Our WWE NXT results for tonight include NXT North American Champion Ethan Page taking on Tavion Heights in a flag match, Fatal Influence clashing with The Culling and Sol Ruca & Zaria in a WWE Women’s Tag Team Title #1 contenders elimination match, WWE Women’s Speed Championship Tournament first round continues when AAA’s Faby Apache battles Lainey Reid, Je’Von Evans taking on Josh Briggs, and DarkState defending the NXT Tag Team Championships against Hank & Tank. Here’s our review and grades for tonight’s show, live from the WWE Performance Centre in Orlando, Florida.
WWE NXT Card:
- Flag Match: Ethan Page vs. Tavion Heights
- WWE Women’s Tag Team Title #1 Contenders Elimination Match: Fatal Influence (Fallon Henley & Jazmyn Nyx) vs. The Culling (Izzi Dame & Tatum Paxley) vs. Sol Ruca & Zaria
- WWE Women’s Speed Championship Tournament First Round: AAA’s Faby Apache vs. Lainey Reid
- Je’Von Evans vs. Josh Briggs
- NXT Tag Team Championship Match: DarkState (Dion Lennox & Osiris Griffin) (c) vs. Hank & Tank (Hank Walker & Tank Ledger)
WWE NXT Results:
Je’Von Evans vs. Josh Briggs
Evans hops the barricade and calls out Briggs. Briggs stomps to the ring flanks by security. Evans lands a dive. Briggs and Evans brawl all over the ringside. After the break, Evans tries a springboard but gets caught by the throat. Briggs launches Evans into the bottom rope. Evans counters a slam from Briggs with a stunner. Evans goes coast-to-coast on Briggs. Briggs rolls out of the ring. Briggs brings a chair into the ring. While the referee is distracted, Briggs clocks Evans with a loaded punch using a chain. Briggs pins Evans.
Winner- Josh Briggs
Grade: B-
Evans never wins a match when it matters. What are they doing with this kid?
#DIY Has Returned
Ciampa and Gargano put over how great it is to be in an NXT ring. TNA Heavyweight Champion Trick Williams interrupts. Williams said #DIY got the better of him last week. #DIY is jealous because their NXT crew can’t hang with his NXT crew. Gargano tells Williams to get in the ring. Williams says Sure, but this time he’s not alone. Former NXT Champion Carmelo Hayes’ music hit. Hayes joins Williams in the ring. Hayes gets in Gargano and Ciampa’s faces, but turns to address Williams. Ciampa and Gargano back up.
Hayes takes Williams to task for disrespecting the NXT OGs. Hayes tells Williams that he’s a squatter in the house Gargano, Ciampa, and Hayes built. Williams apologizes to Hayes for saying some stuff about him last week, but this is still his house. Ciampa chimes in, but Hayes tells Ciampa to mind his business. Hayes reminds Ciampa and Gargano that they turned on each other in the past, too. Gargano challenges Trick Melo Gang to a tag match against #DIY.
Grade: B-
This one ran a bit too long, but was a fun ride. Having Hayes run Williams down at first was a nice touch. It would make zero sense for Hayes and Williams to interact without some sort of reference to all of their past heat. Can’t help but wonder what Williams says to Hayes to get him to show? Storyline-wise, why would Hayes even take the call? Either way, this will be a fun match.
WWE Women’s Speed Championship Tournament First Round: Faby Apache vs. Lainey Reid
After some fast-paced action, Apache misses a Swanton after a distraction from Natalya. Reid gets the pin.
Winner- Lainey Reid
Grade: C+
Hard to rate a match with a 3-minute time limit, but Apache and Reid did their best with the time they had. If this had even three more minutes…
NXT Tag Team Championship Match: DarkState (c) vs. Hank & Tank
Hank and Tnak hit their finish at the start of the match. Lennox breaks up the pin. Osirus and Lennox double powerbomb Hank. Tank breaks up the pin. A four-way brawl breaks out. Hank and Tank land stereo dives. After the break, DarkState is taking turns working over Tank. Hank gets the tag and lands a flatliner for a near fall.
