7/5 Short’s WWE NXT Review: Tyson Kidd, Seth Rollins and Bo Dallas vs. Hunico, Camacho, and Michael McGillicutty, Sofia Cortez vs. Paige, Kassius Ohno (a/k/a Chris Hero) vs. Mike Dalton

By Josh Short

WWE NXT
Taped in Winter Park, Fla. At Full Sail University

The show opened and Jim Ross checked in on commentary welcoming us to the show. He announced Byron Saxton as his co-commentator...

Sofia Cortez (Ivelisse from Tough Enough) made her entrance to little reaction at first but the crowd gave her a good amount of reaction once she fired them up a bit. Her opponent Paige (Britani Knight) was introduced and also got little reaction. Byron Saxton checked in on commentary and said that his wish had been granted with this diva’s match...

1. Sofia Cortez defeated Paige in 2:23. Both women locked up as Ross talked about how Paige’s mother and father were both wrestlers. Cortez hit a beautiful huracanrana which got a nice reaction from the crowd. Paige awkwardly rolled towards the centre of the ring before rolling out of it as if she realised she had gone the wrong way. Cortez hit numerous strikes in the corner before Paige hit one hell of a slap. Sofia came back with an enziguri which Ross described as running head hick. Cortez locked in a rest hold as the crowd booed. Paige got out of it and hit numerous slaps to the chest. Cortez hit a kick to the thigh before a great roundhouse kick to Paige’s head. She ran the ropes and sprung into a very unique DDT (which Paige sold brilliantly) for the win...

After the match Byron Saxton hyped the debut of Kassius Ohno (Chris Hero) and Camacho vs. Seth Rollins...

Short’s Synopsis: Like the majority of matches from last week this was one was all about one person and in this match it was Sofia. Sofia had a really good showing in this match, she looked tenacious, intimidating and threatening at the times she was on offence and the crowd really responded to her. Her strikes were vicious and her huracanrana as well as her DDT finisher got a great reaction. I thought she had what it took to make it on T.E (and not just because I think she’s hot). Speaking of hot, Paige certainly is. She has a unique look in comparison to the rest of the WWE divas and I think that uniqueness plus the fact that she can wrestle well and can get a good reaction from the crowd will help make her one of the top WWE diva’s one day (along with Sofia).

Hunico and Camacho made their entrance to some applause (which seemed piped in) and then a chorus of boos. Seth Rollins made his entrance moshing to one the biggest pops on NXT so far. Saxton noted Rollins’ great crowd reaction while Ross mentioned that WWE officials are apparently very high on Seth.

2. Seth Rollins defeated Camacho in 4:33. Seth attempted to lock up with Camacho but Camacho pushed him away. Seth hit a few strikes before Camacho took Seth down. and threw him into the corner and started pounding on him. Ross noted that "Camacho’s heritage will not allow him to have a retreat gear" which pokes holes in Camacho’s gimmick doesn’t it? Seth hit several chops before pounding on Camacho in the corner. Ross noted Seth’s uniqueness and also stated that Seth’s offence was reminiscent of CM Punk. Camacho hit a big legdrop and continue to pound on Seth as a "Let’s go Rollins" chant broke out.

Seth attempted to grab Camacho but missed to sell Camacho’s offence. A short time later Seth was on the ground holding the ropes, Camacho pulled him up but Seth hung on to the ropes, springing up, turning in mid air, landing on his feet and hitting an enziguri for a cool spot. He followed it up with a Mic Check into the bottom turnbuckle which looked and sounded great; it also got a great reaction from the crowd. Seth ran the ropes and hit a dropkick as the crowd became a lot louder. He headbanged in the corner, setting up for his splash but Hunico attempted t grab his feat distracting him. Hunico got a dropkick of his own. Camacho attacked Seth from behind and got Seth on his shoulders, Seth countered and pushed Camacho into Hunico before hitting Camacho with The Blackout for the 1-2-3.

After the match Hunico and Camacho ganged up on Seth Rollins before Bo Dallas made the save. Hunico and Camacho left to great heat.

Short’s Synopsis: The best match we have seen in the last two weeks of NXT. Camacho looked like an absolute beast and his strikes, body posture and facial expressions made him seem like one badass S.O.B. As for Seth, I’ll go as far as to say no one continues to get a reaction as great as him. He has the crowd in the palm of his hand as he sold Camacho’s beating like a champ before getting them onto their feet with his comeback. If you have five minutes to kill watch this match, it just shows how good these guys can be, even in five minutes...

Corey Graves and Jake Carter made their entrance to good heat. Their opponents: CJ Parker and Nick Rodgers were introduced in the ring...

Ross noted that Carter was the son of Vader and thankfully he didn’t take after his father in the looks department...

