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Slammiversary (2008)
Encyclopedia
Slammiversary was a professional wrestling
pay-per-view
(PPV) event produced by Total Nonstop Action Wrestling
(TNA), which took place on June 8, 2008 from the DeSoto Civic Center
in Southaven, Mississippi
. It was the fourth event under the Slammiversary chronology and marked the sixth anniversary of the promotion. Seven professional wrestling matches
were featured on the event's card
. In the tradition of Slammiversary events, a staple match in TNA—titled the King of the Mountain match
(KOTM)—was featured as the main event for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship
. Following the conclusion of the event, and while an independent construction crew hired by TNA was dissembling the event's set, a worker (Kevin "Angus" Sinex) fell to his death. The scaffold, which he was working on, broke and collapsed; causing him to fall nearly 20 feet (6.1 m) to the concrete floor below. Another man was also injured in this accident.
The main event featured the TNA World Heavyweight Champion Samoa Joe
defeating Booker T
, Robert Roode, Christian Cage
, and Rhino
to retain the championship in the KOTM with Kevin Nash
as Special Guest Ringside Enforcer. Another featured match on the card pitted A.J. Styles
against Kurt Angle
in a standard wrestling match; Styles won the encounter. The event's undercard featured different varieties of matches. TNA World Tag Team Champions
The Latin American Xchange (Homicide
and Hernandez
) (LAX) defeated Team 3D
(Brother Ray and Brother Devon) in a tag team
match. Petey Williams
retained the TNA X Division Championship
against Kaz
in a standard wrestling match.
Slammiversary marked the fifth time the KOTM format was used in TNA and the first time a World Championship was retained in the match. When the event was released on DVD, it reached a peak position of number four on Billboard's
DVD Sales Chart. The professional wrestling section of the Canadian Online Explorer
website rated the entire event a 7 out of 10 stars, one star lower than the rating for the 2007 event
.
, plots, and storylines
. Wrestlers were portrayed as either villains
or heroes
in the scripted events that built tension and culminated in a wrestling match or series of matches.
The main event at Slammiversary was for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship in the annual King of the Mountain match (KOTM). The KOTM involves five competitors fighting to gain a pinfall or submission to be allowed to climb a ladder and hang a championship belt
to win. The match was announced on the May 15 episode of TNA's primary television program, TNA Impact!
, by the reigning champion, Samoa Joe
. He also stated that authority figure Jim Cornette
had chosen four contenders and that he would choose four more; those eight men would compete in qualifying matches to determine his four opponents at Slammiversary. Joe then went on to announce Cornette's four contenders: Robert Roode, Tomko
, Matt Morgan, and James Storm
. On the May 22 episode of Impact!, Joe's picks were announced: A.J. Styles
, Christian Cage
, Rhino
, and Booker T
. The first and second qualification matches for KOTM took place later on the same episode. Roode defeated Morgan in the first, while Booker T defeated Styles in the second. Styles was assaulted by Booker T, Team 3D
(Brother Ray and Brother Devon), Tomko, and Kurt Angle after the second bout. Styles' character changed from a villain to a hero as a result of the attack from his alliances at the time. On the May 29 episode of Impact!, Rhino defeated Storm, while Cage defeated Tomko in the final two qualification matches; Kevin Nash was also appointed Special Guest Ringside Enforcer for the match by order of Cornette during the broadcast. A Special Guest Ringside Enforcer is a person who makes sure no one cheats to win and keeps people from interfering in an encounter.
TNA scheduled a standard wrestling match pitting A.J. Styles against Kurt Angle as the second highest promoted match on the event's card. TNA began to promote a rivalry between Styles and Angle prior to TNA's April PPV event, Lockdown
, with Styles and Angle beginning to have problems as alliances in their group The Angle Alliance. After Kurt and his legitimate wife, Karen Angle
, were scripted into a storyline separation, Kurt began to have suspicions that Styles and Karen were romantically involved, as they were constantly seen with each other. On the May 15 episode of Impact!, Angle made a speech to Karen and implored her to come back to him. On the May 22 episode of Impact!, Karen acknowledged his request but refused to take him back. Later in that episode, Styles was attacked by Tomko, Booker T, and Team 3D after his qualification match with Booker T for the KOTM. Karen came down to the ring in an attempt to stop the onslaught, but failed. She then left the ring and ran backstage to get Kurt. When she returned, Kurt entered the arena with a steel chair and chased Tomko, Booker T, and Team 3D out of the ring, as Karen tended to Styles. After Angle noticed that Karen was showing strong emotion for Styles, he became enraged and stuck Styles in the head with the chair and continued the assault along with Booker T, Team 3D, and Tomko. This plot development set up a standard wrestling match for Slammversary between Styles and Angle, which was officially announced on the May 29 episode of Impact!, by the television announcers for the program: Mike Tenay
and Don West
.
In the Tag Team division
, The Latin American Xchange (Homicide
and Hernandez
) (LAX) were involved in an on-screen rivalry with Team 3D (Brother Ray and Brother Devon). At TNA's May PPV event, Sacrifice
, LAX defeated Team 3D in the finals of The Deuces Wild Tag Team Tournament for the vacant TNA World Tag Team Championship
, with help from their manager
Hector Guerrero
. On the episode of Impact! after Sacrifice (May 15), Team 3D were narrated to blame and assault Guerrero for their loss. On the May 29 episode of Impact!, a match was promoted pitting LAX against Team 3D for the World Tag Team Championship at Slammiversary.
The main match from the women's division
involved the pairing of Velvet Sky
and Angelina Love, who make up the tag team alliance of The Beautiful People
, teaming with their newest alliance, Mickie Knuckles
, against the team of Gail Kim
, ODB
, and Roxxi
. The storyline behind this match was a result of Roxxi getting her head legitimately shaved bald as per the pre-match stipulation of the TNA Knockout
s Makeover Battle Royal
at Sacrifice, which Roxxi lost to Kim. The TNA Knockouts Makeover Battle Royal involved ten competitors fighting to eliminate each other by throwing each other over the top rope and down to the floor. When it came down to the final two participants, they fought to climb a ladder and retrieve a contract
to win a match for the TNA Women's Knockout Championship
against the champion, Awesome Kong
. Kim won immunity from being shaving bald on the May 8 episode of Impact!. During the match, Love was the last eliminated before it was down to Kim and Roxxi. If Kim had lost the match, Love would have had to been shaved bald instead. As a result, Love repeatedly tried to help Kim win the match. On the May 15 episode of Impact!, The Beautiful People interfered in Kim's match with Kong, inevitably costing Kim the match. On the June 5 episode of Impact!, O.D.B. defeated Sky in a match where no one could be disqualified called a Street Fight. After the match, Love, Sky, and their new associate, Knuckles, assaulted Roxxi, O.D.B. and Kim. TNA later promoted a Six Woman Tag Team match for Slammiversary pitting the team of Kim, O.D.B. and Roxxi against The Beautiful People and Knuckles on the same episode.
In the weeks leading to Slammiversary, TNA hyped the on-screen return of the character Abyss
, who had not been seen in the company since early 2008. Each week on Impact! TNA aired special video packages depicting Abyss sitting or standing in a padded room at a mental institution while wearing a Straitjacket
at times. His mannerisms during these videos depicted him acting Schizophrenic
. TNA aired four videos packages. The first video was shown on the May 15 episode of Impact!, while the last was shown on the June 5 episode of Impact!. The first showed Abyss stating that "they" (the doctors at the institution) say that he can come "home
" soon. In the third video, Abyss stated that the doctors said he was cured and that he would get to come "home" in ten days. In the fourth video, it was made official that Abyss would be coming "home" on June 8, the day of Slammiversary.
The scripted wedding of Jay Lethal
and SoCal Val also occurred at Slammiversary. The plot behind this segment began before Slammiversary, with Lethal and Val being a storyline couple. The development to the wedding began on the May 15 episode of Impact!, when Val accepted Lethal's proposal to marry him at Slammiversary. Sonjay Dutt
, Lethal's on-screen best friend, was visibly seen angered by the answer and question during the segment. Later, singer Ace Young
was announced to be in attendance at Slammiversary. Young appeared on the May 29 episode of Impact!, debuting a video for his song "Addicted
", in which Lethal and Val starred. Lethal asked Dutt to be his bestman at the wedding earlier in the same episode; Dutt accepted the offer. On the June 5 episode of Impact!, it was announced that "legends of wrestling's past" or "veterans" would be in attendance at the wedding: Jake Roberts
, Kamala, Koko B. Ware, and George Steele
. This storyline wedding was based on a wedding segment that TNA's rival, World Wrestling Entertainment
(World Wrestling Federation at the time), did in 1991 at their SummerSlam
event, in which Randy Savage
was set to marry his on-screen lover, Miss Elizabeth
. Lethal and Val's characters are similar to Savage's and Elizabeth's.
on PPV, Chris Sabin
and Alex Shelley
, who make up the team pairing of The Motor City Machineguns, defeated the team of Lance Hoyt
and Johnny Devine
in a Tag Team dark match, a match not broadcasted on television.
