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Carmelo Hayes On What Could Have Been Better During NXT Vengeance Day Match

carmelo hayes apollo crews wwe nxt

Carmelo Hayes has reflected on his NXT Vengeance Day victory while admitting that he thought they could have done some things better in the match.

At WWE NXT Vengeance Day last Saturday, Carmelo Hayes defeated his rival Apollo Crews in a 2 out of 3 Falls Match that many fans were looking forward to because they are considered two of the best in-ring performers in all of WWE.

The match saw Hayes pick up the win by winning two falls with Crews winning none. Dabba Kato (formerly known as Commander Azeez) made his return to WWE to appear to help Crews, but it ended up being a distraction. Hayes hit a springboard clothesline followed by the Nothing But Net leg drop off the top rope to put Crews away.

During an appearance on Busted Open Radio today, Carmelo Hayes talked about the high expectations that were placed on Crews and himself going into the match.

“The experience was great. Maybe I’m a perfectionist in my work, but I feel like there were things I could’ve done better. Just the connection I felt with the crowd, there were certain things I could have done different or I could have done better. That was my takeaway, but I’m glad it was received well.

“There was a lot of pressure going into it because Shawn (Michaels) had said, ‘you’re gonna steal the show.’ The expectations were already high and I’m glad we met his expectations.”

Carmelo Hayes was asked about what they could have done better in terms of making it an even better match.

“I feel we could have put the stipulation of the match over better. An issue, in my mind, is that a lot of people are so programmed to see one fall, one fall, and then go to a third. I don’t think people were expecting I was going to to get the two falls. As I’m listening to the crowd, I’m thinking, ‘they’re about ready for an Apollo fall at this point.'”

“I felt like there were those down moments where they weren’t coming because they were like, ‘when is Apollo going to get his falls so we can really get cooking here.’ That’s just from a professional standpoint as far as being in there and being involved. I was happy with it. Apollo and I worked hard, we definitely worked hard. I thought all of our stuff was good, but I’m ready to get back out, do it again, and go up that.”

At the end of Vengeance Day, Carmelo Hayes appeared by the entrance area and pointed at NXT Champion Bron Breakker. It is a major tease towards a future match between the two men that have been the most successful men on the NXT brand.

H/T Fightful