WWE NXT Review - April 26, 2022

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Nikkita Lyons def. Lash Legend

Although I haven't been a fan of this feud, I appreciated how they immediately started fighting before the bell even rang like true rivals would. Unfortunately, it was all downhill from there. I gave them credit for their first encounter because it exceeded expectations, but this was no good and both women are to blame. I know the internet loves Lyons for obvious reasons, but she's still a work in progress in the ring along with Legend. Post-match, Natalya went after Lyons and Cora Jade made the save, setting up next week's tag team match.

Von Wagner def. Tony D'Angelo

Von Wagner was originally scheduled to face Xyon Quinn, but Quinn was deemed unable to compete prior to the show. No word on whether he's injured or not, but hopefully he'll be okay and it's nothing too serious. D'Angelo was a weird replacement for him considering both men are heels and it was hard to get into it as a result. This was fine, but Wagner is still abysmal in the ring. I understand Santos Escobar cost D'Angelo the win, but it was silly for D'Angelo to get pinned less than a month after beating Tommaso Ciampa in Ciampa's NXT farewell at Stand & Deliver. I'm sorry but Wagner has zero upside.

Nathan Frazer Attacked Grayson Waller

Vignettes have been airing for weeks promoting Frazer's arrival on the brand. For those unaware, he's an NXT UK star and is a ton of fun to watch in the ring, though it's unknown if he's here to stay or if his stint will be as short as A-Kid's was. He was supposed to have his first match here before his opponent was ambushed by Waller. Andre Chase and Bodhi Hayward stepped in (ugh) and helped Frazer fend off Waller. I have no interest in Frazer aligning with those two goofs, but I am looking forward to Frazer vs. Waller next week.

Katana Chance and Kayden Carter def. Valentina Feroz and Yulisa Leon

Yes, Katana Chance is the new name for Kacy Catanzaro because no one is allowed to use their real names anymore, or at least anyone who has only been with the company a few years. She and Carter work really well together as a team, but I'm waiting for them to get that sustained push. Valentina and Feroz held their own here and this was a nice match. We'll see if Chance and Carter end up being next in line for a shot at the NXT Women's Tag Team Championship.

Legado del Fantasma (Cruz Del Toro, Joaquin Wilde and Elektra Lopez) def. Josh Briggs and Fallon Henley in a 3-on-2 Handicap Match

Brooks Jensen was originally supposed to team with Briggs and Henley against Legado but was attacked backstage beforehand, thus turning this into a Handicap match. He and Henley fared well for themselves here, but Legado went over in the end as they should have. They need to be made to look like as much of a threat as possible before their inevitable clash with D'Angelo and his new lackeys. This was well worked and they filled the time nicely.

Solo Sikoa def. Trick Williams

Both Sikoa and Carmelo Hayes are set to challenge Cameron Grimes for the NXT North American Championship in a Triple Threat match next week at Spring Breakin', so this was supposed to serve as a warm-up for Sikoa before then. I expected a full-blown squash, but Williams actually scored some offense before eating defeat. Williams has consistently been booked as a goof in the past, so Sikoa probably should have been more dominant here.

The Viking Raiders def. Edris Enofe and Malik Blade

It was announced earlier in the evening that The Creed Brothers will be facing SmackDown's Viking Raiders on next week's show, which be a hell of a hoss fight. Viking Raiders are the perfect people to be returning to NXT for a short stint because they have nothing going on at the moment on SmackDown. I thought this would be a straightforward squash for Viking Raiders, but I actually liked that Enofe and Blade scored some offense and were made to look credible in defeat. Bonus points to Enofe and Blade for the awesome Cool Runnings reference backstage beforehand.

NXT Women's Champion Mandy Rose def. Roxanne Perez (Non-Title)

I know Perez beat Jacy Jane in her NXT TV debut last week, but I still think it was premature to rush into this match even if the title wasn't on the line. I would have saved it for down the road, but it's always possible they revisit this eventually. That said, this was quite good and one of the better matches Rose has had in NXT. Rose has been having her best run ever in NXT, but Perez is already better than her in the ring and that much was evident in this outing. I'm fine with Perez taking the champ to the limit before losing, but why are we building to Wendy Choo challenging Rose for the title? I'd be very disappointed if she was the one to dethrone Rose as champ after all this time.

NXT Champion Bron Breakker Saved Rick Steiner Before Being Attacked by Joe Gacy

I was okay with this storyline when it started, but it completely jumped the shark last week with the dumb druid stuff. This wasn't much better, though it was cool seeing Rick Steiner made an in-person appearance on this episode. Everyone involved tried to make the best of it, but this was still a stupid angle. I can't say I'm not overly anticipating next week's NXT Championship clash between Breakker and Gacy.

Overall Show

We also found out on this show that the NXT Breakout Tournament will be returning in two weeks, this time with women. That's a cool twist, though don't expect a lot of the women involved to be that experienced. This edition of NXT on the whole was solid and served as a go-home show of sorts for next week's Spring Breakin' special, which looks promising on paper. As noted, Breakker vs. Gacy doesn't interest me much, but the rest of the card should be above-average compared to a typical NXT episode.

SEE MORE: NXT Reviews