IMG Credit: WWE

NXT
Date: May 22, 2019
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Beth Phoenix, Mauro Ranallo, Nigel McGuinness

We’re somehow less than two weeks away from the next Takeover (thanks Saudis) so things need to hurry and get ready now. Last week saw the NXT Title and Women’s Title matches being set up, along with what seems to be the Tag Team Title match being set up. That leaves a few things needing to be done, which should be taken care of tonight. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of the Viking Raiders dominating the tag team division but then vacating the Tag Team Titles to go up to the main roster. They faced the Street Profits last week until the Forgotten Sons interfered, setting up a huge brawl with other teams getting involved.

William Regal announces the Street Profits vs. the Forgotten Sons vs. Danny Burch/Oney Lorcan vs. Kyle O’Reilly/Bobby Fish in a ladder match for the vacant titles.

Opening sequence.

Here’s the Undisputed Era for a chat. Adam Cole talks about how the team is going nowhere and everyone’s contract may say NXT, but the Undisputed Era owns them. They’re taking over, and that begins next Friday when O’Reilly and Fish take the Tag Team Titles. Cole will be busy that night too as he gets the NXT Title that has been him all along.

This brings out Johnny Gargano, who knows that Cole is obsessed with winning the title. Cole brings up winning the first fall in New York, though Gargano explains the math in a 2/3 falls match. The fight is teased but here’s Matt Riddle to go after the Era first, with Johnny joining in to clear the Era out. Riddle vs. Strong at Takeover wouldn’t surprise me.

Sean Maluta vs. Mansoor

Mansoor starts fast with a headscissors into a high dropkick but Sean gets in a Samoan drop for a breather. A middle rope Codebreaker gives Maluta two and we hit the neck crank. That’s broken up in a hurry and Mansoor hits a slingshot reverse neckbreaker. A lifting reverse suplex into a swinging neckbreaker Maluta at 2:50. Mansoor looked good, as always.

Regal yells at the Undisputed Era and makes Riddle vs. Strong for Takeover (I can call those obvious ones.). Tonight, it’s O’Reilly and Fish against Riddle and Gargano.

Here’s Velveteen Dream to say that everyone wants to feel him and hold him but he’s too big to hold. When you say his name, you better say it correctly….and here’s Tyler Breeze. The fans are very happy to see him but Dream doesn’t like someone else being called gorgeous. Breeze is glad to be home and knows what it’s like to have everyone talking about him.

Ever since the fashion left NXT though, it’s been a little dull around here. There are wannabe impersonators and cheap knockoffs, but as flattering as that is (Breeze: “And believe me Dream, it’s flattering.”), there is only one Prince Pretty. Dream welcomes him home to the Dream’s NXT but things are a little different around here. NXT wants a man instead of a boy, especially not a boy who plays cops and robbers. Just because Breeze couldn’t cut it on Monday and Tuesday, he can’t come back here and demand the spotlight.

Breeze says the title inspires him and an inspired Tyler Breeze is too much for Dream to handle. Dream calls him a dollar store detective who has forgotten how things work while he’s sitting in catering on Monday and Tuesday. To make sure everything is cool though, Dream offers a selfie with the champ. Breeze goes for it but has one more bit of advice: when you write your number on your trunks but no one calls, no one is interested. A phone shot knocks Dream down and Breeze leaves. Just the battle of the entrances alone will be worth seeing.

Post break Breeze says he wanted to introduce Dream to an inspired Prince Pretty.

Candice LeRae vs. Reina Gonzalez

Candice’s early rollup attempt is easily blocked and Reina powers her down into an arm crank. Back up and Candice spins around into a rollup to the floor, followed by a drive into the steps with Reina’s arm hitting first. Back in and Candice’s top rope hurricanrana sends Reina into the corner and the Lionsault gives Candice the pin at 3:15.

Rating: D+. Well that was quick. I’m rather surprised that Reina got beaten so fast as she’s a near giant in the division and loses in just over three minutes. Candice is a bigger star than most though and her winning makes sense, but I was expecting a little more of a competitive match.

Post match the Horsewomen hit the ring to go after Candice but Io Shirai makes the save with a kendo stick.

Dream will defend the North American Title against Breeze at Takeover. That should finish the card.

Kyle O’Reilly/Bobby Fish vs. Johnny Gargano/Matt Riddle

Riddle has taped up ribs. No Cole and Strong here with the Era. Gargano and O’Reilly go to the mat to start for an early standoff. O’Reilly tries to pull him into a triangle choke so Gargano rolls out into a failed Gargano Escape attempt. Gargano gets taken into the corner but is fine enough to kick Fish in the face, allowing the tag off to Riddle. That means the palm strikes and kicks to the chest, followed by an exploder suplex.

Some rolling gutwrench suplexes have Fish in more trouble so O’Reilly comes in without a tag, earning himself his own rolling suplexes. That’s enough for Fish to get in a cheap shot so Riddle can finally be put in trouble in the corner. A sliding knee to the bad ribs keeps Riddle in trouble, setting up a slingshot hilo to give Fish two. With the rib work not being so successful, O’Reilly strikes away at the chest, earning himself a knee to the face. It’s back to Gargano who tries an O’Connor roll on O’Reilly but Fish tags himself in.

Chasing the Dragon gets two but Gargano breaks up High/Low. Riddle comes back in and no sells a German suplex, setting up a Penalty Kick to O’Reilly to put all four down. The Broton into the Floating Bro gets two on Fish with O’Reilly making the save. Riddle and Fish slug it out until Riddle hits a powerbomb into a knee to the face. O’Reilly makes another save but here’s Cole, who gets taken out with a suicide dive from Gargano. Now it’s Strong to suplex Riddle onto the apron, setting up High/Low to finish Riddle at 13:29.

Rating: B. Strong main event here as the Era wins a match they should have won. The interference keeps Riddle protected and gives him a reason to want to take care of Strong even more. It wouldn’t shock me to see Riddle getting the title shot over Summerslam weekend and going through the Era to get there is a great start.

Post match the Era beats down both guys to end the show.

Overall Rating: B+. Every time I watch this show do things so fast, I’m impressed that much more. They threw together three matches, all of which make sense, in the span of an hour. That’s really hard to do with this kind of efficiency, while also showcasing the other matches for Takeover. While this might not be the best looking Takeover in the world, you can feel how good it’s going to be because that’s what they do. It’s another good show, but more importantly it shows how these people can turn on the jets, which is even more impressive.

Results

Mansoor b. Sean Maluta – Lifting reverse swinging neckbreaker

Candice LeRae b. Reina Gonzalez – Lionsault

Kyle O’Reilly/Bobby Fish b. Matt Riddle/Johnny Gargano – High/Low to Riddle

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2000 Monday Nitro and Thunder Reviews Part 1 (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/02/22/new-book-kbs-monday-nitro-thunder-reviews-volume-vii-january-june-2000/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Worlds Collide: Women Collide
Date: April 24, 2019
Location: Pier 12, New York City, New York
Commentators: Aiden English, Vic Joseph, Mia Yim

This is the last (I think) entry in the series of Axxess events, because that’s something that needed to see the light of day because reasons. The idea here is pretty simple with a bunch of matches between women of different brands. I’m not sure what to expect here as the matches have been mostly good, but this was taped the day after Wrestlemania. Let’s get to it.

Announcers’ preview.

