IMG Credit: WWE

NXT
Date: June 10, 2020
Location: WWE Performance Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Tom Phillips, Mauro Ranallo, Beth Phoenix

We’re done with Takeover: In Your House and the only major change was Io Shirai winning the Women’s Title. Other than that, Adam Cole is still NXT Champion and needs a new challenger. Tonight he faces Dexter Lumis in a match that has me worried. Finn Balor and Keith Lee would seem to be the next big challengers so let’s get to it.

Here’s Takeover if you need a recap.

Takeover recap.

Here’s the Undisputed Era for a chat. Adam Cole talks about how he’s still champion because while Velveteen Dream is a great challenger, but he’s not Adam Cole bay-bay. As for what’s next, what difference does it make? The rest of the team yells about Lumis being weird and stuffing them in a trunk (Strong: “YOU KNOW HOW MUCH I HATE BEING STUFFED IN TRUNKS!”). Strong keeps thinking he seems Lumis in the crowd and Cole is tired of hearing about it. Cole has this tonight, so don’t worry about Lumis. As the team is leaving, Lumis pops up and Strong panics.

Post break, the Era runs into Keith Lee and Mia Yim. Lee likes the look of the NXT Title but Cole says in his dreams.

Keith Lee/Mia Yim vs. Johnny Gargano/Candice LeRae

They yell at each other to start until Lee picks Candice up and moves her to the side. Gargano and LeRae’s stereo hurricanranas don’t work and are countered into…well most of a Super Collider, minus the powerbombs. The women finally start and Candice is thrown straight into the ropes for some shots to the face. The fight heads outside and Lee has to catch Yim in a moment that takes Mauro by surprise. Gargano and LeRae are dropped face first onto the apron and we take a break.

Back with Yim being knocked into the corner, only to have Mia hit Soul Food. The hot tag brings in Lee to beat up Gargano, including Grizzly Magnum. A crazy high toss sends Gargano flying so LeRae tags herself in. That’s fine with Lee, who carries both of them at once. LeRae’s DDT is blocked with ease so Gargano kicks him in the head to make the DDT work. Yim is back in with a kick to the face and a dragon suplex drops Candice again.

Gargano makes the save so Mia hammers on him as well, including a German suplex. Candice hits Soul Food on Mia though and a Lionsault gets two. Gargano comes back in but Mia low bridges him to the floor, allowing her to kick at Candice. Lee Pounces Gargano right into Mia though, allowing Gargano to hit the slingshot suplex, right onto LeRae. Lee immediately checks on her and picks her up, but Gargano rolls him up for the pin at 10:48, sending Candice flying in the process.

Rating: C+. There’s your setup for the rematch as Gargano looks even more evil than usual. That’s the kind of thing you have to do to make him a heel and it worked well here. It was a good match with the man vs. woman stuff not seeming contrived or ridiculous, which is one of the biggest dangers of trying something like that.

We look at Finn Balor beating Damian Priest at Takeover.

Priest wouldn’t change a thing and wanted the match for a reason. The match was the next step in Priest’s name living forever and he accomplished his progress.

Cameron Grimes is ready for Finn Balor tonight but doesn’t think much of Priest’s loss. Priest comes up and decks Grimes with a forearm to the jaw.

Video on Io Shirai winning the Women’s Title, with Asuka and Shinsuke Nakamura being excited for her.

Indus Sher vs. Mike Reed/Mikey Delbrey

Reed gets kicked in the face to start and a running splash in the corner makes it worse. A side slam/middle rope legdrop combination (with the leg possibly not coming close) finishes Reed at 1:05. Total squash.

Cameron Grimes is claiming a broken jaw and doesn’t think he can wrestle tonight. William Regal wants to hear it from Grimes himself.

Post break Grimes is hitting on some women and doesn’t know that Regal is watching from a tablet. Grimes instantly remembers his injury so Regal says the match is on.

Video on Breezango, who need to take things more seriously. It’s not that they can’t go in the ring, because Fandango debuted at Wrestlemania and won (against someone not worthy of naming). They’re going to be entertaining but take things seriously, starting next week against Imperium for the Tag Team Titles.

We look at Karrion Kross beating Tommaso Ciampa in pretty dominant fashion.

Ciampa stayed late after Takeover was over but didn’t have anything to say.

Rhea Ripley isn’t happy with her loss but here’s the still disheveled Robert Stone to offer a partnership. Ripley doesn’t seem impressed but he thinks it’s a maybe. She hits him low and slams him onto a crate. I’m curious where the Stone deal is going, though it’s not likely to mean much.

Finn Balor vs. Cameron Grimes

Grimes hides in the corner to start before getting his arm caught in a hammerlock. Some uppercuts knock Balor to the ropes but he’s right back with an elbow to the face. Balor kicks him down and we hit the chinlock to slow things down. Back up and some running chops in the corner rock Grimes again and the fans seem to approve. Grimes takes him down by the leg but needs to stop for a rub of his sore chest.

Balor rolls through a sunset flip into a basement dropkick though and they head outside. That’s fine with Balor, who can hit a running chop and a whip into the barricade. Back in and Grimes hits a heck of a clothesline to set up his own chinlock, which seems a bit more appropriate. Grimes runs him over again and we take a break.

We come back with Grimes shouting a lot until Balor kicks him out of the corner. There’s the Sling Blade into the John Woo dropkick but the Coup de Grace misses. Grimes is back with a forearm to the face and 1916 is countered into a small package for two. A spinning slam gives Grimes two but Balor avoids a charge and hits the reverse 1916 for two more. The Coup de Grace into the 1916 finishes Grimes at 12:37.

Rating: B-. These guys beat each other up and they have done a good job of making Grimes into someone with some value. At the same time though, Balor hasn’t looked like this in a long time. He’s coming off as a top star and someone who could beat anyone at the moment. Keep this up and show what Balor really can do as a top star.

Post match Balor calls out Keith Lee for a North American Title match.

Dakota Kai vs. Kacy Catanzaro

Raquel Gonzalez is here with Kai. Kacy takes her down in a hurry for a slingshot hilo and they’re on the floor in a hurry with Catanzaro snapping off a hurricanrana. Back in and a slingshot kick takes Kai down again. This time though, Kai sends her face first into the buckle but charges into a sunset flip for two. Kai is back with the scorpion kick into the GTK for the pin at 2:29. This could have been worse as Kacy is someone who has all kinds of positives but she needs a lot more experience. Kai is getting a lot better as a heel too and I like seeing her beat people up.

Post match the beating continues but Kayden Carter runs out for the save. Gonzalez takes Carter out though and the villains stand tall.

Timothy Thatcher is training some unseen wrestlers and promises to make it barbaric and violent. They will begin next week after their legal clearances are in.

Here’s El Hijo del Fantasma for a chat but before he can say much, here’s Drake Maverick to interrupt. Maverick wants to say congratulations because Fantasma is a phenomenal competitor. People have been talking about Drake’s situation but it should be about Fantasma, who debuted in this tournament and then won it. However, Maverick has been curious what would have happened had his head been clear last week (though he said that it was last week) and now he knows he can beat Fantasma.

The champ is down but here are the masked men from last week….and Fantasma headbutts Drake. The other two come in for the big beatdown, with the masked men unmasking as Joaquin Wilde and Raul Mendoza. Fantasma gives Drake the Phantom Driver and unmasks himself, saying his name is Santos Escobar. Wilde and Mendoza hit stereo top rope splashes and the trio poses.

The Undisputed Era is in their dressing room and Strong finds a drawing from Lumis. Panic ensues but Cole says he’s got this. Cole and Fish leave and Strong sees Lumis looking through the window.

Next week, Tegan Nox and Shotzi Blackheart get a Women’s Tag Team Title shot. Also, Imperium defends against Breezango.

Dexter Lumis vs. Adam Cole

Non-title and Strong/Fish are here with Cole. Lumis takes him into the corner to start so Cole stomps away. That goes nowhere and Lumis kicks away without much trouble. Cole bails to the floor and comes back in to stomp away. Lumis powers him up and throws him away (that looked good), with Cole bailing to the apron. This time Cole kicks him down and we take a break.

Back with Cole dropping him for two and hammering away at Lumis’ head. Lumis is starting to get annoyed so Cole drops him with a neckbreaker. This time Lumis fights up with a bulldog into a slingshot suplex for two. Lumis’ German suplex gets two but Cole snaps off a superkick for two more.

There’s a spinebuster to plant Cole but he sends Lumis to the floor. Lumis crawls underneath the ring though and grabs another spinebuster for another two. The Swanton hits knees but Lumis is right back with the head and arm choke. Fish offers a distraction though and Strong makes the save to overcome his fear. The Last Shot finishes Lumis at 12:20.

Rating: C+. It wasn’t a bad match but there is no reason to be interested in Lumis. Other than he’s creepy and draws pictures, what else is there to know about him? This shouldn’t be anything big and thankfully it seemed to be a one off match against Cole. It’s fine to do something with him on a lower level, but Cole has bigger opponents to face.

Post match Cole talks trash but Lumis pulls him into the choke. The rest of the team comes in, drawing in Velveteen Dream for the save. Cole is left alone in the ring….and there go most of the lights. Cue Scarlet to put an hourglass on the apron. Fans: “TICK TOCK!” Scarlet leaves and Cole is worried to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. This was a good fallout show from Takeover and you can see a lot of where things are going from here. I’m not sure how that is going to work as we could be months away from another Takeover, but NXT knows how to set up some big TV shows in advance. This week was about setting up for the future in a hurry and that isn’t a bad idea in this situation.

Results

Johnny Gargano/Candice LeRae b. Mia Yim/Keith Lee – Rollup to Lee

Indus Sher b. Mike Reed/Mikey Delbrey – Side slam/middle rope legdrop combination to Reed

Finn Balor b. Cameron Grimes – 1916

Dakota Kai b. Kacy Catanzaro – GTK

Adam Cole b. Dexter Lumis – Last Shot

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-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

Takeover: In Your House
Date: June 7, 2020
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Mauro Ranallo, Beth Phoenix, Tom Phillips

I’m almost scared for this one, as I don’t know if NXT can pull off the same magic without the fans. It doesn’t help that the show has been a lot weaker since it moved to two hours, but you never bet against Takeover because the show has a pretty outstanding record. Tonight’s main event seems to be another cinematic match between NXT Champion Adam Cole and Velveteen Dream so let’s get to it.

The opening video is a pure nostalgia trip, with an NXT version of the old “revolutionary force in sports entertainment” intro, Todd Pettengill running down the card, and one lucky winner…..not winning a house tonight. New Generation fans (all 14 or so of them) will have a good time with that one.

An altered version of the old house set is here too, with Code Orange performing the opening song.

Shotzi Blackheart/Tegan Nox/Mia Yim vs. Dakota Kai/Raquel Gonzalez/Candice LeRae

LeRae tags Gonzalez in to hide from Yim, who is game to go after Gonzalez instead. Kai comes in so Mia brings in Nox for the revenge. Nox slugs away in the corner and hands it off to Blackheart for some kicks to the face. Kai gets in her own kick for two though and it’s back to LeRae, who misses the backsplash. Gonzalez kicks LeRae by mistake and it’s time to go outside for the parade of dives.

Back in and Shotzi runs LeRae over for two, followed by Cattle Mutilation. Kai makes the save and then distracts the referee so Gonzalez can get in her own clothesline. It’s Shotzi staying in trouble but Gonzalez misses a running boot in the corner. Mia gets the hot tag and comes in to clean house until a double knockdown puts her and LeRae down. Nox comes in to beat on Gonzalez, who comes back with a powerbomb for two. Yim and LeRae fight to the floor and then into the garage, leaving us two on two. Kai kicks Gonzalez by mistake and a double dropkick puts Gonzalez on the floor. The Shiniest Wizard finishes Kai at 9:52.

Rating: C+. It was a fast paced and exciting opener and that’s all you could expect from something like this. Nox is a star in the making, but I’m not sure how much faith you can put in someone with her history of injuries. I like having the two feuds in one match here and Nox vs. Kai feels like it could have some legs if they want to keep it going.

Promotional consideration paid for by the following, with William Regal as Alfred Hayes: WWE Ice Cream Cookie Sandwiches.

We recap Damian Priest vs. Finn Balor. Priest wanted to make a name for himself and attacked Balor, who wasn’t going to stand for that. It’s time for a showdown.

