NXT
Date: February 24, 2021
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Wade Barrett, Beth Phoenix, Vic Joseph

It’s time for a night focusing on revenge, as Karrion Kross is going to get to destroy Santos Escobar for Escobar running his mouth, plus the fallout from Adam Cole attacking Kyle O’Reilly last week. The latter is likely to be a much bigger story but both have my interest. Let’s get to it.

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

The opening video looks at Karrion Kross being ready to destroy Santos Escobar.

Dexter Lumis vs. Johnny Gargano

Non-title. The Way fires up Gargano in the back before the match and Austin Theory doesn’t quite get it. The rest of the team is here with Gargano so the numbers advantage is strong. Gargano bails straight tot he floor to start and his slingshot back in is knocked out of the air without much effort. The rest of the Way accidentally distracts Gargano and it’s a Thesz press into some right hands to give Lumis two. A rather delayed suplex drops Gargano again and he heads outside for a breather.

This time a shot to the ribs staggers Lumis and Gargano sends him head first onto the floor. That just earns Gargano a hot shot onto the apron as much like almost everyone else, Lumis is just too confusing. Theory and Indi Hartwell try to offer a distraction and get stared down, leaving Candice LeRae’s hurricanrana off the apron to be blocked with ease. Gargano uses the distraction to nail a suicide dive though and we take a break.

Back with Lumis fighting out of a camel clutch and driving Gargano into the corner. Lumis punches him down a few times and nails a slingshot suplex. A belly to back into a nipup into a legdrop gets two on Gargano, who misses his rolling kick out of the corner. The Gargano Escape is countered into the Silence which is countered into a crucifix to give Gargano two.

They trade shots to the face and Lumis snaps off a spinebuster for two more. The top rope double stomp misses so Gargano nails him with a superkick for two. Gargano orders Theory to send in a chair but Lumis steps on it to cut that off. A kick to the head knocks Lumis down and while he gets his leg checked out, Theory grabs the chair to hit Lumis…but gets stared down instead. Gargano is sent into Theory and the Silence knocks Gargano out at 13:36.

Rating: C+. And yes the story will continue as NXT pushes Lumis for whatever reason they have. With so many other talented people they have sitting around, this is the best that they can do? I’m not sure what to expect from the story going forward, but hopefully it doesn’t wind up with Gargano dropping the title to him, because…just no.

William Regal looks for someone in the parking lot but no one is there.

Video on MSK, who started as opponents and then came together as a team and won the Dusty Classic. Nash Carter’s dad passed away in high school and he wanted to make his dad proud, which is why he has “Legacy Lives On” tattooed across his chest. Now they wan the Tag Team Titles.

MSK is ready for an interview but gets jumped by the Grizzled Young Veterans. Wes Lee’s hand is crushed with a chair and referees come in to break it up.

Earlier today, Leon Ruff was cleared to wrestle when Malcolm Bivens popped up from his hiding place in the trainer’s room. Bivens wants Ruff to face Tyler Rust tonight and you know Ruff is game.

Tyler Rust vs. Leon Ruff

Malcolm Bivens is here with Rust and says Ruff is in trouble. Ruff comes out but here’s Isaiah Scott to jump him from behind. After ranting about how he is sick of people like Ruff getting a chance, Scott hits a nasty AA onto the apron, with Ruff’s back bending in a rather scary visual. Bivens declares Rust the winner despite the lack of a match.

Yesterday, William Regal offered Zoey Stark a non-title match with Io Shirai. Sure.

Stark is ready to….have her promo cut off by technical difficulties that leave us looking at Shirai.

Cameron Grimes watches clips of Ted DiBiase offering people money for various tasks. Grimes likes the idea and tries the same thing with a guy standing nearby….who does it just fine and gets $1000. The guy says it was easy when Grimes didn’t cheat like DiBiase. Grimes knew he should have watched the whole thing! This is as gold as you can get around here.

We see stills of Adam Cole attacking Kyle O’Reilly last week, which will put O’Reilly out of action with herniated discs. He should be out for 4-6 weeks at the moment.

Io Shirai vs. Zoey Stark

Non-title. They lock up to start with Shirai grabbing the arm with Stark flipping up, only to get armdragged back down. A kind of weird looking backdrop sets up a bit of miscommunication as they seem to be trying to figure out what to do. The Octopus has Stark in trouble and Shirai takes her down for the running basement dropkick. the 619 is blocked and Shirai is sent to the apron, where she blocks a charge with a kick to the face. One heck of a running kick to the head knocks Shirai off the top though and we take a break.

Back with Stark kicking the leg out to cut off a comeback and hitting a sliding kick to the head for two. Stark jumps to the top but misses a 450, meaning stereo crossbodies put them both down. A half and half suplex gives Stark two and we hit the chinlock. Shirai blocks a kick and nails a flapjack, followed by the 619 into the missile dropkick. There’s a double underhook backbreaker for two and Shirai can’t believe the kickout. Stark is right back with a German suplex for her own two but Shirai sends her face first into the corner. The running knees set up the Over the Moonsault to finish Stark at 12:50.

Rating: B-. Stark has come off like a complete star in her two matches so far and I think NXT knows what they have with her. Having her in a non-title loss like this where she made the champ sweat is a good thing and more importantly it’s a positive sign for her future. Hopefully we get to see more of her in the future because she has done rather well so far.

Respect is shown post match but here’s Toni Storm to interrupt. She’s no Zoey Stark because last week she kicked Shirai’s head off and Shirai did nothing about it. Shirai had to pin Mercedes Martinez at Takeover because she can’t beat Storm. Shirai says she’ll fight Storm anywhere anytime but Storm says she’s scared. Storm tells her to go find William Regal and get the match made, which seems to work for Shirai.

The Way is leaving before Dexter Lumis finds them. Johnny Gargano asks Austin Theory why he didn’t hit Lumis with the chair. Theory says Lumis is just misunderstood, sending Gargano over the edge into a rant about how crazy Lumis is for kidnapping multiple people. Indi: “I think he’s kind of hot.” Candice: “WHAT THE…..” Gargano has to cover her mouth and promises to fix this because Theory is going to therapy. Ok a Dr. Shelby cameo could help a lot.

Video on Xia Li marking Kacy Catanzaro.

Cameron Grimes has finished the Ted DiBiase video and now he’s ready to try this again. He tries it with three people but one of the women (who seems to be former WNBA player Anriel Howard) accuses him of copying DiBiase. She stands up and is a good bit taller than him, which doesn’t bother her. The dribbling begins but she dribbles between her legs at eight to win the money. Grimes: “TED DIBIASE! THIS AIN’T OVER!” These things are gold.

Kacy Catanzaro vs. Xia Li

Kayden Carter is here with Catanzaro and Boa is here with Li, as Tian Sha watches from the stage. Catanzaro starts fast with a headscissors but gets dropped face first onto the turnbuckle. Li stomps her down in the corner and there’s a snap suplex for two. The chinlock goes on but Catanzaro fights out and grabs a sunset flip for two. A kick to the ribs sets up another chinlock but Catanzaro fights out again.

The stomping in the corner has Li in trouble and there’s a flipping kick to the back. They head to the floor with Catanzaro going into the barricade. Catanzaro’s leg winds up on the steps and Li stomps down HARD on it, with the knee going in a VERY wrong direction. Screaming ensues but Li throws her back inside anyway, where the referee stops it at 4:41.

Rating: C. I know the story is completely over the top but it is also one of the more interesting things that NXT has done in a while. I’m curious to see where this is going to go and that is more than I can say about a lot of things that take place in NXT these days. Li is a completely different kind of star and I want to see how things continue. Nicely done, though hopefully Catanzaro isn’t gone for a long time because she was getting better.

Post match referees check on Catanzaro as Carter goes up to yell at Sha. With Boa standing in the way, Sha signals to Li, who kicks Catanzaro in the head.

Regal is still waiting in the parking lot. It seems that he is waiting on Santos Escobar, which does make sense.

Video on Raquel Gonzalez/Dakota Kai vs. Nia Jax/Shayna Baszler for the Women’s Tag Team Titles next week. Jax and Baszler don’t seem intimidated.

Cameron Grimes finds someone else to try the basketball idea, which the guy thinks is like Ted DiBiase. After one dribble, Grimes punches him n the face and says DiBiase can kiss his grits. He throws the money around and leaves it on the ground because Grimes is a goof. An entertaining goof, but a goof.

Kacy Catanzaro might have a broken leg.

Grizzled Young Veterans vs. Killian Dain/Drake Maverick

For the sake of simplicity, I’ll only refer to James Drake as Drake and Drake Maverick as Maverick. Before the match, the Veterans announce that Wes Lee has a broken hand and they have been fined, but it’s cool because they know they’re the better team. Dain dropkicks Drake into the corner to start and it’s off to Maverick to work on the arm. Everything breaks down and Dain shoves both Veterans over the top and out to the floor. Then he throws Maverick onto both of them and we take a break.

Back with Maverick being thrown into the wrong corner to keep him from getting over to Dain. Maverick knees Drake in the back though and crawls between Gibson’s legs for the hot tag. House is cleaned in a hurry with Dain getting annoyed at Drake for jumping on his back. That means a Samoan drop/fall away slam combination to the Veterans at the same time, setting up a backsplash for two on Drake.

There’s a double suplex to the Veterans again and it’s off to Maverick for a high crossbody. Some dropkicks have the Veterans in trouble but a blind tag sets up a middle rope dropkick/Downward Spiral combination. Dain is taken to the floor and knocked down but Maverick hits Gibson with a bulldog. Gibson pulls him off the top though and Ticket To Mayhem finishes Maverick at 8:22.

Rating: C. Maverick and Dain are still a fun odd couple but you can only have them lose so many times. The good thing is that the Veterans won because I never get tired of those guys. They work so well together and it’s great to see them doing their thing and hopefully moving back up the ladder sooner rather than later.

Legado del Fantasma arrives.

Post break, Killian Dain carries Drake Maverick to the trainer’s room but they run into Alexander Wolfe, who says Dain used to be a monster. Dain ignores him and gets help for Maverick. Was it that bad of a beating?

Karrion Kross vs. Santos Escobar

Non-title and no DQ but we cut to the parking lot where Kross attacks Raul Mendoza and Joaquin Wilde. That brings Escobar out of his car and the brawl is on. They fight over to a truck with Escobar managing to drop the door onto Kross’ shoulder to make him scream. Kross fights back but the rest of Legado comes in to keep up the brawl. Escobar hides in the truck’s cab so Kross fights off the goons and finds a pickax to swing at the door.

That’s enough to bring Escobar out and the three on one beats Kross down again. The arm is sent into the truck and they head inside, with Escobar heading to ringside while Kross throws the other two through the Plexiglas. The staredown is on and Escobar realizes that he’s in major trouble. They get inside with a big boot dropping Escobar for one but Kross has to deal with Wilde. That’s enough for Escobar to get in a chair shot, followed by rams into the post and steps.

We take a break and come back with Escobar hitting a running basement dropkick in the corner as Scarlett is not pleased. The shoulder is wrapped inside of a chair and sent into the post to put Kross down again. A DDT onto the chair is good for two back inside and there’s a dropkick to the arm. They’re already back on the floor with Kross trying to fight back but getting knocked down by the arm again.

Back in and the armbar goes on before Escobar tries Three Amigos. The first two connect but the third is countered into some suplexes from Kross. They’re outside again but this time, Kross pulls him hard into the post. A suplex and a powerbomb get rid of Wilde and Mendoza, leaving Kross to Doomsday Saito Escobar through the announcers’ table. Another Doomsday Saito sets up a running forearm to the back of the head to finish Escobar at 15:36.

Rating: B. This took a bit longer than it needed but Kross as the unstoppable monster was the right way to go. There’s something interesting about him as the monster face rather than a villain and while that wasn’t quite the case here, he was definitely feeling different than usual and I was digging where they were going. Throw in Escobar being treated like a star as well and this was a very different main event which worked rather well.

LA Knight says he’ll debut on his time.

Here’s Adam Cole to look at a clip of his attack on Kyle O’Reilly last week. Now that footage makes him sick to his stomach. At first he was mad at O’Reilly for getting title shot after title shot but now he is ashamed. He knows O’Reilly can’t be here but he should be, and Cole promises to do everything he can to make it better. Cole sounds near tears but here is Roderick Strong to say Cole wrecked everything.

The Undisputed Era was based on trust and Cole broke it. Strong says O’Reilly is going to heal and Cole might not survive what is coming for him. Cue Finn Balor for the brawl with Cole but Strong tries to break it up, allowing Cole to hit a superkick. Strong and Cole head back inside, where Strong runs him over with a clothesline. Cole begs off and asks for mercy, with Strong dropping to his knees and saying he loves Cole too. They hug….and Cole hits him low. Cole calls Strong stupid to end the show. This was rather good and Cole sold the heck out of it.

Overall Rating: B+. This one was a bit of a different kind of show but I liked almost everything they did. Between Kross looking like a monster, the Veterans winning, the great closing segment and Grimes rapidly becoming the most entertaining thing in wrestling, I liked a lot more of this than I didn’t. Awesome show this week and they have a lot of different ways to go on the way forward.

Results

Dexter Lumis b. Johnny Gargano – Silence

Io Shirai b. Zoey Stark – Over the Moonsault

Xia Li b. Kacy Catanzaro via referee stoppage

Grizzled Young Veterans b. Killian Dain/Drake Maverick – Ticket to Mayhem to Maverick

Karrion Kross b. Santos Escobar – Running forearm to the back of the head

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Takeover: Vengeance Day
Date: February 14, 2021
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Beth Phoenix, Wade Barrett, Vic Joseph

It’s time for the next big one and this time around, it means a rather strange name as St. Valentine’s Day something isn’t allowed anymore. Fair enough, but it’s not like it matters if the show winds up being great and the potential is there this time around. The card is stacked and hopefully it lives up to the hype. Let’s get to it.

