Carmelo Hayes really wants to cement himself as the “A” Champion of NXT.
Hayes came out victorious against Pete Dunne in the main event of WWE NXT 2.0 to retain his North American Championship on the March 1 episode. Dunne and Hayes clashed in an intense battle that saw Hayes pull out the 1-2-3 after hype man Trick Williams got his fingers twisted by ‘The Bruiserweight.” This distraction allowed “Melo” to hit his top rope Fameasser for the win.
.@Carmelo_WWE don't miss! #WWENXT @PeteDunneYxB pic.twitter.com/L6uj26ehmI
— WWE NXT (@WWENXT) March 2, 2022
Post-match, Hayes was grinning ear-to-ear as he revealed that he’s going to defend his North American belt in a ladder match at NXT Stand & Deliver. He noted that he wanted to defend the gold in the same match that it was introduced; Adam Cole became the inaugural champion at NXT TakeOver: New Orleans when he won a classic ladder match that also featured EC3, Killian Dain, Lars Sullivan, Ricochet, and Velveteen Dream.
AND STILL.
No one can touch @Carmelo_WWE for the #NXTNATitle so "The A Champion" is laying down the gauntlet for Stand & Deliver. #WWENXT pic.twitter.com/Sp4QwstMuX
— WWE (@WWE) March 2, 2022
It’s currently unclear which NXT stars will challenge for the gold at Stand & Deliver.