NXT Superstar Johnny Gargano has previously shared his intentions to stay on NXT. For many, he is synonymous with WWE’s black-and-yellow brand. He has recently spoken about his annoyance at people calling NXT the “minor leagues.” Despite his evident passion for the third brand, however, he did spend some time on WWE’s main roster. Catching up with Corey Grave on WWE’s podcast, After The Bell, Gargano reflected on his brief time as a part of the main roster.
Johnny Gargano Breaks Down The Differences
When Graves described his time on Monday Night RAW and SmackDown as “a cup of coffee,” Gargano joked how “I don’t know if that was a cup of coffee. I mobile ordered, but I didn’t pick it up.”
Looking back at his experience on the main roster, Johnny Gargano confessed that it’s very different to what he knows in NXT.
“Maybe it’s because I’m so entrenched with the NXT system, and I’ve known our writing staff, our creative team, all the camera guys and everyone who works backstage plus it’s at Full Sail every week and that’s 10 minutes from my apartment in Orlando so that’s nice.”
He continued, “The travel schedule isn’t as hectic as RAW and Smackdown, but there is that same sense of urgency that is also on RAW and Smackdown. It’s just different. I feel like it’s a lot more stressful on RAW and Smackdown for some strange reason, but in NXT, it feels like home. It feels like I’m very very comfortable, so I think that’s the biggest difference for me.”
Johnny Gargano explained how on the main roster, there are “literally a million people.” Whenever he was backstage at RAW or SmackDown, he would meet new people all the time. At NXT, because of the smaller environment and familiar faces, it has created a family environment that he enjoys.
Austin Theory has sent waves through NXT since he made his debut in December last year. In this week’s episode of NXT, he took on Tommaso Ciampa and gave him a run for his money but eventually lost the match.
Theory was recently interviewed by ComicBook.com where he was asked about his goals for 2020, which he revealed to be a match against his inspiration, John Cena. Austin said that Cena was the first person that got him into wrestling and he liked his attitude the most. Theory also revealed that he was bullied growing up and Cena’s way of handling himself gave him encouragement to push through the harder times.
“I remember turning on the TV, and the first thing I ever saw was John Cena in the ring doing a segment with Johnny Nitro at the time and Melina. I know that makes everybody’s eyes roll. But I remember watching that, and just his attitude, I just liked it.
“For me growing up, I was bullied in school, and I didn’t have my dad in my life, so it kind of helped me, like just his attitude and the way he was and the way he carried himself, no matter what the situation was. John Cena just gave me that encouragement, and even if it sounds cheesy, just to never give up. I mean it’s true, and that’s what’s gotten me here so quick,” said Theory.
As mentioned before, Austin Theory faced Ciampa and he actually shocked him in the early portions of the match with his upstarting performance. He dominated most of the match and gave an impressive performance despite losing.
NXT TakeOver: Tampa Bay will see a huge women’s ladder match as the event takes place during WrestleMania 36 Weekend.
Since NXT Women’s Champion Rhea Ripley will be defending her title against Charlotte Flair at WrestleMania 36, WWE decided to have this match take place for their women’s division.
Who will participate in the match will be determined by several qualifying matches that will take place on NXT in the coming weeks. No names have been revealed yet by WWE but the matches are set to begin from next Wednesday.
NXT General Manager William Regal announced the match on the show’s episode. It was also announced that the winner of the match from TakeOver will face the winner from WrestleMania 36 – either Ripley or Flair – at a later date.
As mentioned earlier, Flair will be challenging Ripley for her NXT Women’s title. Charlotte was in action on this week’s episode of NXT. This was her first appearance on the yellow brand since 2015. She had a match with Bianca Belair in the main event. She defeated Belair and then went on to attack her leg with a steel chair, and then put her in the Figure Eight until Ripley came to the rescue.
Apart from the number on contender women’s ladder match, no other match has been officially announced for the event. NXT TakeOver: Tampa Bay will take place on Saturday, April 4, at the Amalie Arena in Tampa, Florida.
NXT’s March 4 episode will feature two steel cage matches on the same night.
On this week’s NXT, The Velveteen Dream said that he wants the steel cage left up so he can make Roderick Strong experience how it feels. He urged NXT General Manager William Regal to book a steel cage match between them. Strong accepted Dream’s challenge and sent the message that he is going to end him.
It was announced in the episode that Velveteen Dream and Roderick Strong will face off each other inside of a steel cage on next week’s episode. This would be the second steel cage match after the already confirmed bout between Tegan Nox and Dakota Kai.
Velveteen Dream and Strong rivalry resumed after Dream’s return to NXT three weeks ago. Dream insulted Strong’s family and faced him in last week’s main event. He was able to defeat Strong, however, he was attacked by Undisputed Era shortly after the match.
The steel cage match between Tegan Nox and Dakota Kai was made official from the fallout of their street fight that took place at NXT TakeOver: Portland. The match had ended with Raquel Gonzales interfering in the match and helping Kai win.
It will be interesting to see how NXT’s ratings will fare against AEW Dynamite. Dynamite will also see the debut of Lance Archer, so there’s something to look forward to on both programs.
NXT’s March 11 episode is set to air on USA Network live from the WWE Performance Center in Orlando, Florida.
The episode which will air two weeks later was announced on this week’s NXT episode at Full Sail University. Triple H appeared on the episode and announced that the episode from WWE Performance Center will be a Fan Appreciation Event. Full Sail wouldn’t be able to host the NXT episode on March 11 because WWE will be hosting the Hall of Fame event from March 8 to 13.
Free tickets were made available for the show and they sold out quickly. The event was sold out as soon as the tickets went live on sale, according to Lords of Pain.
In February 2019, a WWE Halftime Heat match took place at the WWE Performance Center. The team of Ricochet, The Velveteen Dream and Aleister Black defeated Adam Cole, Tommaso Ciampa, and Johnny Gargano.
No matches have been announced for the March 11 episode yet, but a women’s number one contender ladder match will be held at TakeOver: Tampa to determine who will become the number one contender to Rhea Ripley or Charlotte Flair’s NXT Women’s Championship.
Tyler Breeze is one of a few main roster Superstars to have returned to WWE’s black-and-gold brand, NXT. He joined other names such as his Breezango partner Fandango and former WWE Universal Champion Finn Balor in returning. In an interview with The Chris Van Vliet Show, Breeze discussed his journey back to NXT.
Tyler Breeze Returns To NXT
“I wasn’t in a very good place in May, and that’s just when it came to a head, and when I kind of dropped a bomb on everything, where I just said, I gotta change my life because I am not happy, you know what I mean, and nobody can change it but you kind of thing.”
Breeze continued, “So I said, alright, I gotta change my job, I gotta change my life, I gotta change everything that’s going on. It didn’t even start as a ‘Hey, send me back to NXT, I’m not happy,’ whatever. It wasn’t that at all. It was like, ‘Look, I haven’t been doing anything. I’m not enjoying what I’m doing.’”
He explained how, at that point, it didn’t appear as though his injured partner Fandango would be returning any time soon. Breeze argued that if they didn’t need him, WWE should allow him to “go do something else and either, one, prove that you do need me or that you want me, or I’ll go find something else to do because I’m just not enjoying what I’m doing.’”
According to Tyler Breeze, he was told by WWE that they didn’t want to let him go. So he was given the option to return to NXT. It was a decision he has previously described as “one of the easiest choices of my life.”
It appears as though NXT UK Superstar Tyler Bate is dealing with an injury. The Moustache Mountain member was set to perform at an upcoming OTT Wrestling event this Sunday. However, the promotion took to social media to reveal that Bate unfortunately not be present at their Dead On event.
“Due to recent injury, Tyler Bate will no long appear at #DeadOn. This is unavoidable in wrestling, Apologies #OTT.”
Bate and his tag team partner Trent Seven were scheduled to defend the OTT Tag Team Championships against The True Pros.
Tyler Bate On NXT UK
At the time of writing, there are no further details as to what kind of injury Bate is dealing with. He and Seven last appeared on WWE programming on January 25th. They appeared on WWE Worlds Collide, where they lost a matchup to DIY. They also appeared on the WWE Watch Along stream for Royal Rumble. His tag team partner, Seven, would go on to wrestle against Finn Balor on NXT later that same week.
Although Tyler Bate appeared on last night’s episode of NXT UK, it’s worth noting that the episode was pre-recorded in January. The match saw him face off against Joseph Connors. Bate has not yet commented on or addressed the injury reports.
NXT Superstar and former NXT Cruiserweight Champion Lio Rush has opened up about his time away from the ring during his hiatus. Speaking with TV Insider, Rush confessed how he had “lost sight” of his WWE goals before his reemergence on the black-and-gold brand. Prior to this, Rush had been appearing on RAW as Bobby Lashley’s hype man.
“Last year was all over the place as far as ups and downs, trials and tribulations to get back to the WWE right now,” Rush confessed. “As far as how I approach WWE right now and my position, I’m setting the goal for myself this year in 2020 to just have fun. I feel like last year I kind of lost sight of that, I lost sight of why I wanted to be in WWE in the first place. I tried to control a lot of things that weren’t in my control.”
He noted how he is focusing on having fun and allowing things to happen organically. He is still working on the things he can control, and it’s a mindset he is bringing with him into WWE.
Lio Rush On NXT
Rush spoke about his surprise at receiving a phone call from Triple H, asking him to be a part of NXT. Despite the surprise, he couldn’t deny his excitement at the opportunity. He stressed how it’s an “incredible” time to be a part of NXT.
“When I got the call from Triple H to be in NXT again, I was a little surprised. At the same time, there was a level of excitement there. A lot of the USA viewers were familiar with me from my time on Raw, so I had an advantage in that sense to be one of a few who have had that exposure before. The level of talent on NXT is incredible. I can’t even wrap my head around how many top-tier athletes are in NXT right now at the performance center training every day.”
Lio Rush recently fell short in a championship match against the current NXT Cruiserweight Championship, Jordan Devlin.
SmackDown Superstar Naomi recently returned to in-ring action at WWE’s January event, Royal Rumble. She recently joined the Women’s Weekly Wrestling podcast to discuss a range of subjects. During their conversation, she revealed how she had pitched for WWE to send her to their black-and-gold brand NXT.
“I asked about a year ago to go down to NXT to work,” Naomi revealed. “I just think NXT is awesome. I love NXT and also, the time I wasn’t being used much on the main roster so, I was like, ‘Dang, can I go down there and just see what I can get into, what could happen, and the talent down there is just so good.’”
Naomi had one NXT Superstar in mind if she had been granted her request: Bianca Belair. For her, it didn’t matter if they were feeding or teaming together. She revealed she had a dream of them making history as the first-ever African-American WWE Women’s Tag Team champions.
“I love Bianca, and her personality and her spirit is even more beautiful so, that was one idea I had,” she explained. “I either wanted to go work against her or to be with her or to do this story but it wasn’t the right time and also, ‘B’ is a star all on her own and I think they want her to be that and come into her own but, it’s just a dream of mine because we’ve never officially had two African-American tag team champions.”
Despite Naomi’s interest in becoming a part of NXT, WWE obviously didn’t allow her to move brands as they have for other Superstars. Following her Rumble appearance, Naomi has since returned to action on Friday nights for SmackDown.
WWE has announced that Finn Balor will take part in the NXT UK tapings scheduled for Coventry SkyDome Arena in Coventry, England on the 6th and 7th of March. Balor’s scheduled appearance for the NXT UK brand comes on the heels of the promotion announcing NXT UK TakeOver: Dublin will take place on April 26th, 2020 from the 3Arena.
WWE announced Balor’s special appearance on both nights of the tapings on social media:
“The stage has been set for another epic event across the pond as NXT UK TakeOver: Dublin is slated for April 26 at 3Arena and on the award-winning WWE Network,” a WWE press release for the event reads.
