IMG Credit: WWE

NXT UK
Date: July 24, 2019
Location: Download Festival, Leicestershire, England
Commentators: Vic Joseph, Aiden English

The build towards Takeover: Cardiff continues as we now have some challengers coming up for Walter. First up is Trent Seven, who is fighting for the injured Tyler Bate, taken out at Walter’s hands. Odds are Bate gets the shot at Cardiff, but that doesn’t mean this is a nothing match. Seven has been awesome as of late and this could be quite good. Let’s get to it.

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

Trent Seven arrives and is ready to knock Walter’s head off.

Opening sequence.

Kenny Williams vs. Noam Dar

Grudge match after a few weeks of issues. Feeling out process to start with Dar taking him down by the arm and grabbing a front facelock. That’s escaped in a hurry for a standoff and some nice applause. They grapple a bit more until Dar tries a school boy, only to have Williams be ready for it and ruffle his hair. Dar bails to the floor and catches Williams with a shot to the head to take over for real this time.

Vic thinks punching Williams in the face to take over was the turning point of the match as we hit the chinlock. Williams gets back up and hits a superkick to start the comeback. Dar is sent outside for the suicide dive and a top rope back elbow to the face keeps Dar in trouble. The springboard spinning crossbody misses though and Dar grabs a fisherman’s buster for two.

The ankle lock is broken up and Williams nails a rebound lariat for a double knockdown. Williams tries to hit the ropes but gets pulled down into the kneebar. That’s broken up as well in a bit of a surprise and Williams loses his shoe. With the referee getting rid of it, Dar kicks him low and nails the Nova Roller for the pin at 10:10.

Rating: C+. I liked this one more than I was expecting to as Williams looks to have the skills to go somewhere and Dar feels like a star. This was a good way to continue the feud and I wouldn’t complain about seeing them fight again. If nothing else, this was a good way to have a story going without a title, which the smaller shows tend to be a lot better at than the major shows.

The Grizzled Young Veterans don’t want to talk. Everyone has come after them and they have won every time because they’re locker room leaders. So what could anyone ask them about?

We look back at Kay Lee Ray surprising Xia Brookside to win the #1 contenders battle royal. She’s getting the title shot on August 31 at Takeover: Cardiff.

Jinny/Jazzy Gabbert/Kay Lee Ray vs. Xia Brookside/Toni Storm/Piper Niven

Ray hides from Storm to start so it’s Jinny taking over to start until Toni shoves her away. It’s off to Jazzy vs. Piper with Jazzy managing to knock her down. Since Jinny is willing to come in and take over, Niven runs her over instead. Xia comes in for a dropkick to Ray but walks into a gordbuster. Jazzy adds a big slam as the fans are staying with this one. That’s enough to bring Kay back in for the choking as Xia is a rather good choice to take a beating like this.

A good looking tornado DDT takes Ray down though and it’s back to Toni. Ray runs off again so Toni settles for a German suplex on Jinny. Everything breaks down and Toni hits a dive onto all three. Niven cannonballs off the apron onto them and Xia hits her own big dive from the top. Back in and Piper crossbodies Jazzy (nearly crushing Toni in the process) but Jazzy is fine enough to catch Xia on top. The middle rope X Factor gives Jinny the pin on Brookside at 7:36.

Rating: C. I can always go for a good six person tag and that’s what we got here. They had enough of the feuds going together at once and Xia has another reason to come after Jinny in the future. Jazzy vs. Piper could be a heck of a hoss fight in the future and Toni vs. Ray is already set. Not bad for less than eight minutes.

Trent Seven vs. Walter

Non-title. Trent dives on him to start and sends Walter into the barricade before the bell. They get inside for the first time to officially start but Trent sends him right back out for a baseball slide. Walter is back up and tries the powerbomb but gets backdropped on the floor instead.

Back in and Seven hammers away until Walter snaps off a German suplex. Seven’s chop to the chest just annoys Walter, who slams Seven right back down. The half crab sends Seven bailing to the rope as Walter is looking disgusted at him for not quitting. A missed big boot in the corner lets Seven chop him in the back of the neck, followed by a heck of a clothesline.

More chops annoy Walter, so he knocks Seven down again. Seven is all but out on his feet but manages a backfist to the face to put Walter on the floor. Walter tries to come back in on the top so Seven chops him even more, setting up a top rope superplex for two. They head outside again with Walter hitting a big boot and this time the apron powerbomb connects.

Seven is done so Walter powerbombs him again for no cover. There’s another powerbomb and cue the rest of Imperium to stare at the stage. Walter hits yet another powerbomb and the referee tells him to finish the match. The fourth and fifth powerbombs connect until the referee FINALLY stops it at 14:14.

Rating: B. This was a rather good storytelling device along with a hard hitting fight. They’re setting up Bate as the last hope to fight Walter and that’s going to be an incredible match, especially when he hits the Tyler Driver. Seven made Walter look like an absolute monster here and it was a rather good piece of business. As usual, Seven is a valuable asset and I’m sure he’ll be back.

Overall Rating: B+. This show hit on all three matches with the midcard feud, the women’s feuds and the big emotional main event stuff all working well. They’re really starting to click around here and Takeover could be an outstanding show given what else is going to be set up for the show. For once I have nearly full confidence in them to not mess this up, and that’s some rare air to be in.

Results

Noam Dar b. Kenny Williams – Nova Roller

Kay Lee Ray/Jinny/Jazzy Gabbert b. Toni Storm/Xia Brookside/Piper Niven – X Factor to Brookside

Walter b. Trent Seven via referee stoppage

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s History Of In Your House (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/05/31/new-paperback-kbs-history-of-in-your-house/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

IMG Credit: WWE

NXT
Date: July 17, 2019
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Nigel McGuinness, Mauro Ranallo, Beth Phoenix

It’s weird to say this but NXT is in a little bit of a funk. I don’t know if it’s the Breakout Tournament or Johnny Gargano vs. Adam Cole III not being the most inspiring story in the world, but the last few shows haven’t been the most thrilling the world. They’re not bad by any stretch, but when your standards are this high, anything but great is jarring. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Matt Riddle vs. Arturo Ruas

Ruas is formerly known as Adrian Jaoude, with Mauro mentioning that he has a new identity. They go into an MMA striking battle to start with Nigel listing off their stats. Riddle takes him to the mat and they trade waistlocks into a standoff. Ruas gets in a powerslam but can’t get a full cross armbreaker. Instead Riddle tries his own but Ruas rolls out into another standoff. Back up and Riddle scores with a kick to the ribs so Ruas double legs him down. Another battle of kicks goes to Riddle and it’s the Final Flash knee strike. Riddle pounces on him until the referee stops it at 3:41.

Rating: C. Uh, shouldn’t pounding away with right hands until the referee calls it off be a DQ instead of a knockout? This was a nice change of pace between two people who know what they’re doing so I can go for a little something different. Riddle needs some competition though and a story would help him go a long way. The charisma and skills are there so give him somewhere to go with them.

Post match Killian Dain runs in and wrecks Riddle, including sending him shoulder first into the post and slamming his head onto the floor. A backsplash to Riddle’s back makes it even worse and Dain takes Riddle to the stage…..for another running backsplash THROUGH the stage. Well that worked.

The Street Profits don’t take kindly to the Undisputed Era thinking they deserve the titles more than the Profits. If the Profits aren’t serious, why can’t the Era just beat them? Come see how serious they are because they’re going to keep the titles. Dawkins: “And that is undisputed.” Ford’s shocked face is great.

We look at Mia Yim attacking Marina Shafir in the parking lot last Saturday.

