Winners, News And Notes On January 18, 2022

WWE NXT advertised WALTER against Roderick Strong in what some believe could be Strong’s swan song in NXT. Strong reportedly signed a new contract last year, however with many black-and-gold-era stars being phased out of NXT, Strong represents the last of a dying breed in Full Sail University. NXT also advertised a Pete Dunne memorial service featuring Tony D’Angelo and opening round action from the Dusty Classic.

Last week’s broadcast of WWE NXT drew 647,000 viewers.

• January 11, 2022—647,000
• January 4, 2022—685,000
• December 28, 2021—662,000
• December 21, 2021—591,000
• December 14, 2021—561,000

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WWE NXT Total YouTube Viewership Last Week: 2,173,305

• Most-Viewed: AJ Styles vs. Grayson Waller (761,533 views)
• Least-Viewed: MSK vies for Dusty Cup (34,047 views)
• Median Viewership: 145,757 views

WWE NXT Results | Tuesday, January 18, 2022

Grayson Waller def. Dexter Lumis

Grayson Waller got some serious heat by revealing he had filed a restraining order against LA Knight. Fans even chanted “rip that [expletive]!”

Waller had to choose between LA Knight and Dexter Lumis, and he chose Lumis, which has feel like somewhat of a slight on Dexter, who is supposed to be too terrifying to challenge.

Bron Breaker may be the top guy in NXT, but Waller feels like its top prospect. He’s appeared on Raw, got an elusive match with AJ Styles, they wrote a restraining order storyline for him and now he even has a big heater.

The Creed Brothers def. Brooks and Jenson

Part of the Creed Brothers’ charm is how rough around the edges they are, which adds a certain intensity to their matches. As they become more polished wrestlers, hopefully they still maintain a measure of controlled recklessness in the ring.

This match was very fun two watch in that it came off as four bulls in a China shop. I consider The Creed Brothers favorites to win it all.

Duke Hudson Destroys Dante Chen

I loved Dante Chen’s story, and he does have in-ring charisma, but he could use a mouthpiece.

Duke Hudson returned to crash Dante Martin’s debut. He appears done with the poker gimmick and isn ow playing more of a hothead a la Ken Shamrock.

Tony D’Angelo’s Memorial Service for Pete Dunne

Tony D’Angelo seemed to struggle remembering some of his lines, but his delivery was on point.

Tony D’Angelo cited J.T. The Brick as one of his boys, and I can only assume he was talking about the radio personality.

Trick Williams might be the best promo in NXT.

The payoff to this segment came when the increasingly popular Cameron Grimes smashed a Pete Dunne portrait over D’Angelo’s head.

Ivy Nile def. Kay Lee Ray

I hated that it seemed like Ivy Nile was being fed to Kay Lee Ray. Nile needs to be protected at all costs as an unbeaten monster.

Thankfully, Nile picked up a rollup victory over Ray, but Ray certainly feels like a weak challenger for Mandy Rose if that’s the direction they go in.

Joe Gacy and Harland appear set to feud with Odyssey Jones after a backstage attack. Say what you will about Joe Gacy but he continues to grow on me if nothing else because he really nails that evil grin.

Edris Enofe and Malik Blade def. Legado Del Fantasma

The way the announce team was talking up how heavily Legado Del Fantasma was favored, I felt like there was a chance they might lose.

My hunch was right as Enofe and Blade sprung the upset, causing Vic Joseph to shout “bracket busted!” I love that this tournament is mimicking March Madness with an actual Cinderella team.

Dakota Kai def. Yulisa Leon

There’s such a diversity of talent in NXT in terms of who they put over and whose stories get told. Tonight saw vignettes from Brooks and Jenson (Caucasian cowboys), Sarray (Japan), Dante Chen (Singapore), Solo Sikoa (Samoa), Yulisa Leon (Mexico) and Valentina Feroz (Brazil) and another upset win from Enofe (Nigeria) and Blade (African-American). Though the booking will be better in AEW tomorrow, AEW typically operates along the Spectrum of Whiteness.

WALTER def. Roderick Strong

Vic Joseph kept building this match up as a match “we never thought we would see,” as if WALTER vs. Roderick Strong was a dream match.

This NXT 2.0 crowd didn’t sing along to WALTER’s theme as much as I thought they would.

By this point in the show, the Diamond Mine theme song felt so played out but it was great to see Malcolm Bivens get so much TV time.

WALTER didn’t take long to endear himself to this crowd with a room-rocking chop that elicited chants of “holy [expletive].”

This match lived up to its (forced) potential. By the end of it, fans were applauding in appreciation.

WALTER appeared to undergo a name change to Gunther. Let’s hope this was just a one-time thing.