Posts Tagged ‘Finn Balor’

Finn Balor On His Body Paint, NXT Talent ‘Blowing Him Away’ & More

NXT Champion Finn Balor recently appeared as a guest on The Taz Show: Bodyslams & Beyond to discuss all things NXT. Below are some of the highlights from the interview.

On NXT talents that have ‘blown him away’:

“The growth that a lot of the boys have shown in the last year since I got here is just unbelievable. The likes of like Jason Jordan [and] Chad Gable, they’re two guys that, in the last year, have blown me away with their growth.”

On his demon body paint:

“Honestly, I’m just a fan of art. I’m a fan of expressionism. I’m a fan of changing things on the fly. I’m a fan of just going with the flow and being in the moment and that’s really what the demon is for me. It just kind of helps me channel, kind of, maybe an inner, darker side. People accuse me of being kind of too nonchalant or too laid back and too introverted and I feel like the demon definitely helps me bring a different side of my personality out.”

Finn Balor On Main Roster Shows This Weekend, Daniel Bryan Opposes Black Friday, More

– NXT Champion Finn Balor is on the road with the main WWE roster for this weekend’s non-televised live events.

– Instead of shopping on Black Friday, former WWE World Heavyweight Champion Daniel Bryan is supporting International Buy Nothing Day. He posted a photo of someone holding a “Buy Nothing Day” sign on his official Instagram page today, accompanied by the following write-up:

“Today I’m participating Buy Nothing Day, an international protest against consumerism. And more than just this one day, my goal is to buy much less and to give/experience much more this holiday season. One of the most radical things we can do in today’s society is to buy nothing.”

– Speaking of Black Friday, coincidentally enough, Bryan’s wife — Brie Bella — is featured on the advertisement WWE has been pushing today to promote their Black Friday specials at WWE Shop. WWE tweeted the following:

NXT Preview For Tonight, Main Event Spoilers For This Week, WWE Love Affairs

– Featured above is the latest edition of WWE’s “Five Things” YouTube show, which takes a look at five love affairs fans may have forgotten about.

– The following is scheduled for tonight’s edition of NXT on the WWE Network:

* Guest general manager due to William Regal recovering from surgery
* Finn Bálor and Samoa Joe contract signing
* Scott Dawson and Dash Wilder vs. The Vaudevillains for the NXT Tag Titles
* Asuka vs. Dana Brooke
* Apollo Crews vs. Jesse Sorensen
* Bayley vs. Eva Marie for the NXT Women’s Championship

– WWE taped the following matches for this week’s edition of WWE Main Event prior to the SmackDown television taping in Indianapolis, Indiana on Tuesday evening:

* Titus O’Neil def. Stardust via count out in the first of four matches taped for this week’s show.
* Ryback def. Heath Slater in a quick match. This basically amounted to a squash match, with Ryback dominating throughout.
* Rusev def. Zack Ryder in another quick match. The fans in Indianapolis were into Ryder here, and also gave Rusev good heat.
* Brie Bella def. Charlotte in a non-title match after Paige caused a distraction that allowed Brie to get the win.

Sheamus On ESPN: ISIS/Survivor Series Threats, Being Irish WWE Champion, More (Video)

https://youtu.be/GbLI-Y20geA

WWE World Heavyweight Champion Sheamus appeared on ESPN SportsCenter with Jonathan Coachman on Tuesday evening.

Coach asked Sheamus about the rumors of an ISIS attack at the Survivor Series pay-per-view on Sunday. Sheamus claimed WWE took the threat very seriously and worked with all of the agencies throughout the weekend to ensure everyone’s safety at the event. He said the company has also increased security at live events, noting “there’s no safer place than a WWE event.”

“The Celtic Warrior” also spoke about winning the WWE World Heavyweight Championship on Sunday. The Coach asked what it means to be the only Irish-born WWE Superstar to win the title. Sheamus said he’s always been proud to be Irish and that the Irish are the hardest-hitting athletes in the world right now. He references UFC’s Conor McGregor and NXT’s Finn Balor as proof.

The interview closed out with Sheamus talking about being on the sidelines with the Notre Dame Fighting Irish recently. He said he would also be with them when they win the National Championship later this year. He hyped his TLC title defense against Roman Reigns and that was about it.

Update On Sami Zayn’s Return, Notes On NXT U.K. Tour In December

Former NXT Champion Sami Zayn is being advertised for the NXT tour of the U.K. coming up in December, including all of the regular live events and the NXT TakeOver: London special on December 16th.

