On Saturday, September 27th, WWE NXT returned to Fort Lauderdale, FL, at the FTL War Memorial for its big event, No Mercy. The event was headlined by a bitter rivalry coming to a head as Oba Femi put his NXT Championship on the line against Ricky Saints. This match marked Saints’ biggest one yet, since debuting in NXT.
We also saw Jacy Jayne put the NXT Women’s Championship on the line against Lola Vice, Blake Monroe meet Jordynne Grace in a weaponized Steel Cage match, Sol Ruca defend her WWE Speed Championship in an open challenge, Ethan Page put his NXT North American Championship on the line against Tavion Heights, and so much more. So what were the top three moments of the night?
3. Jordynne Grace survives Blake Monroe inside a Weaponized Steel Cage
In one of the biggest marquee matches of the night, we saw Jordynne Grace go one-on-one with her former best friend, Blake Monroe, in a Weaponized Steel Cage match. This was one that has gotten very personal over the past month. The last time these two women met at NXT Heatwave, Monroe pinned Grace, giving her a slight advantage in this one.
This match was about as brutal as you might imagine. Both women didn’t just want to win the match, but they also wanted to hurt each other. The winner of this match could ultimately be next in line for an NXT Women’s Championship match, and there was a lot at stake. Monroe got violent, cutting some of Grace’s hair off and using the cage and weapons to her advantage.
However, Grace would return the favor using Monroe as a battering ram against the Steel Cage. In the end, Grace would land an air raid crash from the top rope through the table on Monroe and pin her to win the match. This was a fantastic match and an amazing showing by both women. The women’s division in NXT is truly in one of its greatest eras in the promotion’s history.
2. Lola Vice screwed out of NXT Women’s Championship shot
In another one of the night’s big marquee matches, we saw Jacy Jayne put her NXT Women’s Championship on the line against Lola Vice. Vice has been on her best run yet as of late and had a strong case to win the NXT Women’s Championship tonight. Vice earned the opportunity at NXT Heatwave, winning a three-way match, earning a future NXT Women’s Championship match.
Jayne has been out to prove something with her current run. She was often glanced over in her time at NXT, and actually spent a lot of her time in NXT as a sidekick. Now, she’s becoming the woman for NXT to build around. To Jayne’s credit, she’s been succeeding in that role.
Jayne and Vice put on a great match together. In the end, Vice hit her big spinning backfist before her own momentum took her out of the ring. While on the outside, a masked figure landed a big kick on Vice out of nowhere. This led to Vice getting dropped by the rolling encore and pinned. So, who was under the hood? Lainey Reid? Someone else? Only time will tell.
1. Ricky Saints becomes the new NXT Champion
The main event of the show saw Oba Femi put his NXT Championship on the line against the newcomer, Ricky Saints. This match came about when Saints defeated Josh Briggs in a #1 Contenders match for the NXT Championship earlier this month. This is a rivalry that has become very bitter between the two men, and something was going to have to give.
Femi has been the most dominant NXT Champion that we may have seen in NXT’s history. He has an immensely bright future on the main roster, wherever he may end up. Femi and Saints went to a war for the most coveted prize in NXT. Saints looked to prove that his evolution was truly beginning.
In the end, Saints lands four DDT’s on Oba, including one on the announce table, and one on the floor, to win the NXT Championship. This was an incredible main event, and an incredibly hard-fought match by both men. While Oba’s reign is officially over, the reign of Saints has only begun. Now the only question that remains is if Oba is going to be main roster bound.
