By John Moore, ProWrestling.net Staffer (@liljohnm)
NXT TV
Orlando, Florida at the WWE Performance Center
Aired live February 4, 2025 on The CW Network
[Hour One] Vic Joseph, Corey Graves, and Booker T were on commentary. Mike Rome was the ring announcer…
Separate shots of Roxanne Perez, Giulia, Bayley, Austin Theory and Grayson Waller, Oba Femi, and Trick Williams were shown as they were arriving at the Performance Center…
Fatal Influence were out first. Stephanie Vaquer ws out next…
1. Jacy Jayne (w/Fallon Henley, Jasmyn Nyx) vs. Stephanie Vaquer. Stephanie soaked in “Stephanie” chants from the Performance Center crowd. Vaquer dominated the early collar and elbow with Jacy Jayne complaining about it. Vaquer got a two count off a Gutwrench rollup. Vaquer went right into a side headlock. Jayne got to her feet and tossed Vaquer into the corner. Jayne hit Vaquer with rapid kicks in the corner. Vaquer reversed a corner splash.
Vaquer blocked a Sunset Flip and hit Jayne with a leg drop for a two count. Vaquer paintbrushed Jayne with boots in the corner. Jayne used the hair to slam Steph to the mat. Stephanie dodged a Senton and gave Jayne Booker T’s favorite wrestling move, the hip thrust face smashes by Stephanie. Henley distracted Stephanie which allowed Jayne to hit her in the face with a baseball slide heading into break.[c]
Back from break, Jayne had Stephanie in a cravate. Steph rallied with overhand slaps. Stephanie went for a Tightrope hop, but Jayne escaped and staggered Stephanie on the top rope with a Gamengiri. Steph escaped the corner and hit Jayne with Cheeky Nandos. Stephanie hit Jayne with a Superplex. Stephanie and Jayne traded Yay-Boo right hands with Jayne dominating. Stephanie dodged a cannonball and hit Jayne with Eat De-Feet.
Stephanie hit Jayne with a meteora in the corner. Steph followed up with a Belly to Back suplex. Jayne escaped Vaquer’s finisher attempt and hit her with a running knee for a nearfall. Faquer reversed a Discus Lariat into a DDT for a nearfall. Stephanie hit Jayne with a 619 and slingshot crossbody. Nyx broke up the pin. Vic noted that the referee didn’t
Stephanie Vaquer defeated Jacy Jayne via pinfall in 11:21.
“Earlier today”, Jakara Jackson and Lash Legend were chatting with Zaria and Sol Ruca in the women’s locker room. Zaria berated Lash and Jakara for failing to bring the tag titles to NXT and doing anything in the Royal Rumble. Lash talked about wrestling while Zaria was watching her from home. Tatum Paxley, Shotzi, and Gigi Dolin showed up. Gigi had Lash and Jakara’s back, leading to Zaria and Sol leaving…
Vic Joseph hyped Lexis King appearing after the break…[c]
John’s Thoughts: Oddball finishing sequence. It’s a bit annoying when you have to turn off your brain a bit for some of the ref’s “discretion” moments as Vic would put it. That aside, a good match with Jacy Jayne getting in more offense than I thought she would given Jayne’s current spot on the card. A testament as to how good Stephanie Vaquer, making Jayne look credible, while also being a dominant badass. Steph’s push has been simple and effective and she’s looking like she is worth the investment WWE is putting in her.
Highlights aired from Roxanne Perez’s run in the 2025 Royal Rumble aired…
Sarah Schreiber interviewed Oba Femi about his upcoming tag team match against his Vengeance Day opponents. Oba said that Ava says she runs everything in NXT, but Oba runs everything in the ring. Oba said he’ll show Austin and Grayson that they don’t belong in the ring with him. Sarah asked Oba if he owes Trick anything after power bombing him last week. Oba said he doesn’t owe Trick anything…
Lexis King was in the ring with his Heritage Cup. King said he wanted to be humble, but how can you be humble when you’re on the path to being the biggest star in professional wrestling. Lexis talked about legends being in the back to film the LFG show and how one legend, William Regal, reached out and helped show King who he was. King brought up NFL Bust Ryan Leaf trying to give King advice. King said he doesn’t do well with advice and authority. King said he plays by his own drum and rules.
He said he has the looks that kill and the pedigree that will. King said people thought he would become a submissive beta, but the king’s blood doesn’t flow like a normie. He said he’s a 2nd generation talent and son of a psycho. King said he never asked for this. He said he tried to be anything but his father. He said he never knew his dad, but he knew his dad was a loose canon that would do anything to win. King said it was a shame that Pillman had so much potential, but couldn’t reach it.
