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Tag: Finn Balor

  • NXT Pittsburgh live results: Finn Balor vs. Samoa Joe; Sami Zayn vs. Johnny Gargano

    Submitted by Ryan Dunch w/additional notes from Joe Kazmer

    Stage AE was sompletely sold out, with a substantial amount of a standing room tickets sold.

    – The night started with a pre-taped intro from Triple H thanking the fans for making NXT.

    NXT Tag Champions Dawson & Wilder def. Big Cass and Enzo Amore

    People were really excited and chanted along with the whole Enzo/Cass intro. Lots of How You Doin and other chants. Wilder and Dawson won after hitting their finisher on Enzo. Enzo and Cass got a standing ovation after they were left alone in the ring. This was a theme for the night anytime someone the crowd liked lost a match.

    Nia Jax pinned Carmella after the big leg drop

    Wasn’t very good but not as bad as I was expecting. Poor Nia was cat called early on when the crowd was otherwise pretty silent. 

    Elias Sampson def. Tye Dillinger

    Sampson, who is from Pittsburgh, claimed that he wrote a special song about returning to Pittsburgh​ which was comically bad:

    “Back in my hometown of Pittsburgh for the sold out show tonight
    and I’d say it’s nice to be here but that would be a lie,
    You can all tip me money for playing my guitar
    cuz I’ll never turn it down,
    In fact I should get a lot of money for even coming back to this crappy town!”

    Met with boos and an inaudible chant, and actually was worse than it looks on paper. Dillinger was cheered, mostly just people having fun with the 10 chants. Sampson defeated Tye Dillinger after raking Tye’s eyes while the re​f was distracted, and pinned him following a swinging neckbreaker. Then he kissed his guitar and carried it over his shoulder as he exited. 

    Baron Corbin pinned Apollo Crews after the End of Days

    Baron out to good heel reaction, Apollo got a decent pop. “Boring Corbin” chants. Mostly an anti-Corbin crowd as opposed to a pro-Crews crowd.  Corbin looked strong for a lot of the match and Crews got a lukewarm response for his comeback. People were into some of his athletic spots and did react to those – including a plancha to the floor. Crowd got into the last bit with trading shots and some near falls. 

    Sami Zayn pinned Johnny Gargano

    They had a lively match, and both men were over with the crowd. A lot of singing for Zayn, and “Johnny Wrestling” chants for Gargano. Really a great final few minutes which led to Sami pinning Johnny with a Heluva Kick. After the match was over, Sami helped Johnny up and embraced him and raised his hand. The crowd gave Gargano a really nice standing ovation after the match while Zayn hopped out of the ring and applauded him on the outside. Really loud sustained “Johnny Wrestling” chant here as well.

    > Intermission

    Women’s Champion Bayley pinned Alexa Bliss with the Bayley to Belly suplex

    Bayley is very beloved by this audience. Little girls with Bayley shirts in attendance, Bayley made sure to give them hugs. There was a lot of stalling at the beginning with lots of people in the crowd screaming for hugs and Bayley hopping out to give some. There was a fun spot where she popped out and hugged a guy in the front row for a big pop and as she ran back in Alexa gave her a cheap shot. They did some mat wrestling and traded near falls in the final sequence which ended with Bayley catching Alexa with a sudden Bayley-to-Belly for the pin.

    American Alpha (Jason Jordan & Chad Gable) def. The Vaudevillians

    Gable pinned English with their back suplex finisher. Jordan and especially Gable were over huge. Good technical stuff here early on. Both teams looked sharp, all of the stuff was tight. Jordan and Gable are really impressive to see live, lots of spots I’ve never seen anyone do, and it all looked great. Big this is Wrestling chant for the earlier mat wrestling. 

    NXT Champion Finn Balor def. Samoa Joe

    They had a good match. It was quiet early. When the match went on, the show had been on for a solid 2 hours 30 minutes if you include the intermission. But they pulled the crowd in after some mat wrestling when Joe bailed to the outside. This led to brawling on the floor. Joe got some solid heel heat. He made a comeback and hit his flying kick thing in the corner. Crowd started with a “Joe Joe Joe” chant after all the boos and Joe just looked at the crowd and shook his head.

    Finn threw Joe back outside and his a baseball slide. He hit the footstomp to Joe while Joe was still standing and hunched over for a nearfall. This is Awesome chants. Joe hit a bad ass clothesline for a 2 count. Dueling punches, Joe catches Balor in a rear naked, Balor escapes, misses a corner kick. Joe went for the Buster and Balor countered it into a sunset flip pin for another near fall. Final sequence was really good. Balor ended up hitting his kick to the corner and the Coup de Grace for the win.

  • NXT TV taping spoilers: a killer TakeOver Dallas card is finalized

    The big news from tonight’s NXT tapings at Full Sail University in Orlando, FL, is that Nakamura is going to debut at NXT TakeOver in Dallas, TX, as part of Wrestlemania weekend.

    The following are the tapings for March’s NXT shows with initial reports that they weren’t very good. 

    *****

    Your NXT TakeOver Dallas lineup for 4/1 based on what happened Wednesday:

    • NXT Champion Finn Balor vs. Samoa Joe
    • Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Sami Zayn
    • Austin Aries vs. Baron Corbin
    • Women’s Champion Bayley vs. Asuka
    • NXT Tag Champions Dash & Dawson vs. Jason Jordan & Chad Gable
    • Apollo Crews vs. Elias Samson

    Results from J.J. Williams:

    Dark match saw Adrien Reese beat Billie Kay w/ Sylvester LeFort via top rope stunner. Good showing by both women, Adrien will do well on tv, personality shines through. Billie Kay and LeFort are an interesting pairing as we rarely see male managers for female competitors. 

