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Tag: WWE NXT

  • WWE NXT results: Samoa Joe vs Sami Zayn, 2 out of 3 Falls

    The Big News: It took him 45 minutes, but Samoa Joe defeated Sami Zayn and became the #1 Contender to the NXT Title.

    The Medium News: Mr. Regal also announced that Austin Aries would wrestle Baron Corbin at Takeover.

    The Little Beaver Sized News: Bayley did not get hit in the head by an asteroid.

    The first show at Full Sail in a month kicks off with NXT General Manager William Regal coming to the ring. Mr. Regal was angry at Baron Corbin for attacking Austin Aries last week. He would have suspended Corbin, but Aries asked him not to and instead made Aries vs Corbin at NXT Takeover: Dallas.

    -They announced American Alpha vs The Vaudevillians in a #1 Contender’s Match and Bayley & Asuka in a tag team match. Spoiler Alert: they do not happen.

    1.) In a 2-out-of-3 Falls Match to determine the #1 Contender to the NXT Championship, Samoa Joe defeated Sami Zayn two falls to one.

    The show is completely backwards, the main event is on first. Larry Zbyszko, Mauro Ranallo, Adam Jones, Michael Hayes, Sasha Banks and Hideo Itami were all shown sitting ringside watching the show. Itami looked like he would rather be anywhere else in the world as opposed to watching this match.

    Back in January we had a Triple Threat match with these two men and Baron Corbin. Then after a double submission we got a one on one match, which ended in a double pin. Now, can we finally see these two men finish a match?

    We got a commercial break before the introductions to the match, which was literally the point when I realized they were going a full hour.

    They started slow, even slower than they started a few weeks ago. Neither man taking the advantage and both men grappling and angling to be the one to take over. Joe used a headlock to gain the advantage, with a couple side headlock takeovers and then leaning all 280 pounds down on Zayn. However Sami used his speed and technique to get out of it, taking Joe down with armbars.

    We came back from commercial and Joe has officially taken over, using a jumping elbow drop and then a back elbow to the mush. Joe used the face wash kick and Zayn checked to make sure his nose was still there. At one point it looked like Joe was going for a flapjack, but Zayn flipped over at the last second for a belly to belly overhead suplex.

    Zayn made a comeback and was able to get out of a Muscle Buster, but he immediately got kicked in the head. Zayn at this point was just taking a beating. He would get to his feet, hit a single punch or kick and then get slammed down. The booking of this match was brilliant as Joe beat Zayn from head to toe and Zayn kept getting back to his feet.

    Zayn was able to send Joe flying out of the ring and hit his sitting Asai Moonsault to the floor! Zayn rolling Joe back in and got a near fall with a dive off the top rope. The first fall passed 20 minutes when Zayn went for a Blue Thunder Bomb, but Joe shifted his weight and fell on top for a 2 count. An exciting series of counters led to a Joe corner Uranage and finally getting the first fall with a Muscle Buster.

    The second fall started with Joe flying across the ring and going for another Muscle Buster, but Zayn blocked it. Joe continued the beating he was giving Zayn until a series of headbutts led to a Missile Dropkick to Joe. Samoa Joe is wearing a crimson mask! Well a crimson trickle. Joe saw the blood and became more vicious. Joe missed a knee drop, so Zayn almost won with a crucifix.

    Joe’s beating continued outside the ring and they teased a count out on several occasions, including with an STO on the floor. Zayn used the energy from getting back in the ring to fire into yet another comeback, hitting a huge suplex and a flip dive over the top rope. Back in the ring Zayn used an STO and the Koji Clutch for the tap out! It’s all tied at 1!

    At the start of the third fall they announced that the other matches would be rescheduled for another time. Joe kicked out of a Blue Thunder Bomb and then a sunset flip power bomb. Sami even broke out his awesome move where Joe is outside the ring and Zayn runs across the ringside area, dives over the bottom rope, through the ring and hooks Joe with a Tornado DDT.

    Joe blocked the Halluva Kick and turned it into a power bomb, turning it into a Boston Crab and then a Crossface. Joe pulled back the other arm too, but Zayn was able to get his foot on the ropes. 40 minutes into the match and Joe was now trying to win the match by knockout, using all of his strikes to knock Zayn down. Zayn had one last gasp and locked on the Coquina Clutch! Sami Zayn is using Samoa Joe’s own submission hold against him! Joe got his foot on the rope, but when he got up he got the Exploder Suplex in the corner!

    Zayn went for the Helluva Kick, but Joe sidestepped him and locked on the Clutch! Zayn was just inches from the ropes and scratching and clawing, but Joe changed it slightly, wrapping his leg around Zayn’s arm. Sami was inches away from the ropes, coming oh so close, but he passed out! Zayn was inches away from a rope break, but he couldn’t make it!

