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CALDWELL'S WWE NXT RESULTS 6/29: Ongoing "virtual time" coverage of NXT Season 2, Week 4
Jun 29, 2010 - 10:03:12 PM
WWE NXT TV Results
June 29, 2010 - Season 2, Episode 4
Live in Wilkes-Barre, Pa.
By James Caldwell, PWTorch assistant editor
WWE is going with a live episode of NXT this week since they have a WWE fan vote on their website. The show is the last hour of a lengthy Smackdown TV taping in Wilkes-Barre, so it will be interesting to see if the audience stays interested until the end of the show.
This week's NXT started with Michael Cole quickly introducing the show and the new host from last week, Ashley Valence. On stage, Ashley had a false start before announcing that the first official voting is beginning now on WWE's website. Ashley introduced all of the NXT Season 2 Rookies and mis-pronounced Kaval's name. Kaval is still wearing his pink Lay-Cool t-shirt. Ashley recapped the voting process with 50 percent from online and 50 percent from the Pros. She reminded the Rookies that last season's winner, Wade Barrett, was never ranked below #2.
Ashley has a surprise for tonight: they're going to eliminate whichever Rookie is ranked the lowest tonight. She paused for Alex Riley to laugh at this. Ashley continued the monologue and Cole quipped they should eliminate her. She sent it over to Matt Striker, who was ringside for the first challenge of Season Two: the keg carry. Oh great. The crowd was quiet for this. Striker recapped the challenge and said the winner will have immunity from tonight's elimination.
Up first was Michael McGillicutty a/k/a Joe Hennig. Hennig dropped the keg right after picking it up. He was given the buzzer and was cut from the contest. They actually did a post-contest interview as Hennig tried to explain the keg was slippery. Lucky Cannon was next and quickly completed the keg carry at 12.7. Nice time. "Showtime" Percy Watson was next and danced to the keg. He lost two seconds taking his time picking up the keg. It cost him, as Percy crossed the line at 13.0 seconds.
Eli Cottonwood was third. The big man did a big man walk around the ring with the keg and finished at 13.3 seconds. Cole said the keg weighs 160 pounds right before the thing made a hollow noise bouncing off the ground. Kaval was next. He opted to skip the competition and cut a promo. He said he's not risking his body unless it's in the ring for the WWE audience. Titus O'Neil was next and the poor guy tripped over his feet and went spilling across the ringside area. He cut a promo afterward that it's an example of why you don't drink and drive. They did a slow-motion replay to make sport of Titus some more.
Husky Harris was next and he dropped the keg halfway around the ring to lose the contest. Striker put the mic in Harris's face and told him to be professional. Harris told Striker he's pretty brave for sticking the mic in his face. Husky shoved the mic back in Striker's face without beating him up like last week. Last was Alex Riley, who leaned back a bit too much carrying the keg around the ring, which slowed him down. Riley ate the ground while crossing the finish line at 13.3. And Lucky Cannon wins. Striker condescendingly told Lucky it's a big deal he won this. Lucky said he feels good about this. He proceeded to cut another cliche-filled babyface promo that fell flat with the audience.
Announcers: Cole made sport of himself, much to Mathews's chagrin, then Mathews fed to an NXT Rookie video on Percy Watson.
Rookie video: Percy Watson talked about playing in the NFL, working on Wall Street as a commodities trader, owning a limo company, and now being a wrestler. Percy said he wears the glasses when he wrestles because he has vision for where he wants to be in life. Watson said he brings athleticism, flash, high-flying, quickness, and agility. "I got it all, baby," Watson said.
Up next: MVP (Watson's Pro) vs. Husky Harris (Cody Rhodes's Rookie).
[Q2]
[Commercial Break]
In-ring: MVP was on the way to the ring with Percy Watson after the break. Already in the ring were Husky Harris and "Dashing" Cody Rhodes.
