Monster's Ball match

A Monster's Ball match is a professional wrestling, hardcore match type that originated in and is primarily staged by Impact Wrestling (formerly TNA). The key premise of the Monster's Ball is that all contenders are (kayfabe) sequestered alone in a locked room without light, food, or water for 24 hours before the match. This stipulation is meant to induce extreme feelings of aggression in the competitors. Once released, the wrestlers fight one another in a no disqualification match, with the usage of weapons encouraged. Victory can be achieved by pinfall or submission, with the match ending as soon as one wrestler is pinned or submits (there is no elimination format).

There have been 56 Monster's Ball matches conducted by Impact Wrestling, with several unaffiliated independent promotions hosting the match type as well. It was the signature match stipulation of Abyss. Before his retirement in 2019, he had appeared in 48 of the 50 Monster's Ball matches held by Impact to that point and managed in another. Due to the hardcore nature of the match, the Monster's Ball typically features numerous high spots. Frequently used weapons include thumb tacks, "Janice" (a board filled with nails, Abyss's signature weapon), and barbed wire.

Match history (Impact Wrestling)
# Match Event Date Location Notes Ref
1Monty Brown defeated Raven and AbyssVictory Road November 7, 2004 Orlando, Florida [1]
2Rhino defeated Abyss, Sabu, and Jeff HardyBound for Glory October 23, 2005 Orlando, Florida [2]
3Samoa Joe defeated Abyss and RhinoHouse show June 10, 2006 Wayne, New Jersey
4Rhino defeated AbyssHouse show September 29, 2006 Richmond, Virginia [3][4]
5Samoa Joe defeated Brother Runt, Raven, and AbyssBound for Glory October 22, 2006 Plymouth Township, MichiganJake "The Snake" Roberts was the special guest referee
6Abyss defeated Raven, Black Reign and RhinoBound for Glory October 14, 2007 Duluth, Georgia
7Beer Money, Inc. (Robert Roode & James Storm) (w/Jacqueline) (c) defeated Abyss & Matt Morgan, Team 3D (Brother Ray & Brother Devon), and The Latin American Xchange (Homicide & Hernandez) to retain the TNA World Tag Team ChampionshipBound for Glory IV October 12, 2008 Hoffman Estates, IllinoisSteve "Mongo" McMichael was the special guest referee [5]
8Taylor Wilde defeated Daffney (w/Abyss & Dr. Stevie)Sacrifice May 24, 2009 Orlando, FloridaFirst ever Knockouts Monster's Ball match [6]
9Abyss & Taylor Wilde defeated Raven & Daffney (w/Dr. Stevie)Slammiversary June 21, 2009 Auburn Hills, MichiganFirst ever mixed tag team Monster's Ball match [7]
10Abyss defeated Mick FoleyBound for Glory October 18, 2009 Irvine, CaliforniaDr. Stevie was the special guest referee for the match
11Abyss defeated RhinoHouse show November 9, 2009 Nashville, Tennessee
12A.J. Styles defeated AbyssTNA Impact! May 3, 2010 Orlando, Florida
13Abyss defeated Desmond WolfeSlammiversary VIII June 13, 2010 Orlando, Florida [8]
14Jeff Hardy defeated AbyssHouse show July 2, 2010 Brooklyn, New York [9]
15Jeff Hardy defeated AbyssHouse show July 23, 2010 Bloomington, Illinois [10]
16Jeff Hardy defeated AbyssHouse show July 24, 2010 LaPorte, Indiana [11][12]
17Jeff Hardy defeated AbyssHouse show August 13, 2010 Baton Rouge, Louisiana [13]
18Jeff Hardy defeated AbyssHouse show August 14, 2010 Thibodaux, LouisianaMick Foley was the special guest referee [14]
19Jeff Hardy defeated AbyssHouse show September 16, 2010 York, Pennsylvania [15]
20Jeff Hardy defeated AbyssHouse show September 17, 2010 Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania [16]
21Tommy Dreamer defeated AbyssHouse show September 23, 2010 New York City, New YorkMick Foley was the special guest referee [17]
22Abyss defeated Tommy DreamerHouse show September 25, 2010 Rahway, New Jersey [18]
23Rob Van Dam defeated AbyssBound for Glory October 10, 2010 Daytona Beach, Florida [19]
24Tommy Dreamer defeated AbyssHouse show October 15, 2010 Racine, Wisconsin [20]
