Don’t miss Thursday’s TNA IMPACT WRESTLING broadcast on SpikeTV at 9/8c, as the road to the January 8 “Genesis” Pay-Per-View event continues! If you can’t watch it on Thursday night, make sure to set your DVR to record it so you don’t miss any of the Total Nonstop Action!

Here is a preview of Thursday’s broadcast:

– The main event of the broadcast will feature Olympic Gold Medalist Kurt Angle taking on Rob Van Dam

– The Knockouts Championship will be on the line as Gail Kim defends against Mickie James

– The Wild Card Tag Team Tournament continues with two semi-final matches:

Match 1: Eric Young & ODB vs. Samoa Joe & Magnus

Match 2: Abyss & Scott Steiner vs. AJ Styles & Kazarian

– In addition, it will be the final match in the Best-Of-3 Series between Anthony Neese and Zema Ion, with the winner earning a shot at the X Division Championship

– Also scheduled to appear are World Heavyweight Champion Bobby Roode, “The Charismatic Enigma” Jeff Hardy, IMPACT WRESTLING General Manager Sting, “Cowboy” James Storm and many more!

– Plus, more big news on the upcoming January 8 “Genesis” Pay-Per-View event

source: ImpactWrestling.com

Former WWE talent Harry Smith will be among the troupe of wrestlers traveling to Mumbia, India this week to tape the first footage for TNA Wrestling’s planned debut on the television network Colors.

California based independent wrestler Joey Ryan announced Monday on Facebook that he will participate in the project. He wrote, “Beginning this week, I will be working for TNA Impact Wrestling on their upcoming India project. I want to publicly thank David Lagana and Jeff Jarrett for the opportunity.”

Canadian based independent tag team Bollywood Lions—Gurv Sihra and Harv Sihra—have also signed on for the project. Gurv wrote on Facebook, “Excited to announce that my brother Harv and I have been signed on to take part in TNA Wrestling’s upcoming project in Mumbai, India! Very blessed and fortunate for this opportunity!”

Footage of Bollywood Lions is available here.

Other talent reportedly scheduled for the project include Abyss, Alissa Flash, Arya Daivari, Chris Masters, Chavo Guerrero, Cliff Compton, Jimmy Rave, Luke Gallows, Matt Morgan, Nick Dinsmore, Shawn Daivari, Sonjay Dutt and Zema Ion.

sources: PWInsider.com, ProWrestling.net

Preview IMPACT WRESTLING On Thursday Night On SpikeTV

Don’t miss Thursday’s huge TNA IMPACT WRESTLING broadcast on SpikeTV at 9/8c as the road to the December 11 “Final Resolution” Pay-Per-View continues, just days before the epic event! The main event will feature AJ Styles and Jeff Hardy vs. World Champion Bobby Roode and Jeff Jarrett!

Here is a preview of Thursday’s broadcast:

– The main event of the huge broadcast features World Heavyweight Champion Bobby Roode teaming with “The King Of The Mountain” Jeff Jarrett to battle “The Phenomenal” AJ Styles and “The Charismatic Enigma” Jeff Hardy! Styles will challenge Roode for the World Title at Final Resolution, while Hardy faces Jarrett in a Steel Cage Match! What will happen when these four athletes battle just days before the Pay-Per-View? Don’t miss it!

– The GM (General Menace) “The Icon” Sting is back, and he’s asked TNA President Dixie Carter to appear on Thursday’s broadcast to discuss the ongoing situation with the World Champion, Bobby Roode. After Roode physically assaulted Dixie Carter just a few weeks ago, what will the TNA President have to say when she’s face to face with Roode again? Tune in and find out!

– Also on the broadcast, “The Cowboy” James Storm has promised to return – despite dealing with the effects of a concussion – to confront his attacker, Kurt Angle! Will all hell break loose when Storm and Angle are in the same ring again? Can Storm keep his anger in check when faced with the superstar that cost him his shot at regaining the World Title?