Candice LeRae vs. Kay Lee Ray

Kay starts in on the arm but Candice gets in a nifty spinning reversal. A headlock takeover works a bit better until Kay headscissors her way out of trouble. Some rollups give Candice two each but she’s snapmared down into a rolling kick to the head to give Kay two of her own. Candice is right back with a Black Widow, sending Kay stumbling into the ropes.

Back to back to back dives take Kay down for two but the Lionsault misses. Kay gets caught on the middle rope and a super German suplex gives Candice two. A springboard is broken up with a superkick to the back but Candice is right back with a reverse hurricanrana. Now the Lionsault can connect for the pin at 8:25.

Rating: B. Heck of a match here with Candice looking awesome and Kay more than holding up her end. Candice was working hard to keep up with the more polished Kay and that worked perfectly well. I liked this more than I was expecting to so we’ll call this a rather pleasant surprise to start.

Piper Niven vs. Zelina Vega

This better be a squash. Niven towers over Vega and easily shoves her down but gets drop toeholded into the middle buckle. Choking over the ropes works a bit better for Vega and a missed charge keeps Piper in trouble. Vega manages a tornado DDT to cut off a comeback as this is WAY too much from Vega so far.

A Dragon Sleeper goes on until Piper realizes that she’s twice Vega’s size. The hold is broken up with a toss and the seated crossbody crushes Vega again. The Vader Bomb misses and Vega gets in a Codebreaker. The delayed cover (since Vega can’t pull her) gets two but Vega’s moonsault misses. A scoop sitout brainbuster finishes Vega at 4:58.

Rating: D-. Nope. I did not buy the idea of Vega getting in this kind of offense whatsoever and the match really suffered as a result. I’m assuming Vega got in this much offense because she’s on the main roster, but she’s wrestled what, three matches there? This went beyond the point of being believable and it really didn’t work.

Io Shirai vs. Sonya Deville

Mia doesn’t think much of someone coming from the Octagon to the ring because Sonya’s attitude isn’t enough of a reason to boo her. Shirai starts flipping around and hits a few ax handles but Sonya pulls her hard off the ropes to take over. Sonya gets serious by putting her hair up and kicking away in the corner for two.

The bodyscissors goes on with Sonya slapping the head and ribs a bit for a bonus. The fingers get bent backwards as Yim goes on another anti-MMA rant. Sonya hits a chop and Mia asks if that was necessary. Some elbows to the face as Mia now loves the idea of Worlds Collide because different parts of WWE come together. So to clarify: as long as it’s all WWE with wrestling backgrounds, we’re cool. Got it, I think.

The fans are split as Sonya grabs the chinlock, which doesn’t last long as usual. Sonya misses an enziguri and Io’s missile dropkick gets two (with Aiden calling Sonya a former MMA artist, or a mixed martial artist artist, as said by the Artist). Now the enziguri connects to give Sonya two and a running double leg takedown (just call it a spear) finishes Shirai at 8:22.

Rating: C. Another good but not great match with the biggest point being Mia’s rather strange rant against MMA. Sonya winning is rather odd as well, as Shirai is probably going to go after the Women’s Title soon while Sonya is little more than Mandy Rose’s muscle. It’s not completely unrealistic, but it’s not what I would have done.

NXT UK Women’s Title: Toni Storm vs. Nikki Cross vs. Bianca Belair

Toni is defending and we get Big Match Intros. Nikki goes right at Bianca to start but gets caught in a fall away slam. That gives us Bianca vs. Toni in a showdown that I don’t think many people actually wanted. Toni easily spins out of a wristlock and takes Bianca down but here’s Nikki to chop in the corner. Nikki ties Belair up in the ring skirt and hammers away yet still manages to stop a charge from Toni. Now both of them are tied up in the skirt so Nikki can forearm and scream a lot.

Back in and a high crossbody gets two on Toni so Belair throws Nikki outside. That doesn’t last long as Nikki is back in for a three way knockdown. Toni is up first with the running hip attacks in the corner but Belair spears both of them down. The KOD hits Nikki with Toni diving in for the save. The hair whip puts Toni in the corner but Bianca goes shoulder first into the post. Cross is back in with the reverse DDT to Toni and Belair is sent outside. That leaves Cross to take Storm Zero to retain Toni’s title at 7:29.

Overall Rating: C+. Another pretty good but completely skippable show in a series of them. I like the Worlds Collide concept but there are some things that you just don’t need to film. It’s fine if I don’t get to see the matches from Axxess and while the shows weren’t bad, they’re nothing that is going to stick with me. Well maybe other than Mia being ultra serious about everything and her weird hatred of mixed martial artist (artists) getting into wrestling. Seriously what was that?

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2000 Monday Nitro and Thunder Reviews Part 1 (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/02/22/new-book-kbs-monday-nitro-thunder-reviews-volume-vii-january-june-2000/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

NXT
Date: April 24, 2019
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Mauro Ranallo, Nigel McGuinness, Percy Watson

Things are getting interesting around here as Johnny Gargano is still dealing with the Undisputed Era. That could make for some fun matches going forward and we’re starting those tonight with Roderick Strong getting a non-title shot at the champ. Other than that, we could be in for the first steps towards Velveteen Dream vs. Dominik Dijakovic for the North American Title. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a quick recap of Gargano vs. Strong.

Opening sequence.

Jaxson Ryker vs. Humberto Carrillo

Ryker powers him into the corner to start but Carrillo flips out of a belly to back suplex. A springboard kick to the face gets two and there’s a headscissors to take Ryker down again. The standing moonsault is good for two more but Ryker gets all serious and hiptosses Carrillo into the corner. The Widowmaker sends Carrillo outside but Ryker follows and sends him into the barricade a few times. They head over the barricade with Ryker kneeing him in the head against another barricade for….I guess the double countout at 2:59.

Post match the beating continues until Danny Burch and Oney Lorcan come out for the save.

Adam Cole doesn’t want to hear about Strong getting a match with the cowardly Gargano. It doesn’t matter though because Strong will get the job done. Matt Riddle pops up to laugh at Cole being so jealous. Cole leaves and Riddle does his photo shoot with the goofy poses that feel more natural for him than talking.

Vanessa Borne/Aliyah vs. Candice LeRae/Kacy Catanzaro

Aliyah takes Catanzaro down to start and drops a knee with a flip forward for a bonus. Catanzaro is right back up with a flipping kick to the back so Aliyah pulls her down by the hair. Borne comes in to forearm her in the back and it’s Aliyah working on something like a surfboard. A double neckbreaker gets Catanzaro out of trouble and it’s off to Candice to pick things up a bit. The missile dropkick sets up a springboard jawbreaker (Nigel: “NOT TO THE FACE! NOT TO THE FACE!”) to Borne and the Lionsault is good for the pin at 4:26.

Rating: D+. Candice is clearly miles ahead of the other three, which for Kacy is just due to inexperience. Aliyah and Borne can get by without embarrassing themselves but Aliyah should have gotten better just due to time spent around here. The match wasn’t bad, but Candice was the only thing worth seeing.

We look back at Io Shirai being forced to watch Kairi Sane having her arm crushed last week.

Shirai promises to get Shayna Baszler but Marina Shafir and Jessamyn Duke beat her down.

Video on Kushida, who debuts next week.

