Shortly after Kay Lee Ray returned to Pro Wrestling EVE, the British promotion has revealed that the former Alba Fyre will be in action at their next show.
EVE announced on social media that Ray would be facing Rhio at Beers, Brawls, and Burlesque on July 3. The match will have championship stakes: the winner will be the top contender for the EVE International Championship, currently held by Miyu Yamashita.
Rhio goes into that match off a win: she defeated Aliss Ink at EVE 150, the same show where Ray made her return.
According to Cagematch, Ray and Rhio have shared a ring just once before: in June of 2019, Ray won a battle royal in NXT UK. Rhio was one of the other participants in that match.
Also announced for the show: AEW’s Skye Blue, who will be facing Emersyn Jane in singles action. It will be Blue’s first appearance in EVE since last August, when she teamed with Julia Hart to go to a time-limit draw against Millie McKenzie & Safire Reed.
Beers, Brawls, and Burlesque takes place July 3 at the Big Penny Social in London, England. Tickets are available here.
Kay Lee Ray made an unannounced return to the ring on Friday for her first match since being released by WWE.
The former Alba Fyre showed up for Pro Wrestling Eve in London, answering an open challenge that was issued by Molly Spartan. KLR’s return was a successful one, with her getting the victory after landing a Swanton.
During the open challenge, there was a fake-out at first with Abi Cartwright — as “Abi Fyre” — coming down to face Spartan. Eve then delivered on KLR’s heavily speculated return with the actual former WWE star entering. The commentary team put over KLR, a former Eve Champion, as embodying everything the indie women’s wrestling promotion stands for.
“Anyone who is anyone in women’s professional wrestling has stepped through those ropes,” commentary said. “Legends, pioneers, women in the beginning of their careers, women making a name for themselves, nobody has ever personified Pro Wrestling Eve more than Kay Lee F***ing Ray — and she is back home.”
During her time with WWE, KLR was featured on the main roster, NXT, and NXT UK, including a nearly two-year reign as NXT UK Women’s Champion that partially took place during the pandemic era. She is a former Women’s Tag Team Champion (with Isla Dawn) and had been recently aligned with Chelsea Green on SmackDown as one of Green’s “Secret Hervice” members.
Former WWE name Alba Fyre/Kay Lee Ray is being teased for a return to the UK independent scene this week. Pro Wrestling EVE will be hosting History Makers / Rule Breakers on Friday, June 5th and it looks like KLR will be coming in to face Molly Spartan.
EVE has sent out the following to promote the match: Molly Spartan has thrown out the challenge to someone for Friday June 5th, but is being ever so slightly vague with regards to this woman who she hopes will meet her in the middle of the ring at EVE 150 in London on Friday June 5th. All we know is this firey competitor is a former WWE Tag Team Champion, a former EVE Champion, and an absolute KiLleR in the ring…We’ll find out the answer to this mystery this coming Friday June 5 at EVE 150!
EVE 150 History Makers / Rule Breakers Card
Here is the card for the upcoming EVE event on Friday:
EVE International Championship Match: Kris Statlander vs Miyu Yamashita
EVE Championship: Session Moth Martina vs Alexxis Falcon
EVE Tag Team Championships: Lallie vs French Art
NYTE/SKYE vs Relentless All Stars
Lucy Sky vs Melissa Fierce vs Emersyn Jayne
Rhio vs Aliss Ink
🚨 Challenge Accepted? 🚨
A returning former WWE title holder heads to EVE in Walthamstow, London on Friday June 5th to answer @MollySpartan's challenge in the ring.
But who could it be?
…And was it really a wise decision to step up to a woman who is currently 6–1 in EVE… pic.twitter.com/qV3UKfD7kY
— EVE – Riot Grrrls of Wrestling (@ProWrestlingEVE) May 30, 2026
The NXT Champion and the NXT Women’s Champion will be in action on next week’s NXT 2.0 episode, as six matches have been announced.
NXT Champion Bron Breakker will face Duke Hudson in a non-title match. The bout was set up on this week’s episode when Breakker walked through a backstage interview with Hudson and McKenzie Mitchell, ignoring Hudson. Hudson then interrupted a Breakker interview in the parking lot later and challenged him to a match for next week.
NXT Women’s Champion Mandy Rose will face Indi Hartwell in another non-title bout. Hartwell cut a promo on this week’s show discussing her newfound independence as her association with Persia Pirotta and Dexter Lumis ended when both were released last month.
NXT Tag Team Champions Pretty Deadly will be in action in another non-title bout, facing Diamond Mine’s Damon Kemp and Roderick Strong.
In another tag team bout, Edris Enofe & Malik Blade will face Tony D’Angelo’s associates Channing “Stacks” Lorenzo & Troy “Two Dimes” Donovan.
Two additional singles bouts were announced, as Alba Fyre will take on Elektra Lopez, plus Wes Lee will face Sanga.
