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8/5 NXT ON USA PRIMER: Full preview of advertised matches with analysis and pros and cons of various outcomes

By Amin Ajani, PWTorch contributor

August 4, 2020

SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...

NXT ON USA NETWORK
AUGUST 5, 2020
WINTER PARK, FLA. AT FULL SAIL UNIVERSITY
AIRS ON USA NETWORK

It’s a championship edition of NXT as the Undisputed Era will look to get back on their winning ways as Bobby Fish & Kyle O’Reilly will challenge Fabian Aichner & Marcel Barthel for the NXT Tag Team Titles. Damian Priest, Oney Lorcan and Ridge Holland will compete in Triple Threat NXT North American Champion Qualifying Ladder Match to see who will earn the opportunity to advance to TakeOver: XXX. Plus, Dakota Kai will face Rhea Ripley to determine the next challenge for my favorite Io Shirai’s NXT Women’s Title. It’s sure to be another action packed episode of NXT which takes place tonight on the USA Network from Full Sail University. Let’s take a look at what’s advertised for tonight’s show.

ADVERTISED MATCHES & SEGMENTS

  • Imperium to defend NXT Tag Team Titles against The Undisputed Era
  • Keith Lee to face Cameron Grimes
  • Rhea Ripley faces Dakota Kai for the chance to challenge Io Shirai
  • Damian Priest, Oney Lorcan and Ridge Holland battle for TakeOver XXX opportunity
  • Bronson Reed vs. Shane Thore

Imperium to defend NXT Tag Team Titles against The Undisputed Era

The Undisputed Era look to get back on track as Bobby Fish & Kyle O’Reilly will challenge Fabian Aichner & Marcel Barthel for the NXT Tag Team Titles. Things haven’t gone smoothly for the UE of late as the once most dominant faction in NXT now has no gold to show. On the other hand, Barthel & Aichner have been on a roll coming off an impressive showing last week against Ever-Rise. The question now is can O’Reilly’s return help bring the Undisputed Era back to their winning ways and start with the NXT Tag Team Titles?

https://twitter.com/WWENXT/status/1289244458693750784

https://twitter.com/Marcel_B_WWE/status/1290338308527202304

(Amin’s Analysis: This should be a great match featuring four talented wrestlers. Barthel & Aichner are a great collective unit and work well as a formidable team. However, they haven’t had the challengers which led to the NXT Tag Team Title picture not getting the same focus as the other titles on the show. With the return of O’Reilly, I feel the time is right to put the AEW Tag Team Titles back on Undisputed Era and once again make them a focal point of the show. What I don’t want to see is the UE losing this match and this slowly begins a dissension and leads to a split.)

Keith Lee to face Cameron Grimes

Cameron Grimes was in the wrong place at the wrong time last week as he felt the wrath of NXT Champion Keith Lee’s Spirit Bomb attack. Grimes was furious calling Lee a coward during a WWE Network exclusive interview and has promised to teach the champion a lesson in respect this week. The question is can Grimes back up his words and emerge victorious in his one-on-match against Lee?

(Amin’s Analysis: Interesting to note they still haven’t officially announced the Keith Lee vs. Karrion Kross title match for TakeOver: XXX. This shouldn’t be the match where Kross cost Lee his match and this leads to the title match. Don’t think that will happen as I would like to see NXT come up with a more creative way to announce the match. Would rather prefer to see Grimes and Lee have a good match on WWE’s best and most focused pro-wrestling show.)

Rhea Ripley faces Dakota Kai for the chance to challenge Io Shirai

Despite coming up short in a tag team last week against my favourite Io Shirai & Tegan Nox, Dakota Kai looked to have things figured out thinking she was the number one contender for the NXT Women’s Championship. However, things didn’t go as planned for Kai as Rhea Ripley returned and also wants a match against Shirai. Well tonight we will find out who will challenge Shirai for the NXT Women’s Title as Kai will face Ripley in a Number One Contender’s match. Who will come out on top and challenge my favourite Io Shirai for the NXT Women’s Title at TakeOver: XXX.

https://twitter.com/DakotaKai_WWE/status/1288661471199744008

(Amin’s Analysis: This should be a fun match as both Kai and Ripley are very good wrestlers and both will have a great match against my favourite Io Shirai. My preference is seeing Kai get a win here as they have been building to a program with Shirai and it’s a fresh match in the NXT Women’s division which I would like to see.)

Damian Priest, Oney Lorcan, and Ridge Holland battle to enter the TakeOver XXX ladder match

The series of Triple Threat NXT North American Championship Ladder Match qualifying matches continues tonight as Damian Priest, Oney Lorcan and Ridge Holland will battle for an opportunity to compete at TakeOver: XXX. So far we have seen some surprises as Bronson Reed and Dexter Lumis have qualified for the match. So can NXT UK wrestler Ridge Holland be the latest of a fresh bash to qualify or can either Damian Priest and Oney Lorcan stop him for qualifying for the North American Champion Ladder Match?

(Amin’s Analysis: This should be a solid match and I like how fresh NXT wrestlers have been qualifying for the North American Championship Ladder Match. The simple pick here would be seeing Damian Priest win as he’s an established NXT star who has yet to win a title. However, with Ridge Holland coming over from NXT UK, this is a great opportunity for him to pick up a big win and way to establish himself on NXT TV.)

Bronson Reed vs. Shane Thore

After being the first to qualify for the NXT North American Championship Ladder Match, Bronson Reed looks to keep it rolling as he takes on Shane Thore tonight in single’s competition. The question is can Reed keep the momentum going heading into TakeOver: XXX?

(Amin’s Analysis: Last week’s video package was a good start giving the background into Reed’s character and interest in wrestling. The buildup of Reed will likely continue to show more of his in-ring wrestling ability heading into the Ladder Match at TakeOver: XXX.)

The Big Takeaway From Last Week’s Show

Dexter Lumis qualified for the NXT North American Championship Ladder Match at NXT TakeOver: XXX. My favourite Io Shirai & Tegan Nox def. Candice LeRae & Dakota Kai in a very fun tag team match. Johnny Gargano def. Roderick Strong in a solid wrestling match.

Overall Thoughts

The wrestling on the show should be solid and on tonight’s show we will get a more clear direction to the main championship programs at TakeOver: XXX. It will be interesting to see what other big matches are announced for the show in the coming weeks and if they are going in the direction of a potential Adam Cole vs. Pat McAfee match. Overall, should be another solid episode of NXT as the build to TakeOver continues.

RECOMMENDED: NXT HITS & MISSES 7/29: Adam Cole-Pat McAfee, Gagano vs. Strong, O’Reilly pumps up Undisputed Era, Swerve-Atlas, Balor vs. Lumis vs. Thatcher

NXT HITS & MISSES 7/29: Adam Cole-Pat McAfee, Gagano vs. Strong, O’Reilly pumps up Undisputed Era, Swerve-Atlas, Balor vs. Lumis vs. Thatcher

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