James Storm is the *NEW* TNA World Heavyweight Champion

[It's Damn Real!]

I'm glad Storm finally got the brass ring. I like Roode, but I know he does lack in the charisma department. Roode has the look and skill but can't get the fans behind him as good as Storm can. Roode is better fit as a heel. Angle seems to really hurt so Storm will probably have a program with the next big heel. I'm not sure who that will be unless Roode turns. The biggest heel now is Jarrett feuding with Jeff Hardy. I still remember seeing Storm, Angle, and Bischoff at Subway in my hometown two years ago before a house show event. Angle and Storm were both down and earth. Hard to believe Storm would be TNA World Heavyweight champion just two years later.

I can't believe I'm going to say this, but why not Bully Ray?

Talk about a man transformed... he's born again, which isn't something that comes along very often in wrestling at all.

The history is there between Immortal and Fortune to allow for the feud to develop strong legs, and though he's still somewhat involved with Anderson, the match at BFG sort of blew the feud off.

Call me crazy, but I see potential there.

 

[CarlSinclair]

I am already seeing paralells to the American Wolves storyline in RoH. That has obviously not ended, nor has either turned yet. (I haven't seen the most recent tv show but I assume not)

They have had the team stay together and switch the belt between them once already. It was about friendship and honor for both of them.

I can see TNA doing something similar with Beer Money if they are smart.

 

[One to Remember]

This is going to cause friction because the lesser if the two won the title first. Roode will have to turn heel before he takes the belt directly off of Storm. Its kinda like Christian winning his two world titles before Edge's ten..

 

[Showtime]

Correct me if I'm wrong on this as I don't normally watch Impact and at most I read the results... wasn't one of Angle's stipulations on Roode's matches with Fortune that if they won they'd be first in line for a shot and if they lost they would have to start from the very bottom. I know Sting and management booked the match so I suppose they do have more power than Angle, but this seems like lazy booking. One show you're told you now have to reclimb the ladder, the next show you have a title match? Have Storm win that match with Roode before BFG. Have them make it via DQ from Angle interfering and attacking Storm then Roode. That way Angle defending his title against Storm makes much more sense.

How do I feel about the situation as an outsider to TNA. Well at least they are putting the title on someone built up through the company. Whether it was Roode or Storm I'm glad the company is finally going in this direction. Guy's like Angle and Anderson have been great for TNA so far, but neither of them and anyone else signed from the WWE has made any significant gains in the ratings. So if they ratings aren't going to change much from bringing in supposed big stars, then they might as well put the title on guys like Storm, Roode, Styles, Joe, Morgan, guys who developed in and through TNA. This will only help TNA in the long run if they start developing their own stars.

 

[Docmadness]

I'm gonna be honest, I think this is a left field move by TNA. I think its a great move which leads me to believe this wasn't all TNA booking's decision. As soon as I saw that Roode got screwed and then saw that Storm was getting a shot....the first thing that popped into my head was 'Roode is stepping aside for his buddy'.

There is zero history by anyone related to the booking in TNA that would pull this kinda move without one of the guys stepping up and saying 'how bout giving him a shot'.

I may be 100% wrong, but these guys pushed and pushed Roode only to have it fail at BFG. And then this happen on Impact following BFG.......I'm gonna give Roode props on this and probably alot of the other guys in the locker room too. This doesn't smell or look like a 'booking' move....this was a locker room move .

 

[conici]

I think over the course of a few months we'll see Roode getting jealous saying that he deserved the title more but he is still happy for storm and just dropping hints during his promos until he tags with Storm and turns on him saying "That should be my title your no better than me" and leave thus setting a feud for the title.

 

[dansaun77]

great booking, they need to keep the belt on Storm for a while otherwise both of Beer Money are being buried. Roode needs to take his anger iout on Angle for cheating him, thus having a storyline excuse for Angle to vanish and fix his injuries and train for the Olympics. Building Roode up is the key, he is chasing the belt, he needs to be seen as able still to be a champion.

 

[Prince Punk]

I get that angle is hurt.. Which is exactly why he should have dropped the title to Roode... I've heard their match was really good (with the exception of the finish surprise surprise..) and knowing going into the match angle was going to work hurt there was NO reason to keep the title on him..

