WWE NXT Results: Winners, Grades, Reaction and Highlights from July 1

Just three days before an epic NXT Championship match in Tokyo, Finn Balor and Kevin Owens found themselves on opposite sides of a gigantic tag team main event on the WWE Network.

Balor partnered with Samoa Joe to battle Owens and Rhyno, bringing together several different rivalries and stories for one star-studded marquee match.

Would Balor knock off Owens, gaining momentum heading into the most important match of his career, or would the best heel in the industry once again get one over on a fan favorite?

The Vaudevillains continued making their case for an NXT Tag Team Championship match, battling The Mechanics.

Tyler Breeze would continue chasing another shot at the most coveted prize in NXT, battling Tye Dillinger, while Carmella would face her greatest test to date in the form of Emma.

What all went down on the action-packed episode of NXT on the WWE Network?

Find out now with this look back at the night's winners, grades, analysis and highlights.

The Vaudevillains vs. the Mechanics

Aiden English and Simon Gotch continued their trek back into tag team title contention Wednesday night, squaring off with Scott Dawson and Dash Wilder, known collectively as The Mechanics.

The heels isolated Gotch from his partner, working over the strong man until he made the hot tag to English.

The Whirling Dervish earned the Vaudevillains the victory.

Result

The Vaudevillains defeated The Mechanics

Grade

C-

Analysis

Contrary to what their treatment at the hands of WWE Creative would suggest, Wilder and Dawson are a very talented team. Dawson has shown flashes of the old-school enforcers, such as Arn Anderson, while Wilder shows steady improvement with every passing performance.

The Vaudevillains are one of the funnest acts in pro wrestling today, so to see them finally gaining momentum heading into the dog days of summer is nice. Whether they can supplant Enzo Amore and Colin Cassady as the top contenders to Buddy Murphy and Wesley Blake's tag titles remains to be seen.

For now, though, the match was an entertaining sprint of a contest aimed at rebuilding English and Gotch as threats in the tag division, and it succeeded.

Baron Corbin vs. Tucker Knight

Credit: WWE.com

Baron Corbin returned to NXT television this week with another squash match.

Corbin scored the victory with End of Days in mere seconds.

Result

Baron Corbin defeated Tucker Knight

Grade

F

Analysis

Lather, rinse, repeat.

This was another dominant win for Corbin in a squash match as management continues to fight the idea of giving the Lone Wolf of NXT anything else better to do.

Carmella vs. Emma

Credit: WWE.com

Emma's continued transformation from lovable babyface to heel continued this week as she squared off with Carmella.

Emma, the superior wrestler, grounded Carmella and worked over her midsection with a body scissors.

The Princess of Staten Island mounted a comeback with a few shoulder blocks and a big boot, but it was all for naught as Emma forced a tapout with the Emma Lock.

Result

Emma defeated Carmella

Grade

C-

Analysis

This was more of a showcase for Emma than anything, suggesting that the Australian-born Diva may be in line for a future NXT Championship match. And few deserve it more. One of the most talented workers on the roster, she has long been misused.

Carmella looked fine here, slightly better than she was the last time she competed, which is always a positive. Continued work against a wrestler the caliber of Emma will only help her improvement and development.

Tyler Breeze vs. Tye Dillinger

Credit: WWE.com

Tyler Breeze continued float aimlessly around the roster this week as he met Tye Dillinger in singles competition.

Dillinger basked in the chants of "10," in reference to his live event gimmick. He dominated the majority of the two-minute match, but Breeze caught him with the Beauty Shot for the win.

Result

Tyler Breeze defeated Tye Dillinger

Grade

D-

Analysis

Much like Baron Corbin, Breeze is in a holding pattern. He has done nothing of note since losing to Finn Balor back at the last Takeover special, and this was yet another meaningless match that he won without reaping any real benefit.

Here is an idea: Why not put Breeze and Corbin together in a program?

Breeze would have something to do and Corbin could learn a great deal from someone who has been around as long as Prince Pretty.

Samoa Joe and Finn Balor vs. Kevin Owens and Rhyno

Rhyno and Owens isolated Balor after an opening flurry from the babyfaces.

In a bit of villainous genius from Owens, he replicated John Cena's signature offense on Balor but failed to execute the Attitude Adjustment, with the Demon fighting out of the maneuver.

A hot tag to Joe led to a showdown between he and Rhyno.

A heel miscommunication spot saw Rhyno deliver the Gore to Owens, which Balor capitalized on, landing the Coup de Grace for the pinfall victory.

Result

Finn Balor and Samoa Joe defeated Kevin Owens and Rhyno

Grade

C

Analysis

This set the stage well enough for Saturday morning's NXT Championship match between Balor and Owens, but as a match, it was nowhere near the quality of match that one would expect from the quality of performers in this bout.

The heat segment on Balor, who is competing in such a high-profile bout this weekend, was a bit curious. After all, why make him look weak heading into his moment in the spotlight?

Luckily, they made up for it by having him become just the second man in WWE to pin Owens.