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Hey, everybody, it's Jay again with your NXT review. This week emanated from the uh from the Performance Center in Orlando, Florida, Winter Park, Florida. This is the review for this week's NXT episode that aired on the CW on February eleventh. And let me tell you, there was so much that happened. This was the go home episode for Vengeance Day which is Saturday, and there was so much that was going on and I want to talk all about it, but
first let me talk about Ricky Starks. So before I get into before I get into the event itself, and right before the main event, which was the cage match between Tony D'Angelo and Ridge Holland, which a lot happened with that one too. We'll talk about that later.
We have.
Ricky Starks come out. Now, he didn't say his name, he just said you know who I am. And then afterwards the announcers were like, yeah, we know who he is, but nobody actually ever said his name. So those of you that don't know who he is, Ricky Starks came.
Out on.
In the crowd with the microphone and basically said that he is now an NXT. Now here's why this is interesting. Excuse me, So, Ricky Starks was on the AEW for years, years back from almost when it started in twenty nineteen. And there's actually a lot of guys, if I don't know, if you know this, there's a bunch of guys three of them off the top of my head that I can say that besides Ricky Starks that have jumped over
from AAW to NXT. Ricky Starks has been an AEW, like I said, for since since since almost the beginning. And here's the thing. For the last year, this guy who from what I've told, been told and I haven't seen him wrestle, but from what I hear, he's phenomenal, absolutely phenomenal and not no sight to AJ styles. And he here's the thing, he hasn't been on aw TV for like a year. For a year now, I've done some research between the episode on Tuesday night and today.
So here's some of my here's some of the things I found out. Ricky Starks was on an episode of the Chris Van Vleet, the podcast, the interview that he did, uh the interviews that he does, And there's a possibility, now I'm not certain of this, but there's a possibility that the reason why Ricky hasn't been on TV basically since last year at WrestleMania was because Tony Kahan, the
owner of a W, had a problem with him. Now he keeps saying he doesn't have an issue with him, but then again, he hasn't been on TV for a year, which doesn't make any sense because again from what I hear and from what I've seen from one or two matches that I've seen him in, he is absolutely amazing. So Ricky last year went to WrestleMania.
Now he was.
Told by Tony Khan that he didn't have a problem with him going to WrestleMania. However, again, he hasn't been on TV basically since then. On AAW Ricky says he went to see Jade, who he obviously Jade and he worked together in ae W and Cody and he worked together at AW and he wanted to see them perform. Why and why wouldn't he. I mean, this is WrestleMania. This is the biggest show in wrestling period in the United States, probably cross the world unless you talk Wrestling
Wressell Kingdom and New Japan. But that's a whole separate conversation. So it seems like Tony Kahn has had a problem
with him now. He has been on the active roster for AW now since last year's WrestleMania, but again not being used then Monday, from what I heard in my research, Monday, he was taken off the active roster of ae W and along with Malachi Alistair Black, which who's who was who was in w W before and now he is a w It' is Alistair Black in w W E Malachi Black in ae W and now he's now he's free agent again and RUSSEV who also had a different name in AW but he was russe F and w
W A now they put together from what I hear, they put together a contract with Ricky Starks after he was released from AW on Monday, really quick like within a day, and then he shows.
Up to NXT.
They didn't have any plans for them. It was just a here I am, I'm here just so you guys know. Which obviously, if you watch the episode, which you wouldn't be here most most likely you wouldn't be listening to me if you hadn't seen the NXT episode. He came out, he did his Ricky Starks things, and that was it. It was just an intro like, hi, here I am, this is me, b bae bye goodbye. So it's gonna be interesting to see how that plays out. Let me say, Ricky Starks could be if they wanted him to be,
could have been main star Maine and Roster ready. However, most likely they want to have him do some work in NXT first before we came up. But I will tell you this, they will whoever whatever they call him, whether it's Ricky Starks or something else, they will immediately put him into the World title picture or the NXT title picture. And let me say this, it needs it now.
