WWE NXT Review - July 24, 2019

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Jordan Myles def. Angel Garza in an NXT Breakout Tournament Semifinal Match

Both of these guys have a ton of potential and can go far on NXT if booked properly. They're tremendously talented and thus it was no surprise that was as fun as it was. This very well could have gone either way, but I was happy Myles went over and that Garza was protected in defeat. This could have been even better with more time, but I get the feeling that they're holding out until the finals and that NXT really wants that to be the show-stealer.

Bianca Belair def. Xia Li

Belair absolutely obliterated her opponent the last time we saw her in action a few weeks ago and did so in record time. This match wasn't much different with Belair showing off her aggressive side while destroying Li. I'm digging this new character for Belair coming off her losses to NXT Women's Champion Shayna Baszler earlier this year. I have no clue where it's headed, mind you, but I'm looking forward to finding out.

Pete Dunne Interrupted NXT North American Champion Velveteen Dream and Roderick Strong​

Strong vying for the NXT North American Championship at TakeOver: Toronto II has been known about for months and NXT has clearly been building in that direction with Strong picking up a few key victories in recent months. They were having a solid back-and-forth on the mic until Dunne randomly showed up to a huge reaction from the fans in attendance. Dunne then attacked Strong and went face to face with Dream, setting the stage for a Triple Threat at TakeOver. I love the idea to get Dunne involved in the mix and the match should be stellar.

Io Shirai def. Kacy Catanzaro by Disqualification

I can't get over how awesome Shirai's new heel entrance is. Wow. At any rate, Catanzaro has been an ally of Candice LeRae's in the past, so it made sense for her to be Shirai's first opponent since her turn. The match barely got started before LeRae interfered so she could get her hands on her former friend. It was a effective way to further their feud and get fans hyped for their eventual one-on-one encounter (perhaps at TakeOver: Toronto II).

Damian Priest def. Keith Lee

This was exactly the type of hoss battle I was hoping for from these two. I'm sure they're capable of an even better bout, but for what this was, it was entertaining. Interestingly enough, Lee seemed to be positioned as the heel coming into this contest yet was way more over than Priest. It also felt like Priest came across like a heel when he hid behind the referee before beating Lee, so I'm curious whether this feud will continue and, if not, where both men go from here. Lee was just starting to gain momentum, so to see it stop so soon is a bit disappointing.

Overall Show

Johnny Gargano and Adam Cole also determined that the first two falls of their NXT Championship clash at TakeOver will be a Street Fight and a normal wrestling match, which is underwhelming because we've already seen that from them twice before. Here's hoping the stipulation for the third fall ends up being something special (Hell in a Cell, anyone?). The rest of this edition of NXT was excellent with several storylines progressing, two well-wrestled matches, a showcase for Belair, and Dunne returning. I'm already infinitely more excited for TakeOver than I am SummerSlam that same weekend, but then again, what else is new?