5 Key takeaways from NXT after AEW premiere; one big problem, why Balor returned
This week officially kicked off what fans are dubbing The Wednesday Night Wars, as NXT aired its first full, two-hour broadcast on USA Network, and All Elite Wrestling premiered Dynamite on TNT.
Given the online response to the Wednesday night batch of programming, fans are in for a wild Wednesday night ride as both WWE and AEW hit big home runs with their offerings of NXT and Dynamite.
It will be interesting to see how the two companies attempt to program, or possibly counter-program their shows, going forward, in order to establish direction and overall characteristics of NXT and AEW, with NXT attempting to establish itself as a legitimate third brand in WWE, while All Elite Wrestling attempts to establish itself as an alternative to WWE programming.
Given the above, let's take a look at five key takeaways from this week's episode of WWE NXT.
#5 Candice LeRae has arrived in WWE
WWE NXT star Candice LeRae has been a known commodity on the Wednesday night brand for quite some time, but her breakout, star-making performance came on NXT this week when she faced Shayna Baszler for the NXT Women's title.
LeRae came up short in the bout, and lost her bid to win NXT gold, but she scored a major moral victory when she gave Baszler a fantastic Championship match and established LeRae as one of the top female talents on the NXT brand.
LeRae's performance on NXT this week drew a tremendous amount of praise from fans and pro wrestling pundits, and she drew the attention of current WWE SmackDown Women's Champion Bayley, who currently has no match for this Sunday's WWE Hell in a Cell PPV. Following NXT, Bayley issued a challenge to LeRae for this Sunday, Tweeting the following.