WWE NXT
Wednesday, October 3rd
–RESULTS: Lacey Evans over Candice LeRae, Jaxson Ryker & Wesley Blake & Steve Cutler over Vinny Mixon & Torry Kirsch & Cesar Rise, Johnny Gargano over Tony Nese, Lars Sullivan over EC3
-Easily the best thing on the show was the match between Johnny Gargano and Tony Nese. It was amazing how much Nese felt like a bigger star in this environment than on 205 Live. It was a very good television match, highlighted by Nese hitting the Fosbury Flop and getting a big near fall after a 450 splash. The win ended Gargano’s losing streak after he locked in the Gargano Escape. This was a noticeable difference for Nese, who is a talented guy that can do amazing athletic feats but is nothing special on 205 Live. The commentary was also helpful with Mauro Ranallo getting his big spots across as significant.
-There was a great training feature with Shayna Baszler where she is starting fight camp to prepare for her rematch with Kairi Sane at TakeOver to prove to Sane that she has “evolved”.
-The other feature was on Oney Lorcan and Danny Burch. It was a simple profile on the, recapping their loss to The Undisputed Era at TakeOver in June. Lorcan went over his injury where he broke his orbital bone and crushed his cheekbone during the match. Burch referred to themselves as “two regular blokes” that weren’t supermen, they were regular guys that worked hard. It was such a simple piece and yet you felt they were more relatable from a few minutes of speaking. Many people would hear these two speak and think they have a lack of personality but the key is finding a role that connects and people can get behind them and this worked so well.
-Lars Sullivan and EC 3 had a decent match to close the show. Sullivan works well as a big man and won the match with a diving headbutt off the top. In terms of presenting him as a monster through his walkout, the way he moves and the big spots during the match, it’s a well-executed presentation. EC3 was cut around the right eye and bleeding during the match.
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-Lacey Evans and Candice LeRae saw Evans getting under the skin of LeRae by trash talking. It culminated with LeRae losing her cool and walking into the Woman’s Right and was pinned by Evans. The match was fine as Evans is improving and has a strong finish they continue to establish. Some don’t like the Evans character because it feels like she’s out of a time capsule playing Peggy Carter. I don’t know if the character has longevity, but she plays it well.
-There was a video feature promoting next week’s three-way for the North American title with Ricochet, Adam Cole, and Pete Dunne. This match received outstanding reviews when it was taped. They are also promoting a rematch between Bianca Belair and Nikki Cross that will air in two weeks.
-Besides the Gargano and Nese match, I thought this was a bland episode. There was nothing regarding the investigation on Aleister Black’s attacker and this was a run of the mill show. Next week should be a strong show with the North American three-way match.
