BRM Reviews the 7/3/2019 NXT UK

[Big Red Machine]

RHEA RIPLEY PROMO- She doesn’t want to wait any longer for her match with Piper Niven, which was scheduled for later tonight. She demands that Piper come out and face her right now. Piper came out and the referee okayed it so we started the show off with...

RHEA RIPLEY vs. PIPER NIVEN- 5.75/10
This was more of a traditional shine-heat-comeback babyface vs. heel match than the hoss fight I was expecting, but it was still enjoyable for the time it got. Niven got the clean win, which probably sets her up for a show-down with the other big scary monster in the women’s division, Jazzy Gabert.

KENNY WILLIAMS INTERVIEW FROM EARLIER TODAY- good segment
He is asked what was going through his mind when he showed up at ringside during Naom Dar’s match last week. He admits that he was not planning on doing what he did when he first came out. Dar jumps him from behind and gets some shots in. Then, because this was taped outside at the Derby Download Festival, Dar rubbed Williams’ face in the mud and told him that this is where he belongs. I thought this was a good little angle, and I applaud them for using the setting of this show to do an angle they could do at a show in the regular arena setting.

ILJA DRAGUNOV WILL BE IN ACTION NEXT WEEK- sure, why not?

ALEXANDER WOLF vs. JACK STARZ- no rating, extended squash
Starz got in more offense than he needed to, resulting in this match going on longer than it really should have.

GALLUS DRAG A CAMERAPERSON INTO THEIR CLUBHOUSE MEETING- I’m not trying to be mean or snarky when I say this. Their accents are WAY too thick, to the point where this needed subtitles because I couldn’t understand them.
Equally bad was Vic Joseph later referring their six-man tag next week against Dave Mastiff and The Hunt as a “six-bearded brawl.” This is a taped show with a lot of post-production work put into0 the announcing. How the f*ck did this make the air?

TONI STORM VIDEO PACKAGE- this was WAY too elaborate to just announce that Toni Storm will be wrestling next week.

HANDICAP MATCH: Dani Luna & Mercedes Blaze vs. Jazzy Gabbert (w/Jinny)- squash
Apparently this wasn’t originally booked as handicap match but Jazzy went to the powers that be and insisted on facing both opponents by herself.

KASSIUS OHNO VIDEO PACKAGE- F*CKING AWESOME!
This was his usually “these NXT UK guys don’t know anything about British wrestling” stuff, but it was now focused into disdain for Mark Andrews, who Ohno derided as “someone who throws a superkick because of Shawn Michaels,” completely ignorant of the fact that it was popularized by “Gentleman” Chris Adams, who was British.

Interestingly, he used a term I hadn’t heard before: the Founding Five. This apparently refers to British Strong Style, Wolfgang, and Mark Andrews, who I guess were the first five wrestlers signed to NXT UK. This seems like an odd moniker to randomly start using unless there are plans for it to be relevant at some point.

NXT UK TAG TEAM TITLE MATCH: Grizzled Young Veterans(c) vs. Moustache Mountain- 6.25/10
A decent match was interrupted by Imperium running in for the DQ. GYZ ran away, and Imperium beat the crap out of Moustache Mountain. They handcuffed Seven to the ropes and WALTER powerbombed the sh*t out of Bate on the outside, ending with one into the ringpost. This was a very good heavy-heat angle, although one wonders why Pete Dunne or none of the other babyfaces tried to help Moustache Mountain out.
 

This was an okay show from NXT UK. Despite the great angle at the end, it still feels a little disappointing because neither of the big matches delivered to a level worthy of their hype.