NXT Heatwave (2025)

Heatwave
Promotional poster featuring Jacy Jayne, Sol Ruca, Ricky Saints, Oba Femi, and Blake Monroe
PromotionWWE
BrandNXT
DateAugust 24, 2025
CityLowell, Massachusetts
VenueLowell Memorial Auditorium
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The 2025 Heatwave, also promoted as Heatwave: Massachusetts, is an upcoming professional wrestling livestreaming event produced by WWE. It will be the fourth annual Heatwave produced by the company for its developmental brand NXT, and 11th Heatwave overall. The event will take place on Sunday, August 24, 2025, at the Lowell Memorial Auditorium in Lowell, Massachusetts, and will be the first Heatwave to solely use the WWE logo as well as be broadcast on Netflix.

This event is also the first Heatwave to feature wrestlers from WWE's partner promotion, Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA).

Production

Background

The event will be held at the Lowell Memorial Auditorium in Lowell, Massachusetts.

Heatwave was originally the name of a professional wrestling event produced by Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) that took place annually from 1994 to 2000. The 1997 event was an Internet pay-per-view (iPPV), while the 1998 to 2000 iterations of Heatwave aired on traditional pay-per-view (PPV). ECW folded in 2001, and WWE acquired the assets of ECW in 2003. In 2022, WWE revived the event for its developmental brand NXT as an annual television special of the NXT program.[1]

On July 10, 2025, it was reported that the fourth Heatwave under the WWE banner, and 11th overall, would be held on Sunday, August 24, 2025, at the Spartanburg Memorial Auditorium in Spartanburg, South Carolina.[2] However, during The Great American Bash on July 12, Heatwave was announced to take place in Lowell, Massachusetts.[3] In addition to Peacock in the United States, the event will also be available to livestream on Netflix in most international markets and the WWE Network in any remaining countries that have not yet transferred to Netflix due to pre-existing contracts. This marks the first Heatwave to livestream on Netflix following the WWE Network's merger under the service in January in those areas. Beginning with Halloween Havoc in 2024, all major NXT events are branded solely with the WWE logo instead of the NXT logo, marking the first Heatwave to just use the promotion's logo.[4]

Heatwave is expected to go head-to-head with Forbidden Door, a joint pay-per-view event produced by All Elite Wrestling (AEW) and New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), which is set to take place at The O2 Arena in London, England.

Storylines

The event will include matches that result from scripted storylines. Results are predetermined by WWE's writers on the NXT brand, while storylines are produced on WWE's weekly television program, NXT,[5][6] as well as Total Nonstop Action Wrestling's (TNA) weekly television program, Impact!, following WWE and TNA signing a multi-year partnership in January 2025.[7][8]

After Blake Monroe's NXT debut, she and Jordynne Grace formed an alliance, and at The Great American Bash on July 12, Grace and Monroe defeated Fatal Influence (NXT Women's Champion Jacy Jayne and Fallon Henley) in a tag team match.[9] The next night at Evolution, Grace, accompanied by Monroe, challenged Jayne for the title, but lost the match after Monroe attacked her with the championship, turning Monroe heel in the process.[10] Two nights later on NXT, a vignette aired where Monroe mocked Grace for not being worthy for a NXT Women's Championship shot, and invited Grace to watch her singles debut the following week,[11] where Monroe won. After that, Grace attacked Monroe, who would get the upper hand, injuring Grace's neck.[12] On the July 29 episode of NXT, Monroe stated that Grace was not good enough, continuing to mock her,[13] and one week later during Monroe's match, Grace appeared wearing a neck brace and chased Monroe out from the arena, costing her the match by countout. Later that night, NXT General Manager Ava announced that Grace would face Monroe at Heatwave.[14]

At Stand & Deliver, Oba Femi defeated Je'Von Evans and Trick Williams to retain the NXT Championship.[15] After that, Williams would win the TNA World Championship a month later at Battleground.[16] On the July 22 episode of NXT, Evans was thinking about what he should do next when he was approached by WWE Hall of Famer The Undertaker, who said that Evans should "go after the biggest dog in the yard".[12] The following week, Evans discussed Undertaker's advice when he was interrupted by Williams, who thought Evans was there to challenge him, however, Evans revealed he had come to challenge Femi. Williams felt disrespected, stating it would only be a matter of time before he defeated Femi and become a double champion. After that, they were interrupted by Williams' allies The High Ryze (Wes Lee, Tyson DuPont, and Tyriek Igwe) and after some exchange of words, Evans attacked Lee, but it was outnumbered by Williams and High Ryze. Later that night, Evans defeated Lee, and after that, Williams, Evans, and Femi confronted each other.[13] The following week, Femi stated that no one was worthy of facing him for the championship before being interrupted by Williams and Evans, with Evans proposing that he and Williams should face each other to determine who would challenge for the NXT Championship, with Femi stating that the match should happen on that night's episode. Williams declined, preferring it take place on the August 19 episode. It was later confirmed by NXT General Manager Ava, who also announced that the winner would face Femi at Heatwave.[14] The match was won by Evans.[17]