The opening video is a Valentine’s Day rap about how much this place is loved, including a rundown of the card.

There’s a ramp instead of an aisle for a change.

Women’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic Finals: Ember Moon/Shotzi Blackheart vs. Dakota Kai/Raquel Gonzalez

Gonzalez powers Blackheart around with ease to start and does the same to Moon. It’s already back to Blackheart, who is driven into the corner for a hard ram into the buckle. Kai comes in and gets two off Gonzalez’s knockdown. The running kick in the corner misses though and Blackheart gets in a kick to the leg. The Texas Cloverleaf goes on but Kai is all of eight inches from the rope for the easy break.

Blackheart hits the reverse Cannonball against the ropes and it’s Moon coming in with the slingshot splash for two. A double takedown slams Kai down and Moon cranks on the leg for a bonus. Moon pulls her back in to stay on the leg so Kai uses the free leg to kick her way to….well nothing actually as Moon drags her away again. Gonzalez comes in to yell so Blackheart switches without a tag.

Moon is smart enough to knock Gonzalez off the apron to break up the tag though and the ankle lock goes on. Kai finally sends Moon into the corner and the (Hot?) tag brings in Gonzalez to clean house. Some rams in the corner set up a fall away slam to drop Moon and Gonzalez drags Blackheart in for the same. Gonzalez is knocked outside so Blackheart tries a hurricanrana, only to get swung into the barricade.

Back in and Moon dropkicks Gonzalez off the apron but gets taken into the corner again. Kai hits the running kick to the face for two but Moon manages a leg lariat to Kai, causing her to DDT Gonzalez. Moon goes for Kai, only to get picked up by Gonzalez. That’s broken up by Blackheart’s missile dropkick to give Moon two and it’s Blackheart coming back in to clean house. Sliced Bread gets two on Gonzalez with Kai making another save. Blackheart hits a suicide dive to take Kai down again and then puts Kai up in an electric chair.

Moon dives off the top with a crossbody for a modified Doomsday Device and then kicks Gonzalez in the face. Back in and the STF has Gonzalez in trouble so Kai makes another save. Blackheart gets the tag so Kai takes her down with the Kairopractor for two. The assisted GTK gets two on Blackheart with Moon making another save. Gonzalez LAUNCHES Moon onto the ramp but Blackheart dropkicks her down. Kai is tossed onto Gonzalez, who is up to shove Blackheart off the top. A very high powerbomb finally puts Blackheart away to give Gonzalez the pin at 15:45.

Rating: B+. This was a lot better than I would have bet on here with straight action throughout. I’m rather happy to see the established team beat the thrown together team for a change, even though I can’t really imagine Kai and Gonzalez against Nia Jax and Shayna Baszler. What matters here though is the match itself, as these four beat the fire out of each other with some great saves and near falls.

William Regal comes out for the trophy presentation.

We recap Kushida vs. Johnny Gargano for the North American Title. Gargano won the title back a few months ago and Kushida has given him trouble since. Title match set.

Johnny Gargano and the Way do their pre-match dance and cheer for Gargano to retain the title.

North American Title: Johnny Gargano vs. Kushida

Gargano is defending and sends the rest of the Way to the back. Kushida goes straight for the Hoverboard Lock to start but Gargano is out in a hurry. They head to the mat with an exchange of armbars, followed by an exchange of front facelocks. Gargano tries the Gargano Escape but Kushida gets it on him instead, with Gargano escaping in a hurry. They head outside with Gargano sending him into the steps but getting caught in the cross armbreaker.

Gargano is in trouble but manages a neckbreaker over the ropes to cut Kushida off again. A floatover suplex gets…nothing actually as Kushida is up before one. Gargano hits a gordbuster into a kick to the arm (Barrett: “That’s a receipt!”) but Kushida manages an Octopus out of nowhere. That’s broken up and they hit the pinfall reversal sequence for a series of near falls until a double clothesline puts them both down. Back up and Kushida strikes away but can’t get one of the holds.

Instead it’s a German suplex into a kick to the back of the head for two on Gargano. A chickenwing northern lights suplex gets two on Gargano so he heads to the apron. That’s fine with Kushida, who breaks up a springboard and sends him shoulder first into the post. Kushida puts him on top but Gargano hits a swinging superplex, followed by a tornado DDT for two of his own. Back up and Gargano can’t get the Escape but neither can Kushida.

Instead Kushida goes for the arm again, only to get stacked up for two. Another double shot to the face gives us a double knockdown and the NXT chants strike up again. They slug it out from their knees with Kushida getting the better of it. The handspring elbow is countered into the Gargano Escape but Kushida goes for the bad arm and gets the Hoverboard Lock.

That’s escaped as well and a bridging rollup gives Gargano two. A superkick into the lawn dart knocks Kushida silly though and they’re both down again. Kushida manages a chickenwing suplex into the corner and they go up top, with Kushida flipping him down into the cross armbreaker. Gargano is about to tap but rolls over and gets the feet in the ropes. They head outside with Gargano sending him into the barricade for a breather but Kushida slips around to the stage.

That means a running kick to the arm and the Hoverboard Lock goes on, with commentary taking away the drama by declaring it over. Gargano drives him neck first into the rope for the break and One Final Beat onto the ramp knocks Kushida silly. Another One Final Beat back inside retains the title at 24:47.

Rating: A-. This got some serious time and the action worked well as both guys beat the heck out of each other. I’m not sure how many people were expecting a title change here but it’s by far Kushida’s best match in NXT. The biggest problem here was a lack of drama near the end, as Gargano getting out of the cross armbreaker cut off any real drama about a title change, but it takes something pretty great to make about 25 minutes fly by this fast. Awesome stuff here in a Takeover worthy match.

We recap the Men’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic with MSK and the Grizzled Young Veterans meeting in the finals.

Men’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic Finals: MSK vs. Grizzled Young Veterans

That would be Nash Carter/Wes Lee vs. Zack Gibson/James Drake. The Veterans do their usual intro and it’s Gibson cranking on Carter’s arm to start so it’s off to Drake for a headlock on the mat. Carter fights up and brings Lee in though and the pace picks up. The Veterans are sent outside with Lee hitting a cartwheel into a dive to take them out, followed by Carter’s dive to hit Drake.

Gibson gets away though and blasts Carter with a clothesline to take over again. Back in and Drake gets a series of near falls before slapping on a chinlock. That doesn’t last long either so Drake runs Carter over with an elbow for two more. It’s back to Gibson to work on the arm before switching to a front facelock. Drake comes back in but Carter manages a suplex for a breather.

Gibson breaks up the tag by pulling Lee to the floor though and it’s a Downward Spiral/missile dropkick combination (or “Maximum Skullduggery” according to Barrett) for two on Carter. The chinlock goes on for a bit but Carter ducks a spinwheel kick and brings in Lee to clean house. A big dive to the floor takes out the Veterans and then faceplants Gibson back inside.

Carter comes in for a running dropkick to Drake and some rather questionable language to Gibson. A bunch of right hands and a cutter out of the corner gets two on Gibson and they’re both down. Lee’s backflip kick to the head is cut off with a knee though and Helter Skelter into Drake’s 450 gets two with Gibson not believing the kickout. Lee rolls Gibson up for two and sends the Veterans into each other. The push moonsault his Gibson and a poisonrana hits Drake, setting up the Spinal Tap (Lee called it the Final Flash in Impact) gets a very close two.

Lee is sent outside where Drake puts him in an electric chair for the suicide Doomsday Device and a nasty landing. That leaves Carter to fight them both off but it’s a powerbomb/Backstabber combination for a rather close two. Lee is back in though and it’s a spinebuster/middle rope spinning neckbreaker for the pin and the tournament at 18:45.

Rating: B+. And that’s how you pull the trigger on someone, which Impact Wrestling didn’t do for the Rascalz in the two or so years they were in the company. They had one crazy spot after another here and that’s all it needed to be. There’s something awesome about seeing a new team come in and tear the house down like this and it worked to near perfection. Great match and there is going to be a heck of a moment when the Veterans finally win something. The Tag Team Title match should be great too so everything works out.

William Regal comes out for the trophy presentation.

Video on Cameron Grimes being rich, complete with him rolling around in cash in his underwear. This might be the best thing in NXT today.

We recap the triple threat match for the Women’s Title. Io Shirai has been champion since June and Mercedes Martinez attacked her. Then Toni Storm decided she wanted the title too. The triple threat was on.

Women’s Title: Mercedes Martinez vs. Toni Storm vs. Io Shirai

Shirai is defending. Martinez isn’t waiting around to start and jumps Shirai during the Big Match Intros to get things going fast. Shirai is right back in to put Martinez down but Storm shoulders her over. Another shot knocks Martinez off the apron and Shirai plants Storm. A slingshot dropkick hits Storm in the corner but she’s back up with a basement clothesline to knock Shirai against the ropes.

Martinez takes Storm to the floor so Shirai loads up an Asai moonsault…but Martinez just steps to the side so it’s a crash landing. Makes sense. Back in and Martinez plants Storm for two more but Shirai is back in with a missile dropkick to Martinez. Storm cuts Shirai off with a Boss Man Slam, only to walk into Martinez’s spinebuster for two. Shirai takes Martinez down though and it’s a Crossface to Storm, but Martinez adds a Dragon Sleeper on Shirai at the same time.

The holds are both broken up and Martinez hits a reverse suplex on Shirai. That’s fine with the champ, who is back up with a 619 and missile dropkick to put Martinez down again. Storm and Shirai go up but Martinez German superplexes Storm off. The Alberto double stomp hits Martinez, leaving Storm to get back up. They head outside with Storm clearing off the announcers’ table….which breaks after she just touches it a bit.

Storm Zero onto the wreckage is countered into a DDT from Martinez but Shirai climbs onto the lighting structure to dive onto both of them. Shirai is done so Martinez takes Storm back inside for some knees to the face. A fisherman’s buster gets two on Storm and Storm Zero gets two on Martinez with a pair of shocked faces in between. Storm adds a top rope headbutt to Martinez but it’s Shirai moonsaulting in for the pin to retain at 12:42.

Rating: B. This was another match that was almost all action and it worked out well, though I’m not sure who is going to take the title from Shirai. She is coming up on nine months as champion and could hold onto the thing for a lot longer to come. Maybe she drops it to Storm in a singles match, or maybe it is someone else coming up to go after her. Either way, good match here and Shirai’s reign is starting to get kind of historic.

We look at LA Knight (Eli Drake) signing with NXT earlier tonight and then interrupting the Kickoff Show.

We recap Finn Balor vs. Pete Dunne for the NXT Title. Balor has been champion for a few months now and bumped into Dunne in the back one night on TV. Dunne seemed interested in the title and they have brawled a few times, setting up a UK dream match for the title.

NXT Title: Finn Balor vs. Pete Dunne

Balor is defending and they take their time on the entrances. Dunne takes him down by the arm to start but Balor reverses into an armbar of his own. A monkey flip can’t get Dunne out of trouble so Balor works on a headlock on the mat. The grinding continues until Dunne finally counters with a headscissors to work on the neck. That’s broken up as well and we’re at a standoff as second gear continues.

Dunne starts in on the arm so Balor tries to flip out, only to get pulled into a triangle choke. That’s escaped as well and Balor cranks on the arm to keep Dunne in trouble. Dunne reverses as well and starts cranking on the arm to put the champ in more trouble. This time Balor reverses into a leglock so Dunne tries for the arm again, only to have his leg kicked out again. Another leglock goes on but this time Dunne reverses into a front facelock to work on the neck a bit.

The X Plex gets two on Balor and it’s time to slug it out. Balor blasts him with a clothesline for two and it’s back to the leg. An STF has Dunne in more trouble but he sends Balor’s fingers into the mat for the break. Back up and Balor goes for the knee again but 1916 is broken up. Dunne stomps at the face and plants him with a sitout powerbomb for two more. The big stomp on the arm has Balor in more trouble and there’s a German suplex, only to have Balor kick the knee out again.

A Backstabber to Dunne sets up a shotgun dropkick in the corner but Dunne pulls him into a triangle choke. Balor can’t roll free and is knocked out…but his foot is in the rope. Balor can’t stand but he can counter the Bitter End into an abdominal stretch of all things. They go to the mat with the hold still on but Dunne gets to the fingers for some snapping. Dunne holds the hand and avoids a stomp, meaning the Bitter End can connect for two. The kickout stuns Dunne and they’re both down for a bit.

Another powerbomb attempt is countered into a DDT from Balor but Dunne is back with an enziguri. The Bitter End is countered into the reverse 1916 for another near fall and they’re both down one more time. Dunne grabs the hand and bends the fingers back so Balor double stomps him in the back. Balor ribs Dunne’s mouthpiece out and nails a basement dropkick. The Coup de Grace connects but Balor can’t immediately cover. 1916 retains the title at 25:17.

Rating: A-. This took its time to get going but then they beat the heck out of each other, which has been a theme tonight. Dunne losing still feels weird but it also comes off as a huge deal because he barely ever gets beaten. Balor is a full on legend in NXT and whoever takes the title from him is going to be an instant star no matter who it is. They could have gone either way here as the winner is going to be facing Karrion Kross for the title anyway.

Post match Balor poses but here are Oney Lorcan and Danny Burch to jump him from behind. The three on one beatdown is on but the Undisputed Era runs in for the save. Balor isn’t sure what to do and is scared to accept Kyle O’Reilly’s help up. Eventually he does though and they respect each other….and then Adam Cole superkicks Balor. The rest of the team asks what he’s doing so Cole lays out O’Reilly as well. Roderick Strong isn’t sure what to do and looks back and forth from O’Reilly and Balor on the mat to Cole to end the show. It might not be popular, but was there anything else for the Era to do?