Finn Balor vs. Damian Priest

Balor dropkicks him in the corner before the bell and goes after the knee to take the big man down. They head outside with Balor going shoulder first into the steps and then back first onto the apron. The forearms don’t do much for Balor as Priest plants him with a lifting Downward Spiral. Priest stomps Balor down in the corner for one, meaning it’s off to the chinlock.

Balor fights up and sends him to the apron for the dropkick into the barricade. Some hard stomps against the barricade keep Priest in trouble but Priest is back in with a clothesline to cut off the dive. A series of strikes has Balor in trouble so he hits a fast Pele kick for two. Priest knocks him back to the floor and hits a Razor’s Edge onto the apron for two of his own. Back in and Priest hits some running elbows in the corner but Balor is back with the Sling Blade to break up the trio.

Priest kicks him in the face again, only to have Balor counter again. The Coup de Grace is countered into a sitout chokeslam for two and Priest tells the referee he’s not stopping this. A Razor’s Edge off the apron onto the steps is broken up so Balor forearms him off the apron and onto the steps instead. Back in and the top rope double stomp to the back sets up the Coup de Grace finishes Priest at 12:37.

Rating: B. This is one where the NXT wrestlers at ringside helped carry things as they made it feel more energized. These two started fast and didn’t really stop until the ending, which is a good way to do a match like this. Balor almost has to move on to the title picture now, or at least into contention for it. What else is there for him to do at the moment?

And now, here’s Adam Cole for ICO-PRO.

We recap Johnny Gargano vs. Keith Lee for the North American Title. Gargano and Candice LeRae aren’t happy with how they’ve been treated around here so it’s time to do things their way. This includes defeating Lee to become North American Champion, so Lee and Mia Yim mocked their big proclamation. Gargano attacked Lee’s eyes with his car key and then crushed Lee’s hands to even the odds a bit coming into this one.

North American Title: Keith Lee vs. Johnny Gargano

Gargano is challenging and has the key in his trunks. Lee has a Black Lives Matter vest and shoves Gargano around a few times to start. The spinning kick to the face misses and Gargano is terrified. A quick chase lets Gargano get in a dropkick through the ropes, but the suicide dive is pulled out of the air. Gargano can’t send the bad hand into the steps but winds up running towards the set door.

Since that’s not a real door, Lee catches up to him for the Grizzly Magnum chop. They head back inside with Gargano stomping on the hand so Lee knocks him away for a short breather. Gargano is right back with left hands in the corner before shoving Lee’s face against the buckle.

The band hand is bent around the turnbuckle before cranking on the arm even more. The slingshot spear is cut off by an enziguri to give Lee two but he can’t hit a powerbomb. Gargano’s clotheslines don’t work so Lee shows him how it’s done for two more. Lee wants to see Gargano’s heart and loads up another powerbomb.

This time Gargano kicks him in the head and rolls into a sunset flip for two more. Gargano knocks him outside and it’s a suicide tornado DDT to knock Lee silly on the floor. The count is broken up at nine so Lee Pounces Gargano through the Plexiglas. Lee pulls what used to be Gargano back in but here’s Candice for a distraction.

Mia Yim comes out to take care of her but the distraction lets Gargano use the key on Lee’s eye. There’s the slingshot DDT for two on Lee, followed by a low superkick for the same. Gargano hits two more of them for the same but talks too much trash, allowing Lee to hit the Spirit Bomb. The Big Bang Catastrophe retains the title at 20:38.

Rating: B. Another hard hitting, back and forth match here with Gargano taking a surprising loss so soon after starting his big heel turn. That being said, I’m not sure what in the world is left for Lee. Other than going title for title with Adam Cole, who else is left to come after him at the moment?

We recap Adam Cole vs. Velveteen Dream. Cole has been champion for a year but Dream had him beaten until the Undisputed Era interfered. Tonight, they’re fighting in a Backlot Brawl, meaning in a ring behind the building with fans in cars around the ring.

NXT Title: Adam Cole vs. Velveteen Dream

Anything goes, Cole is defending and drives up to the ring in a really big truck, while Dream is in a Lamborghini and dressed as Negan from Walking Dead (complete with Lucille the bat). Dream gets in some early near falls but Cole catches him with a kick to the face. Cole grabs the belt and gets in another car but Dream is there to beat on it with the bat.

They slug it out again and here’s an Uber, with the two of them literally fighting through it. The Uber pulls away and they fight up what looks like the street in front of an apartment building. Cole gets away and finds a fire extinguisher to blind Dream. Some uppercuts knock Dream back to ringside and Cole forearms him up against a truck. Dream manages to post him but Cole rolls away and asks for time out.

A dive off the top is superkicked out of the air to put Dream down again. Dream does the same to Cole though and the champ is out on the ground. Cole gets planted onto the hood of a car and Dream busts out a ladder. The Purple Rainmaker from the ladder is loaded up but here’s the rest of the Undisputed Era in another car with the horn offering a distraction. Dream is fine enough to knock Cole off the ladder and into the windshield though, drawing some blood from Cole’s arm.

The Era beats Dream down in a hurry and that means it’s time to fill the ring with chairs. Dexter Lumis pops out from under the ring though and beats up the Era, even throwing them in the trunk of a car and driving off. Dream is down on the pile of chairs so Cole pulls himself up, only to have the Panama Sunrise countered into a Dream Valley Driver for two. Dream says it’s Dream Over so Cole hits him low and hits the Panama Sunrise onto the chairs to retain at 14:58.

Rating: B. This was one of the more enjoyable cinematic matches and some of that might have had to do with commentary. It helped keep the match a little more grounded and that’s what it needed. This almost has to be it for Dream, because what else is there of him to do down here if he isn’t winning the title?

DX is having issues answering internet questions.

We recap Karrion Kross vs. Tommaso Ciampa. Kross debuted and attacked Ciampa so it’s time for his first real test.

Karrion Kross vs. Tommaso Ciampa

Kross starts fast and sends Ciampa down in a hurry. Ciampa is back up with the Willow’s Bell attempt. Which is countered for a kick to the face. They head outside with Kross dropping him back first onto the apron and there’s a hard suplex back inside. Kross hits a big clothesline and loads up a chokeslam but Ciampa slugs away to knock him to the floor. Now Willow’s Bell can connect for two but the Fairy Tale Ending is countered into an F5. The Krossjacket goes on and Ciampa is out at 6:12.

Rating: C. I thought he would win but I didn’t think he would do it like that. This was just a step ahead of a squash and that is the kind of major debut that Kross needed. Kross comes off like a total monster and giving him that kind of a finisher could make him quite someone to be reckoned with around here. I like the presentation and with someone like Kross, that’s what matters.

A disheveled Robert Stone is here.

We recap Charlotte vs. Io Shirai vs. Rhea Ripley for the Women’s Title. Charlotte beat Ripley to win the title at Wrestlemania and then Shirai won a ladder match to become #1 contender. Shirai beat Charlotte via DQ so the triple threat title match was set.

Women’s Title: Charlotte vs. Io Shirai vs. Rhea Ripley

Charlotte is defending and bails to the floor to start. Back in and Charlotte takes them both down while shouting about how this is her house and they are just guests. Ripley fights up but gets sent hard outside, with Charlotte sending her even harder into the barricade. Shirai grabs a hurricanrana off the apron to take Charlotte down but she’s back up to run both challengers over.

Charlotte and Shirai are back inside with the former grabbing the Boston crab until Ripley makes the save. Shirai cuts Ripley off though and adds a 619 to Charlotte. A double stomp to Charlotte’s ribs keeps her down but Rhea is up to drop Shirai and put everyone on the mat for a bit. Charlotte gets in a double spear for the double knockdown but the moonsault hits Ripley’s knees.

Shirai escapes the Riptide and grabs the Crossface on Charlotte, meaning Ripley has to make another save. That’s fine with Shirai, who hits a springboard missile dropkick on Ripley but Charlotte grabs Natural Selection for two more. Shirai knocks Charlotte outside and hits the big suicide dive onto Ripley. Charlotte is back up to take Shirai down and the brawl with Charlotte starts going around the arena. Naturally, Shirai uses the distraction to get up to the top of the house set and dive onto the other two for a huge crash.

Charlotte stays down on the floor but Ripley can’t superplex Shirai. They switch places as Charlotte gets back in and pulls Shirai down. Ripley is ready for her though and it’s a super Riptide to Charlotte for two with Shirai making the save. The standing Texas Cloverleaf has Shirai in trouble until Charlotte makes the save with the kendo stick. The spear sets up the Figure Eight on Ripley but Shirai moonsaults onto Ripley (mostly onto her head) for the pin and the title at 17:40.

Rating: B+. Other than being terrified for how Shirai landed on Ripley, this was a heck of a fight with all three going hard from bell to bell with one save after another. Shirai winning was a surprise but one that I can take as it should slow down the amount of Charlotte appearances. It’s a rather good main event though and that’s what mattered, with Ripley being able to get another shot later on. Charlotte needs to take a few weeks off, but I doubt that’s what she winds up doing.

Confetti and streamers end the show.

Overall Rating: A-. Yeah I’d say that worked, as Takeover manages to pull off another one. The worst match of the night was the short Kross vs. Ciampa match and even that was easy enough to watch. They need some fresh blood at the top of the card though and I think Lee vs. Balor is going to be the match to determine that spot. The action was very good here though, and a lot of that was due to the wrestlers acting as the crowd. They really did add something and if the rest of the shows could duplicate it, we would be in a much better place from week to week. Very good show here, though it didn’t have the blow away classic.

Results

Shotzi Blackheart/Tegan Nox/Mia Yim b. Candice LeRae/Dakota Kai/Raquel Gonzalez – Shiniest Wizard to Kai

Finn Balor b. Damian Priest – Coup de Grace

Keith Lee b. Johnny Gargano – Big Bang Catastrophe

Adam Cole b. Velveteen Dream – Panama Sunrise onto a pile of chairs

Karrion Kross b. Tommaso Ciampa – Krossjacket choke

Io Shirai b. Rhea Ripley and Charlotte – Moonsault to Ripley

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-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

It’s that time again and I’m really nervous about this one. NXT has taken a big hit in the last few months and I don’t know if they can make it work again. The card just doesn’t feel important here and they won’t have the fans there to make anything work. NXT has pulled off some miracles before, but maybe they’ve got another one in their magic hat. Let’s get to it.

Karrion Kross vs. Tommaso Ciampa

Let’s start with one of the harder ones as they really could go either way here. Ciampa is an absolute NXT legend and one of the biggest stars the promotion has ever had. That being said, Kross is the new star and has done nothing but squash jobbers so far. Kross has always been more about character work than in-ring abilities, so I’m not sure if he’s ready for this spot.

He better be though because he’s beating Ciampa here. NXT knows better than to cut off someone brand new so fast so there is no need for Ciampa to win here. Ciampa is absolutely bulletproof in NXT, but he has lost a ton of steam in recent months. I’m not sure what he needs to do to fix things up, but maybe he just needs a change of scenery after so long around here.

North American Title: Keith Lee(c) vs. Johnny Gargano

This is another match where I think you need to look forward more than at what you have in front of you. Gargano is freshly heel and there is only so much he can do without a big win. At the same time you have Lee, who has been completely dominant as North American Champion. That would suggest something big is coming for him, and I think I know what that is.

I’m going with Gargano winning here, naturally through some shenanigans, so that Lee can move on and go after the NXT Title. There isn’t anything left for him to prove as the North American Champion so let him move on to the bigger and more important situation. It should work out well for everyone involved and Gargano and Lee should be able to have a heck of a match. With Gargano winning that is.

Finn Balor vs. Damian Priest

It’s another interesting one here, though NXT didn’t promote this one very well (if at all) on this week’s TV show. That’s not like them, but then again almost everything has been a little bit off lately. Balor is getting back to his old status around here and Priest is someone who has looked great out there with Dominik Dijakovic and Lee. Now we need to see what he can do against someone else.

I’ll take Balor here in a pick I don’t have much confidence in making. It would make sense to have Balor move on to face Lee for the #1 contendership in what could be a heck of a match. There is no shame in Priest losing to a former World Champion and NXT legend, so it’s not like anything truly bad can come out of this one. An upset is possible, but I’ll play it safe and go with Balor.

Mia Yim/Shotzi Blackheart/Tegan Nox vs. Raquel Gonzalez/Dakota Kai/Candice LeRae

I love a good six person tag but you don’t see one very often. This is a mixture of two feuds in one and that’s a good thing. Neither of the feuds is really big enough to make it onto the show on its own but coupling them together should be enough to make the whole thing work out well enough.

