NXT will emanate from the Performance Center in Orlando once again tonight, as we continue to feel the fallout from the Great American Bash. The new NXT Women’s Champion will make her first title defense against a third-generation star. Plus, two other champions will learn who their #1 contenders are. Be sure to tune into the action on the CW starting at 8 PM ET, and follow along with all the action right here on Cageside!
Shades of Black & Pink
On the heels of WWE pulling the trigger on a Sami Zayn WWE Title win just over 24 hours earlier, NXT crowned one of their fan-favorite internet darlings when Kendal Grey defeated Lola Vice in the main event of the Great American Bash to become the new NXT Women’s Champion. Everyone from Dave Meltzer to Kurt Angle to every writer on the Cageside staff thinks Kendal has the opportunity to be something special in the wrestling business. In the ring, she is arguably the best worker in NXT, male or female, and could already conceivably be considered in the top 5 to 10 in the whole WWE. As we saw during her promo to kick off NXT last week, her character and mic skills remain a work in progress, but it’s refreshing that Chef Shawn and his crew decided not to waste any more time to see what a Kendal Grey title reign looks like.
We also won’t have to wait long to see her first title defense, as Kendal is slated to take on Low Key Legend, Nattie, tonight with the NXT Women’s Championship on the line. As we’ll talk about more below, this week’s episode will feature two #1 contendership matches, but when you’re a third-generation superstar with the resume of Nattie, you are apparently owed title shots whenever you feel like you want one. That’s essentially what happened last week when Nattie and her ever-growing group of lackeys took to Robert Stone’s office and she cashed in her ‘Hart’ card for a shot at NXT’s top prize.
Regardless of how the match came to be, this feels like a smart first title defense for Kendal to get the ball rolling. Nattie hasn’t really been a viable contender in the WWE for the better part of a decade, but she has a penchant for making her opponents look good, no matter where or who she’s wrestling. Kendal doesn’t need help to look good, but I’m expecting this match to be a technical showcase with Kendal undoubtedly coming out on top.
Kendal will also have to keep an eye out for other lurking contenders who want their own shot at gold. Conspicuous by her absence last week, Lola Vice will most likely be looking for a shot to win her title back at some point. Kelani Jordan continues to roll after beating Tatum Paxley last week. During that match, Kali Armstrong looked to make an impact on the champ directly when she jumped Kendal, who was watching at ringside. And after that match, Nikki Blackheart, who will reportedly be known as Reina Volcan in NXT, debuted by attacking Paxley.
The women’s division continues to be the focal point of the entire show for good reason, and that will more than likely continue tonight. Will the centerpiece of that division, Kendal Grey, navigate her first title defense and still be standing tall at the end of the night?
Zaria learns her next victim challenger
Not all title matches in the NXT women’s division are given. Sometimes, they are earned, and four women will learn that the hard way tonight when Zaria’s next challenger for her North American Championship is determined in a Fatal 4 Way.
Izzi Dame, a former North American Champion in her own right, is looking to get back in the title mix on her own accord after she and Niko Vance unceremoniously put an end to Shawn Spears and The Culling. Thea Hail will look to raise her own stock and build some momentum before potentially becoming the inaugural TNA Knockouts TV Champion in the coming months. Lizzy Rain will unplug the air guitar and fog machine to see if she can earn a shot at the North American Title for the second time since debuting this past spring. And lastly, Layla Diggs seems to have reluctantly aligned herself with Nattie, Nikkita Lyons, and Karmen Petrovic in recent weeks. Will being around those three ladies rub off on Diggs enough for her to earn her first title shot on NXT?
Looking at the field, all signs appear to be pointing towards an eventual successful title defense for Zaria, as none of the four women involved seem like reasonable candidates to dethrone the Aussie powerhouse at this point. Under Fatal 4 Way rules, just about anything can happen, so who prevails tonight with a title shot in tow is anybody’s guess at this point.
