TNA Victory Road Review - September 13, 2024

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Pre-Show: Kushida def. Leon Slater

Kushida hasn't had a whole lot going on since his feud with Jonathan Gresham ended, but I'm glad he's still being featured on the shows having fun matches like we saw here. Slater needs more character development, but at least he's making the most of every opportunity he's getting. This was perfectly positioned on the pre-show, and although it was basically a spot-fest, it was a blast while it lasted.

Pre-Show: Jake Something and Hammerstone def. Eric Young and Steve Maclin

This tag team match was teased on Thuesday's iMPACT! after Maclin beat Hammerstone. All four guys worked well together and I especially liked the chemistry that Hammerstone and Something had as partners. I'd definitely be down for them being a regular tandem since it doesn't feel like there are any immediate plans for them on their own right now. This was a quality contest for the pre-show.

The Hardys def. First Class (A.J. Francis and KC Navarro)

Although this was a rather basic bout, The Hardys can get away with it at this stage of their career being the perennial fan favorites that they are. Plus, this didn't have much storyline support as it only came together in the last few days on social media, so there was no reason for this to be more than what it was. This win should get The Hardys closer to contending for the TNA World Tag Team Championship, presumably at Bound for Glory.

"Speedball" Mike Bailey def. Zachary Wentz to Win the TNA X-Division Championship

There were rumblings from fans the weekend of Emergence that TNA only put the X-Division title on Wentz so he could appear at WWE NXT's No Mercy event with the belt and I didn't put stock in that. Well, that theory was proven correct here with Bailey immediately regaining the gold. I wish Wentz got a more meaningful run, but at least he got that moment at Emergence. This was the exciting sprint you'd expect from these two.

Matt Cardona and Steph De Lander vs. Rhino and TNA Digital Media Champion and International Wrestling Heavyweight Champion PCO Never Got Underway

Cardona picked De Lander as his tag team partner (against her will) on Thursday's iMPACT!, but before the bout begin, De Lander announced that she has to undergo neck surgery. PCO accompanied her to the back and Cardona attacked Rhino, so the match never got underway. De Lander spoke for a lot longer than she probably needed to, but best wishes to her on her road to recovery. I imagine we'll still get Cardona vs. PCO at Bound for Glory, though we'll see if the surgery would keep De Lander from appearing.

Spitfire def. Masha Slamovich and Tasha Steelz to Win the TNA Knockouts World Tag Team Championship

Steelz had to fill in for Alisha Edwards and defend her half of the tag titles on her behalf. I assume Edwards still isn't cleared to compete after her injury scare at Emergence. The stipulation was that Spitfire would've had to disband if they lost again. However, that didn't make the stipulation more obvious because Spitfire has had their fair share of issues and I wouldn't have been shocked to see them go their separate ways. This was a good match that benefited from the added drama. It looks like Slamovich might be going babyface with between being scolded by Edwards afterward and attacked by Steelz.

Joe Hendry def. Josh Alexander

I love that Henry gets mic time before a majority of his matches. He's super over right now and has been for months, but he gets the chance to back that up with strong promos that connect with the audience. His match with Alexander may have been his best so far in TNA, which should've been expected given how talented Alexander is. Alexander was an excellent foil for the popular Hendry and there was a lot of great action. Henry wearing a cup after being low-blowed at No Mercy was a nice touch. I figured Henry wouldn't beat Alexander clean until Bound for Glory, but I'm not complaining about the outcome because he needed a high-profile victory.

The System (Eddie Edwards and Brian Myers) def. ABC to Win the TNA World Tag Team Championship

This was a rematch from Slammiversary. ABC retaining seemed like a slam dunk, so The System getting the belts back was surprising. Is that to ensure The System, ABC, The Hardys and possibly another team are all included in the Bound for Glory card where the tag titles can be defended in a multi-team match? Nonetheless, this was another entertaining encounter from these teams as they work well together.

TNA Knockouts World Champion Jordynne Grace def. Wendy Choo

Choo has had some matches in NXT that have exceeded my expectations (that hardcore match with Tiffany Stratton two years ago comes to mind), but it's easy to forget what she's capable of in the ring until she's sharing the ring with someone on her level. We got to see a lot more from her here than we typically do in NXT because she wasn't as limited by the gimmicky crap. Post-match, Rosemary helped Choo lay out Grace, so Rosemary vs. Grace will be the title match at Bound for Glory if I had to take a guess.

TNA World Champion Nic Nemeth def. Moose

Nemeth did a ton of selling in the first half and it made for a rather boring match, but the crowd came alive once they picked up the pace in the second half with all of the interference and nearfalls. JBL once again showed up, this time to thwart The System at ringside. That's twice he's favored Nemeth, so does that mean he wants to manage him like he did Baron Corbin last year? This turned into an enjoyable main event with Nemeth avenging his loss to Moose from Rebellion back in April. Nemeth vs. Frankie Kazarian doesn't feel like it's worthy of the main event slot at Bound for Glory, but perhaps that have a bigger bout in mind.

Overall Show

TNA could've easily phoned it in with Victory Road considering Emergence was only two weeks ago, but this was another thumbs-up event on the whole with multiple title changes and excellent wrestling. Viewers were left with a general sense of what the card for Bound for Glory could consist of, which is smart so the build doesn't feel so rushed. It wasn't ideal that this aired opposite of WWE's SmackDown season premiere (especially with all of the NXT crossover as of late), but they certainly made the three hours worthwhile.

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