William Regal is excited to see Kushida debut and like clockwork, here’s Kassius Ohno to interrupt. They exchange pleasantries and Ohno offers to be Kushida’s first opponent. Regal thinks that’s an excellent idea and the match is made.

Street Profits vs. War Raiders

Non-title. How often do you see NXT’s continuity behind WWE? Ford hits a big flip dive over the top to take the champs down and it’s a spinebuster into the frog splash for a VERY close two on Rowe. A Doomsday Device is escaped and Hanson is in to hammer on Dawkins. The running seated crossbody drops Dawkins and a heck of a clothesline puts Ford down. We settle down to a regular match with Hanson slamming Rowe onto Dawkins, who is right back with a right hand to the jaw.

Ford’s running forearms stagger Hanson, who kicks him in the face. Ford is right back with a delayed belly to back suplex and Rowe gets knocked to the floor. Some spinning splashes in the corner get two on Hanson but the handspring double elbow takes the Profits down. Rowe comes back in for the knee to Dawkins’ head, setting up the springboard clothesline/German suplex combination to Dawkins. Thor’s Hammer finishes Ford at 5:48.

Rating: B. That was a lot of fun with the only lower point being the part where they were actually doing a regular tag match. The Profits can go and with the Raiders heading up to the main roster (under whatever name they’re called this week), someone is going to have to take the titles. I don’t think the Profits will be the team to take them, but they had a very good match here.

Mia Yim doesn’t like Bianca Belair calling herself undefeated because she’s been defeated. Yim should be getting the next title shot and she’s going to prove it.

Roderick Strong vs. Johnny Gargano

Non-title. Strong front facelocks him to start but has to roll his way out of an early Gargano Escape attempt. Gargano knocks him outside for a kick to the face from the apron. A half nelson backbreaker onto the apron puts Gargano in more trouble and a gutbuster gives Strong two. He cranks on Gargano’s arm for a bit before chopping him on the mat and yelling at Gargano to stay down.

The Gory Stretch makes things even worse for Gargano and he rolls outside. This time the half nelson backbreaker is countered into a whip into the steps to put Strong in trouble for a change. Back in and the slingshot spear gives Johnny two. The rolling kick to the head sends Strong outside again for the Cannonball from the apron. They head inside again with the low superkick giving Gargano two but the Lawn Dart is countered.

Strong gets a butterfly suplex into a backbreaker for two, followed by another backbreaker and the belly to back faceplant for two. Johnny pulls him down into the Gargano Escape but here’s Adam Cole for the distraction. A rollup gives Strong two as the rest of the Era comes out. Cue Matt Riddle for the save and the distracted Cole kicks Strong in the head by mistake. That sets up the slingshot DDT to give Gargano the pin at 13:38.

Rating: B-. This was all about the ending but it was nice to have Gargano get a victory over someone with some credibility after the title win. I’m hoping the Era isn’t about to split as they never quite made it all the way to the top of the promotion. Cole as NXT Champion with his minions around him could have made for a good story, but the team has been together for a long time now and I can see why they might want to move on.

The Era argues to end the show.

Overall Rating: B+. It’s another show where they just do everything right, including good wrestling and storyline advancement that the show thrives on. I can’t emphasize enough how great it is to have things built up for next week. When Raw and Smackdown are seemingly written the day of the show, it’s so nice to have some structure instead of setting everything up the night of the show. Do more of that and things will get a little better.

Results

Jaxson Ryker vs. Humberto Carrillo went to a double countout

Kacy Catanzaro/Candice LeRae b. Aliyah/Vanessa Borne – Lionsault to Borne

War Raiders b. Street Profits – Thor’s Hammer to Ford

Johnny Gargano b. Roderick Strong – Slingshot DDT

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2000 Monday Nitro and Thunder Reviews Part 1 (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/02/22/new-book-kbs-monday-nitro-thunder-reviews-volume-vii-january-june-2000/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

NXT
Date: April 10, 2019
Location: Barclays Center, New York City, New York
Commentators: Mauro Ranallo, Percy Watson, Nigel McGuinness

It’s time for the fallout show from Friday with a show taped prior to the show we’re recapping. Tonight we’re looking at a bunch of clips from Takeover: new York plus a trio of matches that took place before the show went on the air. These shows are usually very light and there’s no reason to believe that this should be any different. Let’s get to it.

Here are Friday’s results if you need a recap.

A long recap package of Takeover opens things up.

Opening sequence, now with a new theme song.

Aliyah vs. Candice LeRae

Vanessa Borne is in Aliyah’s corner. Aliyah takes her to the mat and gets in some forearms to the back but Candice is right back up with an armdrag. A knee in the corner slows Candice down and Aliyah demands that New York cheers for her. Vanessa offers a distraction and Aliyah gets in a kick to the face to take over. The chinlock doesn’t work for Aliyah as Candice takes her down and hits a step up backsplash. A neckbreaker into a Lionsault (with Candice possibly tweaking her knee) finishes Aliyah at 4:12.

Rating: D+. Standard Welcome To The Show match to kick off the evening and that’s fine. It was just an exchange of moves with Candice overcoming the odds and winning without breaking much of a sweat. That’s fine for this match though as Candice is such a likable person and character that it’s easy to see why she’s in a spot like this.

We look at Velveteen Dream vs. Matt Riddle with Dream retaining the title in a bit of an upset.

Dream talks about his win as Buddy Murphy walks by. Dream says that’s someone who couldn’t handle the spotlight at Wrestlemania. Murphy doesn’t like that so Dream asks where his title is.

Video on the War Raiders retaining the Tag Team Titles against Ricochet and Aleister Black in what was likely Ricochet and Black’s NXT farewell.

We look at Kushida signing with NXT.

Jaxson Ryker vs. Danny Burch

Steve Cutler, Wesley Blake and Oney Lorcan are at ringside. Burch takes him straight down for two and hammers away in the corner with right hands and clotheslines. Ryker pulls him off the middle rope and blasts Burch in the face with an elbow. A middle rope headbutt gets two but Burch is right back with a forearm. The other Sons offer a distraction so Lorcan takes care of them, leaving Burch to walk into the Widowmaker to give Ryker the pin at 3:10.

Rating: C-. They packed quite a bit in there and Ryker’s intensity is really starting to shine through. Having the Sons as a trio of wrestlers instead of a team with Ryker as a manager has some potential and with Ryker working as the monster, they could go somewhere. Lorcan and Burch are going to be fine no matter what they do because they’re good enough in the ring.

We look at the four way Women’s Title match at Takeover with Shayna Baszler retaining.

Baszler says she’s running out of competition and she’s keeping the title forever.

We look at Pete Dunne FINALLY losing the United Kingdom Title to Walter.

Pete says there will be a rematch.

We look back at Johnny Gargano vs. Adam Cole in a 2/3 falls match with Johnny overcoming the odds and becoming the NXT Champion after chasing the title for over a year. It’s still a very good match but they went just too far to make it perfect. Tommaso Ciampa coming out to endorse the win made up for a lot of it….I think.

The Undisputed Era isn’t happy with the loss with Roderick Strong and Adam Cole getting in an argument. Cole orders the camera shut off.

Street Profits vs. Fabian Aichner/Marcel Barthel

Aichner knocks Dawkins off the apron to start and drives Ford into the wrong corner. Ford is fine enough to dropkick both of them down at once but Barthel kicks him in the face. Barthel has to pull Ford back from a tag and it’s a spinebuster from Aichner to keep him in early trouble.

