Reviews

The John Report: WWE NXT No Mercy 2023 Review

By John Canton • Published 30th September 2023
wwe nxt no mercy review 2023 tjrwrestling

This is WWE NXT No Mercy with Becky Lynch-Tiffany Stratton in an Extreme Rules Match, plus a Carmelo Hayes-Ilja Dragunov rematch and more.

It’s the fifth WWE NXT PLE of 2023 using the No Mercy name that WWE hasn’t used since 2017. It’s the first time they have done a No Mercy show for the NXT brand.

There was a Kickoff Show match saw Blair Davenport beat Kelani Jordan. Gigi Dolin attacked Blair after the match. Let’s get to the main show.

NXT No Mercy
From Mechanics Bank Arena in Bakersfield, California
September 30, 2023

The opening video package focused on the matches at No Mercy. It was a cool video paying tribute to the classic No Mercy video game that is beloved by wrestling fans who remember playing it two decades ago.

Bron Breakker was up first wearing some bear headgear to look even meaner than he usually is. Baron Corbin was up next as the opponent with Corbin arriving on a motorcycle. It’s an interesting choice starting with a heel-heel match.

Baron Corbin vs. Bron Breakker

Bron jumped over the top with a somersault dive onto Corbin on the floor before the match even began. They went fight into the crowd with Corbin punching Bron a few times. Bron came back with punches as they made their way back to ringside. There were random security guys there, so Bron punched them. Corbin clotheslined Bron over the barricade. Corbin set up Bron on the commentary table, Corbin jumped off the steel steps with a back senton and Bron moved, so Corbin hit the table. Bron sent Corbin back into the ring so the match began officially with the referee calling for the bell.

Bron hit a back body drop. Corbin came back with a boot to the face followed by a clothesline off the middle rope for two. Corbin worked over Bron with punches. Corbin hit a suplex on Bron for a two count. The announcers were off for about a minute, but then they were back. Bron told Corbin to bring it and Corbin hit a clothesline. Bron came back with a move where he tossed Corbin into the air leading to Corbin hitting the double knees. The fans were booing Bron loudly as he set up Corbin on the turnbuckle. Bron was unable to hit a move obvious, but then he got back up with a Frankensteiner. Bron hit a press powerslam for a two count. That used to be Bron’s finishing move. Corbin punched Bron a few times followed by a Death Valley Driver slam off the shoulders for a two count. Bron tripped up Corbin going for a submission move, but Corbin fought it and got to the ropes. Bron ran the ropes, Corbin caught him and hit a Deep Six with Vic saying he did an extra rotation for a Deep Twelve for a two. That’s a good nearfall spot for Corbin. Both guys got up using the ropes. They exchanged punches, Corbin did a kick to the leg and Bron hit a jumping knee. Bron charged, Corbin delivered a kick and Corbin tried a lift, but Bron countered with a pin attempt cradle for two. Bron hit a clothesline. Bron ran the ropes, ducked a move and hit a clothesline. Bron knocked Corbin out of the ring with a clothesline. Bron ran at Corbin on the floor and Corbin picked him up with a spinebuster through the commentary table. That was a good spot that could be a disqualification, but table bumps are allowed in WWE these days. Bron actually sat back up and hit a Spear on the floor. Back in the ring, Mr. Stone was on the turnbuckle and he jumped onto Bron. Bron caught Stone and tossed him over the top onto a bunch of security guys on the floor. Corbin capitalized with the End of Days slam on Bron for the pinfall win at 9:33. The fans cheered for that.

Winner by pinfall: Baron Corbin

Analysis: ***1/4 It was an entertaining match that felt like a fight right away with Corbin and Bron taking turns getting nearfalls. I thought that Bron was going to win, so to see Corbin find a way to get the victory is a bit of a surprise. It wasn’t perfectly clean because of Mr. Stone jumping onto Bron due to trying to get revenge for Bron taking out Von Wagner recently. The five minutes of brawling was also very entertaining and fit their story of having a personal rivalry. Even though both guys were heels, the fans were more behind Corbin for this match and happy about Bron losing.

