WWE NXT 7/30/2023 The Great American Bash 2023
I will try to get gifs of the last two matches later.
Pre-show: Dragon Lee, Nathan Frazer, Valentina Feroz & Yulisa Leon vs. Meta-Four (Jakara Jackson, Lash Legend, Noam Dar & Oro Mensah)
NF headflips out of Dar's wristlock then Dar does a nice hip throw. NF moonsaults over him and does a nice dropkick. Leon flips Feroz onto Lash using the ropes then Lash throws Feroz by the neck. Lash does a handspring moonsault on Feroz, which is new. JJ has her sunglasses on and slams Feroz against the mat. Leon flips Feroz onto JJ for 2. JJ hits body shots and a chop on Leon. Leon chops her back.
Lee and Oro go at it. Lee hits forearms then flying headscissors him. Lee hits Naito's slingshot swinging dropkick then Oro drops Lee with a hard shot from behind. Lee is beat up 4v1 in the corner. Oro misses a flip kick and is superkicked while he's down by Lee.
NF gets in and does a fast flying dropkick on Dar. Lash stops an NF dive then Feroz top rope hurricanrana's her. Leon pops up Feroz over the top into a dive. Leon walks up the buckles with NF's help and dives on Dar outside which should have been a DQ as the ref saw it. Lee jumps over the top and hurricanrana's Oro to the floor from the apron.
NF topes Dar and Lash pump kicks NF in front of the ref, which also should have been a DQ. NF superkicks Dar then does an asai moonsault into a reverse ddt. NF goes for a dive up top but JJ gets in the way. Leon top rope dropkicks Lash then Feroz ddt's Lash for 2. I think Leon hurt herself off the dropkick then Feroz fires on Dar in front of the ref which should be our third DQ here.
Lee dragon screws Dar in the corner and superkicks him. Lee facekicks him then Dar punches him. Oro top rope rider kicks Lee then rolling koppo kicks NF in one sequence. Oro alley oops Lee then Lee superkicks him as he handstands in the corner. Lee hits a tornado ddto onto an opponent off another one then NF spinning enzugiri's Oro.
Oro goes to the 2nd rope and NF flipping russian legsweeps him. NF tope con hilos Dar outside and splats himself on the floor then Lee does a destino on Oro to win it.
As I said, there should have been three different DQ's here for the women hitting the men. If the men can't do it, the women shouldn't be able to either. They didn't even try to hide it either, they just did it right in front of the ref. The match was probably the best match the girls have ever been in. It was 100MPH with everyone hitting big spots in successive fashion. They definitely went a little too far for the pre-show, but they really had about the best match possible that they could have done.
NXT Tag Titles - Gallus (c) vs Tony D'Angelo and Stacks
Joe takes a cheap shot on Stacks outside then Mark flying shoulders Stacks. Stacks is beaten up on and hot tags in Tony. Tony beats up the heels and lariats Wolf over the top. Mark is launched on a belly to belly suplex then Tony hits a big spinebuster. Wolf sentons his own partner. Gallus hit stereo shots to the gut and we get a powerplex.
Tony and Wolf lariat each other with both going down. Wolf does a buckshot spear then throws Mark over the top onto Tony. Wolf hits a rare 2nd rope moonsault on Stacks and they call for Joe. Joe gets on the apron with his baton, the ref sees it then Stacks takes a flying knee + drop.
Wolf is sent over the top then Mark is powerbombed into Wolf into the steps outside. Joe tries to hit Stacks but Tony hits him with something. Tony hiptosses Stacks over the top onto their opponents then Wolf takes a bada bing. Tony D and Stacks pick up the win.
It was a good action-packed match. They brought out their bigger spots for this and it was a lot better than anyone could have expected. This is probably the best match Tony and Stacks have ever bene involved in as well.
Weapons Wild Match - Roxanne Perez vs Blair Davenport
Blair is then whipped into the rails with the belt tied on her arm. RP gets a table out then is whipped with a belt. Blair is pushed into the buckles inside then does a nice pop rocks reversal. RP takes a falcon arrow on a trash can for 2. Blair double stomps her while she is over the 2nd rope. RP is kicked on the apron and slips, taking a bad fall down. RP top rope splashes her through a table outside.
RP spin kicks her and hits pop rocks on a chair to win.
WWE hardcore matches are always limited due to the lack of blood and limits on spots. It was okay but a rather basic match.
Gable Steveson vs. Baron Corbin
This is Gable Steveson's debut match, which has been long awaited. People have thought he never would debut and was going back to amateur wrestling but the day is finally here. WWE also got ripped on for it. Gable's just wearing a basic red and white singlet with the US flag and his gold medal.
