Mark Andrews has been the anchor of NXT UK thus far, outperforming bigger stars Tyler Bate and Trent Seven as well as appearing more often than special occasion boy-popper and finger-snapper UK Champion Pete Dunne.
It's unfortunately meant that he's been involved in some tripe too, but this latest singles showcase did everything it could to help his bizarre opponent Mike 'Wild Boar' Hitchman look like a potential player too.
Hitchman lived up to the ravenous intensity of his nickname with his strikes and slaps on Andrews, before taking his rage out on himself with hair-mutilation akin to Mick Foley's original version of the Mankind character. On a show where so many are finding it hard to make an impression, the brand's first out-there performer made sure to maximise his minutes.
Andrews was great here, and even better in episode two...
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
