TNA Wrestling star Leon Slater came very close to becoming the longest-reigning X-Division Champion of all time but was unexpectedly dethroned earlier this month. Slater lost a 2-Out-Of-3 Falls Match to Cedric Alexander of The System on the May 14th episode of Thursday Night iMPACT on AMC. This loss tied him with Austin Aries as the joint-longest-reigning X-Division Champion, both holding the title for 298 days. Naturally, many fans were disappointed that Slater did not have the chance to break the record.
In the latest edition of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Dave Meltzer noted that TNA Wrestling did not allow Slater to break the record because he is believed to be headed to either WWE or AEW once his contract with the company expires. However, Meltzer did not disclose when Slater’s contract will end.
Since TNA entered into a working relationship with WWE, Slater has competed in several NXT and WWE main roster events. Notably, he participated in John Cena’s retirement show, Saturday Night’s Main Event, last December, where he teamed up with Je'Von Evans to face then-World Tag Team Champions AJ Styles and Dragon Lee.
In January 2026, during WWE’s European Tour, Slater accepted an Open Challenge from then-United States Champion Carmelo Hayes on Friday Night SmackDown. He has yet to compete in All Elite Wrestling.
