1.    No Disqualification Falls Count Anywhere match: Bully Ray vs. Tommy Dreamer

The stipulation was added at the last second with Ray announcing it in a brief pre-match promo. Dreamer unloads on Ray with punches to kick this one off and goes for a bulldog, but takes a clothesline. Dreamer sends Ray to the floor and beats on him around ringside, using a fan’s water bottle and yes, a giant stuffed animal, against Ray. Dreamer tosses Ray into the crowd and continues to beat on him. They brawl in the crowd for a bit before Ray is able to drop Dreamer over the barricade back to ringside. Ray uses the steps on Dreamer’s hand, but Dreamer turns things around and starts throwing weapons into the ring. Dreamer jumps off the top with a kendo stick shot to the head, and then brings a BLOW UP DOLL into the ring. Dreamer hits Ray in the head with a trash can lid, and Ray falls onto the doll in the 69 position. Lovely. Dreamer splashes Ray (with the doll on top of him) for a near fall. Dreamer goes up top but Ray hits him in the head with the trash can lid and superplexes him before tossing the doll out of the ring. Dreamer counters the Bubba Bomb with a DDT before getting a table from under the ring. Dreamer sets up the table and goes for a piledriver, but Ray backdrops him and hits him with a trash can. Ray beats on Dreamer with a kendo stick and taunts him on the mic, saying that this is for Devon, but Team 3D’s old music hits and Devon’s sons come out. Ray is distracted as Devon sneaks into the ring, and Devon gives Ray the 3D through the table with Dreamer’s assistance to give Dreamer the win. This was your typical TNA brawl with some goofy spots, and the ending did its job to further the feud. Nothing special, just an okay-ish garbage match from two veterans. Match Time: 10:49     Star Rating: **1/4

2.    TNA Knockouts Tag Team Championship match: Angelina Love and Winter(c) vs. Sarita and Rosita

This was pretty much just filler and had the feeling of a TV match. Love and Rosita trade some headlocks early on before Love hits some forearms. Rosita takes advantage of a missed clothesline and takes down Love, but Love hits a snap suplex before both girls tag in their partners. Winter hits a back elbow and a backbreaker, and then a northern lights suplex after some brief back and forth action. Love gets a tag and beats on Sarita, but Sarita hits a clothesline and tags in Rosita. The heels try double teaming Love but Rosita falls on her face in a mistimed spot. Love scoop slams Rosita for a near fall and tags in Winter. Rosita sweeps Winter and makes a tag, but the double team attempts from the heels backfire again as Winter makes a tag. Love works Sarita’s arm, but gets thrown into the ropes and Rosita hits a shot to the back of the head. Winter gets a tag and the faces double team Rosita before the ref gets distracted. Sarita tries to use one of the title belts but is stopped by the ref. Rosita tries to use the belt but Velvet Sky runs down and takes it away from her. Winter gets a roll-up but there’s no ref to count it, and Rosita counters with a roll-up of her own (which she holds for a LONG time) to get the win as the ref comes back into the ring. Screwy, overbooked finish to end a very by-the-numbers Knockouts match. Had some really poorly timed spots and the finish was a total mess with several people late on their cues. Match Time: 4:55     Star Rating: *1/2

