The title match between #1 contender Ilja Dragunov and WWE NXT UK Champion WALTER has finally been confirmed for later this month after months of waiting due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
WWE announced today that Dragunov vs. WALTER will air on the Thursday, October 29 NXT UK episode on the WWE Network.
Dragunov became the new #1 contender after winning a 20-man Battle Royal that was taped back in March before the pandemic shut the NXT UK brand down. Dragunov and WALTER have been feuding ever since the brand re-launched last month. Now the title match is official for the main event of the October 29 show. WALTER has been champion since being the third man to win the title on April 5, 2019, after defeating Pete Dunne at the NXT “Takeover: New York” event during WrestleMania 35 Weekend.
WWE has also announced that WALTER and Dragunov will meet next Thursday in tag team action. WALTER and Alexander Wolfe will represent Imperium against Dragunov and Dunne.
A new promo for The Mad Russian vs. The Ring General can be seen below.
In more news from today’s NXT UK episode on the WWE Network, the opening round of the first-ever Heritage Cup Tournament continued.
Competing under British Rounds Rules, A-Kid defeated Flash Morgan Webster, 2-1 and the last round by submission. That was the only tournament match for this week’s show.
A-Kid will now face Noam Dar in the semifinals. Dave Mastiff vs. Joseph Conners has been announced for next Thursday’s show, and the winner of that match will advance to the semifinals to face the winner of Kenny Williams vs. Trent Seven, which should air on October 22.
Below is an updated look at the tournament brackets:
FIRST ROUND
* Noam Dar defeated Alexander Wolfe
* A-Kid defeated Flash Morgan Webster
* Dave Mastiff vs. Joseph Conners
* Trent Seven vs. Kenny Williams
QUARTERFINALS
* Noam Dar vs. A-Kid
* Dave Mastiff or Joseph Conners vs. Trent Seven or Kenny Williams
FINALS
* Noam Dar or A-Kid vs. Dave Mastiff or Joseph Conners or Trent Seven or Kenny Williams
The NXT UK women’s division was also in action on this week’s show. The opening match saw Xia Brookside and Dani Luna defeat Amale and Nina Samuels when Brookside pinned Amale. The show-closing segment saw NXT UK Women’s Champion Kay Lee Ray give her State of the Union Address. Ray bragged about staying on top of the division and her recent win over Piper Niven, putting her over the 400-day mark in her reign. After some tough words for the rest of the division, Ray was interrupted by Samuels, Brookside, Luna, Amale, Isla Dawn, and Aoife Valkyrie. Ray taunted them all, including Niven who came out. A brawl ended up breaking out with the entire division. Jinny also came out and fought Ray to the stage. The brawl ended with Valkyrie nailing a dive to take everyone else down, except Ray. She retreated to the back to end the show.
Below are highlights from this week’s NXT UK episode, which also featured several backstage segments, plus Saxon Huxley vs. Jack Starz, plus a video package on Gallus, and footage from the State of the Union Address segment.
Stay tuned for more on the NXT UK brand.
NEXT WEEK ON #NXTUK:
⚫️ @DaveMastiff vs. @JosephConners
⚫️ @WalterAUT & @TheWWEWolfe vs. @UNBESIEGBAR_ZAR & @PeteDunneYxB📺 Thursday at 3 PM ET/8 PM BST on @WWENetwork ! pic.twitter.com/VUifbnGvFA
— NXT UK (@NXTUK) October 8, 2020
Mark your calendars! 🗓#NXTUK Champion @WalterAUT vs. @UNBESIEGBAR_ZAR in 3️⃣ weeks! pic.twitter.com/ZKFBFCpgyS
— WWE (@WWE) October 8, 2020
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