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I attended the TNA Impact Wrestling "Basebrawl" event in Abderdeen, MD last night (7/20/12). Ripken Stadium was probably just under half capacity, considering the ringside section was sold out, but almost no one was seated in the two upper level sections.
Jimmy Jay was the merchandise barker, and Christy Hemme was on ring announcing duties.
AJ Styles defeated Kazarian via Styles Clash. Kaz cut a heel promo before AJ's entrance. Good back and forth match between these two guys who know how to work together. Crowd was really into this match, and it was a great choice to open the show.
Gail Kim defeated Rosita via roll-up. This was a messy match, with some seemingly botched spots and misconnections. Crowd was not very into it. Gail tried to cut a promo early on, but didn't do much good in drawing heat.
Rob Van Dam defeated Robbie E. after a Five-Star Frog Splash. Some early back and forth with Robbie escaping to the outside often. RVD teased a Rolling Thunder, Robbie rolled out of the way.
Jeff Hardy defeated Mr. Anderson via pinfall, after a Twist of Fate. Anderson did his usual microphone shtick he does at the house shows. Some good comedy from Anderson throughout the match. Hardy hit the Whisper in the Wind to set-up a small comeback from Anderson, before a Hardy reversal into a Twist of Fate for the win.
Intermission.
Sting defeated Bobby Roode via pinfall, after a Scorpion Death Drop. Surprisingly great match from Sting and Roode. One of the longer bouts on the card, if not the longest of the night. Roode entered first, slowly and playing his heel character perfectly. Sting was introduced to the biggest ovation of the night. Roode cut a comedic heel promo before the match -- "messing up" his lines and telling the crowd to shut up, running into the speakers and facing them down, getting in the faces of Hebner and Hemme, etc. No rest holds at all from what I can remember. They took the action to the outside with Sting throwing Roode into the guardrails a few times. Roode said he had enough and begins walking towards the locker room. Sting grabs him from behind and goes on the attack. Sting goes full-on Joker and throws everything off of the staff table where Hemme, et al were sitting and propped the table up against a big tent that was set up. Sting then irish-whipped Roode into the table. They make their way back into the ring, where Sting hits a few Stinger Splashes, before locking in the Scorpion Deathlock. Roode reaches the ropes to break the hold. A few exchanges later, Roode gets Sting in the corner. Sting moves out of the way of Roode's charging attack, which sets up perfectly for a Scorpion Death Drop for the win.
Main Event: TNA champion Austin Aries defeated Bully Ray via submission. In a surprisingly quick main event, Austin Aeries and Bully Ray put on a good, entertaining match to close out the night. Lots of comedy spots early on between the two competitors. Lots of crowd chants that Bully played off of perfectly, like "We want Devon". After taking the action to the outside Aeries hit some impressive kicks and running/aerial attacks, and locked in his signature submission for the win.
Notes:
- The wrestlers all entered seated on John Deere people movers. RVD stood up in the back of his during his entrance.
- The ring was incredibly small. I don't remember it being this small at other TNA events I have attended in the past. It seemed to hinder the action, as guys like AJ, Kaz, Hardy and Aeries seemed to not be able to get momentum as they bounced off the ropes. When Roode reached for the ropes while he was in the Scorpion Deathlock, it was almost comical how he had to pretend he couldn't reach the ropes when it was painfully obvious he could have stuck half of his arm outside of the ring.
- Almost all of the wrestlers interacted with the crowd, slapping fives, taking pictures, and hugging audience members before and after the matches. Sting even gave one of his gloves to a fan after his match.
- Before the show, they were promoting that if you bought the AJ Styles action figure at the merchandise booth, you got to go backstage to meet AJ before the show started.
- For $50, you and a friend could go backstage at intermission to do an added meet-and-greet/signing with AJ, RVD, Bully Ray, and (believe it or not) Sting.
- Austin Aeries took pictures after the show with the title belt for free.
- Jimmy Jay not quite as good as Don West at schilling the merchandise. Also not as interactive with the fans, nor did he give away as much free stuff as Don.
- Biggest pop of the night, hands down, was Sting. Hardy, Anderson and RVD also got pretty rousing reactions, but nowhere close to Sting. I think the crowd was excited to see everyone on the card, so even guys like Roode and Bully Ray got a good amount of cheers. No one generated too much heat, other than the go-away heat for Robbie.
This was my third time at a TNA event -- I was at an iMPACT taping the night after the EV 2.0 reunion at "Hardcore Justice", and the house show in Upper Marlboro, MD last year. Overall -- other than the Knockouts match -- this card was above and beyond the last show I attended. Basebrawl is a cool concept, but the stadiums leave the audience too far spread from the action and makes the overall atmosphere sparse and dead -- which is sad, because everyone there was genuinely into the show, unlike the jaded crowds we see at the Impact Zone. Great show by TNA overall.
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