Reviews

The John Report: WWE NXT Deadline 2025 Review

By John Canton • Published Dec 06, 2025 23:48 EST
WWE NXT Deadline 2025 Review

This is WWE NXT Deadline, featuring Ricky Saints facing Oba Femi and two Iron Survivor Challenge matches.

NXT Deadline is the 8th and final NXT PLE of the year. They have five matches scheduled for the show. Most NXT PLE’s this year had at least six matches, but when you have two Iron Survivor Challenge matches going 25 minutes each, I get why they kept it at five matches.

I missed it live because I had plans and I was out, but I wrote this review when I came home. Here are the rules to the Iron Survivor Challenge matches.

Let’s get to it.

WWE Deadline
From Boeing Center at Tech Port in San Antonio, Texas
Saturday, December 6, 2025

There was a video package to set up the show. They showed some superstars walking around earlier in the day.

The commentary team was Vic Joseph and Booker T. Mike Rome was the ring announcer.

There was a ramp from the entrance area to the ring, but not connected to the ring. The crowd size was just under 2,000 people, according to Wrestletix. It’s not huge, but it’s a bigger building than the WWE PC in Orlando at least.

NXT Championship: Ricky Saints vs. Oba Femi

Ricky won the title from Oba at No Mercy in September. It was 70 days into Ricky’s title reign. This is the rematch. It’s also the first time the NXT Title has led off a NXT PLE.

Femi hit a backbreaker early on. Femi worked over Ricky with a forearm to the back, along with a punch to the body. Femi hit a shoulder tackle. Femi sent Ricky face first into the top turnbuckle. Ricky countered a move and hit two knees to the left arm. Ricky did some rope walking, leading to a punch to the arm. Ricky hit Femi in the back of the leg and stomped on the arm. Ricky connected with a missile dropkick off the middle turnbuckle. Femi hit a backbreaker, along with a Gorilla Press Slam dropping Ricky into the mat. Femi pressed his knee into Ricky’s back against the middle rope. Femi suplex tossed Ricky across the ring for a two count. Femi worked over Ricky with body punches and a punch to the jaw. Femi clotheslined Ricky in the back of the head. Femi applied an armbar, followed by a forearm to the back. The fans were chanting for both guys. Ricky got some offense going with a running kick to the face, along with a running elbow against the turnbuckles. Ricky jumped off the top with a hurricanrana, followed by a Spear for two. Femi hit a knee to the ribs and wanted a Powerbomb, but Ricky landed on his feet. Ricky hit a clothesline, Femi tried a clothesline, Ricky avoided it and hit a Stunner for a two count. Ricky applied a guillotine choke, but the powerhouse Femi countered it by slamming Ricky ribs-first across the top rope. Ricky avoided a charging Femi and sent Femi out of the ring. Ricky hit a suicide dive forearm to send Femi into the commentary table. Ricky may have caught the rope with his leg, but he was able to hit the move. Femi got back in the ring before the ten count.

Ricky hit a Fameasser for a two count. Femi hit two clotheslines, a forearm to the back and a running uppercut against the turnbuckle. Femi went for a power move, Ricky countered it and got a two count. Femi caught Ricky on his shoulder and hit a Big Ending for a two count. Femi charged, Ricky moved and Femi went shoulder-first into the ring post. Ricky charged on the floor and Femi hit him with a chop to the chest. Femi charged, Ricky moved and Femi went crashing into the steel steps. Ricky hit a Tornado DDT on the steel steps. The replay showed it was Femi’s forearm hitting the steel steps that made the noise. Back in the ring, Ricky hit an impressive Tornado DDT with a lot of height on it and it got a two count. Femi countered a move and hit the Fall From Grace (Popup Powerbomb) for a two count because Ricky got his right shoulder up. Femi caught Ricky again and hit Fall From Grace again for the pinfall win at 17:20. Oba Femi is the NXT Champion again!