Petey Williams
, who was accompanied by Scott Steiner
and Rhaka Khan
, defended the championship against Kaz
in the first match at Slammiversary. Williams wore a protective face guard during the match, the reason was announced by Mike Tenay and Don West as a result of an injury Williams sustained a few weeks before the event. Williams won the match after he performed a move he dubbed the "Canadian Destroyer", by grabbing Kaz and placing Kaz's head between his legs. He then jumped over Kaz's back, while at the same time having a hold of Kaz's head with his legs, which caused Kaz to perform a backflip. Kaz's head then slammed into the mat after Williams made the full rotation, with Williams pinning him afterwards to retain the X Division Championship. After the match, Steiner, Williams, and Khan attacked Kaz, however, they were stopped by the returning Abyss. Abyss entered the ring and had a brief staredown with Steiner until Steiner pushed Williams towards Abyss, which Abyss countered by grabbing Williams, spinning 360°, and then slamming him down to the mat in a move Abyss dubbed the "Black Hole Slam". Abyss then followed by performing two 270° Black Hole Slams; one on Steiner and the other on Khan.
The Six Woman Tag Team match was next, involving the teams of Gail Kim, O.D.B., and Roxxi and the team of The Beautiful People (Velvet Sky and Angelina Love) and Mickie Knuckles, who was newly billed as Moose. The match started with a brawl between Moose and Kim, ODB, and Roxxi, with The Beautiful People watching from ringside. Both team performed various offensive maneuvers throughout the match. O.D.B. scored the pinfall for her team by pinning Moose after running and slamming her down back first onto the mat.
The Latin American Xchange (Homicide and Hernandez), who were accompanied by Salinas
and Hector Guerrero, defended the TNA World Tag Team Championship against Team 3D (Brother Ray and Brother Devon) in the third match. During the match, Hernandez ran from one side of the ring to the other and jumped over the top rope to the outside in a move Hernandez dubbed the "SuperMex" in an attempt to knock down Team 3D. LAX won the match when Homicide pulled back on Devon's leg, which caused Devon to fall backwards; Homicide then held Devon's shoulders down against the mat for the three count in a pinning attempt called a roll-up.
Next was a $25,000 Fan challenge, which pitted Awesome Kong against Serena Deeb
. Kong pinned Deeb after she hooked both of Deeb's arms behind her back, lifted her up, and slammed her face down to the mat in a move Kong dubbed the Implant Buster to gain the pinfall victory. Another fan challenge took place afterwards with Kong defeating Josie Robinson (Josette Bynum) by lifting Robinson up onto her shoulders and falling to a seated position to slam her back down onto the mat in a move Kong dubbed the Awesome Bomb. Following the second bout, Eric Young
entered the arena with an Elvis
impersonator
, however, the impersonator was stopped by Kong, who performed an Awesome Bomb on him as well.
The wedding of Jay Lethal and SoCal Val took place afterwards. It began with the groomsmen entering the arena: Ace Young, Kamala, Jake Roberts, Koko B. Ware, and George Steele. After the on-screen Preacher for the wedding asked if anyone had any objections to why Lethal and Val should not be married, Dutt was scripted to announce that he was in love with Val and that she should be marrying him instead of Lethal. Lethal became enraged at Dutt's statements and began to argue with him to follow the narrative plot. Afterward, Lethal went and checked on Val, until Dutt came from behind him and hit him with a tower that was part of the wedding set. Dutt continued to assault Lethal until the groomsmen came to Lethal's defense. The fight came to an end when Roberts placed his real-life pet snake on Dutt, which, in-turn, caused Dutt to run off in fear.
The sixth bout was between A.J. Styles and Kurt Angle, who was accompanied by Tomko, in a standard wrestling match. Early in the match, the referee
barred Tomko from ringside and sent him to the backstage area. Most of the match was back and forth between the two with each countering the other's moves either into holds
to make him concede defeat or moves to wear him down. The referee was narrated to appear unconscious near the end of the match after Angle accidentally ran into him. This allowed Karen Angle to enter the arena with a steel chair and call for Kurt to take it. When Kurt grabbed it, Karen refused to let go. Styles then grabbed Kurt, lift him up and held him upside down, followed by trapping Angle's arms behind his legs, and jump forward to implant Angle's face and body into the mat in a move Styles calls the "Styles Clash."
The main event was for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship in the King of the Mountain match with Kevin Nash as Special Guest Ringside Enforcer, in which Samoa Joe defended the championship against Robert Roode, Booker T, Rhino, and Christian Cage. Booker T became the first eligible to hang the belt after he pinned Rhino following lifting him up sideways and slamming down back first with a move he dubbed the "Book End." The next to qualify was Roode after he hit Cage with a steel chair to a ladder which Cage held to gain the pinfall. Rhino followed a little later by pinning Roode with a roll-up. A few minutes later, Cage qualified by pinning Booker T following a splash from the top of a padded turnbuckle onto Booker T, who was held in a rear naked choke submission hold by Joe. While Booker T was standing on the outside of the ring, he grabbed the World Heavyweight Championship from one of the referee's hands and hit Nash over the head with it; Booker T then entered the ring to try and hang the belt. After Nash recovered, he entered the ring and stopped Booker T from hanging the belt by lifting him from the ladder, which he was standing on, and dropping him down to the mat in a move he dubbed the "Jackknife Powerbomb." A few moments later while Roode was climbing the ladder trying to hang the belt, Joe entered and lifted Roode up off the ladder, fell to his back, and slammed Roode's back and neck into his shoulder and the mat by using a maneuver dubbed the "Muscle Buster." Joe then climbed up the ladder to hang the belt and retain the championship.
Following Slammiversary, Samoa Joe and Booker T went on to have a storyline rivalry over the TNA World Heavyweight Championship. Their rivalry began when Booker T demanded a championship match at TNA's July PPV event, Victory Road, on the June 12 episode of Impact!. Joe accepted and the match was made official by TNA on the same episode. At Victory Road, their match ended in a no contest when Joe assaulted Booker T, referees
, security guards, and other TNA personnel. This caused Sting to enter the area and try and stop Joe's assault. When Joe refused to quit, Sting struck Joe in the stomach and back with a baseball bat, which Sting held in his hand. This allowed Booker T to cover Joe for the three count, however, the referee for the match was unconscious; Booker T's wife Sharmell counted the pinfall instead. It was later announced on the July 17 episode of Impact!, that Booker T did not win the championship, due to the that Sharmell was not an official referee.
A.J. Styles and Kurt Angle continued their rivalry after Slammiversary. In the weeks leading to Victory Road, Styles gained alliances in Rhino and Christian Cage, while Kurt also gained two in the pairing of Team 3D (Brother Ray and Brother Devon). At Victory Road, Styles, Cage, and Rhino fought Team 3D and Kurt in a Six Man Tag Team Full Metal Mayhem match, in which Kurt and Team 3D claimed victory after Kurt's real-life best friend, Frank Trigg
, entered the arena and hit Styles with a kendo stick
, which allowed Kurt to pin Styles after slamming him through a table. In a Full Metal Mayhem match, two or more competitors or teams of two or more fight to either gain a pinfall, submission, or climb a ladder to retrieve an envelope or a championship belt
in no disqualification rules.
Robert Roode went on to form a tag team with James Storm under the tag team name of Beer Money, which was later changed to Beer Money, Inc. They fought The Latin American Xchange (Homicide and Hernandez) (LAX) on the June 12 episode of Impact! for the TNA World Tag Team Championship. They originally won the match, however, the referee reversed the decision after he found out that Storm and Roode won illegally. The match was restarted, however, this time LAX won. After the match, Roode and Storm assaulted LAX and Hector Guerrero. Later, LAX challenged Storm and Roode to a match where real-life fans were placed around the ring with leather straps in-order to whip anyone who gets outside the ring in a match TNA calls a "Fan's Revenge" Lumberjack Strap match. Storm and Roode accepted the challenge only after it was made for the World Tag Team Championship on the June 19 episode of Impact!. Storm and Roode were defeated by LAX at Victory Road.
