NXT Results and Recap: Bros, Brawls, & Bruiserweights

Oct 31 2018 Kyle Fowle

source: WWE — WWE NXT – October 31, 2018

Last week, all we wanted to know was why Johnny Gargano had gone and ripped our hearts out of our chests and stomped all over them. This week, we certainly want to know what the fallout from Gargano’s admission—that he was the one who attacked Aleister Black—would be, but we also have one person on our mind: The King of Bros, Matt Riddle. He makes his in-ring TV debut on this week’s episode of NXT, and it’s one that can’t be missed.

Before we get to that debut though, it’s NXT’s wild-eyed secret keeper that starts the show, as Nikki Cross comes to the ring for a match. She’s fresh off a recent main event bout with Bianca Belair, a feud that certainly hasn’t reached its conclusion, but this week Cross has to shift her focus to the hard-hitting veteran Mercedes Martinez. The two are incredibly evenly-matched to start. They trade submissions and strikes, with Cross doing her best to remain unpredictable, and Martinez trying to counter that be keeping her down with a few hard strikes, and at one point busting her nose open with a stiff forearm.

It’s Nikki’s own vicious forearms that get her back in the match. She runs wild, hitting Martinez with everything she’s got, but Martinez gets the momentum back with a flurry of suplexes and a running knee right to Cross’ face. It’s not enough to keep Cross down though, as she fights her way back and hits Martinez with The Purge to get the win. With her secret out there now, perhaps this is the start of Cross’ path back to a championship opportunity, her focus solely on getting a shot at the gold. “That was fun,” she repeats again and again while blood drips from her mouth. Her problems aren’t going away though, as flip-flops after the match. She’s obviously upset that Cross kept the secret about her husband Johnny Gargano, but what does LeRae want with her?

We’ll have to wait to find out, because Cross leaves the ring before LeRae makes her intentions known, which in turn brings out Aleister Black, demanding to know where Gargano is. There are no answers here, and emotions are running high, and that means it’s only a matter of time before this situation boils over.

The next match of the night sees The Street Profits, who recently won the EVOLVE Tag Team Championships, renewing their bad blood with The Mighty. The Australians have been openly mocking the Street Profits for weeks, and you can tell that Montez Ford and Angelo Dawkins have taken exception to it. They’re extremely focused at the start of the match, easily getting the upper hand as Dawkins hits Shane Thorne with a barrage of fists. The domination continues when Montez Ford tags in and lays out The Mighty with one dropkick after another, but a surprise spinebuster from Nick Miller snatches the momentum back.

Ford gets held down for awhile, and The Mighty come close to winning with the same pin combination they did in their previous match. But Ford fights back for the tag to Dawkins, and the big man takes control back for his team. When Ford gets back in, that’s it for The Mighty, as Montez Ford connects with a stunning springboard frog splash. The tag team division is stacked, with worthy contenders around every corner, but The Street Profits once again prove they’re not going anywhere.

Backstage, William Regal makes a couple of announcements for the upcoming NXT TakeOver: War Games: Aleister Black will get his “pound of flesh” when he gets a shot at Johnny Gargano, and Tommaso Ciampa will put his NXT Championship on the line against Velveteen Dream. The latter is an announcement that doesn’t make Lars Sullivan too happy, and next week he’s set to show Dream just how angry it makes him to be excluded from the match for the championship at the Staples Center.

Then, it’s the moment we’ve all been waiting for. Coming to the ring in flip-flops and his signature snapback, Matt Riddle makes his debut on NXT TV. Sure, Riddle looks chill and easygoing on his way to the ring, but once his match against Luke Menzies gets going, he’s all business. Menzies looks to establish his strength advantage early on, but Riddle proves to be his equal despite looking like the smaller man. Riddle uses his quickness and a litany of elbows and knees before locking in the Bromission, which forces Menzies to tap real quick. It’s a dominant performance from the King of Bros, and it undoubtedly puts the locker room on notice.

The night is filled with hard-hitting performances, and the next is yet another one from Oney Lorcan and Danny Burch. Their match against Raul Mendoza and Humberto Carrillo is a true clash of styles, with Mendoza and Carrillo showing off their high-flying skill and speed, while Lorcan and Burch try to hit back with, well, ridiculously stiff strikes. Just when it looks like Mendoza is taking control and getting the NXT Universe behind them as well, Oney Lorcan lays out Carrillo with a nasty flying uppercut, giving them space to plant Mendoza with a high-angle DDT and snag yet another win.

It ends up being NXT’s last match of the night, because before War Raiders vs. Adam Cole and Bobby FIsh can even get started, War Raiders take a page out of Undisputed Era’s book and ambush them backstage. The brawl spills out to the courtyard, where any number of chairs and garbage cans and tables can be used as weapons. It’s pure chaos, and that’s before Ricochet flies into the mix in order to get his hands on Adam Cole. They fight all over the parking lot and into the arena. The brutality and violence simply can’t be contained. In the ring, Undisputed Era use their numbers to beat down War Raiders and Ricochet, but it’s an advantage that doesn’t last, as another man who has some beef with Cole, the UK Champion Pete Dunne, comes to the ring with a chair and wreaks havoc on Undisputed Era.

Remember when I said this violence and brutality can’t be contained? That statement is going to be put to the test, because William Regal comes out to stop the fight and announce that if they’re so intent on ripping each other apart, they can do so inside War Games.

You can watch this week’s NXT on the WWE Network