As much as I hype the women's division on on NXT, the men's division, you've got Oba and Trick and then then you drop maybe Tony DeAngelo is close there, and then it just drops. The men's division needed a kick in the butt and and I think Ricky Starks is gonna give that to him for now they need more, but he definitely will help the process. Let me think about it. This weekend, Oba Femily's defending a title of
triple threat match against nobody from NXT. He's defending him against an He's defending it against a town down Under. Maybe we'll see the split. Probably not between a Town down Under, Austin Theia and Grayson Waller, but Obafemi they pulled. They had to pull those two and to be to go against Obafemi, why like why why would they have to do that because the roster is so small. Trick Williams is doing a program with Eddie Thorpe. I think have a big issue with that Eddie Thorpe. I've already
mentioned that. I'm not gonna say it again, so but Trick Williams is going his Eddie Thorpe. Tony's'angelo had a match tonight against Rich Holland, so he's nowhere to be seen for Vengeance Day. Most of the matches this weekend are like, you know, the North American Women's North American title match. We have, we have the tag team title match between Axiom Praxium and you know, well you would you guys, that's you've seen what happened on We will
talk about on Tuesday. The Triple Threat tag team match which wasn't for the number one contendership, which ended up being for a number one contender ship.
That was kind of weird.
And then we had and then we have the triple Threat match for the world title. We have Trick versus Eddie Thorpe, and we have Javan Evans versus Ethan Page and obviously Ethan Page would put up in that top the top pedestal there. And that's Vengeance Day. Like again, there's like they're not very male superstar heavy in NXT, but they're hugely. They're hugely and the women's division heavy, which is which obviously is awesome. So let's talk about
the episode aside from the Rickey Starks Bricky Starks stuff. Yeah, this was really this was really a great episode. There was so much going on. Again, we talked about this is from the facility in Orlando, Florida, Winter Park, Florida. They had this was, like I said, it was the go home show for Vengeance Day, which happens on Saturday, the fifteenth again, I will be doing a review podcast and from the snowy Northeast on Sunday morning. Snow again.
And there were four matches tonight. There were four matches because of the Ricky Stark stuff. There was some other things between OBA and Etown down Under. There was women's Championship match stuff, and then there was a cage match which they have to you know, this is the performance center. They can't leave the cage up like they do in an arena. They have to put it up. So it took some time to do that as well. Okay, so
here's some of the highlights. First match we had is Coora j a versus Bailey, which was a great match. Kora je Ad looked awesome. I think Bailey made her look awesome.
She you know, she got it. There was an attack. Oh and towards the end.
This is interesting, So towards the end of the match, Roxanne comes out dressed as Hugger Bailey. If you will go back to when Bailey first came up to the WWE. She was dressed in pastel colors. She had straps hanging down from her arms. So she came out acting like and dressed like hugger Bailey from the beginning, and of course Bailey did appreciate being made fun of, so she went out out of the ring to confront Roxanne. It was actually kind of funny to see how the hugger
Baalley thing. So Roxanne was from the distraction. Cory j came out, gave her a double underhooked DDT on the floor, threw in the through Bailey into the ring, and Kory gave her another double underhookd DDT in the ring and picked up a win. Kora je Aide picked up a win against Bailey. That's not something small. That's a big deal, and you know, that's something to look to look at in the future. But it did because she did that.
And this is weird how this worked out. So during the match, Ava whispered something in Julia's ear, who was backstage watching the match, and then after the match was over, Ava came out to announce that Korage Aid will be added to the NXT Women's Championship match to so this is making it now a fortal fatal four way match with Bailey, Roxanne, Perez, Cora Jaid and of course Julia is the champion. So I still think Julia retains. I don't see her losing the title until at least stand
and deliver in April. We'll see how that goes. I don't force. I think Roxanne is gonna be moved up soon.
I mean she so.
Roxanne also then now has a match on Monday against what's your name Roquel Rodriguez uh for for the elimination chamber. I know that people are writing Roxanne Perez off against Roquel, but I see some shenanigans happening, and I would not be surprised if Roxanne ended up in the elimination chamber Allah Tiffany Stein last year, so that will be kind of interesting to see.
So anyway they win her.
