WWE:NXT Discussion Thread

[Emperor Smeat]

Maybe within the next few years since a couple of female wrestlers and maybe even Triple H have hinted about wanting it dropped. Biggest problem is the WWE cares too much about brands and right now the Divas name makes them a lot of money and mainstream exposure.

Probably needs to be a 1-2 punch of both the belt getting replaced and Total Divas being dropped for any real changes to happen.

[Anybody Thrilla]

No matter how you slice it, Asuka simply can NOT be referred to as a "diva". Completely inaccurate.

[#BROKEN Hasney]

I think you can jump right in. Wont be lost. Angles move slowly, so the commentators will explain backstories and stuff.

Yeah, think the space between big events really helps. Obviously, WWE can never move back from 12 PPVs a year because it wouldn't make sense financially, but I really like the slower builds.

[#BROKEN Hasney]

Finished Breaking Ground today and hope they do another season with a newer batch of trainees. Getting to see the inner workings of the PC was really special and hopefully they are not going to send these guys off to the main roster just to die out.

https://49.media.tumblr.com/175560d2258f8e26fa22968ab89d16e4/tumblr_nxy0h0WLpc1unu9zio1_500.gif

Oops

[Mr. Nerfect]

Maybe Charlotte can declare herself the new Women's Champon and the Divas Title can be left as a sort of secondary title for the girls to fight over?

[#BROKEN Hasney]

Maybe Charlotte can declare herself the new Women's Champon and the Divas Title can be left as a sort of secondary title for the girls to fight over?

Or as the Real World Champion.

[Heisenberg]

Optimistically, they put Breeze in the Fatal Five Way match so they are definitely grooming him in a Ziggler type way which means he'll have a job. It's up to him to break the cycle

[Mr. Nerfect]

I sometimes wonder if they just keep guys around because they don't want to look like an evil company that fires people, even if they are white or straight. Look at how much fat is on the roster right now. And it's not that those people aren't without talent, but they are not important to the company. If this were a giant television cast, it's like having extras on the main intro.

You could literally fire:

* Adam Rose
* Alberto Del Rio
* Alex Riley
* Big Show
* Bo Dallas
* Bubba Ray Dudley
* Cesaro
* Curtis Axel
* D-Von Dudley
* Damien Sandow
* Darren Young
* Diego
* El Torito
* Erick Rowan
* Fandango
* Fernando
* Goldust
* Heath Slater
* Horsnwoggle
* Jack Swagger
* Jey Uso
* Jimmy Uso
* Kane
* King Barrett
* Konnor
* Mark Henry
* Neville
* R-Truth
* Randy Orton
* Rusev
* Sheamus
* Sin Cara
* Sting
* Titus O'Neil
* Tyson Kidd
* Viktor
* Zack Ryder

And no one would really notice or care. The Social Outcasts missing would be like 3MB leaving; Cesaro is featured when he is around, but he's not around; Orton is a star but someone no one misses; Big Show, Mark Henry & Kane are basically part-time monsters that just exist at this point; The League of Nations missing would be like 3MB leaving; R-Truth & Goldust are loved, but comedy and replaceable by American Alpha; The Usos have been overexposed to the point where no one really cares; The Dudleys have just turned heel, but people will get bored of that once they lose a match too. That's just the male roster.

[Innovator]

I love Alex Riley RAGING into the loss column

[Innovator]

ALWAYS REMEMBER

http://cdn.makeagif.com/media/4-30-2015/FSJg_f.gif

[Mr. Nerfect]

Can't believe Alex Riley's big face turn was five years ago this year.

[Blonde Moment]

I sometimes wonder if they just keep guys around because they don't want to look like an evil company that fires people, even if they are white or straight. Look at how much fat is on the roster right now. And it's not that those people aren't without talent, but they are not important to the company. If this were a giant television cast, it's like having extras on the main intro.


And no one would really notice or care. The Social Outcasts missing would be like 3MB leaving; Cesaro is featured when he is around, but he's not around; Orton is a star but someone no one misses; Big Show, Mark Henry & Kane are basically part-time monsters that just exist at this point; The League of Nations missing would be like 3MB leaving; R-Truth & Goldust are loved, but comedy and replaceable by American Alpha; The Usos have been overexposed to the point where no one really cares; The Dudleys have just turned heel, but people will get bored of that once they lose a match too. That's just the male roster.

They don't want to let them go unless they have to because someone else wants them,

[SlickyTrickyDamon]

https://49.media.tumblr.com/175560d2258f8e26fa22968ab89d16e4/tumblr_nxy0h0WLpc1unu9zio1_500.gif

Oops

He'll be fine if he can stick around long enough for HHH to get the power.

[SlickyTrickyDamon]

Wish Nia Jax didn't sound like a tranny in promos.

[SlickyTrickyDamon]

Still love Alex Riley's song. Too bad he became such a jobber/Justin Gabriel lookalike.

[VSG]

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CbylIz4UkAIB5DJ.png

http://www.wwe.com/f/styles/wwe_16_9_xl/public/2016/02/003_NAKAMURA_02112016gd_0090b-copy--d714bd9373c68dda725fd11ef666fa33.jpg

[Fignuts]

Still terrifief of Naksmura on a wwe roster.

[VSG]

That suit is the second best one I have seen on WWE.com next only to Mark Henry's retirement salmon suit.

[Emperor Smeat]

http://i.imgur.com/fBrkEff.gif

[#BROKEN Hasney]

Still terrifief of Naksmura on a wwe roster.

Just enjoy the time he has in NXT. That's going ot be fantastic.

Got my King of Strong Style t-shirt yesterday at least.

[Innovator]

<blockquote class="twitter-video" data-lang="en"><p lang="ja" dir="ltr">新日本人WWEスーパースター、シンスケ・ナカムラの契約時の舞台裏を公開！WWEスーパースター達が新スーパースターを迎えました！ <a href="https://twitter.com/ShinsukeN">@ShinsukeN</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/wwe_jp?src=hash">#wwe_jp</a><a href="https://t.co/v5kSfXX3XB">https://t.co/v5kSfXX3XB</a></p>&mdash; WWE Japan (@WWEJapan) <a href="https://twitter.com/WWEJapan/status/701649681772728322">February 22, 2016</a></blockquote>
<script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

[VSG]

Guest starring Kenta/Itami and Funaki

[Evil Vito]

Just enjoy the time he has in NXT. That's going ot be fantastic.

Got my King of Strong Style t-shirt yesterday at least.

Yeah, enjoy the NXT run. Once he shows up on Raw his gimmick will immediately be reduced to "HE'S SO ECCENTRIC AND OFFBEAT, MAGGLE!"

[Heisenberg]

I would like to watch old FCW matches, haven't been arsed to check the Network. Hell the old OVW days too.


I wish we could have a Network show where William Regal wears a GoPro and we get to see who he scouts and trains on the daily.

[Lock Jaw]

Just caught up with the past two weeks... Bayley/Carmella was actually very good.... Thought Carmella had "lost something" when she dropped the accent, but she "picked it up in the ring" so it balances out. Post match stuff was sweet.

This week, Joe and Zayn good match. Interesting ending. Wonder where they are going with this.... Wish Zayn would have been called up after his Rumble appearance.... would have been good in IC title match vs Kevin Owens at Mania.

[Damian Rey 2.0]

Does anyone play the plucky underdog better than Zayn? Guy is as natural a baby face as there is.

[Lock Jaw]

Used to think he could be "the next John Cena", but he is missing the superhuman ability to come back from injuries super-quick and looking in the exact same shape as when he left.

[VSG]

JThis week, Joe and Zayn good match. Interesting ending. Wonder where they are going with this....

:shifty:

[Lock Jaw]

I don't get it

[VSG]

Spoilers, broseph. I don't want to spoil it for you.

In other news: https://twitter.com/WWENXT/status/702203492530651136

2nd parking lot attack in as many days. The WWE needs to hire those guys who drive around parking lots pretending to be security. Also, better security cameras.

[#BROKEN Hasney]

"My be difficult to watch..."

Yeha, because of the fucking blur.

