The John Report: WWE NXT 08/15/23 Review

This week’s WWE NXT saw Tony D & Stacks defend the Tag Team Titles while Wes Lee faced Dijak in a number one contender’s match.

Next week’s episode of NXT is the Heatwave episode on USA Network that will have some bigger matches.

I will use a summary style for most of the review and play-by-play for one or two matches.

This episode is taking 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.

It was right to action this week with the commentary team of Vic Joseph and Booker T welcoming us to the show.

NXT Tag Team Championships: Tony D’Angelo & Channing “Stacks” Lorenzo vs. The Dyad – Rip Fowler & Jagger Reid (w/Joe Gacy & Ava)

The ring was surrounded by Schism followers with yellow masks on. Tony started with Reid, then Tony left the ring and backed off from the masked guys. Stacks hit an impressive dropkick on Fowler. When Reid tagged in, Tony D hit him with a suplex. Stacks did a headlock/headscissors combo on both heels and the champs did a double clothesline knocking the heels out of the ring. Stacks hit a somersault dive over the top on both opponents. The Dyad took over with some double team offense on Stacks, who was sent off the apron onto the commentary table.

(Commercial)

As the match continued, The Dyad isolated Stacks. While Stacks was close to tagging out, Fowler decked Stacks with a lefty clothesline. After about a minute, Tony D finally got the hot tag with slams, suplexes and stomps on the challengers. Tony got a two count after a Fisherman’s Suplex on Reid. Fowler got the tag, pulled Tony out of the ring and Reid hit a suicide dive on Tony. Ivy Nile showed up at ringside, so then more Schism guys with masks were there. Two of the masked guys attacked Fowler and Tony D hit a lifting slam with an elbow smash on Fowler for the pinfall win after 13 minutes. The referee never saw the masked guys attacking the Dyad on the floor.

Winners by pinfall: Tony D’Angelo & Channing “Stacks” Lorenzo

Analysis: *** The action was good for the most part and they got a lot of time, but this was more about the story with The Creed Brothers getting revenge against the Schism group. It was a quality win for Tony D & Stacks over an established tag team, so that’s good for the champions too.

Post match, Schism was making angry faces. The Creed Brothers didn’t reveal themselves, but it’s obviously them.

A video aired about Eddy Thorpe talking about how wanting to unleash his fighting spirt and said that he dances to represent his heritage. Thorpe said he’ll meet Dijak again and he’ll move forward without fear.

The NXT Champion Carmelo Hayes was signing photos and merchandise when Wes Lee walked up to him saying Melo is too busy to talk to him or answer his calls/texts. Lee said later tonight he’ll get Melo to sign the contract to face Lee at Heatwave after Lee beats Dijak. Lee left.

Blair Davenport entered for singles action.

(Commercial)

They showed Chase U in the locker room with Andre Chase telling Duke Hudson he got Thea Hail a match against Jacy Jayne. Thea walked in and told Chase not to throw in the towel.

Dana Brooke (w/Kelani Jordan) vs. Blair Davenport

Brooke clotheslined Blair out of the ring. It was supposed to be over the top, but that didn’t work and Blair bumped to the floor anyway. Blair took over with a double foot stomp on Dana’s back. They battled by the turnbuckle with Broke hitting a sitout Powerbomb for two. Brooke clotheslined Blair. Brooke grabbed the ring bell, Jordan stopped her from doing that and back into the ring where they messed up some pin attempt spot. They went back to the rollup spot for two, but then Blair hit a running knee to the face. Blair hit another knee to the face for the pinfall win after four minutes.

Winner by pinfall: Blair Davenport

Analysis: **1/4 It was fast paced for a shorter match. Blair needed a wins, so that result makes sense. It seems like Brooke is probably going to turn heel due to her aggressive attitude and wanting Jordan to be more aggressive.

After the match, Jordan had her hand on Brooke’s shoulder and Brooke was just staring at her hand.

It was Trick Williams facing Drew Gulak up next so they were shown getting ready backstage.

(Commercial)

Carmelo Hayes, the NXT Champion, was shown signing pictures again as Dijak walked up saying keep one for yourself because Dijak will be the new NXT Champion after Heatwave. Hayes told Dijak to focus on Wes Lee tonight.

