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Credit: WWE.com
The Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic took over the WWE NXT. This tournament is no longer just a gender pair experience, as women will now compete at the same time as men.
The January 20 edition of NXT included three major matches in the Dusty Classic. First, for men, Johnny Gargano joined Austin Theory. The two members of The Way would fight their recent rivals Kushida and Leon Ruff.
Lucha House Party also appeared from Monday Night Raw to compete in the tournament. Gran Metalik and Lince Dorado hoped to beat former NXT doubles champions Marcel Barthel and Fabian Aichner.
The first round of the women’s Dusty Classic began with underdogs Kacy Catanzaro and Kayden Carter battling two of the most dangerous women on the NXT. Toni Storm and Mercedes Martinez are after Io Shirai, but were happy to make history in the doubles tournament first.
All of this was preparing for the main event, where Tommaso Ciampa would enter the NXT Fight Pit against the man who brought him to the black and gold brand, Timothy Thatcher. All that could be predicted was pure unadulterated violence.
This show had a packaged card that was promised a week ago, preparing some of the best fighters in the world to go out and compete at the highest level.
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Credit: WWE.com
Austin Theory showed an impressive ability to contain the speed of Leon Ruff and Kushida, keeping his heels in the game after Johnny Gargano became very confident. Theory, however, made the big mistake of trying to fight Kushida, who was able to oppose him easily.
The leaps found that the best strategy was to isolate Ruff. The Way seemed cohesive throughout his domination, although Ruff fought. He kicked off a high swivel neckline and hit a trampoline cutter to hand the tag over to his partner.
Kushida planted The Rebel Heart outside with a DDT and then caught the North American NXT champion on a cross armbreaker. The theory barely saved his mentor. Ruff dived into Theory to get him out of the action and then defeated The Rebel Heart with a double underhook suplex.
Result
Kushida and Ruff defeated. The pinfall path to advance in the classic men’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team.
Degree
B +
Analyze
Gargano and Theory instantly established chemistry as a pair. The rebellious heart found a rhythm with the young star that no one else could. Hopefully, they will continue to work as a pair, even if it’s not their turn at the men’s Dusty Classic.
Kushida immobilizing Gargano was a surprise, but a welcome one. The Japanese Superstar has gained a huge boost recently. It is almost inconceivable that he will not win the NXT North American Championship next month.
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Pete Dunne did a pre-recorded promo for Finn Balor, explaining that he was better than the Prince and they both knew it.
Ashante Thee Adonis tried to hit some good shots, but Karrion Kross seriously injured his neck in a trio of Saito’s suplexes, sealing an emphatic victory. After that, he locked the Kross jacket.
NXT showed a video package for MSK where Ember Moon put the innovation of Wes Lee and Nash Carter.
Result
Kross def. Adonis by pinfall.
Degree
D
Analyze
What Kross needs now is a chance to fight worthy opponents. He needs to do more than just hit a few suplexes and win. Adonis is established enough that he could have committed a small offense. Instead, he was crushed like any other Performance Center talent.
We all saw it at this point. Of course, Kross can be dominant. It can take more than a minute to fight and still look dominant. The important thing is to help the former NXT champion return to the ring before facing Finn Balor.
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Credit: WWE.com
Imperium tried to set a steady pace at first, but the Lucha House Party was very explosive. Gran Metalik went into action and dived into Marcel Barthel with a splash on Lince Dorado’s shoulders. The luchadors fought out and were hit by Barthel and Fabian Aichner on the hard ground.
Metalik struck back with a hurricane and springboard for Aichner for an almost fall. Lucha House Party then hit a combination of dropkick / sunset flip powerbomb, forcing Barthel to save his partner from the pinfall. The action was halted when both teams approached exclusive tag team finishers.
Dorado finally got Barthel to connect with a superkick and a shooting star to win. Alexander Wolfe appeared on stage to see Barthel and Aichner after their defeat.
Result
Lucha House Party def. Imperium by pinfall to advance in the men’s Dusty Rhodes Classic.
Degree
AN
Analyze
This match had potential, but it was absolutely above and beyond any expectations. Barthel and Aichner have been fighting sprints so often that it was nice to see them buy time and work like real heels. Lucha House Party pushed Imperium with some incredible moves.
It was great to see Metalik and Dorado working so motivated. It was the best the team has looked at in years. While Imperium deserves a great race in the NXT in the future, with only a short reign of the NXT Tag Team Championship so far, this was the time to give it a chance to put an underutilized team.