Winner by pinfall AND NEW NXT Champion: Oba Femi

Analysis: ***3/4 I thought it was a great match. It was even most of the way with both guys coming close multiple times throughout the match. They each hit big moves, including Ricky hitting the Tornado DDT move that he used to beat Oba for the title at No Mercy. When Ricky kicked out the first Fall From Grace I expected Ricky to kick out, but when Femi hit a second Fall From Grace I figured that was the end of the match, and that’s what it was. I admit I predicted this one wrong because I figured Ricky’s reign would last longer than 70 days and Femi seemed like he was ready for the main roster. I guess not. Maybe Ricky Saints will be on the main roster soon. Anyway, I like Oba a lot, and I think the plan is for Je’Von Evans to beat Femi for the title, so that it means more when Evans wins it.

Oba Femi will face WWE Champion Cody Rhodes at Saturday Night’s Main Event next Saturday night, December 13th, in Washington D.C.

After the match, Oba Femi celebrated with the NXT Title in the ring. Ricky Saints got up and extended his hand for a handshake. Femi shook his hand. The fans cheered.

Analysis: It will be interesting to see if they have a third match since Ricky won the first time, Oba won this time and then a third match makes sense. That could be a TV main event.

A commercial aired for NXT New Year’s Evil on January 6th, which is a regular Tuesday night broadcast of the show.

There was an interview with Women’s Evolve Champion Kendal Grey and Wren Sinclair, and it was conducted by Kelly Kincaid. Grey talked about how growing up she used to watch John Cena, and she showed a photo of herself at a WWE show with Cena in the main event. Grey said Cena inspired her to never give up and never back down. Grey said she has to prove she belongs in the Iron Survivor Challenge Match. Wren said Grey is a badass who knows what to do. Grey spoke about her confidence and how she’s ready. Wren talked about how she’s the biggest Kendal Grey fan and she can’t wait to see Grey hold up the Wren-QCC sign. Grey said she’ll show she’s built for big moments. Grey said by the end of the night, everyone will be talking about her.

Sol Ruca was shown on Facetime talking to Zaria. Sol said she felt bad about what has happened in the last few weeks. Zaria said that she didn’t go to the show because she didn’t think Sol wanted her there. Sol said she would have loved to have Zaria there with her. Zaria said they should talk when Sol gets back home. Sol ended it because her match was coming up next.

Analysis: The Zaria heel turn is coming soon. It’s pretty obvious.

A video aired of Hank & Tank making a trip to Japan. They won the Pro Wrestling NOAH GHC Tag Team Championships. They are back on NXT this Tuesday.

There was a video package about the Iron Survivor Challenge matches.

Women’s Iron Survivor Challenge: Kelani Jordan vs. Kendal Grey vs. Jordynne Grace vs. Sol Ruca vs. Lola Vice

There’s a clock counting up to 25 minutes and the names of the five women on the screen to let us know how many falls they each have.

It’s Kelani Jordan and Women’s Evolve Champion Kendal Grey to start the match. They are both incredible athletes with Jordan having more experience, but it’s not like they have had long careers. Jordan hit a dropkick. Grey tripped up Jordan and stomped on her ribs. They exchanged pin attempts with cradles by both women. Jordan stomped on Grey’s back on the apron. Jordan tackled Grey into the side of the ring apron. Jordan hit a Northern Lights Suplex for two. Jordan hit a backbreaker. Grey sent Jordan face first into the mat. Jordan sent Grey into the middle turnbuckle and leg drop to the back of the neck for two. Jordan jumped off the top, Grey moved and Grey hit a snap belly-to-belly suplex to pin Jordan. Grey has 1.

There’s Jordynne Grace as the third woman in the match. Grace set up Grey against the turnbuckle and hit a splash against the turnbuckle. Grace hit a Grace Under Pressure splash off the middle turnbuckle for a two count. Grace applied a submission where she held onto the arms. Jordan got out of the penalty box to break up the submission attempt. Grey rolled up Jordan and they exchanged pin attempts for two counts. Grey applied an Ankle Lock. Jordan sat on top of Grey and held onto the legs for a pinfall. Grey and Jordan have 1.

Grace battled Jordan while Grey was in the penalty box for 90 seconds. Grace sent Jordan into the turnbuckle a few times and hit two clotheslines. Jordan hit a sitout DDT for a two count. Grace left the ring and clotheslined Grey on the floor when Grey got out of the penalty box. Jordan hit a twisting dive onto Grace on the floor. Jordan went up top, Grace got back into it and Grey pulled Grace off the turnbuckle. Jordan shoved Grey down. They did a Tower of Doom spot as the clock ticked down for the next entrant.

It’s Lola Vice in the 4th spot in this match at the 10-minute mark. Vice hit a spinning back fist on Grey and pinned her about 20 seconds after getting into the ring. Grey, Vice and Jordan have 1 point.

Vice hit running hip attacks on Grace and Jordan. Vice hit two German Suplexes in a row. Vice hit her running hip attack on Grace and Jordan at the same time. Vice hit a belly-to-back suplex on Jordan for two and a two count on Grace too. Vice got a jackknife pin attempt on Grace for two. Grey was back into the ring and hit an impressive belly-to-belly suplex. Grey applied an armbar on Grace, but Grace was too strong. Grey countered Grace and pinned her for a three count. Grey has 2, while Vice and Jordan have 1.

Jordan and Grey battled by the turnbuckle, where Grey hit a German Suplex off the top, and Jordan did a moonsault bump to take that. Vice hit a running kick on Jordan, but Grey was there to break up the pin attempt. Grey superkicked Jordan on the apron. Vice and Grey exchanged submission attempts in the ring. Grace kicked the door open to knock Jordan down on the floor. Grace hit a spinebuster on Grey and a sitout Powerbomb for a two count on Grey. Grace hit an impressive cradle suplex on Vice for two. Grace countered a cross body block by Jordan into a successful pin. Grey has 2, Vice, Jordan & Grace have 1.

There is Sol Ruca as the 5th entrant for the final 10 minutes of the match. Jordan was supposed to be in the penalty box, but she attacked Sol and sent Sol into the steel steps. Sol was selling a knee injury. The trainers helped Sol to the backstage area. Jordan was smiling about it. Grace was fighting off Vice and Grey in the ring. There was an exchange of pin attempts by Vice and Grey for two counts. Grace hit two shoulder tackles on Grey. Grace hit a belly-to-back slam. Grace did a “You Can’t See Me” and Jordan stopped the fist drop attempt. Jordan got a rollup on Vice. Jordan hit a jumping back kick on Grey and Vice at the same time. Jordan gave Grace a Spanish Fly on the floor. Ruca got back out there with a knee smash on Jordan. Ruca hit a Soul Snatcher on Jordan and Vice at the same time. Ruca pinned both of them, so Ruca has 2, Grey has 2, Vice, Jordan & Grace have 1.

Ruca battled Grey and hit a German Suplex. Ruca slipped going for a knee smash on Grace. Vice was trying to beat up Jordan in the penalty box. Ruca hit a missile dropkick off the middle turnbuckle. Ruca hit a running knee on Grace for two because Grey broke up the pin. Grace applied a Dragon Sleeper on Ruca. Grace applied a half crab. Vice and Jordan got out of the penalty box. Vice hit some quick kicks on multiple women. Grey countered Vice into a pin attempt. Vice hit a knee smash on Grey. Ruca hit an X-Factor on Vice. Grace hit a rolling senton on Ruca. Grey hit an amazing Shades of Grey flatliner on Grace. Jordan was bit slow to break it up, but she hit a splash on Grace for a successful pinfall. Jordan, Ruca & Grey have 2, Vice & Grace have 1.

Ruca dropkicked Jordan off the apron to the floor. Ruca hit a moonsault off the turnbuckle onto Vice and Grey on the floor. Jordan hit a springboard moonsault on Ruca on the floor. Jordan hit a version of the Olympic Slam. Jordan went for a 450 Splash, but Vice moved. Grace got out of the penalty box with a German Suplex and Blockbuster at the same time. Grace hit a spinning sitout Powerbomb for a pinfall on Jordan. Vice kicked Grey and pinned her. All 5 women have 2 points.