[Heisenberg]

Konnor and Viktor need to go back to NXT and have a gimmick where they show up in the background of vignettes staring at their phones while the camera slowly zooms into their faces buried deep in technology. No explanations until 6 months and they drop the smart phones and start beating down Blake and Murphy until they are no more.

[drave]

Still can't believe how their main roster performance was so poor. I thought they have always performed well and definitely go a bit further with their gimmicks than most performers.

Wonder what happened there.

[Heisenberg]

Well, lack of human sacrifice and goat blood is a good start there Champion.

[drave]

God damnit... I have barrels of goat and virgin blood in my house, they just had to ask.

Human sacrifice can be done as well...... for a price. We will restore them to greatness, sans Bram, since he is TNA4Lyfe

[Ol Dirty Dastard]

dwo4lyfe

[Emperor Smeat]

Official logo for Takeover: Dallas

https://scontent-lhr3-1.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xfa1/v/t1.0-9/3525_1061053620599798_447849644454871691_n.jpg?oh=fda6a0aa5c80ea37881f4391199a2668&oe=5724ABA4

[Mr. Nerfect]

Is Emma still fucking hot?

[VSG]

Damn right she is

[Droford]

Official logo for Takeover: Dallas

https://scontent-lhr3-1.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xfa1/v/t1.0-9/3525_1061053620599798_447849644454871691_n.jpg?oh=fda6a0aa5c80ea37881f4391199a2668&oe=5724ABA4
Shotgun Saturday Night meets Walker Texas Ranger

[Heisenberg]

Ok, Blake and Murphy are good on all aspects except their entrance, which feels like an ongoing rib

[Heisenberg]

Ok, American Alpha can cook here in NXT until a mysterious Jedi robed figure that shows clues of having an amateur wrestling background comes out for a few months and watches them leading to Kurt Angle being revealed as the Jedi, Kurt Angle unleashes American Alpha on RAW and all is well in the land.

[Mr. Nerfect]

Is anyone else a bit worried about The Revival now that Anderson & Gallows are in the WWE? I'll confess to not having watched too many of their matches, but it seems like they would be teams with a similar vibe.

[Emperor Smeat]

According to the Observer, Nakamura is likely going to stay for a long time in NXT or a lot longer than people were expecting. Also similar to Balor, he's getting paid main roster type money while in NXT to cover what he was making in NJPW.

[Asmo]

Stupid observations:
1. Sami Zayn's Helluva Kick. Always thought it was "Hell Of A Kick" rather than "Hell-oo-va" kick.
2. American Alpha's new singlets make them stand out.
3. Love Alexa Bliss' skeletal gloves.
4. Is it just me or has Asuka put on a bit of weight? Love the long hair though.

[SlickyTrickyDamon]

2. They make them look like the Rockers.

[Damian Rey 2.0]

What std said.

[Innovator]

Or the Steiners

[Ol Dirty Dastard]

Yeah a healthy blend of Steiners and Rockers.

[Jordan]

I thought Steiners. Jason Jordan is gonna be huge.

[Damian Rey 2.0]

He's got superstar written all over him. Crisp fucking suplexes. He and Gable mesh beautifully.

[Mr. Nerfect]

American Alpha for Presidents.

[Volare]

<iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/rJIg8a1haOQ?feature=player_detailpage" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

[Innovator]

He's got superstar written all over him. Crisp fucking suplexes. He and Gable mesh beautifully.

His overhead belly to belly is beautiful. The guy is hitting before Jordan even falls back

[Lock Jaw]

Very good match between Finn Balor and Neville.... I miss Neville on NXT, being relevant and such.....

[Ol Dirty Dastard]

to the 2 previous posts above.

Jordan and Gable are just fucking ridiculous. Just seen a few matches, but they are a perfect combo of explosiveness and fluidity.

Finn vs Neville was fun. They were both obviously "holding back" but in a smart way. Both guys are learning that they don't have to do the crazy Japan or Indy style match to tell a good story. And they can still get in some nuts ass high spots regardless.

[VSG]

I wish Aries had a couple of minutes on the microphone first though.

[Lock Jaw]

Nah, loved the fact that he didn't and Corbin attacked him outta nowhere. Was "unexpected" and "took me off guard"..... if he had got in a few words and then Corbin came out, would have been more "formulaic" than it was....

[Damian Rey 2.0]

The Aries debut was stellar. Instant feud with the top heel, and I loved the bit of tossing the shirt in Regal's face. So fucking good there.

[Mr. Nerfect]

You people are going to hate me for this, but I actually think Aries should put Corbin over at Takeover. Aries should look plucky and show off all the things that make him great, but he needs monsters to slay later. It'll give a rematch between the two value later.

[VSG]

You are right, I hate you for that.

[Damian Rey 2.0]

Not a terrible idea.

I do think it's time to end Finn's reign though. He's had a long run but I'd like to see a heel get the strap for a bit.

[#BROKEN Hasney]

Not a terrible idea.

I do think it's time to end Finn's reign though. He's had a long run but I'd like to see a heel get the strap for a bit.

Nah, he's not been corrupted yet. I still like how the belt eventually corrupts everyone to be at least slightly heelish.

[Mr. Nerfect]

I like both Balor and Joe, but it feels like they're both at the end of their NXT stints. Or they should be. Joe can just plug into the main roster whereas Balor will take some work, but how do you have one go over and then the loser gets a push? It's all really weird.

[DaveWadding]

Jesus @ Samoan Joe and Zayn this week. Heloova match.

[Damian Rey 2.0]

Stellar match. Wonder if that's gonna end up being Zayn's swan song in nxt outside of the Nakamura match.

[Emperor Smeat]

Zayn vs Joe was really great this week.

Loved how well they built up to the first fall it practically end up feeling like a match within a match. Also making each fall feel really special which is something lacking a lot when this type of match is done on the main roster.

[Damian Rey 2.0]

They did a great job building to each finish. Thought the count out spots were great. Loved the finish. Decisive but Sami comes out looking great. Still think he plays the underdog better than anyone in recent memory.

Wonder if Joe finally gets the strap or loses to Balor one more time.

[VSG]

This week, Joe and Zayn good match. Interesting ending. Wonder where they are going with this.... Wish Zayn would have been called up after his Rumble appearance.... would have been good in IC title match vs Kevin Owens at Mania.

:shifty:

I don't get it

Spoilers, broseph. I don't want to spoil it for you.


Looks like everything Lock Jaw asked for, he got.

[Lock Jaw]

Just watched it.... great stuff... I liked how they kept talking about stuff they had coming up on the show to make it seem like the match wasn't going to go on the whole show.

[Lock Jaw]

Further comment: I too liked how each fall felt "important" and "like actual matches"..... most of the time in these matches you will have falls that occur where it is like "yeah if this was one fall, no way would that be the end of the match"..... or like anti-climactic first two falls just to get to the one that "matters".....

[Poit]

Nah, he's not been corrupted yet. I still like how the belt eventually corrupts everyone to be at least slightly heelish.

Zayn never fell. We'll never know if it's because he's so pure a face, or because he was champion for so short a time.

[Innovator]

He's the Samwise of NXT

[VSG]

Watching this week's NXT now. The card for NXT Takeover: Dallas should be confirmed by the end of this episode.

[VSG]

Sami Zayn seems so much more comfortable in front of the smaller NXT crowd.

Mixed reaction to Nakamura vignette, feels like most of the crowd had no idea who he was. I couldn't even figure out what he said entirely either. But damn.. goosebumps even though I knew this was coming.

[VSG]

Corey Graves is right. Going from Nakamura to Hype Bros is the worst.

Well at least it was a short match.

[VSG]

I still don't care about most of the newer Divas. :heart: Evil Emma though.

[VSG]

Another random Sorenson appearance. Are he or Ciampa signed on yet?

[VSG]

Not sure why Eva Marie took the pin, looks like they are protecting Nia Jax as much as possible now. Bayley-Asuka should be amazing if they get a decent amount of time.

[VSG]

Alrighty then, American Alpha vs The Revival for the tag titles. I don't know if these 4 guys will have the same chemistry as Revival/Enzo-Cassady but I am extremely excited to find out.