The best friends NXT Champion Carmelo Hayes and Trick Williams were interviewed by Mckenzie Mitchell on the Kickoff Show. Both guys talked about how they are both going to win.

Dragon Lee made his entrance in a referee’s shirt since he’s the special guest referee for this next match. Trick Williams got a nice ovation from the crowd with a lot of fans chanting “Whoop That Trick” for him. Booker T really liked him. Dominik Mysterio was booed loudly as the NXT North American Champion. Dominik has a black eye around his left eye. Lots of heat for Dominik as usual. Alicia Taylor did the in-ring championship introductions when both guys were in the ring.

NXT North American Championship: Dominik Mysterio vs. Trick Williams (Dragon Lee is the referee)

Dominik hit a dropkick for a two count and complained to Dragon about his count. Trick got a rollup for two. Trick ran over Dominik with a shoulder tackle and a dropkick. Dominik left the ring, grabbed his title and tried to leave, but Trick knocked Dominik down with a clothesline. Trick with a body slam along with a running clothesline. Trick was out on the floor, then back in and Dominik kicked the rope. Dominik dropkicked Trick from the apron to the floor. Dominik worked over Trick with chops. Back in the ring, Dominik hit a jumping knee. Dominik grabbed a chinlock followed by a forearm to the back. Dominik did a necksnap across the top rope. Dominik did a senton splash into the ring for two. Dominik threw his gum at Dragon. Trick avoided an elbow drop, Trick came back with punches and hit an uppercut. Trick hit a standing side kick and dropkick for two. Dominik caught Trick with a backslide pin for two. They each ran the ropes leading to a double clothesline spot, so both guys were selling for about a half a minute after that. Dominik hit a 619 kick to knock Trick down. Dominik delivered a superkick, but Trick ducked it and Dominik hit referee Dragon with the kick. Dragon bumped to the floor. Trick hit a neckbreaker for two. A replacement referee arrived to count a two count. Trick hit a flatliner along with a spinning kick to the head like Trouble in Paradise for a two count. They did a double noggin knocker spot to knock both guys down. Dominik was running the ropes and ran over the referee, who was not a regular NXT referee. They were out on the floor again with Dominik sending Trick into the ring post. Back in the ring, Dominik jumped off the top with a Frog Splash, Trick avoided it and the fans were counting, but there was no referee. Dominik brought the North American Title into the ring. Trick avoided it and hit a jumping knee smash to knock Dominik down. Dragon Lee was back up as the referee to count the pin. It went 9:28.

Winner by pinfall AND NEW NXT North American Champion: Trick Williams

Analysis: *** A solid match that featured two young guys that aren’t that experienced, but they are getting better every time we see them. I didn’t predict the title change although I’m certainly fine with it because Trick has had a lot of momentum. The referee bumping made me think that Dominik would cheat to win somehow, but it didn’t happen for him and we have a new champion. That finisher for Trick sounded okay with the leg slap, but it wasn’t a jumping knee strike that looked that deadly. Anyway, I’m happy for Trick. He has improved a lot this year.

Trick Williams celebrated with the NXT North American Title after Dragon Lee gave him the title.

Analysis: I thought there would be some complaint from Dominik or something like that, but there was nothing post match. Trick was presented his title and celebrated with it. Congrats to Trick.

A video aired from NXT this past Tuesday showing how the NXT Tag Team Title match was set up during a dinner.

Joe Gacy was shown walking backstage where he told Ava that the Schism was dead, so go. Gacy said that The Schism wasn’t the right family for her. Ava left, so Joe said he had to find his right purpose.

Tiffany Stratton was shown getting ready for her match.