There were under 2 minutes left as Grace set p Ruca on the apron. Ruca hit a belly-to-back suplex on Grace on the apron. Vice applied a sleeper on Ruca on the floor. Ruca hit a backpack slam on the floor. There were about 60 seconds left. Ruca hit a Soul Snatcher on Vice from the steel steps and she hit the move on the floor. Back in the ring, Jordan kicked Sol’s left knee. Jordan went up top and hit a 450 Splash on Vice for a two count. Jordan and Grace fought with eachother on the floor. Grey jumped off the top and hit the Shades of Grey flatliner on Vice! Grey covered for the pinfall win. Grey got that fall with 3 seconds left in the match. The fans popped big for Grey’s win. It went 25:00.

Kendal Grey wins with 3 falls while Ruca, Grace, Jordan & Vice all had 2 falls.

Winner: Kendal Grey

Analysis: **** Awesome match. Four stars out of five. This match is full of so much action that it’s hard to keep up with everything during the 25 minutes, but they really laid it out well and it was a lot of fun to watch. Kendal Grey and Kelani Jordan were so impressive throughout the match because they were in there for 25 minutes and didn’t tire at all. They looked fresh throughout the match. The Sol Ruca injury spot took her out for a few minutes, but then she got right back in there, got two falls quickly and looked like a threat to win. The last 10 minutes after Sol Ruca entered were outstanding with so many amazing nearfalls throughout the match. My prediction was wrong because I picked Jordynne Grace because I thought at some point she needs to break through for a title shot, but it didn’t happen. I certainly have no problem with Kendal Grey winning because she’s very talented. It’s easy to see why WWE wants to push Grey. She’s got it all.

At NXT New Year’s Evil on January 6th, Jacy Jayne defends the NXT Women’s Championship against Kendal Grey.

Kendal Grey celebrated in the ring while she saw Jacy Jayne and Fatal Influence watching from the aisle.

Analysis: I wonder if they pull the trigger on Kendal Grey as the NXT Women’s Champion. She’s so talented. It’s early in her career, but she’s delivering in big matches every time she’s out there, and I don’t expect Jayne to have a long title reign this time around. They might do a title change.

There were some videos about Evolve wrestlers doing promos. This guy named It’s Gal looks like one of the most annoying people I’ve ever seen in my life. I get that it’s the gimmick, but it is not good to watch.

A clip aired of John Cena’s interview, looking back on his career. Cena spoke about how it’s more of a team atmosphere in WWE today compared to when he started 26 years ago.

The NXT Women’s North American Champion, Blake Mornoe, was backstage talking to NXT GM Ava. Blake suggested an open challenge for NXT this Tuesday. Ava said that an open challenge means that anyone gets an opportunity. Ava wanted Blake to be sure. Ava mentioned Ilja Dragunov, Sami Zayn, and John Cena doing open challenges. Blake said she was able to do it, too. Ava said sure.

Myles Borne was interviewed by Sarah Schreiber, who asked Borne what spot he’ll be in the match because he gets to pick since he won on NXT this past Tuesday. Borne said he’s going to come out third.

While that interview was going on, Jordynne Grace and Kelani Jordan were still fighting. Referees showed up to break it up.

NXT North American Championship: Ethan Page vs. Mr. Iguana

The Iguana had his pet iguana called La Yesca as usual. Booker questioned why Iguana is getting a title shot. It’s a good question since Iguana did nothing to earn it. They need to do a better job of having people earn title matches.

Page hit a shoulder tackle to knock Iguana down, so Iguana stayed down with his arms and legs up in the air. Iguana popped up with an armdrag. The fans were chanting for Iguana. After Iguana did some comedy spots, Page hit a DDT. Page picked up Iguana, who attacked with Yesca while Booker said it’s illegal and Vic said it’s not illegal. Iguana hit a cross body block off the top for two. Iguana did a headscissors to send Page out of the ring. Page punched Iguana and sent him into the steel steps. Iguana hit a running headscissors, along with a springboard headbutt to knock Page down. Iguana “bit” Page’s fingers while Yesca was on the hand. Page got a hold of Iguana on the top rope and hit a powerslam. Page hit a body slam. Page hit Iguana with a boot to the face. Page took Yesca away from Iguana, spit on Yesca and tossed it out of the ring. The fans booed that. Yesca fought back with chops and a Tornado DDT. Iguana went up top, Page shoved him onto the turnbuckle and Page went for a move off the top, but Iguana hit a hurricanrana off the top. Iguana hit a somersault dive over the top and hit a hurricanrana on the floor. Iguana went up top and hit a headbutt on Page for a two count. Booker: “What’s all this green stuff?” Vic: “It’s paint!” True. Page slammed Iguana off the top and hit the Twisted Grin cutter for the pinfall win at 8:33.

