When you look across the landscape of the sports entertainment business, there are numerous examples throughout its history where truth was stranger than fiction. The long and rocky road of Total Nonstop Action is one of those narratives. By all rights, there’s no reason that TNA should’ve survived as long as it has, and the argument could be made that it’s actually in the process of an upswing.
Would anyone have had the audacity to imagine TNA in its current position if you asked them in 2020 where the beleaguered brand might be in five years?
Sure, there are realistic ceilings to most things within the professional wrestling genre, TNA wouldn’t need WWE’s involvement if they could’ve reached this point on their own, which they couldn’t have, but while TNA isn’t going to ascend to the point where they’re running stadiums, the fact that they drew their largest domestic house in its history for a pay-per-view in 2025 is astounding.
Anyone remember the comically bad draws the promotion had of 300 people for house shows during the Hogan era?
Yes, Slammiversary was held in New York so there was a large population to draw from, but there are also more entertainment options in the area so it was more than possible that the event would’ve been lost in the shuffle. Again, the fact that the company can get over 7,000 fans in the building is proof that somehow, someway TNA Wrestling is a draw in 2025, regardless of how unexpected that is based on where the organization was in the past.
More so than the matches, and there wasn’t really a bad one of the card, the biggest story is the overall narrative around the company after the show went off the air. I think it’s fair to say that there’s more optimism around the brand now than there was for several years, and it appears that there’s already a build toward their next pay-per-view, Bound For Glory, in October.
Mustafa Ali beat Cedric Alexander in a 15-minute opener and it was a very solid way to kickoff the PPV. It might be the standard format of the X-Division bout to stat the broadcast, but it’s one that usually works so it makes sense to go with the safe choice to begin a pay-per-view with this much importance placed on it. Alexander landed a nasty German suplex on Ali on the floor at one point. This was fast-paced action and a very solid performance. Everything they did was crisp and smooth. Ali also took a brutal backdrop on the steps as well. After a back and fourth sequence, interference allowed Ali to hit the 450 splash to win the match. These guys showed a lot here, and even if they wouldn’t necessarily be Wrestlemania main eventers, this was more proof that they are better than the spot they had in WWE. That’s not a knock on WWE, either. It’s simply to point out that they are only so many featured spots on each roster, and that’s why it’s important for their to be options in the business since a different promotion can allow performers to realize their full potential as stars.
The eight man tag of The System and Matt Cardona vs. The Dark State was only about six minutes and it was rushed so while it was fine, there’s not much to say about it other than The System got the victory. Next up, Indi Hartwell defeated Tessa Blanchard in a solid match. However, I’m not going to waste my time saying anything more about Tessa Blanchard.
Jacy Jayne beat Masha Slamovich to win the Knockouts championship. This was a solid 12-minute match, and given the finish, I’d say that this bout was kept at a specific gear because there’s more to the story that will unfold with a longer match at Bound For Glory. They did the run-ins to create some drama, and the ref bump allowed for the visual pin to protect the baby face, which also sets up for a rematch later.
Leon Slater defeated Moose to win the X-Division championship. This was a tremendous segment that checked all the boxes. It was a 15-minute fireworks show that spotlighted Slater, but still allowed Moose to shine in the process. It had the wild dives that the X-Division is known for, but Moose worked the power style to give the match some variety. It had the wholesome victory because not only did the 20-year-old Slater win the title to become the youngest X-Division champion in TNA history with his family in attendance, but he got the endorsement from X-Division pioneer and WWE star, AJ Styles, who made his return to the company more than a decade after he left. Slater looked like a star in this segment, and if I had to guess, I’d say that Styles will have a match at Bound for Glory.
The four-way ladder match for the tag team belt was the car crash segment that you’d expect. Thankfully, the Hardys avoided most of the big bumps, but there were some nasty ladder spots during this contest. The premise was that the ladders were destroyed so Jeff dropped a rope ladder from the ceiling. It was a little hokey, but overall this was a fun match that saw the Hardys retain the titles. Post-match Bully Ray made his return to TNA and challenged the Hardys to a final match between the two teams at Bound For Glory. I have to be honest, I was very surprised to hear that D-Von will be competing in another match, as he suffered a stroke a few years ago and it was assumed that his in-ring career was over after he took a producer job in the WWE. As poetic as it will be for The Dudleys vs. The Hardys to happen one more time, specifically because it will probably also be The Dudleys’ final bout as a team, I’m a little worried if D-Von should get back in the ring at all. Obviously, both teams will want to give a quality performance, but the series of retirement matches we’ve seen recently, including Bill Goldberg a few weeks ago, suggests that a lot of precaution should be taken in these types of situations.
The three-way main event was a quality segment, but given that it was in the main event spot on a show that had the wrestling world watching to see exactly what happened, the finish was very underwhelming. First, it should be mentioned that despite being the NXT talent, Trick Williams is probably the guy least prepared to be the world champion of an organization, which isn’t necessarily meant as a knock on him, just a realistic statement about the level that he’s at right now. On the other hand, Mike Santana is a guy that looked like a major star, and it wouldn’t be too surprising if he’s on the WWE’s radar at some point. His entrance alone made him look like one of the biggest stars on the show. Joe Hendry’s popularity is well-established. The in-ring work, particularly between Santana and Hendry during the sequence at the conclusion was great stuff. However, Williams was booked to feign a knee injury just a week after it looked like Seth Rollins suffered a legitimate injury. Besides the fact that they telegraphed the finish since Williams stayed at ringside while the match continued, it’s somewhat lame to use that specific finish a week after a similar injury happened at Saturday Night’s Main Event. As soon as Trick was still outside the ring, it was obvious exactly what was going to happen so the conclusion was rather flat.
That being said, the biggest takeaway from this event was that TNA had its biggest attendance in history, maybe even more important, the company has legitimate momentum as a brand as it builds to its next pay-per-view in October. When is the last time any of that could’ve really been said about TNA? Does that mean that Total Nonstop Action will eclipse AEW? No, but it’s easy to see that the bigger the footprint of TNA, the more of an impact it could have on AEW’s market share.
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Until next week
-Jim LaMotta
Email [email protected] | You can follow me on Instagram, Facebook, & Threads @jimlamotta89
