The 2012 Hardcore Justice was a
professional wrestling
Professional wrestling, often shortened to either pro wrestling or wrestling,The term "wrestling" is most often widely used to specifically refer to modern scripted professional wrestling, though it is also used to refer to Real life, real- ...
pay-per-view
Pay-per-view (PPV) is a type of pay television or webcast service that enables a viewer to pay to watch individual events via private telecast.
Events can be purchased through a multichannel television platform using their electronic program ...
(PPV)
event
Event may refer to:
Gatherings of people
* Ceremony, an event of ritual significance, performed on a special occasion
* Convention (meeting), a gathering of individuals engaged in some common interest
* Event management, the organization of eve ...
produced by
Total Nonstop Action Wrestling
Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (abbreviated as TNA Wrestling or TNA) is an American professional wrestling promotion based in Nashville, Tennessee. It is a subsidiary of Anthem Sports & Entertainment, a Canadian media company owned by busines ...
(TNA)
promotion
Promotion may refer to:
Marketing
* Promotion (marketing), one of the four marketing mix elements, comprising any type of marketing communication used to inform or persuade target audiences of the relative merits of a product, service, brand or i ...
, which took place on August 12, 2012 at the
Impact Wrestling Zone
The Impact Zone is the nickname for any one of three sound stages at Universal Studios Florida in Orlando; they received this nickname due to their use by the professional wrestling promotion Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA), who taped t ...
in
Orlando, Florida
Orlando ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Orange County, Florida, United States. The city proper had a population of 307,573 at the 2020 census, making it the fourth-most populous city in Florida behind Jacksonville, Florida, Jacksonville ...
. It was the eighth and final event under the
Hardcore Justice
Hardcore Justice, originally known as Hard Justice, was an annual professional wrestling Impact Plus event produced by Impact Wrestling. It was originally introduced as a pay-per-view (PPV) event held by Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA) in ...
chronology.
In October 2017, with the launch of the
Global Wrestling Network
Global Wrestling Network (GWN) was a digital streaming service and mobile app owned by Impact Wrestling (now Total Nonstop Action Wrestling), a subsidiary of Anthem Sports & Entertainment. It primarily featured content from the Impact video libr ...
, the event became available to stream on demand.
Storylines
Hardcore Justice featured eight
professional wrestling matches
Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called "Glossary of professional wrestling terms#Gimmick, gimmick matches" in the Glossary of professional wrestling terms, jargon of the business, are performed in professional wrestling. Some gimmick m ...
that involved different wrestlers from pre-existing scripted feuds and
storylines. Wrestlers portrayed
villains
A villain (also known as a " black hat", "bad guy" or "baddy"; The New Oxford Dictionary of English (1998) – p.126 "baddy (also baddie) noun (pl. -ies) ''informal'' a villain or criminal in a book, film, etc.". the feminine form is villai ...
,
heroes, or
less distinguishable characters in the scripted events that built tension and culminated in a wrestling match or series of matches.
The primary rivalry that was featured at Hardcore Justice centered on
Bobby Roode
Robert Francis Roode Jr. (born May 11, 1976) is a Canadian retired Professional wrestling, professional wrestler. He is signed to WWE, where he is a Producer (professional wrestling), producer and was formerly an in-ring performer.
Roode is known ...
and defending champion
Austin Aries
Daniel Healy Solwold Jr. (born April 15, 1978), better known by his ring name Austin Aries, is an American Professional wrestling, professional wrestler. He is known for his time with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, TNA Wrestling, where he is a t ...
, competing over the
TNA World Heavyweight Championship
The TNA World Championship is a professional wrestling world championship created and promoted by Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA). It is the promotion's principal championship. Like most professional wrestling championships, the title is won ...
. At
Destination X, Roode was dispossessed of the TNA World Championship in an upset that saw Aries win the title, ending Roode's record-breaking 256-day reign.
On the following televised episode of ''
Impact Wrestling
Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (abbreviated as TNA Wrestling or TNA) is an American professional wrestling promotion based in Nashville, Tennessee. It is a subsidiary of Anthem Sports & Entertainment, a Canadian media company owned by busine ...
