Lyra Valkyria is “still processing” her NXT Women’s Championship win.
In the main event of NXT Halloween Havoc night one last Tuesday, Valkyria secured the biggest victory of her career by defeating Becky Lynch for the NXT Women’s Championship. It was the first time that two Irish women have ever faced off for a WWE title.
Valkyria opened up about what the victory meant to her in an interview with the Irish Mirror. Valkyria said she’s still processing the moment. She described it as a “picture that is so perfect I couldn’t have painted it.”
It definitely feels like the payoff after years of the grind. I have imagined this so many different ways. The things that you think about are who would I beat? How would I do it? What would I say after? How would that feel holding that title up? What would I be thinking?
It’s like an out-of-body experience because all the times I imagined that and then when it happened it’s just sheer shock so I’m still processing.
All the ways I imagined it happening that wasn’t one of them because it never seemed within the realms of possibility Becky who has gone on to main event WrestleMania, one of the most decorated women in WWE I couldn’t imagine that she could have been NXT Champion in 2023, what were the odds and how could I see that happening and for me to be the one to dethrone her. It’s a picture that is so perfect I couldn’t have painted it.
The loss to Valkyria appears to have ended Lynch’s run in NXT. Lynch held the NXT Women’s Championship for more than a month after winning it from Tiffany Stratton this September. It was Lynch’s first-ever NXT Women’s Championship reign.
Lynch wrote on Instagram last week that she’s immensely proud of her NXT title run. Lynch said the future is in good hands with Valkyria as champion.
The 27-year-old Valkyria wrestled as Aoife Valkyrie in NXT UK before debuting in NXT.
Valkyria told the Irish Mirror that her ultimate goal is competing in the main event of a pay-per-view.
John LaRocca and I are back with a brand new Fight Game Podcast.
To kick off this week’s top five, we talked about a company that we don’t usually talk about but were in the news because of a rebrand back an an old brand. Yep, we talked some TNA to start the show.
Some of the other topics:
Ric Flair as Sting’s gift from Tony Khan
If we believe Flair wrestles again
Becky Lynch vs. Lyra Valkyria on WWE NXT and how it could have been even better
Swerve Strickland breaking into Hangman Page’s home
What we’d like to see out of Swerve
MJF being part of so many programs all at the same time
Becky Lynch is “immensely proud” of her run as NXT Women’s Champion.
Lynch’s time as NXT Women’s Champion came to an end this Tuesday when she lost to Lyra Valkyria in the main event of NXT Halloween Havoc night one. Lynch spent more than a month as champion after winning the title from Tiffany Stratton this September.
The NbeXT era has come to an end. I am immensely proud of my run as NXT womens champion. From getting to step in the ring with some of the finest up and comers to open challenges on Raw and being a catalyst for highlighting the wealth of hungry talent we have on our roster. [Lyra Valkyria] is the real deal and will be a star for years to come. The future is in good hands.
This was Lynch’s first-ever NXT Women’s Championship reign. She didn’t hold the title during her original stint in NXT.
While champion, Lynch had title matches against Stratton, Natalya, Tegan Nox, Indi Hartwell, and Valkyria.
Lynch vs. Valkyria was the first time that two Irish women have ever faced off for a WWE championship.
Valkyria defeated Becky Lynch in the main event of NXT Halloween Havoc night one on Tuesday. The finish of the match had Valkyria kick out of a man handle slam. When Lynch went for a second man handle slam, Valkyria countered and rolled up Lynch for the victory. After the match, Lynch took the title from the referee and gave it to Valkyria. The show closed with Valkyria posing with the title.
Jade Cargill made her presence felt in the main event, sitting on a throne in the crowd. She was shown again after the match.
Valkyria won a three-way match back on the October 3 edition of NXT, defeating Indi Hartwell and Roxanne Perez to become the new number one contender for Lynch’s title. Lynch has successfully defended the NXT Women’s title in recent weeks on Raw against the likes of Tegan Nox and Indi Hartwell. Xia Li had also indicated to Lynch that she wanted a title match.
On Monday’s Raw, Valkyria appeared in the crowd during the NXT Women’s title match. After Lynch won, she and Valkyria exchanged words.
For the first time ever, Halloween Havoc is a two-week special. Night one will see Becky Lynch defend her NXT Women’s Championship against Lyra Valkyria. Lynch is coming off a title defense against Indi Hartwell on Raw. Lynch has successfully retained the title four times since becoming champion.
The NXT Tag Team titles will also be on the line in a match between Tony D’Angelo & Stacks and Chase U’s Andre Chase & Duke Hudson. Chase U earned the title shot by winning a Bada Bing Bada Boom battle royal last week.
