NXT 2/20/24: Get Better Shotzi
This week’s NXT was taped last week and we quickly found out in our main event there was a real injury that occurred. Shotzi had hurt her knee and it was revealed yesterday that she has torn her ACL and she will be out for nine months.
NXT North American Championship: Oba Femi vs Lexis King: This was a fast one. Robert Stone came out which distracted King to let Femi get the advantage and retain the North American Championship.
Winner: “And Still” Oba Femi
Thea Hail Promo: Hail is upset because Osborne has not texted her back since the date. Hail explains that when he opened the door for her she yelled at him and stayed on her phone throughout the entire date. Jane says that is not what she meant by saying do not make yourself seem desperate. Arianna Grace interrupts and says that Hail will be okay and she has some pointers that can help her out. Jane says to stay out of their business as they all walk away cheering up Hail.
Lyra Valkyria and Tatum Paxley Promo: Lyra Valkyria checks on Paxley, but Paxley calls her a hero. She says that even though she was only able to eat soup for the past week it was all worth it. Valkyria says that if Paxley does not get involved tonight she will give Paxley a surprise as she vows to not leave the locker room.
Bron Breakker and Baron Corbin Promo: Breakker and Corbin started bickering with each other about who was the one to get the win last week, but they said that it did not matter because they were champions. Chase U interrupts and says that the former tag team champions promised them a shot at the titles and they want their given opportunity. Axiom and Fraizer interrupt next and say that they want an opportunity as well, and it does not matter what the old tag team champions say because they are not champions anymore. Ava comes out and makes a number one contender match for both teams taking place later tonight.
Roxxane Perez Promo: Perez says that Sinclair reminds her a lot of herself and that unfortunately, Perez has learned over time that NXT is not all sunshine and rainbows. After a while, you realize that opportunities will be given out to people who do not deserve it and the only person who wants what is best for you is herself. She calls out both Valkryie and Shotzi and says whoever wins the main event tonight, she wants next.
Roxxane Perez vs Wren Sinclair: This match made me happy because I like watching my friends shine. Sinclair has a future in this business and she proves that every week. Perez gets the win as she makes Sinclair tap as she awaits another title opportunity.
Winner: Roxxane Perez
Mega Four Promo: Noam Dar hypes up Lash Legend before her big match tonight before No Quarter Catch Crew interrupts and says they want a shot at the Heritage Cup. Dar asks which one is he going to wrestle as Gulack says there is a Catch Clause as they walk away. Dar continues to freak out about the Catch Clause since now he has to prepare for all four of them.
Josh Briggs vs Brooks Jensen: Well, this match happened. In the end, Briggs yelled I did this for you, I love you to show that he does care about his former tag team partner. This match was slow and at times it just did not work at all. It was slow and both looked tired very early on in the match. Hopefully, this is not the last match between these two so they can have a better matchup.
Winner: Josh Briggs
Joe Gacy Vignette: We see Gacy locked in some kind of room in a straight jacket as he is smiling. He says that this train is on a never-ending track and his story with Dijack is never going to end. Dijack says he has many tools to take down the Gacy train as he continues to laugh. One of the other NXT Stars posing as a lawyer says that he can not be doing this when Dijack says this is his world and no one can do anything about it.
Carmelo Hayes Promo: Hayes says that he is back where Trick Melo Gang began in a barber shot and even though he is there without Williams he is not lonely. He talks about how Williams became way over his head thinking he could be better than Hayes when Hayes was always going to be the number one guy. He tells Williams to stay out of his way and he calls out the NXT Champion, but only to talk about his future NXT Title shot.
Arianna Grace vs Jacy Jane: Throughout the match, Jane tried telling Hail to get involved but she refused, Jasmine Nyx was quick to help Jane and that is how she was able to get the win. Jane raised Nxy’s hand after the match while Hail looked on displeased.
Winner: Jacy Jane
The Family Promo: The Family is disappointed with all of their losses last week, but they are ready to bounce back. Tony says that for this family to be successful he needs to take them in a new direction and he has to do things his way. Tony tells the family if they do not like the direction in which the family is heading then they can leave.
Ridge Holland Promo: Holland says that the series of misfortune continues to haunt him. He had to take the chair to Gallus last week to defend himself, but he did not want to do it. He says that he knows his war with Gallus is not over and he is ready to end this once and for all.
Chase U (Duke Hudson & Andre Chase) vs Axiom & Nathan Frazier: As Chase U made their entrance Osborne and Hail looked at each other awkwardly after what happened after their first date last week. However, Chase U was able to win the number one contender match. This match was a lot of fun and no matter what team won they would have had a reason to go after the NXT Tag Team Championships. After the match was over The OC (Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows) attacked both teams from behind. Looks like they also want a shot at those NXT Tag Team Championships.
Winners: Chase U (Duke Hudson & Andre Chase)
Ilja Dragunov Promo: Dragunov calls Hayes a coward for what he did to Williams and is disgusted that he blamed him at the beginning of this whole mess. Dragunov says he is willing to put his NXT Championship on the line at Roadblock if he meets him next week face-to-face in the ring and he is going after something so much bigger than revenge, he is going after Hayes’s soul.
Fallon Henley Promo: Henley says that she is upset that her two best friends are fighting for their lives and Henley can not get some wins. Hail says that her life is not going well either because The OC beat up Chase U, Jane is acting weird, and Osborne is not talking to her. Henley suggests that they go on a walk to make Hail feel better.
Kelani Jordan vs Lash Legend: Trust me when I say by the end of 2024 Legend will be NXT Women’s Champion. How we get there I have no idea, but she was so dominant throughout this match and on NXT as of late that I would be shocked if she did not win some gold. Jackson got involved in this match as she attacked Jordan as she was going to the top rope to help Legend secure the win. Good match though. After the match, Kiana James and Izzi Dame came out and attacked Jordan, until James was able to get the upper hand. Looks like that feud is not ending anytime soon.
Winner: Lash Legend
OC Promo: The OC says that they are here in NXT and they are going to stay here for as long as they want. Anderson jokes that although he was not a good student, he did enjoy the calendar they put out a couple of weeks ago. They call out the NXT Tag Team Champions and they are ready to capture those titles.
NXT Women’s Championship: Lyra Valkyria vs Shotzi: Since this match had to end abruptly due to injury, I was shocked that they even showed the match and how much of it they showed on TV. The injury happened early on in the matchup as they showed the ringside doctors working on Shotzi during a picture-in-picture commercial break. They showed Shotzi hobbling around trying to continue until she collapsed on the floor in pain. They escorted Shotzi to the back as you can tell by the look on Valkyria’s face that she is concerned for Shotzi’s well-being. Ava comes out to say that Shotzi is no longer able to compete. She follows by saying that they promised the fans a Women’s Championship match and that is what they are going to get. She declares an open challenge and says whoever walks through the back will be the new challenger, who ends up being Lash Legend. This was a quick five to six-minute match just to give the fans a title match. They showed Perez drying her hair asking what happened in the match, the woman in the locker room explained what happened as she pushed the TV over and stormed away. Both women did what they needed to do given the unforeseen circumstances, but in the end, Valkyria retained the match.
Winner: “And Still” Lyra Valkyria
Overall: I still do not enjoy that NXT has double the amount of promos/vignettes than matches, because some of these segments are not needed. To me, it is the number one thing that they need to fix in the week-to-week production of NXT, but one can only hope. The matches were better than last week, but some things still need work as we are on the road to Stand and Deliver.
