Welcome to NXT Future Five on Last Word On Sports, where each week we analyze the latest episode of World Wrestling Entertainment Network’s hottest program, NXT and rank the five performers who made the biggest impact.
NXT Future Five: Week of September 9, 2015
Highlights of the Night
Carmella vs. Peyton Royce: I don’t understand Carmella’s gimmick. It’s pretty obvious to me that she was originally meant to be a heel, and just switching her over to a babyface without changing the character just doesn’t work for me. Judging from the flat reaction she received tonight without Enzo or Big Cass by her side, the crowd at Full Sail University feels the same. Some chain wrestling to start with neither woman getting a clear advantage. Some very good wrestling from both these ladies and just a tiny bit of flair from Carmella with a moonwalk. Things picked up with an atomic drop and dropkick combo from Carmella. Peyton came back with a snap suplex and locked in a strange under arm chin lock. Carmella fought out with a short lived snap mare, and hit an elbow in the corner to stun Royce. The Princess of Staten Island followed up with an impressive top rope flying head scissors and a chin lock of her own. With the crowd willing her on, Peyton backed Carmella into the corner and threw both an elbow as well as a pair of spin kicks her way. She then landed a beautiful second rope cross body block that only earned her a two count. The end was nigh soon afterwards as Carmella was able to spin out from Peyton’s grip and smash her with an impressive combo that included a flatliner into her head scissor submission, earning her the hard fought victory.
Finn Balor & Samoa Joe Promo: It seems strange to be listing a one minute backstage promo as a highlight, but I’m adding it on here more for the booking. Balor and Joe are preparing backstage and Finn says they have to be ready because the Lucha Dragons are no joke. This is important because by putting over their opponents, the match feels more important and makes the audience more invested in this contest. The other subtle piece of booking I enjoyed was Joe handing Balor the NXT Championship belt and telling him not to forget it. If the rumours about a future program with these two are true, then something a small as that will go a long way towards telling that story down the line.
House Show Highlights: I actually like that NXT has been having tournament matches at their live events. Not only does it make the live events more special for those attending, but then it doesn’t force a bunch of filler matches onto the TV broadcast. We had enough of that last week, so the less of that, the better. The highlights are shot on a camera of lesser quality, giving it that “fan cam” look, which really works with the live event feel.
Tyler Breeze & Bull Dempsey vs. Johnny Gargano & Tommaso Ciampa: Breeze got the early advantage with an arm drag. Tyler thought that was the time to taunt, but it lead to a hard slap across the face from Ciampa. Tyler quickly tagged in the big Bull, who got caught in a headlock. Dempsey threw him off the ropes and ran into him, sending him to the mat. After a tag to Breeze, Tommaso outwrestled him and made a tag to Gargano who scored some signature offense on Tyler before he once again ran to Bull for help. Johnny attempted both an arm drag and a cross body block, but Bull didn’t budge. That wasn’t the case when hit with an enziguri moments later. Dempsey went down to a knee while Johnny made the tag to the Sicilian Psychopath, who followed up with a vicious running knee, a series of elbows, and a high angled reverse chin lock. Back from commercial, Chiampa jumped on the Bull’s back for a sleeper, but it all came crashing down when Dempsey did exactly that onto Tommaso’s chest. Johnny got the tag and immediately ran over to drop kick Breeze off the apron. Once Bull hit Gargano with an elbow and turned to make the tag to his partner, Tyler was nowhere to be found. Bull did his Bull Fit Punches and honored Dusty Rhodes with a bionic elbow. By this point, Breeze had returned to the apron but was soon off again after Dempsey ran the ropes and collided with his partner, sending him flying to the concrete below. The distraction allowed Gargano and Chiampa to execute a sunset flip/jackknife rollup pinning combination and score the huge upset victory. Post-match, Breeze attacked Dempsey with great anger and frustration. Once Bull started to get up, Tyler hit the Super Model Kick and left the ring.
Izzy the Bayley Super Fan: If you watch NXT with regularity, then you likely know Izzy the Bayley Super Fan. She sits in the front row, decked out in Bayley merchandise, looking just like the NXT Women’s Champion. Bayley has acknowledged her several times and it looks like NXT wanted to do the same, so they set her up to visit Bayley when she returned from Brooklyn with her new championship in tow. They spent the day at the WWE Performance Center and the cameras were rolling the whole time. This is incredible PR for NXT and it shows the bond some of these performers have with their fans. It put a big smile on my face.
Finn Balor & Samoa Joe vs. The Lucha Dragons: Having the match taped during Main Event and then broadcast on NXT was something different. It was great seeing these four performing in front of a bigger than usual crowd, and the picture quality was upped as well, giving the match just a little more gravitas. Balor took control early, utilizing some of his signature spots like the Slingblade and a flying tope to the outside onto both Kalisto and Sin Cara. Once tagged in, Joe most definitely used his size advantage to over-power his smaller, faster opponents, although they did score some signature double team maneuvers against the Samoan Submission Machine. Eventually, the end came when Kalisto attempted to thrown Joe to the outside and perform a dive, only to get caught before he could take flight and slammed down by Joe with a Sambo slam. After a Muscle Buster/Coup De Grace combo, the NXT Champion Finn Balor and Samoa Joe stood victorious to end the show.
The Future Five
5. Dana Brooke: She might not have had an impressive opponent in the Australian Billie Kay, but a win is a win. Before the match, Brooke unconvincingly said that she was going to become the best wrestler in NXT. She still has a long way to go, but she is beginning to incorporate some unique moves that she is able to pull off because of her body type. It was interesting to hear the crowd split on Dana this week. Is she starting to win over the Full Sail crowd?
4. Bull Dempsey: Bull Dempsey lost his match, but he wrestled like a winner. His tag team contest might have well been a handicap match for the good Tyler Breeze did against newcomers Ciampa and Gargano. Dempsey carried that team on his broad back, and did a hell of a job of it too. Dempsey’s Bullfit persona really works for him. He’s a lot of fun to watch, but it’s easy to take him seriously as a threat because of his size and execution. I look forward to his feud with Prince Pretty.
3. Carmella: For all the hype we hear about Eva Marie training at the Performance Centre, Carmella really demonstrated in her match just how far she has come. She and Peyton Royce put on a good wrestling match, and demonstrated a lot of finesse between the two of them. If Carmella continues to improve like this and develop a more likable personality, she could easily become the NXT Women’s Champion sooner rather than later.
2. Johnny Gargano & Tommaso Chiampa: It is a pleasant surprise to see these two talented individuals not only get the chance to show a larger audience what they are capable of, but to win against two NXT mainstays. Gargano & Chiampa worked very well as a team and displayed some of their signature offense while doing a great job selling for Bull Dempsey. I am not sure of their contract status, and their time with NXT might be over once they run into Baron Corbin & Rhyno, but I’m hoping that doesn’t end up being the case.
1. Samoa Joe & Finn Balor: Some could argue that Gargano & Chiampa got the bigger win by coming out of nowhere to win their match, but despite their underdog status, they won what was essentially a handicap match. Joe and Balor on the other hand, defeated a pair of former NXT Tag Team Champions. That’s incredibly impressive enough, but add in the fact that Finn and Joe actually had some very apparent chemistry and they could end up winning the whole tournament.
Final Thoughts
This week’s episode was a huge improvement over last week’s train wreck. With the exception of one match that didn’t stand out from the pack, every match on the show was solid to very good, and the promos and video packages were quick and concise. The tournament is starting to take shape and now that I’m not left in the dark about who is competing in it, I feel more invested. It is an exciting time in NXT, and this week’s episode reflected that feeling.
