Powell’s NXT Hit List: Nathan Frazer and Axiom vs. MSK for the NXT Tag Team Titles, Ethan Page vs. Oro Mensah for the NXT Title, Kelani Jordan vs. Tatum Paxley for the NXT Women’s North American Title

By Jason Powell, ProWrestling.net Editor (@prowrestlingnet)

NXT Great American Bash Night Two Hits

Nathan Frazer and Axiom vs. “MSK” Wes Lee and Zachary Wentz for the NXT Tag Team Titles: The Rascalz reunion was among the most feel-good stories in pro wrestling in 2024. Fans loved seeing these three together again, and both NXT and TNA could have rode it out and continued to reap the rewards. Rather, they shocked everyone by having Lee turn on Wentz and Trey Miguel following the hot tag team title match. It’s ballsy booking when you have a can’t miss thing like the Rascalz reunion and end it so abruptly. The creative forces didn’t wait until the reunion cooled off, they pulled the trigger when fan interest was still at its peak. I didn’t see it coming and I love it. It would feel differently if I thought they just did this just for shock value, but the NXT creative work has been consistently strong enough at the top of the card that I feel confident there is a real plan in place for the fallout. I’m looking forward to hearing Lee’s initial promo and to see what comes next given that he’s flying solo as a heel and is seemingly feuding with two babyfaces.

Ethan Page vs. Oro Mensah for the NXT Championship: A big thumbs up Page busting out a suit and dressing like a champion. Page showed a lot of ass for Mensah during the build by taking all of those visual pinfalls and they paid it off with Page retaining his title in a quality match. This was nice television feud and I enjoyed it, but here’s hoping that Page won’t be put in positions to look so vulnerable going forward. The money is in Page playing a strong and confident heel champion who is good enough to go toe to toe with top challengers, yet isn’t afraid to cheat if the situation calls for it. Perhaps Page’s “NX-Me” promo is the start of him moving in that direction.

Joe Hendry vs. Joe Coffey: Another good spotlight win for Hendry. The Gallus crew did a good job of shining up Hendry, who continues to connect with fans in a big way.

Kelani Jordan vs. Tatum Paxley for the NXT Women’s North American Championship: A solid match. Jordan did a decent job of selling an injured knee even if it did lead to some awkward spots. Jordan continues to stand out as a top prospect with impressive in-ring work for someone of her experience level, and even more so because she is charismatic has a likable personality. It’s hard to say where the Paxley and Wendy Choo weirdness is going, but so far it hasn’t been very compelling.

Wren Sinclair vs. Kendal Grey: A soft Hit. The story of Sinclair bribing her way into the No Quarter Catch Crew has given her character a purpose. On the flip side, Grey is impressive in the ring for this early stage in her development, but I don’t feel like I know anything about her character.

NXT Great American Bash Night Two Misses

Pete Dunne vs. Trick Williams: A Hit for match quality. The Miss is all about the end result of Dunne pinning Williams clean. Trick lost the NXT Championship at NXT Heatwave. He was then put in the position of playing second fiddle to Joe Hendry on the fallout show. And now he took a clean loss to a wrestler who has spent most of his time working undercard matches on the main roster. Granted, things are looking up for Dunne on Raw these days and I’m all for NXT not falling into the trap of every match outcome feeling predictable, but it still felt like a questionable move to have one of the top guys in NXT lose to a guy who hasn’t made much of a splash on the main roster. All of that said, I am open to the possibility that they are telling a story with Trick’s recent struggles. The fact that Williams fought with Dunne in the backstage area later in the show says we haven’t seen the last of them working together. So hopefully this is all just storytelling and not a sign that Shawn Michaels and his crew have soured on Williams for some reason.

Great American Bash picnic scenes: Bad sports entertainment. The wrestlers seemed like they were having a good time hamming it up for the cameras, but it also made most of the male wrestlers look like meathead morons rather than serious professional wrestlers that fans can get behind.