NXT features championship matches and debuts on August 18, 2026

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ORLANDO, FLORIDA - AUGUST 11: Zilla Fatu and Grayson Waller in action during NXT at the WWE Performance Center on August 11, 2026 in Orlando, Florida. (Photo by Conor Kvatek/WWE via Getty Images) | WWE via Getty Images NXT will emanate from the Performance Center in Orlando tonight, with less than 2 weeks until their big summer PLE, Heatwave. The NXT Women’s Champion will be in action, the Men’s Speed Title will be defended, and the fate of Vanity Project at Heatwave will be decided. Be sure to tune into the action on the CW starting at 8 PM ET, and follow along with all the action right here on Cageside! Zilla Fatu joins a suddenly crowded NXT Title scene For most of 2026, NXT has been trying to re-establish the top of its men’s division. After two different waves of main roster call-ups, Tony D’Angelo was pretty much the last one standing. After finally winning the NXT Championship at Stand & Deliver, Tony has been the one constant at the top of the division and has seen a slew of new stars walk through the Performance Center doors. First up was Naraku. The former IWGP Champion seemed primed to dethrone D’Angelo after multiple brutal attacks, but Tony not only beat the former ‘EVIL’ at Great American Bash with one good eye; he also beat Naraku in the rematch, a Street Fight on a recent episode of NXT. With Naraku out of the way, former TNA World Champion Cruz Montana made his long-awaited and highly anticipated debut on Tuesday nights and immediately set his sights on NXT’s top prize. Before Montana could even let his new ring name sink in, former WWE Tag Team Champion Grayson Waller showed up in Orlando and put the entire NXT’s men’s division on notice. Then, last week, as Waller and Montana competed in a #1 contender’s match, Zilla Fatu made his WWE debut by attacking both men, and announcing his presence on the developmental brand. Now, with less than two weeks until Heatwave and no definitive challenger for Tony D’Angelo and his NXT Championship, GM Robert Stone is on the clock to make a decision. Booking a Fatal 4 Way is a real possibility. A triple threat match to determine a #1 contender could happen, but there’s a chance that could lead to yet another debut or return. One way they could go is to have Grayson Waller face Tony D at Heatwave. (After all, Grayson was the first one attacked last week, so technically, he should’ve been declared the winner.) That theory holds a little more water after it was announced last night that Cruz Montana will be calling out Zilla Fatu on tonight’s show. Will these four break off and have two separate singles matches for Heatwave, or, like Stand & Deliver, will Tony D’Angelo be competing for the NXT Championship with three other top stars? Chances are, we’ll find out tonight! WrenQCC in tag team action NXT Women’s Champion Kendal Grey and Women’s Speed Champion Wren Sinclair will have their hands full tonight when they take on Kelani Jordan and Kali Armstrong in a tag team match. After beating Lola Vice in an NXT Underground match a few weeks ago, Kendal has no shortage of challengers breathing down her neck, and is keeping her title reign trucking along. Kelani and Kali seem to be on a short list of potential candidates to face Kendal at Heatwave, and tonight’s tag team match could lead to us finding out who will be challenging for the title on August 30th. Will Kendal (and Wren) make a big statement at the expense of Grey’s arguably top two contenders? Speaking of Wren Sinclair, a week after surviving a Speed Title defense against the Women’s North American Champion, Zaria, Wren came up short last week with the NA Title on the line. Just moments later, Wren suggested another match with the Aussie Powerhouse, this time at Heatwave, and this time to unify the Speed and North American Championships! Will Zaria be lurking during this big-time tag team match tonight? The stakes have been RAISED! 🙌 #WWENXT@WrenSinclairWWE | @kendalgreywwe | @MrStoneWWE pic.twitter.com/0Qg2oVflef — WWE NXT (@WWENXT) August 17, 2026 Heatwave title shots on the line for Jackson Drake The reunited Myles Borne and Tavion Heights won the NXT Tag Team Championships two weeks ago, knocking off long-time champs Ricky Smokes and Brad Baylor of Vanity Project. Myles, in the meantime, has vowed to continue being a fighting champion for his North American Champion, and may get a chance to put his money where his mouth coming up at Heatwave. Last week, Jackson Drake was signed for a match with Shiloh Hill with huge implications for not only himself, but his Swipe Right buddies as well. If Drake can defeat Hill, he earns a North American Title shot against Myles Borne at Heatwave AND Smokes and Baylor get a rematch for the NXT Tag Team Titles. This, of course, means that Borne may be pulling double duty on the 30th and putting both of his championships on the line. No doubt the tag team champs, and Myles especially, will be highly invested in the Drake/Hill match tonight. Will Borne and Heights take in the match from ringside to make sure the rest of Vanity Project doesn’t get involved? Is a Drake loss and a 6-man tag between these three the most likely outcome for Heatwave? Or will Borne have to pull double duty at the end of the month? Quick Hits Thea Hail gets a chance to go one-on-one with a Low-Key Legend when she takes on Nattie tonight. Jaida Parker, Karmen Petrovic, and Nikkita Lyons are sure to be ringside supporting their respective allies. Does Thea stand a chance to pull off arguably the biggest win of her career? Or will that damned numbers game be all Nattie needs to hold off her opponent that is literally half of her age? Seeing his OTM teammate Bronco Nima tend to other business with Los Perros del Mal in AAA, Lucien Price decided to take a proactive approach and try to establish himself as a singles competitor. Week one of that endeavor was successful last week when Price knocked off Men’s Speed Champion Lexis King. This week, King and Price are set for a rematch, this time with the Speed Title up for grabs. Can Price accomplish something on his own that he and Nima haven’t done and become a champion? Or will Birth Right make sure Lexis walks out of the PC tonight with the gold? The working relationship between NXT and AAA continues this week when AAA Cruiserweight Champion Rey Fenix’s #1 contender is decided in a fatal 4 way. Tristan Angels, Romeo Moreno, and EK Prosper of NXT will join AAA’s La Parka with a shot at gold on the line. Can La Parka earn a title shot just days before he tries to advance in the Roman Reigns Invitational Tournament? Or will one of NXT’s young high-flyers stamp their ticket for a title shot south of the border? Speaking of EK Prosper, he stepped in for a missing Shawn Spears last week to defeat The Culling in tag team action with Lizzy Rain. What’s next for Izzi Dame and Niko Vance, and where the hell is Shawn Spears? Dion Lennox beat Saquon Shugars last week in what could’ve been the deciding match in their feud. Will The Shuga Man go back to hunting for allies to help him take down DarkState? Or is it time for both parties to move on to something new and more interesting on Tuesday nights? Kam Hendrix’s health meter was finally charged up high enough to take on Mason Rook last week and it was Lights, Kam, Action when he picked up a win, albeit a tainted one over the guy who’s big and bad and will bodyslam your dad. Will Rook be looking for another match with Hendrix? Or will Kam’s health meter be on the fritz again this week? World Champion CM Punk made an appearance at an NXT house show over the weekend. Any chance he makes a detour down to Orlando before defending his title against Kevin Owens in Toronto on Friday? (Not likely he shows, but you better believe they’ll show a clip of his NXT appearance!) All this and more on the CW tonight as NXT heads towards their next PLE, Heatwave in less than 2 weeks! Let us know what you’re most excited for on tonight’s show in the comments below, and be sure to follow along with the live coverage here on Cageside tonight, starting at 8 PM Eastern!