WWE NXT UK Review - December 5, 2019

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Toni Storm def. Killer Kelly

This was Storm's first match back on NXT UK since she lost the NXT UK Women's Championship at TakeOver: Cardiff over three months ago. I was happy she looked dominant in her return and that she ​won in a matter of minutes, but I hated that it came at the expense of Killer Kelly. I've said this before, but she has been criminally wasted since the start of the NXT UK brand. If they don't have any plans for her, they might as well let her go. At any rate, Kay Lee Ray attacked Storm afterward before Piper Niven made the save, which Storm wanted no part of. The seeds are being planted for a Triple Threat title clash at TakeOver: Blackpool II.

The Hunt def. The Outliers

Personally, I'm a fan of The Hunt and their in-ring intensity, even if they come off as a bit generic at times. Their opponents were Riddick Moss (remember him?) and Dorian Mak (the former Dan Matha). I believe they're managed by Robert Stone (the former Robbie E from TNA), but he didn't accompany them to ringside here. We have yet to see The Outliers on NXT TV and I thought they did fine against The Hunt. There's a lot of room for improvement, but at least they got to show what they could do while The Hunt picked up a needed win.

Jordan Devlin def. A-Kid

Almost all of Devlin's matches on NXT TV are a blast because he never ceases to bring the best out of his opponents. This match was no exception as he and A-Kid produced a very fun outing in the seven minutes or so they were allotted. A-Kid was able to score plenty of offense before eating defeat and I liked how Tyler Bate cheered him on from ringside. The shot of A-Kid crawling into the ring to avoid a count-out loss only to get viciously kicked in the head by Devlin right before the finish was super well done.

Joseph Conners def. Travis Banks and Ligero in a Triple Threat Match

Conners got involved in the last Banks vs. Ligero match, so they all collided in a Triple Threat here. Banks and Ligero are much more exciting to watch and I thought they made this thing as enjoyable as it could be. Conners wasn't terrible, but he tends to make anything he's involved in instantly boring. With the win, Conners is attempting to prove that he deserves to compete at a TakeOver. I fear this will culminate with him wrestling at the Blackpool event, and if he does, hopefully he'll be squashed by someone in quick fashion.

Imperium Attacked Ilja Dragunov Following WWE United Kingdom Champion WALTER and Joe Coffey's Negotiations

To be completely honest, the idea of WALTER vs. Joe Coffey match doesn't sound incredibly appealing to me. I know it makes sense with the story they've told with them in recent weeks, not to mention that Coffey beat Dave Mastiff at TakeOver: Cardiff in August, but going with a heel vs. heel main event is questionable. That said, this was a solid segment that confirmed the main event for TakeOver and set up two additional matches on NXT UK with Gallus defending the NXT UK Tag Team Championship against Imperium next week and Ilja Dragunov facing Alexander Wolfe on an upcoming episode.

Overall Show

I love that TakeOver: Blackpool II isn't for another month or so yet they've already begun to build up the card. WALTER vs. Coffey as the WWE United Kingdom Championship main event is now official, and as noted, they planted the seeds for something with Conners as well as a three-way for the NXT UK Women's Championship and possibly Devlin vs. Bate. I was thoroughly entertained by this edition of NXT UK with the hour flying by more than usual.