diff --git a/pkg/tnf/hack/test-transition-events.sh b/pkg/tnf/hack/test-transition-events.sh
new file mode 100755
index 0000000000..9e670c94bf
--- /dev/null
+++ b/pkg/tnf/hack/test-transition-events.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,66 @@
+#!/usr/bin/bash
+# Test script to validate transition event format on a live cluster.
+# Creates mock events identical to what our code produces, then verifies
+# they appear correctly in `oc get events`.
+#
+# Usage: ./hack/test-transition-events.sh
+# Requires: oc/kubectl with cluster-admin access
+
+set -euo pipefail
+
+NAMESPACE="openshift-etcd"
+TIMESTAMP=$(date -u +"%Y-%m-%dT%H:%M:%SZ")
+
+events=(
+  "EtcdTransitionAuthCompleted|PCS authentication completed on all nodes"
+  "EtcdTransitionClusterConfigured|Pacemaker cluster configured successfully"
+  "EtcdTransitionFencingConfigured|STONITH fencing configured successfully"
+  "EtcdTransitionEtcdResourceCreated|Pacemaker etcd resource agent (podman-etcd) configured"
+  "EtcdTransitionConstraintsConfigured|Pacemaker ordering and colocation constraints configured"
+  "EtcdTransitionStarted|Etcd transition from CEO-controlled to pacemaker-controlled has started"
+  "EtcdTransitionWaitingForRemoval|Waiting for CEO to remove static etcd container from all nodes"
+  "EtcdTransitionStaticContainerRemoved|Static etcd container removed from all nodes, revision is stable"
+  "EtcdTransitionCompleted|Etcd transition to pacemaker-controlled has completed"
+)
+
+echo "Creating ${#events[@]} test transition events in ${NAMESPACE}..."
+
+for entry in "${events[@]}"; do
+  reason="${entry%%|*}"
+  message="${entry#*|}"
+  name="test-${reason,,}-$(date +%s%N)"
+
+  oc apply -f - <<EOF
+apiVersion: v1
+kind: Event
+metadata:
+  name: ${name}
+  namespace: ${NAMESPACE}
+  labels:
+    tnf-test: "true"
+involvedObject:
+  kind: Job
+  name: tnf-setup-job
+  namespace: ${NAMESPACE}
+  apiVersion: batch/v1
+reason: ${reason}
+message: "${message}"
+type: Normal
+source:
+  component: tnf-setup-runner
+firstTimestamp: "${TIMESTAMP}"
+lastTimestamp: "${TIMESTAMP}"
+count: 1
+EOF
+
+  echo "  Created: ${reason}"
+done
+
+echo ""
+echo "Verifying events..."
+echo ""
+oc get events -n "${NAMESPACE}" --field-selector reason!=="" --sort-by='.lastTimestamp' | grep -i "EtcdTransition" || echo "No EtcdTransition events found!"
+
+echo ""
+echo "Cleanup: oc delete events -n ${NAMESPACE} -l tnf-test=true"
+echo "  (events auto-expire after ~1 hour)"
diff --git a/pkg/tnf/pkg/etcd/etcd.go b/pkg/tnf/pkg/etcd/etcd.go
index 33825c2e8b..121b3de70c 100644
--- a/pkg/tnf/pkg/etcd/etcd.go
+++ b/pkg/tnf/pkg/etcd/etcd.go
@@ -8,13 +8,15 @@ import (
 	operatorv1 "github.com/openshift/api/operator/v1"
 	"github.com/openshift/library-go/pkg/operator/v1helpers"
 	"k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/util/wait"
+	"k8s.io/client-go/kubernetes"
 	"k8s.io/klog/v2"
 
 	"github.com/openshift/cluster-etcd-operator/pkg/operator/ceohelpers"
+	"github.com/openshift/cluster-etcd-operator/pkg/tnf/pkg/tools"
 )
 
 // RemoveStaticContainer informs CEO to remove its etcd container
-func RemoveStaticContainer(ctx context.Context, operatorClient v1helpers.StaticPodOperatorClient) error {
+func RemoveStaticContainer(ctx context.Context, operatorClient v1helpers.StaticPodOperatorClient, kubeClient kubernetes.Interface) error {
 	klog.Info("Signaling CEO that TNF setup is ready for etcd container transition")
 
 	_, _, err := v1helpers.UpdateStatus(ctx, operatorClient, v1helpers.UpdateConditionFn(operatorv1.OperatorCondition{
@@ -28,8 +30,11 @@ func RemoveStaticContainer(ctx context.Context, operatorClient v1helpers.StaticP
 		return fmt.Errorf("error while updating ExternalEtcdReadyForTransition operator condition: %w", err)
 	}
 
+	tools.RecordSetupEvent(ctx, kubeClient, "EtcdTransitionStarted",
+		"Etcd transition from CEO-controlled to pacemaker-controlled has started")
+
 	// Wait for CEO to respond by removing static containers
-	err = waitForStaticContainerRemoved(ctx, operatorClient)
+	err = waitForStaticContainerRemoved(ctx, operatorClient, kubeClient)
 	if err != nil {
 		klog.Error(err, "Failed to wait for etcd container transition")
 		return err
@@ -39,15 +44,21 @@ func RemoveStaticContainer(ctx context.Context, operatorClient v1helpers.StaticP
 }
 
 // waitForStaticContainerRemoved waits until the static etcd container has been removed
-func waitForStaticContainerRemoved(ctx context.Context, operatorClient v1helpers.StaticPodOperatorClient) error {
+func waitForStaticContainerRemoved(ctx context.Context, operatorClient v1helpers.StaticPodOperatorClient, kubeClient kubernetes.Interface) error {
 	klog.Info("Wait for static etcd removed")
 
+	tools.RecordSetupEvent(ctx, kubeClient, "EtcdTransitionWaitingForRemoval",
+		"Waiting for CEO to remove static etcd container from all nodes")
+
 	// the container is removed when all nodes run the latest revision
 	err := WaitForStableRevision(ctx, operatorClient)
 	if err != nil {
 		return err
 	}
 
+	tools.RecordSetupEvent(ctx, kubeClient, "EtcdTransitionStaticContainerRemoved",
+		"Static etcd container removed from all nodes, revision is stable")
+
 	// Update the operator status to indicate that the transition has completed.
 	// As soon as the etcd container is removed, this operator won't be able to update this status
 	// unless the etcd container is restarted by the pacemaker resource agent.
@@ -58,7 +69,14 @@ func waitForStaticContainerRemoved(ctx context.Context, operatorClient v1helpers
 		Message: "pacemaker's resource agent is now running the etcd container",
 	}))
 
-	return err
+	if err != nil {
+		return err
+	}
+
+	tools.RecordSetupEvent(ctx, kubeClient, "EtcdTransitionCompleted",
+		"Etcd transition to pacemaker-controlled has completed, pacemaker's resource agent is now running the etcd container")
+
+	return nil
 }
 
 // WaitForStableRevision waits until all nodes run the latest available revision
diff --git a/pkg/tnf/pkg/etcd/etcd_test.go b/pkg/tnf/pkg/etcd/etcd_test.go
index 657946c273..bc3a7d9ad2 100644
--- a/pkg/tnf/pkg/etcd/etcd_test.go
+++ b/pkg/tnf/pkg/etcd/etcd_test.go
@@ -8,54 +8,47 @@ import (
 	"github.com/openshift/library-go/pkg/operator/v1helpers"
 	"github.com/stretchr/testify/require"
 	metav1 "k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/apis/meta/v1"
+	"k8s.io/client-go/kubernetes/fake"
 
 	"github.com/openshift/cluster-etcd-operator/pkg/operator/ceohelpers"
 )
 
