By John Moore, ProWrestling.net Staffer (@liljohnm)
NXT TV
Orlando, Florida, at the WWE Performance Center
Aired live January 20, 2026, on The CW Network
[Hour One] Highlights from last week’s NXT show aired…
Vic Joseph and Booker T were on commentary. Mike Rome was the ring announcer…
NXT GM Ava was advising security guards on making sure to keep Tony D’Angelo under control…
Entrances for the opening match took place…
1. “All Ego” Ethan Page vs. “The French Luchador” Elio LeFleur for the NXT North American Championship. Page started the match with a shoulder block. Elio did a kip up after a shoulder block. Elio eluded Page and pat Page on the head out of disrespect. Elio hit Page with a nice Capo kick and dumped him to ringside with a few huracanranas. A “oui” chant ensued. Page tripped up Elio on the top rope and then gave him a backbreaker on the top buckle.
Page took Elio off the apron with a Yakuza Kick. Page worked on Elio with methodical offense during the break.[c]
Elio reversed Page with a Backdrop. Elio weaved and rallied with strikes. Elio took out Page with a crossbody. Elio got a two count after a Final Cut. Page avoided a 450 and turned Elio inside out with a Pump Kick. Elio showed his fighting spirit and slapped Page in the face. Elio hit Page with a German Suplex. Page swatted Elio out of the air with dropkick. Elio reversed a Power Slam into a DDT. Elio hit Page with a Moonsault.
Elio hit Page with a Slingshot Dropkick for a two count. Elio hit Page with Coast to Coast for a good nearfall. Page blocked a 450 with knees for a nearfall. Elio reversed Ego’s Edge with a Rana. Page countered Elio with a power bomb and got a handfull of tights for the dirty win.
Ethan Page defeated Elio LeFleur via pinfall in 10:16 to retain the NXT North American Championship.
While Page was gloating at the top of the ramp, Ricky Saints made his entrance. Page brought up how they aren’t necessarily friends. Ricky congratulated Page and said that they are the glue holding NXT together. Ricky made his entrance heading into break…[c]
John’s Thoughts: A good first in-ring impression by the French Luchador. He starts out strong with a PPV worthy effort and the out with Page getting the tainted win (And Page doesn’t overuse tainted wins, so it means a bit more with him). Again, the key is always follow up. Give Elio some vignettes and we can maybe revisit this match at a PLE with Elio potentially taking the belt off Page.
A replay aired of Keanu Carver destroying the NXT roster at the opening of last week’s show. Ricky Saints joined the commentary table. Booker T got somber while recapping the segment. They then cut to an argument between Booker and Keanu. Vic couldn’t get any words out of Booker as a recap…
Entrances for the next match took place…
2, Shiloh Hill vs. Josh Briggs for a spot in the ladder match for the vacant NXT Championship. Josh Briggs still has his Spirit Halloween skull that he has attached to his jacket. Hill threw hands early on. Briggs came back with overhead clubbing blows. Hill hit Briggs with a twisting neckbreaker and diving forearm for a nearfall. Hill hit Briggs with a leg drop on the apron. Briggs came back with a sidewalk slam and standing splash for a nearfall. Hill came back with a Huracanrana.
Hill hit Briggs with a Flip Dive from the steel steps. Briggs came right back with a right hand heading into break.[c]
Briggs had control with methodical offense. Hill made a comeback with a double leg takedown. Briggs came back with a diving punch for a nearfall. Hill hulked up and returned fire with a right hook. Hill hit Briggs with a Pounce. Hill hit Briggs with a diving clothesline. Hill hit Briggs with a Standing 054 for a nearfall. Briggs hit Hill with a Big Boot and Chokeslam for a good nearfall. Hill hit Briggs with Underhook Suplex for a two count.
Briggs hit Hill with a big boot. Hill dodged a moonsault and hit Briggs with a Pop Up Neckbreaker for the victory.
Shiloh Hill defeated Josh Briggs via pinfall in 10:41 to earn a spot in the ladder match for the vacant NXT Championship.
After the match, Tony D’Angelo showed up and laid out Hill and Briggs with uranages. D’Angelo intimidated Ricky Saints before heading to the back…
Sol Ruca and Zaria were chatting backstage. Zaria was moping about Sol not being at ringside during her match at Genesis. Sol talked about how she was brawling with The Elegance Brand. Zaria argued about not being 100%…
Vanity Project made their entrance…[c]
John’s Thoughts: A good rep match for Hill who got to work a longer match. He’s still rough with a few moves, but that’s what developmental is for, getting reps and getting better. It still irks me that he has this goofy happy go lucky tooth gimmick after those eerie vignettes that teased a dark and more nuanced character. I’m surprised Briggs isn’t in the ladder match as they usually like him in those matches as he doubles as a high flyer and a big man “base”. NXT continues to be wishy washy with how the protect Briggs to the point where he’s going to need a Bradshaw to JBL esque repackage to undo the damage done to his current character.