    3/9/16 –

    Samoa Joe won 2/3 falls to become #1 Contender to the NXT Championship against Sami Zayn. I have this match going 40 minutes, the first fall didn’t occur until 20 minutes in as Joe hit the muscle buster. Crowd was super in to Sami Zayn tonight, singing his theme song, then the ole’ chants. It quieted down for those first 20 because Joe was putting a beating on Sami. Early in the second fall, Joe got busted open by a headbut, ref asked the trainer to wipe Joe’s head real quick before we got going again. During fall two, Sami took a huge dive to the outside to take Joe out, then was able to lock in the Koji Clutch for his fall victory. Fall three was of course the best and most heated action, Sami hit a sunset flip powerbomb off the top for a nearfall, Joe was then able to hit a huge powerbomb, then in to a Boston Crab, transitioned in to a Crossface for a near submission, Sami was able to lock Joe in the Clutch for a near submission. The finish saw Sami Zayn submit to the Clutch. 

    3/16/16 –

    The Hype Bros beat Angelo Dawkins and Kenneth Crawford via Hype Ryder. Crawford was making his tv debut here. 

    Emma w/ Dana Brooke beat Deonna Purrazzo via submission with the Emma Lock. Another good showing by Emma here in NXT, she just carries herself like a star. Deonna held her own yet again with a much more experienced wrestler.

    Tommaso Ciampa beat Jesse Sorensen via submission using a bridging arm bar. Quick yet physical match, Ciampa has been impressive. 

    NXT Women’s Champion Bayley & Asuka beat Eva Marie & Nia Jax when Bayley hit the Belly To Bayley on Eva Marie. As usual, huge heat on Eva, “You Can’t Wrestle” chants. After Bayley got the win, Nia carried Eva away on her shoulders. After the referee raised the winners’ hands, Mr. Regal made his way on to the stage to announce that Asuka is the new #1 Contender to the NXT Women’s Championship and would face Bayley at Takeover Dallas. The two were standing side by side during this announcement, then Asuka stepped around so she could look directly at Bayley. 

    3/23/16 –

    Chad Gable & Jason Jordan beat The Vaudevillains to become #1 Contenders to the NXT Tag Team Championships. Great action as per usual with these two teams, Jordan is the best hot tag in wrestling. Finish saw American Alpha put Aiden English up for the assisted german suplex and the win. They will face Dash & Dawson at Takeover Dallas.

    Sami Zayn is out for a promo, talked about how even though he doesn’t have a title match at Takeover Dallas he still wants to wrestle on the show, that NXT is like his baby. Mr. Regal again makes his way on the stage and says Sami Zayn will have a match at Takeover Dallas and it will be against NXT’s newest signings, one of the best competitors in the world, the tron goes to static, then Shinsuke Nakamura’s hair from behind, he turns around and the place is going wild. Loudest reaction I’ve heard in Full Sail. He said something yet the cheer was still going so nobody I know was able to catch what he said. Sami Zayn vs. Shinsuke Nakamura at Takeover Dallas.

    Johnny Gargano beat Elias Samson, post match Samson attacked Johnny from behind and tried to rough him up before Apollo Crews ran towards the ring to stare down Elias. 

    NXT Champion Finn Balor beat Rich Swann with the Bloody Sunday DDT in a non title match. Swann was out first to a great reaction, one of the most charismatic wrestlers to show up in quite a while. Once the people realized he was facing Finn, we had some back and forth chants but majority still for the champ. Great athletic action, Swann is the type of wrestler Finn can do amazing work with. Coup de Grace followed by the BloodySunday for the win. 

    Alexa Bliss w/ Blake & Murphy beat Sarah Dobson ( SHINE’s Crazy Mary ) with the Sparkle Splash. Short yet good match to showcase Alexa. 

    Bull Dempsey vs. Danny Burch never happened as Samoa Joe attacked Bull before he made his way to the ring, then went in the ring to attack Burch as well. Refs can’t stop Joe.

    3/30/16 –

    Asuka beat Emma w/ Dana Brooke via submission with the Asuka Lock. This match went over ten minutes, crowd wasn’t as in to it as their previous matches, of course. Emma had control most of the match before Asuka fired up and applied her chicken wing crossface.

    Austin Aries beat Riddick Moss via submission with the Last Chancery. Good reaction for Aries making his Full Sail debut, basic match to showcase Aries before getting his hold on Moss.

    Chad Gable & Jason Jordan beat John Skyler & Corey Hollis with the assisted german suplex. Showcase for American Alpha before their title match. 

    Baron Corbin beat QT Marshall with a side slam. Then post match he hit the End Of Days which lead to a “One More Time” chant, he teased it, then waved the crowd off before leaving to even more boooes. They’ve had him win a few matches with the side slam to build it up as a secondary finish. Still a lot of heat on Baron after all this time.

    NXT Tag Team Champions Dash & Dawson beat Tucker Knight & Steve Cutler and in a non title match with the shatter machine on Tucker Knight. Most of the match saw Dash & Dawson making quick tags to keep the punishment on Steve Cutler. Tucker was able to take a hot tag and run wild for a moment before the champs were able to give him the run around and a quick tag to catch the big man off guard before hitting their finish. 

    Apollo Crews beat Alex Riley with his big slam. After the match, Elias Samson made his way on the stage to sing Crews a song. They’ll face each other at Takeover Dallas. 

    Samoa Joe beats Bull Dempsey with the Clutch rather quickly and doesn’t let go of the hold, referees keep trying to get him to break the hold, Mr. Regal tries to send men out to handle Joe yet he destroys them as well, Finn Balor runs down and we have ourselves a brawl. They make their way to the commentary area, Finn even dove off the desk on to Joe, the brawl started and stopped a few times with Finn ending with the upper hand. That’s our final build up for Samoa Joe vs. Finn Balor II at Takeover Dallas.

    William Regal announced that Nakamura was coming to TakeOver.

  • WWE NXT recap for 1/13/2016: Samoa Joe, Sami Zayn, Baron Corbin all compete plus Bayley!

    Check out WrestlingOutsiders.com for 100% free MMA and Pro Wrestling podcasts!

    The Big News: All three participants in the triple threat #1 Contender’s Match had singles matches this week and all three came out victorious

    The Medium News: Bayley and her #1 Contender Carmella continued the build to their title match by teaming up to defeat Emma and Alexa Bliss.

    The Little Beaver Sized News: Rich Swann debuted, in a losing effort to Baron Corbin.

