Category: TNA

TNA Hard To Kill 1/13/2024 (Card)

TNA Wrestling Hard To Kill Saturday January 13, 2024 from the Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas, NV. Pre-show Countdown To Hard To Kill starting at 7 p.m. Eastern. The PPV portion of the card begins at 8 p.m. Eastern.

A big free agent signing is expected.

CARD

TNA World Championship:
Alex Shelley (c) vs. Moose

TNA Knockouts Championship:
Trinity (c) vs. Jordynne Grace

TNA X-Division Championship:
Chris Sabin (c) vs. KUSHIDA vs. El Hijo del Vikingo

Knockouts Ultimate X Match:
Gisele Shaw vs. Xia Brookside vs. Jody Threat vs. Tasha Steelz vs. Alisha Edwards vs. Dani Luna

TNA World TAG TEAM Championship:
ABC (c) vs. The Rascalz vs. Grizzled Young Veterans vs. Mike Bailey & Trent Seven

Josh Alexander vs. Alex Hammerstone

PCO vs. Dirty Dango w/ Oleg Prudius & Alpha Bravo

DJ Whoo Kid and AJ Francis will debut music video for “We Out$ide”

Countdown To Hard To Kill:
Rich Swann vs. Steve Maclin

Countdown To Hard To Kill:
Eric Young & Frankie Kazarian vs. Brian Myers & Eddie Edwards (w/ Alisha Edwards)

Countdow To Hard To Kill- Digital Media Championship:
Tommy Dreamer (c) vs. Crazzy Steve

Mickie James Reportedly Accepts Creative Position With OVW

While she may not be competing in the ring right now, Mickie James continues to be involved in some non-wrestling work. In addition to her ongoing duties as a co-host on “Busted Open Radio,” James has now reportedly secured a position behind the scenes at a popular independent wrestling promotion — Ohio Valley Wrestling.

According to Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful (via X), the former WWE Women’s Champion has come aboard as Creative Director and Head of Female Talent for OVW. James has also reportedly taken on a responsibility as Executive Producer for all of OVW’s wrestling shows.

News of James joining OVW comes on the heels of her recent return at the promotion’s 2024 Nightmare Rumble event on January 6. There, James made a special guest appearance behind the commentary desk to call the Women’s Nightmare Rumble Match alongside Bryan Kennison and current OVW Women’s Champion Freya The Slaya. Following her brief stint on OVW commentary, James noted, on X, that she was immensely impressed by all the competitors involved, and foresaw big things for OVW this year.

James is no stranger to Ohio Valley Wrestling, as she spent much of her early WWE days there, back when it was WWE’s primary developmental territory. After two years of training in OVW, James was then called up to WWE’s main roster in late 2005, where the path was laid for her memorable feud with WWE Hall of Famer Trish Stratus. In the present day, OVW operates under the ownership of Matt Jones, Louisville mayor Craig Greenberg, and former WWE Tag Team Champion Al Snow.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Backstage Report On Future Of Trinity Fatu (Naomi In WWE)

Ever since joining Impact Wrestling/TNA Wrestling in April 2022, it’s been all sunshine and roses for Trinity, who is currently entering her sixth month as Knockouts Champion. It may also be her last month as champion, however, as Trinity appears to be contemplating a career move back to her old stomping grounds.

Fightful Select reports that Trinity’s contract with Impact/TNA is set to expire in the not-so-distant future and that the Knockouts Champion will be finishing up with the promotion. It’s unclear if Trinity’s last date will be the upcoming Hard to Kill PPV, where the promotion will officially rebrand back to TNA, or if she will continue to work through the end of the month.

As for what Trinity’s next move will be, those within WWE expect that she will return to the company, where she worked for over a decade under the name Naomi. One person within WWE believes a deal is so close that something drastic would have to occur to prevent Trinity from re-signing, though they pointed out that anything could happen in the current free agency market. WWE had previously sought to bring Trinity back last year but was prevented due to an unofficial hiring freeze. The move isn’t a surprise to those in TNA, who have long thought Trinity would return to WWE when her contract expired.

