WWE nXt Results

August 15, 2018

Full Sail University, Winter Park, FL

Commentary by Mauro Ranallo, Nigel McGuinness and Percy Watson

The show opens with a tribute screen to Jim “The Anvil” Neidhart, who passed away on Monday.

Following that is a recap of last week’s major change to the Takeover: Brooklyn IV Championship match, which will now be a singles match between the champ, Tommaso Ciampa and Johnny Gargano, due to Aleister Black’s injury at the hands of an unknown attacker.

Opening Segment: Street Profits vs. The Mighty

It’s Ford and Miller starting this one off for their respective teams. Miller starts strong with chops and forearms, sending Ford sprawling to the Mighty’s corner. Thorne’s tagged in. Headbutt to Ford knocks him to his knees. Powerslam attempt. Ford falls off the shoulder to tag Dawkins. Off the ropes, Dawkins clotheslines Miller. Double team backflip splash by Ford!

They follow that up with a leapfrog by Ford over his partner, Dawkins as Dawkins held his opponent in wheelbarrow fashion on the middle rope. Cool!

The Mighty regroup on the outside. Dawkins brings it to Thorne, but Thorne counters and clubs him back. Tag to Miller. Ground and pound, and a side press for a 2 count.

Miller jaws at Ford, who watches from the apron. Miller then chokes Dawkins on the middle rope. Referee pulls him away to chat, and Thorne keeps up the attack. Double suplex on Dawkins for a 2 count.
Thorne’s back in but it’s short-lived, as he tags Miller to continue the isolation strategy in their corner on Dawkins. Chinlock by Miller. Dawkins tries to get the crowd going; he elbows Miller to the gut. Irish whip. Spinebuster by Miller for a close 2 count.

Tag to Thorne. Whip to the corner. Running shoulder blocks by both members of The Mighty. Ford reaches for the tag as Dawkins fights his way up from the mat. He evades a running attack and crawls towards his corner for the tag. He kicks away Thorne. Thorne misses the elbow drop and the tag is made to Ford!

Somersault over Thorne to clothesline Miller out of the ring. He is hyped up, taking out Thorne too! From the apron, sunset flip and pin on Thorne. Nope. Thorne reverses it and holds the tights….Ford reverses back and holds Thorne’s tights for the 1-2-3!

Winners: Street Profits via pinfall in 6 minutes

Dawkins and Ford celebrate in the crowd, dancing with the fans and Ford sips from his black cup.

One cool point for the Street Profits, for the exciting double team offense and for using one of The Mighty’s own tricks to get the win. They’ve gained a decent following, akin to that of Heavy Machinery, as fan favourites who can hold their own in the Tag Team Division. Don’t think that’s enough for a shot at the titles though.

Backstage, in a somewhat hidden area, nXt Women’s Champion Shayna Baszler appears to be giving Aliyah some tips to prepare her for her match, tonight, against Kairi Sane. Odd to see Baszler being chummy with another wrestler in the division.

One of the theme songs for Takeover: Brooklyn 4 is “Blood // Water” by grandson.

Earlier today, the Undisputed Era produced another one of their trademark promos. O’Reilly and Strong mock their opponents, Moustache Mountain and even mention War Raiders. Bobby Fish says that’s the first time the word clever and those tag teams have been mentioned in the same sentence.

North American Champion Adam Cole addresses Ricochet and the world, saying they aren’t hiding behind anything. They are ready for Takeover: Brooklyn IV.

Second Segment: Kairi Sane (#1c) vs. Aliyah

Women’s Champion Shayna Baszler’s music hits and she stares down Sane before heading over to the nXt announce table. Baszler shakes hands with the three and settles in for the match with a headset, calling out Watson for not standing right away.

Meanwhile, the match has begun with some shoving between the ladies. Aliyah pushes Sane off the ropes. Sane counters that into an innovative leg submission, wrenching Aliyah’s leg around Sane’s own head. Aliyah gets the rope break and then stuns Sane with rights and lefts, seating Sane on the mat.

Single leg takedown, followed by a somersault neck snap, and another! Spear coming out of the corner by Sane. Aliyah crawls to the same corner. Sane charges and nails Aliyah with the Sliding D.

