NXT North American Championship: Wes Lee VS Drew Gulak
NXT kicked off with the North American Championship on the line as Wes Lee looked to retain against Drew Gulak. I thought this match was solid, both men are talented and some of the transitions from Gulak looked great. For most of the match, it felt like Lee was in a handicap match as Charlie Dempsey got involved, but eventually, Tyler Bate took Dempsey out and it allowed Wes Lee to connect with the Cardiac Kick (onto Gulak) to get the victory and retain his NXT North American Championship. Interestingly, after the match, Tyler Bate was clearly looking at the title whilst holding up Wes’ hand.
Grade: C+
Gigi Dolin VS Jacy Jayne, Axiom VS Scrypts
We got a recap of last week’s NXT Championship match at Spring Breakin’ before Alba Fyre and Isla Dawn vowed to make one more ritual before they leave NXT. Trick Williams was then in the ring as he talked about his friendship with Carmelo Hayes that dates all the way back to high school. He then called Bron Breakker out and the former NXT Champion responded by saying that he can’t stand Melo being champion. The two then agreed to have a match next week. JD McDonagh then announced that Monday nights are now going to be known as “Monday Night McDonagh” which is a great name before Noam Dar asked the Irish Ace to do him a favour by taking out Dragon Lee tonight. JD made it clear to Dar that if he keeps bothering him, he’ll take the NXT Heritage Cup with him to Raw. Gigi Dolin then made her way down to the ring as she was about to go one-on-one with Jacy Jayne. I think both women have done a good job of making this feud feel important and personal. However, neither one of their matches so far has been particularly good. It feels quite slow and neither Gigi nor Jacy look too comfortable. However, I did like the fact Jayne got the victory after being busted open badly. The reason I liked this was because it made Jacy Jayne look and feel like a badass. After the match, Jayne beat up Gigi in front of Dolin’s brother, who had been watching from the front row the whole time.
Grade: C
Surprisingly, NXT went straight into another match as Axiom took on Scrypts. Personally, I’ve never rated Scrypts as a wrestler (including when he was on the main roster), but that’s not to say that his acrobatic ability isn’t impressive. However, I really rate Axiom and I thought the masked superhero did a good job at carrying Scrypts through the contest. In the end, Axiom superkicked Scrypts in mid-air before he delivered the Golden Ratio to get the victory. After the contest, Scrypts sucker-punched Axiom which resulted in Axiom ripping Reggie’s mask off.
Grade: C+
Dragon Lee VS JD McDonagh, Joe Gacy VS Joe Coffey
Josh Briggs, Brooks Jensen and Fallon Henley were having a good time in Henley’s bar before Dragon Lee took on JD McDonagh. This was excellent! Both men brought so much, whether it was poisonrana’s, Canadian Destroyers or Spanish Fly’s. Noam Dar watched from ringside whilst holding the NXT Heritage Cup and the match just kept getting better and better. Dragon Lee nearly won the match with his awesome powerbomb, but in the end, JD McDonagh picked up a shocking victory after delivering the Devil Inside. I’m surprised that Lee lost his first match this soon, but in my opinion, his performance means more than the victory. As for JD McDonagh, he went from the guy that I couldn’t care less about to one of the guys I most enjoy watching inside the squared circle. JD couldn’t have left NXT any better and I really hope he gets the spotlight put on him on Monday Night Raw.
Grade: A-
Katana Chance and Kayden Carter talked about their friendship backstage and how it’s only fitting that they bow out of NXT as the NXT Women’s Tag Team Champions. The Schism were then talking backstage and Joe Gacy promised to earn the Dyad a tag team title match. Once again, Ava teased that Gacy should go for gold of his own and I totally agree. We then got a video showcasing the recent injuries that have occurred in the NXT Women’s locker room before it was time for the battle of the Joe’s! This match only went a few minutes which I was surprised about and Joe Coffey would’ve won if it wasn’t for Rip Fowler putting Joe Gacy’s foot on the rope. After Gallus chased the Dyad, Ava was able to cause a distraction which allowed Gacy to hit the Upside Down to get the victory. I like Joe Gacy so I’m glad he won a match for once.
Grade: C
Dani Palmer VS Tatum Paxley, The Unholy Union VS Katana Chance and Kayden Carter: NXT Women’s Tag Team Championships
Dani Palmer thanked Sol Ruca (who was on a phone) for her brand new gear before Hank Walker and Tank Ledger wished her good luck for her debut match. Eddy Thorpe then talked about his desire to train before Damon Kemp came up to him and disrespected him. Kemp’s career has really gone backwards since leaving Diamond Mine. It was then time for the debut of Dani Palmer as she took on Tatum Paxley. This match went about 4 minutes and it was ok for what it was. Palmer showed some good athleticism and I think she has the potential to become an important part of the NXT women’s division at some point. My problem was how Tatum Paxley was treated. I said when Pax split up with Nile that she could easily get lost in the shuffle and she looks like she’s been demoted to the jobber entrance, loses comfortably section which is a real shame. On the positive side, Palmer’s frog splash that she hit to get the win looked great.
Grade: C
Andre Chase had cancelled his class before Duke Hudson took over the lesson. He announced that there “would be no pop quiz today” before he liked the idea of Duke University. That will definitely happen at some point in the NXT world, but it also exists in the real world which is quite funny. Von Wagner was showing pictures of his childhood to Mr. Stone before Stone noticed a certain picture. This clearly bothered Von who walked off. What I don’t get is if you’re going to tell this story, why have him go on to the main roster or, tell this story 2-to-3 months earlier? Anyway, the NXT Women’s Tag Team Championships were on the line as the Unholy Union took on Katana Chance and Kayden Carter. This was a decent to good match between the two best tag teams on NXT right now. The offense was high paced and both teams came close to picking up the victory. Chance and Carter definitely came the closest when they hit their great tag team finisher, but Alba Fyre was able to break it up before the Unholy Union got the victory with their tag team finisher which is also pretty cool. Alba Fyre and Isla Dawn heading to SmackDown is cool because they are both talented and have done a really good job at making them feel like a proper tag team. As for the KC’s, they are arguably the greatest ever women’s tag team (besides maybe the IIconics) and they fully deserve their spot on the main roster. I am also intrigued to see what happens with the NXT Women’s Tag Team titles now as well.
Grade: B-
Indi Hartwell bids farewell to NXT
Dijak promised to end Ilja Dragunov next week before Apollo Crews came over to Trick Williams. Apollo told Trick that he has all the potential in the world and if he keeps working at it, he’ll be the one that gets drafted to Raw or SmackDown this time next year. I agree. Indi Hartwell was then in the ring as she had an announcement. She talked about her original struggles in NXT before she found the Way, a family where she bonded with Johnny, Candice, Austin and Dexter. Indi Wrestling then announced that she’s relinquishing the NXT Women’s Championship and a tournament will start next week before the new champion will be crowned at NXT Battleground. Indi thanked everyone for their continued support before Dexter Lumis appeared and carried her to the back. The rest of the NXT Women’s locker room then appeared and brawled to signal the “start of a new era”. Firstly, I like tournaments so I’m looking forward to seeing who’s going to become the brand-new NXT Women’s Champion. Secondly, it’s been so awesome to see Indi Hartwell’s growth on this brand, from barely being featured to being involved in my favourite ever faction, to being involved in an actual successful WWE wedding to becoming the locker room leader and finally, winning the NXT Women’s Championship at Stand and Deliver. What an impressive run, and what a WAY to end it all.
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