As they enter their second decade of existence, TNA Impact Wrestling has done a good job of surviving. However, the company still has an issue in that they seem to believe they’re a bigger deal than they really are. This has included taking constant shots at WWE. It’s one thing when TNA was boasting better in-ring action. Yet it’s another when the company insists they are not only on WWE’s level but even better.
They can range from wrestlers slamming how WWE treated them to TNA Wrestling as a company majorly insulting WWE. Many of them falter because it’s hard to take TNA seriously. On occasion, they can nail WWE nicely, and fans even agree with them. While it can make TNA look more second-tier, it shows they're daring, taking it to WWE. Without further ado, here's a look at 10 times TNA got fresh with World Wrestling, Entertainment, Inc.
10 Stamford Nuttiness
TNA has an odd habit of trying to go after Stamford, Connecticut, the home of WWE Headquarters. In a 2004 bit where Vince Russo and Dusty Rhodes had an “election” to be TNA booker, they said the servers were slowed by “too much voting in Stamford.”
That was nothing compared to when in 2011, TNA spent who knows how much money putting up billboards across Stamford saying “Wrestling Matters.” Keep in mind, TNA has never run a show in Stamford in their history. Taking so many shots at WWE in their backyard works better in TNA’s minds than in reality.
9 The Robbie Row
Here’s a time when TNA taking a shot at WWE hurt a guy. In 2008, Derek Graham-Crouch, aka Robbie of the Highlanders, decided to attend an Impact taping. When the cameras caught him, the producers focused on Robbie, who realized too late what was going on.
While they couldn’t say his name for legal reasons, Mike Tenay and Don West gloated that TNA was “so hot” that WWE guys were showing up to watch. Robbie was promptly buried by WWE and eventually fired. TNA kept it up, boasting on their website until their own roster complained it was too much.
8 Mr. Anderson’s Burial
WWE clearly pushed Ken Kennedy to be a top star. The plans were in place for him to become World Heavyweight Champion after winning Money in the Bank. But almost every time those plans were about to happen, Kennedy suffered either an injury or a suspension. He finally left WWE in 2009 and was signed to TNA as Mr. Anderson in 2010.
He proceeded to do a promo slamming WWE, mocking Vince, and accusing Triple H of sabotaging him. He seemed passionate but it was hard to take him seriously when it was less sabotage than bad luck that ruined Kennedy in WWE.
7 Matt Hardy Broken
When he joined AEW, Matt Hardy tore into WWE squandering him and his brother Jeff. But that wasn’t the first time Matt had insulted his former company. When he joined TNA in 2011, Matt was part of the Immortal heel faction.
Matt got on the mic to slam what he called a “broken” system that ruined wrestlers and led to his heel turn. The choice of words is intriguing as this was long before Matt hit upon his career-changing “Broken” gimmick, so it was a hint of the genius that was to come.
6 Kaz Mocks The Nexus
Back in 2010, NXT was still a competition show (and not a very good one) trying to give rookies a shot. It didn’t do much at first, but that changed when the Nexus attacked everyone in sight. TNA still took a shot with Ric Flair putting together his Fortune faction. Kazarian got on the mic to say they were all veterans and not a “bunch of rookies.”
While he had a mild point there, he then added how “the WWE Universe” was weak compared to “the TNA Galaxy.” The problem being, of course, that a universe is far bigger than a galaxy. The promo wasn’t quite the brilliant insult TNA thought it was.
5 Hawkins vs Vince
Best known for his epic losing streak, Curt Hawkins was still a dependable worker for WWE for years. He was among the many cut in 2020 when the pandemic meant the company had to consolidate things.
Joining TNA as Brian Myers, Hawkins went on a promo slamming Vince for firing him when Hawkins’ wife was pregnant and calling him old and out of touch. Hawkins was saying some of the same things as many fans felt and this helped his transition to Impact Wrestling.
4 Rhyno Trashing ECW
Even WWE admits their attempt to revive ECW in the mid-2000s was a bad one. Granted, TNA’s attempt with the “Originals” coming in wasn’t much better. Still, it led to Rhyno, a top ECW guy in TNA, to go on a wild promo.
As the last ECW Champion, Rhyno showed he still had the old title belt, threw it into a garbage bin which he then set on fire. He also said that he would not be part of a “tarnished legacy” and had turned down a WWE offer. It was a fantastic promo that was more exciting than most of the WWE revival.
3 VKM
This was another case of TNA’s hubris crossing into stupidity. The former New Age Outlaws announced they were now named the Voodoo Kin Mafia. It was blatantly obvious the name was chosen just to have the same initials as Vincent Kennedy McMahon.
That was still not too bad as petty shots in names are an old trick in wrestling. Even having them challenge DX to a million-dollar challenge match wasn’t that awful. What was dumb was Dixie actually freezing the million dollars as if expecting WWE to call up. The fact the Outlaws eventually returned to become WWE Tag Team Champions shows how ineffective this insult was.
2 The Beard Is Trademarked
Making Eric Young TNA World Champion in 2014 might have worked. Seeing a long-time veteran of the company rising to the top was a great angle that could have developed for months. Instead, with no warning, the guy last seen wrestling women in his underwear won a Gauntlet Match and upset Magnus the same night for the title.
The reason was that TNA was trying to copy Daniel Bryan’s rise and Young was selected just because he had a thick beard. Dixie Carter even did a promo on how she invented the beard and made it cool as if WWE were the ones ripping off TNA. Young’s reign was already off to a rough start being compared so much to Bryan’s.
1 Cookiegate
Like many of TNA’s insults of WWE, the company made this out to be a bigger deal than it was. When WWE was filming in Orlando in 2004, TNA sent some guys with cookies as a peace offering. Rey Mysterio and Eddie Guererro were on hand but their faces were blurred when it was shown on Impact. It wasn’t bad but leave it to TNA to add to it.
They had some bad actors dressed like Vince and Triple H showing up backstage at Turning Point with the announcers acting like they were the real guys (no one believed that). The early bit was fun, the follow-up just made TNA look foolish.