 NXT Champion Ricky Saints and Trick Williams BrawledWilliams storming into the arena as aggressively as he did was really well done. It was a side of him we don't see very often (if ever) and it made sense since he's officially lost it all. His subsequent brawl with Saints confirmed their feud isn't over yet, despite Ava making it clear that Williams lost fair and square at Halloween Havoc. They continued brawling for the rest of the show, leading to Ava announcing a Last Man Standing match between them for Night 1 of Gold Rush. Jasper Troy def. Axiom in the Finals of the WWE Speed Championship No. 1 Contender's TournamentAxiom is a SmackDown Superstar, so while I appreciate having an NXT talent get the next shot at the WWE Speed Championship, Troy vs. El Grande Americano is a strange match to do. Will Troy actually win when it matters most this time? The match itself was short and sweet, as is usually the case with these Speed-style matches. Personally, I can't bring myself to care, but that's just me. NXT Women's Champion Tatum Paxley Announced Lola Vice as Her First ChallengerAs I've said before, Paxley has improved immensely over the years and has formed a great connection with the NXT audience, so I was really happy to see her win the NXT Women's Championship at Halloween Havoc. As expected, she teased tension with the rest of The Culling by promising to be a fighting champion and them not approving. She spun a wheel (which Izzi Dame's name wasn't on) to determine her first challenger and it landed on Vice. This was a good segment to set up the match for later in the night. Evolve Women's Champion Kendal Grey def. Lash LegendGrey was extremely generic the last few times I've seen her on NXT TV, but apparently she's made major strides over on Evolve from what I've heard. Her match with Kali Armstrong where she won the Evolve Women's Championship a few weeks back also received rave reviews. I have no idea where Grey vs. Legend came from, but they had a nice match and Grey winning clean was definitely an upset. Legend has to be main roster bound imminently, right? Myles Borne def. Tavion HeightsThis wasn't billed as a number one contender's match, but I feel like it was implied that the winner would soon be challenging for the NXT North American Championship. Heights already lost to Ethan Page, so Borne winning was the logical outcome. These two had a quality, competitive contest. Josh Briggs' next feud appears to be with Heights based on their interaction toward the end. NXT Women's Champion Tatum Paxley vs. Lola Vice Ended in a No ContestI was worried Paxley might lose the title within days of winning it, but thankfully, that did not happen. This didn't last very long at all before Fatal Influence interfered and attacked both women. This was designed to set up Paxley, Dame and Vice vs. Fatal Influence in a six-woman tag team match for next week. Dame betraying Paxley is inevitable, but I wouldn't rush into it anytime soon. TNA Knockouts World Champion Kelani Jordan def. Jordynne GraceIt was funny seeing the TNA Knockouts World Championship headline the show even though TNA hasn't aired any original content since Bound for Glory a few weeks ago. Nonetheless, they had an average outing, but this was all about the angle at the end with Jordan finally turning heel. Honestly, I'm surprised it took this long. It feels like Grace could be on the main roster any day now, so having her put over Jordan on the way out (both here and in an eventual rematch) is smart. Overall ShowThe women really do run NXT. Not only were three women's championships defended, we also found out that Blake Monroe will have her first defense of the NXT Women's North American Championship in New York City (at Night 1 of Gold Rush on November 18th) and that Sol Ruca will be relinquishing the WWE Women's Speed Championship due to her "injury." This was a thumbs-up episode that wasted no time in following up on Halloween Havoc and building toward the two-week Gold Rush television special next month with minimal filler.
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