[Asmo]

How awesome was that rolling german suplex Gable busted out? That was the highlight, and so was Aiden's powerbomb on Gable. And yes, the new singlets definitely give American Alpha a Steiner Brothers vibe, which ain't a bad thing at all.

Again, must say the entire show feels like it's been thought through. Graves and Philips do an excellent job weaving stories, entertaining, and calling the action. The show's pacing is rock solid, and not a single minute feels wasted.

Must talk about Ciampa's new attitude. Like Graves / Philips said, it seems as if he's dialling the intensity up to 11, but felt he needed a few more big-impact moves in his arsenal to justify the intensity.

And Asuka is the female Brock. She's legit, crisp, realistic. Looking forward to Bayley VS Asuka, where Asuka should get the win, thereby enabling Bayley to move up to the main roster. If Asuka wins though, who really can challenge her to make it seem like a fair contest?

[Damian Rey 2.0]

Nobody. You have her get shafted out of the belt. After months of dominating, she loses to Eva Marie after Nia Jax hits her with a leg drops and have Asuka go on a revenge tour.

[SlickyTrickyDamon]

Corey Graves is right. Going from Nakamura to Hype Bros is the worst.

Well at least it was a short match.

He meant seeing the graphic of Eva Marie not Nakamura.

[drave]

It was awesome to see Asuka pepper the piss outta Eva Marie (even though she sells like shit - to no one's surprise).

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/F-4Wnu8SPwY" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

so good

[drave]

Also love this match and JBL is a Wrestling GAWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWDahh

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[Damian Rey 2.0]

Yeah those were some mean fucking kicks to Eva. My wife joked that Asuka was gonna bust an implant.

[Innovator]

If your name is Deonna Purrazzo, it's probably not the best idea to put your initials on your ass.

[VSG]

That does make her 10x more interesting now though.

[#BROKEN Hasney]

Sami Zayn seems so much more comfortable in front of the smaller NXT crowd.

Mixed reaction to Nakamura vignette, feels like most of the crowd had no idea who he was. I couldn't even figure out what he said entirely either. But damn.. goosebumps even though I knew this was coming.

I love that the ones that were in the know chanted holy shit to a mobile phone filmed bad English promo. Commentary sold him as well as a death sentence and the best in the world. Much better than Cole with Styles. IS IT?! COULD IT BE?!

Thought for a second they wouldn't keep his name since Regal didn't mention it, but commentary said it enough for it to stick. King of Strong Style will stay too, at least on NXT.

[#BROKEN Hasney]

Was Austin Aries wearing contacts? They were some green ass eyes.

[VSG]

Too many shit threads keeping this off the front page.

[VSG]

Ugh.. I still don't care about Elias Samson. One of the commentators went "We don't know anything about him" and he is absolutely right. This is not a good thing months into the gimmick.

Gargano getting a bigger reaction from the crowd too.

[VSG]

LOL Gargano won :D

Heel Drifter with his first loss is suddenly a lot more interesting.

[VSG]

Rich Swann needs to be on NXT more. This is what? His 3rd match in 2 years?

[VSG]

Yeah evil Emma

Yeah evil Alexa Bliss

[VSG]

Ouch.. That Sparkle Splash looked hard on the knees.

[VSG]

Bull Dempsey :'(

I wonder if he knew about his release at this point. Not sure when this was taped.

[VSG]

Great promo package for American Alpha

[VSG]

WTF is this No Way Jose vignette

[Emperor Smeat]

Bull Dempsey :'(

I wonder if he knew about his release at this point. Not sure when this was taped.

Probably considering he got released about a week after those tapings and also very quickly decided to reboot his image for the indies.

[VSG]

That ankle lock into German suplex was pretty cool. 17 min main event segment w/14 min match for two women is always top in my books.

[VSG]

Probably considering he got released about a week after those tapings and also very quickly decided to reboot his image for the indies.

I can't blame him for reworking his gimmick.

[Heisenberg]

I loved Bull Dempsey, he had good charisma. Now we're stuck with Alex Riley and the fact that Corey Graves collects a paycheck

[Heisenberg]

I don't think Asuka v.s. Emma would ever get old this year, although Emma's gimmick is polished up and ready to go on the main roster.

[drave]

I don't think Asuka v.s. Emma would ever get old this year, although Emma's gimmick is polished up and ready to go on the main roster.


Don't be so quick there. So far, NXT stars have been put into mid-card hell, for the most part.

Neville seems to have been the one who has lost the least amount of screen time, but Breeze (who was/is? over as fook in NXT) was not well received despite having a very solid gimmick.

[Innovator]

American Alpha hype package was beautiful.

[VSG]

I don't think Asuka v.s. Emma would ever get old this year, although Emma's gimmick is polished up and ready to go on the main roster.

Emma was on Main Event this week apparently. Could be a dark match because I didn't care about Main Event enough to watch it.

[Mr. Nerfect]

Evil Emma vs. Paige feud on the main roster please.

[Mr. Nerfect]

Austin Aries reminds me of the Devil for some reason.

[Nicky Fives]

Rich Swann proved to me that he could be something in his match with Balor... He's not the biggest guy around, but he has something.... He strikes me as a better Xavier Woods, which is saying something....

[VSG]

Evil Emma on Raw feels as lost as Emma v1 w/Santino.

[Mr. Nerfect]

Don't say that. :( I refuse to watch RAW, but I want her to do well there.

[Mr. Nerfect]

I like Xavier Woods, but he's missing something. Like even when he's kicking ass I can't take him seriously. Dunno.

[VSG]

At this point, I feel like I am buying this month's network for Takeover Dallas, with Wrestlemania being a bonus.

[Innovator]

Baron Corbin is fantastic now

[SlickyTrickyDamon]

Yes great promo and heel. It's a pre-taped so we don't know how many times it took however.

I'd like to think he nailed it on one take though.

ALL HAIL CORBIN DALLAS!

[Innovator]

Baron Corbin Multi-pass

Also, the one minute Nakamura video got me hyped, that and Sami's interview later on in the show

[VSG]

I haven't even seen this week's episode yet but I am happy to declare him and Emma most improved (relative to their position in the company before) over the past year.

[ron the dial]

i hated corbin. now i love corbin. he's put in a lot of work, and it's showing. good for him. a true developmental success story to this point.

[Emperor Smeat]

Probably could point to the match he had against Joe at Takeover Brooklyn where he started to really get into a groove.

No longer was just having meaningless squash matches and the Joe feud being a big upgrade over the Dempsey feud that went nowhere fast. Him turning heel ended up being the big thing needed to refresh his direction.

[Evil Vito]

Corbin has improved loads.

[Lock Jaw]

Just watched this week's ep....

Love how the build to the tag title match on the go home show was just both teams winning squash matches.

When American Alpha's music hit to start the show, I forgot I was watching NXT for a moment and defaulted to "standard WWE booking" and thought to myself "Ok, here comes a one on one match with one partner vs one dude from the other team... WHAT WILL THIS MEAN FOR THIS FRIDAY NIGHT?!"........ But then, of course, they didn't do that.

[DaveWadding]

This Week’s ep was basically an episode of WWF Superstars from the 90s. Promo packages and squash matches.

[VSG]

2 days before the Takeover event. Generally there are only recaps and promos the week of, but this is better.

[Damian Rey 2.0]

Yeah glad to see most involved in tonight's event going over instead of the usual "OMGZZZ HE/THEY JUST PINNED TEH CHAMP(ZZZZ) WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR TAKEOVER!!!!!". Also better than the two top guys playing tug of war with the strap on the go home show.

[VSG]

I laughed hard at Corey Graves going "With a voice like that, Phillips, no wonder he's homeless" on Elias Samson :lol:

[Blonde Moment]

Not sure what I think about this
<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ik8072ewnfY" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

[VSG]

I think it's safe to say it was amazing.

[Frank Drebin]

Too bad that got removed. After seeing the final product, I want to see if it changed.

And yeah, it was pretty sweet.

[Disturbed316]

Hilarious start to the Nakamura/Dillinger match this week, although it was pretty short.

