NXT LVL Up
Date: June 17, 2022
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Sudu Shah, Nigel McGuinness

Things are starting to take form around here and it makes for some more interesting shows. You can tell which names are going to put on a good match and which ones are going to be there as either cannon fodder or to get in some reps. That can make the show easier to predict, but not necessarily good, as tends to be the case. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Thea Hail vs. Arianna Grace

Hail has the rest of Chase U with her and Grace now wears a feather boa to the ring. Grace powers her around to start before they fight over a wristlock. Hail’s arm is snapped across the top to cut her off though and it’s time to kick away in the corner. A DDT on the arm gives Grace two and we hit the hammerlock, with Grace slamming Hail into the mat for a bonus. That’s broken up as Hail fights up and hits a running flip neckbreaker, followed by an arm trap cradle for the pin at 5:29.

Rating: C-. Grace continues to do very little for me, though it does seem like she is starting to put together a persona. Hail on the other hand playing the college student with a bunch of energy could be worse. Neither is great, but at least they went with the one who is doing better at the moment.

Guru Raaj vs. Miles Borne

This is Borne’s debut and they trade flips away from each other for a fast start. Borne takes him down with an armdrag into an armbar to slow things up though, which isn’t surprising as he’s clearly a technical guy due to wearing a singlet. That’s countered into a northern lights suplex and Raaj kicks away, setting up a double arm crank on the mat. Back up and Borne hits some dropkicks into a slam for two as this is rather riveting offense. Raaj fights back and strikes away before a middle rope bulldog finishes Borne at 4:56.

Rating: D+. This was a match between two people who have nothing that sets them apart and had little redeeming value. It wasn’t a bad match, but it was about as boring as you can get without falling off a cliff. Just two guys having a match and that isn’t going to make me care much about either of them.

Respect is shown post match.

Ivy Nile vs. Elektra Lopez

Lopez has Stacks and Two Dimes with her. Nile easily takes her to the mat to start for a headlock. A snap suplex gives Nile two but a gutbuster cuts her down. What looked to be a running spinning chop in the corner is just a run, a stop, and then the spinning chop to Nile, followed by some forearms to the back. The abdominal stretch goes on, with Lopez lifting the leg for a bonus. Lopez takes it to the mat for a bonus but Nile fights up and hits an enziguri. The dragon sleeper finishes for Nile at 5:48.

Rating: C. Nile is at the point where she doesn’t belong on this show. She has mowed down everyone in front of her and was this close to winning the NXT UK Women’s Title. There is no reason to keep her here but she does add some star power. Lopez on the other hand has more natural charisma than she needs, but I don’t remember the last time she won anything important. That’s a weird mixture, especially for part of a stable that gets so much TV time.

Overall Rating: C-. This was a rough going for the show as there wasn’t much to see this time around. The main event was ok at best and that was because Nile is one of the best things going in NXT. LVL Up is only so good from time to time and this wasn’t one of their better weeks, with people just getting in the ring rather than doing anything of note.

 

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NXT LVL Up
Date: June 10, 2022
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Sudu Shah, Nigel McGuinness

It’s time for another one of these which will likely have nothing whatsoever to do with the previous show and feature a bunch of stand alone matches. That is the standard formula around here and I wouldn’t expect to see it change anytime soon. It doesn’t mean the show will be bad, but it also doesn’t give me high expectations. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Valentina Feroz vs. Arianna Grace

Yulisa Leon is here with Feroz. Grace takes her down by the arm to start but Feroz reverses into an arm crank of her own. A rollup doesn’t work so Grace powers her up for a drop onto the buckle. The chinlock goes on but Feroz fights up and gets two off a small package. Grace kicks her down and, after walking around so she can face the camera, gets two. Some throws put Grace down and she hits a spear but Grace is back up. That’s fine with Feroz, who grabs a backslide for the pin at 4:14.

Rating: D+. In short, Grace is not ready for this spot as she looks all over the place and like she is trying to remember every thing that she has to do. The match wasn’t good and felt sloppy, with Feroz doing what she could but not exactly being great in her own right. I’m sure Grace will get a chance because of her look and family connection, but she needs a lot of work.

Sloane Jacobs vs. Sierra St. Pierre

Feeling out process to start with Jacobs grinding away on a headlock and hitting a dropkick. Another headlock takeover takes St. Pierre over and a middle rope spinning crossbody gets two. St. Pierre fights up and hits some right hands, setting up a neck crank. Jacobs grabs a butterfly suplex for two and finishes with a Samoan drop faceplant at 4:58.

