T.N.A. Miscellaneous News Thread

[Y 2 Jake]

In what could end up being called the "Christian Coalition", a new faction has started in TNA storylines featuring NWA World Champion Christian Cage, AJ Styles, Scott Steiner and Tomko. The feeling within TNA is that Christian and Styles have similar heel personas that could play off each other very well, while Steiner and Tomko will play the roles of the "muscle" of the faction and take care of business for Christian and Styles.

Mike Tenay has reportedly been pushing to get a spot back on the current TNA booking team which consists of Vince Russo, Jeff Jarrett and Dutch Mantel. According to reports, Tenay was said to have been the person who took his removal from the previous booking team the hardest after Russo was brought back in to the company late last year.

 

[Y 2 Jake]

While she will be making her in-ring debut for TNA at tonight's Against All Odds PPV, there are said to be plans in the works to have Christy Hemme become a manager of a tag team that goes against the Voodoo Kin Mafia.

One tag team reportedly being considered at this time is the former Heart Throbs of WWE fame. Former Heart Throb Romeo Roselli stated in a recent interview that he is currently negotiating with TNA, but hasn't been offered a contract.

It should be noted that the tag team had a "tryout match" of sorts at the last TNA TV tapings in Orlando on January 29. Management liked their ring entrance but weren't big fans of their wrestling. We'll see what happens.

 

[A.J.]

Credit: Wrestlezone.com

TNA actually informed Ring of Honor late last year that they would no longer allow Samoa Joe to be a ROH regular. It is now believed Christopher Daniels, Austin Aries, and Homicide won't be ROH regulars by year's end.

forums.wrestlezone.com is reporting that TNA was impressed with the Heart Throbs ring entrance during a recent try out, but weren't impressed with them in the ring.

forums.wrestlezone.com also reports that TNA sent out a memo to talent reminding employees that if they do unauthorized media interviews, they will be fined one PPV pay off.

 

[Y 2 Jake]

source: TNAWrestling.com

This Thursday on TNA iMPACT, 14 wrestlers will be involved in a Gauntlet Match to determine the number one contender for the NWA World Title. The winner will face Christian Cage at next month's Destination X pay-per-view on March 11th.

Stipulations will be: Two TNA wrestlers will start the match with a new entrant every two minutes. Competitors can only be eliminated by being thrown over the top rope. The final two wrestlers will then compete in a one-fall singles match to determine who moves on to face Christian Cage for the NWA World Title at Destination X.

The following wrestlers will be included in the match:

1. Abyss
2. AJ Styles
3. BG James
4. Chris Sabin
5. Eric Young
6. James Storm
7. Kip James
8. Kurt Angle
9. Rhino
10. Robert Roode
11. Samoa Joe
12. Scott Steiner
13. Sting
14. Tomko

 

[Y 2 Jake]

Two weeks of TNA iMPACT will be taped tonight in Orlando, Florida at Universal Studios. So far the only match confirmed is a Gauntlet March, which will determine the number one contender for the NWA World Title at next month's Destination X pay-per-view.

TNA will then not tape again until February 26th, their last set of tapings before the Destination X pay-per-view.

As reported earlier, TNA will present their "This is TNA!" special tonight at 9 p.m. EST on SpikeTV.

Stay tuned to the website for full spoilers later tonight!

 

[Y 2 Jake]

forums.wrestlezone.com is reporting that Scott Steiner received stitches last night due to a deep cut on the back of his head from a chair shot by Samoa Joe.

forums.wrestlezone.com is also reporting that Konnan's mother is undergoing tests to determine if she is a suitable donor for her son's needed kidney transplant. Konnan remains on dialysis.

 

[Y 2 Jake]

Dave Meltzer is reporting that James Mitchell will be taking a month or two off from a storyline stand point. There is talk of Mitchell with a new Protégé when he turns.

TNA is taping two episodes of Impact tonight in Orlando. forums.wrestlezone.com will post SPOILERS soon after.