NXT Tag Team Championships: Tony D’Angelo & Channing “Stacks” Lorenzo vs. The Creed Brothers – Julius & Brutus Creed (w/Ivy Nile) vs. Angel Garza & Humberto Carrillo vs. Out The Mud – Bronco Nima & Lucien Price (w/Scrypts)

Two guys are legal and the others wait on the apron. It started out as a brawl with everybody fighting in the ring and then fighting on the floor. Stacks and Humberto exchanged some moves with Humberto hitting a springboard cross body block. Stacks with an atomic drop followed by stomps to the body. Tony D tagged in with a running knee to the ribs and Stacks went into the ring for some tag team offense. Tony gave Stacks a hiptoss into both opponents. Tony lifted up Angel & Humberto at the same time, but then Tony collapsed while selling a right knee injury. The referee called for help. Stacks hit a running uppercut, but Angel got a blind tag and hit a knee the apron. Angel and Humberto worked over Stacks for a bit with a chinlock/dropkick combo. After The Creeds got some offense, the other teams in the match isolated Stacks. Tony D limped out to ringside and said he was back in the match. Tony D tagged himself in and hit a spinebuster on Carrillo. All eight guys were around the ring leading to the quadruple superplex with the fans cheering for all of it. The fans chanted “this is awesome” for the. The Creeds faced off with Tony D & Stacks so it led to a slugfest. The Creeds knocked Tony D& Stacks down. Nima & Prince tagged in with a double team move on Tony D leading to a sitout spinebuster for two. Garza hit a missile dropkick to knock Julius down. Brutus hit a double clothesline to clear the ring. Brutus jumped off the top with a Brutus Ball on a bunch of guys. Stacks kicked Price and Stacks/Tony D hit a double team flatliner with Tony D making the cover the win at 12:07.

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

Analysis: ***1/4 A very good match with a lot of offense from all four teams. I missed a bit midway through the match, but was able to catch most of it. My complaint is that they ignored tag team rules a lot by having up to eight guys in the ring at times and it was a bit ridiculous at times. Normally WWE tag team matches aren’t like that. I think the match could have benefitted from more nearfalls for some of the teams because it didn’t look like some of the teams didn’t come close to winning. Anyway, I expected Tony & Stacks to win since it was their first PLE title defense, so they remain the champions.

A commercial aired for WWE Fastlane next Saturday, October 7th.

There was a video featuring somebody watching TV and changing the channel. Every time he changed the channel, it showed second generation wrestlers. When it stopped, we could see it was Brian Pillman Jr. looking at the TV.

Trick Williams walked into the locker room with his NXT North American Title celebrating his win with NXT Champion Carmelo Hayes. Melo was so happy for Trick and Trick said Melo would win, so then they would celebrate together. They hugged with Melo looking ready to go for his match.

Becky Lynch was shown backstage with a shopping cart as she put weapons into it.

They showed singer Ryan Oakes at ringside. I don’t know who he is, but that’s okay because I doubt he knows who I am.

A video aired about the NXT Heritage Cup match with Butch earning the shot since he won the NXT Global Heritage Invitational tournament, which means he gets to face Noam Dar for the NXT Heritage Cup. Butch talked about his accomplishments in WWE while saying he was there to prove he’s the baddest man in all of WWE. Dar said that Butch isn’t going to get his Cup.

Butch made his entrance with his buddy Tyler Bate as his corner man. Noam Dar had his Meta-Four group with him. That’s Oro Mensah, Lash Legend and Jakara Jackson. The fans booed Dar a lot while Booker likes Meta-Four a lot.

NXT Heritage Cup Championship: Noam Dar (w/Oro Mensah, Jakara Jackson & Lash Legend) vs. Butch (w/Tyler Bate)

There are five three-minute rounds in these matches. There wasn’t much going on in the first couple of minutes leading to Butch hitting a clothesline. Butch tortured the fingers of Dar and stomped on the fingers. Dar did a job shot at the end of the first round.

In round two, Butch got some offense going with a running knee to the head. Butch delivered a bunch of forearms to the chest like his buddy Sheamus and kept going after the count. The women distracted the referee, so Mensah did a cheap kick. Dar hit a jumping kick on Butch for the first pinfall of the match. Dar leads 1-0.