Jordan Devlin On Friendship With Finn Balor
NXT Cruiserweight Champion Jordan Devlin is likely looking forward to competing on the Dublin event from his home country of Ireland. He spoke to TV Insider recently about his friendship with Balor.
“He was the best wrestler in Ireland then and probably now,” Devlin shared.” He was the person I most aspired to be like. He was always the guy I wanted to measure up to and up with. He went from Ireland to Japan to train, as did I. He went to New Japan Pro Wrestling. I went to Zero-One. He went to the States and WWE. I was a couple of years behind him when WWE signed me. We’ve been running the same path for a long time.”
NXT Superstar Tommaso Ciampa has revealed he is taking a hiatus from social media. The former NXT Champion shared his intentions via his Instagram account alongside a black-and-white image from last Sunday’s NXT TakeOver: Portland event. The photo showcases Ciampa staring at his former DIY tag team partner, Johnny Gargano. They both grasp at the NXT Championship during a pivotal moment during Ciampa’s matchup against Adam Cole.
Opening up about his decision, Ciampa explained his decision. Although grateful for the support from the WWE Universe during his surgery and rehab, he admitted that it was time to “block out the noise.”
“Time to block out the noise. I will be taking a hiatus from social media for the time being. Thank you all for your support during surgery and rehab, and for the incredible reception during my return and throughout the journey to Portland. #WeAreNXT“
Following their grappling for the title, Gargano would end up turning on his friend, striking Ciampa with the belt. Gargano’s actions ended up costing Tommaso Ciampa his chance at finally reclaiming his beloved “Goldie.”
This came after Cole’s stalemates from the Undisputed Era had also impacted the match, attempting to help their leader hold onto his championship gold.
NXT Superstar Bianca Belair has shared how her husband, Montez Ford, helped convince her to keep her trademark braid. The Superstar often uses her braided hair as an offensive weapon to whip her opponents with. Belair was ready to drop the braid, but Ford convinced her to keep it.
Bianca Belair’s Braid
“Yeah he definitely helped me come up with it,” Belair confessed in an interview on Lilian Garcia’s podcast, Chasing Glory. “So I’m a huge Beyonce fan and she had a concert, she was on tour, she had this long braid and she was like dancing with it and it just caught my eye. And I’m like, ‘I want to do that,’ and if that catches my eye and wrestling’s about like standing out and like being able to catch people’s eye so I wanna do that braid.”
She continued, “So I did that braid but I kinda did it as just a hairstyle just to fill it out and I was kind of going back and forth with, ‘Well I’d really like to wear my hair down and you know I see all the other girls wearing their hair down and they’re so pretty,’ and I kinda wanted to do that and he was the one who told me, ‘No, you have to keep that braid. Like it stands out and trust me. Just trust me. That’s gonna be a thing. Nobody else wears their hair like that. You’re gonna stand out it’s unique, I’ve never seen anything like that before, you have to keep it.’”
Belair explained how Ford would go on to suggest how she could use her braid as a weapon in the ring, something she has done to great effect. She called him the “mastermind” behind influencing the braid.
Bianca Belair recently competed in a losing effort against NXT Women’s Champion Rhea Ripley. The two wrestled this past Sunday at NXT TakeOver: Portland.
Get to know Bianca Belair in this NXT hype video from 2018:
With the NXT Women’s Championship match at WrestleMania 36 now official, both women have reacted to their impending bout. The match was confirmed following Charlotte Flair’s blindsided attack on Rhea Ripley following Ripley’s successful championship defense during last night’s NXT TakeOver: Portland event. After beating her down, Flair finally accepted Ripley’s challenge.
Charlotte Flair & Rhea Ripley
Taking to Twitter, Charlotte Flair and Rhea Ripley addressed each other in the wake of TakeOver: Portland. Ripley was responding to a message from Triple H, where he refers to Ripley as a “star.” He also refers to Flair, writing how she is “returning to the place that made her one.”
In her response, Ripley thanked her opponent, Bianca Belair, noting how ‘Going to war with you is always brutal!” She then turned her attention to her WrestleMania opponent, writing: “@MsCharlotteWWE you just gave me exactly what I wanted. See you at #WrestleMania36”.
Charlotte Flair, meanwhile, uploaded a picture of her from TakeOver: Portland. She holds the NXT Women’s Championship up, smiling at the crowd following her attack on Ripley. Flair accompanied the image with the following caption: “Everything I do is history. The NXT title will be defended at #WrestleMania #WEMadeNXT @WWENXT”.
Former WWE Superstar Tyson Kidd has looked back on his time as a part of WWE’s black-and-gold brand, NXT. Joining WWE show, The Bump, Kidd opened up about his career and the year he spent as part of the NXT roster.
“I’m so happy. If you take a look back at my body of work in the ring, I’m so happy that I had that NXT run… It sucks that my in-ring career came to an end, but I’m glad that I had that full-year body of work,” Kidd said.
He continued, “My time in NXT was so fun. Those Takeovers were awesome, but when we’d do those tapings, and I would wrestle four times in a night, I was driving home from Orlando to Tampa, I was exhausted, but felt so accomplished that nobody does what we do. It was myself, Sami Zayn, Neville, and Tyler Breeze. Breeze was a bit of an unsung hero between the four of us. He doesn’t always get the full props that he should get; he was a huge part of it. His character work is so awesome. He was very essential towards everything that I did at that time.”
Tyson Kidd & Cesaro
His former tag team partner Cesaro called into the show to discuss what it was like teaming with Kidd. He noted how much respect he has for him, his training and his time in WWE. For him, when they got into the ring together to tag for the first time “everything clicked.” Cesaro doesn’t believe they were necessarily meant to be a team, but they pursued it together and “made that happen with a conversation with the boss.”
Having suffered a tragic spinal cord injury during a WWE Live Event, Kidd found his in-ring career cut short. Looking back on his retirement, Kidd confessed he wasn’t expecting the respect and kudos he received from his fellow WWE Superstars. For him, however, earning their respect had always been an important factor in how he wanted to conduct himself.
