NXT Report

Only 3 weeks in and we missed an NXT Report. Note it is time to get some staff coming out of Wrestlemania. I won’t bore everyone with week the old news, but have just a few comments on NXT’s first outing to Ohio.

It is clear the vision for NXT has changed or at least expanded to the idea of it being its own unique brand. The test drive in Columbus was a huge success. Crowd was even more jacked than the crazies at Full Sail were and they knew everything and everyone connected to the product.

NXT is getting a show on Friday Night of Mania week at San Jose State University and it will sell out and likely be one of the most talked about things as part of Mania weekend.

As for this week’s show, it was two title matches that we have to see. Alexa Bliss got a count out win and earned a shot at Sasha Banks for her NXT Women’s Title. Bliss did a decent job in the match. Really does a great job with facial expressions to the camera. Her work in ring is still a little bit off in comparison to the top girls like Banks, Charlotte and even Bayley. I still see a bright future for her on the main roster, as she will really appeal to the kids. She will also appeal to the adult males and she is very attractive. That is a winning combination. She predictably came up short falling prey to the Banks Statement the finishing submission hold of Sasha Banks. Stone Cold would approve of this finisher as she really locks it on every time. It is quickly becoming one of my personal favorites as far as submission finishers go male or female.

Couple back stage segments one setting up a feud with Bayley and Emma who seems to have gone heel in her return to NXT. In addition, a rubber match between Tyler Breeze and Hideo Itami in a two out of three falls match that is booked for next week’s show.

Breeze calling Devin Taylor Barbra Walters based on her simple question was a highlight for me. Taylor seems to be cast in the role once played by Maria now in ROH as the ditsy but loveable backstage reporter. Taylor has the ditsy down but I am not feeling the loveable part at the moment. Maria played that character so well and it is amazing the contrast of that to her current ROH character that is a mean and nasty female valet for The Kingdom.

Kevin Steen as you may have heard had to have a minor knee surgery. The last match he had in the can was his title defense against Finn Balor. These two were given almost half of the show and made use of the time with a fantastic match. Balor sold a leg injury that ultimately led to his demise and Kevin Owens would retain the NXT title via pinfall.

Another note word is that Sami Zayn may also be injured with a shoulder injury of some sort. There is no real info on it, as the injury hasn’t been a part of storylines to this point. The same is true for Owens. Sadly, fans at Mania will miss on seeing Owens and possibly Zayn Wrestle.

Someone will be getting a ticket into the Andre the Giant Battle Royal and will be determined in a tournament going on at Axcess or perhaps on the Friday night show in San Jose. Most people are suggesting Adrian Neville will win and get the chance to appear on Mania.

I think that would be a bad debut for him in terms of his finisher being from the top rope and this being a Battle Royal. The two don’t make for a happy marriage. Neville I see more than any of the other top NXT male stars having a hard time getting over on the main roster. Vince McMahon is likely to see his negatives more than his positives and that could spell doom for him. Triple H is a huge supporter though so maybe he can help Neville survive in the land of the sharks on the main roster at least at first.

Lastly, there has been a lot of talk of how you change the Diva’s Division and make it into something different. Aside from cutting the dead weight, like the Bellas and the other non-wrestling chicks out of the picture there could be another way too eventually.

Most will say that Charlotte is where this goes next but it isn’t where this is heading. No doubt, Charlotte will be a success but given her ties to Ric Flair being his daughter she is not the answer on here own to change the divas back to women.

Dana Brooke is being teased as debuting soon in NXT. Assuming she is capable in the ring, I have an idea that is long overdue for the Diva’s Division. UFC has Ronda Rousey and she is not going to be wrestling anytime soon in a WWE ring. Brock maybe back but the UFC’s number one draw is not stepping in a WWE Ring to fight.

I purpose you make Brooke into a Ronda Rousey like smashing machine. She is attractive like Rousey and is a fitness model and body builder. So, she has the look to be that attractive ass kicker. Only question is how quickly she can get good in the ring. You could book her in a way to protect her much as they have with Baron Corbin at first. Like the real Rousey, have her come out and just maul he competition. Hell on the main roster she can be part of the authority and make her Stephanie’s response to the Give Diva’s a Chance Movement. If A.J Lee is not sticking around have this girl debut taking out A.J and putting her into a wrestling retirement.

