Who is heading to NXT TakeOver: XXX?

Imperium returns to defend their NXT Tag Team Championships, a new #1 contender to the NXT Women’s Championship will be determined, and another Triple Threat will add to the North American Championship Ladder match!

OFFICIAL RESULTS

• NXT Women’s Championship #1 Contender’s match: Dakota Kai VS Rhea Ripley; Kai wins and will challenge Io Shirai for the title at TakeOver: XXX.
• Bronson Reed VS Shane Thorne; Reed wins.
• NXT North American Championship Ladder Match Qualifier Triple Threat: Oney Lorcan VS Damian Priest VS Ridge Holland; Priest wins and advances to NXT TakeOver: 30.
• Keith Lee VS Cameron Grimes; Lee wins.
• Tegan Nox VS Indi Hartwell; Nox wins.
• NXT Tag Team Championships: Imperium VS The Undisputed Era; Imperium wins and retains the NXT Tag Team Championships.

PLAY BY PLAY

NXT Women’s Championship #1 Contender’s match: Dakota Kai VS Rhea Ripley!

From the Mae Young Classic to NXT UK to WarGames to right here tonight, #CobraKai and the Aussie Nightmare have grown and transformed into truly two of the best! But who will prove to be the better and earn their shot at THE Io Shirai?

The bell rings and the two circle. Dakota and Rhea tie up and Rhea shoves Dakota to a corner! Rhea brushes herself off as Dakota gets back up. They tie up, Dakota headlocks but Rhea blocks the takedown with pure power! Rhea goes to back suplex but Dakota pulls hair! The ref reprimands as Dakota keeps pulling. Dakota lets up to CHOPS Rhea! Dakota grins and laughs but Rhea just scowls as she stands up. Rhea spins Dakota and LARIATS! And LARIATS! And then ripcord to dropkick! Dakota flounders but Rhea rams into her in the corner! The ref counts, Rhea lets up but bumps Dakota off buckles.

Rhea stalks Dakota to another corner and CHOPS back! Dakota is stinging but the crowd fires up. Rhea kicks Dakota’s leg then swings another chop, only for Dakota to dodge. Dakota swings a chop but Rhea dodges back, and CHOPS Dakota again! Rhea brings Dakota up, suplexes and holds her! After a count of 10, Rhea drives Dakota down! Cover, TWO! Rhea keeps her cool as she drags Dakota back up. Rhea whips, Dakota ducks and redirects but Rhea follows. Dakota hurdles, rolls back but Rhea wheelbarrow SLAMS her down! Cover, TWO! Rhea stalks Dakota to another corner and stomps her. Rhea throws Dakota down and kicks her around to the ropes.

Rhea pulls on Dakota’s hair as she drags her up, but lets up at the ref’s count to then kick her in the side! Rhea has Dakota in a corner and the two brawl! Rhea clubs Dakota down hard but lets up to hear the crowd fire up. Dakota sits up, Rhea brings her up but Dakota throws body shots. Rhea shoves her back down then brings her up again, just to knock her down. Rhea pulls hair and knocks Dakota down again, then drags her into body scissors! Dakota endures the squeeze and the shoving, and even more hair pulling! Rhea lets up but puts on more of a squeeze. Dakota elbows back, bridges to a cover, TWO! Rhea still has the squeeze, and forearms Dakota in the back over and over!

Dakota endures, pries at the hold but Rhea pulls on hair again. Dakota moves around but Rhea turns that into a body scissors cover, TWO! Dakota is free but Rhea CLOBBERS her! Rhea talks trash, covers, TWO! Rhea stomps Dakota down, brings her back up but Dakota throws forearms. Rhea kicks then reels Dakota in for a suplex. Dakota slips out, gets to ropes, and dodges Rhea. Dakota goes around, grabs Rhea’s foot but can’t trip her up! Rhea KICKS Dakota away! Rhea goes out and grabs Dakota on the apron. Dakota kicks Rhea away, but kicks into an Electric Chair, that becomes an APRON INVERTED ALABAMA SLAM! Rhea drags Dakota up and into the ring, covers, TWO!! Dakota survives and Rhea can’t believe it as NXT goes picture in picture!

Rhea looms over Dakota as she flounders and crawls. Rhea kicks her further towards the corner, then runs corner to corner, only for Dakota to drop toehold her into buckles! Dakota fires furious fists then covers, TWO! Dakota goes after Rhea with clubbing forearms, puts her on the ropes and chokes her! The ref counts, Dakota lets off but comes back with more clubbing forearms. Dakota brings Rhea up, bumps her off buckles, then runs side to side to BOOT her! Rhea stays up against the ropes so Dakota runs side to side again for another BOOT! Dakota covers, TWO!! Rhea still lives and Dakota grows further frustrated.

Dakota drags Rhea around into a straitjacket stretch! Rhea endures as Dakota thrashes her and leans on the hold. The crowd rallies up, Rhea fights her way up but Dakota throws her down! Cover, TWO! Dakota pushes Rhea around now, clubs her on the back again, then runs to Penalty Kick! Cover, TWO! Dakota is right on Rhea, wanting the straitjacket again. She wraps it back on, pulls it tight, and Rhea endures all over again. Dakota grinds Rhea down to the mat and hooks a leg around her for a partial body scissor. Rhea kicks and fights but Dakota bounces her off the mat! Cover, TWO! Dakota grits her teeth as NXT returns to single picture.

The crowd is thunderous as Dakota goes to ax kick, but Rhea dodges! Rhea O’Conner rolls, TWO! Dakota BOOTS Rhea right down! Cover, TWO! Dakota is still seething as she drags Rhea into a grounded cobra twist. Rhea endures being pulled and stretched, but she grabs Dakota’s hair to pull back! The ref reprimands, Rhea lets go, and Dakota rolls to make it a cobra twist clutch! TWO, Dakota gets up to kick, but Rhea dodges! Rhea BOOTS Dakota away! Rhea fires herself up with the crowd, Dakota runs at her but Rhea LARIATS! Rhea rallies, spins and cravat knee smashes again and again! Snapmare and basement dropkick! Rhea is fired up as the crowd is thunderous again!

Rhea Electric Chairs again, another SLAM! Cover, TWO!! Dakota survives and now Rhea is losing her cool. Rhea drags Dakota up but Dakota fights back. Dakota kicks Rhea away and ROUNDHOUSES her! Rhea throws body shots and a haymaker in return! Rhea roars but Dakota reels her in, only for Rhea to ROCK her with the elbow! Dakota SCORPION KICK! “I’m the #1 contender!!” Dakota runs, but Rhea FLAPJACKS her! Cover, TWO!! Dakota still lives and Rhea is beside herself! Rhea wobbles to her feet while Dakota slowly sits up. Rhea won’t let Dakota think she’s the contender just yet. Pump handle and lift, but Dakota DDT’s out of Riptide!! Cover, TWO!!

Dakota is seething as she watches Rhea get up. KAI-RO- NO! Rhea pops out and BOOTS Dakota down! Then Rhea gets Dakota’s legs, PRISM TRAP!! The hanging Clover Leaf has Dakota caught! Dakota claws, crawls, rolls and sends Rhea into buckles! Dakota gets space as Rhea manages to stand. Dakota runs Around the World to BOOT! Rhea ends up on the apron, Dakota drags her up to the top rope. Rhea resists, Dakota clubs her back, but Rhea holds onto ropes. Dakota clubs more, tries with all her might, but Rhea hits back. Rhea DECKS Dakota off the top! But while the ref checks on Dakota, MERCEDES MARTINEZ BOOTS Rhea outta nowhere!! Does Robert Stone Brand still have beef with Rhea?!

Dakota drags Rhea back up, manages to fireman’s carry for a GO TO KICK!! Cover, Dakota wins!!

Winner: Dakota Kai, by pinfall (NEW #1 Contender to the NXT Women’s Championship)

The Aussie Nightmare’s dream of facing Io Shirai 1v1 was just ended by Mercedes! Dakota gets to go to TakeOver, but will she finally take over the Women’s Division? As for Rhea and Mercedes, Robert Stone’s newest signee attacks Rhea again! Mercedes drags Rhea up, fireman’s carries, and hits the AIR RAID CRASH! Will the Robert Stone Brand regret incurring Rhea’s wrath?

Pat McAfee talks with Shawn Michaels!

It’s not clear what HBK is telling former NFL kicker turned analyst, but Pat will be joining commentary later tonight. Will this conversation give Pat any ideas?

Bronson Reed VS Shane Thorne!

Auszilla is chomping at the bit to start that NXT North American Championship Ladder Match. But first, he once again battles his Worst fellow friend. Will Shane soothe his jealousy by ruining the run of the Thicc Boi?

The bell rings and Thorne circles with Reed. The crowd chants for “Thicc Boi~! Thicc Boi~!” as he and Thorne tie up. They go around, Reed powers Thorne to a corner, but lets up at the ref’s call. Thorne hangs back a minute and Reed dares him to do something. Thorne says they’ll “skip the pleasantries” and he throws a forearm! Reed dares him to do that again and Thorne does. Thorne runs and forearms again! Reed just ROCKS Thorne in return! Thorne fires himself up but Reed ROCKS him again! Reed runs but into Thorne’s dropkick! Reed tumbles out of the ring. Thorne DIVES! The tope takes Reed down at the ramp! Thorne swaggers over as Reed gets up, and CHOPS! Thorne goes to bump Reed off the apron but Reed blocks it! Reed hits back, then catches Thorne to an APRON FULL NELSON SLAM!

Reed pushes Thorne in, the crowd fires up as Reed climbs, but Thorne goes to anchor Reed. Reed clubs Thorne away but Thorne hits back! Thorne climbs up, throws forearms, and goes to underhook the arms. Reed powers out and shoves Thorne, but Thorne lands on his feet! Thorne ROCKS Reed with a dropkick, then goes corner to corner to CANNONBALL into Reed!! Reed flops down, Thorne pumps himself up and aims a KNEE!! Cover, TWO! Thorne can’t believe Reed lives but the crowd is loving this! Thorne drags Reed up, Reed resists the chicken wing crossface and reels Thorne into a headbutt! Reed military presses and drops Thorne, to then THICC SENTON! Cover, TWO!!

Reed doesn’t let Thorne off easy, he fireman’s carries. Thorne elbows free and ROUNDHOUSES back! Reed wobbles but stays up and Thorne clotheslines! Reed still stands, fires up, and clotheslines collide! Thorne throws haymakers and palm strikes, talks some trash, then runs to get a LARIAT from Reed! Reed drags Thorne up, fireman’s carry, RUNNING DEATH VALLEY! Reed keeps going, and returns up top! TSUNAMI SPLASH!! Cover, Reed wins!

Winner: Bronson Reed, by pinfall

The thiccness keeps on going! With all this momentum behind him, will Reed bulldoze whoever gets in that ladder match with him?

Breezango arrives at Full Sail.

Fandango and Tyler Breeze already beat The Undisputed Era once, in a Triple Threat Tag. They don’t mind if Kyle O’Reilly and Bobby Fish win the tag titles tonight. But just then, El Legado del Fantasma pulls up! They attack to make Breezango pay for “mocking” lucha libre culture! That’s a 3v2 brawl, and they SMASH Fandango between door and frame! And then they put him in the trunk!? El Legado kidnaps Fandango!! What do they plan on doing to the Lord of Dance with Prince Pretty unable to help?

Backstage interview with The Robert Stone Brand.

After seeing Mercedes attack Rhea Ripley, the obvious question is, “Why?” Stone says that Rhea may be done with them, but they aren’t done with her. Aliyah says, “Bye-yee~!” as the trio heads out. What will it take for them to leave Rhea be?

NXT shares footage from after last week’s Triple Threat.

Finn Balor kept from tapping out to Timothy Thatcher, but Dexter Lumis took advantage and put Thatcher to sleep. To add on, Finn took his frustrations out on Thatcher with a 1916! Will The Prince make the Professor of Pain pay for his insolence?

NXT injury update!

Despite the great win, Dexter Lumis may be out of TakeOver: XXX with an ankle injury! Was the damage sustained in that match too much for even the tortured artist to endure?

NXT North American Championship Ladder Match Qualifier Triple Threat: Oney Lorcan VS Damian Priest VS Ridge Holland!

We hopefully still have two of the five men in for TakeOver: XXX’s golden opportunity, time to add one more! The Boston Fury wants to prove he can hang with the giants, the Archer of Infamy wants to Live Forever, but they’re both going to “welcome” the Yorkshire Grit from NXT UK to the States! Will Holland make the biggest impact ever in his NXT USA debut?

The bell rings and the three men stare down. Oney throws European Uppercuts on Holland but Holland gives them back! Priest barges in with a leaping roundhouse to Holland! And then he ROCKS Oney with a right! Priest swaggers as he takes aim. Holland says no thanks but Priest dodges the clothesline to hit a leaping elbow on Oney in a corner! But Holland follows right up with a corner splash, that only gets Oney! Priest ear claps Holland then ROUNDHOUSES! And lifting Complete Shots! Oney runs into knees and kicks, fast hands and a rolling elbow! But he dodges the clothesline to get the half nelson! Priest breaks free, switches, but Oney resists the lift! Holland returns and ROCKS Priest!

Holland boots Priest out but Oney BLASTS Holland! Oney runs to FLY onto them both!! Oney topples the titans and has the crowd fired up! Oney puts Holland in, corner elbows then runs corner to corner. Holland dodges, comes back but gets another elbow. Oney is up top, leaps, but Holland catches him! Holland pops Oney around, and arm triangle OVERHEAD suplexes him away! Priest returns, bobs ‘n’ weaves and fires off a strike fest! But Holland counters to an arm trapped HEADBUTT and OVERHEAD suplex! Holland LARIATS Priest out of the ring and stands tall! The crowd is thunderous as NXT goes to break!

NXT returns and Holland brawls with Priest on their knees. Priest hits, Holland ROCKS, but Priest JABS! They fight as they stand back up and throw forearms back and forth. Holland EuroUppers, Priest clotheslines but Holland clotheslines! They both clothesline and stagger, Oney FLIES in again! Oney topples them back over, grits his teeth and watches both big men go to corners. Oney runs and elbows Holland, then runs at Priest. Priest swings on him but Oney gets under. Oney comes back to hit a DOUBLE BLOCKBUSTER! Oney covers Holland, TWO! Priest staggers to a corner but comes back with a rolling roundhouse! But Oney catches it to a HALF CRAB!

Oney has it high to go after the ankle but Priest powers him away! Oney uses that momentum to EuroUpper Holland! Oney goes back at Priest to EuroUpper him down! Cover, TWO! Oney grits his teeth and fires up as Priest bails out. Oney builds speed again, but Holland POUNCES him! Holland fires up and scoops Oney for an EXPLODER JACKHAMMER HYBRID!! Cover, TWO!?! Oney lives and the crowd is loving this! Holland keeps his focus as he looms over Oney. Priest slides in as Holland brings Oney up, Priest dragon sleepers Holland, but Holland spins out of Reckoning! Holland HEADBUTTS and GUT WRENCH POWERBOMBS Priest down! Cover, but Oney breaks it!

All three men are down, the crowd rallies up, and Priest sits up first. Priest goes to a corner while Holland focuses on Oney. Oney CHOPS back, but Holland grabs Oney again. Oney CHOPS again so Holland DECKS him! Holland dares Oney to get up and Oney builds that fury! Oney CHOPS, CHOPS, and CHOPS! He runs to EuroUpper! Holland staggers and Oney keeps moving, to EuroUpper again! Holland is down, Oney moves, but Priest choke grips! Oney pops out, pulls hair and SLAPS away on Priest’s back! Oney runs, into a LARIAT from Holland!! Holland turns around into Priest’s SOUTH OF HEAVEN CHOKE SLAM! Priest glares wild at Oney, brings him in, RECKONING!! Cover, Priest wins!

Winner: Damian Priest, by pinfall (advances to TakeOver: XXX)

The Archer of Infamy called himself the favorite for this match, and he proved himself right! Reed may be rolling and Lumis may be out, but will Priest #LiveForever after TakeOver?

NXT shares Pat McAfee’s tweet.

Pat shares that he is thankful Adam Cole let him have this chance to chat. The conversation was an example of something very rare these days: two people have a miscommunication, they talk it out, agree to disagree and move forward. Is the hatchet finally buried between the two?

Keith Lee VS Cameron Grimes!

The Limitless One was in no mood for the Carolina Caveman’s cawing and crowing, so he clobbered him as an example to Karrion Kross. Will the NXT Champion do it all over again? Or is his focus too frayed to avoid a Cave-In?

Grimes is already moving around, but he wants Keith to give him room. Keith barely moves until the bell rings. He and Grimes circle, Keith backs Grimes up but Grimes uses the ropes as defense. Keith stays back and Grimes bails out. Grimes knows Keith is mad but Keith needs to follow the rules. Keith gives Grimes more space to return, and they circle again. Grimes changes levels but backs away again. Grimes goes out again and warns Keith to play fair. Keith may be champion but he’s dealing with Cameron Grimes! Keith gives Grimes space again as Grimes calms himself down. Grimes returns, goes after a leg, but Keith pries him off to a facelock. Grimes gets a ropebreak with his legs, so Keith pushes him away.

Keith glares at Grimes more as they circle again. Grimes kicks but it’s caught! Grimes fires off forearms fast and heavy, but Keith powers up to grab Grimes by his hair! Keith whips and runs Grimes over! Grimes flounders to a corner, then to the apron. Keith drags him back in by one hand, but Grimes kicks back! Grimes runs, but gets run over again! Keith seethes as he drags Grimes up. Keith whips Grimes corner to corner hard! Grimes manages to stay up but Keith whips him corner to corner the other way! Grimes tumbles over and out of the ring and to the floor! Keith lets Grimes stay there as the ring count climbs, but then gets an idea.

Keith goes out, builds speed around the way, but Grimes dropkicks his legs out! Grimes saves himself from a Pounce to RAM Keith into the steel steps! Grimes climbs up fast, and SUPER MOONSAULTS to take Keith down! Both men are on the ground at the ramp as NXT goes to break!