It’s possible that Zayn is just appearing at the shows in a non-physical capacity, as we haven’t heard that he is ready to make his in-ring return just yet.

Other talents advertised for the NXT tour that is scheduled to kick off on December 10th in Newcastle, England include NXT Champion Finn Balor, NXT Women’s Champion Bayley, NXT Tag-Team Champions Dash and Dawson, Neville, Baron Corbin, Apollo Crews, Samoa Joe, Dana Brooke and Emma.

WWE 2K16 New Moves Pack Released Today As DLC

2K Sports issued the following press release today about the “New Moves Pack” released today as downloadable content for owners of the WWE 2K16 video game. It’s included as part of the DLC season pass, and here’s all of the info:

WWE 2K16 New Moves Pack Downloadable Content Now Available

2K today announced WWE 2K16’s first downloadable content offering, the New Moves Pack, is available now for the PlayStation®4 and PlayStation®3 computer entertainment systems, as well as Xbox One, the all-in-one games and entertainment system, and Xbox 360 games and entertainment system from Microsoft for a suggested price of $3.99. Featuring more than 30 new moves, including the Corner Enzuigiri (made popular by WWE Diva Nikki Bella), Avalanche Ram (made popular by WWE Diva Paige), Sidewinder Suplex (made popular by WWE Superstar Kevin Owens), Standing Crossface Chickenwing (made popular by WWE Superstar Stardust) and Dragon Sleeper (made popular by NXT Superstar Finn Bálor), the New Moves Pack will help fans further customize their favorite Superstars and Divas to dominate their rivals.

The New Moves Pack is also included in the WWE 2K16 Season Pass. For a suggested price of $24.99, a savings of more than 20 percent versus individual content purchases, players will receive the following items as they become available:

Accelerator

Players will gain instant access to all unlockable content available in the game (excluding downloadable content)

Legends Pack

Playable WWE Legends: Big Boss Man, Dusty Rhodes, Lita, Mr. Perfect, “Rowdy” Roddy Piper and Trish Stratus

2015 Hall of Fame Showcase

Playable matches include:
“Macho Man” Randy Savage vs. Jake “The Snake” Roberts
Rikishi vs. The Rock
Alundra Blayze vs. Paige
Larry Zbyszko and Arn Anderson vs. Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat and Dustin Rhodes
Tatsumi Fujinami vs. Ric Flair
The Bushwhackers (Butch Miller and Luke Williams) vs. The Natural Disasters (Typhoon and Earthquake)
The Outsiders (Kevin Nash and Scott Hall) vs. Harlem Heat (Booker T and Stevie Ray)

Future Stars Pack

Playable NXT Superstars: Samoa Joe, Diego, Fernando, Blake and Murphy

Finn Balor vs. Samoe Joe Contract Signing & Matches Announced For Next Week’s NXT

– In the video featured above, Chad Gable and Jason Jordan talk about defeating The Ascension on this week’s edition of NXT.

– Announced for next week’s NXT is a contract signing between NXT Champion Finn Balor and Samoa Joe for their match at the upcoming NXT TakeOver: London special, which takes place on Wednesday, December 16th at SSE Wembley Arena in London, England. As noted, the special will air live on the WWE Network at 3pm EST. / Noon PST. on 12/16.

– In addition to the contract signing, the following matches were announced for next week’s NXT, which will be taped on Thursday night, November 19th from Full Sail University in Winter Park, Florida.

* Bayley vs. Eva Marie
* Asuka vs. Dana Brooke
* The Mechanics vs. The Vaudevillains

NXT TakeOver: London Will Air Live During Afternoon Hours On 12/16

WWE announced this week that the next NXT TakeOver special, which is scheduled for Wednesday, December 16th, will air live on the WWE Network from the SSE Wembley Arena in London, England at 3 p.m. Eastern time and Noon Pacific time.

Although an official lineup has yet to be released, the card is loooking like:

  • NXT Champion Finn Balor vs. Samoa Joe
  • Apollo Crews vs. Baron Corbin
  • Asuka vs. Emma

The 12/16 TakeOver show is also expected to include NXT Tag-Team Title and NXT Women’s Title matches. Those two title matches should become clear on November 19th when the final television tapings leading up to the show are taped at Full Sail University.

Make sure to join us here at SEScoops.com on Wednesday, December 16th for the best NXT TakeOver: London live results coverage on the web!

Daniel Bryan On Being An “Indy Darling” In WWE, Owens/Balor, Kane’s Longevity

WWE Superstar Daniel Bryan recently spoke with WrestlingINC.com during his promotional trip in India. Below are some of the highlights from the interview.

