WWE NXT Results: Winners, Grades, Reaction and Highlights from January 21

The January 21 episode of NXT hit the WWE Network airwaves with an announcement by general manager William Regal that a No. 1 contender tournament would begin to determine the next challenger to Sami Zayn's NXT Championship.

Finn Balor would be first to try to advance to the next round when he battled Curtis Axel. Balor's tag team partner, Hideo Itami, faced Tyler Breeze in the evening's main event. Wins by both babyfaces would set them on a collision course for a match in the semifinals.

Charlotte fought Sasha Banks for the NXT Women's Championship, while Wesley Blake and Buddy Murphy attempted to throw their names into tag title contention by battling The Vaudevillains.

Was the upstart tag team successful, or did Aiden English and Simon Gotch manage to keep their championship aspirations alive?

With the next NXT Takeover special rapidly approaching, Wednesday night's broadcast was yet another phenomenal episode of the WWE Network's signature program.

Here is all that went down this week.

Sami Zayn vs. Tye Dillinger

Tye Dillinger was in the ring, prepared for the night's opening contest, when the show began. Zayn's music played, and the NXT champion hit the ring, wasting no time in attacking Dillinger.

Zayn called out Kevin Owens, who left him lying to close out last week's broadcast.

Regal arrived and questioned Zayn's actions. Zayn responded, demanding a match with Owens. He accepted that it may be a non-title match, and he was fine with that.

Regal officially announced the bout for the February 11 Takeover special.

Grade

B

Analysis

It is excellent to see Zayn show some edge. His character, as popular as it is, does tend to straddle the fine line between babyface and goody two-shoes.

To see Kevin Owens bring that sort of personality out of the NXT champion will only help Zayn to improve his character and better prepare him for the main roster.

Regal's announcement of the February 11 main event instantly gives the show a match the likes of which will attract more viewers to the WWE Network. Considering the history between the competitors, and WWE's working relationship with Ring of Honor for the use of its video library, it would be awesome to see commentators touch on the background between Zayn and Owens.

No. 1 Contender Tournament: Finn Balor vs. Curtis Axel

Credit: WWE.com

In the first match of the No. 1 contender's tournament, Balor looked to continue his considerable roll. He met Axel, a main roster star.

The former intercontinental champion controlled the middle portion of the match, grounding Balor with a side headlock.

The international star fought back, using the Sling Blade clothesline. From there, he finished Axel off moments later with the top-rope double stomp.

Balor's win advances him to the semifinals of the tournament.

Result

Finn Balor defeated Curtis Axel via pinfall.

Grade

B

Analysis

Finn Balor has been one of the must-see elements of NXT over the last month, and it was great to see him knock off the dull Axel to kick off this week's show.

The match was fairly pedestrian, but Balor showed great fire in his comeback and had the fans behind him all the way.

While there will be those who point to Adrian Neville as the favorite to win the tournament, Balor would not appear out of place mixing it up with the top stars on the brand. In fact, he is more ready for the main roster than some of those likely being considered for upcoming call-ups.

NXT Women's Championship Match: Charlotte vs. Sasha Banks

The feud between Sasha Banks and NXT women's champion Charlotte stretched into another week when the former BFF teammates battled in singles competition.

Sasha attempted to outwrestle Charlotte early and did so with a fair amount of success. The champion fought back when action spilled to the outside.

Becky Lynch attempted to get involved, but Charlotte blasted her, sent Banks back into the squared circle and delivered a big knee drop.

Moments later, Lynch hit the ring and attacked Charlotte.

Tension was teased between the heels before Bayley hit the ring and chased them off. Bayley retrieved the women's title and looked admiringly at it before Charlotte ripped it away from her. Uncharacteristically, Bayley delivered the Belly-to-Bayley Suplex, leaving the champion lying and the fans responding favorably.

Regal's music played, and the NXT GM announced a Fatal 4-Way match for the title at Takeover on February 11.

Charlotte looked anything but pleased, while Bayley was ecstatic. The heels, on the other hand, allowed the tension to boil over, engaging in a shoving contest.

Result

Charlotte defeated Sasha Banks via disqualification.

Grade

A

Analysis

A great wrestling segment that was simple in execution.

Lynch is a Diva who has been relegated to sidekick far too long. She deserves the opportunity to showcase her skills more often, and the impending split from Banks should allow that to happen.

The best aspect of this segment was the return of Bayley and her suplex of Charlotte. For far too long, that character had allowed her fellow competitors to walk all over her. That changed when she left the women's champion lying and the NXT fans applauding her.

Wesley Blake and Buddy Murphy vs. the Vaudevillains

Credit: WWE.com

The Vaudevillains attempted to keep their tag team title aspirations alive Wednesday night when they battled the vastly improved Wesley Blake and Buddy Murphy in tag team action.

Murphy found himself isolated from his partner and under attack from Aiden English and Simon Gotch throughout most of the contest.

Murphy escaped a backbreaker-suplex combination and made the hot tag to Blake, who exploded into the match and used a big powerslam to pick up a near-fall. Murphy, from the ring apron, caught English with a big kick, allowing Blake to cover and score the pinfall victory.

Result

Buddy Murphy and Wesley Blake defeated The Vaudevillains.

Grade

B-

Analysis

Murphy and Blake were easily the most improved performers on the roster prior to Takeover: R Evolution. It looks like the two in-ring mechanics will have a shot at the tag titles, at least according to the commentary team during Wednesday's main event.

The Vaudevillains looked like the most likely team to unseat the Lucha Dragons but have suffered three high-profile losses in a row and suddenly find themselves out of title contention.

No. 1 Contender's Tournament: Hideo Itami vs. Tyler Breeze

The second of the No. 1 contender matches Wednesday night, Itami versus Breeze headlined this week's broadcast.

Breeze, like Axel earlier in the night, wore Itami down using a basic headlock. Despite showing added aggression, he could not put the Japanese star away.

Instead, Itami battled back, firing off a series of strikes. He responded to some trash-talking by Breeze with a running, single-legged kick to the face to score the win in the best match of the evening.

Result

Hideo Itami pinned Tyler Breeze.

Grade

B+

Analysis

This was the best match of the show, by far, and a signature performance from Itami thus far in his NXT stint.

The win sets up a match between Itami and partner Finn Balor that, if given time, should be a phenomenal contest.

Breeze has been in a bit of a slump since last fall's Takeover: Fatal 4-Way special, doing nothing of any real value and being conspicuous in his absence during R Evolution. What that means for him and his future remains a mystery, but the brand will always be better off with more contributions from a guy as talented as Prince Pretty.