Lio Rush def. Drew Gulak to become the new NXT Cruiserweight Champion
Lio Rush’s last three weeks have been as good as anyone’s. He returned from sabbatical, earned a title opportunity and now can call himself the new NXT Cruiserweight Champion.
He dethroned Drew Gulak in a hotly contested encounter Wednesday, dazzling yet again since his comeback last month. Starting the match at a blistering pace, including a Spanish Fly that nearly ended the match in immediate fashion, Rush eventually was grounded by Gulak's more tactical style.
With nifty reversals and escapes, Rush found his way back into the fight, even slipping out of The Philadelphia Stretcher's dreaded Gulock at one point. Later countering an apparent superplex attempt, The Man of The Hour set himself up for a springboard stunner and The Final Hour to secure victory.
After impressive victories over Oney Lorcan and now Gulak to put championship gold around his waist, who can slow down the red-hot Rush?
Rhea Ripley def. Aliyah
Shayna Baszler’s continued dominance as NXT Women’s Champion has left fans wondering who could possibly unseat her; Rhea Ripley’s thoughts on the matter are loud and clear.
After taking care of Aliyah in singles competition, Ripley staked her claim to Baszler’s title. "The Nightmare" issued a confident warning for The Queen of Spades, putting Baszler — and her reign — on notice.
Ripley appears unafraid of Baszler, taking a steel chair to her back when fellow MMA Four Horsewomen Jessamyn Duke & Marina Shafir got involved in their non-title bout last month. How will Baszler respond to her newest challenge?
The Forgotten Sons def. Breezango
The Forgotten Sons are done being an afterthought in NXT, and they don’t care who they have to hurt to make their presence known.
Pre-empting what was supposed to be a match between Breezango — who sported a new construction-themed look and entrance — and Ever-Rise by taking out Matt Martel and Chase Parker backstage, The Forgotten Sons took liberties to insert themselves instead in the bout opposite Tyler Breeze and Fandango.
That forcible adjustment was also a fruitful one. The Forgotten Sons' duo of Steve Cutler and Wesley Blake picked up a pinfall victory following some help from Jaxson Ryker on the outside.
Breezango has been successful since reuniting in NXT, but The Forgotten Sons have re-announced themselves as a threat in the tag team division — especially after showing they’re not shy about using the numbers game to their advantage.
Cameron Grimes def. Boa
Killian Dain doesn’t appear to have gotten over narrowly missing out on an opportunity at the NXT Championship two weeks ago.
Unfortunately for Boa, he was the target of Dain’s rage on Wednesday.
Left lying after being the latest victim to Cameron Grimes’ winning streak, Boa was brutalized by the unannounced Dain. The Beast of Belfast continued his beating through the crowd, punctuating it with TKTKTK
The scene reminded us that there may be nothing scarier in NXT than an angry Dain.
NXT North American Champion Roderick Strong def. Isaiah “Swerve” Scott
If The Undisputed ERA has learned anything since fulfilling the golden prophecy last month, it’s that heavy is the head that wears the crown.
NXT’s most dominant group is seeing challengers emerge from all directions for their respective titles. After Roderick Strong defeated Isaiah “Swerve” Scott in a match that seemed to give the NXT North American Champion far more than he bargained for, The Velveteen Dream appeared with a message for Strong — that he plans on recapturing the title in two weeks.
Dream declared his intentions by embarrassing Strong with some — we’ll call it “creative artistry” — on the video screen at Full Sail Live. But that wasn’t all The Undisputed ERA had to deal with.
Tommaso Ciampa also arrived on the scene to confront NXT Champion Adam Cole for the second straight week. Ciampa wasn’t done there, either, taking out Angel Garza with a vicious fist backstage moments later in a seemingly wrong place, wrong time situation.
The Undisputed ERA may have turned NXT into its own Camelot, but it’s clearly now under siege.
Bianca Belair def. Dakota Kai
Bianca Belair will not sit idly while Rhea Ripley claims the front of the line for an opportunity at the NXT Women’s title .
Overcoming the recently returned Dakota Kai TKTK, The EST of NXT didn’t merely let the win speak for itself. Belair rebutted Ripley, announcing herself as a roadblock in Ripley’s path to a potential opportunity at Shayna Baszler’s NXT Women’s Championship.
Belair and Ripley both represent an opponent unlike any the other has seen, and one can only imagine a one-on-one encounter would produce fireworks — and perhaps a definitive next challenger for Baszler.
WALTER def. Kushida
If WALTER and Imperium are to be outmatched in NXT, it’s not going to come at the hands of one man.
Kushida fought against The Ring General valiantly Wednesday. TKTKTK. However, WALTER was simply too much for the time-traveling high-flyer. The leader of Imperium earned the victory after TKTKTK.
The Japanese Superstar was the first to step to Imperium after their bullyish arrival on NXT, but given Kushida’s fate, one has to wonder if anyone else in the locker room will try the same.
Isaiah “Swerve” Scott to battle Roderick Strong
NXT North American Champion Roderick Strong will be in action tonight on USA Network, when he takes on Isaiah “Swerve” Scott in non-title action. The match was announced on WWE’s The Bump, which streams live on WWE Network, YouTube, Facebook and Twitter Wednesdays at 10 a.m. ET.
Scott has made major impressions since his arrival in NXT, with big performances in the NXT Breakout Tournament and against NXT Cruiserweight Champion Drew Gulak on 205 Live. Strong has made waves himself, dethroning The Velveteen Dream as North American Champion on Sept. 18 and bringing The Undisputed ERA one step closer to completing their prophecy of gold. Despite Strong’s victory, Dream has vowed to reclaim the title.
Will “Swerve” continue to show why he’s one of NXT’s fastest rising Superstars and fast-track himself toward a title opportunity, or will Strong smash his speedy foe’s back into pieces and send a message to The Velveteen Dream?
How will Finn Bálor’s arrival impact NXT?
Last Wednesday, Finn Bálor shocked the world when he confronted NXT Champion Adam Cole with a simple message: “As of now, Finn Bálor is NXT!”
What does The Extraordinary Man’s arrival mean for the future of the black-and-gold brand? Will he be looking to dethrone Cole and become a two-time NXT Champion?
How will Tommaso Ciampa’s quest to regain the NXT Title continue?
Adam Cole’s night didn’t get any easier after Bálor’s arrival. As the NXT Champion arrived on the scene to celebrate with The Undisputed ERA after Kyle O’Reilly & Bobby Fish’s successful NXT Tag Team Championship defense, the party was cut short by the return of Tommaso Ciampa.
Unlike Bálor, The Blackheart had nothing to say upon his return from neck surgery. Instead, he slowly paced around Cole, his eyes locked on the championship he had to forfeit because of his injuries. Will Ciampa’s quest to reclaim “Goldie” continue this week?
Can anyone stop Shayna Baszler?
Despite a spirited effort from Candice LeRae, NXT Women’s Champion Shayna Baszler retained her title in a thrilling battle.
As The Submission Magician’s reign rapidly approaches the one-year mark, will a new challenger emerge to try and dethrone The Queen of Spades? Find out on WWE NXT, live tonight at 8/7 C on USA Network!