Overall Rating: A. The worst match on the show would have been the match of the week 90% of the year so I’m not sure what there is to complain about here. This was five straight awesome matches because that’s what Takeover does. The ending was a surprise but a necessary one to give it a big moment that carries things into the next cycle. As usual, the action was great and they gave you a reason to come back, which are two of the most important things a show can do. Outstanding stuff here, in case there was any doubt there would be for some odd reason.

Results

Dakota Kai/Raquel Gonzalez b. Ember Moon/Shotzi Blackheart – Powerbomb to Blackheart

Johnny Gargano b. Kushida – One Final Beat

MSK b. Grizzled Young Veterans – Spinebuster/Spinning middle rope neckbreaker to Drake

Io Shirai b. Mercedes Martinez and Toni Storm – Moonsault to Martinez

Finn Balor b. Pete Dunne – 1916

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We’re back to the good ones here as NXT returns with another Takeover event. This time around we have Vengeance Day, which isn’t the best name but maybe the obvious St. Valentine’s Day Massacre is a little too violent for them. Believe it or not, the card is stacked as we have three title matches plus the two Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic finals. Let’s get to it.

Men’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic Finals: MSK vs. Grizzled Young Veterans

We’ll start with a good one here as I’m actually not sure who is going to win this thing. MSK debuted in the start of the tournament and have made it all the way to the finals. This certainly works for me as I’ve been a fan of the team since they debuted in Impact Wrestling and now they might actually win something. At the same time, the Veterans lost in last year’s finals and it seems that they are due.

I’ll go with MSK to win in an upset though, as they would make for a more interesting matchup against Oney Lorcan and Danny Burch. This is one of those matches that could get some time with some awesome near falls at the end and that’s where NXT’s tag team division shines. The good thing is that they are building up some new teams (like these two) and the future might be a bit brighter. See how nice it is when there is a problem and the promotion actually addresses it?

Women’s Title: Io Shirai(c) vs. Toni Storm vs. Mercedes Martinez

Did you realize that Shirai has been champion for over eight months? It always seems like she is ready to lose the thing at any given time but here she is again, getting rather close to the elite level of Women’s Champions. This is quite the task though as you could see either one of these two taking the title. That’s exactly the point of something like this though and NXT has set things up well.

I’m tempted to pick Martinez here as she has gotten the least hype out of the three but I’ll take Storm to win here. This is more along the lines of a gut feeling as they have been building towards Storm taking the title. They could go multiple ways here, but I’ll go with Storm winning. It gets the title off of Shirai, though I’m not sure what is next for her either. But yeah, Storm wins here.

North American Title: Johnny Gargano(c) vs. Kushida

This has been built up for a long time now and I wasn’t sure if they were ever actually going to do it. Kushida is my favorite guy out of New Japan and while he isn’t the same as he was there, I still like seeing him out there and getting a bit of a push like this. Above all else, it’s nice to see someone new getting a shot at the title.

As nice as it is to see Kushida getting a chance like this, Gargano keeps the title. We’ve done the thing with him losing the title in a hurry far too often already so they need to have him retain here. Gargano needs the win more than Kushida here as it’s not like Kushida is going to lose anything by taking the loss here. He’s been playing with the house’s money for this entire feud so Gargano going over here is fine.

Women’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic Finals: Dakota Kai/Raquel Gonzalez vs. Ember Moon/Shotzi Blackheart

Yes, believe it or not a team with no history together has made the finals of a Dusty Classic. That is as much of a tradition as the tournament itself because WWE really, really likes that idea. This time around we do at least have a regular team included, though I have a bad feeling that it isn’t going to matter, which tends to be the case throughout the history of the tournament.

In other words, yeah Blackheart and Moon win here because they’re a more logical team to lose to Nia Jax and Shayna Baszler. I’m rather sick of seeing the thrown together teams winning here but I guess it makes for a better story or something. Granted that might not be the case when you see the same thing taking place so often but it’s likely taking place here so I’ll go with Blackheart and Moon.

NXT Title: Finn Balor(c) vs. Pete Dunne

And then we cap it off with a dream match as these two seem like they could have an absolute classic. The cool thing about NXT: it is more likely than not that they will. This is going to be a hard hitting fight and they are going to get the time that they need to make it work out as well as they could. It’s a match I would have preferred to see a year or two ago, but I’ll certainly take what I can get.

As for a winner……dang it where’s a quarter I can flip? I’ll take Balor here, but my goodness this one could go either way. I’m not sure how this one is going to end but they are going to beat the living fire out of each other and it’s going to be absolutely awesome. This feels like a Takeover main event and that’s about as good of an accolade as you can give to a match these days.

Overall Thoughts

This is as stacked of a card as there has been in a long time and that’s a great thing to see. I want to see how almost everything goes and it’s nice to have the hype back for these shows. It has all of the potential in the world and it’s even better to have Takeover’s reputation behind the whole thing. Just go with what works here, and that means following Takeover’s tried and true formula.

 

 

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NXT
Date: February 10, 2021
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Vic Joseph, Beth Phoenix, Wade Barrett

It’s the go home show for Takeover: Vengeance Day and it’s still tournament time with three more Dusty Classic matches before we can finally wrap up the brackets for the time being. These things have dominated NXT TV for a few weeks now and I can’t wait for the them to wrap up so we don’t have to spend so much time on them every week. Let’s get to it.

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

Men’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic Semifinals: MSK vs. Legado del Fantasma

Joaquin Wilde and Wes Lee start things off and go to the mat for some arm cranking. Wilde takes over on the leg but gets pulled into an armbar. That’s enough for the early tag to Nash Carter, who hits a Bronco Buster in the corner. Carter dropkicks Wilde into the corner and it’s off to Raul Mendoza to crank on the arm. Some double kicks have Mendoza in the corner and Lee stays in, only to get caught with a double suplex.

Wilde is hiptossed onto the ropes to set up a moonsault for two but Lee is over for the tag to Carter to pick up the pace again. Wilde isn’t having this though and knocks both of MSK outside as we take a break. Back with Lee cleaning house and kicking Mendoza out to the floor. A backdrop puts Wilde on the floor as well and it’s the push moonsault to take Legado out. Lee adds the big flip dive but he tries another one and gets kicked in the head.

Back in and Mendoza walks the rope for a missile dropkick, setting up Wilde’s reverse hurricanrana. Mendoza grabs a swinging suplex for two and puts Carter in a fireman’s carry. That lets Wilde use Carter’s back for a 450 but Lee small packages him in a hurry. Mendoza is smart enough to drop Carter onto the cover for two and MSK is in more trouble. The Russian legsweep/big boot is broken up though and the spinebuster/Blockbuster combination finishes Wilde at 12:58.

Rating: B-. There were good parts here but it didn’t have the best flow or chemistry throughout. The good thing is that MSK can wrestle the high flying style and hang in there just fine. MSK has looked good in the tournament so far and it’s nice to see someone getting a push right out of the blocks instead of having to go through a bunch of squash matches to get there first.

Mercedes Martinez talks about how it has taken twenty years to get here and now she is going to show the world what she can do.

Xia Li vs. Cora Jade

Boa is here with Li as well. Kayden Carter and Kacy Catanzaro come out to try and talk sense into Li, but she has a spinning kick to the face to give Jade for the pin at 46 seconds. Li’s entrance was about three times that long.

Post match Li beats on Jade some more, so Carter goes up to yell at Tian Sha for ruining Li. That sends Li up to throw Carter off the stage and then Sha chokes Boa. Li beats up Catanzaro as well. Having a little extra backstory has made this story work a good bit better.

William Regal is happy with the Dusty Classic but finds Scarlett in his office. She wants Santos Escobar’s time to be up next week. Regal agrees.

Here’s the Way, with Johnny Gargano in a wheelchair because of his broken arm. Gargano says this is the result of Kushida’s attack last week and we see a clip of Kushida kicking the arm. After Candice LeRae moves her hands from over Gargano’s eyes and the Way turns him back to the camera, Gargano says this is ruining his life. He is a known power walker but now he can’t swing his arms. And he hates wheels! Anyway, Gargano can’t defend the NXT Title on Sunday and Kushida should be suspended.

Cue William Regal to say Gargano was medically cleared yesterday but Gargano has an X-RAY showing the longest bone in his arm. The arm is broken horribly but Regal says that’s of a fight arm and Gargano’s left is in the sling. Also, if it’s that bad, Gargano would be in extreme pain.

Regal says Gargano has two options: he can either have Austin Theory as the surrogate to defend the title tonight or just forfeit the title outright. Gargano begs for more time but Regal says we can just ask Kushida, who is in the ring. Kushida cleans house, including superkicking Gargano who popped to his feet. That earns him a superkick back into the chair as Kushida clears the ring.

Women’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic Semifinals: The Way vs. Shotzi Blackheart/Ember Moon

We’re joined in progress with Ember working on Candice’s arm and handing it off to Shotzi for a backsplash. The shoulders in the ribs keep Candice in trouble but she avoids a charge and brings in Hartwell. A side slam gets two on Blackheart and Candice comes back in to work on an armbar. It’s already back to Hartwell, who mocks Ember but manages to drag Shotzi back to the corner.

Candice elbows her down for two more and the armbar goes on again. This time Blackheart jawbreaks her way to freedom and it’s straight back to Moon to pick up the pace. Candice gets knocked into the corner so Blackheart kicks Hartwell for two more. Blackheart gets knocked to the floor though and Candice walks the ropes for a hurricanrana to send Moon into Blackheart outside.

We take a break and come back with Shotzi coming in off the hot tag and starting to clean house. The running reverse cannonball to the back gives Shotzi two and Moon is back in. Moon’s knees are laid up for a bulldog to Candice and another near fall as frustration sets in. This time it’s Ember getting caught in the wrong corner, with Hartwell holding Moon up for Candice’s Lionsault.

A shot to the face is enough for the hot tag back to Blackheart though and things pick up all over again. Everything breaks down but Candice drops Shotzi, setting up Hartwell’s top rope for her own two. That goes to Shotzi though, and it’s an Eclipse to Candice. Hartwell covers Candice for protection so Blackheart’s top rope backsplash hits both of them for the pin at 14:17.

Rating: C-. This gave us the right and fairly clear ending but they didn’t have a smooth match out there. It had multiple botches and both teams didn’t look all that great. Then again, it isn’t like they have much experience together so you can only expect so much. The ending made sense with Hartwell wanting to save Candice more than win, even if it might not appeal to Candice herself. Blackheart and Moon work well enough as a team, but this was none of the four’s best night.

Post match Raquel Gonzalez and Dakota Kai come out for the staredown. William Regal comes in to say the winners will also get a future Women’s Tag Team Title shot. I thought they had said that before. Oh well.

Timothy Thatcher and Tommaso Ciampa talk about the hard match they had last week. Tonight they have the Grizzled Young Veterans, which is a better name for them. They’re winning tonight and then doing the same on Sunday. Class dismissed, and Ciampa storms off, leaving Thatcher smiling a lot.

Santos Escobar isn’t worried about Karrion Kross. He isn’t apologizing either, even when a nervous Wilde and Mendoza come in. Escobar tells them to go pay Kross a visit.

Video on Finn Balor being untouchable as NXT Champion, which got Pete Dunne’s attention. The two have been going at it since, with Dunne even breaking Balor’s fingers. Now it’s time for the big showdown on Sunday.

Kushida vs. Austin Theory

No entrance for either of them and the slugout is on early. Johnny Gargano offers a quick distraction so Theory can take over, including a good looking dropkick. Kushida’s hiptoss is blocked so he throws Theory down and nails the basement dropkick. Theory gets taken down by the arm, which has Barrett fuming over Kushida’s hatred of all things arms. More kicks to the arm set up Kushida tying the arms around his legs and dropping backwards.

The arm is twisted around some more and then snapped down over Kushida’s shoulder, followed by a kick to the shoulder. Theory manages to knock him off the apron though and we take a break. Back with Kushida still in trouble and Theory sending him flying with a fall away slam. The referee checks on Kushida, which seems a little premature, especially since he grabs a rollup for two.

Kushida hits a springboard back elbow into a release German suplex. It’s time to work on the arm some more, this time with a Stunner of all things to send Theory outside. Kushida follows and gets run over but manages to slap on a cross armbreaker on the apron. That’s enough for Gargano to nail the superkick for the DQ at 11:57.

Rating: C. The ending was the right call as this was much more about setting up Takeover than the match itself. I could go for a lot more of Theory and Kushida, either on their own or against each other because they really are that good. Theory has all the tools you could hope for and you don’t get that kind of a talent very often. Go with what works, like Kushida vs. Gargano on Sunday.

Post match the beatdown is on with Gargano going to get a chair to break Kushida’s arm. As he goes around the ring though, someone pulls Theory underneath the ring. Gargano comes back and pulls out Dexter Lumis, who scares Gargano up the ramp. Theory is scared into the Hoverboard Lock from Kushida, who does the same thing to Gargano for a bonus. Lumis comes in to Silence Theory at the same time so Kushida can pose with the title.

Toni Storm talks about beating Io Shirai in the Mae Young Classic. She can do it again and after Sunday, it’s Toni Time.

We get an Imperium video, introducing everyone on the team.

Karrion Kross has taken out Joaquin Wilde and Raul Mendoza. Next week it’s Escobar’s turn.

Cameron Grimes is back, in a rather nice car. He pays security a lot of money to park it and then walks into the arena, where he hands some wrestlers some money as well. Grimes (now with glasses) gets in the ring and tells people to get up, promising a reward for anyone who does (Vic: “Sit down Barrett.”). Two months ago, Timothy Thatcher left him laying and injured so Grimes has been out of action.