It could work and the WWE’s most successful Women’s Champion started as a fitness model that wasn’t the greatest wrestler in the world. Her name is Trish Stratus and she is the Ric Flair of Women’s wrestling with nine Championship reigns the most by any women in WWE.

Hell if some day the real Ronda comes maybe you have the biggest women’s match ever. It is just a thought of where they could go with Dana Brooke. Now can she do that Rousey ring walk death stare? I have no idea. Nevertheless, this is a gimmick that fits her well. If she can’t do an armbar have Chris Jericho teach her it was one of his 1004 moves in his great feud with Dean Melenko back in WCW.

That is it for NXT. Don’t forget later today a special edition of Condo on the Moon Podcast talking Brock re-signing and previewing the ROH show tomorrow in Cali with Walder and myself.   

NXT Takeover: Rival 10 Observations On The Night

NXT Takeover: Rival continued the tradition of awesome events for NXT. It was a night of change with both a new Women’s Champion crowned in Sasha Banks and Kevin Owens is the New NXT Champion. Instead of doing a re-cap of the show, I thought I would offer 10 observations based on last night’s show. There was a lot to talk about coming out of this show that is for certain.

1. Selfie Sticks Rule When Used By Tyler Breeze: It was a late edition to the card with Tyler Breeze taking on Heido Itami. When Breeze came out with a selfie stick all styled to match his outfit. I have missed Tyler Breeze and he had a good match with Itami that as I stated prior to the match both needed. Match aside the Selfie Stick stole the show as far as this match went.

2. Baron Corbin Is Not Ready For Prime Time: Corbin’s feud with Bull Dempsey has damaged him. The third in this trilogy of doom was suppose to be a no disqualification match but had very little in the way of weapons as part of the match. There were a few botched spots and Corbin just didn’t look good in a longer match. It is not like Corbin can’t succeed, but much like how people are critical of Roman Reigns and the position he holds currently. People seeing Corbin as this next big thing is not a role he is ready for at this time.

3. NXT Tag Team Division Needs Help: The Lucha Dragons and Blake & Murphy had a very sloppy tag-team championship match. Blake and Murphy are just to babyface for me liking. While people rave about Kalisto, I have seen him look like a red-hot mess on two NXT specials now. Sure, you have the Vaudevillians and Big Cass & Enzo, but just like on the main roster tag-teams are few and far between. It was a toss up for worst match of the night between the tag team match and Corbin and Dempsey.

4. Finn Balor A Better Version of Jeff Hardy: Finn Balor is a much more together version of Jeff Hardy in some ways. The introduction he has is a much better version of Jeff Hardy for modern times. His introduction is almost bordering on performance art. Once the bell rings with or without the pain, he is an amazing talent. He doesn’t have the baggage and bad habits that have held back Jeff Hardy from having the true career he could have had. Finn Balor should have a tremendous chance of success on the main roster and could be a big merchandise seller.

5. Ladies Hit A Home Run: Triple H talked about wanting to expand the roles for women on main roster on Stone Cold’s Podcast. A big reason for this desire has to be the talent he has seen in NXT. The four-way match that the ladies put on last night validated his opinion. All four women worked about as solid a 4-way match that you could hope to see regardless of gender. The success of Ronda Rousey in MMA is proof that times are changing and women fighting can sell. It may sound silly in the scripted world of pro wrestling it feels more real than the guys may at times. The talent is there to take the Women’s division back to its glory days with Trish, Lita and a host of other ladies.

6. Charlotte and Sami Zayn Next Stop Main Roster: Sami Zayn and Charlotte Flair both lost their titles and that seems to scream that time are now for them to be heading to the next level. If Triple H wants to expand the women’s division Charlotte Flair is the WWE’s Ronda Rousey to run with. The fact her dad is Ric Flair adds to her credibility. While Sami Zayn has nothing left to prove on the NXT level. While many fear what will become of Sami on the main roster his support from Triple H. Clearly, Sami has been taken under the wing of Triple H and just as other guys like The Shield and Bray Wyatt have had success I feel Sami will be able to do the same with his support and backing.

