The Global Heritage Invitational is set to continue on this week’s episode of NXT Level Up.
WWE has announced that a Global Heritage Invitational match between Akira Tozawa and Joe Coffey will air on Level Up this Friday. It’s the second straight week that Tozawa has wrestled a tournament match on the show. Last Friday, he lost to Duke Hudson.
Tozawa has a 0-1 record in the round-robin tournament and Coffey has a 1-0 record. They’re in Group B for the tournament.
Here are the current standings:
Group A —
Butch: 3 points (1 win, 1 draw, 0 losses)
Axiom: 1 point (0 wins, 1 draw, 0 losses)
Tyler Bate: 0 points (0 wins, 0 draws, 0 losses)
Charlie Dempsey: 0 points (0 wins, 0 draws, 1 loss)
Group B —
Joe Coffey: 2 points (1 win, 0 draws, 0 losses)
Nathan Frazer: 2 points (1 win, 0 draws, 1 loss)
Duke Hudson: 2 points (1 win, 0 draws, 1 loss)
Akira Tozawa: 0 points (0 wins, 0 draws, 1 loss)
Tozawa vs. Frazer and Bate vs. Axiom are taking place on next Tuesday’s NXT episode.
The winner of Group A will face the winner of Group B on the Tuesday, September 26 episode of NXT. The winner of that match will then challenge Noam Dar for the Heritage Cup at NXT No Mercy on Saturday, September 30.
NXT Level Up airs on Peacock/WWE Network at 10 p.m. Eastern time on Friday nights. The full lineup for this week’s episode is listed below:
Global Heritage Invitational match: Akira Tozawa vs. Joe Coffey
Last week’s WWE NXT Level Up was taped before Tuesday’s NXT with Vic Joseph and Byron Saxton on the call.
Dante Chen defeated Kale Dixon
Dixon got greeted with a “We want broccoli” chant. After some grappling to open, Dixon took control by bringing Chen down over his knee by the hair. Dixon sent Chen into the buckle before dropping him with a side suplex for two. Dixon went for another one but Chen reversed it into a cover for a near fall.
Dixon locked Chen in a bodyscissors as the announcers bantered about Raw 30. Chen stood up and dropped Dixon to the mat, followed by an offensive flurry before dropping Dixon with a back suplex. Chen hit the big double chop for the win.
– Kelly Kincaid interviewed Lola Vice backstage. She cut a paint by numbers NXT introduction promo. My name is X. My gimmick is Y. Bad dialogue. Catchphrase. She takes on Palmer next.
Dani Palmer defeated Lola Vice
I give this debut for Vice a thumbs up. She was going to get chances because of her look and her social media following, but she has presence and some impressive strikes. She needs more reps, but there’s a solid base there.
Vice took control with some big kicks, landing a suplex for a near fall. Palmer transitioned out of a hold into a dropkick, followed by a splash in the corner and a handspring splash. Palmer brought Vice down with a bodyslam before hitting a standing moonsault for two.
Palmer went to the top for a corkscrew maneuver, but Vice moved out of the way and hit a hurricane kick for two. Vice went for a powerbomb, but Palmer reversed it into a jackknife cover for the win.
Scrypts defeated Oro Mensah
Scrypts ain’t it. It’s a bush league gimmick on a wrestler that isn’t good enough to do half the things he’s trying. He needs to work on his fundamentals like his timing and footwork for his work to come together. And even if it did, he’d still be fighting an uphill battle with this goofy character.
Scrypts made sure the trampoline budget set aside for Sin Cara didn’t go to waste. Both men quickly evaded each other’s holds before Mensah tagged Scrypts with a kick. (I’m already annoyed because I have to undo my computer autocorrecting Scrypts to Scripts each time I write it.) Scrypts got sent flying from a Mensah headscissors before taking a Pele kick. Mensah sent Scrypts over the top rope before hitting a plancha.
Scrypts landed on his feet out of a suplex and pulled Mensah down by the hair. He hit a standing 450 whoopee cushion for a near fall. A twisting crossbody also got a two count. Mensah fought back, but Scrypts shoved him over the top rope when he tried a springboard move. Mensah came back, firing off forearms before scoring with a big lariat. He hit an inverted Pele kick and followed it with a springboard dropkick.
Scrypts rolled to the apron and hooked Mensah on the ropes. The finish here was wacky. Scrypts went for his Molly-Go-Round finish, but Mensah sat up and caught him in a roll-up. Scrypts rolled through that roll-up into his own pin and got the three which the announcers didn’t even realize was a three — a messy finish to a messy match.
Former Bellator MMA fighter Valerie Loureda’s first televised pro wrestling match will air this Friday night.
Loureda, who is going by the name Lola Vice in WWE/NXT, will make her NXT Level Up debut on this week’s episode. She’s facing Dani Palmer in a singles match on the show.
“Vice, an accomplished MMA fighter and NXT’s first Cuban-American Superstar, is set for a tough test in her first match when she battles Palmer,” WWE.com wrote. “A relative newcomer herself, Palmer is searching for her first career victory, despite impressive showings against the likes of Sol Ruca and Thea Hail.”
Loureda made her in-ring debut at an NXT house show this past October.
NXT Level Up airs on Peacock/WWE Network at 10 p.m. Eastern time on Fridays. This week’s episode will also feature the debut of Kale Dixon (real name Caleb Balgaard), a former college baseball player for South Alabama who joined the WWE Performance Center last August.
This edition of WWE NXT Level Up was taped before Tuesday’s WWE NXT with Sudu Shah and Byron Saxton on the call.
Amari Miller & Elektra Lopez defeated Sol Ruca & Dani Palmer
There were bubbles floating in the air when the bell rang to start this contest, a remnant of Miller’s bubbly entrance. Miller and Palmer started with Palmer ripping off a quick cradle out of an armdrag for a near fall. Ruca tagged in and hit a standing moonsault for a nearfall. She showed off her athleticism with a crossbody for another nearfall. Miller was able to get control and tag in Lopez who slowed Ruca down before bringing Miller back in.
Miller continued to grind Ruca down, transitioning a hammerlock into a short-arm clothesline for a two count. Miller started talking trash which allowed Ruca to get past her and make the tag to Palmer. Palmer hit two big shoulderblocks and a dropkick to Miller, sending her into the ropes and allowing Lopez to blind tag her way into the match. Lopez blindsided Palmer and after Miller knocked Ruca off of the apron, Lopez pinned Palmer with the Electric Shock choke bomb.
– Kelly Kincaid interviewed Tank Ledger. He compared himself to a military tank with the ability to get past any terrain and keep moving forward.
Xyon Quinn defeated Tank Ledger
Well, he never said a military tank could win a wrestling match.
Ledger wore the old Zack Ryder one-legged tights for this one. Well, not Zack Ryder’s old tights. That would be odd. This match started with, yes, a test of strength, between these two strong men. Ledger won it by lifting Quinn overhead by his arm before Quinn hit a forearm. Ledger kept hitting big shots, but got too ahead of himself and missed a charge in the corner.
Quinn took control with heavy strikes in the corner and a running back elbow for a near fall. Quinn held Ledger down before Ledger fought out and sent Quinn flying with a back body drop. Ledger strung some offense together, including a cartwheel into a standing Warrior splash. Ledger held Quinn in a fireman’s carry, but Quinn clawed at Ledger’s eyes to get out, landing a running forearm to win.
Four of Level Up’s best athletes came together to put on an impressive main event.
For anyone wondering, Enofe wore a shirt to conceal whether or not he actually got a giant WWE logo tattooed on his chest. While I’m not sure what working people about that would achieve, I’m just the messenger. Heights and Blade started with Heights using his mat wrestling for an early advantage. Blade used his athleticism to take control and hit a big dropkick to get a tag out to Enofe.
They hit a double-team combination before Heights sent Enofe into his corner to get a tag out to Borne. Borne and Enofe went back and forth before Borne dropped him with a DDT. A modified Doomsday Device got a near fall for Heights who transitioned into a crossface that Enofe fought out of. Borne tagged back in and hit a back suplex for a nearfall.
Enofe got the hot tag to Blade, who ran wild on Borne. A big crossbody off the top rope got a nearfall for Blade, but Heights blind tagged his way in. An impressive double-team facebuster almost scored the win, but Enofe dove over a charging Borne to break up the pin. Blade hit a thrust kick to Heights and tagged in Enofe to hit the Climax and score the win.