 

[Y 2 Jake]

After Against All Odds went off the air, they did a bit where Kurt Angle locked Tomko in the anklelock.

Former WWE star Orlando Jordan and Hector Guerrero were backstage visiting at the PPV last night.

Partial Source: PWInsider.com

 

[A.J.]

Spike TV and TNA are in continued talks about expanding Impact into a two hour show. Spike TV officials were in attendance at last night's Impact tapings and threw the company an after-party at the end of the shows.

It also has been said that morale backstage has been at its highest in months.

 

[A.J.]

Discussed backstage at last night's TNA tapings was the expansion of Impact becoming a two hour show and running pay-per-views and house shows on the road.

It is believed that there will be at least two more PPVs on the road this year, after Lockdown. Possible house shows have been mentioned for April 13th in Grand Rapids, Michigan; April 20th in Louisville, Kentucky and June 3rd in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

 

[A.J.]

Ron Killings was backstage last night on crutches. He seemed to be in a great deal of pain, but the exact nature of his injury is unknown at this point.

Konnan was said to have been in a lot of pain backstage at the TNA tapings last night. The effort to help him with his medical bills is still ongoing, if you’re looking for information on how you can donate, email [email protected]

Spike TV officials had ringside seats last night and threw an after party when the taping was over.

 

[Y 2 Jake]

Spike TV and TNA are in continued talks about expanding Impact into a two hour show. Spike TV officials were in attendance at last night's Impact tapings and threw the company an after-party at the end of the shows.

It also has been said that morale backstage has been at its highest in months.

 

[Y 2 Jake]

Source: PWInsider.com

The new gimmick match TNA will be announcing tonight during their "This is TNA!" special on SpikeTV will be a new take on their Ultimate X match where (as you can see from the photo above, which was taken at the TNA tapings in Orlando tonight), scaffolding has replaced the wires for the Ultimate X. The name for the bout may be "Elevation X".

Norman Smiley, NWA Anarchy regular Sal Rinauro, Ricky Vega (formerly Machete in LAX), Deep South Wrestling's Francisco Ciatso and Joey Machete are all backstage at the Impact tapings.

Tickets go on sale this Friday for the 4/15 Lockdown PPV at the Family Arena in St. Louis, Missouri. NWA champion Christian Cage, Christy Hemme, and Eric Young will be doing a appearance at the Family Arena signing to coincide with the on-sale.

 

[Y 2 Jake]

During last nights match between Kurt Angle and Christian at last nights Against All Odds pay per view, Scott Steiner was caught in the back of his head by a chair shot inflicted by Samoa Joe, resulting in blood being drawn from Steiner. It was thought that the injury could be considered serious, effecting Steiners in-ring time. However, sources today report that Steiner will not be missing any action due to the result of the blow to his head.

 

[A.J.]

Source: Mike Johnson

TNA's website has opened up a section for the Destination X PPV on March 11. The section includes a video promo for the event.

Rumors circulated backstage at last night’s tapings that TNA star Apollo was suppose to return as part of LAX; however it did not happen.

Bob Backlund continues to exhibit eccentric behavior, which is among much discussion and entertainment between wrestlers backstage.

 

[A.J.]

TNA's website is reporting that an encore of "This is TNA!" (which aired this past Monday night) will air at 7:00pm ET/6:00pm CT on Thursday. Following that, an all-new "iMPACT!" will air at 9:00pm Eastern/8:00pm CT. So, TNA will have a three-hour block of programming on Spike TV this Thursday night.

Christopher Daniels will be appearing on the CBS show "Numb3rs" this Friday. According to TNA's website, Daniels will be portraying a mixed martial arts fighter in a scene during the show. UFC star Tito Ortiz is on the show as well.

Ron "The Truth" Killing was spotted on crutches backstage at the TNA PPV and TV tapings this weekend. Killings underwent knee surgery recently and looked to have been in a great deal of pain. There is no word at this time when he will return to the ring.