3.    First Blood match: Hernandez vs. Matt Morgan

Things got from bad to worse with this next match. These guys have had some bad matches in the past, but this here was something else. Morgan rushes the ring and they brawl to start, with Morgan taking advantage and choking Hernandez with his boot. Morgan hits some head butts and punches in the corner before tossing Hernandez to the outside. Morgan tries to send Hernandez into the steps and ends up hitting them himself, but he is able to get up and toss Hernandez into the steps and the ref checks for blood. Hernandez hits a shoulder block on Morgan in the ring before grabbing a sharp-ended kendo stick from underneath the ring. Hernandez hits Morgan over the back and tries to stab him in the face with it, but Morgan blocks. Hernandez stays on offense until Morgan comes back with a side slam. Hernandez retakes the advantage with a shoulder block and works over Morgan’s midsection (which makes no sense at all in a FIRST BLOOD match) before spearing him in the corner. Morgan comes back with some clotheslines, a corner splash, and an overhead suplex and grabs the pointed stick. Morgan tries to stab Hernandez but Hernandez blocks and heads up top, only for Morgan to toss him off the top into the ring. Then, a fan runs into the ring but the ref tackles him and both the fan and ref wind up outside the ring. Hernandez wraps a chain around his fist but Morgan is able to take it and hit Hernandez in the face with it. Hernandez is apparently bleeding and Morgan calls for another ref since the original one was somehow down from the fan altercation. Hernandez wipes off the blood with a towel, takes a can out, and sprays Morgan in the chest with fake blood. A ref comes down to the ring, sees the blood on Morgan, and calls for the bell. Yes, the third match in a row with a screwy, overbooked finish, and this one really just insulted people’s intelligence. One of the worst endings to a First Blood match ever, and the rest of the match made no sense with respect to the gimmick because both guys were just hitting a bunch of power moves rather than trying to draw blood. This was just awful, awful stuff. Match Time: 8:38     Star Rating: *

4.    Ultimate X match for the TNA X Division Championship: Kazarian(c) vs. Robbie E vs. Max Buck vs. Jeremy Buck

The PPV entered a good stretch beginning with this match. Although it wasn’t great, this match delivered everything you’d expect an Ultimate X match to deliver. Cookie grabs Kaz’s leg at the start as Generation Me send Robbie to the outside before double teaming Kaz with some quick offense. Kaz is able to spring up to the cables but can’t reach the belt. He finally turns things around on Generation Me, but Robbie comes into the ring and works him over in the corner. Max scales the cables but is pulled down by Robbie. Robbie and Kaz fight in midair on the cables, with Kaz kicking Robbie down and dropping off the cables with a leg drop. Jeremy kicks down Kaz and plants him face-first before guiding Max across the cables. Robbie and Kaz take out Generation Me before trading shots themselves. Robbie counters the Fade to Black, but Kaz dumps him over the ropes and Robbie lands face first on the steps. Kaz does a dive onto Robbie outside the ring, and Jeremy does a crazy moonsault to the outside with Max’s assistance. Max tries to get Jeremy to come back into the ring and help him but Kaz comes in and trades blows with Max. Max hits a dropkick and climbs across the cables as Jeremy holds down Kaz. Kaz is able to stop Max from getting the belt, but Generation Me double team Kaz and Max again tries for the belt. Kaz dropkicks Jeremy from the cables and pulls Max down, hitting him with a mid-air cutter on his way down. Robbie gets on the cables but Max pulls him down and hits a blockbuster off the top.

Max heads up top but Kaz pushes him and Max goes face first into one of the vertical beams holding up the X structure, with Max’s throat forced right into one of the steel bars. Kaz is up top as Jeremy and Robbie end up near the corner, and the three of them do a superplex-powerbomb Tower of Doom spot.  Kaz hits the reverse Tombstone on Robbie, but Jeremy hits him with a back elbow and a spin kick. Jeremy heads to the top turnbuckle but Kaz kicks him and hits a super Flux Capacitor into the ring. Kaz and Robbie both climb across the cables and fight in mid-air, but Generation Me pull Robbie’s legs down before swinging Kaz by his legs, resulting in him taking a hard bump into the ring. Jeremy tries for the title, but Max pulls him down and they argue. Max and Jeremy both climb across the cables and meet in the middle, trading some shots before both are sent back down. Robbie sets up and climbs a ladder as Kaz walks across the cables, holding onto the steel X structure with his hands for support. They meet in the middle and both grab the belt, and Kaz is able to kick Robbie off the ladder and snatch the belt for the win. Very, very good Ultimate X match that was able to distance itself from past incarnations of the match because this one focused more on telling a story rather than just going for the insane spots, though this certainly had a few of those due to the athleticism of Kaz and Generation Me. Not the best Ultimate X match but by far the best match on this show. Glad to see they gave these guys enough time and didn’t make this the opener. Match Time: 14:22     Star Rating: ***3/4

