Ex-WWE Stars Debut On TNA Impact's AMC Debut (TNA News)
2 former WWE names made an Impact (sorry!) during TNA's debut episode on AMC.
Ex-WWE stars Sonya Deville (now known as Daria Rae) and Cora Jade (Elayna Black) debuted on a memorable night for TNA during the first episode of Impact on AMC this past Thursday. Onscreen 'Director Of Authority' Santino Marella introduced Raw as the new authority figure in town.
Daria played up to the cheering live crowd before instantly turning heel on them. That's when she brought out new signing Black. This isn't Elayna's first foray into TNA - she previously worked a handful of bouts under the promotion's banner whilst still under contract to WWE.
Black left the market leader in May 2025 and announced that she'd be stepping back from pro wrestling to concentrate on her mental health. Now, she's back (in Black?) and is seemingly aligned with Daria on TNA TV. Or, at the very least, she's been endorsed by someone who has onscreen power.
It'll be interesting to see where this all goes in coming weeks.
Later in the night, Mike Santana won his second TNA World Title by defeating stalwart Frankie Kazarian in the main event. That pair will now do battle in a 'Texas Deathmatch' at Genesis this Saturday. Further, none other than AJ Styles stopped by to kick off the night and hype the live crowd up.
The WWE legend, who is set to retire from wrestling in 2026, also put TNA over as bigger and better than it had ever been now it had a new home. AMC chiefs would've liked that one.
To summarise, Impact's debut on AMC had some heavy WWE influence. Both past and present.