The New Day defeated Pretty Deadly on Saturday at the Deadline special, becoming the new NXT tag team champions.
There was genuine significance attached to the victory. The New Day’s Kofi Kingston became a 15-time tag team champion, a testament to his longevity and ability to continually evolve in a compelling manner. The win was also meaningful for Xavier Woods, who was part of WWE developmental a decade ago in Florida Championship Wrestling (a precursor to NXT) and lived with constant worry that he was going to be cut. That is now a distant memory, with Woods an integral member of this iconic tag team.
The New Day also became triple crown tag champs, now having held the Raw, SmackDown and NXT titles. And the match served a great purpose, introducing Pretty Deadly’s Elton Prince and Kit Wilson to an audience far wider than ever before.