By John Moore, ProWrestling.net Staffer (@liljohnm)
TNA Impact (Episode 1,097)
Taped July 25, 2025, in Kingston, Rhode Island, at Ryan Center
Simulcast July 31, 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. Gabby LaSpisa was he backstage interviewer (filling in for the “injured” Gia Miller)… Entrances for the opening match took place…
1. Leon Slater vs. Jason Hotch vs. Cedric Alexander for the TNA X Division Championship. All three men started the match with quick counters. Slater took down both Slater and Hotch. Slater came back with Enzuigiris on both opponents. Cedric came back with a Flatliner and DDT on his opponents. Ced hit Slater with a Michinoku Driver for a nearfall. Hotch aught Slater with a knee and snap German suplexes on both opponents.
Hotch hit both opponents with a Triangle Moonsault. Slater hit Hotch with a draping Twist of Fate. Hannifan shouted out to Desmond Wolfe (Nigel McGuinness) by calling the move the Tower of London. Slater hit Hotch with a 450 Swanton for the victory.
Leon Slater defeated Jason Hotch and Cedric Alexander in a three-way via pinfall in 4:05 to retain the X Division Championship.
Slater and Alexander got in each other’s faces after the match…
John’s Thoughts: Hannifan noted that this match was the first triple threat X title defense in a year, and I actually like that stat. Daniels vs. Joe vs. Styles ended up ultimately being a curse on the division in that, between 2006 and 2016, it became bland and rudimentary for nearly every Impact episode to open up with a meaningless multi-person match. It homogenized the division (Does anyone even remember the “great” run of former X Division Champion Tigre Uno?). This match was actually great in a short amount of time, with the talented Hotch taking the pin. I hope this doesn’t become the norm and that we get more of what we got during Speedball Mike Bailey’s X Division title reign, where all his matches felt like you can throw them in PPV main events.
Gabby LaSpisa interviewed Masha Slamovich bout her upcoming match against Jacy Jayne later in the show. Masha said weakness waits, but she doesn’t. Masha said Jacy will regret being in the ring with Masha again. She said Jacy feels like she’s at the top of the world with two title belts. Masha said Masha made the division violent, mean something, and made it a division for real fighters. Masha said Jacy better be ready for the fight of her life…
Hannifan plugged upcoming segments…[c]
Leon Slater and Cedric Alexander were resting backstage, and both agreed that they should face each other for the X Division title in a singles match due to Cedric not being pinned in the triple threat…
Entrances for the next match took place…
2. Indi Hartwell and Dani Luna vs. Ariana Grace and Jody Threat. Grace shrugged off Dani’s collar and elbow. Grace did a bunch of Aikido rolls to avoid a wristlock. Dani came back with a shoulder tackle for a nearfall. Victoria Crawford showed up at ringside with very expressive attire. Indi tagged in and hit Grace with a delayed body slam. Indi and Dani cut the ring in half.
Grace got a wristlock on Dani and tagged in Jody, who didn’t want to get tagged in due to her friendship with Dani. Jody waited to respectfully slap hands with Dani, which Dani accepted. Jody hit Dani with a springboard Codebreaker. Grace tagged in after Jody dumped Dani to ringside. Grace beat up Dani a bit and got a two count. Grace slapped her ass to provoke Indi. Dani fended off both opponents to bring in Indi.
Indi rallied with axe handles and a spinebuster on Threat for a two count. Dani tagged back in. Jody came back with a Michinoku Diver for a nearfall. Dani shoved Jody into Grace to knock Grace off the apron. Dani hit Jody with the Luna Landing (Sitout Spinebuster) for the win.
Dani Luna and Indi Hartwell defeated Jody Threat and Ariana Grace via pinfall in 6:23.
