By John Moore, ProWrestling.net Staffer (@liljohnm)
TNA Impact (Episode 1,072)
Taped January 24, 2025 in San Antonio, Texas at Boeing Center at Tech Port
Simulcast February 6, 2025 on AXS TV and TNA+
Highlights from last week’s TNA Impact aired… Tom Hannifan and Matthew Rehwoldt were on commentary. Mckenzie Mitchell was the ring announcer…
Say his name, and he appears! I believe in Joe Hendry! Clap clap! TNA Champion Joe Hendry made his entrance to start the show. Highlights aired of Joe Hendry’s run in the WWE 2025 Royal Rumble match. Hendry sat in the middle of the ring for his signature concert. He said his first song was going to be a remix of a popular song. Hendry did a remix of Queen’s We are the Champions to talk about himself being a champion.
Hendry said his 2nd song was going to be serious because there is a lot of fear and hurt in the world. He said he was here to bring some positivity. Hendry sung about there being division, high gas prices, and inflation in the world; but everything was better because Joe Hendry won the belt. Not sure if he was doing a remix, but whatever it was, Hendry was solid as usual and the song was a bop.
Hendry allowed the crowd to sing “Joe Hendry won the belt” acapella with him when he dropped the beat. Hendry’s next verse was him lampshading that he was about to be interrupted by a challenger to his belt. On queue, Jake Something made his entrance to interrupt. Something talked about Hendry saying he’d defend the title anywhere, anytime, against anyone.
Something said he asked Santino and got the match for next week for Hendry’s title. Something called Hendry a boy and asked him what he thought. Hendry sung that he accepted…
John’s Thoughts: A fun edition of Hendry’s signature concerts. At one point when he was in the mid-card, these things were getting a bit repetitive, but ever since his feud with AJ Francis over the Digital Media Title, Hendry has freshened up his songs and even elevated this segment to a main event level. There are comparisons to be made to Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s “Rock Concerts”, but Hendry’s positivity does make him feel like a different flavor (Yes, Hendry insults his opponents too, but he’s different enough from Rock to sound original. Not to mention, Hendry also sounds like a better singer than Rock too). Hendry vs. Something should be a good first title defense to kick off Hendry’s run as champion (and I totally expect Hendry to eventually lose the title to Frankie Kazarian when Kazarian decides to cash in his totally-money-in-the-bank trophy).
Gia Miller interviewed TNA Knockouts Champion Masha Slamovich about there being a number one contenders battle for Masha’s title happening later in the show and Cora Jade also coming after Masha’s title. Masha talked about how she thrives in chaos. Masha said if Cora James wants to play Masha’s games with her, just know that while Cora draw’s her X’s with lipstick, Masha draws them in blood…
Tom Hannifan hyped upcoming segments on Impact…[c]
Entrances for the next match took place…
1. Ace Austin vs. Tyson Dupont (w/Wes Lee, Tyriek Igwe). Dupont dominated early on with a collar and elbow. Ace managed to dominate the 2nd collar and elbow exchange. Ace yelled “TNA” at Dupont, which caused him to fire up and take down Ace with a shove. Ace landed on his feet after a hip toss from Dupont. Ace got a two count after a Magistral Cradle, followed by a dropkick.
Dupont used his weight to reverse a suplex. Ace escaped a suplex, but fed right into a pop up power slam by Dupont. Dupont hit Ace with a series of Stinger Splashes. Dupont hit Ace with a spinning uppercut for a nearfall. Ace slammed Dupont into the corner a few times followed by a back knee in order to escape a Full Nelson.
Ace hit Dupont with a Russian Leg Sweep and leg drop. Dupont hit Ace with a side slam. Ace dodged a standing Splash and hit Dupont with The Fold for the victory.
Ace Austin defeated Tyson Dupont via pinfall in 5:22.