– In action on the broadcast, Samoa Joe battles Abyss, Knockouts Tag Team Champion Madison Rayne faces Mickie James, plus much more!

source: ImpactWrestling.com

TNA Wrestling presents Turning Point live tonight on pay-per-view and online at TNAOnDemand.com from Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida. The complete match lineup is as follows:

World Heavyweight Championship Match
Bobby Roode (c) vs. “The Phenomenal” AJ Styles

Challenge Match
“The Charismatic Enigma” Jeff Hardy vs. “King Of The Mountain” Jeff Jarrett

X Division Championship Match
Austin Aries (c) vs .Jesse Sorensen vs Kid Kash

Television Championship Match
Eric Young (c) vs. Robbie E

Tag Team Match
Mr. Anderson and Abyss vs. Bully Ray and Scott Steiner

Undefeated Streak On The Line
Crimson vs. “The Blueprint” Matt Morgan

No Disqualification Match
Rob Van Dam vs. Christopher Daniels

Women’s Knockout Championship Match
Velvet Sky vs. Gail Kim

Tag Team Championship Match
Anarquia, Hernandez and Sarita vs. Jesse Neal, Shannon Moore and Toxxin

Chris Park, who portrays Abyss for TNA Wrestling, says he is always looking for ways to keep his character fresh and exciting. However, he acknowledges that it can be difficult since Abyss has regularly featured throughout the organization’s history, and has just about done it all.

“The character has got a lot of different directions that it can still go down,” he tells SLAM! Wrestling. “There are always new dragons to slay. There’s a number of fresh programs (possible) with some great up-and-coming talent, guys like Gunner and Crimson. Guys like Ken Anderson that I haven’t worked a lot with, or Bully Ray who I’ve never really worked with. Personally, I’m as hungry now as I was nine years ago when I first started full-time with TNA. I’m very proud of what I’ve accomplished, like winning all four major titles, and being a main event heavyweight contender for so many years. I’ve worked hard, and it’s paid off. But I think there’s till so much more that I can do.”

Park says he’s open to Abyss losing his trademark mask, a direction he would not have been comfortable with years ago.

“Five or six years ago, I would have been more resistant to it,” he said about the idea. “But now I’d be open to it. The character has had a great run — both TNA and I have gotten an awful lot out of it. Losing (the mask) would let me create a new presentation of the Abyss character, give me an opportunity to do different things that I haven’t done over the years, put a little more of Chris Park in it.”

Abyss, a former NWA World Heavyweight Champion, also discusses TNA’s expansion efforts, Bruce Pritchard taking over the company’s creative rein, his versatility and more. The full interview can be accessed here.

Preview IMPACT WRESTLING On SpikeTV: Shocks & Surprises!

Don’t miss Thursday’s huge IMPACT WRESTLING broadcast on SpikeTV at 9/8c, featuring the aftermath from our biggest event of the year, Bound For Glory! It’s a night of shocks and surprises on the packed show! Can’t watch IMPACT WRESTLING on Thursday night? Make sure to set your DVR to record it so you don’t miss any of the action.

Here is a preview of Thursday’s broadcast:

– Kurt Angle is STILL the World Heavyweight Champion, having defeated Bobby Roode in controversial fashion at Bound For Glory! The champ will appear on Thursday’s broadcast of IMPACT WRESTLING! What’s next for Angle? How will Roode react? Who will step up to challenge him next? Don’t miss it!

– Also, after defeating “The Immortal” Hulk Hogan at Bound For Glory, Sting returned control of TNA to President Dixie Carter! Both “The Icon” Sting and Dixie Carter will appear on Thursday’s huge broadcast on SpikeTV! The question is, what’s next for Hulk Hogan after what happened at BFG? Is it a new era for Hulkamania? How will Eric Bischoff react? Tune in and find out!

– Also at Bound For Glory, a new Knockouts Champion was crowned as Velvet Sky realized her dream of capturing the gold! Velvet will be on the broadcast this Thursday, but Knockouts VP Karen Jarrett isn’t happy that Velvet came out victorious. What will happen between Velvet Sky and Karen Jarrett this Thursday? Is Jarrett about to make Sky’s championship reign a living hell?

– After he was forcefully kicked out of the Immortal alliance last week, “The Monster” Abyss will battle Immortal’s “Big Poppa Pump” Scott Steiner

– Plus, the Knockouts Tag Team Championship will be on the line as titleholders Tara and Brooke Tessmacher defend against Winter and Angelina Love

Also appearing on Thursday night – “The Phenomenal” AJ Styles, “The Charismatic Enigma” Jeff Hardy, “The King Of The Mountain” Jeff Jarrett, X Division Champion Austin Aries and many more!

— Kazarian took a shot at Sin Cara, who was suspended yesterday for 30 days due to a violation of WWE’s Talent Wellness Program.

“The Flux Capacitor is what makes time travel possible,” Kazarian wrote regarding the name of his finisher. “If you STEAL it, you violate the Wellness Policy and get suspended 30 days. Just sayin’.”

— Matt Morgan underwent MRIs on his lower back yesterday. The TNA star has been dealing with spasms of late that have been increasingly painful.

