Both NXT Tag Team titles are on the line next week.
NXT Tag Team Champions The New Day will defend the titles against Briggs and Jensen, while Kayden Carter and Katana Chance will defend the Women’s Tag Team titles in a three-way against Gigi Dolin & Jacy Jayne and Ivy Nile & Tatum Paxley.
Additionally, Carmelo Hayes will face Axiom, Zoey Stark will take on Nikkita Lyons, and Apollo Crews will return after his loss at NXT Deadline this past Saturday.
The New Day came out during Tuesday’s show to celebrate their title win when Pretty Deadly interrupted, wanting a rematch. The New Day said they would consider it if they could recite the Pledge of Allegiance. Briggs and Jensen came out and did just that, earning themselves a title match.
A match between Dolin & Jayne vs. Nile & Paxley that took place Tuesday ended when the three teams ended up brawling. Later in the show, the three teams fought again, with officials having to separate them.
Here is the lineup for next week’s NXT:
NXT Tag Team titles: The New Day defend against Briggs and Jensen
NXT Women’s Tag Team titles: Kayden Carter & Katana Chance defend against Gigi Dolin & Jacy Jayne and Ivy Nile & Tatum Paxley
It was reported earlier this week that the 36-year-old was serving as a guest coach at the WWE Performance Center. Our own Dave Meltzer reported in Friday’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter that Lorcan has actually been back with the company for a while and working full-time in a coaching role.
“There were stories about Oney Lorcan (Chris Girard, 36), working as a guest coach this week at the Performance Center. When asked about it, we were told he’s not a guest coach and has been there for a while as a full-time coach,” Meltzer wrote.
Lorcan requested his release from WWE last year and it was officially granted on November 4, 2021. He had been with the company for six years after signing a developmental deal in the fall of 2015. He won the NXT Tag Team Championships along with Danny Burch in October 2020 but the belts would be vacated that March after Burch suffered a shoulder injury.
A former NXT Tag Team Champion is back at the WWE Performance Center this week.
PWInsider reported today that Biff Busick (formerly known as Oney Lorcan in WWE) is at the Performance Center this week serving as a guest coach. Busick was released from WWE as part of a round of roster cuts in November 2021.
Busick was a one-time NXT Tag Team Champion during his time with WWE, holding the titles with Danny Burch from October 2020 to March 2021.
After his WWE release, Busick returned to wrestling on the indies. He posted a message on Twitter this July announcing that he was taking some time away from performing in the ring.
“If you have contacted me about bookings, I apologize if I haven’t immediately gotten back to you,” Busick wrote. “I’ve decided to take some time away from performing in the ring. Thank you.”
When NXT unveiled its new logo last month, Busick tweeted out a picture of it. The new logo ditched the colorful NXT 2.0 aesthetic for a black, gold, and white color scheme.
Left My Wallet returns with an hour-long conversation with Biff Busick, the former Oney Lorcan in WWE NXT.
Biff and I go back to before he even had his first match so we talk about him coming up through the New England indie scene, the first time we met, training with both Lance Storm and Funaki, getting kicked out of a WWE tv taping, who he learned the most from in NXT, reviewing matches with Shawn Michaels, and his return match for his home promotion, Beyond Wrestling.
We also talk the subtleties and aspects of in-ring working and how great Kane was to work with.
Biff is one of the most intense and fun workers I have ever had the privilege to work with and it was just as fun to talk with him here. He is a name you will be seeing everywhere, so enjoy this fun conversation with one of the best unsigned (but maybe not for long) talents today.
Biff Busick will soon be back in action. The former Oney Lorcan was announced today as taking part in wXw’s 16 Carat Gold tournament in March 2022.
Busick was released from his WWE contract just yesterday after spending over six years with the company. Busick revealed in a YouTube video that he has a 90-day non-compete clause to wait out before he can return to the ring.
Busick held NXT Tag Team Championship gold from October 2020 to March 2021, before an injury to partner Danny Burch forced the duo to relinquish the titles.
The list of past 16 Carat Gold tournament winners reads like a who’s who in terms of international stardom. NXT UK Champion Ilja Dragunov, Zack Sabre Jr., Malakai Black, Chris Hero, Sami Zayn, Sami Callihan, WALTER and IWGP World Heavyweight Champion Shingo Takagi are all past 16 Carat Gold winners.
