TNA Wrestling confirmed today that it has signed international superstar Fabian Aichner, as first reported by Sports Illustrated. Aichner will make his TNA in-ring debut on tonight’s Thursday Night iMPACT as he faces Eddie Edwards.
Aichner made a shocking appearance on Thursday Night iMPACT on May 14, moments after Cedric Alexander dethroned Leon Slater for the TNA X Division Championship. He confronted TNA X-Division Champion Cedric Alexander last week, on May 21, and brawled with the System.
From The Fabian Files …
Born in Italy, Aichner made his pro wrestling debut in 2011 and spent about eight years working for WWE.
- Speaks three languages: Italian, German, and English
- Was a pro skier before becoming a pro wrestler
- Can ride a unicycle
- His favorite wrestlers are Kurt Angle and Brock Lesnar
- Loves automobile racing, particularly Formula 1
- Lifelong Ferrari fan in F1
- Grew up in a village with 2,000 people in northern Italy;
- “Arnold Schwarzenegger is my hero since I was 5 years old after seeing the movie Commando.”
- “Michael Jordan is my favorite sports athlete.”
- Recently started jiu-jitsu
More on Fabian Aichner
In 2011, Aichner made his professional wrestling debut under the ring name “Adrian Severe” at a New European Championship Wrestling (NEW) event in Deutschland. He quickly became a sensation in Europe and began working in the UK, Austria, Italy, Denmark, Belgium, and Switzerland. He took part in WWE’s Cruiserweight Classic in 2016, but was defeated in the first round.
In June 2017, Aichner signed a contract with WWE. He made his television debut on the September 27 episode of NXT, losing to Kassius Ohno. While still under contract with WWE, he made an appearance at Evolve shows. Returning to WWE in September 2017, Aichner formed a team with Marcel Barthel (Ludwig Kaiser) and went on to compete on both the NXT and NXT UK brands. They would later align themselves with Walter and Alexander Wolfe in May 2019, forming the team Imperium.
Barthel and Aichner would become 2-time NXT Tag Team Champions. Aichner’s final appearance as a member of Imperium was on April 5, 2022, on an episode of NXT, when he and Barthel faced The Creed Brothers in a losing effort. Aichner then walked out on Barthel, and Imperium would later debut on the SmackDown brand without Aichner.
On May 24, 2022, in an NXT episode, vignettes aired promoting the debut of Aichner’s new on-screen character, a wealthy Italian snob named Giovanni Vinci, whose catchphrase was “Veni, Vidi, Vinci”. A few months later, he reunited with Walter (now called Gunther) and Barthel (now called Ludwig Kaiser) in Imperium. Imperium was drafted to the Raw brand in the 2023 WWE Draft.
After coming to SmackDown, Vinci again lost to Apollo Crews and attacked him after the match in what was his final televised appearance in September 2024. In February 2025, after months of inactivity, Vinci was released from WWE, ending his eight-year tenure with the company.
What’s next for TNA Wrestling?
TNA Wrestling visits Denver, Colorado, for the first time, June 6-7, bringing two nights of action-packed pro wrestling to CoBank Arena at the National Western Center. The live events in Denver are Saturday and Sunday, June 6–7. The shows will be broadcast as episodes of Thursday Night iMPACT on AMC and AMC+ in the U.S., Sportsnet 360 in Canada, and TNA+ worldwide.
Stars on the TNA roster include wrestling legends Jeff Hardy and Matt Hardy, TNA World Champion Mike Santana, TNA X-Division Champion Cedric Alexander, TNA International Champion Mustafa Ali, plus Nic Nemeth, Leon Slater, Ricky Sosa, Elijah, The Elegance Brand, Elayna Black, Tessa Blanchard, Rosemary, Eddie Edwards, Frankie Kazarian, and Moose, among others.
