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NXT: Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic is Back

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Wrestling fans who have read the spoilers on the recent NXT tapings may already know this, but the fact that the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic is back doesn’t make it any less exciting.

General Manager William Regal announced the return of the tag team tournament that is held in honor of WWE Hall of Famer and former world champion “The American Dream,” Dusty Rhodes.

WWE revealed the brackets for this year’s tournament, which will be comprised of eight teams. The first round matches include

  • Authors of Pain vs. TM61
  • Moustache Mountain – Tyler Bate and Trent Seven – vs. Oney Lorcan and Danny Burch
  • Sanity’s Alexander Wolfe and Eric Young vs. Riddick Moss and Tony Sabatelli
  • The Street Profits vs. Heavy Machinery

The winners of the tournament will face current NXT Tag Team Champions, the Undisputed Era’s Kyle O’Reilly and Bobby Fish, at NXT Takeover: New Orleans on April 7.

The first two Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic tournaments featured a who’s who of top talent in NXT, as well as newcomer. The first tournament was held in 2015 and won by then-NXT Champion Finn Balor and Samoa Joe. The two would go on to feud for the NXT Championship in the following months.

The next year, the Authors of Pain would defeat TM61 to win the tournament and would later go on to win the NXT Tag Team titles.

The tournament was also a platform for other competitors to shine. The 2015 tourney was where fans teams like DIY, American Alpha and The Mechanics – later the Revival – begin their path to tag team greatness. The 2016 tournament featured names from the Cruiserweight Classic, like Kota Ibushi, T.J. Perkins and Cedric Alexander, as well as the debut of Roderick Strong.

This year’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team classic featured eight teams who are well known to the NXT Universe.

The Authors of Pain are looking to win their second tournament with the hopes of regaining the NXT Tag Team titles. Sanity is also hoping to win the tournament and recapture NXT gold.

Former Moustache Mountains’s Bate and Seven made a name for themselves in England, winning tag team gold in Progress and RPW and are looking to carve their name into NXT history. Lorcan and Burch are rivals who came together over time.  

TM61 seeks to not only make it to the finals, but win the tournament. Heavy Machinery, Moss and Sabatelli and the Street Profits are three teams who have earned some recognition and are hoping winning the tournament will push them to the next level.

For fans who feel NXT’s tag team division has become a little stale, the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic is a good way to shuffle the deck and have some of the lesser experience teams show fans how far they have come since they first started in NXT.

The tournament also allows established teams like the Authors of Pain and Sanity to give a rub to 1-2 tag teams before they transition to the main roster. NXT writers also have a chance to hit the reset and come up with storylines for wrestlers while the tournament unfolds.

 

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Donovan Dijak Suffers Injury at NXT Vengeance Day

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Donovan Dijak

NXT Vengeance Day was a rousing success for WWE on Saturday which saw a number of headlines come out of the event that was well-received by fans, including an injury suffered by Donovan Dijak during his match with Wes Lee for the North American Championship.

Dijak suffered an apparent broken finger during the match, which was seen on camera and shared on social media.

Following the event NXT general manager Shawn Michaels provided an update on Dijak, stating he did not suffer a broken finger – “Yeah, everybody is good” Michaels said. “I announced it at gorilla, it’s got to be a miracle, It’s not broken.

“We got him x-ray, they said it’s not broken and so yeah, I guess what you do is you kind of numb it and put it back in place and that’s what’s happening now. But it is, again, a modern miracle because we all saw it, it was pretty gnarly looking. But, apparently, he’s going to be okay, which is obviously fantastic news for us and him.”

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William Regal’s New Title in WWE Return

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William Regal

William Regal has made his return to WWE following his brief stint with AEW and now has a new title that is much different than what he had prior to his release from WWE during budget cuts last year.

Regal was Director of Talent Development and Head of Global Recruiting prior to his release. Regal was also the former General Manager for NXT and also had an on-screen role before he made his way to AEW.

According to PWInsider, Regal is now the Vice President, Global Talent Development for WWE.

Ahead of his return to WWE and amid his exit from AEW, Regal issued the following on social media:

“Yesterday was my last official day with @AEW. I’d like to thank @TonyKhan, Megha and all the hard working crew. Contrary to people who’ve never spoken to me or have their information from people who don’t know me or are trying to make themselves noticed, I had a lovely time working there and had a great time. Lots of talented Wrestlers, and lovely people to work for. To my fellow BCC members, it was a special, albeit brief few months but it cemented our already strong friendship. To everyone there, thank you for welcoming me. Best wishes.”

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Ex-NJPW Star Karl Fredericks Signs with WWE

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NXT 2.0

Former New Japan Pro Wrestling star Karl Fredericks has officially signed with WWE following the conclusion of his four-year tenure with NJPW. Fredericks announced on social media back in summer 2022 that he would not re-sign with NJPW.

Fredericks was initially linked to WWE last September, when he was reportedly spotted at the WWE Performance Center in Orlando, Florida.

According to PW Insider, Fredericks has officially signed with WWE and will be a part of the NXT brand initially.

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