IMPACT Wrestling is bringing back an all-Knockouts event this upcoming weekend in Nashville, Tennessee: The Knockouts Knockdown will be filmed in The IMPACT Zone at Skyway Studios, starting Friday, September 17. Read on for all of the details, including the announcement video from Gail Kim, and historical information about the genesis of the original Knockouts Knockdown in 2013 — which, at the time, was the first-ever all-women pay-per-view held by one of the top wrestling promotions in the world.
Knockouts Knockdown, confirmed and announced tonight by IMPACT Hall of Famer Gail Kim, will air on IMPACT Plus and for IMPACT Ultimate Insiders on YouTube – and was last held in 2017 in Orlando, Florida.
Knockouts Knockdown will feature several new Knockouts competing in the IMPACT ring – led by Mercedes Martinez, who once ranked No. 2 of the best 50 female singles wrestlers in the PWI Female 50. Mercedes has won championships around the world and, in 2019, was ranked in the Top 10 women’s wrestlers of the year by Sports Illustrated.
Knockouts Knockdown also will feature the return of multiple IMPACT Knockouts who have not appeared in The IMPACT Zone for years. Christy Hemme, it was announced Monday, will have a major role in Knockouts Knockdown. Hemme, part of the Knockouts Division when it began in 2007, is a former Knockout Of The Year award-winner.
“I am so excited for Knockouts Knockdown, when females from across the wrestling landscape will take over The IMPACT Zone, with female wrestlers, referees, announcers and more,” said Gail Kim, the first-ever IMPACT Knockouts Champion who was a record-setting 7-time Knockouts Champion for a combined 711-days.
Kim also confirmed that one of the matches set for the Knockouts Knockdown will be the Monster’s Ball, which will honor the late Knockout, Daffney, who was the first Knockout to participate in a Monster’s Ball Match – in 2009, at the Sacrifice pay-per-view – when she battled Taylor Wilde.
“There is so much planned, so much excitement for Knockouts Knockdown – I know the fans will be excited to watch it live this weekend, starting Friday afternoon, at The IMPACT Zone in Nashville,” Kim said. “Doing something to honor Daffney’s memory is something that everyone involved with the event and others are thrilled to be able to do.
“She was a great wrestler and a better person. No one will forget Daffney; we want to honor her.”
IMPACT shows will be September 17-19 in Nashville, with 2 shows daily: 3-6pm and 7-10pm. For Tickets: http://impac.tw/SeptTV
The Genesis of Knockouts Knockdown
On January 10, 2013, TNA announced that it was moving away from monthly pay-per-views in favor of focusing on the big four — Genesis, Lockdown, Slammiversary, and Bound For Glory — and taping supplementary “One Night Only” events, including the first ever Knockouts Knockdown, to fill the gaps. Below is the official announcement from back in January 2013:
NEWS: TNA IMPACT WRESTLING Announces
Major Changes To 2013 Pay-Per-View Strategy
TNA IMPACT WRESTLING today announced a new worldwide Pay-Per-View programming initiative for 2013. The 52 annual episodes of IMPACT WRESTLING on SpikeTV will lead to four, live epic Pay-Per-View events commencing with “Genesis” on January 13th, “Lockdown” on March 10th, “Slammiversary” on June 9 and “Bound For Glory” on October 13th.
In addition, seven Pay-Per-View specials that will be branded as “TNA Wrestling: One Night Only,” series will debut in April 2013 and continue throughout the year during the additional months. The 3-hour taped Pay-Per-View specials will premiere on the first Friday of each month. The first two “One Night Only” specials will be “Joker’s Wild Tag Team Tournament” and “X-travaganza” which will feature the X-Division.
“The Pay-Per-View industry has changed so much in the last decade,” says TNA President Dixie Carter. “The traditional pay-per-view wrestling model needed to evolve and we believe this strategy will positively impact not only the Pay-Per-View events but the weekly television programming as well.”
The company will continue to produce TNA Wrestling’s “Unfinished Business”, which are one-hour programs available on a Video on Demand (VOD) basis. The monthly titles continue to focus on the history of a rivalry or a specific past PPV event. These titles are available for two months at a time.