By Jason Powell, ProWrestling.net Editor (@prowrestlingnet)
NXT TV
Orlando, Florida, at the WWE Performance Center
Aired live January 27, 2026, on The CW Network
[Hour One] Vic Joseph and Booker T were on commentary, with guest commentator Ricky Saints…
Joe Hendry’s entrance theme played, but he didn’t come out for the opening match. They cut backstage where “The Vanity Project” Jackson Drake, Brad Baylor, and Ricky Smokes were standing over Hendry.
NXT General Manager Ava showed up. The Vanity Project members claimed it wasn’t what it looked like. Ava was informed that Tony D’Angelo had just arrived, and then he was shown walking backstage. Ava informed someone through the headset that they would need to make some changes due to Hendry being attacked…
Entrances for the NXT Tag Team Title match took place…
1. “DarkState” Saquon Shugars and Osiris Griffin (w/Cutler James) vs. “OTM” Bronco Nima and Lucien Price for the NXT Tag Team Titles. Joseph said Saints was no longer on commentary. Hank Walker and Tank Ledger were shown watching the match on a backstage monitor. OTM cleared the champions from the ring heading into a break roughly five minutes into the match. [C]
Joseph said Hendry had been taken to the hospital after being attacked backstage. Griffin and Nima went for simultaneous running crossbody blocks. Both men tagged out. Price worked over both champions.
They cut backstage to another shot of Walker and Ledger watching the match in a backstage area. The Vanity Project trio tried to sneak past them, but they were spotted. Jackson Drake, Brad Baylor, and Ricky Smokes headed to ringside. Baylor climbed on the apron and was immediately knocked back down to the floor by Price. Walker and Ledger ran out and bickered with Vanity Project. In the ring, Shugars rolled up a distracted Price for the win.
“DarkState” Saquon Shugars and Osiris Griffin defeated “OTM” Bronco Nima and Lucien Price in 11:15 to retain the NXT Tag Team Titles.
After the match, a brawl broke out with OTM, Walker and Ledger, and the Vanity Project. Andre Chase tried unsuccessfully to stop Uriah Connors and Kale Dixon from getting involved. The DarkState trios stood in the ring and laughed at the other teams while they brawled. Shawn Spearks and Niko Vance attacked them from behind. Spears and Vance left the tag team champions lying in the ring, and Cutler was holding his shoulder on the floor…
Footage aired from last week of Nikkita Lyons and Blake Monroe talking in the women’s locker room while various wrestlers sat behind them. Lyons sang Monroe’s name and eventually volunteered to face Jaida Parker so that Monroe wouldn’t have to. Monore asked what she would have to do to repay her. Lyons said she didn’t know and called herself a saint… [C]
Powell’s POV: NXT loves their brawls between tag teams. These brawls rarely seem to serve much of a purpose beyond either getting a bunch of teams on the show or setting up a big multi-team match. I’m not sure which this was. It was interesting that there were some cheers for Spears and Vance when they attacked DarkState.
2. Jaida Parker vs. Nikkita Lyons. Both entrances were televised. Lyons had Parker down and hit her with a barrage of punches. She sent Parker to the corner and then threw more punches at her. Lyons put Parker down again and stood on her before performing a split leg drop. Lyons performed a nice Pearl River Plunge for a near fall.
Moments later, the wrestlers traded strikes in the middle of the ring. Parker got the better of it and put Lyons down with a clothesline, a shoulder block, and then a spinebuster. Parker had Lyons draped over the ropes when she jumped up and sat down on her. Parker followed up with a Hipnotic knee strike and hit her finisher for the win.
Jaida Parker beat Nikkita Lyons in 5:20.
After the match, Blake Monroe appeared on the big screen and said Parker’s win was something, but it wasn’t glamorous. Monroe said no one takes the spotlight from her. She said she’d see Parker soon. In the ring, Parker looked into the camera and told Monroe that she knows where to find her…
Footage aired from earlier in the day of Tavion Heights speaking with Eli Knight and Elio Lefleur. Channing “Stacks” Lorenzo, Arianna Grace, and Lexis King showed up. King mocked the newcomers for taking advice from Heights, which led to King and Heights having to be held apart from one another… [C] Joseph plugged the WWE podcast schedule…
“The Elegance Brand” with Ash, Heather, M, Mr. Elegance, and The Concierge delivered a backstage promo about Sol Ruca and Zaria earning a shot at the TNA Knockouts Tag Team Titles. M said Zaria was only worried about herself at TNA Genesis. They claimed that Heather and M would be TNA Knockouts Champions forever…
In the NXT women’s locker room, Zaria was on the phone with Sol Ruca. Zaria was upset about what The Elegance Brand said about them. Zaria asked Ruca where she was and then got flustered and told Ruca not to tell her.