7. What is next for Adrian Neville: Some will say it also time for Neville to move on to the main roster. I have a feeling he will not and would almost be inclined to see him make a heel turn in NXT. He has lost in many face vs. face matches of late and always been taken the losses with class. Eventually he has to snap from this you have to figure. His size will always be a major concern on the main roster. Maybe with a Napoleon complex as a heel he would have a better chance than being the rumored Mighty Mouse type gimmick they planned. I still say face or heel he must have a manager and given faces seldom have mangers these days this is another reason to turn him heel. They teased a heel turn in his feud with Zayn so why not go all the way with it. 

8. Sasha Banks Is Finally The Boss Of The NXT Women’s Division:  Sasha Banks has lived in the shadows of Summer Rae and after that Charlotte but she now can truly be The Boss she has professed to be. I often felt her work was somewhat underrated as people were dazzled by Paige and after that the quickly developing Charlotte. The NXT fans have been behind her long before this moment but this is validation of her gimmick and she finally is on top of the mountain. It will be interesting to see how she handles being on top moving forward with Charlotte likely off to the main roster soon. 

9. Cory Graves A Work In Progress On Commentary: Cory Graves was thrown into commentary out of the blue after being forced to retire as an in-ring competitor due to concussions. I felt on his first show in December he was somewhat better than he was last night. He probably has too many voices in his head telling him what he should be doing. I still like him and his style is unique from the other cast of characters. He is the closest thing we have seen to a heel announcer in NXT. If he is given the chance to grow into the role, I think he can be very good at this eventually.

10. Kevin Owens the Greatest Debut In NXT History: if you had told me 18 months ago, that Kevin Steen would even be in the WWE, I would have had a hard time believing it. It would not be that Kevin wasn’t good enough but that Kevin wasn’t the typical mold of what a WWE Superstar is. I could never have imagined not only is he here in NXT but also has been brought in as the dominant heel of the brand. In his words two months to the day, he debuted in his third televised match he has won the NXT Championship. It is mind-boggling and to see him pictured with Triple H with the NXT Title seems almost out of a dream. It is all very real though and Kevin is truly one of the best performers I have been privileged to see.  It is so great to see him succeed and have success. It is so amazing the confidence and push he has been given on his way in the door in WWE. It really is a magical ride that Kevin has been on after months of waiting for him to debut. I don’t think this is the last title Kevin Owens will lay his hands on. He perhaps without knowing celebrated the same way as Brock Lesnar did when he beat The Rock head butting the title. I made the joke on twitter is it too late for Lesnar vs. Owens at Wrestlemania?  It is one of those wrestling moments that I will remember for a long time... if not forever. Now the work begins, as Owens will look to stay on top and validate what has been afforded him in entering the company with such a strong push.

Fast Lane will have a tough act to follow. This is nothing new for the folks on the WWE Roster who finally have some competition that TNA could never provide. NXT has become not just the future of the WWE but a true force that should motivate people on the main roster that have a pulse and a competitive bone in their body. It was another fun night in the wrestling fantasyland that is NXT. In a place where things make sense, more than they don’t and talent exceeds the high expectations of demanding pro wrestling fans more often than they do not.

NXT Takeover [R] Evolution Preview + Predictions

If you have been living under a rock, tonight is the WWE NXT Special "Takeover R Evolution". Tonight's show hails from Full Sail University in Winter Park, Florida. Tonight show will be on the WWE Network at 8/7 CT with a pre-show with Renee Young, Alex Riley and Jason Albert. I think this NXT special may be the most anticipated NXT Special this year and what a way to end the year on a high note for these young and up and coming talents in the WWE developmental system.  We'll give you a preview for tonights show plus our predictions.

1.) NXT Tag Team Championship Match 

The Lucha Dragons (c) vs. The Vaudevillans 

Josh: Out of all the great matches that we'll see tonight I wouldn't be surprised if this match stoled the show and it should since it's for the NXT Tag Team Championship. I enjoy the wrestling style of The Lucha Dragons and at the same time I love the team of The Vaudevillans. I think this will be a good back and forth match, but at the end of the day I think the title of reign of The Lucha Dragons will come to an end tonight. I'm rolling with the Vaudevillans 

James: Dragons just won the belts recently and the NXT crowd loves them. They do like the Vaudevillans too. Still give me the guys in the masks to retain.

