The crowd was pretty into everything, and the whole tone of the show was about fun, so a lot of comedy and not a lot of super intense action. All the performers seemed to be having a blast in the ring. Bayley and Nakamura seemed to be the most popular merch, even ahead of Balor (though there were a lot of Bullet Club shirts).
– Bayley def. Alexa Bliss
Bayley won with a Bayley to Belly. Everyone loved Bayley, of course; she got one of the best reactions of the night.
– Manny Andrade def. Chris Girard
Crowd had no idea who either were and chanted “Let’s go rookies” at the start of the match. A few people were giving Girard grief for resembling Cesaro physically. Crowd was into Manny by the end. He teased a few dives but never pulled the trigger, and won with the double knees to the corner.
– Austin Aries def. Murphy
Austin worked an extended headlock sequence that got a “Headlock city” chant. He won with a running dropkick to the corner followed by Last Chance-arie for the submission.
– NXT Tag Champions American Alpha def. Sawyer Fulton and Alexander Wolfe
Alpha was over huge and people were buzzing for Jordan’s hot tag. Fulton and Wolfe’s Mad Max outfits got a brief “You look stupid” chant. The did a lot of contrived double team moves on Gable that kind of dragged the match, but the people went crazy for the ending. Alpha won with Grand Amplitude.
Intermission
– Tyler Breeze def. No Way Jose
Breeze got one of the biggest pops of the night for his surprise entrance. Crowd was super into Jose’s entrance music, and chanted his name to the Ole Ole cadence. Tyler made a brief promo on being one of the people who put NXT on the map, and the people chanted “Thank you Tyler.” This was probably the most fun match of the night.
Crowd treated both like babyfaces, and they did some really clever comedy spots. Biggest pop of the whole night might have been when Tyler did Scotty 2 Hotty’s worm, and Jose was booed when he tried doing the people’s elbow. Finish came when Tyler brought a chair in and tired to get the Eddie Guerrero DQ, then hit Jose with the supermodel kick over the bent-over referee’s back for the pin. Super fun match.
– NXT Women’s Champion Asuka def. Eva Marie
Eva was fine, and did a decent job of playing heel. Asuka won with the choke, which was kind of a flat ending. The event was in a convention center hall with no elevated seating, so for anyone past the first five rows, it was sometimes difficult to see mat level. I think many people couldn’t even see what was going on when they went to the finish.
– Finn Balor & Shinsuke Nakamura def. Tye Dillinger & NXT Champion Samoa Joe
Dillinger came out first and cut a promo on the Thunder, who were losing an NBA playoff game to the Spurs in the arena across the street. Nakamura got a great reception. People definitely see him as top-tier. Balor got a main event pop, and I was completely unprepared for the effect he had on the women in the audience. There were women around me who were nearly breathless seeing Finn in person. Joe came out last. Match was really entertaining but not super exciting, if that makes sense. Mainly, it centered around Tye working most of the match with Finn trying to get at Joe and Joe wanting nothing to do with either of his opponents.
When Joe and Nak entered the ring to square off, the atmosphere was electric. Of course, Joe immediately tagged out for great heat. Nakamura worked Tye’s fingers of all things, doing a fun snapping move that made it sound like he was breaking Tye’s finger. Each time he’d do it, the crowd would subtract from ten and chant “nine, eight,” and so on. Good action once Joe really got in there. Good guys won when Balor hit Tye with the Bloody Sunday after Nakamura knocked Joe out with the Kinshasa.
He attempted a springboard maneuver but didn’t make it all the way onto the ropes, slipped, and fell hard into the ring. Noah rolled him up and the ref threw the X up pretty quickly afterwards. He was tended to in the ring for a few minutes before being carried out on a stretcher. From what it appeared, his arms and legs were not moving although he was able to talk to those in the ring who were assisting him.
A fan in attendance noted on Twitter that he was told by EMTs that Crawford was flown out for medical attention, but that wasn’t confirmed. Our JJ Williams was there and noted that Crawford didn’t appear to be awake on the way to the back.
The Miami Herald had a big story on Crawford, 24, last year, who got into NXT by submitting photos and a resume through their online submission process.
Crowd loved chanting with Jose and popped for his antics. Match itself was tame, with lots of stalling and wristlocks. Jose won with a half nelson slam.
– Chris Girard vs Manny Andrade
Crowd didn’t react at all to their entrances, but got into it as it went along. Manny faked a moonsault from the top, then immediately hit a standing moonsault as Girard tried to roll out of the way for a huge reaction. Manny won with a running double knees to a sitting Girard in the corner.
– Tye Dillinger vs Austin Aries
Crowd was hot for both guys, with lots of dueling “Austin Aries/Perfect 10!” chants. They did a lot of mat wrestling, with a bunch of counters. The match was really good, and Austin eventually won with a roaring elbow.
– Triple Threat NXT Women’s Championship: Alexa Bliss vs Bayley vs Asuka (c)
This was a change from the online card, as it was supposed to be Bliss vs Asuka and Bayley vs Eva Marie. Pretty standard triple threat match, with one girl out of the ring most the time. Bayley hit Asuka with the Bayley to Belly, but Bliss threw her out, and got caught by the Asuka Lock for the finish.
– There was an intermission, where Tom Phillips came back out and pronounced the name of the town wrong. There was much booing.
– Tyler Breeze vs Shinsuke Nakamura
Before the match, Tyler cut a promo, essentially reminding us of his status as NXT gatekeeper. He’s fought everyone in NXT, and any new faces have to get through him. Cue the Nakamura chants. Nakamura got a huge reaction for everything he did, but the crowd loved both guys. They did pure comedy at first, with Nakamura trying to mock Breeze’s corner pose, and unable to get to the top rope, doing it on the bottom rope instead. Breeze tried to do Nakamura’s entrance pose on the rope, but couldn’t lean back far enough, so Nakamura gave him a hand. Later, Nakamura got a hold of Breeze’s camera and took a selfie. Nakamura kicked out of the Beauty Shot, and Tyler went for a chair. When the ref took it from him, Nakamura threw Breeze with the reverse powerslam and hit the Kinshasha for the win.
– Alexander Wolfe & Sawyer Fulton vs. NXT Tag Team Champions American Alpha (Chad Gable & Jason Jordan)
Wolfe and Fulton look like Mad Max characters. They overpowered Gable until he finally got the hot tag to Jordan. Alphas are fun to watch, but the crowd was a bit out of it after the Nakamura match, and Wolfe/Fulton didn’t do much interesting to get us back. American Alpha won with their assisted suplex.
– NXT Champion Samoa Joe vs. Finn Balor
Another split crowd here. Finn got a huge “Bullet Club” chant before the match. The match itself was good, with a lot of their signature stuff being countered by each other. Joe won with the muscle buster.
After he recovered from the match, Balor had Phillips come back out and apologize for pronouncing “Salina” wrong, doing his best Stone Cold and The Rock impersonations to send Phillips packing, then finished with the “We Are NXT” slogan.
Approximately 200 in attendance here in Cocoa Beach Saturday night.
– No Way Jose beat Mojo Rawley
Fun opener. Mojo was the more aggressive of the two faces working over Jose, throwing him in o the corner and doing the Stinger Splash. Mojo even hit a pounce, knocking Jose out of the ring. But Jose fired up, hit the baseball punch, and the half-nelson slam for the win.
– Patrick Clark beat Dan Matha
Impressive showing by Patrick, hitting an excellent drop kick and playing the fiery babyface. Matha is a large, yet athletic heel, with a lot of upside. Patrick won with a crossbody off the top.
– Carmella beat Aliyah
Great reaction for Carmella as the crowd finished her promo for her and went wild for her signature spots. Aliyah has improved a lot recently and works as a heel very well, using holds like an Indian deathlock and cutting off Carmella aggressively when she had the chance. Carmella hit her finishing sequence of a big kick, bronco buster, and leg headlock for the win.
– Tino Sabbatelli beat Chris Girard
Very good match. Tino played the arrogant heel and Chris Girard as the aggressive fighter. Tino’s power was just too much for Girard in the end as he won it.
– Mikey Nicholls and Shane Veryzer beat The Authors of Pain (Dhinsa and Selmani)
The Authors Of Pain worked as methodical monster heels, but the speed and athleticism of Mikey and Shane were just too much to handle. Crowd was very into this match and lit up for the hot tag, Nicholls ran wild with some impressive kicks and was part of a double team move to finish off the match. Another great showing by the former TMDK in front of an unfamiliar crowd.
