By John Moore, ProWrestling.net Staffer (@liljohnm)
NXT TV
Orlando, Florida at the WWE Performance Center
Aired live October 12, 2021 on USA Network
Footage from earlier today showed Isaiah Scott, B-Fab, and Top Dolla wondering where Ashanti The Adonis was. All of a sudden, a SUV pulled up and out emerged Legado Del Fantasma. Legado attacked Hit Row. Hit Row were overwhelmed. B-Fab and Top Dolla were thrown in the back of the SUV and Legado drove off, leaving Isaiah Scott all by himself…
John’s Thoughts: I mean… This “earlier today” footage was a kidnapping right? Somebody call the police? Samoa Joe must still be pissed that nobody investigated his kidnapping in a parking lot. Wait? if we’re doing parking lot kayfabe, were Legado Del Fantasma the Samoa Joe Kidnapper ninjas all along?
Vic Joseph, Wade Barrett, and Beth Phoenix were on commentary.
Joe Gacy was sitting in the center of the ring to start the show. Gacy continued to use his usual buzzwords. He called himself and the fans “snowflakes”. Gacy hyped up having an opportunity to get into the match at Halloween Havoc…
1. NXT Champion Tommaso Ciampa vs. Joe Gacy in a non-title match. Ciampa dominated the chain wrestling sequence. Gacy escaped a wristlock and hit Ciampa with a elbow and backbreaker for a two count. “Harland” was in the crowd, which drew the attention of Gacy. The distraction allowed Ciampa to get control and stomp a mudhole on Gacy. Ciampa hit Gacy with a face wash knee. Ciampa smashed Gacy’s face on the announce table.
Ciampa dodged Gacy’s dropkick and continued to dominate. Ciampa worked on Gacy with delayed elbows to the chest, along with a cravate. Ciampa ran into a back elbow from Gacy. Gacy hit Ciampa with a twisting Uranage for a two count. Gacy hit Ciampa with a senton on the apron. The show cut to the first picture-in-picture commercial to happen in a long while for NXT. [c]
Ciampa rallied against Gacy with many running elbows. Gacy escaped an Air Raid Crash and traded elbows with Ciampa. Both men also traded pump kicks. Gacy hit Ciampa with a power bomb for a two count. Gacy missed a moonsault. Gacy got a two count off a jackknife pin. Ciampa caught Gacy in the face with a dropkick during a handstand. Ciampa hit Gacy with the Fairy Tale Ending for the win.
Tommaso Ciampa defeated Joe Gacy via pinfall in 10:47.
Harland attacked Ciampa after the match and grabbed Gacy by the jaw. Harland was calmed down when Gacy rubbed his hand on his cheek. Harland and Gacy retreated to the back…
John’s Thoughts: A really good match and it may have been the best television match we’ve got in the 2.0 era. A lot of NXT 2.0 matches have been rushed, concentrated, and short. This was longer, told a story, and paced very well. Good showcase for Ciampa. Joe Gacy shouldn’t be slighted either because he’s taken the character WWE assigned him and run with it. Not only that, but Gacy has added a bit of depth with his mannerisms and deliberate speaking cadence. Anyways, this felt like old NXT in terms of match quality, which is a good thing.
Toxic Attraction made their entrance for a promo. Gigi Dolan started off by saying that last week they wanted to put an end to NXT women’s Champion Raquel Gonzalez, but Io Shirai and Zoey Stark had to play hero, which left them feeling very unsatisfied. Jacy Jayne said that Io and Zoey want to play by the rules, while Toxic Attraction doesn’t care about the rules. Jayne said Toxic Attraction want the NXT Women’s Tag Team Championship which they’ll challenge for at Halloween Havoc. Mandy Rose said she’s coming for the Women’s Title at Halloween Havoc. Rose said it doesn’t matter what hair color she has, she’s still the baddest bitch in the game…
Xyon Quinn made his entrance…[c]
A vignette aired of someone saying that they will bury the past so they can start again. A graphic for Halloween Havoc flashed at the end of the vignette…
2. Xyon Quinn vs. Malik Blade. Quinn went at Blade with a shoulder block. Quinn hit Blade with a body slam. Blade came back with a back elbow, but Quinn came back with a right hand. Quinn hit Blade with a power whip for a two count. Quinn ended up getting the win after a flying forearm.
