Another double bill of NXT UK this week, with shows that were overdue in more ways the one.
After weeks of waiting, the company finally unveiled a Women's Championship, even though the result has been spoiled for anybody that may have seen the eventual victor in the flesh. WWE fell too far behind too quickly with these initial batched tapings - the sooner they reach a pace in keeping with Full Sail's NXT, the better.
Furthermore, England's 'Second City' has long been underserved by WWE as a viable television destination, not least for this particular project. The brand's three biggest stars have emerged from a booming Birmingham scene - shouldn't more have been made of the locale? Though a side room at the National Exhibition Centre during the 'Insomnia63' gaming festival didn't exactly provide the most glamourous aesthetic, it did at least furnish the city with its first televised action from the company since 2007.
During that taping cycle, Hornswoggle literally blew up the ring with Jonathan Coachman under it. The localised British brand couldn't be that cartoonish. Could it?
Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett
