Posted on 8/12/126 by Bob Magee
Our live coverage kicks off at 8 p.m. Eastern.
***************
Let the kicking begin! There are a lot more matches (and a
lot fewer talking segments) than usual scheduled tonight, so
let’s see how this shakes out!
-The show opened with a recap of last week and then Lizzy
Rain was shown backstage wondering to no one where Shawn
Spears was. Nico and Izzi Dame walked by on their way to the
ring and said “told you” to which Rain responded, “guess I’m
going in alone.”
Shawn Spears & Lizzy Rain vs. The Culling (Izzi Dame & Niko
Vance)
It’s weird that he’s missing because Spears made this match
in the warehouse last week because he… is still mad about
the Culling kicking him out? I guess? Since only Dame and
Nico are left of the group, I kinda think he dodged a bullet
to be honest, but that’s just me. Rain happened to be in the
proximity of the match making, so she got included too,
proving once again that the warehouse is a dangerous place
to hang out.
Rain and Dame got into it while Nico hung out on the corner.
Since women wrestle women and men wrestle men in the mixed
tag matches, and there’s no one there to tag, it’s just a
singles match?
¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Anyway, Dame and Rain wrestled for a bit then Nico tagged
in, at which point EK Prosper showed up and hit him with a
Moonsault. Prosper and Nico started fighting so I guess he’s
Rain’s new partner.
Prosper dodged a charge with a springboard and planted a
kick on Nico’s head. Dame tagged in, so Rain ran over and
hit it with a spin kick. Rain and Prosper then threw chops
on their opponents in the corner. They hit spingboard DDT’s
at the same time and then Dame and Nico bailed from the
ring.
Rain went after her, but Dame caught her and swung her into
the steel steps, whacking Rain’s shoulder. Dame threw Rain
back in the ring and dropped her with a lariat. They traded
shots and rollups, but neither could get a pin. Rain got a
hot tag to Prosper which brought in Nico who ate a
blockbuster right away.
Prosper went for a cover, but Nico kicked out. Prosper went
up top, but Dame distracted him and Nico grabbed him for a
swinging DDT. Rain got a tag and threw feet at Dame. She hit
a gutwrench suplex, but on the charge, Dame got her knee up.
They climned the turnbuckle and Rain hit a hurricanrana to
take Dame down.
Rain went for a cover, but Nico broke up the pin. That made
Prosper mad, so he dropkicked him. Then Dame hit a powerbomb
on Prosper and Nico landed a diving headbutt. He went for
the cover, but Prosper kicked out at two.
Prosper went up top for a swanton and Rain tagged in. Nico
grabbed her and threw her to Dame who powerbombed her for
two. Dame and Rain fought, but Nico grabbed a blind tag.
Rain took out Dame and Prosper hit a shining wizard on Nico
before nailing him with a moonsault and winning the match he
was never supposed to be in.
Match Result: Shawn Spears EK Prosper & Lizzy Rain defeated
The Culling (Izzi Dame & Niko Vance)
I’d say that was a weird start to the show, but let’s be
honest, it’s pretty standard.
-Some footage of Myles Borne and Tavion Heights celebrating
their tag title win last week was shown. Heights said that
they are going to be fighting champions and show the world
what the NXT Tag Division has to offer.
-In medical, Kendal Grey was being looked at by a medic. He
said that she needed at least another week before returning
to the ring. So, she ignored him and walked right to the
ring to talk at us.
-Before that though, EK Prosper and Lizzy Rain were
interviewed. Prosper said that he felt like the Men’s locker
room needs to step up so that’s what he did. Then Kali
Armstrong literally ripped the mic out of his hands and
walked to the ring to demand a women’s title shot. That of
course, brought out Kelani Jordan who disputed that
Armstrong deserved a chance.
Jordan said that she was next in line for the NXT Women’s
championship, and then she was interrupted by Kendal Grey
who I guess took the long way to the ring from Medical. AND
she was carrying a contract.
Grey said that everyone is sick and tired of hearing Jordan
complain. Jordan said “nuh-uh!” and Grey said that she was
prepared for Jordan’s song and dance. She then handed over
the contract which gave Jordan a shot anywhere, any time.
