WWE’s NXT brand delivered one of its most stacked premium live events of the year on June 28, 2026, as The Great American Bash took center stage from the WWE Performance Center in Orlando, Florida. The event was a landmark occasion for NXT — marking the first time an NXT premium live event aired live on The CW Network in the United States, while international fans tuned in on Netflix. With five championship matches on the line, rising stars, bitter rivalries, and a main event main evented by the NXT Women’s Championship, the night was built for fireworks from bell to bell.
NXT Great American Bash 2026: Date, Time, Location, and How to Watch
The Great American Bash took place on Sunday, June 28, 2026, beginning at 7:00 PM ET / 4:00 PM PT. The event was held at the WWE Performance Center in Orlando, Florida, and aired live on The CW for U.S. viewers. It was also available on ESPN Unlimited (via CW Sports) and Netflix internationally. An hour-long free Countdown pre-show preceded the main card across WWE’s online platforms including YouTube, with commentary provided by Megan Morant and Sam Robertson. Vic Joseph and Wade Barrett called the main card action from ringside.
The broadcast marked a historic milestone for NXT, which moved its weekly Tuesday night show to The CW in late 2024 after a period of transition between platforms. General Manager Robert Stone had hyped the event throughout the build, and it delivered on the promise of a showcase for WWE’s next generation of stars.
Full Match Card for NXT Great American Bash 2026
Seven matches were announced and delivered on the night, including five championship contests:
- NXT Championship: Tony D’Angelo (c) vs. Naraku
- NXT Women’s Championship: Lola Vice (c) vs. Kendal Grey
- NXT North American Championship: Myles Borne (c) vs. Tavion Heights
- NXT Women’s North American Championship: Zaria (c) vs. Tatum Paxley
- WWE Women’s Speed Championship: Wren Sinclair (c) vs. Arianna Grace
- Singles Match: Dion Lennox vs. Saquon Shugars
- Singles Match: Shiloh Hill vs. Tristan Angels
NXT Championship: Tony D’Angelo vs. Naraku
The show opened with the NXT Championship match, a deliberate booking decision announced by GM Robert Stone. Tony D’Angelo entered the arena with his right eye heavily bandaged, the result of a stunning fireball attack by the challenger Naraku during a contract signing on the June 23 episode of NXT. Despite the injury, D’Angelo made it clear he was not backing down.
The match was explosive from the first bell. D’Angelo immediately speared Naraku through a piece of the entrance set, and the two men tore into each other with intensity from the opening moments. Naraku systematically targeted D’Angelo’s bandaged eye throughout the contest, using his heel tactics to gain advantages, including eye rakes, his Enter the Abyss technique, and even biting at D’Angelo’s fingers during a crossface submission attempt. Naraku — the former IWGP Heavyweight Champion previously known on the global stage as EVIL — demonstrated exactly why he was considered among the best in the world upon his WWE arrival.
Despite the sustained assault on his eye, D’Angelo refused to give up. He fired back with a running powerbomb, a pair of German suplexes, and an over-the-shoulder powerslam before finishing Naraku with his elevated spinebuster — referred to as Dead to Rights — for the pinfall victory at just over ten minutes.
WINNER: Tony D’Angelo retains the NXT Championship
NXT Women’s North American Championship: Zaria vs. Tatum Paxley
Following the NXT Championship match, the Women’s North American Championship bout got underway. Tatum Paxley, a former champion seeking to reclaim the title she lost to the powerful Zaria weeks prior, came out aggressive and took early control with kicks and a ring apron enzuigiri, even trapping Zaria in the ring skirt to land additional strikes. Zaria responded with her signature power-based offense, dumping Paxley into the crowd over the barricade as the action spilled to the floor.
NXT North American Championship: Myles Borne vs. Tavion Heights
The North American Championship featured a unique emotional dynamic: two former training partners from the No Quarter Catch Crew faction who had gone their separate ways on good terms. Myles Borne had captured the title back in February by defeating Ethan Page and successfully defended it against the likes of Johnny Gargano and Dion Lennox. Tavion Heights, meanwhile, earned his shot by defeating Jackson Drake on the June 16 episode of NXT in a number one contender’s match. Heights had come agonizingly close to championship gold before, falling short of the North American title against Ethan Page at No Mercy. Their shared history and contrasting momentum made this one of the most compelling matchups on the card.
