WWE NXT Results, Winners, Live Grades, Reaction, Highlights From October 13

As WWE NXT continued to set the stage for Halloween Havoc, the October 13 show included a massive No. 1 contender battle between Tony D'Angelo and Myles Borne.

Continuing the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic, Fraxiom collided with Noam Dar and Romeo Moreno, and The Vanity Project faced the underdog duo of Chazz "Starboy" Hall and Mini Vikingo.

Tristan Angels and Saquon Shugars also looked to settle their issues in the ring. Wren Sinclair appeared after her shocking battle royal win last week.

For live grades, highlights and full results for NXT, keep reading below.

Dusty Tag Team Classic: The Vanity Project vs. Chazz "Starboy" Hall and Mini Vikingo

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The Vanity Project

Last Time in Action: Chazz "Starboy" Hall and Mini Vikingo defeated BirthRight to advance in the Dusty Classic (NXT, September 29); Ricky Smokes and Brad Baylor defeated Cruz Montana and EK Prosper (NXT, September 15).

Starboy caused problems for Smokes early, but it was a hot tag to Vikingo that truly caused problems for The Vanity Project.

They took over the ring until Myka Lockwood distracted them, allowing Smokes and Baylor to lay out the underdog team into the first Picture-in-Picture break.

Out of the break, Vikingo laid out Baylor with a Spanish Fly, forcing both men to tag in their partners. Hall laid into the champion including a Double Pele Kick then a Slice Bread and Standing Shooting Star on Smokes.

Smokes kicked out after a Springboard 450 Splash. Hall DDTed Baylor into a 630 Splash from Vikingo, but Smokes broke up the pin attempt.

Smokes got his knees up against a diving Starboy and followed up with Hit and Quit It for the victory.

Hall and Vikingo looked great throughout with unreal athleticism on display, but as this match went on, it became increasingly clear that the underdogs had no chance.

They hit the champions with everything in their arsenal, only to fall fairly easily at the end to the champions' finishing move despite them fighting from behind throughout.

The ultimate goal was to say that Vanity Project were just too good for the underdogs to take down, but the action said it was the champions that could not keep up with the new team.

Vanity Project needed to win at least once as the current NXT tag team champions, but hopefully they will get more actively involved in their semifinal battle.

Result

Baylor and Smokes def. Hall and Vikingo by pinfall to advance to the semifinals of the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic.

Grade

B

Notable Moments and Observations

• The show started with a recap of last week's main event.
• While Booker T praised Vikingo, he also called out that his offense was not as effective due to his size.
• The praise for Starboy as a representative of the WWE ID Program did not land when so many have recently left that program, including one of Starboy's primary rivals in EVOLVE, Cappuccino Jones.

Saquon Shugars vs. Tristan Angels

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Saquon Shugars

Last Time in Action: Saquon Shugars alongside Tony D'Angelo lost to Mason Rook for an NXT Championship opportunity (NXT, September 15); Tristan Angels lost to Zilla Fatu (NXT, September 1).

Shugars wanted to get his hands on Angels immediately and backed up his words with action once the bell rang.

He had Angels reeling, caused him to toss steel chairs into the ring into the commercial break.

Angels tricked Shugars during the break and took over the action. Guided by the support of the crowd, Shugars fought free of multiple submission attempts to fight back.

Shugars went for a Moonsault but hesitated due to the pain in his jaw, allowing Angels to duck it. Angels then caught Shugars with a Knee Drop Bulldog for the victory.

This was ugly action that came off fully as two green stars struggling to keep the pace. It got worse down the stretch as nothing seemed to land.

Both men have charisma to spare, but both have had struggles like this early in their NXT solo runs. Shugars was not hitting his offense clean.

The worst though was the struggle of Angels to hit his finishing move, leading to a flat and unimpressive finish.

It all looked so bad that NXT did not replay anything from the finish of the contest and quickly tried to shift the focus to the next segment.

If this was supposed to show that Shugars is only a couple steps away from challenging for the NXT Championship, it was a colossal failure.

Given Angels' frequent attempts to cheat to survive this match, this is only the beginning of this rivalry. Hopefully they will learn from the first failing.

Result

Angels def. Shugars by pinfall.

Grade

D

Notable Moments and Observations

• Before heading out for his match, Sugars promised to go for gold after taking down Angels. Grayson Waller arrived to warn Shugars he is not ready.
• Shugars walking out of the interview trash-talking his way into his entrance was a great visual and should be replicated in his future entrances.

