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NXT TV REPORT
AUGUST 15, 2023
WINTER PARK, FLA. AT THE CAPITOL WRESTLING CENTER
AIRED ON USA NETWORK
REPORT BY KELLY WELLS (@spookymilk), PWTORCH CONTRIBUTOR
NXT Commentators: Vic Joseph, Booker T
Ring Announcer: Alicia Taylor
Backstage Correspondent(s): McKenzie Mitchell
Tonight after the show, join the PWT Talks NXT self-proclaimed “gang of idiots” to break down the show with calls and emails.
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[HOUR ONE]
(1) TONY D’ANGELO & CHANNING “STACKS” LORENZO (c) vs. THE DYAD (Rip Fowler & Jagger Reid) (w/Joe Gacy & Ava) – NXT Tag Team Championship match
Alicia Taylor handled formal intros. Reid jumped D to open, but D leveled Reid with some rights and then pounded him in a corner. Reid got tossed to a corner and flipped over. D gave chase but three masked Schism guys got in his way and he thought better of it. Fowler tagged in and snapped on an armbar. D caught him for a body slam and tagged Stacks. Stacks and D did a little bit of double-teaming before Stacks hit a dropkick, then wrenched the arm and tagged again. D held Stacks for some punches and Fowler backed D to the heel corner to tag. Reid hit a dropkick but D’Angelo reversed a suplex and tagged. Stacks hit a knee lift and reversed a suplex to an arm drag. He held onto a headlock and Fowler made a blind tag, but Stacks caught him in a headlock as well. Stacks tagged and the faces threw synchronized punches to the breadbasket. Stacks hit a plancha on both heels after they bailed.
Action went back inside and Stacks hit a flying uppercut. Ava distracted him on the apron just long enough for Fowler to catch both faces with some rights. Fowler charged Reid into Stacks, who fell from the apron to the announce table (which didn’t break, but possibly wasn’t supposed to) and the match went to split-screen. [c]
Dyad had Stacks in the tree of woe for some shots upon return. Lariat by Reid got two. Reid threw some clubbing elbows and snapped on a headlock. Stacks threw some rights and Reid yanked his arm to keep him from a tag, then took a cheap shot at D’Angelo. D got heated and the ref focused on him as Stacks managed an inside cradle, but the ref wasn’t there to count the visual pin. Reid kept holding Stacks and he made the tag to Fowler, who threw a big clothesline. Fowler smiled at D in the corner and then threw rights, knees and an elbow. Folwer went for a suplex but Stacks rolled through. Stacks hit an enzuigiri and Reid tagged in, but Stacks finally managed the hot tag to D’Angelo, who threw both heels and hit a spinebuster on Fowler. He rained down boots on Fowler, then stacked Reid on him and kept it up. Corner elbows for both guys. Spinebuster for Fowler. A slam on Reid for two.
Fowler distracted D and made the blind tag. He yanked D to the outside and Reid hit him from the apron. The heels rolled D’Angelo back in as Ivy Nile arrived and distracted Gacy and a large number of masked Schism members. Two masked guys – clearly the Creeds – took out Dyad and rolled Fowler into the ring to get hit with D’s finisher.
WINNERS: Tony D’Angelo & Channing “Stacks” Lorenzo at 13:20.
(Wells’s Analysis: Has any team lost more NXT Tag Team Championship matches than The Dyad? I can’t think of who else it could even be. As usual, a Schism feud feels like it’s going way past its freshness date, and it’s still not doing the Creeds any favors in a babyface context to cost them match after match. This particular match was a strong one, as they kept up a good pace but told an old-school tag team story with the heels cutting off the ring with a long heat sequence on Stacks, and D’Angelo’s hot tag was great as he continues to improve leaps and bounds after his first year or so on the brand was pretty bland in the ring)
-Eddy Thorpe pre-taped segment. He leaned hard into his Native American roots and said he was going to unleash his fighting spirit through dance. He said when he shows his energy, the crowd can feel it. He said he and Dijak will meet again and he’ll move forward without fear.
-Carmelo Hayes was signing for fans when Wes Lee showed up. He said Hayes apparently had no time to answer his calls and texts despite having time for this. Lee said he’d better get done quickly because after Lee beats Dijak, the only thing Hayes will be signing is a contract to face Lee.
