List of TNA World Champions

The TNA World Championship^[1] is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship owned by the promotion Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA). From June 2002 to May 2007, TNA used the NWA World Heavyweight Championship as their primary championship as part of an agreement with the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA). On May 13, 2007, the NWA abruptly ended the arrangement and retrieved control of the NWA World Heavyweight Championship.^[2] On the same night, TNA were set to host their annual Sacrifice pay-per-view event, in which the NWA World Heavyweight Championship was to be defended by then-champion Christian Cage against Kurt Angle and Sting in a three-way match. Angle won the match and on the following episode of TNA's television program Impact! on May 17, was declared the new TNA World Heavyweight Champion.^[3][4] He was stripped of the championship later in the program, with Management Director Jim Cornette citing a problematic finish to the title match.^[5] The ownership of the championship was decided on June 17, 2007, at TNA's Slammiversary event in a King of the Mountain match involving Angle and Cage along with A.J. Styles, Chris Harris and Samoa Joe, which Angle won.^[6]

Current champion Joe Hendry

Despite the championship being primarily contested for by a male roster, it was once won by a female competitor (Tessa Blanchard). Being a professional wrestling championship, the title is won via a scripted ending to a match or awarded to a wrestler because of a storyline. Reigns that began on Impact Wrestling usually air on tape delay and as such are listed with the day the tapings occurred, rather than the air date. Angle holds the record for most reigns, with six. At 335 days, Josh Alexander's second reign is the longest in the title's history. Alexander's first reign holds the record for shortest reign in the title's history at only a few minutes. Overall, there have been 61 reigns shared among 36 wrestlers, with seven vacancies.

Title history

Names

Name	Years
TNA World Heavyweight Championship	May 13, 2007 – March 1, 2017
Impact Wrestling World Heavyweight Championship	March 2, 2017 – July 2, 2017
Unified GFW World Heavyweight Championship	July 2, 2017 - August 17, 2017
GFW Global Championship	August 17, 2017 - September 18, 2017
Impact Global Championship	September 18, 2017 - January 10, 2018
Impact World Championship	January 10, 2018 - March 13, 2021
Impact Unified World Championship	March 13, 2021 - March 16, 2021
Impact World Championship	March 16, 2021 - January 13, 2024
TNA World Championship	January 13, 2024 – present

Reigns

For a list of world champions in TNA between 2002 and 2007, see the list of NWA World Heavyweight Champions.

As of May 9, 2025.

Key

No.	Overall reign number
Reign	Reign number for the specific champion
Days	Number of days held
+	Current reign is changing daily