John’s Thoughts: A well worked match. I don’t feel like there’s much steam behind the impending Spitfire feud, given how ice cold Spitfire was during their long run as a tag team. Ariana Grace is someone I’m confused is not getting TV time on NXT (yes, I know TV time is hard to come by in the women’s division in NXT, but I really think she has something unique to offer in her strong personality and comedy acumen). One small thing I get a kick out of is Victoria Crawford (f.k.a. Alicia Foxxxxxx). She’s still below average in the ring, unfortunately, but she’s very entertaining in terms of body language. Not to mention, she still looks as pretty as she did over a decade ago. Like Santino, I’m happy that Crawford has seemingly found her love for pro wrestling again.
Jake Something was in the middle of a promo where he was yelling about how he’s going to go after the International Championship. International Champion Steve Maclin walked up to him to get in his face…
Hannifan hyped upcoming segments…[c]
A narrated highlight package aired for TNA Slammiversary 2025 that talked about how historic Slammiversary is. This ended up being a trailer for “Slammiversary: Fade to Black” which is a backstage documentary on Slammiversary 2025. The trailer said this documentary was exclusive to TNA+ annual subscribers…
Entrances for the next match took place…
John’s Thoughts: Good to see Myron Reed finally get green wrestling gear. Zach Wentz was giving Reed crap a few weeks ago for not wearing matching Rascalz colors.
3. Ryan Nemeth and Nic Nemeth vs. “The Rascalz” Zachary Wentz and Myron Reed. Reed and Wentz hit The Nemeths with stereo moonsaults. The Rascalz hit Ryan with their signature swarming strikes. They then hit The Nemeths with stereo dives at ringside. Ryan got control and tagged in Nic for a combination neckbreaker on Reed to give Nic a nearfall. Ryan and Nic worked on Reed with methodical offense.
Hannifan said that Nic is like a pitbull while Ryan is like a chihuahua. Rehwoldt said, “Leave Ryan alone!”. Reed escaped two back suplexes but got caught with an elbow drop for a two count by Nic. Reed hit Nic with Stundog Millionaire to bring in Wentz for the hot tag. Wentz tripped up Ryan and hit him with a blockbuster. Nic superkicked Wentz during a handstand, which allowed Ryan to hit Wentz with a DDT.
Nic hit Wentz with a Fameasser to give Ryan a nearfall on Wentz. Reed caught Ryan with a Big Boot. Reed then hit Wentz with Flame On (reverse-momentum Cutter of the apron). Wentz hit Ryan with a Final Flash (Spiral Tap) for the win.
“The Rascalz” Zachary Wentz and Myron Reed defeated Nic Nemeth and Ryan Nemeth via pinfall in 6:16.
Hannifan hyped upcoming segments…[c]
John’s Thoughts: The matches are not too long this week, but I think they are way more entertaining and productive than the previous week. This was a fun match. Nic has taken a huge step down to do charity work for his brother, but I still think that him throwing his little bro a bone is both commendable and wholesome (giving Ryan the strongest run of his entire career). Myron getting the matching tights helped here as he is starting to feel more like a part of the Rascalz as opposed to just being Trey Miguel’s understudy. The Rascalz continue to innovate and Reed’s Flame On move is pretty sick.
The Nemeths remained in the ring after the break. Ryan took a mic and said, “My big brother” has something to say. Nic said that the tag team titles were stolen from the Nemeths, and it was a fluke. Nic mentioned that they still have a rematch clause, and they are invoking that clause at the TNA+ Emergence show. Ryan said the Hardys didn’t pin anyone and won the match with a “magic ladder”.
Ryan said he would like to let Rhode Island know that the food in Rhode Island sucks, their sports teams suck (because they don’t have a big sports team), the ugly kid in the front row sucks, and the lady in the crowd with the crooked teeth sucks. Ryan said the Nemeths are attractive and hot while the fans are ugly and not. Ryan said the Nemeths are sexy bros.
Rhode Island’s own, Home Town Man made his entrances. He said he was in the back eating some local Rhode Island stuffies, but the Nemeths are running down his hometown. He said the fans aren’t ugly, they are beautiful. HTM said Ryan needs to apologize to “my hometown, man”. Ryan said he knows who HTM is. Home Town Man led the crowd in singing his theme. Nic demanded that HTM leave his ring.