    1.) Sami Zayn submitted Adam Rose

    All three men who will compete in the #1 Contender’s Match next week will have matches tonight, so of course we kick things off with Sami Zayn! This is Zayn’s first match in Full Sail since May. The last time Rose was here on NXT he didn’t allow his music to be played, which got him heat. Now he just let it play while he implied he hated his own theme.

    Rose got just enough offense so that this wasn’t a total squash. One person in the crowd tried to get a “Leo Kruger” chant going, but everyone else ignored it and chanted for Sami. Rose hit a Diving Headbutt, which you could tell he was afraid of the landing as he braced himself to the point that it looked ridiculous on slow motion replay. Out of nowhere Zayn hit the STO and slapped on the Koji Clutch for the submission.

    -Alex interviewed Johnny Gargano about his match with Samoa Joe. Gargano pointed out that Joe has been upset about not winning the NXT Title at Takeover and has been taking it out on everyone. Gargano said he is all heart and as long as there is a heart beat he will not back down.

    -Gable and Jordan were outside the arena, talking about being the Alpha Males of NXT. After talking back and forth they named their team American Alpha and said they will beat Blake & Murphy next week.

    Jordan finally said the “Ready, Willing and Gable” line.

    2.) Apollo Crews pinned Tye Dillinger

    This is a rematch of Crews debut back at NXT Takeover: Brooklyn. Dillinger, despite being the Perfect 10, didn’t win 5 matches in 2015. Him and Jason Jordan broke up as a team 10 times and then he has lost almost every match since becoming the Perfect 10.

    Crews picked Dillinger up for a suplex. In his efforts to get out of it Dillinger dropped knees down to Crews’ head, but Apollo still dropped him with the suplex. Apollo went for a Springboard WhatAManeuver, but Dillinger tripped him up and hit a nice looking Suicide Dive. Back in the ring he even got a near fall with a Running Twisting Knee to the face. The announcers talked about how no one had ever kicked out of that move. You know, the one he has used maybe one other time. Whatever. Crews won with a twisting sit out power bomb.

    After the match Crews talked about not liking matches that end in DQ, so he wants a match with Finn Balor.

    -Alex was trying to interview Blake and Murphy, but they were ignoring him. Alexa took over and said Blake & Murphy blew it in London, saying they are so much better than what they showed then.

    -A short video package for The Vaudevillians aired. They were angry young men.

    3.) Baron Corbin pinned Rich Swann

    It is the debut of Rich Swann, who got some screaming and hollering from the fans. The announcers mentioned that he was one of the top independent wrestlers in the world. Swann looked really good in the match. At one point he took a backdrop and did a full flip, landing flat on his face.

    Swann did his best to avoid Corbin like he had the Plague and chopped Baron down with kicks. Swann came off the top rope, but Baron avoided him and hit something that looked more like a Black Hole Slam for the win.

    -Alex interviewed Bayley and Carmella. Carmella was happy about being #1 Contender and getting to wrestle her friend. I smell a heel turn. Bayley just started talking about their upcoming tag match when Dash & Dawson came up and made Carmella go crazy when pointed out that Enzo & Cass can never win the big one.

    4.) Bayley & Carmella defeated Alexa Bliss & Emma

    Emma and Alexa attacked Bayley before the bell, attacking her ribs before the match even started . Despite that Bayley still started the match despite being injured. This was an alright match, but was almost a handicap match. They got the heat on Bayley. When Bayley scratched and crawled and dragged himself to the corner Alexa knocked Carmella off the apron.

    Bayley made her own comeback, which got halted when Dana Brooke interfered to give the heels back the advantage. Finally Bayley was able to avoid her foes and make the tag. Carmella went nuts on both girls and made Alexa tap to a leg scissors.

    -Alex interviewed Finn Balor. Balor accepted Apollo Crews challenge to a non title match.

    5.) Samoa Joe submitted Johnny Gargano

    The fans chanted Johnny Wrestling until half of the crowd decided to chant for Joe. Gargano got a little bit of offense, so Joe went outside the ring. Gargano went to run down the apron at him, but Joe tripped him up and Gargano crashed face first on the apron.

    Gargano made a brief comeback, including hitting a slingshot DDT, but ended up kicked in the face and locked in the Coquina Clutch for the tap out. Good match, but not nearly as good as the Ciampa match a few weeks ago.

    The announcers ended the show by wishing good luck to Sami Zayn and Baron Corbin, putting over that they have to face a monster next week.

  • NXT Green Bay, WI, house show results: Finn Balor vs. Sami Zayn, Bayley vs. Alexa Bliss

    Submitted by Josh Hayes and Vash

    NXT Tag Champions Scott Dawson and Dash Wilder vs. Enzo and Cass

    Enzo and Cass are just the perfect act to kick off a show. Crowd loved them, and did Enzo’s introduction right along with him. Match itself was a solid opener, with Enzo being the babyface in peril for most of the match as he worked to make the hot tag to Cass. In the end though, Dash rolled up Enzo and used the ropes for leverage to get the win. But after the match, Enzo and Cass fought them off to make the crowd happy.

    Bull Dempsey vs. Elias Sampson

    Elias Sampson won. Nothing much of note in the match itself, but Bull wore a cheese head hat to the ring, which led to a spot after the match where Sampson acted like he was going to put the cheese head on to get a pop but then he just stopped, spat in it, and threw it out of the ring and left. Then Bull retrieved it and looked at it for a while and so, since it’s cheese, the crowd chanted for him to eat it. So he bit it and the crowd cheered. 

    Tomasso Ciampa vs. Tye Dillinger

    Good match, but the crowd wasn’t that into the match itself. They were more into doing the 10 chant. Tye Dillinger won, meaning yes, three matches in and a face had yet to win a match at this point. But that was about to change.

    NXT Women’s Champion Bayley vs. Alexa Bliss

    Please indulge me while I state the obvious: Bayley should be on the main roster, as she is a megastar. She was the first person to get a loud pop when her music hit since Enzo and Cass in the opener. The crowd did the usual Bayley chants and songs. She responded to the “Bayley’s gonna hug you” chant by hugging the ref, and the crowd then chanted “one more time” so she did. And here’s how over Bayley is — after all the usual singing and chanting died down and the match was really getting started, one (1) guy shouted “BAYLEY YOU SUCK!” and the entire crowd boo’ed that guy out of the building. He got what he wanted.