3. Corey Graves and Jake Carter defeated CJ Parker and Nick Rodgers in 2:24. Saxton explained Graves and Carter’s gimmick of being ladies men who work and party hard. Parker hit a monkey flip before Graves took advantage and drove CJ into his corner. Parker hit a sunset flip but Carter made the blind tag and kicked CJ in the back before pounding on him. Carter and Graves hit some nice strikes on CJ before Graves locked in a rest hold on CJ. CJ hit a massive backdrop before both men made tags to their partners. Carter hit a sick looking spinebuster on Rodgers. He took out CJ before tagging in Graves and hitting a scoop slam and neckbreaker combination which they call "Bottom’s Up" for the win. They left to a good amount of heat ad Ross talked about their great potential...

Short’s Synopsis: A squash match to introduce the team of Corey Graves and Jake Carter. They looked good in the ring and seem to have good chemistry. They used the same finisher that Curt Hawkins and Tyler Reks use and that Curt Hawkins and Vance Archer (Lance Hoyt) used to use. People may have seen it before but it still looks like a great finisher to me. Speaking of looks, am I the only one that thinks of Jeff Hardy whenever I see Corey Graves? He’s covered in ink, he has the cool look on his face and he wrestles in jeans. I wish that Carter would wear jeans as well because despite the fact that they are an actual team and have good chemistry they seem like two guys just thrown together.

Ross and Saxton were shown on screen and hyped Kassius Ohno as a knockout artist and that his debut was next...

A Kassius Ohno video aired. Eerie music was played in the background as various clips of him were shown in black and white. Unusual noises were played in over the clips, some of them sounded like bones grinding or breaking. Kassius talked about how he likes to deliver pain and the pleasure it brings him. He ended the video by declaring "I’m Kassius and I hurt people"...

Kassius Ohno made his entrance to decent heat that lasted for the whole of his entrance. Mike Dalton was introduced as his opponent...

4. Kassius Ohno defeated Mike Dalton in 2:32. "K.O" chants started immediately as both men locked up. A loud "Let’s go Ohno/Dalton sucks" chant broke out. Dalton hit a drop toe hold and went for the quick cover. Ohno hit a dropkick as J.R noted how he had wrestled all over the world. Ohno stood in a corner yelled "Oh-No!" before running and an elbow to Dalton’s head which got a good reaction from the crowd. He followed it up with flying lariat.

Ross continued to put over Ohno’s experience and the fact that he knows so many different styles, Saxton chimed in and noted that his combination of different styles made him very different. No shit Sherlock. Dalton managed to get out of a rest hold, went for roundhouse kick but hit a spinning wheel kick instead. A short time later Kassius hit a rolling elbow out of nowhere, which got a great reaction for the clean win. After the match, they replayed the rolling elbow twice before Kassius cut a promo. He stated "Kassius Ohno, knocks people out...and when they hear Kassius coming they all say Oh No!"...

Short’s Synopsis: Kassius Ohno is primed for big things after that video package and match. We all know he can wrestle and this match certainly showed that but the best thing about this match was Kassius’s body language and facial expressions. I talked about this earlier with Camacho but Kassius is a master of evoking feeling from a crowd. Before his debut on FCW and on NXT I was fearful of how far his knockout gimmick could go given that the main roster already has Big Show as it’s K.O specialist. However Ohno’s body language and facial expressions as well as the video made it clear that this is a very different knockout gimmick. The close up’s of his face in black and white, the eerie music during the video and they way he presented himself in the ring left me in awe. The match was a squash but Kassius’s performance in it and the video package that introduced him were spectacular. Go out of you way to see his video package and match.

A Bray Wyatt video aired. He appeared to be speaking on a radio. He told us we don’t have to hurt anymore and questioned what are "they" gonna do to something they cannot hurt, something that will not be afraid of them. Clips were shown of him helping people. He yelled that he is not afraid anymore, that he doesn’t feel the pain of man and questioned what "they" are gonna do when "they" discover they cannot hurt him before he spoke to his followers. The screen went black as he said that the only thing they can do is run. A woman and his own laugh were heard in the background as a graphic announced that he will debut next week...

Short’s Synopsis: Dear God, no pun intended, could Husky Harris be more believable as Bray Wyatt? Another awesome video that you should go out of your way to see.

Derrick Bateman made his entrance, acting like a babyface but receiving a good amount of boo’s. Jinder Mahal made his entrance to a good amount of heat...