Two Halloween-themed stipulation matches are set for tonight. Gigi Dolin and Blair Davenport will settle their rivalry in a Lights Out match. Roxanne Perez and Kiana James are facing off in a Devil’s Playground match.
We’ll get our first look at Lexis King (Brian Pillman Jr.) in a WWE ring. He’s making his NXT in-ring debut on the episode.
Tonight’s show airs live on USA Network starting at 8 p.m. Eastern time.
The band New Years Day kicked off the show with their song ‘Vampyre.’
Scarlett & Shotzi welcomed us to the Halloween Havoc. Shotzi was dressed as Pinhead from Hellraiser. Scarlett was dressed as Marie Antoinette, I think.
Vic Joseph & Booker T* previewed the card before throwing it to the ring for the first match.
*One of the all-time terrible commentary teams
Devil’s Playground match: Roxanne Perez defeated Kiana James
Roxanne got some shine early with a variety of pinning combinations including a sunset flip off the steps onto the floor for a near fall. Kiana cut Roxanne off with a laptop shot and took control heading into a picture-in-picture commercial break.
A variety of weapons were used including a chain, a garbage can, a swing set, a sliding board, a see-saw, a picket fence.
Roxanne missed a side Russian leg sweep off the barricade. Kiana missed a moonsault off the barricade. Roxanne hit Kiana with Kiana’s loaded purse and followed up with Pop Rocks onto the loaded purse for the pin.
Roxanne is indeed a prodigy, and Kiana has nights where she looks like a good wrestler and nights where she looks lost. This was overly choreographed, but a fine opener where they spent almost the entirety of the bout on the floor.
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Carmelo Hayes interview
Vic Joseph held a sit-down interview with Carmelo backstage. He asked if Carmelo attacked Trick Williams. Carmelo asked if this was an interrogation.
Carmelo said if he would have had to go through Trick to win that four-way last week for a title shot, he would have. He said his motivation is not just the NXT title, but the title of “Him,” and how can he be “Him” without the NXT title.
Carmelo said “Justice for Trick” and walked off the set while Vic tried to ask more questions and was ignored.
Much more of a heelish edge to Carmelo here than anytime recently, obviously. This was not a good promo.
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Meta-Four were backstage with Shotzi & Scarlett. Akira Tozawa stole the Heritage Cup while Meta-Four argued with one another about a ouija board.
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Lexis King’s in-ring debut: Lexis King defeated Dante Chen
King entered on a throne. He said “Brian Pillman is dead, long live Lexis King.”
They had a simple and short match that King won with a draping, spinning neckbreaker after a superkick.
“My way, my life,” King said after the match.
Lexis King sounds like the name of a credit bureau. Nothing about this did King any favors.
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Chase U backstage segment
Chase U were backstage preparing for their Tag Team title match. Thea Hail promised not to throw in the towel. The Family came in to wish Andre Chase & Duke Hudson luck.
NXT Women’s Breakout Tournament semifinals: Kelani Jordan defeated Arianna Grace
Jordan won after an impressive legdrop and a split-legged moonsault.
As with all the matches in this Breakout Tournament so far, they kept it simple and did well.
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Mr. Stone & Von Wagner segment
Mr. Stone & Von Wagner had a heart-to-heart at the physical therapy facility. Stone said he’s going to avenge his friend next week as he tries to land one punch or one slap against Bron Breakker. Wagner said “we’re friends?” Stone said “yes, we’re friends.”
Wagner said he’s still not feeling up to cornering Stone next week.
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Shotzi & Scarlett welcomed us back from commercial in new costumes. They plugged their YouTube show.
The Creeds & Ivy Nile interrupted and wanted a match against Angel & Humberto. Shotzi said they should spin the wheel to decide what kind of match they should have.
Next week The Creeds will face Angel & Humberto in a Tables, Ladders & Scares match.
Shotzi was Edward Scissorhands, Scarlett was apparently a vampire, but just looked like a lingerie model to me.
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NXT Tag Team Championship match: Chase U’s Andre Chase & Duke Hudson (w/Thea Hail & Jacy Jayne) defeated Tony D’Angelo & Channing “Stacks” Lorenzo to win the titles
Stacks hit an impressive dive onto Chase & Hudson as they went to a commercial break early in the bout.
Back from break, Stacks missed an elbow drop to allow Chase to tag Hudson and switch the momentum. Hudson hit a boss man slam for a near fall.