King said that through advice from the legends, he felt best when he accepted being his father’s son. King said the fans wanted him to be something he’s not, but him staying true to who he is led him to being Heritage Cup champion. King said the truth is that this championship has been mistreated for far too long. He said he’s going to offend the purists. King said he’s going to change the way the title is defended.
King said the time limits, cornermen, and rounds will be gone. All of a sudden, TNA wrestler Johnny Dango Curtis made his entrance as his old Fandango persona. Dango talked about how he used to get weird in NXT (as Dirty Johnny Curtis). He said that music means a lot to him and he appreciates being back in NXT. King said that he remembers Dango as the guy who played dress-up as fire fighters with Tyler Breeze.
Dango said that’s funny coming from a man that looks like he spray painted on his face. King said that it’s actually painted on with a brush. Dango introduced himself as JDC from TNA and said he’s representing The System faction. Dango said he doesn’t mind taking a sip from the Heritage Cup. Dango said he spoke with GM Ava and Ava gave him a match against King next week for the Heritage Cup. King said he appreciates JDC representing The System, but they have a System here. King mocked the old way Fandango would force people to say his name and said that next week they will dance…
The show cut to a clip from Tony D’Angelo appearing on the CW show “Wild Cards” where he plays an actual character. The show then cut to Tony D and the Family. Rizzo said she’s excited to see Tony D in Wild Cards. Stacks berated Tony D for talking to Izzi Dame last week and missing their match. Tony D said to not bust his balls and worry about facing Ridge Holland later…[c]
John’s Thoughts: Not sure why they dragged the whole Lexis King thing so long with him trying to do things the right way, if they only were going to go to square one with him. That said, solid promo from King explaining his modus operandi to the world and going back to being a scumbag. Even more fun was the return of Fandango to WWE who’s now going under the name Johnny Dango Curtis in TNA. I really hope it’s more than just a guest cameo next week as JDC has really shined in TNA. He had great matches, like one in particular where it was a hardcore match against Mike Santana. Where Dango really shined was on the mic when he played a meta heel that heeled on all the “marks” in and out of the ring. I really hope we get that disgruntled vet JDC back someday.
Stacks attacked Ridge Holland in the middle of Holland’s entrance routine. Shawn Spears, Niko Vance, and Brooks Jensen were watching at the crow’s nest…
2. Ridge Holland vs. Channing “Stacks” Lorenzo (w/Tony D’Angelo, Adriana Rizzo, Luca Crucifino). Stacks dumped Ridge to ringside with a Gamengiri and dropkick. Ridge dodged a baseball slide and tackled Stacks into the steel steps. Ridge slowed things down with a power whip into the corner on Stacks. Stacks came back with a upward kick. Ridge came right back with a big boot. Stacks came back with a right hand and jawbreaker when Ridge was talking trash. Stacks hit Ridge with a Mafia Kick and Slingshot codebreaker.
Ridge caught Stacks out of the air and hit Stacks with a Underhook Belly to Belly. Luca went to check on Stacks. Holland dragged Stacks back in the ring. While the referee was keeping Luca back, Izzi Dame tried to attack Ridge, but Ridge saw it coming. Stacks tried to get a rollup off the distracted Ridge, but got a two count. Ridge recovered and hit Stacks with the Redeemer DDT for the victory.
Ridge Holland defeated Channing Lorenzo via pinfall in 3:44.
Axiom and Nathan Frazer were chatting in the locker room about their upcoming match against Nic and Ryan Nemeth. Josh Briggs and Yoshiki Inamura showed up and tried to hype themselves up to face the tag champs. Frazer told them to find someone to beat to prove they deserve a title shot. Briggs and Inamura looked at each other, nodded, and said “I got this” in unison…
Sol Ruca and Zaria made their entrance…[c]
Gigi, Tatum, and Shotzi made their entrance…
3. Zaria and Sol Ruca vs. Gigi Dolin and Tatum Paxley (w/Shotzi). Zaria blocked a Crucifix Driver and gave Gigi a over head slam. Gigi escaped a doomsday device and dropkicked Sol. Gigi tagged in Tatum. Gigi and Tatum cut the ring in half on Sol. Sol got the hot tag to Zaria. Zaria caught Gigi with a spear. Paxley broke up the pin. Paxley and Gigi caught Zaria and Sol with stereo enzuigiris.
Zaria slammed Gigi to the mat and gave Tatum a modified f5 on top of Gigi. Sol hit Gigi with the Sol Snatcher for the win.
Sol Ruca and Zaria defeated Gigi Dolin and Tatum Paxley via pinfall in 4:17.
