SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...
NXT ON USA
FEBRUARY 1, 2022, 8PM EST
LIVE IN ORLANDO, FLA., AT CAPITOL WRESTLING CENTER
AIRED ON USA NETWORK
REPORT BY KELLY WELLS, PWTORCH CONTRIBUTOR
Commentary: Vic Joseph & Wade Barrett
Join the “PWT Talks NXT” Dailycast with me and Nate Lindberg to break down the episode:
•STREAM LIVE, STARTING AROUND 10:15E/9:15C
•CALL: (515) 605-9345 (press “1” to queue)
•E-MAIL COMMENTS/QUESTIONS: pwtorchnxt@gmail.com
•SEARCH “PWTORCH” ON YOUR PODCAST APP TO SUBSCRIBE, AND DOWNLOAD/STREAM THE FULL POST-SHOW RECORDING
[HOUR ONE]
(1) DIAMOND MINE (Roderick Strong & Julius Creed & Brutus Creed) vs. IMPERIUM (Gunther & Marcel Barthel & Fabian Aichner)
No recap to start. Imperium was introduced first and during a “Walter” chant, Vic was produced to say “You can hear the NXT Universe, but the man in the middle is Gunther.” It really is incredible that a guy whose name is just “Walter” could take such a massive step down.
Schmoz to start, and everyone but Aichner and Brutus cleared out to allow the match to start. Brutus dominated with some hard takedowns and tagged Julius, who stomped a bit and tagged Brutus again. Aichner got back into it with some chops as the camera caught Strong outside on the floor in his corner, selling a kayfabe (I assume) injury. Barthel tagged in and worked an armbar. Brutus powered out and hit a spinebuster and tagged Julius again, who went at Barthel with knees to the side and some clubbing blows. Aichner turned it around and chopped Julius and hit an enzuigiri and a suplex. Tag to Gunther for another loud “Walter” chant.
Gunther put the boots to Julius briefly and tagged Barthel, who worked a double armbar. Strong had reached the apron and took the tag as Aichner tagged in as well. Slam by Strong, followed by his rope-running forearms. Gunther made the blind tag and clubbed Strong down as the match went to split-screen. [c]
Diamond Mine was on the offensive. The Creeds teamed up for a gut-wrench of Brutus onto the prone Barthel for a two count. Aichner tagged in and got double-teamed as well as the Creeds hit a powerbomb. Cover for two, broken up by Gunther. Gunther and Strong tagged in. Strong tried a rising knee but got caught; he instead ran the ropes and took down Gunther that way. Things broke down and everyone ended up on the outside. After a moment, Brutus and Gunther were legal in the ring. They reversed a few times until Gunther hit a lariat and a powerbomb to finish.
WINNERS: Imperium at 12:00.
(Wells’s Analysis: Nothing to complain about here other than the name change, which is repeatedly tripping me up as I write this recap. Fun, hard-hitting action that continues Gunther’s likely rise to be the #1 contender before long.)
-LA Knight started a promo backstage and ran afoul of Joe Gacy and Harland. Gacy offered to help Knight past his problems like he did Harland. Knight mocked Gacy by saying “You would do that for me?” and went on to say they’d get past it together when Knight kicks Gacy’s ass later tonight, and that’s just a fact of life. [c]
-WrestleMania hype video. 60 days away.
-The announcers mentioned that the next two episodes would be live on Syfy.
-Toxic Attraction was introduced and they made their way to the ring to battle through another promo. Gigi Dolin and Jacy Jayne cut on Indi Hartwell and Persia Pirotta, who they’ll be defending against at Vengeance Day, and Mandy Rose got out a single word before Kay Lee Ray’s music played, and she said it was time for Mandy Rose to defend her championship against her. Mandy started talking about her accomplishments, which of course all had to do with her looks. She said she’s what every woman “inspires” to be. Sigh. Ray said she was NXT UK Women’s Champion for 649 days while Rose was slipping on her ass on WrestleMania and sucking Otis’s face. Ray said by the end of the night, she’d have her title match. “Not likely,” Rose just barely got out, before Ray charged and beat her down before Rose skinned out with her partners.