    Samoa Joe is finally your #1 Contender. It took over 3 matches over 5 weeks and then it took 45 minutes to get it done. We now know that at NXT Takeover: Dallas on April 1, Finn Balor will defend the NXT Title one more time against Samoa Joe.

    After all that, that does it for this week. Thank you all for reading and until next week make sure to say your vitamins and take your prayers!

  • WWE NXT results: Finn Balor vs. Apollo Crews; Asuka vs. Santana Garrett

    After 3 months, Finn Balor and Apollo Crews finally reaches a conclusion to their match from November. Plus William Regal decides what to do after Sami Zayn & Samoa Joe both won a Triple Threat match last week.

    Spoiler: It’s exactly what you expected him to do.

    *****

    The Vaudevillians beat The Hype Bros

    The Vaudevillians are back and they are evil again, but they still have their happy baby face music. Eight years ago Zack Ryder did a run in on the main event of WrestleMania…just thought I would point that out. Speaking of Ryder, he is the one that the Vaudevillians got the heat on.

    The move of the match was Ryder began making a comeback on both men and went for an inzigiri to Gotch. Gotch ducked, but English was right there to get it anyway. Mojo got the hot tag, but Ryder tagged back in quickly and the Vaudevillians won with the Whirling Dervish.

    – Tom Phillips sat down with Carmella about her upcoming title match with Bayley. She is the daughter of former WWF jobber Paul Vandale. Remember the good old days when Carmella was a hairdresser and became a Diva because Enzo got her fired for dumping hair cream on her dog?

    Anyway, she’s looking forward to wrestling Bayley next week and will beat Emma tonight.

    – Dash and Dawson laughed at the idea of Enzo Amore and Big Cass talking about kicking their butts. They pointed out that Enzo and Cass lost their title shot. They can talk tough all they want, but they can not defeat Dash & Dawson.

    Carmella pinned Emma

    Carmella looks a lot better in street clothes than she does in her ring gear. They did not play up the storyline set up last week where the heels mocked Carmella for doing nothing to deserve being #1 Contender and the fact that Bayley won the tag team match a few weeks ago without her. Emma showed Carmella no respect, slapping her in the back of the head and Carmella suddenly won with a backslide.

    – Both Sami Zayn felt he should be the number one contender following last week’s match where both he and Samoa Joe made Baron tap. Joe scared the cameraman and ignored the question.

    Enzo Amore & Colin Cassady defeated Two Men

    Enzo really does cut a hell of a promo these days. He has improved so much from when he started, if you recall he used to be so bad that he wasn’t even trusted to get in a single offensive maneuver and would just spend the entire match selling. The jobbers never got named, but Colin gave one of them a hiptoss from inside the ring to the pretty black mats. Colin laid out the other with a Catatonic and Enzo pinned him with the Rocket Launcher.

    – Apollo Crews was stretching backstage when a camera was shoved in her face. He said he has what it takes to be NXT Champion, but tonight is step one in becoming champion one day.

    – NXT General Manager William Regal was about to announce Sami Zayn vs Samoa Joe to determine the #1 Contender when Baron Corbin stormed in and demanded to be involved, even though he tapped out to two men. He then made Zayn vs Joe. Makes you wonder why they bothered making you wait a week. It was later announced that the match was booked for two weeks from now.

    Asuka tapped out Santana Garrett

    Santana is a well known women’s wrestler on the Independent circuit and spent over a year in TNA where she was Brittany. In case you don’t remember, she was in a relationship with Samuel Shaw and tried to have a lesbian relationship with Madison Rayne. She did a lot better than most against Asuka but got trapped in a rolling armbar. Santana got out, but got locked in the Asuka Lock for the tap out.

    – Finn Balor said Mr. Regal made the right decision by making Joe vs Zayn.

    NXT Champion Finn Balor pinned Apollo Crews

    These two first wrestled back in November, but it ended in a disqualification when Baron Corbin interfered. Apollo hasn’t been seen much since losing to Baron at NXT Takeover and this is Finn’s first tv match since the same night.

    This was a good, solid match. The crowd seemed exhausted at this point as there were people openly yawning in the front row. Everything these two did was very good. However the fans just couldn’t get into it until the finish. Balor began making his comeback, which woke them up, but they weren’t nearly as loud as they had been.

    Crews kicked out of a Coup de Grace to the back and Finn kicked out of the Gorilla Slam and standing Moonsault. Finn hit the Slingblade, the corner dropkick and the Coup de Grace before pinning Crews with a brainbuster. After the match, Balor shook the hand of Crews.

    That does it for tonight! Until next week, remember to say your vitamins and take your prayers!

