5 WWE Superstars you didn't know were in TNA Impact Wrestling

When Vincent Kennedy McMahon bought his father's company many decades ago, he had a goal in mind: to turn just one of several wrestling territories in the United States, into the biggest wrestling promotion in the world.

And McMahon did just that, with the WWE now being shown in dozens of countries, with an endless stream of content being shown, thanks to the WWE Network.

In second place, in the United States, there is Impact Wrestling, and whilst the company, founded by former WWE star Jeff Jarrett, may never be able to go head to head with McMahon's empire, there was a time where many fans saw it as an acceptable substitute to WWE.

Perhaps that is why so many WWE Superstars spent time in there, with some being recognisable, such as AJ Styles, whilst others tenure's have been forgotten.

Here are five WWE Superstars you (probably) didn't know were in TNA Impact Wrestling.

#5 Tomasso Ciampa

As the reigning NXT Champion, it's clear that Tomasso Ciampa has been a huge success since coming to WWE.

Not only dominant as the top star in the developmental brand, but Ciampa is also a former Tag Champion when he teamed with Johnny Gargano.

But despite making his NXT debut in September 2015, Ciampa would appear on Impact just three weeks later, as his contract with the WWE was yet to be finalized.

Facing off against DJZ and Trevor Lee in X-Division action, Ciampa came up short and was equally disappointed in NXT that very same night, where he lost to Tyler Breeze.

However bad these setbacks were, they did mean that Ciampa joined a very elite few, as someone having appeared in two major companies on the same night.

#4 Dean Ambrose

Debuting on the WWE main roster as part of the Shield, Dean Ambrose has been a tour-de-force since bursting onto screens in 2012.

Whether it be as part of the hounds of justice, going it alone as WWE Champion, or his recent heel turn and feud with Seth Rollins, Ambrose has been consistently entertaining.

But before he made it to the WWE, Ambrose appeared in Impact, just before the Final Resolution 2008 event.

Performing under Indie name Jon Moxley, the future Money In The Bank winner won a dark match in five minutes, with the match surfacing online.

That company decided not to sign Ambrose however, who returned to the indies not long after, before eventually joining the WWE, where he has become a huge star, and someone with the TNA Executives must regret not signing.

#3 Seth Rollins

Dean Ambrose may have gotten a big break in Impact, but he wasn't the only Shield member to do so.

As well as the Lunatic Fringe, Seth Rollins also got a shot in the company, competing under indie name Tyler Black in 2006.

Wrestling in a tag team match, the Architect and his partner were totally dominated by the established Homicide and Hernandez of LAX, with the match lasting just over 30 seconds.

With just one year of experience, the company decided not to sign Rollins, who later made a much bigger name for himself in Ring of Honor.

His star power grew so much in fact, that in 2010 he was offered a contract by Impact, though was also offered one from WWE.

After advice from Evan Bourne, who would interestingly go to Impact after leaving WWE, Rollins would side with the WWE.

#2 Tye Dillinger

Some of our older fans may recognise Tye Dillinger as the infamous 'Stan' who got superkicked by Shawn Michaels at Cyber Sunday 2006, but few will know where the Perfect 10 would land.

After becoming a symbol of DX's controversy, Dillinger would land in TNA, given a tryout in 2009, where he faced fellow ECW alum, Elijah Burke.

After losing to the New Breed leader (remember them?), Dillinger would have to wait for years, before he got another tryout, though lost again, this time to Joey Ryan.

Clearly not being seen highly by the Dixie Carter-led company, Dillinger would walk away from Impact, and later would return to WWE, where he had previously competed, but now as the Perfect 10, where he became one of NXT's most popular stars, before moving up to SmackDown Live.

#1 Shinsuke Nakamura

When Shinsuke Nakamura joined the WWE in 2016, fans were ecstatic, recognising the King of Strong Style from his epic career with New Japan Pro Wrestling

But fans may not be aware of his time in TNA Impact, and whilst it was brief, Nakamura certainly made it memorable.

Joining whilst the IWGP Heavyweight Champion, Nakamura defeated Elix Skipper in January 2008, though had a much bigger match a month later.

In February, Nakamura would face off against Kurt Angle, who had established himself as one of TNA's biggest stars, since joining in 2006.

In an epic bout, the King of Strong Style defended his title against Angle's IWGP 3rd Belt Championship, and even defeated the Olympian to unify the belts, a fact made more impressive when you know that Angle was the TNA World Champion at the time.