's writer Jon Waldman rated the entire event a 7 out of 10 stars, which was lower than the 2007 event's
rating of 8 out of 10 stars. The encounter between A.J. Styles and Kurt Angle was rated a 9 out of 10 stars, while the King of the Mountain match for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship was rated a 6 out of 10 stars. Phil Allely, a journalist for the United Kingdom
newspaper The Sun
, thought that the bout between A.J. Styles and Kurt Angle was "easily the best match of the night." He later stated in his review that "Slammiversary was a well meaning PPV that had one amazing bout, many solid ones, not as many run-ins as normal and helped build lots of new feuds to keep TNA going into its seventh year." The event was released on DVD on August 19, 2008 by TNA Home Video
. The DVD reached a peak position of number four on Billboard's
DVD Sales Chart for recreational sports during the week of September 13, 2008. The DVD remained on the chart for two consecutive weeks, although it ranked lower after the week of September 20, 2008, when it ranked number sixteen; it fell off the chart afterwards.
Professional wrestling
Professional wrestling is a mode of spectacle, combining athletics and theatrical performance.Roland Barthes, "The World of Wrestling", Mythologies, 1957 It takes the form of events, held by touring companies, which mimic a title match combat sport...
pay-per-view
Pay-per-view
Pay-per-view provides a service by which a television audience can purchase events to view via private telecast. The broadcaster shows the event at the same time to everyone ordering it...
(PPV) event produced by Total Nonstop Action Wrestling
Total Nonstop Action Wrestling
Total Nonstop Action Wrestling is a privately held professional wrestling promotion founded by Jeff Jarrett and Jerry Jarrett. The company broadcasts its events on television and the Internet fifty two weeks a year with over a million weekly viewers on its primary television program, Impact...
(TNA), which took place on June 8, 2008 from the DeSoto Civic Center
DeSoto Civic Center
The DeSoto Civic Center is an 8,400-seat multi-purpose arena in Southaven, Mississippi. It was built in 2000. It is home to the Mississippi RiverKings, a team in the Southern Professional Hockey League....
in Southaven, Mississippi
Southaven, Mississippi
-Households And Families:As of the census of 2000, there were 28,977 people, 11,007 households, and 8,134 families residing in the city. The population density was 857.9 people per square mile...
. It was the fourth event under the Slammiversary chronology and marked the sixth anniversary of the promotion. Seven professional wrestling matches
Mock combat
Mock combat involves the execution of combative actions without intent to harm. Participants can engage in such sparring for ritual, training, recreational or performance reasons...
were featured on the event's card
Card (sports)
In sports, a card comprises a listing of the matches taking place in a title-match combat-sport event. Organizers divide overall cards into a main-event match and the undercard, which encompasses the rest of the matches. One can also further subdivide the undercard into midcard and lower card,...
. In the tradition of Slammiversary events, a staple match in TNA—titled the King of the Mountain match
King of the Mountain match
The King of the Mountain match is a professional wrestling match exclusive to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling . It consists of five competitors competing for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship or the TNA X Division Championship as of Slammiversary 2009...
(KOTM)—was featured as the main event for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship
TNA World Heavyweight Championship
The TNA World Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship owned by the Total Nonstop Action Wrestling promotion. It is currently the highest ranked championship in TNA and is primarily defended in TNA's heavyweight division...
. Following the conclusion of the event, and while an independent construction crew hired by TNA was dissembling the event's set, a worker (Kevin "Angus" Sinex) fell to his death. The scaffold, which he was working on, broke and collapsed; causing him to fall nearly 20 feet (6.1 m) to the concrete floor below. Another man was also injured in this accident.
The main event featured the TNA World Heavyweight Champion Samoa Joe
Samoa Joe
Nuufolau Joel "Joe" Seanoa is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Samoa Joe. He is currently under contract with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling....
defeating Booker T
Booker Huffman
Robert Booker Tio Huffman , better known by his ring name Booker T, is a semi-retired American professional wrestler and currently signed to WWE, on its SmackDown brand, as part of the announcing team. Booker is best known for his time in both the World Wrestling Entertainment and World...
, Robert Roode, Christian Cage
Jason Reso
William Jason Reso is a Canadian professional wrestler and actor, better known by his ring names Christian and Christian Cage...
, and Rhino
Terry Gerin
Terrance "Terry" Gerin is an American professional wrestler and actor, better known by the ring name Rhino . He is best known for his career in Extreme Championship Wrestling, World Wrestling Federation / Entertainment and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling...
to retain the championship in the KOTM with Kevin Nash
Kevin Nash
Kevin Scott Nash is an American professional wrestler and actor. As of 2011, Nash is signed to a five year contract with WWE under their WWE Legends program and appears as part of their Raw brand roster...
as Special Guest Ringside Enforcer. Another featured match on the card pitted A.J. Styles
A.J. Styles
Allen Neal Jones , better known by his ring name A.J. Styles is an American professional wrestler currently working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling...
against Kurt Angle
Kurt Angle
Kurt Steven Angle is an American professional wrestler, amateur wrestler, and 1996 Olympic gold medalist. He is currently under contract with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he is recognized as a 15-time World Heavyweight Champion...
in a standard wrestling match; Styles won the encounter. The event's undercard featured different varieties of matches. TNA World Tag Team Champions
TNA World Tag Team Championship
The TNA World Tag Team Championship is a professional wrestling world tag team championship owned by the Total Nonstop Action Wrestling promotion. It is primarily contested within TNA's tag team division. It was created and debuted on May 14, 2007 at the taping of TNA's primary television program,...
The Latin American Xchange (Homicide
Nelson Erazo
Nelson Rodriguez Erazo is an American professional wrestler of Puerto Rican descent, better known by his ring name, Homicide...
and Hernandez
Shawn Hernandez
Shawn Hernandez is an American professional wrestler of Mexican and Puerto Rican descent, better known by his ring names, "Hotstuff Hernandez" and "Hernandez"....
) (LAX) defeated Team 3D
Dudley Boyz
Team 3D was a professional wrestling tag team, consisting of Brother Ray and Brother Devon, formerly sporadically joined into a stable by Brother Runt on several intervals...
(Brother Ray and Brother Devon) in a tag team
Tag team
Tag team professional wrestling is a variation in which matches are contested between teams of multiple wrestlers. A tag team may comprise two wrestlers who normally wrestle in singles competition, but more commonly are made of established teams who wrestle regularly as a unit and have a team name...
match. Petey Williams
Petey Williams
Peter "Petey" Williams III is a Canadian professional wrestler. He is best known for his tenure in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he is a two time X Division Champion and a former captain of Team Canada. Williams Currently Wrestles for Lucha Libre USA...
retained the TNA X Division Championship
TNA X Division Championship
The TNA X Division Championship is a professional wrestling championship owned by the Total Nonstop Action Wrestling promotion. It is primarily defended in TNA's X Division—a style based on a fast-paced, daredevil type of wrestling...
against Kaz
Frankie Kazarian
Frank B. Gerdelman is an Armenian-American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Frankie Kazarian or simply Kazarian. He is currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling...
in a standard wrestling match.
Slammiversary marked the fifth time the KOTM format was used in TNA and the first time a World Championship was retained in the match. When the event was released on DVD, it reached a peak position of number four on Billboard's
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
DVD Sales Chart. The professional wrestling section of the Canadian Online Explorer
Canadian Online Explorer
Canadian Online Explorer is a bilingual online news and information site from Canada.A subsidiary of Quebecor Media, Canoe.ca is a leading local and national interactive media provider of news, entertainment and services, helping to inform and connect Canadians...
website rated the entire event a 7 out of 10 stars, one star lower than the rating for the 2007 event
Slammiversary (2007)
Slammiversary was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, which took place on June 17, 2007 at the Nashville Municipal Auditorium in Nashville, Tennessee. It was the third event under the Slammiversary chronology and marked the fifth anniversary of...
.
Background
The event featured seven professional wrestling matches that involved different wrestlers from pre-existing scripted feudsFeud (professional wrestling)
A professional wrestling feud is a staged rivalry between multiple wrestlers or alliances of wrestlers. They are integrated into ongoing storylines, particularly in events which are televised...
, plots, and storylines
Narrative thread
A narrative thread, or plot thread , refers to particular elements and techniques of writing to center the story in the action or experience of characters rather than to relate a matter in a dry 'All knowing' sort of narration...
