Renee Paquette took to Twitter earlier today and revealed that her friend and former WWE announcer, Tom Hannifan (Tom Phillips), will be joining Impact for commentary during tonight’s Hard To Kill event.
Paquette writes, “Huge news!! @TomHannifan joins @IMPACTWRESTLING as their newest play-by-play announcer at Hard To Kill! What a pick-up for them! I have Tom’s first interview this coming Tuesday on The Sessions!! @TheVolumeSports.”
Hannifan was also spotted in Dallas this morning, leading to some speculation prior to the announcement, according to PWInsider. He replaces Matt Striker on the announce team who, as we noted, revealed earlier this week that he is done with Impact Wrestling.
“I am disappointed that my time with #ImpactonAXSTV is done,” Striker wrote on Twitter. “I REALLY enjoyed that locker room. Thanks for allowing me to tell your story. Thanks, everyone. Stay safe.”
D’Lo Brown, however, will remain on the commentary team and will be beside Hannifan to call the play-by-play for Hard To Kill. The duo will be the new team going forward on Impact on AXS TV as of this Thursday’s episode.
Hannifan, age 32, was a part of WWE’s staff from 2012 through May 2021 when he was released by the company along with multiple other employees. At that time, his roles included producing and managing announcers as Senior Manager of On-Air Talent under Michael Cole.
After his departure from WWE, Tom Hannifan transitioned into the world of college football when he became a host for Paydirt: A Penn State Football Podcast.
Source: Wrestling Inc.
