WWE NXT Results, Winners, Live Grades, Reaction, Highlights Before Heatwave 2026

On the week ahead of Heatwave, NXT presented a final show on August 25 in the WWE Performance Center in Orlando, Florida.

As part of a Championship Summit, Tony D'Angelo would meet his future challengers Grayson Waller, Cruz Montana and Zilla Fatu while Kendal Grey exchanged final words with Kelani Jordan.

Saquon Shugars and Dion Lennox opened the show in a Weaponized Steel Cage. EK Prosper challenged Rey Fénix for the AAA Cruiserweight Championship.

This was only the foundation of an important night. Check out all the results, grades and highlights for NXT below.

Weaponized Steel Cage: Saquon Shugars vs. Dion Lennox

Last Time in Action: Dion Lennox defeated Saquon Shugars (NXT, August 11).

Lennox tossed a trash can at Shugars as he entered the cage, starting an immediate brawl. Lennox relied on his surroundings early, tossing Shugars repeatedly into the steel.

Shugars found a way to fire back, trapping Lennox in a trash can which he attacked with a trash can lid and Missile Dropkick.

Lennox fought free and dropped Shugars' back onto a chair into the Picture-in-Picture break.

Out of the break, Lennox fired up, tossing Lennox into the cage and flying out of the corner with a fast Crossbody.

He whipped Lennox into a kendo stick followed by face-planting Lennox into a steel chair. Lennox responded with a Spinebuster onto a trash can for a near-fall.

Lennox began targeting the leg of Shugars, using a steel chair and Shugars' own bat to target the left knee.

Shugars tried to send Lennox through a table with a Sunset Flip Powerbomb, but his knee gave out.

Shugars kept fighting through the limp and, in a final desperation move, went all the way to the top of the cage for a Crossbody to seal the win.

This was by far the best these two have looked in singles action, especially against one another.

Plunder matches especially with this many pre-set weapons gave them the structure their standard matches lacked.

The aggression of Lennox is far more effective when he is swinging chairs and tossing his opponent into a cage than utilizing his standard offense.

He also showed some impressive ingenuity throughout, combining weapons with the cage that sold his intellect.

This match also gave Shugars a chance to lean into his ability to sell pain, highlighting his resilience while the crowd cheered him on.

The ending was hampered by an early table break, but Shugars soldiered through and still hit a nice top-of-the-cage Crossbody, even if it did not look as devastating as they originally planned.

This should be the end of the rivalry for now. Shugars does not need to go through Osiris Griffin and Cutler James. He just needs to move on.

Let Shugars start building a resume that can allow him to challenge for the North American Championship while DarkState finds a new target.

Booker T oddly clarified that Shugars and Lennox don't hate each other. They just have "bad blood".

Vic Joseph explained that this could have been on Heatwave, but Robert Stone did not believe these two could wait. Booker again oddly questioned if this would have made the premium live event card.

"Use the Table" is a new obnoxious chant the NXT audience provided in place of "We Want Tables".

Shugars Superkicked Lennox after trapping him in a trash can on top of a table, only for the table to break early before the finish.

Nattie and Jaida Parker Agree to a Submission Match at Heatwave

Jaida Parker asked Thea Hail to stay in the back before she headed to the ring to face down Nattie.

The Low-Key Legend explained that she came to NXT to fight Ms. Parker, but she saw a Jaida that had grown soft and failed in her potential.

Jaida called out that Nattie tried to break her, but she only fired up a woman that was ready to embarrass her.

The two agreed to fight at Heatwave in a Submission match.

It is far too rare in the NXT women's division to see two stars just talk without interruption, especially without it quickly turning to violence.

That made this fairly basic promo stand out. Ms. Parker rode a supportive crowd to talking her way through Nattie, selling her confidence.

Even though The Low-Key Legend is the favorite on paper in this type of match, Jaida came out of this selling that there is no way that Nattie could make her tap out again.

Jaida should win against Nattie, and this win should set her up to take the next step to gold in NXT. She is ready for bigger opportunities.

In a backstage interview, Tony D'Angelo ran down all his challengers, promising none of them were ready for his fight.

The Vanity Project met Sarah Schreiber at a bowling alley where they called Myles Bornes and Tavion Heights fake friends while talking up Myka Lockwood as their secret weapon.

Last Time in Action: Kam Hendrix defeated Mason Rook (NXT, August 11); Keanu Carver defeated EK Prosper (NXT, August 4).

Carver teased an early inside cradle then took the best offense of Hendrix and smiled. The Showtime Kick could not even keep Carver down for two.

