First 10 TNA Knockouts Champions, Ranked Worst To Best

In 2007, women’s wrestling was much different. In WWE, matches barely lasted five minutes, with the company caring more about a woman's looks than her abilities. That’s what made it so notable when TNA pushed the Knockouts as a division emphasizing serious wrestling over just looking attractive. Granted, the division would change over the years with some bad angles, but the Knockouts were the obviously better division for women wrestling during its prime.

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Notable is that it took quite a few years for more than 10 women to hold the Knockouts Championship. They were an intriguing group, running from respected known stars to lesser-knowns who managed to become very successful. A few were WWE cast-offs while others TNA built to stardom, although there were also a few flops. Not every Knockout could be as successful a champion as others, and the rankings of the first 10 Knockouts champions show how the division has grown over the years.

10 Winter

With her goth character, Winter stood out in TNA but is better known for a strange angle of “controlling” Angelina Love than anything in the ring.

Her first Knockouts Title reign lasted 18 days, and her second reign was just over a month. She wasn’t even pinned or submitted to lose the title the second time around because she lost it in a Fatal 4-way match. Winter was out of TNA not long after her title loss to make her one of the most forgettable Knockouts Champions ever.

9 ODB

It’s always a shame when a great and popular worker never gets the title reigns they deserve. ODB was loved by the Impact Zone fans for her wild manner and crazy antics in the ring.

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She finally won the Knockouts Title in 2009...in a mixed tag match with partner Cody Deaner then claiming the belt himself. She lost the title in three months, and her other two reigns lasted just weeks. Despite how great she was in TNA, ODB never got to show it as Knockouts Champion.

8 Velvet Sky

While not as successful as Beautiful People teammate Angelina Love, Velvet Sky was still a star in TNA. She could be a sharp heel but also enough of a face to get the crowd to back her. Her first reign of 28 days was rough, but she did much better with a 117-day rule in 2013.

Sky would be in the shadow of Love for most of her TNA career but showed enough of a shine as Knockouts Champion to prove she deserved more with the belt.

7 Taylor Wilde

Every now and then, TNA could pull off a good storyline. Champion Awesome Kong was issuing an open challenge for both her title and $25,000. “Fan” Taylor Wilde came out of the crowd and upset Kong for the belt. She was a good worker and had a nice 121-day reign.

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Sadly, Wilde slumped after losing the belt and she was so embarrassed when a fan saw her at her second job at the Sunglasses Hut that she quit. Still, that big win and reign made her a notable early Knockouts Champion.

6 Angelina Love

The leader of The Beautiful People, Angelina Love, isn't just a pretty face. After winning her first Knockouts Title in 2009, Love soon became a good in-ring worker who improved over time. What hurts her standing as champion is that several of her reigns were quite short.

In fact, a couple of reigns didn’t even last a full week, which cuts into her standing as a champion. Love deserves respect for turning herself into a decent worker and an entertaining heel but hardly a dominant champion.

5 Madison Rayne

Madison Rayne was made to be an arrogant heel with a voice that could put Vickie Guerrero to shame. But she could back it up in the ring as a capable worker, much tougher than her size indicated, and finding a way to sneak out a victory.

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She won her first championship in a steel cage match to prove her courage, and an impressive 188-day reign solidified her as a female star. A tag champion as well, Rayne was the type of heel champ fans loved to hate. Rayne would secure five reigns with the Knockouts Championship over the course of her career, along with two reigns with the now-defunct Knockouts Tag Team Titles.

4 Tara

As Victoria in WWE, Tara was already impressive with her beauty and strength. Joining TNA, Tara was rising up nicely, and holding the Knockouts Title was logical. Oddly, her longest reign was her last (and fifth reign) at 104 days.

One reign didn’t even last a full day, yet Tara as champion was a good sight. She also held the Knockouts Tag Team Titles and could captivate crowds from a wild brawl to a more technical battle. Her success in TNA aids Tara’s legacy as a fine worker.

3 Mickie James

After years in WWE, Mickie James was expected to have a decent run in TNA. Instead, she enjoyed a remarkable second act. Her first win in 2011 set Mickie up for a good 112-day run. Her second reign was shorter, but a third reign was much longer.

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Mickie was also great at shifting from a babyface to an arrogant “country music star” heel and kept up some terrific battles. While she did return to WWE, Mickie’s TNA tenure makes her the rare star to succeed wonderfully in both companies.

2 Awesome Kong

Living up to her name, Awesome Kong was an incredible force in TNA. At a time when women in wrestling were all supermodel types, this monster heel dominated, crushing anyone in her path and proving herself well. She was part of the first-ever Knockouts Title change, and her first reign was supreme.

Surprisingly, she only got one other Knockouts Title reign afterward, but both reigns do combine into nearly a year of dominance. Kong was pushed aside by TNA but deserved her accolades as a groundbreaker in the company.

1 Gail Kim

If anyone belongs in a “TNA Hall of Fame,” Gail Kim is that person. After an unspectacular WWE career, Kim helped put the Knockouts on the map, becoming the inaugural champion and setting the bar for everyone to follow.

Kim’s legacy is amazing as she won the gold seven times, more than any Knockout. She's also an expert jumping between heel and face. Kim was the one who made the Knockouts Division so special and that alone ranks her tops among the best women in TNA history.

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