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This week's edition of NXT UK opened with a tribute graphic to the late Joe Laurinaitis, also known as "Road Warrior Animal". He will be greatly missed.
Sid Scala addressed the competitors of the NXT UK Heritage Cup tournament backstage, ahead of tonight's drawing ceremony. Imperium's Alexander Wolfe obviously had heard enough and knocked Noam Dar's cell phone out of his hand. Dar then answered the phone saying "hi mum" before walking off, signalling the chaos that lays ahead in this tournament.
Andy Shepherd and Nigel McGuinness then welcomed fans to the latest edition of NXT UK, which included the first Championship match at BT Sport Studios in London, England.
#1. NXT United Kingdom Champion WALTER vs. Saxon Huxley (Non-title match)
Huxley went for a quick start and caught the NXT UK Champion off guard but WALTER transitioned into a sleeper hold attempt and clotheslined Huxley out of the ring.
Saxon Huxley attempted to get back into the ring several times but WALTER denied him. Huxley was incredibly frustrated and grabbed the steel ring steps before being convinced to drop them by the NXT UK referee.
Huxley managed some great offence and scooped WALTER up for a bodyslam followed by a crossbody which got him a two count.
Saxon Huxley once again took WALTER down on the outside of the ring with a Lou Thesz press. WALTER then gained control with a brutal chop to Huxley on the outside of the ring.
Huxley then drove WALTER into the steel ring steps and broke up the referee's 10 count. However, WALTER then gained control with a body slam, a series of brutal chops and a backdrop onto the barricade. WALTER then power-bombed Huxley straight onto the ring apron in a shocking move.
Saxon Huxley shocked the NXT UK Universe by making it back into the ring before the referee could count him out. WALTER continued his attack of vicious chops and followed this with a stiff German suplex.
WALTER hit a butterfly superplex, shades of Billy Robinson, and then demanded Saxon Huxley make it to his feet before delivering another brutal chop. WALTER then sealed Huxley's fate and hit a vicious power-bomb for the victory.
Result: NXT UK Champion WALTER def. Saxon Huxley
#2. Official draw for the NXT UK Heritage Cup Tournament
During the break: Saxon Huxley was told "better luck next time" backstage. Huxley appeared to be frustrated and shouted "next time, next time" before walking away in anger.
We got a breakdown of the NXT UK Heritage Cup rules before heading to the assistant to the NXT UK General Manager Sid Scala who was in the ring with the NXT UK Heritage Cup competitors.
Sid Scala was joined by 7 of the 8 Superstars set to take part in the tournament. Scala also reminded us of the 8th wildcard participant set to compete in the tournament.
Sid Scala then welcomed the special guest for the drawing, the longest reigning NXT United Kingdom champion in the brand's history, The Brusierweight Pete Dunne.
Pete Dunne told the competitors to "make a name for yourself and continue the tradition" of British Wrestling. Sid Scala then drew the following match ups for the NXT UK Heritage Cup first round:
- Joseph Connors vs. Dave Mastiff
- Wildcard Entrant vs Trent Seven
- Flash Morgan Webster vs A-Kid
- Alexander Wolfe vs Noam Dar
Noam Dar went to attack Alexander Wolfe but Pete Dunne prevented the attacking from happening. Instead, The Bruiserweight utilised some joint manipulation and threw Noam Dar out of the ring, protecting the integrity of the competition which begins next week on NXT UK TV.
#3. The Hunt vs. Pretty Deadly
Wild Boar and Sam Stoker began the match on NXT UK and exchanged in some chain wrestling.
Lewis Howley and Primate are then tagged in respectively but Primate quickly asserted his dominance over one half of Pretty Deadly.
Stoker and Howley then used some underhanded tactics to change the momentum in the match, which allowed Stoker to hit a beautiful dropkick on Wild Boar.
Pretty Deadly then cut off the ring and worked over Wild Boar in their corner, utilising quick tags in the process.
Wild Boar attempted to fight free but was caught in mid-air by Sam Stoker and was hit with a vicious slam. Wild Boar managed to tag in the fresh Primate who hit both members of Pretty Deadly with clotheslines in opposite coners of the ring.
