Reviews

The John Report: WWE NXT 06/25/24 Review

By John Canton • Published 26th June 2024

This week on WWE NXT saw Tony D’Angelo face Nathan Frazer while NXT Champion Trick Williams was in action against Shawn Spears.

As usual with NXT, I will do a summary style for most of the show and then play-by-play for one or two matches.

This episode took place at the WWE Performance Center in Orlando, Florida. Follow me on Twitter/X @johnreport. My WWE NXT Review archive is here. Let’s get to it.

The commentary team was Vic Joseph and Booker T as usual.

There was a clip of NXT GM Ava talking to the referees and security from earlier today. Ava told them to focus tonight while saying she didn’t want anything going wrong tonight.

Tag Team Turmoil Match

The winners get an NXT Tag Team Title match at NXT Heatwave. There are five teams in this match.

Match #1: New Catch Republic – Tyler Bate & Pete Dunne vs. Edris Enofe & Malik Blade.

Enofe got a nearfall countering the Bitter End into an impressive DDT. When Enofe jumped off the top, Dunne blocked it. Bate tagged back in and they hit a double NCR hit a double Powerbomb for the pinfall.

Match #2: New Catch Republic – Tyler Bate & Pete Dunne vs. Legado Del Fantasma – Angel & Berto

Both teams are on the main roster. Angel opened the ropes while Bate was running so Bate fell out of the ring to the floor. Angel held Bate on his back while Berto flipped over the top with a facebuster for two. Angel got a backbreaker on Bate for two. Apollo Crews ran down to the ring, the referee was distracted by that and that stopped the momentum for the Legado boys. Bate hit the Tyler Driver 97 on Berto for the pinfall.

Match #3: New Catch Republic – Tyler Bate & Pete Dunne vs. The OC – Luke Gallows & Karl Anderson

The OC hit a double team neckbreaker followed by the running boot double team move. The show went to break there.

(Commercial)

Bate did the dreaded airplane spin on Karl. The OC tried the Magic Killer on Dunne, but Bate saved his partner. Dunne did an inside cradle on Luke for the pinfall win.

Match #4: New Catch Republic – Tyler Bate & Pete Dunne vs. Chase U Andre Chase & Duke Hudson (w/Riley Osborne, Thea Hail & Ridge Holland)

This is the final match in the Tag Team Turmoil. Chase did his stomp routine on Dunne with the fans chanting along. Dunne worked over Chase with the ten forearms to the chest. When Duke got the tag, he slammed down both opponents with uranage slams. Duke hit a spinning sidewalk slam on Bate for two. Bate showed off his power with a delayed vertical suplex on Duke. Dunne hit a sunset flip Powerbomb on Chase and Bate hit a suplex on Chase for a two count because Duke broke it up. Bate sent Chase out of the ring and then Ridge shoved Chase out of the ring so that Ridge could take the blow from Bate’s dive on the floor. Back in the ring. Chase hit a cross body block off the top on Bate for the pinfall win. It went 17 minutes.

Winners of Tag Team Turmoil: Chase U – Andre Chase & Duke Hudson

Analysis: **3/4 It was a solid match. It was smart to have Dunne & Bate carry it by putting them in the ring the longest. The finish was cheap because Ridge pushed Chase away to avoid a diving Bate and the referee never saw it. Chase took advantage of the situation to get the win.

That win means Chase U will challenge Nathan Frazer & Axiom for the NXT Tag Team Titles at Heatwave.

The women’s locker room was shown earlier today. Karmen Petrovic was watching a clip featuring Roxanne Perez, so Perez walked In doing her mean girl routine. Karmen and Perez exchanged words that will lead to a match.

Ethan Page was shown walking backstage.

A graphic was shown in memory of WWE Hall of Famer Sika, who passed away earlier in the day. He was the father of Roman Reigns and a big influence on many people in the family. Rest in Peace, Sika.

(Commercial)

Nathan Frazer was talking to Dante Chen in the dressing room. Frazer said he hadn’t heard from Axiom in a few days. Axiom walked in saying he was there for Frazer. Axiom said Frazer will be Heritage Cup Champion and NXT Tag Team Champions.

Let’s Hear from Ethan Page

Ethan Page talked about how NXT Champion Trick Williams is supposed to face Je’Von Evans. Page complained about how he wasn’t eliminated in the battle royal that Evans won. Page bragged about how he beat Evans later in the night, so Page should be in while Evans should be out. Trish called out NXT GM Ava to talk to him.

