WWE NXT Results: Winners, Grades, Reaction and Highlights from October 18

With just days remaining before Halloween Havoc, the October 18 edition of WWE NXT was one of the biggest shows the brand has put together in recent memory.

Cora Jade and Roxanne Perez participated in a Pick Your Poison challenge. Jade chose Rhea Ripley as Perez's opponent, while her rival chose Raquel Rodriguez in return.

Sonya Deville promised to put Alba Fyre on the shelf before her match with Mandy Rose. Cameron Grimes brought in his own help from the main roster, asking Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson to team up with him against The Schism including Joe Gacy.

Kevin Owens returned to NXT as the mediator in a showdown between Bron Breakker, Ilja Dragunov and JD McDonagh, while Tony D'Angelo gave Channing "Stacks" Lorenzo a challenge to defeat a mystery opponent.

This show looked set to be as big as Halloween Havoc, featuring many major names in WWE. It also felt like anything could happen as the company aimed for a memorable night.

Pick Your Poison: Roxanne Perez vs. Rhea Ripley

Rhea Ripley enjoyed beating down Roxanne Perez early and often, but she let her opponent almost stay in the match too long. A timely distraction allowed The Eradicator to connect on a headbutt and Rip Tide to win.

It was so nice to see to see Ripley wrestling again. She has been out of action for four months, and it showed at times. The Eradicator moved slowly at times and relied on the speed of her opponent to keep things moving.

The two have chemistry to explore down the line once Ripley is fully back to her best. What mattered most was that Perez looked great. She fought hard and nearly picked up a surprise win, even with The Judgment Day hovering at ringside.

Result

Ripley def. Perez by pinfall.

Grade

B

Notable Moments

• Ripley ran at Perez and missed, falling outside. Perez planted her with a suicide dive.
• Perez ducked out of the Rip Tide, and Ripley pushed her off her as she attempted Pop Rox.
  

Channing 'Stacks' Lorenzo vs. Shinsuke Nakamura

Channing "Stacks" Lorenzo found out his mystery opponent was Shinsuke Nakamura as his music hit.

Tony D'Angelo enjoyed watching Stacks fight hard, but The Artist planted him with a Kinshasa that sent him outside followed by a second to seal the win.

While it made little sense for the story that D'Angelo would choose Nakamura or that the Japanese star would want to help The Don, this match worked better than expected. Lorenzo looked like a true developing star coming out of this.

Nakamura gave him the space to show off, and Stacks sold well for his opponent in turn. Perhaps this will begin the true rebirth of D'Angelo's Family, which has lost so much momentum.

Result

Nakamura def. Stacks by pinfall.

Grade

B

Notable Moments

• The Don teased Stacks by promising to reveal his opponent and then went to commercial.
• As Nakamura prepared for the Kinshasa, Stacks goaded him on.
• D'Angelo told Stacks that he proved himself as a cornerstone of the family.
  
• Chucky interrupted a confident Grayson Waller to announce his match with Apollo Crews would be Spin the Wheel, Make the Deal. Waller ran out of the building.

Alba Fyre vs. Sonya Deville (w/ Toxic Attraction)

Alba Fyre challenged Sonya Deville move for move. Gigi Dolin and Jacy Jayne tried to get involved but got taken out. In the chaos, Fyre rolled up Deville for three.

This never even got a chance to be a real match. It was barely two minutes, and half of that included Toxic Attraction interference. It was all about setting up an angle where Fyre could stand tall again.

While this was a rough misstep on an important night, it did show why Fyre could finally be the one to dethrone Mandy Rose.

However, it's still is hard to believe she is the one after so much has been put behind Toxic Attraction in this past year.

Result

Fyre def. Deville by pinfall.

Grade

D

Notable Moments

• After the match, Toxic Attraction attacked Fyre before Rose's music hit. Fyre laid out everyone and took Rose's title. Rose and, by extension WWE, seem to have taken Fyre's abduction attempt of the champion in their stride.
  

Carmelo Hayes and Trick Williams vs. Wes Lee and Oro Mensah

Carmelo Hayes and Trick Williams started this fight off in the locker room, and Wes Lee and Oro Mensah fought back.

Once the teams made it to the ring, Trick took out Mensah while Melo caught Lee with a diving axe kick to win.

The hot start was let down by a second short match on the night. Lee and Mensah have been established as threats to the dominance of Hayes and Trick, but the heels dominated easily this time around.

The ladder match at Halloween Havoc on Saturday will be better, and anyone could win. It seems most likely either Lee or Nathan Frazer will pick up the victory, and either can carry the NXT North American Championship with pride.