He is expected to receive the results within the next few days.

— Jeremy Borash celebrates his 37th birthday today.

— Abyss is advertised to appear for Pro Wrestling Destination on Saturday, August 20 in Reno, Nevada. Visit www.pwdwrestling.com for event information.

— Ric Flair is not scheduled for this week’s Impact Wrestling tapings in Orlando, Florida.

— Jeff Jarrett, Abyss and Mickie James appeared at last night’s Asistencia Asesoría y Administración television tapings in Veracruz, Mexico.

— TNA Wrestling will be holding an event at the Chenango County Fair in Norwich, New York on Friday, August 12, 2011. Bell time is 7:30 p.m. Tickets are currently on sale.

— Orlando Jordan celebrates his 38th birthday today.

source: F4WOnline.com

— Abyss stated Wednesday during a chat session on TNAOnDemand.com that he would be defending the X Division Championship (which he renamed the Extreme Title) against Brian Kendrick next month at Destination X.

— Kazarian is featured in Impact Wrestling’s latest “Why Wrestling Matters” video. The former TNA X Division Champion discusses what drives his passion and dedication for professional wrestling.

“There are a number of people out there, old and young, male and female, that want an alternative, that want a pro wrestling company,” Kazarian says. “They want to be entertained by what happens inside of a wrestling ring. They don’t want to be talked to, they don’t want to be lied to, they want to watch people fight. That’s why Impact Wrestling is important today, more so than it ever has been.”

To see the video, click here.

— TNA Women’s Knockout Champion Mickie James will be appearing at a fundraiser for the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation in Elizabethtown, North Carolina on Saturday, August 20. Visit MickieJames.com for more information.

— Saturday night in Mexico City, Jeff Jarrett made history by becoming the new AAA World Heavyweight Champion at TripleManía XIX. Jarrett, who was accompanied by his wife Karen, defeated El Zorro to win the prestigious title after throwing powder in his face and assaulting him with a kendo stick.

The TripleMania event also featured Mr. Anderson, Rob Van Dam, Abyss, Velvet Sky, Mickie James and Angelina Love in action. Jack Evans and Extreme Tiger beat Mr. Anderson and Abyss in a Steel Cage Match to retain the AAA Tag Team Championship. Sexy Star, Angelina Love, Mickie James and Velvet Sky beat Mari, Fabi Apache, Lolita and Cynthia Moreno in an Eight Women Tag Team Match. Dr. Wagner, Jr. beat Rob Van Dam to retain the AAA Latin American Championship.

— Matt Morgan beat “The Pope” D’Angelo Dinero via pinfall in a “Bound for Glory Series” match at Saturday’s Impact Wrestling live event in Buffalo, New York.

It was announced at the show that the match would air this Thursday on Impact Wrestling.

source: Pro Wrestling Torch

— The June 16 episode of Impact Wrestling scored a 1.25 cable rating after drawing two consecutive below average numbers against the NBA Finals.

It was the program’s highest rating since May 17. It was also the second-highest-rated episode since March 17.

The show averaged 1,766,000 viewers over the course of two hours.

— It was reported earlier that TNA Women’s Knockout Champion Mickie James will be wrestling at the World Wrestling Council (WWC) Anniversary show in Bayamon, Puerto Rico, which takes place Saturday, July 16. TNA X Division Champion Abyss and TNA Knockout Tag Team Champion Sarita are also scheduled to appear.

— Gunner is scheduled to appear on Got Game tonight at 10:30 p.m. EST on FOX-18 in Charlotte, North Carolina.

sources: Pro Wrestling Torch, PWInsider.com

– Following Immortal’s attack on Robert Rude last week on Impact Wrestling, TNA will be running a storyline where James Storm will have to find a new tag team partner for Beer Money’s tag title defense at Slammiversary against opponents who have yet to be named.

– By winning the X-Division championship last week on Impact Wrestling, Abyss became only the second Grand Slam Champion (he’s held the TNA World, Tag Team, X Division and Television Titles) in company history. The only other man to accomplish this feat is AJ Styles.

– Employees at Universal Studios, home of TNA’s Impact Zone, are cracking down on the usage of cellphones at TNA television tapings.

Universal has been threatening fans in recent weeks that they will be kicked out of the building if they are suspected of texting spoilers to websites.

The new policy is said to be mandated by Universal Studios, not TNA.

(Partial Source: PWInsider.com)

-With Hulk Hogan currently training for a possible return to the ring later this year, word out of the TNA locker room is that Hogan is looking to wrestle Sting in the main event of TNA’s biggest show of the year – Bound For Glory, later this year. Yeah we know, that same match headlined WCW’s biggest show of the year (Starrcade) back in 1997.

