By John Moore, ProWrestling.net Staffer (@liljohnm)
NXT TV “Great American Bash Night One”
Orlando, Florida at the WWE Performance Center
Aired live July 30, 2024 on Syfy Network
[Hour One] The show started out with a skit, where Hank Walker and Tank Ledger were acting like spies trying to break into the WWE Performance Center. Both guys were acting extra campy with campy music in the background. Eventually, Hank and Tank found their way to the power box where they turned on the lights to the ring area of the Performance Center…
Vic Joseph and Booker T were on commentary. Mike Rome was the ring announcer. There were red, white, and blue flags on the barricade and items like a bbq pit at ringside to play into the Great American Bash theme (weren’t they late with this theme show? 4th of July was about a month ago)…
Separate shots of Roxanne Perez and The D’Angelo Family were shown. NXT North American Champion Oba Femi pulled up the the Performance Center in his SUV…
Entrances for the first match took place. Mike Rome handled the formal in-ring championship introductions. Fyre and Dawn jumped Meta Four during the introductions before the bell rang. The bell rang once Jakara and Fyre were in the ring…
1. Alba Fyre and Isla Dawn vs. “Meta Four” Lash Legend and Jakara Jackson (w/Oro Mensah) for the WWE Women’s Tag Team Championships. Jakara tried to steal one with a Small Package on Fyre. Fyre and Dawn then traded tags to cut the ring in half on Jackson. Dawn put Jakara in a tarantula, holding Jakara in place for Fyre’s superkick. Fyre and Dawn hit Jackson with a double team suplex. Lash entered the ring and powered both opponents out of the ring. Jakara hit Dawn with a dive at ringside heading into break.[c]
Back from break, Lash caught the hot tag and ran through Dawn with clotheslines. Lash hit Dawn with knees to the gut and used her as a battering ram on Fyre. After tossing Dawn, Lash hit Fyre with a backbreaker. Lash hit Dawn with a Chokeslam for a nearfall. Dawn caught Lash with a high kick and Dawn knocked Jackson off the apron. Fyre and Dawn hit Lash with a Backstabber-Swanton combo. Jackson broke up Fyre’s pin.
Dawn and Jackson brawled to ringside. Fyre hit Lash with a Tornado DDT for a nearfall. Fyre worked on Lash with chops. Lash turned the tables and put Fyre in a Electric Chair. Jackson tagged in. Jakara hit Fyre with an assisted wheelbarrow cutter for a nearfall (Vic did the “We have a new champ” telegraph). Dawn hit Lash with a meteora at ringside (the screen went black for a sec). Dawn and Fyre hit Jackson with their Gory Special-Flatliner finisher for the win.
Alba Fyre and Isla Dawn defeated Jakara Jackson and Lash Legend via pinfall in 9:56 to retain the WWE Women’s Tag Team Championships.
NXT Champion Ethan Page made his entrance to mock Meta Four for coming up short. Page told Lash and Jakara to watch next week because they’ll be no flukes. Page told Oro that “this” is as close to the title as you will get. Paige tried to hit Oro with the belt, but he saw it coming. Oro rolled up Page and Lash counted the pin to mock Page again. Meta Four left standing tall while Page threw a fit in the ring…
Cedric Alexander was coaching developmental wrestlers backstage “earlier today”. Shawn Spears showed up and told Cedric that he wants to coach Cedric like he’s coaching Brooks Jensen, but Cedric is just a lost cause. Cedric said he can’t be manipulated because he doesn’t have a weak mind like other people Spears take advantage of. Brooks Jensen heard this in the distance and got in Cedric’s face, thinking Cedric was calling him a “weak mind”. Cedric said he didn’t mean it that way. This would set up a match later in the show…
Hank Walker had a mic and interviewed Tavion Heights about his upcoming match. Heights talked about his accolades which included competing in the last Olympics in Greco-Roman Wrestling. Heights said he also respects Tony D for being a amateur wrestling champion from the University of Buffalo. Hank sent the show to Tank to interview Tony D and the family. Tony D said he respects what Heights does but Tony D brings it every night. Tank sent the show to commercial…[c]
John’s Thoughts: Good showing by the rookies Jakara and Lash. We haven’t seen a lot of Jakara in the ring due to a past injury, but she looked pretty good and comfortable in this tag team setting. A few years ago when Lash Legend had no experience, she looked very green and not great; but taking her off TV to train has done her wonders. She’s something special. She’s quick, tall, athletic, and her moves are starting to look clean. Can I predict and pray that she becomes the Black Rhea Ripley? I really think she has that upside. The match outcome wasn’t in question; mostly because WWE has been warming up Belair and Cargill, Damage Ctrl, and Sonya Deville’s new group as future contenders.
