Destination X (2011)
Encyclopedia
Destination X was a professional wrestling
Professional wrestling
Professional wrestling is a mode of spectacle, combining athletics and theatrical performance.Roland Barthes, "The World of Wrestling", Mythologies, 1957 It takes the form of events, held by touring companies, which mimic a title match combat sport...

 pay-per-view
Pay-per-view
Pay-per-view provides a service by which a television audience can purchase events to view via private telecast. The broadcaster shows the event at the same time to everyone ordering it...

 (PPV) event produced by the Total Nonstop Action Wrestling
Total Nonstop Action Wrestling
Total Nonstop Action Wrestling is a privately held professional wrestling promotion founded by Jeff Jarrett and Jerry Jarrett. The company broadcasts its events on television and the Internet fifty two weeks a year with over a million weekly viewers on its primary television program, Impact...

 (TNA) promotion
Professional wrestling promotion
A professional wrestling promotion is a company or business that regularly performs shows involving professional wrestling. Promotion also describes a role which entails management, advertising and logistics of running a wrestling event...

, which took place on July 10, 2011 at the Impact Wrestling Zone in Orlando, Florida
Orlando, Florida
Orlando is a city in the central region of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat of Orange County, and the center of the Greater Orlando metropolitan area. According to the 2010 US Census, the city had a population of 238,300, making Orlando the 79th largest city in the United States...

. Destination X was promoted with the tagline "Forward to the Past", as an all X Division
X Division
The X Division is a high-flying, high-risk, fast-paced style of professional wrestling seen originally in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling and since then in various NWA member promotions...

 event to commemorate the division that helped pave the way for the company long-term by bringing in popularity with its extraordinary athletic showcases. It was the seventh event under the Destination X chronology—first to be held in July—and the seventh event of the 2011 TNA PPV schedule.

The main event on the card featured two pioneers of the X Division in a battle, where A.J. Styles
A.J. Styles
Allen Neal Jones , better known by his ring name A.J. Styles is an American professional wrestler currently working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling...

 took on Christopher Daniels
Christopher Daniels
Daniel Christopher Covell is an American professional wrestler, best known in the United States by his ring name "The Fallen Angel" Christopher Daniels. He is also known for performing under the ring name Curry Man. He is currently under contract with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , while also...

, which Styles won after hitting the Spiral Tap, a reference of his victory at the second TNA weekly PPV, where he became the first-ever TNA X Division Champion. The other main match on the card was Abyss defending the X Division Title against Brian Kendrick
Brian Kendrick
Brian David Kendrick is an American professional wrestler currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling under his real name. Before joining TNA he spent several years wrestling for World Wrestling Entertainment, where he wrestled under his name, as Spanky, and finally as "The" Brian Kendrick...

 in a match that Kendrick prevailed in following a roll up. Other matches on the undercard included a Four Way X Division Showcase tournament final match for an exclusive TNA contract as Austin Aries
Austin Aries
Daniel Healy "Dan" Solwold, Jr. better known by his ring name Austin Aries, is an American professional wrestler, currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , where he is the current X Division Champion...

 defeated Jack Evans
Jack Evans
Jack Edward Miller is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Jack Evans. He currently performs for the Mexican-based promotion Asistencia Asesoría y Administración, where he is the current World Cruiserweight Champion and a former World Tag Team Champion. He is the cousin...

, Low Ki
Low Ki
Brandon Silvestry is an American professional wrestler. He is best known under his ring names Low Ki, Senshi in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, and Kaval in World Wrestling Entertainment. He is a former one-time PWG World Champion and a former ROH Champion...

 and Zema Ion
Shiima Xion
Michael Paris is an American professional wrestler better known by his ring name, Shiima Xion. He is currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , where he competes as Zema Ion, while also working both on the American independent circuit and in Mexico.-Early career:Michael Paris claims that...

, Rob Van Dam
Rob Van Dam
Robert Alexander "Rob" Szatkowski , better known by his ring name Rob Van Dam , is an American professional wrestler and actor who is currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling ....

 defeating Jerry Lynn
Jerry Lynn
Jeremy "Jerry" Lynn is an American professional wrestler who is currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling ....

, and an Ultimate X match, where Alex Shelley
Alex Shelley
Patrick Martin , is an American professional wrestler, better known by the ring name Alex Shelley. He wrestles for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he currently teams with Chris Sabin as The Motor City Machine Guns. He previously gained fame on the independent circuit, working most notably for...

 defeated Amazing Red
Amazing Red
Jonathan Figueroa is a professional wrestler better known by his ring name, Amazing Red, or simply Red for short. He is best known for working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he is a former three-time X Division Champion, while also working on the American independent circuit...

, Robbie E
Rob Strauss
Robert "Rob" Strauss is an American professional wrestler, currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling under the ring name Robbie E. He is the current TNA Television Champion and a former TNA X Division Champion...

 and Shannon Moore
Shannon Moore
Shannon Moore is an American professional wrestler, who is signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling . He is best known for his work with World Championship Wrestling between 1999 and 2001 and with World Wrestling Entertainment for several years in the 2000s.Moore befriended Matt and Jeff Hardy...

 to become contender to the X Division Title.

