WWE NXT Results
April 17, 2014
Taped at Full Sail University
Report by Justin James, PWTorch contributor

[Q1] The thumbnail on the WWE Network page reminds me that C.J. Parker is booked against The Great Khali tonight. My mind had removed this piece of information from my mind in an effort to protect me.

Colin Cassady is out (and announced as "Big Cass") to open the show. The booth is William Regal, Byron Saxton, Tom Philips, and Renee Young in a rare non-Divas match appearance. Aiden English demands a spotlight, to re-ignite his feud with Cassady. Once again, NXT demonstrates the ability to not lose continuity, though it would be nice to see progression in this feud other than English getting a dashing pair of blue velvet trunks with roses on them.

1 - COLIN CASSADY vs. AIDEN ENGLISH

The announcers acknowledge the pause-stop nature of this feud. English angers Cassady, leading to angry offense from Cassady. High knee from Cassady and a big boot gets two. English targets a knee. Cassady reels under English's assault. Reversed whip and a back drop sends English sky high. English wants a cross-body, Cassady catches him, English slips out of the reversal, wants the Director's Cut but Cassady escapes. Big Boot, Cassady wants a slam, english slips down and rolls him up with a handful of tights for the win.

WINNER: Aiden English in 4:27. Perfectly fine match to re-ignite their feud. Cassady's in-ring work has improved quite a bit. Something that NXT does really well is the use of reversals and counters in the final moments of a match, to give an air of excitement. The main roster usually only sees this from top level talent, but it is a key component of many NXT matches. It's like they're making everyone watch a pile of Chris Jericho matches.

Devin Taylor has Tyler Breeze, who has her read a list of titles from his furry iPhone. He doesn't have anything to say, he just thought that we wanted to see someone gorgeous. Taylor seems to take offense.

Scott Stanford announces that Brodus Clay is booked to face Adrian Neville. It does not seem to be a title match.

Video package on Paige, including her title win on the post-WrestleMania Raw, and a portion of her backstage piece.

Backstage interview with Paige. She is carrying both titles. She says that she is in shock. She says that the joyful mood post-interview has turned into cattiness, and Sasha Banks and Charlotte are the worst. A.J. was complacent and Paige has been preparing, and that's why she holds both titles. She isn't going to get complacent and is ready to defend either title.

[Q2] Camacho is out for a match with Oliver Grey. Too bad they didn't pick up the relationship between Grey and Neville.

2 - OLIVER GREY vs. CAMACHO

Grey shows off a cruiserweight style despite his size, with arm drags and a step-up kick. Big powerslam from Camacho gets two. Camacho wins off a Samoan Drop.

Winner: Camacho in 1:59. Who wins with a Samoan Drop? It is a shame that they used the returning Grey to build up Camacho to make him look good, which will enhance his budding feud with Adam Rose. It's Booking 101, but it is a shame to see Grey get little love on his return.

Devin Taylor interviews Bo Dallas backstage. He blows off his failure to "occupy NXT" and he says it is because the Bo-leivers are law abiding citizens. He's back to his normal self. His drive for victory and the "Bo-movement" will never die.

3 - NXT tag champions THE ASCENSION (KONNOR O'BRIAN & RICK VICTOR) vs. WESLEY BLAKE & CAL BISHOP - non-title Tag Team match

Blake starts against O'Brian, but his first few blows don't stop O'Brian from taking over the match. Blake gets sent ringside and Victor continues with a barrage of chops and rights. Blake is crawling for the corner as Victor stalks him. O'Brian delivers boots to the middle. Victor takes Bishop off the apron, then the Fall of Man for the win.

WINNERS: The Ascension in 2:25. The Ascension is definitely in that category of "good packaging of a not-so-hot product." Their squashes are fun, but they haven't shown the ability to go more than three minutes and maintain interest.

Devin Taylor interviews Sasha Banks about her recent string of losses. Charlotte says that it was a mistake to let Banks take the lead, and Charlotte will be doing the lead. So, next week, Banks and Charlotte will be facing Emma and a partner of her choice. Banks chaffs.

[ J.J.'s Reax: Banks's losses now make perfect sense, since they set up Charlotte to step up to take over the BFFs. It is nice to see a wrestling show make sense yet not be too predictable. ]

[Q3] C.J. Parker comes out looking grumpy. Apparently, he goes to bed wondering what the planet would be like without the "NXT Universe." He says he would prefer it because there would be no litter or zoos or SUVs. How can they boo a man who is the change that they should want to see in the world? The Great Khali's music cuts him off. Regal makes a reference to Ranjin Singh. Ugh.

4 - THE GREAT KHALI vs. C.J. PARKER

Parker stands tall to Khali and hsoves him, but takes a chop to the head and Khali goes on his usual attack. Parker hits his head hard on his way out of the ring. Khali tries to follow up but Parker attacks the knee. The crowd chants "global warming!" at Parker. A hand catches Parker mid-air. The attack ends in the Punjabi Plunge.

WINNER: The Great Khali in 2:40. No one "wins" with a Khali match, but the FSU crowd shocked me by giving Khali a house show reaction.

Backstage interview with Emma. She has not found a partner yet... or has she?

Backstage interview with Sami Zayn. He says that his health is fine. He says he isn't questioning the ref's call, but he thinks he could have held out longer. Zayn says that he can't stand people like Graves.

Jason Jordan and Tye Dillenger actually get a full entrances as they face Sawyer Fulton and Baron Corbin, already in the ring. It will be good to see more teams stepping up to give The Ascension a real battle.

5 - JASON JORDAN & TYE DILLENGER vs. SAWYER FULTON & BARON CORBIN - Tag Team match

Corbin and Jordan face off first. Double team gives Dillenger and Jordan the upper hand. Dillenger demonstrates superb athleticism for his size, but a clothesline puts Corbin on the attack. Basic, yet well-executed offense from Fulton and Corbin. Corbin comes off the top ropes, Dillenger gets a boot up, Corbin lands on his feet and grabs the boot, but Dillenger rolls under the follow up elbow drop, double tag. Jordan is super fired-up after a big back drop, he drop kicks Corbin out of the ring, he gets the crowd fired up, and a double team DDT puts Fulton away.

WINNERS: Jason Jordan & Tye Dillenger in 4:40. This was a basic match, but Jordan's moment of hot tag offense had me emotionally invested. The crowd had been silent until then, and the faces got a very good reaction for their win. Kudos to Jason Jordan for being able to pull that off. Another good example of NXT matches differentiating themselves from the main roster in terms of the booking. There was a series of counters and reversals, but instead of leading straight to a finisher they got to a hot tag, and there was a clean ending without "the action breaking down."

[Q4] It will be interesting to see if a non-title victory will lead to a title match (like it would on Raw) or if they will use Clay to build up Neville (which NXT will quite possibly do).

6 - NXT champion ADRIAN NEVILLE vs. BRODUS CLAY - non-title match

Neville immediately puts Clay in the corner and stymies Clay's various attempts to go on the attack. Sleeper attempt, but Clay tosses Neville into the corner. Neville is non-stop action, but Clay catches a top-rope move and hits a big suplex for two. Clay clobbers Neville with a punch to the heart for two. Neville is bleeding and the crowd rallies him to his feet, but Clay drops him again. Neville slips away before Clay can hit a powerbomb.

Clay draws numerous warnings from the ref in the corner. Nerve hold, Neville gets to his feet but Clay keeps the hold on. Clay gets Neville up for the powerbomb, but Neville fights out.

Neville clips a knee. Roundhouse from the apron and Clay is staggering. Slingshot forearm drops Clay. Red Arrow, but Clay rolls under and hits a running headbutt. Neville rolls out of the ring. Body slam ringside and Clay wants the big splash from the ring steps, but Neville rolls away. Neville slips back into the ring at a nine-and-a-half count for a count-out win.

WINNER: Adrian Neville at 4:50. I really enjoyed this match. Neville got tons of offense to look good, Clay looked like a monster, and the ending left an open end for a re-match.

Post-match, Clay wants to sneak into the ring but a drop kick sends him packing.

Final Reax: NXT continues to be an effectively booked treat with multiple storylines that make logical progress (though the Cassady vs, English feud is an exception there), and clear attention to long term details. The four-person booth lasted all night and was very effective.

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