NXT UK
Date: December 10, 2020
Location: BT Studios, London, England
Commentators: Andy Shepard, Nigel McGuinness

A lot of wrestling shows have been going all over the place as of late so it would be nice to have one that is more a case of giving you what you probably expect. That is where NXT UK shines and I could go for seeing something like that after all of the ups and downs of this week. Let’s get to it.

Opening sequence.

Jordan Devlin is in the ring and issues an open challenge for the Cruiserweight Title. We cut to the back where Ashton Smith tells Oliver Carter to go get the title. And here we go.

Cruiserweight Title: Oliver Carter vs. Jordan Devlin

Devlin is defending and wastes no time in pounding Carter down. Carter snaps off an armdrag into a sunset flip but Carter flips him by the leg. That sends Carter legs first into the ropes and he lands on his head, meaning the referee needs to check on Carter. The clearance is given so Devlin elbows him in the head and chokes with the boot because Devlin is kind of ruthless.

The logical neck crank goes on but Carter comes back with a leg trip and a dropkick. An elbow to the face sends Devlin outside for a heck of a suicide dive and a forearm to the back of the head gives Carter two. Carter plants him with a Rock Bottom but the neck is too banged up to cover. Devlin is right back with a poison rana and the Devlin Side retains the title at 6:30.

Rating: C. If this is a way to get Devlin in the ring more often, I’m all for everything about the whole idea. Devlin has cranked it way up this year and it’s a shame that he didn’t get to spend this summer showcasing everything that he can do. I could go for a lot more of everything Devlin is doing and sending out one opponent after another is a great idea.

Earlier this week, Jinny promised to get Piper Niven when she doesn’t see it coming.

Video on the NXT roster going around England.

And now, in case we weren’t infested with them enough yet, it’s time for the new talk show with Supernova Sessions, hosted by Noam Dar. After the usual introductions, Dar brings out Heritage Cup Champion A-Kid as his first guest. Dar talks about how he mentored A-Kid during his early career and now it is time to return the favor. He will even dub him A-Man! A-Kid says not so fast because the one person who mentored him is Tyler Bate. Cue Bate for the first time to suggest he would have won the title had he been in the tournament. Dar says the match should be on for tonight and he’ll even talk to management. Match on.

The Hunt and Eddie Dennis barge into Sid Scala’s office and might threaten their way into a Tag Team Title shot.

Xia Brookside vs. Isla Dawn

Brookside flips out of a wristlock to start and takes Dawn to the mat for a hammerlock. That’s reversed into the same thing on Brookside, followed by a knee to the face to take her down again. We hit the quickly broken chinlock so Dawn knees her in the ribs again. A northern lights suplex gets two but Brookside fights her way out of another armbar. The Broken Wings connect in the corner to send Dawn outside, with the suicide dive connecting. Hold on though as we have some suitcases. Jinny pops up on screen to say Brookside can only carry her bags, allowing Dawn to hit a Saito suplex for the pin at 5:26.

Rating: C-. The match didn’t have time to go anywhere but the point here was to have Jinny cost Brookside the win. If they put the title on Jinny, it could make a heck of a story with Brookside chasing her until the big win. Brookside is going to get the big moment sooner or later, so set her up well over time for a change.

Saxon Huxley has attacked Jack Starz and Levi Muir.

Heritage Cup: Tyler Bate vs. A-Kid

Kid is defending and it’s under the Heritage Cup rules. After the Big Match Intros, the feeling out process is on with Kid taking him down with a headlock. That’s reversed into an armbar which is reversed with a headscissors for a standoff. They fight over some wristlocks until the first round ends. The second round begins with Bate getting spun into a straitjacket choke, only to reverse into one of his own. Kid reverses the reversal into one of his own before it’s time to grapple on the mat a bit. Neither can get anywhere of note and Bate’s ankle crank doesn’t go anywhere as the round ends.

Round three begins with Bate working on the arm again as they’re still in second gear at most. Back up and they run the ropes with Kid slipping out of the airplane spin. Bate blocks a German suplex and sits down on a rollup for the pin at 1:47 of the round (8:47 total).

Round four begins with another slow start with neither being able to go anywhere until Kid kicks him in the head to make things personal. Bate goes all serious and hammers away, with Kid pulling him into a choke as a result. The sleeper goes on but Bate drives him into the corner for the break. Kid slaps it right back on and then switches into a triangle choke. Bate has to powerbomb his way to freedom for the break.

The fifth round begins with a test of strength taking Bate to the mat, where Kid can’t break his bridge. Back up and Kid hits a springboard moonsault DDT to plant Bate for the pin to tie it up at 1:00 of the fifth round (14:07 total). Round six starts with Bate circling around a bit before winning a slugout. The Liger Kick sends Kid outside but he’s right back in with a jumping enziguri. Kid can’t get the Rings of Saturn but he can get a sunset flip to retain the title at 2:04 (16:55).

Rating: B-. This took a little time to get going but the technical stuff worked out well. I’m not sure how well versed Bate is in this style but he did well enough. If nothing else, I’m glad to see Bate back in the ring after such a long absence. He really is one of the best young talents anywhere and it’s good to have him back. Then you have Kid, who already won the tournament and now has a big win to make him look like an even bigger star.

They shake hands to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. They had a nice and balanced show here with three matches looking at three different parts of the roster. Throw in that they built up some things for later on and it was a good show overall. Again: not a great show, but you know what you’re getting and it worked out rather well. Nice effort here and the main event worked well.

Results

Jordan Devlin b. Oliver Carter – Devlin Side

Isla Dawn b. Xia Brookside – Saito suplex

A-Kid b. Tyler Bate 2-1

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

NXT UK
Date: November 26, 2020
Location: BT Studios, London, England
Commentators: Andy Shepherd, Nigel McGuinness

It’s Thanksgiving in the United Stats but that isn’t quite so important in the UK. Instead, let’s have a title match as the first ever Heritage Cup is on the line with A-Kid meeting Trent Seven in the tournament finals. Other than that, Cruiserweight Champion Jordan Devlin is defending his title as well. Let’s get to it.

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

The opening video looks at the importance of the Heritage Cup and features A-Kid and Trent Seven talking about how important the title would mean to them.

Cruiserweight Title: Jordan Devlin vs. Amir Jordan

Devlin is defending and for the sake of simplicity, I’ll only refer to Amir Jordan as Jordan. A shoulder into a headlock takeover has Jordan down to start but he’s back up with a wristlock to flip Devlin over. That just means a big running elbow from Devlin and they trade chops until Devlin blasts him with a dropkick. Devlin cranks on his neck for a bit, followed by the release Rock Bottom into the standing moonsault for two. They head outside with Jordan being stomped against the barricade and it’s a belly to back backbreaker back inside.

We hit the abdominal stretch but Jordan hiptosses his way to freedom. The comeback is on with a clothesline to the floor and there’s a suicide dive to take Devlin down. Back in and Jordan gets caught on top but Devlin has to block the sunset bomb. Instead it’s an electric chair flipped forward into a slam for two on Devlin. Jordan goes up top but the top rope backsplash hits raised knees. The Cloverleaf makes Jordan tap to retain the title at 9:44.

