Aces & Eights were a villainous stable in the American promotion Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA, later Impact Wrestling), initially consisting of a group of masked wrestlers before their identities were revealed. It had the gimmick of a Vigilante Posse motorcycle club; members of the stable rode motorcycles, wore kuttes, and were referred to as either "prospects" or "patched in". The name of the stable is a reference to the two pair poker hand known as the "dead man's hand".
Contents
History
Takeover of TNA
The stable debuted on the June 14, 2012, episode of Impact Wrestling, with three masked wrestlers attacking Sting as he discussed his induction to the TNA Hall of Fame. On the July 5 episode of Impact Wrestling, an unnamed man delivered an envelope to TNA General Manager Hulk Hogan containing a photograph of aces and eights playing cards (known as the "dead man's hand") and a note reading "see you next week", saying "we're not cowards... we've got something for you Hogan, wait and see!"
Aces & Eights returned (in greater numbers) to TNA on the July 12, 2012, episode of Impact Wrestling, attacking both Sting and Hogan, with Hogan billed as having sustained a pelvic fracture (providing a kayfabe explanation for his absence from television while recovering from surgery to alleviate back pain). Over the next several weeks, the stable continued to attack both faces and heels, they were initially introduced as a Vigilante Gang
Aces & Eights made its first appearance on pay-per-view at Hardcore Justice on August 12, 2012, attacking D'Angelo Dinero backstage (providing a kayfabe explanation for his absence from television to recuperate from a shoulder injury). Aces & Eights later interfered in a four-way tables match, attacking Jeff Hardy and the eventual winner, Bully Ray.
On the August 23, 2012, episode of Impact Wrestling, Aces & Eights brawled with members of the TNA roster, injuring the right arm of TNA World Heavyweight Champion Austin Aries. One week later, Aces & Eights attacked Aries again, knocking him unconscious with a foreign object. The following week on Impact Wrestling, a low-level member of Aces & Eights named Mike was interrogated by Austin Aries into leaking information about Aces & Eights, but Aces & Eights came out and knocked out Mike with a hammer to prevent him from revealing anything.
At No Surrender, on September 9, 2012, Aces & Eights again brawled with the TNA roster following a fight between Aries and a member called "The Armbreaker", injuring the shoulder of Jeff Hardy prior to his Bound for Glory series final against Bully Ray.
Aces & Eights wrestled its first match at the Bound for Glory pay-per-view on October 14, 2012, where two unnamed members of the stable defeated Sting and Bully Ray in a no disqualification tag team match to win unfettered access to the Impact Zone (Aces & Eights had agreed to leave TNA if they had lost). They won following interference from two other members of the stable, one of whom was subsequently unmasked and revealed as Devon, a member of the TNA roster and the former tag team partner of Bully Ray. Devon was the first member of Aces & Eights to be formally identified by TNA.
On the October 18, 2012, episode of Impact Wrestling, Devon, speaking for the gang (his vest identified him as "Sergeant-at-Arms"), threatened the TNA roster, who responded by attacking Aces & Eights. Sting challenged Devon to a match, which Sting won by disqualification when Aces & Eights interfered.
On the October 25 Impact Wrestling, Aces & Eights announced they would target a victim, chosen by throwing a dart at a photo collage of TNA wrestlers and later revealed to be Kurt Angle (a previous target of Aces & Eights). Angle had just lost a TNA World Heavyweight Championship match to Jeff Hardy. Bully Ray confronted his "brother" Devon, who claimed Hogan's mistreatment of him was why he joined Aces & Eights. After Devon announced that he and Bully were no longer brothers, Bully called Devon a "coward" and challenged him to a match on the "Open Fight Night" episode of Impact, on November 1.
That match ended in a brawl between the TNA roster and Aces & Eights, during which Joseph Park unmasked a member, revealing him as Drew Hankinson.
On the November 8 Impact Wrestling, Hankinson was introduced as D.O.C. (Director of Chaos), a prospect of Aces & Eights. Later that night, D.O.C. teamed with Devon to wrestle Sting and Angle. Sting and Angle won by disqualification when Devon used Sting's baseball bat. D.O.C. then drove Sting through a table, to prove his worth to the group. Sting was then attacked by several members and beaten with a ball-peen hammer by D.O.C.
