NXT
Date: January 16, 2019
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Mauro Ranallo, Percy Watson, Nigel McGuinness

We’re almost to Phoenix and things continue to get more and more interesting around here. That’s one of the best things that you can have happen to you at the right time and since it’s NXT, they know exactly how to do so. Keep building things in the NXT way and everything will be just fine. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Street Profits vs. Metro Brothers

Ford and Chris Metro start things off with a takedown and dancing having Chris in early trouble. Dawkins comes in to fire Ford up and accidentally knocks him down in a funny bit. JC comes in and slaps Dawkins, earning himself a fast knockdown. Ford is very pleased with his partner and a heck of a frog splash finishes JC at 1:49. Total destruction.

Post match the Forgotten Sons run in and beat down the Profits. Fans: “WE FORGOT YOU! STAY FORGOTTEN!”

Matt Riddle is still banged up and can’t be in Keith Lee’s corner tonight against Kassius Ohno. He just hopes Lee leaves a little bit for him.

Aleister Black says Tommaso Ciampa knew he wasn’t safe. At Takeover, he will absolve Ciampa of his sins but let’s start the fight early next week. It was nice to see an old school talk to the camera promo instead of the hold your phone style that they love anymore.

Here’s Bianca Belair for a chat. After bragging about getting rid of Nikki Cross last week, we hear about how she’s going to take the title at Takeover, no matter what Shayna and her horse friends think. This brings out Shayna Baszler with Jessamyn Duke and Marina Shafir with Shayna saying she doesn’t see it.

Yeah Belair set a bunch of records at the Performance Center and maybe the fastest and the strongest, but she’s not the smartest. Belair shrugs it off but Shayna promises to turn Belair from un-de-feat-ed to over-ratted. Shayna as Duke and Shafir go to the corner but walks into a slap. Belair bails from the numbers advantage in a smart move. This worked well and Shayna continues to look like a star.

Dominik Dijakovic vs. Adrian Jaoude

Jaoude can’t get anywhere off an attempted ankle pick but a double leg works far better. Dijakovic can’t wrestle up so it’s so kicks to the ribs into a spinning elbow to the face instead. A hard clothesline (the Bloodline) sends Jaoude into the corner but he grabs a kneebar to slow Dijakovic down. Jaoude can’t follow up though and it’s a big boot to set up Feast Your Eyes for the pin at 4:23.

Rating: C-. Jaoude continues to impress in defeat as he has the look and mat skills to go somewhere. There’s a lot more to it than that of course but at least he has the unique part down. Dijakovic is certainly good as well, though that name is just stupid when he already had a bit of a name coming in. At least he’s winning though.

The War Raiders are out in a field and light a bonfire with Undisputed Era chairs on top. They’ll destroy the champs in Phoenix, and that is undisputed.

Video on Takeover: Blackpool. Walter’s debut still makes it worth the whole thing.

Johnny Gargano vs. Humberto Carrillo

Apparently Carrillo is the nephew of Hector Garza. Doesn’t really change anything but an extra detail doesn’t hurt anyone. They fight over a wristlock to start until Carrillo backflips out of the corner. A nipup confuses Johnny and an enziguri makes his head hurt. Carrillo sends him outside but charges into the slingshot spear.

An abdominal stretch keeps Carrillo in trouble and lasts about as long as any other abdominal stretch. Gargano gets elbowed to the floor for a dive from Carrillo and a heck of a high missile dropkick puts Johnny down again. The moonsault takes too long though and Johnny gets his feet up. The Lawn Dart sets up the slingshot DDT to finish Carrillo at 4:43.

Rating: C+. This was reminiscent of Lex Luger getting ready to face the Giant back in WCW as he fought someone of a similar style, like Roadblock in his situation (Raise your hand if you thought you’d get a Roadblock reference this week). Carrillo is VERY impressive and I’m glad he got the call up to 205 Live this week as the division needs that kind of skill.

Post match Johnny calls out Ricochet for next week.

Tommaso Ciampa says if he’s the puppet master, Aleister Black is the ultimate puppet. The champ only fights on the biggest stage so we’ll wait until Phoenix for the real fight. Just be careful what you wish for.

Velveteen Dream video.

Kassius Ohno vs. Keith Lee

A very big shoulder takes Ohno down early and Lee follows up with a spear for two. That’s enough to send Ohno outside for a breather but he has to move before Lee can try a dive. Back in and Lee unloads with the heavy lefts and rights but Ohno scores with a running big boot. The running backsplash gives Ohno two and it’s off to the double arm crank.

Ohno forearms him in the back of the head for two more and it’s time for the chinlock. That’s broken up so Ohno tries another backsplash, which just hits knees. Lee slugs away and gets two off a slingshot crossbody. A Mongolian chop sets up the Pounce but Ohno grabs the rope to get out of the fireman’s carry. Lee shoves the referee by mistake and gets hit low, setting up the rolling elbow to finish Lee at 9:14.

Rating: C+. Nice power brawl here with both guys looking good. I get where they’re going with Ohno winning as it sets up another showdown with Riddle, but did they need to have Lee take a second straight loss? The Riddle match was already done a few weeks ago and doesn’t exactly need to happen again after a clean loss. The story makes sense from where they went with it, but not so much with having Lee lose again.

Post match Riddle runs out to chase Ohno off.

Overall Rating: C. This was a much lighter show and there’s nothing wrong with that. Next week will be the big hard push and we did get a nice build towards the Women’s Title match here. Other than that we likely saw the setup for Ohno vs. Riddle III at Takeover so at least we got something extra as a result. Not a bad show, but not one that you really need to see.

Results

Street Profits b. Metro Brothers – Powerbomb/European uppercut combination to JC

Dominik Dijakovic b. Adrian Jaoude – Feast Your Eyes

Kassius Ohno b. Keith Lee – Rolling elbow

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

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

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

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

NXT
Date: January 2, 2019
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Mauro Ranallo, Nigel McGuinness, Percy Watson

It’s getting close to Takeover time and the show is starting to come into focus. With some of the matches already set, the rest of the card can be put together over the next few weeks. As tends to be the case in NXT, you can probably guess what’s coming but the journey is the most entertaining part. Let’s get to it.

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

This is a special two hour edition as we look at the NXT Year End Awards. Well so much for seeing what we’ve got coming up.

In Memory of Gene Okerlund.

Opening sequence.

We go to Cathy Kelley at WWE Headquarters to hype up the Year End Awards nominees being announced tonight.

And we’ve got a Best Of show. As usual, full versions of the matches will be listed even if clipped versions are shown.

From Takeover: New Orleans.

North American Title: EC3 vs. Lars Sullivan vs. Adam Cole vs. Killian Dain vs. Ricochet vs. Velveteen Dream

Ladder match for the inaugural title with EC3 and Ricochet making their in-ring debut. Cole is the heavy crowd favorite here but they’re not opposed to some of the others. The fans deem this awesome at the opening bell and it’s EC3 bailing to the floor. Ricochet is thrown outside with Dream and Cole following, leaving the battle of the monsters in the ring. Actually never mind as they both go outside to surround EC3, which doesn’t take much effort.

That allows Ricochet to dive off the top with a shooting star onto the giants though and the fans go even nuttier than they were just a few seconds ago. The first ladder is set up but Dream catches Ricochet before he can go anywhere. Ricochet flips around into a headscissors and a dropkick in an incredibly smooth sequence. Dream breaks up a springboard and goes up, drawing in Cole for a save this time around.

EC3 comes in with a jawbreaker and a Hennig necksnap to Cole but it’s Sullivan time again. A pair of powerslams later and both normal sized guys are gone, leaving Dain to knock Sullivan outside. Dain isn’t done with a HUGE suicide dive taking Sullivan out. Cole, Ricochet and EC3 manage to get Dain down and it’s a big brawl with the monsters down. That doesn’t last long either though as it’s Sullivan throwing a ladder at them and wiping everyone out without much effort again.

Dream gets gorilla pressed onto the ladder and Sullivan goes up, drawing some incredible booing. Ricochet can’t sunset bomb him off so EC3 and Dream help, along with Cole punching Sullivan in the face to FINALLY put him down. Now it’s Dain shoving Cole down though and backdropping Ricochet onto the ladder. Cole and EC3 get together to take out Sullivan and Dain in a smart move. With the monsters down, a ladder is bridged between the announcers’ table and ring, which can’t possibly end well.

Hang on though as EC3 does Cole’s pose and that’s just not cool with Cole, who AA’s EC3 onto the ladder. A series of superkicks put a bunch of people down and here’s the REAL pose. Sullivan is up to push the ladder over but this time it’s Dream getting up and cleaning house. Dream even shoves a ladder into a charging Sullivan’s face to cut him off, setting up a HUGE Purple Rainmaker off the ladder (with his head above the belt) to crush Sullivan.

The writhing in pain means Dream’s climb is rather slow and EC3 powerbombs him off one ladder and into another. A TKO off the ladder drops Cole as well but it’s Dain back in to kick EC3 down. He puts a ladder onto EC3 and drops a Vader Bomb, followed by a second with Cole on his back to make it even worse. It’s finally time for Sullivan vs. Dain but Ricochet runs back in….and is tossed back and forth between the two of them like a ball. With Ricochet thrown away, the big men slug it out until Sullivan powerslams Dain down to get the better of it.

Ricochet makes another save and climbs up but Sullivan shoves the ladder over, only to have Ricochet moonsault off (as the ladder is falling back) onto Cole and Dain outside. You know, because of course he can do that. Back in and Ricochet hits a shooting star onto EC3 onto the ladder, because he hasn’t taken enough abuse so far. Dream is back up though and bridges a ladder into the standing ladder, with Ricochet standing on the platform. That means a Death Valley Bomb to drive Ricochet into the ladder and everyone is down again.

