NEWS

NXT LVL Up
Date: April 22, 2022
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Sudu Shah, Matt Camp
I’m at the point where I don’t know what to expect from this show, as you might get someone making a one off appearance before debuting on the main NXT show or a name with nothing else going on. The show has worked before so maybe they can do it again here. Let’s get to it.
Opening sequence.
Malik Blade/Edris Enofe vs. Quincy Elliott/Damaris Griffin This is Griffin’s in-ring debut. Blade staggers the much bigger Elliott with a dropkick but Elliott hits a quick splash on the back to take over. Griffin comes in to work on Enofe’s arm but that’s reversed into another wristlock, allowing Blade to come in with the ax handle. A double belly to back suplex drops Griffin again but he’s right back with a spinebuster.
Elliott comes back in to knock Enofe down, allowing Griffin to whip him into the corner over and over. Elliott’s Pounce sends Enofe flying and the nerve hold ..

That could make things interesting. One of the most interesting things to see in wrestling is a free agent hitting the market. There is so much talent out there and it can be fascinating to see where someone might wind up going. It is something that you get to see every now and then, but now we might be seeing a good number of wrestlers hitting the markets unless something changes.
Earlier this year, several former Ring Of Honor wrestlers debuted in Impact Wrestling under the name Honor No More and have stayed with the company since. According to Fightful Select, as of April 1, multiple members of the stable have not been signed to Impact Wrestling. There is no word on which members have been signed or not. The team includes Mike Bennett, Maria Kanellis, Matt Taven, Vincent, Kenny King and PCO. Eddie Edwards is part of the team but was signed to Impact Wrestling before the rest of the group debuted.
Opinion: I’m not sure who is going to wind up sticking with Impact Wrestling and who ..

Come on up. WWE has a unique situation with NXT, as it allows the company to have its own in-house developmental territory. That means they can develop and then bring up stars to the main roster without having to sign new wrestlers. It can be interesting to see someone come up and now we might be seeing someone do just that, albeit in a different role.
According to Fightful Select, LA Knight is officially done with NXT and is now part of the main roster. This comes after Knight has been working as a manager in dark segments before SmackDown and has since signed Mansoor and Mace to his stable. There is no word on when the team will make its television debut. Knight last wrestled in NXT at Stand & Deliver on April 1 in a loss to Gunther.
Opinion: This isn’t the biggest surprise but it is nice to see that Knight’s tryout seemed to go well. Knight is someone who could be a big star on the main roster and the good thing is that he could be switched into a wrestling role if necessary. I’m ..

Welcome back? With so many wrestlers in WWE at the moment, it can be hard to find something for everyone to do. It doesn’t help when WWE seems to give up on someone and leaves them with little to do. One thing that helps a bit is NXT, where some wrestlers are being sent to give them some ring time. That seems to be the case again, with some wrestlers who have been a success there before.
The Viking Raiders returned to NXT this week and defeated Malik Blade and Edris Enofe. Roderick Strong brought the team in as a challenge to the Creed Brothers, with their match scheduled for next week. The Viking Raiders are currently on Monday Night Raw and are former NXT Tag Team Champions, having won the titles in January 2019. They are the only team to voluntarily vacate their titles, having vacated them on their way to the main roster.
Opinion: As has been the case with other main roster stars coming down to NXT in recent weeks, I’m not sure how well this is going to go but at least the team is..

Thankfully it wasn’t necessary. With so many wrestlers in the history of the industry, it is very rare for someone to become a top level legend. You see them occasionally though and when they reach that level, there is almost nothing that can knock them off. One of the biggest stars of all time was having some very serious health issues, to the point where WWE even made some drastic preparations.
Back in 2017, Ric Flair dealt with medical issues that left him in a coma for thirty one days following complications with his kidneys due to colon surgery. Flair was a guest on the Pivot Podcast and revealed that WWE had prepared a tribute video for him, fearing that he would not survive the ordeal. Flair said that he had a 5% chance of surviving the ordeal but he has since gotten better and is hoping to have fun every day for the rest of his life.
This was an intense interview. Check out the whole thing:
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Opinion: This is the kind of thing that c..

They’re an easy idea. Tournaments are one of the easiest things that a wrestling promotion can put together. It’s such a simple concept, as a bunch of wrestlers are put into a bracket of some kind and the last wrestler or team standing wins a prize. There might be a theme to the whole thing and that seems to be the case again as NXT is bringing back one of their concepts, but with a twist.
This week, NXT announced the first ever Women’s Breakout Tournament, which will focus on women who have either not yet debuted or have not wrestled many matches. While no prize was announced, winners of the previous men’s editions of the tournament have earned a title shot. Four of the eight entrants have been announced, including:
Arianna Grace
Sloane Jacobs
Kiana James
Lash Legend
The tournament begins on May 10.
Opinion: This is something that could work at the moment, as there are several talented women who could be going somewhere if they are allowed to stand out. That is the point of a tour..

