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TONY D’ANGELO & STACKS vs. DYAD (w/Schism) – NXT TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIPS
Kicking NXT off the NXT Tag Titles were on the line as Dyad looked to secure gold from D’Angelo and Stacks.
Shenanigans were had from the get go as not only were Joe Gacy and Ava in Dyad’s corner, but at least of nameless yellow-masked followers had their backs as well. Surprisingly, there wasn’t much interference from Schism as I had expected there to be – with the exception from the odd distraction from Ava.
That is, of course, until the finish saw two followers attack Dyad while Ivy Nile distracted the rest of the followers at ringside. Two followers that had bodies built very similar to the Creed Brothers, mind you. But it couldn’t be the Creeds! They’ve been kicked out of NXT!
Blatant sarcasm aside, Stacks continues to impress me week after week and it’s obvious that he has talent between the ropes. Opposite two competitors the caliber of Dyad and he really shines.
Verdict: HIT
BLAIR DAVENPORT vs. DANA BROOKE (w/Kelani Jordan)
Dana Brooke’s protégé, Kelani Jordan, went toe to toe against Blair Davenport last week and came up on the losing side of things. Brooke wanted to show her how it’s done, and challenged Davenport to a match tonight.
The veteran Brooke took it to Davenport to start the match, but that momentum was shifted quickly as Brooke started gloating, looking at Jordan ringside rather than her opponent. Momentum shifted back and forth a bit with Brooke getting visibly and shriekingly louder with each false finish.
Brooke went to go use the ring bell as a weapon and Jordan stopped her. Davenport put her away shortly thereafter with two Shining Wizards. Jordan comforted Brooke in the ring after the match, but you could see the embarrassment on Brooke’s face as they cut away from the segment.
Brooke was way over the top with her acting here, but other than that it was a perfectly fine segment. I’m interested in seeing more of Kelani Jordan wrestle though, as she shows a lot of promise from what we’ve seen so far.
Verdict: HIT
TRICK WILLIAMS vs. DREW GULAK (w/Damon Kemp & Charlie Dempsey)
The Trick Williams solo experiment continues, as Trick Williams took on the technician Drew Gulak tonight as a bit of an appetizer before his match against Dragunov next week at Heatwave.
Trick can hold his own on the mic and if there was any doubt if he could hold his own in the ring those doubts were squashed tonight. Coming from a boxing background, he mixes those striking skills with some high flying moves making for an entertaining move set.
A theme tonight in all three matches thus far, we saw heel interference on Gulak’s behalf as Dempsey and Kemp continued to interfere. Briggs & Jensen couldn’t take it anymore and ran in from the back to save Williams. Williams picked up the win moments later.
Verdict: HIT
WES LEE vs. DIJAK – NXT CHAMPIONSHIP #1 CONTENDER
A David vs. Goliath-esque contest as Wes Lee looked to survive against Dijak, winner to face Carmelo Hayes next week at Heatwave.
The case for Dijak to get a shot at the title really is a tough one. Since returning as Dijak, sure he’s been presented as a big tough dude. However we’ve seemingly seen him on the losing end of more matches than he’s won – I haven’t checked but that’s my perception anyway. He may look imposing with the NXT title around his waist, but his story to get to the title seemed woefully incomplete compared to Wes Lee.
Wes Lee lost his North American championship to Dirty Dom Mysterio about a month ago after arguably the best reign with that title in the last few years. Well, second best to Melo anyway. His story to get to that title was fantastic, going from a tag performer to a singles performer overnight. This seemed like a natural extension of that story.
This was a fantastic match that saw Wes Lee play the perfect underdog with the worlds largest heart. Beating after beating, Lee found the strength to kick out.
Eddie Thorpe, who called Dijak out in a vignette earlier in the night, made his appearance to distract Dijak to keep the distraction finish a solid 4 out of 4 matches so far. Wes Lee used the distraction to get the win.
Verdict: HIT
TYLER BATE vs. JOE COFFEY (w/Gallus)
At an NXT live event this past Friday, Gallus and Bate got in a little kerfuffle in the parking lot leading to this match tonight.
For a match that was put together based on a non-televised angle, the crowd was certainly into the action. Gallus and Tyler Bate hold a special place in the hearts of the NXT audience.
The match was just as good as you’d expect out of these two with plenty of fast paced, technical action. That is until Dabba Kato interrupted the match and decimated Bate and all three members of Gallus.
The finish didn’t quite meet the distraction finish theme. But… close enough. An hour and a half into the show without a clean finish seems excessive to me.
Verdict: HIT
JACY JAYNE vs THEA HAIL (w/Andre Chase & Duke Hudson)
Earlier in the night, Andre Chase and Duke Hudson were talking backstage when Chase mentioned he got Thea Hail a match against Jacy Jayne to try and get on her good side. Thea overheard and was none too happy. Her usual enthusiasm was out the window and she was completely fed up with Andre Chase after he threw in the towel for her a few weeks ago.
Thea came to the ring without the excited energy, and instead channeled that excited energy into a rage against her opponent.
In the 6th match of the night, we saw more interference as Andre Chase caused the distraction that saw Jayne roll Hail up for the win. Hail was absolutely livid at the end of the match, and I just cannot wait to see how this winds up blowing up in his face next week.
Verdict: HIT
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