On the Marc Review: WWE NXT 10.10.12

From Full Sail University in Winter Park, Florida

Commentators: Byron Saxton & William Regal

Championship’s roll call: WWE Champion: CM Punk… World Champion: Sheamus… Intercontinental Champion: The Miz… United States Champion: Antonio Cesaro… Tag Team Champions: Team Hell No… NXT Champion: Seth Rollins… Diva’s Champion: Eve Torres

The show opens with the WWE Champ CM Punk. He complains about not getting his due as champion and having watched more main events than he’s been in. He’s here to see the NXT Champ, Seth Rollins, compete in his first title match. Punk hopes everyone watching, all the NXT Superstars, realizes how important it is to have the WWE Champion in the house. Tonight everyone is taught a lesson in respect.

Bo Dallas vs. Johnny Curtis:   They lock up and Dallas rolls into a cradle, from a wristlock, for two. Curtis backs Dallas into the corner and does not give the clean break; Dallas comes back with a diving clothesline. Bo hits the ropes but runs right into an elbow to the jaw. Curtis stamps him a few times and mocks Dallas; he fires up but Curtis keeps him down with a shot to the kidney. A snap-suplex gets two for Curtis; he hammer-tosses Dallas into the buckles and applies a chinlock. Dallas (eventually) fires back but charges into a backdrop. Curtis pops up onto the second rope and drops a knee but completely misses. Ouch it looked like he landed hard, all weight onto both knees; Bo sits up like the Undertaker and makes mean faces like him too. While Curtis is writhing, Bo comes at him with clotheslines and a belly-to-belly suplex. He charges off the ropes and hits a spear crossbody for the three count. 2/10 Nothing special here; Curtis is as generic as they come and Dallas does not do much for me either. Dallas need a character development or gimmick change, he’s also pretty bland. This match was just like the two of them: bland.

Here is your winner… Bo Dallas @ about 8:45 via spear crossbody pinfall.

Paige & Audrey Marie vs. Kaitlyn & Alicia Fox:   Gee, what happened to Kaitlyn’s ankle wrapping? Paige and Kaitlyn start off and lock up. Kaitlyn tosses her down. Paige takes her down with a headlock and screams. Kaitlyn snags her in a side headlock; Paige rolls through and kicks her. Tag to Marie and she hits an armdrag and holds an armbar. She maintains control with a wringer and spins into a hammerlock. This goes on for a while until Kaitlyn reverses and whips her in the arm. Alicia blind tags as Audrey goes for a sunset flip and backjumps her; Fox and Audrey do a nice counter leg sweep sequence and Marie hits the ropes and counters a monkey flip attempt into a Winnick Throw (according to William Regal, I believe him). Kaitlyn tags in and Marie grabs her into a facelock; she powers out and tosses Marie on her face. Fox tags and chucks her into the buckle a few times. I guess Foxy and Kaitlyn are playing the heels. She applies a nasty looking chinlock and they quick tag on Audrey. Kaitlyn, seemingly out of ideas, locks in a body scissors. Marie finally nails a jawjacker and tags in Paige. Fox tags as well but clotheslines and a Thesz Press cut off any thoughts of a heel hot tag. She goes for RamPaige but Alicia counters into a cradle for two. Paige hits a one-footed dropkick drawing Kaitlyn into the ring to break up a pin. Audrey rushes in but gets cast aside by Kaitlyn. Paige O’Connor rolls Alicia (knocking Kaitlyn off the apron in the process) and gets three. 4/10 Diva’s match, nothing special, the heat segment was flat and the crowd only cared about Paige. Regal selling the fact that Paige and Audrey defeated “two main roster divas” sells the importance of getting “brought up” to the main roster, which is a good selling point to the show; gives the wrestlers other goals as opposed to just winning the title.

Here are your winners… Paige and Audrey Marie @ about 7:10 via O’Connor roll pinfall.

Jake Carter (I had no idea who he was initially) hits on some unnamed diva in the back and gets rejected. Trent Barreta wanders by and teases him about it. Carter challenges him to a match so it’s on for next week. Elsewhere, Briley Pierce is with Seth Rollins. Seth has been thinking about his first title defense since he won the title. Rollins tells Briley that he felt DISRESPECTED by Michael McGillicutty last week. Those are NOT the best words to use when CM Punk is in the house… no sooner after I type that, Punk appears. It’s like Pee Wee’s Playhouse and the secret word. We got to ROH alums. Punk tells him that he’s been champion forever and still gets no respect; he says that he’s earned his WWE title just as Rollins earned his NXT title. Punk tells Rollins not give his opponent any respect and then beat respect out of him. This gives me an opportunity to see these two titles next to each other, and honestly, I think they’re both pretty ugly. I’m used to that gaudy WWE title but now I’ve had a few weeks to get used to the NXT title and it is pretty ghastly.