Xyon Quinn defeated Malik Blade via pinfall in 2:45.
John’s Thoughts: Quinn has a really good look and I’m really looking forward to his evolution in WWE. He’s one of the guys to look out for as long as they both don’t rush things, and don’t give him some stupid vocational gimmick.
McKenzie Mitchell interviewed Tommasso Cimapa. Ciampa hyped up his match against Bron Breakker. Zack Gibson and James Drake showed up to interrupt and mock Ciampa. Bron Breakker showed up to backup Ciampa. The Grizzled Young Veterans backed down. Breakker said he has Ciampa’s back leading up to Halloween Havoc because he wants to face Ciampa at his best…
Ivy Nile and Diamond Mine made their entrance… [c]
The commentary team checked in from the commentary table. They cut to McKenzie Mitchell interviewing Isaiah Scott about Hit Row getting kidnapped by Legado Del Fantasma. Scott was talked about how he has to focus on Santos Escobar. He yelled that he knows that Escobar doesn’t want to face Scott one-on-one. Scott said he’s taking the title to Smackdown and there’s nothing Escobar can do about it…
3. Ivy Nile (w/Malcolm Bivens, Hachiman, Julius Creed, Brutus Creed, Roderick Strong) vs. Valentina Feroz. Joseph noted that Nile is the first female titan winner of the Titan Games on NBC, hosted by The Rock. Feroz came at her with a flurry of offense, but Nile ended it with a delayed vertical suplex. Nile choked Feroz in the corner with a boot. Nile hit Valentina with a rebound stomp. Nile worked on Feroz with a knee and body slam. Nile rolled into a Torture Rack. Nile added torque to the rack with squats. Feroz ended up having to tap out.
Ivy Nile defeated Valentina Feroz via submission in 2:43.
Malcolm Bivens took the mic and said that what we saw was a message to every woman in NXT. Bivens said the pitbull has been unleashed. Bivens said Nile didn’t come to play games. The Creed Brothers don’t come to play games either. Bivens then hyped up NXT Cruiserweight Champion Roderick Strong. Strong took the mic, but was cut off by Ikeman Jiro’s awesome entrance music. Ikeman Jiro made his entrance, motioning that he’s going after the cruiserweight title. Diamond Mine backed down, aside from Julius Creed. Creed said he’s always ready and always strapped (in that he’s dressed to compete). Jiro cheap shoted Julius and backed down. Vic Joseph wondered if we’re getting Creed vs. Jiro after the break?
John’s Thoughts: I know they’re going for a bit of a Terminator thing with her, but I feel like she needs to emote a little bit in the face. Small nitpick aside, that was a good debut for Ivy Nile. Nile is someone WWE should also take their time on to make sure she’s ready in the ring. She does have an amazing unique look though! That power and rippedness is legit. Kudos to Valentina for becoming a pretzel in the end for Ivy. Looking forward to Ivy’s development too. Because of the legitimacy and practically of Diamond Mine now, they’ve become one of my favorite wrestling factions at the moment.
4. Ikeman Jiro vs. Julius Creed (w/Diamond Mine). Creed hit Jiro with a chop block and delayed butterfly suplex. Creed tackled Jiro into the corner and hit Jiro with a delayed body slam. Julius hit Jiro with a Delayed Gutwrench suplex. Julius hit Jiro with another butterfly suplex. Jiro hit Julius with a Uranage. Ikeman came back with a few jacket punches, ending with a discus lariat. Jiro hit Creed with a delayed Vader Bomb for a two count. Ikeman hit Julius with a Asai Moonsault at ringside. Julius caught Jiro and cartwheel slammed him to the mat. Julius hit Jiro with a basement lariat for the victory.
Julius Creed defeated Ikeman Jiro via pinfall in 3:30.
