By Laurence Gibbons, ProWrestling.net Contributor (@Gibbonsgob)
NXT UK TV
Taped in London, England at BT Sport Studios
Streamed February 25, 2021 on WWE Network
The show started with a hype package for the match between Gallus and Pretty Deadly for the NXT UK Tag Team Championships… We were welcomed to the show by the broadcast team of Andy Shepherd and Nigel McGuinness…
Xia Brookside made her entrance while a highlight package recapped her rivalry with Nina Samuels and the stipulation that the loser must become the winner’s assistant for one month. Samuels made her entrance with her baggage handler Henry…
1. Xia Brookside vs. Nina Samuels. An enraged Brookside started on the front foot. With the action on the outside and Brookside still in control, Samuels kicked Brookside into her luggage to gain the upper hand. Samuels moved smoothly between submissions while trash talking Brookside.
Henry refused to give Samuels her loaded handbag. She eventually forced it off him and returned to the ring. Samuels went to hit Brookside with the bag but missed. Brookside punted the bag out of Samuels hands and rolled her up for the win.
Xia Brookside defeated Nina Samuels in 5:44.
Gibbons’ Opinion: This was a nice, quick opening match. They moved in and out of the ring a lot which kept things fresh. The stipulation, albeit very juvenile, did help to grow interest in the match. What they were fighting for was silly but at least they were fighting for something. I have no idea why Henry turned his back on Samuels. But this was the first time he was called by his name, so no effort has been made to help us understand his psyche. Brookside winning here was definitely for the best as Samuels will play the role of disgruntled servant well.
We saw a vignette for Trent Seven running in the snow with his dogs and talking about how his plant-based diet and positive mental attitude was guiding him to cut the weight to beat Jordan Devlin for the Cruiserweight Championship…
Ilja Dragunov was being interviewed backstage when Sam Gradwell called him a baby and a yogurt and challenged him to a match – Dragunov accepted…
William Regal’s son Bailey Matthews was shown in the ring when Tyler Bate made his entrance.
2. Bailey Matthews vs. Tyler Bate. Matthews took Bate down with the wrist lock. He continued to hold on to the wrist despite Bate hitting him with a monkey flip. Matthews held Bate in the leg scissors while the broadcast team revealed he had trained with Dave Tayler – choosing to omit the fact he is Regal’s son. Matthews had the better of this match displaying a range of classic grappling and submissions until Bate hit a suplex and the standing shooting star press. Bate hit the Tyler Driver for the win.
Tyler Bate defeated Bailey Matthews in 5:42.
Gibbons’ Opinion: This was a really good showing for Matthews, who I knew had signed but didn’t think we’d see this soon. You can certainly tell he’s Regal’s son with his in-ring work and how he carries himself. It is interesting that the commentators hyped up his training and ability but chose not the mention that he was Regal’s son.
This was a proper old school British wrestling match that would have sat nicely on World of Sport. It certainly made me want to see more of Matthews. This was also a decent victory for Bate as he had been on the receiving end of an onslaught for most of the match.
A vignette played for an unnamed wrestler. This will be Metehan, also known as Lucky Kid, but we will have to wait to see what his NXT UK name will be…
Joseph Conners was about to give an interview when Piper Niven interrupted him. Niven slapped him when he called her common, leading Jinny to attack her. When Sid Scala refused Niven’s demand for a handicap match against Conners and Jinny, she grabbed the nearby Jack Starz and asked for a tag match…
Aoife Valkyrie made her entrance with Lana Austin already in the ring…
3. Lana Austin vs. Aoife Valkyrie. Valkyrie’s early agile offense put her in control in the early going of the match. She scored a close two count from a neckbreaker. Valkyrie went for a kick but pulled away when Austin put her hands up. Auston took advantage and nearly put Valkyrie away with a roll up. Valkyrie hit the top rope diving split leg drop for the victory.
Aoife Valkyrie defeated Lana Austin in 4:06.
Gibbons’ Opinion: This match simply stood to continue Valkyrie’s winning streak with Austin acting as cannon fodder. It will be interesting to see how far they go with this particular streak and who will break it. I enjoy watching Valkyrie but wish she had a name that was easier to spell.
Tyler Bate vs. Dave Mastiff was announced for two week’s time. The mixed tag match between Jinny and Joseph Conners and Piper Niven and Jack Starz was also announced for then. Bate will be on Supernova Sessions, next week…
Xia Brookside left the arena followed by a bedraggled Samuels struggling with her bags. The comedy begins…
Kenny Williams and Amir Jordan revealed they would be returning to tag action next week and that they were focussing on getting a tag title shot…
We saw a hype package for next week’s NXT UK Women’s Championship match between Kay Lee Ray and Meiko Satomura…
Pretty Deadly made their entrance ahead of their opportunity at the tag titles. The champions Gallus entered the BT Sports Studio…
4. “Gallus” Mark Coffey and Wolfgang vs. “Pretty Deadly” Sam Stoker and Lewis Howley for the NXT UK Tag Team Championship. The first five minutes of this match centered around frequent tags from both teams to prevent either from gaining the upper hand. Coffey attempted to enter the ring as Howley and Stoker doubled teamed Wolfgang. With the referee distracted, Howley sent Wolfgang into the ring post on the outside.
Pretty Deadly then utilised quick tags to wear down Wolfgang in their corner. Despite the efforts of Stoker and Howley, Wolfgang finally made the hot tag to Coffey. Coffey hit a number of big moves on first Howley and then Stoker once the latter had tagged in. With Wolfgang recovering on the outside, Pretty Deadly hit a double team move on Coffey for a close two count. Coffey chokeslammed Stoker on the ring apron whilst Wolfgang hit a huge spear on Howley in the ring. But this only scored a two count.
Stoker slapped Wolfgang, who chased him out of the ring. Howley shoulder charged Wolfgang over the barrier. Howley returned to the ring with the tag titles and chucked one to Stoker. The referee took one title but left the other on the mat. With the referee distracted by one title, Stoker DDT’d Coffey onto the other title. Pretty Deadly hit Spilt Milk on Coffey to win the tag team gold.
“Pretty Deadly” Sam Stoker and Lewis Howley defeated Mark Coffey and Wolfgang in 15:02 to win the NXT UK Tag Team Championships.
Gibbons’ Opinion: This was a very solid tag team match. No gimmicks, just good old fashioned wrestling. I said I wanted Pretty Deadly to win the titles after they came out on top in the number one contender’s match and I’m happy that it came to fruition. For me, they are a much more interesting team than Gallus.
They have bags of charisma, are decent in the ring and suit bending the rules – as they did a lot to win this match. The opening did drag a bit as it was mainly quick tags and neither team were on top. But when it got going it was a lot of fun. It built nicely into full chaos and plenty of near falls.
The only slightly confusing thing was Pretty Deadly definitely worked heel but were portrayed as the good guys going into the match. Either way, after having Gallus as tag team champions for more than a year it’s nice to have new champs. There’s lots of teams in the tag team division and I’d like to see Pretty Deadly defend these titles regularly and build up their reputation.
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