Here is the lineup for next week’s show:
WWE NXT, Tuesday, May 24 —
Bron Breakker vs. Duke Hudson non-title match
Mandy Rose vs. Indi Hartwell non-title match
Pretty Deadly vs. Roderick Strong & Damon Kemp non-title match
Edris Enofe & Malik Blade vs. Channing “Stacks” Lorenzo & Troy “Two Dimes” Donovan
NXT’s Kay Lee Ray and Kacy Catanzaro appear to be the latest wrestlers to have their in-ring names changed by WWE.
PWInsider reported on Saturday that KLR will now be going by the in-ring name Alba Fyre going forward, while Catanzaro will now be going by the name Katana Chance.
WWE filed trademarks for both “Alba Fyre” and “Katana Chance” on April 12.
KLR was involved in the NXT Women’s Championship match at NXT Stand & Deliver during WrestleMania 38 weekend. Mandy Rose retained her title by defeating Cora Jade, Io Shirai, and KLR in a fatal four-way match.
Before coming to the United States’ version of NXT, KLR was the longest-reigning NXT UK Women’s Champion in history.
Catanzaro is part of a tag team with Kayden Carter in NXT. She signed with WWE in 2017 after having been a star on American Ninja Warrior.
In the latest edition of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Dave Meltzer reported that Vince McMahon decreed in a memo that he doesn’t want anyone new using their real names anymore, nor using names that they already had on the indies.
Marcel Barthel (now Ludwig Kaiser) and Raquel Gonzalez (Raquel Rodriguez) got new names when they were called up to SmackDown last week. Raw’s Austin Theory is now just going by the name Theory, while NXT’s Raul Mendoza has been given the name Cruz Del Toro.
The women’s Dusty Classic winners threw a wrench into the plans for NXT Stand & Deliver last night.
Io Shirai & Kay Lee Ray were crowned as the winners of the 2022 women’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic, defeating Dakota Kai & Wendy Choo in the finals on last night’s NXT. When confronted by Toxic Attraction after the match, Shirai and KLR revealed that they aren’t cashing in their title shot for an NXT Women’s Tag Team title match — they’re going after Mandy Rose’s NXT Women’s Championship.
Rose will defend her title against Cora Jade, Shirai, and KLR in a fatal four-way match at NXT Stand & Deliver on Saturday, April 2. Jade helped Shirai and KLR even the odds in a brawl against Toxic Attraction to close last night’s show.
Bron Breakker is challenging Dolph Ziggler for the NXT Championship at Stand & Deliver. Last night, Breakker defeated Ziggler’s tag team partner Robert Roode in a singles match. Ziggler then laid out Breakker with a superkick on the ramp after the match was over.
Solo Sikoa and Grayson Waller became the latest wrestlers to qualify for the NXT North American Championship ladder match at Stand & Deliver. Carmelo Hayes will defend his title against Santos Escobar, Sikoa, Waller, and one more challenger to be determined. Cameron Grimes, Roderick Strong, and A-Kid are facing off in a last-chance qualifying match next Tuesday.
Plus, Gunther vs. LA Knight was added to the card for Stand & Deliver.
Io Shirai and Kay Lee Ray are the winners of this year’s women’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic tournament.
Shirai and Kai defeated the team of Wendy Choo and Dakota Kai in the finals of the tournament that took place tonight on NXT. The finish of the match had Shirai pinning Choo following a moonsault.
After the match, Toxic Attraction came to the ring and congratulated the team on their win. Mandy Rose told them, however, they wouldn’t be defeating Gigi Dolin and Jacy Janye for the NXT Women’s Tag Team titles. Ray agreed, with the two instead proposing that they be added to the Women’s Championship match at Stand & Deliver on April 2. The show ended with everyone, including Cora Jade, brawling.
Dakota Kai and Raquel Gonzalez won last year’s tournament on February 14, defeating Ember Moon and Shotzi Blackheart. They eventually became the first-ever NXT Women’s Tag Team Champions the following month.
LA Knight will meet Gunther at Stand & Deliver, while the NXT Women’s Championship match will now be a fatal four way.
Knight and Gunther will meet following a confrontation on tonight’s NXT. After winning the Women’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic, Shirai and Ray told Toxic Attraction that instead of cashing in their NXT Women’s Tag Team title match, they would add themselves to the NXT Women’s title match at Stand & Deliver.
The LA Knight and Gunther match was set up tonight after Gunther had defeated Duke Hudson. Gunther was cutting a promo upset that he had been overlooked when Knight came out. Gunther insulted Knight, saying that his mouth got him championship matches, but has never been able to get the win. Knight said he came out here to challenge Gunther and started to attack him. The rest of Imperium attacked Knight, but MSK arrived and took care of Fabian Aichner and Marcel Barthel as Knight eliminated Gunther from the ring.
After Shirai and Ray defeated Wendy Choo and Dakota Kai, Toxic Attraction came out and congratulated the team. Mandy Rose told them, however, that Gigi Dolin and Jacy Jayne wouldn’t lose their titles. Ray and Shirai agreed, instead proposing the four way championship match at Stand and Deliver. The show ended with Toxic Attraction, Shirai, Ray, and Cora Jade brawling in the ring.