No.	Champion	Championship change			Reign statistics		Notes	Ref.
		Date	Event	Location	Reign	Days
	Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA)
1	Kurt Angle	May 13, 2007	Sacrifice	Orlando, FL	1	1	Angle defeated former NWA Champion Christian Cage and Sting in a three-way match. NWA had stripped Cage of the title earlier that day.[7]	[3][8]
—	Vacated	May 14, 2007	Impact!	Orlando, FL	—	—	Angle was stripped of the championship due to a double-fall result of the three-way match at Sacrifice. This episode aired on tape delay on May 17, 2007	[4][5][7]
2	Kurt Angle	June 17, 2007	Slammiversary	Nashville, TN	2	119	This was a King of the Mountain match also involving A.J. Styles, Chris Harris, Christian Cage and Samoa Joe. After the event, Angle's reign and the vacancy were no longer recognized and thus is viewed to be the start of the title's history. TNA counted Angle's previous reign to his credit without detailing why, giving loose recognition towards that reign.	[6][9]
3	Sting	October 14, 2007	Bound for Glory	Duluth, GA	1	2		[10][11]
4	Kurt Angle	October 16, 2007	Impact!	Orlando, FL	3	180	This episode aired on tape delay on October 25, 2007.	[12][13]
5	Samoa Joe	April 13, 2008	Lockdown	Lowell, MA	1	182	This was a six sides of steel cage title vs. career match.	[14][15]
6	Sting	October 12, 2008	Bound for Glory IV	Hoffman Estates, IL	2	189	This was a no countout match.	[16][17]
7	Mick Foley	April 19, 2009	Lockdown	Philadelphia, PA	1	63	This was a six sides of steel cage match.	[18][19]
8	Kurt Angle	June 21, 2009	Slammiversary	Auburn Hills, MI	4	91	This was a King of the Mountain match also involving A.J. Styles, Jeff Jarrett and Samoa Joe.	[20][21]
9	A.J. Styles	September 20, 2009	No Surrender	Orlando, FL	1	211	This was a five-way match also involving Hernandez, Matt Morgan and Sting.	[22][23]
10	Rob Van Dam	April 19, 2010	Impact!	Orlando, FL	1	113		[24][25]
—	Vacated	August 10, 2010	Impact!	Orlando, FL	—	—	The championship was vacated due to Rob Van Dam suffering a storyline injury. This episode aired on tape delay on August 19, 2010.	[26][27]
11	Jeff Hardy	October 10, 2010	Bound for Glory	Daytona Beach, FL	1	91	Hardy defeated Kurt Angle and Mr. Anderson in a three-way tournament final to win the vacant title. Per the pre-match stipulation, Angle (in storyline) was forced to retire.	[28][29]
12	Mr. Anderson	January 9, 2011	Genesis	Orlando, FL	1	35		[30][31]
13	Jeff Hardy	February 13, 2011	Against All Odds	Orlando, FL	2	11	This was a ladder match.	[32][33]
14	Sting	February 24, 2011	Impact!	Fayetteville, NC	3	108	This episode aired on tape delay on March 3, 2011	[34][35]
15	Mr. Anderson	June 12, 2011	Slammiversary IX	Orlando, FL	2	29		[36][37]
16	Sting	July 11, 2011	Impact!	Orlando, FL	4	27	This episode aired on tape delay on July 14, 2011.	[38][39]
17	Kurt Angle	August 7, 2011	Hardcore Justice	Orlando, FL	5	72		[40][41]
18	James Storm	October 18, 2011	Impact!	Orlando, FL	1	8	This episode aired on tape delay on October 20, 2011.	[42][43]
19	Bobby Roode	October 26, 2011	Impact!	Macon, GA	1	256	This episode aired on tape delay on November 3, 2011.	[44][45]
20	Austin Aries	July 8, 2012	Destination X	Orlando, FL	1	98	Aries voluntarily vacated the X Division Championship in exchange for a TNA World Heavyweight Championship match at the event.	[46][47]
21	Jeff Hardy	October 14, 2012	Bound for Glory	Phoenix, AZ	3	147		[48][49]
22	Bully Ray	March 10, 2013	Lockdown	San Antonio, TX	1	130	This was a steel cage match.	[50][51]
23	Chris Sabin	July 18, 2013	Impact: Destination X	Louisville, KY	1	28	Sabin voluntarily vacated the X Division Championship in exchange for a TNA World Heavyweight Championship match at the event.	[52]
24	Bully Ray	August 15, 2013	Impact: Hardcore Justice	Norfolk, VA	2	66	This was a steel cage match.	[53]
25	A.J. Styles	October 20, 2013	Bound for Glory	San Diego, CA	2	9	This was a no disqualification match.	[54]
—	Vacated	October 29, 2013	—	—	—	—	TNA President Dixie Carter announced via Twitter that A.J. Styles had been stripped of the championship due to a contract dispute. Styles continued to carry around the championship belt proclaiming himself champion in the storyline.	[55]
26	Magnus	December 3, 2013	Impact: Final Resolution	Orlando, FL	1	128	Defeated Jeff Hardy in a tournament final to win the vacant title. This was a Dixieland match which aired on tape delay on December 19, 2013. On the January 9, 2014 episode of Impact Wrestling (taped December 6, 2013), A.J. Styles returned claiming to be the legitimate TNA World Heavyweight Champion as he was never defeated for the championship (though not recognized as such by TNA). Magnus defeated him later that night to become the undisputed champion.	[56]
27	Eric Young	April 10, 2014	Impact!	Orlando, FL	1	70	If Magnus had been counted out or disqualified, he would have lost the title. If anyone had interfered in the match, they would have been fired.	[57]
28	Lashley	June 19, 2014	Impact!	Bethlehem, PA	1	91	If anyone besides MVP or Kenny King had interfered, they would have been fired.	[58]
29	Bobby Roode	September 18, 2014	Impact!	Bethlehem, PA	2	111	This episode aired on tape delay on October 29, 2014. Kurt Angle was the special guest referee.	[59]
30	Lashley	January 7, 2015	Impact!	New York, NY	2	24		[60]
31	Kurt Angle	January 31, 2015	Impact!	London, England	6	145	This episode aired on tape delay on March 20, 2015.	[61]
32	Ethan Carter III	June 25, 2015	Impact!	Orlando, FL	1	101	This episode aired on tape delay on July 1, 2015.	[62]
33	Matt Hardy	October 4, 2015	Bound for Glory	Concord, NC	1	2	This was a three-way match also involving Drew Galloway who Matt pinned. Jeff Hardy was the special guest referee.	[63]
—	Vacated	October 6, 2015	—	—	—	—	Vacated due to a legal injunction filed by Ethan Carter III as part of the storyline.	[64]