Sullivan and Dream are up first with the former putting Dream on the bridged ladder. A Freak Accident puts EC3 through Dream through the ladder, leaving EC3 with a look of physical shock on his face. Not to be outdone, Dain drives Cole through Ricochet through a second bridged ladder to put all six down even longer this time. Sullivan and Dain crawl back in and go up the ladder, only to have EC3 and Cole come in with a ladder of their own to climb next to them.

Naturally Dream and Ricochet are up on a third ladder and Cole gets knocked down. Ricochet and Dream go down with EC3 falling as well, leaving a battle of the monsters. Sullivan gives Dain a huge Freak Accident off the ladder and goes up again, drawing even more booing. Cue Ricochet to springboard in and land on Sullivan’s back, dropping two ladders down in the process. Ricochet goes up but Cole turns it over and pulls down the title at 31:15.

Rating: A+. Well that was incredible. I mean really, what else can you say? This never felt longer than it needed to be and was one insane spot after another. Coming in and during the match, it always felt like all six could have won, meaning that nothing felt like a waste of time. Cole winning is one of several acceptable choices and no one comes out of this looking worse than when they came in. Just an amazing spectacle and one of the best things I’ve ever seen in NXT, or any promotion for that matter.

Quick look at Ricochet winning the title from Cole at Takeover: Brooklyn IV.

Here are the nominees for Breakout Star of the Year:

Ricochet

Dakota Kai

Lars Sullivan

Rhea Ripley

War Raiders

Lacey Evans

EC3

Bianca Belair

Video on the rise and split of DIY. The fact that this is still going strong nine months later is remarkable.

From Takeover: New Orleans again.

Johnny Gargano vs. Tommaso Ciampa

Unsanctioned match, meaning anything goes and it’s pinfall or submission only with Gargano’s NXT career on the line. Ciampa comes out to no music, looking as carved up as you could imagine him being. The fans are all over him with some rather vulgar chants and Ciampa is reveling in soaking them all in. Ciampa gets on the corner and says that its his show and his moment. Fans: “F*** YOU CIAMPA!” He even closes his eyes to listen to the chants. Gargano’s music gets a heck of a reaction and you can feel the energy here. In a nice touch, the referee has a black shirt on instead of the usual referee gear.

They stare each other down at the bell and now it’s on with wild punches. That’s how it should start as there’s no reason for this to be about wrestling. The slingshot spear puts Ciampa down and Gargano stomps a heck of a mudhole in the corner before taking it to the floor. Ciampa gets sent over the barricade and Gargano dives right at him to get even more. This time Ciampa gets something out of it though by dropping Gargano ribs first across the barricade.

Gargano tries a piledriver on the table but Ciampa hits him with a monitor. That’s followed by a suplex to take Gargano off the table and to the floor with a sick thud. Ciampa gets creative by slamming Gargano onto the table cover as the pace slows. They get back inside with Ciampa’s face looking more and more evil by the second. Gargano uses the sneering break to get up for a slugout until a belly to back suplex cuts him off for one. A modified Texas Cloverleaf (more like a Liontamer) has Gargano in more trouble until he makes the rope….which means nothing here, as it shouldn’t.

Gargano crawls over the apron to force the break so Ciampa stomps on the back of his head, followed by applauding himself. The fans call Ciampa a rather mean British term and it’s made even worse as he steals a plant’s crutches. Back in and Gargano takes the crutch away and hits the rolling kick to the head to send Ciampa out to the apron. The slingshot DDT is blocked so Ciampa loads up an Air Raid Crash to the exposed concrete.

To prevent a bad case of death, Gargano reverses into a powerbomb onto the same concrete. Fans: “YOU DESERVE IT!” Thank goodness, as I was worried about the fans cheering Ciampa for being too good of a villain. Somehow that’s not enough to end Ciampa so Gargano unloads with crutch shots. Ciampa backdrops him to the floor to save himself and Gargano hits his back on the apron. He’s fine enough to crutch Ciampa in the head though and the slingshot DDT gets two.

Gargano pulls the turnbuckle pad off but can’t hit the Lawn Dart. Instead he’s sent to the apron and the slingshot spear is kneed out of the air. A torture rack powerbomb gives Ciampa two more before he goes old school with the Meet in the Middle knee to the back of the head. That’s only two again and frustration/disbelief sets in. Back up and Gargano grabs the beard so he can hammer on Ciampa even more. A reverse hurricanrana is more like a Backstabber as Gargano can’t get Ciampa over.

Not that it matters as he grabs the Gargano Escape instead, even rolling back into the middle of the ring for good measure. Ciampa rakes the eye for the break, drawing a heck of a heel reaction from the fans. With nothing else working, Ciampa chokes with his wrist tape but Gargano grabs it and they slug it out (great touch as they’re attached here, just like they always have been).

Gargano gets the better of it but a low blow cuts him off. A crutch to the back and Project Ciampa (a powerbomb onto knees) give Ciampa two and they’re both spent. Ciampa pulls himself up and says this is his so Gargano slaps him in the face. A superkick has some more effect and now the Lawn Dart sends Ciampa into the buckle. The low superkick (and a GREAT one at that) gets two in an incredible false finish. They head up top and it’s a SUPER PROJECT CIAMPA (onto Ciampa’s bad knee) for two in an even better false finish that I bought even more than the previous one.

Ciampa takes the brace off instead and loads up the big running knee, only to get hit in the knee with the brace to cut him off. Gargano gets the crutch again and bends it down a bit….only to stop when Ciampa begs off. They sit next to each other (in a callback to their match in the Cruiserweight Classic back in 2016) but Ciampa swings with the brace. That misses though and it’s the Gargano Escape again. Gargano switches to an STF, using the brace to pull on Ciampa’s face for the tap at 36:59.

Rating: A+. And that might be the best match NXT has ever produced. This was a complete roller coaster with both guys looking like they wanted to kill the other, going from one great bit of violence to the next. Some of those near falls were great too, with the possibility that either of them could have won at different points. That being said, Gargano winning was the right call no matter what, as he was the hero in the end.

The emotion here was awesome too, with some perfect callbacks to the deep history between these two. I’ve seen this match a few times now and it does not get old, nor does it ever feel long. It’s an incredible performance and one of the best things I’ve ever seen in wrestling. Absolutely see this, but do yourself a favor and watch a lot of the earlier matches to set it up first. That’s the extra stuff that puts it over the top, making it one of the best things NXT has ever done.

Quick look at Ciampa winning the rematch at Takeover: Chicago which sent Gargano on a downward spiral.

Clips of Aleister Black winning the NXT Title from Andrade Cien Almas, also from Takeover: New Orleans.

From July 25.

NXT Title: Tommaso Ciampa vs. Aleister Black

Ciampa is challenging and still has no music. He even breaks up Black’s pre-match poses like a real villain. They lock up hard to start with Black getting the better of a technical exchange on the mat. It’s almost weird to see Ciampa wrestling but it makes sense because his hatred is at Johnny Gargano alone. A small package gives Black two as they’re still firmly in first gear. The hanging DDT is quickly broken up and Black hits his first kick to the chest to keep Ciampa down.

More kicks have Ciampa on the floor and Black moonsaults into the seated position so he can mock Ciampa’s wave. Back in and Ciampa gets in his first real shots to put Black on the floor for a whip into the steps. Now it’s Ciampa’s turn to mock Black’s pose because what’s good for one devil is good for another. Ciampa stays on the back with a backbreaker and an abdominal stretch.

Nigel is right there to talk about how this will weaken the Black Mass because it’s based on core strength because Nigel actually knows how to analyze a match. A Texas Cloverleaf switches over to the legs but Black is in the ropes pretty quickly. Black is fine enough to escape a super White Noise and a collision gives us a double knockdown, continuing the odd theory of one move balancing out a long stretch of offense.

More kicks have Ciampa in trouble and the standing Lionsault gets two. A hard kick to the head is good for the same and some kicks to the chest (Black: “TWEET ABOUT THIS!”) rock him even more. He’s fine enough to hit a top rope DDT for two but Black is right back with kicks to the head. A big spinning kick to the head sets up a German suplex for a near fall and Ciampa bails to the floor. Black misses a moonsault though and Ciampa sends him into the cameraman.

Back in and the hanging DDT gets a VERY close two so it’s time to pull the ring mats up. The referee starts yelling so Ciampa comes back in, only to be shoved into the referee, knocking him to the floor. Black Mass connects but there’s no one to count. Ciampa goes for the eye and grabs the title but here’s Gargano to superkick him. Gargano tries to take the belt away, sending it square into Black’s head. Ciampa sends Gargano outside and a lifting sitout Pedigree (Christopher Daniels’ Angel’s Wings, a FAR better finisher than that lame neckbreaker Ciampa was using) finishes Black at 22:18.

Rating: A-. It’s basically Shawn/Bret/Undertaker at Summerslam 1997 and that’s not a bad place to be. You could easily get to a triple threat from here and for once I like that idea instead of going with the trilogy. Black vs. Gargano could be awesome on its own and you could really milk the build to Gargano vs. Ciampa III where Gargano goes back to his normal self (how fitting of a first line to his theme music: “Be yourself, can’t be no no else.”) to defeat the evil once and for all.

The match itself was a great piece of drama with Black knowing he had the big weapon ready to win in the end but getting caught by outside interference and Ciampa being evil enough to take him down. Black is kept very strong as he knocked Ciampa cold and didn’t lose clean, making this another near perfectly booked match.

