Lyra Valkyria defends the NXT Women’s Championship against Xia Li

NXT Women’s Champion Lyra Valkyria will put her title on the line for the first time as she takes on the dangerous Xia Li. Li reappeared in NXT two weeks ago, and since then, she has tormented Valkyria, including a brutal beatdown during a Warrior’s Tea Ceremony. Will Valkyria prove that she can successfully defend the title, or will the Li dynasty begin?




– We are live inside the ring inside the CWC where the ring announcer immediately begins the ring introductions for our opening contest.


NXT Heritage Cup Championship: Noam Dar (C) vs. Chad Gable

Introduced first is Alpha Academy's Chad Gable. The fans chant "THANK YOU!!!" The reigning and defending NXT Heritage Cup Champion Noam Dar is then introduced. The bell sounds and we're officially off-and-running with this one.

Gable immediately jumps into the early offensive lead, isolating the arm of Dar and taking him down to the mat. He continues to control him with his superior mat-based amateur wrestling and positioning skills.

Dar traps Gable's arm behind his back upon returning standing. Gable ends up countering out of it and locking up Dar's arm once again. Otis, Akira Tozawa and Maxxine Dupri have some fun with the crowd at ringside as Gable continues to work over Dar inside it.

Oro Mensah and the rest of The Meta-Four are shown shouting words of encouragement to Dar at ringside. Gable continues to control the action as fans chant "Gable! Gable! Gable!" Dar starts to show signs of life as the final 20 seconds of the first round tick away.

Gable trips Dar down out of nowhere and slaps on an ankle lock. Dar gets to the ropes to free himself and the first round ends. After the break, the second round begins and Dar comes out throwing leg kicks. Gable hits the ropes and runs over Dar and then slaps on a side head-lock.

Moments later, we see The Meta-Four help Dar sneak and cheat his way into the early lead, as he picks up the first fall in the second round to go up 1 to 0. We head to a mid-match commercial break as the third round gets underway.

As we settle back in from the break, we see Gable and Dar trading roll-up attempts as the finals seconds tick away to end the round. The two head to their respective corners as the fourth round is about to get started with Dar still up 1 to 0 over Gable.

Gable fights back in the fourth round, and heads to the top-rope where he leaps off and connects with a flying head butt for a super close near fall attempt. He locks his arms around Dar on the apron outside the ropes looking for a German suplex, but Dar avoids it.

Dar ends up planting Gable on the floor, and he is nearly counted out but rolls back into the ring just after the count of nine. The two are trading shots on their knees as the final ten seconds of the fourth round tick away. Gable hits a German suplex and scores a pin as soon as the fifth rounds begins.

The score is now tied up 1-1 and as the referee is dealing with everyone on the ring apron, we see The Meta-Four blast Gable from behind with a cheap shot. He crawls to his corner and is still out of it as the bell sounds to start the sixth round, so Dar immediately begins beating him down.

We see Gable go to slam Dar down but he gets stuck in a triangle choke from Dar on the bottom. Gable muscles Dar up and Donkey Kongs his way free and goes for the cover. Dar kicks out at two. Dar hits a spinning back elbow that stuns Gable.

He recovers and locks Dar in an ankle lock. Dar pushes him into the corner and gets back to his feet. Gable hoists Dar up for a Razor's Edge but flips him over front-ways directly into a DDT for a close near fall. Gable heads to the top-rope backwards and goes for a moonsault.

Dar gets his feet up but Gable stops himself and snatches up an ankle lock. Dar tries kicking free again but Gable rolls and hangs on. He drops down and twists it deep. Dar taps just as the bell sounds. There is confusion as to what that means, as Alpha Academy are celebrating with Gable in the ring, but The Meta-Four are also celebrating with Dar.

The fans chant "He tapped you!" The ring announcer declares it tied 1-1 at the end of six rounds. Due to it ending in a tie, the Heritage Cup does not change hands. The fans boo. Awesome opener. The finish didn't really play out well, as the bell seemed to sound just before Dar tapped.

Noam Dar retains NXT Heritage Cup Championship as match ends in a 1-1 draw.

– We're getting right into our second of two scheduled championship contests for tonight's show, as we see NXT Women's Champion Lyra Valkyria walking backstage in her ring gear towards the end. Vic Joseph and Booker T inform us that her defense against Xia Li is up next.

– We shift gears and head into a quick pre-match commercial break. When we return, we see a vignette with NXT Tag-Team Champions The Family. They claim they aren't done yet with Chase U. They then run into some friends at some kind of business. They raise a glass [with some of the other members of their "family" as a celebration for recapturing the tag titles.