34	Ethan Carter III	January 5, 2016	Impact!	Bethlehem, PA	2	3	Carter III defeated Matt Hardy in the finals of the TNA World Title Series to win the vacant title.	[65]
35	Matt Hardy	January 8, 2016	Impact!	Bethlehem, PA	2	67	This was a last man standing match. Had Hardy not won, he would have left TNA. This episode aired on tape delay on January 19, 2016.	[66]
36	Drew Galloway	March 15, 2016	Impact!	Orlando, FL	1	89	Galloway invoked his Feast or Fired championship opportunity to challenge Matt Hardy for the championship and win the title.	[67][68]
37	Lashley	June 12, 2016	Slammiversary	Orlando, FL	3	113	This was a knockout or tapout only match. On July 13, 2016, Lashley also won the TNA X Division Championship defeating then-champion Eddie Edwards in a title vs. title steel cage match. On August 11, 2016, Lashley also won the TNA King of the Mountain Championship by defeating then-champion James Storm in a title vs. titles match. The following day, Lashley retired the TNA King of the Mountain Championship and vacated the X Division Championship.	[69]
38	Eddie Edwards	October 3, 2016	Impact!	Orlando, FL	1	97	This episode aired on tape delay on October 6, 2016.	[70][71]
39	Lashley	January 8, 2017	Impact: Genesis	Orlando, FL	4	175	This was a 30-minute Iron Man match. This episode aired on tape delay on January 26, 2017. On March 2, 2017, the championship was renamed to the Impact Wrestling World Heavyweight Championship following the renaming of the promotion.[72]	[73]
	Global Force Wrestling (GFW)
40	Alberto El Patrón	July 2, 2017	Slammiversary XV	Orlando, FL	1	43	This was a unification match to unify the Impact Wrestling World Heavyweight Championship and the original GFW Global Championship. The championship was renamed to the Unified GFW World Heavyweight Championship.	[74]
—	Vacated	August 14, 2017	—	—	—	—	Vacated due to Alberto El Patrón's suspension.	[75]
41	Eli Drake	August 17, 2017	Impact!	Orlando, FL	1	146	This was a 20-man Gauntlet for the Gold match. Drake pinned Eddie Edwards to win the match once they were the last two wrestlers. The championship took the GFW Global Championship name, while retaining the TNA World Heavyweight Championship history. On August 24, 2017, the championship was renamed the "Impact Global Championship" (aired on tape delay on September 18, 2017).	[76]
	Impact Wrestling
42	Austin Aries	January 10, 2018	Impact!	Orlando, FL	2	102	This episode aired on tape delay on February 1, 2018. During his reign, the championship took the Impact World Championship name.	[77]
43	Pentagón Jr.	April 22, 2018	Redemption	Orlando, FL	1	2	This was a three-way match also involving Fénix.	[78]
44	Austin Aries	April 24, 2018	Impact! Under Pressure	Orlando, FL	3	173	This episode aired on tape delay on May 31, 2018. Aries unified the Impact World Championship with the Impact Grand Championship.
45	Johnny Impact	October 14, 2018	Bound for Glory	New York, NY	1	196		[79]
46	Brian Cage	April 28, 2019	Rebellion	Toronto, ON	1	180	Lance Storm was the special guest referee.	[80]
47	Sami Callihan	October 25, 2019	Impact!	Windsor, ON	1	79	This was a steel cage match. The episode aired on tape delay on October 29, 2019.	[81]
48	Tessa Blanchard	January 12, 2020	Hard to Kill	Dallas, TX	1	165	Blanchard became the first woman to hold the championship.	[82]
—	Vacated	June 25, 2020	—	—	—	—	After a period of inactivity during which Blanchard missed multiple tapings due to COVID-19-related travel restrictions, her contract was terminated by Impact Wrestling and she was stripped of the title.	[83]
49	Eddie Edwards	July 18, 2020	Slammiversary	Nashville, TN	2	28	This was a five-way elimination match also involving Ace Austin, Trey, Rich Swann, and Eric Young.	[84]
50	Eric Young	August 15, 2020	Impact!	Nashville, TN	2	70	The episode aired on tape delay on September 1, 2020.	[85]
51	Rich Swann	October 24, 2020	Bound for Glory	Nashville, TN	1	183	At Sacrifice on March 13, 2021, Swann defeated Moose to unify the TNA World Heavyweight Championship, which was officially sanctioned as a separate title, with the Impact World Championship. The TNA title was deactivated while the Impact title became briefly known as the Impact Unified World Championship before reverting to Impact World Championship.	[86]
52	Kenny Omega	April 25, 2021	Rebellion	Nashville, TN	1	110	This was a Winner Takes All match in which Omega also defended the AEW World Championship.	[87]
53	Christian Cage	August 13, 2021	Rampage	Pittsburgh, PA	1	71	Cage retires the TNA World Tilte belt during his reign.	[88]
54	Josh Alexander	October 23, 2021	Bound for Glory	Sunrise Manor, NV	1	<1	Alexander voluntarily vacated the X Division Championship in exchange for an Impact World Championship match at the event.	[89]
55	Moose	October 23, 2021	Bound for Glory	Sunrise Manor, NV	1	182	Moose invoked his Call Your Shot Gauntlet championship privilege he earned at the event.	[89]
56	Josh Alexander	April 23, 2022	Rebellion	Poughkeepsie, NY	2	335		[90]
—	Vacated	March 24, 2023	Impact!	Windsor, ON	—	—	Vacated due to Josh Alexander requiring surgery for a torn triceps. This episode aired on tape delay on April 6, 2023.	[91]
57	Steve Maclin	April 16, 2023	Rebellion	Toronto, ON	1	54	Defeated Kushida to win the vacant championship.	[92]
58	Alex Shelley	June 9, 2023	Against All Odds	Columbus, OH	1	218	During this reign, the name of the company was reverted back to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA).	[93]
	Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA)
59	Moose	January 13, 2024	Hard To Kill	Paradise, NV	2	189	Moose invoked his Feast or Fired world title opportunity.	[94]
60	Nic Nemeth	July 20, 2024	Slammiversary	Montreal, Quebec, Canada	1	183	This was a Six-way elimination match also involving Josh Alexander, Steve Maclin, Joe Hendry, and Frankie Kazarian, who Nemeth lastly pinned.	[95]
61	Joe Hendry	January 19, 2025	Genesis	Garland, TX	1	110+		[96]