25Tommy Dreamer defeated AbyssHouse show October 16, 2010 Dubuque, Iowa [21]
26Tommy Dreamer defeated AbyssHouse show October 17, 2010 Hoffman Estates, IllinoisMick Foley was the special guest referee [22]
27Abyss defeated SabuHouse show October 21, 2010 Grand Rapids, Michigan [23]
28Abyss defeated SabuHouse show October 22, 2010 Cadillac, Michigan [24]
29Abyss defeated SabuHouse show October 23, 2010 Saginaw, Michigan [25]
30Abyss defeated SabuHouse show October 24, 2010 Port Huron, Michigan [26]
31Abyss defeated Tommy DreamerHouse show April 9, 2011 Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania [27]
32Abyss defeated Bully RayGenesis January 8, 2012 Orlando, FloridaAs per stipulation of the match, had Abyss lost, he would have had to rejoin Immortal [28]
33Joseph Park defeated Judas Mesias (w/James Mitchell)One Night Only: Hardcore Justice 2 July 5, 2013 Orlando, Florida [29]
34Joseph Park defeated Bad Influence (Christopher Daniels & Kazarian)Impact Wrestling December 26, 2013 Orlando, Florida [30]
35Abyss defeated Eric YoungImpact Wrestling February 6, 2014 Glasgow, Scotland [31]
36Jeff Hardy defeated AbyssOne Night Only: #OldSchool February 7, 2014 Poughkeepsie, New York [32]
37Eric Young (c) defeated AbyssImpact Wrestling April 17, 2014 Orlando, Florida Match for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship [33]
38Magnus & Bram defeated Abyss & WillowImpact Wrestling June 26, 2014 Bethlehem, Pennsylvania [34]
39Bram defeated AbyssImpact Wrestling August 7, 2014 New York, New York [35]
40Bram defeated AbyssOne Night Only: Turning Point January 9, 2015 Charlottesville, Virginia [36]
41Jeff Hardy defeated AbyssImpact Wrestling January 30, 2015 New York, New York [37]
42Eric Young defeated AbyssOne Night Only: Rivals February 6, 2015 Roanoke Rapids, North Carolina [38]
43Matt Hardy defeated AbyssOne Night Only: Hardcore Justice 2015 February 13, 2015 Orlando, Florida [39]
44Abyss defeated GradoOne Night Only: Live! January 8, 2016 Bethlehem, Pennsylvania [40]
45The Wolves (Davey Richards & Eddie Edwards) (c) defeated Decay (Crazzy Steve & Abyss) (w/Rosemary)Impact Wrestling February 16, 2016 Manchester, England Match for the TNA World Tag Team Championship [41]
46Decay (Abyss & Crazzy Steve) (c) (w/Rosemary) defeated The BroMans (Robbie E & Jessie Godderz) (w/Raquel)Impact Wrestling July 28, 2016 Orlando, Florida Match for the TNA World Tag Team Championship [42]
47Rosemary (c) defeated JadeImpact Wrestling: Genesis January 26, 2017 Orlando, Florida Match for the Impact Knockouts Championship [43]
48Abyss (w/James Mitchell) defeated GradoBound for Glory November 5, 2017 Ottawa, Canada As part of the story line, since Grado lost, his work visa is terminated and must leave the U.S. [44]
49 Kongo Kong defeated Abyss Impact! March 22, 2018 Orlando, Florida [45]
50 Eli Drake defeated Abyss Homecoming January 6, 2019 Nashville, Tennessee [46]
51 Taya Valkyrie (c) defeated Jessicka Havok, Rosemary, and Su Yung Slammiversary XVII July 7, 2019 Dallas, Texas Match for the Impact Knockouts Championship [47]
52 Savannah Evans defeated Alisha Edwards, Jordynne Grace, and Kimber Lee Knockouts Knockdown October 9, 2021 Nashville, Tennessee Shannon "Daffney" Spruill Memorial match [48][49]
53 PCO defeated Jonah Impact! May 5, 2022 Poughkeepsie, New York Starting with this match, the original premise of Monster's Ball returns where the participants are locked away for 24 hours beforehand. [50]
54 Sami Callihan defeated Moose Slammiversary June 19, 2022 Nashville, Tennessee Event also serves as Impact Wrestling's 20th Anniversary Show [51]
55 Masha Slamovich defeated Allie Katch Impact! September 29, 2022 Nashville, Tennessee [52]
56 Trey Miguel (c) defeated Crazzy Steve Impact! February 4, 2023
(aired February 23)		 Kissimmee, Florida Match for the Impact X Division Championship [53]
57 PCO defeated Steve Maclin, Rhino and Moose Bound for Glory October 21, 2023 Cicero, Illinois