Recap of the Whodunit story to find out who attacked Black.

From Takeover: WarGames II.

Matt Riddle vs. Kassius Ohno

Knee to the face beats Ohno in six seconds.

Ohno wasn’t happy and jumped Riddle a few weeks later.

Here are the nominees for Tag Team of the Year:

Oney Lorcan/Danny Burch

Street Profits

Heavy Machinery

Moustache Mountain

War Raiders

Undisputed Era

From Takeover: Chicago II.

Tag Team Titles: Undisputed Era vs. Danny Burch/Oney Lorcan

Roderick Strong and Kyle O’Reilly are defending and have Adam Cole in their corner. The fans are behind the champs here (well duh) as Strong headlocks Lorcan to start. It’s off to O’Reilly for a headlock takeover and some right hands to Burch’s head but Burch easily wins a slugout. Everything breaks down and Kyle gets suplexed onto Strong before the champs are sent to the floor.

That’s enough for the hot tag off to Lorcan and it’s time for the running uppercuts. Lorcan nails a big running dive over the top and alternates chops to both champs. The double elevated DDT gets two on Strong but a Doomsday Device is broken up with Lorcan being shoved hard onto the apron. O’Reilly scores with an enziguri on Burch and the cross armbreaker goes on. Somehow that’s rolled over so Burch can grab a rope and the fans are NOT happy that he survived. Geez guys give the bald guys a chance.

The High/Low is broken up and Lorcan is back up with a double Blockbuster off the apron. Now the Doomsday Uppercut gets two as Cole pulls Strong out at the last second. That means an ejection and the fans now hate the referee too. Strong saves another elevated DDT but Lorcan suplexes his way out of a guillotine choke.

A blind tag brings Strong back in so Lorcan powerbombs him down as the referee tells them they have one minute left. The champs get caught in a double submission with O’Reilly having to kick Lorcan off a half crab to break up Burch’s Crossface. A slugout actually goes to the champs and the High/Low ends Lorcan at 15:59.

Rating: B. This was getting close to the great level and that’s a very solid place for an opener. They were also smart to let the fans cheer for the Undisputed Era early on as you know they’re going to be the most popular guys on the card all night long. Burch and Lorcan looked great here and they might have their day later on. This was all it needed to be though and you can probably have War Raiders waiting on the champs in Brooklyn.

Burch and Lorcan get a standing ovation post match.

Here are the nominees for Rivalry of the Year:

Andrade Cien Almas vs. Johnny Gargano

Shayna Baszler vs. Ember Moon

Johnny Gargano vs. Tommaso Ciampa

Undisputed Era vs. Moustache Mountain

Velveteen Dream vs. Ricochet

Aleister Black vs. Nikki Cross vs. Tommaso Ciampa vs. Johnny Gargano

Shayna Baszler vs. Kairi Sane

Here are the nominees for the Future Star of the Year:

Matt Riddle

Mia Yim

Keith Lee

Forgotten Sons

Candice LeRae

Marina Shafir/Jessamyn Duke

Kona Reeves

Dominik Dijakovic

Io Shirai

Here are the nominees for Match of the Year (only a sampling listed here but the full list is from WWE.com):

WarGames Match (TakeOver: WarGames)
Johnny Gargano vs. Andrade “Cien” Almas (NXT Championship Match, TakeOver: Philadelphia)
Moustache Mountain vs. Undisputed ERA (NXT Tag Team Championship Match, NXT TV, July 11, 2018)
Johnny Gargano vs. Tommaso Ciampa (Unsanctioned Match, TakeOver: New Orleans)
NXT North American Championship Ladder Match (TakeOver: New Orleans)
Kairi Sane vs. Shayna Baszler (NXT Women’s Championship Match, TakeOver: Brooklyn IV)
Ricochet vs. Velveteen Dream (TakeOver: Chicago)
Aleister Black vs. Tommaso Ciampa (NXT Championship Match, NXT TV, July 25)
Pete Dunne vs. Zack Gibson (WWE U.K. Championship Match, NXT TV, Aug. 22)
Aleister Black vs. Adam Cole (Extreme Rules Match, TakeOver: Philadelphia)
Pete Dunne vs. Kyle O’Reilly (WWE U.K. Championship Match, NXT TV, June 13)
Danny Burch & Oney Lorcan vs. Undisputed ERA (TakeOver: Chicago)
Nikki Cross vs. Bianca Belair (NXT TV, Sept. 12)
Ricochet vs. Pete Dunne (NXT North American Champion vs. WWE U.K. Champion Match, NXT TV, Sept. 19)
Ricochet vs. Pete Dunne vs. Adam Cole (NXT North American Championship Triple Threat Match, NXT TV, Oct. 10)

From August 22:

Bianca Belair vs. Deonna Purrazzo

Purrazzo has wrestled all over the indies and had a few appearances with NXT a few years back. The fans seem very pleased to see her as some early headlock takeovers are escaped with a nipup and a handstand. A headscissors into a Fujiwara armbar doesn’t work so Purrazzo tries it again, only to get caught in a gutbuster to put her in trouble. Belair crashes down onto Purrazzo’s back and we hit the full nelson.

Back up and some elbows to the ribs have Purrazzo in more trouble as the EST chants begin. Belair’s standing moonsault misses and a basement dropkick connects. The Fujiwara armbar goes on but Belair fights up and hits a torture rack into the faceplant (kind of a reverse Samoan driver) for the pin at 5:40.

Rating: C-. This was exactly what it needed to be with the fans getting a little taste of Purrazzo as Belair goes over strong in the end. Purrazzo is going to be fine around here with her skill level (at 24 years old) and charisma so everything is going to be fine. Belair is likely coming for the title sooner rather than later.

Clips of Johnny Gargano vs. Aleister Black from Takeover: WarGames II.

We look at what seemed to be a DIY reunion in the cage match from two weeks ago.

Gargano isn’t sure what to think of what happened in the cage but he beat Black, which helps him become the hero at the end of the story.

Here are the nominees for Male Competitor of the Year:

Adam Cole

Pete Dunne

Andrade Cien Almas

Ricochet

Velveteen Dream

Johnny Gargano

Aleister Black

Tommaso Ciampa

Here are the nominees for Female Competitor of the Year:

Ember Moon

Nikki Cross

Kairi Sane

Bianca Belair

Shayna Baszler

Matt Riddle vs. Kassius Ohno

Riddle misses an early jumping knee so it’s off to some kicks in the corner, followed by some running forearms. Ohno can’t block an exploder suplex and a backsplash crushes him all over again. Back up and Ohno hits a few shots of his own before giving Riddle a flipping backsplash of his own. A loud kick to the head rocks Riddle again but he somehow scores a German suplex. Ohno scores with a jumping knee to the head of his own and the cyclone kick gets two. Riddle isn’t having this though and kicks him down, setting up the Bromission, with some slaps to the chest, to make Ohno tap at 6:05.

Rating: C-. It was hard hitting with Riddle winning as he should have. Riddle needs to move on from Ohno now though as there isn’t anything left for him to do there. The first match didn’t mean anything other than a surprise so this was the right way to go for the rematch. Ohno is still fine for the role, though they might want to have him win something along the way so these things can mean something.

Post match Ohno looks devastated and near tears. Riddle offers him a fist bump but Ohno sadly walks away. He turns around and gets back in though, eventually giving Riddle the fist bump….and sending him into the post. Another posting on the floor sets up some whips into the steps, followed by a rolling elbow. A fist bump to the unconscious Riddle ends the show. This was rather long and didn’t need to happen as the feud should be done instead of continuing.

Overall Rating: B. With the matches you got to see on here, either in nearly full or shortened form, you can’t go wrong. It was a great year for NXT as things somehow got even better than they had been before, which I didn’t think was possible. It’s an outstanding collection of matches with a few things that didn’t need to be there but were harmless for the most part. NXT is incredible, but I’m pretty sure you already know that.

Results

Matt Riddle b. Kassius Ohno – Bromission

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

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

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

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

NXT
Date: September 5, 2018
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Mauro Ranallo, Percy Watson, Nigel McGuinness

Every now and then you get a dream match, but this time we have a Dream match. The big main event this week is Velveteen Dream vs. Johnny Gargano after Dream interrupted Gargano’s promo/therapy session last week. Other than that we might be getting some more information about who attacked Aleister Black. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Kassius Ohno vs. Kona Reeves

They start rather slowly with Reeves shouting that he’s the finest. That earns him a right hand to the jaw but Reeves comes back with a top rope ax handle. The Hawaiian Drop doesn’t work so Ohno hits the rolling forearm for the pin at 1:46. Thank goodness they’re pulling the plug on Reeves because it just wasn’t working.

Post match Ohno says he’s here to be the best, but now he gets it: there’s always going to be someone fresh and new. Whoever the next guy with buzz is, Ohno is going to be right here to knock them to the back of the line. That’s a good place for him as Ohno isn’t likely to make the main roster with his gut so let him be the NXT gatekeeper.

Connor’s Cure video.

Forgotten Sons vs. Street Profits

The Sons are Wesley Blake/Steve Cutler in a former military gimmick with Jaxson Ryker (Gunner) in their corner. Everything breaks down early on with the Profits dropkicking them to the floor, followed by a big flip dive from Ford. Back in and Cutler gets his arm barred but a blind tag brings Blake back in for a heck of a clothesline. A springboard kneedrop gets two on Ford and the Sons start taking turns hammering him down.

Cutler cranks on a reverse chinlock but his neckbreaker is countered into a backslide for two. That’s enough for the hot tag off to Dawkins as everything breaks down. Cue a masked man to go after Ford but he quick unmasks him as Shane Thorn. Ryker clotheslines Ford, leaving Cutler and Blake to hit a reverse DDT/middle rope stomp for the pin on Dawkins at 6:34.

Rating: C. Well that was quite a bit for a debut match. I like the fact that the Sons beat a bigger named team but it took a lot to make it work. I could have gone without all the interference, but at least we got to the right ending. The Sons could be an interesting gimmick, though this wasn’t the best start.

Heavy Machinery is in William Regal’s office where Otis admits that he broke the toilet in the Performance Center. Something about bad stomach chemistry. They also saw Tommaso Ciampa in the bushes near where Black was attacked.

We look back at the end of last week’s tag match between the Undisputed Era and Pete Dunne/Ricochet.

Post match, Ricochet and Dunne argued about who was responsible for the loss. They want each other’s titles. In two weeks: title vs. title. Well that should be awesome.

Video on the War Raiders.

Kairi Sane vs. Trish Adora

Non-title but Sane has a treasure chest, complete with a bunch of coins. Adora has some size to her with a lot of muscle. Sane takes her down into a rollup before switching over to a Brock Lock. That means a quick rope grab, followed by a spinning backfist to drop Adora. The Insane Elbow finishes Adora at 2:25. Adora has a good look but she didn’t get to do much here, which is understandable.

Post match here’s Shayna Baszler to shove the treasure chest over. Reality is going to hit the pirate ship like a cannonball when she enacts her rematch clause. The fight is on with Sane out striking Baszler and spearing her to the floor. Baszler’s confidence is a great feature for her and it’s making her stuff stand out.

Tommaso Ciampa is in the back again and says the crowd hasn’t seen him since Takeover because he doesn’t have a #1 contender. With Gargano defeated and Black injured, he really is the last man standing. The champ leads wolves and he’s at the top of the food chain. Follow the lead of the NXT Champion. Ciampa is amazing and that’s on his worst days.

Lars Sullivan is in Regal’s office and says he should have told the boss that he was medically cleared earlier on. He was there on the night of the attack to find Black because he owed Black a visit. When he arrived though, Black was already laid out. Sullivan saw the Undisputed Era driving off and Regal arriving. That’s fine for Regal, but Sullivan gets Raul Mendoza next week.

Velveteen Dream vs. Johnny Gargano

Dream poses at him to start and they hit the mat for some grappling. Back up and Gargano is more aggressive than usual with a forearm to the jaw and some Steve Austin stomps in the corner. A trip to the floor goes nowhere so it’s Dream hammering away back inside to slow Gargano down. Dream whips him so hard into the corner that Gargano is flipped upside down, followed by a neckbreaker for two.

We hit the chinlock for a bit until Johnny fights up with the hard shots to the face. Gargano scores with the slingshot spear and Dream bails to the floor where the Cannonball (more like a Blockbuster) from the apron puts him down again. Back in and Johnny misses his rolling kick to the head, allowing Dream to nail a Fameasser. An exchange of kicks to the head is capped off by Gargano clotheslining the heck out of Dream for two and they’re both spent.

They head to the apron for the slugout and Dream tries the Death Valley Driver on the apron. That’s broken up as well but Johnny tweaks his knee. Dream sends it into the steps and hits his twisting DDT back inside for a very near fall. Gargano’s springboard is broken up with a superkick but Dream misses the Purple Rainmaker onto the apron. Johnny nails him with a suicide dive and puts on the Gargano Escape on the floor.

The threat of a countout brings him back to reality but Dream beats the count as well. Gargano loads up a hanging DDT off the apron but lets Dream go before going too far. A fan with a Johnny Wrestling sign gets Gargano’s attention and he heads back inside. Dream calls him Johnny Failure as Johnny lowers the kneepad and the distraction allows Dream to hit the Dream Valley Driver for the pin at 15:51.

Rating: B+. This took its time getting going but once they got started it was off to the races. The Gargano story is rather interesting and while you can see the likely ending, the road there is one of the most entertaining things that NXT does. Throw in the fact that NXT is willing to let Gargano lose the big match and the drama will be off the charts. It’s also a great sign to see Dream get a huge win like this, as he beat one of the top stars in the promotion clean. Great stuff all around.

We get a split JOHNNY FAILURE/JOHNNY WRESTLING chant as Gargano is even more distraught. He walks off through the crowd, which sings the Goodbye Song. There’s also a JOHNNY chant as he leaves through the curtains to end the show.

Overall Rating: A-. Sometimes I can’t wrap my head around how well run this place is. They cut their losses on a character, debuted a stable, set up a rematch for the Women’s Title and had a great main event, all while advancing the overarching Black story, all in about an hour. On the main roster, that’s four months worth of work if they’re putting in the effort. Another incredible show this week and I don’t know why that still surprises me.

Results

Kassius Ohno b. Kona Reeves – Discus forearm

Forgotten Sons b. Street Profits – Reverse DDT/middle rope stomp to Dawkins

Kairi Sane b. Trish Adora – Insane Elbow

Velveteen Dream b. Johnny Gargano – Dream Valley Driver

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

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

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

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

NXT
Date: August 8, 2018
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Mauro Ranallo, Percy Watson, Nigel McGuinness

It’s time for a big match this week with Aleister Black vs. Johnny Gargano. These two have a shared enemy in Tommaso Ciampa, who won the NXT Title thanks to Gargano accidentally knocking Black out. We’re very close to Takeover and that means we need a main event, which is likely to be announced tonight. Let’s get to it.

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

The opening video looks at Gargano costing Black the title, which really was a well done piece of business.

Opening sequence.

Nikki Cross vs. Amber Nova

Nikki drives her into the corner and laughs a lot so the spunky Nova tries a hurricanrana. That’s blocked without much effort so Nova uses the legs to pull Nikki face first into the top turnbuckle. A straitjacket choke has Nikki in trouble for a few moments but Nova gets thrown down with ease. The fisherman’s neckbreaker finishes Nova at 3:24.

Rating: D+. This was actually a few steps above a squash with Nova getting to shine a little bit. Cross is in a weird place as she’s no longer in the Women’s Title picture and doesn’t really have a story at the moment. That’s one of the good things about NXT though: they’re smart enough to put these people on TV, even in short matches like this, just to keep things fresh.

Video on Keith Lee, who debuts tonight.

Ricochet comes out for a match but gets jumped by the Undisputed Era. Adam Cole promises to mangle Ricochet at Takeover.

Vanessa Borne’s plan for tonight: win the match and qualify for the Mae Young Classic. Tonight the world is getting the vision that it deserves. She yells at the interviewers for taking up too much of her time.

Adrian Jauode vs. Kassius Ohno

Jauode, who looks a lot like Tommaso Ciampa, is in a sleeveless gi and has a martial arts background. Some cartwheels distract Ohno and Jauode takes him to the mat. That goes nowhere as Ohno kicks him in the face and drops the backsplash. Another big boot has Jauode in trouble but he comes back with a belly to back suplex. Ohno shrugs it off and hits the Dream Crusher for the pin at 2:56.

Earlier today, EC3 went to Velveteen Dream’s home for the Experience. They go for a walk around the pool with EC3 thinking he’s about to be shoved in. He came here to fight Dream but he’ll wait for Takeover. It’s going to be worth the wait when it’s the one (“allegedly”) vs. the top 1%. Dream doesn’t care for being disrespected like that but drops his sunglasses. EC3 picks them up and sends a charging Dream into the water. Dream seems to be drowning but EC3 points out that it’s three feet deep and everything is fine. This was as odd as you would expect a trip to Dream’s house to be.

Marcel Barthel vs. Keith Lee

Barthel is German and the h is silent. Lee is nicknamed Limitless and weighs 325lbs but can wrestle like a cruiserweight. The fans are way behind Lee as Barthel looks concerned. Barthel: “NEIN!” Lee pops him with a left hand and shouts the exact same thing. A leapfrog into a dropkick has Barthel down again but he’s back up with a corner enziguri. Lee misses a charge in the corner but easily blocks a suplex attempt. Barthel gets knocked away with something like a pounce, followed by a fireman’s carry into a Jackhammer for the pin at 4:24.

Rating: C+. You would have expected a squash here but Barthel didn’t look bad at all. He has a good look, he had a presence and his stuff looked good. That being said, this was all about Lee, who is an athletic freak and can do things that people his size just shouldn’t be able to do. His progress around here should be interesting to see.

The Street Profits are at an ATM for an episode of Street Talk, where they rip on the Mighty, both for being Australian and for talking weirdly. They meet next week.

Mae Young Classic Qualifying Match: Vanessa Borne vs. Taynara Conti

Conti is in a gi as well. Borne isn’t interested in fighting over a lockup to start and sends Conti face first into the buckle. With shouts of I DESERVE IT, Borne takes her to the mat for a dragon sleeper. That’s broken up and Conti kicks at the arm but gets smacked in the face. A right hand annoys Conti so she reverses a crucifix into a spinning slam for the pin at 4:05. That looked like it was edited as I don’t think Conti hit it very clean. I think it was supposed to end in a Rock Bottom or side slam but Conti just shoved her down instead.

Rating: D+. I’ll give them some points for the surprise ending there as Borne seemed like the big star and just got pinned clean. They like to go for the international picks in the Mae Young Classic so going with the Brazilian wrestler is a smarter way to go. Borne is already somewhat established so a win over here means a little something for Conti.

Quick look at Kairi Sane saving Candice LeRae from Shayna Bazler last week.

