By Jason Powell, ProWrestling.net Editor (@prowrestlingnet)
NXT Hits
Jacy Jayne vs. Sol Ruca vs. Zaria in a Triple Threat for the NXT Women’s Championship: An impressive match. This was not one of those three-ways where two wrestlers work in the ring while the other sells on the floor for the majority of the match. There were numerous rapid-fire spots involving all three wrestlers, and they were executed extremely well without looking overly choreographed. The finish played into Jayne’s opportunistic nature, while also adding to Zaria’s anger and frustration. Ruca took the loss, but she had the crowd with her throughout the match and is clearly the most over babyface on the NXT women’s roster.
Joe Hendry, Ricky Saints, Ethan Page, and Tony D’Angelo: Saints slipping on the ropes during his entrance routine would have rattled some wrestlers enough to throw them off their game. Saints didn’t miss a beat and smoothly opened his promo by saying that he might slip, but he never falls. Saints and Page did a nice job of teasing disension, only to punch Hendry simultaneously. The NXT Champion came back and got the better of the heels, but just when it seemed like he was going ot stand tall, D’Angelo entered the ring and speared him. I normally prefer singles matches for the top championships on major events, but this is a rare exception. They have done a nice job of establishing the uneasy relationship between Saints and Page, which seems to point to a four-way at Stand & Deliver.
Tatum Paxley vs. Izzi Dame in a steel cage match for the NXT Women’s North American Championship: Thumbs up for having a cage match that could only be won by pinfall or submission rather than allowing wrestlers to win by escaping the cage. Paxley and Dame did a nice job of using the structure rather than wrestling a standard match that just happened to be inside a cage. It was also good to see Mariah May attack Paxley afterward, as it moves Paxley into something new while establishing that this was the blowoff match to her feud with Dame.
“Los Americanos” El Grande Americano, Bravo, and Rayo vs. “Vanity Project” Jackson Drake, Brad Baylor, and Ricky Smokes in a six-man tag: Bravo and Rayo showed more personality in this match than they ever have on main roster WWE television. It’s strange to see them play heels on Raw and work as babyfaces in AAA and NXT, but it worked in this case. It’s always fun when NXT goes on the road. The live crowd loved Los Americanos and played a big part in my enjoyment of the match. While I would have preferred to see the NXT regulars steal the win, the live crowd clearly disagreed, and it was no surprise to see the main roster team win.
Booker T Appreciation Night: A nice segment for Booker in his hometown. I’m not a fan of his color commentary, but Booker brings a fun, positive energy to everything he does. But he must be a terrible trainer, given that Keanu Carver took out half of the Reality of Wrestling roster before Jasper Troy stepped in. Stu Hart would have taken Carver down and would still be stretching him until he learned some discipline. All kidding aside, the creative team is doing a good job of making Carver the brand’s new badass. I like Troy’s long-term potential, but the last thing Carver needs is a feud where he trades wins with anyone in NXT. Here’s hoping that the plan is to add to Carver’s momentum by feeding Troy to him.
NXT Misses
Channing “Stacks” Lorenzo and Uriah Connors vs. Hank Walker and Tank Ledger in a first-round tournament match for a shot at the NXT Tag Team Titles at Stand & Deliver: I can’t stand when brackets are not shown before the start of a tournament. Part of the fun is looking ahead at the potential matchups. But the reason this match landed in the Miss section is the ridiculous finish. Lexis King entered the ring and shoved Stacks out of the way of a Hank & Tank double-team move right in front of the referee. The idea that King didn’t initiate contact with Walker and Ledger and therefore couldn’t be disqualified is absurd. He literally saved his faction mate, which is outside interference. The rest of the match was fine. It’s early, but the live crowd reactions to the Birthright faction have been flat thus far.
Fallon Henley vs. Wren Sinclair for the WWE Women’s Speed Championship: A minor Miss through no fault of the wrestlers. They did a fine job, and Sinclair is one of the most likable characters in NXT, but I felt nothing when she won one of the worthless Speed titles.
(Jason Powell, founder and editor of ProWrestling.net, has covered pro wrestling full-time dating back to 1997. He hosts a weekly podcast, Pro Wrestling Boom, and also appears regularly on the Wade Keller Pro Wrestling Podcast. Reach him via email at dotnetjason@gmail.com and on social media via @prowrestlingnet.bsky.social or x.com/prowrestlingnet. For his full bio and information on this website, click here.)
Be the first to comment