This was a very good episode of NXT. The main event was excellent between Mandy Rose and Roxanne Perez. They swerved earlier in the show by moving up the title match from New Year’s Evil to tonight. The change was a good one as Perez won the title while her mentor, Booker T, looked on. The lowlight of the show was the women’s tag match that ended early in a DQ. We get a triple threat match for the NXT Women’s Tag Team Championships next week that will hopefully make up for this week’s match. This show loses points on the match score because a few of the matches were ok. The show structure was good but some segments at the end hurt the overall score. The atmosphere was good throughout but not overwhelming. The Perez win was good but some of the matches didn't have a lot of story, the Valkyria-Miller match for example. And the production was good but it didn't have a special theme to it.
On tonight’s episode of NXT: a battle of the big men as Odyssey Jones takes on Von Wagner. Who will prove to be the better man? Lyra Valkyria makes her NXT debut. How will she perform in her first match? Toxic Attraction faces off against Ivy Nile and Tatum Paxley in a number one contender’s match. Who will be the next team to challenge Kayden Carter and Katana Chance? Will we see Grayson Waller and Roxanne Perez after winning the Iron Survivor Challenge? And we hear from the new NXT Tag Team Champions!
GOOD Roxanne Perez:
As Perez was about to start her promo, fellow Iron Survivor Challenge winner cut her off and the two went at it verbally. A highlight of the promo was when Waller told Perez that she won her Challenge first because she had to get home for bedtime like a small child. Then, Bron Breakker joined the fray and chased off Grayson Waller. To end the segment, Mandy Rose hit Roxanne Pere from behind with her title belt.
Matt Cookson WR Star Rating – 3 stars
Brutus Creed challenged JD McDonagh to a match later in the show.
Interestingly, the show went back to Perez and Mandy Rose. Perez demanded her title match be tonight.
GOOD Wes Lee vs Stacks Lorenzo:
Early in the match, Wes Lee executed a risky dive on Lorenzo, with Lee’s back taking most of the damage. Lee controlled the momentum until Stacks countered with a Tilt-A-Whirl Backbreaker. Lorenzo tried to finish off his opponent with a submission hold but Lee broke out of the hold. In the end, Wes Lee finished Stacks Lorenzo by turning a cartwheel into a dropkick. After the match, Tony D’Angelo attacked Lee with the help of a distraction from Dijak.
Results: Wes Lee by Pinfall
Matt Cookson WR Star Rating – 3.25 Stars
Duke Hudson re-affirms his commitment to Chase U after Andre Chase and Thea Hail saw Hudson shaking hands with Drew Gulak.
AVERAGE Ivy Nile and Tatum Paxley vs Toxic Attraction (w/Katana Chance and Kayden Carter on commentary):
Toxic Attraction tossed Nile and Paxley out of the ring while telling the champs to “suck it”, D-Generation X style. The match came to an end after Carter and Chance attacked Toxic Attraction.
Results: Ivy Nile and Tatum Paxley by Disqualification
Matt Cookson WR Star Rating – 2 Stars
Carmelo Hayes promised to delete Axiom for embarrassing him during the Iron Survivor Challenge.
GOOD Odyssey Jones vs Von Wagner:
In a battle of giants, Jones deflected shoulder tackles from Wagner like they were nothing. Later, Jones bodyslammed Von Wagner. The finish came as a result of a distraction, as Rob Stone was chased through the ring. This allowed a cheapshot on Wagner from Enofe and a splash from Jones to finish the match.
Results: Odyssey Jones by Pinfall via Splash
Matt Cookson WR Star Rating – 3 Stars
Javier Bernal is interviewed by McKenzie Mitchell ahead of his match with Ikeman Jiro. Bernal came up with a name for his fanbase.
ABOVE AVERAGE Ikeman Jiro vs Javier Bernal:
Jiro was chipper to start the match but Bernal ended that with a thunderous lariat followed up with a faceplant. Later, Jiro seized the momentum with a series of jacket punches. In the end, Ikeman Jiro picked up the win off of a Hurricanrana from the ring corner. After the match, Scrypts attacked Jiro.