Trick Williams vs. Drew Gulak (w/Charlie Dempsey & Damon Kemp)

Trick hit a leaping clothesline, but then Kemp hit a cheap shot punch that the referee didn’t see. Trick hit an impressive dropkick and uppercut punch. After a Kemp destruction, Dempsey hit a German Suplex on Trick on the floor. Gulak applied a half crab submission while pulling back on the right arm. Trick came back with a dropkick and flapjack. Trick hit a Rock Bottom/Book End that probably could be a finisher for him. Trick knocked down Dempsey and Kemp on the floor. Jensen & Briggs showed up to fight with Dempsey & Kemp. Trick hit a spinning kick on Gulak for the pinfall win after four minutes.

Winner by pinfall: Trick Williams

Analysis: **1/4 A decent match to give Trick Williams some momentum going into next week’s match against Ilja Dragunov. I think Trick should use a Rock Bottom/Book End as his finishing move because that’s a better move than the spinning kick.

Trick Williams spoke into the camera saying he would beat Ilja Dragunov next week on Heatwave.

Baron Corbin was shown walking backstage and he’s going to talk to us up next.

(Commercial)

Let’s Hear from Baron Corbin

Baron Corbin spoke about how nobody has seen Gable Steveson since he got in the ring with Corbin and he’s not coming back for seconds. Corbin said the locker room was full of “soft ass little bitches” while claiming we would be seeing a new Corbin.

Von Wagner with Mr. Stone arrived and joined Corbin in the ring. Stone said Corbin wants to get back to the top of this place, but the problem is a guy like Von Wagner is standing in his way. Stone said that Wagner put Bron Breakker through a table and this guy is just getting started.

Corbin told Wagner that if you want to make it in this business, you need to talk. Corbin spoke about how he confronted The Rock on the first Smackdown on Fox with over four million viewers in 2019. Corbin tried to motivate Wagner to deliver promos.

Wagner said that maybe Corbin talks too much. Wagner said that everybody is tired of Corbin’s same old sob story. Wagner ran down Corbin’s gimmicks while trashing him saying all of his gimmicks sucked. Wagner said he’s moving up the ladder around here, so next week at Heatwave, he has a reservation and a table for Corbin. When Corbin tried a punch, Wagner blocked it and Wagner clotheslined Corbin out of the ring. The fans wanted a table. Wagner cleared off the commentary table, but Corbin fought back with shoulder tackles and security arrived to break up the fight. The fans were chanting “let them fight” at the end.

Analysis: A solid promo exchange to set up a match for next week. Wagner used to get no reactions for most of his promos and actions, but now the fans are cheering for him a lot due to the smashing tables gimmick, so at least that’s working for Wagner. Corbin is a solid heel that can help Wagner progress as a face.

The Judgment Day’s Rhea Ripley and Dominik Mysterio were shown in their locker room. Ripley challenged Lyra Valkyria & Dragon Lee to a math at Heatwave next week. Dominik said he thinks that’s a great idea.

Wes Lee entered for singles action.

(Commercial)

Mustafa Ali was shown talking at a podium to an audience as if he was a politician. Ali spoke about the NXT North American Title saying that the people of North America deserve better. Ali said he’s the North American Champion that we need while inspiring millions across the continent. Ali said that the time for a new North American Champion is now.

Analysis: Interesting promo style. I liked it. Ali is a creative guy and I certainly wouldn’t mind seeing him as North American Champion at some point this year.

Dijak vs. Wes Lee

This is a #1 contender’s match for an NXT Title shot against Carmelo Hayes at Heatwave next week. I’ll go play by play here. They had a terrific match together earlier this year and they should be able to do that again.

Wes got some offense with kicks to the legs and he rammed Dijak’s left knee into the mat. Wes did a kick to the left kneecap. Dijak regrouped on the floor. Dijak pulled on the left arm of Wes against the ropes and then Dijak drove his elbow into the left arm. Wes hit a jumping kick followed by a flipping kick. Dijak grabbed Wes’ hair and drove him left shoulder-first into the turnbuckle. Dijak sent Wes into the turnbuckle. Dijak charged with a running kick, Wes ducked it and Dijak went over the top to the floor. Dijak sent Wes into the steel post.

