Innholdsfortegnelse for February 2026 i Pro Wrestling Illustrated

LAST YEAR, THE FEBRUARY issue of PWI featured a cover story about Joe Hendry—then the most popular star in TNA Wrestling, who had just been cheated out of his most recent opportunity to win the World championship. Hendry kept a cool head despite the loss, and ultimately rebounded at Genesis 2025 to win the title. One year later, Hendry is now a former TNA World champion, who, after making a surprise appearance at WrestleMania in Las Vegas, has transitioned into a new role as an NXT superstar. While Hendry could have certainly benefited from winning the title at Bound for Glory 2024—and it might have made for a better cover story for this magazine—he seems to be doing alright for himself in the present. At Bound for Glory 2025, Mike…

DEBUTING IN DECEMBER 2011, mere days shy of his 16th birthday, Josh Crane embraced the chaos and catharsis of deathmatch wrestling. Through diligence and an unbelievably high pain threshold, he rose to the top of the scene—battling into adulthood in CZW and Big Japan. In recent years, Crane has altered his ring style to that of a more orthodox grappler, though one who throws and hits just a little bit harder (as one who is accustomed to fighting for their life must). The change has had the near-immediate consequence of seeing him crowned the self-styled “King Of Indiana,” bedecked as he’s been by no less than eight championships from the Indiana/Ohio area. And this is how PWI finds him today … PWI: For those who haven’t seen you wrestle, how…

Beloved by wrestling fans for his authenticity and dogged refusal to be defeated by his demons, Santana reflects on sobriety, his late father’s enduring influence, and fulfilling his pro wrestling destiny THIS WAS ORIGINALLY INTENDED to be a feature on the reigning TNA World heavyweight champion. But, less than 24 hours before PWI’s scheduled interview, Mike Santana’s World title reign came to an impromptu end at the hands of Frankie Kazarian and his Call Your Shot trophy. Coming just weeks after the career high of winning the World title at Bound for Glory, the defeat was a crushing setback for Santana—the kind that, once upon a time, may have sent him on a downward spiral to a very dark place. But this isn’t the Mike Santana of a few years ago.…

IN WEATHER FORECASTING, as in wrestling analysis, there are no guarantees. In both, however, there is much to be gleaned by keeping a close eye on developing patterns—the telltale signs that shifts in temperature are coming. Not that it’s always easy: In an era of increased inter-promotional cooperation, supersized TV rights deals, and near-infinite options for wrestling enthusiasts, the game is ever-changing. Women’s wrestling, in particular, has evolved in myriad ways, yielding greater coverage in publications like this one. In less than a decade, women’s tag wrestling has undergone a rapid overhaul, and, in 2026, we can say with confidence that competition will heat up across North America. In this feature, we will share our observational data of the current climate, as well as an analysis of where things appear…

LONG BEFORE DWAYNE JOHNSON and John Cena became top attractions at the box office, producers and casting directors from the cinematic worlds of sci-fi and horror counted professional wrestlers among their genre’s talent pool. From El Santo’s exploits as the monster-battling Samson and Tor Johnson’s stint as a grave robber from outer space to Chris Jericho’s recent role as an arch-demon in Dark Match, pro wrestlers have proven time and again that they have the transferable chops to shine in creepy and otherworldly settings. Now, it’s TNA Knockout Killer Kelly’s turn to curdle some blood in the new horror short Arachnid. Arachnid is a 15-minute psychological horror offering from Canadian filmmaker Luke Paron. The film follows a troubled young man as he struggles with obsessive thoughts of an alluring dancer,…

TWO BROTHERS: UNBROKEN AND UNBOWED MANY OF US WILL h a v e experienced it at some point. Think of a musical artist you always loved. Then, when you went to see them perform later in their career, you left feeling a little underwhelmed—not because you didn’t still love the music, but because the passion simply wasn’t there on the other side of the guardrail. Older wrestlers, like aging rock stars, can often be guilty of phoning it in. Many coast by on former glory. Most times, we forgive them for it, opting to turn our attention to “their old stuff.” In Cameron, North Carolina, however, there are a couple of wrestling rock stars who have no intention of resting on their laurels. For Matt & Jeff Hardy, the hits…

TNA ON AMC NOW IT SEEMS EVERY cable channel wants live action, as AMC Networks and TNA Wrestling have worked out a three-year agreement to air TNA’s flagship program—now rebranded as Thursday Night IMPACT!—from 9 to 11 p.m. Eastern on AMC. The deal is rumored to be worth $30-million, a game-changer for Anthem Sports & Entertainment and TNA. The great news for fans is that AMC wants a specific—yet still undisclosed—number of episodes to air live, which adds an incalculable element of excitement and unpredictability. The first Thursday Night IMPACT under the new partnership will be a live show from the Curtis Culwell Center in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex on January 15. IMPACT episodes will continue to be available on TNA+, in addition to AMC+. Since Anthem’s TNA takeover in 2017,…