Winner by pinfall: Ethan Page

Analysis: **3/4 Easy win for Ethan Page as expected. Page was in control, then Iguana got a flurry of offense until Page hit a couple of moves to finish him off. That was the right move to have Page win in a dominant manner. I have said for months that I think Myles Borne should be the one to take the NXT North American Title from Page within a few months, so maybe they’ll go in that direction soon.

A video aired about the WWE 2K25 video game featuring John Cena’s Farewell Tour edition of add-ons.

There was a video package about John Cena’s famous “You Can’t See Me” hand gesture, while current WWE stars talked about how big a gesture it is. They showed a clip of Cena explaining it from his brother doing it as a joke, then he dared Cena to do it, and Cena started doing it. The gesture took off from there.

A clip aired of The Undertaker’s Six Feet Under podcast with Bayley as the guest.

Kendal Grey and Wren Sinclair were interviewed by Sarah Schreiber backstage. Grey said that she was the underdog and nobody thought she would win. Sol Ruca walked in, saying congrats to Grey. Ruca said if she were out there for the whole time, she would have won. Wren credited Grey for winning. Wren mentioned Zaria hitting Grey with a Spear last week, and Grey won. Ruca said something about Zaria is still her best friend, and Zaria fought for Ruca, so Ruca will fight for Zaria too.

The NXT Champion Oba Femi approached Dion Lennox backstage. Lennox was with his Darkstate buddies. Oba told Lennox that Femi did his part by becoming NXT Champion again. Lennox said that those guys in the match won’t be safe, and neither will Femi at New Year’s Evil. Femi wished Lennox good luck.

A video package aired to set up the Tatum Paxley-Izzi Dame match. Dame cost Paxley the NXT Women’s Title at NXT Gold Rush, so Paxley only held the title for about a month.

Izzi Dame (w/Shawn Spears & Niko Vance) vs. Tatum Paxley

Paxley had a look where her makeup was a mess and she looked like she was crying. Paxley hit some forearms to the chest, but Dame hit a clothesline. Dame hit an uppercut to send Paxley into the ropes. Paxley hit an impressive flipping leg drop to the back of the head. Dame told Paxley to stop, so Paxley reluctantly stopped. Paxley picked up Dame, and Dame hugged her, which led to boos. Dame tossed Paxley into the steel steps. Dame hit a running knee smash to the ribs. Paxley tackled Dame into the turnbuckle. Dame got her knees up, and Dame slammed Paxley to the mat. Dame hit a shoulder tackle on Paxley against the turnbuckle. Dame hit a backbreaker for a two count. Dame hit a knee to the ribs. The fans were chanting, “Let’s Go Tatum” for the babyface Paxley. Paxley hit an elbow smash, but Dame came back with a knee to the ribs. Dame suplexed Paxley onto the top rope. Dame sent Paxley into the turnbuckle and a boot to the face. Dame hit a backbreaker. Dame applied a Boston Crab variation while putting her knee on the mat to use her height advantage. Paxley got an inside cradle. Dame got back with a clothesline. Dame slapped Paxley in the face. Paxley laughed off the attack and fired back up with punches, a kick to the head, and a German Suplex. Paxley hit an elbow drop for a two count. Paxley went to the turnbuckle, but Dame was back up with a forearm. Dame went for a suplex, Paxley stopped that and jumped off the top, but Dame hit a dropkick to the ribs. Dame hit a swinging neckbreaker for a two count.

Dame and Paxley exchanged strikes. Paxley hit a superkick. Paxley hit a crucifix bomb, leading to Dame bumping to the apron. Paxley hit a cross body block that sent both women out of the ring. Rough landing for Paxley, but she was okay. Paxley jumped off the commentary table with a kick. Paxley hit a German Suplex on the floor. Paxley cleared off the commentary table. Dame pleaded with Paxley to stop, but the fans chanted, “Do it” for Paxley. Paxley hit a spinning slam on the commentary table. It wasn’t enough to break the table. Shawn Spears had two dolls that he gave to Paxley. The dolls represented Paxley and Dame. Spears took the doll head off the brunette doll, so Paxley hit Spears with the other doll. Back in the ring, Dame hit a boot to the head and sitout spinebuster for the pinfall win at 12:36.