    Good but basic match, with Bayley doing all her usual spots, which is what the crowd wanted to see, especially the Belly-to-Bayley Suplex, which is what won the match. At one point where, if I remember the pretense right, Alexa was almost counted out, but when she got back in the ring, the crowd started chanting 10 again. So Bayley just did Dillinger’s Perfect 10 shuffle with the cartwheel and everything.

    > Intermission

    Baron Corbin vs. Apollo Crews

    Crews was really over during his entrance, but he seemed to be a little less over during the body of the match, until he made his comeback at least, and won. Corbin was boo’ed at first but then people in my section started getting into him. There was a portion of the match where Corbin threw Crews out of the ring, and Crews lied outside for a while before getting back into the ring, only to be thrown right back out. Then after spending a lot of time outside the ring again, Crews got back in and threw Corbin out. Seemed like a good spot on paper (perhaps) but crowd seemed kinda bored during this long-ish period of non-action.

    However, immediately after that, Crews hit a big assai moonsault which was the first real high spot of the show, and from then on the match was really good. Crews is great at making comebacks. Corbin went for the End of Days at one point, but Crews did a back-flip over his arm, took him down, and hit a standing moonsault, followed by a standing shooting star press to get the win. Probably the best pure match up to that point. 

    Eva Marie and Nia Jax vs. Carmella and Peyton Royce

    Eva was hated as usual. In fact, every time she tagged in, the entire crowd immediately gave thunderous boos. She probably had the most heat on the show. Eva and Jax won when Jax pinned Peyton. I know it’s a house show and all, but on a show where a bunch of heels won, it was weird that the new #1 contender to the Women’s Title didn’t get the win. 

    NXT Champion Finn Balor vs. Sami Zayn

    In this face vs. face match, Finn played the role of the subtle heel. Although the crowd in my section at least seemed to be more behind Finn anyway. He did a LOT of Bullet Club pistol gestures for what it’s worth. At the beginning of the match, there was a dueling chant, but eventually the crowd just started chanting “Both these guys”. Another chant-related thing happened when just a few seconds after they locked up for the first time, a small portion of the crowd started the “this is awesome” chant. I thought there was no way that would catch on yet, since it had just started. But it did pick up a little bit of steam as the chants got somewhat louder. But then thankfully someone chanted the obvious: “It just started”, and that became a dueling chant. It should be noted that later on in the match, the “this is awesome” chant occurred again, as well as “this is wrestling” but it was more warranted that time.

    Anyway, the match itself was probably the match of the night. Although I got the sense that by their standards it was probably really basic. No false finishes except for one where Sami hit the Blue Thunder Bomb for a 2 count. They told the story of Sami taking a beating but still getting back up. Finn knocked him down once, started to go to the top rope, but then he would notice Sami getting to his feet so he’d get back in the ring and knock him down again. That happened a few times until Sami fired back with a flurry of punches of his own and made a comeback. They ended up brawling outside the ring and Sami went for the Torpedo DDT, but Finn hit him with a pelee kick and Sami ended up knocked out draped over the bottom turnbuckle. So then Finn went up to the apron, casually pushed Sami’s limp body back into the ring, went up top and hit the Coupe De Grace for the win. After the match, they shook hands and Sami raised Finn’s arm.

    Notes:

    Bayley and Apollo Crews and maybe a few others that I didn’t notice spent a lot of time after their matches taking pictures with fans in the front row as well. NXT is a very enjoyable experience live. If you’ve never been to one of their shows, you’ve probably heard people say that before, but it’s completely true. I had a blast. Crowd was hotter than most Green Bay crowds I’ve been in. The show itself, while very good, was a bit strange in that a lot of heels went over which seems to go against what they usually do at house shows.

  • WWE NXT results: Women’s #1 contender battle royal, Sami Zayn returns to Full Sail

    Before starting, please check out WrestlingOutsiders.com for 5 days of free wrestling and MMA podcasts every single week.

    • The Big News: In two weeks Samoa Joe, Sami Zayn and Baron Corbin will square off in the triple threat #1 Contender’s match.
    • The Medium News: Carmella won a battle royal to become Bayley’s next challenger.
    • The Little Beaver Sized News: Asuka kicked Eva Marie’s head clean off her shoulders.

    After a 2 week break, let’s see if I remember how to do this.

    *****

    Rich Brennan and Byron Saxton are gone, Tom Phillips is here and Corey Graves never left. The show starts with the return of Mr. William Regal! Mr. Regal thanked the fans for making NXT the fastest growing promotion in the world before announcing a battle royal with the winner getting a shot at the Women’s Championship.

    Mr. Regal introduced Sami Zayn before leaving. This is Sami’s first appearance in the NXT Arena since NXT Takeover: Unstoppable in May. He got quite the reaction coming out, with a standing ovation and chants of “Welcome back” and an extended “Ole” song.

    Sami loved being back and announced that he is here to be the first ever 2x NXT Champion, which led to chants of “two times”. This brought out Samoa Joe, who is not happy about losing to Finn Balor at NXT Takeover: London.

    Joe stated that he is happy Sami is back and he can appreciate Zayn wanting to be champion, but he doesn’t deserve the title match. The last time Sami was in the ring he had to be saved by Joe after a beating by Kevin Owens. Joe pointed out that Finn Balor said he did not beat Joe, he survived. Joe finished by saying that if Sami wants to not get injured again he will leave the ring.

    That brought out Baron Corbin. Corbin agreed with Joe and said Zayn belongs in the back of the line. At Takeover he beat Apollo Crews, while Samoa Joe failed in his shot at the gold. While Sami was at home he was passed by someone hungrier and more durable. Corbin proclaimed himself to be the uncrowned NXT Champion.

