TNA & NWA's Early Partnership, Explained

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Impact Wrestling, formerly known as TNA, had gone through a lot of changes over its existence. Currently, it is owned by Anthem Sports & Entertainment with Scott D’Amore as President and Head of Creative. However, it was not always like this. The promotion was founded by Jeff Jarrett, Jerry Jarrett, and Bob Ryder. Furthermore, it also had a partnership with the NWA. From its establishment in 2002 up until 2007, the championships in TNA were the NWA World Championship and the NWA World Tag Team Championships. Even the X-Division Title was initially the joint NWA-TNA X-Division Championship. It was an interesting partnership that defined the early era of Impact Wrestling in its existence.

NWA's Status Prior To Aligning With TNA

Prior to the NWA becoming a part of TNA, it was at one point the largest promotion in the United States. It had been the governing body over a number of different territories in the country, with a number of different championships and wrestlers within them. However, with the massive growth of WWE, it essentially ended the territory system. This ended the NWA’s time as the dominant wrestling entity. However, it continued to exist throughout a number of different promotions, including in WCW and ECW, but WCW and ECW eventually broke away and became separate from the NWA.

The TNA And NWA Partnership

On the My World With Jeff Jarrett show, Jarrett spoke about how it was his idea to utilize the NWA in TNA. He specifically cited the prestige of the NWA when he was younger in influencing the partnership. Jerry Jarrett was not a supporter of the idea initially due to how the NWA’s profile had dropped over the years. However, Jeff Jarrett saw that it could be useful in helping to establish the new TNA. He said, “I really wanted to make the deal happen. Because I thought it could instantly give us credibility to the lapsed WCW fan.”

In 2002, with the founding and establishment of TNA, the NWA had a new home on television. As a part of this agreement, TNA had the creative right and freedom to book the NWA championships. This period saw a number of top stars holding NWA’s championships. Ken Shamrock became the first-ever NWA World Champion under the TNA banner. Other wrestlers to hold the title included Jeff Jarrett, Christian Cage, R-Truth, Raven, Sting, Abyss, Samoa Joe, Kurt Angle, and more. The NWA World Tag Team Titles were held by legendary teams like Triple X, America’s Most Wanted, LAX, and Team 3D. The NWA-TNA X-Division Title was the only title during this era to hold the TNA name and continues to be an active title within the promotion.

The Split Between TNA And The NWA

The partnership lasted for years, however, it did not last forever. In 2007, TNA and NWA mutually agreed to split from one another. The NWA wanted control over their titles. TNA wanted to establish their own titles. After the split, the two have gone their separate ways, and it has been like this ever since.

In the years after breaking with NWA, TNA went through a number of different highs and lows. There were countless management shifts and rebrandings over the years that had affected the product in a multitude of ways. Today, it goes by Impact Wrestling. In addition, in the last couple of years, the company has steadily been on the rise and regaining popularity with. It also has partnerships with a number of other promotions around the world.

Since breaking ties with Impact Wrestling, NWA has also gone through a number of changes. It was purchased in 2017 by Billy Corgan, who had also been an executive with Impact Wrestling prior. Under Corgan, NWA did also have partnerships with the likes of ROH and AEW. In addition, he also introduced NWA Powerrr, a weekly show, and put on NWA branded pay-per-views. However, the company has also seen a plethora of top talent depart in recent years, such as Thunder Rosa, Nick Aldis, LA Knight (formerly Eli Drake), and more.

Partnerships in professional wrestling are nothing new. They have existed for decades and will continue to exist going forward. Cross promotion events take place, such as NJPW’s shows with Impact Wrestling and AEW. In addition, wrestlers can often be seen competing in numerous different promotions as well. However, the TNA and NWA relationship was unique. Jarrett utilized the legacy of the NWA in order to help grow TNA in its infancy, something which did ultimately work. It was an important era in professional wrestling history for both Impact Wrestling and NWA.