WWE NXT 2.0 Results: Winners, Grades, Reaction and Highlights from May 31

With just days to go before NXT In Your House 2022, the May 31 edition of WWE NXT 2.0 promised a Women's Championship Summit, the finals of a major tournament and the last moments before some major title matches on Saturday.

Mandy Rose has run NXT 2.0 with Gigi Dolin and Jacy Jayne for the past seven months. The champions have seemed untouchable. Wendy Choo, Katana Chance and Kayden Carter looked to change all that, but first they would face off with Toxic Attraction in a Women's Championship Summit.

Cameron Grimes wanted a tune-up for Carmelo Hayes and found his chance against the fast and athletic Nathan Frazer. Cora Jade would fight Elektra Lopez after a confrontation between the two women last week.

This is not to mention the likely appearances of Bron Breakker and Joe Gacy ahead of their NXT Championship clash as well as Pretty Deadly's continued mind games in competition with The Creed Brothers. It was set to be a big night.

Roderick Strong told The Creed Brothers and Ivy Nile to take the night off and watch what he can do against Pretty Deadly. Julius and Brutus Creed tried to help him late, but The Messiah of the Backbreaker got distracted and fell to Spilt Milk.

This was a good match with a predictable result. What mattered most was continuing to build the storyline of Diamond Mine. While The Creed Brothers looked poised to win the NXT Tag Team Championships, their growing tension with Strong is likely to cost them another chance.

It is hard to say where this is going. Diamond Mine is such a perfect fit for The Creeds and Nile as well as Damon Kemp. Strong comes off as the odd man out, and perhaps he will form his own stable to combat Diamond Mine.

Pretty Deadly come off as the type of tag team that should be more style than substance, but they've got the talent to back up their words. They have not missed yet and helped elevate Kemp, who is showing some interesting potential in recent work.

Grade

B

Notable Moments

• Strong slapped Kemp in the face, which lit him up as he hit a series of explosive suplexes on Prince.
• The Messiah of the Backbreaker laid out both members of Pretty Deadly with backbreakers, but the numbers game became too much for him.
• Backstage, Strong told The Creed Brothers they were out of Diamond Mine if they lost on Saturday.

Tony D'Angelo, Stacks and Two Dimes walked onto Legado del Fantasma's yacht. While Elektra Lopez was not convinced by what The Don was selling, D'Angelo sold Santos Escobar on a six-man tag match also included Cruz Del Toro and Joaquin Wilde. The losers would join the winners' family.

While a six-man tag team match including a pair of green wrestlers is not exciting on the surface, the stipulation gives this more stakes than even the title matches for NXT In Your House.

No matter who wins, this was the right call. Legado del Fantasma is an established group that has told its stories in NXT. Forcing Escobar to work under D'Angelo could be the impetus that will finally turn The Emperor face while the reverse would also make for interesting stories.

Grade

B-

Notable Moments

• Joe Gacy cut a powerful promo about Bron Breakker's upbringing that transitioned into an interview with Breakker, who almost broke a TV out of frustration.

Elektra Lopez used his power to dominate the action early, but her opponent was scrappy. Jade fought Lopez off the top rope and hit a diving elbow to win.

Lopez and Jade have very little chemistry. This was much better on paper than in practice. The moves looked sloppy and lacked impact. Jade barely got involved before she won.

The one positive is that Lopez is clearly improving. However, she can have a wider move set and still look like a rookie. It comes down to execution, which the WWE Performance Center trainers should emphasize with her going forward.

The right woman won for now. Jade though comes off as directionless after her big match with Natalya.

Grade

D+

Notable Moments

• Jade finally got into this fight with a tilt-a-whirl headscissor takedown and double foot stomp.
• Roxanne Perez put over Jade as the big reason she is where she is in WWE before explaining why she needed to defeat Tiffany Stratton next week. Stratton promised success in a separate promo.

Before the contest, Wes Lee explained why he wanted to fight Xyon Quinn, and Sanga put him over for his massive heart. While Quinn was too much for Lee in a brawl, the high flier managed to slip around a running forearm and stack up his opponent for a surprise three count.

Give these two twice as much time, and this would have stolen the show. Both men are immensely talent with plenty of obvious chemistry. Even when Lee would dive too far, Quinn was able to catch him, and Lee sold Quinn's offense as impactful without being dangerous.

It is a shame it was so short, but this was a really strong sprint. Both men deserve a regular spotlight. While Lee won the match, Quinn is still the most ready to contend soon. He could challenge Cameron Grimes in the next few months if he wins this rivalry.