For months, DarkState (Dion Lennox, Osiris Griffin, Saquon Shugars, and Cutler James) had been attacking several wrestlers, including NXT Tag Team Champions Hank and Tank (Hank Walker and Tank Ledger). On the June 24 episode of NXT, Hank and Tank were attacked backstage by unknown assailants.[18] A month later, on the August 5 episode, Hank and Tank were attacked by DarkState after their successful title defense. Later that night, DarkState revealed that they were the ones who attacked Hank and Tank a month ago, while Hank and Tank demanded a match against any members of DarkState. NXT General Manager Ava then announced that Hank and Tank would defend their titles against two members of DarkState at Heatwave.[14]

On the June 26 episode of TNA Impact!, Ash by Elegance won a battle royal to become the #1 contender for Masha Slamovich's TNA Knockouts World Championship.[19] A month later at TNA's Slammiversary, NXT Women's Champion Jacy Jayne defeated Slamovich in a Winner Takes All match, leaving with both titles.[20] On the following episode of TNA Impact!, Slamovich was granted by TNA Director of Authority Santino Marella a rematch for the Knockouts World Championship the following week, while later that night, during Fatal Influence's (Jayne, Fallon Henley, and Jazmyn Nyx) celebration, Jayne mocked the entire TNA women's division, including The Elegance Brand (Ash, Heather by Elegance, and M by Elegance). The following week, during Slamovich's rematch, Ash attacked her, costing Slamovich the match.[21] On the August 7 episode, Ash would have her championship match, where Fatal Influence and The Elegance Brand were banned from ringside. However, Slamovich attacked Ash, also costing her the match, and a brawl subsequently broke out between Slamovich, The Elegance Brand, and Fatal Influence.[22] On the August 12 episode of NXT, both Ash and Slamovich were in the crowd watching Henley and Nyx's tag team match, and later that night, NXT General Manager Ava announced that after speaking with Marella, Jayne would defend the TNA Knockouts World Championship against Ash and Slamovich in a triple threat match at Heatwave.[23]

At TNA's Slammiversary, a Winner Takes All match was scheduled for both the NXT Women's Championship and TNA Knockouts World Championship, with both Jaida Parker and Lash Legend making it clear that they would be coming after the winner. At the event, Jacy Jayne won the match, retaining the NXT Women's Championship while winning the TNA Knockouts World Championship.[20] Three days later on NXT, during Fatal Influence (Jayne, Jazmyn Nyx, and Fallon Henley) celebration, they were interrupted by both Legend and Parker. After some exchange of words, Fatal Influence brawled with Legend and Parker, with the latter two getting the upper hand. After that, both Legend and Parker confronted each other.[12] On the following episode, Parker defeated Nyx, and later, Henley defeated Legend.[13] During this time, Kelani Jordan and Lola Vice also stated their intentions of challenging for the NXT Women's Championship, and Jordan and Vice would defeat Jayne and Henley in a tag team match on the August 12 episode.[23] After the end of the show in a video posted on X, it was revealed that earlier in the show, Parker, Jordan, and Vice argued about who should challenge for the NXT Women's Championship, with NXT General Manager Ava announcing a triple threat match to determine the #1 contender for the championship between Parker, Jordan, and Vice at Heatwave.[24]

On the July 22 episode of NXT, Ethan Page debuted a custom version of his NXT North American Championship, which depicted the flag of his native Canada.[12] Two weeks later, Page cut a promo saying Canada was superior to America before being interrupted by Tavion Heights. SmackDown's The Secret Hervice (Chelsea Green, Alba Fyre, and Piper Niven) subsequently appeared, with Green siding with fellow countryman Page.[14] On the next episode, Heights introduced Tyra Mae Steele as his tag team partner, who attacked Page and The Secret Hervice.[23] On the August 19 episode, Page and Green attempted to foster a peace treaty between both Canada and America, only to argue with Heights and Steele over the two countries. After that, NXT General Manager Ava announced that the two teams would face each other in a mixed tag team match at Heatwave.[17]

