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TNA will present Rebellion 2025 on April 27th at 8 PM Eastern at the Galen Center in Los Angeles, California. Let’s take a look at the card that will air live on PPV and TNA+:
*TNA World Champion Joe Hendry vs. Frankie Kazarian vs. NXT’s Ethan Page
*TNA Knockouts World Champion Masha Slamovich vs. Tessa Blanchard
*TNA World Tag Team Champions The Hardys vs. The Nemeths
*Ultimate X Match: TNA X-Division Champion Moose vs. Matt Cardona vs. Leon Slater vs. El Hijo del Vikingo vs. KC Navarro vs. Sidney Akeem
*Falls Count Anywhere: Mike Santana vs. Mustafa Ali
*TNA Knockouts World Tag Team Champions Ash and Heather by Elegance vs. NXT’s Lash Legend and Jakara Jackson vs. Spitfire vs. NXT’s Gigi Dolin and Tatum Paxley
*TNA International Champion Steve Maclin vs. Eric Young
*Walk with Elijah Open Challenge
*Xia Brookside, Lei Ying Lee, and Rosemary vs. Fatal Influence (Countdown to Rebellion)
Here’s how I can see things playing out…
Xia Brookside, Lei Ying Lee, and Rosemary vs. Fatal Influence
I usually pick the Countdown matches very wrong because I try to get fancy and do some fantasy booking. TNA tends to go the happy route on the Countdown instead of kickstarting a feud or something - and there’s nothing wrong with that. Keeping that in mind, I’m going to play it safe and go with Brookside, Lee, and Rosemary winning here to get the TNA side of the night gain some momentum.
Walk with Elijah Open Challenge
Honestly, I’m a bit stumped as to who may be answering this Open Challenge. Elijah has been stressing that the challenger can come from anywhere, so it would be interesting if an NXT talent were to show up. NXT will be well-represented on this show, so why not have one more person from NXT show up to take on Elijah? No matter who it is, I think it has to be a selection with care. Elijah is new on the TNA block and has been in the mix with Joe Hendry and Frankie Kazarian. Beating him probably isn’t wise, but beating a surprise is something that has to be done in a smart fashion. I also think an eye has to be kept on Cody Deaner. Maybe he makes one last attempt at saving his job?
TNA International Champion Steve Maclin vs. Eric Young
I don’t expect a brand new champion of a brand new title to lose in his first defense. However, I do expect shenanigans. Eric Young has been trying to recruit Steve Maclin for a while now since taking over The Northern Armory. They’ve shown intense respect for each other, but neither man will budge on their stance. Eric Young wants Steve Maclin on his side to reign over TNA, whereas Maclin wants to do things the right way. Maclin doing things his way will probably result in him having to fight off the numbers game with Travis Williams and Judas Icarus always lurking around to help Eric Young. It won’t be easy, but I see Maclin retaining the title. I think the bigger question, though, is - will this be the end of Maclin and Young showing respect to one another?
TNA Knockouts World Tag Team Champions Ash and Heather by Elegance vs. NXT’s Lash Legend and Jakara Jackson vs. Spitfire vs. NXT’s Gigi Dolin and Tatum Paxley
Heather really got the Elegance Brand into a pickle by panicking her way into making this match. Quick ten-Hoeve Math shows that NXT has its best odds yet to take a TNA title with two out of four teams looking to become the first NXT talent to win a TNA championship. Although I can see the Elegance Brand clawing out a victory by the skin of their teeth, I also can’t deny that it just may be time for NXT to get its first TNA championship. If an NXT team wins, I’m leaning more towards Lash Legend and Jakara Jackson getting the nod. However, I think that the Elegance Brand ends up retaining…barely.
Falls Count Anywhere: Mike Santana vs. Mustafa Ali
Pretty much like I said with their last PPV match, I can’t say enough good things about both Mike Santana and Mustafa Ali. I feel like they are both at the top of their game inside and outside of the ring. I love how they are both going for it in their promos and matches. I just wish I liked the storyline more, honestly…although it’s had its moments where I enjoyed the intensity. With that said, both men are doing their best with what they have been given and the matches are delivering. This one will, too. The Falls Count Anywhere stipulation gives Ali the advantage with the numbers game in his favor - with or without the missing John Skyler. I can see Ali taking a shortcut win to extend the feud one more PPV…possibly with a match inside of a cage to keep Ali’s goons out.
