5 Ups & 1 Down From Last Night's WWE NXT (Apr 25)

2. Black Smashes Sanity

Aleister Black Alexander Wolfe
WWE.com

We were supposed to get Aleister Black vs. Johnny Gargano last night, and would have if not for a certain 'Blackheart.' Instead, NXT served up Black vs. Sanity's Eric Young. The champion had called Tommaso Ciampa out, but it was the SmackDown-bound trio who responded, and this set up a solid replacement title fight with Black inevitably overcoming Young on his way out of the territory.

This wasn't your typical blow-away NXT main event, and was too short to be anything better than "good," but it was still a triumph. The key goal was to establish Black as a formidable champion. Having him put someone as capable as Young away in under nine minutes did just that, and while Eric exerted control at various points throughout the bout, Aleister's Black Mass and eventual pinfall proved that he was over-matched.

The post-match scene saw Black destroy Sanity, laying both Killain Dain and Alexander Wolfe out with their leader. It was a great way to send the trio off to the main roster. Black gets an almighty rub from obliterating them, and while his reign's true acid test will come in his first TakeOver defence, he's already off to an excellent start.

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Andy has been with WhatCulture for six years and is currently WhatCulture's Senior Wrestling Reporter. A writer, presenter, and editor with 10+ years of experience in online media, he has been a sponge for all wrestling knowledge since playing an old Royal Rumble 1992 VHS to ruin in his childhood. Having previously worked for Bleacher Report, Andy specialises in short and long-form writing, video presenting, voiceover acting, and editing, all characterised by expert wrestling knowledge and commentary. Andy is as much a fan of 1985 Jim Crockett Promotions as he is present-day AEW and WWE - just don't make him choose between the two.