Nathan Frazer gets his crack at the NXT UK title this week, taking on Ilja Dragunov in the main event.
Quick Results
Mark Coffey pinned Sha Samuels in 7:41 (**¾)
Jack Starz & Dave Mastiff pinned Sam Stoker & Lewis Howley in 10:34 (***¼)
Ilja Dragunov pinned Nathan Frazer in 14:42 to retain the NXT UK Championship (***¾)
We’re back at a shade over an hour long as the empty BT Sport studios in London greet us once more. But first, the obligatory video package that covered Frazer’s “shocking challenge,” which came by way of a segment seemingly intended for social media. Andy Shepherd and Nigel McGuinness are on commentary once more…
Mark Coffey vs. Sha Samuels
Gallus and Noam Dar are banned from ringside for this one – and this is a rematch from about eight months ago on this show, which Coffey won, while the pair are 1-1 in prior singles meetings back in ICW.
Once we get past the surprising Eastenders reference that used to dog Sha, we start with Samuels taking Coffey down with a headlock before the Scotsman replied with an armbar. An uppercut took Sha down as Coffey went back to the arm, landing side Russian legsweep before things went outside, with Sha taking a few potshots.
A back elbow back inside, then a slam has Sha ahead, as did a cross Dragon screw/European uppercut to the leg. Commentary quibbles over the colour of Sha’s new gear as he misses a PK to the back, but was able to hit a clothesline off the ropes instead. A Michinoku Driver as Coffey came off the ropes nearly wins it, with an arm whip dumping Coffey to the mat moments later.
Coffey ducks a clothesline into the corner, then rolled away from a flying elbow from Sha, as a comeback saw Coffey charge through the former butcher… a bulldog off the middle rope gets a near-fall for Coffey, while a leaping kick took Sha down again for a similar result. An Exploder-like suplex saw Sha get right back in it though, only for the pair to clatter each other with a double clothesline.
Things break down with punches… but Coffey quickly grabbed the initiative with a uranage, before a Glass Check – a sliding elbow – crashed into Samuels as the Scotman left with the win. A decent opener, as they seem to be getting rid of the “Gallus can only do it in a group” thing. **¾
Next week: Joe Coffey challenges Noam Dar for the Heritage Cup…
Nathan Frazer is warming up backstage…
Earlier this week, A-Kid’s sparring with (I think) Josh Morrell, when Charlie Dempsey approached him looking to learn that leg lock. A-Kid turns Dempsey down because he knew what was going to happen. Dempsey tries to talk his way out of it, but Teoman and Rohan Raja jump A-Kid from behind, with Dempsey joining in. Save for the officials breaking it up, no bugger else was seemingly around. Private tuition?
Isla Dawn’s back in the woods with the bunch of flowers she stole from Meiko Satomura last week. Her final trinket is “within reach” as she’s singing her promo. I mean, it’s different, and there’s worse things to lift ideas from…
They replay the finish of last week’s NXT UK tag title match, focusing on Trent Seven pushing Ashton Smith’s leg off the ropes… then we get a backstage promo that Carter and Smith interrupt, as Trent said that he had to do anything it took to retain the titles. Smith wants a second chance, Tyler accepts, and everyone walks off…
Dave Mastiff & Jack Starz vs. Pretty Deadly (Lewis Howley & Sam Stoker)
Jack Starz finally got his leather vest, which Mastiff gave him in the aisle… except it had no names or anything like that on it. A real off the peg job.
Mastiff and Howley start us off, with a tie-up into the ropes before a shove off and a shoulder tackle led to Howley taking out Mastiff’s leg. Stoker tags in for some double shoulder tackles, but Mastiff just charges him down as Jack Starz came in to hit an uppercut to the back for a two-count.
Mastiff returns to hit some uppercuts of his own, then a back senton as a slingshot splash from Starz added another two counts. A missed splash from Mastiff in the corner allowed Stoker to tag out, but Howley leapt into a gut punch as Starz returned with a floatover, a dropkick and an armdrag.
A roll-up from Starz yielded little as Stoker tagged in… then quickly posted Starz as the former tag champions turned things around in a hurry. Quick tags keep Pretty Deadly fresh, leading to a splash and legdrop combo for a near-fall, alongside a nice Dodon/bulldog combo out of the corner.
Starz remains on the defensive, taking a powerslam as a side headlock was eventually fought out of… but he’s thrown back into the corner before Howley’s attempt to knock Mastiff of the apron backfired. A Pretty Deadly double-team backfires, but Howley kicked out of a sunset flip as Mastiff got the tag in and cleared house, chucking Howley overhead with a belly-to-belly.
