Historic WWE Rendez-vous with TNA Champion: What’s Next?
Passionate about sports, cinema, and television (both on-screen and behind the scenes) since childhood, Bernard has been a journalist for 10 Sport since 2018. More skilled with a keyboard than a ball at his feet, he primarily covers a beloved, criticized, and hated sport (football) and a non-sport (wrestling).
For their upcoming Premium Live Event, NXT Battleground, which takes place on Sunday night French time, WWE has gone all out with the involvement of a champion from another company, Jordynne Grace (TNA), who will face Roxanne Perez for the NXT title. A historic first that is shaking up the wrestling world and is just the beginning… If the “forbidden doors” had already been opened by WWE on the occasion of the Royal Rumble for exceptional appearances by Mickie James in 2022 and Jordynne Grace in January, a new milestone will be reached this weekend at NXT Battleground when Roxanne Perez defends her title against Jordynne Grace, who is herself a champion at TNA. This move, which has become the stuff of fantasies for fans over the years, refers to a talent appearing with a wrestling organization’s competitor without having signed a contract. Partnerships are now common between companies, including WWE, which has long ignored what was happening elsewhere. On Sunday, for the first time in history, a TNA talent will try to win a WWE belt. “NXTNA”: Jordynne Grace, presented as TNA Knockouts Champion for her first match at #WWENXT. I don’t know if we realize the historical significance of this moment!
Jordynne Grace’s quest for a WWE title is historic. Present at NXT on May 28, Jordynne Grace surprised everyone by challenging Roxanne Perez. Two champions from two different companies will face off in a match that is already historic and could become even more so if the TNA wrestler emerges victorious. She had the opportunity to participate in her first singles match at WWE this week against Stevie Turner in preparation for the big showdown on Sunday. “All eyes are on me, and I am ready,” she warned in a video aired on Impact. It started at the Royal Rumble, continued with Stevie Turner, and will end when I hold the NXT Women’s Championship and the TNA Knockouts Championship above my head at the UFC APEX Center.
The showdown is sure to attract purists, and the outcome of the match will shed light on the WWE-TNA partnership. Other similar moves are expected, according to American sources, and some stars are already teasing fans through social media posts, like Drew McIntyre, a WWE star and former TNA champion, and Natalya. In an exclusive interview with le10sport.com on the sidelines of the Backlash show in May, AJ Styles also expressed openness to the idea of returning to his former home: “I think it should be approved by WWE (before the idea materializes, Ed.), but maybe, maybe I have something to do at TNA.” When I see Jordynne Grace’s appearance at #WWENXT, I think all the stars are aligned for one last AJ Styles appearance in TNA.
Bayley hints at a move to AEW. Bayley went a step further by expressing her desire to face Kris Statlander, who is currently under contract with AEW, WWE’s main competitor. “I really like her,” the world champion exclusively told us. “I think she is very athletic, she reminds me a bit of Rhea Ripley,” the crowned star continued. “She looks like she can do anything, so I would love to get in the ring with her one day.” A hypothetical collaboration between WWE and AEW is one of the biggest wishes of wrestling fans, but it remains difficult to imagine due to economic and strategic considerations. However, nothing is impossible, as Sunday’s match, once unthinkable, proves, but TNA, whose ambition is not to overshadow WWE, now appears as a logical ally for the wrestling powerhouse, unlike All Elite Wrestling. It is this same TNA that could, in turn, welcome one or more WWE faces on June 14 during its Against All Odds pay-per-view, an idea that seems to be gaining traction.