Whether you are a wrestling writer or a fan, the lack of storytelling sometimes tarnishes a match, as great as it can be. The action is intertwined with a strong match build-up. Last night, on TNA Thursday Night iMPACT, TNA Wrestling presented the first-ever Guitar Case Casket match. The bout was meant to be the exclamation point of a strong storyline between Elijah and Mustafa Ali.
Since the beginning of the AMC era, the weekly episodes, live or not, haven’t been great. Good but not great. AJ Styles was there on the AMC premiere, but The Phenomenal One is not the one making the show every week. Some talents left, some re-signed, and others arrived. TNA Genesis and TNA No Surrender could have been better, all things set apart. The recent visa issues added clouds in an already crowded sky. Last night, the company had a chance to clear its sky and show its true face. And they did.
NASHVILLE! ICYMI: @_Iam_Elijah_ and @MustafaAli_X will face off in a FIRST TIME EVER GUITAR CASE CASKET MATCH THIS SATURDAY at #TNAiMPACT! at The Pinnacle.
Get tickets NOW at https://t.co/gTgupY0HZg and see it before anybody else: https://t.co/9EsePEzxOD pic.twitter.com/Su5D5aVvs3
— TNA Wrestling (@ThisIsTNA) February 11, 2026
The Sounds of Nashville
Last night, before iMPACT, TNA Wrestling put these words online.
The months-long feud between Elijah and Mustafa Ali hits the final chapter Thursday, February 19, in the first-ever Guitar Case Casket Match, which will air on Thursday Night iMPACT! on AMC in the United States. Fitting, the match is held in Nashville, aka, Music City.
After months of brutality and blasphemy, Elijah and Ali will battle to the death, pun intended. The only way to win the Guitar Case Casket Match is to place your opponent inside a custom-made guitar case casket and close the lid. This unprecedented stipulation was born out of one of the most personal rivalries in recent memory.
EXCLUSIVE: @_Iam_Elijah_ has a message ahead of the FIRST-EVER Guitar Case Casket Match TONIGHT on #TNAiMPACT on @AMC_TV! pic.twitter.com/E2ER0sclFG
— TNA Wrestling (@ThisIsTNA) February 19, 2026
For months, Ali has used Elijah’s own symbol of faith and identity against him, repeatedly smashing guitars over Elijah’s body and targeting his surgically repaired triceps, the very injury that sidelined Elijah for months. Each attack was deliberate and meticulously calculated. Each strike was meant to break Elijah physically and spiritually.
At TNA Final Resolution, Elijah rode a horse into the arena, pursuing Ali and Order 4, and he dragged Ali out of the building behind him. However, Ali continued to mock Elijah, his faith and everything he stands for. Now, Elijah has vowed to end it. Elijah intends to make Ali meet his maker. The Guitar Case Casket Match represents the final reckoning… a place where words, beliefs and vengeance will be buried forever.
This match was made to be special. Would it be?
EXCLUSIVE: @MeanGiaMiller breaks thats all members of Order 4 will be BANNED from ringside in the Guitar Case Casket Match! Here's what @MustafaAli_X had to say about it!@RealTSteelz @TheJasonHotch @BigBillCollier @TheJohnSkyler pic.twitter.com/8YlwT6nh5g
— TNA Wrestling (@ThisIsTNA) February 20, 2026
The match
Elijah threw Ali out of the ring right as the bell rang. Ali grabbed a steel chair and smashed it into his back, and shoved him shoulder-first into the steel post. Elijah fired back with a knee to Ali’s face. He followed with a ukulele, but Mustafa barely avoided it. Elijah tossed Ali over his shoulder straight into the pile of steel chairs.
Elijah continued his momentum, slammed Ali’s head against the edge of the ring, and tried to get him in the casket. Ali slammed the casket closed onto Elijah’s surgically repaired shoulder. Elijah countered, slamming his face into the guitar case casket. He then slammed a mandolin into his back.
Ali torpedoed at Elijah through the ropes outside the ring as he was busy setting up a table. Elijah connected a Pop-Up Powerbomb and plants Ali. Both contenders traded blows until Elijah sent Mustafa face-first into a guitar case. Ali fired back and shoved Elijah face-first into the steel post.
Ali set up Elijah on a table and connected with a 450 Splash through the table. Both contenders were down outside of the ring, and Order 4 interfered. Special Agent 0 put Elijah in the casket, but Elijah fired back, flattening the members of Order 4. Elijah went for a Highway Man’s Farewell onto Tasha Steelz, Ali tried to stop it, and slammed a guitar into Tasha’s back instead.
Elijah got Ali into the casket, but Hotch and Skyler interfered, which gave Ali a chance to recover. Ali connected with a Superkick to Elijah, set up to finish off Elijah, but Elijah countered by smashing a guitar of his own onto Ali. Elijah Chokeslammed Ali through the door that Order 4 set up on the casket, securing the win.
SOMEHOW @MustafaAli_X survives the absolute chaos! @TheJohnSkyler @TheJasonHotch @RealTSteelz @_Iam_Elijah_
WATCH #TNAiMPACT on TNA+: https://t.co/lc2GPLLtCU pic.twitter.com/mDwrjHKSbr
— TNA Wrestling (@ThisIsTNA) February 20, 2026
Nygma says
It could have been a PLE match. TNA Wrestling instead chose to offer it on Thursday Night iMPACT. The era of TNA on AMC begins now, as the company reconnects with its DNA. TNA Wrestling has been synonymous with innovative matches, X-Division, and strong, kick-ass women we call Knockouts.
Involving guitars and horses was fun, as Elijah’s world became Mustafa Ali’s hell. This storyline was worthy of the time it took to be told. From the horse sequence at TNA Final Resolution, we went through all the guitars smashed into each other’s backs, involving The Home Town Man and Jada Stone. The horse chase on the first Thursday Night iMPACT of 2026 was epic. Order 4 interfering added some spice to the storyline as Ali defeated Elijah at TNA Genesis.
Elijah’s road to redemption was hard and epic. Surviving Jason Hotch, John Skyler, Special Agent 0, and mostly Tasha Steelz was not the easiest thing to do. At TNA No Surrender, the Guitar Case Casket was revealed. If this storyline had to end, it would be violently. The match is definitely a 5-star bout because all the pieces of the puzzle were together.
Because every Superman needs a Lex Luthor, we can give Mustafa Ali and Elijah the respect they deserve for entertaining us, through wrestling or cinematic-orchestra segments. Any scenario is good as long as the actors understand it and play it perfectly. This time, the stars were aligned for TNA Wrestling to show its true colors, the ones that have made it shine for 23 years.
EXCLUSIVE: Experience these wild highlights from INSIDE the Guitar Case Casket during @MustafaAli_X vs. @_Iam_Elijah_ in the FIRST-EVER Guitar Case Casket Match!#TNAiMPACT
Watch the replay on TNA+: https://t.co/UCGu4PGEus pic.twitter.com/eqzS7PWE0o
— TNA Wrestling (@ThisIsTNA) February 20, 2026
More From LWOS Pro Wrestling
Header image credit – TNA Wrestling – Stay tuned to Last Word on Pro Wrestling for more on TNA Thursday Night iMPACT results, Guitar Case Casket match, TNA on AMC, and other stories from around the world of wrestling, as they develop. You can always count on LWOPW to be on top of the major news in the wrestling world. As well as to provide you with analysis, previews, videos, interviews, and editorials on the wrestling world. Catch Thursday Night iMPACT on AMC in the US, Sportsnet in Canada, and TNA Plus worldwide. All TNA events, shows, and previous episodes are available on TNA Plus and the TNA Wrestling YouTube channel.