Wren Sinclair said that maybe Grey should take some time off
and heal, but Grey blew her off.
Jordan said that she wanted her match away from the
ungrateful fans in Orlando, so she’ll take her match at
Heatwave. Grey said that was no problem, but Armstrong said
that she came for a title shot and punched Grey in the head.
Sinclair tried to protect her, but she fell to the damn
numbers game and Jordan and Armstrong beat her up.
-Backstage, Robert Stone was watching Cruz Montanta work out
when Keanu Carver showed up and complained about another
“new guy” getting a shot before him. He stormed off and
Stone followed wanting to know what was up. Carver said that
he was just trying to figure things out and Stone ain’t seen
nothing yet.
So let’s see, Split intro, check. Pointless complaining
about title shots from multiple people, check and check.
Interrupted interview? Check. Robert Stone being weird,
check. Contracts and paperwork involved? Check. It’s like
they are playing wrestling mad libs.
Dion Lennox w/ James Cutler & Osiris Griffin vs. Saquon
Shugars
Last week an emotional Lennox declared that he was going to
end it with Shugars once and for all so DarkState could move
onto other things. Osiris Griffin and James Cutler said,
“ok…” and seemed a little concerned about Lennox’s mental
state.
Lennox tried to jump Shugars off the top, but Shugars saw it
coming and threw some heavy strikes. He rolled up Lennoxn
and tried to steal one using the ropes, but Lennox kicked
out.
Shugars keep the offense up with dropkicks and slams,
causing Lennox to roll out of the ring to recover. Lennox
got back in and tried to deliver a spinebuster, but Shugars
kept coming. Cutler tripped Shugars up which broke his
momentum, letting Lennox take over the near falls.
Lennox grabbed a headlock, but Shugars worked out of it and
ate a few forearms. Lennox hit a northern lights suplex, but
Shugars kicked out of the cover. Lennox went back to the
headlock and Shugars started fading for a moment, but then
powered up and broke the hold.
Shugars leapt over a charge and started hitting Lennox with
knees and lariats. Shugars hit a spingboard knock-Lennox-
off-the-apron, and then tossed him back in. Shugars then
picked up his baseball bat and menaced Cutler and Griffin.
Lennox grabbed the bat, and the ref tried to take it away
from him. That let Cutler and Griffin slam Shugars through
the announce table.
They tossed him back in and Lennox made the cover to pick up
the win.
Match Result: Dion Lennox defeated Saquon Shugars
-In Robert Stone’s office, AAA GM Rey Mysterio was on
speakerphone. They set up a match for Rey Fenix (pronounced
fen-nicks, by Stone) to defend his AAA Cruiserwieght title
on NXT. Then they set up a fatal four way match to determine
who he would face in that match that included La Parka and
EK Prosper because, why not? Rey said he had to go and he
trusted Stone to pick the final two.
-In Medical, Saquon Shugars was refusing treatment when
Grayson Waller showed up and yelled at him that he should go
do somthing about it. So Shugars grabbed his baseball bat
and a chair and went to do just that. Shawn Spears was still
missing.
NXT Women’s North American Championship Match: Zaria vs.
Wren Sinclair
Last week, Zaria failed to capture the Speed Championship
from Sinclair, so this week Sinclair gets to see if she can
pry the North American title off of Zaria. Isn’t turnabout
fun?
Sinclair tried to get it over quickly with a couple of fast
covers, but Zaria wasn’t going down like that and threw her
face-first into the corner. Zaria beat her up until she
missed a kick then went for a cover that Sinclair kicked out
of.
Zaria slowed things down and started working Sinclair’s arm.
Sinclair fought back with a bulldog, but Zaria responded
with a pump kick. Zaria started ragdolling Sinclair around,
even going so far as to hang-choke her from the top
turnbuckle. Sinclair lured Zaria to the outside for a
dropkick and then threw her back into the ring.
Sinclair transitioned a headscissor into an abdominal
stretch, but Zaria got out of that and threw her to the mat.
Zaria dropped multiple elbows and then kicked Sinclair in
the corner. Zaria went back to the arm and then hit some
shoulders into Sinclair’s chest for a two count.
Zaria kept the pressure on Sinclair’s arm, wrenching it in
the socket until Sinclari went for a sunset flip. Zaria no
sold it though and picked her up and slammed her to the mat.
Zaria kicked Sinclair in the head, which fired her up and
she started throwing chops. Sinclair went up top and nailed
Zaria with a crossbody.
Sinclair suplexed Zaria, but then got caught with a knee to
the jaw. She suplexed Sinclair and then charged her in the
corner. Sinclair dodged it and rolled her up for two. Zaria
hit a discus lariat, but Sinclair went for a submission off
of that. Zaria shook her off and speared Sinclair.
At that point Saquon Shugars and Dion Lennox came down the
ramp brawling with bats and chairs.
Zaria hit an F5 in the chaos and picked up the victory to
retain her title.
Match Result: Zaria defeated Wren Sinclair
(sigh) I was enjoying that match until the absolutely stupid
and unnecessary Lennox/Shugars interruption.
-Shiloh Hill posted another TikTok letting folks know that
his nose is healing faster than expected. Then he went into
his shed where he had a bag of masks? Anyway, he wrestled in
a mask and it wasn’t so bad, so maybe he’ll do that. Then he
gave us some Poison Mist facts and assorted other travel
facts about Japan. Shawn Spears was nowhere to be found.
Mason Rook vs. Kam Hendrix
So, Hendrix played ‘injury possum’ for a number of weeks,
but then suddenly got better when he happened to be in the
vicinity when Myles Borne needed a challenger for his North
American Title that no one asked him to defend. Rook was mad
about that so they are going to face off over it. This is
all because Rook felt disrespected by Grayson Waller, by the
way.
Hendrix pie-faced Rook off the top, so Rook picked him up
and threw him at the ground until he fell out of the ring.
Hendrix got back in the ring and Rook did it again. Hendrix
managed a comeback and clotheslined Rook to the mat. He kept
the big man off his feet with punches and kicks, but Rook
got up and chopped him across the ring.
Rook went off the ropes and Hendrix caught him with a
spinebuster for two. Hendrix bounced Rook’s head off the
mat, but Rook came back with an elbow to the gut. Hendrix
kept up the pressure though with strikes to the head.
Rook threw Hendrix into the ropes and then bodyslammed in
the center of the ring. Hendrix ripped a turnbuckle cover
off as Rook grabbed him for a blue thunder bomb. Hendrix
then sent Rook’s head into the exposed turnbuckle to pick up
the win.
Match Result: Kam Hendrix defeated Mason Rook
-In Robert Stone’s office, Vanity Project said that Waller
might think the male roster is soft, but Vanity Project is
not. Gross. Tavion Heights and Miles Borne showed up so
Stone made a match for Jackson Drake to face Shiloh Hill to
get a shot a Borne’s North American title at Heatwave. Also,
if Drake wins, Vanity Project gets a chance to win their Tag
Titles back at Heatwave.
To Long, Didn’t Make Sense: if Drake wins against Hill next
week, Borne has to wrestle twice at Heatwave. Over booking?
I’m not sure what you mean. Also, Shawn Spears is still
missing.
Lexis King w/ Birthright vs. Lucien Price
For some reason, King and Birthright have made it their
mission to prove that OTM (Price and Bronco Nima) are
falling apart as a team. I honestly have no idea why. What I
do know is that this will probably be the best match of the
night featuring guys who’s names sound like luxury cars.
Prior to the match, Price asked Bronco Nima to stay in the
back, which is pretty dumb considering Birthright move as a
pack.
Price came at King aggressively, chopping him so hard I’m
sure they heard it at the ROH tapings in Jacksonville.
Brthright tried to cause a distraction, which allowed King
to take over, bleeding from the chest from the previous
chops. He locked Price’s arm into a hold and wrenched back
on it. This went on long enough to show Nima watching in the
back.
Price got out of the hold and clotheslined King in half.
Price threw him across the ring, but King came back with a
superkick and crossbody off the top. Price rolled out of the
cover and picked up King for a nasty backbreaker. King came
off of that with a high knee.
Stacks got up on the apron and Price threw him off. King
charged and Price caught him with a one-armed powerbomb to
get the three count.