    Joe pointed out he choked out Corbin in Brooklyn, so he doesn’t belong in this conversation. Joe threatened Sami again before leaving. Sami said he was standing in the ring and Baron attacked him from behind as Joe walked away. Baron went for End of Days, but Sami got around it and booted Corbin out of the ring. Joe teased attacked Zayn from behind, but stopped when Zayn turned around.

    – Bayley cut a promo saying that she survived the match with Nia Jax and honestly didn’t know she still had all that in her. She is jealous because she loves battle royals and may give the winner a hug.

    -They announced the 2015 NXT Awards:

    • Tag Team of the Year: Enzo Amore & Colin Cassady
    • Female Competitor of the Year: Bayley
    • Male Competitor of the Year: Finn Balor
    • Takeover of the Year: NXT Takeover: Brooklyn
    • Match of the Year: Bayley vs Sasha Banks from Brooklyn
    • Overall Competitor Of The Year: Finn Balor

    All the winners got a plaque with a golden ring bell and hammer on it.

    Tommaso Ciampa submitted Danny Birch

    20 minutes in and we get the first match of 2016. Tommaso Ciampa, complete with correct spelling of his name, one on one with Danny Birch. Birch didn’t get an entrance, but he got a bit of offense. Ciampa hit a really nice draping STO, which should have been his finish, but Birch kicked out. Birch got a near fall with a punch to the face. No, really. Ciampa picked up the win with an armbar after rolling over Birch’s back. That looked really nice.

    – Enzo and Cass said they will not forget being injured by Dash & Dawson. Enzo said real G’s never lose and real men don’t hide behind women. They vowed to finish the business between them.

    -A promo package for Billie Kay, Deonna Purrazzo and Emma, all of whom said they would win the battle royal. The highlight was Billie starting her promo by saying “In case you forgot, I am Billie Kay”. I guarantee 90% of the people watching had no idea.

    -Mr. Regal announced Sami Zayn vs Samoa Joe vs Baron Corbin in a #1 Contender’s Match in 2 weeks.

    NXT Tag Team Champions Dash & Dawson defeated The Ascension

    The Ascension continue to be God’s to the NXT crowd. I always think it’s funny how much they put over their Tag Title reign when there were literally no other teams for about 6 months and the gimmick was every week they would take on a different jobber team.

    Viktor started the match by beating the living crap out of Dash Wilder. Honestly he probably beat the dead crap out of him too. Dash got tired of being stiffed, so he leveled Viktor with a couple blows too. The champs got the heat on Viktor while the announcers talked about Enzo & Cass being tag team of the year. Konnor got the hot tag and used the Dusty Rhodes flip, flop and fly routine on Dawson.

    We had a Pier 6 break out before Dash & Dawson got the win with their finish.

    – Nia Jax was being worked on by the trainer and the trainer did not clear her to compete in the battle royal. Mr. Regal refused to let her join while Eva Marie was quite happy that her largest opponent (even though she is a friend) wasn’t in the match.

    – Carmella, Peyton Royce and Alexa Bliss all said they would win the battle royal. Carmella spent Christmas in a tanning bed.

    Elias Sampson pinned Corey Hollis

    Elias Sampson does not use public transportation. Seriously that is the tidbit we got from Corey Graves. Corey Hollis is the foe this week. Hollis looked at him like “Dude, remember when we were nameless jobbers together?”

    This is Sampson’s second match since being repackaged. The first one saw him beat Bull Dempsey in a bad match no one cared about. This one saw him win with a swinging neck breaker in a meh match that a couple people cared about.

    After the match Sampson announced that what NXT needs is what he is.

    – Alex Reyes interviewed Finn Balor about the upcoming #1 Contender’s Triple Threat Match. Balor said the Joe match was physically and mentally draining. Joe is a monster, but as champion he never rests and faces every challenger. He said all of the three challengers plead a good case as to why they should get the title match. As far as he is concerned the title will stay with him regardless who wins.

    – Cameron, Aliyah (making her debut), Liv Morgan and Asuka all said they will win the battle royal.

    Carmella won the #1 Contender’s Battle Royal, last eliminating Eva Marie

    Emma, Alexa, Carmella, Eva Marie and Asuka were the only ones to get an entrance. Eva pouted when her music was cut off for Asuka’s. Eva took offense to Asuka walking by her, so when the bout started Eva had something to say, so Asuka kicked her head off.

    This was an over the top rope battle royal, so Eva was allowed to roll under the bottom rope and have emergency head re-attachment surgery before continuing. Aliyah, in her debut, was the first one out. That was followed by Deonna Purrazzo, who can go lose a battle royal in TNA now, Cameron, Liv Morgan, Bliss, Emma, Royce, Kay, Asuka and Eva Marie.

    Morgan lifted Cameron up for a power bomb, but dropped her, so they went right back to the spot, which led to Bliss throwing them both out. Bliss should have been the favorite since she is shorter than the top rope, but she didn’t make the final four. Eva stayed on the floor the entire match until Asuka eliminated everyone else in the ring. Eva threw Asuka over the top rope to the floor, but she forgot one person. Earlier Carmella was knocked to the floor and the entire crowd knew what was going to happen. Sure enough Carmella got in and threw out Eva Marie to win!

    After the match, Bayley ran down and hugged her new #1 Contender as the show ended.

    So that does it for this week. Until next week, remember to say your vitamins and take your prayers.

  • NXT Tampa results: Manny “La Sombra” Andrade debuts; Finn Balor, Asuka, more

    Submitted by J.J. Williams

    – Hype Bros defeated Marcus Louis and Sawyer Fulton via pinfall with the Hype Ryder on Marcus. Good reaction for the Bros here. Fun action.

    – Elias Samson beat Rich Swann with his new neckbreaker finish. Good match, Swann is beloved already and Elias had a lot of heat here. After the win, Elias hopped the barricade and drifted away.

    – Eva Marie, Alexa Bliss and Peyton Royce defeated Liv Morgan, Aliyah, and Adrien Reese. The negative reaction for Eva is amazing these days. Eva got the pin on Aliyah.

    – Manny Andrade (the former La Sombra) made his NXT debut and defeated Riddick Moss with running knees to the face while Moss is laying with his head on the bottom turnbuckle. Manny wasn’t known yet, so he had to win over this crowd.