Both members of The Hunt climb to the top rope to hit The Ambush, but Howley rolled out of the ring. Wild Boar hit a diving headbutt but Stoker kicked out at a two count. Wild Boar had Stoker rolled up for a three count but Howley had the referee distracted. This distraction allowed Stoker to roll up Wild Boar and get the victory for Pretty Deadly.
Result: Pretty Deadly def. The Hunt
Post-match: Eddie Dennis invited Pretty Deadly over to have a quick conversation with the highly rated, young tag team.
During the break: The Hunt are frustrated backstage. The Tag Team then bumped into Flash Morgan Webster and Mark Andrews who told the vicious tag team to keep their heads up but The Hunt walked away dejected.
We then saw Assistant to the NXT UK General Manager Sid Scala talking to Pete Dunne. Scala was panicking about maintaining order for next week's NXT UK Heritage Cup Tournament opening round matches.
However, Pete Dunne removed any fears that Scala had by revealing that he will referee next week's opening round NXT UK Heritage Cup matches, beginning with Noam Dar vs Alexander Wolfe.
It is also announced that next week we will see a Triple Threat Wild Card match to determine who will be the 8th and final entrant into the NXT UK Heritage Cup tournament.
#4. Main Event: Kay Lee Ray (c) vs. Piper Niven (NXT UK Women's Championship Match)
Piper Niven utilised her power advantage early on in the match on NXT UK which caused Kay Lee Ray to take some time on the outside to gather her thoughts and readdress her game plan.
Kay Lee Ray attempted to control Niven with a standing double wrist lock early on but Piper managed to power out.
Piper Niven showcased her power by hurling the NXT UK Women's Champion around the ring on several occasions. Niven then followed this up with a half-straight-jacket submission hold.
However, Kay Lee Ray was able to get out of the hold and began working on the leg and knee of her opponent. Piper Niven was able to get a reprieve though after she threw Kay Lee Ray over the top tope and to the outside.
But, seemingly out of nowhere, Kay Lee Ray hit a tornado DDT to Piper Niven on the outside of the ring. Ray followed this up by hurling Niven into the steel ring steps.
Kay Lee Ray attempted to put Niven out for good by punting Piper's head against the steel steps. However, Piper Niven rolled out of the way and Kay Lee Ray struck the steel ring steps knee first, seemingly injuring her knee.
The referee called for Kay Lee Ray to receive medical assistance for her injured knee as the match was stopped. NXT UK referees and doctors assisted Kay Lee Ray to her feet to take her to the backstage area.
Piper Niven then told the NXT UK Women's Champion "I don't want to take your title like this," which infuriated Ray who slapped Niven straight in the face.
Piper responds with a slap of her own and threw Kay Lee Ray into the ring and the match continued!
Piper Niven utilised a half Boston crab to the injured knee before Ray reached the rope to break the hold. But, out of nowhere, Kay Lee Ray hit a beautiful superkick to Piper Niven.
Ray then hit a senton from the top rope to Piper Niven but was only able to get a two count over the challenger. Kay Lee Ray told herself repeatedly "I can do this" before getting back to her feet.
Piper Niven kicked the knee away from Kay Lee Ray before she hit a senton of her own for a close two count.
Piper Niven continued to attack Kay Lee Ray's knee and pulled her to the middle of the ring in the process. However, the NXT UK Women's Champion grabbed the bottom turnbuckle, causing the protective covering to be removed. Niven hit a Piper Driver to seemingly capture the NXT UK Women's Championship but Kay Lee Ray managed to get her foot on the bottom rope to save her title.
Niven attempted a Vader Bomb, but Kay Lee Ray got her knees up. But, this re-injured Ray's already injured knee. Niven went for a rolling cannonball but the NXT UK Women's Champion rolled out of the way, causing Piper to go straight into the exposed turnbuckle. This allowed Kay Lee Ray to get the cover and retain the NXT UK Women's Championship.
Result: Kay Lee Ray def. Piper Niven to retain the NXT UK Women's Championship
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