No title changed hands on Tuesday's NXT, but the main event put a suspended wrestler into the NXT Women's Title picture. Wren Sinclair won the 20-woman NXT Women's Title No. 1 Contender's Battle Royal while disguised as AAA's Lady Shani, WWE.com reported. She will challenge NXT Women's Champion Kelani Jordan at Halloween Havoc on Saturday, October 31.
WWE.com said the field came from NXT, Raw, SmackDown, TNA, Evolve and AAA. Pro Wrestling Dot Net listed the final four as Kiana James, La Catalina, Kali Armstrong and Lizzy Rain. Armstrong eliminated Rain and appeared to have won, but Shani returned and dumped Armstrong out of the ring, then unmasked as Sinclair. Fightful reported that Shani was never eliminated, which is how she was able to get back in. Jordan was shown watching.
Sinclair is under a storyline suspension imposed by general manager Robert Stone, Fightful reported. POST Wrestling described it as an indefinite suspension that followed an attack on an official. Wrestling Inc reported that commentator Vic Joseph pointed out the suspension on air, and that ring announcer Mike Rome still announced her as the winner. POST wrote that it seems likely the suspension will be lifted for the title match.
The show opened with Zilla Fatu beating Lexis King by pinfall. Afterward, BirthRight attacked Fatu. WWE.com said the group used a steel chair, Wrestling Inc reported that King directed Charlie Dempsey to hit Fatu with it, and the group then smashed Fatu's hand with the steel steps. No outlet has reported a diagnosis for the hand.
BirthRight was involved in the night's other tournament result. The group attacked Sean Legacy and Dorian Van Dux backstage, leaving them unable to compete in the first round of the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic. William Regal then persuaded Stone to give that spot to Dempsey and King, who beat The Tokyo Bad Boys, Kento and Takuma. Dempsey pinned Takuma with a bridging suplex after King broke up a pin attempt, and the pair advance to the quarterfinals.
Also on the show, Hank Walker and Tank Ledger beat Shido Ash and Viktor Zanov in the first round of the same tournament. Pro Wrestling Dot Net reported that Ledger scored the pin on Ash. Shiloh Hill and Naraku went to a no-contest when Naraku's mist hit the referee, according to WWE.com. Hill and Naraku kept brawling until officials and security separated them. Pro Wrestling Dot Net recorded the finish as an apparent disqualification win for Hill, so outlets differ on the result.
NXT Champion Grayson Waller opened a segment with an open challenge, and both Tony D'Angelo and Myles Borne came out. Waller proposed that they meet in a No. 1 contender's match, POST Wrestling reported, and Borne then dropped D'Angelo with a punch, per WWE.com. The match is set for October 13, and the winner challenges Waller at Halloween Havoc. Fightful reported that the October 13 show also includes Dusty Classic quarterfinals: NXT Tag Team Champions Brad Baylor and Ricky Smokes face Chazz Hall and Mini Vikingo, and Noam Dar and Romeo Moreno face Axiom and Nathan Frazer. Saquon Shugars faces Tristan Angels.
Waller remains NXT Champion and Jordan remains NXT Women's Champion. Halloween Havoc has two matches set: Jordan against Sinclair, and Waller against the winner of D'Angelo and Borne.