As expected, Wes Lee and Tyriek Igwe jumped Ace Austin. They were chased away by Trey Miguel and Zachary Wentz who had chairs in their hands…
John’s Thoughts: I really like that this isn’t a one-sided partnership as WWE has consistently allowed their developmental wrestlers to serve as enhancement fodder for established stars (and even having established stars like Wes Lee lose to TNA wrestlers). This might be the first time we saw Dupont work a singles match on television and he looked pretty decent. It helps that Ace Austin is such a talented dude who made him look great, but the rookie held his own. Again, I would have preferred Myron Reed in the role of third Rascal, but Ace is a fine stand-in. Unfortunately, it does put Ace in the stand-in role again, just like when he was the third Hardy Boy a few months ago. I hope they swing back to Ace trying to win one for Chris Bey again, because that story was really clicking and had a lot of real-life pathos to it (also, prayers again to Chris Bey and Bey’s family that Bey can get through this tough time).
Tessa Blanchard cut a promo in the makeup room. Tessa said she was clarifying that she wasn’t going to be in the number one contender battle royal because she is not a pendeja (which I assume is a female pendejo). She said she’s too smart and won’t let nine women team up against her. She said all the women are trying to get her because they have professional jealousy and feel threatened. Tessa said that the Diamante of Lucha Libre is back, and nobody can mess with her because they can’t anyway…
Rosemary got a televised entrance heading into break…[c]
A Steph De Lander promo aired and she was with Mance Warner and the Digital Media Championship. There were “23” graphics spliced in the promo video. Steph reiterated that she won the Digital Media title in a divorce [with PCO] and that she and Mance Warner are the Digital Media Champions. Mance said he didn’t just cross the line, he kicked it. Mance said that TNA is their home now.
Mance said they are going to walk around and drink beer. He said he’s going to cut anyone who gets in his way. He said nobody can stop him, especially Sami Callihan. Steph said that if Sami knows what’s good for him he’ll watch his back…
A handful of women were in the ring for the battle royal. Ash and Heather by Elegance made their entrance with their stick horses. Cora Jade joined the commentary team. Retired wrestler and former WWE Women’s Champion Jazz made her entrance. Jazz had her TNA retirement a few years ago (in a pretty good run). Hannifan noted that Jazz was the owner of a local National Wrestling Alliance in San Antonio, TX, “NWA San Antonio”…
2. Women’s Battle Royal for a shot at the TNA Knockouts Championship. Alisha Edwards started the match, getting in the face of Jazz. Jazz hit Alisha with a Glam Slam. Cora Jade said she liked that Alisha and Jazz were wearing purple. Random brawling ensued. Alisha Edwards eliminated Tasha Steelz. Hannifan noted that Alisha eliminated her tag partner. Both Spitfire members caught Alisha out of the air and eliminated her.
Jody and Dani went to ringside through the middle rope (Thus not eliminating themselves). For some reason, Ash felt the need to twiddle her fingers outside of the ring apron to reveal that she was hiding. Dani dragged Ash out with Heather holding to Ash’s feet and Jody holding to Heather’s. Ash accidentally almost eliminated Heather, but The Concierge caught her. Jody knocked Heather off the apron to eliminate her.
Ash eliminated Dani Luna. Rosemary hit Jody Threat with a spear and eliminated her. Ash called for a time out in the center of the ring managed to somehow form an alliance with Rosemary and Savannah Evans against Jazz and Xia Brookside. Ash even slapped Evans in the ass for motivation at one point. Jazz used strikes to fend off Rosemary and Ash. Ash rolled to ringside to avoid elimination.
Rosemary shoved Jazz to the apron and Ash dragged Jazz to ringside for the elimination. Ash was over the top in her celebration at eliminating Jazz, even doing rapid star poses. Ash tried to attack Rosemary, but cowered in fear when Rosemary saw it coming. Brookside used this interaction to toss Rosemary over the top rope. Xia also eliminated Ash. A picture-in-picture showed Tessa watching the match backstage on a monitor.
Xia managed to get Evans on the apron, but Evans held on. Xia got distracted by Cora Jade approaching her. Xia used a bite to escape a chokeslam by Evans. Evans gave Xia a headbutt to knock her off the apron to pick up the win.
Savannah Evans won the women’s battle royal to earn a shot at the TNA Knockouts Championship in 8:45.