Rating: C. Devlin continues to look sharp out there and Jordan was putting up a good fight throughout. This was much more about having Devlin get in there and show that he can still bring it in a title defense and they pulled that off well. I’m curious about how they’re going to handle the two Cruiserweight Titles, but that isn’t the kind of thing that WWE is going to let last very long.

Post match Devlin says there is one Cruiserweight Champion.

Rampage Brown is training at the Performance Center when Saxon Huxley comes up to say his name. Please just be a squash.

Noam Dar is getting his own talk show. Does he have to?

Flash Morgan Webster and Mark Andrews jumped Eddie Dennis and the Hunt on their way in today. That could be a heck of a six man with the right partner.

Isla Dawn vs. Jinny

They trade headlocks to start until Dawn knocks her down and gets two off a double knee drop. Jinny responds by kicking her in the head and then grabbing the Iron Octopus. Dawn makes a rope so Jinny rolls her into a reverse chinlock. With that broken up, Jinny kicks her in the head over and over. Back up and Dawn hits her own kicks to the chest and a Saito suplex gets two. Jinny sends her hard into a knee to the face though and the Tarantula has Dawn screaming. Something like a crossface chickenwing with a leg grapevine makes Dawn tap at 5:04.

Rating: C+. The finish looked good and Jinny was more dominant than she has been in a long time. She has seemed to be ready to move up to the next level for a long time now and maybe this is the time where she finally gets to move up. Nice and quick match here, with Jinny coming off like a killer who can take a hit.

Post match, Jinny calls out Piper Niven.

Alexander Wolfe comes in to see Sid Scala about a match with Joe Coffey. Scala says it’s on, with Gallus and Imperium banned. Wolfe throws him an apple.

Here’s what’s coming next week.

Heritage Cup: Trent Seven vs. A-Kid

For the inaugural title. Feeling out process to start with Kid taking him to the mat for a quickly broken headlock. Seven cartwheels his way to freedom and grabs a headscissors on the mat to slow things down a bit. That’s reversed into a double arm crank on Seven and they roll around with some grappling as the first round ends.

Round two begins with a test of strength going to Seven, who can’t break Kid’s bridge. Kid tapes him down and starts pulling on the arms but switches over to a kneebar. Seven is in trouble but manages to survive until the end, where he pops Kid in the jaw with a right hand.

We start round three with Kid kicking the water bottle out of Seven’s hand, only to have the parched Seven unload with chops. Kid kicks him down in a heap though and some running kicks, including one to the face, finish Seven at 1:34 of round three (8:50 total). The fourth round begins with Kid hitting a running kick to the face in the corner again and slapping on a Crossface. The triangle doesn’t work for Kid so he tries a cross armbreaker, which is countered with a heck of a powerbomb. They’re both down as time expires.

Round five begins with Seven grabbing a front facelock and Kid having to flip his way out of it. Back up and Seven plants him with a DDT for two and they both need a breather. Kid pulls himself up in the corner and fights out of the Birminghammer attempt. Seven tries a belly to back superplex attempt instead but Kid turns it into a high crossbody for a very near fall as time expires.

The final round begins with Seven hitting a quick Emerald Flosion for his own near fall. A big lariat gets the same and there’s the Birminghammer for a delayed two as Kid’s foot is underneath the rope. The Seven Star Lariat only gets two so Kid goes for the arm, only to have Seven stack him up for the pin at 2:31 (19:41).

So that’s a tie at the end of round six so let’s go to overtime with no time limit. Round seven starts Kid wins a slugout but the Seven Star Lariat cuts him off. Seven can’t follow up so Kid goes to the apron, with Seven joining him. The slugout goes to Seven, who hits his suplex slam to the floor, leaving Kid mostly done.

Kid still dives in and beats the count so Seven hits another Seven Star Lariat. That’s not enough for a cover as Seven loads up the Birminghammer, only to have Kid slip out and hit a superkick. Seven pulls him into a rollup like the one he won with before but this time pulls him into a Rings of Saturn, with Kid using his leg to pull Seven’s arm back for the tap and the cup at 5:17 of overtime (26:04 total).

Rating: B. That certainly worked and you forget that the rounds are there after a bit, making it a rather good match with both guys trying to survive and hold onto/chase the lead. Seven not being able to hang in there with the young Kid worked, especially with Kid just striking him down over and over. Good stuff here and Kid is a nice choice to see what he can do with the Cup, especially once Imperium realizes it’s perfect for them.

Post match Seven presents Kid with the trophy and streamers fly to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. The main event was more than enough to carry the show and the first two matches were certainly serviceable enough. They wrapped up the tournament on a high note and that’s a positive sign for the future. As usual, they know how to set things up for the future so while they have their work cut out for them following this one, they had a good show here and could pull it off again in the future.

Results

Jordan Devlin b. Amir Jordan – Cloverleaf

Jinny b. Isla Dawn – Crossface chickenwing with a leg grapevine

A-Kid b. Trent Seven 2-1

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

NXT UK
Date: October 15, 2020
Location: BT Studios, London, England
Commentators: Nigel McGuinness, Andy Shepherd

It’s the third week of the Heritage Cup but this time around we have something even bigger going on. This time around it’s a huge main event featuring Ilja Dragunov/Pete Dunne vs. Walter/Alexander Wolfe. That’s a preview for Walter’s upcoming United Kingdom Title defense against Dragunov, which has all of the potential. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Heritage Cup First Round: Dave Mastiff vs. Joseph Conners

Conners won’t shake hands, just like he wouldn’t when the brackets were revealed. Mastiff works on the arm to start so Conners does the same to keep things even. That’s enough to send Conners flying into the corner as he can’t do much against the power to start. Mastiff manages a dropkick and uppercuts Conners into the corner as the first round ends.

Round two starts with Mastiff shouldering him into the corner as the one sidedness continues. Conners gets in a shot to the ribs so Mastiff runs him over with another shoulder. Mastiff grabs an armbar on the mat but Conners fights up. A powerslam out of the air plants Conners for two so Mastiff slaps him out to the floor without much effort to end the round. We start round three with Conners swinging away so Mastiff blasts him in the face for the knockout and the automatic win at 25 seconds of the third round (7:08 total).

Rating: C-. They needed to do something a little different to show how the matches can go and this was a good way to do just that. Mastiff running through Conners is the right way to go and if it means less Conners in the near future, I’m all for it. The rules are starting to feel a lot more natural too, so it isn’t even a complicated system that takes a long time to learn. Not the best match, but it did what it was supposed to do.

Jordan Devlin talks about wrestling for so much of his life and finally winning the Cruiserweight Title. Then he sees someone holding the title and calling themselves the champion, but if Santos Escobar wants to do that, he needs to come pin him. This was a fired up promo and hopefully Devlin can come back as good as he was before he was sidelined.

Ashton Smith and Oliver Carter have a chat about shirts before Carter talks about being ready to beat Eddie Dennis next week.

Isla Dawn vs. Piper Niven

Piper goes with a standing armbar to start but Dawn reverses into a wristlock (popular way to start around here). A top wristlock actually works on Niven and lets Dawn grab a headlock. That’s reversed into an armbar as they’re doing quite a bit of grappling to start. Back up and Niven misses a clothesline and gets rolled up for two, but she’s fine enough to knock Dawn into the ropes.

