4 things WWE NXT got right this week: Champions retain; international tag team returns
This week’s WWE NXT hosted two top championship matches as Mandy Rose, and Bron Breakker defended their titles on Tuesday night. Rose was set to take on Alba Fyre in a Last Woman Standing match, while Breakker took on Von Wagner to open the show.
Meanwhile, Shawn Michaels made a special announcement for the upcoming NXT Deadline event. He revealed that a brand-new match would take place at the show.
The 25-minute long match will see superstars enter the ring five minutes apart. The superstar to get the most pinfalls would win the match. Anyone who is pinned would have to spend 90 seconds outside the ring as a penalty.
A couple of other fantastic matches also took place during the show. However, the creative team booked a few lackluster matches and segments that could have been much stronger by allowing the superstars more time.
Take a look at the four things WWE NXT got right on this week’s show.
#4. Bron Breakker overcame Von Wagner to retain the WWE NXT Championship
The WWE NXT Championship match kicked off this week’s show as Bron Breakker came out to defend his title against Von Wagner. The challenger used Mr. Stone to get the early advantage by pushing him into Breakker.
However, the champion was ready to fire back at Wagner and took him outside the ring. Wagner sent Breakker into the steel steps and hit a chokeslam on the bottom of it.
The bigger man kept control for some time and pushed the champion around. He hit a butterfly suplex and a sidewalk slam but couldn’t put Breakker away. Bron took control again by hitting a couple of big moves and a bulldog before Wagner got his finisher in for a near fall.
Wagner got into an argument with the referee, and Mr. Stone tried to get involved. The challenger threw him off the apron, and the distraction allowed Breakker to hit a Spear to retain his NXT Championship.
Breakker was always going to retain his title, as Wagner is not ready to carry the brand. However, he put on a decent fight against one of the show's top names. He still has much to do in the ring before being seen as a legitimate threat at the top of the card.
#3. Indus Sher returned to action on Tuesday night
Indus Sher returned to action on WWE NXT this week to take on the team of George Cannon & Jake Fingado. Sanga and Veer Mahaan looked to show their dominance during the match.
Sanga knocked down his opponent and bounced him off the ropes to showcase his brutal strength. He hit the new kid with some moves before tagging in Veer, who immediately went after his legs.
The new guys got a tag but couldn’t do much in the match. Sanga hit a tackle and a few big slams before Veer came in to hit his signature elbow drop. However, he added insult to injury by taking down the new kid with a combination finisher for the win.
After the match, Indus Sher sent a warning to the Creed Brothers. NXT could have done much more by giving Indus Sher an established tag team to take down.
There was no need to rebuild Veer and Sanga by feeding them some promotional talent. However, a rivalry against The Creed Brothers will help put the international tag team on the map again.
#2. Apollo Crews put down JD McDonagh to get in line for a title shot
Apollo Crews and JD McDonagh competed in one of the most high-profile matches on WWE NXT. The latter used his smarts to take control early and sent Crews into the corner before hitting him with a few stiff strikes.
Crews sent his opponent outside the ring and hit a moonsault off the apron to regain control of the match. He hit JD with some good moves before taking him down with a splash in the corner. Apollo hit a powerbomb combo that nearly earned him the win.
The former Intercontinental Champion stayed on the attack and hit a top-rope suplex before failing to get a vertical suplex that McDonagh turned into a roll-up. The heel went for his finisher, but Crews caught him with a big knee to the head. He followed it up with a pop-up slam to secure the victory.
Bron Breakker came out after the match to stare down his potential future challenger on the ramp. It was a solid contest between the two superstars that lit up NXT.
This week’s show had a few weak matches, but this one certainly delivered. JD will likely take a backseat now as Crews moves into the NXT Championship picture.
#1. Isla Dawn helped Mandy Rose win the Last Woman Standing match on WWE NXT
Mandy Rose defended her NXT Women’s Championship against Alba Fyre in a Last Woman Standing match. The champion fled the ring right after the bell, but Fyre cashed her down and hit her with a dive outside the ring.
The two women fought outside the ring before Fyre brought a steel chair and other weapons into the game. Rose took advantage of the situation and hit a slam on the steel chair.
Fyre targeted Rose’s knees and looked to weaken her by locking in a submission hold. The two superstars continued introducing new weapons into the clash to do as much damage to each other as possible. Rose was hit with a ladder before she used it to take down Fyre.
They fought around on the outside again before Fyre hit Rose with a Superkick. Fyre climbed the ladder near the announcers’ desk before Isla Dawn from NXT UK appeared and hit her with the mist, sending her through the announce table.
Rose made it back into the ring to beat the 10-count while Fyre could not get up, allowing Rose to retain her NXT Women’s Championship.
This was a far better performance from Mandy Rose, who needed to end this rivalry on a high. Dawn’s arrival helped protect Fyre from a clean loss. She is one of the better superstars to have come out of the UK brand.
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