WWE NXT Battleground 2023 Live Coverage - May 28th, 2023
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Date:
Sunday May 28, 2023 7:30pm ET
Location:
Tsongas Center in Lowell, Massachusetts
Available on:
Peacock, WWE Network (outside of the U.S.)
Card:
NXT Title Match
Bron Breakker vs. Carmelo Hayes (c)
NXT Women’s Title Tournament Finals
Lyra Valkyria vs. Tiffany Stratton
NXT Tag Team Titles Match
The Creed Brothers vs. Gallus (c)
Triple Threat for the NXT North American Title
Joe Gacy vs. Tyler Bate vs. Wes Lee (c)
NXT Heritage Cup Title Match
Dragon Lee vs. Noam Dar (c)
*Match held under British Rounds Rules.
Last Man Standing Match
Dijak vs. Ilja Dragunov
:nxt4:
– The WWE NXT Battleground Kickoff pre-show opens up with Megan Morant, Matt Camp and Sam Roberts at WWE TV studios in Stamford, Connecticut. They hype tonight’s show. We see NXT Superstars, including NXT Champion Carmelo Hayes with the Boston Red Sox this weekend. McKenzie Mitchell is in Boston and she tells us Hayes will have friends and family in the crowd for the main event. We go to a video package on Dijak vs. Ilja Dragunov with the Last Man Standing stipulation. The panel in Stamford discusses Dijak vs. Dragunov. We get a NXT Women’s Title tournament finals hype video on Tiffany Stratton.
Back from a break and we get a video and discussion on the Heritage Cup. We see Heritage Cup Champion begging Oro Mensah to be in his corner as Nathan Frazer will be with Dragon Lee. We see Bron Breakker arrive to the arena and he tries to intimidate a local DJ. Hayes and Trick Williams also arrive and we see Hayes speaking with the voice of the Boston Celtics. We get a tournament hype video on Lyra Valkyria now. The panel discusses Stratton vs. Valkyria now. Back from the break and we get a video and discussion on tonight’s main event. That’s it for the Kickoff.
– The 2023 WWE NXT Battleground Premium Live Event opens with a video package looking at WWE history in Lowell, Massachusetts. We cut to an intro video. We’re now live from the break and Vic Joseph welcomes us to the Tsongas Center in Lowell. He’s joined by WWE Hall of Famer Booker T.
:nxtnorth:
Triple Threat for the NXT North American Title: Joe Gacy vs. Tyler Bate vs. Wes Lee (c)
We go right to the ring and out comes NXT North American Champion Wes Lee. Tyler Bate is out next and he’s not happy with Lee. Joe Gacy is out with Tyler Bate.
The bell hits and they all go at it but then break and fall back. Bate goes for Lee and Lee dodges, then asks why. Gacy tries to get Bate to double team with him but it back-fires. Bate unloads on Gacy and then Lee at ringside. Gacy ends up hitting a suicide dive and a big powerslam but can’t get the pin. Lee slams Gacy out of a Sunset Bomb attempt for 2. Lee with a Poisonrana on Bate for 2.
Bate mounts offense with big suplexes and stomps for pin attempts and a kip-up for a pop. Bate spins Gacy around, then keeps him on his shoulders while doing a Swing on Lee. This leads to Bate slamming Gacy for 2. Lee immediately punches Bate. Bate and Lee trade big strikes to dueling chants now.
Bate back-drops Lee into a Gacy powerbomb, then Gacy launches him into Bate. Gacy goes to slam Bate but slams both at once when Lee charges at him. Gacy with a Crossface to Lee. He knocks Bate away. Gacy smiles like a mad man at Bate. Bate finally breaks the hold. Bate misses the Shooting Star Press and gets caught in Gacy’s Crossface but Lee beaks it up. Fans chant “this is awesome!”
All three go at it now. Bate and Gacy collide with moves, then Lee hits a double Cardiac Kick for 2, then another 2 count. Fans chant for tables as Lee unloads on Bate. Gacy drops Lee but Lee jumps on his back with a Sleeper. Gacy fades. Gacy finally launches himself into the turnbuckles to break it up. Bate breaks up a pin and hits a Tyler Driver 97 on Gacy for 2. Lee pins Bate for 2. Gacy sends Lee out but he comes back in. Lee knocks Bate to the floor bu Gacy hits him. Gacy goes to the top as Lee jumps over the ring post an takes out Bate on the floor.
