It’s that time once again, time to check out what happened this week on NXT. We’re on the lookout for a new number one contender, so good ol’ William Regal announced that there would be a series of singles matches, which would lead to a fatal four way to determine the new number one contender.
Andrade’s Championship Celebration
The new NXT Champion strutted his way to the ring, flaunted his success, and had Zelina Vega sing his praises. Whereas Andrade continued to say “I am the champion” at least 6 times, I now know why Zelina has been speaking for him. He presents himself better when speaking in his native tongue, so just let Zelina focus on building him up. Oh my god, she’s a female Paul Heyman.

Meanwhile…
– Lars Sullivan was interviewed about his next opponent, Rodrick Strong, all he cared about was getting his hands on Strong so he can become the new champ. Nothing’s going to stop him…
– Undisputed Era announced that Adam Cole would take on Aleister Black. While Kyle O’Reilly and Bobby Fish would take on Sanity in 2 weeks time.
– Ember Moon said it was a dream come true to become women’s champion. Billie Kay & Peyton Royce interrupted, saying that since they weren’t pinned they should get another shot. This then led to a slight conflict between the iconic duo, until they agreed to both get a hit in on Ember moon. Best quote from this segment has to go to the guy off screen who asked: “Can I have my mic back?” The timing was perfect, I tip my hat to you, sir.
– Pete Dunne will defend his title against Tyler Bate for the WWE UK Championship. Given that their last title match together was one of my favourite fights of this year, you can bet I’m excited as hell for this.
Trent Seven vs Killian Dane
Surprise “British Strong Style”! As much as Trent tried to fight off the assault. Dain was just too big to fully keep down, each strike had the force, but sadly mad no impact on the Beast of Belfast. Dain took his time, but he ended the match with a senton, and then a Vader bomb. Dain goes through to next round, while we wonder why they used Trent Seven in this when there are other bodies in the back for him to crush. Granted, it wasn’t a squash. But, it did seem like a waste of time for Trent.

No Holds Barred: Ruby Riot vs Sonya Deville
Sonya immediately dominated, treating Riot like a rag doll. Even as Riot tried to end the match early on with her Pele kick, Sonya reversed into an ankle lock. The pain seemed unbearable, fortunately, Riot did escape but clutched her foot continuously. The damage had already been done, and Sonya went to work on slowly dissecting Riot. Ruby finally got back into the fight, slowly working Sonya down and tiring her out. It all seemed to be going Riot’s way until Deville hit a triangle lock and knocked Riot out.
I’m not going to lie, there were some decent moments in the match but overall it had no impact. Most of Deville’s strikes felt weak and relied on Riot doing more to sell the movement. I’d say she still needs more time to develop, but I’m not the one who drafted her to RAW.

Kassius Ohno vs Johnny Gargano
Two fan favourites? The main event of NXT? Let’s do this.
While Ohno played mind games, to begin with by asserting his strength, Gargano quickly woke him up by locking him up and managing to bring the big guy down to his knees. Johnny had realised as well that he couldn’t walk right through this obstacle, as Ohno could easily pick him out of the air and slam him right back down. Back and forth the momentum shifted as both men became frustrated.
The dynamic here was engaging to watch, Johnny acting like he’s trying to chop down a tree and Kassius trying to keep up with the fast pace of Gargano. Kassius hit the Cyclone kick, but Gargano just kept on going. It doesn’t matter what you do, Gargano would not quit for anything. After everything, Johnny Gargano hit the Gargano escape and managed to make Ohno submit. What a win, what an underdog story, and what a main event.