Stacks escaped a Fratliner and managed a tag to Tony D. Stacks & Tony D reestablished the advantage as they cut Chase off in their half of the ring. Stacks & Tony D did their version of the Power & Glory superplex spot for a near fall with Hudson breaking up the pinfall attempt on Chase.
Stacks & Hudson fought to the floor. Jayne tried to pass a foreign object to Chase, but he refused to use it. Chase sent Tony D into the ropes and bumped Jayne off the apron, then caught Tony D in a pinning combination to win the titles.
Jayne & Hail celebrated with Hudson & Chase in the ring as the Chase U student section went crazy.
Stacks & Tony D are good & Chase U is a fun act, God bless everyone involved.
Nathan Frazer’s Hard Hitting Home Truths
Frazer said he was going to beat Dominik Mysterio for the North American title next week if Mami let Dom take his balls out of her purse. Frazer said last year’s Halloween Havoc was a bad night for him but he’s back stronger and faster than ever.
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A video package aired with Irish fans weighing in on social media regarding the all-Irish main event on tonight’s show.
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Baron Corbin promo
McKenzie Mitchell interviewed Baron backstage. She asked if he attacked Trick Williams last week, which Corbin denied. Corbin said he came this close to earning a shot at the NXT Championship last week.
A good promo.
Lights Out match: Blair Davenport defeated Gigi Dolin
The crowd chanted for tables. Davenport teased setting one up, but then denied the fans.
The big spot of the match was Davenport hitting a falcon arrow off the announce desk through another table to set up the pinfall victory.
They had a decent weapons brawl with straps, chairs, tables, etc.
Ilja Dragunov sit-down interview
Vic interviewed Ilja backstage. He said Carmelo is a desperate man and not focused enough to regain his title next week. Ilja said the intangibles will be the difference in their match.
Carmelo was shown watching the interview on a monitor. Scarlett & Shotzi approached dressed as the twins from The Shining & said that all signs point to him being Trick’s attacker last week. Carmelo said they should go bother somebody else.
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Tiffany Stratton & Fallon Henley promo
Sarah Schreiber interviewed Tiffany. Tiffany said said she likes Sarah better than McKenzie already. Fallon Henley interrupted dressed as Tiffany for Halloween and did a pitch-perfect Tiffany impression. The two brawled, likely setting up a match for next week.
They exchanged the advantage with a series of kicks early. They did a lengthy sequence of irish whip reversal spots that led to Vice being sent to the floor. Petrovic hit a nice dive to the floor.
Immediately off the dive, they got back in the ring and Vice hit a high kick for the pin.
The finish came out of nowhere. Both competitors have good strikes. Booker T said that Lola is spicy and you want to put that spice on everything.
Chase U celebration
Andre, Duke, Thea, and Jacy were celebrating their victory backstage when Chelsea Green & Piper Niven interrupted in costume. Thea & Jacy said they were going to ask Shawn Michaels for a Tag Team title shot against Chelsea & Piper.
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Lyra & Becky were shown backstage as they prepared for the main event, which is next.
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Meta-Four segment
Meta-Four were complaining to a security guard that they didn’t have video surveillance to determine who stole the Heritage Cup. Lash Legend showed Noam Dar a photo of Tozawa with the Heritage Cup and Dar freaked out.
Carmelo Hayes & Bron Breakker backstage
Bron said he and Melo would be fighting for the top spot in the industry for decades. Bron said that whether or not Carmelo attacked Trick, he did what he had to do. He said that once he puts away Mr. Stone & Carmelo beats Ilja next week, they can get back to their rivalry.
Jade Cargill arrives
Cargill made a grand entrance to watch the main event from a platform in the arena.
NXT Women’s Champonship: Lyra Valkyria defeated Becky Lynch to win the title
There were loud dueling chants.
They went 50/50 to establish Valkyria as a credible challenger. Becky used her matrix escape from a pinfall attempt, then Lyra did the same. They hit simultaneous crossbodies into a double down.
Becky blocked one northern lights suplex attempt, but Lyra continued to fight for it and finally hit one. Becky countered with a Bexploder. Becky teased a leg slice off the ropes, but Lyra escaped. Lyra avoided a baseball slide and hit a dropkick through the ropes to the apron with Lynch on the floor.
Lyra hit the leg slice that Becky teased earlier for a two count. Lyra avoided the Manhandle Slam and hit a missile dropkick for another near fall. Lyra avoided a Disarm Her. Becky used sliced bread out of the corner for a near fall of her own.
Lyra again avoided the Manhandle and they traded cradles. Becky got an armbar applied, but Lyra escaped and stacked Becky up for two.
Lyra hit a fisherman’s suplex for two. Lyra went to the top rope and missed a splash. Becky got the Disarm Her, but Lyra reached the ropes to force a break.