Trinity’s departure from WWE came under controversial circumstances, after she and then WWE Women’s Tag Team Title partner Mercedes Mone, then Sasha Banks, walked out of the promotion in May 2022 after disagreements with WWE Chairman Vince McMahon. While Trinity’s return to WWE is expected, the same cannot be said for Mone, who has broken off talks with WWE and is expected to sign with AEW.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

TNA Has ‘Earmarked’ Funds To Sign A Big Free Agent

TNA President Scott D’Amore recently made a few official statements regarding some big signings potentially coming to the promotion soon.

The Wrestling Observer is reporting that TNA Wrestling has “earmarked some money” to sign a big free agent next year.

D’Amore previously stated, “We’re going to have a lot of fun. We’re going to have surprises for you. We are right there at the goal line of finalizing one of, I think, one of the biggest signings in TNA.”

Some of the recently released WWE Superstars who will become free agents on December 21 are Dolph Ziggler, Mustafa Ali, and Matt Riddle.

Source: eWn

Impact Wrestling Hidden Jems 12/14/2023, Impact Expected To Reveal International Star’s Return 

Impact Wrestling will present a special ‘Hidden Gems’ episode tonight on AXS, with matches never aired before on TV.

  • Josh Alexander vs. Yuya Uemura
  • Street Fight: PCO vs. Deaner
  • Gisele Shaw & Savannah Evans vs. MK Ultra
  • Alan Angels vs. Samuray del Sol
  • Dirty Dango & Alpha Bravo vs. Tommy Dreamer & Channing Decker

An announcement on the return of an international star is expected to take place on this week’s episode of Impact Wrestling.

While there’s no word on who it will be, Kazuchika Okada and Will Ospreay have already been announced for the January 14th TV tapings in Las Vegas, Nevada. This is the day after Hard to Kill 2024.

KUSHIDA Signs With TNA Wrestling

TNA Wrestling announced today that they’ve signed KUSHIDA to a contract. TNA issued the following:

KUSHIDA Signs With TNA Wrestling

It’s official, KUSHIDA has signed a contract with TNA Wrestling. As a longtime New Japan Pro-Wrestling standout, KUSHIDA has held the IWGP Jr Heavyweight Championship and IWGP Jr Heavyweight Tag Team Championships on multiple occasions. KUSHIDA has been on the precipice of success since his arrival last year, taking Steve Maclin to his limit in an IMPACT World Championship match at Rebellion 2023. It’s time for KUSHIDA to take his career to the next level and it happens in TNA Wrestling!

Impact Wrestling Final Resolution (12/9/2023) Results, Zack Sabre Jr, Trent Seven

IMPACT Wrestling hosted a new edition of Final Resolution, the last show under the IMPACT Wrestling name.

  • Countdown to Final Resolution Match: PCO def. Clutch Jessie.
  • Jake Something cut a promo backstage, but he was attacked from behind by Jason Hotch with a chair. Security guards separated Something & Hotch.
  • Countdown to Final Resolution Match: Jack Price def. Aiden Prince.
  • Jordynne Grace & IMPACT Knockouts Champion Trinity were interviewed backstage by Gia Miller. They will face each other on Hard To Kill for the title, but they promised to focus on teaming for tonight’s match.
  • Countdown to Final Resolution Match: Frankie Kazarian def. Sheldon Jean.
  • IMPACT Tag Team Championship Match: Bullet Club’s Ace & Bey Club (Ace Austin & Chris Bey) (c) def. Eddie Edwards & Brian Myers (w/ Alisha Edwards).
    • The Rascalz (Zachary Wentz & Trey Miguel) attacked ABC after the match, where they called their shot at the IMPACT Tag Titles.
  • Josh Alexander & NJPW World Television Champion Zack Sabre Jr cut a promo backstage ahead of their match against Motor City Machine Guns. They put over the Guns, with Sabre Jr saying that he would prove why he was the greatest technical wrestler ever. They aimed to get gold after tonight.
  • Alisha Edwards, Brian Myers & Eddie Edwards cut a promo in the ring, where she dissed the Toronto crowd for their accents. Santino Marella interrupted and booked an impromptu match between Alisha and Jody Threat.
  • Jody Threat def. Alisha Edwards (w/ Eddie Edwards & Brian Myers).
  • IMPACT Digital Media Championship Match: Tommy Dreamer (c) def. Deaner.
  • The Rascalz cut a promo backstage, but they were immediately interrupted by Santino Marella. Marella booked them into an impromptu tag match against Mike Bailey & a mystery opponent. The mystery partner was revealed to be Trent Seven.
  • Mike Bailey & Trent Seven def. The Rascalz (Trey Miguel & Zachary Wentz).
  • Scott D’Amore came to the ring and officially offered a contract to Trent Seven, which he signed. Seven is now on TNA.
  • The Motor City Machine Guns cut a promo backstage, where they promised that they would be heading into TNA as victors tonight.
  • Jake Something def. Jason Hotch.
  • Moose def. Rhino.
  • Frankie Kazarian cut a promo backstage, where he said that he was excited to see the rebirth of TNA. He said that 2024 would be the year of TNA & the year of Frankie Kazarian.
  • Jordynne Grace & IMPACT Knockouts Champion Trinity def. Deonna Purrazzo & Gisele Shaw.
    • Gisele Shaw & Deonna Purrazzo argued after the match. The two shook hands, but Shaw pulled Purrazzo in and hit her with the Lethal Combination.
  • Moose was interviewed by Gia Miller backstage, where Moose said that he would be known as the new TNA World Champion at TNA Hard to Kill.
  • Josh Alexander & Zack Sabre Jr​​​​​​​ def. Motor City Machine Guns (Chris Sabin & Alex Shelley).

Impact Wrestling Streaming Service Reportedly To Undergo Changes

Impact Wrestling will soon be rebranded as TNA Wrestling, and the promotion has also announced changes to their streaming platform. The promotion has revealed that their Impact Plus streaming platform will now be known as TNA+, and the new streaming service will be costlier than before. 

The monthly subscription, which was priced at $7.99 will now cost $9.99, while the yearly subscription rates have increased from $71.99 to $95.99 a year. Impact has announced that the new TNA+ subscription will include access to the entire TNA+ library, and subscribers will also be able to watch Bound For Glory, Slammiversary, Hard To Kill, and Rebellion pay-per-views. The move from Impact Plus to TNA+ will take place on December 14, 2023.

Impact Wrestling will be reverting back to its former name, TNA, at the Hard to Kill pay-per-view on January 13, 2024. This change will occur almost eight years after the company adopted the Impact Wrestling name. The reported reason for returning to the TNA name was that a substantial segment of the fanbase continues to associate Impact with the TNA name. Additionally, the decision is rumored to have been influenced by the fact that the promotion experienced its peak years under the TNA moniker.

Following next year’s Hard to Kill pay-per-view, the newly-rebranded TNA Wrestling will hold the Snake Eyes TV tapings, which will feature two of NJPW’s biggest stars, Will Ospreay and Kazuchika Okada. 

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Impact Wrestling Preview 12/7/2023

Tonight’s episode of Impact Wrestling on AXS TV is all-new. Inter-promotional showdown with Lucha Libre AAA from Monterrey, Mexico. 8/7c on AXS TV and 8:30pm ET on YouTube for IMPACT Insiders

Here are the matches that have been announced for the show:

  • The Motor City Machine Guns and El Hijo del Vikingo vs. Trey Miguel and Los Vipers.
  • X-Division Champion Chris Sabin and Knockouts World Champion Trinity vs. Chik Tormenta & Dinamico.
  • Moose and Toxin vs. Josh Alexander and Octagon Jr.

Report – CM Punk Received ‘Major Money Offer’ From TNA/Impact Wrestling Ahead Of WWE Return

As many of you know by now, CM Punk made his return to WWE at Saturday night’s Survivor Series: War Games 2023 pay-per-view event at the Allstate Arena in Chicago, IL.

Pwinsider is reporting that Punk was considering a “major money offer” made by TNA/Impact Wrestling before finalizing his multi-year deal with WWE on Saturday.

According to the report, Punk was “amazing” during his discussions with TNA/Impact Wrestling, which included dealing with top executives such as Scott D’Amore and Lou D’Angeli.

Sources in Impact believed at one point that the promotion was very close to signing Punk and hoped he would appear at Bound for Glory 2023 as part of the announcement that Impact was rebranding back to TNA.

The conversations continued after Bound for Glory 2023 and people in Impact remained hopeful about bringing Punk in full-time.

However, Impact executives soon realized that Punk could earn a bigger paycheck in WWE, and they were happy for him.

Several Impact wrestlers appreciated the time Punk spent with them when he visited the TV tapings in Chicago, IL.

Source: eWn