I’LL BE THE FIRST TO admit my seven glamorous years with WWE consisted mainly of sitting at a desk in a cubicle in Stamford. However, every now and then (about four or five times a year), the company would send me out on the road. This might have been for a very special event, or just to be able to conduct a boatload of necessary interviews with talent while they were trapped with nowhere else to go, because of Raw, Smackdown, or pay-per-view tapings. Those TV loops were always fascinating for various reasons, never failing to be memorable. But, without a doubt, one of the most memorable of all was the loop in May 2004, which included a stop at the Staples Center in Los Angeles for the Judgment Day…

10. TONI STORM COMES FACE-TO-FACE WITH JON MOXLEY. It was the most memorable clash of lipstick and mayhem since The Rocky Horror Picture Show. 9. WWE UNVEILS A NEW UNDERTAKER-THEMED COMMEMORATIVE BELT PRICED AT $849.99. For the hefty price tag, buyers also receive more of ’Taker’s signature “mental moves,” including how to remove tomato stains from white carpet, what to do when attacked by a rabid ferret, and the cheat codes to Tecmo Bowl on the NES. 8. RIC FLAIR MAKES CONTROVERSIAL AND UNFOUNDED CLAIMS REGARDING HULK HOGAN’S PASSING. The remarks came during a heated argument that Flair was having with a passing cloud. 7. SETH ROLLINS COMPLAINS THAT PEOPLE KEEP HARRASSING HIM WHEN HE’S DRIVING HIS CYBERTRUCK. After publicly voicing his frustration, Rollins discovered that it was just Jim…

WHO DOESN’T LOVE A feel-good story punctuated by a full-circle moment? When Jeff & Matt Hardy took home PWI Tag Team of the Year honors for the year 2000, the young thrill-seekers joined a who’s-who of legendary teams—The Road Warriors, The Rock ’n’ Roll Express, The Steiners, and Harlem Heat, to name a few—as fan-voted recipients of the award. Now, three full decades after competing in their earliest tag matches, they are once again making history within the pages of Pro Wrestling Illustrated. As the number-one pair on 2025’s “PWI Tag Team 100,” The Hardys are the longest-tenured team to ever lead this competitive list. For the evaluation period in question, they outrank three outstanding contemporary acts—FTR, The Usos, and The Young Bucks—who have all ranked first in previous years (and…

HAPPY “TAG TEAM 100” ISSUE, my darlings! At the time of writing this column, thoughts of Christmas trees, Hallmark movies, and hot cocoa are dancing in my head. Perhaps more relevant, though, to this installment of “Mat, Stage, & Screen” are the gobs of truly stupendous entertainment news surrounding the wrestling industry and the players within it. I’ve always wanted to have my own column, and, as a little girl from South Philadelphia, I never could have predicted it would be within the pages of this illustrious magazine. Yet, here we are! I couldn’t be happier to bring you all every morsel of the latest and greatest film, TV, fashion, and literary scoops involving our favorite wrestlers and wrestling personalities. So, let’s get into it, because I have a lot…

FOR THOSE WHO HAVE heard about my journey in the wrestling industry on podcasts or via social media, you already know that I didn’t grow up watching wrestling on a weekly basis like many of my peers. And when the time came for me to truly become immersed in the world of graps, I immediately gravitated towards wrestlers with an unconventional je ne sais quoi—AJ Lee, CM Punk, Paige (Saraya), Natalya, Jazz, and The Hardy Boyz, to name a few. In particular, The Hardys—with their dauntless in-ring style and uncanny way of being charming by just standing in one place—have captivated me for years. So, of course, I had to head to New York City to see the brothers on stage at Connolly’s Pub & Restaurant in the midst of…

HEAVYWEIGHT 1 CODY RHODES  (3) WWE Undisputed Universal champion Atlanta, GA 2 SAMOA JOE (-) AEW Men’s World champion Huntington Beach, CA 3 CM PUNK (-) WWE World heavyweight champion Chicago, IL 4 KONOSUKE TAKESHITA (4) IWGP World heavyweight champion Osaka, Japan 5 FRANKIE KAZARIAN (-) TNA World Champion Anaheim, CA 6 DOMINIK MYSTERIO  (6) AAA Mega/WWE Intercontinental champion San Diego, CA 7 ADAM PAGE  (1) Former AEW Men’s World champion Aaron’s Creek, VA 8 CLAUDIO CASTAGNOLI (-) CMLL World heavyweight champion Lucerne, Switzerland 9 YOSHIKI INAMURA  (-) GHC heavyweight champion Tochigi, Japan 10 MADS KRULE KRUGGER (10) MLW World heavyweight champion Unknown WOMEN 1 STEPHANIE VAQUER (2) WWE Women’s World champion San Fernando, Chile 2 KRIS STATLANDER (1) AEW Women’s World champion Long Island, NY 3 JADE CARGILL  (-)…