Cora Jade pointed and laughed at the knocked out Xia at ringside. Hannifan hyped upcoming segments…[c]
John’s Thoughts: In the past, TNA (and most wrestling companies) have been guilty of having these number one contender battle royals be just a bunch of filler and pointless walking and punching. This one was pretty productive and fun. Fun to see Jazz get the nice guest appearance. She did have that retirement tour, but every time she steps back in the ring she does more than your usual “legend” would. Alisha eliminating Steelz should lead to something. The star in my opinion was Ash. Even though I thought her having her fingers point out of the apron was campy and cringe, everything else she did in a comedy-sense was fun. I continue to really appreciate the effort the former Dana Brooke has done to revamp her image. I like them giving Savannah Evans her win back after losing to Léi Ying Lee (Where the hell is Ying Lee anyway? This is ending up very similar to her WWE run where she shows up looking like a badass and future star; only to vanish into thin air for months).
An ad aired for the TNA Rebellion show happening at the University of Southern California’s Galen Center…
Eric Young and the Northern Armory, Judas Icarus and Travis Williams, made their entrance. Young said that you are looking at Canadian greatness in the ring. He said they are all the Northern Armory and they run TNA Wrestling. Young said that Josh Alexander just quit and was about to leave these young, hungry, and talented young men out in the cold, and Young wasn’t going to just stand by. Young said that TNA has been run by Canadians forever, with names like Eric Young, Josh Alexander, Gail Kim, Bobby Roode, Petey Williams, etc..
A “USA” chant ensued. Young said no one has won more matches, won more championships, and dedicated more time in this company than Eric Young. Young said he’s Young said he’s above everyone in the company, including the face, president, owner, and everybody. He said in his first act, he eliminated Josh Alexander. Young said a great army needs a great leader and he’s a great leader.
Young’s promo was cut off by Steve Maclin making his entrance. Hannifan noted that Young was one of the few friends Maclin has had in TNA. Maclin asked Young if “this”, the Northern Armory, was worth saving? Maclin asked if this was the plan all along, why didn’t Young just tell him? Maclin said he doesn’t put his trust in many people, and Young was the first person that he put his trust in, in TNA. Maclin talked about going to war with Young.
Maclin said Alexander and the Northern Armory tried to end both Young and his career. Maclin said he shared his life and Marine corps stories with Young. Maclin said as long as Young is with The Northern Armory, he’s not. While Maclin was leaving, Josh Alexander made his entrance with a mic in hand. Maclin shared a look with Josh and then headed to the back. Josh said that his hearing isn’t what it once was due to many injuries, but he thought he just heard Young claim to “eliminate” him and remove him from TNA for good.
Alexander said that he doesn’t know how good Young’s eyesight is, but he should see that Josh Alexander is still here standing in this ring. Josh said that it is true that his time in TNA is ending soon. Josh said no matter what anyone says, he loves TNA and this place means everything to him. He said he can say that all he wants, but he needs to “show” everyone how much he loves TNA. Josh said that Santino granted him one last match, next week against Eric Young.
Josh said that nobody has spilled more blood and tears in TNA than him. He said that next week he’ll wrestle with everything in his heart to show how much this place means to him. Josh said he’s also going to enjoy kicking Young’s ass…
Tom Hannifan hyped upcoming segments…[c]
John’s Thoughts: While at one point I was bored of Eric Young leading boring heel factions, I feel like there’s been enough time between now and when he was a cult leader, where we can have him be Mr. Rah Rah Canada bad guy. Easy heat in the US and it sets up a natural feud with Mr. US Marine, Steve Maclin. I thought Maclin really gained strides as a babyface when he wrestled a great match against Josh Alexander with his hands tied behind his back, and I think feuding with Eric Young will help develop Maclin even further in the eyes of the TNA audience as someone to root for. Just be prepared for the roles to temporarily flip when they feud in “bizzarro” Canada. Josh already passed the torch to Mike Santana, so I don’t mind him presumably putting heat on Young on his way out to have Young set up to be a credible villain (I don’t know the spoilers, but just given what we’ve seen from wrestling in the past, I just assume). If Josh decides to re-sign with TNA, he has a ready-made feud with Young and The Northern Armory too.
Sami Callihan was tossing things around backstage and yelling at random people, looking for Mance Warner. Sami then started to yell at Frankie Kazarian while Kazarian was in the middle of filming a pre-tape. Sami asked if Frankie saw Mance Warner. Kaz said “Can’t you see I’m cutting a promo. I’m putting myself over”. Kazarian said he doesn’t even know who Mance Warner is? Kazarian said if Sami wasn’t such a mark, he wouldn’t always have issues with everyone. Sami walked off to find Mance.
After Sami left the promo set, Kazarian yelled at “stupid” Santino to come over to him. Kazarian said this was feeling like a unsafe workplace with a slob like Sami Callihan yelling backstage. Santino said he doesn’t appreciate what Kaz did, but he’ll help Kaz with his problem. Santino told Kazarian to get back to work. Kazarian said he was in the middle of cutting a 5 star promo before Sami terrorized him…
John’s Thoughts: Kazarian has been a very entertaining heel ever since he found his voice as a pro wrestler. I wonder if this stems from how he carries himself on the Konnan “Keepin’ It 100” podcast because this Kazarian sounds similar to how he speaks on there (Where he took Juventud Guerrera’s segment on the show where he, Disco, and Konnan review random musical fan submissions. The Frankie Kazarian, and formerly Nick Aldis, Juicy Seal segment).
The System made their entrance. A picture-in-picture recap aired to recap JDC confronting Lexis King on NXT to set up a Heritage Cup title match for next week. Leon Slater and the Hardy Boyz then made their entrance. Slater took off his hoodie mask to reveal that he had half his face painted like Matt and Jeff Hardy…
3. Matt Hardy, Jeff Hardy, and Leon Slater vs. “The System” JDC, Moose, and Eddie Edwards (w/Alisha Edwards, Brian Myers). Curtis hit Slater with a shoulder tackle and did a little dance. Eddie tagged in. Slater took down Eddie and JDC with armdrags. Slater pointed and tagged in Matt who did his signature “ohhh” into a overhead elbow drop.
Jeff tagged in and worked on Eddie with some signature strikes. The Hardy’s used quick tags to cut the ring in half on Eddie, while also leading the crowd in “Delete” chants. Hannifan noted that the Hardy brothers haven’t lost a tag match in TNA in 11 years. Jeff hit Eddie with Poetry in Motion. Slater hit Moose and JDC with Poetry in Motion.[c]
Slater caught Moose with a Dragonrana. Slater hit JDC and Eddie with a double back elbow. Alisha got on the apron to cut Slater off. Slater teased attacking Alisha, but jumped over her with a Molly Go Round. Moose caught Slater out of the air and power bombed him on the apron. While Slater was trying to beat the count, Moose was doing the Jeff Hardy dance.
Slater beat the ten count, but was then pummeled by punches by Moose. The System then went back to isolating Slater with quick tags. Eddie and Moose hit Slater with signature moves. Curtis hit Slater with The Last Dance Leg Drop. Jeff shoved Moose on top of Curtis to break up the pin. Slater got a two count off JDC and then hit him with a leg lariat. Jeff and Moose tagged in with Jeff having the momentum.
Jeff cleaned house. Jeff hit Moose with his signature Atomic Drop combo. JDC and Eddie broke up Jeff’s Twist of Fate attempt on Moose. Slater hit all three opponents with a dive. Jeff hit JDC with a Suicide Dive. Matt hit Eddie with a suicide dive. Moose used a pump kick to block Slater’s dive. Slater fought through and hit Eddie and JDC with a flip dive over the ring post. The Hardys hit Moose with the Plot Twist. Jeff told Slater to go to the top. Slater hit Moose with the Swanton 450 Bomb. Jeff hit Moose with a Swanton Bomb for the win.
Jeff Hardy, Matt Hardy, and Leon Slater defeated Moose, Eddie Edwards, and JDC via pinfall in 10:45 of on-air time.
Tom Hannifan hyped upcoming segments…[c]
John’s Thoughts: With all the generic Def Rebel music we were getting from the Royal Rumble last week, it’s refreshing to see the power of how good theme music can bring a Pavlovian response from the crowd (ironically, the Hardy music is considered “generic” royalty free music). I digress. This was one of the better past-and-future matches with the Hardys not taking the air out of the room and allowing Leon Slater to shine. Leon Slater is finally starting to click as a future homegrown TNA star. Even past the Swanton finisher, Slater does have very similar death defying qualities to Jeff Hardy, and that is not a bad comparison to be made to (as long as he doesn’t go too overboard. Jeff can probably tell Slater how those body aches start piling up).
