With the recent WWE - TNA partnership deal, a lot of cross promotion appearances were expected and it is also taking place. WWE is mostly treating TNA equal to NXT which is the developmental territory of the promotion, and as of now, it looks like the promotion is only treating TNA as a talent hunt platform.
TNA wrestlers are mostly appearing in the NXT and some of the NXT stars have also appeared in TNA Wrestling. Of course, there had been some exceptions like the random appearances that took place in the Royal Rumble event. The present TNA World Champion Joe Hendry also appeared in the NXT last year and he even challenged for the NXT Championship at the NXT No Mercy event.
Joe Hendry Had Moments with CM Punk and Cody Rhodes? Also Reveals His Interaction with Paul Heyman at Royal Rumble
That was not the only time that Hendry appeared in WWE. He also featured in the men's Royal Rumble match at the Royal Rumble event as a surprise entrant. He was eliminated from the match by Roman Reigns. Recently the present TNA world heavyweight champion spoke to Denice Salcedo where he talked about meeting top stars like CM Punk and Cody Rhodes in WWE. He also remembered his moment with Paul Heyman at WWE Royal Rumble. Here is what he had to say;
Joe Hendry first appeared in the WWE ring as a TNA star back in 2024
“I enjoyed being able to have a conversation with Cody Rhodes, someone who I’ve wrestled before, someone who was instrumental in helping me getting a job with Ring of Honor. I enjoyed chatting with CM Punk. He had great advice for me. I enjoyed meeting Paul Heyman.
"I didn’t want to assume that Paul Heyman knew who I was, but he did know who I was, and we had a really good conversation. So that was a very cool moment for me. He’s obviously a legend in the business, so to be able to have a conversation with him is great.
Joe Hendry appeared in the men’s Royal Rumble match of 2025
“I enjoyed working with Shane Helms; we’ve gotten on really well. There were so many friendly faces. I really enjoyed talking with everyone backstage. The way that WWE and TNA have been working with each other. It’s just been with open arms on both sides. I have been made to feel so welcome. I know that everybody has, on both sides. So it’s just been a phenomenal partnership.”
Check out the potential switch of Joe Hendry to WWE here
The majority of the fans criticized the booking that Joe Hendry received in the men's Royal Rumble match. Despite being the World Champion of TNA wrestling he was given a jobber treatment in the Royal Rumble match. But soon it had been pretty much cleared that WWE is not treating TNA Wrestling as anything more than a talent hunt platform much like they had OVW in the early 2000s.
H/T - Inside The Ropes