. Wrestlers were portrayed as either villains
Heel (professional wrestling)
In professional wrestling, a heel is a villain character. In non-wrestling jargon, heels are the "bad guys" in professional wrestling; the term heel coming from the term take to you heels, which means to run away which heel champions tend to do to avoid losing their titles.storylines...
or heroes
Face (professional wrestling)
In professional wrestling, a babyface or face or in simple words, a fan favorite is a character who is portrayed as a heroic relative to the heel wrestlers, who are analogous to villains...
in the scripted events that built tension and culminated in a wrestling match or series of matches.
Championship (professional wrestling)
A Championship or "title" in professional wrestling is a recognition promoted by professional wrestling organizations.Championship reigns are determined by professional wrestling matches, in which competitors are involved in scripted rivalries...
to win. The match was announced on the May 15 episode of TNA's primary television program, TNA Impact!
TNA iMPACT!
Impact Wrestling is a professional wrestling television program for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling that currently airs in the United States and Canada on Spike...
, by the reigning champion, Samoa Joe
Samoa Joe
Nuufolau Joel "Joe" Seanoa is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Samoa Joe. He is currently under contract with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling....
. He also stated that authority figure Jim Cornette
Jim Cornette
James Mark "Jim" Cornette is an American professional wrestling manager, commentator, promoter, and booker. As a manager, he has worked for Jim Crockett Promotions, World Championship Wrestling and World Wrestling Federation and from 1991 to 1995, was the owner of Smoky Mountain Wrestling...
had chosen four contenders and that he would choose four more; those eight men would compete in qualifying matches to determine his four opponents at Slammiversary. Joe then went on to announce Cornette's four contenders: Robert Roode, Tomko
Travis Tomko
Travis David Tomko is an American professional wrestler, known by his ring name Tomko, who most recently worked for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he previously was a member of Christian's Coalition and the Angle Alliance and often worked alongside A.J. Styles. He was also notable for his...
, Matt Morgan, and James Storm
James Storm
James Allen Cox is an American professional wrestler who competes under the ring name "The Cowboy" James Storm. Since 2002, Storm has been employed by Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he, along with A.J...
. On the May 22 episode of Impact!, Joe's picks were announced: A.J. Styles
A.J. Styles
Allen Neal Jones , better known by his ring name A.J. Styles is an American professional wrestler currently working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling...
, Christian Cage
Jason Reso
William Jason Reso is a Canadian professional wrestler and actor, better known by his ring names Christian and Christian Cage...
, Rhino
Terry Gerin
Terrance "Terry" Gerin is an American professional wrestler and actor, better known by the ring name Rhino . He is best known for his career in Extreme Championship Wrestling, World Wrestling Federation / Entertainment and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling...
, and Booker T
Booker Huffman
Robert Booker Tio Huffman , better known by his ring name Booker T, is a semi-retired American professional wrestler and currently signed to WWE, on its SmackDown brand, as part of the announcing team. Booker is best known for his time in both the World Wrestling Entertainment and World...
. The first and second qualification matches for KOTM took place later on the same episode. Roode defeated Morgan in the first, while Booker T defeated Styles in the second. Styles was assaulted by Booker T, Team 3D
Dudley Boyz
Team 3D was a professional wrestling tag team, consisting of Brother Ray and Brother Devon, formerly sporadically joined into a stable by Brother Runt on several intervals...
(Brother Ray and Brother Devon), Tomko, and Kurt Angle after the second bout. Styles' character changed from a villain to a hero as a result of the attack from his alliances at the time. On the May 29 episode of Impact!, Rhino defeated Storm, while Cage defeated Tomko in the final two qualification matches; Kevin Nash was also appointed Special Guest Ringside Enforcer for the match by order of Cornette during the broadcast. A Special Guest Ringside Enforcer is a person who makes sure no one cheats to win and keeps people from interfering in an encounter.
TNA scheduled a standard wrestling match pitting A.J. Styles against Kurt Angle as the second highest promoted match on the event's card. TNA began to promote a rivalry between Styles and Angle prior to TNA's April PPV event, Lockdown
Lockdown (2008)
Lockdown was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , which took place on April 13, 2008 at the Tsongas Arena in Lowell, Massachusetts. It was the fourth annual event under the Lockdown chronology. Eight professional wrestling matches were featured...
, with Styles and Angle beginning to have problems as alliances in their group The Angle Alliance. After Kurt and his legitimate wife, Karen Angle
Karen Angle
Karen Jarrett is an American professional wrestling valet and personality, currently working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling...
, were scripted into a storyline separation, Kurt began to have suspicions that Styles and Karen were romantically involved, as they were constantly seen with each other. On the May 15 episode of Impact!, Angle made a speech to Karen and implored her to come back to him. On the May 22 episode of Impact!, Karen acknowledged his request but refused to take him back. Later in that episode, Styles was attacked by Tomko, Booker T, and Team 3D after his qualification match with Booker T for the KOTM. Karen came down to the ring in an attempt to stop the onslaught, but failed. She then left the ring and ran backstage to get Kurt. When she returned, Kurt entered the arena with a steel chair and chased Tomko, Booker T, and Team 3D out of the ring, as Karen tended to Styles. After Angle noticed that Karen was showing strong emotion for Styles, he became enraged and stuck Styles in the head with the chair and continued the assault along with Booker T, Team 3D, and Tomko. This plot development set up a standard wrestling match for Slammversary between Styles and Angle, which was officially announced on the May 29 episode of Impact!, by the television announcers for the program: Mike Tenay
Mike Tenay
Michael William "Mike" Tenay is a professional wrestling play-by-play announcer currently employed by Total Nonstop Action Wrestling . Prior to signing with TNA in 2002, he had a notable tenure with World Championship Wrestling from 1994-2001...
and Don West
Don West (sportscaster)
Donald "Don" West is an American pitchman, television personality and wrestling broadcaster currently working as an on-screen talent for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, and also as a pitchman for WildWestDeals.com, an internet marketing website...
.
In the Tag Team division
Tag team
Tag team professional wrestling is a variation in which matches are contested between teams of multiple wrestlers. A tag team may comprise two wrestlers who normally wrestle in singles competition, but more commonly are made of established teams who wrestle regularly as a unit and have a team name...
, The Latin American Xchange (Homicide
Nelson Erazo
Nelson Rodriguez Erazo is an American professional wrestler of Puerto Rican descent, better known by his ring name, Homicide...
and Hernandez
Shawn Hernandez
Shawn Hernandez is an American professional wrestler of Mexican and Puerto Rican descent, better known by his ring names, "Hotstuff Hernandez" and "Hernandez"....
) (LAX) were involved in an on-screen rivalry with Team 3D (Brother Ray and Brother Devon). At TNA's May PPV event, Sacrifice
Sacrifice (2008)
Sacrifice was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , which took place on May 11, 2008 at the TNA Impact! Zone in Orlando, Florida. It was the fourth event under the Sacrifice chronology...
, LAX defeated Team 3D in the finals of The Deuces Wild Tag Team Tournament for the vacant TNA World Tag Team Championship
TNA World Tag Team Championship
The TNA World Tag Team Championship is a professional wrestling world tag team championship owned by the Total Nonstop Action Wrestling promotion. It is primarily contested within TNA's tag team division. It was created and debuted on May 14, 2007 at the taping of TNA's primary television program,...
, with help from their manager
Manager (professional wrestling)
In professional wrestling, a manager is a secondary character paired with a wrestler for a variety of reasons. The manager is often either a non-wrestler, an occasional wrestler, an older wrestler who has retired or is nearing retirement or, in some cases, a new wrestler who is breaking into the...
Hector Guerrero
Hector Guerrero
Héctor Manuel Guerrero Llanes is a Mexican-American professional wrestler, better known simply by his paternal name, Héctor Guerrero...
. On the episode of Impact! after Sacrifice (May 15), Team 3D were narrated to blame and assault Guerrero for their loss. On the May 29 episode of Impact!, a match was promoted pitting LAX against Team 3D for the World Tag Team Championship at Slammiversary.
The main match from the women's division
TNA Knockout
Knockout is a term used by Total Nonstop Action Wrestling to refer to its female talent. The term is applied universally to wrestlers, backstage interviewers, and managers/valets. They are analogous to the Divas of rival WWE.-History:...
involved the pairing of Velvet Sky
Velvet Sky
Jamie Szantyr is an American professional wrestler currently working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling under the ring name Velvet Sky. She is a former TNA Women's Knockout Champion and TNA Knockouts Tag Team Champion with her former Beautiful People partners Madison Rayne and Lacey Von Erich...
and Angelina Love, who make up the tag team alliance of The Beautiful People
The Beautiful People (professional wrestling)
The Beautiful People was an alliance of professional wrestlers that appeared in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , consisting of Angelina Love, Velvet Sky, Cute Kip, Madison Rayne and Lacey Von Erich. The stable was known for their narcissistic gimmick, and holding the TNA Women's Knockout...
