Reviews

TNA Impact Review – January 30, 2025

By Kristian Thompson • Published 31st January 2025
TNA January 30 Review

This week’s TNA Impact show saw Mustafa Ali back in action, NXT’s Wes Lee taking on Ace Austin, and tag team action in the main event.

The show opened with the regular recap of last week’s live show, which saw the newly crowned TNA World Champion Joe Hendry retaining the gold over Matt Cardona.

TNA Impact 30.1.25 from the Boeing Center at Tech Port in San Antonio, Texas

There was a highlight package of the main happenings from Genesis, which I covered above. There was an interview that was taped earlier in the day between Gia Miller and Santino Marella. He said tonight would be full of surprises and TNA would make history. A mystery person drove into the parking lot in a black car.

Let’s Hear from Nic Nemeth

After losing the World Title at Genesis, they have been teasing Nemeth to be in a slump and that he might leave TNA but of course, we smart fans know our wrestling acting. Nemeth put over the success of Genesis but it wasn’t a great night for him. He gave Joe Hendry his props. Nemeth said it was time to get back up off the canvas and go back after the TNA title. Ryan Nemeth came out with his migraine-inducing ‘brother’ shtick. Ryan called Hendry lucky and that Nic was the real champion. He said 2025 was going to be Nic’s year. Ryan was blowing up and calling Hendry a fraud. Nic tried to calm his brother down but was interrupted by First Class. AJ Francis said he was there to talk solely to the Nemeth brother who mattered (Nic). Francis put himself over as TNA’s most versatile talent with the most lucrative contract. He said he and KC wanted the spotlight. AJ said he was sick of all these old-timers coming in and holding on to previous successes. Ryan started going crazy again but Nic calmed him down again. Nic wasn’t impressed with First Class’ interruption. Ryan said let’s make a tag match and Santino Marella popped out to make it the official main event.

Analysis: That was a long 8 minutes. Ryan’s voice is probably the only voice in wrestling that is worse than Alisha Edwards. My goodness, he is painful. This was a nothing segment and that’s not a worthy main event.

Gia Miller was backstage with NXT’s liaison, Arianna Grace, who is Marella’s daughter although they don’t acknowledge it on TV. Tessa Blanchard walked past but she wasn’t impressed with Grace. She ran Grace down as someone who got everything handed to her. Grace walked off with some bad acting. Tessa chased Gia off too.

Analysis: Tessa is a bully who gets easy heat. It’s good to have her back.

There was an ‘Earlier today’ clip setting up a match between Cora Jade and Xia Brookside, but later on, it was actually Hyan as Jade’s opponent.

Match #1: NXT’s Cora Jade vs Hyan

They’re trying to build Cora up as a threat to Masha Slamovich, but it’s silly to think that TNA would let an NXT talent take their title. Cora dominated early with a dropkick then choked Hyan out in the middle rope. She missed an attack against the rope so Hyan hit a variation of the Wasteland for a 1 count. Cora sent her into the ropes and hit a knee lift. She finished Hyan off with Jaded for the win after 3 minutes.

Winner by pinfall: Cora Jade

Analysis: * Easy win for Cora Jade to build her up as a threat to Masha Slamovich.

Xia Brookside went down to the ring afterward to check on Hyan and Jade attacked her from behind and hit Jaded on her. That looks better than the AEW World Champion, Jon Moxley’s, version of the move. Masha Slamovich ran down afterward to chase Cora away.

Gia Miller was backstage with Wes Lee, Tyson and Tyriek. She wanted to know why they got involved in the Rascalz match last week, costing them the NXT Tag Team Championships. Lee said those two became too fixated on tag team gold and lost sight of what matters to Lee. He said Tyson and Tyriek would become NXT Tag Team Champions and he would beat Ace Austin later tonight.

