NXT is in a state of flux at present. A number of stars have left for the main roster, and there is a need to establish new stars whether they are new faces or those who have been around but haven’t had a chance to shine yet. Last week stuttered a bit with it’s rushed matches and forced backstage interactions. Will this week’s episode strike a better balance?
Ricochet Promo
One week on from his TV debut victory over Fabian Aichner, Ricochet kicks off this week’s show. After dealing with some heckling about his lack of socks, he announces his intention to take over NXT and challenge for the NXT Championship. He talks about how he wants everyone to remember his name. Remind you of anyone? Sure enough, Velveteen Dream interrupts.
The Dream, drawing a positive reaction from the crowd, tells Ricochet to get to the back of the line. The two exchange barbs as Ricochet vows to steal Velveteen’s spotlight. They square up ready to fight but Dream fakes out on his attack and slides out of the ring.
A new rivalry established between two stars who are hugely over with the crowd. The fan participation helped make this segment as they reacted to everything these two said. Ricochet has a way to go before he can match Dream’s mic skills, but he certainly opened up more once he had silenced the ‘you need socks!’ chants.
EC3 v. Raul Mendoza
Finally, EC3 makes his MXT TV debut. He gets a sizeable pop from the crowd and an ‘NX3’ chant early on. Mendoza uses his speed to take a brief early advantage but EC3 soon overpowers him. It is a routine squash from there as the Top One Percenter swats down any further comeback attempts before landing the Grand Finale complete with a cocky push up cover.
Winner: EC3
Am I missing something here? Sure, EC3 has the look and I give him respect for the bumps he took in the ladder match at TakeOver, but nothing stands out about his character or in-ring ability for me. He just seems like another arrogant heel – hardly ground-breaking stuff.
Dakota Kai v. Vanessa Bourne
A match set up in a backstage segment last week gives the opportunity to add some depth to the women’s division beyond the title picture. Kai goes for a Helluva Kick style move early on but gets caught in the ropes. Bourne seizes the advantage from there. Kai soon mounts her comeback with a series of kicks. She lands her running corner kick before finishing Bourne off with a rollover backbreaker.
After the match, Shayna Baszler makes her presence felt. She literally makes Kai cower in the corner before turning her attention to the prone Vanessa Bourne. As the champ applies the Kirufida Clutch, Kai bails and heads to the back. She gets stopped for an interview but soon gets confronted by Baszler again who challenges her to do something. As Kai quivers, Baszler walks off and then Nikki Cross appears form off camera to cap the segment off with a manic laugh.
Winner: Dakota Kai
That was a decent if short match and a strong showing for Kai. The only thing that didn’t quite click was how she went from all smiles and hyped up energy to whimpering in the corner as soon as Baszler appeared. An element of looking over her shoulder coming to the ring or being nervous throughout the match would have worked wonders. As for Nikki Cross, does this appearance mean she is set to challenge Kai or become her ally?
War Raiders v. Heavy Machinery
This match almost immediately degenerates into a brawl with War Raiders coming out on top. With Tucker Knight knocked to the outside, Dozovic finds himself isolated. He eventually powers his way to a hot tag, but it doesn’t change anything. Knight quickly gets dominated as Hanson blasts Dozovic off the apron. Fallout soon follows.
Winners: War Raiders
Unlike EC3, here are new faces I had heard of but not seen before they came to NXT who have impressed. The ease with which they handled big guys like Heavy Machinery suggests a big future in NXT and on the main roster for Rowe and Hanson.
Kassius Ohno v. Tommaso Ciampa
Ciampa comes out to his trademark chorus of boos before Kassius Ohno strides down to the ring and goes straight after him. By default, Ohno is hugely over with the crowd as a babyface as he attacks Ciampa in and out of the ring. Every strike gets a cheer and every Ciampa fightback gets booed.
As Gargano’s former partner takes control of the match, he utilises every aggressive heel tactic – using the ropes, stomping and gouging, refusing to break holds until on the verge of getting DQed. Ohno soon starts to do the same, stamping on Ciampa’s head and targeting his eye heavily.
Ohno gets a couple of near falls and dishes out plenty of trash talk but gets caught out when Ciampa uses the referee as a shield to set up a cheap shot. Ciampa then goes after Ohno’s eye while the ref is distracted. Both guys trade blows and blocks until the biggest heel in all of WWE gets the win off a spinning neckbreaker. After the match, Ciampa attacks Ohno with his knee brace in a manner reminiscent of how Gargano won their TakeOver match.
Winner: Tommaso Ciampa
There was no technical skill or agility on display here, but there didn’t need to be. These two went after each other viciously and it made for a short but brutal contest. Ciampa getting the win makes sense as his feud with Gargano looks set to continue. Ohno looked strong in defeat and will bounce back.
Final Thoughts
That was a great episode – 4 matches with none of them feeling rushed, an extended promo segment that set up a hot rivalry, and strong storytelling across the field. Even the brief backstage exchange between Pete Dunne and Orcan/Burch to set up next week’s match against the Undisputed Era was on the money – main roster writers take note!
