SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...
NXT TV REPORT
NOVEMBER 8, 2017
TAPED 10/4 IN ORLANDO, FLA. AT FULL SAIL UNIVERSITY
AIRED ON WWE NETWORK
REPORT BY JUSTIN JAMES, PWTORCH CONTRIBUTOR
[Q1] Pre-credits flashback to last week, with Undisputed Era ruined the Sanity – Authors of Pain tag team title rematch.
Bit of a new look for Heavy Machinery, with Tucker Knight sporting a headband.
(1) HEAVY MACHINERY (TUCKER KNIGHT & OTIS DOZOVICH) vs. SEAN MALUTA & CHRIS PAYNE
Payne starts against Dozovich. Maluta tries to come in and Maluta takes punishment too. Body slam from Dozovich. Dozovich does the worm somehow then delivers and elbow drop. Maluta wants to come in so they do a stero three-point stance and plow him over. Payne takes a choo-choo charge in the corner then falls over backwards. Springboard elbow drop from Tucker Knight, Dozovich tagged. The Compactor ends it, crushing both opponents at once.
Winners: Heavy Machinery at 2:22. Wait wait wait, Dozovich doing the Worm? Knight hitting a springboard elbow drop? This match just put a super huge smile on my face. These two have so much personality and charisma.
Backstage with Ember Moon. She’s asked about how she chokes in big matches. Moon challenges Mercedes Martinez to a match next week.
Roderick Strong is booked to face Adam Cole tonight.
[ J.J.’s Reax: Oh, good, we might finally get to see if Adam Cole can wrestle a decent match in NXT. ]
Velveteen Dream is booked for tonight. Kairi Sane is on her way out now.
[Q2]
(2) KAIRI SANE vs. BILLIE KAY (w/Peyton Royce)
Kay snaps her fingers in Sane’s face so Sane bows then poses at her. Kay catches a crossbody, Sane transitions, Kay with a shoulder block. Sane struggles to get momentum. A big boot gives Kay a two count, then she mounts, then covers for two again. Kay with a torture rack, of all moves. Key dumps Sane into the corner and covers for two. Kay jaws at Sane, but Sane ducks a clothesline and lands a spear. Sane hits chops repeatedly in the corner, sending Kay to the mat. Sane marches to the corner, sliding knee, cover but no win. Royce distracts from the apron, when Sane goes back to Kay, Kay has an inside cradle for two. Sane chops Kay’s head to stun her, then goes to the top for the Insane Elbow.
Winner: Kairi Sane in 3:00. Good match to put over Sane’s moveset to folks who didn’t watch the Mae Young Classic, and make her look strong before Takeover: Wargames.
Backstage in William Regal’s Office. Kassius Ohno comes in. He’s wearing a Cesaro shirt. He notes his ups and downs since his return, and he thinks that he is on a roll and it is time to get back to the championship scene. Ohno says he wants Lars Sullivan. Regal is surprised. Ohno says he thinks that if he beats Sullivan, that will put him in line for a title shot. Regal says “I know how hard you can hit” (reference to their amazing match ages ago) and books it. Ohno leaves and Regal seems surprised.
[ J.J.’s Reax: I just love the booking here. Ohno owned his bad track record, came off as having a great attitude, and took on a huge challenge in order to earn a better spot on the card. This is exactly what I want to see from Ohno, and I look forwards to seeing what Sullivan can do in a longer match. ]
Video package on Wargames. Arn Anderson, Dustin Rhodes (not as Goldust) and Booker T with narration to talk about the history of Wargames.
Backstage with Zelina Vega and Andrade “Cien” Almas. She won’t discuss strategy with anyone except Almas. they ask Almas about his relationship with Vega. Vega cuts off the question and says that they are old friends and knows who Almas really is. She says Almas has no peers. Almas with some tough talk, mostly in Spanish.
[ J.J.’s Reax: I like Vega in the Paul Heyman role a lot. ]
(3) VELVETEEN DREAM vs. CEZAR BONONI
[Q3] Quick waistlock takedown from Dream against the much-larger Bononi. Bononi hits a back elbow out of the corner to go on the attack. Dream grabs the ropes, hits a punch, clothesline then mounts Bononi. Dream stomps a mudhole in Bononi. Spinebuster puts Bononi down. Dream picks up Bononi in a fireman’s carry and cartwheels into a Death Valley Bomb for the win.
WINNER: Velveteen Dream at 1:10. Holy cow, did Dream look amazing there in the ring. It wasn’t just him getting the win, it was him manhandling the much larger Bononi. The spinebuster and DVB in particular showed Dream to be much stronger than his size indicates. I simply cannot wait for this match.
Post-match, Dream addresses Black. He says he is in Black’s head, and at Wargames he will get what he wants, Black’s lips saying his name.
Throwback to three weeks ago, when Ruby Riot got pinned by Ember Moon and lost her shot at being in the Fatal Fourway in Takeover.
Backstage update with Ruby Riot “earlier today”. She is still in pain, and is told she needs two more weeks of rest. Sonya Deville comes in and says that Riot could have just tapped out to avoid this pain. Deville says that Riot took the coward’s way out by crawling for the ropes instead of tapping out. Riot says that Deville should have broken her ankle, and when she is back in action they will face each other. Deville is looking forwards to it.
[ J.J.’s Reax: After that Fatal Fourway, and seeing Deville live a few weeks ago, I can say that I’m also looking forwards to that match. ]
Street Profits in the FSU hallway. Some guy in a suit comes in, they compliment him on his outfit but say he needs one thing, and hand him one of their cups. Someone else has some dry cleaning for Tino Sabbatelli. Montez Ford claims he is Sabbatelli and accepts the dry cleaning. They look inside, it’s a suit. Sabbatelli and Riddick Moss show up. Sabbatelli claims it is a $5,000 suit. Ford points out that Sabbatelli can’t afford that. They jaw. Sounds like a match is on for next week.
Almas and NXT Champion Drew McIntyre will meet face-to-face next week.
Roderick Strong is out first to face Adam Cole. Cole comes out without Bobby Fish or Kyle O’Reilly. Interesting.
(4) RODERICK STRONG vs. ADAM COLE
[Q4] Lockup then a break with Strong getting the better of it. Strong takes Cole down, then locks him up on the mat. A few reversals here. This is already Cole’s best match in NXT. Lots of back-and-forth here. Dropkick from Strong and Cole goes outside. Strong jumps on Cole off the apron. Cole hides behind the ref, then hits a superkick as Strong comes through the ropes into the ring. [c]
Cole in control out of the match, using a ground-and-pound strategy. Cole with a head scissors on the mat, Strong leverages into a cover for two forcing Cole to break. Cole locks on a sleeper mid-ring. Strong fades to the mat, but then revives and drives Cole into the corner. Cole comes out but Strong has a backbreaker for him. Another backbreaker for two. Enziguri lets Cole pick up another two count.Strong slips out of a suplex, enziguri, Cole with a superkick, front suplex into a neckbreaker for a nearfall. A dueling chant breaks out. Strong has a leaping knee, then puts Cole on the turnbuckle. Strong looks for a superplex, but Cole recovers a bit and tries to fight him off. Strong nails a backbreaker onto the top turnbuckle. Strong is trying to crawl into a cover, so of course, Kyle O’Reilly and Bobby Fish save Cole.
WINNER: Roderick Strong by disqualification at 9:46. Good match. Adam Cole has finally had a good match on the NXT roster where he didn’t look like a loser or a chicken, as well as displaying technical skill and agility. This is the match Cole desperately needed to have.
Strong is on the ramp, and The Authors of Pain show up. Then Killian Dain, Eric Young, and Alexander Wolfe. The teams suddenly go at it. Of course, Cole is cowering on the mat until Young notices him. Crazy brawl breaks out. Strong ends up superplexing Cole into everyone else on the outside and they are all knocked out.
Final Reax: I am just so crazy excited over this Velveteen Dream – Aleister Black feud, and now psyched to see Kassius Ohno doing something with Lars Sullivan. I am glad to see Adam Cole hitting his stride, though the continued positive reactions of the crowd to him are a problem. He isn’t a Samoa Joe, where everyone loves to see a monster squashing bugs even if they are a heel, he hasn’t done anything to cheer for yet. The crowd is reacting to his pre-NXT career and it is making it tough to get Cole over as a heel. The Wargames match will be a ton of fun. For some reason, it wasn’t mentioned that Johnny Gargano will be facing Pete Dunne for the UK Championship Title. While that makes zero sense (is Gargano from the UK?), that match will be really good.
NOW CHECK OUT LAST WEEK’S REPORT: 11/1 NXT TV Report: NXT Tag Team Title match with Sanity vs. Authors of Pain, plus Gargano, Cross
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