– NXT Women’s Champion Asuka and Adrien Reese beat Nia Jax and Mandy Rose
Star reaction for Asuka and the match was build around her as you might expect. Nia would destroy Adrien then allow Mandy to pick the scraps. Asuka finally got the hot tag and ran wild, hitting a vicious knee on Mandy that would make Hideo Itami proud. Asuka won with her head kick then celebrated with the fans ringside.
– Elias Samson beat Noah
The crowd was all over Samson as he insulted them in song form before Noah made his way to the ring. The Hawaiian born Noah wants to make friends but the Drifter has none of it and proceeds to work him over and apply headlocks. Drifter wins it with his neckbreaker.
– Finn Balor, Tye Dillinger & Manny Andrade beat NXT Champion Samoa Joe & The Revival
Excellent main event with everything you’d expect. You got a superstar pop for Balor, who was on fire all through the match. Amazing finishing sequence where Andrade did a plancha to the outside on Joe to leave Finn free to hit the double foot stomp off the top on both Revival members and then pin the legal man for the win.
I was live at Full Sail University in Winter Park FL, alongside the usual sellout crowd of 450 in attendance for NXT TV.
Dark Match –
Manny Andrade beat Angelo Dawkins
Dawkins made his way to the ring first, stirring it up and jawjacking with no one in particular. Huge star reaction for Andrade, wearing his vato style fedora and pants with suspenders over his normal gear. Fast paced match for the most part, Manny teased one dive, then reset himself as a teaser, then on the center so he could face hard camera he did the Tranquilo lounging on the middle ropes to taunt Dawkins. The finish saw the running double knees while Angelo was set in the corner for Manny to pick up the win.
5/4/16 —
Dasha Fuentes welcomes us to the show and then we have a Samoa Joe in ring promo. He says his title win was inevitable and he did exactly what he said he would. Before Joe could continue, he was interrupted by the debuting Eric Young, wearing street clothes. He says that Joe knows him and what he’s about, and points to the title on Joe’s shoulder adding I collect those. Joe then leaves but says Young doesn’t belong in his ring and the next time he sees him in it, he will beat his ass.
Nia Jax beat Tessa Blanchard
What you’d expect as they are building Jax up for Asuka. She won after hitting a huge leg drop center of the ring for the win directed at the hard camera.
Austin Aries beat Tye Dillinger
Good reactions for both men, and this is the best match Aries has had thus far in NXT as well. Dillinger seemed a little taken aback by how strong of a reaction he had as there were dueling chants for both while they had a very good match. Dillinger hit the Goto style knee to the back that AJ Styles has been using lately for a convincing near fall. Tye then lowered the knee pad to attempt his usual finisher but Aries caught him with the rolling back elbow for the win.
Fuentes informs us that Mr. Regal has made Eric Young vs. Samoa Joe as tonight’s main event.
The Revival beat The Hype Bros
The Revival did an excellent job of controlling the ring and were able to get the win while not cheating, but still causing a distraction to their advantage. These two clearly study their classic tag team wrestling. Shatter machine for the strong win to get them back on track.
No Way Jose beat Noah
Big reaction for No Way Jose in Full Sail as you’d expect; he’s a fun personality with a lot of charm. The chants included “No Way, No Way, No Way Joseee” to the tune of the Sami Zayn “Ole’” chants and his song’s style “No Way Jose” chants as well. Salsa dance style offense and solid work before the big baseball pitch wind up punch and then a full nelson slam for the win. Post match, No Way Jose was able to convince referee Drake Wuertz to dance with him to a huge cheer. Some fancy footwork by Drake.
NXT Champion Samoa Joe beat Eric Young
They got over ten minutes here in our main event, hard hitting action with these as you’d expect. Joe was able to outlast Young in their battle, hit the muscle buster and instead of going for the pin Joe locks in the clutch for the choke out victory. Joe then wouldn’t release the hold for a very long time until officials were able to get the two separated.
5/11/16 —
In ring promo segment with Finn Balor who got great reaction, “Thank You, Finn” chants. He says he’s going to address the elephant in the room, Samoa Joe. He reminds us all that he beat Joe twice before and both matches could have gone either way. Then, we got The Drifter walking out singing a song about Finn, no words were comprehendable due to the loudest booing since Eva Marie challenging Bayley a few months back. Absolutely drowned out by booing here.