Vic Joseph plugged this weekend’s Summerslam live events as well as a few interviews airing on the Summerslam pre-show…
A Pete Dunne promo aired. Dunne said he’s seen it in the locker room for years, people trying to figure things out in the locker room. He said he’s YxB, Young and Bitter. He said when he turned to someone for the first time in his life, he got stuck with a terrible nickname, Butch. He said he was front row to the Sheamus show. Dunne talked about Sheamus, Ridge Holland, and Tyler Bate all leaving him. He said none of them are like him, and neither is Trick.
Pete talked about getting robbed on a bus once in England on the way to a show. He said no one stuck up for him. He said he pulled himself up and handled business. Dunne praised Trick for his recent success. Dunne said you think a man like that can trust their own instincts rather than come to Dunne for help. Dunne said next week he’ll help Trick figure it out…
Trick Williams was watching the promo on a monitor. Trick said forget about “Whoop dat trick” because next week Trick is going to whoop dat ass…
Entrances for the next match took place. Mike Rome handled the formal in-ring introductions…
2. Tony D’Angelo (w/Channing Lorenzo, Luca Crucifino, Adriana Rizzo) vs. Tavion Heights (w/Charlie Dempsey, Myles Borne) in a Rounds Match for the NXT Heritage Cup. Heights and D’Angelo started the match with a traditional Judo/Amateur Wrestling exchange. Tony D used a fireman carry to take down Heights. Heights came right back with a hip toss. Tony came back with a few scoop slams and a shoulder tackle.
Tony D put Heights in a Kesa Gatame. Tony D took down heights with a shoulder tackle. Heights got some respite after putting Tony D in a headlock. Both men lowered their weight to block gutwrenches. Tony D put Heights in a heel hook to run out the clock. [End of Round 1]
Wren Sinclair was shown cheering Tavion Heights from the crowd. The show cut to Picture-in-picture according to Vic Joseph (for me, I got regular commercials. Maybe they didn’t sync things up with Syfy?).[c]
The show cut back with ten seconds on the clock. Tony D hit Tavion with a Superplex as the clock ran out. [End of Round 2]
Heights came back with clubbing blows. Tony D hit Tavion with a Belly to Belly for a two count. Tony D hit Tavion with a Fisherman Buster for the first fall. [End of Round 3]
Tony D’Angelo pinned Tavion Heights 0:24 into round 3 to go up 1-0
Wren Slinclar gave Tavion Heights an aggressive and loud motivational speech which actually gave Tavion Heights the Friends and Family Power-Up. Heights ran through Tony D and hit him with a Belly to Belly to give Tavion his first fall. [End of Round 4]
Tavion Heights pinned Tony D’Angelo 0:29 into Round 4 to tie the match 1-1.
Tavion started the round with a T Bone Suplex for a nearfall. Tavion got another nearfall after an overhead belly to belly. Tony D recovered and hit Heights with a release suplex and two spinebusters. Tony D picked up the pinfall win after a Uranage. [End of Round 5]
Tony D’Angelo defeated Tavion Heights via pinfall 1:39 into round 5 to retain the NXT Heritage Cup (2-1).
Social media clips were shown of Fallon Henley, Jacy Jayne, Jasmyn Nyx, Sol Ruca, Karmen Petrovic, and Lola Vice to set up their upcoming match…
Brooks Jensen made his entrance heading into break…[c]
John’s Thoughts: A good and quick match between two amateur wrestling standouts. A part of me wanted this to be a bit of a brawl-for-all type of situation where they shoot wrestle. It’s Olympic season, and we have a Olympian and state champion in the ring. The amateur wrestling isn’t for all, but I respect the usage of more practical and realistic moves. Tony D, oddly enough as the cartoon mafia guy, continues to be the most sportslike Heritage Cup champion since the cup moved to the US. The lowkey standout from this segment for the 2nd week in a row is Wren Sinclair, who’s showing a lot of personality in her current role adjacent to No Quarter Catch Crew. Her hype-up segment really resonated with the Performance Center crowd.