Dawn pounds away on the back but gets kicked down without much effort. A running seated crossbody gives Niven two, which seems to be more her speed. Dawn is back up with a kick to the head and a top rope Meteora gives her two of her own. Niven powers out of a dragon sleeper and sends her into the corner for the running knees. The Piper Driver finishes Dawn at 8:18.

Rating: C. This was a quick win to get Niven back on the right track. I’m not sure I can see her getting the title shot again for a good while but it’s nice to give her something to do. Piper has a certain charisma to her and I can go with having her around more often. Dawn continues to be someone who can take loss after loss and be just fine so it’s not like this hurts her in a big way.

Kenny Williams is ready for Trent Seven next week.

We look at Flash Morgan Webster being attacked last week.

Video on Trent Seven, who wants the Heritage Cup to prove he still has it.

Imperium vs. Ilja Dragunov/Pete Dunne

It’s Walter/Alexander Wolfe for Imperium. Dunne hammerlocks Wolfe to the mat to start and then hits a running chop to put him down again. Walter comes in and it’s time for the big rival renewal. Dunne takes him into the corner but gets powered down so Walter can work on the arm. A nip up into a headscissors lets Dunne go for a cross armbreaker into a short armscissors. That’s powered up for the escape but Dunne slips down the back into a sunset flip for two. Dragunov comes in and is immediately headlocked takeovered down to slow the pace.

It works so well that Walter does it again, followed by a rather loud chop. A running seated senton crushes Dragunov and it’s Wolfe coming in for the fast two. Wolfe’s cobra clutch backbreaker gets two more and we hit the chinlock. That doesn’t last long as Wolfe holds him up for the big chop but Dragunov chops Wolfe right back. A kick to the head allows the double tag to Dunne and Walter, with the former snapping off a German suplex. The armbreaker goes on again but Walter powers out in a hurry and kicks Dunne in the head.

The running dropkick sends Dunne FLYING into the corner but it’s right back to Dragunov anyway. A knee to the face rocks Wolfe and Dragunov plants him down for two. The 61Line gives Dragunov two more and Dunne tags himself in, setting up double kicks to the head in the corner. Dragunov’s top rope backsplash gives Dunne two but Walter tags himself back in. The chop into the German suplex sets up the top rope splash but this time Dunne pulls Walter into the triangle choke.

Wolfe chokes Dragunov on the mat so Walter powerbombs Dunne onto the two of them for the break. Everyone is down until Dunne takes Wolfe to the floor, leaving Dragunov to get chopped out of the air. The powerbomb gets two on Dragunov with Dunne making the save before heading outside again. Walter’s German suplex gets two more so it’s time to smack Dragunov in the head over and over.

Dragunov gets two off a big clothesline as Dunne comes back in with the Bitter End to Wolfe. The sleeper is blocked and Dragunov strikes away again, setting up the Gotch life suplex for two. Torpedo Moscow is blocked by Wolfe so Dunne sends him hard into the barricade. Dragunov tries it again but has to slip out of the sleeper, setting up Torpedo Moscow to finish Walter at 19:02.

Rating: B. They were having a different kind of match here and it worked rather well. This was more of a wild fight than a regular tag match and that’s what they should have done. These guys work better in that style most of the time and I liked what we were seeing here for the most part. That’s the first time that anyone has ever pinned Walter in NXT UK and while I normally wouldn’t like that finish, it makes sense as a way to make Dragunov feel like a giant slayer as he lost a lot of his luster in the time away.

Overall Rating: B-. The main event more than carries this, though the first two matches weren’t all that great. It’s a good sign that the big story can work that well though and it makes me wonder how good things are going to be when we get to the title showdown. The show overall didn’t matter all that much, but that main event is a heck of a fight and worth a look if you have the time.

Results

Dave Mastiff b. Joseph Conners via knockout

Piper Niven b. Isla Dawn – Piper Driver

Ilja Dragunov/Pete Dunne b. Imperium – Torpedo Moscow to Walter

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

NXT UK
Date: September 17, 2020
Location: BT Studios, London, England
Commentators: Andy Shepard, Nigel McGuinness

We are FINALLY back with the first new show in over five months. There are no fans in attendance but that is going to be the case throughout WWE for a long time to come. I’m not sure what to expect here, but we have some big matches to set up over the coming weeks. Let’s get to it.

The opening video looks at the move over to BT Studios in London and some of the bigger names in the promotion. Makes sense for a way to bring people back in.

Opening sequence.

The arena looks rather cool.

Sid Scala is in the ring but here’s Ilja Dragunov to cut him off in a hurry. The rather intense Dragunov says he has waited for six months for a fight but here’s Noam Dar to say Dragunov needs anger management. The fight is on in a hurry with the 6 1 Line taking Dar down. Referees break it up but Scala makes Dar vs. Dragunov tonight.

Gallus vs. Kenny Williams/Amir Jordan

Non-title and hopefully Jordan isn’t as annoying as he was before. Coffey shoulders Jordan down to start but Jordan is up with a dropkick. Williams comes in for a headlock and an armbar but it’s quickly off to Wolfgang for his own armbar. A heck of a clothesline drops Jordan and Coffey runs him over for a bonus. The armbar goes on again to keep Jordan on the mat and it’s off to the cravate.

Jordan gets sent into the corner and then flipped back out but manages an enziguri, allowing the hot tag to Williams. A slingshot hurricanrana sends Wolfgang into the corner and a running dropkick puts Coffey on the floor. Some more kicks to the face drop Wolfgang for two but he plants Williams for a suplex. Williams gets in a shot of his own to Coffey and Jordan comes back in with a Swanton for two. That’s enough for Coffey though as he runs over both guys and hands it back to Wolfgang. The enziguri into the powerslam finishes Jordan at 10:53.

Rating: C. I’m not sure if this was the best way to bring things back to life around here. Jordan and Williams are fine for a low to mid level team but they aren’t exactly major threats to a team like Gallus. The match was far from bad, but this wasn’t exactly a great restart for the show.

Post match most of the tag team division comes out to stare Gallus down. Imperium is shown watching on a monitor.

Saxon Huxley is going to be back next week to destroy things.

Here’s Kay Lee Ray for a chat. It’s time for the longest reigning NXT UK Women’s Champion to be back in the ring and she is going to be defending the title. She and Piper Niven defined women’s wrestling in the UK but here’s Niven to interrupt. If Ray likes to talk so much, why not talk about how many times Niven has beaten her in Japan and in the UK? Next week Ray gets to show how great she is and Niven should know better. Ray takes a swing but winds up bailing.

Video on Isla Dawn and Aoife Valkyrie.

Isla Dawn vs. Aoife Valkyrie

Valkyrie grabs a headlock to start but gets shoved away for an early standoff. Back up and a spinwheel kick puts Dawn down and it’s right back to the headlock. This time Dawn escapes with a belly to back suplex and it’s off to a double arm crank. Dawn unloads on her in the corner and puts on the arm cranking again, only to have Valkyrie fight up with a spinning kick to the face. A running Blockbuster gets two and a spinning kick to the head drops Dawn again. The top rope ax kick gives Valkyrie the pin at 5:45.

