Eddie Edwards Comments On Current Status Of TNA-WWE Partnership

After months of cross-promotional work, WWE and TNA Wrestling made their partnership official with a multi-year deal taking effect at the start of 2025. Nearly 15 months later, TNA's Eddie Edwards believes the collaboration is still running strong for multiple reasons.

"I think it's been a success," Edwards told "Q101" in a new interview. "You take a step back, and right now, the involvement isn't as heavy as it was before. I think that's what's important about this relationship. It's got to kind of go in waves like that where if we want to send some talent or they want to use some of our talent, the important thing is that the doors open. Those opportunities are going to be there.

"For us, having TNA talent go to NXT, it gave the opportunity for our talent to have new fans tune in and see what they can do. Then you get those fans who watch them on NXT who might not watch on TNA, then they see what they can do on NXT and like, 'Oh, alright. Let's check them out on TNA.'"

As Edwards noted, the WWE-TNA partnership has largely resulted in crossover appearances amongst talents from the TNA and "WWE NXT" brands, with Edwards personally competing in a tag bout against "NXT's" DarkState faction at last year's TNA Slammiversary event. On occasion, TNA stars – Nic Nemeth and Joe Hendry being notable examples — have also emerged on WWE's main roster brands, while former WWE Champion AJ Styles returned the favor through his outings in TNA, which he famously called home from 2002 until 2014. 

Currently, "NXT" star Arianna Grace reigns as the TNA Knockouts Champion, while her fiancé and fellow "NXT" talent Channing "Stacks" Lorenzo continues making appearances on "Thursday Night iMPACT" as a former TNA International Champion.

In addition to drawing new eyes to both wrestling promotions, Edwards pointed out that the WWE-TNA deal has carved an opening for underutilized names to gain exposure and experience. One such case is Arianna Grace herself, who up until recently, had been rarely seen on "NXT" anymore, despite her regular showings on TNA.

"It's great when you're in a relationship where it's not a take, take, take thing," Edward said. "It's about both companies working together where certain talent, NXT, they have a lot of people on that roster, they can't all be on the TV all the time. They all can't be getting the reps all the time that they want. So send them over to TNA and they'll get a few more reps in a whole different environment, from backstage to in the ring. Each company is different and have their own thing. So I think it's very important, as a wrestler, to be able to perform in all these different environments and different styles. I think that's another thing that you get with this relationship that is beneficial for both teams."

Former NXT and TNA World Champion Trick Williams has echoed Edwards' sentiments, citing his time under the TNA banner as one that especially helped him prepare for WWE's main roster. According to Williams, TNA's more relaxed creative operations allowed him to build trust in himself as a performer while also building the courage take risks in the ring. In the present day, Williams is now in line for his first WrestleMania match, with WWE veteran Sami Zayn as his opponent. 

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit "Q101" with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.