Combined reigns

As of May 9, 2025.

Inaugural and record six-time champion Kurt Angle.

Two-time champion Josh Alexander, who holds both the shortest (10 minutes) and longest (335 days) reigns in the title's history.

†	Indicates the current champion

Rank	Wrestler	No. of reigns	Combined days
1	Kurt Angle	6	608
2	Lashley	4	403
3	Austin Aries	3	373
4	Moose	2	371
5	Bobby Roode	2	367
6	Josh Alexander	2	335
7	Sting	4	326
8	Jeff Hardy	3	249
9	A.J. Styles	2	220
10	Alex Shelley	1	218
11	Bully Ray	2	196
	Johnny Impact	1
13	Nic Nemeth	1	183
	Rich Swann	1
15	Samoa Joe	1	182
16	Brian Cage	1	180
17	Tessa Blanchard	1	165
18	Eli Drake	1	146
19	Eric Young	2	140
20	Magnus	1	128
21	Eddie Edwards	2	125
22	Rob Van Dam	1	113
23	Joe Hendry †	1	110+
24	Kenny Omega	1	110
25	Ethan Carter III	2	104
26	Drew Galloway	1	89
27	Sami Callihan	1	79
28	Christian Cage	1	71
29	Matt Hardy	2	69
30	Mr. Anderson	2	64
31	Mick Foley	1	63
32	Steve Maclin	1	54
33	Alberto El Patrón	1	43
34	Chris Sabin	1	28
35	James Storm	1	8
36	Pentagón Jr.	1	2

See also

• List of current champions in TNA Wrestling