NXT Deadline 2025 Review

Linus O'Howell
Dec 7, 2025
4 min read

NXT Championship: Ricky Saints VS Oba Femi

The final Premium Live Event of the year had all the spotlight set on the superstars of NXT as NXT Deadline kicked off with Oba Femi getting his rematch against Ricky Saints for the NXT Championship! It was an odd sight to see the NXT Championship on the line first; it’s never happened before, but I quite liked it! It made you fully expect Ricky to retain his Title, and I think the match benefited from that! Yes, it wasn’t a superb contest, but there was still plenty of exciting moments, with a good near-fall following a Fall From Grace! However, to my surprise, a second Fall From Grace was enough for Femi to pin Saints for the 3-count, meaning Oba Femi is now a 2-time NXT Champion! I definitely didn’t expect this; I’m actually stunned! However, the exciting thing about this result is that it means that Oba will now face Cody Rhodes at Saturday Night’s Main Event next weekend!

Grade: B

Women’s Iron Survivor Challenge: Kendal Grey VS Sol Ruca VS Kelani Jordan VS Jordynne Grace VS Lola Vice

The first of two Iron Survivor Challenges kicked off on the women’s side as Kelani Jordan and Kendal Grey started proceedings! Kendal Grey actually managed to score the first fall, pinning Kelani Jordan just before Jordynne Grace entered the fray, and it was 1-all between Kendal and Kelani once Lola Vice entered at the 10-minute mark! Lola came out firing, nailing Grey with a backfist to add another fall, before Grey and Grace both got points on the board as Sol Ruca found herself as the final entrant! Unfortunately for Sol, she was quickly taken to the back as Kelani attacked her on her way to the penalty box, but Ruca returned to deliver 2 Sol Snatchers to put herself on level terms with the Evolve Women’s Champion! Amazingly, Kelani, Jordynne, and Lola all scored another fall, meaning it was a 5-way tie with just 2 minutes to go! Kelani Jordan stormed out of the penalty box with less than 30 seconds to go, looking in a strong position to get the win, but in the end, an amazing mid-air Shades of Grey from Kendal to Lola Vice was enough for Kendal Grey to score the win, stunning the crowd (and also me, again)! I never expected Kendal to win this match, but I’m happy for her; she really has improved massively!

Grade: B

NXT North American Championship: Ethan Page VS Mr. Iguana

It was time to relax a little as the fan-favourite Mr. Iguana tried to dethrone Ethan Page for the NXT North American Championship! This was definitely the weakest match on the show; it was also the shortest, and it was very much designed as a comedy bout! There were some good moments in this; Mr. Iguana can hit some good moves, but I don’t know, I feel like this could’ve been a lot better given how good Ethan Page has proven to be! Anyway, this wasn’t what this was designed to be, with All Ego scoring a relatively straightforward victory with a Twisted Grin!

Grade: C+

Izzi Dame VS Tatum Paxley

A true grudge match was up next as Tatum Paxley looked to score some revenge as she went one-on-one with Izzi Dame! I quite liked certain parts of this; Tatum is a very good wrestler, whilst Izzi can be a powerhouse in this division! I thought the presentation of Tatum was also really good, with Dame trying to play with her emotions by constantly hugging/apologising to her former friend! Now, Paxley dealt with most of this pretty well, slamming Izzi hard on the announce table, but Pax’s mind was then distracted once again as Shawn Spears ripped the head off of Tatum’s Culling doll (this genuinely happened)! This then opened the door for Izzi Dame to deliver “Dame Over”, and this result makes sense!

Grade: B-

Men’s Iron Survivor Challenge: Leon Slater VS Je’Von Evans VS Joe Hendry VS Myles Borne VS Dion Lennox

And in the Main Event of NXT Deadline 2025, Leon Slater and Je’Von Evans kicked off proceedings in the Men’s Iron Survivor Challenge! To my surprise, Je’Von was able to score an early fall over Leon, and Myles Borne entered at Number 3 after being able to pick his entrance spot! Dion Lennox entered next, picking up a pinfall over Evans, before Joe Hendry arrived to a great reaction! Joe was able to get his name on the scoreboard, as were Leon and Myles, meaning we went into the final couple of minutes with everyone on 1-fall apiece! This meant we got a chaotic last 60 seconds, with Je’Von climbing his way back out of the penalty box to deliver a dive that was quickly topped by “Big Play Slater”! Joe Hendry then took out Leon Slater, with Myles Borne chucking Dion Lennox over the announce table! However, Borne got played by Evans, with Je’Von stealing a roll-up victory over Myles to get the win, confirming Je’Von Evans as the 2025 Men’s NXT Iron Survivor! After the match was over, Oba Femi arrived on the entrance ramp to stare down Je’Von Evans, and this is when the lights went off, Tony D’Angelo made his return to drop Evans to end the show! The Don is back, or is he?!