The Triple Threat 4.13.08: The 87th Edition – Lockdown Preview and Kurt Angle Highlighted

Topic # 1 TNA’s Lockdown is this Sunday, what are your thoughts on the card?

David Martell: I am going to be honest, I really don’t watch TNA. Every time I try it just one big disappointment. With that said, this PPV actually looks decent. We get two woman’s matches on the card which is NEVER seen so that is pretty neat. Anything with Awesome Kong in it is going to be decent and the Queen of the Cage match will probably be fun. The Cuffed in the Cage match could be interesting. I love tag team wrestling and TNA seems to have a good amount of decent tag teams out there. I will have to give TNA credit on there tag and women’s divisions because they are superior to the WWE’s. BG James vs. Kip James will be shit, this would be a good bathroom break or smoke break, whatever you prefer. I also don’t care about the mixed tag match with Booker T and Sharmell vs. Robert Roode and Payton Banks. I just can’t get into their storyline. The X division Xscape match will be awesome and could be the best match of the night if done right. I’m kind of skeptical about the Lethal Lockdown match because on one side, you have an awesome team of Cage, Sting, Matt Morgan, Rhino and Nash. Not so much Nash. On the other side, you have a crappy team of Team 3D, Tomko, James Storm and AJ Styles. Not so much AJ Styles. I’m sure it will be a pretty damn good match but it could be so much better if the teams were more even. Now we get to the main event for the TNA World Title with Angle going against Joe. Many people are saying that Joe will finally win the title here and that’s great. I do think it’s too late though. They should have let Joe have the title a long time ago when he was on a hot streak. Maybe I can be proven wrong tonight but it just seems like it doesn’t matter anymore. Overall, this PPV looks decent and if you’re a TNA fan this looks like a good buy.

Alex Mattis: Decent looking card. One of TNA’s trademark PPV’s will take place Sunday and could prove to be a landmark for TNA because the man who should have had their title for the past year or so may finally win it. But I’ve said that a million times. That’s right; Samoa Joe is once again going for the gold. This man should have been carrying TNA, and the company may be in a different place if he had won the title back in the King of the Mountain match instead of Kurt, but I guess we’ll never know. All signs would point to the notion that Joe is getting the belt. And I suppose you can say better late than never, but I just don’t know how much it means now. I’m sure we’ll get a great match and a cool moment with Joe winning the belt. And who knows this may help the company get over the huge hump they are facing. Cause let’s face it, TNA is in a fucked state and needs some change to get it rolling in a better direction. Joe needs to be the face of TNA and while it should have started long ago, if it starts this Sunday then wonderful. Often times now-a-day’s I’m asking myself what is TNA doing right these days? Well not a lot, but the women’s division is definitely one thing. And it shows that they have a lot of faith in it giving it three places to shine on the Lockdown card. The mixed tag match should be fun, the “Knockouts” tag match should be something (I’ll watch damn near anything that involves Amazing Kong wrestling), and the “Queen of the Cage” should be an entertaining women’s spot fest. I assume the winner of that will get a shot at the title, some great prize huh? As at every LockDown we have the Xscape match. A little spin on it putting the X Division title on the line, it should be a fun spot fest as it has come to be known for. I see this coming down to Lethal and Dutt going from the on-going tension they have going on TV. Possibly even with a heel turn from Dutt leading to him winning the title. I can make all the predictions I want, but knowing TNA’s booking anything can happen. Another LockDown tradition in the “Lethal LockDown” match. And this year we have Team Tomko against Team Cage. Should be the usual shenanigans that this match has shown the past three years. Expect AJ to do something crazy. Christian will more than likely win this match for his team. As I have said for the past several TNA PPV’s, this could be a good show let’s just see how the booking pans out.