A pair of Release German Suplexes followed by a Pounce sent Hendrix to the floor. Showtime poked Carver in the eye, but as the referee talked to Carver, Mason Rook laid out Hendrix with a Running Crossbody.

Carver followed up with a Bridging Fisherman Suplex for the victory.

The positive was that Carver looked great. He shrugged off Hendrix's best offense and showed off a growing variety of moves in his arsenal.

It feels like Carver has fully landed in NXT, and his natural growth in the company makes him an easy choice to win gold soon.

The negative was a rushed and flat finish that made out that Carver needed Rook's help to seal the win in a match he was dominating.

It also was noticeable that Carver and Hendrix are a bad pair with limited in-ring chemistry. This is definitely not a match to quickly revisit.

Hendrix can continue feuding with Rook while Carver should look to the champions that leave Heatwave with the gold.

While big names are challenging Tony D'Angelo, Carver feels like a better long-term bet for NXT as a future NXT champion.

NXT showed footage of Carver finding out last minute that he would fight Hendrix. Carver teased anger but gladly accepted the challenge.

The crowd did not know how to react in this impromptu heel vs. heel match, but Carver won them over more, signaling he might be slowly turning.

In a pre-tape, Zilla Fatu promised to make a splash immediately in NXT.

Last Time in Action: Kali Armstrong alongside Kelani Jordan defeated WrenQCC (NXT, August 18); Zaria defeated Wren Sinclair to defend the Women's North American Championship (NXT, August 11).

Zaria and Kali began quickly testing each other's strength. The women's North American champion was too much for the former Evolve women's champion.

Instead of strength though, it was speed that gave Kali an edge as she knocked Zaria outside and caught her with a Springboard Crossbody into the PIP break.

Back from break, Kali kept control with an explosive Superplex. The two exchanged strikes in the center of the ring that ended with Kali standing tall.

Kali set up the Kali Connection, but Zaria countered into a Spear followed by an F5, only for Kali roll through into a Sunset Flip pin for the shock victory.

This was a great showcase for Kali. Zaria let the NXT newcomer look like a real threat by pushing Kali to her most dynamic performance on NXT so far.

This was not just a showcase of the explosive power of Kali. It was instead about the dynamic athleticism of one of NXT's most intriguing rising stars.

Kali did not need to actually beat Zaria, who has been well protected lately, but she will add more unpredictability to the Heatwave Unification match.

The best bet is for Zaria to take all the gold, but Kali is also a priority star in NXT. Zaria could easily go after the NXT Championship instead.

Kali def. Zaria by pinfall to earn a spot in the Heatwave championship unification match.

In a pre-tape, Kelani Jordan talked about how she has done everything in NXT and been disrespected constantly.

Kendal Grey talked with Wren Sinclair and NASCAR racer William Sawalich about doctor concerns about her balance for her title match against Lani.

BirthRight vs. Sean Legacy, DVD, Noam Dar and Romeo Moreno

Last Time in Action: This was the last time Lexis King, Charlie Dempsey, Channing "Stacks" Lorenzo and Uriah Connors have teamed up as a foursome since NXT Countdown to Stand & Deliver (April 4). This was the first time Sean Legacy, Dorian Van Dux, Noam Dar and Romeo Moreno have worked as a foursome.

The action quickly picked up as BirthRight could not contain the speed and ferocity of Legacy, DVD, Dar and Romeo.

Connors managed to trip up Romeo though, pulling him outside and face-planting him on the floor into the commercial break.

BirthRight continued to dominate Romeo back from break until Romeo managed to flip past everyone to DVD hot tag.

Dux dived onto BirthRight then tagged in Legacy to set up a Springboard 450 on Stacks, but King broke up the pin.

Dempsey and Dar tagged in before the babyfaces began an explosive comeback, diving onto the field. In the chaos, Dempsey caught The Scottish Supernova with a Bridging Regalplex for the victory.

This was a formulaic tag team match but continued to highlight the impressive rising athletes in NXT's undercard.

In particular, DVD and Romeo were flying with fire throughout, creating a whole new highlight reel of moves just from this contest.

It would have been nice to see BirthRight do more than just survive though given their significant experience advantage as a unit.

Instead, it just felt like Dempsey survived by out-wrestling Dar one-on-one in the last minute, which does not do much for BirthRight as a team.

Still, at least the right group won for the moment, hopefully setting up more focused matches for the future between these groups.

One of the babyfaces in this match should be the one to finally dethrone Lexis King as Men's Speed champion.

Dempsey, King, Stacks and Connors def. Dar, Romeo, Legacy and DVD by pinfall.

Booker T questioned who the leader of BirthRight is. Vic Joseph assumed it was Lexis King, but it is odd that has not been established five months in.