Ava the NXT GM walked out to the ring saying that Page really thinks he can do no wrong. Page said that his All Ego name is very warranted. Ava said that Page did have a point.

Shawn Spears walked out saying he can’t have Ava making the wrong decision. Spears said that he has no problem with Page saying they are from the same part of the world and have traveled similar roads. Spears said that two weeks ago, he pinned Evans first. Page reminded Spears that Evans eliminated him in the battle royal. Spears said that tonight he’ll beat Trick Williams which will make Ava’s decision a whole lot easier.

Trick Williams made his entrance as the NXT Champion. Trick told Spears to sit his goofy ass down. Trick said it didn’t matter who his opponent was at Heatwave. Trick said that when they get to Toronto, the people will be chanting “Whoop That…” and Spears attacked Trick. Page joined in with Spears against Trick. Je’Von Evans went down to the ring to save Trick. The heels were knocked out of the ring while the referees held the heels back.

Analysis: It seems like a four-way match is likely for Heatwave, but they just haven’t announced it yet. It was obviously heading that way after this segment.

Ridge Holland was shown walking backstage while Tyler Bate & Pete Dunne confronted him about what happened. Dunne said that Ridge was supposed to be on his own, but he’s with Chase U now. Ridge left. Hank & Tank walked in saying they wanted to face New Catch Republic next week to test them. Bate said that was fine while Dunne walked away.

Wes Lee made his entrance for singles action.

(Commercial)

They showed Robert Stone and Stevie Turner talking outside of Ava’s office. Stone said that he’s been an asset to Ava making tough decisions. Turner claimed she’s been helping Ava make decisions because she gives the inside scoop on a lot of things. Turner claimed she is winning and Stone said Turner couldn’t beat him on his best day.

Analysis: It’s a competition to see who is more loyal to Ava and wanting to be her main assistant.

Wes Lee vs. Joe Coffey (w/Wolfgang & Mark Coffey)

Lee was distracted by Wolfgang, so Joe hit a leaping shoulder tackle. Joe hit a big backbreaker. Lee countered a move leading to a DDT into the mat. Mark was on the apron, so Lee knocked him down with a knee and that allowed Joe to hit a powerslam for two. Joe hit a running uppercut to send Lee into the turnbuckle. Joe went for his clothesline, Lee avoided it and Lee bounced off the ropes with the Cardiac Kick for the pinfall win. It went about three minutes.

Winner by pinfall: Wes Lee

Analysis: **1/4 It was good for a short match. Lee is going after the North American Title so it was about giving him a win over a tough opponent like Joe Coffey, who did get a couple of nearfalls in the match.

After the match, Oba Femi did a promo from the stage saying that Wes Lee had earned a shot at Oba’s NXT North American Title match. Oba said he’ll see him at Heatwave.

Analysis: I’m going with Oba Femi winning that, but a title change is possible too. I’d say it’s the best chance for somebody to beat Femi since he won the title.

Tony D’Angelo was interviewed with The Family standing by. Tony talked about how he was ready for his Heritage Cup title defense up next.

(Commercial)

They showed Chase U’s Duke Hudson & Ridge Holland backstage. Duke received an envelope with photos of the match from last week. That’s when Andre Chase, Riley Osborne & Thea Hail walked in with enthusiasm. Those three were excited. They left. Duke and Ridge were happy about the win.

Analysis: The photos would show that Ridge cheated to help Chase U win last week. We are to assume that nobody other than Duke actually knew that.

NXT Heritage Cup Championship: Tony D’Angelo (w/Channing “Stacks” Lorenzo, Luca Crusifino & Adrianna Rizzo) vs. Nathan Frazer (w/Axiom)

I’ll go full play-by-play here for this match. It’s best two out of three falls with a maximum of six three-minute rounds.

Round 1: Tony used his power to knock the speedy Frazer down. Frazer ran the ropes and got a ROLLUP OF DEATH~! using his full body for the pin. It went about 40 seconds for that first round.

Round 2: Tony started aggressive with a suplex. Frazer tried an attack off the ropes, but Tony punched him in the ribs. Frazer tried to run away until Tony caught him and Tony hit a huge spinebuster. It was about 1:10 into that round when Tony got the pinfall.

Round 3: The third round started with Tony hitting a running shoulder tackle to the ribs. Frazer came back with punches and he sent Tony to the apron leading to Frazer hitting a dropkick to the floor. Frazer went for a dive, Tony caught him and Tony sent Frazer hard into the steel steps. They went to a break.