The 16 Carat Gold will be held from March 4 to March 6, 2022 in Oberhausen, Germany. Jonathan Gresham, Ace Romero and Fuminori Abe have also been announced for the tournament.
Shortly after WWE’s quarterly investors call wrapped, the company began making cuts to their talent roster, citing “budget cuts” as the reason.
From the main WWE roster, Keith Lee, Mia Yim, Nia Jax, Karrion Kross, Eva Marie, Lince Dorado, Gran Metalik, Harry Smith, and B-Fab were released.
From the NXT roster, Scarlett, Ember Moon, Franky Monet, Jessi Kamea, Katrina Cortez, Jeet Rama, Oney Lorcan, Trey Baxter and Zayda Ramier have been let go.
Mass releases have become a regular occurrence in WWE throughout 2021 as they made 13 roster cuts on August 6, another 14 on June 25, six on June 2, eight on May 19, and 10 on April 15.
Kross and Lee are both former NXT Champions. Lee had been rebranded as “Bearcat” Keith Lee on Raw. Kross had not been accompanied by Scarlett on the main roster as he had been in NXT.
Jax is a former Raw Women’s Champion and a two-time former WWE Women’s Tag Team Champion. Her pairing with Shayna Baszler was the focus of the women’s tag division in WWE throughout much of this year.
Scarlett stated on Twitter that she has a 30-day non-compete clause following here release, while Oney Lorcan stated on YouTube that his non-compete is 90 days.
Double or Nothing is the lead story in the new issue of the Wrestling Observer. Match-by-match coverage, star ratings, poll results, surprising PPV numbers and reasons why it happened, the atmosphere, what did and didn’t work and the signing of Mark Henry and the situation with Lio Rush.
Also in this issue:
WWE front office hires, their background, the shift in company strategy an how they fit in, as well as the reasons for the controversy regarding Jamie Horowitz and what happened when he was at FOX.
WWE cutting of Braun Strowman, Lana, Ruby Riott, Aleister Black, Murphy and Santana Garrett, reasons all were let go as well as the future prospects for all of them individually.
WWE schedule going forward, with the shows through September, the exclusive first word on plans for NXT going on the road, and a SummerSlam update.
New Japan/WWE talks, the history of Vince McMahon and booking of WWF talent in Japan when working with the Japanese, next Takeover show, more firings, U.K. and Canadian ratings, next week’s TV show and most-watched WWE videos.
A major feature on the life of 60s and 70s star Tony Marino, from his bodybuilding days to his start in wrestling, his international tours, the Battman gimmick from the Batman TV show, his biggest career shows, being part of setting the all-time indoor pro wrestling gate record for North America in 1970 and more.
More detail on ratings than any other source, how every segment on NXT and AEW did with different age groups and more, all other wrestling shows of the past week, how many different viewers the shows had which is very different from the television number, breakdown of who watches the shows, how they watch, DVR numbers and how long the average fan watches.
ORDERING INFO: Order the print Wrestling Observer right now and get it delivered via mail, by sending your name, address, Visa or Master Card number and an expiration date to [email protected] or by going to www.paypal.com directing funds to [email protected].
Rates in the United States are $14.50 for 4 issues, $35.50 for 12, $70 for 24, $116 for 40 and $149.50 for 52.
In Canada and Mexico, the rates are $16 for 4, $27 for 8, $38.50 for 12, $76 for 24, $126 for 40 and $162.50 for 52.
For the rest of the world, rates are $18 for 4, $48.50 for 12, $93 for 24, $155 for 40 and $201.50 for 52.
If you order by mail with a check, cash or money order to P.O. Box 1228, Campbell, CA 95009-1228, you can get $1 off in every price range.
TUESDAY NEWS UPDATE
WWE
An angle aired prior to tonight’s NXT on social media where security broke up a brawl between The Way (Johnny Gargano and Austin Theory) and Pete Dunne & Oney Lorcan.
Kyle O’Reilly did media rounds today with the likes of TVInsider and DAZN. TVInsider asked O’Reilly about transitioning into a singles wrestler. “It has certainly been challenging,” he said. “I’ve had singles experience, but this is new for me coming to WWE and NXT. Those singles matches were few and far between. It has definitely put me into the deep end. I’ve grown and evolved because we all have those dreams of becoming a singles champion in WWE. I love tag team wrestling, and I think I’m a good tag team wrestler. But this is something new.”