5.    TNA World Tag Team Championship match: Beer Money(c) vs. Ink Inc.

Though this was certainly not up to par with some of Beer Money’s better matches with the likes of the Motor City Machineguns, this was a very solid tag title match. James Storm and Jesse Neal start the match, locking up and trading headlocks before Neal hits a pair of arm drags. Both guys hit slaps before Storm hits a neckbreaker for a near fall, but Neal gets one of his own after a cross body out of the corner. Robert Roode and Shannon Moore get tags and go at it, trading some quick holds before Moore gets a near fall off a dropkick. Moore hits a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker and tags in Neal for some double-teaming. Roode avoids a charging Neal in the corner and scoop slams him. Storm gets a tag but gets attacked from behind by Moore. Moore gets a tag, beats on Storm in the corner, hits a leg drop, and applies a headlock. Moore slams down Storm and tags in Neal, who scores a near fall after a neckbreaker. Ink Inc. do some quick tags as they continue to work over Storm, but Storm is eventually able to avoid a leaping Moore in the corner and makes a tag. Roode hits some clotheslines and chops on Neal, and gets a near fall after a big spinebuster. Storm tags in for a double team, but Neal tags in Moore, who comes in with a headscissors and a kick. Moore hits a hurricanrana to Roode, a moonsault on Storm, and a bulldog on Roode. Moore heads up top but Roode pushes Neal into him. Roode gets a two count after some back and forth action, and Neal attacks him from behind. Beer Money double suplex Neal and do their taunt, but Neal is able to hit a spear. Ink Inc. do their neckbreaker/cutter combination but only get a two count. Moore gets frustrated and tries to use the metal book necklace, but Neal tells him not to do it. Neal eats a superkick from Storm, and Beer Money hit the DWI on Moore for the win. After the match Moore takes a beer and spits it in Beer Money’s face. Match really got going in the last few minutes and told a nice story with the character progression of Moore. They’re moving this along nicely with Moore being the rude punk and Neal being the purist. Good match, no complaints here. Match Time: 12:31     Star Rating: ***1/4

6.    AJ Styles vs. Matt Hardy

This was a good effort from both guys, but not the show stealing performance they were looking for. They lock up at the start before they reach the corner and the ref calls for a break. AJ hits some punches and chops before applying a side headlock and Hardy fights out, only to be dropped with a shoulder. Hardy fights out of a headlock but AJ takes him down into another one. AJ hits a dropkick and heads to the apron, but Hardy brings him back in, only for AJ to send him to the floor. Hardy is able to clothesline AJ after a Ric Flair distraction for a near fall. Hardy works AJ over for a bit and charges him, but AJ pulls the ropes and Hardy goes out to the floor. AJ hits a moonsault off the apron to the floor and they fight on the outside. Hardy sends AJ into the apron and shoulder-first into the post before returning to the ring. Hardy goes to send AJ into the guardrail but AJ slides underneath and into the crowd, and then jumps off the rail with a forearm smash. Styles hits some chops back in the ring and Hardy tries to fight him off, but Styles hits some elbows before Hardy whips him into the corner. Styles gets thrown out to the floor and attacked by Flair while Hardy distracts the ref. Hardy brings Styles back in and slingshots him into the second rope, then butterflies the arms for a submission and takes him down to the mat.