Breakout Tournament First Round: Dexter Lumis vs. Bronson Reed

Lumis is Samuel Shaw and Reed is Jonah Rock. Reed says he’s from Australia and a usual night out for him is a fight fight at a pub. Why does no one talk about Australian strong style? Lumis frames his hands to look at Rock, who reaches his hand out at Lumis for a scene straight out of a character loading screen. The much bigger Reed runs him over but an elbow lets Lumis put him on the floor.

Lumis’ running flip dive misses but he lands on his feet, leaving Reed to run him over. Back in and Lumis sends him throat first into the bottom rope and hammers away. The neck crank goes on for a bit until Reed is back up with forearms to the face. The announcers talk about Lumis enjoying pain as Reed gets two off a backsplash (common move tonight). Lumis is right back up with a belly to back suplex and spinning legdrop, only to miss the Swanton. Reed slams him down and a top rope splash finishes Lumis at 5:52.

Rating: C. Lumis seems like someone who could be interesting if he was given some promo time and maybe a few vignettes. Reed is someone you get the idea of immediately and he looked good in the ring. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him work before but there’s some potential there and I was pleased with a short match here.

Here are the updated brackets:

Bronson Reed

Cameron Grimes

Angel Garza

Jordan Myles

Tyler Breeze thinks he might need some backup against the Undisputed Era. Cue the Forgotten Sons to say he’s not a real man. Breeze: “Oh I’m a real man. Check out his beard.” Breeze thinks Jaxson Ryker is Buddy Murphy and doesn’t seem worried.

We look at the debut of evil Io Shirai last week, when she said she didn’t need any friends.

Next week: Kacy Catanzaro vs. Io Shirai.

Kushida vs. Apollo Crews

Welcome home for Crews and he gets quite the reaction, even though he was never a big star in NXT. They shake hands to start with Kushida taking him to the mat and Gator Rollins him for two. Back up and they trade flips to dodge until Crews nails a dropkick to take over. Kushida slides to the floor and gets the chase going, allowing him to catch Crews with a handspring double heel to the face. Crews is fine enough to hit a pop up gutbuster and the chinlock is on. A Stinger Splash sets up a heck of an overhead belly to belly suplex for two on Kushida.

Back up and Kushida catches him with a kick to the arm in the corner as the setup for the Hoverboard Lock begins. The Tajiri handspring elbow connects and a basement dropkick has Crews in even more trouble. Crews powers out of an armbar attempt and some rolling German suplexes keep Kushida rocked.

He’s fine enough to Downward Spiral crews into the middle rope but Crews hits a jumping enziguri to put both guys down. Kushida catches him on top with another double heel shot to the head and pulls Crews down into a cross armbreaker. With that not working, Kushida rolls into the Sakuraba Lock for the tap at 10:45.

Rating: B. This worked quite well with Kushida getting to show off some more, though I can understand the criticisms from people saying he’s not that interesting. So far all he’s had are one off matches that get to showcase his skills, but he needs either some serious competition or something personal to challenge him. Crews is still very talented, assuming you don’t expect him to have some kind of character behind him.

Post match Kushida offers Crews respect and we get another WELCOME BACK chant.

Keith Lee isn’t happy with his tenure so far as he’s had a lot of starts and stops. He has yet to see any of the opportunities that were promised to him and he’s been passed by for all the new talents. Right now we’re in the middle of a tournament with eight people fighting for a title shot. Now there’s Damien Priest running around and getting all this attention so maybe he should change the narrative. I fully support more Keith Lee.

Next week: Lee vs. Priest.

Here’s Adam Cole for his first NXT Title defense but first, a chat. Cole talks about being on the Bay Bay Championship Tour as of late and he’s been able to show the world what power is. It is now undisputed that there is a power switch happening in NXT. He’s never said he won’t be a fighting champion so let’s have a title match right now, against this man. We see a clip of Johnny Gargano at his training school and showing a student the NXT Title. You know where this is going.

NXT Title: Adam Cole vs. Twan Tucker

Tucker is challenging and doesn’t look nervous. Cole insists that he’s alone here and it’s one on one. Tucker didn’t come alone though and here’s Gargano to charge the ring and go after Cole. No match of course.

Gargano superkicks him to the floor and hits a dive to the floor. They go into the crowd with Gargano hammering away and whipping Cole through various things. Referees break it up and Cole holds up the title so Gargano dives on him again and hammers away. They get into the ring and it’s the Gargano Escape to make Cole tap to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. Yeah this was way better than the previous weeks with some good wrestling and a few things being set up for later. The main thing here is trying to make Gargano vs. Cole feel more important….but I’m just not feeling it. We’ve done that so many times now and you could say this is their fifth match after three falls in the first one. That’s quite a bit to take and NXT rarely goes there. They do seem to be setting up the Undisputed Era dominance, though I’m not sure how interesting that would be. At least we had something good here though and NXT feels back on track.

Results

Matt Riddle b. Arturo Ruas via referee stoppage

Bronson Reed b. Dexter Lumis – Top rope splash

Kushida b. Apollo Crews – Sakuraba Lock

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s History Of In Your House (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/05/31/new-paperback-kbs-history-of-in-your-house/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

IMG Credit: WWE

NXT UK
Date: July 17, 2019
Location: Download Festival, Leicestershire, England
Commentators: Vic Joseph, Aiden English

We’re still at the Download Festival and that means the crowd reactions are likely to be a little bit weaker again this time. The build towards Cardiff continues but it seems that we have to get through one more stand alone show before we get there. That’s understandable, but not the most thrilling thing in the world. Let’s get to it.

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

Sid Scala runs down the card.

Opening sequence.

Marcel Barthel/Fabian Aichner vs. Tyson T-Bone/Saxon Huxley

Aichner shoves T-Bone down to start so T-Bone punches him from the mat. That earns him a powerslam and T-Bone stumbles over for a tag to Huxley. A spinebuster from Aichner and a kick to the face from Barthel has Huxley in trouble for a change. We hit the chinlock for a bit until a clothesline gets Huxley free, only to have the legal Aichner sneak around and pull T-Bone to the floor. With T-Bone down, it’s a powerbomb/middle rope European uppercut combination to finish Huxley at 4:53.

Result: D+. Pretty much a squash here as Imperium continues to look completely dominant. The four of them could be the top monsters for the company for a long time to come and making Barthel and Aichner look better is going to get them closer towards that ending. I still don’t get the appeal of T-Bone and Huxley but they could be worse.

Travis Banks says his journey continues despite losing to Walter. His journey is just beginning.

Xia Brookside vs. Jinny

Jinny says she doesn’t need Jazzy Gabbert to beat Xia but Jazzy doesn’t go anywhere. Brookside grabs a quick headlock before a crossbody gets two. A missed charge sends Jinny into the corner and Xia ties her in the Tree of Woe. That means a missed charge from Xia as well, allowing Jazzy to stare her down so Jinny can take over. Jazzy gets in a few shots of her own and Jinny pounds away for two. Brookside gets in a hurricanrana out of the corner but the referee gets knocked away. That’s enough for Gabbert to grab Brookside’s foot and Jinny pins her with a rollup at 4:35.

Rating: C-. Somewhat better than the opener as Jinny could ride this help from the monster all the way back to the title scene. Or Gabbert could go after Toni Storm as the ultimate monster. Either way, you could be in for something entertaining as the show has a women’s feud that isn’t about the title. That’s more than some places can say.

Imperium talks about taking out British Strong Style and only Trent Seven is left. Walter has accepted Trent’s challenge and promises to break his back.

Kenny Williams didn’t like washing the mud out of his mouth, but he’ll be ready to face Noam Dar next week. He’ll snap the wing that Dar has taken him under.

