The NXT Tag Team titles will be on the line as MSK (Wes Lee & Nash Carter) defend against Drake Maverick & Killian Dain this Tuesday night. Leon Ruff vs. Isaiah “Swerve” Scott has also been added to the episode, along with an eight-person tag match with The Way (NXT North American Champion Johnny Gargano, Austin Theory, Candice LeRae & Indi Hartwell) facing Bronson Reed, Dexter Lumis, and NXT Women’s Tag Team Champions Shotzi Blackheart & Ember Moon.
WWE has also announced that new NXT Champion Karrion Kross (w/ Scarlett) will be kicking off Tuesday’s NXT. Plus, we’ll see footage of what happened after TakeOver: Stand & Deliver night two went off the air following Kyle O’Reilly defeating Adam Cole in their unsanctioned match.
Kross won the NXT Championship by defeating Finn Balor at TakeOver: Stand & Deliver night two last week.
On night one of TakeOver: Stand & Deliver, MSK became the NXT Tag Team Champions by defeating The Grizzled Young Veterans (Zack Gibson & James Drake) and Legado Del Fantasma (Raul Mendoza & Joaquin Wilde) in a triple threat match. The NXT Tag Team titles were vacant going into that match after Danny Burch & Oney Lorcan had to relinquish them last month due to Burch suffering a separated shoulder.
Maverick & Dain became the number one contenders to MSK’s titles by defeating Breezango (Tyler Breeze & Fandango) on the TakeOver: Stand & Deliver night two pre-show.
Reed won the Gauntlet Eliminator match at TakeOver: Stand & Deliver night one and advanced to challenge for Gargano’s North American Championship at night two, but Gargano defeated Reed to retain his title. Blackheart & Moon retained their NXT Women’s Tag Team titles against LeRae & Hartwell at night two.
Rivals Ruff and Scott were participants in the Gauntlet Eliminator. Scott eliminated Ruff during the match.
Here’s the updated lineup for Tuesday’s NXT:
New NXT Champion Karrion Kross (w/ Scarlett) will kick off the show
We’ll hear from new NXT Women’s Champion Raquel Gonzalez
Franky Monet debuts (Franky Monet appears to be former Impact Knockouts Champion Taya Valkyrie’s WWE in-ring name)
We’ll see footage from what happened after Kyle O’Reilly and Adam Cole’s unsanctioned match at TakeOver: Stand & Deliver night two
Undisputed NXT Cruiserweight Champion Santos Escobar will issue an open challenge
New NXT Tag Team Champions MSK defend against Drake Maverick & Killian Dain
Leon Ruff vs. Isaiah “Swerve” Scott
Eight-person tag match: The Way (NXT North American Champion Johnny Gargano, Austin Theory, Candice LeRae & Indi Hartwell) vs. Bronson Reed, Dexter Lumis, and NXT Women’s Tag Team Champions Shotzi Blackheart & Ember Moon
NXT’s Tuesday night debut will feature an open challenge from undisputed Cruiserweight Champion Santos Escobar.
On Twitter today, Escobar announced that he’ll be issuing an open challenge on this Tuesday’s episode of NXT. “UNDISPUTED… El Campeón!! Settled once and for all at #NXTTakeOver Stand And Deliver,” Escobar wrote. “Tomorrow night, OPEN CHALLENGE! Who wants to lose? Tomorrow’s your night! #WWENXT”
Escobar became the undisputed NXT Cruiserweight Champion by defeating Jordan Devlin in a ladder match at TakeOver: Stand & Deliver night two last Thursday. Escobar and Devlin had both claimed to be the rightful NXT Cruiserweight Champion going into that match. Escobar won the match by retrieving both of their title belts that were hanging above the ring.
When Devlin was unable to travel and defend the NXT Cruiserweight Championship following the start of the COVID-19 pandemic last year, WWE announced a tournament to crown an interim champion. The interim branding was later dropped from the tournament. Escobar defeated Drake Maverick in the tournament finals last June.
Here’s the updated lineup for Tuesday’s NXT:
We’ll hear from new NXT Women’s Champion Raquel Gonzalez
Franky Monet debuts
Undisputed NXT Cruiserweight Champion Santos Escobar will issue an open challenge
Franky Monet appears to be former Impact Knockouts Champion Taya Valkyrie’s WWE in-ring name.
Gonzalez defeated Io Shirai in the main event of TakeOver: Stand & Deliver night one last week to win the NXT Women’s Championship. At the end of the match, Gonzalez hit a lariat, a one-armed powerbomb, and pinned Shirai to win the title.
WWE.com wrote about Gonzalez’s segment on Tuesday’s NXT:
What better way to ring in NXT on Tuesday nights than with the new NXT Women’s Champion?
The NXT Universe will hear from Raquel González on NXT on its new night this Tuesday at 8/7 C on USA Network.
“Big Mami Cool” rose to the occasion in the biggest moment of her career, dethroning former champion Io Shirai at NXT TakeOver: Stand & Deliver after an unforgettable battle.
Now that González has solidified her place atop NXT, what will be her first move as champion?
WWE has also announced that Franky Monet will debut on this Tuesday’s episode of NXT. Franky Monet appears to be former Impact Knockouts Champion Taya Valkyrie’s WWE in-ring name.
As they did Wednesday night, Shawn Michaels and Paul “HHH” Levesque talked to the media after night 2 of NXT TakeOver: Stand & Deliver.
Full and free audio can be found below by clicking the red button, but here’s a few highlights:
Asked about whether Gable Steveson has signed a contract, Levesque said the Olympics are his top priority and Steveson and his father were guests tonight and for WrestleMania. He’s a big fan of WWE and Levesque is a big fan of his and if he chooses to eventually sign a deal, Levesque thinks he’ll be great at it.