Matches

No.Matches*Stipulations
1Jordynne Grace vs. Blake MonroeSingles match[25]
2Hank and Tank (Hank Walker and Tank Ledger) (c) vs. Two members of DarkState (Dion Lennox, Osiris Griffin, Saquon Shugars, and/or Cutler James)Tag team match for the NXT Tag Team Championship[26]
3Jacy Jayne (c) vs. Masha Slamovich vs. Ash by EleganceTriple threat match for the TNA Knockouts World Championship[27]
4Jaida Parker vs. Kelani Jordan vs. Lola ViceTriple threat match to determine the #1 contender for the NXT Women's Championship[28]
5Chelsea Green and Ethan Page (with Alba Fyre and Piper Niven) vs. Tyra Mae Steele and Tavion HeightsMixed tag team match[29]
6Oba Femi (c) vs. Je'Von EvansSingles match for the NXT Championship[30]
(c) – the champion(s) heading into the match
*Card subject to change

References

  1. ^ Thomas, Jeremy (July 26, 2022). "NXT Heatwave Set For Next Month, Two Matches Set". 411Mania. Archived from the original on July 27, 2022. Retrieved July 26, 2022.
  2. ^ Lambert, Jeremy (July 10, 2025). "Report: NXT Heatwave Scheduled For August 24". Fightful. Archived from the original on July 10, 2025. Retrieved July 10, 2025.
  3. ^ Thompson, Andrew (July 12, 2025). "NXT Heatwave Confirmed For August 24th In Lowell, Massachusetts". Fightful. Archived from the original on July 12, 2025. Retrieved July 12, 2025.
  4. ^ Gibbons, Aidan (January 25, 2024). "WWE Network to be shut down by the end of 2024". Cultaholic. Archived from the original on January 25, 2024. Retrieved January 25, 2024.
  5. ^ Grabianowski, Ed (January 13, 2006). "How Pro Wrestling Works". HowStuffWorks. Discovery Communications. Archived from the original on November 29, 2013. Retrieved March 5, 2012.
  6. ^ "Live & Televised Entertainment". WWE. Archived from the original on February 18, 2009. Retrieved March 21, 2012.
  7. ^ WWE.com Staff (January 16, 2025). "WWE & TNA Wrestling announce multi-year partnership". WWE. Archived from the original on January 16, 2025.
  8. ^ "WWE® & TNA Wrestling announce multi-year partnership". Total Nonstop Action Wrestling. January 16, 2025. Archived from the original on January 16, 2025.
  9. ^ Moore, John (July 12, 2025). "NXT Great American Bash results: Moore's live review of Oba Femi vs. Yoshiki Inamura for the NXT Championship, Ethan Page vs. Ricky Starks in a Falls Count Anywhere match for the NXT North American Title". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Archived from the original on July 12, 2025. Retrieved July 12, 2025.
  10. ^ Powell, Jason (July 13, 2025). "WWE Evolution results: Powell's live review of Iyo Sky vs. Rhea Ripley for the Women's World Championship, Tiffany Stratton vs. Trish Stratus for the WWE Women's Championship". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Archived from the original on July 14, 2025. Retrieved July 13, 2025.
  11. ^ Moore, John (July 15, 2025). "NXT TV results (7/15): Moore's review of the GAB fallout edition with Trick Williams, Mike Santana, and Joe Hendry vs. DarkState, Stacks vs. Tony D'Angelo vs. Luca Crusifino in a Triple Threat". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved July 16, 2025.
  12. ^ a b c d Moore, John (July 22, 2025). "NXT TV results (7/22): Moore's review of Oba Femi vs. Yoshiki Inamura vs. Josh Briggs for the NXT Championship, Undertaker's appearance, Ricky Saints vs. Jasper Troy, Blake Monroe vs. Wren Sinclair". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved August 6, 2025.
  13. ^ a b c Moore, John (July 29, 2025). "NXT TV results (7/29): Moore's review of Ethan Page vs. Santino Marella for the NXT North American Title, Charlie Dempsey vs. Tavion Heights, Lash Legend vs. Fallon Henley, Jaida Parker vs. Jazmyn Nyx". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved August 6, 2025.
  14. ^ a b c d Moore, John (August 5, 2025). "NXT TV results (8/5): Moore's review of Hank Walker and Tank Ledger vs. Uriah Connors and Kale Dixon for the NXT Tag Titles, Sol Ruca vs. Tatum Paxley for the Women's NA Title, Blake Monroe vs. Kelani Jordan". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved August 6, 2025.
