AJ's Attacker Speculation

[a0161613]

OK this storyline has me deeply intrigued. I love that they are trying to recreate that incredible Unbreakable match by trying to bring as much heat into it in such a short space of time.

The key to the original match was the incredible backstory that they had as a part of the X Division at the time. And while I dont expect this match to be anywhere near as good as that one, it should come close.

What I really like is the addition of something / someone new. This mystery man has targetted AJ in the same way that McGuiness/Wolfe has targetted Angle. I love that despite everything that we hear as visitors to this site, the identity has not been spoilt and going into the PPV, I have no idea who this attacker is.

The whole thing has made for really interesting viewing on iMAPCT. It will also make for some interesting possibilites on the PPV and coming out of it. While I don't see AJ losing (Daniels isnt good enough for that belt and Joe needs more momentum IMO), I think the potential for him to stay interesting as champ is there and a new challenger can only help. Certainly this (perceived) weak booking is leading to me thinking that AJ HAS to retain.

I thought (like others I imagine) that the guy was Tomko but iMPACT this week changed my mind. Tomko is lean and tall, but up close he seemed to a lot more bulky and not quite as tall. I'm not sure who it is but not knowing is awesome. TNA needs to keep more secrets like this.

 

[FromTheSouth]

I hope that the mystery attacker is Hogan. Wouldn't that be fucking awesome. AJ could go over Hogan after retaining the belt in the triple threat. That's not who it is though.

If I had to bet, I wuld assume it was Angle. Kurt Angle is giving these pro-youth face promos, and that isn't like him. Sure, they could have turned him face, but I think he is likely just waiting for a moment to do something heelish. I don't think that would be the best guy for it, but it would make sense.

Tomko is a good guess as well. Their history would make it a good feud from the start, but I don't tyhink Tomko is viewed by the TNAS establishment as a main event guy.

It could be Danielson. Last I had heard, he hasn't signed with with WWE yet, he just has a preliminary agreement. Can you imagine the tag matches on Impact between AJ/Kurt and Nigel/Danielson? That would be pretty epic.

 

[a0161613]

I'd take any of those three.

Danielson would be a massive kicker for TNA. I rate him better than McGuiness and I lke him A LOT, loving his current introductory feud. It could be Wolfe.....right build, shaven headed....if it is then he negotiated a sweet deal for himself. The other candidates going by build would be Morgan or Hernandez but I love their most recent work, especially Morgan and I hope they don't ruin it with a unnecessary heel turn.

I think you could be fairly close with Angle; the build is right and we know his aggression. We've seen an AJ Angle feud before and they have great matches; I guess it would be fresh. I like Angle as a face though, it gives him new opponents and opportunities are there to keep his character fresh. It makes sense for them to keep him face for at least a while. If Hogan does get in the ring, a match with Hogan is inevitable IMO.

 

[AzLunchbox]

I think that there's a few possibilities it could be. I liked that they showed us him attacking while Daniels and Joe were in the ring so we can rule them out. Then there's the fact that it's someone that appeared to have a shaved head....then the announcers keep saying he's big (even though it's hard to tell with the angles we've been given)

At first i was thinking Mr. Anderson was going to debut as the attacker......but last time i saw him he still had hair....and he's not that huge of a guy really.

Then there's Tomko that alot of people are saying but so far who knows.

Then there's my choice for the attacker......it all depends though on just how big he really is because it's been hard to tell.

But i say....maybe it's the guy that's been signed to TNA for ages now and hasn't shown up. NATHAN JONES!

He fits the profile somewhat.....and could come in as the "Main eventer of World Elite" So it's hard to tell so far and kudos to TNA for keeping it hush hush......But i'm going with Nathan Jones.

 

[Ziirox]

TNA resigned Tomko. The attacker will probably be Tomko. I think at this point, if TNA is going to bring him in again they are going to do something with him finally and give him a decent singles push.

What I would love to see is Muhammed Hassan back in wrestling. Give him basically the same gimmick he had in WWE and put him with World Elite. Him and Sheik could make a run in a very hot Tag Division and bring super heat to this whole group that seems to be somewhat fading already. Unfortunately, its very unlikely that would occur. Tomko does seem like the logical choice for who the attacker is.

Btw... LOL @ the Nathan Jones mark... haha.

 

[UFOcalling]

I have a feeling it could be Shannon Moore. Seems like AJ, Joe and Daniels keep focusing on the word "punk" when they talk about the attacker. Stuff like "...this guy keeps jumping me from behind like a punk", etc. I could be WAAAAAY off here, obviously it's all speculation. I'm just reading into that one word. In all honesty, I hope it's not Moore...I don't feel like he deserves to be immediately thrown into the main-event (if he is even under contract with TNA).

This would be an awesome way for Mr. Anderson to debut as well. I really hope it's not Hogan, I don't think they'd have him debut as a heel anyway. There's no way the fans would boo him either. It would be sweet to see Jeff Hardy return to TNA as a heel, but with his legal situation there's no way it's him. DDP would make a cool attacker too....I really liked the angle WWE did with DDP and the Undertaker back in the day, making him the stalker of Taker's wife. That was a great storyline, no one thought it would be Page. Obviously it won't be DDP either, he's too old and too beat up for a comeback....especially a main-event run.

