WWE NXT Results, Winners, Live Grades, Reaction, Highlights From October 20

Despite Halloween Havoc 2026 being less than two weeks away, only two matches are currently confirmed for the event emanating from WWE's Performance Center in Orlando on Halloween night.

That makes the upcoming episode of WWE NXT all the more crucial as far as setting up the rest of the show in addition to selling viewers on what's already been announced.

Grayson Waller and Tony D'Angelo are bound to have words before they collide for the NXT Championship at Halloween Havoc, while NXT Women's champion Kelani Jordan and Wren Sinclair make their match official in a contract signing.

The night's featured match will see Cruz Montana and Dion Lennox do battle after weeks of trash talk. Depending on the outcome, a rematch seems likely for Halloween Havoc to help fill out the incomplete card.

In Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic quarterfinal action, El Hijo de Dr. Wagner Jr. and Galeno del Mal will take on BirthRight and the decorated duo of Hank Walker and Tank Ledger will face The Creed Brothers.

Here are the complete results, grades and reaction for the Oct. 20 edition of WWE NXT as it airs live on The CW.

Tony D'Angelo Calls Out Grayson Waller

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Tony D'Angelo wasted no time in calling out Grayson Waller upon getting in the ring to start the show. Waller told him that he's been waiting for this match, acknowledging that they got signed to NXT around the same time five years ago and that they both represented NXT 2.0 in WarGames.

Waller added that D'Angelo's been ducking him and that he wants him one-on-one to prove who the superior star truly is. D'Angelo is one of the only demons he has yet to conquer, he said.

D'Angelo fired back by saying that he specialized in street smarts while Waller was always more focused on having viral moments instead of winning championships. Waller admitted that he still resents D'Angelo because he was essentially "chosen" by management and that put a chip on his shoulder.

D'Angelo called Waller a hypocrite and a troll desperate for attention. Waller interrupted him by saying that he already won their Halloween Havoc match mentally months ago, and that he's going to take D'Angelo out to the deepest waters and let him drown himself.

Bron Breakker, Carmelo Hayes and everyone else from NXT 2.0 may now be on Raw and SmackDown, but D'Angelo said that he and Waller are foundation guys. His legacy is already cemented, and he wants to see if Waller can swim in the deep waters with him.

Grade

B+

Notable Moments and Observations

• This was strong stuff from these two. Waller is always on point with his promos, but D'Angelo isn't the most dynamic on the mic. Despite that, D'Angelo cut one of his better promos ever, and they successfully left this viewer more interested their match than before.
• Waller mentioning that D'Angelo owns two wins over Oba Femi (something no one else can lay claim to, by the way) was wild. They tend to shy away from that because of where the both of them are now, but it did give D'Angelo a bit of a credibility boost considering how far Femi has come since then.
• It's also incredible to think that Waller and D'Angelo were among the new fresh faces dominating NXT 2.0 five years ago, yet they're still on the same show. Granted, Waller has been on the main roster since then, but D'Angelo has been an NXT stalwart, similar to the spot Johnny Gargano once occupied.

Dusty Classic Quarterfinal: El Hijo de Dr. Wagner Jr. and Galeno del Mal vs. BirthRight

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Last Time in Action: El Hijo de Dr. Wagner Jr. and Galeno del Mal def. El Mesias and Mecha Wolf (AAA on Fox, Oct. 3); BirthRight def. Toyko Boys (NXT, Oct. 3).

El Hijo de Dr. Wagner Jr. and Galeno de Mal are the reigning AAA World Tag Team Champions, though the titles obviously aren't on the line here. Meanwhile, BirthRight is represented by Lexis King and Charlie Dempsey.

Wagner Jr. and Dempsey exchanged holds to start. It didn't take long for Wagner Jr. and Galeno to gain the early advantage, double-teaming King and laying out most of BirthRight at ringside right before the commercial break thanks to an impressive dive over the top rope from Wagner Jr.

A little while later, a hot tag to Galeno resulted in both Dempsey and King taking some punishment. Once the pace picked up, King accidentally landed a superkick on Dempsey, and everyone took each other shortly thereafter.

BirthRight got back on the same page and covered Wagner Jr., only for Galeno to make the save before the three count was made. Zilla Fatu emerged at ringside to attack Uriah Connors, leading to the AAA World Tag Team champs to put down King with a frog splash for the win.

Result

El Hijo de Dr. Wagner Jr. and Galeno de Mal defeated BirthRight to advance to the semifinals of the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic.

Grade

B-

Notable Moments and Observations

• This was a good, well-worked match from successfully served both as a showcase for AAA's top tag team and as a vehicle to progress the program between Fatu and BirthRight. Thankfully, the action itself didn't feel like an afterthought, and they were given an ample amount of time before Fatu showed up.
• With BirthRight currently feuding with Fatu, it was safe to assume they weren't getting much further in the tournament. It also would have been silly for the AAA World Tag Team champs to get eliminated this early.
• Despite having a "broken hand," Fatu laid out BirthRight with ease after the match was over. The stage is set for Fatu to have some sort of a match with the group at Halloween Havoc that will allow him to get his revenge once and for all.

Tavion Heights Addressed Myles Borne

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Tavion Heights recapped Myles Borne's betrayal of him a month ago. Unfortunately, it sounded like he slipped up a bit when talking about what happened at Heatwave, but he quickly recovered when talking about how he doesn't make the same mistake twice.

He had a front row seat on the apron last week when he watched Borne fail to become number one contender to the NXT Championship. While addressing Borne, he used the usual expletive that everyone does on this show (hint: it begins with a b) before Borne attacked him from behind and brawled with him to the parking lot.

Grade

C-

Notable Moments and Observations

• With how much potential Heights has in the ring, it's disappointing that he fell flat on the mic here. He didn't have a chance to make up for it either with the segment being so short.
• I doubt this was actually the case, but it felt like Borne was ordered to rush to the ring sooner than he was supposed to so Heights' promo could be cut short. What we got here was ultimately unremarkable, and not very effective as far as generating interest in another match between these two.
• With Halloween Havoc, Borne and Heights are virtually guaranteed to face off on that show, but what the stipulation will be (most matches on NXT Halloween Havoc historically have had a stipulation) remains to be seen.

Izzi Dame vs. Layla Diggs

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Last Time in Action: Izzi Dame and Layla Diggs lost in an NXT Women's Championship number one contender's Battle Royal (NXT, Oct. 6).

This match was set up in a backstage segment that aired earlier in the episode. We haven't seen much of Diggs since she was supposed to challenge for the NXT Women's American Championship over the summer before getting injured, a title Dame currently has her sights set on heading into Halloween Havoc.

Dame targeted Diggs' previously injured shoulder early on, and although Diggs attempted to score some offense throughout, Dame maintained control and repeatedly put her down. Diggs did shine coming out of the commercial break before Dame planted her with a powerful crucifix bomb.

After the two traded strikes, Dame turned Diggs inside out for a close two count. Diggs then missed a moonsault from the top rope that led to Dame connecting with her patented running knee for the win.

Result

Izzi Dame defeated Layla Diggs.

Grade

C

Notable Moments and Observations

• Post-match, Zaria confronted Dame and granted her an NXT Women's North American Championship match at Halloween Havoc. Dame subsequently rejected the title shot but accepted the matchup itself. This seems to be her way of playing mind games with Zaria, but it doesn't make a ton of sense and has no business happening at Halloween Havoc if it's a non-title affair.
• The crowd wasn't too invested in this outing and it's difficult to blame them. The women worked hard, but Diggs is still a newer name on the rise and nothing about Dame as a character stands out at all. This existed to give Dame a victory and that's about it.
• Diggs was just starting to build momentum before she was sidelined with her shoulder injury, so this was a nice way to get her back in the mix, even if the focus was largely on Dame. She has upside, but she needs more reps and opportunities to improve.

Dusty Classic Quarterfinal: Hank Walker and Tank Ledger vs. The Creed Brothers

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Last Time in Action: Hank Walker and Tank Ledger def. Shido Ash and Viktor Zanov (NXT, Oct. 6); The Creed Brothers def. Harley Riggins and Jax Presley (NXT, Sept. 22).

This is an interesting match between two teams that have dominated NXT's tag team scene over the last five years. The Creeds previously won the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic in 2022, while Hank & Tank have been NXT regulars for the past three-plus years.

A simple exchange of strikes in the early going turned into an all-out slugfest right before the break. In the second half, Hank & Tank gained the advantage, which Julius Creed put a stop to by throwing Ledger off the top rope.

The Creeds halted their momentum at every turn. In a last-ditch effort, Ledger tagged in Walker, who laid out Julius with a Bossman Slam in the ring. As Hank & Tank closed in on the win, Brutus cut them off. Hank & Tank ended up hitting their finisher on Julius soon after to advance to the next round.

Result

Hank Walker and Tank Ledger defeated The Creed Brothers to advance to the semifinals of the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic.

