6/12 NXT TV Taping Report in Winter Park, Fla. (Spoilers): Breakout Stars tournament with renamed DJZ, Trevor Lee, ACH, Shane Strickland, Sam Shaw, major women’s main event, Gargano no-show
SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)…
NXT TV TAPING REPORT
JUNE 12, 2019
WINTER PARK, FLA. AT FULL SAIL UNIVERSITY
REPORT BY TOM STOUP, PWTORCH CORRESPONDENT
This is the first of a two-night taping, to be continued tomorrow night (June 13). Notably, former NXT Champion Johnny Gargano did not appear, though it is still possible he will be worked in tomorrow. Whatever the reason for it may be, Gargano’s absence from the ring on this night did allow wrestlers currently associated with him to breathe on their own.
“Johnny Champion” shirts were available at the merch stand, along with new Tyler Breeze, Mia Yim, and Walter shirts among other recent mainstays. Adam Cole and Velveteen Dream shirts were displayed most prominently, and new collectible pins were also available along with many other accessories. Mia Yim herself could be seen greeting a fan who had purchased her shirt. Ridge Holland (f/k/a Luke Menzies) could be seen ordering a meal from the food trucks; he was gracious when congratulated on his recently updated moniker.
(A) Rinku Singh pinned Sean Maluta in a dark match. Official: D.A. Brewer. “The Million Dollar Arm” Singh wound up his arms as if throwing a pitch, and leveled Maluta with a big clothesline for three.
Alicia Taylor asked for a 49-second moment of silence to honor the 49 victims of the Pulse Orlando shooting on its anniversary. An #OrlandoUnited hashtag was displayed on the tron, and cameras filmed the crowd during the remembrance. Taylor then tossed to a Takeover: XXV highlight reel.
The Undisputed Era was introduced to kick off the event proper. As if there was any doubt, the vociferous crowd reaction stood as reassurance that the Era are the premiere act in NXT right now. New NXT Champion Adam Cole took the mic and said, “I told you so.” He said anyone who gets in the Era’s way will regret it, and that the Era will remake NXT in their Undisputed image. He tossed to a revised NXT intro video featuring only members of the Era and their highlights. Kyle O’Reilly humbly took credit for making the video. Cole issued a message to the other male NXT champions and said they had better shine up their titles nicely before handing them over. He reissued the statement that by the end of 2019 the Era would be “dripping in gold,” and said “not even Triple H” would be able to stop them. He said no one can touch them. NXT North American Champion Velveteen Dream interrupted and said, “I’d like to touch you.” He said it is in fact he who has made NXT what it is today, and that he wants to add Cole’s championship to his own. Roderick Strong said Dream doesn’t deserve to be a champion, nor does he even deserve to be in the Era’s presence. Matt Riddle interrupted and reminded Strong who beat whom in their singles match at TakeOver. He reminded Cole that he’s beaten him, too. Riddle coolly deflected Cole’s attempt to ridicule him, and drew “Bro” chants. Cole sufficed to call Riddle a “moron” and accused him of being jealous. Cole suggested Riddle go back to “writing reviews of wrestlers from the Attitude Era” and the crowd chanted “Goldberg” in reference to Riddle’s comments on Goldberg’s performance at last week’s Super Showdown. Tyler Breeze interrupted to a great pop, and said he’d been talking to William Regal. He said, “I don’t really care who’s better looking– which, me, by the way. What I do care about is you guys trying to take credit for a brand that I built before any of you idiots were even here.” He said Regal has approved a same-night main event of he, Dream, and Riddle against any three of the Era.
(1) Damian Priest (f/k/a Punishment Martinez) pinned Raul Mendoza. Official: Jessika Carr. Mendoza entered with an updated look including a personalized leather jacket and facial hair, and received a warm reception from the fans. Priest entered with a new entrance reminiscent of Baron Corbin’s NXT entrance with a mix of Aleister Black’s, complete with spotlights on the stage and impactful rock music. The words “Live Forever” flashed on the screen before the music hit, and Priest motioned as if firing an arrow as his name burned across the screen. Priest started in with strikes. Mendoza rallied, and tightrope-walked the ropes to leap onto Priest. Priest chokeslammed him on the apron after catching a dive, then nailed him with a spinning roundhouse kick and a spinning neckbreaker for the win.