[Emperor Smeat]

Feels like I've heard of Tucker Knight's NXT theme somewhere in the past before but can't remember where.

Sounds like something from a video game or old generic WCW type theme.

[VSG]

Good episode overall, especially after last week's recap stuff. Tye Dillinger got himself over and also had Nakamura look amazing too.

[Damian Rey 2.0]

Loved the new set. Nakamura is so crisp. Just gets the whole "sports entertainment" shtick perfecting. A perfect 10 sell job in the running knee by Dillinger.

[Frank Drebin]

That wasn't a new set, was it? I thought that was taped at Axxxxxesssssss in Dallas WM week.

I was gonna come on here to see if anyone knew what their taping schedule is. Have the matches for next week's show been taped already?

[VSG]

Yeah these were taped in Dallas already. Next 3-4 shows are also done.

[XL]

Dillinger's promo was pretty good.

[XL]

Also, who was that backstage interviewer? She was awful. Can't believe they got rid of Devon.

[ron the dial]

huge dillinger mark. glad he got put in that match. he was fantastic. and that promo was crisp.

[Nicky Fives]

Also, who was that backstage interviewer? She was awful. Can't believe they got rid of Devon.

Devon was goo, but I don't mind the new Mexican guy...

[#BROKEN Hasney]

huge dillinger mark. glad he got put in that match. he was fantastic. and that promo was crisp.

Yeah, love him too. In fact, I missed the promo as I was skipping around the episode so now I have to go back.

[Evil Vito]

I don't think Angelo Dawkins is going to make it. That they keep changing his gimmick is bad enough, but his match with Aries was pretty blah. If you're in the Performance Center for 4 years and still can't work a good match against Aries I'm pretty sure you need to start considering other career options.

[Innovator]

So much for Shoot Nation

[Dorkchop]

Feels like I've heard of Tucker Knight's NXT theme somewhere in the past before but can't remember where.

Sounds like something from a video game or old generic WCW type theme.

It's Tori's WWF theme. I remember it from Wrestlemania 2000 on the N64.

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I pretty much stopped posting here years ago and only read the 100 001 thread, but had to log in reply to you.

[SlickyTrickyDamon]

That wasn't a new set, was it? I thought that was taped at Axxxxxesssssss in Dallas WM week.

I was gonna come on here to see if anyone knew what their taping schedule is. Have the matches for next week's show been taped already?

Yeah pretty weird. They say "2 weeks" but it was only a day after NXT TakeOver Dallas. Pretty silly when the thing says WrestleMania Axxess on the marque. They had a few matches on Friday as somewhat of a test of how the "arena" would look like.

It was basically just a few rows of benches.

[Emperor Smeat]

That wasn't a new set, was it? I thought that was taped at Axxxxxesssssss in Dallas WM week.

I was gonna come on here to see if anyone knew what their taping schedule is. Have the matches for next week's show been taped already?

Its either next week or next month. WWE revealed on Twitter they go back to Full Sail next week but didn't specify if it was a tv taping or not. Next month has a set of tv tapings on May 19th to lead into the next Takover a couple of weeks later.

[SlickyTrickyDamon]

It's Tori's WWF theme. I remember it from Wrestlemania 2000 on the N64.

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Yo_W2C-nTUI" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>


I pretty much stopped posting here years ago and only read the 100 001 thread, but had to log in reply to you.

Your user image.

IT'S BAYLEY! :love: :heart:

[Lock Jaw]

For being taped at Wrestlemania Axxess, thought the crowd was garbage. Except for Bayley/Dillinger/Nakamura, I feel like they were like 100% silent for rest of show..... sapped my energy with their dead silence....

[Emperor Smeat]

From the way it was explained on another forum, WWE did a really bad job promoting the show and timing it to happen when a lot of the bigger stuff at Axxess occurred.

Wasn't till Nakamura's music hit that people from other areas started to rush into the arena to see the match.

[Mr. Nerfect]

Tye Dillinger is fantastic.

[VSG]

Great opening match. I am glad the champs won too.

[VSG]

"Who is this Jose and why is he always being denied?" :lol:

I love Graves so much.

[VSG]

I can't believe it but I am actually a fan of No Way Jose. Very fun gimmick, and finisher sequence. This might actually work exactly as it is on the main roster also till he becomes Santino 2016/2017.

[VSG]

Elias Samson was getting interesting finally and they feed him to Nakamura next week. Dunno.

[VSG]

Building up Nia Jax for the inevitable Jax/Asuka matchup :y:

[VSG]

"The Red Queen" is a top nickname, even for Eva Marie. Not sure why they are feeding her to Asuka though, unless they've completely given up on her in NXT and only keeping her for Total Divas- which I am completely ok with.

[DaveWadding]

Samson and Eva Marie are my least favorite NXT people. I'm stoked to watch them both get crushed by my two favorites.

[Ol Dirty Dastard]

"The Red Queen" is a top nickname, even for Eva Marie. Not sure why they are feeding her to Asuka though, unless they've completely given up on her in NXT and only keeping her for Total Divas- which I am completely ok with.

cuz she sucks and asuka is a killer. hot tho

[Emperor Smeat]

Enzo/Cass vs Alphas was pretty good.

:lol: at Graves wondering why Jose is always getting denied if his name is No Way.

[Mr. Nerfect]

How did No Way Jose go?

[Simple Fan]

Just got a notification from WWE app, Samoa Joe won the NXT Title at a live event.

[Innovator]

I'm in on No Way Jose, dude has some charisma

[VSG]

How did No Way Jose go?

Much better than I expected, and Corey Graves really sold him to the crowd and TV audience.

[Heisenberg]

No Way Jose was put up against a credible looking German fella, I gave the match a chance and didn't skip any of it

[Evil Vito]

Wrestling is entertainment, and No Way Jose seems entertaining. Liking him so far.

Ceiling with that gimmick is probably Santino Marella 2016 whenever he debuts on the main roster, but that's a valuable position to have.

[Innovator]

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Cgl0y4SWYAAo8lL.jpg

[XL]

NWJ feud or team with Fandango?

[Mr. Nerfect]

I think there a lot of main roster guys that could use a reboot on NXT. Fandango is definitely one of them.

[Mr. Nerfect]

Would love to see a 20/20 tag team with Tye Dillinger and Johnny Curtis.

[Disturbed316]

No Way Jose looks and feels like a giant jobber, didn't get into it at all.

[SlickyTrickyDamon]

No Way Jose will probably fail because it's a goofy WWE gimmick invading NXT. Like Vince finally figured out how good NXT is and now is trying to ruin it.

[Mr. Nerfect]

Oh, I looked up him on Google images. It's that guy. He's got a pretty good look and I can see him turning heel down the line and being treated serious after he's got his foot in the door a bit. I'm not stressed right now.

[XL]

Are we getting Joe vs Nakamura for the belt!? :drool:

[Damian Rey 2.0]

^ probably at the Summer Slam takeover

[drave]

Are we getting Joe vs Nakamura for the belt!? :drool:


Can't.Fucking.Wait.

[VSG]

Eva Marie was actually booked stronger than I expected. They are leading to Asuka/Nia Jax though.

[SlickyTrickyDamon]

lol one of the jobber tag team guys starting a Defense chant and it getting over on the Axxess crowd.

[Ol Dirty Dastard]

lol that is amazing

[Mr. Nerfect]

https://pbs.twimg.com/ext_tw_video_thumb/725818190748618752/pu/img/KDaWLy2e3hchN17_.jpg

[VSG]

WWE basically spoiling all taped debuts these days.

[Emperor Smeat]

Bayley rumored to have been seriously injured during tonight's tapings. Being speculated it might be ACL type injury although could also just be her being really good at selling an injury.

Doctors are looking at Bayley after her loss to Nia Jax, and it appears to be an ACL injury. It is unclear if it is storyline or not


Update: Read a bit more on the Bayley rumored injury and it seems to be just a false scare since other people at the show were saying the doctor wasn't from NXT's actual medical team and instead one of the NXT wrestlers who hasn't officially debuted yet.

[VSG]

Oh dear.