(Commercial)

Dijak continued to work on the left arm/shoulder of Wes with an armbar. Wes managed to get back up to his feet and jumped up leading to a spinning DDT. That was impressive. Wes kicked the left knee again followed by a running dropkick. Dijak went for a kick, Wes caught him and hit a spinebuster-like move followed by a running double knee attack for two. Wes went for a Cardiac Kick, but Wes collapsed and sold his left shoulder injury. Dijak went for Feast Your Eyes, then he sold a knee injury and Wes hit a boot to the face. Dijak was selling the left leg injury as he hit the High Justice move that’s a sitout Chokeslam for a two count. Dijak swung Wes off the apron and sent Wes crashing into the steel steps. After Dijak tossed Wes over the barricade, Eddy Thorpe showed up and stared at Dijak. Wes came back by jumping off the barricade and doing a hurricanrana into the steel steps. Wes superkicked Dijak as well. Back in the ring, Wes did the Cardiac Kick to Dijak’s head. Wes went up top with a twisting splash onto Dijak for the pinfall win after 12 minutes.

Winner by pinfall: Wes Lee

Analysis: ***1/2 Great match. Both guys were selling body parts through the match with Wes selling the shoulder/arm while Dijak was selling the left knee. The turning point was when Thorpe showed up at ringside, he did nothing physically, but just getting in Dijak’s face was enough to allow Wes to make the comeback for the win. These guys work so well together. I want Dijak to get pushed, but Wes is a great performer too.

That win means Wes Lee will get to challenge Carmelo Hayes for the NXT Championship at Heatwave next week.

Dragon Lee and Lyra Valkyria spoke backstage about their mixed tag team match against Rhea Ripley & Dominik Mysterio. Lyra said they are always on the same page while their team hardly knows about eachother. Dragon said that Lyra is born for greatness.

Tyler Bate was interviewed by Mckenzie Mitchell for Bate’s match against Joe Gacy. It was set up prior to a NXT live event last Friday, so we saw a video of that argument. Bate talked about Joe’s anger problem while saying that he needs to find balance and serenity.

Tyler Bate entered for singles action.

(Commercial)

A video aired featuring Ilja Dragunov offering a warning to Trick Williams ahead of their match at Heatwave next week. Dragunov said that he’s bringing the raging fire. Dragunov said he was more dangerous than Trick can imagine.

Wes Lee was shown leaving the office of Shawn Michaels and Lee had the NXT Championship contract in his hands.

Tyler Bate vs. Joe Coffey (w/Wolfgang & Mark Coffey)

Bate hit a dropkick, but then he was distracted the Gallus boys. Joe hit a backbreaker for two. Bate hit a running forearm, a knee lift and an uppercut off the middle turnbuckle. Bate hit a standing Shooting Star Press for a two count. Joe hit a German Suplex for two. They exchanged strikes and Bate clotheslined Joe out of the ring. Bate hit a dive over the top to the floor. Dabba-Kato came out of the back and kicked Bate for the DQ finish after four minutes.

Winner by disqualification: Tyler Bate

Analysis: ** The action was solid before the cheap attack by Kato. A lot of offense for Bate to show how talented he is. Joe has a good ground game with power moves.

After the match, Kato tried going after Joe, but the Gallus boys saved Joe. Kato hit a sitout two-handed Chokeslam on Bate. Kato stood tall.

Analysis: Welcome back Dabba-Kato to his six fans. I didn’t really miss him, but I guess WWE has to try again with him.

Baron Corbin was interviewed in the parking lot. Bron Breakker walked up to Corbin saying he wasn’t finished with Von Wagner next week. Corbin said Bron looked finished when Wagner put Bron through a table. Bron said that he’ll be watching and Corbin said Bron intimidates everybody in NXT, but Corbin is not everybody.

(Commercial)

Nathan Frazer was at his news desk for “Hard Hitting Home Truths” with the NXT Heritage Cup. Frazer defends that Cup against Noam Dar, They had a video with Noam Dar and Meta-Four with Noam holding the fake Heritage Cup. It turned into a promo exchange. Dar truthfully said that Frazer beat Mensah, not him. Frazer had a button that he used against Dar and it said “FRAUD” every time Frazer pushed it.

Analysis: This entire storyline is silly, but Frazer-Dar will have a great match next week.

Jacy Jayne vs. Thea Hail (w/Andre Chase & Duke Hudson)

Hail did a headscissors that sent Jayne out of the ring and Hail hit a suicide dive on the floor.