D.O.C. defeated Joseph Park, and Devon lost to Kurt Angle at the Turning Point pay-per-view on November 11.
Dominance
On the November 15 episode of Impact Wrestling, Aces & Eights chose Magnus as their next victim; Devon used a baseball bat and D.O.C. a ball-peen hammer to injure Magnus' knees. Later that night, Kurt Angle teamed with Garett Bischoff to defeat Devon and an unnamed member, despite D.O.C. attempting to interfere in the match. As a reward for his loyalty, D.O.C. was promoted from a prospect to a patched in member.
On the November 22 episode of Impact Wrestling, Aces & Eights attacks Eric Young as their next victim after Young won the 2012 Impact Turkey Bowl against Jessie Godderz and Robbie E in a triple threat turkey suit match; Devon used a baseball bat on the back of Eric's left leg. ODB was hand-cuffed to the ringpost and forced to watch DOC injuring Eric's right ankle with a ball peen hammer.
On the December 6 episode of Impact Wrestling, Devon became the first member of Aces & Eights to win a title, defeating Samoa Joe for the Television Championship, after interference from D.O.C. Later that night, the group attacked Angle again, as well as Jeff Hardy after being paid to do so by Bobby Roode. At Final Resolution, Devon, D.O.C., and two masked members lost to Kurt Angle, Samoa Joe, Garett Bischoff, and Wes Brisco, after Angle pinned one of the masked members.
On the December 27 episode of Impact Wrestling, Aces & Eights offered membership to Mr. Anderson. Anderson accepted that offer on the January 3, 2013, episode of Impact Wrestling. Later that night, Devon and a masked Aces & Eights member were defeated by Kurt Angle and Samoa Joe in a tag team cage match. Afterwards, several Aces & Eights members attacked Angle and Joe. Sting made his return and helped them fight off Aces & Eights with his baseball bat. Angle unmasked Devon's tag team partner, revealing him as Knox (renamed "Knux" in March 2013).
On January 13, 2013, at Genesis, Aces & Eights went two for three: Mr. Anderson defeated Samoa Joe and Devon defeated Joseph Park, before D.O.C. lost to Sting.
On the January 17 Impact Wrestling, Aces & Eights crashed Bully Ray and Brooke Hogan's wedding and attacked Ray, Hulk Hogan, and two of Ray's groomsmen, Tommy Dreamer and Brother Runt, after Ray's best man, Taz, revealed himself as the newest member. During the beatdown, Knux and D.O.C. taunted Brooke and forced her to watch. Sting tried to make the save, but was also beaten down. Aces & Eights then ran off, leaving Brooke to tend to her father and fiancé.
Downfall
After Slammiversary, Sting announced the return of the Main Event Mafia to war with Aces and Eights. On the June 13 edition of Impact Wrestling, Mr. Anderson won a battle royal which also included fellow members Devon, D.O.C., Knux, Wes Brisco, and Garett Bischoff for a spot in the 2013 Bound for Glory Series after D.O.C. was forcibly thrown out by Anderson after refusing to voluntarily eliminate himself as the other members had done.
On the July 11 edition of Impact Wrestling, D.O.C. lost his bid to become the Vice-President of Aces and Eights as Knux gave his deciding vote to Mr. Anderson, to D.O.C.'s disgust. On July 12, 2013, D.O.C. parted ways with TNA after his contract expired (it was explained on-screen that he turned in his kutte over losing the VP bid to Anderson). On July 18 at Impact Wrestling: Destination X, Bully Ray lost the World Heavyweight Championship to Chris Sabin following interference from both Aces & Eights and the Main Event Mafia. On the August 1 episode of Impact Wrestling, Kurt Angle announced that the Main Event Mafia and Aces & Eights would face off in a 5-on-5 tag match at Impact Wrestling: Hardcore Justice on August 15, whereby the person to be pinned or submit must leave TNA.
The 5-on-5 match would be delayed until the August 22 episode of Impact Wrestling due to Kurt Angle entering rehab following a DUI. At Impact Wrestling: Hardcore Justice, Bully Ray regained the TNA World Heavyweight Championship, defeating Sabin in a steel cage match after Tito Ortiz (who officially joined Aces & Eights) and Mr. Anderson interfered. Later in the evening (for the episode to be aired on August 22) The Main Event Mafia (who recruited AJ Styles to be Angle's replacement) defeated Aces & Eights after Styles pinned Devon following a Styles Clash. This forced Devon to leave TNA, thus also removing him from Aces & Eights. On the same show, Bully Ray also revealed that he had been involved romantically with Brooke Tessmacher, now named just Brooke. Brooke then also officially joined Aces & Eights.
Following weeks of dissension, and after Hulk Hogan enforced the rule that Bully Ray must challenge one of the members of the group for the next title defense on the September 12 special episode of Impact Wrestling: No Surrender, on the September 5 episode of Impact Wrestling, Mr. Anderson intentionally missed handing the hammer to Bully Ray to get out of Scorpion Deathlock by Sting, thus losing the no-disqualification match. Anderson confronted Bully Ray and revealed he would be the challenger. On Impact Wrestling: No Surrender, it was announced that Bellator MMA had pulled Ortiz from TNA programming due to his upcoming PPV fight with Rampage Jackson. On the same show, Bully emerged victorious over Anderson in a Last Man Standing match with the help of the other group members, and took the kutte from Anderson after a post-match beating, effectively removing him as Vice President and a member of the group. It caused a rift within the stable as the remaining members tried to voice their opinions on Bully Ray's clouded judgments after he started his relationship with Tessmacher and ousted Mr. Anderson. On the September 26 episode of Impact Wrestling, Knux called out Bully Ray again for hanging around with Tessmacher rather than taking care of the remaining members, and barred him from participation from the next tag match against The Main Event Mafia. Later in the night, following an Aces & Eights defeat to the Main Event Mafia in which Samoa Joe forced Wes Brisco to submit, Bully Ray came to the ring and told Brisco that he was out of Aces and Eights, but Brisco refused to hand his kutte over to Ray. Ray then hit Brisco with a clothesline and piledriver, after which Knux and Bischoff, after some hesitation, eventually took Brisco's kutte off and gave it to Ray. At Bound for Glory, despite interference from Dixie Carter and Aces & Eights, Bully Ray lost the TNA World Heavyweight Championship to AJ Styles. On the October 24 episode of Impact Wrestling, Mr. Anderson returned and cost Bully Ray his rematch with Styles for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship.
Reunion
D'Lo Brown and Mr. Anderson were scheduled to represent Aces and Eights at TNA: There's No Place Like Home but the event was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, on the June 23, 2020 episode of Impact!, D'Lo Brown teased the return of the faction by standing up from a chair to reveal an Aces & Eights kutte draped over the back.
On the June 16, 2022 episode of Impact!, Aces & Eights (represented by Garett Bischoff and Wes Brisco and managed by D'Lo Brown) made their return as fan favorites, losing to Honor No More's Kenny King and Vincent.
Members
Championships and accomplishments
American Pro Wrestling Alliance
APWA Hardcore Cup Championship (1 time) – Knux
APWA World Tag Team Championship (1 time) – Knux and D.O.C
Atomic Revolutionary Wrestling
ARW Next Level Championship (1 time) – Garrett Bischoff
Pro Wrestling Illustrated
PWI Feud of the Year (2012) vs. TNA
PWI ranked Ray #4 of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the PWI 500 in 2013
PWI ranked Devon #32 of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the PWI 500 in 2013
PWI ranked Anderson #62 of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the PWI 500 in 2013
PWI ranked D.O.C. #69 of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the PWI 500 in 2013
PWI ranked Brisco #101 of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the PWI 500 in 2013
PWI ranked Knux #132 of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the PWI 500 in 2013
PWI ranked Bischoff #235 of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the PWI 500 in 2013
Rampage Pro Wrestling
RPW Heavyweight Championship (1 time) – D.O.C.