4/4 NXT REPORT: Wells’s live report on Dragon Lee vs. Nathan Frazer, Dijak vs. Odyssey Jones, D’Angelo & Stacks vs. Pretty Deadly, more

NXT TV REPORT
APRIL 4, 2023
WINTER PARK, FLA. AT THE CAPITOL WRESTLING CENTER
AIRED TAPED ON USA NETWORK
REPORT BY KELLY WELLS (@spookymilk), PWTORCH CONTRIBUTOR

NXT Commentators: Vic Joseph, Booker T

Ring Announcer: Alicia Taylor

Backstage Correspondent(s): McKenzie Mitchell

Tonight after the show, join me, Bruce Hazelwood & Nate Lindberg to break down the show with calls and emails.

•STREAM LIVE HERE ABOUT 15 MINUTES AFTER THE SHOW CONCLUDES
•CALL: (515) 605-9345
•EMAIL COMMENTS/QUESTIONS: pwtorchnxt@gmail.com
•IF YOU DON’T LISTEN LIVE, DOWNLOAD OR STREAM THE FULL SHOW POST-RECORDING

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[HOUR ONE]

-The show opened with some technical difficulties. We got a black screen as the live crowd counted down to the show, and the “Then. Now. Together. Forever.” thing sounded far away. It transitioned into highlights from Stand and Deliver, ending with Carmelo Hayes becoming new NXT Champion.

-Alicia Taylor introduced new NXT Women’s Champion Indi Hartwell. Vic announced the first 30 minutes tonight would be commercial-free and commercials would be limited throughout – great news for everyone but a recapper looking for a bathroom break. “You deserve it” chant. Hartwell soaked it up for a minute and said “You have no idea how long I’ve waited to hear that.” After waiting out an “Indi Wrestling” chant, Hartwell said she can’t believe it’s real that she’s the NXT Women’s Champion. She said she gave up a long time ago trying to figure out to say when she became champion because she stopped thinking it would happen. She said she was tag team champions with Candice [Lerae] but holding this was a pipe dream. She said the fans stood by her. She said the outpouring of love makes it that much sweeter. She said she has to acknowledge Roxanne Perez and said she’s the first person who should get an opportunity against her for the title. She started a second thought, but Zoey Stark’s music played her to the ramp.

Stark said she couldn’t listen to this crap. She said pigs fly, unicorns are real and Indi Hartwell is the new NXT Women’s Champion. She told Indi she was holding a title held by legends and future Hall of Famers. She said those women worked hard to build the title up, and Indi is nowhere near that level. “Zoey sucks” chant. She said the positive coming out of Stand and Deliver is that now we have a very beatable Women’s Champion. Boos for that. She said Hartwell should grant her a title match tonight. Hartwell agreed to the match and Stark said Hartwell would make history by becoming the shortest-reigning NXT Women’s Champion of all time.

-Courtesy of NXT twitter, Wes Lee and Axiom ran into each other at the airport. Axiom wants a shot one-on-one, and Lee said Axiom deserved it. Always amusing to see a masked wrestler in an airport.

(1) TONY D’ANGELO & CHANNING “STACKS” LORENZO vs. PRETTY DEADLY (Elton Prince & Kit Wilson)

A recap reminded us of the basic backstage stuff that got us here. Booker T heavily put over Pretty Deadly. Stacks won a quick grapple with Prince to open. Wilson made a blind tag and laid out Stacks with a rear clothesline. Inverted atomic drop by Wilson. Stacks hit a backslide for one, followed by a dropkick and then another. Tag to D’Angelo, who hit a knee lift on Wilson. Body shots by D, who distracted himself with Prince and took a jawbreaker for his troubles. Prince tagged in and D suplexed him. Irish whip and a charge into a boot by D. Prince missed from the second buckle and D’Angelo turned him inside out with a lariat. Basement dropkick by Prince grounded D. Wilson tagged in and D blocked him to the mat. Wilson slapped D’Angelo and taunted him. It turned into a brief exchange that D’Angelo won.

All four guys got involved and the Family hit tandem back body drops. They cleared out Pretty Deadly and fired up to cheers. Vic said it was something like a reset in the tag team division and this could raise someone to a title shot. The smoke cleared and Prince took over on offense on Stacks. He wrenched the left arm, then twisted the wrist. Stacks got back into it with some rights, but Prince powered Stacks to the heel corner and tagged. Stacks managed a schoolboy for two, then tagged D, who dominated with suplexes and tosses. Belly-to-back for Wilson fromthe buckle. German suplex and a spinebuster for Prince. Wilson broke up a pin attempt. D’Angelo and Prince collided strangely and as referee Darryl Sharma checked on D, Pretty Deadly switched places (successful because the head of the legal man was under the apron and only their gear was seen). Prince hit D’Angelo from behind and charged him into an exposed buckle, then rolled him up to win.