As you might have guessed, Ford crawls over for the tag a few seconds later and it’s Dawkins cleaning house. A spinning splash in the corner connects but a Doomsday Device is broken up. One heck of a moonsault gives Aichner two on Ford but Dawkins spears Aichner down to break up a powerbomb. The Doomsday Blockbuster finishes Barthel at 6:02.

Rating: C-. Much like the previous two, this wasn’t the kind of match that you need to see but for the live crowd, it was a nice way to warm things up a little bit more before they got to the important stuff. The Profits are entertaining and have a ton of charisma so having them go over the rather dull European team was the easy choice.

Overall Rating: D+. Completely skippable show as usual, but after everything we’ve gotten to see in recent days, it’s fine for them to take a little break like this. The wrestling wasn’t the point this time around as everything was about taking a breather and catching fans up in case they didn’t see Takeover (Though why wouldn’t you have?). We’ll get back to the important stuff next week and everything will be fine.

Results

Candice LeRae b. Aliyah – Lionsault

Jaxson Ryker b. Danny Burch – Widowmaker

Street Profits b. Fabian Aichner/Marcel Barthel – Doomsday Blockbuster to Barthel

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2000 Monday Nitro and Thunder Reviews Part 1 (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/02/22/new-book-kbs-monday-nitro-thunder-reviews-volume-vii-january-june-2000/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

NXT
Date: November 21, 2018
Location: Staples Center, Los Angeles, California
Commentators: Mauro Ranallo, Nigel McGuinness, Percy Watson

After everything that went down on Saturday, it’s time for a little breather. That tends to be the best thing that you can get the week after Takeover and that’s even better the day before a holiday. There are some matches from before Saturday’s Takeover, which are often pretty entertaining in their own right. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with the traditional long form recap of Takeover.

Opening sequence.

Keith Lee vs. Fidel Bravo

The fans sing about basking in Lee’s glory so the much smaller Bravo shoves him in the fans and demands respect. Lee takes him into the corner for a double chop to the chest, followed by the Supernova for the pin at 1:59. Lee is growing on me and that finisher is a big part of it.

Video on Kairi Sane vs. Shayna Baszler.

Baszler doesn’t want to talk about Duke and Shafir getting involved in her match.

We look back at Kassius Ohno calling out Matt Riddle on Sunday’s Kickoff Show, leading to Riddle defeating Ohno in five seconds in an impromptu match.

Riddle is very happy with his debut (which he again pronounces day-but) and he couldn’t have asked for more.

Lars Sullivan vs. Keita Murray

Sullivan isn’t playing around as he hits a running splash in the corner and a sliding clothesline. The Freak Accident is good for the pin at 37 seconds.

Sullivan says that’s a warning to everyone until he gets his NXT Title match. He beats on Murray some more but Keith Lee comes in for the save. Nothing wrong with a good hoss battle.

Video on Aleister Black vs. Johnny Gargano. That was so awesome and the “Give me your best shot John.” moment really stood out.

Black won’t talk about his rivalry with Gargano continuing. Candice LeRae came up and they stared at each other without saying anything.

Video on Tommaso Ciampa vs. Velveteen Dream. Again: that was incredible.

Sullivan and Lee yell at each other. They’ll face off next week with matches taped in San Jose last week.

Long video on WarGames. Still a little longer than it needed to be, but great nonetheless.

Nikki Cross vs. Candice LeRae

Candice tells her to come on so Nikki does just that, even taking Candice down underneath the ring skirt to hammer away. A crossbody gets Candice out of trouble and a dropkick gives her two. Nikki’s bulldog is shoved off and Candice steps up onto her back for a backsplash in a cool spot.

An Unprettier drops Cross but she avoids the Lionsault. Instead it’s Cross hitting the Purge for two but getting caught on the top. Candice hits a German superplex (from the bottom rope) for two more. Cross laughs at her though, getting pummeled in the corner for her efforts. A stomp sets up the Gargano Escape, sending Cross scrambling to the ropes. Nikki sends her throat first into the ropes and grabs a hanging Purge for the pin at 7:01.

Rating: C. Perfectly watchable match here with Candice continuing to be a great underdog. Cross could hang around NXT for years or move up to the main roster tomorrow and I’d be fine with either. She’s that great at playing the character and even in matches comes off as completely insane. That’s hard to do but she makes it work every time.

Overall Rating: C+. Another rather nice post Takeover NXT. Next week’s show with the house show taping should be a lot of fun as it’s nice to see them giving the talent the week off instead of having a taping around the Thanksgiving holiday. It’s certainly better than having them work on the holiday night like WWE had to do last Christmas (the network’s decision but still) and should mean a much hotter crowd. Nice show this week, as tends to be the case with the post Takeover editions.

Results

Keith Lee b. Fidel Bravo – Supernova

Lars Sullivan b. Keita Murray – Freak Accident

Nikki Cross b. Candice LeRae – Hanging Purge

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 1997 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/11/20/new-paperback-complete-1997-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

NXT
Date: October 3, 2018
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Mauro Ranallo, Nigel McGuinness, Percy Watson

As usual, NXT knows how to build towards the future and that’s what they’ve done here. Next week we get the triple threat match for the North American Title and the week after that it’s the War Raiders getting their shot at the Tag Team Titles. Other than that, it’s time to continue searching for Aleister Black’s attacker and Lars Sullivan vs. EC3. Let’s get to it.

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

Nikki Cross talks about being ready to play with Bianca Belair again because Bianca didn’t play fair last time. Speaking of people who didn’t play well, she knows what happened.

Opening sequence.

Candice LeRae vs. Lacey Evans

Fallout from Evans insulting Candice’s abilities as a wife last week. They shove each other to start with the much bigger Evans taking her down by the throat. LeRae gets driven into the corner as well so she sends Evans face first into the buckle. A faceplant gets two so Evans runs her over without much effort. Hang on though as Evans needs to pat down her lipstick before taking LeRae down into a headscissors, complete with pushups.

A kick to the face sets up the chinlock as Evans pulls the hair for some bad measure. Evans misses a slingshot elbow though and Candice scores with an enziguri. The middle rope swinging Downward Spiral gets two more and Evans says LeRae is a loser, just like her husband. That ticks LeRae off but she charges into the Women’s Right for the pin at 6:18.

Rating: C-. It seems like they really want to push the heck out of Evans but there’s such a firm gap between the title picture and everything else that there isn’t really a middle ground for him. They’re getting that right hand over as a finisher though and Evans is easy enough to hate that she’s likely going to get a title shot at a Takeover one day though and that’s fine.

Video on the North American Title triple threat match and what it means to everyone. Ricochet cares because it’s his, Cole cares because it’s proof that he’s the future and Dunne wants to prove even further that he’s the best in the world.

Video on the Forgotten Sons, in sepia.

Tommaso Ciampa sits in the back and says everyone is going to try to chop you down. They’re speculate and lie to try and steal your spotlight for themselves. Perhaps it’s to cover their own tracks and hide their own guilt, which is what Velveteen Dream is doing. Dream is living in a dream world where Ciampa attacked Aleister Black, but they both know what Black experienced. Maybe he should keep his theories to himself because Ciampa will turn the Dream into a nightmare. Ciampa vs. Dream sounds oddly fascinating.

