On the heels of a strong performance in a loss against Bobby Roode and a thunderous home country reaction in Canada, Tye Dillinger returned to NXT looking to slow the momentum of new champion Samoa Joe.
Joe targeted the lower half of Dillinger, using the same knee-based offense that he softened Shinsuke Nakamura up with at TakeOver.
Every attempt at a comeback Dillinger tried, Joe cut off. The champion openly mocked his opponent but could not put The Perfect 10 away.
The babyface fired off more attempts at a comeback, but the damage done to his knee limited his offense. Eventually, Joe grounded Dillinger, applied the STF, then the crossface and, ultimately, the Coquina Clutch for the win.
Result
Samoa Joe defeated Tye Dillinger
Grade
B
Analysis
This was a Samoa Joe at the top of his game systematically picking apart Dillinger. No matter what the babyface did, the champion cut him off, picking him apart and forcing the submission.
The champion has been phenomenal in this, the second half of 2016, and is quietly building his argument for NXT Superstar of the Year acclaim.
Dillinger was solid here but one has to wonder why management will not pull the trigger and give him a legitimate push when he is mostly over with the NXT crowd on a consistent basis.