06/08/2023
WWE NXT Results: Winners, Grades, Reaction and Highlights from June 6
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WWE NXT Results: Winners, Grades, Reaction and Highlights from June 6
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The women of NXT ruined Tiffany Stratton’s “Tiffybration.” Now, they will fight for a shot at her title.Credit: WWE.com.
WWE NXT has begun to set a new path to the future and featured its top talent fighting for a new opportunity on the June 6 edition.
The women of NXT, including Cora Jade, Roxanne Perez and Lyra Valkyria, met in a No. 1 Contender Battle Royal for a chance to face Tiffany Stratton for the NXT Women’s Championship.
Mustafa Ali was set to wrestle in an NXT ring for the first time since 2017 when he faced the dangerous Joe Gacy, while the rest of Schism were involved in a six-person tag to settle their rivalry with Diamond Mine.
Eddy Thorpe looked to finally shut up Damon Kemp in a rematch, and Blair Davenport returned to action against Dani Palmer.
Ilja Dragunov spoke for the first time since his brutal battle with Dijak, while Carmelo Hayes was certain to respond to Baron Corbin’s attack after last week’s main event.
This was a big show for NXT, as it continued its impressive rebuild of a young roster.
Ilja Dragunov Stands Up to Baron Corbin
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Baron Corbin marched to the ring and decried the way the NXT roster had grown lazy and arrogant. Ilja Dragunov interrupted to challenge him to determine the true No. 1 contender to the NXT Championship.
This was a fine opening for the night, playing up the chaos that came from Corbin’s return to NXT last week. The Lone Wolf makes sense as an NXT veteran looking back on the good old days without the crowd supporting him.
Dragunov should be looking for a shot at the NXT title, and he presents a unique challenger for Corbin.
It was surprising to not see Carmelo Hayes right off the bat, but the gold brand has time to keep building the feud. Hopefully, Melo vs. The Czar is the longer-term goal while Corbin can be an early credible speed bump for that match.
Grade
B-
Notable Moments
Dragunov showed a large black bruise on the right side of his body from Battleground.
After the faceoff, Trick Williams clotheslined Corbin out of the ring.
The Czar headed to the back where he was ambushed by Bron Breakker.
Duke Hudson found Thea Hail after a tough training session with Charlie Dempsey and Drew Gulak ahead of the Battle Royal.
Diamond Mine vs. Schism
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Julius and Brutus Creed showed their athleticism against Rip Fowler and Jagger Reid but stepped aside for Ivy Nile in the end.
Nile had Ava locked in the dragon sleeper, but Reid saved her. Ava headbutted her rival with a metal mask to steal the win.
The unreal athleticism of the Creeds is unmatched, even by the main roster. When they and Nile arrive on Raw or SmackDown, they will turn heads with a larger audience.
This was clearly about highlighting Nile, who ran the wave of momentum that comes from the Creeds and The Dyad clashing. It is just a shame that Ava could not keep up with the field.
This was the most fans have seen Ava perform to date, but she looked sluggish and awkward. Her strikes got nowhere close to landing, and she carried none of the imposing presence she has built as a manager.
Hopefully, NXT is not too committed to pushing Ava soon. Nile is far more ready and could see a revenge win against her rival soon.
Result
Schism def. Diamond Mine by pinfall.
Grade
B
Notable Moments
In a repeat showcase of The Creed Brothers’ strength, Julius deadlifted Reid from a sitting position into a delayed vertical suplex position. He traded Reid with Brutus and then took him back before hitting the suplex.
In an impressive sequence, Brutus planted Fowler and hit him with a standing moonsault. He suplexed Julius onto him before allowing Nile to suplex him onto their rival. Finally, Julius helped Nile hit a standing senton bomb.
Channing “Stacks” Lorenzo met Tony D’Angelo in jail and promised to make Gallus pay.
Blair Davenport vs. Dani Palmer
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Dani Palmer got punched in the face early and often in this one-sided fight.
Blair Davenport ripped her off the top rope by her hair before finishing it up with a Falcon Arrow.
NXT is taking it slow with Palmer, much like Sol Ruca at the beginning of her run, so it was not surprising to see her lose so soon. Basically, though, she got in no offense throughout.
The point was to sell Davenport as a big deal. It mostly worked, but her offense was not quite as crisp as a dangerous striker’s should be. She will need to iron that out with more capable rivals.
Result
Davenport def. Palmer by pinfall.
Grade
C
Notable Moments
NXT showed a video package highlighting Davenport’s recent actions.
The creative team used a smoke machine for Davenport’s entrance, and the fumes were still in the air during the match.
Mr. Stone struggled to convince Von Wagner to speak to a therapist, but he finally agreed when his head was turned by one particular expert.
Baron Corbin vs. Trick Williams
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Because of a post-segment attack from Bron Breakker on Ilja Dragunov, Trick Williams was given the first shot at Baron Corbin.
Trick pushed The Lone Wolf hard, but a knee injury during the match slowed him. Corbin won with End of Days.
This was a fine but rather bland battle of strikers. Even with an invested crowd, there was no spark to the matchup. The Lone Wolf beat up his NXT opponent until Trick decided to sell his knee injury at the last moment.
While this is the kind of match Corbin has needed while continuing to lose repeatedly on SmackDown, these two did not have the chemistry to make this a breakout moment for Trick.
It merely served to delay more exciting pairings for The Lone Wolf against Dragunov and Carmelo Hayes.
Result
Corbin def. Trick by pinfall.
Grade
D+
Notable Moments
NXT highlighted a tweet from Melo, who advised that he was healing up from last week and would make Corbin pay soon.
Booker T agreed with The Lone Wolf that the whole industry has grown too soft.
Corbin targeted the knee of Trick, sending his leg hard into the announce table and steel steps.
After the win, Corbin told Dragunov he would gladly fight him next week.
Mustafa Ali vs. Joe Gacy
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Joe Gacy did some damage to Mustafa Ali early, but after a surprise sunset flip powerbomb, Ali picked up a fast win off a 450 splash.
Schism tried to sneak attack the free agent, but Wes Lee and Tyler Bate made the save and cleared the ring.
While Baron Corbin took over 10 minutes to defeat Trick Williams, it took Ali maybe three to down Gacy. It was a genuine squash match in which The Schism’s supposed leader looked out of his depth.
This was an impactful way to immediately sell that Ali is not just a challenger but also a genuine threat to Lee’s title reign. However, it came at the expense of Gacy’s remaining credibility.
If Schism is going to move forward, Gacy needs to evolve. It might be best to just move on from the whole crew and rebrand around Ava.
Result
Ali def. Gacy by pinfall.
Grade
C
Notable Moments
Ali promised he would finally win gold in NXT. The NXT North American champion was ready to hand the free agent a title opportunity, but Ali wanted to earn it.
Booker T called Gacy the leader of Schism, but it has looked more like Ava is the true leader with each week. Losses like this do not help.
Carrying the momentum from Night of Champions and a more welcoming NXT crowd, Ali felt like a genuine big star in this environment. Even the giddy way Lee acted around him sold a star power Ali has not had recently.
Backstage, an angry Gacy said he needed to reevaluate what was costing him wins. Ali convinced Bate and Lee that they needed to fight one-on-one soon.
On the latest “Hard Hitting Home Truths,” Dragon Lee joined Nathan Frazer as the senior international correspondent and made fun of Noam Dar. Frazer challenged The Scottish Supernova to a Heritage Cup match.
Later, Dar seemed to accept the challenge with complete confidence.
Eddy Thorpe vs. Damon Kemp
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Damon Kemp once more fell to Eddy Thorpe, but it came with some controversy this time.
Thorpe hit a bridging German suplex, and the referee missed Kemp’s foot on the second rope.
Round two did not get nearly enough time to deliver. These two can hit hard and deliver big moves, but the story was half-baked in this four-minute exhibition.
Given the ending, hopefully the final match will have a more complete spotlight. Thorpe, especially, has yet to show the full scope of his offense against top competition.
Result
Thorpe def. Kemp by pinfall.
Grade
C-
Notable Moments
Kemp dominated this match from the outset, including hitting an emphatic rolling fireman’s carry and backbreaker.
After realizing too many teams were closer than them in NXT, Edris Enofé and Malik Blade agreed to fight each other to find their chemistry next week.
Dabba-kato vs. Scrypts
7 of 9
A series of distractions from Axiom saved Scrypts from a mugging at the hands of Dabba-Kato. He caught Kato with a return somersault back elbow before stacking up the big man for a surprise three-count.
This was tragically messy misfire. Kato and Scrypts struggled to connect in the ring, and Axiom’s interference made him look petty. The wrong man won and then immediately lost any sense of momentum from it.
Axiom and Scrypts could be a fun tag team together, but Reggie lacks much in terms of credibility on his own. He was not the right man to defeat a dominant giant this early in his NXT return.
Kato will recover and Scrypts will have better performances, but it’s just a shame that this thrown-together contest made both look worse for the moment.
Result
Scrypts def. Kato by pinfall.
Grade
F
Notable Moments
Gigi Dolin and Kiana James argued backstage.
Booker T continued his roll on commentary by awkwardly telling Vic Joseph that he should call Scrypts “Reggie” because they weren’t friends.
Scrypts ran right into a big boot that left him dazed. It got worse as Kato threw him through the ropes outside and then chopped him into the table.
Axiom arrived to stop Kato from powerslaming Scrypts on the steel steps.
After his loss, Kato made Axiom and Reggie pay, laying them out.
NXT Women’s Championship No. 1 Contender Battle Royal
8 of 9
As favorites in the Battle Royal continued to fall, it looked like Dana Brooke might take it against Cora Jade. But Thea Hail appeared and eliminated both to win the biggest match of her career.
As Battle Royals go, this was solid. It lacked strong moments but did use the cast of interesting characters in the women’s division.
NXT could have chosen an easy option with Lyra Valkyria, Gigi Dolin or Cora Jade to win, but, instead, the most unlikely victor emerged. Hail has not won big matches lately, but she has been constantly improving.
She will face the biggest challenge of her career in an NXT Women’s Championship against Tiffany Stratton. Two of the brand’s most promising young stars will collide soon, and the crowd will be genuinely invested in a shocking upset.
It won’t happen, but this is a great way to see how far Hail can go as a competitor. Charlie Dempsey and Drew Gulak were the surprising catalysts to give her just that extra bit of legitimacy that could make her a new top name in the division.
Result
Hail won the Battle Royal by last eliminating Jade and Brooke to become the new No. 1 contender to the NXT Women’s Championship.
Grade
B
Notable Moments
Early in the night, Brooke revealed she was joining the Battle Royal. She is not a free agent unlike Mustafa Ali and Baron Corbin, so this did not make much sense.
In an interview, Tiffany Stratton welcomed all challengers and put over Valkyria as the biggest threat, respecting her game after their match at Battleground.
A welcoming crowd gave Brooke almost no reaction. Even when she got to the final three, they weren’t behind her.
Oro Mensah saved Jakara Jackson from elimination. Later, Valentina Feroz and Yulisa Leon took out both Jackson and Lash Legend. The heels eliminated them right afterward despite being out of the match.
Blair Davenport arrived to watch from ringside. Roxanne Perez rolled out to attack her. Tatum Paxley eliminated herself to help Davenport lay out The Prodigy, setting her up to get eliminated.
Jacy Jayne tried to eliminate Valkyria but got sent to the floor with a headscissors takedown by The Valkyrie. Jade then kicked Valkyria off the ropes for an elimination.
The ring was completely filled with Chase U students at the end to celebrate Hail.
To end the night, Bron Breakker made a shocking challenge to Seth Rollins to defend his WWE World Heavyweight Championship on NXT.
Overall Show
9 of 9
Last week, NXT built upon momentum from Battleground to deliver one of its best editions of the year. But Tuesday’s show did not keep that momentum moving forward.
The matches were short when they needed to be longer, except Baron Corbin vs. Trick Williams, which could have been much shorter.
Too much of the focus was on main roster stars over the foundation of the roster. The real highlights of the night were Thea Hail and Ivy Nile. Both got to show what they can do with a growing spotlight.
Hopefully, both can carry that forward to the future. The women’s division needs young stars to step up while allowing the likes of Roxanne Perez and Cora Jade to move on since they are beyond this roster at this point.
The card promised for next week has serious potential, especially if Seth Rollins vs. Bron Breakker is the main event. That should make up for this forgettable night of action.
Overall Grade: C-
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