Read More: WWE NXT Star Explains Meaning Behind New Gimmick
Hank and Tank crush Lennox with a suplex/swanton combo. Cutler and Shuggars pulls Hank and Tank out of the ring as they set up their finish. Cutler makes the mistake of saying Joe Hendry’s name out loud. Hendry burst through a wall like Kool-Aid Man. Hendry chases Cutler. In the confusion, Shuggars helps Lennox reverse a roll up for the win.
Winners and STILL NXT Tag Team Champions, DarkState!
Grade: C+
Standard TV match. The Joe Hendry bit is funny, but it can’t happen again next week. This will get old quickly.
Flag Match: Ethan Page vs. Tavion Heights
Page tosses his ring jacket at Heights and tries to climb the pole. Heights cuts Page off. Heights chases Page all over the ring. Page cuts Heights off and hits a code breaker. Page and Heights keep cutting off each other’s attempts to retrieve their respective flags. Page gets suplexed off the top by Heights. Heights manages to climb the pole and pull down the American flag for the win.
Winner- Tavion Heights
After the match, NXT Alum Tyler Breeze appears and takes a selfie over Ethan Page’s body.
Grade: C+
As far as flag matches go, this was… fine. It’s hard to make an “item on a pole” match good. Well, unless we are talking Judy Bagwell on a pole. Best match type ever…
WWE Women’s Tag Team Title #1 Contenders Elimination Match: Fatal Influence (Fallon Henley & Jazmyn Nyx) vs. The Culling (Izzi Dame & Tatum Paxley) vs. Sol Ruca & Zaria
Paxley and Nyx double team Zaria, booting her out of the ring. Nyx and Paxley trade pin attempts. Zaria rolls back in and clears the ring. Ruca gets the tag and rides Paxley and Nyx like a surfboard. Everyone lands a dive and a big move, including Ruca taking about all of the Culling with a corkscrew splash off the top.
After the break, Ruca and Dame take out Nyx with a doomsday blockbuster. Zaria clears the ring again. Ruca and Zaria both landed Spears. Ruca sets up Sol Snatcher. Henley pushes Zaria in the way. Ruca destroys Zaria with a Sol Snatcher. Ruca gets dumped out of the ring. Nyx pins Zaria.
Sol Ruca and Zaria have been eliminated
After the break, Dame and Paxley hit their finish on Henley for the win.
Fatal Influence has been eliminated
Winners and NEW Number One Contenders, The Culling!
After the match, NXT Women’s Champion Jacy Jayne berates Nyx and Henley for losing. Jayne rants about this being her division. The ‘tron shows a few SUVs pulling up to the arena.
After the break, Jayne rants about not needing anything from anyone, and the only person she ever needed was herself. She’s the greatest NXT Women’s Champion of all time. Stephanie Vaquer’s music hits. Vaquer and Jayne go back and forth. Jayne says there are three of them and one of her. Vaquer asks Jayne if she knows what time it is. WWE Women’s Champion Tiffany Stratton’s music hits.
Stratton stands with Vaquer and disputes Jayne’s claim that she’s the greatest women’s champion ever. Jayne calls Vaquer and Stratton “Super Seniors.” Stratton says she doesn’t think Mami is going to like being called that. Rhea Ripley’s music hits. Ripley walks out on the stage and challenges Fatal Influence to a fight at NXT Homecoming.
Grade: B-
Best match of the night. Tons of close near falls, big moves, and a solid finish. The finish led to setting up one of the biggest six-woman tag matches in NXT history. No, that wasn’t hyperbole.
WWE NXT Review:
Tonight’s show was all over the place, featuring good matches, bizarre finishes, and tons of build-up to the big NXT show: Homecoming. With so many past stars showing up tonight, it’s hard not to get excited about the already announced matches and potential surprises. What did you all think of tonight’s show? Who else will show up at NXT Homecoming? Tell us in the comments!
Rating: B-
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