Tag team partners Jason Hotch and John Skyler were yelling at each other backstage. Mustafa Ali, still in a politician dress suit, got in between them to calm them down. Ali told them that if everyone is yelling, then no one is listening. Ali said they are “good hands” right now, but he thinks they can be “great hands”. Ali left then and then walked over to sit next to Tasha Steelz, who was sobbing over her recent tag partner Alisha Edwards betraying her.
Ali said that he sees that this keeps happening in TNA. Ali said you give your heart and soul to someone and they not only break your heart, but step on your soul. Ali said he hates that this continuously happens here. Ali said that Tasha is a good person and it’s up to them to put a stop to this. Ali said that if not them, then who? If not now, then when? Ali told Tasha to take his hand and to make sure nobody feels like this again. Tasha took Ali’s hand and walked off with Ali…
John’s Thoughts: Interesting. While Ali is still visually in politician cosplay, he felt a little bit more “real” in those last two interactions. He was still being a manipulative politic man, but not like he’s just playing a character, and more like he has an ulterior motive. This feels like what HBK and the NXT creative team were going for with Ali when they pulled the plug on the cosplay look. It reminds me a little bit of what WWE were trying to do with the late Sean O’Hare before O’Hare passed, with a “devil over your shoulder” type of character. I kinda hope we see more of this and less caricature.
Matt Cardona made his entrance first, followed by Mike Santana who did his usual Jey Uso-like entrance through the crowd. Hannifan noted that this was the same location that Santana had a Texas Death Match against JDC a few months ago (which, as I actually mentioned in my NXT review this past week, is a match I HIGHLY recommend. That match was a sleeper hit of 2024)…
4. Mike Santana vs. “Alwayz Ready” Matt Cardona. Santana dominated the early collar and elbow, with Cardona rolling to ringside to stall a bit. Cardona held on to the ropes to stall even more. The referee told Cardona to not hold Santana’s hair which allowed Santana to rally, flip the bird, and hit Cardona with a running Senton. Santana hit Cardona with a flip dive.
Hannifan hyped up Impact’s upcoming live events which include a live TV show from Full Sail University. Cardona hit Santana with a power whip and slowed down the pace of the match. Santana rallied with left and right hooks. Cardona slowed things back down with another Irish Whip. Cardona worked on Santana with methodical offense. Santana regained control after a dropkick and Buck 50 cutter. Cardona ducked Spin the Block.
Santana reversed a Ruff Ryder into a Death Valley Driver for a nearfall. Cardona hit the top rope to crotch Santana. Cardona hit Santana with the Broski Boot. Cardona hit Santana with a Tiger Bomb for a nearfall. Santana reversed a Ruff Ryder into a Buckle Bomb. Santana did the Eddie Guerrero shimmy into a Frog Splash on Cardona.
Mike Santana defeated Matt Cardona via pinfall in 8:13.
A hype teaser aired to hype the upcoming Fraxiom vs. Nemeth Brothers tag title match…[c]
John’s Thoughts: Mike Santana is one of my favorite acts to see develop in pro wrestling and this was a solid and easy win for him as he is being built up presumably to be TNA’s next main protagonist. Matt Cardona, meanwhile, seems to be at a very odd time of his career. He had the great “Death Match King” run, Steph De Lander run, and had a few fun Impact runs. Now it seems like he’s waiting around doing guest appearances, hoping WWE or TNA would sign him. I’m not sure why they won’t, because the dude did an amazing job reinventing and elevating himself. Can someone send a call to chef Heartbreak Kid to see if he can bring good ol’ mat in to the NXT kitchen? How is “Stan” from catering back in WWE and not Zack Ryder?
The following segments were advertised for next week: Josh Alexander vs. Eric Young, Sami Callihan vs. Frankie Kazarian, Xia Brookside vs. Cora Jade, Masha Slamovich vs. Savannah Evans for the Knockouts Title, and Joe Hendry vs. Jake Something for the TNA Championship.