  • WWE NXT results: Samoa Joe vs. Sami Zayn vs. Baron Corbin, Alex Riley returns!

    • The Big News: Sami Zayn and Samoa Joe both won the #1 Contender’s triple threat match over Baron Corbin
    • The Medium News: Jason Jordan and Chad Gable are now AMERICAN ALPHA!
    • The Little Beaver-sized News: Alex Riley is back. No really.

    I am not spoiling anything, but I cannot wait to go to NXT Takeover: Dallas.

    American Alpha defeated Blake & Murphy (w/Alexa Bliss)

    American Alpha is the new name for Jason Jordan & Chad Gable. Tonight they are here to do battle with yet another former set of Tag Team Champions. They have beaten The Vaudevillians and The Ascension and are now here to do battle with Blake & Murphy. They still have the Lucha Dragons and the Wyatt Family to go. Blake and Murphy were outclassed by Gable at one point. Murphy was trying to get the heat, but Gable took out both men by himself like it was nothing. The fans chanted that Blake’s top know looked stupid. Gable used a hip toss on Murphy that looked more like a power slam.

    After being whooped by Gable, Murphy injured his knee coming down from a leapfrog. Blake tried attacking Gable from behind and IT’S A MIRACLE! MURPHY IS HEALTHY AGAIN! The heels took over briefly until Gable back dropped Blake out of the ring. Jordan got the hot tag and it was Full Suplex University! Jordan suplexed both men time and again before winning with their double team move.

    – Alex interviewed Emma and Dana Brooke. Next week, Emma will face Carmella. Dana pointed out that the tag match last week was all about Bayley and had nothing to do with Carmella. They mocked Carmella for losing to Blue Pants and said Emma will have no problem with her next week.

    – We got an Asuka video package.

    Nia Jax (w/Eva Marie) pinned Liv Morgan

    Brian Witner’s favorite wrestler is in the corner of Nia Jax. Yeah, he’s the only one. Anyway Liv Morgan looks like a low rent Kaitlyn and Nia destroyed her. Something tells me this match was total crap live as we got more than one obvious edit. Nia won with a legdrop.

    – Carmella cut a promo saying she would beat Emma all by herself, calling the Emmalution a freaking joke. Enzo and Cass took over and called Dash & Dawson fat. Enzo said he almost beat up the guy pumping his gas because he thought it was Dash and Dawson.

    – A Baron Corbin video aired.

    – Another heel Vaudevillians video aired. THEY ARE NO LONGER SMILING!

    Alex Riley pinned Bull Dempsey

    Bull has yet another new theme. No seriously. Alex Riley is back. Remember when he quit his NXT announcing job to go after Kevin Owens? How many people does Owens have unfinished storylines with at this point? The announcers talked about how they didn’t even know Riley was here. Well the announcer and the guy who cues the music certainly knew. Riley almost won with a neck breaker and did win with a knee to the face. No one cared. Remember when Riley when randomly get good reactions? Well this was not one of those nights.

    Riley was in a dark corner drinking water. He said the last 4 months he has sent texts and emails to Stamford, Connecticut and got 0 replies. I think Vince was like “Who?” Anyway, Riley was upset because NXT had video packages for Sami Zayn’s return and in depth profiles on Apollo Crews and nothing about Riley.

    Elias Sampson pinned John Skylar

    John Skylar has HHH’s logo on the ass of his trunks. Or at least a logo that looks a lot like it. This match was fine. It was better than Sampson’s other squash matches, but that’s like saying being shot in the foot is better than being shot in the head. Elias won with a spinning neck breaker.

    – The Hype Bros were randomly talking about The Vaudevillians’ promo packages, bro. They became really annoying, bro, when talking about going clubbing, bro. Bro, then they talked about Zubaz, bro and Mojo watching Ryder sleep, bro. They said bro in 30 seconds more than Vince Russo could ever dream of, bro.

    – Next week is Finn Balor vs Apollo Crews in a non-title match.

    Sami Zayn and Samoa Joe both won the #1 Contender’s Triple Threat Match when they made Baron Corbin tap out.

    I always love a good fight and that’s what this was. It was three guys who all had one goal and that was to win and become the #1 contender. Joe tore through both men for several minutes. He kept knocking Baron down and out, outside the ring, while beating on the smaller Zayn. Zayn was finally able to dispose of Joe, but as soon as he did that he ran right into Corbin. Poor guy could not catch a break.

    Sami finally caught a break thanks to the commercial break. Zayn fired up as we came back from commercial and hit an amazing dive over the top rope to both men outside. Corbin almost pinned Zayn with a Black Hole Slam. Joe at one point used a drop toe hold to Sami where Zayn landed in a pinfall on Corbin. The referee didn’t even attempt to count since Joe was doing his running back splash to both men.