Finn never even moved as Samson made his way in to the ring and once Samson was directly behind himm, Balor hit a Pele kick to a huge cheer. Finn then picks up the guitar and looks at the hard camera before throwing it towards the entrance way where Elias was after rolling out of the ring. Samson made the catch, saving his precious acoustic guitar. Very fun segment here as Finn was in no mood for The Drifter’s nonsense.
NXT Tag Team Champions American Alpha beat Corey Hollis and John Skyler
Great reaction including “You Deserve It” chants for the tag champs. There was excellent wrestling early by Chad Gable before the heels were able to use distractions and take advantage. They worked Gable over for a bit before the Jason Jordan hot tag, after running wild and bringing the straps down, The Revival made their way to the ramp to get a closer look at the champs, there would be no distraction though. Jordan even raised the straps back up so he could lower them again, hit a spear in the corner, tag in Gable for the Grand Amplitude assisted suplex for the win. The champs and former champs stared at each other before making their way to the back.
Shinsuke Nakamura beat Alex Riley
Huge ovation for Shinsuke Nakamura who got an absolute superstar pop as you’d expect. Riley tried to trade big shots with Nakamura and that didn’t end well, big running knee to midsection by Shinsuke while Riley was set over the top rope. Kinshasa for the win and a mighty YeaOh in the center of the ring as celebration.
Alexa Bliss beat Rachael Ellering
Good showing by SWA’s own Rachael Ellering here, Alexa Bliss worked her match and won it with the splash off the top rope.
Finn Balor beat Elias Samson
The best match I’ve seen from The Drifter, a lot of fun seeing him mix it up with the top stars lately as the crowd absolutely hates him. Finn had his shoulder taped still yet was working an extra vicious style, a lot of action in between Samson headlocks, big dropkick through the ropes by Finn, strong kicks and finally hits the 1916 DDT for the win as he sits on Elias Samson and stares in to the hard camera wanting this to be Samoa Joe.
Post match Finn continues his promo from earlier as he wants his rematch with Samoa Joe, as Joe comes out Mr. Regal runs to get between them, and standing on the ring apron with Finn still in the ring. Finn runs and dives over Mr. Regal on to Samoa Joe, then holds the NXT Championship in his hands before setting it on Joe who is laid out on the ground. William Regal then makes it official that at NXT Takeover June 8th we will in fact have NXT Champion Samoa Joe vs. Finn Balor for the title.
5/18/16 —
NXT Women’s Champion Asuka beat Adrien Reese
Dueling chants as both are fan favorites to the Florida NXT fans, Asuka has some who have turned on her after dethroning Bayley so there was a light mixed reaction. Not too much but noticable. Excellent work by these two, Reese is an incredible athlete and Asuka thrives on facing great talents. Reese went for a move off the top rope but Asuka caught her arm and transitioned it in to the Asuka Lock for the win.
Dasha Fuentes told us that Blake and Murphy would be facing Austin Aries and a partner of his choosing next, I’d expect this to be built up with backstage promos.
Austin Aries and Shinsuke Nakamura beat Blake and Murphy w/ Alexa Bliss
As expected, another huge superstar reaction for Nakamura. When he wrestles, everything seems like a blur because the crowd is so in to him. Aries did a lot of work with Blake and Murphy before Shinsuke got the tag and set up for the Kinshasa. Aries however had his hand out for the tag which Shinsuke did not give before hitting the move and scoring the pin. The referee raised Aries and Nakamura’s hands the victor yet Aries was still subtly talking to Nakamura as if he wanted that tag. Also after this match Alexa Bliss walked away angrily leaving her team, then Blake looked back at Murphy and left him as well. We may have seen the last of BAMF.
Carmella beat Peyton Royce
Carmella introduced herself as only she can and now she allows the crowd to finish her promo for her by raising the mic as everyone else says “Hottest Chick In The Ring” how you doin? Nice touch as she’s quite over. This is Peyton’s first singles match under her new Poison Ivy type persona, holding a flower, maneuvering herself through the ropes, very fluid motions. At one point Peyton hit two vertical suplexes and a third with a bridge for a near fall, Carmella then fired up for her comeback which is now a superkick, bronco buster, face first drop and her leglock submission for the win.