Wren Sinclair Officially Gets the Shot at Kelani Jordan at Halloween Havoc

Wren Sinclair explained that she was no longer scared to take risks. She was stepping up for herself and Kendal Grey in seeking out the NXT Women's Championship.

Kelani Jordan interrupted to declare that she refused to face Wren since she manipulated her way to this opportunity, offering to face Kali Armstrong, anyone from TNA or the real Lady Shani.

Robert Stone arrived and asked the crowd what they wanted, officially announcing that Lani would defend against Wren at Halloween Havoc.

This was a long segment to only confirm the inevitable match that was set up last week.

Wren struggled with her words more than usual, leaving Lani looking like the far more confident promo in comparison.

This was especially rough when Wren took some heel-like shortcuts to get to this spot, while Lani made the best points despite speaking as the cowardly heel.

Stone continues to be a wishy-washy general manager whose decisions are driven by whoever he spoke to last, which makes for a terrible authority figure.

Grade

C-

Notable Moments and Observations

• Izzi Dame explained to Niko Vance in an awkward pre-tape that she wanted to figure out Zaria and show everyone her flaws.
• Wren still did not truly explain why she stole Shani's spot and mask beyond a half-hearted apology.
• Stone and Wren also never truly explained what happened to her suspension.
• Kelani put her hair down for this appearance, showing off her new long blonde flowy hair.
• Cruz Montana encouraged Lizzy Rain before he got a call from his mother. Dion Lennox then laid out Montana and re-called his mother, promising to send him back to a dark place.

Reina de Reinas Championship: La Catalina (c) vs. Kali Armstrong

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La Catalina

Last Time in Action: La Catalina and Kali Armstrong both lost in the No. 1 contender battle royal (NXT, October 6).

Catalina danced around Kali early in this contest, but that only angered the challenger, who exposed the cement under the padding on the floor.

The Reina de Reinas champion fought back with a Senton off the steel steps to send the match to a PIP break.

Catalina tried to run around the strikes of Kali, but the challenger continued to show the danger behind her strong strikes.

Kali went for the Kali Connection, but Catalina knocked her to the floor onto the exposed cement followed by a Shining Wizard to retain the Reina de Reinas Championship.

It was certainly a choice to deliver just one women's match over two hours when NXT's women's division is so far ahead of the men's, but at least the one match was good.

Kali especially drove the action, but the two had obvious chemistry from the jump. The match flowed with solid drama to sell the possible title change.

The finish did not fully land, especially the telegraphed cement bump that is both overly dangerous and looked ineffective on camera, but this was overall a strong showcase of two rising stars.

Before long, NXT will need to strap up Kali, who works every match like she is already the champion, which makes it hard to see her losing so many big opportunities.

Result

Catalina def. Kali by pinfall to retain the AAA Reina de Reinas Championship.

Grade

B+

Notable Moments and Observations

• Catalina has a solid flow to her offense, but she needs to find more impactful signature offense. She cannot just rely on Headscissors.
• Kali went to Robert Stone's office to complain about last week, and Stone announced that he got approval for her to challenge Catalina.
• Wren Sinclair ran into Myles Borne backstage and called him selfish. Kendal Grey arrived to announce she was cleared, and she and Wren started strategizing.
• EK Prosper found Chazz "Starboy" Hall and Mini Vikingo and encouraged them. The Vanity Project mocked them, and the trios agreed to fight next week.

Dusty Tag Team Classic: Fraxiom vs. Noam Dar and Romeo Moreno

Last Time in Action: Nathan Frazer and Axiom defeated DarkState to advance in the Dusty Classic (NXT, September 29); Noam Dar and Romeo Moreno defeated Los Americanos to advance in the Dusty Classic (NXT, September 22).

Dar and Frazer quickly exchanged submissions then tagged out as Axiom and Romeo picked up the pace.

Axiom showed extra aggression early and managed to cause Romeo to ccidentally kick Dar off the apron. Frazer then tossed Axiom into Romeo to send the match into the PIP break.

Out of the break, the action intensified. Frazer almost got the win off a bottom rope Spanish Fly on Romeo. Axiom ducked Romeo flying, and he went face-first onto the announce table.

This left The Scottish Supernova fighting solo against Fraxiom. Frazer and Axiom double-teamed Dar, including an elevated Superkick and Frog Splash for the near-fall.

Fraxiom almost sealed it with a Diving High-Low Combination, but Romeo finally got back into it, breaking up the pin.