The match was corge Ade, which you know again, the fact that she beat Bailey is no small fat, no small task. Then backstage you've got Soul, Ruka and Zaria talking about going to the beach, which I can't really see Sarria going to the beach of course, so Ruka for sure. And then Nikita Lyons, who God please, Nikita Lyons is She's not She's not entertaining to me at all.
She her the way.
She talks is thuggish. I just I don't really articularly care for her character. I like the way she works in the ring. The match between so then okay, so I'm sorry, I'm getting ahead of myself. So Nikita Lyons makes it known that she believes that Ruka so Ruka is holding Zaria back, and then ended up becoming a match tonight between Zaria and Nikita Lyons. So this was a pretty good matchup. We'll talk about that, you know when when we get to that. So, after that interaction,
we had Oba Femi and Atown down under. So Oba Fami comes out to the ring most likely to give a you know, basically to give a glimpse to do his plans for Vengeance day, and Grace and Waller and Austin Theory and Grace and Waller Well and Alston Theory come out and they start basically jarring at each other like I'm gonna be the NXT champion. No, I'm gonna be the NFT champion, blah blah blah, and then they start play fighting but not really hitting each other.
And then.
Austin Theory goes to hit Grayson Waller and Grace and Waller ducks and hits Obafemi in the face and then they both start attacking Femi. So the whole thing is a set up. Duh, they're gonna They're gonna tease.
This is the problem with this match.
The match on paper is not bad, it's it's weird to me though, Like it's weird to have Oba and Grayson Waller and Austin Theory together because.
It's really gonna be.
It's really going to be a handicapped batch of sorts. I don't see the breakup from Atown down Under or if I if if I was gonna see the breakup, it wouldn't be on NXT, it would be on Monday Night Raw. And they just got moved to Monday Night Raw.
Like they're not they're not.
Gonna do They're not gonna pull the trigger on that, not now, not here. So anyway, they start ganging up on Oma Fami and you know that was pretty much the end of that.
Uh.
My prediction for as I'm doing predictions, as we go through the through the through Tuesday Night, my prediction is Oba Fami is gonna just beat the s not the snot out of both of them. Uh, They're gonna make it semi competitive, but ultimately all the family's gonna just destroy both of them, I think.
So.
Then we have Ednie Thorpe, who he challenged Trick Williams to a strap match. So last few weeks, Adie Thorpe has been coming out with a strap and whipping Trick Williams with a strap.
So Annie Thorpe next in.
Challenges Trick Williams to a strap match, which later on we'll find out if he accepted.
I'm sure that there's a question that he may or may not, right, right, sure. Uh.
Then there's a doctor that talks about Javon Evans and it's funny they talked about, you know how they've been trying they've been trying to make the process of of Javan evans jaw healing faster, like with but I'm in be twelve, Like I don't understand, Like what are we doing here, like which we're trying to speed up the process of healing.
I don't think it works that way.
However, however, Javon Evans was cleared, although the doctor for him was concerned that if he gets hit in the face that there could be some permanent damage and he could break again, and his jaw could break again, and of course Jovan Evans like, I don't care. I'm medically cleared, and so Avis has Javon's signed a waiver that says that that the WWE is not held responsible.
YadA, YadA, YadA.
Anyway, this is gonna be a great match. This is so Javon Evans versus Ethan Page. It's gonna be a great match. I think Javon Evans actually ends up pulling up the victory here. I don't think you go through all these weeks of you know, him getting killed, getting you know, the jaw thing. It's the whole thing with Centric Alexander, who's now not an X in NXT anymore.
He's he was released.
I don't know if anybody heard that. We'll talk about that. So, yeah, Javan Evans got cleared. There's gonna be a match between Javon Evans and Ethan Page.
And I think, honestly, I think, you know, if if I.
