TNA Completes First Round of Knockouts Television Championship Tournament

TNA has completed the opening round of the tournament to crown the inaugural Knockouts Television Champion.

The championship was unveiled on June 28 during the Countdown to Slammiversary pre-show at Agganis Arena in Boston, where TNA Hall of Famer Traci Brooks introduced the belt and announced that a 16-woman single-elimination tournament would begin four days later on Impact. Brooks confirmed the title would be defended exclusively on Impact television, giving the weekly show a women’s championship of its own, with every tournament match contested under a 10-minute time limit. The full tournament bracket was then revealed on June 30 via TNA’s social media channels.

The first half of the bracket saw Indi Hartwell face “Vicious” Vicki Venuto. Hartwell signed with TNA in April 2025 and unsuccessfully challenged for the Knockouts World Championship at Bound for Glory later that year, but is still searching for her first title in the promotion. Venuto, meanwhile, is a four-time ISPW Women’s Champion who has made sporadic appearances for TNA since 2024.

Elsewhere on the same side of the bracket, Harley Hudson was matched up with Thea Hail. Hudson, a member of the TNA roster, is still seeking her first singles victory on Impact, while former NXT Women’s North American Champion Hail entered the tournament as part of the WWE-TNA partnership.

Elsewhere on that side of the bracket, Elayna Black was drawn against Wendy Choo. Black has spent recent months embroiled in a rivalry with Indi Hartwell and Mara Sadè, while Choo is a former WWE EVOLVE Women’s Champion competing through the WWE-TNA partnership. The final first-round match on that side sees M By Elegance take on Rosemary. M By Elegance is a former two-time Knockouts World Tag Team Champion alongside Heather By Elegance, while Rosemary is a former Knockouts World Champion and record five-time Knockouts World Tag Team Champion, currently holding the titles with Allie.

On the other half of the bracket, Jada Stone was drawn against Alisha Edwards. Stone, a Columbia, South Carolina native and graduate of the Palmetto Wrestling Academy, entered the tournament looking to capitalise on the biggest opportunity of her career, while Edwards brought plenty of experience as a member of The System, accompanied to ringside by her husband, Eddie Edwards. Elsewhere, Jody Threat was matched up with Gabby Forza. Threat is a two-time former Knockouts World Tag Team Champion, while Forza is a Create A Pro Wrestling Academy graduate and former college football player who made her TNA debut in the tournament.

Mara Sadè was also drawn against Tasha Steelz on that side of the bracket. Sadè is still searching for her first singles championship in TNA, while Steelz entered as a member of Mustafa Ali’s Order 4 stable and a former Knockouts World Champion.

The final first-round match saw Heather By Elegance face Allie in a bout with recent history behind it. Heather is a two-time former Knockouts World Tag Team Champion who, alongside M By Elegance, lost the titles to Allie and Rosemary at Slammiversary, just two days before the bracket was announced. Allie, who only returned to TNA earlier this year, is also a two-time former Knockouts World Champion and entered the tournament as one-half of the reigning Knockouts World Tag Team Champions.

The tournament began on the July 2 episode of Impact from Albany, New York. Mara Sadè secured the first victory of the tournament by defeating Tasha Steelz with a top-rope moonsault. Later in the show, Heather By Elegance and Allie continued the action, with Allie appearing to have momentum after setting up a superplex from the top rope. However, interference at ringside involving M By Elegance and Rosemary created an opening for Heather, who knocked Allie from the turnbuckle before hitting a double foot stomp to advance.

On July 9, the tournament continued with two more first-round matches. Indi Hartwell battled “Vicious” Vicki Venuto, taking an Ace Crusher late in the match before fighting back with the Hurts Donut to secure the victory and advance. Jody Threat then faced Gabby Forza, who used her power advantage to control much of the contest and attempted to put things away with a second Vader Bomb. Threat avoided the move, countered by lifting Forza onto her shoulders, and delivered the Pop Shove It to pick up the win.

The Elegance Brand picked up another victory on the July 16 episode, as M By Elegance defeated Rosemary to advance. Rosemary appeared to have the match won after taking control late and sending M crashing to the floor with a clothesline off the apron. However, Heather By Elegance created a distraction on the apron while Allie pulled her down, allowing M to spray champagne into Rosemary’s eyes before securing the roll-up victory. Later that night, Thea Hail became the first NXT representative to advance, avoiding a leg drop from Harley Hudson before countering with a springboard backsplash to pick up the win.

The final two first-round matches aired on July 23, with one result dramatically changing the tournament landscape. Elayna Black appeared to have Wendy Choo beaten after hitting the Blackout and climbing to the top rope, but Choo caught her and brought her down with a superplex. Neither competitor was able to recover before the 10-minute time limit expired, and TNA later confirmed that the draw would eliminate both women from the tournament. Following the result, Knockouts World Champion Xia Brookside emerged and attacked both Black and Choo, sending them into the steel steps after a previous verbal confrontation with Black.

That result reshaped the bracket, as M By Elegance had been scheduled to face the winner of Elayna Black vs. Wendy Choo in the quarterfinals. With neither competitor advancing, M received a bye into the semifinals instead. In the night’s other tournament match, Eddie Edwards attempted to influence the outcome by grabbing Jada Stone’s leg as she went for a handspring. Stone recovered and countered Alisha Edwards into a pinfall to secure her place in the next round.

With the first round complete, every former Knockouts World Champion has been eliminated from the tournament, with Rosemary, Allie, and Tasha Steelz all exiting. Of the seven women remaining, only Heather By Elegance, M By Elegance, and Jody Threat have previously held TNA gold, with all three of those reigns coming in the tag team division. As a result, the inaugural Knockouts Television Champion is guaranteed to capture the first singles championship of her TNA career.

The quarterfinals begin this Thursday, July 30, on a live episode of Impact from the Liacouras Center in Philadelphia. Indi Hartwell will face Thea Hail, while Jody Threat takes on Jada Stone. At the time of writing, Mara Sadè vs. Heather By Elegance has yet to receive a confirmed date, while M By Elegance has already advanced to the semifinals following her bye.

For more coverage from the tournament and everything surrounding TNA, WrestlePurists will keep you updated.