{"id":97459,"date":"2020-05-15T03:03:47","date_gmt":"2020-05-15T08:03:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/?p=97459"},"modified":"2020-05-15T03:03:47","modified_gmt":"2020-05-15T08:03:47","slug":"nxt-hits-misses-5-13-riddle-thatcher-vs-imperium-for-nxt-tag-titles-ripley-speaks-kross-scarlett-promo-thatcher-vs-riddle-balor-vs-grimes-cruiserweight-tournament","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/2020\/05\/15\/nxt-hits-misses-5-13-riddle-thatcher-vs-imperium-for-nxt-tag-titles-ripley-speaks-kross-scarlett-promo-thatcher-vs-riddle-balor-vs-grimes-cruiserweight-tournament\/","title":{"rendered":"NXT HITS &#038; MISSES 5\/13: Riddle &#038; Thatcher vs. Imperium for NXT Tag Titles, Ripley speaks, Kross &#038; Scarlett promo, Thatcher vs. Riddle, Balor vs. Grimes, Cruiserweight Tournament"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"pwtor-3023780740\" class=\"pwtor-before-content pwtor-entity-placement\"><hr \/><b>SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)... <\/b>\r\n\r\n<iframe src=\"https:\/\/widget.spreaker.com\/player?show_id=3076978&theme=light&playlist=false&playlist-continuous=false&autoplay=false&live-autoplay=false&chapters-image=true&episode_image_position=right&hide-logo=false&hide-likes=false&hide-comments=false&hide-sharing=false&hide-download=true\" width=\"100%\" height=\"140px\" frameborder=\"0\"><\/iframe>\r\n<hr \/><\/div><p><strong>NXT Tag Team Championship &#8211; Broserweights (Timothy Thatcher &amp; Matt Riddle) vs. Imperium (Marcel Barthel &amp; Fabian Aichner) &#8211; HIT: <\/strong>Kicking off this week\u2019s NXT was an action packed tag team classic, pitting these two rival teams against one another. Thatcher started it off for the Broserweights with Barthel in for Imperium, showcasing their technical wrestling and mat work. Some may consider this a slow start, and it was. But for those of us who love this type of technical wrestling, it was an exciting start to the bout. Once Riddle entered the ring is when things really began to speed up. Imperium played their part well and kept Riddle away from Imperium, as you would expect out of a veteran team. They did such a great job of beating Riddle down, you could see the frustration build. It wasn\u2019t until Riddle accidentally threw Barthel into Thatcher, knocking him off the apron, that he abandoned Riddle and walked up the ramp. Leaving this a handicapped match, it wasn\u2019t long before Imperium picked up the win. Without Pete Dunne, I didn\u2019t know how much further the Broserweights would go. Hell, with Dunne I didn\u2019t know how much further it could go. Moving on to a new set of champions will give Riddle and Dunne a story to come back to once international travel is allowed again, and potentially gives Riddle and Thatcher a singles feud to occupy their time until that happens.\u00a0 After the commercial break, Thatcher was interviewed backstage and asked why he turned on his partner.\u00a0 He essentially said that he was fed up with Riddle\u2019s immature behavior. When Riddle confronted him, it broke into a brawl that needed to be stopped by officials. Later on in the night, Riddle was Facetiming with William Regal, who made the match official for the night. Thatcher immediately attacked putting the match in question.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Teagan Nox vs. Indi Hartwell &#8211; HIT:<\/strong> Glad to see Hartwell getting some more time on TV, even if it was in a relatively short match. She did exactly what she was supposed to do. She gave Nox a formidable opponent that she could ultimately overcome, and she did it very well. A very enjoyable exhibition contest to showcase two talented female wrestlers.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Rhea Ripley Speaks &#8211; HIT<\/strong>: She cut a great promo about her loss at WrestleMania and Shirai\u2019s loss to Charlotte just a few weeks ago. Shirai couldn\u2019t get the job done, so Rhea came back to conquer the queen. My biggest complaint: Why would a babyface Rhea call Ric Flair a stupid old man? It seemed very out of place.<\/p>\n<p><strong>NXT Interim Cruiserweight Tournament \u2013 Tony Nese vs.\u00a0 Jake Atlas &#8211; HIT:<\/strong> Unable to advance any further in the tournament, Nese was simply in the match to give Atlas an opponent to see if he could. If Atlas loses, he also loses his chances of advancing. This tournament has become my favorite thing on NXT week to week, and this match did not disappoint. Nese gave Atlas a believable fight and hurdle to overcome to advance. Very impressed with Atlas, and looking forward to seeing what the future holds for this up and comer.<\/p>\n<p><strong>The Undisputed Era \u201cBunch\u201d \u2013 HIT: <\/strong>I had to make the obligatory \u201cHey! We look like the Brady Bunch!