The show starts off with a nice video hyping up “one year ago” and how everything has changed for the NXT roster. 15,671 are in attendance – breaking last year’s record and topping all of TNA’s paid attendance for at least the last year. Corey and Tom are on commentary – yes! Aries vs. Jose is up first. No Way Jose has a new No Way shirt like a stop sign and revamped gear. His intro is huge here, and is great for an opening act. A conga line joins in for the intro, which is outstanding. Aries’s lighting-heavy intro is even better on a big stage, and he’s treated like a god coming down to the ring.
He gets a huge “Austin Aries” chant when the match begins and Jose outwrestles him a bit and slaps his back. Jose dominates with kicks and strikes and sends him to the floor before diving onto him. Aries regains a bit of control with a back elbow and a neckbreaker over the rope. Running elbow to the back gets 2. Aries eats corner to corner turnuckle shots on the apron before a double chop. Shin breaker into a back suplex/facebuster leads to the Last Chancery – but a rope break saves Jose.
Aries sends him out for a dive, lands the corner dropkick and sets up a brainbuster, but Jose reverses into one of his own! Rolling elbow hits, but Jose recovers and hits a lariat! Jose goes for the full nelson slam, but Aries backs him up and lands a crucifix bomb to rock him. Corner dropkick hits for 2. Aries goes up top and eats an uppercut, but lands a sunset flip powerbomb and wins with the Last Chancery. Jose’s stock was raised quite a bit here, while Aries looked strong and shined brightly as well. Itami comes down and eats a beating from Aries before delivering one of his own. The crowd chants “GTS!’ and he hits it to a huge pop – Itami needed traction and got it.
Ric Flair and Fifi are in the crowd. Billie Kaye comes out to face Ember Moon. They put over her training by Booker T and Skandor Akbar. Moon lands a nice pop-up rana and a forward-flip armdrag. Discus punch gets 2 for Kaye. Moon hits a nice springboard crossbody, but then Eats Defeat for 2. Ember fights out of a Gory special, lands a neckbreaker and a chancery suplex. Ember goes up and hits a jumping corkscrew stunner to win. That is going to kill her hips, but it’s cool-looking!
Backstage, Roode says NXT is glorious. Roode-Almas video from NXT airs. Roode descends from on high via a scissor lift! Glorious! Roode doing the Okada pose for every GLORIOUS in the theme amuses me greatly. The fans sing his theme and man does is suck Roode didn’t come around five years earlier, but with NXT as it is right now. Almas gets booed and Roode has new black, gold, and green gear and matching robe – looks slick. Almas is now dressed like a firefighter stripper in red. Yikes.
Roode gets a snapmare and then does a GLORIOUS pose. Almas lands some chops and then a codebreaker. Almas fakes him out and shows charisma, before getting stopped up top and stomped in the corner. They exchange chops before Roode gets a chinlock and then eats some chops. The double knees are set up, but he eats a lariat for 2. German off the top by Roode, but Almas lands on his feet and gets 2 off a straightjacket German. Roode’s fisherman suplex is countered into a small package for 2. Almas lands a series of elbows to the face and kicks him down into the double knees. Shotgun knees hit hard, but Roode avoids the hammerlock DDT. He eats a boot, but then Roode gets a spinebuster before hitting a pumphandle slam called the Glorious Bomb and winning. Well, this is a bad finish for Roode – but a good name for it at least.
Orange County Choppers and HHH present the CWC trophy. Tag title match is up next, with the faces out first. Revival has new white and black gear that looks sharp. Ciampa and Dawson are starting off with some arm work. Ciampa sends him to the floor the second any trouble brews, which is a great touch for the heels. Ciampa chops both guys down and Gargano has some nice exchanged with Dash. Lots of great chops and clubs here before Ciampa gets lured in and we got clubbering!
Dawson drags Dash out, but Gargano dives on one of them and then Ciampa hits something off the apron that is missed on-camera. Dash tags in Dawson, leading to Ciampa eating some big forearms and a suplex for 2. Corner double team leads to a chinlock for the heels. Great tug of war for a tag, but Ciampa just can’t make it! Nice basement dropkick gets 2 before Ciampa comes back and tags in Johnny!
