Completing the trifecta of NXT women’s division hires alongside Stephanie Vaquer and Giulia, ZARIA – formerly known as DELTA – arrived in the final seconds of tonight’s NXT. She capped a female-heavy episode preceding Halloween Havoc on Sunday – the one treat in a pillowcase of apples.
Damage CTRL vs Meta-Four
Jakara Jackson and Lash Legend have become Monday Night Raw and Smackdown regulars the last two weeks, but Damage CTRL brings the main-roster acumen to them. Legend masks her inexperience with size and strength, but the opposition is unmistakably more intense. Io Sky lands an outside moonsault before break, and Kairi Sane makes a fired-up comeback thereafter. The former slips on a springboard to a forgiving audience, and Legend recuperates with an unforgiving pump kick. But Smackdown’s Piper Niven and Chelsea Green interfere to wreck all four, just to show off WWE’s considerable women’s tag team division.
Winners: N/A
Footage from earlier shows Hank Walker and Tank Ledger’s introduction of NASCAR’s Cole Custer to the Performance Center lot. OTM claims he stole their parking spot – a good enough reason for tonight’s tag team match, playa.
More prior footage catches Ashante “Thee” Adonis flirting with Karmen Petrovich until Sol Ruca and Brinley Reece block the interaction. “It’s a canon event,” Reece says. Footage rewinds even further, decades further, with classic ECW clips promoting NXT at the 2300 Arena in Philadelphia on November 6.
Jaida Parker vs Tatum Paxley
Paxley offers quirky offense, but it takes just Parker’s hip drop to get guys standing. Lola Vice watches the monitors as Paxley gains control, and two hip attacks from Parker gives the OTM member her W. While officials separate Parker and Vice, Wendy Choo stuffs Paxley in a road case while cameras cut away to something more important than kidnapping.
Winner: Jaida Parker
Lexis King asks fellow second-generation wrestler Charlie Dempsey how he can change his “loose canon” public image. He requests a Heritage Cup Championship match to earn respect, and Dempsey orders Myles Borne to make it official with Ava. “All you need is a cornerman,” Wren Sinclair says.
Choo wheels away Paxley backstage as Nathan Frazer demeans young Je’Von Evans for his losses. Evans slaps him, and bystander Wes Lee eggs the former too before Cedric Alexander cools his protege.
A Stephanie Vaquer package highlights her worldwide success before her apparent goal of “getting to WWE.” Giulia backs her too, and in their respective languages, they vow to take down Roxanne Perez and Cora Jade at Halloween Havoc.
Luca Crusifino vs Oba Femi
The D’Angelo Family rush to a floored Adriana Rizzo backstage before break, and Booker T suggests she slipped on a banana peel. Before he challenges Tony D’Angelo in Tables, Ladders, and Scares for the North American Championship, Femi has an appetizer in “The Legal Eagle.” Crusifino scores with hopeful offense, but Femi’s Fall From Grace puts it away. Channing Lorenzo tries stopping a post-match assault, and Tony D’Angelo’s attempted save gets him zip-tied to the post. The champion is forced to watch Lorenzo tossed through a table and Crusifino powerbombed through a ladder, and Femi once again looks monstrous.
Winner: Oba Femi
ZARIA, the former DELTA, is teased for Halloween Havoc. After break, Andre Chase gets poetical about Ridge Holland’s betrayal and challenges him to an Ambulance Match on Sunday. He describes Chase University as a support system, and that canonically is the perfect representation of this faction.
“I should’ve dropped your ass like a mixtape,” NXT Champion Trick Williams says to Ethan Page in-ring. Page separates their career paths, calls him pampered, and claims he’s never shed blood and liked it. The challenger attempts to come across “savage” before the Devil’s Playground Match, but Williams and the crowd don’t buy it. Page compares himself to the devil, but the only thing comparable is the albeit well-done white versus red outfits they don.
Roxanne Perez and Cora Jade are interrupted by Fatal Influence backstage, and meanwhile in the background, Lexis King attempts and fails to find a cornerman. Women’s North American Champion Kehlani Jordan steps in to ask for her challenger on Sunday, but Fatal Influence decides to leave it vague.
Sol Ruca vs Karmen Petrovich
Petrovich sees Ashante “Thee” Adonis in the crowd with another blonde, already giving Ruca an advantage. The competitors trade momentum, but a distracted Petrovich falls to Ruca’s Sol Snatcher for three.
Winner: Sol Ruca
Tyson Dupont and Tyriek Igwe congratulate Nikkita Lyons on her return, but Oba Femi steals her attention by giving back her entrance jacket. “You dropped this,” he says to a pop.
OTM vs Hank Walker and Tank Ledger
Hank and Tank are accompanied by NASCAR driver Cole Custer, who looks just happy to be there. Walker makes a comeback as Lola Vice attacks Jaida Parker ringside, allowing Custer to hit Bronco Nima with his helmet. Hank and Tank hit Collision Course for the victory, and all four faces dance over winning that parking spot.
Winners: Hank Walker and Tank Ledger
Fraxiom argues out of Ava’s office, and Lexis King walks in to ask for an appointed cornerman. “Nobody trusts me ‘cause they think I’m just like him,” King says with rare character development.
Ridge Holland responds to Andre Chase in a promo package, accepting the perception of being a dangerous wrestler. After, Tony D’Angelo is interviewed backstage in frustration, promising to “personally beat Oba’s ass!”
Fatal Influence vs Stephanie Vaquer and Giulia
Vaquer and Giulia exchange glances with Io Sky and Kairi Sane beforehand, again flexing WWE’s women’s roster. They wrestle circles around Fallon Henley and Jacy Jayne, but Jazmyn Nyx ringside assists before break. Vaquer gets Orlando standing for her comeback that exudes confidence, but the opposition recuperates over Giulia. Kehlani Jordan evens the odds, Giulia connects with a knee strike, and Vaquer hits a package backbreaker for three.
Winners: Stephanie Vaquer and Giulia
Jayne spins the wheel and lands on Spinner’s Choice. “Well ladies,” Henley says before ZARIA abruptly appears. “Booker! She’s here!” Vic Joseph blurts out at the final second. Four episodes in, and The CW time constraints show no mercy.
NXT 10/22/24
Orlando, FL
When not even Trick Williams and Ethan Page can hit the mark, the episode left sparse treats before Halloween Havoc. Damage CTRL, Vaquer, and Giulia carried their matches while the remainder of the card never got off the ground.