Lyra hit a sit-out powerbomb out of the corner for two, then went back to the top rope. Becky cut her off and hit a superplex into a DDT for another two count.
Lyra fought out of a powerbomb attempt out of the corner and hit a spinning high kick for a near fall.
Becky blocked a kick and turned it into a Manhandle Slam, but Lyra kicked out at two.
Lyra escaped another Manhandle Slam and trapped Becky’s shoulders for the pin and the upset victory.
The two hugged and Becky raised Lyra’s arm, then left the ring to Lyra to celebrate her title win.
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I’m going to miss Becky having great title matches on the show every other week if this is the end of her NXT run, but this was another in a series of classics that she put on as NXT Women’s Champion.
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Next week —
NXT Championship: Ilja Dragunov defends against Carmelo Hayes
NXT North American Championship: Dominik Mysterio defends against Nathan Frazer
WWE Women’s Tag Team Championship: Chelsea Green & Piper Niven defend against Thea Hail & Jacy Jayne
Lyra Valkyria is next to get a crack at the NXT Women’s Championship.
Valkyria defeated Indi Hartwell and Roxanne Perez in a three-way match to become the new number one contender for the NXT Women’s Championship on Tuesday, defeating Hartwell after Kiana James took out Perez at ringside. With the win, she will now face Lynch on the first night of NXT’s two-week Halloween Havoc event, which begins on October 24.
In a backstage interview, James said she cost Perez the match because she wanted to prevent Perez from winning another championship. She then announced that if Perez could defeat Asuka on next week’s NXT, Perez could get a match against her.
Lynch is currently out of action after successfully defending the title at NXT No Mercy this past Saturday, defeating Tiffany Stratton in an Extreme Rules match. She was set to defend the title on Monday’s Raw against Tegan Nox, but was pulled from the match after receiving a cut during the Extreme Rules match that required stitches. The match is now set for next week’s Raw.
Two matches have been added to the lineup for WWE NXT this week.
Dana Brooke vs. Lyra Valkyria has been booked for the show. Brooke is coming off a loss in tag action on August 29 when she and Kelani Jordan lost to Elektra Lopez and Lola Vice. Valkyria’s last match on WWE programming was a victory in mixed tag action with Dragon Lee over Dominik Mysterio and Rhea Ripley on August 22.
WWE has also announced a six-man tag match for Tuesday’s show. Charlie Dempsey, Drew Gulak & Damon Kemp will team together to wrestle Brooks Jensen, Josh Briggs & Myles Borne.
Dominik Mysterio and Rhea Ripley will be wrestling on next week’s NXT.
On Tuesday’s NXT, Rhea Ripley laid out the challenge to Lee and Valkyria, upset that it wasn’t enough for Valkyria to get an endorsement from Ripley. Mysterio had successfully defended the North American title against Dragon Lee on last week’s show thanks to help from Ripley.
A match between Baron Corbin and Von Wagner is also set. Wagner confronted Corbin on Tuesday’s show, with Mr. Stone running down Corbin. Corbin responded by saying that he wanted to hear what Wagner had to say. Wagner said that Corbin could bring any of his eight characters to the ring next week, promising that he would ‘table’ Corbin. After the talking ending, Corbin attempted to cheap shot Wagner, but Wagner countered with a clothesline out of the ring.
In a video posted on social media following NXT, Ava challenged Ivy Nile to a match at Heatwave, saying after she gets done with Nile, The Creed Brothers will be forced to reveal themselves.
NXT Women’s Champion Tiffany Stratton will also make an appearance on next Tuesday’s show.
Here is the updated lineup for next Tuesday’s Heatwave:
NXT Championship: Carmelo Hayes defends against Wes Lee
Ilja Dragunov vs. Trick Williams
NXT Heritage Cup: Nathan Fraszer defends against Noam Dar
Dominik Mysterio and Rhea Ripley vs. Dragon Lee and Lyra Valkyria
Tonight’s NXT will feature the fallout from Great American Bash.
Carmelo Hayes is still the NXT Champion following a battle with Ilja Dragunov this past Saturday. We’ll see if a new challenger for Hayes emerges tonight.
Tiffany Stratton also retained her NXT Women’s Championship at Great American Bash, defeating Thea Hail in a submission match. Though Hail lost, she didn’t tap out. Andre Chase threw in the towel as Stratton had Hail locked in a Boston crab. Stratton will celebrate her victory tonight.
Dominik Mysterio retained the North American title at Great American Bash, while Tony D’Angelo & Stacks defeated Gallus to become the new NXT Tag Team Champions.