The event was mostly received positively by wrestling critics. It was rated 8 out of 10 by Canadian Online Explorer
Canadian Online Explorer
Canadian Online Explorer is a bilingual online news and information site from Canada.A subsidiary of Quebecor Media, Canoe.ca is a leading local and national interactive media provider of news, entertainment and services, helping to inform and connect Canadians...

's pro wrestling section, SLAM! Sports.

Background

The seventh installment in the Destination X chronology was originally planned to take place on March 13, 2011 at the TNA Impact! Zone in Orlando, Florida
Orlando, Florida
Orlando is a city in the central region of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat of Orange County, and the center of the Greater Orlando metropolitan area. According to the 2010 US Census, the city had a population of 238,300, making Orlando the 79th largest city in the United States...

. However, in early January 2011 TNA switched the planned date for their Victory Road
Victory Road (2011)
Victory Road was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by Total Nonstop Action Wrestling promotion, which took place on March 13, 2011 at the TNA Impact! Zone in Orlando, Florida...

 PPV event with Destination X. Causing Victory Road to take place on March 13 and Destination to be slated for July 17. Destination X was then moved again to July 10. To promote the event, TNA released a promotional poster featuring the tagline "Forward to the Past," featuring the signature six-sided ring once used by TNA, and was used again for this event.

Storylines

The main feud on the card was between Abyss and Brian Kendrick
Brian Kendrick
Brian David Kendrick is an American professional wrestler currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling under his real name. Before joining TNA he spent several years wrestling for World Wrestling Entertainment, where he wrestled under his name, as Spanky, and finally as "The" Brian Kendrick...

 over the TNA X Division Championship
TNA X Division Championship
The TNA X Division Championship is a professional wrestling championship owned by the Total Nonstop Action Wrestling promotion. It is primarily defended in TNA's X Division—a style based on a fast-paced, daredevil type of wrestling...

. On the May 19 edition of Impact Wrestling, during Eric Bischoff
Eric Bischoff
Eric Aaron Bischoff is an American entrepreneur, and professional wrestling booker and on-screen personality currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling...

's agenda to eradicate the X Division, Abyss defeated the reigning champion Kazarian
Frankie Kazarian
Frank B. Gerdelman is an Armenian-American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Frankie Kazarian or simply Kazarian. He is currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling...

 to win the title, effectively setting the plan in motion. With the X Division progressively being sidetracked, and even humiliated by Bischoff, Kendrick led a pack of X Division stars to fight for the survival of the division and get revenge against Bischoff and Immortal
Immortal (professional wrestling)
Immortal is a villainous professional wrestling alliance in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling . It currently consists of Eric Bischoff, Bully Ray, Gunner, TNA founder and AAA World Heavyweight Champion Jeff Jarrett, his wife and valet Karen Jarrett, Kurt Angle, Ric Flair and Scott Steiner...

. At Slammiversary IX
Slammiversary IX
Slammiversary IX was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , which took place on June 12, 2011 at the Impact Wrestling Zone in Orlando, Florida...

, Kendrick competed in a Three Way match with former champion Kazarian and Abyss over the title, but lost to Abyss. However, Kendrick was granted another match with Abyss when "The Network" decided that the Destination X pay-per-view would solely focus on the X Division. On the June 30 edition of Impact, Abyss, much in panick mode, discovered that his mask had been stolen backstage, setting off in a frantic search for it in his locker room. The next week, Kendrick revealed he had thieved the mask, claiming Abyss' ego hindered him from aiding the X-Division, but truly wore the mask to conceal his pain within. He pledged to help Abyss rid his ego and fulfill his potential, though his mission was to beat him for the X-Division Title. Kendrick then returned the mask to make a settlement with Abyss, who attacked him for his troubles.

On the June 23 edition of Impact, A.J. Styles
A.J. Styles
Allen Neal Jones , better known by his ring name A.J. Styles is an American professional wrestler currently working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling...

 announced that, in accordance with the theme for the Destination X event, he was "coming home" to the X Division, a legacy he helped pioneer (as the first-ever X Division Champion) and which brought the company to the forefront in its early years. He also teased the return of the six-sided ring. Interrupted by Samoa Joe
Samoa Joe
Nuufolau Joel "Joe" Seanoa is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Samoa Joe. He is currently under contract with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling....

, who boastfully laid claim to his accolades including having defeated Styles many times, this eventually brought out his best friend and Fortune
Fortune (professional wrestling)
Fortune is a professional wrestling alliance in the Total Nonstop Action Wrestling promotion. It currently consists of A.J. Styles, James Storm and Kazarian...

 ally Christopher Daniels
Christopher Daniels
Daniel Christopher Covell is an American professional wrestler, best known in the United States by his ring name "The Fallen Angel" Christopher Daniels. He is also known for performing under the ring name Curry Man. He is currently under contract with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , while also...

, who suggested a match with Styles, and unexpectedly left out Joe. The following week, though Styles was slightly skeptical of Daniels wanting the match, Styles and Daniels signed the contract to make their match official at Destination X, agreeing to not let the competition stand in the way of their friendship.

Left out of the Destination X match with Styles and Daniels, Joe encountered Kazarian backstage, who was engaging in a discussion with Daniels about the situation. Joe ridiculed Kazarian for inquiring about the predicament, calling him the "Real Housewife of Fortune", which ended up igniting a feud after Kazarian insulted him, and for his actions, was ultimately assaulted by Joe.

On the June 23 edition of Impact, Rob Van Dam
Rob Van Dam
Robert Alexander "Rob" Szatkowski , better known by his ring name Rob Van Dam , is an American professional wrestler and actor who is currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling ....

 appeared in a backstage segment and pitched himself in on Destination X, proclaiming he was X Division
X Division
The X Division is a high-flying, high-risk, fast-paced style of professional wrestling seen originally in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling and since then in various NWA member promotions...

 before there was an actual division, referring to his prominent days in Extreme Championship Wrestling
Extreme Championship Wrestling
Extreme Championship Wrestling was a professional wrestling promotion that was founded in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1992 by Tod Gordon and closed when his successor, Paul Heyman, declared bankruptcy in April 2001...

. His longtime rival and a pioneer of the X Division himself, Jerry Lynn
Jerry Lynn
Jeremy "Jerry" Lynn is an American professional wrestler who is currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling ....

, abruptly emerged and reminded him that it was the two of them in which carried the style back then. This signified the possibility of another match between them, which was supposed to have transpired at Hardcore Justice
Hardcore Justice (2010)
Hardcore Justice was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , which took place on August 8, 2010 at the TNA Impact! Zone in Orlando, Florida...

 the year prior, but due to sustaining a back injury before the match, Lynn was forced to pull out and was replaced by Sabu. Lynn and Van Dam later crashed the contract signing between Styles and Daniels, where they decided to rekindle their rivalry once and for all at Destination X.

For the four weeks leading up to Destination X, there had been a 12-man tournament consisting of a series of four Three Way matches. Two of these matches included stars from the X Division's past, while the other two included all newcomers participating in tourney. The winners of these matches would advance to a four way match at Destination X and the winner at the event, would receive a TNA contract. Austin Aries
Austin Aries
Daniel Healy "Dan" Solwold, Jr. better known by his ring name Austin Aries, is an American professional wrestler, currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , where he is the current X Division Champion...

 won the first match defeating Jimmy Rave
Jimmy Rave
James Guffey is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Jimmy Rave. He is best known for working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling...

 and Kid Kash. The following week, Zema Ion won the second match against Federico Palacios
Federico Palacios
Walter Kirney is an American professional wrestler. He is best known for working under the ring name Azrieal for independent promotions such as Ring of Honor and Jersey All Pro Wrestling.-Total Nonstop Action Wrestling:...

 and Dakota Darsow
Dakota Darsow
Dakota Darsow is an American professional wrestler. He is best known for his time working in World Wrestling Entertainment developmental territory Florida Championship Wrestling , under the ring names Maverick Darsow and Barry Allen.Darsow is a second-generation professional wrestler; his father...

. The week after that, Low Ki
Low Ki
Brandon Silvestry is an American professional wrestler. He is best known under his ring names Low Ki, Senshi in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, and Kaval in World Wrestling Entertainment. He is a former one-time PWG World Champion and a former ROH Champion...

 won his match beating Matt Bentley
Matt Bentley
Matthew James "Matt" Bentley is an American professional wrestler best known for his work in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling by the ring name Michael Shane. He was trained by his cousin, former World Wrestling Entertainment wrestler Shawn Michaels, and he took the name Michael Shane as a play on...

 and Jimmy Yang. On the final Impact before Destination X, Jack Evans
Jack Evans
Jack Edward Miller is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Jack Evans. He currently performs for the Mexican-based promotion Asistencia Asesoría y Administración, where he is the current World Cruiserweight Champion and a former World Tag Team Champion. He is the cousin...

 won the final match against Tony Nese and Jesse Sorensen
Jesse Sorensen
Jessy Ryan Sorensen is an American professional wrestler, currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling .-Early career:Throughout 2008, Sorensen competed in various Texas Independent Wrestling Promotions as Ryan Sorensen....

.

One of the staples of the X Division is the Ultimate X match
Ultimate X match
The Ultimate X match is a type of professional wrestling match created by Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , mainly used in their X Division. It is considered the "signature match of the X Division," as stated numerous times by Mike Tenay right before an Ultimate X match begins.-Match...

. Four wrestlers from the division were chosen by TNA management to compete in an Ultimate X match after Mick Foley
Mick Foley
Michael Francis "Mick" Foley, Sr. is an American semi-retired professional wrestler, author, comedian, actor, voice actor and former color commentator. He has worked for many wrestling promotions, including WWE, WCW, ECW and TNA. He is often referred to as "The Hardcore Legend", a nickname he...

 announced the match for the show many weeks before. The wrestlers chosen were Alex Shelley
Alex Shelley
Patrick Martin , is an American professional wrestler, better known by the ring name Alex Shelley. He wrestles for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he currently teams with Chris Sabin as The Motor City Machine Guns. He previously gained fame on the independent circuit, working most notably for...

