NXT Stand & Deliver (April 2022)

Original Airdate: April 2, 2022

From Dallas, Texas; Your Hosts are Vic Joseph and Wade Barrett

Opening NXT North American Title Fatal Five-Way Ladder Match: Carmelo Hayes v Cameron Grimes v Santos Escobar v Grayson Waller v Solo Sikoa: Those transparent barricades are neat! I literally don’t know who half these guys are. And, yes, I realize there are five of them. I half know Waller. Escobar is dressed like Ultimate Warrior here, though he looks more like a teenager getting in his last trick or treat than Jim Hellwig. So this is just the usual stunt show, with no storytelling to speak of, just spot-spot-spot. Waller takes an insane bump while missing a flying elbowdrop off of a ladder on the floor (in which I’m pretty sure he broke his arm), and then Grimes just grabs the belt to win at 20:59. This did nothing for me. ¾*

Tommaso Ciampa v Tony D'Angelo: Barrett notes that Ciampa has broken his neck and torn his ACL, “all in the pursuit of… entertaining the NXT crowd.” And he says that without even a hint of his tongue in his cheek. Ciampa pounds him into the corner for a series of running kneesmashes, and he pulls Tony to the outside to chuck into the steps. Ciampa pulls the mats up out there, but Tony gets control before he can use the exposed floor. Inside, Tony uses a butterfly suplex for two, and a backelbow sets up a chinlock for him. Ciampa fights free and makes a comeback, but a kneesmash misses, allowing Tony a falcon arrow for two. Tony tries a suplex, but Ciampa blocks. He tries the Fairytale Ending, but Tony blocks, and hooks a schoolboy for two. Ciampa with one of his own for two, and he unloads with a flurry of chops. Superplex, but Tony blocks. He tries a 2nd rope axehandle, but Ciampa catches him with a knee on the way down, and both guys stagger up for a slugfest. Ciampa gets the better of it with a discus forearm, but a corner charge ends badly, and Tony grabs a crowbar. A swing with it misses, however, so Tony goes low, and suplexes him for two. Back to the crowbar, but Ciampa fights him off with a DDT, and the Fairytale gets him two. Crippler crossface looks to finish, but Tony makes the ropes, and wisely bails. Ciampa chases to slam him on the exposed floor from earlier, but Tony counters with a DDT on the concrete. Inside, Tony gives him a boot to put the exclamation point on it, and Ciampa is pinned at 13:11. This was fine. Afterwards, Ciampa gets a nice send off from the crowd on his way out to the main roster, complete with Triple H making a surprise appearance to see him off. **

NXT Tag Team Title Triple Threat Match: Fabian Aichner and Marcel Barthel v Nash Carter and Wes Lee v Brutus Creed and Julius Creed: First fall wins it here. Carter and Lee dominate the field to start, but Nash gets clobbered by Marcel. Aichner comes in, but Nash manages to tag out to Lee, so Aichner takes him out as well. The Creed’s manage to sway things in their direction for a bit, and everyone trades off, with little direction or storytelling. We get a dogpile sequence on the outside, and Carter and Lee hit Marcel with a series of dives for two. Tower of doom spot ends in another pile up, and then we get a second dogpile bit on the outside, just in case you missed the first one, I guess? Brutus doing a literal cannonball with his dive was pretty cool, though. The Creed’s look to put Nash away, but the champions cut that effort off. They head in to polish Nash off themselves, but Lee saves - taking Marcel off the middle rope with a rana, right into a sitout powerbomb from Carter at 11:21. Like the opener, this was another multi-man car crash match that did nothing for me. But, at least it did nothing for me in eleven minutes instead of twenty. *

NXT Women's Title Fatal Four-Way Match: Mandy Rose v Io Shirai v Kay Lee Ray v Cora Jade: First fall wins it. The three challengers decide to gang up, and they beat Mandy until she ends up on the outside. Once she’s out of the way, they fight it out, and everyone ends up spilling to the outside to slug it out. Shirai and Ray end up taking the ring, and a reversal sequence ends in a stalemate. Shirai uses a drop-toehold to set up a tiger feint kick, but Ray dodges, and Rose pulls Shirai out of the ring. That allows Mandy to put the boots to Ray, but Jade charges in with a Thesz-press to cut the champion off. Jade with mounted punches, but Mandy manages a takedown, and adds a sloppy rotating spinebuster for one. Mandy unloads on her in the corner, and she messes up a hanging vertical suplex that gets two. Rose is looking like a total amateur out there. She misses a charge that sends her flying over the top, and Cora dives off the apron with a somersault senton. She stands tall, but Ray dives after her, and, of course, Shirai does a dive onto Ray to end the sequence. Every single one of those bumps looked terrifying. Shirai and Ray end up taking the high ground, and Io hooks a victory cradle into a double stomp. Tiger feint kick finds the mark, and a flying dropkick gets two when Rose breaks the pin. Rose dumps her and steals the cover, but Ray kicks out at two, and traps Mandy in a submission. Jade comes in for the save, but Shirai cuts her off, and puts Cora in a Texas cloverleaf (in another botched move). Everyone ends up looking up at the lights, and Jade ends up getting the better of things, and she makes a comeback on Mandy. Springboard double stomp finds the mark, but Ray tries to stop her from climbing to the top, so Cora takes her out with a Canadian destroyer on the apron. Shirai blasts her before she can get back on track, however, and Io dives with a flying dropkick on the champion. Running kneesmash in the corner connects, and a bridging German suplex is worth two. Shirai with a Spanish fly off the top, but Jade breaks the pin at two, and hits Rose with a sliced bread. Double-arm DDT gets her two when Ray saves, and Kay gives Cora a gory facebuster. To the top, but Shirai shoves Ray off, and Io does her own dive in the form of a flying moonsault. She looks to finish, but Rose blasts her with a boot before she can cover, and Mandy steals the pin on Cora herself at 13:29. This was energetic, and generally watchable, but there were a lot of botches here. * ½ 

