Pwinsider.com reported earlier today that Traci Brooks has been released from her contract, and though she has not been used to her full potential in recent months, her release puts a huge exclamation mark on the recent signs that the Knockouts division is going in the wrong direction—as many predicted with the new era in TNA…

While the division will be around for months to come, it’s demise will be the fact that it will be WWE Divas-lite. Traci Brooks has often been considered “The Original Knockout,” and with her gone, goes the historic significance of her 7 years in the company, where she wrestled the majority to the women wrestlers that have graced the promotion. Her release comes at a time where we have lost Alissa Flash, the knockouts television time being significantly reduced since January 4, an overdose of The Beautiful People, and Awesome Kong’s future in TNA unconfirmed. It should be noted that while Kong posted a questionable tweet this week on her status (Awesome Kong TNA status update), her profile remains in TNAwrestling.com, while Traci’s has been removed.

The TNA Knockouts Division has always been a place to see diversity, as opposed to the competition, where the image of WWE Divas have been to the specifications of Vince McMahon. The hiring of models, and female wrestlers that can fit that description, excluded the chance to see women like Awesome Kong, ODB, Alissa Flash, Traci Brooks, Daffney, Sojo Bolt, Roxxi, and many others. The Knockouts division was also defined by multiple women’s matches on Impact and pay-per-views, something rare in the WWE. This is slowly, or rather… rapidly becoming something of the past.

Traci Brooks had the following to say on her release…

Just wanted to take this time to say yes i was released yesterday afternoon from TNA. There is nothing to report or any stories on why…simply they had nothing for me. I loved my time at TNA and will look back at my seven years with them with great fondness. TNA is a family and unfortunately this is the nature of the beast with family members coming and going. I will still be wrestling and doing conventions just like i have been this whole time. Thank you to the ring crew, camera men, production, creative and of course the talent who i have shared so many good times with, my only sadness is not being able to say goodbye to these people in person. I do have my ebay store (tracibrooksdirect2u) where you can find traci brooks merch. My myspace which is tnaknockouttracibrooks and my facebook which is traci brooks i do not or have not ever had a twitter account and those 2 sites are my only social network…so if anyone is following me on twitter sorry to say its not me, as well as facebook..there is imposter’s but traci brooks is my only facebook account..thanks again to my fans for always supporting me and for all the great times i have had over the years. Looking forward to what life has in store for me..god bless..and please watch TNA monday nights as i will still be cheering on my family including my husband

The couple were married just a few weeks ago, with Gail Kim, Socal Val, Christy Hemme, Aj Styles, and Samoa Joe were all part of the wedding party.

—Former 2-Time WWE Women’s Champion Jazz was added to WWE.com’s Alumni section this week. Click Here For Her Profile. Jazz is scheduled to face Amber O’Neal at WSU’s 3rd anniversary show on March 6, 2010 in New Jersey. Click Here for Lethalwow’s recent video interview with Jazz.

—Leading up to WSU’s Anniversary show, the ladies will be on the road. On February 6 at National Wrestling Superstars in Edison, NJ, one-half of the WSU Tag Champions Angel Orsini will take on Sumie Sakai. On February 13 at ACE Pro Wrestling in Union City, NJ, WSU Spirit Champion Alicia will defend against Jana. Alicia defeated Brittney Savage on December 12, 2009 to win the title.

—Prowrestling.net reported two days ago that Awesome Kong was not granted her release from TNA. It was revealed that Awesome Kong has been unhappy with the company for some time now over the salary that the Knockouts receive in comparison to the male stars.

This week on Impact, TNA Women’s Knockout Champion Tara successfully defended her title against Angelina Love. TNA also gave us more Knockouts action in the form of a web match: Sarita and Taylor Wilde vs. Traci Brooks and ODB.