    – Jason Jordan, Chad Gable and Apollo Crews defeated NXT Champion Dash & Dawson and Angelo Dawkins. American Alpha is very over, a lot of solid wrestling here. Gable hit a delayed roll through Chaos Theory. It was a thing of beauty. Jordan is the best hot tag in NXT, and cleared house before Gable scored the pin after the assisted German Suplex.

    – Baron Corbin defeated Alex Riley with the EOD. Physical match. Baron was jawing with the crowd a lot.

    – Asuka defeated Billie Kay (w Sylvester LeFort) via Asuka Lock submission. Good match here, all about Asuka.

    – NXT Champion Finn Balor and Bull Dempsey defeated Tye Dillinger and Tino Sabatelli. A lot of comedy with Bull doing his jumping jacks routine and upsetting the heels with his antics. Finn was extra animated in this match as he Irish whipped Tino across the ring and chopped him 9 times before Dillinger got in his way to stop the tenth, Finn then chopped Tye for the large ten chant. Balor got the win with the stomp and sent everyone home happy.

  • WWE NXT Blackpool, England, results: Finn Balor vs. Sami Zayn vs. Baron Corbin

    Submitted by Stephen Lyon | Blackpool, England

    The latest stop on NXT’s UK tour was in Blackpool, England tonight, for a sold out show at the 2,000 capacity Empress Ballroom, a beautiful building set up wonderfully with WWE’s usual production and lighting. It was a fantastic show, with several very good matches, an incredible atmosphere throughout and quite clearly, the performers were having an absolute ball in front of such a hot crowd.

    It felt like a special show, rather than just another stop on the tour. Part of that was due to the ornate ballroom they were running (rather than a regular arena like other stops on the tour), and part of it was due to the obvious factor of it being William Regal’s (and Robby Brookside’s too) return to the place they largely first made their names in wrestling some 30+ years ago. Both spoke about this in separate promos later on.

    NXT Tag Champions Dash & Dawson def. Enzo Amore & Big Cass to retain

    Enzo & Cass were predictably over huge, with everyone singing along to their opening catchphrases. They had a really good 20 minute match with the champs going over. Amore sold most of the way and they built to Cass getting the hot tag.

    Asuka def. Alexa Bliss

    Another really fun match. Both very over. Asuka made Bliss submit in 10 minutes.

    Bull Dempsey def. Tye Dillinger

    This was tons and tons more entertaining than you could possibly imagine and was one of my favourite matches of the night. Mostly comedy but really funny comedy, with the heel (Dillinger) being infuriated by the crowd’s antics. Firstly, fans were chanting ‘Bull is gorgeous’. They liked doing the ‘Ten, Ten’ thing with their hands like Dillinger, but when Dillinger went for a test of strength with one hand, fans were chanting ‘Five, Five’. Then when he pointed angrily with one finger, fans were chanting ‘One, One’. Each time, Dillinger flipped his lid. You probably had to be there, but the crowd had an absolute ball with this match. Dempsey won with a sit down splash off the top rope.

    – Jordan & Gable def. Blake & Murphy

    This was the match of the night. The crowd reaction for Gable & Jordan was OFF THE CHARTS. I’ve being going to wrestling for 25 years, have been to 5 Wrestlemanias and lots of post-WM Raws, as well as tons of wild UK indy crowds, but the duelling chants for Jordan and Gable at the start of this match was nuts, up there with the very best reactions I’ve witnessed in person. They literally didn’t lock up for the first 5 minutes because the crowd were singing, jumping up and down, going crazy. Blake & Murphy were great too, sold being pissed off, stormed off, came back, and the chants would start again. I noticed Canyon Ceman come out at the side of the entrance area during this craziness and he was visibly getting a kick out of it, taping the reactions on his phone. And then the match was excellent. Gable was phenomenal; how this guy (and Jordan for that matter) are not already on the main roster is travesty. 

    Intermisson

    After intermission, William Regal came out to a heroes’ welcome in his adopted home town. He came out to his normal theme, then after a few bars, it stopped. Instead they then played old-style Blackpool ballroom organ music, which he may have entered the ring to 30+ years ago. Regal engaged in some comedic banter with some overly rowdy ringside fans, and mentioned how, even though he originally wrestled many times in Blackpool in the early 1980s, this was his first time in this ballroom. He mentioned his former mentor Bobby Barron, and paid tribute to all the fans in attendance. This was all great. 

    – Nia Jaxx def. Carmella

    Quick match. Jax was over as a heel. Crowd liked Carmella and were chanting ‘How ya’ doing?’ at her.

    – Samoa Joe def. Apollo Crews

    Another very good match. Both worked really hard. They were a few ‘Uhaa Nation’ chants for Crews at the start of the match, as Crews wrestled numerous times in this region for Preston City Wrestling over the past few years prior to his WWE signing and was very popular. The fans then got into singing the Apollo Crews name. I thought it was really interesting seeing how Crews has adapted his wrestling style to WWE style, slowing down but making things mean more. Joe won with the muscle buster. Crowd cheered Joe too and didn’t really boo him at all.

    – NXT Women’s Champion Bayley def. Emma (w/Dana Brooke) to retain

    Crowd heavily cheered Bayley as expected. Another good match. Emma had a spot where she picked up Bayley’s belt and tried to run to the back with it, and the crowd sung ‘Same old Emma, always stealing!’ Ouch. Dana was thrown out by the referee for interfering prior to the finish.

    – NXT Champion Finn Balor def. Baron Corbin & Sami Zayn to retain

    Zayn was heavily cheered,more than Balor. Corbin was hated, but wasn’t resented like I thought he might be. There were some comedic spots where Zayn and Balor put on each other’s jackets and imitated each other. There was a frequent spot in the show where the crowd were chanting ‘<Wrestler X> give us a wave’, mainly directed at babyfaces. They sung ‘Corbin – give us a wave’ to mock him. Rather than ignore it like a heel, he sarcastically waved, which led to ‘Thank you Corbin’ chants. Finish saw Balor do a double foot stomp off the top on to Corbin for the win. Besides the comedy spots, all three worked very hard, much harder than a usual WWE main roster house show main event.