Up on the top rope, InSane elbow and X marks the spot, says Ranallo! No cover attempt though. She stares down Baszler at the announce table and returns to the top rope. InSane elbow #2! NOT DONE YET. It’s a THIRD InSane elbow! She covers….but lifts Aliyah’s shoulders off the mat and stares down Baszler.

Sane bridges all the way back to the mat, cinching in her Anchor leg submission. Aliyah quietly taps out as Baszler stands up and stares down her opponent for Takeover: Brooklyn IV. Sane does the same from the turnbuckle.

Winner: Kairi Sane via pinfall in 3 minutes.

One cool point for Sane because she showed an edge we haven’t yet seen from her. Nailing 3 InSane elbows and then locking in the Anchor is a devastating way to win a match. Looks like Aliyah’s chat with Baszler did her no favours. Sane made her look like a chump.

A preview for the North American Championship match between Adam Cole and Ricochet is shown.

Third Segment: The Velveteen Dream Appears at Full Sail

Dream begins to talk about EC3 and how funny he is. The crowd is fairly vocal, trying to get in their chants and jeers. He says EC3 got his curiosity and his attention. Dream takes a few moments to bask in the “Velveteen” chant before saying that, on Saturday, EC3’s dream is over.

And that brings EC3 to the ring to a huge “NX3” chant. He asks is this what it sounds like when doves cry? Crowd eats that up. EC3 says he knows Dream is trying to get into his head, but EC3 builds parking lots, restaurants and condos in people’s heads. Dream’s head is a real fixer-upper.

EC3 will claim victory after victory after victory…Dream picks up where EC3 left off and then shouts there is no victory! This Saturday, EC3 won’t have his hand raised nor will he be laughing. It will be “Dream Over”. Crowd picks up on the “Fanny Pack” chant from earlier.

The suit jacket comes off and EC3 unbuttons his dress shirt. He says let’s do this right now. Dream takes out his earring and takes off his vest, slowly, before throwing it at EC3. He lifts EC3 on to his shoulders. EC3 slides off and the two exchange punches. EC3 connects with the One Percenter and then mocks Dream, sliding out of the ring, backwards, on his knees.

One cool point for both men because this is exactly what I hoped would happen. EC3 and Dream entertained on the mic, and got some good digs in on each other. The physical interaction was brief but EC3 got the best of Dream, again, looking strong going into Takeover.

Dream’s cocky attitude makes him a great fall guy who fans love to see beaten, but EC3 is so similar that he could easily be liked or disliked, depending on his opponent. Crowd has given EC3 much love since his debut. Dream’s been on the losing end of a few major matches now. I wonder if he’s due for a win?

We get another look at the WWE.COM video, following last week’s episode, where Aleister Black was attacked in the parking lot. Cathy Kelley leads a replay that highlights which wrestlers were seen in that video, near the scene of the attack. She points out Johnny Gargano, the Undisputed Era, Lars Sullivan, and Heavy Machinery.

On the second angle, Candice LeRae, Sane and Kassius Ohno are seen at patio tables. Steve Cutler, Wesley Blake and Jaxson Ryker are standing chatting while Kona Reeves shushes away the cameraman as he looks at his phone by the production truck. Finally, Ricochet waits to leave the parking lot by an SUV.

The third angle reveals Shayna Baszler and Velveteen Dream near the trucks. Also in that picture, Marcel Barthel talking with Fabian Aichner, and Cezar Bononi leaning against an SUV. Walking through the middle of that space was nXt Champion Tommaso Ciampa, the most obvious suspect because of the threat Black posed to him. EC3 was also hanging around that area, too.

It’s a classic “Whodunit”! We’ll see if they follow up with this in a few weeks when Black returns.

“Made An America” by The Fever is a featured #NXTLOUD theme for Takeover: Brooklyn IV

Fourth Segment: Promos

A promo for the Last Man Standing nXt Championship match between Tommaso Ciampa (c) and Johnny Gargano is shown.

A highlight package of Bianca Belair training alone at the WWE Performance Center is shown. She should be back to 100% very soon.

