SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...
NXT TV REPORT
MAY 12, 2026
ORLANDO, FL AT THE WWE PERFORMANCE CENTER
AIRED LIVE ON THE CW
REPORT BY DAVID MILLER, PWTORCH CONTRIBUTOR
Commentators: Vic Joseph, Booker T
Ring Announcer: Mike Rome
Correspondents: Emily Agard, Blake Howard
-Vic Joseph introduced the show before throwing to Mike Rome for the ring introductions.
[HOUR ONE]
(1) TATUM PAXLEY & LIZZY RAIN vs. NIKKITA LYONS & ZARIA
Zaria, who still has the best ring entrance of the entire WWE female roster, started the match against Mackenzie Phillips, er, I mean Rain. Paxley soon took the tag and drove Zaria’s face into her knee. Lyons tagged herself in, which didn’t seem to sit well with Zaria. Big Kat Kita stood on the North American champ’s chest, but Paxley and Rain soon disposed of their opponents then hit stereo dropkicks through the ropes to the floor. Floor spot = split-screen commercial break. [c]
Stuff got advertised while Lyons worked on Paxley. Back to full screen, Paxley fell to a sit-out powerbomb from Lyons before Zaria tagged in and womanhandled Paxley. Rain eventually made the hot tag, as did Lyons. Rain cut loose with about ten dozen chops in the corner, then hit a cutter on Zaria. She went for Thunderstruck but ate a hard right from Lyons that rearranged her dental work. Paxley tagged in and nailed a superkick to Lyons, who slipped out of a cemetery driver to deliver a kick of her own. She slowly crawled to the corner to make the tag, but Zaria dropped down to the floor. Lyons screamed at her for refusing the tag, then turned to take a flip kick from Paxley. Rains tagged in and hit Thunderstruck for the victory.
WINNERS: Tatum Paxley & Lizzy Rain at 9:21.
(Miller’s Take: Good opening tag bout. Zaria leaving Lyons to fend for herself wasn’t a big surprise, as she didn’t want to do it in the first place. We’ll have to see what GM Robert Stone has to say about her actions. Lyons looked good in her role. It remains to be seen if she’ll take offense to Zaria hanging her out to dry. Paxley and Rain worked well together and would make decent challengers to Brie Bella & Paige if they ever wanted to go that route.)
-In the women’s locker room, Kendal Grey vowed to avenge Wren Sinclair’s injury at the hands of Kelani Jordan. Sinclair, who was on crutches, said she didn’t want to be a distraction and end up like Sol and Zaria. Grey promised her they’d never be like that. NXT Women’s Champion Lola Vice walked up. They started out playing nice but soon began bickering over who won their last match. Sinclair stepped in between them to put a stop to it before Grey said she’d meet her in the ring soon.
-A short video package on Naraku aired before they cut to a commercial break. [c]
(2) LINCE DORADO vs. NARAKU
Naraku started out working on Dorado’s arm, then put him down with a shoulder block. He clubbed him with a forearm and then landed a few chops. Dorado came back with a springboard press, but Naraku began raking Dorado’s face repeatedly with his boot. He launched Dorado straight up in the air, then flattened him with a lariat. They exchanged blistering chops, but Naraku stayed on his opponent with stiff, hard-hitting offense. Dorado mounted an offense with a springboard stunner, but Naraku quickly took back control with a fisherman suplex. He executed what I can best describe as a reverse Russian legsweep that the announcers referred to as Enter the Abyss for the win.
WINNER: Naraku at 4:34.
(Miller’s Take: Decent introduction to the wrestler formerly known as EVIL. His offense tonight stressed impact over finesse. Dorado got in a respectable amount of offense considering his credentials, but this was clearly meant to showcase this new, highly anticipated arrival from the Orient.)
-In the men’s locker room, Sean Legacy, E.K. Prosper, and Tate Wilder were preparing for their upcoming match against BirthRight. Dorian Van Dux walked up and said he’d be back in one more week. He encouraged them to go kick ass tonight.