It was round three as they ran the ropes and I think Dar delivered a forearm, but they both sold it like they were knocked down. Butch landed on his feet after a German Suplex attempt and Butch delivered a kick. Butch hit a moonsault off the turnbuckle onto Dar on the floor. Back in the ring, Dar rolled up Butch for a two count. Butch delivered a kick and went for a moonsault, but Dar stopped that with a kick. Butch with a forearm leading to Butch hitting the Bitter End for the pinfall. It is 1-1.

Round four started with Butch worked over Dar with repeated punches and hammer fists. Dar tripped up Butch leading to a rear naked choke, but Butch got out of it. Dar with a lift leading to an armbar. Butch came back with an armbar on the left arm. Dar went for a Triangle Choke submission, but Butch fought his way out of that. Butch hit the Explex slam for a two count. Butch went up top, but Dar kicked the leg to knock him down and Dar hit a brainbuster for two. Dar jumped off the top, Butch caught him by the left arm and Dar fought it off as the clock counted down to zero. Butch had Dar trapped in the last 15 seconds, but Dar was able to hold on before the round ended.

The fifth round started with the two guys exchanging strikes. Butch worked over Dar with repeated chops along with punches. Dar delivered knee strikes to the body to knock Butch down. Dar hit a spinning back elbow to knock Butch down for a two count. Dar slowly went up top, so Butch met him there with a jumping kick. Butch it a superplex off the top for two. They fought on the apron with Dar delivering a kick along with a brainbuster on the apron for two.

They were into the bonus sixth round. They exchanged strikes. Butch hit a German Suplex, stomp on the hands and a kick to the head. Mensah did a cheap shot kick to Butch. Dar hit the Nova Roller running kick for two. Butch hit a Tyler Driver 97 for two. Dar countered a move into one of his own. Butch hit a Bitter End for a two count. Butch applied an armbar submission on the right arm of Dar. Gallus showed up to beat up Bate at ringside, so Butch knocked them down. Butch decked Dar with a clothesline. The Dar friends distracted the referee, which led to Joe Coffey hitting a stiff clothesline with Butch selling it with a flip. Dar covered for the pinfall win at 15:54.

Winner: Noam Dar (2-1)

Analysis: ***1/2 It was a smart, entertaining match. The finish was cheap, so that’s something I didn’t like about it, but it’s fitting for Dar and his Meta-Four group as cheap heels. Gallus attacking Butch & Bate felt random, but those sides also faced off recently with Butch beating Joe, so that’s why Joe sought revenge for that. Neither guy stood out more than another. It was good wrestling overall.

They showed replays with Vic saying that it took seven people to beat Butch in that match. Dar celebrated with his friends.

A video aired about Cora Jade. She hasn’t been used much in the last few months.

NXT Deadline is coming on December 9th with the Iron Survivor Challenge making its return. They will also have a Halloween Havoc two week TV special on October 24th and October 31st.

The video package aired for the Carmelo Hayes-Ilja Dragunov match.

Ilja Dragunov made his entrance first as the challenger. The fans were cheering for him since he’s a babyface like the champion, but he’s not as popular as the champion. They zoomed in on his eyes while they Dragunov posed in the ring.

Carmelo Hayes made his entrance as the NXT Champion with “jerseys” shown of the men that he has beaten as the champion. That was followed by the word “HIM” shown on the screen. Carmelo Hayes got a big ovation as the NXT Champion. They stood in the ring as Alicia Taylor did the championship introductions.

