Overall, this was an ok episode of NXT 2.0. The highlight of the night was the match between Roderick Strong and Apollo Crews. The main event was also pretty good and advanced a couple of storylines by incorporating Mandy Rose and Roxanne Perez. The meeting between Santos Escobar and Tony D’Angelo resulted in a street fight being scheduled for next week. The low point of the night was the match between Kiana James and Nikkita Lyons. James put up a decent effort but this match was nothing special. The whole show loses points because most of the matches were fine but nothing special. This episode does set up a lot to look forward to with the street fight and the women’s title match for next week.
On tonight’s NXT 2.0: Zoey Stark takes on Cora Jade. Will Jade avenge her defeat at Stark’s hands in the women’s battle royale? Tony D’Angelo meets up with Santos Escobar. Will the two men be able to resolve their differences? Wes Lee takes on Trick Williams in a Rounds Match. Can Wes Lee deliver the knockout punch? And Nikkita Lyons battles Kiana James. Who will come out on top?
ABOVE AVERAGE Nikkita Lyons vs Kiana James: James took a surprising advantage when she made a point of targeting Lyons’s leg. Despite this, Lyons was able to turn the match around with some kicks and a German Suplex. Lyons delivered a Split-Legged Legdrop to pick up the victory. James hit Lyons with her briefcase after the match.
Results: Nikkita Lyons by Pinfall via Split-Legged Legdrop
Matt Cookson WR Star Rating – 2.5 Stars
Roderick Strong rebukes the Creeds for watching film with Apollo Crews. The group argues and Crews challenges Strong to a match.
Lash Legend talks to Malik Blade about her match last week.
ABOVE AVERAGE Wes Lee vs Trick Williams in a Rounds Match: round 1 was basically a boxing match with Lee dominating but unable to pick up a point. Round 2 was more of a wrestling match, won by Trick Williams after Carmelo Hayes interfered on his behalf. Wes Lee pinned Williams in round 4 but Williams knocked him out in between rounds. With seconds to go in round 5, Lee hit Williams with a right hook to make the pin.
Results: Wes Lee by Pinfall
Matt Cookson WR Star Rating – 2.75 Stars
Andre Chase tells Arianna Grace and Thea Hail to resolve their dispute in a match.
ABOVE AVERAGE Carmelo Hayes: Hayes brags about defending his title against Nathan Frazer. Giovanni Vinci tells Hayes that his previous challenger doesn’t compare to Vinci. The two briefly brawl before referees separate them.
Matt Cookson WR Star Rating – 2.75
ABOVE AVERAGE Thea Hail vs Arianna Grace: Grace held Hail in a submission hold but Hail refused to tap out. After showing some passion, Hail nearly won the match with a standing moonsault. Arianna Grace picked up the victory in the end after faking an injury to get in a cheap shot.
Results: Arianna Grace by Pinfall
Matt Cookson WR Star Rating – 2.5 Stars
Solo Sikoa exchanges words of admiration with Cameron Grimes.
GREAT Roderick Strong vs Apollo Crews: Strong counters a corner jump with a nice drop kick. Strong also delivered several backbreakers all throughout the match. Crews took Strong to suplex city later in the match and nearly picked up the win after one of them. Apollo Crews was able to finish Strong off.
Results: Apollo Crews by Pinfall via Crews Buster
Matt Cookson WR Star Rating – 3.5 Stars
Sanga offers to help Valentina Feroz and Yulissa Leon.
Roderick Strong blames the rest of Diamond Mine for his loss.
GOOD Santos Escobar and Tony D’Angelo: Escobar is unwilling to submit to D’Angelo’s authority. Santos Escobar offers D’Angelo a high-stakes match. If Escobar wins, Legado Del Fantasma gets to leave D’Angelo’s faction. If Tony D wins, Santos Escobar leaves NXT. The two agree to make their match a street fight.
Matt Cookson WR Star Rating – 3.25 stars
ABOVE AVERAGE Pretty Deadly vs Edris Enofe and Malik Blade: Prince threw a chair into the ring but Malik Blade jumped onto him afterward. Before could use the chair, Briggs and Jensen, who were ringside, grabbed the chair from his hands. A Spilt Milk from Pretty Deadly finished off Enofe. After the match, Lash Legend delivered a beating to the ringside Fallon Henley.
Results: Pretty Deadly by Pinfall via Spilt Milk
Matt Cookson WR Star Rating – 2.75 Stars
Joe Gacy talks to Cameron Grimes before he leaves the Performance Center.
Grayson Waller tells Apollo Crews he isn’t welcome in NXT.
GOOD Zoey Stark vs Cora Jade: the two exchanged pin attempts early on. Jade tried to use a kendo stick but Stark avoided it and responded with a German Suplex. Jade attempted to use the kendo stick again but she was surprised to see it in the hands of Roxanne Perez. This allowed Stark to hit Jade with a superkick and a Belly-to-Back GTS to pick up the win. Mandy Rose was at the commentary table but tried to get in a sneak attack on Stark after the match. Stark superkicked Rose and stood over her carrying the belt.
Results: Zoey Stark by Pinfall via Belly-to-Back GTS
Matt Cookson WR Star Rating – 3.25 Stars
Overall, this was an ok episode of NXT 2.0. The highlight of the night was the match between Roderick Strong and Apollo Crews. The main event was also pretty good and advanced a couple of storylines by incorporating Mandy Rose and Roxanne Perez. The meeting between Santos Escobar and Tony D’Angelo resulted in a street fight being scheduled for next week. The low point of the night was the match between Kiana James and Nikkita Lyons. James put up a decent effort but this match was nothing special. The whole show loses points because most of the matches were fine but nothing special. This episode does set up a lot to look forward to with the street fight and the women’s title match for next week.
Matches: 0.25/1 Stars
Show Structure: 0.5/1 Stars
Atmosphere: 0.5/1 Stars
Storytelling: 0.5/1 Stars
Production/Theme: 0.75/1 Stars
Overall Rating. 2.5/5 Stars
Photo Credit: WWE
For inquiries about the rating criteria check out the article announcing the new system here:
