The 2022 Spring Breakin' was the inaugural Spring Breakin'

professional wrestling Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring or ...

event produced by

WWE World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and var ...

. It was held primarily for wrestlers from the NXT brand division. Spring Breakin' aired as a special episode of '' NXT''. The

television special A television special (often TV special, or rarely television spectacular) is a standalone television show which may also temporarily interrupt episodic programming normally scheduled for a given time slot. Some specials provide a full range of e ...

took place on May 3, 2022, at the

WWE Performance Center The WWE Performance Center is the official professional wrestling school system of the American professional wrestling promotion WWE. The promotion currently operates two Performance Center locations, which serve as training facilities for WWE ...

in Orlando, Florida and aired on the

USA Network USA Network (simply USA) is an American basic cable television channel owned by the NBCUniversal Television and Streaming division of Comcast's NBCUniversal through NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment. It was originally launched in 1977 as Mad ...

. Five matches were contested at the event. In the main event,

Bron Breakker Bronson Parmar Rechsteiner (born October 24, 1997) is an American professional wrestler and former American football player. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the NXT brand under the ring name Bron Breakker and is the current NXT ...

defeated

Joe Gacy Joseph Ruby (born August 8, 1987) is an American professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the NXT brand under the ring name Joe Gacy. He is the leader of The Schism. Gacy is best known for his work in Combat Z ...

to retain the

NXT Championship The NXT Championship is a professional wrestling championship created and promoted by the American professional wrestling promotion WWE. It is defended as the top championship of the NXT brand division, the promotion's developmental territory ...

Production

Background

On the April 19, 2022, episode of '' NXT'', it was announced that Spring Breakin' would be held as a special episode of ''NXT'', with the

airing on May 3 on the

and taking place at NXT's home base of the

in Orlando, Florida.

Storylines

The card included matches that resulted from scripted storylines, where wrestlers portrayed

heroes Heroes or Héroes may refer to: * Hero, one who displays courage and self-sacrifice for the greater good Film * ''Heroes'' (1977 film), an American drama * ''Heroes'' (2008 film), an Indian Hindi film Gaming * ''Heroes of Might and Magic'' ...

villains A villain (also known as a "black hat" or "bad guy"; the feminine form is villainess) is a stock character, whether based on a historical narrative or one of literary fiction. ''Random House Unabridged Dictionary'' defines such a character ...

, or less distinguishable characters in scripted events that built tension and culminated in a wrestling match or series of matches. Results were predetermined by WWE's writers on the NXT brand, while storylines were produced on WWE's weekly television program, ''NXT'', and the supplementary online streaming show, '' Level Up''. On the April 5 episode of ''NXT'', following

's successful

defense, Breakker's father,

Rick Steiner Robert Rechsteiner (born March 9, 1961) is an American real estate broker and retired professional wrestler, better known by the ring name Rick Steiner. Steiner is best known for his tenure with World Championship Wrestling (WCW), where he wa ...

, appeared on the TitanTron to congratulate Breakker on his victory. The camera then zoomed out to see Steiner trapped in a cage by

, who burned Steiner's

WWE Hall of Fame The WWE Hall of Fame is a hall of fame which honors professional wrestlers and professional wrestling personalities maintained by WWE. Originally known as the "WWF Hall of Fame", it was created in 1993 when André the Giant was posthumously ...

ring the following week. Breakker spent the entirety of the April 19 episode searching for Gacy. At the end of the show, Breakker found Gacy on top of an elevated platform. Breakker got his father's Hall of Fame ring back under one condition: Breakker had to defend the NXT Championship against Gacy at Spring Breakin'. Afterwards, Gacy told Breakker to take a leap of faith before pushing him off the concourse. Breakker was surrounded by Gacy's druids as ''NXT'' went off the air. At NXT Stand & Deliver,

Carmelo Hayes Christian Brigham (born August 1, 1994) is an American professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the NXT brand under the ring name Carmelo Hayes. Hayes is a former one-time NXT Cruiserweight Champion and a former ...

lost the

NXT North American Championship The NXT North American Championship is a professional wrestling championship created and promoted by the American promotion WWE. It is primarily defended as the secondary men's championship of the NXT brand division, the promotion's developme ...

