WWE’s Tony D’Angelo succeeded where so many faltered when he defeated Oba Femi and became the new NXT North American Champion, and it was a huge moment for D’Angelo, for The Family, and for the NXT crowd cheering on The Don. When you then add the fact that all of it took place during the launch of NXT on The CW and the number of main roster superstars in the mix on the same night, it becomes something pretty incredible, and that’s not at all lost on D’Angelo. D’Angelo will face Femi in a TLS match (Tables, Ladders, and Scares) at Halloween Havoc in what is sure to be an epic rematch, but ComicBook had the chance to speak to D’Angelo after his first landmark win, where we discussed finally overcoming Femi in the ring, the current state of the locker room in the move to The CW, and the growth and evolution of The Family.
It all starts with D’Angelo’s feud with Femi though, which has been quite challenging for The Don at several points along the way. When your nickname is The Don of NXT, it obviously takes a lot to get under your skin, and yet Femi was able to do what many never could and make D’Angelo doubt himself and even his abilities in the ring. D’Angelo was able to overcome that though, and it just shows that even The Don is pretty human at the end of the day.
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“Well, you know, everybody’s human, The Don’s a human. I got emotions just like everybody else, and just so happened that Oba was, you know, this big Nigerian guy that…he just smacked me around a little bit. Like I’d never been smacked around before. I had to mentally go somewhere to get prepared, and I had all the training. I had the family, they had my back, and you know it was a mental barrier that I had to jump over, and alongside the family, they got me right. I got my mind right, and we took home the gold, which is always the goal. So it was a good, it was a good time,” D’Angelo said.
A New Era, A Great Start
D’Angelo and Femi were front and center during NXT’s premiere on The CW thanks to their back and forth on Miz TV, and then the very next week they delivered an epic battle in the ring during a stop in St. Louis. D’Angelo’s win is a big moment even without all of those elements, but throwing all those in adds a lot. When asked if the move to The CW has changed the vibe at all, D’Angelo said morale continues to be high.
“I think the overall morale is high, not that it wasn’t before, but, you know, new network, new opportunities, and it’s just more eyes, you know, larger audience,” D’Angelo said. “So people’s names are going to get out there quicker and we’re also traveling more, it seems like. So I’m all for it. You know, the locker room is all for it. They love traveling.”
“You know, we love the PC. We love the fans at the PC, but it’s nice for a change every once in a while. So I think for this to happen on CW, the second week of CW and then the first week going back to my hometown and being on Miz TV and everything, it was, it was a great two weeks and I’m ready to keep the train going,” D’Angelo said.
Holding Their Own
Part of the fun has also been the big names from Raw and SmackDown who have been in the mix over the past few weeks, including CM Punk, Bianca Belair, Jade Cargill, Randy Orton, The Miz, and more. D’Angelo couldn’t be more thrilled to have them in NXT and helping out, and he’s glad they want to be there. That said, he’s also happy that the NXT Superstars are there to show what they can do and hold their own.
“I mean, who’s going to say no to Randy Orton, CM Punk, Miz, you know, all these, these guys wanting to come down and help? I’ll never say no, but I think it’s great that everybody wants to help out and, you know, we’re still new to the game, so of course, any help that we can get we appreciate. But you know, we’re also here to show what we can do. I think the NXT locker room is very special,” D’Angelo said. “I think that everybody is ready to show the entire wrestling community, the entire world, why we got this new network deal and why we’re not so much developmental, in my opinion. But, you know, we’re just here to ball out and I think collectively we’re going to do that. We’re going to take care of business, as The Don would say.”
WWE NXT Halloween Havoc
- WWE NXT Championship – Devil’s Playground Match: Trick Williams (C) vs Ethan Page
- WWE NXT North American Championship – Tables, Ladders, and Scares Match: Tony D’Angelo (C) vs Oba Femi
- NXT Women’s Champion Roxanne Perez and Cora Jade vs Giulia and Stephanie Vaquer
NXT Halloween Havoc streams live on Peacock on Sunday, October 27th at 7 PM ET.
Are you excited for the rematch at Halloween Havoc? You can talk all things wrestling with me on Threads and Twitter @mattaguilarcb!