, Robbie E, Shannon Moore
Shannon Moore
Shannon Moore is an American professional wrestler, who is signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling . He is best known for his work with World Championship Wrestling between 1999 and 2001 and with World Wrestling Entertainment for several years in the 2000s.Moore befriended Matt and Jeff Hardy...

, and Amazing Red
Amazing Red
Jonathan Figueroa is a professional wrestler better known by his ring name, Amazing Red, or simply Red for short. He is best known for working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he is a former three-time X Division Champion, while also working on the American independent circuit...

.

Former X Division Champion Douglas Williams
Doug Williams (wrestler)
Douglas Clayton Durdle is an English professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Doug Williams. He is currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling under the ring name Douglas Williams...

 announced an open challenge at the show via Twitter. On the July 7 edition of Impact, Williams made it official by publicly laying out the challenge.

Events

Other on-screen talent
Role: Name:
Commentator(s) Mike Tenay
Mike Tenay
Michael William "Mike" Tenay is a professional wrestling play-by-play announcer currently employed by Total Nonstop Action Wrestling . Prior to signing with TNA in 2002, he had a notable tenure with World Championship Wrestling from 1994-2001...

Jeremy Borash
Jeremy Borash
Jeremy Borash , is an American professional wrestling play-by-play commentator, announcer, ring announcer, booker, interviewer, producer and website designer...

Ring announcer(s) Christy Hemme
Christy Hemme
Christina Lee "Christy" Hemme is an American actress, singer, model, professional wrestling valet and former professional wrestler. Hemme is currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, as a backstage interviewer and ring announcer.-Early life:Hemme was born in Poway, California, but she...

Referee(s) Earl Hebner
Earl Hebner
Earl William Hebner is a professional wrestling referee currently working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, and the twin brother of Dave Hebner...

Brian Hebner

Preliminary matches

At the start of the event, commentator Mike Tenay
Mike Tenay
Michael William "Mike" Tenay is a professional wrestling play-by-play announcer currently employed by Total Nonstop Action Wrestling . Prior to signing with TNA in 2002, he had a notable tenure with World Championship Wrestling from 1994-2001...

 announced that Taz
Tazz
Peter Senerchia is a retired American professional wrestler and current color commentator best known by his ring name Tazz, originally Tazmaniac and later shortened to simply Taz...

 was on assignment and taking his place would be Jeremy Borash
Jeremy Borash
Jeremy Borash , is an American professional wrestling play-by-play commentator, announcer, ring announcer, booker, interviewer, producer and website designer...

. The opening match to set the night off at Destination X was Samoa Joe going up against Kazarian. Kazarian tried to take an early advantage but Joe began dominating the match with a mean streak against Kazarian and his comeback efforts. The match spilled to the outside early, Joe in control, before it shortly returned inside the ring. Kazarian maintained a brief period turning the momentum. However, Joe did not let up on his dominance. During the match, Joe failed twice to apply his signature rear naked choke
Rear naked choke
The Rear naked choke is a chokehold in martial arts applied from an opponent's back. Depending on the context, the term may refer to one of two variations of the technique, either arm can be used to apply the choke in both cases...

, but succeeded in his third trial though Kazarian did not submit. Towards the end of the match, Joe argued with the referee after having to break off the choke, and this allowed a resilient Kazarian to recover, counter another attempted choke and roll up Joe out of nowhere for the victory.
Before the second match, Douglas Williams came out accompanied by Rob Terry
Rob Terry
Robert "Rob" Terry is a Welsh professional wrestler and bodybuilder. He is currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling . Before signing with TNA, he was under contract with World Wrestling Entertainment and competed in the company's developmental territory, Florida Championship...

 and Magnus
Nick Aldis
Nicholas Harry "Nick" Aldis is an English professional wrestler and actor. He is currently working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling under the ring name Magnus, where he is a one time World Tag Team Champion with Doug Williams...

. With the mystery for William's opponent in his open challenge up in the air, it was revealed as debuting UK wrestler Mark Haskins
Mark Haskins
Mark Haskins , is an English professional wrestler, currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling . He is also known for his appearances in Dragon Gate.-Total Nonstop Action Wrestling :...

, who was scouted during his involvement in TNA's UK Tour early in the year. Williams showed respect for Haskins and his abilities, but claimed Haskins was not better than him and exploited his inexperience factor of not having competed on live PPV. In the match, Williams, confident, matched technical prowess with Haskins, retreating from the ring to regroup after almost pinned in a series of pin attempts between them. Williams gradually got back in control for a period, mostly going back-and-forth with Haskins. Down in the end, Williams ultimately won the match with a roll up following Haskins' missed shooting star press.