(Commercial)

Jayne was in control with some basic offense like a back elbow smash and a senton splash. Hail pulled on the left arm for a takedown followed by Hail hitting a double knee attack to the arm. Hail hit a springboard back splash for two. Hail applied a Kimura Lock, but Jayne got to the ropes to break it. Jayne pulled a turnbuckle pad off, so Chase put it back on. Hail was yelling at Chase about being on the apron. Jayne capitalized with an inside cradle for the pinfall win after eight minutes.

Winner by pinfall: Jacy Jayne

Analysis: **1/4 Jayne needed a win here, so having her capitalize on the situation to win is the right result. This match was all about the story with Hail continuing to lose her focus due to Chase.

A video aired about Humberto Garza telling his grandsons Humberto Carrillo and Angel Garza that they are still a family. Humberto said no more games, no more distractions and a new beginning together.

Wes Lee walked up to Carmelo Hayes in the backstage area where Melo was singing photos. Wes Lee had the contract with him. Wes said he’s not waiting and took the table.

Wes Lee walked out with the table and brought it out to the ring. A contract signing is next.

(Commercial)

There was a video package about NXT Women’s Champion Tiffany Stratton. There is no storyline for her at the moment.

Next week on NXT Heatwave:

* Dominik Mysterio & Rhea Ripley vs. Dragon Lee & Lyra Valkyria

* Ilja Dragunov vs. Trick Williams

* NXT Heritage Cup: Nathan Frazer vs. Naom Dar

* Von Wagner vs. Baron Corbin

* NXT Championship: Carmelo Hayes vs. Wes Lee

Analysis: It’s a good lineup. Everything has been built up well.

NXT Championship Match Contract Signing

Carmelo Hayes made his entrance as the NXT Champion for the contract signing with Wes Lee, who was in the ring with a table and contract. Melo told Wes he better chill.

Wes said he doesn’t know anything about Melo’s lifestyle now. Melo spoke about the responsibility of being a champion. Melo credited Wes for holding the NXT North American Championship very well. Melo said that next week is Wes’ shot to take the title, but Melo said he’s not convinced that Wes can’t be “Him.”

Wes said when Melo got here, he was one of the chosen ones and Wes said he wasn’t one of them. Wes said in the military, they told him he can’t do that job. Wes said in WWE, people said “you can’t” to him. Wes spoke about being a two-time tag champion, then he became North American Champion and Wes spoke about how he’s been told he can’t do things, but then he did it. Wes claimed he was the greatest North American Champion in history. Wes asked who did he take that champion off?

Melo said that Wes won that championship, but he didn’t beat Melo. Melo said he got the most eyes on that championship and he put the title on the map while adding he was a two time North American Title. Melo said this is about his NXT Championship. Melo said at Heatwave, Wes can’t beat Melo. Wes spoke about how he has turned doubters into believers including himself. Wes said he will not fail anymore. Wes signed the contract.

Melo said Wes earned this. Melo spouted some TLC telling him don’t go chasing waterfalls and said next week it’s Melo can’t miss. Melo signed the contract to truly make it official.

Melo held up the NXT Title, so Wes jumped up and broke the table with his feet. Wes: “See you at Heatwave.” They had a staredown to end it.

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Three Stars of the Show

1. Wes Lee
2. Dijak
3. Tony D’Angelo & Stacks

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The Scoreboard

This week: 7 out of 10

Last week: 6.75

2023 Average: 6.99

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Final Thoughts

I thought it was a good show overall. I’m looking forward to Carmelo Hayes facing Wes Lee next week for the NXT Title. In terms of matches, Wes Lee and Dijak had the best of the show. That was great like their match earlier this year. The Tag Team Title match to open the show had an interesting story with the Creed Brothers costing The Dyad against Tony D & Stacks. There were a bunch of short matches that all furthered storylines.

They continue to utilize a lot of the roster by having matches and also a lot of interviews/backstage segments. It’s hard to keep track of how many stories they actually have because there are so many of them.

The lineup for Heatwave next week is okay for a Tuesday special episode. Rhea & Dom in a mixed tag should lead to some interest from fans of theirs that watch them on Raw. The other matches on Heatwave were all pushed very well in the last few weeks.

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Thanks for reading. Go Toronto Blue Jays. My contact info is below.

John Canton

Email mrjohncanton@gmail.com

Twitter/X @johnreport