The Rise & Fall Of TNA | Wrestling Timelines

23. October 19, 2006 | Best Sh*t Ever

If you watch pro wrestling for its stylised take on violence, one of the coolest moments in the history of the sport takes place on this date. 

Mike Tenay requests that the undefeated Samoa Joe make his way to the ring on iMPACT. Joe has stolen the NWA World title because he’s pissed that his win over Jeff Jarrett wasn’t fought for the belt. Before authority figure Jim Cornette can fire him for refusing to return it, Joe is confronted by Kurt Angle. 

The face-to-face is incredible. The iMPACT Zone is a cauldron, in a state of euphoria and anticipation at the sight of the two most credible badasses in the U.S. ready to throw down. Angle is so agitated that he can’t stop gurning. Joe is stoic, until Angle smashes him with a shoot headbutt into the bridge of his nose. This is electrifying. This is deranged. On one level, it’s terrible pro wrestling, in that the very idea is to fake this sort of thing. On another, it’s the perfect tease for a dream match, a transgressive promise of all-out, entirely committed violence. The scene develops a genuinely cinematic flair when Joe, his face splattered, recovers from the attack, rising up behind Angle with bloodied snarl. The fight is on, but is just as quickly broken up. 

This is the stuff, holy sh*t. It makes you want to pound your chest. You make animalistic noises involuntarily. You want to smash the nearest object. You want to taste blood. 

Jarrett pops up to retrieve his belt, but he immediately feels like a relic - a heel clown in a new world of adrenaline-fuelled combat sports. Which way does TNA go?