That being said, there isn’t a ton of drama here as LeRae and company should win, if nothing else to give LeRae’s new heel run a boost. Have Gonzalez wreck people and LeRae can get a smiling pin. It’s something that would work out well for her and fit everything she’s doing now, while also making Gonzalez look awesome and allowing Kai to smirk a lot, which she does rather well.

Women’s Title: Charlotte(c) vs. Io Shirai vs. Rhea Ripley

Here’s your standing “man I’m sick of Charlotte” comment because man I’m sick of Charlotte. She’s an amazing talent and one of the best in the history of the women’s division, but WWE needs to learn the concept of not having someone around ALL THE TIME. There is no need to have her around this often, and yet odds are that is going to continue for the time being.

So yeah, Charlotte retains here, mainly so she can be on every show possible. It doesn’t matter if you’re sick of her or not, because you’re going to see her on another show in a hurry. Shirai might be main roster bound and Ripley will probably get the title back eventually, but it’s the Charlotte Show for now, because there’s a show, and that means Charlotte is going to be on it.

NXT Title: Adam Cole(c) vs. Velveteen Dream

Oh my goodness we had to get here eventually and I have no idea what to pick. Cole has been champion for over a year now and it is time to take the title off of him. At the same time though, I can’t imagine Dream winning the title anymore, as he has gone pretty cold in the last few months. You can go either way here, but again I think it’s the future that matters here more than the present.

I’m going with Cole to retain here, possibly due to the Undisputed Era because anything can go here because of the Backlot Brawl aspect. Cole’s time is running out as champion but I have a feeling it continues on a little bit longer. Dream….my goodness I hope he doesn’t get called up to the main roster as has been rumored, because EGADS they would ruin him in a heartbeat. Cole retains here, but I have no confidence in the pick.

Overall Thoughts

Usually I get something a little bit more excited about these shows as I do the previews. That just isn’t happening this time though and that worries me to no end. The matches will likely be good because there’s so much talent in there but I can’t get to being as excited as I usually am. Now of course I’m NEVER betting against Takeover until they let me down because they have about as perfect of a record as they can, but the magic doesn’t seem to be there this time around. If that’s the case, it’s a sad day because Takeover is/was special. I don’t want that to go away, but this time around, maybe even NXT can’t make it work.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-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: April 22, 2020
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Tom Phillips, Byron Saxton

We’re at an interesting point here as they are having to come up with some more stories without a full crew. It certainly seems that Adam Cole is gone for the time being, meaning we need to find a way to fill time until Velveteen Dream can challenge him. Dream has something to do tonight though, as he faces Finn Balor. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening recap.

Something has happened to Finn Balor in the locker room and he’s out of the match against Dream.

Here’s Dream to say new levels and new devils while doing Balor’s finger guns. In his experience, sometimes you are just dealing with the same new demons. Now he has been stood up by a demon….and here Adam Cole to interrupt. A lot of people have been assuming that the winner of Dream and Balor would be the new #1 contender and now Balor is nowhere to be found.

Cole knows what Dream is trying to do but he’ll never be the NXT Champion because Cole is his reality. Cue Bobby Fish and Roderick Strong to jump Dream from behind and the beatdown is on. Cole joins in but Keith Lee comes in for the save. Tag match abounds more than likely.

Shotzi Blackheart/Tegan Nox vs. Dakota Kai/Raquel Gonzalez

Blackheart is in her tank so Phillips gets in the line of “Well isn’t that a pretty picture: Shotzi rolling down the block in a Panzer.” That’s a line from the Santa Clause and I would not have bet on hearing that on this show so well done on the awesome reference. Shotzi armdrags Kai down to start and the reverse Sling Blade puts her in the corner. Nox comes in for her reverse Cannonball and the villains are sent outside, allowing Shotzi to hit a big dive to drop them both.

Back from a break with Gonzalez holding Shotzi in a cross between a Gory Stretch and a torture rack. Shotzi is sent into the corner and Kai comes back in for two. A kick to the face allows Shotzi to make a tag and it’s back to Nox to strike away at Gonzalez. Nox’s headbutt just hurts herself but she avoids a charge in the corner. There’s a high kick to rock Gonzalez again and everything breaks down. Kai kicks Nox to the floor and Gonzalez powerbombs Shotzi for the pin at 7:44.

Rating: C. Shotzi is one of those people who has so much energy that you can’t help but watch her (the green hair helps too). The charisma and action make her that much better and she could be something with more polish. Gonzalez getting a win makes sense as she’s one of those monsters who can hurt a lot of people in a good way.

We look at Drake Maverick’s tear jerking video where he announces he has been released while still being in the tournament. In another video, Maverick talks about how he’s done but wants to go out as champion. If that original video was a work, I will buy a hat so I can tip it to WWE.

Video on Jake Atlas.

Interim Cruiserweight Title Tournament Group A: Drake Maverick (0-0) vs. Jake Atlas (0-0)

Feeling out process to start with Maverick being sent to the apron. A dropkick sends Atlas into the ropes and a hurricanrana takes him to the floor. Back in and Atlas whips him hard into the corner but Maverick avoids a charge. A knee to the head sets up a Tequila Sunrise before Atlas gets sent outside. Drake hits a suicide dive and a top rope elbow for two back inside. Sliced Bread is broken up though and Atlas hits a superkick. A super cartwheel DDT finishes Maverick at 6:22.

Rating: C. Maverick is as good of an underdog as you can get and seeing him give everything he has to stay around is going to be a heart wrenching few weeks. Odds are he doesn’t win anything in the tournament, but they could have an amazing story if he gets to the finals somehow. I don’t think it happens, but dang it could be fun if he does.

Group A Standings

Jake Atlas – 1 – 0

Kushida – 0 – 0

Tony Nese – 0 – 0

Drake Maverick – 0 – 1

Post match, Atlas says one down and two to go as a disappointed Maverick leaves.

Video on Damian Priest, who still wants the North American Title.

Kushida wants the title.

Nese wants the title back.

Interim Cruiserweight Title Tournament Group A: Kushida (0-0) vs. Tony Nese (0-0)

Nese goes with a waistlock to start and muscles him down, only to have Kushida reverse into a front facelock. That’s reversed into a leglock but Kushida switches into a crossface chickenwing. Nese breaks that up as well and hammers away until Kushida knocks him out of the air. Kushida’s handspring is cut off though and Nese sends him into the barricade. Back from a break with a chop off on the mat and Nese being sent to the apron.

Kushida kicks him in the arm a few times but it’s good enough to get Kushida up in a pumphandle. It’s not good enough for the slam though as Kushida grabs the Sakuraba Lock. That’s reversed into a northern lights suplex to give Nese two so he goes up, only to get kicked in the face. Nese knocks him down and hits the 450 for two more, meaning frustration is setting in. Another trip to the top doesn’t go well for Nese, as Kushida catches him and pulls him down into the Sakuraba Lock for the tap at 11:09.

Rating: B-. Nese was bringing it here and it was a good thing to have him in there against someone as talented as Kushida. I know Kushida hasn’t exactly lit NXT on fire but he’s still talented enough to bring out the best in someone like Nese. This was a nice surprise and I’m starting to get some nice hopes for the tournament.

Group A Standings

Jake Atlas – 1 – 0

Kushida – 1 – 0

Tony Nese – 0 – 1

Drake Maverick – 0 – 1

Matt Riddle says he misses Pete Dunne but he’s glad to be teaming with Timothy Thatcher again. Thatcher likes the idea of making someone tap. Riddle says every time he looks in Thatcher’s blue eyes, he reminds him of Stallion Pete. Thatcher: “My eyes are brown.” Riddle: “I know bro.” Riddle has something planned for next week.

We get a Killer Kross video, as narrated by Scarlett Bordeaux.

Commentary officially acknowledges Karion Kross and Scarlett for the first time.

Johnny Gargano, sitting at a dinner table, talks about his fairy tale coming true when he married Candice LeRae. Then he got another fairy tale by becoming the first Triple Crown Champion and the heart of NXT. No one believed he would be the better man by beating Tommaso Ciampa. Candice, now with silver hair and black lipstick, brings him dinner as Johnny rants about how NXT has become a toxic wasteland.

The fairy tale was believing that if you do the right thing, you will be awarded. Sure he signed everything and did everything the company asked but Ciampa got everything handed to him. Johnny is tired of waving the NXT flag on top of a mountain of unappreciation. Candice sits down and talks about going through the same thing. She was everyone’s big sister and did the right thing, but where was anyone when she needed them?

It’s insane to do the same thing over and over and expect different results, so Candice is changing things. Now she is going to be out for herself first, just like Johnny. They have been stabbed in the back again and again by people they thought they could trust. From now on, they can trust each other and it’s time to rebuild NXT in their image. It’s their way so they need to win the titles. I was digging this as the two of them both sound a lot more natural this way.

Io Shirai wants to show Charlotte how great she is and win the title. She bows to no one.

Drake Maverick says he’s fighting his opponent and himself. Maybe everyone was right about him.

Mia Yim vs. Jessi Kamea

I believe this is Kamea’s debut. Mia drives her into the corner to start and grabs a headlock, which doesn’t last all that long. A shoulder drops Jessi but she nips right back up for a shoulder of her own. Mia nips…well most of the way up and then shoulders Jessi back down. A running basement spinwheel kick gives Kamea two and she pounds away with rights and lefts. Kamea gets two off a springboard spinning elbow but misses a running knee in the corner. A missile dropkick misses as well and it’s a neckbreaker into Protect Yo Neck to finish Kamea at 3:12.

Rating: D+. This was little more than background noise as the announcers talked about Mia vs. Charlotte. Mia was her usual adequate self here but she is still someone who has yet to click with me. Her work is fine but there is nothing about her that really makes me care. That being said, she isn’t the top challenger or anything like that so it’s not some big tragedy.

Post match here’s Charlotte to says he hopes Mia wants the match too. Mia says she would be honored to be in the ring with Charlotte, who says she never had her chance to thank Mia for her first match in NXT. Mia has always been a good hand and next week, Charlotte can help make her a star.

Jack Gallagher talks about how he’s here to be a champion and not a joke anymore. He’s a gentleman outside the ring but when you see those tattoos, you know it’s war paint.

Robert Stone lounges in the pool while Chelsea Green is in a swimsuit photo shoot. He talks about how close she was to being the new #1 contender but stops to direct her. Chelsea dives into the water and swims over to him. As Chelsea has a seat, he says no one has her combination of all the skills, including Rhea Ripley. Chelsea says she put everyone on notice and is the next Women’s Champion. Stone: “Yes you are.”

Interim Cruiserweight Title Tournament Group B: Jack Gallagher (0-0) vs. El Hijo de Fantasma (0-0)

This is Fantasma’s debut. They lock up to start and Gallagher gives us a clean break out of the corner. A hammerlock takes Fantasma down but he powers out of a chinlock without much trouble. Now it’s Fantasma grabbing his own chinlock until Gallagher powers up for a Wasteland. They head outside with Gallagher sending him into the barricade but Fantasma catches him with a kick to the head. A fake out into a slingshot dive drops Gallagher again and we take a break.

Back with Gallagher scoring with some kicks to the spine, followed by the armbar. Fantasma breaks that up and hits some clotheslines, plus a jumping superkick to send Gallagher outside. The big suicide dive nails Gallagher again so he goes for the mask to provide a distraction. Gallagher’s big headbutt gets two so he goes after the mask again, earning himself some knees to the face. A Samoan driver finishes Gallagher at 11:40.

Rating: B-. Another good one here as Fantasma gets to win after a test in his debut. That’s a smart way to start as a simple squash isn’t all that interesting and of course you don’t want him losing. Gallagher is someone who can work well with anyone and that is what he did here. Nice work.

Group B Standings

Akira Tozawa – 1 – 0

El Hijo de Fantasma – 1 – 0

Jack Gallagher – 0 – 1

Isaiah Scott – 0 – 1

Post match Fantasma thanks the fans at home and he’s ready to become Cruiserweight Champion.

Fantasma is at his car when the van from the previous few weeks shows up. The masked men jump him but he fights them off and they drive away. Fantasma doesn’t know who they were.

Keith Lee/Velveteen Dream vs. Undisputed Era

Cole/Strong for the team here with Fish in the corner. The Era’s cheap shots at the bell don’t work and Fish is ejected before he can interfere. The distraction works well though as it’s Damian Priest sneaking in to hit Lee in the throat with his baton. Dream waves down medics (but gets referees) as Cole is all smiles to take us to a break.

