Nerdly » ‘WWE NXT’ Review (June 26th 2019)

28th Jun2019

‘WWE NXT’ Review (June 26th 2019)

by Nathan Favel

Welcome to this review of NXT, right here on Nerdly. I’m Nathan Favel and we have a couple of big matches to get to, so let’s get to them right now.

Match #1: Angel Garza def. Joaquin Wilde in the first round of the NXT Breakout Tournament

The following is courtesy of wwe.com:

The bigger the entrée, the bigger the appetite. In the first round of the newly launched NXT Breakout Tournament, Angel Garza and Joaquin Wilde gave volume to that credo in a rip-roaring showdown that prompted “Fight forever” chants throughout Full Sail Live. Garza, an uber-confident third-generation luchador, put his versatile skillset on full display with a series of fast-paced maneuvers that threw Wilde’s innovative offense out of whack, which was apparent when he manipulated a dazzling headscissors from his opponent with a faceplant right onto the canvas. However, Wilde used his fearless spirit to force Garza to his wit’s end through creative attacks such as countering a running attack with an impressive inverted atomic drop that came packed with a stomp facebreaker followed by a roll-up pin attempt. Aware that a longer match would favor the Chicago-bred daredevil, Garza went straight to business and cut down his opponent with a jaw-dropping Spanish Fly that left NXT announcer Mauro Ranallo hollering “Mamma Mia!” To ensure a victory, he latched a devastating double underhook butterfly stunner on a winded Wilde, snagging the pinfall and a ticket to the next round.

My Opinion: 3 out of 5 – This was really good. Why was it so short? It’s not like they have…okay, they do have other stuff planned, but still… The wrestling here was the finest, but it got shot in the foot by the small window of time. Wrestling works better when it has more than twelve minutes to make an impression. Does anybody at the WWE remember that? In any case, these guys had a proper WWE debut doing what they should be doing, which is giving a performance worth talking about.

Match #2: Street Profits def. Forgotten Sons via Disqualification

The following is courtesy of wwe.com:

Free smoke season is in full effect, and that was all NXT Tag Team Champions The Street Profits had to offer their fervid rivals The Forgotten Sons in combat this week. Before their scheduled bout, Montez Ford & Angelo Dawkins volunteered to put their championship on the line, promising to leave Wesley Blake & Steve Cutler “remembered” as the first team to take an L from the new champs. As the move prompted the NXT announcers to speculate whether or not the titles were on the line, Ford & Dawkins brought the fight to their nemeses and came seconds away from making good on their word before Jaxson Ryker intervened. After Ford landed a breathtaking frog splash on Cutler, Ryker jumped in the ring and clobbered away at the reigning champs before Oney Lorcan & Danny Burch ran down to make the save. Lorcan & Burch also share a tense history with The Forgotten Sons, and it wasn’t long until they forced The Savages of NXT out of the ring. But as the Brit-Am bruisers took the liberty of handing Ford & Dawkins their NXT Tag Team Titles, the gritty duo couldn’t help themselves from being transfixed by its treasured appeal. Lorcan & Burch would then leave little to wonder as they left the champions with the parting words, “You owe us.”

My Opinion: 1 out of 5 – This sucked. Two minutes of…nothing. I have no idea if this was meant to be for the tag titles or not. Screw this $#!@. Why would you waste a title match? I know I sound angry and bitter, but these are the decisions that help kill a league.

Match #3: Keith Lee def. Nykos Rikos

The following is courtesy of wwe.com:

What do you call a flight without end? NXT newcomer Nykos Rikos learned the answer to that upon seconds of racking up flyer miles as he flew across the ring following a turbulent pounce by “Limitless” Keith Lee. After declaring this was “my NXT,” Lee shipped his opponent off to la-la land by fastening him with the Limit Breaker, a fireman’s carry converted into a powerslam, for the decisive win.

My Opinion: 1 out of 5 – Keith got to do some moves. That’s about it. Monty Brown would like Keith’s Pounce. Okay, Keith being wasted is depressing the hell out of me.

Match #4: (Main Event) NXT Women’s Champion Shayna Baszler def. Io Shirai (Steel Cage Match)

The following is courtesy of wwe.com:

Unforgiving is usually the way to describe what goes down inside the steel confines of a traditional Cage Match, but Io Shirai gave it new meaning in the aftermath of her NXT Women’s Title brawl against Shayna Baszler. The deep-seated animosity between these rivals came to a punishing head as they took full advantage of their steel surroundings. The NXT Women’s Champion was not only out to defend her prized possession, but also to inflict some serious retribution for all the merciless assaults Shirai imposed against her (and The Horsewomen’s Jessamyn Duke & Marina Shafir) over the past month – from the Kendo stick attack at TakeOver: XXV to the arena-wide brawl that popped off on the June 12 edition of NXT TV. As a result, The Queen of Spades started the match by sticking to the basics, which included a flurry of hard-hitting MMA strikes and limb-twisting submission holds. Minutes into the match, the champion trapped Shirai in Kirifuda Clutch territory before maneuvering into a punishing single-leg Boston crab. After landing a series of strongarm attacks, Baszler looked to be on the verge of climbing out of the cage, but she instead returned to cause more damage to the Japanese Superstar – or so she thought.

Despite being rammed into the cage wall, Shirai miraculously found her stride and never looked back. After torpedoing Baszler into the steel with a series of dropkicks, The Genius of the Sky took to the high-rent district and clasped a spine-tingling German suplex on the champion from the top rope. As Shirai found a clear path to the door, she was met by Baszler’s henchwomen, whose distraction allowed Baszler to clutch The Genius of the Sky into the third Kirifuda Clutch attempt of the night. But Shirai’s stride continued, as she rolled out of Baszler’s signature submission hold to administer a double stomp right onto Baszler’s sternum. With Shafir guarding the door, Shirai opted to ascend the cage walls in an attempt to climb over and out. As Shafir scaled the steel structure to prevent Shirai’s escape, Candice LeRae arrived and met her halfway up the wall to even the odds. When Duke stepped inside the ring to walk Baszler out of the cage, Tenacious C crashed into her with a jaw-dropping splash off the top of the cage. With Baszler by her lonesome, The Genius of the Sky took a leap of faith off the cage and landed a gravity-defying moonsault on the champion.

In the final moments, both Superstars engaged in a tug of war at the doorway. When The Queen of Spades clutched her rival into a last-minute Kirifuda Clutch, a desperate Shirai clocked Baszler with the cage door, inadvertently sending the champion collapsing right out of the ring to the floor and thereby retaining her NXT Women’s Championship.

My Opinion: 4 out of 5 – This was a mean, brutal fight to the finish that made both athletes look as vicious and nasty as you can get. Given that this was for the NXT Women’s Title, it really needed to stick the landing. I can say that this match is one of the best from NXT so far this year, because it was wrestled as if to show a cage match that was as terrifying as they come. This was better than the Steel Cage Match from Stomping Grounds a few nights ago. Yeah, I mean it. These fighters ripped each other apart like there was candy inside. Over-all, at least this lived up to the hype.