8 Ups And 1 Downs For WWE NXT (Feb 2)

7. Leon Has A Ruff Night, Lumis Wants Theory's Head...Of Hair?

After finding himself on the receiving end of a beatdown courtesy of The Way on last week's NXT, Leon Ruff was gifted with a chance to teach Austin Theory some respect.

Early on, it seemed like Theory's insistence on showing off in front of his tutor would be his downfall as Ruff constantly took advantage of his arrogance, reversing fall-away slams and executing rapid roll-up attempts. Even a Johnny Gargano interference attempt, bookending an odd Women's Dusty Cup semifinal preview between The Way and Shotzi Blackheart & Ember Moon, couldn't stop Ruff, who outsmarted the North American Champion with tactics Eddie Guerrero would have been proud of.

Yet, in a somewhat surprising turn of events, Theory managed to overcome a sweet cutter from the former NA Champ before suddenly drilling him with an ATL for the victory. However, his plans to inflict even more punishment on Ruff post-match were soon scuppered by the arrival of Dexter Lumis. The creepy starer soon chased away the arrogant Way apprentice, but not before stealing a clump of his hair and sniffing it...because Dexter Lumis?

A Lumis/Theory programme could be a compelling use of both men's time over the next few weeks, giving Theory an opportunity to carve out a bit more of an independent path in trying to stave off the threat of the steely character. But let's try and keep the surreal hair fetishes to a minimum, yeah?