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Credit: WWE.com
Toni Storm and Mercedes Martinez admitted backstage that they are not friends, but they wanted to win and felt better than anyone. General manager William Regal introduced Beth Phoenix, who emphasized how important and historic it is that women finally have their own Dusty Rhodes Classic.
Kayden Carter set a pace from the start that Mercedes Martinez ruined when he planted a tilt-a-whirl slam in Kacy Catanzaro. Toni Storm took action, but came across a circular saw on a purely motivated Carter.
Catanzaro collided with Martinez outside, sending them both to the advertisers’ table. Storm planted Carter with a German suplex and then pinned a one-legged Boston crab. Io Shirai attacked Martinez from the outside, leaving Storm to do a spin-through leg lock to create a 630 splash corkscrew for victory.
Behind the scenes, Carter and Catanzaro made it clear that they would win the entire tournament. A fight broke out between Storm and Shirai after the result.
Result
Carter and Catanzaro def. Storm and Martinez by pinfall to advance in the women’s Dusty Classic.
Degree
B +
Analyze
This was a real arrival for Carter and Catanzaro. Arguably the only true female tag team on the NXT, the two worked hard to get an opportunity like this. Working with absolute veterans, they got the best job out of their careers.
Although they needed to win over a team that was not established, the situation was well set. The two jumps are arguably the closest to challenging Genius of the Sky to the NXT Women’s Championship. This sets up perfectly for Shirai vs. Martinez in the next NXT TakeOver.
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Malcolm Bivens waited outside William Regal’s office while Tyler Rust called for a match against Bronson Reed. Bivens wanted Rust to face an easier opponent, but he only tried to motivate him once the dispute was settled.
The Colossal dominated Rust, while Bivens seemed uncertain about how to train his client in this almost improvised game. Even though Rust found some openings, he still couldn’t stop the older man from planting it with the Avalanche for three. Then, the manager told the client to let him choose the battles next time.
Result
Reed def. Rust by pinfall.
Degree
C +
Analyze
The idea of Reed vs. Rust was better than execution. The talented fighters worked well together, but there was a lot of history and focus for the competition. Colossal works well with anyone who has confidence in their ability to improvise and build a story.
Bivens and Rust are a strange pair. It may happen soon, and it is good to see Bivens on television again. However, the manager is still looking for his ideal client.
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Finn Balor demanded a fight with William Regal’s Oney Lorcan and Danny Burch, and the NXT general manager only agreed if the NXT champion could find a partner. The prince paid a favor and asked Kyle O’Reilly to join him. The Undisputed Era star agreed.
Legado del Fantasma climbed into the ring while Santos Escobar scoffed at the entire cast. He was sure that he was the absolute best NXT champion. As he placed Raul Mendoza and Joaquin Wilde, Lucha House Party arrived and started fighting with the trio. Curt Stallion arrived to help clean the ankle ring.
Drake Maverick overcame MSK, but was sure that he and Killian Dain would win the Dusty Classic.
Degree
Ç
Analyze
The series of segments that led to Balor asking O’Reilly to work with him worked; however, it is ridiculous that NXT thinks that fans could not believe that the Prince could join his biggest recent rival. The two have been helping each other as much as getting hurt for weeks.
Legacy of the Phantom vs. Lucha House Party is a fun rivalry that fortunately did not end early. This segment was a waste of time, but it was good for the WWE to finally recognize candidate # 1 for the NXT Cruiserweight Championship. Stallion still doesn’t feel like the right man to dethrone Escobar.
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In the pre-fight weigh-in, Tommaso Ciampa and Timothy Thatcher almost fought, but William Regal separated them.
The two men started above the Fight Pit where The Blackheart brutalized the coach at the beginning. The two fell from the top into the steel pit below. Thatcher changed the action by aiming at the left elbow with suplexes and elbow blows. The heel smiled as he almost broke his opponent’s fingers.
It was only with a low blow that Ciampa returned to the fight, hitting Willow’s Bell to almost knock him out. Blackheart planted Thatcher with the Fairytale End and then went for the submission, but the heel struggled. He pinned Ciampa’s leg to the steel and used a stretcher muffler to force the finish.
The two looked at each other with malice and a respectful tone to end the night.
Result
Thatcher def. Ciampa by submission.
Degree
B +
Analyze
Thatcher needed to win this match and he did just that. He looked incredible fighting with the best that Ciampa could give him. He was creative, but he never played with fear. He went after Ciampa to such an extent that The Blackheart resorted to more covert tactics to stay in the fight.
This was what it needed to be. It was physical and brutal. The technical side of both men was sold excellently. The lighting made it difficult to watch at times, but ultimately the goal was achieved. Thatcher came out looking like an unstoppable monster in his playing style.