A grudge match between Jacy Jayne and Lyra Valkyria has been announced for tonight. The two brawled at Great American Bash when Jayne attacked Valkyria.
The Schism will hold an interrogation as they attempt to confirm who the two followers who have been disobeying them are. Dijak vs. Eddy Thorpe and Yulisa Leon & Valentina Feroz vs. Elektra Lopez & Lola Vice are also set for the episode.
Our live coverage starts at 8 p.m. Eastern time.
NXT begins with a recap of The Great American Bash, and then an opening angle where Gallus ambushes The Family. Tony D’Angelo and Channing “Stacks” Lorenzo arrive to the building in their SUV, and they bring with them their newly won NXT Tag Team title belts.
Gallus jump The Family in the parking lot. While Tony D and Stacks put up a fight, they are eventually beaten down and left laying on the concrete. This would set up six-man tag match for tonight’s main event, with a mystery partner for The Family.
Cut to Booker T and Vic Joseph at the announce desk, and they are interrupted by Jacy Jayne. She vows to finish what she started at The Bash, except this time there will be nobody to pull her off Lyra Valkyria. I guess she forgot about the referee. Anyway, the show is kicking off live with a grudge match from the soundstage at the Performance Center in Orlando.
Jayne rushes to meet Valkyria during her entrance, and the grudge match is underway with a brawl before the bell.
Lyra Valkyria defeated Jacy Jayne
Valkyria pinned Jayne after a splash off the top rope. The finish was somewhat out of nowhere. They were fighting when Jayne hit Valkyria with a superkick, but Valkyria dodged another strike. Valkyria ducks under, and she levels Jayne with a roundhouse kick. Valkyria follows up by climbing the turnbuckles for a leap of faith and the three count.
They wrestled through a commercial break, and Valkyria showed a ton of fire. Jayne got to dominate a lot despite losing, which is seemingly standard WWE booking logic. Nothing necessarily wrong with that, as the heel got a comeuppance. The finish was just sudden.
NXT Champion Carmelo Hayes is talking backstage with Trick Williams. They talk a little about The Bash and Hayes’ banger with Ilja Dragunov. Williams then voices some frustration with being seen as a sidekick. Williams wants to fight Dragunov to show that he too is a dragon slayer like Hayes. Williams and Hayes embrace before Williams exits the scene.
Tony D and Stacks are in the trainer’s room when roving reporter McKenzie Mitchell asks them for a medical update. Tony D says the update is Gallus are dead men walking, and Tony D wants to fight all of Gallus tonight. Stacks points out that means all three. Tony D says he will make a call.
Rey Mysterio to appear live on NXT next week
Out comes “Dirty Dom” and “Mami” for an in-ring promo. NXT North American Champion Dominik Mysterio and WWE World Women’s Champion Rhea Ripley enter the ring, and they boast about Dom retaining his title at The Bash. They are soon interrupted by Dragon Lee.
Ripley tries to insult Dragon Lee, but he laughs it off. Dragon Lee takes exception to Dom thinking he is the greatest luchador ever. That is Rey Mysterio, according to Dragon Lee. After a discussion about the size of each other’s cojones, Dragon Lee challenges Dom to a title match next week. Dom accepts the challenge, saying he is a fighting champion.
Ripley assures she will be in Dom’s corner, and Dom says that is all he needs. Dragon Lee responds with a surprise. Dragon Lee says next week he will not come alone either. Suddenly, Rey Mysterio appears on the Titantron, and Mysterio announces that he will be in Dragon Lee’s corner next Tuesday on NXT.
Carmelo Hayes and Wes Lee have a heated confrontation in the locker room. They are interrupted by Noam Dar and Oro Mensah. Words are exchanged, and a scuffle breaks out. This sets up a tag team match for later tonight.
A dejected Thea Hail is flanked by Duke Hudson and Andre Chase for an interview with McKenzie Mitchell. Baron Corbin interrupts and tells them the interview is over. Chase says this is there allotted time. Corbin disrespects and insults Hail, and Chase says he will not allow that. This sets up a singles match between Corbin and Chase.
Dijak defeated Eddy Thorpe
Dijak pins Thorpe clean, after injuring Thorpe’s shoulder. Thorpe was getting a good push, and then he loses clean. Maybe they have a return match, and there is a 50/50 booking treatment. Regardless, they had a good match here tonight. More of that, please.
Thorpe takes an ugly bump, as Dijak goes to work on an arm. Dijak works over the arm, and he smashes Thorpe into a ring post. Thorpe fight back, but he uses his injured arm for an elbow drop. That backfires on him, and Dijak again posts the arm. Dijak follows up with superkick into the shoulder, and Dijak does a roaring kick that drops Thorpe for a three count.
Tony D is on the phone with his mystery partner, and Tony D says he is in.
Dana Brooke wants Kelani Jordan to find her “killer instinct.”
Vice pinned Leon to win the match in somewhat of an upset. Feroz & Leon were getting a push. It appears they now have rivals, as this would seem to set up a return bout
This match was set up after Lopez & Vice on social media cut a promo cutting down Leon & Feroz. Too bad for them that Leon & Feroz are the team being pushed. Vice & Lopez make a good team, but the match was so-so. Everybody worked hard.
The heels work over Feroz, leading towards a hot tag to Leon. She cleans house. Lopez is sent out of the ring by Leon, but Vice recovers unbeknownst to Leon. She turns around and walks into a superkick from Vice, and Vice covers Leon for a pinfall.
NXT Women’s Champion Tiffany Stratton cut a promo on TikTok bragging about her retaining the title at The Bash. She will be back live next week on NXT.
Noam Dar & Oro Mensah (with Jakara Jackson & Lash Legend) defeated NXT Champion Carmelo Hayes & Wes Lee (with Trick Williams)
Dar pinned Lee to win the match. As part of the finish and the story of the match, Lee inadvertently hits Hayes with a finisher. There is tension between Lee and Hayes. This could seem to set up Lee being the next challenger for Hayes’ title.
Wes Lee, who has more of an edge lately, with a subtle tease of heelish behavior. Before the bell to start the match, Lee dives through the ropes for a dive on Dar & Mensah. The two teams go on to brawl at ringside. They finally get into the ring, and they match bell sounds to officially start the match. Surprised by the ambush, Dar takes bumps while still wearing his jacket.
The match goes through a commercial break, and Lee is being worked over as the show returns from the break. Builds to a hot tag. Hayes is a house of fire. Dar bump and feeds for Hayes. Legend gets involved at ringside at one point, and Hayes ducks a clothesline from Legend. Moments later, Jackson gets into the ring to distract Lee.
Jackson stands over Dar to protect him as Lee is perched on the top rope, and Jackson dares Lee to go through her. Still being a subtle heel, Lee goes for a twisting senton anyway, and Jackson moves out of the way. Lee splashes Dar for a near fall when the pin is broken up.
A flurry of action brings Hayes back into the ring. He drops Mensah with a kick. Lee signals and measures for a Cardiac Kick on Dar. Lee then inadvertently hits Hayes with the Cardiac Kick, and Lee is superkicked by Mensah (who was apparently supposed to do a springboard, but botched it). Dar delivers a shining wizard to Lee, and Dar covers him for a pinfall.
Bron Breakker cut a promo threatening Von Wagner.
A plug advertises Cody Rhodes appearing Thursday during Today on NBC.
Rhea Ripley and Dominik Mysterio are in the parking lot when they are confronted by Axiom. Dom does a comedy bit where he mistakes the masked Axiom for Dragon Lee. They are all interrupted by Mustafa Ali, and Ali barges into the conversation wanting a word with Dom. Axiom feels disrespected by this, which would seem to set up a match between Axiom and Ali.
Baron Corbin defeated Andre Chase (with Thea Hail and Duke Hudson)
Corbin pinned Chase to win the match, but the story was really at ringside with Thea Hail.
Hail was visibly depressed at ringside. She upset about Chase throwing in the towel on Sunday, Hail throws in the towel for Chase when Corbin had him in a single-leg crab. Corbin caught the towel, and the referee did not see Hail thrown it in, and Corbin throws the towel back outside the ring.
Hail picks up the towel and leaves ringside, heading backstage. Hudson is taken aback with Hail’s actions and her walking out. Meanwhile, Chase is given The End of Days, and Corbin covers him for a three count.
Roxanne Perez is the focus of a vignette that shows her returning to her home state of Texas for her match at The Bash. Her family is featured in the video package, and they were also part of the story at The Bash. The mini-doc here was great character development for Perez.
In a scene straight out of a Monday night wrestling show in the late ’90s, a car is seen arriving to the building, and out steps a mysterious figure. The announcers speculate of this person is the mystery partner for tonight.
Tyler Bate in a skit confronts Meta-Four. This would seem to set up a match between Bate and Noam Dar for the Heritage Cup. Bate is the rightful holder of the trophy, but Dar now has a replica version.
Where in the world are the Creed Brothers?
Joe Gacy and Ava hold an interrogation with The Schism, trying to identify the traitors. The Dyad are also there, and they are livid. The masked members are all told to unmask one by one, as they are looking for the culprits.