Winner by pinfall: Izzi Dame

Analysis: *** It was a match that was heavy in terms of the story, and I think it worked for the most part. If Spears hadn’t distracted Paxley with the dolls, then maybe Paxley would have won because that time allowed Dame to recover. After that, Dame hit two moves and got the win. In my preview, I picked Dame to win because I think there will be more matches, so Dame winning the first match made sense, and I think they’ll do a rematch with Paxley getting the win whenever that happens.

Ricky Saints was in the locker room, looking sad about his loss. Je’Von Evans was there saying that Ricky was a champion before, and he’ll do it again. Ricky said he disagreed. Evans said that he’s the “Absolute” Ricky Saints and that won’t change. Ricky said that the impossible Femi is back. Evans said that when he wins the Iron Survivor Challenge, he’s going to win that NXT Title. Ricky said he hopes he wins.

They aired the WrestleMania 42 commercials multiple times throughout the show. I didn’t keep track of how many times, but it was a lot.

There was an interview with Dion Lennox talking to Blake Howard from earlier in the week. Dion said it was cool that John Cena saw him as a force and put him in the Iron Survivor Challenge. Dion said he wants Darkstate to run all of NXT, not just the Tag Team Division, so he was happy to give up his tag team title to Saquon Shugars. Dion said all of their success as individuals is for the team. Dion spoke about how he is where he wants to be. Dion said that he is coming for Oba Femi. Dion said he wanted Oba to win because Oba started all this for Lennox. Dion will teach Femi that when Dion strikes, there ain’t a damn thing that’s safe.

Analysis: They aired a Kendal Grey interview earlier, and she won the Women’s Iron Survivor Challenge. Now it’s a Dion Lennox interview, so is he going to win the Men’s Iron Survivor Challenge? Find out in the main event.

A video aired about John Cena’s classic match with AJ Styles at Royal Rumble 201,7, when Cena won his 16th WWE Title. Awesome match. The WWE wrestlers talked about the match.

There was a video about Shiloh Hill where he spoke about his life’s journey leading to NXT. I’m not recapping the whole thing, but the dude talked about chasing squirrels. Riveting. A computer told Shiloh he’s ready for his first match on NXT.

This Tuesday on NXT:

* Shiloh Hill debuts

* Jordynne Grace vs. Kelani Jordan

* Blake Monroe’s Women’s NXT North American Championship open challenge

They aired the Iron Survivor Challenge Match video again.

Men’s Iron Survivor Challenge Match: Joe Hendry vs. Je’Von Evans vs. Myles Borne vs. Leon Slater vs. Dion Lennox

The first man in the match was the 21-year-old TNA X-Division Champion Leon Slater, who is very exciting to watch. Oba Femi won this match last year and became NXT Champion for the first time at New Year’s Evil this year. Your boy is bouncy and number two in the match, Je’Von Evans. The fans loved the Young OG Evans as usual. Evans is 21, like Slater as well.

Evans went for a springboard Cutter right away, but Slater caught him to block it. Slater kicked Evans and went for a move off the top, but Evans moved out of the way. Slater avoided an Evans charge and hit a hurricanrana. Slater hit a spin kick to the head. Slater hit a handspring back elbow for a two count. Evans hit a spin kick to the ribs. Evans bounced off the ropes with a hurricanrana, followed by a dropkick. Evans and Slater exchanged chops with Slater getting the advantage. Slater and Evans exchanged pin attempts for two counts. Slater avoided a Cutter and got a rollup for two. Evans hit an impressive Cutter and tried to get bouncy, but Slater stopped it. Evans got a hurricanrana into a pin that was successful. Evans has 1 point.