“I wanted to build respect with my peers… I felt like I had done that throughout my WWE career. I really felt it and knew it was there when I got injured. I got flooded with texts and people calling me and visitors all the time.”
Kidd continued, “Of course, Cesaro, being one of the main guys, he was with me that night. He traveled off the road and came to see me when I had surgery. He brought me Starbucks and Chipotle, which is the usual combo.”
Despite many considering WWE’s NXT to be the company’s third brand, it turns out that WWE Hall of Famer Kurt Angle doesn’t see it that way. In an interview with Sportskeeda, Angle explained why NXT continues to be WWE’s “training ground.”
“I think NXT is a great brand. I think Triple H has done an incredible job with that. But you know what? It is still the ‘training ground’ for RAW and SmackDown. These guys might have a little more leeway than the guys on RAW and SmackDown,” Angle said. “They get more time in their matches than the guys on RAW and SmackDown. If you watch any NXT TakeOver, every match is 30 minutes.”
He continued, “Guys and girls on RAW and SmackDown, they don’t get that kind of time so I wouldn’t say they are the better product, I would say they have more freedom on what they want to do.”
Kurt Angle On Moving To The “Big Show”
Kurt Angle argued how, when Superstars move up to the “big show,” they have to be more aware of time limitations and cues. He credited this freedom in NXT as a reason why so many Superstars are looking to stay on the black-and-gold brand.
“You have to do things specifically and I don’t think that NXT has to do that. That’s probably the reason why a lot of the guys want to stay there and I don’t blame them for that.”
That being said, Angle noted how he doesn’t believe that more match time equates to NXT being a better product. Despite this, “[…] I would say that they are doing an excellent job and Triple H has done an unbelievable job of making that an entity – basically a product of its own. It could survive on its own. So it has become huge and there are a lot of fans that follow it.”
NXT’s most recent pay-per-view, NXT TakeOver: Portland, took place last night in Portland, Oregon.
Triple H has addressed Charlotte Flair accepting Rhea Ripley’s NXT Championship challenge at WrestleMania 36. He spoke about their impending matchup during a post-TakeOver media call, crediting Vince McMahon with the idea. The match was confirmed during last night’s NXT TakeOver: Portland event following Flair’s ambush of Ripley.
Charlotte Flair Versus Rhea Ripley
According to Triple H, USA Network had no involvement in the decision to have Flair face off against the NXT Women’s Champion. “I believe that this was, to be honest, it was shocking to me when it was first mentioned to me. I believe that this was really just a decision from Vince [McMahon]’s part on understanding where the other stories are going for the women.”
Looking to build new opportunities and stories fans haven’t seen before, Triple H noted how WWE was looking to deliver more original narratives with new pairings. “[…] I think you see that with Shayna Baszler going after Becky Lynch, and you see that in different ways on SmackDown with where they’re going so this was a way of Charlotte Flair needing to be in that big epic role. I think it really had nothing more to do with that.”
He continued, “I think people put too much stock into building up other things. It’s easy to put your tinfoil hat on and start to talk about stuff, and I’m sure just even saying that, everybody will be like, ‘Oh my God, there’s no way they didn’t…’ Whatever, you believe what you want. It really comes down to that, this is good storytelling and that’s what the goal is here, it’s just really good storytelling across the board.”
Charlotte Flair will challenge Rhea Ripley for the NXT Women’s Championship at WrestleMania 36. The event takes place on April 5th from Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida.
NXT TakeOver: Portland aired live from the Moda Center in Portland, Oregon. Adam Cole defended the NXT Championship against Tommaso Ciampa in the main event.
NXT TakeOver: Portland Results
Keith Lee def. Dominik Dijakovic to retain the North American Championship
Dakota Kai. def. Tegan Nox
Finn Balor def. Johnny Gargano
Rhea Ripley def. Bianca Belair to retain the NXT Women’s Championship
Broserweights def. Undisputed Era to capture the NXT Tag Team Championships
Adam Cole def. Tommaso Ciampa to retain the NXT Championship
Here are 6 takeaways from the PPV:
Keith Lee Retained In An Incredible Match Against Dijakovic
Photo: WWE.com
Keith Lee defended his NXT North American Championship against Dominik Dijakovic in the first match of the night.
Match Recap: Keith Lee took Dominik down with an incredible Hurricanrana early and the crowd went insane. Dijakovic connected with a boot to the face that sent Lee out of the ring. Dominik went for a flip but Lee caught him. Dominik escaped and tried to Suplex Keith on the apron but had a hard time lifting him. Back in the ring, Dijakovic leveled Lee with a Cyclone Kick and made his way to the top rope. Dijakovic hit an awesome Corkscrew Moonsault for a near fall as the crowd chanted “NXT!”.
Both superstars fired up for Clothesline and connected at the same time. Dijakovic hit another Clothesline that sent Keith to the apron. Dominik planted Keith Lee with a Feast Your Eyes off the second rope for a near fall as the crowd chanted “this is awesome!”. Lee battled back with a pounce that sent Dominik flying to the the corner.
The action spilled outside the ring and Lee hit Dominik with a chop to the chest that echoed throughout the arena. Dominik battled back with a Superkick and Lee fell onto a computer chair. Dijakovic followed that up with an absolutely insane springboard Cannonball before rolling Keith Lee into the ring. Lee hit the Spirit Bomb but Dijakovic rolled through and hopped to his feet. Lee hit another Spirit Bomb but somehow Dominik was able to kick out at two.
Dijakovic and Lee then on the turnbuckle. Dominik planted Lee with a Spanish Fly off the second rope for a near fall. Dijakovic tried to lift Lee up but his back gave out and he fell to the canvas. Keith Lee quickly hit the Big Bang Catastrophe for the pinfall victory. Keith Lee is still the NXT North American Champion. After the match, Keith Lee showed Dijakovic respect and posed with him in the ring.
Opinion: Keith Lee and Dominik Dijakovic have unbelievable chemistry in the ring and all of their matches have been great. This was an excellent way to start TakeOver and will be tough for anyone to follow tonight.
Dakota Kai squared off against Tegan Nox in a Street Fight tonight at TakeOver: Portland.
Match Recap: Dakota Kai attacked Tegan during her entrance but Nox battled back and hit a Spear through the barricade. Kai planted Tegan with a DDT and rolled her into the ring to officially start the match. Nox placed a trash can over Kai’s head and hit an inverted Senton. Kai blasted Nox over the head with the trash can lid and rolled her back in the ring. Nox planted Kai with a German Suplex onto the trash can for a near fall. Nox Chokeslammed Kai off the second rope and followed it up with the Molly-Go-Round for a two count. Nox placed Kai’s head on a chair and went for a kick but Dakota got out of the way. Kai then booted the chair into Tegan’s face before slamming her into the ring post outside the ring.
Kai taped Tegan’s arm to the the turnbuckle and booted her in the face. She followed it up with another kick and Nox fell to the floor. Tegan grabbed a laptop and hit Dakota on her surgically repaired knee. Nox wrapped her fist with a steel chain and started unloading on Kai’s knee. Tegan placed Dakota’s knee in the chair and stomped on it before connecting with a Shining Wizard. Nox brought a table into the ring and set it up in the corner. Nox put Kai on the table and then her neck in the steel chair. Raquel Gonzalez hopped on the apron and attacked Nox. Raquel Chokeslammed Nox off the top rope and onto the table but it didn’t break. Kai then pinned Nox for the victory.
Finn Balor faced Johnny Gargano tonight at TakeOver: Portland.
Match Recap: Gargano and Balor traded shots and submission holds for the first few minutes of the match. Johnny hit Finn with a Spear and both superstars fell to the floor outside the ring. Balor battled back and hit Gargano with the Slingblade and followed it up with a knee to the midsection.
Back in the ring, Balor connected with a Dragon Screw and locked in a Figure Four. Johnny escaped with some punches to the face and followed it up with an Enziguri. Gargano hit the Slingshot Spear and went for the cover but Finn was able to kick out at the last moment. Gargano launched Balor into the corner but Finn bounced off the turnbuckle and hit a Pele Kick. Gargano then fell on top of Balor for a cover and Finn kicked out at two.
Johnny hit a Slingshot DDT and went for the cover but Balor was once again able to kick out at two. Balor hit another Slingblade and went for the Coup de Grace but Johnny got out of the way. Johnny locked in the Gargano Escape in the middle of the ring but Balor broke free and hit a Double Stomp. Finn went for the 1916 DDT but Johnny countered into the Gargano Escape once again.
Balor fought through the pain and grabbed the ropes to break the hold. Gargano cleared off the announce table but Balor got up and slammed him on top of it. Balor followed it up with a Dropkick that sent Gargano flying off the table and onto the barricade. Back in the ring, Balor hit the Coup de Grace and stood over Johnny. Balor then planted Gargano with the 1916 DDT for the pinfall victory.
Opinion: This started out slow but wound up being a terrific match. It also took some time for the crowd to get into it after following the very good Street Fight between Nox and Kai and the classic between Dijakovic and Lee. Balor winning caught me by surprise but I have no issue with it. Finn should have always been in a prominent role on RAW or SmackDown, so it is good to see him being featured that way in NXT.
Rhea Ripley put her NXT Women’s Championship on the line against Bianca Belair tonight at TakeOver.
Match Recap: Ripley controlled the action early and focused her attack on Belair’s arm. Rhea connected with a Clothesline and followed it up with a Dropkick that sent Bianca to the corner. Ripley stomped on her a couple times and followed it up with a chop. Belair connected with a rough-looking Suplex that dropped Rhea on her side for a near fall. Ripley lifted Belair up in the Electric Chair and slammed her to the canvas for a near fall. Rhea locked in a submission hold but Bianca countered into a Spinebuster for a near fall. Ripley and Belair then traded shots in the corner and Bianca got the better of the exchange after hitting the hair whip.
Belair lifted Ripley above her head and dropped her to the mat as the crowd chanted “EST!”. Rhea hit Belair with a kick but Bianca hopped back up and hit a Spear. Bianca followed it up with a Back Body Drop that sent Rhea to the floor outside the ring. Belair then flipped onto Ripley but Rhea battled back and sent her into the steel steps. Back in the ring, Ripley went for a Sunset Bomb but Belair held onto the ropes. Ripley then planted Belair with the Riptide for the pinfall victory. Ripley is still the NXT Women’s Champion.
After the match, Charlotte Flair attacked Rhea from behind and then asked for a microphone. Flair told Ripley that she will see her at WrestleMania and then hit her with Natural Selection. Charlotte raised the NXT Women’s Championship as the crowd booed. Charlotte sent Bianca Belair into the steel steps before heading backstage.
Opinion: Ripley versus Charlotte should be a great match at WrestleMania. Rhea and Bianca had a very good match tonight as well. I thought the Back Body Drop spot was unnecessary/insane because Rhea landed directly on her feet and then fell awkwardly. I have no idea how Rhea didn’t get injured and hopefully that is the last we see of that spot. It will be interesting to see if anything comes of Charlotte attacking Bianca as well after the match.
The Broserweights Captured The NXT Tag Team Championships
Photo: WWE.com
Kyle O’Reilly and Bobby Fish defended the NXT Tag Team Championships against Pete Dunne and Matt Riddle tonight at the PPV.
Match Recap: Dunne stomped on O’Reilly’s hand and then slammed Fish onto the ring apron to start things off. Pete followed it up by slamming O’Reilly onto Fish with a Suplex. Back in the ring, Dunne went to work on Bobby’s fingers and stomped on Fish’s ribs. Undisputed Era then took control and isolated Dunne in the corner of the ring. Kyle went for a running kick but Dunne ducked and O’Reilly booted Fish in the face. Riddle tagged in and unloaded a flurry of kicks to Fish and O’Reilly.
