WWE NXT 01 25 2017

WWE NXT
January 25, 2017
Winter Park, Florida (Full Sail University)
Commentary: Tom Phillips, Corey Graves, Percy Watson
Courtesy of WrestleView.com

“WWE: Then. Now. Forever.”

The NXT intro takes us to commentary, who hype a Fatal 4 Way Face Off later tonight between the women vying for the NXT Women’s Championship at Takeover: San Antonio. Ember Moon makes her way to the ring for the opening match of the night as she gets ready to take on Liv Morgan, who comes out to the ring next. The bell rings, and this match is underway!

Ember Moon vs. Liv Morgan

Both women lock up, with Ember getting a headlock takedown only for Liv to get a headscissors to get out. Ember kips out to get out of that, and we have a standoff as the action continues. Nearfall for Ember with a rollup, and they exchange near falls until they start rolling around. Liv with the final say for a nearfall of her own. Ember runs right into a headscissors armbar takedown by Liv, but a block on the corner leads to Ember getting another nearfall. She follows right into a crossface on Liv, who struggles to get out of the hold. Liv reverses into a rollup, getting a nearfall in the process. Liv takes it to Ember with a bulldog, before locking in the guillotine hold on Ember…who powers out of it, sending Liv right out of the ring! Liv struggles to her feet as Ember waits, landing a hard dropkick on Liv. Liv back in the ring, and Ember waits for her on the top turnbuckle before hitting the Eclipse for the win!

Winner via pinfall: Ember Moon

We get replays from the match, and see Ember extend a hand to Liv to help her up before leaving the ring. Commentary hypes the match between Andrade “Cien” Almas and Roderick Strong set for Takeover: San Antonio, and we go backstage where Almas is standing by. Asked about Strong’s reaction to Almas’ challenge, Almas promises to kick Strong in the face…to which Strong walks in, telling him to make good on his promise. Almas walks off, but as Strong starts to talk he’s attacked by Almas! Almas shouts abuse at Strong in Spanish, before walking off as we go to break.

Alex’s Thoughts: Good opener with Ember and Liv, and a nice win for Ember puts her up in the rankings of the division. Side note, I really dig the Eclipse as far as finishing moves go. I’m also digging Almas/Strong as a feud, and look forward to seeing more of the former ROH Champ on a worldwide stage in NXT!

– AD: Remember the Rumble…January 29, Royal Rumble on the WWE Network! –

We thank Ghost for “Square Hammer,” one of the official theme songs of NXT Takeover: San Antonio! We look back at the NXT Tag Team Championship match at Takeover: Toronto, and a look at the Authors of Pain who have been on a tear since their NXT debut and look to take the titles away from #DIY at Takeover: San Antonio. Back at ringside, No Way Jose makes his way to the ring as we go to break.

– AD: NXT Takeover: San Antonio, this Saturday only on the WWE Network! & WWEShop is your home for NXT gear! –

Back from the ring, Kona Reeves makes his way to the ring. The bell rings, and this match is underway!

No Way Jose vs. Kona Reeves

Kona gets a waistlock on Jose, who boogies his way out of it. Jose with a headlock now, picking up steam with a couple arm drags. Kona offers to dance with Jose, but jabs him in the chest instead. Jose with a chop, but gets caught into a running Samoan drop for a nearfall by Reeves. Kona mocks Jose by standing on him like a surfboard, before locking in an abdominal stretch. Jose gets out with a hip toss, and evades Kona before hitting some right hands and chops. Flapjack by Jose, who misses a big right hand before blocking Kona into a pop-up punch for the win!

Winner via pinfall: No Way Jose

We get replays of the match as Jose celebrates in the ring. He starts to be interviewed until Elias Samson interrupts for a tune about “a dancing man…a life-sized puppet.” Jose says it’s a shame it took you a year to write that song, because it absolutely sucks. How about a different tune? Just drift…away! Samson tries to go after Jose, but is stopped at the apron. Commentary hypes the Face Off between the women vying for the title this Sunday, but up next Eric Young is in action!

Alex’s Thoughts: This was my first taste of the greatness that is No Way Jose, and I couldn’t be happier. I just wanna retype my favorite part of this match: “Kona gets a waistlock on Jose, who boogies his way out of it.” Kona looked pretty good in this, so I wanna see where he goes from here as well. I like the idea of Jose/Samson as a feud, that could be a fun one!

