Top 3 Performers of NXT (February 27, 2019)
This week's NXT kicked off with former North American champion Johnny Gargano coming to the ring. Gargano spoke about how he had experienced a lot in the past week, having appeared on Raw and Smackdown as well as losing his title to Velveteen Dream. He was cut off in the middle of his promo by NXT champion and Gargano's tag team partner, Tommaso Ciampa. Ciampa seemed to suggest that he and Gargano could join the Dusty Rhodes classic as a tag team together, which if they won would lead to a shot at the tag team titles at Takeover: New York. The two finished the promo with a handshake, seeming to symbolize that #DIY was back together again.
Ricochet was backstage with Cathy Kelly to talk about his issues with the Undisputed Era. Ricochet suggested that he doesn't have to worry about the Era now that he has Black by his side, and suggested that he and Black will enter the Dusty Rhodes classic with hopes that they can defeat the Undisputed Era team of Bobby Fish and Kyle O'Reilly. Outside, the newly reformed #DIY team ran into Gargano's wife Candice LaRae. LaRae who was unsurprisingly unsupportive of her husband's decision.
Back in the ring, Vanessa Bourne and Aaliyah made their way down to the ring for the first action of the night. They faced off against the team of Taynara Conti and Xia Li. Conti and Bourne started in the ring for their respective teams and begun the match exchanging chain maneuvers. Bourne would be the first to make a tag, bringing in Aaliyah as they double-teamed Conti, hitting her with a double T-Bone Suplex. Conti eventually fought back to tag in Xia Li, who would gain the advantage after the tag. However, Bourne would get a blind tag and she and Aaliyah would hit a double team move on Li for the victory.
After a confrontation between Velveteen Dream and the Undisputed Era took place at the entrance to the studio at Full Sail University, Io Shirai and Bianca Belair were seen yelling at each other in the hallways outside of William Regal's office. Back in the ring, Dominik Dijakovic faced off against the Limitless Keith Lee. Lee had previously been involved in Matt Riddle's feud with Kassius Ohno. The two began by trying to knock the other off their feet. Dijakovic attempted to perform a Monkey Flip on Lee, only for Lee to land on his feet. The two traded chops as Dijakovic got Lee down to his knees as he gained momentum. Dijakovic would hit Lee with a sit-out Chokeslam, only for Lee to kick out at two of the subsequent pinfall. Lee would catch Dijackovic as he came off the ropes before slamming Dijakovic to the ground, but would also only get a two count.
The battle would spill to the outside as Dijakovic knocked Lee off the apron with a spinning kick. Dijakovic would also hit Lee with an Asai Moonsault. Neither wrestler would recover as the referee counted to 10, resulting in the match ending in a double count-out. Both men would attempt to continue the match but were separated by the referees who forced them backstage. Prior to the main event, the WWE Women's Tag Team Champion and NXT Alumni Sasha Banks and Bayley came down to the ring to show that they truly meant that they would defend their titles not just on Raw, but also Smackdown and NXT.
The final match of the evening and the main event of the evening saw Mia Yim challenge NXT Women's Champion Shayna Baszler. The two hard-hitting superstars went back and forth trading blows, as the match spilled to the outside, Yim targetted Baszler's left hand which she had hurt earlier in the match, treading on her hand and fingers while they were placed on the steel stairs. Yim would then miscue a kick and connect with the stairs, leading to her hurting her left leg and foot. Both wrestlers would target the other's injury throughout the match. Yim would eventually gain the upper hand, hitting Baszler with her Eat Defeat finisher, but was unable to transition into a pin quickly due to her injury. Baszler would eventually trap and force Yim to submit after locking in the Kirafuda Clutch.
#3 Mia Yim
It was very difficult to split this week's third spot, as both Mia Yim and Keith Lee had valiant performances even in defeat. Yim just gets the spot after taking her opponent, NXT Women's Champion Shayna Baszler, to her limits before ultimately submitting to the Kirafuda Clutch. Despite losing the match, Yim's performance against the current champion was impressive.
The match also built on their shared history, with Baszler also defeating Yim previously during the inaugural Mae Young Classic in the Round of 16. Yim smartly targetted Baszler's right hand, which she had hurt after missing Yim with a punch and hitting the canvas instead. As the fight spilled outside the ring, Yim managed to hit Baszler with a Tope Suicida and a barrage of kicks, forcing the champion backward. However, as Yim looked to deliver a kick to Baszler as the champion was against the steel stairs, Baszler moved and Yim's foot connected with the stairs.
Despite this, Yim still looked like she would pick up the upset victory after hitting her Eat Defeat finishing move, but wasn't able to transition quickly enough into a pin, allowing Baszler time to recover and kick out at 2.