A video was shown in which William Regal said he is giving eight men who have been training at the Performance Center an opportunity to get on NXT TV. The opportunity will be called the NXT Breakout Tournament, and the winner will receive a title match of their choosing.
(2) Xia Li pinned Taynara Conti. Official: Eddie Orengo. Each wrestler entered with updated music. Conti relentlessly mocked Li despite the two having earlier shared a bow of respect, and Li kept kicking out of her pin attempts. Li fought out of a surfboard and took it to Conti with her educated feet, eventually landing her signature spinning heel kick for the victory.
(3) Adam Cole & Bobby Fish, & Roderick Strong (w/Kyle O’Reilly) defeated Tyler Breeze & Velveteen Dream & Matt Riddle via pinfall. Official: Drake Wuertz. Riddle looked impressed with Breeze’s entrance. Sadly Breeze has waxed the chest hair he showed off at TakeOver. Dream flaunted before his TakeOver opponent Breeze and worked the crowd to Riddle’s continued enjoyment. From their corner the Era discussed which member would sit out, and decided it would be O’Reilly. Cole and Riddle started things off, with distractions from the Era swaying things in their favor quickly. Strong tagged in but quickly fell victim to a sequence of roll-through gutwrenches that got Riddle to his corner for a tag to Dream. Fish tagged in to take his boots to Dream, and Dream responded with a bulldog and a dodged swipe at Cole on the apron. Breeze had a brief turn at the action before Cole and Riddle going counter for counter instigated a breakdown. Wuertz waved off O’Reilly’s distractions and regained control with a helpless Riddle again isolated in enemy territory. Cole countered a fireman’s carry into a backstabber for two. Strong tagged in and hit a backdrop for two. Fish then scored his own near fall off a suplex. After Cole failed to capitalize on outsmarting Riddle with a successful kick fake, Breeze got a hot tag and nearly pinned Fish with a Beauty Shot before Strong pulled Fish to safety. Confusion between Breeze and Dream led to Riddle getting kicked off the apron by Cole. Strong then capitalized by hitting Dream with the End of Heartache for the win. Dream sold his frustration by kicking the ring steps long after the cameras had cut.
Break. Alicia Fox said the first round of the NXT Breakout Tournament would take place at this taping, and she announced Shayna Baszler defending the NXT Women’s Championship against Io Shirai in a steel cage.
(4) Angel Garza (f/k/a Garza, Jr.) pinned Joaquin Wilde (f/k/a DJZ) to advance in the NXT Breakout Tournament. Official: D.A. Brewer. Garza kissed the hand of a recognizable NXT fan on his way to the ring. The wrestlers went back and forth in a match worthy of the Cruiserweight Classic. Garza made the crowd go wild when he tore off his pants and hit a facebuster for two. As Garza began to dominate, Wilde impressively reversed a unique chokehold. Garza hit a Spanish Fly for two, and the crowd flew out of their seats. Garza then folded Wilde up and dropped him on his tailbone for three. He let a female fan rub his pecs as he celebrated.
(5) The Street Profits defeated Wesley Blake & Steve Cutler (w/Jaxson Ryker) via disqualification. Official: Eddie Orengo. The Profits took a path through the crowd as they entered to celebrate their TakeOver title win. Upon their own entrance the Forgotten Sons got nearly as much audible hate as the Profits got love. Angelo Dawkins and Montez Ford made fun of the Sons, and offered to put their titles on the line. The crowd chanted “no,” and the Profits decided not to put the titles up. The Sons double-teamed Ford before Ford soared to a tag. Dawkins tagged again quickly and Ford nailed a high frog splash. As Ford went for the pin, Ryker pulled him out of the ring and clotheslined him in clear view of the official. Orengo called for the DQ, and a three-on-two beatdown ensued. Danny Burch and Oney Lorcan charged in for the save. As the Sons backed off, Lorcan and Burch took the titles and admired them. When the Profits saw this was happening, their rescuers respectfully handed the titles back and the champions held them high.
(6) Keith Lee pinned Nykos Rikos. Rikos wrestled in ring gear that must be seen to be believed – a Hefty-black, would-be body suit with the right arm and neck cut off diagonally down the chest and the left pant leg cut short like trunks. Lee popped the crowd by bowling Rikos over early, then quickly put things away with Ground Zero.
