There was plenty happening before the WWE NXT episode on September 8, 2026 even went live on The CW and internationally on Netflix. Fans inside the building got two non-televised matches along with a confrontation involving WWE EVOLVE Women’s Champion Nikkita Lyons.
Kale Dixon picked up a victory over Richard Purnell, who works as Richard Adonis on the independent wrestling scene. Dixon finished him off with a kneeling Angel’s Wings to get the win before the cameras started rolling.
Nikkita Lyons also came out and addressed the crowd about her journey in WWE, but she didn’t get to finish things peacefully. Vanta The Unknown interrupted, exchanged words with Lyons and then dropped the EVOLVE Women’s Champion with a spinning kick.
The other non-televised match saw Mariano defeat Brooks Jensen with a 450 Splash. Mariano, who competes as Conan Lycan on the independent scene, was also part of WWE’s SummerSlam tryouts.
So while viewers at home were waiting for NXT to hit the air, the live crowd was already getting matches, a surprise confrontation and a closer look at talent WWE continues to evaluate.
Which of these pre-show moments would you have liked to see make the actual NXT broadcast? Let us know in the comments below.