WINNERS: Pretty Deadly at 7:12.

(Wells’s Analysis: A perfectly fine tag opener as Pretty Deadly was predictably great and D’Angelo continues to vastly improve his offense after a long period of stagnation.)

-Jacy Jayne, fresh off of costing Gigi Dolin the Women’s Championship, mocked her in a pre-taped segment. Her heel mic skills are inching forward; hopefully we’ll get another step forward in the ring when the rematch happens.

(2) ODYSSEY JONES vs. DIJAK

This was built from Jones eliminating Dijak early from last week’s battle royal. Big boot by Dijak got two. Dijak clubbed and booted a grounded Jones. Jones whipped Dijak to a turnbuckle, where Dijak did a Shawn Michaels-like flop over and out (not as smooth as HBK, but few are). Dijak leapt onto Jones, who caught and slammed him for two. Jones dragged Dijak near a corner and slowly went up, still selling the big boot. Dijak recovered, hit a superkick and lifted and planted Jones for a long two. Dijak hit a bit moonsault and got the quick win.

WINNER: Dijak at 2:45.

(Wells’s Analysis: I’m not surprised Dijak got a needed win to rebuild his credibility, but I’m surprised Jones got so little offense. Hard-hitting stuff and I think these two could have a pretty nice 8-10 minute match down the road)

-Dragon Lee hype segment. He’s up next. [c]

-Stills from Stand and Deliver.

-Moments ago, Carmelo Hayes and Trick Williams arrived fashionably late.

-McKenzie Mitchell interviewed all three members of Gallus. Joe Coffey said Gallus boys remain on top. Joe said these guys are champions, and people are going to realize that “this…is OUR…kingdom.”

(3) NATHAN FRAZER vs. DRAGON LEE

I’ll try to keep up with the speed of this match. Good pop for Lee, working a TV match in Orlando for the first time. Noam Dar jumped the railing and was holding the Heritage Cup from NXT: UK. He said the rumors were true: he was finally here in NXT. He said he’d decide if anyone was good enough to challenge for his Heritage Cup. He told the two to “do their little match” to boos.

Handshake. Repeated standing switches and ground reversals to open. Reset. Test of strength was initially won by Lee, then Frazer. They rolled to the floor and each got a one count. Standing switches again. Lee worked a headlock. Lee ran the ropes and blocked Frazer to the mat. Quick evasions led to a rana by Frazer, but Lee landed on his feet. Another reset. Vic threw to split-screen. [c]

Frazer yanked Lee into the turnbuckle, then hit a DDT from above for two. Frazer went up to the top but Lee recovered and went with him. They jockeyed for position and Lee threw Frazer behind him, but Frazer landed on his feet. Lee grounded Frazer and hit a corner dropkick. PK by Lee got two. Lee went up in the corner and this time Frazer joined him. Frazer ended up in the tree of woe and Lee stomped him. Lee charged and Frazer hit a back kick for two. Frazer went up and missed but landed on his feet. The two exchanged kicks and shots. Lee hit a sit-out powerbomb for a long two. Noam Dar was shown reacting a few times throughout this segment. The crowd was scorching for this match. Lee hit a running knee to a kneeling Frazer to finish.

WINNER: Dragon Lee at 10:09.

(Wells’s Analysis: Considering how few commercials there will be tonight, it’s criminal that this match got one. The crowd took well to Lee, and Frazer is a great first opponent for him as the match would clearly deliver and get the crowd going. Noam Dar showing up feels long overdue to the point that I kind of forgot about him, but he’s a decent wrestler and a really fun slimy heel)

-Chase U segment. Andre Chase thanked (an absent) Tyler Bate for showing up for Chase U at Stand and Deliver. Duke Hudson wanted some recognition and the music got all inspirational as he put himself over and the class took the bait and cheered. Chase U said next week, he would award Hudson the MVP Trophy. Hudson fired up, as did the rest of Chase U.

-Zoey Stark prepared for her match. [c]

-More stills from Stand and Deliver, including the former members of The Way (minus Austin Theory) standing together after the Gargano match.

-Alba Fyre and Isla Dawn got all witchy with their title belts. Dawn saw a sign in a cup of water that their trials were just beginning. She cursed any team who tries to take the NXT Women’s Tag Team Championship. Fyre said for now, they celebrate. They clinked wine glasses and drank. Well, I hope it was wine.

-McKenzie Mitchell interviewed Wes Lee, who said the five-way match was the wildest of his life. He put over each of his opponents, but said the one that really stood out was Axiom. He said he feels like he owes him one, so they’ll go for the NXT North American Championship.

