Aces & Eights

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".

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". ===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. , Devon, D.O.C., D'Lo Brown (as the masked "VP"), and Knux (back), standing over Sting (bottom) 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. , and Wes Brisco on the far side of the ring, with "VP" - later revealed to be D'Lo Brown - and D.O.C. on the near side) surround General Manager Hulk Hogan on the February 14, 2013, episode of Impact 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. On the January 24 Championship Thursday edition of Impact Wrestling, Taz explained why he joined Aces & Eights and implied that his contract with TNA makes him effectively immune to retaliation by TNA Management; Taz also mentioned working for a "higher power" within Aces & Eights. Later that night, Bully Ray swore revenge upon Aces & Eights, singling out Devon and Taz as his main targets. Kurt Angle called out Mr. Anderson and challenged him to a steel cage match at Open Fight Night on the January 31 Impact Wrestling. Just after Jeff Hardy defeated Christopher Daniels in the main event, Taz distracted Hardy as a masked member of Aces & Eights attacked Hardy from behind, injuring Hardy's left leg. That same night, it was revealed that Angle's friends, Wes Brisco and Garett Bischoff, were also members of Aces & Eights. Angle defeated Anderson in their cage match while Brisco watched from ringside; after the match, a masked member of Aces & Eights confronted Angle, then revealed himself as Bischoff. Brisco feigned surprise, then suddenly attacked Angle along with Bischoff; Brisco then took his suit jacket off and let his hair down as he revealed his own Aces & Eights vest. Magnus made his return and fought Devon, but D.O.C. and Knux interfered; Magnus threw his attackers over the top rope and forced them to retreat. Hulk Hogan reinstated Bully Ray and made a match for the February 7 Impact Wrestling: Bully and Sting vs. Devon and D.O.C. in a tables tag match. On the February 7 Impact Wrestling, Bischoff stated that he joined Aces & Eights because he got no respect from the fans, and Brisco said he joined because Hulk Hogan disrespected him. Devon then threatened Angle, saying that Aces & Eights would end his career. In the main event, Bully Ray and Sting defeated Devon and D.O.C. in their tables tag match; Sting gave D.O.C. a Scorpion Deathdrop and Bully drove his former brother Devon through a table for the win. On the February 14 Impact Wrestling, Sting accepted Aces & Eights' challenge at Lockdown: Sting and three members of the TNA Roster would face Devon, D.O.C., Knux and Mr. Anderson in a 4-on-4 tag team match. Later that night, Angle faced Samoa Joe in a World Heavyweight Championship contender's match, but Brisco and Bischoff interfered and attacked both Angle and Joe, resulting in a "No Contest" for the match. At the end of the night, Hogan was about to announce the #1 contender for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship, but Aces & Eights rushed the ring and surrounded Hogan; Sting and Bully Ray came out for the save, forcing Aces & Eights to retreat. On the February 21 Impact Wrestling, Bischoff faced Samoa Joe, but Brisco intervened, resulting in Bischoff's disqualification. Angle rushed to the ring for the save; as Bischoff and Brisco retreated through the crowd, Angle challenged Brisco to a steel cage match at Lockdown. In the main event, Devon, D.O.C. and Anderson faced Sting, Bully Ray and Hogan in a six-man tag match, but Hogan was a no-show. As Sting & Bully prepared to finish off Anderson, Aces & Eights dragged Brooke Hogan and her father to the ring, forcing Bully Ray to rush to their aid; D.O.C. took advantage of the distraction to execute a big boot to the face followed by the pin on Sting, who was then beaten down by Aces & Eights. On the February 28 Impact Wrestling, Sting expanded the Lethal Lockdown match at Lockdown to 5-on-5: Devon, D.O.C., Anderson, Knux and Bischoff would face "Team TNA", consisting of Sting, Samoa Joe, Magnus, James Storm and Eric Young; as Sting distracted Aces & Eights, Young snuck into the ring and attacked Aces & Eights from behind, then Team TNA fought Aces & Eights and forced them to retreat. At the end of the night, Kurt Angle chanced upon Mr. Anderson and beat him down, then Angle invaded the Aces & Eights clubhouse, attacking Devon and the masked Vice-President. Angle smashed a bottle over the VP's head before unmasking him; a shocked Angle then angrily berated the VP, whose face was never shown on camera. The show ended as the other members of Aces & Eights attacked Angle from behind. The March 7 episode of Impact Wrestling had Brisco coming out to the ring to insult Angle, who responded by attacking Brisco. As TNA officials attempted to separate Brisco and Angle, Angle pointed at one of the officials, D'Lo Brown, who then kicked Angle in the groin and revealed himself as the Vice-President of Aces & Eights. Devon then faced Sting in the first match in a Best-of-Three series to determine which team would get the advantage at Lockdown; Devon pinned Sting after a fan blinded Sting by throwing beer in his face. In the second match of the series, Samoa Joe and Magnus defeated D.O.C. and Bischoff, and in the last match of the series, Mr. Anderson pinned James Storm after Aces & Eights distracted Storm, thus giving Aces & Eights the advantage at Lockdown. The show ended with Brown leading Aces & Eights into the ring for a brawl with Team TNA. At the Lockdown pay-per-view, Brisco won his match against Angle with help from Brown. Later in the night, Aces & Eights lost the Lethal Lockdown match after Eric Young landed an elbow drop from the top of the steel cage for the pin. Later in the night, Aces & Eights interfered in the Steel Cage match between Bully Ray and Jeff Hardy. Devon tossed a hammer to Bully Ray, who used it on Jeff Hardy to win the TNA World Heavyweight Championship, turning heel in the process. Bully Ray announced after the match that he used Hulk and Brooke to become champion and revealed himself to be the President of Aces & Eights. On the April 11 episode of Impact Wrestling, Ray successfully defended the TNA World Heavyweight Championship in a Full Metal Mayhem against Hardy. On the May 2 episode of Impact Wrestling, Brown was defeated by Kurt Angle in an "I Quit" match after swearing on his colors that he would beat Angle, resulting in Bully Ray demoting him to prospect (on July 17, Brown was released from TNA, thus permanently removing him from Aces & Eights). On the May 16 episode of Impact Wrestling, Mr. Anderson told Kurt Angle that the following week, AJ Styles would be patched in to Aces & Eights. On the May 23 episode of Impact Wrestling, Styles did accept the leather vest and attacked Kurt with a hammer, however he also attacked the other members of Aces & Eights. At the Slammiversary pay-per-view, Devon defeated Joseph Park by count out (due to a pre-match attack by Devon and Knux) to retain the TNA Television Championship, only to lose it to Abyss, Park's brother. Bischoff, Anderson, and Brisco would also fall in defeat to Samoa Joe, Magnus, and Jeff Hardy in a six-man tag. Bully Ray managed to defeat Sting in a No Holds Barred match, after knocking him down with a hammer which meant Sting could never challenge for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship again. === 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. ===Timeline===

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