WWE NXT 2.0 Results: Winners, Grades, Reaction and Highlights from August 23

WWE NXT 2.0 is facing an invasion. NXT UK talent have begun appearing on the show, and on the August 23 edition, talent from both brands clashed.

Gallus made a major impact by attacking Diamond Mine in the group's NXT debut. Wolfgang and Mark Coffey looked to continue their momentum by capturing the NXT UK Tag Team Championships for a second time, challenging Josh Briggs and Brooks Jensen.

NXT UK champion Tyler Bate planned to prove his talent against one of NXT's biggest men, Von Wagner, just one week after getting in the face of the NXT champion Bron Breakker.

One of NXT's most heated feuds reached its end this week. Tiffany Stratton and Wendy Choo fought in a Lights Out match.

Elsewhere, Grayson Waller debuted his talk show "The Grayson Waller Effect" with guest Apollo Crews.

With changes coming to NXT 2.0 and NXT UK, this show continued that clash of talent that could ultimately lead to a new NXT Worlds Collide event.

Bron Breakker called out Tyler Bate to get answers for his arrival last week. The NXT UK champion challenged the NXT champion to a unification match at NXT Worlds Collide.

This was not a surprising announcement given the recent news about the end of NXT UK, especially after Bate came out to confront Breakker last week. This also likely indicates all of the NXT UK titles will be unified at Worlds Collide.

It will be a shame to see the NXT UK Championship retired as it is a very impressive title in terms of legacy and look, but WWE wants a fresh start with NXT Europe. Bate will likely give Breakker the match of his career to date at World Collide.

The only real shame is that Ilja Dragunov is missing out on all of this. While Bate is appropriate as the first and last NXT UK champion as well as the only man to hold the title twice, this spot should have been given to the man who took the torch from Gunther.

Grade

B

Notable Moments

• Both men put over JD McDonagh as a great competitor, even though the match last week felt largely one-sided.
• Bate did not sound all that confident with his side of this promo, but luckily the crowd was respectful.
• Later, McDonagh cut a promo hanging upside down, promising to come back more dangerous than before.
  

While Josh Briggs and Brooks Jensen challenged Wolfgang and Mark Coffey physically, neither team got close to a finish before Pretty Deadly got involved. The champions brawled with Elton Prince and Kit Wilson to the back, getting themselves counted out.

This was an uninspired finish to a match that never truly got going. The two teams could be good together, but it was hard to tell. It would have been better with the non-finish to just end the match sooner.

Briggs and Jensen have felt awkward as NXT UK champions since winning the gold. While a good tag team, they should not be the last NXT UK tag champions. Hopefully, the plan is for Gallus or Pretty Deadly to take the gold before the titles are retired.

Result

Gallus def. Briggs and Jensen by countout; the champions retain the NXT UK Tag Team Championships.

Grade

D

Notable Moments

• NXT showed a vignette on Gallus' history in NXT UK and vision for NXT.
• Fallon Henley and Lash Legend brawled backstage, leaving the champions without their biggest supporter for the match.
  
• After the match, Diamond Mine stormed the ring, brawling with Gallus until officials broke it up.
• Pretty Deadly mocked Gallus backstage, setting up a likely match between the teams.
• Diamond Mine and Briggs and Jensen spoke backstage after it was announced The Creed Brothers and Damon Kemp would fight Gallus next week. There was tension for a future title unification match.
  

"The Grayson Waller Effect" debut started with Waller making clear his talk show was all about him. He brought out Apollo Crews and antagonized him until the former WWE intercontinental champion punched him in the mouth.

This was fine, but it should have felt more heated. Despite the history already built between the two men, they threw insults at each other like it was their first meeting. Crews held his own but at the same level as his rival on the mic.

The two need something more to get this feud going. Right now, it makes little sense why the two have not wrestled one-on-one in the months of their conflict.

Grade

C

Notable Moments

• Crews called Waller a low-budget Miz. That has become a tired insult already.
• Waller brought up Crews' former accent. Crews used it one last time while calling himself still a proud Nigerian warrior.
  

Javier Bernal walked in confident but was completely outmatched by Cameron Grimes. The former NXT North American champion hit the Cave-In on Big Body Javy to win.

Grimes has been in NXT far too long to need a squash match, but at least he is picking up wins again. This was all about continuing the story of Grimes attempting to forge his own path while Schism watches closely.