5. Jinder Mahal defeated Derrick Bateman in 4:02. Both men locked up as a "USA" chant broke out. Jinder went for a suplex but Bateman countered with Northern Lights suplex. Later Bateman hit a suicide dive on to Jinder on the outside. Bateman came up holding his left leg as a "this is awesome" chant briefly broke out. Jinder dragged Bateman over to the ropes and sat on Bateman before hitting several knees like he did last week. Bateman performed several roll ups before hitting a stiff looking flapjack. He then hit a Moonlight Drive which got a great reaction and a near fall. Bateman went for the DBD but Jinder got out of it and hugged the bottom rope. Bateman pulled him up and went for the DBD again but Jinder countered and hit a weak looking knee to the back. Jinder then locked in the Camel Clutch for the win.

Short’s Synopsis: The crowd may have chanted this is awesome, but I don’t think it was. I wasn’t bad it just wasn’t as engaging as other matches we’ve seen on NXT.

After the match Jinder locked in the Camel Clutch again...

A graphic featuring Bo Dallas, Seth Rollins and Tyson Kidd taking on Michael McGillicutty, Hunico and Camacho. Saxton Noted that NXT GM Dusty Rhodes had made this match due to the events that happened earlier in the night...

Tyson Kidd, Seth Rollins and Bo Dallas made their entrance to a great reaction as Chris Russo and William Regal joined J.R on commentary. Michael McGillicutty, Hunico and Camacho made their entrance to a good amount of heat. Hunico and Camacho were wearing different attire from the ones they were wearing "earlier in the night". The commentators put over McGillicutty and his match with Tyson Kidd on the first episode of the new NXT...

6. Michael McGillicutty, Hunico and Camacho defeated Tyson Kidd, Seth Rollins and Bo Dallas in 9:51. Dallas and McGillicutty started, Michael made Bo tag in Kidd only for Michael to tag in Hunico. Nice. Ross questioned why Hunico wears his bandana as he beat on Kidd. Kidd came back with a great huracanrana out of the corner. Hunico locked in the Gory Special before turning it into a pin. Kidd, whilst still locked in the move managed to lift his body weight and hit a sunset flip for a great spot. The action quickened as Bo Dallas and Seth Rollins made quick tags. Hunico took control after Camacho distracted Seth...

Alberto Del Rio was shown recalling his favourite Raw moment: DX invading WCW...

Back from the break Camacho locked in a rest hold, Seth fought out of it as Hunico made the tag, Seth hit a big monkey flip which drew a lot of cheers from the crowd. He tagged in Bo Dallas who made a comeback with a variety of clotheslines and other strikes. Camacho took control and tagged in McGillicutty. The commentators continued to put over McGillicutty in a big way. Bo tried to make the hot tag but Hunico tagged in and hit a very nice double underhook backbreaker. A very loud "Bo" chant started as regal talked about how Hunico and Camacho met...

Apparently, Hunico was getting beat up by a gang when one of the gang members stabbed him, Camacho then showed up, grabbed the guy that had stabbed Hunico and bit his nose off. Talk about pushing PG to the limit. Bo continued to play the babyface in peril, he finally made the tag to Tyson Kidd who got really big reaction. He hit his kick whilst he holds on to the ropes which also got a big reaction before following it up with a picture perfect springboard dropkick. Everyone ended up in the ring before the action spilled to the outside, Seth then performed a cross body to the outside which even took out Bo. Only Kidd was left in the ring. A "this is awesome" chant broke out. Kidd went for a dive to the outside but McGillicutty re-entered the ring and hit a chop block on Kidd. He followed it up with a sick looking McGillicutter for the win. The heel team’s win got a great amount of heat...

Jim Ross then thanked everyone for tuning in before closing out the show...

Short’s Synopsis: A great match to close a great show. If anyone is questioning why Tyson Kidd is getting a big push then look at this match as a reason why. He got a much bigger reaction than anyone else and he had the crowd in the palm of his hand. The crowd loved everything he did. This was another strong outing for Michael McGillicutty who has proved here on NXT that he deserves a big push. He so good in the ring and looks like a complete badass when he’s on offence. If Kidd can get a big push without any mic time then I see no reason to why McGillicutty shouldn’t after his two performances on NXT. As for the rest wrestlers in this match each played their part well, Rollins had a great moment with his cross body to the outside, Bo played the babyface in peril well and Hunico and Camacho showed that they had good chemistry as a team. This was a great match.

Overall, a very strong show for the NXT. Let’s hope last week’s episode was only a dip in form and this show continues to go from strength to strength. The Bateman vs. Mahal and Graves and Carter vs. Parker and Rodgers matches could’ve been better but they weren’t that bad. The rest of the show was great. Kidd and McGillicutty continue to impress, Camacho got show how much of a beat he can be, Kassius Ohno had the crowd in the palm of his hand, Sofia and Paige both looked great and Bray Wyatt, despite being a very unique character is being made completely believable by Husky Harris. I’m really looking forward to his debut and the rest of the show on next week’s NXT. Thanks for reading.