It is being reported that the advertised NXT Women’s Championship match slated for tonight’s launch of NXT 2.0 has been pulled from the show. The match was set for NXT Women’s Champion Raquel Gonzalez to defend her title against Franky Monet. The report originally comes from Fightful Select who states that they have learned the … Read more
Mandy Rose continues to have her eye on the team of Gigi Dolin and Jacy Jayne. Since Rose’s return to the NXT brand, she has scouted both Dolin and Jayne and has been seen backstage conversing with them. As a result, the two have formed a new tag team. Dolin picked up her first win … Read more
The longest-reigning and record-setting former NXT UK Women’s Champion Kay Lee Ray made her official move to the NXT US brand. At TakeOver 36 on Sunday, Ray confronted the NXT Women’s Champion Raquel Gonzalez after she retained her title against Dakota Kai. First, in a match where Dakota Kai was set out to prove that … Read more
Tonight’s TakeOver event will see the NXT Women’s Championship defended as the champion Raquel Gonzalez is challenged by Dakota Kai. The two have a big history together over the past year and a half and now Kai wants her shot at the top. For Diva Dirt’s preview and prediction of this match you can click … Read more
The 36th NXT TakeOver takes place tonight and offers up a championship grudge match that promises to be a standout affair. The NXT Women’s Championship is on the line between Raquel Gonzalez and Dakota Kai. The build to this match has been very good although a tad rushed. It would have been nice to see … Read more
The hottest couple in wrestling Indi Hartwell and Dexter Lumis have taken their relationship to the next level on this week’s NXT. The star-crossed lovers have fought hard for their love over the past couple of months. Her guardians, Johnny Gargano and Candice LaRae have attempted to break them up multiple times, but as the … Read more
NXT’s last show before their TakeOver:36 event is tonight. At TakeOver on Sunday, Aug. 22, the NXT Women’s Championship will be on the line as Raquel Gonzalez defends against Dakota Kai. The two former teammates will have a sit-down interview tonight. A mixed-tag team match is also set for tonight. Robert Stone and Jessi Kamea … Read more
In a match-up that was originally slated to be Ember Moon facing Sarray, Moon has been replaced by Dakota Kai. The match will kick off the show. According to WWE.com “Kai was originally slated to face Ember Moon, but Moon was declared unable to compete by the NXT Medical Staff earlier today.” Sarray currently is … Read more
WWE has made it official and Raquel Gonzalez will be defending her NXT Women’s Championship against her former tag team partner Dakota Kai at TakeOver:36. The event is set to take place the night after SummerSlam on Sunday, Aug. 22. Two weeks ago, Kai shocked Gonazlez by turning on the champion when no other woman … Read more
Dakota Kai and Raquel Gonzalez are no longer tag team partners or even friends. In what the NXT Women’s Champion Raquel Gonzalez thought would be a challenge for someone to step up to the plate, she did not expect her partner to be that person. On this week’s NXT, Gonzalez along with Kai made their … Read more
Xia Li laid down a challenge to the NXT Women’s Champion Raquel Gonzalez for a championship match on last week’s NXT. She instantly received her title shot and found herself in the main event of this week’s NXT. Towards the end of the match, there was some concern for Li. The match stalled when she … Read more
The NXT Women’s Championship will be defended on tonight’s show as Raquel Gonzalez is set to face Xia Li. Li approached Gonzalez last week and essentially demanded a title shot. The match was then instantly booked. Will Li be able to dethrone Gonzalez or will the reign continue? Also planned for tonight’s show is Franky … Read more
NXT Women’s Champion Raquel Gonzalez has a new challenger and that is Xia Li.
Prior to Li stepping up to Gonzalez, the champion was at ringside supporting her tag team partner Dakota Kai as she faced Ember Moon. Moon is now officially a singles competitor again as Shotzi Blackheart has now moved on to SmackDown with Tegan Nox.
Kai and Moon put on another clinic of a match and Kai was able to pick up the win. Afterward, the lights went out and Xia Li emerged.
