WWE NXT 2.0: What went right on the first night of the relaunch

The WWE NXT reboot — branded as NXT 2.0 — drew plenty of varying opinions: some fans welcomed the changes brought by the rebrand and the new faces while others didn’t care for the show’s new tone.

As with anything, your enjoyment of the show will vary based on your personal tastes, but in a lot of ways, both of those reactions are valid. To be clear, this wasn’t a good episode, but it wasn’t without its redeeming qualities (if nothing else, it’s nice to see the wrestlers working in a well-lit building). After all, even the worst wrestling shows will get something right, even if it wasn’t intentional.

So, what did the creative team get right to kickstart this new era of NXT?

These are the two things that went right on the debut of NXT 2.0.

Tommaso Ciampa wins the NXT Championship

Due to Samoa Joe vacating the NXT Championship this past weekend due to injury, the number one contender’s Fatal 4 Way between LA Knight, Kyle O’Reilly, Pete Dunne, and Tommaso Ciampa became a championship match with the brand’s most prestigious prize at stake.

The change from contender’s match to title match wasn’t the only one this contest undertook, but the most important one came at the end when Ciampa hit the Fairytale Ending on Knight to score the pin and win “Goldie” for the second time.

Even though putting the title on Ciampa doesn’t exactly scream “new era of NXT” it was the right move to make. As a reliable veteran in the ring and on the microphone, he will shepherd many of NXT’s newer, greener prospects through their development, and as a wrestler with some cache and name recognition, he will provide whoever beats him for the title with some needed credibility.

Squash matches

Aside from the NXT Title match, the bulk of the show’s in-ring action consisted of squash matches, as Ridge Holland, Diamond Mine’s Creed Brothers, and Hit Row’s B-Fab all took part in respective showcase bouts.

Anyone who has read my pieces in the past knows that this is a safe space for enhancement matches. They are simple but effective, as they allow the winning wrestler to flash their moveset and personality in a dominant showing without sacrificing another wrestler on the roster.

All three looked impressive, and it will be interesting to see what the next chapter will entail for all of them.