I hope TNA totally swerves us all together, and has it be someone way out of left field.

 

[litpdwi16]

Just putting in my two cents.

Christopher Daniels does deserve a World Championship run. He had to put up with wrestling as Curry Man, Suicide as well as getting fired twice. This man is one of the few TNA originals that is excellent in the ring and on the mic. If you think back to Unbreakable 2005, he along with AJ and Joe put on what I still think is the greatest match in TNA history.

To say that Daniels isn't good enough for that belt makes me wonder who you think is.

 

[Dangermartin]

I'd like to see them put the strap on Daniels eventually. Not yet though. AJ needs a solid run with the belt.

I have no idea who the attacker is, but can't wait to find out. I can't see it being Hogan. I predict a Four-Way match taking place at the next PPV after Turning Point, followed by a Daniels/Joe feud and a AJ/Attacker feud. TNA has got me excited about wrestling again!

 

[It's Damn Real!]

I'm not sure how any of you feel about this type of a storyline, but IMO the attacker should be Tomko, but what they should do at the PPV is have AJ drop the belt to Daniels to set up a major feud with them.

Tomko shows face at the PPV in a work that looks like he'll try to screw AJ for the title, but hits Joe instead. This takes Joe out of the match, and when AJ is "confused" as to why Tomko is back in TNA and why he helped him, Daniels rolls up AJ for the pin and walks off laughing with Tomko.

AJ and Tomko had a long history of being friends, so to have both his "best friends" screw him over would be perfect, IMO.

It also gives Joe a feud with Tomko, and Daniels/AJ a singles feud.

I don't want to hear shit about how Daniels doesn't deserve it either.

(A) He just cut the perfect promo set-up for it last iMPACT! when he talked about how AJ got everything in this company, and he got nothing, and (B) He's cut his teeth and then some for this company, having to suffer both as Suicide and Curry Man, and was fired twice. He absolutely deserves it.

 

[Greenlight13]

It's Tomko, A) they resigned him, B) It looked just like him in the first attack. You could see whoever it was was big and bald. C) He and AJ have a history.

As far as the match goes... I got a 2 hour shoot interview with AJ and Daniels and they talk about the Unbreakable three-way and how they actually had 5-10 minutes more stuff planned and in their minds it was 5 stars as they planned it and the way it came off was 4-4.5. Now everyone I know calls that match a 5-star so imagine what it would have been like if they'd done it as originally planned....

Problem is they had two rematches and between those two they have more than likely used the material they didn't get round to amongst those matches. But they're creative guys and more importantly they're incredibly frustrated with creative right now so knowing them they'll likely go out there and put on the match of the year just to give Russo the middle finger.

 

[KillBill]

Lol, I'm sorry, but a few of theses guesses are out there...

Hogan is not that athletic, and he wouldn't go heel.
Shannon more is a lot smaller,
And Nathan Jones is bigger than Matt Morgan, he's huge, so definatly not him.

I would say tomko. The guy looked a little wide, but he was wearing a baggy hoodie. It would be a great way to bring him back, because of his history with AJ and it makles sense. And he is decent in the ring.

 

[It's Damn Real!]

Nathan Jones retired from wrestling back in 2005, so I highly doubt it's him.

Tomko just makes the most sense considering it's fairly common knowledge to his point that he's re-signed with the company.

 

[It's Damn Real!]

As far as I know, he retired to continue working on his acting career. I know there were reports he'd signed with TNA, but I think the fact you haven't seen him, or even heard of him are kind of proof that maybe that report was false.

 

[AzLunchbox]

No that isn't proof that the reports were fake.

Nathan Jones did sign with Tna....and as far as i know he's still signed to them. After signing he got injured as someone said already.....i believe it was a car accident or something but i can't remember off the top of my head....so he never debuted. He is most likely nearing being healthy again unless it was a career ending type injury....don't remember the details. So i'm expecting him to Join World Elite at some point as he'd be a perfect fit.

And to the person that said Nathan Jones is sooo much bigger and then suggested Tomko....last i remember both of them were close to the same height....i think Jones was about 2 inches taller or something like that. So if it could be Tomko it could be just as likely to be Jones........and i think they're actually the 2 most likely people to be the attackers. Either Tomko playing off his past with AJ, or Jones joining World Elite....i mean Eric Young joined World Elite by turning on Styles and it looked to be heading to a fued with Styles that never really took off......so what better thing to do then to bring in a monster to attack AJ for you?

Both options make sense to me and both men are large bald men.....which seems to be the clues we have to go by so far. I just wish that we had an angle that really showed this mans size compared to AJ....he's bigger then AJ....but by how much?

 

[It's Damn Real!]

Ah ha, I wasn't aware of that. As far as I knew, he simply retired.