Riddle followed it up with a couple of Brotons and a Fisherman’s Buster to Fish. Matt connected with a GTS and a German Suplex to Kyle for a near fall. Dunne tagged in and hit a Powerbomb but Kyle kicked out at two. Pete Moonsaulted onto Fish outside the ring as Riddle went for a Moonsault as well. O’Reilly got his knees up and planted Riddle with a couple German Suplexes. Riddle popped up and hit O’Reilly with a knee to the face. Dunne tagged in and was greeted with a boot to the face from O’Reilly. Dunne locked in an Arm Bar but O’Reilly quickly countered into an Ankle Lock.
Dunne countered into an Ankle Lock of his own but Kyle countered into a Scorpion Death Lock. Fish then leaped onto Riddle’s back and applied a Sleeper Hold but Riddle fought through and booted O’Reilly in the face to break up the Scorpion Death Lock. Riddle then fell back and slammed Fish to the canvas. Riddle tagged in as Dunne lifted Fish in the Electric Chair. Fish escaped and tagged Kyle in.
Fish planted Riddle with a Suplex and O’Reilly followed it up with a Knee Drop. O’Reilly applied a Knee Bar in the middle of the ring as Fish trapped Dunne in the corner. Pete snapped Fish’s fingers back and then stomped on O’Reilly’s hand to break the hold. O’Reilly shoved Dunne to the corner and Pete accidentally knocked Riddle off the apron. Riddle got back into the ring and accidentally hit Dunne with a Spear. Fish and O’Reilly then connected with Chasing the Dragon but Dunne somehow kicked out at two.
Riddle tagged in and kneed Fish in the face. Riddle and Dunne booted O’Reilly out of the ring and then hit a slam/kick combo on Bobby Fish for the victory. The Broserweights are the new NXT Tag Team Champions.
Johnny Gargano Helped Adam Cole Retain The NXT Championship
Adam Cole defended the NXT Championship against Tommaso Ciampa in the main event of TakeOver: Portland.
Match Recap: Ciampa controlled the match early and sent Cole to the outside. Adam got back in the ring and Tommaso immediately applied a Headlock. Cole broke free but Ciampa took him right back down and trapped him in a Headlock again. Ciampa hit Cole with a chop to the chest but walked into a boot to the face outside the ring. Cole smirked and then mocked Ciampa by giving himself a round of applause on the ring apron.
Tommaso got pissed off and launched Cole into the ring post. Ciampa hit a running knee and then gave himself a round of applause on the apron. Tommaso hit Cole with a Dropkick and followed it up with a running knee strike to Adam’s face. Cole once again rolled out of the ring to regroup as the crowd booed.
Ciampa chased him out the ring and slammed his ribs into the barricade. Ciampa hit another running knee to Cole’s face before posing for the crowd. Tommaso hit another knee to the face and celebrated with the crowd. Cole battled back with a slam that sent Ciampa back-first onto the edge of the announce table.
Adam brought Ciampa back in the ring and started taunting him by shouting at him to give up while applying a submission hold. Cole went for a Sunset Bomb but Ciampa blocked it. Cole then hit a Backstabber off the middle rope and went for the cover but Ciampa kicked out at two.
Cole hit an Enziguri and climbed to the middle rope. Adam went for Panama Sunrise but Tommaso countered with a knee to the face. Ciampa followed it up with a German Suplex and a Torture Rack Bomb for a near fall. Cole connected with a Ushigoroshi for a two count.
Both men battled on the turnbuckle and Cole went for the Panama Sunrise but Ciampa countered with an Air Raid Crash off the middle turnbuckle for a near fall. Cole hit a Superkick but Ciampa shrugged it off and Powerbombed Cole on top of the announce table. Ciampa hit another Powerbomb and this time sent Cole through the table.
Ciampa brought Cole back in the ring and leveled him with a Clothesline. Tommaso hit Project Ciampa and went for the cover but somehow the champ was able to kick out at the last moment. The crowd chanted “NXT” as both superstars struggled to their feet. Cole connected with to kicks that sent Ciampa tumbling out of the ring. Cole went for a Suicide Dive but Ciampa was ready and countered with a knee to the face.
Adam Cole hit another Ushigoroshi in the ring and went for the cover but Ciampa kicked out at two. Cole connected with the Last Shot but Ciampa instinctively rolled to the apron and Adam couldn’t go for the cover. Cole followed him and Ciampa capitalized with an Air Raid Crash on the ring apron as the crowd chanted “holy sh*t!”.
Ciampa went for Fairytale Ending but Cole countered with a Back Body Drop outside the ring. Cole hopped off the announce table and planted Ciampa with the Panama Sunrise. Back in the ring, Ciampa planted Cole with a DDT and followed it up with the Fairytale Ending but somehow Cole kicked out at the last moment. Cole then locked in a Crossface in the middle of the ring but Tommaso countered into a Crossface of his own.
Cole battled through the pain and reached the bottom rope to break the hold. Adam rolled out of the ring to buy himself some time as Roderick Strong hopped on the apron. Strong distracted the referee as O’Reilly and Fish attacked Tommaso outside the ring. They rolled Ciampa back inside and Cole went for the cover but Ciampa kicked out at two.
Tommaso took out Strong with a DDT and then leaped onto the rest of Undisputed Era outside the ring. Cole hit three Superkicks and followed it up with the Last Shot but Ciampa somehow kicked out again. O’Reilly slid the title in the ring and distracted the referee. Cole shoved Ciampa into the referee and then hit Tommaso with a low blow. Cole went for the Panama Sunrise but Ciampa hit him with a low blow of his own. Ciampa hit the Fairytale Ending but the referee was knocked out.
Johnny Gargano showed up and ripped the title out of Ciampa’s hand. Gargano then hit Tommaso with the title and Cole covered Ciampa for the victory. Adam Cole is still the NXT Champion.
Gargano turns on Ciampa and costs him the NXT Championship.
The reverse version of their epic feud from 2018? I’m here for it. If it leads to more TakeOver classics then I for one can’t wait.
