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NXT has officially kickstarted a new era as the black and gold brand made its switch to Tuesday nights.
Newly crowned NXT Tag Team Champions MSK were set to defend their gold in the opening contest as they went toe-to-toe with Drake Maverick and Killian Dain. Would their reign be short-lived?
NXT Women's Champion Raquel Gonzalez celebrated her monumental victory before having a few surprises come her way.
The NXT North American Champion and NXT Women's Tag Champions retained their titles at TakeOver: Stand & Deliver, and it lead to an eight-person mixed tag team match tonight. The Way faced off against Bronson Reed, Dexter Lumis, Shotzi Blackheart, and Ember Moon in the main event.
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Also, Santos Escobar, after unifying the NXT Cruiserweight Titles, was feeling a little cocky. He'd put his gold on the line in an open challenge tonight.
We kicked things off with the new NXT Champion Karrion Kross.
Karrion Kross valiantly returns as NXT Champion
At TakeOver: Stand & Deliver Night Two, Karrion Kross defeated Finn Balor to become a two-time NXT Champion. Kross and Scarlett made their way to the ring, with Kross enamored by his prize.
Kross acknowledged Finn Balor, calling him one of the greatest to ever step inside a ring. He said that The Prince was almost invincible as the NXT Champion. That was until he ran into Kross.
Balor claimed Kross' emotions were his weakness, but in the end, the newly-crowned champ knew exactly how and where to point his fury. At Stand & Deliver, he proved that, putting away one of the most dominant champions in NXT history.
When you're at the top, it's a long way down. That's the saying, but Kross considered that a total lie, as nobody will be able to out-train him, and nobody else's hunger can compare to his.
He vowed to be a fighting champion.
All may step up because Kross would knock them all down. No matter where the time is told, in the end, everybody pays the toll.
Kross delivered one of his best promos in NXT tonight and has sent a message to the entire roster.
NXT Tag Team Championship Match: Killian Dain & Drake Maverick vs MSK (c)
Former NXT Tag Team Champion Killian Dain kicked the opening contest off with Nash Carter. Dain battered Carter with Drake Maverick, getting a two-count. Wes Lee tagged in, but couldn't keep up with the former 205 Live General Manager.
Eventually, MSK took Maverick to their corner, and the NXT Tag Team Champions went on a roll. That came to a halt, of course, when the Beast of Belfast came back into the match.
Back from a commercial break, MSK managed to regain control as Dain tagged out. Carter dropped Drake Maverick with a dropkick to the knees and a German suplex.
Wes Lee and Nash Carter hit the Hot Fire Flame, but the pin was broken up by Dain. The big man tagged in but was hit with a phenomenal Spiral Tap.
As they set up for a tandem maneuver, Dain stood tall, catching Lee and spiking him on top of Nash with a piledriver.
A powerbomb from Dain dropped Carter. However, before he could drop Maverick on top of him, Lee pulled him out of the way. Dain was disposed of after a springboard cutter and rolling kick combination.
MSK finished the match off by dropping Maverick with the spinebuster/blockbuster finisher, retaining the NXT Tag Titles.
Results: MSK defeated Drake Maverick and Killian Dain via pinfall on NXT.
Grade: B-
After the match, Imperium waited for MSK to leave before attacking Killian Dain. It seemed that Alexander Wolfe was going to bring him into the fold, but the group laid the Hound of Ulster out with a double spinebuster instead. Imperium looks to be ready to get back into the title mix.
Jessi Kamea w/The Robert Stone Brand vs Mercedes Martinez on NXT
Jessi Kamea used her size advantage to get the early upper hand. However, after avoiding a flying knee in the corner, Mercedes Martinez rocked Kamea with one of her own. A Death Valley Driver made quick work of Kamea.
Results: Mercedes Martinez defeated Jessi Kamea via pinfall on NXT.
Grade: C-
Martinez rushed Robert Stone after the match and shook him down, taking the money that he owed her. After that, she used Vic Joseph to send a message to the new NXT Women's Champion. She congratulated Raquel Gonzalez, but said that her days as champion were numbered.
The Way were backstage as they prepared for their eight-person tag team match against Bronson Reed, Dexter Lumis, and the NXT Women's Tag Team Champions. Johnny Gargano had already defeated Reed at NXT TakeOver: Stand & Deliver, and felt this whole mess was "coo-coo bananas." But he didn't mind crushing Reeds' dreams again.