Edit: Thanks, for the unannounced edit there, Smeat :fu:

[Nicky Fives]

absolutely LOVE that spoiler, I cannot wait.... the most excited I've been in awhile.....

[Emperor Smeat]

Spoilers for the next set of tv shows:
May 4th Episode:
* New NXT Champion Samoa Joe opens with a promo in the ring. Joe says it's a new era and he runs things. Eric Young interrupts to a huge pop. Young says everyone knows him and the only thing that's guaranteed is he brings change. Joe leaves after a staredown and says he doesn't belong in the same ring and next time he's in it he's going to beat EY's ass

* Nia Jax squashed Tessa Blanchard

* Austin Aries defeated Tye Dillinger with a 450

* Joe vs. EY is announced for later

* Dash and Dawson defeated Zack Ryder and Mojo Rawley

* No Way Jose defeated Noah Kekoah. Jose made referee Drake Younger dance after the match to a big pop

* Samoa Joe defeated Eric Young in a stiff match, after a Musclebuster and a choke. Joe didn't release the hold until well after the match. The crowd didn't care for much of this match but it was good


May 11th Episode:
* Finn Balor opens the show with a promo but is interrupted by Elias Samson. Samson gets Eva Marie levels of heat as he sings a song he wrote for Balor. Samson says Balor is nothing without the NXT Title. Finn hits a pele kick, throws Samson out of the ring and then tosses the guitar at him but he caught it

* NXT Tag Team Champions Chad Gable and Jason Jordan defeated John Skyler and Corey Hollis. The Revival watched from the ramp and walked down to ringside to taunt American Alpha after the match

* Shinsuke Nakamura defeated Alex Riley with the Kinsasha. The crowd exploded for Nakamura's Full Sail debut and the chants continued for him after he left before the next match

* Alexa Bliss defeated Rachael Ellering in a quick squash. Ellering is daughter of WWE Hall of Famer Paul Ellering

* Finn Balor aggressively defeated Elias Samson. After the match, Balor cut a promo and said he wants his rematch. He's obsessed with being NXT Champion but now he's possessed, like a Demon, who wants what belongs to him. Joe comes out but NXT General Manager William Regal stops a brawl and announces Balor vs. Joe for Takeover on June 8th. Balor jumps over Regal and takes Joe out

* NXT Women's Champion Asuka defeated Adrienne Reese with the Asuka Lock. A good match and great debut for the former Athena


May 18th Episode:
* Austin Aries and Shinsuke Nakamura defeated Blake and Murphy with Alexa Bliss. Aries wanted the tag but Nakamura refused and hit the Kinsasha for the win. A good tease of a feud between the two. After the match, Bliss walked away from Blake and Murphy, then Blake walked away from Murphy

* Carmella defeated Peyton Royce

* Johnny Gargano and Tommaso Ciampa defeated Danny Birch and Rob Ryzin in a good stiff match

* Nia Jax defeated Bayley and dominated the match. Crowd died for this one. Bayley hit a hurricanrana off the apron to get the crowd back into the match. Nia missed a charge in the corner and got the ring post, then locked in the guillotine choke. Nia lifted her up for a suplex, but Bayley reversed and appeared to blow her knee out. Not a legit injury, as Nia crushed her in the corner & worked over her leg. Nia destroyed Bayley and pinned her. This was a long match that just didn't work with the crowd. Bayley sold that she couldn't put any weight on her leg and was helped to the back

* NXT Tag Team Champions American Alpha defeated The Revival in the main event, which may have been a non-title match. Gable and Jordan won with stereo ankle locks

[Mr. Nerfect]

Look like we're building towards the following June 8 Takeover card:

* Samoa Joe vs. Finn Balor for the NXT Title
* Asuka vs. Nia Jax for the NXT Women's Title
* American Alpha vs. The Revival for the NXT Tag Team Championship
* Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Austin Aries
* Blake vs. Murphy

Cool.

[Mr. Nerfect]

I'm excited to see some of the new girls.

[Heisenberg]

Feel like all those years of watching TNA paid off cause all the ones that worth a damn came over and are getting their time in the sun

[SlickyTrickyDamon]

NXT has a good problem. They have way too much top tier talent. Gotta advance some of them to the main roster soon I think. Gonna make their developmental guys look like shit before too long.

Roode, Aries, Young, Joe. What will they do with all of them along with Nakamura? They are loaded. How long will the likes of the Samsons and Dillingers be able to hang with that class of talent?

[Mr. Nerfect]

Dillinger is fantastic.

[Disturbed316]

Good show this week, when ever Regal gets angry on the mic, you know its a good show.

[#BROKEN Hasney]

Dillinger is fantastic.

http://66.media.tumblr.com/6c4cae6eed3d6b759b3c0c697feaefaa/tumblr_ntt1wpXIMJ1rji3hpo9_400.gif

[XL]

Aries calling in a friend? Dirty Heels reunion?

[Arrogance]

NXT is getting closer to what I've always wanted out of a pro wrestling show...I hope they get a second hour.

[Frank Drebin]

Nah. The reason nxt is always fresh is because they only have one hour to fill every week.

[SlickyTrickyDamon]

And that would mean they would be filming twice as long when they do tapings.

[Mr. Nerfect]

Apparently Dillinger and Manny Andrade had a great match at an NXT house show. I expect him to be on television soon. The faster they can get Billie Kay and Peyton Royce out there too, the better. Fuck, just let them wrestle each other.

[SlickyTrickyDamon]

Saw Peyton lose at Axxcess to that New Jersey girl. Match was fairly terrible probably due to the blonde.

[SlickyTrickyDamon]

http://66.media.tumblr.com/6c4cae6eed3d6b759b3c0c697feaefaa/tumblr_ntt1wpXIMJ1rji3hpo9_400.gif

How loud was the 10 10 10 10 10 chant at WrestleMania on TV when Brock hit the 10th Suplex?

[SlickyTrickyDamon]

Apparently Dillinger and Manny Andrade had a great match at an NXT house show. I expect him to be on television soon. The faster they can get Billie Kay and Peyton Royce out there too, the better. Fuck, just let them wrestle each other.

Saw Andrade face Chrisopher Girade (Biff Busick). He could win the whole Open.

[Mr. Nerfect]

Cool. Actually, I think Andrade winning the whole Cruiserweight Classic is probably the idea. I'd love to see it come down to him and Ibushi.

[Mr. Nerfect]

Widening it up, I'd like Zack Sabre, Jr. and Johnny Gargano in the finals too.

[Mr. Nerfect]

I really want them to bring in Shelton Benjamin & Charlie Haas for a match against American Alpha. Have that at the upcoming Takeover and have Johnny Gargano & Tommaso Ciampa beat The Revival in a #1 Contender's Match.

[SlickyTrickyDamon]

Revival are automatically the number one contenders. I'd assume the rematch was at TakeOver unless they already had it in tapings that I didn't read.

[Mr. Nerfect]

I wouldn't run it at Takeover again. Have them lose the rematch, talk about how they may not have won, but they have put tag team wrestling on the map again and they want another shot. Gargano & Ciampa have been racking up wins, the two teams agree to face each other and find out who is next in line.

[Mr. Nerfect]

Mr. Regal has announced that there is an announcement regarding the main event of Takeover coming this week. The brawl between Finn Balor, Samoa Joe and a lot of the roster in Portland had something to do with it.

[Evil Vito]

The brawls where the wrestlers have to actively try to pull-apart guys always seem weird to me. It's visually impressive but I'm always left wondering why most of the wrestlers give a shit about breaking up a fight. Especially the heels.

[Mr. Nerfect]

I'm actually the same way. I think it too often makes guys feel weak. That being said, there are occasions where it has been done well. Brent Albright and Johnny Jeter in OVW, for instance.

For faces it makes more sense, because they are legitimate athletes and are potentially friends with more people -- being nice guys and all. Especially within an older school mentality.

[Evil Vito]

I definitely agree that it makes some of the guys look weak by not being able to contain two men.

I think when Lesnar and Undertaker brawled last year they emphasized that Triple H basically mandated the roster to come out and intervene. But of course all of the guys they were trying to protect like Reigns, Cena, etc. were nowhere to be found.