Tommaso Ciampa and Johnny Gargano beat Danny Birch and Rob Rizin
Showcase match for Ciampa and Gargano, yet some very fun strong exchanges by Danny Birch who goes by Martin Stone on the indie scene these days, laying in strikes with the always ferocious Tommaso Ciampa. Finish was Gargano and Ciampa hitting double superkicks on Rizin who was on his knees in the center of the ring.
Nia Jax beat Bayley
This match went about fifteen minutes, Nia was destroying Bayley at every turn. We had enough hope spots to keep us believing that Bayley could get this win like she did in London yet that was not the case. Jax would stomp on the arm of Bayley, then Bayley would try to lock in the submission that beat Nia once before, Nia would then slam her down again, Bayley mustered up the strength to make it to the top yet it was Nia’s evening.
Towards the end of the match, Nia stomped on Bayley’s leg and after making it to her feet and fighting back some, Bayley then in the corner buckled her leg and collapsed for a moment before Jax was able to set her in the center of the ring, drop a big leg on the back of Bayley’s head, roll her over and score the convincing win. Post match the referee and two men in black shirts checked on Bayley, after a while they helped her to the back with her keeping all weight off her leg.
NXT Tag Team Champions American Alpha beat The Revival
This was a non title match yet Revival needed this one if they had any hope of getting the titles back. Excellent work as you’d expect, yet the crowd was clearly drained by Bayley losing and being helped to the back just prior to this match. Great wrestling by four of the best tag team workers we have seen in NXT, with a new finish for the team Alpha locked in stereo Ankle Locks for the double tap out submission on both men. This was a definitive victory by American Alpha who now await their next challengers.
This concludes three weeks of TV NXT will be back at Full Sail University on May 19th to get us to the June 8th NXT Takeover live special.
When former TNA Champions Eric Young and Bobby Roode left TNA in March, the assumption they would head to the land of WWE/NXT seemed pretty obvious. But as we know in today’s wrestling culture, anything is possible when it comes to what goes into that decision making process.
Roode made an on-screen debut during NXT TakeOver during Wrestlemania weekend and Thursday night at the latest set of NXT tapings, Young made his promotional debut by interrupting and confronting NXT Champion Samoa Joe during an interview segment. The two then had a non-title match as part of the first show they taped. If you want the result, click here.
The 36-year-old Young has been a pro since 1998 and is best known for his decade-plus run in TNA that saw him win every male title the company offered and even the Knockouts tag team titles at one point.
Here’s some news, notes, and results from the NXT weekend shows in Florida that got a bit overlooked with everything big that was happening up North.
Tampa —
– Patrick Clark beat Murphy
– Selmani & Dhinsa – The Authors Of Pain – beat Gabriel & Uriel Ealy who are the large twin security guards who usually man the doors at events. Selmani & Dhinsa have scary masks now, similar to what SANADA wore to the ring recently in Japan. These four are huge. The Authors of Pain have even been getting a lot of angry foreigner heat for their promos when I’ve seen them.
– Adrien Reese beat Daria. They’re still allowing Reese to use the top rope in to a stunner finish that she used on the indies which always gets a huge reaction. Daria works as an MMA fighter: leg kicks, holds, quiet intensity.
– No Way Jose beat Josh Woods. This was said to be a lot of fun with Woods playing the straight man to Jose’s fiesta antics.
– Sawyer Fulton & Alexander beat Shane Haste & Mikey Nicholls. TMDK were said to be smooth and great in the ring. People may not have known who they were, yet it was the match of the night by the finish.
– Alex Reyes interviewed Cezar in the ring. He’s from Brazil and was the positive face, happy to be in NXT.
– Tino Sabbatelli beat Angelo Dawkins. Good match, Tino has been improving greatly, and carries himself like a star. The match got derailed because Tino was busted open. They even had to change the apron or the mat after the match!
– Aliyah & Liv Morgan beat Mandy Rose & Nikki Storm. Good reaction for the debuting Nikki. Morgan hit her standing moonsault on Storm for the win.
– Alex Riley beat Tye Dillinger in the main event. Riley also got busted open, causing them to halt the match.