TNA Knockouts – February 4, 2010 Impact Match:
TNA Women’s Knockout Championship
Tara(c) vs. Angelina Love

—Tara and Angelina Love (Heel of the Year) were interviewed backstage by Christy Hemme prior to the match. When asked about The Beautiful People, Angelina noted that success is the best revenge, and tonight, she would become a 3-time TNA Women’s Knockout Champion like Tara (TNA Wrestler of the Year). A video was also shown, to help build the feud between The Beautiful People and Angelina Love.

Angelina Love made her way to the ring first, followed by Tara. The match began with an Elbow-and-collar tie up, followed by a side headlock takedown by Tara. The ladies kept the match mat based, and the show went to a commercial at 1:09. During the commercials, a brief clip was shown of Tara working on Angelina’s left arm. Back from commercial, the ladies we in a greco-roman knucklelock, favoring a technical match. The finish came after Angelina kicked out of the “Spider’s Web,” Angelina then attempted her bicycle kick; however, Tara moved out of the way. Tara then went for the Widown’s peak, following by Angelina countering it into a pin for a 2-count. Tara after almost getting pin, rolled Angelina up for a quick win.

Winner: Tara

—On TNA’s youtube account, former TNA Knockout Tag Team Champions Sarita and Taylor Wilde (Tag-Team of the Year) took on Traci Brooks and former TNA Women’s Knockout Champion ODB (Top 25 Ranking of 2009 – #10). This was a good showing from all four ladies, with ODB and Traci surprisingly having chemistry as tag team partners. Sadly, TNA is missing the ball with building towards a rematch of Sarita and Taylor vs. Awesome Kong and Hamada.

On December 31, 2009, the women of TNA ended the year with a bang. Eight women competed in a tournament to determine the #1 contender for the TNA Women’s Knockout Championship, which rejuvenated credibility in the Women’s Knockout Championship by having a show dedicated to establishing a #1 contender. Also on the show, was the TNA Knockout Tag Team Champions Sarita and Taylor Wilde in action.

TNA Women’s Knockout Championship #1 Contender Tournament

First Round matches:

Hamada vs. Madison Rayne (4:24)
ODB vs. Traci Brooks (4:14)
Roxxi vs. Velvet Sky (2:13)
Awesome Kong vs. Daffney (3:29)

Hamada vs. Madison Rayne
—Hamada vs. Madison Rayne kicked off the show, with Madison making her entrance first. The ladies began with a collar-and-elbow tie up into a standing side headlock by Hamda. Madison then countered with with an inside roll-through. The ladies then locked-up with another collar-and-elbow followed by Hamada starting to work over the right arm of Madison. She, however, got out of her predicament by countering a hip-toss into an arm drag. Madison followed by taunting Hamada, only to be kicked in the face. After a headbutt to Madison, Hamada missed a top rope arm drag, in which Madison was able to take control of the match. That didn’t last long, as Hamada hit Madison with a vicious kick to the face. It wasn’t long after that Hamada hit her Hamada Driver for the win. This was a very good match for Madison Rayne, showing that she can definitely hold her own when given a chance. Followers of Madison Rayne outside of TNA are aware that she is more than capable in the ring; however, in TNA, this was her best showing to date.

Winner: Hamada at 4:24.

Christy Hemme interviewed TNA Women’s Knockout Champion Tara next. In the backstage segment, it was revealed that Tara would be introducing the top 3 TNA pay per view matches throughout the show.

ODB vs. Traci Brooks
—A recap of Tara winning the Knockouts title was shown, followed by Traci Brooks making her entrance. Out next was ODB, who began the match with spitting her drink in Traci’s face. After slams to the mat on Traci, ODB attacked Traci’s arm, and dominated throughout. Traci was able to mount a comeback after hitting a very nice spear on ODB. Traci followed with her trademark offense; however, ODB was able to counter a top rope move by Traci, and follow up with her TKO finisher. Nice job by both ladies. This match confirmed that Traci is back to being a babyface, which was questioned during her short lived feud with Alissa Flash.

Winner: ODB at 4:14

Up next was Christy Hemme interviewing The Beautiful People (Velvet Sky, Madison Rayne and Lacey Von Erich). All three ladies got some nice time on the mic, with Madison focusing on damage control on her loss against Hamada. Velvet focusing on talking about her match later against Roxxi, and Lacey on Lauren being “fired” due to slapping her.

