The March 17, 2021 episode of WWE NXT aired live on the USA Network from Orlando, Florida at the Capitol Wrestling Center.
WWE NXT Results
- Dexter Lumis def. Austin Theory.
- Legado del Fantasma def. Breezango
- Dakota Kai (w/Raquel Gonzalez) def. Zoey Stark.
- Tommaso Ciampa def. Marcel Barthel.
- LA Knight def. August Grey
- NXT Tag Team Champions Danny Burch & Oney Lorcan def. Finn Balor & Karrion Kross.
Here are the takeaways from this week’s show:
Finn Balor Opens
The WWE NXT TakeOver: Stand and Deliver main event is now official as Finn Balor will defend the NXT Title against Karrion Kross. WWE had Balor come out to the ring for a promo. He listed off everyone he’s beaten and now Kross is waiting for him to do the same.
Balor said at TakeOver, Kross’ time is up. This led to Kross and Scarlett walking down to the ring. Kross said that this whole situation wasn’t going to happen until they settled their separate affairs. He said they need to know who the real champion is in NXT. He said the entire world needs to know it.
Balor said everyone wants to be a champion until the real champion walks into the room. Balor said Kross walks and talks like a champion, but Balor is the champion and Kross doesn’t have what it takes to beat him. Kross promised him at TakeOver that Balor will know what it feels like when he chokes him out.
Balor responded by saying Kross will know what it’s like to be in the main event and choke. Scarlett said she’s already seen this in the cards – two champions draped in gold and the world in awe. Oney Lorcan and Danny Burch came out for a promo and told Balor that he should be facing Pete Dunne.
They said that Dunne can also beat Kross and in time, Pete Dunne will become champion. This led to Scarlett throwing out the idea of Burch and Lorcan defending the tag team titles against Kross and Balor. They agreed to it for later in the show.
The main event saw Balor get pinned after Balor accidentally kicked Lorcan into Scarlett. Kross attacked Balor, which led to the finish. After the match, Kross laid out Balor with a choke then a forearm shot to the back of the head.
Singles Match
The Way’s storyline with Dexter Lumis continued on this show as NXT North American Champion Johnny Gargano, Candice LeRae, Indi Hartwell & Austin Theory have been clashing with the mysterious figure.
Lumis vs. Theory was booked in a singles match. Lumis dominated early while Theory got some spots near the finish. However, it was Lumis who locked in his sleeper hold for the win.
Theory’s been through a lot on TV including having to go to therapy for having stockholm syndrome Theory was showing after being abducted by Lumis at TakeOver: Vengeance Day last month as he walked with the group to the ring, which featured Gargano retaining his North American Championship against Kushida.
Adam Cole Reacts
Adam Cole came out to the ring to give his reaction to the return of Kyle O’Reilly last week during his NXT Title match with Finn Balor.
Cole said that deep down Kyle knows that he is jealous of him and won’t ever be as successful as him. He congratulated Kyle for writing his own death warrant. He won’t leave until Kyle shows up and he finishes it. William Regal came out and said Kyle wasn’t medically cleared last week.
Now, Kyle is out of action for longer due to the damage he suffered. He informed Cole that he has banned Kyle from the CWC. Kyle appeared on the big screen and said that they will settle their differences soon enough. Kyle said that he can’t wait and won’t rest until he gets him. Kyle said that he knows everything about Cole and is willing to do anything to take care of Cole.
Cole said that Kyle can’t hurt him unless he finds him first. Later in the show, we see both Cole and Kyle being arrested after a car incident.
Breezango vs. Legado del Fantasma
Breezango vs. Legado del Fantasma took place in a tag team match. The match was solid with the heels going over.
There was an angle shot two weeks ago where Mendoza and Wilde attacked Breezango as they were making their entrance for a match against Ever-Rise.
Fast forward to last week, Fandango and Tyler Breeze got their payback by attacking Mendoza and Wilde after Mendoza and Wilde defeated The Grizzled Young Veterans. The finish of that match saw MSK distract The Grizzled Young Veterans. The babyfaces celebrated after taking out The Grizzled Young Veterans and Mendoza and Wilde.
Following the match, Santos Escobar questioned where Jordan Devlin was.
Jordan Devlin’s Appearance
Devlin appeared right after Escobar questioned his appearance. Devlin stated he didn’t need stooges to protect him. Santos got into the ring. Devlin told Santos to put his replica in the trash because the real champion was back. Santos said he has redefined what it means to be a cruiserweight and made history as champion. Santos challenged him to a champion vs. champion match at TakeOver. Eventually, Devlin headbutted him then hit an angle slam to end the segment.
WWE has announced that Devlin will defend his NXT Cruiserweight Championship against Seven on this Thursday’s episode of NXT UK.
Devlin announced last week that he was flying to the United States to appear on this week’s episode and mentioned next month’s two-night NXT TakeOver: Stand & Deliver event where said it would be a shame if the biggest TakeOver in history didn’t have the real NXT Cruiserweight Champion on the card.
Both Devlin and Escobar are both considered NXT Cruiserweight Champions by WWE. The reason for this is due to Devlin not being able to travel and defend the title due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result, a tournament to crown an interim champion was booked last year. WWE later dropped the interim branding for the tournament. Thus, when Escobar beat Drake Maverick in the tournament finals, he was crowned the NXT Cruiserweight Champion.
LA Knight’s Debut Match
LA Knight made his NXT in-ring debut against August Grey. It was a complete squash match. During it, Bronson Reed came out and put on Knight’s jacket, but ripped it while putting it on. It almost cost Knight the match, but he quickly recovered and hit his finisher for the win.
Last week in a backstage segment, Knight, formerly known as Eli Drake, announced his in-ring debut would take place. His interview was interrupted when he was attacked by Bronson Reed before they got separated by officials.
This same show also saw Knight cost Reed a match against Cameron Grimes. Two weeks ago, Knight had done an in-ring promo and right after it had ended, Reed’s music hit and he came out for his match while Knight was still in the ring.
Knight made his promotional debut under this gimmick at last month’s TakeOver: Vengeance Day pre-show. He is a former Impact Wrestling World Champion.