Li tells Gonzalez that she is standing in her way. Gonzalez accepts the challenge and says she hopes she shows up this time and tells her to take a good look at the belt. Li then left the ring and the match is booked.
Next week Li challenges Gonzalez with the NXT Women’s Championship on the line.
Io Shirai & Zoey Stark are officially the next opponents for The Way’s (Candice LeRae & Indi Hartwell) NXT Women’s Tag Team Championships. The title match will take place at The Great American Bash on July 6. Shirai & Stark won this opportunity by winning a Triple Threat on this week’s NXT that involved NXT … Read more
Franky Monet was poised to have the encore of her world premiere tonight. Prior to her heading to the ring, a new face graced our screens as Elektra Lopez made her NXT debut. Lopez, formerly known as Karissa Rivera, was signed by WWE earlier in the year and had her class originally announced in February. … Read more
Shotzi Blackheart returned at this weekend’s NXT TakeOver: In Your House to help her tag team partner Ember Moon and get some revenge in the process. Blackheart has been out for a number of weeks after suffering an attack by Raquel Gonzalez and Dakota Kai. Moon challenged Gonzalez in an attempt to become a two-time NXT Women’s Champion. Despite Blackheart returning and removing Kai from the equation, Moon wasn’t able to put Gonzalez away and the championship stayed put.
Moon hit a huge Eclipse on Gonzalez prior to Blackheart’s return. As the count was heading in Moon’s favor and she was a mere second away from becoming the new champion, Kai inserted herself. Kai placed Gonzalez’s foot on the ropes. The referee saw Gonzalez’s foot but didn’t see Kai do it so the official called for the rope break to keep Gonzalez alive in the match.
Blackheart made her return and chased Kai around the ring slamming her into the plexiglass at ringside. The two then battled back and forth as they made their way to the stage where the In Your House set up was. Blackheart threw Kai into the plants below the set window. The two disappeared as they battled to the backstage area.
Moon tried to capitalize with Kai now out of the picture and she executed a big DDT from the ring apron onto the ramp. She tried for a second Eclipse, however, the champ was able to stop the attempt and grabbed Moon for the one-armed powerbomb to get the pin to retain her title.
The second women’s match from In Your House had Xia Li facing Mercedes Martinez in a very personal match. Li felt disrespected several years ago when Martinez defeated her in the Mae Young Classic. Martinez may have the experience but she knew she was heading into a three-on-one disadvantage because with Li comes the rest of Tian Sha (Boa and Mei Ying).
Li was able to finally get her retribution from many years ago as she came out with the win. As the match approaches its ending, Boa gets in the way of Martinez and the two exchange words before Boa is shoved to the side for Martinez to get to Li. After she is able to get a back drop on Li, Martinez goes for the Air Raid Crash but is unable to execute it as Li breaks free. Li connects with a spin kick to the face of Martinez which is enough to get the pin for the win.
After the match, things get intense as Mei Ying gets involved. Martinez didn’t back down from Ying and said she wasn’t scared of her. She tries to go for the steel chair which she just had to fight off Li and Boa post-match, but that wasn’t enough. Ying grabbed Martinez by the throat and slammed her into the plexiglass. All three members of Tian Sha then regrouped on the ramp as Martinez lays at ringside.
Other notes from the night includes a message from General Manager William Regal. Regal was leaving the building with tears in his eyes saying: “It’s been seven years since I became the GM of NXT and I’ve never seen so much bedlam. It’s complete madness. I think it’s time for a change.”
Could this be the end of Regal as GM? At this time it is just speculation. He will be at NXT this Tuesday to further address his concerns and statement.
The next special event will come in July and it will be the return of The Great American Bash. This event theme returned last year along with several others including In Your House and Halloween Havoc. It will be on July 6 on NXT’s regular night of Tuesday.