Roxxi vs. Velvet Sky

—Roxxi was out first, followed by highlights from her TNA return. Velvet Sky then made her way to the ring. The match began with Velvet kicking Roxxi in the stomach, followed by throwing her into one of the top turnbuckles. Velvet continued to dominate the start of the match, which included a nice bulldog and an octopus stretch. Roxxi countered a sunsetflip by Velvet with a drop kick to turn the match in her favor. It wasn’t long after that Roxxi hit her Voodoo Drop for the win.

Winner: Roxxi at 2:13.

After the match, Jeremy Borash interviewed Roxxi at ringside. Roxxi spoke about feeling great about being back in TNA, and her respect for TNA Women’s Knockout Champion Tara. During this, Lacey Von Erich ran down the ramp and hit Roxxi in the back with a nightstick. She followed by hitting her in the ribs the nightstick and choking her out. Lacey looked really good in this run-in.

Awesome Kong vs. Daffney
—This was the last first round match in the tournament, with Daffney making her way to the ring first, followed by Awesome Kong. This match began with Daffney initiating a test of strength, in which Kong accepted. Daffney smartly began to kick Kong’s right leg, and then proceeded to run to the ropes behind Kong, and then take her down to her knees with a chop block. Daffney then continued the test of strength with Kong on her knees; however, Kong overpowered her, throwing her back-first into the mat. Kong then followed with vicious chops to Daffney. Kong dominated the moments that followed, which included the return of her Accordion Rack. Daffney retreated to the outside, only to be slammed into steal stairs. Back in the ring, it was not long before Kong hit her Implant Buster for the win. This was a very entertaining match, and hopefully there will be a more competitive bout in the future.

Winner: Awesome Kong at 3:29.

Sarita & Taylor Wilde vs. April Hunter & Lorelei Lee.
—The next match was the “mild concussions” April Hunter and Lorelei Lee challenging the TNA Knockout Tag Team Champions in a non-title match. The British Invasion (Brutus Magnus and Doug Williams) were at ringside doing commentary for the match, followed by April Hunter and Lorelei Lee making their entrances. Sarita and Taylor were out to the ring next. Lorelei and Sarita started the match, with Sarita getting the better of the exchange. Taylor was in next, in which Lorelei fared no better. She got the tag to April Hunter, who hit a nice spinning sidewalk slam on Taylor. April then got the tag to Lorelei, and proceeded to put Taylor in a straight jacket crossface. Lorelei followed simultaneously with a running bulldog on Taylor. Lorelei made a pin attempt on Taylor, and then tagged April back in. After hitting a double knee backbreaker on April, Sarita got the hot tag. Sarita cleaned house and then tagged Taylor back in who won with an assisted standing moonsault. This was a nice face paced match, that should have gone longer. April and Lorelei were very impressive in this match.

Winner(s): Sarita & Taylor Wilde at 2:45.

TNA Women’s Knockout Championship #1 Contender Tournament

Semi-Final Round matches:
Roxxi vs. Hamada (7:47)
Awesome Kong vs. ODB (6:21)

Roxxi vs. Hamada
—Roxxi was out first for the match, with bandages around her ribs. This was a work, due to the attack from Lacey Von Erich earlier on the show. Hamada was out next. The ladies began the match with a collar-and-elbow tie up in which Hamada quickly transitioned into a take down on Roxxi into an arm bar. Roxxi then rolled through into a wristlock; however, Hamada countered it and then hit a drop toe hold into a toehold and hammerlock. After bringing Roxxi to her feet, Roxxi got out of Hamada’s hold with an arm drag. This was a very nice start to the match.