Here is the current card for NXT Stand & Deliver, which will take place April 2 at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas:
Dolph Ziggler vs. Bron Breakker for the NXT Championship
Imperium vs. The Creed Brothers vs. MSK for the NXT Tag Team Championship
Mandy Rose vs. Cora Jade vs. Kay Lee Ray vs. Io Shirai for the NXT Women’s Championship
Tommaso Ciampa vs. Tony D’Angelo
LA Knight vs. Gunther
Carmelo Hayes vs. Santos Escobar vs. Grayson WAller vs. Solo Sikoa vs. TBA in a ladder match for the NXT North American Championship
The finals of this year’s women’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic has been set.
The team of Io Shirai and Kay Lee Ray will take on Wendy Choo and Dakota Kai in the finals. This is after Shrai and Ray defeated Kacy Catanzaro and Kayden Carter, while Choo and Kai defeated Raquel Gonzalez and Cora Jade. It was not said when the finals would take place.
During the Choo & Kai vs. Gonzalez & Jade match, Gigi Dolan struck Gonzalez in the knee from behind with a foreign object. Gonzalez’s knee buckled towards the finish, allowing Kai to pick up the victory with a foot stomp off the top rope. Later in the night, Jade attacked Mandy Rose, who was in her own personal lounge watching the second semifinal match.
Shirai & Ray defeated Catanzaro & Carter after Ray connected with the KLR bomb on Carter, with Shirai getting the pinfall following the moonsault.
The teams of Kay Lee Ray & Io Shiral and Kacy Catanzaro & Kayden Carter have advanced in the Women’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic tournament.
Ray & Shirai defeated Lash Legend and Amari Miller on tonight’s NXT after a moonsault press from Shirai on Legend. Later in the show, Catanzaro and Carter defeated Ivy Nile and Tatum Paxley, with Paxley taking the fall after a 450 splash/neckbreaker combination from Catanzaro and Carter. As a result, the two teams will face each other in the semifinals of the tournament.
The two other remaining opening round matches will have the team of Indi Hartwell & Persia Pirotta face Wendy Choo and Dakota Kai, while Cora Jade & Raquel Gonzalez will face Yulisa Leon and Valentina Feroz.
The first women’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic took place last year. In the finals, Dakota Kai and Raquel Gonzalez defeated Ember Moon and Shotzi Blackheart. Kai and Gonzalez were later named the first NXT Women’s Tag Team Champions.
A Women’s Championship match headlines tonight’s episode of NXT on Syfy.
NXT is airing on Syfy both this and next week due to the Winter Olympics. On tonight’s show, Mandy Rose will put her NXT Women’s Championship on the line against Kay Lee Ray.
WWE has announced that tonight’s Rose vs. KLR match will air commercial-free.
Next week’s NXT is the special Vengeance Day edition of the show. Before their NXT Championship match next week, Bron Breakker and Santos Escobar will meet for a “championship summit” tonight.
The finals of the men’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic will take place at Vengeance Day. Tonight, MSK vs. Malik Blade & Edris Enofe and The Creed Brothers vs. The Grizzled Young Veterans will decide who advances to the finals.
Plus, Sarray vs. Dakota Kai, LA Knight vs. Sanga, and Wendy Choo vs. Tiffany Stratton are also set for tonight.
Our live coverage begins at 8 p.m. Eastern time.
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As the credits roll on the lead-in, a bumper ad highlights Kay Lee Ray on what is being billed as a “Syfy Edition” of NXT.
NXT itself opens with a video package featuring NXT Women’s Champion Mandy Rose that hypes her title tonight against Kay Lee Ray.
Kicking off the show in the ring is a semifinal in the Dusty Classic tournament.
Creed Brothers (Julius & Brutus Creed with Malcolm Bivens) defeat Grizzled Young Veterans (James Drake & Zack Gibson) in the semifinals of the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic
Brutus pins Gibson and the Creed Brothers advance to the finals of the Dusty Classic.
Creed Brothers jump Grizzled Young Veterans before the bell, interrupting a GYT promo. GYV used to be such serious wrestlers before their characters took a comedic turn.
They still worked hard to help get the Creeds over, making the up-and-comers look good in the process. The Veterans also used their veteran experience as part of the story within the match.
Brutus falls prey to double team tactics by GYV, and the tide begins to turn. Tandem catapult targets the Brutus’ windpipe, and Brutus is in trouble. GYV work him over.
Hot tag to Julius, and he runs wild. Gibson has to save Drake by breaking up a pinning attempt. Tag by GYV, but Julius is unaware. Julius is then wiped out with a tope. GYV then execute a Doomsday Device, yet Julius is able to kick out at two.
Hot tag to Brutus, and he squares off with Gibson. Slugfest develops, and Gibson targets the windpipe in a callback to earlier in the match. Brutus is again in peril. GYV look to capitalize.
