NXT – August 1, 2012
By Scott Keith on August 3, 2012
NXT
Date: August 1, 2012
Location: Full Sail
University, Winter Park, Florida
University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: William
Regal, Byron Saxton, Jim Ross
Regal, Byron Saxton, Jim Ross
Reviewed by Tommy Hall
Back to Florida again
and tonight is a big step forward in NXT as we’re going to have a
major announcement. I won’t spoil it for you as you’re going to read
about it soon. Why I’d be worried about spoiling something a minute
away is beyond me, but there isn’t much else to talk about for this
show and I need to fill in space. Let’s get to it.
and tonight is a big step forward in NXT as we’re going to have a
major announcement. I won’t spoil it for you as you’re going to read
about it soon. Why I’d be worried about spoiling something a minute
away is beyond me, but there isn’t much else to talk about for this
show and I need to fill in space. Let’s get to it.
Dusty Rhodes opens the
show and he’s called the interim GM of NXT. I thought he was
permanent. Dusty talks about what it means to be a champion and how
NXT needs someone to be atop this place. There’s going to be a Gold
Rush Tournament to crown the first tournament and the round of eight
begins soon. The eight men are (in no particular order mentioned):
show and he’s called the interim GM of NXT. I thought he was
permanent. Dusty talks about what it means to be a champion and how
NXT needs someone to be atop this place. There’s going to be a Gold
Rush Tournament to crown the first tournament and the round of eight
begins soon. The eight men are (in no particular order mentioned):
Richie Steamboat
Bo Dallas
Leo Kruger
Seth Rollins
Mike McGillicutty
Drew McIntyre
Jinder Mahal
Justin Gabriel
No Tyson Kidd. That’s
interesting. Oh and the first round begins RIGHT NOW.
interesting. Oh and the first round begins RIGHT NOW.
Gold Rush Tournament
First Round: Richie Steamboat vs. Leo Kruger
First Round: Richie Steamboat vs. Leo Kruger
Richie tries some very
fast rollups for two each. Kruger chops him in the chest and the
chase is on outside. Back in and Leo tries a sleeper but Richie
escapes before it goes on. The camera is using some non-traditional
angles here for some reason. Kruger gets knocked to the floor and
tries to frustrate Richie. That makes sense as his dad always had a
temper to him. Back in and Richie hits a chop in the corner and
Kruger may have a bad knee.
fast rollups for two each. Kruger chops him in the chest and the
chase is on outside. Back in and Leo tries a sleeper but Richie
escapes before it goes on. The camera is using some non-traditional
angles here for some reason. Kruger gets knocked to the floor and
tries to frustrate Richie. That makes sense as his dad always had a
temper to him. Back in and Richie hits a chop in the corner and
Kruger may have a bad knee.
Scratch that as it was
a fake and Kruger nails him. Now that’s how you go about being evil.
A snap suplex gets no cover as Leo would rather pose. An elbow drop
gets one and it’s off to a cravate. Steamboat tries to fight back
but walks into a big spinebuster for another two. The sleeper is
countered again so Kruger settles for right hands to the head.
Kruger charges into a boot and it’s back to the chops.
a fake and Kruger nails him. Now that’s how you go about being evil.
A snap suplex gets no cover as Leo would rather pose. An elbow drop
gets one and it’s off to a cravate. Steamboat tries to fight back
but walks into a big spinebuster for another two. The sleeper is
countered again so Kruger settles for right hands to the head.
Kruger charges into a boot and it’s back to the chops.
A backdrop puts Kruger
down and a missile dropkick gets two. Steamboat misses a clothesline
and there’s the sleeper from Kruger. Steamboat finally makes the
rope but he’s in trouble. Kruger sends him into the ropes but
Steamboat comes back with the Sling Blade for the pin to advance at
7:51.
down and a missile dropkick gets two. Steamboat misses a clothesline
and there’s the sleeper from Kruger. Steamboat finally makes the
rope but he’s in trouble. Kruger sends him into the ropes but
Steamboat comes back with the Sling Blade for the pin to advance at
7:51.
Rating: C.
Not bad here but it was just a match. These two had a better match a
few weeks ago but they had something to fight for here, which at
least makes things more interesting. Steamboat doesn’t have that
much going for him at the moment other than his name, but that can be
easily fixed.