Hamada continued to dominate match, until Roxxi was able to get a cross armbreaker. The ladies then had a few exchanges, before Hamada began taking advantage of Roxxi’s injured ribs. After a modified octopus stretch from Hamada, came the spot of the match…Hamada came off the top ropes with a double foot stomp on Roxxi’s back. Roxxi proved to be resilient in the moments that followed, getting an exploder suplex on Hamada and getting her running hip attack and big boot in. Hamada then mounted a comeback, with vicious offense. This included a frankensteiner and missile drop kick; however, Roxxi continuously kicked out of Hamada’s pins. Roxxi was able to mount a comeback at the end of the match; however, Hamada countered Roxxi’s Voodoo Drop into a roll-up. Great match by these two. Arguably the best of the night.

Winner: Hamada at 7:47

Awesome Kong vs. ODB
—ODB was out first for the match as she finished a bottle of liquor, followed by Awesome Kong. The action started before Kong got in the ring, as ODB attacked Kong on the ramp. The ladies brawled, with Kong getting the better of it. ODB was thrown into steal stairs early on; however, she was able to get out of the predication with numerous strikes to Kong. She followed by smashing Kong’s head into the steal stairs. After a few more strikes to Kong, ODB showboated to the crowd and in return received a vicious clothesline to the floor from Kong. Back in the ring, Kong body slammed ODB; however, she missed a splash soon after. ODB went for a near fall, and the show went to a commercial break.

Back from the commercial, ODB mounted the back of Kong with a headlock only to be driving back first into one of the corner turnbuckles by Kong. The ladies went back and fort, with ODB getting a bronco buster on Kong after a body avalanche, followed by ODB dragging Kong flat on the match for a pin attempt. ODB followed by attempting to pick Kong up; however, all of Kong weight fell onto ODB into a pinning predicament. ODB kicked out, and Kong dominated the rest of the match.

The finish came with ODB pulling the referee into Kong’s body avalanche. ODB then grabbed the empty liquor bottle that she came to the ring with. The bottle was then broken on Kong’s head as Kong attempted a powerbomb. Sick spot, with ODB getting the 1-2-3.

Winner: ODB at 6:21 (excluding commercial)

TNA Women’s Knockout Championship #1 Contender Tournament:

FINAL ROUND:

Hamada vs. ODB
—This match began with ODB shoving Hamada by the head disrespectfully. Hamada then went after ODB with a kick to the stomach, followed by headbutts and chops. Hamada then hit a beautiful Headscissors takedown on ODB, followed by an impressive tornado DDT. Hamada went for a cover after the tornado ddt; however, ODB retreated to the outside of the ring. Excellent start to the match.

ODB finally got back into the ring after stalling. She fared no better, as Hamada continued to get the better of her. ODB was able to turn the match around as Hamada was climbing the ropes to attempt a moonsault. ODB knocked Hamada from the top ropes, causing her to be hung upside down from the the top turnbuckle she was climbing. ODB proceeded to consecutively kick Hamada in the stomach. The show then went to commercials.

Back from the commercials, ODB slammed Hamada to the mat by here hair, followed by a pin attempt. ODB then hit a fall-away slam on Hamada, followed by another pin attempt. ODB then put Hamada in a bear hug and slammed her into one of the corner turnbuckles. Hamada then moved out of the way of a body avalanche by ODB, and proceeded to hit an enziguri kick on ODB. Hamada had a nice comeback in the moments that followed; however, ODB was able to regain control with a jaw breaker. Awesome Kong was then seen coming down the ramp with a table, and set it up at ringside. After being distracted by Kong, Hamada was able to get a vicious spin kick on ODB, which sent her outside the ring. Hamada followed with a somersault onto ODB from the ring apron. Hamada then set ODB on the table, and went for a moonsault to the outside on ODB. ODB rolled off the table, causing Hamada to crash through it. ODB then rolled Hamada back into the ring, and hit her TKO for the win. This was a great match, and ODB’s best match in TNA for 2009.

Winner: ODB

After the match, Jeremy Borash interviewed ODB. It was announced that ODB would get her title shot live on January 4, 2010, in the special live impact 3-hour special. After disparaging words towards Tara, the TNA Women’s Knockout Champion made her way to the ring. The ladies then exchanged words, and it wasn’t too long before it turned into a catfight. This was a very nice way to end the show.

