On last night’s edition of Impact!, Josh Alexander wrestled his last TNA match for the foreseeable future. He has been with TNA since 2019 winning the Impact World Championship twice, the Impact X Division Championship and Impact World Tag Team Championship twice with Ethan Page.
Alexander is married to fellow wrestler and ring announcer Jade Chung who has also left TNA.
Alexander wrote a farewell on X to the company today:
In February of 2019 I stepped foot in the ring (for a local independent promotion), much like I had hundreds of times before over the previous 14 years. It was in my hometown of Toronto, Canada. I was surrounded by friends, family and about 500 loyal Canadian fans. Most of which had seen me over the years give everything I had every time I stepped into the squared circle. That night, after my successful title defense in the main event, I walked through the curtain and heard Scott D’Amore calling me back to the ring.
As I walked back down the ramp, I had a feeling what this could possibly mean. Flooded with emotions, I got in the ring. A few minutes later, I was a signed, contracted TNA talent. I never asked Scott (or anyone) for an opportunity, a contract or quite frankly anything over the years. Perhaps I’m stubborn, but I always felt like my work, attitude and professionalism would speak for itself.
I’ve always idolized Kurt Angle (duh), Eddie Guerrero, Aj Styles, Samoa Joe and so many others. Like them, I wanted to be the best. Being the best to me didn’t mean I made the most money, it didn’t mean I was the most recognizable star. It was never about “fame” to me, and still isn’t to this day. I just wanted to wrestle and earn the respect of my peers. That being said, I felt like I had more than earned an opportunity to get a contract in wrestling on that cold February evening in 2019.
As they say, then the work began. I showed up in TNA and because of my time over the previous 14 years, I’d already had the trust of many in the locker room. They knew I was capable, coachable, reliable and was willing to go out and at the very least, give everything I had to do whatever my job was that night.
Within 3 months, myself and Ethan Page, now known as “The North”, captured tag team gold. We were driven, we wanted to climb up the card. We knew that as a tag team we complimented each other, and were creative enough to showcase ourselves in any situation (ex: Handicap match vs. Willie Mack HTK 2020 is a personal favorite).
By the end of 2020, Ethan’s contract had come to an end. With a year left on my contract, I was left to sink or swim. With no plan for me, I remember begging for a pre-show match on Hard To Kill 2021. I was granted my wish, and that night I opened the show versus Brian Myers in a losing effort. That night, in the early goings of that match, I broke my heel. The next day at tapings with my foot swollen and black, I powered on, not wanting to tell anyone I was hurt. This was due to two things; 1) I didn’t want to begin my singles run by being shelved and 2) I was struggling to make ends meet to keep food on the table for my young growing family. The reality of not wrestling and getting paid (I was on a per date contract at the time) was not an option.
By April when Rebellion rolled around, I was announced in a 3-way match for the X-Division Title. I showed up that day and to my surprise I was slated to win. I was honestly shocked. I didn’t have communication with anyone at this time, outside at shows or tapings. Again, I never pried or asked what I was doing either. I put my trust in Tommy, Robert, Scott, and everyone in Creative. This was truly a dream come true. I went on to have a run defending that championship with showcase matches that helped solidify my place amongst the best in the company, thanks to my opponents. (TJP, Jake Something and Chris Sabin were among my personal highlights).
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