The Judgment Day arrive in NXT, Chase University VS Drew Gulak and Charlie Dempsey
The Judgment Day entered the WWE Performance Center to open the show as Finn Balor, Damian Priest, Rhea Ripley, and Dominik Mysterio demanded that everyone rises in their presence. The crowd were delighted to see the Women’s World Champion in particular before Finn Balor said NXT is the house that he built. Maybe him and AJ are the same person. Carmelo Hayes and Trick Williams then arrived as the NXT Champion told Balor that he’s in “Melo’s house now”. Damian Priest then responded to this by reminding Hayes that he holds the power as Senor Money in the Bank. The segment then ended with a tag team match being agreed upon. This was totally fine, but it also wasn’t as special as it probably should’ve been. The Judgment Day run Monday Night Raw, Carmelo Hayes runs NXT, yet something just seemed a little bit off here.
Grade: C
McKenzie Mitchell interviewed Tony D’Angelo by video call as McKenzie asked Tony D about how he’s feeling regarding tonight’s huge match between Stacks and Joe Coffey. The Don responded by saying he’s not sure who Stacks is anymore. I have to say, this is the most polite D’Angelo’s ever come across in his NXT Career. Gigi Dolin then had a video promo where she said that Kiana James doesn’t like her because she used to be like her. A bunch of old pictures of Miss. James then came on the screen before they cut back to Kiana who wasn’t at all impressed. Logically, this actually makes total sense. The first match of the night then saw Andre Chase make his in-ring return as he teamed up with Duke Hudson to take on Drew Gulak and Charlie Dempsey. This was a solid opening contest that was made more enjoyable by the fact that it was Andre Chase’s return. Mr. Chase is such an entertaining person to watch and it’s made even better by the loud crowd reactions that he receives. The MVP of Chase University Duke Hudson is also great whilst Drew Gulak and Charlie Dempsey do a good job of making others look better. The ending saw Thea Hail lock in a Kimura Lock on Drew Gulak whilst the referee was distracted before Chase hit the Fratliner to get the victory. Thea Hail locking in the Kimura on the person that taught her the move was a really clever decision and this was a good way to end what has been a decent storyline (as long as it is the end).
Grade: B-
Cora Jade VS Kelani Jordan, Bron Breakker VS Ilja Dragunov: NXT Championship Number 1 Contenders Match
Bron Breakker cut a promo backstage where he said he was going to remind Ilja Dragunov why he’s “Badass Bron Breakker”. I appreciate the alliteration. Von Wagner and Mr. Stone then sat down for a chat as Von said that he came into NXT as “the Monster” because that’s what he had to do his entire life to survive. Wagner then said that seeing the crowd cheer him last week was the first time he’s felt himself. Again, this was all really well done. Cora Jade was then in the ring as she was about to go one-on-one with Kelani Jordan. This match was totally fine, there wasn’t much to it, but there wasn’t anything necessarily bad about it. Cora Jade is still one of the top names in NXT whilst Kelani Jordan will definitely benefit from being in this match. In the end, Jade picked up the win with her DDT before she tried to attack Jordan with her kendo stick. However, she missed multiple times before Dana Brooke chased her off.
Grade: C
Ilja Dragunov looked straight down the camera and told Bron Breakker that he (Breakker) isn’t the Baddest man in NXT. We then got a video recap of last week’s “NXT Underground” before Gable Steveson said he isn’t sure what’s next for him. I have nothing to say about this. A bunch of Performance Center recruits were then talking about how crazy last week’s match between Eddy Thorpe and Damon Kemp was before Dijak walked past unimpressed. I’m not being funny, but why wasn’t Dijak’s return used as more of a big deal rather than him just walking past and scoffing about Eddy Thorpe. It was then time for Bron Breakker and Ilja Dragunov to battle for the right to face Carmelo Hayes for the NXT Championship at The Great American Bash. This match started physical right from the off as both Bron and Ilja looked to hurt their rival. A bunch of different strikes and feats of power took place before Dragunov nailed Breakker with the Torpedo Moscow. However, Bron managed to kick out and I still don’t really know how. The match then continued and saw the former 2-time NXT Champion wreck the former NXT UK Champion with a ridiculous mid-air Spear, but somehow, Dragunov was able to kick out. The two then went back and forth with even harder strikes and more close near falls before Dragunov finally nailed Breakker in the back of the head to get the victory. Whilst this match came out of nowhere and probably should’ve been saved for the Premium Live Event, this absolutely delivered and then some. This was genuinely one of the best TV matches that I have seen in a long time as Ilja Dragunov continues to prove that he’s one of the best wrestlers in the entire world. As for Bron Breakker, I’m really not sure what he’s got left to do in NXT now and it might make sense for this to be his last appearance on the brand. Breakker’s whole run in NXT has been very hit-or-miss, but if this is to be his last match on the brand, Bron’s left with a walk-off Home Run.