Alicia Taylor went to the front row to introduce a Make-A-Wish girl from the United Kingdom who had a “business meeting” with Stephanie McMahon earlier in the day. The young girl received a standing ovation. Taylor then announced Tyler Breeze vs. Roderick Strong for later in the evening.
Break.
(7) Mia Yim pinned Aliyah (w/Vanessa Borne). Official: Drake Wuertz. Aliyah tempted fate by mocking Yim at the opening bell. As Yim intimidated her Aliyah feebly tried to slink out of the ring, but was caught. Yim went for a cannonball but Borne pulled her friend out of the way. Aliyah took advantage and eked out some offense, even finding a couple near falls before Yim got her groove back. Yim hit her cannonball successfully, belly-to-belly suplexed Aliyah from the ring, then dove on to both Aliyah and Borne. Yim brought Aliyah back into the ring for Seoul Food and the decisive pin. Aliyah sold Yim’s finisher by leaping backward. Instead of celebrating for the hard cam, Yim went to ringside and chucked Borne into the ring steps. She then stormed to the commentary desk and demanded a camera. She delivered what appeared to be an emphatic message directly into the camera. Yim was called back afterward to repeat the promo, and this time her music was turned down so she could be heard better.
Break. Event crew set up for Kushida’s entrance. A commercial for WWE’s Nigel McGuinness documentary was shown, and Mauro Ranallo fist-pumped along with a “Nigel” chant from the commentary desk.
(8) Kushida submitted Jeff Parker. Official: D.A. Brewer. Kushida’s entrance received a notably warmer reception from this enthusiastic crowd than at his prior two tapings. Parker of NXT’s Team 3.0 was not announced, but his appearance encouraged “Cobra Kai” chants. Kushida worked a number of holds and hit a flying back elbow. Parker then got a fair bit of offense in, even pausing to mock Kushida’s gimmick and successfully hitting a slingshot elbow drop afterward. Kushida finally turned things around and locked in the Hoverboard, looking as though he could have done it at any time he wanted.
The NXT Breakout Tournament brackets were shown, and from this point on were updated on the screen after each tournament match. On the left side is Jordan Myles (f/k/a ACH) vs. Boa, and Isaiah “Swerve” Scott (f/k/a Shane Strickland) vs. Cameron Grimes (f/k/a Trevor Lee). On the right, Bronson Reed (f/k/a Jonah Rock) vs. Dexter Lumis (f/k/a Sam Shaw), and Angel Garza (f/k/a Garza, Jr.) vs. Joaquin Wilde (f/k/a DJZ).
(9) Cameron Grimes (f/k/a Trevor Lee) pinned Isaiah “Swerve” Scott (f/k/a Shane Strickland) to advance in the NXT Breakout Tournament. Official: Drake Wuertz. Grimes, whose new name seems inspired by his hometown of Cameron, North Carolina, was announced from Burlington, North Carolina. Following gradual opening phases, Scott leapt into a Frankensteiner reversal from the top rope and fired up. He kicked at Grimes, but Grimes found a sit-out powerbomb for a close two. Scott responded to a leaping forearm with an uppercut and a backflip over the top rope to the outside onto Grimes. Grimes hit an incredible mid-air powerslam and then a double stomp for the win.
(10) Bianca Belair pinned Priscilla Zuniga. Official: Jessika Carr. After Zuniga shoved her face, Belair clubbed Zuniga so hard her own hoop earring flew off. Belair Gorilla Pressed Zuniga and dropped her flat. Belair caught Zuniga in a hurricanrana attempt, powerbombed her twice, hurled her into the turnbuckle, then hit the KOD for the win. Carr tried to instruct Belair to flaunt for the hard cam but Belair made her way up the ramp. When Carr caught up to Belair, Belair gave a completely in-character cocky smile and a shrug as if to say, “You got what you got!” Carr returned to Zuniga to help her to the back.
(11) Roderick Strong pinned Tyler Breeze. Official: Eddie Orengo. Breeze was announced from his “seasonal residence” in Palm Beach, California. Early in the match, Strong backdropped Breeze into a sharp corner of the ring steps, and then again into the metal barricade. Breeze stayed alive, keeping Strong underneath through a better part of the proceedings. Strong fought for a superplex, but couldn’t keep his opponent on the ropes. Bobby Fish and Kyle O’Reilly ran in, which provided enough of an opening for Strong to hit the End of Heartache for the win.
Break.