(Commercial)

Round 4: Frazer clotheslined Tony out of the ring. Frazer followed up with two suicide dives in a row. Back in the ring, Frazer hit a neckbreaker and a superkick for two. Frazer hit a rollup for two. Tony D hit a big spinebuster for a two count. Frazer tried a moonsault, but Tony caught him and Tony sent Frazer into the turnbuckle. Tony charged, Frazer moved and Frazer hit a missile dropkick off the top rope as round four ended.

Round 5: Tony got some offense going with a clothesline. Tony charged, but Frazer stopped him with a superkick for two. Frazer jumped off the turnbuckle and Tony caught him with another spinebuster for two. Tony tried a German Suplex, Frazer landed on his feet and Frazer hit a jumping kick that sent Tony out of the ring. Frazer hit a running dropkick that sent Tony into the steel steps. Back in the ring, Frazer jumped off the top with a Coast to Coast dropkick into the right shoulder for two. The fans were chanting “this is awesome” for them. Frazer went up top, Tony D went after him and Frazer knocked him down with elbows. Frazer jumped off the top with a Phoenix Splash right at the buzzer, so there was no count.

There is one round left. If it ends in a 1-1 tie then Tony D retains the Heritage Cup.

Round 6: Frazer got a sunset flip for two and then an inside cradle for two. Frazer hit a lifting neckbreaker with no pin attempt after it. Frazer went up top, Tony was back up, Frazer jumped over and landed on his feet. Frazer was on the top rope where Tony met him with a belly-to-belly suplex off the top. Tony hit another huge spinebuster for the one…two…and three. It was 1:12 into the sixth round. The whole thing was about 14 minutes.

Winner: Tony D’Angelo

Analysis: ***1/2 It was a great match between two babyfaces having an even matchup with a lot of pinfalls throughout the match, which made it exciting to watch. I don’t think Frazer can have a bad match in singles or a tag. He’s so talented. Tony D is a good athlete as well who kept up with his quicker opponent and I liked all the power moves that Tony did. Tony D does the spinebuster very well, so using it as a finisher makes a lot of sense. Fun match.

The NXT Champion Trick Williams was backstage with the “Young OG” Je’Von Evans. Evans said that he didn’t want Trick to go out there himself. Evans said he could be in Trick’s corner since he knows Shawn Spears and Ethan Page are up to no good. Trick said that Evans needs to focus on his title opportunity. Trick said he’ll be fine by himself. Evans said he knows Trick will do his thing and Whoop That Trick. They did a handshake and Trick left.

The NXT Women’s Champion Roxanne Perez made her entrance with a cocky look on her face.

(Commercial)

Roxanne Perez vs. Karmen Petrovic

Lola Vice went down to ringside to do commentary on the match due to her issues with Roxane Perez. Karmen went for a high kick, but Perez avoided it. Perez tripped up Karmen while she was on the turnbuckle. Perez sent Karmen into the turnbuckle followed by a Russian legsweep for two. Perez did some hair pulling. Karmen hit a jumping kick and a discus clothesline like her buddy Natalya. Perez blocked a kick by getting her knees up. Perez kicked Karmen in the ribs and Perez hit Pop Rox for the pinfall win after four minutes.

Winner by pinfall: Roxanne Perez

Analysis: ** A quick match to give Perez a win to build her momentum as the champion. Karmen has potential and a good look, but she’s not being pushed much right now.

Lola Vice went into the ring with Perez. When Perez tried a strike, Vice blocked it and Vice hit a spinning back fist to knock Perez down. The fans popped big as Vice held up the NXT Women’s Title over her head. Vice walked away with the NXT Women’s Title as well.

Analysis: They have turned Vice into a babyface during this feud to set them up for a title match.

Noam Dar was shown talking to Meta-Four on Facetime. Dar said that Ethan Page ripped a tendon off the bone, so he’ll be out for a while. Oro Mensah said that this group makes him smile and he loves this group. Oro talked about how his dad almost died in a car accident when he was six years old and his body suffered a lot of burns, which meant there was a lot of therapy to go through. Oro said that his dad went through a lot to get better. Oro had to move to Switzerland and didn’t feel like he fit in. Oro admitted that he never fit in anywhere until he met Meta-Four and that’s why he will not rest until he gets his revenge on Page for what he did to Dar. Noam said that Oro is beautiful, Meta-Four is beautiful and they were all happy.

Analysis: It was cool to hear that story from Oro Mensah.