, teaming with their newest alliance, Mickie Knuckles
Mickie Knuckles
Mickie Lee Knuckles is an American professional wrestler who has worked for a number of major independent promotions, including Independent Wrestling Association Mid-South, Chikara and Combat Zone Wrestling. She also worked for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling under the name Moose...
, against the team of Gail Kim
Gail Kim
Gail Kim is a Canadian professional wrestler of Korean descent, who is currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , where she is the current TNA Women's Knockout Champion and one half of the TNA Knockouts Tag Team Champions with Madison Rayne...
, ODB
Jessica Kresa
Jessica Kresa is an American professional wrestler and actress better known as ODB , currently working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where she is a former three–time TNA Women's Knockout Champion....
, and Roxxi
Nicole Raczynski
Nicole Raczynski is an American professional wrestler, best known for working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling under the ring name Roxxi...
. The storyline behind this match was a result of Roxxi getting her head legitimately shaved bald as per the pre-match stipulation of the TNA Knockout
TNA Knockout
Knockout is a term used by Total Nonstop Action Wrestling to refer to its female talent. The term is applied universally to wrestlers, backstage interviewers, and managers/valets. They are analogous to the Divas of rival WWE.-History:...
s Makeover Battle Royal
Gauntlet for the Gold
The Gauntlet match as defined by Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, is a battle royal-style match. When it involves title implications, such as a title on the line or contendership for a title, it is called a Gauntlet for the Gold...
at Sacrifice, which Roxxi lost to Kim. The TNA Knockouts Makeover Battle Royal involved ten competitors fighting to eliminate each other by throwing each other over the top rope and down to the floor. When it came down to the final two participants, they fought to climb a ladder and retrieve a contract
Ladder match
A ladder match is a type of match in professional wrestling that is most commonly used to describe a match where an item is hung above the ring, and the winner is the contestant who climbs a ladder and retrieves the item...
to win a match for the TNA Women's Knockout Championship
TNA Women's Knockout Championship
The TNA Women's Knockout Championship, often referred to simply as the Knockouts Championship, is a professional wrestling women's world championship owned by the Total Nonstop Action Wrestling promotion. It is primarily contested for in TNA's women's division...
against the champion, Awesome Kong
Kia Stevens
Kia Michelle Stevens , better known by her ring names Amazing Kong, Awesome Kong and Kharma. She is signed with WWE, but has been inactive since May 2011 due to pregnancy...
. Kim won immunity from being shaving bald on the May 8 episode of Impact!. During the match, Love was the last eliminated before it was down to Kim and Roxxi. If Kim had lost the match, Love would have had to been shaved bald instead. As a result, Love repeatedly tried to help Kim win the match. On the May 15 episode of Impact!, The Beautiful People interfered in Kim's match with Kong, inevitably costing Kim the match. On the June 5 episode of Impact!, O.D.B. defeated Sky in a match where no one could be disqualified called a Street Fight. After the match, Love, Sky, and their new associate, Knuckles, assaulted Roxxi, O.D.B. and Kim. TNA later promoted a Six Woman Tag Team match for Slammiversary pitting the team of Kim, O.D.B. and Roxxi against The Beautiful People and Knuckles on the same episode.
Chris Parks
Christopher J. "Chris" Parks , better known by his ring name "The Monster" Abyss, is an American professional wrestler currently working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling...
, who had not been seen in the company since early 2008. Each week on Impact! TNA aired special video packages depicting Abyss sitting or standing in a padded room at a mental institution while wearing a Straitjacket
Straitjacket
A straitjacket is a garment shaped like a jacket with overlong sleeves and is typically used to restrain a person who may otherwise cause harm to themselves or others. Once the arms are inserted into the straitjacket's sleeves, they are then crossed across the chest...
at times. His mannerisms during these videos depicted him acting Schizophrenic
Schizophrenia
Schizophrenia is a mental disorder characterized by a disintegration of thought processes and of emotional responsiveness. It most commonly manifests itself as auditory hallucinations, paranoid or bizarre delusions, or disorganized speech and thinking, and it is accompanied by significant social...
. TNA aired four videos packages. The first video was shown on the May 15 episode of Impact!, while the last was shown on the June 5 episode of Impact!. The first showed Abyss stating that "they" (the doctors at the institution) say that he can come "home
Total Nonstop Action Wrestling
Total Nonstop Action Wrestling is a privately held professional wrestling promotion founded by Jeff Jarrett and Jerry Jarrett. The company broadcasts its events on television and the Internet fifty two weeks a year with over a million weekly viewers on its primary television program, Impact...
" soon. In the third video, Abyss stated that the doctors said he was cured and that he would get to come "home" in ten days. In the fourth video, it was made official that Abyss would be coming "home" on June 8, the day of Slammiversary.
The scripted wedding of Jay Lethal
Jay Lethal
Jamar "Jay" Shipman better known by his ring name Jay Lethal, is an American professional wrestler currently signed to Ring of Honor , where he is the ROH World Television Champion...
and SoCal Val also occurred at Slammiversary. The plot behind this segment began before Slammiversary, with Lethal and Val being a storyline couple. The development to the wedding began on the May 15 episode of Impact!, when Val accepted Lethal's proposal to marry him at Slammiversary. Sonjay Dutt
Sonjay Dutt
Retesh Bhalla is an American professional wrestler of Indian Punjabi descent, better known by his ring name, Sonjay Dutt. He is best known working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, and is also known for his stints with Combat Zone Wrestling, Major League Wrestling, and other various independent...
, Lethal's on-screen best friend, was visibly seen angered by the answer and question during the segment. Later, singer Ace Young
Ace Young
Brett Asa "Ace" Young is an American singer, songwriter and actor. He came to national recognition upon appearing on the fifth season of the reality television talent show, American Idol, although he was eliminated from the competition on April 19, 2006, finishing in seventh place.-Early...
was announced to be in attendance at Slammiversary. Young appeared on the May 29 episode of Impact!, debuting a video for his song "Addicted
Addicted (Ace Young song)
"Addicted" is Ace Young's second single, after his 2006 song "Scattered". "Addicted" is the first and only single off of his self-titled 2008 CD. The song was written by Andreas Carlsson, who was part of the team who wrote for the Backstreet Boys...
", in which Lethal and Val starred. Lethal asked Dutt to be his bestman at the wedding earlier in the same episode; Dutt accepted the offer. On the June 5 episode of Impact!, it was announced that "legends of wrestling's past" or "veterans" would be in attendance at the wedding: Jake Roberts
Jake Roberts
Aurelian Jake Smith, Jr. is a second-generation American professional wrestler, the son of former wrestler Aurelian "Grizzly" Smith...
, Kamala, Koko B. Ware, and George Steele
George Steele
William James Myers , better known by his ring name George "The Animal" Steele is a former American professional wrestler and actor...
. This storyline wedding was based on a wedding segment that TNA's rival, World Wrestling Entertainment
World Wrestling Entertainment
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. is an American publicly traded, privately controlled entertainment company dealing primarily in professional wrestling, with major revenue sources also coming from film, music, product licensing, and direct product sales...
(World Wrestling Federation at the time), did in 1991 at their SummerSlam
SummerSlam (1991)
SummerSlam was the fourth annual SummerSlam professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by the World Wrestling Federation . It took place on August 26, 1991 at Madison Square Garden in New York, New York....
event, in which Randy Savage
Randy Savage
Randall Mario Poffo , better known by his ring name "Macho Man" Randy Savage, was an American professional wrestler, best known for his time with the World Wrestling Federation and World Championship Wrestling .Savage held twenty championships during his professional wrestling career and was a...
was set to marry his on-screen lover, Miss Elizabeth
Miss Elizabeth
Elizabeth Ann Hulette , best known as Miss Elizabeth, was an American professional wrestling manager. She gained international fame from the mid-1980s to the early 1990s in the World Wrestling Federation, and the mid-1990s in World Championship Wrestling in her role as the manager to the late...
. Lethal and Val's characters are similar to Savage's and Elizabeth's.