 

[A.J.]

Christopher Daniels was not backstage at the Against All Odds PPV or the TNA TV tapings last night for Spike TV.

Actor Steve Schiripa (who plays Bobby Bacala on The Sopranos) and former NFL star Andre Rison both made appearances at TNA's TV tapings last night in Orlando.

Monday night's 2/12 "This is TNA!" two-hour primetime special on Spike TV drew a 1.2 cable rating. We hope to have more details on this rating very soon.

 

[A.J.]

The following was issued on TNAwrestling.com:

TNA issued the following two press releases today:

TEAM ECKSTEIN SCORES WIN OVER TEAM PIERZYNSKI - David Eckstein can swing a steel chair as well as he hits with a wooden bat. Eckstein, the St. Louis Cardinals’ 2006 World Series MVP, smacked Dale Torborg with a chair Sunday at Total Nonstop Action Wrestling’s (TNA) “Against All Odds” Pay-Per-View in Orlando, Fla., leading to a victory for Team Eckstein over Team Pierzynski. Eckstein was the corner-man for TNA star Lance Hoyt, who battled Torborg, the strength and conditioning coach for the Chicago White Sox, who represented Team Pierzynski. Team Eckstein’s win, ironically, came after the referee re-started the match when he realized Pierzynski had cracked Hoyt with a chair leading to what appeared to be a win for Team Pierzynski. “We beat them at their game,” the elated Eckstein gloated after the match. “Spring training is almost here, and I just needed a little extra batting practice. “I swung that chair as hard as I could. Anyone who has watched me play knows that I put everything into it when I take a swing (a bat), and I did the same with a chair.” The Team Eckstein victory culminated a three-month feud between the baseball greats, started by Pierzynski and Torborg when they ripped up pages of Eckstein’s new children’s book, Have Heart, in front of Eckstein. New York Yankees great Johnny Damon also has been involved with the Eckstein-Pierzynski feud, coming to Eckstein’s defense when Pierzynski and Torborg verbally berated the St. Louis superstar. “It’s unbelievable getting in the ring,” Eckstein said. “I’ve loved wrestling ever since I was a little kid; I practiced it in my living room with my brother. Having the opportunity to actually step in the ring and get involved is a dream come true, an unbelievable experience. “I was nervous out there, though; I’ll be honest about that. I definitely had the jitters when I walked out."

STEVE SCHIRIPPA CALLS IN A "HIT" ON TNA WRESTLING iMPACT! THIS THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 15 ON SPIKE TV - New York, NY, February 14, 2006 - Total Nonstop Action (TNA) Wrestling's "Thursday Night iMPACT!" will feature a real "made" man when Steven Schirripa, star of HBO's "The Sopranos" and host of Spike TV's "Casino Cinema" will make a visit to his other family - cousins Bubba and Devon of the legendary tag team Team 3D, this Thursday, February 15 (9:00-10:00 PM, ET/PT) only on Spike TV. On a recent episode of "iMPACT!" current NWA World Heavyweight Tag Team Champions LAX violently attacked Brother Ray's Uncle Nick in his family's Italian restaurant in West Islip, New York. Team 3D lives by the motto of "family above all else." Now Cousin Steve Schirripa is helping his extended wrestling family exact revenge. Coming off the brutal "Little Italy Streetfight" at the "Against All Odds" Pay-Per-View last Sunday, Team 3D and Cousin Schirripa will make a major announcement with a special challenge to LAX on this Thursday’s “iMPACT!” and continue into next Thursday's (2/22) episode. The night will kick off with an encore presentation of the two-hour event “This is TNA!” airing at 7 p.m. ET/PT on Spike TV.An encore of Schrippa's appearance can be seen this Saturday, February 17 at 11:00 PM, ET/PT on Spike TV.

 

[A.J.]