NXT tag teams get their shot…. except for one
Two other champions will learn who their #1 contenders are this week as NXT’s tag team division sorts their ranks. Five teams looking for a shot at the Swipe Right boys from Vanity Project invaded GM Stone’s office last week, and all but one of them were thrown into a Fatal 4 Way tag team match this week.
OTM hasn’t competed much since NXT aired a sit-down interview with the duo a few months ago, but Bronco Nima showed up in AAA recently as a member of the rebooted Los Perros del Mal faction. Nima has downplayed his involvement in that group to his longtime partner, Lucien Price, but it will be interesting to see whether everything is simpatico tonight. Cutler James and Osiris Griffin of DarkState returned at the Bash but waited until after their boy Dion Lennox lost before revealing that they were actually not injured. With Saquon Shugars lurking and looking for revenge, James and Griffin would be advised to watch out for swinging baseball bats. Birth Right looks to raise their own stock and get back into the win column after Arianna Grace lost her Speed Championship match at the Bash, and the team of Dorian Van Dux and buff Macklemore Sean Legacy is looking to earn their first title shot, but may need to get on the same page to do so.
One team that wanted a title shot but was not included in the #1 contender’s match is Romeo Moreno and Noam Dar. Despite winning a tag team match together on Evolve at the end of May and mixing it up with former NXT Tag Team Champions, Fraxiom, recently, it was only two weeks ago that Dar and Moreno made it official that they were a tag team. Stone deliberately left them out of the match tonight and let them know that they need to do more to establish themselves before they get thrown into the title mix. That makes sense, except for the fact that one of the other teams in the match (Van Dux & Legacy) only has one match together under their belts, too. What will Romeo and Noam do to show Stone that they’re worthy of championship consideration?
Quick Hits
- After a successful title defense at the Bash and putting the locker room on notice on NXT last week, Tony was blindsided by Naraku on last week’s episode, making it clear that the score is not settled between those two. Tony D will surely be looking for some revenge this week, but the main question is, will WWE’s camera crew capture it?
- After emerging victorious over Tristan Angels at the Great American Bash and recovering his Mr. NXT sash, Shiloh Hill was confronted by Niko Vance backstage last week. Niko seems primed for a sink-or-swim stretch on NXT after he and Izzi put Shawn Spears out to pasture. Can Shiloh keep his winning ways going? Or will Niko throw himself firmly into the mix in a wide-open NXT men’s division with a big victory?
- It was not a good night for AAA on NXT last week. Galeno and El Hijo del Dr. Wagner Jr. came up short in their attempt to win the NXT Tag Team Titles against Swipe Right of the Vanity Project. And El Hijo del Vikingo’s scheduled title defense against EK Prosper was scrapped when Vikingo was reportedly injured before the show went on the air. Will any AAA appear on NXT this week to try to reverse their fortunes?
- Speaking of the Vanity Project, they took advantage of the numbers game to help Jackson Drake pick up a victory over Mason Rook last week. Will the big man get his hands on Smokes and Baylor as they await their #1 contenders tonight? Or will Myka Lockwood make sure that that doesn’t happen and Vanity Project’s dads stay safe?
- EK Prosper came up with another improbable victory over resident hothead Keanu Carver last week with an assist from Tank Ledger, who was avenging Carver’s attack on his partner, Hank Walker at the Bash. Will Prosper return the favor and help Tank beat Keanu this week?
- Jaida Parker beat Karmen Petrovic last week and vowed to Nattie that her time was coming. With Nattie and Layla Diggs competing elsewhere tonight, will Jaida have to settle for getting her hands on Evolve Women’s Champion Nikkita Lyons this week?
All this and more on NXT on the CW tonight as the developmental brand looks to heat up heading into Heatwave at the end of August. Let us know what you’re most excited for on tonight’s show in the comments below, and be sure to follow along with the live coverage here on Cageside tonight, starting at 8 PM Eastern!