Gables grab the leg and Baron slips out. Gable hits a forearm then Crobin rushes him. Corbin hits shots in the corner, Gable goes up and over him then hits a strike flurry. Gable does a leapfrog and catches him with an ankle lock. Corbin goes out and is german suplexed on the floor. Gable's head is banged off the post then his shoulder is sent into the post.
Corbin pounds on him and bangs his head off the post. Corbin death valley drivers him for 2. Gable has his head banged off the top rope then he is lariated. Gable hits triple belly to belly suplexes then lariats him over the top. Gable lariats him over the top again.
Corbin hits forearms outside then is thrown over the commentary table. Corbin then jumps off it at him. They end up getting counted out then both go over the commentary table as they fight. The crowd boos, chants bullsh!t then boos Gable.
This was bullsh!t and I'm glad the crowd called it out. Double countouts rarely ever happen, especially on a PPV. And how do you not let Gable win on his debut? Corbin's lost to everyone, what difference does it make if he loses to Gable? Obviously, this isn't the end of it, but they could have had Corbin lose then attack him after. The crowd didn't really care that much for Gable either likely due to his sexual assault allegations and maybe due to him not being fully dedicated to wrestling. It was a decent debut for Gable. I think he maybe forgot a spot early where he hit a flurry in the corner but he was fine in the little he got to do and he didn't get to do a whole lot besides punches and some suplexes. The thing is, gold medals and amateur wrestling don't mean what they used to back in the day and the amateur wrestlers are not known like they used to be. No average person can name any current active amateur wrestlers and the sport gets zero mainstream coverage. While the athletic skills and wrestling ability of amateur wrestling does transfer to pro wrestling, charisma and personality mean a lot more. When WWE signed Gable and Tamyra Mensah-Stock, they basically signed them for their gold medals and not a lot else. They may make it and they may not, but people like Thea Hail who probably never watched wrestling period were way ahead of them on day one because they have the personality skills to do things. We'll have to see where it goes. If Gable wants to do this, WWE will invest in him.
NXT North American Title - Dominink Mysterio (c) vs Mustafa Ali vs Wes Lee
Dom is stared at by both then heads out. Rhea Ripley stands in front of him like she's some tough guy and Dom tries to run again. Dom is double stomped then Wes and Ali push each other. Wes hurricanrana's Ali and they trade armdrags. Ali rolls him up for 2 and they trade forearms. They fight up top and Dom pushes both off the buckles onto the floor.
Dom hits suplexes on his opponents then takes a double suplex. Ali and Wes then do a three amigos through the double suplex position. Wes headscissors Ali into Dom then superkicks Dom so Ali takes a ddt. Wes meteoras Dom for 2 then Ali throws Dom over the top. Ali dropkicks Dom off the apron then 2nd rope tornado ddt's Wes. Wes does a great sell for it.
Ali slingshots into a roll into a cutter on Dom then Ali boston crabs and camel clutches his opponents at the same time. Dom hits a nice dropkick on Ali and Ali superkicks him during his 619 attempt. Ali superkicks Wes then tries to 450 both into the apron, but they move.
Wes topes Dom outside and Rhea starts distracting him. Wes tope con hilos on Dom over her and runs away from Rhea in a stupid spot. Rhea then pump handle drivers him through a table in an even dumber spot. Dom hits Wes with the title belt for 2. Dom is seated on the top rope and Ali dropkicks him. Ali 450's Wes for 2 when Rhea pulls him out. Dom top rope frogsplashes Wes and wins it.
The Rhea Ripley stuff was just ridiculous here. It buries all the guys and makes them look small and weak. It was your average three way. They kind of had something going on early with Dom being bullied but they gave that up quick after. It had a lot of flying spots here but nothing too out of the ordinary.
Trick Williams is interviewed. He said Dragunov may respect the Trick-Melo friendship but won't understand it. He says they go way back and says Melo will show the world why he is him.
NXT Women's Title - Submission Match - Tiffany Stratton (c) vs Thea Hail
Thea runs through a banner for her entrance and Tiff comes out in a pink cowboy hat. Tiff rolls her up and grabs a leg. Thea kicks her way out. Thea leapfrogs but Tiff goes under her and surfboards her. They revers submissions then Thea hits armdrags and a dropkick. Tiff rolls out and they mess up a tope. Tiff rams her back into the post. Tiff then stretches her around the post.
