Leon Slater has officially given up the X-Division Championship—and TNA already has a plan to replace him. Santino Marella announced on August 27 that six wrestlers will fight for the vacant title at Bound For Glory.
TNA will hold a series of qualifying matches leading into the pay-per-view. Each winner will advance to a six-way match, where the next X-Division Champion will be crowned. Marella confirmed the news in a video posted through TNA’s social media account.
“Ladies and gentlemen, it is I, Santino Marella, the Director of Authority. Leon Slater has exercised Option C, which means he will challenge for the TNA World Title.”
Slater’s decision means his latest X-Division Championship reign is already over. Marella said the title has been vacated and laid out exactly how TNA will crown its next champion.
“In light of that, he has vacated the X-Division Championship. We will be starting a series of qualifying matches, in which the winner of each match will then be in a six-way match for the X-Division Title at Bound For Glory.”
Slater regained the championship from Cedric Alexander in a Last Man Standing Match at TNA Lockdown on August 23. He won after hitting a 450 Splash and leaving Alexander unable to answer the referee’s ten-count.
Later that night, Nic and Ryan Nemeth defeated Matt and Jeff Hardy inside the cage to capture the TNA World Tag Team Championship. That made Nic Nemeth a double champion, but Slater came out before he could enjoy it and got directly in his face.
Slater announced that he was exercising Option C and cashing in the X-Division Championship for a TNA World Title match at Bound For Glory. That puts him on a collision course with Nemeth while opening the door for six other wrestlers to fight over the belt he left behind.
TNA hasn’t revealed the qualifying matches or announced who will compete for the vacant championship. What is locked in is the destination: six qualifiers will survive, and one of them will leave Bound For Glory as the new X-Division Champion.
Who do you want to see qualify for TNA’s six-way X-Division Championship match at Bound For Glory? Leave your feedback in the comments.
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