Next week: Sane vs. Aaliyah and Tyler Bate vs. Roderick Strong.

Former UFC Heavyweight Champion Cain Velazquez is here.

Aleister Black vs. Johnny Gargano

They go right at each other to start and Black scores first with a hard kick to the chest. Gargano rolls over for a kick to the head and that means the suicide dive. As one fan is VERY pro-Black, Johnny throws him back in for some stomps in the corner. The slingshot spear is countered with a knee to the face and Black wants Gargano to look at him. They trade clotheslines and kicks for a double knockdown but here’s Ciampa to throw Gargano outside for the DQ at 2:30. I’m glad they kept this very short as Gargano vs. Black is a match that should get the full on treatment instead of going long and then having interference.

Ciampa beats them both up as the fans chant for a triple threat. Gargano gets in a shot on him so Ciampa bails, leaving Black and Gargano to fight some more. Referees break it up but here’s William Regal to make a triple threat for the title in Brooklyn to end the show. Somehow that’s the first ever triple threat NXT Title match in Takeover history (assuming it happens due to Black’s injury).

Overall Rating: B-. This was a different kind of show as they touched on a bunch of stuff while also setting up the big main event. A bunch of wrestlers got some focus tonight and that’s a good thing, especially with so many people on the NXT roster. The wrestling was nothing great but the storytelling was there and that’s the more important thing. Good show here and a way to make me care about Takeover that much more.

Results

Nikki Cross b. Amber Nova – Fisherman’s neckbreaker

Kassius Ohno b. Adrian Jauode – Dream Crusher

Keith Lee b. Marcel Barthel – Fireman’s carry Jackhammer

Taynara Conti b. Vanessa Borne – Spinning Slam

Johnny Gargano b. Aleister Black via DQ when Tommaso Ciampa interfered

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Opening sequence.

Dakota Kai vs. Lacey Evans

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Kassius Ohno vs. Rick Ramirez

Discus forearm for the pin in 40 seconds.

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

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

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

Nikki Cross vs. Candice LeRae vs. Kairi Sane

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

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

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

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

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

The staredown ends the show.

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

Results

Lacey Evans b. Dakota Kai – Woman’s Right

Kassius Ohno b. Rick Ramirez – Discus elbow

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

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

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

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

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

NXT
Date: May 9, 2018
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Percy Watson, Mauro Ranallo

We’re in that odd period of NXT as we’re too far away from the next Takeover to really start building there but too far from the previous Takeover to deal with fallout. NXT is capable of pulling off something in the meantime though and that should be more than enough to bridge the gap. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Here’s Ricochet to get things going. Everywhere he’s gone in his career, he’s tried to have people talking about him. Over Wrestlemania weekend, his goal was to leave people talking. You can call it confidence or cockiness but it’s who he is. Now the only thing on his mind is the NXT Championship but here’s Velveteen Dream to interrupt. Dream says no no no and wants to know who gave Ricochet the authority to come out here and ask for title shots. He needs Ricochet to take a step back and asks about the One and Only nickname.

Dream questions if Ricochet makes things look good because Ricochet is looking at the one experience. Ricochet can jump around all he wants but remember he’ll land in the back of the line behind the Dream. Ricochet says Dream is a lot, but he’s not Ricochet so enjoy the spotlight while you can. That’s fine with Dream, because anything Ricochet can do, Dream can do better. Ricochet: “Prove it.” Dream teases throwing a punch but drops to the mat instead, leaving after Ricochet winks at him. I could go for this feud, but I’m not sure where Dream goes if he loses another big match.

Raul Mendoza vs. EC3

Mendoza grabs a headlock to start, followed by a missile dropkick. EC3 is right back with a reverse bulldog driver (I’m not sure how much that would hurt) and sends him face first into a buckle. A TKO is good for the pin (with two hands on the chest for the cover) at 2:44.

Post match EC3 says he doesn’t care about losing at Takeover because adversity makes a man. The only thing you’ll see out of him going forward is victory after victory. Then this place will be NX3.

Last week Oney Lorcan and Danny Burch told Pete Dunne that they don’t like him but they’ll have his back because they don’t like Undisputed Era either. Dunne leaves without saying anything. That’s about what I expected.

Dakota Kai vs. Vanessa Bourne

Kai hits a running dropkick but misses a running version in the corner. Bourne is right back with a kick to the ribs and a swinging fisherman’s neckbreaker for two. We hit the double arm crank for a bit before Kai is back up with more kicks. Now the running kick in the corner rocks Bourne, followed by a running sunset flip into a Backstabber (cool) for the pin on Bourne at 2:36.

Post match Shayna Baszler comes out and Kai is terrified. Shayna drops the title and chokes Bourne off as Kai leaves in fear (with Baszler staring her down) instead of making a save. When Kai stands up for herself, many months from now, the pop is going to be crazy.

Back from a break with Kai being unsure what just happened. Baszler comes in and tells her to do something about it. Kai still can’t move so Shayna laughs and leaves. Kai hears more laughter and Nikki Cross is hanging from piece of metal and laughing at her too. Now that’s kind of interesting.

Heavy Machinery vs. War Raiders

Rowe and Dozovic start things off and it breaks down into a four way forearm slugout in no time. Knight gets sent outside and Dozovic gets kneed in the ribs. He’s still able to suplex Hanson down so it’s off to Knight vs. Rowe. Hanson is right back in with a suicide dive to Dozovic, leaving Knight to take Fallout for the pin at 2:52. That’s all this needed to be.

We look back at TM61 cheating to defeat the Street Profits.

The Profits are training because this is serious.

Tommaso Ciampa vs. Kassius Ohno

Still no music for Ciampa. Ohno takes it to the floor early on and sends Ciampa into the barricade. One heck of a right hand sends Ciampa back into the ring but he snaps Ohno’s throat across the top rope. A running knee to the head rocks Ohno again and a kick to the side of the head puts him down as Ciampa asks if Ohno is Gargano’s big brother. Ohno blocks a chop and hits a bicycle kick. It’s time to go simple as Ohno stands on Ciampa’s head and then drops an exposed knee onto Ciampa’s damaged eye.

A shot to the face knocks something out of Ciampa’s mouth and puts on a cravate choke into something like a Bubba Bomb (with a cravate instead of a full nelson) for two. Ciampa is right back and pulls at Ohno’s eye, setting up a running knee to the back of the head for a near fall of his own (I thought that was it). A clothesline sets up a neckbreaker into a faceplant to put Ohno away at 9:32. Mauro is LIVID that Ciampa won.

Rating: C+. I can appreciate the idea of Ciampa as a violent guy who wants to injure people but sweet goodness he needs to switch those last two big moves up. A neckbreaker faceplant is a move that anyone could use and doesn’t look nearly as good as the running knee. It doesn’t fit the violent nature that Ciampa had been going for all match and didn’t feel like the end of the match. The rest was the right call with Ohno out for blood to avenge his friend and Ciampa not caring because he wanted to hurt someone. Just fix that finish.

Post match Ciampa hits Ohno in the back of the head with his knee brace and chokes him with it. Ciampa shouts that he broke Johnny’s spirit and broke Candace’s heart so the Gargano fairy tale is over.

Overall Rating: B. What more could you ask for? They covered about six stories in less than an hour and didn’t even touch the Undisputed Era or Aleister Black. As I’ve said before, if there’s one thing NXT knows how to do, it’s make everything feel like the most important thing in the world. This show flies by and that’s far more than you get anywhere else. Another very good show here that makes me want to see what they have in store.

Results

EC3 b. Raul Mendoza – TKO

Dakota Kai b. Vanessa Bourne – Sunset Backstabber

War Raiders b. Heavy Machinery – Fallout to Knight

Tommaso Ciampa b. Kassius Ohno – Neckbreaker into a faceplant

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

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

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

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

NXT
Date: March 21, 2018
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Mauro Ranallo, Nigel McGuinness, Percy Watson

We’re in the home stretch towards Takeover: New Orleans and you can guess most of the card. NXT knows how to set up things down the last few weeks and I have no doubt that they’ll pull it off again. We also have more from the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic, which could be a lot of fun by the end. Let’s get to it.

Here’s last week’s show if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Here’s Tommaso Ciampa, still without music, to open the show. The fans have their Johnny Gargano signs to annoy him even more, which are a great touch. Ciampa has a mic and again the fans won’t let him get a word out. After being cut off over and over, Ciampa finally shouts that HE’S GONE. Gargano isn’t walking down the aisle because he’s gone.

Ciampa drops the mic and heads to the floor to glare at the fans, eventually ripping up the Johnny signs. He pulls away one from a fan….and it’s Johnny Gargano. The fight is on until security pulls him away as Ciampa looks like he’s seen a ghost. Johnny is carried out into the parking lot as the fans want to see them fight. Another great segment here and a moment that needed to happen.

Charly Caruso recaps the first round of the Dusty Classic. There is a change to announce as well: Tyler Bate has injured his knee so Moustache Mountain has to be replaced. A surprise team will replace them tonight. Roderick Strong will be one member, but his partner will be revealed later.

The Undisputed Era laughs off the idea of Strong winning anything in NXT. Adam Cole is so confident that he’d like Kyle O’Reilly and Bobby Fish to stay in the back for his match tonight. In other words, Fish is injured.

Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic First Round: Oney Lorcan/Danny Burch vs. Roderick Strong/???

Ok so it’s later and the partner is…..Pete Dunne. Well that works. Strong and Lorcan hit the mat to start with Roderick grabbing something like an STF to keep the pace slow. Burch comes in and gets dragged over to the corner with Dunne coming in to crank on the arm. The twisting only gets Dunne so far as Burch takes the leg out and tries a kneebar, drawing in both partners as we go to a break.