NXT Championship: Carmelo Hayes vs. Ilja Dragunov

Ilja was aggressive with strikes to start the match. Ilja beat down Melo with punches and chops against the turnbuckle. Ilja with a forearm to the back, then he sent Melo to the apron and Ilja kicked Melo off the apron to the floor. Melo was back in the ring with a tackle leading to mounted punches. Melo delivered forearms to the back along with shoulder tackles. Melo hit a running forearm. Ilja swung around the ropes leading to a running clothesline. Ilja with a senton splash. Ilja unloaded on Melo with repeated chops to the chest. Ilja hit a running boot to the back of the head for two. Ilja hit a driving knee to the head. Ilja with another boot to the head. Melo with some chops, but Ilja hit him with a back fist to the head. Ilja slapped Melo in the face along with a forearm to the back. Ilja kept on firing chops, but Melo finally grabbed the arm to block the attack. Melo delivered his own chops along with a kick to the gut. After more strikes from Ilja, Melo hit him with an open hand palm strike and both guys were down. There were “NXT” chants from the crowd. More strikes were exchanged, Melo with a kick and Dragunov with a jumping kick. Ilja went for a charging move and Melo hit a jumping kick. Melo hit a springboard bulldog for a two count. Normally it’s a DDT, but Melo turned it into a bulldog this time. The fans chanted “this is awesome” for them. Melo went for a headscissors, but Ilja blocked it and hit a German Suplex. Ilja with another German Suplex. Melo got out of another suplex attempt and Melo spun around the head/neck area to slam Ilja face first onto the mat for a two count. Both guys were down selling again.

Melo held onto Ilja’s arm leading to stomps to the head. Ilja came back with two knees to the body along with a running knee. Ilja picked up Melo and hit a Powerbomb while Ilja fell to the mat after he did the move. Ilja went for the Coast to Coast dropkick, Melo tried to hit double knees and Ilja was able to block that. Ilja drove Melo back first into the turnbuckle. Ilja went back up top again and hit a Coast to Coast dropkick to the head for a two count. The fans chanted “this is awesome” again. Melo knocked down Ilja with a headbutt. Melo went up top, so Ilja decked him with a palm strike to the head. Ilja hit an impressive superplex from the middle rope while Melo was on the apron. Ilja went for a charging attack, but Melo hit double knees to the body. Ilja hit the H-Bomb forearm smash for a two count. Ilja jumped off the middle turnbuckle and hit another H-Bomb for one…two…and no because Melo got his right shoulder up. Melo was bleeding a bit on his forehead. Some fans chanted “holy shit” for that nearfall. Ilja charged right into a superkick by Melo for a two count. The fans chanted “NXT” for this match. They went to the apron where they exchanged strikes again. Melo lifted up Ilja and gave him a Cutter on the floor. The angle they shot it from wasn’t the best, but it was still a good move. They were back in the ring with Melo jumping off the top, but Ilja stopped that with a clothesline or maybe it was a punch. Ilja went up top and jumped off with an H-Bomb forearm for the face for the one…two…and three! Dragunov wins! It went 21:04.

Winner by pinfall AND NEW NXT Champion: Ilja Dragunov

Analysis: ***** That was an incredible match. I think it’s the first five star match in NXT in a few years from me. I just thought it told a great story from the moment it began with Dragunov being really aggressive and rocking Melo a bunch of times with all the strikes he did. That set the tone for the match where it looked like a legitimate fight for a lot of it. What was so great is that Melo kept on fighting back, he came so close to winning and the fans loved him for it. Dragunov hit the H-Bomb forearm twice with Melo kicking out, so Dragunov had to raise the stakes by going to the top rope and that was enough to beat Melo. I thought that having a clean win for Dragunov was the right way to go. They could have gone with a controversial finish and that would be fine too, but it was even better having a clean ending. The fans loved this match too. It’s easy to see why. I’m not sure if I would rank this ahead of the two five-star matches I rated at WrestleMania 39, but it’s certainly up there as one of the best WWE matches this year.

After the match, Ilja Dragunov was presented with the NXT Championship. Dragunov pulled Hayes up and shook his hand. Dragunov pulled in Hayes for a hug. The fans cheered.

Analysis: A post match sign of respect. I like that.

A commercial aired promoting Raw.

There was a video about Tyler Bate. That was followed by a Roxanne Perez video.

The NXT Women’s Breakout Tournament field was shown: Jakara Jackson, Karmen Petrovic, Lola Vice, Jaida Parker, Izzi Dame, Dani Palmer, Kelani Jordan and Arianna Grace. My pick is Lola Vice to win. Good to see Arianna Grace back.

They showed highlights of Blair Davenport beating Kelani Jordan on the Kickoff Show.