The match was joined in progress…
3. Cedric Alexander vs. Brooks Jensen. Jensen hit Cedric with a knee for a nearfall. Shawn Spears appeared at ringside to watch the match. Jensen used a power slam to put Cedric in a Tree of Woe. Jensen hit Cedric with a shoulder tackle for a two count. Cedric fought out of a cravate with punches and a jawbreaker. Cedric rallied with running forearms. Vic Joseph noted how Cedric has gained more muscle recently.
Cedric tripped up Jensen and hit him with a Basement Dropkick. Cedric got a nearfall off a Michinoku Driver. Jensen knocked Cedric off the top rope with a throat punch. Jensen hit Cedric with a leg drop for a nearfall. Jensen hit Alexander with a front Suplex on the announce table. Jensen went for a spinning heel kick from the apron, but Cedric dodged which sent Jensen’s knee into the announce table. Cedric hit Jensen with a Lumbar Check for the win.
Cedric Alexander defeated Brooks Jensen via pinfall in 5:01 of television time.
John’s Thoughts: Happy they aren’t treating Alexander as a “good hand” in NXT after last week’s loss so this was a good bounce back. Brooks Jensen losing doesn’t hurt him as it’s character development for his current unhinged persona. Just because it’s benefited NQCC by giving them some solid in-ring time, I wouldn’t mind if they find a way to put Jensen on a excursion to TNA, both for development, and to continue this story where he’s walking on eggshells for his job.
[Hour Two] A Je’von Evans promo aired. He said his earliest memory of wrestling, was watching it with his mom and dad. He said his parents always fought, but they stopped once the show came on. He said his mom was a John Cena fan while his Dad was a Booker T person. Je’von talked about how it was tough having families separated, but once he saw Jeff Hardy hit a Swanton, all that anger and pain went away. He talked about how he always took a trampoline to his neighbors house to play pro wrestling with them. A “to be continued” graphic aired…
Joe Hendry was chatting with a few developmental women backstage about his upcoming concert. After Hendry left, Ashanti the Adonis escorted the shawtys to go watch Hendry’s concert…[c]
A Rascalz Tree House segment aired (Their old That 70s Show smoke circle segments, just without smoke this time). Wes Lee joked that it’s odd to have this on Tuesday instead of Thursday on Impact. Wentz said the Treehouse can happen anywhere and anytime. Trey confused Wes with technobabble and said it’s magic.
Wes said the Rascalz are magical as hell. Wes said they can’t [smoke weed] here because WWE is PG. Wentz noted that MSK is one of the best tag teams in NXT. Wes pointed out that they never lost the tag team titles. Trey reminded Wentz that he pinned Axiom the previous week. Wentz said that pinning a tag champ proves that they deserve a tag title shot which may lead to them defending a new set of tag belts in two companies. Wes said he’ll dial up Axiom now. The Rascalz then put their hands on the camera so they can partake in private…
John’s Thoughts: These things used to come off as kinda lame to me back in TNA a few years ago, but I don’t mind them doing it on NXT and current TNA as a nice throwback. Wentz tends to work the best in these with his natural Michael Kelso impersonation. Also, why were they able to make more weed references when Matt Riddle was around and now they have to be all PG? It’s legal and medicinal across the country.
Booker T and Vic Joseph checked in on commentary…
Say his name and he appears! I believe in Joe Hendry! Clap Clap! Hendry was in the center of a red carpeted ring with a guitar. Hendry soaked in the crowd singing his song acapella. Hendry welcomed the crowd to the first Joe Hendry concert in NXT. He said he felt the buzz in the air and knew he had to create something special. He said he knows the world believes in Joe Hendry, so he had to create a song everyone will love. Or at least most people will love.
Joe Hendry strummed his guitar, and started to sing his first entrance theme “Joe Hendry makes things Better”. It was a remixed version that added Chef Shawn Michels in it. Hendry also mocked Booker T for the twitter meme of Booker being in a AI version of Hendry’s entrance video. Hendry then joked about Joe Coffey looking like the son of Dutch Mantel (Zeb Coulter). Hendry then led the crowd in claps and continued his first entrance theme, mocking Gallus along the way.