1 -- MVP (w/Percy Watson) vs. HUSKY HARRIS (w/Cody Rhodes)
They had a nice start to this match with MVP and Harris slowly dancing around the ring teasing a lock-up and staying on their feet for the first two or three minutes. Harris collided mid-ring with MVP and screamed at him to bring it. MVP smirked, then caught Harris with a small package for a one count. They cut to a random shot of the Pros on stage as Cole said Mark Henry is "on assignment" and has already voted in the Pros vote. Why not put over the WWE champ by saying Sheamus knocked out Henry on last night's Raw? Anyways, MVP knocked Harris to the floor with a Chono Boot. A fan in the very quiet arena audibly shouted, "Get up, Butterball!" as Harris recovered on the floor. They cut to break.
[Commercial Break]
Back from break, MVP was working over Harris in the ring. They cut back to the Pros on stage watching the action. Meanwhile, the ref checked on MVP, who was selling an injury after Harris regained control. Henry then went to a rear naked choke and failed on a nip up attempt. He followed with a round of right hand fists to the mid-section as Mathews mocked the nip up. Cole proceeded to cut a promo on Mathews not being an athlete and only taking a nip of something from a bottle. This show has come off the rails.
Harris continued to slow things down and delivered a scoop slam. He decided to pick up MVP again and deliver another scoop slam. Harris doesn't seem to be all there, but maybe it's just the gimmick. Harris then teased a whip to the corner, but awkwardly turned it into a short-arm clothesline. Harris tried to follow with a sentaun, but MVP moved and Harris ate the mat.
MVP tried to make a comeback and rally the crowd, but Harris failed to feed for MVP's comeback. Harris eventually flopped down near the ropes. MVP then warmed up the Ballin' Elbow drop to little fanfare as Cole made a LeBron James to Miami Heat reference. MVP connected, then made the pin for the win.
Post-match: MVP wanted a handshake from Harris, but Harris walked out of the ring with Cody Rhodes following behind him. MVP smirked and Percy Watson just smiled. The Pros were shown evaluating the proceedings as Harris walked off.
WINNER: MVP in 13:00. That was brutal and a lifeless crowd didn't help. The first few minutes were really strong with the slow build-up and feeling-out process, but Harris on an extended offensive attack was not exactly a smart decision. At least they found out what Harris needs to work on, but isn't that what FCW is for? They don't need not-ready-for-prime-time wrestlers on national TV. (1/2*)
Still to come: the first NXT Season Two Poll.
[Q3]
[Commercial Break]
Announcers: Cole and Mathews were shown on-camera to recap the news today that the first NXT Season Two elimination will go down tonight. Cole recapped Lucky Cannon receiving immunity tonight via the keg carry. They showed Titus O'Neil crashing and falling, Joe Hennig dropping the keg, Alex Riley spilling over the finish line, and Lucky Cannon winning.
2 -- ELI COTTONWOOD & ALEX RILEY & TITUS O'NEIL vs. JOE HENNIG & KAVAL & LUCKY CANNON
They randomly cut to the ring for a random six-man tag match. Hennig and Eli started things off against each other. Lucky and Titus then entered the ring and had an FCW-quality exchange. Alex Riley provided a distraction on Lucky, allowing Titus to take control for their team. Riley entered and worked over Cannon as they cut to a shot of "coach" Miz smiling and watching approvingly as his Rookie dominated the match. Team Riley continued to work over Cannon as Cole said it's a good thing Cannon won immunity since he's looking terrible here. The crowd was absolutely lifeless for this. They cut to a shot of Miz watching intently as Cannon teased a hot tag.
Cannon eventually made it to Kaval to wake up the crowd. Kaval cleaned house and delivered kick strikes on Riley for a two count. Kaval landed a nice handspring kick strike in the corner for a two count as Eli and Titus broke up a pin attempt. The two big men proceeded to chuck Kaval out of the ring. Hennig then snuck in the back door and dropped Riley with a neckbreaker. The action broke down as Kaval re-entered the scene. He went up top and landed a big double foot stomp on Riley for the pin and the win. And cue up a celebration by Lay-Cool on the stage. After they aired highlights of the match, Kaval, Hennig, and Cannon were shown celebrating in the ring.
