Nic Nemeth wins TNA World Championship; Josh Alexander turns heel on Joe Hendry

Nic Nemeth is the king of the mountain in TNA. The Wanted Man fulfilled his goal by winning the TNA World Championship at Slammiversary (July 20, 2024).

Nemeth competed against reigning champion Moose, Josh Alexander, Frankie Kazarian, Steve Maclin, and Joe Hendry in a six-way elimination bout. The last man left would win the gold. The action was spicy with drama, and there was even a heel turn from Alexander on Hendry.

Hendry was the star early with a vertical suplex to Moose on the floor, then he overhead pressed Nemeth out of the ring onto Moose.

Alexander had his moment to shine exploding for 15 consecutive German suplexes. He added a double German suplex for good measure.

Maclin was the first to bite the dust. He tackled Kaz in the Tree of Woe to set up the KIA DDT. As Mr. Mayhem lifted his target, Moose ran in for the spear to pin Maclin.

This next moment will be relevant later. Nemeth superkicked Kazarian off stage to crash through a table. If you are a long-time wrestling fan, then you know where this is heading.

On to more eliminations. Moose was out next in a shocker. Hendry fired up with fallaway slams all around. He battled Moose for a bit then surprised the crowd to pin the champ off a Standing Ovation chokeslam. That elimination guaranteed a new titleholder.

I believe in Joe Hendry, but, apparently, Alexander did not. In another shocking story beat for this match, Alexander struck Hendry with a low-blow kick and eliminated him on a C4 spike piledriver.

If there was any doubt that Alexander just turned heel, he made it crystal clear after the pinfall by mounting Hendry with arms trapped to the sides. Alexander proceeded to slap the taste out of Hendry’s mouth.

Alexander had been the heart and soul hero of TNA in recent years. As jarring as it is to see him embrace the dark side, that sets up a great obstacle for Hendry to overcome to boost him even higher in the ranks.

Alexander’s dirty deed didn’t go unpunished. He was the fourth elimination. Nemeth escaped the C4 spike piledriver to counter for a headbutt. A superkick sealed Alexander’s fate on this evening.

Remember Kazarian? He sneaked back into the ring right after that last pin to catch Nemeth off guard for the Fade to Black piledriver. Nemeth dramatically kicked out at 2. Kaz kept on the pressure for a chickenwing submission to Nemeth’s injured shoulder. Nemeth rolled position over the top to escape. He popped up to deliver a superkick. Nemeth and Kaz tangoed some more, then Nemeth cashed in the Danger Zone (Zig Zag) to win.

Share your thoughts on the Nic Nemeth era in TNA. Get full PPV results here. The Slammiversary replay is available for streaming through TNA+ and TrillerTV.