-Blair Davenport hit the ring ahead of her match with Dana Brooke. [c]
-Chase U got together by the lockers. Andre Chase said he knew Thea Hail was still pissed at him, but he got her a match with Jacy Jayne to work through her emotions. Duke Hudson egged her on, and Chase had to reassert himself to make sure it didn’t get worse. After Hail left, Chase said (bleeped, of course) “Dude, what the f*&^ was that?”
(2) DANA BROOKE (w/Kelani Jordan) vs. BLAIR DAVENPORT
Brooke shoved Davenport to the mat, then hit an ugly spot, followed by one where she was supposed to clothesline Davenport over the top rope, but she didn’t go. Ugh. Davenport bailed instead and Brooke went out for some shots. Back inside, Davenport hit diving double boots on a draping Brooke for two. Slam for two. Davenport threw down some dismissive kicks and Brooke rolled her up for two, then booted her a few times and threw a back kick for two. Brooke missed a cartwheel splash and Davenport went up for some rights, but Brooke walked out and hit a powerslam on her for two. Brooke screamed in melodramatic frustration. Davenport bailed. Brooke went out after her and Davenport shoved her into the steps. Brooke looked back behind her to make sure she would hit the steps.
Action went back inside and Brooke hit a lariat. She went and grabbed the ring bell and Jordan stopped her and asked what she was thinking. Brooke went in for some shots and a rollup for two. Davenport hit a big knee (a kamigoye, though not called as such) and then another to finish.
WINNER: Blair Davenport at 3:58.
(Wells’s Analysis: Kelani Jordan is good enough to get over, but Dana Brooke is an albatross around her neck. Brooke was pretty rough here throughout as Davenport tried to make the best of it)
-WrestleMania XL spot. [c]
-Carmelo Hayes was still signing autographs, and Dijak got in his face this time. He told Hayes to sign one for himself because he’ll want a memento of himself with the belt. Hayes told him to focus on himself.
(3) TRICK WILLIAMS vs. DREW GULAK (w/Charlie Dempsey & Damon Kemp)
Kemp’s t-shirt called Trick the “purse holder.” There was a purse on the ramp and Williams kicked it out of the way. Quick start and Gulak rolled up Williams for two. Trick hit a flying clothesline and Kemp took a cheap shot at him from the outside. Rope run and a nice dropkick by Trick. Trick put Gulak in the air and threw a big uppercut. Action spilled outside and Williams rolled Gulak in, but Kemp distracted the ref and Dempsey charged Trick to the apron. Trick went back in and got dropkicked. Gulak charged Trick to one buckle, then the opposite. Trick tried to punch his way back into it and Gulak grounded him and stretched him on the mat. Trick kicked upward and managed a flurry of punches once he hit his feet. Another dropkick by Williams. Knee and a flapjack by Williams. A neckbreaker by Williams, who hit a uranage after a taunt. Dempsey went for Trick’s leg and missed. Williams took Dempsey and Kemp both out and went back to the ring. Te two tried again to interfere, and Josh Briggs & Brooks Jensen showed up and yanked them down and took them out. Williams hit his kick finisher.
WINNER: Trick Williams at 3:57.
Williams said into the camera that he knows Ilja’s the Mad Dragon, but when they meet he’ll be draggin’ that ass.
(Wells’s Analysis: Trick’s babyface act is really strong. It’s still a little tough to see him outside of the Hayes bubble, but he earned the singles push and it continued in a big way here as he overcame a lot of interference to win, when a loss to give him something to overcome was certainly not out of the question. Brief, but very good)
-An interviewer tried to get a word with Baron Corbin, who mocked her question and gave no answer. [c]
-Dabba-Kato pre-taped segment. He wondered how a man of his stature stood in the shadow of someone else. He said when he returns, he’ll cast a shadow over everyone in NXT.
-Baron Corbin hit the ring with a mic. He said the great thing about being himself was he could go out and say what he wants. He said he ran an Olympic gold medalist out of the ring and he’s not coming back for seconds. He said everyone watching in the back was a bunch of soft-ass little bitches. He said he was ushering in a new era. Not of NXT, because he doesn’t care about this place, but for himself. An era where Corbin is in the main event where he belongs.
Von Wagner and Mr. Stone hit the ring to disagree with Corbin’s assessment. Corbin thanked Stone for his irrelevant opinion and said it was good he stopped dressing like Happy Corbin. Stone said Wagner put Bron Breakker through a table. Corbin started to respond and wondered why he was talking to Stone. He told Stone to give Wagner the mic. Corbin admitted maybe that was a mistake. He said if he wants to make it, he’s got to learn to talk on the stick. He said on his first night on SmackDown Live, he stood toe to toe with The Rock. He said that’s why he makes the big bucks. He said if Wagner doesn’t follow Corbin, he’s got a lot of years ahead of him on this show. Wagner said maybe he hasn’t talked a lot, but Corbin might talk too much. He said he formed a friendship with Stone and his fancy lingo. He said everyone is tired of Corbin. He said he could come back next week with any of his tired gimmicks and Wagner will use him to move up the ladder. He said at Heatwave, he’s got a reservation for one, and Corbin’s ass is gonna get tabled.
Corbin trieda cheap shot but Wagner took him out and it spilled to the floor. Wagner threw everything off the table and Corbin fought him off. The two were separated by refs and security to boos. I wonder if a table match stipulation is imminent. The fans were kind of out of this to start, but the three of them got them there eventually.
-Rhea Ripley and Dominik Mysterio talked by the lockers. Rhea took issue with Dragon Lee and Lyra Valkyria. The two said they should drop in on Heatwave and make a challenge for a mixed tag.
-Wes Lee entered to a good reaction ahead of the match to determine the opponent for Carmelo Hayes next week. [c]
[HOUR TWO]
-Mustafa Ali was at a podium. He gave a speech like a politician, running down the holders of the North American Championship. He said the people of America deserve someone better. He said he’s the North American Championship we need. He said he’ll inspire millions and show them that they, too, can do incredible things the right way. He said the time for a new North American Championship is now. He told everyone they could believe in him. “In Ali we trust!” Ali was very good in this puffed-up context.
(4) WES LEE vs. DIJAK – #1 Contender for the NXT Championship at Heatwave
Booker T gushed over the Ali segment, calling it moving. Lee evaded to open, rolling from one area to another and throwing the occasional kick to the back of the legs.. He suckered Dijak into a corner and evaded some more shots. He tried to trip Dijak, and when he didn’t go, he threw some quick kicks. He grounded Dijak and wrenched his leg. Dijak kicked himself free. After some more evasions, Lee dropkicked Dijak’s worked leg to keep on the offensive. He speared the leg in a corner. Dijak rolled to the outside and sold. The camera was off him for a bit so I wonder if something got tweaked.
Dijak hit a sucker punch and went into the ring limping. He worked a double armbar until Lee kicked up and out of trouble. Lee ran the ropes for a bicycle kick. He tried to run again and Dijak put him into the post. Dijak threw elbows down on Lee’s back and covered for two. He grounded Lee and worked another armbar. Lee punched upward and freed himself. Dijak charged him in a corner and missed and went over and out. Lee tried a tope suicida but Dijak caught him and darted him into a post. Dijak continued limping significantly during split-screen. [c]
Dijak had Lee grounded with a double armbar again. Lee went up and turned it into a DDT, after which both guys sold. Dijak ran (sort of) at Lee, who tripped him into the turnbuckle. Lee threw rights and blocked a big boot and turned it into something akin to a chokeslam. Wow. Meteora by Lee got two. Lee hyped himself up in a corner and went for the Cardiac Kick, but his shoulder went out and he collapsed. Dijak went for Feast Your Eyes, but his leg gave out. The two jockeyed for position and Dijak hit the High Justice chokeslam for two. Dijak rolled outside and looked to be in agony at this point. He yanked Lee out and swung him into the steps. The referee went to check on Lee. Dijak chucked Lee over the barricade. Dijak was going to separate the ring steps, but then looked back at someone who appeared. It was Eddy Thorpe, who distracted Dijak for a Lee headsicssor takedown. Back inside, Lee hit a Cardiac Kick and a spin off the top to finish.
WINNER: Wes Lee at 12:12.
(Wells’s Analysis: I hope Dijak’s leg isn’t too messed up, and I credit both guys for figuring out a way to tell a good story and get twelve minutes out of it without having Dijak move around more than necessary. It won’t go down as a memorable match for either of them, but it wasn’t the disaster it could’ve been.)
-Wes Lee and Lyra Valkyria talked it over backstage and ran down the Judgment Day, agreeing that Dominik has a stupid face. Lyra Valkyria said they have to get together. Lee said he’s taken, and Valkyria made it clear she just meant the team had to be on the same page, because their opponents definitely are.
-McKenzie Mitchell talked to Tyler Bate as they threw to a video from @NXT_Anonymous that set up the coming match with Joe Coffey. Bate said he’s known Coffey for a long time and he knows he’s just still angry about his mates losing the tag championships. He said he needs to practice serenity like Bate. Bate went out for the match. [c]
-Ilja Dragunov cut a pre-taped promo on Trick Williams. He said to bring the confidence and swagger because he’s bringing the fire and he’s stronger than Williams can imagine.
-Wes Lee walked through the back with his contract for the match with Carmelo Hayes. With all the major matches announced having already been wrestled, this is likely the main event segment.
(5) TYLER BATE vs. JOE COFFEY (w/Wolfgang & Mark Coffey)
Lockup and quick reversals. Headlock takeover by Coffey. Escape and a headlock by Bate, who held on and grounded Coffey and ran his foot into Coffey’s head with his hand. Bate ran the ropes into an unmoving Coffey, so he dropkicked him. Gallus distracted Bate and Coffey hit a backbreaker for two. Coffey snapped on a full nelson Bate escaped and hit an O’Connor roll for two. Uppercuts and combo punches by Bate. Uppercut off the ropes. Bate hit a knee lift and an uppercut from the second buckle. Suplex and a kip-up by Bate. Standing shooting star press got two. Bate did the airplane spin and released and sold his own dizziness. He charged and missed, then went for a second buckle uppercut but Coffey caught him for a German suplex with a bridge for two. Bop and bang by Bate. Tyler Driver ’97 was rolled through. Coffey exited the ring and Bate hit him with a plancha. Dabba-Kato ran in out of nowhere and booted Bate. The ref called for the bell as boos rang out.
Either NO CONTEST or WINNER BY DQ: Tyler Bate at 4:05.
(Wells’s Analysis: Bate utterly dominated so I expected something out of Coffey even in the case of a finish like this. Maybe they ran out of time. Good stuff, though, as these two have a lot of history together and could probably work a match with each other in their sleep. Dabba-Kato reasserts himself as a threat and his post-match powerslam of Bate probably sets him up as an early opponent)
-Baron Corbin and Bron Breakker ran into each other outside and both got prickly as they talked about Von Wagner. Bron Breakker said good luck next week – he’ll be watching. Corbin replied that he knows everyone in that locker room is intimidated by Breakker, but he isn’t everyone. [c]
-Hard Hitting Home Truths with Nathan Frazer. He said Florida is really frickin’ hot right now and it’ll culminate in Heatwave. He said he’ll be defending the true NXT Heritage Cup against Noam Dar. He said it took some time for him to convince Dar his version isn’t real. Dar and his friends in Meta-Four showed up on his inset screen and Dar said he only deals in facts and he’s done with Frazer’s insane conspiracy theories. Frazer asked which was the real Heritage Cup. Dar wouldn’t relent. Frazer rolled the tape from last week where Dar acknowledged which Cup was real in order to get a match. Dar said the stupid boy was trying to make him look stupid. Frazer said Dar was doing a good job of that on his own. Frazer was armed with a “fraud button” that he kept hitting whenever Dar lied, eliciting a buzz and the word “FRAUD.” Meta-Four sold it as a major annoyance. Dar and his group took their leave. Every Meta-Four segment is so much fun, and Frazer shone here opposite them.
(6) THEA HAIL (w/Andre Chase & Duke Hudson) vs. JACY JAYNE
Jayne entered and Hail stormed to the ring right after, giving only a moment for her music to play. Hail struck early and hit a headscissor takedown. Jayne bailed and Hail hit a tope. The match went to commercial. [c]
Jayne had Hail grounded with a chinlock. Hail managed a back elbow in the corner and rolled up Jayne for two, but Jayne hit a quick shot and a senton for two. Jayne uncovered a corner buckle tried to run Hail into it, but Hair reversed and hit a knee, and then a couple of ax-handles. Exploder by Hail, followed by a rolling senton. Another for two. She tried a neckbreaker but Jayne threw a kick to the back of her leg. Hail jumped up into a kimura lock and Jayne fought it off and hit a spinebuster for two. Jayne made sure the corner was still exposed and threw some kicks down at Hail. She went to the corner where Andre Chase was covering the turnbuckle. Hail yelled at him for being on the apron, and Jayne hit an inside cradle to finish. Hail stormed off.
WINNER: Jacy Jayne at 8:12.
(Wells’s Analysis: Jayne could’ve been just about anyone here as this was a way to move forward the Chase U saga, but for her part, this was by far the longest match she’s had that came off well. Granted, almost half of it was during commercial. Chase U’s problems continue to change in interesting ways, and I love the way Hudson just keeps stirring it up as he tries to go up the ladder)
-Humberto Garza told his nephews, in a pre-recorded bit to remember what he always taught them about family. When life strikes us down, we still have family. This results in a quick rundown of the Angel Garza-Humberto Carrillo breakup. This was framed as a dream the two young men were having at the same time.
-Carmelo Hayes was signing. Wes Lee walked up to him with the contract and said he told him he’d be back. He told Hayes to sign. Hayes said he’d see him next week. Lee threw the remaining 8x10s off the table, then collapsed it. Hayes held off security and said he’d take care of it. Lee dragged a table out to the ring. This is probably the best reason they’ve ever come up with to show us the contract being signed. [c]
-Tiffany Stratton segment. She said she’d see everyone next week at Heatwave. Toodles!
-Vic ran down the Heatwave card. Wagner-Corbin isn’t a tables match after all, but I suspect one will be used.
[OVERRUN]
-Wes Lee cut off Carmelo’s music and said he finally had the most important signing of his day. Hayes said he was going to turn into the old Hayes if Lee didn’t chill. Hayes put over Lee as one of the greatest North American Champions ever. He said until he puts on Hayes’s shoes, he shouldn’t talk about how easy Hayes has it. He said a little adversity made Lee fold like a chair on the boardwalk. He said next week was his shot to take the title, but he’s not convinced he can be “him.”
Lee said he doesn’t need to be him. He said he was told over and over that he couldn’t do things. He said in the military, his supervisors always said he couldn’ – t do this. He said he lost his partner after two championships and he was told he couldn’t do it again, but he did. He asked who he took that championship off of. Hayes said Lee took that belt, but he didn’t actually beat Hayes. He said although he agrees with what 90% of what Lee says, but he won’t – he can’t beat him. Lee said his own biggest doubter was himself, but no more. He said he won’t fail anymore. He opened the folder and signed, and said “now sign the damn contract.” Hayes said he’s earned it and this was only a matter of time, but this time it isn’t Melo Don’t Miss, it’s Melo CAN’T miss. Melo held up his belt after signing. Lee hopped up on the table and snapped in half, then stood in the wreckage, landing perfectly without looking to be unstable at all. What a cool spot. They stared at each other as the show ended.
(Wells’s Analysis: Essentially a perfect segment to make the match a must-see affair when it was only made official an hour ago, though we all knew it was headed there with the interactions they’ve had to this point. Both were the best versions of themselves on the mic; Hayes has always been dynamite in that arena but Lee has really upped that part of his game over the course of a year or two. I don’t suspect Lee will win in this PLE-lite, but as always, Melo is main roster ready so there’s going to be some doubt there.)
FINAL THOUGHTS: Heatwave seems really hastily put together, and altogether too soon after the last big show, but all the same it’s got some real sizzle and some interesting hooks without giving away too many big matches. Good matches tonight other than Dana Brooke’s clunker, and a possible Dijak injury that looked to slow down his match with Wes Lee. Carmelo Hayes continues to do something every week that Bron Breakker never really did at all, which is have a strong and memorable title reign. Meanwhile, Breakker is doing his best work away from the championship and as far away from being babyface as one could be.
I’ve had multiple asthma attacks today and won’t take the chance of being on the podcast, but Bruce and Nate will break it down further. Check them out tonight with the link at the top or stream tomorrow.
I like the way the Garza story is being handled, last week and this week as well. Really nice direction and storytelling.