NXT LVL Up – September 13, 2024: New Faces

NXT LVL Up
Date: September 13, 2024
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Blake Howard, Byron Saxton

We’re getting closer to the move to the CW, which isn’t likely to have much of an impact on this show. That’s what commentary will be talking about though, as it is certainly the biggest thing to take place in NXT in a good while. Hopefully we get some better action to go with the excitement so let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Shiloh Hill/Cutler James vs. Uriah Connors/Kale Dixon

Dixon gets elbowed in the face to start and James starts cranking on his ankle. Connors comes in but Dixon gets a blind tag for a cheap shot on Hill and the villains take over. A slingshot hilo gives Dixon two and Hill’s backsplash gets the same. Dixon grabs a chinlock with a knee in the back before switching to the regular chinlock. Hill fights up and a double clothesline gives us a double breather, followed by the tag off to James. A wheelbarrow faceplant gets two on Connors with Dixon making the save. Back up and James hits a spinebuster to finish Connors at 5:15.

Rating: C+. This was a perfectly fine tag match but the best part was not knowing who was winning. Both teams are pretty much thrown together but that gave it a bit of mystery, as neither was the obvious pick. You don’t get that very often and it made what should have been a run of the mill match a bit better.

Kendal Grey and Carlee Bright are ready for Grey’s match with Tyra Mae Steele’.

Kendal Grey vs. Tyra Mae Steele

Steele wrestles her down to start (as you would expect) and Grey can’t sit out. Instead Grey rolls her into a quickly broken cross armbreaker as Steele muscles her up for something like a powerbomb. A snap suplex gives Steele two and she grabs something like an STF. Grey suplexes her way to freedom but walks into something like a Pounce for two. Steele grabs a dragon sleeper but Grey flips out of it and hooks a small package for the pin at 6:02.

Rating: C. Steele continue to feel like a star in the making and more of a matter of time rather than anything else. Getting her some kind of experience is only going to help her and I could go for seeing her do even more. On the other hand you have Grey, who is still desperately in need of something to set her apart.

Niko Vance, speaking very quietly, is ready to prove himself against Luca Crusifino.

Niko Vance vs. Luca Crusifino

Vance is a former football player and rather large. Crusifino can’t power out of a headlock to start and Vance grinds away for a bit. An armbar slows Vance down until he fights up and fires off some knees to the ribs. The neck crank keeps Crusifino in trouble as we hear about Vance’s football resume. A jawbreaker gives Crusifino a breather though and a running clothesline takes Vance down. Crusifino makes the clothesline comeback and finishes with the Codebreaker at 5:48.

Rating: C. This was much more about giving Vance his first exposure on television and it worked well enough. Vance is the latest in the line of athletes from other sports who look good but need polish in the ring. That’s something that can come with time, but for now, he looked passable enough for his first time in front of a camera.

Overall Rating: C+. This was a bit more of what LVL Up felt like it was supposed to be. The biggest thing here was that it seemed to be more about presenting younger, up and coming stars and that is a good thing to do. The opener had four relatively new names, while Steele and Vance are still pretty much unknowns around here. I can go for that kind of show and it worked well enough this week.

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