WWE NXT Results, Winners, Live Grades, Reaction, Highlights From May 12

It is a new era in WWE NXT, highlighted by so many fresh faces, and many of those new stars promised to appear on the May 12 show.

NARAKU promised to make his in-ring debut as a message to NXT champion Tony D'Angelo.

Tatum Paxley and Lizzy Rain teamed up against Nikkita Lyons and Zaria. Kendal Grey hoped to find revenge against Kelani Jordan.

This was just the beginning of what this week had to offer. What would NXT deliver this week? Could more new acts define themselves in NXT?

Tatum Paxley and Lizzy Rain vs. Zaria and Nikkita Lyons

Kevin Sabitus/WWE via Getty Images

Lizzy Rain

Last Time in Action: Lizzy Rain defeated Nikkita Lyons (NXT, April 28). Tatum Paxley defeated Blake Monroe in a Casket match to retain her Women's North American Championship, and Zaria defeated Sol Ruca in a Last Woman Standing match (NXT: Revenge - Week 2, April 21).

While Zaria tried to assert her dominance early, it was Paxley and Rain that clicked as a team and took over, clearing the ring into the first picture-in-picture break.

The heels slowed the pace down for a time by isolating Paxley. When Rain got the hot tag, she lit up Lyons and nearly picked up the win.

After Lyons ducked a 450 Splash from Paxley, Zaria walked out on her tag team partner and left her to take another Thunderstruck for a Rain victory.

While Rain just arrived in NXT, she is clearly already both a major priority and a fan favorite. Her infectiousness energy carried this match.

This was good action, particularly when Zaria was in control, but it did fall into a formulaic pattern where the match relied upon the hot tags to Rain then Paxley to light up the crowd.

It would have been nice to see Paxley and Rain try more cohesive double-team offense, especially since it seems like this could be a partnership that lasts.

Zaria was protected in the finish, but she did invalidate the point of her competing in the match in the first place. She had a chance to earn a title opportunity and chose instead to walk away.

Booking like this can quickly devolve into making the heel look dumb, which would be a shame as Zaria has played a smart manipulator since she fully turned heel.

A victory for Rain should get her a one-on-one title shot against Paxley, which will be a fun challenge for the new arrival, and it would not be shocking to see Rain capture the gold.

Result

Rain and Paxley def. Lyons and Zaria by pinfall.

Grade

B+

Notable Moments and Observations

Booker T did a good job selling fully why Zaria was in this match under protest as she did not want to be in tag matches anymore.

The start of Zaria v. Rain was a fantastic tease of their chemistry as they clunked heads and hit hard.

As the heels isolated Paxley, the crowd chanted "We want Lizzy" and went wild for her hot tag in just her second NXT match.

Zaria's confidence as a heel has added to her in-ring work. She finally truly works like a dominant monster.

NARAKU vs. Lince Dorado

Last Time in Action: This was NARAKU's WWE debut while this was Lince Dorado's first NXT match since February 3, 2021 where he lost alongside Gran Metalik to Legado del Fantasma in the men's Dusty Classic.

Dorado showed off his veteran experience with fast-moving lucha libre to keep NARAKU on his toes, but the former Evil still sealed his first NXT win with Enter the Abyss (formerly called Everything is Evil, an STO).

NARAKU made clear afterward to the camera that he is "pure evil".

This was a fairly basic showcase for NARAKU. He gave Dorado more offense than he probably should have but picked up the win in the end.

His entrance presentation was more important this week than his in-ring work. He comes out as a serious threat immediately, bathed in purple smoke.

Hopefully, he can show off more against higher level competition in the near-future because this match did not make him come off as a serious threat yet in the ring.

Result

NARAKU def. Dorado by pinfall.

Grade

C

Notable Moments and Observations

NXT needs to get the pronunciation of NARAKU's name down quickly. The crowd followed the example of Mike Rome: Nah-rah-koo. Booker T kept saying Nah-roh-koo, and Vic Joseph kept emphasizing the second syllable over the third.

It was jarring to hear Booker mentioning a company like Dragon Gate.