NXT returns and Grimes boots Keith! Grimes talks trash, “I don’t care who you are! I’m Cameron Grimes!” But Keith swats Grimes’ punches away, ROCKS him with haymakers from all sides and DECKS him with a left! And then forearms in the corner! And CROSSBODIES! Cover, TWO!! Grimes survives but Keith just brings him back up. Keith reels him in, lifts him up and SPIRIT- NO! Grimes pops out of the bomb, but his kick is caught! Keith fireman’s carries and throws Grimes, only for Grimes to counter with a cradle! Cover, TWO! Grimes ducks, waistlocks and shoves Keith to table top him to a matchbook cover, but he puts his feet on the ropes!! TWO!!

Keith escapes but Grimes SUPER FOREARMS! Keith stands back up to choke grip, whip, but runs into an enziguri! Grimes knew the Pounce was coming again, and now he goes up and leaps! Into Keith’s arms! Keith frowns as he pops Grimes right up. Grimes escapes, dodges and hits COLLISION COURSE! Cover, TWO!! Keith lives and Grimes can’t believe it! Grimes grits his teeth as he aims from a corner. Keith stirs, the crowd rallies, and Grimes runs at Keith, but gets caught! Grimes fights out of the bomb with hammering forearms, but Keith GRIZZLY MAGNUMS back! Keith is seething again as he looms over a floundering Grimes.

The crowd sings, “OH~ Bask in His Glory~!” as Keith drags Grimes back up. Grimes SUPER FOREARMS, and CHOPS, but none of it bothers Keith! Keith raises his hands but Grimes stops the Grizzly Magnum with body shots and forearms! Grimes keeps throwing forearms, Keith fires up, GRIZZLY MANGUM! Keith keeps Grimes standing, reels him in and LARIATS! Keith shakes his head, he is not done with Grimes. Keith drags Grimes up again, reels him in and hits another LARIAT! Another LARIAT! And ANOTHER LARIAT! Keith waits for Grimes to flounder back up to his feet, then pops him up for the SPIRIT BOMB!! Cover, Keith wins!

Winner: Keith Lee, by pinfall

The Limitless NXT Champion has crushed Cameron Grimes, but that rage is still boiling underneath the surface. But the lights change, and once again the spotlight shines on Keith. Scarlett Bordeaux speaks in Serbian, then Karrion Kross speaks on the titantron! “Mr. Lee…! I guess we’re doing this the hard way.” Kross hasn’t seen William Regal once since Kross was signed. But since he’s the one who makes things happen, all of this is on him! The camera zooms out, and it is revealed that Kross is choking out Danny Burch! And he already wiped out a number of other wrestlers! “Ticktock.” Kross and Keith want after each other in the worst way, will Regal’s hand be forced?

NXT has a message from William Regal!

“I think it’s safe to say that the North American Championship match series has been nothing short of extraordinary, and the opportunity created by Keith Lee has already paid off with Bronson Reed, Dexter Lumis and Damian Priest, as all three men have qualified for the match at TakeOver: 30.” However, Lumis’ ankle injury is going to keep him out of the  match! His spot is vacated and we’re back to three open spots! Regal considers the fact that Johnny Gargano and Finn Balor were not pinned or submitted in their respective Triple Threats, and they of course believe they deserve another chance. Therefore, in two weeks, we will have the four men that weren’t defeated in their respective Triple Threats face of in two 1v1 matches. The winners of each match will be our final two participants!

El Legado del Fantasma heads to the ring!

However, not from the ramp, but from a back door entrance! Joaquin Wilde and Raul Mendoza drag Fandango in while Santos Escobar has a mic. He has the music stop so that we can hear what he says to the “perro” they have here. Escobar says that every week, they come out here and explain why lucha libre culture is important. They explain why lucha libre is art and not just some gimmick to be exploited for easy merchandise money. Unfortunately, people like Breezango exist. Mendoza and Wilde TOSS Fandango into ringside! Then they push him into the ring where Escobar waits.

Escobar continues to tell Fandango and the rest of us that Fandango and Breeze just play dress up. At the Great American Bash, they mocked lucha libre! They didn’t just spit in the face of El Legado’s ancestors, such as Escobar’s own father, El Fantasma. They spit in the face of Escobar himself! No mas! The disrespect stops now! But Breeze appears to save his friend! But that’s still 2v1 as Escobar watches his men beat Breeze down! Enziguri Russian leg sweep combo! Listen closely, everyone. Anyone who can hear his voice, such as Isaiah “Swerve” Scott, if you dare speak Escobar’s name again, this will be your future. Breezango is down in a heap as the Leader of Leaders stands over them. Will El Legado continue to remake lucha libre and Cruiserweight wrestling in their image?

NXT reviews the history of the Undisputed Era.

Their debut at TakeOver: Brooklyn did in fact #ShockTheSystem. At the inaugural NXT WarGames, they took over. The Undisputed Era ruled the system with a golden fist. They closed 2017 in style with the NXT Tag Team Championships. They added Roderick Strong to the rankings. Everyone wanted a shot at them. Moustache Mountain may have taken those belts away but it wasn’t for very long. “What everyone may fail to realize is that, this is the Undisputed Era.” The gold always came back to them, because they were “The Baddest Team on God’s Green,” becoming a historic three-time NXT Tag Team Championship faction! But now, Imperium has those titles. Will Marcel Barthel and Fabian Aichner deny them that fourth? Or is history repeating itself not only inevitable, but undisputed?

Backstage interview with Damian Priest.

NXT Media finds The Archer of Infamy in the parking lot, ready to leave, so Priest wants to make this quick. After his successful win to move on to TakeOver: XXX, what are his initial thoughts? The same thing he thought last week: this opportunity was created for him. It is not a secret that Priest has been after the North American Championship for some time, so it doesn’t matter who is in the match. Bronson Reed, whoever else, the #ReignOfInfamy begins. One last question, how does he feel about Dexter Lumis unfortunately being out because of injury? It sucks to be Lumis. You get into the business, knowing the risk- Bronson Reed interrupts from his parking spot and congratulates Priest. See you at TakeOver. Maybe.

Priest walks over to Reed and makes it clear. Reed has aspirations and all, but he needs to get them out of his head. This isn’t going to be a fluke situation. A fluke? Yes, a fluke. Reed can show Priest what a “fluke” can do. Is that supposed to intimidate Priest? Take it how you want. Well Priest isn’t going to take it, because Reed ain’t that big. But if Reed wants to try him, they can go 1v1. Any time. Then see you soon. Will Auszilla and Priest battle and batter each other right out of TakeOver: XXX?

Pat McAfee joins commentary!

The special invitation by Adam Cole has Pat sitting with Tom Phillips, and now Pat is a married man! Pat feels good to be back in the family after that little dust up.

Tegan Nox VS Indi Hartwell!

Don’t call it a comeback anymore, the girl with the Shiniest Wizard is here and building back up to the title scene. But #ImpressiveIndi got her first NXT win over Shotzi Blackheart, with some help from Robert Stone. Will Indi’s ego keep her rolling? Or will Tegan shine some light on the subject?

The bell rings and Indi brags about beating Shotzi. Tegan says that’s fine, but Tegan had a great match alongside Io Shirai and all that. Indi doesn’t care, that wasn’t #Impressive. So Tegan HEADBUTTS her! Tegan throws forearms and EuroUppers then more forearms. Tegan CHOPS Indi in a corner, has her in another corner for forearms, but Indi hits back. They brawl, Tegan clubs Indi but Indi lifts and hotshots Tegan down. Indi drags Tegan up to sidewalk slam! Cover, TWO! Indi clamps on a chinlock but Tegan endures. Tegan fights her way up as the crowd rallies, fights back with body shots, then whips. Indi reverses and elbows Tegan down! Cover, TWO!

Indi keeps on Tegan with another chinlock, drags her around and grinds her to the mat. The crowd rallies, Tegan fights her way up again but Indi wrangles her back down. Tegan tries again, rolls Indi up, TWO! Tegan comes back but Indi BOOTS her down! Cover, TWO! Indi is shocked! That move finished Shotzi, but again Shotzi was distracted. Indi runs corner to corner, Tegan boots her away, then comes back to leaping takedown! Tegan rains down angry rights, Indi pushes Tegan off, but Tegan comes back to stomp a mudhole! Tegan stops as the ref counts, but she comes back to CANNON-BOAR! Tegan rolls Indi out to SHINIEST WIZARD!! Cover, Tegan wins!

Winner: Tegan Nox, by pinfall

Now that was #Impressive! Will Tegan keep the fire going and the light shining all the way back to a golden opportunity?

One last North American Championship series Triple Threat is announced!

It will be Cameron Grimes VS the returning KUSHIDA VS a superstar yet to be named! Given William Regal’s caveat from earlier, things get much more complicated now! One man will win and advance automatically while another is completely eliminated! But now, the odd man out will join Finn Balor, Johnny Gargano and Ridge Holland in a second chance singles pool! Who is the third man, brother?

Two more matches are made official for next week!

Danny Burch wants revenge on Kross for victimizing him and the assortment of wrestlers backstage! Will Burch be able to settle the score? Or will Kross simply sharpen his teeth on the Govenah’s bones?

NXT Tag Team Championships: Imperium VS The Undisputed Era!