Lee comes back in to a big Uranage by Gacy. Gacy back-flips at Lee but Lee intercepts him with a Cardiac Kick for the pin to win and retain.
Winner: Wes Lee
– After the match, Lee celebrates to a standing ovation. We go to replays.
– We get a NXT Women’s Title tournament finals hype video on Tiffany Stratton. We also see NXT Champion Carmelo Hayes and Bron Breakker arriving earlier as we saw on the Kickoff.
– We get a video on the NXT Heritage Cup and British Rounds Rules.
NXT Heritage Cup Title Match: Dragon Lee vs. Noam Dar
We go back to the ring and out comes Dragon Lee. Nathan Frazer is with him to be in his corner. NXT Heritage Cup Champion Noam Dar is out next. He poses in the ring with the Cup as Lee looks on.
The bell rings and they go at it. Dar controls most of the fist minute and goes for the eyes. Lee turns it around and focuses on the knee now. They get up and trade counters and Dar ducks a big kick to show off. Lee dropkicks Dar off the apron as the first round ends with the bell.
Oro Mensah runs down to be in Dar’s corner. Lee takes control and unloads with big kicks in the corner for 2. They trade big strikes now. Dar rolls Lee into a 3 count for the first pin as round 2 ends with the bell.
Dar takes control with a big kick in the corner. Dar controls the match and slams Lee out of the corner. Lee lands bad on his neck. Lee comes back with a big hurricanrana to the floor, then a big suicide dive for a pop. Lee brings it back in for 2 as he holds his knee.
Lee with kicks as the round comes to an end. Lee with big strikes against the ropes as the bell hits. They go to back off but Dar drops Lee with a cheap shot back elbow. Dar claims he didn’t hear the bell as the referee yells at him.
Lee unloads to start the round. Lee lures him in for a roll-up for 2. Dar with an armbar. Lee with a Crescent Kick and a Cloverleaf submission. Mensah tries to help Dar but here comes Frazer. Mensah drops Frazer with a cheap shot to boos. Lee ends up pinning
Frazer rushes in and beats Mensah to the floor as fans go wild. Frazer with a big dive as he keeps brawling. Officials kick them both out. The bell hits and here we go again. They trade big moves and counters with Lee hitting hard on a big dive. They go at it and Dar hits a huge powerbomb for 2.
Jakara Jackson runs down and jumps in the ring to distract the referee, allowing Lash Legend to run in from the crowd and deck Lee with a spit bucket to the head. Dar follows up with a Nova Roller to Lee for the pin to win and retain.
Winner: Noam Dar
– After the match, Lash and Jackson hit the ring to celebrate with Dar. Mensah comes back to join them. Dar poses in the corner with the Cup as we go to replays. Dar and his new crew pose together.
– Back from a break and we get a promo for the next match.
Last Man Standing Match: Dijak vs. Ilja Dragunov
We go back to the ring and out comes Dijak as Alicia Taylor does the ring introductions. Dijak stops at his wife and kids to tell them he doesn’t want to see what is going to happen. The music hits and out next comes Ilja Dragunov to a pop.
The bell hits and they start brawling. Dijak with big shots in the corner. They trade big chops in the opposite corner until Dijak levels Dragunov. Dragunov with big back elbows to break free. Dijak blocks a 619 by booting Dragunov to the floor. The referee counts again.
Dijak brings it back in but Dragunov knees him out, then unloads with big kicks. Dragunov slams him head-first into the announce table, drops him and yells out. Dragunov runs and leaps off the steel steps but Dijak meets him in mid-air with a big boot. Dijak launches Dragunov on top of the half of the steps. The referee counts but Dragunov is up as Dijak pulls out a table.
Dragunov charges and crashes them through a table. Fans chant “NXT!” and Dijak is apparently bleeding. Dijak is up at 9 but he’s hurting. Dijak rolls back in. They trade big strikes now. Dragunov with a roundhouse kick. Dijak blocks a German suplex and knocks Dragunov back onto the steps. The referee counts but Dijak grabs him. Dragunov counters a move and drops a DDT onto the steal.
