Tag: nxt uk results

NXT UK results: Tag team number one contender’s elimination match

Posted on by Markus Gronemann

Quick results —

  • Trent Seven told Jordan Devlin he would drop below 205 lbs and challenge for Devlin’s NXT Cruiserweight Championship.
  • Meiko Satomura is coming to NXT UK to challenge Kay Lee Ray for the NXT UK Women’s Championship.
  • Ben Carter defeated Sam Gradwell.
  • Sha Samuels defeated Josh Morrell. Samuels was talking to Noam Dar backstage before his match.
  • Ilja Dragunov couldn’t explain what happened with Jack Starz last week. Sam Gradwell talking trash in the background during Dragunov’s interview may lead to a match between them.
  • Rampage Brown challenged Joe Coffey to a match down the line.
  • Pretty Deadly became the number one contenders to the NXT UK Tag Team titles by defeating The Hunt, Ashton Smith & Oliver Carter, and Mark Andrews & Flash Morgan Webster. Pretty Deadly last pinned Andrews after Eddie Dennis attacked Andrews’ knee with a chair from the outside. Pretty Deadly jaw-jacked with Gallus after the match.

Full rundown —

Jordan Devlin in-ring segment

Devlin walked to the ring and talked about his NXT Cruiserweight Championship open challenge. Devlin said he’s the longest-reigning Cruiserweight Champion of all time and that he wants his legacy to be that he was the best wrestler under 205 pounds this company had ever seen.

As Devlin was cutting his promo, Trent Seven’s music played and he walked out with a microphone in hand. Seven had not been seen since the fallout of his loss to A-Kid in the Heritage Cup tournament finals. He agreed that Devlin had beaten all challengers and was cementing his legacy

Seven said that maybe the division needed a new challenger. Seven suggested that he’s going to slim down below 205 pounds and challenge Devlin for the Cruiserweight title once he does. Devlin looked incredulous but said that if Seven could cut what he guessed must be about 30 pounds, then he would indeed defend the Cruiserweight title against him.

Devlin wished Seven good luck and patted his belly as he walked by him, but Seven grabbed Devlin’s wrist and decked him with a hard right that sent Devlin to the mat. Devlin rolled out of the ring, then slid back in to grab his belt, but Seven had put his foot down on top of it.

Seven bowed down to Devlin and told him once more that he would take the title off him.

– Backstage, Eddie Dennis was firing up The Hunt as they prepared for their main event match later tonight.

A new challenger for NXT UK Women’s Champion Kay Lee Ray

A video highlighted Kay Lee Ray’s NXT UK Women’s Championship reign and showed her beating everybody in the division as she talked about her reign getting longer and longer. The screen then cut to a Tweet KLR hat recently sent out that read “Another win. Now give me the best in the world…” Highlights of a woman kicking and beating various wrestlers then aired. The woman was quickly revealed as legendary Japanese wrestler and president of Sendai Girls’ Pro Wrestling Meiko Satomura (who had been in the 2018 Mae Young Classic and recently signed an NXT UK deal as a player/coach).

She said her name is Meiko Satomura and that many say she is the best wrestler in the world. Clips from the Mae Young Classic, PROGRESS, wXw, and Sendai Girls showed Satomura slaughtering people as a graphic announced that Meiko Satomura is coming to NXT UK.

– Pretty Deadly were shown warming up for the main event.

Ben Carter pinned Sam Gradwell after a frog splash (7:33)

This was a battle of speed vs. brutality with Carter coming back with athletic moves and fast, creative offense from repeated beatdowns.

Gradwell walked out and demanded that they “decrease the volume,” then proceeded to ridicule Carter for wearing “PE pants” and being from Jersey, “a place with more cows than people, that was not even in an atlas.” He also called Carter a “yogurt” and promised to send him back “across the channel in a catamaran.”

Gradwell worked Carter’s arm early, but Carter came back with a number of dropkicks and some lightning-fast offense. Gradwell used his aggressiveness to ground Carter and scored a number of near falls.

Carter eventually sent Gradwell to the outside with a spinning head kick, then hit a dive on Gradwell seconds later before returning to the ring and hitting a somersault plancha to the outside. Gradwell countered a guillotine into a front slam. Carter came back with an impressive looking quebrada into a reverse DDT/elbow drop combo before hitting a beautiful frog splash off the top for the pinfall victory.

– Mark Andrews & Flash Morgan Webster were shown preparing for the main event.

– Sha Samuels was seen talking to Noam Dar backstage and it was announced that Samuels would be in action next.

Sha Samuels submitted Josh Morrell with a Cobra/Camel Clutch (5:12)

This was 95 percent Samuels ragdolling and beating up on Morrell, so unlike in the previous match, the smaller man could not use his agility to his advantage much. Morrell showed some promise, especially with a standing twisting somersault senton, but Samuels quickly stopped any offense.

In the end, Samuels hit a spinebuster and applied a mix between a Cobra and Camel Clutch for the submission win.

– Ilja Dragunov was doing some casual one-armed push-ups as one is wont to do when he was asked about his match with Jack Starz last week. Clips were shown of Dragunov snapping and destroying Starz. Dragunov said he didn’t know what happened and that he didn’t want to hurt Starz. Dragunov said that this hadn’t been the plan and looked bewildered and distracted.

Gradwell mouthed off in the background, as he often does. Dragunov then just walked off. I see a severe beating at the hands of Dragunov in Gradwell’s immediate future.

– Rampage Brown was interviewed backstage as Gallus walked by. Brown was friendly with them and greeted Joe Coffey. Brown told him that they (Mark Coffey & Wolfgang) knew what they were doing next, but that Joe may need a challenge. Joe told Brown he might take him up on that.

– A  graphic announced that Nina Samuels will face Xia Brookside next week. Jordan Devlin’s NXT Cruiserweight Championship open challenge also returns next week.

Fatal four-way number one contender’s elimination match: Pretty Deadly (Sam Stoker & Lewis Howley) defeated The Hunt (Wild Boar & Primate), Ashton Smith & Oliver Carter, and Mark Andrews & Flash Morgan Webster (22:15)

Andrews and Smith started out and traded offense. Both tagged their partners and Carter and Smith hit their move where Carter somersaults over the top onto Smith’s back and then hits an assisted moonsault. Pretty Deadly blind-tagged in and out until Andrews turned the game on them. Gallus were shown sitting by the entrance eating popcorn and having a good time.

Eventually, Primate and Howley were in and The Hunt hit double German suplexes on both Pretty Deadly members. The Hunt and Andrews & Webster briefly brawled, then took turns beating up on Smith. Smith eventually tagged Andrews and Andrews and Webster cleaned house on the other three teams. Stoker and Andrews ended up on the top turnbuckle, with Smith tagging back in and hitting a super powerbomb on both.

Smith was looking to suplex Howley into the ring when Carter jumped on his back and moonsaulted on everyone on the outside, after which Smith hit a Falcon Arrow for a near fall. A melee broke out with everyone hitting everybody else with a big move. Primate and Smith ended up the legal men and Primate hit a high-angle suplex on Smith. The Hunt set up for their finish, but Andrews pulled Boar out of the ring and Smith and Carter eliminated Primate after an electric chair/cutter combo. (The Hunt eliminated at 12:00)

Smith hit a big gutwrench suplex on Stoker, then had an exciting exchange with both members of Pretty Deadly before tagging in Carter. Stoker hot tagged Andrews, who looked surprised. Andrews and Webster double-teamed Smith and hit a poison rana/kick combo for the pin. (Smith & Carter eliminated at 15:10)

This left Pretty Deadly and Andrews & Webster. Andrews and Pretty Deadly had some awesome exchanges, concluding with a hurricanrana by Andrews on Stoker. Howley attacked Andrews’ previously hurt knee, then managed to get Andrews in a giant swing on his hurt knee. Howley transitioned into a half crab and finally a figure four. Webster made the save and broke up the hold. Andrews hit Stun Dog Millionaire and made the hot tag.

Webster back body dropped Stoker on Howley to the outside and followed with a somersault off the top. As Andrews was getting ready for a dive, Eddie Dennis (who was banned from accompanying The Hunt to ringside for this match) suddenly popped up and hit Andrews in the knee with a chair, then quickly disappeared again.

Pretty Deadly then hit their Hart Attack/neckbreaker finish on Andrews to win the match and become the number one contenders to Gallus’ NXT UK Tag Team titles.

Only Joe Coffey was left in the chairs by the ring, as Mark Coffey and Wolfgang came back out to their music and trash talked Pretty Deadly, who jaw-jacked back and forth with them.

Next week —

  • Jordan Devlin’s NXT Cruiserweight Championship open challenge
  • Nina Samuels vs. Xia Brookside

NXT UK results: Kay Lee Ray vs. Jinny Women’s title match

Posted on by Markus Gronemann

Quick results —

  • Rampage Brown defeated Dave Mastiff in a mean guy match.
  • Ilja Dragunov defeated Jack Starz. Dragunov seemingly still suffered from some trauma from his loss to WALTER, but he eventually snapped and won by ref stoppage. Dragunov then looked remorseful for what he had done.
  • Amir Jordan defeated Tyson T-Bone.
  • Kay Lee Ray successfully defended her NXT UK Women’s Championship against Jinny. Interference from Jinny’s associate Joseph Conners repeatedly backfired during the match.

Full rundown —

– The show opened with a recap of the build to Kay Lee Ray and Jinny’s NXT UK Women’s Championship match.

Rampage Brown defeated “Bomber” Dave Mastiff after hitting a Doctor Bomb (6:31)

Brown went into this match undefeated, while Mastiff was the original undefeated monster when NXT UK first kicked off. The two of them have been friendly since Brown debuted — and Mastiff proposed a friendly singles match between them during a segment at the NXT UK Performance Center last week. On a trivia note, they wrestled 11 times on the UK scene between 2012 and 2016, with Brown leading the series 9-2.

This was a stiff match with both men hitting hard shots and suplexes.

They traded blows in the early portion of the match, then Brown took Mastiff off his feet with a dropkick. Seconds later, Mastiff retaliated with a dropkick of his own. Mastiff took over with a sit-down splash off a sunset flip and a senton, then took Brown out of mid-air and hit a pumphandle suplex for a near fall.

Brown came back with a stiff clothesline for a near-fall of his own. Mastiff went for his cannonball in the corner, but Brown moved and Mastiff stopped. Brown took out Mastiff’s knee as he went to the top. Brown then hit a backdrop driver followed by the Doctor Bomb to pick up the victory.

– A video recapped last week’s WALTER vs. A-Kid NXT UK Championship match. A-Kid said he lost, but he’ll win the next time they face off.

– Kenny Williams was waiting for Amir Jordan. He excitedly told Jordan that he’ll have a match with Tyson T-Bone tonight. Jordan wasn’t too happy, but Williams told him he believed in him.

Ilja Dragunov defeated Jack Starz by referee stoppage (5:47)

Dragunov had his debut match in NXT UK against Starz. Dragunov asked Starz for a rematch last week, as he wants to start over after his loss to WALTER. This match saw Dragunov somewhat flustered early on until he snapped and destroyed Starz, seemingly no longer being able to control himself.

Starz countered a wristlock early on and took Dragunov down in uncharacteristic fashion. Starz kept getting the advantage, out-wrestling Dragunov, who at times looked a bit caught off guard. Dragunov caught him off a body press, but Starz escaped once more.

Starz hit a German suplex hold for a near fall, then hit a series of European uppercuts on Dragunov. After a slap by Starz, Dragunov finally snapped out of it and went to work on Starz while screaming in Russian, hitting slaps, chops, and a number of suplexes that had Starz basically knocked out. Dragunov hit Torpedo Moscow to the back of Starz’s neck but did not go for the pin. Instead, he hit repeated elbows to the side of Starz’s head until the referee stopped the match.

After the match, Dragunov looked remorseful as he realized what he had done while Starz laid on the mat, barely moving.

– Sam Gradwell was watching clips of Ben Carter vs. Jordan Devlin on his phone. He made fun of Carter and called him out.

Amir Jordan (w/ Kenny Williams) defeated Tyson T-Bone after countering a sunset flip (5:00)

Jordan used his speed early and held onto T-Bone, but he was overwhelmed after a minute as the larger T-Bone manhandled him. Williams looked on concerned from ringside as T-Bone hit a slingshot with Jordan’s throat under the bottom rope.

Jordan briefly came back, but T-Bone overwhelmed him once more. In the end, Jordan went for a sunset flip, but T-Bone sat down on him. Jordan managed to escape and roll T-Bone over for the win.

– Xia Brookside talked about her feud with Nina Samuels. Brookside said she defeated Samuels, but Samuels then cost her the win against Isla Dawn. Brookside said Samuels dragged her family’s name through the dirt, but she would soon learn what the Brooksides are made of.

– A video hyped the upcoming number one contender’s four way tag team elimination match with Pretty Deadly, The Hunt, Oliver Carter & Ashton Smith, and Flash Morgan Webster & Mark Andrews. This match will take place next week — and in a piece of breaking news, Eddie Dennis is banned from accompanying The Hunt to ringside.

– A split screen showed KLR and Jinny getting ready for their match.

NXT UK Women’s Championship match: Kay Lee Ray retained against Jinny (w/ Joseph Conners) after hitting a Gory Bomb (11:06)

Jinny interfered in KLR’s falls count anywhere match against Piper Niven weeks ago, allowing KLR to keep the title. With the help of her new associate Joseph Conners, Jinny then defeated Niven to earn the title shot.

