By Jason Powell, ProWrestling.net Editor (@prowrestlingnet)
NXT Hits
Trick Williams vs. Eddy Thorpe in an NXT Underground match: The clean and decisive TKO victory for Williams was a mild surprise, if only because Thorpe has been getting a nice push. Thorpe shouldn’t have much trouble getting his heat back, and we’re a month out from Stand & Deliver, so I suppose it’s time to wrap up some programs to set the stage for the premium live event matches. The post match angle with Trick calling out Oba Femi and brawling with him was nicely done. The involvement of Je’Von Evans is a little concerning in that I fear they could be setting up a Triple Threat for the NXT Championship over WrestleMania weekend? Evans is great and he’s the rising star of the brand, but I really want to see Oba vs. Trick in a singles showdown match. If they go with the Triple Threat, could it mean that they intend to move the title to Evans because Oba and Trick are post WrestleMania call-ups? I want to like the Dark State, but it’s going to take a lot more than a light show.
Stephanie Vaquer, Jaida Parker, and Jordynne Grace: Just when it looked like they were setting up Vaquer vs. Grace, Parker laid out Grace and seemingly took the title match that Vaquer seemed to be offering. In this case, there’s no reason to suspect a Triple Threat because they announced Vaquer vs. Parker for next week, which might mean that they are saving the Grace match for Stand & Deliver. Regardless of the direction, Parker’s mic work stood out in a good way.
Stacks, Luca Crusifino, and Adriana Rizzo vs. Brooks Jensen, Niko Vance, and Izzi Dame: The battle of the sidekicks was pretty good. The bigger talking point was Stacks telling Tony DeAngelo to stay backstage, which left him vulnerable to a four-on-one attack by the Dark State. They’ve teased Stacks turning on D’Angelo for a long time now. The timing for it actually happening now seems right in that they could have a match at Stand & Deliver. However, my guess is that that they keep the D’Angelo Family together for a feud with Lennox and his crew once their current faction feud with The Culling concludes.
Josh Briggs and Yoshiki Inamura vs. Hank Walker and Tank Ledger: A soft Hit. I enjoyed the match right up until the closing seconds. Ledger took a lariat from Briggs and then had to scoot into position to take a top rope splash from Inamura. It didn’t seem like Ledger did anything wrong. Rather, it seemed like the location of the lariat spot left him with no choice. The match was still enjoyable enough to land in the Hit section despite that late flaw. Briggs and Inamura have clicked as top contenders, and the Hank and Tank duo continue to be a good high energy undercard act.
Chelsea Green vs. Sol Ruca for the Women’s U.S. Championship: A soft Hit for a decent match. Ruca looked good in defeat and was heavily protected by selling a knee injury throughout the match. Will Zaria turn on Ruca or will they continue to do be an odd couple team on a brand that doesn’t have its own tag team titles?
NXT Misses
Ricky Saints vs. Ridge Holland: Holland took the majority of the offense and the Saints comeback felt underwhelming. The Roshambo finisher has never been a personal favorite. In this case, it was impressive that Saints was able to power up Holland, but the actual impact of the move didn’t look significant enough to put away the girthy heel.
Jacy Jayne vs. Karmen Petrovic: A minor Miss for what felt like a random match. Jayne may not scream future world champion, but she stands out as a reliable mid-card wrestler who can be counted on to have good matches with a variety of opponents. That makes her valuable in NXT given the mix of experienced and developmental talent. The Petrovic and Ashante Adonis romance story seems to have stalled out. Adonis is a lot more fun when he’s swinging and missing with various women.
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