On Adam Cole’s future, Levesque said to watch Tuesday and reiterated his line for Wednesday about how a loss doesn’t necessarily mean a call-up to the main roster.
Levesque said Brian “Road Dogg” James is doing well at home and was actually on headset the past two nights.
Everyone was medically cleared after the show including Cole and Kyle O’Reilly.
Whether TakeOver will be two nights in the future depends on a lot of circumstances. Things just worked out right this year.
There’s no immediate plan for UK TakeOvers due to the pandemic but as soon as things are clear, they can’t wait to do them. They are taking a wait and see approach with the June date that has already been announced.
Michaels said that if he was part of the Performance Center in his 20s, he thinks the structure and support would have done him well.
After his first title reign ended abruptly due to injury, Karrion Kross has regained the NXT Championship.
At TakeOver: Stand & Deliver night two tonight, Kross (w/ Scarlett) defeated Finn Balor to win the NXT Championship. The finish of the match saw Kross pin Balor after hitting two forearm strikes to the back of the head.
Balor tried to frustrate Kross and force him to make a mistake during tonight’s match. Balor also focused on Kross’ midsection and hit the Coup de Grace at one point, but Kross kicked out and transitioned to the Kross Jacket. Kross later broke out of a submission attempt by Balor. He then pummeled Balor with strikes, hit a German suplex, a Doomsday Saito, and connected with two strikes to the back of the head to get the win.
In defeating Balor, Kross won back the title that he never lost. Kross defeated Keith Lee to win the NXT Championship at TakeOver XXX last August, but he had to vacate the title just days later due to a separated shoulder. Balor won the vacant title in September of last year.
Kross was able to avoid having to undergo surgery for his separated shoulder. He made his return to NXT in December.
An undisputed NXT Cruiserweight Champion was crowned at TakeOver: Stand & Deliver night two tonight.
Santos Escobar defeated Jordan Devlin in a title unification ladder match to become the undisputed NXT Cruiserweight Champion. As they were fighting while on a ladder near the end of the match, Escobar headbutted Devlin and sent him crashing through a ladder that was set up in the corner. Escobar then retrieved both Cruiserweight title belts that were hanging above the ring.
Going into tonight’s unification match, Escobar and Devlin had both claimed to be the rightful NXT Cruiserweight Champion. Devlin won the NXT Cruiserweight Championship at Worlds Collide in January 2020. But with him unable to travel and defend the title due to the COVID-19 pandemic, a tournament was announced to crown an interim champion. The interim label was later dropped from the tournament. Escobar won his version of the NXT Cruiserweight Championship by defeating Drake Maverick in the tournament finals last June.
There was a point in tonight’s ladder match where Devlin looked like he was about to retrieve the title belts, but Escobar’s Legado Del Fantasma stablemates Raul Mendoza and Joaquin Wilde ran down and attacked Devlin. After defeating Devlin, Escobar celebrated on the stage with his nine-year-old son, Mendoza, and Wilde.
New number one contenders to the NXT Tag Team titles were decided on tonight’s TakeOver: Stand & Deliver night two pre-show.
Killian Dain & Drake Maverick defeated Breezango to become number one contenders on tonight’s pre-show. WWE has not announced when Dain & Maverick will be getting their shot at MSK’s NXT Tag Team titles.
Maverick pinned Tyler Breeze in tonight’s match after hitting a top rope hurricanrana and being powerbombed onto Breeze by Dain.
MSK’s Wes Lee & Nash Carter claimed the vacant NXT Tag Team titles yesterday on night one of TakeOver: Stand & Deliver, defeating Grizzled Young Veterans (James Drake & Zack Gibson) and Legado Del Fantasma (Raul Mendoza & Joaquin Wilde). The titles had been held previously by Danny Burch & Oney Lorcan, but were vacated after Burch suffered a shoulder injury on the March 17 episode of NXT. William Regal announced that the titles were officially vacated in a tweet on March 23.
Breezango are former NXT Tag Team champs themselves, having held the title from August 2020 to October 2020.
NXT TakeOver: Stand & Deliver concludes tonight with a double main event.
NXT Champion Finn Balor will put his title on the line against Karrion Kross. Kross, who had to vacate the NXT Championship due to injury just days after winning it last year, is getting the chance to reclaim the title that he never lost.
Former Undisputed Era stablemates Adam Cole and Kyle O’Reilly will look to settle their issues in an unsanctioned match. In storyline, NXT can’t be held liable for anything Cole and O’Reilly do to each other.
An undisputed NXT Cruiserweight Champion will also be determined as Jordan Devlin and Santos Escobar face off in a ladder match, Johnny Gargano will defend his NXT North American Championship against Bronson Reed, and NXT Women’s Tag Team Champions Shotzi Blackheart & Ember Moon will put their titles on the line against Candice LeRae & Indi Hartwell.
Tonight’s main card will air live on Peacock in the United States and the WWE Network everywhere else starting at 8 p.m. Eastern time. There will also be a pre-show starting at 7 p.m. Eastern. On the pre-show, Breezango and Drake Maverick & Killian Dain will face off in a tag team number one contender’s match.
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The pre-show featured the standard mix of promos, video packages, and talking head segments. The hosts were Sam Roberts and Jimmy Smith. Smith was excellent, adding a ton of legitimacy and excitement to the broadcast.
Mickie James joined commentary for the pre-show match.