Instead they let him run himself into the ground at the ppv so that he had to look weak to James Storm... People who were saying Roode jobbed to Angle on Sunday are dead wrong.. If you want to see a job look at the match between James Storm and Kurt Angle..

The only thing this accomplished was making themselves look bush league.. Btw do they realize this is the second 90 second title match that's taken place this year in their organization? At this point I've determined they really don't care all that much about the wellbeing of their workers...

Though on a side note at least this time the 90 second title mach was not on ppv..

 

[blockanWo]

Im just disappointed we went through the entire BFG series to have the title change hands on the night after a PPV in a 2 minute match. ...a 2 minute match.

Im thrilled Storm is champion and about dam time a homegrown TNA talent got the belt after such a long drought, but the match was pathetic.

I understand that Angle was injured, but why couldnt they have had Roode go over on Angle the night before and saved this whole drama.

I dunno, the logic behind the scenes just flat out boggles the mind...but hey a result is a result.

 

[Rayne]

This seems like a logical buildup to a Storm/Roode feud. Roode, the anointed champion-to-be in many eyes, is screwed out of a win only to have his erstwhile tag partner and friend win the belt a few days later. What starts out as support for a friend degenerates into a friendly rivalry, which degenerates into an open war.

A lot of people want to say that James Storm wasn't built for this run, and they're right. He wasn't built to be a dominant champion who proved over months he's at the top of the heap. He's a guy that came along one night and lucked into the title, which spices up the Roode/Storm rivalry more- Roode, a guy who busted his hump for four months only to get screwed in the title shot, against Storm, a guy who walked into the building and became world champion one night.

It's a good feud that doesn't rely on someone the WWE released in order to get it going, which makes TNA/IW look like a brand that can build their own talent to put on a good show. (If you're always using someone else's castoffs, you're going to look like a second-rate promotion compared to them.)

At least, this is the logical conclusion. It's an easy storyline that's been told several times before, and works every time. TNA/IW has a history of taking the obvious, trying to get too fancy with it, and causing people to not care as a result. (See: 2010.) It's a feud people have been waiting for; the classic Michaels/Jannety tale, told over and over again through the years, but unlike so many failed attempts to tell this story, this is a tag team people actually care about.

By the way, Roode isn't champion not because "Hogan didn't want it", but because people aren't ready for him to be champ. They think they want it, but the desire for Roode to be champ right now is a slow, smoldering fire. You want that shit hot, not casually warm. People wanted Shawn Michaels to be WHC for years. There were failed attempts, treachery, and every other kind of obstacle put in his way, until he finally won at Wrestlemania, in a match that's remembered so fondly because it was built for so long. Had Shawn won the belt in his first attempt against Diesel, I don't think The Heartbreak Kid would have been nearly as big in the '90s as he was.

 

[JWGunslinger]

I am so glad I decided to tune into Impact tonight, even after sitting through more Knockouts match/promo shit than I can stomach and Jarrett and Hardy running past security to hit each other, there was a major golden moment on there and that was James Storm my fellow cowboy winning the TNA World Heavyweight Championship. As much as I hated Roode getting screwed out of his World Title against Angle I'm glad that the man to take the strap off Kurt was his good buddy and Beer Money brother James Storm. The man has worked his ass off and been a good company man for a long time, tonight he received his payment and boy I'll tell ya he earned it. I'm extremely happy for Storm and I can't wait to see what he can do with his first reign

 

[Stormlor]

I was actually pumped for Impact tonight after reading some of the results early on the week.

My real only complaint is still Hogan. I understand they want to build a story around him and Immortal, but this is getting dumb. We all know Hogan isn't going to wrestle EB.

Storm winning the title was well done. I do agree that it was too short of a match but to be honest we've seen this before with HBK winning titles out of no where with his superkick. If Storm did an Eye of the Storm I would cry because there was no setup. A superkick can come out of no where and thats what it did tonight. Perfect way to win a title for Storm.

My only issue is I don't see Storm being a long champion. He's great on the mic, and has great skill. I still look at him more like a Devon. Has great skill but something is holding him back.