Diamond Mine put the boots to Jiro. Kushida ran out for the save. Kushida didn’t want to hit Nile, which allowed the Creed Brothers to blindside him. They all put the boots to Kushida too. The segment ended after Strong left Kushida lying after a End of Heartache…
Raquel Gonzalez cut a promo to hype up her match at Halloween Havoc against Mandy Rose. Gonzalez noted that her match against Rose will be a Spinn the wheel make the deal match…
John’s Thoughts: I wonder if that match is going to be a loser leaves town match? Not saying that it’s definite, but that might be how they get Gonzalez to the main roster.
Kyle O’Reilly and Von Wagner made their entrance…[c]
[Hour Two] Lashing Out With Lash Legend aired. It was essentially a talk show where she would splice in pop culture references…
John’s Thoughts: Hmmm. This is just the Abraham Washington Show without Tony Atlas, and Tony Atlas was the best part of that show. That said, Lash Legend does have confidence and decent talking ability, so she might just be hindered by the generic mandatory talk show gimmick.
Pete Dunne and Ridge Holland made their entrance…
5. Kyle O’Reilly and Von Wagner vs. Pete Dunne and Ridge Holland. Holland and Dunne dominated for a stretch. O’Reilly recovered and hit Dunne with roundhouse kicks. Dunne and O’Reilly traded forearms. Wagner and Holland traded forearms. Wagner cleared Holland and Dunne from the ring. Wagner gave Holland an irish whip into the steel steps. The show cut to regular commercial. [c]
John’s Thoughts: By the way, Von Wagner’s ring tights really freak me out. He looks like he’s a man wearing pantyhose because the coloring is skin colored. Manty hose? Is someone in the back ribbing Wagner?
O’Reilly had Holland in a guillotine choke, but Dunne tagged in and broke the hold with joint manipulation. Holland tripped Wagner off the apron to prevent him from tagging in. Dunne and Holland were about to slam O’Reilly on the steel steps but Wagner came in and hit both opponents with a flying shoulder tackle. Von Wagner rallied against Holland and hit Holland with a jumping knee. Wagner hit Holland with a side suplex. Wagner hit Dunne with a big boot.
O’Reilly hit Dunne with a diving knee at ringside. Holland and Wagner traded counters. Wagner hit Holland with a Butterfly Suplex for the clean win.
Von Wagner and Kyle O’Reilly defeated Ridge Holland and Pete Dunne via pinfall.
O’Reilly and Wagner fist bumped after the match…
The show cut to a Andre Chase University skit. Andre Chase was teaching a class on ring awareness. He said he taught Odyssey Jones about having to put his foot on the rope instead of under the rope. “Brandon” pointed out that Chase cheated. Chase started cursing “Brandon” out, with his F-bombs bleeped…
Duke Hudson vs. Grayson Waller was hyped for after the break…[c]
John’s Thoughts: I don’t know what WWE is trying to do with Von Wagner. They rushed him out there on the 1st 2.0 main event where he didn’t make an impact. Then he cuts some horrible promos. And now he’s Kyle O’Reilly’s little buddy. Sadly, the best part about him is how his horrible promos last week became a slight guilty pleasure for me. They’re not doing him any favors. It doesn’t do O’Reilly or Dunne any favors because it seems like Wagner was just shoehorned into their program. And I understand that they’re protecting the hell out of Dunne, but it’s very odd that Ridge Holland is losing a majority of his matches as he’s on his way out of the door.
Tony D’Angelo cut a promo about his successful debut. He said he’s the man in NXT. He argued about having a “scheduling conflict” that prevented him from appearing on the Lash Legend show. He blamed the producer for causing this to happen. He said the producer was a nice guy. D’Angelo walked away from his car and you could see the car shaking, implying that the producer was trapped in the trunk…
Entrances for the next match took place. Waller got a inset promo where he claimed to be a Golden Glove boxer…
6. Grayson Waller vs. Duke Hudson. Waller used a straight punch to escape a headlock from Hudson. Waller worked on Hudson with a armwrench. Hudson escaped and worked on Waller with strikes to the gut in the corner. Waller hit Hudson with a stunner and got a two count off a rollup. Hudson tripped Waller off teh springboard. Hudson picked up the win after rolling Waller up.