Grade

B

Notable Moments

• Lee fought out of the corner and hit a side kick to the back of Quinn's head, but he flipped right into the arms of his opponent, who planted him with a middle turnbuckle Snake Eyes.

Katana Chance and Kayden Carter snapped back at Toxic Attraction taunting. Wendy Choo was not interested in talk, just asking that Mandy Rose sign the contract. Rose went off on Choo for acting like a child before finally signing for their title match.

A fight broke out after the contract was signed during which Choo sent Rose through a table with a diving side splash.

This was an awkward segment, but surprisingly it worked that way. Choo turned the crowd against Rose and proved her popularity. This was the first time Choo came off as a legitimate contender to defeat Rose for the NXT Women's Championship.

The time has come to take the gold off Toxic Attraction. At least one of the championships need to go to a fresh act. Chance and Carter have earned a run with the NXT Women's Tag Team Championships after proving themselves time and again for years.

Grade

C

Notable Moments

• Rose could barely talk over the crowd that was fully behind Choo.
• Another video package was shown for Giovanni Vinci.

Duke Hudson tried to keep Solo Sikoa down, but the moment he got his feet under him, he was unstoppable. He planted the big man with a Samoan drop, a corner hip attack, and a diving splash to win.

The action here was solid for what it was, but Hudson really should not have been completely squashed a week after defeating Bron Breakker. He got some offense in, but he never had a real chance.

Sikoa has been built up in a big way lately, but if he loses to Cameron Grimes when it matters, he is going to have a long road back to title contention. He could quickly become similar to Santos Escobar, talking a big game but never winning the big one.

Grade

C-

Notable Moments

• Backstage, Sikoa reminded Cameron Grimes that he had next, but Hudson interrupted, telling Sikoa he was not worthy of gold if he could not beat the big man.
• Sikoa reversed a Razor's Edge attempt into a back body drop to begin building back momentum.

Grayson Waller told Brooks Jensen and Fallon Henley to stay in the back. This allowed Robert Stone, Sofia Cromwell and Von Wagner to get involved. Wagner's distraction allowed Waller to hit a rolling cutter on Josh Briggs to win.

Wagner attacked Briggs after the bell, hoping to injure his arm just like Jensen, but Jensen arrived to make the save, even with a cast still on his hand.

This was just a waste of talent. There was not enough time for either man to do anything before the distraction finish. It was obvious and boring. At least give two talented guys the time to have a good match before the Wagner stuff.

Briggs and Jensen come off in the end as more cannon fodder to Wagner. Waller meanwhile is just drifting, waiting for a real rival again.

Grade

D

Notable Moments

• Waller was hyping up those backstage to watch Tiffany Stratton but said the wrong thing about  Henley, which caused Briggs to challenge him man to man.

Ivy Nile tried to focus in on this match, but it was clear the Diamond Mine drama had her attention divided. She got beat up early by Kiana James, but she fought back and slammed James to pick up the win. Afterward, Pretty Deadly mocked Nile until The Creed Brothers sent them running.

It is telling how dominant Nile has been that it felt like she was challenged when James countered a few of her moves. This was a squash, but James got to look like she had a chance briefly thanks to the story around Nile that has her distracted.

That did not make it good though. James is an uninteresting performer at the moment and come off too trained. Nile has potential but needs a new manager with Malcolm Bivens gone. The brawl afterward was more interesting, mainly because Pretty Deadly vs. The Creed Brothers is NXT's best angle.

Grade

D+

Notable Moments

• James taunted Nile in the locker room about Diamond Mine's dissension, setting up this match.
• James managed to flip out of the dragon sleeper, the first woman to counter it.

Nathan Frazer showed off his impressive speed, sending Cameron Grimes reeling early and often. However, the champion continued to adapt before planting his opponent with the Cave-In to win.

Afterward, the NXT North American champion sent Trick Williams and Carmelo Hayes reeling, holding the ring to end the show.

This was easily the best match on the card. It was not difficult to take that spot given all the rushed matches, but Grimes vs. Frazer was genuinely good. The two put so much into their 10 minutes, never letting up on the pace.

Frazer never had a chance, even if he stayed in the fight. He got some nearfalls, but there was no drama. It was just about showing off what he could do before he fell. With the right build, these two could have a genuinely great match down the line.

Grade

B+

Notable Moments

• Grimes got control of this match after ducking a dive from Frazer and kicking him off the apron.
• Frazer reversed a powerbomb into a sunset flip bomb for a nearfall.