Next week, the UK Championship will be on the line as champion Pete Dunne defends against 2018 UK Tournament Winner Zack Gibson for the second time.

Final Segment: Roderick Strong w. Kyle O’Reilly vs. Tyler Bate w. Trent Seven

Big boot from Tyler Bate immediately as the bell rings. Whip off the ropes and a big back body drop by Bate on Strong. Bate’s got Strong reeling with forearms. O’Reilly gets up on the apron. Bate kicks him away but Strong uses that opportunity to bring Bate down from the top turnbuckle with a backbreaker!

Strong slows down the pace with some stomps on Bate. He brings Bate to the corner for punches and chops. Bate fires a few back. Strong throws Bate to the mat. Kidney shots. Chinlock slows Bate right down. Crowd’s involved in warring chants for both teams.

Strong with the cover and a 2 count following a backbreaker. Seated abdominal stretch but it’s not cinched in tightly. Bate returns to his feet. Jawbreaker on Strong but Strong stays up.

Both men ascend the top-right turnbuckle. Bate throws Strong off. Strong rushes back and receives a face-first drop by Bate. Diving European Uppercut to follow! Both men are slow to get back to their feet. They exchange punches in the centre of the ring. Bate showcasing his strikes, forcing Strong to the corner with a flurry of right hands.
Exploder suplex coming out of the opposite corner. Kip up and standing shooting star press for a 2 count! Bate’s on point.

He attempts the airplane spin but his back gives way. Strong gets Bate up on his shoulders…reversed into a hurricanrana by Tyler Bate! Belly to back suplex and bridging pin for a 2 count. Bate sets up Strong for a Tyler Driver. Strong counters. Bate attempts a somersault kick. Strong catches Bate’s legs and attempts a submission, but Bate reverses into a rollup for a pinfall attempt.

High knee in the corner by Strong on Tyler Bate. Spike slam and a 2 count! These two are relentless.
An incredible minute of action takes place between Bate and Strong, with fast counters, but Bate is the aggressor there, forcing Strong through the ropes to the floor below.

Strong’s on the outside and Bate flies with a plancha on him. Back in the ring, there’s an attempted distraction by O’Reilly, so Seven gets involved, neutralizing that situation for his partner.

Tyler Driver ’97 finishes Strong off and Moustache Mountain have the one-up on the Undisputed Era going into Takeover: Brooklyn IV.

Winner: Tyler Bate via pinfall in 9 minutes

Two cool points for Tyler Bate. Let’s remember this guy is 21 years old, a former UK Champion, former nXt Tag Team Champion, and he wrestles at an exceptional pace, blending acrobatics with speed and ridiculous strength for his cruiserweight frame. That whole flying, shoulders first against the ropes thing is part dumb, part awesome, but it worked against Strong and the fans loved it.

One cool point for Strong because the guy endures. He endured all kinds of punishment from Tyler Bate and kept getting back up for more. This is a consistent character trait and a major reason why the Undisputed Era is so tough to beat. Both he and O’Reilly are resilient like this. Saturday night’s gonna be SO RIGHT for Tag Team Wrestling.

Here’s the official card and predictions for Takeover: Brooklyn IV:
nXt Championship Last Man Standing Match: Tommaso Ciampa (c) def. Johnny Gargano
nXt Women’s Championship Match: Shayna Baszler (c) def. Kairi Sane (#1c)
nXt Tag Team Championship Match: Undisputed Era (c) def. Moustache Mountain (#1c)
nXt North American Championship Match: Ricochet def. Adam Cole (c)
The Velveteen Dream def. EC3

Share your cool point suggestions and comments on tonight’s show and predictions for the upcoming Takeover below. Enjoy Brooklyn IV, and for more discussion on that event and SummerSlam, tune into “The Doc Says” podcast where I chatted with The Doc about all 5 matches on Saturday night.
Peace!!
Follow @JCoolLOP
Have more to say than a paragraph or two? Join the LOP Columns Forum . There, you have plenty of opportunities to write your own columns, join in the discussions and meet a lot of great wrestling fans. Visit today!