This Tuesday on NXT:

* Gigi Dolin vs. Blair Davenport

* Tyler Bate & Butch vs. Gallus

They showed Tegan Nox of the WWE Raw roster watching at ringside. Nox faces the winner of this match Monday on Raw.

The video package aired for the Becky Lynch-Tiffany Stratton match.

Tiffany Stratton made her entrance first as the former NXT Women’s Champion. She’s only 24 years old and has only been wrestling for about two years. That’s very impressive. Booker T was really excited while shouting some of his famous phrases.

Becky Lynch made her entrance while a video aired showing some of her accomplishments. The graphic on the screen said “N-Bex-T” like Lynch has said in the past. Becky Lynch arrived was wearing a shirt with names on it like Seth Rollins and Roux (her daughter) along with Bray Wyatt and others. Lynch brought out some weapons on a shopping cart. Stratton went after Lynch on the floor and the match began.

NXT Women’s Championship Extreme Rules Match: Becky Lynch vs. Tiffany Stratton

Lynch attacked right away with steel chair shots to the ribs and the back. Lynch hit Stratton with a hard hat. Lynch beat up Stratton with kendo stick shots to the body. Stratton ran into the crowd, so Lynch went after. They went walking up the stairs in the crowd. Lynch grabbed some fake chain from a fan and punched Stratton with it. Stratton was bleeding around her right eye as Lynch sent her into the barricade and back to ringside. Stratton finally got some offense going with a kendo stick shot to the ribs. Lynch drove the steel steps into Lynch to knock her down. Stratton hit a suplex on the floor. They finally got into the ring with Stratton hitting a splash to the back along with a double foot stomp. Vic Joseph said it was Lynch’s stylist King Troi that handed her the chain. They showed some replays and I think they tried to stop Stratton’s cut from bleeding. Stratton brought a tool box into the ring and hit Lynch with a wrench. Stratton used a chain to punch Lynch in the ribs. Lynch tried a submission move, but Stratton overpowered leading to a sidewalk slam for two. Stratton brought a chair into the ring and hit Lynch in the back with the chair. Lynch jumped off the middle rope, Stratton caught her and Lynch shoved Stratton into a chair that was against the turnbuckle. Lynch with a Bexploder Suplex. Lynch went up top and hit a missile dropkick. Lynch kicked Stratton down on the floor followed by a forearm smash. Lynch rammed the shopping cart into Stratton’s ribs. Lynch put Stratton in the shopping car and sent her into the steel steps. They went into the ring with Lynch pouring out a bag full of dolls. Lynch hit a reverse DDT onto the dolls for a two count. Lynch was throwing the dolls at Stratton while some of the dolls went into the crowd. Stratton hit Lynch hard with a trash can.

Lynch avoided a trash can thrown into the ring and Lynch delivered kicks to the ribs. Lynch went up top, Stratton avoided the attack and hit Lynch with a trash can. Stratton hit a spinebuster onto the trash can for two. My feed messed up for a bit, but then it came back about two minutes. Lynch wanted to set up a table on the floor. Stratton hit Lynch to stop that. I think it was a kendo stick. As Stratton set the table, Lynch went under the ring and used a fire extinguisher spray on Stratton. Lynch grabbed a 2×4 barbed wire bat and hit Stratton. Stratton was able to come back by avoiding the bat leading to Stratton going on a flurry of offense with a cartwheel and back elbow that sent Lynch through the barricade. Lynch managed to throw Stratton into the ring post. Lynch set up Stratton on the commentary table. Stratton with a headbutt to knock Lynch down and Stratton did a somersault onto Lynch, who was on a chair. Stratton put Lynch on a table on the floor. Stratton went up top and hit a Swanton Bomb onto Lynch on the floor. The table broke in the middle of it, but not perfectly. Back in the ring, Stratton went up top and hit a Swanton Bomb again for a two count. The fans chanted “this is awesome” for them. Both women were down selling the physicality of the match.