Killian Dain & Drake Maverick defeated Breezango (Tyler Breeze & Fandango) to become the #1 contenders to the NXT Tag Team Championships
Breezango came to the ring dressed like pirates, matching the theme of this week’s Wrestlemania. Maverick frustrated Fandango by imitating his dancing gimmick, so Dain forcefully tagged himself in, downing Fandango before tagging Maverick back in by tossing him into his opponent. Fandango then took control with a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker, leading to a long beatdown where Breezango isolated Maverick in their corner.
Maverick flipped out of a suplex and used evasive maneuvers to reach Dain for the hot tag. Dain ran wild on both opponents, taking down Fandango with a running crossbody and a uranage. He followed it up with a slingshot senton before performing a Samoan drop / fallaway slam combination in a cool power spot.
Dain and Maverick set up for a big tag team move, but Breeze ran in to save his partner and dispatch Maverick. Dain fought off the attack and tagged in Maverick, who hit a top-rope hurricanrana on Breeze. Dain then came in and powerbombed his partner onto Breeze for the win.
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Rock artist Poppy performed to open the show.
Santos Escobar (c) defeated Jordan Devlin (c) in a ladder match to become the undisputed NXT Cruiserweight Champion
This was a fun stunt show with some cool stuff, although the story was odd. The fact that both men are heels made it difficult to get into, and Devlin isn’t the type of person who should be working as a scrappy underdog at this point.
Both men were billed as the “NXT Cruiserweight Champion.” They performed a choreographed chain wrestling sequence to start until Devlin planted Escobar with a uranage and a standing moonsault. An Asai moonsault followed, with Devlin inadvertently banging his head on the announce desk on the landing. Devlin pulled out a ladder and smacked Escobar with it.
An early attempt at climbing the ladder from Devlin was foiled by Escobar. Escobar whipped Devlin into a propped-up ladder in the corner, sending Devlin crashing to the floor. He followed it up with a running knee on the outside. Escobar produced another ladder and propped it up against the fencing around the barricade. After re-entering the ring and dispatching Devlin by dropkicking a ladder into him, Escobar kept up the attack with repeated ladder shots.
Escobar climbed for the titles, but Devlin tried to stop him, so Escobar beat him down with repeated stomps. He set up a ladder over the turnbuckle, but Devlin reversed a whip into it with a whip of his own. Escobar popped up and downed his opponent with a dropkick. He tried to launch Devlin into the ladder, but Devling hopped up and almost reached the titles. Escobar pulled Devlin down, which Devlin turned into a DDT.
The propped-up ladder on the floor came into play when a dive from Escobar thrust Devlin into it. Escobar taunted Devlin until Devlin countered a suplex by dropping Escobar onto a ladder. They had a strike exchange, where Escobar temporarily gained the advantage after a rising knee. Devlin countered the follow-up into a Spanish Fly and a slingshot cutter.
Devlin set up a ladder near the corner, which both men climbed. They traded strikes, with a right hand from Devlin sending Escobar to the mat. Devlin climbed to the top of the ladder and landed a high moonsault on Escobar in a great spot. Devlin nearly reached the championships, but Legado del Fantasma ran out and pushed Devlin off the ladder to the floor before tossing him into the steel steps.
Escobar sent Mendoza and Wilde to the back before climbing to the titles. Devlin stopped the climb by just tossing a ladder into his opponent before setting up the ladder right next to Escobar’s. After a struggle, Devlin hit a Spanish Fly from halfway up the ladder. Devlin nearly reached the titles, but Escobar climbed up and sent Devlin crashing through a ladder to the canvas with a headbutt, which allowed Escobar enough time to grab the titles and retain.
– After the match, Escobar celebrated with his son and Legado del Fantasma.
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MSK were interviewed backstage about their tag title victory from night one. They were excited about the championships and said they were ready for Killian Dain and Drake Maverick, who will be their first challengers. They then disagreed on who would win tonight’s two main event matches.
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Shotzi Blackheart & Ember Moon (c) defeated The Way (Candice LeRae & Indi Hartwell) to retain the NXT Women’s Tag Team Championships
This was a nice, compact match that didn’t overstay its welcome. Hartwell looked strong in there with some really good workers.
Hartwell & LeRae attacked before the bell, and a step-up senton from LeRae got a quick two count. The challengers worked over Blackheart with frequent tags and double team moves. Occasionally Blackheart would get a hope spot, but she’d get cut off every time by The Way.
An enziguiri finally bought Blackheart enough time to reach Moon for her first tag of the match, five minutes in. She laid in strikes on LeRae, downing her with a strong right hand. Moon set up for the Eclipse, but a distraction from Hartwell allowed LeRae to push Moon down. The Way tried to hit a double team superplex, but that was foiled by Blackheart, leading to a tower of doom spot that got Hartwell a two count on Moon.
The Way continued to work over Moon until she fought off a double team to tag in Blackheart, who entered the match with a crossbody on both opponents. A tiger suplex sent LeRae rolling to the floor, where Blackheart attempted a suicide dive. Blackheart wasn’t caught at all — looked like she went face first into the barricade and the floor. Scary moment.
Moon took out The Way with a dive before tagging in Blackheart for a tandem maneuver for two. LeRae rolled up Blackheart for two and sent Moon to the floor, tagging in Hartwell for a tandem maneuver of their own for two. Blackheart fought out with an enziguiri and hit a double Eclipse on both opponents. The diving senton from Blackheart followed to win and retain.
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NCAA champion and Olympic amateur wrestler Gable Steveson was shown in the crowd.
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Johnny Gargano (c) (w/ Austin Theory) defeated Bronson Reed to retain the NXT North American Championship
This was a perfect midcard match for TakeOver, stuffed with great in-ring work, a compelling babyface vs. heel dynamic, and some close near falls.
