NXT Roadblock | |||
---|---|---|---|
Promotion | WWE | ||
Brand(s) | NXT | ||
Date | March 7, 2023 | ||
City | Orlando, Florida | ||
Venue | WWE Performance Center | ||
NXT special episodes chronology | |||
| |||
Roadblock chronology | |||
|
The 2023 NXT Roadblock was the fourth Roadblock professional wrestling event produced by WWE. It was primarily for wrestlers from the NXT brand division. Like the previous Roadblock event, NXT Roadblock aired as a special episode of NXT on the USA Network. The television special took place on March 7, 2023, at the WWE Performance Center in Orlando, Florida. The event's title is a reference to its position on the road to NXT Stand & Deliver, NXT's WrestleMania Weekend event.
Five matches were contested at the event. In the main event, Roxanne Perez defeated Meiko Satomura to retain the NXT Women's Championship. The event also saw the WWE debut of Dragon Lee.
Roadblock is a professional wrestling event established by WWE in 2016. The inaugural event was held in March that year and aired exclusively on the WWE Network. The event's name was a reference to its position on the "Road to WrestleMania". [1] In July 2016, WWE reintroduced the brand extension, where the roster was divided between brands where wrestlers were exclusively assigned to perform. Roadblock was brought back that same year in December as a Raw-exclusive event under the title Roadblock: End of the Line. It aired on pay-per-view (PPV) and the WWE Network with its name being in reference to being WWE's final PPV of 2016. [2] [3] Roadblock was then discontinued without any further events scheduled. [4] However, Roadblock was revived for the NXT brand as a television special episode of NXT titled NXT Roadblock. [5] On the February 14, 2023, episode of NXT, it was announced that the 2023 NXT Roadblock would take place on March 7, 2023. [6]
The card included matches that resulted from scripted storylines, where wrestlers portrayed villains, heroes, or less distinguishable characters in scripted events that built tension and culminated in a wrestling match or series of matches. Results were predetermined by WWE's writers on the NXT brand, [7] [8] while storylines were produced on the weekly television program, NXT, and the supplementary online streaming show, Level Up .
On the February 14 episode of NXT, after winning their tag team match, Meiko Satomura challenged Roxanne Perez to an NXT Women's Championship match, which Perez accepted. [9] The following week, the bout was made official for Roadblock. [10]
On the December 27, 2022, episode of NXT, Tony D'Angelo lost his NXT North American Championship match after interference from Dijak. [11] At NXT: New Year's Evil on January 10, 2023, Dijak defeated D'Angelo to become the number one contender for the title at NXT Vengeance Day. [12] At the event, Dijak failed to win the title after interference from D'Angelo and Channing "Stacks" Lorenzo. [13] On the February 21 episode, D'Angelo challenged Dijak to a Jailhouse Street Fight at Roadblock, [10] which Dijak accepted a week later. [14]
At NXT Vengeance Day, Toxic Attraction members Gigi Dolin and Jacy Jayne failed to win the NXT Women's Championship in a triple threat match. [13] On the following episode of NXT, during a "Ding Dong, Hello!" segment hosted by Bayley, Jayne attacked Dolin, breaking up Toxic Attraction. [15] Over the next few weeks, Dolin and Jayne talked about their breakup and on the February 28 episode, a match between the two was scheduled for Roadblock. [14]
At NXT Vengeance Day, Grayson Waller failed to win the NXT Championship in a Steel Cage match. [13] After the event, he stormed into Shawn Michaels' office, resulting in him being suspended for a week. [15] After more confrontations, on the February 21 episode of NXT, Waller told Michaels to meet him face-to-face at Roadblock, [10] which was confirmed the following week. [14]
