New NXT Champion: Tommaso Ciampa

On last night’s episode of NXT, in one of the BEST matches I’ve ever seen on the show, Tommaso Ciampa defeated Aleister Black to become the new NXT champion.

3 weeks ago I spoke about how Aleister wasn’t working as the champion, and that he should be taken out of the equation. It’s unfortunate that he’s been nothing more than a support role for the Gargano/Ciampa feud to be elevated. I didn’t think it would actually happen, but as of last night, exactly that happened. The 13th NXT champion has fulfilled the unlucky stigma associated with that number.

The NXT title hasn’t changed hands on a weekly episode since Kevin Owens destroyed Sami Zayn in February of 2015. As devastating as that outcome was, what took place last night looked like someone had actually had been robbed.

The fully-invested crowd brought their “WTF” faces in full force.

The entire #NXTUniverse right now:#WWENXT pic.twitter.com/gn5teaZBSq

— WWE Universe (@WWEUniverse) July 26, 2018

Aleister Black made a valiant effort to retain his title, but Tommaso Ciampa was prepared to walk out the champion by any means necessary.

He exposed the concrete under the mat outside the ring, threw Aleister into a cameraman, and struck him with a crutch he’d hidden under the ring. It wasn’t enough to put Aleister down though. He kept coming back even with all of Ciampa’s shenanigans.

Johnny Gargano played a pivotal role in this match, as he couldn’t stand by and watch Ciampa cheat any further than he already had. While the ref was down, Ciampa had the NXT title in his hands with intention of nailing Aleister in the face with it. Johnny super-kicked him and grabbed the title to snatch it away from him, but with the force of him ripping it away, he flailed and the title collided with Aleister’s skull. Ultimately, that’s what cost Aleister Black his undefeated streak in singles competition, and his coveted NXT Championship.

A regretful Gargano tweeted this out:

I screwed up..

I caused this mess but I swear to you I'll fix it. Sometimes mistakes have the power to turn you into something better than you were before. I have to be better.. I don't know how and I don't know where but I promise I'll make this right.

I just have to..

— Johnny Gargano (@JohnnyGargano) July 26, 2018

All signs point to NXT Takeover Brooklyn for Gargano and Ciampa. They’ll blow the roof off their feud that’s been growing since they were an unsigned tag team in the Dusty Rhodes Classic, to now, where they’ve been the biggest feud in WWE for roughly half a calendar year. Whether or not Aleister Black will or won’t be part of the equation isn’t something I can predict.

Ciampa has become Thanos in this tale, and he’s just acquired his completed Infinity Gauntlet.

Braden Jackson – @Dembrae

Images provided by WWE.com and Tommaso Ciampa’s official Twitter account: @ProjectCiampa