Recapping the NXT episode from April 26, 2017.
Rubyyyy, Come Out And Playyyy
There are few ways you could start off an episode of a wrestling show better than Nikki Cross crawling in the ring unannounced. You never know what could happen. Was she here for personal amusement? Was SAnitY far behind? Cross is hard to figure out in some ways (what’s her motivation?) and easy in other ways (oh yeah, it’s violence.). She used her hijacked platform to call out Ruby Riot.
William Regal must be taking notes from Kurt Angle on Monday nights, because right away he started making great matches. Regal announced Nikki Cross would fight Ruby Riot in the main event of the episode. As Riot was heading toward the ring, Nikki Cross — in classic Nikki Cross fashion — attacked her from behind. The match never even got started, which in this case, I’m okay with. We’re still a few weeks away from Takeover: Chicago, and this one-on-one between two of the roster’s feistiest females could use a little more building from now until then.
Speaking of Takeover: Chicago, Regal dropped another bombshell: next week, there will be a Women’s Battle Royal to determine who will be the No. 1 contender to face Asuka for the NXT Women’s Championship. (My prediction: Billie Kay.)
Will Hideo Earn It?
Bobby Roode, in all his glorious form, responded to his brutal attack last week at the hands of NXT veteran Hideo Itami. After months of rehabilitating his neck, Itami wanted to make a statement, and decided a GTS to the NXT Champion was a pretty good one to make. Nothing official was said about any No. 1 contender match involving Itami; my guess is, next week, we see him make quick work of, say, Andrade Almas, and get elevated right into the main event of Takeover: Chicago.
All Mas For Almas
Andrade “Can’t Buy A Win” Almas fell victim to NXT’s newest free agent acquisition, Drew McIntyre. Since his first re-appearance on WWE television right before the main event of Takeover: Orlando, McIntyre has had to use little effort to get the entirety of the NXT Universe behind him. That’s not saying he hasn’t put forth the effort; in both of his matches on NXT (he defeated Oney Lorcen two weeks ago), McIntyre flaunted the wrestling skills that helped him become a champion in more than ten different promotions.
It’s tough to tell who the alpha dog is out of these most recent additions to the talent pool. You have McIntyre, Aleister Black, and Kassius Ohno, not to mention the return of Hideo Itami. Any combination of these four guys, plus Bobby Roode, will make for a must see main event. (Okay, maybe I’m reaching by putting Ohno in that group — Ohno replaced No Way José in his match at Takeover: Orlando, and José’s ceiling is a mid-carder, so maybe Ohno is on a similar path. Oh, no!)
Who Is Roderick Strong?
In a unique segment, we got to see Part 1 of “Who Is Roderick Strong?” It included Strong driving through his hometown of Riverview, FL, reminiscing about his childhood. Strong felt he hadn’t told his story up to this point because he wasn’t ready to yet. He tears up as he narrates the part of the story about his parents’ addictions during his childhood. Strong’s father would abuse his mother, and it came to a culmination where Strong’s mother shot his father. It was obviously a tough tale to tell. Eventually, Strong started training wrestling with his father and Jim Neidhart, which gave him the drive and passion for the sport that he has today. Strong’s mother has pictures of her son competing at a Takeover on her wall, as proud as any parent could be of their children.
It was very brave of Strong to put himself in such a vulnerable state as he gave us a glimpse into his psyche. This segment (that will most likely wrap up next week) was just what the NXT Universe needed in order to find out exactly where Roderick Strong, who seemingly got placed in our laps just a few months ago, comes from.
Aleister Black def. Kona Reeves
Kona Reeves, we hardly knew ye. Between his entrance, his calmness before, during, and after the match (sometimes culminating in taking a couple seconds to sit Indian style, and just think about how much it must suck to be the person across from him), and his subtle yet masterful spinning kick to the head, Aleister Black has most of the tools needed to succeed in this business. Off the top of my head, I don’t remember Black ever speaking, so if Triple H knows that he isn’t too strong on the mic, keep him away from it. We don’t want to have his image ruined for us because he delivers a line like Roman Reigns.
Bate Defends Gold
While there wasn’t much of a build up to this United Kingdom Championship Match, we knew exactly what these two guys were capable of. With some of the other participants from the United Kingdom Tournament watching ringside, Tyler Bate got to remind everyone just how good he is. “Gentleman” Jack Gallagher is no slouch, either; after making a name for himself during the Cruiserweight Classic, he’s become one of the premier talents on 205 Live, and he’s also had the best Cruiserweight Championship match since the belt made its return, when he lost to Neville at Fastlane.
I’d like for the United Kingdom title to be a more prominent part of NXT, perhaps as the show’s Intercontinental Championship equivalent. That could be a problem with NXT being only an hour long, and already having too many mouths to feed. This means NXT (or 205 Live) would have to be extended to two hours, or the UK competitors get their own show Wednesday nights after NXT. (Did I just fantasy book another hour to the already daunting week of mandatory wrestling viewing? Yes!)