3/20 Zim's WWE NXT Live Coverage: Sheamus vs. Aiden English, Adam Rose, Bayley vs. Sasha Banks, Mojo Rawley vs. Bull Dempsey, and a cameo by New England Patriots TE Rob Gronkowski

By Zack Zimmerman

WWE NXT
Aired March 20, 2014
Taped February 28, 2014 at Full Sail University

The opening video played… Mojo Rawley made his over-the-top entrance to open the show. He stopped to acknowledge New England Patriots TE Rob Gronkowski in the crowd, who was shown wearing a cheesy Mojo Rawley shirt cheering. Mojo's opponent was already in the ring.

1. Mojo Rawley vs. Bull Dempsey. Dempsey took control of Mojo and showed good athleticism for a big guy with a forward roll into a shoulder thrust in the corner. He continued to work over Mojo until Mojo broke free with a back suplex around the two minute-mark. Mojo cornered Dempsey with a three-point stance and hit a couple of stinger splashes, the butt-butt, and the Earthquake Splash for the win.

Mojo Rawley pinned Bull Dempsey in about 2:25.

After the match, Mojo climbed into the crowd to celebrate with Gronk and a pocket of fans all wearing the same cheesy shirt…

Backstage, Devin Taylor interviewed CJ Parker who was uncharacteristically dressed up. He said he's sickened and disgusted by Mojo Rawley's lifestyle. He said Mojo stays hyped because hes genetically modified and highly processed. He said Mojo eats fast food, burps, and throws the wrapper out of the window. He said that next week, he's going to dispose of Mojo Rawley… [C]

Zim Says: Nothing more than we've come to expect from Mojo; he's too inexperienced in the ring to be pushed like this, but the crowd seems like they're getting into him. I assume Mojo and Gronk have football-related history. Parker's interview was fine; this new character just is what it is.

Tyler Breeze made his entrance next. A replay showed Breeze attacking Woods from behind before Woods' match with Alexander Rusev last week. Sami Zayn was out next. As Zayn slapped hands with ringside fans, Corey Graves ran down and rammed Zayn into the ringpost. He told Zayn to stay down before a doctor checked Zayn for a concussion. Zayn sold it well. Graves backed up the ramp and referee's and trainers assisted Zayn to the back as the fans chanted "Ole"…

Backstage, Devin Taylor welcomed Sheamus back to NXT. Sheamus said its really where he got his start, but before long, Aiden English interrupted him. English introduced himself and said he would use his fame from NXT to make the jump to Broadway. Sheamus told him he would see him out there later tonight…

Scott Stanford hyped that match as the main event… Scott Stanford hyped that Adam Rose would be in action next… [C]

Zim Says: Adam Rose! Woo! Nice follow-up for Zayn and Graves to continue their program.

Adam Rose made his entrance to new music that is slightly less awesome and less chant-able. Camacho was already waiting in the ring.

2. Adam Rose vs. Camacho. Rose pranced around the ring and did his tuck-and-roll spot as well. The crowd tried several times to pick up a chant of Rose's theme song, but the change from week one has them thrown off. Rose did the bicycle in the ropes spot, but Camacho came right back with a back suplex. Camacho hit repeated chops in the corner as the crowd chanted "party pooper" at him. Camacho mocked Roses prancing and Rose fired back at him. Rose bleeding from the mouth. Rose hit a running back-elbow in the corner, the Bronco Buster, and a hard spinebuster. Rose retreated to the corner and yelled "choo-choo" before unleashing the lariat for the win.

Adam Rose defeated Camacho in about 4:45.

Rose danced his way up the ramp and re-joined the party posse to the back… Scott Stanford hyped Bayley vs. Sasha Banks next… [C]

Zim Says: A fun appearance from Rose, but less spectacular than week one. The "Woo" from his first theme is way better than the "Hey!" in this one.

Sasha Banks and Bayley made their entrances; Sasha with Charlotte and Bayley with Natalya.

3. Sasha Banks (w/ Charlotte) vs. Bayley (w/ Natalya). Bayley backed Sasha into the corner and punked her, which appeared to boost Bayley's confidence. Bayley hooked in a Full Nelson and dropped Sasha on her back before donning The Boss' shades and mocking Sasha. Bayley dropped Sasha across the top turnbuckle but she missed a stinger splash and Sasha took control with a dropkick to Bayley's back. Sasha stayed in controlfor the next several minutes, quelling Bayley's comeback attempts and dumping her to ringside. Bayley slipped back in the ring and scored the win with a surprise rollup…

Bayley beat Sasha in about 4:30.

Scott Stanford hyped Sheamus vs. Aiden English next… A video package aired hyping next week's show as "Vengeance Week." Charlotte vs. Natalya, CJ Parker vs. Mojo Rawley, Xavier Woods vs. Tyler Breeze, and Bo Dallas vs. Adrian Neville for the NXT Championship were advertized.

Zim Says: I missed the exact finish, but the match was pretty decent.

Aiden English sang himself to the ring and William Regal gushed about him on commentary. Sheamus was out next to a big pop. Before the bell, English took a mic and called the NXT Arena "the theatre that The Artiste built." He said he was Broadway-bound. Sheamus asked if anyone thought he would make it to Broadway and the crowd chanted "No!" Sheamus said in Ireland, singing is a celebratory thing, so he was going to share a song with everyone at NXT. He had the crowd start a rhythm clap and let out a Irish tune that was pretty fun. Englush took the mic, but Sheamus grabbed it back and continued to sing. English knocked Sheamus to ringside and things were underway.

4. Aiden English vs. Sheamus. Sheamus chased after English but English took control and wore Sheamus down with shots in the corner. Sheamus fought back a short time later and fired back at English in the corner. He caught English in the ropes and hit the Celtic Drum or whatever he calls it. Regal said watching this match was like watching film negatives. Funny. Sheamus went for the Brogue Kick but English evaded it and ducked out of the ring as the show went to the final break. [C]

Back from break, English had the better of Sheamus until Sheamus launched him over the top rope to ringside. Sheamus high-fived a mini-Sheamus in the crowd as he continued to assault English. English ran across the ring and tripped Sheamus up, dropping him onto the ringsteps to take control. Back in the ring, English stayed in control. Around the six minute-mark, Sheamus broke free and went to the top rope but English caught him with a modified neckbreaker for a near-fall.

English locked in a piggyback sleeper hold, but Sheamus rallied back a short time later. He hit a axe handles, a running knee strike, and a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker. Sheamus retreated to the corner and pumped up before delivering the Brogue Kick for the win.

Sheamus defeated Aiden English in about 8:40.

Zim Says: A decent main event to a decent show. It's nice for Sheamus to come down and give someone the rub by making them look credible; English looked credible here. The match was nothing to rave about, but certainly nothing to complain about.

Overall, the show was better than last week, but it still hasn’t quite picked-up like I'd hoped it would for its Network run. The show is as competent and watchable as ever, some weeks just feel hotter than others. I like that they're keeping Adam Rose super-relevant, but the subtle changes from week one are enough for his stock to drop just a bit with me this week. The ladies match was solid and competitive. Mojo Rawley isn't my type of wrestler but I can see the things they like in the guy; he just needs significant improvement IMO. I liked the simple but effective continuation of the Sami Zayn/Corey Graves feud and I'm looking forward to watching that play out. My favorite part of the show was the way they hyped next week's episode and promoted each match. It's not something they need to do weekly, but it's a nice touch for them to include things like that when they can. Not a particularly great episode, but as usual I have a hard time picking out any significant flaws.

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