 

[Isaac Kaye]

The more I think about it, the more Hogan gave away in that interview 3 days before BFG. It's absolutely scandalous, not only did he hint at the outcome of the main event but he talked up Storm as the next big thing alongside Hardy and THEN said something along the lines of 'there's bigger things in the pipeline brother, trust me'.

Bascially, Hogan gave away the finish of one of the biggest PPV's of the year whilst knocking aside the guy they had built for the last month AND he plugs Storm as the next big thing and he's champion within a week.

Storm is a great talent, and it definitely adds intrigue to the storyline. I think this is great for TNA and hopefully they will give him a good run, but I'm not sure this is the best way of putting the title on him.

 

[Zeven_Zion]

The more I think about it, the more Hogan gave away in that interview 3 days before BFG. It's absolutely scandalous, not only did he hint at the outcome of the main event but he talked up Storm as the next big thing alongside Hardy and THEN said something along the lines of 'there's bigger things in the pipeline brother, trust me'.

Bascially, Hogan gave away the finish of one of the biggest PPV's of the year whilst knocking aside the guy they had built for the last month AND he plugs Storm as the next big thing and he's champion within a week.

Storm is a great talent, and it definitely adds intrigue to the storyline. I think this is great for TNA and hopefully they will give him a good run, but I'm not sure this is the best way of putting the title on him.

You forgot the part where the spoilers were going to come out three days later and we were all going to find out anyway. Are you actually whining that Hogan put Storm over? Because that's what he did.

How come people only focus on what he said about Roode and damn the guy to hell because of it, but turn a blind eye to him praising James Storm? Are you that hungry for negativity?

Here's what I see right now. Finally TNA put the belt on a TNA original - James Storm. Storm beat a "WWE Reject" [how symbolic] to capture his first heavyweight championship. I figured the IWC should be extatic but yet I see people whining about how much talking there was on the show. Don't forget the "it was too short" bullshit. Well of course it was too short, Angle was injured. Wasn't the IWC so protective of wrestlers' health? Now you want the guy to wrestle with a fucked up leg? Are you out of your minds? A couple of months ago I once again mocked the IWC for their ignorance and living in denial, and I said that even when TNA does something you/we all want, you'll immediately neglect it and focus on some other negative aspect. Anything you can do to not give credit where credit is due.

What? Is the way James won the belt the issue here? I can see that, but it doesn't seem to be the issue when someone cashes in MITB every damn year, sometimes more than once. It doesn't seem to be the issue when the cashing in is not as important to the person gaining the title as it is to James Storm. A lot of things seem to become issues once they occur in TNA Wrestling, everyone's favorite ground for wishful thinking and basement booking.

Facts are these - James Storm won his first World Title and congratulations for that - you deserve it. Robert Roode is hotter now than he would have been if he beat Kurt Angle on Sunday. This ending, which did not sit well with a lot of people myself included, added more layers to this storyline and it could develop into something very interesting between Roode and Storm.

Look at the landscape of the Main Event now. There's no Kurt Angle, there's no Sting. As a matter of fact, there's no WCW/WWE/WWF/WWWF/AWA/ROH/NJPW/ECW "reject" anywhere near the title picture. Anderson is not going to be in it, Hardy is busy with Double J, Sting is the new GM, Hogan can't walk. Right now the Main Event scene consists of James Storm and Bobby Roode.

Don't you idiots realize that TNA just did what you've been wanting them to do for years? They used a "WWE Reject" like Kurt Angle to defeat a semi-TNA original in a cheap manner so the next night the WWE reject can put over a TNA original. Therefore the WWE reject is out of the picture due to injury and TNA is left with two new young, fresh TNA original stars in the Main Event, one of which is the current TNA World Heavyweight Champion. This will I believe lead to Bobby Roode lashing out on James Storm and turning heel. Roode has always been heelish in nature. It's in his goddamn name. Losing to Kurt Angle at BFG could be the catalyst of this heel turn and jealousy toward his tag team partner and best friend. It's absolutely flawless. TNA killed two birds with one stone here.

If Roode had simply won the title from Angle, Storm wouldn't have been as hot as he is right now. What? He'll just challenge Bobby the next night, we'll head into Turning Point with Storm vs Roode as the Main Event. And then what? Storm beats Roode - marks bitch it's too soon. Roode beats Storm - marks bitch Storm is getting buried. Storm turns heel? Right, turn the entertaining guy heel, and keep the guy who screams heel and has the word RUDE in his damn name face. Remember that time when Shawn Michaels was heel and Triple H was face and they were feuding? Awesome feud wasn't it? Oh wait, that never happened.