We look at Gallus defeating Dave Mastiff/The Hunt last week. After the show, Mastiff called out Joe Coffey but Gallus backed away.

Gallus says they tamed the wild animals and Joe is going to make Mastiff sit and heal.

Here’s Toni Storm for a chat. For a long time, she thought Kay Lee Ray was one of her best friends. She took Toni under her wing when she first got to the UK but now she’s not sure what happened to Ray. All Ray has to do is say when she wants her title shot and Toni will be ready….so here’s Ray to interrupt. She knows Toni is sick of her mind games so let’s do this right now. Eh or not actually. Ray is going to make Toni wait for Takeover: Cardiff but until then, she’s going to make Toni’s life a nightmare.

Scala isn’t interested in waiting for Takeover so next week it’s Toni Storm/Xia Brookside/Piper Niven vs. Kay Lee Ray/Jazzy Gabbert/Jinny.

Also next week: Walter vs. Trent Seven.

Kassius Ohno vs. Mark Andrews

Fans to Ohno: “PLEASE DON’T EAT HIM!” Ohno grabs a cravate to take Andrews down for two but Andrews cartwheels his way to freedom. Some dropkicks and an armdrag send Ohno outside but the suicide dive is pulled out of the air. Ohno, while still carrying Andrews, pulls the padding off the hook that attaches the post to the buckle and drops Andrews hard onto it.

Back in and a legdrop gets two and we hit the quickly broken chinlock. Ohno chokes on the rope instead and it’s back to the mat where Ohno declares himself a wrestling genius. Ohno: “He can’t get out because he doesn’t know how!”. Something like an abdominal stretch with a neck crank sets up a backbreaker for two as Ohno is having fun picking him apart here. He even sits on Andrews in the corner before knocking him off the top to the floor in a heap.

A more serious Ohno follows him outside and hammers away while throwing more insults. Ohno takes too long getting back in though and it’s a trio of enziguris as he comes through the ropes. The big running flip dive into a hurricanrana has Ohno down on the floor. Back in and Ohno sneaks in a shot to the throat, followed by a forearm to the back of the head for two.

One heck of an electric chair faceplant gives Ohno two and you can see the frustration setting in. Ohno chops away and Andrews stares at him. A knee to the face doesn’t do much to Andrews, who snaps off a reverse hurricanrana for two of his own. Stundog Millionaire and a tornado DDT gets two but Fall to Piece is caught in a cravate. Ohno hits a cravate suplex of all things (that’s a new one) but Andrews grabs a victory roll for the pin at 13:06.

Rating: B-. This told a very nice story with Andrews fighting from underneath against the bully in Ohno. They’re both easy characters to get but more importantly they’re easy to get behind/boo which is why a story like this worked so well. On top of that it was a good match with Ohno busting out some awesome stuff and grinding Andrews down but not being able to finish him.

Overall Rating: C+. It was nice to see the setup of the first match for Takeover but I’m more interested in seeing next week’s show. The women’s tag match and Trent vs. Walter should be entertaining and that helps get us one step closer to Takeover, as they’re getting better at bridging the gap between the major shows. Nice show here, with the rather low level main event offering a surprise.

Results

Marcel Barthel/Fabian Aichner b. Tyson T-Bone/Saxon Huxley – Powerbomb/middle rope European uppercut to Huxley

Jinny b. Xia Brookside – Rollup

Mark Andrews b. Kassius Ohno – Victory roll

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s History Of In Your House (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/05/31/new-paperback-kbs-history-of-in-your-house/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

IMG Credit: WWE

NXT
Date: July 10, 2019
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Mauro Ranallo, Beth Phoenix, Nigel McGuinness

With about a month to go before Takeover: Toronto, it’s time to start getting things set up for the big show. In this case, that includes more instances of Adam Cole being a jerk about pizzas as we wait for Johnny Gargano to show up again and deal with him. As for tonight though, we have Oney Lorcan and Danny Burch getting a shot at the Tag Team Titles. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Here’s Io Shirai, clad in all black with a new darker entrance, to explain her actions. She says she doesn’t need any friends or any of us and that’s it.

Velveteen Dream is having a press conference, where he doesn’t approve of a question about his next challenger. Another question about Roderick Strong getting a title shot but Strong isn’t ready to experience him one on one. No more questions.

Damien Priest vs. Blanco Loco

Blanco is from Mexico, New York, which is a real town. Priest kicks him in the face and hits a toss Falcon Arrow for a big crash. A big clothesline has the squash going in full force and another one makes it even worse. Priest kicks him in the head and hits the Reckoning (Roll the Dice) for the pin at 1:38.

Killian Dain watches film, but this time he talks about being able to tell us stories. His house was set on fire with his family still in it. There were tanks and soldiers on every street corner and he can’t hear out of one ear because of a car bomb. He’s the only surviving male member of his high school class. The difference is that he hasn’t forgotten. He wants us to know who he is and why he’s doing what he does. He’s going to breathe on our face because everything he had was taken from him. Now he’s taking what he wants. Awesome promo, and Dain has the work ability to back it up.

Breakout Tournament First Round: Boa vs. Jordan Myles

Boa is a Chinese wrestler who has never wrestled on NXT TV and Myles is ACH. They shake hands to start and it’s Boa taking him down with a headlock. Myles spins out of an armbar and flips a lot before dropkicking Boa down. The armbar goes on for a bit, followed by a rollup with a camera cut that might have been an edit. Boa is right back with a kick to the chest and an ax kick to the same chest makes it even worse.

Another kick sends Myles into the corner and a butterfly suplex gets two. Boa squeezes the chest (how constricting) but tries to switch into a cross armbreaker, which is quickly reversed into a rollup. Myles tells him to come on and fires off some kicks with don’t seem to really come close to hitting Boa. A basement dropkick to the side of the head sets up the Midnight Star (450) for the pin on Boa at 8:21.

Rating: C-. I’ve never been a big fan of ACH and this didn’t do much to change my mind. It always seems that he’s putting on a performance instead of having a match and is much more about the flashiness than trying to make this seem real and it doesn’t work well for me. He’s crazy athletic and his high flying looks very good, but the overall package misses for me. Boa has a good look and seems aggressive, but he’s going to need to show a bit more fire.

Shayna Baszler has heard Mia Yim’s story over and over and that’s not enough to impress her. Besides, the story always ends the same against her: tap, nap or snap.

Video on Keith Lee and his journey through NXT so far. The company has been put on his back but he always winds up on top. He’s entering his second year and he has to reach the peak. Limitless isn’t enough anymore so he will become infinite.

William Regal announces that Apollo Crews will be back next week to face Kushida.

Also next week: Adam Cole defends the NXT Title.

Tag Team Titles: Street Profits vs. Oney Lorcan/Danny Burch

The Profits are defending. Ford and Lorcan start things off with Ford having to spin out of a wristlock into an armbar. Dawkins comes in and puts on a front facelock, which he describes as being out here rolling. Everything breaks down early on and the Profits stack them up on the ropes so Ford can dive over Dawkins onto both of their backs. Things settle back down for a second before a double suplex to Dawkins sets up a Crossface from Burch. Ford comes in for a quick save so Burch goes with a bunch of right hands to Dawkins’ face. Burch misses a charge though and it’s a double tag to Ford and Lorcan.

Ford gets to clean house and an assisted Sliced Bread #2 has Lorcan in trouble. Burch makes a save and comes in to take over. A half and half suplex gets two on Ford and a German suplex sends him right into the corner for the tag to Dawkins. House is cleaned and it’s a big knockdown so we can get a breather. Lorcan and Ford are up for the slugout until Ford hits a great looking flip dive onto Burch on the floor. Lorcan’s dive is cut off and the spinebuster into the frog splash finishes Burch to retain the titles at 9:59.

Rating: C+. The Profits aren’t the best team in the world but you can feel the energy when they’re out there that no one else can offer. That alone is more than enough to keep the titles on them for the time being and make for quite the entertaining matches. This was rather fun and hard hitting as Burch and Lorcan continue to be good for some of the better tag matches on the show no matter what.

Bobby Fish and Kyle O’Reilly come out for the staredown to end the show.

Overall Rating: C. This wasn’t their best effort, though it’s still a perfectly watchable show. The tournament is up and down at best and the opening squash was just fine. They need to get to the build to Takeover, though you can see most of the card from here. I’m sure it’s going to get better as we get back to the regular build, but the summer has been lacking a little bit.

Results

Damien Priest b. Blanco Loco – The Reckoning

Jordan Myles b. Boa – Midnight Star

Street Profits b. Oney Lorcan/Danny Burch – Frog splash to Burch

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s History Of In Your House (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/05/31/new-paperback-kbs-history-of-in-your-house/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

IMG Credit: WWE

NXT UK
Date: July 10, 2019
Location: Download Festival, Leicestershire, England
Commentators: Vic Joseph, Aiden English

We’re still at the Download Festival and this time it’s all about a six man tag, with the Hunt and Dave Mastiff facing off with Gallus. With the rise of Imperium meaning that we need a fresh team to challenge them….well ok Gallus isn’t fresh but they’re at least a team who could give them a fight. We could be in for something entertaining here though so let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of Imperium interfering in last week’s Tag Team Title match and wrecking Moustache Mountain. Tyler Bate seems to have been beaten up very badly.

Ilja Dragunov vs. Ashton Smith

Smith grabs a headlock and hopes for the best but his shoulder has no effect. Ilja tells him to bring it on so the second shoulder works better. A nice spin move allows Dragunov to hit a shot to the face into a backsplash to take over. Smith tries the leg but Dragunov grabs a chinlock and forearms him in the back for the break.

With that not working, Smith tries another leglock, though this time he has Ilja in front of him for a change. That’s fine with Dragunov, who reverses into a powerbomb and knees Smith in the face. Smith is right back up with a fisherman’s buster for one but it’s a discus lariat to take him back down. The Torpedo Moscow finishes Smith at 4:43.

Rating: C-. It’s interesting that Dragunov isn’t pushed as invincible as he took some offense here but the intensity gets him out of trouble. Dragunov is going to be the kind of guy who can steal the show in a longer form match but you can’t take your eyes off of him because of how much he puts into everything.

We look at Jazzy Gabbert attacking Xia Brookside, who got some revenge by eliminating Gabbert from the #1 contenders battle royal. Gabbert tried to distract Brookside against Killer Kelly but Brookside won anyway.

Brookside says Jinny is the real problem and next week, she gets her chance to face her one on one.

Nina Samuels narrates a video about fans coming out to see her. She even interviews fans while trying to walk over hay and mud.

Candy Floss vs. Toni Storm

Non-title. We get a quick handshake as the fans are behind Storm to start. Floss spins into a wristlock so Toni takes her to the mat without much effort. A headlock into a headscissors is reversed without much effort and Toni even offers her a hand back to her feet. Back up and they trade headlocks again with Toni’s taking her to the mat.

Floss escapes so Toni says she likes this one. In the middle of the technical exchange, the fans want tables. They’ll have to settle for Floss getting forearmed in the face for two so Floss is back up with a backslide for her own two. A small package gets the same so Storm blasts her with a clothesline. Storm Zero finishes Floss at 5:56.

Rating: C. Storm was having fun here and there’s nothing wrong with losing clean to the champ. It was nice to see someone getting an endorsement like that, even when she is nowhere near Storm’s level. Storm continues to come off like a star with little competition, but that wasn’t what they were going for here. It was fine for a showcase and that’s all they were going for.

Post match Storm congratulates Floss but here’s Kay Lee Ray to jump Floss from behind. This is said to make things personal, because attacking someone Storm interacted with for about seven minutes is serious business.

We get another part of the interview with Ligero, who needs to improve his win/loss record and get fired up again. There is always a way to come back and turn things around and things could always change.

Here’s a serious Trent Seven to address what happened last week. He doesn’t usually do this alone because he tends to have at least one person with him. Pete Dunne has his hands full elsewhere though and they can’t expect him to drop things and come help them. Bate however is hospitalized and injured, but Trent is here. He’s been here since the beginning and this place was built on British Strong Style.

Now you have Imperium running around saying this mat is sacred. Was it sacred when they tied him up and made him watch Bate get sent into the post over and over? He’s coming for Walter and it’s for Pete, Tyler and the Trent Seven Army. Heck of a promo here and one of the best that they’ve had in NXT.

Next week: Mark Andrews vs. Kassius Ohno.

The Hunt/Dave Mastiff vs. Gallus

It’s a big brawl to start with Gallus being chased off to some polite applause. We settle down to Primate vs. Mark with the latter being kicked into the corner. A big clothesline cuts Primate down though and it’s off to Wolfgang to stomp him in the head. Joe comes in for a cross arm choke but Primate fights up and rolls over for the tag. It’s Boar coming in and promptly getting chokeslammed by Joe.

Wolfgang gets two off a running backsplash to a sitting Boar and Joe grabs a bearhug. Boar’s comeback is cut off by a running shoulder and it’s right back to the bearhug. An overhead belly to belly finally gets Boar out of trouble and it’s Mastiff coming in to clean house. A German suplex puts Joe down for two and an overhead suplex gets two. Wolfgang comes in and gets kicked down, allowing Mastiff to Regal Roll Joe onto him for a big crash.

Joe is right back up with a powerslam as everything breaks down. Another German suplex sends Mark into the corner and Joe is tossed on top of him. Joe is able to avoid the Cannonball so Mark takes the whole thing, leaving the Hunt to hit stereo suicide dives. Everyone heads outside until Joe is left alone with Primate, meaning it’s All The Best For The Bells to give Joe the pin at 12:25.

Rating: C-. This didn’t feel as long as it was, though some of the holds could have been cut out. Gallus winning is good and Mastiff continues to look strong, which has been the case since the promotion started. Someone is finally going to pin him and it’s going to be a big deal, which is a very valuable point.

Overall Rating: D+. Maybe it’s that they need to start the real build towards Takeover or the lack of the entertaining chants but these Download shows are running out of steam. That Trent Seven promo was very good but the rest of the show just came and went without leaving much of an impact. Get to the big stuff already because the clock is going to start ticking soon.

Results

Ilja Dragunov b. Ashton Smith – Torpedo Moscow

Toni Storm b. Candy Floss – Storm Zero

Gallus b. The Hunt/Dave Mastiff – All The Best For The Bells to Primate

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s History Of In Your House (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/05/31/new-paperback-kbs-history-of-in-your-house/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

IMG Credit: WWE

NXT
Date: July 3, 2019
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Beth Phoenix, Nigel McGuinness, Mauro Ranallo

Things took a bit of a turn last week with Io Shirai turning full heel on Candice LeRae. That could make for some interesting changes as we head towards Toronto with that match being a potential TV main event between now and then. Other than that it’s time for more of the Breakout Tournament so let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Aaliyah vs. Mia Yim

Vanessa Borne is in Aaliyah’s corner. Aaliyah takes her down to start and yells a lot but misses an enziguri. Borne has to pull her out of the way of a rolling kick in the corner and Mia is in trouble again. A kick to the back and a knee drop (with a forward flip) keep Aaliyah down as the announcers drop Beatles lyrics.

Mia is right back with the Tarantula but walks into an enziguri. Something close to a surfboard has Mia in a different kind of trouble but she avoids another knee. Aaliyah gets sent into the corner for a Cannonball, followed by a toss to the floor for a double suicide dive. Back in and Protect Your Neck finishes Aaliyah at 4:52.

Rating: C-. Aaliyah still doesn’t look great most of the time but this was one of her better performances. What matters most is Yim heading straight for Shayna Baszler and the title in a match that I didn’t expect to be looking forward to. It seemed like Candice would be getting this spot but they’re making this work.

Post match Mia sends Borne into the steps and goes to commentary to say she’s coming to beat up Shayna Baszler. Oh and for the title too.

We look back at Shirai snapping last week and destroying Candice.

The Forgotten Sons storm into William Regal’s office and complain about their title shot. Regal says they got themselves disqualified so it’s to the back of the line with them. Threats are made but Regal has accepted the Street Profits’ idea for some challengers. Therefore, next week, Danny Burch and Oney Lorcan are getting a shot at the Profits.

We see Adam Cole going to Gargano’s Restaurant but the owner, Frank, doesn’t seem happy. Cole goes over to a wall of Johnny Gargano’s stuff and tacks up an autographed photo of himself. Cole gets his pizzas and leaves while pointing out the updated wall.

We cut to Cole bringing the pizzas to a wrestling school where Johnny recently spoke. Cole doesn’t think much of the students because Johnny lied to them. Johnny told them that they could achieve something but Cole can see that they’re not good enough. Cole brought them the pizzas because they need to take it home, sit on their couch and give up. Just accept that Johnny got lucky to win the NXT Title and give up already. Cole is an awesome jerk but I really don’t need to see him fight Gargano again.

Kushida vs. Jeff Parker

Kushida wrestles him to the mat without much effort to start and grabs a headlock. That goes nowhere so it’s time to work on the arm on the mat with an elbow going into Parker’s ribs. The threat of the Hoverboard Lock (now called the Sakuraba Lock) sends Parker over to the rope so Kushida kicks him in the arm. Now the Sakuraba Lock finishes Parker at 2:32.

Tyler Breeze doesn’t like the Undisputed Era taking credit for NXT’s success because this used to be NX-Breeze.

Killian Dain watches film.

Breakout Tournament First Round: Isaiah Scott vs. Cameron Grimes

That would be Shane Strickland vs. Trevor Lee. Scott says he’s confident and Grimes knows he’s the best in the world. They go technical to start with Grimes going for the arm as the fans know Scott’s signature chants. A quick trip to the floor goes nowhere so Scott comes back in with an armbar of his own. Grimes goes with some heavy forearms to escape so Scott cartwheels into a headscisccors to take over again.

The armbar goes on again but Grimes reverses into an armbar of his own. One heck of a clothesline drops Scott and it’s time to work on the arm a little more. Scott is back up with a hurricanrana out of the corner and a Downward Spiral gets two. The top rope stomp misses though and Grimes grabs a sitout powerbomb for his own two. Grimes gets sent outside and Scott nails a running flip dive. Back in and they trade strikes to the head until Grimes’ running flipping suplex takes Scott down. The standing double stomp finishes Scott at 8:32.

Rating: B. Grimes is the guy that I always heard great things about but never got the appeal. That changed here as these two had a heck of a match which made me want to see more of the tournament. Both guys looked like stars here and neither would have been hurt by the loss. Really good, action based match here and it worked.

Bianca Belair vs. Priscilla Zuniga

Belair shoves her in the face to start so Zuniga shoves her right back. That’s WAY too far for Belair, who takes off the earrings and takes Zuniga down for a beating. Some hair tosses set up shoulders in the corner and it’s a gorilla press, with squats. Two powerbombs into a reverse buckle bomb sets up the KOD to finish Zuniga at 2:13. This was ten miles ahead of everything Belair has done so far and showed off the crazy athleticism that the announcers kept talking about. She looked awesome here and had a fire she has never approached before.

Matt Riddle training video.

Tyler Breeze vs. Roderick Strong

Breeze works on the arm to start but Strong reverses into a headlock in a hurry. Back up and Breeze kicks him in the face but gets dropkicked right back down. They head outside with Breeze getting dropped back first onto the CORNER of the steps, followed by another backbreaker onto the barricade. Back in and Strong starts stomping at the back (makes sense) before grabbing something like a surfboard.

Breeze fights out of that as well and sends Strong outside for a running forearm from the apron. A Backstabber gives Breeze two back inside but Strong enziguris him on top. That means a superplex to bang up Breeze’s back even more but the Strong Hold is broken up. Most of the Supermodel Kick gives Breeze two and his own enziguri puts Strong down. Cue Kyle O’Reilly and Bobby Fish so Breeze kicks Fish down, only to walk into End of Heartache for the pin at 11:23.

Rating: B-. Another well done instance of having one person get a victory and the other being protected in a loss. This doesn’t hurt Breeze at all and Strong looks better at the same time. I could see Strong taking the North American Title at some point and they’re giving him some credibility to move in that direction so far. I would say keep it up, but would you expect anything else from NXT?

Overall Rating: B. This was a show built around the idea of advancing stories while also making the stars already there look good. You need these kind of shows without a big main event for a change and this one worked quite well. Some of the Takeover card is starting to come into shape and given the atmosphere, it could be another great one.

Results

Mia Yim b. Aaliyah – Protect Your Neck

Kushida b. Jeff Parker – Sakuraba Lock

Cameron Grimes b. Isaiah Scott – Standing double stomp

Bianca Belair b. Priscilla Zuniga – KOD

Roderick Strong b. Tyler Breeze – End of Heartache

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s History Of In Your House (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/05/31/new-paperback-kbs-history-of-in-your-house/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

IMG Credit: WWE

NXT UK
Date: July 3, 2019
Location: Download Festival, Leicestershire, England
Commentators: Vic Joseph, Aiden English

We have to be coming up on the end of this taping cycle. This week has a title match included with the Grizzled Young Veterans defending against Moustache Mountain in a rematch from Takeover: Blackpool. The crowd reactions continue to be the most interesting parts of these shows as the fans might not be the most familiar with the product. That makes for a better chance to see what works and what doesn’t, assuming NXT actually pays attention. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a look at the Grizzled Young Veterans winning the titles and Moustache Mountain fighting to get back to the title shot.

Opening sequence.

Rhea Ripley storms to the ring and, after telling the cheering fans to shut up, calls out Piper Niven for a fight right now.

Rhea Ripley vs. Piper Niven

Rhea manages to pound her down to start but the big running crossbody out of the corner gets Niven out of trouble. A trip to the floor lets Ripley snap Niven over the top rope and the beating continues outside. Niven gets posted to give Ripley one as the fans have moved to split. We hit the bodyscissors on Niven for a good while until Piper dropkicks her into the corner. Niven does exactly the same thing but Rhea drops her across the ropes.

The standing Cloverleaf has Niven screaming a lot until a rope is grabbed. That just makes Rhea even angrier so she slaps Piper in the face. A Saito suplex plants Rhea and the fans move to a more general NXT chant. An exchange of clotheslines goes nowhere but Rhea can’t hit Riptide. Instead Piper avoids a charge to send her shoulder first into the post, setting up the Piper Driver to finish Ripley at 8:33.

Rating: C+. I liked this more than I was expecting to and Ripley got in a lot on Niven. That being said, it makes sense to have Niven win here as we’ve seen Ripley at the top of the division before and it’s a good idea to let someone else get close to that level. Niven is an athletic monster and will likely be near the title scene soon enough.

Kenny Williams gets jumped by Noam Dar, who rubs his face in the mud.

Ilja Dragunov is back next week.

Jack Starz vs. Alexander Wolfe

The much bigger Wolfe works on the wristlock to start and then bends the arm back on the mat. With the arm work boring him, Wolfe hits a good German suplex and whips Starz from corner to corner. A pump kick rocks Starz again but he slips out of a fireman’s carry. Starz rocks him with a running uppercut in the corner but runs into a Death Valley Driver. The sitout powerbomb finishes Starz at 4:05.

Rating: D+. Nearly a complete squash here and that’s how it should have been. If nothing else it’s all you expect when Starz is out there. Wolfe is a great addition to the team as the four man unit looks better than the three man version. Imperium is going to need some long term competition and it could be interesting to see who joins British Strong Style against them.

Gallus is ready to destroy the Hunt and Dave Mastiff. The cameraman gets thrown out.

Toni Storm is in action next week as well.

Jazzy Gabbert vs. Mercedes Blaze/Dani Luna

Jinny is out with Gabbert. With Luna being knocked around, it’s quickly off to Mercedes, who gets crushed in the corner as well. Both women get crushed at the same time and it’s a Dominator to finish Mercedes at 1:44. Complete squash.

Kassius Ohno says NXT UK is in a state of emergency. If you want to save British wrestling, you need someone like him. Ohno likes a lot of the founding members of the roster but sees Mark Andrews as a follower. Andrews uses a superkick to be like Shawn Michaels, not realizing that it was a British wrestler named Chris Adams who perfected it.

Also next week: Gallus vs. The Hunt/Dave Mastiff.

Tag Team Titles: Moustache Mountain vs. Grizzled Young Veterans

The Veterans are defending. Bate hiptosses and armdrags Drake to start and it’s off to Seven as the fans are chanting…something I can’t understand. The assisted Swanton from Bate gives Seven two so Gibson comes in instead. A few chops have Gibson cringing and it’s a blind tag to bring Drake back in for a blind side knee off Gibson’s back to take Seven down.

Seven gets sent outside for a slingshot knee/backbreaker combination. Back in and the chinlock keeps Seven down but a backfist finally allows for the tag to Bate. The BIG STRONG BOY chants start up and Gibson gets muscled over with a suplex. The standing shooting star looks to set up the Tyler Driver 97 but Gibson makes the save. That’s fine with Bate, who hurricanranas both of them down at once.

The big no hands dive takes out both champions at the same time and a powerbomb gets a very delayed two on Gibson. Everything breaks down and a superkick/neckbreaker combination sends Bate outside. A Backstabber into an assisted Fameasser gets two on Seven and Drake screams a lot. Seven tells him to take his best shot and it’s the Seven Star Lariat to take Drake down again.

The second hot tag brings Bate back in and a small package gets a hot two on Gibson. Everything breaks down again and Seven puts Gibson in the torture rack. Bate comes off the top with the knee to Gibson and a headbutt to Drake in the same landing. The Burning Hammer drives Gibson onto Drake but Imperium runs in for the DQ at 12:05.

Rating: B. I was getting into this one as they went along and the ending actually caught me by surprise. They came up with a smart way to protect the champs and keep the challengers looking strong while also setting up another match between Imperium and British Strong Style. Good stuff here.

Post match the beatdown is on as the fans dub Imperium as WALTER’S B******. Seven gets handcuffed to the corner as Walter apron bombs Bate. Imperium shouts a lot and poses to end the show.

Overall Rating: B+. This was one of those shows where they did everything they could have done in just under an hour. The main event was the best thing on the show and Imperium continues to look like the best thing about the show in its short history. I had a very good time with this and it absolutely flew by, which isn’t often the case around here. Keep doing this as we head into Cardiff and they’re in great shape.

Results

Piper Niven b. Rhea Ripley – Piper Driver

Alexander Wolfe b. Jack Starz – Sitout powerbomb

Jazzy Gabbert b. Mercedes Blaze/Dani Luna – Dominator to Blaze

Moustache Mountain b. Grizzled Young Veterans via DQ when Imperium interfered

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s History Of In Your House (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/05/31/new-paperback-kbs-history-of-in-your-house/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

IMG Credit: WWE

NXT UK
Date: June 26, 2019
Location: Download Festival, Leicestershire, England
Commentators: Vic Joseph, Aiden English

We’re still at the Download Festival and that means we’re still in for a cool venue. The big story coming out of last week saw Kay Lee Ray becoming the new #1 contender to the Women’s Title, though you might not be seeing the title match for a little while. What we get tonight though is Walter defending the United Kingdom Title against Travis Banks, which could be rather interesting. Let’s get to it.

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

Travis Banks says he’s ready.

Opening sequence.

Mark Andrews vs. Joseph Conners

Andrews rolls out of a wristlock to start and takes him down with an armdrag. The fans are VERY appreciative of an armbar but Conners cuts them off by bending Andrews’ neck around the ropes. A running clothesline gets two and a suplex is good for the same as they’re keeping the offense simple so far. Some choking on the apron and a neck snap across the rope somehow wake Andrews up so he can slug away.

The knee slide into the enziguri sets up a suicide dive to the floor to rock Conners again. He’s right back with a sunset bomb into the corner though and a belly to back faceplant gets two. The fans are all over Conners, showing that the Download Festival has bad taste in heels. Andrews can’t get a backslide but can get a Stundog Millionaire. Fall To Pieces finishes Conners at 6:09.

Rating: C-. Just a match here and nothing that hasn’t been done better before. What makes me feel better though is that it seems Conners is falling down the card, which means we don’t have to listen to him anymore. Andrews is still easy to cheer for and that’s a good piece to have around on any show.

The Hunt is angry but Dave Mastiff comes up to suggest he’s on their side against Gallus.

Here are the Grizzled Young Veterans, with trash bags around their feet, for a chat. They’re not happy about having to defend their Tag Team Titles in front of a bunch of dirty fans out here. The fans clap so Gibson has to tell them that’s not something to cheer about. This is supposed to be a music festival but Gibson hasn’t heard a single instrument. They’ll defend their titles against Moustache Mountain and then they can go anywhere but here. Good stuff as usual, but the fans didn’t hate Gibson as much as they tend to do.

Video on Piper Niven vs. Rhea Ripley, with Niven standing up against Ripley for thinking she is the most dominant female in NXT UK. They meet next week.

In two weeks: Gallus vs. The Hunt/Dave Mastiff.

Killer Kelly vs. Xia Brookside

Xia is aggressive to start and forearms her in the back, but it’s not the best strategy against Kelly. A wheelbarrow suplex gives Kelly two and it’s time and it’s time for a double arm crank. With that going nowhere, Kelly hits a pump kick to put Xia in the ropes for some covering up. She’s fine enough to come back with a headscissors as Jazzy Gabbert and Jinny come out to watch. Kelly gets in a shot from behind as the two of them leave but Xia is fine enough to hit the Codebreaker for the pin at 3:16.

Rating: D+. Just a match here with Xia getting a win to get back some momentum after coming up just short in the battle royal last week. Kelly continues to show a lot of potential, though she almost never (if ever) actually wins a match. They keep her strong enough so that a win wouldn’t come out of nowhere though and that’s a smart way of doing things.

Toni Storm is happy that Kay Lee Ray won the battle royal but would love to know when Ray wants her shot. Toni is ready anytime and she’ll be in action in two weeks.