Jacksonville —
– Adrien Reese & Sara Lee beat Aliyah & Mandy Rose
– Patrick Clark beat Kishan Raftaar from India, making his Florida NXT debut. He worked the Arnold Classic and those WWE events in his home country.
– Dylan Miley beat Noah
– Angelo Dawkins beat Tino Sabbatelli
– Alex Riley beat Murphy
– Liv Morgan beat Daria
– Alex Reyes interviewed Mada from Tough Enough.
– Mikey Nicholls & Shane Haste beat Alexander Wolfe & Sawyer Fulton. Like in Tampa, this was also said to be the match of the night.
– No Way Jose beat Tye Dillinger in the main event. There was a dance off that even included referee Drake Wuertz. Jose won with the big wind-up pitch punch.
Submitted by Kyle Litke from the Mid-Hudson Civic Center
Building was full. It wasn’t exactly Madison Square Garden, but the intimacy of the venue was great. Tom Phillips noted WWE’s history in that building in the mid 80s during the show.
– Chris Girard beat Mojo Rawley
Mojo came out acting like a face, but jumped Girard while he was interacting with the fans and got booed. Short, perfectly fine match to get the crowd going. Girard won with a Blockbuster.
– Carmella & Bayley beat Dana Brooke & Peyton Royce
Big pop for Carmella and an even bigger pop for Bayley. Brooke was great here on the outside during the entrances, shouting at the fans and really playing it up. Standard, solid tag match with Bayley getting the win with a Bayley to Belly.
– Manny Andrade beat Tomasso Ciampa
Manny got zero reaction coming out as no one knew him. This was a really good match with some great near falls. The crowd got way into it and was chanting for Manny by the end. Manny got the pin with double knees to the corner.
– Nakamura beat “The Drifter” Elias Samson
Samson came out first and tried to sing a song but it was impossible to hear over the booing from the crowd. Nakamura’s music hit to an enormous pop. Samson kept bailing to the corner to kiss his guitar, which drew an exasperated reaction from Nakamura. Nakamura followed it up by playing air guitar, then tossing the air guitar to the ref. The ref tossed it back to him and he broke it over his knee, which angered Samson. A great example of Nakamura doing things to connect with the crowd regardless of what his first language is. Nakamura got the win with the Kinshasa.
> Intermission
– NXT Tag Team Champions American Alpha beat the Revival in a 2/3 falls match
Another really good match. American Alpha took the first fall with Grand Amplitude. The Revival managed to take the second fall by hitting a Shatter Machine while the ref was distracted keeping Jordan out of the ring. The third fall started with Dash and Dawson destroying Gable for an extended period of time, including a great spot with the ref distracted and not seeing Gable tagging in Jordan. Huge heat for that. Jordan finally got the hot tag. Jordan and Gable ended up winning with dual ankle locks, with both Dash and Dawson tapping.
– NXT Women’s Champion Asuka beat Alexa Bliss by submission
Asuka got a big pop. Alexa got a surprising amount of offense on Asuka. Strange crowd reactions as a big “Let’s Go Asuka, Let’s go Bliss” chant started, with a lot of people chanting for Bliss. Asuka won with the Asuka Lock.
– NXT Champion Samoa Joe beat Finn Balor and Austin Aries in a triple threat
Joe bailed to the outside immediately and spent a few minutes tripping Balor every time he came near the ropes. Really good ending with Balor going up top for the Coup de Grace on Joe. Aries intercepted him, then hit a 450 splash on Joe. He went for the pin, but Joe turned it into a Coquina Clutch. Balor then came off the top with the Coup de Grace on both guys. He hit 1916 on Aries, but Joe threw Balor out of the ring and stole the pin.
Post match, Balor teased coming to Raw (the crowd chanted “See you Monday” and he held up a finger to shush them while winking). He then said he had bad news for Joe, he wasn’t going anywhere and was staying in NXT. He then ended the show with finger guns and “Too Sweet” hand gestures, so take that for what it’s worth.
– Chris Girard pinned Mojo Rawley with a running blockbuster out of the corner
This was perfectly fine. Rawley played heel in this match since everybody loved Girard. He was a goofy, annoying heel and everyone was into his spots. He dominated most of the match until the comeback. New England Patriots’ star Rob Gronkowski was in the building wearing a Get Hyped t-shirt, since he goes way back with Rawley. As you might imagine, he’s a god in these parts.