Bernal did not get enough time to show anything, further solidifying how little NXT Level Up momentum matters to the main show.

Result

Grimes def. Bernal by pinfall.

Grade

C-

Notable Moments

• Joe Gacy told Grimes "good luck" before the match from the stage.
• After his loss, Big Body Javy yelled at a woman in catering until a security guard warmed him to back off.
  

Indi Hartwell had little answer to Blair Davenport, who put her away with a brainbuster. Davenport called out the NXT women's champion, getting both Mandy Rose and Meiko Satomura. This set up a triple threat unification for NXT Worlds Collide.

Indi Wrestling waited until everyone cleared out, questioning what she was going to do next. Dexter Lumis returned and carried her away. He gave her a note, affirming his love, before he was arrested again by police.

Hartwell vs. Davenport was an ugly match. The two could not get on the same page, so it all fell apart. It was not a great introduction to Davenport, especially since she was immediately inserted into an important title match.

While Davenport's inclusion is likely to make sure both champions are protected, Rose vs. Satomura was a better match on paper. Still, this should be a strong women's title match for Worlds Collide.

The return of The Tortured Artist was an exciting surprise, giving some NXT closure to InDex and setting up the story for the future. Hartwell adds an interest wrinkle to this unique story WWE is telling with Lumis.

Result

Davenport def. Hartwell by pinfall.

Grade

C+

Notable Moments

• NXT showed a vignette for Davenport before her match.
• Davenport caught Hartwell returning to the ring, DDTing her over the bottom rope, setting up a technical assault of Indi Wrestling.
• Kayden Carter and Katana Chance spoke with Wes Lee, promising they would take on every challenger.
  

Joaquin Wilde and Cruz Del Toro could not find their ideal mindset after last week's events. While they fought hard, The Dyad put them away with a double-team lungblower.

Given backstage action afterward, this was the end of Legado del Fantasma in NXT. The group should find new life on Raw or SmackDown. In classic fashion, Wilde and Del Toro had one more memorable sprint before leaving.

Jagger Reid and Rip Fowler are a great tag team in their own right and will continue to benefit from a fresh spotlight.

Result

The Dyad def. Wilde and Del Toro by pinfall.

Grade

B

Notable Moments

• The Don told Wilde and Del Toro that they needed to win no matter what tonight.
• Cameron Grimes watched this match from the stage.
  
• The former members of Legado del Fantasma stormed outside afterward to meet Santos Escobar, who told his family to leave NXT with him.
  

Tyler Bate refused to stay down long against a strong opponent in Von Wagner. While the big man was difficult for him to pick up for the Tyler Driver, the NXT UK champion improvised, hitting a corkscrew senton to win.

This felt like it could have gone twice as long, but Bate brought out the best in Wagner. The focus was to put over the NXT UK champion as he looks to challenge NXT's most dominant man in Bron Breakker.

It was a shame, though, that Wagner had to lose momentum to help Bate along. He has looked unstoppable at times in NXT, but he was beatable on this night.

Result

Bate def. Wagner by pinfall.

Grade

B-

Notable Moments

• NXT showed a video package on the history of Bate in NXT UK. Wagner responded by promising to make sure Bate did not make it to Worlds Collide.
• Bate landed on his feet off a back body drop but walked into a fallaway slam.
  

Tiffany Stratton found an early edge, arrogantly dominating Wendy Choo. However, thanks to some clever use of unconventional weapons, Choo picked up a big win, ending it with a Vader bomb.

This was an awkward version of a Lights Out match, dimming the lights so that it was hard to follow the full action. The two women made the most of the limited visibility and especially the chance to use any and all weapons to sell their rivalry.

Both women brought everything to make this feel special, and it was easily the strongest match of the night because of their effort. It just would have been nice to see their work more clearly in better lighting.

Choo got a necessary big win over Stratton, ending this feud on a high. Both women come out of this as bigger deals, thanks to this memorable main event conclusion.

Result

Choo def. Stratton by pinfall.

Grade

B+

Notable Moments

• Stratton was looking beyond Choo ahead of their match, promising to challenge the winner of the NXT Women's Championship unification match.
• Choo attempted to smash Stratton with a bed that she had brought for her entrance. The mattress was removed before Choo sent Stratton through it with a uranage.
• Choo used a pillow loaded with Legos then placed them on the floor. Stratton took over and body slammed her rival on the blunt objects.