On if being one of the first “indy darlings” in WWE made things hard for him in the company initially:

At first, I think there were a lot of misconceptions about the guys who wrestled for a long time on the independents, like, “Oh, they can’t make it in the WWE, because it’s just a different… it’s a larger arena”. I would wrestle sometimes in front of as few as 15 people, but also sometimes in front of thousands of people on the independent scene, but that’s very different from wrestling in front of ten thousand people every single night. It’s a different audience; you didn’t see a lot of kids at the independent shows. There weren’t a lot of 5 year old kids coming to the independent shows. So you have to wrestle for those people too, and the thought process was that, somebody like me – I’m just an average size guy. That’s not what captivates the kids’ imaginations, right? When they see someone like John Cena, who literally looks like Superman; what am I going to do to capture those children’s imagination? And even when I was a kid, what captured my imagination? Jake “The Snake” Roberts, people with animals, people with fancy face paint, and all that kind of stuff.

“There was a lot of hesitation, as far as like, “Wait a second, how is this 5’8″, 190 pound average person going to connect with these people”, in what they call as “superstars”? We’re called superstars, so, “How is he going to connect?” And that was the biggest question mark. They had a lot of doubts about me for a long time, but the real benchmark, for if somebody can connect with the WWE Universe, is if they connect. So it doesn’t matter if you’re big or small or whatever; if I go out there and the fans react, well then I’ve done my job.”

On other independent stars such as Kevin Owens and Finn Balor doing well in WWE:

“I think it’s a natural evolution of what happens. Because, RAW right now is three hours long, right? So what happens is, before, when RAW was two hours, you didn’t see many long matches, and there were separate brands. There was RAW and Smackdown!, and you didn’t see people on both shows very often. Well now, we have a three hour RAW and two hour Smackdown!, so guys are wrestling long matches on both shows. And who’re going to stand out on that kind of platform? Guys who know how to be different in the ring, who can go out there and wrestle a 10, 12, 15 minute match twice a week, and not have the fans get bored by it.

“Because realistically, if you take wrestlers from the previous generations, and if they had wrestled as much on television as we have, they would be over exposed. But then, you won’t like them as much. That’s one of the biggest battles our generation faces; the previous generations’ battle was getting exposure, trying to get exposure. Now our battle is over exposure, and those who can handle over exposure the best are the ones who are popular, and incidentally, people who handle over exposure are the ones who’ve spent years wrestling in all the different places. So they know how to interact with people in different settings, and that kind of stuff. So I think it is natural that the independent stars are the people coming up and doing very well.”

On Kane’s longevity in WWE:

“So a lot of it is, he is very smart. He knows what he is doing. But also, you have to, and this is for all of us. The same applies for my popularity, for Steve Austin’s popularity… a lot of it depends on luck. If he gets a bad injury, at a certain time in his career when he is getting a big opportunity, all of a sudden, maybe his career in the WWE isn’t as long. If one thing happens this way instead of that way, he may not still be in the WWE. But, that said, he’s got really lucky breaks, and he’s good enough to capitalize on those breaks, and that’s why he has been here for so long. He’s smart, he’s really good at what he does, and for the most part he’s entertaining.”

Finn Balor Scheduled For Main Roster Shows, Final RAW Rating, More

– NXT Champion Finn Balor is scheduled for several WWE RAW and SmackDown television tapings after the WWE Survivor Series pay-per-view on November 22nd. Unless Balor is introduced on the main roster in the next few weeks, he will likely be working dark matches at the TV tapings.

– As noted, Monday’s taped edition of RAW in Manchester, England drew 3.173 million viewers, down from last week’s average of 3.248 million viewers. The final RAW rating came in at 2.23, which was also down from last week’s show, which finished with a 2.32 final rating.

– Speaking of Monday’s RAW, WWE posted the following “Top 10 Moments” compilation video for the show.

Finn Balor Attending Upcoming RAW & SmackDown Tapings, Hideo Itami & Sami Zayn Updates

– NXT Champion Finn Balor is scheduled to attend several RAW and SmackDown tapings after Survivor Series. He is currently overseas with WWE for this week’s European tour and defeated Sheamus on Friday night at the O2 Arena in London, England.

Balor attending RAW and SmackDown tapings is by no means an indication that he’ll be appearing on WWE television any time soon. That said, with the absences of John Cena, Seth Rollins and Randy Orton, it might not be a bad idea to feature Balor on WWE TV to at least hype NXT Takeover: London (12/16).