It wasn’t mentioned earlier, but part of the Undisputed Era’s legacy includes taking on NXT UK’s premier faction in the Worlds Collide crossover spectacular earlier this year. Though, that might be because Imperium won that war. However, that was 4v4 with the Ring General, Walter, in the mix. Will the Pride of Italy and the Impeccable German be able to defeat the duo formerly known as reDRagon 2v2? Or are the titles going back to the UE for a fourth time?

The introductions are made, the belts are raised, and history will be written with Worlds Collide renewed!

The teams sort out, Kyle O’Reilly starts with Aichner and they tie up right away. Aichner knees low, clubs Kyle on the back but Kyle fires back. Aichner CHOPS, Kyle forearms! Aichner chops again, Kyle kicks this time. Aichner CHOPS then fires off strikes, but Kyle dodges and runs to BOOT! Aichner BOOTS back! Kyle forearms, Aichner EuroUppers but Kyule kicks again. Kyle ducks, fires off more strikes then sweeps the leg! Aichner crawls to ropes, Kyle kicks him to the corner. Kyle fires off more strikes, tags Bobby Fish in, and Fish stands Aichner up to throw forearms and body shots. Fish kicks Aichner around, brings him up for knees, then headlocks.

Aichner powers up and powers out, but Fish ducks and leaps, into Aichner’s arms! Aichner hits a BACKBREAKER! Cover, TWO! Aichner drags Fish around to an armlock but Fish moves around. Aichner stays on top of Fish, Fish rolls back but Aichner stands over him again. Aichner cranks the arm, Fish throws body shots and powers back. Barthel tags in as Fish whips. Aichner reverses and Barthel arm-drags Fish down! Barthel cranks on his own armlock and even digs an elbow into Fish’s side. Fish fights up, he throws forearms, then throws body shots and kicks the legs out! Fish tags Kyle and wrenches Barthel, but Barthel fights back! Barthel rocks Fish with a right, but reDRagon shoves him and double KICKS him down!

Kyle digs a knee in, stays on top of Barthel and rains down hands! Tag back to Fish, Kyle keeps Barthel down and Fish slingshots for the senton! Cover, TWO! Barthel flounders around but Fish is after him. Barthel throat chops and tags Aichner back in! Fish dodges Barthel but Aichner SPINE BUSTERS, and feeds Fish to Barthel’s Penalty Kick! Pat’s comments about Adam Cole upset Beth Phoenix a bit, but Pat apologizes while also defending that Cole having a child’s body and a big bobble head are just him teasing. Imperium is standing tall while Cole glances over at Pat while NXT goes picture in picture.

Aichner toys with Fish, stomps him down, then has him in a corner. Aichner clubs Fish at the ropes then stomps him down. The ref counts, Aichner lets off and Cole coaches Fish up. Aichner drags Fish over and tags in Barthel. Imperium mugs Fish, brings him around, and Cole starts to be suspicious about what Pat is saying on commentary. Barthel bumps Fish off buckles and throws body shots. The ref counts, Barthel stomps a mudhole in, but lets up at 4. Barthel taunts Kyle and the rest of the Undisputed Era, but the ref keeps Kyle back. Fish kicks from the mat, gets up but gets BLASTED with a EuroUpper! Cover, TWO! Barthel keeps Fish from Kyle while Cole stares at Pat.

Barthel has Fish down with a chinlock and leans on the hold, but Roderick Strong gets Cole to focus on the match. Barthel brings Fish up to throw haymakers! Fish is in the Imperium corner as Barthel rams his shoulders in. Tag to Aichner but Fish hits back! Fish DECKS Barthel and boots Aichner! Fish leaps but Aichner catches him, to feed to Barthel’s blindside EuroUpper, and then LARIATS him down! Cover, TWO! Aichner drags Fish into body scissors as NXT returns to single picture.

Cole continues to stare daggers at Pat while Fish endures the squeeze. Fish throws elbows to get free but Aichner chinlocks. Cole still rallies with the crowd as Fish fights back, but Cole just can’t look away from Pat. Aichner CLUBS Fish, whips him but Fish decks Barthel! Aichner runs in but is dumped out hard! Fish is down and crawls, but Aichner intercepts! Fish body drops Aichner away! Hot tags to Barthel and Kyle! Kyle rallies on Imperium as he BOOTS Aichner and KNEES Barthel! Kyle whips, Barthel reverses, but Kyle ducks under and kicks and strikes away on Barthel! Leg sweep! The crowd is thunderous, Kyle runs in and forearms Barthel! Kyle wrenches to shoulder breaker!

