A Collective Review of WWE NXT UK 2/13/2020 by Lance Augustine

Welcome to the weekly TJRwrestling review of WWE NXT UK. Last week, it was a solid show that was headlined by the Steel Corner Street Fight between Trent Seven and Eddie Dennis. It was a hard-hitting match with both men dealing and taking a lot of punishment. They also set up a submission match for the NXT UK Championship between Kay Lee Ray and Toni Storm. You can read my complete thoughts on last week’s show and every episode I have covered so far here. It’s time for the show!

WWE NXT from York, England 2/13/2020

The intro plays and we are inside the NXT UK arena.

Adife Valkyrie vs. Amale

Valkryie starts the match by grabbing a front face lock on Amale. She keeps it locked in, with Amale fighting out and Valkyrie rolling her up for a two count. Valkyrie locks her in a headlock and when Amale fights out, Valkyrie rolls her up for another two count. Amale comes back with a high knee to the midsection, but as she throws Valkyrie into the corner, she leaps over and hits an elbow. Valkyrie remains on the offensive by jumping onto the opposite rope and hitting another flying back elbow and gets a near fall. Valkyrie comes off the ropes and slides under the legs and knocks Amale down to the mat. Valkyrie hits a standing moonsault for a two count. She gets Amale in an armbar, but she fights out and slams Valkyrie’s head into the mat. Valkyrie recovers and hits a series of kicks, topped off by a Pele Kick that knocks Amale down. Valkyrie hits a kick to the side of the head and follows that up with a split-legged scissors kick from the top rope and picks up the win in about 4 minutes.

Winner: Valkyrie
Match Rating: 1/5 Stars

Collective Thoughts: Some of the offense was sloppy and there were some moments where both women were out of sync, but that’s to be expected. The outcome of the match was a foregone conclusion. Amale was already in the ring while Valkyrie had an entrance and since it was her debut, a dominant match was in order to put her over. That’s not to say this was a typical squash though because Amale got some believable offense in, but in the end, Valkyrie is the new women’s rising star for NXT UK.

Post-match, they show replays while Valkyrie poses in the ring.

Backstage, Travis Banks is being interviewed. He is asked about his loss at World’s Collide and he says that today is a new day and he is going to focus on that. Just as he does, he is interrupted by Alexander Wolfe, who tells him the only thing people are talking about today is Imperium. Wolfe said something they aren’t talking about is how Banks let down the NXT UK brand. Banks fires back by asking Wolfe what it is like riding the coattails of Walter. The two have a staredown and Wolfe leaves.

“Bomber” Dave Mastiff vs. Saxon Huxley

Huxley starts the match off quickly with some kicks but is quickly taken down with a scoop slam by Mastiff. Huxley gets a foot up and climbs to the top but as he comes off Mastiff hits a big chop. He hits another chop and then picks Huxley up for a delayed suplex. Mastiff hits some vicious elbows to the side of the head. Mastiff hits another chop, but Huxley starts to make a comeback and hits a couple of high knees. He tosses Mastiff into the corner and hits another knee to the midsection. Huxley comes off the ropes, but Mastiff takes him down with a chest bump, followed by a running senton. Mastiff hits the ropes and comes down hard on the chest of Huxley. He hits a German Suplex and Huxley crawls into the corner. Mastiff comes charging in with a rolling senton and pins Huxley in about 3 minutes.

Winner: Dave Mastiff
Match Rating: 1/5 Stars

Collective Thoughts: They are 2 for 2 on the squash matches where both competitors have some kind of offense. Huxley hit a few knees but other than that it was all Mastiff here. He moves well for a big man and they are building him up for his eventual showdown with Walter for the NXT UK Championship. Also, big shoutout to Mastiff in this match for the Vader inspired tights.

After the match, Mastiff stands in the ring and mocks the Imperium pose.

Toni Storm is shown backstage and is heading to the office of NXT UK General Manager Johnny Saint. She says that she wants the I Quit match with Kay Lee Ray. She is reminded by Sid Scala that an I Quit can be potentially devastating to a career. She scoffs and is presented a contract to sign, but is reminded that if she loses she will never get a shot at the title again as long as Kay Lee Ray is champion. She signs the contract and walks away as the segment ends.

