4 Ups And 6 Downs From WWE NXT 2.0 (Nov 23)

Ups...

4. Ciampa Breaks Waller's (Black)Heart

Last week saw Grayson Waller dip into a darker side of his persona during an appearance on Lashing Out with Lash Legend, with the NXT newcomer confessing that he didn't give a damn about the "hotdog and a handshake" generation and that the time of the social media megastars was upon us.

Doubling down on that new rhetoric, the loudmouth sensation only went and cut off WWE's signature before the developmental show had even officially kicked off this week. A scathing promo on the fans in attendance followed, confessing that their fickleness had been seen before in their response to icons like John Cena, The Rock, and Roman Reigns over the years. But before he could arrogantly add "Grayson Waller" to that list, Tommaso Ciampa stormed down to the ring to teach this cocky 21st Century Success Story a lesson.

What ensued was a surprisingly compelling bout between a seasoned veteran and a star who only appears to get better in-between the ropes by the week. Despite Blackheart's early dominance, Waller would eventually turn the tables and implement WWE's typical "methodical" top player pace as (hopefully) a knowing nod to the aforementioned divisive names. And then, when things were taken up a notch, Waller hung with the NXT Champion shot for shot, pulling out an inverted Death Valley Driver and a wicked inverted rolling senton as we reached the closing stages.

It was here where Ciampa's experience came good, nailing Waller with a rapid fire Willow's Bell and Fairytale Ending for the win after the newbie seemed to rush his finish at the faintest smell of blood in the water. But make no mistake, Waller came out of this smelling like roses and clearly has all the foundations necessary to come good on his claims of being the next big thing in WWE.