Match Result: Lucien Price defeated Lexis King
Look, I like Brian Pillman Sr & Jr, but Lexis King is the
single stupidest gimmick I’ve ever seen. He’s like a Kid
Rock impersonator from 2001. Also, I don’t like how Nima and
Karmen Petrovic are in Perros Del Mal everyone but when they
are in NXT. It’s very odd.
-In his office, Robert Stone was on the phone when Wren
Sinclair and Kendal Grey came in. Sinclair asked for another
shot at Zaria and Stone was like “I dunno…” as if he hadn’t
seen the chaos that ended the match. Stone did what anyone
would: made a tag match for next week with Grey and Sinclair
against Kelani Jordan and Kali Armstrong then made a
Unification match for the Speed and North American Titles at
Heatwave.
¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Honestly, anything you want in NXT, just ask.
-In the locker room, Thea Hail said that she wanted to fight
Nattie, so look for that next week. Then the scene switched
to the Lunchroom where Noam Dar and Romeo Moreno were
talking about the four way to face Ray Fen-icks. Moreno was
asked to he in the match, but didn’t want to upset Dar. Dar
told him to get it dont. Then Tristan Angels came in and
announced that he was selected as the 4th entrant in the 4-
way.
NXT Championship #1 Contender’s match: Cruz Montana vs.
Grayson Waller
Waller thinks everyone sucks except him, so he should be the
one carrying the NXT Title into the future. Montana had to
fight for everything in his life and he’s willing to fight
Waller to get it. The winner of the match goes on to face
Tony D’Angelo for the NXT title. D’Angelo joined commentary
to watch from ringside.
They circled each other off the bell, looking for an
opening. They they just started punching. Waller sent Cruz
into the corner and Cruz exploded back out of it with a
gutwrench. He suplexed Waller and went for a cover, but
Waller wasn’t ready to quit yet.
Waller sent Cruz back to the corner for strikes and then
dropkicked him to the mat. Waller went for a suplex, but
Crux blocked it. He got the second one in though and went
for a cover. Cruz kicked out at two and came back with a
shot to the gut. They continued sending each other in and
out of corners until Cruz hit a back body drop and Waller
rolled out of the ring.
Cruz dove through the ropes, sending Waller sprawling over
the announce table. Booker and Vic scrambled away but
D’Angelo no sold it and didn’t move.
Cruz chopped Waller against the barricade and then sent him
back into the ring. Waller immediately responded with a
baseball slide then clotheslined Cruz on the outside. Waller
side-Russian-leg-swept (sweeped?) Cruz into the ring apron
before throwing him back into the ring. Waller launched Cruz
into the corner and then stomped him back out of the ring.
Then put him back in the ring.
Cruz came back with a superplex off the turnbuckle. He laide
out Waller with a flying clothesline and then a dropkick.
Waller came back with a high knee and then Cruz dropped him
(and commentary called him “Santana”) on his back.
Cruz whiffed a kick and Waller tried to exploit it, but Cruz
managed to get a cutter in for two. Cruz called for Spin The
Block, but Waller saw it coming and bailed from the ring.
Cruz went to dive, but Waller caught him and sent him
reeling. Waller fell victim to a rollup, but kicked out at
two.
Waller hit a curb stomp on Cruz, but only got a two count.
Waller dropped an elbow from the top rope and then went for
a springboard, but “Santana” took over with an atomic drop
and set him up in the corner. Waller escaped to the outside
and leapt back in to eat a perfectly executed Spin the
Block.
But THEN, Zilla Fatu arrived and Samoan Dropped Cruz before
levelling Waller, and the ref called for the bell. Fatu went
up top and splashed Cruz. He then did the same to Waller.
Match Result: Cruz Montana vs. Grayson Waller went to a no
contest
D’Angelo stood up out of his seat and stared at Fatu in the
ring as the show came to a close.
Oh Man, NXT, so many mixed feelings. The matches on this
show were great, and the main event was a fantastic debut
for Fatu. The out-of-ring segments were an absolute
nightmare that made no sense or played off the worst of the
worst wrestling tropes out there. You win some, you lose
some.