Not bad here but it was just a match. These two had a better match a
few weeks ago but they had something to fight for here, which at
least makes things more interesting. Steamboat doesn’t have that
much going for him at the moment other than his name, but that can be
easily fixed.
Here are the official
brackets for the tournament:
brackets for the tournament:
Rollins
McIntyre
Gabriel
McGillicutty
Steamboat
Dallas
Mahal
Big E. Langston vs.
Adam Mercer
Adam Mercer
I wonder if I can get a
glass of juice to go with the squash we’re about to have. Langston
fires knees to the ribs and hits a set of backbreakers. Mercer gets
in a bit of offense but Langston runs him over. There go the straps
and Langston loads him up in a powerslam position. Instead of
slamming him forward, Langston falls onto his back and slams Mercer
into the mat for the pin at 2:00. Apparently it’s called the Final
Cut. The name is ok but I’m not wild on the move.
glass of juice to go with the squash we’re about to have. Langston
fires knees to the ribs and hits a set of backbreakers. Mercer gets
in a bit of offense but Langston runs him over. There go the straps
and Langston loads him up in a powerslam position. Instead of
slamming him forward, Langston falls onto his back and slams Mercer
into the mat for the pin at 2:00. Apparently it’s called the Final
Cut. The name is ok but I’m not wild on the move.
Audrey Marie vs.
Raquel Diaz
Raquel Diaz
Well Marie looks good
in leather pants and a leather bikini top. She’s got that going for
her. Diaz has a mic on the way to the ring and talks about how great
she looks and how well she can work a ramp. Marie grabs a headlock
to start but Raquel hot shots her for two. Diaz hooks a chinlock but
it doesn’t last long. Instead she chokes away and rams Marie’s face
into the mat a few times. Raquel loads up a backslide but Marie
counters our of the corner. The counter is caught in the Gory Bomb
though, giving Diaz the pin at 2:33. I’m not a fan of Diaz’s
character, but I’m a big fan of the fact that she has a character.
in leather pants and a leather bikini top. She’s got that going for
her. Diaz has a mic on the way to the ring and talks about how great
she looks and how well she can work a ramp. Marie grabs a headlock
to start but Raquel hot shots her for two. Diaz hooks a chinlock but
it doesn’t last long. Instead she chokes away and rams Marie’s face
into the mat a few times. Raquel loads up a backslide but Marie
counters our of the corner. The counter is caught in the Gory Bomb
though, giving Diaz the pin at 2:33. I’m not a fan of Diaz’s
character, but I’m a big fan of the fact that she has a character.
Raquel puts an L on the
forehead of Marie with lipstick. The L is for loser I guess.
forehead of Marie with lipstick. The L is for loser I guess.
Paige is glaring at
Raquel in the back. She says we’ll see about Raquel and her tour.
Raquel in the back. She says we’ll see about Raquel and her tour.
Hunico/Camacho vs.
Mike Dalton/Jason Jordan
Mike Dalton/Jason Jordan
Hunico and Jordan get
us going as Regal tells us Camacho and Hunico’s backstory for the
dozenth time. Jordan takes Hunico to the mat and controls with a
front facelock before it’s off to Dalton. After a Camacho
distraction, a dropkick gets two for Hunico. Off to Camacho who
stomps away on Dalton in the corner. A butterfly suplex gets one and
Camacho pounds away some more. Back to Hunico who hits a double team
powerbomb with Camacho for two. Hunico launches Dalton at Camacho
but Dalton catches him in a hurricanrana out of nowhere for the upset
pin at 3:41.
us going as Regal tells us Camacho and Hunico’s backstory for the
dozenth time. Jordan takes Hunico to the mat and controls with a
front facelock before it’s off to Dalton. After a Camacho
distraction, a dropkick gets two for Hunico. Off to Camacho who
stomps away on Dalton in the corner. A butterfly suplex gets one and
Camacho pounds away some more. Back to Hunico who hits a double team
powerbomb with Camacho for two. Hunico launches Dalton at Camacho
but Dalton catches him in a hurricanrana out of nowhere for the upset
pin at 3:41.
Rating: D+.
This was a surprise but it caught me off guard which is nice to see.
