WWE NXT Superstar Makes Surprising SmackDown Debut

One of last week’s key storylines on WWE SmackDown involved Santos Escobar turning on LWO leader and mentor Rey Mysterio, and many did not take that act lightly. In addition to the other members of the LWO, there were others who had an issue with Escobar’s actions, including Dragon Lee, and Lee then asked Nick Aldis for an opportunity to avenge Mysterio. Aldis couldn’t book that yet, but he did want to showcase Lee alongside a Superstar from NXT, and that turned out to be Axiom, who made his SmackDown debut in a match against Lee.

Aldis told Lee that he had been doing incredibly well on SmackDown so far, and he wanted to showcase Lee in a match against Axiom tonight. Axiom and Lee have battled it out before in NXT, but never in front of a SmackDown crowd. WWE then made it a big deal too, putting together a video package of Axiom’s highlights and talking about why he wears the mask and other aspects of his career on commentary.

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Lee and Axiom would go on to have an exciting match as expected, with several near falls for both stars. The crowd quickly started to get behind Axiom and Lee as the match went on, and the bigger spots went over well, even drawing this is awesome chants. It’s a good sign for both superstars, as Lee is still early on in his SmackDown tenure and this is Axiom’s first time on SmackDown TV.

Lee would win the match, but both stars looked strong. It remains to be seen whether Axiom will return to SmackDown in a more permanent fashion as Lee did earlier this year, or if this was a way to showcase Axiom and NXT in a tie-in to a continuing storyline.

Lee’s move up to SmackDown was unexpected at the time, as there wasn’t a formal announcement for Lee joining the main roster. WWE was clearly impressed with his matches in NXT, and he was quietly promoted to SmackDown full-time, delivering impressive matches against Dominik Mysterio and Austin Theory. Since then he’s been a fixture on SmackDown, and that will only continue.

WWE Survivor Series War Games Card:

• Men’s War Games Match: Judgement Day’s Finn Balor, Damian Priest, Dominik Mysterio, and JD McDonagh vs Seth Rollins, Cody Rhodes, Jey Uso, and Sami Zayn
• Women’s War Games Match: Damage CTRL’s Bayley, IYO SKY, Kairi Sane, and Asuka vs Bianca Belair, Charlotte Flair, Shotzi, and TBD
• Women’s World Championship Match: Rhea Ripley (C) vs Zoey Stark
• Intercontinental Championship Match: Gunther (C) vs The Miz

What did you think of the match? Let us know in the comments and as alway you can talk all things wrestling with me on Threads @mattaguilarcb!