\u201d joke whenever people are shown in a Zoom meeting. I\u2019m an IT guy, so maybe I hear it more than most. Anyway. The U.E. had a Zoom call to discuss Cole\u2019s victory over Dream, Dexter Lumis\u2019 attack on Roddy and a slew of other storylines. A really cool \u201cbehind the scenes\u201d look at these four great friends and killer stable. You could tell they were just having fun, not scripted, and hitting bullet points. Very entertaining.<\/p>\n<p><strong>A Look At Karrion Kross &amp; Scarlett &#8211; HIT : <\/strong>Shot in very cinematic way, Karrion Kross said they aren\u2019t here to \u201cshock the system\u201d or save us. They are our entertainment. Here to bring chaos to the brand. I wasn\u2019t completely sold on the actual verbiage of the promo. But I loved the way it was produced, the way it was delivered, and how it came across to the audience. Really makes this duo feel important.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Kai Speaks on Why She Turned \u2013 HIT:<\/strong> Another Borash special, this video package showcases the outline of the feud between Kai and Nox. She said Nox wasn\u2019t able to be a dominant partner, which is why she \u201cTraded her in\u201d for Reina Gonzales. Well produced and a good reminder of this feud that had seemingly been either cancelled or put on the back burner for the time being.<\/p>\n<p><strong>DX Invades NXT to make a major announcement \u2013 HIT: <\/strong>In what might be the first time I\u2019ve actually seen a mask used in wrestling for social distancing purposes, a masked Shawn Michaels and unmasked HHH were shown backstage producing the show in \u201cRegal\u2019s absence. Of course, as soon as Michaels went to speak, he lifted the mask. Completely defeating the purpose. Road Dogg came out next, with a mask. Immediately removed it. Terrible, terrible social distancing practices all around here. Of course, its to promote the 25<sup>th<\/sup> anniversary of In Your House. Since we are all stuck at home, NXT Takeover will return. June 7<sup>th<\/sup>, NXT Takeover In Your House! Hit on the announcement. Miss on their social distancing.<\/p><div id=\"pwtor-1098095721\" class=\"pwtor-content pwtor-entity-placement\"><div align=\"center\" data-freestar-ad=\"__336x280 __336x280\" id=\"pwtorchcom_test_300x250\">\r\n  <script data-cfasync=\"false\" type=\"text\/javascript\">\r\n    freestar.config.enabled_slots.push({ placementName: \"pwtorchcom_test_300x250\", slotId: \"pwtorchcom_test_300x250\" });\r\n  <\/script>\r\n<\/div><\/div>\n<p><strong>Finn Balor vs. Cameron Grimes &#8211; HIT :<\/strong> Last week, Grimes was in the ring cutting a promo and compared himself to Balor. Balor took offense to this, setting up the match this week. Balor isn\u2019t everyone\u2019s cup of tea, though he has revitalized himself recently in NXT. But I certainly enjoyed watching Grimes do everything he could to thwart Balor\u2019s offense. I have been extremely impressed with and entertained by Grimes and you really got to see him shine here tonight. He really brought it to Balor and looked like he could hang with a former Universal Champion. Damian Priest\u2019s interjected himself towards the end of the match, using the nightstick to take out the knee of Balor, allowing Grimes to get the upset victory! I certainly enjoyed the journey these two talents took me on, even if Grimes didn\u2019t get a clean win. It\u2019s still a major win, and arguably his biggest win to date. Priest casually laid a chair in the ring, waited for Balor to stand up and delivered the Day of Reckoning on the chair. He then used the chair to pin Balor down and said that he was the man who attacked Balor weeks back, setting up a very enticing feud.<\/p>\n<p><strong>NXT Interim Championship Tournament &#8211; Jack Gallagher vs. Isaiah \u201cSwerve\u201d Scott &#8211; HIT : <\/strong>Like Nese earlier in the night, Gallagher has already been eliminated from advancing in the tournament and just served as an opponent for Swerve. Speaking of Nese, he ran down and attacked Swerve for his comments earlier in the night regarding the wrestlers who couldn\u2019t even win one match in the tournament. The match started, and Gallagher nearly pinned Swerve in the first 5 seconds. Gentleman Jack was anything but a gentleman, bringing the fight to a wounded Swerve. Ultimately, Swerve wasn\u2019t able to fight back to prove his worth in the tournament, now leaving Swerve 1-2. An excellent story, great wrestling and another reason why cruiserweight wrestling should never be overlooked.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Kayden Karter vs. Aliyah &#8211; HIT:<\/strong> I expected this to be a short match. But I didn\u2019t expect it to be this short, nor did I expect Karter to pick up the win since Aliyah had just returned a few weeks ago, and got the attention of Robert Stone just last week. Stone made his way out after Aliyah\u2019s loss and seemingly shrugged her off instead of welcoming her to the brand. Is Stone just going to have a stable of jobbers, or will he turn these women around into stars?