– AD: John Cena vs AJ Styles for the WWE Championship at the Royal Rumble, this Sunday on the WWE Network –

We thank Memphis Mayfire for “This Light I Hold” featuring Jacoby Shaddix, another theme song for Takeover: San Antonio! Back at ringside, Chris Atkins makes his way to the ring for the next match. Eric Young makes his way to the ring with SAnitY in tow, as we go to an exclusive where Tye Dillinger promises to knock all of SAnitY down. The bell rings, and this match is underway!

Chris Atkins vs. Eric Young

Atkins is distracted, allowing Young to get a cheap shot. Atkins responds with a hard shoulder tackle, but Young shoves him with an eye rake to the corner. Young with right hands on Atkins, mocking him with a “TEN” in the process. Young follows driving his boot into Atkins in the corner, before a leg drop to the spine and a unique suplex gets Young the win!

Winner via pinfall: Eric Young

Young gets a microphone, telling Tye he made the wrong choice turning SAnitY down before Killian Dane drives a boot to the face of Atkins. Commentary hypes Tye Dillinger taking on Eric Young at Takeover: San Antonio, as well as the NXT Championship match as Shinsuke Nakamura defends against Bobby Roode. Up next, we’ll take a look at the biggest money match in NXT history!

Alex’s Thoughts: Good little match to show what Eric Young is capable of as he heads into Takeover. Kudos to commentary for letting me know what Damo’s NXT name is, too! Atkins actually looked pretty dang good, and this was another of those deals where a student of the PC got some screen time.

– AD: Wrestlemania tickets available now! & 205 Live, every Tuesday after Smackdown only on the WWE Network –

Back from break, we go back to last week as TM61 took on Revival in an upset victory…only for Revival to beat both men after the match, attacking Shane Thorne’s knee in particular. Earlier this week, Shane Thorne underwent knee surgery and will be out 7-9 months. Moving on, commentary hypes the NXT Championship match between Shinsuke Nakamura and Bobby Roode. We look at the rise of Nakamura and Roode, as we get ready for the biggest money match in NXT history! Commentary hypes the event and the main event, before moving on to the Fatal 4 Way Face Off up next!

– AD: Sports Entertainment’s biggest video library gets you ready to rumble! –

We thank Starset for “Monster,” one of the theme songs for Takeover: San Antonio!

NXT Women’s Championship Fatal 4 Way Face Off

Back at ringside, William Regal is standing by. Peyton Royce and Billie Kay make their way out to the ring first, microphones in hand. A chant of “ASUKA’S GONNA KILL YOU” breaks out as Kay says she and Royce run the NXT Women’s division, and will prove it at Takeover by beating Asuka and Nikki Cross…who comes out next, sans SAnitY as she heads to the ring. She looks like she’s more focused on tearing Kay and Royce down than to talk, as Asuka runs down to the ring. Kay and Royce high tail it out of the ring, allowing Asuka and Cross to stare each other down before attacking them. They’re quickly removed from the proceedings, bringing the focus back to Cross and the Women’s champ. Security runs down to break things up, but Asuka attacks them with ease as does Cross! With all the chaos going down, Asuka manages to take down Cross with a hard kick before dealing with the security some more…but Cross launches off the top turnbuckle, diving onto Asuka and security! Royce and Kay watch on as we get a replay of what went down. The crowd chants “NXT” as Royce and Kay look on to bring the show to a close.

Alex’s Overall Thoughts: I love seeing the different feuds get plenty of focus as we head into these Takeover specials. I know they can’t give everyone all the time in the world, but they make really good use of time. Tonight was a fun segment to send us home to Takeover: San Antonio, with Kay and Royce showing continual unity and Cross and the champ showing their chaotic natures. It’s gonna be a great match at Takeover, and this whole show should be fun top to bottom!


Quick Results

* Ember Moon def. Liv Morgan
* No Way Jose def. Kona Reeves
* Eric Young def. Chris Atkins

That’s it for this week, Wrestleviewniverse! What did you think of NXT? Let me know in the comments or on Twitter @Power2TheSmarks, and be on the lookout for Occupy Pro Wrestling’s upcoming posts for the Pick Ems League as we head into Royal Rumble weekend!