Highlights from Stephanie Vaquer and Giulia’s Royal Rumble run aired…
Separate shots of NXT Women’s Champion Giulia, Roxanne Perez, and Bayley were shown…[c]
John’s Thoughts: A good quick tag match, but it’s still odd to see NXT creative fumble with the booking of Zaria. Can we fast forward to the part where Zaria beats the hell out of Sol Ruca so she can get her monster heel run rolling? (They aren’t even booking her as a monster babyface. She’s just a “normal” person that hangs out with the developmental wrestlers).
[Hour Two] Sarah Schreiber interviewed Trick Williams. Williams said deserves a title shot, not Waller or Theory. He said he was going to whoop both of they bitch asses. Trick said he’s also coming after Oba after the tag match. Sarah Schreiber sent the show back to the commentators (with the screen behind her doing the same Vengeance Day color test pattern that closed last week’s show)…
Bayley made her entrance first. Roxanne Perez was out next. Perez said before Giulia comes out, they need to talk about her run in the Royal Rumble. Bayley talked about Perez not winning the Rumble. Perez bragged about eliminating Giulia. Perez talked about Bayley leaving to Raw after she couldn’t make it on Smackdown, and is now here to try to take glory from Perez in NXT. Perez was about to brag about going to the main roster herself, but was cut off by Bayley. Bayley said she hopes that Perez surpasses her one day.
Bayley said Perez is blind and entitled. Bayley talked about helping build the first ring in NXT and how Dusty Rhodes used to lead the promo classes she was a part of. Bayley talked about how she’s going to go to WrestleMania after qualifying for the Elimination Chamber. Bayley said Perez is losing herself now, and might lose her best friend too. Bayley said that she’ll be fine if she doesn’t win at Vengeance Day, but will Perez? Perez said she has no friends or mentors when it comes to championships.
Perez said in WWE she has no equal. Perez said Bayley can talk all she wants because she’s going to win the NXT Women’s Title. She said she’ll also win the Smackdown and Raw women’s titles. Perez said if she vacates the NXT Women’s Title, then Cora Jade can finally win a championship. Giulia made her entrance with a mic. Giulia told Perez “enough”. Giulia said that Perez is nothing without a title.
Giulia said she’ll also beat Bayley too. Giulia said at Vengeance Day, nobody will survive the Beautiful Madness. Royal Rumble winner, Charlotte Flair made her entrance. The crowd gave Charlotte “welcome back” chants. Charlotte said that mama has come back home and the queen has arrived. Charlotte talked about being home grown from NXT and how NXT will always be her home. Charlotte talked about becoming a two time NXT Women’s Champion after winning the rumble last time.
Charlotte talked about Perez becoming the ironwoman of the Women’s Royal Rumble, but if she comes out of Vengeance Day as champion, she’ll only be 2nd place. Charlotte said she wants to shake the hand of Giulia, the champion of the best women’s division of the world. Charlotte said only problem is, “I’m better”, which drew boos. Charlotte said whatever title she chooses to go after, she’ll be champion. After Charlotte was about to leave, Cora Jade hit Giulia and Bayley in the back with a Kendo Stick. Cora tried to swing at Perez, but Perez
NXT GM Ava and security guards were keeping Je’Von Evans and Ethan Page apart. Evans still couldn’t speak fully with his jaws wired shut. Ava suspended Evans because he’s not medically cleared. Page said instead Ava should “punish” Evans by having Evans face him in a match. Ava said Evans can face Page only if he’s medically cleared…
Kelani Jordan made her entrance…[c]
John’s Thoughts: Roxanne Perez is clearly on deck for a callup. Interesting that they still have her as a heel and set up for a feud against Bayley (she’s going to be undersized even on the women’s roster, and that’s tough for a debuting wrestler in front of a new audience). The interaction between Bayley and Perez was solid. They made sure to keep Giulia’s promo limited due to her limited english (maybe they’re having her go out to cut English promos as on-the-job training?). Charlotte felt shoehorned in the segment to tease her picking Giulia, even though she shouldn’t.
Ridge Holland confronted Tony D, the Family, and Izzi backstage. Ridge talked about how he deserves a title shot and how he doesn’t trust anybody in the room, including Izzi. Izzi proposed Tony D vs. Ridge in a Cage match…
Karmen Petrovic made her entrance…
4. Kelani Jordan vs. Karmen Petrovic (w/Ashante the Adonis). Jordan got an early pin attempt and two count. Petrovic hit Jordan with a sweep and leg lariat for a two count. Petrovic hit Jordan with a Rolling Sobat for a two count. Jordan hit Petrovic with a Pele Kick and Tiger Feint armdrag. Jordan dumped Petrovic to ringside. Ashante went to check on Petrovic, but ate a corkscrew Plancha from Jordan.
