NXT New Year's Evil 2026

Full disclosure, I was very late to watch this, the first special NXT event of the new year. Sometimes real life slows you down, and it has certainly slowed down my wrestling viewing this month. With that said, I was very excited to finally watch the event, particularly because of what sounded like it would be an excellent main event match with two of the best young wrestlers in the world today.

I liked how the show had an unconventional beginning, with the match that was supposed to open the night, between Blake Monroe and Thea Haile, descending into chaos before the bell rang, meaning the on-screen authority figure had to scramble to move the card around. It was unique and memorable - I really liked it. It was then followed by a fairly interesting promo from Ricky Saints, essentially to set up his character's feuds for the new year.

The actual first match of the evening was the heated blow-off between Tatum Paxley and Izzi Dame. This was a reasonably fun back-and-forth, but it ended a lot quicker than I was hoping it would, and never quite kicked into the kind of gear that I was hoping it would. I still enjoyed it, but it really felt like a rivalry like theirs deserved more time and more drama for their big match.

Next up was Jacey Jayne's defence of her NXT Women's Championship against the 2025 Women's Iron Survivor and Evolve Women's Champion Kendal Gray. This was much better than the opener. You can really tell that Gray has 'it'. She is so good at everything she does, and it's very clear that people backstage think highly of her too. The match started off a little average, but the second half of it was very entertaining. People underrate Jayne a lot, and she showed once again here that she is a force to be taken seriously. Both she and Gray put in some great work, and the chaotic finish suited both women.

It was now time for Thea Haile to host an open challenge for her newly won NXT Women's North American Championship, with her opponent being Izzi Dame. With both women featuring earlier in the show, this was definitely a little bit of a surprise, but I wasn't mad about it. It worked for Dame's character to take advantage of the situation. I am not the biggest fan of Haile's, but I thought she put in a lot of work since she won the title to show her worth as a champion. The match itself was fine - nothing too exciting happened until the final thirty seconds-or-so. Those last moments were legitimately very good, however, and the final spot looked great. I was also not surprised by the result, once it happened, and whilst it was a little sad, it made a lot of sense.

After several chaotic backstage segments and promos, it was time for the main event, with Oba Femi defending his NXT Championship against the TNA X-Division Champion Leon Slater. I really liked how this match evolved. It went from dominant champion against underdog challenger to injured champion trying to survive an onslaught. It made for a really compelling dynamic, which both men played into beautifully. I am a huge fan of both wrestlers, and I cannot wait to see what both of their futures hold. There was an excellent shot to end the show, which blow the top of the card, and indeed NXT in 2026, wide open.

Overall, I thought this was a pretty decent start to NXT's year, although it did feel very much like a regular episode of NXT TV, for the most part. With that said, both NXT Championship matches were excellent, and the wider context of the event means that their are so many opportunities and potential directions for the brand this year, which can only be a good thing.