WWE NXT Review - May 19, 2026

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Mason Rook and Kam Hendrix def. NXT North American Champion Myles Borne and NXT Champion Tony D'Angelo

We've seen NXT follow this formula before (including as recently as a month ago with D'Angelo and Borne) where a potential challenger pins a champion in tag team action. It's hardly interesting or innovative, but at least Hendrix pinned Borne and not D'Angelo. It was a well-worked opener. This was Rook's in-ring debut on NXT TV and I thought he had an impressive outing.

NXT Women's Champion and AAA World Mixed Tag Team Champion Lola Vice, Kendal Grey and WWE Women's Speed Champion Wren Sinclair Attacked Kelani Jordan and Izzi Dame

As much as I'd like to see Jordan contend for the NXT Women's Championship soon, Dame is a more logical choice considering she just pinned Vice (in tag team action... shocking, I know!). Their back-and-forth was fine, and the babyfaces played their roles well. It was a solid segment on the whole. We found out later in the show that it will be Jordan vs. Sinclair in a rematch next week.

Tristan Angels def. Romeo Moreno

Moreno's character apparently is that he's Noam Dar's biggest fan. That's about it. Thankfully, this served as a straightforward showcase for Angels, who is both skilled in the ring from what I can tell and can clearly talk. With Shiloh Hill addressing Angels from the crowd afterward, it looks like those two will be feuding going forward. They're polar opposites as characters, so it makes sense.

NXT Women's North American Champion Tatum Paxley def. Lizzy Rain

Rain has had a hell of a first month in NXT and had another breakout performance here. This didn't seem to be hindered by the babyface vs. babyface dynamic at all as the crowd was behind them both. I didn't think Rain was walking away with the belt, but she didn't need to since she was made to look credible in defeat. Post-match, Zaria laid out both women, so my money is on her to be the one to take the title from Paxley.

Keanu Carver def. Tate Wilder

Wilder just got pinned in a six-man tag team match last week and got beat by Carver here. Yeah, he's not exactly off to a strong start in NXT. He looks generic, and while he isn't bad in the ring, I have no idea what they're going for character-wise with him. This felt like a glorified squash for Carver, who they continue to build up slowly but surely. As I've said before, the character profiles for him have been well done.

Mason Rook Attacked Kam Hendrix

I'm surprised they did this segment on the same they teamed up and picked up a victory. Obviously, there was never an actual alliance between them, so it's not like I was surprised that they came to blows despite winning together earlier. This was basic stuff to establish both guys as being next in line for an NXT Championship opportunity with Rook standing tall as he should have. They wisely kept it short and sweet.

NXT Tag Team Champions The Vanity Project (Ricky Smokes and Brad Baylor) def. DarkSate (Saquon Shugars and Dion Lennox)

For a heel vs. heel main event, this was a quality main event, though it was more about whether Shugars and Lennox could get the job done than it was the match itself. Sure enough, Lennox led an assault on Shugars after he ate the pin. I don't see how this is supposed to benefit DarkState since Shugars was the only one who stood out from the group, but perhaps Shugars will emerge from this a breakout babyface.

Overall Show

DarkState's betrayal of Shugars at the end was the most newsworthy thing on the entire episode, but I'd still say it was another thumbs-up edition of NXT. They're properly pushing the newer names and filling out the two hours nicely. I'm not sure when the next premium live event is, but I'm glad there isn't one anytime soon as they're taking their time instead of rushing into anything.

SEE MORE: NXT Reviews