While he has been hurt, he started playing a lot of video games and that meant trips to Game Stop. It was so great that he invested and now he has SO MUCH MONEY. Then he invested in Dogecoin and now he’s even MORE RICH. The clothes start to come off as Grimes rants about how William Regal can kiss his grits. I could absolutely go for this as it’s an angle that works every time and Grimes is perfect for the thing. Also, how often do we get something this topical?

Johnny Gargano says Kushida better be ready for Takeover because that’s Johnny’s world.

Io Shirai talks about winning the Women’s Title in a triple threat match and she can do it again. She is a different person than when she lost to Toni Storm and now this title reign will never end.

Men’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic Semifinals: Timothy Thatcher/Tommaso Ciampa vs. Grizzled Young Veterans

Before the match, Zack Gibson says these two are as dumb as they look. When have either of them ever had a team end well? The Veterans are winning the trophy so they will be recognized as….whatever Gibson was going to say before Ciampa kicked James Drake in the face. It’s a big brawl on the floor before the bell with the Veterans beating them down and then switching places so the beating can continue.

They finally get inside for the opening bell with Gibson taking Thatcher down and bringing in Ciampa. The stomping ensues again so it’s back to Thatcher, who allows the tag off to Drake. Thatcher gets knocked into the corner and Gibson comes back in, allowing Drake to pull Ciampa to the floor. Ciampa is sent into the steps and then double teamed onto the apron as we take a break.

Back with Ciampa still down after being checked by the medics during the break. Gibson takes Thatcher down into a chinlock for a bit before loading up a Doomsday Device. That’s broken up though and Ciampa blasts Drake as Ciampa gets back on the apron. There’s the hot tag and house is cleaned, including a bunch of clotheslines. Some German suplexes have the Veterans down again and Ciampa gets two on Drake.

We settle back down with Drake having to power Ciampa into the corner to block the Fairy Tale Ending. Gibson and Ciampa slug it out with Gibson hitting him in the throat, setting up a swinging suplex. Drake comes in and uses Ciampa as a launchpad to take Thatcher down, followed by the Doomsday Device. Thatcher breaks that up as well but the Veterans put him down on the floor. Willow’s Bell is blocked and the Ticket To Mayhem hits Ciampa for the pin at 11:39.

Rating: C+. The ending helped but the injury spot felt pretty wedged in. Ciampa was right back up like nothing was wrong later and it’s not like the Veterans beating Ciampa and Thatcher is some huge upset. I’m not sure why they needed the injury deal when some simple cheating would have worked just fine, but it’s not like it ruined anything. The Veterans moving on makes sense and as long as that works, there isn’t much to complain about here.

Post match MSK and the Veterans glare at each other.

Commentary stands up and hypes Takeover, with everyone in each match coming to the stage for a staredown. Finn Balor and Pete Dunne stare each other down in the ring to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. This show did a nice job of setting up Takeover, though I never need to think about the Dusty Classic again. Adding in the prize for the women helped, though it wasn’t exactly a groundbreaking change. The wrestling was good here and I’m glad Gargano vs. Kushida is back on, plus the Grimes stuff has me giddy with how fun it could be. Nice show here, but Takeover is the main course on Sunday.

Results

MSK b. Legado del Fantasma – Spinebuster/Blockbuster combination to Wilde

Xia Li b. Cora Jade – Spinning kick to the face

Shotzi Blackheart/Ember Moon b. The Way – Top rope backsplash to LeRae

Kushida b. Austin Theory via DQ when Johnny Gargano interfered

Grizzled Young Veterans b. Tommaso Ciampa/Timothy Thatcher – Ticket to Mayhem to Ciampa

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NXT
Date: January 27, 2021
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Wade Barrett, Vic Joseph, Beth Phoenix

It’s still tournament time around here as the women’s Dusty Classic continues the first round but the men’s version heads on to the quarterfinals. I’m still not sure if this is the best idea in the world as these tournaments are dominating the show, but maybe the action is going to be enough to carry the show. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening recap.

Men’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic Quarterfinals: MSK vs. Killian Dain/Drake Maverick

Maverick and Lee start things off and go to the mat in a hurry. Maverick’s headlock is driven against the ropes so Lee says bring it. Dain wants in but Maverick isn’t ready yet, instead taking Lee to the mat with a front facelock. That’s broken up as well as Maverick is taken into the corner for a running Bronco Buster from Carter. Maverick slips away and brings in Dain to clean house, including throwing Maverick at Nash for a knockdown (always effective).

The running big boot in the corner rocks Carter but a shot to the knee put Dain down for a second. Lee comes back in and is tossed outside with ease to send us to a break. Back with Dain hitting Lee in the face again and crushing him with a backsplash. That’s enough to give Maverick two but the chinlock is countered for the hot tag to Carter. A penalty kick rocks Maverick and a dropkick puts Dain on the floor. The push moonsault connects for two with Dain making a save. Dain is sent outside again though and it’s a Hart Attack with a Blockbuster instead of a clothesline to finish Maverick at 11:06.

Rating: C+. This was more like it for both teams, as Dain and Maverick are the kind of a team with just enough credibility to mean something and MSK feel primed for a serious run in the tournament. They made enough sense here too, with Dain being the wrecking ball that had to be dealt with and then Maverick being a much easier target. Good enough match and MSK continues to make me smile.

Danny Burch and Oney Lorcan are fired up for tonight. Pete Dunne looks like he’s ordering dinner.

Raquel Gonzalez/Dakota Kai and Jessi Kamea/Aliyah are ready to win the Dusty Classic.

Curt Stallion looks out the window and sees shooting stars. One day he followed it and knew what he was ready to do. Now he wants to have a rocket strapped to his back in the form of the Cruiserweight Title.

Women’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic First Round: Jessi Kamea/Aliyah vs. Dakota Kai/Raquel Gonzalez

Kamea and Aliyah have Robert Stone in their corner. Gonzalez and Aliyah start things off with Aliyah not being able to shove her around. Instead Gonzales swings her around in a lockup so it’s off to Kamea, who has to avoid an elbow. A dropkick sends Gonzalez into the corner for a running forearm but she sends Kamea into Kai’s elbow. Aliyah comes in for some double teaming and a running flipping hair faceplant puts Kai down.

Kai is sent outside but manages to pump kick Aliyah down hard and gets two back inside. Back in and Gonzalez hits a swinging powerslam on Aliyah, setting up Kai’s running kick to the face in the corner. Kai gets two off a double stomp but Aliyah manages a clothesline to bring in Kamea. That’s fine with Gonzalez, who plants her with the chokeslam for the pin at 5:58.

Rating: C-. This wasn’t quite as interesting as the ending wasn’t in doubt and the match felt a good bit longer than just under six minutes. That being said, the women’s tournament is only three rounds long so it is a good thing to see the winners look dominant. Not the worst match, but it needed more wacky Robert Stone shenanigans to really push it over the edge.

The Way is sure they’ll win the Women’s Dusty Classic but Johnny Gargano isn’t going to answer anything about Kushida. Austin Theory says it’s kind of like the curse but Gargano orders him to say no more words. Kushida does not get a title shot.

Scarlett uses Tarot cards to display that destruction is coming.

Tegan Nox has been training with Brie Larson. Video tomorrow.

Tyler Rust vs. Dante Rios

Malcolm Bivens is at ringside and he has an inset promo, promising that Rust will win. Rust takes him down with ease to start and then nails a hard right hand. A stomp onto the head keeps Rios down and it’s time to crank on the arm. Some chops rock Rust and a backside gives Rios two. What looks to be a tornado DDT winds up as a guillotine choke but Rust powers out. A big boot into a flipping neckbreaker sets up a modified Rings of Saturn (When did that become the most popular move in the world?) to make Rios tap at 3:23.

Rating: D+. Rust still looks good but they are playing into the idea that he might not be as polished as Bivens thinks he is. At least he won here, but it took a little longer than expected. It’s something different though, and that’s often a nice thing to see, especially when so many newcomers have the dominant run before their first story.

Bivens and Rust get a post match photo.

The Grizzled Young Veterans and Kushida/Leon Ruff are ready to win the Dusty Classic.

Finn Balor and Kyle O’Reilly are ready, don’t trust each other, and will see each other out there.

Men’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic Quarterfinals: Leon Ruff/Kushida vs. Grizzled Young Veterans

Before the match, Zack Gibson promises to win because Ruff and Kushida have been a team for about five minutes. Kushida takes Gibson to the mat without much trouble but Drake comes in for a spinning kick to the face. It’s off to Ruff for a dropkick but Kushida is already back in for stereo basement dropkicks and two on Drake. We hit the quickly broken armbar and Ruff snaps off a top rope hurricanrana to put Drake down again. Drake forearms his way to freedom but Kushida saves Ruff from a double suplex. A middle rope cutter gets two on Gibson and we take a break.

Back with Ruff grabbing a sunset flip for two on Drake, who pops back up with a heck of a clothesline. Ruff is sent outside for a slingshot forearm/backbreaker combination to put him in even more trouble. A neckbreaker gets Ruff out of trouble back inside and the hot tag brings in Kushida to start cleaning house. The cartwheel into the basement dropkick rocks Drake again and there’s a running dropkick in the corner. Gibson comes back in and escapes an Octopus, setting up a Doomsday Device of all things for two on Kushida.

The double handspring elbow drops the Veterans though and the hot tag brings in Ruff for the second house cleaning. A suicide dive hits Drake and a top rope flip dive hits Gibson. Back in and a running clothesline puts Gibson down again but Ruff misses the Swanton. Drake gets caught not paying attention on the apron and it’s the Ticket to Mayhem to finish Ruff at 13:15.

Rating: B-. I could watch the Veterans at least three days a week and the two of them could be favorites in the tournament. Granted that could be the case for most of the remaining teams and that’s a good sign for the whole thing. This worked out about as expected and Kushida getting the North American Title shot at Takeover (as he is almost a lock to do) is a lot more important than this team.

Post match here’s the Way to beat down Kushida and Ruff. Johnny Gargano insists that Kushida will never get a shot but here’s Dexter Lumis to scare them off. Sweet goodness why can’t this guy just fall in a hole somewhere?

Curt Stallion has been attacked by Legado del Fantasma.

Post break, the Cruiserweight Title match is officially canceled for tonight. If this was supposed to be a surprise, maybe they shouldn’t have pulled the match from the show’s official preview.

Legado del Fantasma doesn’t know what’s going on but ANGRY William Regal comes in and says the title match is on for next week, with promises of consequences if anything else happens to Stallion. Regal leaves and the trio is freaked out by a playing card, though they insist there is nothing to worry about. I wonder if that’s an ace. Like, say, an Irish ace.

Here’s Toni Storm to say she wins whatever she wants. She wanted to be the first ever person to win the Women’s Dusty Cup but Io Shirai took that away from her. Now she wants to hurt and ruin Shirai, but more than anything else, she wants to be the NXT Women’s Champion.

Cue Io Shirai to say she’ll fight Toni anytime because she doesn’t like her. The fight is on with Storm being sent outside but here’s Mercedes Martinez to jump Shirai from behind. Martinez holds up the title but Storm says it’s hers. Shirai is back in to jump them both but Storm pulls her off the top. A pair of hip attacks in the corner leave Shirai laying and Storm rubs the title.

Isaiah Scott doesn’t like being accused of messing with Bronson Reed and suggests you could the fingers pointing at you when you point your finger at someone.

Imperium video, which heavily suggests the return of Walter. It’s about time.

The Undisputed Era aren’t worried about facing Tommaso Ciampa and Timothy Thatcher because they’re tougher, more experienced and better. Well that was to the point.

Bronson Reed vs. Isaiah Scott

Reed throws him outside to start but Scott sticks the landing, only to get sent face first into the apron. A crossbody on the floor crushes Scott and we take a break. Back with Scott working on an armbar and then raking Reed’s face a bit. Reed isn’t having that and runs him over again, setting up a backsplash for two.

Scott gets in another shot to the shoulder but Reed goes to the middle rope anyway. An enziguri connects though and Scott hits a 450 for two. Scott tells him not to get in his business and hits Reed in the face, which seems to be a rather bad move. Reed headbutts him and adds a hard clothesline, setting up the Tsunami for the pin at 9:21.

Rating: C+. This is the kind of thing that I can go for: taking two young (or at least new) stars and giving them a story. Reed is looking more and more like a breakout star every week and Scott….well at least he can still talk rather effectively. Pushing one of them is a good idea though and if Reed is their guy, so be it.

Scott really does not look pleased.

Tommaso Ciampa talks about how some fights change people and respect can grow. Timothy Thatcher joins him to say pretty much the same thing. Ciampa promises a war with Undisputed Era next week.

Kyle O’Reilly/Finn Balor vs. Oney Lorcan/Danny Burke

Non-title, which I didn’t know until this show started. Balor armdrags Lorcan into an armbar to start and it’s quickly off to O’Reilly vs. Burch. O’Reilly grabs an armbar of his own but Burch goes to the recently injured jaw to break up a tag attempt. Lorcan and Burch get to work on the arm for a change, followed by Burch’s headlock on the mat. That’s reversed into a wristlock, which is enough for O’Reilly to get back over to Balor.

O’Reilly is back in less than five seconds later as Balor and O’Reilly start the rapid fire tags and arm cranking. They stop to glare at each other though and we take a break. Back with Balor getting a tag to clean house in a hurry, including a bunch of stomping on Lorcan. A trip takes Balor down though and Lorcan gets in some stomping of his own.

