WWE NXT Vengeance Day Recap

While there are many uncertainties in the WWE right now, NXT was busy trying to put on a potential show of the year for 2024. NXT Vengeance Day, NXT’s latest premium live event gave WWE and their fans a look into who the future stars of the business will be. The big story of the night was Trick Williams having to pull double duty. From a phenomenal Women’s Championship match to a heartbreaking heel turn that everyone saw coming, NXT Vengeance Day was a show to remember.

Men’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic Tournament Final: Trick Melo Gang vs. The Wolf Dogs

Trick Melo Gang looked great throughout the entire match but couldn’t do enough to put The Wolf Dogs away. This match had the chance to be the show-stealer, but a few miscues slowed the pacing down, not allowing the match to reach the heights of The Wolf Dogs’ semifinal matchup that got them into this match. During Trick Williams’s hot tag, he tweaked his knee while performing a kip-up, which would be a big part of the main event.  The end of the match had Carmelo Hayes take a spear from Bron Breakker, while he was jumping in the way of Williams. Backstage in the trainer’s room, Melo explained to Trick that he took the spear to protect him for the main event, where he was challenging Ilja Dragunov for the NXT Championship.

Winner: The Wolf Dogs via pinfall

No Disqualification: Joe Gacy vs. Dijak

Dijak went into this match thinking he was prepared for Joe Gacy but was flabbergasted when Gacy came with even more sadistic glee than we had seen before. This match was as advertised, a creative hardcore brawl between rivals who don’t like each other. Something we expected coming from two talented veterans.

Dijak trapped Gacy in a trash can and then repeatedly stomped on it until it morphed around him. One of the underrated spots of this match was Joe Gacy blinding Dijak with tape, then proceeding to beat him senselessly with two kendo sticks. Dijak followed this up with a blindfolded Feast Your Eyes but was unable to cover Gacy for the pinfall. After some scrappy back and forth, Dijak, now able to see, hit Gacy with another Feast Your Eyes, this time for the 1 2 3.

Winner: Dijak via pinfall

The Family vs. OTM (w/ Scripts)

Following that hellacious battle was The Family battling OTM. This was your typical tag team match. Although a good match, with a predictable outcome and slow pace, this wasn’t your typical premium live event encounter. This match would’ve been great on television, but again the predictability of the winner took away from the action. The Family attacking their rivals from behind to start the match, looking for immediate revenge from Tuesday's sneak assault was a good touch.  D'Angelo threw a dazed Stacks onto the crowd, followed by Rizzo hitting a clean frog splash to the outside which looked super cool.

Winner: The Family via pinfall

NXT Women’s Championship: Lyra Valkyria (c) vs. Roxanne Perez

Lyra Valkyria and Roxanne Perez were battering each other in a physical battle until Lola Vice hit the ring to cash in her Breakout Tournament contract to join the title match. This was a match of two halves. Perez and Valkyria put on a 20-minute technical classic, and then Vice came in, turning it into a chaotic triple threat.

That being said, it worked. The crowd was invested in every maneuver, especially the struggles of Perez, who was once again screwed out of her title opportunity, the title she never lost in the first place. When Vice made her appearance, she hit both women with a roundhouse kick, but both kicked out. Valkyria ducked a second roundhouse attempt, hit the Nightwish, and got the victory. Lyra Valkyria winning was the right move, Lola Vice isn’t quite ready for a championship reign, and Roxanne Perez losing in this fashion sets up for a potential show-stealing rematch during WrestleMania weekend.

Winner: Lyra Valkyria via pinfall

North American Championship: Oba Femi (c) vs. Dragon Lee

This was an incredible battle of styles that stole the show. The way Femi kept answering Dragon through sheer power was impressive. He came off as an unstoppable force while telling a complete story in the ring. Oba Femi should not be this good. He signed with WWE in December 2021 while he was still at the University of Alabama. He had no wrestling experience, yet two years later, he looks like a star and is stealing the show from veterans. It always helps to work with one of the best in-ring performers in WWE today.

Dragon Lee has consistently pushed his opponents to greater heights. He and Femi have an awesome chemistry that should be utilized in the future. The future is bright for the North American champion. It's hard to imagine anyone taking the gold from him any time soon. In fact, it would not be surprising if he is still holding the belt when Wes Lee returns from injury looking for his match.

Winner: Oba Femi via pinfall

NXT Championship: Ilja Dragunov (c) vs. Trick Williams (w/ Carmelo Hayes)

Match of the year for 2024 so far. This match had it all, hard-hitting action, incredible storytelling, and drama. Oh man, the drama. Carmelo Hayes joined Williams at ringside but kept getting involved. He caused a referee bump that saved Dragunov from a three-count. The talk of this match is everything that happened after the bell.

Afterward, Melo attacked Trick's knee and laid out a Trick Melo Gang shirt on his friend. This was phenomenal drama undercut by some messy booking down the stretch. Both men leaned into this bloody brutal battle that is by far the best performance of Trick's career. The way they played the crowd made for a special atmosphere. The result was a shock, even with the aftermath. The crowd was ready for Trick to complete his storied rise, but he fell just short. Dragunov's next title defense is likely to be overshadowed by the aftermath of Melo and Trick falling out. The signs were too clear for Melo to stay face. No one else could have been the one to lay out Trick, and this was the right moment for the turn. Melo vs. Trick is the money program for Stand & Deliver on WrestleMania weekend.

Winner: Ilja Dragunov via pinfall

NXT delivered a night to remember at Vengeance Day, but it's one that comes off as a preamble to the top program NXT is ready to produce. The opener set up vulnerabilities for Trick Williams that cost him his shot at Ilja Dragunov in the main event. However, both matches suffered a bit from the need to set up something bigger down the line. Roxanne Perez and Lyra Valkyria gave fans a taste of what they can do together, but Lola Vice's involvement changed the dynamic entirely, leaving a sense that the greatest work is yet to come.

Dragon Lee and Oba Femi stole the show in what could be the night that made a future megastar. Dijak and Joe Gacy over-delivered in a filler position, but The Family vs. OTM could have been left off the card. As a whole, NXT ensured fans remembered this night. However, it is Stand & Deliver that will be the gold brand's greatest night of 2024 considering the build to come.