Jinny may have had this match won, but interference by Conners repeatedly backfired, allowing KLR to retain.

It was clear early on that the rules would not be highly regarded by either woman, as they pulled each other’s hair repeatedly. Niven and Dani Luna were both shown watching on the ThunderDome-style screen.

KLR looked to have hurt her previously injured knee on a landing and rolled to ringside, allowing Jinny to smash KLR’s head into the ring steps on the outside. They kept brawling on the outside with both women breaking the count repeatedly. More members of the NXT UK women’s division were shown watching on the screen.

Jinny locked in a surfboard-style submission, but KLR told the referee to shut up as he asked her if she wanted to give up. KLR finally made the ropes.

Jinny was on offense with some rolling kicks, but KLR hit a superkick out of desperation as both women collapsed. KLR eventually locked in the Koji Clutch as Conners nervously paced on the outside. Jinny managed to turn the hold into a pinning attempt, forcing KLR to release. KLR went for the Gory Bomb, but Conners got on the apron to distract her and the referee.

Jinny then put KLR on the second turnbuckle and hit the Makeover off the ropes. As Jinny went for the pin, Conners held KLR’s feet down from the outside. The referee caught him and sent him to the back. But before leaving, Conners grabbed the NXT UK Women’s title belt as KLR rolled up Jinny for a two count.

KLR saw Conners with the belt and chased him down, grabbed the belt, and slapped him. Meanwhile, Jinny grabbed the belt and looked to hit KLR with it, but KLR ducked. As Jinny and the referee struggled over the belt, KLR hit a Gory Bomb to get the win.

Next week —

  • Number one contender’s elimination match: The Hunt vs. Pretty Deadly vs. Oliver Carter & Ashton Smith vs. Mark Andrews & Flash Morgan Webster (Eddie Dennis is banned from accompanying The Hunt)
  • Ben Carter in action

NXT UK results: Jordan Devlin vs. Ben Carter Cruiserweight title match

Posted on by Markus Gronemann

Image: WWE

Quick results — 

  • Jinny defeated Piper Niven to become the number one contender to Kay Lee Ray’s NXT UK Women’s Championship. Jinny got help from Joseph Conners, who first took a somersault senton for Jinny and then pulled Niven’s legs away from under her, allowing Jinny to roll her up.
  • Ben Carter was interviewed by Noam Dar on his Supernova Sessions talk show. After some shenanigans, Jordan Devlin interrupted and was eventually challenged by Carter
  • Pretty Deadly cut a promo on Gallus.
  • Tyler Bate cut a spiritual promo that was mocked by Sam Gradwell. Bate vs. Gradwell is set for next week.
  • Dave Mastiff defeated Saxon Huxley in a quick match.
  • In a tremendous main event, Jordan Devlin retained his version of the NXT Cruiserweight Championship against Ben Carter. Carter looked like a million bucks here in a star-making performance in losing and should have a great future on the brand, if not on NXT or even the main roster down the line.

Full rundown —

NXT UK Women’s Championship number one contender’s match: Jinny defeated Piper Niven with a roll-up after getting assistance from Joseph Conners (6:49)

They traded vicious strikes right away and ended up at ringside. Back in the ring, Jinny kept viciously attacking Niven and gained the upper hand, locking in the Iron Octopus. Niven eventually managed to power out. Joseph Conners walked down the aisle and started watching the match on the ramp.

Jinny went to ringside and Niven went for a somersault plancha, but Conners stepped in front of Jinny and got wiped out. Jinny went to the top rope, but Niven caught her. As Niven got ready to slam Jinny, Conners grabbed Niven’s legs from the outside, allowing Jinny to roll through and get the win.

– Pretty Deadly cut a promo on NXT UK Tag Team Champions Gallus and said they knew Gallus didn’t like them. Pretty Deadly said they had Gallus paint a target on their back — almost as if that was what they wanted Gallus to do.

– A mysterious video narrated by Aoife Valkyrie aired. Valkyrie talked about birds having to be ready when they leave the nest. She said birds don’t try to be perfect when they soar, they just are.

– Tyler Bate cut a very spiritual promo about losing to A-Kid. He quoted Bruce Lee, who said that you had to become like water and who inspired martial artists to change their style. Bate said he wanted to do that to professional wrestling. Sam Gradwell was then shown watching this video on his phone. Gradwell asked if that was supposed to be inspirational. Gradwell said the only Yogi he respects is the one running around stealing picnic baskets. Gradwell said being like water is terrible advice.

Supernova Sessions with Ben Carter

Noam Dar said this was New Year’s resolution sessions and proceeded to read off his list. Dar’s resolutions were:

  • NXT Cruiserweight Champion
  • NXT World Champion
  • NXT UK Champion
  • Superstar of the Year Award
  • Most Handsome Award
  • Most Funny Award
  • The Most Humble Award
  • The Lead Role in The Marine 475
  • To be an absolute legend (which he proceeded to tick off the list)
  • Trish Stratus’ phone number (which he said was a joke, since he already got it)

Dar then introduced his guest, Ben “Carpenter,” who will make his NXT UK debut next week. Dar proceeded to ask him about woodwork and if it had always been a passion. Carter took it in stride and told Dar his name was Carter, but that he knew all about Dar and knew he would pull off something like this. Dar pretended this was a mistake made by “his people” and said that he had prepared seven questions on shelf design.

Dar then asked Carter why he decided to join NXT UK and Carter said that he wanted to face the very best this industry has to offer. Dar said that’s cool because he had the best in front of him and maybe they could have a match. At that point, NXT Cruiserweight Champion Jordan Devlin’s music interrupted their talk and he walked onto the set.

Devlin asked Dar how he could have Carter on the show before him. Devlin was respectful to Carter, saying he had been in his place, being called a prodigy with unlimited potential. Devlin also said he has a standing open challenge every time he steps into the ring and since Dar shared a roster with him, he should have had him on the show first. Dar replied by saying that once Devlin becomes the “real” NXT Cruiserweight Champion and not just a substitute, his people would talk to Devlin’s people and he could be on the show.

Carter interjected and said Dar had been surprisingly nice to him, but he sided with Devlin on this. Carter called Devlin the true, legitimate, undisputed NXT Cruiserweight Champion, the ace of this division, one of the gatekeepers of this entire brand — and because of all these things, Devlin should have no problem defending the title against him. Dar got all giddy and Devlin said that he knows Carter was supposed to debut next week, but he should face the Irish Ace tonight instead.

Sid Scala then entered and said he would call Johnny Saint, but he was confident that they could move something around and make the match official as the main event for tonight.

– A graphic for next week’s WALTER vs. A-Kid NXT UK Championship match was shown.

– Kay Lee Ray cut a promo, talking about Jinny becoming the number one contender to her title. KLR said usually Jinny’s daddy would reach into his pocket and buy her what she wanted, but the NXT UK Women’s Championship requires talent and could not be bought.

– A video recapped Dave Mastiff recently saving Jack Starz & Levi Muir from a post-match attack by Saxon Huxley.

Dave Mastiff pinned Saxon Huxley after hitting Into the Void (4:43)

Mastiff had the upper hand early, but Huxley came back and ran wild. Mastiff came back and after some more offense hit his Into the Void cannonball senton into the corner for the victory.

– A great video that included promos and match highlights of both men previewed WALTER vs. A-Kid for next week.

– Tyler Bate vs. Sam Gradwell was also announced for next week.

NXT Cruiserweight Championship match: Jordan Devlin retained against Ben Carter after hitting Devlin Side (12:44)

This was a star-making performance for Carter, who had probably the most impressive NXT UK debut in the brand’s history.

Carter started out strong and controlled Devlin, showing off his speed, agility, and athletic prowess. Devlin eventually stopped him off a whip-in and hit the uranage/standing moonsault combo, then proceeded to beat the hell out of Carter.

Carter came back once more and got a near fall off a beautiful sunset flip that he seemingly hit from high up in the sky. Carter avoided a dropkick by Devlin as he paused mid-move on a springboard move, then hit a springboard dropkick of his own. Devlin regrouped and threw carter to ringside and then into the ring steps.

Devlin scored a near fall back in the ring. A welt formed on Carter’s shoulder from the impact into the steel steps. Seconds later, they collided in mid-air off flying crossbodies, which grounded both competitors. Devlin then slid to ringside and Carter hit a moonsault reverse DDT off the apron. Carter followed up with a spinning neckbreaker in the ring for a very close near fall.

Carter missed a Phoenix Splash but rolled through, then got wiped out by a standing Spanish Fly from Devlin. Carter hit a Code Red for another near fall but then got his legs caught coming off the ropes. Devlin locked in the Four-Leaf Clover, but Carter would not tap, making the ropes twice and eventually forcing a break.

Carter was on his knees, with his back in bad shape. Devlin capitalized, hit a number of Kawada-style kicks, and then hit Devlin Side to get the win. This was a great match.

Next week —

  • WALTER defends the NXT UK Championship against Heritage Cup Champion A-Kid
  • Tyler Bate faces Sam Gradwell

NXT UK results: Gallus vs. The Hunt tag title match

Posted on by Markus Gronemann

Quick results —

  • Kay Lee Ray beat Isla Dawn in a non-title match
  • Ben Carter will make his debut soon
  • Ilja Dragunov is looking to start all over on is path to the championship
  • Levi Muir & Jack Starz beat Saxon Huxley in a handicap match; after the match, Huxley attacked them and was in turn attacked by Dave Mastiff
  • Piper Niven will face Jinny in a #1 contender’s match in three weeks
  • A-Kid called out WALTER and challenged him for the NXT UK championship; the match as later confirmed for 2021
  • Kenny Williams is seemingly still hurt and will support Amir Jordan as a single
  • Trent Seven seemingly will take a break from the ring
  • Rampage Brown beat Josh Morrell
  • Gallus beat The Hunt, when Mark Andrews & Flash Morgan Webster interfered; also interfering were Eddie Dennis and Joe Coffey; after the match, both Pretty Deadly and Ashton Smith & Oliver Carter got involved

Report —

Non-title match: NXT UK Women’s Champion Kay Lee Ray pinned Isla Dawn (04:18)

Isla comes off a victory over Xia Brookside, who was distracted by Nina Samuels last week. This also was KLR’s first match since her brutal title defense in a falls count anywhere match against Piper Niven a few weeks back.

KLR dominated the early portion of the match, but Dawn took over with a knee strike into the ropes and a running meteora. Dawn scored a close near fall off the Saito suplex she beat Brookside with last week.

KLR came back with a Tornado DDT, then locked in a Koji clutch, which Dawn only narrowly escaped. KLR then hit a super kick and the Gory Bomb for the victory.

After the match, KLR cut a quick promo and said she’d be champion for a long, long time.

**********

A video highlighted NXT UK’s newest signee, Ben Carter.

William Regal, Nigel McGuinness, Ashton Smith, Gallus and Sid Scala all sang his praises. Clips aired of Carter, courtesy of SCWPro in Iowa.

Carter, 22 from Jersey in the UK, started out two years ago and went to the U.S. to train under Seth Rollins at his Black & Brave wrestling school.

He has had matches on AEW Dark, Impact, GCW and Beyond, and will make his debut on NXT UK soon.

**********

A tremendous video of Ilja Dragunov aired.

It was shot in black and white and saw Dragunov sit on a chair in an empty ring, talking about his match with WALTER. He called it probably the match of the year 2020 in WWE and that it was a lion fighting a tiger. He said he promised to redefine violence with this match and he did. But he lost.

He said now, he had to start all over again. The only thing shot in color in this video were his red contact lenses, which he then removed in a close up shot. This was just amazing from an emotional and cinematographic point of view.

**********

Handicap match: Levi Muir & Jack Starz beat Saxon Huxley (05:21)

Huxley attacked both men at the NXT UK Performance Center last week and left them laying.

Starz started out with Huxley, but got manhandled and looked worried. Muir was in next, who seemed to have the strength advantage, but got pounced out of mid-air off a leapfrog attempt. Starz hit a dropkick-assisted body press for a two count.

Huxley hit an impressive gorilla press slam on Starz, then smashed into both opponents on a run around ringside. Starz kicked out of a pin after a gutwrench powerbomb.

Muir briefly was on offense and the team even took Huxley off his feet with a double dropkick.

Starz hit a sunset flip on Huxley who held on to the top rope, but Muir slapped his hands away from the apron, allowing Starz to score the deciding pin for his team.

Huxley attacked both men after the match, but Dave Mastiff ran out to make the save and clotheslined Huxley over the top.

**********

Piper Niven stormed into Sid Scala’s office and demanded that he watch a video on her phone.

It looked like from a CCTV camera at the Performance Center. Niven was seen lifting some weights, then took a quick break, while someone wheeled a chest into the room. Niven looked into it and it contained a steel chair with a piece of paper attached to it.

She gave it to Scala and it looked like a signed contract. Niven demanded a match with Jinny (the chair seemingly was the one Jinny attacked Niven with to cost her the match against Kay Lee Ray a few weeks ago).

It was confirmed Niven and Jinny will meet in a #1 contender’s match in three weeks.

**********

Dave Mastiff was shown walking backstage when he met Rampage Brown. Brown asked him about his interaction with Huxley and Mastiff told him he doesn’t like bullies. This looked like a friendly encounter between friends.

**********

A-Kid in-ring segment —

A-Kid was in the ring with the NXT UK Heritage Cup trophy and talked about how he was the first-ever Heritage Cup champion, won the tournament and eventually even beat his mentor, Tyler Bate.

He said his next step was very clear, and he challenged WALTER for the NXT UK championship.