-Birthright made their ring entrance before they cut to a commercial break. [c]
-“Earlier today”, Nattie was shown getting ready to cut a promo for LFG. Shortly after she began speaking about being on LFG, Jaida Parker walked up and asked to speak to her. Nattie said she was in the middle of filming something, but Parker said she didn’t care and took exception to Nattie’s comment about her being soft. Nattie said if she wanted to interrupt while she was talking about a show with rookies, maybe she should join LFG. The film crew separated them as they got in each other’s faces. Parker walked away, running her mouth while Nattie sat back down and asked to start the interview over.
(3) BIRTHRIGHT (Stacks Lorenzo & Charlie Dempsey & Uriah Connors) (w/Lexis King & Arianna Grace) vs. E.K. PROSPER & TATE WILDER & SEAN LEGACY – 6-Man Tag Team Match
Wilder, in his NXT debut match, started against Stacks. Wilder showed some great fire with crisp moves early on. Legacy tagged in shortly after Dempsey stepped in for his team. Legacy hit a picture-perfect dropkick to the mush of Dempsey. Prosper took the tag and showed off some insane aerial ability before Birthright briefly took control. Connors tagged in for a lightning-quick exchange with Prosper before all of Birthright retreated to the floor, signaling it was time for the next commercial break. [c]
When they returned from break, Connors was working over Legacy. Wilder and Dempsey took the hot tag for their respective teams, with Wilder showcasing explosive offense. The match broke down with everyone hitting big moves against each other. It got back down to the legal men, with Dempsey delivering a double underhook superplex on Wilder. Legacy reached for the tag to Wilder, who decided he would keep going on his own. Legacy pleaded for the tag, but Wilder ignored him and hit a top rope splash for a near fall. Wilder assured Legacy that he had things under control as he climbed the turnbuckle for a moonsault, still ignoring the pleas from his teammates to tag out. He missed the moonsault and ate a double team kick to the head from Stacks and Connors, with the latter scoring the pin.
WINNERS: BirthRight at 12:59.
(Miller’s Take: This was a lot of fun. All six men can really go, and the action was hard to keep up with at times. The story being told here was of Wilder, who the announcers referred to as an adrenaline junkie, wanting to do too much by himself and not being a team player. This could lead to a quick heel turn for Wilder if he continues to brush off the advice of Legacy, who earlier told him to pick his spots carefully.)
-In the back, North American Champion Tatum Paxley told Lizzy Rain she had so much fun. She said she wanted to get back to where she was before the situation with The Culling, that being giving title shots to those she deemed deserving, then offered Rain a title shot. Rain thanked her profusely before Shiloh Hill jumped into the shot like Superman sticking a landing. He congratulated them on their win, then said he’d been doing some research on Tristan Angels. Rain rolled her eyes and said she couldn’t escape him. When Hill asked, she confirmed they’d had some interaction back in the U.K. Hill marveled that Angels family had more sheep per square acre than any family in the U.K., then wondered aloud if they ever heard of pigs. They made fun of his calling himself Mr. England. Hill said he’d probably win Mr. NXT. Angels walked up and basically challenged Hill, then walked away as they looked at him like he had two heads and five feet. [c]
-The NXT Progressive Spotlight was on The Culling. Shawn Spears and Niko Vance told Izzi Dame how great she was. She said she wouldn’t have had anyone else by her side for the mixed tag team match they won last week. Vance praised her vision of keeping the strong and eliminating the weak. Vance and Spears stood to leave, but Dame asked Vance to stay behind. A somewhat surprised Spears excused himself. Dame told Vance that if Lola was watching the women’s match tonight, she would be too. Interesting interaction that gave me the vibe that Dame may be looking at Spears as the next weak link.
