As Impact Wrestling continues to build a momentum unseen since their late 2000s run, last night’s PPV Redemption continued that with the shocking win by Pentagon Jr. over Austin Aries and Fenix to become the new Impact World Heavyweight Champion. But there was other moves that were made that also helped to propel Impact’s rise back in the world of pro wrestling as they announced that highly sought after free agent Tessa Blanchard was the newest member of the Impact Knockouts Division. Tessa made her debut last night at Redemption, joining the commentary team during the Taya Valkyrie vs. Keira Hogan match. She is scheduled to start in-ring this week at Impact’s next round of tapings from the Impact Zone in Orlando.
https://twitter.com/Tess_Blanchard/status/988266606622068737
Tessa Blanchard has long been rumored to be on the verge of signing with the WWE, after several appearances on NXT as well as being a participant in last summer’s Mae Young Classic. With her boyfriend new NXT Superstar Ricochet, her father a WWE Hall of Famer (Four Horseman Tully Blanchard) and her stepfather NWA Legend Magnum TA, it seemed she was poised for a big run in the WWE. But despite reports, Blanchard arrived in the Impact Zone last night as the newest member of the Impact Knockouts Division instead.
While many naysayers point to the departures of names like Gail Kim (retirement), Laurel Van Ness (Chelsea Green), Taryn Terrell and Madison Rayne over the past year as signs of Impact’s impending doom, they’ve actually made great strides in making it one of the strongest Knockouts rosters in years – apart from mainstays like Rosemary, Allie, Sienna, they’ve added some a lot of top indie stars to the division in the past year, with Su Yung, Taya Valkyrie, Keira Hogan, Alisha Edwards (Alexxis Naveah), Diamante (Angel Rose), and now Tessa Blanchard. With 7x Knockouts Champion Gail Kim now the lead agent/producer for the division, the Knockouts Division is emerging as one of Impact’s strongest and most cohesive divisions.