-type args struct {
-	ctx            context.Context
-	operatorClient v1helpers.StaticPodOperatorClient
-}
-
 func TestRemoveStaticContainer(t *testing.T) {
-	tests := []struct {
-		name    string
-		args    args
-		wantErr bool
-	}{
-		{
-			name:    "sets ExternalEtcdReadyForTransition condition",
-			args:    getArgs(),
-			wantErr: false,
-		},
-	}
-	for _, tt := range tests {
-		t.Run(tt.name, func(t *testing.T) {
-			if err := RemoveStaticContainer(tt.args.ctx, tt.args.operatorClient); (err != nil) != tt.wantErr {
-				t.Errorf("RemoveStaticContainer() error = %v, wantErr %v", err, tt.wantErr)
-			}
+	ctx := context.Background()
+	operatorClient := newFakeOperatorClient()
+	kubeClient := fake.NewSimpleClientset()
 
-			// Verify that the operator condition was set
-			_, status, _, err := tt.args.operatorClient.GetStaticPodOperatorState()
-			require.NoError(t, err, "Failed to get static pod operator state")
-			isSet := v1helpers.IsOperatorConditionTrue(status.Conditions, ceohelpers.OperatorConditionExternalEtcdReadyForTransition)
-			require.True(t, isSet, "Expected ReadyForEtcdContainerRemoval condition to be set to True")
-		})
-	}
-}
+	err := RemoveStaticContainer(ctx, operatorClient, kubeClient)
+	require.NoError(t, err)
 
-func getArgs() args {
-	ctx := context.Background()
+	_, status, _, err := operatorClient.GetStaticPodOperatorState()
+	require.NoError(t, err)
+	require.True(t, v1helpers.IsOperatorConditionTrue(status.Conditions, ceohelpers.OperatorConditionExternalEtcdReadyForTransition))
+	require.True(t, v1helpers.IsOperatorConditionTrue(status.Conditions, ceohelpers.OperatorConditionExternalEtcdHasCompletedTransition))
 
-	etcd := &v1.Etcd{
-		ObjectMeta: metav1.ObjectMeta{
-			Name: "cluster",
-		},
+	events, err := kubeClient.CoreV1().Events("openshift-etcd").List(ctx, metav1.ListOptions{})
+	require.NoError(t, err)
+
+	expectedReasons := map[string]bool{
+		"EtcdTransitionStarted":                true,
+		"EtcdTransitionWaitingForRemoval":      true,
+		"EtcdTransitionStaticContainerRemoved": true,
+		"EtcdTransitionCompleted":              true,
 	}
 