WALTER walked out and told A-Kid that the next time he stepped into his ring, he must wipe his dirty feet on the ring apron.

He said it was great watching A-Kid in the tournament and he can clearly see he is very proud to be a professional wrestler. But how dare he claim to represent the heritage of this great sport. He said A-Kid was nothing special and like everyone else, his fairy tale will end once he steps into the ring with WALTER.

He said one thing will never change, and that is that WALTER is the NXT UK champion.

**********

Kenny Williams was in the NXT UK Performance Center. He said his health update wasn’t too good.

Amir Jordan walked in all happy and asked him if he was good to go so they could go for the tag team titles eventually. Williams told him he’d support him in his singles career instead.

**********

Trent Seven did a sit-down interview, talking about the Heritage Cup. He said he thought he did enough, but he didn’t.

He was caught up in what the Heritage Cup meant and was looking backwards at all the great men that came before him, when he should have been looking forward.

He said he needed to become better and it sounded like he will be taking a break from active competition, as he stated that he will be gone for a while, but not forever.

Rampage Brown pinned Josh Morrell (03:12)

Brown hit a huge back body drop on Brown, then kicked him out of the ring. Brown kept dismantling Morrell, but the youngster briefly came back with a dropkick and a corkscrew plancha.

Seconds later, Brown hit a devastating clothesline, followed by a dead lift powerbomb and the Doctor Bomb for the victory.

**********

Sid Scala had a breaking news announcement and said if all parties agree, WALTER would defend his NXT UK championship against A-Kid in the new year.

**********

NXT UK Tag Team Championship: Gallus (Mark Coffey & Wolfgang) defeated The Hunt (Wild Boar & Primate) w/Eddie Dennis to retain the titles (07:59)

The Hunt attacked Wolfgang right away and took turns beating him down. He eventually managed to pick up Boar and drive him into his corner, allowing Coffey to tag in.

Dennis briefly distracted Coffey, allowing his guys to take back over. The Hunt were firmly in control as Eddie Dennis played his part at ringside to ensure his team stayed on top of their opponents.

Coffey finally made the hot tag to Wolfgang, who ran wild on both opponents. Dennis freely interfered behind the referee’s back, until Joe Coffey ran out and drove him into the ring steps.

As Joe Coffey argued with the ref, The Hunt went to the top in order to deliver their double flying headbutts. Mark Andrews & Flash Morgan Webster then ran out and pushed The Hunt off the turnbuckles, allowing Gallus to hit their powerslam/head kick finisher on Wild Boar for the successful title defense.

As Gallus celebrated, Pretty Deadly walked out, looking to challenge the champions.

As the teams had words back and forth, Asthon Smith & Oliver Carter came out, attacked Pretty Deadly and threw them into the ring, where Gallus promptly beat them up and threw them to the outside again.

The tag team division in NXT UK certainly looks stacked going into 2021.

Next week —

A special Christmas Edition of NXT UK.

NXT UK results: A-Kid vs. Tyler Bate for the Heritage Cup

Posted on by Markus Gronemann

Quick results —

  • Jordan Devlin successfully defended his NXT Cruiserweight championship against Oliver Carter in week 1 of his open challenge series
  • Noam Dar debuted his Supernova 11 Series talk show; his guests were NXT UK Heritage Cup winner A-Kid and, unexpectedly, a returning Tyler Bate. Dar stirred things up and they ended up agreeing to a Heritage Cup match later tonight
  • Eddie Dennis and The Hunt pressured Sid Scala into a tag team title match for next week
  • Isla Dawn beat Xia Brookside after Nina Samuels distracted Xia from the big screen
  • Saxon Huxley attacked Jack Starz and Levi Muir af the UK Performance Center
  • A-Kid successfully defended his Heritage Cup championship against Tyler Bate, winning 2-1; Bate scored the first fall with a rollup, A-Kid scored the second fall from a moonsault implant DDT and then turned over a jackknife cover in round 6 for the final pin

Report —

The show opened with Jordan Devlin in the ring as he welcomed us to NXT UK, the show with the real NXT Cruiserweight champion. He kicked off week 1 of the Jordan Devlin’s Cruiserweight Championship Open Challenge. He said every time you saw Jordan Devlin in the ring, the championship was on the line.

Backstage, Ashton Smith was pumping up Oliver Carter and told him to go out there and win for Switzerland (his native country) and Ghana (the country he has his roots in). They came out together but Smith went to the back before the match.

NXT Cruiserweight Championship: Jordan Devlin pinned Oliver Carter to retain the title (06:30)

Devlin beat Carter down, but the challenger came back, showing his athletic prowess with a back flip kick into the corner and arm drags.

Devlin caught Carter’s foot and he went to back flip, but Carter bounced into the ropes and landed right on his neck, which either was a brutal accident or an intricately planned spot. He sold the neck the rest of the match and Devlin worked it over.

Carter came back and even hit a hurricanrana on Devlin, who was on the top rope. Carter hit a uranage, but once more sold his neck and couldn’t follow up on it. He hit an enzuigiri into the corner, but Devlin hit a poison rana, which once more spiked Carter on the neck.

Devlin followed up with Devlinside for the pinfall victory.

**********

Jinny was interviewed at the UK Performance Center. She was asked about Piper Niven and said that she would deal with Niven on her own time and Niven would not see her coming. But for now, she does not concern herself with Niven and said she tamed wild animals in the past and would do so again.

**********

Supernova 11 Sessions

Noam Dar hosted the first episode of his new talk segment. The setup was a lounge, complete with a couch and snacks. Dar put himself over, then introduced his guest, the first-ever NXT UK Heritage Cup champion, A-Kid. Dar laid on the couch while A-Kid had to sit on a folding chair.

Dar greeted A-Kid in French, then asked if he spoke English in Spanish. A-Kid said that Dar knew full well he spoke English and in fact, he may speak it better than Dar himself.

A-Kid said after beating Dar in the tournament, he was happy to be here. Dar said he was looking to clear up the misconception that they were rivals and that when A-Kid came to NXT UK, Dar took him under his wing, nurtured him and became his mentor and sensei. A-Kid looked like this was news to him.

Dar even gave him a new name and said after winning the Heritage Cup, he was no longer A-Kid but A-Man. A-Kid told him to stop, that he was in fact not his mentor, sensei or friend. He said a lot of people helped him out, but Dar was not one of them. A-Kid said that no one helped him more than Tyler Bate. Dar ran down Bate and called him a has-been, asking who he ever beat.

At that point, Bate’s music played and he made his return to NXT UK after more than 9 months. Dar played all nice and clapped, but Bate blew him off and congratulated A-Kid on winning the Heritage Cup. He said he wished he could have been in the tournament and Dar immediately picked up on it, asking if what Bate meant to say was that he would have beaten A-Kid. Bate said that’s not what he said and not to put words in his mouth.

Dar said they should have the match tonight and he even would go to Johnny Saint to request it, so that they could find out who was the student and who was the master. Bate and A-Kid agreed to have the match and shook hands on it.

**********

Eddie Dennis and The Hunt walked into Sid Scala’s office. The Hunt positioned themselves on either side of Scala and growled at him menacingly, then began to throw things off his desk.

Dennis asked about who were the previous tag team champions (Mark Andrews & Fash Morgan Webster) and who beat them last week (The Hunt). He demanded that the Hunt get a title match against Gallus.

Scala, clearly scared, stammered that he had to talk to Johnny Saint about that. Dennis told him to go and do that, then snapped his fingers and left with The Hunt.

**********

A graphic announced the A-Kid vs. Tyler Bate Heritage Cup match for tonight’s main event

**********

Isla Dawn pinned Xia Brookside (05:24)

Both women were more aggressive than in the past and had a back and forth match. 

They brawled on the outside after a dive by Brookside when a stagehand set down a number of bags and suitcases by the ringside area. Nina Samuels appeared on the screen and told Xia (who beat her a few weeks ago) that “Brooksides are only good for carrying my bags.”

This distracted Xia, who walked right into a head kick by Isla. Dawn followed with a Saito suplex for the win.

**********

Sid Scala was being interviewed about how things were going at the NXT UK Performance Center when Saxon Huxley came crashing out of a room, screaming “Better luck next time!” and smashing some trash cans.

Scala and the camera ran into the room, where Levi Muir and Jack Starz where on the floor after having been attacked by Huxley. They had told Huxley after his last match week that he may have “better luck next time.”

**********

A graphic announced Gallus defending the NXT UK Tag Team Championships against The Hunt for next week.

**********

A quick reminder about the Heritage Cup rules:

  • All matches consist of six three-minute rounds with 20-second breaks between each round.
  • All matches are 2 out of 3 falls.
  • Falls can be won by pinfall, submission, or countout.
  • Once a fall occurs, the round ends.
  • The match ends once a wrestler has won two falls.
  • In the event of a disqualification or knockout, the match instantly ends without the need for two falls.
  • If all six rounds are completed, whoever is ahead on falls wins the match.
  • If there is a draw on falls, the match continues under sudden death rules with no time limit.

NXT UK Heritage Cup Championship: A-Kid beat Tyler Bate two falls to one to retain the Cup (16:56)

Bate looked phenomenal and in even better shape then before his pandemic induced break from the ring.

Round 1

The stared out with mat work and traded holds and counters for most of the round. They were locked in a knuckle lock as the round ended.

Round 2

They traded straightjacket holds for half of the round, A-Kid then transitioned into some BJJ in the final minute. luring Bate into his guard. They grappled some more as the round drew to a close.

Round 3

Bate went for an airplane spin early, but A-Kid escaped and hit a snap German. They traded more counters and Bate eventually rolled up A-Kid with an O’Connor roll for the pin at 1:47. (Bate 1-0)

Round 4

A-Kid was more aggressive now and had Bate locked in a triangle, which Bate power-bombed out of right as the round ended.

Round 5

A-Kid hit a springboard moonsault on DDT on Bate to score a pinfall in 1:00 of the round (Tied 1-1)

Round 6

They traded strikes and kicks early. Bate threw A-Kid through the ropes but held on to his leg, then went for a deadlift vertical suplex but A-Kid escaped. Bate went for his springboard lariat but A-Kid caught him and turned it into an armbar and went for a Jim Breaks Special, but Bate eventually escaped. Bate went for a jackknife pin, but A-Kid flipped him over and scored the deciding fall at 2:04 of the round. (A-Kid 2-1)

**********

Bate shook A-Kid’s hand after the match and raised his hand.

**********

Next week —

Gallus defend the NXT UK tag team championship against The Hunt.

NXT UK results: Joe Coffey vs. Alexander Wolfe

Posted on by Markus Gronemann

Quick results —

  • Rampage Brown defeated Saxon Huxley
  • Aoife Valkyrie defeated Aleah James
  • Joe Coffey defeated Alexander Wolfe
  • The Hunt defeated Mark Andrews & Flash Morgan Webster

Full rundown —

– The show opened with a graphic paying tribute to Pat Patterson.

– A graphic plugged tonight’s Flash Morgan Webster & Mark Andrews vs. The Hunt match. A video then recapped the history of their feud.

Rampage Brown defeated Saxon Huxley

Huxley provoked Brown last week at the NXT UK Performance Center, leading to this match.

This was a clash of big men and Huxley looked good with a bunch of offense. In the end, Huxley came off the top but got caught with a powerslam and fell victim to Brown’s Doctor Bomb.

– During media day at the Performance Center, Joseph Conners was interviewed while Jinny also gave an interview in the background. Piper Niven stormed in and attacked Jinny until things were broken up by a bunch of officials.

– Another video looked at the Andrews & Webster/Hunt rivalry.

– Saxon Huxley came backstage where he was told “better luck next time, bro,” which he kept muttering to himself.

Aoife Valkyrie defeated Aleah James

After a fast opening sequence, James looked flustered. She used some creative offense, but Valkyrie hung with her and kept outwrestling her. Valkyrie won with a top rope guillotine leg drop. 

– Pretty Deadly interviewed each other in a fun segment, talking about how they had victories over The Hunt and Oliver Carter & Ashton Smith. They challenged Gallus and said they would be the new NXT UK Tag Team Champions.

– Another video hyped Andrews & Webster vs. The Hunt for later.

Joe Coffey defeated Alexander Wolfe

The rest of Gallus and Imperium were banned from ringside for this match.

They traded holds and counters on the mat early on, with Wolfe getting the better of the exchange. Coffey came back with jabs and punching combinations. Wolfe worked over Coffey’s arm. Coffey hit a suplex, but he further injured his arm in the process.

They kept stiffing each other until Coffey launched himself over the top rope from the apron with a shoulder block, hit the Glasgow Sendoff into the corner, and followed with a lariat to the back of Wolfe’s head and All the Best for the Bells for the pinfall victory.

After the match, Gallus came out to celebrate with Coffey.

– Jordan Devlin cut a promo on why he wanted Sid Scala to find him challengers for his NXT Cruiserweight Championship. He quoted Ric Flair, saying “to beat the man, you got to beat the man.” Devlin said starting next week, he would offer an open challenge to all comers.

– A graphic announced the debut of Noam Dar’s Supernova Sessions interview segment for next week.

The Hunt (Wild Boar & Primate) w/ Eddie Dennis defeated Mark Andrews & Flash Morgan Webster

Webster & Andrews stormed to the ring and attacked The Hunt, then they brawled around ringside before the bell had even rung.

When it finally did, Webster and Andrews hit a double enzuigiri on Boar. Webster then wiped Boar out with a dive, followed by a moonsault onto his back by Andrews once Boar got back into the ring. Boar turned the tables and beat on Andrews. Andrews eventually tagged Webster, who ran wild on Boar, hitting a hurricanrana off the apron to the outside. Webster followed with a cannonball senton onto Primate. Webster and Andrews quickly tagged in and out and hit some creative offense on Primate.

Primate came back with a release German suplex, followed by Primate launching himself onto Webster in the corner. Andrews managed to tag in and hit a double DDT on both members of The Hunt. Webster and Andrews then hit stereo somersault dives onto The Hunt to the outside. Primate almost got pinned, but Dennis threw Boar into the ring to break it up.

Boar disposed of Webster and The Hunt began to dismantle Andrews. With some assistance from Webster, Andrews hit Stun Dog Millionaire on Primate. Andrews went to the top trying to finish the match off, but Dennis violently threw him off the top rope. Webster went to attack Dennis, but Boar took him out at ringside. Primate hit a vicious spear on Andrews, then The Hunt hit a Death Valley Driver/sit-down powerbomb combination for the victory.

Dennis celebrated with his team in the entranceway while Andrews and Webster were distraught in the ring.

Next week —

  • The Jordan Devlin open challenge begins and Noam Dar’s Supernova Sessions debuts.

NXT UK results: Heritage Cup finals

Posted on by Markus Gronemann

Quick results —

  • Jordan Devlin submitted Amir Jordan to retain his version of the NXT UK Cruiserweight Championship.
  • The Hunt were attacked by Flash Morgan Webster & Mark Andrews, setting up a match for next week.
  • Jinny submitted Isla Dawn, then taunted Piper Niven. Jinny cost Niven her falls count anywhere match against NXT UK Women’s Champion Kay Lee Ray last week.
  • Alexander Wolfe demanded and got a match against Joe Coffey next week, with both men’s factions banned from ringside.
  • in an excellent main event, A-Kid defeated Trent Seven to become the inaugural NXT UK Heritage Cup Champion. They were tied at 1-1 after six rounds, leading to a sudden-death overtime period where A-Kid submitted Seven to win the tournament.

Full rundown —

The show opened with the same video that aired last week, with Trent Seven and A-Kid talking about what it would mean to them to win the NXT UK Heritage Cup.

NXT Cruiserweight Championship match: Jordan Devlin retained against Amir Jordan (9:40)

Jordan, with the blessing of his injured partner Kenny Williams, challenged Devlin for a title match last week.

They intensely fought for position early on. Jordan got the better of him for a moment, but Devlin returned the favor. Devlin scored a near fall off a moonsault and they brawled on the outside to the count of seven.

Devlin worked over Jordan’s taped up shoulder, targeting it with strikes and kicks. Jordan wiped Devlin out with a dive, then hit an STO off a dive through the ropes back into the ring. Jordan hit a slam off an electric chair position for a near fall, but he eventually was caught in the Four Leaf Clover (Texas Cloverleaf) and was forced to tap out.

– Rampage Brown was training at the NXT UK Performance Center when Saxon Huxley, who was training at the rack next to him, started muttering Brown’s name and walked up to him. Brown looked at him and said he was up for all challengers, no matter how crazy.

– A promo video revealed that Noam Dar will have his own chat show on NXT UK called Supernova Sessions. It was hyped that the segment will debut soon.

– A graphic plugged the Heritage Cup finals.

– Eddie Dennis and The Hunt walked into the arena. A reporter asked Dennis if he wanted to comment on what happened with Mark Andrews and Flash Morgan Webster, but Dennis said no. Andrews and Webster then suddenly attacked The Hunt. Webster and Boar brawled into a table, while Andrews went to hit Primate with a trash can. The melee was quickly broken up by officials.

Jinny defeated Isla Dawn (4:27)

Jinny interfered in the Kay Lee Ray vs. Piper Niven falls count anywhere match for the NXT UK Women’s Championship last week, causing Niven to lose. Jinny also has her eyes set on the Women’s title.

Dawn started out aggressively, blasting the Fashionista with stiff kicks. Jinny came back with a rolling kick of her own and stomped Dawn in the corner. Dawn hit a backdrop driver that had Jinny at the edge of losing. She followed up with a Tarantula in the ropes. Dawn missed a top rope attack and quickly found herself at the end of a modified STF by Jinny. Jinny got the win via submission.

After the match, Jinny taunted Niven.

– Alexander Wolfe stormed into Sid Scala’s office and demanded a match against Joe Coffey. Wolfe also wanted Gallus banned from ringside, to which Scala agreed, but also banned Imperium. After staring a hole in Scala, Wolfe finally agreed.

-Next week, Mark Andrews & Flash Morgan Webster will face The Hunt. Wolfe will also take on Joe Coffey with the rest of Imperium and Gallus banned from ringside.

As a reminder, here are the rules of the NXT UK Heritage Cup:

  • All matches consist of six three-minute rounds with 20-second breaks between each round.
  • All matches are two-out-of-three falls.
  • Falls can be won by pinfall, submission, or countout.
  • Once a fall occurs, the round ends.
  • The match ends once a wrestler has won two falls.
  • In the event of a disqualification or knockout, the match instantly ends without the need for two falls.
  • If all six rounds are completed, whoever is ahead on falls wins the match.

NXT UK Heritage Cup finals: A-Kid defeated Trent Seven at 5:17 of the sudden-death overtime period (23:22)

This was an excellent match, telling a great story with Seven being the desperate veteran looking for one final big win to cement his legacy and A-Kid being the young up-and-comer looking for his first big win to make a name for himself. Seven, as the guy who helped put Pete Dunne and Tyler Bate on the map, both who have surpassed him at this point, was perfect for this role. A-Kid is an excellent worker and will go far in this business.

They went the full six rounds and were tied 1-1 at the end. A-Kid pinned Seven after a flying kick in round three, and Seven managed to turn a submission into a roll-up in round six. Therefore, the match went into a sudden-death overtime period for the deciding fall, which A-Kid scored by submission.

Round One:

Seven hit a gutwrench powerbomb as the first real offensive move of the match, but A-Kid kicked out of a pin right away. They traded submissions around the two-minute mark and kept it up until the round ended.

Round Two:

A-Kid firmly controlled Seven with holds and submission attempts throughout the round. Seven punched him in the face right at the end of the round.

Round Three:

A-Kid hit a running enzuigiri into the corner, smashing right into Seven’s water bottle. They traded chops and kicks, including A-Kid hitting a Pele kick, followed by a flying kick that put Seven down for the pin at 1:35 of the round. A-Kid took a 1-0 lead.

Round Four:

A-Kid continued to lock in submission after submission and went for an armbar. Seven eventually slammed his way out of it, but A-Kid locked it in again and neither would let go, even after the round ended.

Round Five:

A-Kid went for more submissions, but Seven hit a DDT for a near fall. A lariat by Seven launched A-Kid onto the ropes and Seven tried to go for the Burning Hammer. A-Kid escaped and they battled on the top turnbuckle as time ticked away. A-Kid eventually landed on top of Seven and went for the pin with two seconds left, but the round ended in mid-pin at 2.5.

Round Six:

Seven went for a roll-up, hit a snap dragon suplex, and then hit an Emerald Frosion, but he couldn’t get the pin. A-Kid went for a small package for another near fall. Seven hit the Burning Hammer and struggled to make the pin. A-Kid got his leg under the ropes.

Seven was exhausted around the 1:40 mark but hit a lariat for another near fall. Seven eventually rolled out of a submission and managed to pin A-Kid at 2:30 of the round to tie A-Kid at 1-1.

The match then went into sudden-death overtime.

Overtime:

A-kid went wild with kicks, but Seven turned him inside out with a lariat as he came off the ropes. They fought on the apron until Seven slammed A-Kid to the mats on the outside and both men struggled to make it back into the ring. A-Kid just barely made it back in to avoid being counted out.

Seven hit the Seven Star Lariat and then went for the Burning Hammer, but A-Kid flipped out, hit a super kick, and followed with a flying kick into the ropes. Seven went for an omoplata, but A-Kid countered into a submission of his own. A-Kid forced Seven’s arms behind his back and locked them with his legs. Seven struggled but eventually had to submit, crowning A-Kid the first-ever NXT UK Heritage Cup Champion.

Scala was going to give the Heritage Cup trophy to A-Kid after the match, but Seven took the trophy from Scala and presented it to A-Kid himself. A-Kid celebrated as the show went off the air.

Next week —

Alexander Wolfe faces Joe Coffey in a match where the rest of Imperium and Gallus will be banned from ringside. Mark Andrews & Flash Morgan Webster will also take on The Hunt.

NXT UK results: Women’s title falls count anywhere match

Posted on by Markus Gronemann

Quick results —

  • Joe Coffey pinned Sam Gradwell. Later, as Coffey and Gallus celebrated backstage, he drew the ire of Alexander Wolfe.
  • Pretty Deadly defeated Oliver Carter & Ashton Smith.
  • Saxon Huxley squashed Levi Muir.
  • in a brutal falls count anywhere match for the NXT UK Women’s Championship, Kay Lee Ray retained against Piper Niven after Niven was attacked with a chair by Jinny. Both Niven and KLR crashed through a table and KLR landed on top of Niven. They used all kinds of weapons and probably had one of the most brutal women’s matches in WWE history.

Full rundown —

Joe Coffey defeated Sam Gradwell

Gradwell was pinned by Coffey two weeks ago in a six-man tag match and has run his mouth and made excuses ever since.

Coffey worked over Gradwell’s surgically repaired knee. Gradwell valiantly fought back and they traded stiff shots throughout the match. Coffey picked up the win with his Best for the Bells spinning lariat.

– Sid Scala was backstage with Jordan Devlin and announced that he and Johnny Saint had sanctioned title defenses for Devlin’s NXT Cruiserweight Championship. Devlin said he didn’t need them sanctioning his matches and said they should be thankful he won the title and brought it to NXT UK. Kenny Williams and Amir Jordan walked up and Jordan challenged Devlin for the title. Williams gave his blessing.

– A tremendous highlight video of the WALTER vs. Ilja Dragunov battle aired. It was narrated by Dragunov.

– Alexander Wolfe was backstage and cut a promo about Imperium. Gallus celebrated Coffey’s victory in the back and repeatedly disturbed Wolfe’s train of thought. He screamed at them to shut up and got into a war of words with Joe Coffey. Coffey challenged him to fight at any place, any time. Coffey said that Wolfe cost him his title match against WALTER back in January.

Pretty Deadly (Lewis Howley & Sam Stoker) defeated Oliver Carter & Ashton Smith

These two had words at the NXT UK Performance Center last week, leading to this match.

Smith ran wild early on but was cut off by Pretty Deadly’s teamwork. They then worked over Carter for a bit until he finally made the hot tag. Smith had a fiery comeback and Smith & Carter almost had the match won after an assisted 450 splash by Carter on Howley, but Stoker put Howley’s foot on the ropes.

Smith rolled up Howley, but he pushed him off and Stoker hit an uppercut from the outside, allowing Howley to roll up Smith for the win.

– In a video from the NXT UK Performance Center, Mark Andrews and Flash Morgan Webster were furious. Andrews talked about Eddie Dennis, saying he knew all along how selfish Dennis was and that he didn’t care who he hurt along the way. Webster said he had known “Mike” (Wild Boar) since they were 12 years old and Boar had thrown away 15 years of friendship.

– A highlight video of Rampage Brown’s debut aired, featuring some of the NXT UK roster commenting on it.

Saxon Huxley defeated Levi Muir

This was basically a squash as Huxley destroyed Muir. Jack Starz came to ringside to cheer Muir on, but it was to no avail. Huxley won after hitting a lariat.

– A video aired hyping up A-Kid and Trent Seven’s paths to the finals of the NXT UK Heritage Cup tournament. Seven said he needed to win this to cement his legacy. A-Kid said he needed to win to kick off his career. The finals happen next Thursday on NXT UK.

– Jordan Devlin will also defend his NXT Cruiserweight Championship against Amir Jordan on NXT UK next week.

NXT UK Women’s Championship falls count anywhere match: Kay Lee Ray defeated Piper Niven to retain her title

Niven attacked KLR as she walked out, even before the bell rang. Once they were in the ring and the match started, Niven threw KLR to ringside and dove through the bottom and middle rope with a crossbody for a two count.

Niven grabbed a chair, but KLR kicked it out of her hands. They fought around ringside and KLR hit a sunset flip over the barricade for a two count of her own. KLR grabbed the ring bell and went to smash Niven’s head, but Niven moved and the bell bounced off the ring steps.

Niven hit KLR’s previously injured knee with a steel turnbuckle. Niven brought a trash can into the ring, but KLR superkicked her. KLR then went for the Gory Bomb, but she couldn’t get Niven up. KLR hit Niven with a kendo stick and applied a chain-assisted Camel Clutch, but Niven powered up to her feet and threw KLR backwards onto the trash can. Niven went for the Piper Driver onto a chair, but KLR escaped.

Jinny ran out and attacked Niven, but Niven disposed of her. KLR went for another Gory Bomb, but Niven countered into a backslide for another two count.

They brawled into the backstage area and KLR hit Niven in the head with a traffic sign. Niven returned the favor by breaking a picture frame over KLR’s head. KLR smashed a guitar over Niven’s back for another near fall. KLR set up a chair and went for another Gory Bomb, but Niven escaped and hit the Piper Driver through the chair for a close near fall.

Niven smashed a huge steel pipe into KLR’s knee. KLR survived, superkicked Niven, and threw Niven face-first into some production crates. Niven back body dropped KLR onto some of the boxes and got another two count.