The crowd chanted “We Believe” once the song was over. Hendry said it was time for an Encore. Before Hendry could get into his song, Gallus made their entrance with Joe Coffey on the mic. Joe Coffey said there will be no encore. He said Hendry is a one hit wonder, one trick pony, and internet meme.
He said if he hears the song one more time, someone is getting decked. Coffey said if Hendry wants some, he can get some. Hendry swung at Joe Coffey, but he was overpowered by Wolfgang and Mark Coffey. Joe Coffey hit Hendry in the back Jeff Jarret Style with a guitar. Gallus stood tall to end the segment…
Hank and Tank ran into Roxanne Perez backstage and praised her for being history maker and record breaker. Perez liked the respect. Hank then said it was time for Tank to break the world record of putting post-it notes on his face. Perez called them annoying. Jaida Parker passed by and said that Perez might not have a championship at the end of the night…[c]
John’s Thoughts: A Jeff Jarrett and Dutch Mantel (Zeb Coulter) reference on the same night. This is NXTNA. Only thing missing was a Rudy Charles REF BUMP!!! These Joe Hendry concerts are always solid (Though I thought his last one that he did to clown on “Top Dolla” AJ Francis was better. It was a remix of Creed’s Higher. I’ll post it below). Hendy does a great job getting the crowd engaged. It was fun hearing him play the acoustic version of his first TNA entrance theme (though a lot of people might not have been aware of that). The post match stuff shows that Hendry is knee deep in NXT feuding, on a collision course with Joe Coffey and Gallus.
NXT GM Ava was moderating a contract signing between Ethan Page and Oro Mensah, who were bickering in her office. Ava shut them up and told them to take turns. Oro talked about Page taking out his main man Noam Dar. Oro then mocked Page for getting pinned yet again (unofficially). Page said none of that matters because Oro will never be champion. Page signed the contract. Oro said Page better watch out because the title is going to go around the main man Oro Mensah’s waist in the end…
Entrances for the next match took place…
4. Jaida Parker vs. Kendall Grey (w/Carlee Bright). Grey took down Parker with a fireman takedown. Grey got a two count off a crossbody. Parker turned the tables with a front suplex on the top rope. Parker hit Grey with an Inverted Suplex for a few nearfalls. Grey reversed a Front Suplex. Both women traded forearms. Grey hit Parker with a neckbreaker and a few forearms.
Myles Borne and Wren Sinclair showed up to complain to Carlee Bright. Grey hit Bourne with a suplex again. Grey hit Parker with a Olympic Slam for a nearfall. Parker hit Grey with her signature draping gutbuster. Parker slammed Grey and hit her with her running hip attack finisher for the victory.
Jaida Parker defated Kendall Grey via pinfall in 4:03.
Thea Hail was warming up in the locker room. Ridge Holland was with her and thanked her for her nice words last week. Ridge wished Hail luck in her title match later. Ridge said nobody will be throwing in the towel this time. Riley Osborne, Duke Hudson, and Andre Chase showed up. Ridge told Hail to win the title by any means possible. Chase got nervous at that last line…
Jacy Jayne, Jasmyn Nyx, and Fallon Henley made their entrance…[c]
Vic Joseph plugged the Summerslam pop-up store in Cleveland, OH…
Axiom was talking to Cruz Del Toro and Joaquin Wilde in Spanish. Nathan Frazer showed up and wondered what they were talking about. Axiom said they were talking about an upcoming WWE Speed Match. Robert Stone and Stevie Turner showed up and told Frazer that Axiom accepted a title defense against MSK. Frazer signed it and looked confused. Frazer then argued to Axiom about accepting tag team challenges without him around…
The babyface team made their entrance next…
5. Sol Ruca, Lola Vice, and Karmen Petrovic vs. Fallon Henley, Jacy Jayne, and Jasmyn Nyx. Sol hit Fallon with an X Factor and mocked her by riding her like a surfboard. Petrovic tagged in. Henley dragged her to her corner and had a little bit of an advantage. Petrovic hit Nyx with a few kicks and a reverse Blockbuster for a two count. Petrovic hit Nyx with a Scorpion Kick. Petrovic then turned a Front Chancery into a Muta Lock. Petrovic hit Nyx wtih a Yakuza kick and tagged in Vice.
