This Saturday will see history made in WWE, as a Speed Championship will be defended for the first time during a PLE. But first, fans had an exciting tournament semi-final to determine who would challenge Sol Ruca at NXT No Mercy.
The tournament semi-final was a classic veteran versus rising star encounter. Candice LeRae, the inaugural Speed Champion, was determined to regain her title, having lost it to Ruca in April. But the underdog Lainey Reid has convinced fans that she is the dark horse in NXT right now.
Just over a year into her career, the NXT Level Up graduate scored the biggest win of her career a fortnight ago, beating AAA veteran Faby Apache to advance to the semi-finals. Reid is definitely a talent held in high regard by WWE, with shades of Tiffany Stratton evident in her gimmick. Regardless of the result, expect her to be a central piece of the NXT narrative over the coming year.
LeRae Redemption or Another Scalp for Lainey Reid?
As the bell rang, it was LeRae who quickly gained the upper hand with a trademark Senton and an attempt at a Springboard Moonsault. Reid thankfully dodged the latter move, preventing a potentially premature finish to the match. The pair next tussled on the apron, with LeRae landing a Diving Crossbody to stun Reid on the outside.
As the final minute approached, LeRae seemed to have victory in hand as she locked in a cinched Crossface. Reigning champion Ruca and her tag team partner Zaria watched on from NXT’s elevated platform. Meanwhile, Reid escaped the clutches of LeRae again, reversing the submission into a rollup for a near fall. The pair traded rollup after rollup before Reid devastatingly changed the script.
It was lights out for LeRae. Reid’s powerful Jumping Knee Strike caught the veteran unaware, bringing the semi-final to a close with just over 30 seconds on the clock.
It was another major upset win for the rising Lainey Reid, who now sets her sights on No Mercy and Sol Ruca’s WWE Speed title. The title match will be Ruca’s first defense since July 9th, when she overcame Alba Fyre. With a men’s tournament likely to follow, another title defense should see Ruca surpass LeRae’s record reign of 188 days.
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