On the February 7 episode of NXT, Ava of Schism (Joe Gacy, Jagger Reid, and Rip Fowler) attacked Thea Hail of Chase University (Andre Chase and Duke Hudson) backstage. Later that night, Chase and Hudson lost their match after Hail showed up with Schism smiley faces. [15] The two teams continued their feud over the following weeks and on the February 28 episode, a Chase University class was interrupted by Schism. Later that night, a match between Chase and Gacy was scheduled for Roadblock. [14]
At NXT: New Year's Evil, Jinder Mahal made his return to NXT to defeat Julius Creed; the match was originally The Creed Brothers (Julius and Brutus Creed) vs. Indus Sher (Sanga and Veer Mahaan). [12] The match eventually occurred on the January 31 episode of NXT, where Indus Sher were victorious. [16] Two weeks later, Mahal challenged Bron Breakker for the NXT Championship, and the match was scheduled for the February 21 episode, [9] where Breakker retained. [10] On the February 28 episode, a six-man tag team match pitting Breakker and The Creed Brothers against Indus Sher (Mahal, Mahaan, and Sanga) was scheduled for Roadblock. [14]
The television special began with Tony D'Angelo (accompanied by Channing "Stacks" Lorenzo) taking on Dijak in a Jailhouse Street Fight. The rules were that there was no disqualifications, and that the match could only end when an opponent is locked in a cell. In the closing stages, with Lorenzo knocked out, as Dijak tried to drag D'Angelo into the cell after performing Feast Your Eyes, D'Angelo found a crowbar and struck Dijak with it before dragging him into the cell and slamming the door shut to win the match. [17]
Next, NXT Tag Team Champions Gallus (Mark Coffey and Wolfgang) called out Pretty Deadly (Kit Wilson and Elton Prince), who appeared from an elevated platform. After Gallus laid out the title belts in the ring, Wilson and Prince tried to retrieve them, only for Gallus to beat them down and send them retreating. It was later announced that an NXT Tag Team Championship match between Gallus and Pretty Deadly was made official for the following week. [17]
In the next match, The Creed Brothers (Brutus Creed and Julius Creed) and NXT Champion Bron Breakker (accompanied by Ivy Nile) took on Jinder Mahal and Indus Sher (Veer Mahaan and Sanga) in a six-man tag team match. Before the match, a brawl broke out between the two teams. In the closing moments, Breakker performed a Spear on Mahal before doing the same to Sanga. Mahaan was able to stun Breakker, however, The Creed Brothers performed a Doomsday Brutus Ball on Mahaan to win the match. [17]
Afterwards, Grayson Waller hosted The Waller Effect, with Shawn Michaels as the special guest. After the two talked about Michaels being in charge of NXT since September 2022, Michaels mentioned the legends NXT had created over the last few years. Waller then challenged Michaels to a match at NXT Stand & Deliver, but Michaels said that someone else would like to do it more. That person was revealed to be Johnny Gargano, in his first NXT appearance since December 2021. Gargano then cleared Waller from the ring before standing tall with Michaels to end the segment. [17]
In the third match, Gigi Dolin took on Jacy Jayne. In the end, Dolin performed a rollup slam on Jayne to win the match. After the match, Jayne attacked Dolin and wrapped her head in a chair, only to be sent to the back by referees. [17]
After that, NXT Champion Bron Breakker challenged Carmelo Hayes to a match at NXT Stand & Deliver. After the two hyped the match, Hayes accepted, but on the condition that Breakker put the title on the line. [17]
In the penultimate match, Andre Chase (accompanied by Thea Hail and Duke Hudson) took on Joe Gacy (accompanied by Ava, Jagger Reid, and Rip Fowler). In the climax, while Hail did her breathing exercise and got at Ava's face, Hudson and Chase were distracted by that, allowing Gacy to perform the Upside-Down World on Chase to win the match. [17]
Before the main event, NXT North American Champion Wes Lee was about to make another open challenge for the title, but was interrupted by Axiom. Lee told him that if he wanted the match, he would have to beat the entire locker room. [17]