  15. ^ Moore, John (April 19, 2025). "NXT Stand & Deliver results: Moore's live review of Oba Femi vs. Trick Williams vs. Je'Von Evans for the NXT Title, Stephanie Vaquer vs. Giulia vs. Jordynne Grace vs. Jaida Parker for the NXT Women's Title". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Archived from the original on April 23, 2025. Retrieved April 19, 2025.
  16. ^ Moore, John (May 25, 2025). "NXT Battleground results: Moore's live review of Stephanie Vaquer vs. Jordynne Grace for the NXT Women's Championship, Joe Hendry vs. Trick Williams for the TNA World Championship". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved May 25, 2025.
  17. ^ a b Moore, John (August 19, 2025). "NXT TV results (8/19): Moore's review of Trick Williams vs. Je'Von Evans for a shot at the NXT Championship at NXT Heatwave, Josh Briggs vs. Yoshiki Inamura in a Philadelphia Street Fight". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved August 19, 2025.
  18. ^ Moore, John (June 24, 2025). "NXT TV results (6/24): Moore's review of Jordynne Grace vs. Lash Legend vs. Izzi Dame vs. Jaida Parker for an NXT Women's Title shot, Trick Williams vs. Josh Briggs for the TNA Championship". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved June 24, 2025.
  19. ^ Moore, John (June 27, 2025). "TNA Impact results (6/26): Moore's review of Mike Santana vs. AJ Francis in a Street Fight, battle royal for a Knockouts Title shot, Mustafa Ali vs. John Skyler in a Call to Arms match". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Archived from the original on July 19, 2025. Retrieved July 4, 2025.
  20. ^ a b Powell, Jason (July 20, 2025). "TNA Slammiversary results: Powell's live review of Trick Williams vs. Joe Hendry vs. Mike Santana for the TNA World Championship, the return of AJ Styles, Masha Slamovich vs. Jacy Jayne in a title vs. title match". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Archived from the original on July 21, 2025. Retrieved July 21, 2025.
  21. ^ Moore, John (August 1, 2025). "TNA Impact results (7/31): Moore's review of Jacy Jayne vs. Masha Slamovich for the Knockouts Title, Leon Slater vs. Cedric Alexander vs. Jason Hotch in a three-way for the X-Division Title". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Archived from the original on August 16, 2025. Retrieved August 15, 2025.
  22. ^ Moore, John (August 8, 2025). "TNA Impact results (8/6): Moore's review of Joe Hendry vs. Mustafa Ali, Jacy Jayne vs. Ash by Elegance for the Knockouts Title, Steve Maclin vs. Jake Something for the TNA International Title". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved August 14, 2025.
  23. ^ a b c Moore, John (August 12, 2025). "NXT TV results (8/12): Moore's review of Oba Femi, Trick Williams, Moose, and Je'Von Evans vs. DarkState, Nia Jax vs. Lash Legend, Jacy Jayne and Fallon Henley vs. Kelani Jordan and Lola Vice". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved August 13, 2025.
  24. ^ Thompson, Andrew (August 12, 2025). "Triple Threat Match Set For NXT Heatwave PLE, Winner Gets Shot At NXT Women's Championship". Fightful. Retrieved August 13, 2025.
  25. ^ WWE.com Staff (August 12, 2025). "Jordynne Grace vs. Blake Monroe". WWE. Retrieved August 12, 2025.
  26. ^ WWE.com Staff (August 12, 2025). "NXT Tag Team Champions Hank & Tank vs. DarkState". WWE. Retrieved August 12, 2025.
  27. ^ WWE.com Staff (August 14, 2025). "TNA Knockouts Champion Jacy Jayne vs. Masha Slamovich vs. Ash by Elegance". WWE. Retrieved August 14, 2025.
  28. ^ WWE.com Staff (August 12, 2025). "Jaida Parker vs. Kelani Jordan vs. Lola Vice". WWE. Retrieved August 14, 2025.
  29. ^ WWE.com Staff (August 19, 2025). "Chelsea Green & Ethan Page vs. Tyra Mae Steele & Tavion Heights Mixed Tag Team Match". WWE. Retrieved August 20, 2025.
  30. ^ "NXT Champion Oba Femi vs. Je'Von Evans". WWE. August 19, 2025. Retrieved August 20, 2025.
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