Builds to a Tower of Doom of sorts where Drake takes a superplex. Julius pulls the straps down on his singlet, signaling for the finish. Brutus stops him because Brutus wants to finish it.
Brutus levels Drake with a sliding Ishii lariat, and Brutus covers Gibson for a three count.
Cora Jade is being interviewed about teaming with Raquel Gonzalez. Valentina Cruz Feroz and Yulisa Leon interrupt, and they begin to cut a promo on Jade. They heel on Jade in Spanish. Gonzalez enters the scene, and she trades barbs with them in Spanish. This clearly sets up a tag match.
Wendy Choo apparently went on a shopping spree with Tiffany Stratton’s credit card. That is a crime, but in the WWE universe it is only a plot twist. The card was canceled, so Choo threw it in the trash. Not before buying a bunch of things, and “maxing out” the card. That is highly illegal. Please do not attempt.
Tiffany Stratton defeats Wendy Choo
Stratton pins Choo after a short match.
The silliness of Choo’s character detracts from how good she can be as a wrestler. Stratton improves over her previous performances.
Choo was able to shine, until Stratton broke a nail. Stratton then cut off Choo. Corkscrew splash by Stratton just before she scores a three count.
Pete Dunne in a backstage interview announces next Tuesday on NXT Vengeance Day is a steel cage match with Dunne against Tony D’Angelo.
Dunne is now carrying around a cricket bat, after he recently used the bat to whack the D’Angelo’s fingers.
Pete Dunne defeats Draco Anthony
Dunne pins Anthony despite interference by Tony D’Angelo.
The match oddly begins during a split-screen commercial break. Dunne eventually targets the fingers after the break, and Dunne goes about dissecting Anthony with technical grabbling. Plus strikes, which would lead to the tide turning in the match.
Antony fires up on Dunne, and he takes over on offense. Joe Gacy and Harland watch from a perch looking out over the ring, and Anthony is distracted by them.
Gacy approached Anthony in a digital media angle shot last week. Their story continues to unfold here tonight. The distraction cost Anthony, and Dunne cuts him off.
Tony D’Angelo enters the ringside area looking to attack Dunne. D’Angelo swings a crowbar at Dunne, but Dunne dodges the blow. Dunne posts D’Angelo, thwarting the heel.
Dunne then turns his focus back to Anthony, finishes the match with The Bitter End, and Dunne covers Anthony for a pinfall.
D’Angelo tries to attack Dunne after the match, but Dunne snaps D’Angelo’s fingers. Dunne gets some plunder from underneath the ring, and he throws the plunder into the ring. Dunne then grabs his trusty cricket bat, and he proceeds to cut a promo on D’Angelo.
Dunne tells D’Angelo he needs more than a crowbar next week. Dunne says they shoot attach to the side of the cage all the weapons he threw into the ring to the side, so they can have a “weaponized” cage match.
Zoey Stark and Io Shirai finally agree that Shirai needs a partner for the Dusty Classic since Stark is still injured.
LA Knight defeats Sanga (with Grayson Waller)
Knight pins Sanga despite interference by Waller.
Sanga is portraying a monster heel, so the match was based around that idea. It was David against a Goliath.
Knight never gives up as he tries to knock Sanga off his feet. Eventually, a missile dropkick takes Sanga off his feet.
Waller takes odd a turnbuckle pad, exposing the metal buckle. That heelish plan backfires, as Sanga collides with the exposed turnbuckle. Knight delivers a neckbreaker, and Knight gets a three count over Sanga.
After the match, Waller attempts a sneak attack. Knight thwarts the assault, and he cleans house on Waller before giving him a stunner.
McKenzie Mitchell interviews Duke Hudson, and Hudson buries Dante Chen. Hudson says Chen is not here tonight “for a reason.” Hudson wishes Indi Hartwell luck in the Dusty Classic.
Championship Summit
A table is set up in the ring for the two opponents in the main event of Vengeance Day to face off tonight in some sort of summit.
WWE Champion Bron Breakker sits opposite his first challenger, Santos Escobar. Breakker gets up, says he knows how these “contract signing things go.” So, Breakker says he flip the table over now and start fighting right now.
Escobar lets out a sinister laugh and he scoffs. Escobar says has things under conrtol.
Breakker again acts like he wants to fight. Suddenly, the theme music for Dolph Ziggler blares, and out comes Ziggler to interrupt the summit.
Ziggler takes a seat at the table, props his feet up, and he begins to cut a promo. Ziggler jokes that he apparently know works Tuesday, albeit with a bonus. He thanks “Ace” for that.
Ziggler asks Breakker who he is, and Breakker laughs. Breakker says he is the NXT Champion, and he is the reason Ziggler is here. Ziggler responds by listing the title he won, but he has yet to win the NXT title.
The crowd chants for a “triple threat” as Ziggler continues his promo. Tommaso Ciampa interrupts Ziggler, and Ciampa joins the summit.