While a Hulk Hogan vs. Sting match is still a match some fans would pay to see again – it all depends on whether Hogan is physically able to work a match after undergoing more than a half dozen back surgeries in the past year or so.

Related News: Hulk Hogan Says It’s 50/50 That He’ll Wrestle This Year

– Dixie Carter remains the president of TNA Wrestling, despite online reports the contrary. As many know, TNA is funded primarily by Panda Energy, which is owned by Dixie’s  father, Bob. Dixie’s mother Janice began working behind the scenes in TNA earlier this year overseeing the company’s finances. After the tremendous amount of money TNA has spent in recent years signing household names to big contracts and the failed attempt at going live on Monday nights, major changes to TNA’s operations are expected in the coming months to save.

– Abyss’ front teeth are still missing after getting kicked in the face by Rob Van Dam several weeks ago on iMPACT!

— The April 22 episode of TNA iMPACT! scored a 1.17 cable rating, up from 1.14 the week before and 1.15 two weeks ago.

The program ranked #29 on cable television for the night, #23 in males 18-34, and #8 in males 18-49.

— Abyss won’t be missing any ring time after suffering dental injuries during a match against Rob Van Dam at Tuesday’s iMPACT! taping.

Abyss underwent dental surgery on Thursday, having repair work done to his upper lip and having 4 to 5 damaged teeth pulled.

Abyss has indicated to his colleagues that he’ll be ready to return to the ring within a week.

— This week’s episode of TNA iMPACT! featured 18 minutes and 48 seconds of in-ring action, down from 35 minutes and 48 seconds the week before.

sources: Pro Wrestling Torch, PWInsider.com

— Multiple sources have confirmed that Jay Lethal has parted ways with TNA Wrestling. His profile was removed from the company’s website Wednesday night.

In a new bit of information, many within TNA are saying that organization officials opted to release the former X Division Champion.

— Abyss will be undergoing dental surgery to repair the bottom row of his teeth, which were badly damaged during a misplaced springboard kick from Rob Van Dam at Tuesday’s iMPACT! taping

Abyss received a lot of praise within the company for working Wednesday’s taping despite being in severe pain.

— Brother Devon, Eric Young, Orlando Jordan and Tommy Dreamer vs. Douglas Williams, Magnus, Murphy and Rob Terry was taped for the May 3 episode of TNA Xplosion on Challenge TV last night in Orlando, Florida.

source: PWInsider.com

— Abyss is backstage at tonight’s iMPACT! taping in Orlando, Florida. He has not appeared for TNA since the January 20 episode of iMPACT! due to a storyline injury.

— Last night on Twitter, Bret Hart gave his take on the difference between TNA Wrestling and World Wrestling Entertainment.

He wrote, “The main difference between TNA and WWE is the same as the difference between WCW and WWE: Vince McMahon.”

— TNA Wrestling producer Al Snow and Necro Butcher are advertised for the MCW event on March 19 in Alliance, Ohio. For more information on the show, visit MCWpro.com.

source: PWInsider.com

– The Monster Abyss will be out of action until the February 24th TNA iMPACT in Fayetteville, North Carolina. He’s being kept off TV to sell injuries from Crimson stabbing in the back with Janice.

– A number of European wrestlers recently received tryouts with TNA during the company’s tour last month. TNA was most impressed with Mark Hawkins and he’s seen as the first person TNA would offer a job to if they hire anybody from this round of evaluations.

– Also on the European tour, Knockout Madison Rayne got sick and was unable to work the show in Manchester. Instead of the scheduled Rayne and Tara vs. Mickie James and Angelina Love match, they went with Love vs. Mickie with Tara as referee.

– TNA recently announced that it switched the dates for the Destination X and Victory Road pay-per-view events. The reason for the change is the company wants to build up the X-Division and that will take more than a month or two, when Destination X was previously scheduled for. The X Division pay-per-view is now scheduled for July.

(Source: Wrestling Observer Newsletter)

The word amongst the TNA Wrestling locker room is that AJ Styles suffered an injury to his knee and therefore won’t be competing at tonight’s Genesis pay-per-view.

His previously scheduled opponent, Douglas Williams, will instead be wrestling Abyss.