'', Roode, emotionally distraught in response to his loss, felt that Aries' victory at the PPV was nothing more than a "fluke" and approached TNA General Manager,
Hulk Hogan
Terry Gene Bollea (; born August 11, 1953), better known by his ring name Hulk Hogan, is an American retired Professional wrestling, professional wrestler. He is signed to WWE as a brand ambassador. Known for his flamboyance and massive physiq ...
, to get a rematch at Hardcore Justice.
On the August 9 episode of ''Impact Wrestling'', both Aries and Roode agreed during the scheduled contract signing that after the pay-per-view match, if Aries won, Roode would not receive another rematch and in case Aries lost, he would waive his rematch clause.
Another feud going into Hardcore Justice is between
Kenny King and defending champion
Zema Ion, competing over the
TNA X Division Championship
The TNA X Division Championship is a men's professional wrestling championship created and promoted by Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA). It debuted on June 19, 2002, at the taping of TNA's second then- weekly pay-per-view (PPV) event. The cur ...
. At Destination X, Zema Ion won the TNA X Division Championship following a tournament which led to an
Ultimate X
The Ultimate X match is a type of professional wrestling match created by Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA), mainly used in their X Division. It is considered the signature match of the X Division.
Match format
Ultimate X is contested by th ...
match to determine a new champion.
On the July 26 edition of ''Impact Wrestling'', Austin Aries, in recurring backstage segments throughout the night, spoke with those who partook in the tournament, Kenny King,
Sonjay Dutt
Retesh Bhalla (born April 7, 1982) is an American Professional wrestling, professional wrestler signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW) as a Glossary of professional wrestling terms#agent, producer and Glossary of professional wrestling terms#manage ...
,
Dakota Darsow and
Rashad Cameron on who should receive a shot at the X Division Championship based on their qualifications. Coming down to King and Dutt, Aries selected King as the best choice since Dutt (an X Division veteran) had been injured. That night, King faced Ion for the title; however, Roode interfered in the match, helping Ion to retain the X Division Championship.
The following week, Aries and King teamed in a successful effort against Roode and Ion, with King (who got the pin on Ion) later earning himself a title rematch with Ion at Hardcore Justice.
During the event, the
Bound For Glory Series The Bound for Glory Series is an annual professional wrestling tournament held by Impact Wrestling in which 12 wrestlers compete in a series of matches over the course of several months (throughout the summer specifically) to determine who receives ...
tournament will be highlighted, featuring three different four-way matches. Each match will have its own hardcore stipulation (
Ladder,
Tables match
Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called " gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, are performed in professional wrestling. Some gimmick matches are more common than others and are often used to advance or conclude a storyline. ...
, and
Falls Count Anywhere respectively), and the winner of each match will get 20 points in the BFG Series standings. Those matches include
A.J. Styles,
Christopher Daniels
Christopher Daniel Covell (born March 24, 1970), better known by the ring name Christopher Daniels, is an American retired Professional wrestling, professional wrestler. He is signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW), where he works as the Head of Ta ...
,
Samoa Joe
Nuufolau Joel Seanoa (born March 17, 1979), better known by the ring name Samoa Joe, is an American professional wrestler and actor. He is signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW), where he is a member of the Opps, and is one-third of the AEW Worl ...
, and
Kurt Angle
Kurt Steven Angle (born December 9, 1968) is an American retired professional wrestler and amateur wrestling, amateur wrestler. He first earned recognition for winning a Wrestling at the 1996 Summer Olympics – Men's freestyle 100 kg, gold me ...
in a Ladder match,
James Storm
James Allen Cox (born June 1, 1977) is an American professional wrestler better known by the ring name James Storm. He currently competes on the independent circuit. He is best known for his time in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA).
He sta ...
,
Bully Ray
Mark LoMonaco (born July 14, 1971), known by his ring name Bubba Ray Dudley (also spelled Buh-Buh Ray Dudley), is an American professional wrestler. He is signed to WWE under a legends contract. He is best known for being one-half of the Dudley B ...
,
Jeff Hardy
Jeffrey Nero Hardy (born August 31, 1977) is an American Professional wrestling, professional wrestler. He is signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA) and also appears on partner promotion WWE on its NXT (WWE brand), NXT brand.
He is re ...
