5 things WWE NXT got right this week: RAW Superstar returns to the brand; champion laid out
An action-packed episode of WWE NXT took over Tuesday night this week. The show started slow but quickly picked up pace with a couple of championship matches that were top-notch.
Mandy Rose and Toxic Attraction continued to showcase their dominance over the brand’s women’s division. Meanwhile, The Schism appeared in a segment that was also well-received by fans.
Cora Jade got a match against Wendy Choo, while Chase U set their eyes on the NXT Tag Team Championship. Carmelo Hayes was also looking to equal Johnny Gargano’s record by winning the North American Championship thrice.
Meanwhile, a former RAW Superstar returned to the brand and immediately targeted a top champion.
Take a look at the five things WWE NXT got right on this week’s show.
#5. Cora Jade put Wendy Choo to sleep on WWE NXT
Cora Jade took on Wendy Choo in a singles match on WWE NXT. The latter started strong and hit some big moves before the heel fired back. Jade caught her on the ropes and unleashed continuous strikes.
Choo went for the Nap Drop early, but Jade countered and tried to take Choo out with a stomp. The babyface hit a Nap Drop soon after and a Handstand Strike before hitting a Brainbuster.
The two women traded some strikes before Jade tried to hit her opponent with a Kendo Stick. Choo dodged her strikes and hit her with a kick. The heel got the DDT soon after to pick up the win.
Both women put on a decent show, and it was good to see Jade get the win. She emerged as a top heel on the brand not too long ago but lost a lot of steam after her loss to Roxanne Perez. WWE should continue to work on her character and bookings in the coming months.
#4. Ivy Nile defeated Kiana James to stay relevant on the brand
Kiana James looked to prove herself against Diamond Mine’s Ivy Nile on this week’s WWE NXT. James locked in a full nelson early to punish her opponent before being taken down with a few backbreakers.
James continued to rely on submission maneuvers as she caught Nile in a knee bar. She hit a big suplex after Niles fought out but got caught in the Rings of Saturn right away.
Kiana fought out of the submission hold but fell to a Hurricanrana and a gut wrench suplex. The two women exchanged some strikes as the fight spilled over to the floor. Fallon Henley showed up to send James back into the ring, allowing Nile to lock in another submission for the win.
Nile is among the top female superstars in NXT today. It’s a shame to see her compete so low down on the card. She proved herself once again in a good match against James and should get a decent push after the win.
After the match, The Creed Brothers sent a warning to Indus Sher saying that they were not afraid of Veer and Sanga. The two teams will likely collide in the coming weeks.
#3. Pretty Deadly retained their NXT Tag Team Championships
Chase U challenged Pretty Deadly for the WWE NXT Tag Team Championship. Duke Hudson and Andre Chase were looking to get their hands on the gold during the show.
The challengers had the upper hand early as they tried to isolate Elton Prince. The champ fired back with a dropkick and isolated Chase in return. Prince and Kit Wilson hit a double-team splash for a near fall before Chase got back in the game.
He took both champions down before tagging Hudson in for a double-team move of their own. Andre toyed around with the champions and hit some good moves but could not retain control of the contest for long.
Hudson tagged Chase in but accidentally took him down with a running boot. Pretty Deadly took advantage and sent Hudson into the steel steps outside before hitting Spilt Milk on Andre for the win.
The match was exciting, and it looked like the titles would change hands on more than one occasion. However, the miscommunication allowed Pretty Deadly to successfully retain their titles. Both teams put on an entertaining show for the tag team titles on WWE NXT.
#2. Wes Lee put on a good show against Carmelo Hayes to retain his title
Carmelo Hayes looked to win the WWE NXT North American Championship once again as he challenged Wes Lee for the title. The match went outside the ring early, where Hayes punished Lee with some stiff strikes.
Lee endured some punishment early on before missing a dropkick. Both men took each other out with double pump-kicks before Lee recovered to take control of the contest for some time.
He hit a Headscissors Toss for a near fall before missing a top rope move on Hayes. Trick Williams came out to distract the champion, but Lee took him down with a big dive outside the ring. Hayes looked to use the distraction to his advantage, but Wes Lee hit him with the Phantom Driver for the win.
The match was fast-paced and entertaining. It had a few top spots that made it memorable.
Additionally, it was the right call to allow Lee to retain his championship against Hayes. The win showed that he deserves to lead the mid-card of the NXT brand.
#1. Dijak returned to take out the NXT North American Champion
Wes Lee was left puzzled after his successful title defense on WWE NXT. The mood of the champion changed quickly as Dijak (formerly known as T-Bar on RAW and Dominik Dijakovic on NXT) showed up from behind in the ring.
Lee was greeted with a chokeslam by the former member of RETRIBUTION, who stood tall to close the show. It was a good way to bring back Dijak, who had been suffering for a long time on the main roster.
Dijak was among the top names in NXT not too long ago. However, his run on the main roster was lukewarm at best. He has been repackaged, and hopefully, Shawn Michaels will give him an even better run on the brand in the coming months.
Winning the North American Championship right away would be a great start for the returning superstar. However, WWE could have also allowed him to go after Bron Breakker following his return.
What did you make of NXT this week? Let us know in the comments section below.
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