Nic Nemeth (WWE's Dolph Ziggler) Makes Shocking TNA Debut at Hard to Kill

Former WWE superstar Nic Nemeth (Dolph Ziggler) makes his shocking TNA debut at Hard to Kill

By Matthew Aguilar

There were a number of memorable moments and welcome surprises throughout TNA's Hard to Kill pay-per-view, but TNA saved its biggest reveal for last. The main event of TNA's first pay-per-view of this new era was for the TNA World Championship, with Alex Shelley defending his Title against Moose, and the match was as thrilling as you'd expect from two of TNA's biggest stars. It would end up being Moose walking away as the Champion, which was a big enough surprise on its own, but then TNA finally revealed its big signing, and it was none other than Nic Nemeth. Nemeth, who went by Dolph Ziggler in WWE, is now part of TNA, and the crowd couldn't have been happier to see him.

Moose was celebrating his Championship win when Nemeth showed up behind him in the ring, and Nemeth connected with a superkick to knock the newly crowned Champ to the mat. Nemeth then went out in the crowd and ripped his shirt to reveal a TNA shirt underneath, making his addition to the TNA roster official.

Nemeth looks to be a major part of TNA's plans moving forward, and it was a wonderful surprise to cap off a stellar pay-per-view. This was the first pay-per-view under the returning TNA banner, and the night ends with a new TNA World Champion, a new Knockouts Champion, and new Knockouts Tag Team Champions. The night also revealed the addition of Dana Brooke to the Knockouts roster, and AJ Francis made his debut for the brand earlier in the night as well.

As for Nemeth, he's been busy, as he also showed up in New Japan Pro-Wrestling recently. TNA has a good relationship with New Japan, so he'll be able to work with both brands most likely, and TNA also revealed a full partnership with AAA during the pay-per-view, so Nemeth could also probably work some matches there as well if he wanted.

Nemeth was one of the most surprising releases in WWE's previous talent cuts, as he was always someone that could be called upon at anytime to work a feud or program with little to no build-up and still make it work. Whether that was a major Title match, a midcard match, or working with newer talent in NXT, Nemeth was someone who could make it work and make it believable, which is why many were surprised to see him let go by WWE.

Now Nemeth is officially TNA, and he is a huge pickup for the company. He can work with anyone and make them look like a million bucks, and there are a number of dream style matches he can have in TNA. Hopefully, we'll get more from him next week, but in the meantime, you can find the full card with updated results for Hard to Kill below.

Hard to Kill

  • TNA World Championship Match: Moose (C) def. Alex Shelley
  • TNA X- Division Championship Match: Chris Sabin (C) def. El Hijo del Vikingo and KUSHIDA
  • TNA Knockouts Championship Match: Jordynne Grace (C) def. Trinity
  • TNA Knockouts Tag Team Championship Match: Decay (C) def. MK Ultra
  • TNA World Tag Team Championship Match: ABC (C) def. The Rascalz, Grizzled Young Veterans, and Speedball Mike Bailey and Laredo Kid
  • Knockouts Ultimate X Match: Gisele Shaw def. Jody Threat, Xia Brookside, Alisha Edwards, Tasha Steelz, and Dani Luna
  • Josh Alexander def. Alex Hammerstone
  • PCO, Jake Something, and Rhino def. Dirty Dango, Oleg Prudius, and Alpha Bravo

What did you think of Hard to Kill? Let us know in the comments and as always you can talk all things wrestling with me on Threads @mattaguilarcb!

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