The year 2019 could be titled ‘The Year of NXT’ due to the brand securing a TV contract, putting on excellent shows but the main result: Winning Survivor Series.
The build before the event itself was something of excellence from creative, there was enough time for stories to be built and did not make each brand look weak. I could talk for days on how November 2019 was ‘the month’ for wrestling but that is not the focus of today’s piece.
Today on SLTDWrestling I shall be taking a look at what Team NXT has done since their win last year, remember to follow SLTDWreslting on Twitter for all things Wrestling, and whilst you’re there make sure to give me a follow too @TomCallan16.
Matt Riddle
Riddle’s build towards this event was surprisingly positive given the accusations flying around that point of 2019. Weekly appearances if all three brands allowed the entire WWE Universe to adapt to the ‘Original Bro’ with the bigger picture being the main roster call up down the line.
Post Survivor Series was where Riddle experienced his biggest successful run in the black and gold brand. His partnership with Pete Dunne in the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic had won him NXT Tag-Team Championship reign which when overlooking it was fun whilst it lasted. The speculation surrounding the anaphoric tag-team was a Dunne heel turn but with the outbreak of COVID-19 leading to Dunne staying in the U.K. it meant that Riddle needed a new partner- this being Timothy Thatcher. The dynamic with Riddle and Thatcher was impressive from creative, their feud with the Undisputed Era was fun, and hearing Riddle mock Bobby Fish weekly was entertaining but that seemed to be the ending of the team.
Their loss to Imperium had sparked a potential split for the team and eventually, Thatcher turned on Riddle and continued to attack his former partner until a match was created. This was the perfect outcome for the two as Thatcher worked better as a heel and the attack had solidified him as a top heel on the brand. The outcome for Riddle was a Pit-Fight with Thatcher on NXT in which he choked Riddle out for the win- this ending Riddle’s run with NXT.
From this point, it was clear that the future of Matt Riddle was on the main roster, but fans did not know entirely if Vince was going to utilize him correctly. The build towards his debut was backed by praise from WWE Hall Of Famer Kurt Angle- with Angle constantly hyping Riddle as Smackdowns ‘next big thing’ – would there be hope for Riddle on the main roster? The answer is a big fat no with a sprinkle of sugar on top, Riddle seemed to be buried on the main roster, and feuds with AJ Styles for the IC Championship had seemed to be ‘too soon’’. The loss to Styles had indicated a move to raw where he continues to fluctuate in momentum but there seem to be no plans for him on the main roster- oh Vince, how did you mess this up?
Keith Lee
BURIED I SAY BURIED. All jokes aside, Keith Lee had a stellar year since Survivor Series, a North American Championship win had seemed to be the perfect option for Lee as he perfectly suited the titles workhorse ethic. Lee continued to put stellar matches with Dominik Dijakovic for the title and slowly built as a fan favorite at Full Sail. Interest in the superstar had grown and the opportunities followed.
Lee entered a program with Adam Cole ‘ Bay Bay’ in mid-2020 in an attempt to put the two championships on the line at the returning Great American Bash. Lee was victorious in this encounter and had made history as a double champion in NXT and this indicated the future for the ‘limitless’ superstar. Creative had another idea however, Lee was made to drop the North American Championship quickly after obtaining the NXT championship due to the commitments surrounding the NXT Title.
This decision had buried the NA Championship and made it seem worthless but Lee continued to be the figurehead of NXT. Lee slowly made himself a target with the strap around his waist – a target for Karrion Kross. Kross was white-hot at this point due to an excellent entrance and a physique unmatchable on the brand. Winning over Tomasso Ciampa had given him momentum going into his future encounter with Lee but some argued that it’s too soon for this matchup to occur.
We had two popular superstars with a f*** ton of momentum strapped to them and any result would hurt either superstar. Creative ignored this problem and booked a match for NXT Takeover XXX with Kross being victorious- Lee’s run in NXT had ended in an abrupt fashion. I don’t want to talk about his main roster run because tears would run down my cheeks- PLEASE BRING BACK HIS THEME MUSIC.
Tomasso Ciampa
Who?
There’s been no direction for Ciampa, NXT had him feud with Gargano again but didn’t have the same effect as the first- the biggest thing he has done since Survivor Series is the team with Gargano at Worlds Collide, this bringing back #diy for one night.
Please do not lose his music and decided to put him on the main roster- make him a character in which is a benchmark for future superstars to look up to, it’s simple but will be effective for the BlackHeart.
WALTER
It was great for an NXT UK superstar to get coverage on the main roster in the way Walter did, he had an excellent match with Seth Rollins on Raw but his involvement in the Survivor Series match wasn’t anything special. Moving forward saw Walter work for promotions such as WXW, Evolve, and NXT UK.
The Ring General defended his title successfully against Joe Coffey in an excellent match at NXT Takeover Blackpool II and then moved his focus to the Undisputed Era. Creative clearly wanted Walter to work both NXT and NXT UK with the match at Worlds Collide against the UE portraying himself as a dominant force in NXT. There was a potential feud with Finn Balor in the works with a match occurring at NXT Takeover, but the Coronavirus pandemic had other ideas and led to Walter going several months without a noted match.
Walter then returned to competition in September 2020 and built a feud with Ilja Dragunov for the title. Walter and Dragunov had chemistry like no other and the size difference helped build this matchup as something must-see. Their recent match on NXT UK TV. had sent shockwaves in the world of 2020 wrestling- this being given 5 stars by Wrestling Observer’s Dave Meltzer and being WWE’S first matchup t obtain this in the year 2020.
Walter continues to assert his brutality on the world of wrestling and has clearly forgotten his horrible booking at last year’s Survivor Series, there are positive things to come.
Damien Priest
Priest’s character work has improved majorly since Survivor Series. Since then he has been inserted in the North American Title picture with matches against Keith Lee catching the eye of the NXT Universe. February saw Priest fluctuate in wins and losses on the Black and Gold brand but continued to find himself as a character- slowly building as a heel with arrogant and selfish characteristics.
Priest was clearly going to be pushed as a top mid-carder with consistent matches on NXT and was given the opportunity to challenge for the North American Championship again at the expense of Keith Lee relinquishing his title. Priest was inserted into the NA ladder match at Takeover XXX- facing Bronson Reed, Cameron Grimes, Johnny Gargano, and The Velveteen Dream. The match itself was entertaining and well worked with Priest coming out as champion and turning face it was noticed.
Priest was only able to defend his title successfully three times before losing the championship to Johnny Gargano in a devil’s playground match at NXT Halloween Havoc. He continues to be inserted in the North American Championship title picture but is yet to be established as a main event character.
Who do you think out of the five guys from 2019’s Survivor Series Team NXT has had the best 2020? Let us know in the comments below or tweet us @SLTDWrestling
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