Cameron Grimes :not to be confused with actress Camryn Grimes who voices Mrs. Claus in Mickey Saves Christmas Trevor Lee Caddell (born September 30, 1993) is an American professional wrestler currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the NXT brand under ...

in a five-way ladder match. On the following episode of ''NXT'', while Grimes talked about his title win, he was interrupted by

Solo Sikoa Joseph Yokozuna Fatu (born March 18, 1993) is an American professional wrestler signed to WWE. He currently performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name Solo Sikoa where he is a member of The Bloodline and a former NXT North American Cha ...

, who also competed in the ladder match, setting up a title match between Grimes and Sikoa for the following week, where Grimes retained. Afterwards, Grimes was attacked by Hayes and Trick Williams. On the April 19 episode, after Hayes' match, Hayes stated that he would be taking the title back from Grimes at Spring Breakin'. As Grimes and Hayes stared each other down, Sikoa appeared and attacked Hayes and Williams. Later that night, a triple threat match between Grimes, Hayes, and Sikoa for the title was scheduled for Spring Breakin'. On the April 12 episode of ''NXT'',

SmackDown ''WWE SmackDown'', also known as ''Friday Night SmackDown'' or simply ''SmackDown'', is an American professional wrestling television program produced by WWE that as of currently airs live every Friday at 8 p.m. ET on Fox. Fox Deportes si ...

Natalya Natalya (russian: Наталья) is the Russian form of the female given name Natalia. The name Natasha (russian: link=no, Наташа), being originally a diminutive form of Natalya, became an independent name outside the Russian-speaking state ...

made her return to ''NXT'' to seemingly wish a good future for

Cora Jade Brianna Coda (born January 14, 2001) is an American professional wrestler. She is signed to WWE, performing on the NXT brand under the ring name Cora Jade, where she is a former NXT Women's Tag Team Champion. Before signing to WWE, she pre ...

, only to tell her that the future was bleak. She then placed Jade in the

sharpshooter A sharpshooter is one who is highly proficient at firing firearms or other projectile weapons accurately. Military units composed of sharpshooters were important factors in 19th-century combat. Along with " marksman" and "expert", "sharpshooter" ...

and stood tall. The following week, after Natalya's match, Natalya confronted

Nikkita Lyons Faith Jefferies (born August 5, 1999) is an American professional wrestler, taekwondo practitioner, and musician. She is currently signed to WWE, where she performs on its NXT brand under the ring name Nikkita Lyons. Jefferies has also wrestled ...

, who had her own rivalry with

Lash Legend Anriel Howard (born May 6, 1997) is an American professional wrestler currently signed to WWE where she performs on its NXT brand under the ring name Lash Legend. She is also a former college and professional ( WNBA) basketball player. Pro ...

, stating that after Lyons' match against Legend, Natalya would place her in the Sharpshooter. On the April 26 episode, after Lyons defeated Legend, Natalya and Legend attacked Lyons until Jade made the save. Later that night, a tag team match pitting Lyons and Jade against Natalya and Legend was scheduled for Spring Breakin'. On the April 12 episode of ''NXT'',

The Creed Brothers The Creed Brothers are an American professional wrestling tag team consisting of brothers Brutus Creed (Drew Kasper; born May 13, 1996) and Julius Creed (Jacob Kasper; born October 3, 1994). They are currently working for the professional wrestl ...

(

Brutus Creed The Creed Brothers are an American professional wrestling tag team consisting of brothers Brutus Creed (Drew Kasper; born May 13, 1996) and Julius Creed (Jacob Kasper; born October 3, 1994). They are currently working for the professional wrestl ...

and

Julius Creed The Creed Brothers are an American professional wrestling tag team consisting of brothers Brutus Creed (Drew Kasper; born May 13, 1996) and Julius Creed (Jacob Kasper; born October 3, 1994). They are currently working for the professional wrestl ...

) eliminated three teams, but were the last team eliminated in a

gauntlet match Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called "concept" or "gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, are performed in professional wrestling. Some gimmick matches are more common than others and are often used to advance or conclude a ...

for the

vacant Within the context of building construction and building codes, "occupancy" refers to the use, or intended use, of a building, or portion of a building, for the shelter or support of persons, animals or property. A closely related meaning is th ...

NXT Tag Team Championship The NXT Tag Team Championship is a men's professional wrestling tag team championship created and promoted by the American promotion WWE. It is defended on the NXT brand division, the promotion's developmental territory. Introduced on Januar ...