Dragunov is up at 5. Dragunov with knees to the face to keep Dijak down in the corner. Dragunov rams half of the steps into Dijak’s face while he’s down. Dragunov goes to the top for a Coast 2 Coast into the steps, into Dijak’s face. Fans chant “holy shit!” now as the referee counts. Dragunov is up at 9 and Dijak is up right before the 10.
Dragunov unloads with chops but Dijak chops back and superkicks him. Dragunov chops him down to his knees, then hits a big diving forearm. Dragunov with more chaps, slops and an elbow. The referee counts to a “this is awesome!” chant. Dragunov attacks and hits a German suplex for 2. Dijak gets right up, hulking up and yelling at Dragunov. They go at it. Dijak gets the upperhand and chokeslams Dragunov from the ring to the floor.
Dragunov makes it up right before 10 and Dijak is seething. Dragunov taunts him. Dijak hits Feast Your Eyes but comes back up. Dijak screams. Dijak grabs a kendo stick and taunts Dragunov in between stiff. Dragunov yells back at him. Dijak says Dragunov is forcing him to do this… he delivers another stiff swing. Dijak screams for Dragunov to stay down and not make him do this. Dragunov screams in his face. Dijak with another big kendo stick shot as Dragunov hangs on to the ropes and screams out.
Dijak brings a steel chair in and said Dragunov forced him to do this. He puts it to Dragunov’s throat but Dragunov slaps him. Dijak with a shot to the ribs and chair shot over the back. Dijak turns back around into a Torpedo Moscow for a big pop.
Fans chant as Dragunov stumbles up and hits the running uppercut. Dragunov climbs half of the steps and hits the big diving forearm to the back of the head, while on a steel chair. The referee counts as Dragunov looks on and that’s it, Dragunov is the last man standing.
Winner: Ilja Dragunov
– After the match, the music hits and fans go wild as Dragunov manages to stay up. We go to replays. Dragunov poses in the corner to an ovation now.
– Back from a break and Duke Hudson is with his Chase U students. He yells at a guy named Ricky. Duke says he thought the job would be great but it sucks, it’s taking his will to live. He brought Drew Gulak and Charlie Dempsey to teach skills to the students. They end up showing a Hail match and insulting her. She storms out crying. Duke yells at Dempsey and Gulak but they say there’s no hiding from the truth and no crying in wrestling. Duke says they can’t talk to any one from Chase U like that.
– McKenzie Mitchell is backstage with Noam Dar and his new crew. He goes on about making history with tonight’s Heritage Cup defense being the first on U.S. soil. Dar says they are now in control.
:nxttag:
NXT Tag Team Titles Match: The Creed Brothers vs. Gallus
We go back to the ring and out comes The Diamond Mine – Brutus Creed and Julius Creed of The Creed Brothers with Ivy Nile. Gallus is out next – NXT Tag Team Champions Wolfgang and Mark Coffey with Joe Coffey.
Julius starts off with Coffey and they go at it. Brutus ends up coming in but Coffey grounds him. Both teams face off and go at it. The Creeds take control. Julius with a big slam to Coffey for 2. Mark doesn’t see Brutus tag in until he hits a big bomb from the top. Brutus smashes Coffey now. Wolfgang ends up hitting the blind tag to deck Brutus off the top, throat-first on the top. Wolfgang unloads on Brutus now. Coffey tags in with stomps for 2. Coffey keeps control and then tags in Wolfgang for a sliding elbow. Coffey comes back in as they continue to wear Brutus down.
Brutus finally slams Coffey to break free but Wolfgang rushes in to stop the tag. Julius ends up making Coffey scream with a dozen big suplexes to Coffey. Creed with the standing moonsault and Shooting Star Press for 2. Gallus ends up dominating Julius until a big Brutus Bomb for a pop. The brothers hype each other up and show love to each other, then they tell Gallus to bring it for a fight.
The two teams go at it. Ivy ends up stopping Joe and sending him into Julius to take him out. Ava of The Schism attacks and sends Nile into the ring post. This distracts Julius, which allows Gallus to hit the double team for the pin to retain.