Event
Before Slammiversary aired liveLive television
Live television refers to a television production broadcast in real-time, as events happen, in the present. From the early days of television until about 1958, live television was used heavily, except for filmed shows such as I Love Lucy and Gunsmoke. Video tape did not exist until 1957...
on PPV, Chris Sabin
Chris Sabin
Joshua Harter is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Chris Sabin. He is currently working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , where he currently teams with Alex Shelley as The Motor City Machine Guns.After being trained by Scott D'Amore, Sabin debuted in 2000 for...
and Alex Shelley
Alex Shelley
Patrick Martin , is an American professional wrestler, better known by the ring name Alex Shelley. He wrestles for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he currently teams with Chris Sabin as The Motor City Machine Guns. He previously gained fame on the independent circuit, working most notably for...
, who make up the team pairing of The Motor City Machineguns, defeated the team of Lance Hoyt
Lance Hoyt
Lance Hoyt is an American professional wrestler, currently signed to New Japan Pro Wrestling as Lance Archer. He is best known for his work in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he is a two time NWA World Tag Team Champion with Kid Kash while the title was under the TNA banner...
and Johnny Devine
Johnny Devine
John Peter "J.P." Parsonage is a Canadian professional wrestler, better known by his ring name "Hot Shot" Johnny Devine...
in a Tag Team dark match, a match not broadcasted on television.
Preliminary matches
TNA X Division ChampionTNA X Division Championship
The TNA X Division Championship is a professional wrestling championship owned by the Total Nonstop Action Wrestling promotion. It is primarily defended in TNA's X Division—a style based on a fast-paced, daredevil type of wrestling...
Petey Williams
Petey Williams
Peter "Petey" Williams III is a Canadian professional wrestler. He is best known for his tenure in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he is a two time X Division Champion and a former captain of Team Canada. Williams Currently Wrestles for Lucha Libre USA...
, who was accompanied by Scott Steiner
Scott Steiner
Scott Carl Rechsteiner is an American professional wrestler better known by his ring name Scott Steiner. Steiner is perhaps best known for his appearances with World Championship Wrestling alongside his older brother Rick as the Steiner Brothers and as a member of the New World Order...
and Rhaka Khan
Trenesha Biggers
Trenesha Biggers is a model and professional wrestler who worked for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling under the ring name Rhaka Khan. She was in the final top 25 in the 2005 WWE Diva Search.-Professional wrestling career:...
, defended the championship against Kaz
Frankie Kazarian
Frank B. Gerdelman is an Armenian-American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Frankie Kazarian or simply Kazarian. He is currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling...
in the first match at Slammiversary. Williams wore a protective face guard during the match, the reason was announced by Mike Tenay and Don West as a result of an injury Williams sustained a few weeks before the event. Williams won the match after he performed a move he dubbed the "Canadian Destroyer", by grabbing Kaz and placing Kaz's head between his legs. He then jumped over Kaz's back, while at the same time having a hold of Kaz's head with his legs, which caused Kaz to perform a backflip. Kaz's head then slammed into the mat after Williams made the full rotation, with Williams pinning him afterwards to retain the X Division Championship. After the match, Steiner, Williams, and Khan attacked Kaz, however, they were stopped by the returning Abyss. Abyss entered the ring and had a brief staredown with Steiner until Steiner pushed Williams towards Abyss, which Abyss countered by grabbing Williams, spinning 360°, and then slamming him down to the mat in a move Abyss dubbed the "Black Hole Slam". Abyss then followed by performing two 270° Black Hole Slams; one on Steiner and the other on Khan.
The Latin American Xchange (Homicide and Hernandez), who were accompanied by Salinas
Shelly Martinez
Shelly Leonor Martinez is a Mexican American model, actress, professional wrestler and valet. She is known for her work with World Wrestling Entertainment on its ECW brand under the ring name Ariel and for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling under the ring name Salinas as valet to The Latin American...
and Hector Guerrero, defended the TNA World Tag Team Championship against Team 3D (Brother Ray and Brother Devon) in the third match. During the match, Hernandez ran from one side of the ring to the other and jumped over the top rope to the outside in a move Hernandez dubbed the "SuperMex" in an attempt to knock down Team 3D. LAX won the match when Homicide pulled back on Devon's leg, which caused Devon to fall backwards; Homicide then held Devon's shoulders down against the mat for the three count in a pinning attempt called a roll-up.
Next was a $25,000 Fan challenge, which pitted Awesome Kong against Serena Deeb
Serena Deeb
Serena Deeb is an American professional wrestler. She is best known for her time with World Wrestling Entertainment, appearing on the SmackDown brand and also known for her time with the developmental territory Florida Championship Wrestling. under the ring name Serena...
. Kong pinned Deeb after she hooked both of Deeb's arms behind her back, lifted her up, and slammed her face down to the mat in a move Kong dubbed the Implant Buster to gain the pinfall victory. Another fan challenge took place afterwards with Kong defeating Josie Robinson (Josette Bynum) by lifting Robinson up onto her shoulders and falling to a seated position to slam her back down onto the mat in a move Kong dubbed the Awesome Bomb. Following the second bout, Eric Young
Eric Young (wrestler)
Jeremy Fritz is a Canadian professional wrestler, best known under his ring name Eric Young. He currently performs for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he has gained popularity using a variety of comic relief gimmicks....
entered the arena with an Elvis
Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley was one of the most popular American singers of the 20th century. A cultural icon, he is widely known by the single name Elvis. He is often referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll" or simply "the King"....
impersonator
Elvis impersonator
An Elvis impersonator is someone who impersonates or copies famed American musician Elvis Presley. Professional Elvis impersonators can work all over the world as entertainers, and such tribute acts are in great demand due to the unique iconic status of Elvis...
, however, the impersonator was stopped by Kong, who performed an Awesome Bomb on him as well.
The wedding of Jay Lethal and SoCal Val took place afterwards. It began with the groomsmen entering the arena: Ace Young, Kamala, Jake Roberts, Koko B. Ware, and George Steele. After the on-screen Preacher for the wedding asked if anyone had any objections to why Lethal and Val should not be married, Dutt was scripted to announce that he was in love with Val and that she should be marrying him instead of Lethal. Lethal became enraged at Dutt's statements and began to argue with him to follow the narrative plot. Afterward, Lethal went and checked on Val, until Dutt came from behind him and hit him with a tower that was part of the wedding set. Dutt continued to assault Lethal until the groomsmen came to Lethal's defense. The fight came to an end when Roberts placed his real-life pet snake on Dutt, which, in-turn, caused Dutt to run off in fear.
Main event matches
Referee (professional wrestling)
A professional wrestling referee is the official figure that makes sure that wrestling matches move smoothly in an attempt to maintain kayfabe. The referee also has the ultimate power in the ring...
barred Tomko from ringside and sent him to the backstage area. Most of the match was back and forth between the two with each countering the other's moves either into holds
Professional wrestling holds
Professional wrestling holds include a number of set moves and pins used by performers to immobilize their opponents or lead to a submission. This article covers the various pins, stretches and transition holds used in the ring...
to make him concede defeat or moves to wear him down. The referee was narrated to appear unconscious near the end of the match after Angle accidentally ran into him. This allowed Karen Angle to enter the arena with a steel chair and call for Kurt to take it. When Kurt grabbed it, Karen refused to let go. Styles then grabbed Kurt, lift him up and held him upside down, followed by trapping Angle's arms behind his legs, and jump forward to implant Angle's face and body into the mat in a move Styles calls the "Styles Clash."
The main event was for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship in the King of the Mountain match with Kevin Nash as Special Guest Ringside Enforcer, in which Samoa Joe defended the championship against Robert Roode, Booker T, Rhino, and Christian Cage. Booker T became the first eligible to hang the belt after he pinned Rhino following lifting him up sideways and slamming down back first with a move he dubbed the "Book End." The next to qualify was Roode after he hit Cage with a steel chair to a ladder which Cage held to gain the pinfall. Rhino followed a little later by pinning Roode with a roll-up. A few minutes later, Cage qualified by pinning Booker T following a splash from the top of a padded turnbuckle onto Booker T, who was held in a rear naked choke submission hold by Joe. While Booker T was standing on the outside of the ring, he grabbed the World Heavyweight Championship from one of the referee's hands and hit Nash over the head with it; Booker T then entered the ring to try and hang the belt. After Nash recovered, he entered the ring and stopped Booker T from hanging the belt by lifting him from the ladder, which he was standing on, and dropping him down to the mat in a move he dubbed the "Jackknife Powerbomb." A few moments later while Roode was climbing the ladder trying to hang the belt, Joe entered and lifted Roode up off the ladder, fell to his back, and slammed Roode's back and neck into his shoulder and the mat by using a maneuver dubbed the "Muscle Buster." Joe then climbed up the ladder to hang the belt and retain the championship.