Niven then dragged KLR on top of the box and seemingly looked to go for a Piper Driver off the boxes through a table set up at the bottom. As she picked KLR up, Jinny reappeared and hit Niven with a steel chair to the back, prompting both Niven and KLR to topple through the table to the floor. KLR somehow landed on Niven and had her arm draped over her, which allowed her to score the pinfall victory and retain the NXT UK Women’s Championship.

KLR and Jinny glared at each other as the show went off the air.

Next week —

  • A-Kid vs. Trent Seven in the Heritage Cup tournament finals
  • Jordan Devlin defends his NXT Cruiserweight Championship against Amir Jordan

NXT UK results: Seven vs. Mastiff, Rampage Brown debuts

Posted on by Markus Gronemann

Quick Results —

  • The Hunt, joined by Eddie Dennis, defeated Kenny Williams & Amir Jordan.
  • Rampage Brown made his debut by destroying Jack Starz.
  • Xia Brookside defeated Nina Samuels. Samuels feigned a knee injury in the match, which backfired as Brookside rolled her up. Samuels then attacked Brookside after the match.
  • Trent Seven defeated Dave Mastiff 2-1 to advance to the finals of the Heritage Cup tournament. Seven will face A-Kid in the finals.

Full Rundown —

The Hunt (Wild Boar & Primate) w/ Eddie Dennis defeated Kenny Williams & Amir Jordan after Primate pinned Jordan following top rope double headbutts (8:45)

This was The Hunt’s first match since aligning with Eddie Dennis. Dennis came out with them for this match. Wild Boar and Primate started out aggressively, but the smaller babyfaces used their speed and teamwork to gain the upper hand early in the match.

The turning point came when Boar catapulted Williams over the top rope, where he seemingly hurt his knee. They worked over Williams for a while until he finally got the hot tag. Jordan ran wild for a bit, but he eventually fell prey to The Hunt’s double headbutts off the top.

– A very good video aired on the upcoming Trent Seven vs. Dave Mastiff Heritage Cup semifinal match. Seven talked about how he contacted Mastiff years ago to help him become a better wrestler. WWE aired clips of the two of them having matches in PROGRESS. Mastiff said he’ll knock Seven out. Seven said he needed to win this match and called it the most important match of his career.

Rampage Brown pinned Jack Starz after a Doctor Bomb (2:22)

Brown is a veteran of the British scene and has been wrestling for over 15 years. He briefly was signed to WWE in the FCW days in 2011 and also appeared during a UK taping of an ECW on Syfy match back in 2008. He started out in All Star Wrestling and has wrestled for PROGRESS, RevPro, Preston City Wrestling, Defiant, World of Sport, and a ton of other promotions. In a fun trivia fact, he technically still holds the RevPro Tag Team titles with The Great O-Khan (which they last defended in mid-February), meaning that a WWE signed wrestler co-holds a title with an NJPW signed wrestler.

Brown looked like a monster here and manhandled Starz, who continued his role of putting over the debuting monster — Starz also was on the losing end of WALTER and Ilja Dragunov’s first NXT UK matches. Brown hit a Rick Steiner-like powerslam where he caught Starz in mid-air. He pinned Starz with a Doctor Bomb in just over two minutes.

– Sid Scala was in the NXT UK Performance Center about to make an announcement when Ashton Smith and Oliver Carter took the cameraman away. They walked over to where Pretty Deadly were talking. Smith, mockingly playing sports reporter, tried asking them about Eddie Dennis. Pretty Deadly were not amused and said they only care about tag team gold. The two teams got into it and Scala broke it up, telling them they would have a chance to resolve things.

– A video recapped the complete history of Kay Lee Ray’s feud with Piper Niven in NXT UK. The two will face off in a falls count anywhere match for the NXT UK Women’s Championship next week.

– Rampage Brown was asked about his debut backstage. He said he was just getting started and told the rest of the boys to keep up.

Xia Brookside pinned Nina Samuels with a small package (5:50)

Brookside, who has two singles and one tag team victory over Samuels in NXT UK, was in control for most of the match. Near the end of the match, Samuels got on the top turnbuckle, then cartwheeled over the top rope as Brookside ran into the corner. Samuels looked to have hurt her knee. The referee checked on her and repeatedly told Brookside to step back. As Samuels was back on her feet, Brookside immediately went in for a small package to get the win, obviously not believing Samuels was hurt.

As Samuels was being helped to the back after the match, she suddenly attacked Brookside, showing her injury had been a ruse after all. Samuels gave Brookside the Knee-na-goroshi on the outside.

– Sam Gradwell was asked about his loss in the six-man tag to Gallus last week. He elaborately talked about how he couldn’t account for every three seconds in the match and how it had been a melee. Gradwell said that Joe Coffey may have pinned him, but in a singles match between them, things would be different. Alexander Wolfe, who overheard the conversation, then walked up and told Gradwell to get his act together and called him a disgrace to the sport. Gradwell seemingly blew Wolfe off and left.

A quick reminder about the Heritage Cup rules:

  • All matches consist of six three-minute rounds with 20-second breaks between each round.
  • All matches are two-out-of-three falls.
  • Falls can be won by pinfall, submission, or countout.
  • Once a fall occurs, the round ends.
  • The match ends once a wrestler has won two falls.
  • In the event of a disqualification or knockout, the match instantly ends without the need for two falls.
  • If all six rounds are completed, whoever is ahead on falls wins the match.

Heritage Cup semifinal match: Trent Seven defeated Dave Mastiff 2:1 (10:55)

The winner of this match faces A-Kid in the finals. Mastiff was the only one to win a match by knockout in the tournament and was looking to repeat that here.

Round One —

They traded headlocks and felt each other out mostly. In the final seconds of the round, they collided in mid-air as both men went for a body press at the same time.

Round Two —

Mastiff dominated the first half of the round, but he missed a vertical splash and Seven rolled him up with a crucifix pin at 1:22 of the round. Seven took the lead 1-0.

Round Three —

Mastiff repeatedly hit splashes and sentons on Seven to knock the wind out of him. Seven hit a DDT, but it looked like his ribs were hurt. Mastiff hit a huge superplex at the 2:00 mark. Mastiff hit Seven with a hard forearm that looked to have him at the brink of a knockout. Mastiff inadvertently distracted the referee, keeping him from properly checking on Seven. Seven told the ref he was good to continue.

Round Four —

Mastiff hit a power bomb and the rolling cannonball in the corner, getting the pin at 0:42 of the round and tying the match at 1-1.

Round Five —

There was a rare production error, as they actually had “Round 6” on the screen here.

Seven was still in the corner as Mastiff went for another cannonball, but Seven rolled out of the way and escaped to ringside. Mastiff went to suplex him back inside while on the ropes, but Seven blocked it. They battled on the top rope and Seven went for a sunset flip powerbomb but couldn’t get Mastiff off the ropes. Seven chopped Mastiff’s thigh, then picked him up for the Burning Hammer and scored the pinfall victory at 1:31 of the round. Seven won the match 2-1.

Seven looked at the Heritage Cup trophy after the match and said his name would be the first to be engraved on it. A-Kid walked out and they shook hands, declaring that the best man may win.

Next week —

Kay Lee Ray defends the NXT UK Women’s Championship against Piper Niven in a falls count anywhere match.

NXT UK results: The Heritage Cup tournament begins

Posted on by Markus Gronemann

Quick results —

  • Kenny Williams won the Heritage Cup Wild Card triple threat match, beating his tag team partner Amir Jordan and Ashton Smith in a fun match. Williams will face Trent Seven in round one of the Heritage Cup tournament.
  • Jinny defeated Xia Brookside for the third time those two have met on NXT UK. Jinny cut a promo after and called herself the queen of NXT UK
  • Noam Dar defeated Alexander Wolfe 2-1 in a first round match in the Heritage Cup. Dar scored the first fall off a roll-up in round two, while Wolfe got a fall in round four after a bridging German suplex. Dar then hit the Nova Roller on Wolfe after special guest referee Pete Dunne had reprimanded Dar for cheating before the finish. After the match, Wolfe and Dunne got into it, leading to WALTER and Ilja Dragunov joining the fray.

Full rundown —

The show opened with a graphic for tonight’s Heritage Cup tournament first round match: Alexander Wolfe vs. Noam Dar with Pete Dunne as the special guest referee. We then went to the Wild Card triple threat match to determine the final participant in the tournament. The winner of the triple threat will face Trent Seven in round one.

Heritage Cup Wild Card triple threat match: Kenny Williams defeated Ashton Smith and Amir Jordan after pinning Smith following a tornado DDT (9:25)

Kenny Williams was shocked that his tag partner Amir Jordan was in the match. Jordan and Williams briefly teamed up to get Smith out of the ring but then squared off. They traded roll-ups but then got hit by a double clothesline from Smith. All three men traded flash pin attempts before Jordan hit a crossbody on Smith for a two count.

Williams hit a springboard headbutt that threw Smith off the apron. He then followed with a dropkick through the ropes but got caught on a dive. Jordan also hit a dive, sending everyone tumbling.

Back in the ring, Smith took over and dominated the match, sending Williams to the outside. Smith then went for a superplex on Jordan, who went for a sunset flip instead and got the assist from Williams to hit a powerbomb on Smith.

Smith still was strong, sending Williams into Jordan and then hitting a Blue Thunder Bomb on Williams for a near fall. Jordan hit a flatliner on Smith for another near fall.

Jordan and Williams traded strikes. Smith threw Jordan to ringside but got hit with a hurricanrana by Williams. Smith hit a slam on Williams, but Jordan came off the top with a Swanton Bomb to break up the pin. Jordan then covered Williams for another near fall. Jordan was sent to the outside once more by a superkick from Smith. Williams countered a slam from Smith with a tornado DDT for the pinfall victory.

– A video aired on Jinny and Xia Brookside ahead of them facing off later tonight.

– In another video, Eddie Dennis talked about his superior intelligence and how he aligned with Pretty Deadly last week.

– A clip from earlier in the year where Mark Andrews was attacked backstage was shown. Nobody has taken credit for the attack still. Andrews walked into the arena with Flash Morgan Webster and said he was back.

Jinny submitted Xia Brookside with an STF (6:33)

Brookside escaped an arm twist, which Jinny mockingly applauded her for. Brookside escaped some more attempts, then hit a dropkick on Jinny. Jinny came back with a kick to the stomach and took Brookside down for a pinfall attempt. Brookside took Jinny down with a headscissors off the ropes, then went for a monkey flip that was either blocked or botched.

Brookside was aggressive with a corner attack and a number of pinning combinations for some near falls. Brookside figure foured Jinny’s legs and kicked at her knee, then continued working over the legs. As the referee was talking to Brookside, Jinny hit a hard right hand for another near fall.

Brookside looked for the Brookside Bomb but Jinny blocked, then snapped Brookside’s head on the top rope. Jinny then locked in a modified STF for the submission.

– After the match, Jinny said she was ruthless and people would witness the new Jinny — the queen of NXT UK.

– A graphic announced Flash Morgan Webster vs. A-Kid in a Heritage Cup first round match for next week. A video feature on A-Kid then aired.

– Another graphic announced that Kay Lee Ray will give a State of the Union address next week.

Heritage Cup first round match (special guest referee: Pete Dunne) Noam Dar pinned Alexander Wolfe after the Nova Roller in 2:56 of round five to win the match 2-1 (14:02)

Pete Dunne entered first, followed by Dar and Wolfe.

Round One —

Wolfe and Dar wrestled on the mat for the first 30 seconds with neither man getting the advantage. They traded more holds but still no man had the clear advantage. Wolfe locked in a cravat, then transitioned into a hammerlock. Dar hit a snapmare and a kick as the round concluded. Both men were handed water during the break. 

Round Two —

They grappled for position and Dar stomped Wolfe’s feet. He took Wolfe to the mat and went for a pin, but Wolfe wasn’t in danger. Wolfe pushed Dar’s shoulders down to the mat for a number of pinfall attempts. Wolfe hit a headlock takeover and tried to grind Dar down. Dar got Wolfe down for a backslide for a near fall, then countered a DVD attempt into a roll-up at 2:48 of the round, scoring the first point in the match.

Round Three —

Wolfe immediately took Dar down, then locked in a number of submissions. Wolfe rolled up Dar but only scored a two count. They traded strikes and forearms as the time in the round ran out. As Dunne tried separating both men after the end of the round, Wolfe hit a vicious slap on Dar.

Round Four —

Dar came back with a kick to Wolfe’s knee, then took his legs out and went for another pin but only got two. Dar signaled for the Nova Roller, but Wolfe ducked, hit an axe kick, and then scored a fall with a bridging German suplex at 0:58 of the round to tie Dar 1-1.

Round Five —

Dar countered an attack into an omoplata, but Wolfe countered as well. They traded submission attempts until Dar rolled Wolfe over for another near fall. Wolfe kicked out of another pinfall attempt and Dar transitioned into another armbar. Wolfe hit a flying kneebar but Dar escaped. Dar rolled Wolfe up but grabbed the ropes, prompting Dunne to kick his hand.

As Dunne was checking on Wolfe, Dar hit the Nova Roller (which Dunne narrowly ducked) on Wolfe for the pin at 2:56 of the round. With Dar winning two falls, he got the win and advances to the second round of the tournament. He’ll face the winner of Flash Morgan Webster vs. A-Kid.

– After the match, Dunne refused to raise Dar’s hand. Dar then left. Wolfe berated Dunne in German, telling him he was the reason Wolfe lost the match. Wolfe then went to attack Dunne, who got the better of him by hitting a kick to the head and stomps to the face. Dunne then went for the Bitter End before WALTER came out.