While not definite, the belief is that Styles will remain sidelined for a few weeks.

source: PWInsider.com

— It was reported earlier that Kurt Angle was upset with Abyss over the monster wrestler dropping him on his head during their Steel Cage Match on last Thursday’s iMPACT!. To add further details, Angle leapt off the top of the cage and Abyss attempted to perform the Black Hole Slam. However, Abyss dropped Angle awkwardly on his back during the sequence. While Angle wasn’t super hot at Abyss, he was very concerned with his own safety. (source: Pro Wrestling Torch)

— TNA Wrestling will be holding several events over the next few days besides Sunday’s Bound for Glory pay-per-view at the Daytona Beach Ocean Center. For a complete schedule of events, click here.

— Yesterday was TNA President Dixie Carter’s birthday. She turned 46 years old.

— TNA president Dixie Carter noted on her Twitter account this evening that she attended Mickie James’ CD release party.

“Just left my first music showcase in a while. Wanna guess the artist? Mickie James. Thanks for the invite girl,” Carter wrote.

James held her release party, promoting Strangers & Angels, in Carter’s (and TNA’s) backyard of Nashville, Tennessee.

— Abyss received 17 stitches in his arm as a result of the attack by Desmond Wolfe that aired on tonight’s episode of iMPACT!.

— There has been talk of doing shoot interviews with talent that would be exclusively sold on ShopTNA.com. The video releases would also feature matches and other footage.

TNA star Abyss spoke to Brian Fritz of Fanhouse.com this week to promote Sunday’s TNA Sacrifice event.  Here are some highlights of what he said about:

The Evolution of his Character:

“I’m really proud of the character. I think it has matured a lot over the years. In this business, to keep any kind of a character at all, at any level, relevant for an extended period of time — I’ve been with TNA for going on eight years and I’ve been there since basically close to the beginning — so you gotta switch it up. You gotta try different stuff or you kind of get stale by doing just the same old thing. I’m proud of what we did with the character. I really like the original stuff. I really like the stuff coming back with the whites (clothing) and the insane asylum stuff. I really liked all that stuff and then the transformation now into the stuff with Hulk (Hogan). That’s been obviously a dream come true. I’ve really enjoyed the different sides of it. I think that keeps the character interesting, when you can see him when he’s happy, when he’s angry, when he’s sad, when he’s mad. You see different sides of the character and that keeps the character kind of fresh.”

Wanting to Wrestle Hulk Hogan:

“I would love it man. I think it would be great. It would be an honor, no doubt about it. It would be the biggest moment in my wrestling career. I sincerely doubt there would be a bigger moment in my career than me against Hulk Hogan in a singles match. I would love it and I think we could pull off something special. I have no doubt in that.”

The Best Advice that Hogan Has Given Him:

“He’s given me so much so I could go a million different ways to answer this but I’ll go this way with it,” said Abyss. “One of the things he’s really taught me was to really use the story you’ve been given and incorporate it in your match and work smart. He’s taught me to maximize the tools you’re given when it comes to putting a match together and an angle together.”

To hear what Abyss said about his hardcore wrestling style, working with Mick Foley and Hulk Hogan dubbing him the “John Cena of TNA,” visit Fanhouse.com.

Partial Source: Wrestling Observer Newsletter

– Former WWE Diva Kristall Marshall confirmed on Twitter last week that she and Bobby Lashley have split up. She wrote:

“Hello everyone Bobby (Lashley) and I have split, but remain great friends. He is a constant in our son’s life and a tremendous father.”

– With Tommy Dreamer’s WWE no-compete clause expired, he’s expected to wind up in TNA soon either as an agent or as on-air talent.

– TNA has also had talks with former WWE star Nick “Eugene” Dinsmore about doing a spinoff of the Eugene character in TNA.

Warning: The following contains a potentially big TNA storyline *Spoiler*

– Current plans call for the monster Abyss to turn on his hero, Hulk Hogan. No word yet when the turn will happen, but it’s been planned for quite some time.

TNA founder Jeff Jarrett was backstage at the television tapings in Orlando, Florida this week. There was no formal reintroduction of Jarrett from management, nor any type of update on what his position with the company is at this time, according to prowrestling.net. One source did say having Jarrett back was ackward, considering nobody knew what his specific role was, and whether he actually holds any authority. For those wondering, Jarrett is still a minority owner in the company and has been back in the TNA office for several weeks now.On this week’s iMPACT!, a segment aired where Mick Foley convinced Jarrett to return to TNA television next week.

Also on this week’s iMPACT!, TNA hyped an The angle that was considered “too graphic for Spike TV.” TNA has since released some shocking footage from Thursday afternoon of Abyss being set on fire by Raven and Stevie Richards. According to the TNA website, Abyss was hospitalized with “severe burns covering his entire left leg.” Check it out: