NXT
Date: March 7, 2023
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Vic Joseph, Booker T.

This is the Roadblock special, because we need a special event less than a month before what is probably the biggest NXT event of the year. Since the NXT Champion is in a six man tag, the real main event is probably Shawn Michaels appearing on the Grayson Waller Effect. NXT has teased Michaels fighting Waller, so odds are we see who is doing it in Michaels’ place this week. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with Tiffany’s Epiphanies, as Tiffany Stratton runs down the card and talks about how we got here. In her own style of course.

Tony D’Angelo vs. Dijak

This is the Jailhouse Street Fight, meaning a casket match with a jail cell (weird choice of name). Dijak tries a nightstick to start but gets clotheslined to the floor instead. It’s way too early to send Dijak into the cell but D’Angelo fights his way out of it too. After Stacks gets knocked down, they head back inside where Dijak hits High Justice onto a chair. Dijak throws in a bunch of chairs as commentary makes Big Boss Man references.

A bunch of chair shots put D’Angelo down but he catches Dijak on top with a chair shot. The flipping belly to back superplex sends Dijak crashing (that looked good) and we take a break. Back with Dijak hitting a springboard elbow to put D’Angelo through a table on the floor (that looked good). D’Angelo is back up with the belly to back Rock Bottom on the floor and they’re both down.

Dijak is sent into the cell but brings Stacks with him for the save. A discus boot to the face puts Stacks over the barricade so D’Angelo throws Dijak down. D’Angelo explodes with chair shots but a low blow gets Dijak out of trouble. Stacks dives into the cell to keep the door from closing, allowing D’Angelo to come back with a bunch of crowbar shots. The door is slammed onto Dijak’s head and D’Angelo locks him in for the win at 11:22.

Rating: C+. The elbow alone gets this a boost but otherwise, I have no idea why this needed to have the jail cell deal. It didn’t add much of anything and Dijak getting knocked cold in the cell isn’t much better than having him get pinned. This was a weird way to go, but a face D’Angelo could be….I’m not sure what actually.

Roxanne Perez is nervous about facing Meiko Satomura tonight and she has pushed herself harder than ever. She’s ready.

Josh Briggs comes in to Kiana James’ office to talk about Brooks Jensen and Fallon Henley. Briggs points out the flowers that someone (who he assumes to be Jensen) sent her and says his friends’ happiness is his own happiness. After pulling away the name card and hiding it under her planner, James seems concerned and agrees to call Jensen tonight.

Here is Gallus for a chat. They waste no time in calling out Pretty Deadly, who pop up on the platform. Gallus wants them down here face to face and ask what it is going to take to make that happen. Gallus lays the titles down and say come take them, so here is Pretty Deadly. The beating doesn’t take long and Pretty Deadly runs off without much of a fight. The eventual match should be interesting.

Lyra Valkyria isn’t pleased with Stevie Turner because she is here for a fight. Valkyria wants the Women’s Title too.

New signing Dragon Lee is here.

Indus Sher vs. Bron Breakker/Creed Brothers

It’s a brawl on the floor before the bell with Indus Sher taking over. We start with Veer and Breakker hammering on each other until Julius comes in to take over. Brutus slams Julius onto Veer for two before it’s off to Mahal. A suplex drops Mahal in a hurry and it’s off to Breakker to slug it out with Sanga. Everything breaks down and the good guys send them outside for the big flip dive, allowing them to pose as we take a break.

Back with Mahal kneeing Julius in the face for two but Julius flips out of a belly to back suplex. Sanga comes in to run Julius over but something like an Angle Slam gets Sanga out of it. Breakker gets the tag and scores with a moonsault before Julius hits a heck of a 450 for two. A Doomsday Deice is broken up though and Sanga runs Julius over. A side slam/middle rope elbow drop gets two and everything breaks down again. Everything breaks down and Breakker spears Sanga and Mahal. Julius slams Veer down, setting up a Doomsday Brutus Ball for the pin at 11:13.

Rating: C+. That should be the end of the Creeds vs. Indus Sher unless they run back the regular tag match one more time. Other than that, this was Breakker smashing people and the Creeds holding their own against the monsters. Mahal continues to add nothing, but that hasn’t stopped them for a long time now.

Long video on Gigi Dolin vs. Jacy Jayne.

It’s time for the Grayson Waller Effect. We waste no time in having Shawn Michaels come out as the guest, with Waller saying he would have freaked out if he was here at 12 years old. Waller brings up being a Bret Hart guy though, and Shawn says “we’re going there”? As the fans chant HB Shizzle (that will never get old), Shawn talks about how they used to be cool and wants to know what changed.

Waller talks about how he won the Iron Survivor Challenge, he was taking over. For some reason though, Shawn treats Waller the same as people used to treat Shawn in his day. Shawn was told he was too small and not a draw but look what happened. That doesn’t work for Shawn, who says Waller cashed in his title shot and lost. To see the problem, Waller needs to look in the mirror.

Waller says Shawn is only in the Gorilla Position every week because HHH had a heart attack. Shawn can give him that one, but Waller needs to understand something: HBK is directing this ship. Waller accuses Shawn of trying to get rid of him, maybe even cutting him after Wrestlemania, because they don’t want a star. That doesn’t work for Shawn, who says NXT has always been about the collective.

We hear a list of names who helped build the place (including the Undisputed Era) and the current stars, which includes Waller. The thing is, Waller is just a part of it. Waller: “I’m a part of it! I’m a part of it!” Waller doesn’t buy this team player stuff from SHAWN MICHAELS, but Shawn says that isn’t true of him now.

That sends Waller out of his chair, because Shawn doesn’t see what is right in front of him. Shawn: “ENOUGH!” People a lot bigger than Waller have been running him down for 40 years, but do not ever run NXT into the ground. Waller: “Then do something about it.” Waller issues the challenge for Stand & Deliver for Shawn to put on the HBK had one last time.

Shawn takes off his jacket and says that for over a decade, he has had people challenging him to a Wrestlemania dream match. People have been asking for dream matches for so long that they have backed the Brinks truck to his door. Heck the drivers know his address! Waller is just a guy and he’ll come and go. Everyone wants to fight Shawn, and nothing would make him happier than to beat Waller up at Stand & Deliver.

The reality is there is someone who wants to take Waller out even more, and that man is…..Johnny Gargano. The brawl is on and Waller bails in a hurry. Ok they needed someone big if Shawn wasn’t going to do it and Gargano fits. And remember: Waller interrupted Gargano’s NXT farewell and it was never followed up on, so well done for some continuity.

Gigi Dolin vs. Jacy Jayne

Dolin (who didn’t get an entrance) takes her to the floor to start and the brawl is on. Back in and Dolin cranks the arm and yells a lot before going right back to the floor. Dolin knocks her down again and we take a break. Back with Dolin fighting out of a chinlock but getting dropped with a clothesline for two. Dolin fires off kicks to the chest but Jayne grabs a neckbreaker. Dolin is right back with an abdominal stretch, which she swings back like a crucifix bomb….for the pin at 7:58. Well ok then.

Rating: C-. I’m not sure what happened here but it wasn’t an interesting or even important feeling match. The ending came out of nowhere and felt more like Dolin caught Jayne rather than beating her. This match showed one major problem: outside of having different hair color, there isn’t much to make these two stand out from each other. Save for a few moments here and there, they have never done anything other than stand behind Mandy Rose and be a team. That doesn’t work well when you need to make a new star and it wasn’t working here.

Post match Jayne shrugs off the impact of the abdominal stretch bomb and loads up a Pillmanization but referees break it up. So this is going to continue?

Brooks Jensen apologizes to Fallon Henley about the Kiana James stuff. Josh Briggs comes in to compliment him on the roses idea, but Jensen seems a bit confused. Anyway, James calls him (Jensen: “Hey girl.”) and they seem to have a date, with Henley being astounded by how he was talking. Henley and Briggs pick up on the roses deal and have an idea.

Here is Bron Breakker to say it’s time to set up the biggest match on the biggest stage. At Stand & Deliver, he wants Carmelo Hayes, and calls him out right now. Cue Hayes to say that yes, it is time for these two to go at it. Breakker says he has been going through challenger after challenger but he kept wanting it to be Hayes. They’re both ready to fight and they’ll do it at Stand & Deliver. This felt like they were building up a battle of titans rather than a personal feud and that is a good way to go.

Thea Hail is meditating with Tyler Bate when Chase U comes up. Hail is making progress in her recovery and she’s ready to be out there for now. Duke Hudson doesn’t buy Bate’s “snake oil” for a second.

Joe Gacy vs. Andre Chase

Joined in progress with Chase hitting a running clothesline and hammering away as Chase U is rather happy on the floor (Schism on the other hand is unhappy). Gacy knees him in the face and gets two off a brainbuster. Chase comes right back with the spelling stomps but gets caught on top. A sunset bomb gives Chase two but Thea Hail goes after Ava on the floor. That’s enough of a distraction for Gacy to hit the handspring lariat for the pin at 4:26.

Rating: C-. I’m out of ways to get upset at Chase losing and Gacy winning over and over. For the life of me I don’t get what NXT sees in Gacy and Schism but there is a chance that it involves the father of one of the team’s members. This didn’t have time to go anywhere and involved far too healthy of a dose of Gacy to be very good.

Isla Dawn and Alba Fyre are in the woods under the full moon and get rather spooky.

Post match Andre Chase tells Thea Hail he’s proud of her but Duke Hudson reminds Chase that he lost. Hudson says Chase U is a bunch of loses and a bloody joke before walking off.

Wes Lee issues another open challenge for next week. Cue Axiom to say he’s getting the shot, though Lee says get to the ring first. Seems cool with Axiom.

Women’s Title: Meiko Satomura vs. Roxanne Perez

Satomura is challenging. Bell, handshake, break nine seconds in. Back with Satomura taking her down with a test of strength but Perez pulls her into a chinlock. That’s reversed into an ankle crank before Satomura starts striking away at the face. A running forearm just wakes Perez up and she dragon screw legwhips Satomura down. Perez knocks her outside for the dive but a super Russian legsweep is blocked.

Satomura kicks away but Perez sticks the landing on a Death Valley Driver. Another attempt works and Satomura hits the cartwheel knees to the back. They head outside with Pop Rox not exactly working so Satomura hits Scorpio Rising for two, with the foot on the rope saving the title. Perez is fine enough to grab a rollup for the pin at 14:00.

Rating: B. This was the best match of the night and it was hyped up more than any other match, but it didn’t exactly feel epic. Part of that is due to Satomura being explained to us rather than shown to us. She is absolutely a legend and by far the best in-ring star in the division, but her only time under the WWE banner was in NXT UK. No one saw her there, so what is there for fans who haven’t seen her to go off? She’s clearly great if you just watch her in the ring, but you need more than that to make this feel like some huge accomplishment for Perez.

Post match respect is shown…and Perez collapses. Referees and medics come out, with Booker T. getting in the ring to check on her as well. Perez is taken to the back on a stretcher and into the ambulance to end the show. This feels like it is tying into the “I’ve never trained harder” promo from earlier.

Overall Rating: C+. I’m really not sure why this needed to be a special. There were some matches that felt bigger than normal, but giving the show a name and talking about it like it was something important didn’t really work. Having so much Stand & Deliver talk didn’t help either, as that show felt so much bigger than anything else that was going on here. What we got was good, but this certainly didn’t feel like a must see show, no matter what catchy name it had.

Results
Tony D’Angelo b. Dijak – Dijak was locked in the cell
Creed Brothers/Bron Breakker b. Indus Sher – Doomsday Brutus Ball to Veer
Gigi Dolin b. Jacy Jayne – Abdominal stretch bomb
Joe Gacy b. Andre Chase – Handspring lariat
Roxanne Perez b. Meiko Satomura – Rollup

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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

AND

Remember to check out Wrestlingrumors.net for all of your wrestling headline needs.

NXT
Date: January 10, 2023
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Booker T., Vic Joseph

It’s New Year’s Evil and this time we have the NXT Title on the line as Grayson Waller challenges Bron Breakker. Other than that, we have a twenty woman battle royal for the #1 contendership to the Women’s Title. Throw in Indus Sher vs. the Creed Brothers and we should be in for a good one. Let’s get to it.

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

We open at Chase U, with Andre Chase assigning the class to watch New Year’s Evil. Chase recaps everything and mentions Australia. A student asks Duke Hudson if he’s Australian and gets thrown out because Thea Hail doesn’t need to be near that kind of stupidity before her battle royal. Hail gets fired up and is all ready to go.

Dijak vs. Tony D’Angelo

Stacks is here with D’Angelo and Wes Lee is on commentary. They fight to the floor and then back inside, with D’Angelo getting knocked down outside. Back in again where a shot to Dijak lets them head back outside (pick a place already). This time D’Angelo is thrown into….Stacks, who blocks a whip into the barricade. D’Angelo tackles Dijak down and hammers away as we take a break. Back with…Stacks handcuffed to the corner. D’Angelo pounds on Dijak, only to get caught with High Justice for a rather near fall. Stacks gets in to protect D’Angelo but gets dropped, leaving D’Angelo to get booted down for the pin at 9:59.

Rating: C-. This was a bit of a weird one to start the show with as Stacks protecting D’Angelo was a bit weird. The good thing is that Dijak looks strong and is probably next up for Lee and the North American Title, but D’Angelo probably isn’t out of the picture. Either way, not a great match here and hopefully just a one off miss for both of them.

Toxic Attraction is ready for the battle royal.

Indus Sher vs. Creed Brothers

Hold on as Veer Mahaan isn’t here, leaving Sanga to say he’ll do this himself. Cue Jinder Mahal to jump the Creeds from behind, saying he isn’t about honor. No match.

Pretty Deadly is getting ready, but New Day comes in to say it’s time to run the gauntlet now because Indus Sher vs. the Creeds isn’t happening.

Valentinz Feroz asks Sanga what that was but he says this is what he’s doing. Elektra Lopez comes up and tells Feroz to get over it with the battle royal coming.

Gauntlet Match

Pretty Deadly has to win three matches in a row to get the title shot against the New Day. First up it’s Slammin Jammin Jimmy Jackson/Brian Williams, who come out to the Rockers’ old music. Spilled Milk finishes in 34 seconds.

Hold on though as cue the New Day to say not so fast as they have picked the second team: Edris Enofe/Malik Blade. The fight is on with Enofe and Blade knocking them to the floor without much trouble. We take a break and come back with Prince hitting an assisted gutbuster for two on Enofe. Back up and Prince hits a superplex on Enofe but Blade comes in off a blind tag with one of the best frog splashes I can remember for two on Prince. Enofe reverses a suplex attempt into a small package but Wilson turns it over for the pin at 12:12 total.

New Day announces Brooks Jensen and Josh Briggs as the third team but someone jumps them in the back. Instead here’s Gallus to beat the fire out of Pretty Deadly and finish with the powerslam/enziguri combination at 15:11 total.

Rating: C. This was more of an angle mixed with a match as Gallus seems to be the next challengers for New Day. Where that leaves Pretty Deadly isn’t clear, but for now at least they seem to be on the back burner. The idea of joke versions of classic teams could have worked, but I’d rather they go somewhere with this like they did here. Blade/Enofe still seem to have potential though and I could go for more of them.

New Day and Gallus stare each other down.

Carmelo Hayes is at the diner, writing in a journal ala Apollo Crews. Trick Williams pops up in a mask and says he can’t see. Hayes wants the NXT Title.

It’s the countdown to the New Year…..and it’s Tiffany Stratton, who knows everyone missed her. She’s glad to be back and take over, because no one is better than she is.

Video on Grayson Waller vs. Bron Breakker for the NXT Title.

Kayden Carter and Katana Chance are ready to go after singles gold. They leave the parking lot and Tiffany Stratton gets in her car without answering questions.

NXT Title: Bron Breakker vs. Grayson Waller

Breakker is defending and powers Waller around to start. A cheap shot lets Waller get in a guillotine choke though and he takes Breakker down for two. Waller gets in his own pushups but Breakker is back with a heck of an overhead belly to belly. Back up and Waller sends him hard into the corner, then drives him in again, with the bottom two ropes both breaking.

We take a break and come back with the ropes fixed and Waller working on the injured back. Breakker fights out of the camel clutch and grabs a suplex, followed by the Steiner Bulldog. The threat of a spear sends Waller outside so he runs back in with a running knee to the face and two. Waller tries to walk the ropes but they break again, sending Waller outside. That’s enough for the countout to retain the title at 12:15.

Rating: C. This show isn’t exactly blowing the doors off tonight, as this felt like it was more about setting up something for the future rather than doing something important here. What mattered was having Breakker not be happy with the win and likely wanting a rematch as Waller kind of got cheated. I’m not sure why they didn’t reverse the roles, but you can see the Vengeance Day rematch (likely in a cage) from here.

Roxanne Perez wants Cora Jade to be her #1 contender.

Video on Charlie Dempsey vs. Hank Walker, as Dempsey wants to hurt Drew Gulak’s student.

Apollo Crews is watching the Carmelo Hayes/Trick Williams video from earlier tonight when Axiom comes in. Axiom thanks Crews for having his back last week but Crews goes on a rant about Hayes and Williams. Axiom doesn’t like it either and says you can see it all over his face. Crews: “…..yeah I can!” The tag match seems imminent.

Hank Walker vs. Charlie Dempsey

Drew Gulak is here as Walker pounds Dempsey into the corner to start. That earns him a takedown by the leg and a good deal of cranking but Walker pulls him into a cross armbreaker. Dempsey is in trouble but flips backwards and grabs the face and leg trap to make Walker tap at 4:32.

Rating: C. That was a nifty escape from Dempsey near the end and it’s nice to see him get a win in more of a featured spot. Dempsey is great as the guy who can go out there and hurt people with a bunch of nasty looking moves but I’m not sure how far he can take something like that. For now though, he got a nice win so good for him.

Sol Ruca and Alba Fyre are ready for the battle royal.

Tyler Bate is coming back next week.

The NXT Anonymous account has filmed Scrypts leaving his card in Oro Mensah’s locker.

Jinder Mahal vs. Julius Creed

Sanga is here with Mahal. Julius charges in to start and clothesline Mahal to the floor as we take an early break. Back with Julius jumping to the top and superplexing Jinder down. Mahal takes him down again though and yells a lot, allowing Julius to hammer away. The jumping knee gives Mahal two but a t-bone suplex out of the corner gives Julius a breather. A Sanga distraction breaks up the shooting star press though and Mahal hits the superkick into the Khallas for the pin at 9:53.

Rating: C. Julius Creed feels like someone who should be rocketing up the ladder but instead he’s losing to Jinder Mahal. That’s bad enough, but it’s in addition to Indus Sher being downgraded from interesting character to “Villains from India”. For some reason that is the gimmick for almost every wrestler from India/of Indian descent (either that or dancing) and it gets really, really annoying when they are capable of doing something else.

Kiana James and Fallon Henley promise to win the battle royal, with the banged up Brooks Jensen wishing James luck.

Stevie Turner is coming and streaming.

Battle Royal

Cora Jade, Sol Ruca, Alba Fyre, Fallon Henley, Kiana James, Elektra Lopez, Lash Legend, Amari Miller, Indi Hartwell, Zoey Stark, Ivy Nile, Tatum Paxley, Wendy Choo, Thea Hail, Jacy Jayne, Dani Palmer, Gigi Dolin, Lyra Valkyria, Nikkita Lyons, Valentina Feroz

For a future Women’s Title match. Jade is out in less than ten seconds and people are shocked. Paxley is out shortly thereafter, followed by Miller, with Ruca being thrown out….and walking on her hands around the ring to get back in. Vic: “She’s Kofi Kingstoning this!” Feroz is out and Legend misses a boot, allowing Hartwell to kick her to the floor as well.

Henley gets tossed and Palmer is thrown onto her and Legend for the big crash. Jade tries to get back in and gets eliminated again as we take a break. Back with Hartwell being eliminated and Hail having been eliminated during the break. Lyons kicks Lopez out and Choo is gone as well, followed by Stark tossing Lyons too. Ruca tosses a posing Stark and we’re down to Jayne, Ruca, Fyre, Dolin and Valkyria.

Fyre tosses Ruca and we’re down to four. Fyre and Valkyrie fight to the apron with the former being knocked out. Cue Cora Jade from the crowd to take out Valkyria, leaving Toxic Attraction….who now have to fight each other. Jayne superkicks Dolin but can’t get her out that fast. They both go up and knock each other down to the floor for the double elimination at 13:14. Load up the triple threat graphic I suppose.

Rating: C-. They couldn’t have telegraphed that finish much more if they had tried. I can get the idea of a triple threat match and this is a way to set it up, but there are a lot of interesting singles options out there over MORE Toxic Attraction. At least they are doing something different with them though so maybe we have a bit of a hope spot.

Jayne and Dolin are announced as co-winners, meaning the triple threat is confirmed as Roxanne Perez comes out for the staredown.

Shawn Michaels is with Bron Breakker and Grayson Waller. The solution: a cage match at Vengeance Day.

Overall Rating: C-. This was a pretty hard miss as it was hyped up to be an important show and was little more than a prequel to Vengeance Day. Gallus and Stratton returning felt big but other than that, we had commercials for people coming later (and of course Jinder, because we must) and very little in the way of anything that mattered. Really big misfire here and I was firmly disappointed with the whole thing.

Results
Dijak b. Tony D’Angelo – Big boot
Pretty Deadly lost a gauntlet match when Gallus defeated them
Bron Breakker b. Grayson Waller via countout
Charlie Dempsey b. Hank Walker – Head and leg stretch
Jinder Mahal b. Julius Creed – Khallas
Jacy Jayne/Gigi Dolin won a battle royal

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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

AND

Remember to check out Wrestlingrumors.net for all of your wrestling headline needs.

NXT
Date: December 6, 2022
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Booker T., Vic Joseph

It’s the go home show for Deadline and I’m not exactly expecting much tonight as a result. The card is mostly set, though we do need to determine the final entrants in each Iron Survivor Challenge. That means a pair of triple threat matches and they at least have some stakes going in. Let’s get to it.

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

Iron Survivor Challenge Qualifying Match: Axiom vs. Von Wagner vs. Andre Chase

The rest of Chase U is here with Chase. A running boot rocks Wagner at the bell but he’s fine enough to headlock both of them at once. That’s broken up and a double shoulder puts Wagner on the floor. Axiom loads up a dive but gets rolled up for two by Chase. That’s enough for Wagner to get back up and send them both outside as we take a break. Back with Chase hitting a top rope superplex on Axiom near Wagner, who was either out of position to get knocked down or was trying to help with the crash.

Either way, Axiom heads to the floor and it’s a slugout between Chase and Wagner. A Russian legsweep drops Wagner to set up the spelling stomps, followed by a tiger driver to give Chase two on Axiom. Wagner comes back in but gets triangle choked by Axiom. That’s broken up and Wagner plants Chase for two. Chase DDTs both of them at once but Axiom shoves Chase to the floor and superkicks Wagner for the pin at 11:58.

Rating: C+. It was fast paced and that’s one of the best things that can be said about something like this. On top of that, at least Chase didn’t take the fall, even if it would be nice for him to actually win something for a change. The fans are into him and for some reason that seems to be enough for NXT for whatever reason. Also it was someone other than Wagner, which is a positive.

Julius Creed’s knee is cleared for him to compete but Ivy Nile asks the trainer to check his ribs. Those are banged up, and he won’t be able to compete because of them. Brutus Creed isn’t happy, but Nile says she’s protecting Julius.

Cora Jade is ready to do whatever it takes to become #1 contender.

Bron Breakker is about to go fishing when Apollo Crews shows up at the doc to join him. Crews compliments the boat and Breakker shows him how to cast. They praise each others’ athleticism, with Breakker admitting he copied the standing moonsault from him. Crews asks if this really calms you down, with Breakker talking about the pressure that comes from being champion.

Crews catches a fish, earning some praise from Breakker, before throwing it back. They agree that Deadline should be a good one and shake hands. Crews says today wasn’t Breakker’s day with fishing and Saturday won’t be his day at Deadline either. These vignettes have been different enough to make the feud interesting and that’s a nice change of pace.

Bryson Montana is in the ring for a match but Indus Sher takes him out. Cue Montana’s opponent.

Javier Bernal vs. Bryson Montana

Actually hang on as Bernal has a sudden hamstring injury so he’s out. Indus Sher says they won’t fight the Creed Brothers unless they’re 100%, so the challenge is turned down for now. Cue the Creed Brothers but Ivy Nile and some referees hold them back. No match.

Duke Hudson is trying to console Andre Chase when a very excited Thea Hail runs in to say she’s facing Isla Dawn tonight. Hudson doesn’t think it’s a good idea because Dawn is scary, but Chase says go do it. Chase isn’t happy when Hudson questions his decision.

Sol Ruca danced on Tik Tok at a live event but Brooks Jensen/Josh Briggs and Malik Blade/Edris Enofe got in an argument behind them. A tag match was set.

Tony D’Angelo vs. Xyon Quinn

Stacks is here with D’Angelo, who is getting quite the positive reaction here. Quinn drives him into the corner to start but D’Angelo slugs away at the ribs. A suplex drops Quinn again Quinn’s Samoan drop sends D’Angelo outside, only to run him over back inside. D’Angelo hits something close to John Cena’s ProtoBomb for the pin at 1:49.

Post match D’Angelo says he’s back and he wants Wes Lee and the North American Title. Cue Lee to say the Don is back and the champ is ready for him. Dijak took Lee out recently though so if D’Angelo wants the title, he’ll have to wait until Lee takes care of some business. That doesn’t work for D’Angelo, who says his business comes first. Dijak pops up on screen to say he’s going to decimate NXT and take the title. Then Stacks jumps Lee, who shoves Stacks down and bails from the numbers advantage.

Last week, Hank Walker talked to Charlie Dempsey and says he wishes he could have followed in his father’s footsteps. Walker wants respect and they can do this if they need to. Dempsey says he’ll show Walker that he doesn’t belong.

Scrypts looks at his debut match and talks about how he needs to change things up, starting with the chosen ones. He writes his name down while surrounded by crinkled papers.

Hank Walker vs. Charlie Dempsey

Dempsey slaps him in the face to start so Walker takes him into the corner. There’s a big hiptoss to send Dempsey flying and a slam makes it worse. Dempsey grabs a gutwrench suplex but here is Drew Gulak of all people for a distraction. The Kimura keeps Walker in trouble abut he fights out and hits a Thesz press. That’s fine with Dempsey, who dragon screw legwhips him down but a half crab attempt is broken up. Dempsey cranks on the knee instead and ties up the face at the same time to make Walker tap at 4:02.

Rating: C. This was quick and to the point, as there is no reason to believe that Walker, who is little more than a brawler, could hang with a technical monster like Dempsey. I’m glad to see Dempsey taking someone apart, and having him do that to Gulak in a technical off could be very entertaining. Or Gulak mentors him, which might not be the best idea as Gulak last won anything….when?

Zoey Stark talks about timing and knowing how none of the people in the Iron Survivor Challenge can touch her.

Grayson Waller is ready to win the Iron Survivor Challenge because everyone is scared of him going in.

And now, Pretty Deadly as Santa and an elf in a Christmas set in the ring, for the real meaning of Christmas. They both sit in the throne (yeah there’s a throne) and read the book, which talks about their bulging sacks overflowing. They’ll never lose the titles and never be bruised so they have a Merry Christmas hug….and here is New Day to interrupt.

Kofi Kingston talks about how Pretty Deadly has beaten everyone, so let’s have a title match at Deadline. The fight is on and New Day clears the ring without much effort, including having presents put on Pretty Deadly’s heads. That’s a big surprise and Pretty Deadly will benefit from the win.

Isla Dawn is ready to hurt Thea Hail.

Javier Bernal is going to leave and suddenly remembers he’s in pain when McKenzie Mitchell shows up. No, he is NOT scared of Indus Sher, who don’t want any of him. He accuses Mitchell of being biased and wants someone more fair. Cue Ikemen Jiro, who Bernal trusts. Jiro calls him a chicken and Bernal isn’t pleased.

Thea Hail vs. Isla Dawn

Chase U is here too. Dawn shoves her down to start and hits a running shot to the back. Hail fights up and slugs away, including a running shot in the corner. There’s a t-bone suplex to Dawn, who is right back with a sitout reverse DDT. A second one finishes Hail at 2:50.

Post match Alba Fyre pops up to go after Dawn but gets held back by referees. Fyre charges anyway and a referee gets misted by mistake.

Kiana James is ready to be smart and win the Iron Survivor Challenge.

Lyra Valkyria is here next week.

Josh Briggs/Brooks Jensen vs. Malik Blade/Edris Enofe

Odyssey Jones is here with Blade and Enofe. Jensen gets knocked into the corner to start and Blade hits a heck of a dropkick for two. That’s broken up and it’s Jensen working on the arm as Kiana James’ assistant shows up with a letter for Jensen. Blade hits a big moonsault on the floor onto Briggs (and almost misses), leaving Enofe to hit an old Dean Ambrose standing top rope elbow for two on Jensen. Von Wagner shows up to brawl with Jones and it’s the high/low to give Briggs the pin at 3:25.

Rating: C. It might not be the best idea to have multiple people getting involved or interfering in a match that doesn’t even last three minutes. I like both teams but it would be nice to have Blade and Enofe win something for once. The tools are there, but eventually they just feel like losers and that is a hard stigma to overcome.

Respect is shown post match.

Roxanne Perez is ready to prove herself because she keeps getting screwed over. But how do you prepare for a match that has never taken place before? She looks in a mirror to talk herself up and seems to buy it.

Shawn Michaels runs down the concept of the Iron Survivor Challenge.

Iron Survivor Qualifying Match: Indi Hartwell vs. Wendy Choo vs. Fallon Henley

In the back, Brooks Jensen opens the envelope from the assists, which contains VIP tickets to Deadline from Kiana James. Hartwell starts fast but Choo headlock takeovers Henley. A double rollup gives Hartwell two as Toxic Attraction is watching. Back up and Henley flips both of them down at once, with Hartwell being sent outside. Hartwell kicks Henley down on the floor though and we take a break.

We come back with Choo in the Tree of Woe with Hartwell kicking away, only to get rolled up by Henley. With Choo free, Hartwell is sent outside and Henley is suplexed, with Hartwell having to make the save. The Tower of Doom leaves everyone down and Choo splashes Henley. Then Hartwell sends Choo outside, decks Henley, and steals the pin at 10:15.

Rating: C+. Hartwell was the focal point of the match and is the most established star so her going forward makes sense. I still like Henley a lot but she might be better suited as the manager/friend of the team rather than a featured star. You know what you’re getting with Choo, though to be fair she has toned down A LOT of the silliness and it’s a big improvement. Hartwell was the right call here though.

Toxic Attraction says of course they’ll be at Deadline but Indi Hartwell comes in to say Saturday is her night.

Deadline rundown.

Here is Grayson Waller for the Grayson Waller Effect, with the rest of the Iron Survivor entrants (JD McDonagh, Carmelo Hayes, Axiom and Joe Gacy) as his guests. Waller insults all of them but Hayes says he’s ready to show that he is the A Champion again. McDonagh asks about Hayes losing the North American Title twice, but Hayes says that doesn’t matter right now. McDonagh is sure he can go 25 minutes, which Waller would never understand.

Waller shrugs that off and asks Gacy about this group. Gacy says individuals are selfish and will step over each other to get what they want. Axiom talks about how you have to evolve to win and that is where he excels. Hayes: “NERD!” We get a question from a fan: which spot would you want to enter the match?

Axiom says first or second so he can maximize his falls, but that doesn’t appeal to anyone else. Gacy promises that he’ll win but Hayes says he won’t miss. Waller says you never know when someone is going to strike first, earning himself a headbutt from Gacy. The fight is on and everyone but Waller heads to the floor, leaving Waller (with camera) to flip dive onto everyone else. The big brawl ends the show.

Overall Rating: C+. This could have been worse, as they did make the Iron Survivor Challenge feel like a big deal. That is kind of hard to do when it’s nothing but a heavily gimmicked #1 contenders match, but they pulled it off here. There wasn’t much else of interest on the show and Deadline is looking like a pretty unimportant card, but they made the featured matches feel bigger and that’s the important thing.

Results
Axiom b. Von Wagner and Andre Chase – Golden Ratio to Wagner
Tony D’Angelo b. Xyon Quinn – Belly to back slam
Charlie Dempsey b. Hank Walker – Leg trap crossface
Isla Dawn b. Thea Hail – Sitout reverse DDT
Josh Briggs/Brooks Jensen b. Malik Blade/Edris Enofe – High/low to Enofe
Indi Hartwell b. Fallon Henley and Wendy Choo – Running forearm to the back of Henley’s head

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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NXT
Date: November 29, 2022
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Booker T., Vic Joseph

This week is about the past and the future, as a group of Hall of Famers, led by Shawn Michaels, will announce the participants in the Iron Survivor Challenge. That would be quite the segment and it will determine most of the Deadline card. The main event is a rather big six woman tag so let’s get to it.

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

Indi Hartwell vs. Roxanne Perez

Hartwell powers her around to start but Perez dropkicks her down. The chinlock goes on to slow Hartwell up but she fights up and sends Perez crashing out to the floor. Back in and a boot to the face drops Perez and a hard clothesline gives Hartwell two. A sideslam sets up the chinlock but Perez is up rather quickly.

Perez forearms away and sends Hartwell face first into the middle buckle as the comeback is on. A running basement dropkick sends Hartwell into the corner, where she comes out with a belly to back suplex to cut Perez off. Perez is fine enough to send her outside, setting up the high crossbody back inside. Hartwell is back up with a big boot but Perez kicks her in the ribs and grabs Pop Rox for the pin at 9:05.

Rating: C+. Perez continues to become a bigger and better star every week. She’s young, she’s good, and she continues to string together solid matches. What matters is Perez is being treated as something important and it wouldn’t surprise me to see her move up the ladder rather quickly. Perez even taking the Women’s Title is a possibility and that’s pretty impressive for someone who hasn’t been around that long.

Thea Hail and Duke Hudson interrupt Andre Chase, with Hudson apologizing for messing up last week (Chase: “I know, I was there!”). Hudson has gotten a petition together to get Chase into the Iron Survival Challenge but Grayson Waller comes up to suggest Hudson isn’t on the up and up. Hail has to be held back but Hudson has this.

Dijak vs. Dante Chen

This is Dijak’s return after a pretty long NXT absence. Dijak grabs him by the throat to start and sends Chen into the apron. A sitout chokeslam (Hard Justice) plants Chen and some hard forearms to the back knock him even sillier. Dijak elbows away in the corner but Chen comes back with some right hands. The double chop and a pump kick rock Dijak, who shrugs them off and hits Feast Your Eyes for the pin at 3:49.

Rating: C. This was mostly a squash and Dijak already looked better than he ever did on the main roster. Dijak ran through Chen, shrugged off whatever was thrown at him, and finished with his hard knee to the face. That’s what this needed to be, as Dijak isn’t someone who needs to be complicated. Just let him do his impressive looking stuff and he’ll be fine.

Post match Dijak says this is his place to dominate and he promises to run through everyone.

JD McDonagh came to the Diamond Dojo earlier today and the Creeds weren’t impressed. They’re ready for Indus Sher and argue with McDonagh about how sure they can do it. McDonagh continues to be a pest.

We go to the Hall Of Fame panel, with Shawn Michaels, Road Dogg, X-Pac, Alundra Blayze and Molly Holly picking the five entrants for both Iron Survival Challenges. They all praise the roster and discuss some possible entrants in the men’s match, but the announcement will be made later.

Grayson Waller vs. Duke Hudson

The rest of Chase U is here with Hudson. Waller grabs a headlock to start but Hudson powers him into the corner. A side slam connects as we see the Hall of Fame panel…paying absolutely no attention to the match whatsoever. Hudson gets whipped into the corner and the cravate goes on.

That doesn’t last long as Hudson makes the powered up comeback, including an overhead belly to belly. They head outside where Hudson almost boots Hail, only to say that he can stop it whenever he needs. Chase, who Hudson booted last week: “YOU CAN STOP IT WHENEVER YOU NEED???? Back in and the rolling Stunner finishes for Waller at 5:21.

Rating: C. This was about the storyline development with Hudson letting the big boot reveal slip. Chase is smart enough to figure that out and now the question becomes where things go from here. Waller should be beating Hudson on his way to something bigger, though I’m not sure if he’s going to make it to the Iron Survivor Challenge.

Javier Bernal has a special announcement: BIG BODY TUESDAY, complete with his own merchandise! You can get his Big Body Baseball Bat, which was requested by Adam Judge! Mitchell: “You mean Aaron Judge?” Bernal: “Adam is his middle name!” There is also the Big Body Pillow (McKenzie: “Already trademarked.”) Bernal: “Men want to be me and women want to be with me.” McKenzie: “Absolutely not.” Therefore we have a cologne, which she says smells like rotten eggs. Axiom comes in and a match is set. Bernal and Mitchell have some great chemistry together.

Kiana James vs. Fallon Henley

Henley kicks her down to start and we take a break less than a minute in. Back with James working on the arm, including ramming it into the top rope. The Codebreaker on the arm gets two and the arm cranking continues. Henley fights up and manages a one armed takedown, followed by a head of a shot to the face. The chase is on around the ring but James manages to grab the bag for a distraction, with Henley being sent into the post. The 401K finishes for James at 9:39.

Rating: C+. The arm stuff was nicely worked in here and even played into the finish to make it better. Henley losing again is a bit much, but it is nice to see James getting elevated for a change. Both of them have the talent and now the question is which one gets to move up to the next level first.

Malik Blade is crushed at Von Wagner ripping up his sweater but Edris Enofe and Odyssey Jones (in a Godfather shirt) tell him to use it to fire himself up. Blade can go with that but he wants to do this himself.

The Hall of Famers talk about the women and are rather pleased with some of their options.

Nikkita Lyons/Katana Chance/Kayden Carter vs. Toxic Attraction

Hold on though as Zoey Stark jumps Lyons from behind and takes out her leg. Toxic Attraction looks on and smiles. No match.

Lyra Valkyria (the former Aoife Valkyrie from NXT UK) is coming and runs through the woods while losing her feathers.

Elektra Lopez is ready to make her own empire. If you bet against her, you’ll go broke.

Javier Bernal vs. Axiom

Axiom takes him down by the arm to start and hits a dropkick to send Bernal outside. We take a break and come back with Axiom wrapping the leg around the post. Some dropkicks to the knee keep Axiom in trouble and a hart slam jars the knee even more. Axiom manages a sunset flip and pulls Bernal into a choke, which is countered into a sitout powerbomb for two. The Figure Four stays on the leg until Axiom turns it over to send Bernal to the rope. Back up and Axiom hits the Golden Ratio superkick for the pin at 9:01.

Rating: C+. Axiom is someone who can make things look good in the ring, but there is something a little less than interesting about calling your finishing move the Golden Ratio. Bernal talking so much trash and then losing suits him well, and if they keep it as goofy as they have so far, it can go well. Just don’t try to make him into something he isn’t.

Nikkita Lyons is cleared for the six woman.

Pretty Deadly is excited because next week is…..CHRISTMAS!

Apollo Crews is at a diner when Bron Breakker interrupts. Breakker looks at the menu but doesn’t see Crews being ready to win the title. Breakker puts his own pressure on himself but Crews says he’ll have the speed and strength advantage. They’re both ready and things never quite get personal. Very minor note that no one else will care about: Crews’ pen was from a Chase bank. That is the kind of realistic thing that made the segment feel more normal, as I’m surprised WWE didn’t have the pen branded with their own logo. It’s nice to see something feel spontaneous rather than totally staged.

Julius Creed vs. JD McDonagh

Brutus Creed is here with his brother. McDonagh grabs a headlock to start and Julius can’t even suplex his way to freedom. Julius can power his way out of it though and the toss has McDonagh in trouble. The chase around the ring results in Julius being dropkicked off the apron as we take a break.

Back with McDonagh holding a bodyscissors as Indus Sher is out to watch. Julius fights up and knocks him outside for a heck of a clothesline but can’t German suplex him off the apron. Instead McDonagh hits an apron moonsault before going after Julius’ knee. Said knee is cranked around and taken to the floor, where McDonagh grabs a chair. The big swing is loaded up but Veer Mahaan takes it instead, which is a DQ…I think on McDonagh, giving Julius the win at 10:33.

Rating: B-. The ending was a little weird but McDonagh not beating someone else is rather nice to see. Indus Sher vs. the Creeds is being treated as a big deal and while it’s not the most interesting, they are putting the work in to make it better. Julius continues to feel like a top star ready to break out and giving him singles matches like this will make that more likely.

Video on Isla Dawn’s debut.

Dijak is leaving when the D’Angelo Family interrupts. Tony has a business proposal and Dijak seems interested.

Von Wagner vs. Malik Blade

Blade strikes away to start and rains down some right hands in the corner. Wagner powers out but seems to be favoring his knee as Blade sends him outside. Some rams into the announcers’ table have Wagner in more trouble but he avoids a frog splash. The fireman’s carry neckbreaker finishes Blade at 2:41 as Wagner’s monster push continues.

Post match Wagner stays on him but Edris Enofe and Odyssey Jones make the save.

Here are the Iron Survivor Challenge participants:

Men
Carmelo Hayes
JD McDonagh
Grayson Waller
Joe Gacy

Women
Zoey Stark
Cora Jade
Roxanne Perez
Kiana James

The final spots will be determined in triple threat wild card matches next week.

Toxic Attraction vs. Kayden Carter/Katana Chance/Nikkita Lyons

Jayne and Carter start things off but everything breaks down in a hurry. Triple superkicks send Toxic Attraction to the floor and Carter/Chance hit back to back dives. We settle down to Carter rolling Rose up for two but Jayne offers a distraction. Rose gets in some running knees to Carter and the villains take over in the corner. A spinebuster gives Rose two and we hit the bodyscissors.

Carter kicks her away and brings in Chance to fire away at Dolin but gets suplexed down. Lyons makes the save and everything breaks down again. We settle back down to Chance getting suplexed but grabbing a rollup for two on Rose anyway. Everyone else comes back in and Dolin sends Carter into the steps. Lyons suplexes Jayne but Rose gets in a cheap shot and the bad knee gives out. A not so great looking high/low finishes Lyons at 9:04.

Rating: C+. This felt like a house show main event with the thrown together group taking on the established villains. That worked out well enough as Toxic Attraction feels like such a team that should be difficult to stop. Lyons coming back and going after the title one day seems all but inevitable, but for now she needs to focus on Zoey Stark, which is likely coming at Deadline.

A pleased Zoey Stark looks down from the platform to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. When I think about this show, it felt like two hours of checking things off a list. It felt like several matches, angles and feuds were advanced in the span of one night and that is nice to see. In other words, it came off like something that was planned in advance and then everything came together. That kind of attention is nice to see and makes it feel like an old school edition of NXT. Good stuff here, and Deadline is mostly together, even without being officially announced yet.

Results
Roxanne Perez b. Indi Hartwell – Pop Rox
Dijak b. Dante Chen – Feast Your Eyes
Grayson Waller b. Duke Hudson – Rolling Stunner
Kiana James b. Fallon Henley – 401K
Axiom b. Javier Bernal – Golden Ratio
Julius Creed b. JD McDonagh via DQ when McDonagh used a chair
Von Wagner b. Malik Blade – Fireman’s carry neckbreaker
Toxic Attraction b. Kayden Carter/Katana Chance/Nikkita Lyons – High/lot to Lyons

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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AND

Remember to check out Wrestlingrumors.net for all of your wrestling headline needs.

NXT
Date: November 22, 2022
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Vic Joseph, Booker T.

We’re on the way to Deadline and that means we need to add some people to the card. There are five spots each for the Iron Survivor matches and all of them need to be filled. Other than that, we could use some matches of any kind and that is where we probably start tonight. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening recap.

Here is Toxic Attraction for a chat. Mandy Rose brags about keeping the Women’s Title last week, saying another one bit the dust. Now NXT has to set up this Iron Survivor Challenge to find a new contender for her title and she’ll be watching closely. Rose brags about their success but here are Kayden Carter and Katana Chance to interrupt. Carter mocks the idea of Rose doing everything herself and suggests that Jacy Jayne and Gigi Dolin will bail as soon as Rose loses the title. That’s enough for the fight to be on with Toxic Attraction dominating due to the numbers advantage.

Earlier today, Wes Lee arrived when Tony D’Angelo pulled up in his car. D’Angelo suggests revenge over Lee hurting him but Lee says D’Angelo knows where to find him.

Grayson Waller comes up to Duke Hudson and says Hudson isn’t the flag waving rah rah guy. Hudson says he is, because he’s a dedicated student.

Cora Jade vs. Wendy Choo

Choo takes her down by the arm to start and Jade has to beg off into the ropes. Jade sends her throat first into the ropes and hits a running elbow to the back to take over. Back up and Choo hits a running boot in the corner, only to miss the sleeping elbow. Choo avoids a springboard stomp and sends Jade outside as we take a break.

Back with Choo hitting a flipping forearm in the corner for two so Jade grade the stick. Choo takes it away so the referee takes it from her, allowing Jade to throw Choo’s drink into her eyes. A double arm DDT finishes Choo at 9:04. The referee being confused by the liquid on the mat while counting away seems a bit shenanigansy but he didn’t see anything.

Rating: C. Choo has been toned down a bit in recent months and that is a bit better. I’m not sure what is next for her but getting rid of a lot of the over the top stuff has made her a lot easier to watch. The push of Jade continues and she is starting to thrive in this role. You can tell she’s someone WWE sees something in and it is starting to work rather well.

Choo cries post match.

Apollo Crews is ready for Bron Breakker and the NXT Title at Deadline. He has had all kinds of title matches but this is the one that he wakes up thinking about. This time, his vision is holding the NXT Title.

Kiana James is ready for revenge on Ivy Nile.

Javier Bernal has a 1,347 name list of people he wants to challenge, starting with Axiom, who is still hurt. #14 is Elon Musk because Bernal isn’t paying $8 for a check mark. McKenzie Mitchell: “How many followers do you have?” Bernal: “Two thousand. Million.” Drake (the rapper, not Maverick) is on the list, plus some unnamed wrestler who is retired. If Mitchell doesn’t lighten up, she’ll be the one he fights. This is the different kind of promo that made things feel a little different, which is quite welcome.

Chase U, now with several new students, are interrupted by Pretty Deadly, They wonder when Duke Hudson is going to be his usual self and a fight breaks out. Hudson holds his own against both of them until referees break it up.

Ivy Nile vs. Kiana James

Tatum Paxley is here with Nile. James grabs a headlock to start before muscling her up for an over the shoulder backbreaker. A drop to the knees makes it even worse for Nile and a belly to back suplex gives James two. Back up and Nile cranks on the arm before firing off some kicks. A running hurricanrana drops James to the floor, where Fallon Henley pops up to prevent an escape attempt. Back in and the Diamond Chain Lock finishes James at 4:39.

Rating: C-. Not the best match here but Nile getting away from LVL Up is a good thing. She is more than good enough to hang in there with the main NXT stars and I’m not sure why she hasn’t gotten the chance. James continues to be a decent character who needs some more ring time, but she did ok enough here.

Post match the Creed Brothers come in to brag about Nile’s win before saying Indus Sher isn’t making their name off the two of them. They’re ready to fight anytime.

Isla Dawn brags about what she did to Alba Fyre last week and reveals she has been behind some of the recent tech glitches (nice little loose thread being tied up). She and Fyre will have so much fun together.

A banged up Duke Hudson comes in to see Andre Chase and says he got in a fight with Pretty Deadly. Chase: “Who?” Hudson says they were talking trash about the university and the repercussion is……a Tag Team Title match tonight (the fans are REALLY happy with that one)! The student Chase was talking to is very happy so Chase asks him what the **** is he still doing here. It’s time to prepare!

Scrypts vs. Guru Raaj

Scrypts walks around the barricade on the way to the ring and given his size and flipping ability, I would bet pretty heavily on that being Reggie/Reginald. The REGGIE chants would seem to back that up. Scrypts flips away from a charge and hammers away, setting up a Molly Go Round for the pin at 1:21. Nice job on the surprise and if Reggie has trained himself up a bit more, good for him to use that crazy athleticism again. That being said, the mask is awful and looked more goofy than anything else.

Post match Scrypts leaves a card with his name on it on Raaj’s chest.

Here is Schism for a chat, with all of them sitting in chair, albeit with the one in the middle missing. Joe Gacy says it is their duty to reinforce the idea of having something to be thankful for. Ava Raine talks about how families are torn apart by Thanksgiving. Blood relatives cannot be counted on, but Schism certainly can be.

Raine goes outside to look at the crowd as we hear about how Thanksgiving has lost its intent. Raine gets a fan out of the crowd and lets him sit in the empty chair. Gacy talks about how their table is bare so new traditions can be forged. Then they sacrifice him with a release Rock Bottom through the table. Schism continues to be a thing that exists for reasons I don’t understand.

Trick Williams says Carmelo Hayes is ready, so Wes Lee comes in to say that means Williams doesn’t need to be out there for tonight’s title match. Williams eventually agrees, even if he doesn’t seem to do it on purpose. Nice little mind game here.

Video on Bron Breakker going on a boat for some fishing, which is his happy place. He’s ready for Apollo Crews but needs to get away at times. These little personal pieces can go a long way for anyone, including Breakker.

Sol Ruca vs. Zoey Stark

Ruca flips around to start so Stark superkicks her down for two. Stark sends her to the floor but Ruca gets tied up in the ring skirt, setting up the chinlock back inside. That’s broken up and Ruca hits a dropkick into a backdrop for two. A sunset flip gets the same and a flipping splash in the corner hits Starks as well. Ruca hits a powerslam but misses a dropkick, setting up the running knee to give Stark the pin at 4:20.

Rating: C. Not much to see here again, as we have a bit of a running theme this week. Ruca has the same criticisms she has had so far: she’s athletic, she’s in great shape and that’s the extent of anything that stands out about her. Stark is still just kind of there, likely setting up a showdown with Nikkita Lyons at Deadline.

Post match, Nikkita Lyons runs in to clear out Stark.

Edris Enofe and Malik Blade get beaten up by Von Wagner in the parking lot.

Charlie Dempsey trains old school like Billy Robinson and Karl Gotch. Some clips of the legends are nice to see.

Tag Team Titles: Pretty Deadly vs. Chase U

Chase U, with Thea Hail, is challenging. Wilson runs Chase over to start but Chase is back up with a crawl through the legs into a cartwheel. Chase takes both champs down on his own before Hudson comes in to help him do the same. Back with Wilson keeping Chase in trouble in the corner and Hudson being lured to the floor.

Hudson accidentally runs Hail over but gets the hot tag a few seconds later. Everything breaks down and Hudson loads up the Fratliner. That doesn’t work though and it’s Hudson accidentally Kicking Chase in the face. With Hudson on the floor, Spilled Milk to Chase is enough to retain the titles at 11:49.

Rating: B-. Chase U continues to be one of the most over things in all of NXT but they still haven’t gotten that big win to give them some kind of an accomplishment. I get not wanting to give them the titles here, but Chase losing again is a bit hard to take. We’re probably heading to Hudson vs. Chase at some point in the future, but Chase winning something of note would be nice to see.

At a live event, Indi Hartwell and Roxanne Perez got in an argument as Elektra Lopez filmed everything.

Kayden Carter and Katana Chance recruit Nikkita Lyons (who has changed clothes since chasing off Stark) to go after Toxic Attraction.

Next week: Shawn Michaels reveals everyone in both Iron Survival Challenges.

North American Title: Carmelo Hayes vs. Wes Lee

Lee is defending (and has to jump over a rock during his entrance) and there is no Trick Williams here. They lock up to start with Hayes getting the better of things. That earns him a tackle and some right hands to the face, with Lee hammering him out to the floor. Back in and Lee misses a basement dropkick but dodges a springboard dive. Stereo kicks to the face put them both down and we take a break.

We come back with Lee fighting out of a chinlock but getting caught with a springboard spinning clothesline. Lee fights back and sends him into the corner for a running forearm, only to have Hayes come back with something close to La Mistica for two. Nothing But Net misses for Hayes and a running Meteora gives Lee two. Cue Williams for a distraction so Lee hits him with a running flip dive. Back in and Lee hits a backflip kick to the head Hayes again, setting up a Michinoku Driver for the pin to retain at 12:56.

Rating: B. That’s a good win for Lee, as Hayes has been around the North American Title for a long time now and beating him is something Lee had to do to be taken seriously as a champion. Lee still feels like he is in a bit over his head but he can work his way out of that with a few wins. Solid match too and having Lee take out Williams and Hayes at once makes him look that much better.

Post match Dijak (yes Dijak) is back and hits Feast Your Eyes to knock Lee silly to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. This was a show that picked up near the end but the first half was only so good. They had something with the Chase U stuff throughout most of the show and the Scrypts/Dijak returns were nice surprises. The wrestling didn’t work so well in the first half but the last two matches made up for it well enough. It seems like we’re getting the start of the Deadline build next week, even if you can see a lot of the card from here. Pretty good show, which could have been a lot better if the first hour hadn’t dragged it down.

Results
Cora Jade b. Wendy Choo – Double arm DDT
Ivy Nile b. Kiana James – Diamond Chain Lock
Scrypts b. Guru Raaj – Molly Go Round
Zoey Stark b. Sol Ruca – Running knee
Pretty Deadly b. Chase U – Spilled Milk to Chase
Wes Lee b. Carmelo Hayes – Michinoku Driver

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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

AND

Remember to check out Wrestlingrumors.net for all of your wrestling headline needs.

NXT
Date: November 15, 2022
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Vic Joseph, Booker T.

Deadline is in less than a month but we have a big night to get through first. This week will see two title matches, as the NXT Title and NXT Women’s Titles will both be defended. Those are going to make for some major matches and there is going to be some other big stuff included as well. Let’s get to it.

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

NXT Title: Von Wagner vs. Bron Breakker

Wagner, with Mr. Stone, is challenging. Stone offers an early distraction so Wagner can jump Breakker to start. Breakker’s arm is snapped over the top rope and some shoulders to the arm make it even worse. Back up and Breakker snaps off a suplex as we take an early break. We come back with Wagner fighting out of a chinlock and taking Breakker to the floor for a spinebuster onto the steps.

Breakker manages a top rope clothesline though and the comeback is on, including the powerslam. The Steiner Bulldog plants Wagner again but Wagner grabs a Fireman’s carry flipped into a neckbreaker. Breakker tries the gorilla press but his back gives out, leaving him to escape another fireman’s carry. The spear retains the title at 12:42.

Rating: C+. There was no reason to believe that the title was changing hands here but this got Breakker in the ring and let him get a win under his belt. Wagner is still a pretty generic monster but now that he is out of the way, Breakker can move on to something more important/interesting. For a one off title match, it went just fine.

Video on Alba Fyre vs. Mandy Rose.

Bron Breakker gets to the back where JD McDonagh congratulates him.

Here is Zoey Stark to say her back feels better now that she isn’t carrying Nikkita Lyons anymore. Stark came back from a nine month layoff and gets told that she’s going to be teaming with Lyons in the tournament for the WWE Women’s Tag Team Titles. Then Stark got hurt, but Lyons said that she wasn’t mad at her.

Stark didn’t get hurt doing something stupid, but rather while she was in the ring. Then they lost the Tag Team Title match and was tired of the apologies. We see Stark turning on Lyons last week and Starks is very happy with her new attitude. She blames the people and says it is now about her because she is UNDENIABLE. She is the hunter and everyone back there is the prey. As was the case last week: this would have more impact if they had five matches together as a team.

Duke Hudson comes up to see Andre Chase, who wants to know why Hudson threw in the towel last week. Hudson says it was because he values Chase’s health and if Charlie Dempsey had hurt him last week, the entire University would have been on the shelf. If people accuse him of loving the university too much, then he is guilty as charged. Thea Hail comes in and Hudson leaves rather abruptly. Hail says Hudson is growing on her.

Apollo Crews comes up to Bron Breakker and suggests he’s coming for the title.

Indus Sher vs. George Cannon/Ariel Dominguez

Sanga slams Cannon face first into the mat to start and drops him throat first across the top. Veer comes in to run Cannon over and some big slams drop the tiny Dominguez. A running big boot and corner splash rock Dominguez again, setting up a side slam/middle rope elbow to give Mahaan the pin at 3:26.

Rating: D+. Just a squash here but Sher didn’t exactly do anything to make themselves more interesting. They did a fine imitation of the Authors of Pain or the Viking Raiders as the latest power monsters and that’s about it. I’m sure they’ll be fine as they look the part, but this is far from original or any kind of a novel take on the concept of big monsters.

Post match Indus Sher says they’re ready to crush the Creed Brothers.

Diamond Mine is ready to fight but Ivy Nile tells them to cool it.

Wendy Choo calls Cora Jade a salty and petulant child who will never change. At the same time though, she said some things that Choo hasn’t heard since high school. Next week, she’ll give Jade two black eyes.

JD McDonagh vs. Apollo Crews

They stare at each other to start until Crews armdrags him into an armbar. Back up and McDonagh does the same thing back to Crews, only to get reversed into a headscissors. Crews grabs a backdrop and shoulders him out to the floor in a heap. That’s fine with Crews, who goes after him for a drop onto the announcers’ table as we take a break.

Back with Crews dropping backwards onto McDonagh off the middle rope, only to get caught in a sleeper. A belly to back suplex puts Crews down but he sends McDonagh outside, setting up the apron moonsault. They get back inside with a sitout powerbomb giving Crews two, meaning it’s time to go up top. McDonagh pulls him back down in a crash but Crews gets in a hard whip into the corner.

Crews misses a charge and cashes out to the floor, where McDonagh hits a good looking Asai moonsault. Back in and Crews catches him on top, this time with a super Angle Slam for a double knockdown. They trade small packages for two each until an exchange of shots to the face staggers them both. McDonagh gets two off a sunset flip and goes up top, only to miss a moonsault. A high angle spinebuster gives Crews the pin at 13:55.

Rating: B. That’s quite the surprise ending as I would have bet on McDonagh winning again to set up another title match down the line. The interesting thing here is that Crews finally gets a win that feels like it matters after a few months of just kind of being there. He’ll probably lose to someone in his next big match, but he has to win something to maintain some credibility.

Mandy Rose is ready to beat Alba Fyre because she is a superstar.

Javier Bernal is ready to face Axiom, ignoring that he is injured. With Axiom out of action, what about Ilja Dragunov? Eh he’s out too, so maybe anyone from Gallus? Oh yeah they’re all suspended. Well find him someone then! This was actually somewhat funny so I’ll go with shocked at Bernal being moderately entertaining for a change.

Here is Booker T. to moderate the contract signing between Wes Lee and Carmelo Hayes, with Trick Williams. Hayes is proud to be in Booker’s Fave Five, but Booker isn’t sure about that. Lee says Hayes isn’t the A Champion anymore but Hayes says the fifteen minutes of fame end next week. Lee is ready for his first title defense because he is ready to prove himself again. They both sign and Williams talks some trash with Lee but Booker isn’t going to let violence ensue.

T-Bar is still ready to come back.

Odyssey Jones hypes up Malik Blade and Edris Enofe, but he isn’t wild on Blade’s sweater. Blade talks about how it is a tribute to his father, who wanted him to look nice.

Brooks Jensen/Josh Briggs vs. Dyad

Fallon Henley and the rest of Schism is here too. Fowler slugs away on Jensen to start but gets taken down with a running faceplant. Briggs comes in for a flying shoulder and it’s quickly back to Jensen. Everything breaks down and Jensen gets knocked off the apron, leaving Reed to suicide dive him into the announcers’ table in a nasty crash. Briggs is right back up to clean house, including throwing Reid into the ropes on the floor, with Briggs clotheslining him out of the air. Cue Kiana James to go after Henley, earning herself a slap. Back inside and a double Codebreaker finishes Briggs at 4:10.

Rating: C. Well at least Schism didn’t talk. Pushing the Dyad as a team is a fine enough idea, though it isn’t going to matter until they actually win the titles. Kiana James as a thorn in the country boys’/Henley’s side is interesting, but she’ll need a team of her own to fight them at some point. For now though, costing them a win works well enough.

Shawn Michaels joins us for an announcement of a new match: the Iron Survivor Challenge. There will be a men’s and women’s match at Deadline with five entrants each. Two wrestlers will start and every five minutes, a new one will be added until all five are in. You win with the most falls in 25 minutes, with falls coming via pinfall, submission or DQ. If you win a fall, you get a point, but the person who loses the fall is put in a penalty match for 90 seconds. The winner is the new #1 contender, with entrants being announced in the coming weeks. So it’s a gauntlet Iron Man Penalty Box match? That’s quite a few things combined.

Indi Hartwell vs. Tatum Paxley

Ivy Nile is in Paxley’s corner. Paxley sends her into the corner to start but Hartwell does the same. A hiptoss is broken up so Hartwell knocks her down with a shot to the face. The chinlock doesn’t keep Paxley down very long as she makes the comeback, only to have Hartwell rip her mask off. Hartwell kicks her down and, after throwing the mask to Nile, hits a running forearm to the back of the had for the pin at 4:00.

Rating: C. Reheating Hartwell is a good idea and I’m curious to see just how far they’ll take her. She hit rock bottom for a good while and was even a regular on LVL Up so there isn’t much further she can fall. She didn’t need to cheat to beat Paxley here so it could have been a lot worse. Paxley continues to be just kind of there, but at least she’s getting on TV.

Scrypts was here but is already gone because he is too smart and fast to be caught. You’ll see how smart he is next week so do you want to play a game? So he’s Jigsaw?

Roxanne Perez congratulates Indi Hartwell on her win but wasn’t it too far to rip off Tatum Paxley’s mask? Hartwell doesn’t care because she wants in the Iron Survivor Challenge. The heel turn continues to work.

Women’s Title: Mandy Rose vs. Alba Fyre

Mandy is defending in a Last Woman Standing match. Fyre starts fast and knocks her outside to start. Some rams into the barricade knock Rose sillier and Fyre grabs some weapons from underneath the ring. The delay lets Fyre grab a slam on the floor but she’s right back with a half crab back inside.

We take a break and come back with Fyre hitting a dive off the top to take Rose out on the floor. Rose is back up with some ladder shots against the barricade to put Fyre in trouble but she’s back with a trashcan shot. Rose barely beats the count and they fight into the crowd, with Rose knocking her off the barricade.

Fyre fights up and knocks a diving Rose out of the air. A Gory Bomb onto the apron lets Fyre put her on the announcers’ table. Fyre goes up a ladder….and Isla Dawn pops up on the other side to send Fyre through the table. Rose beats the count at 11:56 to retain the title again.

Rating: B-. They had a good fight here, even with the screwy finish. What matters is keeping the title on Rose, which I wouldn’t have bet on coming in. NXT needs someone who can take the title off of her and I’m not sure who that is at the moment. At least it wasn’t Jayne or Dolin interfering in the end here, even if Fyre has to lose in another big match.

Overall Rating: B-. The main event felt big and Crews vs. McDonagh was a good match, which is enough to carry this week. The rest of the show was pretty in the middle at best, but I’ll take two rather good matches out of six on a weekly show. Other than that, they set up things for the future, though I’m not sure how well the Iron Survivor deal will go. For now though, nice week of TV as we are on the wa to a bigger show next month.

Results
Bron Breakker b. Von Wagner – Spear
Indus Sher b. George Cannon/Ariel Dominguez – Side slam/Middle rope elbow combination to Dominguez
Apollo Crews b. JD McDonagh – Spinebuster
Dyad b. Josh Briggs/Brooks Jensen – Double Codebreaker to Briggs
Indi Hartwell b. Tatum Paxley – Running forearm to the back of the head
Mandy Rose b. Alba Fyre when Fyre didn’t answer the ten count

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NXT
Date: November 8, 2022
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Vic Joseph, Booker T.

We are a little over a month away from Deadline and for reasons I don’t quite grasp, Von Wagner is next in line for the NXT Title shot. The good thing is that match is set for next week so it won’t drag down a major show, but we could be in for a rough two weeks. Hopefully the rest of the show can balance it out. Let’s get to it.

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

Joe Gacy vs. Cameron Grimes

Gacy, now in regular trunks instead of his full body gear, has the rest of Schism with him and gets knocked into the corner to start. Grimes fights his way out of some quick trouble and elbows Gacy in the face. Back up and Grimes slips out of a fireman’s carry and knocks Gacy outside as we take a break.

We come back with Gacy stomping away (he likes doing that) and we hit the Crossface. That’s broken up and Grimes gets in a knockdown. After stomping on Reid’s hand at ringside, Grimes hits a high crossbody for two. Gacy bails to the floor and there’s the big running flip dive to take out a bunch of Schism. Back in and an Ava Raine distraction lets Gacy hit the handspring lariat for the pin at 10:45.

Rating: C. It’s amazing to see how things are getting so bad for Grimes. One might think that it’s bad to feud with the lamest thing in all of NXT, as has been the case for Grimes for a long time now. Other than that, you had a pretty basic good guy vs. bad guy match with lackeys interfering. What else was there to get out of this?

Nathan Frazer tells Axiom that he’ll be out of action a bit longer due to his injuries. JD McDonagh comes in to say Frazer knows nothing about pain so Axiom mocks McDonagh for losing a lot. A match is made for later.

And now, to the Barber Shop with Carmelo Hayes not worrying about the haters saying he didn’t get his North American Title back. He and Trick Williams aren’t worried about Wes Lee and don’t care for their barber being something of a fan. Apparently the contract signing is in two weeks.

Scrypts is coming to watch NXT fall.

Sol Ruca vs. Elektra Lopez

Lopez gets knocked outside to start but she’s right back with a heck of a clothesline to take over. Ruca tries to fight back with some shots to the face and manages to stagger Lopez, only to get slammed off the top. A chokebomb finishes for Lopez at 2:58. Not quite a squash but Lopez didn’t feel like she was in danger.

Post match Indi Hartwell runs in to brawl with Lopez.

Duke Hudson and Thea Hail want to take Charlie Dempsey apart. Hudson will be at ringside tonight against that BESMIRCHING (chuckle) Charlie Dempsey but only for support.

We get a video call between Toxic Attraction with Jacy Jayne being worried about showing up because Alba Fyre might hurt them. Then Fyre (who Jayne thought was a cop) pulls her out of the car and promises to come for Mandy Rose next week.

Charlie Dempsey vs. Andre Chase

The rest of Chase U is here too. Dempsey takes him to the mat to start but Chase is back up with a front facelock. Chase can’t get an armbar but he can hit the spelling stomps. That’s broken up and Dempsey pulls him into a leglock, followed by an STF. That’s enough for Duke Hudson to throw in the towel at 2:48, despite Chase being right next to the rope.

Kiana James and her assistant come into Fallon Henley’s bar where Josh Briggs and Brooks Jensen are in lust. James is trying to buy the place (Wasn’t she trying to do that to Chase U for about thirty seconds a month ago?) but Henley isn’t interested. She has a lot of memories and isn’t taking the deal, as James wants to build an apartment complex.

Hank Walker vs. Stacks

Tony D’Angelo is here with Stacks. Walker gets taken down to start and hammered in the back as commentary talks about Logan Paul. A knee to the head gives Stacks two but Walker gets fires up and runs Stacks over. Stacks pokes him in the eye and gets two off a rollup before dropping Walker with a running knee to the back of the head for the pin at 3:11.

Rating: C-. What were you expecting here? Walker is a wrestling security guard and Stacks is a lackey to a Mafia boss. There was only so much to get out of something like this and they hit their ceiling pretty hard here. I still don’t quite get the appeal of Walker, as he’s a bit similar to Briggs and Jensen, but he’s unique enough to have a spot, as long as it doesn’t get much higher than this.

It’s time for the Grayson Waller Effect with Von Wagner, with Mr. Stone, and Bron Breakker as guests. The fans writing in don’t seem to like Wagner and he doesn’t care what they think. Wagner brags about how great he is but Breakker says try jumping him face to face. Breakker lists off all of the people who have been impressed by him or taken out (Breakker: “Apollo Crews. There I said your name, you happy now?”) and violence is teased but they just stare at each other instead. And yeah it’s still Wagner so he still isn’t interesting.

Wes Lee wanted to win the Tag Team Titles last week but he’s ready to beat Carmelo Hayes next week.

Cora Jade isn’t scared of Wendy Choo, who doesn’t have any friends and no one cares about her.

Apollo Crews is in Nigeria as part of a WWE talent search but he hasn’t forgot about Bron Breakker.

JD McDonagh vs. Axiom

Axiom takes him down for an early double arm crank to start and McDonagh is looking frustrated early. McDonagh tries to fight up but can’t get anywhere with him. A trip to the floor has McDonagh even more annoyed and we take an early break as seething ensues. Back with Axiom hitting a heck of a springboard moonsault to the floor but he comes up holding his knee.

Back in and McDonagh gets caught in an armbar and has to go to the ropes for the break. McDonagh starts going after the leg but Axiom is able to get back up with a shot to the head for a double knockdown. It’s McDonagh up first anyway but his moonsault is pulled into a triangle choke.

That’s broken up as well but Axiom’s knee gives out on a superkick attempt. This time Axiom pulls him into a choke, which is reversed into a VERY bendy kneebar, which is enough for the referee to break the hold because Axiom is screaming so hard. Axiom begs him not to stop it but the doctors say it’s over at 13:45.

Rating: B. This was a technical vs. high flier match and a lot of fun for the most part. That ending was nasty (though not quite as nasty as when it happened to A-Kid in NXT UK) and a good way to make McDonagh look dangerous. I don’t need to see him get another title shot, but they are doing a great job of making him feel big.

Brutus Creed vs. Damon Kemp

The rest of Diamond Mine is here and we have a five minute time limit. Brutus jumps Kemp in the aisle to start the fight fast before heading inside for the bell. The fight is on fast with Brutus knocking him around and then outside. Kemp gets pulled back to the floor and hammered onto the announcers’ table before they head back inside. Brutus sends him shoulder first into the post before grabbing a chair. That’s taken away though and Brutus blasts him for the DQ at 2:46.

Post match Creed hits him with the chair again but Veer and Sanga are looking at Diamond Mine from the balcony.

T-Bar is still coming back and promises his form of justice.

Roxanne Perez offers an ear to Indi Hartwell if anything is wrong but Hartwell says there are no friends in this business. It doesn’t work that way.

Women’s Tag Team Titles: Nikkita Lyons/Zoey Stark vs. Kayden Carter/Katana Chance

Carter/Chance are defending. Chance takes Stark down to start but Stark sticks the landing on a monkey flip. Lyons comes in to work on Carter’s arm but Carter is back up with a running dropkick to send Stark outside. We take a break and come back with Stark holding Chance in a Stretch Muffler. That’s broken up and it’s back to Carter, who hits a big dive to take out both challengers at once.

Chance comes back in and kicks Lyons into the corner for the tag off to Stark. A suplex gets two on Chance, even with Lyons cutting Carter off from making a save. Chance Stundog Millionaires herself out of trouble and everything breaks down. Stark almost clothesline Lyons by mistake and Lyons even takes the bullet of a double superkick for her. A superkick drops Carter but the champs are back up and the 450/neckbreaker combination retains the titles at 11:04.

Rating: C. I’m still not sure what I’m supposed to see in Starks and Lyons as a team as they seemed to be nothing more than two women thrown together to have an NXT team in the Women’s Tag Team Titles tournament. They’re ok enough but it feels like you could sub someone else into either spot with little to no change.

Post match respect is shown but Stark hits Lyons with a title to split the team up. This would be one of those splits that is supposed to be a big deal but they’ve been a team for….have they even had five matches together on TV?

Overall Rating: C. As has been the case for a pretty long time now, there isn’t anything that feels like a big deal right now. I’m sure there will be a new challenger for Breakker after he beats Wagner next week, and the way they are going, it wouldn’t surprise me to see a multi-man match at Deadline. What we got here was another ok show, but it felt like it was setting up more stuff in the future. That has to happen sometimes, but it happens a lot in NXT these days.

Results
Joe Gacy b. Cameron Grimes – Handspring lariat
Elektra Lopez b. Sol Ruca – Chokebomb
Charlie Dempsey b. Andre Chase when Duke Hudson threw in the towel
Stacks b. Hank Walker – Running knee to the back of the head
JD McDonagh b. Axiom via medical stoppage
Damon Kemp b. Brutus Creed via DQ when Creed used a chair
Kayden Carter/Katana Chance b. Zoey Stark/Nikkita Lyons – 450/neckbreaker combination to Stark

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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NXT
Date: November 1, 2022
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Booker T., Vic Joseph

We are into the final two months of the year and heading towards Deadline in December. It would seem that JD McDonagh is on his way towards the next shot at Bron Breakker, where he is probably a favorite to win the title. Now though the question is who shows up from the main roster this week. Let’s get to it.

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

Here is Bron Breakker to get things going. He talks about how great a night Halloween Havoc was, and not just for him. We hear about Wes Lee winning the North American Title, but here is Pretty Deadly to interrupt. They don’t think much of Breakker retaining his title again but Breakker mocks their accents.

Cue Wes Lee to praise Pretty Deadly’s hair and Breakker is willing to let Pretty Deadly have the spotlight. Pretty Deadly poses for a picture (meaning a lot of hip thrusting) but Breakker says someone is going to interrupt. That would be Breakker and Lee, who want the Tag Team Titles. Prince: “There is no way this night could get any worse.” Cue R-Truth and yeah it’s worse. This was a bit of an out of nowhere title challenge, which makes me think the change in the World Series schedule might have messed up NXT’s plans.

R-Truth vs. Grayson Waller

Waller gets sent into the corner to start but comes out with a shoulder. A mock of You Can’t See Me earns Waller a trip down and Truth grabs a headlock. Back up and an STO drops Truth but he rolls away before Waller can try the elbow. They head outside with Truth hitting a big flip dive and we take a break. We come back with…..the match being stopped due to an injury to R-Truth at 7:13. Truth didn’t quite clear the ropes on that dive and hurt his knee. Oh that’s never good to see.

Rating: C. Oh that doesn’t look good. You never want to see anyone get hurt in any way and a knee is one of the scariest possibilities. It doesn’t help that Truth is in his late 40s and probably doesn’t have much time left in the ring. Hopefully he isn’t severely hurt and only needs some ice, but we could be waiting for a long time before he’s back out there.

Post match Waller brags about his win (which came on his own) over a 20 year vet.

We get a sitdown interview with Schism, with Ava Raine saying no one but Schism ever took the time to get to know her. She got hurt early in training and no one who had “known her for years” checked on her. The rest of the team talks about how much they care and can’t help what people think about them. And no, Raine isn’t brainwashed, but she will help Joe Gacy against Cameron Grimes next week. You mean the lack of a Get Well Soon card means we have to sit through MORE Schism???

Javier Bernal talks to Edris Enofe and Malik Blade outside of Shawn Michaels’ office. He was told to be here to find out about his match tonight, but Odyssey Jones comes out. Jones will face Bernal tonight.

Kiana James gives her assistant an envelope.

Indi Hartwell and Zoey Stark get in one of those “only WWE women argue like this” arguments and a match is set for later.

Andre Chase gives Thea Hail a pep talk before her match but she doesn’t feel right. There is no Bodie Hayward, but Duke Hudson breaks through a wall and offers to carry the flag.

Thea Hail vs. Kiana James

Andre Chase and Duke Hudson are in Hail’s corner. Hail is rather fired up to start but James takes her to the mat for an early armbar. It takes Hail a bit to fight back but she sends James into the corner, setting up the running flip neckbreaker. Back up and James hits her running reverse Sling Blade for two, as Hudson puts the foot on the rope. That’s too much for Chase, who ejects him on principle. Another reverse Sling Blade finishes Hail at 4:18.

Rating: C. The Chase University story was one of the best things in NXT and while Chase can still do some very funny things, you can feel that some of the energy is gone and the idea is starting to fall off. It doesn’t help when you have Duke Hudson, who is good but not the most exciting, guy there to bring it down (which does seem to be the point) and Hail losing, but hopefully they can figure out something to salvage it in some way.

Post match Charlie Dempsey returns and jumps Chase from behind, drawing Duke Hudson out for the save. Hail isn’t sure if she can trust Hudson but seems to enough.

Josh Briggs/Brooks Jensen/Fallon Henley are ready to watch the main event. Kiana James’ assistant comes up to deliver the envelope from earlier to Henley. The trio reads the papers but don’t say anything about them.

Mr. Stone interrupts Wes Lee and Bron Breakker to ask why Von Wagner hasn’t gotten a title shot. Breakker tells him to get out.

Odyssey Jones vs. Javier Bernal

This is Jones’ first match in several months after a knee injury. Jones runs him over to start and then does it again for a bonus. Bernal gets smart by going after the legs to take the much bigger Jones down, setting up a sleeper. With that broken up, Jones has had enough and grabs a swinging Boss Man Slam for the pin at 4:21.

Rating: C. I’m not quite as all in on Jones as some but he does make for a good big man to crush people like Bernal. Jones is someone who could be a rather nice addition to the roster in some places and that is a good thing to have. Bernal….I know you need jobbers, but was he really the best that they had available?

Here is Toxic Attraction to celebrate Mandy Rose reaching one year as NXT Women’s Champion. Jacy Jayne and Gigi Dolin both congratulate her, talking about how she has beaten everyone and turned Toxic Attraction into one of the most important factions in the history of NXT. They send us to a video looking at her rather long title reign.

Rose: “Not bad for a piece of eye candy huh?”. She knows no one can stop her and thanks Dolin and Jayne for helping bring Toxic Attraction to the top. The numbers don’t lie and she wants some respect on her name. Anyone in the locker room knows where to find her so here is Alba Fyre. Dolin is put through a table and Fyre says Jayne is next, with Rose to follow.

Apollo Crews thinks NXT wants to see him face Bron Breakker because Crews is a matchup problem for anyone. Crews thinks Breakker is running from him, but Von Wagner comes in to say he’s next for Breakker. Please no.

Scrypts calls the Performance Center again and says being in NXT almost feels like home. We also see security footage of him spray painting his name on the wall.

Indi Hartwell vs. Zoey Stark

Nikkita Lyons is here with Stark, who gets caught by the wrist to start. Back up and Stark hits a springboard spinning crossbody as the lights go out for a bit (seems a bit planned). The lights come back up (after not going all the way out) as Stark works on Hartwell’s arm for a change. Stark gets clotheslined to the floor and the frustration is on as we take a break.

Back with Stark stomping Hartwell down in the corner, even as Lyons tells her to cool it. Stark teases taking her outside for a powerbomb through the announcers’ table but Stark talks her out of it. Back in and Stark kicks her in the face, setting up a clothesline to the back of the head for the pin at 9:48.

Rating: C+. The reheating of Hartwell continues and I’m still not sure how interesting Starks really is. Having her lose her temper isn’t quite an enticing story and having her with Lyons doesn’t exactly help things. Maybe they can get somewhere with her, but it’s not quite clicking yet.

The man who appears to be T-Bar talks about how this is his authority.

Valentina Feroz wants Sanga in his corner but Veer comes in to interrupt them. Sanga says he can’t do it as Wendy Choo watches from behind.

Nikkita Lyons has to calm Zoey Stark from going after the taunting Kayden Carter and Katana Chance.

Valentina Feroz vs. Cora Jade

Feroz looks rather upset on the way to the ring but she’s fine enough to take Jade down. A running knee sends Jade outside and Feroz sends her right back inside. Jade gets in a shot to the face and we hit the choke. Feroz breaks that up but misses a high crossbody, allowing Jade to hit a DDT for the pin at 3:38.

Rating: C. This was quick as it should have been, as Jade is rising up the heel side and Feroz is best known for being part of a tag team that is on the shelf at the moment. The lack of Sanga seemed to shake Feroz up and somehow they have set the story up so that makes a good bit of sense. There was no way Feroz should have won here, but at least the loss was logical.

Post match Jade goes after Feroz with her stick but Wendy Choo makes the save.

Stacks tells Tony D’Angelo that he took care of that thing. D’Angelo sees Stacks like his own son getting started. Elektra Lopez comes in to say she’s her own boss now and will be even more dangerous.

Tag Team Titles: Pretty Deadly vs. Wes Lee/Bron Breakker

Lee and Breakker are challenging. Lee sunset flips Wilson to start and then rolls him up for two more. Wilson gets annoyed when Lee flips away from him so it’s off to Prince. Breakker comes in for a backdrop and running clothesline to drop him hard. Stereo Frankensteiners take the Champs down and we go to a break.

Back with Lee dropkicking Prince through the ropes to the floor but Wilson jumps him from behind. Lee is thrown back in and elbowed down by Wilson so the beating can continue. A quick shot allows the tag off to Breakker though and a Steiner Bulldog puts Prince down. Breakker suplexes both of them and nips up, meaning it’s back to Lee and everything breaks down. Cue Carmelo Hayes for a distraction though and Lee gets rolled up to retain the titles at 12:00.

Rating: C+. This felt like something you would see at a house show and that isn’t a bad thing for a thrown together TV main event. Singles champions vs. team champions is a fine way to go, though I could have gone without Lee taking a pin. At least they had some shenanigans with Hayes interfering, but I also don’t need Hayes going after the North American Title again.

Lee and Hayes fight away and it’s Von Wagner coming in to jump Breakker.

Apollo Crews is watching in the back when JD McDonagh comes up. McDonagh doesn’t see Crews’ vision of being NXT Champion coming true.

Overall Rating: C+. The more I think about this show, the more I think that they pulled back a bit because baseball was moved into the time slot. That’s fine for a one off show as they didn’t know they were going up against the World Series until yesterday. Punt things until next week when you have a bigger audience and make this more of a stand alone show with previews for next week. For what it was, this was perfectly acceptable, but it’s not worth your time.

Results
Grayson Waller b. R-Truth via referee stoppage
Kiana James b. Thea Hail – Reverse Sling Blade
Odyssey Jones b. Javier Bernal – Swinging Boss Man Slam
Indi Hartwell b. Zoey Stark – Running clotheslines to the back of the head
Cora Jade b. Valentina Feroz – DDT
Pretty Deadly b. Wes Lee/Bron Breakker – Rollup to Lee

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NXT LVL Up
Date: October 21, 2022
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Sudu Shah, Byron Saxton

It’s the second week of the Saxton Era and that means…well very little really, as Saxton isn’t as well versed as Nigel McGuinness and not quite as good of a commentator as him either. That more or less leaves the wrestling to carry things and that is a hit or miss bet around here at best. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Ikemen Jiro vs. Myles Borne

Borne grabs a headlock to start but gets reversed into a cravate. Another headlock slows Jiro down but Borne hurts his knee on a leapfrog. Jiro is right on that knee with a leglock sending Borne over to the rope. The half crab has Borne in more trouble until he crawls over to the rope. The jacket punch rocks Borne but the reverses the Ikemen Slash into a small package for the pin at 5:20.

Rating: C. This was a different way to go from most Borne matches and it was quite the win for his career. Borne has gotten better than I would have expected him to be able to do and it’s nice to see his success. At the same time, Jiro was acting more heelish, which is quite the weird way to go for someone with his kind of charisma.

Javier Bernal is ready for Andre Chase because he learned at the school of hard knocks.

Bryson Montana vs. Duke Hudson

Montana grabs him in a front facelock to start and Hudson has to bail to the rope. Hudson elbows away without much trouble but Montana runs him over with a clothesline. A Michinoku Driver gives Montana two but Hudson is back with a snap German suplex. The big boot finishes Montana at 3:53.

Rating: C-. This didn’t have time to go anywhere and Hudson continues to be quite the charisma vacuum once the bell rings. Montana seems to be one of NXT’s next projects and that isn’t a bad thing. He has the size and look to go somewhere so let him see what he can do when he gets his feet a bit wetter in the ring.

Andre Chase vs. Javier Bernal

Thea Hail is here too. Chase takes him down by the arm to start and Bernal is sent outside, where Thea Hail yells at him. Back in and Chase shoulders him down before hammering away in the corner. Bernal manages to get in a knee lift and hammers away, only to get caught with a middle rope sunset flip for two. Some kicks keep Chase in trouble but he comes right back with a suplex. Chase slugs him down and the spelling stomps have Bernal in trouble. The high crossbody finishes Bernal at 6:41.

Rating: C. Chase has become one of the biggest stars around this show and that is one of the things that can make him into a special treat. The fans go nuts when he comes out and while it would be nice to see him doing something bigger in NXT, it might be easier to take the moments on the smaller stage like this one. If it means less of Bernal being boring on the main show too, so be it.

Overall Rating: C. There was a bit more energy to this show, though that might just be the reactions to Chase being in the ring. The show is still completely skippable and I don’t see that changing anytime soon, but at least it was a fun use of half an hour. I’m still not sure why they stopped sending one slightly bigger name down here a week but maybe they found it beneath those stars. For now though, ok show, especially for the short run time.

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NXT
Date: October 4, 2022
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Sudu Shah, Wade Barrett, Byron Saxton

We’re coming up on Halloween Havoc near the end of the month and the card seems to be set. They still have a few things that need to be done to get ready for the show though and we will probably get some more of that build this week. We also have some guest stars coming in this week from Smackdown so things should be feeling bigger. Let’s get to it.

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

Here is Pretty Deadly, dressed as very stereotypical British men (complete with red robes and powdered wigs), for a state of the Commonwealth address. They talk about how back in the day, some pilgrims came from the United Kingdom (Prince: “Hello.”) and now as a result, they are here. All of the other teams have been training in the Performance Center to be as good as they are, including the Boring Brothers and Cheap Denim. Therefore, they should be the Tag Team Champions for all time!

Cue the Brawling Brutes, who are tired of how Pretty Deadly have been complaining everywhere. Pretty Deadly claims they were hacked (By Kevin Nash! Kevin Patrick! Kevin Owens!) but get cleared out anyway. As usual, Pretty Deadly is one of the funnier things in NXT, as long as you don’t take them seriously in the slightest.

Earlier today, Alba Fyre attacked Toxic Attraction so the six woman tag is off for tonight, with Fyre and Mandy Rose taken out.

Carmelo Hayes vs. Oro Mensah

Trick Williams is here with Hayes. Mensah snaps off a suplex to start and they head outside. Hayes gets in a cheap shot to take over and chops Mensah down back inside. Back up and Mensah kicks away, including a shot to the head to knock Hayes away. A missed charge slows Mensah down though and the top rope ax kick finishes for Hayes at 5:30.

Rating: C. Hayes is a bigger deal than Mensah, but you would think that they might not want to have Mensah lose in one of his first matches as part of NXT. Granted Mensah has almost no chance of winning in the ladder match so it isn’t going to lead anywhere, but this was a bit of an odd way to go. I can always appreciate more from Hayes, though Mensah not losing would have made sense too.

Brutus Creed isn’t cleared to compete because of his shoulder. Duke Hudson comes in to laugh at him and gets a match with Julius Creed as a result.

North American Title Match Qualifying Match: Von Wagner vs. Andre Chase

Carmelo Hayes is on commentary. Wagner throws him around with the straight power to start but Chase is back with some right hands. Mr. Stone offers a distraction but gets taken down by Thea Hail. Chase grabs a rollup for two but gets caught with a Death Valley Bomb for the pin at 3:31.

Rating: C-. While I can see the point in having Hayes win the opener, this one feels a lot more questionable. Chase has been on a roll as of late while Wagner seems to have long since stopped being anything around here. I guess they need a power guy in the ladder match, but they had no one else other than Chase to get him in there?

Post match Wes Lee jumps Carmelo Hayes.

Sanga wishes Nathan Frazer luck in his qualifying match. With Frazer gone, Veer Mahaan comes in to stare at Sanga.

Lash Legend is ready for Wendy Choo.

Grayson Waller has his security ready to deal with Apollo Crews’ visions.

Wendy Choo vs. Lash Legend

Choo goes after her to start and they head outside, where Legend spins her into a backbreaker. Back in and a side slam gives Legend two but she misses an elbow, allowing Choo to strike away. Some more kicks put Legend down and Choo’s top rope Vader Bomb is good for the pin at 3:46.

Rating: D+. Given that it was a Lash Legend match, this could have been a heck of a lot worse. I’m not a big fan of Choo, but she is miles ahead of anything Legend can do right now. Hopefully this wraps it up for both of them though, because there is no reason to have it keep going. WWE keeps trying with Legend and it keeps not working, so at least they’re consistent.

Wes Lee is ready for Halloween Havoc but wants Grayson Waller first. He’ll have to settle for a match with an invading Stacks.

Gallus promises to be back and they’re coming for Bron Breakker.

Kayden Carter and Katana Chance know they are different but they work great together.

Toxic Attraction vs. Nikkita Lyons/Zoey Stark

For a future Women’s Tag Team Title shot. Lyons powers Dolin into the corner to start so it’s off to Stark vs. Jayne. Stark knocks her outside without much trouble so Dolin comes back in, earning a springboard spinning crossbody. Toxic Attraction is sent outside for a breather and we take a break.

Back with Lyons in trouble but she kicks her way to freedom. The hot tag brings in Stark to go after Dolin. A superkick into a German suplex gets two on Dolin as everything breaks down. Jayne gets to clean house for a change but she walks into the flipping knee from Stark. The splits splash finishes for Lyons at 10:23.

Rating: C. I like Toxic Attraction, but the title picture needs some fresh blood. WWE sees something in Lyons and Stark as a team so this isn’t the biggest surprise. I don’t know if they win the titles, but at least a fresh team is being added to the mix. Lyons feels like she is going to be a major priority for the women’s division at some point, but for now she will have to settle for going after these titles.

Ilja Dragunov is ready to get some more gold because he fought so hard to become champion and then never lost it. He’s ready for JD McDonagh and Bron Breakker if that is what it takes to get back where he wants to be. Dragunov continues to feel like a star.

It’s time for the Grayson Waller Effect with Cora Jade and Roxanne Perez. They talk about how they want to fight each other, with Perez saying they wanted to come into WWE together and be what the Four Horsewomen were to them. Jade accuses her of showing her true colors but Waller interrupts to reveal that in two weeks, they are going to get to pick your poison, meaning select each others’ opponents. Oh and their Halloween Havoc match is going to be Spin The Wheel, Make The Deal.

Waller even goes up to the stage to spin the wheel, comes up on Weapons Wild (sounds street fightish). The women fight in the ring so Waller comes back, only to be pulled underneath by Apollo Crews. Waller comes out and yes his eyes are red like in Crews’ vision last week. This is the right role for Waller, as he is rather good at being the annoying pest who never shuts up.

The Schism yells at an unseen member of the team in a red hoodie. The person failed at their mission and need to be better.

Julius Creed vs. Duke Hudson

Creed knocks him down, grabs a suplex and hits the basement clothesline for the pin at 48 seconds.

Post match Brutus Creed comes out and beats on Hudson as well. Damon Kemp pops up on the platform to say it’s going to be different at Halloween Havoc. Kemp makes it simple: if Julius can beat him at Halloween Havoc, Brutus can get another match, with Brutus saying he just needs five minutes. Kemp says Brutus’ career is on the line at Halloween Havoc, which Brutus accepts on Julius’ behalf. Julius makes it even bigger by saying it’s an ambulance match. Kemp is in.

JD McDonagh is ready for Ilja Dragunov and Bron Breakker at Halloween Havoc.

Hank Walker’s security buddies fire him up. Quincy Elliott comes in to do the same and dancing ensues.

Axiom is ready to win his trilogy with Nathan Frazer.

Xyon Quinn vs. Hank Walker

Walker armdrags him down a few times but Quinn is back with some shots to the face. We hit the quickly broken chinlock so Walker can hit the Thesz press. Some right hands have Quinn in more trouble but that’s broken up. Quinn’s running fist finishes Walker at 2:10.

Post match the beating is on until Quincy Elliott, makes the save. And adds a spank to Walker.

Cameron Grimes comes up tot he red hoodied Schism person with a warning about Joe Gacy. Cue Schism to beat Grimes down and to praise the hoodied one for doing well. The person in the hoodie is officially on the team. No identity given.

Brooks Jensen/Josh Briggs and Malik Blade/Edris Enofe give the Brawling Brutes a pep talk but get in their own argument. The Brutes say either team can get a shot after they win the titles, but get serious.

Bron Breakker is ready for Halloween Havoc but Javier Bernal comes up to suggest it’s a bad idea. Oh and that Breakker isn’t very good. A match is set for next week.

Tag Team Titles: Brawling Brutes vs. Pretty Deadly

The Brutes are challenging. Wilson hammers on Holland to start but can’t get him up for a suplex. A dropkick/butterfly suplex combination drops Wilson so Butch can come in to bend the fingers. Prince comes in and gets dropped with a clothesline, leaving Wilson to get caught with some Sheamus style forearms to the chest.

We take a break with the champs in trouble and come back with Butch fighting out of a chinlock but getting driven into the corner. Butch slips away again and makes the tag to Holland for the house cleaning. A powerbomb out of the corner gets two on Wilson and it’s back to Butch, who misses a running knee in the corner. Prince tosses Wilson at Butch for a Codebreaker (cool) with Holland having to make the save.

Everything breaks down again and Holland sends Prince outside, leaving Butch to try a cross armbreaker on Wilson. Prince makes the save by stacking Wilson up for two but Butch is back with the Bitter End. Prince puts a foot on the rope so Holland sends him outside. The kick to the head into the Northern Grit connects but here is Imperium for the distraction. Prince uses said distraction to send Butch into the apron and Spilled Milk retain the titles at 12:25.

Rating: C+. They had some good drama in the end but this was less of a match and more waiting for Imperium to show up and cost the Brutes the titles. That’s a fine way to go with Extreme Rules coming up in less than a week so they did the right thing all around. Pretty Deadly might not be good, but they are just right for what they are and that’s enough.

The brawl continues on the floor and goes to the back to….not end the show as Edris Enofe/Malik Blade and Josh Briggs/Brooks Jensen come out to stare at the champs to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. This show didn’t have the best wrestling, but it did a nice job of getting things ready for Halloween Havoc. That’s what matters a lot more at the moment and NXT did a nice job of building the show up. Now I want to see it more than I did before and the next few weeks should be entertaining as well. Efficient show this week, even if it might not have been their best.

Results
Carmelo Hayes b. Oro Mensah – Top rope ax kick
Von Wagner b. Andre Chase – Death Valley Bomb
Wendy Choo b. Lash Legend – Top rope Vader Bomb
Nikkita Lyons/Zoey Stark b. Toxic Attraction – Splits splash to Jayne
Julius Creed b. Duke Hudson – Sliding lariat
Xyon Quinn b. Hank Walker – Running punch
Pretty Deadly b. Brawling Brutes – Spilled Milk to Holland

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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