Background: In a war of the extreme, the feud between Sabu and Abyss escalated thanks to three pay-per-view encounters where Abyss won both of those bouts. In an effort to gain some type of revenge, Sabu challenged Abyss to a match where the masked man would have to face his greatest fear – barbed wire – in a first-ever TNA bout where the ring ropes would be replaced with barbed wire.
Turning Point
December 11, 2005
Orlando, FL
Sabu vs. Abyss
Sabu came out with a barbed wire chair, but Abyss stopped him from entering. So Sabu grabbed a baseball bat wrapped in the dangerous metal. Abyss avoided a haymaker from the bat, but not a regular steel chair that Sabu used to pin the big man to the mat. Abyss kicked out before the three count, sending Sabu into the barbed wire. Sabu got up swinging while bleeding from his forehead. Hotshot by Abyss dropped Sabu throat first across the wire. Desperate, Sabu mule kicked Abyss low while retrieving a sharp instrument he used to stab Abyss’ left arm afterwards. Air Sabu missed, sending him groin first into the wire! Sabu paid Abyss back with a drop toe hold to make him taste the wire for the first time. Sabu couldn’t get a pin and failed to get any momentum without the ropes to help him spring. Instead, Sabu ran into a choke slam on a chair. Father James Mitchell tossed a chair wrapped in the wire to Abyss so he could use the weapon, but Sabu countered by sending the chair into Abyss’ nether regions. Abyss took several chair shots to the head from that barbed wire chair before leaving the ring. Abyss found no haven on the floor as Air Sabu drove him against the barricades. Tossing a piece of plywood covered in the wire, Sabu unintentionally let Abyss recover and grab him. Gourd buster by Abyss dropped Sabu across the wire ropes to leave him hanging!
“The Monster” wanted to power bomb Sabu on the plywood, but Sabu wasn’t having it. Fighting his way to freedom, Sabu rushed the stumbling Abyss; only to be pressed and dropped across the plywood wire. Abyss retrieved another wire board, almost sending Sabu into the referee & the board. Sabu sidestepped Abyss, sending his opponent into the cornered board before sandwiching him between the boards & wire for a banzai drop for the three count.
Winner: Sabu (10:59)
Is It A Classic: It was truly a barbaric spectacle. It didn’t have the timing or poise of classic barbed wire matches like Sabu vs. Terry Funk in ECW, but it made up for it in pure brutality. It’s definitely not a match for the weak at heart and probably something TNA/Impact Wrestling is happy to ignore because how rough it is to watch from a humane perspective.
