WWE NXT is on the road this week with tonight’s episode taking place live from Center Stage in Atlanta.
Bayley will continue her feud with Roxanne Perez as the two meet in tag team action. It will be Bayley and NXT Women’s Champion Giulia against Perez and Cora Jade.
A Women’s Tag Team title match is also set with Bianca Belair and Naomi putting their belts on the line against Lash Legend and Jakara Jackson. In another title match, Shotzi challenges Fallon Henley for the NXT Women’s North American Championship.
NXT Champion Oba Femi will appear as Grayson Waller and Austin Theory’s guest on The Grayson Waller Effect.
Last week, Trick Williams made it clear that his sights are set on winning the NXT Championship back from Femi. Williams will be in action tonight when he goes one-on-one with Wes Lee.
NXT is on the air from Center Stage in Atlanta.
The show starts with Bayley’s first match on NXT since 2020.
NXT Women’s Champion Giulia & Bayley defeated Roxanne Perez & Cora Jade
Bayley pinned Jade to win the match. This was such a fun match. Really good opener.
The babyface duo gets to shine early on, but the heels take over before a commercial break. Perez & Jade both do dives just before the show cuts away to a split-screen. Bayley is trying to rally as the show returns from the break.
Bayley tries to climb the turnbuckles, but the heels work together to trip her up and stomp on her. Bayley is separated from her corner, and the heels work her over. Bayley-to-belly and a hot tag to Giulia. Some Matrix moves and Giulia is on fire. Missile dropkick for a two count.
Miss-communication by the heel duo, as Jade inadvertently hits Perez with a forearm smash. Giulia hit a knee for a near falls where Jade dives in to break it up. Bayley rushed into the ring to fight with Perez, and their fight spilled outside the ring.
Perez takes a hard bump into the barricade, and she is down selling the rest of the match. Meanwhile, Giulia drops Jade with a headbutt. Bayley climbs the turnbuckles around Giulia tags her, and Bayley leaps off the top rope with a flying elbow drop. Bayley then hooks a leg and covers Giulia for a three count.
Eddy Thorpe is the focus of a vignette, where is standing by a fire as he cuts a promo. He vows to make his mark, and he will not be broken. Should be noted he still has that strap like in a strap match.
After a fun wrestling match to open the show, now is the sports entertainment portion of the program.
“The Grayson Waller Effect” with NXT Champion Oba Femi
Although it starts as a talking segment with Femi facing off with Garyson Waller and Austin Theory. That leads to Femi issuing a challenge to either Waller or Theory, asking which one will face him at Vengeance Day. Trick Williams is shown watching the proceedings on a monitor backstage.
After Femi challenges Austin and Waller, out comes NXT General Manager Ava. She tells Femi he does not make the matches around here, she does. Ava is then interrupted by the entrance of Trick. He storms past Ava and into the ring. Trick throws both Waller and Theory out of the ring, but Femi cuts off Trick and give him a pop-up powerbomb. The show cuts to a commercial break with Trick down, and has a match up next.
Sarah Schreiber interviews Izzi Dame to ask what is going on with Dame and Tony D’Angelo. Dame says nothing is going on, and they are not even friends. They just have a similar enemy. Up walks Ridge Holland to interject, and he calls Dame a liar.
Channing “Stacks” Lorenzo comes up to take up for Dame, and Holland says he does not want to talk with D’Angelo’s lackey. Holland and Stacks get face-to-face when they are separated by referees.
Referees are at ringside checking on Trick Williams, who is still selling the powerbomb from Femi. Trick vows to wrestle, and the refs let him.
Trick Williams vs. Wes Lee (with Tyriek Igwe & Tyson Dupont)
A day after JD McDonagh took a nasty bump on an announce desk, they do a spot in this match were Lee jumps off the apron with meteora that drives Trick backwards on the announce desk. From there, the show cuts to a commercial break.
Igwe and Dupont get involved at one point, and there is blatant interference. The ref lets it go, as Trick thwarts the heels. However, Trick starts kicking too much butt.
