TNA returns to the PPV circuit with Lockdown on Sunday, August 23 from Chicago, IL. The novelty of Lockdown is that every match is inside a steel cage. The current lineup includes:
- TNA World Tag Team Championship: Matt Hardy & Jeff Hardy (c) vs. Nic Nemeth & Ryan Nemeth
- TNA International Championship: Jason Hotch (c) vs. Mustafa Ali
- Knockouts Tag Team Championship: DemonXBunny (c) vs. Elegance Brand
- Moose vs. Frankie Kazarian
- Elijah vs. AJ Francis
These next two matches are not official yet, but all signs strongly point to them being booked for Lockdown
- Knockouts Championship: Xia Brookside (c) vs. Elayna Black
- X-Division Championship: Cedric Alexander (c) vs. Leon Slater
At this point, I’m assuming that the Hardys versus the Nemeths is the main event. There isn’t a compelling story behind this match yet. It came together in a minute. The Nemeths asked, and the Hardys accepted. The story has
been fleshing out in the weeks since. Matt beat up Ryan in a singles match. Nic will defend the TNA World Championship against Jeff on Impact. The Hardys and Nemeth have history in the past. Last year, Nic and Ryan won the titles from the Hardys. The Nemeths proclaimed themselves as the greatest brother tag team of all-time. The Hardys reclaimed the gold a few months later.
Out of the official matches, the international title tilt has the most heat right now. The story of Jason Hotch being fed up with Mustafa Ali’s orders in Order 4 petered out without any rich payoff. Time passed, and the payoff came last week when Hotch defied Ali to challenge for his title. Hotch shocked the Impact Zone to win the belt in a feel-good moment. Next came a true scumbag move by Ali when he placed his hands on Hotch’s wife with the promise to ‘take care’ of her after he destroys Hotch in the rematch. Ali crossed the line, and the majority of fans want to see Hotch kick Ali’s ass.
Rosemary and Allie won the Knockouts tag titles from the Elegance Brand. In the rematch, Rosemary was nowhere to be found. Allie fought alone. The match was thrown out as a DQ after Allie snapped with the title belt as a weapon to beat off interference from the Elegance Brand. Round three was booked for Lockdown, but Rosemary is still missing. The question is if the Demon Assassin will be in Chicago for the PPV.
Moose and Frankie Kazarian clash for the first time in singles action. Both have high opinions of themselves. Moose is the Face of the Franchise. Kaz is the King of TNA. Moose is currently a babyface, so he offered Kaz the opportunity to earn his nickname as King. Kazarian accepted the cage match on his terms for an escape the cage stipulation.
Elijah and AJ Francis have gone back and forth for months. When Elijah declined to collaborate on music, Francis bought the rights to Elijah’s catalogue. Elijah earned back the masters by beating Francis. After Elijah rightfully beat up Francis’ sidekick Expressions, Top Dolla seeks to settle the disrespect inside the cage.
Elayna Black is arrogant with entitlement about being the best Knockout of all-time. Xia Brookside took exception, since she currently holds the Knockouts Championship. After Black couldn’t even advance past the first round of the Knockouts Television Championship tournament (time limit draw against Wendy Choo from NXT), Brookside attacked Black to make her point. It looks like Black will fail upwards into a title shot as a new babyface in her hometown at Lockdown.
The best story for the card is Leon Slater chasing the X-Division Championship held by Cedric Alexander. Slater was on the verge of breaking history as the longest reigning X-Division champion in history, then Alexander beat him for the title. Alexander is ducking the rematch with outrageous claims that Slater was handed his success. Slater is a proper babyface, and he has tremendous support from the fans to reach the top once again.
Share your thoughts on the card so far for TNA Lockdown. Which matches are you most excited for?
