WWE: Tyler Bate beats Trent Seven to retain United Kingdom Title
Teenager retains UK Title on NXT with win over tag partner
Thursday 16 February 2017 11:35, UK
Tyler Bate defeated tag-team partner and fellow Englishman Trent Seven in his first defence of the United Kingdom Championship in a pulsating match on WWE NXT on Wednesday night.
Bate, 19, pinned Seven - with whom he currently holds tag titles in PROGRESS Wrestling and Chikara - with a Tyler Driver '97 to retain the belt he scooped at the a tournament in Blackpool in January.
The Dudley-born teenager and Seven, who compete together as Moustache Mountain, showed their friendship early in their bout in Orlando by tweaking each other's facial hair.
The action soon became heated, however, and Seven, 35, almost pinched his pal's strap after hitting a Seven Stars short-arm lariat before Bate rallied to remain champion.
Bate and Seven's countryman Pete Dunne - runner-up to Bate in Blackpool last month - will make his NXT bow next week when he goes one-on-one with Wales' Mark Andrews.
Dunne's ploy during the United Kingdom Championship Tournament was to attack his opponents before and after matches - but William Regal has warned him that will not be tolerated in NXT.
Elsewhere on a night when it was confirmed Kassius Ohno was returning to NXT, Tag Team Champions The Authors of Pain (Akam and Rezar) destroyed Garriston Spears & Lance Anoa'i.
The titleholders were then challenged to a rematch by former champions Johnny Gargano and Tommaso Ciampa, with that bout now set to take place in two weeks' time.
Gargano and Ciampa were then blindsided by The Revival's Scott Dawson and Dash Wilder, who soon fled when Akam and Rezar stormed to the ring.
Plus, Liv Morgan, Peyton Royce and Ember Moon were informed by NXT General Manager Regal that they will compete in a Triple Threat next week for the right to face Women's Champion Asuka.
Regal's announcement came after Morgan and Moon had lost to Royce and Bille Kay in tag action.
Head to skysports.com/WWE every week for the latest NXT results.