The chinlock goes on to keep Balor down and a double atomic drop into a Russian legsweep gets two. Lorcan starts yelling at Balor, which rarely seems like a good idea, and is quickly followed by Balor nailing a Pele kick. The Sling Blade is enough for the hot tag to O’Reilly as house is cleaned in a hurry. Burch gets a boot up in the corner and tries a middle rope but dives into a kneebar to give O’Reilly and Balor the win at 11:56.

Rating: B-. They were telling a nice story here, though I’m hoping we get at least a token Tag Team Title match out of this. I’m not sure we will, but it would serve well as a TV main event. At least they had a good match in the non-title version, but I would hope that NXT isn’t he kind of place that just lets the champs lose.

Post match O’Reilly and Balor seem cool but Pete Dunne pops up. Burch and Lorcan send O’Reilly into the barricade and Dunne breaks Balor’s fingers as the Undisputed Era come to the ring for the save, albeit rather slowly. The big staredown ends the show, though Balor drops to the floor with the Era standing in the ring. We could use a fourth for the villains here as that’s a heck of an eight man tag.

Overall Rating: B-. The tournament matches are good but I’m rather relieved that they are wrapping things up sooner rather than later. There are too many tournament things going on at once here and it’s kind of dragging things down. It’s the majority of things going with the show and while the wrestling is good, I could go for something else. This was another good week, but I’m losing patience with all of the tournament stuff.

Results

MSK b. Killian Dain/Drake Maverick – Blockbuster/spinebuster combination to Maverick

Dakota Kai/Raquel Gonzalez b. Jessi Kamea/Aliyah – Chokeslam to Kamea

Tyler Rust b. Dante Rios – Rings of Saturn

Grizzled Young Veterans b. Leon Ruff/Kushida – Ticket to Mayhem to Ruff

Bronson Reed b. Isaiah Scott – Tsunami

Kyle O’Reilly/Finn Balor b. Oney Lorcan/Danny Burch – Kneebar to Burch

 

 

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NXT
Date: January 13, 2021
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Nigel McGuinness, Beth Phoenix, Vic Joseph

We’re a little over a month away from Takeover and that means it is time to start putting things together. Last week’s show featured a stacked card with Finn Balor retaining the NXT Title over Kyle O’Reilly, meaning that he is going to need a new #1 contender. This week is also going to focus on the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of last week’s show and a quick look at the Dusty Classic, with three first round matches tonight.

Candice LeRae vs. Shotzi Blackheart

Candice has Indi Hartwell with her. Shotzi ducks a kick to start and shrugs off a neckbreaker, allowing her to go up top. The high crossbody gets two on Candice and it’s time to work on the arm. The armbar sends Candice bailing to the ropes so Shotzi goes after the other arm for a change. This time they go to the apron with Shotzi dropping her onto the steps but managing to avoid getting tossed into the barricade ala the battle royal from a few months ago.

An Indi distraction lets Candice hit a springboard spinning crossbody to the floor and we take a break. Back with Shotzi winning a slugout and nailing the running reverse Cannonball against the ropes. They go to the apron again with Shotzi hitting a DDT and then diving onto Indi and Candice at the same time. Back in and Candice manages a dropkick into the corner into a low superkick for two. Blackheart grabs another DDT but gets distracted by Indi, setting up Mrs. LeRae’s Wild Ride for the pin at 11:22.

Rating: C+. They went back and forth rather well, though it did slip into the succession of spots rather than much of a flowing match at times. I’m not sure on Shotzi losing, but I do get Candice winning here, as the Way still hasn’t been around all that long as an official faction and needs to look strong. Good opener here though, with Indi paying dividends.

Pete Dunne, Oney Lorcan and Danny Burch arrive, which seems to be a surprise.

Here’s Finn Balor for a chat. Balor says this is the day that he’s still the champ. Kyle O’Reilly again showed that he was great but he isn’t on Balor’s level. O’Reilly stepped up and got put down, because now he he is the one eating through a straw. Whoever is coming next better understand that they don’t make the cloth he is cut from anymore.

Cue Pete Dunne and company, with Dunne saying that he knew it would come down to these two to be the face of British wrestling. They were always going to go one on one so Balor tries to start fast. The beatdown gets the better of him through with Dunne taking him down by the arm. O’Reilly runs in for the save but it takes Adam Cole and Roderick Strong to chase the villains off. Balor has an awkward but seemingly respectful staredown with O’Reilly before leaving. Dunne vs. Balor is about as awesome of a match as there is right now, even if Dunne has lost a bit of his mystique.

Johnny Gargano is ready to take out Dexter Lumis and then he’ll beat Kushida too….but here is Austin Theory with some of Lumis’ drawings of the two of them. Gargano doesn’t handle things well.

Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic First Round: Grizzled Young Veterans vs. Ever-Rise

Before the match, Zack Gibson does his usual stuff, saying this is going to be their year. William Regal pops up on the screen to say the tournament is on and we’re ready to go. Gibson drives Martel into the corner so it’s off to Parker, who tries some trash talk. That earns him a beating into the corner so Drake can take him down with a headlock. Parker uses the hair to pull him down and stomp away, with Gibson getting things out to the floor.

An EVER-RISE RULES shout has Drake ready to kill him so Gibson calms things down. Drake fights up again and drops Parker, before throwing in a shot to Martel on the apron. Gibson comes back in for a front facelock and a belly to back slam. A half crab is blocked with some kicks to the face so Drake comes back in for a running elbow in the corner. There’s a spinwheel kick to give Drake two and he grabs the wristlock to cut off a near hot tag attempt.

Parker finally manages to drag Drake over for the hot tag to Martel, who immediately cleans house. There’s a suplex to Drake followed by a running clothesline and it’s already back to Parker. The Sweet Taste is broken up by Gibson and Drake hits a dropkick to Martel. The Ticket to Mayhem sends the Veterans on at 7:58.

Rating: C. They tried but the idea of the Veterans being actually threatened by Ever-Rise is laughable on its best day. The Veterans are going to be favorites to win the whole thing so there was little drama to be seen here. They are one of the better teams going today but could use the boost from a strong showing in the tournament.

Raquel Gonzalez talks about how important last week’s win was for her because just one year ago, Rhea Ripley was the chosen one. She is looking forward to the division and the Women’s Title because she is the baddest b**** around.

Shotzi Blackheart isn’t happy but she’s ready to win the Dusty Classic and beat Candice up on the way. She needs a partner and it needs to be someone she went to war with. Cue Ember Moon and the team is formed in a hurry.

Johnny Gargano vs. Dexter Lumis

Non-title and Gargano has Austin Theory with him. The bell rings and Gargano rips up the picture Lumis drew. That earns him a boot to the face and some right hands from Lumis, who does not appreciate the disrespect. Gargano misses the rolling kick to the head so Lumis is right there to stare at him. They head outside with Lumis ducking the running kick and nipping up to freak Gargano out.

Back in and Lumis gets caught on top but a superplex attempt is cut off by a series of headbutts. Lumis shoves him off the top but misses a Swanton as we take a break. We come back with Gargano in control and driving in knees to the back. Lumis manages a spinebuster though and the comeback is on with some right hands to the face. A slingshot suplex into a legdrop gives Lumis two but Gargano’s crucifix gets the same. The low superkick gets two more and it’s time for a slugout. Lumis has to deal with Theory and even Silences him, but Gargano uses the distraction to grab a rollup pin at 11:12.

Rating: C-. This was certainly a Lumis match, as I couldn’t get into anything they were doing. Lumis can do a few things in the ring but NXT thinks he is the most interesting person around. It’s much more an indifference to him than disdain, but that doesn’t exactly make things much better. Standard Lumis here, meaning the weakest thing on the show.

Post match the beatdown stays on with Gargano grabbing a chair. Kushida runs in for the save and makes Gargano tap with the Hoverboard Lock. Kushida hands him the title and poses for a good visual.

Pete Dunne, Oney Lorcan and Danny Burch are ready to take out the Undisputed Era.

Timothy Thatcher and Tommaso Ciampa have a sitdown interview with Wade Barrett. Thatcher is cleared for the Fight Pit so we’ll do that next week. Ciampa challenged him to this because he wanted to change the culture but Thatcher says Ciampa doesn’t know what he’s getting into. Thatcher talks about Ciampa interrupting Thatcher’s students but Ciampa calls him a piece of garbage as a teacher. Ciampa is ready to change things in the Fight Pit and he’ll see if he still has it.

The Undisputed Era is ready to end Lorcan and Burch. They respect Breezango, but the two of them are in the Era’s way.

Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic First Round: MSK vs. Isaiah Scott/Jake Atlas

MSK is……Nash Carter/Wes Lee, better known as the former Rascalz. Carter (formerly Zachary Wentz) starts things off with Atlas and they go to the mat, only to pop up for a standoff. Atlas’ armbar doesn’t last long so Carter starts flipping around, setting up a jumping back elbow for one. Scott comes in and the flipping around is on, setting up Carter’s springboard corkscrew spinning crossbody.

Lee (formerly Dezmond Xavier) comes in to work on the arm a bit more. Scott takes him into the corner though and Atlas gets in a knee to the ribs. A low bridge from the apron puts Lee on the floor and Atlas takes him down. Carter goes over for the save and Lee adds the flip dive. Vic calls them some rascals and we take a break. Back with Scott having to block a hot tag attempt, meaning Carter gets over to Lee for the tag a few seconds later (even the newcomers get that one).

Atlas gets knocked down so the push moonsault can connect for two as Atlas makes the save. This time it’s Lee getting caught in the corner so Atlas can kick him in the head. Scott’s 450 gets two with Carter having to dive in for the save. Carter hits a big dive onto Atlas on the floor but pops back up in the corner to get the tag from Lee. With Atlas down, it’s a modified Hart Attack with Lee hitting a running Blockbuster into the spinebuster to finish Scott at 11:54.

Rating: B. I’ve been a big Rascalz fan since they debuted so it’s cool to have them here on a stage where people might see them. They looked great here and I could go for a lot more of them. While winning the tournament seems far fetched, it isn’t out of the question and that is the kind of thing that can make the team a big deal in a hurry.

Here are the first four teams in the Women’s Dusty Classic:

Indi Hartwell/Candice LeRae

Kacy Catanzaro/Kayden Carter

Mercedes Martinez/Toni Storm

Shotzi Blackheart/Ember Moon

More teams to be announced and the first match is next week.

Video on Boa/Xia Li and their mystery master.

Scarlett, with Karrion Kross, uses Tarot cards to say things are about to get bad, especially for Finn Balor.

Xia Li vs. ???

The awesome entrance takes three times longer than the match, as Li finishes with the spinning kick to the face in 22 seconds.

Post match Li ties her in the ropes and beats her up even more, much to the master’s approval.

Kacy Catanzaro and Kayden Carter are ready to win their first round match over Mercedes Martinez and Toni Storm. They’re used to being overlooked though and beg everyone to do just that.

Isaiah Scott and Jake Atlas had to be separated. Bronson Reed handles the separating and Scott doesn’t seem to like that.

Next week: more first round matches, plus the Fight Pit.

Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic First Round: Undisputed Era vs. Breezango

Adam Cole/Roderick Strong for the Era here with Kyle O’Reilly in their corner. Breeze headlocks Cole to start and shoulders him down, but both of them try superkicks to no avail. They go with another grapple off to the mat with neither being able to get anywhere. Fandango and Strong come in with Strong grabbing an armbar to take over. Fandango gets in his own armbar as they’re completely even so far. A spinwheel kick gives Fandango two and we go to a break.

Back with Cole kicking Breeze in the head but getting sent outside before the hot tag. Breeze’s dive is cut off with a kick to the head, which is enough for the double tag to Strong and Fandango. Strong slams Breeze onto Fandango for two and it’s back to Cole, who misses the Last Shot. Breeze hits a Backstabber for two on Cole and knocks Strong to the floor. That means a backbreaker/slingshot elbow combination can get two on Cole.

Strong is back in as everything breaks down, meaning everyone can kick someone in the face for the four way knockdown. Cue Lorcan/Burch/Dunne to go after O’Reilly but Finn Balor runs in for the save before the jaw can be crushed again. That doesn’t matter though as Dunne knees O’Reilly in the jaw and Balor’s bad arm is sent into various things. Cole is distracted and walks into a superkick but Strong makes the save this time. The Panama Sunrise is countered but Cole superkicks Fandango out of the air for the pin at 11:57.

Rating: B-. This was the best Breezango match I’ve seen in a long time and that is probably due to having a team like the Era in there to rein them in. You knew the Era wasn’t losing in the first round without a bunch of interference and that was teased here, so there was a bit of drama near the end. I’m curious to see where this is going, which is why you tie an angle into a tournament match like this. Good stuff.

Dunne and company smirk from the stage to end the show as the Era checks on O’Reilly’s injured jaw.

Overall Rating: B. They did a nice job with the opening round of the tournament, which is rarely going to be the most interesting stuff. What matters here is they gave me some interest in every match, with the Veterans vs. Ever-Rise having a bit of a history, a mystery team and then the main event tying into the title feud. Throw in a few other things here and there and it was a nice show up and down.

Results

Candice LeRae b. Shotzi Blackheart – Mrs. LeRae’s Wild Ride

Grizzled Young Veterans b. Ever-Rise – Ticket To Mayhem to Martel

Johnny Gargano b. Dexter Lumis – Rollup

MSK b. Jake Atlas/Isaiah Scott – Spinebuster/Blockbuster combination to Scott

Xia Li b. ??? – Spinning kick to the face

Undisputed Era b. Breezango – Superkick to Fandango

 

 

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NXT
Date: December 30, 2020
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Beth Phoenix, Wade Barrett, Vic Joseph

It’s finally time to wrap up the year and that can’t come soon enough. This is the go home show for next week’s New Year’s Evil, but we also have a major night in that we are finding out the Year End Award winners. NXT makes these things out to be a big deal and hopefully they continue their trend this year. Let’s get to it.