    Zayn nearly got a win with a Blue Thunder Bomb on Corbin, but after Baron kicked out, Joe yanked Sami outside the ring and choked him out with the Coquina Clutch. Zayn had to wake up because Corbin had Joe pinned with End of Days and he had to break it up. Zayn had Corbin pinned again, this time with the Halluva Kick, but Joe broke it up. Zayn slapped the Sharpshooter on Corbin…and Joe ran in to put the Crossface on Baron and he had no choice but to tap out.

    Both Zayn and Joe argued that their submission was the one to cause Corbin to tap out. Mr. Regal walked out to talk to the referee. Mr. Regal said he had to go review the tape of the match. The fans had no idea what they were saying and everyone just walked off.

    *****

    That does it for the show. Until that point, thank you for reading and remember to say your vitamins and take your prayers! Be sure to check out WrestlingOutsiders.com for 100% free wrestling and MMA podcasts!

  • 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.

  • 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 announces Bayley title match, Sami Zayn vs. Samoa Joe for January 22nd

    Fresh off her successful title defense submission victory over Nia Jax at NXT TakeOver: London in December, NXT Women’s Champion Bayley now has her next challenger set: Carmella. 

    NXT announced Thursday night via Twitter that title match will take place at their Friday, January 22nd event at the CFE Arena at the University of Central Florida. 

    Additionally, Samoa Joe and Sami Zayn will hook it up to determine the new No. 1 contender to NXT Champion Finn Balor. On the aforementioned London show, Balor successfully defended his belt against Joe in the main event via pinfall. Zayn returned on that same show after a long layoff following shoulder surgery, and will be looking to regain the title he lost to Kevin Owens.

    The event is part of an aggressive January calendar for the popular WWE-created brand where they will run 15 total shows, including several on the same night in two locations.

    In a coincidence, Bayley tweeted out Thursday that today marks her fourth year in NXT.

  • WWE NXT TV results: Sami Zayn returns in London

    The Big News: Sami Zayn returned after shoulder surgery.

    The Medium News: The London crowd loved Sami Zayn and Chad Gable. Oh and Jason Jordan got some love just because he was Gable’s partner.

    The Little Beaver Sized News: The fans didn’t love anyone else.

    *****

    Jason Jordan & Chad Gable won a Fatal 4-Way Match over The Vaudevillians, The Hype Bros and Blake & Murphy

    We are still in London and are kicking things off with 4-way tag team action featuring 2 sets of former Tag Team Champions. The Vaudevillians came out as Sherlock Holmes and Watson and played up as babyfaces despite turning heel just a few weeks ago. The fans liked the Vaudevillians, but they absolutely loved Jordan & Gable. They liked the Hype Bros…until Mojo blind tagged himself in, which made Gable go to the apron.

    We had a series where everyone came in, one at a time, to throw someone out of the ring and that led to an 8-way standoff. Gable ended up being in the match for the majority of it as the fans would just chant for Gable anytime he tagged out. At one point Gable went for the hot tag and in the Perfect Timing Department, just as he dove for the tag, Jordan got yanked off the apron.

    Jordan did get his hot tag and we got an 8-way free for all. After depositing the other 5 on the outside, Gable pinned Blake with their move where Jordan threw him into the air and Gable caught him with a bridging back suplex.

    – Last week, Emma was being worked on after her match with Asuka. Dana was complaining about what she would do to Asuka when Asuka walked in. Asuka mocked Dana by patting her on the head and then doing the Emma dance. Dana waited until Asuka left to state that this wasn’t over.

    – We got a video package for the entire UK tour.

    -Tye Dillinger is a heel this week. Maybe he’s always a heel, but he never comes across that way. Anyway he is going to show Sami Zayn why he is the Perfect 10.

    – The Drifter Elias Sampson is still on his way. This time he is literally walking on railroad tracks. Maybe Nia Jax would have gotten to NXT quicker than 9 weeks if she walked on the train tracks.

    – Next week is Best of NXT 2015 Part 1. Well these next two weeks are going to be skippable fun.

    – Baron Corbin is happy he beat Apollo Crews last week. He declared himself the #1 Contender and uncrowned NXT Champion.

    The Drifter Elias Sampson defeated The Svelte Bull Dempsey

    Bull Dempsey has a new theme song. He still has his Dr. Death Steve Williams/Michael Elgin robe and he now weighs in at 299 ¾ pounds, which was completely ignored by the announcers. You know, I was only joking when I called Elias Sampson “The Drifter”, well now it’s his actual nickname.

    Corey Graves made reference to Big Daddy Shirley Crabtree and Bull did jumping jacks before the match started. The WWE production team did an exceptional amount of cuts and zooming during this match, which gave me a headache.