Grade: A-
Tiffany Stratton VS Ivy Nile, Joe Coffey VS Channing “Stacks” Lorenzo: The Fate of Tony D’Angelo
Wes Lee was interviewed by McKenzie Mitchell backstage and the NXT North American Champion said Mustafa Ali’s unpredictability makes him dangerous. Dominik Mysterio then just walked in and said he accepts Wes’ Open Challenge. Wes seemed puzzled by this and the match will take place next week. Mysterio better not win. Baron Corbin then had another cool video where he said he needs to find himself again. The best part about this was it showed a picture of his “Bum-ass Corbin” gimmick from 2021. Ivy Nile then looked to bounce back after the Creed Brothers’ loss last week as she went one-on-one with the NXT Women’s Champion Tiffany Stratton. Tiffany is definitely the best female competitor in NXT, but it was nice to see that Ivy Nile was able to remind people that she’s got a lot of potential. Whilst her not going up with the Creeds is a loss for both Julius and Brutus, it might be exactly what Ivy needs to break out as a singles star. However, it wasn’t meant to be in this match as her lack of focus saw her get thrown face-first into the turnbuckle before Stratton delivered the Prettiest Moonsault Ever to get the victory. I thought this was a good match and I look forward to seeing it again one day.
Grade: B-
Thea Hail was telling Andre Chase about the new submission moves she has learnt since he’s been gone before Mr. Chase told Thea that she isn’t done with Tiffany Stratton yet. Duke Hudson then walked in and it resulted in them all chanting “rematch” which is fair, but it’s also going to be tough for them to put on a better performance than their first match. We then found out that Supernova Sessions has been cancelled because Noam Dar’s still not in a good head space after losing his NXT Heritage Cup. I’m not being funny, but he probably should’ve had a rematch by now, particularly given the fact that he didn’t even lose to Nathan Frazer. Blair Davenport then said if Roxanne Perez fights her again, she’ll put her on the permanently injured shelf alongside Nikkita Lyons, Sol Ruca, and Wendy Choo. It was then time for Channing “Stacks” Lorenzo to fight for Tony D’Angelo’s freedom as he battled Joe Coffey of Gallus. Early on, Joe Coffey told Stacks “it's time” and straight after this, Coffey hit “All the Best for the Bells” in the most planned spot ever. However, Stacks kicked out and this shocked the whole of Gallus before Coffey screamed at Stacks saying “we had a deal!” Tony D’Angelo then called into the arena from prison which was the most bizarre thing yet in this storyline (which is saying something) before Bronco Nima and Lucien Price arrived to stare down with the NXT Tag Team Champions. In the end, Stacks used clever/heel tactics to pick up the victory to free The Don. Whilst this match was a bit mad, I do enjoy watching Stacks wrestle so this was totally fine. It also gets an upgrade for Tony D calling in and trash-talking Gallus. However, I’m still not 100% sure that it’s Gallus who “rated out” D’Angelo so the chargers being dropped are a little bit strange.
Grade: C+
Carmelo Hayes and Trick Williams VS The Judgment Day
Ivy Nile seemed deflated backstage before Schism walked up to her with a bunch of new followers. Joe Gacy then told Nile that it wasn’t him who hit Julius Creed in the head last week before Ava said there’s a place in their group if she wants it. That ain’t happening. Valentina Feroz and Yulisa Leon were then talking before Los Lotharios walked in and started complimenting the female tag team. NXT Heritage Cup Champion Nathan Frazer and Dragon Lee then walked in and this segment set up a match between the two “teams” for next week. In my opinion, none of these four should be losing right now so it’ll be interesting to see what NXT has planned. It was then time for the main event as NXT Champion Carmelo Hayes and Trick Williams took on The Judgment Day’s Finn Balor and Senor Money in the Bank Damian Priest. The action in this match was pretty decent, but that’s not really a surprise when you see who’s involved. Carmelo Hayes is a star that has a very bright future in the WWE whilst Trick Williams continues to get better. Finn Balor is obviously a highly-rated veteran whilst Damian Priest is on fire right now. However, I didn’t like the ending. After Priest dropped Trick Willy onto the announce table with a Razor’s Edge, Rhea Ripley tossed the briefcase to Priest in order for the Archer of Infamy to cash in. However, Ilja Dragunov arrived to stop this before Melo accidentally knocked Dragunov off the ring apron. This allowed Priest to hit South of Heaven onto the A-Champion before Finn Balor delivered the Coup de Grace to once again beat Carmelo Hayes. I don’t get this, it was bad enough having Finn beat Melo on Raw, but to have him beat him on Hayes’ show is ridiculous. Also, you could’ve easily had Finn pin Trick or if you are going to have the NXT Champion be pinned, have it be Damian Priest as a sign that Priest could easily take his NXT Championship if he cashed in on him. Also, Carmelo was annoyed at Ilja Dragunov after the match and that made no sense.
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