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ECW Icons Bring The Shocks At NXT

By Lyle Kilbane • Published 7th November 2024
Rob Van Dam ECW NXT

It was a night where the past met the future as several ECW legends invaded NXT in Philadelphia.

WWE had confirmed several ECW alumni would be on hand when NXT took place in the old ECW Arena for a rare return to Wednesday nights.

Bubba Ray Dudley found himself involved in proceedings at Halloween Havoc as he saved NXT Champion Trick Williams from an attack by Ridge Holland and Ethan Page. That led to Dudley taking part in his first WWE match in 8 years as he teamed with Williams to face Holland and Page in Philadelphia.

Dawn Marie was also announced ahead of time as the special referee for a hardcore match between Jaida Parker and Lola Vice. WWE Hall of Famer Rob Van Dam was also set to be part of the show and he ended up cheering on Je’Von Evans in his match with Wes Lee after Lee had attacked RVD backstage earlier in the night.

However, there were plenty of extreme surprises to be had as well.

ECW Icons Appear In NXT

FBI’s Nunzio had been teased for an appearance on the show dubbed ‘NXT 2300’ and he was joined by Tony Mamaluke as he took on Tony D’Angelo for the NXT North American Championship. D’Angelo retained and the two men squashed their issues after the bout which was Nunzio’s first in WWE for 16 years.

NXT General Manager Ava braved the Philadelphia crowd with her assistants Stevie Turner and Robert Stone to announce the location for Deadline as Minneapolis on the 7th of December. As Stone launched into an attack on the Philadelphia fans, the lights went out and when they returned Rhyno greeted him with a vicious gore.

The show saw Ridge Holland pin Trick Williams as part of the tag team match also involving Ethan Page and Bubba Ray Dudley. While that might set up a title match for Holland somewhere down the road, the fans were left delighted when D-Von Dudley made a surprise appearance, bringing a table with him as Ethan Page was driven through it.