WWE NXT UK Review - July 31, 2019

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

WWE United Kingdom Champion WALTER vs. Tyler Bate Was Made Official for NXT TakeOver: Cardiff

Although Imperium put Bate on the shelf a few weeks ago, I honestly didn't consider Bate a potential opponent for WALTER at TakeOver. I really thought Pete Dunne would get a rematch, but I like this option a lot more simply because it's a fresher match. Plus, WALTER has already defeated Dunne and Trent Seven one-on-one and Bate is the last member of British Strong Style he needs to overcome. This was a strong segment with Bate holding his own against all of Imperium and looking like a threat to the title.

Gallus def. Pretty Deadly

Mark Coffey and Wolfgang represented Gallus here, as Joe Coffey is set to take on "Bomber" Dave Mastiff on next week's episode. Pretty Deadly consisted of Sam Stoker and Lewis Howley, who have appeared on NXT UK before as enhancement talent. They were squashed pretty quickly here. Afterward, Coffey and Wolfgang cut a promo announcing their desire to win the NXT UK Tag Team Championship. With Moustache Mountain not available due to Bate's opportunity in the main event, Gallus vs. The Grizzled Young Veterans would make sense for TakeOver.

Rhea Ripley def. Dani Luna

After Ripley came up short in her recent rivalry with Piper Niven, I was certain she was headed for WWE's main roster, simply because there isn't anything else for her to do in NXT UK. I guess that could still be the plan at some point, but it appears she'll staying put in NXT UK with nothing to do in the meantime. On the bright side, she came across as dominant here and kept this as short and as sweet as possible.

Alexander Wolfe def. Jordan Devlin

Devlin demanded a shot at the WWE United Kingdom Championship but was put in a match with Wolfe by Sid Scala instead. I'm not sure who the crowd was supposed to cheer for since both men are heels, but this ended up being a pretty good main event. Wolfe proved he can hang on his own while Devlin never ceases to deliver. It'd be nice to see him receive some direction sometime soon.

Overall Show

The first two matches were squashes, and although the main event was solid, I wouldn't say it was worth going out of your way to see. It was a decent show on the whole, but the real focus was on setting up WALTER vs. Bate as the TakeOver: Cardiff main event and furthering the feud between Toni Storm and Kay Lee Ray through an excellent video package. I'm looking forward to seeing what else will be added to the TakeOver card over the next month.