WWE NXT UK Review - April 3, 2019

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Kenny Williams and Amir Jordan def. Fabian Aichner and Marcel Barthel

​Williams and Jordan have gone from stepping stones in NXT UK's tag team division to threats to the NXT UK Tag Team Championship now that they have won three matches in a row. I've sung the praises of Aichner and Barthel in the past and they once again had a strong showing here. This was a fun match while it lasted that allowed Williams and Jordan to continue their winning ways. It's amazing just how much better the NXT and NXT UK tag team divisions are than Raw and SmackDown Live's.

Kay Lee Ray def. Isla Dawn

Ray has quickly become one of my favorites on the NXT UK women's scene. She has a certain charisma about her that helps her stand out from the rest of the ladies and she's a skilled competitor to boot. Dawn, on the other hand, has never done much for me, but at least she held her own here. This was a pretty good match with Ray going over as she should have. Here's hoping a shot at the NXT UK Women's Championship is in her future.

NXT UK Tag Team Champions The Grizzled Young Veterans Addressed the Audience

Zack Gibson mentioned how he wasn't cleared to compete after getting his bell rung recently by Oney Lorcan, though I'm sure that's just a kayfabe injury. The promo we got from them instead, though, was great. And by "them" I mean Gibson because James Drake didn't speak a single word. That's probably for the best, because Gibson is a tremendous talker in his own right and Drake didn't need to say anything. They basically put the NXT UK tag team division on notice and referenced Williams and Jordan coming for the titles. The cool thing about Gibson promos is that he always has the crowd in the palm of his hand.

Joe Coffey def. Trent Seven

Coffey called out Seven last week for being the "weak link" of British Strong Style. Seven and Tyler Bate are likely still in the hunt for the NXT UK Tag Team Championship at the moment, so this was an odd match to do since I assumed the rivalry wrapped up between British Strong Style and Gallus months ago. Nevertheless, this was a quality main event with a nice pace. Seven tapping out clean to Coffey was slightly surprising, but at least it gets Coffey back on the right track after a string of losses.

Overall Show

In addition to everything else mentioned above, a video package for Pete Dunne vs. WALTER for the WWE United Kingdom Championship this Friday at NXT TakeOver: New York aired at the end of the episode and it was excellent. I have faith that will be among the best bouts of WrestleMania weekend. The rest of the show was solid with Coffey, Ray, and Williams and Jordan picking up momentum-building wins in well-wrestled matches. Next week, Toni Storm will defend the NXT UK Women's Championship against Jinny, Piper Niven will make her in-ring debut for NXT UK, and Travis Banks will battle Kassius Ohno.