– Sami Zayn won’t be back in action any time soon. He was at the Performance Center several weeks ago but has not been training regularly for a return. He has stated publicly that he won’t be back until early 2016.

– Hideo Itami also continues to rehabilitate his shoulder after undergoing surgery back in May. He was slated to miss around 6-8 months of action and has not yet returned to the WWE Performance Center for training.

(Source: PWInsider.com)

Samoa Joe Turns Heel On Former Partner Finn Balor (Video)

Samoa Joe turned heel and attacked Finn Balor during the main event of this week’s episode of NXT on the WWE Network. Balor was defending the NXT Championship against Apollo Crews when Baron Corbin interfered and attacked Crews. Samoa Joe ran down and cleared house before unleashing a vicious attack against his former partner Finn Balor. Joe left the champion laying after a muscle buster to kick off what is sure to be a must-see feud.

Cameron returned to action on this week’s show, losing to Asuka.

Next week:

  • NXT Champions The Vaudevillians vs. Dash and Dawson
  • Hype Bros & Bayley vs. Blake, Murphy & Alexa Bliss in a mix-tag match

Sheamus vs. Finn Balor Poll, CMLL & NJPW Star To WWE?, Attitude Era DVDs

– For 2016, WWE is bringing back their “Attitude Era” DVD and Blu-ray series according to reports from WrestlingDVDNetwork.com. The “Attitude Era Vol. 3” set is scheduled to be released next summer, while the “Attitude Era Vol. 2” set was released in 2014.

– CMLL and NJPW veteran La Sombra could possibly be signing with WWE, according to Wrestling Observer Radio. Sombra, who has been wrestling since he was 14 years old, had a WWE tryout back in 2011 while the company was touring in Mexico. Though he was obviously not signed back then, there is speculation that it is a possibility.

– The first-ever Sheamus vs. NXT Champion Finn Balor match has been receiving a lot of buzz online. The match is set for Wednesday’s WWE live event in Dublin, Ireland. On Tuesday, Sheamus issued this Twitter poll on the match:

Finn Balor Dresses As CM Punk For Halloween, Busick & Swann Debut In NXT

Biff Busick and Rich Swann made their NXT live event debuts in Gainesville, Florida in a Halloween costume battle royal. NXT Women’s Champion Bayley, who was dressed up as a Lego, ended up winning the battle royal.

It’s worth mentioning that NXT Champion Finn Balor appeared to be dressed up as CM Punk, with a Dolph Ziggler hoodie on, while Aiden English dressed up as current WWE Intercontinental Champion Kevin Owens.

Below are some photos from the event.

https://twitter.com/snkxwwe/status/660243852327067648

https://twitter.com/swampneko/status/660258953906008064

https://twitter.com/ilyassking1/status/660271399089643520

https://twitter.com/snkxwwe/status/660240415875010560

https://twitter.com/snkxwwe/status/660240917224361984

https://twitter.com/snkxwwe/status/660242227382325248

https://twitter.com/snkxwwe/status/660243011666878466

https://twitter.com/WWEDrakeWuertz/status/660236121734008832

Apollo Crews Challenges Finn Balor For The NXT Title Next Week

After winning the #1 Contender’s Battle Royal earlier this month, Apollo Crews will challenge Finn Balor for the NXT Championship in the main event of week’s show.

WWE tapes the next several weeks of NXT TV tonight from Full Sail University in Winter Park, FL – check back later tonight for spoiler results.

WWE is hyping the match match with a look at Crews’ journey to the top of NXT:

The Usos To Return Soon, Steve Austin Interviews Ryback, Finn Balor vs. Sheamus

– The Usos have been working out in the ring at the WWE Performance Center for the last week and are expected to return to WWE television in the near future. Jey Uso in particular has been out of action with a shoulder injury since the spring.

– Ryback is the guest on the first of two “Steve Austin Show” podcasts this week. On this week’s “Family Friendly” edition of the show, “The Rattlesnake” talks to “The Big Guy” just before his match against Kevin Owens at Sunday’s WWE Hell In A Cell pay-per-view. The official description for the show, which you can download at PodcastOne.com reads as follows:

“Ryback had a great conversation with Steve Austin just before his “Hell In A Cell” match on Sunday. They talked about growing up in Vegas, playing high school football and baseball, why Ryback is the guy to replace John Cena (when the time comes) at WWE, Ryback’s workout philosophy & strategy, why he doesn’t believe in “cheat days” when it comes to diet, what “The Secret” did for his pro-wrestling career, how Arnold Schwarzenegger motivated him back to the ring, and his “Tough Enough” experience. You’ll also hear about Ryback’s relationship with Vince McMahon, why he prefers to travel solo, and how he continues to improve his own in-ring performance.”

