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With a historic episode of the Mae Young Classic, an explosive RAW featuring John Cena vs. Braun Strowman for the first time ever and perhaps the best episode of SmackDown Live in ages, this was a good week for sports entertainment.
Unfortunately, with no major developments taking place this week, this episode of NXT just felt a tad underwhelming, until the last few minutes when The Undisputed Era (more on that later) took centre stage. Let's revisit the episode and find out what worked and what did not, as we list five points to note.
Let us know if you agree, disagree or have any specific opinions, in the comments below.
#5 Yet another fabulous main event
As historic as the Mae Young Classic tournament was, the level of wrestling was just about on par with WWE standards. It reminded us just how good the wrestling was during the WWE United Kingdom Tournament.
This week, we saw The Bruiserweight Pete Dunne and Wolfgang take each other to the limit, with an absolutely destructive showcase of hard-hitting moves for the WWE United Kingdom Championship.
This match was a treat for wrestling purists, especially considering how well the two men knew each other, countering moves, Dunne applying the most painful looking submissions and Wolfgang defying gravity with some high flying action. It was funny to see how a complete, despicable heel like Pete Dunne got the biggest babyface reaction of the night at Full Sail University.
Dunne won the match and is still your United Kingdom Champion. Considering he gets the best reaction in the whole division, we suspect he'll hold the belt for some time now.
Of course, it was after he won the match that the action really started...
#4 The Undisputed Era
Heel or face, The Undisputed Era has put everyone on notice! Adam Cole, Kyle O'Reilly and Bobby Fish attacked Pete Dunne at the end of his match against Wolfgang. Kudos to Dunne for first beating a hasty retreat, teasing that he was coming to his fellow United Kingdom wrestler's aid, and then returning only for his championship. That was a priceless moment.
The only thing we do not like about this faction from ROH is their name - The Undisputed Era. Think of all the legendary factions and how their names spelled dominance, and more importantly, were not a mouthful - nWo, Evolution, DX and even The Bullet Club.
Be that as it may, we cannot wait for General Manager William Regal to take strict action against these three troublemakers over the following weeks, eventually leading to their in-ring debuts in due course of time. Adam Cole Bay Bay!
Speaking of Regal, let's discuss him right now.
#3 Still no clarity on the Women's Championship
A few hours ago, we learned that Kairi Sane, the winner of the Mae Young Classic tournament, will get a chance at the vacated NXT Women's Championship at the next Takeover event. Regal was asked who will be facing her, but it seems like he needs time to mull over the same.
It is unclear if it'll be a one-on-one contest between someone in NXT and Sane, or if it will be a multi-woman match, at this point. We can't say that we're not excited for this, though!
It was also classy of NXT to show a video package of Asuka, following her departure. It is clear that Asuka has made quite an impression in NXT's legacy and that the next NXT Women's Champion will forever live in her shadow.
Speaking of the women in NXT right now...
#2 A face turn?
Nikki Cross does not behave like most traditional babyfaces do. However, she did align herself with Ruby Riot during her tag team match against the Iconic Duo, sneaking up to the ring, from the crowd.
We saw the rest of SAnitY appear to be working as babyfaces at the last Takeover event, where they defeated the Authors of Pain. Has Cross also turned over a new leaf and become a babyface? It will be interesting to see how this changes the dynamic of the division.
Special kudos to Ruby Riot for the befuddled expression on her face, after the interference from Cross. This made the whole segment, in our opinion. Let's hope Cross' motives are clear in the weeks that follow.
#1 A shadow of his former self
Yes, Johnny Gargano did defeat Riddick Moss this week. However, he was only a shadow of the wrestler he once was, suffering a lot more punishment than he should have.
We must mention the announcers who played up the fact that Gargano was far less fluent and innovative than he otherwise has been. Gargano played his part to the fullest as well, allowing Moss to dominate him before picking up a close underdog win.
This is a very different kind of story, and we love it. Diesel was part of a storyline much like this in the 90s, but it is still a breath of fresh air in today's NXT landscape.
The essential story here is that Johnny Wrestling is a tag team wrestler, and in a singles environment, he simply cannot thrive. The dark shadow of DIY still hangs over him, as was exemplified when a DIY shirt cost him his match at Takeover in Brooklyn.
Did you notice anything interesting about NXT that we missed out on, this week? Let us know in the comments. See you again, next week!