The OC’s Luke Gallows & Karl Anderson were backstage standing over OTM so they did a cheap attack. That led to Michin and Jaida Parker getting into a fight as well. It was broken up by officials.

(Commercial)

Ava the NXT GM was told by a referee that OTM was banged up. Ava told Carlee Bright she’ll get to face Wendy Choo next week. Lola Vice walked in with the NXT Women’s Title to tell Ava that she can give the title back to Roxanne Perez and Vice wants a title match at Heatwave.

Tavion Heights vs. Damon Kemp (w/Charlie Dempsey & Myles Borne)

Heights hit an impressive shoulder breaker early in the match. When Kemp left the ring, Dempsey pulled on Kemp’s left arm to help him heal. Kemp took over by ramming Tavion’s head into the mat repeatedly. Kemp connected with a German Suplex and an Angle Slam for two. Heights came back with an impressive belly-to-belly suplex followed by a belly-to-belly slam for the pinfall win after three minutes.

Winner by pinfall: Tavion Heights

Analysis: ** It was fine for the time given. Kemp had a decent amount of offense and then it took a couple of moves for Heights to get the win.

The win means that Heights will join the No Quarter Catch Crew.

Kelani Jordan, the NXT Women’s North American Champion, was interviewed by Kelly Kincaid. Jordan said she wants to be a drama-free champion. Jordan said she was eager to see who wins the Sol Ruca-Arianna Grace match.

Jaida Parker walked into the screen complaining about Michin attacking her. Parker challenged Michin to a Street Fight next week.

Arianna Grace entered for singles action.

(Commercial)

Izzi Dame confronted Brinley Reece, who was with Edris Enofe & Malik Glade. Dame said that the guys don’t want Reece around. Tatum Paxley was lurking behind a glass door. Dame left and Reece wondered if it was true.

Nathan Frazer was shown talking to Axiom backstage. They are the NXT Tag Team Champions. Axiom said they will be ready for their title defense and Frazer said that sounds like a great idea. Frazer said that he had to get ready for his WWE Speed match and then he would be ready to watch tape with Axiom, so Nathan left.

Analysis: They keep pushing the story that Frazer is happy to be a Tag Team Champion, but he’s also focused on other things.

Sol Ruca vs. Arianna Grace

The winner gets an NXT Women’s North American Title match at Heatwave.

Ruca hit a sitout facebuster along with a jumping double knee attack. Grace tripped up Ruca on the apron and Grace hit a suplex to take control. Grace hit a running knee lift for two. Sol got some momentum going with shoulder tackles. Sol slipped on the ropes for a third time in the match. Sol kicked Grace back and Sol hit the Sol Snatcher for the pinfall win after four minutes.

Winner by pinfall: Sol Ruca

Analysis: ** An easy win by Sol, who is definitely a future champion on the NXT brand. Grace is an interesting character who is improving in the ring as well, but she’s not being used well enough to win in a spot like this. I think Sol needs to change her footwear because she slipped on the ropes three different times.

After the match, Kelani Jordan congratulated her friend Sol Ruca. That’s the matchup for Jordan’s NXT Women’s North American Title at Heatwave.

Roxanne Perez got her NXT Women’s Title back in the office of NXT GM Ava. Perez complained about getting attacked by Lola Vice. Ava informed Perez that she will defend the NXT Women’s Title against Vice at Heatwave.

The Trick Williams-Shawn Spears main event was next.

(Commercial)

Kelani Jordan and Sol Ruca were walking backstage where Jordan talked to Ruca about seeing eachother at Heatwave. Jacy Jayne, Jazmyn Nyx, and Fallon Henley walked into the screen to complain about being overlooked. Henley trashed Karmen Petrovic, who was walking in the background, claiming she didn’t deserve the opportunities that she had been given. Jayne said to Henley maybe they should do something about it and Henley agreed saying “maybe we should.”

Analysis: This seems like a new heel women’s stable coming to NXT. I’m all for it.

Next week on NXT:

* Street Fight: Michin vs. Jaida Parker

* Face-Off: Roxanne Perez and Lola Vice

* New Catch Republic – Pete Dunne & Tyler Bate vs. Hank Walker & Tank Ledger

* Wendy Choo vs. Carlee Bright

Shawn Spears made his entrance for the main event. Congrats to him and his wife Cassie Lee (former Peyton Royce in WWE) on the birth of their son earlier this week. It’s their second son together.