Forgotten Sons vs. Vinny Mixon/Cesar Rise/Torry Kirsh

Who names these jobbers? Steve Cutler has a mask due to a broken nose in the team’s debut match. Ryker runs Kirsh over to start so it’s off to Mixon to get beaten up as well. The Tree of Woe makes things even worse for Rise as the announcers don’t bother trying to call the jobbers by their names. An armbar keeps Mixon in trouble for a few moments until it’s off to Rise for some failed clotheslines. Blake shows him how it’s done, followed by a middle rope double stomp/reverse DDT combination. A slingshot jackknife finishes Kirsh at 2:28. Exactly the kind of squash it needed to be.

We look back at Shayna Baszler vs. Kairi Sane being set up for Evolution.

Video on Baszler vs. Sane over the last year, which has been a pretty under the radar rivalry. Baszler has been going back to the basics, which means more MMA-style training.

Tony Nese wants top competition so he’s going to beat Johnny Gargano tonight.

Bianca Belair doesn’t want to play with Cross. She’ll embarrass Nikki instead and repeats Un-de-fea-ted over and over.

Johnny Gargano vs. Tony Nese

They fight over a wristlock to start until Nese runs him over with a shoulder. A running hurricanrana sends Nese to the floor but the suicide dive is broken up with a hard clothesline. Nese misses a charge in the corner so Gargano rolls him up, followed by the rolling kick to the head. Now the suicide dive hits as Gargano is looking more confident than he’s seen in a long time.

Nese suplexes him down for two and we hit the bodyscissors. Gargano leans back for a rollup but can’t break the hold. I’ll certainly take someone trying to do something other than just laying on the mat. Gargano fights up and hits the slingshot DDT, followed by the slingshot spear. Some kicks to the head have Nese in more trouble but he rolls out of the Gargano Escape. A buckle bomb has Gargano right back in trouble and Nese dumps him to the floor.

The second slingshot DDT attempt is countered into a backdrop for a nasty crash to the floor, setting up the big Fosbury Flop to the floor. Back in and Nese hits a great looking 450 for two, followed by a sick looking German suplex into the corner. The running knee is blocked by a superkick though and the Gargano Escape makes Nese tap at 9:43.

Rating: B. When Gargano is on his game, he can have some of the best matches in the world at the moment. Gargano looked like his old self here and that should mean a big match at the next Takeover. He doesn’t need to go after the title again right away, but one day he’s going to get his hands on that thing and it’s going to be one of the best reactions NXT has ever seen.

Video on Danny Burch/Oney Lorcan, who got together after beating each other up in a series of matches. That’s a story that has worked before and it’s working well here. Lorcan has been out for a few months with a broken orbital bone. No word on when they’re back in the ring.

Lars Sullivan vs. EC3

EC3 gets aggressive to start and goes right at Sullivan, only to be taken to the floor for a choke. Some rams into the steps FINALLY put Lars down and EC3 hammers away at the head back inside. A whip into the corner sends Sullivan shoulder first into the post and a slam puts the big man down again. Sullivan finally gets going with some shoulders in the corner and the heavy crossface shots to the jaw.

The big neck crank goes on for a few seconds but EC3 fights up and manages a suplex. A not great looking high crossbody gets two on Sullivan, who comes right back up with a huge clothesline. The Freak Accident is broken up and it’s a Cactus Clothesline to the floor. EC3 makes the mistake of charging at Sullivan though and it’s a Freak Accident on the apron. Back in and the diving headbutt finishes EC3 at 6:45.

Rating: B-. They did this the right way by keeping things moving but not letting it go on too long. The point here was EC3 chopping at the tree as well as he could but Sullivan was just too much for him. That’s a good story and the match was entertaining as a result. I’m not sure what EC3 can get out of NXT as he has everything he needs to be on the main roster. Give him a win and let him go up, hopefully as a heel like he should be.

Overall Rating: B. You know what impresses me the most about NXT? The amount of mileage they can get out of any given match or story. They’re still talking about the ladder match from New Orleans (in the main event) and then the Aleister Black injury, which dropped into their lap, is fueling EC3 vs. Sullivan, Ciampa vs. Dream, and the whodunit story, which is spinning into the Undisputed Era vs. everyone else story. You don’t get that out of any other company and it’s really impressive to see here.

The show itself was good with two strong matches and more setting the table for the bigger stuff down the line. Next week’s triple threat match has the makings of a classic and with WarGames coming up next month, it’s more good forecasts for NXT. I’m not sure I can remember the last time that wasn’t the case and that’s remarkable.

Results

Lacey Evans b. Candice LeRae – Women’s Right

Forgotten Sons b. Vinny Mixon/Cesar Rise/Torry Kirsh – Slingshot jackknife to Kirsh

Johnny Gargano b. Tony Nese – Gargano Escape

Lars Sullivan b. EC3 – Top rope headbutt

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2003 Smackdown Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/09/07/new-book-kbs-complete-smackdown-2003-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

NXT
Date: August 1, 2018
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Nigel McGuinness, Percy Watson, Mauro Ranallo

Last week, evil won. Tommaso Ciampa defeated Aleister Black to become the new NXT Champion, thanks to an accidental belt shot to Black’s head at the hands of Johnny Gargano. That is Gargano’s, as well as a lot of other people’s, worst nightmare and it’s going to make for an interesting future. Let’s get to it.

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

In Memory Of Nikolai Volkoff and Brian Christopher.

Long recap of last week’s title change. The crowd energy really did make that so much better, as is normally the case around here.

Opening sequence.

Heavy Machinery vs. The Mighty

The Mighty have new black coats and throw them at Heavy Machinery’s faces. Those coats are thrown back at them and followed by right hands before the bell even rings. Otis spins Miller around before planting him with a slam but Thorn is right back with a high dropkick (to a not very high Otis) to take over. A double belly to back suplex gets two and Thorn starts in on the arm.

Rating: C-. Very formula based tag match here until the main roster style finish, which isn’t the best sign in the world. The good thing is that it doesn’t happen around here very often so maybe it’s just a one off thing instead of the crutch that it has become on the main roster. I like the Profits too so this is a positive sign, especially with the division getting some more depth.

Moustache Mountain vs. Matt Knotts/???

Bate starts with the bigger Knotts, who mocks the wave. That means one heck of a left hand to Knotts’ jaw and Seven comes in for the chops. The unnamed jobber (Mauro: “His opponent.”) comes in and gets chopped as well, setting up a dragon suplex. Bate’s t-bone suplex drops Opponent and the top rope knee/Burning Hammer combination is good for the pin on Opponent at 2:21. Mountain looked great.

Post match Moustache Mountain apologizes to the fans for losing the titles. Bate apologizes for throwing in the towel but they’re invoking their rematch clause for Takeover: Brooklyn. That’s going to be a VERY interesting crowd reaction.

EC3 vs. Kona Reeves

I don’t have to say this very often around here, but please make it short. Reeves can’t get out of a headlock to start as Nigel actually tries to compare him to Barry Windham. Thankfully EC3 hits a good looking elbow to make me forget about how ridiculous that statement was.

A cobra clutch (the Kona Clutch) has EC3 in trouble for all of a few moments before coming back up with left hands. EC3’s running flip neckbreaker but here’s the Velveteen Dream (DON’T START DOING THIS NXT!) who says someone still can’t get over Royal Albert Hall. Dream points behind EC3 and the Hawaiian Drop gives Reeves two. Reeves yells a lot and the One Percent finishes him off at 5:32.