Zach Brown: This card looks very entertaining to me. The two Women’s cage matches are sure to impress because TNA’s women almost always deliver. The Cuffed in the Cage match should be awesome because most of the wrestlers in that match are amazing wrestlers. The only match on the card that looks lame to me is the “Former Partners Collide” match. Both BG James and Kip James are over the hill, and don’t belong in a wrestling ring anymore. The mixed tag match between Booker T and Robert Roode (and their respective female companions could be good because both Booker T and Robert Roode are solid wrestlers. The X Division Championship match should be good, but expect Black Machismo to retain the title. The Lethal Lockdown match never disappoints. But I have to admit, this year’s Lethal Lockdown isn’t as star studded as the past Lethal Lockdown matches have been. I mean, Tomko as a team captain? He just doesn’t strike me as a top tier TNA wrestler yet. And finally, the moment that is long overdue in TNA. I of course mean Samoa Joe’s run with the TNA Heavyweight title. Even though it’s tragic that he’ll most likely never get to hold the NWA title, it’s still important for Samoa Joe to be the face of TNA at some point in his career. To say it’s long overdue is an understatement. This match should be amazing of course, but I just hope TNA finally takes the plunge and makes Angle drop the strap.

Topic #2 Naddie Neidhart made her debut on Smackdown recently. What are your thoughts on her moving up to the main roster?

David Martell: An actual good women’s wrestler coming to the WWE, greatness. You don’t see that a lot. The WWE only has a handful of decent women wrestlers which include Beth Phoenix, Victoria, Mickey James. The more the merrier I say. She also has good genes and I’ve heard that she even does a sharpshooter, which is completely awesome. I look forward to seeing where she goes.

Alex Mattis:Cool, we need more good women wrestlers. She come from one of the most famous family’s in wrestling history and I’m sure she looking to live her legacy in the biz. I’m not sure what the E will do with her as they seem to have a problem with the women division (Beth Pheonix murdering everyone), but I would like to see a showdown between her and Beth.

Zach Brown: Well let’s just say that Jim Neidhart has some good genes. But seriously, this girl knows how to wrestle. Can you name any female wrestlers that use a spinning powerbomb or a Sharpshooter? I really can’t. Hopefully Natalie can give Beth Phoenix a run for her money. I honestly can’t think of any other female wrestlers in WWE (besides maybe Victoria) that could believably beat Beth Phoenix. As much as I love Beth, she does have a lot of meat on her bones, and that’s a quality that a lot of the other Divas are lacking. Hopefully Neidhart can challenge Phoenix in that area, and we’ll have another genuinely talented female wrestler on our hands.

Topic #3 WWE has plans to open up a concussion awareness program. What are your thoughts on this?

David Martell: I like where the WWE is going with all of these programs helping out wrestlers. It sucks that the Chris Benoit incident had to be the wake up call. Wrestlers, especially WWE wrestlers who are constantly on the road, endure a ridiculous amount of physical stress. Concussions are probably normal in the business and helping those people out who suffer from concussions is fine and dandy to me.

Alex Mattis: What is concussion awareness? “Yo if you get hit the head with a chair you may get a concussion. I mean seriously. This is most likely just another ploy by Vince & Co. to look good on the exterior but it’ll be just as legit as their wellness plan. Substance abuse awareness you think would be higher on priority.

Zach Brown: If WWE is serious about doing this, then I couldn’t be happier. Obviously, the first thing that comes to mind is “What if WWE had this before the Chris Benoit incident?” Maybe things could have been different. But who knows? It’s clear as day that wrestlers can undergo some intense physical stress. If WWE continues to create programs that monitor the mental and physical health of their wrestlers, hopefully we’ll never have any more shocking deaths in wrestling world again.

Topic #4 Torrie Wilson recently hinted on a possible retirement on her myspace blog. What do you think about this?

David Martell: Torrie Wilson sucks. I would be happy if she retired. I can’t even think of one match in her career that was half way decent. Please prove me wrong if there was one. Yeah, she looks good but obviously the WWE doesn’t have a problem with finding good looking women to strut their stuff on a normal basis. I say good riddance.

Alex Mattis: Retiring? From what? Lookin’ hot? What has she ever done in wrestling to have the word “retirement” branded on her departure? Especially right after Ric Flair, her “retirement” would be like Dewey Cox following Elvis Presley. That being said, she is still really hot and I would like to see her in an interviewer roll because I feel that she comes across naturally on the mic and translates well to her audience.