Home Town Man said this is the home of the Rhode Island Rams, and if Nic doesn’t shut up, he’ll ram this mic down Nic’s throat. Ryan said nobody makes a physical threat against “my big brother”. Home Town Man started throwing hands, but was beat down by the numbers advantage. Ryan managed to take off HTM’s mask. Security quickly ran out to cover HTM’s face. Nic gave rapid super kicks to security. Wentz and Reed ran back out to chase away the Nemeths…
Hannifan hyped upcoming segments…[c]
John’s Thoughts: Going back to his recent “People’s Choice” gimmick, Cody Deaner always runs the risk of being very esoteric and cringe with his local cheap pop formula. That said, Deaner is so talented that he can make the most basic and cringy material work out wonderfully. This man can make anything work (Yes, his heel cult failed, but I also thought that thing was dead on arrival, given how many losses they would take without gaining heat).
Frankie Kazarian cut promo backstage, saying TNA isn’t like it once was and that they are disrespecting OGs like him. Kazarian said he’s been carrying that mark Tom Hannifan on commentary, but was pulled and yanked from commentary. He said the disrespect is disgusting. Kazarian called out TNA President Carlos Silva and told him to bring his little hat for a chat. Kazarian said he’s not just a wrestler, he’s a king…
John’s Thoughts: Welp, Silva’s been getting a lot of TV time. I really hope he doesn’t catch the Dixie Carter bug, becoming a regular on-air talent. How soon before we see Carlos Silva eat a top rope Bully Ray power bomb through a table?
Mike Santana made his entrance, but stuck around in the crowd to cut his promo. Santana said there was a lot of buzzin’ around Slammiversary. He said the eyes of the wrestling world were locked in on the UBS Arena. He said to keep it real with ya’ll, he lost. Santana said his family, city, and culture were on his back. He said he was cheated, but the reality is he lost.
Santana said if you’ve been following him, you’ve known he’s hit rock bottom. He said he faced the devil in his face and fought. He said he fought for the person most important in his life, his father. Santana said when he decided to bet on himself, he was doubted and counted out, but he fought, and fought, and fought. Santana said not just to get to the main event, but to be in front of all the fans.
A “Santana” chant ensued. Santana said one of the hardest things he had to deal with was when the world was crumbling in front of him, when the air was being drained from the room, Santana had to look across the ring, in the front row. Santana cut off for a bit to show emotion. Santana said he had to watch the tears run down his daughter’s face, and he knew he had to put everything aside to comfort his little girl.
He said he told her that everything was going to be okay. Santana said his daughter told him she knew because he’s going to get Trick next time. Mike said that when he looked in the rearview mirror at his daughter, he knew exactly what had to be done. He said he made the promise to her, and to the crowd, it’s not “if” but “when”. He said he will step through the ropes, in the ring, and “mark my F’n words, I WILL BE TNA WORLD CHAMPION!”. Santana’s theme played to end the segment…
Hannifan noted that Bound for Glory tickets go on sale this weekend…
Rehwoldt and Hannifan plugged the TNA+ Emergence show…
John’s Thoughts: Simple, effective, and strong. I keep hyping up Santana as being one of the best promos in the business, and he never lets me down. The best part about his promos is the humanity he shows. He comes off as a plucky everyman that everyone can relate to. Great follow-up to his loss that sets him on the journey to be the man who brings the world title back to TNA.
A Tale of the Tape graphic aired for the Knockouts Title match…
Entrances for the Knockouts Title match took place. Hannifan said Jacy Jayne is calling herself “The New Double J of TNA”. McKenzie Mitchell handled the formal in-ring championship introductions…
4. Jacy Jayne (w/Fallon Henley, Jazmyn Nyx) vs. Masha Slamovich for the TNA Knockouts Championship. Both women started the match with rapid pin attempts. Jayne landed a huracanrana. Masha came back with a running knee and clothesline. Henley grabbed Masha’s leg, which allowed Jayne to hit Masha with a kick and catapult. Jayne hit Masha with a neckbreaker for a two count. Jayne put Masha in a cravat with some overhead strikes.