Back with Dunne still working on the arm, followed by a shot to the face to send Burch into the corner. Stereo chops get two on Danny but he comes right back with a middle rope dropkick. Lorcan comes back in for a running boot to the face and a running European uppercut gets two on Strong.

The running Blockbuster gets the same as the pace stays white hot. Everything breaks down again and Strong dives into another uppercut. Burch throws Strong with a release German suplex and Lorcan suplexes Strong onto him in a big crash. Dunne gets caught in a Crossface but Strong kicks Lorcan onto Danny to break up the hold. A blind tag brings Strong back in and End of Heartache finishes Burch at 10:15.

Rating: B-. Dunne didn’t get to shine as much as usual here but it was still a heck of a hard hitting match with all four looking good. Strong and Dunne could make for a solid team built on respect, though I’m not sure how far they’ll go outside of the tournament. We got in a good match here, but it makes me want to see Dunne on his own more than anything else.

Ember Moon vs. Aliyah

Non-title. Aliyah’s headscissors on the mat doesn’t get her very far so she pulls Ember out of the corner and onto the mat for some more success. Cue Shayna Baszler to do commentary, with her feet on the table of course. Aliyah grabs a chinlock for a bit before Moon counters a crossbody into a Samoan drop. A flip clothesline in the corner sets up the Eclipse for the pin at 2:57. Nothing match and little more than a way to have the women on screen together.

Raul Mendoza comes out for a match but gets jumped by Andrade Cien Almas. Andrade and Zelina Vega get in the ring with the former ranting in Spanish about how great of a champion he is. Almas wants Aleister Black to face him next week and to show him some respect.

Lars Sullivan is back next week, along with Aleister Black and Almas going face to face.

William Regal promises an announcement next week to change the landscape of NXT forever.

Adam Cole vs. Kassius Ohno

Ohno grabs an arm to start but gets run over by a shoulder. A big boot to the chest breaks up a leapfrog and there’s a heck of a backsplash to crush Cole in a painful looking landing. Cole gets sent outside and comes up limping but of course it’s just goldbricking, meaning a jumping enziguri rocks Ohno again.

Back with Cole kicking him down for two and getting the same off a neckbreaker. We hit the chinlock for a bit before a Backstabber gets another two. Cole tries a charge and runs right into a punch to the jaw to get us right back to even. Ohno’s big boot into a slam into a legdrop (well he is wearing yellow) give him two of his own and Cole’s head gets knocked off by the cyclone kick.

They forearm the heck out of each other until the Last Shot gives Cole two more. Cole’s Shining Wizard is reversed and the High Tension Elbow knocks him out onto the ramp. Back in and three straight superkicks set up the Last Shot and the running knee to the back of the head (called the Last Shot here) end Ohno at 13:00.

Rating: C+. Ohno is at his best here when he’s putting someone over and making them look awesome. That’s what we got here and the match was a lot of fun with Cole talking trash and hanging in a fight at the end. This gives Cole the little bit of momentum back that he’s been lacking as of late so hopefully this leads somewhere else for him.

Overall Rating: B. They’re getting closer to New Orleans and most of the card is already set. I’m liking the idea of the NXT Title match more and more every week as it’s starting to get out of the shadow of Gargano vs. Ciampa. Having Gargano show up again made for a better show as well, as it was a necessary step to take. Good show here, as they’re starting to make the fans’ mouths water again.

Results

Roderick Strong/Pete Dunne b. Oney Lorcan/Danny Burch – End of Heartache to Burch

Ember Moon b. Aliyah – Eclipse

Adam Cole b. Kassius Ohno – Last Shot

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the 2018 Updated Version of the History of the WWE Championship in e-book or paperback. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/01/26/new-book-kbs-history-of-the-wwe-championship-2018-updated-version/

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

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

Takeover: Philadelphia
Date: January 28, 2018
Location: Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Percy Watson, Mauro Ranallo

This one is a little bit different as we don’t really have a top match to build this show around. There’s a lot of good stuff but nothing all that great. That being said, it’s kind of NXT’s bread and butter as they know how to set up a full card instead of hanging everything onto one match. Let’s get to it.

Paul Heyman narrates the opening video, which is either brilliant or missing the point. He talks about how this city has a rich history of fighting but tonight is about the future. We see the standard clips of the big matches before Heyman caps it off with the WE ARE NXT line. Heyman is synonymous with Philadelphia but has never done anything of note in NXT, but the delivery more than makes up for it.

Nigel McGuinness is sick today so Percy gets to take up the slack. This could be a long night.

Tag Team Titles: Undisputed Era vs. Authors of Pain

The Era is defending but there’s no Adam Cole due to his match later. The Authors jump the champs to start things off, sending Fish and O’Reilly outside before the opening bell. Fish bails from Razar to start so it’s Kyle coming in to take him down and strike away. That goes as long as you would expect with Razar powering out without much effort, meaning it’s time to get another breather.

Back in and Fish goes after the knee but gets knocked around by the raw power. It’s off to Akum for some shots to the head, which send the champs outside. Walking away doesn’t work as Fish is pulled back and dropped face first onto the barricade. Back in and Akum gets low bridged to the floor, allowing Fish to kick him in the leg and really take over. Fish spears Razar to the floor (I didn’t think he could pull that off) and it’s time for the double kicks to the ribs.

Some hard kicks to the leg take Akum down and O’Reilly comes back in for a leg lock. Some champion miscommunication allows Akum to hit a good back body drop for the hot tag off to Razar, even though there really aren’t any faces in this. The fall away slam/drop backwards with Fish on Razar’s back combination crushes the champs all over again but they’re right back up with the strikes in the corner.

Fish again shows off the power with an exploder suplex for two but Razar slugs them down. Akum comes back in on the bad leg but it’s a jumping knee to the head to cut off the Last Chapter. O’Reilly grabs a kneebar on Akum and Fish gets a choke on Razar, who flips him down onto Kyle for the save. Not bad.

Everyone is down so the fans start the dueling chants. It’s Akum up first and buckle bombing Fish. A buckle bomb crushes O’Reilly and the Super Collider connects but Akum can’t powerbomb Fish. Instead it’s a hurricanrana to send the Authors into each other and Fish rolls Akum up to retain at 14:56.

Rating: B. While not a great match, it was a smart match with the champs coming at them with a power game to go with the striking and submissions. The leg work was a good story to tell throughout the match as they broke the Authors down and actually went after them instead of running away and stealing a win. I liked the story here and it made for a good match.

War Machine is here.

Earlier today, Velveteen Dream promised a thirty second knockout of Kassius Ohno.

Velveteen Dream vs. Kassius Ohno

Dream now has a muscular man and a woman to help him with his entrance, including a large pillow containing his custom made mouth piece. He’s also now in boxing trunks for a rather sharp change of pace. After Ohno’s entrance, Dream boxes the buckle a little bit. The fans count and Dream hits a big right hand to knock Ohno down at 27 seconds.

Dream dances around though (how Rocky I of him) and gets forearmed in the face, knocking the mouth piece out. Back up and Dream scores with a swinging spinebuster from two as the fans are almost entirely behind Dream here. We hit the chinlock until Ohno powers him into the corner, where Dream unloads with rights and lefts. Dream shouts DREAM OVER at Ohno, followed by a top rope double ax for two more. The second chinlock goes a bit better but Ohno powers out of it again, this time slamming Dream down.

Back up and Ohno easily wins a strike off, followed by the running backsplash. A superkick cuts Ohno off and the wind up DDT (with no snap this time around) gets two, followed by Dream’s Death Valley Driver for the same. The rolling forearm drops Dream but it’s another Death Valley Driver into the Purple Rainmaker (from the post) for the pin on Ohno at 10:46.

Rating: B-. Now where can I get a pair of those shorts? Dream needed this win and that’s why you have someone like Ohno on the roster. He can hit the heck out of people but at the end of the day, he’s going to get pinned off a big finisher. Dream just has the makings of a star though as the fans buy into him, though he’s dead in the water on the main roster where Cole and company would talk about every single thing he does and how they don’t understand it. Good match here, but there was no way they could follow Dream’s two previous matches.

We recap Ember Moon vs. Shayna Baszler. Shayna is the newcomer/outsider as a former mixed martial artist who has choked a bunch of women out. Moon won’t stand for the bullying but Baszler says this has been her plan all along. Above all else though, this feud has shown how lame Ember is while Baszler has shown up and looks like a polished pro right out of the gate.

Women’s Title: Shayna Baszler vs. Ember Moon

Moon is defending. Baszler easily takes her down to start and kicks Moon’s leg out. Back up and Moon scores with some dropkicks to put Baszler out on the floor. A suicide dive drops her again but Baszler takes the hair down and unloads with strikes to the face and chest. Makes sense here as they’re having Baszler easily win the stand-up fighting but getting beaten down in the wrestling.

Baszler steps on the arm like she did to Dakota Kai and it’s off to an armbar. More knees and stomps to the arm have Moon in trouble before Baszler just pulls on the arm. Moon gets in a few slaps though, followed by a kick to the chest and a springboard spinning crossbody. The Eclipse connects but it hurts the arm even more, causing Moon to writhe in pain in the corner.

The trainer comes in to check on the arm and the fans are NOT happy with the delay. Baszler finally gets up and tries a cross armbreaker, only to have Moon get her feet on the ropes. The armbreaker goes on again in the middle of the ring with Baszler even pulling the legs back towards the middle, just in case. Somehow Moon rolls her over though and stacks Baszler up to retain at 10:11, sending Mauro into a huge MAMA MIA.

Rating: B. Moon escaped here and that’s likely to set up a rematch where Baszler wins the title. I get the idea of not putting the title on Baszler just yet but Moon needs to get better in a hurry. They told a good story with the ending as the inexperienced Baszler was too focused on one move and left herself vulnerable, which makes Ember look like a veteran who might have lost the physical battle but won the mental game. At the end of the day, the lack of ever defeating Asuka is hard to overcome and it’s weighing her down a lot. This should help her though and having to fight from underneath is a good story for her.

Moon is helped out but Baszler sneaks up from behind and grabs the choke.

Ricochet (billed as Trevor “Ricochet” Mann) is here.

We recap Aleister Black vs. Adam Cole. Black knocked Cole out of the #1 contenders tournament by kicking him in the head, only to have Cole cost Black the tournament final. A match was set up but William Regal made it Extreme Rules, which might play more towards Cole’s strengths.

Adam Cole vs. Aleister Black

Extreme Rules. Black’s entrance is surrounded by candles and smoke this time around, making it look even better. Black easily wins an early strike off and moonsaults into the seated position. Cole grabs a chair and there’s the ECW chant that you knew was coming. That’s taken away in no time and Black has a seat on the chair as Cole needs to come up with a better idea.

Black follows him out this time and gets caught with a few shots, allowing Cole to throw in some weapons. Both guys find kendo sticks but Black throws his away and says bring it on. He’s either very skilled or very stupid. A few kicks to the chest have Black in trouble but the springboard moonsault is caned out of the air in a good looking crash. Cole’s Backstabber with the kendo stick (White Russian Backstabber?) gets two and it’s table time.

Black breaks up a superplex attempt and gets slammed off the top onto a trashcan. A running knee drops Cole again and Black sets up another table next to the first. That’s not enough though as Black pulls out a ladder but Cole kicks him down and sets the unfolded latter in the corner. Cole is bleeding from somewhere (might be his hand) and hammers away in the corner. Black fights up and drops Cole onto the ladder in a good looking crash.

With Cole down, Black goes up top but Cole throws him a chair and superkicks it into Black’s head, sending him through the tables. Mauro: “HOLY BLEEP INDEED!” That’s only good for two so Cole loads up two chairs next to each other. Black is back up though and hits an AA onto the top of the chairs (FREAKING OW MAN!!!) to probably break Cole’s back. A sliding knee into the chair into Cole’s face gets two as Fish and O’Reilly run in for the save. High/Low on the floor drops Black and it’s time to load up the announcers’ table.

Cue Sanity for the save (makes sense) with Killian Dain taking everyone out with a suicide dive. With Black still down, Cole tries a suplex through the table. That’s broken up as well and the double knees (ala Sasha Banks) drives Cole through instead. Fans: “MAMA MIA!” Back in and Cole scores with his own superkick and grabs a chair. Of course he walks right into Black Mass (to the shoulder) for the pin at 21:58.

Rating: A-. This kept building and turned into a star making performance for both guys. Black is on a roll at this point and that Black Mass should put him into the title match at Takeover: New Orleans. This was better than I thought it would be as it started slowly but built into a brawl with Black finally being the last man standing by the end. Very good stuff here and easily the best part of the night so far.

Ethan Carter III, billed as EC3, is here and officially confirmed as a new signing.

We recap Andrade Cien Almas vs. Johnny Gargano. Almas has righted the ship after months of mediocrity, mainly thanks to the addition of Zelina Vega. Gargano had a nightmare of a 2017 and is on the comeback trail, finally turning himself back into Johnny Wrestling. Tonight is his chance at redemption, both by winning the title and beating Almas, who was a big part of his downward spiral.

NXT Title: Johnny Gargano vs. Andrade Cien Almas

Almas is defending and is played to the ring by a masked mariachi band. He also wears a mask to the ring but takes it off before getting inside. They start with a technical sequence and wrestle to a standoff as we see Johnny’s wife Candice LeRae in the crowd. Neither finisher can connect early on and Almas bails into the corner while waving a finger at Johnny. We start again with Gargano wrestling him down into an armbar but one heck of a chop gets the champ out of trouble.

The announcers recap the Almas story of letting his career fall apart as he gets sent outside but manages to avoid the running flip dive off the apron. Back in and Almas bends Johnny’s neck across the top rope, followed by the chinlock. Johnny fights up but gets caught in the Tree of Woe. Almas misses the top rope stomp though and gets suplexed into the corner. A middle rope swinging Downward Spiral gives Johnny two and the slingshot spear is good for the same.

As usual, Vega has some awesome facial expressions as you can feel her panicking on the near falls, which sell them that much more. Almas catches him with a spinning faceplant for two before going up. The regular moonsault doesn’t work but Almas lands on his feet and hits a standing version for two more in a smart sequence. Johnny’s superkick gets the same and they’re both down again.

Gargano puts him on the top but can’t hit the sunset bomb. Almas misses the running knees in the corner but the slingshot spear is countered into a faceplant. A reverse tornado DDT gets two more and both guys are spent again. Excellent sequence. Almas can’t hit the hammerlock DDT on the apron so Gargano slingshot DDTs him onto the apron instead. That’s only good for a very close two back inside and Almas blocks the Gargano Escape. The running knees are broken up and there’s the Lawn Dart to rock Almas again.

Vega’s distraction lets Almas grab the DDT but that’s reversed into a small package for a VERY close two. A low superkick gives Johnny two, with the camera panning over to tease interference but it just shows Vega panicking at the near fall. Almas cuts him off on top and it’s the top rope double stomp onto the apron, followed by a hard toss to send Gargano into the apron again. Back in and the double knees are good for two and Almas is shocked. To be fair, I am too.

They fight back to their feet and Johnny somehow grabs a hurricanrana. The Gargano Escape goes on and Almas can’t spin out. Vega grabs Almas’ hand and the distraction lets Almas rake Johnny’s eyes. The hammerlock DDT is broken up and a backdrop puts Almas on the floor for a suicide dive of all things. Vega is back up with a hurricanrana to send Johnny into the steps though and the hammerlock DDT…..gets two. They had me on that one.

Gargano rolls outside and Vega goes after him, drawing Candice over the barricade for the brawl. She chases Vega to the back, drawing a THANK YOU CANDICE chant. The slingshot DDT gets a VERY close two and the Gargano Escape goes on again….but the foot is on the ropes. They head to the apron again and Almas hits the running knees to drive Johnny’s head into the post, leaving him with the far away look in his eyes. A draping hammerlock DDT FINALLY ends Gargano at 32:22.

Rating: A+. Oh yeah that was amazing. They had me multiple times on the near falls and I never once got bored throughout the whole thing. Gargano is ready to be NXT Champion at some point and not having Ciampa interfere was the right decision as their match doesn’t need to be for the title. It’s an epic back and forth match with the great near falls being traded near the end. It takes a lot to suck me in like that and they did it to perfection here. Outstanding match.

Post match Candice comes back to take Johnny to the back but they stop for the pose on the stage….AND TOMMASO CIAMPA BREAKS A CRUTCH OVER JOHNNY’S BACK! Ciampa walks away as Candice tends to Johnny to end the show.

Overall Rating: A. Is Takeover capable of having a bad show? Or even a bad match for that matter? Like I said coming in, this felt more like a collection of matches and it still blew me away. The worst match was probably Dream vs. Ohno and even that was above average. Nothing was following that main event though and now you have a double main event of Black vs. Almas and Gargano vs. Ciampa set for New Orleans. That alone makes for a great show and if they have a strong undercard (War Machine vs. Undisputed Era and two others would be more than enough), it could be an all time classic. Great show here of course.

Results

Undisputed Era b. Authors of Pain – Rollup to Razar

Velveteen Dream b. Kassius Ohno – Purple Rainmaker

Ember Moon b. Shayna Baszler – Rollup

Aleister Black b. Adam Cole – Black Mass

Andrade Cien Almas b. Johnny Gargano – Hanging hammerlock DDT

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the 2018 Updated Version of the History of the WWE Championship in e-book or paperback. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/01/26/new-book-kbs-history-of-the-wwe-championship-2018-updated-version/

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

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

NXT
Date: December 6, 2017
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Mauro Ranallo, Nigel McGuinness, Percy Watson

Things are about to get interesting around here again as we start the process of crowning a new #1 contender to challenge Andrade Cien Almas for the NXT Title. That process will take place over the next several weeks as we’ll have four qualifying matches to set up a four way match with the winner getting the title shot. Let’s get to it.

We open with William Regal announcing the competition to establish a new #1 contender. Velveteen Dream was scheduled to face Kassius Ohno but is being held out due to an injury. A replacement will be named.

Opening sequence.

Here are Andrade Cien Almas and Zelina Vega for the big championship celebration. Vega tells us to get on our feet while Almas says he told us all so. He laughs at the idea of injuring Drew McIntyre and says WE ARE NXT to wrap things up in a hurry.

Earlier today, Lars Sullivan called Roderick Strong a handsome guy, which Sullivan certainly isn’t. All Lars cares about is getting his hands on Strong so he can become the NXT Champion.

Fatal Four Way Qualifying Match: Trent Seven vs. Killian Dane

Seven charges straight into a forearm and a running dropkick sends him into the corner. We hit the neck crank on Seven for a bit before he kicks Dane in the knee and grabs a DDT. The Seven Stars lariat is cut off with a crossbody for two more. A second attempt at the lariat gets two but Dane is right back up with a backsplash into a Vader Bomb to end Seven at 3:13.