Incident
Following the conclusion of the Slammiversary event, a man by the name of Kevin "Angus" Sinex was removing a light array, when the scaffolding that he was working on collapsed, which caused Sinex to fall to the concrete floor below. He was immediately rushed to the Baptist DeSoto Hospital in Southaven, Mississippi, where he was later pronounced dead. Another crew worker named Paul Martin lost a thumb in the incident, and he was also taken to the hospital. TNA released a statement the next day on behalf of President of TNA Wrestling Dixie Carter. The Impact! following the event was dedicated to Sinex, with a banner at the beginning of the show stating "In memory Kevin Sinex (1963–2008)".Aftermath
| Other on-screen talent | |
|---|---|
| Commentator | Mike Tenay Mike Tenay Michael William "Mike" Tenay is a professional wrestling play-by-play announcer currently employed by Total Nonstop Action Wrestling . Prior to signing with TNA in 2002, he had a notable tenure with World Championship Wrestling from 1994-2001... |
| Don West Don West (sportscaster) Donald "Don" West is an American pitchman, television personality and wrestling broadcaster currently working as an on-screen talent for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, and also as a pitchman for WildWestDeals.com, an internet marketing website... |
|
| Frank Trigg Frank Trigg Dewey Franklin Trigg III is an American mixed martial artist, color commentator, pro wrestler and co-host of MMAWeekly radio show and TAGG radio show... |
|
| Hector Guerrero Hector Guerrero Héctor Manuel Guerrero Llanes is a Mexican-American professional wrestler, better known simply by his paternal name, Héctor Guerrero... |
|
| Willie Urbina | |
| Ring announcer | Jeremy Borash Jeremy Borash Jeremy Borash , is an American professional wrestling play-by-play commentator, announcer, ring announcer, booker, interviewer, producer and website designer... |
| David Penzer David Penzer David Penzer is an American professional wrestling ring announcer, most recently working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling. He is perhaps best known for his appearances with World Championship Wrestling between 1995 and 2001.... |
|
| Referee | Earl Hebner Earl Hebner Earl William Hebner is a professional wrestling referee currently working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, and the twin brother of Dave Hebner... |
| Rudy Charles Rudy Charles Daniel Engler is an American professional wrestling referee, better known by his ring name, Rudy Charles, best known for his time as a referee in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , where he was the promotion's senior referee... |
|
| Mark "Slick" Johnson | |
| Andrew Thomas | |
| Interviewers | Jeremy Borash |
| Lauren Thompson Lauren Brooke (interviewer) Lauren Thompson or Lauren Brooke is a U.S. television personality, print and voiceover model who works for Golf Channel hosting "Top Ten" and "Golf Now" , as well the "College Sports Minute". She is also known for previously working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling as a backstage interviewer... |
Following Slammiversary, Samoa Joe and Booker T went on to have a storyline rivalry over the TNA World Heavyweight Championship. Their rivalry began when Booker T demanded a championship match at TNA's July PPV event, Victory Road, on the June 12 episode of Impact!. Joe accepted and the match was made official by TNA on the same episode. At Victory Road, their match ended in a no contest when Joe assaulted Booker T, referees
Referee (professional wrestling)
A professional wrestling referee is the official figure that makes sure that wrestling matches move smoothly in an attempt to maintain kayfabe. The referee also has the ultimate power in the ring...
, security guards, and other TNA personnel. This caused Sting to enter the area and try and stop Joe's assault. When Joe refused to quit, Sting struck Joe in the stomach and back with a baseball bat, which Sting held in his hand. This allowed Booker T to cover Joe for the three count, however, the referee for the match was unconscious; Booker T's wife Sharmell counted the pinfall instead. It was later announced on the July 17 episode of Impact!, that Booker T did not win the championship, due to the that Sharmell was not an official referee.
A.J. Styles and Kurt Angle continued their rivalry after Slammiversary. In the weeks leading to Victory Road, Styles gained alliances in Rhino and Christian Cage, while Kurt also gained two in the pairing of Team 3D (Brother Ray and Brother Devon). At Victory Road, Styles, Cage, and Rhino fought Team 3D and Kurt in a Six Man Tag Team Full Metal Mayhem match, in which Kurt and Team 3D claimed victory after Kurt's real-life best friend, Frank Trigg
Frank Trigg
Dewey Franklin Trigg III is an American mixed martial artist, color commentator, pro wrestler and co-host of MMAWeekly radio show and TAGG radio show...
, entered the arena and hit Styles with a kendo stick
Shinai
is a weapon used for practice and competition in kendo representing a Japanese sword. Shinai are also used in other martial arts, but may be styled differently from kendo shinai, and represented with different characters....
, which allowed Kurt to pin Styles after slamming him through a table. In a Full Metal Mayhem match, two or more competitors or teams of two or more fight to either gain a pinfall, submission, or climb a ladder to retrieve an envelope or a championship belt
Championship (professional wrestling)
A Championship or "title" in professional wrestling is a recognition promoted by professional wrestling organizations.Championship reigns are determined by professional wrestling matches, in which competitors are involved in scripted rivalries...
in no disqualification rules.
Robert Roode went on to form a tag team with James Storm under the tag team name of Beer Money, which was later changed to Beer Money, Inc. They fought The Latin American Xchange (Homicide and Hernandez) (LAX) on the June 12 episode of Impact! for the TNA World Tag Team Championship. They originally won the match, however, the referee reversed the decision after he found out that Storm and Roode won illegally. The match was restarted, however, this time LAX won. After the match, Roode and Storm assaulted LAX and Hector Guerrero. Later, LAX challenged Storm and Roode to a match where real-life fans were placed around the ring with leather straps in-order to whip anyone who gets outside the ring in a match TNA calls a "Fan's Revenge" Lumberjack Strap match. Storm and Roode accepted the challenge only after it was made for the World Tag Team Championship on the June 19 episode of Impact!. Storm and Roode were defeated by LAX at Victory Road.
Reception
The Canadian Online ExplorerCanadian Online Explorer
Canadian Online Explorer is a bilingual online news and information site from Canada.A subsidiary of Quebecor Media, Canoe.ca is a leading local and national interactive media provider of news, entertainment and services, helping to inform and connect Canadians...
's writer Jon Waldman rated the entire event a 7 out of 10 stars, which was lower than the 2007 event's
Slammiversary (2007)
Slammiversary was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, which took place on June 17, 2007 at the Nashville Municipal Auditorium in Nashville, Tennessee. It was the third event under the Slammiversary chronology and marked the fifth anniversary of...
rating of 8 out of 10 stars. The encounter between A.J. Styles and Kurt Angle was rated a 9 out of 10 stars, while the King of the Mountain match for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship was rated a 6 out of 10 stars. Phil Allely, a journalist for the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
newspaper The Sun
The Sun (newspaper)
The Sun is a daily national tabloid newspaper published in the United Kingdom and owned by News Corporation. Sister editions are published in Glasgow and Dublin...
, thought that the bout between A.J. Styles and Kurt Angle was "easily the best match of the night." He later stated in his review that "Slammiversary was a well meaning PPV that had one amazing bout, many solid ones, not as many run-ins as normal and helped build lots of new feuds to keep TNA going into its seventh year." The event was released on DVD on August 19, 2008 by TNA Home Video
TNA Home Video
TNA Home Video is a division of Total Nonstop Action Wrestling that releases TNA's PPV events & other TNA produced compilations on DVD. TNA Home Video was formed in 2005 to partner with Navarre Corporation to distribute and produce TNA's expanding video library...
. The DVD reached a peak position of number four on Billboard's
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
DVD Sales Chart for recreational sports during the week of September 13, 2008. The DVD remained on the chart for two consecutive weeks, although it ranked lower after the week of September 20, 2008, when it ranked number sixteen; it fell off the chart afterwards.
