Looking at new TNA world champion A.J. Styles
If TNA’s goal is to be viewed as a distinctive brand and not a WWE – or even WCW – wannabe, the crowning of A.J. Styles as world champion at the No Surrender pay-per-view on Sunday night was a significant step in that direction.
Styles, who won the title in a five-way match with Kurt Angle, Sting, Matt Morgan and late addition Hernandez, is the face of TNA for many longtime fans of the company. Styles is one of just a few veterans on the current roster who have become top stars in TNA without having first made a name for themselves in either WWE or WCW.
Styles, who has 11 years experience despite being just 31, had won the NWA title three times when that championship was under the TNA banner, but this is his first world title reign since Impact began airing on Spike four years ago. It will be interesting to see if he is given a lengthy run on top or if he is just a transitional champion.
While I think guys such as Matt Morgan and Hernandez have more of a star aura than Styles, whose rather ordinary look, lack of size and Southern drawl work against him, there’s no denying that Styles is a phenomenal worker – pun intended. Any match that he is involved in is likely going to range from good to great. That couldn’t be said when guys such as Mick Foley and Sting were world champion. And as tremendous as Angle is, he is going to be the biggest star in the company regardless of whether or not he has the belt, so it makes more sense to put it on a guy like Styles who could use the help.
Here are some more thoughts on the developments at No Surrender:
Judging by the recaps I have read, the show seemed to be well-booked. TNA president Dixie Carter is more involved in the creative direction of the company than ever before, so hopefully she will be a filter for head writer Vince Russo the way Vince McMahon was when Russo was in WWE.
I especially like the way the five-way title match advanced the story lines. Sting had a chance to pin Angle, but he decided to dive onto Morgan instead. That opened the door for Styles to score the pin and win the title. Looking ahead to next month’s Bound for Glory pay-per-view, the main event figures to be Styles defending the title against Sting. It has been rumored that it could be Sting’s last match, and this would allow him to pass the torch to Styles at TNA’s biggest show of the year. Morgan, meanwhile, came out of the match looking strong because it was his Carbon Footprint that knocked out Angle and set up the winning pin. There most likely will be a Morgan-Angle match at BFG. …
I don’t think it made Hernandez look too smart to cash in his Feast or Fired briefcase to get himself into the main event rather than waiting to face the winner afterward, ala CM Punk and Edge. Although, I suppose it does make Hernandez look more like a babyface for not taking the easy way out. Plus, it added more heat to the feud between Hernandez and Eric Young, as Young attacked Hernandez early in the title match and took him out. …
Thank God Russo resisted the temptation to put the TNA Knockouts title on Cody Deaner. Perhaps Carter wouldn’t allow it. Either way, it was nice to see ODB walk out with the belt. …
Rather than coming up with a story line reason for Angelina Love not being on the show to team with Velvet Sky against Sarita and Taylor Wilde in the finals of the Knockouts tag team title tournament, TNA just told the truth and said that Love and the company have parted ways for business reasons. Works for me.







Comments
What's going on with Awesome Kong? Is she hurt or have they run out of things for her to do at this point?
Posted by: S Patrick | September 21, 2009 5:13 PM
I was happy to finally see ODB win Knockouts title. I didnt like the way Hernandez cash in his briefcase. I would have save something like that for Impact not the ppv. If Styles vs Sting is main event for BFG i hope the match will be as good as last years BFG match between Sting and Joe.
Posted by: jason | September 21, 2009 5:53 PM
Styles having the strap had been LONG overdue , IMO .
Posted by: the artist formerly known as jack in hebron | September 21, 2009 5:59 PM
What do you think the main event at Bound for Glory will be? I was sure it was going to be Angle defending the TNA world title against Lashley. If Styles faces Sting and Angle faces Morgan, who will Lashley wrestle?
Or do you think AJ won't wrestle Sting and drop the title to someone else? It seems odd that they didn't wait until BFG to put the title on him. Do you think they pulled the trigger early because of Kurt Angle's contract status?