Thea Hail showed up and told Zaria that friends in NXT come and go. Zaria asked if Hail was complaining even though she stumbled onto winning the NXT Women’s North American Championship. After some bickering, Zaria told Hail that she would see her later…
Backstage, NXT North American Champion Ethan Page told Myles Borne that if he wanted to qualify for the ladder match, he needed to do it by any means necessary. Borne told Page to stay out of his business. Ricky Saints showed up. Borne fired up and told Saints not to be at ringside during the match, and then he stormed away. Page asked Saints who would have thought the way to get Borne riled up was Saints being obnoxious…
Dion Lennox made his entrance… [C] Backstage, Ava was shown speaking to Joe Hendry by phone. She
Jackson Drake, Brad Baylor, and Ricky Smokes showed up and asked how Joe Hendry was doing. She said Hendry was not cleared. They acted disappointed. She said she knew they attacked Hendry. They unconvincingly said it could have been anyone. Drake said the boys were just trying to make something happen.
Ava said she couldn’t technically prove that they attacked Hendry. She decided that Drake would be in the ladder match for the vacant NXT Championship. She added that Hendry would also be in the match next week if he’s medically cleared…
Myles Borne made his entrance…
3. Dion Lennox vs. Myles Borne in a qualifying match for the ladder match for the vacant NXT Championship. There was an apparent botched spot early where Borne ran the ropes and the wrestlers weren’t on the same page, as Borne’s head hit Lennox’s abdomen. Joseph announced Tavion Heights vs. Lexis King for later in the show. They cut to an early PIP break.
Ethan Page came out and slid the NXT North American Championship belt to Borne and encouraged him to use it as a weapon. Page tried to distract the referee, but he caught Borne with the belt and took it away from him. Borne turned back to Lennox, who slammed him to the mat with his superplex powerslam finisher and scored the pin.
Dion Lennox defeated Myles Borne in roughly 11:30 to qualify for the ladder match for the vacant NXT Championship.
[Hour Two] After the match, Page berated Borne, saying he’d never be a winner if he didn’t take his advice. Page said Borne can’t pull the trigger. Borne took the title belt and hit Page with it…
Powell’s POV: The crowd was quiet until a mild “Let’s go, Myles” chant broke out. Both wrestlers have upside, but they have yet to connect with the audience. If Borne can’t get the fans behind him while feuding with a great heel in Page, then perhaps it’s time to really shake things up.
Security guards escorted Tony D’Angelo to Ava’s office, where she and Ricky Saints were talking. Saints said he heard a lot about D’Angelo. Saints told Ava to make sure nothing happened during the ladder match because he didn’t want anyone to interfere. Saints left the room.
D’Angelo asked Ava while she bailed him out. She said NXT needs him despite his recent actions. Ava said guys like Saints and Ethan Page were only in it for themselves, and he knows NXT better than anyone. She asked if he was in or out. D’Angelo said he would let her and everyone else know his intentions next week. He said he’s not the same Tony D’Angelo. As he was leaving, Ava stopped him and told him not to interfere in the ladder match…
Tavion Heights made his entrance… [C]
Backstage, Uriah Connors told Kale Dixon and Andre Chase that he was maximizing his minutes earlier. Chase headed out to get ready for his match. Lexis King showed up and told Connors that it was good that he’d been listening. King said Connors’ father would be proud. King said he knew his father would be. King made his entrance for his match…
4. Tavion Heights vs. Lexis King. Heights picked up a near fall during the first ten seconds of the match. Channing “Stacks” Lorenzo and Arianna Grace walked out while Heights was getting the better of King. Heights went for a clothesline near the ropes, but King avoided it, causing Heights to tumble to the floor in front of Stacks and Grace. Heights returned to the apron and went for a slingshot move that King avoided. King hit the Coronation and scored the pin.
Lexis King beat Tavion Heights in 3:55.
After the match, King put his arms around Stack and Grace. He looked into the camera and said this was just the beginning. The broadcast team wondered what he meant. King said, “You are looking at three people, who…” and then they cut away…
Zaria was shown in the women’s locker room while Joseph said her match was up next…
Powell’s POV: Meh. The King vs. Heights match was brief, but the live crowd didn’t seem all that interested.
An NXT Origins video aired with Finn Balor. He said he just wrestled prior to his time in NXT. He said he felt that his time in NXT turned him into a superstar. He said he didn’t think he’d be as successful as he was had he not learned how to open up to the camera. He said he looks back at his time in NXT as some of the most important years of his development, as well as some of his happiest years…
5. Zaria vs. Thea Hail. Both entrances were televised. NXT Women’s North American Champion Izzi Dame sat in on commentary. Hail dropkicked Zaria, who ended up at ringside. Hail dove onto her. Back in the ring, Zaria dropped Hail on the top rope and then hit her with a big boot. There was a PIP break. [C]
Hail targeted Zaria’s arm, which Joseph recalled her injuring during a TNA match. Hail eventually took Zaria down and caught her in a Kimura. Zaria powered her way out of the hold and then speared Hail. Zaria hoisted up Hail on her shoulders, but Hail countered with a DDT. Hail let out a primal scream, but then she and Zaria butted heads.
The camera cut to the broadcast team just in time for Tatum Paxley to jump off the barricade onto Dame. Paxley chased Dame into the ring and out the other side. Hail rolled up a distracted Zaria for the three count.
Thea Hail beat Zaria in 9:15.