Grade

B-

Notable Moments and Observations

• Hank & Tank haven't really evolved as characters since first joining forces a few years ago, so it was the wrong call to have them move on to the semifinals at the expense of The Creeds. Of the remaining teams, they're the least likely to win the whole thing.
• Hank & Tank will face El Hijo de Dr. Wagner Jr. and Galeno del Mal in the semifinals. On the other side of the bracket, The Vanity Project will battle Noam Dar and Romeo Moreno. Expect those matches to take place on next week's NXT before the finals are held at Halloween Havoc.
• It feels like a major step backward to bring The Creeds back to NXT just to have them get eliminated in the quarterfinals of a tournament they had a good chance of winning again. WWE has done next to nothing with them on the main roster, and now it looks like their NXT future is in question as well.

NXT Women's Championship Contract Signing for Halloween Havoc

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Wren Sinclair walked to the ring to a solid crowd reaction with the contract for the NXT Women's Championship match at Halloween Havoc in hand.

She said that Kelani Jordan is going to stand down instead of standing out come their championship clash. Jordan interrupted her almost immediately and congratulated Sinclair on becoming number one contender before dragging out a wounded Kendal Grey, who announced she was cleared to compete just last week.

The segment ended abruptly as Sinclair fended off Jordan and tended to Grey in front of the entrance.

Grade

D+

Notable Moments and Observations

• Well, that was certainly a segment. Similar to what we got from Myles Borne and Tavion Heights earlier in the evening, it felt like they pressed the fast-forward button and delivered what probably should have been a backstage segment instead.
• Surely this was the quickly contract signing of all-time? Granted, the contract was never technically signed, so that might make this an improvement over your average contract signing, but the segment was too short to even matter.
• Poor Kendal can't catch a break. First, she was sidelined after Heatwave and had to undergo therapy sessions, and now Jordan may have put her back on the shelf (in storyline, of course). If nothing else, this should make Sinclair want to get her hands on Jordan at Halloween Havoc that much more.

Cruz Montana vs. Dion Lennox

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Last Time in Action: The Vanity Project def. Cruz Montana and EK Prosper (NXT, Sept. 15), Saquon Shugars def. Dion Lennox (NXT, Aug. 25).

DarkState's Osiris Griffin and Cutler James attempted to jump Montana backstage beforehand, but Montana managed to fight them off. He proceeded to make a custom entrance through the crowd, which will hopefully stick going forward because it's an awesome visual.

The bad blood between these two is such that Montana instantly took the fight to Lennox before the bell could even ring. On the outside of the ring, Lennox went for a powerslam on the exposed floor, but Montana thwarted it by running Lennox into the ring post.

In the final few minutes, Montana caught Lennox with a cutter in the middle of the ring for a two count. Lennox talking trash to Lennox in the corner caused the brawl to spill to the outside, and with Montana firmly focused on putting Lennox through the barricade, the referee counted to 10.

Result

Cruz Montana vs. Dion Lennox ended in a double count-out.

Grade

B

Notable Moments and Observations

• Montana continued his assault on Lennox well after they were both counted-out by hitting him with a Curb Stomp on the concrete. He also attacked James and everyone else who attempted to stop him, resulting in the former TNA World champion being handcuffed by security as the show went off the air.
• The story is that Montana's anger got the better of him and Lennox is exploiting that. Security seemingly "arresting" Montana was slightly silly, but as far as creating the need for a gimmick match between them at Halloween Havoc and leaving fans wanting to see Montana put Lennox in his place, mission accomplished.
• This main event started so close to the end of the episode that they thankfully made the most of the time they had by ensuring there was never a dull moment. This was a great mix of action and storytelling, so the rematch should be even better if there aren't any disqualifications or count-outs holding them back.

Overall Show

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NXT has had two full months to hype up Halloween Havoc, and although the concept itself will be entertaining because of the brand's tendency to go all out with it, the card should be much stronger than it currently is.

The highlights of the night were easily the opening segment with Tony D'Angelo and Grayson Waller and the main event between Cruz Montana and Dion Lennox. Both of those things did the most to build toward the event, whereas everything else was okay at best.

The NXT Women's Championship contract signing (or lack thereof, rather) was a letdown and the two tag team matches were well wrestled albeit unspectacular. Throw in Izzi Dame vs. Layla Diggs as well as the rushed segment with Tavion Heights and Myles Borne and it was a fairly subpar show saved by the bigger stars.

Why do Jackson Drake vs. EK Prosper for the NXT North American Championship next week on the show when that could have been saved for Halloween Havoc to add some excitement from an in-ring standpoint? NXT has one more week to cement the card for the event, but realistically, most of the heavy lifting should have been done by now.

Final Grade

C+

Graham Mirmina, aka Graham "GSM" Matthews, has specialized in sports and entertainment writing since 2010. Visit his website, WrestleRant, and subscribe to his YouTube channel for more wrestling-related content.