A trio of big matchups were made official for NXT’s Great American Bash this week.
The latest episode of NXT TV set up three bouts for the July 12 Premium Live Event (PLE), which is scheduled to take place at Center Stage in Atlanta, Georgia.
The biggest of the upcoming fights is an NXT Championship meeting between Oba Femi and Yoshiki Inamura.
Inamura secured a shot against Femi by winning a #1 contenders match on NXT this week, overcoming newcomer Jasper Troy with a frogsplash. The upcoming match will be the first time that NOAH’s Inamura challenges for a singles title since first appearing on NXT programming late last year.
For Femi, he’ll be attempting to defend his belt for the seventh time, extending a reign which started back in January.
It was also announced Tuesday that Sol Ruca will put her NXT Women’s North American Championship on the line against The Culling’s Izzi Dame.
Dame scored a clean pinfall win over Ruca in tag action this week, causing NXT General Manager Ava to book a matchup between the two.
The matchup marks the third consecutive NXT PLE that Ruca has been booked for. She first started her title run back in April, when she won a ladder match at Stand & Deliver. In May, she defended her title for the first time in a singles bout against Kelani Jordan.
Dame has yet to claim a title since debuting in the NXT ring two years ago. However, potentially with the help of new ally Tatum Paxley, she might get that first bit of gold later this month.
In what is likely to be the NXT TV in-ring debut for Blake Monroe (formerly Mariah May), she’ll team with Jordynne Grace in a tag bout against Fatal Influence’s Jacy Jayne and Fallon Henley.
Following a fight between the two groups on TV this week, Ava booked a matchup for the Great American Bash.
Monroe has only wrestled once since signing an NXT deal, working a house show in late June. As of right now, the upcoming tag bout is her only known booking, meaning it will likely be her first time wrestling on TV in months.
The bout will serve as a preview to the NXT Women’s Championship match between Jayne and Grace, which will take place at Evolution later in the weekend.
In a crossover with TNA, a contract signing for a world title bout set for Slammiversary will take place as part of the Great American Bash, too. Trick Williams, Joe Hendry, and Mike Santana are expected to appear.
Here’s a rundown of everything we know about the upcoming PLE thus far.
- Contract Signing for Trick Williams vs. Joe Hendry vs. Mike Santana for TNA World Championship (Match to take place at TNA Slammiversary)
- Jacy Jayne & Fallon Henley vs. Jordynne Grace & Blake Monroe
- Sol Ruca vs. Izzi Dame (NXT Women’s North American Championship)
- Oba Femi vs. Yoshiki Inamura (NXT Championship)