There is a comedy bit where Ikemen Jiro pranks The Schism as he reveals himself as a member. Except he is not a member, so they kick him out of the ring. They kick out someone else. That left two more members. They Dyad lambaste them, and accuse them of being the Creeds. Dyad jump the two masked guys, and they pull off the masks. Turns out, they were not the Creeds.
The Creed Brothers suddenly appear on the Titantron, and they are supposed to be vacationing after losing the losers leave town match. This is supposed to be comedy as the Creeds are shown at various locations like the Pyramids. Gacy then screams for followers of Schism to find the Creed Brothers and bring them to Schism. What a silly angle this is, but whatever. Could be a lot worse.
In a skit from “last week” on NXT, an upset and angry Cora Jade pitches and fit in the locker room after losing a match. She storms out and claims she is leaving NXT.
Matches officially announced for next Tuesday on NXT:
Dominik Mysterio, with Rhea Ripley in his corner, defends the NXT North American title against challenger Dragon Lee, with Rey Mysterio in his corner
Tyler Bate against Noam Dar in a Heritage Cup match
Bron Breakker vs. Von Wagner
Mustafa Ali vs. Axiom
NXT Tag Team Champions The Family (Tony D’Angelo & Channing “Stacks” Lorenzo) & Santos Escobar defeated Gallus (Mark Coffey, Wolfgang & Joe Coffey)
Escobar was revealed as the mystery partner, and he has history as a rival of Tony D. Tonight, Escobar returned to NXT as Tony D’s tag partner.
The babyfaco trio clear the ring and clean house before a commercial break, but the rudos have the advantage when the show returns. Stacks is being worked over after the break.
Hot tag, and Escobar gets to shine as he runs wild. The two teams face off, three-on-three for a melee in the closing moments. Escobar with a super-duper avalanche Frankensteiner off the top rope on Mark Coffey. In comes Stacks and Tony D, and they execute their double team Bada Bing finisher. Tony D then hooks a leg and covers Coffey for the deciding pinfall.
The show closes with Ilja Dragunov cutting a promo on Trick Williams, vowing to terminate him entirely. Strong words.
WWE Women’s World Champion Rhea Ripley will be in action on this week’s episode of WWE NXT.
Stemming from an angle shot in a promo segment on WWE’s social media channels, Ripley will face Lyra Valkyria on the Tuesday, July 25 WWE NXT show in a non-title match.
As Ripley was being interviewed by Byron Saxton, Valkyria interrupted and issued a challenge to Ripley for Tuesday. Ripley accepted, and the match was made official.
It was previously announced that Ripley and new NXT North American Champion Dominik Mysterio would kick off Tuesday’s episode. Mysterio defended the North American title both on Friday’s SmackDown show and Monday’s Raw.
The updated lineup for Tuesday’s NXT:
Rhea Ripley vs. Lyra Valkyria
Carmelo Hayes, Trick Williams & Ilja Dragunov vs. Joe Gacy & The Dyad
Gable Steveson will decide his future
Kendo stick match: Cora Jade vs. Dana Brooke
Dominik Mysterio & Rhea Ripley will kick off the episode
WWE has announced a new match for Tuesday’s edition of NXT.
Jacy Jayne vs. Lyra Valkyria has been added to the lineup for the show.
Jayne and Valkyria were involved in a backstage segment along with Rhea Ripley on last week’s show. The segment ended with Valkyria knocking Jayne to the floor and Ripley telling her she deserved it.
Valkyria performed in her home country of Ireland over the weekend. She defeated Scarlett on the 6/29 WWE house show from Dublin. She’s also coming off a loss to Tiffany Stratton in the finals of the NXT Women’s Championship tournament at Battleground.
Jacy Jayne comes into this one 3-3 in televised singles matches so far this year.
The 7/4 edition of WWE NXT was filmed last Tuesday from the Performance Center. Spoilers from the show are available here.
Tiffany Stratton has won the first championship of her professional wrestling career.
Sunday night’s Battleground event saw Stratton defeat Lyra Valkyria to be crowned the new NXT Women’s Champion. The match was the finals of a tournament to decide the new title holder.
Valkyria entered Battleground with a storyline knee injury following a kendo stick attack by Cora Jade on NXT last Tuesday. Valkyria’s knee caused her issues throughout the match.
To win the championship, Stratton connected with her Prettiest Moonsault Ever and pinned Valkyria.
Valkyria had been able to avoid the Prettiest Moonsault Ever the first time Stratton went for it. Valkyria then hit a roundhouse kick and appeared to have the match won, but Stratton managed to get her foot on the bottom rope.