WINNER: Team Kaval in 5:00. Kaval continues to stand out for his in-ring work and demonstrate why he will be a star if WWE gives him an opportunity similar to Evan Bourne. Meanwhile, Riley continues to stand out for his heel work. The match was barely passable with Lucky Cannon isolated for most of the match. (*)
On-stage: Matt Striker begged the viewers to go to WWE's website to vote for their favorite NXT Rookie. The Pros then huddled up on stage and compared notes on who should be eliminated.
DVD plug: Ricky Steamboat. An abbreviated version of the video that aired on Raw last night with plenty of old-school clips.
[Q4]
[Commercial Break]
Raw Rebound: They went back to last night to show Ricky Steamboat and assorted legends celebrating Steamboat's career before the Nexus group attacked the legends and KO'ed Steamboat. They included a voice-over on the WWE wrestlers unable to lay a finger on Nexus or be subject to suspension. It seems pretty inconsistent with John Cena's "hustle loyalty respect" character to not risk suspension and allow Nexus to take out the WWE Legends.
Announcers: Cole gave an injury report on Ricky Steamboat and said the other Legends suffered minor injuries. Mathews said Raw is under siege from Nexus. He said the question is how the group will affect the new Money in the Bank PPV. Cole said the new Raw GM has taken measures to ensure Nexus does not become involved in the main event of WWE champ Sheamus vs. John Cena with the match inside a steel cage. Cole also ran down the eight men involved in the MITB ladder match.
MITB video: They continued to fill time by re-airing the video package from Raw on Edge's successful MITB history. The cameo list included Jim Ross on commentary, Shelton Benjamin in the 2005 MITB match, Coachman and Joey Styles on commentary, and Lita.
Announcers: Cole and Mathews were shown on camera again. They said the online voting has been closed, the Pro voting has been tabulated, and the results will be announced next.
[Commercial Break]
Smackdown plug: Rey Mysterio's first live appearance as the new World Hvt. champion.
Ringside: Matt Striker was with the eight NXT Rookies to recap the events tonight with one of them going home. Striker recapped Lucky Cannon having immunity tonight. And #1 is...Kaval. Cole said that doesn't surprise him with the Internet voting. #2 is Percy Watson. #3 is Michael McGillicutty. #4 is Alex Riley, who sold not being happy with that vote. #5 is Lucky Cannon, which drew a mild reaction. #6 is Eli Cottonwood. So, it comes down to Titus O'Neil and Husky Harris.
[Q5 -- over-run] Striker asked Harris and O'Neil to step forward and face the vote. Striker said the eliminated Rookie has his work cut out for him. Cue up the drumroll and #7 is...Husky Harris. #8 is Titus O'Neil and he's going home. He just didn't stand out during the show. Titus was given the mic and he cut a motivational speech to the audience. Titus said life is a game and you must make it what you can. The crowd applauded as Titus signed off, "Make it a win." Titus left the ringside area shaking hands with the fans on the front row as Striker talked about the competition intensifying from here. Riley had a great expression no-selling the vote with a #4 ranking. They cut to a final shot of Titus hugging his NXT Pro, Zack Ryder, and posing on the stage to close the show.
We welcome your 0-10 score and comments on this show for an "NXT TV Reax" feature in the Torch Feedback section of PWTorch.com. To contribute your thoughts on NXT, email to pwtorch@gmail.com using our Feedback form.
•New for September 2010 - the Torch Today "Daily News at a Glance"... If you've got 25 seconds, we've boiled the news of the day down to 250 words. Check it out every day at 5 p.m. ET or bookmark the listing. Appointment reading for the wrestling fan who doesn't want to miss anything, but doesn't have much time.