George Iceman was backstage throwing almost-racist comments at Santino Marella for not allowing the Elegances a Tag Team Title rematch. He said he would review his decision but he has put them both in next week’s battle royal for the TNA Knockouts Championship #1 Contendership. Spitfire walked past and wondered if they were in the match, which Santino confirmed.

Analysis: Two quick segments to set up things later on tonight and next week. Battle royals are always fun.

Match #2: Brian Myers w/ The System vs Leon Slater

It was pretty even early on. Slater wanted a dive to the outside but the rest of The System blocked him and stood in front of Myers. He got distracted so Myers nailed a superkick. Myers slammed Slater’s head into the mat then whipped him hard into the top turnbuckle. He slapped on a headlock with Slater in a seated position on the mat. Slater wriggled free but Myers sent him back into the corner with a chop and another hard whip into the opposite side, which netted him a 2 count. He went back to the headlock, this time with Slater on his back. Slater got back to a knee but Myers cut him off with a back elbow. Myers tried a crossface but Slater again got free and managed to connect with a crossbody. Slater was rolling with a duo of lariats. He connected with a single-leg dropkick. Nice selling by Myers. Slater hit his one-armed Blue Thunder Bomb for 2. He hit a leg lariat for another 2 count. Myers fought back with an enziguiri and the Implant DDT for a close nearfall. He set up for the Roster Cut but he ran into an inside cradle. Slater sent Myers to the outside with a big boot over the top rope. Myers walked away from ringside so Slater did his insane twisting senton over the corner turnbuckle. That’s amazing. Slater nailed Moose with a big kick and hit Edwards with a 619. JDC tried to interfere but he copped a kick to the head. Alisha slipped one of The System’s rings on Myers’ finger. Myers nailed Slater with a right hand and the Roster Cut for the win after 7 minutes.

Winner by pinfall: Brian Myers

Analysis: **1/2 That was very predictable with Myers getting the win due to cheating. Slater shouldn’t be losing to someone of Myers’ caliber. There’s too much interference in The System’s singles matches.

Steph de Lander and Mance Warner were backstage with the TNA Digital Media Championship. Sami Callihan attacked Warner from behind and appeared to abduct him.

Analysis: More Callihan. Hooray.

Frankie Kazarian was trying to console Leon Slater backstage. Slater said he didn’t want to carry Kaz’s trophy around. The System walked by. Moose said Slater could carry their bags instead. Alisha said Slater could be their secretary. The Hardys backed Slater up. JDC called The Hardys washed up. Matt challenged The System to a 6-man tag team match next week. Kaz mocked The Hardys dancing which was amusing.

Analysis: At least Slater is getting some TV time. I hope he gets a good push in 2025.

The camera cut to Warner and Callihan fighting in the crowd. The action spilled to ringside. Callihan nailed a snap suplex on the floor. He tossed Warner into the ring and grabbed some weapons. Callihan set up Warner’s neck in a chair and was about to bash him with a baseball bat when SDL ran down and slid him the Digital Media Title. SDL distracted Callihan, who turned around to a title shot between the eyes. Warner hit a knee strike to put Callihan down.

Analysis: At least the Digital Title is being featured again. Is Callihan a ‘weapons-only’ wrestler now. This seems like a very long show compared to last week.

Steve Maclin was backstage questioning whether Eric Young should trust Josh Alexander tonight. He told Young to be careful.

Match #3: Laredo Kid vs Mustafa Ali

It’s great to see Ali back in a TNA ring. Maybe he can liven up this very uninteresting show. Ali hit a dropkick early. The fans were cheering for him. They botched an arm drag but recovered okay. Kid hit a head scissors that sent Ali out of the ring. He was very popular, too. Ali got back into the ring with a serious look on his face. He sent Kid into the turnbuckle but missed a chop. Kid went for a crossbody from the top but Ali nailed him with a dropkick as he was coming down. Ali scored a 2 count there. He tried a variation of the abdominal stretch with Kid in a seated positon. Ali pulled Kid to the mat by his mask. He slapped Kid in the face but then ran into a Michinoku Driver for a 2 count. Kid took too long following up so Ali tossed him into the middle turnbuckle. Ali rolled Kid up using his feet on the middle ropes but the referee noticed and stopped his count. Ali went to the outside but was met with a suicide dive. He raked Kid in the eyes and nailed the draping DDT using the ring apron. Ali tossed Kid back into the ring and nailed a perfect 450 Splash for the win after 5 minutes.

