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This week’s WWE NXT had a few interesting matches lined up following an exciting Halloween Havoc show. The biggest advertised match of the night had The Velveteen Dream compete against Tommaso Ciampa, while Ember Moon and Dakota Kai were scheduled to lock horns during the show.
Shotzi Blackheart and Toni Storm were also booked to face each other after Blackheart had expressed her desire to compete against the former NXT UK Women’s Champion.
The threat of an appearance by Pat McAfee and his new heel faction was high, while some fans also expected to see The Undisputed Era address what had happened to them over the past few weeks.
Johnny Gargano and Candice LeRae seemed to get closer to the figure in the Scream mask, while NXT Women’s Champion Io Shirai called out Rhea Ripley during the show.
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In this article, we will look at the five things WWE NXT got right on this week’s show.
#5 Ember Moon tastes her first loss after her WWE NXT return
Ember Moon was ready to compete during this week’s WWE NXT against Dakota Kai who has been a prominent Superstar on the show since her heel turn. Moon seemed overconfident and tried to take the fight to The Captain of Team Kick early.
Moon missed a suicide dive to the outside of the ring which allowed Kai to gain control of the match and work over the former NXT Women’s Champion. She kicked Moon into the mat again and again, but The War Goddess refused to stay down for long.
She mocked Kai and dared her to slap her, tricking her in a cross-face in the process. While it seemed like Moon had the upper hand late in the match, Raquel Gonzalez proved her loyalty to The Captain of Team Kick once again by distracting Moon. The distraction allowed Kai to hit The War Goddess with the GTK for the victory.
After the match, Kai told the NXT Universe that she was not the same woman she used to be when Moon competed with her last time.
The match was good and Gonzalez’s distraction allowed Kai to pick up another victory to build more heat. Kai has already had several shots at the NXT Women’s Championship, but a loss for Moon allows WWE to overcome the first hurdle in her booking before proceeding forward.
#4 KUSHIDA becomes Cameron Grimes’ biggest nightmare on WWE NXT
After his match against Dexter Lumis at WWE NXT Halloween Havoc, Cameron Grimes was seeing zombies in his head everywhere. He was scheduled to take on KUSHIDA during this week’s show.
KUSHIDA has been trying hard to climb the ladder in NXT, and he started on the right foot early on in the match. He went after the arm of Grimes and set up towards an armbar to weaken his opponent.
Grimes tried to get back in the match, but it was visibly obvious that he was still disturbed by the match he competed in last week. After the two men kicked up the action in the match, the referee took a bad bump that took him out.
Another referee took the ring, and Grimes thought he was a zombie which allowed KUSHIDA to take advantage and lock him in the Hoverboard Lock for a submission victory.
This was a fun match that allowed KUSHIDA to get over once again. He will hopefully reach the NXT North American Championship picture soon, and Johnny Gargano and KUSHIDA could end up putting up a good show for the title.
#3 Pat McAfee, Pete Dunne, and their faction make a statement on WWE NXT
Drake Maverick and Killian Dain continued their partnership this week as the duo took on Ever-Rise once again on WWE NXT. Chase Parker and Matt Martel tried their best to isolate Maverick so they could keep their hopes of winning the match.
While things were looking pretty decent for Ever-Rise, Pat McAfee arrived with Pete Dunne, Danny Burch, and Oney Lorcan. The newest heel faction of NXT took down everyone in the ring, causing a no-contest.
After they were done taking down Maverick, Dain, Martel, and Parker, they celebrated their actions. McAfee took the mic to cut a promo and paid tribute to The Undisputed Era. He then said that the torch had been passed on to The Kings of NXT.
Former NXT United Kingdom Champion Pete Dunne then revealed that he had still not forgiven Roderick Strong for turning against him to join Undisputed Era years ago and that he turned on Kyle O’Reilly as payback.
The Beast of Belfast tried to take revenge on the group as they walked out, but the four men ended up injuring him badly and Dunne ended the segment by booting the car door into Dain.
This segment helped establish The Kings of NXT as the new big threat on the roster, and we could watch Ever-Rise team up with Dain and Maverick to take on the faction before The Undisputed Era return to take them down.
McAfee was great on the mic once again, while Dunne gave a fairly good reason for aligning with the new heel faction.
#2 Tommaso Ciampa puts an end to The Dream on WWE NXT
Velveteen Dream entered the ring to compete against Tommaso Ciampa on this week’s WWE NXT. Dream was still wearing a cast on his arm, and Ciampa went straight after the injury to take advantage in the match.
While Dream tried to fight out, he could not get away from Ciampa to protect his arm for long enough. It took a Spinebuster from His Purple Highness to slow down The Blackheart who was looking to make a statement during the night.
The two NXT Superstars then got equal offense in and the match hung in the balance. After Dream got tired of trying to put down Ciampa, he tried to introduce a steel chair into the fight.
The referee caught him, and the distraction allowed Ciampa to take down Dream with a high knee. He followed it up with the Willow’s Bell and finally ended The Dream with the Fairy Tale Ending.
This was a good fun match that allowed Ciampa to slowly start rising up the cards once again. While Johnny Gargano has remained at the top since these two men competed in the One Final Beat match, Ciampa has struggled to find his way on weekly shows. This victory could help The Blackheart gain prominence once again.
#1 Toni Storm picks up a victory over Shotzi Blackheart on WWE NXT
The green-haired Shotzi Blackheart wanted to fight Toni Storm in the Black and Gold brand, and the former NXT United Kingdom Women’s Champion was more than thrilled to take her on. However, Blackheart believed that Storm had stolen her tank, and things went from bad to worse from thereon.
Storm took the fight to the newer Superstar early in the contest and both women ensured that the action remained fast-paced from the opening bell.
Blackheart was visibly upset at losing her tank and wanted to teach Storm a lesson. She hit the former NXT UK Women’s Champion with a springboard DDT to the apron, but couldn’t put her away.
While Blackheart had control of the match, Candice LeRae appeared on the big screen to tell the green-haired Superstar that she’d stolen her tank. The distraction allowed Storm to stack Blackheart up for the three-count.
After the match, LeRae ran over the tank with a truck, leaving Blackheart with mixed emotions. This was arguably the best match of the night and it showed once again that Blackheart is one of the most refined Superstars in NXT. The final moments allowed the Black and Gold brand to build a big rivalry between Blackheart and LeRae, while the victory allows Storm to progress towards the NXT Women’s Championship picture.