NXT Women's Championship: Lyra Valkyria (C) vs. Xia Li

Back inside the CWC we see Carmelo Hayes in his ring gear in his locker room. In walks Trick Williams who tells him he qualified for the Iron Survivor Challenge last week and this week it's his turn. Hayes seems distracted so Trick asks him about it. He claims he's just "locked in." He says 'Melo was there for him at ringside last week, so he's gonna be there for him this week.

Hayes says he appreciates that but he's gotta do this himself. Trick says Carmelo knows he understands that. Trick smiles and looks happy for his friend as a clearly distracted Hayes walks off. Back inside the CWC, the theme for the NXT Women's Champion hits and out comes Lyra Valkyria. As she is heading to the ring, she is knocked out from behind by a roundhouse kick from Xia Li.

Medics rush out to tend to her as fans loudly boo. Vic Joseph questions if we're even going to have a title match and whether or not Lyra can even compete. She is being helped up as we head into another commercial break.

Winner: No Contest

– When we return, we see highlights of what just transpired between Xia Li and NXT Women's Champion Lyra Valkyria before the break. Vic Joseph and Booker T inform us that they hope to have an update on Valkyria soon. We then shoot into the ring where we see the competitors for our next match.

Angel Garza & Humberto Carrillo vs. Malik Blade & Edris Enofe

Joseph and Booker inform us that due to what just happened with Valkyria and Xia, the Garza & Carrillo vs. Blade & Enofe bout scheduled for later tonight will take place now instead. The bell sounds and we're officially off-and-running with this one.

We see Garza and Carrillo jump into the early offensive lead and they continue to dominate for several minutes. When Enofe finally gets the hot tag for his team, he helps shift the offensive momentum into his team's favor. It doesn't last for long, however, as Garza decks him and then he and Carrillo hit a double-team finisher for the pin fall victory.

Winners: Angel Garza & Humberto Carrillo

– After the match we shoot backstage and see another shot of Lyra Valkyria being checked on by doctors. Vic Joseph again tells us they will provide an update on her condition as soon as one becomes available. We then see Fallon Henley giving Josh Briggs a pep talk before his big opportunity tonight.

Men's Iron Survivor Challenge Qualifier: Carmelo Hayes vs. Josh Briggs

Inside the CWC, the theme for the former NXT World Champion Carmelo Hayes hits and out he comes. He makes his way to the ring for the men's Iron Survivor Challenge qualifying match for this week. As he settles in the ring, we head into a pre-match commercial break.

When we return, we see Josh Briggs make his way down to the ring for his big opportunity. The bell sounds and we're officially off-and-running with this one. Briggs is competitive at first but Hayes quickly takes over and settles into a comfortable prolonged offensive lead.

When the action spills out to the floor several minutes into the bout, Briggs takes over, using his size and strength to manhandle Hayes and launch him across the commentary desk for a roar from the crowd. On that note, we shift gears and head into a mid-match commercial break as the bout continues.

Hayes seems to have it won when out of nowhere, Lexis King makes his way down to the ringside area. Hayes knocks him off the apron but then turns around into a JBL-like clothesline from hell from Briggs. Briggs follows up with a moonsault off the top-rope and scores the pin fall for the upset victory. With the win, Briggs has qualified for the Iron Survivor Challenge.

Winner and QUALIFYING for Men's Iron Survivor Challenge: Josh Briggs

– Now we head into the doctors room backstage inside the CWC where the NXT broadcast team catches up with NXT Women's Champion Lyra Valkyria.

She is asked if her title defense is off tonight in a way where it would be obvious that it was, but Valkyria responded very matter of fact-like, stating she owes Xia a kick in the face and will still fight her as scheduled later tonight.

– We then see a shot of Wes Lee walking the hallways as Vic Joseph informs us he will be coming to the ring next. We head to another commercial break.

– When we return, we see footage of Von Wagner visiting Robert Stone for their planned dinner at Stone's house. The entire thing seemed to be that Von wasn't very socially aware and was about as socially developed as Stone's young children.

– Now we return inside the CWC where Wes Lee's theme hits and out he comes to the fans chanting his name. The former longtime NXT North American Champion settles in the ring to a ton of love from the WWE NXT Universe in attendance.

Speaking of the NXT North American Championship, Lee immediately starts his promo off by talking about how he's got his sights set on the NXT North American Championship.

He talks about the disdain he sees in Dominik Mysterio, whom he describes as someone with "a face you just want to punch into dust." Lee says people when and lose titles all the time, but when he was champion, he felt like he belonged.

Lee says he needs another shot at Dom-Dom for the NXT North American Championship. He challenges him to a title showdown at NXT Deadline on December 9. The theme for "Dirty" Dom hits and out comes The Judgment Day member to an insane amount of heat from the WWE NXT Universe.