    Afterwards, Balor and Zayn remained in the ring. Zayn took the mic and said it was great to be back, and paid tribute to Regal for bringing him into WWE and making him want to be a wrestler. He then praised Robby Brookside and asked him to come out. Brookside came out to a huge ovation, with a ‘God Save The Queen’ Sex Pistols-type theme music used. Brookside gave a similar speech to Regal earlier, putting over their former mentor Bobby Baron and also paid tribute to the crowd, to end the show.

    Notes & Observations:

    – All in all, a fantastic show. With the hot crowd and unique setting, I’m kind of surprised they didn’t hold the Takeover event here. I get why they picked London, but Blackpool would have looked great on tv. Maybe in the future.

    – Crowd booed any mentions of the WWE TLC ppv (an advert played on the big screen), and during several matches, chanted ‘Better than Raw’.

    – The NXT crew was very visible around the town during the day, as most were clad in black NXT-branded tracksuits. A lot of the NXT crew including Matt Bloom had an afternoon meal at the Harry Ramsden’s Fish & Chips restaurant.

    – There were very few kids in the audience, the show drawing mostly young adults.

    – There was an interesting rumour going around (unconfirmed, but take this for what its’ worth) that the WWE Raw & Smackdown tv tapings next November will be held in Glasgow, Scotland for the first time, at the Hydro Arena. This, if true, would be a fascinating move, as they would likely be taking place 2 weeks before ICW runs the Hydro Arena for the biggest show in their history. I guess another business rival has been identified.

  • WWE NXT Orlando house show results: Finn Balor, Apollo Crews, and Tye Dillinger team up

    Submitted by JJ Williams

    – Rich Swann beat Axel Tischer via an incredible standing splash maneuver

    Great showing by Swann here. Instantly won over the crowd and worked a fast paced crisp match.

    – Asuka, Adrien Reese and Aliyah beat Emma, Cameron and Billie Kay

    Asuka caught Billie in the Asuka Lock.

    – Tough Enough Josh promo segment where he was heelish and said his name is Bronson Mathews.

    – Bull Dempsey beat Tino Sabatelli with a seated splash off the top

    Comedy early. Bull did jumping jacks to upset Tino.

    – Marcus Louis beat Oscar The Luchador with a rock bottom type slam

    – Enzo, Big Cass w/ Carmella, and Levis Valenzuela beat NXT Tag Champions Dash & Dawson and Elias Samson

    Pre match promo by Zo and Cass about taking the titles at Takeover. Long match. Cass hit a side slam followed by a top rope splash on Samson for the win. Post match, Cass told them to play Levis’ music and it was time to fiesta!

    – Hugo Knox defeated Tucker Knight via spinning heel kick

    Back and forth match.

    – Nia Jax beat Daria in a squash

    Tough Enough Daria was out to cut a promo but before she could start, Nia Jax interrupted and challenged her to a match. 

    – NXT Champion Finn Balor, Apollo Crews, and Tye Dillinger beat Baron Corbin, Constantine, and Riddick Moss

    Long match, a lot of heat on Baron, crowd was behind Finn all the way. He received the the hot tag and finished off the match with the dropkick to the corner and the double foot stomp off the top.

  • WWE NXT recap for 11/25/2015: Bayley vs Eva Marie

    -Just a fun reminder to check out the Wrestling Outsiders Podcast and our interview with Dave Meltzer, which is live right now at http://www.talkshoe.com/tc/139049

    The Big News: Despite WWE Corporate stacking the deck in Eva Marie’s favor, Bayley retained her championship in a fun, well booked main event.

    The Medium News: Sami Zayn returns soon!

    The Little Beaver-sized News: Michael Cole is in charge with Mr. Regal recovering from surgery

    -Michael Cole is in the ring to oversee the contract signing for the Finn Balor-Samoa Joe title match at NXT Takeover. Cole is booed until he mentions that Mr. Regal has undergone successful surgery. Cole was booed again when he mentioned he was put in charge.

    Cole says that Mr. Regal ixnayed the Bayley-Eva Marie match, but WWE Corporate overruled Mr. Regal and that match will happen tonight.

    With that Finn Balor and Samoa Joe came to the ring for their signing. Balor came out first, took the mic and told Joe he is not entitled to the NXT Title and plans on sticking his foot down Joe’s throat.

    Joe stormed to the ring, signed the contract and immediately walked away without saying a word. Balor was calling him a coward and tried to get Joe to stick around, but Joe was having nothing of it.

    Finn walked away, but when he got to the top of the ramp Joe attacked him, ran him to the ring and threw him in there. After a brief flurry of punches by both men Joe locked on the Coquina Clutch and choked out Finn.

    1.) NXT Tag Team Champions Dash Wilder & Scott Dawson defeated The Vaudevillians

    It is a tag team championship rematch. Just two weeks ago The Vaudevillians dropped the belts to Dash & Dawson and now they are looking to reclaim the belts.

    The champs got the heat on English by dropping him with a single arm DDT. It didn’t last long as Gotch got tagged in and went all manly on their foes until Dawson knocked his head off with a clothesline. Both teams went for their finish, but it got reversed both times. However, at the end of the day Dash blind tagged himself in, the champs hit their move and retained the championship.

    As the champs celebrated we saw the return of Enzo Amore & Colin Cassady! The fans exploded as Enzo and Cass lay a hurting on the champions. Dash and Dawson are sent packing and it looks like their future foes have been decided.

    -Eva Marie was sitting on William Regal’s desk. When Tom Phillips asked her why, she simply said that it is because she needs more space to get ready. Eva then went on to say that Bayley is a swell girl, but we need a real woman to be champion. She says she is happy to have the support of the entire WWE Universe, before showing a bunch of gifts left for her.

    Eva then introduced her new friend, Nia Jax, and said nothing beats friendship.

    -A video aired with a bearded man playing guitar. I bet he’s coming to NXT. All we saw was his beard and his clothes, with the video in black and white.

    2.) The match between Asuka and Dana Brooke never started

    On October 7 Asuka debuted at NXT Takeover by beating Dana Brooke all over the arena. Well Dana did not learn her lesson and here we are for a rematch.

