Team USA (also known as Team NWA or Team TNA) is a wrestling faction brought together as part of

Total Nonstop Action Wrestling Impact Wrestling (stylized as ''IMPACT! Wrestling''), is an American professional wrestling promotion based in Nashville, Tennessee. It is a subsidiary of Anthem Sports & Entertainment. Founded by Jeff and Jerry Jarrett in 2002, the promot ...

's X-Cup Tournaments, which involved a team of

X Division The X Division is a high-flying, high-risk, fast-paced style of professional wrestling seen in Impact Wrestling (formerly Total Nonstop Action Wrestling) and since then in various NWA member promotions. Its tagline is that "It's not about weight ...

contestants from various countries representing their nation in an international wrestling competition.

History

2004

America's X-Cup

Team USA was created and led

Jerry Lynn Jeremy Lynn (born June 12, 1963), better known by the ring name Jerry Lynn, is an American retired professional wrestler currently signed with All Elite Wrestling as a producer and coach. He has worked for promotions such as World Championship ...

after he was appointed by TNA Management as the man for the job due to being a pioneer of the

. The other teams in the X-Cup Tournaments were

Team Mexico Team Mexico is a professional wrestling stable that was first formed in 2004 to compete in TNA Wrestling's America's X-Cup Tournament and has since returned to compete in other TNA X Cup Tournaments. History 2004 The original team consisted of ...

or Team AAA,

Team Britain Team Britain, or Team UK, was a professional wrestling stable brought together to compete in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling's 2004 America's X-Cup Tournament and TNA World Cup 2013. Also, a Team Britain was formed in 2006, but it never was us ...

Team Canada Canadian National Team or Team Canada may refer to: Canada at multi-sport events * Canada at the Olympics * Canada at the Paralympics * Canada at the Commonwealth Games * Canada at the Pan American Games Canada's national sport teams * Canada me ...

, and

Team Japan Team Japan is a professional wrestling group that was brought together as a part of Total Nonstop Action Wrestling's World X Cup Tournament. History 2004 Team Japan started as six-man team as team captain Nosawa from All Japan Pro Wrestling tea ...

or Team AJPW. Team USA did not have a very good showing early on, as they lost the inaugural America's X-Cup Tournament to

(consisting of

Juventud Guerrera Eduardo Aníbal González Hernández (born November 23, 1974) is a Mexican professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Juventud "Juvi" Guerrera. Guerrera is best known for his appearances with the Mexican professional wrestling promot ...

Hector Garza In Greek mythology, Hector (; grc, Ἕκτωρ, Hektōr, label=none, ) is a character in Homer's Iliad. He was a Trojan prince and the greatest warrior for Troy during the Trojan War. Hector led the Trojans and their allies in the defense o ...

Mr. Águila José Delgado Saldaña (born December 10, 1977) is a Mexican professional wrestling, professional wrestler (or ''lucha libre, luchador'') best known by his ring name Mr. Águila in Mexican wrestling promotions Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre, CMLL ...

, and

Abismo Negro Andrés Alejandro Palomeque González (July 1, 1971 – March 22, 2009) was a Mexican luchador (Spanish for "masked professional wrestler"). He is best known for appearing under the stage name Abismo Negro, which is Spanish for "Black Abyss", ...

Frankie Kazarian

They were also embroiled in a feud with

Frankie Kazarian Frank Benedict Gerdelman (born August 4, 1977) is an American Professional wrestling, professional wrestler and musician currently signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW), performing under the ring name Frankie Kazarian. In addition, Kazarian also pe ...

, who believed he was wrongfully overlooked by Lynn with regards to the selection of the team. Kazarian proceeded to make his point by attacking and defeating members of Team USA in an attempt to get Lynn's attention. Sonjay Dutt eventually left the team to pursue a grudge with Kazarian regarding this situation. Kazarian defeated Dutt and demanded the now-open spot on the team. TNA responded by putting him in a match with Christopher Daniels for the open spot. Daniels won the match and joined Team USA.

World X-Cup

With Daniels on Team USA, the team enjoyed instant success, winning an 8-man tag warm-up for the World X-Cup. Their momentum carried into the World X-Cup, where Team USA emerged victorious.

2006

Team Formation

Team USA would return to TNA Wrestling to take part in the 2006 World X-Cup. The team's members were chosen through qualifying matches held during episodes of

TNA Impact! ''Impact!'' (stylized as ''IMPACT!''), also known as ''IMPACT! on AXS TV'', is an American professional wrestling television program produced by the American promotion Impact Wrestling (formerly known as Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA)) tha ...