Tom Hannifan and Matthew Rehwoldt checked in on commentary. Hannifan welcomed the NXT-WWE Liason, Arianna Grace, to the commentary table. Hannifan noted that it could be a history making night if a TNA tag team can defeat a NXT tag team for NXT championships (Though, I don’t think it would be too big this time, given that it wasn’t too long ago that Nic Nemeth defeated Bron Breakker to become NXT Champion)…
Nic and Ryan Nemeth were out first. Out next were NXT Tag Team Champions Axiom and Nathan Frazer. Ariana Grace said that Fraxiom were her best friends. She said she’s also on the path to being best friends with Matt Rehwoldt since she accepted his Instagram request…
5. Axiom and Nathan Frazer vs. Nic Nemeth and Ryan Nemeth for the NXT Tag Team Championships. Nic beat Ryan at Rock, Paper, Scissors to start the match with Axiom. Nic and Axiom started the match at a stalemate during the opening amateur wrestling sequence. Frazer tagged in and ran circles around Nic. Frazer took down Nemeth with a few armdrags. Grace noted that Ryan Nemeth was roommates with her father at one point (Santino).
Ryan tagged in and took down Frazer. Ryan and Nic hit Frazer with stereo elbow drops. Frazer hit Ryan with an Enzuigiri and DDT. Axiom tagged in and got a two count on Ryan. Axiom hit both Nemeth’s with suicide dives. Nic managed to recover and take out both Fraxiom members heading into regular break.[c]
Frazer and Axiom used quick tags to cut the ring in half on Ryan. Nic tagged in and rallied on Axiom. Nic hit Axiom with his signature ten elbow drops. Nic hit Axiom with a Fameasser for a nearfall. Axiom blocked a superkick from Nic. Ryan hit Axiom with a gamengiri to give Nic a two count on Axiom. Ryan and Nic traded quick tags to cut the ring in half on Axiom.
Axiom managed to tag in Frazer o hit Nic with a Sling Blade and Frog Splash for a nearfall. Nic hit Frazer with a hanging DDT for a nearfall. Frazer caught Nic with a Seth Rollins’ enzuigiri. Axiom tagged in and traded hands with Nic. Nic managed to surprise both Fraxiom members with superkicks. Ryan tagged himself in. The Nemeth’s hit both opponents with Danger Zones. Ryan got a two count. Nic hit Axiom with an Impaler DDT.
Axiom recovered and staggered Ryan on the top rope. Frazer hit Ryan with a Superplex into a Brainbuster. Nic broke up Frazer’s pin. Nic took out Frazer with a superkick. Ryan brought a steel chair in the ring and Nic stopped him. Frazer dropkicked Nic to ringside. Frazer held Ryan in place so Axiom could hit him with a Super Golden Ratio Kick for the victory.
Axiom and Nathan Frazer defeated Ryan Nemeth and Nic Nemeth via pinfall in 14:40 of on-air time to retain the NXT Tag Team Championship.
Hannifan pointed out that Ryan Nemeth’s actions cost Nic Nemeth gold. Impact closed…
John’s Thoughts: Axiom and Nathan Frazer ran through the entire NXT tag division and a few members of the WWE main roster. Having TNA around gives them a handful of new opponents while also giving TNA the chance to showcase one of the most consistantly booked tag teams in the world. A good match as usual from the tag champs, who continue to mix up their style against various opponents. Having the former Dolph Ziggler in the ring only made the quality that much better.
Initially when Ryan first turned heel, I was totally expecting Nic to turn soon after. I still think the Nic turn is still on the table, but I like their face-heel brotherly dynamic where Nic is the honorable babyface while Ryan is the annoying little brother. Nic is so honorable, that no matter how much of a fool Ryan acts, he will always have his brother’s back. I hope they don’t immediately break up the Nemeth’s yet as there is a good match against the Hardy’s that could be fun. Fraxiom should also be in line for a match against the Hardys themselves. Overall, this week’s episode of Impact was solid with the injection of NXT talent boosting the show overall.
Be the first to comment