8 Ups And 2 Downs From WWE NXT (Aug 31)

Ups...

8. Kyle Kooly Defeats Duke

WWE.comIt wasn't the best of week's for Kyle O'Reilly on the previous edition of NXT. On the back of being sneak attacked by the black and gold brand's resident monster Yorkshireman, the former Undisputed Era man was involved in a backstage skirmish with Duke Hudson, setting up a match between the two on last night's show.

Leaning heavily into his pr*ckish arrogance from minute one, Hudson took advantage of his superior power game, walloping the BJJ expert with well-timed knees and Irish whips whenever the highly experienced grappler attempted to pick up a head of steam. All in all, it was a rather dominant display from the 2021 Breakout Tournament competitor, but where there's a Kool Kyle there's always a way to win.

Sure enough, with Hudson getting a little caught up in the moment and trying to nail O'Reilly with a big boot off the apron, the former NXT Championship challenger seized the opportunity to hit two dragon-screws in the ropes on the bigger man before landing a top-rope knee and locking in a subsequent knee-bar for the tap-out victory.

Hudson still has room to grow and is no doubt one for the much talked about new direction NXT is set to take in the coming months, but this was undoubtedly his best Tuesday night display to date. As for Kool Kyle, you have to imagine he's eager to get some revenge on Ridge Holland going forward, battered ribs or not.