Reed surprised Gargano early on by matching his athleticism before overpowering him with an overhead press into a fallaway slam. Gargano stretched Reed’s arm over the rope and went for a slingshot spear, but it wasn’t enough to take Reed down. Reed chopped Gargano down to the mat before Gargano came back with a chop block and a running forearm.
Gargano sent Reed to the floor and tried to follow it up with a plancha, but Reed caught him out of midair. Gargano escaped the grip of the challenger and thrust him into the corner of the announce desk. In the ring, Reed went for his seated splash, but Gargano rolled out of the way and landed a diving crossbody, which only got a one count.
The ribs of Reed were the target of Gargano during his beatdown. Reed started his comeback by turning a Gargano dive into a powerslam. He hit repeated forearms and a corner splash before planting Gargano with a chokeslam. Reed had a nice power spot where he went for a vertical suplex, Gargano tried to knee his way out of it, but Reed maintained control to turn it into a Death Valley driver.
Gargano managed to tie Reed up in the corner, taking control with an enziguiri and a backstabber. He landed a thrust kick on Reed’s midsection, but Reed countered the follow-up into a vertical suplex. Reed hoisted Gargano up into the electric chair, which Gargano turned into a reverse hurricanrana. Gargano then applied the Garga-No Escape.
Eventually, Reed reached the ropes to break the hold. Gargano attempted the One Final Beat, but Reed caught him and tossed Gargano back into the ring with a huge Splash Mountain. Gargano rolled out of the way of the Bullfrog Splash and landed his half of #DIY for two. He tried it again, but Reed caught the kick and fought back with a headbutt and a short-arm lariat.
Reed climbed the ropes for the Bullfrog Splash, but Theory distracted him, giving Gargano the chance to stop the dive. Gargano then attempted a top-rope hurricanrana, which didn’t come together correctly — it looked like Reed was supposed to catch Gargano, but he slipped. Reed hit a powerbomb, but when he went for the cover, Theory put Gargano’s foot on the ropes.
Out on the floor, Reed got in Theory’s face before catching a Gargano dive and sending him into Theory. Theory then took a bullet for Gargano as Reed hit a suicide dive. Back in the ring, Reed countered the One Final Beat into a slam for two. He tried to follow it up with a powerbomb, but Gargano rolled out of it and landed repeated thrust kicks. Reed came back with a kick of his own, but missed a top-rope moonsault.
Gargano hit a One Final Beat and then a second to retain the championship.
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Karrion Kross (w/ Scarlett) defeated Finn Bálor (c) to win the NXT Championship
Despite starting a bit slow, this built to a nice finish and was Kross’s best performance yet in NXT.
Neither man established an advantage for the first few minutes. Kross fired up with power moves until Bálor moved out of the way of a corner attack, forcing Kross shoulder-first into the ring post. Bálor then made Kross’s injured shoulder and arm the target of his attack.
Kross tried to power his way out of an armbar, but Bálor turned it into almost an arm-trap flatliner. Forcing Kross into the corner, the champion nailed Kross with a heel kick. Kross collapsed from the pain, in a clear callback to Bálor’s match with Kyle O’Reilly.
After that, Bálor altered his strategy, instead opting to target Kross’s midsection. Kross fired up and called for his finisher, but Bálor countered it with repeated shotgun dropkicks. Bálor went to the top rope and hit the Coup de Grace, but Kross kicked out at two, Kross then immediately applied a rear naked choke, which Bálor rolled out of with a stomp for good measure.
The champion applied a grounded abdominal stretch. Scarlett implored Kross to reach the ropes, and he finally did, crushing Bálor with a second Doomsday Saito. Two running forearm smashes were enough for Kross to pin Bálor and win the championship.
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Santos Escobar, flanked by Legado del Fantasma, was interviewed about his title win. He said LDF are family and called himself the emperor of lucha libre.
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The ring was filled with security ahead of the main event, trying to keep the two apart.
Kyle O’Reilly defeated Adam Cole in an Unsanctioned Match
This match went 40 minutes. Some will say that’s too long or that it jumped the shark, but I loved the wacky melodrama. These two absolutely killed each other in one of the most brutal WWE matches in history.
Right off the bat they traded strikes. O’Reilly sent Cole to the floor then immediately followed it up with a plancha. He applied an armbar at ringside, which Cole fought out of. O’Reilly downed Cole with a double-leg and sent him face-first into the barricade. He propped Cole up on a chair and laid in kicks, but Cole went for a piledriver, which O’Reilly fought out of.
Back in the ring, O’Reilly used the ropes to assist on a guillotine, but Cole shoved O’Reilly onto the apron and back to the floor. Cole produced a half-dozen chairs and attacked O’Reilly with one. He targeted O’Reilly’s back, hitting a neckbreaker onto a chair. O’Reilly eventually fought back, going for a kimura, but Cole countered with a ushigoroshi for two.
Cole continued his beatdown until a knee lift from O’Reilly bought him some time. O’Reilly went for a knee bar, but Cole was able to roll to the floor. As Cole regrouped on a chair, O’Reilly landed a diving dropkick. O’Reilly chucked a chair into Cole’s face for two before grabbing a chain. Cole stopped whatever O’Reilly was planning to use the chain for with a draping neckbreaker for two.
The chain that O’Reilly brought into the match was tied around the top rope by Cole. The two fought over the chain, with O’Reilly winning the battle with a forearm. O’Reilly landed chain-assisted Kawada kicks, but Cole countered with a chain-assisted figure four leglock. O’Reilly reversed the pressure, then they landed simultaneous knockout strikes for the double down.
