SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...
Biance Belair vs. Mia Yim – HIT: These are two of the better women’s wrestlers under the WWE umbrella. Bianca Belair showed confidence throughout, using dirty tactics at the end to secure the win. This win over Yim keeps Belair looking strong. They built it as the winner would have some bragging rights to being a challenger for the NXT Women’s Championship match. Shayna Bayzler has defeated Belair on more than one occasion, so I would like to see them give her credible wins before putting her into another Women’s Title match.
Performance Center Segment- HIT: This may be signs of Marina Shafir and Jessamyn Duke having issues and that could be good for these women. We will have to wait and see where this goes, but the possibilities are endless here in regards to storylines. There wasn’t much clarity regarding the scuffle so we soon see where this plays out to.
The Forgotten Sons parking lot segment – MISS: I don’t understand why they did this segment or even what purpose it possible could have served. While Jaxson Ryker is credible, they are going to have to do a really good job building them up in order to increase their perception. There are a lot of question for the NXT Tag Title scene and that may be where the Forgotten Sons are headed.
Raul Mendoza vs. Riddick Moss – MISS: Nothing was wrong with the talent involved or the match. The problem was this match seemed to serve no purpose. The action was good and fast-paced, and the crowd was into Mendoza some what. Mendoza looked good, but is he going to be getting a push? I can’t see that happening.
Kushida Video Highlight – HIT: It’s a great idea to show a video package promoting Kushida, who is a newly signed talent. Build him up and make the fans take him as a serious threat.
Matt Riddle vs. Adam Cole – HIT: A really good match here as you would expect. Riddle dominated the beginning of the match with brute strength and grappling. Cole at one time in the match called Riddle a joke which fired Riddle up. Adam Cole did an amazing superkick after Riddle springboarded off the ropes. Riddle caught Cole in the Bro-mission for the finish. Good match as everyone expected with these two. They could have had a PPV-type match, but for what they did and for storyline sake, this was more than fine.
Undisputed segment – HIT: I love the possible outcomes that could come of this. It will be great no matter how it unfolds. They could make bigger single stars out of some members. But also in the same breath, the same wrestlers could fizzle on their own. It’s clearly going to come down to them coming to blows. I don’t know of many fans who don’t like these guys.
FINAL THOUGHTS: Overall this was a decent NXT show anchored down by a strong main event. The Undisputed Era’s issues continue as it’s still not clear who is going to finally turn on whom. This will be one of the more interesting things going forward on the NXT brand. There a big questions regarding the future of the NXT Tag Team titles as the Viking Raiders vacated them. It’s amazing to watch NXT and see the drastic differences between the NXT shows and the main roster shows. They are building up Kushida, even though he didn’t wrestle, via commentary and video package which is a good gesture when it comes to establishing talent and getting them familiar.
RECOMMENDED: 5/8 NXT TV REPORT: Riddle vs. Cole, Belair vs. Yim, Riddick Moss’ return vs. Mendoza
No idea where they’re going with the UE, which is cool. I really don’t want them to break the group up in NXT, though. I think they’d do better debuting as a unit on the main roster, when the time comes. They could always come back to that, I guess. Storyline continuity isn’t the main roster’s strong suit. The group has a chemistry you don’t often see, however.