Ember Moon, Pete Dunne, Adam Cole, MSK, LA Knight, and Ted DiBiase have been announced for tomorrow’s The Bump.
HeelByNature is reporting that WWE has abandoned the trademark for The Collective, filing for an “express abandonment” on June 4. The name is used for Game Changer Wrestling events held during WrestleMania weekend.
NXT UK stars Kay Lee Ray, Noam Dar, Oliver Carter, and Rampage Brown met with Mr Cenz, a graffiti artist.
Dwayne Johnson has released a short clip introducing the cast for the upcoming DC Super Pets movie, where he will be voicing Krypto.
Shingo Takagi in a press conference following NJPW Dominion spoke about becoming the new IWGP World Heavyweight Champion: “Okada had the record for most defences of the previous IWGP Heavyweight title. He represented that belt, but I feel now it’s with me, the prestige of this title has been elevated a bit, if I do say so myself. Tanahashi, Okada, they’re definitely factors, but what drives me most is beating out the people of my generation. Ibushi, Naito, they’re the guys that make me the most competitive. Ibushi and I debuted at the same time, Naito and I have that past in the Hamaguchi Gym. I have my reasons for coming to New Japan in the first place, but getting to throw down with Ibushi, that was definitely one aspect. Having a proper place for us to square off. We didn’t start out as New Japan guys, but a few years ago it hit me that the guy I want to fight the most is in NJPW, and if I want that to happen then I have to be in NJPW too. Then October 2018 I arrived, and two years, what, eight months later… I wouldn’t call that a rapid ascent. I’m 39 this year, I can’t afford to take things slow.”
Will Ospreay replied to Takagi’s title win on Twitter: “Facts. You & the rest of the roster got slapped about when I was at 50%. Imagine me at 100%. Enjoy the Interim Championship.”
The former Aleister Black, Tommy End, is a guest on Oral Sessions with Renee Paquette.
Angel o Demonio, who is best known for nearly killing Cuervo de Puerto Rico after striking him with a brick in 2018, passed away from COVID-19 on Saturday.
Jacob Fatu has surpassed 700 days as MLW World Champion, defeating Tom Lawlor back on July 6, 2019.
Mikey Nicholls told Andrew Thompson of Post Wrestling that he is still with New Japan Pro Wrestling, but hasn’t been able to attend shows due to COVID-19: “I’m still in contact with them but because we’ve got…I don’t know the travel thing, and then there’s quarantining there and here and then I don’t know if I need the shots and stuff like that so, I’m all booked in to get at least my first vaccine shot so I’m trying to get all on top of all that so that when it becomes easier, there’s no hold up and no hassle to just jump right back into it.”
CWF Atlanta announced that they will shoot episodes of the UWN PeachTree TV at Center Stage in Atlanta, Georgia.
Users of B/R Live have received word that the service is moving to Bleacher Report’s website and will no longer have access to their B/R Live account starting on June 30.
Gangrel posted Facebook that he is no longer involved with his Wrestling Asylum.
Inside Edition has a story on Juana Barraza, a wrestler who was later identified as a serial killer known as “Little Old Lady Killer”.
A new match announcement has been made for next week’s NXT.
During this morning’s edition of WWE’s The Bump, it was announced that Oney Lorcan vs. Austin Theory will take place on NXT next Tuesday. The episode is NXT’s go-home show for TakeOver: In Your House.
Lorcan and Theory are each aligned with one of the wrestlers who will be taking part in the fatal five-way match for the NXT Championship at TakeOver: In Your House. Lorcan is aligned with Pete Dunne, while Theory is stablemates with Johnny Gargano. A triple threat match between Dunne, Gargano, and Kyle O’Reilly on last night’s NXT was supposed to decide NXT Champion Karrion Kross’ challenger for TakeOver, but it ended in a no contest when Adam Cole made his return and attacked all three wrestlers.
Lorcan and Theory got into a shoving match backstage after last night’s triple threat match and had to be separated by officials. Lorcan said Dunne would have won the match if it wasn’t for Cole. Theory disagreed and said Gargano would’ve won.