WWE Women’s Speed Championship: Wren Sinclair vs. Arianna Grace
The WWE Women’s Speed Championship was on the line as Wren Sinclair, representing WrenQCC, put her title on the line for the first time on NXT programming since winning it from Fallon Henley at the March 17 episode in Houston, Texas. Her challenger, Arianna Grace of the BirthRight faction, punched her ticket to the match by winning a tournament, defeating Layla Diggs in the first round and Izzi Dame in the finals on the June 23 NXT episode. Grace was aiming to add gold to BirthRight’s collection alongside stablemate Lexis King.
Singles Match: Dion Lennox vs. Saquon Shugars
This grudge match stemmed from one of NXT’s most personal betrayals of the year. Saquon Shugars had been a founding member of DarkState alongside Dion Lennox, Cutler James, and Osiris Griffin. After Shugars and Lennox failed to capture the NXT Tag Team Championships from The Vanity Project (Baylor and Smokes) on the May 19 episode, DarkState turned on Shugars immediately after — blindsiding him with a vicious attack to kick him out of the group. Shugars responded by lurking at vantage points inside and outside the Performance Center, watching the group’s every move and waiting for his moment of revenge. The Great American Bash gave him that opportunity.
Singles Match: Shiloh Hill vs. Tristan Angels
This personal feud kicked off when Angels lost the Mr. NXT pageant to Shiloh Hill — an outcome that sent the vain and ambitious Angels into a rage. He launched a blindside assault on Hill, only to have it cost him in a subsequent Evolve title match against Aaron Rourke on the go-home episode. NXT management promptly booked the singles collision for the Great American Bash to settle the score between these two rising stars.
NXT Women’s Championship: Lola Vice vs. Kendal Grey
The main event of the evening featured Lola Vice defending the NXT Women’s Championship against former EVOLVE Women’s Champion Kendal Grey. Vice had claimed the title by dethroning Jacy Jayne and was now facing her toughest challenge yet. Grey, a former collegiate wrestling standout, had burst onto the NXT scene and earned her title opportunity by defeating Kelani Jordan in a No. 1 Contender’s match on the June 9 episode. NXT GM Robert Stone confirmed the Women’s Championship match as the main event, with Vice’s in-ring striking style expected to clash spectacularly with Grey’s mat wrestling pedigree. The pairing gave NXT two strong and very different athletes to anchor one of its most high-profile nights of the year.
The Historic Significance of NXT Great American Bash 2026
Beyond the matches themselves, this edition of The Great American Bash carried outsized historical weight. It was the 28th edition of the Great American Bash event series and the first NXT premium live event to air on The CW Network. The show took place on a stacked weekend for professional wrestling — running concurrently with WWE Night of Champions, AEW Forbidden Door, and TNA Slammiversary, creating one of the most event-heavy nights in recent wrestling memory.
NXT’s shift to The CW in late 2024 revitalized its position in the weekly wrestling landscape, and the Great American Bash represented the first major milestone of the brand’s PLE presence on the network. Red, white, and blue rally towels filled the Performance Center crowd, underscoring the patriotic theme that has historically defined the Great American Bash.
NXT Great American Bash 2026: Key Storyline Threads
Several major narratives ran through the build to this event. Naraku’s arrival was among the most striking in recent NXT memory — he delivered cryptic gifts to D’Angelo, showed him unusual signs of respect, and then pivoted to outright hostility with the fireball attack on the contract. His background as a former IWGP Heavyweight Champion lent him significant international credibility even before his first NXT match. Meanwhile, Kendal Grey’s trajectory from EVOLVE to NXT contender in a short window reflected exactly the kind of developmental story NXT does best, and her main event slot represented a major vote of confidence from NXT leadership.
The DarkState/Shugars feud illustrated NXT’s ongoing strength in faction storytelling, while the Shiloh Hill and Tristan Angels program showed how personality-driven conflicts between newer roster members can quickly generate fan investment. Across the card, the Great American Bash was a snapshot of NXT’s current depth and direction as it finds its footing as a CW staple.
Drop your predictions, reactions, and hot takes in the comments — who stole the show at NXT Great American Bash 2026?