Almost a year ago, WWE and TNA Wrestling announced a multi-year partnership. The Nygma I am was quite puzzled, due to the risks it could represent for TNA Wrestling. Was it a real partnership or the beginning of a “merger” process (much more when WWE acquired Lucha Libre AAA a few months later)?
If the partnership is meant to last three years, then the first year wasn’t that bad, but it depends on the company and the item. Nygma says: The “Trick-NA” era was torture when the TNA invasion of NXT was brilliant. But for once, I’ll put aside Nygma’s verve to try to offer a clear eye on the first year of this partnership. I picked five items to try to figure out which brand made the most of the partnership.
1- Talents Appearances – Tie
It all started with Jordynne Grace and Joe Hendry. The then- TNA Knockouts World Champion Grace made her surprise WWE debut in the 2024 Women’s Royal Rumble match. A year later, Hendry made his own Royal Rumble debut, even though he had appeared many times on NXT since June 2024. If Grace signed with WWE after the partnership, Hendry’s signing with WWE is the direct result of it. WWE noticed Grace and Hendry. They put them under a different spotlight. And both departed TNA to sign with WWE.
Because the rosters are not of the same size (the NXT one evolves constantly due to the Evolve and Lucha Libre AAA talents), we can’t compare what’s not comparable. More NXT Superstars appeared on TNA iMPACT than the opposite (around 38 vs. 28). Same for title challenges (around 18 vs. 8). We even had three NXT title vs TNA title matches.
EXCLUSIVE: TNA World Champion @joehendry made history last week entering the @WWE #RoyalRumble.
Joe Hendry KICKS OFF #TNAiMPACT with a championship live concert THURSDAY at 8/7c on AXS TV in the US, Sportsnet 360 in Canada and TNA+ worldwide. pic.twitter.com/mKdHBFBZnP
— TNA Wrestling (@ThisIsTNA) February 5, 2025
When it comes to WWE globally, it is worth noting that Matt Cardona and Nic Nemeth participated in John Cena’s “The Last Time is Now” tournament. Also, the then-TNA World Champion Joe Hendry appeared to be Randy Orton’s surprise opponent at WrestleMania 41.
There’s no benefit for either a company or the other. NXT talents appearing in TNA shows means a spotlight right on TNA iMPACT or any TNA PLE. Watching Moose, Rosemary, Frankie Kazarian, or Eddie Edwards on an NXT show is a dream come true. The four people I named are pure TNA talents. They deserved to be seen on a larger scale. One example: Moose vs. Oba Femi at NXT Roadblock 2025. This match couldn’t have happened before the partnership. Now, every NXT fan knows what Moose is about.
