In a non-title match, O’Reilly had a chance to prove himself at the very highest level.
Io Shirai and Zoey Stark joined forces to combat The Way, but first the team needed to build some credibility before challenging the NXT women’s tag team champion.
He slapped Cole in the face in a deliberate callback to John Cena’s debut, starting this match off hot.
While Hayes started hot, the veteran wore down the rookie with impact offense and focused technical holds.
Hayes and Cole both nearly took the win, but neither could take the three.
His charisma is striking, even in short promos, and he truly has impressed in the ring with his ability to keep up with top talent.
A few rough spots aside, this was a good story to tell in the ring with Hayes.
While the Cena callback was a bit corny, the point was clear.
The Genius of the Sky responded by stating she respected Stark as well, but she did not like her.
Afterward, Dakota Kai and Raquel Gonzalez told Stark and Shirai they would not pass them up for a title shot.
The Way quickly changed into gear for the match, but Theory was an easy target for the physical tacticians.
Johnny Wrestling played the face in this match, and it was fun to see Gargano working at that level again.
If we see Johnny Wrestling truly return for this match, it will easily steal the show.
She may one day get a chance to seriously shine, but she was not brought into this match with any expectation she would get to show what she can do.
Martel and Parker could have been allowed to hit more offense in this contest.
This left Kushida alone to take a brutal attack from Roderick Strong joined by Tyler Rust, Hideki Suzuki and Malcolm Bivens.
Kushida and KOR gave us a rare technically focused match where both looked to get a big submission to seal it.