Noam Dar vs. Ligero

Dar holds his jacket out in an attempt to get Ligero to charge for a funny moment. The bell rings and Dar messes with Ligero’s horns before bailing out to the floor. Back in and Dar avoids an armdrag before knocking Ligero down for some more mocking. Dar can’t get a rollup so he hides in the corner as the stalling continues. A headlock works a bit better as Kenny Williams comes out with a chair to watch at ringside.

Dar is fine enough to work on Ligero’s knee, which is rammed into Dar’s head to break up a suplex. A Widowmaker and kick to the back give Ligero two but Dar kicks the leg out. Dar grabs a fisherman’s buster for two but the Nova Roller is broken up. Ligero’s enziguri puts Dar down for a bit, only to have Dar get back up and get a knockdown of his own. Dar misses a top rope double stomp and injures his knee but really it’s just a ruse to get Williams to give him the chair. Williams hands it to him but doesn’t let go, allowing Ligero to grab a rollup for the pin at 8:59.

Rating: C-. I don’t know what it is about Dar. For the life of me I can’t remember the last time that I went back and forth on someone so many times but I go from liking Dar to rolling my eyes about having to see him again. He’s not someone I want gone, but he’s someone who needs to figure out how he should be presented because it hasn’t happened yet.

We look back at Banks coming out to say he’s ready for Walter last week.

United Kingdom Title: Travis Banks vs. Walter

Walter is defending. Banks tries to circle the monster to start but gets taken into the corner. The big chops miss but a crossbody is pulled out of the air so Walter can lay him on the top rope. Walter’s chop puts Banks on the floor and a big boot to the face knocks Banks silly. Walter goes to the test of strength to keep Banks down but he manages to power up and kick at the leg. A big kick knocks Walter down and a Shining Wizard rocks the champ again.

The shotgun dropkick sets up a top rope double stomp for two on Walter and you can feel the energy going out of the crowd. The Slice of Heaven is countered into a Boston crab to crank on Banks’ back. A rope is grabbed so Walter throws him into the corner. Only to get caught with the Slice of Heaven. Walter bails to the apron and gets dropkicked to the floor, setting up a suicide dive. Banks stays outside for too long though and gets powerbombed onto the apron. Back in and a regular powerbomb retains the title at 8:49.

Rating: B. Banks wasn’t going to win here but he was trying as hard as he could. That’s not enough to overcome the situation though and it was pretty clear that the title wasn’t changing hands. Walter is likely to have a very long reign and that means he isn’t going to lose the title in his first defense. Banks was game here and they had something going near the end but it wound up being what was expected, which was fine.

Overall Rating: B-. This is an instance where they have to get through a bunch of stuff before we can get to the build to Takeover. Next week the Tag Team Titles are on the line and then we probably get the Women’s Title match soon after that. With those out of the way, we can move on to the Takeover stuff and that’s where it should get really good. This worked well enough, though you could feel it wasn’t as important.

Results

Mark Andrews b. Joseph Conners – Fall To Pieces

Xia Brookside b. Killer Kelly – Codebreaker

Ligero b. Noam Dar – Rollup

Walter b. Travis Banks – Powerbomb

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s History Of In Your House (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/05/31/new-paperback-kbs-history-of-in-your-house/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

IMG Credit: WWE

NXT
Date: June 26, 2019
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Nigel McGuinness, Mauro Ranallo

We’re rapidly approaching Takeover: Toronto and that means things need to start coming together in a hurry. One such match that needs to be taken care of is a big main event on this week’s show as Women’s Champion Shayna Baszler defends against Io Shirai in a cage match. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of Shirai vs. Baszler, which is a rematch from Takeover: XXV when Shirai snapped and attacked Baszler after losing clean. Now most people would call that….never mind.

Opening sequence.

Breakout Tournament First Round: Joaquin Wylde vs. Angel Garza

That would be DJZ vs. Garza Jr. Garza starts with some mind games but Wylde is right there to shove him back, giving us an early standoff. What looked to be a tilt-a-whirl is countered into a faceplant to give Wylde two but a tilt-a-whirl faceplant gives Garza the same. Hold on though because GARZA TAKES OFF HIS PANTS! A running knee to the ribs in the corner keeps Wylde in trouble and a powerbomb into a release X Factor gets two. The straitjacket chinlock goes on and Garza adds a knee to the back, only to have Wylde backflip out into the same hold.

Two feet to the face set up a rollup for two on Garza, who gets sent outside. That means a suicide dive from another side of the ring (think Bayley’s dropkick through under the bottom rope) but Garza is right back with a heck of a super Spanish Fly…for two. The fans go nuts on that kickout and then do it again when Wylde grabs a quick crucifix for the same. Garza is right back up with a butterfly Stunner (That’s what Nigel calls it. Think of a Bubba Bomb but off a double underhook.) for the pin at 7:29.

Rating: C+. These are always hard to rate as they’re people having a match. I don’t know anything about them in NXT and they don’t really have characters so it’s just about who wins. It was a good match though and that made it a lot better. Just letting two guys go out there and fly is going to work most of the time and it did here.

Video on Kushida, who is excited to be here and wants to see what’s waiting for him.

Street Profits vs. Forgotten Sons

Non-title and the Profits come through the crowd for the always high energy entrance. Before the match, the Profits talk about handing out free smoke and offer to make this a title match. Ok then.

Tag Team Titles: Street Profits vs. Forgotten Sons

The Sons are challenging and it’s Cutler taking Ford into the corner to start. With Ford down on the ropes, Cutler hiptosses Blake onto his back, followed by an Angle Slam/neckbreaker combination for two. Ford is right back up and slides over for the tag off to Dawkins as everything breaks down. The spinebuster into the frog splash looks to finish but Jaxson Ryker pulls Ford out for the DQ at 2:21.

Post match the beatdown is on until Oney Lorcan and Danny Burch come in for the save. The Sons bail with Ryker pulling them back. Lorcan and Burch pick up the titles but hand them back, saying the Profits owe them.

Someone who looked like Killian Dain is watching footage.

Vanessa Borne and Aaliyah don’t get why we’re applauding Mia Yim for being poor. They just can’t understand it because they’re so pretty. They’ll teach Mia a lesson as long as she keeps the bandanna over her face through the whole match.

Nykos Rykos vs. Keith Lee

Nykos tries to go after Lee and gets sent flying with one of the biggest Pounces I’ve ever seen. The Limit Breaker is good for the pin at 1:07. Lee continues to be impressive.

Adam Cole went to the Download Festival in England and defended the title against Dave Mastiff. Once he was back home, he went to Gargano’s Sandwich Shop, which we’ll see more of later.

Women’s Title: Shayna Baszler vs. Io Shirai

Baszler is defending inside a cage and there are no seconds here. We get the Big Match Intros and Baszler is looking extra confident due to being inside the cage. The early punches have Shirai in trouble but it’s too early for the Kirifuda Clutch. A stomp to the head has Shirai in more trouble but she’s up in time to stop an early escape attempt. Shirai can’t get out either though as Baszler pulls her right back down. A whip into the cage starts a SHAYNA chant and it’s off to a neck crank.

Baszler kicks her in the back for two and sends Shirai face first into the cage for a nasty crash. Shirai ducks a charge to send Baszler into the cage though and a pair of dropkicks into the steel have Baszler in actual trouble for the first time. A German suplex gives Shirai two and the running knees in the corner make it even worse. Shirai goes all the way up top but Baszler is right back up to throw her down.

That’s not enough for an escape either as Shirai pops up with a German superplex and a delayed two. That means an escape attempt but Jessamyn Duke and Marina Shafir hold the door closed. Shirai slips out of a Kirifuda Clutch and hits a double stomp but Shafir locks the door. Instead of covering, Shirai goes up but has to deal with Shafir. Cue Candice LeRae to cut off Shafir but Duke opens the door to pull Baszler.