The Grizzled Young Veterans make their way down to the ring. They are coming off a loss to the Broserweights in the finals of the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic on the NXT US show. They get in the ring and Zack Gibson grabs a mic. He introduces himself and his partner, James Drake, and says that they should be recognized for their work around the world. Gibson says that at Takeover: Blackpool I, they made history when they became the first-ever NXT UK Tag Team Champions. He said everyone lined up for a shot at the titles and they beat them all. He said that was until Johnny Saint put them in a triple threat match at Takeover: Cardiff and they lost the titles. Gibson says there next opportunity at the gold was at Takeover: Blackpool II in a 4-way Ladder match. Gibson said at this rate their next title match will be in a 7-team Circus rules match with the referee being Johnny Saint himself. He says that unless you were blind, you can see there talent and the impact they have made around the world. He said that William Regal understands their team and soon enough they will be at the top of the world. He said that like his partner Drake, Regal is also from Blackpool. He said that he is from Liverpool which has a rich history of champions. Gibson said that now they are in York, which is famous for absolutely nothing. The crowd doesn’t like that much. Gibson tells Drake to ignore the fans booing, and tells him to find something special with York. Gibson says there is nothing good about York and says that York is the UK what The Hunt is to tag team wrestling. Gibson says they exist, but if they didn’t, nobody would notice. He says he isn’t saying this just to rag on them but because he looks in the crowd and sees a lot of disappointed faces. HE says he knows their value and knows that people are excited people are to see a team like them. He says to take pictures and stand up to rejoice because they have conquered all of Europe. Gibson says that soon they will be recognized as the best team in the world.

Collective Thoughts: That was a strong promo by Zack Gibson. He ran through all the typical heel tropes of running down a city and even brought NXT General Manager William Regal into it. He spoke with a lot of confidence and I think they are a force to be reckoned with in both NXT UK and NXT US. They had a strong showing in the Dusty Rhodes Classic and they will ride that wave of momentum moving forward.

There is a backstage segment going over the NXT UK live events and shilling some merchandise. James Connor interrupts and asks where his name is at on the program. He says all he ever hears about is Tyler Bate. He asks what happened when he faced Bate’s prodigy A-Kid. He beat him. He asks what’s going to happen when he faces Tyler Bate next week. He said he will beat him too. Connors leaves as the segment ends.

Amir Jordan vs. Joe Coffey (w/Gallus)

Coffey starts the match off with a hip toss. Jordan fights back and locks in a headlock. Coffey shoots him into the ropes and hits a shoulder block. Both men exchange rope spots with Coffey ending it with a belly to belly suplex. He sends Jordan into the corner and hits some chops and punches. Jordan fights back with a shot to the face but Coffey scouts it well and hits a sit-out powerbomb for a two count. He follows that up with wrenching on the arm of Jordan. Coffey hits some punches that knocks Jordan into the corner and he stomps on his chest. Coffey wrenches the arm again and takes Jordan down to the mat with an armbar. He grabs his leg to add more pressure to the submission. Jordan fights his way back up to his feet, but Coffey takes him down again by the arm. Coffey adds some clubs to the chest while still working the arm. Jordan comes back up and hits a headscissors that drives Coffey’s head into the mat. Jordan backs into the corner and hits a boot to the face. He climbs to the second rope and hits a crossbody. Coffey escapes to the outside but Jordan is right behind him and hits a suicide dive. He rolls him back in the ring and Jordan climbs to the top rope and goes for a senton bomb but Coffey gets the legs up. Coffey follows that up with the Glasgow Sendoff and the Best of the Bells and gets the win in about 5 minutes.

Winner: Joe Coffey
Match Rating: 2/5 Stars

Collective Thoughts: That was an impressive win for Joe Coffey. He has been built well since his loss against Walter for the NXT UK Championship, which means he isn’t losing much momentum. It was a competitive match with Amir Jordan getting some quick and athletic offense in. Joe Coffey’s offense looks stiff and believable and he will be in the title hunt for the foreseeable future.

After the match, Joe Coffey grabs the mic with Gallus standing behind him. Coffey says that Gallus is on top and then calls out Ilja Draganov. He says that Draganov has been talking about World’s Collide since it happened and that he is about to get his world smashed. He said that Ilja owes him a debt and it’s time for Coffey to collect. He said that his boys are going to take care of business tonight and beat up Oney Lorcan and Danny Birch.

NXT UK Tag Team Championship Match
Gallus (Mark Coffey and Wolfgang) (c) vs. Oney Lorcan and Danny Birch

Gallus is still standing the ring from the previous segment. Lorcan and Birch charge into the ring and are ready to roll.