Jaida Parker showed up to talk trash to Jordan. Petrovic hit Jordan with a crossbody at ringside. Petrovic hit Jordan with a Tornado DDT for a nearfall.[c]
Jordan did a kip up after taking down Petrovic. Jordan hit Petrovic with an X Factor for a nearfall. Jaida was watching the match from ringside. Petrovic rallied with axe handles and a clothesline. Petrovic hit Jordan with shortarm kicks and a Sling Blade for a two count. Jordan came back with double boots. Petrovic hit Jordan with a modified Frankensteiner for a two count. Jordan blocked a Tornado DDT and a got a two count after a Northern Lights.
Petrovic rolled up Jordan for a two count. Jordan blocked a Rolling Sobat and hit Petrovic with a Twisting Angle Slam. Jordan hit Petrovic with a One of a Kind. Jordan hit a 2nd One of a Kind after staring at Parker. Jordan then picked up the win after a Rear Naked Choke submission on Petrovic. Jordan put Petrovic in the submission after the bell and had to be pulled off by referees. The lead referee reversed the decision.
Karmen Petrovic defeated Kelani Jordan via reverse decision (submission) in 10:39.
Stephanie Vaquer was interviewed in the parking lot. Vaquer talked about having her eyes on the North American title. Vaquer had a quick glare at Lola Vice when she passed by. Vaquer got in the camera and said she’ll see Fallon in hell…
Vic hyped hyped the upcoming tag match involving Oba Femi and Trick vs. A Town Down Under…[c]
John’s Thoughts: I was about to complain about Kelani Jordan not showing enough of her new edge in the ring, but they did a good job turning that around by having Jordan let Jaida Parker get to her and leading to the reverse decision. Makes Jaida look like a solid agitator while also continuing Jordan’s character development to the dark side. Petrovic is still a work in progress in the ring, but she did decent here in one of her longer matches. I give developmental wrestlers benefit of the doubt given they are in their training stages, but I’m curious as to how the casual viewers view developmental matches. I personally don’t mind and love seeing the improvement, but casual viewers don’t care about the inside baseball stuff.
NXT GM Ava was was chatting with Fraxiom, but Bayley barged into the office and demanded a match against Cora Jade. Ava booked Bayley vs. Cora Jade for next week. Briggs and Inamura showed up. Briggs said he challenged Hank and Tank Inamura challenged NQCC. Ava booked Inamura and Briggs vs. NQCC vs. Hank and Tank for next week…
Tony D’Angelo vs. Ridge Holland in a Cage Match for the NXT North American Championship and Lexis King vs. Johnny Dango Curtis for the NXT Heritage Cup…
Sarah Schreibler interviewed Grayson Waller and Austin Theory as they headed to the ring. Waller said they are going to prove they are the best tag team in NXT. Waller said he’s going to be thenext NXT Champion at Vengence Day, which Waller took exception to. Waller and Theory made their entrance (the Vengeance Day color test pattern appearing on a monitor behind them as they passed Gorilla Position)…[c]
John’s Thoughts: The color test pattern appeared last week and because I was typing up my review, I legitimately thought it was a network TV test pattern. A debut at Vengeance Day? Hopefully it isn’t a “hacker” because the last two I saw in pro wrestling (Mustafa Ali and Sami Callihan) didn’t amount to much after the long teases. Speaking of a similar gimmick, whatever happened to “NXT Anonymous”? The hidden camera stalker that would reveal dirt on various wrestlers.
The commentary team ran through some of the advertised Vengeance Day matches…
Trick Williams made his entrance first, followed by the NXT Champion Oba Femi. Trick didn’t like it that Oba’s entrance cut off his entrance. The crowd alternated between Whoop Dat Trick and “Oh” chants during Oba’s entrance. Graves lampshaded the cliche of “can they coexist” between Oba and Trick…
5. NXT Champion Oba Femi and Trick Williams vs. “A Town Down Under” Austin Theory and Grayson Waller. Oba tried to start the match with Theory, but Trick tagged himself in and took out Theory with a dropkick. Theory came back with a rolling slingshot dropkick for a nearfall. Waller tagged in and worked on Trick with methodical chops. Trick returned the favor with a chop. Trick took down Waller with a few Booker T Crescent Kicks. Trick refused to tag in Oba and hit Waller with a body slam.
Oba tagged himself in and hit Theory with a delayed body slam. Waller hit Oba with a right hand when Oba went to trash talk Trick. Oba lowered his weight to block a body slam. Oba body slammed Waller. Trick tagged himself in and body slammed Waller. Waller tried to clothesline a running Trick, but Oba dragged him to ringside. Waller hit an arguing Oba and Trick with a flip dive heading into break.[c]
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