NXT Preview - October 3, 2020

Nope, I’m not on Periscope, and sorry to disappoint. If you haven’t seen this week, both Hayden & Spencer went live for their RAW & Smackdown Live Previews. Check em out if you haven’t! However, I’m still writing these articles because who really wants to see my ugly mug?

Now, let’s talk about NXT!

A recap of last week’s episode.

• William Regal cuts a promo on Aleister Black’s attacker when he’s interrupted by The Undisputed Era. In response to this and their general B.S, Regal books two matches.
• Adam Cole vs Ricochet vs Pete Dunne in two weeks for the North American Championship
• Roderick Strong & Kyle O’Reilly will face the War Raiders in three weeks for the NXT Tag Team Titles. 
• Lars Sullivan vs jobber ends in a DQ when EC3 attacks Lars.
• The Mighty defeat the Street Profits 
• Kairi Sane defeats Vanessa Bourne. After, Shayna Baszler comes to the ring and gets her rematch from Sane… at Evolution!
• Tommaso Ciampa defeats Otis Dozovic

As always, I’m Parker Love – here with your weekly NXT Preview!

The Main Event

EC3 has been wanting victory, after victory, after victory in NXT. What does he do? He starts beefing with a guy who has very many victories and very few losses in Lars Sullivan. The third Ethan Carter accused Lars of attacking Aleister Black, and Lars responded as a man of his size does in sports entertainment - laying him out with a Freak Accident. Now…

EC3 has been a rare disappointment to me on NXT. He’s yet to get that signature win in the third brand, despite two high profile Takeover matches. Now, he’s likely to lose on a TV taping. Yes, I get he isn’t a world class wrestler or high flier. However, his character-based act gives him an old school feel, and his time in TNA proved he can be a focal point. I do still believe he can do great things in WWE, but he needs a tweak.

Other Segments

Velveteen Dream accused Tommaso Ciampa as the one to attack Aleister Black last week in an interview with Queen Cathy. How will Ciampa respond? I wouldn’t complain about another match. If it works for Heavy Machinery, it might work for the Dream.

Johnny Gargano returns after a brief hiatus from Full Sail, taking on 205 Live’s premier athlete Tony Nese. For weeks, we’ve seen a more aggressive Johnny Wrestling - due to his matches with Tommaso Ciampa. Will we start to see a return to his roots for Johnny? I hope so; it’s weird - though completely understandable - seeing this guy get partially booed, and it’ll be REALLY weird if he was the one who actually attacked Aleister Black. This match should still be stellar, they’ve had some great matches in the past.

After a simple-yet-effective setup last week, we’ll see Lacey Evans take on Candice LeRae. This was set up after Evans claimed that LeRae doesn’t stand with her husband as a real lady should. The Gargano’s have been tied together for most of their time together in NXT, but both are good enough to shine on their own as well. Candice’s problems aren’t just with this match though. Her interview with William Regal was very dodgy - is she a potential suspect in the Aleister Black attack? Doubtful, but she may be covering for her husband…

The Forgotten Sons return tonight, in a six-man tag match. The fact WWE doesn’t name who they’re facing should be an indicator of the level of competitiveness in this matchup. I like these guys, I would love to see them get a meaningful feud for these guys in the future. However, squash matches are still awesome for establishing threats.

Championship Scene

Pete Dunne has been UK Champion for 500 days. Wow. Feels like yesterday he had his classic TakeOver: Chicago match with Tyler Bate. After a fantastic TV match with Ricochet, they now add Adam Cole into the mix. Jesus, I love wrestling sometimes.

Honestly, I do hope the Shayna Baszler - Kairi Sane match at Evolution is their last series for a while. I’d love to see what Baszler can do on the main roster, and I am starting to get a little tired of this feud.

I’m extremely curious to see what feud is next for Champ-uh. Tommy Entertainment has been money since taking the belt, but who will step up to be his next challenger? Velveteen may make a comment tonight, Aleister still has a rematch available to him, and there is a long lineup of capable superstars behind.

Finally, I’m super excited to see what we get between War Raiders and The Undisputed Era. Seeing how Triple H will book a match-up between smaller heels and humongous babyfaces will be interesting. I expect a similar match as what we got from AOP-Undisputed, with the potential to be just that much better in-ring.

My Thoughts

• Even though it’s against Kona Reeves, I can’t wait to see Keith Lee in action again next week.
• Has anyone even asked Nikki Cross who attacked Black? I get shes crazy, but why not effing ask??
• Unrelated note: Good for PAC (FKA Neville). Happy to see him back in one of his home promotions.

That’s it for tonight! What do you think about tonight’s episode? Let us know by commenting, or by following us on Facebook and Twitter! Thanks for reading, and see you next week!

Last 5!

• Is it OVER Yet: World of Trios #20
• Over the Top Rope: Episode XVX | Interview with Psycho Sawyer of Monster Pro Wrestling
• NXT Preview: September 26, 2020
• September 18 Smackdown Live Preview: Styles vs Almas
• Bad Decisions in Booking History: Luke Harper at WrestleMania 33