10/18 NXT TV Report: Sanity vs. Undisputed Era, Ember Moon vs. Ruby Riot vs. Sonya Deville, plus Black, Ohno

NXT TV REPORT
OCTOBER 17,  2017
TAPED 10/4 IN ORLANDO, FLA. AT FULL SAIL UNIVERSITY
AIRED ON WWE NETWORK
REPORT BY JUSTIN JAMES, PWTORCH CONTRIBUTOR

[Q1] Pre-credits video hypes Sanity facing Undisputed Era tonight. Sonya Deville starts the show. She is in a Triple Threat qualifier for the NXT Women’s Championship Match at Takeover. Out next is Ember Moon, who gets a muter reception compared to previous appearances. Last out is Ruby Riot. I am thinking theyhave the crowd mic down because she also has a quiet reception.

(1) EMBER MOON vs. RUBY RIOT vs. SONYA DEVILLE – NXT Women’s Championship Qualifier Triple Threat Match

They look for a three-way test of strength but Deville puts a boot to Deville. Moon covers Deville for two. Deville has a cover for Riot with Moon on the outside. Riot with a cover on Deville. Moon returns and they send Deville outside. Riot blocks a DDT, armdrag. Back-and-forth with Moon. They work together to keep Deville out. Big elbow to Moon from Riot, springboard crossbody gets Moon two on Riot. Deville back in, it’s chaos on the ring. Cover by Moon on Deville, then Riot, both are good for two. Deville with stiff shots to Moon. [c]

Suplexex from Deville to Moon out of the break, then to Riot. Riot drives Deville into the corner, then puts Moon into Deville. Moon ducks a kick so it hits Deville, Moon pitches Riot out of the ring and covers Deville for two. moon goes to the springboard moonsault, Deville meets her with a spear in mid-air, Riot breaks up the cover. Deville with strikes to Riot in the ropes, charges, Riot low bridges her. Riot looks for a suicide dive and Deville clocks her with a shot from the outside, then fends off Moon. Deville wants a kick from the apron but Moon surprises her with a dropkick off the outside. Riot climbs to the top, plancha to Moon and Deville, but she looks like she hurt her right ankle badly. Riot gets to her feet but is stumbling. Riot hits a Pele kick to Moon but goes back to selling her foot. She crawls to Moon to cover, but Deville pulls Riot off, puts an ankile lock onto the injured leg. Deville drops into a grapevine on the leg to keep Riot away from the ropes, but she makes it. Riot forgets the no rope break rule, keeps craling, Deville drags her back in and re-applies the ankle lock. Very tense sequence. Riot teases tapping out, Moon sets up Eclipse behind Deville, lands it, covers Riot for the win.

WINNER: Ember Moon at 9:02. Perfectly booked match. Deville finally looks like a legit threat, Moon looks like the smartest player in that ring, and Riot came off as “most likely to win” until the “freak injury” gave her an out for the loss. This may be the smoothest Riot has looked (she still needs more confidence when she climbs the turnbuckle), and Deville’s weaknesses were well hidden in the format. Exciting use of the triple threat format too.

“Earlier this week” the Performance Center security camera shows Roderick Strong being approached by Undisputed Era. They have a pleasant conversation, give Strong a shirt, but he hands it back to Adam Cole.

Interview with William Regal about how they will determine the final member of the NXT women’s Championship match. Peyton Royce and Bille Kay show up. Kay drops some fake compliments, but Regal says that Kay will be in the match next week, but it will be a Battle Royale. Kay walks off like an angry teenager, Royce is angry with Regal.

Raul Mendoza is out to face Aleister Black.

(2) ALEISTER BLACK vs. RAUL MENDOZA

A few seconds after the bell, Velveteen Dream shows up on the apron and dons Black’s entrance vest. Mendoza capitalizes on the advantage. Mendoza drives Black out of the ring, then hits a huge dive over the top. Springboard senton to give Mendoza two. Black gets up, catches a kick, then batters Mendoza with leg strikes. Sliding knee to Mendoza’s head. Dream looks a bit stunned ringside as Black speeds it up. Springboard moonsault to Mendoza, Black Mass. As Black hits on the mat he looks angry instead of calm and collected like he usually does. When Dream leaves, Black ignores him, until he exits, then Black finally looks at Dream.

WINNER: Aleister Black at 2:10. Great to see the development here, with Dream finally getting into Black’s head. Black is showing his frustration so well with little touches like the heavy breathing after the match (but still not looking at Dream until the last moment). Black actually got mildly distracted by Dream, which is totally out of character for him. This feud may be a touch thin on the rationale behind it, and seem like a strange pairing, but in terms of the little touches, this is one of the best-executed feuds in quite some time.

Sit down backstage interview with Drew McIntyre. McIntyre really makes it sounds like he has planned to become NXT Champion for years and he is still amazes that he was able to accomplish it. He briefly touches on his initial WWE run. He dwells on his release and how no one could understand it, he had just moved into his first apartment with his girlfriend (now his wife). The release put him back in the right mindset to work hard to succeed. He gives his girlfriend a ton of credit for helping him and now he is the NXT Champion.

He is talking and Zelina Vega interups and sends the interviewer packing. Vega says that McIntyre and Andrade Almas have a lot in common, they both had a down period. Of course, McIntyre got fired and Almas didn’t. She puts McIntyre on notice and asks why McIntyre has been avoiding Almas. He repeats that anyone who wants a title match can have it. Vega says that the champion has the most pull with Regal, so if McIntyre truly wants a match with Almas, it would have been booked already. McIntyre tells her that if Almas truly wanted a match, he wouldn’t send her by herself, he would come with her, look McIntyre in the eye, and ask for the match.

[ J.J.’s Reax: really, really well produced segment. Vega looked smart, trying to walk McIntyre into the match and acting like he has been ducking Almas (he hasn’t), and McIntyre came off as smart enough to not fall for her tricks, but a fighting champion. His talk about his history was well-done too. ]

(3) KASSIUS OHNO vs. CEZAR BONONI

Bononi with a strong start, Ohno comes back, Bononi with a dropkick for two. Big knees to Ohno. Bononi starts to dominate Ohno. Ohno blocks a whip, then hangs onto the ropes so Bononi whiffs a dropkick, then follows up with a senton. Ohno eats a boot on his follow up in the corner. Ohno builds a head of steam and big boots Bononi to the outside. Ohno rolls Bononi into the ring, then hits another big boot. Ohno lands a rolling elbow to the back of the head.

WINNER: Kassius Ohno at 3:01. Good win to continue rebuilding the highly damaged Kassius Ohno.

(4) NXT Tag Team Champions SANITY (ERIC YOUNG & ALEXANDER WOLFE & KILLIAN DAIN w/Nikki Cross) vs. UNDISPUTED ERA (ADAM COLE & BOBBY FISH &  KYLE O’REILLY) – Six Man Tag Team Match

Fish embarasses Wolfe until Wolfe catches a kick. Wolfe gets tripped into the turnbuckle and Fish tags O’Reilly who walks right into a delayed bodyslam. Tag to Young, drop toehold from Wolfe, elbow drop from Young. Dain tags in. Then Wolfe. Double team lets Young cover for two. Distraction from Cole gives O’Reilly a break, and Fish is able to tag in to batter Young for two. [c]

Cole has mounted Young out of the break and is punching away. Cole settles into a chinlock. Fish and O’Reilly double team Young for two. Double suplex lets O’Reilly cover for two. Young seems to be busted open on the forehead. O’Reilly kicks Wolfe off the apron, but the pause lets Young recover enough to dodge the charge. Fish gets a tag and is able to keep Young away from Dainfor a moment, then Dain gets the tag and goes on a hot tag rampage. Dain clears the ring of everyone. Fish hits an elbow, Dain gets O’Reily in a fireman’s carry, then catches Fish on a crossbody, to hit a combo Samoan Drop/fallaway slam. Cole can’t beliefe his eyes. Body slam to fish, senton splash, Vader bomb, but Cole kicks Dain in the back of the head. Young chases Cole, O’Reilly catches Young, O’Reilly gets double teamed and is done. Cole looks to head for the ramp but Wolfe cuts him off. Young stomps him for going the other way. Dain drags Cole into the ring and tosses him like a bag of trash. Sanity is about to finish Cole for good, until the Authors of Pain come out. They wreck Wolfe for the disqualification, then take out Young, and they wreck Dain.

WINNERS: Sanity by DQ at 11:02. Wow, Undisputed Era has just been totally humiliated in the ring not once but twice. Fish and O’Reilly had brilliant singles matches against Aleister Black, but since adding Cole they look like complete chumps. Not only were they clearly losing the match, Cole was going to walk out on them. Cole is definitely not living up to his hype, either. His physique demands a hard hitting, fast-paced style and instead he sticks to basic strikes and rest holds like he is having his first match out of the Performance Center or something. I am so underwhelmed by Adam Cole right now, and I feel like he is a huge anchor on Fish and O’Reilly.

Post-match, AOP just demolish Sanity, then pose with the Tag Team belts.

FINAL REAX: I feel like Adam Cole may be shaping up to be a Hideo Itami or a Kassius Ohno (on his current run), someone who came in with a ton of fanfare and failed to deliver. Hopefully NXT and the Performance Center can drag the best out of Adam Cole or there is just some bad booking that needs to be corrected, or he needs to adjust, or something, because they are giving him a very prominent spot and he is not going above and beyond right now. It doesn’t help that they are getting spanked by Sanity, a team that up until a few months ago was a heel team that couldn’t get wins without significant amounts of cheating. The Velveteen Dream – Aleister Black feud is now officially “compelling” and I have to give Black and Dream huge credit for just nailing all of the details on this one to a T. The women’s division continues to meander its way to Takeover. Please let Paige show up in the Battle Royale and win it. Or Summer Rae. Or Emma. The NXT Women’s division needs some shaking up, and having a returning star make a big splash and go straight to the big dance would be perfect.

NOW CHECK OUT LAST WEEK’S REPORT: 10/11 NXT TV Report: Royce vs. Cross vs. Morgan to earn slot at Takeover against Kairi Sane, Gargano vs. Almas