Winner by pinfall: Mustafa Ali

Analysis: **1/2 I would’ve liked another 5 minutes but they’ve packed the show with too much other rubbish so good matches like this have their time cut. Ali was getting a lot of cheers so turned up the cheatometer to get some heat. A fun little match.

Mike Santana confronted Ali after the match. He was not impressed by Ali interrupting him last week and not even acknowledging him. Ali suggested that Santana could fight someone that’s “always ready” alluding to Matt Cardona (maybe next week?). It shows Ali is still a weasely heel.

Match #4: The Northern Armory vs Josh Alexander & Eric Young

The Northern Armory turned on Alexander last week when he apologised for his heelish ways over the last few months. Judas Icarus and Alexander started the match. Alexander tossed him around the ring for a bit. Travis Williams tagged in. Alexander used a shoulder block and a back elbow. Williams slipped out of a suplex and Icarus did a blind tag. Alexander clotheslined Williams out of the ring and hit a rolling DVD on Icarus for a 2 count. He nailed a few hard chops in the corner. Williams protected Icarus from a whip in the corner and nailed a flying forearm to Alexander. Williams hit a Meteora from the ring apron on Alexander, then tossed him back into the ring for a nearfall. Icarus tagged back in. They did a double-team kick for a nearfall, then Williams was legal again. Alexander avoided attacks in the corner until he copped a double-team enziguiri. Alexander avoided a Frog Splash and nailed a T-Bone suplex. Williams tagged in and so did Young. Young turned around and clocked Alexander so hard that his headgear came off. Good! Young had a maniacal look on his face and allowed Icarus and Williams to beat Alexander down. The Northern Armory hit a double-team Tiger Driver on Alexander and the referee called for the DQ after 5 minutes.

Winners by disqualification: Eric Young & Josh Alexander

Analysis: ** That was more about the angle than the match quality and I am happy for a Young heel run again. He’s so much better in that role. I cannot buy into him as a face anymore. Now he can do evil things and cheat to win. I wonder if they will keep the Northern Armory name.

Young nailed Alexander with a piledriver to end the segment.

Match #5: NXT’s Wes Lee vs Ace Austin

It was very athletic from the outset. Lee got the advantage with a dropkick and a flurry of punches in the corner. They exchanged forearms and Lee hit a dropkick to the back of Austin’s neck for a 1 count. Lee kicked Austin in the corner with as much penetration as Orange Cassidy. He ramped it up with a spinning kick to the head. Lee did a cocky cover for a 2 count. He locked in a half-Nelson submission but Austin used an arm-drag to counter. They exchanged forearms again. Austin ducked a clothesline and sent Lee inside-out with one of his own. That has to be a skill in itself, to sell the move like that. Lee avoided Austin’s springboard kick but ran into a Legsweep and a legdrop. Austin hit a flurry of clotheslines in the corner and a spinning springboard kick from the middle rope for 2. He nailed a gut wrench powerbomb for 2. Tyson and Tyriek predictably ran down to ringside. Austin took them both out with kicks. He sent Lee over the top rope. Austin tried his moonsault over the top rope but almost landed terribly on his neck as he was well short of landing on Lee and friends. Austin tried to get back into the ring but Tyriek held his leg. Austin wiggled free but ran into the Cardiac Kick and Lee won by pinfall after 9 minutes.

Winner by pinfall: Wes Lee

Analysis: **3/4 That’s the match of the night but even then it wasn’t that interesting until the run-in towards the end.

The heel trio beat down Austin after the match and The Rascalz ran down to predictably set up a 6-man tag down the road.