It’s always fun to see something unexpected and having guys who seem
like jobbers get a win is one of those things. Jordan is supposed to
be a big prospect and this is the first match he’s won in, even
though he didn’t get the pin. Nice little surprise here.
This was a surprise but it caught me off guard which is nice to see.
It’s always fun to see something unexpected and having guys who seem
like jobbers get a win is one of those things. Jordan is supposed to
be a big prospect and this is the first match he’s won in, even
though he didn’t get the pin. Nice little surprise here.
Gold Rush Tournament
First Round: Drew McIntyre vs. Seth Rollins
First Round: Drew McIntyre vs. Seth Rollins
McIntyre beat Rollins
last week so there’s a backstory here. Feeling out process to start
and Rollins knocks Drew into the ropes. Drew takes over with a right
hand but Seth knocks him to the floor. He loads up a dive so Drew
rolls under the ring. That’s one way to avoid it. Drew rams Seth’s
arm into the steps and we head back inside. McIntyre works over the
arm and hits a DDT on it for two.
last week so there’s a backstory here. Feeling out process to start
and Rollins knocks Drew into the ropes. Drew takes over with a right
hand but Seth knocks him to the floor. He loads up a dive so Drew
rolls under the ring. That’s one way to avoid it. Drew rams Seth’s
arm into the steps and we head back inside. McIntyre works over the
arm and hits a DDT on it for two.
We take a break and
come back with Drew ducking his head and getting kicked in the face.
Rollins can’t follow up though and Drew takes over again, stomping
away in the corner. This is the opposite of last week’s show where
it was all Rollins for most of the match. The bad arm is rammed into
the apron and we head back inside. McIntyre tries to throw him up
into the air but Rollins DDTs him out of the air for two. Rollins
tries to speed things up and hits an enziguri to stagger Drew.
come back with Drew ducking his head and getting kicked in the face.
Rollins can’t follow up though and Drew takes over again, stomping
away in the corner. This is the opposite of last week’s show where
it was all Rollins for most of the match. The bad arm is rammed into
the apron and we head back inside. McIntyre tries to throw him up
into the air but Rollins DDTs him out of the air for two. Rollins
tries to speed things up and hits an enziguri to stagger Drew.
Seth knocks him to the
floor and hits a suicide dive to send McIntyre up the ramp. Back
inside and Drew takes Rollins’ head off with a clothesline for two.
Rollins tries to go up but dives into a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker for
two. Drew loads up a belly to back superplex but Rollins knocks him
off. They do the same finishing sequence from last week with the
missed splash, but this time Seth avoids the running boot and hits
the Blackout for the pin at 9:44 shown of 13:14.
floor and hits a suicide dive to send McIntyre up the ramp. Back
inside and Drew takes Rollins’ head off with a clothesline for two.
Rollins tries to go up but dives into a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker for
two. Drew loads up a belly to back superplex but Rollins knocks him
off. They do the same finishing sequence from last week with the
missed splash, but this time Seth avoids the running boot and hits
the Blackout for the pin at 9:44 shown of 13:14.
Rating: B-.
I liked the psychology at the end there a lot as it was a direct call
back to the previous week’s match. Rollins is a guy that is hit or
miss to me but giving him a longer match like this helped him a good
bit as he had to work to get a win here instead of just being insane
and winning a quick match. Good main event.
I liked the psychology at the end there a lot as it was a direct call
back to the previous week’s match. Rollins is a guy that is hit or
miss to me but giving him a longer match like this helped him a good
bit as he had to work to get a win here instead of just being insane
and winning a quick match. Good main event.
Overall Rating: B.
It’s so nice to see this show moving forward so quickly. In less
than two months they’ve already made more progress than Season 5 made
in over a year. The matches were good, they had a purpose, and
they’re fighting towards something. That’s more than all of Season 5
could say in their entire run. Good stuff here and possibly their
best show yet.
It’s so nice to see this show moving forward so quickly. In less
than two months they’ve already made more progress than Season 5 made
in over a year. The matches were good, they had a purpose, and
they’re fighting towards something. That’s more than all of Season 5
could say in their entire run. Good stuff here and possibly their
best show yet.
Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews
Comments are disable in preview.