In the main event, Roxanne Perez defended the NXT Women's Championship against Meiko Satomura. After an even match between the two, Satomura performed a handstand legdrop for a nearfall. In the climax, Perez attempted Pop Rocks, but Satomura blocked by grabbing onto the ring apron. Back in the ring, Satomura performed Scorpio Rising on Perez, who grabbed the bottom rope to void the pin. As Satomura attempted a second Scorpio Rising, Perez countered into a roll-up to retain the title. After the match, Satomura passed the NXT Women's Championship belt to Perez, who suddenly collapsed. Perez was then taken out of the arena in an ambulance, while nodding her head to say that she was okay, as the show ended. [17]
On the following episode of NXT, WWE executive Shawn Michaels issued a statement via Twitter that NXT Women's Champion Roxanne Perez was discharged from the hospital, however, after numerous tests, her health was still in question. As such, Michaels announced a ladder match at Stand & Deliver to crown a new NXT Women's Champion, with qualifying matches beginning that same episode. [18] On the March 28 episode, Perez stated that she collapsed due to anxiety, and that she had been cleared by the doctors to return. She was then added to the ladder match, turning it into a title defense. [19]
Also on NXT, Gallus (Mark Coffey and Wolfgang) and Pretty Deadly (Kit Wilson and Elton Prince) had their match for the NXT Tag Team Championship, where Gallus retained. [18]
Johnny Gargano talked about his return to NXT, and about missing a part of himself when he returned to Raw in August 2022. He also mentioned Waller disrespecting the fans and NXT when commentator Vic Joseph showed footage of Waller watching the show from Gargano's home. This led to a brawl between Gargano and Waller outside the house, which Waller got the better of. [18] The following week, Gargano came up with a contract for an unsanctioned match between him and Waller, but Waller said that he would only sign it on the March 28 episode if Gargano did not show up at the building, and Gargano accepted. [20] On that episode, Waller signed the contract to make the unsanctioned match stipulation official. [19]
NXT North American Champion Wes Lee's open challenge turned into a massive brawl, which Lee got the better of. Later that night, Shawn Michaels announced that Lee would be defending the title in a fatal five-way match at Stand & Deliver, with Lee selecting his opponents. [18] The following week, Lee chose Dragon Lee, JD McDonagh, and Ilja Dragunov as his opponents. The final spot was filled in a battle royal on the March 28 episode, [20] which was won by Axiom. [19]
As Chase University (Andre Chase, Duke Hudson, Thea Hail, and Tyler Bate) were talking backstage, Schism's (Joe Gacy, Jagger Reid, and Rip Fowler) Ava put her mask on Chase University's speakerphone. [18] The following week, the two teams agreed to an eight-person mixed tag team match for Stand & Deliver where the winning team would gain control of Chase University. [20]
No. | Results | Stipulations | Times [17] | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Tony D'Angelo (with Channing "Stacks" Lorenzo) defeated Dijak | Jailhouse Street Fight [21] | 11:11 | ||
2 | Bron Breakker and The Creed Brothers (Brutus Creed and Julius Creed) (with Ivy Nile) defeated Indus Sher (Jinder Mahal, Sanga, and Veer Mahaan) by pinfall | Six-man tag team match [21] | 11:14 | ||
3 | Gigi Dolin defeated Jacy Jayne by pinfall | Singles match [21] | 8:01 | ||
4 | Joe Gacy (with Schism (Rip Fowler, Jagger Reid, and Ava)) defeated Andre Chase (with Chase University (Duke Hudson and Thea Hail)) by pinfall | Singles match [21] | 4:27 | ||
5 | Roxanne Perez (c) defeated Meiko Satomura by pinfall | Singles match for the NXT Women's Championship [21] | 13:59 | ||
|
Christopher James Dijak is an American professional wrestler. He is currently working on the independent circuit under the ring name Donovan Dijak. He is best known for his tenure in WWE, where he performed under the ring names Dominik Dijakovic, T-Bar, and Dijak.
Christian Brigham is an American professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE where he performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name Carmelo Hayes. He is a former one-time NXT Champion, a two-time and longest combined reigning NXT North American Champion, and a one-time and the final NXT Cruiserweight Champion, having unified it with the NXT North American Championship.
The NXT Women's Tag Team Championship was a professional wrestling women's tag team championship created and promoted by the American promotion WWE. It was defended on the company's developmental brand, NXT, and was briefly featured on the main roster brand, SmackDown, before its retirement. The championship was established on March 10, 2021, and the team of Dakota Kai and Raquel González were the inaugural champions. On the June 23, 2023, episode of SmackDown, the title was unified into the WWE Women's Tag Team Championship, officially retiring the title in the process, with Alba Fyre and Isla Dawn recognized as the final champions.
Carla Gonzalez is an American professional wrestler. As of March 2022, she is signed to WWE where she performs on the NXT brand under the ring name Roxanne Perez. She is the current NXT Women's Champion in her record-tying second reign, and a former NXT Women's Tag Team Champion with Cora Jade. Prior to signing with WWE, Gonzalez wrestled under the ring name Rok-C in Ring of Honor (ROH), where she was the inaugural ROH Women's World Champion. She also worked for several independent promotions such as Reality of Wrestling.
Toxic Attraction was an American villainous professional wrestling stable in WWE on the NXT brand. The group originally consisted of Mandy Rose, Gigi Dolin, and Jacy Jayne. After Rose was released from her WWE contract in December 2022, Toxic Attraction became a tag team of Dolin and Jayne before they split in February 2023, ending the group.
The 2021 NXT Halloween Havoc was the second annual Halloween Havoc professional wrestling event produced by WWE, and 14th Halloween Havoc event overall. It was held exclusively for wrestlers from the promotion's NXT brand division. The event aired as a special episode of WWE's weekly television series NXT, broadcast on the USA Network. It took place on October 26, 2021, at the WWE Performance Center in Orlando, Florida. The television special was hosted by Chucky in a crosspromotion for the Chucky TV series, with NXT wrestlers Grayson Waller and LA Knight also serving as hosts.
Taylor Grado is an American professional wrestler signed to WWE where she performs on the NXT brand under the ring name Jacy Jayne and is a member of The Fatal Influence stable. She is a former record-tying two-time NXT Women's Tag Team Champion.
The 2021 NXT WarGames was the fifth annual and final NXT WarGames professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) and livestreaming event produced by WWE. It was held exclusively for wrestlers from the promotion's NXT brand division, which reverted to being WWE's developmental territory in September. The event took place on December 5, 2021, at the WWE Performance Center in Orlando, Florida, and was the first WarGames to livestream on Peacock. It was also the last WWE PPV and livestreaming event to carry the term "pay-per-view" as WWE began to use the term "premium live event" for these major events beginning with Day 1 the following month.
Joseph Ariola is an American professional wrestler currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the NXT brand under the ring name Tony D'Angelo. He is the leader of The D'Angelo Family stable as "The Don of NXT" He is a former two-time NXT Tag Team Champion and a one-time NXT Heritage Cup champion.
The 2022 NXT Vengeance Day was the 10th Vengeance professional wrestling event produced by WWE, and the second annual held for the promotion's NXT brand division. It took place on February 15, 2022, at the WWE Performance Center in Orlando, Florida. It aired as a special episode of NXT. In lieu of its normal channel, the USA Network, the television special aired on Syfy due to USA's broadcasting of the 2022 Winter Olympics in NXT's normal slot.
The 2022 NXT Roadblock was the third Roadblock professional wrestling event produced by WWE. It was held primarily for wrestlers from the NXT brand division. Unlike the previous two Roadblock events, NXT Roadblock aired as a special episode of NXT on the USA Network. The television special took place on March 8, 2022, at the WWE Performance Center in Orlando, Florida. The event's title is a reference to its position on the road to NXT Stand & Deliver, NXT's WrestleMania week event. This was the first Roadblock event since Roadblock: End of the Line in December 2016.
