01st Dec2018

‘NXT: UK’ Review (Nov 28th 2018)

by Nathan Favel

NXT-uk-large

Welcome to this week’s NXT: UK review, right here on Nerdly. I’m Nathan Favel and we have a new UK Women’s Champion to crown, so let’s get right to it.

Match #1: Joe Coffey vs. Tyler Bate ended in a No Contest

The following is courtesy of WWE.com:

After tasting weeks of defeat, Sid Scala went to NXT UK General Manager Johnny Saint for an opportunity and walked out of the GM’s office with a future match against Joe Coffey. However, still not medically cleared this week, Scala instead emerged to introduce Coffey’s replacement opponent, Tyler Bate – just weeks after The Coffey Brothers and Wolfgang attacked Moustache Mountain backstage. Though Bate’s explosive office proved effective against Coffey early on, the distraction by emerging Mark Coffey and Wolfgang allowed the Iron King to take change with a brutal offense. The former U.K. Champion manage to regain momentum, but another distraction by Mark quickly brought the advantage back to his brother.

This continued interference soon brought Trent Seven to the ringside to rally his partner, and Bate would do just that, disorienting Joe with an airplane spin and wheel kick combination. But, when Bate attempted his Tyler Driver 97 finishing maneuver, Mark Coffey and Wolfgang charged the ring, with Bate’s equalizer Trent Seven leaping in seconds later. As the bell rang and all hell broke loose, the numbers quickly started to work against Moustache Mountain. That was until WWE U.K. Champion Pete Dunne charged the squared circle and allowed British Strong Style to clear the ring.

My Take: 3 out of 5 – This was good until the run-in happened. I think they could definitely make a big feud between these two into a draw for the brand, but not if they keep doing bull-$#!@ finishes.

Match #2: Ligero def. Dan Moloney

The following is courtesy of WWE.com:

Bouncing back from a tough loss to Jordan Devlin several episodes ago, Ligero took on Dan Moloney. Though Moloney would demonstrate immense power and aggression throughout, the Leeds Luchadore took advantage of his opponent’s missed leg drop from the ropes to hit a beautiful summersault senton over the ropes and onto the ringside floor before finishing off his opponent with the springboard DDT.

My Take: 2 out of 5 – Ligero looked good in a match that was designed to get him over. I never thought I would see Ligero getting a push in the WWE, but it is good to see him get his time in the sun.

Match #3: Zack Gibson & James Drake def. Amir Jordan & Kenny Williams

The following is courtesy of WWE.com:

Amidst promise of the coming NXT UK Tag Team Titles, Amir Jordan & Kenny Williams teamed up for the second time on NXT UK against running mates Zack Gibson & James Drake. Despite demonstrating both explosiveness and resilience in a very tough combination, in the end, The Bhangra Bad Boy and the Lucky-In fell short when Williams was treated to Ticket-To-Ride, a maneuver that gave Gibson & Drake the big win.

My Take: 2.5 out of 5 – This was a solid match that got the job done. I consider this to be a real “meat and potatoes” kind of fight, so you can expect the fundamentals and a bit of salt and pepper to make dinner a little easier to swallow. Salisbury Steak is sounding pretty good right now.

Match #4: (Main Event) Rhea Ripley def. Toni Storm to become the first-ever NXT UK Women’s Champion

The following is courtesy of WWE.com:

After fighting their way through two hard-fought matches a piece in the NXT UK Women’s Championship Tournament, Toni Storm and Rhea Ripley squared off in the Finals to crown the first-ever NXT Women’s Champion. Though Storm started the contest out with an aggressive attack on Ripley that quickly moved outside the ring, the momentum changed in a hurry when she missed her mark and went changing into the ring barricade. Then, in a key moment, Ripley countered her opponent’s attack on the ring apron with a brutal backdrop that sent Storm crashing onto the ring apron, spine-first. Even though her back was clearly in pain, the rocking competitor heroically shook off the referee’s inquiries on whether she could continue and barely beat the 10-count back into the ring. However, the damage had been done.

Ripley refused to relent, and though the resilient Storm fought back, The Mosh Pit Kid was able to unleash an absolutely punishing assault, specifically targeting her opponent’s injured back with ruthless aggression which included locking in her modified Cloverleaf that utilized the arms. Ignoring the pain, Storm delivered three snap German suplexes, before miraculously bridging with her injured back to pick up the near fall. Ripley fired back, catching Storm with a major dropkick as her opponent was coming off the ropes. Though Storm was able to evade her opponent and sent her charging into the rope post, her Storm Zero attempt was stalled when Ripley countered and tossed her over the top rope and crashing to the ringside floor, adding still more punishment to her lower back.

In the height of the action, the determined Storm thwarted Ripley’s Riptide attempt and looked to finally hit the Storm Zero. But, in a heartbreaking moment, her injured back prevented her from executing her finishing maneuver and opened the door for Ripley to hit the Riptide for the three-count. Rhea Ripley is the first-ever NXT UK Women’s Champion! And with the NXT UK locker room looking on, Ripley showed uncharacteristic respect to Storm before accepting the NXT UK Women’s Championship from COO Triple H and General Manager Johnny Saint.

My Take: 4 out of 5 – I really liked this match and I think you will too. This is another great main event from this extension of NXT and it’s another sign that this sibling league just might have legs to walk on. The psychology was great and the action was right there and never relented. This was one of the best women’s matches from the WWE this year and one of the better WWE matches over-all.

Final Verdict: 4/5

This was a good episode with a great main event. I like not having any-thing to complain about.

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