WWE NXT Season Finale
June 1, 2010
Dallas, TX
Report by: Mike Tedesco of Wrestleview.com
“Yes, sir, we promised you a great main event…” The WWE video leads us into the show.
A video plays running down the highlights of the first season of NXT. The stuff with Daniel Bryan this season was extremely well done. They showed all the eliminations and finished up with Justin Gabriel, David Otunga, and Wade Barrett still standing. The next breakout star will be crowned tonight. This was a great video. They even made the “competitions” look interesting.
The NXT video plays and they cut around the part where they show the rookies with their pros because how could they explain away Carlito? The fireworks explode as Michael Cole and Josh Mathews welcome us to the show, LIVE from Dallas, Texas.
Matt Striker is in the ring and he welcomes us to the season finale of NXT. Tonight one rookie’s dream will come true but before he does that he welcomes the five eliminated NXT rookies who are seated at ringside. The Pros are then welcomed to the stage. Striker then welcomes the three NXT finalists Wade Barrett, David Otunga, and Justin Gabriel.
Striker congratulates them on making it this far. For the past fifteen weeks they’ve cultivated a dream. Two of them will have persevered but will go home empty handed. Only one rookie will win NXT and become the next breakout star, having a championship match on PPV. We will have two Pro’s Polls tonight. They will be doubly scrutinized because all three of them will see action in a triple threat match next.
Josh Mathews says next week will start season two of NXT. They introduce the first rookie Husky Harris. He’s a third generation superstar. His grandfather is Blackjack Mulligan and his father is IRS, Mike Rotunda. His WWE Pro will be Cody Rhodes. The horrible names continue.
Chris Jericho, R-Truth, and Matt Hardy come to ringside to manage their rookies, who will face each other next.
-Commercial Break-
John Morrison, who will be a WWE Pro on NXT Season Two, promotes his rookie, who he calls a giant redwood tree. He’s taller than all the other trees in the forest but he’s hard to talk to. If he can open his mind he can show him how to burn the rest of the forest down. His rookie is Eli Cottonwood, who is a 7’1 powerhouse. They showed five seconds of highlights and I’m totally sold. I like this guy.
Triple Threat Elimination Match
Wade Barrett (7-5) vs. David Otunga (6-4) vs. Justin Gabriel (7-3)
The bell rings and they slowly approach. Otunga goes for Gabriel but Barrett stops him. Otunga kicks Barrett out of the ring but quickly gets rolled up by Gabriel for a one count. Gabriel kicks and then baseball slides Barrett down at ringside. Otunga punches Gabriel and shoulders him in the corner. Otunga whips him hard into the corner and clotheslines him. Otunga hits a stiff short-arm clothesline for a near fall. Barrett then runs in, kicks Otunga in the face, and throws Gabriel out of the ring.
Barrett punches away at Otunga in the corner before kicking Gabriel down. Jericho yells at the announcers at ringside. I’m going to miss that. Barrett goes for a suplex on Otunga but Gabriel springboards off the top rope and hits a sunset flip on him for a near fall. Otunga throws Barrett out of the ring and works on Gabriel. Otunga has a whip reversed on him but he holds the ropes. Gabriel charges and gets back body dropped over the top rope onto Barrett. They had a nice collision there.
Otunga throws Gabriel into the ring and pins him for a near fall. Otunga hits a sloppy looking powerslam and goes over to the ropes. Barrett snaps Otunga off the top rope but gets kicked off the apron by Gabriel. Gabriel hits a BEAUTIFUL 450 Splash on Otunga and pins but Barrett pulls him out and covers Otunga himself! David Otunga is eliminated from this match.
-Commercial Break-
We come back from the break to see Gabriel kick out of a submission. Gabriel goes into the ropes but takes a kick and an elbow to the back of the head. Barrett locks on an abdominal stretch. During the break Barrett executed a HUGE flapjack and a gut-buster. Barrett punches the ribs as he cinches the hold in more. Barrett takes him down and drops an elbow. Barrett whips him hard into the corner and charges but Gabriel moves.
Gabriel hits some kicks but has a whip reversed on him. Gabriel back flips over him and hits a big roundhouse kick. Gabriel hits a forearm and gets the crowd into it. Gabriel hits him in the corner and hits a springboard cross-body for a near fall. Barrett punches and goes for his finisher but Gabriel slides down and rolls him up for a near fall. Jericho was on the apron begging Barrett to kick out. Gabriel hits a nice takedown and goes up top. Gabriel comes off with the 450 Splash but Barrett gets the knees up!! Barrett gets a small package and takes it!
