Here's a place to check results and comment along with the newest episode of WWE NXT, airing live in its regular Wednesday night at 8PM Eastern time slot on USA Network.
Check out our Wednesday morning preview post to get caught up on what's been happening, and what we expect this week.
Advertised for tonight: An empty arena show featuring Finn Bálor vs. Velveteen Dream, three Interim Cruiserweight Championship Tournament bouts, Tegan Nox & Shotzi Blackheart team-up to take on Dakota Kai & Raquel Gonzalez, and more!
Come right back here at 8 p.m. ET when the NXT live blog kicks off once the show starts on USA. It will be below this line here. (REMINDER: NO GIFS OR PICS ARE ALLOWED IN THE COMMENTS SECTION. OFFENDERS WILL BE BANNED.)
Enjoy the show!
WWE NXT RESULTS AND LIVE BLOG FOR APRIL 22
Tom Phillips narrates last week’s highlights. It closes with Killer Kross attacking Tommaso Ciampa, then leads right into Phillips informing us that it seems Finn Balor’s been attacked, he isn’t in the building, and will not face Velveteen Dream tonight.
Dream heads down to the ring, and repeats “new levels, new devils” several times. He starts to address Finn, and here comes the NXT champ.
Adam Cole says everyone assumed whoever won Finn vs. Velveteen would be the new #1 contender, and he sees what Dream did. He didn’t take out Balor, but Undisputed ERA will take out Dream. Bobby Fish & Roderick Strong attack Velveteen from behind while he’s focused on Cole on the ramp. He’s taking a three-on-one beating when here comes Keith Lee! The North American champ fights off Strong & Fish, then pounces Cole into him them! He checks on Dream as the ERA angrily backs up the ramp.
Time for a match
Tegan Nox & Shotzi Blackheart vs. Dakota Kai & Raquel Gonzalez
Nox tries to roll up Gonzalez at the jump. Shotzi with the bling tag when Tegan gets whipped into the ropes, and stays away from the larger woman, who backs into the corner and tags Kai. She continues her momentum, sending Dakota into the ropes and hitting her with a senton. Another tag, and another charging senton from Tegan. The heels head outside, Blackheart flies and takes them both. She howls as he get our first commercial.
Gonzalez has taken control while we are away, and she’s got Shotzi on her shoulder as we see a replay of the Kai cheapshot that let their team get the upper hand. Blackheart evades the running kick in the corner, then enziguri’s her way free to get the tag. Nox takes the fight right to Raquel, but can’t knock her off her feet, even with a headbutt. Raquel misses a charge and takes a European uppercut and kick to go down to one knee. Tegan climbs, but Dakota distracts her enough for Gonzalez to recover. She catches Nox, fallaway slam. a fallaway slam. Shotzi tags in and hits a seated splash for a near fall. Kai kicks Nox from the floor but Shotzi goes for something with a wheelbarrow set-up. Gonzalez counters with a one arm powerbomb and that’s that.
Dakota Kai & Raquel Gonzalez def. Shotzi Blackheart & Tegan Nox via pinfall
We’ve got a new main event - it’s Dream & Lee vs. Cole & Strong. We get a reminder that Drake Maverick was released. His match will be next, after a word from our sponsors.
After the break, Jake Atlas gets a video package. He’s here to break barriers and win the title to show people who look up to him what’s possible.
Drake Maverick vs. Jake Atlas
Atlas with an early power advantage, but Maverick uses his ground game to almost set up a Tequila Sunrise. That gets us a respectful staredown. Speedy follow-up from Drake sends both men to the apron, and Maverick holds on to send Jake to the floor. Back-in, Atlas catches Maverick for a backbreaker that gets two. He whips Drake hard into the corner back first. Takedown and a clench from behind, but Maverick powers up. He carries Atlas to the corner and sends him headfirst into a turnbuckle, then evades another charge to send Jake shoulder first into the post. He ends a flurry with a dropkick off the second rope, right into the Tequila Sunrise. Atlas gets to the ropes and heads outside, but gets flattened by a dive. Drake throws him in, elbow off the top, one, two, no! He tries for a cutter off the ropes, but Atlas throws him off and nails a superkick. Jake heads up top but Maverick catches up. He goes for a super-rana but Jake holds on. He cartwheels on the top rope and hits a DDT while falling to the mat.
Jake Atlas (1 - 0) def. Drake Maverick (0 - 1) via pinfall
McKenzie Mitchell interviews Jake at the podium. He says he’s on top of the world, then shouts out Drake as he’s helped to the back. Atlas says he was rooting for him, but the world will know his story. One down, two to go.
We start to get the video package for Keith Lee we saw last week, but it’s cut off by Damian Priest, who doesn’t give a damn about Lee or where he came from. All he cares about is the NA title. Priest says Keith’s picked contenders he knows he can beat. He’s ducking Damian because he knows he hits hard. He knows Keith likes making moments, so he reminds him of the moment he made in his first NXT match - pinning Lee. He’s taking the belt.
Kushida vs. Tony Nese
Kushida’s in the ring when we cut to the arena, but he does get a video package. His opponent gets an entrance and a video reminding us he won the Cruiserweight title last year, and lost it without being pinned.
Each man gets a clean break early and taunts the other with a pose. Nese follows up with a quick calf crusher, but Kushida reverses that into an arm submission, but Tony forces him to the ropes. Kushida forearms his way out of there, but Nese with a chop to the throat and then snaps Kushida down on the top rope. Outside, the American throws his opponent into the barricade and back in for a quick cover. Kushida recovers to hit a back elbow off the top, but when he tries to follow with a handspring back elbow, Nese ducks under and pulls him out of the ring and throws him into the barricade again as we go to a break.
Tony’s stil in control with a body scissor when we get back, and Kushida quickly punches out. Back on their feet, they’re basically brawling. Kushida tries to throw Nese to the floor, but Tony fights that off and snaps the rope on him again. Nese misses his follow-up though, setting up the handspring back elbow. Fastball punch, but Nese catches the follow-up. He goes for a pumphandle slam, but Kushida counters into the Sakuraba Lock. Tony slams him down to break that, eventually getting free to head up top. 450 splash, but it’s only a nearfall.
Nese up first, but he runs into a palm strike. A second one puts Tony down, but he returns fire with another palm strike when Kushida climbs. Nese gets Kushida on his shoulders on the middle rope, but the Japanese Superstar gets free. He gets the Sakuraba Lock on up there, holds it through a flip off the top, and Nese taps.
Kushida (1 - 0) def. Tony Nese (0 - 1) via submission
Matt Riddle & Timothy Thatcher are interviewed. It’s more odd bromance like Riddle had with Pete Dunne, and includes him confusing Thatcher’s eye color with “Stallion Pete’s”. He has a plan to show the world what a beautiful man Timothy is next week. Thatcher asks what he has in mind, but we’re off to more commercials.
Scarlett Bourdeaux narrates the newest Karrion Kross video, telling us doomsday is upon NXT. Tom Phillips and Bryon Saxton transition that to Johnny Gargano & Candice LeRae.
We’re at their place, which is candlelit. Johnny is talking about how great a day it was when Candice became Mrs. Wrestling, but he was lucky enough to have multiple fairy tale endings in his life. He runs down his NXT accomplishments, and talks about how no one believed he could beat Tommaso Ciampa. Candice (now with purple-ish hair) brings in his dinner and says “we did” (the cup he wore to beat Ciampa in under glass on the table).
He rants about what’s wrong with NXT, and how it’s a place that rewards horrible people and punishes good ones. Candice cuts in and says that’s just NXT. She’s been unappreciated since she got here. And she served as the mother of the locker room, but when she needed them, they weren’t there. It happened over and over, which is the definition of insanity. But insanity gave her clarity. She’s done eating second.
Johnny says they can only trust each other, and says they’re gonna tear down NXT and rebuild it. They’ll be the first married couple to reign over the brand as men’s and women’s champ.
Io Shirai gets a video package for her upcoming title shot at Charlotte Flair. She bows down to no one. Time for more commercials.
McKenzie Mitchell catches up with a teary-eyed Drake Maverick outside somewhere. He says Jake Atlas is great. Every other athlete in the tournament is fighting their opponent. He’s fighting his opponent and himself. Maybe everyone was right about him...
Mia Yim vs. Jessi Kamea
Kamea’s ditched her nerdy girl gimmick and is now dressed all in black with fishnet tights. Showy evasions early from Jessi, but Yim shows off right back at her. Things are even, but Kamea lands a kick after a standing switch, then goes into ground-and-pound. Step-up twisting elbow for two as the announcers compare Jessi’s volleyball background to Charlotte’s as they remind us Flair called out Mia last week. The comeback starts with a neckbreaker, goes into an STO, and ends with Protect Ya Neck.
Mia Yim def. Jessi Kamea via pinfall
The Queen is here. She’s in street clothes and has her Women’s title and a mic. Out of the deepest division in WWE, she wants Yim first. She hopes Mia wants it too. She says she’s enjoyed watching Flair grow as she grows into the HBIC. Charlotte says Mia’s always been a good hand, and she looks forward to making her a star next week. Yim doesn’t like the backhanded compliment.
Gentleman Jack Gallagher gets a video. His tattoos prove he can take pain. He’s bringing something different to this tournament as he looks to capture the title that’s evaded him for three years.
Chelsea Green is posing for pics by a pool while Robert Stone directs her, and says it’s just another day for his brand. She swims over and joins him for some lounging as they run down the other women in the division and put her over as a future champ.
Gentleman Jack Gallagher vs. El Hijo del Fantasma
Fantasma rocking his standard lucha look, and entering to a generic rock theme. Both men charge into a lock-up. Gallagher pokes at the mask a couple times in the early going, but not much else of note in a pretty standard opening few minutes. Jack goes for covers when he catches a pop-over evasion attempt into a slam. They trade strikes, Gallagher sends Fantasma over the top, then slides. Fantasma side-steps it, but Jack grabs him and throws him into the barricade. Fantasma comeback sees him turn an enziguri into a stretch that he uses to rana Gallagher over the top. It looks like he’ll follow with a dive, but Jack has that scouted, so he switches to a crossbody. He celebrates as we go to a break.
Jack’s in charge when we get back, and replays show him snapping Fantasma off the top rope and going after the mask again to get in more offense. He’s working the arm, but Fantasma comes back with a chop and a back elbow. Forearms in the corner, but Jack punches his way back across the ring. One of those misses and Gallagher gets hit with a superkick. He goes outside... Arrow From the Depths of Hell (without the archery taunt)! Both men down on the ramp. Jack gets in the ring first, but he’s still reeling. Running back elbow, jackknife cover, one two no! Gallagher comes back and gets a close nearfall of his own off a headbutt. Running drop kick misses, but he bounces to his feet. Unfortunately for Jack, Fantasma grabs him and gets him on his shoulders. Gallagher tries to get free by messing with the mask, but he answers with knees. Samoan Driver ends it.
El Hijo del Fantasma (1 - 0) def. Gentleman Jack Gallagher (0 - 1)
Mitchell goes to interview him, but he asks for the mic to cut a promo in Spanish about becoming Cruiserweight champ.
We learn that next week will feature Flair vs. Yim in a non-title match, and Priest vs. Lee in a title match. We see Fantasma talking to the camera and loading his truck outside when the van kidnappers roll up. He fights them off and they speed off.
Velveteen Dream & Keith Lee vs. Undisputed ERA (Adam Cole & Roderick Strong)
Bobby Fish is out with the ERA, and the heels attack at the bell, but their advantage doesn’t last for even a second. The referee throws Fish out when he grabs Dream’s ankle, but while that’s going on, Damian Priest shows up to hit Lee in the throat with his nightstick a few times. He can’t breathe, and Velveteen calls for the refs, who swam to check on him. That happens as we get our last ad break.
We learn Dream insisted the match continue, and he’s taking a two-on-one beating when we return. Roddy is putting on a backbreaker clinic, but Velveteen will not stay down for a three count. He’s stretching Dream when Dexter Lumis appears on the apron in Velveteen’s corner. Dream crawls toward him, but Strong catches him. Dream Valet Driver, but Cole stops him before he can get a tag. Velveteen slips free and tags Lumis! He’s in hot and takes out both members of the ERA. Fish arrives to try and help, but Dexter flies and takes out Bobby and Roddy. Dream comes off the top with Purple Rainmaker and pins the champ!
Velveteen Dream & Dexter Lumis (I guess) def. Undisputed ERA
Lumis slinks off to the side and peers over the apron at Dream, who looks at him from the top rope as Undisputed slinks up the ramp in defeat.