ARTICLE CONTINUED BELOW…
Check out the latest episode of “PWT Talks NXT” with Kelly Wells and Nate Lindberg, part of the PWTorch Dailycast line-up: CLICK HERE to stream (or search “pwtorch” on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or any other iOS or Android app to subscribe free)
[HOUR TWO]
-NXT GM Robert Stone stood mid-ring with a contract in hand for Mason Rook, who made his ring entrance. The fans chanted, “he’s big, he’s bad, he’ll bodyslam your dad”. Never heard that one before. He said it’s pretty hard not to notice a flying human tank and he’s not just the best super-heavyweight, but the best any weight. Not unexpectedly, he was interrupted by NXT Champion Tony D’Angelo. Security stood between him and the ring as he told Rook he wasn’t going to make a name at his expense. Kam Hendrix again ran out and attacked D’Angelo. As security tried breaking them up, they looked up in time to see the flying tank come off the top turnbuckle with a moonsault to the outside, taking out half of Orlando. He got back in the ring and signed his contract as Stone admonished him.
-In the locker room, Romeo Moreno was talking up Noam Dar, who was doubting himself. [c]
-Emily Agard sat down with OTM at a barbecue. It was a relaxed, informal environment. Bronco Nima introduced her to his little brother, J.J. She asked Lucien Price to tell her something about Nima. He told her Nima lost his mother, leaving him to take care of his little brother. Nima proudly explained his responsibility. She spoke with J.J., who spoke very eloquently of what OTM meant to him. Nima told Agard that Price was a great artist. This was a second great segment with Emily Agard. Like Keanu Carver last week, Agard drew out of OTM what inspires them and who they are. Whether it’s a heel or a face, we need a reason to care about the wrestlers we see featured every week. I really hope these types of segments with Agard continue.
(4) JACKSON DRAKE (w/Brad Baylor & Ricky Smokes & Myka Lockwood) vs. NOAM DAR
The announcers wondered aloud if Dar would be able to return to form after such a long time off. He quickly proved he was, knocking Drake to the floor with a big boot. Did I say “floor”? What does that mean, boys and girls? Of course, that means its commercial time. [c]
When they returned, Drake hit a superplex on Dar for a near fall. He bounded off the ropes with a handstand springboard cutter for another two-count. Drake swung at Dar repeatedly, who blocked every blow and followed up with some stiff offense. Drake surprised Dar with a double knee gutbuster for a near fall. They rolled each other up back and forth for numerous pin attempts before Dar cinched in an armbar. Drake escaped, and they exchanged forearms mid-ring, then traded kicks. Lockwood grabbed Dar from outside the ring to stall his momentum, which allowed Drake to take over and hit a 450 splash for the win.
WINNER: Jackson Drake at 11:00.
-As The Vanity Project celebrated Drake’s tainted victory, the lights went out. Strobe lights flashed as Drake hid behind Lockwood after spotting DarkState lurking in the stands. [c]
-In the back, Myles Borne approached Tavion Heights to tell him about a tag team match next week against Kam and Mason. Heights thought they were putting the band back together, then said the match was with himself and Tony. Heights got offended and said he guessed it was a champion thing, then walked off in a huff.
-When they returned to the ring, DarkState stood in the ring while The Vanity Project stood on the floor. They talked about going after tag team gold and pointed out what they did to Hank & Tank last week. Smokes said beating a team that calls themselves “The Belly Boys” doesn’t warrant a title shot. Baylor reminded them that they were the ones who took the titles from them and caused friction between Shugars and Lennox. James said they talked to Stone and got a rematch, but it wouldn’t be him and Osiris. James and Griffin told their teammates they had to get back on the same page, so it would be Lennox & Shugars challenging for the belts. Lennox and Shugars shoved James and Griffin aside as The Vanity Project attempted a sneak attack, then cleared the ring of the champs.
-In the back, Robert Stone congratulated Naraku on his first victory. Naraku thanked him, shook his hand violently, then laughed his signature “ha ha haaa” laugh as Stone winced in pain. When he turned the corner into his office, Kam Hendrix and Mason Rook were there. They objected to the tag team match he made for next week. Tate Wilder walked into Stone’s office as Hendrix and Rook left. Hendrix, who was embroiled in a bitter feud with Wilder in Evolve, gave him the side eye as he brushed past him. Wilder was all fired up from earlier and asked for a match next week. Keanu Carver walked in to tell Stone that he didn’t want to talk to anybody else, like he had to last week with Emily Agard. Stone suggested that if Wilder was so intent on having a match, he could take on Carver next week. Wilder hesitated, then accepted. Carver asked Stone if Wilder had a death wish. Stone said he probably did. [c]
-Vic Joseph ran down next week’s card, including Borne & D’Angelo vs. Hendrix & Rook, Paxley defending against Rain, and The Vanity Project defending against DarkState.
