WWE NXT Results, Winners, Live Grades, Reaction, Highlights From September 22

The September 22 edition of WWE NXT from the Performance Center in Orlando, Florida featured the return of the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic.

NXT champions Kelani Jordan and Zaria attempted to impose their will against potential threats to their gold, Reina de Reinas champion La Catalina and Thea Hail.

Zilla Fatu teamed up with Doran Van Dux and Sean Legacy to battle BirthRight in the ongoing conflict over Fatu's role in NXT.

For all the results, live grades and highlights, check out the reaction below.

Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic: Noam Dar and Romeo Moreno vs. Los Americanos

Last Time in Action: Romeo Moreno and Noam Dar lost to The Creed Brothers (NXT, September 8). This was the first time Los Americanos had competed in NXT since they lost to The Vanity Project at Stand & Deliver (April 4).

Los Americanos took the early edge in this contest until Dar and Romeo caught both luchadors in Guillotine Chokes.

Bravo powered Romeo onto Dar to break up both submissions then Bravo dived onto both competitors on the outside into the first Picture-in-Picture break.

Back from break, Romeo escaped the isolation of Los Americanos and tagged in Noam for the hot tag, laying into both Rayo and Bravo.

Bravo fired back by catching both men for an Airplane Spin into a double Diving Headbutt from Los Americanos for a near-fall.

Romeo caught Bravo with a Superkick then saved Noam from a pin after the Bitter End from Rayo.

In a flurry afterward, Rayo dived onto Romeo outside, and Noam countered a Tyler Driver into a Kneebar. Bravo fought free into a German Suplex.

Los Americanos drove down Noam into a combination Top-Rope Hurricanrana and Frog Splash for a near-fall.

Noam took out Rayo with a Back Elbow then a Romeo top-rope Fireman's Carry into a High-Low combination on Bravo sealed the win.

This started strong but went a few minutes too long, losing the pace down the stretch.

Some memorable individual spots sold the impressive athleticism of both teams. It just seemed like the teams lost their way late and had to re-heat the action to get to the finish.

It was nice to see Romeo pick up the win, but the climax of the match was when Noam caught Bravo in the Kneebar. A tap-out there would have delivered a better overall match.

The right team absolutely won. Time and again, Romeo and Noam have shown out in NXT. They should be one of the teams to go far in this tournament.

In fact, even with The Creed Brothers looking to build back momentum from their return to NXT and two fresh tag team champions that could use the highlight, Romeo and Noam would be the most exciting team to win this whole tournament.

Hopefully, they at least get to face Fraxiom again in a few weeks as the first match between those teams was a dark-horse match of the year contender in NXT.

Result

Romeo and Noam def. Bravo and Rayo by pinfall to advance in the Dusty Classic.

Grade

B

Notable Moments and Observations

• The show started with a video package narrated by Cody Rhodes to talk up the legacy of the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic.

• Vic Joseph joked about what kind of experience Rayo and Bravo could have in a tournament like this even if they have never competed in the tournament (since we cannot acknowledge Pete Dunne and Tyler Bate's history).
• It is a shame that NXT has not kept more consistent with the Dusty Classic yearly, especially since the NXT women could also represent more in this tournament.

Kali Armstrong vs. Skylar Raye

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Kali Armstrong

Last Time in Action: Kali Armstrong defeated Lizzy Rain (NXT, September 15); Skylar Raye lost to Reina Volcan (NXT, July 21).

Raye kept moving to try to disorient Armstrong, attempting frequent pins early in this contest. Armstrong caught Raye out of the corner and planted her with a Powerslam for a near-fall into the PIP break.

Out of the break, Raye laid into Armstrong and hit a Frog Splash for a near-fall. Armstrong responded with a Spinebuster for her own near-fall.

Armstrong caught Raye diving into a Scoop Powerslam. Raye then ducked the Kali Connection, sending Kali into the referee.

Reina Vulcan arrived to lay out Armstrong with a Spinning Powerslam followed by a Spin-Out Powerbomb to Raye that set her in position to pin Armstrong for three.

This was ugly. Raye looked several steps off throughout this match including an early miss where she kicked air several feet ahead of her opponent.

Armstrong did not look good on the defensive, failing to sell the offense of Raye believably. It did not help though that Raye was trying too hard to use power and impact moves against the much bigger Armstrong.

While NXT is often a testing ground for talent, the brand has gotten better about not highlighting talent before they are ready to be seen on TV.

Raye looked completely out of her depth in this moment, yet she was given a (dirty) pinfall on Armstrong who has been on the rise to this point.

This likely will set up Armstrong vs. Volcan while NXT tries to prepare Raye more to take the next step. However, this was a bad segment for all involved, except maybe Volcan who is at least finally back on TV.

Result

Raye def. Armstrong by pinfall.

Grade

F

Notable Moments and Observations

• Before the match, Raye explained in a pre-tape that she was taking her fate into her own hands with her attack last week and performance tonight.
• Raye should not be hitting Shoulder Blocks on Armstrong with this much success given their noticeable size difference.
• Kendal Grey spoke with a therapist about her vertigo and concern about losing everything to this injury.

Kelani Jordan and Zaria vs. La Catalina and Thea Hail

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Thea Hail and Zaria

Last Time in Action: Kelani Jordan and Zaria lost to Kendal Grey and Lola Vice (NXT, June 16). This was La Catalina's first-ever NXT match under her current AAA name and the first time she had teamed with Thea Hail.

Hail went right after Zaria at the bell, and she and Catalina kept the pressure on, including a dive to the floor onto the heels into the commercial break.

The heels managed to isolate Hail, who managed to kick out a Zaria Spear before tagging in the Reina de Reinas champion.

Thea managed to reverse Zaria's F5 into a Jackknife pin for a surprise win.

Beyond the heartwarming connection of Hail and Catalina, this was a fairly forgettable match despite all the talent involved.

It was also unnecessary for Hail to get a pin on Zaria to earn her shot at the Women's North American Championship as she was already in position to challenge.

In particular, this all made NXT's top champions look weaker at a time when both could use a boost in credibility.

Jordan had not been able to truly run with the NXT Women's Championship yet, and Zaria still feels stuck half-way between face and heel.

Result

Hail and Catalina def. Zaria and Jordan by pinfall.

Grade

C+

Notable Moments and Observations

• Catalina and Hail came out together, and Hail stole her teammates' hat for a brief time to try it out.
• Zaria has new music that sounds like her old theme was run through a computer program to make it more generic.
• Shiloh Hill offered red mist to Saquon Shugars in his fight with Tristan Angels.
• NXT highlighted footage from earlier in the day where Robert Stone had to escort the suspended Wren Sinclair off the premises.

Dion Lennox Gets Personal with Cruz Montana

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Cruz Montana

Cruz Montana took the ring to talk about his future, only to be quickly interrupted by DarkState.

El Boricua told Dion Lennox to face him one-on-one in the ring, and Lennox agreed.

Lennox made clear that he did not appreciate Montana calling EK Prosper the future. Montana did not back down on his comments since he and Prosper worked to get to WWE off their hard work.

Lennox got personal by calling Montana's wife a "drug dealer" then called him a "drug addict". It got to be too much, leading to El Boricua to throw hands until security intervened.

NXT had something with the dynamic of Montana and Keanu Carver but has instead pivoted to Montana and Lennox, which already feels flat.

Lennox is not a promo guy and certainly not a top challenger in NXT. He does not come off as a real threat to Montana.

Throughout this segment, he delivered his lines competently but without the fire of his veteran rival.

All signs point to this as a test for Lennox that he will struggle to pass, especially while trying to keep up with a fresh name in NXT.

Grade

D

Notable Moments and Observations

• Lennox continues to sell that he deserves better than the indie wrestlers that did the work outside WWE.
• That would be a fine motivation, but Lennox needs more character than former NFL guy that is a good athlete.

The Creed Brothers vs. Harley Riggins and Jax Presley

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The Creed Brothers

Last Time in Action: Julius and Brutus Creed defeated Romeo Moreno and Noam Dar (NXT, September 8). Harley Riggins and Jax Presley defeated Harlem Lewis and Mike Derudder (LFG, May 3). This was Riggins and Presley's NXT debut.

The Creed Brothers walked in confident but quickly found themselves struggling with the speed and power of Riggins and Presley.

While the new team had Brutus and Julius scrambling, The Creed Brothers just needed a few seconds to catch Riggins with a Double Elevated Powerbomb to win.

This was a classic NXT squash where the losing team got all the offense, only to fall to a finisher from the talent that actually matter.

Riggins showed off some decent athleticism throughout, but this match did not accomplish its goal.

The Creed Brothers should have dominated to sell themselves as the true favorites in the tournament. Instead, they spent three minutes putting over a team that was not at their level.

Result

Brutus and Julius def. Riggins and Presley by pinfall to advance in the Dusty Classic.