. Two weeks later,

Roderick Strong Christopher Lindsey (born July 26, 1983), better known by his name Roderick Strong, is an American professional wrestler currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the NXT brand, as the leader of Diamond Mine, but is currently inactive due ...

hyped The Creed Brothers to reverse their fortunes and booked them in a match against SmackDown's

The Viking Raiders The Viking Raiders are an American professional wrestling tag team consisting of Erik and Ivar, and are managed by Valhalla. The team is currently performing in WWE on the SmackDown brand. Erik and Ivar were previously known as War Machine ...

( Erik and

Ivar Ivar (Old Norse ''Ívarr'') is a Scandinavian masculine given name. Another variant of the name is Iver, which is more common in Norway. The Old Norse name has several possible etymologies. In North Germanic phonology, several of the elements c ...

) at Spring Breakin'. On the April 26 episode of ''NXT'',

Nathan Frazer Benjamin Timms (born 23 July 1998) is an English professional wrestler currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the NXT brand under ring name Nathan Frazer. Professional wrestling career Early career (2018–2020) Benjamin Timms wa ...

was scheduled to face Guru Raaj in the former's debut match on NXT, only for

Grayson Waller Matthew Farrelly (born 21 March 1990) is an Australian professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the NXT brand under the ring name Grayson Waller. Before signing to WWE, he previously wrestled on the independen ...

to attack Raaj. Waller then mocked Frazer before turning his attention to the

Chase University Chase University (often known as Andre Chase University and Chase U) is an American professional wrestling stable consisting of Andre Chase, Duke Hudson and Thea Hail. They are currently signed to WWE, where they perform on NXT. The group's c ...

students in attendance. Frazer then laid out Waller, with Chase U member

Andre Chase Chance Barrow (born April 22, 1989) is an American professional wrestler currently signed to WWE where he performs for the NXT brand under the ring name Andre Chase. He was previously known by the ring name Harlem Bravado where he teamed with hi ...

calling it a "teachable moment". Later that night, Frazer was scheduled to face Waller at Spring Breakin'. On the April 19 episode of ''NXT'', two hooded men cost

Santos Escobar Jorge Luis Alcantar Bolly (born April 30, 1984), is a Mexican second-generation ''luchador'' (professional wrestler). He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name Santos Escobar. Before his WWE ca ...

a win. The following week, the men fought with Legado Del Fantasma (

Joaquin Wilde Michael Paris (born October 5, 1986) is a American professional wrestler currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the Smackdown brand, under the ring name Joaquin Wilde. He is a member of Legado Del Fantasma. Paris began his career in 2004, ...

and

Cruz Del Toro Raúl Mendoza (born November 25, 1991) is a Mexican professional wrestler currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the SmackDown brand under the name Cruz Del Toro and is a member of Legado Del Fantasma. Professional wrestling career Earl ...

) during

Tony D'Angelo Joseph Arriola (born June 9, 1995) is an American professional wrestler currently signed to WWE where he performs on the NXT brand under the ring name Tony D'Angelo. Professional wrestling career On the October 5, 2021 episode of NXT, Ariola ...

's match, allowing Escobar to attack D'Angelo on the outside of the ring, causing him to lose his match. Later that night, the hooded men were revealed to be Channing "Stacks" Lorenzo and Troy "Two Dimes" Donovan. Also, it was announced that D'Angelo and Escobar would have a sit-down meeting at Spring Breakin'.

Event

, Referees (professional wrestling)

Preliminary matches

The television special began with Cameron Grimes defending the NXT North American Championship against Carmelo Hayes and Solo Sikoa in a triple threat match. Grimes performed a Spanish Fly powerslam on Hayes, followed by Sikoa taking down Grimes and Hayes. Sikoa performed a Hip Smash on Grimes and Hayes in the corner. Grimes performed a Frankensteiner on Hayes and Sikoa, and did the same to Hayes for a nearfall. Hayes countered a Cave In attempt by Grimes into a Codebreaker for a nearfall. In the climax, Sikoa performed a Superkick on Hayes and performed an Uso Splash on Grimes, but Hayes broke up the pin. Sikoa countered a Codebreaker from Hayes, but Grimes performed a Cave In on Sikoa, who in turn performed a Samoan Drop on Hayes. Afterwards, Grimes pinned Hayes to retain the title. Following this,

NXT Women's Champion The NXT Women's Championship is a women's professional wrestling championship created and promoted by the American promotion WWE. It is defended on the NXT brand division, the promotion's developmental territory. Introduced on April 5, 2013, ...