Ultimate X Match: TNA X-Division Champion Moose vs. Matt Cardona vs. Leon Slater vs. El Hijo del Vikingo vs. KC Navarro vs. TBA
This will be Moose’s toughest title defense to date with so many variables and flying limbs. The Ultimate X Match provides not only entertainment, but the unexpected. There is a wide variety of talent and skills that Moose will have to fight through in order to retain his title. Plus, Moose is afraid of heights and may not even be able to climb his way to grabbing the belt. Matt Cardona, if he is willing to do more TNA dates, is always a strong contender to grab a belt and bring in some extra eyes to the product. El Hijo del Vikingo is dangerous in the air. How cool would it be for him to defend a TNA title at NXT/AAA Worlds Collide in June? Leon Slater has been fighting his way up the rankings for months and, I think, is the most likely to grab the belt on Sunday if Moose cannot. Ultimately, I feel that Moose should retain here and end up losing the title in a one-on-one match. Moose has done a lot to show dominance in the division, so having a person take him down one-on-one would be more impactful than someone just grabbing the belt in a multi-man match.
TNA World Tag Team Champions The Hardys vs. The Nemeths
The Hardys definitely have the psychological advantage after The Nemeths’ visit to the Hardy Compound. With The Hardys not only are inside of The Nemeths’ heads, but they also have a lot of momentum in their desire for revenge. Of course, anger can be blinding. If The Hardys are only seeing red, they may not catch on to some of the cheap tactics from The Nemeths. I think the stage is set for a title change here with the feud continuing for another month or so.
TNA Knockouts World Champion Masha Slamovich vs. Tessa Blanchard
Since Masha Slamovich won the TNA Knockouts World Championship, Tessa Blanchard has been making her life hell - even when Slamovich is taking on other competitors. Blanchard returned to TNA with a bang and hasn’t stopped going after what she believes is hers. Slamovich will not just be defending her title on Sunday…she will be defending TNA from Tessa Blanchard. Although I think Slamovich is ready and able to retain, I think there is a good chance that Blanchard takes, or maybe even steals, a victory here to cement the fact that she’s back in TNA to be dominant.
TNA World Champion Joe Hendry vs. Frankie Kazarian vs. NXT’s Ethan Page
I’m looking forward to the action of this match and am very curious to see what the result ends up being. The build for this match, though, has been really random to me and I don’t feel invested in it at all. I very much enjoy Joe Hendry, but let’s face it - his TNA World Title reign has been underwhelming. I don’t blame Hendry for that at all. I think it was a combination of when he won the title and everyone being extremely excited for what was going to happen next. When nothing earth shattering happened right after Hendry’s title win, things cooled off.
I don’t love Frankie Kazarian calling his shot so early for this match. He lays on his heel schtick so strong that it would make more sense for him to call his shot either during the match or just as it’s starting. I know that Rebellion is happening in his area, so it may have helped ticket sales a bit. Storyline-wise, though, it just doesn’t sit right with me. I feel the same way about Ethan Page being inserted into this match. I am very sad to complain about Ethan Page being featured in an important match, but he kind of…just showed up and got put into the match. Page is too good of a talent, inside and outside of the ring, to be thrown into something willy-nilly.
The Hendry injury angle will play a factor in the match. I don’t know if he’s really dealing with an issue or not out of character, but it was clear that the storyline part of things kicked off thanks to Elijah yanking on his arm. So - what’s the plan for that? Will Elijah get involved in the main event? Will Elijah cost Hendry the title? Will Elijah help Hendry retain the title? Maybe Elijah doesn’t show his face at all. No matter what, though, I think it is paramount that something big happens with Hendry and with the result of this match. Rebellion is a huge show, but Slammiversary in Long Island is only a few months away and they will be looking to fill another big venue with that show. Hendry needs to play a huge part in that show and whatever he is doing will probably get kick started on Sunday at Rebellion.
With all that said, I expect the main event to deliver inside the ring and I’m going to say that some kind of plan will be shown for whatever is happening going forward.
Overall Thoughts
I know I complained about a thing or two above, but I am looking forward to the show. TNA has been delivering inside of the ring for a while now and I think there are enough question marks on some feuds and matches that will make things very interesting. If you haven’t decided yet, I highly recommend watching the PPV. I’m sure it’ll be entertaining!
PWInsider.com will have live coverage of TNA Rebellion 2025, starting with the Countdown to TNA Rebellion at 7 PM Eastern. I hope to see you then!
Are you looking forward to TNA Rebellion? What do you think of the card? Do you see things shaking out the same as I do or do you disagree on something? Let me know at matt.tenhoeve@gmail.com and let’s talk about it!
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