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Undisputed Era hit the ring to open up another episode, bragging about retaining the NXT Tag Team Championship, and Adam Cole was starting to suggest that he should be the number 1 contender to face Ricochet for the NXT North American Title as he wasn't pinned in the triple threat match that also featured Pete Dunne. This surprisingly brought out the top 1% of NXT, EC3. EC3 then accepted Adam Cole's challenge for an impromptu match between the two.
A referee was brought out and a match was put together. Considering the matches that NXT has had on in the last few weeks, including the North American Title match and last weeks Tag Team title opener, this match didn't hit the lofty standards that had been set. EC3 beat Cole with a roll-up despite a distraction from The Undisputed Era, for an unexpected finish.
The next match on the card was Aliyah versus the debuting Mae Young Classic competitor Mia Yim. The crowd was firmly behind Yim, but Aliyah was in control for most of the match, wearing down the Mae Young Classic competitor with a submission move. However, Yim broke free and would use a series of kicks to cut down her opponent, using an Eat Defeat to pick up the victory.
William Regal was backstage being hounded by Bianca Belair for a shot at the women's title because she is "un-de-fea-ted". After Belair left, Regal was accosted by The Undisputed Era, and booked a match for Bobby Fish and Adam Cole against the War Raiders for next week's NXT. This was followed by a video packaging hyping Lacey Evans.
The next match on the episode featured a debuting Justin Xavier against Kassius Ohno, who has developed a more aggressive streak of late. For what it's worth, Justin Xavier showed some fantastic skills when he was allowed to get in some offense but this was all about Ohno. Ohno hit a series of strikes and sentons on his opponent and pinned him for the three-count after landing a rolling elbow.
Nikki Cross came out after the finish to say "he's coming" as the commentators played dumb. It's clear that Kassius Ohno is building up to a feud with Matt Riddle. A video package showed Riddle defeating a WWE create-a-wrestler, and announcing his debut on next week's NXT.
The episode ended with NXT GM William Regal in the ring announcing the title match for Tommaso Ciampa at NXT WarGames. Regal never got to finish as he was interrupted by Ciampa. Ciampa was in turn interrupted by the Velveteen Dream. Before Dream could finish his thoughts Lars Sullivan hit the ring.
As the chaos was going down, Aleister Black was shown taking out security at the entrance and bursting into the ring. Ciampa scurried away and Black hit Sullivan with a devastating Black Mass. Black then turned to Regal screaming "where is he?" before being hit from behind by Johnny Gargano. Gargano then revealed himself to be Black's mystery attacker before the episode went off air.
Here are the top 3 NXT stars of the night:
#3 Johnny Gargano
The nicest guy on NXT has finally snapped. Johnny Wrestling revealed himself to be the person that attacked Aleister Black in the parking lot in the lead up to TakeOver: Brooklyn IV. Appearing at the end of a segment which also included the current champion, Tommaso Ciampa, Velveteen Dream, Lars Sullivan, and Aleister Black, Gargano hit the ring and made quick work of Black, attacking him from behind.
Gargano's action goes against the character he portrayed for such a long time and most of the audience was surprised, despite the heel turn being hinted at several times during his long feud against Tommaso Ciampa. However, it seemed like it was all going to be swept under the rug after Gargano had a stellar match with 205-Live competitor Tony Neese.
This seemed to all be a ruse, as Gargano once again attacked Black from behind, finalizing the long-running "whodunit" plotline that had been weaving its way through NXT for over a month. It will be interesting to see how the title picture shapes up. Considering all the names that were ringside before Gargano jumped Black, and considering this new evidence, could the title match at TakeOver: WarGames II be a multi-man match?
#2 Kassius Ohno
About a month ago, Kassius Ohno looked lost on NXT, lacking actual feuds and storyline materials, hanging on to a face character that was starting to sour on people. He lacked the edge and motivation that he previously had, while others around him were being promoted to the main roster left, right and center.
However, in the last month, Ohno has been on a tear, flirting with a heel turn, and displaying more heelish tendencies during his match; berating Regal for taking him too lightly. A genuine frustration seemed to be emanating from Ohno and it seemed to be giving him a new motivation.
Despite almost being outshone by his debuting opponent at the start of the match, Ohno finished it strong and made an absolute statement in this one. Despite the commentary team playing dumb, Kassius Ohno has Matt Riddle in his sights, and with Riddle slated to debut on NXT next week, there is no doubt that Ohno will play a part in his arrival.
#1 Aleister Black
Talk about a way to make an impactful return to the ring. Black's taking out of the security guards, especially the Black Mass he hit on the security guard coming out of the door made quite the splash. Running to the ring, and taking out a cameraman on the way added to the sense of urgency in the scene. Sliding into the ring and quickly taking out Lars Sullivan with a Black Mass also looked frightening.
The intensity with which he turned to Regal and shoved him into the corner stole the attention of the audience. This all allowed for Johnny Gargano to complete his heel turn, hitting Black from behind and revealing himself to be Black's mystery attacker.
While the scene Black interrupted was getting interesting, I cannot wait for how the title picture will look like come TakeOver: WarGames. Black made the scene and upped the tempo with his ferocity.