Duke Hudson defeated Grayson Waller via pinfall in 2:39.
Vic Joseph claimed that Hudson got a handful of tights (even though it looked like a Gotch Style hold to me). Hudson threw a poker chip at Waller and left…
Legado Del Fatnasma were shown backstage. Escobar said it’s a shame that his familia is here and not Scott’s. Escobar said that even so, he promises that Legado Del Fantasma will stay backstage during their match later…
Indi Hartwell and Persia Pirotta made their entrance. Hartwell kissed Dexter Lumis while they were in the Gorilla Position…[c]
John’s Thoughts: I feel like they’re just burning through the gimmicks with Waller and Hudson. Hudson goes from being generic big guy, to MVP’s heavy, to douchebag, to poker man. Waller goes from quirky buddy, to extreme sports dude, to boxing man? Is there anything productive with changing gimmicks week to week?
An Imperium promo aired where they talked about the ring being sacred…
The commentary team ran through the advertised NXT Halloween Havoc card…
7. Indi Hartwell and Persia Pirotta vs. Sarray and Amari Miller. Hatwell hit Sarray with a sidewalk slam for a two count. Sarray turned the table and tagged in Miller who hit Hartwell with kicks. Miller locked Hartwell in a sleeper. Hartwell escaped and tagged in Pirotta, who hit a rally of lariats. Pirotta hit Miller with Snake Eyes and a Yakuza Kick. Pirotta gave Miller an X Factor. Hartwell hit Miller with her signature slingshot elbow for the victory.
Inti Hartwell and Persia Pirotta defeated Amari Miller and Sarray via pinfall in 2:26.
Hartwell took the mic and said it was time for them to go after the tag titles. Io Shirai and Zoey Stark made their entrance with Shirai saying a promo in Japanese. Shirai said she doesn’t like Hartwell and Pirotta. Gigi Dolan and Jacy Jayne walked out to mock Shirai. A brawl ensued. Io Shirai and Zoey Stark stood tall in the end after clearing everyone from the ring…
John’s Thoughts: Yes, there’s a lot of green talent out there, but I actually like how they established a bit of a foundation for the NXT Women’s division. Toxic Attraction are definitely given plenty of mic time to establish their characters. They’re also allowing the other tag teams to rack up wins and establish characters of their own. Why can’t they book the main roster women’s tag titles with effort like this?
Grayson Waller was walking around backstage where she passed by a lot of the women of the roster. Cameron Grimes thought that Waller looked impressive with the way he talked to the ladies. Waller said that Grimes needs to shave his beard and his chest hair. Waller also introduced Grimes to dating apps…
John’s Thoughts: I know that Grimes’s unique look does make him stand out, but I wouldn’t mind a little bit of a tweak because this current look as been associated with his goofball character for way too long…
Isaiah Scott made his entrance heading into commercial…[c]
A vignette aired for Solo Sikoa. He’s a boxer and the vignette looked solid…
John’s Thoughts: Michael Tarver 2.0? I kid. But at the same time I really liked Michael Tarver back in the old NXT game show days. I thought Tarver’s knockout punch gimmick had potential and could have been money if presented properly.
Legado Del Fantasma made their entrance. Santos Escobar sent Elektra Lopez, Joaquin Wilde, and Raul Mendoza to the back. Isaiah Scott attacked Santos Escobar on his way to the ring…
8. Isaiah “Swerve” Scott vs. Santos Escobar for the NXT North American Championship. Scott continued to have the upper hand because he jumped Escobar before the match. Scott hit Escobar with a tilt a whirl backbreaker. The graphic hyped that Tony D’Angelo will appear next week (Eyyyyyy!). Escobar used an armdrag to escape an abdominal stretch. Escobar tripped Scott off the apron. Escobar hit Scott with his Arrow From The Depths of Hell dive. The show cut to picture-in-picture.[c]
Escobar hit Scott with a spinebuster. Escobar worked on Scott with methodical offense. Escobar and Scott traded chops. Scott hit Escobar with a follow through lariat. Scott hit Escobar with a diving uppercut. Scott reversed a Paydirt into a Flatliner for a two count. Escobar hit Scott with a Frankensteiner in the corner. Escobar hit Scott with a Frog Splash for a two count. Escobar hit Scott with a baseball slide. Scott got a breather after crotching Escobar on the top rope.