He eats a back elbow, but gets the Kalisto kick! Outside-in spear gets 2! Blind tag leads to them doing the Arn Anderson punch fakeout DDT for 2! Psycho armbar on Dawson! Dawson makes a last-second save! Cradle gets 2 for Ciampa! Forehead to forehead for the bald guys leads to forearms! SUPERKICK/KNEE HITS AND GETS THE W…no! The foot was on the rope! Dawson gets kneed and supkericked out, but sacrifices himself so Dawson can chopblock Johnny! PILLMANIZER AND A TRAILER HITCH! Trailer hitch is locked on and he taps. This ruled!
Asuka-Bayley recap video. Bayley comes down for her second annual semi-main event in front of 15,000 fans! TUBE MEN ARE ON THE RING NOW! HOORAY! Asuka’s robe has a trail that stretches the entire rampway, which is new. Asuka grooving to her theme is terrifying, and then she takes off a new mask with paint that matches her own and it’s even better. An epic staredown starts things off before a series of tie-ups and dueling chants.
A series of cradles get 2 for Bayley, but she eats a knee to the face jumping off the second rope. Asuka hits a series of hip attacks before doing an octopus hold in the ropes. Asuka lands a series of strikes on the apron, but Bayley lands a series of buckle shots. Asuka goes for a rope-hanging hip attack, but Bayley avoids it and clubs away. Crossbody gets 2 for Bayley, but Asuka gets 2 for a shining wizard. The ref says “six minutes”, which sure sounds like an ending is on its way fairly soon.
Asuka goes up for a superplex, but gets locked in a tree of woe and eats a flying elbow for 2. HIP ATTACK, but Bayley gets a running knee. Stretch muffler is on, before she moves into an ankle lock. Bayley escapes and Asuka kicks away, but Bayley wants more! Bayley gets 2 off a backslide. Facebuster gets 2. Asuka Lock is on! Bayley fights out and lands the Bayley to Belly for 2.5! Asuka lock is on again and Bayley turns it into a cradle for 2. Asuka kicks her, but Bayley wants more and eats a buzzsaw kick and loses. Asuka shows Bayley respect after the loss, and it looks like Bayley is finally main roster-bound. Bayley goes to the floor to hug Sasha and Becky before hugging Charlotte to boos and finally hugging her mother.
NXT New Zealand and Australia tour is announced for December. Backstage, Joe gets a security-filled entourage while Nakamura stretches a bit. Great video package for the main event shows each guy doing training and then we see Mick and Noelle along with Balor. Someone comes out to play violin for Nakamura’s theme. Wow. Just hearing it live is something else, and then Nakamura makes it even better by just doing random gyrations to it. Joe goes for no frills and it works perfectly. Nakamura bows to Joe, who just looks sickened.
Joe muscles him into the corner and the fans sing Nakamura’s theme. Nakamura goes to take Joe down and does – but struggles and gets 1. Joe works on the arm a bit before they fight to the floor. Joe dominates until a 9 count. Joe hits an enzuiguri and doesn’t even want to cover – he wants to brag about Nakamura being in there with the champ! Nakamura slugs him and hits the draping apron knee. Nakamura’s kneedrop misses, but Joe’s tope doesn’t!
Basement chop and kick lead to an elbow for 2. Joe hits the powerbomb into the Tenzan crab before the STF is locked on. Joe turns it into a cranking crossface before Nakamura turns it into a cradle for 2. Joe eats a kick and gets set up top where he eats the knee to the gut. Joe gets the inverted atomic drop and the running kick, but misses the senton. Nakamura hits the kneeling PRIDE knees, but Joe gets the ST-Joe as Nakamura charges into the corner.
Nakamura kicks him away and hits the second rope flying kick, but doesn’t get all of it. Joe gets his blitz and sends Nakamura flying with a palm strike. Joe gets caught in an armbar, but Joe keeps his grip. Joe turns a triangle into a cloverleaf! Nakamura escapes and Joe eats a German! Snap slam off the Kinshasa gets 2! Muscle Buster gets 2.5! Nakamura avoids another one and lands a Kinshasa for 2! Flying knee to the neck! KINSHASA GETS THE KO AND THE WIN!
Screenshot Gallery –
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