NXT and IMPACT Inter-promotional Event? Could it work?

Everyone loves to fantasy book inter-promotional shows. Shows like Forbidden Door, Multiverse United, and ROH: War of the Worlds have utilized inter-promotional match-ups. Fans want to see WWE and Impact, WWE and AEW, or even WWE and New Japan in inter-promotional events. What if there is an inter-promotional program fans haven’t thought about? What about NXT and Impact? Before you split hairs, even though NXT is WWE, fans see the two in a different light. Let’s look at the benefits and drawbacks of NXT and Impact working together.

Impact Wrestling has slowly redefined itself during the past few years since shedding the TNA name. Many fans turned their noses up at the mention of TNA in conversation. People have said the same thing about NXT. When it was Black and Gold, people liked NXT, but it was still developmental. Then, during the year-long run of NXT 2.0, people tuned out completely. Both NXT and Impact are having stellar shows weekly because of the creative direction of Shawn Michaels and Scott D’Amore. An inter-promotional event featuring wrestlers from NXT and Impact could make for a fantastic show.

Pros

An event that showcases NXT and Impact wrestlers would be huge for both fan bases. Not only could the event be a pay-per-view, but the amount of potential tickets for live attendance would be tremendous. Even though both NXT and Impact typically have shows in smaller venues, both companies try to run larger venues for their special events. At Vengeance, an NXT premium live event, there were about 5,350 fans in attendance (per Wrestletix on Twitter/X). Impact: Bound for Glory will have about 650 in attendance, according to my estimation. Working on a show together, Impact would perform in front of a larger crowd than their usual capacity.  

Along with live attendance, an increase in television viewership would happen. If NXT and Impact were to do the show on the Peacock network as a premium live event, there could be about 750,000 people to tune in. Even if the show were to take place on an episode of NXT, it would garner 550,000 to 700,00 viewers. Could it be beneficial for NXT wrestlers to show up in Impact? Of course! It would allow the wrestlers to travel and bring new eyes to AXS, the network Impact airs on. Sending NXT talent to Impact would show goodwill towards the business relationship. 

Also, veteran wrestlers in Impact could help the up-and-coming wrestlers in NXT. Young NXT talent having the chance to be in the ring with wrestling veterans would allow them to learn how to “carry a match.” These match-ups would also allow the veteran talent to showcase their coaching abilities. On top of the learning aspect of these matches, veterans could dictate the match pace. Some wrestlers like to work fast, so working with someone with more experience may want to slow that pace down. It also allows wrestlers to do the opposite. Slow-paced wrestlers may work a faster match.

The potential match-ups alone should be enough to make this happen. There could be great tag matches like Creeds against Chris Bey and Ace Austin, Subculture versus Gallus versus The Family versus The Design, or even The Good Hands against Enofe and Blade. Fantastic women’s matches like Masha Slamovich versus Ivy Nile, Deonna Purrazzo against Roxanne Perez, and Trinity and MK Ultra teaming against Davenport with Jacy Jane and Thea Hail. Not to mention matches involving Moose, Bron Breakker, Steve Machlin, The Rascalz and Wes Lee, Lio Rush, Dragon Lee, and many others. Countless match-ups can come from an inter-promotional event between NXT and Impact. 

Cons

A drawback to this event would be, “Who wins in each match?” Not every match can go to a time-limit draw, double count-out, or multiple disqualifications on the card. There would need to be clear winners and losers for a majority of matches. But how would Scott D’Amore and Shawn Michaels determine the outcomes? There would have to be some give-and-take through the card’s entirety. The companies don’t want their top stars to lose, but this means the audience will miss out on exciting matches like Trinity versus Tiffany Stratton or Alex Shelley against Carmelo Hayes. There would need to be deliberation about who wins and who loses during the event. Deciding winners would not be the only drawback of the event.

Another drawback would be the possibility of injuries. Yes, injuries can occur during any match with any competitor, but in this case, the wrestlers would feel the need to “outdo” their usual performances. Pushing the limits is when mistakes happen and injuries can take place. When wrestlers are performing at a high-profile event, there is more pressure for them to do things to perfection. Assuming all matches go to plan and no one sustains an injury, there would still be one more drawback to the event.

Wrestling is a form of entertainment where egos become larger than life. Some wrestlers in both companies may feel they should not lose their bouts. A wrestler in Impact may feel working with NXT would be a “step down” performance-wise. While a wrestler in NXT may see Impact as a downgrade because there are not as many fans watching their product. The egos of some wrestlers may come into play if an event like this were to come about. Hopefully, for the sake of all the positives involved, they could set aside their egos and be able to work something out. 

Conclusion

I could see an inter-promotional event between NXT and Impact working. Between the amount of talent, the styles of wrestling, and the creative backing from both companies, an inter-promotional show could be the greatest event for both promotions. My opinion is, the pros outweigh the cons in this case. Both NXT and Impact are significant promotions that deserve to be seen by the masses. Would you like to see this inter-promotional event? If it ever happened, what are some matches you would like to see?