<\/p>\n<p><strong>Dinner with the Garganos &#8211; HIT: <\/strong>Back at their dinner table, the two talked about Johnny\u2019s recent win over Dijakovic. Obnoxious heel work from Dijakovic and I loved every second of it. He said that Dijak learned a lesson as the camera went black and white and his whole demeanor changed, as it did three weeks ago. It happened a bit later on as he switched gears to Keith Lee. Candice had a similar moment as she talked about the state of the women\u2019s division, then turned to the camera and called Kacy Catanzaro an example of what they will do to any man or woman that stands in their way. I love this new incarnation of Mr. &amp; Mrs. Johnny Wrestling.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Matt Riddle vs. Timothy Thatcher &#8211; HIT : <\/strong>These two former Tag Champions wasted no time getting straight to it. This felt more like a fight with the two styles and backgrounds of Thatcher and Riddle respectively. A lot of strong style, amateur wrestling, strikes, kicks and holds. Personally, I really enjoyed this contest. It wasn\u2019t your typical flashy NXT main event. Instead, just a brutal looking contest between two new rivals. However, I can\u2019t help but feel that this match won\u2019t be critically acclaimed as this style of wrestling certainly isn\u2019t for everyone, nor do I feel like it catered to the usual NXT crowd. I\u2019m not complaining, I just have a feeling others may. As far as I\u2019m concerned, Thatcher proved himself a worthy singles competitor in the NXT upper to main event card.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><strong>RECOMMENDED:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/2020\/05\/13\/5-13-nxt-on-usa-report-wellss-report-on-balor-vs-grimes-riddle-thatcher-vs-imperium-major-announcement\/\">5\/13 NXT ON USA REPORT: Wells\u2019s report on Balor vs. Grimes, Riddle &amp; Thatcher vs. Imperium, \u201cMajor Announcement\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"pwtor-end-article-groups pwtor-entity-placement\" id=\"pwtor-2666933107\"><div id=\"pwtor-3296091388\"><div align=\"center\" data-freestar-ad=\"__336x280\" id=\"pwtorchcom_medrec_3\">\r\n  <script data-cfasync=\"false\" type=\"text\/javascript\">\r\n    freestar.config.enabled_slots.push({ placementName: \"pwtorchcom_medrec_3\", slotId: \"pwtorchcom_medrec_3\" });\r\n  <\/script>\r\n<\/div>\r\n\r\nTHANK YOU FOR VISITING<\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<div class=\"mh-excerpt\"><p>NXT Tag Team Championship &#8211; Broserweights (Timothy Thatcher &amp; Matt Riddle) vs. Imperium (Marcel Barthel &amp; Fabian Aichner) &#8211; HIT: Kicking off this week\u2019s NXT was an action packed tag team classic, pitting these two <a class=\"mh-excerpt-more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/2020\/05\/15\/nxt-hits-misses-5-13-riddle-thatcher-vs-imperium-for-nxt-tag-titles-ripley-speaks-kross-scarlett-promo-thatcher-vs-riddle-balor-vs-grimes-cruiserweight-tournament\/\" title=\"NXT HITS &#038; MISSES 5\/13: Riddle &#038; Thatcher vs. Imperium for NXT Tag Titles, Ripley speaks, Kross &#038; Scarlett promo, Thatcher vs. Riddle, Balor vs. Grimes, Cruiserweight Tournament\">[&#8230;]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":93927,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"episode_type":"","audio_file":"","podmotor_file_id":"","podmotor_episode_id":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"","filesize":"","filesize_raw":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","itunes_episode_number":"","itunes_title":"","itunes_season_number":"","itunes_episode_type":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[52,28,27],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-97459","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-opnionandanalysis","category-specialists_hitsandmisses","category-specialists"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/post\/2020\/02\/GrimesCameron_WK_3x2_600.png","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/97459","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=97459"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/97459\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":97460,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/97459\/revisions\/97460"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/93927"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=97459"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=97459"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=97459"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}