Rating: D+. EC3 looked good but my goodness Reeves is just lame. He doesn’t have a great look (it’s fine), his offense is really dull and his character feels like he’s ripping off a few other wrestlers. Hopefully this is it for him, as his finisher couldn’t get a win and Reeves didn’t look good otherwise. Dream on the other hand is one of the best things about NXT at the moment but PLEASE tell me these distractions aren’t going to become a thing. At least it didn’t lead to a loss.

In the back, EC3 says he’d love to join Dream’s experience because he knows it’s going to turn into a fight. He is the best here, he is the best there, he is the best anywhere.

Shayna Baszler vs. Candice LeRae

Non-title. Baszler offers LeRae a chance to leave and gets dropkicked for her efforts. LeRae goes for the arm but gets tossed outside, setting up a whip into the steps. That means Baszler can start in on the arm, bending it all over the place and stomping on it to bend it in rather painful directions. An enziguri gives LeRae a bit of relief and she takes Baszler down with a one armed snapmare.

Baszler staggers up and walks into a spinning middle rope Downward Spiral for one. A suicide dive has Baszler in even more trouble and the jumping tornado DDT gets two. Ms. LeRae’s Wild Ride is pulled down into the Kirifuda Clutch (the same way Baszler beat her in the Mae Young Classic) but this time LeRae grabs the rope. An Unprettier sets up a Lionsault but LeRae only hits mat. Baszler kicks her in the arm and the Clutch is good for the tap at 7:57.

Rating: B. They were working here and that made for a very good match. LeRae is similar to her husband: it’s so easy to get sucked into her matches because she plays a great underdog and that’s what happened here. I was wanting to see her get the win here and that’s a great sign for a regular TV match.

Baszler goes after her again after the match but Kairi Sane makes the save. Sane checks on LeRae and Baszler kicks at her again, meaning referees have to hold Sane back as Baszler leaves.

Moustache Mountain is ready to beat the Undisputed Era again. They run into the War Raiders, who says they’re coming for whoever leaves Brooklyn with the titles.

Regal makes EC3 vs. Dream and Adam Cole vs. Ricochet for the North American Championship for Brooklyn.

Next week: Ricochet is back and Keith Lee makes his in-ring debut.

Here’s Ciampa for his first comments as champion. Mauro says Ciampa makes Thanos look like the Wizard of Oz. Now that’s a great line. Ciampa is reveling in being the champion and points at individual fans, laughing about his win and saying he told us so. Once he’s in the ring, Ciampa says he and the title make a beautiful couple. He’s a man of his word and won’t be listening to the fans telling him to shut up.

This is what happens when the most dangerous man in NXT takes his place at the head of the table. The fans chant at him even more so Ciampa complains about how heavy the title is on his shoulder. The icing on the cake was Gargano proving himself to be a failure because Ciampa won again. Ciampa was the magic answer to Black and now Black and Gargano can bicker about who is 2A and 2B. It doesn’t really matter because the gap between 1 and 2 has never been stronger. NXT will forever be the A show because he is the greatest sports entertainer (erg) of all time.

Ciampa sits in the ring and here’s Black to interrupt. Gargano sprints past him though and the fight is on with Ciampa being knocked to the floor. The champ bails through the crowd (that can’t be safe) and Gargano says he’s the reason Ciampa is champion. Black superkicks Gargano and the fans think Gargano deserved it. Well yeah he pretty much did. Black agrees with Gargano being to blame to end the show.  Great ending here, with both challengers having a legit reason to go after the title and Black wanting to take out Gargano for what he did.  The triple threat is the right call here and it should be awesome.

Overall Rating: B. Good main event and a hot ending to the show make this the kind of show I look forward to from NXT. The opening matches weren’t the best but they were short enough to not really hurt things. On top of that we had matches made for both next week and Takeover, as the card comes together in a hurry, as it only seems to do around here. This was a very easy show to watch as the time continues to fly by.

Results

Heavy Machinery b. The Mighty – Compactor to Miller

Moustache Mountain b. Matt Knotts/??? – Top rope knee/Burning Hammer combination to ???

EC3 b. Kona Reeves – One Percent

Shayna Baszler b. Candice LeRae – Kirifuda Clutch

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2003 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/07/23/new-book-kbs-complete-2003-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

NXT
Date: July 18, 2018
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Nigel McGuinness, Mauro Ranallo, Percy Watson

Tonight we get to see one of NXT’s best features in action. The main event of this week’s show is a triple threat match for the #1 contendership to the Women’s Title. Around here, that’s something that can headline a show without blinking an eye. On any other show, such a thing would be insane. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Dakota Kai vs. Lacey Evans

Evans mocks Kai’s kicking to start so Kai rolls her up and rides her on the mat, freaking the heck out of Evans in the process. A shot to the ribs cuts Kai off though and Evans puts her in the Tree of Woe. That means more shots to the ribs, even after Evans uses the strings from Kai’s boot to tie her in the corner. Kai falls out of the corner so Evans kicks and stomps away, with Kai selling the heck out of it.

We hit a double arm crank with a knee in Kai’s back until Evans misses a moonsault. Rapid fire kicks to the face set up some running face wash kicks in the corner for two as Nigel screams about how you can’t hit Evans in the face. A pumphandle slam gets Evans out of trouble and the Woman’s Right is good for the pin on Kai at 8:58.

Rating: C+. This got better in the second half but the first part of this with all of the kicks and stomps to the ribs took away a lot of energy. I’m not sure if I like Evans or not as she has a character that can draw some good heat but I’m having issues getting past the right hand finisher and her not great in-ring skills. There’s something awkward about her and it’s a little much at times.

Ricochet is ready to come after the Undisputed Era because he’s going to eventually get his hands on Adam Cole and the North American Title.

The Street Profits are playing basketball and talking about getting even with The Mighty.

EC3 didn’t mean to show up Velveteen Dream when he interrupted him. After stopping for a picture and giving away a shirt, EC3 runs into Kona Reeves, who talks about the finest. A match is set up as Reeves doesn’t show me anything talking either.

Video on Tommaso Ciampa vs. Aleister Black before their title match next week. The idea is both of them can dip down into the darkness but Ciampa claims to only need one second to become the champion.

Kassius Ohno vs. Rick Ramirez

Discus forearm for the pin in 40 seconds.

The Undisputed Era brags about getting their titles back and calls Ricochet a joke who thinks he’ll get a title shot. These guys are really starting to find their groove.

Video on the War Raiders, including their history as a team. They met in a tournament (the Ring of Honor Top Prospect Tournament I believe) and beat each other so hard that they decided to hit opponents together just as hard. They’re modern day vikings and know that no one can stop them. Then Rowe had a serious motorcycle wreck in 2014 and was lucky to survive. If that can’t stop them, how could any tag team? Rowe is the smaller of the team but he’s the powerhouse while Hanson is the bigger one who flies. Nothing can stop them.

Video on Velveteen Dream and all of his experiences. The next experience in Brooklyn may be the greatest.

