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WWE NXT Results December 12, 2015 Sheffield, England at Motorpoint Arena Report by Adam Leggott, long-time PWTorch reader
After a Triple H opening video, Greg Hamilton handled the introduction to the show as we kicked off with…
(1) Enzo Amore & Colin Cassidy beat Blake & Murphy (w/Alexa Bliss). The crowd was super hot for Enzo & Cass throughout the match which began with the two of them on offence before gradually transitioning to the heels beating down Enzo. Hot tag brought in Big Cass and eventually Enzo got the pin with a Cass-assisted top rope splash. Longer match than I would have anticipated, but very solid opener. Blake & Murphy played their roles well, with Bliss running interference once during the match. They’re a pretty good heel unit.
(2) Bull Dempsey beat Tye Dillinger. Both guys were over with the crowd with plenty of “Bull Fit” and “10!” chants. There was even one chant of “Bull is gorgeous.” Really. This match was pure comedy from start to finish but very well done by both guys in the roles they were given. Tye played the heel for the most part. Bull won with a big splash.
(3) Samoa Joe beat Apollo Crews. From the comedy of the previous match to what was, in my opinion, the match of the night. Crews’s athleticism is incredible to see in-person and Joe makes everything he does look solid and legitimate. I think there was a slight issue in that the crowd was into both guys and didn’t really know who to cheer over the other, which maybe slightly hurt both guys’s reception but there was no doubting that both men were over. Joe picked up the win via the Musclebuster to keep the #1 contender strong before Wednesday’s Takeover.
(4) NXT Women’s Championship – Bayley beat Emma (w/Dana Brooke). Aside from a small but vocal section supporting Emma, Bayley was very over with fans. A tad more comedy in this match than I’d have liked (given these two’s respective portfolio), but fun and enjoyable nonetheless. Some chants for Dana Brooke broke out halfway through and she didn’t seem certain how to react, settling eventually on putting her hands to her ears. Brooke was ejected from the match for interference and shortly after, a Bayley-to-Belly suplex won it for the champion.
Intermission. During which, ten highlights from Smackdown were shown. The two featuring Roman Reigns were booed heavily as was the advert for TLC (a generic advert, not featuring any specific talents, which may reflect the feeling towards the main product as a whole).
NXT General Manager William Regal came out to deliver a brief speech of thanks to the crowd for their support in helping NXT evolve to what it is today.
(5) NXT Tag Team Championship – Dash & Dawson beat Jason Jordan & Chad Gable. Absolutely unbelievable how popular Jordan & Gable are. At times I genuinely think even Jason Jordan looked blown away with their reception. The chants barely stopped throughout the match, either for Jordan & Gable or against Dash & Dawson. Scott Dawson got a “Perry Saturn” chant at one point and Dash Wilder received a “Which one are you?” chant. The champs got the win via a roll-up holding the tights on Gable. I’m beginning to really like Dash & Dawson’s throwback style, although cheating to win as heels really should not be considered “throwback.” Jordan & Gable are definitely future tag champs and might even be the ones to dethrone Dash & Dawson.
(6) Asuka beat Carmella. Interestingly, Carmella seemed just as over as Asuka, mostly through the “How you doin’?” catchphrase though. She also declared herself the Princess of Sheffield before the match. Asuka won via submission in a fairly low-key match, though I was impressed with how Asuka carries herself in the ring. She just makes it all seem like it comes naturally for her.
(7) NXT Championship – Finn Bálor beat Baron Corbin and Sami Zayn. Zayn was introduced last but the secret was most definitely out about his return as “Olé” chants were in full voice before both Corbin’s and Bálor’s entrances. In fairness Bálor was also very popular and I believe the addition of Corbin to the main event allowed fans to focus their boos and support both faces equally. Overall a very good main event utilising the triple threat format well. Bálor won with the Coup de Grace onto Baron Corbin whilst he was pinning Sami Zayn – a nice finish. During the match, Sami Zayn fell into Greg Hamilton, who spent the rest of the match with a towel to his mouth, so I’m not sure whether that was a planned spot. It didn’t seem like it. In any event it sparked a brief “Greg’s hardcore” chant.
Having attended three main roster events over the last three years, I can say this NXT show was far and away better than any of them in terms of wrestling quality, crowd engagement, and overall value for money. And I mean that more in praise of NXT than as a criticism of the other shows, which I have mostly enjoyed.
I never attended an ECW show but I imagine it would have had a similar feel to this. There was very much an “us” mentality about the crowd here as several “NXT” chants and the booing of the TLC adverts would suggest. In addition, the crowd were invested in every wrestler and every match which was good to see.
It wasn’t until the main event that the first “this is awesome” chant appeared. It was nowhere near as prevalent as it is during main roster shows, which I’m sure will please Wade Keller!
1 Comment on 12/12 WWE NXT in Sheffield – Detailed report on top matches, reactions, “us vs. WWE,” more
I was there and the show was truly fantastic. Better than the Wwe Raw Live show I saw back in 2004. No mention of the fan who jumped the rail to interfere in the tag team championship match? Couldn’t help chanting “What a Bellend” once he was taken away. Made the crowd more excited for the rest of the night. Also Nia Jax made her presence felt after Bayley and Emma’s match too
I was there and the show was truly fantastic. Better than the Wwe Raw Live show I saw back in 2004. No mention of the fan who jumped the rail to interfere in the tag team championship match? Couldn’t help chanting “What a Bellend” once he was taken away. Made the crowd more excited for the rest of the night. Also Nia Jax made her presence felt after Bayley and Emma’s match too