2.) WWE NXT Women's Championship Match 

Charlotte (c) vs. Sasha Banks w/Becky Lynch 

Josh: I've been personally looking forward to this match for a long time. Sasha and Charlotte have split up from their partnership for about 5-6 months now and this match has brewing to happen ever since Charlotte won the NXT Championship at NXT Takeover over Natalya. Despite her losing on Raw this week, Charlotte is one of most skilled technical female performers I've ever seen. Not only is she beautiful, but she's unique in her own way. Sasha Banks another beautiful and talented performer who naturally comes off as a heel and I like the work she's been doing over the last couple of months. I'm going with Sasha Banks because I think it's her time and also the fact that Charlotte may be going up to the main roster very soon. 

James: Many feel Charlotte will lose this match as she is going to be heading to main roster soon. I think she will retain and lose the belt as part of the T.V taping after the special event. Her lose on Raw adds to my belief she needs to win and retain her championship.

3.) Finn Balor & Hideo Itami vs. The Ascension

Josh:  This has the makings to being a match of the year candidate and plus now we finally get to see Balor and Itami perform without being interrupted by commercials I'm going with Hideo & Finn, because they’re both guys I’ve been watching for a very long time. I know what they’re capable of. I wouldn’t want to be The Ascension. They’ve just been needling them, like two tigers in a cage. That’s not a team I’d want to mess with. Plus I think the Ascension will be heading up to the main roster to go after the WWE Tag Team Championships. I seriously can't wait to see this match and just one of those matches that you sit back and it reminds you of why you enjoy watching wrestling 

James: The Ascension is on the move to the main roster. Balor and Itami are still being built for the WWE audience that doesn't know them. It equals a win for the former Prince Devitt and Kenta.

Kevin Owens Debut: 

Josh:  I'll keep this short and sweet, I'm so happy for Kevin Owens and he's going to make a big impact in the WWE in my opinion. You're going to have alot of sour grape ring of honor fans that are going to nit pick every single thing the WWE does with him, but I'll tell you this I think Kevin is the perfect guy for the WWE environment and if you give it time and see how his character evolves then this is going to be a fun experience. I don't think we'll see Kevin cost Zayn the title and that leads to the WWE version of Ladder of Wars, I think Kevin will come out cut a promo about who he is and will challenge somebody to a fight 

James: Kevin Steen has transformed into Kevin Owens. Both guys are pretty much the same and Kevin will no doubt in my mind cost his long-time friend Sami Zayn the NXT Championship. If you have never seen Steen vs El Generico Ladder War you have missed out. WWE is aware of the history and made new fans to Owens aware of it so if WWE does not pair these two they have missed the boat.

4.) WWE NXT Championship Match 

Adrian Neville (c) vs. Sami Zayn 

Josh: I know alot of people may have seen this match already before a WWE televised taping, but now we're in a different environment, I've been loving the story telling aspect of this feud and Sami is doing some of the best work of his career right now. Neville is on top of his game and don't count him out, Neville deserves as much as praise as any NXT Superstar out there. I think this match may have the opportunity to surpass the Zayn vs. Cesaro matches, but at the end of the day I think we'll see Zayn finally win the NXT Championship. 

James: Based on my Steen Debut thoughts Neville wins and continues to be a tweener that is heading to the heel side of the equation. Owens vs Zayn is on and I suggest you get your popcorn ready for this one.

This should be a fun night maybe we see some appearances from Enzo & Cass, Baron Corbin, Bull Dempsey and this may be the best NXT show of the year.

Speaking of Kevin Owens who will be debuting tonight, one of his mentors and best friends Steve Corino the color commentator from Ring of Honor wrestling will be on the podcast tomorrow with James and Chris Walder.

Rumors Already Surfacing For Next NXT Special

Seems the next NXT special is already taking shape with the main event expected to be Sami Zayn challenging Adrian Neville for the NXT title in a one on one match.

