NXT Stand & Deliver 2023 Preview: Full Card, Match Predictions & More

WWE NXT Stand & Deliver 2023 is coming up this Saturday! Before the event takes place, let’s run down everything you need to know about the upcoming pay-per-view.

Who is scheduled for the card? How interesting does the show seem? What’s going to happen with all the matches?

Here is a full preview of WWE NXT Stand & Deliver 2023.

PPV EVENT INFORMATION

Date: Saturday, April 1, 2023

Start Time: 12 p.m. ET (kickoff), 1 p.m. ET (main show)

Location: Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, California

MATCH CARD, PREDICTIONS & HEAT INDEX ANTICIPATION LEVELS

(as currently advertised; card is always subject to change)

Temperature Scale = Scorching > Hot > Lukewarm > Temperate > Chilly > Cold > Freezing

Heat Index is my assessment of how interesting the segment is, including how excited I am for the match and how intriguing the feud has been. The hotter, the better. Scorching translates to not being able to wait to see it, while Freezing means I couldn’t possibly care less and think it will be awful.

NXT CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH:
Bron Breakker (c) vs. Carmelo Hayes

Heat Index = Hot
Prediction: Carmelo Hayes wins.

Thoughts: While the story for this is a little lackluster in that it is quite literally “the two obvious top guys fight each other and that’s it”, it’s not as though we didn’t all see through that to begin with. Whatever. Moving on. Hayes should definitely win the belt here. Breakker has done all he can do in NXT and would learn more on the main roster right now compared to sticking around in developmental. The match should be good and I think it’ll check off all the boxes.

NXT WOMEN’S CHAMPIONSHIP LADDER MATCH:
Gigi Dolin vs. Indi Hartwell vs. Lyra Valkyria vs. Tiffany Stratton vs. Zoey Stark

Heat Index = Hot
Prediction: Tiffany Stratton wins.

Thoughts: Whether or not Roxanne Perez is in this match sparks my curiosity, for sure. Since we don’t happen to know what was going on with her potential health scare (or whether or not that is even legitimate, as you have to take it with a grain of salt that it could just be kayfabe), I wonder what the original plan was, or if there even was a plan at all until this started taking fruition. In any fashion, I feel like we can entirely skip Gigi Dolin, Indi Hartwell and Lyra Valkyria. They don’t stand any chance. Either the belt stays on Roxanne, or it goes to Tiffany or Zoey. And while I don’t think this will be a great match, I’ll go Hot on it just because of the intrigue surrounding the title situation.

UNSANCTIONED MATCH:
Grayson Waller vs. Johnny Gargano

Heat Index = Hot
Prediction: Johnny Gargano wins.

Thoughts: Johnny Gargano has been one of my favorites on the roster for however many years now. Pairing him up with Grayson Waller will be a recipe for success, even if the feud has had some hiccups along the way. I’ll be happy in either scenario with either guy winning. This is a no-lose segment unless they just botch it, somehow.

NXT WOMEN’S TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH:
Fallon Henley and Kiana James (c) vs. Alba Fyre and Isla Dawn

Heat Index = Temperate
Prediction: Alba Fyre and Isla Dawn win.

Thoughts: None of this sparks immense hype in me, but I’ll give them credit that despite the CW-style storyline going on, I’m curious to see what direction they’ll take this Kiana James and Brooks Jensen thing. Something is going to happen here that will cost James and Henley the tag titles and push that story further. What that will be remains a question mark. But damn it, if I don’t kind of want to know, even though I fully assume it will result in more cringe-worthy segments to follow.

NXT NORTH AMERICAN CHAMPIONSHIP FATAL 5-WAY MATCH:
Wes Lee (c) vs. Axiom vs. Dragon Lee vs. Ilja Dragunov vs. JD McDonagh

Heat Index = Hot
Prediction: Wes Lee wins.

Thoughts: Throw a bunch of talented in-ring guys into the ring together. Done. They’ll flip around and do some interesting maneuvers for 15 minutes and it will be fun. Maybe there’s a title change, but I’m leaning toward Wes Lee proving himself here and being one of the few champions to keep his title. Then, he’ll lose it at the next event.

MIXED TAG TEAM MATCH:
Chase University (Andre Chase, Duke Hudson, Thea Hail and Tyler Bate) vs. Schism (Joe Gacy, Ava Raine, Jagger Reid, Rip Fowler)
* Stipulation: If Schism wins, they get control over Chase University *

Heat Index = Lukewarm
Prediction: Schism wins.

Thoughts: Obviously, with this stipulation going on, Duke Hudson’s fledgling loyalty to Chase U, and this being Ava Raine’s first televised match, I’m fully expecting Schism to get the victory. This card is a little overloaded, and this would be the match I would have cut if need be, but I’m still glad these Superstars are getting a chance to shine.

NXT TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP TRIPLE THREAT MATCH:
Gallus (c) vs. The Creed Brothers vs. Channing “Stacks” Lorenzo and Tony D’Angelo

Heat Index = Lukewarm
Prediction: Gallus wins.

Thoughts: WWE only really seems to like one story with Gallus lately, which is that teams will politely ask them for title shots, Gallus will force them to hang out with them to shoot some pool or whatever, and then, they’ll say that they were going to give them the opportunity. Clearly, Gallus just wants some friends, more than anything else. Sad, right? I could see either of the challenging teams winning, but part of me still thinks Indus Sher will be the next in line and the ones to beat Gallus, so while we might pity them right now for wanting some buddies, maybe they’ll manage to retain their titles. Or is the real prize the fiends they’ve made along the way?

OVERALL PPV:
How excited am I for the event as a whole?

Heat Index = Hot

Thoughts: This is going to be an exhausting week with a lot of burnout. There’s a good chance this gets entirely lost in the shuffle. Many people will likely skip it. After the previous couple days and the ROH Supercard of Honor event and whatnot the night before, I might not even be in the right mindset to FULLY enjoy this, as I’ll be also looking at the clock for Night 1 of WrestleMania. So if this were happening at a different time of the month, I think it would be better off, overall. But despite those things, this is a strong card with essentially almost every big name you can try to put on there (minus a few examples). I expect an overall really good show with a few flubs along the way, even if it gets overlooked because it is in a crammed weekend.

What do you think is going to happen at WWE NXT Stand & Deliver? Which matches are you most excited to see? Keep the discussion going in the comments below!

Also make sure to enter my 2023 Road to WrestleMania contest for a chance to win a Dusty Rhodes Funko Pop!

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