NXT HITS & MISSES 6/27: Aleister Black promo, Ricochet & Mustache Mountain vs. Undisputed Era, Gargano’s big miss

HITS

Aleister Black Promo:  This was pretty good, mainly because it soon became the Tomasso Ciampa show.  As Black spoke of his victory at NXT Takeover: Chicago II, Ciampa came out to mock the champion in great heel fashion.  He spoke of Black’s mystique and how he will not only take it from him, but also his title.  Black seemed to be visibly agitated by Ciampa’s antics which will serve as a backdrop for the mind games that he will play in the next coming weeks.  The last time we saw Black in a rivalry like this it was with the Velveteen Dream and we saw how classic that turned out.  One would expect great things for this battle, but it might have been good to see Ciampa have a few more feuds or matches with some other competitors before making his stake for the NXT title.  Will Gargano play a part in this as Ciampa took away his title shot?  Maybe this will become a triple threat match with Gargano being added. Knowing NXT, something will develop and more than likely it won’t disappoint.

Ricochet & Moustache Mountain vs. Undisputed Era:  Great match that gave one everything that they could ask for.  The tone was set when Undisputed Era attacked the enhancement talent that was set to face Moustache Mountain as they were making their way to the ring.  As they crowded the ring, Ricochet came out to make the save leading to Regal making it a six-man tag team match.  Why did Ricochet come out in the first place?  It’s good to see that it’s possible that there is a Ricochet-Adam Cole rivalry for the North American Championship as Ricochet doesn’t need to be shot to the top right now.  This will give him time to become more established and reputable if he goes after the brand’s secondary title.  This match had all that one could want; great collaborative moves, hard strikes from each team and plenty of near falls that kept the crowd on the edge of their seats.  Ricochet was truly the star of the match but unfortunately his team didn’t pick up the win after Roderick Strong delivered an End of Heartache on the ring apron to the “one and only”.  He was then rolled into the ring where Cole made the pin.  No one came out looking bad from this match; Moustache Mountain didn’t take the pin so they don’t look weak as the tag champions, Ricochet was the highlight of the match so it was okay that he took the pin, plus it wasn’t in single competition and the Undisputed Era picked up the win while Cole making the pin on his possible future rival so it was all a win-win.

MISSES

Johnny Gargano Promo:  Honestly, this was horrible. Johnny Wrestling was backstage watching his wife’s victory looking befuddled.  He went on to say that he wants one more match with Ciampa, not caring what kind of match, but wants it as soon as possible.  As great as the feud with Ciampa was, it’s time to move on, or at least take a break.  I agree with William Regal on this one, Gargano needs to find a new opponent as neither of the two should be defined by their feud.  Ciampa has now moved on to the NXT Championship picture, so Gargano should do the same.  Their epic rubber match can come later on down the road, but right now a break is needed.

FINAL THOUGHTS

It was a solid show with a great main event.  Kona Reeves looked his best this week in singles action as he was not over the top and annoying but used heel tactics just right to be tolerable.  He also was better in the ring as he wasn’t overly aggressive that doesn’t go with his persona.  Candice LaRae battled Lacey Evans in a decent effort picking up the hard fought victory with an injured arm.  The momentum is building for the next storylines this week to where the lines are being drawn.  The other promos this week were awful.  Vanessa Borne’s promo was pointless as a set up for a feud with Kairi Sane.  It just came off catty.  Heavy Machinery’s promo was also not needed and if they are all about steaks and weights, why were there only sausage on the grill?   Aside from the few low points, another great week as expected.

NOW CHECK OUT LAST WEEK’S COLUMN: NXT HITS & MISSES 6/20: War Machine vs. The Mighty, Velveteen Dream’s cryptic promo, EC3’s new promise, more