By Jason Powell, ProWrestling.net Editor (@prowrestlingnet)
NXT Hits
Grayson Waller and Mason Rook verbal exchange: They needed to produce a strong final push for their NXT Championship, and they delivered. Waller performed his usual slick mic work with several jabs at Rook’s weight, which made Rook seem sympathetic. Rather than lean into that, Rook fired back with a strong promo that got a good rise out of the fans in attendance. Waller gets an assist for Rook’s promo clicking, because he is good at selling verbal jabs at his expense by conveying through his facial expressions when an in-ring rival’s words are hitting home with his character. I was looking forward to their match before this exchange, but it definitely increased my interest.
Noam Dar and Romeo Moreno vs. “Los Americanos” Bravo and Rayo in a Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic tournament first-round match: A terrific way to open the tournament. The match was fast-paced, competitive, and the outcome didn’t feel predictable. Bravo and Rayo are over in their AAA roles, so it was good to see the NXT regulars get a quality win.
Cruz Montana and Dion Lennox: Just when it seemed like Montana destroyed Lennox in this verbal battle, Lennox came back with a zinger about Montana’s mom dealing drugs. It’s one thing to deliver a line like that for shock value. What’s more impressive is that the rest of Lennox’s promo did a really nice job of further establishing the differences between their backgrounds. Lennox was at risk of coming off like an entitled brat based on what Montana said about him, but he turned some of Montana’s criticisms of his background into positives by talking about how he worked hard and did everything right. I hope this wasn’t setting up a one-off match, because I really like the idea of Montana working with Lennox. While it’s asking too much of anyone to get the DarkState faction over at this point, perhaps Montana can give them a boost by making fans see their leader Lennox in a new light.
AAA Reina de Reinas Champion La Catalina and Thea Hail vs. NXT Women’s Champion Kelani Jordan and NXT Women’s North American Champion Zaria: With only one non-champion in the match, it seemed like Hail was either going to win for her team or take the loss. They made the right call, as Hail pinning Zaria sets up their NXT Women’s North American Championship match for next week.
Skylar Raye vs. Kali Armstrong: A soft Hit. It’s not easy to invest in a match involving two wrestlers whose character development occurred on the Evolve television show. In this case, the match was good enough that they pulled me in. Sure, there were a couple of clunky moments, but that’s to be expected from wrestlers with limited in-ring experience. It was good to see Reina Volcan return to television, even if she interfered to set up an unsatisfying finish.
NXT Misses
Kendal Grey: I’m all for character development, but I’m not a fan of the direction Grey’s character has taken. I have no idea what they are going for with Grey visiting a sports psychologist, let alone why we can watch these sessions on the television show. Perhaps I shouldn’t complain, as this was an upgrade over somehow seeing Shiloh Hill’s hallucinations a week earlier. On a positive note, Grey has improved her promo game.
Lexis King, Uriah Connors, and Channing Lorenzo vs. Zilla Fatu, Sean Legacy, and EK Prosper: A soft Miss for the BirthRight members stealing a win. It’s not that I’m against heels cheating to win matches. Rather, I don’t see any chemistry between most of the BirthRight members, so I groaned when they beat the talented trio of babfaces. If nothing else, it was encouraging to see Arianna Grace play a part in the match rather than just stand in the background.
Zaria and Izzy Dame: What’s so difficult about pushing Zaria as a no-nonsense badass? Dame actually played footage of what appeared to be Zaria playing a part in her high school’s production of Wicked. Rather than roll her eyes at this silly attempt to humiliate her, Zaria stormed off in a huff like an embarrassed teenager. Ugh. Zaria’s character is such a mess that I don’t think I could explain it to a new fan.
Julius Creed and Brutus Creed vs. Harley Riggins and Jax Presley in a Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic tournament first-round match: The match was fine. It fell into the minor Miss category because Riggins and Presley came off like enhancement wrestlers. They didn’t get a televised entrance, let alone an introductory video or promo. It would be a little more understandable if they were going to be squashed, but they got a decent amount of offense before the Creeds went over strong. The Creeds didn’t gain much from beating a team that most NXT viewers don’t know, and the Evolve duo weren’t put in position to make much of a good impression despite taking the loss.
(Jason Powell, founder and editor of ProWrestling.net, has covered pro wrestling full-time since 1997. He hosts the 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.)