Styles gets a pin attempt but Hardy keeps the hold cinched in. Styles is able to ram Hardy into the corner, but Hardy drops a charging Styles face first in the other corner. Hardy chokes Styles against the ropes and hits some elbow drops for a near fall. Hardy goes to a neck-based submission and this is starting to drag. Styles fights out and hits some quick strikes before both guys go for clotheslines and halfway connect. AJ hits an enzuigiri, some clotheslines, and a kick. AJ hits a backbreaker and goes up top, but Hardy avoids him and hits a side effect for a near fall. AJ counters the Twist of Hate with a backslide and goes for the Styles Clash, but Hardy slams him on his neck. Flair distracts the ref to prevent AJ from getting a pinfall. AJ is able to hit a Pele kick on Flair, but Hardy hits a DDT for a near fall. Hardy hits a top rope moonsault, but AJ counters the Twist of Hate again. Hardy heads up top but AJ kicks him, Hardy takes a bump into the ring, and AJ goes up top and hits the Spiral Tap. Flair tries for a distraction but the ref fights him off and counts the pin. AJ low blowed Flair after the bell. This was pretty dull when Hardy was on offense since he can’t move very well, but the final minutes were really good. Some people are going to really like this but I thought it dragged in the middle a bit too much. Still, a good match to put over AJ. Match Time: 17:40     Star Rating: ***

Throughout the night they were showing video clips of Jeff and Karen Jarrett on their honeymoon, which was with the children in Universal Studios. Jeff was being the fun-loving dad and Karen was completely miserable. The blowoff to all of this was a final Jeff/Karen argument, which ended with the family being DOUSED WITH A BUCKET OF WATER. Wow, how lame. Jeff also announced he would offer Kurt Angle a truce on Impact, which was TNA doing what they always do in their ass-backwards booking: using PPVs to build up Impact.

7.    #1 Contender’s match: Rob Van Dam vs. Mr. Anderson

After seemingly entering recovery mode following a horrific first hour, this PPV fell off a cliff. They trade shots at the start and Anderson hits a shoulder block. They do some quick back and forth action and RVD hits a headscissors for a near fall. More back and forth action and counters and quick pin attempts, but RVD botches a leap frog. Anderson hits a corner clothesline, but RVD hits some shoulder thrusts in the corner before hitting a springboard kick and Rolling Thunder. They fight outside and RVD drapes Anderson over the barricade, but Anderson avoids the leaping leg drop and RVD connects with the barricade. Anderson uses the post on RVD’s leg and brings him back into the ring, hitting several knee drops on the leg and applying a single leg Boston crab. Anderson clips RVD’s leg and gets a near fall. RVD fights out of the corner and hits some clotheslines and a kick to the face. Van Dam counters a move from Anderson, but Anderson counters Rolling Thunder. Van Dam applies a headlock but Anderson backdrops him. Anderson hits some elbow drops and a neckbreaker, then the Green Bay Plunge for a near fall. Van Dam hits some shoulder thrusts in the corner and they fight to the outside. They brawl up the ramp as the ref counts and Anderson hits a Mic Check on the ramp. Both guys are down as the ref counts to 10, and this ends in a double count out. Yes, a #1 contender’s match on a PPV ended with no winner and TNA just moved on to the next segment. Before the finish, it was just an okay match that was really dull for the most part. Absolutely no excuse for a BS finish like that, but this was NOTHING compared to what was to follow. Match Time: 12:54     Star Rating: **1/4

After Sting and Jeff Hardy made their entrances for the main event, Eric Bischoff came out to the ring. Bischoff said since Hardy didn’t have a chance to prepare for Sting on the March 3^rd Impact, Sting won’t have a chance to prepare for a last minute No Disqualification stipulation, which Hardy knew about ahead of time. Sting attacks Bischoff and the match begins.

8.    No Disqualification match for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship: Sting(c) vs. Jeff Hardy

They stall at the start, with Hardy lumbering around and cowering into the corner when Sting comes at him. More lumbering around and they lock up, with Sting hitting a few punches. Sting then hits the Scorpion Death Drop out of NOWHERE for the pin and that’s it. WHAT? That’s the PPV main event you’re charging people $34.95 to see? Are you kidding? TNA claimed afterward that Hardy was in no condition to perform, which was evident given the way he was moving around the ring. Still, they could have called an audible or something to give fans a PPV quality main event instead of this crap. Stuff like this is what drives away customers and gives people every reason to not order your PPVs. If you actually ordered this PPV, contact your cable provider and demand a refund. What bullcrap. Match Time: 1:29     Star Rating: DUD

