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NXT UK offered another action-packed edition this week. This episode featured three matches and the debut of Jordan Devlin's NXT Cruiserweight Championship Open Challenge. Noam Dar introduced everyone to his Supernova Sessions and Tyler Bate made his long-awaited return to NXT UK.
The show kicked off with NXT Cruiserweight champion in the ring. Last week on NXT UK, Jordan Devlin issued an open challenge and he was looking for an opponent. Oliver Carter was the first to answer Devlin's challenge after his partner, Ashton Smith pumped him up backstage.
Jordan Devlin vs. Oliver Carter for the NXT Cruiserweight Championship
Devlin wasted zero time in laying in with vicious strikes and chops. Carter answered back with an arm drag and pin attempt, which Devlin easily kicked out of. Carter followed with a powerbomb attempt, but Devlin flipped out of it and caught Carter’s leg. "The Irish Ace" threw Carter into the ropes, causing the challenger to Carter painfully land on his neck.
Devlin ruthlessly targeted Carter’s injured neck. The champion refused to let up, and he locked Carter into a rear chin lock. Carter powered out and hit a snap suplex. Some flying forearms sent Devlin to the outside. Carter hit a fierce suicide dive, but he winced in pain before rolling the champ back into the ring for a near fall.
Carter kept up this onslaught and hit a big Rock Bottom into a spin kick in the corner. But Devlin hit a nasty Poisonrana that took Carter out. The Devlin Side earned the champion the victory.
Result: Jordan Devlin retains the NXT Cruiserweight Championship against Oliver Carter
Grade: B
Jinny built her feud with Piper Niven on NXT UK
After the match, footage of Jinny being interviewed played. "The Fashionsita" had some choice words to say about Piper Niven, who attacked her last week. Jinny even went so far as to call Niven a wild animal. The impending match between these two is going to be a banger for NXT UK.
In the NXT UK premiere of Noam Dar’s Supernova Sessions, Dar interviewed the first-ever Heritage Cup winner, A-Kid. The animosity between these two was present from the start. The arrogant and cocky Dar claimed that he was A-Kid’s sensei.
A-Kid took umbrage to this statement and said Tyler Bate is his mentor. Bate entered to congratulate A-Kid, but Darr twisted his words to set up a match between the two. A gentleman’s handshake seals the deal, and Bate was set to have his first match in nine months.
Backstage, The Hunt crashed into Sid Scala’s office. Eddie Dennis pressured him into setting up an NXT UK Tag Team championship match next week.
Xia Brookside vs. Isla Dawn on NXT UK
Brookside took firm control with multiple wrist locks early on. Dawn locked in an armbar, but Brookside easily escaped. The advantage was short-lived, though, as Dawn took out Brookside’s knee and ground her to the mat with some aggressive offense.
Dawn hit a big knee to the face and a snap suplex for a near fall. Dawn returned to the armbar to hone in on Brookside's limb.
Brookside fought back with a forearm attack, and she hit a hurricanrana followed by a double knee to the back. A baseball slide took the action to the outside.
A man brought out some suitcases to the entranceway, and Nina Samuels appeared on the big screen. This distraction took Brookside out of the game, as it allowed Dawn to hit a back suplex for the win.
The rivalry between Brookside and Samuels is clearly far from over.
Result: Isla Dawn defeats Xia Brookside on NXT UK
Grade: C
A-Kid vs. Tyler Bate for the NXT UK Heritage Cup
In the main event, A-Kid defended his NXT UK Heritage Cup against the returning Tyler Bate.
Round 1 - The two competitors felt each other out. Bate attempted an armbar, but it didn't pan out. Headlock takedowns gave way to a wrist-lock and some really admirable old-school British wrestling, which is exactly what the NXT UK Heritage Cup is all about.
Round 2 - The opponents went back to grappling, as they exchanged straightjacket holds. Bate wrestled A-Kid to the mat, but he reversed it. Sportsmanship between the two started to wane as the second round drew to a close.
Round 3 - Technical prowess was a must, as both men went right back into an exchange of holds. The pace quickened, as A-Kid started using his speed and agility to free himself. But for all his fancy tricks, Bate caught A-Kid with a Northern Lights suplex for the early advantage.
Round 4 - Aggression began to take hold, and a shoving match turned into a strike fest. A-Kid dropped Bate with a big headlock suplex and transitioned into a sleeper hold. Bate tried to power out, but A-Kid synched it in. Bate got to his feet, but the two men fell in exhaustion at the end of the round.
Round 5 - The competitors are slow out the gates, but they're as stiff as ever. The pressure was on A-Kid, as he needed the win the level the match. A brutal flipping DDT helped him do just that.
Round 6 - Bate was feeling the effects of that DDT, and he didn’t allow A-Kid anywhere near him. They exchanged a remarkable sequence of boxing, in which Bate took the advantage. But A-Kid rallied with a flurry of offense and turned it into a succession of pinfall attempts.
The human game of chess resulted in A-Kid catching Bate for the surprising victory. After the match, a show of respect between the two closed out the night on yet another excellent edition of NXT UK.
Result: A-Kid retains the NXT UK Heritage Cup against Tyler Bate.
Grade: A
