10 Problems Nobody Wants To Admit About NXT

7. The Air Of Desperation

Adam Cole
WWE.com

NXT booked Ladder matches to earn the advantage ahead of the brutal, double-cage WarGames spectacular. Not since Vince Russo first made googly eyes with a pole has pro wrestling seen such total gimmick match overkill.

These Ladder matches served no logical purpose in storylines - fraught with danger, they in theory handed Adam Cole and Io Shirai as much of a disadvantage - and dulled the imminent brutality of WarGames. They were promoted purely as window dressing to hand NXT the advantage over AEW, as, all the while, the black-and-gold brand normalised a potential draw of a stipulation.

But remember: it's a marathon, not a sprint, words written by WWE's PR team just hours after Adam Cole and Matt Riddle wrestled a (brilliant) 150mph sprint of a PWG-indebted opener expressly designed to counter-programme AEW Dynamite's premiere. The data that followed revealed the short-term idiocy behind the play: Riddle is a big draw amongst the elusive teenage demo, and now, he is removed from the NXT Championship picture.

This week, Cole defends that belt against Finn Bálor, in the opener, free of commercials, marking the second main event-level challenger NXT has burned through in just 12 weeks.

This poses two problems: where AEW is lighting the fuse, NXT is lighting the touch-paper, in the process enveloping itself in a short-term mentality of desperation that can prove off-putting to many.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!