Zach Brown: So apparently, Torrie Wilson is thinking about retiring due to back problems caused by her wrestling career. If Torrie left WWE, I can’t say I’d miss her too much. She hasn’t done too much in recent memory, and to be honest, I’m surprised she’s still in WWE. I’m kind of shocked that she hasn’t bowed out already like Stacy Kiebler, Trish Stratus, or even Lita. But really, her health should be the number one priority. After hearing news like that from a doctor, she should just be able to leave WWE, no questions asked.

Topic #5 Mike Knox has been caught up in a steroid scandal. What are your thoughts on this?

David Martell: I am glad all these wrestlers are getting caught. It is about time this crap is getting taken care of. Mike Knox is a sad, sad man and I have no idea why the E even hired him. I say good riddance.

Alex Mattis: This guy is still around? I don’t have any real thoughts on the subject. I’m sure the E had this material presented to them so they didn’t have to make another example of a mid-carder. I thought this guy was gone from the E, but if he wasn’t already this will certainly do it.

Zach Brown: How dumb do you have to be to leave a stash of steroids in your old house? Mike Knox is not a good wrestler by any means, so I’m not too affected by this news to be honest. The issue of steroid use in wrestling is barely even relevant in this story. The important thing to notice is Mike Knox’s sheer stupidity. There weren’t any raids on his house, no inquiries with his doctor, no discovery of a purchase through an online vendor. Just “Hey Mike, we found steroids in your house.” “Oops.”

Superstar Highlight

Kurt Angle

Career Stats:
• Total Nonstop Action Wrestling
• TNA World Heavyweight Championship (2 times, current) (First)
• TNA World Tag Team Championship (1 time) with Sting
• TNA X Division Championship (1 time)
• King of the Mountain (2007)
• Second Triple Crown Champion (1 time)
• World Wrestling Federation/Entertainment
• WCW United States Championship (1 time)
• WCW World Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
• WWE Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Chris Benoit (First)
• WWF/E Championship (4 times)
• WWF European Championship (1 time)
• WWF Hardcore Championship (1 time)
• WWF Intercontinental Championship (1 time)
• World Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
• King of the Ring (2000)
• Inoki Genome Federation
• IWGP Third Belt Championship (1 time)

What are your thoughts on Kurt Angle?

David Martell: I honestly don’t give a crap about Kurt Angle anymore. He is the Triple H of TNA and every time I decide to watch TNA, all I get is a great big helping of Kurt Angle. He is completely nuts. He dogs everything WWE including there video games. I don’t know about you guys, but I have been playing WWE Smackdown since it first came out and those video games are awesome. I think somewhere down deep inside, Kurt Angle wishes he was back in the WWE. I do think he’s a phenomenal wrestler and one of the best technical wrestlers of all time but he needs to get his brain checked.

Alex Mattis: Oh crazy Kurt. TNA’s only star it would seem. It’s sad to an extent that people look at him with such distain, he is still one of the best wrestlers in the world and some can argue the greatest pure wrestler in the history of professional wrestling. He’s done some good things in TNA, had some good matches, put over Jay Lethal, his comedy is still on point, but the fact that he is constantly forced down our throats can make you tired of the Olympic gold medalist. Once he loses the title I hope he drops to a mid-card program and reminds people that he is still one of the best. Plus his wife is a fox.

Zach Brown: In my honest opinion, Kurt Angle is the most talented technical wrestler of all time. Winning an Olympic gold medal already says so much about how talented an athlete is. But when you become a professional wrestler, it’s a completely different level of competition. Not only does Kurt have some of the sickest submissions and mat skills in professional wrestling, but he’s also incredibly acrobatic as well. You can’t look at Kurt’s moonsault and say he isn’t acrobatic. The man has the whole package. Kurt possesses unbelievable wrestling ability, great charisma in the ring, and the ability to take companies to the next level. I mean let’s be honest, Angle’s move to TNA was pretty much the biggest news in wrestling of 2006. He’s one of the most entertaining wrestlers alive today, and one of my favorite wrestlers of all time.

Something to remember Kurt Angle by.