On Friday, August 15th, TNA Wrestling returned to Baltimore, MD, for its big event, “Emergence.” The show was headlined by a big match for the TNA World Championship, as Trick Williams defended against Moose. Williams and Moose have had a fun rivalry as of late, which even spilled over to WWE NXT television. Would Moose be able to save TNA and reclaim the top prize from the WWE superstar, or would TNA’s top prize remain on a competitor of a different promotion?

We also saw Leon Slater put his newly won X-Division Championship on the line against Cedric Alexander. Mike Santana faced off with Sami Callihan in a match where, if Callihan loses, he retires. Steve Maclin put the TNA International Championship on the line against Jake Something in a no-disqualification match. Also, the Hardy Boyz put the TNA World Tag Team Championships on the line against The Rascalz, and so much more. So, what were the top three moments of the night?

3. Mike Santana Retires Sami Callihan

In one of the big marquee matches of the night, we saw Mike Santana go one-on-one with Sami Callihan. Santana has been on a tear trying to get back to the TNA World Championship, and Callihan has made it a point to say that if he can’t win tonight, he’s going to retire. Something was truly going to have to give between two of TNA’s greatest competitors around today. In a match for the X-Division Championship against Moose, Callihan fell short, and Moose cut a promo on him after the match, saying he doesn’t have it anymore. This very clearly affected Callihan, and that’s how he got to too tonight.

Santana is poised for a win here tonight, as he’s hoping to get back in the TNA World Championship picture as we approach Bound For Glory season. This was an excellent match between two of TNA’s best and two of TNA’s biggest fan favorites. Before the match, Callihan cut a promo saying that if he loses, he’s going to go down swinging. He challenges Santana to a Baltimore Street Fight, and Santana accepts, saying he wants the “damn death machine.” The fight between these two men was fantastic. This wasn’t just a match; this was a fight between two men who, while they have respect for each other, want to beat the hell out of each other.

Ultimately, Santana landed a massive “Spin The Block” on Callihan and pinned him to win the match. After the match, Callihan fist bumps Santana, and Callihan left his boots in the ring. If this is the end, thank you, Callihan. Callihan has been a mainstay in TNA for quite some time now, and he’s had a ton of excellent wars in the company. Hopefully, we see Callihan again down the line. As for Santana, he is truly the standard of TNA, and he should, without a doubt, be next in line for the TNA World Champion. Some may even argue he should have won the belt at TNA Slammiversary (which he should have).

2. Leon Slater Defeats Cedric Alexander in a MOTY Contender

In the opening match of the night, we saw Leon Slater put the X-Division Championship on the line against Cedric Alexander. This marked Slater’s second X-Division Championship defense. Slater won the X-Division Championship back in July at UBS Arena at TNA Slammiversary when he defeated Moose. Following his match with Moose, Slater was confronted by one of the GOATs of TNA, AJ Styles. Styles gave Slater a big vote of confidence, which Slater has used ever since. Alexander was given the title shot following Slater’s first successful defense against Jason Hotch and Alexander.

Alexander told Slater they had to do battle and see who the better man truly was. They did just that in the opening match of TNA Emergence. Slater and Alexander had a match-of-the-year contender in their first one-on-one meeting. Slater has been one of the top young talents in TNA and is poised to go on a generational run with the X-Division Championship. As for Alexander, he looks to be in great shape following his WWE departure. Alexander looks ready to show the wrestling world just how good he truly is. Ultimately, at the end of this one, Slater put Alexander away with the Swanton 450 splash.

This was another fantastic defense for Slater following his win at Slammiversary. It was a true match-of-the-year contender. Both Alexander and Slater left it all out in the ring, going to a near 20-minute war. Ultimately, what’s next for Slater is up in the air. There’s a slew of wrestlers who could challenge for his X-Division Championship next. As for Alexander, he has all the makings to be a major player in the TNA X-Division going forward. The future of TNA’s X-Division is very bright.

1. Trick Williams Retains His TNA World Championship

    In the main event of the night, we saw Trick Williams put the TNA World Championship on the line against Moose. On a recent episode of TNA iMPACT, we saw Moose pin Williams in tag team action. Should Moose be able to repeat that here tonight, he would become the new TNA World Champion. Williams retained his TNA World Championship last month at TNA Slammiversary against Mike Santana and Joe Hendry. Now, Williams will look to remain at the top of the TNA mountain, but first, he must knock off one of the standards in TNA, Moose.

    The match was all we hoped it would be and then some. Moose looked to not only capture the TNA World Championship, but also bring the World Championship back home to TNA. Williams had other ideas to follow through on his plans of turning TNA into TrickNA. The match started with some trash talk from Williams, who told the Baltimore crowd that the “real birds” of the NFL are the Philadelphia Eagles. This was an excellent main event between two of the biggest and baddest men around today. It truly lived up to the hype. Both Williams and Moose showcased their athletic ability fully in this one.

    We saw a cool spot where Williams hit a back body drop on a charging Moose through the timekeeper’s table on the outside. Williams accidentally knocked out the referee, which caused Moose to hit him with a spear. As Moose seemingly had the match won, Williams caught Moose with a trick shot for just a two-count. Ultimately, after an amazing back-and-forth match, Williams hit two more trick shots to retain his TNA World Championship. This was an amazing match. Williams has been doing his best work of his entire career as the TNA World Champion. Hopefully, though, we get the TNA World Championship back on a TNA star come Bound For Glory on October 12th.

    Overall, TNA Emergence was a very fun card from top to bottom. The match of the night had to be Leon Slater vs. Cedric Alexander. However, Trick Williams vs. Moose was a VERY close second. At the end of the day, the TNA World Championship remains on a WWE guy. Not many people thought that would change at Emergence. However, hopefully, at Bound For Glory, we see TNA rise and reclaim their two top championship titles.