Participant list

In Impact Wrestling, 51 wrestlers have taken part in Monster's Ball matches. Abyss holds the record for most participations, having competed in 48 such matches, and the record for most victories with 19.

Superstar Victories Appearances
Abyss/Joseph Park* 19 48
Jeff Hardy/Willow* 9 11
Tommy Dreamer 4 6
Bram 3 3
Samoa Joe 2 2
Taylor Wilde 2 2
PCO 2 2
Eric Young 2 3
Rhino 2 5
A.J. Styles 1 1
Davey Richards 1 1
Eddie Edwards 1 1
Eli Drake 1 1
James Storm 1 1
Kongo Kong 1 1
Magnus 1 1
Masha Slamovich 1 1
Matt Hardy 1 1
Monty Brown 1 1
Robert Roode 1 1
Savannah Evans 1 1
Taya Valkyrie 1 1
Trey Miguel 1 1
Crazzy Steve 1 3
Rosemary 1 2
Allie Katch 0 1
Alisha Edwards 0 1
Black Reign 0 1
Brother Devon 0 1
Brother Runt 0 1
Christopher Daniels 0 1
Desmond Wolfe 0 1
Havok 0 1
Hernandez 0 1
Homicide 0 1
Jade 0 1
Jessie Godderz 0 1
Jonah 0 1
Jordynne Grace 0 1
Judas Mesias 0 1
Kazarian 0 1
Kimber Lee 0 1
Matt Morgan 0 1
Mick Foley 0 1
Moose 0 2
Steve Maclin 0 1
Robbie E 0 1
Su Yung 0 1
Brother Ray/Bully Ray* 0 2
Daffney 0 2
Grado 0 2
Raven 0 4
Sabu 0 4
  • Abyss competed as Joseph Park in two Monster's Ball matches, the rest as Abyss.
  • Jeff Hardy competed as Willow in one Monster's Ball match, the rest as Jeff Hardy.
  • Bully Ray competed as Brother Ray in one Monster's Ball match, the other as Bully Ray.

Monster's Ball matches outside of Impact

A Monster's Ball match was announced by John Cena Sr. (father of John Cena), president of the Massachusetts-based Millennium Wrestling Federation on its MWF Xtra online show to take place at their Night of Champions show on June 21, 2008. Todd Hanson defeated Abyss, Rick Fuller and Brian Milonas to win the match and retain his MWF Heavyweight Championship.[54][55] Through TNA's working relationship with Mexican promotion AAA, Verano de Escándalo on July 31, 2011, hosted a Monster's Ball match, where Chessman defeated Abyss, Extreme Tiger, and Joe Líder. On June 7, 2014, at House of Hardcore V, Abyss defeated Tommy Dreamer in a Monster's Ball match. On November 14, 2015, Abyss would face off against Sabu in a Monster's Ball match at House of Hardcore 11 in a losing effort. Abyss has brought the Monster's Ball match to several other independent promotions throughout the world. For example, in June 2018, Abyss was scheduled to face Jimmy Havoc in Melbourne, Australia in a Monster's Ball match at a World Series Wrestling event.

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