By John Moore, ProWrestling.net Staffer (@liljohnm)
NXT TV
Orlando, Florida, at the WWE Performance Center
Aired live December 2, 2025, on The CW Network
[Hour One] Vic Joseph was on commentary. Corey Graves was filling in for Booker T. Mike Rome was the ring announcer…
The women in the Iron Survivor were all in the ring with NXT GM moderating the summit. Sol Ruca talked first about how Ethan Page was right last week and it was her time to become NXT women’s champion. Jordynne Grace spoke up about how it’s her time. Lola Vice talked about John Cena picking all of them for a reason. Lola pointed out that she would be champion right now if not for Lainey Reid.
Kendal Grey talked about being the only champion in the ring right now. She said she may be a underdog, but she always rises to the competition. Kelani Jordan told Grey to shut up. Jordan’s promo was drowned out by the performance center crowd. Jordan talked trash. Jordan talked about how she and Sol were the best in the ring due to having Iron Survivor experience, and Sol will be handicapped due to an injured leg and not having Zaria with her. Fatal Influence made their entrance.
Jacy Jayne said she’s here to see who the next loser is going to be going after her title. Jayne said all order was restored in NXT when she became champion again, and she’s not letting anyone take it from her. Jayne mocked Sol for having a bum leg. She said Grey was in over her head. Jayne said Lola and Grace will choke. Jayne then mocked Kelani for losing the Knockouts title. Kelani said she wouldn’t have lost if not for Jordynne Grace, the meathead. A brawl ensued between the Iron Survivor wrestlers. Grey, Vice, and Sol dumped everyone from the ring…
John’s Thoughts: Standard segment, but a bit wooden in terms of Sol Ruca, Kendal Grey, and Jordynne Grace’s promo delivery. Grace has improved over the years, but tends to fall back sometimes. Other than that, I assume this is going to set up some multi-woman tag match later in the show.
Joe Hendry and Thea Hail were backstage hyped about John Cena talking about Hendry and putting him in Iron Survivor Match at Deadline. Stacks and Ariana Grace pulled up and were chuckling. Grace noted that Stacks and Her would have done better than Joe and Thea. Thea walked up to Grace and said she’ll kick Grace’s ass. Stacks dragged Grace away…
At the ring, Thea Hail and Joe Hendry made their entrance…[c]
GM Ava was walking backstage surrounded by security. She ordered the security to keep Kelani Jordan and Jordynne Grace apart. Ava then walked up to Fatal Influence and booked them in a match against Sol, Grey, and Vice…
The NXT-TNA Laison Ariana Grace made her entrance with her fiance, Stacks. A tweet from Steve Maclin was shown. Vic joked that Maclin wants to turn Stacks into a “forgotten son” (a reference to Maclin’s old NXT gimmick…
1. Thea Hail (w/Joe Hendry) vs. Ariana Grace (w/Channing “Stacks” Lorenzo). Grace took down Thea with a armbar. Thea escaped with an armdrag. Stacks distracted Hail which allowed Grace to hit her with a throat punch. Grace gave Hail a neckbreaker. Hail got a two count off a backslide and small package. Hail dumped Grace to ringside and gave Grace a Suicide Dive. Hail gave Grace an Exploder and Knee Plus.
Stacks tripped Hail while she was running the ropes. Joe Hendry pulled up and gave Stacks a Standing Ovation on the apron. Grace rolled up Hail for a two count. Hail put Grace in a Kimura for the submission win.
Thea Hail defeated Ariana Grace via submission in 2:46.
John’s Thoughts: A fine enough match to presumably set up a feud in NXT’s experimental mixed tag division around the AAA Mixed Tag titles. Good to see Grace back in the ring on NXT, but it feels like she pops up every once in a while, then disappears off to TNA Impact for months. It’s also very odd how TNA and NXT do their characters sometimes with Grace as a full on heel on NXT but a lovable babyface on TNA.
Lucien Price and Bronco Nima were in the parking lot and were almost accidentally hit by Uriah Connors and Kale Dixon. Nima told Andre Chase to tell them it’s on sight if they try to cross OTM again. Chase told Dixon and Connors that he doesn’t know what “on sight” means, but for Uriah and Kale to stop pissing OTM off…
Josh Briggs and his Spirit Halloween Store skeleton buddy made their entrance…[c]
Another clip from the John Cena Last Time is Now interview aired…
Myles Borne, Joe Hendry, Je’von Evans, and Leon Slater were in Ava’s office. Robert Stone showed up and handed Ava a package that came in the mail. Ava noted that in the advertised eight man person tag match will have rewards. If the face team wins then they all get to pick their spots in Iron Survivor. If DarkState wins Dion Lennox picks the entry order. Ava then poured out the contents of the box and it was a bunch of random black bits of something…
Josh Briggs attacked Tavion Heights before the bell…
2. Josh Briggs vs. Tavion Heights. Briggs got a two count off a choke slam. Heights no sold boots and gave Briggs a lariat for a two count. Graves noted that Briggs might be jealous of his old tag team partner Yoshiki Inamura winning NOAH’s world championship after Inamura went back to Japan. Heights hit Briggs with a Flip Fisherman Suplex for a two count. Briggs came back with a forearm lunge. Both men traded hands.
Briggs dumped Heights to ringside and paintbrushed him with a boot. Heights recovered and gave Briggs a spinebuster through the barricade.[c]
Back from break, Briggs had the upper hand with methodical offense. Heights got a moment of respite after a single leg dropkick. Heights rallied with clotheslines and a back slam. Tavion and Josh ran head first into each other. Heights punched the chain away from Briggs. Heights hit Briggs with a Belly to Belly. Heights got a two count because the referee took his time putting away the chain. Heights was distracted arguing with the referee. Briggs caught a distracted Heights with a Mafia Kick and Clothesline from Hell for the win.
Josh Briggs defeated Tavion heights via pinfall in 11:26.
Briggs was arguing with various fans after the match…
The Culling were shown walking backstage…[c]
John’s Thoughts: A fine match between two guys who really need momentum. Both are really talented, but both get booked 50-50 and aren’t allowed to stand out. Hopefully Briggs walks away from this W with a W in the feud because he really needs it and NXT is scarce in terms of strong villains. I wouldn’t mind Briggs getting a repackage to wipe away the mediocre stank from him (similar to what they did with Dijak where he went from T Bag to his awesome Sin City character. That allowed Dijak to stand strong as a credible heel in NXT). I have the same thoughts on Jasper Troy. WWE needs to do a better job protecting their big men, which should be easy, but they tend to take the hard route.
The Culling made their entrance, led by Izzi Dame. Izzi said she gets it, she gets why everyone likes Tatum Paxley, because they relate to not wanting to be alone. Izzi said she tried to give Tatum many chances, but she was hopeless. Izzi said she’s been hearing “Why, Izzi, Why?” for weeks. Izzi said she was correcting a mistake. Izzi said she took exception to Tatum not taking the advice of the person who dug her out of her hellhole. Izzi talked about how she carved purposed in Tatum, and gave her voice and confidence.
Izzi said Tatum continued to trip over the same insecurities that Izzi tried to rip away. Izzi said Tatum acted like the Culling wasn’t good enough for her. Izzi said Tatum only became champion because of what Izzi gave to her and Izzi took it away at Gold Rush. Izzi hyped going against Tatum at Gold Rush and how she’s going to finish what she started. She said at San Antonio she’ll end the version of Tatum that refuses to evolve.
Tatum Paxley appeared on the big screen in a dark room with runny eye shadow. She said The Culling were great together and Izzi took everything away. Izzi said Tatum looks pathetic and predictable. Izzi told Tatum to do something about it unless she’s scared. Tatum said she’s scared at what she’ll become without Izzi’s arm on her shoulder. Tatum said she’s scared because she’s going to make Izzi feel all her pain…
John’s Thoughts: Eh, cookie cutter setup for a simple grudge match at Deadline. I thought they really could have had a nuanced story with Izzi becoming champion after putting Tatum in a false sense of security, but instead they went with the generic betrayal.
Sol Ruca apologized to Zaria backstage for not being at ringside. Zaria scoffed and said Sol looks like she’s doing fine. Zaria said Sol shouldn’t expect her in her corner in the tag team match. Grey, Lola, and Wren Sinclair told Sol to not worry about it. Sol told Zaria she’s sorry…[c]
John’s Thoughts: I hope Zaria being mopey means they are going to make her heel, which would be great as I was afraid they would turn Sol based off their weird storytelling. That said, they REALLY are dragging their feet with this breakup.
A rules video aired for the Iron Survivor match…
[Hour Two] The babyface team made their entrance…
3. Lola Vice, Kendal Grey, and Sol Ruca (w/Wren Sinclair) vs. “Fatal Influence” Jacy Jayne, Fallon Henley, and Lainey Reid. The face team dumped the heels to ringside. Vice hit Reid with a seated Senton. Henley hit Vice with a Tiger Feint Kick. Grey hit Henley and Reid wiht a Asai Moonsault. Jayne hit the pile of wrestlers with a flip dive. Sol hit the pile of women with a Triangle Moonsault. Vice hit Reid with low roundhouse kicks in the corner. Sol tagged in and hit Reid with a Standing Moonsault for a two count.
Henley tagged in and slammed Sol to the mat for a two count. Corey Graves said Fallon Henley is the most underrated woman in NXT (I 100% agree). Grey tagged in and Henley tackled her to the corner. Grey tripped up Henley and hit her with a Shotgun Dropkick for a two count. Reid tagged in and hit Grey with a dropkick for a two count. Jayne tagged in and was rolled up by Grey. Reid tagged back in. Henley tripped Grey off the apron. Jayne hit Grey with a Senton heading into break.[c]
Back from break, Fatal Influence cut the ring in half on Grey. Grey used a Judo roll to tag in Vice for the hot tag. Vice hit Reid and Jayne with her signature “I’m a Latina” hip attacks. Vice hit Henley with a suplex for a two count. Sol tagged in and hit Henley with a Shoulder Breaker for a two count. Sol caught Jayne with a Superkick and dumped her to ringside. Henley rolled up Sol for a two count.
Henley hit Sol with a Blockbuster. Jayne and Reid hit Sol with a double knee to give Jayne a two count. Grey hit Reid with Paydirt. Henley took down Grey. Sol hit Henley with a Slingshot X Factor. Jayne rolled up Sol for a one count. Sol surprised Jayne with a Sol Snatcher for the victory.
Sol Ruca, Lola Vice, and Kendal Grey defeated Fatal Influence via pinfall in 11:12.
After the match, Zaria missed Sol and hit Kendal Grey with a spear. Sol and Zaria jawed with each other…
NXT Anonymous was watching a conversation between Je’von Evans and Ricky Saints where both men gave soft verbal jabs at each other. The segment ended with Evans joking and saying that Ricky will wrestle at MSG one day…
OTM made their entrance to new entrance music (Has decent bass, but I do miss the GTA sounding music they had before)…[c]
John’s Thoughts: Was that the Zaria heel turn? If it was, it felt kinda weak and shoehorned. Hopefully they run that back with more of an impactful segment. With that match and the Anonymous segment, are they telegraphing Sol Ruca and Je’von Evans as the two Iron Survivors? I feel like Je’von is a easy pick, but NXT is also very high on Dion Lennox. The women’s field has more options because I feel like Sol should be locked in a feud with Zaria. Either that or they have Sol win and have Zaria cost her the title.
Another clip from the John Cena interview aired where the focus was on the “Summer of CM Punk”…
Dion Lennox was chatting with the rest of DarkState where he offered to give up his tag title belt to one of the other members while he goes after singles gold. Cutler James handed it straight to Saquon Shugars. Oba Femi passed by and Shugars mocked his Nigerian accent. Dion stepped up to Oba and told Oba to watch out and how he wants to face Oba for the title…
John’s Thoughts: They are laying it on thick that they are high on Dion Lennox.
4. “Out Tha Mud” Lucien Price and Bronco Nima vs. “New Chase U” Uriah Connors and Kale Dixon. Kale and Connors hit OTM with stereo Suicide Dive. Connors hit Price with a Swanton for a nearfall. Price recovered and used a right hand to take down Connors. OTM used quick tags to cut the ring in half on Connors. Dixon tagged in and gave OTM right hands. Kale gave Price a chop to the back to crumple him. Price gave Kale a Superkick. Nima gave Kale a Single Leg stomp to the chest.
Nima broke up his own pin. Price gave Kale a gutbuster on Nima’s leg to get a one count. Graves talked about how he doesn’t like wrestlers that wear one pant leg. Kale gave Price a single leg codebreaker to tag in Connors. Connors hit Nima with a high kick and Gamengiri. Connors hit Nima with a Tornado DDT for a nearfall. Connors and Dixon hit Price with stereo superkicks. Connors hit Nima with a spirngboard Stunner.
Nima caught Connors out of the air. Price and Nima slammed Dixon and Connors into each other. Price hit Connors with the assisted Alabama Slam for the victory.
Out Tha Mud defeated Chase U via pinfall in 4:38.
John’s Thoughts: A better than expected tag match. Fingers crossed that OTM can get a consistent run on television because both men have been snakebit with injuries which have halted their pushes over the years. I’ve, long time, been bored with this iteration of Chase U. Kale and Uriah actually are good in the ring, they’ve just been the worst characters in an act that has worked with everyone else that was a part of it. Andre Chase can turn anything into gold, other than these two, which sucks as Chase U was arguably the most over act in NXT at one point. I wonder if adding the promising Shiloh Hill to the act might work, especially since they keep hyping his academic background?
A replay aired of Page and Green defending their titles against Vice and Iguana at AAA two weeks ago…
Cut to this week, Ethan Page was leaving the performance center, telling Ava he deserves the night off for being the hardest working double champion in WWE. Ava said Page is due to defend his North American Title. Page was in the drivers seat, but Mr. Iguana was in the passenger’s seat. Page ran out freaked out…[c]
A Shiloh Hill segment aired. He talked about trying racoon for dinner at Thanksgiving for the first time last week. He talked about one time he upgraded his snowmobile in the winter. He noted how he blew away his siblings with his upgraded snowmobile. He pointed how how he crashed in the middle of nowhere. He noted how he had to go into survivor mode, picking up twigs and building shelter. He said he heard wolves and was super hyped.
He was happy about possibly not being alive to wrestle on LFG. He talked about Undertaker being his mentor. He talked about how Taker told him to let it all out…
Graves and Joseph checked in and Graves joked that he wondered if Hill was on a watch list somewhere. They then ran through the advertised Deadline card. Ethan Page vs. Mr. Iguana for the North American Title was added to the card…
Je’von Evans, Joe Hendry, and Leon Slater made their entrances…[c]
DarkState made their light show entrance…
5. Joe Hendry, Je’von Evans, Leon Slater, and Myles Borne vs. “DarkState” Dion Lennox, Osiris Griffin, Saquon Shugars, and Cutler James. Shugars had Borne in a cravate. Borne escaped and got a one count on Shugars. Ava was shown in a dark room backstage ready to moderate a contract signing between Oba Femi and Ricky Saints. Hendry tagged in and hit Shugars with a hip toss. Hendry hit Shugars with a neckbreaker for a nearfall. Shugars escaped a Fallaway slam and tagged in Cutler.
Slater tagged in and hit Cutler with a dropkick. Vic Joseph alluded to, but didn’t fully mention, TNA signing their TV deal with AMC today. The babyfaces cut the ring in half on Cutler James. James hit Evans with a backbreaker to gain control. DarkState cut the ring in half on Evans. Evans hit Dion with a huracanrana and dropkick for a nearfall. Borne tagged in. Dion hit Borne with a Spinebuster. Dion chopped Hendry to bring in all eight men.
All eight men traded hands. James and Griffin caught Evans and Slater out of the air and tossed them at ringside. Dion tossed Hendry into the steel steps. DarkState had the advantage heading into break.[c]
DarkState cut the ring in half on Evans. Evans got the hot tag to Hendry, but Shugars quickly stopped the momentum. DarkState cut the ring in half on Hendry with six minutes left at the top of the hour. Hendry managed to get a window of opportunity after hitting Dion with a Suplex. Slater caught the hot tag and cleaned house. Slater hit Griffin with a modified dragon whip. Griffin and James hit Slater with a double spinebuster to give Griffin a two count.
Slater escaped a Shield Bomb by hitting Dion and Cutler with a dropkick. Evans tagged in and hit Shugars over the announce table with a Suicide Dive. Evans then hit Cutler with a dive over the top rope. Evans hit Griffin with a slingshot clothesline. Griffin blocked Je’von’s springboard, but Evans hit Griffin with a cutter and springboard cutter. The rest of DarkState broke up Je’von’s pin. Hendry cleaned house. Dion and Joe traded hands at ringside.
Slater and Borne tagged in. Slater hit Griffin with the Swanton 450. Borne hit Griffin with Borne Again for the victory.
Myles Borne, Leon Slater, Je’von Evans, and Joe Hendry defeated DarkState via pinfall in 14:48.
Oba Femi and Ricky Saints were at a table backstage. Oba Femi signed the contract first and said that Ricky will only be a footnote in Oba’s legacy. Ricky said he’s wondering what would happen if he loses. Ricky said there is an exception to the rule and ruler, named Ricky Saints. Ricky signed the contract. Ava pointed out that the men’s championship match will open Deadline. NXT closed…
John’s Thoughts: I actually liked the work in the eight person tag main event as they worked against the flow of a usual television tag team match. That said, they do continue to make DarkState look a bit hapless on television. The formula has been to make DarkState look hapless on television and dominant on PPVs which feels a bit wishy washy. I wish they’d push the heel faction stronger as it would make more compelling television.
Overall, this felt like a middle-of-the-road go-home show that was going through the motions to sell Deadline. Just like the Royal Rumble though, the Iron Survivor matches have been entertaining throughout the years and sell the PLE through gimmick alone. NXT does have a bit of a depth chart issue in terms of strong characters so I hope that coming out of Deadline things are a lot clearer. I’ll be by this weekend as usual with my coverage of the show.
The show was OK but the best thing about NXT tonight was no Booker T.
“TELL ME YOU DID NOT JUST SAY THAT!!”
That wasnt a heel turn from Zaria.