WWE NXT (15th March, 2017)- 5 Points to Note
This week, NXT came back to the University of Central Florida, only a few days removed from NXT Takeover: Orlando on Wrestlemania 33 weekend. The crowd was packed in, to witness NXT Champion Bobby Roode put his title up for grabs in his first glorious championship defence. That too, against the returning Kassius Ohno who’s made a heroic name for himself in the independents, pun intended. Did the show deliver? Did it disappoint? Why do we say that it was a show that was about the numbers? Read on.
#5 First 3 time NXT Champion?
The big news this week was the grand return of Kassius Ohno, who made his comeback to NXT amidst much fanfare. Going straight for the champion, we were treated to a very entertaining match between these two talented performers. For a man of his size (and girth), Kassius Ohno moves like a much smaller man (as we have seen time and again outside the WWE). After much back and forth, Roode would persevere and deliver the ‘Glorious DDT’ to pick up the big victory.
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One fascinating cutaway during the match was to Shinsuke Nakamura who appeared to be watching the action from the back. As William Regal had stipulated, the winner of the Ohno-Roode contest battles the King of Strong Style at NXT Takeover: Orlando. Will Nakamura become the first ever 3-time NXT Champion very soon? Or is Bobby Roode slated to continue for the long haul while Nakamura gets called up to Raw/Smackdown?
One interesting thing to note is that NXT’s Tour to Download Festival advertises Bobby Roode and not Nakamura. Does this signify that Roode is going over Nakamura come NXT Takeover: Orlando?