WWE's Tony D'Angelo Ends Santos Escobar's NXT Career at Heatwave

By Matthew Aguilar

The street fight between Santos Escobar and Tony D'Angelo on tonight's WWE NXT Heatwave has been a long time coming, but the stakes were higher than ever for this final battle. If Escobar won, Legado del Fantasma would be free from the D'Angelo family and organization. However, if Escobar lost and D'Angelo won, Escobar would have to leave NXT entirely. The physicality of the match was indicative of those stakes, and there were trash cans, steel steps, crowbars, chairs, and brass knuckles used throughout. Unfortunately, D'Angelo's team was able to help out just a bit more than Legado, and with a crowbar D'Angelo defeated Escobar, ending his run in NXT and perhaps clearing the way for a move to Raw or SmackDown.

Santos was the aggressor early, going after D'Angelo's knees and leg, and his strategy was paying off, as D'Angelo was clearly holding his knee and favoring his other leg, and then Escobar targeted the other leg too. D'Angelo came back with strikes but then Escobar hit a knee strike to D'Angelo's jaw and went for the cover, but he kicked out.

Escobar went up top and hit a huge crossbody and then called upon Legado, but Stacks wiped out the team. Escobar rebounded though and delivered a dropkick to the face of D'Angelo, knocking him down again. Tony D turned the tables though by hitting Escobar with a trash can lid and then he rolled him in the ring and hit him again before going for a cover. Escobar kicked out but D'Angelo wasn't done, catching Escobar and slamming him down for another pin attempt, but Escobar once again kicked out.

D'Angelo grabbed a chair and targeted Escobar's left arm three times, and then Tony put Escobar's arm through the chair and slammed him into the post. D'Angelo then kept at the hurt arm, slamming it on the ring apron and then connecting with strikes to the head and knee. D'Angelo then slammed the arm into the steel steps, and then he put the arm between the steps and ring and stomped on the steps.

D'Angelo grabbed more chairs and then hit a vertical suplex into three chairs on the floor. D'Angelo rolled Escobar into the ring for the pin attempt but he kicked out. Punches to the mid-section came next and then D'Angelo slammed Escobar down into a cover, but Escobar kicked out.

Stacks gave D'Angelo a trash can and he connected with it on Escobar's head, though he had enough to kick out of the cover. Escobar came back with clotheslines and then connected again with kicks before heading up top and hitting a strike with the forearm. That knocked D'Angelo out of the ring and Lopex then punched Tony D before Escobar came flying out between the ropes. D'Angelo slammed Escobar's shoulder into the post and then hit an elbow drop.

Then Legado took out Stacks and Escobar went for the roll up and almost got D'Angelo. Escobar almost had the brass knuckles in hand but Tony broke it up. Elektra went to give Escobar the crowbar but Tony charged at her and knocked her down. D'Angelo hit a low blow on Escobar and then grabbed the crowbar but Escobar met him with a dropkick in the middle of the ring.

They taunted each other in the middle of the ring as two weapons were on either side, but D'Angelo got to the crowbar first, hitting Escobar and getting the win. Escobar is now out of NXT, and Legado is still a part of Tony D'Angelo's organization.

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