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March 9th, 2016 On commentary tonight, at Full Sail University, are Tom Phillips and Corey Graves. Opening Segment nXt General Manager William Regal’s music hits and he walks to the ring to address the nXt fans. He immediately discusses Baron Corbin’s attack on Austin Aries, which would merit disciplinary measures. Aries doesn’t want Regal to do that. Instead, he wants a match with Corbin at nXt Takeover: Dallas. As far as the #1 Contendership for the nXt Championship is concerned, tonight’s winner will face Finn Balor for the title at Takeover. Second Segment 2 out of 3 falls Singles Match: Sami Zayn vs. Samoa Joe Both competitors complete their entrances before the first commercial break. The bell rings and the two men warily try to start this match off, hands fussing in the air for an advantage. Samoa Joe uses his feet, swinging high in the air towards Zayn’s head but misses. Zayn grapples Joe from behind but it’s reversed into an arm twist. Zayn tries to tumble his way out of it as Joe turns it into an arm lock, then a quick pinfall attempt for 1 count. The two wrestlers regroup and grapple once more. Zayn has Joe’s wrist and delivers a few kicks to him before rolling into a pinfall attempt for 1 point. Joe’s not impressed. Another strong grapple sees Zayn push Joe into the turnbuckle and get all up in his face. As the crowd cheers “Ole”, we have another lock up and then a side takedown by Joe, followed by 3 quick pinfall attempts. Side headlock until Zayn pushes Joe off the ropes, only to receive a shoulder tackle and a 1 count pin attempt. Joe embraces the side headlock strategy once more, bringing Zayn to his back on the mat. Shortly thereafter, it’s Zayn’s turn to bring Joe to the mat with an arm submission. Cradle pinfall for 1 count and Zayn goes back to the arm submission. Joe punches his way free. On the ropes, a big chop from Joe and a bigger one bring Zayn to a knee. Joe pushes Zayn off the ropes. Zayn leaps backwards over Joe’s head. He approaches Joe who escapes the ring to catch his breath. Zayn feigns an outside dive by doing his seated springboard backflip inside the ring. We go to commercial Upon returning, the two have locked up, ending in a referee breakup and a high kick from Joe to the chest of Zayn. Joe flips over Zayn on to his back and delivers a jumping elbow drop. Joe in command wrenching Zayn’s head between his arms. Zayn breaks free, runs at Joe, and receives an elbow smash to the face. Joe brings Zayn into the corner and meets him with a vicious running boot across the jaw. Joe pins him for a 2 count in the middle of the ring. Zayn delivers a right hand to Joe in protest. Joe calmly brings Zayn back to his feet for a headbutt. Another headbutt and now the straight jabs which knock Zayn on to the ring apron. Joe’s striking offense is wearing Zayn down but Zayn responds with a slap to Joe’s face. He’s not quitting. Zayn delivers a few more right hands, bounces off the ropes, right into a belly to belly suplex by Joe! More punches from Joe as Zayn gets stuck in the corner. Joe lets Zayn run the ropes and pays for it with clotheslines. Zayn delivers enough of these until Joe shows signs of being dazed. Zayn ascends the turnbuckle. Joe tries to get Zayn on his shoulders for the musclebuster but no can do. Zayn defends himself from it but can’t avoid the quick enziguri. Joe goes for the pin but Zayn kicks out at 2.5! No falls yet and we’re almost 20 minutes in. Joe throws Zayn’s head into the turnbuckle. Zayn wildly swings at Joe until the referee checks on him and moves Joe away. Big boot/senton splash combo by Joe and Zayn kicks out of that as well! Wow. Surprising to see this at 0-0 still. Joe chops Zayn and tries to keep the boxing going until Zayn faceplants Joe to the mat. Joe recovers quickly and powerslams Zayn for a 2.5 count. So close again for Joe. Still 0-0 and... We go to commercial And we’re back with Joe still in control of this match, jabbing at Zayn and then chopping him to the mat. Zayn keeps getting up and keeps wanting to fight but Joe is easily able to chop the Canadian down. Zayn and Joe trade punches until Joe sweeps Zayn down. Joe off the ropes, Zayn backpedals and Joe’s momentum sends him over the ropes which Zayn pulled down. Zayn springboards off the ropes and does a backflip plancha on Joe to the outside! Big moment. Both men in the ring. Zayn with a giant crossbody from the top rope and it gets him a 2 count. Zayn tries to lift Joe but he can’t do it and even when Zayn gets a pinfall attempt, Joe isn’t too deterred. Huge clothesline from Joe on Zayn and still only a 2 count. Joe looking for the muscle buster again but he can’t do it. Zayn gets a little wild coming off the top rope and Joe spike-slams him to the mat, picks him up and then executes the muscle buster. 