(12) Jordan Myles (f/k/a ACH) pinned Boa to advance in the NXT Breakout Tournament. Official: Drake Wuertz. Contrary to what was on display in his recent dark match, Myles has sacrificed very little of his goofy personality in his move to NXT. Big Boa squared up to the Super Junior but couldn’t hang with his effortless athleticism. Eventually Boa’s strength and MMA-style striking found him at advantage, and he drove a scissor kick into Myles’ ribs. He hit a full nelson suplex for two. Boa’s heated onslaught continued until Myles fired up into a comeback. Myles chopped a cloud of sweat from Boa’s chest, and kicked Boa in the corner until Wuertz pulled him away. He hit a flipping splash from the top rope to win, and enthusiastically led the audience in a celebration.
(13) Damian Priest pinned Blanco Loco. Official: Jessika Carr. Priest re-filmed a clothesline multiple times until Loco sold it well, then did his bow and arrow motion before hitting his spinning roundhouse and spinning neckbreaker sequence to win.
(14) Bronson Reed (f/k/a Jonah Rock) pinned Dexter Lumis (f/k/a Sam Shaw) to advance in the NXT Breakout Tournament. Official: D.A. Brewer. Lumis was announced from “an undisclosed location.” The wrestlers began by making their signature hand gestures at one another. They traded power moves, and eventually Reed found two on a heavy senton. Lumis was incensed upon only getting two after a backdrop and a standing leg drop. Reed lowered the straps on his singlet and hit his massive finishing splash to advance.
The updated NXT Breakout Tournament brackets now have Jordan Myles (f/k/a ACH) facing Cameron Grimes (f/k/a Trevor Lee) and Bronson Reed (f/k/a Jonah Rock) facing Angel Garza (f/k/a Garza, Jr.) in the semis.
Officials and ring crew set up the steel cage. As they did, a video package recapping Shayna Baszler and Io Shirai’s TakeOver match played. Alicia Taylor then hyped the crowd by encouraging respective bleacher sections to be louder than others.
(15) Shayna Baszler defeated Io Shirai via escape to retain the NXT Women’s Championship in a steel cage match. Official: Eddie Orengo. Baszler entered with an updated tron graphic. She was in a hurry to get the cage door closed following introductions, and bore a sick smile as if only she knew what Shirai had gotten herself into. Shirai fought back as Baszler opened the affair by contorting her like a plaything then stomping on her head. At her first opening, Shirai tried to escape the cage but was yanked down by Baszler. Baszler hurled Shirai through the ropes and into the cage wall. The two wrestled for advantage until Shirai dropkicked Baszler into the cage wall multiple times in a row and German suplexed her for two. Shirai went for a moonsault from the top of the cage too soon, and got caught in a chokehold. Shirai rallied and German suplexed Baszler from the top turnbuckle for two. Shirai crawled toward the door, but Jessamyn Duke and Marina Shafir ran in and shut it, leaving Shirai prone to Baszler’s Kirifuda Clutch. From the confines of the hold Shirai kicked the door at the interfering Horsewomen and wriggled away from Baszler. She climbed the cage but Shafir halted the ascent from the other side. Candice LeRae ran in and attacked Duke and Shafir. Duke went to check on Baszler in the ring. Shirai was out on top of the cage as LeRae climbed to check on her, and then LeRae hit a cross body from the top of the cage onto Duke. Shirai then moonsaulted from the top of the cage onto Baszler and the fans stood and chanted “NXT” and “Yowie-Wowie” as the women laid in a heap. Shirai crawled to the door once more and fought off Baszler. Baszler caught her at the last moment, however, and sank in the Kirifuda as Shirai hung over the apron headfirst. Shirai used the door to bash Baszler in the head, and Baszler toppled over Shirai to the outside for the victory. LeRae consoled Shirai as the Horsewomen departed, but Shirai viciously attacked her. Shirai seemed to stop herself for a moment, but instead got a chair and repeatedly hit LeRae over the back with it. Shirai set up the chair and suplexed LeRae onto it. WWE staffers checked on LeRae after Shirai left to some boos and some “Io” chants. LeRae laid still for some time, and eventually William Regal came to ringside. At long last LeRae sat up to cheers from the audience, and was helped to the back.
RECOMMENDED: 6/12 NXT TV REPORT: Lorcan & Burch vs. Undisputed Era, KUSHIDA vs. Gulak in a submission match