5 Ups & 1 Down From Last Night's WWE NXT (Feb 21)

Feb 22, 2018 February 22nd, 2018

1. This Utter Bastard

Tommaso Ciampa is the worst man who ever lived.

We all knew it was coming, but while his TakeOver: Philadelphia assault lost much of its sting after Gargano and Almas' classic main event, it still resonated as a grim warning of what lies in Johnny's future. There were no such quibbles with last night's interference, though. Ciampa's run-in was played perfectly, and when he struck his former partner with the crutch, costing him his NXT career, it was impossible to view him as anything other than an utter bastard.

Ciampa isn't content with costing Gargano the NXT Championship: he wants to ruin the man's life. This was put over heavily on commentary, and while WWE's plans for the former DIY duo remain to be seen something big is playing out before our very eyes.

This is an outstanding long form storyline on par with Bayley vs. Banks, Owens vs. Zayn, and anything else NXT has thrown up throughout the brand's existence. Everything has hit the mark, from their tense Cruiserweight Classic encounter to last night's assault, and when Tommaso is finally cleared to wrestle, they're going to tear the building down.

Nothing less than a TakeOver main event will do for NXT's most anticipated match of 2018.

Andy H Murray

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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.

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