That sounds worse. Wrestlers are larger than life characters with personalities that are often over the top and meant to be as big as possible. That can often come with bodies that are literally larger than most, as you see some wrestlers who dwarf most normal people. However, those wrestlers have their own issues, and now one of the biggest wrestlers ever has revealed some previous problems.
During a recent appearance on the Out Of Character podcast, Monday Night Raw star Omos revealed that he had a brain tumor removed when he was 18 years old. Omos was playing college basketball at the time when an MRI revealed the tumor. As he was getting ready to have the tumor removed, he was diagnosed with partial Cushing’s Disease. Omos said that he was the first person ever recorded with a tumor on his pituitary gland, a brain tumor and Cushing’s Disease, which resulted in a medical journal article about his case.
Opinion: What matters most is that Omos seems to have these issues cleaned up a..

That would have been strange. Wrestlers rely on their reputations quite a bit and the first impression can make a hue impact. There are only so many ways to debut in wrestling and if it goes wrong, the wrestler can be fighting out of a hole in a hurry. It seems that a recent return was almost a lot worse, as the result of someone’s first match back almost went very differently.
Mustafa Ali returned from a six month hiatus this week on Monday Night Raw. Ali defeated the Miz when he returned, but according to Fightful Select, the original plan called for Ali to lose. The plans called for Miz to win the match until Sunday afternoon when WWE made a change. In addition, WWE has not frozen Ali’s contract for the time that he was gone, though they may extend it in the future.
Opinion: That could have been a lot worse, as I don’t want to imagine how bad it would have been to have Ali return and then lose in his first match back. Ali is someone with a lot of talent, but it isn’t going to matt..

The new generation. There are a lot of wrestlers throughout the world today and some of them are the children of previous wrestlers. In a way, these wrestlers have a leg up on others as they have grown up around someone in the industry and have probably been given some insight on how things work. It can be fascinating to see how they do as a result and that seems to be the case again.
Arianna Grace made her debut on NXT this week, appearing in a vignette announcing her entry into the first ever women’s Breakout Tournament. Grace is formerly known as Bianca Carelli and is the daughter of former WWE star Santino Marella. She has previously wrestled for the NWA and signed with WWE earlier this year. There is no word on if Santino will be appearing in WWE with Grace.
Welcome to the team. Check out Graces’s debut:
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Opinion: This is the kind of thing that can make for some very interesting moments as you do not know how well a second generation s..

NXT
Date: April 26, 2022
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Wade Barrett, Vic Joseph
Things got weird last week as Joe Gacy suddenly had a cult (minus his one regular follower) and sent them after Bron Breakker. That’s your NXT Title match for next week and….yeah I’m not sure what to expect there. Other than that, we need to start building up the rest of the card and that will probably be done tonight. Let’s get to it.
Nikkita Lyons vs. Lash Legend They go right at the brawling with Lyons getting the better of things and taking her to the ground for some right hands. Legend sends her crashing out to the floor though and a ram into the steps makes it worse. Back in and Lyons gets a sunset flip for two but Legend is back with a spinning side slam for the same. The neck crank has Lyons in trouble but she is back up with the kicks to the leg. There’s a snap suplex to drop Legend and a German suplex does it again. The spinning kick to the chest finishes Leg..

It’s a plan. We are less than two weeks away from WrestleMania Backlash and a lot of the card has already been set. There are several matches announced for the show, including some title matches. Those are the most important matches on the show and a title change can be a big shakeup for everyone involved. Now we might know that one of them is coming in advance.
According to Wrestling Observer Radio, Ronda Rousey is likely to win the SmackDown Women’s Title from Charlotte at WrestleMania Backlash. The idea is that WWE will not want to have Rousey, a UFC legend, lose in an I Quit match, even to Charlotte. In addition, Lacey Evans is returning to SmackDown and is likely to feud with Charlotte, even if she does not have the title any longer.
Opinion: Rousey winning the title is something that almost has to happen, just for the sake of getting the title off of Charlotte. She has held the title long enough that someone has to take it from her and Rousey could use the boost. Evans vs. Char..

That’s him. WWE has a lot of resources and one of its biggest is having its own developmental territory in NXT. The company is able to bring up wrestlers who have been appearing on national television whenever they want to but WWE has a bit of a strange habit of changing things up about them in the process. That seems to be the case again with an NXT legend.
Tommaso Ciampa was officially called up to Monday Night Raw earlier this month and became part of the roster. Ciampa appeared on this week’s show when he attacked the returning Mustafa Ali. During the attack, Ciampa was referred to by his last name only, suggesting that his first name had been dropped. In addition, earlier on Monday, TVA Sports Quebec’s Kevin Raphael said that Ciampa had lost the Tommaso name. This comes after WWE has shortened over names in recent weeks.
Tommaso Ciampa is now only Ciampa.
Effective immediately.
— Kevin Raphael (@kevinraphael21) April 25, 2022
Opinion: For the life of me I wish WWE would drop ..