RESPONSE FROM KE: I originally thought it would be Angle-Lashley at BFG, too.
Posted by: Anonymous | September 21, 2009 6:05 PM
It seems like you don't make habit of ordering TNA PPVs, for whatever reason, and usually I don't blame you. You really missed out last night. In addition to story developments you focused on, there were several good matches. Suicide vs. Pope was extremely entertaining, the lockdown match had a great pace, and Lashley vs. Rhino was kinda short but appropriately very hard-hitting.
I know you get a lot heat from some comments for being pro-WWE, anti-TNA and I usually think that such arguments are exaggerated, but why is it that you almost always watch WWE PPVs and rarely watch TNA PPVs?
RESPONSE FROM KE: The honest answer about the PPVS is that I just can't squeeze any more wrestling into my life. My official title at The Baltimore Sun is sports editor. It's what I do 40 hrs. a week. Blogging is something that I do in addition to my other duties. The blog started out almost as a hobby, but it has become a part-time job, so now I'm working about 60 hrs. per week. That's not counting the eight hrs per week of wrestling I watch (11 hrs. when WWE has a PPV). I also have a wife and two young children who I wish I could spend more time with, and an elderly mother who is in bad health. Somewhere in there I try to work in going to the gym and getting a few hours of sleep every night.
I'm not complaining, because I love what I do. But you asked, and that is the long answer as to why I only watch the WWE PPVs. One Sunday a month I take three more hours away from my family to watch wrestling. I just can't do it two Sunday per month. And since I think WWE's PPVs deliver more regularly than TNA's, that's why I choose theirs. Plus, TNA often seems more interested in getting people to watch Impact than their PPVS (and it's working, as their buy rates have fone down as their ratings have gone up).
Posted by: J Newbs | September 21, 2009 6:22 PM
If AJ would have started out with the WWE he would be a HUGE star by now. TNA never deserved him.
Its time to bring him in the WWE to take on CM Punk.
Posted by: rob the barber | September 21, 2009 7:54 PM
Why would Hernandez cash in his brief case to be part of a 5 way? That makes him look like one of the biggest idiots in the history of the world.
Posted by: Elevation | September 21, 2009 8:12 PM
I think this is one of the best things TNA could have done. I can't help but remember some of your posts where you talk about how companies need to listen to their fans. The fans have always been behind AJ and its about time he got another run at the top. Despite a lacking in promo skills, he was always a guy people wanted to watch, so i dont think this is a bad move at all. Hopefully he gets more than a couple months. Plus i think a program with angle will be nearly as good for morgan as a title run.
Posted by: Jeff Q | September 21, 2009 8:16 PM
It's worth checking out the Samoa Joe vs. Daniels match. It's not on the same level like their matches used to be 4 years ago, but it was still a good match, and the best match of the PPV.
Posted by: Benny | September 21, 2009 8:25 PM
I am glad to see that TNA finally did the right thing and put the belt back on Styles I don't know why they don't build him up like Jeff hardy While he's alot Like Jeff hardy great work ethic and poor mic skills his matches alone i think could help him get a better rating as long as they stay on this heavy wrestling light stick i think they can build a lot of momemtum and possibly move up the rating in the next 6 months at the very least a half of point.
Posted by: frank from dundalk | September 21, 2009 8:31 PM
I hope they keep the belt on Styles for your exact reasoning. It would have been okay if they had used Morgan instead, but one of those two needed to be the one to get the run for a while. Sting jobbing to Styles as you suggest will be reminiscent of Flair on the first Clash of Champions jobbing to Sting to put him over. You may recall that that show was free on TBS and was on at the same time as Wrestlemania back when the WM's were afternoon shows.
I'm glad that they just came clean with the Angelina Love predicament. Madison Rayne will have to improve 20X to equal the departed one and I'm ever hopeful that Velvet Sky can carry the act on. One positive is more mic time for Velvet. The Knockouts are so much better in the ring than the Divas it's not funny. I will say they both play their roles very well for their respective company.
