By JCH
I have had a great weekend at Super Strong Style and am off to Epic Encounter and Pro Wrestling Eve this weekend as the shows just keep on coming but right now it’s time once again for the NXT recap, bought to you by me, JCH.
This week’s main event is Matt Riddle vs Adam Cole. Seems to me like Cole is going to be challenging Gargano, so can see him getting the win. Unless they continue the Undisputed break up and we end up getting Strong v Cole.
I can’t remember if this is the end of the post mania tapings, or a new one. I’ll looks for where F.R.G is.
First up is Mia Yim vs Bianca Belair.
F.R.G slightly more to the left on hard cam. New tapings.
Crowd is split between ‘Let’s go Mia’ and ‘E-S-T’ chants.
After opening exchange Mia comes in for show of respect and Bianca kicks her. Lots of trash talk early. Series of kicks from Mia including a nice dropping Pele kick.
Mia misses into the corner and Bianca takes control for a period. It involves a lot of back clubbing and trash talk and dancing.
Eventually too much showboating from Bianca and Yim locks on a hanging guillotine. Belair fights out with more back clubbing. Belair has the hair coiled and ready to use, but Mia keeps beating her to the punch. Rolling cannonball from Yim, now a tarantula. Big knee from Mia in the ropes. Mia goes for a sunset flip, which Bianca fights and fight out of until she goes for the pin holding the ropes. Ref sees it and Mia rolls up Bianca for 2, Belair rolls forward hooks her hair round the ropes for leverage and gets the three.
Good match and fantastic originality in the finish.
Security footage of the Forgotten Sons ambushing the (apparently now) Viking Raiders after a performance centre workout. The Raiders will be in NXT live next week. Now called Ivar and Erik as well.
Footage from Performance centre as the Horsewomen are sparring. Coached by Shayna. From behind Io Shirai attacks Shayna. A brawl ensues. This feud continues.
Raul Mendoza is out. He’s taking on Riddick Moss. Who apparently is returning from an Achilles tendon injury. I vaguely remember him. Was he in a tag team?
Seems to have a sort of PT gimmick as the ‘Riddick Regimen’
Raul Mendoza vs Riddick Moss
Percy tells us the Riddick Regimen came about as Moss returned quicker than he should have by ignoring Doctors, and he realized he would succeed doing things his way. Seems a bit daft to me. Ignoring doctors. He works out before the match with a stretchy belt.
After Mendoza catches Moss, he stops to get some sort of massage drill and starts massaging his shoulder.
Lovely pace and athleticism by Mendoza. Springboard Hurricanrana and a running SSP leaves him in control. Moss catches him coming off the ropes and performs bicep curls with Mendoza before a huge fall away slam. Press ups into an explosive shoulder into the corner. Moss has Mendoza in a gorilla press, drops him into a spinebuster for a near fall.
Moss in control stops for a drink. He offers some to Mendoza who slaps the bottle away. Moss running into the corner Mendoza dropkick the knee sending Moss face first into the corner. Mendoza in control. Kicks, flying head scissors. Goes up top. Moss tries to cut him off. Mendoza avoids him, kicks Moss off the turnbuckle and hits a springboard corkscrew type thing for the upset win.
Really fun match. Moss impressed with strength and character, whilst Mendoza’s pace and agility were good. The former tag partner of Humberto Carrillo could be in line for an award here….
Up Next Matt Riddle vs Adam Cole
Riddle out first, followed by, on his own for now, Matt Riddle. F.R.G is bopping along to the song whilst on his phone.
Full Sail crowd seem to me more behind Riddle. Sensible from my fellow students.
Rids starts off with a waist lock and hits 3 slams before looking for Bromission. Cole gets to the ropes and takes a timeout. Riddle is all over Cole to start. Out wrestles Cole on the mat, then the Broton to the back, now the triple gut wrench suplexes. Big ‘Bro’ chants.
Cole avoids Riddle in the corner, Riddle lands on the top but Cole pulls his legs away. Big bump for Rids and Cole in control. Big Kick and Cole grounds Riddle. Methodical style from Cole. Headlock, corner strikes, then a dragon sleeper. Riddle looks to pick up the pace and Cole cuts him down.
