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Xia Li was ready to pounce on an opportunity of a lifetime on WWE NXT this week. She challenged Raquel Gonzalez for the NXT Women’s Championship on the show.
Samoa Joe was looking for Karrion Kross to show up at CWC. The NXT Champion decided to toy with Joe even more and did the unthinkable to end the show. Is NXT building towards an in-ring return for The Samoan Submission Machine?
Odyssey Jones defeated Andre Chase to progress in the NXT Breakout Tournament. The tournament is beginning to heat up, and fans will likely get to see a few big matches in the weeks to come. KUSHIDA and Bobby Fish teamed up to take on Diamond Mine this week.
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Legado Del Fantasma provoked Hit Row and paid the price. NXT is doing well to build a big rivalry between these two factions. Meanwhile, The Way continued to tease a break-up on this week’s show.
NXT continued to deliver with another great show. The brand announced its next TakeOver event during the night, and fans will likely see a few big storylines develop in the weeks to come. Take a look at the five things WWE got right on this week’s NXT.
#5. KUSHIDA and Bobby Fish took out Diamond Mine on WWE NXT
KUSHIDA and Bobby Fish teamed up on WWE NXT after what happened last week. The two men took on Diamond Mine’s Tyler Rust and Roderick Strong in a tag team match.
The babyfaces attacked Diamond Mine on their way to the ring. This gave KUSHIDA and Fish the advantage for some time.
The Japanese Superstar tried to wear down Strong with some technical offense, but the former NXT North American Champion countered with a series of backbreakers.
Fish tried to take control of the action after getting a hot tag. However, Strong neutralized him by sending him back-first onto the apron. The NXT Cruiserweight Champion got the tag again and went on a roll. He wore Rust down and then locked in the Hoverboard Lock. It did not take long for Rust to tap out to the vicious maneuver.
The match was good and gave the fans something to cheer about. All four men did well and kept the action ticking throughout the contest. It was the right call to allow KUSHIDA to pick up the victory for his team.
It looks like the NXT Cruiserweight Champion will be defending his title against Strong sooner rather than later. The match could take place at the upcoming NXT TakeOver 36 event.
#4. Kyle O’Reilly started finding his killer instinct again on WWE NXT
Kyle O’Reilly challenged Austin Theory to a match on WWE NXT this week. There was some backstory to this contest, but Johnny Gargano told the young superstar that he’d have to go out for the match on his own.
The match kicked off with Theory using his strength to get the upper hand. KOR fought back with some technical strikes to ground his opponent. O’Reilly worked on Theory’s leg before locking in an ankle lock.
Theory fought out of the submission and went back to using his power to take control of the bout. After a few top moves, Theory managed to tick his opponent off.
KOR sent Theory into the steel steps and then set up the diving knee drop inside the ring. A kneebar helped O’Reilly seal the deal after a good match.
NXT did well to pair these two men up. Theory got a chance to shine while KOR proved himself against another larger opponent.
Backstage, The Way argued before Theory walked out after Johnny Gargano did not high-five him. This could lead to a major storyline for the NXT brand.
#3. Cameron Grimes was forced to do the dirty work by LA Knight on WWE NXT
A match between LA Knight and Drake Maverick was booked on WWE NXT this week after the latter interfered in his business. Maverick tried to wear down his larger opponent with a few dropkicks early in the contest.
Knight kept Maverick under pressure for some time and used his strength against his opponent. Knight got distracted as the crowd started cheering for Cameron Grimes. Maverick took advantage of the distraction to make a comeback into the match.
Grimes held the NXT Million Dollar Championship up high for Knight, and Maverick sent him right into it. He then rolled up the champion for the victory.
After the match, Knight beat down Maverick to make a statement. The heel then forced Grimes to punch Maverick before ending the segment.
The match was decent and allowed Maverick to return to the ring without Killian Dain. It was interesting to see how The Technical Savage is ready to follow Knight’s demands reluctantly. The angle will likely lead to a good storyline for both superstars.
Grimes had been a heel for far too long, and it was good to see the crowd cheer for him. It looks like the creative team's plans are working.
#2. Raquel Gonzalez knocked the wind out of Xia Li on WWE NXT
Xia Li set out to fulfill her destiny on WWE NXT this week. She challenged Raquel Gonzalez for the NXT Women’s Championship on the show. Dakota Kai came out to support her friend for the championship match.
Gonzalez used her strength to overpower Li early. The challenger found an opening and targeted Gonzalez’s leg to slow her down. She kept attacking Gonzalez’s leg and kept her grounded for some time.
Gonzalez continued delivering some big moves to stay in the match, but could not keep Li down for long. She delivered a massive spinning Vader Bomb to Li that knocked the wind out of her. She kicked out of the pin but struggled to continue.
After officials cleared Li to continue the match, Gonzalez caught her with a single-arm powerbomb for the win. It was a decent match between two superstars who are still not very experienced. It was also Gonzalez’s first defense in which she was the more experienced superstar.
Li knocked Mercedes Martinez’s head off not too long ago, and nearly got taken out herself this week. Hopefully, she is not injured and will be able to return soon. Gonzalez needed a big win before TakeOver 36, and that is exactly what she got in this NXT Women’s Championship match.
#1. Karrion Kross continued to provoke Samoa Joe on WWE NXT
Karrion Kross locked Samoa Joe in the Kross Jacket last week on WWE NXT. Joe was fuming this week as he made his way to the show in street clothes rather than a suit.
Joe called out Kross early, but instead NXT General Manager William Regal came out to calm him down. He reminded Joe that he was not allowed to lay his hands on any superstar, and wanted him to solve the matter without getting physical.
Throughout the night, The Samoan Submission Machine kept waiting for Kross to arrive. After the NXT Women’s Championship match, Joe came back to the ring and demanded that Kross appear and face him.
Instead, the NXT Champion appeared on the big screen and revealed that he had taken out William Regal backstage. He mocked Joe and reminded him that he can do anything he wants.
NXT is doing really well in this rivalry. It’s a shame that Kross appeared on WWE RAW this week and took a loss at the hands of Jeff Hardy. WWE could have done so much better than that to keep this rivalry special.
NXT fans will be happy with the way angles are progressing. With TakeOver 36 coming up, one can expect things to reach boiling point before these two men finally face each other in the ring.
What are your thoughts on Karrion Kross losing on his WWE RAW debut this week?
Ex WWE writer blasts Liv Morgan HERE
