27th Jul2022

‘WWE NXT 2.0’ Review (July 26th 2022)

by Phil Wheat

Welcome to this week’s review of NXT 2.0, the first of the post-Vince era I do believe? Anyway, as I’ve said regarding Raw and Smackdown, we’re not going to see big changes yet. But the most interesting brand that COULD see big changes is NXT… Maybe we’ll get NXT 3.0? Anyway, let’s get into the review!

Match #1: Grayson Waller def. Wes Lee

The following is courtesy of wwe.com:

Looking to bring an end to Grayson Waller’s continuous trash talk, Wes Lee locked horns with “The Arrogant Aussie.” Lee came out swinging in a fast-paced opening few minutes, but Waller took the wind out of his sails with a swift kick to the midsection. Waller connected with a huge right hand, but it didn’t keep Lee down for long as he fired back with a superkick to stun Waller. The two Superstars exchanged blows as Waller flattened Lee with a modified sit-down powerbomb. Lee fired up to drop Waller with a dive through the ropes, but as he climbed to the top turnbuckle Waller dumped Lee to the arena floor. Waller looked to inflict more damage, but the referee stepped in between the two Superstars. As Lee stood up to re-join the fray, a hooded Trick Williams appeared out of nowhere to punch Lee in the back of the head. Lee somehow managed to beat the 10-count, but Waller quickly jumped into action to deliver his rolling stunner for the win.

My Score: 3 out of 5

Match #2: Apollo Crews def. Xyon Quinn

The following is courtesy of wwe.com:

Apollo Crews had retribution on his mind when he stepped into the ring with Xyon Quinn, going right after the Samoan Superstar with a stunning dropkick. The two hard-hitting rivals traded blows as Quinn earned the upper hand following a forearm to the back of the head and a reverse neckbreaker. Crews withstood a suplex and rallied to deliver a trio of clotheslines before flattening Quinn with a top-rope cross body, but the high-risk maneuver took all of Crews’ energy as Quinn rallied to drop Crews with a Samoan drop. Quinn looked to run it straight through Crews with a running forearm, but was met by an enziguri before Crews dropped Quinn with a backstabber and a chokeslam in quick succession to pick up the pinfall victory.

My Score: 2 out of 5

Match #3: Zoey Stark def. Gigi Dolin

The following is courtesy of wwe.com:

Still fuming over Toxic Attraction’s attack that sidelined her for nearly nine months, Zoey Stark collided with Gigi Dolin in a heated match that saw Stark pummel Dolin with a flurry of right hands as soon as the bell rang. With the rest of Toxic Attraction watching on from ringside, Dolin used the distraction to earn the upper hand with a big boot and a slam. Stark continued to fight back, clocking Dolin with a Superkick and pointing to Mandy Rose before leveling Dolin with a unique knee to the head for the 1-2-3. Afterwards, Jacy Jayne and Mandy Rose attempted to finish what Dolin started, but Stark backed them down. Unfortunately for Stark, she forgot about Cora Jade who snuck up behind Stark and pelted her with a Kendo Stick until Roxanne Perez raced out to chase Jade off and attend to Stark.

My Score: 1 out of 5

Match #4: Giovanni Vinci def. Andre Chase

The following is courtesy of wwe.com:

Giovanni Vinci set out to teach the students at Chase U a lesson by pummeling its founder Andre Chase. Chase stood toe-to-toe with the “Word-Class Sportsman,” but Vinci swung the momentum to his corner with a massive uppercut. Vinci and Chase traded dropkicks before a frustrated Vinci snatched the Chase U flag out of Bodhi Hayward’s hands and snapped it across his thigh. The disrespect fired Chase up as he sent Vinci flying into the steel ring post, but his momentum was quickly halted as Vinci tossed Chase over the ropes and flat onto the arena floor. After Vinci shoved Hayward, Chase responded with a back body drop and the patented “Chase U stomps.” Chase and Vinci exchanged knockout blows for a series of stunning nearfalls, but Vinci had the last laugh catching Chase with a clothesline and a sit-down powerbomb to earn the win. After reveling in his victory, Vinci went back to continue his beatdown of Chase, but honorary flag bearer Nathan Frazer slid in to protect his friend as Vinci backed off.

My Score: 3 out of 5

Match #5: Indi Hartwell def. Arianna Grace

The following is courtesy of wwe.com:

Indi Hartwell and Arianna Grace took their dispute from the 20-Woman Battle Royal back into the ring as the two squared off in singles action. Hartwell caught Grace with a huge spinebuster, but the up-and-comer surprised Hartwell with a quick roll up, nearly stealing the win if not for the referee spotting her foot on the ropes for leverage. As Grace argued her case, Hartwell caught her with a big boot to earn the victory.

My Score: 1.5 out of 5

Match #6: Tony D’Angelo, “Stacks,” Cruz Del Toro, & Joaquin Wilde def. Diamond Mine

The following is courtesy of wwe.com:

In Tony D’Angelo’s haste to prove he has the dominant family in NXT 2.0, “The Don” united a bickering Diamond Mine to come together for a colossal Eight-Man Tag Team Match. The two factions slugged it out in a hard-hitting affair that saw things quickly break down as all eight Superstars brawled in the center of the ring before Brutus Creed wiped out the “Family” with a Brutusball. Despite being the newest member of Diamond Mine, Damon Kemp laid waste to Joaquin Wilde with a flurry of slams, dumping him to the outside floor and turning his attention to an interfering Cruz Del Toro. As Kemp hoisted Del Toro up, Wilde slid in to take out Kemp with a chop block as D’Angelo’s crew isolated and picked apart the up-and-comer in their corner. Kemp escaped to tag in Julius Creed who suplexed everyone is his path including a massive top-rope superplex to Del Toro. Julius suplexed a fresh D’Angelo looking for the ankle lock, but “Stacks” flew in for an elbow in the nick of time. After a flurry of running knees and clotheslines from Strong and Julius respectively, Strong went for another pop-up knee to D’Angelo but “The Don” dodged the attack to send Strong flying into Julius. D’Angelo took advantage of the miscue and planted Julius with his twisting suplex to pick up the pinfall victory.

My Score: 3.5 out of 5

Final Verdict: 3/5

A better episode this week thanks to three great matches. So the usual 50-50 booking from WWE then! Still, I think NXT 2.0 needs a shot in the arm to bring it up to the standard of NXT of old… Or just to the standard of a good show every week!

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