On the November 26, 2009 episode of TNA Impact! on Spike, the TNA women battled in a battle royal to determine the #1 contender for the World Women’s Championship. The participants in the battle royal were The Beautiful People, Traci Brooks, Alissa Flash, Hamada, Sarita, Taylor Wilde, Daffney and Tara.

—The segment began with Traci Brooks entering the ring, already in the ring was Hamada, Alissa Flash, and Daffney. The Beautiful People then made their entrance, followed by the Tag Team Champions; Sarita & Taylor Wilde, Tara, and the special guest referee; ODB. The action began, focus was quickly put on Hamada and Daffney—after headbutts to Daffney, Hamada eliminated her early on. Focus ten shifted on Alissa and Traci, as the feud between them continued. Embroiled with each other, they became susceptible—Sarita & Taylor Wilde hit double drop kicks to eliminate them both. A ringside catfight immediately broke out between Alissa and Traci. We then went to commercial, during which Tara eliminated Lacey Von Erich.

Velvet Sky and Madison Rayne then teamed up to eliminate Sarita. Immediately after, Taylor Wilde eliminated Hamada, however, unintentionally eliminating herself as well. This left Tara alone to fight off Velvet & Madison. Tara eventually eliminated both Madison and Velvet for the win.

After the match, TNA Women’s champion raised Tara’s hand in victory, however, the exchange was far from amicable on ODB’s part.

—Kristal Marshall was also on Impact!, with her future role in TNA becoming more apparent. She accompanied Bobby Lashley in both his matches, which included faking an injury to help him get a win. She also acted as his mouthpeice in a backstage segment.

After the match, a very pissed off Traci attacked Alissa. TNA may possible be taking Traci’s real-life condition and turning it into a storyline.

Many Alissa fans should be pleased with the win, however if this is another feud, I am a bit skeptical. Alissa went from short lived feuds against Sarita and Hamada, and now Traci? Her feud with Hamada should have resulted in at least one pay per view match. Alissa vs. Hamada or Sarita, had the potential to result in ground breaking matches.

On another note, it was apparent during this segment that Traci is no longer with the Main Event Mafia.

—The second knockouts match of the show saw Awesome Kong & The Beautiful People defeat Sarita, Taylor Wilde, ODB & Tara. Awesome Kong picked up the win after hitting Taylor Wilde with a Spinning-Implant Buster.

Although the heels go into Turning Point with a win, this match wasn’t clear cut on what we were suppose to take away from it going into the pay per view. Did Awesome Kong send a message to Tara at the expense of making a tag team champion look weak?—Now that is not very good booking is it? Ah well, we got a stare down between Kong and Tara…

The fact is, Tara and Kong’s feud is the current Knockouts selling point, with the Knockouts World Title and Knockouts Tag Team Titles having no current value. The Beautiful People may be chasing the tag titles, however they currently have no credibility, and no one is exactly going after ODB for her title.

What should have been answered about the 6-Woman match was not. That is, who wins the Knockouts Title if The Beautiful People wins the match at Turning Point?

Bound For Glory is a big night for the TNA Knockouts, with two big title matches…The TNA KNOCKOUTS CHAMPIONSHIP: Awesome Kong vs. Tara vs. ODB (c) and the TNA KNOCKOUTS TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP: The Beautiful People vs. Taylor Wilde & Sarita (c). While TNA’s No Surrender Pay Per View served as a turning point for the Knockouts, Bound for Glory will give us insight on where we are headed going into 2010.

—TNA KNOCKOUTS CHAMPIONSHIP
Awesome Kong vs. Tara vs. ODB (c)
Was ODB just a transitional champion? She may have very well been a means to putting the title on Kong or Tara. TNA has been teasing an all-out feud between Awesome Kong and Tara, holding back on a singles match between the two women…frankly a good idea to hold off on what could be a major feud in the division’s history, as the feud would have greater meaning if it was over the Knockouts title.