Candice dives onto Duke and Shirai moonsaults down onto Baszler to put everyone down. They both try for the crawl and Shirai almost makes it until Baszler dives over with the Clutch. Shirai grabs the door to slam it into Baszler’s head for the break….but Baszler falls out of the cage to retain at 13:32.

Rating: B-. It never had the top level urgency but the lack of gimmick matches around here makes this feel so much more important. It’s been a good while since we’ve seen a cage match in NXT and that changes a lot about the atmosphere. I’m not sure what Shirai does from here but she’s lost just about every way you can now so it’s either LeRae or Yim next.

Post match Candice helps Shirai up….and gets laid out as Shirai snaps and beats the heck out of her. Shirai finds a chair and beats on Candice even more, albeit with some pretty weak chair shots. A suplex onto the open chair crushes Candice to end the show. Shirai: “I don’t need friends.”

Overall Rating: B. The card had a little bit of everything here including two title matches, which is a big deal on any card. Couple that with a fun squash and the tournament match and there wasn’t much missing from the whole thing. Shirai as a heel is something different and it gives Candice something to do other than going after the title. That might be what’s next for Candice but there is time to get there before Toronto. Rather good show this week as things are actually getting better.

Results

Angel Garza b. Joaquin Wylde – Butterfly Stunner

Street Profits b. Forgotten Sons via DQ when Jaxson Ryker interfered

Keith Lee b. Nykos Rykos – Limit Breaker

Shayna Baszler b. Io Shirai – Baszler escaped the cage

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s History Of In Your House (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/05/31/new-paperback-kbs-history-of-in-your-house/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

IMG Credit: WWE

NXT UK
Date: June 19, 2019
Location: Download Festival, Leicestershire, England
Commentators: Vic Joseph, Aiden English

Things are shaking up around here as Imperium has added its fourth member with Alexander Wolfe. That is likely to set up a fourth member of British Strong Style, or at least a friend or two, to help fight off the villains. We could get something very good out of this and I’m rather pleased. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of Wolfe joining Imperium last week in a good moment.

Opening sequence.

The arena is in a pretty large hall and the look is a nice change of pace.

Kenny Williams vs. Kassius Ohno

Ohno goes to the arm to start (the right one for a change) and cranks on it again to take Williams down to the mat. Back up and Williams flips over him but Ohno is too big for a sunset flip. For some reason Williams ties himself in the ropes, allowing Ohno to kick him in the face. The chinlock sets up a double arm crank as the fans implore Ohno to not eat Williams.

The backsplash hits Williams’ raised knees, which hurts the knee a bit due to Ohno’s girth. It’s fine enough to flip out of a belly to back suplex and grab a rollup for two. Ohno gets knocked outside for the dropkick through the ropes and a suicide dive. Back in and Ohno breaks up a springboard, setting up the discus elbow to the back of the head for the pin at 7:25.

Rating: C. Perfectly watchable match here with Ohno continuing to look like a formidable villain that a bigger name can take down later. It helps that Ohno knows all of these different styles and can wrestle against just about anyone, which was the case on display here. Williams continues to look good and he’s fine to have around for matches like this.

Post match here’s Imperium, now with their own graphic and matching track suits, so Ohno makes a hasty retreat.

Post break, Marcel Barthel is rather heavily booed before being able to say that the people seem to think Imperium is here to entertain them. That’s not true, because they’re here to restore the honor of their sport. The fans want wrestling as Barthel talks about their numbers increasing. Fans: “WHO ARE YA???” After being told to respect their values, the fans say that they want Pete Dunne.

Wolfe gets cut off by a SANITY chant before saying that he wanted wrestling to be treated with respect. Walter brings up #1 contender Travis Banks, who has an upcoming title shot but Imperium will decide how things will be done. The title match is next week and Banks is a fool for thinking he has a chance against Walter. Cue Banks to say he’s down for a title match next week and Walter needs to bring everything he’s got. The matching suits are a great look for the team and having Wolfe around makes the team feel that much more imposing.

We look back at Gallus attacking the Hunt two weeks ago.

Noam Dar was on the phone when a cameraman interrupted him to ask if Dar took a drive recently. Dar doesn’t like that accusation and mockingly applauds Kenny Williams for his loss. There is room for Williams under Dar’s arm but Williams threatens to treat his arm like his knee.

The Hunt vs. Gallus

It’s Mark Coffey/Wolfgang for Gallus here with Joe Coffey in the corner. The brawl is on in a hurry with the Hunt sending them outside for double suicide dives. We settle down to Boar and Coffey with Mark getting in a full nelson slam. It’s off to Wolfgang for a neck crank, a tag to Coffey for some stomping, and a seated full nelson from Wolfgang.

Coffey slaps on a cobra clutch on the mat as we run the full list of neck related holds. Boar finally flips out of another full nelson and brings Primate in to beat up Wolfgang. Everything breaks down and Boar gets driven into the steps. Back in and the enziguri/powerslam combination finishes Primate at 6:14.

Rating: C. I liked the match well enough and the Hunt can be heated up again without much effort later on. Gallus can be built up again to be fed to Imperium and that’s not a bad place for them. The most important thing though: how much better is the Hunt without their regular names? I’m so glad they figured that out.

Post match Joe joins in for the big beatdown. Dave Mastiff makes the save.

Moustache Mountain is getting a Tag Team Title shot in two weeks. They’re focused on Imperium, but getting the titles is what matters most.

Battle Royal

Xia Brookside, Jinny, Jazzy Gabbert, Kay Lee Ray, Piper Niven, Isla Dawn, Nina Samuels, Killer Kelly, Candy Floss, Rhea Ripley, Rhio, Kanji

The winner gets a future Women’s Title match. Everyone but Jazzy go to the ropes to start before three of them go after Jazzy instead. That means Rhio and Kanji being tossed out, followed by a Dominator to Floss. Jinny gets rid of her and the ring has cleared out in a hurry. Ray is sent outside (not over the top) and comes up holding her knee. Niven picks Jazzy up and puts her on the apron, allowing Brookside to get in a sliding dropkick for the elimination.

That leaves Jinny surrounded so it’s a triple team from Brookside, Dawn and Niven. Jinny is thrown over the top but Jazzy catches her and slides the boss back in. Jazzy is ejected so Xia gets rid of Jinny a few seconds later. Ripley muscles Kelly out and we’re down to five. Brookside and Dawn go after Ripley but Xia gets tied in the Tree of Woe for her efforts.

There goes Dawn and it’s the Ripley vs. Niven showdown. Hang on though as Samuels is tossed and it’s Ripley, Niven, Brookside and Ray on the floor. A Cannonball crushes Ripley but she shoves Ripley over the top to the apron. Niven pulls her out with her and Brookside eliminates them both with a dropkick. The celebration is on but Ray comes back in and dumps Brookside for the win at 8:40.

Rating: C. It’s the right end result and the match was well paced but STOP WITH THAT STUPID ENDING!!! It feels like every other battle royal has that same exact ending and it’s so overdone these days. As soon as Ray was seen on the floor, you knew where this was going because that’s how so many battle royals go these days. Ray winning is fine, but come up with a better way to do it.

Overall Rating: C+. The Imperium segment and the right result for the main event made for a good show, though not quite as solid as some of their recent shows. What matters here is how they set things up for the future, with the UK Title match next week and the Tag Team Titles in two weeks. It makes me want to keep watching and that’s the right idea.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s History Of In Your House (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/05/31/new-paperback-kbs-history-of-in-your-house/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6