It’s that time again for another TakeOver event and this one like most will see two women’s matches on the card. This will be the second In Your House since the theme returned to WWE last year for the first time since the year 1999. First we will see Xia Li representing Tian Sha as … Read more
NXT TakeOver: In Your House returns for the second year running and features two intriguing women’s matches to look forward to. The first is Mercedes Martinez taking on the vicious and undefeated Xia Li. The second sees Ember Moon challenge Raquel Gonzalez for the NXT Women’s Championship. Mercedes Martines vs Xia Li Mercedes Martinez is … Read more
With Ember Moon’s tag team partner (Shotzi Blackheart) being out of commission from an attack a few week’s back, she understands that she is at a disadvantage heading into TakeOver: In Your House. The event takes place this Sunday, June 13, and Moon is challenging Raquel Gonzalez for the NXT Women’s Championship. On last night’s … Read more
The next NXT TakeOver event In Your House is rapidly approaching on June 13. It was announced from this week’s NXT that we will have two women’s matches on the card. The NXT Women’s Title will be defended as Raquel Gonzalez will be putting her championship on the line against Ember Moon. Last week, Moon … Read more
This week’s NXT is going to have the in-ring debut of Franky Monet as well as two teams that have their eye set on the NXT Women’s Tag Team Titles. Former champions Shotzi Blackheart & Ember Moon will be facing Dakota Kai and NXT Women’s Title Raquel Gonzalez. Franky Monet has been in NXT for … Read more
Raquel Gonzalez is still the NXT Women’s Champion after a hard fought match against Mercedes Martinez.
Leading up to tonight’s title match, Gonzalez and Martinez have been clashing over their differences. Martinez being a 20-year veteran while Gonzalez saying that she has accomplished more in one year than Martinez has her entire career made this match very personal. One thing the two have in common is they are both strong competitors.
As the match comes to its conclusion, Martinez gets a count of two from a Fisherman Buster. Gonzalez then bounced back with a big boot. The champ followed it up with her one-armed powerbomb to put away Martinez and retain her title. Dakota Kai was at ringside and in the corner of Gonzalez but did not interfere in the match.
Announced for next week’s show is a rematch between Zoey Stark and Toni Storm. Stark defeated Storm at the last Takeover event, Stand & Deliver. Storm has been riddled with the fact that she lost to a rookie. Since then, Stark has been a thorn in the side of Storm as she cost her a match against newcomer Zayda Ramier. Can Stark go 2-0 over Storm next week?
Franky Monet has been seen weekly approaching various superstars since her debut several weeks ago. She first introduced herself to Raquel Gonzalez but since then has made sure others have known her name as well. She will be in action for the first time in an NXT ring in two weeks. An opponent for her has not been named at the time of this writing.
The Warrior of the Sun has officially wrestled her first match in NXT.
Sarray is victorious in her first match for the brand. The highly anticipated match landed her across the ring from Zoey Stark. Stark has been impressive since joining the brand herself so this match-up already had the potential to be a good one and it did not disappoint. She puts away her first opponent with a spinning heel kick under the jaw, connecting with a forearm, and hitting a suplex to get the pin.
After the match, both Sarray and Stark showed excellent sportsmanship. Sarray helped up Stark who then raised her arm in victory. As Stark was making her way up the ramp she was attacked by Toni Storm. Stark defeated Storm on the pre-show of TakeOver: Stand & Deliver and it is clear that taking that loss isn’t sitting well with Storm. Sarray went over to help Stark and to prevent any further attack from Storm.
This was the only women’s match on the show this week but there were many women throughout the show. NXT Women’s Champion Raquel Gonzalez was being interviewed and was asked about all of the eyes that have been fixated on her now that she is champion. She said to line all the challengers up and she will defeat them all until there is no one left standing.
Kai then focused on Martinez who called out Gonzalez last week. Martinez answered later on in the night and said she would go through Kai first so that there will be no one in her way to get to Gonzalez and the gold.
"If they want to step up, go ahead, light 'em up, and I'll take them down one-by-one, until there is NO ONE left standing." – @RaquelWWE
As for the former NXT Women’s Champion Io Shirai, she had a sit-down interview with Beth Phoenix about her title reign and recent loss and what she sees for her future. They discussed the match from Stand & Deliver which led to Shirai saying that when the time is right she will get her rematch.
Phoenix asked her what was next in the meantime. Shirai says her body needs rest in order to face Gonzalez again. As she tries to explain possible time away from the ring, Franky Monet entered with her dog. Monet introduced herself to Shirai and says that she is such a fan of Phoenix who she has been watching since she was a kid.
Monet adds that she didn’t mean to eavesdrop but since Shirai is going to take some time off that she could fill her shoes as the top woman of the NXT women’s division. Shirai responds in Japanese and after Monet says she doesn’t understand Shirai says that she likes cats.
Lastly, we have The Way. Early in the night, Dexter Lumis took on LA Knight and Indi Hartwell appeared behind the barricade. This distracted Lumis to the point that he suffered a loss. Hartwell then tried to console him and get her kiss but The Way came and grabbed her off the apron and took her away from the situation.
Throughout the night Hartwell continued to be preoccupied with the thought of Lumis. Candice LeRae told her that she really needs to get focused and stop being distracted by boys. They need to focus on the NXT Women’s Tag Team Titles. Not knowing that Hartwell had left her, LeRae was approached by the champions Shotzi Blackheart and Ember Moon. Once LeRae realized that Hartwell was no longer by her side, the tag champs attacked her and pulled her into the bathroom.
After being attacked, a disheveled LeRae would join her husband Johnny Gargano along with Austin Theory backstage. Theory was discussing a match that he was able to get booked in. They asked what happened to LeRae but she didn’t answer as Hartwell joined her stablemates. Hartwell says she ran into William Regal and was able to get them a tag team title match. Everyone but LeRae seemed thrilled by that announcement as she is left by herself.
What did you think of Sarray’s debut match against Stark? How about everything else that transpired for the women of the brand this week? Leave your thoughts below.
At NXT TakeOver: Stand & Deliver, Raquel Gonzalez dethroned Io Shirai for the NXT Women’s Championship. The win ended Shirai’s impressive 300+ day title reign while crowning a new and dominant champion. On the most recent edition of NXT, Gonzalez celebrated her win with her partner Dakota Kai. But her celebrations were cut short when she … Read more
NXT is now on Tuesday nights and there is a lot to unpack already.
There was an advertised debut, two matches that involved the women including the main event, a lot of eyes on the new champion Raquel Gonzalez, and a surprise moment that was heartwarming to see.
The first match of the night was from an altercation that happened earlier in the day. Mercedes Martinez was heated because after she paired back up with The Robert Stone Brand a few weeks ago she didn’t get paid as she wanted. This was done because Jessi Kamea wasn’t able to compete. She approached Aliyah and Robert Stone backstage. When she wasn’t getting her money she choked Aliyah up against the way until Kamea entered. Martinez asked her if she wanted to step up to her. Kamea said no, she wanted to step on her.
Mercedes Martinez defeated Jessi Kamea
Despite the confidence that Kamea presented, the match was way shorter than it needed to be and Martinez was able to pick up the victory. After the match, Martinez went after Stone and Aliyah. Aliyah was able to escape around the barricade to the other side of the plexiglass but Stone wasn’t so lucky. Martinez held him up against the plexiglass until he gave her the money she was requesting.
As she was walking away checking her money, she stopped at the announce table and delivered a message to Raquel Gonzalez. Martinez has her eyes set on the new champion and wants to take the gold for herself as she states she is coming for her.
She isn’t the only woman that has her eyes set on Gonzalez. The debuting Franky Monet made a huge statement as she let the new champion know that she will be seeing her every Tuesday night. For a full rundown of what took place during Monet’s debut, you can click here to see the previous report.
After Monet and her adorable dog left the ring, a moment happened that no one was expecting. The new RAW Women’s Champion Rhea Ripley and the new SmackDown Women’s Champion Bianca Belair joined Gonzalez in the center of the ring to celebrate their victories. Behind them on the screen was a photo of all three of them together. It was a beautiful and a fully realized moment of what we have witnessed this past week.
In a WWE Network Exclusive that was just uploaded, it shows Triple H being the proud papa as he takes photos with all three champions. Then after he leaves the three women to discuss their wins with one another and Ripley mentions that it is the start of a new era. They all agree and Belair says that the ones that came before them don’t have to leave but they need to make some space. Plus there is more coming behind them as well.