Scott hit Escobar with a Death Valley Driver on the apron. Scott went for a 450 but Escobar got the knees up. Escobar rolled up Scott for the two count. Joaquin Wilde and Raul Mendoza got on the apron. Carmelo Hayes and Trick Williams ran out to beat up the Legado henchmen. Scott gave Escobar a snake eyes. Scott hit Escobar with the JML Driver for the suprise win.
Isaiah Scott defeated Santos Escobar via pinfall in 11:40 to retain the NXT North American Championship.
John’s Thoughts: Ohhhhh… This is clever! I see what you did there! I love logical stuff like that.
As expected, Carmelo Hayes gave Isaiah Scott a shortarm lariat to leave him lying. Trick Williams handed Hayes the Title Match contract. Hayes signed the contract, which apparently works like Money in the Bank…
9. Isaiah Swerve Scott vs. Carmelo Hayes (w/Trick Williams) for the NXT North American Championship. Hayes hit Scott with a springboard punch. Scott kicked out at two. Hayes gave Scott a kick to get him on the mat. Hayes hit Scott with a diving axe kick for the victory.
Carmelo Hayes defeated Isaiah Scott via pinfall in 1:12 to become the new NXT North American Champion.
No overrun this week as NXT closed with Melo and Trick celebrating Melo’s title win…
John’s Thoughts: Some people may have thought it was a bit much, but I really really liked the closing matches of this week’s NXT show. First of all with the actual match, Scott and Escobar really know each other well and have put on many matches over the past 6 years. As a matter of fact, I might have seen some iteration of Shane Strickland vs. El Hijo Del Fantasma more than Shane Strickland vs. anyone else in the last 6 years. I kinda hope Scott and Escobar stay on different brands from each other, just so Scott can have a different F’n opponent. As many times as they’ve faced, there have been good, great, and even boring matches. This was one of the great ones and that finish really threw me for a loop because they were making it clear that Escobar was going to take the title off Scott due to Scott’s impending callup.
What I REALLY like is when I get thrown for a loop because I didn’t catch it initially and thought “why the hell are Trick and Melo suddenly babyface all of a sudden?”. The satisfaction of the logic clicking hit after the match which is the right time to click. Of any of the 2.0 projects, Carmelo Hayes is one of the better ones to put the title on due to him having a lot of indie and NXT experience already under his belt. Melo is money in his current iteration and it should be interesting to see how he carries this title belt. This week’s NXT 2.0 was the best episode of NXT 2.0 so far. We got some actual storytelling and storyline development. This felt the most like NXT 1.0, and 1.0 is actually what they should be striving for because that was a better show. Just give 1.0 the 2.0 ad campaign and production value. I’ll have more thoughts on this show in my dot net audio review for the members.
Von Wagner looks like a downscaled Great Khali without a goatee.
Is it just me or is Joe Gacy coming off like the original incarnation of Bray Wyatt. And it also looks like he’s on his way to having his own Harper and Rowan.
It looks like Wyatt family 2.0 is complete. I actually missed the post-match assault.
Lol!! This is the funniest thread. NXT 2.0 is great.
Diamond Mine is like an old-school Heenan Family like faction. They aren’t limiting the group to the standard three or whatever. They have singles wrestlers, a tag team, and a female. Putting Strong with the group adds to the credibility.
Toxic Attraction is something else I am loving every week. They are really trying to flesh out these characters and I wouldn’t mind them holding all the gold for everyone to chase. Amazing how NXT seems to get the Women’s division right.
Yes, they need to stop with all the character changes. If something doesn’t work,at least take the talent off of TV for a bit before introducing something new.
That said, I am a fan of character-driven wrestling and that is what I am loving most about this.