Rating: C-. Jacobs is another work in progress and while I can get what WWE sees in her, she needs a lot more ring time and a lot more work before she is ready to go. This wasn’t terrible but it is clear that Jacobs is still figuring a lot of this stuff out. She might get there and I have more confidence in her than Grace, though that isn’t saying much.

Ikemen Jiro vs. Dante Chen

Jiro works on the wrist to start but Chen flips out and grabs a headlock. With that broken up, they fight over a pinfall reversal sequence to get us to a standoff. Chen gets knocked down for a twist of the neck and a running crossbody gives Jiro two. Back up and Chen knees him in the ribs before another shot sends Jiro to the apron. The seated abdominal stretch stays on the ribs but Jiro fights up with the jacket punches. A slingshot springboard moonsault gets two on Chen, who grabs a gutbuster. Not that it matters as the Ikemen Slice finishes for Jiro at 6:59.

Rating: C. Given my tastes in wrestling, Jiro is someone I shouldn’t like, but he has some great charisma and is smooth in the ring, making it hard to dislike him. That is more than I can say for a lot of NXT wrestlers and I get why he is in a more featured role. You can tell that he has the experience and abilities, but the jacket/over the top nature is likely to keep him pretty firmly in the lower levels of the card.

Overall Rating: C-. The women’s matches were rough but Jiro was a level higher enough to make this passable. This show continues to be the “yeah sure put them on, whatever” card of the week and that isn’t likely to change. What matters is getting people in the ring, but with the house show circuit coming back around, I’m not sure how much of an impact this show is going to have. It’ll stay around because WWE is the ultimate creature of habit, but it doesn’t need to be, at least not in this form.

 

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NXT LVL Up
Date: May 27, 2022
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Sudu Shah, Nigel McGuinness

I’m not sure what to think of the show these days and there isn’t anything coming out of last week to set this up. They had something going for a few weeks with something leading to a possible story for the next week but that hasn’t bee the case in a long time now. Maybe we can get a little something here so let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Andre Chase/Bodhi Hayward vs. Bryson Montana/Demaris Griffin

Hayward grabs a headlock on Griffin to start but Griffin reverses into one of his own. Back up and a hiptoss has Griffin in the corner but it’s off to Montana. A sunset flip gives Chase two before it’s time for the spelling stomps. Montana doesn’t care for that and sends him face first into the mat. Chase isn’t having any of this and fights up, getting over for the tag to Hayward. House is quickly cleaned and the Fratliner finishes Montana at 3:49.

Rating: C. Chase and Hayward continue to be two of the most entertaining people in all of NXT and that is something worth having around. I still see something from Montana and I wouldn’t have him taking falls, but at least he is getting some ring time. Now just find something else for him to do and maybe they have a little something with him.

Arianna Grace vs. Amari Miller

Miller wins an exchange of forearms and grabs an armbar. Some more forearms set up a Regal cutter for two on Grace, who drives her into the corner to even things up. A bow and arrow hold has Miller in more trouble and we hit the chinlock. Miller fights up and kicks away but gets caught in a sunset flip. That’s broken up though and Miller grabs a cradle for the pin at 5:13.

Rating: C-. Grace has some size and power though she is in need of something to make her stand out. For the sake of her career, hopefully it doesn’t involve talking about her father, who is kind of a pest. Miller on the other hand has all the charisma that she needs and could be a bigger deal if given the chance. Now just give her some better competition to learn from and you might have something.

Dante Chen vs. Trick Williams

Carmelo Hayes is here with Williams. Some running shoulders set up an armbar on Williams and it’s an armdrag into another armbar. Back up and Williams him down before cranking on a wristlock. Chen gets caught in an armbar and can’t quite power out. The second attempt works a bit better but Williams knocks him down again. An elbow misses for Williams though and Chen gets to strike away. A belly to back suplex gives Chen two but Williams hits the Trick Kick for the pin at 6:06.

Rating: C. Just a match here as there is only so much that you can get out of these two. Neither of them is overly interesting, though at least Williams has some charisma when he is getting the chance to talk. Granted it doesn’t mean all that much when you have him with Carmelo Hayes, who is far better than Williams in any given way.

Williams and Hayes celebrate to end the show.

Overall Rating: C. Another ho and may I add hum show this week and that shouldn’t be the biggest surprise. You can only get so far with a show with this level of talent and nothing in the world of storytelling, so this was only going to be ok at best. The matches were fine enough, though I’m not entirely sure I’ll remember them tomorrow. In other words: this was Level Up.

