WWE NXT: Roadblock Review - March 8, 2022

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Dakota Kai and Wendy Choo def. Raquel Gonzalez and Cora Jade in a Women's Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic Semifinal Match

Kai and Choo are still a strange team to me, but I realize that's the point. Kai is crazy and Choo is lazy, but at least the NXT fans are taking to them. Gonzalez and Jade were my pick to win the whole thing given how much creative attention they've gotten up to this point, so the outcome surprised me. It looks like Gonzalez and Jade will be resuming their rivalry with Toxic Attraction coming out of this. The match itself was decent and it was nice to see them receive an ample amount of time.

Fallon Henley def. Tiffany Stratton

Stratton is very much a work in progress in the ring and it doesn't help that her "daddy's little rich girl" gimmick is awful. That said, she looked better here than she has in past outings, so there was that. Meanwhile, Henley is one of the more refined enhancement women's wrestlers NXT has right now due to her past experience, so I had no issue with her scoring an upset win over Stratton (even if it was due to interference from Sarray).

Grayson Waller def. LA Knight in a Last Man Standing Match

This has turned into one of my favorite feuds since it started all the way back in October. Both men have played their roles remarkably well and the matches have been very good. This was easily their best bout yet as they gave it an excellent effort, made the most of the stipulation and kept the crowd engaged from start to finish. They produced some awesome spots and the finish looked fantastic. I'm fine with Knight losing if the idea is to call him up to Raw or SmackDown coming out of WrestleMania 38. As for Waller, this was his biggest win to date.

Io Shirai and Kay Lee Ray def. Kacy Catanzaro and Kayden Carter in a Women's Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic Semifinal Match

Catanzaro and Carter are one of the only true teams in this entire tournament, but KLR and Shirai are bigger stars, so Catanzaro and Carter were in a weird spot here. I'm still not a fan of their characters, but they've improved immensely in the ring and NXT needs more actual teams like them in the women's division. This was an enjoyable outing with a fun closing stretch. The finals could very well go either way.

NXT Tag Team Champions Imperium (Marcel Barthel and Fabian Aichner) vs. MSK Ended in a No Contest

The idea that MSK would take The Creed Brothers' place in the NXT Tag Team Championship match against Imperium due to Creed Brothers being attacked in the parking lot beforehand is pretty dumb when you think about it. When wouldn't they just postpone the match? I understand why they did what they did, but the setup was silly. On the bright side, what we got from MSK and Imperium was well wrestled as always and I'm sure the inevitable Triple Threat tag team match is going to be a banger.

Dolph Ziggler def. Tommaso Ciampa and Bron Breakker in a Triple Threat Match to Win the NXT Championship

Breakker vs. Ziggler in a straight-up singles match would have delivered, but adding Ciampa to the mix made this even more exciting I feel, especially with all of those suspenseful nearfals in the final few minutes. This was stellar stuff with all three guys have strong showings and having excellent chemistry together. I figured there was a chance Ziggler would win, but I didn't think they'd actually do it. If nothing else, it's intriguing and something different. Ziggler has been damaged goods for many years, but him being the NXT Champion could be cool if done right, and he can have some stellar matches with the rest of the roster. I'm willing to give it a chance and I think it could be a positive for everyone involved. Does this mean Breakker's main roster call-up is imminent or will he get the belt back at Stand & Deliver? Does Ciampa follow him to the main roster since there's nothing left for him to do in NXT? Will Ziggler be exclusive to NXT now or will he continue to appear on both Raw and NXT? Time will tell.

Overall Show

This special Roadblock edition of NXT summed up how I feel about NXT 2.0 at the moment: the good is great and the bad is brutal. I mean, some of the storylines on this show are just the worst, specifically anything romance-related because it's usually campy and corny nonsense. Lashing Out with Lash Legend and Nikkita Lyons was terrible, too. But then you have matches like that terrific Triple Threat and the entertaining Last Man Standing match that make these episodes worthwhile. The lack of consistency with NXT 2.0 is its biggest flaw, but again, the matches featuring the top talent are what salvage it. Hopefully they can put together a top-tier card for Stand & Deliver despite it being a matinee show on WrestleMania Saturday.

SEE MORE: NXT Reviews