WWE NXT Review - July 7, 2026

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Kali Armstrong Attacked Kelani Jordan and AAA World Mixed Tag Team Champion Lola Vice

It feels like Armstrong has been away from NXT TV for a few months. I don't know if she was injured or if they just didn't have anything for her, but I'm glad she's back and in a prominent spot at that. She, Jordan and Vice all cut decent promos staking their claim at the next shot at the NXT Women's Championship. Having Armstrong stand tall was smart as it made her look dominant.

Sean Legacy & Dorian Van Dux def. Birth Right (Uriah Connors and Channing "Stacks" Lorenzo), DarkState (Osiris Griffin and Cutler James), and OTM in an NXT Tag Team Championship No. 1 Contender's Fatal 4-Way Tag Team Match

For as much as I rag on NXT's tag team division (or what's left of it, anyway), I did think this was a successful showcase for everyone involved. It was all action and I was especially impressed by Legacy and Van Dux. Needless to say, I was happy they went over. Saquon Shugars distracting DarkState to cost them the victory furthered that feud as well.

Keanu Carver def. Tank Ledger

Carver is coming off back-to-back losses to EK Prosper, so this was a necessary match for him to have in order to get back on track. Apparently this marked Ledger's first singles matchup in years and I thought he fared well for himself despite it being a glorified squash. This went about as long as it should have. I have to imagine a third bout between him and Prosper is imminent.

Layla Diggs def. Thea Hail, Izzi Dame and Lizzy Rain in an NXT Women's North American Championship No. 1 Contender's Fatal 4-Way Match

Diggs was the last person I expected to become number contender, so that came out of nowhere. That's not a bad thing, though, as I applaud the attempt to push her. Sure, I don't think she's ready for a push yet, but she had a solid showing here and I'm curious how she'll do against Zaria next week. The four-way was fun and, similar to the four-way tag team match from earlier, they kept the pace consistent throughout.

NXT North American Champion Myles Borne Saved Tavion Heights from The Vanity Project

This segment was so quick that you may have missed it if you blinked. Heights wanted to apologize to Borne, got interrupted by Vanity Project instead, and got saved by Borne during his brawl with Vanity Project. It was simple stuff that seemed to hint at a tag team match soon. That said, I'm ready for either Borne or Heights to turn on the other because they're spinning their wheels at this point.

Niko Vance def. Shiloh Hill

I'm sorry but I find Vance to be very boring. He's not awful or anything, but he doesn't offer anything out of the ordinary, either. He wasn't all that exciting in The Culling to begin with, but without Shawn Spears, he's even more exposed as being generic. Hill should have won this match, but Tristian Angels had to get involved to keep that rivalry alive for some reason. The match itself was okay.

NXT Women's Champion Kendal Grey def. Nattie

This was far and away the best thing on the entire episode. You had to know Nattie wasn't winning the title in Grey's first defense, but Nattie always excels in these spots working with the newer women. This was a really good main event as they unsurprisingly had strong chemistry together. I liked the tease at the end that Grey has multiple potential challengers waiting in the wings to challenge her (as seen in the opening segment).

Overall Show

This show was carried by the two multi-person matches and the quality main event. Everything else was average and uninteresting. The show was once again centered around the women this week and it made for an enjoyable episode, but NXT looks a lot different without them. The other storylines are basic at best. There needs to be more of an incentive for fans to tune in beyond what they're doing with the women.

SEE MORE: NXT Reviews