The April 22, 2020 episode of WWE NXT aired live on the USA Network from the Winter Park, Florida at Full Sail University.
The show was headlined by The Velveteen Dream and Keith Lee vs. Adam Cole and Roderick Strong in a tag team match.
WWE NXT Results (4/22)
- Dakota Kai & Raquel Gonzalez def. Tegan Nox & Shotzi Blackheart
- Jake Atlas def. Drake Maverick – Tournament Match
- Kushida def. Tony Nese – Tournament Match
- Mia Yim def. Jessi Kamea
- El Hijo del Fantasma def. Jack Gallagher – Tournament Match
- The Velveteen Dream & Dexter Lumis (replacing Keith Lee) vs. Adam Cole & Roderick Strong
Here are the 6 takeaways from this week’s show:
Drake Maverick Wrestles After WWE Release
An Interim Cruiserweight Championship Tournament Match between Drake Maverick and Jake Atlas took place.
This was one of the most interesting matches of the night. Not because of the storyline of the bout because there wasn’t one, but the situation that Maverick finds himself in right now.
Atlas went over after hitting a cartwheel DDT for the win.
Last Wednesday, it was a dark day in WWE as the company decided to release several wrestlers and staff members as a way to cut costs due to the coronavirus. Maverick was one of those talents who were released by the company.
Despite this, WWE is pushing forward with booking Maverick in this tournament, which was announced prior to the releases that were made. Clearly, the likelihood of him winning the tournament is very small but the mentality that WWE has is quite intriguing.
Kushida vs. Tony Nese
Kushida vs. Tony Nese in an Interim Cruiserweight Championship Tournament Match took place.
The expectations of this match lived up to it as it was a fun high paced bout. In the end, it was Kushida who went over.
Since his arrival in NXT, Kushida has seemed lost in the way of the brand as he wasn’t necessarily booked badly but didn’t have a ton going on and outside of his accomplishments in NJPW, WWE never gave a reason for fans to like or even invest in him.
This tournament will be a good way to do that. Clearly, the issue isn’t his in-ring work as he can put on a compelling match with anyone.
The Feud Continues
The feud that seems will never end continued on this show with Tegan Nox and Shotzi Blackheart vs. Dakota Kai and Raquel Gonzalez in a tag team match taking place.
It was a fine match with Gonzalez going over after she pinned Shotzi. This feud dates all the way back to November at the NXT TakeOver: War Games event once Kai turned heel by attacking her good friend in Nox.
Since then, Nox and Kai have worked several matches including a Steel Cage Match.
Now, with the additions of Gonzales as the heater for Kai and Shotizi backing up Nox, there’s still no end in sight.
Velveteen Dream vs. Finn Balor Doesn’t Happen
Just one week after the initial start of the program, WWE went straight to booking a match between Velveteen Dream and Finn Balor. It was the biggest match featured on the card and due to the star power of both stars, rightfully so.
WWE set up the match last week when Dream was doing a promo. Balor interrupted and told him that he doesn’t know or like Dream.
The only problem is that the contest didn’t take place. WWE did an angle where there was a backstage incident involving Balor and the match was pulled.
NXT Champion Adam Cole came out and cut a promo while Dream was in the ring. Cole talked about how many thought Dream vs. Balor was a #1 contender match and now with Balor no longer being found, he thinks Dream is trying to sneak his way into a title match.
Cole said that Dream would never be the champion. He said that he doesn’t know what happened to Balor but does know what will happen to Dream.
This led to The Undisputed Era attacking Dream. Keith Lee ran out to make the save.
Some fans might be mad about the false advertising but it appears that WWE is holding off on the match.
Tag Team Headliner
So with The Velveteen Dream vs. Finn Balor not taking place, WWE went in a different direction for the main event. Following the opening segment, WWE booked Dream and Keith Lee vs. Adam Cole and Roderick Strong.
When WWE first announced Dream vs. Balor, some thought it was just a hiccup in the eventual showdown with NXT Champion Adam Cole for Dream, who has been trading promos with Cole for the past several weeks.
Many fans could argue that WWE could’ve held off on booking this match in order to gain some momentum and perhaps pull in good ratings. It appears that is what WWE is doing.
Lee was taken out early by Damien Priest, who hit him in the throat with a nightstick. Dexter Loomis eventually came out to be the Dream’s new tag team partner. The match was a lot of fun with Dream going over.
Table For 2
WWE did this segment with Johnny Gargano and Candice LeRae at their home right before they were about to eat dinner. The video kept going in and out of black and white and color.
Gargano and LeRae talked about how for years, they took a backseat to everyone. They put NXT first and themselves in second place. They questioned where that got them. Exactly nowhere.
Gargano and LeRae both vowed that they wouldn’t be second anymore and would make those who put NXT first pay for doing so as they learned the hard lesson.
LeRae is now showing off a new look with a different hairstyle. It was a unique vignette and perhaps we’ll get more of it going forward.