3. “Swipe Right” Ricky Smokes and Brad Baylor (w/Jackson Drake) vs. “Chase University” Uriah Connors and Kale Dixon. Ricky and Uriah started the match with chain wrestling. Smokes took down Connors with a shoulder tackle. Kale and Baylor tagged in. Connors blind tagged in to allow some tandem offense on Baylor. Chase U hit their opponents with stereo Suicide Dives. Baylor countered Connors by dragging him off the top rope. Lexis King was shown with Stacks and Ariana Grace watching the match from the back.
Vic Joseph said Baylor looks like an Evil Matt Damon (So Jessie Plemons?). Kale hit both opponents with Yakuza Kicks. Kale hit Baylor with a Northern Chop. Kale hit Swipe Right with a nice looking Fosbury Flop. Kale hit Ricky with a Twisting Splash for a nearfall. Uriah hit Ricky with a neckbreaker. Smokes tagged in. All four men traded strikes.
Baylor hit Kale with a high knee. Swipe Right hit Kale with a Scorpion Death Drop Stomp for the victory.
The Vanity Project defeated New Chase U via pinfall in 5:38.
Ava was chatting with her assistant Robert Stone (who’s a babyface on CW while he’s a heel on AMC). Lola vice and Thea Hail entered the room to ask for North American title shots. Ava booked Thea, Lola, and Izzi in a triple threat for the NA title…
Jaida Parker was shown walking backstage…[c]
John’s Thoughts: Good showing by Vanity Project now that they’re officially signed to NXT. They work well as heels stooges which make you want to see them get punched in the face. On the other side, Kale and Uriah are actually really good in the ring, but we barely see them in the ring, and the few times we see them, they are enhancement fodder. With NXT thinned out a bit, hopefully we get more of a push for Chase U, which was at one point one of the top acts on NXT when they had different configurations.
Blake Howard hosted a sitdown interview with Keanu Carver. Carver pulled a Marshawn Lynch by saying he’s only here because they made him. Carver refused to answer any questions and walked out…
[Hour Two] Jaida Parker made her entrance and was all smiles. Jaida soaked up the moment a bit. She said she’s happy to be back. She said what hasn’t changed since she was gone, was herself. She said she’s been watching NXT. She gave props to Kendal Grey for stepping up. She then talked down about Blake Monroe. Jaida said Lola Vice deserves props too for killing it. Jaida said she’s going to make an impact because hard work stands for itself.
Jaida said she’s the standard that refuses to bend. Jaida said she hears everyone and a lot of people have opinions about her. She said people say she’s not good enough or belong here. Jaida said people keep telling her how to be better. She said she may not catch a break, but she catches eyes. Jaida talked about she changes the air in the room when she enters.
Jaida said you can’t put her in a box. After more words, the lights went out. The spotlight showed Blake Monroe in a red dress on the Crow’s Nest. Monroe said Jaida made a huge mistake by interrupting her recently. Monroe said Jaida is all talk. Jaida said Blake talks so much, she needs something to prove. Jaida then told Monroe the crowd have her back and “bye!” Jaida’s theme played to end the segment…
Ava was chatting with Myles Borne and Elio LeFleur backstage. Ricky Saints passed by to gloat and call the next match. Myles Borne took exception to Ricky. Ethan Page showed up and brought up how Borne chokes in his opportunities. Page then said ” we all know what you have to do”…[c]
John’s Thoughts: While Jaida’s delivery was fine, the promo was a bit wordy and there was a lot of saying a lot without advancing a point. Not bad, but similar to a few promos last week, it felt like the interference could have been sooner.
Vic Joseph sent the show to a teaser for WWE Unreal, Season 2…
Ricky Saints rejoined the commentary table…
4. Sean Legacy vs. Eli Knight for a spot in the ladder match for the vacant NXT Championship. Eli and Sean had a lucha stalemate to start the match. Knight got a side headlock takedown. Both men had a stalemate standoff after dropkicks. Sean caught Eli with a dropkick and followed up with a Suicide Dive. Sean caught Eli with a Slingshot Crossbody. Sean worked on Eli with chops. Knight did some matrix dodges and hit Season with a dropkick.
Knight adjusted and hit Legacy at ringside with an Asai Moonsault.[c]
Eli and Sean were pretty even during the break. Eli and Sean took each other out with stereo clotheslines. Both men traded fatigued strikes. Sean turned Eli inside out with a clotehsline. Both men traded rapid pin attempts. Sean caught a rolling Knight with a super kick. Sean hit Eli with a slingshot 450 for a nearfall. Knight used a Belly to Belly to send Legacy into the buckle. Knight did a backflip after missing a moonsault for a nearfall.
A “this is awesome” chant ensued. Knight and legacy traded multiple pin attempts. Knight hit Legacy with Sliced Bread. Sean used boots to block a moonsault. Legacy hit Knight with a Corkscrew Burning Hammer for the win.
Sean Legacy defeated Eli Knight via pinfall in 10:54 to earn a spot in the ladder match for the vacant NXT Championship.