Masha escaped with a snapmare and clotheslines. Masha hit Jayne with a few corner kicks and a Liger Kick. Ash by Elegance appeared in the ring and hit Masha with the tag title belt to invoke a DQ.
Masha Slamovich defeated TNA Knockouts Champion Jacy Jayne via DQ in 3:31.
Fatal Influence got in Ash’s face and didn’t like the DQ. M and Heather ran out to have Ash’s back. Lei Ying Lee and Xia Brookside ran in the ring to chase off the heels and help Masha to her feet. McKenzie Mitchell announced Masha as the winner via DQ…
John’s Thoughts: Eh. Wonk finish. It didn’t help that they telegraphed a wonk finish by announcing off-rip that a random System vs. First Cla$$ was in the main event slot, while one of their top titles was in a mid-card slot. Very weird too that they are pitting two heel trios into a presumed program (with Brookside and Lee being shoehorned in just to give the crowd someone to cheer for). I guess this is something for the semi-canon TNA+ show.
It was time for TNA’s sponsored injury report. Gia Miller was medically cleared from her head trauma and contusions. Moose is cleared even though he is sporting a hip injury. Elijah has no return date on his recovery after triceps surgery. Jake Something and Mance Warner are medically cleared after thumbtack punctures…
A doctor told KC Navarro that he wasn’t cleared to wrestle in the main event due to reaggravating his leg injury. Trick Williams and AJ Francis showed up. Trick yelled at AJ to get his boy ready for the main event. AJ told KC that he paid him this week because KC claimed to be ready to go. AJ told the doc to give KC a crutch, and he’ll come to the match anyway. The doctor reiterated that KC can’t wrestle tonight…
Hannifan announced that Trick Williams will replace KC Navarro in the main event…[c]
Backstage, TNA Director of Authority Santino Marella yelled at The Elegance Brand for interfering in the Knockouts Title match. Ash said nobody wants to see Masha, they want to see “Meeeee!”. Masha ran in and had to be held back by security while Ash bragged about being the number one contender to the Knockouts Title. Santino said Jacy Jayne vs. Ash by Elegance for the Knockouts Title will be next week, and the winner will face Masha in a title defense. Santino also banned M and Heather from ringside…
A [re-] introductory vignette aired for Mara Sade (f.k.a. Jakara Jackson). Sade said she is from Duke City, New Mexico. She said she’s multi-talented. She talked about having a background in basketball, softball, and fitness competitions. She said she was a part of Dwayne Johnson’s Titan Games. She said that led her to getting a WWE tryout and falling in love with wrestling. She said she enjoys beating the bitches ass, entertaining, and being in the spotlight.
Jakara said she looks like a masterpiece, like art which is meant to be seen by the masses. She said the attention being on her gives her power. She said she doesn’t just see her as a bomb ass knockout, but a generational talent. She said she sees herself as someone to inspire the masses. She said she sees herself on movie screens. She said TNA was built on legacy and opportunity, and she wants to be a part of that. She said TNA will allow her to unlock that hidden potential. Sade said she will show everyone exactly who Mara Sade is…
John’s Thoughts: A good introductory vid and a better introduction than her cold debut last week. On one hand, I was very surprised she was released from WWE, especially since she did a wonderful job taking a brunt of the selling and offense for Lash Legend in tag matches. She never got to really cut promos, but Noam Dar was good in making that whole Meta Four thing work, and she was a bright spot in the group. I actually see this TNA run as a bridge back to WWE if she’s up for it. We’ve seen wrestlers go out, reinvent themselves, and come back to WWE stronger. This TNA-WWE relationship allows released wrestlers to go out, but still have that bridge back to WWE in a sort of in-house indie promotion.
Order 4 made their entrance for Mustafa Ali’s “victory celebration”. The random Secret Service members stood on the ramp while the large Secret Service guy stood close by Ali at all times. John Skyer told the stupid fans to stand up and cheer Mustafa Ali. Ali talked about how outsiders have invaded the TNA locker room and have taken away jobs and opportunities from people like you and Ali. Ali said they are taking TNA championships.
Ali said he’s had enough, no more, and it’s time for change. Ali said press secretary Tasha Steelz is making sure Ali’s good word is heard from all over the world. Ali introduced “Agent Zero” as his weapon of mass destruction. Ali asked the crowd, Who wants to see Ali as next TNA Champion? The crowd booed. He said the crowd has bad judgement because they cheer for an addict like Mike Santana, degenerates like The System, and a fraud like Joe Hendry.
Say his name, and he appears! I believe in Joe Hendry! Clap Clap! Hendry made his entrance and said he understands that Ali is mad. Joe said Ali claims to have a “secret service”, but there are no secrets in TNA because cameras are everywhere. Joe said he has embarrassing footage of John Skyler. The big screen showed John Skyler’s cutout face pasted on a WWE Brawlin’ Buddy doll.
The Skyler doll was shown on a pizza box, buying Joe Hendry merch, and using an Ali shirt to wipe his ass. A “wipe his ass” chant ensued. Ali said that everything to Joe is a joke. Ali said he wishes Joe would disappear if he said his name. Joe challenged Ali to a match later. Ali said “no”. Ali said they can do it next week, so everyone can prepare for something to truly believe in. Joe Order 4 will need earplugs next week when the crowd chants “We believe”…[c]
John’s Thoughts: A setup for Hendry vs. Ali next week, which should be fun. Again, I don’t see why Ali has been deadass over the last 5 years to get his cosplay politician gimmick on TV. He’s fine doing everything else, but that. I did get a chuckle out of “Agent Zero” though. If they are going to do this cosplay thing, I at least hope they allow Tasha Steelz to talk more because she really broke out as the standout of the group a few weeks ago when she revealed herself as the mastermind of rebuilding Order 4. As for Joe, not sure where he goes in terms of Bound for Glory? My guess is his next big program involves someone in NXT because they spent most of Tuesday this week doing subliminal hype for Hendry.
Tom Hannifan sent he show to an interview he did with Sami Callihan where Callihan s going to address his future in pro wrestling. Hannifan told Sami that people are worried about Sami. He said that Sami’s social media has people concerned about his future. Sami said he’s never been more embarrassed in his life. He said he’s not mad at Moose, but disgusted in himself. Hannifan reminded viewers of the derogatory things Moose said about Sami after their last match together two weeks ago.
Hannifan said Moose has retracted most of those statements. Sami said maybe it’s Moose as a friend trying to send Sami a message. Sami said that after his last leg injury, he gained about 60 pounds. He said he’s always struggled with body issues. He said he was 340 pounds when younger. Sami said he had bulimia at one point for 6 years. Sami said he entered WWE with abs and was a death machine in TNA.
He said it’s not surprising people call him fat, and maybe he is a fat piece of shit. Hannifan said that’s not true. Sami said he loves TNA wrestling, but maybe being in front of a camera is not what’s best for the company. Hannifan asked if it was true that Sami was retiring. Sami said he needs to find out if he has it or doesn’t. Sami said he wants one more match against the current Standard of TNA, Mike Santana, to prove if he still has it.
Sami said maybe this will be the start of a great story, Sami getting back in shape, but if he loses, he’ll have his answer, leave his boots in the ring, and the Death Machine will retire in Baltimore…
Matthew Rehwoldt hyped the main event of the show…[c]
John’s Thoughts: That’s were that promo was leading. Dang. I commend Sami for putting himself in a vulnerable position and opening up to the crowd. I personally gain a lot of sympathy when I hear that he was going through it. His recent run has been a mess, but I would also blame some of that on him not really doing anything entertaining creatively (even early in his TNA run, when he was the manager of the Crist Brothers, he was doing way more fun stuff). Given Mike Santana’s status as the plot armor main protagonist of TNA, I think Sami might retire! A lot of stakes in the upcoming match and a bigger than usual hook for a TNA+ show.