Dom tries to talk but the fans drown him out and then Lee cuts him off and tells him to shut up. He says his title reign has been a joke and one that only sees Dom get saved by The Judgment Day at every turn. Dom says next week, Lee will have to face three other former North American Champions to get to him at Deadline.

If and only if he wins, he will get a shot at the NXT North American Championship at the final NXT PLE of 2023. Dom asks Lee what he says. Lee says challenge accepted. It's set for next week.

Women's Iron Survivor Challenge Qualifier: Thea Hail vs. Blair Davenport

Now we see a video package updating fans on the controversy surrounding Andre Chase and Chase U. After the package wraps up, we see Thea Hail freaking out backstage before her Women's Iron Survivor Challenge qualifier, because Chase U isn't there for her tonight.

Up comes Jacy Jane who explains they aren't here for good reason, but makes it clear that she's got her back -- always. Hail gets excited about this and is now ready to fight. We head to another commercial break on this note.

When we return, we see Josh Briggs and Fallon Henley backstage reacting to Briggs qualifying for the Iron Survivor Challenge at Deadline. Back inside the CWC, the theme for Blair Davenport hits and out comes the women's star for her Iron Survivor Challenge qualifier.

Next out is Chase U's own Thea Hail, who heads to the ring accompanied by Jacy Jane. They come out to the Chase U theme but then Jacy Jane calls for it to be changed. It is. They head to the ring to that music instead.

It's time for the second of two Iron Survivor Challenge qualifiers as picked by WWE Hall of Fame legend JBL. The bell sounds and we're officially off-and-running with this one. After some back and forth action, we see Davenport get the win after Hail is distracted.

With the win, Davenport qualifies for the Iron Survivor Challenge at the year-end NXT Deadline 2023 premium live event. Jacy Jane consoles Hail in the ring after the match.

Winner and QUALIFYING for Women's Iron Survivor Challenge: Blair Davenport

– When we return from the break after the Women's Iron Survivor Challenge qualifier bout, we see a lengthy, elaborate video package showing the differences between NXT World Champion Ilja Dragunov and Baron Corbin heading into their showdown at NXT Deadline 2023.

Eddy Thorpe vs. Charlie Dempsey

Now we return inside the CWC where Charlie Dempsey makes his way to the ring accompanied by Drew Gulak and Myles Borne, as he will be competing in our next match of the evening. He settles in the ring and his theme music dies down.

The entrance tune for his opponent plays and out comes former NXT Underground bad-ass Eddy Thorpe to a nice pop from the Orlando crowd. He settles in the ring, his theme song fades off and the bell sounds to officially get this match off-and-running.

After some back-and-forth action, we see Thorpe settle into the offensive lead. Dempsey fights back and takes over, but as he goes for a roll-up, Thorpe counters and rolls him up for the pin fall victory. After the match, Dempsey is joined by Gulak and Borne in a three-on-one beat down of Thorpe.

Winner: Eddy Thorpe

– Once the match wraps up, we shoot to more footage of The Family's dinner. After they get some envelopes from their fellow family members, Tony D'Angelo and Stacks go to leave when they are ambushed and attacked by Angel Garza and Humberto Carrillo.

The Family tell them "if they want [a shot at the tag titles] they got it!" Now we see another shot of NXT Women's Champion Lyra Valkyria leaving the doctors room backstage, as it's time for her second go-around with Xia Li, this time in the ring with her title on-the-line. We head to another commercial break.


NXT Women's Championship: Lyra Valkyria (C) vs. Xia Li

When we return, Vic Joseph and Booker T confirm The Family vs. Garza & Carrillo for the tag-titles for next week and reveal Cameron Grimes, Bronson Reed & Johnny Gargano as Wes Lee's opponents for his NXT North American Championship eliminator for his title opportunity against Dominik Mysterio at NXT Deadline 2023.

Back inside the CWC, the theme for Lyra Valkyria hits and out comes the NXT Women's Champion. Xia Li also makes her ring entrance. The bell sounds and we're officially off-and-running with our final match of the evening.

Lyra starts off strong, but it isn't long before Xia completely takes over and turns this into a very one-sided beat down for the next several minutes. We head into a mid-match commercial break with Xia still dominating the offense. When we return, Xia is still beating the champ down.

Booker T asks Vic Joseph if he can imagine Lyra losing the NXT Women's Championship in her very first defense. Soon after he says that, Lyra finally manages to score a pin fall victory out of nowhere to beat Xia Li in a very hard-fought contest. With the win, Valkyria has the first defense of her title under her belt. The show goes off the air soon after her big win.

Winner and STILL NXT Women's Champion: Lyra Valkyria