Jay Lethal Jamar Shipman (born April 29, 1985), better known by the ring name Jay Lethal, is an American professional wrestler currently signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW). Dubbed "The Franchise" of Ring of Honor, Lethal is a two-time ROH World Champion, ...

was the first to qualify for the team, defeating

Shannon Moore Shannon Moore (born July 27, 1979) is an American professional wrestler. He is best known for his work with World Championship Wrestling (WCW) between 1999 and 2001 and with World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) for several years in the 2000s. H ...

and

Roderick Strong Christopher Lindsey (born July 26, 1983), better known by his name Roderick Strong, is an American professional wrestler currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the NXT brand, as the leader of Diamond Mine, but is currently inactive due to ...

in a triple threat match.

Chris Sabin Joshua Harter (born February 4, 1982), better known by his ring name Chris Sabin, is an American professional wrestler. He is currently signed to Impact Wrestling, and is also known for his work in Ring of Honor. After being trained by Scott D ...

was the second to qualify, defeating

Alex Shelley Patrick Kenneth Martin (born May 23, 1983) is an American professional wrestler and physical therapy clinician, better known by the ring name, Alex Shelley, makes appearances with Impact Wrestling (formerly known as Total Nonstop Action Wrestl ...

and

Sonjay Dutt Retesh Bhalla (born April 7, 1982) is an American professional wrestler currently signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW) as a producer and manager. He is best known for his time with Total Nonstop ActionImpact Wrestling under the ring name Sonja ...

for the role.

, who defeated

Matt Bentley Matthew James Bentley (born December 10, 1979) is an American professional wrestler best known for his work in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA) by the ring name Michael Shane, later changed to "Maverick" Matt Bentley. He was trained by his c ...

and

Elix Skipper Elix Skipper (born December 15, 1967) is an American retired professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances with World Championship Wrestling, where he was a one-time WCW Cruiserweight Champion and a one-time WCW Cruiserweight Tag ...

, was the third to qualify. Finally,

would qualify by defeating

and

Chase Stevens Chase Bradley Stevens (born January 17, 1979) is an American professional wrestler, best known under the ring name of "The Natural" Chase Stevens. He is known primarily for his work in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA), where he was a member ...

. At a later time, former Team USA captain Jerry Lynn was given the authority of coach/mentor for the team. Despite never coming to the ring with the team during the competitions, he advised them backstage and appointed former teammate Chris Sabin as the team captain for 2006.

World X-Cup Run

Team USA jumped ahead early in the World X-Cup, with Alex Shelley and Sonjay Dutt defeating Minoru Tanaka and

Hirooki Goto is a Japanese professional wrestler. Since his debut, he has wrestled primarily for New Japan Pro-Wrestling. He is also known for being the longest reigning NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Team Champion with his Chaos stablemates, Tomohiro Ishii and ...

of Team Japan on

to earn Team USA 2 points. Chris Sabin then defeated Puma of Team Mexico to earn Team USA another 3 points. After not scoring any points in the

Gauntlet for the Gold A Gauntlet for the Gold match is a professional wrestling match used in Impact Wrestling. Match format Different from the other gauntlet matches, in which one competitor faces several others in turn, the Gauntlet for the Gold match is very simil ...

match at

Sacrifice Sacrifice is the offering of material possessions or the lives of animals or humans to a deity as an act of propitiation or worship. Evidence of ritual animal sacrifice has been seen at least since ancient Hebrews and Greeks, and possibly exi ...

, the team found themselves tied for first place with

after

Petey Williams Peter Williams III (born August 26, 1981) is a Canadian professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE as a backstage producer. He is best known for his time in Impact Wrestling, where he is a two-time X Division Champion. He is also k ...

pinned Puma to win the Gauntlet. Director of Authority

Larry Zbyszko Lawrence Whistler (born December 5, 1951), better known by the ring name Larry Zbyszko, is an American retired professional wrestler. He is perhaps best known for his feud with his mentor, Bruno Sammartino, during the early 1980s as well as his ...

announced a sudden death tiebreaker between the captains of the two teams for the following episode of TNA Impact to determine the winner of the World X-Cup. Just before the match started, both respective teams were locked out of the Impact Zone. Chris Sabin defeated Petey Williams with the Cradle Shock to win the match at the tournament for Team USA.

Shelley/Nash Controversies

The inclusion of Shelley on the team created controversy for Team USA, as the team was mostly full of

babyface Babyface or Baby Face can refer to: Nicknames * Lester Joseph Gillis a.k.a. Baby Face Nelson, an infamous 1930s bank robber * Roosevelt "Baby Face" Willette (1933–1971), an American hard bop and soul-jazz musician * "Baby Face", Jimmy McLarnin ...

wrestlers, while Shelley was a heel working for

Jeff Jarrett Jeffrey Leonard Jarrett (born July 14, 1967) is an American professional wrestler and promoter. He is currently signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW), where he also serves as Director of Business Development. Beginning his career in his father J ...