Results: Ikeman Jiro by Pinfall
Matt Cookson WR Star Rating – 2.75 Stars
AMAZING The New Day:
Woods and Kingston celebrated their title win and reminisced about Woods’ time in NXT. then, Pretty Deadly demanded a rematch. New Day said they would grant the request if Pretty Deadly could recite the pledge of allegiance. They couldn’t, but Briggs and Jensen could, earning a title shot.
Matt Cookson WR Star Rating – 4 stars
GREAT Brutus Creed vs JD McDonagh:
Creed fought with intensity to start the match, pummeling McDonagh in the corner. Later, McDonagh wanted to demonstrate his brutality by using a chair. However, Sanga and Veer ripped the chair from McDonagh’s hands. Nevertheless, McDonagh won the match on a couple of Angle Slams.
Results: JD McDonagh by Pinfall via Side Slam
Matt Cookson WR Star Rating – 3.5 Stars
Zoey Stark’s answer to Nikkita Lyons’ Tik Toks is to challenge her to a match.
ABOVE AVERAGE Amari Miller vs Lyra Valkyria:
Valkyria was in control of this match early on as she tossed Muller out of the ring. Later, Miller used her anger to get in some offense but Valkyria countered. In the end, Valhyria won in her NXT debut on a frog splash.
Results: Lyra Valkyria by Pinfall via Frogsplash
Matt Cookson WR Star Rating – 2.5 Stars
Axiom promised he wasn’t afraid of Carmelo Hayes.
Kiana James sweet-talked Brooks Jensen and gave him a nice shirt. Meanwhile, toxic Attraction, Cater and Chance, and Ivy Nile and Tatum Paxley renewed their brawl from earlier.
GOOD Duke Hudson vs Damon Kemp:
Kemp was in complete control of this match at the beginning. That is until Duke Hudson saw Drew Gulak at ringside. This seemed to give Hudson confidence, and he took control. He won on a flurry of offense punctuated by a big boot.
Results: Duke Hudson by Pinfall via Big Boot
Matt Cookson WR Star Rating – 3.25 Stars
AMAZING Roxanne Perez vs Mandy Rose for the NXT Women’s Championship: (Make Subheading)
The two ladies did some trash-talking and showboating to start the match. Perez dove onto Rose outside the ring and attempted to press the advantage with Pop Rox but the champ countered. Later on, Perez thought she had a victory after a Hurricanran from the top but Rose kicked out. After a lengthy cross-face submission, Mandy Rose hit Perez with a Kiss by the Rose and thought she had the three count but the challenger kicked out. In the end, we got a surprising title change after Roxanne Perez landed Pop Rocks. Perez and Booker T (who trained Perez) were both very emotional after the title change, ending the show on a good note.
Results: Roxanne Perez by Pinfall via Pop Rocks
Matt Cookson WR Star Rating – 4 Stars
Overall…
This was a very good episode of NXT. The main event was excellent between Mandy Rose and Roxanne Perez. They swerved earlier in the show by moving up the title match from New Year’s Evil to tonight. The change was a good one as Perez won the title while her mentor, Booker T, looked on. The lowlight of the show was the women’s tag match that ended early in a DQ. We get a triple threat match for the NXT Women’s Tag Team Championships next week that will hopefully make up for this week’s match. This show loses points on the match score because a few of the matches were ok. The show structure was good but some segments at the end hurt the overall score. The atmosphere was good throughout but not overwhelming. The Perez win was good but some of the matches didn’t have a lot of story, the Valkyria-Miller match for example. And the production was good but it didn’t have a special theme to it.
Matches: 0.5/1 Stars
Show Structure: 0.75/1 Stars
Atmosphere: 0.75/1 Stars
Storytelling: 0.75/1 Stars
Production/Theme: 0.75/1 Stars
Overall Rating. 3.5/5 Stars
Photo Credit: WWE
For inquiries about the rating criteria check out the article announcing the new system here:
