WWE NXT Results: Winners, Grades, Highlights and Reaction from February 21

The saga of Johnny Gargano took another unfortunate turn Wednesday night, when he lost his NXT Championship match to Andrade "Cien" Almas, thanks to interference by former tag team partner Tommaso Ciampa, and must now leave the WWE developmental brand.

The match itself, another stellar entry in the series between Gargano and Almas, was an excellent exclamation point on an episode that saw the announcement of the third Dusty Rhodes Classic and both Nikki Cross and Velveteen Dream in action.

Find out everything that went down on Wednesday's broadcast, and relive the explosive main event, with this recap of the WWE Network exclusive.

No Way Jose vs. Velveteen Dream

Velveteen Dream attempted to keep his winning streak alive Wednesday night, squaring off with resident party-lover No Way Jose in the opening contest.

Dream took the fight to Jose from the opening bell, but Jose turned the tide in his favor heading into the first break.

Dream wrested control of the bout with a jawbreaker coming out of the commercial. Jose mounted a comeback and tried for his windup punch, but the eccentric villain caught him with a dropkick. The rolling Death Valley Driver followed, and the top-rope elbow known as the Purple Rainmaker earned the artist formerly known as Patrick Clark the win.

Result

Velveteen Dream defeated No Way Jose

Grade

B

Analysis

Velveteen Dream continues to thrive, the most unexpected breakout star NXT has produced in years. His connection with the audience is awe-inspiring, and it was on full display here. Management has done a phenomenal job of utilizing him as little as possible so as not to overexpose his gimmick.

It has worked, and the result is a Superstar on his way up the ranks in NXT.

Jose is headed in the other direction, as one has to imagine a main roster call-up would best benefit him at this point, particularly since his character would likely play to the WWE audience better than it does to the older-skewing NXT fans.

Nikki Cross vs. Vanessa Borne

The arrogant Vanessa Borne, seen this past fall in the Mae Young Classic, squared off with the unpredictable entity of Sanity, Nikki Cross.

Borne utilized her power advantage to earn control of the match at one point, but her cockiness only served to fire up Cross.

Cross unloaded on Borne, working her over with a series of strikes and a running cross-body block.

A top contender for the NXT Women's Championship at numerous times throughout her stint with the promotion, Cross utilized her neckbreaker (now known as the Purge, according to the announce team) to finish Borne off.

Result

Nikki Cross defeated Vanessa Borne

Grade

C

Analysis

If the point of this was to remind us Cross was here, it was a job well done.

Otherwise, this was just a match between two women who have been conspicuous by their absences of late.

Cross deserves better, and hopefully her brief tussle with Lacey Evans was just the tip of the proverbial iceberg in relation to that program.

NXT Championship Match: Johnny Gargano vs. Andrade "Cien" Almas

Andrade "Cien" Almas' journey to the NXT Championship began at TakeOver: Brooklyn III last August with a win over Johnny Gargano.

At TakeOver: Philadelphia, Almas retained the NXT Championship by beating Gargano in a Match of the Year candidate.

Wednesday night, the Superstars battled for the third time with the stipulation that should Gargano lose, he would be forced to leave NXT forever.

Another superb wrestling match unfolded, with the in-ring chemistry of the Superstars on full display.

It was the events of the closing moments of the match that will resonate with the brand for the foreseeable future.

With Candice LeRae having neutralized Zelina Vega earlier in the match, Gargano capitalized on a distraction of the referee and applied his Gargano Escape to Almas. With the official knocked unconscious following an elbow from Almas, Gargano had the win in-hand but was unable to actually collect the title.

Tommaso Ciampa appeared and blasted Gargano with his crutch. Almas delivered the hammerlock DDT to score the victory.

Gargano said his emotional goodbyes to NXT after the bell.

Result

Andrade "Cien" Almas defeated Johnny Gargano

Grade

A

Analysis

Another extraordinary match between two of the best wrestlers on the planet.

Add in the drama of Ciampa's interference, the storyline progression and the plight of Gargano, and you have an enthralling story the audience will have the pleasure of following for the foreseeable future.

With Gargano out of the title picture and on to a feud with Ciampa, it appears as though the path is clear for Almas to start up a feud with Aleister Black, presumably in time for TakeOver: New Orleans on April 7.