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A loaded WWE NXT episode kicked off with Shotzi Blackheart and NXT Women’s Champion Io Shirai with a fiery non-title contest that set the pace for the rest of the night.
The brand announced two big matches to crown #1 contenders for the NXT Championship and NXT Women’s Championship next week. This announcement was made just a day after Triple H announced that the next TakeOver event will take place in the first week of October.
Tommaso Ciampa dominated in the ring once again, scoring a decisive victory against his opponent. Killian Dain and Drake Maverick were scheduled to partner together to take on Roderick Strong and Bobby Fish on this week’s show.
The NXT Tag Team Champions defended their titles against Imperium, and NXT North American Champion Damian Priest was set to defend his title for the first time on this week’s show.
In this article, we will look at the five things WWE NXT got right on this week’s episode of the Black & Gold brand.
#5 WWE NXT try to tell a story with Drake Maverick and Killian Dain
Drake Maverick and Killian Dain were scheduled to team up and take on Undisputed ERA’s Roderick Strong and Bobby Fish this week, but there was a twist to the story when Dain informed the former 205 Live General Manager backstage that he was going to be on his own.
Maverick showed a lot of guts as he walked out alone for a two-on-one Handicap match against the multi-time NXT Tag Team Champions.
Maverick tried to overcome an early onslaught and took down Strong with a few big strikes. However, he could not stay ahead in the match for a long time.
NXT General Manager William Regal approached Dain, who was watching the match in the backstage area, and talked some sense into him. The Beast of Belfast then made his way to the middle but he wasn’t of much help.
The Beast cut loose and unloaded on the members of Undisputed ERA before Roddy brought in a steel chair to draw the disqualification.
After the match, Maverick shoved Dain who reacted by punching his partner to close the segment. This was a good match that showed the gutsiness of Maverick once again and paved the way for an unlikely partnership between Dain and Maverick.
It seems like their rivalry with Undisputed ERA is far from done, and the two reluctant partners will probably have to team up again for a few more matches against Strong and Fish.
#4 KUSHIDA shows off his newfound aggression on WWE NXT
After a loss to Bronson Reed on last week’s WWE NXT, Austin Theory hit the ring and requested a mic. He praised himself, going as far as to call himself a future first-ballot Hall of Famer. Theory then issued an open challenge to anyone who wanted to face him.
KUSHIDA made his way out to the middle and the Japanese Superstar took down Theory with a jumping enzuigiri and kept attacking him.
Theory got back in the game with a big suplex and tried to keep KUSHIDA down for the rest of the match. However, the challenger fought back and targetted Theory’s arm to allow himself an opening.
He applied the Hoverboard Lock on Theory soon after, making him submit to the move to pick up a victory.
KUSHIDA’s newfound energy and attitude can help him grow on WWE NXT, and the victory will likely give him a chance to push forward. He will perhaps be in a rivalry with Dream in the coming weeks, and we could watch the two men deliver some great matches in the months to come.
#3 Breezango silence Imperium on WWE NXT
Fabian Aichner and Marcel Barthel have taken shots at Tyler Breeze and Fandango since they lost the NXT Tag Team Championships to the duo. They were keen on defeating Breezango, the NXT Tag Team Champions, on this week’s show.
Imperium was impatient and stormed the ring to take out the Champions, after which they worked over Fandango for the early part of the match.
After Fandango took a lot of punishment, he managed to make a hot tag to Breeze, who exploded into the match.
The match spilled outside the ring where Fandango managed to take out both the heels with Superkicks, but missed a top-rope leg drop.
After brawling some more, Prince Pretty managed to put Aichner away to pick up the victory and Breezango scored their first successful title defense.
This was a good match for the first-time Champions who got a chance to prove that they are worthy of wearing the gold on NXT. Breezango waited long for their first Championships in the company, and they have a long way to go from here since NXT is loaded with some top quality tag teams.
#2 Io Shirai and Shotzi Blackheart impress on WWE NXT
Things did not end smoothly between Shotzi Blackheart and NXT Women’s Champion Io Shirai last week, and the two women were booked to take each other on the ring on this week’s show.
Both women have impressed over the past few months, and they were looking to replicate their performance during this week’s non-title contest.
The women started strong and the commentary team worked hard to put Blackheart over as she tried to show that she is worthy of being the #1 contender to the NXT Women’s Championship.
Shirai applied a crossface that almost made Blackheart tap out, but she fought out of it and scored a near-fall.
Shirai delivered a 619 followed by a missile dropkick, but the gutsy Blackheart refused to eat the pinfall. The Jodi Judas did further damage to Blackheart by delivering a German Suplex to the green-haired Superstar on the ring apron.
Finally, The Genius of the Sky hit a moonsault to pick up the victory, but Blackheart managed to gain a lot of respect for her great performance.
After the match, the two competitors showed respect for each other, and thankfully, Blackheart did not turn heel at the end of the contest.
This was a great match who continue to impress week after week. Blackheart is one of the newer competitors, yet she seems ready for the big leagues and impressed us with her performance.
#1 Damian Priest retains his WWE NXT North American Championship
Following his first WWE NXT North American Championship win at NXT TakeOver XXX, Damian Priest was set to make his first defense on this week’s show. Timothy Thatcher had studied his opponent well over the past week or so, and this was his chance to shine on NXT.
Thatcher used his technical knowledge and experience to keep the Champion grounded and kept control of the match.
However, Priest used his power to fight back and took out his challenger with a big clothesline and a Falcon Arrow. Thatcher soon applied the armbar on Priest but could not take the Champion out.
After a second armbar, Priest looked down and out as his arm was visibly injured, but he still managed to put away Thatcher with The Reckoning to retain his title.
Thatcher has been having a tough time on WWE NXT since he defeated Matt Riddle in the Fight Pit. He needs a few wins to get back on track, and a strong showing against the NXT North American Champion helped his case.
Priest’s first defense saw him stay down for long but fight from underneath to pick up the victory. The Archer deserves a long Championship reign, and a good first match has put him on that track.
