Episode #124
July 4th, 2012 | Full Sail Arena in Winter Park, Florida
The NXT intro was just so damn good here. Several people in the intro haven’t been on TV yet. Jim Ross and Byron Saxton are on commentary.
Sofia Cortez def. Paige in 2:21
Paige gets jobber treatment and doesn’t even get an entrance. Sofia is presented as the star and though she’d leave WWE, she’d find success in Lucha Underground and Shine. Paige does get in the early offense with a headbutt while JR puts over his family’s history. Sofia snaps off a head scissors, causing Paige to bail. They exchange some impressive strikes though something may have happened because the camera does a weird cut like something was cut out. Cortez wins after turning a wheelbarrow into a DDT. Fine way to start as the women get some shine. NR
Seth Rollins def. Camacho w/ Hunico in 4:31
Camacho and Hunico are main roster guys. Hunico isn’t over and Camacho needs a LOT of help. In 2017, he’s still not good. Camacho is in control early and hits a rather impressive leg drop. The height I mean, the move itself was basic. His heat isn’t very good, but Seth tries his best by selling it well. He wildly swings like he’s desperate. Rollins starts to rally and dropkicks Hunico as he attempts to interfere. Camacho levels him and they seem to flub a spot where Seth was to send Camacho into Hunico on the apron. Hunico has to awkwardly stand there while they reset. Seth eventually does it and wins with the Blackout. Standard match. Seth tried but Camacho is just bad. *¼
Hunico and Camacho jump Seth Rollins after the bell until Bo Dallas makes the save. Imagine that. Bo Dallas having to saving Seth Rollins. How the times have changed.
Corey Graves and Jake Carter def. CJ Parker and Nick Rogers in 2:24
Maybe it’s just me but I don’t remember Nick Rogers. Corey Graves is the former Sterling James Keenan, while Jake Carter is the son of Vader. Carter and Graves show off solid teamwork. It’s Parker who takes the brunt of the offense. Graves takes a big back body drop bump and both guys tag out. Carter hits a spinebuster and knocks Parker off the apron. They win with a body slam/neckbreaker combo of sorts called Bottoms Up. Decent enough debut for Carter and Graves. NR
VIGNETTE ~ OH NO! Kassius Ohno is a knockout artist who likes to hurt people.
VIGNETTE ~ More from Bray Wyatt, who tells his “followers” that they don’t have to hurt anymore. I don’t recall but this might be the first look at Luke Harper. He sits with a group of people listening to Bray.
Kassius Ohno def. Mike Dalton in 2:32
JR notes Dalton was trained by Lance Storm. He gets the better of a wristlock and takes Ohno to the mat. Ohno turns it around yells “OH NO”. He pounds away on Dalton before moving to a cravat reset hold. Dalton fights free and hits the future Beauty Shot for two. Ohno gets tired of his shit and knocks him out with a rolling elbow. Good way to introduce Ohno as a badass. NR
Ohno gets on the microphone and says he knocks people out. “When they hear Kassius coming, they all say oh no.”
Jinder Mahal def. Derrick Bateman in 4:02
JR says Bateman had an impressive victory a few weeks ago, even though it was just last week. Bateman brings the fire with a cross body and clotheslines Mahal outside. He follows with a suicide dive that just looked weird. Inside, Mahal takes control but Bateman still manages a few hope spots. Like, each time Mahal tries something, he gets a rollup or something. He comes close with a neckbreaker. Mahal hits a knee to the back of the head and then applies the camel clutch to make Derrick tap. Better than I expected. I liked Bateman’s flash pins and the fact that Mahal didn’t control too much helped. **
After the match, Jinder Mahal applies another camel clutch.
Byron Saxton informs us that due to the events earlier tonight, a six-man tag main event has been set. Hunico, Camacho and Michael McGillicutty take on Seth Rollins, Bo Dallas and Tyson Kidd.
William Regal joins commentary for the main event.
Camacho, Hunico and Michael McGillicutty def. Bo Dallas, Seth Rollins and Tyson Kidd in 8:18
Michael McGillicutty’s theme rules. We nearly get Kidd and McGillicutty to start but Michael thinks better of it and tags Hunico. I wanted more from their main event two weeks ago. Kidd and Hunico have some fun exchanges before Seth gets tagged. The heels start working a heat on Seth. They go to break after a Camacho body slam but it returns and no time seems to have passed. Hunico takes a big bump on a monkey flip and Seth tags out. Bo comes in hot but ends up in trouble at the hands of McGillicutty. The heat on Bo lasts a while and features three chinlocks. He makes the tag and Kidd comes in with a kick and springboard dropkick. Seth takes out Hunico, Camacho and even Bo with a dive. However, they hold him back as Kidd falls to the McGillicutter. Solid main event that had potential to be better if the heat on Bo wasn’t so repetitive and dull. **¼
Overall: 5/10. A step up from last week. Rollins, Bateman and even Mahal looked better, while Ohno, Cortez, Carter and Graves showed potential. Getting McGillicutty and Kidd back into the fold helped. I understand they’re trying to establish guys but six matches is a bit too much for a one hour show.
