TNA Hard Justice 2008 Preview & Predictions

Submitted By Patrick Kelley on 08/08/08

TNA's Hard Justice has been hyped as "The Most Hardcore PPV of the Year" Whether or not TNA is deliberately trying to mimic WWE's One Night Stand is up to you. Because of the hardcore nature of this PPV, this show has a fair number of gimmick matches with No DQ stipulations. Normally TNA catches flack for doing this, but I don't see a problem with it if the feud or situation calls for the gimmick. For example, lets look at last month's Victory Road. - It had Ultimate X, but that made sense because it was the finals of the World X Cup, and what better way to close than with the ultimate test for X Division athletes. The Elimination Tag Match was good too because it was a way to get the other 12 Participants involved. - VR also had Full Metal Mayhem. That was fine given the particpants. The AJ Styles/Kurt Angle feud had gotten to a point where a regular match just wouldn't cut it, and with Team 3D, Rhino, and Christian all involved, it had to be something crazy and over the top. - There was also Fan's Revenge which was a good way to give the heels, Robert Roode & James Storm, some payback. In my opinion, they are the two best heels in the company so its always good to see the heels get embarrised. Now lets look at a PPV where the gimmick matches weren't entirely necessary: Against All Odds 2007. - Sting vs. Abyss in a Prisonyard Match. Alright, that one was fine given the storyline, and the set looked cool. - AJ vs. Rhino in a Chain Match: Now this one I didn't get. There was no reason for this to be a chain match. They could have said that Rhino wanted AJ in a situation where he couldn't run away (like they did with Elevation X the next month) but they didn't, so this just seemed random. - LAX vs. Team 3D in a Little Italy Streetfight. This just wasn't necessary. The feud hadn't really called for a No DQ match (yet) and the set looked really silly. - Christy Hemme vs. Big Fat Oily Guy in a Tuxedo Match...need I say more. So if the situation calls for the gimmick, then its fine. Where does Hard Justice 2008 fit in? Well lets look at the matches. SIX KNOCKOUTS TAG TEAM MATCH Taylor Wilde, Gail Kim, & ODB vs. Awesome Kong & The Beautiful People - No gimmick here, but this is a good match to have. TNA's women's division has been on fire since it was born back in October. Taylor has made a name for herself with her recent matches with Kong, while Angelina & Velvet have become two of the best heels in the company. And I think most can agree that Gail, ODB, & Kong are probably the three most talented girls on the roster, so this match should be a great show case for TNA's Women's Division. My Prediction: Kong, Love, & Sky - This is a tough call to make, but since Taylor & Gail won their matches at Victory Road, it seems logical to give the bad girls the nod here. BLACKTIE BRAWL & CHAIN MATCH "Black Machismo" Jay Lethal vs. "Guru" Sonjay Dutt - 1st Gimmick Match of the night. Now this is one I'm not too keen with. Like the AJ/Rhino match I already mentioned, a chain match just seems random. There is also the added stipulation that both men will be in tuxedos and a victory can be achieved by ripping your opponent's tuxedo off. So its basically a chain match & tuexedo match combined, which is too much. However, I have really enjoyed this feud, mostly because of Sonjay Dutt. He has fit into his new role very well, and comes across like a legit psycho. Lethal & Sonjay are both talented guys and hopefully they make this match worth it. My Prediction: Sonjay Dutt - I definately see So Cal Val turning on Lethal here and giving Sonjay the win. He seems to be the one on the rise, so giving him the win would probably be the better choice. NEW JERSEY TAG TEAM STREETFIGHT "The Instant Classic" Christian Cage & "The War Machine" Rhino vs. Team 3D - Now this is one gimmick I don't have a problem with at all. When you start introducing Glass Tables into a feud, a regular tag match just doesn't seem like its enough. Rhino, Christian, & Team 3D are all great with No DQ matches, so this should be a really good match up. My Prediction: Christian Cage & Rhino - This feud is reaching the end and I think its time for the faces to get the win over Team 3D. X DIVISION CHAMPIONSHIP "Maple Leaf Muscle" Petey Williams (c) vs. Consequences Creed - This is an interesting match up. I don't expect anything too shocking like a title change, but I really like this Creed guy, and this will be a good test for him. This would make for a strong & action packed opener. My Prediction: Petey Williams - Like I said, I don't expect a title change, but it is nice to see Petey and the X Title getting TV time again. If they didn't take the belt off of him while he was hurt, I don't see TNA taking it off him until Bound For Glory. TNA TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP The Latin American Xchange (c) vs. Beer Money Inc. - This is one of my favorite feuds in TNA right now. Storm & Roode are probably my two favorite heels in TNA right now, and LAX is my favorite tag team, so this should be a good one. Homicide's run with a glass table on the last Impact will play some kind of role in this match. My Prediction: Beer Money Inc. - For a random team of singles guys that got thrown together, Storm & Roode have done exceptionally well with their new role. On Impact, they debuted their new finishing move, and have totally fit into the tag team position with matching gear & a theme music. It seems as if TNA is serious about this team, and I definately see them taking the gold here, with Homicide's injury being the deciding factor. LAST MAN STANDING MATCH "The Phenomenal" AJ Styles vs. Kurt Angle - This is another gimmick match I'm fine with. Like the 3D vs. Cage/Rhino match, a regular match just isn't going to cut it for these two guys who are basically trying to kill each other. This has been one of the top feuds in the company, and they seem to be building this as the final match between the two. Hopefully this feud ends with a bang as these two have really delivered well in the ring with great matches at Slammiversary & Victory Road, and a really strong effort in the Weapons Gauntlet on Impact (Angle took a NASTY shot with the ladder) I think this should be the Match of the Night. My Prediction: AJ Styles - Since TNA is building this as the final match, Kurt Angle needs to lose. And AJ needs to go into another big feud. They seemed to tease a feud with Sting, and to be honest AJ Styles vs. Sting is definately something I'd love to see. TNA WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP: SIX SIDES OF STEEL WITH WEAPONS "The Samoan Submission Machine" Samoa Joe (c) vs. Booker T - After Victory Road's bizarre ending to the first Joe/Booker match, hopefully they give us a finish here. Now the set up looked like Raven's House of Fun with a Steel Cage. It looked interesting, but I don't feel the weapons are necessary and I would have preferred a straight up cage match. However, this main event has a lot of intrigue. They seem to be building up for Sting to have some kind of involvement, but I think all the times that it seems like Sting has been attacking Joe was done by somebody else (except for the one at VR obviously) I think they are going to swerve us and it will be Nash that has attacked Sting. Whether or not they do that at the PPV is something we'll have to wait and see. I think this match has a lot of intensity going into it, and I hope it delivers. My Prediction: Samoa Joe - I can definately see Booker winning, but I think Joe will be the champion going into Bound for Glory, and I'm picking him to retain. But don't be surprised if Booker walks out with the victory either. - There will also be a performance by Rappers Filthee, Grandmaster Cas, & Ice T. This is not an uncommon thing to have celebrities participate at wrestling events (hell thats what Wrestlemania was built on) but I am not a fan of rap at all, and I'm sure I'll be using this as a bathroom break. Overall, the card looks good to me. It should be an entertaining show and hopefully TNA delivers. In my opinion, most of their PPVs this year have been good, and hopefully the steak continues with Hard Justice. :: DISCUSS THIS POST ON THE FORUMS! :: SEE MICKIE JAMES & THE DIVAS NUDE! :: BUY WRESTLING DVD'S THROUGH OUR STORE! :: GO BACK TO THE HOME PAGE WRESTLING EPICENTER STORE IS OPEN! 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