Nikki Cross vs. Candice LeRae vs. Kairi Sane

The winner gets a title shot at Takeover and Women’s Champion Shayna Baszler comes out for commentary (with Nikki waving at her in that crazy way). They exchange rollups to start as the fans are split between Kairi and Cross. LeRae gets knocked to the floor as Baszler says all three are bodies, meaning they’re submissions waiting to happen. That’s a great line. LeRae pulls Cross to the floor but the suicide dive is blocked with an elbow.

Back in and Cross grabs something like a Rings of Saturn before tying her in the Tree of Woe for some stompings. Sane comes back in with a spear to Cross and a double stomp for two on LeRae. Cross breaks up the Anchor but LeRae pops back up to take them both down. A Cannonball off the apron drops Sane but Cross plants LeRae with a reverse DDT on the ramp. Not to be outdone, Sane hits a suicide elbow to Cross and they’re all down on the floor.

Baszler isn’t impressed because the winner gets to face her, and that’s not really winning. Back in and Sane gets the worst of a Tower of Doom so it’s time for a slugout from their knees. LeRae takes over with a Downward Spiral/DDT combination, followed by a Lionsault for two on Sane.

Cross hits a hanging swinging neckbreaker onto the floor so Nigel asks if Baszler learned anything from her first match with Nikki. Baszler: “Yeah. That I can beat her.” Three straight belly to back suplexes knock Sane silly but LeRae is back in with a small package to slow Cross down. Another Lionsault hits Cross, only to have Sane drop the Insane Elbow for the save and the pin on LeRae at 10:30.

Rating: B-. The action was good but Baszler was the most impressive to me here with some outstanding lines that made her come off like a star. She’s so condescending and such a jerk that you want to see anyone beat the heck out of her and take the title. That’s an art that takes time to develop and she’s done it in such a short amount of time. Sane was the best choice here as Baszler has beaten Cross and LeRae feels like a longer term title project.

The staredown ends the show.

Overall Rating: C+. This is one of the most entertaining times in NXT: the night when you can see the next Takeover card taking form. You can pretty much guess what’s coming based on the last week or two of television and, as usual, that looks quite good from here. The next taping cycle can firmly establish everything so this is kind of the final preview, which has me wanting to see what we’re getting at one of the biggest shows of the year. In other words, everything is looking good around here, as usual.

Results

Lacey Evans b. Dakota Kai – Woman’s Right

Kassius Ohno b. Rick Ramirez – Discus elbow

Kairi Sane b. Nikki Cross and Candice LeRae – Insane Elbow to LeRae

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of the NXT The Full Sail Years Volume III (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/05/25/new-book-nxt-the-full-sail-years-from-dallas-to-new-orleans/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

NXT
Date: June 27, 2018
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Mauro Ranallo, Percy Watson, Nigel McGuinness

It’s time to start getting ready for Brooklyn as the next Takeover is only about a month and a half away. The big story this week is the return of NXT Champion Aleister Black, who will be making his first comments since retaining over Lars Sullivan in a brutal match at Takeover: Chicago II. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Moustache Mountain has won the Tag Team Titles from Undisputed Era at the United Kingdom Championship Tournament event. They’ll be in action tonight.

Here’s Black for a chat. Black talks about the adversity he faced in Chicago in the form of Sullivan. That man did things Black didn’t think was humanly possible, but Aleister made him fade to black. Cue Tommaso Ciampa (again with no music) to say it’s time to stand face to face with the devil. Black can dress things up all he wants but he’s the NXT Champion. In Black’s case, the title makes the man instead of the other way around. That same night in Chicago, Ciampa beat Johnny Gargano WITH HIS HANDS TIED BEHIND HIS BACK.

Now it’s time to focus on the title because Black has something Ciampa wants. Black threatens to kick his head off but Ciampa wants him to think before he speaks. See, when Ciampa beats him, the title goes away but so does Black’s mystique. Ciampa sits down on the stage, does the evil wave, and promises to make the title reign fade to black. This was the logical progression for Ciampa and him winning the title would be a great moment.

We see an X-ray of Sullivan’s head, showing that he wrestled half of the match against Black with a broken jaw.

Vanessa Bourne had a press conference earlier today and wanted to know why Kairi Sane dresses like a pirate. Why don’t more people want to be like Sane? Tonight, Sane is in for a beating and Bourne will be the new poster girl for NXT.

Kona Reeves vs. Max Humberto

The fans are behind Humberto, even knowing his name. We hear about Reeves being mentored by fellow Hawaiian Don Muraco, which isn’t a name you hear dropped very often. Reeves headlocks him down and pounds the chest with some forearms. Back in and a boot to the face drops Humberto, setting up the Hawaiian Drop for the pin at 2:49. Total squash and Reeves still does nothing for me.

Clip of Moustache Mountain winning the titles.

Candice LeRae vs. Lacey Evans

LeRae starts fast with some armdrags but a pull of the hair lets Lacey send her shoulder first into the post. The arm gets twisted down to the mat as the pace slows in a hurry. We hit the seated cobra clutch and the fans are already clapping for Candice to get back up. Candice fights out and grabs a neckbreaker and nails some right hands of her own. An Unprettier (called a Vertebreaker by Mauro) sets up a very high Lionsault to give Candice the pin at 5:38.

Rating: C+. Candice is rather spunky and knows how to do a comeback, which should make it very easy to push her as a big time face around here. Throw in her husband’s popularity and it should be even easier. The Lionsault looked great and that’s a pretty nice win considering how hard Evans has been pushed in recent months.

Johnny Gargano is shaken up after Chicago but he’s watched it again to see what Ciampa did. He doesn’t care where it happens, but he’s going to fight Ciampa again, whether it’s next week or in a grocery store because this ends when Ciampa does.

Heavy Machinery cooks some food and wants the Mighty.

Next week: Gargano vs. EC3.

LeRae is worried about Gargano but she wants the Women’s Title.

Moustache Mountain vs. Dave Dixon/Carl Axelrod

Dixon and Axelrod have a Titantron and theme song, but they also have a beatdown from behind at the hands of the Undisputed Era. No match.

Kyle O’Reilly says the titles only changed hands because of the home field advantage so they’ll be cashing in their rematch soon and taking the titles back. The beatdown is teased but here’s Ricochet for the save.

Ricochet/Moustache Mountain vs. Undisputed Era

Bate wristlocks O’Reilly into a wristlock to start and it’s quickly off to Ricochet for a slingshot hilo. The Seven Stars Lariat is blocked and it’s off to Cole, who gets chopped down to one knee. A DDT gets two on Cole and the assisted backsplash crushes Strong and Cole. Ricochet gets in a moonsault onto the same two and it’s Strong taking the beating this time. Bate comes back in but a distraction lets Strong hit a half nelson backbreaker to take over.

It’s off to the chinlock for a bit before Cole hits a snap suplex for two. The Era starts in on the arm with Cole sliding in with a knee to the shoulder and, as you might expect, a shoulder breaker. Bate scores with an exploder suplex and brings in Ricochet to clean house. A springboard elbow to the jaw gets two on O’Reilly but the guillotine choke has Ricochet in very quick trouble.

Somehow he’s able to make a tag to Seven, who breaks the hold with a full nelson on O’Reilly. The Era has had enough of Seven and it’s a fireman’s carry backbreaker into a running knee to the face. Seven is fine enough to clothesline the heck out of O’Reilly and bring Ricochet back in as everything breaks down. Cole and Ricochet kick each other in the head and everyone is down.