Kross will defend his NXT Championship against Dunne, Gargano, O’Reilly, and Cole in a fatal five-way match at TakeOver: In Your House. The event is taking place on Sunday, June 13.
Ember Moon vs. Dakota Kai is also set for next Tuesday’s NXT. It will be part of the final build to Moon challenging for Raquel Gonzalez’s NXT Women’s Championship at TakeOver. Plus, Grammy-nominated pop-rock and nu-metal artist Poppy will make her return to NXT as she appears on next Tuesday’s episode.
Sterling (formerly known as Alex Zayne) and Hale (Anthony Henry) are both new additions to the 205 Live roster. Sterling was part of the group of signees that joined the WWE Performance Center last December, while Hale joined the Performance Center this February.
Sterling made his WWE debut by defeating Samir Singh on 205 Live three weeks ago. He lost to Nese the following week but then defeated Hale on last Friday’s show.
Hale’s WWE debut was a loss against Cameron Grimes on NXT three weeks ago. On 205 Live, Hale has defeated Daivari but lost to Sterling.
In storyline, Nese and Daivari are the veterans of 205 Live who don’t like newcomers to the brand. Nese & Daivari were most recently in action on NXT last week, losing to Hit Row’s Top Dolla & Ashante “Thee” Adonis.
Killian Dain vs. Alexander Wolfe had originally been announced for tonight’s NXT but will no longer be taking place. In a video WWE posted before tonight’s show, Wolfe said he had a stomach bug and couldn’t wrestle Dain tonight. Wolfe’s Imperium stablemates Marcel Barthel and Fabian Aichner were skeptical about Wolfe’s illness.
Wolfe and Dain were formerly stablemates in SAnitY. On NXT two weeks ago, Wolfe wouldn’t hit Dain with a steel chair when Barthel ordered him to. But Wolfe did stand in Dain’s way when Dain tried to send Barthel into the ring post. Barthel reversed the move and sent Dain into the ring post instead. Barthel & Aichner then hit the Euro Bomb on Drake Maverick and pinned him to win a tag match.
**********
WWE has added another match to the card for tonight’s NXT.
Kyle O’Reilly will face Oney Lorcan on tonight’s episode of NXT. The match was set up by an angle where Lorcan interrupted an interview with O’Reilly as O’Reilly was arriving for tonight’s show. Lorcan said O’Reilly can’t beat Karrion Kross, Finn Balor, or Pete Dunne — and he wouldn’t be able to beat Lorcan one-on-one either. O’Reilly then challenged Lorcan to face him in the ring tonight.
O’Reilly, Balor, and Dunne all interrupted NXT Champion Kross on last week’s NXT. That led to a brawl breaking out. When Kross was the only one left in the ring, NXT North American Champion Johnny Gargano and Austin Theory ambushed Kross and laid him out.
Kross is facing Theory in a non-title match on NXT tonight. WWE has announced that Kross vs. Theory will open tonight’s show.
This will be the first time Lorcan has wrestled since unsuccessfully challenging for Kushida’s NXT Cruiserweight Championship three weeks ago.
Here’s the updated lineup for tonight’s NXT:
NXT Women’s Champion Raquel Gonzalez defends against Mercedes Martinez
NXT Cruiserweight Champion Kushida defends against Santos Escobar in a two-out-of-three falls match
Non-title match: NXT Tag Team Champions MSK vs. Breezango
Kyle O’Reilly vs. Oney Lorcan
Non-title match: NXT Champion Karrion Kross vs. Austin Theory
WWE has made four new match announcements for this week’s episode of NXT.
Karrion Kross vs. Oney Lorcan, NXT Cruiserweight Champion Jordan Devlin vs. Kushida in a non-title match, NXT United Kingdom Champion WALTER vs. Drake Maverick in a non-title match, and Bronson Reed vs. LA Knight have all been added to the card for this Wednesday’s NXT.
Kross vs. Lorcan and Reed vs. Knight were both set up by messages that were sent to NXT general manager William Regal. After Regal announced that the NXT Tag Team titles have been declared vacant due to Burch suffering a separated shoulder, Lorcan sent out a tweet blaming Kross for Burch’s injury. Lorcan told Regal to give him a match against Kross.
