WWE NXT Halloween Havoc Results: Winners, News And Notes On October 28, 2020

WWE NXT Halloween Havoc features several advertised matches for the revived classic franchise just in time for Halloween. Advertised matches include the Garganos in “Spin the Wheel, Make a Deal” matches with Candice LeRae taking on Io Shirai for the NXT Women’s Championship while Johnny Gargano will challenge Damian Priest for The NXT North American Championship.

Rhea Ripley will face Raquel Gonzalez in a singles match and Dexter Lumis will take on Cameron Grimes in a Haunted House of Terror Match

Last week’s broadcast of WWE NXT drew 644,000 viewers compared to 753,000 for AEW Dynamite.

• October 21, 2020—644,000
• October 14, 2020—651,000
• October 7, 2020—639,000
• September 30, 2020—732,000
• September 23, 2020—696,000

WWE NXT—Key Competition 

• Cable news coverage of 2020 Presidential Election
• AEW Dynamite

Pro Wrestling Bits—Al Snow Interview

WWE NXT Total YouTube Viewership Last Week: 

1,765,920 (Up from 1,511,995 views)

• Most-Viewed: Dakota Kai Spoils Ember Moon’s Victory (280,691 views)
• Least-Viewed: Timothy Thatcher’s Live Thatch-as-Thatch-Can Exhibition (70,535 views)
• Median Viewership: 93,245 views

WWE NXT Halloween Havoc Results—Wednesday, October 28, 2020

Johnny Gargano def. Damian Priest—Devil’s Playground Match for the WWE NXT North American Championship

AEW wasted little to no time getting right into its first match, while WWE NXT Halloween Havoc went with the risky choice of starting off with a live performance for Damian Priest’s elaborate entrance.

Johnny Gargano superkicked a skeleton right back into its casket and the precision of his superkick needs to be appreciated.

This match got a lot of time, with multiple commercial breaks, and earned every minute of it.

Of all the superkicks Gargano dished out in this match, I was surprised to see none of them went to the wheel.

WWE NXT teasing a payoff off the mysterious individual under that Scream mask would be a shrewd counterprogramming move.

Pat McAfee Explains his Actions; Pete Dunne Turns Heel

Pat McAfee left no stone unturned carefully (and charismatically) explaining his motives and actions to take out the Undisputed Era over the past few weeks.

Kyle O’Reilly should have seen this coming since The Undisputed Era added a fourth member, in Roderick Strong, at his expense.

With the addition of Pete Dunne, Pat McAfee officially has a stable.

Santos Escobar def. Jake Atlas

Santos Escobar paid tribute to Rey Mysterio’s iconic Halloween Havoc 1997 gear in a more timely tribute than that of Seth Rollins, who was really just trolling.

Dexter Lumis def. Cameron Grimes—Haunted House of Terror Match

I’ve never heard somebody say “I’m coming for you!” with less confidence than a terrified Cameron Grimes at the beginning of this match.

The production was excellent, but nothing could have elevated this match more than the performance of Cameron Grimes. This man is on the growing list of stars who will be super over when fans are allowed to come back.

This match took up several segments, which each creepier than the one prior.

Rhea Ripley def. Raquel Gonzalez

I’m surprised Raquel Gonzalez didn’t shatter the plexi glass when she power bombed Rhea Ripley’s massive, shredded back into it.

NXT made no bones about this match being between two powerhouse monsters. I thought it would be out of place by not having a stipulation but it didn’t need one. This was a Monster Mash at Halloween Havoc without even trying to be one.

Candice LeRae vs. Io Shirai—WWE NXT Women’s Championship

Halloween Havoc was book-ended by live entrances with Poppy playing Io Shirai out to the ring, though her audio was quite low.

Tables and Ladders and Scares is a great name for a Halloween-themed match. It sounds like a match where the winner has to climb the ladder and retrieve a bag of candy corn.

I was shocked to see Io Shirai successfully fend off the Scream mask character and still retain the NXT Women’s Championship. By that finish alone, she might be the best-booked babyface in the company.