Rating: C. This was a bit better with Valkyrie beating Dawn down and finishing her with the devastating big move at the end. Dawn is someone who can put anyone over and still be fine so the result worked out well. Valkyrie seems to be someone who they want to push as a big deal in the division and getting her out here like this makes sense.

Video on the Heritage Cup, including a quick bio on everyone involved, or at least the seven entrants we know of so far.

Pete Dunne will be here to draw the brackets for the tournament. That’s rather interesting.

Noam Dar vs. Ilja Dragunov

Dragunov takes him down and hammers away before dropping him with a right hand. Some knees to the ribs set up a running shoulder to put Dar down and Dragunov hits a running backsplash. Dar bails to the floor to cut off the beating before heading up top on the way back in.

Dragunov gets his knee kicked out and Dar’s bridging northern lights suplex gets two. There’s an elbow to the head and a snapmare into the ropes keeps Dragunov in trouble. Some shots to the face just annoy Dragunov and he muscles Dar up with a suplex. One heck of a clothesline takes Dar’s head off but he tries to pull Dragunov into an armbar. That’s broken up though and Dragunov stomps him down.

Now the 6 1 Line gets two but Dar breaks up a second one. A running dropkick puts Dragunov on the floor but he comes back in to knock Dar silly again. Dar elbows him in the head but Dragunov wins a slugout with quite a bit of effort. Cue Alexander Wolfe for a distraction but Dragunov sends Dar into him. Torpedo Moscow gives Dragunov the pin at 11:49.

Rating: B-. This was designed to showcase Dragunov as a machine and that’s what they did rather well. He plays the part as perfectly as can be done with the insane eyes and unique movements so I don’t know how much complaining can be done when he is beating up Dar. Dragunov vs. Walter sounds amazing and the sooner we get to it, the better.

Post match here’s Walter for the showdown with a fired up Dragunov to end the show. It’s amazing to see how much the show picks up when he is involved.

Overall Rating: C+. They had a bit of a rocky start here with the tag match not being the most thrilling but it picked up a bit after that when we got into the showcases. I want to see both singles title matches and the tournament could be interesting assuming Pete Dunne is the final entrant. NXT works best with its top level star power and having Walter appear was the best thing they could have done in that regard. This wasn’t the best, but it got better as the show went on.

Results

Gallus b. Amir Jordan/Kenny Williams – Powerslam to Jordan

Aoife Valkyrie b. Isla Dawn – Top rope ax kick

Ilja Dragunov b. Noam Dar – Torpedo Moscow

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

NXT UK
Date: July 30, 2020
Host: Andy Shepard

The barrel scraping continues as we look for some more content to fill in time until they can do some fresh tapings. I’m not sure more they can do in this situation but it might be time to look at some other NXT content, or even content from somewhere else. Hopefully we get something good here so let’s get to it.

Joseph Conners sends us to the Download Festival on June 26, 2019.

Mark Andrews vs. Joseph Conners

Andrews rolls out of a wristlock to start and takes him down with an armdrag. The fans are VERY appreciative of an armbar but Conners cuts them off by bending Andrews’ neck around the ropes. A running clothesline gets two and a suplex is good for the same as they’re keeping the offense simple so far. Some choking on the apron and a neck snap across the rope somehow wake Andrews up so he can slug away.

The knee slide into the enziguri sets up a suicide dive to the floor to rock Conners again. He’s right back with a sunset bomb into the corner though and a belly to back faceplant gets two. The fans are all over Conners, showing that the Download Festival has bad taste in heels. Andrews can’t get a backslide but can get a Stundog Millionaire. Fall To Pieces finishes Conners at 6:09.

Rating: C-. Just a match here and nothing that hasn’t been done better before. What makes me feel better though is that it seems Conners is falling down the card, which means we don’t have to listen to him anymore. Andrews is still easy to cheer for and that’s a good piece to have around on any show.

So Conners picked a match where he lost. I knew he was kind of dense.

A Kid is ready to come back because he has been studying everyone in NXT UK.

Isla Dawn wants to clip Xia Brookside’s wings. From NXT UK, January 9, 2019.

Isla Dawn vs. Xia Brookside

We actually get a handshake to start as the fans aren’t sure who they like more here. A wristlock gives us a standoff so Dawn takes her down into a quickly broken armbar. Dawn slips out of a headscissors and works on the legs, which just seems to annoy Brookside. Back up and Brookside dances out of a crossarm choke to put Dawn in one of her own. Dawn reverses into the same thing before it’s off to a pinfall reversal sequence for some near falls each. Brookside tries a victory roll but Dawn uses the Owen Hart counter by sitting down on it for the pin at 4:59.

Rating: C-. This didn’t have the time to go anywhere but Brookside continues to be all kinds of charming and adorable while Dawn is the kind of person who could be built back up into something bigger down the line. They’re going to need some fresh challengers after Takeover and while Dawn has already lost a shot, it’s not like they have any better options at the moment.

Dani Luna is ready to show us another side of herself.

Noam Dar is waiting on his birthday wishes and has a present for us. From NXT UK, October 17, 2018.

United Kingdom Title: Pete Dunne vs. Noam Dar

Dar is challenging and General Manager Johnny Saint is in the ring for the introductions. Dunne gets a hero’s welcome, as you had to expect. Feeling out process to start but hang on because the fans need to sing Happy Birthday to Dar. That’s not cool with Dunne so he blasts Dar with a clothesline, which is fine with the fans as well. Dar sends him outside for a hard soccer kick to the arm and Dunne in in some sudden trouble.

Back in and Dunne hits a quick X Plex for a breather and unloads in the corner. Dar kicks him with the face so Dunne flips out of a German suplex and gets two off a powerbomb. A northern lights suplex gives Dar the same so Dunne goes for the fingers like a true villain who the fans cheer anyway. Dar is right back with a release fisherman’s suplex onto the apron and they’re both down. Stereo dives beat the count at nine as the fans declare this awesome.

Dunne goes to the fingers again so Dar spins around into an elbow to the face. A leglock is reversed into a cross armbreaker but Dar reverses that into an ankle lock. Dunne staggers him with an enziguri so Dar forearms him in the back of the head for the double knockdown. Dar kicks the leg out but the Nova Roller is forearmed out of the air. The Bitter End is reversed into a kneebar with Dunne having to dive for the rope. That’s enough for Dunne, who bends the fingers back again and stomps on the arm, setting up the Bitter End to retain at 11:35.

Rating: B. This didn’t have the drama or the emotion (or the time) that a lot of Dunne’s matches have but Dar more than showcased himself here. They’re doing a very good job of having Dunne get closer and closer to losing the title but surviving in the end. Whoever eventually figures out the puzzle is going to look like a star and that’s the point of such a long title reign. Good first main event here.

Post match Dunne offers a handshake but the injured Dar sticks his pinkie up, which Dunne seems fine with as he returns the gesture and smiles.

Overall Rating: C. I was getting flashbacks to the old days of the show here and not just because they had so many older matches. This felt like a show from their formative days, with two nothing matches and then a good main event to bail it out. I’m getting worried about how bad things are going to get, if nothing else due to having the Best Of be people picking matches where they lose. They don’t have anything better than that?

