8 Ups & 2 Downs From NXT Stand & Deliver 2022

Triple H appears; Tommaso Ciampa waves goodbye to NXT; 3 titles change hands.

by Jamie Kennedy
Dolph Ziggler Robert Roode Dirty Dawgs
WWE

Few things were certain heading into NXT's Stand & Deliver 2022.

The reborn third brand hasn't exactly been hitting weekly homes runs on TV, and Vince McMahon's 2.0 rebranding has largely disillusioned those who once enjoyed the indy-wrestling-meets-WWE-production vibes of the show. NXT 2.0 is developmental for Raw and SmackDown - plain and simple. That's the way things will be until the boss man's whims steer things in a different direction again.

Now for some good news. NXT's roster came through on the final word of this pay-per-view's name. They did deliver, often in a big way. No match on the card could be considered an obvious disappointment, and some definitely exceeded expectations that many had going in.

WWE put on an afternoon of surprise comebacks, emotional farewells, title switches and more. This, being honest, was a better way to set yourself up for WrestleMania 38 than Monday's episode of Raw or Friday's naff edition of SmackDown.

Here's all the good and bad from an event that might just represent hope for the future of NXT after all. More wrestling like this wouldn't be a negative.

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Contributor

Lifelong wrestling, video game, music and sports obsessive who has been writing about his passions since childhood. Jamie started writing for WhatCulture in 2013, and has contributed thousands of articles and YouTube videos since then. He cut his teeth penning published pieces for top UK and European wrestling read Fighting Spirit Magazine (FSM), and also has extensive experience working within the wrestling biz as a manager and commentator for promotions like ICW on WWE Network and WCPW/Defiant since 2010. Further, Jamie also hosted the old Ministry Of Slam podcast, and has interviewed everyone from Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels to Bret Hart and Trish Stratus.