 

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NXT
Date: May 10, 2022
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Wade Barrett, Vic Joseph

While things should have changed last week with NXT Champion Bron Breakker beating Joe Gacy at Spring Breakin, Gacy’s minions beat Breakker down and kidnapped him. Since wins and losses don’t matter around here, Gacy vs. Breakker continues while the women’s Breakout Tournament begins. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of last week’s title match, plus the post show beatdown and Gacy and Company taking Breakker into a field with a sack of his head. They seem to leave him there as Gacy is all nutty.

Women’s Tag Team Titles: Toxic Attraction vs. Roxanne Perez/Wendy Choo

Toxic Attraction is defending against the criminals. Choo dives in off the top from behind to take the champs down and it’s Perez starting with Jayne. That’s fine with the champ as Perez gets sent into the corner, allowing Jayne to do some of the most blatant spot calling I can remember (she grabbed Perez’s head and talked to her).

Jayne makes the mistake of talking too much trash though and it’s Choo coming in to clean house. Choo sends them outside and holds the ropes open so Perez can hit a double dive as we take a break. Back with Jayne taking Choo down but the tag off to Perez doesn’t take that long. A Russian legsweep gets two on Dolin as everything breaks down. Mandy Rose gets in the ring so Choo goes after her, allowing Jayne to hit a superkick on Perez for the pin at 10:01.

Rating: C+. Choo’s gimmick is still horrible but she can wrestle a somewhat exciting match. That kind of makes me wonder what in the world the point is in trying to have her be this goofy thing that is impossible to take seriously. If she was having matches like this in regular gear, she would be downright useful, but it is a little hard to buy her as anything important based on how she is dressed in the ring (and what she does out of it).

Post match Toxic Attraction beats Choo down.

Grayson Waller and Tiffany Stratton went shopping.

The Creed Brothers aren’t happy with Roderick Strong interfering against the Viking Raiders last week. Strong says the win is what matters but next week the Creeds are going to face the Raiders again. That’s cool with Strong, who is bringing in someone who has been wanting to join the team for a long time now: Damon Kemp. The Creeds say that new members are supposed to be a group decision, so they’ll talk about this later.

Here is Joe Gacy, with minions, for a chat. Gacy says that Bron Breakker has to take the next step in his journey all alone. He started his own journey here months ago and allowed anyone to be a part of real change. Two men, the minions, separated themselves from the pack and have proven their worth to him and themselves. Now Breakker can be a part of this change and receive eternal joy. Otherwise, affliction and hardship await those who resist. And that’s it, because Gacy is just another cult leader that has been done time after time.

Sarray, a schoolgirl again, talks to Chase University and since Bodie Hayward speaks Japanese (Chase: “We got a foreign language department?”), he translates that Sarray wants to team with Chase in a mixed tag. Chase is in.

This week at the Performance Center, Ivy Nile had an exercise challenge, starting with pushups. More on this later as some participants drop out early.

Here are the eight Women’s Breakout Tournament participants and we’ve got brackets:

Nikkita Lyons
Arianna Grace

Fallon Henley
Sloane Jacobs

Roxanne Perez
Kiana James

Lash Legend
Tatum Paxley

Everyone gets introduced with a quick bio graphic.

Women’s Breakout Tournament First Round: Fallon Henley vs. Sloane Jacobs

Henley misses a charge in the corner to start, allowing Jacobs to try a dropkick that is left a big short, meaning Henley has to lean into it for the near fall to make sense. Cue Brooks Jensen and Josh Briggs to cheer Henley on as Jacobs kicks her in the face for two. Back up and Henley manages a clothesline for a double knockdown, setting up a running knee to finish Jacobs at 4:16.

Rating: C-. They did the right thing by having Henley go forward, but the brackets would suggest that she is going to get wrecked by Nikkita Lyons in the second round. Henley has fit in rather nicely with the country boys and that is a good starting point for her. Jacobs isn’t even 20 years old yet so she has a long way to go, but at least the base seems to be there so far.

Respect is shown post match.

Legado del Fantasma doesn’t feel bad about kidnapping AJ Galante last week. Now it’s time to start the car again.

Cruz del Toro goes to start the car but Tony D’Angelo and company jump him and beat him down. Then they put him in another car trunk and drive off.

Alba Fyre vs. Amari Miller

Fyre grabs a rollup to start as we go split screen to see Ivy Nile putting her contestants through burpees to get rid of even more. Miller comes back with a Regal Cutter for two but Fyre superkicks her for the same. Fyre plants her again with the Firebomb (Gory Bomb) and hits a Swanton for the pin at 3:38.