Winner by Pinfall: Wade Barrett (8-5)
Match Rating: **
Matt Striker asks the Pros to get together and come up with the first Pro’s Poll of the evening.
MVP says he’s excited to be a WWE Pro on NXT. His rookie comes from South Beach which isn’t like Miami. MVP goes over the things it takes to be a superstar, like dedication and sacrifice. If he shows him some of those and earns his respect then he’ll show him a few things. His rookie is Percy Washington who’s got to be WORSE than Heath Slater. That character is atrocious.
-Commercial Break-
The Junkyard Dog video plays again. JYD was the BEST!
Zack Ryder is backstage and he says he’ll be a pro on NXT Season Two. Ryder says it doesn’t matter what his rookie’s attributes are. What matters is what he teaches him, like how to dress and pick up girls. His rookie is Titus O’Neil. This guy looks pretty impressive. They’ll be an interesting pair. He’s a former pro football player and Florida Gator.
Matt Striker is ringside while the three remaining NXT rookies are in the ring. The Pro’s Poll will be revealed soon. Striker asks the eliminated rookies who should be eliminated. Michael Tarver says he’s the product and if he had to choose anyone to be eliminated it would be him. What?!
Daniel Bryan says David Otunga can’t wrestle and Justin Gabriel can’t talk. Wade Barrett should win. Skip Sheffield says he doesn’t care who wins and sits down. Darren Young says Wade Barrett will win. He’s built for this mentally and physically. Young then rips on the crowd. Heath Slater says Wade Barrett has proved it and he’ll win.
The time is upon us for the first Pro’s Poll of the evening. It is as follows:
#1 Wade Barrett (8-5) (Last week: 1)
#2 David Otunga (6-5) (Last week: 2)
#3 Justin Gabriel (7-4) (Last week: 3)
Justin Gabriel has been eliminated from the NXT competition. The crowd boos wildly at this result. Justin Gabriel says he’s just a kid from South Africa living his dream but, as Striker says, it’s over… but not really. He’s the most tenacious person he knows. He’ll keep coming back until he makes it in this company. He’s had some ups and downs in NXT but he keeps getting up. He’ll keep coming back because someday he will be a World Champion. Justin Gabriel goes to the back to a nice applause.
Matt Hardy meets him at the top of the stage and takes a microphone. Hardy says that Gabriel is very much like him. While he didn’t win NXT he will not die. He’ll be back. This door may have closed but he can kick another one open. He’s a good guy and he wishes him luck.
Michelle McCool and Layla are the first ever WWE Pros on NXT. They don’t know much about their rookie but he’s competed all over the world. It’s Kaval (Lo-Ki). I guess they were saving him to give season two some star power. His ring gear is lame but he’s tremendous.
There’s still one more Pro’s Poll to be revealed. The winner of NXT is coming.
-Commercial Break-
Did you know that every Tuesday since its premiere 14 weeks ago, NXT has been the #1 show on SyFy?
Mark Henry will be a WWE Pro on NXT Season Two. His rookie thinks he’s lucky and he is, having him for a mentor. His rookie is Lucky Cannon. His name comes from some close calls he’s had early in life. He’s got a great look but a terrible name. He’s a former sheriff apparently.
Matt Striker asks the rookies to face each other. As entertainingly and creatively, in sixty seconds, tell the rookie across from you why that person should be eliminated and you should stay. David Otunga says Wade Barrett is ugly and his nose is as crooked as his pro. His teeth wouldn’t intimidate anyone but a dentist. Otunga says he’s pretty and Barrett doesn’t have the “it” factor. Otunga asks if he mentioned he went to Harvard. That was bad.
Wade Barrett cuts a great promo saying that Otunga must have had the viewers turning the show off during his promo like he’s had happening every time he wrestles. Barrett says the Great Khali has more balance in the ring than Otunga. Ouch! Barrett says Otunga has a great body but doesn’t know how to use it. Barrett says people say Otunga has the “it” factor because he has no tangible qualities that WWE can hang on to. If you add two more letters to “it” factor than you have an idea of what he thinks of Otunga. They wouldn’t be S and H, would they?
Striker says it’s time for the WWE Pros to huddle up and determine the winner of NXT. This is a no brainer.
Kofi Kingston is backstage and he puts over his rookie, Mr. Perfect’s son. Instead of Joe Hennig it’s Michael McGillicutty. Is that a joke? Cody Rhodes gets to keep his name and Joe Hennig has to settle for Michael McGillicutty? Are you kidding me? Oh watch out for Michael McGillicutty! He’s the next breakout star. A name is everything.
