For the past couple of months, NXT North American Champion Myles Borne has been in a tough spot. He saw his friend Tavion Heights acting in a way that he didn’t like. Their issues started on the April 28, 2026 episode of NXT, when Heights attacked NXT Champion Tony D’Angelo without notice.
The next week, D’Angelo retained his title in a great match. Borne questioned his actions, in which he responded by saying that he wanted to get himself a title opportunity.
That comment caused friction between them. The two paired up to face DarkState on the June 2 NXT, but ended up losing. He beat Jackson Drake in a number one contender’s match two weeks later to face Borne at the Great American Bash. At the PLE, Borne was victorious, denying him his first championship in NXT.
On the July 7 NXT, Heights came out to reflect on what happened that night and how he didn’t win the championship. Would the members of the Vanity Project interrupt his address to the fans?
Tavion Heights Fights off the Vanity Project with the Help of Myles Borne
Since the start of the year, it’s been clear that the Vanity Project is positioned to be one of the top acts in NXT. They’re super talented, very young, and are energetic in the ring. Brad Baylor and Ricky Smokes have been NXT Tag Team Champions since February, and Myka Lockwood has been impressive on WWE LFG and on NXT.
Drake especially has been featured a lot over the last few weeks, getting a sneaky win over Mason Rook last Tuesday. It seemed like Rook was not going to be done with them, but they decided to take their concerns to a different person. Even though their number one contender’s match was two weeks ago, Drake has a lot of issues he has to sort out with Heights.
The segment began with Heights in the ring. He told everyone that he was thinking about what he said before his match with Borne at the Great American Bash. Admitting that he can be arrogant, he said that he only does that because he knows he can be great.
When he came to NXT as a former Olympian, he thought he was the best, but he was humbled. He told the fans that he got jealous when he saw Borne’s success and that his biggest fear was being forgotten. That’s why he wanted to apologize to him.
However, the Vanity Project’s music played as they came out. Drake said that he should apologize for what happened in their match. Baylor then said that NXT General Manager Robert Stone should apologize for Dorian Van Dux and Sean Legacy getting an NXT Tag Team title opportunity, with Smokes agreeing with him.
They entered the ring as Drake told Heights that he was handed an opportunity on a silver platter but couldn’t get the victory and that without Borne’s help, he would’ve been at the Great American Bash.
Tavion Heights responded by saying that he could get a rematch at any time, but the result would still be the same. He then punched Drake, igniting a brawl between himself and the three members of the Vanity Project. They got him on the ground before stomping on him. But Borne arrived as backup with the NXT North American Championship in his hand.
He slid into the ring to defend his friend. Immediately he clotheslined Drake and Smokes, then suplexed Baylor to the ground. He threw Baylor to Heights, who suplexed him out of the ring onto Drake and Smokes. Afterwards, the two men exchanged in a hug, officially making up after weeks of tension. It seems like whenever Borne is in trouble, Heights will be in his corner to defend him.