    The crowd was dead for 99% of it, just when they started making noise Elias put his finger to his lips to ask them to be quiet. Talk about bad timing. Anyway he won with the Diving Elbow Drop. It looked pretty good.

    Elias pretended to play guitar in tune to his theme song and literally no one cared.

    – Dash & Dawson were happy to retain the straps. They called Enzo & Cass were one of the best tag teams in the world, but gleefully pointed out that they were the best, before wishing the Jersey Boys a Happy Holidays. That was nice of them after they broke Colin’s leg.

    Sami Zayn pinned Tye Dillinger

    Sami Zayn was last seen at NXT Takeover: Unstoppable in May, where his match with then-NXT Champion Kevin Owens ended in a ref stoppage when he was given the Pop Up Power Bomb on the ring apron. Of course he was injured trying to psych the fans up before his match with John Cena. I am not sure if that was a worse injury than Randy Orton getting injured taking the garbage out.

    I missed a lot about Sami, even his theme song, which is weird since I bought it off iTunes a year ago, so I could have listened to it at literally any time. The fans sang Sami’s theme song, which in case you forget, is completely instrumental.

    The fans went absolutely nuts for Zayn’s entrance, but settled down when Tye took over. This was actually taped after the Takeover show last week, which is pretty weird. Let it be known that in 2015 Tye Dillinger’s match was after Finn Balor and Samoa Joe’s match.

    RANDOM TRIVIA: If you think Tye Dillinger’s match going after Finn vs Joe was weird, in 1989 during the classic Flair-Steamboat series, the two of them never finished a show. At Chi-Town Rumble, for some strange reason, WCW did a Kendall Windham-Steve Casey match that went 25 minutes and not even Dave Meltzer stuck around for. (WCW officials simply forgot they were still wrestling and never gave them the cue to go home) At Clash of the Champions VI they then taped Sting vs Rip Morgan and Lex Luger vs Jack Victory. Finally at WrestleWar 89 they had Road Warriors vs Mike Rotunda/o & Steve Williams AND Eddie Gilbert & Rick Steiner vs Kevin Sullivan & Dan Spivey.

    Suddenly Tye Dillinger isn’t such a bad way to close the show.

    No one cared about 99% of what Tye did. The only thing they got excited for was a Dillinger Superkick that they bought as a finish. Other than that they only cared for Sami. Zayn hit all of his moves, including the Blue Thunder Bomb and the t-bone suplex into the corner, before winning with the Helluva Kick.

    After the match, Sami took the mic and very happily proclaimed he was back. Sami stated that he has had a series of disappointments in 2015, between losing the title to Kevin Owens and injuring himself vs Sami Zayn, but the trend is broken tonight. Sami put over the crowd, saying more and more great things will happen with NXT in 2016. He finished things off by promising that he will have a great 2016.

    That does it for this week. I hope everyone has an excellent Christmas and we’ll see you again next week. Until then, make sure to say your vitamins and take your prayers!

  • NXT TakeOver preview & predictions: Finn Balor vs. Samoa Joe in London

    2015 has been an amazing year for NXT. The little brand that could got hit first with the injury bug to Sami Zayn and Hideo Itami, but also saw eight talents called up to the main WWE roster. While you can argue the successes of Kevin Owens, Neville, Tyler Breeze, Charlotte, Sasha Banks, Becky Lynch, and the Lucha Dragons in WWE, they left quite the hole in NXT.

    When WWE lost John Cena, Randy Orton, Seth Rollins, and Cesaro all in a few weeks of each other, they replied by changing very little other than Sheamus winning the World title for a little over a month. By comparision, look at NXT. When they lost the Lucha Dragons, they responded by pushing Dash & Dawson, Blake & Murphy, and Jordan & Gable. When NXT lost Sasha, Becky, and Charlotte, they began pushing Asuka, Nia Jax and yes, even Eva Marie. When Owens got super over in his feud with Cena, NXT started the slow burn to Samoa Joe’s heel turn to replace him. When Neville and his cool moves went to Raw, we got Apollo Crews and his cool moves. When Itami got injured, Finn Balor not only got Itami’s title shot, he got his entire title reign.

    So with that, we come to NXT TakeOver: London, the second Takeover outside of Full Sail and the first outside of the United States. What can the average WWE fan look forward to on this show?

    Finn Balor vs. Samoa Joe for the NXT Championship

    The winners of the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic explode! Joe had asked Balor for a title shot after they won the Dusty Classic. While Balor had said yes, he stood by and allowed William Regal to make a battle royal for the title shot. Joe, feeling betrayed, turned his back on Balor and laid him out, turning on his friend and occasional tag team partner.

    This match is going to have every opportunity in the world to be the classic bout that happens at every TakeOver as both men can be counted on to come through in the clutch. If he wins the championship, Joe will become the first man to win a title in both TNA and NXT. Both men have numerous challengers in 2016 regardless of who wins as Crews has told Balor that they still have unfinished business. Plus, you have Baron Corbin and a returning Sami Zayn waiting in the wings.

    Prediction: Finn Balor retains here and in a rematch in January

    Apollo Crews vs. Baron Corbin

    Corbin has come a long way since he started being pushed in September 2014. At first, the fans loved him for winning every match in 30 seconds and then turned on him when his matches went two minutes with Corbin not allowing them to count how long his matches go.

    Crews already has the storyline where he has unfinished business with Balor, and Corbin is at least six months away from being ready for main events. Corbin has had excellent TakeOver matches with both Rhyno and Samoa Joe this year and this should be no exception. With each successive match, Corbin is showing more and more and has developed into a pretty good worker.

    Prediction: Apollo Crews wins

    Bayley vs. Nia Jax for the NXT Women’s Championship

    This match WILL NOT BE A 5 STAR CLASSIC! With Charlotte, Becky and Sasha now on the main roster, NXT has to restock itself on women’s wrestlers, so we have Alexa Bliss, Carmella and a half dozen brand new girls most people don’t remember the names of. Bayley is the hero to the masses, coming off back to back ****+ matches with Banks and a shockingly acceptable match with Eva Marie, she is now going to battle Nia Jax. Jax, a cousin of The Rock, debuted on TV the week after TakeOver: Respect and immediately became a force in the division. This match will be so different than every other women’s title match that chances are most people will hate it.

    Just remember, it could be Eva Marie getting the title.

    Prediction: Nia Jax wins the title to set up the next title feud.

    Asuka vs. Emma

    Speaking of the next women’s title feud, Asuka debuted shortly after TakeOver: Brooklyn and began a long rivalry with Dana Brooke and Emma. Dana got her head knocked from here to Port St. Lucie in her debut so now, in complete denial, here comes Emma. This is arguably Emma’s biggest opportunity since returning to NXT after her failed call-up last year. The story is that the #DivasRevolution that everyone is enjoying in WWE started with her on NXT. Can Emma prove that she still belongs in the top tier of women’s wrestlers? This is her chance to prove it as long as Asuka doesn’t send her head into the back row.

    Prediction: Asuka wins and moves onto Nia Jax.

    Dash & Dawson vs Enzo Amore & Colin Cassady for the NXT tag team titles

    This is a weird situation. Back in October, Enzo & Colin defeated Dash & Dawson to become the new no. 1 contenders. However, Dash & Dawson injured the Jersey Duo, took their title shot and took the championship. Enzo and Cass came back from their injury angle and cut a serious promo, all but guaranteeing they would win the belts. They have been teaming for almost 3 years and have never won the titles, despite being close to winning them earlier this year.

    Two problems with the titles changing hands:

    1) Dash & Dawson just won the belts last month. With the exception of title changes being caused by injuries, the shortest title reign was Sami Zayn’s nine-week long NXT title reign. Most title reigns last a minimum of three months, and these two just started getting a serious push after a year of being jobbers.

    2) Jason Jordan & Chad Gable are the new, hot babyface team. They already have the angle that they are beating as many former NXT Tag Team Champions as possible, so they are probably next in line for the belts.

    Prediction: Dash & Dawson retain.

    Overall Thoughts:

    Only one guaranteed great match out of five this time makes this the weakest NXT TakeOver card on paper. However, you have two more matches that be very good and the other two should at least have very interesting results. It has become a running joke that NXT has constantly had their shows around the same time as a bad, poorly built WWE PPV. However, this time they are coming after a pretty good (but poorly built) WWE PPV and have to top it with a weaker card than usual.

    If history has taught us anything, it is to not take the guys and girls from NXT for granted. We should believe that the show has a chance to be great given the fact that they have consistently delivered. However this time, they have their work cut out for them.

  • WWE NXT results (Newcastle, England): Sami Zayn returns to challenge Finn Balor

    Submitted by Jason Lithgo from Newcastle, England

    Enzo and Big Cass vs. Blake and Murphy 

    Nice opening match to kick the night off, not too long. Enzo and Big Cass are really over and the crowd were into it from the start. Enzo and Big Cass got the win with he big splash from the top rope by Enzo. 

    Bull Dempsey vs. Tye Dillinger 

    Tye Dillinger’s ‘perfect 10’ gimmick is more over than I would have imagined, but that might be the graces of a crowd who are just happy to be here. Nothing much to see here. Bull Dempsey won with a sit down splash form the middle rope. 