Last week’s WWE NXT Level Up was taped before NXT on Tuesday with Sudu Shah and Byron Saxton on commentary.
Oro Mensah defeated Myles Borne
Borne used his mat skills to control Mensah early on, but Mensah picked up the pace after flipping out of a German suplex attempt. He strung some offense together, getting the crowd into it after a pop-up rana. Mensah went for a high kick in the corner, but Borne ducked it and dropkicked him off the apron.
Borne laid on Mensah with a headlock until Mensah tried to fight out. Borne dropped him with a T-bone suplex for a near fall. Borne hit another pair of suplexes for a nearfall, but Mensah fought out of a third and hit one of his own. Mensah fired up and hit a springboard moonsault before finishing Borne off with the rolling capo kick in the corner. Post-match, the two shook hands and raised each other’s arms.
– Kelly Kincaid interviewed the debuting Tavion Heights. He told us about his accomplishments as a Greco-Roman wrestler, including representing America at the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo. He said he would give “Stacks” what he had coming to him.
Channing “Stacks” Lorenzo (w/ Tony D’Angelo) defeated Tavion Heights
This was Heights’ debut and if he can build on this performance, he’s going to be very good. He never looked out of place, and has an explosiveness to his work that was very impressive. Keep an eye out for Tavion Heights as he has a chance to be a real player in NXT.
The commentary team hyped up Heights as one of the best athletes to ever train with the Performance Center. He showed his mat proficiency by dominating a scramble on the mat. Lorenzo hit a big dropkick, but Heights cut off a flurry with a fireman’s carry takedown. Heights hung onto a wristlock despite being thrown through the ropes by his hair, but Lorenzo booted him in the face to break it. A running boot from Lorenzo scored a near fall.
Lorenzo worked over Heights on the mat before Heights fought back to his feet, flooring Lorenzo with a pair of clotheslines and an impressive snap powerslam. Heights tosses Lorenzo around in a gutwrench hold before dumping him with a facebuster for two. Lorenzo hooked onto Heights’ gear and hit his curb stomp for the win.
Thea Hail (w/ Andre Chase & Duke Hudson) defeated Sol Ruca
The two traded holds and arm drags before coming to a stalemate. Hail took advantage of a handshake and hit a rana, but Ruca gave her a boot in the corner. Ruca hit a Rolling Thunder-type moonsault for two. A backbreaker from Ruca only got her a one count. Ruca locked in an abdominal stretch, and landed on her feet when Hail tried to hip toss out of it. A body slam got another near fall.
Ruca locked on a surfboard stretch, which should be the surfer’s finish, but Hail fought out. She fired up and hit the springboard senton, but only got a two count. Ruca countered an O’Connor roll with a bridging pin for two and then springboarded into the ring into another roll up for two. Hail feigned another O’Connor roll, which Ruca tried to counter with a bridge again. This time, Hail caught Ruca in a crucifix pin for the win in a creative finish to this main event.
This week’s WWE NXT Level Up was taped before Tuesday’s NXT with Sudu Shah and Byron Saxton on the call.
Thea Hail (w/ Andre Chase & Duke Hudson) defeated Dani Palmer
Hail picked up a win over the debuting Palmer. You could tell this was a match between two less-experienced wrestlers, but that’s what Level Up is here for. It was fine by this show’s standard.
This was Palmer’s Level Up debut. According to commentary, she is a three-time national champion in acrobatics and tumbling representing Baylor University. It’s Baylor vs. Chase U tonight, although at this point I would like both schools’ chances against Texas A&M. Palmer shook hands with both Chase and Hudson on the floor before locking up with Hail.
Hail worked on Palmer’s arm with Palmer trying to use her athleticism to get out of Hail’s holds. She eventually got out with both women crashing into each other with a crossbody attempt. Hail fought out of an abdominal stretch and strung some offense together, including a big throw into the corner.
After a slight stumble, Hail hit a springboard senton and a big facebuster for the win. They showed Hail missing the ropes on the springboard on the replay, even though this show is taped and they could have edited it out to begin with. Alas, Hail won.
– It’s time for the weekly Kelly Kincaid interview, which I will now be calling Kincaid’s Korner. She talked to another Level Up newcomer, Oba Femi. He gave his background and how he got a scholarship from the University of Alabama to throw shotput. He also talked about how he threw that shotput around like LSU threw Alabama around the field a couple of weeks ago. (He didn’t say that, I added that part.)
