WWE NXT Halloween Havoc 2022 Results: Winners, Grades, Reaction and Highlights
Mandy Rose put her year-long reign as NXT women's champion on the line Saturday night at Halloween Havoc, as she defended against top contender Alba Fyre in one of the marquee matches of the premium live event.
The latest presentation by the black-and-gold brand also featured a blockbuster Triple Threat bout for the NXT Championship, the coronation of a new North American champion in a ladder match and a Weapons Wild contest between former friends.
Who emerged victorious, what does it mean for a brand in flux and was "Mr. Money in the Bank" Austin Theory a factor in the night's festivities?
Find out now with this recap of the event.
Ladder Match for the NXT North American Championship
The vacant North American Championship was up for grabs in a Ladder Match to kick off this year's Halloween Havoc, the result of Solo Sikoa relinquishing the title upon his call-up to the main roster.
Nathan Frazier, Wes Lee, Oro Mensah, Von Wagner and former champion Carmelo Hayes did battle for the right to etch their name in the history books.
The high-energy, high-spot-heavy match was a fantastic one that may have set the bar impossibly high for the rest of the show.
Frazier and Mensah showed up and showed out in their first opportunity to compete in a premium live event. Wagner was great as the unstoppable big man who fans very passionately did not want to win.
It was Lee and Hayes who provided the foundation for everything that happened between bells and, suitably, were the final two competing for the title. Lee winning was the right call. He has been an inspirational babyface who was handed a bad hand with the end of MSK and forced to find himself on television.
He did and the reaction the fans gave him tonight was reflective of a Superstar who earned their respect and admiration. Now, he channeled that into his first singles title.
Result
Lee defeated Frazier, Mensah, Hayes and Wagner to win the title
Grade
B+
Top Moments
- Wagner played the role of the bruiser, overpowering the opposition and bumping them around the ring. Think Kane in those early, inaugural Money in the Bank Ladder Matches.
- Mesah took an ugly bump off a ladder, barely clearing the top rope before falling on the other competitors in the match.
- Frazier delivered a frog splash from the top rope, onto Wagner, driving him through a ladder that had been propped between the apron and guardrail.
- Lee wiped out Frazier at ringside and the latter stopped selling to fix his hair in the single most annoying moment of the match.
- Wagner, miraculously recovered from being splashed through a friggin ladder, gorilla press slammed Lee from the ring and onto the commentary table at ringside.
- Lee leveled Hayes on a bridging ladder with a Meteora, then climbed the primary won to retrieve the title and win the match to a thunderous reaction.
Toxic Attraction Hunted Alba Fyre; Casket Match: Apollo Crews vs. Grayson Waller
Prior to the Casket Match between Apollo Crews and Grayson Waller, a pre-taped video saw Toxic Attraction journey to a haunted house in search of Alba Fyre. Haunted hijinx ensued and Fyre dispatched both Gigi Dolin and Jacy Jayne before absconding with an unconscious Mandy Rose.
The rivalry between Crews and Waller came to a head in a Casket Match that leaned a little to heavily into theatricality, to the detriment of its quality.
Crews bumped through the casket, referees wandered aimlessly, and the lights went out. There were druids, and a second casket, as the match tried too hard to be something it was not.
Yes, this is Halloween Havoc and there is a desire to have different gimmick bouts across the card but nothing about the Crews-Waller feud needed the casket stipulation. A one-on-one showdown likely would have been very good, at the least.
Instead, this was overbooked and mostly unnecessary, even if the effort from the participants was admirable.
Result
Crews defeated Waller
Grade
C+
Top Moments
- Jane and Dolin's character work, including facial expressions, stole the haunted house segment. They really should be better utilized than as lackeys.
- Waller grabbed Vic Joseph's pen from the commentary table.
- Crews bumped hard from the ropes, through the lid of the casket, only to appear outside of it after a brief lights-out. Druids brought a second casket to the ring.
- Crews attempted to throw ring steps on a prone Waller, who escaped in the nick of time.
- Waller caught his charging opponent with a rolling stunner, then mocked The Undertaker before attempting a Tombstone piledriver. Crews countered.
- Crews delivered a spinebuster into the casket for the win.
Weapons Wild Match: Roxanne Perez vs. Cora Jade
Former friends turned bitter enemies did battle in the night's next match as Roxanne Perez battled Cora Jade in a Weapons Wild Match.
A physical match with some entertaining spots and the emotion you would expect from a rivalry that has been as intense as this one, it delivered what it needed to.
Perez and Jade took a big bump from an elevated platform, through a table, before transitioning to a finish that saw the babyface answer her foe's taunt of "I was never your friend" by back body dropping her onto a bed of chairs.
Pop Rox earned The Prodigy the win.
These two are the future of women's wrestling in WWE and, given the television time and expectations on them to deliver, they performed admirably en route to an actual victory for Perez and professional one for both women.
Result
Perez defeated Jade
Grade
B-
Top Moments
- Perez brought a skateboard with her to the ring, a callback to Jade's shocking betrayal of her a month ago.
- Jade cut off her opponent's momentum with some sort of spray to the eyes.
- Jade applied a camel clutch with the assistance of a rope on the floor.
- The babyface fought back, attacking her rival with an appropriate intensity.
- Jade tried to run but the combatants fought through the crowd before arriving on an elevated platform.
