5 Ups & 5 Downs From Last Night's WWE NXT (Dec 11)

3. False Advertising

Dakota Kai
WWE.com

In a pre-match promo cut earlier in the night (a solid enough promo, incidentally), Mia Yim promised to send Dakota Kai home in an ambulance.

She sought to achieve this by...throwing a few suplexes at a slightly more risky angle, and Dakota Kai responded by shrieking a bit more when she threw her kicks. That's reductive, and probably a little harsh, but the tone of this match betrayed both premise and promise. It was a solid-to-good pro wrestling match that, ultimately, felt like a slightly intense wrestling match, and when it did meet the remit, Yim hit more steps than opponent in one of the big spots.

Mia Yim did, admittedly, backdrop Kai through a table in the post-match, but this spot was doubly undermined. Firstly, it was a dreaded get-the-heat-back moment after Kai's win, and secondly, it didn't resonate as a moment of hatred-fuelled violence. The blocking and staging felt rather contrived, and the landing felt both gentle and botched, where it was meant to look brutal and be safe.

Ultimately, NXT promised a chapter in a blood feud between two women who hate one another, and delivered something co-operative and underwhelming.

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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!