WWE NXT on USA: Live Results, Highlights, and Grades for Sept. 25

https://twitter.com/WWENXT/status/1177016795703562240

Dakota Kai vs. Taynara Conti

Nice pop from the crowd for Dakota’s return, which is lovely to hear. She faces Taynara, who I guess lost the “Conti” from her name? Did I fall asleep and miss that one? Probably, it’s been a strange year.

Right off the bat, Kai showed why she’s the Captain of Team Kick. Surprisingly, Taynara did the same. Good striking is always welcome to me, so I was digging this one from the get-go.

I’m not sure I totally understand Dakota taking a beating at the beginning of this one. If it’s her return, and NXT is on a new network with a presumably new audience, wouldn’t you want to showcase her ability BEFORE making her have a comeback?

I’m guessing it’s because she faced Taynara, who could benefit from a bit of a showcase herself. But why not go with Kai against someone else? Last week, Cameron Grimes got a quick squash victory over Sean Maluta — why not hold off on Taynara and do Kai versus someone like Aliyah, or Vanessa Borne?

It’s really nitpicking on my part here, because all was right at the end. The GTK finish is a good choice for Kai, and she looks to be staking her claim as a major player in the WWE NXT Women’s Division moving forward.

Winner: Dakota Kai

Rating: 2.0 out of 5 Stars

Decent little match, nothing super special but nothing super bad. Good showing for the returning Kai, and Taynara looks competent, too.