    Asuka vs. Alexa Bliss

    This was a Asuka showcase match and she was very popular with the crowd. Alexa looked pretty good as well and definitely worked well with Asuka. Asuka won with the Asuka lock. 

    Samoa Joe vs. Apollo Crews

    Pretty standard match. Joe seemed to be the favourite here. Both got their signature moves in and then Joe won with the Muscle Buster into the Coquina clutch. 

    – After the intermission, they introduced William Regal to a huge pop and he thanked everyone for coming and that without the fans they wouldn’t be able to do this tour. 

    NXT Tag Team Champions Dash and Dawson v Chad Gable and Jason Jordan

    This was a really good match (Jordan and Gable seem to be incapable of having a bad match recently), Gable isolated for the most part with Jordan getting the hot tag. Both Gable and Jordan looked really impressive and the crowd loved them. Dash and Dawson won after a distraction and roll up on Gable.  

    NXT Women’s Champion Bayley vs. Emma

    Another standard match as far as in ring work goes. Dana Brooke came to the ring with Emma and was ejected around halfway through for interfering. Bayley won with the Bayley to Bayley. After the match Nia Jax came to the ring and looked as if she was going to get in before smiling at Bayley and leaving. 

    Neville vs. Baron Corbin

    This was Neville’s hometown show so he got the pop of the night. Baron Corbin impressed here, against someone of Neville’s size, he certainly has a presence. Neville hit an Asai moonsault after Corbin ran to the outside. Corbin hit a huge spinning side slam but Neville managed to keep him down long enough to beat him with the Red Arrow, which probably got the second biggest pop of the night.

    WWE NXT Champion Finn Balor vs. Sami Zayn

    Balor came out first which meant that a retuning Zayn got the biggest reaction of the night for someone not called Neville. We were told this was the first time ever that Balor and Zayn were facing off. They shook hands after the bell rung. Pretty good match with some mat wrestling to start followed by some running chops to the corner by Balor. There a was a pretty good spot in which Balor was trying to keep Zayn down to hit the coup de grace but Zayn would make it to his feet before Balor could reach the top rope, getting up a little bit quicker after each blow. Zayn hit a huge tope con hilo to the outside on Balor. Balor won with the coup de grace, he lifted Zayn’s hand after the match and made a quick exit to give Sami the ring. This was a good taste of what a feud between them could bring. 

    The crowd were hot for most of the show and it was a better show all round than the WWE show they ran here in November. 

  • WWE NXT recap: Finn Balor & Apollo Crews vs Samoa Joe & Baron Corbin

    Check out WrestlingOutsiders.com for free wrestling podcasts four days a week (and one awesome podcast that has nothing to do with wrestling the fifth day)!

    The Big News: Samoa Joe choked out Finn Balor in the main event, just seven days before their championship match at NXT Takeover.

    The Medium News: Bayley vs. Nia Jax was made official for Takeover, which threatens the streak of eight straight great Takeover women’s championship matches.

    The Little Beaver Sized News: The Hype Bros did a promo talking about poop.

    **********

    Enzo Amore & Colin Cassady defeated Corey Hollis & John Skylar

    The #1 Contender’s are here to kick off the go home show to Takeover! Next Wednesday night Enzo and Cass get their second shot this year at the Tag Team Titles, this time held by Dash & Dawson. This was a very different Enzo & Cass, as they didn’t do their usual entrance, which is so weird.

    Hollis and Skylar looked similar to the champs in the way they dressed, which I guarantee wasn’t coincidental. Colin managed to still scream “How you doin” while beating the snot out of one of his foes. Enzo tagged in and collided with Hollis before dropping him a second time with a nice looking dropkick. The #1 Contender’s picked up the win with the Rocket Launcher.

    After the match they cut a promo talking about how this is how they put food on their table. They have been teaming longer than any team in NXT history (which really isn’t saying too much, but they have been teaming well over 2 years). They stated Dash & Dawson will not effect their future, the only people that will effect their future are in the ring.

    Colin said they have fought too hard for too long to let Dash & Dawson get in the way of what they want. They promised to get retribution, they will leave the champs laying and will walk out as Tag Team Champions.

    -Backstage Tom Phillips interviewed Emma & Dana Brooke. Emma asked why the red carpet has been rolled out for Asuka since Day one. Emma stated that she is the one that paved the way long before you ever heard of Bayley, Sasha, Charlotte or Asuka. Dana made Tom squat down to pat him on the head.

    -NXT Takeover is LIVE at 3:00pm EST. I am sure Dave and the crew will have live play by play. I will be at work, so you will be spared from that.

    -A video for Tye Dillinger aired. I’m not sure if you heard the rumors but he is the Perfect 10.

    Asuka defeated Deonna Perazzo via ref stoppage

    It’s Asuka time. She has added the horizontal line across her face that is similar to the one Havok used in TNA. They could not have given Deonna a wackier name if they tried.