The 2022 Worlds Collide was the third Worlds Collide professional wrestling livestreaming event produced by WWE. While the event was held primarily for wrestlers from the promotion's NXT and NXT UK brand divisions, Worlds Collide also featured some wrestlers from WWE's main roster brands, Raw and SmackDown. It took place on Sunday, September 4, 2022, at the WWE Performance Center in Orlando, Florida, and was the first Worlds Collide to livestream on Peacock. This was the first Worlds Collide event since 2020 and also the final event for NXT UK, which was meant to relaunch as NXT Europe in 2023. This was also NXT's last major event in which the brand was referred to as "NXT 2.0", as nine days later, the "2.0" moniker was dropped.
The 2022 NXT Halloween Havoc was the third annual Halloween Havoc professional wrestling event produced by WWE, and 15th Halloween Havoc event overall. It was held exclusively for wrestlers from the promotion's NXT brand division. Unlike the previous two years, which aired as television specials, the 2022 Halloween Havoc aired as a livestreaming event. It took place on Saturday, October 22, 2022, at the WWE Performance Center in Orlando, Florida. SmackDown wrestler Shotzi returned to co-host the event with NXT wrestler Quincy Elliott; Shotzi previously hosted the 2020 event when she was still on NXT. In a cross-promotion with the Chucky TV series, Chucky returned to participate in the Spin the Wheel, Make the Deal segments.
The 2023 NXT Stand & Deliver was the third annual Stand & Deliver professional wrestling livestreaming event produced by WWE. It was held exclusively for wrestlers from the promotion's NXT brand division. The event took place on Saturday, April 1, 2023, at the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, California as part of WrestleMania Weekend, being held the same day as WrestleMania 39 Night 1 with a special start time of 1 p.m. Eastern Time 10 a.m. Pacific Time. WWE wrestlers Pretty Deadly served as the hosts of the event. This was also the first Stand & Deliver to livestream on Binge in Australia.
The 2023 NXT: New Year's Evil was the third annual NXT: New Year's Evil professional wrestling television special produced by WWE, and fourth New Year's Evil overall. It was held exclusively for wrestlers from the promotion's NXT brand division. The event took place on January 10, 2023, at the WWE Performance Center in Orlando, Florida and aired live as a special episode of WWE's weekly television series NXT on the USA Network.
The 2023 NXT Vengeance Day was the 11th Vengeance professional wrestling event produced by WWE, and the third annual held for the promotion's NXT brand division. It took place on Saturday, February 4, 2023, at the Spectrum Center in Charlotte, North Carolina, marking the first major NXT event to be held in North Carolina and the second Vengeance event held at this venue after the 2006 event, when it was formerly known as Charlotte Bobcats Arena.
Kayla Klingensmith is an American professional wrestler. She is currently signed to WWE where she performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Kiana James. She is a former one-time NXT Women's Tag Team Champion.
The 2023 NXT Battleground was the sixth Battleground professional wrestling livestreaming event produced by WWE. It was held for wrestlers from the promotion's NXT brand division. The event took place on May 28, 2023, at the Tsongas Center in Lowell, Massachusetts. It was the first Battleground held since 2017, as well as the first to livestream on Peacock.
The 2023 Spring Breakin' was the second annual Spring Breakin' professional wrestling event produced by WWE. It was held primarily for wrestlers from the NXT brand division. Spring Breakin' aired as a special episode of NXT. The television special took place on April 25, 2023, at the WWE Performance Center in Orlando, Florida and aired on the USA Network.
The 2024 Spring Breakin' was a professional wrestling television special produced by WWE for its developmental brand NXT. It was the third annual Spring Breakin' for the brand and aired as a two-part special episode of NXT on the USA Network. The event took place on April 23 and April 30, 2024, at the WWE Performance Center in Orlando, Florida.