NXT UK: 05/05/2022

NXT UK is kicked off with the resident talk show segment, Supernova Sessions. Noam Dar & Sha Samuels receive a guest that they actually respect for once, in Lash Legend. After a comedic bit where Noam gives Lash some dead flowers, followed by Sha giving her a whole bouquet, the trio would speak on all of incoming talent on excursion from America, Lash included. Lash declares that she is set to make the biggest impact. Granted that’s a lot of talk seeing as she was less than 24 hours from a tag team loss on NXT. The segment would conclude with Sha making smart remarks against Damon Kemp and Noam trying to awkwardly hide his excitement at being next to Lash Legend. This would lead into backstage segment where Damon Kemp would make a fool of Sha Samuels in front of Lash. Seeing the disrespect that Sha had made towards him earlier, Damon promises to show him what he’s got in a match later in the night.

The first match of the night saw the in-ring debut of Tiger Turan. A masked wrestler who appears to have a bone to pick with Kenny Williams. For his first ever match though we see Tiger Turan take on a local competitor, Tate Mayfairs. I think it’s fair to say that Turan has been inspired by Tiger Mask of NJPW’s legacy. Despite having the traditional appearance of a luchador, Tiger Turan has solid movements and doesn’t rely on top rope maneuvers. From the way he grapples with his opponent, clutching the wrist, attempting to sweep the legs, and the impact of the chops he hands out, Tiger Turan may be a mystery of a man. But his abilities were on full display against Tate Mayfair, who sold the offense well, while also putting up a good fight for a local. After performing a Swanton Bomb, Turan would be congratulated backstage much ti the chagrin of the Luckian, Kenny Williams. Kenny Williams has had a terrific run as a heel and the fact that he’s made so many enemies over the past year that Tiger Turan could conceivably be anyone (such as Amir Jordan, Kenny’s former tag team partner, forced to leave the brand at the end of their feud) makes this storyline all the more intriguing.

While NXT UK hasn’t had a premium live event since January 12, 2020, many have been hoping for the return of NXT UK Takeover. Having announced an event for Dublin before Covid-19 shut the country down, many had heard that there was going to be an event in Wales upcoming. The WWE has since confirmed that there will be an event titled “Clash At The Castle,” but said event will be hosted by the main roster and not by the competitors of NXT UK. I’ll suppose we’ll have to continue to wait for the developmental brand to get their due. In the meantime, with no premium events to build for, the brand has been doing a spectacular job of putting on main events every week, worthy of being added to a premium event card.

Damon Kemp would also receive the showcase treatment, being placed opposite enhancement talent, Danny Jones. Damon may be the lesser known of the NXT competitors on excursion but that means he has arguably the most to gain from this trip. Being a man with plenty of experience in amateur wrestling, the UK audience has more appreciate for his style. Take into account he has some level of charisma that is on display even as he’s tossing his opponent around and you have potential for Kemp to move forward. Now we just have to hope that he improves enough over the next 90 days to pass the evaluation period. (As reported by Dave Meltzer on the Wrestling Observer Radio- https://www.f4wonline.com/podcasts/wrestling-observer-radio/wrestling-observer-radio-aew-and-nxt-2-0-ratings-weekend-big-show-preview )

After picking up the win, Damon would be attacked by Sha Samuels. If formula dictates the booking, next week will see Damon asking Assistant to the General Manger, Sid Scala for a match and then we’ll have Damon Kemp Vs. Sha Samuels booked for May 19th.

Before we get to the main event, there were a few segments placed throughout the show to build up next weeks card. Next week is set to be the 200th episode of NXT UK. Keep in mind that 205 Live had 270 episodes before it was cancelled. (Per IMDb- https://m.imdb.com/title/tt6286394/ ) Among these segments we have Sid Scala announcing a triple threat tag team title match. Who Moustache Mountain is set to defend against is to be determined with qualifying matches. We know that after a confrontation, Joe & Mark Coffey of Gallus will face Ashton Smith & Oliver Carter next week. We also know that Teoman & Rohan Raja of Die Familie are set for a qualifying match at a later date, but their opponents have yet to be announced. My money is on the last team in this equation being Dave Mastiff & Jack Starz. But Die Familie will be in action next week when Charlie Dempsey has a one on one rematch with A-Kid. To continue the featured time for American athletes, we see a vignette hyping Ivy Nile’s appearance for next week and Nina Samuels is not impressed. And while the match card was already filled for next weeks big show we also had a tense confrontation between Von Wagner and Sam Gradwell. Wrapping the video packages for next week is one that details the rivalry that’s been brewing for months between NXT UK champion, Ilja Dragunov and “The Irish Ace” Jordan Devlin. Since their Empty Arena match back in January, both men have kept busy. Dragunov had defended his title against Rampage Brown, Roderick Strong, and most recently Nathan Frazier. Jordan has only competed in ring twice since the match but has made his presence felt throughout, first in a hard clash against Wolfgang and then with a dominant performance over Danny Jones. And after the contract signing last week, the stipulation has been added that whoever loses this title match must leave NXT UK. Given Jordan’s prior experience working in America and his incredible talent, I foresee him losing this match and immediately working with the NXT roster in USA. Just as long as he’s not forced to join Fight Night on Smackdown.

And finally we see our main event of the night. A “World of Darkness” match for the NXT UK Women’s Title. With Meiko Satomura defending her title against the witch of NXT UK, Isla Dawn. This stipulation mostly dictated that there would be no disqualifications and no count outs and that the arena would be filled with dark blue lighting befitting Isla Dawn’s character. There were several points in the match where it seemed Isla Dawn would power up her mystical energy for a grand comeback but they don’t call Meiko the “Final Boss” for no reason. If there was ever a time for Isla to power up, Meiko would cut her off. Even if the champion seemed in danger, it wasn’t for very long. Pulling out the victory with a chair assisted axe kick, Meiko would finally put this program to bed. I certainly feel for Isla as I believe her work as a heel is leagues above her work as a babyface. But with Alba Fyre (the former Kay Lee Ray) now being in America and Isla having lost twice in a row, Meiko seems to have far less challengers than before. It’s possible Jinny could make another run for the belt having been in a winning streak since losing her last shot at the title this last November. There’s also Aoife Valkyrie who’s been rehabbing a knee injury since August. Should she be ready to come back, she could easily be programmed opposite the champion. For the immediate future though, it seems more likely that Meiko will earn more notches on her strap by defeating American competitors Lash Legend and Ivy Nile. While the latter match is far more appealing than the former, it will certainly be a chance for the younger competitors to learn from a veteran and it would further build the champion as an unstoppable force worthy of the nickname “The Final Boss.”

Recap

• Tiger Turan def. Tate Mayfairs (4:03)

• Damon Kemp def. Danny Jones (4:15)

• Meiko Satomura def. Isla Dawn in a World of Darkness match to retain the NXT UK Women’s Title (12:48)

All match times are provided by Pro Wrestling Fandom ( https://prowrestling.fandom.com/wiki/May_5,_2022_NXT_UK_results )

Next Week’s Lineup

• Gallus (Mark & Joe Coffey) Vs. Ashton Smith & Oliver Carter in a Tag Team Title Qualifying match

• Ivy Nile Vs. Nina Samuels

• Ilja Dragunov (c.) Vs. Jordan Devlin in a Loser Leaves NXT UK, NXT UK Title match

New Episodes of NXT UK available every Thursday on Peacock.

By Raymond Clough.