The Way also had some unfinished business with Shotzi Blackheart and Ember Moon, and Austin Theory vowed to get his revenge on Dexter Lumis and finally handle his business. Indi Hartwell chimed in, looking to get in the ring with Lumis so that she could handle her own business. That's...probably not what Theory meant?
At NXT TakeOver, Isaiah "Swerve" Scott had a star-making performance in the Gauntlet Eliminator. Though he didn't win, he stole the show. Tonight, Swerve looked to finish his feud with Leon Ruff.
Santos Escobar defeated Jordan Devlin at NXT TakeOver: Stand & Deliver in a ladder match to unify their NXT Cruiserweight Titles. Now the undisputed champion, Escobar looked to defend his title in an open challenge.
A year ago, that title was one of a forgotten division. However, with the birth of Legado Del Fantasma and the rise of the Emperor of Lucha Libre, the division has had a lot of light shone on it in the last year.
Escobar is a warrior, much like his father was and his son one day would be. As a warrior, he would never back down.
However, there was a possibility he'd live to regret this challenge, as it was answered by Kushida.
NXT Cruiserweight Championship Match: Kushida vs Santos Escobar (c)
Santos Escobar told his boys that Kushida was a loser and that he had this in the bag. However, The Time Splitter made him eat those words with a running dropkick. Legado del Fantasma was sent to the locker room as Escobar and Kushida traded counter-for-counter.
During the break, Escobar took control when they moved to the floor. Kushida was bounced around ringside by the NXT Cruiserweight Champion, with Escobar sending him into the apron and plexiglass.
Escobar drove Kushida into the steps before locking him in a high-angle Boston Crab on top. Kushida was battered on the inside with nasty elbows and knees to the jaw. A flying double knee in the corner sandwiched Kushida, and a super hurricanrana brought Kushida down for a two-count.
Kushida responded with an inverted atomic drop, snapmare and dropkick. The wind-up punch and penalty kick to the arm left Escobar in serious trouble. A palm strike left the NXT Cruiserweight Champion in trouble at the top.
Kushida managed to hit a half-hatch suplex off the top, and a hammerlock suplex that nearly put Escobar away. Unfortunately for the Japanese star, his opponent put his foot on the rope just in time.
Escobar countered another suplex, and the two competitors laid each other out with a series of kicks. The handspring back elbow was countered by Escobar with a backstabber.
Kushida turned a Phantom Driver into a sunset flip. They traded pinfalls until a jackknife pin would finally put away Escobar, crowning a new NXT Cruiserweight Champion.
Results: Kushida defeated Santos Escobar via pinfall on NXT.
Grade: A
Kushida finally captured his first title in NXT. What a stunning performance from the Time Splitter tonight.
Ciampa & Thatcher have their eyes set on the NXT Tag Team Titles
Tommaso Ciampa sat next to Timothy Thatcher and made their intentions clear. MSK's days were numbered as Team Dad (work in progress) was coming for the NXT Tag Team Titles.
NXT GM William Regal congratulated Kushida backstage following his big win. Former NXT Cruiserweight Champion Jordan Devlin also appeared, vowing to take the title back once he returned from the UK.
Raquel Gonzalez shows off her new NXT Women's Championship
Dakota Kai was proud to introduce her best friend and new NXT Women's Champion Raquel Gonzalez to the CWC. A year and a half ago, Gonzalez was supposed to debut on the first episode of NXT on the USA Network. However, she was told that she simply wasn't ready.
That lit a fire under her, and Gonzalez busted her tail for well over a year to finally prove herself. Big Mami Cool praised the woman that believed in her, Dakota Kai. Without her, Gonzalez wouldn't debut at NXT TakeOver: Portland and become the inaugural NXT Women's Tag Team Champions.
In fact, Raquel wouldn't be standing here with the gold it was not for Kai. The Captain of Team Kick nearly teared up but applauded her friend.
Franky Monet makes her NXT debut
The Raquel Gonzalez era kicked off at TakeOver last week. At that point, the lights went out. When they came back up, Franky Monet, aka Taya Valkyrie, made her debut.
La Wera Loca was here to introduce herself to the NXT crowd, their champion, and the world. The best women's division in the planet just got a whole lot better.
NXT witnesses an epic reunion
When Monet left, another familiar face entered. Former NXT Women's Champion, and current RAW Women's Champion, Rhea Ripley, entered the building. The Nightmare came down to celebrate with Gonzalez. The SmackDown Women's Champion, Bianca Belair, did the same.