Back with Dream on his own and Strong grabbing a front facelock. Cole pump kicks him into an Angle Slam for two and it’s time for the backbreakers. The seated abdominal stretch stays on the ribs….and suddenly Dexter Lumis is on the apron. Dream escapes a suplex and hits the Dream Valley Driver, allowing the hot tag to Lumis. House is cleaned in a hurry as Fish comes back out. Dream tags himself back in as Lumis dives onto Fish and Strong. The Purple Rainmaker finishes Cole at 9:43.

Rating: C+. Well that was a surprise and that’s the kind of thing they have to do at the moment. NXT needs to switch things up a little bit and use the talent they have available. Lumis is different enough to make a quick impact and that’s what they did here. The ending and the surprise made this a good enough main event, while also helping to set up Priest vs. Lee next week. Nice, efficient match, as NXT knows how to do.

Overall Rating: B-. This was an entertaining show with a bunch of stuff going on at once, all of which feels like it’s going somewhere. They set up some stuff for next week and the future, which is something that NXT does as well as anyone else. Solid effort here with some good enough wrestling and a more streamlined format than we’ve seen in recent weeks.

Results

Shotzi Blackheart/Tegan Nox b. Dakota Kai/Raquel Gonzalez – Powerbomb to Blackheart

Jake Atlas b. Drake Maverick – Super Cartwheel DDT

Kushida b. Tony Nese – Sakuraba Lock

Mia Yim b. Jessi Kamea – Protect Yo Neck

Velveteen Dream/Dexter Lumis b. Undisputed Era – Purple Rainmaker to Cole

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-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: April 8, 2020
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentator: Mauro Ranallo

We’re in the marathon taping session now and this time around we have a big double main event. This week’s show will feature the six woman ladder match to crown a new #1 contender, but the real big match is the final showdown between Tommaso Ciampa and Johnny Gargano in a battle years in the making. Let’s get to it.

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

As you might have expected, the opening video is all about Gargano vs. Ciampa.

Tegan Nox vs. Dakota Kai vs. Io Shirai vs. Chelsea Green vs. Mia Yim vs. Candice LeRae

Ladder match for the #1 contendership and Robert Stone and Raquel Gonzalez are here too. It’s a brawl to start with Kai being left alone in the ring. Gonzalez throws in a ladder but a bunch of the women take her out and triple team Kai in the corner. Green gets caught on the apron for a series of forearms to knock her down as well. It’s time for the first ladder as Stone tries to set up a table on the floor.

LeRae and Shirai fight over trying to drop each other onto the ladder until Green comes in with a double bulldog. Back from a break with Kai and Nox slugging it out until Nox gets in a chokeslam. Green gets shoved away so Nox climbs but has to deal with Nox again. LeRae and Green come in to take both of them down, only to have Yim and Shirai do the same.

Another ladder is set up, but everyone keeps pulling each other down. Soul Food drops LeRae but Green gets her leg caught in a ladder in the corner, leaving Yim to have to crush it with a chair. Shirai sends Yim face first into the ladder in the corner but Gonzalez shoves Shirai’s over. That’s fine with Shirai, who lands on the top rope and springboards down onto everyone else.

Back from another break with Nox sending Gonzalez and Yim off the top and through the table at ringside. Shirai knocks Kai off the top and through the ladder (always looks good), only to get dropped by Candice. Stone helps Green go up but LeRae and Shirai break that up too. Shirai shoves Candice off the top and onto the ladder in the corner (egads), allowing her to pull down the briefcase for the title shot at 16:40.

Rating: B. The lack of fans hurt things but there were some nasty bumps here. Shirai getting the title shot is a good way to go as her match against Charlotte could be great. They needed some fresh challengers in here and this is as good of a choice as they had. The rest can get back to where they need to go in the future, but Shirai was the right choice here.

We look back at Imperium attacking Finn Balor two months ago. Then Balor beat Alexander Wolfe and bailed before Imperium could take him apart.

Balor wants Walter.

We look at Indus Sher attacking Matt Riddle two weeks ago.

Killer Kross vignette.

We look at Raul Mendoza and Joaquin Wilde being kidnapped by masked me.

Indus Sher vs. Ever Rise

Martel’s wristlock on Rinku has no effect so it’s off to Parker to drive him into the corner. An enziguri staggers Rinku again and a slingshot elbow to the back gets one. Rinku clotheslines Parker’s head off though and that might be it for the upset bid. There’s a double toss to send Parker flying and Rinku stomps away. Rinku knocks Martel off the apron and it’s off to Saurav for a big boot. A rope walkless Demolition Decapitator to Parker is good for the pin at 4:30.

Rating: D. Oh no on this one. Indus Sher were every slow, generic, monster heel team that you can think of and that’s not a good thing. I don’t know if they think so much of Rinku’s status (he was the subject of the movie Million Dollar Arm, which was mentioned several times) but my goodness this really did not work. It’s one of the worst things I can remember NXT doing in a good while as this was a complete miss.

Adam Cole says he’s for real and Velveteen Dream is a flash in the pan, twice.

Video on Charlotte defeating Rhea Ripley to become the new NXT Women’s Champion.

Charlotte talks about her dad teaching her that the man makes the suit. In her case, the woman makes the title. She’s done everything there is to do and now she is going to elevate this title. Rhea Ripley was good, but just like everyone else, she bowed down to the Queen.

Ripley says Charlotte was better than she expected.

Johnny Gargano and Candice LeRae arrive at the empty building for the final battle with Tommaso Ciampa. The ominous music plays as Candice gets back in the car, but comes back out to give Gargano….something in a small package.

We go to an empty arena (like, more empty than usual as this is feeling cinematic). HHH is in the ring and says it starts and ends in this ring. In between, nothing else matters and there is a referee here to call things. After this, there is no between the two of them. HHH leaves and the door closing means it’s on.

Johnny Gargano vs. Tommaso Ciampa

Ciampa kicks the chair away and they talk trash to each other before slugging it out. Gargano gets hammered down in the corner but a whip over the corner puts him in trouble. The slingshot spear is cut off with a knee to the face and we take an early break. Back with Ciampa kicking him in the arm and stomping away while shouting about the two of them being brothers. A catapult sends Gargano into the bottom buckle as the lack of commentary is really jarring.

They have stopped with the cinematic stuff for the most part, but the camera cuts are fast and furious. Gargano gets in a shot to the face though and sends the injured knee into the post. The fight goes to the floor with Gargano hammering away with left hands but Ciampa suplexes him into the post. Ciampa takes too much time bringing a table over and gets dropped again, allowing Gargano to mock him from the apron. It’s time for weapons with Gargano unloading with both a trashcan lid and the accompanying trashcan.

Back in and Gargano blasts the knee with the chair before sitting down and telling Ciampa to get back up. A chair to the back puts Ciampa back down and the chair is wedged in the corner. As expected, that means Gargano goes head first into it instead and they’re both down. Back from another break with Gargano’s slingshot dive being knocked out of the air with a trashcan lid shot. The chair goes around the neck and Ciampa sends it into the post, allowing Ciampa to get in his applause.

Ciampa pulls out a crutch for the sake of the callback and it’s time to choke away, while shouting in Gargano’s face of course. Gargano comes back with a fire extinguisher but he can’t powerbomb Ciampa through a table. Ciampa can powerbomb him through one instead and they both need a quick breather. With Gargano down, Ciampa cuts up the ring and, despite the referee telling him that it’s too far, the pad is pulled back to expose the wood.

Gargano gets through a side door so Ciampa follows, only to get hit in the knees with an anvil case. Some left hands put Ciampa in front of a wheel on a semi truck but the anvil case misses. Ciampa gets on top of the truck (popular trope this weekend) and calls Gargano up to join him. In pure wrestler logic, Gargano follows him and gets his face pulled back because Ciampa is rather violent. That’s reversed into the Gargano Escape on top of the truck, but Gargano misses the low superkick.

The regular superkick works and a second actually puts Ciampa down as we take another break. Back again with Gargano staggering back into the arena and Ciampa slowly following behind. Gargano puts him through a table as the cinematics have been cranked up again. They’re back in the ring now with Gargano stomping him down and shouting THIS IS IT. What looks to be a super White Noise off the top to the exposed boards is instead reversed into a super White Noise onto the floor with Gargano getting the worst of two bad landings.

That gives Ciampa the first near fall of the match and we take another break. Back again with Ciampa bringing in the crutch but Gargano bends it around his neck ala New Orleans. This time though Ciampa breaks it up with the trashcan lid, only to have Gargano BLAST him with the lid. Some kicks to the head rock Ciampa again but Gargano can’t follow up. Instead, Gargano calls him a failure as a husband, friend and a father. The big crutch shot misses so Ciampa unloads on him with it instead.

We take ANOTHER break (this has to be a record) and come back with Ciampa choking with the crutch but a thumb to the referee’s eye sends him to the apron. Ciampa’s running knee takes the referee out and Gargano knocks Ciampa outside too. Back in and Ciampa plants him again so Gargano grabs Ciampa’s hand. Ciampa pulls it away and pulls himself up with the top of the broken crutch so they can hit stereo shots to knock each other down. Cue Candice and she isn’t sure what to do.

The guys get up as Candice asks Gargano what he’s doing. She asks Ciampa if he’s happy for taking away her husband. Candice kicks Gargano low and leaves but Ciampa doesn’t follow up. Ciampa shows mercy and tries to help Gargano up, saying he’s sorry. Ciampa gets up but here’s Candice to kick him low as well, with Gargano revealing that he’s wearing a cup. Gargano: “You lose.” The Fairy Tale Ending on the exposed boards finished Ciampa at 52:37.

Rating: D+. And that’s being generous as I actually let out a heavy sigh when this FINALLY ended. These two are capable of having an incredible match with each other (best match I’ve ever seen live when I was there in New Orleans) and this wasn’t it. This felt like something they put together spot by spot as a big list of options instead of something they actually planned to do and then no one told them to cut it down.

There was no drama, I never got interested, the way it was shot was annoying and we’ve seen all of this before. It just kept GOING, with no one telling them to wrap it up already and that’s not a good feeling. You really could have cut out about half an hour of this thing and it would have been the same story and match, which is never a good sign. I can’t believe how disappointing this was and really, they didn’t need to go back to it after New York didn’t work.

As for the end of the feud, egads man. This never felt like the big, final battle but rather just a really long one that they happened to have. I love the whole feud and if it had wrapped up with Gargano winning the title in New York last year, it was an all time classic. This had its moments (both of them turning into what the other was to start, some of the looks of hatred when the other wouldn’t stay down, neither of them being willing to admit they couldn’t do it), but almost no match needs to go this long and this one certainly didn’t. We’ve seen it done better and more efficiently and they had nothing to make up for that here.

A very happy Gargano staggers away with Candice as Ciampa can’t get up. The two of them leave the arena, pass a car with people sitting in it (not identified but Kross and Scarlett Bordeaux would make sense) and drive away to end the show.

Overall Rating: D. If that ladder match hadn’t been there, this would be the absolute worst thing NXT has ever done. What makes it interesting though is that they didn’t so much fail completely but rather totally missed with the big match. It was clear that they had a concept and went with it, but it wasn’t the right concept. That’s the kind of mistake that NXT NEVER made before and that scares me for the future. You can feel so much of the main roster pressure, the need to beat AEW and the extra hour weighing on them and I’m going to be really sad if they can’t find a way out of it. Total misfire this week so watch AEW.

Results

Io Shirai won a ladder match by pulling down the briefcase

Indus Sher b. Ever Rise – Middle rope elbow/backbreaker combination to Parker

Johnny Gargano b. Tommaso Ciampa – Fairy Tale Ending onto exposed boards

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-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: April 1, 2020
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Tom Phillips, Sam Roberts

It’s a taped show this week and likely will be for a good while to come. This time around we are going to have a rather stacked card, capped off by the triple threat match for the North American Title. Other than that though, all roads lead to next week with the final showdown between Johnny Gargano and Tommaso Ciampa. Let’s get to it.

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

The opening recap looks at the triple threat match.

Velveteen Dream vs. Bobby Fish

Fish kicks away to start but Dream clotheslines him down. A knee drop gets two and there’s a little gyration for a bonus. Back up and Fish kicks him into the corner, only to get popped in the face. A top rope ax handle has Fish in trouble and Dream hammers away in the corner, only to get sent outside. Fish whips him into the barricade and we take a break.