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

NXT UK
Date: April 30, 2020
Commentators: Tom Phillips, Andy Shepard
Host: Tom Phillips

It’s another special edition of the show but this time around it’s something you have seen before. This week’s theme is Hidden Gems, which means we are looking at matches that aired for the live crowd at TV tapings but were filmed for whatever reason. That could make for some interesting footage as it’s all new to us. Let’s get to it.

Tom welcomes us to the show and explains the idea.

From the Download Festival in Derby, England, June 14, 2019.

NXT UK Women’s Title: Toni Storm vs. Deonna Purrazzo

Storm is defending and they fight over wristlocks to start. Storm takes her to the mat but Purrazzo headstands out of a headscissors. Purrazzo gets in her own headscissors so Storm slips out as well to give us a standoff. Some uppercuts give Storm one and we hit the half crab. A rope is grabbed in a hurry so Storm kicks her in the chest for two more. Storm misses a charge into the corner though and Purrazzo snaps the arm back for her own two. Purrazzo stomps away in the corner and takes a bow, setting up a modified STF.

The fans ask if Storm will be their girl until Purrazzo quiets them down with another shot to the arm for some near falls. The armbar brings the fans back into it but it’s a Lethal Combination into a Koji Clutch. Back up and they slug it out until Toni rolls some German suplexes. The arm goes out on Storm Zero though, allowing Purrazzo to put on another armbar. Storm gets to the rope for the save so it’s a hard clothesline and a quick Storm Zero to retain at 11:14.

Rating: B-. Storm is someone who can be awesome when she has the right circumstances and she made it work here. The arm work made sense and Storm went with a rush of adrenaline to retain the title in the end. It was also one of Purrazzo’s best performances around here, even though she wouldn’t be in the company by the time it aired.

From Plymouth, England on July 20, 2019.

Matt Riddle vs. Ligero

From a TV taping. Andy: “How do you solve a riddle like the Original Bro?” Tom: “I see what you did there.” The fans chant something I can’t understand as the bigger Riddle goes with the grappling to start. Ligero reverses into a headlock but Riddle powers him up with a belly to back suplex. The chinlock is snapped back on and Ligero slugs away with the forearms.

Riddle powers him down again and starts with the strikes, setting up the running forearms in the corner. A suplex sets up the Broton for two and Riddle is fired up. Riddle grabs a Jackhammer for two but the Floating Bro is countered into a running German superplex. Ligero flips out of a German suplex and they head to the floor with Riddle getting caught with a hurricanrana. A springboard Stunner gives Ligero two back inside and a slingshot splash gets the same. C4L is countered into a powerbomb and it’s the Final Flash into Bro Derek. The Floating Bro finishes Ligero at 8:38.

Rating: C+. I wanted to see more of this as Ligero came to play this time. Ligero can work well with anyone and while I’m still waiting on that big breakout moment from Riddle, he looked good here in a rare instance where he was a good bit bigger than his opponent. Nice match here with both guys putting in a nice performance.

From the Download Festival in Derby, England, June 15, 2019.

NXT Women’s Title: Shayna Baszler vs. Isla Dawn

Shayna is defending and drives her into the corner to start without looking too worried here. Dawn gets a quick one off a rollup and takes out the leg to mess with Shayna’s head. That earns Dawn a headlock so she rolls Baszler up for another two. A suplex sends Baszler outside so Dawn follows but gets sent into the steps.

Back in and Baszler stomps on the arm, setting up the armbar. Baszler hammers away for two and the arm is bent around the top rope. An armbar takedown lets Baszler crank on the arm a little more but Dawn fights up for a running dropkick. A gutwrench faceplant gives Baszler two so she kicks Dawn in the face and grabs the Clutch for the tap at 8:39.

Rating: C. This wasn’t great but I’m not sure who was going to buy Dawn as a threat against Baszler when Dawn has never won anything of note. Baszler is a monster and it takes someone special to beat her, or even challenge her really. It wasn’t bad, but it felt like a long squash.

Ilja Dragunov is keeping his fire going until he finally gets to face Walter for the UK Title. He’s ready to go where no one else ever has and this match will redefine violence.

Next week: the Rise of Imperium. Cool.

From Coventry, England, March 6, 2020.

Ilja Dragunov vs. A-Kid

Kid wrestles him down to start and gets a quick one to set up a standoff. They hit the mat again with Kid tying him up into a bow and arrow. That’s reversed into a chinlock, which is reversed into a headscissors on Dragunov. An exchange of rollups give them two each and Kid slips out of a headscissors for a standoff. Kid headstands into a headscissors on the mat (dang) so Dragunov slips out and says bring it.

Dragunov changes plans and hits him in the face, setting up a crossbody for two more. The top rope elbow to the floor drops Kid again but he’s right back with a German suplex back inside. Kid’s northern lights suplex into an armbar, followed by a quick high crossbody for two. Frustration is setting in so Dragunov BLASTS him with a clothesline.

The 61Line gets two more but Kid kicks him in the arm. Dragunov responds by kicking him in the FACE and a deadlift German suplex gets two. Kid pulls the leg down and twists the ankle so it’s an enziguri with the free leg for the double knockdown. Somehow Kid is back up with a super Spanish Fly for two but Dragunov spinebusters him. Torpedo Moscow finishes Kid at 13:23.

Rating: B+. That’s your perfect example of someone letting it all hang out as Kid gave this everything he had and the match was awesome. It says a lot when I know the result beforehand and still got sucked into the match because they were going that hard. This was awesome and I hope someone important was watching both of them, because it was great stuff.

Overall Rating: A-. Now this was more like it with a heck of a show where they threw wrestling matches out there to fill in their wrestling show. It’s so nice to see that instead of a show with a lot of talking and I’ve been enjoying this (and 205 Live) so much more as a result. WWE has such a deep video library that it makes sense to use it in a time like this. Check this out, especially that main event, if you have time.

Results

Toni Storm b. Deonna Purrazzo – Storm Zero

Matt Riddle b. Ligero – Floating Bro

Shayna Baszler b. Isla Dawn – Kirifuda Clutch

Ilja Dragunov b. A-Kid – Torpedo Moscow

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

NXT UK
Date: March 5, 2020
Location: York Barbican, York, England
Commentators: Aiden English, Tom Phillips

It’s time to get serious around here again with Walter defending the United Kingdom Title against Dave Mastiff. This might not be the most suspenseful title match in the world but they have done a good job of making Mastiff into a big deal where a win over him will mean a little something for Walter. Let’s get to it.

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

The opening video looks at Walter vs. Mastiff, including Mastiff dropping the champ with one right hand because Walter’s power advantage won’t be here this time.

Opening sequence.

Travis Banks vs. Alexander Wolfe

Banks hits a running knee to the floor and a suicide dive takes Wolfe down in the first ten seconds. Back in and the Slice of Heaven is elbowed out of the air, allowing Wolfe to take his jacket off. A dropkick gives Wolfe two and we’re onto the chinlock to keep Banks in trouble. Banks fights up and dropkicks him into the corner, setting up a hard kick to the chest from the apron.

