Multiple members of the TNA roster have issued an open letter to Anthem to express their issues with the recent events that have occurred within the company.
On February 7th it was announced via press release that Scott D’Amore has been terminated from his position as TNA President and would be replaced by Anthony Cicione effective immediately. Talent was said to be shocked by the news as many thought very highly of D’Amore. Being informed of the news on Zoom, a call featuring TNA talent was said to be “chaotic” in nature and many were sceptical over the regime change.
Reports would surface within the next few days which stated that there was a dispute between D’Amore and TNA management, with follow-up reports claiming that D’Amore was looking to purchase the promotion but was refused by Anthem.
Talent has remained angered by the move, with many publicly expressing their support for D’Amore on social media. Additionally, some have found the change frustrating due to a lack of transparency, with one example being that Anthem stated to talent that the departure was mutual even though the press release said he had been terminated.
TNA Talent Address Anthem
With frustrations continuing, multiple wrestlers have endorsed an open letter to Anthem to let their feelings be known about D’Amore’s exit. Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful has obtained a copy of the letter and has made it public on Fightful Select.
The letter reads as follows:
“Len and Scott, TNA/ Impact is not just our employer and the company for which we work. It is a family. A family that each of us has grown to love and cherish and trust with our bodies and our careers. A family for which we feel deeply and that desire, above all else, to protect. We are deeply saddened by the decision to remove Scott D’Amore from the TNA/Impact family. Scott is a brilliant wrestling mind that has guided this company and has it positioned to take the next step upward in our industry.
Scott is also so much more than this. He is a trusted friend, confidant, teacher, advisor, brother, and mentor to so many within the TNA/Impact family. Scott has been the heart of the TNA/Impact family for over two decades. Len and Anthem have been instrumental in supporting and building this company back from the ground up. The contributions of Len and Anthem have never gone unnoticed by anyone in the company, and we want to make sure Len knows this.
TNA, simply put, would not have survived without Len and Anthem. Not just financially, but with the undying faith in Scott and us to revive the company that was on the brink of death. Len and Anthem are the foundation that TNA has been able to build upon. We would not have made it back to this point without BOTH of you. The fans know this, and the TNA family knows this. We come to you to voice our concern for TNA/Impact, our family, and its future and direction. We, like you, wish to safeguard what we have all worked and sweat and bled for to build.
We want TNA/ Impact to continue grow and to continue to be an enviable place for all professional wrestlers to work. We understand and appreciate that professional wrestling, at its core, is a business, and that the company must provide a fiscally responsible, financially viable product. At the same time, professional wrestling is uniquely situated. The business of professional wrestling is so much more than balance sheets, downloads, and ratings. The wrestling business is and must be its people, its characters, and its storylines. That is to say, there is no wrestling business without the wrestling creative vision and the right people bringing the creative vision to life.
To thrive, a wrestling company must have both an eye toward business decisions, and its fingers on the pulse of creative decisions and the ever-changing appetite of our fans. It is in light of this concern and our desire to uphold the high standards of TNA/Impact that we offer this letter. It is our desire to have a dialogue with you and with the company in an effort to protect the present and the future of TNA/Impact for you, for Anthem, for the fans, and for professional wrestlers.
We feel strongly that a “wrestling person” needs to be intimately involved at a high level to ensure that the amazing company we have all built and product we have provided to our fans continues to grow and flourish. It is our opinion that the best possible person for that role was, is, and will be Scott.
We recognize that we do not necessarily know all the facts or details around the decision to remove Scott. In life there is always the rumors, the opinions, and, somewhere in between, the truth. We rarely get to know which is which. It remains our hope and desire that everyone can set aside the past few days and any hurt feelings or unkind words that may have been exchanged, and meet to discuss a path forward that preserves the TNA/Impact family we all hold so dearly.
We remain steadfast and hopeful that this letter can be a first step to opening, and keeping open, productive lines of communication to ensure the TNA/Impact family continues to be a wonderful, unique place to work for years to come. We ask and implore you both to come together and create a resolution that will reunite this family once again. We look forward to hearing from you and continuing this dialogue.
Signed, your TNA Family.
Fightful has also spoken to talent regarding their opinions on Anthony Cicione, who is spoken of well as a person but there are concerns with his lack of experience in wrestling.
In other TNA news, the promotion looks to make a major change by 2025.