WWE NXT - September 4, 2013
by Samoa Rowe
-From Orlando, FL. Our hosts are Tony Dawson and Alex Riley.
Bayley and Charlotte vs. Alicia Fox and Aksana
In case you don’t know, Charlotte is Ric Flair’s daughter. Bayley is star-struck to be in there with official WWE divas and Aksana takes advantage. Fox puts a hurting on Bayley with a Northern Lights suplex. Bayley catches Aksana in a hug suplex! Hot tag to Charlotte, who is a tad clumsy, yet more physically imposing than her opposition. Charlotte gets tossed off the top like her dad, but rolls through the landing. Bayley makes a blind tag and manages to roll-up Fox for the win at 4:33. Charlotte is a good sport about Bayley stealing the pinfall. Fox and Aksana seemed like seasoned pros compared to the NXT divas, but this was okay for a 4 minute match.Winners: Bayley and Charlotte
-Sylvester Lefort rallies his unlikely stable of Alexander Rusev and Scott Dawson. Rusev breaks a 2x4 with Mason Ryan’s name written on it. Once they’re done with Ryan, they’re going to Sizzler! Dawson likes that bit of news. This is such a weird group of characters. Imagine a French Randy Savage managing Mike Knox and Jamie Noble.
Rick Victor (with Conor O’Brien) vs. Corey Graves (with Adrian Neville)
Graves throws his jacket in Victor’s face and tackles him. Graves is out for revenge as he bats Victor around. Victor clubs his way into the match but Graves delivers a suplex. Graves hurts his injured ribs while hitting a cross body. Graves counters with a mule kick but Victor drops him rib-first on the ropes. Cue the commercial! After the break, Victor is having a field day pounding on Graves and his injured ribs. Graves puts together a comeback, all while clutching his ribs. O’Brien gets on the apron, prompting Neville to drop-kick him off and connect with a dive. Graves gets a roll-up for the win at 9:43 (shown). This was a disappointing and tedious match to sit through. Neither man showed much while on offense and the crowd was dead throughout.Winner: Corey Graves
-Sasha Banks is putting on make-up when Summer Rae shows up to egg her on into making a statement against Paige. Summer thinks that Sasha should use her inner rage to give Paige the beating of her life. I like Summer Rae channeling Emperor Palpatine.
-Renee Young interviews NXT Women’s Champion Paige about Summer Rae trying to get into Sasha’s head. Paige doesn’t really care, because she’s the “anti-diva.” She’s not a “Cover Girl” but she “covers girls” for the 3 count. Good promo here.
-Sylvester Lefort is making it routine to interrupt the ring announcer so he can introduce his own clients. It’s one thing to be French, it’s another thing to be rude.
Alexander Rusev (with Sylvester Lefort and Scott Dawson) vs. Mason Ryan
Time to see how much Ryan has improved in the 2 years since he was on Raw. They lock up and exchange shots. Ryan connects with a shoulder tackle but runs into an impressive leg lariat from Rusev! Series of falling head butts by Rusev, followed by more head butts! Ryan side steps and comes back with punches. Ryan brings Dawson into the ring and clotheslines him out. Lefort distracts as well, allowing Rusev to nail a splash. The Camel Clutch finishes Ryan at 3:58. This was actually a pretty good showing by two big men, although there were times that Rusev seemed lost.Winner: Alexander Rusev
-Leo Kruger has knocked down Xavier Woods and thinks it’s really hilarious. I was wondering where these two were.
Sami Zayn vs. Jack Swagger (with Zeb Colter)
Zayn bursts into a flurry of attacks but Swagger knocks him down with a shoulder tackle. Zayn rebounds with a drop-kick and takes control. Zayn bounces off the ropes as Swagger dodges a dive. Colter distracts long enough for Swagger to ambush with a clothesline. Cue the commercial! After the break, Zayn is escaping a chinlock, but Swagger retains control with a belly to belly suplex. Zayn shows signs of life, but Swagger practically decapitates him with a clothesline. Zayn pulls the ropes to send Swagger to the floor and wipes him out with a dive! High cross body gets 2 for Sami! Swagger comes back with a power slam for a near fall. Zayn nails the Falcon Arrow for 2! Zayn escapes the Patriot Lock, but Swagger nails the gut-wrench power bomb! Swagger reapplies the Patriot Lock but Sami gets the ropes. Zayn counters the Swagger Bomb and nails a desperate Yakuza Kick! The crowd is completely behind Sami, who is selling a hurt ankle. Sunset flip power bomb off the ropes by Zayn, but Swagger kicks out! NXT Champion Bo Dallas shows up at ringside to pretend to support Sami, who has no choice but to tap to the Patriot Lock at 13:12 (shown). This got really good after the commercial. Zayn once again generated an emotional wave of support from the crowd and meshed well with Swagger’s power and submission holds, ***½.Winner: Jack Swagger
Final Thoughts: NXT as the Sami Zayn Show is top-notch entertainment and is worth checking out. Otherwise, this was more simple Wrestling 101 booking with a roster that is getting the hang of working in front of a crowd. The good main event is more than enough to make me forget the boring Victor/Graves match. Another highly enjoyable installment, Thumbs Up.
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