(Wells’s Analysis: I have to kind of grade Rose on a curve, but she did more or less make this work tonight in comparison to what she’s been doing on the mic in recent weeks. Ray sold the match well for her part)
-Cora Jade got a few words out to McKenzie Mitchell in the back before Raquel Gonzalez showed up and said it wasn’t too late for Jade to back out. Jade said she may get her ass kicked, but she needs to do this. [c]
-Outside, an unseen announcer talked to Mandy Rose about whether she would be giving a title match to Kay Lee Ray. She said Ray didn’t deserve one. Gigi and Jacy got into a limo and Rose knocked on the front door to say to let her in because the door was locked. The window went down and revealed Kay Lee Ray, who smiled and drove off with Gigi and Jacy. First NXT parking lot abduction in a while!
(2) CORA JADE vs. RAQUEL GONZALEZ
Gonzalez dominated after a little quick offense from Jade. Gonzalez slammed Jade for two, then battered her in a corner. Rope run and Jade got caught by Gonzalez with a side slam for two. Suplex by Gonzalez for two. Gonzalez worked a nerve hold and Jade broke it with a jawbreaker but Gonzalez went right back to it on offense with some clubs. There was a relentless, loud “Raquel”/”Cora” chant that’s likely the loudest fan contest.
Gonzalez put Jade up in the corner and Jade slapped her. On the floor, Gonzalez tried her slam again but Jade rolled through. For the next minute, the picture went out for several seconds at a time three separate times, though the audio was still fine, and it seemed like it may be wardrobe malfunctions from Gonzalez. Jade threw some rights while selling a troubled left arm. Gonzalez caught a charging Jade with a Chingona Bomb to finish.
WINNER: Raquel Gonzalez at 6:02.
After the match, Gonzalez helped Jade up and said “Let’s go win this,” suggesting they’ll be partners in the Dusty Cup.
(Wells’s Analysis: Perfectly fine big vs. small underdog story here that ends in respect and a new team. A good showing from Jade fighting from underneath, which will likely be her niche for the foreseeable future)
-Sarray has a mystical necklace and she’s up next. [c]
-Last week, Pete Dunne brutalized Tony D’Angelo with a cricket bat. He said he guesses you could say he “handled his business” like Tony’s always talking about. Dunne said let’s settle this where it all started: inside a steel cage.
(3) SARRAY vs. KAYLA INLAY
Sarray, clad in schoolgirl clothes, walked backstage with her music introducing her. She blew on her mystical necklace, and smoke went up. When the smoke cleared, Sarray, now in wrestling gear, walked the ramp. Cute editing trick, though it’ll get old quickly.
Sarray went for a handshake, but her opponent slapped it away. Sarray got in some quick offense and worked a few slams where she held each of the enhancement’s hands and whipped her over. I spent the match mostly looking for the name of the enhancement, but Sarray looked much more passionate than in her previous incarnation.
WINNER: Sarray at 3:29.
(Wells’s Analysis: I didn’t recognize her, but the enhancement previously worked on AEW Dark as Xtina Kay. Good fire and a strong restart for Sarray)
-Duke Hudson vignette. He said he was addicting to the long game, and what did that get him? He was going to get addicted to inflicting pain, and now, he’ll make his own luck. Good promo. [c]
-Tommaso Ciampa met Bron Breakker at his locker. He said Bron is one of a few people who understand what it means to be champion. Breakker said “let’s kick some ass.” Ciampa said “Yeah…let’s kick some ass,” but he was looking away and clearly had something on his mind.
[HOUR TWO]
-Carmelo Hayes and Trick Williams hit the ring. Both had mics. Williams cut on Cameron Grimes, saying last week he beat a distracted man and now he thinks he’s ready for Melo? Carmelo said that even though the fans don’t take Grimes seriously and don’t see him as a threat to Melo, he actually does. Fun line there. He worked toward his closing line, but Grimes’s music cut it off, bringing Grimes, wearing a suit, to the ramp with a mic. “To the moon” chant. Grimes called it out. Trick told him he’d beat his slimy – and then Grimes said he wasn’t slimy, he’s grimy. He said Trick’s hair looked like a pineapple under the sea, which made Hayes Squidward. Grimes called out the fact that Trick was doing most of the talking and asked which man he’s fighting. Hayes said in two weeks, at Vengeance Day, he was going to shoot for the moon and take the stars as casualties. Tricks and Carmelo walked the ramp, and Grimes said it was funny that Hayes brought up stars, because it’s going to be a one-star match, and that star was going to the moon.
-Backstage, Edris Enofe and Malik Blade workshopped a team name. They’re Brave, Bold and Confident. Blade started to say “BBC” and Edris cut him off and said that wouldn’t fly. Mandy Rose became the topic of conversation and Enofe asked what Blade would say to her if she was in front of him right now. Blade held out his arms like he was supplicating and closed his eyes and started talking up the hypothetical Mandy. Of course, the actual Mandy busted through the door, being chased, and landed in Blade’s arms. Blade looked at her, then looked up and yelled “Thank you!” Kay Lee Ray showed up with her bat and went at Rose and the women fought offscreen. Enofe said they should take off. Blade, motioning to his midsection, said “I need a minute.” Well, that was the largest number of men’s junk references in one NXT scene in a while. [c]
-McKenzie Mitchell talked with Diamond Mine. Malcolm Bivens said without struggle, there is no progress. Both members of the Creed Brothers cut a promo about winning the Classic and getting back to Imperium; Julius was kind of okay and Brutus was quite a bit better. GYV showed up and made some threats about next week’s match.
(4) LA KNIGHT vs. JOE GACY (w/Harland)
Brief domination from Knight but Gacy took over before long. Uranage out of the corner. Gacy worked a chinlock as Harland looked on cruelly from the outside. Forearm and a belly-to-back by Gacy. Body shots by Gacy. Knight tried to get back into it with rights, but Gacy took him to a corner and kicked the rope into his leg. Whip by Gacy, who missed a splash. Jumping neckbreaker by Knight, followed by a full body slam. Elbow drop by Knight. Stunner, blocked, and Knight got dumped. Outside the ring was the repackaged Saurav, who distracted Knight long enough for Grayson Waller to hit a neckbreaker. Knight fought his way back into the ring just for Gacy to hit his lariat finisher.
WINNER: Joe Gacy at 4:20.
Waller grabbed a mic and yelled at Knight that he doesn’t belong in Waller’s NXT. Knight tried to get a shot in on Waller, but Saurav spiked him. Waller said if Knight wants to get his hands on him, he’ll have to go through the former Saurav, who I think he called “Sanga” or something similar.
(Wells’s Analysis: Knight sure loses a lot for someone ostensibly near the top, but this worked for all parties involved and Knight’s mouth will keep him at the top. Saurav looked super sharp in his suit)
-Wendy Choo walked backstage ahead of her upcoming match with Amari Miller. She unwittingly passed by Tiffany Stratton, who watched Choo interestedly as she walked away. [c]
-Robert Stone and Von Wagner spoke from the back. Stone said he thought too much about the entertainment aspect of what he was doing, but now he saw a man mowing down the opposition and knew he had to hitch himself to that. He said this is Von Wagner’s world, and we’re just living in it. A good choice to keep the mic out of Wagner’s hand.
-Earlier today, Tiffany Stratton talked to Amari Miller about Wendy Choo. She said she’s weird, and if Miller takes care of her, she’ll take her shopping.
(5) WENDY CHOO vs. AMARI MILLER
Choo now has lullaby theme music, so they’re going all-in on this mind-numbingly stupid gimmick. Choo grabbed a leg and laid down on Miller’s leg. Miller tried to get her away, and Choo shushed her and tried to “sleep” again. The two got to their feet and Choo did a modified elbow drop with her hands folded at the side of her face. Miller got back into it and hit a senton. Double armbar by Miller, but Choo escaped and hit a couple of body shots and a lariat. Hard suplex by Choo followed seamlessly by an exploder. Choo went for the legs but Miller hit a lungblower for two.
Stratton walked to the ring and offerend Miller a credit card. Miller nodded but was, of course, DISTRACTED and Choo hit her finisher.
WINNER: Wendy Choo at 3:26.
Stratton demanded the return of her credit card from Miller. Miller pointed out at Choo, who was posing with it as Stratton threw a tantrum.
(Wells’s Analysis: I love Choo’s late-match hard-hitting offense, but it’s work to get that far. She got a mild chant, but a lot of her cutesy sleeping spots play to silence and confusion.)
-Brooks Jensen tried to get some pointers on picking up girls – specifically Kayden Carter – from Persia Pirotta, Dexter Lumis and Indi Hartwell. Hartwell said nonverbal communication is sexy. Lumis stared at her and she said “Yes! Let’s go to the hot tub.” Jensen said “That was the hot tub look?” to Pirotta, who thought he was trying to do the hot tub look to her, and she said “I’m into someone else” and also left. He said “So am I! Kayden,” and he continued sputtering until the scene faded out. The best thing I can say is that it wasn’t Jensen’s worst scene so far.
-Draco Anthony is grinding hard ahead of his debut up next. [c]
-Nikkita Lyons vignette. She said she comes from entertainment – her dad is a bassist and her mom was beautiful groupie. She put over her music, and she was shown doing a rap track that was about 1/100th as good as Hit Row. She’ll debut soon. Hope she’s farther along in the ring than on the mic.
-Sarray, back in schoolgirl clothes, was with McKenzie. Dakota Kai interrupted and made some threats.
(6) DRACO ANTHONY vs. ANDRE CHASE (w/Bodhi Heyward)
The jacked former marine hit some early impact offense until Chase caught him with an inverted atomic drop and a neckbreaker. Anthony took over again with a slam and some corner blocks. Release exploder by Anthony for two. Anthony worked the arms and the two exchanged some offense. I’m big on suspending disbelief, but Chase’s slight physique and in particular his lack of wins make him hard to buy against Anthony. Anthony shoved off Chase and grabbed the Chase U flag from Heyward. Anthony stomped on it and the vocal males wouldn’t play along and booed him pretty hard. Anthony distracted himself into Chase’s finisher. Chase made a challenge to Von Wagner.
WINNER: Andre Chase at 4:34.
(Wells’s Analysis: What a disaster. Neither guy got the desired reaction and the potential monster babyface lost in his first time out.)
-Mandy Rose got to a kitchen, winded. She sat down, and from behind her, Kay Lee Ray popped up and poured a large bowl of spaghetti on her head. Rose rushed off as Ray said “you know what I want” and smacked the bat on the floor. Vic said “What a meatballsy move by Kay Lee Ray.” [c]
(7) BRON BREAKKER & TOMMASO CIAMPA vs. LEGADO DEL FANTASMA
Ciampa and Wilde to start. Wilde fought out of a headlock and did his hip shake. Ciampa hit a hard elbow and did the macarena to mock Wilde. Mendoza made the tag and took over on offense, but Ciampa stomped him in the corner and Mendoza regrouped with Elektra Lopez and Santos Escobar on the outside. Breakker and Wilde tagged in and Breakker held up Wilde for a delayed suplex. Ciampa cut off an interfering Mendoza and both babyfaces hit delayed suplexes. LdF skinned out and the faces both did Ciampa’s clap and back-pat bit. [c]
[OVERRUN]
The referee got distracted and Santos Escobar tossed Breakker into the steps on the outside. Breakker rolled into the ring and Wilde did a running boot and hit a corner lariat and got tagged simultaneously, and the two members of Legado kept tagging repeatedly and hitting corner lariats. Wilde was legal at the end of it and he hit a suplex for two. Back elbow and a cover for two. Wilde kept up the heat segment with a front chancery until Breakker hit a swift backdrop and made the hot tag. Ciampa destroyed both Legado guys with corner shots and a double clothesline. He tagged Breakker, who got distracted long enough for Mendoza to hit a missile dropkick. Top rope splash by Mendoza for a long two. Both guys jockeyed for position until Breakker hit a spear. Wilde broke it up and Ciampa dumped him and then Wilde. Wilde went to the top to interfere again but Ciampa pushed him outside where he landed on a table. Breakker hit his powerslam on Mendoza.
WINNERS: Bron Breakker & Tommaso Ciampa at 11:26.
After the match, Escobar teased action with Breakker but he of course jumped off of the apron and took off. The faces fist bumped in the ring after the match and Ciampa pointed out to the ramp, where Mandy Rose and Kay Lee Ray were still fighting. Ray said she wouldn’t wait until Vengeance Day – she wanted a match next week. Rose finally agreed and begged Ray to put down the bat. Ray said sure, then superkicked Mandy and hit the KLR Bomb. The show, as most weeks, ended with an eight minute overrun.
(Wells’s Analysis: Enjoyable main roster-style tag match to end the show; some dissension was teased in the scene with Ciampa earlier but the two were straightforward teammates in this one. I’d expect a callup for Legado in part or in total after Mania. Ciampa, potentially of note, is now dyeing his beard so it isn’t gray anymore. I thought it looked awesome before, but without a doubt, the effects of aging scare some decision-makers in WWE. I’m interested in how Ciampa sees the rest of his run in the company)
FINAL THOUGHTS: There were some hiccups and missteps, and we’re going to be suffering a LOT of bad mic work in the long term as we continue to get a cavalcade of new talent, but this was a pretty inoffensive week on the whole and the KLR-Mandy story provided a fun (if obvious) through-line for the episode. I’ll break it down with Nate Lindberg tonight on PWT Talks NXT.
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.