Dunne and WALTER got into a shouting match and WALTER got into the ring, but Wolfe snuck up on Dunne and beat him up. WALTER went to powerbomb Dunne, but Ilja Dragunov ran in for the save and Dunne and Dragunov cleared the ring of Imperium. Dunne and Dragunov screamed at Wolfe and WALTER as the show went off the air. It looks like we may get a tag team match with those four down the line.

Next week —

The Heritage Cup continues with Flash Morgan Webster taking on A-Kid in a first round match. Plus, coming off her brutal title defense against Piper Niven from last week, NXT Women’s Champion Kay Lee Ray will give a State of the Union address.

NXT UK results: Kay Lee Ray vs. Piper Niven Women’s title match

Posted on by Markus Gronemann

Quick results —

  • WALTER defeated Saxon Huxley in a hard-hitting affair. Huxley got a lot of offense in, but in the end he was no match for the NXT UK Champion.
  • The first round matches for the Heritage Cup were drawn. After Noam Dar was disrespectful, Pete Dunne got into it with him.
  • Pretty Deadly defeated The Hunt in a decent tag match.
  • Kay Lee Ray retained her NXT UK Women’s Championship against Piper Niven. KLR injured her knee as she ran into the ring steps and Niven looked to capitalize on the injury — only to fall victim to an exposed turnbuckle herself, causing her to get pinned.

Full rundown —

– The show opened with a tribute graphic for Joe “Road Warrior Animal” Laurinaitis.

– A quick video recapped last week’s episode before taking a look at this week’s lineup: Pete Dunne presides over the drawing of the Heritage Cup and Kay Lee Ray looks to defend her NXT UK Women’s Championship against Piper Niven.

– We saw that Sid Scala was meeting with the seven announced participants for the Heritage Cup earlier today, telling them to behave and be respectful. Noam Dar kept playing on his phone, so Alexander Wolfe slapped it out of his hands.

Non-title match: NXT UK Champion WALTER pinned Saxon Huxley after a powerbomb (6:09)

Huxley looked to hit a big boot, but WALTER immediately went for the sleeper. Huxley came back but quickly was disposed of and sent over the top rope. WALTER refused to let Huxley re-enter the ring. Huxley picked up the ring steps and threatened to throw them in the ring, but the referee would have none of it. Huxley kicked WALTER in the head and hit a body slam, then followed with a clothesline off the top rope for a two count. He followed up with an elbow drop after which WALTER rolled to ringside, but Huxley followed with a Thesz Press on the outside.

Huxley went for another running boot, but WALTER moved and Huxley got caught on the ringside barrier and ate a chop for his defiance. Huxley sent WALTER into the chairs, but the champion came back with a running kick to Huxley’s back. WALTER picked Huxley up and threw him back-first on the barrier, then hit a powerbomb to the edge of the apron. The referee started to count and Huxley made it back into the ring by the count of nine.

WALTER hit some chops, but Huxley answered with strikes of his own. WALTER locked in the sleeper, then as Huxley started to fade, hit a huge German suplex. WALTER then hit some more strikes and put Huxley on the top for a big butterfly superplex.

WALTER screamed at Huxley in German to get back on his feet, then struck him down again with a chop to the neck and followed with a powerbomb for the pinfall victory.

After the match, WALTER shouted at the camera in German, telling Dragunov that he destroyed Huxley tonight and would do the same to Dragunov.

– We saw a clip from the break with Huxley stumbling down some stairs, where he met Jack Starz. Starz told him he’d get him next time and Huxley pounded a locker and screamed “Next time!”

– A video ran down the rules of the Heritage Cup.

Heritage Cup Drawing

All seven announced participants, sans the mysterious wildcard entrant, were in the ring with Scala. After being introduced by Scala, Pete Dunne came out to his music with a microphone in hand. He said the Heritage Cup was for those who paved the way, like William Regal, Johnny Saint, and Rollerball Rocco. Dunne said he showed the world what British Wrestling was all about and now it was their turn. Scala started drawing the numbers and announced the matches:

  • Joseph Conners vs. Dave Mastiff
  • Wildcard entrant vs. Trent Seven
  • Flash Morgan Webster vs. A-Kid
  • Alexander Wolfe vs. Noam Dar

Before Wolfe vs. Dar was announced, Dar said there was no need to draw and got into Wolfe’s face. Wolfe, in German, told Dar in no uncertain terms that he would kick his ass. Dar went for a cheap shot, but Dunne caught his hand, snapped his fingers, and threw him to ringside, protecting the integrity of the Heritage Cup.

– Piper Niven was backstage with a few babyface members of the NXT UK women’s division, getting ready for her match later.

Pretty Deadly (Lewis Howley & Sam Stoker) defeated The Hunt (Wild Boar & Primate) when Stoker rolled up Boar for the win (8:00)

Boar and Stoker started and Stoker flipped out of an arm drag attempt, but he got hit with another one right away. Primate tagged in and Stoker managed to tag out. Primate ran wild for a bit, hitting a back elbow and a slam before Boar tagged back in. Pretty Deadly distracted the referee, then used some cheap tactics to pull Boar into the rope, gaining the upper hand.

Boar hit a sit-down powerbomb on Stoker, but he quickly got cut off again and was isolated by the heels. Howley went for some submission attempts, but Boar grabbed his hair to escape. Boar rolled through on a reverse body press by Howley, but he was slammed to the mat once more. Boar finally hot-tagged Primate, who ran wild on both members of Pretty Deadly for a bit. After some brawling with all four men, Boar hit a flying headbutt on Stoker, who kicked out. Boar speared Howley through the ropes, allowing Stoker to roll-up Boar for the win.

After the match, Eddie Dennis turned up near the entrance and talked to Pretty Deadly. 

– Wild Boar & Primate went backstage during the break and encountered Flash Morgan Webster & Mark Andrews, who tried cheering them up.

– Scala talked to Dunne and said that next week’s match with Wolfe vs. Dar could get out of hand. Dunne offered to be the special guest referee and Scala made it official.

– A graphic also announced a triple threat match for next week. The participants weren’t revealed, but the winner will become the wildcard entrant for the Heritage Cup tournament.

NXT UK Women’s Championship match: Kay Lee Ray retained against Piper Niven after Niven missed a cannonball senton into an exposed turnbuckle (14:24)

They locked up and Niven threw KLR into the corner. The champ quickly fled to ringside to regroup. KLR kicked Niven in the stomach, then started working over her arm, locking in a standing double wristlock. Niven finally escaped and got on offense, throwing KLR across the ring. She followed up with a headbutt, then locked in a choke and a bodyscissors, but KLR escaped and started working Niven’s leg.

Niven finally escaped and sent KLR to ringside. She followed KLR out and went to send her into the steps, but Niven got hit with a superkick instead, followed by a tornado DDT off the apron. KLR went for a running kick, but Niven moved and the champ smashed her knee into the steps. The referee held Niven back while he called for help and had people check on KLR’s knee. Niven was livid at the idea of the match being ruled a no contest. Two referees looked to help KLR to the back and Niven told her she did not want to win the title this way.

KLR slapped Niven and told her she’d never win the title, then Niven hit her back and dragged her back into the ring. Niven went to lock in a half crab on KLR’s injured knee, but KLR made the ropes. KLR came back with a superkick right on the point of Niven’s chin. KLR then made it to the top rope and hit a somersault senton for a close near fall. KLR picked up Niven, who kicked her injured leg out from under her, then hit a senton for a two count of her own. Niven looked to pull KLR from the corner, but she held onto the turnbuckle and ripped it off, prompting the ref to fix it.

Niven locked in the half crab once more until KLR escaped. KLR went for the Gory Special but couldn’t get Niven up and was hit with a Michinoku Driver. KLR got her feet on the ropes, then got her knees up on a Vader Bomb attempt by Niven. The referee pleaded with KLR to stop the match while she was in the corner, but Niven went for a running cannonball. KLR moved and Niven’s back hit the exposed turnbuckle, allowing KLR to score the pin and retain her title.

After the match, Jinny came out and watched KLR celebrate as the show went off the air.

Next week —

The Heritage Cup kicks off with Pete Dunne serving as the special guest referee for a first round match between Alexander Wolfe and Noam Dar. A triple threat match with three mystery participants will decide the wildcard entrant for the Heritage Cup tournament.

NXT UK results: The relaunch begins

Posted on by Markus Gronemann

Quick results —

NXT UK is back after more than five months, taping from BT Sport studios in London, England. A good show with three fun matches picked up where things left off back in March.

  • NXT UK Tag Team Champions Gallus (Mark Coffey & Wolfgang) defeated Amir Jordan & Kenny Williams in a non-title match. Good action and Williams continues to look impressive. After the match, most of the NXT UK tag team roster surrounded the ring.
  • NXT UK Women’s Champion Kay Lee Ray and Piper Niven had a confrontation ahead of their title match next week.
  • Aoife Valkyrie defeated Isla Dawn in a rematch from earlier this year.
  • Ilja Dragunov defeated Noam Dar in a very good match. Both men look more jacked than before and had a stiff back-and-forth outing. Alexander Wolfe came out near the finish, but Dragunov thwarted him and picked up the win via Torpedo Moscow. NXT UK Champion WALTER then came out for a staredown.

Full rundown —

For the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic put a stop to events in March, NXT UK returned this week with a show taped at BT Sport studios, the home of the brand’s UK television partner.

A cool video opened up the show, with Shawn Michaels and Triple H talking about the hiatus and how hungry the talent is. A video ran down some of NXT UK’s top stars, interspersing match highlights with some of their thoughts.

A brief shot of the very cool looking studio setup was shown before the new intro video to the tune of Wargasm’s God of War aired.

Nigel McGuinness (remotely) returned to the commentary booth and called the show alongside Andy Shepherd (in the arena), instantly making this one of the best commentary teams on WWE television — if not the best.

After the intro, NXT UK assistant general manager Sid Scala was in the ring and welcomed us back. He was about to say what would kick off the show when Ilja Dragunov’s theme played and the Mad Russian walked to the ring.

Dragunov played to the very small crowd of probably local talent before apologizing to Scala, although in a very loud and direct way. Dragunov said he had been waiting for six months. He had been caged and isolated and was waiting for a battle. Noam Dar walked out and told Dragunov he needed some anger management therapy, which prompted Dragunov to dive on top of him and beat the ever loving hell out of the Scotsman. He took Dar’s head off with the Konstantin Special before referees broke the fight up.

Scala said he’d shuffle things around and Dragunov would face Dar in tonight’s main event.

Non-title match: NXT UK Tag Team Champions Gallus (Mark Coffey & Wolfgang) defeated Kenny Williams & Amir Jordan when Wolfgang pinned Jordan after an enzuigiri/powerslam combo (10:53)

Coffey and Jordan started out and Coffey immediately took him down with a shoulder block. Jordan tried going for a hip toss, but he found himself on the wrong end of a backslide for a two count. Williams tagged in and came off the top onto Coffey’s arm. Coffey also tagged out and Wolfgang found himself worked over by both men. Wolfgang came back with a clothesline on Jordan before tagging in Coffey. He landed a flying European uppercut on Jordan, who found himself in peril in Gallus’ corner.

Wolfgang worked over Jordan’s arm and snuffed out any kind of counter attempt. Coffey was back in, stepping onto Jordan’s neck before trying a number of successive pinfall attempts. The champions kept working over Jordan, cutting the ring in half and keeping him on their side of it. Gallus hit a double-team monkey flip on Jordan before Wolfgang went for a slam but got hit with an enzuigiri, allowing Jordan to make the hot tag.

Williams hit a cool looking rope-assisted hurricanrana before kicking Coffey in the face and then in the chest, sending him to ringside. Williams then scrambled out of a gorilla press and countered into a sunset flip before Wolfgang got the upper hand again and slammed The Luckian to the mat. Coffey hit a German suplex for two before Williams went for a crucifix pin, followed by a slingblade. Williams took down Coffey, then Jordan hit a Swanton off the top and would have picked up the victory if Wolfgang hadn’t made the save.

Gallus then quickly came back with the enzuigiri/powerslam combo on Jordan for the victory.

After the match, Mark Andrews & Flash Morgan Webster, The Hunt, Pretty Deadly, and Ashton Smith & Oliver Carter came out and all surrounded the ring. Imperium (Marcel Barthel & Fabian Aichner) also appeared on the screen, so it looks like they were not in the UK for the tapings after all.

– A Saxon Huxley video aired, with him pushing his own face against a fence. He said his mind had begun to wander during isolation and it was a big mistake releasing him. He said he will be bringing a flood next week. It will be WALTER vs. Huxley on the show.

NXT UK Women’s Champion Kay Lee Ray in-ring segment

KLR said she’ll be defending her title next week. She said this would be a day to rejoice, if she didn’t have to face Piper Niven. She said the two of them defined women’s wrestling in the UK and now they will face off for the title in a WWE ring. She said people will find out why KLR is just that little bit better than Niven.

This prompted Niven to walk out. Niven said she couldn’t remember a time when KLR talked so much. She said since KLR liked talking so much, she should tell everybody how often Niven had beaten her in Japan and in the UK already. Niven said she has KLR’s number.

KLR said that this was what Niven wanted to believe and that she would prove to the world that she’s better than Niven. She said that Niven had never beaten this KLR. She said that Niven should have known better than to trust her.

KLR went to hit Niven with the mic, but Niven blocked the shot and knocked KLR down. KLR immediately slunk away.