Grade

D+

Notable Moments and Observations

• The Creed Brothers had new music and a fresh entrance presentation, and none of it works. They are going for imposing but landed on bland.
• Riggins and Presley did not get an entrance for this match but got strong consistent offense once the bell rang.
• Vic Joseph especially popped for Riggins hitting a Tumbleweed out of the corner at his 6'4" size.
• Vic tried to compare Riggins to Kevin Nash, but Nash is a full half-foot taller than Riggins.

BirthRight vs. Zilla Fatu, Sean Legacy and EK Prosper

Last Time in Action: Channing "Stacks" Lorenzo, Uriah Connors and Lexis King alongside Charlie Dempsey defeated Sean Legacy, Dorian Van Dux, Noam Dar and Romeo Moreno (NXT, August 25). This was the first time Zilla Fatu, Legacy and EK Prosper teamed as a trio.

Zilla was a house of fire from the beginning of the match, running over BirthRight, including diving onto all of them at ringside into the commercial break.

Connors isolated Prosper, almost beating him with a Stunner. Zilla got the hot tag and sent BirthRight into full retreat.

Arianna Grace distracted the referee from seeing a tag, setting up Legacy to 450 Splash right into the knees of Connor who rolled up Legacy to win.

Afterward, King trash-talked Zilla only to take a knife edge to the throat. BirthRight pulled King to safety before he could take a Samoan Spike.

NXT's desperate need to immediately make Zilla a big star is far too blatant to feel natural, and it leads to awkward matches like this.

Even when Zilla is on the losing team, he was constantly the explosive competitor and barely took any offense from BirthRight.

After the match, Zilla had to immediately get his heat back as well while Legacy and Prosper were bystanders through it all.

It is nice to see BirthRight finally getting some wins, but it is likely all to give Zilla their momentum by the end.

Result

Connors, Stacks and King def. Legacy, Prosper and Zilla by pinfall.

Grade

C

Notable Moments and Observations

• Legacy told Dorian Van Dux to stay in the back since he was not medically cleared and reveal Prosper as his replacement for the night.
• Only Zilla got an entrance for this match.
• Zilla is trying hard to get over the catchphrase "Hello". Jey Uso got "Yeet" over, so it might work.

Mason Rook Tells His Story to Grayson Waller

Grayson Waller refused to let Mason Rook have a microphone to start, mocking the big man as the lazy star that he was brought back to replace.

Rook finally took the mic and warned Waller that he is the best big man in the business, and he will prove it by crushing the NXT champion when the bell rings.

There is no question that Waller is the best talker in NXT, but this was not about Waller's mic skills. This was about him elevating Rook.

He did just that by throwing out lazy lines about Rook's weight while giving the fresh star a chance to deliver firm threats that seemed to rattle the champion.

While Rook has a lot of work to do to get anywhere near Waller's promo work, he showed enough to sell that he was worthy of standing up next to the champion.

By the end, it was clear that Waller vs. Rook next week should at least be interesting, even if the result is a foregone conclusion.

Rook is not ready to carry the top title yet. However, he might show fans in the ring why he is going to be in the future.

Grade

B+

Notable Moments and Observations

• Robert Stone talked up Mason Rook backstage and promised him mic time. Hank Walker and Tank Ledger arrived to also hype him up.
• Zaria found out she was facing Thea Hail next week when an old video appeared on the tron from Zaria doing school theater. Zaria ran off as Izzi Dame mocked her.

Vic Joseph highlighted next week's card:

• NXT Championship: Waller (c) vs. Rook.
• North American Championship: Zaria (c) vs. Hail.
• Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic: Fraxiom vs. DarkState.
• Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic: BirthRight vs. Mini Vikingo and Chazz Hall.
• Myles Borne returns.

Final Word

This was about the worst of what NXT can deliver in two hours.

After a solid opener, every other match felt too short, and none had enough character to sell any of the talent.

The promo work was flat as is the current story direction of the overall brand.

The most interesting women in NXT right now are a suspended Wren Sinclair and an apparently injured Kendal Grey.

Grayson Waller is doing his best to start his NXT Championship reign off strong, and he and Mason Rook did the work in the main event.

However, all the talent interested in going after the NXT Championship two weeks ago seemed noticeably uninterested in the title this week beyond Rook.

NXT has refueled the roster after a major call-up spike earlier in the year, but it did not feel like it tonight. This was the showcase of a brand that looked devoid of talent.

Final Grade: D