    Asuka with some really nice wrestling before snapping off an armbar so beautiful that Alberto Del Rio could take lessons. Thankfully for Deonna, Jimmy Uso did not dive off the top rope onto the arm, but instead she got the ropes.

    Asuka hit a Hip Attack, so Emma decided now was the best time to stand on the ramp, looking amazing in her jeans. Asuka then took off Deonna’s head with a spin kick and won via ref stoppage.

    -The Hype Bros were being annoying and talking about poop.

    -Alexa told Blake & Murphy that she was embarrassed. Alexa is really upset that she lost to Bayley and it’s her mens’ fault. They did vow to break the Hype Bros.

    -The Drifter is Elias Sampson and I assume he is re-debuting soon. Honestly I think NXT should have a grifter character.

    The Hype Bros upset Blake & Murphy (w/Alexa)

    Blake is now wearing a ripped shirt that looks like he tried to wear one of Alexa’s shirts. Not sure if that’s better or worse than when I couldn’t tell the two apart. My least favorite announcer’s Heel Rant Of The Week was about the Hype Bros.

    The former champs tried to double team Mojo, but Mojo ran through his foes and then Irish Whipped Zach, who took the Chris Hamerick bump through the ropes with a dropkick to the heels outside the ring. Ryder went for the Broski Boot on Murphy, but Blake broke it up. Unfortunately Blake then got hit with the Broski Boot, but Murphy cut off Ryder for the heat.

    Mojo got the hot tag and did a really good comeback, featuring a discus lariat to Blake. The faces actually won with the Assisted Rough Ryder (Hype Ryder) in an upset.

    This was a decent match that was given quite a bit of time given that neither team is currently on the Takeover card.

    -Samoa Joe and Baron Corbin had a meeting backstage. Tonight is not about how they don’t like each other, it’s about taking out Finn Balor & Apollo Crews. Corbin called Apollo a rookie who doesn’t deserve anything while Joe said Finn betrayed him and not the other way around.

    Women’s Champion Bayley pinned Peyton Royce

    Next week on Takeover Bayley will defend the eight pounds of silver and purple against Nia Jax. While I like both ladies, I suspect that the streak of amazing womens championship matches ends at eight. Peyton now comes out with a flower.

    The story of this match was if Bayley was making a mistake by taking a match with Takeover next week, especially since Nia has beaten her down the last two weeks. Peyton got a bit more offense than you would expect, but it did further the story. Bayley made her comeback, hit the Belly to Bayley and picked up the win!

    Bayley had no time to celebrate when Nia Jax and Eva Marie strolled out onto the stage. The fans made so much noise to avoid hearing Eva talking. Shockingly they didn’t get any quieter when Nia took the mic, so Nia spoke louder. Nia said if she got to NXT sooner then Bayley never would have become champion.

    Nia vowed to win the strap because she is destined for greatness.

    -The NXT Championship is hanging around backstage, while Finn Balor stood nearby and threw kicks. Apollo Crews walked up and they discussed whether or not Finn’s head was in the game.

    -Apollo reminded him they have unfinished business and that he is coming for the strap.

    -The video of Sami Zayn injuring his shoulder before his match with John Cena aired. He returns soon!

    Samoa Joe & Baron Corbin defeated Finn Balor & Apollo Crews

    Baron Corbin still has a great entrance. Finn started the match, so Joe made sure to tag out to Baron. Baron and Finn wrestled for a minute until Finn tagged out to Apollo. Baron didn’t want to wrestle Apollo, so he tagged out to Joe. Apollo dropkicked Joe’s head off, but Joe screwed it back on and beat down Crews. With his hated rival down, Baron agreed to tag in to beat down Apollo.

    The match built to Apollo making the hot tag to Finn while Baron tagged Joe in. Finn got the best out of the interaction with Joe, including a beautiful running kick and several running chops. Joe went for the Muscle Buster, but Finn rolled behind for a two count.

    Apollo and Baron fought out of the ring, while champ and challenger fought inside. Balor hit The Slingblade and went for the Coup De Grace, but Corbin pushed him off the top rope. Joe laid out Finn with the Death Valley Driver and then choked the champ out.

    -Seven days before Takeover Samoa Joe has choked out the NXT Champion! What will happen next week? That will do it for this week! Until Takeover, remember to say your vitamins and take your prayers!

    **********

    Next week:

    Finn Balor vs. Samoa Joe for the NXT Championship
    Apollo Crews vs Baron Corbin
    Bayley vs Nia Jax for the NXT Women’s Championship
    Emma vs Asuka
    Dash & Dawson vs Enzo Amore & Colin Cassady for the NXT Tag Team Championship