WWE NXT No Mercy held numerous opportunities for Championship gold, with five Title matches on the card throughout the night. It all led to the battle over NXT’s most prized possession, where Ethan Page would defend his Title against TNA star Joe Hendry. There’s been some animosity between the two over the past few weeks, and Page wanted nothing more than to send Hendry back to TNA for good. Trick Williams was the special guest referee, and though it would hurt his soul a bit, he called it down the middle as promised. What he didn’t notice though was a low blow from Page to Hendry that helped him seal the win, giving Page the victory and continuing his NXT Championship reign.
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NXT Believes in Hendry
Early on more of the attention was on Williams and his referee abilities than on Page’s opponent, but Williams was determined to call it down the middle. Henry then kept countering Page and not letting him take control of the match, and then Hendry really shifted into gear by knocking down the Champ before lifting him for what seemed like forever before hitting the vertical suplex.
Henry then tried to roll up the Champ but Page kicked out, and then Page laid in some heavy shots to halt the challenger’s momentum. Page was clearly getting a bit frustrated with all the crowd’s hype for Hendry, and set about trying for a superplex up top. Henry was able to fend him off at first, but then Page hit Hendry with a powerslam into a cover, though Hendry kicked out.
Page continued to look annoyed by the fans, and Hendry only made that a bigger issue when he hit Page with a suplex off the top rope. Hendry jumped over the top rope and knocked the Champion to the floor. Page came back with an Ego’s Edge against the ring apron on Hendry, and Hendry almost didn’t beat the count but he got in at 9 and a half. Hendry hit an Ego’s Edge on the Champ and went for a cover, but Page kicked out.
The Unfortunate Right Call
Hendry slammed Page down and went for another cover, but the Champ stayed alive with another kick-out. A slugfest broke out and then Hendry hit a big clothesline and slam before getting the crowd to chant along. Henry hit the Standing Ovation and went for the cover, but as the 3 count hit, Williams pointed out that Page’s foot was underneath the bottom rope.
Then Page collided with Hendry, knocking Williams out of the ring, and Page slammed Hendry down for a cover. A second referee ran in and only got a count of 2, which infuriated Page. Page got the Title and Hendry almost rolled up Page, but then Page came back and slammed Hendry down onto the Title for a pin attempt. Williams slid in and caught the referee’s hand though, saving the match. Unfortunately Williams wasn’t facing Page when he hit the low blow on Hendry, and Page hit the finisher and retained his NXT Championship. Pete Dunne then rushed in and attacked Williams, slamming him to the floor and closing out the event.
NXT No Mercy Updated Results
- NXT Championship Match: Ethan Page (C) def. Joe Hendry (Special Referee Trick Williams)
- NXT Women’s Championship Match: Roxanne Perez (C) def. Jaida Parker
- NXT Tag Team Championship Match: Axiom and Nathan Frazer (C) def. Chase U (Ridge Holland and Andre Chase C)
- NXT North American Championship Match: Oba Femi (C) def. Tony D’Angelo
- NXT Women’s North American Championship Match: Kelani Jordan (C) def. Wendy Choo
- Zachary Wentz def. Wes Lee
What did you think of NXT No Mercy? You can talk all things wrestling with me on Threads and Twitter @mattaguilarcb!