[HOUR TWO]

(4) INDI HARTWELL (c) vs. ZOEY STARK – NXT Women’s Championship match

On a night where no championship matches were originally promoted, here’s the first of two. Hartwell’s reaction remained strong for her second appearance of the night. Alicia Taylor handled formal introductions.

Indi hit two body slams to open. Short-arm clothesline, and another. Springboard cross-body by Stark. Stark ran the ropes into a boot, but then hit a basement dropkick to the temple for two. Stark leaned on Hartwell in a corner to boos. Hartwell fought to her feet and lifted up Stark, then arm dragged her. Stark yanked Hartwell’s face to a turnbuckle and worked her back with whips. Hartwell created separation with a knee. The two exchanged shots and Hartwell laid out Stark for two. Stark bailed and yanked Hartwell’s legs out from under her, then springboarded into the ring atop Hartwell going into split-screen. [c]

Stark hit a basement lariat for two. She worked a cravat, which Hartwell broke with a toss. Hartwell blocked a shot and hit a couple of clotheslines and a side slam. Stark went to the apron and hit an enzuigiri on Hartwell. Stark missed a big springboard dropkick and both women sold on the mat. Hartwell went to the apron where she laid out Stark with a boot, then went up and hit a diving elbow to the back for two. Forearm and palm strike exchange. Roundhouse kick by Stark, who missed a springboard. Indi turned it into a spinebuster for two. We caught a closeup of Hartwell, who sold self-doubt. Stark hit a half-and-half suplex and her 360 knee finisher, but Hartwell tumbled to the outside. Stark rolled her into the ring and covered for two, but Indi pulled her over with a crucifix to win.

WINNER: Indi Hartwell at 10:32.

Tiffany Stratton hit the ramp and pointed to Hartwell in the ring, but Cora Jade attacked Hartwell’s blind side and beat her down to heavy boos. Jade went out and walked up to Stratton, where both women claimed Hartwell was theirs.

(Wells’s Analysis: It’s reasonable that Hartwell would still doubt herself, as she overcome a long period of a lot of losses. Jade is back with a tweaked look, but it’s still in the same family as her gimmick before. She and Stratton provide two wildly different heel opponents for Hartwell. The match here was fine, like so many Hartwell matches, but never kicked into an extra high gear, like all Hartwell matches. Her popularity got her to the top. I hope she can step up enough to remain there)

-Briggs, Jensen, Kiana James and Fallon Henley had a scene by the lockers. Henley finally said James was cheating on Jensen and James admitted she was playing the field. She got Jensen back on her side as she said everything changed with their first kiss. She left. Henley kept on picking at Jensen, who told Briggs and Henley to stay out of his relationship. After dozens of scenes with little to no story progression, this one had quite a bit of it.

-In memory of Butch Miller, 1944-2023. [c]

-Cora Jade walked outside and told an unseen interviewer that she would just have to wait until next week to hear what she has to say. Lyra Valkyria showed up and got in her face.

(5) IVY NILE vs. TATUM PAXLEY

Quick offense by both. Paxley suplexed Nile, then hit a body slam. Paxley yelled in Nile’s face and Nile trapped her arm in a brief submission. Paxley hit a leaping elbow for two. Paxley snapped on a headlock and continued taunting Nile. Nile fought to her feet and Paxley angled her back down. Nile got up on a second effort and hit a gut-wrench suplex. Nile put Paxley into a corner and hit combo strikes, then a bunch of knees until the ref held her back. Nile put up Paxley into a torture rack and tossed her. Lariats by Nile and a takedown into some strikes. Running boot in the corner by Nile and Paxley bailed and tried to crawl away. Nile kicked Paxley to the floor, then shoved her back inside and followed.

Paxley caught a kick, but Nile trapped her in a Skull End finisher and Paxley tapped.

WINNER: Ivy Nile at 4:24.

The Creed Brothers showed up to celebrate with Nile on the ramp.

(Wells’s Analysis: Paxley is vastly improved over the last time we saw her and she knows how to get intense for a feud match. A strong effort from both that should at least open some eyes despite neither being positioned as a major threat to the Women’s Championship)

-McKenzie Mitchell interviewed Ilja Dragunov, who said it was never going to be an easy match to win, and he wasn’t done. Von Wagner stepped in and said Dragunov was saying a lot of words for a guy who just didn’t get the job done. He made threats to Dragunov, who said they’d go next week. Mr. Stone charged into frame and asked Wagner what he was doing. Wagner said he does what he wants. Stone said he’d get Wagner a match with Dragunov next week, but if he doesn’t win, then the two of them are done.