Ciampa sits down beside Ziggler, and Ciampa refers to him as “kid” while further deriding him. Escobar exclaims, “What the hell is going on?” That is a very valid question.
The bickering among everyone continues until Ciampa snaps on Ziggler. A melee ensues. Ciampa brawls with Ziggler. Breakker looks to clean house on Legado del Fantasma, but they jump him. Escobar then powerbombs Breakker through the table set up in the ring.
Sarray defeats Dakota Kai
Sarray pins Kai after using a Saito suplex. Sarray’s push rolls on.
Another match that begins during a commercial break. Very back-and-forth. Kai is still doing the crazy gimmick, which is doing her no favors.
NXT North American Champion Carmelo Hayes and Trick Williams are featured in a skit from a barber shop. They were basically talking shop ahead of Hayes’ title defense against Cameron Grimes next Tuesday for Vengeance Day.
The NXT Women’s Tag Team Champions, Gigi Dolan and Jacy Jayne, brawl with Indi Hartwell and Persia Pirotta during a skit. The heels produce an old photograph showing Hartwell with Duke Hudson, so a love triangle is liking to develop.
Nikkita Lyons is the subject of a vignette. She is a famous singer, but she can fight. Kind of like if Hannah Montana trained as in mixed martial arts.
MSK (Nash Carter & Wes Lee) defeats Edris Enofe & Malik in the semifinals of the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic
MSK advance to the Dusty Classic final after winning this semifinal match
Lots of action in this match between two babyface teams, but the crowd did not seem to favor one or the other. That hurt the match, as the crowd was really into most every other match on the show. They just seem unsure who to cheer for in this match.
They wrestled through a commercial break. The pace quickens after the break, and the match intensifies.
Enofe gets a near fall after a splash off the top rope, but he is soon double teamed by MSK. They execute their tandem finsiher, and Lee covers Enofe for a pinfall.
A great vignette featuring Cameron Grimes hypes him challenging for the North American Championship next week. Grimes returns to the trailer park. He says he would give up all his other successes in life, like getting rich and whatnot, to win a championship.
NXT Women’s Champion Mandy Rose defeats Kay Lee Ray to retain her title
Rose pins KLR after interference by Gigi Dolan and Jacy Jayne. Io Shirai runs in after the match to save KLR from a beatdown by Toxic Attraction.
Rose’s Toxic Attracion stablemates were supposed to be a non-factory, as they got into a backstage brawl earlier on. Therefore, they were supposedly kicked out of the building for the night. Except that was a swerve.
KLR was getting near falls after a few superkicks when KLR climbs the turnbuckles. Dolan and Jayne hit the ring. Jayne distracts the referee, and Dolan shoves KLR off the top rope.
Rose delivers a knee strike, and she covers KLR for a tainted victory.
Toxic Attraction were not done yet, as Jayne and Dolan hold KLR. Rose grabs KLR’s bat, and Rose teases hitting KLR with the bat.
Io Shirai runs in to make a save. She cleans house on Toxic Attraction, and Shirai looks to have chosen her new tag partner for the Dusty Classic. Shirai saves KLR, thus forming an alliance.
This week’s NXT Women’s Championship match will be airing commercial-free.
WWE has announced that Mandy Rose and Kay Lee Ray’s NXT Women’s Championship match this Tuesday night will air without commercials. Raw and NXT are both airing on Syfy for the next two weeks due to the Winter Olympics being on the USA Network.
Rose has been NXT Women’s Champion since winning the title from Raquel Gonzalez at Halloween Havoc last October. On last week’s NXT, KLR terrorized Rose throughout the show until Rose would finally agree to give her a title match.
Here’s what’s been announced for Tuesday’s NXT:
NXT Women’s Champion Mandy Rose defends against Kay Lee Ray
NXT Champion Bron Breakker and Santos Escobar will meet for a “championship summit” ahead of their title match at Vengeance Day next week
Men’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic semifinal match: MSK (Wes Lee & Nash Carter) vs. Malik Blade & Edris Enofe
Men’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic semifinal match: The Creed Brothers (Julius & Brutus Creed) vs. The Grizzled Young Veterans (Zack Gibson & James Drake)
The final stop before NXT WarGames featured two ladder matches to determine which teams will have the entrance order advantage on Sunday.
KLR won the women’s WarGames advantage for her team, defeating Dakota Kai in the opening match of last night’s NXT. KLR is set to team with Io Shirai, Raquel Gonzalez & Cora Jade against Kai, Mandy Rose, Gigi Dolin & Jacy Jayne on Sunday.
In last night’s main event, Bron Breakker defeated Johnny Gargano to get the WarGames advantage for his team. A fan vote decided that Breakker and Gargano would be the participants in last night’s ladder match.
The men’s WarGames match will pit Breakker, Carmelo Hayes, Tony D’Angelo & Grayson Waller against Gargano, Tommaso Ciampa, Pete Dunne & LA Knight.
