Backstage News On How WWE-TNA Crossover Was Set Up, What’s Next
There are more plans for WWE and TNA to work together following the shocking NXT debut of Jordynne Grace.
The wrestling world is still buzzing about this week’s edition of WWE NXT which saw the TNA Knockouts Champion Jordynne Grace confront the NXT Women’s Champion Roxanne Perez in the ring.
Grace was there because NXT GM Ava picked her to challenge Perez for the NXT Women’s at the Battleground PLE on June 9th. This led Grace to deliver a promo to a shocked Perez. It has been previously reported that Perez had no idea it would be Grace in that spot because she wanted to be legitimately surprised.
It has been reported by Mike Johnson of PWInsider that 99% of TNA staff didn’t know about Grace appearing on WWE NXT. Johnson believes that TNA’s Creative Team was kept completely in the dark and that it’s likely that only TNA President Anthony Cicione and TNA Executive Producer Ariel Shnerer were involved. It is believed that Shnerer was the point person behind the deal happening.
On the May 30th TNA Impact broadcast, they showed the clip of Grace appearing on NXT TV. The Impact television show had to be adjusted late to fit the clip into the show.
The report also confirmed that WWE used Lita’s theme music during rehearsals to avoid potential spoilers from leaking.
As for what’s next, Jordynne Grace has issued an open challenge for a TNA Knockouts Championship match for the Against All Odds PPV on June 14th.
There might also be an open challenge for Grace at the Slammiversary PPV in Montreal on July 20th.
It was reported by Johnson that there is hope within TNA that the WWE NXT connection may lead to a boost in ticket sales.
When Does WWE NXT Women’s Title Challenger Jordynne Grace’s TNA Contract Expire?
As for Jordynne Grace’s wrestling future, PWInsider reports that her deal expires in the first quarter of 2025 meaning she has somewhere between 7 to 10 months on her deal.
Grace made her WWE debut this past January at the WWE Royal Rumble as a participant in the Women’s Royal Rumble match, which was a surprise to a lot of people.
Meanwhile, WWE executive and NXT boss Shawn Michaels has teased more surprises coming to NXT, which could lead to more TNA wrestlers being on the show.