8 Innovations TNA/Impact Brought To American Wrestling
3. The Six-Sided Ring
Before we get into this entry, an important note; Impact Wrestling did not invent the six-sided ring that they became known for. This variation on the traditional four-sided wrestling ring had become popular through its use in Mexican promotion, Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide. Impact merely adapted the ring for mainstream American wrestling fans.
Anyway...
First becoming a feature of Impact programming with the launch of their new weekly show in 2004, the six-sided ring instantly made Impact Wrestling stand out. Every other company was using the four-sided ring. Of course they were. It's what we expect from a professional wrestling show. Impact themselves had used this ring from their initial launch until 2004.
It's no question that the wrestlers would have needed time to get used to wrestling with an extra two sides, particularly when it came to the X Division stars. However, they adapted to things quite well all things considered.
How did the fans react to this, though? Well, after a few years of reverting to a four-sided ring from 2010 onwards, a fan-voted poll in the summer of 2014 was won by the hexagonal ring. Fans clearly warmed to the six sides. This was critical for the company. If fans reacted negatively to the six-sided ring, there was the chance they'd stop watching entirely, but instead, they watched on in glee as Impact made the six-sided ring their own.