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TEAM BRON VS. TEAM GACY, MANDY VS. INDI & MORE: 6/11 WWE NXT IN LARGO, FLORIDA REPORT

NXT 2.0 Live- Tampa Results

June 11, 2022

Location: Minnreg Hall (it’s new name is the Largo Event Center)

Attendance: 350 (Estimate)

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After the National Anthem, Indi Hartwell came out, cut a small promo about Toxic Attraction and challenged Mandy Rose for the NXT Woman’s Championship. Rose came out and accepted which made the crowd react loudly. The crowd tonight was active and rowdy in the best way possible which made this show even better than it already was.

NXT Woman’s Championship: Indi Hartwell v. Mandy Rose (NXT Women’s Champion)

The path to this match was laid last night after Indi Hartwell ran in to the ring at NXT Tampa to stop the Toxic Attraction beat down of Wendy Choo, Roxanna Perez, and Cora Jade. Hartwell challenged Rose to this match last night then came out after the anthem to see if Mandy would answer her challenge. Mandy did and this match was intense from the start with the crowd erupting to every twist and turn presented. The loudest pop came when Roxanna Perez and Cora Jade ran out of the back in the middle of the match to stop Jacy Jayne & Gigi Dolin of Toxic Attraction from interfering to help Mandy Rose. A brawl between these ladies broke out and the crowd erupted as this unfolded. Indi Hartwell hit some of the best sidewalk slams I have ever seen live during this match and was impressive with her charisma and execution. She nearly won several times until Mandy Rose hit a tremendous running knee to Hartwell’s face for the victory. I thought this was a tremendous match, especially for NXT 2.0, and both ladies showed their talent off during this bout. 

Myles Borne vs Hank Walker- Stopped due to interference 

The lovely ring announcer asked who wanted to see two young NXT Wrestlers have their 1st live match and the crowd gave an enthusiastic yes response. Hank Walker then came out followed by Myles Born. They were going back and forth with different maneuvers until Von Wagner ran in surprising everyone and annihilating both young wrestlers in a brutal quick fashion. Sofia and Robert Stone came out to join Von Wagner in the ring with Stone cutting a promo about how this pointless match should not take place in Von Wagner’s ring. He was able to elicit a loud negative response from the crowd while Von Wagner wiped the floor with Borne and Walker.

Von Wagner defeated Hank Walker

After beating down Walker and Borne, Von Wagner and company started to leave ringside when Hank Walker, on the mat clutching his ribs, challenged Von Wagner to come finish him off if he even could. Von Wagner agreed and a new match began with Walker taking another fierce beating at first. Wagner become too arrogant which allowed Walker to make a surprising comeback which inspired the crowd to get behind him. This turned out to be a decent match when I thought it would be a waste of time. Walker does not seem to have any sort of character outside of guy that looks like he sells insurance in Iowa with his nice flannel dress shirt, jeans and clean leather shoes. Walker is built like Kevin Owens but without the intimidating look of KO or his tattoos so it seemed Von Wagner with his Cro-Magnon skull would quickly destroy him. To the crowd’s surprise, Walker hit Von Wagner with several big clotheslines and a huge slam which seemed more impactful due to the intense nature Walker presented out of nowhere. This guy has some definite potential even though I know nothing about him beyond what I watched at the show but I think there is something there. The match ended when Von Wagner hit a nasty looking Big Boot out of nowhere and pinned Walker to the crowd’s disappointment. 