Trick Williams made his entrance as the NXT Champion. They showed him walking from the backstage area before he appeared in front of the crowd. A lot of “Whoop That Trick” chants and adlibs from Booker as usual.

Trick Williams vs. Shawn Spears

This is not for Trick’s NXT Title. I’ll go play-by-play for this. Ethan Page was on commentary to watch the main event.

It started with Spears bailing to the floor, so Trick followed him out there. Trick connected with a big chop. Back in the ring, Spears did a Thesz Press followed by punches and a stomp. Trick connected with a few chops followed by a clothesline. Trick and Spears each did a pump kick at the same time, which knocked them both down. Vic was throwing it to commercial as Oro Mensah attacked Page with punches. Oro and Page exchanged punches as security showed up to break it up.

(Commercial)

Spears was in control with a Crossface submission, but Trick was able to get to the bottom rope to break the hold. Spears punched Trick a few times. Trick no sold the punching and came back with his own punches. Trick hit two jumping side kicks along with a flatliner into the mat. Trick went for a Book End, Spears avoided it and Spears hit a superkick. Spears hit a knee smash to the face for two. Spears elbowed Trick in the head. Trick hit an uppercut, Spears with a jumping knee, Trick with a kick and Spears hit a Backstabber. Trick hit a Book End. A “fan” in a hoodie showed up at ringside and it was Brooks Jensen even though the announcers never said his name. Security and referees held Jensen back. Jensen threw Vic Joseph’s candy jar at the announcers. Trick did a slingshot leap over the top onto Spears on the floor. Jensen had a hold of the hood off the commentary table hood and hit Trick in the head with it. The referee never saw it while Trick sold it like it hurt. Back in the ring, Spears gave Trick the running C4 into the turnbuckle for the pinfall win after about nine minutes.

Winner by pinfall: Shawn Spears

Analysis: *** A rare pinfall loss for the NXT Champion Trick Williams, but it was done in a cheap way also due to Brooks Jensen accidentally helping Shawn Spears for the win. It was done that way to give Spears a meaningful to get him into the NXT Title picture so that’s why the result was what it was and I get why it was booked that way. They did a nice job of doing a finish that was a bit complicated, but they pulled it off well. Sometimes a finish like that could go wrong if somebody messes it up. However, they executed it perfectly and it worked to give Spears a meaningful win.

Shawn Spears celebrated the victory while Vic said it was a stunned NXT Universe because they didn’t expect Trick Williams to lose.

Ava the NXT GM was in her office with Robert Stone and Stevie Turner summarizing the chaotic NXT Title situation. Ava said that everybody has compelling cases so at Heatwave for the NXT Championship, it’s a Fatal 4-Way. End show.

Analysis: That means it is Trick Williams defending the NXT Title against Shawn Spears, Ethan Page, and Je’Von Evans. Spears and Page are from Ontario with Spears being from Niagara Falls and Page is from Hamilton, so they’ll be in a big title match at a show that takes place about an hour from where they are from. That’s cool for both guys. I think Trick will retain the title in that match, but if he does lose then I think Page might win. I’m just saying my pick for now is for Trick to keep his title.

===

Three Stars of the Show

Tony D’Angelo/Nathan Frazer
Shawn Spears/Trick Williams
Chase U – Andre Chase & Duke Hudson

====

The Scoreboard

This week: 7.5 out of 10

Last week: 7.5

2024 Average: 7.08

====

Final Thoughts on WWE NXT

I liked the show quite a bit just like last week. There were some pretty good matches like the Tony D’Angelo-Nathan Frazer match being the best of the night. I don’t think Frazer can have a bad match. He’s so talented. Also, I liked how the Shawn Spears-Trick Williams ending was booked with Brooks Jensen showing up to accidentally cost Trick the win and Spears gets a big win over the NXT Champion Trick. I said for weeks that it appeared they were headed for a four-way at Heatwave, so now we know it’s happening.

It was the usual nice mix of in-ring action throughout the show with plenty of talking as well. What I enjoy also is that people oftentimes win matches to earn title matches. They aren’t just handed to them, so I like that emphasis on rewarding winners by setting them up for title matches. Good wins by Chase U, Wes Lee and Sol Ruca to set up their title challenges at Heatwave.

The Heatwave card right now has five matches with all of them being title matches. That might be the full lineup unless they decide to add more. I think it’s a solid lineup that could produce a title change at Heatwave in Toronto on July 7th.

The next NXT PLE is Heatwave on July 7th in Toronto. Here’s the lineup so far.