– A video on Isla Dawn and Aoife Valkyrie aired ahead of the next match.

Aoife Valkyrie pinned Isla Dawn after a leg drop off the top (5:44)

Dawn was looking to avenge her loss from earlier in the year here in this rematch. Valkyrie locked in a side headlock and took down Dawn. She countered with a leg vice before Valkyrie quickly escaped. Valkyrie connected with a spinning heel kick and went for a hip toss, but Dawn blocked it. Valkyrie hit a reverse crossbody block off the ropes and then went back to the side headlock. They ended up back on their feet and Valkyrie took Dawn down with a headscissors.

Dawn was quickly back on offense, locking in a double-arm submission. She then transitioned into a crossface attempt until Valkyrie powered out. Dawn went back to her initial submission attempt, then Valkyrie countered and hit a head kick. Valkyrie followed with a flurry of kicks, then hit a blockbuster for a near fall. Dawn rolled her up with a near fall of her own, but Valkyrie came back with a unique springboard kick off the ropes.

Valkyrie then went to the top rope and hit her axe kick leg drop to the back of the neck for the pinfall victory.

– Scala talked about the eight-man Heritage Cup tournament. There will be seven announced participants and one wild card entrant. A-Kid, Dave Mastiff, Noam Dar, Flash Morgan Webster, Joseph Conners, Alexander Wolfe, and Trent Seven are the confirmed participants.

– The Heritage Cup drawing was announced for next week, with it also being revealed that Pete Dunne will be a special guest for the drawing.

Ilja Dragunov defeated Noam Dar after hitting Torpedo Moscow (11:49)

Dragunov immediately took down Dar with a single leg, then looked for some ground and pound. Dragunov was using a fighter’s stance and they grappled for position for a bit. Both men seemingly used their time away from the ring during the pandemic to get even more jacked than before.

Dragunov took down Dar with a chop and hit a senton, then sent Dar fleeing to ringside off a charge. Dar tried getting the upper hand, but Dragunov would have none of it. They briefly battled on the top turnbuckle before Dragunov knocked Dar down, but Dragunov then fell victim to an attack on his leg, which sent him tumbling down into the ring.

Dar hit a Northern Lights suplex on Dragunov for a two count before working over Dragunov’s leg which he had targeted just moments before. He also worked over Dragunov’s arm for good measure, looking to dismantle the number one contender bit by bit. They traded strikes before Dragunov hit an Inoki-style dropkick to the head, followed by a wheelbarrow suplex. Dragunov hit a stiff lariat and went for a suplex, but Dar countered into an omoplata. Dar followed with an ankle lock attempt, but Dragunov broke free.

Dragunov hit the Konstantin Special for a close near fall before going back to the top rope, but he missed a foot stomp. Dragunov went for the Konstantin Special once more, but Dar had him scouted and countered, then kicked Dragunov to ringside. Dar followed up with the Super Nova, but Dragunov kicked out at 2.9. Dar tried another pin attempt and then locked in an armbar, but Dragunov powered out of the hold. Dragunov came back with chops to the neck.

Dragunov hit an impressive Gotch-lift suplex and then rolled backwards from a bridge to cover Dar, but Dar narrowly kicked out. Dragunov set up for Torpedo Moscow, but Alexander Wolfe then came to ringside and grabbed Dragunov’s leg. Dar used the distraction to try and roll up Dragunov. He kicked out, then sent Dar into Wolfe and followed up with Torpedo Moscow to get the win.

As Dragunov celebrated his victory, Imperium’s theme hit and WALTER walked out, staring down Dragunov, who dared him to step into the ring with him as the show went off the air.

Next week —

Kay Lee Ray defends her NXT UK Women’s Championship against Piper Niven, NXT UK Champion WALTER faces Saxon Huxley in non-title action, and the Heritage Cup drawing with special guest Pete Dunne takes place.

NXT UK results: NXT UK vs. NXT Hidden Gems

Posted on by Markus Gronemann

Quick results —

This was a fun show with an NXT UK vs. NXT stars theme. The matches were various dark matches, taped at shows between June 2019 and March 2020. Though they were mostly good, this was not on the level of the previous Hidden Gems episode.

  • Finn Balor pinned Kenny Williams after the 1916 DDT in a good opener
  • Rhea Ripley pinned Nina Samuels after Riptide in her last-ever NXT UK match
  • Killian Dain pinned Travis Banks after a Vader Bomb
  • Matt Riddle & The Street Profits beat Joseph Conners & The Grizzled Young Veterans when Riddle pinned Conners after Bro Derek

Full rundown —

Andy Shepherd welcomed us to another episode of “Hidden Gems” and threw us right to our first match:

Finn Balor defeated Kenny Williams after the 1916 DDT (8:30)

Taped on March 7, 2020 in Coventry, England

Balor immediately attacked Williams and threw a running knee, screaming “this is for Jordan.” He took Williams down with a headlock and tightened the vice. Williams eventually escaped and came back with a springboard back elbow, then started working over Balor’s arm and hit a hurricanrana. Williams threw a running kick to Balor’s face, but Balor came back and began stomping Williams.

Balor threw a number of running chops, then hit a running kick of his own. The crowd chanted “you killed Kenny,” to which Balor replied “I killed Johnny, I killed Matt Riddle, and I’m gonna kill WALTER.” Williams staged a comeback and hit a number of forearms, then hit a springboard shotgun dropkick, followed by a see-saw lariat.

Williams went for an attack out of the corner but was hit by a slingblade. Williams recovered and threw Balor to ringside, then hit a dropkick through the ropes and followed with another dive. He rolled Balor back into the ring and hit a top rope spinning uppercut for a near fall.

Williams went for a wheelbarrow roll-up, but Balor countered and then hit the Coup de Grace, followed by the 1916 DDT for the victory. 

Rhea Ripley defeated Nina Samuels after Riptide (4:31)

Taped on October 5, 2019 in Brentwood, England

This actually was Ripley’s final match in NXT UK. She backed Samuels into the corner right away, then worked over her arm. Samuels tried kicking her way out of an armbar but received a hip toss for her troubles. Ripley hoisted Samuels on the top rope and patted her on the head, then caught a crossbody and transitioned into a deadlift vertical suplex.

They ended up at ringside and Samuels got the upper hand. She hit Ripley’s head in the corner and followed with a snapmare and a choke. Ripley powered out. Samuels avoided her with a cartwheel but got hit with a dropkick. Samuels came back with a head kick off the apron and a spinning senton for a near fall.

Ripley then quickly came back with Riptide for the win and followed up by kicking Samuels out of the ring.

Killian Dain defeated Travis Banks after a Vader Bomb (8:26)

Taped June 16, 2019 at Download Festival

They locked up and Dain immediately used his power to keep Banks at bay. Banks came back with a leg kick, but Dain no-sold the attacks. Banks tried shoulder blocking Dain but couldn’t move him. Banks attacked the legs some more and actually got Dain down on the mat and attempted a cover.

Dain threw Banks across the ring, then hit a senton on Banks’ back and kept manhandling the Kiwi Buzzsaw. He wedged Banks between the turnbuckles, then hit some running double knees into his ribs. Dain locked in a reverse chinlock and then hit a suplex for another two count.

Dain locked in another chinlock, then body slammed Banks as he was on the verge of escaping the hold. Banks came back with a kick to the face and then hit a few more leg kicks. He followed up with a dropkick into the corner, then hit a running senton off the apron, followed by a dive.

Banks hit a double foot stomp from the top for a two count and went for Slice of Heaven, but Dain averted the move and hit a running crossbody for a near fall of his own. Banks hit another dropkick into the corner, followed by a double foot stomp off the turnbuckles onto a sitting Dain.

Banks ended up on Dain’s shoulders and used a victory roll for a near fall, but Dain came back with a forward Samoan drop, a senton, and the Vader Bomb for the pinfall victory.

Matt Riddle & The Street Profits (Angelo Dawkins & Montez Ford) defeated Joseph Conners & The Grizzled Young Veterans (Zack Gibson & James Drake) when Riddle pinned Conners after Bro Derek (13:42)

Taped July 19, 2019 in Plymouth, England

The segment started with the GYV and Conners in the ring and Gibson cutting a promo. Gibson complained about the fans making the show about themselves. He handed the mic to Drake as the show cut to a break.

After the break, Conners was on the mic and said they wanted the best NXT UK has to offer. He then corrected himself and said they wanted the best the world has to offer.

This prompted The Street Profits’ music to hit and they told GYV to shut up. They said since the GYV had friends, they also had a friend and were going to give him a call. This led to Matt Riddle coming out and joining The Street Profits, which was much to the crowd’s delight.

GYV and The Street Profits posed with their respective sets of Tag Team titles, which both teams held at the time. Riddle and Conners started out and Riddle immediately took him down off a waistlock. Conners escaped a headlock by grabbing Riddle’s hair and locked in a leg vice. Riddle quickly came back with two float-over gutwrench suplexes until Conners tagged Gibson.

Riddle immediately locked in an armbar, then, when Drake tagged in, locked in an ankle lock. Dawkins tagged in and quickly managed to get both members of GYV in position for a leapfrog backbreaker for Ford to hit. Gibson managed to get the upper hand once more and the heels took turns working over Ford, isolating him in their corner.

Ford was in trouble as everyone took turns working him over. Ford hit a sunset flip on Drake, but he managed to tag Gibson before falling down in the move. Gibson locked in the Cobra Clutch, after which Drake worked Ford over. Ford finally managed to hot tag Dawkins and hoisted Conners on his shoulders.

Riddle hit a top rope knee Doomsday Device, but Gibson made the save. All six men brawled in the ring until Dawkins hit a double spear on GYV. Ford and Drake were the legal men and traded punches. Ford got the upper hand, but Gibson blind tagged in. Ford evaded a Doomsday Device by GYV, hit a superkick on Drake, and small packaged Gibson for a two count.

Ford hit a somersault senton on all three heels, then rolled Conners back into the ring. Dawkins hit a spinebuster, followed by a frog splash by Ford and Bro Derek by Riddle for the win for the NXT team.

Next week —

A special look at Gallus.

NXT UK results: Previously unaired Hidden Gems

Posted on by Markus Gronemann

Quick results —

This was top-to-bottom probably one of the best episodes of NXT UK. They picked four great matches from the past 12 months for this Hidden Gems-style special episode. The main event of Ilja Dragunov vs. A-Kid was particularly great and you should go out of your way to watch it.

  • Toni Storm pinned Deonna Purrazzo after hitting Storm Zero in a fun, hard-hitting match that saw Purrazzo dominate. Great things will be in her future, and any company should look to pick her up once things get back to normal.
  • Matt Riddle pinned Ligero after a top rope Broton in another hard-hitting match that showed off the strengths of both men.
  • Shayna Baszler defeated Isla Dawn by submission with the Kirifuda Clutch in a fun battle that showed off what a destroyer Baszler is, with Dawn getting a few hope spots in.
  • Ilja Dragunov pinned A-Kid after hitting Torpedo Moscow in one of the best matches in the brand’s history. It would have fit right in on any TakeOver special or any NJPW show of the past few years. This was an athletic strong-style battle with a lot of drama and great crowd reactions. Both men are great and A-Kid will hopefully be able to show off his talent on a national stage at some point. Both of these men should be regulars on NXT at least.

Full rundown —

After a few weeks of highlight/best-of shows, we were back with some original content this week. Tom Phillips opened the show, announcing that him and Andy Shepherd would present four previously unaired matches, which had been filmed at various tapings.

Toni Storm pinned Deonna Purrazzo after hitting Storm Zero (11:14)

This match was taped on June 14, 2019 at Download Festival. Storm was NXT UK Women’s Champion at the time and retained her title. They only showed quick highlights of the entrances and the match started right away. 

The announcers talked about both women being in the Mae Young Classic in 2018, which Storm won. Purrazzo had the early advantage and worked over Storm’s arm, but the champ quickly came back with some wristlocks of her own.

They went back and forth on the mat, with Purrazzo escaping a headscissors via headstand and then gesturing to Storm to bring it. Storm found herself in the same predicament Purrazzo was in, but instead of a headstand, she just backtracked her way out of the hold.

Purrazzo slapped Storm’s hand away as she went for a handshake, but Storm hit a number of European uppercuts and then locked in a single-leg Boston crab. Purrazzo quickly grabbed the ropes to escape, but she got booted down by Storm for a two count seconds later.

Purrazzo worked over Storm’s shoulder and upper arm, including stomping away at them in the corner. Purrazzo locked in a combined leg-and-neck lock, then kept at it with strikes and clotheslines. Purrazzo stomped on Storm’s elbow and scored another near fall.

Storm came back with a headbutt and some strikes, but she got caught with a flatliner. Purrazzo then immediately locked in a Koji clutch. Storm escaped and the two women once more traded strikes as the crowd went yay-boo.

Storm countered a whip-in into three consecutive German suplexes, then went for Storm Zero, but couldn’t lock it in due to her injured arm. Purrazzo came back with another attack and another near fall. Storm whipped her into the ropes and stopped her in her tracks with a stiff headbutt to the shoulder, but the subsequent cover only netted a two count for the champion.

Purrazzo locked in an armbar, then transitioned into a Rings of Saturn that had Storm in big trouble, especially when Purrazzo also hooked one of Storm’s legs. Storm finally made the bottom rope, but was down on the mat in pain.

Purrazzo hit a number of chops — until Storm followed her into the ropes, hit a clothesline, and finally hit Storm Zero for the pinfall victory.