Opinion: I wanted to see Goldie return to Ciampa but I’m all for revisiting the incredible rivalry between Tommaso and Gargano. Adam Cole and Tommaso Ciampa put on an awesome match to conclude a nearly flawless TakeOver event. Every match delivered and NXT continues be one of, if not the best brand in professional wrestling.
Bianca Belair is set to face off against current NXT Women’s Champion Rhea Ripley this Sunday. Speaking with Newsweek, Belair addressed her championship opportunity at NXT TakeOver: Portland. She also reflected on her Royal Rumble experience and her recent exchanges with “The Queen” Charlotte Flair.
Clearly confident with her in-ring abilities, Belair stressed how this TakeOver will be the first time the WWE Universe won’t be considering her an “underdog.”
“This Takeover is going to be the first where I can say for myself and the audience that I’m not considered the underdog in any shape or form,” Belair stated. “This Takeover is the first time when everyone has finally caught on and sees me as a true competitor.”
Royal Rumble Experience
Reflecting on her appearance in the Women’s Royal Rumble matchup, Belair noted how it was the buildup that was hardest for her. The easy part is when her music hits and she can get in the ring.
“The hard part are the parts people don’t see,” she revealed. “Getting into the arena early and hanging out hours before the show starts. But I had to make the most out of this opportunity. I knew this was going to be a make or break moment for me.”
She continued, “Once I got in there I was fine. I just let my body take over and let it do what it does. Afterwards I remember having a huge sigh of relief that everything went well, and it didn’t hit me until the next day. First I was it’s over with, I’m glad I’m healthy, I think I did very well. I was in front of thousands of people, [laughs] and how I got highlighted. It was validation for me and everything I put into Bianca Belair in NXT and WWE, and it’s finally paying off. That’s the best feeling in the world. And it gives me more confidence than I already had.”
Bianca Belair On Charlotte Flair
In recent weeks, Belair has had verbal and physical exchanges with Rhea Ripley and Charlotte Flair. Flair, who won the Royal Rumble match, had been approached by Ripley over using her Rumble opportunity to face her at WrestleMania 36. Unsurprisingly, Belair wasn’t pleased with being overlooked given her upcoming TakeOver match. Looking back on her first experiences with NXT, Belair remembered being impressed by Flair. She recalled how “The Queen” had that “it” factor.
“[…] the first person who caught my eye was Charlotte Flair. She had that “it” factor. Her moveset, her presence, everything about her had that “it” factor. She was the one person that, if you saw her, that’s what you need if you want to be a superstar in this business.”
She continued, “Four years later I have that same person talking about me and saying all these good things. It gives me confidence, but, at the same time, I’m ready to be in the ring with her now. I want to be in the ring with the best, and doing that brings out the best of me. It’s crazy to think that the person I looked at when I first got to NXT is now talking about me. I don’t want to say validation again, but that’s a feeling of “you know what you’re doing, and you’re ready.” And I’m ready.”
NXT TakeOver: Portland takes place on Sunday, February 16th from the Moda Center in Portland, Oregon.
When NXT presents Takeover Sunday night from Portland, it won’t be the night before a major WWE PPV. Triple H noted during a recent interview with Yahoo Sports that the change in PPV schedule which sees NXT Takeover events presented on Sundays independent of WWE events has created a different vibe backstage.
“When you come into an area and you know that tomorrow night there is going to be another pay-per-view taking place, there’s a slightly different buzz,” Triple H said. “The conversations are different, some of the people are different. There’s also this moment of, ‘Hey, we have to prove ourselves so when we leave here we can say, follow that.’ When you’re in this business, every time you step into the ring, you want to leave with a moment that fans will remember you by. When you have the stage to yourself and you have the whole audience, that’s different, but the buzz is just as high.”
Triple H also took some time during the interview to talk about Bianca Belair vs Rhea Ripley. Belair won a battle royal on a recent edition of NXT to earn the shot against the new champion.
“You find yourself in this situation where you have Rhea Ripley and Bianca Belair both on fire right now,” Levesque said. “If Bianca Belair wins this, would anybody be upset if it was Bianca versus Charlotte, if that was the road we went down? Would anybody be upset if it was Rhea and Charlotte? Would anybody be upset if it was a triple threat? There are so many opportunities because you have phenomenal talent, performing in incredible ways and the storylines write themselves. It’s win-win-win.”
The full interview with Triple H can be read here.
Triple H has addressed rumors that WWE intends to rename the NXT Women’s Championship. It had been reported that the company planned to drop the word “Women’s” going forward, with the belt simply being referred to as the NXT Championship. Speaking on an NXT TakeOver: Portland media call, Triple H dismissed the idea.
“There were conversation that were had,” Triple H admitted. “It was basically about not having to beat it into the ground when you say it, but it just got run with and once… when you have that many people working on a product, and something gets taken the wrong way, everybody in trying to do their job, just spreads it.”
He continued, “There was never an edict, there was never anything. It really was what it was, of just trying not to… if you’re showing a graphic, you don’t have to say, the title belt that says ‘Women’ s’, the graphic that says ‘Women’ s’, the announcers saying ‘Women’ s’, so everybody is… but you get it. There are pictures of women there, you get what it is. You don’t have to beat it into the ground. It was more of, it just got run with and speculated on.”
NXT Champion
Since the rumors first started, there has only been one time that a WWE graphic has showcased current champion, Rhea Ripley, as “NXT Champion.” This graphic was used during WWE’s Worlds Collide event. Since then, there have been no other occasions where the genderless description has been used.
Rhea Ripley is set to defend her NXT Women’s Championship against Bianca Belair this Sunday. The two will compete at NXT TakeOver: Portland, which takes place from the Moda Center in Portland, Oregon.
Current NXT Champion Adam Cole has revealed who his WrestleMania dream match would be against. For the black-and-gold brand Superstar, there’s only one name that comes to mind: “The Phenomenal” AJ Styles.
“[…] if I could have a WrestleMania match with anybody right now in WWE, really in the world, I would love to wrestle AJ Styles at WrestleMania,” Cole told FLO WWF. “I’ve wrestled him a couple of times before. He’s one of the absolute best I’ve ever faced before, but I’ve never beat him.”
