With Night One of The Great American Bash in the books. This along with the steady rise of COVID-19 cases in the state of Florida! This was a huge week for the Black and Gold Brand. These were the stories that NXT Fans were talking about; inside and outside the ring. We present NXT Weekly for 7/4/20.
NXT UK Conference Call
WWE Officials held a mandatory conference call with the talent and crew of the NXT UK Brand this past Tuesday afternoon. There was much speculation regarding the fate of the brand as a whole due to the COVID-19 Pandemic. The call instead centered around the sexual harassment and abuse policy of WWE; in that there remains zero tolerance for abuse of any kind.
As per company procedure, any worker formally charged with allegations is immediately suspended. A conviction or any convicting evidence found in the investigation results in a release.
This call, which many likened to a “warning”. As it was of course in response to the #SpeakingOut movement that began a couple of weeks ago. Aside from this topic, no other information or key points for the brand’s future were addressed; including any sort of timeline or indication when live events would return for the UK offshoot.
NXT Weekly for 7/4/20
Sasha Banks Hypes up The Boss’s Return to NXT
Prior to her match with Io Shirai at Great American Bash, Sports Illustrated spoke to Sasha Banks regarding a number of topics. “The Boss” ended the interview by putting the current NXT roster on notice:
“I’m just coming down here today to show people that this is not their NXT. This has always been my NXT, and that’s what I’m going to show tonight. No matter where I am on the card, I always headline. I’m always the main event. Whether it’s first, second, third, fourth, or fifth, I am the main event no matter where you put me.” – Sasha Banks
Here Comes a New Challenger!
The Opening match of Night One of the Great American Bash (which aired on Canada Day no less…) saw a new Number One Contender for the NXT Women’s Championship be determined.
Dakota Kai, Candice LeRae, Mia Yim, and Tegan Nox competed in a Fatal 4-Way Elimination Match. GM William Regal altered the rules slightly from previous 4-Way Matches.
While no count-outs were still active, it was mandated that no outside interference would be tolerated. Thus effectively neutralizing Dakota Kai’s secret weapon in Raquel Gonzalez.
With the aforementioned Kai and her arch-rival Tegan Nox being the last two competitors, “The Girl With The Shiniest Wizard” lived up to her moniker by delivering a Wizard that was indeed the Shiniest to earn the pinfall victory and a chance at the Title!
https://twitter.com/WWENXT/status/1278901866039033858
NXT Weekly for 7/4/20
A Technical Classic
In what many were already speculating would be a hard-hitting and technically excellent match, Timothy Thatcher and Oney Lorcan exceeded even the highest of expectations with one of the best bouts in recent memory on any WWE show!
While Thatcher walked away with the submission victory, nothing should be taken away from Lorcan, who was able to showcase his technical abilities along with his toughness.
Post-match, the founder of NXT, Triple H himself, took to Twitter to offer his seal of approval to both men for the match.
https://twitter.com/TripleH/status/1278492540644347909
Rhea Ripley Represents Herself
The former NXT Women’s Champion was able to ensure her career continues to develop on her terms, as Rhea Ripley emerged victorious in a match with severe consequences.
With Robert Stone down a client, the brand guru looked to gain a new one in “The Nightmare”, and challenged Rhea to a Handicap match against Aliyah and himself where if Ripley lost, she would be forced to join The Robert Stone Brand.
Thankfully for the Aussie powerhouse, this scenario was avoided when Ripley made both her competitors tap simultaneously!
https://twitter.com/WWEonFOX/status/1279175185237544961
NXT Weekly for 7/4/20
Darkly Dreaming Dexter
In what was promoted as NXT’s first-ever Strap Match, Dexter Lumis was able to defeat Roderick Strong, whom the mysterious behemoth has been stalking for the past several weeks.
Strong fought valiantly and even had his fellow Undisputed Era member Bobby Fish interfere late in the match to no avail. Ultimately, the mysterious Lumis continues to shine every week.
https://twitter.com/WWEonFOX/status/1278498991445954560
A New Number One Contender??
In a bizarre yet passionate interview, Cameron Grimes informed the NXT audience that he was moving on from his previous opponent Damian Priest and declaring himself the Number One Contender to any and all Belts.
https://twitter.com/CGrimesWWE/status/1278505418873016322
https://twitter.com/WWEonFOX/status/1278505794833506304
The Main Event
In the final match of Great American Bash Night 1, Current Women’s Champion Io Shirai cemented her place at the top of the division by defeating former NXT and current Women’s Tag Champion Sasha Banks in an absolutely epic contest.
Banks’s Tag Team partner Bayley was at ringside to create a numbers advantage, however WWE Raw Women’s Champion Asuka made a surprise appearance to assist Shirai and deliver a debilitating spray of Green Mist to the face of The Boss.
Triple H Breaks Down Night One Of GAB
After Wednesday’s broadcast concluded, Triple H took to Twitter to share his thoughts on the evening as a whole, including specific praise for Shirai in her victory against Banks.
https://twitter.com/TripleH/status/1278514126751436800?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1278514126751436800%7Ctwgr%5E&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Frajah.com%2F
https://twitter.com/TripleH/status/1278489637942591488?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1278489637942591488%7Ctwgr%5E&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Frajah.com%2F
The Game also offered up a preview of things to come for Night Two of The Great AMerican Bash, scheduled to go down next Wednesday.
https://twitter.com/TripleH/status/1278514377013026816?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1278514377013026816%7Ctwgr%5E&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Frajah.com%2F
NXT Weekly for 7/4/20
Great American Bash Defeats Fyter Fest
In the ongoing saga of the Wednesday Night Wars, NXT was able to defeat AEW in the Ratings this week. Given that both promotions were running special editions of their broadcasts, this was a very important victory for NXT.
Furthermore, it has been determined that the match between Io Shirai and Sasha Banks was the highest-rated Main Event in NXT history since moving to USA, adding yet another case for the excellent state of the current Women’s Wrestling scene.
With Night Two of GAB delivering a Winner Take All Match for both the NXT North American Championship and NXT Championship, along with several other high profile bouts, next week is sure to be another explosive one for NXT. Make sure to follow along as always to find out what went down!