-	// Create a fake operator client with node statuses that indicate etcd container has been removed
-	fakeOperatorClient := v1helpers.NewFakeStaticPodOperatorClient(
-		&etcd.Spec.StaticPodOperatorSpec,
+	require.Len(t, events.Items, len(expectedReasons))
+	for _, event := range events.Items {
+		require.True(t, expectedReasons[event.Reason], "unexpected event reason: %s", event.Reason)
+		require.Equal(t, "Normal", event.Type)
+		require.Equal(t, "tnf-setup-runner", event.Source.Component)
+		delete(expectedReasons, event.Reason)
+	}
+	require.Empty(t, expectedReasons, "missing events: %v", expectedReasons)
+}
+
+func newFakeOperatorClient() v1helpers.StaticPodOperatorClient {
+	return v1helpers.NewFakeStaticPodOperatorClient(
+		&v1.StaticPodOperatorSpec{},
 		&v1.StaticPodOperatorStatus{
 			OperatorStatus: v1.OperatorStatus{
 				LatestAvailableRevision: 1,
@@ -70,9 +63,4 @@ func getArgs() args {
 		nil,
 		nil,
 	)
-
-	return args{
-		ctx:            ctx,
-		operatorClient: fakeOperatorClient,
-	}
 }
diff --git a/pkg/tnf/pkg/tools/events.go b/pkg/tnf/pkg/tools/events.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..e3cf095321
--- /dev/null
+++ b/pkg/tnf/pkg/tools/events.go
@@ -0,0 +1,50 @@
+package tools
+
+import (
+	"context"
+	"fmt"
+	"strings"
+	"time"
+
+	corev1 "k8s.io/api/core/v1"
+	metav1 "k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/apis/meta/v1"
+	"k8s.io/client-go/kubernetes"
+	"k8s.io/klog/v2"
+)
+
+const (
+	setupEventNamespace  = "openshift-etcd"
+	setupJobName         = "tnf-setup-job"
+	setupSourceComponent = "tnf-setup-runner"
+)
+
+// RecordSetupEvent creates a Normal Kubernetes event in openshift-etcd for a
+// TNF setup lifecycle milestone. Failures are logged but never returned —
+// event recording must not block the setup.
+func RecordSetupEvent(ctx context.Context, kubeClient kubernetes.Interface, reason, message string) {
+	event := &corev1.Event{
+		ObjectMeta: metav1.ObjectMeta{
+			Name:      fmt.Sprintf("tnf-%s-%d", strings.ToLower(reason), time.Now().UnixNano()),
+			Namespace: setupEventNamespace,
+		},
+		InvolvedObject: corev1.ObjectReference{
+			Kind:       "Job",
+			Name:       setupJobName,
+			Namespace:  setupEventNamespace,
+			APIVersion: "batch/v1",
+		},
+		Reason:         reason,
+		Message:        message,
+		Type:           corev1.EventTypeNormal,
+		Source:         corev1.EventSource{Component: setupSourceComponent},
+		FirstTimestamp: metav1.Now(),
+		LastTimestamp:  metav1.Now(),
+		Count:          1,
+	}
+
+	if _, err := kubeClient.CoreV1().Events(setupEventNamespace).Create(ctx, event, metav1.CreateOptions{}); err != nil {
+		klog.Warningf("Failed to record %s event: %v", reason, err)
+	} else {
+		klog.Infof("Recorded event: %s - %s", reason, message)
+	}
+}
diff --git a/pkg/tnf/setup/runner.go b/pkg/tnf/setup/runner.go
index 7586c2df5c..6f90330bc0 100644
--- a/pkg/tnf/setup/runner.go
+++ b/pkg/tnf/setup/runner.go
@@ -83,6 +83,9 @@ func RunTnfSetup() error {
 		return err
 	}
 
+	tools.RecordSetupEvent(ctx, kubeClient, "EtcdTransitionAuthCompleted",
+		"PCS authentication completed on all nodes")
+
 	klog.Info("Running TNF setup")
 
 	// create tnf cluster config
@@ -100,12 +103,18 @@ func RunTnfSetup() error {
 		time.Sleep(5 * time.Second)
 	}
 
+	tools.RecordSetupEvent(ctx, kubeClient, "EtcdTransitionClusterConfigured",
+		"Pacemaker cluster configured successfully")
+
 	// configure stonith
 	err = pcs.ConfigureFencing(ctx, kubeClient, []string{cfg.NodeName1, cfg.NodeName2})
 	if err != nil {
 		return err
 	}
 
+	tools.RecordSetupEvent(ctx, kubeClient, "EtcdTransitionFencingConfigured",
+		"STONITH fencing configured successfully")
+
 	// Register pacemaker alert agents for fencing taint/untaint.
 	// Tolerate the scripts not being present yet, they are delivered by
 	// MCO which may not have rolled out at this point
@@ -125,6 +134,9 @@ func RunTnfSetup() error {
 		return err
 	}
 
+	tools.RecordSetupEvent(ctx, kubeClient, "EtcdTransitionEtcdResourceCreated",
+		"Pacemaker etcd resource agent (podman-etcd) configured")
+
 	// configure etcd constraints
 	configured, err = pcs.ConfigureConstraints(ctx)
 	if err != nil {
@@ -134,8 +146,11 @@ func RunTnfSetup() error {
 		time.Sleep(5 * time.Second)
 	}
 
+	tools.RecordSetupEvent(ctx, kubeClient, "EtcdTransitionConstraintsConfigured",
+		"Pacemaker ordering and colocation constraints configured")
+
 	// Signal CEO that TNF setup is ready for etcd container removal
-	err = etcd.RemoveStaticContainer(ctx, operatorClient)
+	err = etcd.RemoveStaticContainer(ctx, operatorClient, kubeClient)
 	if err != nil {
 		return err
 	}