WWE NXT Results: Winners, Grades, Reaction and Highlights from April 8

Just two weeks removed from a weekend in which NXT was on display for thousands of fans to see at Axxess, WWE presented a special episode of its Wednesday night staple live on the WWE Network.

Hideo Itami, Finn Balor, Tyler Breeze and Adrian Neville competed in a tournament for the right to represent the brand in the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal, one of the marquee matches on the WrestleMania card.

Rabid fans filled the SAP Center in San Jose to watch the best and brightest of WWE's future battle it out. They rooted on their favorites and brought the same energy to the event that a crowd in Full Sail University in Tampa does, making the matches feel even more important than they already were.

By now you know who emerged victorious but how did he get there?

Let's take a look at everything that went down when NXT hit the WWE Network airwaves for this week's broadcast.

Tournament Semifinal No. 1: Hideo Itami vs. Adrian Neville

Itami defeated Jason Jordan to advance to the semifinals while Neville ousted Kalisto.

An outstanding, hard-hitting battle kicked off this week's broadcast, complete with brutal and violent strikes.

The stalling threatened to hurt the match early but Neville took control of the bout and wore Itami down. The Japanese star mounted a comeback and, at one point, attempted the running-corner dropkick but was caught square in the jaw with a sidekick from Neville.

It did not phase Itami, who blasted the former NXT champion with the Shotgun Kick and scored the upset victory via pinfall.

The contest was an outstanding way to kick off the show and proof that, regardless of whether they are in front of the fans in Tampa or San Jose, the stars of NXT work hard to deliver a stellar in-ring product.

Match Grade: B-

Tournament Semifinal No. 2: Finn Balor vs. Tyler Breeze

Breeze knocked off Bull Dempsey in a rare heel vs. heel match while Balor defeated Baron Corbin in an all-babyface affair to advance to this point.

In only five minutes of ring time, Balor and Breeze still managed to entertain the crowd, though a great deal of that was the presence Balor carries himself with. He is such a captivating performer, from his all-time great entrance to his in-ring strong style.

Balor scored the win over Prince Pretty with the Coup De Grace in an average match, setting up the final-round battle with former tag team partner Itami.

Breeze was never really a threat to win this, which is interesting considering the fact that he was given a clean win over Itami last week in the main event. His use over the last few months has been head-scratching, to say the least.

Match Grade: C+

Tournament Final: Finn Balor vs. Hideo Itami

In the night's main event, Balor and Itami clashed for the second time on NXT television, all for the opportunity to step foot on the WrestleMania stage and perform in front of 76,000 fans.

The crowd was largely behind Balor but Itami more than had his fair share of fans, the chants for each competitor alternating back and forth throughout the bout. 

The contest failed to live up to their previous encounter but it was still an incredibly physical bout between two of the best strikers in the industry. Both competitors countered each other's signature maneuvers numerous times but in the end, Balor escaped the GTS only to run into the Shotgun Kick.

For the fans in San Jose for WrestleMania, they witnessed two of the very best international competitors squaring off at Axxess, the brainchild of WWE.

While the match was merely okay as compared to really good, or even great, it helped cap off the show-long story and gave Itami a signature win, which he desperately needed following last week's disappointing loss to Tyler Breeze in the Best 2-Out-Of-3 Falls match.

Match Grade: C+

Show Analysis:

The April 8 episode of NXT was a great way to highlight just how much of an impact the young stars of WWE's future made on the fans that invaded the Bay Area for this year's WrestleMania festivities.

By portraying competitors such as Itami, Balor and Neville the way that they did, fans had a greater respect and awareness of them and the brand. The word of mouth that likely spread among fans that weekend will only help NXT in the long run, leading to more eyes on the product.

Was the wrestling as great as one would hope given the talent involved? No, but there were restrictions on the time. What was great was the way fans were taken through the journey of Hideo Itami as he won his semifinal and final round matches, the embarked on his first WrestleMania appearance.

It was a great piece of film making, one that could have been saved for a network documentary special if so desired.

Next week, things will get back to normal but for this week, the special Axxess episode of NXT was a fantastic presentation from top to bottom, well worth a watch for the backstage stuff involving Itami alone.