The NXT Women’s Championship was vacated by Indi Hartwell earlier this month. Hartwell is now a member of the Raw roster after being called up in the WWE Draft.
In the tournament, Stratton defeated Gigi Dolin in the first round and Roxanne Perez in the semifinals. Valkyria defeated Kiana James and Jade in her first and second round matches.
Tiffany Stratton and Lyra Valkyria have advanced in the NXT Women’s Championship tournament.
On Tuesday, Stratton defeated Gigi Dolin in the opening match of NXT. The match ended quickly, with Stratton scoring the clean win after what she now calls the prettiest moonsault ever (BME). Later in the show, Valkyria and Kiana James had a more competitive match, with Valkyria scoring the win after a roundhouse kick.
Stratton will face the winner of a match between Roxanne Perez and Jacy Jayne that will take place on next week’s NXT, while Valkyria will face the winner between Fallon Henley and Cora Jade, which will also take place next week.
The tournament was announced on last week’s NXT, with Indi Hartwell vacating the championship upon being drafted to the main roster. The tournament finals will take place at NXT Battleground on May 28. NXT’s pay-per-view event will take place the same day as AEW’s Double or Nothing event.
Two more women have qualified for the ladder match at NXT Stand & Deliver.
Tiffany Stratton was the first to qualify, defeating Indi Hartwell with the BME. Later in the show Lyra Valkyria qualified, defeating Ivy Nile with a roundhouse kick. With their wins, they now join Gigi Dolin and Zoey Stark for a chance at the Women’s Championship. The fifth participant has yet to be named.
The ladder match was announced on last week’s show after Shawn Michaels released a statement saying Roxanne Perez’s status was unclear after she fainted following her match against Meiko Satomura at NXT Roadblock, and as a result NXT may have to crown a new Women’s Champion.
“I wish I had better news, but the doctors are saying we’re no closer to finding out what happened to me at RoadBlock,” she wrote in a Twitter post on Tuesday. “I’m very frustrated, but I promise I’ll be back, stronger than ever, but I just don’t know when!”
Here is the updated lineup for Stand & Deliver on April 1:
NXT Championship: Bron Breakker (c) vs. Carmelo Hayes
NXT Women’s title ladder match: Zoey Stark vs. Gigi Dolin vs. Tiffany Stratton vs. Lyra Valkyria vs. ???
NXT Women’s Tag Team titles: Kiana James & Fallon Henley vs. Alba Fyre and Isla Dawn
NXT North American title: Wes Lee vs. Dragon Lee vs. Ilja Dragunov vs. JD McDonagh vs. ???
NXT Tag Team titles: Gallus (c) vs. The Creed Brothers vs. Tony D’Angelo & Stacks
Winner gets the school: The Schism vs. Chase U & Tyler Bate
Two qualifying matches for the Women’s Championship ladder match at Stand & Deliver will take place on NXT.
WWE has announced Lyra Valkyria vs. Ivy Nile is scheduled for Tuesday’s show. The winner will be entered into the title match on April 1 in Los Angeles.
WWE has previously advertised that Valkyria would face Wendy Choo on Tuesday but has since changed the match to Valkyria vs. Nile. Choo has been sidelined with an injury deemed “not too serious” and was written off television via a parking lot attack on the February 28 episode.
Another qualifying match for this week’s NXT featuring Indi Hartwell vs. Tiffany Stratton was previously announced for Tuesday as well.
Zoey Stark and Gigi Dolin have already qualified to be two of the four participants at Stand & Deliver. Stark defeated Sol Ruca and Dolin defeated Kiana James in qualifying matches on last week’s show.
Shawn Michaels announced the ladder match to crown a new NXT Women’s Champion after an angle at Roadblock saw Roxanne Perez collapse following her match. Our own Dave Meltzer previously reported that the angle was done to potentially explain Perez’s absence due to a non-injury-related situation. However, on Tuesday’s edition of Wrestling Observer Radio, Meltzer noted that Perez will be “back in the mix” shortly.
Meltzer said:
She is okay, cleared, and will be worked back into storylines probably starting on tomorrow’s show. Somehow they are going to get her back in the mix. Whatever the issue was, they got a good report.
It’s not an injury but it was just a situation that could have kept her out. That’s why they did the thing as a backup thing. Everything’s cool and from what I was told today, now they are going to start working her back in.
WWE NXT lineup for March 21, 2023:
NXT Women’s Championship Qualifying match: Lyra Valkyria vs. Ivy Nile
NXT Women’s Championship Qualifying match: Tiffany Stratton vs. Indi Hartwell