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

In memory of Jon Huber/Luke Harper.

Isaiah Scott vs. Bronson Reed

Reed headlocks him down without much trouble to start. Scott gets sent outside and there’s a big shoulder off the apron to take him down again. Back in and Scott hits a dropkick to the floor again, setting up a running kick from the apron. That’s good for two back inside but Reed pounds him down without much effort. Scott flips out of the corner though and hits an elbow in the corner.

A running dropkick to the leg gives Scott two but Reed is back up to grab him by the throat. Reed headbutts him down a few times and a swinging chokeslam gets two. Scott goes to the ropes so the referee tries to break it up, allowing Scott to sneak in a headbutt. This just annoys Reed though, who runs him over and hits a backsplash. The Tsunami finishes Scott at 6:18.

Rating: C. Not much to this one but I can go for more of Reed being the big unstoppable monster. The Tsunami is one of those spots that is going to work on anyone and it looked awesome here again. I can go for more of Scott as a heel, but maybe he should actually win something of note.

It’s time for the first award, with Breakout Star of the Year:

Pat McAfee

Damian Priest

Shotzi Blackheart

Cameron Grimes

Dexter Lumis

Timothy Thatcher

Raquel Gonzalez

Santos Escobar

Ilja Dragunov

Winner: Shotzi Blackheart.

I mean….yeah she has been pushed, but how is this not Grimes, who has been a star, or Priest, who actually won something? There are worse choices, but there are also some far better ones. And no Karrion Kross?

Shotzi talks about how her dad taught her to be a bad*** and she had a great year. Next year is going to be even better.

Earlier today, the Way panicked because Johnny Gargano saw a black cat. He isn’t losing again!

Breezango vs. Grizzled Young Veterans

Drake headlocks Breeze down to start but Breeze is back up to pull on an armbar. It’s off to Fandango for a shoulder and an armbar of his own. The chinlock goes on as we’re told that the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic is back in two weeks. It’s off to Gibson for the first time and Breeze is driven into the corner. That means Drake can grab a headlock, but Breeze gets over for the tag off to Fandango.

The pace picks up a bit with a sunset flip giving Fandango two. A double kick to the head puts Gibson down but he knocks Fandango off the apron. Breeze takes the Veterans down so Fandango climbs the lighting structure for a dive. Fandango comes up holding his knee though and we take a break.

Back with Fandango still down on the floor until Gibson sends him inside for a dragon screw legwhip. A slam puts Fandango down again with his knee hitting the ropes this time. The knee is healthy enough to kick them to the floor and a crawl through Gibson’s legs is enough to bring Breeze back in. Everything breaks down and Breeze gets taken down with a double forearm on the floor. Fandango takes Gibson down with a flip off the steps but Gibson is back up to send him knees first into the steps. That leaves Breeze to walk into Ticket To Mayhem for the pin at 13:00.

Rating: C. The more I think about it, the more obvious it is that Breezango is not a great team around here. They’re fine for comedy, but watching them in a thirteen minute match drags a show to a halt. They just aren’t that interesting and it shows worse every time. I get why they’re here, but can we make the matches a little bit shorter?

Post match Ever-Rise comes out and has the referee hold them back. She’s done and walks away, so the Veterans come after them. Ever-Rise walks away.

It’s time for Tag Team Of The Year:

Undisputed Era

Breezango

Imperium

Gallus

Legado del Fantasma

Oney Lorcan/Danny Burch

Winner: Undisputed Era.

Can we just name the award after them already?

The Era talks about how awesome they are and this year, it’s Adam Cole and Roderick Strong representing the team in the Dusty Cup.

Boa and Xia Li kneel before the master, who puts paint on their heads. They get up and follow the mystery woman through a curtain and into the light. Next week.

Mercedes Martinez vs. Valentina Feroz

Martinez forearms her in the face to start and hits a quick chokeslam. Feroz’s sleeper doesn’t work and a sunset flip fails even harder. The Air Raid Crash finishes Feroz with ease at 2:12. Martinez looked like a monster.

Post match Martinez says every woman here is on her radar, click click.

It’s time for the Female Competitor Of The Year:

Rhea Ripley

Io Shirai

Candice LeRae

Dakota Kai

Kay Lee Ray

Tegan Nox

Winner: Io Shirai.

Like it really could have been anyone else.

Shirai thanks the fans for voting for her and smiles a lot.

Now the Male Competitor Of The Year:

Finn Balor

Adam Cole

Johnny Gargano

Keith Lee

Walter

Tommaso Ciampa

Winner: Adam Cole.

Not much of an argument here, but it’s a bit closer than the women’s race.

Cole says he told us so but he couldn’t do it without the Undisputed Era. As cool as it is to win two of these in a row, Kyle O’Reilly winning the NXT Title next week is going to mean even more.

Pete Dunne vs. Roderick Strong

Strong chops him against the ropes to start as commentary actually brings up their time teaming together in the Dusty Classic in 2018. They run the ropes until Strong hits a clothesline and hammers Dunne down again. Dunne is back with a headlock but Strong slips out and hits the Sick Kick. With nothing else working, Dunne starts in on the fingers and bends the arm a bit.

Strong is right back with the first backbreaker to send Dunne outside and there’s a dropkick through the ropes. We take a break and come back with Dunne grabbing something like Rings of Saturn. That’s broken up so Dunne backflips over him out of the corner, only to get caught with a dropkick. Strong scores with a running knee in the corner and the running forearms against the rope has Dunne in more trouble.

The Angle Slam connects for two and Dunne heads outside, where Strong hits a full nelson slam onto the apron. Back in and Dunne counters the butterfly backbreaker into a triangle choke, which is countered into another backbreaker for another two. Strong forearms his way out of another triangle so Dunne kicks him in the face. Dunne finally snaps the fingers and the Bitter End finishes Strong at 13:40.

Rating: B. This was the kind of match you would expect from these two with Dunne absorbing everything Strong could throw at him until the fingers were too much of a weak spot. Dunne is starting to look a bit more like his UK self and that is very good for everyone involved.

It’s a big award with Match Of The Year:

Four Way Iron Man Match – Super Tuesday

Finn Balor vs. Kyle O’Reilly – Takeover: 31

Ilja Dragunov vs. Walter – NXT UK TV

Men’s WarGames – Takeover: WarGames

Rhea Ripley vs. Charlotte vs. Io Shirai – Takeover: In Your House

Winner: Finn Balor vs. Kyle O’Reilly.

I liked Walter vs. Dragunov better but those two beat the heck out of each other and this gives them some more steam going into the rematch.

Finn Balor comes up to William Regal, who has the trophies. Balor says Regal can keep his, and he’ll give Kyle the award in person.

Balor is on his way to the ring and runs into Pete Dunne, telling him to get in line if he wants a title shot.

Video on the Fight Pit match next week.

Here’s Finn Balor to present Kyle O’Reilly with the trophy. Balor says he and O’Reilly had the Match of the Year, with O’Reilly proving that he belonged in this ring. O’Reilly deserves this….and here he comes to claim it. Balor says the award is his because Balor doesn’t need it. Instead, he has the NXT Title and three plates in his jaw to remind him of that day. That’s cool with O’Reilly, because the trophy means something to him.

It’s proof that he belongs here but he isn’t going to carry around a participation trophy. This is a reminder that he came up short in the fight of his life. He will do everything to become NXT Champion because it means he has done something in the last fifteen years. Balor says that’s great, but he’s going to do everything he can to make O’Reilly suffer. He is going to make O’Reilly wish that he (censored) the first time.

Cue Scarlett and Karrion Kross to interrupt and say that what’s in the ring belongs to them. It doesn’t matter who leaves with the title in seven days because their fate is already sealed. Kross says doomsday is here, tick tock. Damian Priest pops up behind him and hits Kross in the face as the fight is on. The Razor’s Edge on the ramp is broken up so Priest headbutts him down the ramp instead.

Kross drives him back first into the lighting structure but they go crashing through the Plexiglas. They fight into the back and then come through the curtain again with Kross hammering him on some anvil cases. They both crash down and Scarlett REALLY likes what she is seeing. Heck of a brawl here, but the O’Reilly/Balor segment was great.

We get a Rhea Ripley video, talking about how she and Raquel Gonzalez used to be close at the Performance Center. They wanted to be sisters, which Ripley never had before. Now they even have matching RNR tattoos on their fingers. Raquel has changed though and now her ego has grown over Rhea’s success. Gonzalez talks about how she is the biggest and baddest woman in NXT and maybe she has been playing this game since the beginning. Ripley doesn’t seem to buy it and now they’re ready to fight again. That’s better backstory than I would have bet on seeing.

Here’s Legado del Fantasma in the ring for a chat. Santos Escobar tells them to enjoy the year because it was a great one for the three of them, but especially him. His lack of awards is a sham because he’s here to dominate, which is what he has done. William Regal is trying to find the next challenger for the NXT Title because no one can touch him. No one is going to belong in this ring with him because they are the leaders of lucha libre. Cue the Lucha House Party of all people (who somehow have never wrestled on NXT TV) and after some shouting in Spanish, it’s lucha time.

Legado del Fantasma vs. Lucha House Party

Escobar offers a quick distraction so Legado can jump them from behind, only to get caught with a double Golden Rewind. A double dropkick to the floor sets up stereo dives and we take a break before the bell. We’re joined in progress with Metalik splashing Mendoza for two as Barrett rants about how easy it is to beat the Miz. Dorado comes in but Mendoza gets in a dropkick to the ribs and a running clothesline in the corner.

The chinlock goes on for a bit but Dorado gets up top for a high crossbody. The hot tag brings in Metalik for a superkick to Mendoza, followed by a reverse Sling Blade. There’s the rope walk dropkick for two and a super hurricane drops Mendoza again. Metalik’s top rope splash connects with Wilde having to make a save. There’s a running hurricanrana to send Wilde to the floor and the inverted hurricanrana plants Mendoza. The rope walk elbow is good for the pin on Mendoza at 3:51.

Rating: C. They packed some nice stuff into the short time that they had, but the important thing here is getting to see some mostly unused main roster names getting a chance in NXT. I have no idea if this lasts beyond tonight but having Lucha House Party here, possibly to go after the Cruiserweight Title, is a good thing. It’s not like they’re doing anything important on Raw.

Next up is Future Star Of The Year:

Austin Theory

Jake Atlas

Leon Ruff

Kacy Catanzaro

Kayden Carter

Indi Hartwell

Xia Li

A-Kid

Aoife Valkyrie

Pretty Deadly

Winner: Austin Theory.

Given that he wrestled at Wrestlemania, it’s kind of hard to argue against him, especially with Ruff’s title win being little more than a joke.

The Way tells Theory to share with Indi Hartwell, who is amazed to find out that the bell is real. Theory mentions the curse so Johnny Gargano throws his protein powder…..and breaks a mirror in the process. Then he accidentally walks underneath a ladder.

The final award is the Overall Competitor Of The Year.

Winner: Io Shirai.

She has been champion for a long time and has some awesome matches. What else do you need?

Shirai thanks the fans again.

North American Title: Johnny Gargano vs. Leon Ruff

Ruff is challenging and neither get an entrance. Gargano, with the Way at ringside, headlocks him down to start but gets rolled up for a fast two. A victory roll gets two more on Gargano and sends him outside for a breather. Austin Theory offers a distraction but Gargano misses the slingshot spear anyway. Back in and Ruff chops away but Gargano knocks him off the top and out tot he floor. Ruff gets sent into the barricade, only to have Ruff jump onto the cage barricade and come back off with a hurricanrana. Back in and a neckbreaker drops Ruff again and this time Gargano sends him into the steps.

We take a break and come back with Gargano snapping the arm but Ruff gets two off a backslide. Some crossbodies stagger Gargano and a jumping neckbreaker out of the corner puts him down again. Ruff hits a German suplex into a corkscrew Cannonball for two. A rebound lariat drops Gargano again but he pops back up with a superkick.

The Lawn Dart sets up a low superkick for two on Ruff, followed by the discus lariat. Gargano powerbombs him into the Gargano Escape, with Ruff going straight to the rope. The Lawn Dart into the barricade is broken up so Ruff goes to the apron for a jumping cutter onto the floor. Back in and the frog splash gives Ruff two so he takes Gargano up top. That’s fine with Gargano, who drops him hard face first onto the turnbuckle. One Final Beat breaks the curse at 14:13.

Rating: C+. The lack of drama hurt things a bit here but the action was good, which is what carried this over the finish line. This almost has to be it for Ruff and after as much as he got out of the run with the title, I’m thinking he’ll be just fine. Gargano believing in the curse until the ending was a nice touch and the big relief on his face made it that much better.

Dexter Lumis pops up with a bunch of drawings to run down the New Year’s Evil card, including Gran Metalik vs. Santos Escobar for the Cruiserweight Title.

Overall Rating: B-. Good show here, but next week is the one that is really going to matter. This week was more about setting things up for New Year’s Evil, which is looking like it could be bigger than some Takeovers. If it’s anything like a usual big time NXT, they’re going to be just fine. This week was a good stepping stone to that, but it was nothing more than a stepping stone.

Results

Bronson Reed b. Isaiah Scott – Tsunami

Grizzled Young Veterans b. Breezango – Ticket To Mayhem to Breeze

Mercedes Martinez b. Valentina Feroz – Air Raid Crash

Pete Dunne b. Roderick Strong – Bitter End

Lucha House Party b. Legado del Fantasma – Rope walk elbow to Mendoza

Johnny Gargano b. Leon Ruff – One Final Beat

 

 

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

NXT
Date: December 9, 2020
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Wade Barrett, Beth Phoenix, Vic Joseph

Takeover: WarGames has come and gone and that means it is time to start getting ready for New Year’s Evil, which seems to be the next big television show. I’m not sure what that is going to entail but tonight we get to hear from Finn Balor for the first time in…well in two weeks actually but maybe he is ready to get back in the ring. Let’s get to it.