(6) WES LEE (c) vs. AXIOM – NXT North American Championship match

Alicia Taylor again provided formal intros. Strong reaction for both guys, but the crowd is decidedly pro-Lee. Quick reversals and escapes early. A crucifix from Axiom very nearly got three and Lee sold it well on his face afterward as he stared up at Axiom. The two locked wrists and again went through a series of reversals. Axiom hit a dropkick for two. More reversals led to a dropkick by Lee for two. Lee went for a leverage pin for two. Axiom managed a hurcanrana, sending Lee out, and followed up with a tope. Axiom rolled Lee back in and went up, but Lee threw an uppercut, dropping Axiom all the way to the floor, and the match went to split-screen. [c]

The two exchanged forearms in the center of the ring. Lee hit a big uppercut and took over. He hit a dropkick and a corner elbow. German suplex by Lee. Both guys attempted their finishers at the same time. Lee stomped Axiom and rolled him up for two. Lee backflipped with something in mid, but Axiom caught him in a submission. Axiom transitioned to a headlock, then hit a half-and-half. Lee kicked up and took down Axiom, who responded with an inside cradle for two. Axiom kipped up into a superkick by Lee. Lee twisted off of the top rope but Axiom got a knee up and booted Lee to the mat. Axiom missed a shot and opened things up for a Cardiac Kick by Lee.

WINNER: Wes Lee at 10:41.

After Lee left, a creepy video played and Scrypts was taunting him on the screens. Axiom, like few babyfaces before him, looked around him and saw Scrypts fly off the top rope, and he dropkicked him and stood above him as the audience went nuts for the babyface thwarting the cheap shot. Axiom said he would “expose” Scrypts.

(Wells’s Analysis: The first half was the kind of quick-reversal stuff that can wear on me at times, but these two always transition into a more hard-hitting segment before finishing. Very good stuff, as expected. The post-match was excellent as Axiom got a huge boost from fighting off Scrypts. Seems like ol’ Reginald might be in for another run as himself soon.)

-McKenzie Mitchell interviewed Nathan Frazer, who said that this loss has changed his perspective, and “when your perspective changes…your reality changes.” Mitchell thanked him for his time. [c]

-More stills from Stand and Deliver.

-Tank Ledger, Dani Palmer and Oba Femi are all on their way to NXT.

-Alicia Taylor introduced Trick Williams and new NXT Champion Carmelo Hayes just a few minutes before the hour. Hayes, kind of a nebulous tweener as he’s been leaning face but Williams has been clearly working heel, got a good reaction. “Melo” chant. He stood, and he delivered. He is the NXT Champion, and he is…Him. This is the “Him Era.” He said he stopped chasing championships, and started attracting them. He said he didn’t want to kill the vibe, but every great champion needs a great opponent. He said he had to give Bron Breakker his flowers for a moment. He said he respected Bron Breakker and he wants him to come out here if he’s listening.

[OVERRUN]

Bron went to the ring with his own mic. He bowed quickly at Melo, and then at Tricks, which is odd considering Tricks brained him with a belt. Melo said thank you to Bron on behalf of everyone in NXT. “Thank you Breakker” chant. Breakker said it was his duty to pass the torch the most respectful way he knows how. Tommaso Ciampa did it for him and he’s doing the same for Hayes. He said he doesn’t know what’s next to him. He said he hears the Melo chants week after week and he asked the people to give it up for Hayes.

Breakker started to leave and Hayes told him to hold on. Hayes extended a hand and Breakker took it. Breakker held up Hayes’ arm for a moment, then hit him with a lariat to boos. He laid out Tricks and laughed, then ripped off his shirt and tossed it down at Hayes. Boos rained down, as well as a competing “one more time” chant, as the show went off the air five past the hour.

(Wells’s Analysis: On Twitter a couple of days ago I predicted a Breakker heel turn if he headed up to the main roster, and apparently the company has the same idea in mind and will test it out in NXT. I strongly think Breakker is dead on arrival as a babyface character but can have an excellent career as a bully heel. This development is long overdue for him and I look forward to seeing the very things that held him back as a face become huge assets as a heel)

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FINAL THOUGHTS: How strange that the company that put on such a flat Raw after WrestleMania could follow it up by one of its better NXT episodes of the last few months. Good action in the ring, interesting developments and new challengers, and one final angle that should set up the brand well for the next couple of months. As a babyface I thought Breakker was still miles away from the main roster, but as a heel I think he can contribute there almost immediately, and I expect he’ll do that not long after losing a rematch with Hayes. Tonight, Bruce, Nate and I are a full house in PWT Talks NXT. Check us out tonight live or stream tomorrow. Cheers.