WWE NXT live results: Battle royal for Halloween Havoc title shot
Tonight, we’ll find out Jacy Jayne’s NXT Women’s Championship challenger for Halloween Havoc
A multi-promotional number one contender’s battle royal is set to take place on tonight’s WWE NXT episode. In addition to the NXT women’s division competing, stars from TNA’s Knockouts division have been invited to be in the battle royal as well. Halloween Havoc is now less than two weeks away with the PLE set to be held in Arizona on October 25.
TNA’s Matt Cardona — the former Zack Ryder — makes his return to the WWE ring tonight for a match against Josh Briggs.
Lucha Libre AAA will also be represented on NXT with AAA Worldwide Champion Dr. Wagner Jr. taking on Lexis King.
Plus, Blake Monroe vs. Zaria has also been announced for the episode. It will continue Monroe’s feud with NXT Women’s North American Champion Sol Ruca.
Join us for live coverage starting at 8 p.m. Eastern time.
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New NXT Champion Ricky Saints opens the show with an entrance dressed in street clothes, and he is holding the NXT title belt. Trick Williams interrupts Saints a few minutes into Saint’s monologue, with Trick appearing on the Titantron.
Saints begins the monologue boasting about winning the title despite odds stacked against him. Saints then cuts a promo on Trick, with Saints saying Trick folds like origami. After cutting a cutting a promo on how bad Trick is, Saints turns around and lobbies for a title match against Trick. Saints is “calling his shot” in the “Absolute Era” of NXT.
Trick interrupts with a pre-taped promo shown on a video screen. Trick insults Saint in a short video where he cut his promo uninterrupted by Saints. After Trick’s promo, Saints responds by saying must have slipped on the cocoa butter he puts on, and Trick bumped his head. Saints vows to burst the bubble on Trick’s fantasy land.
Je’Von Evans and Leon Slater are talking backstage when they are met by Matt and Jeff Hardy. The Hardys vow to give Darkstate some receipts at Halloween Havoc on behalf of Evans and Slater.
— Matt Cardona gets a full entrance before a commercial break.
— “Anonymous” footage shows TNA Knockouts Champion Kelani Jordan arguing with Jordynne Grace. This would seem to set up a match between the two for the Knockouts title.
Matt Cardona vs. Josh Briggs
Cardona put over Briggs in a good match, where Briggs scores a clean pinfall on Cardona. For the finish, Briggs hits Cardona with a big boot. Briggs then falls on top of Cardona to score the pinfall.
The match went through a commercial break. This was clearly a big match for Briggs as he wore his fancy vest complete with a smoking skull. It was literally gimmicked to emit smoke. Cardona put him over well, but Cardona looked great in doing so. The finish came out of nowhere, as they had traded near falls earlier in the bout. Very well laid out with modern sensibilities, but an old school type of finish.
Before the commercial break, Cardona fires up and does a flip dive over the top rope to the floor. After the break, Briggs is getting heat on Cardona. Comeback by Cardona as they head down the stretch going home.
Match result: Josh Briggs defeated Matt Cardona via pinfall.
Lyra Valkyria joins Hank & Tank and Chase U for a backstage skit where they are all confronted by The Culling. This served to set up a triple threat tag team match for next week, along with Izzi Dame vowing to win the battle royal tonight.
— AAA Latin American Champion El Hijo del Dr. Wagner Jr. has a full entrance before a commercial break.
— Fatal Influence is the focus of a video package. Lainey Reid officially joined the group. After the video package, Vic Joseph on commentary was baffled at Reid joking the faction. What show was he watching the last several weeks?
El Hijo del Dr. Wagner Jr. vs. Lexis King in a non-title match
The match goes through a commercial break after Wagner does a moonsault to the floor. After the show returns from the break, King works a leg. Wagner hulks up into a comeback, while still selling his leg in a silly manner. For the finish, Wagner lands a Shining Wizard, followed by a Michinoku Driver on King.
Match result: El Hijo del Dr. Wagner Jr. defeated Lexis King via pinfall.
