SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...
NXT TV REPORT
JANUARY 16, 2019
TAPED IN ORLANDO, FLA. AT FULL SAIL UNIVERSITY
REPORT BY JUSTIN JAMES, PWTORCH CONTRIBUTOR
[Q1] No pre-credits video, but post-credits, Johnny Gargano is advertised for later tonight. Street Profits kick the show off. Fans in the audience are shown, they clearly have not forgotten the “stir the pot” dance.
(1) STREET PROFITS (ANGELO DAWKINS & MONTEZ FORD) vs. THE METRO BROTHERS (CHRIS METRO & J.C. METRO)
Chris and Ford start off. The Metro Brothers look like Deuce and Domino. Metro pushes Ford which angers him. Dawkins tags in. Dawkins gets angry at being smacked by JC so he slaps him to the mat, then knocks Chris down with a single punch. Ford tags in, massive frog splash gets the win.
WINNER: Street Profits in 1:49. Good, quick match to remind us that the Street Profits has charisma and in-ring skills.
Post-match, The Forgotten Sons ambush Street Profits during their celebration. Jaxson Ryker provides the advantage that the Sons need. Weirdly he comes out about 30 seconds into the attack, giving the impression that he took too long get out of the back. The crowd chants “we forgot you” at them.
Backstage with Matt Riddle and Keith Lee. Riddle says he will not be ringside to watch Lee vs. Ohno because he hasn’t been medically cleared. Since when do you need to be medically cleared to be ringside? Riddle hops that Lee leaves some of Ohno for him so he can have the scraps.
[ J.J.’s Reax: big improvement on the promo from Riddle. While it wasn’t delivered in a super-serious fashion, he didn’t sound like he learned to speak by watching Bill & Ted movies either. ]
Bianca Belair is up next.
[Q2] Smoke-room promo with Aleister Black. Black vows to absolve NXT Champion Tommaso Ciampa of his sins and recapture the NXT Championship, and says that he will be happy to confront Black next week.
Belair is out in her street clothes to cut a promo. She reminds us that she beat Nikki Cross last week. She puts NXT Women’s Champion Shayna Baszler on notice. She says that Baszler may have her Horsewomen posse, but she is Un-duh-… and Baszler interrupts with Jessamyn Duke and Marina Shafir in tow. Baszler isn’t impressed with Belair despite her records and accolades. She isn’t the smartest though, it doesn’t matter how big Belair’s arms are, she will tear them off at Takeover. Belair says her arms will just be holding the title up in the air at Takeover. Baszler says that Belair is no different from anyone else who talks but is afraid to fight her. Baszler says that Belair is afraid that she will change Belair’s vocabulary from “un-duh-feat-ed” to “ov-er-rate-ed”. A dueling chant between the two breaks out. Baszler says that Shafir and Duke aren’t anything for Belair to worry about and pushes Shafir and Duke to the corner, Belair slaps Baszler, ducks a roundhouse from Duke and slips out of the ring wagging a finger.
[ J.J.’s Reax: If there is another woman on the NXT roster that I thought could match Belair on the mic, it would be Baszler. She came really close, but Belair just hit a grand slam on the mic. ]
Dominik Dijakovic is next.
(2) DOMINIK DIJAKOVIC vs. ADRIAN JAUODE
Dijakovic eludes Jauode’s attempts at wrestling until Jauode has a waistlock to put Dijakovic into the corner, then dumps him on the mat and they are in a bull mat-based contest, almost amateur style wrestling. This is some great work if you are a fan of technical wrestling. Dijakovic moves to kicks while holding a wrist to put Jauode on the mat. Running elbow from Dijakovic in the corner. “Time to fly” and suplex-tosses Jauode halfway across the ring. Jauode suddenly unleashes body blows, Dijakovic responds with fists then the “Bloodline lariat”. Jauode with a sudden kneebar but Dijakovic gets to the ropes. Jauode runs into a crazy big boot, Dijakovic tells us to feast our eyes, hits the FYE for the win.
WINNER: Dominik Dijakovic in 4:24. I am such a huge fan of Dijakovic already, and every time I see Jauode i want to see more. this was a really good match that I enjoyed quite a bit.
War Raiders video. They are in a field with torches. They respect Undisputed Era for running NXT and “taking pieces of us”. They say they are gathered to celebrate. They look like they watched Robin Hood a few too many times and thought the Friar Tuck outfit was a great gimmick. What a corny package.