, and
Robbie E
Robert Strauss (born October 1, 1983) is an American professional wrestler and Manager (professional wrestling), manager. He is signed to WWE, where he is a Producer (wrestling), producer, the on-screen assistant to the NXT general manager Ava (w ...
in a Tables match, and
D'Angelo Dinero,
Magnus
Magnus, meaning "Great" in Latin, was used as cognomen of Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus in the first century BC. The best-known use of the name during the Roman Empire is for the fourth-century Western Roman Emperor Magnus Maximus. The name gained wid ...
,
Mr. Anderson, and
Rob Van Dam
Robert Szatkowski (born December 18, 1970) better known by his ring name Rob Van Dam (frequently abbreviated to RVD) is an American professional wrestler. Known for his unique ring style—which includes his variety of kicks, acrobatic movemen ...
in a Falls Count Anywhere match.
Another feud entering Hardcore Justice surrounds
Chavo Guerrero and
Hernandez battling
Kid Kash
David Tyler Cash (born July 31, 1969), better known by his ring name Kid Kash, is an American mixed martial artist and retired professional wrestler, best known for his tenures with Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW), Total Nonstop Action Wre ...
and
Gunner. Guerrero made his debut appearance on the July 26 edition of ''Impact'', humbly proud to be a part of TNA and citing the Guerrero family as being champions in wrestling, something he'd also like to accomplish in the company. When Kid Kash interrupted and undermined the Guerrero family, a brawl ensued leaving Guerrero on his own until Hernandez evened out the playing field by aiding Guerrero against Kash and Gunner.
The next week, Guerrero went on to defeat Kash in his debut match.
A Knockouts match scheduled for the event is
Madison Rayne
Ashley Nichole Lomberger (née Simmons; born February 5, 1986) is an American professional wrestler signed to All Elite Wrestling under the ring name Madison Rayne, where she is also a coach for the women's division. She is best known for her t ...
taking on defending champion
Miss Tessmacher for the
TNA Women's Knockout Championship
The TNA Knockouts World Championship is a women's professional wrestling Professional wrestling championship#World championships, world championship owned by Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA). The championship debuted on October 14, 2007, at t ...
. Several weeks prior,
Madison Rayne
Ashley Nichole Lomberger (née Simmons; born February 5, 1986) is an American professional wrestler signed to All Elite Wrestling under the ring name Madison Rayne, where she is also a coach for the women's division. She is best known for her t ...
conceded to secretly admiring a particular person within the company. On the July 5 edition of ''Impact Wrestling'', it was revealed to be referee
Earl Hebner
Earl William Hebner (born May 17, 1949) is an American retired professional wrestling referee. He is best known for his time as senior referee for the World Wrestling Federation (now WWE) from 1988 to 2005. Hebner (along with his identical twi ...
when she kissed him after he officiated a match.
Earl Hebner started favoring Madison, giving her and
Gail Kim
Gail Kim-Irvine (born February 20, 1977) is a Canadian-American retired professional wrestler. She is best known for her tenures in TNA Wrestling and World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). In TNA, she was the inaugural and record setting seven-tim ...
the win over
Mickie James
Mickie Laree James (born August 31, 1979) Additional January 6, 2017. is an American Country music, country singer and Professional wrestling, professional wrestler. She is signed to WWE. She is also signed to Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW) as Cre ...
and
Tara in a
Tag Team match
Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called "gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, are performed in professional wrestling. Some gimmick matches are more common than others and are often used to advance or conclude a storyline. ...
, despite James having actually won the match.
On the August 2 edition of ''Impact'', Hebner repeated his actions, allowing Rayne to beat Tara, James, and Kim in a
four-way match
Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called "gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, are performed in professional wrestling. Some gimmick matches are more common than others and are often used to advance or conclude a storyline. ...
for a shot at the Knockout Championship.
Results
See also
*
2012 in professional wrestling
2012 in professional wrestling describes the year's events in the world of professional wrestling.
List of notable promotions
These promotions held notable events in 2012.
Calendar of notable shows January
February
March
April
...
References
External links
HardcoreJustice.comImpactWrestling.com
{{TNAPPV, Hardcore Justice
Hardcore Justice
2012 in professional wrestling in Florida
2010s in Orlando, Florida
Professional wrestling shows in Orlando, Florida
August 2012 in the United States
2012 Total Nonstop Action Wrestling pay-per-view events