Overall PPV Rating: 5.5/10

My name is Jared Silberkleit and I am from Orange, CT. I am a huge pro wrestling fan and follow all kinds of promotions such as WWE, TNA, ROH, PWG, CHIKARA, Dragon Gate USA, and anything else I might come across. I am a huge supporter of independent wrestling and I feel that it provides a true alternative to the mainstream promotions and also showcases a lot of innovation and hard work. Aside from wrestling I am also a really big fan of football, baseball, hockey, and MMA. I have also written for www.sportsgrumblings.com for over two years.

Replacing ECW will be WWE NXT, which will be a partial reality show similar to the UFC’s “The Ultimate Fighter.” The wrestlers on it will be up and comers from Florida Championship Wrestling, the ‘minor league’ breeding ground for the WWE. Fans will get more insight on the wrestlers outside the ring and they will be competing with each other for more than just a pinfall, adding the extra incentive to become the next big Raw or SmackDown superstar.

The current ECW roster will become free agents and be dispersed to the other two brands. The current ECW champion Christian will defend his title on the final broadcast on February 16 versus Ezekiel Jackson, ironically enough using exreme rules. No word on what will become of the championship after that.

Although it was a shell of its former self, ECW still had an air about it because of the days when Paul Heyman led it to near stardom status. No other promotion had as much influence on the entire industry, possibly with the exception of the Hulk Hogan-era WWF.

When you have wrestlers such as the Sandman, Cactus Jack, Terry Funk, Shane Douglas, Raven, Stevie Richards, the Blue Meanie, The Dudleys, the Public Enemy, Taz, Sabu, RVD and so many others, it was a special time, indeed. Tommy Dreamer was the last link to the old days and when he finally called it quits recently, it was only a matter of time before the lights finally went out for good at the old bingo hall near Interstate 95.

Having the action spill over the security wall (or rather security fence) and continue in the middle of the crowd was merely part of the evening and handing one of the grapplers your chair for him to smash his opponent over the head became a badge of honor.

Ever since the semi-controlled riot known as ECW declared bankruptcy in April of 2001, there has been a void in the sports entertainment world. Sure, it has a weekly home on Tuesday nights on ScyFy as one of the three brands run by Vince McMahon, but it is more like a farm team for up and coming young guns and a few ‘name’ wrestlers to keep the fans interested. It is a shell of it’s former self and when was the last time that you saw barb-wire in the place of ring ropes? Even Tommy Dreamer, the last link to the old bunch, has been scarce of late.

All is not lost, though. Every month on Long Island, Fight the World Pro Wrestling holds an event that does more than conjure up memories of the old ECW. In fact, the FTW champion is none other than Balls Mahoney, who had a few bumps and bruises from those golden days back at the ECW Arena in Philadelphia, aka the “bingo hall.”

Sabu, another ECW veteran, has made appearances at FTW shows, as had Jake “The Snake” Roberts, who was a headliner for years with the WWF/WWE. In their next show on Saturday, November 21 at  Center Island Sports (101 Union Avenue, Ronkonkoma, New York), Homicide from TNA’s World Elite is on the card.

The rest of the FTW roster includes Big Jim Sullivan, Dameon Slugga, Dan Barry, D.J. Hyde, Earl Cooter, Grim Reefer, Jay Lover, Jimmy Jact Cash, Len Oddity, The Rockstar, Vin Gerard, The Master Wes Draven and tag teams All Money is Legal, The Best Around and the Nigerian Nightmares, the current FTW tag team champions.

MuscleSport Mag has teamed up with FTW and is now one of their sponsors. Be sure to look for our banners and promotional items at their events and check on our website for regular updates on all the happenings inside and out of the FTW squared circle.

Tickets for their events are $20 at the door and $15 in advance. For more information and ticket purchases, visit their official website, www.ftwprowrestling.com.

Jake "The Snake" Roberts and The Rockstar at a recent FTW event