Result

Melo and Trick def. Lee and Mensah by pinfall.

Grade

D+

Notable Moments

• Von Wagner and Mr. Stone taunted Frazer and Axiom backstage.
• After the match, Wagner laid out Melo with a big boot only for Frazer to dive onto him.
  

The Schism vs. Cameron Grimes and The O.C.

Cameron Grimes wanted to get his hands on Joe Gacy, and he got his wish only when Rip Fowler and Jagger Reid also got involved.

Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson proved their worth by putting The Schism away after a Magic Killer to Reid.

The involvement of The O.C. overshadowed the story NXT has been telling for months, but that is likely for the best as the rivalry has been lackluster. This was easily the best in-ring work this feud has delivered.

In fact, The Schism looked better than the group ever has. The in-ring work was strong, highlighting the chemistry within the established trio.

It is a shame Gacy's group could not pick up the win after looking so good.

Result

Grimes, Gallows and Anderson def. Schism by pinfall.

Grade

B+

Notable Moments

• Backstage, Gallows and Anderson made clear they were not only helping Grimes for the money he was putting up but also because they were fans of him.
• Just before the match, Gacy warned Grimes that Schism would make him pay.
• Veer Mahaan refused to answer interview questions clearly before leaving with Sanga.
• NXT had two contract signings for next week: Kayden Carter and Katana Chance vs. Nikkita Lyons and Zoey Stark, and Pretty Deadly vs. Malik Blade and Edris Enofé.

For Co-Hosting Duties: Xyon Quinn vs. Quincy Elliott

Shotzi was announced as the Halloween Havoc host. Xyon Quinn and Quincy Elliott wanted to join her as co-host, so she announced the winner would get that spot.

Quinn could not deal with the size of Elliott, who took him out with the Diva Drop to win.

It's good to see Shotzi back and she'll be in her element as the co-host on Saturday, and Elliott can fit her aesthetic well with his own colorful outfits. That was about all this segment had going for it.

Quinn and Elliott did not work well together, leading to awkward and slow spots in a match that did not go three minutes yet felt twice as long. Hopefully, this feud will end here.

Result

Elliott def. Quinn by pinfall to become the co-host of Halloween Havoc.

Grade

D

Notable Moments

• Elliott went over a running double knee drop but missed. Quinn tried to grab a weapon outside, but Hank Walker stopped him.
• Damon Kemp taunted Julius Creed until The Diamond Mine star walked off on their dual interview.
• Andre Chase went over the history of Halloween Havoc, only for Chuck to interrupt.
  

Pick Your Poison: Cora Jade vs. Raquel Rodriguez

Cora Jade realized early that she could not match Raquel Rodriguez, so she goaded Big Mami Cool into using her kendo stick against her. This caused a disqualification.

This was over before it got going, but there is a story to tell between these two in the ring one day. Instead, Jade talked her way into a quick result and a tainted victory.

After a strong start to the show, NXT used multiple awkward quick finishes to get through the card.

Considering the hype behind Tuesday's show, it was sad to see so much of the wrestling forgotten for the sake of the usual NXT desire to book as many wrestlers as possible each week.

Result

Jade def. Rodriguez by disqualification.

Grade

D+

Notable Moments

• Rodriguez missed a chop outside, going hand-first into the table, and Jade took advantage with a flurry of strikes and a springboard double knee strike to the back.
• After the finish, Perez stormed the ring and sent Jade running.
  

The KO Show Descends into Chaos

Kevin Owens called out JD McDonagh for stirring up trouble, and The Irish Ace took the cue to do so even more.

Bron Breakker and Ilja Dragunov got into each other's faces, and KO finally gave up on stopping the fight and let the two get on with it.

Dragunov took out both Breakker and McDonagh and then stood tall. Austin Theory's music hit, and he showed off his Money in the Bank briefcase, teasing a future cash-in.

Owens kept the energy high in this segment, even with three mic-workers who are rough around the edges. Everyone did what they could to give a final boost to a match that will be better than the build due to the talent involved.

Theory appearing was a surprise but possibly a wasted moment if he wants to actually cash in. It would have made more impact for him to take his shot without any warning.

If A-Town does take the NXT Championship, it would be a smart way to reboot him in WWE.

Grade

B

Notable Moments

• Josh Briggs, Brooks Jensen and Fallon Henley got the Halloween Havoc party started early, getting Indi Hartwell and Ikemen Jiro to also participate in their drinking game.