WWE NXT UK Review - March 26, 2020

​By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Imperium (Marcel Barthel and Fabian Aichner) def. Ashton Smith and Oliver Carter

I didn't think Smith and Carter had the slightest chance of winning coming into this contest, but they ended up surprising me down the stretch by coming close to winning on a few occasions. Then again, Imperium is always excellent and work well with just about everybody they step in the ring with, so I should have expected this to be as entertaining as it was. Smith and Carter are a solid tandem, but Imperium never cease to deliver and were the right choice to win.

Aoife Valkyrie def. Nina Samuels

Valkyrie has been rolling in recent weeks and I appreciate how it didn't take her nearly as long as it did Ridge Holland to start facing credible competition. Her last match with Isla Dawn wasn't anything special, and unfortunately, this wasn't a vast improvement by any means. Valkyrie is a work in progress, but from what I've seen, she's very good. It's just a shame her opponents aren't as interesting. I feel we'll get a better grasp of what she's capable of once she starts having matches with the likes of Kay Lee Ray and others at that level.

Noam Dar def. A-Kid

A-Kid has proven to be a blast in the ring. Although he's had his fair share of backstage interviews, however, I still don't feel like we know a lot about him. Hopefully that changes eventually, but until then, it was smart for Dar to beat him here. They had a fun little match in the time they were allotted, but the crowd didn't seem to care at all and instead sat on their hands.

NXT Cruiserweight Champion Jordan Devlin def. Travis Banks

It was never explained why Banks was rewarded with a shot at the NXT Cruiserweight Championship. Maybe since he wasn't pinned in the Cruiserweight title Fatal 4-Way at Worlds Collide? Nonetheless, these two had a strong feud last year in NXT UK and this encounter showed that their chemistry hasn't faltered one bit. The crowd never bought into the possibility of Banks winning the title, but it was a top-notch main event and I liked how Devlin was barely able to pick up the victory.

Overall Show

It didn't matter if it was the championship main event, A-Kid vs. Dar, or anything else on this show. The crowd was criminally quiet almost the entire time and it certainly hindered my enjoyment of the episode. It's a shame because NXT UK has been producing some quality content lately and it doesn't feel that way whatsoever based off how the crowds have been reacting (or not reacting). We have an NXT UK Championship number one contender's Battle Royal to look forward to next week, but it's unknown when they'll get their title shot with NXT UK TakeOver: Dublin being bumped to October due to the coronavirus outbreak.