-Kelani Jordan was shown standing in the ring, awaiting her opponent, before they cut to Blake Howard with Kali Armstrong. She said she was going to run through everyone in NXT just like she did on Evolve. Kendal Grey, flanked by Wren Sinclair, walked up and said, “You run through everybody.” Armstrong sneered at the snarky comment from the woman who beat her for the Evolve title.
(5) KELANI JORDAN vs. KENDAL GREY (w/Wren Sinclair)
The two women got into a shoving match before Grey took Jordan down with a double leg takedown. She went for an early armbar, but Jordan quickly made it to the ropes. Jordan backed her into the corner and chopped her hard as Lola Vice was shown watching on a monitor in the back. Jordan cartwheeled out of a fireman’s carry, which was the beginning of a series of beautiful, fast exchange of maneuvers. Grey quickly rolled into an ankle lock, but Jordan escaped. They took the fight to the floor, with Grey hitting a high cross body off the top turnbuckle before they cut to a split-screen commercial break. [c]
After the Liberty insurance dude got stuck in an elementary school desk while a teacher told him about his delinquent son, Tajin tickled our taste buds, and we were reminded of a NASCAR race this weekend, they returned to full screen. The women each ducked kicks from the other before they showed Jordan taking Grey down hard on the apron during the break. Grey fired up, pulled down the straps, and began tossing Jordan around the ring. She got a two-count on Jordan as the injured Sinclair cheered her on from ringside. Jordan came back with a sit-out powerbomb for a near fall.
She dragged Grey to the corner and went for a split-legged moonsault, but Grey caught her in an ankle lock. Jordan tried to escape, but Grey refused to relinquish the hold. Shortly after escaping Grey’s grasp, she found herself in an armbar submission. Both women collided mid-ring, then stood up and traded kicks. Grey caught Jordan off the ropes with a snap powerslam for another near fall. Vice was again shown watching on a monitor in the back when Izzi Dame clocked her from behind. In the ring, both women climbed the top turnbuckle as Vice and Dame fought their way to ringside, where they tumbled into Sinclair. Grey saw this and hesitated, which allowed Jordan to trip her off the ropes. She landed the split-legged moonsault this time for the pin.
WINNER: Kelani Jordan at 12:49.
(Miller’s Take: Fantastic main event! I think Jordan might have found Sol Ruca’s replacement as her best opponent. Both are extremely talented, with Jordan being ready for the main roster. Grey is getting there and will undoubtedly be a top player, probably by this time next year. Grey has an out here with all the shenanigans on the outside being a determining factor in her loss. I could watch these two phenomenal athletes wrestle each other every week and never tire of it.)
-After the match, Vice walked over to check on Sinclair, but Grey shoved her defiantly. Izzi Dame kicked Vice from behind and held the NXT Women’s title over her head as Grey knelt to check on Sinclair again.
FINAL THOUGHTS: Good action tonight from some NXT vets and newcomers alike. After watching him in Evolve over the last several months, I’m looking forward to seeing Kam Hendrix in action next week. Tate Wilder showed a lot and has come a long way since his debut in Evolve with a horrendous cowboy gimmick. With all the fresh talent in NXT, there are a ton of exciting new feuds on the horizon worth looking forward to. While I don’t think Lola Vice will drop the strap anytime soon, I do think they have a lot of work to do with building her as a strong champion. She has a bit of a Jacy Jayne-like start to her reign, as I don’t believe fans really saw her as championship material. They succeeded with Jayne, so let’s see if they can do the same with Vice. See you next week!
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