Some time before the next match, which was scheduled at the event, Eric Young
Eric Young (wrestler)
Jeremy Fritz is a Canadian professional wrestler, best known under his ring name Eric Young. He currently performs for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he has gained popularity using a variety of comic relief gimmicks....

 appeared in a backstage segment recorded just before the event began, looking for a tag team partner at a table behind which stationed Suicide, Curry Man
Christopher Daniels
Daniel Christopher Covell is an American professional wrestler, best known in the United States by his ring name "The Fallen Angel" Christopher Daniels. He is also known for performing under the ring name Curry Man. He is currently under contract with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , while also...

, and Sangriento
Amazing Red
Jonathan Figueroa is a professional wrestler better known by his ring name, Amazing Red, or simply Red for short. He is best known for working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he is a former three-time X Division Champion, while also working on the American independent circuit...

. With none of them offering to be his partner for various reasons, in a surprise appearance, Shark Boy
Shark Boy
Dean Mathew Roll is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Shark Boy and his experience in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling .-Early career:...

 showed up and accepted the position. After Generation Me's entrance to the ring, it became evident that they were competing against Young and Shark Boy. To start the match, Young and Shark Boy played their games, stalling over who should begin as the legal man. Eventually, Shark Boy and Jeremy Buck go at it first. The match sees lots of back and forth action. Young and Max Buck are in next and the balanced competitiveness continues — Young using his more comical approaches and Max moving quick for his executions. In the end, Generation Me tried to set up a top rope move on Young, but Shark Boy made the save by pushing Jeremy off the top rope, giving the Chummer
Stunner (professional wrestling)
A stunner is a common term in professional wrestling referring to the seated three-quarter facelock jawbreaker maneuver, predominantly used by Stone Cold Steve Austin and named for his Stone Cold Stunner finisher...

 to Max and Young following up with the Youngblood Neckbreaker and the pinfall victory.

The next match was the Ultimate X match for contention to the TNA X Division Championship
TNA X Division Championship
The TNA X Division Championship is a professional wrestling championship owned by the Total Nonstop Action Wrestling promotion. It is primarily defended in TNA's X Division—a style based on a fast-paced, daredevil type of wrestling...

 between Alex Shelley, Robbie E, Amazing Red and Shannon Moore. Moore had his way with everyone in the early goings and attempted to climb for the 'X' but Red stops him and fights him off prior to going at it with Shelley. Meanwhile, Robbie pursued the 'X' and wasn't able to keep himself hanging from the ropes attached to the structure. Red soon found himself at an advantage point and tried to climb for the 'X' but Shelley ceased his efforts. Red, Shelley, and Robbie do combat in the ring corner and Robbie gets sent to the floor before Shelley works Red over. Moore started climbing but was stopped by Shelley. When Robbie returned, all three fought and Shelley prevailed and attempted to climb only to be halted by Red. However, Shelley overcame Red and knocked him to the apron leaving Robbie to be the one pulling him off the ropes. Red and Robbie had exchanges and Robbie got the better of the situation. From there, he knocked Moore off the apron and baseball slid him under the bottom rope, where Moore trapped him in the apron cover, leveling him with forearms. Shelley flew over the ropes shoving Moore into Robbie, but Moore ended back on the apron and hit a moonsault
Moonsault
A moonsault, moonsault press, or back flip splash is a professional wrestling aerial technique. Much of its popularity in American wrestling is attributed to The Great Muta, despite it being used in North America by "Leaping" Lanny Poffo years before Muta came from Japan.In a standard moonsault,...

 back onto Shelley. The action continued with the momentum constantly shifting. Robbie scaled for the ‘X’ but Red put a stoppage to it and scored a few spinning kicks. Robbie whipped Red to the ropes, and he flew over taking out Moore and Shelley. When Robbie tried to climb again, Red hit a springboard dropkick in the ring dropping Robbie out of the air and onto the canvas. Towards the match’s conclusion, Moore climbed the structure to the top. Red climbed the ropes for the ‘X’, however, Moore dropped down from the structure onto the‘X’ to kick Red off of it and retrieve the ‘X’, but Shelley, who had started climbing, wrapped his feet around the ropes and slid down on it, kicking Moore off and successfully unhooking the ‘X’ and falling to the mat to get the victory. After the match, Chris Sabin
Chris Sabin
Joshua Harter is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Chris Sabin. He is currently working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , where he currently teams with Alex Shelley as The Motor City Machine Guns.After being trained by Scott D'Amore, Sabin debuted in 2000 for...

 came out to congratulate Shelley.

Rob Van Dam revisited his history in a match with his longtime wrestling rival Jerry Lynn. The match initially stalled and before it began, the two opponents showcased a display of sportsmanship. When it started, Van Dam and Lynn locked up, and after an athletic display and rope running, no one took the lead. That was until Van Dam swept the legs of Lynn knocking him down to the mat and began working over his left arm. Lynn fought back and proved the two knew each other well as the match came down to 50/50 between them. Lynn got frustrated and implemented a strategy to turn the match in his favor by advantageously tossing Van Dam out of the ring during a handshake. Lynn led the way, baseball sliding and front flipping on Van Dam outside the ring and back in the ring, following up with keeping him grounded, despite short defensive comebacks by Van Dam. Eventually, Van Dam was able to attain control, and in one highlight, spin kicked Lynn hanging across the ringside guardrail. The match continued back-and-forth and down in the end, Lynn impressed with two creative chair spots, one which drew blood from Van Dam. But after Van Dam kicked a chair in Lynn's face, he nailed the Five-Star Frog Splash and covered to win the match.