Posted by: Johnny Valentine was great | September 21, 2009 9:30 PM
I think we can all expect Angelina Love to come back at some point when her Visa issue is cleared up, but what kind of TBP group will she come back to, as it looks like she was replaced with just Rayne, but a Von Erich to boot.
And thank goodness the main event for BFG is Styles vs Sting (most likely), rather than what I feared it would be, Angle vs Lashley. No one cares about "The Boss" , Dixie.
Posted by: Niche | September 21, 2009 10:42 PM
With so much apathy and pessimism revolving the Wrestling buisness today, it's incredibly refreshing to see hard work, dedication and skill rewarded. Congrats to AJ & TNA.
Posted by: ted | September 22, 2009 12:22 AM
Great, great move! I have been watching several older Styles matches on Youtube, and he truly is a unique wrestler with some wicked finishing moves, some of which I wish he'd use again. He, Brian Danielson, and Samoa Joe had an amazing match with several finishing and counter-finishing moves, one after the other...and in a high school gym to boot!
Posted by: jon in bradenton, florida | September 22, 2009 5:50 AM
Johnny Valentine was great,
Ric Flair did not job to Sting at the first Clash of the Champions. It went toa 45-minute draw.
Posted by: Frank | September 22, 2009 10:24 AM
Kevin, I can't thank you enough for all the time you spend working on this blog every week. I know my work days would be much less interesting without it to read. I know before you've mentioned watching the shows on tape but I've got to ask if you've given in and got a DVR (or Tivo) yet. I had stopped watching wrestling for several years and only got back into it after getting a DVR. It's so nice to have everything record automatically and it saves a huge amount of time every week. When you skip all the ads, constant repetitive recaps and lengthy superstar entrances (The Undertaker's comes to mind) a 2 hour episode of Raw quickly becomes 45 minutes. If you adopted a similar love of the fast forward button I'm sure you could cut your 11 hours a week to 6 or 7 without missing a beat. Wrestling is great and all but it's not worth sacrificing sleep or family time for.
Posted by: Bill in C-Land | September 22, 2009 11:13 AM
Nobody deserves the TNA title more than Styles. He is their own home grown wonder boy that most everyone likes.
Posted by: AMC | September 22, 2009 11:58 AM
Thanks for the honest response Kev. Love the blog and keep up the good work.
Posted by: J Newbs | September 22, 2009 12:05 PM
To borrow the words of "ted" above, "it's incredibly refreshing to see [the] hard work, dedication and skill" that is required to maintain an intelligent blog about wrestling. I have said it many times...this is the only wrestling site I read anymore. It always has intelligent analysis and is well worth the read.
RESPONSE FROM KE: The kind words are much appreciated. The blog is time consuming, but it's a labor of love.
Posted by: Jerry | September 22, 2009 12:35 PM
"If AJ would have started out with the WWE he would be a HUGE star by now."
________________________________
I wish that I could agree with that, but unfortunately, I can't. For the reasons that Kevin alluded to (look, size, et cetera) I doubt that WWE would let Styles be anything more than a good midcard act. Pure wrestlers like AJ seldom reach the top of WWE. Chris Benoit was one exception, and, looking waaaayyyyy back, Bob Backlund was another. No one else comes to mind.
Posted by: Christopher | September 22, 2009 8:16 PM
"Thank God Russo resisted the temptation to put the TNA Knockouts title on Cody Deaner. Perhaps Carter wouldn’t allow it. Either way, it was nice to see ODB walk out with the belt. …"
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Well, they've kind of run out of ways to skirt the no man-on-woman violence rules that Spike TV has.
Posted by: Don | September 23, 2009 9:43 AM
Kev I think i can speak for everyone who reads this we all love your blog and for most of us we only joke because we love.
Posted by: frank from dundalk | September 23, 2009 10:39 AM
It's heartwarming when someone has their priorities in order.
Posted by: Arnold | September 24, 2009 5:23 PM