Awesome Kong will deliver in this match, the question is, will Tara and ODB? Both women on their A-game and if booked well, can deliver. The match will be “good” however, the Knockouts need a 2008 pay per view match that stands out as incredible—A feat that has been eluding them.

Madison Rayne, former Shimmer Women’s Tag Team Champion, would go down in the history of modern women’s tag team wrestlers with such a win. As much as it would be great for her, would she be piggybacking on something Angelina helped build with Velvet Sky? On that note, doesn’t Velvet Sky deserve to be rewarded for the last 2 years of work as a tag team wrestler? All valid questions. This one can go any way.

—Taylor Wilde (w/Sarita) defeated Traci Brooks in a singles match, for TNA’s Weekly Webmatchs on Youtube…

For such a short match, this was a nice showing from both women. Taylor Wilde is amazing as usual, and Traci continued to do an amazing job with her new persona. Great to see Taylor using her finisher more regularly as opposed to roll-ups, it can never have the intensity of say Madusa Miceli’s german suplexes, but we can only dream.

This week on Impact, Velvet Sky, Madison Rayne, Alissa Flash & Traci Brooks battled Sarita, Taylor Wilde, Christy Hemme & Hamada in an Elimination Match. Also on the show, was Tara challenging ODB for the World Women’s Title.

—Velvet Sky, Madison Rayne, Alissa Flash & Traci Brooks defeated Sarita, Taylor Wilde, Christy Hemme & Hamada in the Elimination Match.

-Traci Brooks eliminated Christy Hemme
-Alissa Flash & Hamada were eliminated due to a count-out
-Velvet Sky eliminated Taylor Wilde
-Sarita eliminated Traci Brooks
-Sarita eliminated Velvet Sky
-Madison Rayne pinned Sarita, for the win.

Very nice television match, which went over 6 minutes. This was a big win for Madison Rayne, as the sole survivor. Her losing record in TNA has been extensive, so this is a good direction for her. Lacey Von Erich assisted Madison in the win, by hitting Sarita with a choke slam.

This match accomplished three things—It furthered the feud between Alissa Flash and Hamada, put heat on Madison & Velvet going into their Bound For Glory Tag Title match, and continued the development of Lacey Von Erich’s role in The Beautiful People.

—Also on the show, was a Knockouts Singles Title match. ODB(c) pinned Tara after hitting her TKO, to retain the belt.

Awesome Kong served as a distraction for Tara, which lead to ODB making short work of Tara. Not much of a match here, however it served as build to a 3-way. Both Awesome Kong and Tara now have had unsuccessful title matches against ODB, loosing due to distractions from each other. This, in my opinion is valid foreshadowing for booking a triple threat match.

—TNA recently added a video on youtube Angelina Love, Velvet Sky, Socal Val and Lauren’s shoot in Muscle & Fitness Magazine…

“I feel like it was made for me, and she [Angelina] wasn’t a good fit for it in my opinion,” Adkisson said. “. . . I thought that everybody was going to be, `Oh no. Angelina is gone,’ but not one person said that. Nobody really missed her that much. I feel like I can fill the shoes that I’m supposed to.

“TNA told me this role was made for me, and I feel the same way. So when I met the other members, Velvet and Madison, they are awesome. . . When I got there, we all just felt like we were one group, and the band was completed. . .

“I’ve never met Angelina before in my life. After what some people have said, I don’t know if I want to. I just feel like we can all be a group together and shine together, so I’m excited about that.”

In character or not, the wording of the statements don’t seem right at all. It just did not sit right with me.

—Another Beautiful People member, Velvet Sky weighed in for the first time on Angelina Love’s release. (Click Here For The Interview.)

—There is an all-new TNA Knockouts Spin Cycle up on youtube. This edition features Playboy playmates Traci Brooks and Chrity Hemme, plus “Future Legend” Alissa Flash and half of the Knockouts Tag-Team champions, Sarita. A bit dated, but pretty fun show none-the-less, which also features Mick Foley, Abyss, and Shark boy.Click Here To View The Video.