WWE NXT Review - June 3, 2020

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Candice LeRae vs. Mia Yim Ended in a Double Count-Out; Johnny Gargano and LeRae def. NXT North American Champion Keith Lee and Yim

LeRae and Yim worked well together and had an enjoyable opener, but it could have been bigger and better with more time. I wish they would have saved the mixed tag team match for another night because it felt rushed here, but I understood what they were going for and it gave the heels a win ahead of TakeOver. That would usually guarantee a victory for the babyface at the event, but I have a sneaking suspicion that Gargano is walking out the new NXT North American Champion.

Isiah "Swerve" Scott def. Tony Nese

Scott has been at odds with Nese and Gallagher recently after they played a part in him being eliminated from the Interim NXT Cruiserweight Championship Tournament. It was nice to see a second Cruiserweight match on this show in addition to the main event and it was well wrestled. They maximized their minutes and Scott beating Nese was the right call as he looks to get back on track.

Breezango def. Undisputed Era (Roderick Strong & Bobby Fish) and Oney Lorcan & Danny Burch in an NXT Tag Team Championship No. 1 Contender's Triple Threat Tag Team Match

I was just thinking about how NXT's tag team division needed a shot in the arm and Breezango's return is a step in the right direction. Granted, not all of their problems are solved with Breezango back, but they're fresh faces in the title picture and I was wondering where Indus Sher was before they resurfaced post-match. This was a fun Triple Threat with everyone looking good.

Santana Garrett def. Aliyah

Both of these ladies have been positioned as utility players on this brand for years (Garrett was doing jobs on NXT long before she was ever signed by the company), so I was interested to see who would win. As a match, it was perfectly fine but nothing you'll remember a week from now. Garrett is far more polished in the ring and deserves a push ahead of Aliyah, even though Aliyah has been there for years. The story is that Robert Stone was aiming for Aliyah to be his new client after Chelsea Green fired him last week, but her latest loss doesn't help her cause any.

Cameron Grimes def. Bronson Reed

Grimes is riding high at the moment coming off his victory over Finn Balor from last month, so it's imperative that NXT keep his momentum going as long as possible and not let it go to waste. I'm a fan of Reed and I'm glad he returned, but while this was a competitive contest, it was all about Grimes. Karrion Kross struck afterward and laid out Reed, sending a message to his TakeOver opponent Tommaso Ciampa in the process.

El Hijo del Fantasma def. Drake Maverick to Win the Vacant NXT Cruiserweight Championship

There was no mention of this being for the Interim NXT Cruiserweight Championship. Rather, Fantasma was announced as the new NXT Cruiserweight Champion, so perhaps the whole "interim" concept was dropped because they don't expect Jordan Devlin to be back any time soon. Despite that, this was an excellent match with strong showings from both men. Fantasma is just fantastic while Maverick was the ultimate underdog with the story he was telling coming into the finals of this tournament. The finish played out exactly as I expected it to, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. I thought Fantasma would reveal himself as the leader of the masked men who have been popping up and kidnapping people lately, but I assume that's still coming eventually. Fantasma becoming the champion was the right call and it's nice to see WWE offered Maverick a new contract. It's going to be a polarizing decision because it begs the question of why the company doesn't just rehire everyone that was released back in April and it's a strange situation, but I'm happy for him.

Overall Show

In what should come as no surprise, TakeOver: In Your House has an absolutely stacked card on paper and this go-home show left me looking forward to it. Sure, the main event had nothing to do with TakeOver, but it was newsworthy in that a new Cruiserweight Champion was crowned and Maverick was rehired. We also got Breezango back and the mini Prime Target documentaries on Adam Colve vs. Velveteen Dream as well as Charlotte Flair vs. Rhea Ripley vs. Io Shirai were fantastic. NXT is slowly but surely finding its footing again and, of course, having people in the audience makes a major difference.