Had to guess, and if I was a betting person, which I only am sometimes, I think Jovan Evans wins the match clean. That's just my own personal opinion and have to see how that how that plays out. So we have a the third match, which is a triple threat tag team match between Josh Brace and Yoshiki in Amora versus No Quarter Catch Crew, Tavian Heights and my Miles Born and Hank and Tick. And this match was a lot better than I thought it would be. Actually
was very entertaining, really good match. Okay, so Josh Brace, Josh Brace and yo Yo Kishi have not really had much much of a match at the XTAM, but they did. They Haigen Tank are really entertaining. These two were really good. Tavian and Milesbourne are really good too. It was a great match, like I said, a lot better than I thought it would be. Josh, Brazen, Yokish and Amura end up getting the win of the tag team triple threat match. So yeah, this so now, So after the match is
over and they won again not a number one pretended match. However, Phraxium then comes out on the balcony and says, good job you won. Now you get a tag team title match. So now they're they've just made a new match. Three days out from four days out.
From Vengeance Day.
There's now made a match which is Phraxium versus Josh Briggs and Yakishi and Amora, and that should be a great match. I mean, listen, Phraxium don't put on bad matches. They they had a match last week against the Nema Brothers on TAM and I only I gotta, I gotta look it up on YouTube because from what I hear is a phenomenal match. But yeah, no, it was. The triple threat tag team match was amazing. It was absolutely amazing.
Then we're backstage and we have the D'Angelo family in Stax and Toni le Sony D'Angelo have a moment where they squash their little arguments that they have the rest of the family around and they and the two two of them seem cool.
Again with each other.
The family is around, which is you know, all of them, and then also is he Dane is there as well, so I yes, she's kind of an outside part of the family at this point. Then we have an n XT Heritage Cup match with Lexus King versus j d C from TN. He's on the He's on TNA as in the System they're called this is a group called the System. He made his debut last week, so a lot of a lot of people coming in out of TNA and you know TNA NXT. It's almost like he said nxtn A right, so this was a really good
match too. Ultimately, I don't I never saw them really giving giving a TNA wrestler any championship, So Lexus King ultimately did win the match.
There.
They did have the new quote new rules, which is basically regular rules. You know, Lexus King last week said that he was gonna stop rounds, he was gonna stop cornerman, he was gonna stop time, you know, timed rounds and everything. So ultimately Lexus King did get to win. It was a straight up wrestling match. Now, I guess it's basically this is a third title, but instead of a belt, it's a cup and there's no special rules to it. So anyway, it was a good match, very good match.
Then you've got the NXT North American Women's champ being fallon Henley. She's walking with fatal influence and they are talking about strengthened numbers, and Colonie Jordan shows up, letting it be known that she wants to rematch, and then Jada Parker also enters and she comes in saying she wants a shot too. Shanty the Adonis then inserts himself, making a case for his girlfriend Karmen Petrovitch who wasn't on the show, but Adrian you know what's his name,
Shanta the adonnas was which I thought was weird. And then basically it's just chaos and and Fallon Henley and Fatal Influence basically walk away and everybody's just kind of like arguing with each other, which is interesting. So the next match we have is Zaria versus Nike Nikita Lyons just set up earlier, which I had talked about. This was a really decent match. It was really nice for them to showcase and remind us what Zaria could really do.
Like Zaria was, she was Zaria. She you know, played up the strength and you know, obviously she's a buff woman. She's a buff woman in Nikita Lyons is not a small woman. I'm trying to be nice. So it was really nice to see Nikita Lyons basically showcase her strength. And I'm waiting for Joan Grace to come on, and I want to see Jordan Grace and and Zaria have have a program together because that's gonna be muddy, that's gonna be money. I hope for Standing deliver, but we'll
see what happens. But Ultimately, Zaria did win the match with an F five, which is I don't know if that if they're calling it that, but it's basically the same move bro that brock Lesner does, So that's what I'm calling it.
F five.
Uh.
Then a short little interview with in the balcony with Sarah and.
Sarah and Trick Williams. Uh.
Trick, then of course he does accept shock of he does accept Eddie Thorpe's challenge for a strap match.
Again.
I think I said this last week. I'm not sure if they're gonna do it. They haven't. They haven't said whether they're doing a strap match, a strat match like four corners touch four corners, or if they're doing a strat match where you.
Just pin the person or just you know, or get to make him submit. I'm not sure.
But anyway, Trick Williams accepted the challenge to the surprise of absolutely nobody. And yeah, by the way, just well, I'll talk about this later. So we talked about Ricky Starks. He came out next. Again, we don't know what his name is gonna be. I think they're playing around with some different things. I don't I guess Ricky starks is I'm guessing is is.