After the match, Hail offered a handshake to Zaria, who slapped her hand away. Fallon Henley and Lainey Reid came out and stood on the apron. Hail put her hand on Zaria’s shoulder and told her she had her back. Zaria grabbed Hail and put her down with an F5. Henley and Reid dropped off the apron. Zaria yelled at Henley and Reid…
Keanu Carver was shown seated inside a room. He spotted the camera and then stood up and slammed the door…
Powell’s POV: For a second there, I thought Carver was sitting on a toilet. Anyway, the match was solid aside from the finish. It wouldn’t have been so bad had we not seen a similar finish earlier in the show.
Backstage, Charlie Dempsey spoke with Wren Sinclair while Evolve women’s Champion Kendal Grey sat next to them. Sinclair spoke about how she and Grey didn’t get pinned during last week’s three-way match. She sought Grey’s confirmation. A distracted Grey apologized and then spoke about how she still believes she can beat Jacy Jayne for the NXT Women’s Championship.
Stacks, Arianna Grace, and Lexus King showed up after Sinclair and Grey exited. Grace told Dempsey that he is one of them. He wasn’t sure what she was referring to…
Powell’s POV: It appears that Stacks, Grace, and King are trying to start a faction of wrestlers who come from wrestling families. They courted Uriah Connors, who is the son of Fit Finlay, and Charlie Dempsey, the same of William Regal. I guess the idea is that Stacks qualifies for marrying into Santino Marella’s family.
6. Keanu Carver vs. Andre Chase in a qualifying match for the ladder match for the vacant NXT Championship. The match spilled over to ringside. Chase tackled Carver over the broadcast table. Chase stood on the table and let out a primal scream. Carver stood up, jumped on the table, and then slammed Chase onto it. Back in the ring, Carver executed another powerslam and then pinned Chase clean.
Keanu Carver defeated Andre Chase in 4:05 to qualify for the ladder match for the vacant NXT Championship.
After the match, Carver attacked Chase and stomped his head on the ring steps. Trainers and referees ran out to check on Chase…
The following matches were advertised for next week’s show: Ricky Saints vs. Shiloh Hill vs. Sean Legacy vs. Jackson Drake vs. Dion Lennox vs. Keanu Carver vs. Joe Hendry (if Hendry is medically cleared) in a ladder match for the vacant NXT Championship, Heather by Elegance and M by Elegance vs. Sol Ruca and Zaria for the TNA Knockouts Tag Team Titles, Izzi Dame vs. Thea Hail vs. Lola Vice in a Triple Threat for the NXT Women’s North American Championship, and Tony D’Angelo explains his actions…
Carver was still in the ring, and the trainers were tending to Chase, who had a bloody mouth and held his jaw. Carver asked if they really thought “that cornball” was going to stop him. Carver said if anyone had something to say about it, they could come see him.
Ricky Saints, Shiloh Hill, Sean Legacy, Jackson Drake, and Dion Lennox were shown watching Carver on a backstage monitor. Goofball Hill said he didn’t need a ladder, it was going to be awesome. Hilly yelled and then left the room. Saints said he would get his own ladder. Lennox stood up and looked at Legacy and Drake before walking past them… [C]
A video aired on the NXT Championship and some of the wrestlers who have held it. The narrator asked who would be next to join the list of champions…
Keanu Carver, Shiloh Hill, Sean Legacy, Jackson Drake, and Dion Lennox were in the ring. Hill said that Carver’s comments may have scared some people, but they excited him. Lennox said Hill would lose more teeth if he kept yapping. Legacy said he had nothing to lose and said it was the biggest opportunity of his life. He said he could be a little crazy and reckless in the ladder match.
Drake said that’s exactly why his dumb ass would choke. Drake talked about being calculated. The fans booed. Drake said the man he was supposed to face had an unfortunate injury. A “shit the hell up” chant broke out while Drake spoke about becoming the youngest double champion in company history.
Ricky Saints’ entrance music played, and he walked out and set up a ladder match in the entrance aisle. Saints climbed up a few rungs and said the view was beautiful. Saints said he saw future champions, but they were seeds that hadn’t sprouted yet. Saints said he is a rose that came up from the concrete jungle known as NXT.
Carver said they were all doing too much talking. He said they didn’t have to wait until next week. Carvery hit Hill. A brawl broke out. Saints ended up being the last man in the ring, and he climbed his ladder and went for the belt that was hanging above the ring. Entrance music stopped Saints.
Joe Hendry limped to the ring and put Saints down with the Ovation. Carver returned to the ring and put Hendry down with his powerslam. Carver stood tall, and his entrance music played while the other wrestlers were down in the ring or on the floor. Joseph ran through the lineup for next week’s show and plugged tickets for this weekend’s NXT live events in Tennessee and Alabama. The executive producer credits were shown as Carver looked up at the title belt…
Powell’s POV: The show delivered plenty of hype for next week’s ladder match for the vacant NXT Championship. I can’t say they left me anxious to see the match, but simply knowing that a new champion will be crowned is a strong hook for next week’s show.
Overall, this was a below-average episode. I will have a lot more to say about it during our weekly same-night audio review of NXT for Dot Net Members (including our Patreon patrons). Let me know what you thought of the show by grading it below.
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