To sum up ...
- New TNA original Champion
- Two young, TNA originals in the Main Event
- No WWE Rejects involved in it

So what the fuck is the problem now?

 

[blockanWo]

. Well of course it was too short, Angle was injured. Wasn't the IWC so protective of wrestlers' health? Now you want the guy to wrestle with a fucked up leg? Are you out of your minds?

Yet he manages to pull off a full length match with Bobby Roode what...48 hours prior to Impact tapings?

If he was THAT injured he couldn't have given Storm a 15 minute match why didn't he just drop it to Roode?

Now with that being said, they COULD have been going for the fluke win type feel and they could be going with a Storm Roode fued going into the future based on the two matches which I would totally be fine with.

I do agree with you though, we are focusing on the wrong things here. Home grown talent is on top, a man who has a great look, who has the crowd and has the skills in the ring as a wrestler and a performer to get it done.

 

[Rasha]

This is going to cause friction because the lesser if the two won the title first. Roode will have to turn heel before he takes the belt directly off of Storm.

Don't be so sure about who "the lesser of the two" is. For all that Roode looks like the second coming of Triple H, I think Storm is the more charismatic and individually entertaining. I thought the energy he brought to that celebration last night was awesome and something Roode could not have matched.

When all the Roode hype started last year it was because of his heel work. He's fantastic in the ring but there's a missing gear when he's a face. He definitely needs to turn to realize that Triple H-like potential he has. I'd love to see Flair get in his ear, telling him that he's letting his moment pass him by and that he could be "one of the greats" but he has to act now. A Roode w/ Flair partnership could be amazing.

 

[D-Man]

You forgot the part where the spoilers were going to come out three days later and we were all going to find out anyway. Are you actually whining that Hogan put Storm over? Because that's what he did.

How come people only focus on what he said about Roode and damn the guy to hell because of it, but turn a blind eye to him praising James Storm? Are you that hungry for negativity?

Here's what I see right now. Finally TNA put the belt on a TNA original - James Storm. Storm beat a "WWE Reject" [how symbolic] to capture his first heavyweight championship. I figured the IWC should be extatic but yet I see people whining about how much talking there was on the show. Don't forget the "it was too short" bullshit. Well of course it was too short, Angle was injured. Wasn't the IWC so protective of wrestlers' health? Now you want the guy to wrestle with a fucked up leg? Are you out of your minds? A couple of months ago I once again mocked the IWC for their ignorance and living in denial, and I said that even when TNA does something you/we all want, you'll immediately neglect it and focus on some other negative aspect. Anything you can do to not give credit where credit is due.

What? Is the way James won the belt the issue here? I can see that, but it doesn't seem to be the issue when someone cashes in MITB every damn year, sometimes more than once. It doesn't seem to be the issue when the cashing in is not as important to the person gaining the title as it is to James Storm. A lot of things seem to become issues once they occur in TNA Wrestling, everyone's favorite ground for wishful thinking and basement booking.

Facts are these - James Storm won his first World Title and congratulations for that - you deserve it. Robert Roode is hotter now than he would have been if he beat Kurt Angle on Sunday. This ending, which did not sit well with a lot of people myself included, added more layers to this storyline and it could develop into something very interesting between Roode and Storm.

Look at the landscape of the Main Event now. There's no Kurt Angle, there's no Sting. As a matter of fact, there's no WCW/WWE/WWF/WWWF/AWA/ROH/NJPW/ECW "reject" anywhere near the title picture. Anderson is not going to be in it, Hardy is busy with Double J, Sting is the new GM, Hogan can't walk. Right now the Main Event scene consists of James Storm and Bobby Roode.

Don't you idiots realize that TNA just did what you've been wanting them to do for years? They used a "WWE Reject" like Kurt Angle to defeat a semi-TNA original in a cheap manner so the next night the WWE reject can put over a TNA original. Therefore the WWE reject is out of the picture due to injury and TNA is left with two new young, fresh TNA original stars in the Main Event, one of which is the current TNA World Heavyweight Champion. This will I believe lead to Bobby Roode lashing out on James Storm and turning heel. Roode has always been heelish in nature. It's in his goddamn name. Losing to Kurt Angle at BFG could be the catalyst of this heel turn and jealousy toward his tag team partner and best friend. It's absolutely flawless. TNA killed two birds with one stone here.

If Roode had simply won the title from Angle, Storm wouldn't have been as hot as he is right now. What? He'll just challenge Bobby the next night, we'll head into Turning Point with Storm vs Roode as the Main Event. And then what? Storm beats Roode - marks bitch it's too soon. Roode beats Storm - marks bitch Storm is getting buried. Storm turns heel? Right, turn the entertaining guy heel, and keep the guy who screams heel and has the word RUDE in his damn name face. Remember that time when Shawn Michaels was heel and Triple H was face and they were feuding? Awesome feud wasn't it? Oh wait, that never happened.

To sum up ...
- New TNA original Champion
- Two young, TNA originals in the Main Event
- No WWE Rejects involved in it

So what the fuck is the problem now?

Off-topic...

Can you EVER make an argument for TNA without comparing it to WWE? I mean, not for nothing, but it's getting old. If you want TNA to stand on its own so much, you really need to stop crutching your arguments in their favor by using the WWE as a comparison point.

Onto the subject of Storm winning the title...

When I heard the spoilers a few days ago, this seemed like the dumbest move TNA could have made. It really didn't make a whole lot of sense in a pro-wrestling world that I've been accustomed to watching. But if there is one thing that TNA still does well, it's create classic moments. Regardless of whether they "make sense" or not, TNA tends to take their twisted end of a storyline and really make it memorable. Last night was a perfect example of that.

That crowd pop was borderline insane when Storm hit the superkick. It was a shock of disbelief (in a positive way) when the ref counted to three during that pinfall. People went absolutely apeshit, as they should have... no one expected this to happen. And seeing Storm celebrating really brought a smile to my face. Yes, the guy is a TNA original and we sometimes forget how long he's been clawing his way up the ladder to reach that brass ring. Now he has it and, considering the lack of heels in the title picture, this opens the doors to heel turns in the near future. Whether it's Storm or Roode, someone is turning to the dark side.

Also, I had never been as impressed with Storm's mic work than I was last night. Sure, he's cut longer promos in the past. But his genuine nature really showed on the stick last night and I really saw his potential. I really hate wrestlers with a simplified and borderline-copied persona (i.e. beer-drinking redneck... a.k.a. Austin) but if they can take that persona and do something different with it, they're a win in my book.

In a sea of positives, I still have two major, negative critiques for last night's happenings. First of all, I wish that Storm wouldn't have reminded anyone about his "still current" position as a tag team wrestler. If this guy and Roode are now being put over as main-event caliber singles stars, shouldn't they stop mentioning the fact that they are still a tag team tandem?

Secondly, although I know why it happened, I really hate how quick the match was. I don't know... maybe it's just me but I think a more clever way of Storm winning the title could have happened while simultaneously keeping his credibility. Angle's arsenal consisted of an excessive amount of punching, followed by him distracting himself, thus leaving himself open to a superkick. Considering that Kurt has been blown up for months by Roode as the "best wrestler in the world," he was pretty careless and stupid.

I know, I know... it's a bit over-analyzed. And I honestly hate when others do it but I just feel like those were big issues that really apply here. But overall, it was a great moment and I'm happy for Storm. I just hope TNA takes a good direction with it all.

 

[Crunk Panda™]

I've known James since high school and I always wanted to see him get to this level, but you know, nothing against him...but never thought that day would come. Then it did.
Hell of a guy and I'm ecstatic for him, I hope this is the start of some good change in TNA

 

[Krossbreed]

Storm deserves it...he is a TNA original and is authentic to the brand in the same way Sting has become distinctive to the brand of TNA. This is what i wanted to see for a long time TNA pushing there own in-house made stars to represent there company and not be known as the company where wwe burn outs and have beens go. Tna still has the other stars who can have big feuds but the face of the company should be tna authentic.

Storm winning so quickly...a big downer...but when you see the celebration after you see so much more than that...you see a man that has respect for the company...and the company finally giving him the ball...

"roode got screwed" is to build roode up as a guy who shouldve been champ... fan sympathy baby face...to have him cool with storm winning is something new he hasn't hinted any signs of jealousy in his character yet...but the fans expect it so the fans are almost waiting for Roode to blow...now we see tna advertising roode t shirts...roode has been built into a main guy.

 

[Viggo]

I was pleasantly surprised with Storm winning the title. I was expecting a Roode/Angle rematch. This may be a knee-jerk reaction because a lot of the negative feedback fans gave the BFG main event, but I enjoyed it. Storm gets a good reception from the fans too, and like someone else said above, he's a homegrown talent, so it strengthens the perception of TNA originals. Angle will get a rematch, and then I see a Roode/Storm main event at an upcoming PPV. If Storm and Roode do face off at a PPV main event, it may just be the first TNA PPV I purchase. Tip of the hat to TNA.

 

[jimivy]

This sets up such a great story. We will see Roode/Storm stay together even though they will have some hard fought matches. We will see a fresh breath in the main event picture. I wouldn't be surprise if we see Storm hold to the title for 3 months or longer giving Styles,Joe,Daniels,Roode,Ray,Anderson,Morgan some matches for us to love. Also I wouldn't be surprise if we see Stlyes/Kaz go after the tag titles. And even though I love EY, Roode getting the TV title. (Can only hope for those two things)

Was it a quick match, YES. Has those type of matches happen in the past YES. Magumn TA, Nikita K, Shawn Micheals, Brock L just to name a few that had quick wins against strong if not stronger opponents.

Was this a knee jerk reaction. I don't know, what if they are going back to not letting the workers know the whole story to get more an authentic look to the storyline. I don't know, but I do know that they are moving in the right direction.

So IWC, (which includes myself) chill out. Probably out of the whole IWC only .001 have actually worked in the business. I am one of those that have worked in the business and understand that the build of a story needs to take time not 14 days like the WWE does. What we have seen from Impact over the past year is slower builds to stories and I like, and hope they continue that way.

 

[wewantchange]

theres only two words to explain whats going to happen between bobby roode and james storm. HEEL TURN. one of them is going to turn heel its just a matter of time. i thinks its gonna be roode because he can be jelous about how roode won and all that idk we will see tho im 100 percent sure one of them isgonna turn heel

 

[SpecialFNK]

WHEN did Angle get injured? I'm thinking it was during the Roode match at BFG. maybe it was when Angle did the move off the top rope?
lets say it was all written that Angle beats Roode at BFG but then loses to Storm at the next Impact. this would lead to the feud they want between Storm and Roode. then you had Angle injured during the BFG match, but still able to finish the match the way it was written. problem is he was then so injured he couldn't wrestle the same type of match TNA had written for the next Impact.
if Angle was written to win at BFG but injured during the match, it's hard to make a quick decision for him to lose THEN, when it's all written into the future for him to win that match and lose on Impact.

 

[TheGamea]

the whole time TNA was pumping up bobby roode, I was like this guy isnt ready, I wasnt hating but he just aint look like a champion and the way Storm came out on the impact before BFG and last night I was like HE look more like a champion that the number 1 contender...

but i just hope like I always did before this whole RR vs fortune that they dont turn on each other except aj and chris d.

if beer money can stay with the fortune thing I think it will be great pending Strom doesnt drop the title next ppv

 

[It's Damn Real!]

WHEN did Angle get injured? I'm thinking it was during the Roode match at BFG. maybe it was when Angle did the move off the top rope?
lets say it was all written that Angle beats Roode at BFG but then loses to Storm at the next Impact. this would lead to the feud they want between Storm and Roode. then you had Angle injured during the BFG match, but still able to finish the match the way it was written. problem is he was then so injured he couldn't wrestle the same type of match TNA had written for the next Impact.
if Angle was written to win at BFG but injured during the match, it's hard to make a quick decision for him to lose THEN, when it's all written into the future for him to win that match and lose on Impact.

From what I've read/understand, Angle was injured prior to the Bound For Glory match. Some reports indicate he injured it stretching, others aren't as clear, but all of them agree that he wrestled the entire match injured.

Hell, one even noted that he was seen in the black dressing the injury and that it was "black".