Winners: Gallus
– After the match, Gallus celebrates.
– We get a video for the tournament finals.
:nxtwomen:
NXT Women’s Title Tournament Finals: Lyra Valkyria vs. Tiffany Stratton
We go back to the ring and out comes Lyra Valkyria to a pop. Tiffany Stratton is out next. We get formal ring introductions from Alicia Taylor.
The bell rings and they go at it. Valkyria dominates Stratton and they break. Stratton counters but Valkyria counters for 2 and she’s fired up. Stratton mounts offense but Valkyria leap-frogs and lands bad on her knee.
Valkyria gets the upperhand and sends Stratton out for a breather. Stratton lures Valkyria out and crashes her knee into the ring post. Stratton smashes the leg to the post again to boos. Stratton whips the knee brace off, then brings Lyra in with heavy offense to the hurt knee. Lyra kicks out at 2. Stratton keeps slamming the exposed knee into the mat. Stratton stretches her with a big bridge now. Lyra screams out and it breaks. Stratton covers for 2 and continues with strikes. Stratton ducks a kick and drives the knee into the mat for 2. Stratton with a Stretch Muffler now.
Lyra goes on but rolls her for 2. More back and forth. Lyra with a missile dropkick but her knee is hurting. They trade more strikes. Lyra sends Stratton to the floor, kicks her through the ropes. Stratton ends up getting countered into a big Crucifix Bomb for 2. Stratton dominates Lyra in the corner for 2. Lyra keeps trying but her knee is going out. She rolls Stratton for 2 and slams her again for 2 as fans rally.
Lyra unloads and looks to put Stratton away but her knee buckles on a kick. Stratton fights back but Lyra drops her for 2. Lyra is shocked at the count. Fans chant “NXT!” now.
Stratton slams Lyra, then hits the rolling senton into the corner. Stratton goes up and hits the Prettiest Moonsault Ever for the pin to win the vacant NXT Women’s Title.
Winner and New NXT Women’s Champion: Tiffany Stratton
– After the match, Stratton celebrates to a big pop as we go to replays. Stratton poses with the title.
– Back from the beak and we get a video for the main event. We see both competitors walking backstage.
:nxtchamp:
NXT Title Match: Bron Breakker vs. Carmelo Hayes (c)
We go back to the ring and out comes Bron Breakker to boos. NXT Champion Carmelo Hayes is out next to a huge hometown pop. Trick Williams raps an entrance for Hayes. Hayes has family and friends here tonight. Taylor does formal ring introductions.
The bell rings and they go at it. Hayes hits a big dive to the floor early on. Breakker takes control early on but Hayes hits the Fade-Away leg drop for 2. Hayes with a single Crab now. Bron breaks free and levels Hayes with a lariat for 2. Bron yells at Boston to boos. Bron with a belly-to-belly throw.
Bron beats Hayes around some more and nails a big suplex for 2. Fans chant “you suck!” as Bron toys with Hayes and Boston. Bron with another big overhead throw. Bron ends up hitting a big Frankensteiner for a close of 2 count. Bron beats Hayes around while taunting the crowd. Hayes fights back but Bron hits another German off the duck.
Hayes finally breaks out of the Steiner Recliner with double knees. Fans go wild as Hayes gets up fighting back. Hayes unloads with kicks, then the springboard attack and another close call. Hayes fights Bron off and hits a Cutter for 2. They trade big strikes as fans count along.
Bron presses Hayes but he comes back and misses the flying leg drop. Bron ends up hitting a huge Spear in mid-air to intercept a springboard. Bron slams Hayes around to loud boos as the referee warns him.
Hayes turns it around and hits superkicks. Bron hits his big springboard DDT, then the Nothing But Net flying leg drop for the pin to win and retain.
Winner: Carmelo Hayes
– After the match, Hayes takes the NXT Title to celebrate as the hometown crowd pop. Bron tries to recover as we go to replays. Trick joins Hayes for the post-match celebration. Hayes poses in the corner now as Vic says the Carmelo Hayes Era is just beginning. NXT Battleground goes off the air.