They exchanged more strikes, but Cole countered running offense with a clothesline using the chain. Cole then hit a chain-assisted backstabber for two before propping up two chairs. They each tried to send each other into the chairs, with Cole attacking with a German suplex and a shining wizard for two.
Cole moved to the floor and tried to suplex O’Reilly onto the steel steps. O’Reilly countered and applied a guillotine before crushing Cole with a knee strike. It looked as if O’Reilly was about to suplex Cole into the steps, but he hesitated as the announcers discussed his inner turmoil. Cole tried to take advantage of the hesitation, but O’Reilly had it scouted.
They exchanged forearms on the announce table until O’Reilly crushed Cole with a brainbuster. The table did not even buckle. Cole retreated to the broadcast area and smashed a monitor over O’Reilly’s head. He searched under the ring and found a toolbox, removing a wrench from the box. Cole appeared to try to stab O’Reilly with it, but O’Reilly fought him off. Cole then grabbed a tire iron, but O’Reilly took him out and hit a rebound lariat.
O’Reilly used the chain to apply an armbar and then a triangle choke. Cole rapidly faded, but grabbed the tire iron and struck O’Reilly across the ribs with it to break the hold. The two then set up chairs in the middle of the ring and exchanged strikes. O’Reilly looked to gain the advantage until a low blow sent him to the mat. Cole followed it up with a great superkick for two.
Cole grabbed a chair and wrapped it around O’Reilly’s head. He was about to Pillmanize O’Reilly until a referee implored him to stop. Cole crushed the official with a right hand and then hit Panama Sunrise, but the official couldn’t make the count. Cole berated the unconscious official as O’Reilly rolled to the ramp, where Cole threw another chair into his face.
O’Reilly rolled to the floor, where Cole repeatedly sent him into the ringside fencing. It looked like Cole was setting up for something dastardly, but O’Reilly locked on a jumping guillotine. Cole drove O’Reilly into the stage, sending them crashing through it. He then kicked out the side of the stage, pulling O’Reilly through it.
Both men were bloodied from the bump through the stage, Cole on his hand and O’Reilly on his back. Cole crushed O’Reilly with a brainbuster onto the steel steps. He rolled O’Reilly into the ring and covered, but O’Reilly barely got his shoulder up at two.
Cole pulled down the knee pad and went for the Last Shot, but O’Reilly collapsed to the mat before he could hit it. O’Reilly avoided another try and locked on a kneebar on both legs, but Cole fought out of it with a right hand using a chain. Cole went for Panama Sunrise, but O’Reilly countered into a Death Valley driver and a soccer kick. O’Reilly then hit a Last Shot of his own for a fantastic near fall.
O’Reilly wrapped a chair around Cole’s ankle and set up for a diving stomp, but Cole popped up and smacked him with the chair. Cole propped O’Reilly in the corner and berated him by saying he was always better than him, so O’Reilly sent him to the mat with a low blow. O’Reilly then wrapped a chain around his knee and hit a diving knee drop to finally pick up the win.
On Thursday’s NXT UK: Prelude special, Tyler Bate earned a shot at the Heritage Cup Championship with a victory over rival Noam Dar.
Fought under Heritage Cup rules, Bate defeated Dar in the sixth round, two falls to one, after hitting the Tyler Driver ’97 to get the pin. The win is his fourth straight since he lost to current champion A-Kid in the Heritage Cup finals in December while this was Dar’s first match since he lost in the November’s Heritage Cup semifinals, also to A-Kid.
No date was announced for the rematch, but A-Kid appeared on the show and said he wanted to prove who was the best mat wrestler in NXT UK.
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Thursday’s show also featured some announcements for their regular weekly show, also on Thursdays:
Kenny Williams vs. Amir Jordan: The former tag team partners will go at it next week as Jordan demanded it following Williams turning on him last week.
Nathan Frazer (the former Ben Carter) vs. Saxon Huxley
Dar will host his Supernova Sessions interview segment with special guests former NXT UK Tag Team Champions Gallus.
A number one contender’s match is set for tonight’s NXT TakeOver: Stand & Deliver pre-show.
WWE has announced that Breezango (Tyler Breeze & Fandango) vs. Drake Maverick & Killian Dain will take place on tonight’s TakeOver: Stand & Deliver night two pre-show. The winner will get a shot at the NXT Tag Team titles, but WWE hasn’t revealed when that title match will be taking place.
At night one of TakeOver: Stand & Deliver, MSK (Wes Lee & Nash Carter) defeated The Grizzled Young Veterans (Zack Gibson & James Drake) and Legado Del Fantasma (Raul Mendoza & Joaquin Wilde) in a triple threat match to win the NXT Tag Team titles. The NXT Tag Team titles were vacant going into that match. Danny Burch & Oney Lorcan had to relinquish the titles last month after Burch suffered a separated shoulder.
On their way to winning this year’s men’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic, MSK defeated Maverick & Dain in the second round of the tournament.
The TakeOver: Stand & Deliver night two pre-show will begin at 7 p.m. Eastern time tonight. The pre-show will air live on Peacock in the United States and the WWE Network everywhere else, along with airing on WWE’s social media platforms. Tonight’s main card is airing live on Peacock in the U.S. and the WWE Network elsewhere. It will begin at 8 p.m. Eastern.