Tiff suplexes her then bow and arrows her. Tiff tilt-a-whirl backbreakers her then handpspring backflips into an elbow on her back. Tiff backbreakers her over her shoulder then Thea uses the ropes to get out and nearly kills her on a german. Thea armdrags out of a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker and hits crosschops. Thea exploder her and Tiff catches her bottom rope reverse tope with a bodyscissors.
Thea bulldogs her by pushing off the buckles then topes her. Tiff has her shoulder rammed into the post. Thea top rope crossbodies her but Tiff catches her and rolls backwards. Thea goes for the kimura but is suplexed into the buckles. They go up top and Thea does a belly to belly from the top. Thea kimura's her. Tiff grabs the ropes to ropebreak but there are no ropebreaks. Thea lets go anyway.
Tiff catches her off the apron and rams her into the rail. Thea is then sent into the steps. Tiff hits her triple jump moonsault and boston crabs her. Tiff ends up letting go and puts a better boston crab on. Tiff loses the boston crab again and knells on her with a single leg crab. Andre Chase then throws in the towel for Thea.
Not the greatest of endings here. It saves Thea from tapping out, but it was a crowd deflater. The girls had sloppy moments here and Tiff is brave to take a top rope suplex after nearly breaking her neck off one minutes later. The story was good though. Tiff did a good job of working the back and while Tiff did have trouble keeping the crab on, she really did sink it in good. They did not explain whether rope breaks counted or not here which did hurt the match as that really mattered here. They said they did and didn't at times.
Dragon Lee thanks his partners from the pre-show match then he runs in Dom and Rhea. Lee tells them they know who he is. Dom says he made the Mysterio name relevant and said his dad is a deadbeat who likes to help people who look like him. He then walks away. Look, these half-spanish, half-English promos do not work and they need to stop doing them. It just leaves people confused and spending half the time wondering what was just said.
We see clips of Schism fighting each other from Tuesday. They argue over whose fault it was that they lost. Ava says they were will be an interrogation and we will find out which member of their crew cost them the match, as they will have to remove their masks one by one.
NXT Title - Carmelo Hayes (c) vs Ilja Dragunov
Drag grabs a waistlock then is put in a wristlock. Melo puts on an armlock then Drag does a nice hip throw. Drag running facekicks him then is armdragged. Melo puts on another armlock and hits a hard chop. Drag rushes him into the corner and hits chops back. Melo hits forearms then Melo springboard twisting crossbodies him. Melo pump kicks him off the apron and hits a stiff lariat.
Melo has his kick caught then Drag enzugiri's him. Melo blind backwards springboards and is caught with a german. They trade forearms and Drag hits double germans. Drag pumping knees him and another german. Drag sentons him for 2 then lariats him hard against the ropes.
Drag uraken's him and Melo hits forearms. Drag spinning chops him and Melo kips up and superkicks him. Drag does his tiger feint through the ropes into a lariat. Drag forearms him in the back of the head hten does a grounded cobra clutch. They trade kicks and Ilja hits a high kick.
Drag hits a short arm clothesline and stares down Trick. Drag hits another short arm clothesline then Melo hits boots to the face. Drag enzugiri's him then Melo hits a la mistica drop with Melo just bouncing off the mat.
Melo hits shots to the body and they each hit chops. Melo lariats him down. Drag rains down elbows on him then Melo does it to the back of his neck. Melo springboard blind ddt's him for 2. Melo punch flurries him and takes an enzugiri as he sits up top. Drag top rope sentons him for 2. Drag goes coast to coast off a springboard and Melo catches him with a codebreaker. They do a wild sell off it. Melo comes off the top for a legdrop but Drag lets him go down and powerbombs him. Drag forearms him into the mat. Drag goes for a top rope suplex but Melo hits a top rope cutter out of it for 2.
Trick grabs the title and yells at Melo, asking if he's a fraud or a champ and says this is the 4th quarter. They trade more shots and and kick each other in the head. They forearm each other then high kick each other. Trick tries to hype up Melo more then Drag headbutts him off the steps. Melo hits his top rope legdrop over the neck and wins it.
They did a little too much here and it went a little too long but it was a hard hitting and interesting match. I've never really seen people bounce off of landings like they did here. It was an interesting match-up for Melo and was a lot different than his usual matches. They beat the crap out of each other as expected. It was disappointing to see Drag lose again, but Melo losing was the worse outcome here.
Overall thoughts: It was a good show. The main was good. The women's title match had some positives, but had a bad finish and some botches.The three-way was your typical three way. Gable did okay in his debut, but the crowd hated him and the finish sucked. The weapon's wild match was okay and the tag title match was really good. The pre-show was also the best match several of the wrestlers in it had ever had.
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