The NXT Tag Team title match for WarGames was also confirmed last night. Kyle O’Reilly & Von Wagner defeated Legado del Fantasma’s Raul Mendoza & Joaquin Wilde in a number one contender’s match. They’ll challenge for Imperium’s Tag Team titles on Sunday.
WWE has determined which teams will have the entrance order advantage in Sunday’s WarGames matches.
In the men’s WarGames match, the team of Bron Breakker, Carmelo Hayes, Grayson Waller & Tony D’Angelo will have the entrance order advantage against Tommaso Ciampa, Johnny Gargano, Pete Dunne & LA Knight. Breakker won the advantage for his team by defeating Gargano in a ladder match on tonight’s NXT.
A fan vote decided who would represent their team in the men’s WarGames advantage ladder match, with Breakker and Gargano getting the most votes.
Io Shirai, Raquel Gonzalez, Cora Jade & Kay Lee Ray will have the entrance order advantage against Mandy Rose, Gigi Dolin, Jacy Jayne & Dakota Kai in the women’s WarGames match this Sunday. KLR defeated Kai in a ladder match to get the advantage.
The card for Sunday’s NXT WarGames event is listed below:
WarGames match: Tommaso Ciampa, Johnny Gargano, Pete Dunne & LA Knight vs. Bron Breakker, Carmelo Hayes, Grayson Waller & Tony D’Angelo
WarGames match: Io Shirai, Raquel Gonzalez, Cora Jade & Kay Lee Ray vs. Mandy Rose, Gigi Dolin, Jacy Jayne & Dakota Kai
Hair vs. hair match: Cameron Grimes vs. Duke Hudson
NXT Cruiserweight Champion Roderick Strong defends against Joe Gacy
NXT Tag Team Champions Imperium (Marcel Barthel & Fabian Aichner) defend against Kyle O’Reilly & Von Wagner
The final build to WarGames takes place on tonight’s NXT.
Tonight’s show will feature two ladder matches to determine which teams will get the entrance order advantage in Sunday’s WarGames bouts. Kay Lee Ray will face Dakota Kai in the women’s advantage ladder match, while a fan vote will determine the two participants for the men’s advantage ladder match.
Io Shirai, Raquel Gonzalez, Cora Jade & KLR will take on Mandy Rose, Gigi Dolin, Jacy Jayne & Kai in the women’s WarGames match on Sunday. The men’s WarGames match will be Tommaso Ciampa, Johnny Gargano, Pete Dunne & LA Knight vs. Bron Breakker, Carmelo Hayes, Tony D’Angelo & Grayson Waller.
A tag team number one contender’s match is also set for tonight’s show. Kyle O’Reilly & Von Wagner vs. Legado del Fantasma’s Raul Mendoza & Joaquin Wilde will determine Imperium’s NXT Tag Team title challengers for Sunday.
Joe Gacy is challenging for Roderick Strong’s NXT Cruiserweight Championship at WarGames. Tonight, Gacy will host an “all-inclusive invitational.”
Plus, Cameron Grimes faces Andre Chase, Edris Enofe debuts, and MSK continue the search for their shaman. Our live coverage begins at 8 p.m. Eastern time.
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Cold open, meaning no canned intro. Just a live shot from the CWC, almost as if it is being joined in progress. Opening the show is a ladder match to determine the War Games advantage, but first a pull-apart brawl to begin things with a bang.
Dakota Kai is joined by NXT Women’s Champion Mandy Rose and the NXT Tag Team Champions, Gigi Dolan and Jacy Jayne. They all are the heel side of the women’s War Games match. Kay Lee Ray is joined by the babyface side of the War Games match, which includes Io Shirai, Raquel Gonzalez and Cora Jade.
Moments into the show the two teams meet on the entrance ramp. It has the makings of a Gordon Solie Pier Sixer to open the show. A powder keg waiting to ignite, and then boom. Exploded into a wild brawl.
Kay Lee Ray defeated Dakota Kai in a ladder match to win the War Games advantage
KLR climbed a ladder to unhook a briefcase and win the match. Thus KLR’s team wins the advantage going into War Games. This ladder match was so much better than the last ladder match on NXT. Probably the best women’s match on NXT in months. Most assuredly the best match on this show.
They took some big bumps, but nothing too crazy. Some parts gave me vibes of All Japan Women from back in the day. Maybe it was the double stomps. More on those in the recap itself.
As a huge brawl erupts on the ramp, that’s also basically the start of the match. Officials pour out to separate the two teams. When the dust begins to settle, Kai is throwing KLR into a ladder in in the aisle leading to the ring. KLR fires up and springboards into a flip dive to the outside.
KLR was on fire until Kai sent KLR twisting into the ring steps. Kai was acting crazy again, and laughing maniacally as she dragged around the ladder. KLR cuts off Kai’s glee with a tope suicida. Kai is suplexed onto the ladder. She cursed in pain. That was bleeped out.
Kai recovered quickly. She and KLR took turns climbing the ladder and reaching for the briefcase above. Kai hit KLR with a face wash. KLR ends up tied in a tree of woe, and Kai leapt off the top rope to deliver a double stomp on KLR.
