Matches Watched:

Hideo Itami vs. Curtis Axel
United States & Canada
WWE NXT

Those that are irritated by what could be described as the WWE style of heel work (slowing down the pace with a healthy diet of chin locks) are sure to be annoyed with Curtis Axel’s performance in this match.  I thought Itami looked good.  All of the offense he used – a diving lariat, hard kicks to the chest, a running boot, among other moves – all looked crisp.  Even the spinning kick he used as his finisher looked good and I am not a huge fan of that type of kick.  I enjoyed the small reversal sequence before the finish and the way Itami used a snapmare to set up his finisher.

Tyler Breeze vs. Chad Gable
United States & Canada
WWE NXT

Gable wrestles like you would expect a WWE trained amateur standout to wrestle – a lot of waist lock takedowns and some showy riding of his opponent.  He also thew in a Minoru Suzuki “arm bar in the ropes” spot.  At one point, seeing that stuff would get me all giddy and I’d trumpet Gable as this premiere mat wrestler.  The truth is those few spots are a nice foundation but you can’t tell much of what kind of wrestler he is actually going to be from a match like this.  Short match, nothing to it other than a chance to get a glimpse at Gable.

Lucha Dragons (Sin Cara & Kalisto) vs. The Vaudevillians
United States & Canada
WWE NXT

Not much to say about this match.  Gotch looked the best out of everyone although nobody looked bad.  Standard, non-offensive tag match which is NXT in a nutshell.