WWE NXT on USA Results, Highlights: Drew Gulak vs. Lio Rush

Roderick Strong vs. Isaiah “Swerve” Scott

Well, this was predictably great. Until it wasn’t, after the match, but more on that later.

2019 has quietly been one of the best in Roderick Strong’s long career. I don’t know if it’s more the association with the Undisputed Era that has made him up his game, or if his veteran status has afforded him an opportunity to better assess what he’s doing. Whatever it is, though, it’s working.

And Isaiah Scott? He’s always been an exciting face in wrestling, but the larger platform of WWE NXT could be the thing that takes him to the next level. The crowd inside Full Sail was 110% behind Scott, too — impressive when he’s facing Roddy/UE, who the crowd can’t help but cheer.

Scott’s offense is beyond perfect for NXT, too. A slingshot double stomp to the outside? A cartwheel into a splash? Elevated DDT? Yeah, he’ll do just fine here.

Even though Undisputed Era eventually made their way down to the ring, they weren’t directly involved in the finish. Maybe Scott was a little distracted by their presence, but it was all Roddy at the end of this one. The End of Heartache led perfectly into the Stronghold and a submission victory for the North American Champion.

Winner: Roderick Strong

Rating: 3.75 out of 5 Stars

Let’s not discount how good Swerve was in this match, even if by the end of everything he was the 7th most important person in the segment. He’s got a bright future in front of him in NXT, so keep that in mind as you read about what followed.

After the victory, Adam Cole put himself and the UE over, and he said the word “dream” which brought out the Velveteen Dream. In a segment that absolutely HAD to be written by Vincent Kennedy McMahon himself, Dream made a lot of jokes about Roddy’s, uh, manhood, before bringing out a photoshopped picture of Roddy’s junk.

It was as bad as it sounds.

Eventually, Tommaso Ciampa came out and did something, or maybe nothing, I honestly don’t know. All I know is that somehow a really great match between two awesome superstars ended with jokes my middle schoolers would think were dumb.

Dakota Kai vs. Bianca Belair

It took a while for me to get into this match, because the whole “Roddy has a teeny package” thing just REALLY took me out of the show. That’s not the NXT I know and love, and it’s probably not the NXT you know and love, either. And to put that garbage segment that I’m assuming was done to draw in younger viewers right before a women’s match between two of the best in the division? Disgusting.

Even worse than me being taken out of this match? The crowd was deader than dead for long stretches. Look, I’m just one schlub at a laptop, so if I tune out it just means my review suffers. But if the 500 or so people inside Full Sail tune out, the TV is so quiet you can hear a pin drop.

But from what I can tell, Dakota Kai did some kicks, Bianca Belair was a ridiculous combination of strength and agility, and Belair picked up the W. From the crowd reaction, there wasn’t a lot more to it.

Winner: Bianca Belair

Rating: a billion times better than the Strong/Dream segment, you pick a number

After the match, Belair says Rhea Ripley can’t just come in and say she gets to face Shayna Baszler. If Rhea wants a shot at the NXT Women’s Champion, she has to go through the EST.

That should be a fun match when it happens, hopefully sooner rather than later. Both Ripley and Belair have similar strengths — namely, their strength. I think Belair’s agility is the X-factor, but Rhea may be talented enough to overcome that difference.

Kushida vs. WALTER

The opening of this match ruled so hard, man. WALTER acting like a boss and just imposing his will on the smaller Kushida. Some tomfoolery from WALTER led to a return by Kushida, which just enraged the Ring General. Kushida running for his life afterwards and speeding up the match. Just truly great work all around.

I think WWE NXT was really trying to pull off the David vs. Goliath feel with this one. And, sure, if David was a Back to the Future-loving Japanese wrestler, and Goliath was a monstrous Austrian who can chop you to death without breaking a sweat, that’s what you had.

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There’s not enough good things to say about this match. Given the garbage with Dream and Strong, this was a HUGE palate cleanser. Just one guy trying to stick and move, while the other tried to stick him into the mat.

The best part of this one for me? No involvement from the rest of Imperium. Even when WALTER was at his most vulnerable, his cohorts remained in the locker room. It’s a very subtle difference from the Undisputed Era, but that difference is like night and day. Even when UE doesn’t directly get involved, they are out at ringside giving the impression they will. Imperium knows WALTER has everything under control, so they’re nowhere to be seen.

Winner: WALTER

Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars

For my money, this was the match of the night, just barely edging Roddy/Swerve. Kushida (and WALTER) were able to salvage a semi-botch, when Kushida slipped off the top rope. Besides that, it was a very well-executed match.

I especially enjoyed the rough look on some of the moves, like some of the inside cradles towards the end of the match. It’s more believable as legit competition — to me, at least — when some of the moves look like they were a struggle to execute. Not every suplex, especially late in the match, should look like a guy lifting up a toddler. There should be some resistance.

Kushida’s insistence on continuing to use the Hoverboard submission seemed like a good idea at the time, as it wore down WALTER’s arm. I actually thought the Ring General was tapping out, but he was just pounding the mat in pain. It wasn’t enough to slow the big man down, though, and the WWE United Kingdom Champion walked away with a hard-fought victory.

And that does it for this week’s episode of WWE NXT. What did you think? Sound off in the comments below!