It’s Myles Borne in at 3 as we learned earlier in the night. Borne went after Evans and Borne hit an Angle Slam for a two count. Slater got out of the penalty box with a springboard cross body block on Evans for two. Evans and Slater did a spot where they fought for a suplex by going over the top together. Borne capitalized with a somersault dive over the top onto both guys on the floor. Back in the ring, they exchanged chops and Borne punched Evans for a two count. Borne hit a clothesline on Slater for two. Evans chopped Borne, Slater hit a forearm and Slater went for a double elbow. Evans hit a snap suplex and splash on Slater for two.

The #4 spot went to Dion Lennox of Darkstate. Dion hit a running clothesline, a boot and he tossed Slater in the air. Dion hit a Northern Lights Suplex on Evans for two. Slater hit a jumping leg drop to the back. Evans worked over Dion with punches. Borne put Slater on his shoulders and Dion hit a clothesline off the top like a Doomsday Device. Dion hit a sitout slam like a Michinoku Driver on Evans for the pinfall. It’s 1 point for Evans and Dion.

Dion worked over Slater and Borne with running clotheslines. Slater hit a jumping kick on Dion. Borne hit a belly-to-back suplex on Slater for two. Slater kicked Borne to knock him down. Evans got back into it with a springboard clothesline and a suicide dive. Evans went up top and hit a Frog Splash on Borne for two.

Say his name and he appears because Joe Hendry is the 5th and final man in the match for he final 10 minutes. There was a superplex off the top as Joe went into the ring. The fans were singing Joe’s song as he hit a neckbreaker and a fallaway slam. Joe hit a double fallaway slam on Evans and Slater at the same time. Dion hit Joe in the back to stop a power move. Joe clotheslined Dion out of the ring. Joe cleared the ring of a few wrestlers. Joe hit a running high jump over the top rope onto three guys on the floor. Borne and Joe exchanged attempts at finishing moves. Joe put Borne on his shoulders and hit a spinning spinebuster for a pinfall. It’s Evans, Joe, and Dion with 1 point.

Evans got a rollup on Joe for a two count. Slater rolled up Evans for two. Joe got a cradle on Slater. Slater and Evans superkicked Joe, then they superkicked Dion together and Slater/Evans kicked eachother at the same time. The fans chanted “NXT” for them. Borne got out of the penalty box and Dion hit the door to slam it on Joe. Evans hit a spinning kick on Joe. Evans went up top and hit a Coast to Coast Swanton on Joe and Slater hit a Coast to Coast dropkick on Joe. Slater went up top and hit the Swanton 450 Splash on Joe for the pinfall. It’s Evans, Joe, Dion and Slater with 1 point while Borne has 0.

There were less than five minutes left as Borne hit a Born Again on Slater for two because Dion broke up the pin. Born exchanged moves with Dion and Borne hit Born Again on Dion for the pinfall. All five guys have 1 point.

Dion attacked Joe in the penalty box with punches and Dion sent Joe into the box. Evans, Borne and Slater exchanged punches in the ring. Joe got back up to send Dion into the box. Borne hit a powerslam on Evans, Slater with a knee, Evans was back up with a Cutter on Slater and Joe hit a lariat on Evans, who took a big bump. Dion pulled Joe out of the ring. Dion tossed Evans into the penalty box and locked him in there even though Evans wasn’t supposed to be there. Dion hit his sitout slam, but Joe made the save on a pin attempt. Joe hit a Standing Ovation on Dion. Evans jumped off the penalty box onto Dion on the floor. Slater hit a somersault dive over the top onto Evans on the floor. Slater hit a superkick on Joe. Evans was back in with a Cutter on Slater. Evans jumped off the top with a Cutter on Slater for two because Borne broke up the pin. There were 47 seconds left. Borne hit a shoulder tackle on Evans. Borne hit a Born Again off the middle turnbuckle on Evans for two because Dion broke up the pin. Slater hit a Swanton 450 on Evans. Joe picked up Slater and Slater gave Joe a hurricanrana over the top on the floor. Borne tossed Dion over the commentary table. Borne crawled back into the ring, right into Evans, who got an inside cradle on Borne for 1…2…and 3! Evans gets the pinfall at 24:57 with 3 seconds left. Evans gets a 2nd fall. It went 25:00. The fans were cheering.