Aichner runs in but Kyle knees him first! Barthel blocks Kyle’s kick but Kyle SLAPS him away! Kyle blocks Aichner’s kick and sends it into Barthel, to then grab Barthel’s leg! DRAGON SCREW CHAIN! The crowd is thunderous as Kyle AX ‘n’ SMASHES Aichner out of the ring! Barthel boots but the leg is put on the ropes! Barthel begs, “NEIN!” as Kyle DRAPING DRAGON SCREWS the other leg! Kyle kicks the leg out! Kyle climbs up top, leaps and KNEES the bad leg! HEEL HOOK!! Barthel flails, hammers the legs, shouts in pain and hammers more, but Kyle cranks harder! Barthel drags himself over to a ropebreak! But Fish drops a falling headbutt on him! Also, Pat makes many odd short jokes about Cole and his friends.

Kyle drags Barthel from the ropes to put the Heel Hook back on! Barthel continues to endure, Aichner returns to triangle MOONSAULT onto Kyle! Everyone is down and the crowd is thunderous! But Cole has had enough of just watching Pat, he storms over. Cole wants Pat to understand that even with all the noise, he still hears what Pat says! He thought they were over this! Pat says he was joking, but Cole says it isn’t funny. Cole isn’t asking, he is telling Pat to chill. Pat mutters to Tom that Cole is an “angry elf.” Cole takes Pat’s water and SPLASHES him with it! Cole tells Pat to stop talking and do something! Referees and Strong rush over to stop this from escalating, and even HBK and HHH show up! The hatchet was NOT buried at all!

Back in the ring, Kyle is distracted by the incident and Aichner BLASTS him off the apron! Barthel clobbers Fish! Imperium coordinates and hits Fish with the EUROBOMB!! Cover, Imperium wins!!

Winners: Imperium, by pinfall (still NXT Tag Team Champions)

Adam Cole blames Pat McAfee but the UE still dropped the ball. Pat is about to leave but he thinks of something more to say. “Nothing is ever gonna change. For the rest of your life, you’re going to be a tiny, itty bitty, short little BI*CH!” That really sets Cole off! Everyone holds Cole back as he climbs over the announce desk, and then Pat sucker punch field goal kicks him!! Pat gets attitude but HHH shoves him! Pat says this is a “very unprofessional place” NXT has here, but is still evicted from the premises. Cole is out cold as HBK checks on him. Will Pat pay for turning an apology into a punk out attack?

My Thoughts:

Woo, what an episode! We got to open strong with the NXT Women’s Championship #1 Contender’s match, and I had half a mind last week thinking Rhea wasn’t out of that Robert Stone Brand story. I really hope Rhea and Shotzi team up to take on Mercedes and Aliyah. Clearly, both Rhea and Shotzi are into rock ‘n’ roll, heavy metal and all that, and they are going to rock that match. The qualifier Triple Threat happened sooner than I thought but it makes a lot of sense to make that the midway match. Priest, Oney and Holland had a great match, but I wonder if NXT pulled an audible knowing Dexter Lumis was in bad shape. Priest wins, and will have a great match next week with Bronson, who himself had a really good match with Shane Thorne.

It is a real shame for Lumis, who was on quite the roll, but I think they made a mistake trying to get him to do a flip out and land like he’s Ricochet when he is not. Hopefully he’ll be back soon to keep his momentum. Obviously Grimes loses to Keith, and Kross’ actions were logical given Regal refusing to just give him his shot. Kross VS Burch will be really good next week. Grimes and Kushida being in a qualifier Triple Threat is great, but I am really curious to see who the mystery man is. Is Velveteen Dream going to be back from this hiatus he’s been on? Is it someone NXT has yet to use? Will a Raw or SmackDown star pull of a successful return like Finn Balor? And Regal making that announcement is great news. I bet Balor finds his way back in through that, because I really expect him to become North American Champion to give meaning to said return.

Tegan had a good match to fill for time, and clearly she and Candice are going to meet again. Their story is far from over, and it will surely feed into Candice’s rise towards the title. Giving her and Johnny #TheJohnnyGarganoWay as a mission wouldn’t really work if she didn’t become a true contender at some point. Then the story of Pat McAfee and Adam Cole happening while there’s also the NXT Tag Team Championship match was pretty good stuff. The match was great, even with a distraction based finish (WWE is really doing that a lot when you look at everything as a whole, not sure what that’s about). But it makes sense, it feels like the UE is almost out of NXT and on to SmackDown.

Cole and McAfee are obviously going to have a match after this, as McAfee was just brilliant as he went from Face to Heel right before our eyes, or in our ears since he was just talking. It makes a lot of sense for a football kicker to have a strong kick like that. I just feel really bad if Cole loses against a semi-celebrity on his way out.

My Score: 9.1/10