I guess is owned by A W k.
Us his name, which is weird because most most names in AW I don't think they trademark I didn't think they trademarked, but I guess, I guess. It seems he can't use this name or they're trying to buy the rights to it or something. I'm not sure, so we'll see how that works out. Then we have the Steel Cage Match. The main event, which is the Steel Cage Match for the North American Championship with Tony D'Angelo and
Ridge Holland. This match was slow in the beginning and picked up at the end, and in the end there was a I mean when Tony D'Angelo kind of got back up from getting an overall beat down for a while, he just just was throwing him against the cage back and forth, just really do it, like just kicking his butt. Eventually, what happened was is he Dane comes out because she
wasn't not initially. The rest of the family's out there, but they can't get in the cage because there's cage and Izzy Dane comes out with a crowbar and first she starts to put it in and then and then Stacks is like, what are you doing?
And then Stacks into putting in it. Anyway, there's a fight.
Between Ridge and Tony D'Angelo over who's going to get control of the crowbar ends up being Ridge, who basically meets the crap out of Tony with it and tries to go over the pin and Tony kicks out, which was I was, I was actually kind of surprised. And then Tony kicks out, starts beating on Ridge and does the spinebuster and gets the win. They open the cage door, so now this so now Tony is this is continues
to retain the title. Then they open the cage door, Ridge comes out, starts beating the crap out of Stacks and the other guy for iris forget his name, while Rizzo goes in Adriana Rizzo goes into the ring to confront to console Tony di'angelo, and as that happened, and then Izy Dane eventually comes in too, because again she's she was out there, and then Sean Spears and his little crew come out, and uh, and it's pack Tony D'Angelo.
Well, so they come out and and is he.
Dane actually hits Tony D'Angelo with the crowbar, and so is he Dane is a part of I guess Sean Spears kind of finally can finally convinced her that that she should go with him. And Sean Spears like he he's one of the guys from AW that was really good him, Ethan Page and now Ricky Starks. There was somebody else like, oh, Lexus King, who used to be Brian Pielman Jr. All those guys come over and now they all have prominent roles. They all have prominent roles
in in NXT. So I heard something, I don't know, something on Eric Bischoff's show that he does eighty three Weeks or whatever it's called.
Where basically it feels like it feels.
Like AW just holds people back. And this is not an AEW show. And I'm not here to downplay AW.
But look at look at.
Look at the people that are thriving and really just doing so well at Ethan Paige is has been money ever since he walked in the door. Lexus King, current Heritage Cup champion, has had a storyline virtually every week that he's been there. Sean Spears, there was some low time with him, and now he's back on TV and starting another faction because you know, there's a vacuum now
where Chase University was Chase University was. And by the way, speaking of Chase University, I don't know if anybody heard, but not last weekend with all the releases, but the weekend before, Duke Hudson was released from NXT as well from WWE, so they're not bringing I haven't seen Thea Hale forever except on Instagram.
I don't know what's going on with her or.
In TikTok and Dell Contston now has been released and age the heck is it Adrian Chase, Yeah, he's just basically walking backstage every week disheveled and dejected about Chase University. I don't know what's going on.
This is gonna be interesting to see how it plays out.
But anyway, this was a great episode. Honestly, I can't wait for Vengeance Day. I think it's gonna be a great card. Starts at six o'clock this week, I think, I think. I usually I feel that usually when it starts early like that, when it starts like earlier than seven or eight o'clock, it's because there's a UFC fight on and they want to be sure that the pay per view is done. The WW pay review is done before the UFC fight at ten, so I think that's why they make it at six.
That's my own personal opinion. I think I'm right.
Actually on that one because of the whole TKO thing they own both companies.
Yeah again, great episode. I can't wait for Vengines today.
I will be doing a recap a review of Vengeance Day on Sunday, so be prepared for that. And in the meantime, you know, talk, I'll talk to you soon. Don't forget ww podcast all the stuff you can. You can listen ad free Patreon, on Apple, on Spotify, all the things. Talk to you soon. Thanks a lot, guys, see you later.
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