Two pairs fight on opposite apron, leaving Cole and Ricochet to hit each other in the head a lot. The High/Low doesn’t work on Ricochet (because of course he can flip out of it) and there’s the 630 to Cole for two with O’Reilly making a very timely save. A release suplex onto the apron cuts Ricochet off though and Cole gets the pin at 13:28.

Rating: B-. Very fun match with Ricochet doing his superhero style flipping and diving and the Era getting a pin, although not on the champions, to keep them hot on the trail for the titles. Moustache Mountain can do more than their usual match and as long as you can let Bate go nuts out there every now and then, the team is going to be fine.

Overall Rating: B. Solid effort this week with two good matches and the big title feud being set up at the beginning. In other words, they set stuff up for next week and beyond while doing things to entertain us at the same time, all in about fifty minutes. Cut out the Reeves match and put in pretty much anything else and this is a near classic episode, but as it is we’re stuck with just a rather good one.

Results

Kona Reeves b. Max Humberto – Hawaiian Drop

Candice LeRae b. Lacey Evans – Lionsault

Undisputed Era b. Ricochet/Moustache Mountain – Release suplex onto the apron to Ricochet

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of the NXT The Full Sail Years Volume III (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/05/25/new-book-nxt-the-full-sail-years-from-dallas-to-new-orleans/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

NXT
Date: May 2, 2018
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Mauro Ranallo, Percy Watson

It’s back to Full Sail and that means a nice relief from the breakneck pace of the last few weeks of Raw and Smackdown. At least they’ve set some stuff up in advance and this show will likely deliver some entertaining stuff. There are three matches announced for tonight, including Roderick Strong vs. Pete Dunne. Let’s get to it.

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

The Undisputed Era brags about being awesome with Adam Cole talking about how he gave Oney Lorcan the honor of being the first unsuccessful challenger to the North American Title. They’re ready to deal with Danny Burch and Pete Dunne too.

Opening sequence.

Kairi Sane vs. Shazza McKenzie

McKenzie is from Australia and has wrestled in Shimmer. They shake hands and Sane wastes no time in getting two off a rollup. Some chops rock Shazza and the sliding seated clothesline have her in even more trouble. The top rope elbow sets up an Alabama Slam and the Insane Elbow to give Sane the very fast pin at 1:49.

Post match here’s Lacey Evans to admit that she was wrong: Sane does belong here. The hand is extended and Evans decks her in the face.

We look back at Tommaso Ciampa destroying Johnny Gargano last week. Ciampa looking down from the production truck as the ambulance drove away was a great visual.

Candice LeRae says this was supposed to be the greatest year but it’s been one disaster after another. She stars crying while talking about watching Johnny being taken away and has to leave.

Video on Lars Sullivan.

Street Profits vs. TM61

Ford spinwheel kicks Miller in the face to start so it’s off to Dawkins to shoulder Miller down in a heap. In a cool spot, Dawkins launches Ford into the air for a double dropkick to both Australians. Dawkins misses a charge in the corner though and a slingshot hilo crushes him. We’re already in the chinlock and the fans are split on this one. A double clothesline doesn’t make their decision any easier and the hot tag brings in Ford to speed things up. Ford kicks Miller in the face but his sunset flip is reversed into a rollup with Thorn holding the foot on the ropes to give Miller the pin at 3:10.

Rating: D+. Well it’s not like TM61 was doing anything as faces so turning them might be the best thing that they can do. They’re not the most interesting guys in the world so maybe they can do something out of this. It’s still not a good match and I like the Profits a lot more, but at least they’re doing something with one of the teams.

Video on War Raiders vs. Heavy Machinery before their match next week.

Video on Kona Reeves.

Kassius Ohno calls Ciampa a coward for hurting his friend like that.

Kona Reeves vs. Patrick Scott

A knee to the ribs has Scott knocked down early and Kona informs him that he’s the finest. Reeves stomps away in the corner and this time tells the fans that he’s the finest. A falling middle rope elbow sets up the Hawaiian Drop (Samoan drop but with a faceplant instead of landing on the back) is good for the pin on Scott at 2:02. Reeves was really not that impressive.

EC3 says his first match was great, so imagine how great the sequel will be. His TV debut is next week.

Dakota Kai wants to make her mark but doesn’t want to talk about Shayna Baszler. Vanessa Bourne comes in to say she would have slapped Baszler in the face because she’s not a coward. A fight is teased and Kai is willing to fight her at some point.

Candice LeRae vs. Bianca Belair

Candice is rather subdued and shaken up over what happened to Johnny last week. Feeling out process to start with Belair shouldering her down but getting rolled up for two. With Candice still on the mat, Belair deadlifts her straight up into a gorilla press, holds her there for a good while, and then launches Candice face first into the top turnbuckle. We hit a torture rack with Candice having to elbow her way to freedom. The comeback is on with a missile dropkick but Belair shrugs off a tornado DDT. The Alley Oop ends LeRae at 3:39.

Rating: C. Belair gets more and more impressive every time with the incredible athleticism and the look to back it up. That gorilla press was something else and a crazy power display. I know LeRae is tiny but she’s still an adult who is being held above someone else’s head with that kind of ease. There’s no way that’s not impressive on some level.

Next week: EC3’s singles debut and Ohno vs. Ciampa.

Pete Dunne vs. Roderick Strong

Non-title and a grudge match after Strong turned on Dunne at Takeover. Cole and O’Reilly are in Strong’s corner. Dunne wastes no time in forearming Strong down but a trip to the floor goes to Strong. A powerbomb onto the apron keeps Dunne in trouble and Pete is in some serious pain. Back in and Strong cranks on the neck so Pete pulls on his nose to escape. That’s rather rude of him. We hit a seated abdominal stretch for a bit until the X Plex gets Dunne out of trouble.

Dunne comes off the middle rope with a stomp to the arm but Strong sends him outside. Back in and a double underhook backbreaker gets two, followed by some kicks to Dunne’s head. A choke takes Strong down and Dunne tries to switch it into a cross armbreaker. That’s broken up as well so Dunne takes him up top, only to get brought back down in a super Angle Slam. Dunne isn’t happy though and snaps the fingers before dropping Strong with a release German suplex. The Bitter End looks to finish but draws in the Undisputed Era for the DQ at 9:02.

Rating: C+. The ending hurt this one a good deal as there was no secret to the run-in finish. That being said, it makes a lot of sense this time around as it’s clearly going to be a long form story instead of something where they do the matches in a hurry. You can probably hold off on British Strong Style vs. Undisputed Era until Summerslam weekend at this rate and that’s a very interesting idea. The match was good, but it was another step on a very long road.

Post match the beatdown continues but Danny Burch and Oney Lorcan run in for the save to end the show.

Overall Rating: C. This is one of the other areas where NXT shines. This wasn’t about the big main event story but rather a lot of other stuff, which was treated like the most important stuff in the world. That’s very rarely pulled off in WWE but NXT manages to make it work every week. The show wasn’t great or anything but they managed to make the show feel important and that’s what matters most with something like this.

Results

Kairi Sane b. Shazza McKenzie – Insane Elbow

TM61 b. Street Profits – Rollup to Ford with feet on the ropes

Bianca Belair b. Candice LeRae – Alley Oop

Pete Dunne b. Roderick Strong via DQ when Undisputed Era interfered

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of the WWE Grab Bag (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/03/23/new-paperback-kbs-grab-bag/

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