More kicks to the chest have Wolfe in trouble but he’s right back with a swinging suplex. Wolfe’s German suplex gets two more but Banks gets in his own suplex. They fight to the apron and Banks gets to the middle rope for a kick to the chest, knocking both of them outside. Wolfe is fine enough to hit a hanging DDT onto the floor for two back inside, followed by a sitout powerbomb for the pin at 9:00.

Rating: C+. Banks is a weird case as he never seems to get as high up as he should be going. I’m not sure what is slowing him down but it’s kind of disappointing to see someone like him not be able to get over the hump. Then there’s Wolfe, who is proving to be a bit more than the lower singles member of Imperium, which is a bit surprising.

Eddie Dennis talks about how he went from being a principal to a wrestler. He has a mathematics degree and it takes a certain intellect to manipulate the mind.

Video on the tag team division.

Ridge Holland vs. Saxon Huxley

Huxley pounds away in the corner but gets caught in an early suplex. Back to back Northern Grits finish Huxley at 1:18. Holland looked awesome.

Jordan Devlin says he’ll be back next week.

Aoife Valkyrie vs. Isla Dawn

They fight over a wristlock to start and Valkyrie gets a few near falls off some rollups. A monkey flip lets Valkyrie put her down for two and they go into the pinfall reversal sequence. Valkyrie misses the big kick though as Dawn drops into the splits. Dawn powers her into the corner to get out of something like a Kimura, setting up a Meteora for two. Valkyrie gets in a kick to the face though and the top rope ax kick is good for the pin at 4:30.

Rating: C-. This didn’t have much time and while Valkyrie continues to look dominant, she isn’t looking like a star most of the time. Maybe she needs some adjustments, but I haven’t seen the big moment from here that makes me think there’s something special there. Then again she has had a handful of matches around here so maybe she just needs some more time.

Ligero is annoyed that Noam Dar has been talking about him on social media. People need to come to him face to face and Dar will have the chance next week. Maybe it would help if you took the mask off dude.

United Kingdom Title: Walter vs. Dave Mastiff

Walter is defending and takes Mastiff into the corner, only to have the chop blocked. Mastiff gets two off a running crossbody and we hit the quickly broken chinlock. The sleeper doesn’t work on Mastiff so Walter kicks him in the face. A powerbomb doesn’t work either so Mastiff sits on his chest. Walter gets German suplexed into the corner but he cuts off the Into The Void attempt with a dropkick.

Another big boot has less effect as Mastiff is up for the big slugout, with Walter getting the better of things. The top rope splash misses though and Mastiff hits a rebound German suplex. A Regal Roll gets two and Into The Void connects for the same. Mastiff gets knocked off the top but is fine enough to hit a big forearm. Walter goes to the throat though and finally manages a powerbomb to retain at 7:59.

Rating: B. The ending wasn’t in doubt and that was cemented as soon as Into The Void got two but I have a great time with this. They didn’t both with anything more than having two big guys trade hard shots until one of them couldn’t get up. It wasn’t supposed to be some long, drawn out classic with a bunch of drama and they didn’t go anywhere near something like that.

Overall Rating: B-. Another good episode this week with the big main event (big for between Takeovers that is) and some other nice stuff underneath. Walter vs. Finn Balor is going to be awesome in Ireland though and a title change isn’t completely out of the question. You can see the card coming together from here and after the most recent Takeover around here, that’s rather appealing.

Results

Alexander Wolfe b. Travis Banks – Sitout powerbomb

Ridge Holland b. Saxon Huxley – Northern Grit

Aoife Valkyrie b. Isla Dawn – Top rope ax kick

Walter b. Dave Mastiff – 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

IMG Credit: WWE

NXT UK
Date: January 30, 2020
Location: York Barbican, York, England
Commentators: Tom Phillips, Aiden English

Things have already changed since last week’s show as NXT and NXT UK split at Worlds Collide. Despite being down a man, Imperium defeated the Undisputed Era in the show’s main event. Jordan Devlin even brought home some gold by winning the Cruiserweight Title. Now almost none of that is going to mean much here because this show was taped in advance, though we’ll likely get some videos taped since. Let’s get to it.

Here is Worlds Collide if you need a recap.

Quick recap of Worlds Collide.

Opening sequence.

Oney Lorcan/Danny Burch vs. The Hunt

Burch and Boar start things off with Danny working on the wrist and taking it over with a headlock. Boar is back up with a shoulder in the corner and Primate comes in with a springboard double stomp to the back. Lorcan comes in and hits Primate in the face to take over, setting up a double chop from Lorcan and Burch. It’s already back to Boar though and the wild running starts charging around at everyone.

That just earns him a double suplex to give Lorcan two and we hit the abdominal stretch. A bite to the arm allows the hot tag off to Primate and house is clotheslined in a hurry. Primate hits the post though and Burch’s powerbomb gets two. Everything breaks down again and a bunch of headbutts have people staggered. Primate gets uppercutted out of the air, setting up the elevated DDT for the pin at 7:24.

Rating: C. They packed in a lot of energy here and that’s the kind of thing that these teams should have been doing. The Hunt continues to be one of the more entertaining teams around while Burch and Lorcan are great for a gatekeeper team who might even win the titles one day. That’s a valuable team to have around and they had a fun match here.

Toni Storm is upset because Kay Lee Ray is still in her head.

Here’s Eddie Dennis for a chat. He shows us a clip of his destruction of Trent Seven at Takeover and brags about the destruction in a bit of a scary voice. Cue Trent (he gets around these days) to pull off a turnbuckle pad and say that Eddie used it to win at Takeover. Since Eddie is so tough, let’s have a street fight with no turnbuckle pads. Dennis doesn’t answer but does lunch at Trent, who sends him outside. Of note: Trent sounded fine here, which doesn’t do much for continuity after Finn Balor attacked him earlier this week. The perils of a taped show.

A-Kid wants to impress Tyler Bate so they’ll have a match next week.

Aoife Valkyrie is coming in two weeks.

Nina Samuels vs. Isla Dawn

This is their fourth match on this series alone. Samuels snaps off headscissors so Dawn grabs a rollup for two. Back up and Dawn bridges into a cradle for two more so Samuels sends her to the floor. A handspring kick to the face knocks her off the apron to give Samuels two back inside. Samuels drops a leg and grabs a quickly broken chinlock, only to have Dawn send her hard into the corner. Dawn pulls her off the top and hits a top rope Meteora, setting up the half and half suplex for the pin at 5:03.

Rating: C-. The match wasn’t bad but there is only so much you can do when they keep having the same match over and over again without actually getting anywhere. These two have been stuck in the midcard of the division for a long time now and I don’t see that changing anytime soon. I’m not sure if either of them can move up to the title scene and therefore, they come off as little more than filler.

Ilja Dragunov says he will not miss again.

Burch and Lorcan want Gallus.

Tyson T-Bone vs. Ridge Holland

Holland drives him up against the ropes so T-Bone hits him in the head. The slugout is on until Holland snaps off an overhead belly to belly. Some uppercuts have T-Bone on the ropes again and again he comes right back with some wild swings. Holland fires off some headbutts though and an Alabama Slam sets up Northern Grit for the pin at 3:13.