Here’s the updated card for tonight’s show:
NXT TakeOver: Stand & Deliver night two —
NXT Champion Finn Balor defends against Karrion Kross
Unsanctioned match: Adam Cole vs. Kyle O’Reilly
Ladder match to determine undisputed NXT Cruiserweight Champion: Jordan Devlin vs. Santos Escobar
NXT North American Champion Johnny Gargano defends against Bronson Reed
NXT Women’s Tag Team Champions Shotzi Blackheart & Ember Moon defend against Candice LeRae & Indi Hartwell
Tag team number one contender’s match: Breezango vs. Drake Maverick & Killian Dain (pre-show)
NXT UK joins in on WWE’s WrestleMania week festivities with a special event airing today.
NXT UK: Prelude will be headlined by WALTER defending his NXT United Kingdom Championship against Rampage Brown. The match is airing just one day after WALTER’s successful title defense against Tommaso Ciampa at NXT TakeOver: Stand & Deliver night one.
WALTER’s reign with the NXT United Kingdom Championship recently reached the two-year mark. Brown is undefeated since arriving in NXT UK last November.
The next challenger for A-Kid’s Heritage Cup Championship will be decided by a number one contender’s match on NXT UK: Prelude. Tyler Bate and Noam Dar will face off in a Heritage Cup rules match. Trent Seven will be in Bate’s corner, while Sha Samuels will be in Dar’s corner.
A tag team match rounds out the NXT UK: Prelude card, with NXT UK Women’s Champion Kay Lee Ray teaming with Isla Dawn against Meiko Satomura & Emilia McKenzie. Emilia McKenzie is Millie McKenzie’s new WWE in-ring name. She returned to NXT UK last week and confronted KLR. As KLR and Dawn were beating McKenzie down, Satomura then came out to make the save.
NXT UK: Prelude will begin at 3 p.m. EST/8 p.m. BST this afternoon and will stream on Peacock in the United States and the WWE Network everywhere else.
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The show opened with a video package running down all the matches on tonight’s NXT UK: Prelude special. The show comes to us from BT Sports Studios in London, Nigel McGuinness and Andy Shepherd are on commentary
Tyler Bate (w/ Trent Seven) beat Noam Dar (w/ Sha Samuels) two falls to one to earn a Heritage Cup Championship shot (15:40)
Quick thoughts: This was a great match between two of the best on the brand. Dar worked over Bate’s leg and had him limping in the later rounds. Bate scored the first fall early in round one with a roll-up, Dar tied him in Round 5, forcing Bate to tap from a leg lock. Bate scored the win in Round 6 after Tyler Driver ’97.
The Heritage Cup is a new trophy first introduced in September and won by A-Kid in late November. Heritage Cup matches are being contested under British Rules:
matches consist of six three-minute rounds with 20-second breaks between each round
matches are 2-out-of-3 falls
falls can be won by pinfall, submission, or count out
once a fall occurs, the round ends
the match ends once a wrestler has won two falls
in the event of a disqualification or knockout, the match instantly ends without the need for two falls
if all six rounds are completed, whoever is ahead on falls wins the match
Bate challenged A-Kid for the Cup once before and narrowly lost. He’s debuted a slightly tweaked, more relaxed and spiritual persona recently. Dar has been hosting his “Supernova Sessions” talk segment on NXT UK in recent months where he stirred things up both with A-Kid and Tyler Bate, among others, and hasn’t been in action since November. Seven and Samuels being in their respective protégé’s corners has been set up on the show as well.A-Kid appeared on screen and wished both men luck. He said he’d be watching closely.
Round 1:
They did an extended backslide spot early, where they pushed each other into opposite corners. Bate showed some crisp British style counters and got the first fall with a roll-up at only 1:15 of round one. Bate leads 1-0.
Round 2:
Bate locked in some body scissors but Dar managed to turn the hold into a pinning attempt. Bate got Dar in a cravat and they traded counters. Samuels tried to coach Dar and had some success as Dar repeatedly hit Bate in the head. They locked knuckles and shuffled for position, Bate had Dar down for a pin but he bridged out of it as the round ended.
Round 3:
Dar hit a leg kick to the thigh, then floored Bate with another kick and attacked the wrist. He proceeded to work over Bate’s legs and ankles, looking to ground The Big Strong Boi. Dar with a right hook had Bate down for a cover. Dar snapmared Bate into the rope, legs first, then hit a big slam off a back suplex lift. ate made it to the second turnbuckle and hit a flying European uppercut, then got Dar up for the Airplane Spin and actually continued to spin into the other direction as the time ran out. This was cool as he had Dar up there for a good 25 seconds.
Round 4:
Bate picked up where he left off and picked up Dar for another Airplane Spin, then hit his bounce-back lariat for a two-count. Dar came back with a body block for a near-fall of his own. Dar went for a half crab but Bate avoided the move and hit a right that sent Dar staggering. Dar kicked Bate’s leg out, which actually had Bate do a backflip from the impact. Both men were down as the round concluded.
Round 5:
Bate’s leg was hurt as he limped out of the corner. Dar caught ate of another bounce-back lariat attempt, locked in a leglock and Bate tapped at 0:40 of the round. Dar ties Bate 1-1 as we head to the final round.
Round 6:
Bate hit a deadlift German suplex for a two-count. Dar caught him with a roll-up for another two, Bate then hit a rolling kapa kick. Bate went to the top, Samuels wanted to throw him off but Seven grabbed him. Bate threw Dar on both men, then followed up with a dive on both. Dar looked to hit the Nova Roller but bate caught him with a punch and hit Tyler Driver ’97 for the pinfall victory at 1:34 of the round to win the match 2-1.
Bate and Seven celebrated after the match.
