Free agent tag team The Grizzled Young Veterans are launching a new independent wrestling promotion.
This June, Burning Heart Pro Wrestling will debut with a show taking place from the Liverpool Olympia in Liverpool, England. The promotion will be led by a committee of “top international wrestlers.”
Zack Gibson & James Drake of The Grizzled Young Veterans posted a video on Wednesday announcing the news. The promotion’s first show is set for Friday, June 21. Tickets go on sale this Monday (April 29).
Friday 21st June 2024 Burning Heart Pro Wrestling takes over the historic @LpoolOlympia
Led by a committee of international wrestlers. Created by wrestlers, for wrestlers and fans. Pro wrestling from the heart 🔥❤️
— Burning Heart Pro Wrestling (@burningheartpw) April 24, 2024
“It is our privilege to announce the arrival of Burning Heart Pro Wrestling,” Drake sais. “A new international wrestling promotion run by a committee of top, top international wrestlers.”
“The first show in Burning Heart Pro Wrestling will take place in my hometown on the 21st of June at the Liverpool Olympia,” Gibson added. “A venue rich in history that has seen its fair share of blood, sweat, and tears in a city with unrivaled heart. What better place for a company called Burning Heart to show the world exactly what they are about: pro wrestling from the heart.”
Gibson & Drake departed NXT last October when their WWE contracts expired. They had asked to be released from their contracts in April 2023 but had the request denied.
Since leaving WWE, The Grizzled Young Veterans have competed on the indies and for TNA Wrestling while still being free agents.
A best-of-three series for the TNA Tag Team titles kicks off on Impact tonight.
The belts are being contested in a series between champions ABC (Ace Austin & Chris Bey) and challengers The Grizzled Young Veterans (Zack Gibson & James Drake). Gibson & Drake were one of ABC’s challengers in a fatal four-way match at Hard to Kill last month. Upset that they didn’t get a straight-up title shot, GYV launched an attack on ABC last week.
Nic Nemeth is set to compete in his second-ever TNA match tonight. He made his debut by defeating Zachary Wentz last week. Tonight, Nemeth goes one-on-one with Trey Miguel.
Brian Myers vs. Kevin Knight and Masha Slamovich vs. Jody Threat are also set to air tonight. Plus, new Knockouts Tag Team Champions Decay (Havok & Rosemary) will be in action.
We’ll hear from Frankie Kazarian following his recent heel turn. And a new talk show will debut as Josh Alexander appears on the Sound Check with Alan Angels.
TNA will also look back at Knockouts Champion Jordynne Grace’s appearance in the WWE Royal Rumble.
Nic Nemeth defeated Trey Miguel (w/ Zachery Wentz)
Good match to open the show tonight. Trey Miguel was a great opponent to work with him. Time will tell if Nemeth has long term success in TNA, but he is off to a good start.
Wentz immediately distracted Nemeth and Miguel attacked, hitting a tope con giro. After that, the first few minutes of the match featured Miguel getting heat on Nemeth, often with the help of Wentz. Nemeth went for a fireman’s carry, but Miguel raked the eyes and threw Nemeth into the ring post. Miguel went for a springboard into the ring and Nemeth jumped up and hit a dropkick on Miguel as he was stretched out for a crossbody. That was cool.
Nemeth hit a Stinger Splash in the corner and a neck breaker before hitting 10 elbow drops in a row, but Miguel kicked out. Nemeth called for a superkick, but Wentz grabbed his foot and stopped it again. This time it was in front of the referee though, and the referee ejected Wentz, who threw a great classic heel temper tantrum. This allowed Miguel to hit a meteora for a 2-count. Miguel called for a superkick but as he went in, Nemeth hit one of his own and managed to get the pin.
–Steve Maclin came out and took out Nemeth from behind, offering some payback for the results of their brawl last week. The Rascalz teamed up with him, superkicking Nemeth at Maclin’s direction. Maclin nailed Nemeth with the KIA as the fans booed. I’m liking this feud so far. It shows how much Maclin has grown and how he very much so is a TNA guy, while Nemeth is trying to earn his way.
–Deaner was backstage with Kon and Kon interrupted his promo, saying that The Design was dead, and it was time to remind the world who the baddest man in TNA is. They “TO THE BREAK~!’ed” this segment fast, with Hannifan pitching it to break after saying “A relationship severed” with no emotion. I laughed.
The Decay (Rosemary & Havok) defeated Mila Moore & Savannah Thorne
Rosemary and Moore started the match, with Rosemary biting, choking, and overall being very violent to start. Thorne tagged in and hit a hard forearm to Rosemary, who no sold it and then tagged out to Havok. Thorne tried to run away, but Moore dropped off the apron to avoid being tagged in. Havok hit a Death Valley Driver on Thorne and then hit a combo chokebomb for the win.
–MK Ultra were shown to be watching the match closely, and Kelly and Slamovich claimed they wanted their rematch at No Surrender. Jody Threat and Dani Luna walked up and said they wanted to be in the picture again. Slamovich and Threat got into a shoving match, and it was announced that they would be facing each other tonight.
–Alan Angels was with Josh Alexander on the first episode of The Sound Check. Angels talked about how Alexander had to squash some bugs to get to the top of the business. Alexander said that it wasn’t about nefarious means, but working hard to get your shots. Angels said that Alexander didn’t give credit to people he should have, and he knew ho he was talking about. Alexander said he didn’t know what he was talking about, and Angels said that Alexander was not being a good example to his family, and at this Alexander walked out.
Brian Myers defeated Kevin Knight
This was a mostly nothing match when they went to picture in picture after Myers threw Knight into the apron and hit a back suplex on the floor. Like many of Knight’s matches in TNA/Impact, he got to show a lot of what makes him very good, but he loses in the end with Myers hitting a roster cut for the win. That said, Knight did look good, but I’d like to see them do more with him.
–Alisha and Eddie Edwards came down to the ring after the match and looked to be ready to lay a beatdown on Knight, but KUSHIDA came down and made the save as Myers and Edwards bailed.
–Chris Sabin was with Gia Miller, talking about Mustafa Ali indicating he was coming for the TNA X-Division championship. As Sabin was talking about how he knew who Ali was, Mustafa Ali’s political ad started playing on the TV with clips of Chris Sabin getting beaten down in the ring as Ali delivered a monologue about how he was going to bring something new to TNA to take out Sabin.
Jason Hotch and John Skyler came up laughing, and Sabin said that if they were so confident he could face Skyler next week, and Skyler did not look pleased about having to wrestle Sabin, but Hotch assured him that he would do fine and that Ali would be watching.
–Kazarian said that fans were not going to like his explanation about why he turned on Eric Young, but that he is the reason TNA exists today. He said he was the one in the video going into the water to dig up TNA in their original announcement video, and that he was done giving, and he was going to start taking. He said he had been overlooked, and that it stopped now, and he had zero desire to be the hero to the people, so he was going to become the monster he needed to be to succeed.
–The System was celebrating backstage, and Alex Shelley broke up the party to challenge Moose for a rematch for his TNA World Championship. Shelley said that he would be fighting Moose at No Surrender, but could go tonight if Moose wanted to, and Moose rejected it.
–A hype video aired for Ash by Elegance.
–Deaner came down to the ring looking distressed. He said that he had to admit that The Design was done now, and some fans gave a dramatic (and sarcastic) “Noooooooooo!” and I laughed. Deaner said he was wrong when he thought he could resurrect Violent by Design, and that if something was dead, it could never come back to life. Of course, this resulted in PCO’s scientists electrifying him and he rose up.
PCO defeated Deaner
PCO hit a code breaker in the corner and an inverted DDT before setting up Deaner for the PCOsault and nailing him for the win.
–Kon ran down after the match to take out PCO, but he also laid out Deaner. Kon wrenched the neck of Deaner, implying that he broke his neck like you do in the movies, and Kon then hit a chokeslam on PCO before doing The Iron Claw on PCO, attempting to squeeze the life out of him.
–AJ Francis walked up to Rich Swann, and Francis offered to manage Swann again, addressing Swann losing to Hendry on Xplosion. Swann said that whatever Francis was selling he wasn’t buying. Rhino walked by and Francis asked him if he needed help with Crazzy Steve and Rhino said, “**** off” before walking away. Francis then said, “See, that is why rhinos are going extinct. Can’t trust them.” That was hilarious. I like Francis here in TNA, especially if he is not wrestling.
–Jordynne Grace talked about her experience at the WWE Royal Rumble, and she said that she was so surprised when WWE wanted her to be in the match. They actually showed Grace watching footage of it on her phone, which is the first time I think I can ever recall actual WWE footage being on the air in TNA.
They showed the stadium, and Grace walking around backstage, and had actual footage of the Rumble itself with Michael Cole and Corey Graves talking about how she beat Naomi for the TNA Knockouts Championship. This was very cool, and the first example of WWE giving footage to another company to show like this, that I can recall.
This was a hard hitting, quick match, with Slamovich getting the win to continue to build to MK Ultra’s rematch for the TNA Knockouts World Tag Team Championship.
This was not a long match, though more competitive than some of the squashes on this show. Slamovich managed to hit the Snow Plough after Killer Kelly distracted Threat, despite Luna taking out Kelly to make the save.
–The System were shown backstage beating on KUSHIDA. I guess they didn’t like him saving Knight earlier in the show.
Grizzled Young Vets (James Drake & Zack Gibson) defeated ABC (Chris Bey & Ace Austin) in a Best 2/3 Series Match
Excellent match to start this best of 3 series, and GYV going up 1-0 is the perfect start to it.
The first in this 3 match series (should it require 3 matches) started here, with GYV immediately isolating Austin, and attempting to hit a double suplex on him. However, as they had Austin up in the air, Austin kneed both of them in the heads, causing them to stumble backwards into a blind tag from Bey while Austin was upside down in the suplex position. That was cool.
Beya and Austin exercised quick tags to isolate Gibson. Drake blind tagged in as Gibson hit the roes, and Bey did not notice, and turned right into a dropkick to the knee from Drake. Another cool spot there. Drake and Gibson started getting the heat on Bey. GYV are doing a great job getting over here in TNA, which is not a surprise since they are great, but it is so interesting to see how badly WWE fumbled them with the Dyad where here they are just the violent tag team looking for titles, and it works far better.
GYV continued their heat on Bey, hitting a series of double team moves before taunting Ace Austin. Bey managed to crawl through the legs of Drake and make the tag to Austin, who ran wild, hitting a double dropkick to Drake and Gibson. Austin hit a double stomp to Drake for a two count, but Gibson broke it up. Austin called for the 1-2-Sweet, but Drake cut it off. Bey, however, came in with a frog splash for a 2-count.
Gibson and Drake managed to shove Austin back to the corner, and as he was trapped with a shoulder tackle, Drake hit a flying kick to the face of the trapped Austin for a two count. Drake screamed that Austin was going to learn what it meant for the champions to be the underdogs before setting up a doomsday device. Austin hit a superkick to Gibson to break it up.
All 4 men faced off in the middle and started brawling, with both teams hitting double team moves and helping their own partners dodge and counter attacks. Drake smashed Bey into the steps after Bey hit a suicide dive to the floor. Austin hit a Fosbury Flop to the floor, but GYV were able to hit Grit Your Teeth back in the ring after clotheslining Austin with a scarf.
Final Thoughts
There were a lot of squash matches on this episode of TNA Impact. That isn’t to say there isn’t room for that, but if you cut one squash and gave a little more time to Threat and Slamovich, ti would have made the show a little better. However, this was a very watchable show, and another good episode of the new TNA Impact.
The Grizzled Young Veterans are coming to TNA Wrestling.
TNA shared a promo on Tuesday with The Grizzled Young Veterans (Zack Gibson & James Drake) revealing that they will debut for the promotion at Hard to Kill 2024. Gibson & Drake declared that they’re coming for the Impact Tag Team titles.
BREAKING: @JamesDrakePro and @ZackGibsonGYV will make their TNA debut at #HardToKill on January 13 LIVE on PPV from the Palms in Las Vegas!
“TNA has a long history of working with the top veteran teams in this industry, some for better and some for worse,” Gibson said. “We might not be the veterans that TNA are used to working with, but let me promise you this: we are the Veterans that TNA needs to work with to steer this ship in the right direction. Because God only knows teams like The Rascalz or The ABC are simply not the right men for the job.
“January 13, Hard to Kill, The GYV are coming to TNA. And we are coming for the TNA Tag Team titles.”
ABC (Ace Austin & Chris Bey) are the current Impact Tag Team Champions. The Rascalz (Trey Miguel & Zachary Wentz) are the other team that The Grizzled Young Veterans mentioned in their promo.
Gibson & Drake became free agents this October when they departed WWE. They had requested their release from the company in April, but the request was denied and they remained with WWE/NXT until their contracts expired.
The Grizzled Young Veterans are former NXT UK Tag Team Champions.
Hard to Kill is being held at the Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas on Saturday, January 13. Impact Wrestling’s name change back to TNA Wrestling officially goes into effect that night.
Here’s everything that’s been announced for the pay-per-view so far:
Impact World Champion Alex Shelley defends against Moose
Knockouts Champion Trinity defends against Jordynne Grace
X-Division Champion Chris Sabin defends against KUSHIDA and El Hijo del Vikingo in a three-way match
Knockouts Ultimate X match (participants to be announced)
PCO vs. Dirty Dango
The Grizzled Young Veterans make their TNA debut
Pre-show match: Rich Swann vs. Steve Maclin
Pre-show match: Eric Young & Frankie Kazarian vs. Brian Myers & Eddie Edwards
Pre-show match: Digital Media Champion Tommy Dreamer defends against Crazzy Steve
With their WWE contracts expiring, The Grizzled Young Veterans (Zack Gibson & James Drake) uploaded a promo on Saturday declaring that they are back. Gibson & Drake also announced that they’re now available for bookings. They called it a “global takeover” and noted that they will be based out of the United States.