Planet Jarrett Planet Jarrett was a professional wrestling stable in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, led by the eponymous Jeff Jarrett and containing many of the main event heels in the promotion. It replaced the Kings of Wrestling as the dominant heel faction ...

faction. Problems with Shelley led to initial losses in exhibition matches featuring Team USA taking on Team Canada and Team Japan, but Shelley turned things around and became a productive member of Team USA, aiding their efforts. Shelley later got involved with a second controversy that started during the World X-Cup. He was invited by

Kevin Nash Kevin Scott Nash (born July 9, 1959) is an American actor and retired professional wrestler, currently signed to WWE under a legends contract. He is best known for his tenure with World Championship Wrestling (WCW) where he performed under his r ...

to conduct an interview with the big man. During the interview, Nash criticized TNA and threatened to destroy the X Division. Shelley showed the tape to Team USA, who took serious offense. Nash appeared after the Gauntlet match at Sacrifice, beating down Puma after he had lost the match and delivering a Jackknife Powerbomb to the Team Mexico competitor. Nash also appeared the following week on TNA Impact, attacking Chris Sabin after he won the trophy. Nash broke the trophy and used parts of it to gouge Sabin, then delivered a Jackknife Powerbomb to him as well. Jerry Lynn and Team USA eventually was allowed back into the arena and made the save, but Shelley mysteriously departed with Nash.

Post X-Cup

After the 2006 World X-Cup, Alex Shelley formed the Paparazzi Productions along with Kevin Nash and they developed a short feud with USA 2006 Team Captain, Chris Sabin. Since then, Sabin is now teaming with Alex Shelley as the

Motor City Machine Guns The Motor City Machine Guns is an American professional wrestling tag team consisting of Alex Shelley and Chris Sabin. They are currently signed to Impact Wrestling, where they are three-time and current Impact World Tag Team Champions. The team ...

. Meanwhile, Sonjay Dutt and Jay Lethal are an on-again-off-again tag-team. Lethal is now known as "Black Machismo" and his character is based on that of "The Macho Man" Randy Savage. Dutt, on the other hand, is currently playing a character that is based on

Gandhi Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (; ; 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948), popularly known as Mahatma Gandhi, was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist Quote: "... marks Gandhi as a hybrid cosmopolitan figure who transformed ... anti- ...

2008

Mexico won the World X Cup 2008.

2013

Team USA won the World Cup of Wrestling in a tiebreaker match against Team Aces & Eights.

2016

EC3, Tyrus and

Eli Drake Shaun Ricker (born November 1, 1982) is an American professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name LA Knight. Ricker is known for his time in Impact Wrestling as Eli Drake. Ricke ...

represented Team TNA in the 2016 Lucha Libre World Cup, but was eliminated in the first round.

Members

2004

(Captain) *

(Left the team to pursue a feud with

) *

Christopher Daniels Daniel Christopher Covell (born March 24, 1970), better known by the ring name Christopher Daniels, is an American semi-retired professional wrestler. He is signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW) and is the Head of Talent Relations. He is best kno ...

(Replaced Dutt)

2006

(Captain) *

2008

* Kaz (Captain) *

Curry Man Daniel Christopher Covell (born March 24, 1970), better known by the ring name Christopher Daniels, is an American semi-retired professional wrestler. He is signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW) and is the Head of Talent Relations. He is best kno ...

2013

James Storm James Allen Cox (born June 1, 1977) is an American professional wrestler better known by the ring name James Storm. He is best known for his time in Impact Wrestling. He started his career in 1997 and after working on several independent pr ...

(Captain) *

* Kazarian *

Kenny King Kenneth, Ken or Kenny King may refer to: Ken King * Ken King (born 1971), American politician and businessman * Ken King (ice hockey) (1952–2020), Canadian sports executive Kenneth King * Kenneth George King or Jonathan King (born 1944), Englis ...

Mickie James Mickie Laree James (born August 31, 1979) Additional January 6, 2017. is an American professional wrestler and country singer. She is currently signed to Impact Wrestling. She has also had tenures in WWE and the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA ...

2016

* EC3 *

* Tyrus

Competitive record

World X Cup record

Championships and accomplishments

** TNA World X Cup (2004) – with (Jerry Lynn, Chris Sabin, Elix Skipper and Christopher Daniels) ** TNA World X Cup (2006) – with (Chris Sabin, Jay Lethal, Sonjay Dutt and Alex Shelley) ** TNA World Cup of Wrestling (2013) – with (James Storm, Christopher Daniels, Kazarian, Kenny King, and Mickie James)

External links

TNAWrestling.com (Official Website of TNA Wrestling)
{{TNA One Night Only annual events Impact Wrestling teams and stables Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide teams and stables