Dante Chen defeated Oba Femi
This was Femi’s Level Up debut, and he accounted for himself well. His power spots impressed the crowd, and he didn’t look out of place.
Byron Saxton read off some of Femi’s weightlifting stats, all boiling down to the fact that this man is exceptionally strong. He showed off his strength by hammering Chen with an uppercut and tossing him around the ring with ease. A one-armed backbreaker from Femi got a near fall. He then locked Chen into the dreaded bearhug before shutting down a flurry of offense from Chen with another uppercut.
Femi went back to the bearhug as the camera focused on the bruises on Chen’s back. Chen slipped out and avoided another uppercut. He dodged a big elbow drop and fired off shots, finally knocking Femi down with a springboard forearm. Chen hit two Steamboat-style double arm chops for a near fall, hitting a third one for the win.
Channing Lorenzo (w/ Tony D’Angelo) defeated Oro Mensah
Mensah is very talented and a highlight of Level Up whenever he’s on. I’m not a fan of the D’Angelo family act as it’s very corny and played out. But Lorenzo’s work here was just fine.
D’Angelo joined Shah and Saxton on commentary, shouting encouragement to Lorenzo at points. Mensah sent Lorenzo running out of the ring after hitting a backflip off of Lorenzo’s chest and some arm drags. Mensah kept control after some upkicks and a squash against the ropes, but Lorenzo baited him into the corner and sent him into the ringpost.
D’Angelo is not very quick on commentary as you could hear him searching for answers in his head after being asked a question by Shah. Meanwhile, Lorenzo worked on Mensah’s arm, reversing a roll-up into a Rings of Saturn-type hold. Mensah fought out, winning a strike exchange with a big lariat.
A no-hands springboard moonsault from Mensah fired the crowd up, and a springboard dropkick sent D’Angelo off of commentary to try and distract him. It didn’t work as Mensah hit a rolling Capo kick for a nearfall. Mensah went for another springboard move, but D’Angelo popped him with his crutch. Lorenzo then hit a curb stomp with his knee to win.
This past week’s edition of WWE NXT Level Up was taped before last Tuesday’s NXT with Byron Saxton joined by Sudu Shah.
Ivy Nile & Tatum Paxley defeated Lash Legend & Jakara Jackson
Nile continues to impress on Level Up, coming up with more innovative ways to hook the Diamond Chain Lock submission. This was my first time seeing Jackson. She’s got a good look, some athleticism, and is one to keep an eye on.
Legend tried to jumpstart the match, but Nile sent her tagging out after a high roundhouse kick. Paxley tagged in, following a Nile suplex with a twisting senton on Jackson for two. Jackson and Paxley showed off their athleticism with a criss cross, leading to Jackson taking Paxley down with a reverse X-Factor. Legend tagged in and hit a big standing splash for two.
Paxley fought back with a dropkick, but Legend cut her off with a Umaga-esque tilt-a-whirl backbreaker. Jackson tagged in and hit a backbreaker of her own. Paxley hit an enzuigiri, leading to both Nile and Legend tagging in. Nile ran wild, hitting a high kick and a rana before falling to a big boot from Legend. Jackson tagged in, but Nile caught both of them simultaneously with an insanely cool punch/kick combo.
Paxley low-bridged Legend out of the ring, allowing Nile to catch Jackson with the Diamond Chain Lock for the win.
– Kelly Kincaid interviewed Javier Bernal backstage. He questioned Ikeman Jiro’s fashion sense and said that he will beat Jiro while looking better than he ever could.
Javier Bernal defeated Ikemen Jiro
“Big Body Javi” scored a tainted win in a standard-issue Level Up match.
Bernal knocked Jiro down, but Jiro kipped up and hit some armdrags. It’s still odd seeing him doing his deal here in NXT after watching him in All Japan Champion Carnival tournaments years ago. Now, he’s here doing prelim matches on the NXT B-show. These two traded shots before Bernal knocked Jiro down on a springboard attempt and hit a neckbreaker in the ropes for a near fall.
Jiro fought out of a Bernal chinlock, but Bernal landed a big forearm in the corner for two. A bulldog out of the corner followed by a clothesline only got a near fall for Bernal. Bernal landed some heavy kicks to the midsection before Jiro caught one and hit a dragon screw leg whip.