In their promo, Gibson & Drake said they don’t need spooky lights, special effects, or overproduction.
“We took a long look around and we said to ourselves, ‘If this is the big life, then we’re not looking to live it.’ We are sick of taking the safe option. We are sick of reading the same old boring scripts that go absolutely nowhere,” Drake said.
“A very famous British wrestler told us when we arrived in the States that it was time for us to put our head down and start listening to orders if we wanted to succeed,” Gibson said. “He said that he wanted us to have all the fun out of our system because there’s no pirates here. Well I am sorry for anyone that had different expectations for us. I am sorry that we can’t be who you wanted us to be. Simply put: we are not politicians. It’s a pirate’s life for us.”
In NXT recently, Gibson & Drake used the names Rip Fowler & Jagger Reid. They were part of the Schism with Joe Gacy and Ava.
Gibson & Drake requested their release from WWE this April, but the request was not granted. They had their final match for NXT this August.
Gibson & Drake became the inaugural NXT UK Tag Team Champions in 2019. They were stars on the UK indie scene prior to signing with WWE.
One week before their NXT Championship match at Halloween Havoc, Tommaso Ciampa & Bron Breakker will team up on NXT.
WWE has announced that Ciampa & Breakker will face The Grizzled Young Veterans in tag team action on NXT next Tuesday. The match was set up by a confrontation between Ciampa & Breakker and The Grizzled Young Veterans that took place on NXT tonight.
Ciampa defeated Joe Gacy in a non-title match on tonight’s NXT. If Gacy had won, he would have been added to Ciampa and Breakker’s NXT Championship match at Halloween Havoc.
The Grizzled Young Veterans interrupted a backstage interview with Ciampa following his match against Gacy. Zack Gibson said he and James Drake can’t wait to watch Ciampa lose the NXT Championship to a rookie. Breakker then walked up and challenged The Grizzled Young Veterans to a match, but Gibson said he and Drake weren’t dressed for a fight.
Breakker told Ciampa that he’ll stand by his side until Halloween Havoc because he wants to beat Ciampa at his best.
Halloween Havoc is a special episode of NXT that’s taking place on Tuesday, October 26.
Ciampa & Breakker have teamed together once before, defeating Pete Dunne & Ridge Holland on NXT three weeks ago.
Odyssey Jones vs. Andre Chase is also set for next Tuesday’s NXT. Plus, Tony D’Angelo will be in action.
The NXT Tag Team titles will be on the line as MSK defend against Josh Briggs & Brooks Jensen, Carmelo Hayes & Trick Williams, and The Grizzled Young Veterans in a fatal four-way match. The match was originally announced as an eight-man tag before being changed.
Tonight’s show will also feature Odyssey Jones vs. LA Knight, Indi Hartwell vs. Mei Ying, Ikemen Jiro vs. Joe Gacy, Cora Jade in action, the debut of Tony D’Angelo, and Mandy Rose vs. Ember Moon.
Rose vs. Moon will kick off tonight’s show. Last week, Rose set her sights on the NXT Women’s Championship as Toxic Attraction attacked Raquel Gonzalez following her title defense against Franky Monet. Rose laid out Gonzalez with a knee strike and then posed with Gonzalez’s NXT Women’s title belt.
We may also find out what’s next for NXT Champion Tommaso Ciampa and Bron Breakker, who are on a collision course toward a match against each other.
Our live coverage begins at 8 p.m. Eastern time.
**********
The show opened with Vic Joseph explaining that the original eight-man tag was turned into a four-way tag team match because nobody could get along.
Mandy Rose (with Jacy Jayne and Gigi Dolan) defeated Ember Moon
A fine, albeit short match. Not feeling hopeful for Ember’s future in this new NXT.
Moon gained control early in the match, putting Rose in a tree of woe position. The rest of Toxic Attraction pulled her out of the ring. Moon responded with a tope suicida that took out Jayne. Rose cut off Moon as she was re-entering the ring and hit a reverse suplex for a two count. Rose was in control until Moon cut her off with a punch.
Moon went to the middle rope and connected with a codebreaker for a nearfall. She missed the Eclipse then walked right into a knee strike by Rose and was pinned.
On commentary, Beth Phoenix said that Adam will handle their business, in reference to the angle on SmackDown where Seth Rollins invaded Edge and Beth’s house.
Legado Del Fantasma bragged about taking out Hit Row, who are now moving to SmackDown as a result of the Draft. Escobar challenged Swerve for the NXT North American Championship.
LA Knight defeated Odyssey Jones
Basic match, but I thought Jones looked very good here for what they want him to do. The finish was WWE 101 booking where the guy is on offense for the bulk of the match then loses after taking one move, which is ludicrous.
Crowd chanted for Jones as the match started. Jones splashed Knight and threw him around like a ragdoll in the ring. Knight exited the ring as Jones stalked Knight, who found an opening by tripping Jones, sending him to the middle turnbuckle.
Knight remained in control until he tried to bodyslam Jones, who responded by splashing Knight in a counter. Jones hit a knee to the gut when Andre Chase appeared on the apron to distract Jones. This allowed Knight to plant Jones with a reverse cutter for the win, with Chase holding down Jones’ foot.
McKenzie Mitchell interviewed Cameron Grimes, who put over all the current romances going on in NXT. He said that he was on a search to find a lucky lady. Pete Dunne and Ridge Holland walked in. Dunne said he was the baddest man in NXT. He challenged Grimes to a match. Grimes ignored him and instead started to chat with some ladies nearby.
Kyle O’Reilly walked up to Von Wagner in the locker room and asked why he’s had his back for the last two weeks. Wagner referred to himself in the third person strangely and said that O’Reilly has heart. O’Reilly said after the last year, he doesn’t trust anybody and told Wagner to stay out of his way.
Tommaso Ciampa came out for a promo. He said Halloween Havoc returns October 26 on NXT, and the champ needs an opponent. He mentioned one man in particular who says he’s not a patient man and that he wants to be the flag bearer in NXT. Ciampa said actions speak louder than words. He asked who had the balls to take the NXT title from him.
This brought out Bron Breakker. He told Ciampa that he’s shown nothing for respect for him. He wants to be the NXT Champion. He said he has the biggest balls in the locker room and that he and the crowd want the title shot. Ciampa said the difference between him and Breakker is that Breakker wants the NXT title, but Ciampa needs it. He told Breakker that he has three weeks to go from an intern to a PHD, accepting his challenge.
It is hilarious that Breakker is a Steiner with a capital S, looking like his father, wrestling like a Steiner and cutting promos just like Scott, yet everyone on TV is banned from stating the obvious. The WWE Universe is a universe completely disconnected from ours.
Joe Gacy in a backstage promo said that while social media crashed, he knew one platform that won’t crash: NXT 2.0. He will use the ring as our safe space, conflict can be resolved peacefully and that yes, there can be two winners.
Indi Hartwell and Persia Pirotta were talking about how many condoms Hartwell used during her honeymoon backstage when they opened a creepy door they saw was filled with smoke. Mei Ying and Boa were inside, with Boa telling them to get out.
Joe Gacy defeated Ikemen Jiro
Another short match. They are 100% into this Gacy gimmick.
Gacy offered a handshake, with Jiro accepting. After Ikemen connected with a strike, Gacy told Jiro to hit him again. Commentary mentioned that Gacy has received national attention as a result of what WWE thinks are woke promos. Gacy hit a clothesline in the corner, then a suplex. Ikemen cut him off with a sloppy DDT then used his jacket for a comeback.
Ikemen hit a nice hurricanrana off the top rope but missed a knee strike. Gacy springboarded off the ropes then planted Ikemen with a clothesline for the win.
After the match, Gacy lifted Ikemen to his feet and hugged him. Ikemen looked confused. As Gacy was walking to the back, a creepy bald man stared at him in the stands. Turns out, the creepy bald man was in fact Parker Boudreaux, who looked unrecognizable. He is going under the name Harland in NXT.
Cora Jade, whose gimmick is “skateboarder”, is up next.
Duke Hudson is now a professional poker player. In Duke’s Poker Room, we don’t discriminate, you see. THIS IS 1990s WWF SUPERSTARS.
Cora Jade defeated Franky Monet
Another short match. Like with Ember, I think things aren’t looking good for Franky if she isn’t called up soon.
Cora Jade came to the ring on a skateboard with a song that was straight up off of a Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater game from 1999. Virginia Perry, who was supposed to wrestle her, was suddenly jumped by Franky Monet, who was just standing there for…reasons?
Monet was in total control from the start, hitting knees in the corner. Trey Baxter suddenly popped up at ringside supporting Jade. Jade missed a splash in the corner and tried to rally back but Monet cut her off. Monet went for her finish but Jade rolled her up and pinned Monet.
All the tag teams in the tag team title match attacked one another backstage. Vic Joseph said that the title match was now elimination style.
Ciampa was cutting a promo when Gacy walked up to him and said he had toxic energy. He speaks for a voice struggling to be heard and basically said he wanted a title match. Ciampa said if Gacy beats him next week, he can be in the Halloween Havoc title match. Ciampa told Gacy that the ring won’t be a safe space for him next week.
Raquel Gonzalez looked mad as she was walking into the Performance Center.
Pete Dunne defeated Cameron Grimes
I liked this while it lasted, but it did not last long, the theme to most NXT TV matches these days.
Grimes started in control, but Dunne cut him off with a clothesline. He manipulated Grimes’ fingers but Grimes fought back, only to get taken down. Dunne missed a knee in the corner, allowing Grimes to make his comeback. He went to the top rope with a clothesline for a nearfall.
The two traded offense until Holland took Dunne out of the ring. O’Reilly was the latest person to appear out of thin air to attack Holland, who responded by throwing O’Reilly over the announce table. Amongst all the confusion, Dunne was able to hit the Bitter End on Grimes for the win.
O’Reilly jumped Dunne after the match, but he and Holland quickly took him out like he was nothing.
Tony D’Angelo, who has connections, is up next.
Hit Row vignette. Top Dolla made it clear they were not running away from Legado Del Fantasma. B-Fab told Elektra next time she won’t be so nice. Swerve accepted Escobar’s North American title challenge.
Von Wagner was shown helping O’Reilly to his feet after he was laid out.
Tony D’Angelo defeated Malik Blade
Not good at all. D’Angelo is nowhere near close to be on NXT television. However long this match went, it needed to be cut in half.
D’Angelo came to the ring wearing a velvet tracksuit. The crowd liked D’Angelo. Blade cut him off, hitting a dropkick that sent him out of the ring. D’Angelo was able to make a comeback. D’Angelo is not ready for NXT TV by any stretch of the imagination. Blade cut him off again and hit a crossbody for a nearfall. D’Angelo tripped Blade into the turnbuckle, hit a belly-to-belly suplex, then pinned Blade with a northern lights suplex, then slowly followed with a twisting fisherman’s buster.
Backstage, Carmelo Hayes and Trick Williams talked about the tag team title match. Hayes brought up he didn’t even cash in his Breakout title contract. Williams clarified they were bout it bout it.
Indi Hartwell defeated Mei Ying
Bad. Add the 10,000 year old lady who was trained by dragons to the list of people not long for this version of NXT.
The two had a very long feeling out process until Ying was able to take control with a neck hold, then eventually a nerve choke. Mei Ying shoved Hartwell into the turnbuckle outside of the ring. Persia Pirotta was the 36346th person to appear out of thin air and distracted Mei Ying, leaving the opening for Hartwell to post her in the corner. This allowed Hartwell to pin Ying after a springboard elbow.
Backstage, Lash Legend said if you thought last week’s show was great, next week she will spill some hot tea that will make the Urban Meyer story seem tame. I am not a football guy, but Meyer I believe is a coach for the Jaguars. Who owns the Jaguars? Hmm. Anyway, Tony D’Angelo walked in and wanted to be part of next week’s show. Lash seemed interested, then talked about how she shut down Facebook and Instagram yesterday.
A Diamond Mine promo aired introducing every member of the stable, I guess for those who are new. Considering last week’s rating, there are not many new people watching this.
Raquel Gonzalez came down to the ring for a promo. She dared Mandy Rose to try and touch her title again. This brought out Toxic Attraction. Rose said she used to admire Gonzalez, but now she just comes off as desperate, knowing her title reign is about to come to an end. She said Toxic Attraction are taking over. Gigi Dolan said that they are championship material, and you can’t stop but look in awe of us. Gonzalez brought up the stitches she gave Dolan last week, which Dolan did not like.
Jacey Jayne said that we can add jealousy to go with being desperate. Jayne said that they are all over Raw and SmackDown and we are the face of NXT. Soon, they’ll be holding all the gold in NXT. They are not just Toxic Attraction, they ARE the attraction.
The trio then circled around the ring as Rose asked if they should have some fun. Zoey Stark and Io Shirai entered for the save, daring Toxic Attraction to attack. They backed down as the babyfaces stood in the ring.
O’Reilly was icing his shoulder when Von Wagner walked up to him and said whether he likes it or not, he is the only one that has O’Reilly’s back and they are taking on Pete Dunne and Ridge Holland next week.
Gonzalez, Stark, and Shirai were backstage talking about how they didn’t like Toxic Attraction more than they didn’t like each other. Hartwell and Pirotta walked up and told the Tag Team Champions that they wanted a title match as well. I guess Johnny Garango and Candice LeRae have just disappeared and we’re moving on from The Way.
MSK defeated Grizzled Young Veterans (Zack Gibson and James Drake), Brooks Jensen and Josh Briggs, and Carmelo Hayes and Trick Williams to retain the NXT Tag Team titles
This had no choice but to be the best match on the show. Everyone looked good, even Jensen and Briggs. They are clearly green, but they looked good and did what they needed to do to be the powerhouse team in the match.
Everyone tagged in early and did their stuff. Most of it looked good. Briggs and Jensen ended up gaining control, and allowed Wes Lee to hit a running tope con hilo to the floor, taking out Hayes and Williams. MSK pinned Williams with an assisted neckbreaker off the top rope, scoring the first elimination.
Back from the break, Zack Gibson of the Grizzled Young Vets controlled Wes Lee. Drake was tagged in and took control, but MSK cut them off, with Nash Carter hitting a moonsault off the turnbuckle and to the floor, taking out the GYV. Jensen was able to tag in and quickly pinned Gibson with an assist from Briggs. That left MSK and Jensen & Briggs.
Briggs hit Lee with a big boot, with Jensen planting him with a side Russian leg sweep at the same time. The two controlled Lee, hitting a double chokeslam. Carter hit a big crossbody to the floor, taking out Jensen. In the confusion, Lee was able to get a victory roll over Briggs for the pin and to retain the titles.
Jensen and Briggs grabbed the titles after the match. They gave them to MSK as they left, establishing themselves as babyfaces. As they were leaving, Imperium (Marcel Barthel and Fabian Aichner) ran in and attacked MSK. Jensen and Woods came in and chased away the heels, helping MSK to their feet as the show ended.
Final Thoughts:
Well, let’s see what I can remember.
I said this on Twitter as the show was going on, but this was like if WCW Nitro booked by Vince Russo had a lovechild with 1992 WWF Superstars. Goofy gimmicks, wrestlers not even close to being ready for national television, 2 minute matches and lots of tall, good-looking people are all over this show. It’s hard to absorb anything when so much happens. I think it’s the end result of a bunch of corporate people plus Kevin Dunn and Bruce Prichard trying to figure out how to draw in the 18-49 demographic. This is what they think will work. I guess we’ll see if they’re right.
On the plus side, we have some things announced for Halloween Havoc in a few weeks and there’s a clear direction. So there’s that. The old NXT guard isn’t going to like this. But WWE doesn’t want the old NXT guard. They’ve given that floor to AEW to run away with after years of attempting, and utterly failing, to thwart them. WWE corporate wants…this. And this is what they’ll get.
WWE has revealed how NXT’s next Tag Team Champions will be decided.
On tonight’s episode of NXT, it was announced that MSK (Wes Lee & Nash Carter), The Grizzled Young Veterans (Zack Gibson & James Drake), and Legado Del Fantasma (Raul Mendoza & Joaquin Wilde) will face off in a triple threat match at TakeOver: Stand & Deliver night one. The winning team will become the new NXT Tag Team Champions.
The NXT Tag Team titles were declared vacant after Danny Burch suffered a separated shoulder while teaming with Oney Lorcan against Finn Balor & Karrion Kross in the main event of last week’s NXT. It was said tonight that Burch is expected to be out of action for six months.
Lorcan & Burch had been NXT Tag Team Champions since winning the titles from Breezango in October of last year.
MSK defeated The Grizzled Young Veterans in the men’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic finals at TakeOver: Vengeance Day last month. MSK were supposed to challenge for Lorcan & Burch’s Tag Team titles on NXT three weeks ago, but that didn’t happen due to Lee suffering a broken hand. In storyline, the injury was blamed on an attack by The Grizzled Young Veterans.
Mendoza & Wilde defeated Breezango on NXT last week.
Legado Del Fantasma’s Santos Escobar is also set for action at TakeOver: Stand & Deliver. NXT Cruiserweight Champions Escobar and Jordan Devlin will face off in a title unification match at night two of the event.
TakeOver: Stand & Deliver night one will air live on the USA Network on Wednesday, April 7. Night two will be live on Peacock in the United States and live on the WWE Network everywhere else. Night one will be headlined by Io Shirai defending her NXT Women’s Championship against Raquel Gonzalez, while night two will be headlined by Balor defending his NXT Championship against Kross.
One of the Tag Team title matches that had been announced for next week’s NXT may no longer be taking place on the episode.
Men’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic winners MSK (Wes Lee & Nash Carter) had been set to challenge for Oney Lorcan & Danny Burch’s NXT Tag Team titles next Wednesday, but there was a backstage segment on tonight’s show where MSK were attacked by The Grizzled Young Veterans (Zack Gibson & James Drake). Gibson later cut a promo and claimed that Lee’s hand had been broken when Gibson used a chair in the attack.
Drake said The Grizzled Young Veterans had been given a “hefty fine” by NXT general manager William Regal following the attack.
WWE didn’t address the status of the Lorcan & Burch vs. MSK NXT Tag Team title match, but it wasn’t promoted for next week’s show after the backstage attack. Women’s Dusty Classic winners Dakota Kai & Raquel Gonzalez will challenge for Nia Jax & Shayna Baszler’s WWE Women’s Tag Team titles on NXT next Wednesday.
MSK (former Rascalz Dezmond Xavier & Zachary Wentz) made their NXT debut in this year’s men’s Dusty Classic. They defeated The Grizzled Young Veterans in the tournament finals at TakeOver: Vengeance Day earlier this month. This was the second straight year that The Grizzled Young Veterans lost in the Dusty Classic finals. Matt Riddle & Pete Dunne defeated them to win the 2020 tournament.
The Grizzled Young Veterans defeated Drake Maverick & Killian Dain on NXT tonight.
Two teams that took part in this year’s men’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic are set for action on Wednesday’s episode of NXT.
WWE has announced that The Grizzled Young Veterans (Zack Gibson & James Drake) vs. Drake Maverick & Killian Dain will take place on this week’s NXT episode. It will be the first time each team has wrestled since their respective losses in the Dusty Classic.
The Grizzled Young Veterans made it to the finals of the men’s Dusty Classic but lost to MSK (Wes Lee & Nash Carter) at NXT TakeOver: Vengeance Day earlier this month. Gibson & Drake defeated Ever-Rise (Chase Parker & Matt Martel), Kushida & Leon Ruff, and Tommaso Ciampa & Timothy Thatcher in the first three rounds of the tournament.
Maverick & Dain defeated Curt Stallion & August Grey in the first round of the Dusty Classic but lost to MSK in the quarterfinals.
This was the second straight year that The Grizzled Young Veterans lost in the Dusty Classic finals. Matt Riddle & Pete Dunne defeated Gibson & Drake to win the 2020 tournament.
Here’s the updated lineup for this week’s NXT:
After turning against Kyle O’Reilly and attacking NXT Champion Finn Balor, Adam Cole will explain his actions
Non-title no DQ match: Karrion Kross vs. NXT Cruiserweight Champion Santos Escobar
Non-title match: NXT North American Champion Johnny Gargano vs. Dexter Lumis
Xia Li vs. Kacy Catanzaro
The Grizzled Young Veterans vs. Drake Maverick & Killian Dain
The 2021 men’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic is down to its final two teams.
The Grizzled Young Veterans (Zack Gibson & James Drake) will face MSK (Wes Lee & Nash Carter) in the men’s Dusty Classic finals at NXT TakeOver: Vengeance Day this Sunday. The winning team will receive the Dusty Cup and a shot at Oney Lorcan & Danny Burch’s NXT Tag Team titles.
The Grizzled Young Veterans defeated Tommaso Ciampa & Timothy Thatcher in the main event of tonight’s NXT to advance to the finals. The Grizzled Young Veterans had defeated Ever-Rise (Chase Parker & Matt Martel) in the first round of the tournament and Kushida & Leon Ruff in the quarterfinals.
MSK advanced to the finals by defeating Legado Del Fantasma’s Raul Mendoza & Joaquin Wilde on NXT tonight. MSK defeated Isaiah “Swerve” Scott & Jake Atlas in the first round and Drake Maverick & Killian Dain in the quarterfinals.
MSK (former Rascalz members Dezmond Xavier & Zachary Wentz) made their NXT debut in this year’s Dusty Classic.
The Grizzled Young Veterans are in the Dusty Classic finals for the second straight year. They lost to Matt Riddle & Pete Dunne in the finals of the 2020 tournament.
Here’s the updated card for TakeOver: Vengeance Day:
NXT Champion Finn Balor defends against Pete Dunne
NXT Women’s Champion Io Shirai defends against Toni Storm and Mercedes Martinez in a triple threat match
NXT North American Champion Johnny Gargano defends against Kushida
Men’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic finals: The Grizzled Young Veterans (Zack Gibson & James Drake) vs. MSK (Wes Lee & Nash Carter)
Women’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic finals: Shotzi Blackheart & Ember Moon vs. Dakota Kai & Raquel Gonzalez
The quarterfinals of the men’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic will kick off on NXT next week.
WWE has announced that the next round of the men’s Dusty Classic will begin with MSK vs. Drake Maverick & Killian Dain and The Grizzled Young Veterans vs. Kushida & Leon Ruff taking place on NXT next Wednesday. Kushida & Ruff advanced in the tournament by defeating NXT North American Champion Johnny Gargano & Austin Theory in a first round match on NXT tonight.
MSK and The Grizzled Young Veterans both won first round matches on last week’s NXT, while Maverick & Dain advanced by winning a first round match on last Friday’s 205 Live. MSK made their debut by defeating Isaiah “Swerve” Scott & Jake Atlas, The Grizzled Young Veterans defeated Ever-Rise, and Maverick & Dain defeated Curt Stallion & August Grey.
MSK were formerly known as The Rascalz. Dezmond Xavier’s new in-ring name is Wes Lee and Zachary Wentz is now Nash Carter.
There’s still one first round match remaining in the men’s Dusty Classic. Tony Nese & Ariya Daivari vs. Ashante “Thee” Adonis & Desmond Troy had been announced for this week’s 205 Live, but it was said that Adonis isn’t cleared to compete in the match after losing to Karrion Kross on NXT tonight. Kross also put Troy in the Kross Jacket after that match.
The Nese & Daivari vs. Adonis & Troy winner was set to face Undisputed Era’s Adam Cole & Roderick Strong in the quarterfinals. WWE uploaded a post-NXT video tonight where — after their Fight Pit match against each other — Tommaso Ciampa told Timothy Thatcher that he’s heard there’s an opening in the Dusty Classic
Cole & Strong, Kushida & Ruff, and The Grizzled Young Veterans have advanced to the quarterfinals from the left side of the bracket. MSK, Maverick & Dain, Gran Metalik & Lince Dorado, and Legado Del Fantasma’s Raul Mendoza & Joaquin Wilde have advanced from the right side of the bracket. The team that wins the tournament will get the Dusty Cup and a shot at Oney Lorcan & Danny Burch’s NXT Tag Team titles.
Next Wednesday’s NXT will also feature NXT Champion Finn Balor & Kyle O’Reilly facing Lorcan & Burch in a non-title match and NXT Cruiserweight Champion Santos Escobar defending his title against Curt Stallion.
The winners of this year’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic were crowned on NXT last night.
Matt Riddle & Pete Dunne won the Dusty Classic by defeating The Grizzled Young Veterans (Zack Gibson & James Drake) in last night’s main event. In addition to winning the Dusty Cup, Riddle & Dunne will challenge Undisputed Era’s Kyle O’Reilly & Bobby Fish for the NXT Tag Team titles at TakeOver: Portland.
Adam Cole’s challenger for TakeOver was also confirmed last night. In Portland, Tommaso Ciampa will get a shot to reclaim the title he never lost.
Tegan Nox and Dakota Kai faced off in a grudge match last night, and Dominik Dijakovic took a step toward becoming the first challenger for Keith Lee’s North American title.
Taped at The Brentwood Centre in Brentwood, England on October 5, 2019
Quick results —
– Joe Coffey pinned Tyson T-Bone in a quick match.
– Isla Dawn defeated Killer Kelly in a fun match. This was Kelly’s return to the ring after a knee injury suffered over the summer.
– A video profiled Piper Niven, who said she wanted to be a role model to anybody not comfortable with themselves. In another video, Kassius Ohno stated he would take out Tyler Bate next week.
– A very good main event between The Grizzled Young Veterans and Mark Andrews & Flash Morgan Webster ended in a double DQ when Gallus attacked the Veterans and Imperium attacked Webster & Andrews.
Gallus and Imperium eventually squared off. Ilja Dragunov, who Alexander Wolfe had tried to recruit last week, then also entered and eventually sided with Gallus. The two factions brawled as the show went off the air.
Full rundown —
The show opened with a graphic plugging tonight’s main event of The Grizzled Young Veterans vs. Mark Andrews & Flash Morgan Webster.
Joe Coffey pinned Tyson T-Bone after All the Best for the Bells (4:52)
They traded fists early until T-Bone evaded a lariat and hit a kick and a crossbody. Coffey came back with a belly-to-belly and a backbreaker. He applied an armbar and grounded T-Bone for a while, including rolling through on a hip toss.
Coffey evaded an elbow in the corner, hit a crossbody off the second turnbuckle, and followed with the Glasgow Sendoff and All the Best for the Bells for the victory.
– Alicia Taylor interviewed Xia Brookside, who said she was working the hardest she ever had and would show Kay Lee Ray what she was really made of.
– A video plugged the upcoming debut of Ridge Holland.
– An in-depth look at Piper Niven aired. Niven said she first fell in love with wrestling when she was home from school sick and stumbled upon an Undertaker match. She started training at 16.
Niven said she had her sights set on the NXT UK Women’s title and wanted to be a role model for young people not feeling confident about themselves.
Isla Dawn pinned Killer Kelly with a bridging German suplex (4:24)
Kelly tried going for a kick, but Dawn evaded her and applied a single-leg Boston crab, focusing on Kelly’s previously injured knee. Dawn followed up with a dropkick.
Kelly came back with some ground and pound, kicks, and a clothesline. Dawn came back by slamming Kelly repeatedly into the corner, then went for a Saito suplex that was blocked. Dawn hit a knee and then got a suplex in for a near fall.
Kelly fled to the apron, snapped Dawn’s neck on the top rope, and followed up with two shotgun dropkicks. Kelly went for the Carnation Revolution, but Dawn countered into a bridging German suplex for the pinfall victory.
– A graphic plugged Kassius Ohno vs. Tyler Bate for next week. A video of Ohno then aired, where he questioned what British Strong Style was. Ohno said strong style was created by Antonio Inoki and British Strong Style thought it sounded cool and took the name. All the while Ohno was showing what real British wrestling looked like.
Ohno said Dunne was gone, Seven was in shambles, and only Tyler Bate was left. He said he would extinguish British Strong Style and see Bate next week.
– A graphic plugged Xia Brookside vs. Kay Lee Ray and Travis Banks vs. Ligero for next week.
Flash Morgan Webster & Mark Andrews vs. The Grizzled Young Veterans (James Drake & Zack Gibson) ended in a double DQ (19:30)
Gibson and Webster started out with Gibson manhandling the smaller man. Webster came back with a side headlock and grounded Gibson for a while. Gibson finally got a leglock in and tagged Drake, who briefly took over.
Webster tagged out and Drake fled to ringside. Drake and Andrews traded quick pinfall attempts. Andrews and Webster tagged in and out quickly and trapped Drake in their corner. Gibson managed to blind tag in, but the Veterans were quickly stopped with double dropkicks. The faces isolated Gibson and hit their standing moonsault/somersault senton combo.
The Veterans then came back and took turns working over Webster, including an assisted backbreaker with Drake jumping over the top to the outside.
Webster was in peril for a while and got worked over by both Grizzled Young Veterans. Gibson applied his modified Cobra Clutch, then Drake worked over Andrews’ back. Webster finally managed to hit the Rude Boy Block from a whip into the corner. He was inches from tagging Andrews, but Gibson pulled him off the apron. Drake hit a backbreaker on Webster for a two count, as Gallus casually strolled down the aisle from the back.
Webster finally managed to tag in Andrews, who proceeded to clean house on both Veterans. He hit a moonsault into a tornado DDT on Gibson, then hit an assisted standing 450 for a near fall. The Veterans came back with a running enzuigiri by Drake, followed by a superkick-assisted neckbreaker by Gibson.
Drake went for a springboard dropkick off Gibson’s back, but Andrews turned it into a powerbomb. Quick offense by both teams followed at a breakneck pace, with both being on the verge of victory at times.
The Veterans went for a Doomsday Device on Andrews, but he rolled through for a victory roll. Andrews hit a reverse rana on Drake and all four men were down. At that point, Fabian Aichner and Marcel Barthel walked out and had words with Gallus. Gallus stormed the ring and took out the Veterans while Imperium disposed of Andrews and Webster.
Imperium and Gallus squared off on opposite sides of the apron, then Alexander Wolfe and Joe Coffey backed up their partners. Finally, WALTER’s music played and he walked out.
Both teams were facing off in the ring when Ilja Dragunov’s music played. He walked out and entered the ring on Imperium’s side and stood beside them, but then walked over to Gallus’ side and helped them even the odds as a big brawl between the two factions broke out and the show went off the air.
Next week —
The final set of matches from this taping air. Ligero meets Travis Banks in a rematch from their double pin result a few weeks ago, NXT UK Women’s Champion Kay Lee Ray faces Xia Brookside, and Kassius Ohno takes on Tyler Bate.
Taped at the Motorpoint Arena in Cardiff, Wales on September 1, 2019
Quick results —
Imperium opened the show with a promo, proclaiming their dominance, then Marcel Barthel & Fabian Aichner quickly disposed of two enhancement wrestlers (Danny Jones & Harry Green).
Jordan Devlin defeated Ashton Smith in a very good match that showcased Smith’s strength and explosiveness.
Tegan Nox returned to television for the first time since her injury in August of 2018 and made her NXT UK debut, quickly squashing Shax in under 30 seconds. Kay Lee Ray then berated her after the match and a challenge was issued by Nox.
Noam Dar held a press conference, celebrating himself and drawing the ire of Trent Seven. A British Rounds match between Kassius Ohno and Sid Scala also was announced for next week.
In the main event, Mark Andrews & Flash Morgan Webster successfully defended their newly won NXT UK Tag Team titles against former champions The Grizzled Young Veterans. The match was good and very entertaining but a level or two beneath the three-way at NXT UK TakeOver: Cardiff.
Full rundown —
All four members of Imperium came out to start the show. The crowd chanted “You still suck” and then sang “Tyler Bate” at them as Marcel Barthel grabbed the mic and stated: “Our arrival in NXT UK was necessary. Your champions — just like your nation — is a symbol of weakness. You may not comprehend why you need us, but you will learn, accept, and respect our rules, our teachings, and our way of life.”
Alexander Wolfe followed by saying: “Imperium are here to protect the honor of the mat and we are here to protect the honor of our sport. And if you’re not willing, and if you reject, you will endure pain, you will experience suffering. You will fall.”
WALTER then concluded with a promo of his own: “At NXT UK TakeOver in Cardiff, I disposed of Tyler Bate. We disposed of British Strong Style. There’s no one left to step up to this group of supreme athletes. You all need to accept that we are your future. I am your WWE United Kingdom Champion. This is the era of Imperium.”
Imperium (Marcel Barthel & Fabian Aichner) defeated Danny Jones & Harry Green after hitting a European Bomb (3:23)
Jones, 23 started wrestling about six years ago and is a regular with ATTACK! and Dragon Pro Wrestling in Wales and Pro Wrestling Chaos in Bristol. He also did a tour with All Japan Pro Wrestling back in 2017.
Green, who also wrestles as Beano, mostly worked for the same promotions and started in 2016. He was trained at the Dragon Pro Wrestling Academy by the likes of Mark Andrews, Flash Morgan Webster, and Wild Boar.
Barthel and Aichner immediately attacked the two youngsters before the bell and the referee had to check on them to start the match. Barthel beat on Jones and slapped him hard, sending him staggering to the corner, where Barthel followed with an uppercut, a double underhook suplex, and a running kick.
Aichner followed up with a couple of backbreakers, then threw Jones to his corner so he could tag in Green. Green briefly fought back, but he quickly found himself in a wheelbarrow position by Barthel and ate a DDT off the second turnbuckle from Aichner. Barthel and Aichner then quickly finished off Green with the European Bomb.
After the match, Wolfe and WALTER destroyed Jones some more, with Wolfe holding him up and WALTER taking his head off with a lariat.
– A video recapped Kassius Ohno beating Sid Scala last week. Scala then stated that Ohno was somewhat underhanded in the match. Scala said Johnny Saint ordered them to have a rematch and next week they would do just that. It will be a British Rounds match, the first in NXT UK history.
– A breaking news graphic announced that Noam Dar would hold a press conference tonight.
Jordan Devlin defeated Ashton Smith after hitting Devlinside (5:34)
They fought for position, with Devlin flipping out of a wristlock, then slapping Smith, who fired up and fought back. He lifted Devlin off the mat, then hit a dropkick that sent Devlin to the apron.
Devlin came back by snapping the top rope into Smith’s face, then worked him over with strikes and forearms. Devlin locked in a kneeling abdominal stretch and hit his uranage/standing moonsault, but Smith got his knees up.
Smith followed with a running dropkick and a rolling fireman’s carry slam. He then caught a body press by Devlin and turned it into a vertical suplex, showcasing his strength.
Devlin then escaped a slam with a knee to the face, evaded a charge, and hit a springboard cutter for a near fall. He went for a moonsault, but Smith superkicked him out of mid-air.
As Smith ran the ropes, Devlin caught him with a standing Spanish Fly, then hit a few Kawada kicks and pulled Smith up and into Devlinside for the victory. Smith looked pretty impressive here.
– Radzi Chinyanganya was looking to talk to Toni Storm backstage, but she was nowhere to be found. As he threw the segment back to the commentators, Nina Samuels walked up and took the spotlight. She said TakeOver: Cardiff was almost two weeks in the past and The Nina Samuels Show was the future.
– A graphic announced Tegan Nox’s NXT UK debut would be next.
– A video segment previewed next week’s Ohno vs. Scala British Rounds match. Nigel McGuinness, William Regal, Robbie Brookside, and Johnny Saint talked about the history and heritage of the sort of match we would be seeing and also ran down the rules for the match.
Tegan Nox pinned Shax after hitting a shining wizard (0:28)
Nox tried to shake Shax’s hand but received a slap instead. She then quickly won with a fallaway slam and a shining wizard in just under 30 seconds.
After the match, Kay Lee Ray walked out and ran down Nox, then talked about how she had won the NXT UK Women’s Championship at TakeOver. But after the match, nobody wanted to talk about KLR and all people wanted to talk about was Nox.
KLR said she would do to Nox what she did to Toni Storm if Nox stood in her spotlight. Nox then replied that if KLR wants to fight, she would fight her anytime, anywhere.
Noam Dar press conference
Dar basically called a press conference to talk about how he is the greatest wrestler in NXT UK. The journalists couldn’t believe it and Dar started throwing them out when somebody asked about the Tag Team title match at NXT UK TakeOver: Cardiff.
Trent Seven was then shown talking on the phone in the background and made fun of Dar. He presumably talked to Drake Maverick on the phone and said he knows Maverick didn’t want Dar on 205 Live, but they don’t want him here either and begged him to take Dar back. Dar then stormed off.
– A video recapped the Dave Mastiff vs. Joe Coffey last man standing match from TakeOver: Cardiff. They said both men still were out with injuries.
NXT UK Tag Team title match: Mark Andrews & Flash Morgan Webster retained against The Grizzled Young Veterans (Zack Gibson & James Drake) when Andrews pinned Drake after hitting a Shooting Star Press (12:39)
Gibson and Andrews started things off, with Andrews using his athleticism to get Gibson to the mat, but he quickly turned things around and tagged Drake. Andrews hit a number of arm drags, then tagged out to Webster. Webster and Andrews quickly tagged in and out and hit the standing moonsault/somersault senton on Drake.
The Grizzled Young Veterans then quickly came back, including Drake hitting a step-up kick on Webster on the apron. They hit some unique double-team moves on Andrews as Webster tried interfering to no avail. Andrews ended up on the outside and found himself of the receiving end of a shoulder breaker, assisted by Drake launching himself over the top.
Drake and Gibson then took turns working over Andrews’ shoulder. Andrews at one point managed to hit the Stun Dog Millionaire and make the tag to Webster, who ran wild on Drake.
Webster hit a dive on Gibson, then hit a double underhook facebuster on Drake for a near fall. Gibson came in off a distraction but quickly was foiled, with Andrews hitting an assisted 450 for another near fall.
The Grizzled Young Veterans came back, hitting a Doomsday Device on Webster for another near fall as Andrews made the save. A quick tag later, Andrews hit a top rope reverse rana on Drake, who narrowly managed to kick out of the pin.
Drake attacked Andrews’ shoulder and tagged in Gibson, who worked over the shoulder some more. Andrews tried hitting Stun Dog Millionaire, but he couldn’t get a hold on Gibson, who locked in the Shankly Gates. As Andrews was close to tapping out, Webster came off the top with a somersault senton to break the hold.
Andrews tagged out and Webster hit a moonsault on Gibson. The Grizzled Young Veterans went for Ticket to Mayhem, but Andrews pulled Gibson out of the ring. Webster rolled through on Drake for another two count.
Webster missed a springboard dropkick and found himself in position for Helter Skelter. Webster evaded and managed to pull Gibson into a superkick by Drake. Webster slammed Drake, then Andrews hit a Shooting Star Press off the top to retain.
Next week —
Sid Scala takes on Kassius Ohno in a British Rounds match.
The lineup for NXT UK TakeOver: Cardiff looks to be officially set.
Two matches were announced for the special on this week’s NXT UK episode. Travis Banks will face Noam Dar, and NXT UK Tag Team Champions The Grizzled Young Veterans (Zack Gibson & James Drake) will defend their titles against Gallus (Mark Coffey & Wolfgang) and Mark Andrews & Flash Morgan Webster in a triple threat match.
In storyline, Andrews & Webster earned their way into the Tag Team title match after getting wins on the past two episodes of NXT UK. Webster defeated Mark Coffey on the episode that aired last Wednesday, while Andrews defeated Drake on this week’s show.
Motorpoint Arena Cardiff is hosting UK TakeOver on Saturday, August 31. It’s the second TakeOver special in NXT UK history.
Here’s the updated card for UK TakeOver: Cardiff:
WWE United Kingdom Champion WALTER defending against Tyler Bate
NXT UK Women’s Champion Toni Storm defending against Kay Lee Ray
NXT UK Tag Team Champions The Grizzled Young Veterans (Zack Gibson & James Drake) defending against Gallus (Mark Coffey & Wolfgang) and Mark Andrews & Flash Morgan Webster in a triple threat match
Travis Banks vs. Noam Dar
Dave Mastiff vs. Joe Coffey in a last man standing match