Matt Riddle pinned Ligero after a top rope Broton (8:29)

This match was taped on July 20, 2019 in Plymouth, England.

Ligero wore elaborate shoulder pads that matched his mask. They fist-bumped to start the match and Riddle immediately hit a beautiful one-armed takedown slam, then played to the crowd. Riddle followed with a headlock takeover, which Ligero countered into a headscissors. Riddle escaped and went for a soccer kick, but Ligero ducked and rolled Riddle up, then locked in a side headlock of his own. Riddle powered out and hit a German suplex to escape. He then missed a head kick and Ligero hit a hurricanrana to take Riddle down.

Riddle hit two rolling gutwrench suplexes to score a two count, then kicked Ligero in the head and the face. Riddle worked Ligero over in the corner, hit an exploder, and followed with the Broton and another kick. Riddle hit an extended vertical suplex into a Jackhammer for another two count, which prompted “Goldberg” chants from the crowd.

Riddle hit another Broton and then went to the top rope for the Floating Bro, but Ligero jumped up and hit a top rope German that saw Riddle land on his shoulder. Ligero took him down with a combination, but Riddle ducked an enzuigiri and went for a deadlift German, which Ligero moonsaulted out of. They ended up at ringside and Ligero did a headstand on the apron, then sent Riddle flying with spinning headscissors.

Back in the ring, Ligero scored another two count, after which he hit some creative offense to dominate Riddle. He hit a splash from the top and middle ropes for another two count, prompting the crowd to chant “This is awesome.”

Riddle ducked a kick by Ligero and picked him up for a powerbomb, then hit Bro Derek and a top rope Broton for the win.

Shayna Baszler defeated Isla Dawn by submission with the Kirifuda Clutch (8:39)

This match was taped on June 15, 2019 at Download Festival. Like with the Storm match, Baszler was NXT Women’s Champion at the time and retained her title.

They locked up and Baszler backed Dawn into the corner, then kicked her leg away on the break. Dawn then backed Baszler in the corner and broke clean, but Baszler turned her around and kicked her legs away again.

Dawn scored a number of near falls, including after a float-over suplex, after which Baszler scurried to ringside. Dawn missed a baseball slide to the outside and ended up getting thrown into the ring steps. Back in the ring, Baszler hit a kick to the back, then stomped on Dawn’s left elbow and locked in a double wristlock.

Dawn used a surprise roll-up, but quickly found herself at the receiving end of Baszler dealing out punishment again. Baszler kept working over the arm for a few minutes with attacks and submission holds.

Dawn pulled down the top rope as Baszler came charging and sent her to the outside, then took over the match with a back suplex. But she fell victim to Baszler once more, with Baszler picking her up for a gutwrench suplex and then unceremoniously dropping her on her arm.

Dawn hit a beautiful head kick, but Baszler stopped her momentum with a forward-roll kick, a knee to the face, and finally locked in the Kirifuda Clutch for the submission victory.

– Tom Phillips talked about the last match and how you never know what you may see in NXT UK, as some title holders may come in to defend their championships. He then transitioned to Andy Shepherd for a video chat with the new number one contender to the NXT UK Championship, Ilja Dragunov.

Shepherd asked Dragunov how he kept himself prepared and Dragunov quoted one of his mentors, who once told him “How do you not get tired of working? You just don’t stop working.” Dragunov said he does not need to prepare — he was born prepared.

Shepherd asked why Dragunov thought he could beat WALTER, which no one else in NXT UK has done before. Dragunov brought up Pete Dunne, Tyler Bate, and Joe Coffey as men who had succumbed to WALTER, but Dragunov said he has the will to beat WALTER.

Dragunov said you have to be willing to suffer through the pain — but he eats pain. He said you have to be willing to fight so intense — but he is intensity. Dragunov said WALTER will make a mistake and he will capitalize on it. Dragunov also promised that this match will redefine violence.

– Next week, NXT UK will take a look at the Rise of Imperium.

Ilja Dragunov pinned A-Kid after hitting Torpedo Moscow (13:14)

This match was filmed during the most recent set of NXT UK tapings on March 6, 2020 in Coventry, England.

They locked up and A-Kid ended up on the middle turnbuckle, but nothing came of it. He took Dragunov down and rolled into a cover, but the Mad Russian easily kicked out.

They ended up trading submissions on the mat, with A-Kid getting the better of the exchange. A-Kid applied a bow-and-arrow submission, various arm locks, and a tight neck vice. Dragunov locked in a side headlock but got taken down with a high-angle arm drag by A-Kid, who transitioned into an armbar and then a quick roll-up.

Dragunov applied an overhead wristlock that had A-Kid on his back, but he bridged out and flipped over into another neck vice. They had a standoff with Dragunov telling him to bring it. A-Kid grabbed Dragunov’s fingers, but Dragunov hit a hard chop and a senton, then hit a cartwheel into a crossbody.

A-Kid ended up on the outside. Dragunov hit an enzuigiri as he went to enter back into the ring, then hit an overhead karate chop from the top rope to the outside. Back inside, A-Kid thwarted a top rope senton and then hit a German suplex.

A-Kid hit an overhead Northern Lights suplex, then flipped over backwards into an armbar. Dragunov picked him up for a powerbomb and they both plunged into the top rope. A-Kid hit a top rope crossbody for another two count.

Dragunov picked A-Kid up, then clobbered him with a stiff lariat. Dragunov hit a Konstantin Special that almost took A-Kid’s head off and saw him land right on the back of his neck. A-Kid hit a Pele kick to Dragunov’s arm, but Dragunov came back with a single-leg dropkick and a high-angle German for another close two count.

A-Kid stopped Dragunov’s chops with a wristlock, then tried going for an ankle lock, after which both men traded some stiff kicks to the head. A-Kid stopped Dragunov on the top rope with a running enzuigiri, then hit a top rope Spanish Fly and a leg lariat for a 2.9 count.

A-Kid was pumped up in the corner, but charged right into an amazing twisting spinebuster, followed by a top rope senton. Dragunov then hit Torpedo Moscow for the win. This was a tremendous match — one of the best in the brand’s history.

Dragunov shook A-Kid’s hand after the match, then celebrated on the top rope as the show went off the air.

Next week —

A look at the Rise of Imperium.

NXT UK results: Cruiserweight title on the line

Posted on by Markus Gronemann

Taped at Coventry Skydome in Coventry, England on March 7, 2020

 Quick results —

  • Imperium defeated Oliver Carter & Ashton Smith in a fun opener.
  • Aoife Valkyrie pinned Nina Samuels.
  • Piper Niven talked about teaming with Dani Luna next week to take on Kay Lee Ray & Jinny.
  • Noam Dar beat A-Kid in a very good match after a low blow and the Nova Roller.
  • Jordan Devlin defended his NXT Cruiserweight Championship against Travis Banks in a fantastic main event. Devlin retained after a roll-up while grabbing the ropes, which the referee missed.
  • A number of NXT UK wrestlers vowed to win the 20-man battle royal for a shot at WALTER’s NXT UK Championship next week. This was fun and reminded me of the old Royal Rumble promos in the 90s — it made the battle royal feel special, rather than just something being put on for the hell of it.

Full rundown —

The show opened with a recap of Jordan Devlin winning the NXT Cruiserweight Championship at Worlds Collide and looked ahead to his upcoming match with Travis Banks in tonight’s main event.

Imperium (Fabian Aichner & Marcel Barthel) defeated Ashton Smith & Oliver Carter when Aichner pinned Carter after a European Bomb (8:32)

Barthel and Carter started out with Barthel quickly tying Carter up on the mat. Carter came back with a superkick, but Aichner blind-tagged in to crush his momentum.

Carter managed to tag Smith and we got a brief battle of agile powerhouses. Carter tagged back in and they hit a unique move where Carter somersaulted over the top rope onto Smith’s back on the apron, with Smith launching him back in a sort of rope-assisted moonsault splash. Imperium came back from that creative offense with pure brutality though.

Carter and Smith ran roughshod on Imperium, but Smith got thrown to the outside as Imperium set up for the European Bomb on Carter. Smith pushed Barthel off the ropes and Carter scored a narrow near fall. Seconds later, Imperium thwarted their advantage once more and finally hit the European Bomb on Carter for the win.

– A video with Gallus playing cards at a table talking about NXT UK being their kingdom aired.

– Tyler Bate and Trent Seven talked about the upcoming NXT UK title number one contender’s battle royal. Seven told Bate that “may the best boi win.”

– Alexander Wolfe then also discussed the battle royal, vowing to win to secure the interests of Imperium and keeping the mat sacred.

– Oliver Carter and Ashton Smith got interviewed after their loss to Imperium. Pretty Deadly was there, making fun of them. Smith calmed down Carter and told him to concentrate on the battle royal: They concluded by saying ready and forward — always forward.

Aoife Valkyrie pinned Nina Samuels after Peripeteia (4:48)

Valkyrie locked in a side-headlock, but Samuels initially escaped before being taken down again. Samuels locked in a headscissors, but Valkyrie neck-bridge backflipped and kipped up out of the move. Samuels then was back on offense and transitioned with a modified Indian deathlock into a surfboard submission.

Valkyrie came back with an arm drag off a reverse electric chair, then went to the top rope, but Samuels escaped to ringside. Valkyrie hit a running dropkick through the ropes to take Samuels out. Samuels came back with a launching splash off the apron into the ring. Samuels slapped Valkyrie, which fired her up as she hit a spinning kick and followed up with Peripeteia (a guillotine leg drop off the top rope) for the win.

– A recap of Kay Lee Ray attacking Dani Luna after their match and Piper Niven making the save from last week aired. Niven then was interviewed and asked why she decided to come to the aid of Luna last week. She said Luna was big and strong enough to fight for her own, but she didn’t know how devious KLR could be. Niven said she and Luna would face Kay Lee Ray and Jinny next week and she would finally get her hands on KLR.

– A video recapped the backstage attack on Mark Andrews before the six-man tag last week. Flash Morgan Webster said Andrews was still undergoing tests but vowed to find out who attacked him. He said Andrews told him to concentrate on the battle royal and he would for the sake of South West Subculture. 

Noam Dar pinned A-Kid after the Nova Roller (6:38)

Dar took A-Kid down, but he quickly found himself on the receiving end of some punishment as A-Kid escaped and turned the tables on him. They went back and forth on the mat until Dar shoved A-Kid off and he replied with a spin kick that missed.

A-Kid went for an octopus hold but transitioned into a kick as Dar escaped. They traded quick falls for one counts until A-Kid scored a close near fall off a crucifix. Dar hit a spinning elbow that rocked A-Kid and saw him crumble on the mat. Dar set up for a draping DDT but just let A-Kid fall to the mat and kicked him.

A-Kid hit some quick moves in succession and sent Dar to the outside. He went for a springboard moonsault to the outside, but when Dar got back in the ring, A-Kid transitioned into an aerial attack to the inside. Dar caught him off the move and locked in a shoulder bar that A-Kid escaped from. Dar then hit a low blow behind the referee’s back and hit the Nova Roller for the win.

After the match, Dar talked about the battle royal and said he would win and become the next NXT UK Champion.

– A highlight video on WALTER aired.

– Dave Mastiff, Kassius Ohno, and Ilja Dragunov all talked about the battle royal next week, vowing they would win.

WWE NXT Cruiserweight Championship match: Jordan Devlin retained against Travis Banks after a roll-up while grabbing the ropes (14:57)

They took each other down early with neither man getting the advantage. Banks scored a number of quick near falls before Devlin escaped to ringside. Banks looked to pull him back inside but Devlin snapped his neck on the top rope.

Devlin looked to go for the uranage, but Banks escaped and threw him to the outside once more. He went for a running dive, but Devlin moved and used Banks’ momentum to push him hard into the barricades shoulder-first. Devlin followed up with a high-angle back suplex and then locked in a shoulder bar. Banks staged a brief comeback but got wiped out from a standing Spanish Fly by Devlin for a near fall. Devlin stayed in control until Banks came back with hard chops.

Devlin stopped him with a nosebreaker, then grabbed Banks’ arm and hit a few Kawada kicks, but Banks wanted more. Devlin hit the uranage, but Banks got his knees up on Devlin’s moonsault.

Banks hit a few clotheslines, a running cannonball into the corner, and followed with a German suplex for another near fall. Banks hit a running knee to the face of Devlin, then followed with a rolling elbow kick and a dive as Devlin stumbled outside. Banks hit a double stomp off the top on a standing Devlin for another two count.

Devlin evaded a Slice of Heaven, but Banks also escaped a Devlin Side. They traded hard shots until both collapsed to loud “NXT” chants from the crowd. Banks punched Devlin as he was up on the top rope, then hit a double foot stomp onto Devlin when he was stuck in a tree of woe.

They battled on the top rope until Devlin hit a springboard cutter off the apron onto Banks as he was stuck on the second turnbuckle. Banks came back with a Slice of Heaven, then went to hit the Kiwi Crusher, but Devlin escaped, rolled up Banks, bridged on his head, and also grabbed the bottom rope for leverage to score the pinfall victory and successfully defend his title.

Next week —

The 20-man battle royal for a shot at WALTER’s NXT UK Championship takes place. It will feature, among others, Tyler Bate, Trent Seven, Alexander Wolfe, Ashton Smith, Oliver Carter, Flash Morgan Webster, Noam Dar, Dave Mastiff, Kassius Ohno, Ilja Dragunov, and Jordan Devlin.

Also, Piper Niven teams with Dani Luna to take on Kay Lee Ray & Jinny.