Je’Von Evans wins with 2 falls while Joe, Slater, Dion & Borne all had 1 fall.

Winner: Je’Von Evans

Analysis: **** I’m going 4 stars for this just like the women’s match. I enjoyed the matches about the same. The women’s match had more falls, but the excitement was just as good, if not better, in the men’s match, and the flurry of action in the final few minutes was absolutely outstanding. It reminded me of the year Trick Williams won it with a similar ending at the end of the match. That’s the kind of thing that works really well because somebody winning right before the buzzer is exciting to watch. There were moments in the match when I thought Lennox or Borne might win, but my pick was Evans, so I’m glad it was him, and I like how resilient he was by getting the inside cradle after taking Slater’s Swanton 450 about 15 seconds before that. I’m sure some people watching this could be picky and be mad that the wrestlers aren’t selling moves long enough, but I think they timed it well, and it didn’t seem too unrealistic to me. The right guy won because Evans is going to be the top star on the NXT brand in 2026, and winning a match like this is the right booking decision, in my opinion.

At NXT New Year’s Evil on January 6th, Oba Femi defends the NXT Championship against Je’Von Evans.

After the match, Je’Von Evans was excited about the win and shook hands with the other babyfaces Joe, Slater, and Borne. Dion refused that and left the ring. They showed replays of all the chaotic action.

The “Young OG” Je’Von Evans celebrated in the ring while the NXT Champion Oba Femi stared at him from a distance. Vic mentioned that Evans has never beaten Femi with the title on the line.

The lights went out and a video was shown of a man walking on a sidewalk by a bridge.

There was a spotlight on Evans in the ring, then they showed Femi and there was Tony D’Angelo in the ring. Tony picked up Evans and slammed him with a spinebuster. Tony dropped some black materials from his pocket onto Evans on the mat. That was the same material that was sent to Ava last week on NXT. Tony D stared at Femi from a distance. Tony D had on a thick jacket and he had a very thick beard. Vic said as we look toward the future, the past has become the present in NXT. End show.

Analysis: It has been several months since we have seen Tony D on NXT. I figured he would be on the main roster since he’s been in NXT for over four years, but here he is for more NXT. Tony has a different look, with a thicker beard and a jacket that you wouldn’t say fits his mafia style. Maybe it’s a new gimmick for Tony where they say he’s left the mafia gimmick in the past, and now he’s out for revenge against everybody because he was screwed over in the past. I’m sure the direction can go in a lot of ways, but clearly, Tony is going to be in the NXT Title picture with Oba and Evans after this.

WWE NXT Deadline had a runtime of 2 hours, and 45 minutes on Netflix in Canada.

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Five Stars of the Show

  1. Je’Von Evans
  2. Kendal Grey
  3. Oba Femi and Ricky Saints
  4. The four men in the Iron Survivor Challenge Match who didn’t win.
  5. The four women in the Iron Survivor Challenge Match who didn’t win.

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Final Thoughts on WWE NXT Deadline

I’m going with an 8 out of 10.

Awesome show. I’m rating this as the second-best NXT PLE of the year after Stand & Deliver. The three best matches were all great, while the other two were just okay. Nothing was bad. It was an entertaining show that was under 3 hours.

Good night for young talent with the 21-year-old Evans and 24-year-old Grey as big winners, while the 27-year-old Femi is NXT Champion again. That’s not a knock on others and I’m not saying others are old. I’m just saying you can tell NXT is clearly enjoying the youth movement on the brand right now, and they are backing those young superstars because of how talented they are right now. As good as they are now, can you imagine how good they’ll be in the future? That’s what is so fun about watching them in NXT and seeing them grow. I love it.

Here are my NXT PLE rankings for this year:

Stand & Deliver (April 19) – 8.5 (out of 10)

Deadline (December 6) – 8

Halloween Havoc (October 25) – 7.75

Vengeance Day (February 15) – 7.75

No Mercy (September 27) – 7.5

The Great American Bash (July 12) – 7.5

Heatwave – 7.25

Battleground (May 25) – 7.25

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Thanks for reading. My contact info is below.

John Canton

Email [email protected]

Twitter/X @johnreport