Tony D’Angelo showed up and tossed around Legacy and Knight. Tony D gave Legacy a uranage on the announce table. Ava and a few guards showed up at ringside. The guards were actually cops, who arrested Tony D…
John’s Thoughts: The Tony D development went from interesting to odd. So why is he a Vigilante now? What is he fighting for? They need to move forward with whatever they are going to do or else risk losing the crowd. Prior to that, great match by Eli Knight and Sean Legacy. We’ve seen how great Legacy can be and he’s going to be a fun high flyer for the brand. Eli Knight has had two matches in NXT and in both matches he’s really stood out as a future sensation.
A Culling segment aired where Izzi Dame bragged about winning the NA title. Niko said they need to go after the NXT Tag Titles. Niko said they can let OTM and DarkState beat each other up while they pick up the scraps…
Tony D was being escorted out of the building. Ava told Tony D she had no choice. Blake Howard kept trying to ask Tony D questions, but he wouldn’t answer him before being driven away. Blake Howard tried to handle an outro, but was shoved away by OTM who got in the camera and asked for a match against DarkState next week…
John’s Thoughts: Poor Blake Howard getting bullied by everyone tonight.
The Vanity Project was hanging out with a few women and bragged about how great they are. Robert Stone showed up and noted that Jackson Drake’s opponent next week is Joe Hendry. Say his name and he appears, I believe in Joe Hendry. Clap clap. Joe Hendry took the place of one of the women and told Drake he’d see him next week…
Fatal Influence made their entrance. Za Ruca then made their entrance…[c]
DarkState were chatting backstage about how they are looking forward to beat OTM. Cutler James noted that they need to be careful of Tony D. Dion said he’s going to qualify for the ladder match next week…
Vic Joseph hyped up next week’s qualifying matches…
Wren Sinclair and Kendal Grey made their entrances. “The Personal Concierge” from TNA was watching the match in the front row…
5. “Fatal Influence” Lainey Reid and Fallon Henley (w/Jacy Jayne) vs. Sol Ruca and Zaria vs. Kendal Grey and Wren Sinclair to become number one contenders to the TNA Knockouts Tag Team Championships. Sol hit Kendal and Lainey with a senton for a nearfall on both opponents. All three women in the ring traded rapid pints. Sol did a cool Matrix dodge and took out Grey and Reid. Zaria looked pouty and tagged herself in. Vic noted that Zaria is injured from her match against Lei Ying Lee at Genesis.
Grey and Wren used quick tags to get tandem offense on both opponents. Fallon tagged in and worked on Grey with tandem offense. Jacy Jayne teased getting involved by ducked away from Zaria. Sol tagged in and tried to do a backflip off Zaria, but Zaria’s injured arm gave out. Fallon hit Zaria with a Tiger Feint. Reid hit Zaria with a Suicide Dive. Wren and Grey hit their opponents with Stereo Dives.[c]
Zaria put Grey in her hangman move. Henley put Grey in a Electric Chair. Zaria took out Grey with a Doomsday Device. The other three women tagged in. Wren attacked both opponents with chops. Wren gave Sol and Reid a stinger splash. Grey tagged in. Grey and Wren hit Sol with a High Low move. Reid hit Grey with a nice Blue Thunder Bomb for a good nearfall. Grey dodged a punch from Jayne and hit her with a Wrecking Ball Kick.
Grey put Reid in a Cross Armbreaker. Sol broke the move up with a Slingshot Splash to get a two count on Grey. A “Women’s Wrestling” chant ensued. Reid and Grey hit Sol with Stereo Superkicks. Grey hit Reid with a Suplex. Sol hit Grey with a Slingshot X Factor. Zaria tagged herself in. Zaria hit Grey and Reid with a Double Spear.
Fallon dumped Sol to ringside. Grey hit Zaria with Shades of Grey. Jayne hit Grey wiht a right hand. Henley threw Wren into the barricade. Reid hit Zaria with a Crucifix BOmb. Fallon hit Zaria with a DDT and Blockbuster. Sol broke up Fallon’s pin. Sol caught Reid and Henley with a Double Sol Snatcher. Zaria hit Henley with an F5 for the victory.
Zaria and Sol Ruca defeated Fatal Influence and Kendal Grey and Wren Sinclair via pinfall in 12:23 to become number one contenders to the TNA Knockouts Tag Team Championships.
Vic Joseph noted that DarkState vs. OTM was made official for next week. Sol and Zaria celebrated and hugged to close the show…
John’s Thoughts: Awesome television main event. The action during the break was fun as well. I’m still not keen on NXT’s unnecessarily large amount of title belts in play, but this was a good match for those additional McGuffins. Kendal Grey continues to look like a wrestling machine! Lainey Reid even showed up too with highly impactful moves. The never ending breakup of Za Ruca continues. They at least are slowly turning Zaria heel by having her mope.
This was the 2nd week after the massive callups. This week felt a little more hopeful of the reset compared to last week, and this week’s show was carried by strong wrestling matches throughout the show. Very fun that we got to see some of the new talent too. What I do hope is we get more vignettes so we can have these new characters with some character development.
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