Burch suffered the separated shoulder while he and Lorcan were defending their NXT Tag Team titles against Kross & NXT Champion Finn Balor last week. Lorcan & Burch retained after Kross attacked Balor during the match. Right before being attacked by Kross, Balor had hit a dropkick on Lorcan that knocked Scarlett down. Balor is defending his NXT Championship against Kross at TakeOver: Stand & Deliver night two on Thursday, April 8.
Knight posted a video on Tuesday night telling Regal that he wants a match against Reed. Reed then responded and said he wants the match as well. Reed said Knight stuck his nose in Reed’s business first by costing him a match against Cameron Grimes three weeks ago. This will be the second match that Knight (formerly known as Eli Drake) has had in NXT. On last week’s episode, Knight made his NXT in-ring debut by defeating August Grey.
Devlin vs. Kushida was announced after Kushida answered an open challenge that was issued by Devlin. At TakeOver: Stand & Deliver, NXT Cruiserweight Champions Devlin and Santos Escobar are facing off in a title unification match.
WWE uploaded video of an angle on Tuesday where Maverick was looking for Killian Dain and barged into Imperium’s locker room questioning them. WALTER took a weapon out of Maverick’s hands and asked him who he thinks he is. WALTER told Marcel Barthel and Fabian Aichner that he’ll take care of the problem with Maverick on Wednesday’s NXT.
Last week, WALTER returned to NXT for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic began. He laid out Tommaso Ciampa on the episode.
Here’s the updated lineup for this week’s NXT:
NXT Women’s Tag Team Champions Shotzi Blackheart & Ember Moon defend against Aliyah & Jessi Kamea
NXT Women’s Champion Io Shirai & Zoey Stark vs. Raquel Gonzalez & Dakota Kai
Karrion Kross vs. Oney Lorcan
NXT Cruiserweight Champion Jordan Devlin vs. Kushida in a non-title match
NXT United Kingdom Champion WALTER vs. Drake Maverick in a non-title match
Bronson Reed vs. LA Knight
NXT general manager William Regal will announce a solution for Adam Cole and Kyle O’Reilly’s issues and will declare the consequences for their recent attacks on each other
Regal will also give an update on the situation with the vacant NXT Tag Team titles
Due to an injury suffered by Danny Burch, the NXT Tag Team titles have been declared vacant.
Burch & Oney Lorcan retained the NXT Tag Team titles against NXT Champion Finn Balor & Karrion Kross in the main event of last week’s NXT, but Burch suffered a separated shoulder during the match. Medical personnel checked on Burch after the injury and he never returned to the match. After Balor gave Lorcan a dropkick that accidentally knocked Lorcan into Scarlett, Kross attacked Balor. Lorcan then pinned Balor after hitting a running uppercut.
NXT general manager William Regal posted a tweet today confirming Burch’s injury. Regal announced that the NXT Tag Team titles have been vacated. Regal will give a further update on the status of the titles on this Wednesday’s episode of NXT.
“I can confirm this incredibly unfortunate news and make the difficult decision to vacate the #WWENXT Tag Team Titles,” Regal tweeted. “Furthermore, I will address the state of the titles further tomorrow night on @WWENXT.
Burch & Lorcan had been NXT Tag Team Champions since winning the titles from Breezango in October of last year.
MSK won this year’s men’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic and were next in line for a title shot against Burch & Lorcan. MSK were supposed to get their NXT Tag Team title shot earlier this month, but that match was delayed due to MSK’s Wes Lee suffering a broken hand during the Dusty Classic finals. In storyline, Lee’s injury was blamed on an attack by The Grizzled Young Veterans. MSK had defeated The Grizzled Young Veterans in the Dusty Classic finals.
NXT Champion Finn Balor and his next challenger Karrion Kross were briefly partners as they teamed up in the main event of last night’s NXT.
Oney Lorcan & Danny Burch retained their NXT Tag Team titles by defeating Balor & Kross on last night’s show. During the match, Balor gave Lorcan a shotgun dropkick on the outside that knocked him into Scarlett. Kross then attacked Balor and threw him into the ring, with Lorcan connecting with an uppercut on Balor and pinning him to get the win.
