TJR: WWE NXT Deadline 2024 Preview
This is WWE NXT Deadline featuring two Iron Survivor Challenge matches, plus Trick Williams facing Ridge Holland for the NXT Title.
I am writing this preview on the morning of the show. I was going to do it on Friday, but life got busy and I wasn’t able to get it done in time. I like the card for NXT Deadline and the two Iron Survivor Challenge matches will be going 25 minutes, so they are the highlights of the show in many ways. Based on comments from NXT announcer Vince Joseph on TV this past week, it seems like the Women’s Iron Survivor Challenge Match will be the main event, so I’ll put that up last.
Before I begin, here are the rules for the Iron Survivor Challenge matches. That graphic is from last year, but I believe the rules are the same.
The winners get a title shot at New Year’s Evil, which is usually a TV special, but perhaps it will be a PLE next year. As I said, they got 25 minutes and they are usually very good matches. This is the third year of NXT doing those matches.
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Men’s Iron Survivor Challenge Match: Wes Lee vs. Je’Von Evans vs. Nathan Frazer vs. Ethan Page vs. Eddy Thorpe
There are questions about Eddy Thorpe’s availability for this match. Thorpe was the victim of a dreaded mystery attack (a lot of those going around WWE TV shows lately) and we don’t know if he’ll be in this match. Perhaps it will be revealed that Oba Femi did it, then they put Oba in this match and he wins it. I guess it could happen, but I’m not predicting that. It could be another wrestler too instead of Femi. Your guess is as good as mine.
I think it should be a great match since there are a lot of talented guys in the match. My lean is to go with Wes Lee as the winner since his heel turn still feels fresh and he hasn’t been a challenger for the NXT Title yet. Frazer would be a fun choice although he’s still a tag team wrestler. Page could certainly win as a former NXT Champion, but I think he’s there to come close to winning without getting the victory. Je’Von Evans might come close to winning and maybe he’s in there for most of the match. I love watching Evans. I wouldn’t mind it if he won. I just feel like Lee is the best choice to win out of this group.
I will also add that I think Trick Williams will probably hold the NXT Title until WrestleMania weekend, so whoever wins here probably isn’t taking the title off Trick. I could be wrong, but that’s what I feel.
Winner: Wes Lee
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NXT Underground Match: Lola Vice vs. Jaida Parker
These two women have done a great job of having a personal, hard-hitting feud. I liked their match in Philly a few weeks back and now it’s a different feel with an Underground Match that has no ropes. It feels more like a fight. Vice has had Underground success with wins over Natalya and Baszler in the past while Parker is new to the Underground environment.
Even though Parker has been a heel in the past with the OTM group, she is gaining momentum as a face because the fans like and respect her as a badass. I think Vice was better as a heel in the past, but I don’t mind her as a face now. Parker won their last match and stood tall on NXT this week, so it makes me think Vice is going to win this match. I would be happy with Parker winning. I just think based on the booking that Vice winning makes more sense.
Winner: Lola Vice
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NXT Tag Team Championships: Nathan Frazer & Axiom vs. No Quarter Catch Crew – Myles Borne & Tavion Heights
The placement on the card is important here because if it’s after the Iron Survivor Challenge, then I can see NXT doing a story where Frazer is in the Iron Survivor Challenge match for 25 minutes and then he has to do this tag team title match as well. That can lead to a story where Frazer has an injury or he’s fatigued, which leads to mistakes in the match and perhaps a title change as well.
I’m going with the title change. I didn’t think Borne would win the battle royal on NXT to get his team with Heights a title shot, but here we are. It’s a huge match for Borne & Heights since they haven’t been pushed to PLE matches much. I assume the NXT bosses feel they are ready, so we’ll see how Borne & Heights fare. I think there’s going to be miscommunication with Axiom & Frazer, who will sell fatigue/injury and then there will be the upset title change. The NXT Tag Team division hasn’t been that strong this year other than Axiom & Frazer, so I hope things get better as we head into the new year.
Winners AND NEW NXT Tag Team Champions: No Quarter Catch Crew – Myles Borne & Tavion Heights
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NXT Championship: Trick Williams vs. Ridge Holland
This is Trick’s second NXT Title reign and this time he’s held the title for about two months. As I mentioned earlier in the preview, I expect him to have a longer title reign that sees him hold the title until around WrestleMania’s Stand & Deliver NXT PLE, so I think Trick should retain the gold here.
Ridge has been built up well as a heel that’s easy to hate since he beat all the Chase U guys while also ending the Chase U “university” itself after a three-year run. Ridge has won most of his matches since being a heel, so it gives him some positive momentum going into this match. I don’t think either guy is necessarily great in the ring, but I assume they will have a solid match where Ridge dominates most of it and Trick makes the big comeback to win. I’m not sure who will take the title off Trick. I just don’t think Ridge is that guy.
Winner: Trick Williams
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Iron Survivor Challenge Match:Sol Ruca vs. Zaria vs. Stephanie Vaquer vs. Giulia vs. Wren Sinclair
I’ll start by saying I think it would be awesome to see this women’s match in the main event of the show. The NXT women’s division is so impressive and is one of the best parts of the brand. They usually feature more women’s matches in an episode than Raw or Smackdown has, which is a testament to how well the division is going.
When it comes to this match, I think the winner will beat Roxanne Perez to be the NXT Women’s Champion. It’s been a very long title reign for Perez that I thought would end two months ago, but Cora Jade helped Perez beat Giulia in that match. Giulia is one of the three main contenders in this match along with Stephanie Vaquer and Zaria. They are all new in NXT over the last few months and I think they are all viable choices as the winner. That’s not a slight against Sol or Wren because I like them too. I just feel like the other women have a real shot to win this match.
My gut feeling is that Giulia will win and she’ll beat Perez for the NXT Women’s Title. If not her then Zaria would be my pick. It’s tough to choose and that makes it an exciting match because there’s going to be a lot of drama in the 25 minutes that these women are out there.
Winner: Giulia
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BONUS THOUGHTS
The Match I’m Looking Forward To The Most
Both Iron Survivor Challenge Matches.
The Match I Care About The Least
NXT Tag Team Title match. There isn’t a story other than a battle royal win to earn a title shot.
Longest Match
The Iron Survivor Challenge Matches at 25 minutes.
Shortest Match
NXT Tag Team Title match around 12 minutes.
Excitement Level on a Scale of 1-10 (1 being low, 10 being high)
I think it’s about a 7 out of 10. I don’t anticipate this being some great show or anything that we will remember as a legendary NXT PLE. However, I like the Iron Survivor Challenge matches and I think the ten wrestlers in them will do a good job. The rest of the card is average and frankly weaker than most of the better NXT PLE events. That’s not to say the NXT product is bad right now because I do like it. I just think they had better shows earlier in the around, especially around the summer. Plus, there’s only two title matches on the show, which is less than normal for a NXT PLE and the absence of a Roxanne Perez match hurts the card too.
I’ll have a review of Deadline either Saturday night or Sunday morning. I don’t know if I’m going to be home to do it all live. I’ll do the best I can as always.
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Thanks for reading. My contact info is below.
John Canton
Email mrjohncanton@gmail.com
Twitter/X @johnreport