Results
| # | Results | Stipulations | Times |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Motor City Machineguns (Alex Shelley Alex Shelley Patrick Martin , is an American professional wrestler, better known by the ring name Alex Shelley. He wrestles for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he currently teams with Chris Sabin as The Motor City Machine Guns. He previously gained fame on the independent circuit, working most notably for... and Chris Sabin Chris Sabin Joshua Harter is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Chris Sabin. He is currently working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , where he currently teams with Alex Shelley as The Motor City Machine Guns.After being trained by Scott D'Amore, Sabin debuted in 2000 for... ) defeated Lance Hoyt Lance Hoyt Lance Hoyt is an American professional wrestler, currently signed to New Japan Pro Wrestling as Lance Archer. He is best known for his work in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he is a two time NWA World Tag Team Champion with Kid Kash while the title was under the TNA banner... and Johnny Devine Johnny Devine John Peter "J.P." Parsonage is a Canadian professional wrestler, better known by his ring name "Hot Shot" Johnny Devine... |
Tag Team match Tag team Tag team professional wrestling is a variation in which matches are contested between teams of multiple wrestlers. A tag team may comprise two wrestlers who normally wrestle in singles competition, but more commonly are made of established teams who wrestle regularly as a unit and have a team name... |
||
| 1 | Petey Williams Petey Williams Peter "Petey" Williams III is a Canadian professional wrestler. He is best known for his tenure in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he is a two time X Division Champion and a former captain of Team Canada. Williams Currently Wrestles for Lucha Libre USA... (c) (with Scott Steiner Scott Steiner Scott Carl Rechsteiner is an American professional wrestler better known by his ring name Scott Steiner. Steiner is perhaps best known for his appearances with World Championship Wrestling alongside his older brother Rick as the Steiner Brothers and as a member of the New World Order... and Rhaka Khan Trenesha Biggers Trenesha Biggers is a model and professional wrestler who worked for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling under the ring name Rhaka Khan. She was in the final top 25 in the 2005 WWE Diva Search.-Professional wrestling career:... ) defeated Kaz Frankie Kazarian Frank B. Gerdelman is an Armenian-American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Frankie Kazarian or simply Kazarian. He is currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling... |
Standard wrestling match for the TNA X Division Championship TNA X Division Championship The TNA X Division Championship is a professional wrestling championship owned by the Total Nonstop Action Wrestling promotion. It is primarily defended in TNA's X Division—a style based on a fast-paced, daredevil type of wrestling... |
15:19 |
| 2 | Gail Kim Gail Kim Gail Kim is a Canadian professional wrestler of Korean descent, who is currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , where she is the current TNA Women's Knockout Champion and one half of the TNA Knockouts Tag Team Champions with Madison Rayne... , ODB Jessica Kresa Jessica Kresa is an American professional wrestler and actress better known as ODB , currently working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where she is a former three–time TNA Women's Knockout Champion.... , and Roxxi Nicole Raczynski Nicole Raczynski is an American professional wrestler, best known for working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling under the ring name Roxxi... defeated The Beautiful People The Beautiful People (professional wrestling) The Beautiful People was an alliance of professional wrestlers that appeared in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , consisting of Angelina Love, Velvet Sky, Cute Kip, Madison Rayne and Lacey Von Erich. The stable was known for their narcissistic gimmick, and holding the TNA Women's Knockout... (Angelina Love and Velvet Sky Velvet Sky Jamie Szantyr is an American professional wrestler currently working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling under the ring name Velvet Sky. She is a former TNA Women's Knockout Champion and TNA Knockouts Tag Team Champion with her former Beautiful People partners Madison Rayne and Lacey Von Erich... ) and Moose Mickie Knuckles Mickie Lee Knuckles is an American professional wrestler who has worked for a number of major independent promotions, including Independent Wrestling Association Mid-South, Chikara and Combat Zone Wrestling. She also worked for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling under the name Moose... |
Six Woman Tag Team match | 10:14 |
| 3 | The Latin American Xchange (Homicide Nelson Erazo Nelson Rodriguez Erazo is an American professional wrestler of Puerto Rican descent, better known by his ring name, Homicide... and Hernandez Shawn Hernandez Shawn Hernandez is an American professional wrestler of Mexican and Puerto Rican descent, better known by his ring names, "Hotstuff Hernandez" and "Hernandez".... ) (with Salinas Shelly Martinez Shelly Leonor Martinez is a Mexican American model, actress, professional wrestler and valet. She is known for her work with World Wrestling Entertainment on its ECW brand under the ring name Ariel and for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling under the ring name Salinas as valet to The Latin American... and Hector Guerrero Hector Guerrero Héctor Manuel Guerrero Llanes is a Mexican-American professional wrestler, better known simply by his paternal name, Héctor Guerrero... ) (c) defeated Team 3D Dudley Boyz Team 3D was a professional wrestling tag team, consisting of Brother Ray and Brother Devon, formerly sporadically joined into a stable by Brother Runt on several intervals... (Brother Ray and Brother Devon) |
Tag Team match for the TNA World Tag Team Championship TNA World Tag Team Championship The TNA World Tag Team Championship is a professional wrestling world tag team championship owned by the Total Nonstop Action Wrestling promotion. It is primarily contested within TNA's tag team division. It was created and debuted on May 14, 2007 at the taping of TNA's primary television program,... |
15:00 |
| 4 | Awesome Kong Kia Stevens Kia Michelle Stevens , better known by her ring names Amazing Kong, Awesome Kong and Kharma. She is signed with WWE, but has been inactive since May 2011 due to pregnancy... (with Raisha Saeed) defeated Serena Deeb Serena Deeb Serena Deeb is an American professional wrestler. She is best known for her time with World Wrestling Entertainment, appearing on the SmackDown brand and also known for her time with the developmental territory Florida Championship Wrestling. under the ring name Serena... |
$25,000 Fan Challenge | 02:26 |
| 5 | Awesome Kong (with Raisha Saeed) defeated Josie Robinson | $25,000 Fan Challenge | 01:42 |
| 6 | A.J. Styles A.J. Styles Allen Neal Jones , better known by his ring name A.J. Styles is an American professional wrestler currently working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling... defeated Kurt Angle Kurt Angle Kurt Steven Angle is an American professional wrestler, amateur wrestler, and 1996 Olympic gold medalist. He is currently under contract with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he is recognized as a 15-time World Heavyweight Champion... (with Tomko Travis Tomko Travis David Tomko is an American professional wrestler, known by his ring name Tomko, who most recently worked for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he previously was a member of Christian's Coalition and the Angle Alliance and often worked alongside A.J. Styles. He was also notable for his... ) |
Standard wrestling match | 22:44 |
| 7 | Samoa Joe Samoa Joe Nuufolau Joel "Joe" Seanoa is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Samoa Joe. He is currently under contract with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling.... (c) defeated Robert Roode, Booker T Booker Huffman Robert Booker Tio Huffman , better known by his ring name Booker T, is a semi-retired American professional wrestler and currently signed to WWE, on its SmackDown brand, as part of the announcing team. Booker is best known for his time in both the World Wrestling Entertainment and World... , Rhino Terry Gerin Terrance "Terry" Gerin is an American professional wrestler and actor, better known by the ring name Rhino . He is best known for his career in Extreme Championship Wrestling, World Wrestling Federation / Entertainment and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling... , and Christian Cage Jason Reso William Jason Reso is a Canadian professional wrestler and actor, better known by his ring names Christian and Christian Cage... |
King of the Mountain match King of the Mountain match The King of the Mountain match is a professional wrestling match exclusive to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling . It consists of five competitors competing for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship or the TNA X Division Championship as of Slammiversary 2009... for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship TNA World Heavyweight Championship The TNA World Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship owned by the Total Nonstop Action Wrestling promotion. It is currently the highest ranked championship in TNA and is primarily defended in TNA's heavyweight division... with Kevin Nash Kevin Nash Kevin Scott Nash is an American professional wrestler and actor. As of 2011, Nash is signed to a five year contract with WWE under their WWE Legends program and appears as part of their Raw brand roster... as the Special Guest Ringside Enforcer |
19:49 |
King of the Mountain match
| Qualification # | Wrestler | Wrestler pinned or submitted | Method |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Booker T | Rhino | Pinned after a Book End. |
| 2 | Robert Roode | Christian Cage | Pinned after a steel chair Folding chair A folding chair is a light, portable chair that that folds flat, and can be stored in a stack, row, or on a cart.-Uses:Folding chairs are generally used for seating in areas where permanent seating is not possible or practical. This includes outdoor and indoor events such as funerals, college... shot onto a ladder Ladder A ladder is a vertical or inclined set of rungs or steps. There are two types: rigid ladders that can be leaned against a vertical surface such as a wall, and rope ladders that are hung from the top. The vertical members of a rigid ladder are called stringers or stiles . Rigid ladders are usually... . |
| 3 | Rhino | Robert Roode | Pinned with a roll-up |
| 4 | Christian Cage | Booker T | Pinned after a Frog splash. |
| 5 | Samoa Joe | Robert Roode | Pinned after a Muscle Buster. |
| Hung the belt to win. | |||
See also
- Slammiversary
- List of TNA pay-per-view events
- King of the Mountain matchKing of the Mountain matchThe King of the Mountain match is a professional wrestling match exclusive to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling . It consists of five competitors competing for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship or the TNA X Division Championship as of Slammiversary 2009...