[Q3] Video package on the outstanding NXT UK Takeover: Blackpool event last weekend. For those who didn’t see it, you truly missed out.
Johnny Gargano is out. He makes sure to slap hands with a young fan on the ramp. he is facing Humberto Cariillo.
(3) HUMBERTO CARRILLO vs. JOHNNY GARGANO
Gargano starts in the face corner agaisnt the talented and charismatic Carrillo. Clean break from Gargano, then a rolling takedown into an ankle lock. Carrillo flips out, then has a wristlock. Gargano reverses it. Big forearm from Gargano breaks him free. Carrillo dazzles with his speedd, sunset flip, Carillo rolls through, Gargano tries a “Gotcha!” kick, Carrillo rolls under and good gracious what a sequence. Springboard arm drag from Carrillo. Slingshot spear puts Carrillo on the mat. Two count for gargano off a low dropkick. Gargano locks in an abdominal stretch. Carrillo reverses in the corner, springboard backflip backelbow, over-the-top corkscrew plancha to follow up outside. Carrillo up top, ten foot tall missle dropkick, back flip into a moonsault for a nearfall. Carrillo to the top, moonsault to the ceiling, Gargano gets knees up, superkick, Snake Eyes to the second turnbuckle. Slingshot DDT puts Carrillo down.
WINNER: Johnny Gargano in 4:46. Outstanding match from these two. Carrillo is so enjoyable to watch. It seems he is heading to 205 Live, which is disappointing given how little time he was on NXT for us to enjoy.
Post-match, Gargano get in the camera and says that if Ricochet wants his respect, show up next week. Gargano gets a “Johnny Wrestling” sign from the young fan on the ramp.
Ciampa is shown outside. He says that if he is the puppetmaster, Black is the puppet. Black is gullible and a fool. Ciampa says he fights on the biggest, grandest stage because that’s what a main event player does, but he doesn’t expect Black to understand. He tells Black to be careful what he wishes for, and gives Goldy (the title belt) a kiss.
[Q4] Velveteen Dream vignette. Every time I see Dream or Black in this smoky room setting I wonder why they get such a similar presentation.
(4) KEITH LEE vs. KASSIUS OHNO
After some tension, Ohno wants a headlock but Lee slips out. Ohno eludes a suplex, hits a chop. Lee leapfrogs, hits a crossbody for two. Lee whips Ohno, Ohno grabs the ropes and ducks out of the ring. Lee thinks suicide dive, but Ohno runs away and Lee puts the brakes on. Lee waves a finger. Ohno breaks the count and then goes back outside. Lee follows. Ohno tries to ambush him, but Lee catches the kick and delivers blows. Back body drop sends Ohno sky high. Ohno trips Lee into the turnbuckles, then follows up in the corner. Ohno keeps Lee down, then hits a lump kick to Lee’s face as he kneels. Senton splash gets Ohno two. Stiff elbow from Ohno. Lee holds onto the ropes to block a whip, but Ohno has more strikes for him. Ohno continues with blocks, a forearm to the back of the head nets two for Ohno. Lee breaks free of a hold, but Ohno has kicks. Lee gets knees up to block a senton splash. Lot’s of back and forth. Slingshot crossbody squashes Ohno for two. Ohno pleads for mercy on the mat, returns to his feet, then tries a right. Ohno catches it and beats Ohno back to the mat. Lee takes a shoulder to the stomach, then lands a double chop, and hits Ohno with the Pounce. Ohno holds the ropes to block a fireman’s carry. Ohno pushes Lee into the referree. Lee checks on the refferee, low-blows Lee, then lands the rolling elbow for the win.
WINNER: Kassius Ohno in 8:04. Well, the finish explains the bad booking where Lee shouldn’t be losing to Ohno and Ohno desperately needed a win.
Post-match, Riddle comes charging out of the back as referress try to hold him back. Riddle chases Ohno out of the ring, then checks on Lee.
FINAL THOUGHTS: Very strong episode that felt much shorter than it was thanks to non-stop action, engaging promos, and storylines that I want to see leading to satisfying conclusions. After the excellent event in Blackpool, I feel like this has been a great week for NXT.
CHECK OUT LAST WEEK’S REPORT: 1/9 NXT TV REPORT: Nikki Cross vs. Bianca Belair, EC3 vs Adam Cole, European Union squash, Gargano talks about ups and downs of 2018 then Ciampa joins him
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