NXT Great American Bash 2026 Preview
Well we’re back with the Great American Bash, thankfully without the country music concerts that Dusty Rhodes would throw in back in the 80s. These NXT events are now following the same format as the main roster pay per views so we only have five matches this time. As usual, we have mostly title matches with a fifth match being about a grudge, though it’s only so interesting in the first place. Let’s get to it.
Saquon Shuggars vs. Dion Lennox
Darkstate explodes in the only non-title match on the show and I’m not sure how interesting that really is. The problem is that Darkstate felt like second cousin twice removed of the Shield, Retribution and the Nexus, which isn’t much of a compliment. Lennox is pretty much the de facto leader so Shuggars taking out the other two in order to get to him is as good as it’s going to get.
While Lennox needs the win more, I’ll go with Shuggars winning here, hopefully to kill off Darkstate for good. The team hasn’t been interesting in a long time now and there is pretty much no reason for them to continue. Lennox isn’t great either but he’s at least treated like something important so he should have something after this match. I’m really not sure I see it with Shuggars either, but he’s the better pick here.
Women’s Speed Title: Wren Sinclair(c) vs. Arianna Grace
So yeah this title is still a thing and I really could go for it not being such a thing. There is no need for the women’s division to have three titles, especially one like the Speed Title which still feels like a weird novelty. Sinclair is injured coming in but even a less than great Sinclair is still incredibly entertaining. The other two are a bit less thrilling, though they could both leave as champion.
I’ll take…actually I’ll take Grace to win here, as Sinclair could do a few different things without it while Grace is someone who could get a long way while being the undeserving champion. Hopefully Sinclair gets the chance to do something better when she’s healthy, but the Speed Title isn’t doing much for her anyway. Grace is almost a Honky Tonk Man style champion and that could work well for something like the Speed Title. Grace wins here and hopefully lives down to expectations as a result.
Women’s Title: Lola Vice(c) vs. Kendal Grey
Now this is more interesting as we have the established champion in Vice and the up and coming star in Grey. It is pretty clear that Grey is going to be a big deal in NXT and likely win the title at least once during her time in NXT. The question is does that happen here, because Vice is someone who has been a big star for a long time now and it might be a surprise to see her drop the title here.
As much as I want to say Grey wins the title, I don’t think it happens here as Vice retains the title. This is the title match that I could see going either way and it would not surprise me whatsoever to see Grey become champion. Vice feels like a big star though and there are a variety of women waiting to come after the title. The match should be good as Grey knows how to play the underdog, but ultimately she comes up short. I think. Maybe.
North American Title: Myles Borne(c) vs. Tavion Heights
So here we have something of a personal grudge match, as they were teammates in the No Quarter Catch Crew but both have gone their own way. Borne has done a good bit better than Heights thus far though and that is not ok with Heights, who wants a win of his own. That is how title matches can go a lot of the time and hopefully it winds up working out here, as this could be a good match.
While I could see Heights winning (and I would approve of it as I’ve been a fan for a bit now), Borne winning can leave him to go after some other, bigger named challengers. The match itself should be good as you have an Olympic wrestler in Heights and someone who knows how to wrestle an exciting match in Borne. Throw in the personal issue and it should work, even with Borne retaining.
NXT Title: Tony D’Angelo(c) vs. Naraku
I’ve been trying to get into D’Angelo as champion and it’s just not quite working. D’Angelo has come a long way since his ridiculously goofy days as a mob don. He’s a star in NXT and has the lineage, but that doesn’t mean he’s the right choice to be the top star. On the other hand you have Naraku, who certainly has his own legacy, even if it isn’t in NXT thus far. It’s kind of a weird pairing for a title match but it might be what needs to happen.
I’ll go with Naraku winning here, as he’s a bigger star and someone who should be able to get put into the title picture rather quickly. Go with Naraku winning here, though I’m not sure where that leaves D’Angelo. I can’t picture him going to the main roster but what in the world does he have left in NXT? Either way, Naraku needs to win so the experiment can end, as it doesn’t seem to be working here.
Overall Thoughts
As has been the case with a lot of these bigger NXT events in recent months, nothing really feels like a big match. On the other hand though, nothing feels unimportant and that’s a great thing to see. The show should be fine and NXT has done a good job of making me want to see a lot of mostly new names fight, which isn’t the easiest trick to pull off. Some of these matches should be rather entertaining and if they throw in a twist or two, it rather well could be a nice night.
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