[Mr. Nerfect]

I like it more when referees get all worked up and start running around in a panic.

[Volare]

<iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/yqithQryFyE?feature=player_detailpage" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

[VSG]

Sweet!

[#BROKEN Hasney]

It's outrageous that Tye's I Am A 10 shirt isn't available. OUTRAGEOUS.

OK, not that much, but I want it.

[Evil Vito]

Should be a great match as per usual between those two.

[Innovator]

Tye's first shirt has to go on sale initially for 10.00.

[Heisenberg]

Aries calling in a friend? Dirty Heels reunion?



Activate Bobby Roode debut sequence

[XL]

First tapings of NXT were 4 years ago this week. Thought it might be interesting to look at the fates of all those involved.


WWE taped the first four editions of WWE NXT tonight from Full Sail University in Winter Park, Florida. Below are full results.

- Dusty Rhodes was announced as the new General Manager of NXT.
The legendary Dusty Rhodes remained as the GM of NXT until September 2013, where he went up to the main roster to work a programme alongside his sons against The Shield. Dusty sadly passed away on June 11, 2015.
Dark Match:

* Xavier Woods b. Dean Ambrose
Woods had a rocky debut to the main roster, starting a programme with Brodus Clay that went nowhere and benefitted nobody. Woods tread water for a long time on the undercard until hooking up with Kofi Kingston, and fellow NXT Alum Big E to form The New Day. This provided another rocky start as the face team struggled to get over, before turning heel, getting over, and turning face again to become one of the hottest acts in WWE.

Ambrose, who never actually appeared on NXT TV, debuted on the main roster as part of The Shield on November 18th, 2012. The group became one of the hottest acts on the card and Ambrose became US Champion at Extreme Rules on May 19th, 2013. He became the longest running US Champion since the title came under the WWE banner with a run of of 351 days, dropping the title to Sheamus in a 20 Man Battle Royal on the May 5th, 2014 episode of Raw. Ambrose has enjoyed a main roster career towards the top of the upper-Midcard despite a run that rarely saw him pick up any big/PPV wins. He has become a 1-time Intercontinental Champion, won 5 Slammy Awards (as part of The Shield) and was booked into a headline WrestleMania feud with Brock Lesnar.

* After the match, Triple H came out to thank the crowd for coming. He told the crowd that just like Full Sail is the future of the entertainment business, NXT is the future of WWE. He announced that the upcoming episodes of NXT will air in over 60 countries.

WWE NXT #1

* Jim Ross & William Regal come out for commentary. JR introduces the new General Manager of NXT, Dusty Rhodes.

* Bo Dallas (aka Bo Rotundo) b. Rick Victor
Clearly one of the guys NXT wanted to make into a star, Bo Dallas has had an up-and-down career. He made his main roster debut in the 2013 Royal Rumble eliminating IC Champ Wade Barrett, the two entered into a brief feud before Dallas went back to NXT full time. Dallas went on to become the 3rd ever NXT Champion, defeating Big E Langston on the July 12th show. He lost the title to Adrian Neville at the first NXT Takeover event in February 2014. Dallas was promoted to the main roster again in May 2014, taking his "Inspirational" gimmick with him, and establishing a 17 match winning streak. Since this time Dalllas' stock was decreased in WWE, he is currently part of the Social Outcasts, a robber faction.

Rick Victor did little in NXT until he became part of The Ascension. With his partner Conor O'Brian he became the longest running tag team champion in NXT history with a run of 364 days, losing to The Lucha Dragons at Takeover: Fatal 4-Way on September 11th, 2014. The Ascension were promoted to the main roster in December 2014. The stock plummeted from the get-go as they compared themselves favourably to the Legion of Doom, and Demolition whilst the commentators "buried" them on commentary. A quasi-faction with Stardust in September 2015 as The Cosmic Wasteland gave them a short-lived focus on the main shows before falling back down to jobber status in the months following.

* Ascension (Conor O’Brian & Kenneth Cameron) b. CJ Parker & Mike Dalton

Conor O'Brian was a veteran of the original NXT format who was re-invented as part of The Ascension. He teamed with Kenneth Cameron until November 30th, 2012 when Cameron was released from his contract following his arrest. He then teamed with Viktor, see above.

Cameron left the WWE on November 30th 2012 following an arrest for battery of a law enforcement officer, and disorderly intoxication. On the May 1st 2014 episode of TNA Impact he debuted as Bram. He would go on to win the King of the Mountain Championship in March 2016.

The former 2-time FCW Tag Team Champion, Parker failed to get over with the NXT crowd despite a number of tweaks to his gimmick. He asked for, and received his release from his WWE contract in March 2015. He returned to the independent wrestling scene, and now performs in NJPW as Juice Robinson.

Mike Dalton went on to reinvent himself as Tyler Breeze, a self-obsessed male model who became a cornerstone of NXT as its growth continued. Despite an inconsistent career Breeze was promoted to the main roster on the October 22, 2015 episode of SmackDown. The promotion was the emotional finale to the first season of Breaking Ground, a WWE Network show covering the progression on the guys and girls training at the Performance Centre. Breeze was quickly allowed to slide into insignificance before recently forming a team with another under-utilised talent in Fandango.

* Jason Jordan comes out to face Damien Sandow, but Sandow cuts a promo, refusing to compete against him.
Jason Jordan was used as an occasional talent in NXT throughout its first 3 years before finding success as part of American Alpha with Chad Gable. They are one of the most over acts, and the current NXT Tag Team Champions having won the titles from The Revival at Takeover: Dallas prior to WrestleMania.

The Ballad of Damien Sandow is a sad one. He had moderate success on the main roster even winning the MITB briefcase in 2013, eventually unsuccessfully cashing in against John Cena. After an indifferent period during which Sandow mimic, he struck gold when he became the stunt double of The Miz. This brought a Tag Team Championship reign and 2 Slammy Awards, and had the live crowd rabid for Sandow to turn on Miz. However, the opportunity was squandered and Sandow was released in May of this year b
* Tyson Kidd b. Michael McGillicutty by submission with the Dungeon Lock.
Kidd became a Tag Team Champion alongside Cesaro, and his relationship with wife Natalya was featured on Total Divas. He is currently rehabbing a career-threatening neck injury suffered in a match versus Samoa Joe in June 2015.

The NXT veteran McGillicutty was repackaged shortly after this run in NXT as Curtis Axel, with an IC Title reign following shortly after. A team with Ryback was to follow before Axel would become a "comedy jobber" and join the Social Outcasts.

WWE NXT #2

* Seth Rollins b. Jiro. After the match, Rollins got a mic and told the crowd that he’s going to take WWE by storm.

Seth Rollins would become the first NXT Champion on the August 29th 2012 show, beating Jinder Mahal in a tournament final. He droped the title to Big E Langston on the January 9th show. He debuted on the main roster as 1 third of The Shield in November 2012 (whilst still NXT Champion) with whom he became a Tag Team Champion with a 5 month reign.Turning on his partners to join The Authority on June 2nd 2014, Rollins went on to capture the MITB briefcase and became the first person ever to cash-in at WrestleMania, when he won the WWE World Heavyweight Championship at Mania 31. His reign as champion ended due to an injury suffered in a house show match against Kane on November 4th 2015. He is also a 10-time Slammy Award winner.

Jiro, aka Taishi Takizawa, was released from WWE the same month this match aired. He returned to Japan.

* Jinder Mahal b. Jason Jordan by submission with the Camel Clutch.
Mahal debuted for the main roster in 2011, but ended up working on the preliminary NXT shows whilst still appearing on Raw and SmackDown. He was the losing finalist in the NXT Title tournament, after which he went back to the main roster full time to create 3MB. He was released on June 12th 2014 having held no championships in FCW, NXT or WWE.

* Leo Kruger b. Aiden English. Kruger cut a heel promo after the match.
Leo Kruger toiled away in NXT before re-inventing himself as party animal Adam Rose. A promotion to the main roster swiftly followed, though his fortunes quickly tumbled. He quickly became an afterthought before joining the Social Outcasts. More recently he was suspended for a Wellness violation before being indefinitely suspended following an arrest.