Back with Fish kicking the knee out and then kicking away at it even more as you can’t fault his logic. A slingshot hilo gets two and we take another break. Back again with Dream not being able to hit the Dream Valley Driver and having to fight out of a sleeper. Now the Dream Valley Driver can finish Fish at 15:46. The part after the second break was barely a minute long.

Rating: C-. This never got off the ground and I’m not sure why. The second break really didn’t feel necessary and the match was just going through the motions until the ending. That can get annoying in a hurry and I’m not sure what they were going for here. Dream seems destined to go after Adam Cole and the NXT Title but he needs something better than this.

Post match Dream says he’s coming after Cole.

We look at Matt Riddle getting beaten down by two unnamed monsters last week. Malcolm Bivens was introduced as their manager.

Bivens is glad his reputation precedes him. He introduces them as Rinku and Sarif, both of whom hit people really hard. The two of them rant a bit.

Dexter Lumis vs. Jake Atlas

Lumis stares at him to start and hammers away in the corner. A springboard armdrag doesn’t get Atlas very far as Lumis is right back with forearms to the face. Atlas snaps off a running hurricanrana but Lumis knocks him down again and rips at his face. The neck crank makes it even worse but Atlas fights up with a neckbreaker to the floor. The suicide dive drops Lumis but he’s right back with a Side Effect. A head and arm choke finishes Atlas at 3:25.

Rating: C-. Lumis’ facials and presence alone should carry him a long way, but it would make sense to show him being creepy outside of the ring. He has a great vibe to him but let us know a bit about him. He’s the kind of guy who can get to a different level of disturbing and some vignettes would help that a lot.

Killer Kross video.

We look at part of Johnny Gargano and Tommaso Ciampa brawling at the Performance Center two weeks ago.

#1 Contenders Qualifying Match: Gauntlet Match

It’s a six woman gauntlet match with the winner getting a spot in next week’s #1 contenders ladder match. Shotzi Blackheart is in at #1 and Deonna Purrazzo is in at #2. Shotzi ducks a running clothesline to start and kicks her in the head. A reverse Cannonball against the ropes gets two but Purrazzo is right back with a bicycle kick for the same. Some shots to the back get two more so it’s off to the chinlock to keep Shotzi down. Purrazzo takes her up top but gets knocked right back down, setting up Shotzi’s top rope elbow for the elimination at 3:45.

Xia Li is in at #3 and slugs away in a hurry before we take a break. Back with Xia hitting a running dropkick, only to miss a spinning kick to the head. Shotzi grabs an Edge-O-Matic and a seated Cattle Mutilation gets rid of Li at 9:49. Aliyah is in at #4 and grabs a backslide for two, setting up a battle over a small package.

Blackheart reverses that into a reverse Koji Clutch but Aliyah is out in a hurry. A running kick in the corner drops Shotzi for two, only to have her come back with a German suplex. The same Cattle Mutilation finishes Aliyah at 13:16. Kayden Carter is in at #5 and dropkicks Shotzi down for a fast two. Shotzi gets crotched in the corner so Carter can hit another running dropkick for another two and we take another break.

Back again with Shotzi hitting a running DDT out of the corner, setting up a top rope backsplash to get rid of Carter at 18:20. Dakota Kai, with Reina Gonzalez, is in at #6 to complete the field and start stomping away at Shotzi. Some forearms to the chest get two on Shotzi and a cheap shot from Gonzalez gets the same.

The chinlock doesn’t last long so Kai kicks her into the corner instead. Shotzi is back with some clotheslines and a belly to back suplex to send Kai outside. You don’t make Shotzi wait though as she hits a suicide dive onto both of them. Gonzalez gets sent into the steps but the delay lets Kai hit the Go To Kick for the pin at 24:03.

Rating: C. I thought they might find a way to send Kai on to the ladder match as soon as I saw her lose three weeks ago. She seems ready to move towards the title picture and having her against Rhea Ripley after WrestleMania is something that could work out rather well in the end. Either way, we could be in for a heck of a ladder match, which is what matters most. Good enough stuff here with Shotzi coming out looking rather positively as well.

Video on Rhea Ripley vs. Charlotte. I really could see that going either way.

Joaquin Wilde vs. Kushida

Kushida goes straight to the front facelock and even slaps Wilde on the back for a bonus. What looks to be a rollup winds up as a surprise cross armbar attempt but Wilde is out in a hurry. A wristlock doesn’t work either as Wilde reverses down into an armbar. That’s broken up as well and Kushida armdrags him down for the basement dropkick.

Back from a break with Wilde kneeing him in the face and stomping away in the corner, only to have Kushida kick him in the arm. Kushida rather loudly asks if Wilde is ok, allowing Wilde to come back with a jawbreaker. That just earns Wilde the cross armbreaker for the tap at 8:45.

Rating: C+. I can go for more of Kushida, even if he is a shell of himself after his time in New Japan. That being said, he can still more than go around here and hopefully he can do something around here in the absence of so many other people. Wilde continues to be a solid talent who needs a story to give him something to do.

Post match we get a rather tense handshake with Wilde seemingly wanting a rematch.

Video on Johnny Gargano vs. Tommaso Ciampa. Their final showdown is next week.

During the break, Wilde was attacked and thrown into a van by masked men ala Raul Mendoza a few weeks back.

North American Title: Damian Priest vs. Keith Lee vs. Dominick Dijakovic

Lee is defending and it’s one fall to a finish. We get the Big Match Intros, complete with tales of the tape for all three in a nice bonus. They all slug away at each other to start and it’s a triple shot to the face to put everyone down as we go to a break. Back with Priest hitting a Downward Spiral on Dijakovic as Lee is down on the floor. Lee gets back in though and catches Priest on the top for a slugout.

Dijakovic gets Lee in an electric chair so Priest can hit a spinwheel kick (it works in No Mercy, it works here) to put everyone down at once. Back up and Lee gets caught with a double chokeslam, leaving Priest to muscle Dijakovic up into a Razor’s Edge. Dijakovic gets launched over the top onto Lee and that means a running flip dive to take both of them down again. Back from another break with Priest hitting the sitout chokeslam for two on Dijakovic but the Reckoning is easily blocked.

Dijakovic tries the suplex toss into Lee, who catches Priest in the air. Then Lee swings Priest around into Dijakovic a few times, because that’s the kind of thing Lee can do. The Spirit Bomb gets two on Priest with Dijakovic making another save. Lee chokeslams/spinebusters the heck out of Dijakovic but Priest catches him with the spinning kick to the arm.

The super hurricanrana brings Lee down and Dijakovic drops the top rope elbow. A double cover gets two on Lee and everyone is down again. Priest and Dijakovic go to the apron so Lee chops both of them but they shove him off the top for the huge crash. Dijakovic’s corkscrew moonsault gets two so Priest busts out his baton. Lee Pounces him to the floor though and it’s the Big Bang Catastrophe to Dijakovic to retain the title at 19:33.

Rating: B. It’s another entertaining fight between these three and odds are this was going to be a Takeover match but my goodness they need to find something to do with the crowd noise. This was like watching an amazing dress rehearsal and having no one there to cheer for them. It was rather entertaining and they beat the heck out of each other, but the lack of crowd reactions really took away some of the energy they should have had.

Overall Rating: C+. This show got better as it went on and is miles ahead of Raw and Smackdown at the moment, but it’s still just not all that great. The main event did a lot of good for it though and hopefully we get somewhere with the bigger Takeover matches over the next few weeks. Now just find a way to get the energy back and things will be a little better in a hurry.

Results

Velveteen Dream b. Bobby Fish – Dream Valley Driver

Dexter Lumis b. Jake Atlas – Head and arm choke

Dakota Kai won a gauntlet match last eliminating Shotzi Blackheart

Kushida b. Joaquin Wilde – Cross armbreaker

Keith Lee b. Dominick Dijakovic and Damian Priest – Big Bang Catastrophe to Dijakovic

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-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: March 11, 2020
Location: WWE Performance Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Nigel McGuinness, Mauro Ranallo, Beth Phoenix

It’s a special episode this week as we’re in the Performance Center instead of at Full Sail due to an event at the university. We’re getting ready for Takeover, assuming the show stays on the schedule given the Coronavirus. Either way, we’re in for some good stuff on the way to the show so let’s get to it.

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

Opening recap.

Opening sequence.

The arena looks great and other than the PERFORMANCE CENTER sign, you wouldn’t know it wasn’t Full Sail.

North American Title: Keith Lee vs. Cameron Grimes

Grimes is challenging and tries for a leg pick to start. That’s blocked with straight power and Lee isn’t all that impressed. An Irish whip doesn’t work for Grimes either so he hits Lee in the face, only to get knocked hard out to the floor. Lee follows him out but Grimes escapes the powerbomb by grabbing the ropes and stomps him in the face for a unique counter.

The suicide dive is pulled out of the air though and Lee nods at him before trying the powerbomb again. Grimes grabs the rope again so Lee knocks his leg out this time instead. Back in and Grimes’ hat is knocked off the post but a superplex is broken up. Grimes nails a high crossbody but can’t cover off the impact.

Back from a break with Lee powering out of a waistlock and crushing Lee with a crossbody. The Spirit Bomb is escaped and Grimes hits the Superman forearm. A superkick rocks Lee and Grimes kicks him in the head again. There’s a rather impressive bridging German suplex to give Grimes two and he slips out of the Spirit Bomb again. Not that it matters as the Pounce sets up the Big Bang Catastrophe to retain the title at 11:57.

Rating: B-. Grimes got to show off here and Lee was on his usual ridiculous level. It was nice to see Lee switching things up a bit and fighting a smaller opponent rather than the usual monsters. What we had here was good, though I’m still curious about what we’ll be seeing at Takeover. Maybe it means another Lee vs. Dijakovic match, but you never can tell.

Post match here’s Damian Priest to jump Lee with a pipe. Dominick Dijakovic runs him off and helps Lee up but Lee powerbombs him instead. It isn’t clear if Lee saw that it was Priest who jumped him.

The #1 contenders ladder match at Takeover will be a six way. I don’t think the number had been confirmed until now.

#1 Contenders Qualifying Match: Dakota Kai vs. Mia Yim

Kai has Raquel Gonzalez in her corner. Yim kicks her down to start and grabs some early near falls but Kai is back up with a slap to the face. That earns her a running basement dropkick and Yim hammers away for two. Gonzalez trips Yim down though and drops her onto the apron as we take a break.

Back with Yim getting in a shot to the knee, plus a superkick to the jaw. A running neckbreaker gives Yim two but Kai sends her throat first into the middle rope. The Kairopractor gets two so Kai goes with the Kawada kicks, only to get rolled up for two more. Kai’s running boot in the corner misses so Yim powerbombs her out of the corner. Gonzalez breaks up the pin so the referee yells at her, meaning there’s no count off Kai’s rollup. Yim Codebreakers Kai for the pin at 9:42.

Rating: C. Yim winning here was a surprise as Kai has been a much bigger deal as of late. That being said, there are still four spots to be filled in and it wouldn’t surprise me to see Kai get one of them. Gonzalez is a good enforcer though I’m not sure what she is going to be able to do on her own. She’s fine at the moment though and doesn’t need to mix things up just yet.

Post match Gonzalez powerbombs Yim to leave her laying. Yim gets a big ovation as she gets up. Off a single powerbomb? Really?

Tommaso Ciampa arrives and doesn’t think much of doing things Johnny Gargano’s way tonight.

We get another creepy video of various signs of destruction, including the words “tick tock”.

Kushida vs. Raul Mendoza

They go straight to the forearm exchange to start until Mendoza dropkicks him into the corner. A springboard is knocked out of the air though and Kushida hits a springboard flip dive to the floor. Back in and Mendoza grabs a swinging suplex to put him down, setting up a Lionsault for two. Kushida scores with a Tajiri elbow but a rolling DDT is blocked. Instead Kushida hiptosses him down into a basement dropkick (ala Jay Lethal) before going up. Mendoza is right there to catch him so Kushida grabs the Hoverboard Lock up there. With that broken up, Kushida flips him down into a cross armbreaker for the win at 4:00.

Rating: C+. I’ve been a Kushida fan for a long time and while he’s nowhere near what he was in New Japan, at least he got to show up here and win a match for a change. Mendoza continues to be one of the best hands in the whole company as you can put him out there against anyone and get at least a watchable match. That’s a very valuable thing to have on your roster and why Mendoza appears on so many shows.

Tyler Breeze was at the Performance Center earlier today and talks about how the Performance Center built the wrestlers. Austin Theory comes in to say he used to watch Breeze on Breaking Ground when he was in high school. Breeze doesn’t seem impressed so he takes a picture of Theory. Breeze: “You look great, for a flash in the pan.”