I still feel Tomko makes more sense, but Jones is a giant of a man. Even if he were brought in in another angle, I'd still welcome him to TNA.

 

[Dangermartin]

Is there actually any proof that he signed with TNA? I don't recall them releasing any statements or press releases or anything along those lines. When TNA snap someone up, they usually announce it. Even if they don't intend to, or can't, use them straight away.

 

[a0161613]

I don't see Daniels as a potential victor as I think this whole thing is made for AJ to come out. While Daniels has been a great servant I dont believe he has anywhere near the amount of momentum needed to win the belt. He is relatively bland and boring and less interesting to me since he dropped the successful Fallen Angel gimmick. i like Dnaiels and thought his 6 month X Division title run was excellent but he isnt at Aj and Joe's level and IMO will never be.

I hope it isnt Jones. He got booted off the WMXIX card for being pants and can't imagine he has improved much.

 

[It's Damn Real!]

I don't see Daniels as a potential victor as I think this whole thing is made for AJ to come out. While Daniels has been a great servant I dont believe he has anywhere near the amount of momentum needed to win the belt. He is relatively bland and boring and less interesting to me since he dropped the successful Fallen Angel gimmick. i like Dnaiels and thought his 6 month X Division title run was excellent but he isnt at Aj and Joe's level and IMO will never be.

I hope it isnt Jones. He got booted off the WMXIX card for being pants and can't imagine he has improved much.

Daniels carried that segment between him and AJ from the last episode of iMPACT!

Did Amazing Red have the momentum to win the X-Division title? Did British Invasion have the momentum to win the TNA tag titles?

I don't think he's any more boring than AJ Styles, Kazarian, Tomko, the new Samoa Joe or half of TNA's roster.

 

[Pepe Silvia]

Oy... Who says the person that was SEEN attacking AJ is actually the person who will be revealed to in the storyline? For all we know it could be some TNA regular doing the work while Tomko/Attacker stays at home and sips margaritas with his feet up, and shows up at the PPV.

...Wouldn't it be hilarious if it was like, David Flair?

 

[It's Damn Real!]

Well all the reports were coming out that Tomko not only had been re-signed by TNA, but was scheduled to work the last two tapings of iMPACT!, which is why most of the IWC strongly considers him to be the attacker.

Yeah, TNA could be taking us for a ride there, but it's not often they throw a monkey wrench out like that.

 

[NSL]

I hope that the mystery attacker is Hogan. Wouldn't that be fucking awesome.

No...It wouldn't. It really wouldn't. I would drive myself off a cliff.

When Hogan signed, I said "Please don't make AJ drop the belt to him", and if it is him, we'll see just that. AJ's booking has been questionable, at best, so taking the belt off him for an over the hill has-been would be pathetic. Hogan doesn't need any more belts, and he certainly doesn't need to be wrestling...At all.

Hogan is not that athletic, and he wouldn't go heel.

Why not? He did it in WCW, and had quite the long run with it. There's no reason to think he's going to be a face, simply because he's Hulk Hogan. And, what was so athletic about the attacks? It was a forearm from behind, and a few punches and kicks. I can do that, and I'm not a wrestler (obviously).

 

[It's Damn Real!]

Why no pay-off with the attacker at the PPV last night? IMO, this lessens the importance in revealing the attacker entirely, no?

I'd still think the attacker is/was Tomko, but I just don't see why they didn't have him show face again at Turning Point, and I don't really see what the point in unmasking him – so to speak – is anymore, seeing as there's no payoff unless they push for Joe/Daniels/A.J. III for Final Resolution.

Thoughts?

 

[johnbragg]

I'd still think the attacker is/was Tomko, but I just don't see why they didn't have him show face again at Turning Point, and I don't really see what the point in unmasking him – so to speak – is anymore, seeing as there's no payoff unless they push for Joe/Daniels/A.J. III for Final Resolution.

Because then he couldn't ruin Styles' victory celebration on this week's Impact. He doesn't give a damn about Joe or about Daniels--there was no conspiracy. He's done being a lackey--he did it for Christian, he did it for Styles, and all it got him was nothing. As the announcers might say, he's in business for himself. He's back in TNA to win the TNA World Heavyweight Title. He doesn't solve your problems anymore--if you stand between him and that title, he IS your problem.

That's the promo I'd have him give, anyway.

 

[It's Damn Real!]

Well at this point, yeah, I could see that, but I question the strength of the story now. I think it'd have been stronger had he screwed A.J., because it'd only further the story of A.J. losing his "best friends" in the business. He lost Joe months prior, Daniels just weeks prior, and then would have lost Tomko as well. The succession just seemed logical, IMO.

I guess that could still continue, but I just don't think it's as strong as it could have been now.

 

[NSL]

Like a lot of other people, I was sure that it was going to be Tomko...They still haven't revealed it, but how could it be Tomko after he shows his face on screen in the company?

The options are really starting to dwindle, and the only person I can think, is Hogan. I don't want it to be, obviously, but it seems like an option considering his history. If it is Tomko, they booked this all wrong, and it will come off as a non-event.