1-2-3! First Fall: Samoa Joe via pinfall in 26 minutes Joe waits in the corner as Zayn crawls on the mat, trying to get back to his feet and... We go to commercial. The bell rings and Joe wastes no time charging at Zayn in the corner, pushing him up the top rope and going for the muscle buster. He can’t get it so he chops Zayn down from his perch. Joe with lefts and rights knocks Zayn on to the ring apron for the ref to check on him. Graves says he might win this by KO. Joe goes for the muscle buster again but Zayn headbutts Joe off of him and then lands a missile dropkick on the veteran. The crowd gets behind Zayn as the red-bearded one takes the offensive, punching Joe as he sits helpless in the top left corner. Zayn leaves him too long though and Joe lays a barrage of chops and punches on his body. Middle of the ring, snap suplex and a 2 count. Now, Joe wears Zayn down where Zayn surprises him with a quick pinfall attempt but to no avail. Joe dumps Zayn to the outside to catch his breath and we may have a countout, but Zayn rolls in at 7. Joe punts Zayn and throws him into the ring steps. Zayn returns to the ring and Joe kicks him right back out. STO on the floor! The referee counts to 7 until Zayn stirs. He launches himself into the ring at 9, dragging himself to his feet as Joe waits to pounce. Joe and Zayn trade punches with Zayn getting the better of him. He tries to suplex Joe. Joe tries to suplex Zayn. Zayn finds the strength to lift Joe and suplex him. Joe rolls to the outside where he receives an awkward front flip plancha, only getting hit in the shoulder. Zayn’s the one to roll Joe back into the ring and he climbs the turnbuckle. He jumps over Joe, runs back in and receives a chop. Zayn brings Joe down to the mat and locks in the Koji Clutch, forcing Joe to tap! Second Fall: Sami Zayn via submission in 36 minutes We’re tied 1-1 as the crowd chants at Joe, “You tapped out!” and... We go to commercial. Back for the final fall, the bell rings and fatigue is quite evident in both wrestlers’ movements. Joe with a spinning chop, but he misses the follow up, which Zayn capitalizes on to deliver Blue Thunder Bomb for a 2.5 count! Joe retreats to the corner. Zayn attempts a Helluva Kick but Joe leaves the ring. Zayn, up on the turnbuckle, Joe meets him there, gets him in position for a superplex. Zayn punches him in the torso until he’s crouching. Zayn with a huge powerbomb... 1....2.... Joe kicks out! The momentum is clearly in Zayn’s favour as both men recover...Joe on the outside again. Zayn stands up and rolls to the outside, takes a big run, jumps through two sets of bottom ropes in the corner to tornado DDT Joe right on the floor. That was ridiculously impressive. The referee counts to 9 and Joe barely gets back in time. Zayn hears the cheers of the crowd as he attempts the Helluva Kick again which Joe turns into a powerbomb for a 2 count. He hangs on and puts Zayn into a Boston Crab briefly, transitioning into a crossface submission in the middle of the ring. Zayn struggles for the ropes and gets close, until Joe pulls back his right arm, putting pressure on the wrist. Zayn remembers to extend his leg to get the rope break. Joe hears the “Ole!” chants of the crowd and he’s disgusted. He lands a few punches and high kicks, striking Zayn down to the mat. The referee counts to 8 and once Zayn is up, Joe continues with slaps and punches, following it up with an enziguri. Zayn crumples to the mat and the referee starts the count anew. The referee counts to 9 and Joe advances again. Knees and quick kicks to the head, capped off with a swift kick that knocks Zayn down. The referee only gets to 3 and Zayn’s energy has peaked. He locks Joe in the Coquina Clutch, Joe’s own move, but they’re close to the ropes and Joe gets the rope break with his leg. Joe runs at Zayn in the corner and receives an Exploder Suplex into the turnbuckle. Zayn is going insane waiting for Joe to stand up and receive the Helluva Kick but Joe moves out of the way and locks in his own Coquina Clutch, cinching it in by wrapping his legs around Zayn’s torso. There’s nowhere for Zayn to go, even though the bottom rope is in sight. Zayn’s arm goes limp and the referee calls the match! Final Fall and New #1 Contender: Samoa Joe via submission in 45 minutes Phillips and Graves have nothing but good things to say about that match at its conclusion. They review the highlights and the outcome. Four cool points for both wrestlers who went the distance. I did not expect the match to take up the entire show but it did, and I’m not upset. This was a slower-paced match than we’re used to seeing nowadays, but it made sense. Joe wouldn’t have been able to keep up with Zayn, wrestling at too quick a pace, so he established the pace early on. Except for a few bursts of energy from Zayn, Joe controlled the match and wore down Zayn with strikes, submissions and some well-timed, hard-hitting slams. When Zayn did seize the advantage, he did so with intensity, aggression and versatility, showing off his own submission skills by winning the 2nd fall. His Blue Thunder Bomb and the through the ropes Tornado DDT were out of this world and showcased a unique offense from what his peers are producing these days. Joe gets the win and that sets him up for a rematch from Takeover: London with Finn Balor. Is this simply a matter of Sami Zayn getting the main roster callup and not being needed to wrestle twice on Wrestlemania weekend? Or is it more of a logical next step for the Balor/Joe feud, the two competitors having earned a rematch based on how well things went in December? Perhaps it’s as simple as the nXt crew wanting a face vs. heel matchup? Maybe it’s just that the better man won. Joe’s veteran talent has brought him very quickly to the top of the nXt roster, where he rightfully belongs. Finn Balor should be concerned. Will he be concerned enough to channel his inner demon? I’m interested to see the build over the next three weeks, which will likely include a contract signing. Joe’s all business at the contract signings. In conclusion, a great match, full of suspense and excitement but at a manageable pace. That’s all for tonight, folks. Feel free to share your thoughts and cool point suggestions on tonight’s episode. Peace!
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