LA Knight v Gunther: Wait, they renamed WALTER? That’s especially odd, since he was already so established with that name for this audience. Knight holds his own slugging it out with Gunther, and even manages to stomp a mudhole, so Gunther bails. Knight stays on him with a clothesline from the apron, but Gunther recovers with a powerbomb onto the apron. Knight beats the count, so Gunther bodyslams him for two, and takes him to the ground in a chinlock. Knight fights free, so Gunther grinds him in a Boston crab instead, then shifts it into an STF. He can’t quite hold it properly, however, so Gunther uses a headbutt instead. Gunther with a corner whip, but a second one gets reversed, and Knight delivers a backdrop on the rebound. Gunther pops up with a clothesline, however, but Knight manages a reverse a vertical suplex on him. Knight with a slingshot shoulderblock, and he stomps another mudhole in the corner, as the camera makes it it’s mission to set off my vertigo. Suplex, but Gunther blocks, and they slug it out - won by Knight with a bodyslam. Elbowdrop follows, and a vertical superplex is worth two. They stagger up for another slugfest, and Gunther grabs a sleeper to try and force a submission. Knight manages to keep a vertical base, and he counters the hold into an inverted death valley driver for two. That was some ridiculous strength. Knight climbs, but Gunther crotches him on the top, and then brings him off with a clothesline. That sets up a flying splash, and Gunther finishes with a powerbomb at 10:24. This wasn’t anything special, but it had actual storytelling, which immediately puts it a step above all the mindless spotfest stuff earlier on the card. **

Main Event: NXT Title Match: Dolph Ziggler v Bron Breakker: Bron blitzes him at the bell, sending Ziggler to the outside right away. Bron drags him back in, but Dolph steals the high ground in the process, and clobbers him. They botch a takedown spot, but do their best to make it look intentional, before repeating it. It was meant to be Bron doing the Rick Steiner high catch powerslam spot. Bron with a trio of overhead suplexes, so Robert Roode trips him up to keep him from finishing. The referee ejects Roode, but he successfully took Bron off track, and he’s distracted. That allows Ziggler a superkick, but Bron counters it into a side suplex anyway. Superplex, but Ziggler crotches him on the top to block, and then brings him down with an elevated neckbreaker for two. Dolph takes it to the mat in a headlock, but Bron starts to fight free, so Ziggler drops him with another neckbreaker for two. Elbowdrop gets two, allowing Ziggler to go to a crippler crossface, as the announcers talk about how this is Dolph’s eighteenth WrestleMania weekend. And look how far he’s come! Main eventing… the developmental brand. Bron tries climbing the ropes again, so Ziggler sweeps the legs, and Bron takes a bump into the buckles on the way down. Ziggler with a chinlock/bodyscissors hold, but Bron fights free, and makes a comeback. Tilt-a-whirl slam gets two, so he takes Dolph to the top, and brings him down with a rana for two. Spear gets two, and Bron is rattled. Ziggler dumps him to the outside to buy time, and then catches him with a knee when the challenger rushes back in. Nice spot to highlight the benefit of experience, though the announcers didn’t even bother to underline it. Superkick, but Bron blocks, and connects with another spear. Press-powerslam looks to finish, but Roode runs back out to pull Ziggler out of the ring at two! Bron responds by diving onto both guys with a somersault suicada, and he sends Roode into the steps to make sure he stays out of things. Major Marc Mero vibes on that dive. Unfortunately for him, that allows Dolph time to recover, and a rocker dropper leads to the Zig Zag for two! Ziggler with a gorgeous flying elbowdrop for two, and he looks for the superkick to finish, but wastes way too much time telegraphing it, and Bron is up! Spear finds the mark, but Ziggler manages to rake the eyes to block another press-powerslam, and the superkick retains at 16:13. Wow, even as someone completely out of the loop as far as the weekly developments of this brand, I thought for sure this was being set up as Bron’s crowning. Best match of the show, with good storytelling. Bron reminds me more of Goldberg than his dad or uncle - explosive offense, but sloppy as hell. And, don’t get me wrong, the Steiner Brothers could be that too, but I was getting major Goldberg vibes - in both a good and bad way. ***

BUExperience: It’s a developmental brand headed up by a guy who started working during the Bush administration. 

DUD