“So he’s a guy I definitely want to get the chance to get in the ring with again. But, to me, when I think about, like, the top 3 lists of the best performers on the planet today, AJ Styles is always on my list. [He’s] just an unbelievably great athlete and I think we could have a really, really great match, especially on a stage like WrestleMania. Yeah, so AJ Styles would be my pick.”
Adam Cole Versus AJ Styles
The Undisputed Era had a run-in with AJ Style and his O.C. cohorts, Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson, a few months ago. The O.C. invaded NXT, attacking Cole and his stablemates before the show had a chance to start.
They would end up in the main event of that episode against the team of Tommaso Ciampa, Matt Riddle and Keith Lee. Following their NXT appearance, it was reported that AJ Styles attempted to pitch a matchup between the two stables for last year’s Survivor Series.
Adam Cole is scheduled to defend his NXT Championship against Tommaso Ciampa at NXT TakeOver: Portland. The event takes place on February 16th from the Moda Center in Portland, Oregon.
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Former Lucha Underground star King Cuerno, also known as El Hijo del Fantasma will finally be making his NXT debut during a live event this weekend.
The Mexican star, now renamed to Jorge Bolly recently
appeared on a video with new NXT on-air personality Kat Marino and announced
that he will be making his NXT debut at Saturday’s Live Event from Ft. Pierce,
Florida.
He revealed that he will be teaming with Raul Mendoza for a tag team match but their opponents were not confirmed. You can check out the video featuring the announcement of his debut below:
Making his professional wrestling debut in 2000, Bolly has
wrestled for a number of big companies in Mexico, including AAA and Lucha
Underground.
He also made several appearances for Impact Wrestling in
2017 and 2018, competing at events like Slammiversary XV and Bound For Glory.
WWE announced the signing of the Luchador back in September but it was later revealed that he was recovering from a knee injury and that’s why he hasn’t made his debut yet.
Jorge Bolly also teased the introduction of his tag team partner in the video above and called their team ‘Tequila’. So now it would be interesting to see which star he introduces as his partner during the show.
NXT Superstar Chelsea Green recently appeared on the NotSam Wrestling podcast. The former IMPACT Wrestling star joined WWE back in October 2018, competing at an NXT Live Event In Largo, Florida.
Chelsea Green’s former character Laurel Van Ness had become the ‘Hot Mess’ following an angle in 2017, where she was ‘left at the altar’ by Braxton Sutter. The character would prove to be Green’s most successful during her run at IMPACT. As Van Ness the former Knockout won the division’s Championship back in December of 2017, defeating Rosemary.
During the interview with Sam Roberts, Chelsea Green revealed that the ‘hot mess’ could make a return…of sorts. “The hot mess is your crazy ex girlfriend” Green began. “The hot mess is the girl that beats up every other girl in the locker room. And the hot mess is whatever you make of it. So you are going to see the hot mess again. It’ll just be in a completely different light.”
Chelsea Green also discussed her recent appearance in the 2020 Women’s Royal Rumble. “I’ve been at NXT working day in and day out at the Performance Center. Waiting for this opportunity so to finally be given. Honestly, it was about time. I have pushed and kind of shoved my way to the top throughout my entire career, and NXT is no different.”
Green also recently spoke to ComicBook.com about how she has ‘evolved’ during her time in NXT. “So, it’s been kind of a different sort of evolution this year, but I’m loving it and I’m still figuring it out. And maybe in a year, you can ask me the same question, and I’ll have a totally different response. You know?”
Would you like to see the Hot Mess in NXT? Let us know in the comments
Matt Riddle has once again stated he plans on retiring Brock Lesnar. This time the Original Bro made such comments while performing on an NXT house show in Las Vegas.
"I guarantee you this. The Bro RETIRES Brock Lesnar!"
Nothing is going to stop @SuperKingofBros from trying to get his match with The Beast ??
“This is just the beginning,” Riddle said at the show. “12 years ago, it started and 12 years from now I’ll still be going and I guarantee you this Las Vegas, the Bro retires Brock Lesnar. And you know what? The Broserweights are NXT, DIY is NXT, and everybody in this building is NXT!”
Riddle had previously noted that the venue in Vegas was where he made his UFC debut 12 years ago.
12 years ago I had my first fight with the UFC and now 12 years later at the very same venue (THE PALMS) I wrestle for NXT in front of my friends and family, moments like this make me extremely proud because I never gave up on myself even when this seemed impossible #bropic.twitter.com/my3yDwGJJp
Following SummerSlam weekend, the official YouTube account of the WWE Performance Center published a video of Riddle saying he was going to get his match with Brock Lesnar.
“I really wanted to get my hands on Brock,” Riddle says in the video. “You know, I saw him throwing everybody around. I don’t care what he says or what anybody says, I don’t care if he wants the match or not. I’m going to get it. I don’t care, it’s not up to him.”
This past week’s episode of NXT saw the return of popular Superstar Velveteen Dream. It was revealed during the ending of the show that Dream was behind the cryptic “2 5 20” messages that have been sporadically appearing during the black-and-gold brand’s recent episodes. Once the message had been made clear, Dream appeared behind the Undisputed Era before doling out his revenge on the stable. The Undisputed Era subsequently addressed Dream’s return and attack in am interview with WWE.com.
“I have never felt more disrespected in my whole entire life,” Roderick Strong said. “Now listen, it was strictly business what happened between me and Dream before he was put on the shelf. But this? This is extremely personal. Dream’s going to pay, he’s going to pay big time.”
Undisputed Era leader, Adam Cole added, “You know who else is going to pay? Literally everybody else. We have done this exact same song and dance for far too long now. It’s the Undisputed Era versus the World, am I right? Always.”
He continued, “So whether it’s Velveteen Dream, whether it’s Tommaso Ciampa, I don’t care who it is. The Undisputed Era will be there to knock them down because that’s what we do. We’re the very best that not only NXT has to offer, but WWE has to offer. We run this place.”