According to reports, the feeling internally within TNA right now about the Monday night "This is TNA!" special is that the show scored a solid rating seeing as it was 115% higher in viewership than the normal show in that timeslot. The show was also No. 3 that night among ad-supported cable network programming in the important male 18-49 and 25-34 demographics. Despite the improvement in that timeslot, the number still has to be looked at as a slight disappointment considering the huge WWE audience that was without wrestling that night. However, some see the slight increase to 1.2 as a possible sign of things to come if ratings for iMPACT! on Thursday finally start to bump up from the 1.1 range.

As reported on earlier by forums.wrestlezone.com, TNA is scheduled to hold a House Show event on April 20 in Louisville, Kentucky at the Louisville Garden. TNA is said to be working out all the legal paperwork that is needed to run in Kentucky at the moment. An official announcement about this show could be coming very soon by TNA.

 

[Y 2 Jake]

Source: Mike Johnson

TNA's website has opened up a section for the Destination X PPV on March 11. The section includes a video promo for the event.

 

[Y 2 Jake]

s noted yesterday, there will be a three-hour block of TNA programming on Spike TV tonight starting at 7:00pm Eastern/6:00pm Central with a replay of the "This is TNA!" special from Monday and then a new episode of iMPACT! at 9:00pm Eastern/8:00pm Central.

Speaking of iMPACT! tonight, the entire show will be going head-to-head with the final hour of WWE Raw tonight on the USA Network. It's expected that TNA's rating will dip slightly because of Raw, but if the company were still to stay in the 1.0-1.1 range it would be considered a solid success.

Tickets for the Lockdown PPV go on sale tomorrow in St. Louis, Missouri at the Family Arena box office. NWA World Champion Christian Cage, Eric Young and Christy Hemme will all be on hand for fans who purchase tickets at the box office.

Former Diva Search Runner-Up Leyla Milani will be hosting her own 30 second promo for the Monday Night RAW on USA Network. It is called RAW FANNATION and it'll air for the entire year.

 

[A.J.]

Tickets for April's Lockdown PPV went on sale today at 10am central time at the Family Arena box office in St. Louis and on Metrotix.com.

Christian Cage's brand new TNA T-shirt is up at ShopTNA.com.

You can now purchase episodes of TNA iMPACT! dating back to June of 2006 via Xbox Live.

TNA has added a subsite for it's Bashin' Brawler dolls by Marvel Toys.

Senshi will be appearing as Low Ki for IWC this weekend in PA. For more information check out www.IWCWrestling.com.

 

[PlatynumX420]

TNA News: Impact fans abandon ship to watch Raw instead, as ratings down 40 percent
By Wade Keller, Torch editor
Feb 16, 2007, 15:23


TNA Impact took a big hit in the ratings this week, drawing a 0.59 rating last night. The replay of This is TNA! that preceding it drew a 0.48 rating. Once Raw ended on USA, Spike viewership went up, as Pros vs. joes drew a 0.77. Inside the UFC, which usually draws a fraction of Impact's audience, drew a 0.46 rating.

 

[Y 2 Jake]

source: PWTorch Newsletter

--TNA star Ravenbrought his newly wedded wife to the TNA shows this past weekend. This is the first time she had come along with him. According to various backstage sources, she got into a verbal argument with the massage therapist backstage who had a pervious relationship with Raven.

-- During a vignette introducing TNA on the “This is TNA!” Monday night special, a voiceover said the wrestlers do what they do "not for the multi-million dollar contracts, because TNA doesn't have any," but because "for TNA wrestlers, it's an addiction."

 

[Y 2 Jake]

Credit: The Wrestling Observer Newsletter

- Rhino recently did an interview in the Dearborn Press and Guide. He said he wants to wrestle for 10 more years and admitted that the belt he burned on iMPACT! last year was just a replica of the ECW title. He still has the real title in his possession

Brother Ray is complaining that Konnan's promo's are taking away his Babyface heat.

B.G. James said that he would leave T.N.A. if he could get out of his contract and go back to WWE.