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On this week's WWE NXT, Breezango was set to defend their NXT Tag Team Championships against The Undisputed ERA to cement their position as the top tag team of the brand.
Ember Moon competed in her first singles match since her return to NXT, while Tommaso Ciampa got a chance to exact revenge from both KUSHIDA and The Velveteen Dream.
The partnership between Killian Dain and Drake Maverick got stronger this week after the duo defeated Ever Rise once again. Austin Theory seemed to be done with WWE following his consecutive loses against Bronson Reed on the night, and it will be interesting to see what the future holds for both talented Superstars.
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Xia Li and Timothy Thatcher snapped on their opponents in separate matches, but NXT saved the best for last as a big reveal changed the landscape of the brand.
In this article, we will look at the five things WWE NXT got right on this week’s show.
#5 Ember Moon has her first singles match after her WWE NXT return
Before the match, Adam Cole was seen backstage with The Undisputed ERA to hype up the NXT Tag Team Championship match that was scheduled to main event the night. Cole was confident that Roderick Strong and Bobby Fish would defeat Breezango to once again become the NXT Tag Team champions.
After teaming up with Rhea Ripley to mark her WWE NXT return, Ember Moon competed in her first singles match on this week’s show. She was booked to take on Jessi Kamea during the night.
Moon started well and picked up right from where she left off. The War Goddess was focused and put on a submission clinic, and finally got the win with a leg-trap crossface.
After the match, Dakota Kai came out and attacked the former NXT Women’s Champion.
Moon unleash a new submission hold in her match, which could help her get injured less frequently from the high-flying manoeuvres that she performs. She can save those for big matches and make her opponents tap out on television.
Kai’s attack puts another hurdle in Moon’s path as she will have to go through a few women before she can take on the current NXT Women’s Champion.
#4 KUSHIDA scores a big victory on WWE NXT
The rivalry between KUSHIDA and The Velveteen Dream became a triple threat affair as Tommaso Ciampa joined the story. Dream had attacked Ciampa inadvertently during his match against KUSHIDA a few weeks ago on WWE NXT, and The Blackheart was looking to exact revenge against both men.
Ciampa targeted KUSHIDA early on, but Dream got involved to slow down his offence. Dream was nursing an injury, and the Japanese Superstar decided to take full advantage of it. He trapped Dream in a submission hold outside the ring which further aggravated his injury.
Ciampa slowed down KUSHIDA with the Willow’s Bell, but could not keep the cruiserweight out of the competition for long. Dream used his cast to take out Ciampa, and KUSHIDA hit him with a German Suplex to pick up the victory.
This was arguably the best match of the night that allowed KUSHIDA to go over big time. He already had wins against the former NXT North American Champion under his belt, and he managed to score another one with a former NXT Champion involved.
#3 Legado del Fantasma pick up a victory on WWE NXT
Jake Atlas, Isaiah "Swerve" Scott and Ashante "Thee" Adonis joined forces to compete against Legado del Fantasma this week. Atlas started hot in the contest and took the fight to the WWE NXT Cruiserweight Champion’s team.
Legado del Fantasma got back in the game soon after and stayed ahead of their competition in the middle portion of the match. Santos Escobar laid out Swerve outside the ring but Atlas pulled off a beautiful manoeuvre to take out Escobar.
Adonis was left alone in the ring to take a double team finish from Joaquin Wilde and Raul Mendoza who picked up the victory for their team.
This was a good match that allowed Legado del Fantasma to score a victory and impress after some ordinary performances together. Adonis got a big match while Atlas was the star of the match and could get into the NXT Cruiserweight Championship picture soon.
Swerve’s story with Escobar seems far from over, while Atlas should move into the Championship picture soon and be given a chance to take down the heel Champion with his great athleticism.
#2 Danny Burch and Oney Lorcan become the new WWE NXT Tag Team Champions
The Undisputed ERA was set to take on Breezango for the WWE NXT Tag Team Championships this week. Earlier in the night, Bobby Fish was hurt backstage and Kyle O’Reilly decided to take his spot in the match along with Roderick Strong. However, Strong was also laid out before the match and O’Reilly had no option but to refuse wrestling in the match.
Oney Lorcan and Danny Burch faced Breezango for the titles instead. The challengers came in with a renewed energy and were determined to win the belts right from the get-go.
However, Tyler Breeze was successful in slowing them down and he injured Burch’s left leg. Breeze and Fandango put on a good show from thereon, but they were still unable to get the better of the brawlers.
Someone attacked Fandango from behind and the referee tried to find out who it was. Burch caught Breeze with a low blow (which has become way too common in recent WWE matches) and set up the victory for his team.
This was a fun match that allowed Lorcan and Burch to finally win the NXT Tag Team Championships. It took a long time, but it was worth the wait. It will be interesting to see these two lead the NXT tag team division, and with the emergence of Killian Dain and Drake Maverick as a tag team, we could get some interesting tag team matches.
#1 The Mystery Man reveals himself on WWE NXT
At WWE NXT TakeOver 31, Adam Cole was attacked during the final moments of the night by someone and was deposited to the ringside by Ridge Holland. It was later shown that Holland was merely a hitman in the story.
Last night on NXT, Bobby Fish was attacked backstage and was unable to compete for the NXT Tag Team Championships along with Roderick Strong. Kyle O’Reilly took his place in the match, but Strong too was laid out by a mystery attacker before he could make it to the match.
Danny Burch and Oney Lorcan took The Undisputed ERA’s place in the NXT Tag Team Championship match and defeated Breezango with the help of the mystery attacker. At the end of it all, the mystery man held up the hands of the new NXT Tag Team Champions and revealed himself - it was none other than Pat McAfee.
This was a great reveal keeping in mind the heat between Cole and McAfee. This was likely a change of story following Holland’s legitimate injury, but it will help NXT build some great rivalries especially with McAfee attacking The Undisputed ERA.
At NXT TakeOver: XXX, McAfee put on a great performance against Cole in his first match, and it’ll be exciting if he aligns himself with Lorcan and Burch to go after The Undisputed ERA.