Kross destroyed Lorcan with two Doomsday Saito suplexes after the match and then beat down Balor. Kross put Balor in the Kross Jacket before laying him out with an elbow strike. Scarlett told Balor that everything happens for a reason and he can’t escape fate.
It was confirmed last night that Balor will defend his NXT Championship against Kross at TakeOver: Stand & Deliver next month. A confrontation between Balor and Kross opened last night’s show until they were interrupted by Lorcan and Burch.
Burch suffered a shoulder injury in last night’s main event and didn’t return to the match.
Though not officially announced, Adam Cole vs. Kyle O’Reilly, NXT Women’s Champion Io Shirai vs. Raquel Gonzalez, NXT United Kingdom Champion WALTER vs. Tommaso Ciampa, and NXT Cruiserweight Champion Santos Escobar vs. NXT Cruiserweight Champion Jordan Devlin also look to be planned for TakeOver: Stand & Deliver following last night’s NXT. TakeOver: Stand & Deliver is a two night-event that’s taking place on Wednesday, April 7 and Thursday, April 8.
Though their scheduled title defense is off, Oney Lorcan & Danny Burch will still be in action on this week’s episode of NXT.
WWE has announced that NXT Tag Team Champions Lorcan & Burch will face Tommaso Ciampa & Timothy Thatcher in a non-title match on NXT this Wednesday. Lorcan & Burch were originally set to defend their titles against men’s Dusty Classic winners MSK (Wes Lee & Nash Carter) on the episode, but that is unable to take place due to Lee suffering a broken hand.
WWE posted a video on Tuesday night where Lorcan & Burch confronted MSK as they were being interviewed about Lee’s injury. Ciampa then approached Lorcan & Burch and challenged them to a match against him and Thatcher. Lorcan & Burch said they’ll face anyone, but only a select few can get an NXT Tag Team title shot. Ciampa said it would be non-title because giving him and Thatcher a title match would require Lorcan & Burch to have a set of bollocks.
After Thatcher defeated Ciampa in a Fight Pit match, the former rivals became partners as they teamed together in this year’s men’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic. Ciampa & Thatcher made it to the semifinals of the tournament before losing to The Grizzled Young Veterans (Zack Gibson & James Drake).
MSK defeated The Grizzled Young Veterans in the men’s Dusty Classic finals at NXT TakeOver: Vengeance Day last month, but Lee suffered a broken hand during the match. There was a backstage segment where The Grizzled Young Veterans attacked MSK on NXT last week, with it being claimed that Lee suffered his broken hand when The Grizzled Young Veterans used steel chairs in the attack.
This week’s NXT will also feature Women’s Tag Team Champions Nia Jax & Shayna Baszler defending their titles against women’s Dusty Classic winners Dakota Kai & Raquel Gonzalez.
WWE has revealed when the men’s and women’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic winners will be getting their title shots.
Both title matches will be taking place on the Wednesday, March.3 episode of NXT. Men’s Dusty Classic winners MSK (Wes Lee & Nash Carter) will challenge for Oney Lorcan & Danny Burch’s NXT Tag Team titles, while women’s Dusty Classic winners Dakota Kai & Raquel Gonzalez will challenge for Nia Jax & Shayna Baszler’s WWE Women’s Tag Team titles.
At TakeOver: Vengeance Day on Sunday, MSK defeated The Grizzled Young Veterans (Zack Gibson & James Drake) in the men’s Dusty Classic finals and Kai & Gonzalez defeated Shotzi Blackheart & Ember Moon in the women’s Dusty Classic finals. A trophy presentation for both teams took place on NXT tonight. It included Jax & Baszler appearing for a confrontation with Kai & Gonzalez.
MSK (former Rascalz Dezmond Xavier & Zachary Wentz) made their NXT debut in this year’s men’s Dusty Classic. They defeated Isaiah “Swerve” Scott & Jake Atlas in the first round of the tournament, Drake Maverick & Killian Dain in the quarterfinals, Legado Del Fantasma’s Raul Mendoza & Joaquin Wilde in the semifinals, and The Grizzled Young Veterans in the finals.
Kai & Gonzalez defeated Aliyah & Jessi Kamea in the first round of the women’s Dusty Classic, Kacy Catanzaro & Kayden Carter in the semifinals, and Blackheart & Moon in the finals.