The main event saw an eight-person tag team match that pinned the NXT Women’s Tag Team Champions Ember Moon & Shotzi Blackheart along with Dexter Lumis and Bronson Reed against all four members of The Way.
Blackheart, Moon, Reed, and Lumis defeated The Way
This match had a bit of everything and was fun to watch. As the match starts to wind down to its finish, Indi Hartwell pretended to be knocked out in the ring as Lumis was trying to put Johnny Gargano to sleep. Once Lumis realized that Hartwell was “knocked out” he showed concern. As he goes to help her up, Austin Theory takes him out and Lumis spills to the outside. Hartwell then disposes of her own teammate Theory out on the other side of the ring. She then falls down again on the ring apron and Lumis picks her up to take her to the back. She picks her head up, winks, and smiles with a thumbs up. #Index.
Back to the action in the ring. Moon climbs on top of Reed’s shoulders and delivers an Eclipse on Theory. Candice LeRae then dumps Moon to the outside. Reed then fights off Gargano and Theory in the corner as he is perched up on the top turnbuckle. LeRae then tries to deliver a superplex to Reed as Blackheart shows up to place her on her shoulders and drop her on top of Theory. Reed then hits a Tsunami for the pin and the victory for his team.
Other women who made appearances on the show are Zoey Stark, Marina Shafir, and the announcement of Sarray’s debut.
Stark was seen backstage being interviewed about how she felt competing at her first TakeOver event. She says just four months ago she was living in Las Vegas trying to make ends meet. Now she has a huge victory over Toni Storm and has her eyes set on the NXT Women’s Title. Mercedes Martinez had something to say about that statement. Martinez says that she is the next in line for a title shot and that we shouldn’t be wasting our time on some rookie.
Shafir didn’t play any big part in the show but she was alongside her husband Roderick Strong. Strong turned in his resignation to William Regal who stated that he was always welcome back. What this may mean for Strong and if Shafir is going to play a part in it remains to be seen. Shafir was last seen in action alongside Zoey Stark in the Dusty Cup in January.
Lastly, Sarray will be making her long awaited debut next week. Sarray was signed a while back and because of the pandemic she wasn’t able to get to the United States. She is here now and the video hyping her debut from Regal seems to be big things on the horizon for this talent.
Now let’s get into the Winners & Losers of the week:
Although I am not loving the fact that Raquel seems to be a babyface all of a sudden, she 100% deserves this title win. Her recapping her history and how much she has grown showed that. Her interaction with the debuting Franky was great. And the big moment between her and Rhea and Bianca was something that I was not expecting in the slightest and made me emotional from all three wins this past week.
WINNER: Franky Monet
Good first impression of Franky. And for a change we have someone who is debuting who I feel has a good entrance and music to go along with it. The Torrie Wilson vibes are real. Going right towards the champ is good also and at the same time it doesn’t feel like she is necessarily jumping the line as Mercedes and Zoey both mentioned they have their eye on the prize as well.
WINNER: Indi Hartwell
Indi has so much talent. Both in the ring and her ability to make everyone laugh. I was fully expecting the Index moment and I am still good with it happening as it did. Her thumbs up was great and the WWE Network Exclusive that has come out is even better. She explained where she went missing was that she had to go to “medical” to be “cleared.” *wink wink* The Way is actually a stable where all four of them play their parts so very well.
It’s hard to pick a loser because everything was solid. But the constant jobbing that The Robert Stone Brand gets to be tiring. Kamea stands up to Martinez in the clip from earlier today to just lose in a minute. I didn’t expect her to beat Martinez but at least they could have had a solid match.
If RAW and SmackDown would start using their women as much as NXT does then it would be a lot more fun discussing the Winners & Losers of the week.
Franky Monet is officially on NXT with her dog and all. Monet (formerly Taya Valkyrie) was expected to debut on tonight’s NXT and with that debut, she went straight to the top. She had the look down and her music was fire as she made her way down to the ring to confront the new … Read more