Wagner cuts a promo after the match where he calls out NXT North American Champion Ethan Page, who enters dressed in a suit jacket and dress shirt that matched his Canadian version of the North American title belt. This confrontation led to the announcement of a death match between the two at Halloween Havoc. More specifically, they are billing the bout as a “Day of the Dead” match.
— Trick Williams attacked Ricky Saints in a phantom assault during a backstage skit with others. The skit begins with authority figures Santino Marella and Ava talking when with Leon Slater and Je’Von Evans. Those two wrestlers are lobbying for a tag team match tonight. Their lobbying efforts are interrupted by Arianna Grace and Stacks. This led them booking an X-Division title match with Stacks challenging Slater. Suddenly, a commotion is heard and the camera pan away. Trick is seen standing over a fallen Saints. Trick is yelling when officials and security pour into the scene. Ava tells for “medical!”
From there comes the entrances of Blake Monroe and Zaria, respectively. They are vastly different, yet both great entrances in their own way.
Blake Monroe vs. Zaria
Sol Ruca plays a part in the finish after running in and jumping on the apron. Ruca takes a metal folding chair away from Monroe, who was intending to use the chair as a weapon. Despite making the save, Ruca’s interference causes a distraction. The referee is distracted by Ruca, as he argues with her on the apron. Dude, do your job!
With the ref distracted by Ruca, Monroe retrieves a hair pick from her knee pad. Monroe uses the pick as weapon and strikes Zaria in the throat. Monroe follows up with The Beauty Shot (double-arm DDT), and Monroe covers Zaria for a tainted victory.
Match result: Blake Monroe defeated Zaria via pinfall.
— Ava announces a Speed tournament, and the winner faces El Grande Americano for the Speed title. The tournament starts next Tuesday on NXT.
— Hank and Tank enter the sound stage before a commercial break.
Hank Walker & Tank Ledger vs. Chase U (Kale Dixon & Uriah Connors) vs. The Culling (Shawn Spears & Niko Vance) in a triple threat tag team match
The match was action packed and going along when OTM returned to clean house. Lucien Price and Bronco Nima run in and assault the match participants. This leaded to what I assume is a no contest finish. The match was very entertaining until the finish. Nevertheless, OTM looked dominate in their return. Does this set up a four-way tag match, or what?
Match result: The triple threat tag team match ends in a no contest after outside interference by OTM.
— In a backstage skit, Sol Ruca gifts Zaria her spot in the battle royal.
— Ricky Saints is storming around backstage looking for Trick Williams. Saints is stopped by Ava, who wants him to calm down so the match can happen. Ava reveals Saints and Trick have a contract signing next Tuesday on NXT.
— Several women wrestlers get full entrances ahead of the battle royal. Those getting entrances include Jordynne Grace, Lash Legend, Lei Ying Lee (formerly Xia Li in WWE), Xia Brookside, Victoria Crawford (formerly Alicia Fox in WWE), and Jaida Parker (who was over huge with the live studio audience in attendance). After a commercial break, the rest of the battle royal participants are in the ring.
— In between the break and the start of the battle royal, Darkstate lays out the Hardys in a phantom attack that involved chairs.
NXT Women’s Championship #1 Contender’s 20-Woman Battle Royal
Far as battle royals go, this was good. They wove a few feuds and story lines into the match.
The final four were Kendal Grey, Jordynne Grace, Izzi Dame, and Tatum Paxley. As they go home, Paxley is on the apron with a rear naked choke on Grace. Meanwhile, Dame tosses out Grey, who looked strong throughout the match. Dame then goes for a Cactus Jack clothesline that sends both her and Grace over the ropes to the floor for a double elimination. That leaves Paxley as the sole survivor, and she wins the battle royal to earn a title shot.
Match result: Tatum Paxley won a battle royal to become number one contender.
After the match, the Fatal Influence trios enters the scene. NXT Women’s Champion Jacy Jayne poses with the title belt in a stare down with Paxley. Lyra Valkyria runs past Fatal Influence, and Valkyria joins with Paxley in celebrating her win.