Rating: C. They got in some hard shots here but Holland showed off more potential here. If he gets a character to go with the look and hard hitting, they have something with him. He can be the body guy around here and the kind of powerful physicality can take him a long way. T-Bone isn’t going to get pushed but he’s a fine brawler and that’s a good thing to have around.

Next week: Tyler Bate vs. A-Kid and Trent Seven vs. Eddie Dennis in a steel corner street fight.

Imperium vs. Dave Mastiff/Flash Morgan Webster/Mark Andrews

Walter is the odd man out here, with the Wolfe injury being mentioned on commentary because putting in commentary later is a useful tool. Andrews and Barthel start things off and the size difference is rather notable. Barthel takes him down and works on the arm to start, even spinning around while holding an armbar. It’s Aichner coming in for an armbar of his own so Webster comes in to try his luck.

A running hurricanrana is easily countered and Aichner cranks on the ankle while pulling him over to the ropes. Webster knocks Barthel down though and hits a standing inverted Swanton for two. That’s enough to bring in Mastiff and a hiptoss has Aichner down. It’s already back to Andrews, who spins around for a headscissors to send Aichner over for the tag to Barthel.

The fast tags continue with Mastiff grabbing a delayed vertical suplex for two on Barthel, setting up Andrews’ basement dropkick for the same. Webster climbs onto Barthel’s back for a hurricanrana to Wolfe but Wolfe is right back with a SCARY German suplex to drop him onto the back of his head. Things slow down in a hurry and Webster is tied in the Tree of Woe for the running double dropkicks.

A spinebuster into a penalty kick gets two but Webster is right back up with the tag off to Mastiff to run people over. Everything breaks down and Barthel throws Andrews to Aichner for the suplex, only to get reversed into the Stundog Millionaire. Andrews and Webster hit the stereo flip dives and Mastiff dives off the apron onto all three villains. Mastiff even mocks the Imperium pose, drawing out Walter to jump him from behind. That earns Walter a right hand to the face but it’s Aichner hitting a brainbuster on Andrews for the pin at 11:27.

Rating: B-. Mastiff has been one of the more interesting people around here for a long time now as he looks like any other big guy who shouldn’t have much of a run around here. However, he’s stayed relevant since his debut and while he isn’t going to win, it isn’t insane to put him against Walter. The others were their usual selves and I can go for more of them in spots like this.

Walter and Mastiff stare each other down to end the show. I could go for that.

Overall Rating: C+. Not too bad of a show here, though the continuity issues from Worlds Collide and NXT were a little distracting (not a big negative, just distracting). The Mastiff vs. Walter stuff feels like a mini filler feud until we get on to the Wrestlemania season stuff and that’s acceptable. The rest of the show was pretty skippable, but it was still a fine enough show that didn’t get dull so well enough done.

Results

Oney Lorcan/Danny Burch b. The Hunt – Elevated DDT to Primate

Isla Dawn b. Nina Samuels – Half and half suplex

Ridge Holland b. Tyson T-Bone – Northern Grit

Imperium b. Dave Mastiff/Flash Morgan Webster/Mark Andrews – Brainbuster to Andrews

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

NXT UK
Date: December 12, 2019
Location: Bonus Arena, Hull, England
Commentators: Tom Phillips, Nigel McGuinness

The roll towards Blackpool continues as we are getting ready for one of the biggest shows that NXT UK has ever had. The show is going to be built around Gallus vs. Imperium in what should be a rather hard hitting feud. That feud will be continuing this week with Gallus defending the Tag Team Titles against Imperium in a main event set up last week. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Isla Dawn vs. Kay Lee Ray

Non-title. The fans seem split but the pro-Dawn chants are a bit louder. Dawn gets in a quick crossbody for two and la majistral is good for the same. It’s way too early for the Gory Bomb from Ray as Dawn reverses into a sunset flip for two instead. Ray blocks a rollup attempt and a faceplant giver her two of her own. Dawn’s leg is wrapped around the middle rope but Ray misses a charge into the corner. A running knee in the corner corner hits Ray but bangs up the knee again. Back in and a Meteora gives Dawn two, only to have the knee go out again. Some superkicks set up the Gory Bomb to finish Dawn at 4:27.

Rating: C. Just a match here as Ray had to sweat a little bit before winning in the end. The fans responded well to Dawn and maybe a face run for her could go somewhere. You don’t exactly expect that out of someone called the White Witch but stranger things have worked. Ray is becoming a bigger deal though and winning like this will get her higher up the all time ranks.

Post match Ray says she doesn’t care who she faces next and mentions both Toni Storm and Piper Niven. Cue Piper with a shake of her head but Storm charges past her to go after Ray. The fight is on but Storm is knocked into Piper, who isn’t happy at being dropped. They argue as Ray leaves, only to have Sid Scala come out and announce a triple threat for the title at Takeover.

Jordan Devlin is here to show some highlights of the rest of the NXT UK roster. We start with the Grizzled Young Veterans defeating Moustache Mountain to become the first Tag Team Champions. Then Tyler Bate got beaten up at the Download Festival. Finally, Bate lost to Walter at Takeover: Cardiff while Devlin was sat on the sidelines. Shame really. Good stuff from Devlin here.

Joe Coffey says Takeover is the biggest night of his career. Last time they were in Blackpool, Walter kicked him in the face so this time it’s time to show that Gallus is the best.

Michael May vs. Trent Seven

Or not as Eddie Dennis comes out and jumps May, telling Seven that it was a gift. No match of course.

Noam Dar wants to fight at Takeover but Johnny Saint gives him a match with Tyler Bate next week instead.

Ridge Holland vs. Jack Starz

Holland throws him around like a toy to start, including a hard head and arms suplex. A knee to the ribs cuts off the comeback cold and there’s a double underhook overhead belly to belly. Starz avoids a charge in the corner and grabs a headlock, which I don’t see going well. Holland pounce the heck out of him though and finishes with Northern Grit at 2:39. Another dominant and impressive performance.

Post match Holland is nice enough to give Starz a tip of the cap.

A healthy Amir Jordan surprises Kenny Williams at the gym. They’re teaming, and dancing, again next week.

Tag Team Titles: Gallus vs. Imperium

Gallus is defending against Marcel Barthel/Fabian Aichner. They start fighting before the Big Match Intros are done and it’s Mark forearming Aichner to start. A headlock takeover puts Coffey down so it’s off to Barthel for an armbar. Aichner slaps on one of his own but Coffey pops up with a jumping shoulder. It’s off to Wolfgang, with Phillips trying to compare him to British Strong Style as the fathers of NXT UK. Other than being in the same place, I’m not exactly seeing the resemblance.

Everything breaks down for a bit and Barthel gets flipped into the corner. He rakes the eyes to get out of a fireman’s carry and some stereo dropkicks in the corner have Coffey in trouble. Barthel gets rather cocky and yells in the corner as a trainer comes out to check on Coffey. He’s fine enough to slap Barthel in the face so it’s more stomping in the corner. Aichner hits a hard clothesline but gets backdropped over the top to give Coffey an opening.

Another backdrop allows the tag off to Wolfgang so house can be cleaned. A swinging neckbreaker gets two on Aichner and it’s back to Coffey in a hurry. Now the catapult into the Samoan drop can connect for two and everything breaks down again. With Coffey down on the floor, an assisted spinebuster gets two on Wolfgang.