Here’s Rhea Ripley for a chat. She isn’t going to be intimidated by Charlotte because she loves the idea of knocking the Queen down. Cue Charlotte (fans: “YOU DON’T GO HERE!”) to say that Rhea has guts….and there’s a GO BACK TO RAW chant. Charlotte doesn’t think the bright lights or 80,000 people in the stands are going to distract Ripley.

It’s going to be Charlotte that takes Ripley out of her game because she’s going to take Ripley into deep waters. Charlotte gets in the ring and the fight is on in a hurry, with Charlotte kicking her in the face (painful considering those heels are tall enough to ride the scrambler at the fair) and putting on the Hartbreaker around the post. That’s probably your story of the match.

Video on Walter vs. Finn Balor. Finn holds up a passport, suggesting that he’s coming to NXT UK.

Mia Yim is in the parking lot when a car drives up. Two masked men jump out and kidnap Raul Mendoza. Probably the same guys who kidnapped Samoa Joe in TNA about ten years ago.

#1 Contenders Qualifying Match: Tegan Nox vs. Deonna Purrazzo

Nox has a bad shoulder coming in so Purrazzo goes right after it. A takedown by the arm gets two but Nox sends her into the corner for the Cannonboar. Purrazzo is right back with a bicycle kick into the Fujiwara armbar but Nox reverses into a crucifix for two. The Shiniest Wizard finishes Purrazzo at 2:27.

The Undisputed Era comes out for a match but hold on though as here’s Velveteen Dream in the crow’s nest. Dream holds up the tights with Strong’s family on the, saying they’re just tights and Strong is just dumber than he looks. He wants a title shot at Takeover but Cole says he hasn’t earned anything. Didn’t Dream lose last week inside that cage? Next week, Cole is officially the longest reigning NXT Champion of all time so they can end this tonight. Dream snaps his fingers though and it’s time for a match.

Tag Team Titles: Broserweights vs. Undisputed Era

Kyle O’Reilly/Bobby Fish are challenging for the Era and the rest of the team is at ringside. Riddle and Fish start things off and I try to keep the song out of my head. Fish gets slammed down in a hurry and Riddle does a bit of a dance. Everything breaks down in a hurry and the champs hit stereo gutwrench suplexes to send us to a break. Back with Riddle kicking at O’Reilly’s chest and forearming at his head, only to get sent to the apron.

A Fish distraction lets O’Reilly get in a kick to the face to knock Riddle outside. We settle down to Riddle in trouble and not being able to strike his way to freedom. Fish’s slingshot hilo gets two and it’s a double suplex to start on the back. Riddle shrugs off some kicks though and it’s off to Dunne to clean house. That includes taking out O’Reilly’s leg and X Plexing him into a failed Cross armbreaker attempt.

Instead it’s a triangle choke to send Fish straight into the ropes and outside, allowing Riddle to nail a big running flip dive onto the Era. Strong and Cole try to interfere again but get ejected, with Riddle miming all the cheating that they did. We take a break and come back with Dunne blocking another hilo and making the second hot tag to Riddle. More striking abounds, plus a pair of Brotons for two.

Everything breaks down and the champs flip out of stereo German suplexes so they can kick the Era in the heads. We settle down to Fish escaping the Bro to Sleep but walking into the Final Flash. A blind tag lets O’Reilly come in with a top rope knee to the ribs for two with Dunne making his own save. Cue the Grizzled Young Veterans as Riddle knees Fish again. The referee is with the Veterans though, meaning it’s a backdrop to send Fish onto the two of them. That leaves O’Reilly to get kneed in the head, setting up the Bro To Sleep/enziguri combination to retain the titles at 20:01.

Rating: B. Another good match between these four, which isn’t all that surprising. All four can do the striking and the champs have that weird chemistry that you just stumble upon from time to time. That’s the kind of thing you can’t build up and NXT is capitalizing on it as they should. Solid back and forth match here, with the Veterans waiting in the wings for the Broserweights.

Here’s Tommaso Ciampa, who wants to know why Johnny Gargano did everything he did. Gargano pops up on screen to talk about how horrible of a person Johnny is, but since Ciampa knows the building well, he storms to the back and the fight is on. They fight down the hallway with Ciampa hitting him with a framed poster. It heads into the medical area with both guys beating up other people to keep the fight going.

Gargano throws him through the window of the gym door and they fight into the exercise equipment, with Gargano throwing him over a big tire. Gargano grabs a weight but Ciampa kicks it away and grabs some smaller ones. He THROWS them at Gargano but destroys a mirror instead, sending Gargano down another hall. They finally make it into the arena and Ciampa hits a running chair shot to the side of the head.

Gargano is back up though and they go up to the crow’s nest with Ciampa following him. They slug it out up there with Gargano pulling him into the Gargano Escape. The referee gets knocked down and Gargano superkicks Ciampa, who pops right back up with the Air Raid Crash off the balcony and through the announcers’ table to end the show. This was a lot of fun as they used their environment, which isn’t something you get to see them do very often. I know the two of them have done this to death, but sweet goodness they can take it to another level at times.

Overall Rating: B. I liked this one rather well as, aside from the big main event angle, there was nothing that would suggest that this was anything more than a regular Full Sail show. It was another solid episode as the focus shifts towards Takeover, though right now everything seems up in the air. The good thing is they might just be able to do the show at the Performance Center or Full Sail if necessary, but dang things are all over the place at the moment. Anyway, rather awesome show this week as NXT gets going towards Tampa.

Results

Keith Lee b. Cameron Grimes – Big Bang Catastrophe

Mia Yim b. Dakota Kai – Codebreaker

Kushida b. Raul Mendoza – Cross armbreaker

Tegan Nox b. Deonna Purrazzo – Shiniest Wizard

Broserweights b. Undisputed Era – Bro to Sleep/enziguri combination to O’Reilly

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-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: March 4, 2020
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Nigel McGuinness, Mauro Ranallo

It’s a big night around here with a pair of steel cage matches. First up Tegan Nox and Dakota Kai are in for a big fight, as Nox is still out for revenge after Kai attacked her back in November. Other than that, we have Roderick Strong vs. Velveteen Dream in a heck of a grudge match. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening recap.

Mauro previews the show.

Tegan Nox vs. Dakota Kai

Inside a cage with Raquel Gonzalez in Kai’s corner. Nox slugs away to start and takes Kai down to hammer her upside the head. The Shiniest Wizard misses but Kai can’t send her into the cage. A middle rope crossbody isn’t even worthy of a cover and Nox pounds away even more. Kai sends her into the corner though and chokes with a boot, followed by a ram into the cage for two.

Nox is back up and hits some running shots in the corner, onto to have the Cannonboar (yes Boar) hit knees. We take a break and come back with Nox sending Kai into the cage over and over, much to the fans’ delight. A tabletop suplex gives Nox two but Kai is back with the Kairopractor for her own two. Kai gets evil and goes after Nox’s knee brace but Nox kicks her away. It’s time for the climb, with Kai catching her on top, only to get chokeslammed right back down.

Instead of leaving, Nox climbs back down and hits the Cannonboar. Nox goes all the way up again and this time it’s a high crossbody of the cage. Nigel says that was a 20 foot drop, putting Kai at about 8’4. It’s time to go for the door but Gonzalez holds it shut, only to have Kai miss a running kick and knock the door into Gonzalez’s head. The Shiniest Wizard connects for two and Nox is STUNNED.

Gonzalez tries to come in this time but Nox kicks her in the face. Kai chases Nox up top so Nox kicks her down as well. Nox tries to climb down so Gonzalez tries to pull Kai out. That’s fine with Nox, who kicks the door onto Kai’s knee but Gonzales pins her against the cage with the door. The delay lets Kai escape at 16:10.

Rating: B-. The interference got annoying because the stipulation was built around the idea of Gonzalez not being able to interfere. Then she just did anyway, making the cage a rather pointless detail. There’s a good chance they do this one more time, perhaps in a ladder match in the tournament final at Takeover?

Finn Balor thanks Walter for sending Imperium to make the first move. That forced his hand and Walter will see him sooner than he thinks.

Rhea Ripley was in Raymond James Stadium (home of Wrestlemania XXXVI) and talks about how cool it is to have an NXT Title on the line. She started wrestling in front of 50-100 people and now she’s here. All she ever wanted to do was help people but she needed to find herself first. She changed everything and now she is ready to accomplish what she wanted. People called her a mini Charlotte when she got to WWE and now she wants to beat the real Charlotte.

#1 Contenders Qualifying Match: Chelsea Green vs. Shotzi Blackheart

Robert Stone introduces Chelsea. Green kicks her away to start but Shotzi takes her down for the Jeff Hardy legdrop between the legs. An enziguri drops Green again but she avoids a charge and gets caught with a Backstabber. Green kicks her in the ribs for two, followed by a missile dropkick to the apron. I’m Prettier (not Unprettier) finishes Blackheart at 2:24. I’m not sure I would have gone with Green over Blackheart for the ladder match. I’m also not sure how many people are going to be in the ladder match, as I thought it was just two but that might not be the case.

Here’s Keith Lee for a chat. After greetings and salutations, Lee talks about men invoking his name, including Dominick Dijakovic, who wants to fight forever. Or people like Damian Priest, who wants to live forever. Cue Cameron Grimes, who says Lee should be talking about him. Lee’s jacket comes off and Grimes has made the gravest mistake of his career.

The fans keep booing Grimes before he can get a word in, until Lee says he’d like to hear this. Apparently William Regal has granted Grimes a title match next week, so Lee shoves him out of the ring. Lee tells him to bring it next week. The fans didn’t like Grimes here.

Austin Theory is ready to win all of the titles but Isaiah Scott comes up to say not so fast. They’ll fight tonight.

The Undisputed Era is warming up.

Undisputed Era vs. Oney Lorcan/Danny Burch

Kyle O’Reilly/Bobby Fish here. Fish and Lorcan strike it out to start but everything breaks down in a hurry. The Era is sent outside and Lorcan hits a double Blockbuster off the steps to send us to a break. Back with Fish hitting Lorcan in the face again and having to throw in some knees to cut off the comeback attempt. Fish’s slingshot hilo hits raised knees though and it’s off to Burch to slug away. An RKO drops O’Reilly but Fish comes back in with a blindside shot to the face.

Burch gets beaten up in the corner and the chinlock goes on. That lasts as long as you might expect and it’s Burch getting up for a shot to the face. O’Reilly misses a big kick to the head though and Burch dives over for the hot tag. Lorcan comes in and gets to clean house, including a running Blockbuster to send O’Reilly outside. The big running dive over the top takes down Fish and O’Reilly and Lorcan takes him them back inside for running elbows in the corner. That’s not a good idea against the Era though as they come back with the High/Low to finish Lorcan at 11:50.

Rating: B. Burch and Lorcan are great gatekeepers as they can have good matches against anyone and make their opponents look good. The Era is in a weird place at the moment though as they’ve held the titles for the better part of ever and there’s no need for them to do so again. That being said, what else is there for them to do at the moment?

Post match the Era says they want their titles back. Adam Cole is taking care of business and tonight Roderick Strong is shutting up Velveteen Dream. Cue the Broserweights with Matt Riddle saying they’re down with a rematch. The Grizzled Young Veterans jump them from behind and throw the Broserweights off the stage. The Veterans don’t want to hear about rematch clauses because they’re going to be the Tag Team Champions.

Video on Austin Theory.

Austin Theory vs. Isaiah Scott

Feeling out process to start with Theory’s headlock not getting him very far. Scott takes him into the corner and hits a quick dropkick. A jumping kick to the face in the corner drops Theory and we take a break. Back with Theory hitting a slingshot rolling dropkick to take over, only to get caught with a discus lariat. A jumping Downward Spiral gives Scott two but Theory counters a hurricanrana into the buckle bomb.

RP1 (leg trap brainbuster onto the knee) gives Theory one but Scott pulls him into a cross armbreaker. With that broken up, Scott pins one arm behind Theory and stomps the other one down, giving us a SNAPPING sound that made me cringe harder than anything in wrestling has in years. Theory is fine enough to pull Scott off the top and hit a one armed ATL (Austin Theory Launch, a TKO) for the pin at 10:59.

Rating: C+. Theory is one of those guys where you can see everything WWE loves in a wrestler wrapped into one. It isn’t surprising me that he is getting this kind of a push and he’ll be around for the time being. The different names for his moves are going to help too. Scott continues to feel like he has potential but can’t get very far for whatever reason. He’s far from in danger, but he feels like he’s running on a treadmill.