Both Zayn and Neville were front and center at an event for the WWE 2K15 game as they will be characters in the game along with former NXT alumni like Bo Dallas, Rusev and Bray Wyatt. Cory Graves is also said to be in the game as well but his career has been in much doubt with concussion problems and has not been seen in NXT in many months. Below are some links to interviews with various talents from that 2K15 event.




Brian Fritz with Sami Zayn
Sam Roberts with Sami Zayn
Brian Fritz with Adrian Neville
Sam Roberts with Bo Dallas
Brian Fritz with Bo Dallas 
Brian Fritz with Bill DeMott 


In addition to that the Lucha Dragons the new Tag-Team Champs will defend against favorites of NXT crowd the Vaudevillians in addition we will see Hideo Itami and Finn Balor better known as Kenta and Prince Devitt have a tag-team match with the Ascension. The two teams did face off at the television tapings recently in Devitt's debut so this would be a re-match of that encounter.

What still is up in the air is if Kevin Steen will be on this show with a set of T.V tapings between now and the proposed early December 11th date for the NXT special event. Steen has yet to debut and he like the other two is expected to have his name altered as well. Adam Cole a recent guest on our podcast spoke about his great relationship with Steen and his belief in the success he will have as part of the WWE. Cole himself has been talked about as perhaps going to NXT come the end of his current contract with ROH. In talking with Cole he just would state that you never know what the future would hold for him going forward. Cole was recently ranked number 9 in the Pro Wrestling Illustrated top 500 wrestlers. A list that saw WWE have the top 3 ranking stars with John Cena at 3, Randy Orton at 2 and Daniel Bryan topping the list.

Steen was seen in photos prior to the 2k15 event looking in tremendous shape and that was the one issue his detractors had about him being a success in the WWE. Kevin while still a large guy has certainly come a long way in the last year in getting into better shape and that has increased since coming into the WWE fold at the end of August.

Baron Corbin has recently debuted and is making waves the competition level and just level of talent in general at NXT is growing by leaps and bounds. Guys like Sami Zayn, Tyler Breeze and Adrian Neville have been touring on various WWE house show loops. This in addition to the surprise appearance of those three along with Tyson Kidd on Raw a few weeks back. Kidd is being used currently as part of the angle with his wife and Summer Rae on the main roster. Rumors of some sort of love triangle being at least teased.

So, NXT is on the rise and once Steen officially joins the fold it should lead to some interesting potential match-ups going forward depending on how long guys like Zayn, Breeze and Neville remain on the roster.

You can follow us on Twitter @Condoonthemoon for all our latest on the world of pro wrestling.

Condo on the Moon Podcast #30

It might not have the history of Wrestlemania 30, but we are on Podcast number 30 here at Condo on the Moon. We have had many Randy Savage impressions some great guests like Jimmy Korderas, Adam Cole and many others. Along with countless hours of myself James Borbath and Chris Walder trying to offer are opinions and views on professional wrestling. It has been a lot of fun and we hope to keep this thing going and thanks to all of you who have listened over our 30 shows. If you enjoy the show we encourage you to help spread the word out of what we like to think is the best wrestling podcast a lot of people haven't heard of. Will look to change that in the next 30 episodes and hopefully with your help we can do it.

So this week we have an extensive talk about NXT and the direction of things with the shows taped last night at Full Sail. We offer a rather male oriented opinion on this whole concept of wrestlers names changing. We talk the struggles of Raw as well and the WWE power struggle behind the scenes that is rumoured. Also get into the PWI 500 list with the top 10 guys on that list including one of our former guests here on Condo on the Moon. In addition how I almost got ripped off for a new webcam and Walder having a meltdown about parking prices in Toronto. This and so much more this week on the show.


If you have an issue listening here on the site head over to Podomatic were you can listen there or via I-tunes.

Hangin on the Moon is coming back next week with are first ever 3 way video podcast as Walder and Lopez join me for a wrestling free for all. In addition the Roman Reigns piece I referenced is in fact out over on Between the Ropes so go check that out.

Keep up to date with everything Condo on the Moon related on Twitter and Facebook.

Once again thanks for all the support and we really enjoy bringing this to you each and every week. It has been a lot of fun making the transition from covering the NBA to covering the world of pro wrestling.