NXT Quick Takes 12/30/20

Awards

1. Breakout star of the year – Shotzi

There were better choices, she has done well but she hasn’t been as dominant as Raquel Gonzalez.

1. Tag team of the year- Undisputed Era

Also better choices out there for this one, Imperium being one of them.

1. Female competitor of the year- Io Shirai

Rhea Ripley would have gotten my vote because she was at Wrestlemania with Charlotte and even Cornette liked that match.

1. Male competitor of the year- Adam Cole

Finn Balor should have won, his heel turn launched him to the moon and he hasn’t come down since.

1. Match of the year- Balor vs O’ Reilly

It was good but not the NXT match of the year, not even close really.

1. Future star of the year- Austin Theory

No complaints here, he fit into the Raw roster seamlessly, much deserved.

1. Overall competitor of the year- Io Shirai

Again, Rhea Ripley could have gotten this honor as well but overall, I don’t think any of the winners were outrageous or anything.

Swerve vs Reed

That silly Godzilla thing is still terrible but in a good way, makes me laugh every time. Not sure why this match was made, it buried the booking of Atlas a little bit. Swerve is in no man’s land right now. Reed wins and I think he will be the guy to challenge Gargano for his title.

Breezango vs GYV

Fandango getting creative jumping from a truss near the ring was the type of thing we need to see more on NXT. I liked this match a lot, tag team wrestling is almost always good in WWE. Grizzled Young Veterans win, pinning the former tag team champs and looking to be future champs really soon i think.

Mercedes Martinez vs jobber

A good jobber makes a wrestler look great. A great outing for Martinez to reintroduce herself to the NXT audience. Martinez is going to challenge Io next and may actually beat her depending on if Rhea and Io move to another show.

Strong vs Dunne

Not much to it, another solid match on the card, the midcard of NXT is the strongest there is anywhere. Dunne wins clean, talks smack to Balor, I can’t wait to see them clash.

Balor presents the MOTY award to O’ Reilly after cutting a great promo. Scarlett interrupts with Karion Kross, Damian Priest surprises Kross and a brawl breaks out all over the arena.

Lucha house party vs Legado del Fantasma

I liked the promo from the group but they need to get those tag titles in order to make a name for themselves. I liked all of the action and I’m going to enjoy Fantasma vs Gran Metalik.

Johnny Gargano [c] vs Leon Ruff

Gargano breaks the curse to retain his North American Championship. Ruff has a ways to go but has a lot of upside. Ruff would be a great Cruiserweight Champion someday but for now, he needs more seasoning, more matches like this one.

Honorable mentions

1. India Hartwell can’t act.

2. Cole and Strong representing UE in the Dusty Classic.

3. Mystery woman graduate Boa and Xia Li and reveal herself soon.

4. Thatcher vs Ciampa in the fight pit ext week.

5. Rhea talks about Raquel in a great video package.

Final take

NXT could have phoned it but they didn’t, they put on a solid show regardless of what was going on. New Year’s Evil is going to be the event of the year and I can’t wait.

#JohnnyGargano #FinnBalor #NXT #DamianPriest #KarrionKross