WWE NXT Review - September 26, 2018

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Undisputed Era Interrupted NXT General Manager William regal

It's rare nowadays that we get a Regal appearance in front of the live crowd, so him coming out to address the Aleister Black situation was cool. It wasn't long before Undisputed Era interrupted him to complain about their own problems, which led to Regal announcing that it will be Ricochet vs. Pete Dunne vs. Adam Cole for the NXT North American Championship in two weeks and Kyle O'Reilly and Roderick Strong vs. War Raiders for the NXT Tag Team Championship in three weeks. This was a strong segment to kick off the show and Regal remains the best general manager in all of WWE right now.

Lars Sullivan def. Victor Orchant

Sullivan squashing fools will never not be fun. It was what got him over in the first place about a year ago, and if done sparingly, having him face local athletes is effective in establishing him as a monster heel. I also liked the pre-match vignette that showcased his dominance, as well as the post-match angle that saw EC3 return and take the fight to Sullivan. They will collide one-on-one on next week's edition of NXT.

The Mighty def. Street Profits

Although I've enjoyed The Mighty as heels in recent months, there is no question that they haven't exactly had momentum on their side, as they've lost more often than not. This series of matches they've been having with Street Fights has been a treat, though, and this was easily their most entertaining encounter to date. The Mighty winning clean surprised me, but I'm not complaining. Hopefully they can transition into the NXT Tag Team Championship picture eventually.

NXT Women's Champion Kairi Sane def. Vanessa Borne (Non-title)

As I've said in the past, Borne is a prospect to keep an eye on. Her in-ring abilities are coming along nicely and she simply has a presence about her. However, this was all about Sane and giving her a victory in order to maintain momentum as champion. Afterward, Shayna Baszler confronted Sane and demanded her championship rematch, which she will get at WWE Evolution next month.

NXT Champion Tommaso Ciampa def. Otis Dozovic (Non-title)

Granted, the outcome was never in doubt, but this was way better than I was expecting it to be. Dozovic doesn't usually compete in singles matches, but I hope he will more going forward because he is a star in the making and is a damn blast to watch, not to mention he had the crowd behind him every step of the way. Unfortunately for the Heavy Machinery member, even a little assistance from Tucker Knight wasn't enough to help him pick up the win. In defeat, though, he gained a ton.

Overall Show

I believe this kicked off a fresh set of tapings for NXT and it definitely came across that way because the crowd was hot all night long. Everything served a purpose and built to something, whether it be an upcoming episode of NXT TV, WarGames 2 or Evolution. The weekly product is terrific at the moment and this was an all-around excellent show. In addition to EC3 vs. Sullivan, next week's show will also feature The Forgotten Sons in action and Johnny Gargano taking on Tony Nese.