Some Jacket Punches took Bernal down before Jiro wrapped Bernal up with a tarantula and then hit a leg drop over the ropes. However, Bernal ducked the Ikemen Slash and rolled up Jiro with the tights to win.
Edris Enofe, Malik Blade & Odyssey Jones defeated Bronco Nima, Lucien Price & Xyon Quinn
This was an energetic six-man tag and a fun main event for Level Up. The crowd was into Jones in one of his first matches back from injury while Price had a very impressive show of aggression for his side.
Last week, I said Quinn was wearing the cool guy starter pack. He must have found a good promo code because Price and Nima had their leather jackets on as well.
Nima used his size advantage to take down Enofe before tagging in Price, but Enofe dropped him with a dropkick and tagged in Blade. Blade got sent into the heel corner, but rolled out and tagged in Jones. We got a staredown between Jones and Quinn which had Saxton asking for some popcorn and hummus. That’s an odd snack combination, but Saxton is in much better shape than me for a reason.
After Quinn failed at a shoulderblock, we got a Pier Six brawl with everybody jumping into the pool. Quinn tried for some trickery, getting his partners to distract Jones, but Jones didn’t fall for his shenanigans and got Enofe tagged in. Price blind tagged Quinn and laid out Enofe with a lariat. He sent Enofe into the corner and hammered him with shots in the midsection before tagging in Nima. Quinn and Nima hit tandem offense as Quinn got a near fall.
Price drilled Enofe with a kick to the midsection and cut off a sunset flip attempt. Price tried to take his opponents off the apron, but that allowed Enofe to break through and get a tag to Jones. Jones ran wild, hitting a bossman slam for a near fall that Quinn broke up. Enofe took out Quinn, allowing Blade to hit a splash off of Jones’ shoulders to score the pin on Price.
This week’s edition of Level Up was taped before Tuesday’s edition of NXT. Sudu Shah and Matt Camp of The Bump were on commentary.
Ivy Nile defeated Sol Ruca
Two of NXT’s best female prospects had themselves an impressive showing in the Level Up opener. This was better than some recent women’s matches on NXT proper.
Shah said that many people called Nile “the factory-built combat machine.” I would like to meet these people. There are so many purple lights flashing during Ruca’s entrance that my TV flips out for a second.
Ruca used her long legs to work her way out of Nile’s holds before they both ended up on the mat, mirroring each other’s kipups to applause.
Ruca used her legs to transition a handshake into a headlock. Nile got out and hit a step-up chop to the head before the two reversed each other’s pinfalls. Ruca cartwheeled out of a hip toss and hit a facebuster for two. Nile fought off an armbar attempt, but couldn’t fight off a deadlift suplex from Ruca for two. Nile attempted an armbar of her own but only got it on properly after Ruca got her in the ropes.
Ruca hit a sidewalk slam and started her comeback, which included a frontflip splash. Nile dodged an attack before hitting a headscissors and a running kick. Ruca flipped out of another hip toss, but Nile caught her in her dragon sleeper (called the Diamond Chain Lock) for the submission win.
The finish got a big pop for Level Up standards. Ruca is an impressive athlete, and I can see her being quite good at this once she gets more reps.
– Kelly Kincaid interviewed Myles Borne, who seems to get an interview every week on this show. He humbly said that he would beat Hank Walker later tonight and maybe will do some celebrating afterward.
Hank Walker defeated Myles Borne
Walker showed some great fire here, beating his friend and ending his winning streak.
The announcers put over how these two both grew up in North Carolina, and that they have bonded over their shared experiences recently. Walker sent Borne flying with a pounce early on, but Borne caught him with a small package soon after. Borne used his technical skills to his advantage early on, knowing that the former security guard would be more apt to throw hands.
Borne went for a flying nothing before Walker caught him with a boot to the chin. Walker followed up with a Thesz Press and some ground-and-pound before splashing Borne in the corner. Walker fired up and ripped his shirt off, but Borne caught him with a Northern Lights Suplex for two. Walker ducked an attack off the ropes and hit a flying forearm for the win.
Oro Mensah defeated Xyon Quinn
This was a solid main event as Mensah showed off his unique offensive skills in a win.
