TNA X-Division Champion Leon Slater spoke with PWInsider.com‘s Mike Johnson about various topics, including top WWE star AJ Styles’ appearance on TNA iMPACT’s AMC debut.
Slater said, “Yeah, it’s huge, man. As I was scrolling [on my phone] between interviews here, I’ve just seen that. So that is super exciting—not only to be starting a new year with TNA on a new network in front of millions and millions of people, you know what I’m saying—but now we have probably the greatest TNA wrestler to ever exist with us to celebrate as well. So it’s gonna be a good night on AMC, man.”
On the vibe backstage ahead of TNA iMPACT’s AMC debut:
“Everyone is very excited, man. I feel like TNA has almost been this hidden gem over the past few years of pro wrestling. The talent has been killing it for the past three, four—maybe even five—years, especially since COVID, with that new wave of talent: Speedball, Josh Alexander, Jordynne Grace, that whole crop of Impact talent really coming into their own. The transition back to TNA over the past two years has been huge for us, and I feel like we’ve done a great job growing that and keeping the momentum going. I don’t feel like it’s something we “deserve”—I feel like it’s something we’ve earned. That’s not just the in-ring talent. That goes for management, creative, the office—everyone. We’ve earned an opportunity like this. It almost feels like a science project you’ve been working on in the basement every day, getting better and better, and now you finally get to show it to the world. We’re excited to show people what we’ve been working on.”
On his biggest moment of 2025:
“It’s definitely winning the X Division Title. That belt holds so much gravity for me. I grew up a TNA kid watching the X Division, and to be not only champion, but the youngest of all time, means everything. My mom, my sister, and my girlfriend were front row at Slammiversary. It was the biggest TNA attendance at the time. They’d never seen me wrestle in an arena show—only small indies back home To be in New York City, a kid from Bradford, in front of nearly 8,000 people at UBS Arena, hear the three-count, be handed the belt by Carlos, and run straight to my family—that’s the moment I’m most proud of in 2025.”
On what he hopes Styles brings to TNA on iMPACT:
“I am most definitely hoping it’s a challenge to me. You know what I’m saying? I feel like that’s a match that is definitely going to happen at some point. Of course, I’m not on the inner workings of everything, but I feel like I have quite a gift for manifesting. Everything I see in my dreams and picture in my head seems to come to reality. That’s the match I’ve been picturing for years and years, especially with the position I’m in right now—youngest X Division Champion of all time—and he’s the first X Division Champion of all time. AJ has said he’s wrapping it up in 2026, so I feel like that singles match is something that needs to happen, and I think it needs to happen for the X Division Title in a TNA ring.”
On representing TNA on WWE Saturday Night’s Main Event:
“It was very validating. I’ve been putting in work since I was nine years old, trying to make this not just a career, but a career people remember forever. I always carry myself with confidence and belief that I’m the best—because if you don’t, you get lost in the shuffle. So for me, being a 21-year-old kid from Bradford, England, working for TNA, and being on John Cena’s last match as the only TNA-contracted talent—it proved that the work I’ve been putting in has been the right work. It showed that WWE viewed me highly enough to put me in that position, and TNA trusted me to represent the company on such a huge stage. Millions of people saw that match across YouTube and social media. A lot of younger fans might not even know what TNA is. If I’m their introduction and I can bring them to Genesis, the AMC premiere, or Albuquerque, that’s only a positive thing.”