Here is Takeover if you need a recap.

Long recap of Takeover.

Here’s Finn Balor for the opening chat. The champ is back and while there are some people who love him, there are some people who hate him. If you want to get to know him, come see him in the ring. This brings out Pete Dunne (here we go), who says they’re cut from the same cloth. It is going to be a matter of time before Dunne takes that title, but here’s Kyle O’Reilly to say his invitation must have gotten lost in the mail.

Now Peter Peter Pumpkin Eater is tough but his team didn’t win at Takeover. As for Balor, yeah he beat him, but O’Reilly took him to the limit and made him eat through a straw for two months. Let the vengeance consume you….but here’s Damian Priest to cut them off as well. Priest things Balor vs. Priest is a marquee matchup that both of them want. Dunne says Priest is the one who couldn’t even beat Leon Ruff. Priest thinks Dunne is the one Pat McAfee pays to keep his mouth shut.

O’Reilly asks when Priest last won a match and they all start bickering as Balor leaves. Balor says they need to learn some manners because they interrupted him before he could make his announcement. He’s going to be defending the title on January 6, but William Regal gets to decide who gets that Finn rub. Cue Scarlett, but Balor cuts her off. He knows she’s going to say tick tock, but tell Karrion Kross that when he’s ready, Finn is ready. Balor leaves so Priest that if Kross is back and looking for a fight, all he has to do is step to him like a man.

The best thing about this: you could believe any of the possible challengers could get the shot. Sure Dunne seems very likely, but you have four people who could be a threat not only to getting a shot at Balor, but at Balor himself. Give us a reason to be curious and things get a lot more interesting in a hurry.

Post break Pete Dunne is being interviewed by Killian Dain charges at him for revenge. Oney Lorcan, Danny Burch, Drake Maverick and referees have to hold them back.

Jake Atlas vs. Isaiah Scott

Scott takes him down by the arm to start and Atlas has to roll to the floor for a breather. That’s fine with Scott, who kicks him in the face from the apron to put him in trouble again. Back in and the rolling Downward Spiral gets two on Atlas, with Scott being surprised by the kickout. Atlas is back with a suplex into a powerbomb for two but Scott around to set up the House Call. Scott can’t get the JML Driver so he goes back to the arm. What looked to be a German suplex attempt is broken up and Scott grabs the arm again. This time it’s la majistral, but Atlas reverses into a cradle for the pin at 4:26.

Rating: C. I’m surprised by the result, but that might be more about me being quite the Scott fan. Atlas needs to grow a bit and while giving him some wins are going to help, there is still something lacking from his overall presentation. He isn’t exactly impressive physically (though he’s acceptable) and his stuff in the ring isn’t quite eye popping. In a few words, he’s about average and while he’s far from bad, I could go for a bit more than that.

Post match Scott walks away from a handshake. He did have a bit of a heel touch in the match.

Tommaso Ciampa says no one is safe. It is time that he let the past die in the past and move forward. He wouldn’t have it any other way, so tonight it’s Cameron Grimes’ time. Grimes is loud and confident but maybe it’s just insecurity. That can often disguise itself as confidence and tonight we’ll find out which is true.

Ever Rise vs. Grizzled Young Veterans vs. Imperium

Am I missing something with Ever Rise? The match certainly is as they go to the floor so the other four go after them to start the beatdown in a hurry. Back in and Aichner takes Gibson down, only to get his arm cranked a bit. Barthel comes in with an armdrag and stomp to Gibson but Ever Rise gets back up, allowing Gibson to get over for the tag to Drake. Barthel is taken outside for some quick double teaming but manages to keep Drake from tagging Gibson back in. Ever Rise is back in instead to take over on Drake, with Martel getting two off a double takedown.

Drake gets rid of Ever Rise and it’s back to Gibson vs. Aichner again. Gibson drives Aichner into the corner for another tag to Drake, who spinwheel kicks Aichner. Martel clotheslines Drake down though and a double Snake Eyes into the corner gets two. Imperium is back in with the double dropkick in the corner to knock Parker out of the Tree of Woe. Barthel hits a middle rope moonsault for two on Drake and a middle rope DDT drops Drake again, only to have Parker steal the near fall. That’s enough Ever Rise though and it’s the Ticket To Mayhem to drop Parker and give the Veterans the win at 7:07.

Rating: C+. I was rather surprised by this one as I never would have expected to like it so much. Ever Rise as the team trying to steal the win was a great little addition as they came closer more than once. The Veterans winning is a good idea and Imperium looked better than usual here. This was the surprise of the night and while it wasn’t a classic, it was far stronger than I ever would have bet.

The participants in both WarGames matches talk about how brutal the whole thing was. This was different and everyone is different than when they went in. The biggest note out of this: Bobby Fish tore his tricep and has already had surgery. No word on how long he will be out.

Toni Storm says she turned on Shotzi Blackheart because she wants the Women’s Title and that’s all that matters, no matter what she has to do. Now Ember Moon is in her way and that’s cool, because Toni is winning no matter what. Io Shirai comes in to say the title is the only thing that matters. Shirai has no problem with Toni, but she doesn’t like her and therefore hits Storm in the face. They brawl into the arena with Storm throwing her into the ring but getting taken down anyway. Storm rolls away before the moonsault can launch but here’s Ember Moon to toss her back in, with Shirai hitting said moonsault.

Tommaso Ciampa vs. Cameron Grimes

This could be interesting. Timothy Thatcher comes out to watch as Ciampa takes Grimes down by the arm to start. Grimes fights up and is immediately elbowed in the face for his efforts. That’s enough for a trip to the floor, where Thatcher’s staredown doesn’t exactly work as Ciampa takes it back inside. A knee to Ciampa’s ribs takes him down for two and we take a break.

Back with Ciampa fighting out of a chinlock and grabbing a rollup for his own two. The clotheslines rock Grimes again and it’s a running knee in the corner for two more. Grimes is back with a knee to the face and the flipping powerslam gets two more. Ciampa catches him on top with some chops though and shoves Grimes outside in a heap. Cue Tyler Rust (Thatcher’s student) for a distraction though and Grimes gets in another shot. Not that it matters though as Ciampa gets him into the ropes and hits Willow’s Bell for the pin at 10:52.

Rating: C. This is something that could be better on a larger stage and with a little bit of a story, but for not it was a perfectly fine ten minute TV match. Ciampa vs. Thatcher continuing could be fine but what matters most is that Grimes isn’t running from Dexter Lumis any longer, as that wasn’t helping anyone. Fine enough match here, as Ciampa continues to reestablish himself.

Post match Ciampa and Thatcher stare each other down again, with Thatcher claiming innocence on the interference. Ciampa leaves so Grimes yells at Thatcher, who twists Grimes’ leg around to leave him laying.

Raquel Gonzalez is happy to have won WarGames on Sunday and to beat Io Shirai in particular. Now Dakota Kai is on the shelf, but tonight it’s time to make Ember Moon regret that she returned to NXT.

Here are Johnny Gargano, Candice LeRae, Indi Hartwell and Austin Theory for a celebratory chat, complete with Gargano dancing. Gargano dubs the team The Way, with Johnny and Candice bragging about their wins on Sunday. Gargano: “THAT’S THE WAY!” Theory: “The Milky Way!” Sure there were some issues, with LeRae breaking his arm and Gargano needing stitches in his mouth, but now he is the first ever three time North American Champion.

Candice has now led her team to victory in WarGames two years in a row, so she must be Ms. WarGames. Gargano is so happy that he has a special present for her. Indi has to get the present, which is imported from Italy. It’s….a trophy with Shotzi Blackheart’s head on top! Candice says she definitely deserve it but she doesn’t have a trophy for him.

That’s cool with Gargano, who has his North American Title. He and Theory are so in sync (as demonstrated with some high fives WITHOUT EVEN LOOKING) that they’ll be facing Damian Priest and Leon Ruff next week. Candice: “If you’re not in the Way, then stay out of our way.” Cue Priest to say he’s coming for revenge but Karrion Kross jumps him from behind for the beatdown, including a powerbomb on the stage. Kross walks to the back and gets in a car with Scarlett waiting.

Tyler Rust is in the back when Malcolm Bivens comes up and wants to talk business. Rust leaves with him.

Pete Dunne vs. Killian Dain

Dain slugs him into the corner to start and tosses Dunne around, followed by the pump kick to the jaw. Dunne bails outside, where Dain hits another pump kick. Dain manages to posting but headbutts the post by mistake to put him down for the first time. Back in and Dunne pounds him down in the corner, setting up some kicks to the face for a bonus. A quick suplex gives Dain the breather so Dunne is right back with one of his own.

There’s the stomp to the fingers and we take a break with Dain heading to the apron. Back with Dain fighting out of a chinlock and dropping down onto Dunne for the break. The release Rock Bottom into a slingshot hilo into a jackknife gives Dain two. Dunne is right back with a triangle choke, but Dain is right back with a sitout powerbomb for the break. Dain takes him up top for something like a fisherman’s superplex for two more.

With Dunne rocked, Dain loads up the Vader Bomb but here are Oney Lorcan and Danny Burch for the save. Drake Maverick runs down to chase them off with a chair, only to get jumped from behind. Dain makes the real save but Dunne catches him with a kick on the way back in. The Bitter End finishes Dain at 13:35.

Rating: C+. Dain got a lot out of this, but at the same time there is only so much that you can do when he never actually wins anything. Granted Dain should not be beating Dunne and it seems that we are getting ready for Dain/Dunne vs. Lorcan/Burch for the Tag Team Titles, but Dain winning something could do him some good. He did look aggressive here though, as he should have.

The Way comes up to Leon Ruff in the back to mock him for Damian Priest being taken out. Kushida comes up to say he’ll be Ruff’s partner, which works for Ruff.

Raquel Gonzalez vs. Ember Moon

They stare each other down to start until Moon’s early hurricanrana attempt is blocked. The middle rope Codebreaker gets blocked as well and Gonzalez starts yelling a lot. Gonzalez tosses her into the corner and then back out again as the power is on full display here. Moon can’t get a wristlock but can kick Gonzalez in the face. Gonzalez doesn’t seem to mind and knocks Moon down again for some elbow drops.

Moon fights out and hits a running Downward Spiral before knocking Gonzalez outside as we take a break. We come back with Gonzalez knocking her down again and working on the arm. Moon manages a hurricanrana into the corner, setting up the spinning snap suplex out of the corner. A tornado plants Gonzalez for two more but Moon can’t quite follow up.

Gonzalez is knocked outside and there’s the suicide dive to make it worse. That lasts all of a few seconds as Gonzalez pops up and lawn darts Moon face first into the post for….two. A running knee gives Moon two but the Eclipse is pulled out of the air (cool). The powerbomb is countered into a victory roll for two but the second attempt plants Moon for the pin at 12:35.

Rating: C+. This was a great way to make Gonzalez look like a monster, as she not only absorbed everything Moon threw at her, but she just blocked the Eclipse, which was one of the best weapons the women’s division has ever seen. They have to be gearing her up for the Shirai title shot either at Takeover or at New Year’s Evil, and after something like this is would be hard not to. Just don’t send someone flying head first into the post and have them keep going for a few more minutes. That shouldn’t be complicated.

Post match Toni Storm comes out after Ember Moon but Rhea Ripley makes the save and the Ripley vs. Gonzalez standoff ensues. Gonzalez bails to the floor but keeps her eyes locked on Ripley to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. Nothing on here was great, but they started setting up a lot of things for the next big show. There are some stories being set up for later with the wrestlers already starting to get ready for later. Given how fast things move around here anymore, they need to start faster and now I’m curious to see where a lot of these things go, which is a nice feeling to have so soon.

Results

Jake Atlas b. Isaiah Scott – Cradle

Grizzled Young Veterans b. Ever Rise and Imperium – Ticket to Mayhem to Parker

Tommaso Ciampa b. Cameron Grimes – Willow’s Bell

Pete Dunne b. Killian Dain – Bitter End

Raquel Gonzalez b. Ember Moon – Powerbomb

 

 

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

NXT
Date: December 2, 2020
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Beth Phoenix, Wade Barrett, Vic Joseph

It’s the go home show for Takeover: WarGames and that means it’s time for another ladder match (yes I said another ladder match). There is also one last spot to be filled on Team Blackheart and there is a chance that could be revealed tonight. Other than that, it’s time for the final push towards Sunday and that is where NXT shines. Let’s get to it.

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

The roster, including the bosses, are on the stage for an In Memory Of Pat Patterson graphic.

We get the big video tribute, set to Patterson singing My Way, as only it could be. That’s a big one as Patterson really was one of the forces in WWE and an absolute genius at all things wrestling.

The roster gives us a THANK YOU PAT chant in a pretty emotional moment.

Opening sequence.

Damian Priest/Leon Ruff vs. Legado del Fantasma

Johnny Gargano is on commentary and Priest seems to be replacing Curt Stallion, who was jumped by Legado del Fantasma. Earlier today, Priest attacked Joaquin Wilde for sticking a finger in his face, meaning there is no Wilde here with Santos Escobar/Raul Mendoza. Ruff insists that he gets to start with Escobar as Gargano explains what a dad joke is supposed to be. Escobar gets taken down early but Ruff is pulled into the corner for a tag off to Mendoza.