Rating: C. Now that is how you make Dane look like an unstoppable monster. He beat the heck out of Seven here, nearly no sold his finisher, and ended him in short order. Dane looked awesome out there and someone pinning him later will look like a bigger deal as a result. Seven will be fine of course as he just needs a promo about his mustache to get him back on track.

The Undisputed Era talks about awesome they are with Adam Cole promising to take out Aleister Black next week. The week after that, Fish and O’Reilly will take the Tag Team Titles from Sanity.

Ruby Riott vs. Sonya Deville

No holds barred. Sonya wastes no time in throwing her down, only to get rolled up for one. A snap suplex gives Ruby one but the Riot Kick is countered into an ankle lock. Ruby grabs a rope but realizes it doesn’t matter, meaning it’s a kick to the head for the break instead. Back from a break with Sonya breaking up a dragon suplex and driving a hard knee into the ribs for two.

A jumping lariat gets the same and we hit the chinlock. Riott fights up with some forearms to the jaw, followed by a springboard faceplant for two of her own. Sonya is smart enough to head out to the floor and Ruby’s ankle is fine enough for a suicide dive. Back in and Sonya kicks her in the face, followed by a triangle choke (in the ropes, which doesn’t matter) for the knockout at 11:15.

Rating: C+. This was hard hitting stuff and a good way to wrap up the feud. They made a big point out of Riott not tapping, which keeps her looking strong in defeat. That’s the right call when you have two people who recently made their debuts on Raw. Good fight here and the ending worked well.

Ember Moon is answering questions when the Iconic Duo comes up. Moon didn’t pin Peyton Royce so she should get a title shot. The match is quickly granted for next week.

Pete Dunne defends the UK Title against Tyler Bate in two weeks.

Video recapping the history between Bate and Dunne.

Fatal Four Way Qualifying Match: Kassius Ohno vs. Johnny Gargano

They circle each other for a bit with a handshake being the only contact in the first minute. Some early cradles give both of them two each until Gargano kicks him in the face to take over. The slingshot spear is countered though and Ohno blasts him in the face to send us to a break.

Back with Ohno dropping a knee to the face with the knee pad pulled down. Gargano tries to fight back so Ohno kicks him square in the jaw for two instead. The backsplash hits knees though and Johnny scores with some clotheslines of his own. A hurricanrana out of the corner sets up an enziguri to send Ohno outside.

Now the slingshot spear connects for two but Johnny misses his rolling kick to the head. Ohno has to bail out of his own dive to the floor and it’s a suicide dive into a tornado DDT to drive Ohno into the ramp. That should probably kill him but he’s right back up without too much energy.

Back in and Ohno’s Cyclone Kick gets two and frustration sets in. Gargano gets two off a victory roll but Ohno hits a great looking flying forearm to the back of the head for the same. Mauro: “What is Johnny Gargano made of??? SOMEONE TEST THAT MAN’S DNA!!!” A series of kicks has Kassius reeling though and the Gargano Escape makes him tap at 14:40.

Rating: B+. This was a heck of a beating with the two guys hitting each other as hard as they could for a long time. Gargano surviving to win in the end was the right call and tells a much better story. Ohno is the kind of guy who can lose over and over again and still come out just fine, which is what will happen here. Really great fight though with the right ending.

Gargano calls Ohno back to the ring for a fist bump of respect to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. The main event more than carries this show but it’s clear that we’re in for the long form build on a lot of these stories. The best thing continues to be building up more than one week’s worth of matches, which gives you ample reason to come back. You get the feeling that this is a very well planned out show and that’s such a nice change of pace over Raw and Smackdown, which feel like they’re made up that day (likely because that’s probably true).

Results

Killian Dane b. Trent Seven – Vader Bomb

Sonya Deville b. Ruby Riott – Triangle choke

Johnny Gargano b. Kassius Ohno – Gargano Escape

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the Monday Nitro and Thunder Reviews Volume VI: July – December 1999 in e-book or paperback. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2017/11/22/new-book-kbs-monday-nitro-and-thunder-reviews-volume-vi/

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

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

NXT
Date: October 18, 2017
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Nigel McGuinness, Percy Watson, Mauro Ranallo

It’s the Undisputed night as the Undisputed Era are back in the ring this week. Tonight it’s going to be the Undisputed Era vs. Sanity in a six man tag. The question though is how does this help us set up the upcoming Takeover: Houston and how the NXT Title will factor in. Let’s get to it.

We open with a quick look at Sanity vs. Undisputed Era.

Opening sequence.

Sonya DeVille vs. Ember Moon vs. Ruby Riot

The winner is in the four way title match at Takeover. Riot hurricanranas Ember to start but gets lariated down by DeVille. Sonya is sent outside and it’s Ruby flipping Ember around into a standoff. The springboard crossbody gets two on Sonya and a kick to the face gets the same on Riot. Ruby it sent outside and Ember gets kicked down and we take a break. Back with Sonya suplexing them both down, only to be headscissored into Ember for two more.

Riot and DeVille slug away at each other until Sonya is knocked outside. It gets even worse for DeVille when she gets kicked out of the air by Ember. Moon is down as well though, only to have Ruby dive onto the two of them. She comes up with a horrible ankle though and things slow way down. Riot is still able to get inside, only to have DeVille slap on an ankle lock. The hold stays on for a good while until Moon comes in off the top with the Eclipse on Sonya and a pin on Riot at 11:34.

Rating: C-. I wasn’t feeling this one for the most part as it felt disjointed for the most part. The injury at the end was fine and it seems that Riot’s ankle is fine. It’s not terrible but they didn’t have the best chemistry and it showed. Ember or Sane is the best option for the title at this point and it makes sense to have Moon make the title match. If nothing else it means another chance to see the Eclipse.

The Undisputed Era talked to Roderick Strong outside the Performance Center but we couldn’t hear what was said.

William Regal is about to announce how the fourth participant in the Women’s Title match will be chosen but the Iconic Duo comes up to interrupt. Regal gets around to saying that there will be a battle royal next week.

Aleister Black vs. Raul Mendoza

Before any contact, cue the Velveteen Dream on the apron with Black’s vest. The distraction lets Mendoza knee Black to the floor, setting up a running flip dive to the floor. A springboard Swanton gets two on Black but the rapid fire kicks take Mendoza down. Black Mass puts Mendoza away at 2:10.

Dream leaves with the vest with Black glaring at him.

Drew McIntyre had a sitdown interview and is thrilled with his title reign so far. It’s everything he had hoped it was and he’s been feeling pretty good. A few years back he was released from his dream job and it took him a long time to get things together. He was always a wrestler and even his father never understood things. Somewhere along the line his fire went out and now he’s back here to build something special.

Cue Zelina Vega to take over the interview to say Drew and Andrade Cien Almas have a lot in common. She was Andrade’s second chance and thinks Drew has been avoiding him. Drew suggests going to William Regal because he’d love to give Almas a shot. If Andrade is serious, come see the champ himself.

Kassius Ohno vs. Cezar Bononi

They strike it off to start until Bononi hits a dropkick for two. Another dropkick puts Ohno on the floor, followed by a suplex for two back inside. A third dropkick misses though and Ohno scores with his backsplash. Ohno kicks him in the jaw and the rolling elbow is good enough for the pin at 3:05.

Rating: D+. Nothing to see here but Ohno is always going to get a reaction from his theme song alone. Bononi seems like someone who is ready to become a big star if he’s given the right push or character. You can last a long time on a look like that and Bononi hasn’t even scratched the surface yet.

Sanity vs. Undisputed Era

Fish and Wolfe start things off with Fish striking away, only to get tossed into the corner. O’Reilly has about the same level of success and it’s off to Dane to uppercut Kyle in the corner. The fast tags continue with Young adding a middle rope forearm to the chest for two. It’s back to Fish, who scores with more kicks and right hands to Young as the beating takes us to a break.

Back with Cole grabbing a chinlock until his partners work on Eric’s arms. O’Reilly gets two off a double suplex and some kicks keep Young down in the corner. Kyle is smart enough to kick Wolfe off the apron and bring Dain in, allowing him a chance to pull Young to the corner again. Not that it matters as Eric kicks O’Reilly away and makes the hot tag off to Dain.

That means it’s time for the big man offense, including a hard running dropkick and some corner splashes. Fish and O’Reilly get tossed at the same time but Cole superkicks Dain in the back of the head for the save. A belly to back suplex/neckbreaker combination puts O’Reilly down and Cole is quickly surrounded. Sanity takes him inside….and here are the Authors of Pain to jump Sanity for the DQ at 13:31.

Rating: C+. I liked this one, though it didn’t hit the level I was hoping it would. The ending is interesting as it could set up a potential three way feud, which often means a heck of a story. The Undisputed Era wasn’t destroyed here as there was a reasonable chance that O’Reilly and Fish could have gotten back into it for the save. Good stuff here but it’s a step on a long path.

The Authors destroy Sanity as the Undisputed Era leaves to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. The main event was the most interesting part of the show but more importantly we’re starting to see the card for Takeover forming. That makes for some interesting shows as we’re getting ready for the rest of the card. Just let us have a good special event and the TV feels even better than it already does. Solid show this week but nothing too great.

Results

Ember Moon b. Sonya DeVille and Ruby Riot – Pin on Riot

Aleister Black b. Raul Mendoza – Black Mass

Kassius Ohno b. Cezar Bononi – Rolling elbow

Sanity b. Undisputed Era via DQ when the Authors of Pain interfered

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the Updated History of the Intercontinental Title in E-Book or Paperback. Check out the information here:

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