Last week on NXT: A promo parade happened and Johnny Gargano kicked Ricochet in the mouth. Both Nikki Cross and EC3 lost their matches to Bianca Belair and Adam Cole respectively. It was a nice send off to the NXT Alum, gonna really miss Nikki and the mood she brought to Full Sail.
Cold Open
Once again there wasn’t one.
Street Profits vs. Metro Brothers.
- I am all in on the Street Profits. They are killing it in Evolve right now, have amazing entrance music and movements, can wrestle with the best of them, bleed charisma and seeing the lame white people dance to their theme is something I REALLY relate to.
- Metro Brothers obviously give off a Deuce & Domino vibe or T-Birds if you’re nasty. I remember feuding with The Metro Brothers when I was Jimmy Hopkins and I needed to go to shop class.
- I used to brag that Street Profits have the same shoes as my toddler daughter but sadly she grew out of them.
- Dawkins and Ford are trying to hype each other up and Dawkins pushes Montez so hard Ford falls on the floor. Angelo is so strong that he is knocking Metro out with slaps. Ford laughs at it and hits a frog splash for the win.
- The Forgotten Sons attack Street Profits during the whippin up celebration.
- The Forgotten Sons are like when the troops came back from Vietnam and wanted that brotherhood back so they started motorcycle gangs. Kind of a Hell’s Angels vibe. P.S. Steve Cutler is an alternate universe Chase Owens.
And I’m Like… Street Profit showcase matches? I’m all here for it. The only downside is that they don’t wear their Evolve Tag Championships on NXT. Loved this opening match though. Having Forgotten Sons attack the Street Profits works so well because the Sons are the antithesis of fun and entertainment. The crowd chants “We Forgot You”, which is tremendous. It’s hard to boo proud vets though.
Matt Riddle isn’t cleared medically so he can’t be at ringside for Keith Lee vs. Kassius Ohno.
Aleister Black is talking about absolving Tommaso Ciampa of his sins. Next week.
Bianca Belair Promo
- When Bianca comes out I can’t help but smile. She just like her husband Montez Ford. The energy and swagger is undeniable, as well as the lame white people dancing to the theme song. I honestly feel happiness during these entrances and just giggle like a high ass.
- Shayna Baszler, Jessamyn Duke and Marina Shafir all come out.
- Shayna says that Bianca is the strongest and fastest but isn’t the smartest. She will tear Belair’s arm off.
- Bianca says “Girl.. ah-uh”. I loe that the sass is laid on thick even when Bianca is outnumbered.
- I still think Shayna is so adorable after watching her at Sarah Logan’s wedding.
- Shayna said she is turning Bianca from Un-Duh-Feat-Ed to Ov-Er-Ra-Ted. Which leads to dueling chants that will probably stay with Bianca until her first defeat.
- Shayna says Bianca shouldn’t be scared of Baszler’s friends, so Bianca just slaps some horsewomen and bails.
And I’m Like… I AM INVESTED! Get Bianca the belt and let the EST reign supreme. I’m ready for the queen to take her throne. Montez rocking his crown and Bianca bringing out her championship is stuff my dreams are made of.
Adrian Jauode vs. Dominik Dijakovic
- Two quick things. We all know his name will be shortened to Dijakovic on the main roster. He must not be that impressive if NXT isn’t trying to put this match on YouTube. Maybe it’s a plan, to familiarize the die hards with Dijakovic and then put his first REAL match on YouTube.
- Dijakovic keeps putting his arm up defensively even when Jauode isn’t even attacking. It’s like playing Fight Night Round 2 and just holding L1 while pointing the joystick to the upper left. Weird stuff.
- Mauro calls him “Fun house mirror tall”.
- Nigel McGuinness says he is hitching his wagon to Adrian Jauode. Mauro is putting over how great Dijakovic is and Nigel is pushing hard for Adrian.
- This match is a lot of brawling and feats of brute strength. What’s more entertaining is the commentary. After this taping Mauro sent out a tweet apologizing for his performance. This match kind of shows. There is no fluidity and it’s awkward. Maybe that’s why commentary was pulled from Jaxon’s match a few weeks ago?
- Dijakovic won with “Feast Your Eyes”
And I’m Like… NO REACTION to Dijakovic. When I saw this dude on Beyond and ROH I thought “This guy is ready made to be a star in WWE”. So far he hasn’t shown much star quality. Similar to Sami Callihan and Mike Kanellis. Maybe the are too trepidation and don’t have the confidence or something. Shit’s off though.
War Raiders cut a viking ass promo, probably after a viking ass wedding.
Johnny Gargano vs. Humberto Carrillo
- Someone is a BIG fan of Humberto. Dude is all over the Network. I saw him live and he was the most applauded wrestler on the NXT card. He is super talented but for having no character or personality, it’s crazy how much he is being used.
- This match is a lot like Humberto’s 205 Live match. You can tell almost the whole match is planned out by the way the moves are anticipated. It’s still good, just the chemistry is off. Maybe a language barrier? Carrillo didn’t give that vibe live. He does best in tag matches I think.
- The last year Johnny has been a prominant figure on NXT and now Humberto is going toe-to-toe with him and the crowd is eating it up!!
- Johnny switches a gear in his head and gets sinister, hits his moves of doom and wins.
And I’m Like… That was fantastic. If you’re watching with a casual eye you won’t notice the move anticipation at parts. The story turned out to be that Gargano took Humberto lightly, but once he decided to kick ass it was all over for Carrillo. Good shit.
Tommaso cuts a promo about how Aleister Black is gullible. Ciampa only says he fights on the big shows. Does great promo delivery like always. Aleister is now considered Ciampa’s number one puppet.
A Velveteen Dream vignette.
Kassius Ohno vs. Keith Lee
- Nigel says Kassius Ohno is a wrestling genius.
- Keith Lee has such a bad entrance. The theme song has no energy and is so basic. I really hope a year from now we know that this entrance was just a work in progress. Like how when Finn started his weird crawling entrance and didn’t know how to time the music right.
- This match starts off hot and it gets HOSSY fast. Big boys throwing ham bones.
- Kassius decides to take a powder and tries to make Keith chase him. When Ohno thinks he got the advantage, Keith just overpowers Kassius and stays in control.
- Ohno is able to land a kick to Keith’s head and then hits five straight pump kicks to Keith Lee. That sure as hell turns the tides.
- The crowd is really invested in this and firmly behind Keith Lee. Kassius has a basic bow and arrow hold on Keith and the crowd is clapping for support. It’s what Dijakovic’s match was missing.
- How does Keith Lee have a bit of a stomach AND abs???!?
- Keith is able to surprise Ohno with a pounce! Then Ohno pushes Keith who hits the ref. While the ref is recovering Kassius hits Keith’s balls and gets the win.
And I’m Like…. SUPER surprised with an Ohno win. He lost so much in the beginning of his run, I never take him seriously. This was a real fun match that had the crowd along for the whole ride. It’s cool that this Ohno/Riddle feud has gone on for as long as it has and continues to have legs.
You can follow me on Twitter here. Make sure to follow us on Twitter @BodySlamNet @BodySlamDotNet and on Instagram @BodySlamDotNet Also check us out on Facebook and give us a like and share by clicking HERE.