Romeo sent Frazer into Axiom then laid out Axiom with a Super Fireman's Carry Slam off Frazer's back. Dar returned to set up a Double Nova Roller for the victory.

Following up on possibly the NXT TV match of the year, the rematch between these teams might have been even better than their first encounter.

It was non-stop action that used big spots to set up unique in-ring dynamics, working this almost as a Tornado Tag with how much all four men got involved.

There was more action in this one match than there is on most weeks of NXT television, and it solidified the importance of this tournament for Dar and Romeo.

This is NXT's chance to make them the next best tag team. Given how poorly SmackDown books Fraxiom, that may only matter to NXT, but these two are absolutely ready to carry this division.

Fraxiom should get more rub on SmackDown from this performance, but if the group does not, NXT will always have room to use a team this dynamic.

Result

Romeo and Dar def. Fraxiom by pinfall to advance to the semifinals of the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic.

Grade

A+

Notable Moments and Observations

• Dar's seamless counters into submissions made him look more dangerous in this match than he has in years.
• BirthRight interrupted The Wagner Brothers' interview, but the AAA tag team champions were not intimidated.

No. 1 Contender for NXT Championship: Tony D'Angelo vs. Myles Borne

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Myles Borne, Tony D'Angelo and Grayson Waller

Last Time in Action: Myles Borne lost the North American Championship to Jackson Drake (NXT Heatwave, August 30

Borne went right after D'Angelo, quickly bruising the back of Tony D, including tossing him hard into the steel steps.

D'Angelo fought back and sent Borne back-first onto the steps to send the action into the final PIP break.

Back from break, Borne ducked a Clothesline and responded with a Dropkick. He kept the pressure on the former champion, Irish Whipping him into multiple turnbuckles.

D'Angelo fired back and caught Borne diving with a Spear for a near-fall. D'Angelo caught Borne on a Borne Again attempt and flipped him into a Powerbomb for another near-fall.

Tony D then caught him with Dead to Rights for the victory.

Afterward, Tony D allowed a masked man in the ring, who revealed himself to be Tavion Heights. He laid out Borne to stand tall over his former friend.

While this action was good overall, it never kicked into a top gear down the stretch. Borne seemed to be uncertain how to keep the flow as D'Angelo hit one move after another rather than a true back-and-forth.

Perhaps the two ran out of time, but it was tough watching this have to follow the best match of the Dusty Classic so far, which probably should have closed the show out instead.

D'Angelo was the right man to win as the heel Waller needs a strong babyface challenger. Borne will likely collide with Heights in a stipulation battle to put their rivalry behind them.

Halloween Havoc is shaping up well to be a more dramatic show than Heatwave, though NXT has some choices to make on what should be the priority matches for the event.

At this stage, the finals of the Dusty Classic and the NXT Women's Championship match have more hype and potential than the NXT Championship clash.

Result

D'Angelo def. Borne by pinfall to earn an NXT Championship match at Halloween Havoc.

Grade

B-

Notable Moments and Observations

• D'Angelo cut a pre-taped promo on Borne earlier in the night, promising that he was ready while Borne was not.
• Booker T oddly sounded genuinely disgusted by Vic Joseph mentioning Bubba Ray and Busted Open Radio.
• Grayson Waller watched the action backstage from the NXT lounge. It was odd he only spoke to Saquon Shugars during the night.
• Borne's shoulder was up on the pin, but the referee still counted the three.
• The show ended with Danhausen leaving a note to Robert Stone that he needed to make him the host of Halloween Havoc or be cursed.

Vic Joseph ran down the card for next week:

• Cruz Montana vs. Dion Lennox.
• Dusty Classic: The Creed Brothers vs. Hank Walker and Tank Ledger.
• Dusty Classic: The Wagner Brothers vs. BirthRight.

Final Word

NXT was up-and-down this week. While the Dusty Classic is carrying the action side of the product, the top title pictures are not moving as smoothly as needed to hype up Halloween Havoc.

Even though the premium live event card is shaping up well, the actual excitement around the event needs a severe ramp-up.

It is time to sell not just why the talent want the gold but why fans should anticipate these competitors fighting each other.

NXT is still a show that relies far more on its in-ring product than Raw or SmackDown, and the talent can make-or-break the episode through their work as they are still learning.

NXT has plenty of talent, but who are the names that are going to step up next to truly become the future stars of WWE?

That remains to be seen.

Final Grade: C