NXT Minus 6: Darling Nikki

Nikki A.S.H. ruined my plans, but I forgive her.

6. In my world, Twisted Sister Nikki Cross shows up to NXT, cashes in her M.I.T.B. briefcase to challenge Raquel Gonzalez and wins the one title she should have held long ago. That didn’t happen, but I’m still happy for her. She is a top shelf talent who deserved her championship moment. I still say Cross is one of the most complete characters ever to come out of NXT.

5. Karrion Kross losing his first match on RawDown DOES NOT bury NXT. The Black & Gold is bigger than any one wrestler. I don’t know what Vince is trying to pull, but long term this means nothing to NXT. Think of all the other talent who have gone on to do diddly squat on the main roster. NXT keeps giving us amazing Takeovers and MOTY contenders. Maybe Kross was buried. NXT was not.

4. It looks like Xia Li sold an injury so they could end her match to make time for Karrion Kross. If that’s the case, shame on NXT for dumping on the women’s championship match like that. On the flip side, kudos to Xia for selling like a champ. After she took the Chingona Bomb, she looked like she had her insides scrambled for real. I was genuinely worried for her safety until I realized the show was running out of time.  

3. Pete Dunne & Oney Lorcan versus Members Only is the moment I’ve been waiting for. This is the tag team feud that must end in the Fight Pit. I still think they should use the Pit sparingly & we’ve already had one match in it this year. For these four, I’ll allow a second. Gonna be a lot of stiff shots and sore chests after this one. I feel like he’s been overlooked, but Tommaso Ciampa has quietly put together a Wrestler of the Year resume in 2021.  

2. Talk about turning chicken shit into chicken salad. Cameron Grimes is K.I.L.L.I.N.G. it right now. He has accomplished the impossible. He’s making La Knight interesting. First, I want to see Grimes win the Million Dollar Belt and give it back to Ted Dibiase. Then I want to see him get a title shot. Nobody in recent memory has worked harder or deserved it more.  

1. This week’s That’s Why I Love Wrestling goes to KUSHIDA!!! There’s a little Thai restaurant near me that serves the best bowl of Tom Yum soup I’ve ever had. Each spoonful is different & I never know what I’m going to be tasting. Watching KUSHIDA wrestle is like that. What move will he dazzle me with next? This week, he hits a flying body scissors on Tyler Rust, turns it into a rolling takedown and floats over to apply the Hoverboard lock. This gets thrown around a lot, but he is a true mat technician with a MENSA level ring IQ.