DVD was the biggest crowd favorite in this match, and his explosive offense paid off that support.

Backstage, Keanu Carver reminded an annoyed Robert Stone that the referee's decision is final while Shiloh Hill asked for a match with Naraku next week.

AAA World Cruiserweight Championship: Rey Fénix (c) vs. EK Prosper

Last Time in Action: Rey Fénix defeated Dragon Lee to advance to the finals of the World Heavyweight Championship No. 1 Contender Tournament (Raw, August 24); EK Prosper defeated La Parka, Romeo Moreno and Tristan Angels (NXT, August 18).

Despite a confident start from Fénix, Prosper flipped through the grip of the champion and sent him to the floor with a Dropkick.

He followed up with a Moonsault to the floor to send this match into a commercial break.

The champion fired back out of the break, only to get countered again by Prosper including a Springboard Leg Drop for a near-fall.

Fénix fired back with Adios Amigo into a Diving Crossbody and Frog Splash for his own near-fall.

Prosper countered a Rolling Cutter with a Suplex but bounced the champion into a Handspring Cutter. Prosper blocked the Mexican Muscle Buster and planted the champion with a Top-Rope Headscissors.

Fénix dodged the Moonsault followed by a Corner Enzuigiri, Superkick and Mexican Muscle Buster for the win.

Despite positioning this as the epic main event of NXT, it never truly felt like Prosper was ready for the spotlight given to him.

Fénix is one of the best luchadors going, and it felt like he was giving too much to the less experienced star to make this a genuine struggle.

There was little drama to the finish as Fénix was not going to lose less than a week away from the biggest match of his WWE career against Penta.

It might have been best to keep this shorter and tighter to sell that Prosper has more to learn before he can contest one of AAA's best.

Fénix def. Prosper by pinfall to retain the AAA World Cruiserweight Championship.

While the main roster has not always responded to Fénix, the NXT crowd was quickly chanting "Animo" for the champion.

In the men's locker room, Myles Borne and Tavion Heights talked strategy with NASCAR racer Sam Mayer joined by Hank Walker and Tank Ledger, who wanted the next tag title shot.

Kendal Grey arrived first with Wren Sinclair, promising the NXT women's champion was a fighting champion.

Kelani Jordan arrived followed by Zaria and Kali Armstrong, all promising victory at Heatwave.

Grayson Waller interrupted to talk up the talent in the arena before telling them that it was time for them to all let him talk.

Tony D'Angelo told Waller that he would fail like he always does. Cruz Montana arrived to declare himself a fighter not a talker, starting a brawl including security.

Zilla Fatu arrived late to take out his competition, raising the NXT Championship, while Grey and Wren held the NXT Women's, Women's North American and Women's Speed Championships high.

While the crowd popped big for Zilla and NXT got a nice final shot of possible winners standing tall, this was a mess that did no one any favors.

Waller has quickly lost steam due to the messy build of the NXT Championship match and looked like a chump in the chaos.

WrenQCC stood tall by the end, but most of the challengers got a forgettable 10 seconds to speak on a night that needed to solidify more stars.

Even if the goal is to sell fans on the "chaos" of NXT, this did not serve as a final exclamation mark before Heatwave. It was just the same-old NXT standard of overloading a segment without substance.

Grey threw shade at Liv Morgan, refusing to wait to defend her gold.

Waller called the women in the ring the 10%, referencing his recent line that these were the women ready for the main roster call-up.

Vic Joseph ran down the Heatwave card before the Championship Summit:

Women's North American and Speed Championship Unification: Zaria (c) vs. Wren Sinclair (c) vs. Kali Armstrong.

North American Championship: Myles Borne (c) vs. Jackson Drake.

NXT Tag Team Championships: Myles Borne and Tavion Height (c) vs. The Vanity Project's Brad Baylor and Ricky Smokes.

NXT Championship: Tony D'Angelo (c) vs. Grayson Waller vs. Cruz Montana vs. Zilla Fatu.

NXT Women's Championship: Kendal Grey (c) vs. Kelani Jordan.

The go-home show to Heatwave was, in a single word, underwhelming.

Beyond Nattie and Jaida Parker maximizing their limited minutes to sell their feud ending Submission match, nothing got a boost in hype from this show.

Kali Armstrong and Zaria delivered in the ring, but she may have unnecessarily complicated a simple story between Zaria and Wren Sinclair.

Rey Fénix and EK Prosper delivered an over-the-top main event that does not connect to anything on the PLE to come. The same can be said for the opening battle of Saquon Shugars and Dion Lennox.

The main hype for the night came from the main event chaos, and that was a mess that only showed that the main angles for Heatwave have been rushed.