Lynch left the ring again. Stratton saw that and Stratton went for a moonsault on the floor, but Lynch moved. Lynch gave Stratton a Manhandle Slam on the floor. They went back into the ring with Lynch covering for a two count with Stratton getting her right arm up. Stratton got a rollup for two. Stratton slammed Lynch on the chairs. Stratton went up top and went for the Prettiest Moonsault Ever, but Lynch moved out of the way so Stratton hit the chairs. Lynch hit a Manhandle Slam onto the steel chairs. Lynch moved Stratton off the chairs and covered for the one…two…three! Becky Lynch wins to keep her title. It went 20:18.

Winner by pinfall: Becky Lynch

Analysis: ****1/2 That was an awesome match! Two straight incredible matches in a row. We know how great Becky Lynch is and she showed it again, but let’s also give credit to Tiffany Stratton for putting on an impressive performance. They really put on an impressive match with a lot of weapons being used along with plenty of nearfalls for both of them. I think at times they probably rushed a few spots just to get a lot of them in there, but overall I thought they absolutely crushed it. Lynch took a beating throughout the match because Stratton brought the fight to her. That table spot with the Swanton Bomb didn’t work perfectly and Stratton probably hit the floor pretty hard, but it didn’t stop her. That’s why I was so impressed by Stratton. She kept on fighting the whole way. I liked the finish with Lynch hitting the Manhandle Slam on the steel chairs. Lynch winning was the obvious result. It was still the right result. The fans loved this match with good reason. It was excellent.

Post match, Becky Lynch was looking at her right arm so maybe it was hurting her. Lynch held up her NXT Women’s Title. Replays were shown of the match.

Becky Lynch celebrated with her NXT Women’s Title. Lynch looked over to Tegan Nox in the crowd since they have a title match coming on Raw. Lynch continued to celebrate.

They showed Carmelo Hayes talking to NXT North American Champion Trick Williams in the locker room. Melo said he was sorry he lost. Trick said that “you are still him” and they hugged. That was the end of the show.

Analysis: Nice way to end it with those two. They didn’t leave with the two titles, but at least Trick got his first title win.

This show had a runtime of about 2:47:41 on WWE Network.

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Five Stars of the Show

  1. Ilja Dragunov/Carmelo Hayes
  2. Becky Lynch/Tiffany Stratton
  3. Trick Williams
  4. Noam Dar
  5. Baron Corbin/Bron Breakker

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Final Thoughts

I rate this show a 9 out of 10.

This was an outstanding show. It’s probably the best NXT PLE event in the last four years. I don’t really remember the last time I rated an NXT show a 9 out of 10 like this, but it absolutely deserves it. The final two matches really stood out with Ilja Dragunov/Carmelo Hayes putting on a five star match that is one of the best WWE matches this year. They managed to top their incredible performance at the Great American Bash, so kudos to them on that. It felt like an intense fight the whole way and Dragunov left as the new NXT Champion. I loved the match.

Becky Lynch and Tiffany Stratton absolutely crushed it. That match was the perfect example of how you can say somebody got elevated even in defeat because Stratton looked amazing even as the loser in that match. Stratton has only been wrestling for two years, yet she went 20+ minutes with one of the best women’s wrestlers ever and more than held her own. Lynch was excellent as usual. At times I thought maybe they rushed a bit, but it really was a fantastic performance by both of them.

The other four matches were all pretty good too. Baron Corbin and Bron Breakker had a physical fight that was better than I was expecting. There was nothing bad on the show. Some stuff could have been longer with better finishes maybe, but I enjoyed most of it. I’m genuinely happy for Trick Williams going from a guy who was in the background for nearly two years and has stepped up to become the NXT North American Champion.

If you don’t watch NXT anymore or had no idea about this show, that’s fine. I get it. I’m just saying if you like pro wrestling, make sure you watch this show. It was awesome. Plus, the crowd in Bakersfield was really good most of the night too. That always helps. Great job, NXT crew.

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Thanks for reading. My contact info is below.

John Canton

Email mrjohncanton@gmail.com

Twitter/X @johnreport