TNA is making some big moves when it comes to free agency but unfortunately it isn’t transferring over into PPV buys via television.

Just this past Saturday, the company had it’s Rebellion PPV and it featured the main event of TNA World Champion Moose defending his title against Nic Nemeth. The card also featured Josh Alexander taking on Hammerstone in their rubber match which was a Last Man Standing fight.

According to Dave Meltzer, Rebellion saw a massive drop in PPV purchases in comparsion to TNA’s return PPV earlier in January, Hard To Kill. Hard To Kill had over 66,000 buys on TV and streaming, which happened to be a record for the promotion. Unfortunately, Rebellion had only 500 TV buys at air-time, that’s an 89% drop in comparison to Hard To Kill which had 22,400. However, the streaming buys have yet to be released so TNA should see at least a little boost with the combination.

Although the buys of down, the perception of TNA is very positive with acquisitions such as Nemeth, Hammerstone, AJ Francis and Mustafa Ali. Rebellion also saw the major returns of Matt Hardy and Mike Santana into the company fold.

Nemeth said in an exclusive interview with SEScoops, noting how much he believes in TNA as a company and the promotion’s long-term booking plans. Nemeth isn’t signed to any contract with TNA, but noted his primary goal is getting the company over and its roster of rising stars.

You can check out the full interview with Nemeth below:

Mike Santana and Ortiz joined AEW in 2019, quickly becoming fixtures in the tag team division. Proud n Powerful had a lot of momentum coming into AEW as the former LAX, but that team is no longer a factor. 

Why Mike Santana & Ortiz Split Up

Unfortunately, Mike Santana and Ortiz’s relationship soured, leading to a permanent split. Last year, they made a surprising return but remained at odds. Aligning with the Blackpool Combat Club for the Stadium Stampede match at AEW All In, their partnership was short-lived. 

Despite a feud that ended with Mike Santana winning on the October 25th Rampage, fans were disappointed they didn’t reunite for another run. The two are not going to reunite, from everything we can tell.

The Shining Wizards Wrestling Podcast recently spoke to Ortiz, where his split with Santana came up. He made it clear that their team’s disbanding was totally Santana’s call.

”Unfortunately, it wasn’t the company’s call to split us (Santana & Ortiz). Me and Santana just couldn’t get it together personally and he was just very adamant about not working with me anymore. So, the company kind of had no choice but to split us up, right? So they’re like, ‘Okay, you’re just not gonna not tag. It doesn’t make any sense. Let’s at least make this make sense why you split.'”

Mike Santana & Ortiz’s Future

Mike Santana has been missing from AEW television since concluding his program with Ortiz. He remains part of AEW and continues to accept independent bookings. 

The future of the former tag team is uncertain, but it appears that if a reunion is in the cards, then they have a lot of personal issues to work through first.

According to a new report, one of AEW’s injured wrestlers is already on the way to recovering.

A few weeks ago, during the Blood & Guts match on AEW Dynamite, AEW star Santana suffered an injury. He injured his left knee during a spot with Daniel Garcia just minutes after he entered the match. It was a non-contact injury.

Update & Timetable

Dave Meltzer reported, in the latest edition of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, that Santana had “reconstructive knee surgery and looks to be out about eight months.”

This confirms what Chris Jericho said on the True Gordie Podcast. Jericho said that Santana injured his knee doing a simple rock bottom and that he would be out for eight months.

It was previously reported that Santana attended a live event in Puerto Rico last weekend to relinquish a championship that he was holding. He was also seen walking on crutches at the indie wrestling event.

Konnan recently confirmed reports of there being a rift between Proud & Powerful or Santana & Ortiz. They had not worked a normal tag team match together in 2022. Before he was injured, Santana had been working as a singles star on the indie scene this year.

• Wrestling Injury Tracker: Updated List of Everyone Out of Action

Santana suffered a legitimate injury during the Blood and Guts match on the June 29 Dynamite. He appeared to have tweaked his knee during a move and was taken away by the medical staff.

Not much was known about the AEW star’s injury at the time. Though a new report from Fightful Select has provided an update on his condition.

Per the site, AEW sources have indicated that the Proud-n-Powerful member suffered an ACL Injury. It’s what Santana himself told several people within the company.

The former Inner Circle member attended a LAWE Wrestling event over the weekend. He was there to relinquish the LAWE world championship due to his injury.

The injured star was on crutches and told people he had not yet had surgery. You can check out Santana’ promo from the show in the video below:

The Blood and Guts match this year saw The Jericho Appreciation Society fighting against the team of John Moxley, Claudio Castagnoli, Santana, Ortiz, Wheeler Yuta, and Eddie Kingston.

The ending of the bout saw Kingston locking Jericho in a submission. When Matt Menard tried to interfere, Castagnoli locked him in as well. Claudio picked up the victory for his team when Menard tapped out.

While there hasn’t been an official announcement, it’s believed that Santana will be out of action for 8-12 months.

• Wrestling Injury Tracker: Updated List of Everyone Out of Action

Santana will be on the sidelines for the rest of the year after he suffered a knee injury whilst trying to perform a Rock Bottom during the Blood and Guts match on the June 29th episode of AEW Dynamite between The Jericho Association Society and The Blackpool Combat Club.

The Blackpool Combat Club went over in the match thanks to Claudio Castagnoli picking up the win. Santana’s injury kept him out of action for the majority of the match.

During his appearance on the “True Gordie Podcast,” Chris Jericho updated fans on how long Santana will be out of action.

“He f**ked up his knee from doing a simple Rock Bottom,” Jericho said. “That’s not on top of a cage, that’s not falling off a cage, that’s not getting hit with a barbed wire bat, or whatever. It’s doing a wrestling move, and he’s out eight months.”

Santana and Ortiz made their AEW debut at All Out in 2019, beating down The Young Bucks and The Lucha Bros after their ladder match that saw The Lucha Bros win the titles. 

The former LAX members have yet to win gold in AEW. Konnan recently confirmed rumors that the tag team is suffering from a frayed relationship as they have not worked a normal tag team match thus far in 2022 and won’t for the rest of the year now with Santana sidelined. 

Santana joins several AEW stars who are injured. You can see our updated injury tracker with the full list of names.

H/T to WrestlingInc for the transcription

There have been rumblings over the last few weeks of an AEW tag team no longer being on the same page.

The talks simply started as speculation, rather than a report. Fans took notice of Santana and Ortiz not really being together for their feud with the Jericho Appreciation Society.

While the duo had been involved in multi-man tag team matches, they weren’t really seen together, which got people talking.

As they say, where there’s smoke there’s fire.

Konnan Claims Tension is Real

Konnan has taken to his Keepin’ it 100 podcast and he confirmed that there are indeed issues between Santana and Ortiz.

“Yes, they are not on good terms.”

Konnan on Santana & Ortiz

Konnan is close with both men, so he certainly has credibility when it comes to the topic at hand.

It’s quite the turn of events as many felt Santana & Ortiz had the potential to eventually win the AEW World Tag Team Titles after the Inner Circle disbanded.

Santana is expected to be out of action for quite some time as he suffered a knee injury during the recent Blood & Guts match.

On top of that, Santana’s AEW contract is reportedly going to be up soon.

While it isn’t confirmed, some have speculated that he has been teasing leaving the promotion once his deal expires.

AEW has been plagued with injuries over the past month, with several stars being taken out of action.

AEW World Champion CM Punk announced his injury just days after he captured the title from ‘Hangman’ Adam Page, and Bryan Danielson is also said to have suffered an injury and hasn’t wrestled in over a month.

Former World Champion Kenny Omega continues to be away recovering from surgery after dealing with multiple injuries, and now another star is out of commission.

Santana injured

During the recent Blood and Guts match, Santana competed and had a spot that didn’t go according to plan.

Santana had an awkward uranage spot with Daniel Garcia mere minutes after he entered the double cage, which led many to believe Santana is injured.

While speaking on Busted Open Radio, AEW President Tony Khan confirmed the news that Santana is injured, saying it “could be a relatively long injury.” 

Khan added that he spoke to Santana after Blood & Guts, ensuring the wrestler that the company will stand by him throughout his recovery.

Khan gave no specific time window as to when Santana will be back in the ring.

His previous injury

This is a bad time for Santana, but not the first time he’s had to deal with an injury.

In May 2019, while working for Impact Wrestling, Santana suffered a stage two tear in his MCL.

Santana was cleared to wrestle that same month, but would finish up with Impact in early August, and debuted for AEW at All Out on August 31.

The injuries continue to mount in AEW.

The company held its special Blood & Guts edition of Dynamite inside Little Caesars Arena in Detroit, MI. The match featured the Jericho Appreciation Society vs. Blackpool Combat Club, Eddie Kingston, Santana & Ortiz.

BCC, Kingston, Santana & Ortiz won the match but at least one man did not walk away unscathed.

Santana Hurt

When it was time for Santana to enter the match, he brought in a table and a bat wrapped in barbed wire. He didn’t get much offense in, however, as he quickly suffered an injury.

It appeared to have occurred when he awkwardly landed on his leg while giving Daniel Garcia a Uranage.

Santana tried to make it back to his feet and was able to land one last strike but he simply couldn’t put weight on the injured leg.

Eventually, he was helped to the back and did not appear during the post-match celebration.

We’ll keep you posted with updates on Santana’s injury when they become available.

This week on Dynamite, Santana, and Ortiz were involved in a backstage brawl with the Young Bucks. The team now known as Proud and Powerful got the advantage on Matt and Nick Jackson, even power bombing Matt through part of the Dynamite stage.

Following the attack, Santana and Ortiz cut a promo in the back. AEW recently published the promo in the below Instagram post:

Proud and Powerful Send Message to the Young Bucks

“Perfect, just who I wanted to see,” Ortiz says to begin the video. “You see that? We put them in the circle.”

Santana then began to speak.

“Young boys, I hope you’re ready because every time we see you it’s on-site,” Santana said in the video. “Every city, every state, every arena, y’all better be ready and willing to fight because this s**t don’t end here, it don’t end now, it keeps going and going and going.”

“People keep asking us, they keep asking us why aren’t you going after SCU?” Ortiz added. “Why aren’t you going after the tag team titles? There’s one title we want and Young Bucks, you got that title. We’re the best, we’re the best, we’re the best!”

“Try to prove us wrong,” Santana concluded the video with.

• Early Estimate on AEW Full Gear PPV Buyrate

The Young Bucks didn’t get their revenge on the Inner Circle members Santana & Ortiz. 

At the AEW Full Gear pay-per-view event from the Royal Farms Arena in Baltimore, Maryland, Santana & Ortiz beat Nick & Matt Jackson in a tag team match. This served as the opening contest on the main card. 

• AEW Full Gear Results & Live Coverage

This feud kicked off at the All Out event from the Sears Centre in Chicago, IL that aired on pay-per-view in August. It happened after the Lucha Brothers beat Young Bucks to retain the AAA Tag Team Titles.

Post-match, two masked men attacked Lucha Bros then Nick Jackson. The former team known as LAX was revealed as the masked men. 

The Young Bucks lost to Private Party in the opening round of the AEW Tag Team Title tournament. Santana and Ortiz didn’t compete in the tournament. 

Time will tell whether AEW continues this feud or goes into a different direction heading into the future. 

The fallout from this match will be presented on Wednesday’s episode of Dynamite on TNT from Municipal Auditorium in Nashville, TN. 

What are your thoughts on the winners of this match? Was this the right call by AEW officials or should it have gone the other way? Sound off in the comment section.

Fans found out after weeks of speculation who are going to be Chris Jericho’s mystery tag team partners. 

It turns out that Jericho will team up with Ortiz and Santana to face off with Kenny Omega and The Young Bucks in a six-man tag team match. AEW announced the news on Countdown Show that aired on Tuesday night. 

The match will take place on the premiere episode of AEW Dynamite on Wednesday night from Washington, D.C., at the famed Capital One Arena on the TNT Network.

The promotion has already confirmed that The Young Bucks will be in action as they will take on Private Party as part of the first-round in the AEW Tag Team Title Tournament on next week’s show in Boston, Massachusetts at the Agganis Arena

This contest will determine who will advance in not only the tournament but also to get closer to have the chance to become the inaugural AEW Tag Team Champions. 

AEW Full Gear

AEW presents Full Gear on Saturday, November 9th from Baltimore’s Royal Farms Arena. The show will air on B/R Live, which is Bleacher Report’s streaming service, traditional PPV outlets, and FITE TV in international markets. 

It’s already been announced that Jericho will make his next title defense as AEW World Champion against Cody Rhodes in the headliner of this show. 

What are your thoughts on these two stars serving as Jericho’s mystery tag team partners? Was this the right call by AEW officials? Sound off in the comment section.

“A Ghetto Soap Opera” is how Santana and Ortiz describe the LAX vs OGZ rivalry. The backstage scenes often resemble more of an HBO drama than a pro-wrestling show. Although LAX defeated the OGZ at Slammiversary, King’s team stole the belts, tagged them and are claiming them as their own.

Santana and Ortiz recently took part in an Impact Wrestling media call.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=prOl_Yecvak&frags=pl%2Cwn

LAX vs. the OGZ

When the original LAX first hit the pro-wrestling scene over 10 years ago, Santana and Ortiz were only teenagers. We asked Santana and Ortiz how the original version of the faction influenced them when they were younger.

“LAX has been something we’ve watched since when we were kids,” Santana said. “The fact that two Latinos out there not like playing a gimmick but being them and being proud of who they are and what they represent.”

“It’s pretty surreal, it’s a pretty cool thing,” he continued. “I never would have thought when I was 14-15 years old that when I was watching them on tv, I never would have thought ‘hey I’m going to be at Slammiversary XVI wresting the original LAX and putting on one of the best matches in Impact history.”

Ortiz would say his background as a wrestling fan is different from Santana’s. He got into wrestling more in the early 2000s boom when Homicide was first making his mark.

“Homicide was definitely one of the dudes that was just killing it on the indies,” Ortiz said. He’d continue to say watching Homicide’s growth as a performer had an impact on him.

“This is a dude from where we come from and he’s killing it having these insane matches,” Ortiz continued. “Then putting him together with Hernandez and Hernandez is just a truck!”

“We can’t ask for a better position,” he continued. “We are carrying the ball and are going to take it to the moon.”

Santana and Ortiz have come from idolizing LAX to being LAX. Not only that, they are feuding with the original LAX over the Impact tag-team Championships.

LAX vs the Young Bucks on Chris Jericho’s Cruise

The OGZ aren’t the only tag-team LAX need to worry about, however. They have a big match coming up this October on Chris Jericho’s “Rock N Rager at Sea.”

Konnan challenged the Young Bucks to a match during a recent episode of the “Keepin’ it 100” podcast. The match was made official later the next day.

The next #ROHvsImpact DREAM match for @jericho_cruise is #YoungBucksvsLAX! Book cabins NOW! https://t.co/FkbLcDbZDJhttps://t.co/sBFxDlGuxW

— Chris Jericho (@IAmJericho) July 30, 2018