– WWE announced a match between NXT Champion Finn Balor and “Mr. Money In The Bank” Sheamus for the November 4th stop in Dublin, Ireland during their European tour. WWE tweeted the following about the match today:

*Spoilers* 3 Weeks Of NXT TV Tapings (Through 11/18)

The following are spoiler results from the set of NXT television tapings held on Thursday, October 22, 2015 at Full Sail University in Winter Park, Florida.

NXT TV Spoilers For 11/4

– Asuka def. Cameron via submission

– Bull Dempsey def. Angelo Dawkins

– Eva Marie def. Gionna Daddio, who is now using the name Marley.

– Apollo Crews def. Finn Balor ended in a DQ when Baron Corbin attacked both guys in what was a NXT title match, so the title didn’t change hands. After Corbin hit the ring, Samoa Joe came out and took out Corbin, but then shocked everyone by attacking Finn Balor for a surprising heel turn to close out that week’s show.

NXT TV Spoilers For 11/11

– Adrien Reese (aka Athena) def. Peyton Royce with a top-rope jump into a Stunner for the 1-2-3.

– Baron Corbin vs. Tye Dillinger never takes place as Apollo Crews takes out Corbin.

– Bayley, Zack Ryder & Mojo Rawley def. Alexa Bliss, Blake & Murphy in a six-person inter-gender tag-team match. Bliss stole Bayley’s title and ran off with it during the match. Bayley hit a Belly-To-Bayley on one of the men and then ran after Bliss. Ryder hit the Rough Ryder to get the win for his team.

– Nia Jax def. Deonna Purrazzo in a squash match.

– The Mechanics def. The Vaudevillains via submission to become the new NXT Tag-Team Champions. Great crowd reactions for this match and for the title change.

– Samoa Joe came out for a promo segment. The fans boo him because he turned heel and attacked Finn Balor on “last week’s show.” Balor ends up coming out and confronts Joe. They get into it but referees end up holding them back. This segment ends the 11/11 edition of NXT TV.

NXT TV Spoilers For 11/18

– Nia Jax def. Carmella in a squash match.

– Chad Gable & Jason Jordan def. The Ascension in tag-team action when Gable and Jordan score the pin after hitting the assisted German suplex.

– Emma def. Mary Kate (aka Rosie Lottalove and Andrea) with the Emma-lock.

– The Mechanics def. Two local talents (believed to be Corey Hollis and John Skyler) to retain the NXT Tag-Team titles.

– Bayley def. Alexa Bliss via the Huggplex to retain the NXT Women’s Championship. Eva Marie ended up coming out to challenge Bayley to a future title match.

Spoiler Photos: Top NXT Star Turns Heel At This Week’s TV Taping

This week’s NXT television taping featured a number of newsworthy happenings. In addition to this noteworthy item, there was a big heel turn that took place during this week’s taping.

A match that featured NXT Champion Finn Balor defending his title against Apollo Crews took place at the NXT television taping on Thursday night in Winter Park, Florida, and featured a big heel turn from none other than Samoa Joe.

The Balor-Crews match ended in a disqualification as Baron Corbin hit the ring and attacked both Crews and Balor. This led to Samoa Joe coming out. Joe took out Corbin and then shocked everyone by attacking Balor. This was described by fans in attendance as a “real heel turn” with lots of heat from the crowd directed towards Joe.

The Balor-Crews title match and post-match Samoa Joe heel turn is scheduled to air as part of the November 4th episode of NXT TV.

Below are some photos of Samoa Joe’s post-match heel turn.

https://twitter.com/Manic_Pineapple/status/657336115800748032

https://twitter.com/Manic_Pineapple/status/657336217722318848

https://twitter.com/Manic_Pineapple/status/657336379798589441

Paige Tells Ghost Stories, WWE Table For 3, Renee Young Talks To Finn Balor

– The next episode of “Table For 3” on the WWE Network drops at 4pm EST. on Wednesday and will feature The Miz, Curtis Axel and R-Truth. The official description for the show reads: “The Miz, R-Truth and Curtis Axel share insightful stories in and outside the ring, and discuss what it takes to make it as a WWE Superstar.”