Rating: C. Fyre looked good here, but that isn’t hard when you’re one of the best in the world. I know WWE felt the need to change everything about her but at least the red hair is about as much of a trademark as you can get. It wasn’t quite a squash as Miller has a bit of standing around here, though Fyre should be either in the title scene or on the main roster like yesterday.

Solo Sikoa won’t let Trick Williams and Carmelo Hayes in the building.

Cora Jade is ready for Natalya and isn’t that little girl that Natalya remembers.

Here is Solo Sikoa for a chat. He likes what he did to Trick Williams and Carmelo Hayes and wants the North American Title. Cue Cameron Grimes to say that once he beats Hayes, Sikoa is next. That’s cool with Sikoa, who walks away, but here are Hayes and Williams to beat Grimes down. Sikoa slowly leaves, then turns to look back and very eventually makes the save.

Legado del Fantasma calls Tony D’Angelo and company and threats are made. Santos Escobar throws in a “f*** you” to end the call and D’Angelo breaks things.

Nathan Frazer is excited to be here when Xyon Quinn comes in. Quinn says something Frazer doesn’t understand when Wes Lee comes up too. Frazer says he thought it was some American thing and leaves, which seems to set up Lee vs. Quinn.

Tiffany Stratton/Grayson Waller vs. Andre Chase/Sarray

Sarray transforms, but it also changes Bodhi Hayward into a schoolgirl and changes Chase’s sweater to blue. The guys start things off with Waller working on the wristlock. A shot to the face annoys Chase so it’s off to Stratton, who has to run away from Sarray. That lets Stratton get her into the ring for a forearm to the face, only to have Sarray take her down by the leg. The Muta Lock goes on, with Sarray having to grab the hair for the escape.

Chase and Sarray hit the spelling stomps and we take a break. Back with Waller beating on Chase until a suplex gets him out of trouble. Everything breaks down again and the Sunray dropkick hits Waller. That leaves Sarray to get planted though and Stratton hits the twisting Vader Bomb….for two as Hayward blasts the air horn. Stratton dives on him (Stratton: “THAT’S A TEACHABLE MOMENT!”) but gets rolled up by Sarray for the pin at 10:26.

Rating: C+. Chase U has rapidly become one of my favorite things in all of NXT and that is due to the efforts that Chase has put in. He has turned a totally dumb story into something I like to see every week and that is a rare thing to see. It is all in the performance for him and I could go for more of that and people like him. Waller and Stratton were fine here and Sarray winning….I just can’t imagine it’s going to stick this time. She has fallen too far and the still lame transformation stuff is making it worse.

Ivy Nile has people doing lunges.

Mr. Stone says if people step to Von Wagner, they are going to get hurt. Ikemen Jiro comes in and attacks him and they get separated.

Indi Hartwell is sad about Dexter Lumis (whose name we can’t say) being gone when Toxic Attraction comes in. Mandy Rose talks about how she can’t imagine what Indi is going through….because no one would ever leave her. Go find Wendy Choo and cry with her. Hartwell shakes her head a lot.

Women’s Breakout Tournament First Round: Nikkita Lyons vs. Arianna Grace

Grace hits her in the face to start and manages to take Lyons down early on. Something like an Anaconda Vice has Lyons in trouble but she’s back up with some superkicks. A release German suplex sends Grace flying and a spinning kick to the face drops her. The splits splash finishes for Lyons at 3:08.

Rating: C. They kept this one short with Grace getting in some offense before falling tot he bigger star. There is nothing wrong with pushing the heck out of Lyons as she has the physical gifts and intangibles to go a long way. Grace looked good in the short term, but you can only get so much out of her selling a lot in a three minute match.

Ivy Nile gets rid of more people with the battle ropes and pullups. Nile outlasts the one remaining person and doesn’t look happy.

Video on Cora Jade vs. Natalya, and yes that really is the main event.

The Viking Raiders are in on a rematch against the Creeds.

Natalya vs. Cora Jade

Feeling out process to start with Jade spinning out of a wristlock and taking Natalya down early. The threat of some kind of a hold has Jade slipping out, only to send Natalya to the floor. We take a break and come back with Jade escaping a surfboard, setting up a running knee in the ropes. A tornado DDT gets two on Natalya but she is fine enough to suplex Jade hard into the corner.

Jade’s knee is crushed in the ropes so Natalya wraps it around the post. That allows Jade to pull her face first into the post and Sliced Bread gets two. With nothing else working, Jade grabs the Sharpshooter but Natalya powers out as Jade’s knee can’t hold up. Natalya grabs the Sharpshooter and Jade passes out at 14:06.