Aiden English formed a team with Simon Gotch as The Vaudevillains in June 2014. In July 2015 they defeated Blake & Murphy to become the NXT Tag Team Champions. On November 11th they lost the belts to Dash & Dawson. English, alongside his partner, made his main roster debut of the April 16th 2016 edition of SmackDown. They are scheduled to face WWE Tag Team Champions The New Day this Sunday.

* Richie Steamboat b. Rick Victor. Ricky Steamboat was ringside in support of Richie.
Son of HOF'er Ricky Steamboat, Richie won multiple championships in FCW before it became NXT. His career came to an abrupt end in November 2012 when he suffered a back injury.

WWE NXT #3

* Antonio Cesaro w/ Aksana b. Dante Dash. After the match, Aksana got a mic and told the crowd that Cesaro is her lover, then kissed him.
Cesaro was already a regular on the main roster during his time in NXT, having already established himself in 37 different gimmicks. He went on to have a phenomenal feud with Sami Zayn that helped put NXT on the map. He is a 1-time U.S. Champion, 1-time Tag Team Champion (with Tyson Kidd), and 1-time Slammy Award winner, as well as winning the Inaugural Andre The Giant Battle Royal. Cesaro is regarded as one of the most underrated talents on the roster.

Aksana was part of NXT Season 3, placing 4th. Her WWE career was ended in June 2014 when she was released from her contract.

Dante Dash. Who? Real name Teon Freeman doesn't even have a Wikipedia page.

* Sofia Cortez b. Paige
Sofia Cortez gained some fame from a stint on Tough Enough's fifth season. Her participation was cut short due to injury but she was later signed to a development deal. In August 2012 she was released from her contract, later linking it to a report she had filed against NXT Head Coach Bill DeMott. She now performs under her real name Ivelisse in Lucha Underground where she has been 1/3 of the Trios Champions.

Paige became the first NXT Women's Champion in June 2013. She held the title through the rest of 2013 before debuting on the main roster on the post-Mania episode of Raw where she challenged and defeated reigning Divas Champion AJ Lee to be the first woman to hold both the NXT and WWE versions of the women's championships. After 308 days carrying the NXT Women's Championship Paige was forced to vacate the title. Paige became a main focus of the Divas Division until the Divas Revolution took form in the Summer of 2015.

* Seth Rollins b. Camacho w/ Hunico
Camacho is the son of Haku (so I won't say anything too disparaging). Following an alliance with Hunico, Camacho was released from his contract on June 12th 2014. He has since appeared in TNA as Micah, and now wrestles in New Japan.

* Kassius Ohno b. Mike Dalton
The former Chris Hero spent 21 months under WWE contract before his release on November 8th 2013 reportedly due to management's issues with his weight, and apparent lack of commitment to change. Hero returned to the independent scene.

WWE NXT #4

* The Ascension b. The Usos via a Neckbreaker into Flapjack combination.
Jimmy and Jey debuted in WWE in May 2010, dropping into NXT for a feud with The Ascension. They are 2-time Tag Team Champions, and 2-time Tag Team of the Year Slammy Award winners.

* Bray Wyatt b. Aiden English via a Swinging Flatliner.
A veteran of NXT season 2 as Husky Harris, he had spent time on the main roster as part of The New Nexus before returning to FCW/NXT to reinvent himself as Bray Wyatt. Following an injury, Wyatt established his Family with Luke Harper and Erik Rowan. A year later The Wyatt Family debuted in Raw. Wyatt went on to feature in headline feuds with John Cena, and The Undertaker. He is currently injured.

* Michael McGillicutty, Hunico & Camacho b. Tyson Kidd, Seth Rollins & Bo Dallas following a McGillicutter on Tyson.

[Mr. Nerfect]

Nice write-up, XL.

[Mr. Nerfect]

I liked Ivelisse.

[VSG]

Damn.. I didn't realize there were some NXT: Redemption storylines that carried over to the current NXT promotion. Aksana/Cesaro especially.

[Mr. Nerfect]

I thought Cesaro/Aksana was SmackDown?

[SlickyTrickyDamon]

Vaudeys didn't win the tag titles until 2015.

[Evil Vito]

As much as I love NXT, NXT Redemption really was the goods. It was so obvious Vince didn't give a shit about it so the writers just kinda did whatever they wanted and it ended up being the best stuff on TV at the time.

[Evil Vito]

It also helped that NXT Redemption was an hour long show.

I know most of us want Raw to go back to two hours and that's great. But man, an hour really feels like the perfect amount of time to watch wrestling for me.

[Mr. Nerfect]

I prefer one-hour shows, but RAW being two hours would be such an improvement. You can move more meaningful stuff over to SmackDown too. Ultimately both shows get something out of it. The entire product does really.

[Mr. Nerfect]

Welp, apparently we are getting American Alpha vs. The Revival at the next Takeover.

[Mr. Nerfect]

I really want Jim Cornette to be The Revival's manager. :(

[XL]

Vaudeys didn't win the tag titles until 2015.

Good catch. :y:

[Innovator]

Welp, apparently we are getting American Alpha vs. The Revival at the next Takeover.

That's a great thing

[Volare]

Love Peyton, love Carmella, love Carmella's submission even more.

<iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/qgaQlYsXIEA?feature=player_detailpage" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

[VSG]

Welp, apparently we are getting American Alpha vs. The Revival at the next Takeover.

And what's wrong with that? :fu:

[Evil Vito]

yeah it makes sense. The Revival were always going to get a re-match and it's pretty common for NXT to run the same title matches for multiple Takeovers. It'll be a good match as per usual so it's A-OK to me.

[Simple Fan]

I think it's fine. Don't watch NXT tag teams unless it's a Takeover, as I think they all suck except American Alpha.

[Volare]

The Aussie's have arrived.

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[DaveWadding]

I want Asuka to obliterate Nia Jax. Totally fucking destroy her. No one likes her or thinks she's good anyways.

[Ultra Mantis]

Why are they filming the NXT promos on iPhone now?

[Droford]

They're doing a ton of backstage stuff live on Facebook so I suppose it's easier

[Emperor Smeat]

Spoilers for the next set of tapings (May 25th and June 1st):
May 25th Episode:
* William Regal announces that Bayley isn't cleared to wrestle for the rematch against Asuka. He makes Carmella vs. Alexa Bliss vs. Nia Jax in a #1 contenders match for the main event

* Johnny Gargano and Tommaso Ciampa defeated the debuting "TM61" Shane Thorne and Nick Miller in what was said to be an amazing match

* Austin Aries is out for a promo in the ring. He says he will be NXT Champion soon but Shinsuke Nakamura interrupts. Nakamura says the NXT Title will come to the King of Strong Style instead. Regal interrupts and makes Aries vs. Nakamura for "Takeover: Revenge"

* No Way Jose defeated Johnny Vandal in a quick squash. The crowd loved Jose. After the match, he went over to the announce table for a dance party with Corey Graves and Tom Phillips

* Nia Jax defeated Carmella and Alexa Bliss in a #1 contender's Triple Threat to earn a shot against NXT Women's Champion Asuka at Takeover. Nia pinned Carmella with a leg drop to win. This was a good match that the crowd was into all the way through. After the match, Asuka came out to the stage to hold the title up. She made her way to the ring and went face to face with Nia to end the episode


June 1st Episode:
* Dash and Dawson come out and talk about taking back their titles at Takeover. They admit American Alpha are great amateur athletes. Gargano and Ciampa interrupt. Ciampa says The Revival's time at the top is done and they can't beat Alpha or them. The Revival calls them "good hands" and Ciampa asks if they're speaking of themselves. Dawson tells them to go back to the bingo halls and let the top guys handle top guy business. Dash and Dawson goo to leave but Gargano accuses them of running up the ramp pretty fast for "top guys." Dash and Dawson come back but eat stereo dropkicks, then retreat

* Tye Dillinger defeated Murphy, who was alone. The crowd loved Dillinger

* Austin Aries defeated Elias Samson with the Last Chancery. Our correspondent noted that Samson had nuclear "go away" heat. Aries cut a promo after the match but fans chanted for Nakamura. Aries said at Takeover, he will make it official that he's the best in this ring

* Regal comes out for a contract signing with Nia Jax and Asuka. Nia says everyone has been running scared from Asuka but she doesn't understand why. She says Asuka beat Bayley but she broke Bayley. She says Asuka has never faced anyone like her and she's not scared of Asuka. Nia signs the contract. Asuka says Nia talks too much and signs also. Asuka then goes off on Nia in Japanese. Nia shoves her. Asuka comes back with strikes but Nia plants her with a powerbomb. Regal and two referees check on Asuka and help her to her feet

* Gargano and Ciampa defeated The Revival when Gargano reversed a top rope suplex into a pin. The Revival beat them down after the match and hit a Shatter Machine on Ciampa. American Alpha hits the ring for the save and a brawl breaks out. This ends the tapings as it's time for dark main events

[Simple Fan]

The Aussie's have arrived.