Coffey is back up to block the European Bomb and it’s time for the slugout. Coffey wins a slugout with Aichner and forearms Barthel out of the air. Aichner drops Coffey but walks into a spear from Wolfgang to put everyone down. Cue the Grizzled Young Veterans to steal the titles but Mark Andrews and Flash Morgan Webster cut them off. They all get in and the match is thrown out at 11:58.

Rating: B. This was getting good by the end but the interference was necessary to get us to the match that really matters. Gallus vs. Imperium could go on for a long time now and if this is the kind of match that we are going to get, we should be just fine for the next several weeks. Or we can just have a big mess of a match at Takeover, which should be fine too.

Post match the big brawl is on until Johnny Saint and Sid Scala come out to announce a four team ladder match for the titles at Takeover. That seems like quite the harsh decision, unfair to the champs and rather overly fair to the Veterans.

Overall Rating: C+. Pretty nice show overall with Takeover coming together (albeit in matches that weren’t really surprising, which isn’t a bad thing) and a solid main event. Things are starting to look good around here and with the shadow of Walter lurking, we could be in for a lot of good stuff for the near and even somewhat far future.

Results

Kay Lee Ray b. Isla Dawn – Gory Bomb

Ridge Holland b. Jack Starz – Northern Grit

Gallus vs. Imperium went to a no contest when the Grizzled Young Veterans, Mark Andrews and Flash Morgan Webster interfered

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

NXT UK
Date: November 7, 2019
Location: Brentwood Centre, Essex, England
Commentators: Tom Phillips, Nigel McGuinness

I’m not sure what is going on here but things have felt rather flat lately. Maybe it is the lack of Walter and the top title, but they have gone about as far as they can without the champ showing up anytime in recent weeks. The rest of the stuff has been running out of steam for a good while now and they need to come up with something else. Maybe they can do that tonight so let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Joe Coffey vs. Tyson T-Bone

Coffey goes right after him and it’s a slugout to start. You don’t try to punch with someone named T-Bone and of course he gets the better of it, only to have Coffey knee him in the ribs. Coffey muscles him up for a backbreaker and a hard clothesline gets two. The armbar goes on for a good while until T-Bone hiptosses his way to freedom. A suplex gets two on Coffey but he’s right back with a spinning middle rope crossbody. All The Best For The Bells finishes T-Bone at 4:52.

Rating: C-. It was a scrappy win but Coffey gets some momentum back after being out of the ring for a long time. That’s a good idea as Gallus seems primed for a big push, perhaps as faces. Coffey won clean here and he still has a heck of a finisher to go with the awesome name. T-Bone is good in rolls like this and the match would have been even better without the long armbar.

Xia Brookside isn’t worried about Kay Lee Ray because she has been training hard.

Ridge Holland, who wears shoes and walks through puddles, is coming. You may remember him as Luke Menzies.

Video on Piper Niven, who started watching during the Attitude Era and then thought she could do that. More on this next week.

Killer Kelly vs. Isla Dawn

This is Kelly’s first match since May due to a knee injury. Dawn takes her down by the arm to start and goes for the knee, sending Kelly straight to the ropes. Kelly slugs away and gets two off a clothesline but Dawn is back with some uppercuts. A Saito suplex is blocked so Dawn gets two off a belly to back instead. Kelly is back up with a running dropkick into the corner and another in the corner for a bonus. Not that it matters as Dawn grabs a bridging half and half suplex for the pin at 4:24.

Rating: C. Kelly has never quite done it for me and Dawn is someone whose gimmick gets my attention but it never quite clicks. The other problem is that there really isn’t any room at the top of the division and I’m not sure where Dawn would fit. We’ve been here before, and I don’t see the result going any differently.

Kassius Ohno doesn’t think much of British Strong Style because they just took an idea from Japan because it sounded cool. Now he’ll have to teach Tyler Bate a lesson at the hands of the wrestling genius.

Next week: Ray vs. Brookside and Banks vs. Ligero II.

Mark Andrews/Flash Morgan Webster vs. Grizzled Young Veterans

Webster and Gibson get things going with Gibson throwing him down to start without much effort. That earns him a headlock takeover as the first gear continues. Drake comes in and gets sunset flipped for two so it’s off to Andrews, which sends Drake bailing to the floor. After a breather, Drake comes back in but can’t backslide Andrews. The opposite can happen for a near fall though and it’s Andrews hitting a basement dropkick for two more.

An armdrag keeps Drake in trouble as Gibson offers some loud advice: “DRAKE! STOP HIM!” Everything breaks down again and stereo dropkicks put the Veterans on the floor. Back in and Webster drops Gibson for two but it’s Drake coming in off a blind tag to kick him in the leg. Another dropkick knocks Andrews off the apron and Nigel is on his feet in love of Gibson.

The kneeling backbreaker/slingshot elbow to the chest crushes Webster on the floor as the momentum has completely changed in a hurry. A hard elbow to the jaw gives Drake two and the chinlock goes on. Gibson comes in for a harder chinlock, followed by Drake’s spinwheel kick to the head. A suplex sets up another chinlock but Webster finally fights up with some forearms. The Blue Boy Block puts Drake down but Gibson is right there to pull Andrews to the floor.

A kick to the chest is enough to get rid of Drake though and Andrews comes in to clean house. Andrews’ tornado DDT and assisted 450 get two on Gibson but Webster gets sent outside. A superkick/neckbreaker combination gets two on Andrews but he’s fine enough to catch Drake in a sitout powerbomb. There’s a slingshot hurricanrana to put Gibson down on the floor so Webster can slingshot onto Drake for two.

Back in and Webster gets out of the Shankley Gates but takes a running dropkick in the corner. Double knees to the chest give Drake two and the fans are rather impressed. A Doomsday Device misses and Webster rolls Gibson up for two and Andrews hits a reverse hurricanrana on Gibson for the four way knockdown. Cue Imperium and Gallus on the stage for a staredown, with Gallus running in to jump the Veterans for the DQ at 19:27.

Rating: B. This took its time but started rocking by the end and I’m glad they went with the ending instead of someone taking a fall. It’s a good match with two talented teams, as Andrews and Webster have done more than I was expecting from them. The action was hot and it didn’t feel as long as it was so well done on all counts.

Post match the double beatdown is on and it’s another Gallus vs. Imperium staredown. Alexander Wolfe and Joe Coffey come out to make it three on three. Cue Walter and Gallus is in trouble….so it’s Ilja Dragunov to even things up again and it’s the big staredown into the big brawl to end the show with the crowd WAY into things.

Overall Rating: B-. The ending segment was quite good and it’s amazing how much better the show feels just because Walter is there. I know it was all of a minute and a half but he gets your attention and you know that something important is happening. The main event and the post match angle carried this after a just ok first half. A revamped (and apparently face) Gallus vs. Imperium works for me, as you can only rely on British Strong Style for so long. Not a great start but a very strong ending and that’s more important.

Results

Joe Coffey b. Tyson T-Bone – All The Best For The Bells

Isla Dawn b. Killer Kelly – Bridging half and half suplex

Flash Morgan Webster/Mark Andrews b. Grizzled Young Veterans via DQ when Gallus interfered

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:

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