The following matches were advertised for next week: Steve Maclin vs. Jake Something for the TNA International Championship, Jacy Jayne vs. Ash by Elegance for the TNA Knockouts Championship, Heather by Elegance and M by Elegance vs. Xia Brookside and Lei Ying Lee, and Joe Hendry vs. Mustafa Ali…
Eddie Edwards, Alisha Edwards, and Moose made their entrance with ten minutes left at the top of the hour. They were high-fiving fans. First Cla$$ made their entrance with KC Navarro on crutches. TNA Champion Trick Williams made his entrance…
5. “The System” Moose and Eddie Edwards vs. Trick Williams and AJ Francis (w/KC Navarro). AJ and Eddie started the match. AJ hit Eddie with an axe handle and posed. Moose dumped AJ to ringside with a big boot.[c]
Back from break, the heels cut the ring in half on Moose. Moose came back with a suplex and tagged in Eddie. Hannifan noted that Eddie has the longest consecutive tenure of any active TNA wrestler, being only in TNA since 2014 as a part of the American Wolves. Eddie dumped Trick to ringside and hit him with a Suicide Dive. KC tripped Eddie off the apron. Hannifan wondered if KC was faking an injury.
AJ and Trick worked on Eddie with methodical offense. Eddie got a window of opportunity after hitting the large AJ with a Blue Thunder Bomb. Moose tagged in and hit Trick with a Uranage and a Senton. Trick gave Moose a boot. Moose hit Trick with a power bomb for a nearfall.
While AJ distracted the referee, KC accidentally hit Trick with the swing of a crutch while he was going after Moose. Moose hit Trick with a spear for the victory.
Moose and Eddie Edwards defeated Trick Williams and AJ Francis via pinfall in 9:30.
Hannifan closed the show, wondering if TNA was a step closer to regaining their world championship…
John’s Thoughts: I’m all for Moose being a babyface because he’s five years past his due date with doing everything there was to do as a heel in TNA, which included a lot of clownshoes moments that were hard to take seriously. While turning Brian Myers made sense given the effort they were putting into turning him with Matt Cardona, the rest of The System flipping feels forced (It clearly undercuts Alisha Edwards, who was the standout star of The System, and now she can’t cut her strong Bully Ray-like promos). Hopefully, they find a way to make this work. It’s just odd all of a sudden seeing Eddie and Alisha slap hands with fans (at least Tom Hannifan retconned Moose by saying that Moose redacted calling Sami Callihan a fat piece of shit two weeks ago).
Even though he’s a babyface, Moose has still done everything there is to do in TNA in general, so the freshest things you can get out of him is by putting him against WWE wrestlers. Moose vs. Trick should be fun, and it will set up Trick with a credible win heading into what I assume is a clash with Mike Santana, telegraphed by Santana’s earlier promo. I hope WWE gives Moose a shot because Moose has all the tools to be a top star in WWE. He can always give you that high workrate indie match, but what he did gain in his long TNA tenure is the confidence and ability to talk and do standout character work. Like AJ Francis, Moose also has the credibility of being a person who has had a tenure as a roster member of multiple NFL teams (as a part of the O-line).
I was really down on last week’s show for good reason. TNA was not ready to go live, and they were all over the place. The matches had no rhyme or reason, along with some unproductive segments. Last week’s show felt like a house show, which was not what a fallout show should have been. This week’s show felt like a good fallout show. I used to hate how TNA+ builds would kill the momentum of their long-term stories, but this week’s show set up the next TNA+ show as a good stepping stone to build upon their upcoming stories.
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