Trick won’t back off when the ref says so, and Trick shoved the ref down. The ref then disqualifies Trick. A miscarriage of justice as Gorilla Monsoon would say. Trick picks up a metal folding chair, and he heels flee.
In a backstage skit, Ava tells Femi that he will defend the NXT title in a triple threat match against Theory and Waller at Vengeance Day. Another triple threat match. How original. But wait, there’s more.
After a commercial break, Ava is talking with Trick, who is upset he is not getting the title shot at the PLE. Ava tells Trick to prove it, and she books him in a tag match with Femi as Trick’s partner against Waller and Theory for next week on NXT.
NXT Women’s North American Champion Fallon Henley (with Jacy Jayne & Jazmyn Nyz) defeated Shotzi (with Tatum Paxley & Gigi Dolan) to retain her title
Henley pinned Shotzi with ‘The Hoedown” to win the match. Rough to watch at time because Shotzi took such crazy bumps.
Shotzi does a dive on to everyone at ringside. From there, the respective entourages start fighting at ringside. They fight their way up the ramp and exit stage right. Henley chop blocks Shotzi’s knee, and the show cut to a commercial break wondering whether Shotzi can continue.
Shotzi makes a comeback after the show returns from the break. She takes some crazy bumps. Moments late, she drops all her weight on Henley when Shotzi jumps off the ropes with a senton bomb.
Henley cuts off Shotzi, and Shotzi gets trapped in the tree of woe. Henley then suplexed Shotzi, and Henley does a famouser (Rocker Dropper), that Vic Joseph on commentary called the “The Hoedown”. Silly name, but Henley is so damn good.
After the match, Stepahnie Vaquer enters stage right to confront Henley. Then a title match is officially announced that Henley defends against Vaquer at Vengeance Day.
Kelani Jordan was very rude to Karmen Petrovic, and Petrovic calls her a “bitch” as Jordan walks off.
Sarah Schreiber interviews Ava in a backstage skit. Ava is about to announce the NXT Womens’ title match for Vengeance Day when Roxanne Perez interrupts with Cora Jade in tow. Perez assumes she is not the challenger, and she blames Jade for losing in the tag match.
Ava instead announces Perez is challenging for the title in yet another triple threat match. What such an overdone concept. Anyway, the women’s title match is Giulia defending against Perez and Bayley in a triple threat.
Jade storms off, as she is upset over the news. Perez chases after her. Later in the show, Jade tells Ava they need to “have a word!”
Ethan Page vs. Cedric Alexander
Page pinned Alexander.
The match goes through a commercial break. Page works over Alexander’s hand, targeting it and smashing the hand on the ring steps. After a while, Alexander fights back with a suplex. Alexander then makes a comeback. Michinoku Driver by Alexander for a near fall. Brainbuster for a two count as well.
Alexander has Page in a submission when Page snaps Alexander’s fingers to break the hold. There is a slugfest and they trade strikes. Page blocks Alexander’s handspring finisher, and Page executes a Diamond Cutter. Page then covers Alexander for a pinfall.
Page pulls the bottom turnbuckle pad off, as if Page is going to smash the injured hand. Je’Von runs down the ramp for a save, and Evans leaps into the ring to splash Page. Evans is a house of fire, and Page is set sailing out of the ring.
Fatal Influence cut a promo where they announced Stephanie Vaquer against Jacy Jayne in match for next week.
Josh Briggs gives Yoshiki Inamura a leather vest in a vignette. Now they have matching vests like a real team.
WWE Women’s Tag Tea Champions Bianca Belair & Naomi defeated Lash Legend & Jakara Jackson to retain the titles
Belair pinned Jackson to win the match, and the champions retain their titles. My feed of the CW was in-and-out several times during the match, so it seems disjointed to me.
The live crowd booed heavily at the false finish, thinking Jackson has pinned Belair. The crowd turned on the match when Belair kicked out.
Belair and Naomi execute a tandem sit-out finisher on Jackosn, and Belair scores the deciding pinfall.
There was a teaser of some sort at the end of the show for Vengeance Day.