Mandy Rose Amanda Rose Saccomanno (born July 18, 1990) is an American professional wrestler, television personality, and fitness and figure competitor. She is best known for her time in WWE, where she performed under the ring name Mandy Rose. Rose bega ...

was at a tanning salon when

Wendy Choo Karen Yu (born January 18, 1992) is an American professional wrestler. She is currently signed to the promotion WWE, where she performs on the NXT brand under the ring name Wendy Choo. She is also known for her appearances with Ring of Honor and ...

changed the settings on the tanning bed, causing Rose's skin to be burnt. Rose's

Toxic Attraction Toxic Attraction was a professional wrestling stable in WWE on the NXT brand. The group originally consisted of Mandy Rose, Gigi Dolin, and Jacy Jayne. After Rose was released from her WWE contract in December 2022, Toxic Attraction became a ta ...

members, NXT Women's Tag Team Champions

Gigi Dolin Priscilla Lee Kelly (born June 5, 1997) is an American professional wrestler. She performs under the ring name Gigi Dolin in the NXT brand, and is one-half of the tag team Toxic Attraction with Jacy Jayne, and she is a former record-tying two ...

and

Jacy Jayne Taylor Grado (born June 2, 1996) is an American professional wrestler signed to WWE, where she performs on the NXT brand under the ring name Jacy Jayne as a member of Toxic Attraction. She is a former record-tying two-time NXT Women's Tag Team C ...

, checked on Rose, who screamed when she looked at herself in the mirror. In the second match, Nathan Frazer (accompanied by Andre Chase and Bodhi Hayward of Chase University), in his debut match on NXT, took on Grayson Waller. During the match, Waller attempted a Curb Stomp, but Frazer sent Waller out of the ring and followed up with a Suicide Dive. Waller blocked a Phoenix Splash attempt by Frazer and performed a Butterfly Blockbuster on Frazer for a nearfall. In the climax, Waller shoved Frazer off the top rope, but Chase blared an air horn, causing Waller to fall off the top rope. Frazer then performed a Phoenix Splash on Waller to win the match. Afterwards, footage was shown of the fourth woman presented in the inaugural NXT Women's Breakout Tournament (which began the following week), Fallon Henley. Next, Santos Escobar and Tony D'Angelo (accompanied by Channing "Stacks" Lorenzo, Troy "Two Dimes" Donovan, and AJ Galante) had a sit-down meeting. After a conversation between the two, they agreed to an uneasy truce. D'Angelo stated that he and his associates would see Legado Del Fantasma (Escobar, Cruz Del Toro, Joaquin Wilde, and

Elektra Lopez Legado Del Fantasma is a professional wrestling stable composed of leader Santos Escobar, Joaquin Wilde, Cruz Del Toro and Zelina Vega currently performing in WWE on the SmackDown brand. The trio was formed in 2020 when El Hijo del Fantasma t ...

) sometime soon. In the third match, Nikkita Lyons and Cora Jade took on Natalya and Lash Legend. In the climax, after an even match, Lyons and Legend were trading roll-ups when Natalya accidentally superkicked Legend. Lyons followed up with a Superkick and a split leg drop on Legend, after which, Jade tagged in and performed a Senton on Legend to win the match. Following this, footage was shown of the fifth woman presented in the inaugural NXT Women's Breakout Tournament, Tatum Paxley. After that, Gigi Dolin and Jacy Jayne were enjoying their time at the beach when Wendy Choo and

Roxanne Perez Carla Gonzalez (born November 5, 2001) is an American professional wrestler signed to WWE where she performs on the NXT brand under the ring name Roxanne Perez, where she is the current NXT Women's Champion in her first reign. She is a form ...

stole their car keys and shoes. It was then announced that an NXT Women's Tag Team Championship match pitting Dolin and Jayne against Choo and Perez was scheduled for the following week. In the penultimate match, The Creed Brothers (Brutus Creed and Julius Creed) took on The Viking Raiders (Erik and Ivar). During the match, Ivar performed a powerbomb on Erik onto Brutus, and Ivar followed up with a splash on Brutus for a nearfall. Later, The Viking Raiders had Julius pinned, but Brutus broke up the pin. In the climax, after Brutus tossed Ivar out of the ring, Roderick Strong interfered with a Running Knee on Erik, allowing Julius to perform a basement lariat on Erik to win the match. Before the main event, Santos Escobar and AJ Galante met in the parking lot, but as they shook hands, Escobar attacked him. Joaquin Wilde and Cruz Del Toro then placed Galante in the back of Escobar's SUV.