Joe Hendry recorded a backstage promo promoting some merch. He said he would be back next week for a concert.

Analysis: The World Champion should be live on your show every week, not in a 45-second promo. Poor.

Next week:

* Battle Royal for a shot at the TNA Knockouts Championship
* Leon Slater & The Hardys vs The System
* Mike Santana vs Matt Cardona
* Joe Hendry Live Concert

Analysis: The words on the page are better than this week’s show. How is it a Live Concert if the show is taped?

Match #6: First Class vs The Nemeth Brothers

I’m not loving Ryan being around the main event scene but I can see how it could slowly help Nic morph into a heel character. There were less than 10 minutes left in the show when Ryan and AJ faced-off. Nic made a quick tag in and was overpowered by Francis. Nic couldn’t take him down with a clothesline. KC Navarro tagged in. Nic sent him to the ring apron but KC hit a kick. Nic nailed a dropkick and then Francis ran in so he took a dropkick. The Nemeths both dropkicked Francis out of the ring. They sent KC over the top rope.

(Commercial break)

Francis and Ryan were the legal men. Francis choked out Ryan in the middle rope. He used the top rope to continue the choke and then nailed a clubbing blow to Ryan’s chest. Francis nailed his running knee strike in the corner and tagged in KC. Ryan fought back with forearms but ran into a dropkick. KC hit the 305 and taunted Nic in the corner. He nailed a snapmare and then a double stomp for 2. Francis tagged in and hit a big boot for 2. Ryan fought out of a sleeper but AJ slammed him to the mat. He talked trash to Nic in the corner. AJ nailed a chop that sent Ryan to the mat. Ryan avoided a suplex and locked in a sleeper but AJ tossed him off and nailed a sidewalk slam for 2. He nailed another sidewalk slam but again Ryan kicked out. AJ sucker-punched Nic off the ring apron. He went for a 3rd sidewalk slam but Ryan turned it into a spinning DDT. Nic got back up on the apron and got the tag, as did Navarro. Nic hit a few clotheslines and a neckbreaker. He did his elbow drop spot for 2. Francis came in and tried the Down Payment but got a superkick. The Nemeths clotheslined AJ to the outside. Ryan hit an axe handle to the outside to take down the big man. KC tried a roll up back in the ring for 2. He blocked a superkick and nailed one of his own for a 2 count. Nic caught KC with a Fame Asser. Ryan got the blind tag. Nic hit the Danger Zone and Ryan stole the pinfall victory after 9 minutes.

Winners by pinfall: The Nemeths

Analysis: **1/2 It was a solid main event but nothing memorable happened. There’s no storyline between these teams; this was about Nic getting back on the winning side and building himself back up after losing the TNA World Title. It was fine but didn’t feel like an angle that should close the show. It continued a really uninspiring evening of TNA TV.

Final Rating: 5/10

That feels like a harsh rating, but I’m probably being generous. No matches over 10 minutes, the 3 main champions combined for about 90 seconds of TV time and a generally forgettable episode of TNA which I haven’t written about probably in my 2 ½ years of doing this. I did enjoy Eric Young turning heel, the Digital Title making a reappearance (hopefully for good) and Mustafa Ali being back on TV. Those who read my articles will know that if Eric Young and Sami Callihan are amongst the best parts of the show, then it’s a rough week of viewing. The best match was Wes Lee vs Ace Austin, but even that wasn’t as exciting as it could’ve been. This episode felt like it was taped, insofar as nothing major happened and it felt like they just went through the motions. Hopefully, next week is more interesting. I know we can’t have epic live TNA every week, but tonight just didn’t captivate me.

The next TNA monthly special is Sacrifice on March 14th from El Paso, Texas.

Any feedback or comments are welcome. My email address is kristian.l.thompson@gmail.com in case anybody wants to get in touch with me and my Twitter/X handle is @thomok6 as well. Thanks for reading!