- Perez momentarily hesitated to punch Jade before both women took a plunge off the platform and through a table.
Ambulance Match: Julius Creed vs. Damon Kemp
Halloween Havoc hosts Shotzi and Quincy Elliott made their way to the ring for a bit of fun before Lash Legend interrupted. Some back-and-forth insults concluded with the Beetlejuice-attired Shotzi laying the loudmouth heel out with a DDT.
Shotzi is great at this hosting gig and should fill this role at every one of these Halloween Havoc presentations every year from now until eternity.
Up next, Damon Kemp sought to defeat Julius Creed in an Ambulance Match and end the career of Brutus Creed in the process. The only way to win? Throw your opponent in the ambulance and close both doors.
Creed took considerable pain and punishment to ensure the continued career of his brother and tag team partner, even sacrificing his own right hand to stop Kemp from closing the ambulance door. Fired up, he unloaded on Kemp with a chair, stuffed him in the emergency vehicle and scored the biggest win of his young career.
The former amateur wrestler is a star in the making. He is already damn good between the ropes and has exhibited the intensity and aggression that stars at the next level of demand. He is going to be the guy at some point and if not, will settle nicely into a main event role, a la Kurt Angle.
Kemp is no slouch himself but is not quite at the level of his opponent.
The right guy went over and the Creeds can move back into tag title contention if need be.
Result
Creed defeated Kemp
Grade
B
Top Moments
- Kemp wisely fended off defeat by using the same crutch he brought to the ring with him to prevent Creed from closing the ambulance door.
- Creed kicked the ambulance door back in Kemp's face in a sudden, explosive, violent moment.
- Kemp delivered a uranage onto the ring steps, driving the air out of his opponent.
- Creed trapped Kemp in a wheelchair and sent him head-first into the ring steps.
- The babyface repeatedly risked his own well-being, sacrificing his hand to prevent the ambulance door from closing and ending his brother's career.
- Creed wore Kemp out with the same steel chair that the heel used to brutalize Brutus, beating him about the body 10 times with the weapon. He added a powerbomb on the stretcher for good measure.
NXT Women's Championship Match: Alba Fyre vs. Mandy Rose
After a terrorizing experience earlier in the night, NXT Women's champion Mandy Rose found herself on the defensive, forced to thwart the mind games and physicality of No. 1 contender Alba Fyre.
She weathered the storm, downing her rival and working her over throughout the heart of the match. Just as Fyre mounted a comeback and appeared to have the match won via Swanton Bomb, Gigi Dolin and Jacy Jayne appeared, pulling the referee out of the ring.
More shenanigans gave way to Rose securing the win and continuation of her historic reign as champion.
The match was OK but somewhat lacking given the effort that went into establishing Fyre as the top contender. The haunted house stuff earlier in the show was a ton of fun and felt like the perfect setup for a new champion but it was not to be.
It was apparent earlier in the show that Roxanne Perez is most likely the choice to dethrone Rose and while that is the right call, one has to wonder if NXT officials missed their chance to really capitalize on the heat and make the change earlier, before fans could potentially get worn out by Toxic Attraction's dominance over the women's division.
Result
Rose defeated Fyre
Grade
C+
Top Moments
- Fyre drove Rose to the venue and fought the NXT Women's champion into the arena.
- A battered referee was not available to count the fall, preventing Fyre from winning the title.
- Further interference from Dolin and Jayne allowed Rose to deliver Kiss From The Rose for the pinfall victory.
Triple Threat Match for the NXT Championship
NXT champion Bron Breakker has spent the majority of his time with the brand either as the top dog or in between stints as champions. Saturday, he faced the greatest threats to his reign atop the black and gold brand in the form of Ilja Dragunov and JD McDonagh.
What ensued between champion and challengers was one of the best main events in recent NXT history. A dramatic encounter that showcased Dragunov and McDonagh and established them as very real threats to Breakker, it was a hard-hitting and uber-physical match that kept fans guessing with every false-finish and near-fall.
The finish saw Breakker overcome the Russian, pinning him following the spear, all while McDonagh could do nothing but watch from the floor, unable to make that one last save that would keep his championship aspirations alive.
This was a major test for Breakker, who was tasked with locking horns with two of the best wrestlers from the NXT: UK brand and proving he could hang with them. Not only did he hang with them, but he confirmed himself as their equal.
The crowd ate it up and while the champion may not have been the favorite among the fans, he earned their respect by the end of the match. Mission accomplished for NXT officials and the talent involved.
Result
Breakker defeated McDonagh and Dragunov to retain
Grade
A+
Top Moments
- Breakker and Dragunov focused their attention on McDonagh early.
- Breakker launched McDonagh with an overhead suplex straight out of father, Rick's, playbook.
- Dragonuv threw caution to the wind and executed the Van Terminator (Coast-to-Coast) in pursuit of the NXT Championship.
- The babyfaces teed off on McDonagh, each delivering hard shots to the heel while the official warned him to "get your fists up."
- Dragunov unleashed late, chopping away at both men.
- In a cool trio spot, Breakker delivered a German suplex to Dragunov who, in turn, delivered a release overhead German to McDonagh.
- A great false finish that saw McDonagh nearly steal the win.
- McDonagh grabbed the referee's hand to break up the count in another dramatic near-fall.