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I like this though, going to have to check them out. WWE really needs to bring in more legitimate tag teams.

[Mr. Nerfect]

To clarify: I think that American Alpha vs. The Revival II will be a good match. I'd have been fine with it as a televised main event of a TV though. It's quite rare those belts get to main event, isn't it? I'd rather have seen Johnny Gargano & Tommaso Ciampa challenge American Alpha at the actual Takeover, given the push they have been getting. The Revival could have spread out the tag team "star power" by facing TM61 in their debut, or something.

Good charisma from Shane Thorne in that video, by the way. He seems relaxed. He might have to tweak getting that laid-back Aussie personality polished for American audiences, but I like the interplay between him and Nick Miller.

[Mr. Nerfect]

Peyton Royce is gorgeous, but that outfit she was wearing against Carmella is atrocious. If they want her to do a Poison Ivy thing, I hope they spend some coin on getting her some better attire.

[VSG]

It might be a triple threat tag team match now so I am all for that also.

[Mr. Nerfect]

That could be fun too. I'd prefer an epic team vs. team classic match, but I won't turn down something that fun.

[Mr. Nerfect]

Think we get just the four matches at Takeover? If they're given time and hype videos, they could really fill a large portion of the time. I'd maybe like to see Tye Dillinger vs. Manny Andrade, or whatever his new name is. Andrade "Cien" something.

[Poit]

The Aussie's have arrived.

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That tag team has an 85% of inflicting burn.

#pokemonjokes

[Disturbed316]

Nia Jax has quite a booty on her.

[Nicky Fives]

I actually like Nia Jax, she's super green and has a limited move-set, but at least she's different than all the other "Total Divas" garbage we've been force-fed for years....

On the other hand, not a huge fan of The Revival, decent talent in the ring, but if they were to get released, I wouldn't miss them in the slightest....

Dis-banding Blake & Murphy is not the way I would go either, not sure that either has what it takes to be a top singles guy to compete with the likes of Balor, Joe, Nakamura, Aries, etc. in the main event picture.... Seems to me that they would be better off together than apart, especially with fireplug Alexa in their corner....

[Disturbed316]

I actually like Nia Jax, she's super green and has a limited move-set, but at least she's different than all the other "Total Divas" garbage we've been force-fed for years....



Agreed, I'm liking more I see of her but she's still got some way to go. I think she could pull off a 'Worlds Strongest Woman' gimmick ala Mark Henry.

Could do with a change of finisher too, again, something like the Worlds Strongest Slam/splash combo could work for her.

[Mr. Nerfect]

Is it true that Wesley Blake is injured? I heard something about a torn ACL. That's a shame, because Buddy Murphy vs. Wesley Blake with Alexa Bliss as the ref would have been a fun addition to Takeover.

I honestly don't really like them as a team. I think they could have pushed them into a title match against American Alpha by having the Nakamura/Aries alliance crash, but when you look at a team like MNM -- even considering Johnny Nitro's relatively short time in the business up until that point -- the same charisma is just not there. Murphy needs to find something. I'd try to stay away from anything "too Australian," but he does have an extreme sports edge. It didn't work for Justin Gabriel, but you could easily do some vignettes about how Australia has got some of the most dangerous and venomous creatures in the world -- and he's the most dangerous. His Australian ring name of Matt Silva is so much better than Buddy Murphy too.

Blake has this weird journeyman vibe to me. I like him in longer tights -- sort of like something Hiroshi Tanahashi would wear. I like him using a Superkick and the Six Star Frog Splash as finishers. I'd probably use him as a wrestling babyface.

I love The Revival, but I worry about their main roster prospects. I can see Scott Dawson turning into Jamie Noble very quick and Dash Wilder being released. I like the idea of them having a manager. There's also just not much nuance in the tag team division. If their whole shtick is to be this tag team revival, then they need to be put on top, don't they? Can you really see them being put above teams like Karl Anderson & Luke Gallows? Maybe in time when things move on from where they currently are, but these guys are NXT bound for a long while I think, and I'm fine with that. I'm actually pretty cool with them getting Alexa Bliss as a manager too.

Nia Jax is getting better all the time, but she still has a long way to go. I don't want to see her on the main roster until she's a lot better, and even then I'd make her a bodyguard that eventually breaks away from her charge.

[Emperor Smeat]

Yeup, Blake got hurt shortly after the Nakamura/Aires match during last month's set of tapings.

[Evil Vito]

While I still enjoy NXT as a how, one thing that bothers me a bit is that right now I feel there's just too much talent on NXT and as a result the booking is too focused on showcasing the big talents. That's the way it should be, but as a result the smaller names end up falling between the cracks.

Between Joe, Balor, Aries, and Nakamura the top of the card is an absolute logjam of names. Then you have Hideo Itami who should return, and various other bigger guys, there's no chance for lesser guys to really break out from the pack anymore as they did earlier in NXT's run.

I feel it's become too much ROH-ey 'These guys are the best at what they do, see them fight each other', rather than just have anyone be booked as if they could legitimately take the NXT Title.

Also it's become a bit too 'outside talent' heavy. Where in the past you could see the likes of Neville and Zayn as homegrown talent, guys like Joe/Aries/Nakamura are anything but homegrown and were debuted as such. They're established stars and pretty much completely polished, there's no upward growth, no change to give them 'learning moments' where they lose against others. Guys like Joe/Aries/Nakamura almost feel 'too good' compared to the rest of the roster, and it has created a feeling of there being two groups, rather than one big group. Because those kind of guys aren't really ever going to lose. They're there to look great and unstoppable, which is nice when they have a big match with each other, but it means all the other guys on the roster are completely fucked because you know they're gonna get mowed down.

In a way Takeover: Brooklyn was both the best and worst event for NXT as a whole. It had huge great moments and matches, but also it really started that change where some guys were started to get booked as unstoppable winning machines who could only lose against other unstoppable winning machines. And everyone else were destined to lose.

And that's never been the magic of what made NXT great, sure the work-rate and talent is awesome, but the simple but smart storytelling was what made NXT awesome in it's own way, where plucky underdogs like Enzo Amore could get insanely over, and Tyler Breeze was a believable title contender, or Sami Zayn being super-talented but having issues winning when it mattered, etc.

The talent/workrate came second. I helped it all, but it was never the be-all-end-all of the content. It was all about organic storytelling and giving a feeling that all of them were equally talented, and it's all about them trying to refine themselves.

I am reserving judgement until after the next special, which will doubtless be great from an in-ring standpoint. Hopefully it will clear the table again with Balor either regaining his title or getting his 'going to the main roster' tour, and then different names being pushed up to the top.

[Evil Vito]

Oh and another thing - as they continue to add more and more established indy names to NXT (and who knows how many Cruiserweight Classic guys will impress them enough to earn contracts) I kinda worry that NXT will expend to 2 hours every week. I'd rally hate that. I just think an hour is the perfect amount of time to sit down watch wrestling.

Or maybe they'll split NXT into, say, a Wednesday group and a Friday group and air two hour-long shows a week. Still I think it could reach a point of oversaturation.