[WATCH] Karrion Kross uses fire to attack Keith Lee, NXT Champion rushed to hospital

Tonight's episode of WWE NXT had quite an intriguing start to the episode. The opening match of the night saw Karrion Kross defeat Danny Burch in a surprisingly competitive encounter. The latter posed more threat to Kross than anyone else has done in the recent weeks. However, Kross still managed to pick a victory to send another message to Keith Lee.

Following this, Keith Lee walked out with a file in his hand. Both Kross and Scarlett left the ring as soon as the NXT Champion stepped inside the ropes. An agitated Lee called out Kross for being a coward and walking away. He then went on to reveal that William Regal has sanctioned a championship match between the two Superstars.

Keith Lee, who had already signed the contract, asked Karrion Kross to do the same and the latter obliged. But before they return the file, Scarlett gave it a little kiss.

Back inside the ring, Keith lee opened the file and was immediately subjected to a flame that seemed to directly hurt his eyes. The champion spent the next few minutes screaming in agony while simultaneously sending threats to Kross. In the meantime, he was attended by the medical staff and was rushed to the ambulance backstage.

WHAT JUST HAPPENED?! #WWENXT @RealKeithLee @WWEKarrionKross @Lady_Scarlett13 pic.twitter.com/77LXRQT2KM

— WWE (@WWE) August 13, 2020

Later in the night, Mia Yim addressed the attack laid on Keith Lee right before her match. She revealed that she couldn't be at the hospital with him, but the NXT Champion did not sustain any serious injury. WWE are yet to release an official statement following this incident, but it has certainly managed to add more intensity to the championship rivalry between Keith Lee and Karrion Kross.

Keith Lee vs Karrion Kross for the NXT Championship

When you play with 🔥, you're bound to get burned.#WWENXT @RealKeithLee @WWEKarrionKross @Lady_Scarlett13 pic.twitter.com/5DA6Y4DTIR

— WWE NXT (@WWENXT) August 13, 2020

As confirmed tonight, Keith Lee is set to defend his NXT Championship against Karrion Kross at the upcoming pay-per-view, NXT Takeover: XXX. Kross has had his eyes set on the gold ever since Lee defeated Adam Cole for the title.

Since then, Kross has attacked several Superstars with an intention to send a message to Lee ahead of their impending encounter. But tonight, they finally came face to face, and Kross managed to get the better off the champion.

As for Lee, he will now look to avenge the surprise attack that could have compromised with his title defence. It will be interesting to see what else is in store for this NXT Championship feud.