-Commercial Break-
Michael Cole and Josh Mathews put over NXT Season Two. They’re changing up the way the next breakout star is determined. The pros have 50% of the vote and the fans have the other 50%. You get to vote on WWE.com. I like that.
The Miz stands up and says he has a very important announcement. We’ve seen all the WWE Pros of Season Two talk about their rookies and he’s proud to announce that he’ll be back for season two. Unlike this season he won’t be burdened with an egotistical, arrogant loser like Daniel Bryan. This season he will have a winner. His rookie is Alex Riley. This guy is just like The Miz. This is a good pairing.
Matt Striker says it’s time to reveal the Pros Poll and William Regal stands up and congratulates Wade Barrett on winning the competition. R-Truth stands up and says that’s not the case. Umm… didn’t he just partake in the Pro’s Poll? They already know who won. Regal says the only reason Otunga is here is because of his wife and she’s ugly. Damn that’s rough. I don’t think Jennifer Hudson is ugly. All the Pros start arguing and Chris Jericho tells Regal to stop embarrassing himself. Regal says he’s always liked Jericho’s two moves. This was a fun segment.
Wade Barrett wins the NXT competition and is the next breakout star of WWE! Barrett celebrates like crazy as David Otunga looks disappointed. Striker asks for Otunga’s thoughts. Otunga says he’s looking for Ashton Kutcher because he’s being puked. Even Stevie Wonder can see that he’s the next breakout star. He knows someone who was eliminated from American Idol who became bigger than any of the winners (wife Jennifer Hudson).
Wade Barrett takes the microphone and says that he’s the next breakout WWE Superstar. This is nothing that he and his pro, Mr. Chris Jericho, didn’t know from the start. He didn’t come for a pat on the back. He came here to make himself a lot of coin and now he has a PPV title match which will bring the big bucks rolling in. Barrett says this is the beginning of a brand new era in WWE. The era of Wade Barrett. The winds of change have stopped because change is here and it’s now. Barack Obama is debuting with WWE? Chris Jericho raises Wade Barrett’s arm. That was a great closing segment.
A video plays showcasing all the highlights of the season and ends with Wade Barrett standing tall.
Quick Match Results
Wade Barrett (8-5) def. David Otunga (6-5) & Justin Gabriel (7-4)
Bump of the Night: Barrett getting the knees up on the 450 Splash!
Match of the Night: The Triple Threat (only match) **
Mike’s Thoughts
NXT has been an experiment with many ups and downs but WWE put a lot of effort into tonight and we got a tremendous closer to the season. Because of tonight I’m pumped for next week’s start of season two.
Wade Barrett won the NXT competition and there’s no doubt in my mind that the right guy won. Daniel Bryan didn’t need to win this because of what they’re doing with him now. He would’ve gotten over anyway. Barrett is a new star and he’s going to do great. He’s got a great look and great abilities. I can’t wait to see what they do with this guy. He’s going places.
As for David Otunga I’m not sure what they can do. There’s no question that he’s a great talker but his ring work is shoddy at best. You can only talk so much before you have to start backing it up in the ring. Maybe he can sit in FCW for a bit and sharpen up the skills. It’s the opposite for Justin Gabriel. He’s a great competitor but a terrible talker. Maybe he’d be a good fit on Smackdown where there’s less talking and more wrestling.
I was surprised to hear that season two is starting next week. I figured there would be some time taken between the seasons but that’s not the case. The line-up for the second season of NXT, starting next week, is as follows:
Husky Harris (WWE Pro Cody Rhodes)
Eli Cottonwood (WWE Pro John Morrison)
Percy Washington (WWE Pro MVP)
Titus O’Neil (WWE Pro Zack Ryder)
Kaval (WWE Pros Lay-Cool)
Lucky Cannon (WWE Pro Mark Henry)
Michael McGillicutty (WWE Pro Kofi Kingston)
Alex Riley (WWE Pro The Miz)
Before I close this off I just want to say something about the names that creative comes up with for these guys. Is that the best that they can do? Generic, horrible names like Husky Harris and Michael McGillicutty? The name is everything, people. There’s a reason he’s Stone Cold Steve Austin and not the Ringmaster. There’s a reason he’s John Cena and not Prototype. Names like Lucky Cannon and Eli Cottonwood may have flown in the mid-80s but that’s 25 years ago. It’s time to get with the program. Use their real names if that’s the best you can do.
Final Rating: *** 1/2
E-Mail – MikeyT817@hotmail.com
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