Dante Dash vs. Leo Kruger:   Oh, boy I love Kruger’s insane poacher gimmick. Kruger SMILES at Dash and waits… waits… and nails him with a clothesline. The commentators sell this as “pouncing out of a bush”. He stomps away, hits a clothesline, and then smiles and strokes his hair. He grabs him by the chin and pulls back; a short clothesline follows as does a snap-suplex. Kruger rips at his hair and rams his head into the mat. Kruger’s End finishes the squash. Post-match, Kruger grabs the match and grumbles about extinguishing his prey quickly. He asks who his next trophy will be. 4/10 Squash match; Dash is a pretty big guy so I anticipate him getting a push sometime. I like Kruger’s character and the way he laughs when he speaks.

Here is your winner… Leo Kruger @ about 6:15 via Kruger’s End pinfall.

Briley Pearce talks to Michael McGillicutty who is tired of discussing respect. He says that he’ll show Seth Rollins respect when he defeats him for the title… and CM Punk when he defeats him for the WWE title.

NXT Heavyweight Championship Seth Rollins vs. Michael McGillicutty:   Jim Ross and CM Punk join for commentary. Punk gets his own entrance before the match starts. He’s looking forward to this title match and wishes (someone) good luck. Rollins starts with a hammerlock and McGillicutty snags the rope with his leg to break the hold. Seth hits a shoulderblock and spin savate kick; he looks for the Blackout right at the beginning but McGillicutty slips to the floor. They shout mean things to each other as we head into break. Back from commercial, McGillicutty stomps Rollins in the corner but gets caught in a hiptoss coming out of the opposite corner. Rollins takes him over with a side headlock. McGillicutty comes back with a reverse elbow and his own side headlock. Rollins hits a pair of nice dropkicks and tries a bulldog but McGillicutty tosses him through the ropes to the floor. McGillicutty tosses Rollins into the apron face first for a wicked looking bump. Back in the ring, Mike gets a nearfall. Rollins counters a charge in the corner with a boot. He tries a moonsault but McGillicutty crotches him and Rollins falls into the Tree of Woe. McGillicutty rushes over and kicks and bends him backwards from the floor. The referee releases him and McGillicutty gets two; he chucks Rollins into the corner hard with a hammer-toss. Back from the final commercial break with Rollins mounted on the top turnbuckle and SKIES over McGillicutty when he charges the corner. Seth hits some clotheslines and a one-footed dropkick. He hits the running splash in the corner and clotheslines him to the floor. Rollins topés out onto him. Back in the ring, Rollins tries to springboard from the apron but sails right into a dropkick. McGillicutty gets a two count. We get a lot of cuts to Punk throughout the match watching intensely. McGillicutty tries to whiplash in the ropes but Seth lands on his feet and dims McGillicutty’s bulb with an enziguri. Rollins tries the Blackout again… but it is avoided again and McGillicutty hits the snap Saito suplex for two. He tenaciously tries again and gets two more. He goes for the Perfect-plex (which he only uses in NXT) but Rollins counters into a cradle for two. McGillicutty clobbers him with a clothesline to keep him from any more surprises. McGillicutty gets another nearfall and throws a mini tantrum in frustration with his inability to put Rollins away. He tries the McGillicutter but Rollins sidesteps it. Rollins comes back with Sliced Bread #2 for the three count. 7/10 Good main event this week; Rollins’ first title match was a good one and they left a lot of time for the match too. I’ve said this before: NXT McGillicutty is much more fun than WWE McGillicutty. Rollins won the match with a different move other than the Blackout (after it failed twice); it’s important for a champion to have more than one put-away move. Sheamus, Punk and other great champions beat opponents with more than just their one finishing maneuver. Rollins now has the Sliced Bread #2 as well as the Blackout.

Here is your winner… Seth Rollins @ about 12:10 (broadcast) via Sliced Bread #2 pinfall.

OVERALL 6/10 Welp, good show again; the main event was the show, which is how the first title match should be; the focus is on the title. The midcard and squash matches all complement the title defense main event, which is the way it should be. Championship = ultimate goal.

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