– Also on Wednesday, a new episode of “Unfiltered with Renee Young” will premiere on the WWE Network at 4:30pm EST. The description for her show, which will feature Finn Balor, reads: “Renee sits down with NXT Superstar Finn Balor as they discuss growing up in Ireland, his favorite movies and his surprising love for legos.”

– Below is the latest Superstar Ghost Stories teaser featuring WWE Diva and Total Divas star Paige.

Becky Lynch Says Finn Balor Is the Best Wrestler In The World

Becky Lynch was interviewed this week on The Sam Roberts Wrestling Podcast and was asked who she thinks is the best wrestler in the world. The Irish Diva was quick to name her fellow countryman, NXT Champion Finn Balor.

“Personally, I consider [Finn Balor] to be the best wrestler in the world. He is also one of my dearest friends as well, so it’s just awesome to have him around, just to have another person to bounce [ideas] off of. I’m so happy for him and being the NXT Champ and where he’s going to go is just to the moon and back.

Being able to be in such close proximity to see everything that he’s about to do and everything that he [has] already done because the Bullet Club was all his invention, and that’s so cool. So what he’s going to do here [in WWE] is going to be phenomenal.”

You can listen to the full podcast here:

WWE Filming NXT Live Events, Billy Gunn Works With Balor, HHH/Dusty Rhodes

– WWE had camera crews at the NXT live event in Winter Haven, Florida this weekend filming matches for the WWE Network show, “Breaking Ground.” They have had the same crews at the WWE Performance Center and other recent NXT live events for the same reason.

– Speaking of the NXT live event in Winter Haven, Billy Gunn made an appearance in front of the crowd and the aforementioned camera crews at the end of the show. Finn Balor invited Gunn to the ring after his match, and while Gunn declined at first, the fans in attendance eventually changed his mind. Gunn went on to hit Blake with a FameAsser before closing out the show doing the D-X routine alongside Balor and The Vaudevillains.

– Triple H posted the following on Twitter to the late Dusty Rhodes on what would have been “The American Dream’s” 70th birthday.

Spoiler: #1 Contender To NXT Championship Revealed

Apollo Crews is the #1 contender to Finn Balor’s NXT Championship after winning a battle royal at Thursday’s TV tapings from Full Sail University. The final four in the battle royal were Crews, Samoa Joe, Baron Corbin and Tyler Breeze.

No word yet on when the match will take place, NXT Takeover: London on December 16th is still over 2 months away. Crews has looked great since making his NXT debut over the summer and looks to be on the fast track to the top.

NXT Battle Royal Next Week To Crown New #1 Contender

NXT General Manager William Regal has announced that next week’s show will feature a Battle Royal to determine the next #1 contender to Finn Balor’s NXT Championship.

As noted earlier, The Rock’s cousin Nia Jax will also debut next week.

The show will be taped tonight when NXT tapes the next several weeks of programming from Full Sail University in Winter Park Florida. Check back later for spoiler results.

Finn Balor & Samoa Joe Win First Ever Dusty Rhodes Tag-Team Classic Cup

At Wednesday’s NXT Takeover: Respect special on the WWE Network, the first-ever “Dusty Rhodes Tag-Team Classic” tournament winners were crowned.

The teams of Finn Balor & Samoe Joe, The Mechanics, Baron Corbin & Rhyno and Chad Gable & Jason Jordan advanced to tonight’s WWE Network special, with Balor and Joe eliminating The Mechanics in the opener, and the team of Corbin and Rhyno taking out the team of Gable and Jordan to advance to the finals.

In the finals, which were held in the co-main event spot of the NXT special, Balor and Joe ended up defeating Corbin and Rhyno, who put up a good effort.

Cody Rhodes came out to do the Dusty Rhodes Tag-Team Classic Cup presentation to Balor and Joe. He mentioned that tonight everyone is a “Rhodes” member as “The American Dream” theme music played and the fans echo’d chants of “Thank You Dusty! Thank You Dusty!” to close out the first ever Dusty Classic Tournament and move on to the 30-minute “Ironwoman Match” for the NXT Women’s Champion.

For complete NXT Takeover: Respect results, click here.

Matt Hardy Responds To Finn Balor At TNA Headquarters, Finn Gets The Last Laugh

NXT Champion Finn Balor made waves on social media on Friday when he tweeted a photo of himself at TNA Headquarters in Nashville, Tennessee.

TNA star Matt Hardy has since responded, noting that Balor was at TNA HQ in hopes of participating in the X-Division match at tonight’s Bound For Glory pay-per-view.

Wishful thinking by Hardy, but Balor let him know that he’s got much more important things going on: