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WWE NXT has been delivering great episodes week after week, and with the announcement of NXT TakeOver: In Your House last week, fans can expect the Black and Gold brand to take their game up a notch going forward.
Two matches for the Interim NXT Cruiserweight Championship were contested during the night, one of which ended with a surprise finish.
Karrion Kross found his first major opponent on NXT this week, while Damian Priest laid down a challenge for Finn Balor.
Roderick Strong looked to take out the man who has been haunting Undisputed Era for some weeks now, while WWE’s Nightmare Rhea Ripley had a big return match against Io Shirai to close out the show.
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In this article, we will look at the 5 things WWE NXT got right on this week’s episode.
#5 The Interim NXT Cruiserweight Championship Tournament
Even though the Interim NXT Cruiserweight Championship Tournament has gone on for a bit too long, it is still entertaining and could end up giving us a worthy NXT Cruiserweight Champion.
Akira Tozawa faced El Hijo del Fantasma in the first tournament match of the night. Even though Tozawa has been doing a great job in NXT, WWE has been wasting his talent and value whenever they take him to RAW.
The Stamina Monster once again performed his heart out and delivered some great German Suplexes to gain the upper hand. However, the luchador scored the victory with the Phantom Driver. Fantasma ended up winning the Group B of the tournament in the process.
Later on in the night, Drake Maverick competed against Kushida to prove a point to the entire WWE Universe. Even though Kushida managed to work on the arm of Maverick and catch him in submission holds, the former 205 Live General Manager refused to give up.
NXT’s Japanese Superstar had the upper hand but Maverick scored a surprise pinfall victory to score the biggest win of his career.
WWE could crown a brand new NXT Cruiserweight Champion
Now that Kushida, Maverick, and Jake Atlas are tied at the top, we will see a Triple Threat match to determine who will progress to the final match from Group A.
These two matches were great and told a story. Fantasma is new to NXT and has a lot of hopes attached to him. A loss would have hurt his value on NXT. Maverick’s victory allows him to tell an underdog story that could see him win the NXT Cruiserweight Championship and possibly bag another contract with WWE.
#4 NXT TakeOver: In Your House gets its first big match
The newest WWE Superstar Karrion Kross arrived to kick off NXT this week along with Scarlett Bordeaux and competed in a match against Liam Gray. As expected, Kross made his lesser-known opponent tap out to the Kross Jacket to end the match quickly.
After the match, former NXT Champion Tommaso Ciampa arrived to welcome Kross to the Black and Gold brand before stating that he’d face Kross at NXT TakeOver: In Your House.
NXT is looking to build a big match for WWE's next big event
This was a simple yet effective segment to build towards the first match announced for the big event. Kross may be new to NXT, but the WWE Universe is aware of his skills and his work outside the company.
Ciampa, on the other hand, needs no introduction. Even though he lost his previous match to Johnny Gargano, he remains NXT’s top star and can end up having a great rivalry with the newcomer.
Such a big rivalry could help Kross aim right for the top within months of his arrival, while Ciampa needs to rebuild slowly and become the biggest Superstar on the brand once again.
NXT fans can expect a great TakeOver event early next month!
#3 Danny Burch and Oney Lorcan rise on the NXT Tag Team division
Ever-Rise came out to compete against Danny Burch & Oney Lorcan on WWE NXT this week. Ever-Rise recently got a taste of RAW last month when they competed against Cedric Alexander and Ricochet even though they went on to lose the match.
Burch & Lorcan also suffered a similar fate a couple of months ago at the hands of Alexander & Ricochet. However, it seems like NXT is looking to invest in the UK tag team as they got to dominate Ever-Rise in this match. Burch & Lorcan brutalized their opponents and made them tap out, ending them fairly quickly.
Burch & Lorcan can become WWE's next big tag team
While Ever-Rise deserves a lot more in WWE, NXT is focusing on the right team at this point to possibly rise up on the roster and get in contention for the NXT Tag Team Championships soon.
Imperium will need some tough competition, especially after Matt Riddle and Timothy Thatcher imploded, while Undisputed Era reentering the Tag Team Championship picture could get a bit stale.
Imperium vs. Burch & Lorcan could end up being a good rivalry, especially if they can take the feud to NXT UK in the coming months.
#2 Roderick Strong wins the match, Dexter Lumis wins the segment
After weeks of being stalked and attacked by Dexter Lumis, Roderick Strong of The Undisputed Era decided to take matters into his own hands this week on NXT and face the newer WWE Superstar.
Strong was the superior wrestler in this clash, but Lumis decided it was the perfect time to showcase his own skills and shine at a time when the entire WWE Universe is watching from home.
While Strong showed off his grappling skills, Lumis unloaded with some explosive strikes and slams to get the better of the former NXT North American Champion.
While Lumis managed to brave off most of Strong’s attacks, he fell to a pinfall attempt to end the match. However, Lumis was not done with Strong as he caught him with the Kata Gatame choke. Bobby Fish and NXT Champion Adam Cole attempted to make the save, but The Velveteen Dream arrived to take them out.
Is NXT looking to build WWE's future megastar?
This was a great match followed by a great post-match brawl that leaves many options open for NXT. We could end up seeing Dream take on Cole for the NXT Championship at NXT TakeOver: In Your House, or Dream and Lumis can team up to take on The Undisputed Era at the event.
#1 The expected result to build towards NXT TakeOver
The main event of the night saw two of the best Superstars in WWE compete for a possible shot at the NXT Women’s Championship down the line. Rhea Ripley and Io Shirai squared off in a clash where neither woman was ready to pull any punches in a physical match.
While The Joshi Judas did everything she could to prove that she was a much more refined performer than the former NXT Women’s Champion, The Nightmare did not stay down for long as she continued to get back in the match.
Current NXT Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair then walked down the ramp to watch the two women compete and cause a distraction. The Genius from the Sky sent Ripley into Flair with a headscissors, leading to WWE’s Queen getting involved in the match and attacking Shirai.
The match ended in a disqualification which was followed by a Spear from Flair to Ripley.
Is WWE looking to book a Triple Threat Match for TakeOver?
While we’d predicted this result earlier this week, it was right for WWE and NXT to let Flair interfere and build-up towards an epic Triple Threat Match for NXT TakeOver: In Your House. This match-up would have the potential to main event the show and also give NXT a chance to crown a new Champion.