A blind tag brings Stoker back in for a DDT, as Pretty Deadly then tried on Starz’s new coat… Starz snarls, Mastiff hits a German suplex to Stoker as Starz demanded to tag in to finish the job, which he did after he stripped Stoker, then put the leather vest on himself. Shoulder blocks have Stoker on the back foot, before Starz escaped a powerbomb and hit one of his own for the win. I’m not a fan of Pretty Deadly going down here, but the Jack Starz “getting weirdly aggressive in the leather vest” is a wacky gimmick. ***¼
Maybe for their next match, they can get a patch with Starz’s name on it?
Ilja Dragunov is stripping off and skipping ahead of his title match…
“Earlier this week,” Xia Brookside throws a strop at the roving cameraman… who hangs around and records her on the phone to “daddy.” She’s asking for some help, and having seen the spoilers, this looks to be leading to some new blood. The segment ends with Xia chasing away the cameraman for filming her private conversation…
We get the next step of that wacky vignette with the trucker from last week. Except there’s a voiceover this time that pretty much gives away that this is the return of Wild Boar – unless he’s voicing over for someone else. He’s coming back, and the hunt has just begun. I’ll give NXT UK this, they’re certainly operating outside the box when it comes to vignettes.
After adverts, we get a video package on next week’s Heritage Cup title match, with Joe Coffey and Noam Dar’s sit-down comments spliced in throughout.
Also next week: Charlie Dempsey vs. A-Kid…
WWE NXT United Kingdom Championship: Nathan Frazer vs. Ilja Dragunov (c)
In the year-or-so Frazer’s been on this show, he’s not been too far away from title pictures, having had shots at the Cruiserweight title, tag titles, and now the big one (for this show.)
Ilja’s got new music, and part of me wonders if this is part of any response to wider world events. Before they lock up, commentary’s plugging the title match on “full fat” NXT next week… aiming that plug at the US marketplace. Something something confused target market for a UK show?
A wacky waistlock takedown, a la a German suplex, got Dragunov an early pinning attempt before things were taken into the corner. Another takedown gets Ilja in with a side headlock, but Frazer got up, pushed off… and got knocked down. A bodyslam keeps him there, but Frazer manages to get back into it, backflipping over Dragunov off the top rope as a leaping forearm and a dropkick had the champion on the back foot.
Frazer tries to stick and move, but just got decked with a forearm as a grounded cobra clutch looked to see Ilja stake his claim. Another forearm puts Frazer down, while an attempted springboard ended with him getting booted onto the apron. A hiptoss from Dragunov brings Frazer back in as another cobra clutch and a swivelling lariat kept the momentum in Dragunov’s direction.
Dragunov pulled Frazer up off the ropes, but ate an enziguiri before he recovered to press slam Frazer down. Ilja tees up a Torpedo Moscau, but ends up going for German suplexes before a bridging teardrop suplex nearly won it. Ilja’s almost Okada-like in going back to the cobra clutch, this time switching it up into almost a crossface-like position, but Frazer escaped to hit a superkick and a ‘rana for a near-fall.
Frazer keeps going with the quebrada into the Eye of the Hurricane, but couldn’t follow up as the pair exchanged strikes. A mounted sleeperhold from Frazer’s broken up into the corner, as Dragunov missed an elbow that ended up connecting with the mat. Capitalising, a Slingblade from Frazer took Dragunov down before we went back to elbow exchanges.
Dragunov switches it up for chops, but got caught with a superkick for a near-fall before Frazer got chopped as he climbed the ropes. Another press slam’s flipped out of by Frazer, before the Konstantin-Spezial from Dragunov bought him time – albeit at the expense of the already-injured arm. A trip up top from Ilja ended with him taking a dropkick and an avalanche ‘rana from Frazer… who then sped back up for a Phoenix splash, crashing into Ilja for a near-fall.
Another ‘rana from Frazer’s countered into a powerbomb, before a downward elbow strike nearly put the Jersey native away. Frazer and Dragunov trade palm strikes again, leading to a German suplex from the challenger… Dragunov swats Frazer with another clothesline, again with the injured right arm, before palm strikes had Frazer out.
From there, Ilja hits the ropes for the Torpedo Moscau headbutt – the move not being named – and that’s enough for Dragunov to eke out the win. A cracker of a main event, in spite of the house commentary style over-egging everything… Frazer more than held his own, but leaves this one battered, bruised, and with a L. ***¾
Post-match, Dragunov shook Frazer’s hand, then celebrated with the title as the show went off the air.
While the lay of the land on NXT UK still could do with some shaking up, this was a good hour’s TV by their recent standards – especially with that main event as Nathan Frazer and Ilja Dragunov lived up to expectations.