Last week, we saw a title change hands without a finger being lifted. One wonders if things can go up from here, or if it’s possible to go even lower. Having done a test run on Xplosion with pretty good results, tonight we would see a rematch between Sarita and Mickie James. Can James pick up another victory or can the former Dark Angel get the pin this time? Find out below..
Out first in a new outfit of green and purple is Sarita. She’s looking good in those colors, and I believe she has some streaks in her hair. Very nice! Exuding confidence, she enters the ring. “HARDCORE COUNTRY!” blares, signalling the arrival of Mickie James. And as she enters, my jaw drops. I know she’s playing up the ‘country’ aspect of her character but…the shorts are ripped so high, you can see the pockets! They look like they’re barely there, and the top looks like she could bust out of it at any time. I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised, considering what Angelina, Velvet and Madison have worn to the ring but…goodness. Her hair looks fabulous though, so that’s a plus. She gets a great reaction from the crowd as she enters, but Sarita doesn’t look impressed. As the bell rings, the two circle each other before locking up.
Sarita initially gets the upper hand with an arm lock, but James counters and manuevers her into a monkey flip that sends Sarita across the ring. The Latina is not impressed and she gets up, shoving James while saying, “Who do you think you are?” MJ blocks a forearm and counters with a spin kick that connects to Sarita’s stomach, then follows up with a nice bit of offense that ends with a nice dropkick and a pinning attempt. The cover’s good for two.
Mickie grabs her by the waist from behind and attempts to shove Sarita off the ropes and roll her up, but Sarita clings to the ropes, sending James backwards. The Dark Angel is quick in taking advantage by grabbing Mickie by her hair and flinging her backwards to the mat. But she loses time by doing her little dance (seriously? What is that?), before kicking Mickie. She then springs to the opposite corner and flies off, twisting in mid-air looking for a crossbody, but Mickie moves, leaving Sarita to eat canvas! James is on her feet and nails a nice flying dropkick. Deciding descretion is the better part of valour, Sarita exits the ring for a break. James doesn’t let up, however, going for a baseball slide. Sarita catches her, but instead Mickie gets a nice swinging hurricarana on the outside!
At this point, Sarita tries to beg off, but as Mickie goes to follow up, the crafty Latina grabs MJ and pulls her head first into the steel stairs. The momentum has shifted again, this time Sarita wastes no time in getting Mickie back in the ring and going for a cover. No dice, even when she goes for a second pin. Changing strategies, Sarita rolls MJ onto her stomach and drives her knee into the small of Mickie’s back. When she gets James onto her feet, MJ tries to mount some offence, but Sarita goes on the attack, beating her down with multiple kicks, then sends her head first into the corner. Grabbing hold of her, Sarita applies the torture rack and goes into an airplane spin. But Mickie gets loose and counters with a rollup, which Sarita kicks out of.
Having gotten her second wind, Mickie gets the upper hand, landing several forearms and clotheslines to Sarita. She gets a snapping headscissors takedown, then a huge Lou Thez press from the top rope, and finally lands the Mick Kick to take Sarita out. She gets the three count and the win – her first official match on Impact is in the bag, and it’s another win for Mickie over Sarita.
It’s not over, however, as Tara sneaks into the ring and ambushes Mickie from behind. She gets some stiff shots in before nailing her with the Widows Peak. She screams at Mickie, “You’re in my house now!” Showing contempt for her fellow former Diva, she turns her back on James and wipes her feet (a familiar gesture from her!), before leaving the ring. She’s wearing a pretty damn hot outfit too!
Thoughts: That’s two good matches for Mickie. I see a renewed sense of fire from her, which is excellent since she’s still capable of going in the ring. She proved this on the independent scene, against Mercedes Martinez. Her and Sarita work well together, I hope this crosses over to other Knockouts. We’ve seen many good bouts between Mickie and Tara, so one can assume when they do face each other, it’ll be as good as their past matches. But something else happened tonight on TNA…
Next, the former Katie Lea has debuted as Winter! I was initially skeptical when I heard the report. I thought, “Oh wonderful, another stalker angle..” All that changed when I saw it unfold, however. I LOVE supernatural things, and Katie definitely has the look and the acting skills to pull off something along these lines. Everything was perfect, her look, her words, her tone of voice – everything. My most fervent wish is that they draw this out for a proper amount of time and keep the spookiness factor going upwards gradually. And what better way to debut her than two weeks before Halloween? I’m honestly excited about this – please, TNA, for the love of God don’t screw this up!