Cole calls himself the uncrowned champion and that Riddle is nothing. Riddle responds by slapping the shit out of him. Cole with a kick, but big release German by Riddle.
Cole tries to go strike for strike again and Riddle destroys him, then hits the Pele kick, splashes into the corner and an exploder suplex. Cole ducks a PK, then rolls away from a standing moonsault but Rids lands on his feet and hits the Broton followed by a PK for a 2. Riddle is destroying Cole here. Not unlike the Dream match.
Battle for waist control, Cole with an enziguri, Riddle ducks it and hits a deadlift German with a bridge for 2. Excellent from Riddle. Cole catches Riddle off the ropes with a big boot and follows up with an Ushigaroshi for near fall.
Riddle reverses into the huge ripcord knee. He throws Cole up for Bro to Sleep and Cole reverses it into a backstabber. That was great. Riddle kicks out at the last minute.
Strike exchange from the floor, to their feet. Cole stamps on the bare foot of Riddle, calls for the super kick. Riddle catches the foot and turns it into an ankle lock. Cole almost escapes, Riddle transfers into the Bromission, Cole with the dream style roll up and Riddle kicks out. Then clocks Cole in the face with a kick. Fisherman buster, rolls through for another. Goes for another but Cole turns it into the brain buster onto the knee. Whatever he calls that these days. Great match.
More slaps from Riddle, Cole goes for a superkick, Riddle covers up, so Cole hits it to the knee. Hey Marty, Cole goes for the jump off top rope into a destroyer. Panama Sunrise? Florida keys? I don’t know what he calls what. Riddle catches him and almost hits a Momo Watanabe drop on your head from a reverse package piledriver type position. Back to belly driver?
Series of reversals ends with Superkick to the back of the head from Cole, then the Last Shot and its Ove…. No. Late, late kick out from Riddle. Cole drops the knee pad, looks for another last shot. Riddle stops him. Cole enziguri, Riddle with jumping knee, Bro to Sleep, Powerbomb and another huge knee, but Cole rolls to the outside.
Roddy comes down to help Cole up. Riddle PK’s Roddy from the apron. Rids springboards in to a Superkick. Ref in 1-2-the latest of kick outs from the king of a near fall. Riddle rolls through into the Bromission…. COLE TAPS. RIDDLE WINS. The era come down and stare as Riddle bops up the ramp.
Post-match Cole seems to blame Roddy and gets a bit aggressive. The crowd is still chanting for BRO. Cole tries to claim he had a plan. Fish and O’Reilly try to play peacemaker.
Fish leaves with Strong, whilst Kyle goes off with Cole who is shouting ‘thanks a lot Roddy’
‘I’ve been losing big matches, every time he’s involved. I won that 5 way by myself’
Adam Cole spans logic.
Well that match was bloody good.
Continuing the trend of Fantastic main events, decent story progression and good undercard matches. NXT may have a formula but its a bloody enjoyable one and an easy hours watch.
Stars of the Week
1. Matt Riddle - Another great performance from the BRO. With Cole seemingly going to be busy with Strong at Takeover 25 is Rids the man to meet Johnny G for the title?
2. Adam Cole - Definitely played his part in a great match. Probably my favorite Adam Cole singles match ever.
3. Raul Mendoza - Agile, fast and fun. What’s not to like.
Humberto Carrillo award
Raul Mendoza - Humberto’s own former tag partner takes the award home this week following an exciting performance and a victory over Riddick Moss. Moss having a new gimmick and Mendoza’s normal standing in the show led me to believe he would be there to put Moss over, but Raul had a great performance and picked up a win.
Takeover XXV predictions.
June 1st is Takeover, which is 2 more weeks of NXT away?
Card looking like it could be….
Johnny Gargano vs Matt Riddle
Velveteen Dream vs Dominick Dijakovic
Shayna Baszler vs Io Shirai
War Raiders vs Forgotten Sons
Adam Cole vs Roderick Strong
You’d think Kushida would probably be on there as well though…. not sure. Will stick with this for now.
Comments