The Four Way X Division Showcase tournament final match for an exclusive TNA contract was next featuring competitors Austin Aries, Jack Evans, Low Ki and Zema Ion. In the inception, Aries tried to go after Evans, who was targeted by Low Ki, thus, Aries went after Ion and tried to win the match early by pinning him to no success. Low Ki confronted Aries and gave in to his offered handshake, but used the opportunity to deliver a stiff kick. Aries and Low Ki battled it out and Low Ki prevailed during their scuffle and forced Aries out the ring. Everyone in the ring took turns shining in the match. Soon, Aries returned to the ring dominating all his opponents shortly before Evans, Low Ki, and Ion all hit him with a dropkick at the same time, making Aries leave the ring. Many creative and highly athletic moves, strong physicality, countless near falls were seen in the match in its progression. At the end, Aries slammed Low Ki down with the brainbuster
Brainbuster
A brainbuster is a professional wrestling throw in which a wrestler puts his/her opponent in a front facelock, hooks his/her pants, and lifts him/her up as if he/she was executing a vertical suplex. The wrestler then falls onto his/her back so that the opponent lands on his/her head while remaining...

 to secure a pinfall victory and claim the contract.

Main Event matches

The following match prior to the main event was Abyss defending the TNA X Division Championship as he faced Brian Kendrick. Kendrick refused to shy away from the odds in front of him, kicking at Abyss, who was not phased in the least, in the beginning of the match. As the much bigger man, Abyss dominated the early portion of the bout, hitting and beating on Kendrick, though Kendrick tried his best to put up a fight. Abyss got distracted looking at his book for inspiration on Sun Tzu
Sun Tzu
Sun Wu , style name Changqing , better known as Sun Tzu or Sunzi , was an ancient Chinese military general, strategist and philosopher who is traditionally believed, and who is most likely, to have authored The Art of War, an influential ancient Chinese book on military strategy...

's Art of War philosophy and this was costly when Kendrick landed a punch that caused him to bleed from the eyebrow. Kendrick used his fast pace to take it to Abyss until Abyss cut him off with the Shock Treatment. Kendrick, however, got a shoulder up during the ensuing pinfall. Abyss argued with referee Earl Hebner
Earl Hebner
Earl William Hebner is a professional wrestling referee currently working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, and the twin brother of Dave Hebner...

, who then was knocked unconscious when Abyss whipped Kendrick to the ring corner as Kendrick prevented a collision with Hebner, but moved out the way when Abyss stormed in for body contact. Kendrick connected with a Sliced Bread #2 and pinned Abyss, but there was no referee in sight. Nearing the end of the match, Eric Bischoff came down to the ring to argue with Kendrick, who laid him out from a punch. Immortal members Gunner, Bully Ray and Scott Steiner
Scott Steiner
Scott Carl Rechsteiner is an American professional wrestler better known by his ring name Scott Steiner. Steiner is perhaps best known for his appearances with World Championship Wrestling alongside his older brother Rick as the Steiner Brothers and as a member of the New World Order...

 came out next to beat down Kendrick. Fellow X Division members Generation Me, Shark Boy and Amazing Red tried to make the save, but Immortal took care of them. Moreover, further back up arrived in Austin Aries, Eric Young, Shannon Moore, Douglas Williams, Robbie E, and Alex Shelley to drive Immortal out. In the final moments, Kendrick went for a move off the top rope, Abyss countered and went in for the kill with a chokeslam
Chokeslam
A chokeslam refers to a type of body slam in professional wrestling in which the wrestler grasps their opponent's neck, lifts them up, and slams them to the mat. It is common in televised wrestling because it is simple and relatively safe, yet looks powerful on camera...

 but Kendrick reversed it and rolled Abyss up. At first there was no referee, but then a revived Hebner proceeded to perform a three count as Kendrick won his first X Division Championship. After the match, X Division stars helped Kendrick celebrate the moment while red confetti descended from the rafters and Eric Bischoff and Immortal were upset. Abyss also appeared to have a fallout with Bully Ray.

The main event of the night was two best friends and pioneers of the X Division competing as A.J. Styles went head to head with Christopher Daniels. Styles and Daniels set the pace in the beginning stages, putting on a technical exhibition and contending in a series of chain wrestling executions. They also proved to know each other well by anticipating particular moves in certain situations. There were several near falls and counters seen in the match, and in the early portion, Styles had control and continuously worked on the left arm of Daniels. Gradually, Daniels changed his game plan when Styles exited the ring to take a breather, and instead of waiting on him to completely face his direction, launched out on Styles with a suicide dive just as he spun around, and followed up with a second when Styles got to a vertical base. Thereafter, the momentum went to Daniels, who put Styles in the ring and hit Back Suplexes and other moves to affect his neck and carry out his plan of working over that area on Styles. It wasn't until Daniels was going to conduct a move off the ropes that Styles turned the match back in his favor, pushing Daniels off and landing a slingshot crossbody onto him. However, Styles gained control briefly until his flying forearm smash attempt backfired when Daniels knocked him off the ropes to the outside. Back in the ring, as Styles fought back, Daniels applied the Koji Clutch and Styles was able to get the rope break. Down to the end of the match, Styles and Daniels continued to trade offense and countered multiple times including each others signature moves, but delivered their finishing moves which only led to two counts during pins. Daniels also let his frustration get the better of him. At the very end, while both were on the top rope, Styles backdropped Daniels, who attempted the Angel's Wings from that height, and Styles hit the Spiral Tap, and covered for the victory.

Aftermath

After the highly acclaimed success garnered for the delivery of Destination X, TNA officially announced the signing of Austin Aries, who won his Four Way X Division Showcase tournament final match for an exclusive contract at the event against hopefuls Low Ki, Zema Ion and Jack Evans during a match where fans voiced a chant that the company should "sign them all", a chant which trended worldwide as "#SignThemAll" on Twitter. TNA Vice President of Talent Relations, Bruce Prichard
Bruce Prichard
Bruce Prichard is a professional wrestling personality, best known as a manager and producer for World Wrestling Entertainment , where he portrayed Brother Love, the original manager of The Undertaker...

, believed Aries offered an exceptional and fierce style which he saw beneficial to the X Division as well as "an arrogance and a confidence backed by tremendous physical ability". Due to the tournament performances on Impact Wrestling leading up to and at the pay per view, Prichard said several other upcoming talents would be signed to the X Division roster in reinvigorating the division. Prichard finished by saying, "Our goal now is to reinvent and redefine the X-Division as something unique to all of pro wrestling".

On the Impact Wrestling episode following Destination X, Austin Aries defeated Shannon Moore with the help of a chain. Alex Shelley ran down to the ring to complain to him about cheating to win the match, though Aries ultimately seemed to ignore him. The next week, Shelley, having won the Ultimate X match that rewarded him the opportunity, was set to take on defending champion Brian Kendrick for the TNA X Division Championship. During the match, Aries began a feud with Shelley by costing him his title match when he ran out to the ring and hit Shelley in the head with the X Division Title, unbeknownst to the referee, Shelley and Kendrick, as Aries hid under the ring.

Reception

Destination X received mostly positive reviews. Bob Kapur, a writer for the Canadian Online Explorer
Canadian Online Explorer
Canadian Online Explorer is a bilingual online news and information site from Canada.A subsidiary of Quebecor Media, Canoe.ca is a leading local and national interactive media provider of news, entertainment and services, helping to inform and connect Canadians...

 on its pro wrestling section, rated the event an 8 out of 10, stating that "the spotlight was once again on the X-Division, and the result was a solid and refreshing show that lived up to the company's "Wrestling matters" slogan". Kapur also went on the rate all of the matches between 7 to 9 out of 10 including the main events of the X-Division Championship match giving it 7 out of 10 and AJ Styles versus Christopher Daniels giving it 9 out of 10. Also notable, the undercard Contract match was scored 9 out of 10.

411 Mania pro wrestling section writer Colin Rinehart reviewed the show saying, "Probably the best and most consistent offering on PPV from TNA so far this year, and a potential candidate for PPV of the year for the company most likely by the time the end of the year rolls around. Almost everyone delivered here and while a few matches were a tad bit underwhelming based on pre-show expectations, the overall bulk of the show consisted of highly entertaining, hard fought contests showing off some of the best "X-Division" style talent in the world today. An easy and enthusiastic thumbs up here for Destination X".

Results

# Matches Stipulations Time
1 Kazarian
Frankie Kazarian
Frank B. Gerdelman is an Armenian-American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Frankie Kazarian or simply Kazarian. He is currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling...

 defeated Samoa Joe
Samoa Joe
Nuufolau Joel "Joe" Seanoa is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Samoa Joe. He is currently under contract with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling....

Singles match 11:19
2 Douglas Williams
Doug Williams (wrestler)
Douglas Clayton Durdle is an English professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Doug Williams. He is currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling under the ring name Douglas Williams...

 (with Magnus
Nick Aldis
Nicholas Harry "Nick" Aldis is an English professional wrestler and actor. He is currently working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling under the ring name Magnus, where he is a one time World Tag Team Champion with Doug Williams...

 and Rob Terry
Rob Terry
Robert "Rob" Terry is a Welsh professional wrestler and bodybuilder. He is currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling . Before signing with TNA, he was under contract with World Wrestling Entertainment and competed in the company's developmental territory, Florida Championship...

) defeated Mark Haskins
Mark Haskins
Mark Haskins , is an English professional wrestler, currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling . He is also known for his appearances in Dragon Gate.-Total Nonstop Action Wrestling :...