Main event

In the main event, Bron Breakker defended the NXT Championship against Joe Gacy. Gacy dominated the match, while Breakker told Gacy to not mess with Breakker's family. Gacy performed a lariat and a leg drop on Breakker, but both resulted in nearfalls. Gacy performed a Scorpion Death Drop on Breakker for a nearfall, after which, Gacy's druids appeared behind the ring post. After more back-and-forth action, Gacy performed an Alabama Slam and a Powerbomb on Breakker for a nearfall. As Gacy went for the Upside-Down World, Breakker avoided it and performed a Spear on Gacy to retain the title. After the match, the druids went to the ring apron, surrounding Breakker. After the event went off the air, the druids viciously attacked Breakker before placing him on a stretcher and carrying him out of the Performance Center.

Aftermath

On the following episode of ''NXT'', Joe Gacy offered NXT Champion Bron Breakker an invitation to join his movement. The following week, Breakker declined. Gacy then offered Breakker a rematch for the title, adding the stipulation that Breakker would lose the championship if he was disqualified due to him not being able to control his anger, making the match official for

In Your House In Your House (known as NXT TakeOver: In Your House in 2020 and 2021 and then NXT In Your House beginning in 2022) is a professional wrestling series of events created by WWE, a professional wrestling promotion based in Connecticut. The events o ...

. Also on ''NXT'', Solo Sikoa wanted another shot at the NXT North American Championship, and defending champion Cameron Grimes said that he would get the match after Grimes defeated Carmelo Hayes at In Your House. The next day, a title match between Grimes and Hayes was made official for In Your House. The Creed Brothers (Brutus Creed and Julius Creed) were upset about how they defeated The Viking Raiders (Erik and Ivar), and Brutus said that it was how they were going to defeat The Viking Raiders in a rematch the following week. Roderick Strong stated that he would be bringing in Damon Kemp to

Diamond Mine There are a limited number of commercially available diamond mines currently operating in the world, with the 50 largest mines accounting for approximately 90% of global supply. Diamonds are also mined alluvially over disperse areas, where dia ...

. The following week, The Viking Raiders (Erik and Ivar) defeated The Creed Brothers due to an untimely assist from Strong and Kemp. Santos Escobar stated that AJ Galante was fair game in the war due to his interference in the peace talks. Tony D'Angelo then kidnapped Cruz Del Toro, and a match between D'Angelo and Escobar was scheduled for the May 17 episode. During the match, a brawl between Toro, Joaquin Wilde, Channing "Stacks" Lorenzo, and Troy "Two Dimes" Donovan occurred at ringside, allowing Escobar to strike D'Angelo with

brass knuckles Brass knuckles (variously referred to as knuckles, knucks, brass knucks, knucklebusters, knuckledusters, knuckle daggers, English punch, iron fist, paperweight, or a classic) are "fist-load weapons" used in hand-to-hand combat. Brass knuckles ...

to win the match. The following week, after Lorenzo and Donovan's match, the two teams engaged into another brawl. On the May 31 episode, the two teams agreed to a

six-man tag team match Much like the singles match, tag team professional wrestling matches can and have taken many forms. Just about any singles or melee match type can be adapted to tag teams; for example, hardcore tag team matches are commonplace. Tag team ladder ...

at In Your House where the losing team would join the winning team's stable. Toxic Attraction (Gigi Dolin and Jacy Jayne) retained the NXT Women's Tag Team Championship against Wendy Choo and Roxanne Perez after interference from NXT Women's Champion Mandy Rose. On the May 24 episode, Choo attacked Rose after the latter's match, after which, Rose accepted Choo's challenge for an NXT Women's Championship match, which was scheduled for In Your House in a Women's Championship Summit the following week. Natalya and Cora Jade had a match on the following episode of ''NXT'' which Natalya won. Afterwards, Jade and Natalya showed each other respect. A second Spring Breakin' was confirmed for the following year, establishing Spring Breakin' as an annual Spring event for NXT.

Results

References

External links

* {{WWE NXT events WWE NXT 2022 in professional wrestling in Florida Events in Orlando, Florida May 2022 events in the United States Professional wrestling in Orlando, Florida