Kayden Carter & Katana Chance defeated Valentina Feroz & Yulisa Leon

This match was very entertaining, and these ladies were able to utilize Largo’s rowdy crowd effectively to make it a fun experience for everyone in attendance. Kayden and Katana came out dancing to this club music and were giving out glow sticks to the crowd. There were definite hints of Adam Rose’s old entrance here as these ladies also had several beginning wrestlers not on the card yet dancing throughout the crowd handing out glow sticks as well. This pumped the crowd up and a loud “Whoop, Whoop” chant broke out to the rhythm of their music. It was fun and good to see that things are starting to click for this team as these ladies are so talented. Valentina Feroz and Yulisa Leon then came out and while I have never seen them, they had an interesting entrance as well. They came out to Salsa music and they handed out balloons to people while dancing to the ring which this crowd also went wild for. I am focusing on these entrances because I believe that these antics got the crowd more interested into the match. The match was high paced with several impressive double team maneuvers from both teams but Carter & Chance took their offense to another level. They hit several double team attacks that I have never seen done before which led them to hit their double team finisher where Carter held the opponent and Chance hit a 450 splash which made the crowd react loudly. I believe I described the finisher correctly but it is one of those things better seen then described. This was a good match and both teams have a bright future if they keep up this level of charisma and performance. 

Sol Ruca, formerly Calyx Hampton, was introduced by the lovely NXT 2.0 ring announcer and she walked to the ring on her hands. It was quite impressive and the crowd was impressed but many, including myself were not aware of her. She seems to have the look and ability to do well in the WWE but her mic skills might need to improve but that is based on a very short promo since Grayson Waller than came out interrupting her. He cut a brutal promo on her and the fine people of Largo (how dare he) which garnered a large negative reaction. He told Ruca to leave his ring but she signaled that he should try to make her. When he got in the ring to do so, she body slammed him and the crowd popped for it. Tiffany Stratton then ran in to save Waller which led to Windy Choo coming in to help Ruca which led directly to the next match.

Wendy Choo defeated Tiffany Stratton w/Grayson Waller

This match was entertaining but Waller stood out as he acted obnoxious at ringside doing different heel antics and insulting the fans. One fan near called him a British loser and Waller turned around, stared at him, and then stated, “listen I would say something about you but your missing teeth tells everyone here enough."  I burst out laughing because Waller was spot on but then joined in on booing him. He is a very dislikable heel and his ‘Suburban Baller’ persona was hated by the fans. Waller tried to interfere to help Stratton but messed up which allowed Choo to hit her running, sleeping elbow drop. 

Intermission

Andre Chase & Ikemen Jiro defeated Quincy Elliott & Duke Hudson

To begin the second half of the show, Duke Hudson came to the ring and was about to speak when he was interrupted by Quincy Elliot. I have never seen or heard of Quincy before but he is quite the spectacle being a rather large man who acts very feminine. The best way to describe him is to imagine if Bronson Reed acted like Velveteen Dream. Hudson was surprised by Quincy’s antics and when he went to speak again, Chase U came out. Andre Chase cut a promo about how this is a “Teachable Moment” and that a tag team match is in order but that he needed a partner since Bodhi Howard could not wrestle since he was sore from his hard work. Ikemen Jiro answered the call and was Andre Chase’s tag partner against Quincy and Duke. This was a pretty entertaining match and Quincy was getting some pretty big reactions which surprised me as I am not a fan of these types of gimmicks but I was in the minority here. Ikemen Jiro is interesting but I did find his character a little strange. He wore a bright orange floral blazer the entire match and even utilized it to do damage to his opponents which was unique. He would place his hand in the blazer’s pocket and then punch his opponent seemingly with his blazer which looked like the wings of some tropical bird hitting something with it’s wings. Hudson and Chase both wrestled well and contrasted greatly with their very colorful partners. I was very impressed with Andre Chase’s all around ability and he made me a fan of his tonight. Chase U with Jiro won when they teamed up to barely suplex Quincy, who weighs about 450 pounds, which made the ring shake but it somehow stayed together. Regardless of all the wackiness, this was another entertaining match and the kids at the Minnreg seemed to really like it. 

Cameron Grimes defeated Tony D’Angelo (Due to D’Angelo Shoulder Injury)

This match that was just starting to become good when it seems 'tragedy struck' Tony D’Angelo. With Professional Wrestling, anything can be a work but the way this match ended suddenly and with how Tony D’Angelo was in pain after the match, they played this up as a real shoulder or arm injury with the severity being unknown. The match ended suddenly when D’Angelo and Grimes were trading maneuvers when Grimes hit a surprise roll-up that D’Angelo was supposed to kick out of. I know this because where I was sitting, I observed that if D’Angelo would have kicked out, Grimes would have been sent headfirst into the ropes where one of D’Angelo’s lackies was waiting to sucker punch Grimes. The spot was set-up perfectly, yet it didn’t happen and the ref gave an awkward 3-Count which confused Grimes who almost started improvising as if it was a botch. I will give it to the very young ref of the match, he instantly took control and told Grimes that he won since it was a three count while subtlety motioning for some assistance which came quickly. The refs helped Tony to the back helping him hold his arm in place.

North American Championship Open Challenge: Carmelo Hayes defeated Solo Sikoa

Carmelo Hayes stated at NXT Tampa that he will be having an Open Challenge for the North American Championship at these live events and he stayed true to his word at Largo. He came out with Trick Williams and issued the open challenge. It was answered by none other than Solo Sikoa which loudly awakened the crowd that was sitting in a akward silence after the unfortunate injury that occurred in the previous bout. This was a classic Largo Loop match that delivered at a high level that it felt like one of the great matches on this circuit from before the Pandemic. Carmelo and Solo are both stars and they both got huge reactions from the crowd throughout the match. It was highly competitive with several great near falls and heel antics by Trick. Solo nearly won several times but Carmelo escaped with win after putting solo in a surprise cradle for the pin when he was distracted by Trick. Solo was shocked he lost while Carmelo and Trick escaped as a quick as they could to the back. Solo was very angry and left the ring sternly. The ring announcer came out to introduce the main event when something amazing happened. Solo remerged dragging Carmelo back to the ring where he proceeded to beat on Carmelo then hit him with a stiff kick. When Solo was about to do more damage, an obvious beaten up Trick came out and rescued Carmelo. Solo celebrated with the crowd as his opponents escaped to the back. This was one of the best matches of the weekend and it was so entertaining that it should have been the main event.

Main Event: Bron Breakker, Josh Briggs, and Brooks Jensen defeated Joe Gacy and 2 Druids

It seems any NXT 2.0 Live house show will have Bron Breakker in the main event which is not a bad idea but this match was nowhere near as fun as the prior one. Gacy came out with his two druids wearing maroon cloaks that also covered their faces so you could never see who they were despite the crowd chanting for their opponents to rip off their hoods throughout the match. Gacy and his friends had a six-man tag match against Brok Breakker, Josh Briggs and Brooks Jensen. Bron got a huge response when he came out and pretty much for anything he did but he did look really good in this match with a lot of intensity. His clotheslines look very painful and it does not look like he holds back at all when you see him wrestle in person. Gacy was shorter than I anticipated but played the role of the heel well but the druids were a little over the top when they wrestled. Several issues occurred throughout this match where sequences were botched or people were in the wrong place which made the match seem awkward at points. Wrestling is hard and it is even harder if you cannot see properly through your Druid costume which is what I think happened. The Druids were even wearing black Doc Martin boots, like the style of boots popular in the 90’s, to wrestle in and that might have caused them to trip once or twice. The one good thing the Druids did was sneakily switch places with each other behind the refs back which drew a lot of heat from the crowd. Eventually the ref caught them which eventually led to Bron hitting a spear out of nowhere Gacy for the victory. Bron is amazing to see wrestle in person regardless of who he is facing, he is a natural and super entertaining. 

Final Thoughts:  This was a very entertaining show that surpassed expectations with the new 2.0 brand. These shows are different than prior Loop shows from before the Pandemic but that does not mean they are worse or better, just different. Older loop shows were based on in-ring quality with the goal being to have the best matches possible. The 2.0 shows over the past two nights have been focused on telling specific stories with the matches with good wrestling as a story telling device. I am sure some people prefer one style over the other but both are entertaining and I am just grateful live wrestling is back on the Loop. The crowd was fiery all night, the Minnreg Hall still had a vintage bowling alley smell, cheap booze was still sold by an old Polish lady in a make-shift bar, bodies were slammed and all seemed right for once in this crazy world of ours. 

 

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