These three women had been close for a while, and it was a pretty fantastic sight to see the three of them together like this. The crowd joined in, chanting "NXT" as they held their titles high.
Roderick Strong quits NXT
NXT GM Wiliam Regal went to his office where Roderick Strong and his wife Marina Shafir were waiting. The former Undisputed Era member was there to hand in his notice, and said he was leaving NXT.
Regal said that times between himself and UE were rough, but Strong has always been a professional and would be welcomed back with open arms should he ever wish to return.
Leon Ruff vs Isaiah "Swerve" Scott on NXT
Leon Ruff rushed Isaiah "Swerve" Scott, battering him and dropping him on his shoulder with a leg whip. A dropkick to the shoulder and another drop to that freshened weak spot left Swerve screaming in pain on the floor.
Scott got a chance to breathe after catching Ruff on the apron with a chop. A diving uppercut to the back of the neck earned Swerve a two-count.
A Russian leg sweep from Bret's rope sent Ruff to the floor, and Swerve followed up with a pump kick that knocked the former NXT North American Champion out cold.
Following a commercial break, Scott was seen taunting Ruff in the corner. However, Leon had enough, and fought back against his long-time rival. A springboard cutter sent Swerve to the floor where he was hit with a dive off the top. Back in the ring, a missile dropkick took Swerve down for two.
They fought to the top, where the runt of NXT hit a stunning top rope hurricanrana that nearly sent Swerve across the ring. Somehow, it wasn't enough.
Swerve went for the death valley driver into the corner, but it was countered with a head scissors. A Hurricanerana roll-up scored a two-and-a-half count.
Swerve moved to the top, and countered another hurricanrana with an alley oop into the top turnbuckle. The JML Driver put Ruff away for the win in a fantastic match.
Results: Isaiah "Swerve" Scott defeated Leon Ruff via pinfall on NXT.
Grade: A+
Zoey Stark knocked off former NXT UK Women's Champion Toni Storm at NXT TakeOver: Stand & Deliver. In her rookie year with the company, Stark has more than proven herself as a future star of the brand, and she had her eyes set on gold.
Mercedes Martinez interrupted her interview backstage, claiming that she was nothing but a rookie, and that she needed to get in line behind Martinez.
If we're gonna get Zoey Stark vs Mercedes Martinez, that's something the NXT Universe can definitely get behind.
WALTER and Imperium have big plans for NXT
We got a vignette from the NXT UK Champion WALTER, who successfully defended the gold against Tommaso Ciampa in what many said was the match of WrestleMania week. WALTER said that Imperium would dominate NXT, and would even expand.
Dexter Lumis, Bronson Reed, Shotiz Blackheart, and Ember Moon vs The Way on NXT
Austin Theory kicked things off with Dexter Lumis but was quickly overwhelmed by the Tortured Artist of NXT. He went to tag out but stopped when Indi Hartwell tried to tag in. Candice LeRae did so instead and was blindsided with a flying single-leg dropkick from Ember Moon.
The NXT Women's Tag Team Champions battered LeRae until she was saved by Johnny Gargano. Lumis was tagged in by Moon, and he hammered Gargano and Theory with some nasty right hands. Indi Hartwell attempted to kiss Lumis, but she was pulled off the apron by LeRae.
Theory and Gargano brought down Lumis, wearing the stalker down throughout the break. After Bronson Reed tagged in, the match broke down. Ember Moon hit Gargano with a suicide dive, while LeRae spiked Lumis on the floor with a flying tornado DDT.
In the ring, Blackheart demanded Reed use her as a weapon, and he launched the NXT Women's Tag Team Champion onto the crowd outside. Back in the ring, Lumis locked Gargano in The Silence. However, Hartwell distracted him by falling over in the ring.
Lumis broke his own hold and seemed to have compassion for Hartwell. Austin Theory rocked him with a boot to the head but was attacked by his own partner Indi Hartwell. Lumis, still thinking she was unconscious, took her to the back.
Reed rocked Theory with a big forearm and stood still to be used by Moon for an Eclipse on Theory. As Reed set up for the Tsunami, Gargano and LeRae blocked him. Gargano was sent crashing onto Theory, and Blackheart tossed LeRae on top of him as well. After LeRae was sent to the floor, Reed crushedTheory with the Tsunami.
Result: Bronson Reed defeated Johnny Gargano via pinfall on NXT.
Grade: B+