Open Challenge match 7:40
3 Eric Young
Eric Young (wrestler)
Jeremy Fritz is a Canadian professional wrestler, best known under his ring name Eric Young. He currently performs for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he has gained popularity using a variety of comic relief gimmicks....

 and Shark Boy
Shark Boy
Dean Mathew Roll is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Shark Boy and his experience in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling .-Early career:...

 defeated Generation Me
The Young Bucks
The Young Bucks is an American professional wrestling tag team, consisting of real life brothers Matt and Nick Massie from Southern California...

 (Jeremy and Max Buck)
Tag Team match
Professional wrestling tag team match types
Much like singles matches, tag team professional wrestling matches can and have taken many forms. Just about any singles or melee match type can be adapted to tag teams; for example, hardcore tag team matches are commonplace...

7:22
4 Alex Shelley
Alex Shelley
Patrick Martin , is an American professional wrestler, better known by the ring name Alex Shelley. He wrestles for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he currently teams with Chris Sabin as The Motor City Machine Guns. He previously gained fame on the independent circuit, working most notably for...

 defeated Amazing Red
Amazing Red
Jonathan Figueroa is a professional wrestler better known by his ring name, Amazing Red, or simply Red for short. He is best known for working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he is a former three-time X Division Champion, while also working on the American independent circuit...

, Robbie E
Rob Strauss
Robert "Rob" Strauss is an American professional wrestler, currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling under the ring name Robbie E. He is the current TNA Television Champion and a former TNA X Division Champion...

 (with Cookie
Becky Bayless
Rebecca Treston better known by her ring name Rebecca "Becky" Bayless, is an American professional wrestler, currently working for independent promotions such as Women's Extreme Wrestling, Wrestling Superstars Unleashed, Wrestlicious, and Women Superstars Uncensored...

) and Shannon Moore
Shannon Moore
Shannon Moore is an American professional wrestler, who is signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling . He is best known for his work with World Championship Wrestling between 1999 and 2001 and with World Wrestling Entertainment for several years in the 2000s.Moore befriended Matt and Jeff Hardy...

Ultimate X match
Ultimate X match
The Ultimate X match is a type of professional wrestling match created by Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , mainly used in their X Division. It is considered the "signature match of the X Division," as stated numerous times by Mike Tenay right before an Ultimate X match begins.-Match...

 to determine the number one contender for the TNA X Division Championship
TNA X Division Championship
The TNA X Division Championship is a professional wrestling championship owned by the Total Nonstop Action Wrestling promotion. It is primarily defended in TNA's X Division—a style based on a fast-paced, daredevil type of wrestling...

10:30
5 Rob Van Dam
Rob Van Dam
Robert Alexander "Rob" Szatkowski , better known by his ring name Rob Van Dam , is an American professional wrestler and actor who is currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling ....

 defeated Jerry Lynn
Jerry Lynn
Jeremy "Jerry" Lynn is an American professional wrestler who is currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling ....

Singles match 16:51
6 Austin Aries
Austin Aries
Daniel Healy "Dan" Solwold, Jr. better known by his ring name Austin Aries, is an American professional wrestler, currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , where he is the current X Division Champion...

 defeated Jack Evans
Jack Evans
Jack Edward Miller is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Jack Evans. He currently performs for the Mexican-based promotion Asistencia Asesoría y Administración, where he is the current World Cruiserweight Champion and a former World Tag Team Champion. He is the cousin...

, Low Ki
Low Ki
Brandon Silvestry is an American professional wrestler. He is best known under his ring names Low Ki, Senshi in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, and Kaval in World Wrestling Entertainment. He is a former one-time PWG World Champion and a former ROH Champion...

 and Zema Ion
Shiima Xion
Michael Paris is an American professional wrestler better known by his ring name, Shiima Xion. He is currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , where he competes as Zema Ion, while also working both on the American independent circuit and in Mexico.-Early career:Michael Paris claims that...

Four-way X Division Showcase tournament final for an exclusive TNA contract 13:30
7 Brian Kendrick
Brian Kendrick
Brian David Kendrick is an American professional wrestler currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling under his real name. Before joining TNA he spent several years wrestling for World Wrestling Entertainment, where he wrestled under his name, as Spanky, and finally as "The" Brian Kendrick...

 defeated Abyss (c)
Singles match for the TNA X Division Championship
TNA X Division Championship
The TNA X Division Championship is a professional wrestling championship owned by the Total Nonstop Action Wrestling promotion. It is primarily defended in TNA's X Division—a style based on a fast-paced, daredevil type of wrestling...

10:14
8 A.J. Styles
A.J. Styles
Allen Neal Jones , better known by his ring name A.J. Styles is an American professional wrestler currently working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling...

 defeated Christopher Daniels
Christopher Daniels
Daniel Christopher Covell is an American professional wrestler, best known in the United States by his ring name "The Fallen Angel" Christopher Daniels. He is also known for performing under the ring name Curry Man. He is currently under contract with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , while also...

Singles match 28:27

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
x
OK