That doesn’t go well for Ruff and it’s already back to Escobar for a jumping knee to the face. Priest comes in for a change and has some trouble with the faster Mendoza. They head outside with Mendoza getting sent into the barricade but Priest is distracted by the Ghost Face in the crowd. That’s enough for Escobar to hit a suicide dive and we take a break. Back with Priest grabbing Mendoza by the throat but getting dropkicked by Escobar.

A suplex gives Escobar two and it’s time to start working on Priest’s knee. Priest is fine enough to power up with a Downward Spiral to Escobar but he’s a little hesitant to bring in Ruff. He finally does though and it’s time to clean some house but a Mendoza cheap shot puts Ruff down. That’s only enough to knock Ruff over to the corner for the hot tag to Priest and now it’s time for the real house cleaning. Priest loads up the Reckoning but Ruff tags himself in. That’s fine with Priest, who Reckonings Mendoza, setting up Ruff’s frog splash for the pin at 12:23.

Rating: C. I don’t need Priest and Ruff as a big man/little man tag team (not without whistling music) but for a one off to build Ruff up a bit, it did well enough. They were also smart enough to not have Escobar take the pin, which shouldn’t be happening anytime soon. I’m curious about Stallion being gone and hopefully it isn’t a health issue, but maybe it’s better to not have him in a spot like this just yet.

Post match Priest shakes Ruff’s hand but turns around to see two Ghost Faces behind Gargano.

We look back at the end of last week’s show with a masked man costing the Undisputed Era the WarGames advantage.

Rhea Ripley and Ember Moon show Shotzi Blackheart an engine for their war machine. Blackheart thinks she’s in love and is ready to go to war.

We look at Undisputed Era’s history in WarGames. The team is together (in suits for a change) and getting ready for one more match, even after Pat McAfee and company have been taking them apart a few times. They’re ready to go to war but their backs are against the wall. This time though, they’re going to make McAfee and company their b******. This did a nice job of making the Era look good, though don’t we already kind of know that?

Team LeRae laughs off the idea of anything from Team Blackheart. The team is ready to fight and Raquel Gonzalez is going to gain the advantage. Tonight, Blackheart is going to feel like she has been run over by a tank.

August Grey vs. Cameron Grimes

Grimes has a bag with him and pulls out the strap. Some kicks to the chest have Grey in trouble to start and there’s a hard whip into the corner. Grey manages a dropkick and a jawbreaker, followed by a running neckbreaker to rock Grimes. Back up and Grimes sends him to the apron, with Grey going up top for a rope walk spinning high crossbody. Grey’s rollup gets two but he gets caught in a swinging Side Effect. The Cave In finishes Grey at 2:17.

Post match Grimes says Dexter Lumis is making a mistake with the strap match and ties Grey by the wrist. A clothesline drops Grey again and the whipping ensues. Grimes gets a little too cocky though and here’s Lumis to take Grey’s place. The beating is on with Grimes being sent running off. Lumis stares a lot because that’s what Lumis does.

Jake Atlas vs. Tony Nese

Atlas armdrags him into an armbar to start and Nese hides in the ropes for a bit. A dropkick sends Nese outside but he’s fine enough to crotch Atlas on the top back inside. We cut to the back where Pat McAfee and Company arrive and come back to full screen with Nese kneeing Atlas in the face. The torture rack keeps Atlas in trouble but he’s right back with a few right hands. Some forearms give Atlas two but Nese is back with a throat snap across the top rope into a low superkick. Nese misses a running knee in the corner though and the cartwheel DDT gives Atlas the pin at 5:24.

Rating: C. This was at least partially there as filler so we could see McAfee and Company arrive. Nese didn’t even get an entrance here so you can only expect so much out of him here. Atlas is still someone who seems like they want to push but he often fails as he gets close to the next level, though he is starting to seem a little more comfortable around here.

Post match Atlas says that bad things have happened around here but he’s not going to stop. One day, he is going to be Cruiserweight Champion.

Here are McAfee And Company for their weekly chat. McAfee says rest in peace to Pat Patterson, who he respects and appreciates. Then you go to the opposite end of the respect spectrum with every wrestling fan at home and here tonight, plus the Undisputed Era. Earlier tonight, we had to see a night out with the Undisputed Era, which was the lamest night out McAfee had ever seen in his entire life.

That was all about nostalgia BROTHER, so let’s do that themselves. McAfee talks about investing into greatness here because he has more money than anyone here has ever seen. He talks about how great they are and talks about Pete Dunne being the longest reigning United Kingdom Champion. Last week, Dunne won a ladder match, with the help of a masked man (who must be handsome and athletic under the mask, but it certainly wasn’t him) and on Sunday, they will have the advantage as a result.

Then you have thirty years of experience between the Tag Team Champions, who have finally gotten the chance that they deserve. McAfee wants everyone to watch on Sunday because he wants them to feel every single bit of pain. You can tune in to see him get hut, but the truth is that these guys broke the Undisputed Era’s spirit. Dunne says the Era is done this Sunday. McAfee wraps it up and continues to make me want to hear him talk more and more.

Quick video on the Grizzled Young Veterans.

The older man makes Boa and Xia Li dunk their heads under water. They then bow to him, only to be attacked from behind. I’m still not sure what to make of these things.

Ever Rise vs. Grizzled Young Veterans

Hang on though as here is Imperium to jump Ever Rise and say this is their tag division. They want the Veterans right now so let’s do this instead.

Imperium vs. Grizzled Young Veterans

Aichner works on Gibson’s arm to start and hands it off to Barthel for more of the same. Drake comes in to slug away at Barthel but gets taken into the corner as well, meaning Imperium can start taking turns on him. A suplex doesn’t work though and it’s back to Gibson to clean a bit of house. An armdrag into a headscissors doesn’t do much to Aichner so they hiptoss each other to the floor.

Back from a break with Aichner in trouble, including a spinwheel kick from Drake to give Gibson two. Drake gets dropped ribs first onto the top rope though and Gibson gets catapulted into the corner to put him in trouble. The stereo dropkicks in the corner set up White Noise to give Barthel two. Gibson gets in a shot to the throat to slow Barthel down but Aichner breaks up the tag attempt (even though Drake is still down on the floor).

A spinebuster into a kick to the face into a tilt-a-whirl faceplant gets two as frustration begins to set in. Aichner’s moonsault hits knees though and now the tag brings in Drake. Aichner catches Drake on top for a superplex though and Gibson has to make a save this time. With everyone else on the floor, Aichner hits a huge dive, only to have Ever Rise come in to send Barthel into the steps for the DQ at 14:04.

Rating: C+. This was getting going near the end and that’s kind of hard to do in a heel vs. heel match. Thank goodness there was no indication that either side was turning, as it would be quite the bad idea all around. The Veterans needed a win here though and I’m not sure why they didn’t get one, when you could have had Ever Rise cost Imperium the match instead. Also, as usual, Imperium without Walter isn’t worth much of your time.

During the break, Ever Rise ran off while still talking trash.

It’s time for Thatch As Thatch Can. Thatcher talks about how tired he is of all the interruptions….and Tommaso Ciampa is behind him. Ciampa says he’s here to teach and class is in session. Thatcher says he doesn’t want any trouble and then tackles Ciampa down, with Ciampa getting the better of things (Ciampa: “LESSON #1: DON’T BE AN A**!”). Thatcher’s student gets in a cheap shot from behind though and the beating is on, with Thatcher choking Ciampa out.

WarGames rundown.

Thatcher is proud of his student and says on Sunday, Ciampa is going to learn respect.

Raquel Gonzalez vs. Shotzi Blackheart

Ladder match for the WarGames advantage. Shotzi kicks away to start but misses a charge in the corner. Gonzalez gets her in an over the shoulder backbreaker before flipping her down and grabbing the hair (kind of an easy target). Blackheart gets knocked off the apron so it’s time to set up the first ladder. A dropkick through said ladder has Gonzalez down but she manages to drop Blackheart face first onto a ladder.

Gonzalez starts heading back in so Blackheart jumps on her back. That doesn’t work either as Gonzalez sends her into the barricade, only to have Blackbeard send her leg first into the steps. A dropkick sends Gonzalez into the steps as well and a Coffin Drop off the barricade puts them both down.

Back from a break with Shotzi hitting a DDT onto the apron for another double knockdown. Gonzalez is right back with a steps shot to the face and it’s time to set up the ladder in the ring. Shotzi makes another save and they take turns sending each other into the ladder. Said ladder is laid over the middle rope and Shotzi’s running inverted Cannonball sends Gonzalez into the ladder. With Gonzalez on the floor, Shotzi hits a big dive to take her down again.

The rest of the teams are looking on from their podiums but come to ringside to start the brawl at ringside. Indi Hartwell can’t get the briefcase down as Blackheart makes the save, only to have Gonzalez take Shotzi down. Gonzalez goes up but here’s Io Shirai to take her down. After sending Gonzalez outside, Shirai hits the huge moonsault onto everyone else. That’s enough for Blackheart to climb the ladder to win the briefcase at 14:39.

Rating: C+. Take two people, have them do a few big spots, then have the interference to set up the ending. This feels like your run of the mill ladder match these days and while it is still good enough, it isn’t exactly inspiring. Shotzi winning is a bit of a surprise, but they probably have a twist to put her team in trouble on Sunday. Fair enough, but this (and last week’s main event) didn’t need to be a ladder match.

Team Blackheart poses on the ladder to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. This show was all about setting up Sunday but at the same time, the WarGames cage alone is going to be enough to sell the show. The rest of the stories are getting somewhere and while I don’t really need to see Lumis vs. Grimes, the card looks good enough to be a solid night. That’s what this show needed to establish and it did so well enough.

Results

Leon Ruff/Damian Priest b. Legado del Fantasma – Frog splash to Mendoza

Cameron Grimes b. August Grey – Cave In

Jake Atlas b. Tony Nese – Cartwheel DDT

Imperium b. Grizzled Young Veterans via DQ when Ever Rise interfered

Shotzi Blackheart b. Raquel Gonzalez – Blackheart pulled down the briefcase

 

 

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

NXT UK
Date: August 6, 2020
Host: Andy Shepard

It’s more of the same around here as the vault stays wide open. That usually doesn’t mean much with this show as they have to be running out of interesting things to show. I’m not sure if WWE is ever going to do anything about that as this show isn’t very high on their list of priorities, but it is still working well enough at the moment. Let’s get to it.

Andy does his usual welcome.

Kenny Williams takes us back to NXT UK, July 24, 2019.

Kenny Williams vs. Noam Dar

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

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

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

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

Kay Lee Ray talks about her reign becoming even longer during the lockdown. Her record will continue when things are back to normal and she will prove herself again.

Toni Storm talks about her history with Dakota Kai and sends us to NXT UK, November 7, 2018.

Toni Storm vs. Dakota Kai

They lock up to start with Kai driving her into the corner for a clean break. A handshake seems to suggest that things are ok but they both try kicks to the ribs, both of which are caught. Kai kicks her down for two but Storm is right back with an uppercut as we hear about Storm’s time in Japan. An STF goes on for a long time until Kai makes the rope and gets back up for another slugout.

Stereo headbutts give us a double knockdown but Kai is there with two more kicks. A snap German suplex sends Kai into the corner but she runs to the other corner for a kick to the head. The bicycle kick rocks Storm, who shrugs it off for some running knees in the corner. Storm Zero finishes Kai at 7:17.

Rating: C. The ending wasn’t exactly in doubt as Kai never wins anything and Storm is likely to be one of the big stars of the division. Storm has some of the best star power I’ve seen in a good while and it makes sense to have her win in the first match. Just get her some competition though, as it’s not like there isn’t a full tournament roster to pick from.

They shake hands post match.

Sam Gradwell says you might not remember him because he has been gone with knee injuries but he’s back. The storm is coming to NXT UK.

The Grizzled Young Veterans talk about returning to Zack Gibson’s home in Liverpool and moving to the top of the division. Here they are dealing with potential spoilers from NXT UK, January 9, 2019.

Tag Team Title Tournament Semifinals: Flash Morgan Webster/Mark Andrews vs. James Drake/Zack Gibson

The winners get Moustache Mountain on Saturday. Drake and Andrews start things off but it’s quickly off to Gibson to knock Webster off the top. A Doomsday Device gets two on Andrews and we’re only about 45 seconds in. That’s followed by a middle rope elbow/backbreaker combination on the floor as Andrews is still in serious trouble. Back in and we hit the chinlock, followed by a heck of a chinlock from Drake.

Gibson grabs another chinlock but Andrews finally kicks the villains into each other, allowing the hot tag to Webster. That brings the fans right back into it and Webster clotheslines Drake down to hammer away. A running flip dive drops Gibson on the floor, followed by the Baba O’Reilly Buster for two on Drake. Gibson counters a monkey flip with an armbar but Webster knocks him outside without much effort.

An assisted standing 450 gives Andrews two on Gibson but Webster gets pulled to the floor. Ticket to Ride is good for two on Andrews, who hurricanranas Drake into Gibson for a breather. Webster comes in with a Swanton to both guys and a reverse hurricanrana gets two on Drake. That puts everyone down and the fans are very pleased. Gibson heads outside and catches Andrews’ dive, reversing it into Helter Skelter on the ramp. Back in and another Ticket to Ride finishes Webster at 8:19.

Rating: B. This was looking pretty boring to start but my goodness it picked up steam as they got going. I was expecting Webster and Andrews to just be the spunky challengers who were little more than a roadblock for Drake and Gibson but they turned it into a rather good match with everyone working hard and giving us the obvious ending, but not before a great effort.

Overall Rating: C+. The action was mostly good but you can feel the level of importance going further and further down every week. There has to be something else they can dip into other than the same rapidly depleting bag of matches, but for now they can keep going with this for the time being. If nothing else just have Gibson talk about how great he is for the entire show.

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