WWE NXT UK Review - October 10, 2019

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

The Hunt def. Pretty Deadly

The Hunt had their momentum derailed awhile back when they lost to Imperium, so it was nice to see them get back on the right track with a win here. Pretty Deadly were the perfect punching bags for them in this standard squash match, which is exactly what it needed to be. Speaking of Imperium, they came out afterward to attack The Hunt, so apparently that feud isn't over yet.

Jordan Devlin def. Jack Starz

I've been saying for a while how criminal it is for Devlin to be suffering from a lack of direction, but it looks like they've finally figured out how to use him. Granted, there was no reason for this match to last as long as it did (Devlin should have won with ease in under a minute), but at least he was able to hit his signature stuff and cut a post-match promo about he feels he's the best NXT UK has to offer. I expected Tyler Bate to interrupt him, but instead, it was "Bomber" Dave Mastiff. That's another feud I could get behind.

"Bomber" Dave Mastiff def. Kenny Williams

Mastiff crashed Devlin's victory celebration and noted how he was offended by his claim that he was the best that NXT UK had to offer. As previously noted, that could be a fun feud if Tyler Bate isn't going to be programmed with Devlin as was teased a few weeks ago. At any rate, Mastiff and Williams had a decent little match that allowed Mastiff to return to his winning ways following his loss to Joe Coffey at TakeOver: Cardiff. It was weird to see him squash a babyface if he isn't heel, though.

Gallus Interrpted NXT UK Tag Team Champions Mark Andrews and Flash Morgan Webster

It was nice to see Andrews and Webster get mic time for a change, as it helped establish them as fighting champions who are easy to root for. It wasn't long before they were interrupted by Gallus, who will be challenging for the NXT UK Tag Team Championship on next week's episode. This was a solid segment that featured quality mic work from both tandems and provided effective hype for that title encounter.

Piper Niven def. Jazzy Gabert

Niven and Gabert were two standouts from the inaugural Mae Young Classic in 2017 and thus I had high hopes for this. Unfortunately, it ended up being an average outing and nothing more. They worked a pretty basic match and the fact they were barely given five minutes for a main event was disappointing. On the bright side, Ripley aiding Niven to victory piqued my interest, especially given their checkered past. I wouldn't have beaten Gabert so soon, but I assume this leads to Ripley and Niven forming an unlikely alliance against Jinny and Gabert.

Overall Show

NXT UK has its weeks where it's an absolute treat to watch, but during weeks such as this one where there is so much other exciting wrestling out there, I can't possibly recommend going out of your way an episode as uneventful as this one. Literally nothing stood out as special. Several storylines were progressed and a title match was made official for next week, but the whole show felt like filler with so many short and uninspiring matches.