Jayne tagged in and got a two count off a rollup. Both women traded knife chops. Both women traded rapid rollups. Vice hit Jayne with a double leg lift takedown. Petrovic tagged back in. Vice and Petrovic hit Jayne with a modified Meet in the Middle to give Petrovic a nearfall. Jayne recovered and tagged in Henley. Sol saved petrovic from a suplex and used her as a pattering ram on Jayne and Henley.
The face team dumped the heels to ringside. Petrovic hit Jayne with a dive to ringside. Sol continued her innovation by hitting a Top Rope Red Arrow to the ringside floor on all three opponents. The show cut to picture-in-picture (?). Again, for me, the show cut to regular commercial (I wonder if it’s a local thing for me or SyFy just doing it?).[c]
The heels cut the ring in half on Petrovic back from break. Vice tagged in and cleaned house with rapid Taekwondo kicks. Sol tagged in and hit Henley and Jayne with a Slingshot 450 Double Clothesline. All three women hit their opponents with Vice’s signature “I’m a Latina” Hip attack in stereo. Sol hit Henley with a power bomb for a two count. Henley crotched Sol on the top rope. Jayne hit Sol with a Tower of London.
Nyx tagged in and hit Sol with a Fisherman Suplex. Vice and Petrovic broke up Nyx’s pin. Jayne hit Vice at ringside with a cannonball. Petrovic dodged Henley’s Tiger Feint and shoved her into the ringpost. Petrovic tagged in and hit Nyx with shortarm kicks and a facebuster. Nyx hit Petrovic with a Pele Kick. Jayne tagged in and gave Petrovic a forearm. Henley tagged in and hit Petrovic with a modified Big Ending for the victory.
Fallon Henley, Jasmyn Nyx, and Jacy Jayne defeated Karmen Petrovic, Sol Ruca, and Lola vice via pinfall in 12:57.
Tatum Paxley ran into Kelani Jordan backstage. Tatum asked Jordan if she wanted to play dollhouse with her. Jordan said she didn’t want to play dolls. Paxley asked if they can play with the North American Championship. Jordan said she doesn’t play when it comes to the title. Tatum said she doesn’t play when it comes to the title either. After Tatum left, Jordan started to play with the dollhouse a bit, but was freaked out because Wendy Choo was glaring at her the whole time…
Separate shots of Thea Hail and Roxanne Perez were shown as they were heading to the ring…[c]
John’s Thoughts: Another week, another strong effort from the developmental women. I have no clue why when Vince McMahon was around and 2.0 was a thing, they were forced to push wrestlers on TV before they were ready? I like that Petrovic has added more grappling to round out her moveset. The standout continues to be Sol Ruca who continues to pull out new and innovative wrestling moves in every match. This week being the slingshot 450 double lariat and top rope Red Arrow to ringside.
Vic Joseph plugged the free outdoor kickoff event for Summerslam weekend…
Joe Hendry was interviewed in the parking lot about his concert being crashed. Hendry talked about how this was supposed to be a milestone in his carrer, and Gallus had to ruin it. He said Gallus is driven by jealousy and Joe Coffey is at the wheel. Hendry said he proved he can hang in NXT. He then hyped up how he’s going to force Joe Coffey to believe in Joe Hendry next week…
Vic Joseph plugged the following matches for next week: Ethan Page vs. Oro Mensah for the NXT Championship, Trick Williams vs. Pete Dunne, Joe Hendry vs. Joe Coffey, Kelani Jordan vs. Tatum Paxley for the NXT Women’s North American Championship, and Axiom and Frazer vs. MSK for the NXT Tag Team Championships.
Entrances for the main event took place. Vic noted that this was the year in a row where Thea Hail is challenging for the NXT Women’s Title at the Great American Bash. Mike Rome handled the formal in-ring championship introductions. Vic Joseph noted that this was the youngest combined age in a NXT Women’s Title match…
6. Roxanne Perez vs. Thea Hail (w/Andre Chase, Duke Hudson, Riley Osborne, Ridge Holland) for the NXT Women’s Championship. Both women started the match with rapid rollups. Perez ran to the ropes to prevent a Kimura Lock. Perez put Hail in an armbar. Both women ran the ropes. Perez used a handstand to block a headscissors. Hail rallied with an strike and Exploder Suplex. Hail hit Perez with a Triangle Moonsault heading into break, I got half picture-in-picture this time.[c]
Back from break, Hail got a one count off a rollup. Vic noted that it’s been over a decade since the women’s title changed hands at a Great American Bash (presumably at a WWE PPV after they acquired the brand from WCW). Hail fired up and rallied with right hands and axe handles. Hail sold a arm injury. Hail hit Perez with the World’s Smallest Slam and flip senton. Perez dodged a springboard senton.
Perez quickly turned a pin attempt into a Crossface. Perez hit Hail with a Tope Suicida. Perez was distracted with Chase which allowed Hail to hit Perez with a Tope. Hail hit Perez with a top rope crossbody. Hail pancaked Perez with a Michinoku Driver which Vic noted looked like a awkward landing. Perez yanked Hail’s injured arm.
[Overrun] Hail used a backslide for a great nearfall. Hail and Perez traded Kimuras and Pins. Perez managed to get Hail in a Crossface. Hail deadlifed Perez and hit Perez with a Rolling Senton and Springboard Trust Fall for a nearfall. While the referee was distracted, Perez gave Hail a thumb to the eye. Perez gave Hail a Saito Suplex. Hail recovered and tossed a running Perez into the ringpost. Hail put Perez in a Kimura.
Perez rolled to ringside to break the hold. Hail shoved Perez into the steel steps to turn the tables. Perez then tossed Hail’s injured arm into the steps. Perez put Hail in a crossface. Hail quickly reversed it into a pin and Kimura. Perez reversed it again into a Crossface. Perez kicked off the ropes to prevent a rope break. Perez dragged Hail to her feet and hit her with Pop Rocks (Code Red) for the victory.
Roxanne Perez defeated Thea Hail via pinfall in 1121 to retain the NXT Women’s Championship.
Perez celebrated her win to close the show…
John’s Thoughts: An awesome match and way more epic than I would have expected. That’s the thing about Chase U. You get lulled into their solid sports entertainment gimmick, and they surprised you with a mat classic. A “mat” classic in particular in that both women did a great job with the mat work, reversing pins, kimuras, and crossfaces. Those nearfalls and false finishes at the end were really good, enough to make me suspend my disbelief for a sec that this was a foregone conclusion.
I’m happy they decided to use this to elevate Hail’s in-ring credibility instead of going with the towel finish tease they did in a segment earlier. A good themed show, again, anchored by WWE’s developmental and NIL wrestlers. I remember how ugly it looked back in the 2.0 days. To follow the meme, let Chef Shawn Michaels cook (the meme being HBK’s DX joke retirement where Triple H was trying to get him out of the Cafeteria. HBK even set his recent twitter profile pic as Chef Shawn). He’s let these developmental wrestlers cook in the gym, live events, and at their practice rings, and they are looking very clean out there. By the way, they focused on Oba Femi getting out of his SUV. Did he just show up for TV for that five second spot? I’ll be by in a bit with my audio review for the Dot Net Members and Patreon Patrons.
Update: I asked someone else and they weren’t having problems with their picture-in-picture. For some reason, Sling TV, which I use, replaced my PIP breaks with local ads. Eh? I don’t pay attention to the Picture-in-picture anyways. Plus, the timing is all the same. I use any commercial break to catch up with my report.
Mr. Moore, you’re correct as is Vic Joseph, the last time a title changed hands at the Great American Bash was in the the WWE era when Michelle McCool defeated Melina to win the WWE Women’s title way back in June 2009. Although technically, the PPV was known simply as The Bash, so strictly speaking, Shelton Benjamin beating Matt Hardy for the United States title in July 2008 would be the most recent title change.
They’ve been acknowledging the history of these recycled names from other companies recently. At Heatwave, they even had Vic note that the last time tag team titles changed hands, was at ECW Heatwave.
No offense but some people are saying Joe Hendry Big hype,reminds them of the Honky tonk man , gimmick lack wrestling skills.
I’m going to say this here as I did on my own snippets, and I’ll call her by her real name. Madison Knisley arrived tonight. She matched up wonderfully. I find myself comparing this to Becky Lynch’s arrival match on NXT against Sasha Banks at Takeover Unstoppable.
She should’ve won the title actually.Roxanne would just get the rematch and take it back,but Thea deserves atleast a brief run at some title honesyly..