    Dana cut a promo while walking to the ring when Emma attacked Asuka from behind! Asuka took care of her quickly, but when Asuka turned her attention back to Dana, Emma attacked again and put her in the Emma Lock. The heel duo walked off together with no match.

    As she got back to her feet, Asuka smiled. Someone is going to die.

    -Bayley cut a promo saying that Eva Marie is pretty and has WWE Corporate on her side, but the difference is Bayley is a wrestler and tonight she will show Eva why she is the Women’s Champion.

    -Sami Zayn returns soon. That’s good.

    3.) Apollo Crews pinned Jesse Sorensen

    Apollo is three weeks away from going one on one with Baron Corbin at NXT Takeover. Tonight he does battle with the man most famous for breaking his neck on a live TNA ppv. He has been on the show at least twice already, but the announcers acted like this was new.

    The highlight of the match was Apollo holding Jesse up for a suplex for 21 seconds before dropping him. Sorensen got just enough offense so it wasn’t a total squash, but Crews won with a sit out power bomb.

    After the match Crews officially accepted Baron’s challenge. I actually thought he did that last week. Oh well.

    -Baron Corbin immediately replied with a promo saying Apollo is going to be the answer to a trivia question because no one will remember him.

    -Charles Robinson walked to the ring before the main event and was added as a second referee. Robinson is here to ensure there will not be controversy in the match.

    Next week: Samoa Joe vs Tommaso Ciampa

    4.) NXT Women’s Champion Bayley pinned Eva Marie (Thank God)

    This is not the first time these two wrestled. Last year they tried to re-debut Eva Marie and she had an atrocious match with Bayley that she was taken off tv for a year and it finished 5th in the Worst Match of the Year in the Observer last year. Eva Marie had Nia Jax for immoral support and Bayley had 300 screaming fans. They are really pushing the idea of WWE Corporate trying to set up Eva Marie winning here.

    When they dimmed the lights for the introductions Eva Marie posed like a model while Bayley stood there and shook her head at the challenger. Eva was doing everything well, but was doing it a step slowly. At least nothing got botched. Anyway Eva hit a suplex, Bayley got up and hit the Belly to Bayley Suplex, but Nia Jax pulled the referee out, injuring him.

    Charles Robinson took over as Nia jumped up on the apron and laid out Bayley with a headbutt behind Charles’ back, but Eva only got a 2 count. Eva used some more of her slow offense until the champ took her head off with a clothesline. Bayley went for a corner charge, but Charles stepped in front of her, claiming Eva was in the ropes.

    Eva hit The Kendrick NOOO! YES! Bayley kicked out. Eva went for The Kendrick a second time, but Bayley pushed her into Charles, knocking him out of the ring. Nia interfered yet again, but Bayley yanked her off the apron, laying her out. After that Bayley hit a Belly to Bayley Suplex from the middle rope for the win!

    That was a fun match. They kept it simple and threw in a lot of smoke and mirrors to cover up for Eva’s shortcomings.

    After the match Nia laid out Bayley before dropping the championship on her prone body.

    -That does it for this week. Thank you for reading and I wish my American readers a very Happy Thanksgiving. Until next week, remember to say your vitamins and take your prayers!

  • WWE Dublin, Ireland, house show results: Seth Rollins possibly injured, Finn Balor vs. Sheamus

    Submitted by Clan Bushell

    Cesaro vs. The Miz

    Cesaro was super over in Dublin with Miz playing his part as the heel very well telling the crowd to shut up when he raises his hand. Cesaro hit the big swing and finished with the Sharpshooter for the win. Curtis Axel then came out and for a moment played the face but then told the Irish fans when his hand goes up, everyone shows up. He says he respects the Miz and he is the WWE’s must see superstar. Axel then says he and Miz could beat anybody in the arena or in the back.

    Big Show vs. The Miz & Curtis Axel

    Big Show comes out and sets up a 2 on 1 handicap match against Axel/Miz. Finishes with a double chokeslam Big Show win.

    Bo Dallas vs. R-Truth

    R-Truth gets a great reaction in Dublin for his What’s Up gimmick. R-Truth wins. Bo then looks upset before shouting Boo You Boo You at the Irish fans before running to the back.

    WWE Tag Team Champions The New Day vs. the Dudleys

    Both got a good reaction from the crowd. TND did the bit where they pretend to throw the crowd their shirts but fake it and leave it on the ring apron. Good back and forth match between the two teams with the New Day getting the roll-up for the win. Xavier attacked Bubba after the match and jumped on the turnbuckle to celebrate. Dudleys clean house and Xavier gets hit with the 3D.

    Tyler Breeze vs. Dolph Ziggler

    Breeze and Summer come out and Summer says “I’m so happy to be back in London, England” to a lot of boos from the Irish fans. Ziggler out with his hair long and straightened look like a glam rocker. I thought this was a great match with a few near falls and some good chemistry between the two. Ziggler eventually hits the superkick into the zig zag for the win.

    Brie Bella & Alicia Fox vs. Becky Lynch & WWE Divas Champion Charlotte with Paige as special guest ref

    Strange thing I found here was Becky came out with Charlotte to Charlotte’s entrance music. Thought the hometown girl would have got an entrance. Not a bad match. Paige doing a lot of heel ref work stopping Becky helping Charlotte, etc. Becky got the win with the disarmer, then they played her music for a few seconds before turning back to Charlotte’s.

    Finn Balor vs. Sheamus

    Best match of the night for me. Both got good reactions from the crowd. Started off slow but then near falls and some good action in and out of the ring. Balor got the win to a huge reaction from the crowd. Sheamus and Finn then shook hands after the match which the fans loved.

    WWE Champion Seth Rollins vs. Kane — No DQ

    Rollins out doing his usual heel work. Kendo sticks were used. Kane was put through two tables. Rollins seems to have injured himself going for the monkey flip into powerbomb through the table. Seemed to tweak his knee and the match could of been ended a bit early, but I’m not 100% on that though. Rollins got the win and when was then helped to the back by a WWE trainer.