Birch and Coffey start the match off for their teams. They lock up in the center with Coffee pushing Birch into the corner. They fight out and Birch is pushed into the Gallus corner and Coffey makes the tag to Wolfgang. Wolfgang comes in and slaps on a headlock that grounds Birch. He tosses him back in the corner and makes another tag into Coffee. Coffee continues working on the arm but Birch manages to get to his corner to make a tag into Lorcan. Birch and Lorcan exchange tags and double team Coffey in the middle of the ring. Birch gets the tag back in and starts to hit some uppercuts in the corner. He throws Coffey into the opposite corner but Coffey slides under the rope. Wolfgang comes in to distract Birch which gives Coffey the upper hand and he hits a flying elbow. Coffey continues to stomp on Birch and makes the tag back into Wolfgang. He comes in and locks Birch in a submission hold. Birch makes his way back to his feet but Wolfgang snuffs it out and hits a high knee. Birch escapes a second attempt by Wolfgang and dives to makes the tag to Lorcan. he comes in and is a house of fire, taking out both men of Gallus. As he goes to hit Coffey, he is grabbed which gives Wolfgang the chance to take him out. Both members of Gallus continue to keep Lorcan isolated and hit double team offense. Wolfgang locks in a full nelson that has Lorcan in a bad spot. Lorcan fights out and attempts to make a tag but he is cut off and taken to the Gallus corner once again. Coffey makes the tag back in and continues to work on the arm of Lorcan. Coffey hits some elbows and makes another tag. Wolfgang comes in and starts working over Lorcan with some strikes. Big chop by Lorcan but Wolfgang isn’t affected. Wolfgang hits him with some more shots but Lorcan fires up and hits some chops of his own, but Wolfgang powers him up and slams him down. HE goes up top for a moonsault, but Lorcan moves and Wolfgang only hits the canvas. Both men get to their corners and make the tags. Birch is in and takes out Wolfgang with a dropkick before exchanging blows with Coffey in the ring. Birch hits some uppercuts and a German Suplex. Birch hits a big headbutt before making the tag back to Lorcan. They go to hit Coffey with some double team offense, but Wolfgang cuts them off. Birch with another headbutt to Wolfgang and hits Coffey with a series of chops. Lorcan makes the tag back into Birch, who climbs to the top rope but is pulled off by Coffey. Gallus hits a double team move and goes for another but Birch fights out and puts Coffey in a cross face. Wolfgang comes in to make the save but Lorcan cuts him off and locks him in a single leg crab. Wolfgang fights out and breaks up the other submission by pushing Lorcan into Birch and Coffey. Wolfgang spears Lorcan to the outside and Coffey hits a move on Birch on the inside. He tags in Wolfgang and they hit the Powerslam/Enziguri combo to pick up the win and retain the titles. The match went about 10 minutes.

Winner(s) and STILL NXT UK Tag Team Champions: Gallus (Mark Coffey and Wolfgang)
Match Rating: 2.75/5 Stars

Collective Thoughts: Good main event that saw two teams that work the tag team style extremely well. Coffey and Wolfgang used their corner to their advantage and isolated both Birch and Lorcan, and while Wolfgang used a lot of power moves, Coffey is the more athletic of the two. Birch and Lorcan held their own, although their offense was short-lived for most of it. Gallus is at the top of the NXT UK brand along with Imperium, and the future is bright for both factions.

After the match, Ilja Draganov makes his way down to the ring and when he gets in, he exchanges blows with Coffey. They go at it in the middle of the ring before Gallus plays the numbers game and triple-team Draganov. He hit him with a Slingshot Samoan Drop and he is laid out. Coffey taunts him while he is down as the show goes off the air.

Overall Show Grade: 6 out of 10

This was an average episode of NXT UK. There wasn’t much as far as storyline development, and having two squash matches on a 51-minute show is a bit odd. There was a good promo done by the Grizzled Young Veterans and the main event was fine but other than that the show fell kind of flat. Valkyrie looked alright in her debut, although the match was booked kind of weird if you are trying to get her over. I do like where they are going with Mastiff and Walter and that hoss showdown should be a good one when it goes down. Overall, the show was average, with nothing really jumping off the page.

What did you think of this week’s episode of WWE NXT UK? Loved it? Hated it? Didn’t know it was on? Either way, keep the conversation going over @collectiveheel on twitter and let me know your thoughts. Support the site. Support each other. I’ll be back soon enough with some more Collective Thoughts.