Rating: B. They were managing to pull me in here, and while I get the idea of Jade hanging in there to fall in the end, I’m not sure that’s the best way to go. Is Natalya really important enough that Jade can’t beat her? I know WWE seems to think of her as a legend and yeah I think I just answered my own question.

Post match Jade wakes up and Natalya helps her to her feet for the big hug to end the show. Please, not another tag team.

Overall Rating: C+. The main event pulled this one over the line and while it took time, I’m glad it actually got there. NXT continues to push some rather uninteresting stars and characters though, from Choo to Gacy to D’Angelo and company to Sarray to Natalya and it doesn’t help me through the show. There are good and interesting people on here who could use the TV time, but the bad names are bringing things WAY down and it’s making parts of the show a chore rather than entertaining. Side note: has there ever been a full, regular show that has a woman in every match? That might be a first.

Results
Toxic Attraction b. Roxanne Perez/Wendy Choo – Superkick to Perez
Fallon Henley b. Sloane Jacobs – Running knee
Alba Fyre b. Amari Miller – Swanton
Andre Chase/Sarray b. Tiffany Stratton/Grayson Waller – Rollup to Stratton
Nikkita Lyons b. Arianna Grace – Splits splash
Natalya b. Cora Jade via referee stoppage

 

 

 

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NXT LVL Up
Date: April 29, 2022
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Sudu Shah, Nigel McGuinness

I’m almost looking forward to this show in a way and that should make for an interesting enough week. They’re starting to do something a bit differently around here as you see wrestlers debut here before moving up to the main NXT show a week or so later, making this a glorified preview show. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Dante Chen vs. Damon Kemp

Busy week for Kemp, who was on NXT UK yesterday and since the schedule for these shows couldn’t possibly have anything nefarious or misleading going on, he must have some jet lag issues. Chen goes for an armbar to start but gets taken to the mat for some easy riding. This prompts a discussion of pretty much any main roster story the fans can think of to avoid talking about the match.

Back up and Chen starts working on the leg to put him in a bit of trouble, including some cranking on the mat. A backslide gives Kemp two but Chen is back with a spinning toehold. The Ric Flair cannonball down onto the leg is countered into a rollup for two and Kemp is back up with a running shoulder. The running powerslam finishes Chen at 5:13.

Rating: C. The more I see of Kemp, the more I like him. He has some charisma to go with an amateur wrestling background and that is more than you could expect in a situation like his. I could go for more of him, though not so much with Chen, who continues to just be there with little of note about him.

Amari Miller vs. Arianna Grace

Miller is returning from two months off due to an injury and Grace is better known as the daughter of Santino Marella. Miller takes her down with a headlock to start but eventually gets powered down into an armbar. Said armbar keeps Miller down on the arm as we move on to a discussion of the main roster Women’s Titles. Back up and Miller hits a running kick to the chest, only to get small packaged to give Grace the pin at 5:15.

Rating: D+. This was as interesting as four and a half minutes of armbars are going to be. I get that they want to push Grace as someone in the Breakout Tournament, though I’d like to believe that she has something more than we got to see here. If nothing else, it is a bit frustrating to see Miller come back and lose after she was starting to get somewhere before her injury.

Respect is shown post match.

Andre Chase vs. Quincy Elliott

Bodhi Hayward is here with Chase. Quincy shoves him into the corner and gives us a hip swivel, followed by a crushing in another corner. Chase swivels his way out of a waistlock but gets run over again, meaning even more swiveling. Back up and for some reason Chase tries a slam, earning himself another knockdown (and a sore back to go with it).

The big splash doesn’t even warrant a cover before Quincy hits a side slam for two. Chase fights up and manages to stagger Quincy, setting up a high crossbody. The spelling stomps set up a failed sunset flip attempt, but Chase grabs the leg to break up more swiveling. A fairly impressive slam finishes for Chase at 6:19.

Rating: C-. I can go for watching Chase for a good while, but Quincy pretty clearly ran out of stuff he knew how to do and started repeating things with about two minutes left. I know WWE likes rushing things, but if you can’t make it through a six minute match without repeating that many spots, you might not be ready for TV. The slam was good, though it didn’t exactly make up for everything else.

Nigel praises Chase’s 13 inch pythons to end the show.

Overall Rating: C-. This was a pretty disappointing show, but the run time continues to be its saving grace. Even if the show isn’t very good, it’s only not very good for less than half an hour (including ads between matches) so its hard to get that annoyed. Hopefully this was just a one off though, as this was a pretty bad step backwards for the show.

 

 

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