WWE’s Tuesday night developmental show, NXT, has begun undergoing several changes this week as part of the brand’s “season premiere”.
Back to Black and Gold (Sorta)
Oro Mensah is FIRED UP! 🔥#WWENXT pic.twitter.com/tDUJZ4oxnX
— WWE (@WWE) October 5, 2022
For starters Wade Barrett kicked off the show, introducing his partners for the night. First was Monday Night Raw commentator Byron Saxton, and the other NXT Level Up commentator Sudu Shah. Shah noted that he was filling in for regular NXT voice Vic Joseph, who recently got married to fellow colleague McKenzie Mitchell. While it’s unknown how permanent this arrangement will be, it’s important to note that Shah is filling in for Joseph, and not Saxton. Saxton is no stranger to NXT, being both a competitor and commentator on the show until around early 2015. It is unknown if he will be a regular fixture in the show again, but it is certainly a possibility.
The show also has new graphics and color schemes for a lot of the set. While the overall set is still quite colorful, the ring-mat was noticeably darker, more of a grayish color than white. The ring ropes were also white again, and the outside barricades are basic black instead of see-through. The audience’s placement was also different, with the seats in the building being noticeably higher than usual. PWInsider reported that this was done to give the live crowd a better viewing experience, which several fans from the nosebleed sections confirmed was successful.
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The announcers are also adjacent to the ring entrance again, as opposed to at ring-side. This was the arrangement in the old NXT, but was one of the changes that came with the NXT 2.0 rebrand. On that subject, the final notable change was the absence of the “2.0” from the name. Some of the graphics on the show still carried it, but that could change over time. WWE’s website and social media can confirm the change as it’s is only listed as “WWE NXT” now.
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