Quinn came out with the Cool Guy Starter Pack, that being aviators and a leather jacket. Look out Top Gun — we’ve got a real maverick on our hands. Mensah showed off his athleticism early on, backflipping off of Quinn’s chest before sending him flying with a headscissor takedown. Quinn got out of the way of a scissor kick and hammered Mensah in the back, but Mensah sent him to the floor with a dropkick and dropped him with a pescado.
Quinn sent Mensah into the apron to take control. Quinn worked on his back, dropping him with a backbreaker and a splash to the back. Mensah tried to get a backslide, but Quinn powered out and hit a clothesline. Quinn hit the taunt button before hitting Mensah with a neckbreaker for a nearfall.
Quinn locked Mensah in the dreaded bear hug, but Mensah fought his way out. Mensah hit a flurry of strikes and a springboard moonsault, but couldn’t hit a suplex as his back gave him trouble. He could hit a rounding kick to Quinn, and followed it up with a spinning heel kick in the corner to score the win.
This week’s WWE NXT Level Up was taped this past Tuesday prior to NXT with Sudu Shah and Byron Saxton on the call. This was your average edition of the show with one debut: Jakara Jackson.
Channing “Stacks” Lorenzo (w/ Tony D’Angelo) defeated Tank Ledger
This was Ledger’s first singles match. I must say he has quite the ring entrance and quite the gear. D’Angelo sat in on commentary and took umbrage with Shah for not asking him about how his knee was doing. Honestly, the focus of the match was on D’Angelo’s commentary.
This was Stacks’ first match since his loss to Shinsuke Nakamura which D’Angelo set up to make a man out of him. Shah said Ledger was a local legend in Chicago for his playing time at Northwestern University which D’Angelo wasn’t fully prepared to have a retort to.
Ledger got distracted by D’Angelo which swung things in Stacks’ favor. Ledger later fired up and used his power to drop Stacks with some clotheslines and a standing splash for a two count. Character-wise, Ledger feels like a wrestling descendant of Mojo Rawley.
In the end, some earlier stomping on Ledger’s fingers came back to help Stacks as Ledger failed to get him up for a move. He hit a European uppercut, a boot, and a clothesline to a seated Ledger for the win. The finish looked awkward as Ledger was already laying down before the clothesline was actually hit. Oh well.
– Kelly Kincaid was with Trick Williams who was on the phone with his girl on vacation, saying he would take out Brooks Jensen in two minutes or less. Kincaid said Carmelo Hayes would not be in his corner tonight, but Briggs would be in Jensen’s corner. Williams didn’t care and eventually did some dancing with Kincaid. If you haven’t heard Williams on the mic, he’s as good as advertised.
Thea Hail defeated Jakara Jackson
This was Jackson’s NXT debut and we were told, among other things, that she is a former model, a multi-sport athlete, and also competed in the Titan Games. New Chase U member Duke Hudson was on hand to watch, but Bodhi Hayward apparently wasn’t which commentary said Andre Chase was a bit frustrated with.
As you might expect, Jackson is green. She was working Hail’s left arm for a good few minutes that was first-day BJJ white belt level at best. Also, Hail yells. A lot.
Hudson came out into the entryway to wave the Chase U flag to fire up Hail who worked out of the multi-minute armor with a throw. Hail eventually picked up the win by slamming Jackson to the mat and pinning her. I like the Chase U act, but this match wasn’t good. I assume we’re getting a Hudson-led power struggle within the group by year’s end.
Brooks Jensen (w/ Josh Briggs) defeated Trick Williams
Jensen is half of the former NXT UK Tag Team Champions with Briggs while Williams is aligned with the aforementioned Carmelo Hayes. Jensen was rolling early until Williams got him caught up in the ring skirt, stomping on him for some real heel heat.
Williams is going to be given every chance to succeed with his physique, presence and verbal skills. He’s going to need a few years down in NXT to get it down which likely means he’ll be called up way too early.
Jensen regained control with a powerslam and later avoided getting caught in the ring skirt again by outsmarting Williams by running around the ring and hitting him with a punch. Jensen got popped with an uppercut as he jumped in off the top rope, followed by a spinning neckbreaker that got a close near fall. In the end, Jensen got the win off a Fameasser, snapping a two-match losing streak.
Given all the wrestling that’s on TV in a given week, you can skip this.
