WWE NXT alt. perspective report
April 19, 2011
Taped in London, England
Report by Justin James, PWTorch contributor

Well, the show is now in Week 7 of NXT 5, and there has been no word of the first elimination. Right now, Titus O'Neil is dominating the points with 13. Darren Young trails with nine and Byron Saxton takes up the rear with four. This season has been very consistent, with Lucky Cannon standing out as a character and Titus O'Neil looking good (for NXT) in the ring. Outside of the Rookies, Maryse and Yoshi Tatsu have been developing nicely and getting a lot more mic time. A reminder of the cast...

Byron Saxton (Yoshi Tatsu)
Conor O'Brian (Vladimir Kozlov)
Darren Young (Chavo Guerrero)
Jacob Novak (JTG)
Lucky Cannon (Tyson Kidd)
Titus O'Neil (Hornswoggle)

[Q1] The show opens with Josh Matthews (Todd Grisham is "on vacation") and William Regal introducing the show. Maryse is on the stage to introduce the Rookies.

Maryse is the judge to see who gets a bye on the second round for a two redemption point challenge, a tug of war on the pugilist platforms.

Round 1

- O'Brian-Saxton: Saxton goes flying off the platform and onto the ramp.

- Novak-Young: Novak wins in a tight decision. He's still sporting the Slam Master J look.

- Cannon-O'Neil: O'Neil is DQ'ed for taking up too much slack in the line before the contest.

Maryse gives Cannon a bye for the second round because she likes obnoxious men and he is the most obnoxious.

Round 2

- Novak-O'Brian: Novak wins.

Round 3

- Novak-Cannon: Cannon starts by screaming at the crowd, drawing heat. Cannon ends up throwing the rope at Novak, then pushing Novak down and storming off the stage screaming, "It's all about me!" Cannon is DQ'ed.

Jacob Novak picks up two redemption points, then steals Cannon's robe and runs behind the stage.

[c - "That's What I Am"]

In the ring, JTG tries to fore up the crowd and introduce Jacob Novak. Novak cuts a cheesy cheap heat pro-USA promo. JTG seems to be enjoying it. Isn't he supposed to be a face? Novak then calls out Regal again. Conor O'Brian (with Vladimir Kozlov) comes out and says that if Novak wants a fight, he's going to bring it.

1 - CONOR O'BRIAN (w/Vladimir Kozlov) vs. JACOB NOVAK (w/JTG)

Conor O'Brian gets the early advantage while Regal says that Novak isn't too different from how he used to be. Novak takes over with a clothesline out of the corner and then leg drops. Regal questions if the change in Novak's gimmick will actually help him be a Superstar. Novak takes O'Brian down with a big boot and then calls out Regal again. O'Brian surprises Novak with a rollup for two. Novak goes back to a brawling offense. O'Brian hits another rollup for the win as Novak was distracted by staring at Regal.

WINNER: Conor O'Brian in 3:00.

Post-match, Novak gets in Regal's face then shoves him. JTG then pulls Novak away before Regal charges at him.

[Q2]

[c - Ad for the draft next week]

Raw Rebound - focus on the situation with John Morrison and R-Truth from Raw. Good video package; it made it look much more interesting than it really was.

Backstage, Byron Saxton gives dating tips to Yoshi Tatsu telling him to slow down. Maryse comes out and Tatsu says she looks great. Maryse wants to know what Yoshi is doing tonight and he says he is free. She says she is going shopping and invites Yoshi along. She gives him a peck on the cheek and Yoshi is too dazed to discuss the upcoming tag match.

[c - "DX: One Last Stand" DVD]

There is a lot of debate in the NXT live chat room over the smoking part on last night's Raw involving R-Truth.

2 - DARREN YOUNG (w/Chavo Guerrero) vs. TITUS O'NEIL (w/Hornswoggle)

Pre-match, Chavo warns Darren to not mess with Hornswoggle. Supposedly, Young said that he could beat Hornswoggle with one hand tied behind his back, so it looks like it's going to happen. William Regal brings up Chavo's past with Hornswoggle. Uh-oh, now a blindfold is coming out. So, it looks like the match has been changed to Hornswoggle vs. Darren Young with his hand tied behind his back and his eyes blindfolded.

Hornswoggle dances around Young, striking at will. Young peeks through the blindfold while the ref was distracted and stays on top of Hornswoggle. He tries to go to the top rope, but Hornswoggle head butts him down and hits the Tadpole Splash for the win. Regal says that he is not surprised by the result.

WINNER: Hornswoggle in 2:00. The burial of Darren Young continues.

[Q3]

[c - Make a Wish foundation]

3 - YOSHI TATUSU & BYRON SAXTON vs. TYSON KIDD & LUCKY CANNON

Maryse is ringside as Josh Matthews tries to find out what's going on with her and Tatsu. (The running joke all show was Mathews had to be smartened up to what he missed this season with Grisham hosting.)

Saxton and Cannon start it off, but Cannon demands Tatsu in the ring. Tatsu asks for the tag and Cannon goes nuts for Yoshi. Yoshi tags in. Tatsu with the trademark quick strikes sends Cannon to tag in Kidd. Fast-paced series of take downs and pin attempts and chain wrestling. Saxton takes in and keeps Kidd down with an arm bar. Regal says that Saxton is having a hard time standing out. He also says that he would not have succeeded if he had to go through NXT. Tatsu and Saxton tag in and out a few times, and Saxton is able to maintain control.

[c - Awesome Kong vignette, Draft preview]

In the chat, the WWE audience is totally confused by the Kong ad; they don't seem to realize it's a woman or who it is.

Back from break, Cannon has Saxton is a head scissors. Cannon with more basic holds and stomps. Kidd tags in as Cannon tries to impress Maryse. Cannon with cheap shots on Saxton as Kidd distracts the ref. Saxton tries a sunset flip for two, Cannon tags back in. Cannon's trunks say "Da-Lish," which is rife with double entendre possibilities. Cannon keeps Saxton down and keeps heeling to the audience with his "it's all about me" line.

Cannon hits a spinebuster and mounts Saxton while Maryse is laughing hysterically. Saxton lands a shoulder tackle out of the corner and they both tag out. More Yoshi vs. Kidd goodness here. I could watch those two go at it all night. Cannon is off the apron to flirt with Maryse. Tatsu had the upper hand but stopped to yell at Cannon, and Kidd surprises him with some sort of spinning neckbreaker type move for the win.

WINNERS: Tyson Kidd and Lucky Cannon in 12:00. These two made an excellent heel pair.

Final Reax: Not a bad episode of NXT. The Tatsu-Kidd in ring action was worth the price of admission. Lucky Cannon is getting better and better by the week as a heel. Even the contest wasn't too horrible. The biggest problem was the Hornswoggle-Young comedy match. There was a decent amount of wrestling and while only the last match was above average, there was nothing to really complain about.

There is still no word of when eliminations will be. I feel like there is zero game plan for NXT right now. It's also interesting that last season's "winner" (Johnny Curtis) has yet to appear on WWE TV, let alone get his "prize" of a WWE Tag Title match with R-Truth.

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