– Mark Andrews & Flash Morgan Webster were training at the UK Performance Center with Dani Luna; they talked about losing and needing to come back stronger
– a video looked at Ilja Dragunov’s transformation after his loss to WALTER last year; Dragunov snapped in a number of matches
– Piper Niven and Jack Starz were training at the UK Performance Center. Niven screamed at Starz and asked if he was ready and he screamed back that he was
– Jordan Devlin cut a short promo
Meiko Satomura & Emilia McKenzie beat UK Women’s Champion Kay Lee Ray & Isla Dawn (9:00)
Quick thoughts: This was a fun, fast paced tag team match that established McKenzie as a star. She looked good, throwing some signature suplexes and her spear on KLR, implying she might be able to beat her. She pinned Isla Dawn after a small package off a Fisherman’s buster attempt. After the match, Aoife Valkyrie walked out, seemingly challenging Satomura.
McKenzie made a surprise return to NXT UK last week (she had a few matches very early on in NXT UK’s run) while Satomura, who was hired as a player-coach lost a match to Kay Lee Ray for her NXT UK Women’s championship a few weeks back. Dawn debuted a more aggressive side lately and all four women ended up in a bawl last week.
McKenzie and Dawn started the match. Dawn overwhelmed Emilia with strikes early but got rolled up quickly. Both women tagged out and he got another meeting of “The Best in the World” and the “Forever Champion”. KLR got Meiko into the corner and kicked away at her. Dawn and KLR quickly tagged back and forth to work Satomura over.
Meiko came back with forearms against both women, then worked over Dawn’s arm and hit a handstand into a kne drop for a two count. McKenzie tagged back in and hit a running drop kick to Dawn’s head. KLR came back in and got Emilia up for the Gory bomb but got rolled up. Dawn received a German suplex for interfering before Emilia speared KLR for a two-count.
Dawn attacked Meiko at ringside, taking her out of the match for a little while, as Dawn and KLR worked over McKenzie. Dawn hit a backdrop driver for a two-count before getting the better off a strike exchange. McKenzie hit a cutter as both women crawled to their respective corners and made the tags. Satomura hit a head kick to a downed KLR, then leveled KLR with a Pele kick, followed by a Saito suplex for a near-fall as Dawn entered to make the save.
KLR hit the Gory Bomb on Satomura for what looked to be the win as McKenzie narrowly made the save. She German suplexed Dawn again for good measure. Satomura meanwhile locked KLR in a face lock but the champion made the ropes. KLR hit a face-first suplex slam, then tagged Dawn who hit a knee drop for yet another two-count.
At ringside, KLR looked to kick Emilia into the steps but she moved and hot a German suplex on the floor. She tagged in but got hit with a head kick by Dawn. Isla went for a fisherman’s buster but Emilia countered the move into a small package for the pin and the win. Satomura also prevented KLR from making the save.
McKenzie and Satomura celebrated when Aoife Valkyrie walked out and stared down Satomura. She removed a black feather and laid it down on the floor as her music played.
– A-Kid talked about looking forward to face Tyler Bate once again. He wants to build his legacy and proof that he is the best pure mat wrestler in NXT UK.
– Amir Jordan stormed into the building, looking for Kenny Williams who attacked him in their tag team match last week. he encountered Sid Scala who told him Kenny wasn’t here but promised they could settle their differences next week. Williams was encountered in the building and said it was him doing all the work in his team with Jordan. He said it was up to Amir to keep up with him.
– Gallus will be the guests of Noam Dar on next week’s Super Nova Sessions.
– Next week, Nathan Frazer (the former Ben Carter) faces Saxon Huxley and Amir Jordan clashes with Kenny Williams.
NXT UK Champion WALTER pinned Rampage Brown to retain (13:43)
Quick thoughts: This was the blueprint of a strong-style hoss fight and it was glorious as meat pounded on meat, 280-plus pound bodies were being hoisted through the air and meaty palms smashed into tender chests. They hit each other with all their big moves as Brown kicked out of lariats, power bombs and escaped numerous sleeper holds. WALTER kicked out o the Doctor Bomb and a huge top-rope power slam. Eventually, WALTER won after a German suplex, power bomb and Big Splash off the top.
WALTER has been the NXT UK champion for 734 days (more than two years) and has defeated all challengers, including Tommaso Ciampa just last night (even though this match here was certainly taped a few weeks ago). Brown has also been undefeated since arriving in NXT UK, being a veteran of the British scene dating back 20 years. WALTER and Brown battled three times before in PROGRESS, with Brown currently having a 2:1 edge (although WALTER won their mot recent match in 2018). Brown stepped up to challenge WALTER recently and the big Austrian in a sit-down interview that aired last week said he would never respect Brown, as to Brown wrestling is his job whereas to WALTER it is his life.
WALTER grabbed Brown in a waistlock right away and they battled for position. Brown evaded a chop in the corner and hit one of his own. In a battle of shoulder tackles, WALTER actually got thrown to the mat, but steamrolled Brown out of the corner. Brown hit a beautiful dropkick that sent WALTER to ringside. Brown ran him over on the outside, then went for a suplex but got rammed into the barricades and slammed onto the apron for his troubles.
WALTER bent Brown backwards over the ropes and hit him with some blows. WALTER was working towards a double wrist-lock but Brown powered out. WALTER hit a snapmare, kicked Brown’s back and locked in a Boston crab, which Brown actually escaped by picking WALTER’s ankle. brown actually hit a suplex on WALTER after the champion first failed to hit one of his own.
They inevitably traded chops before escalating into a striking exchange and WALTER hit a lateral press for a two-count. WALTER attempted a number of submissions, then reverted back to beating the piss out of Brown, who actually came back and hit a power slam on WALTER.
WALTER locked in the sleeper hold, then transitioned into a power bomb but Brown over-rotated out of it and threw WALTER down, then followed up with a flying shoulder block off the turnbuckles. Brown tried getting WALTER up for the Doctor Bomb but WALTER powered out. He hit a Shotgun dropkick, followed by the power bomb but Brown kicked out at two.