– Bayley and Carmella defeated Dana Brooke and Alexa Bliss
End came when Bayley pinned Dana with the Bayley to Belly. Carmella went to school here (University of Rhode Island) so, naturally, she was beloved. Standard women’s tag match.
– Manny Andrade pinned Riddick Moss with the double knees in the corner
Andrade is ridiculously athletic and ridiculously good. This match was real good. Best spot was probably when Andrade did a moonsault, but Moss moved. Andrade landed on his feet and immediately hit a standing moonsault.
– NXT Tag Team Champions American Alpha (Chad Gable and Jason Jordan) def. The Revival (Dash Wilder and Scott Dawson) to retain
End came when Gable pinned Dawson with Grand Amplitude. This was my favorite match on the show. They did a false title change near the end. Dawson was the legal man and was getting pounded on by Jordan. Wilder switched places with Dawson behind the referee’s back and pinned Jordan with a small package. The referee noticed his mistake, however, and Gable eventually pinned Dawson.
> Intermission
– Austin Aries pinned Tomasso Ciampa with the rolling elbow and the 450 splash
I was expecting this to be the best match, but I felt like there was something missing. Still real good though. Aries played subtle heel (very subtle really, as it was essentially a babyface match). The finish was botched when Aries missed his elbow, so they immediately did a quick spot and went back to the finish.
– NXT Women’s Champion Asuka submitted Peyton Royce with the Asuka Lock
Asuka’s incredible. She comes out looking like an absolute killer with the crowd telling Peyton that she’s about to be killed, yet she has an incredible rapport with the fans and all the kids seem to love her. There’s something she has that I don’t think any other woman has ever had in this company. Good match.
– Finn Bálor and Shinsuke Nakamura defeated NXT Champion Samoa Joe and Elias Samson when Bálor pinned Samson with the 1916 (Bloody Sunday)
Samson came out first and the place just hated everything he tried to do or say. “Drift Away” chants. “Nobody Likes You” chants. He tried to sing his song but Nakamura’s music hit and the place came absolutely unglued. There was a great spot early where Nakamura was in the ring and Joe tagged in. Joe circled around, teasing an encounter, but then immediately tagged out for massive heat. Nakamura mocked Samson throughout the match, pretending to play guitar and throwing the imaginary guitar to the crowd. Joe and Nakamura finally went at it and it was outstanding. They have to do a feud for the championship. This was either the best or second best match on the show.
After the match, Bálor took the mic and talked about how bad he felt after losing the championship. The crowd chanted “See You Monday” and he smirked. He wasn’t sure if he’d be himself anymore after losing the championship. He said that the Kingston, RI crowd made it clear that he was still Finn Bálor. He handed the mic to Nakamaura who said: “This Is NXT!” After a long pause, they too-sweeted each other and did a simultaneously Nakamura back-bend pose. Then Finn slapped hands with everyone at ringside.
Samoa Joe pinned Finn Balor with a muscle buster to win the NXT title in the main event at today’s house show in Lowell, MA at the Memorial Auditorium.
It was the first night of a three-show Northeastern tour.
Not much more in the way of details are available but it was a rare house show title change. Balor was selling an ankle injury after the match. It’s unclear if this was storyline or not, as he was down for a long time and unlaced his boot in the ring. Unlacing his boot would tend to mean its storyline. One way or another, it wasn’t an impromptu title change as talk of the impending switch had gone around all afternoon.
Josh Nason is traveling back from Lowell and will have a live report up shortly.
Balor had been champion since July 4, 2015, when he defeated Kevin Owens at Sumo Hall in Tokyo, and his 292 days as champion broke the record of 287 set by Adrian Neville’s 2014 run.
The rest of the show results were:
Mojo Rawley pinned Riddick Moss
Bayley & Carmella beat Peyton Royce & Dana Brooke – This would be Brooke’s return after a long injury absence
Chris Girard pinned Tommaso Ciampa – This match tore down the house.
Austin Aries pinned Manny Andrade
Shinsuke Nakamura pinned Elias Samson
Chad Gable & Jason Jordan beat Dash Wilder & Scott Dawson to retain the NXT tag titles
Asuka beat Alexa Bliss to retain the women’s title