The match goes through a split screen commercial break. Kai was working a leg as the show returns from the break. KLR counters to deliver a Gory Bomb that sent Kai crashing onto the announce desk.
Slugfest on top of a ladder in the middle of the ring, and KLR takes a big bump off the ladder. Kai jumps from high atop the ladder for a double stomp from the heavens. KLR is up quickly soon after, and Kai tied in a tree of woe on the ladder. KLR superkicks Kai, and then KLR climbs the ladder to unhook the briefcase.
So the babyfaces get the advantage heading into War Games. That is not how War Games usually works, but whatever.
Santa Claus tries to sell me WrestleMania tickets in an ad. Good luck with that.
Grizzled Young Veterans were trying to break into Briggs and Jensen’s locker when Jacket Time stumbles into the scene. Briggs and Jensen walk in, and Grizzled Young Veterans flee, leaving Jacket Time to take the heat. This was supposed to be comedy I think. Just seems dumb to me.
Cameron Grimes defeated Andre Chase
Grimes was in peril until a comeback and a Cave In for a pinfall victory. This was like Grimes getting a win over Brooklyn Brawler on Superstars of Wrestling many decades ago. After that came a another tired old idea, but from Monday Night Raw in the 2000s instead.
Duke Hudson cut a promo from a perch over the ring, as Grimes looked on. Hudson had pictures of Grimes with various different ridiculous haircuts. Finally came a picture of Grimes with a bald head, which is kind of the idea with a hair match and whatnot. Grimes gets angry and tries to shave Chase’s head, but one of Chase’s students saves Chase.
Grimes tells Chase he is going to shave him bald. I was very much interested in the hair match before this segment, but this segment makes me less interested.
Next up is arguably the best character development in weeks. A vignette profiled Edris Enofe. This was great. Talks about him proving haters wrong since childhood, and Enofe details his military service. Enofe has a match later in the show.
Ring announcer Alicia Taylor is in the ring with the new school men’s War Games team, called Team 2.0. It’s promo time. Dragged on forever. Said a lot without saying much at all. Taylor finally tries to save the segment by beginning to announce who from the new school team will compete in the match tonight against a member of the so-called Black-and-Gold Team. Apparently there was an online poll to decide, and Bron Breakker won the poll. Breakker is now set to face Johnny Gargano in a ladder match.
Gargano enters the scene to cut a promo where he called Breakker the “big bad booty nephew.” The crowd chanted that back to Gargano. Breakker was asked by Gargano to leave his team in the back tonight, making the match just one-on-one in a ladder match. Breakker said he would galdy kick Gargano’s ass, and that looks to be the main event for tonight.
MSK were in a car, and the GPS gimmick says they are close to their destination. As they arrive the GPS gimmick cursed at them, like if the car from Knight Rider talked like Stone Cold. MSK get out of the car and they knock on a door. They are blinded by a light, and they realize it is him. They were in awe, and end scene. To be continued soon.
Kyle O’Reilly & Von Wagner defeated Legado del Fantasma (Raul Mendoza & Joaquin Wilde with Elektra Lopez & Santos Escobar)
Wagner pinned Wilde in a match that was mostly boring until the finish. The winners go on to challenge Imperium on Sunday for the NXT Tag Team Champioship.
While there is good wrestling in this match, it was a channel changer. Xyon Quinn walked out to ringside as the show went to a commercial break, which was the most interesting part of the match so far. Except maybe for O’Reilly. He’s really good if you didn’t know. Like really freaking good. Pitty he is stuck in this wacky team. Maybe it can be Ax and Smash time again one day.
After a commercial break, Quinn brawls with Escobar as they exit stage right. O’Reilly is worked over until he makes a hot tag to Wagner. House cleaning by Wagner as the heels bump and feed for him. Mendoza with a wickedly cool double springboard into a missile dropkick, and that cuts off Wagner.
O’Reilly trade strikes with Wilde and they also trade counters in the best sequences of the match. Wagner with a low bridge breaks up the heel team’s finisher. Double team moves by Wagner and O’Reilly that concludes with a high/low combo. Wagner then pins Wilde to win the match.
Wagner and O’Reilly in winning the match earn a title shot on the War Games card where they challenge Imperium.
Another Tiffany Stratton vignette. She is rich. We never see her face, but we know she is a rich daddy’s girl. Whatever.
Joe Gacy’s All Inclusive Invitational
Good grief, it’s Joe Gacy. Must we?
Long Gacy promo. Good freaking grief.
This was basically a public workout or exhibition style match. Gacy runs a gauntlet to face three enhancement wrestlers. After beating the first jobber, Gacy is about to wrestle a woman wrestler since it is all inclusive.
Malcolm Bivens interrupts the match, saving this segment in the process. Bivens is flanked by Diamond MIne, which includes NXT Cruiserweight Champion Roderick Strong. Gacy has a match on Sunday as the challenger against Strong in a title match.
Bivens cut a promo on Gacy, and Gacy says he’s wants to talk to Strong one-on-one. Strong gets into the ring to face Gacy. Strong says he is tired of talking, and he decks Gacy with a punch. Gacy with a counter does a handspring into the ropes like he is Kushida, and he hits Strong with a lariat.
Solo Sikoa was being interviewed by McKenzie Mitchell when Sikoa is confronted by Boa. Sikoa tells Boa he is on his own because Sikoa cannot speak Boa’s language. Terrible character development, but whatever.
Solo Sikoa defeated Edris Enofe
Enofe is introduced with such an excellent vignette earlier in the show, yet he is beaten clean in this match. Go figure. At least Enofe got a cool entrance, and he even came out second like he was a star. Then he lost the match. Whatever. At least the match itself was good for what is NXT 2.0.
Enofe got to shine, but Sikoa cut him off with a Samoan Drop. Sikoa then leapt off the top rope with a Superfly splash, and he covers Enofe for a pinfall.
Boa runs in after the match to attack Sikoa. Boa applies a death grip like he is Meng, and Sikoa is trapped. Enfore jumps in to make a save, and Enofe is then caught in the death grip. Sikoa manages to run off Boa.
Indi Hartwell gets a call from the hospital saying Dexter Lumis is missing. Persia Pirotta tells Hartwell their match is up next. There is no time to worry about a missing husband, there’s wrestling to do. The show must go on I guess.
Elektra Lopez is outside the building having an enchanted moment with Xyon Quinn. She wishes he could not fight with Escobar, but she wishes Quinn luck in his upcoming match. They have little chemistry together, but Lopez and Quinn are supposed to be attracted to each other romantically. At least that is the tease anyway.
Indi Hartwell & Persia Pirotta defeated Yulisa Leon & Valentina Feroz
Hartwell is in storyline distracted again this week. Even more so this week since Lumis is apparently missing from the hospital. Hartwell still has a wrestling match to wrestle, so she went to wrestle. She was worked over, but Pirotta cleans house after a hot tag. Pirotta delivers a sit-out cutter bomb, and she wins the match for her team.
A vignette introduced Draco Anthony. He was at a cafe, and he seemed to be drinking coffee. Anthony says his actions speak louder than his words. This vignette did him no favors. He looks like an interesting guy too, so they course give him a bland vignette.
Bron Breakker defeated Johnny Gargano in a ladder match to win the War Games advantage
So we get Gargano against Breakker in a ladder match with no build, and it is also Breakker’s first ever ladder match. No build. Plus this plays into a new school vs. old school feud. That is WCW in 2000 levels of bad booking. But whatever. The match was good thanks in large part to Gargano’s leadership.
Whereas the women’s match ladder match earlier on the show began with spots involving the ladder, the men’s match built to the ladder becoming involved in the match. The men’s match might have better ring psychology, but the women’s match was much more of a spectacle.
Breakker looks strong, and Gargano looks cunning as they fought to climb the ladder. Tope by Gargano sends Breakker over the announce desk just before the show cut to commercial. The brawling at ringside continued during the break, and Gargano drags a ladder back into the ring.
Gargano shoves a ladder over. and Breakker was supposed to take some sort of big bump. Yet he messed up. At least I think he did. It looked bad no matter what. No one will likely remember to the botch, especially after the next spot.
Breakker with an overhead belly-to-belly Steiner suplex sent Gargano crashing into a ladder. Breakker went for a flying elbow drop off the ropes, but no water in the pool. Gargano moves, and Breakker crashes into the ladder. Looked both awkward and painful.
Breakker is baited into being rammed face-first into the ladder. With the ladder perched on the top rope, Breakker lifted the ladder with Gargano on it. That led into a Terry Funk spot from Barely Legal, but this time it was a green Breakker with a ladder on his head instead of a hardcore legend. The Funker did it better of course.
Gargano was measuring Breakker for a superkick. Breakker flips off Gargano by giving him a middle finger salute. Gargano nails Breakker with a superkick of doom. Breakker goes down like a ton of bricks.
Breakker came back with a super Frankensteiner off the top turnbuckle. Breakker sets up a ladder, but Gargano cuts him off. They go on to fight atop the ladder, and Breakker is smacked in the face by the hanging briefcase. Breakker still manages to pull Gargano off the ladder, and Breakker catches Gargano in mid-air to deliver a powerslam. Breakker then unhooked the briefcase to win the match.
Team 2.0 now goes into War Games with an advantage over the Black-and-Gold Team. The teams run in after the main event for a huge brawl as the show goes off the air. So the show began with a brawl and it ends with one.
Final Thoughts
If this go-home show was supposed to peak interest ahead of War Games, it likely failed in that regard. In the immortal words of Vinny V, “It was a show.” However, check out the ladder matches. Especially the women’s ladder match with Kay Lee Ray against Dakota Kai, which was pretty dang great. Skip everything but the ladder matches.