WALTER went up top for the Big Splash, but Brown stopped him and hit a huge top-rope power slam for another near-fall. Brown looked hit another tackle, got stopped with the sleeper but hit a Saito suplex followed by the Doctor Bomb. WALTER rolled away immediately and Brown was to spent to cover him immediately. Brown pummeled WALTER with clobbering forearms and went for another Doctor Bomb but WALTER back dropped out of it.
He chopped Brown across the throat, then followed with a lariat, then hit a second one but only for another two-count. WALTEr locked in another sleeper, a German suplex and power bomb but Brown kicked out once more. Finally, WALTER went up top and hit the Big Splash, the move that won him the title in his match with Pete Dunne almost two years ago to finally score a pin and successfully defend his championship.
The show went off the air as WALTER posed with the title belt and Nigel McGuinness asked who would be able to end the historic reign of the Ring General?
NXT TakeOver: Stand & Deliver kicked off with two new champions being crowned on night one.
In the main event, Raquel Gonzalez defeated Io Shirai to become NXT Women’s Champion and end Shirai’s 300-plus day title reign. MSK (Wes Lee & Nash Carter) also defeated The Grizzled Young Veterans (Zack Gibson & James Drake) and Legado Del Fantasma (Raul Mendoza & Joaquin Wilde) in a triple threat match last night to win the NXT Tag Team titles. The tag titles had been declared vacant after Danny Burch suffered a separated shoulder last month.
WALTER retained the NXT United Kingdom Championship by defeating Tommaso Ciampa in a violent battle, Pete Dunne staked his claim as the best technical wrestler by defeating Kushida, and Bronson Reed won a Gauntlet Eliminator match to become the number one contender to Johnny Gargano’s NXT North American Championship. Reed will challenge for Gargano’s title at TakeOver: Stand & Deliver night two tonight.
Paul “HHH” Levesque and Shawn Michaels spoke to the media following the first night of NXT TakeOver: Stand & Deliver, discussing the futures of Io Shirai, Toni Storm, WALTER, Zoey Stark, “the meeting” and more.
Full audio is available by clicking the red button at the bottom of this post.
Levesque said media reports about last week’s talent meeting were “inaccurate” and that if he wanted people to know what was discussed, he would have put out a memo about it. He said it was an informational meeting and no other groups were brought up.
Both Levesque and Michaels put over how unique and impactful NXT UK Champion WALTER is. When asked if he could see WALTER being more of a presence in the U.S., Levesque said the travel is just seven hours and that when travel restrictions are lifted, “all bets are off”. If he wants to work in both NXT and NXT UK, they can make it work.
Asked if Io Shirai is done with NXT, he said he finds it funny whenever a talent loses, it’s assumed they are getting called up. Both men put over Raquel Gonzalez’s work ethic and that this was the right time for her to win the title. Michaels said when he first saw Rhea Ripley and Gonzalez next to each other at an NXT house show, he knew they were money.
Similarly, Levesque said Toni Storm’s loss doesn’t mean her momentum is stopped. Both love Zoey Stark and put over her work ethic as well.
Raquel Gonzalez defeated Io Shirai to win the NXT Women’s Championship in the main event of night one of NXT TakeOver: Stand & Deliver.
Highlights from the match included Shirai connecting with a moonsault off the post to the ramp and a crossbody off the skull stage set piece.
The closing sequence saw Shirai hit a moonsault in the ring, but Gonzalez kicked out. Gonzalez followed up with a lariat and a one-armed powerbomb to secure the victory.
Gonzalez, 30, signed with WWE in 2016. She appeared as enhancement talent on NXT television in early 2017, then participated in the Mae Young Classic in the summer of that year as Reina Gonzalez. Her NXT ascent began when she became associated with Dakota Kai at NXT TakeOver: Portland in February 2020.
Shirai’s NXT Women’s title reign ended after 10 months as champ. She claimed the Championship at NXT TakeOver: In Your House on June 7, 2020, dethroning Charlotte Flair by pinning Rhea Ripley in a triple threat match.
Less than three months after making their debut, MSK are NXT Tag Team Champions.
At NXT TakeOver: Stand & Deliver night one tonight, MSK (Wes Lee & Nash Carter) defeated The Grizzled Young Veterans (Zack Gibson & James Drake) and Legado Del Fantasma (Raul Mendoza & Joaquin Wilde) in a triple threat match to win the NXT Tag Team titles. Lee pinned Gibson after MSK hit a double-team corkscrew blockbuster with Lee jumping from the second rope.
The NXT Tag Team titles were declared vacant last month after Danny Burch suffered a separated shoulder. Before having to relinquish the titles, Burch & Oney Lorcan had been the NXT Tag Team Champions since October of last year.
MSK (former Rascalz Dezmond Xavier & Zachary Wentz) made their NXT debut as entrants in this year’s men’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic. They won the tournament, defeating Isaiah “Swerve” Scott & Jake Atlas, Drake Maverick & Killian Dain, Legado Del Fantasma, and The Grizzled Young Veterans along the way.
Tonight was the first time MSK have wrestled since Lee suffered a broken hand while facing The Grizzled Young Veterans in the Dusty Classic finals this February. In storyline, Lee’s injury was blamed on an attack by The Grizzled Young Veterans. MSK were supposed to challenge Burch & Lorcan for the NXT Tag Team titles last month, but that was delayed due to Lee’s injury. Burch & Lorcan vs. MSK then never happened due to Burch separating his shoulder.
