HEYDORN’S WWE NXT RECEIPT 1/10: Poor finish to NXT title match hurts build for rematch

This week’s episode of WWE NXT has wrapped. Let’s take a stroll down memory lane and relive some of the madness.

-I know there are fans of Chase U out there, but let’s just call it straight up … I’m not one of them. Where do you go with the act? Does it remain somewhat funny forever? The range on this thing is severely limited. As long as it almost lives in its own environment like it did this week, it’ll be fine. Any step further up the card and it crumbles with ease.

-Tony D’Angelo is high on the most improved list for NXT talents since the onset of NXT 2.0 in September of 2021. There is a presence there now that stands out in a major way. I have a feeling it won’t be long until he’s a babyface — he might be already.

-Now, as for Dijak, he looks like a cartoon villain of a 90s superhero cartoon. It’s just too much and the entire presentation is overproduced. So much so, that it’s hard to buy what he’s doing and relate to him because he’s like a video game. Way to polished for pro wrestling. That said, Wes Lee trying to overcome and beat Dijak should work given the adoration that Lee has.

-Jinder Mahal honestly is a nice heel addition to NXT. The Creed Brothers opposite him will continue to get strong babyface reactions. Julius Creed was solid on the show this week and does a nice job of conveying emotion. He still needs work on his promo skills, though.

-What’s taking so long for Pretty Deadly to get up to the main roster. They are made for it. A fine little gauntlet match, but seems counterproductive to keep PD out of the title picture just because. Gallus vs. New Day should be fine too, but just isn’t the match that is top of mind in that division right now.

-We got a repackage of sorts for Tiffany Stratton this week and I still don’t see it. A lot of what she does seems very forced and unnatural. I just don’t buy that she wants to beat someone in a fight.

-Strong hype during the show for Grayson Waller vs. Bron Breakker for the NXT Championship, but an incredibly disappointing finish. Like, if you wanted to do the match at Vengeance Day, just do it there. This thing this week felt out of place to begin with and the silly finish of the rope breaking hurts the intrigue moving forward instead of increasing it.

-The Hank storyline with Drew Gulak and Charlie Dempsey is entertaining. Very entertaining. It’s in the proper place on the card, but Hank is building a connection with the audience as things play out. Dempsey as the cold, ruthless, killer in the ring plays nicely off of Hank’s charm. Have to wonder where Gulak’s allegiances will lie in the end. Hint … sorry Hank!

-So, they got to the triple threat match at Vengeance Day with both members of Toxic Attraction winning the battle royal, but cmon. Two winners? Lame. Lame, lame, lame. What’s wrong with, “both women hit the floor at the same time and because of that, we are restarting the match.” That’s happened once or twice in WWE. I don’t mind where they got to on this as it gives Roxanne Perez a hill to climb in essentially a two on one match, but the road travelled? Miss.

CATCH-UP: HEYDORN’S WWE RAW RECEIPT 1/9: Cody Rhodes videos prime audience for huge return