We get a series of creepy visuals, mainly involving death. Killer Kross maybe?

Mauro sat down with Johnny Gargano at the Performance Center and asks what happened with Tommaso Ciampa at Takeover. Johnny says he was the only wrestler to show up at the premiere of Mauro’s documentary in New York, which Mauro says meant more to him than Johnny could ever know. Johnny talks about some of Mauro’s (complimentary) statements about him but Mauro doesn’t know him at all.

Mauro would like to think that he knows him but people want to know about the sneak attacks on Ciampa. That makes Johnny a lot more serious and says that it can’t be a sneak attack when you’re wearing a powder blue sport coat. No one has any idea what Johnny has seen, gone through or felt, but Mauro wants to know. Johnny gets up and nearly gets in Mauro’s face before sitting back down. Mauro asks why again and this time Johnny stands up and puts his hand on Mauro’s shoulder, saying that Mauro knows why.

If Mauro admits it though, he’s admitting he’s a liar. Mauro admits that they haven’t talked since Takeover: Portland so Johnny yells at him for calling him Johnny Turncoat. When Ciampa came back, Mauro couldn’t help but say Daddy’s Home. Johnny wants Mauro to look in the camera and say he’s a liar but Mauro walks off. Johnny: “No Mama Mias now!” Gargano grabs the camera and says next week at the Performance Center, they do things his way. This was a level of intensity that you don’t see from Johnny very often (if ever) and he feels like he’s on the verge of madness all over again.

Video on Velveteen Dream vs. Roderick Strong.

Next week: Keith Lee defends against Cameron Grimes and the Undisputed Era gets their Tag Team Title rematch, all from the Performance Center.

Velveteen Dream vs. Roderick Strong

Inside a cage ant they go straight at it at the bell with Strong sending him into the cage. Dream is right back with a crossbody but it’s too early for the Dream Valley Driver. They slug it out again with Strong getting the better of it, including the first backbreaker. Strong yells that Dream did this and starts with the running forearms. A backdrop sends Strong into the cage but here’s Marina Shafir (Strong’s wife) to slip him a kendo stick.

Shafir leaves and we take a break. Back with Strong going up but getting hit low, allowing Dream to grab a Boston crab. Strong grabs the rope and thankfully the referee does nothing, but Dream lets go anyway. The breather lets Strong grab the Stronghold but Dream slips out as well. Another Dream Valley Driver is broken up so Dream dropkicks him into the cage.

There’s a superkick to make it worse but Strong pulls him face first into the cage. They fight over the kendo stick with Strong using it for a pumphandle backbreaker. Strong goes up but Dream pulls the pants down (fans: “A******!”) for the save. Dream stays on the top with him and that means a super Angle Slam to put them both down.

Neither can dive through the door and now the Dream Valley Driver connects. Dream hits a second one and goes all the way to the top, only to have the rest of the Undisputed Era come out. Cole manages to get inside so Dream slams him off the top. Strong gets over to the door again so Dream grabs him, looks at Cole….and shoves Strong out to give Strong the win at 13:00.

Rating: B. This was both hard hitting and entertaining while setting up the next Takeover main event. Strong was fighting to get rid of Dream once and for all, but the ending says that Dream has his sights on something bigger (likely the guy he left himself inside the cage with, plus that guy’s shiny title). The match was a good fight but the ending was all about setting up something new and that’s a nice combination.

Post match Dream locks the cage with himself and Cole inside and the beating is on. Dream starts throwing Cole at the cage to knock the rest of the Era out, followed by using the stick to beat them up. Strong gets tied in the Tree of Woe and it’s another Dream Valley Driver to send Cole into the chair. Dream grabs the title and poses a lot to end the show.

Overall Rating: B+. This was a solid show up and down as the focus moves towards Tampa. I like a lot of where the show looks to be going and that’s hard to do on such a short turnaround time. It also helps that there was nothing bad here with a bunch of good matches and an intense promo from Gargano. Couple that with the potential of Balor vs. Walter (which might be more likely for Dublin) and things are in a good place. The doldrums that they were in for a few weeks have been shaken off and that’s quite the relief going forward.

Results

Dakota Kai b. Tegan Nox – Kai escaped the cage

Chelsea Green b. Shotzi Blackheart – I’m Prettier

Undisputed Era b. Oney Lorcan/Danny Burch – High/Low to O’Reilly

Austin Theory b. Isaiah Scott – ATL

Roderick Strong b. Velveteen Dream – Dream pushed Strong out of the cage

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-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

Takeover: Portland
Date: February 16, 2020
Location: Moda Center, Portland, Oregon
Commentators: Beth Phoenix, Nigel McGuinness, Mauro Ranallo

We’re back with the big show and making the Sunday debut, which hopefully isn’t a trend. This is the first Takeover since November and it’s going to be an interesting one since we are only about six weeks away from the next one. As usual they’ve done a good job with building the card so let’s get to it.

Poppy performs the theme song live.

North American Title: Keith Lee vs. Dominick Dijakovic

Lee is defending. They stare each other down to start and neither can get anywhere off a headlock. Lee goes with a hurricanrana to pop the crowd for the first time and shrugs off some shoulders for a bonus. The cyclone boot works a bit better and puts Lee on the floor, setting up the Fosbury Flop, which Lee catches in a powerbomb. That’s escaped as well and Dijakovic suplexes him onto the apron.

Back in and Dijakovic talks trash and slowly pounds Lee down but Lee blocks a suplex. Instead it’s a release German suplex to drop Dijakovic on his face but Dijakovic is back with another cyclone book. A corkscrew moonsault gives Dijakovic two and it’s time to strike it out again. An exchange of standing clotheslines puts them both on their knees and neither can get up. Lee is on his feet first and heads up top but Dijakovic is right there wit him with a super spinning Samoan drop for two. That looked awesome, though it wasn’t the top rope Feast Your Eyes that commentary called it.

Lee is back up with a Pounce into the corner and it’s time to head outside. Dijakovic gets knocked into a chair and Lee chops him rather hard but Dijakovic puts him in the chair for a superkick. It’s time to show off again though as Dijakovic hits a springboard flip dive onto Lee in the chair and they head back inside. Back in and the Big Bang Catastrophe is countered, as is the sitout chokeslam.

Instead Lee hits the Spirit Bomb…and Dijakovic pops up to his feet. Another Spirit Bomb gets two and Lee almost looks sad. Lee goes up top but Dijakovic shoves him out to the floor in a crash. Dijakovic pulls him back up for a super Spanish Fly but the back gives out on the Feast Your Eyes attempt. The Big Bang Catastrophe connects to retain Lee’s title at 20:17.

Rating: A-. This is the definition of spectacle, as the match was built around the idea of one huge spot after another until one of them couldn’t get up anymore. That’s always incredible to watch and neither comes out looking anything close to bad. It was an awesome match and somehow not even their best one ever. It’s going to take someone special to take the title off of Lee and that’s a great situation to be in.

Lee helps him up post match, as he should.

We recap Dakota Kai vs. Tegan Nox. They were best friends and went through everything, including knee rehab together. Then Kai didn’t make it onto the WarGames team but was added as a replacement. Therefore, she turned on Nox and went after her bad knee in a rather evil moment. Tonight it’s a street fight.

Dakota Kai vs. Tegan Nox

Street fight. Kai jumps her during the entrances and they fight through the barricade with Kai hitting a DDT on the floor. They head inside for the opening bell and a two count on Nox, meaning it’s time to bring in the weapons. Nox hits a crossbody off the steps to knock the cricket bat away from Kai and adds a Cannonball against the steps. A table is pulled out but Kai cuts her off with a kick to the face.

Nox is back with a trashcan though, including a nasty German suplex to put Kai onto the can for two. The Kairopractor gives Kai her own two but Nox sends her face first into the apron. They go to the top with Nox chokeslamming her down and busting out a Molly Go Round for two. Nox puts Kai’s head in a chair and loads up a Punt of all things but Kai slips away and throws the chair at her to send Nox outside.

Kai tries to duct tape her to the rope but Nox is back out again and hits her in the knee with a laptop. It’s time for…chains of all things with Nox hitting her in the knee with the steel. The chair is wrapped around the knee for a stomp and the Shiniest Wizard connects. Nox brings the table in instead and wraps the chair around Kai’s neck. It’s time to go up but here’s Raquel Gonzales (Reina Gonzales) to make the save and throw Nox onto (not through) the table. Kai pins what’s left of Nox at 13:40.

Rating: B. They made the right call with Kai winning here as there was nothing to be gained with Nox winning. Gonzales being the big surprise is a different way to go and it keeps Nox looking like the great sympathetic face that she is. You can imagine that this isn’t done yet, or at least Nox isn’t done with trying to get revenge.

Gonzales helps Kai up and Kai isn’t sure what is going on.

We recap Finn Balor vs. Johnny Gargano. It’s a battle of old vs. new as Balor is one of the legends around here and Gargano has taken up the NXT mantle in his absence, leading NXT to new heights. Balor doesn’t like what NXT has become and is back to show that he’s still the best while also taking out Gargano late last year in the process.

Finn Balor vs. Johnny Gargano

They go technical to start with Balor not being able to take over on the arm and getting rolled up for two instead. Balor takes him down with a headscissors and even does some pushups at the same time for a bonus. Gargano fights out and gets a headlock on the mat before kicking Balor in the chest. The rolling kick to the head stuns Balor again but he’s back up with a whip into the corner for some running chops.

Balor goes to the apron but Gargano follows him out and hits a spear to knock them outside. Gargano loads up a running dropkick, only to have Balor Sling Blade him down. Back in and Balor grabs an armbar while rubbing his forearm over Gargano’s face. The chinlock/armbar stays on until Gargano fights up and pulls Balor down by the arm. Gargano goes to the apron but gets his leg snapped over the top rope.

Balor works on the leg and stomps on it in the corner, followed by the cannonballs down onto said leg. Gargano can’t quite kick him over the top so he pulls Balor back inside and gets two off a small package instead. Back in and Balor ties up the leg again until Gargano fights his way up one more time. An enziguri and dropkick put Balor on the floor but the suicide dive is countered. 1916 is blocked though and Gargano sends him into the steps, setting up the running flip dive off the apron.

The Lawn Dart is broken up and Balor hits a Nightmare on Helm Street for two. Gargano gets in a superkick followed by the Lawn Dart and they exchange kicks to the head. They slug it out with Gargano getting the better of it from the apron. The slingshot spear is blocked but the slingshot DDT connects for two. Back in and Balor cuts off the running superkick with the Sling Blade. That works so well that they do it again and Balor dropkicks him into the corner.

The Coup de Grace misses and Gargano pulls him into the Gargano Escape. That’s reversed into a standing double stomp but 1916 is countered into the Gargano Escape again. This time Balor dives for the rope and bails to the floor, allowing Gargano to hit the John Woo dropkick into the barricade. Gargano loads up the announcers’ table but Balor knocks him down, setting up his own John Woo dropkick off said table. Back in and the Coup de Grace connects hard, setting up a heck of a 1916 to finish Gargano at 27:19.

Rating: A-. These guys beat the heck out of each other and Balor won definitively, which should set him up for a huge match in Tampa, say against Lee perhaps. Gargano shrugging off the knee work was the only significant problem as it was fun to watch these two beat each other up until Gargano could keep going any longer. Heck of a match and Balor continues to look like a huge star around here.

Roderick Strong is ready to destroy Velveteen Dream on Wednesday. That’s next week though because tonight, the rest of the Undisputed Era is ready to prove why they are the best in the world.

We recap Rhea Ripley vs. Bianca Belair for the Women’s Title. Ripley became the biggest deal in the division and finally ended Shayna Baszler’s title reign. Belair won a battle royal and doesn’t like Ripley overlooking her to face Charlotte at Wrestlemania.

Women’s Title: Bianca Belair vs. Rhea Ripley

Ripley is defending and goes for the arm to start but gets reversed into a waistlock to the mat. That doesn’t last long though as Rhea is up with clotheslines and a dropkick but Belair grabs a cravate. A standing moonsault gives Belair two and she nearly drops Ripley on a Jackhammer attempt.

Belair goes full He Nan with a seated full nelson but Belair powers out again. The standing Cloverleaf is countered as Belair sends her shoulder first into the post. A spinebuster gives Belair a few near falls and she puts Ripley on top. That means an exchange of hard slaps to the face until Belair uses the hair whip to take over. The gorilla press drop shows off Belair’s power but the KOD is countered.

Ripley kicks her in the chest but Belair pops up with the spear for the double knockdown. They slug it out from their knees but Ripley avoids the hair whip. Belair backdrops her over the top so Belair hits a big running flip dive. Ripley gets in a whip to the steps but blocks a sunset bomb back inside. That’s fine with Ripley, who switches to the Riptide to retain at 13:33.

Rating: C+. Belair continues to be an athletic freak and she’s grown on me in recent months. Her problem at the moment is that she is developing a reputation for not being able to win the big one, though it’s hard to imagine that she won’t be Women’s Champion one day. Ripley now has a clear path to Wrestlemania and Charlotte, which should be a heck of a showdown.

Post match Charlotte runs in and decks Ripley. She accepts the match at WrestleMania and sends Belair into the steps for a bonus.

Tag Team Titles: Undisputed Era vs. Broserweights

The Broserweights are challenging after winning the Dusty Classic. They drive out in a golf cart with the trophy in the back, plus matching “How Much Fish Could Bobby Fish Fry If Bobby Fish Could Fry Fish?” shirts. Matt Riddle isn’t done and leads the fans in a singalong of the line, drawing the champs up to start the fight. Riddle kicks at O’Reilly to start so it’s off to Fish, who gets suplexed down. Dunne comes in and blasts Fish with a clothesline before stomping on the arm.

Fish is sent outside for the middle rope moonsault but Fish sweeps the leg back inside. That allows the tag off to O’Reilly as the champs take over for the first time. O’Reilly twists the leg around the ropes and Fish kicks the other leg out to keep Dunne down. The champs collide though and it’s off to Riddle to clean house. That means kicks and Brotons to both, plus a Bro To Sleep into a German suplex for two on O’Reilly.

Some knees to the face give Dunne two on O’Reilly but Dunne kicks the post by mistake. Riddle knees O’Reilly again and the Final Flash sets up a release German suplex. O’Reilly strikes him right back and they both go down to a nice reaction. Back up and Riddle gets in a spear on O’Reilly but Fish is back in with a chop block to Riddle. Double knees put the champs down and it’s Dunne coming back in to strike it out with O’Reilly.

Dunne reverses O’Reilly’s ankle lock into one of his own but gets reversed into a Scorpion Deathlock. Fish sleepers Riddle at the same time but Riddle knees O’Reilly and drops back onto Fish for the double escape. What looked to be a Doomsday Device is broken up and O’Reilly t-bone superplexes Riddle down.

O’Reilly kneebars Riddle but Dunne bends Fish’s fingers and stomps onto O’Reilly’s for a save of his own. Things settle down with Dunne bending O’Reilly’s fingers but Riddle is drawn in to accidentally spear Dunne. Chasing the Dragon gets two and the fans are WAY into the kickout. Riddle is back up and makes a blind tag so it’s time to knee a lot of people. The Bro To Sleep/enziguri combination gives us new champions at 16:58.

Rating: A-. This is the kind of wild tag match that makes NXT work so well and that’s the kind of match you can always use on any show. I’m a bit surprised by the title change but the Undisputed Era has held the titles for the better part of ever so having them drop the things to a new team is a good idea. NXT doesn’t have the deepest tag division in the world so this is the right way to go, if nothing else as the Undisputed Era continues its slide.

We recap the NXT Title match between Tommaso Ciampa and Adam Cole. Ciampa had to vacate the title due to a neck injury and now he’s back to get the title he never lost. Cole is on the verge of becoming the longest reigning champion in the title’s history but Ciampa is coming for Goldie because daddy’s home.

NXT Title: Adam Cole vs. Tommaso Ciampa

Cole is defending and we’re ready to go after the Big Match Intros. Ciampa puts him against the ropes and mocks Cole’s pose, followed by a headlock for a bonus. It’s too early for Willow’s Bell so Ciampa goes with another headlock. That stays on for a bit until Ciampa gets up and chops him in the corner. Cole’s Backstabber misses so he kicks Ciampa down instead and gives himself the applause.

Ciampa throws him over the announcers’ table though and now we get the real self applause. A jumping enziguri misses Ciampa and he drops Cole across the barricade. That means a running knee to the head and a bunch of chops in the timekeeper’s area. The big running knee makes it worse and Ciampa even hugs a fan. Ciampa misses a kick though and gets suplexed into the edge of the announcers’ table for a delayed two. Cole kicks him in the face for two more but takes too long going up, meaning he has to block a sunset bomb.

A Backstabber out of the corner sets up a chinlock but Ciampa is up again. The Panama Sunrise is countered with a dropkick and they both need some time to get up. Ciampa grabs a torture rack bomb for his own two but Cole is right back with the fireman’s carry backbreaker for two. Cole ties him in the corner but a sunset bomb is countered into the super Air Raid Crash for the VERY near fall and Ciampa is stunned. They head outside again with Ciampa powerbombing him onto the announcers’ table (again, not through), followed by another to put Cole through it.

Back inside and Cole hits a quick superkick, only to get caught with Project Ciampa for two. They slug it out with Cole knocking him to the floor but a suicide dive is kneed out of the air. Back in again and Cole snaps off the brainbuster onto the knee for two as the fans are split again. They slowly fight up with Cole getting the better of it and hitting a Last Shot. Ciampa is smart enough to roll straight to the rope though, meaning it’s time to head to the apron.

Another Air Raid Crash onto the apron puts them both down on the floor but Ciampa can’t hit the Fairy Tale Ending. Cole can hit a Panama Sunrise off the announcers’ table though and Ciampa is….not done as he’s back up for Willow’s Bell. The Fairy Tale Ending connects for two and Ciampa has nothing left. Cole changes pace with a Crossface but Ciampa reverses into one of his own. It’s too close to the rope though and Cole bails outside after the break.

Cue Roderick Strong for a distraction though and O’Reilly and Fish take Ciampa down with a High/Low on the floor. That’s only good for two as well so Ciampa hits Willow’s Bell on Strong and nails a big corkscrew dive onto the other three. Back in and Cole hits a quick Last Shot for two and I let out an “oh come on”. The ref gets bumped and Ciampa hits another Fairy Tale Ending for no count so here’s Johnny Gargano (Where was he five minutes ago?) to throw the title to Ciampa….and then hit him with it instead. Cole retains the title at 33:23.

Rating: B+. I enjoyed it but these Cole main events are getting out of hand on a ridiculous level. They could have cut out probably seven to ten minutes of kickouts here and done the same thing, which isn’t a good sign. That being said, the action was good and Gargano vs. Ciampa part whatever number we’re at should be good with a new twist on the whole thing. This pretty much leaves Velveteen Dream as the most likely challenger to Cole in Tampa as there aren’t many other ways to go, save for Lee dropping the title in a hurry. Anyway, entertaining main event that could have been better with a few cuts.

Overall Rating: A. It never ceases to amaze me that this is probably considered one of the weaker Takeovers and it’s still an incredible show. There’s nothing close to bad on it and several very good matches, though it didn’t have the big blow away one. You can piece together some of Takeover and it wouldn’t surprise me to see a few cameos from NXT UK to really bump up the quality. What we got here was great though and it was an awesome show as Takeover continues to be the untouchable one.

Results

Keith Lee b. Dominick Dijakovic – Big Bang Catastrophe

Dakota Kai b. Tegan Nox – Toss onto a table

Finn Balor b. Johnny Gargano – 1916

Rhea Ripley b. Bianca Belair – Riptide

Broserweights b. Undisputed Era – Bro To Sleep/Enziguri combination to O’Reilly

Adam Cole b. Tommaso Ciampa – Belt shot to the head

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-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

This is a different kind of show for more ways than you almost ever see. In this case, we have a show on a Sunday, a Takeover without a major event from WWE and a six match card. I’m not sure if those things are better or worse for what we’ll be seeing but NXT has not been as strong as usual of late. This is where they get their reputation from though so let’s get to it.

Women’s Title: Rhea Ripley(c) vs. Bianca Belair

I’m not sure what to expect from this one and that’s a hard thing to pull off. What makes this so much better is the fact that while they are certainly teasing Charlotte vs. Ripley at WrestleMania, they might be going a swerve in the form of a triple threat match with Belair vs. Ripley vs. Charlotte. Now I’m not sure how great that would be, but it’s a possibility.

That being said, I don’t think it’s a possibility that is going to become a reality so we’ll say that Ripley retains here. NXT clearly sees something huge in her and I don’t think they’re going to take the title off of her in her first Takeover defense. Unless there is something surprising like Charlotte interfering to cost Ripley the title, and I’m not sure I see that happening, I think we’ll be seeing Ripley retain.

Tag Team Titles: Undisputed Era(c) vs. Broserweights

The Undisputed Era is reaching the Shayna Baszler point of “someone has to beat them”. Granted that has been the case for a long time now and yet it never seems to end. Now that’s an interesting point as you start to wonder who that team is, because there isn’t a very deep tag division in NXT. Hence the Broserweights being put together to get this spot after winning a handful of matches.

I’ll take the Undisputed Era to retain here, as I think we’re coming up on the dream match at Takeover: Tampa where DIY takes the titles off of them. The Broserweights can keep teaming together, but there isn’t a need to switch the titles here. The Undisputed Era has held them for so long now that another six weeks isn’t going to matter, so switch them in Tampa instead of here.

Johnny Gargano vs. Finn Balor

Here’s your showcase match and it’s a very good one at that. The story makes perfect sense here as you have the former star against the new one, with Gargano needing to prove that he’s as good as he seems to be. Balor is someone with main roster credentials and having Gargano beat him would be a huge moment for him. You could see this one going either way though and that’s what makes it fascinating.

I think I’ll go with Balor here, as there is a case for both of them. First and foremost, Balor is Balor and someone who brings instant main roster credibility to NXT. At the same time though, Gargano has one of the best resumes and legacies in NXT, but he also has a reputation for losing. He’s a lot better when he’s losing though and it’s not like another loss is going to hut him that much. Gargano winning wouldn’t shock me, but I’ll take Balor.

Dakota Kai vs. Tegan Nox

This is a good example of a match where the extra time for the build may have hurt it a bit. The whole thing is built on Kai being the most horrible person ever by taking out the adorable Nox’s already injured knee. The problem is that was three months ago and a lot of the steam has gone away. The heat will be back as soon as we see a clip of the attack, but it doesn’t feel as important as it once did.

Again you could go either way here, but if they want Kai to go anywhere, she needs to win here so I’ll say that. Nox is someone who has that underdog/never say die aspect to her and that is going to be enough to carry her a long way. Kai is still new to this massive heel turn deal and having her lose (again) wouldn’t leave her with much to do going forward. Let her win here and see where she can go with it.

North American Title: Keith Lee(c) vs. Dominick Dijakovic

I don’t think I’m alone when I say this is the match a lot of people have wanted to see again. These guys showed a completely new aspect to big man matches and they were some of the most exciting things I’ve seen in a long time. I had wanted them to do it on a bigger stage and that is what they are getting here, with a title on the line to boot.

I’ll take Lee to retain, as he seems in line to become the next big thing in NXT. Therefore, you don’t take the title off of him here (barring what would be a very surprising turnaround to give him the title shot at Takeover: Tampa), though Dijakovic winning it would hardly be the worst thing in the world. But yeah Lee retains here, as it is going to take a Herculean effort to get the belt off of him.

NXT Title: Adam Cole(c) vs. Tommaso Ciampa

This is the match that got me into the show because Ciampa’s promos have been outstanding. He never lost the title and pinned Cole to win WarGames so there is already a story built in. Should Cole retain, there is a strong chance he sets the record for the longest NXT Title reign in history, which is a pretty big deal given the history the title has. I’m more curious what happens if Ciampa loses though, as this is pretty much his life.

I think we’re going to find out though, as I’ll take Cole to retain. It leaves open the question of who is left to fight him (though a certain Dreamy one would seem to be an option) but for now, Ciampa doesn’t get Goldie back. I’m not sure if he ever does, but I don’t think he does here. It’s another coin flip (dang NXT is good at setting those up), though I’m going with Cole retaining.

Overall Thoughts

I’m not sure what to expect from this show as the television shows haven’t been as great lately. What matters the most though is that we’ll get down to just the wrestling here and that’s where NXT shines. I do not believe they are capable of a bad (or even average) Takeover and I don’t see this one going any differently. Just give us a good show and everything will be fine. Make it a great one and NXT is back, which is what I’d bet on happening.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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