DarkState Retain WWE NXT Tag Titles, Celebration Short-Lived

DarkState are still the NXT Tag Team Champions following a successful title defense, but the scene around them is only heating up.

During Tuesday's opening "WWE NXT" contest, DarkState's Osiris Griffin and Saquon Shugars defended their titles against OTM's Bronco Nima and Lucien Price. At one point, OTM seemed poised to dethrone DarkState when Nima launched himself and Griffin to the outside floor, leaving Price to drag Shugars by his hair in the ring. Before Price could even set himself up for a potential pinfall, however, Vanity Project's Brad Baylor, Jackson Drake, and Ricky Smokes charged down to ringside to distract him.

When Price knocked Baylor off the apron, Shugars seized the opportunity to surprise the OTM member with a rope-leveraged roll-up for a pinfall of his own. With it, DarkState officially retained their NXT Tag Team Championships. Chaos also ensued.

Following DarkState's victory, OTM ignited a brawl with Vanity Project, Hank and Tank, and later Chase U in the entranceway. Back in the ring, DarkState celebrated their win until The Culling's Shawn Spears and Niko Vance ambushed them from behind. Vance initiated the attack by tossing Cutler James into the steel ring post. Spears followed by superkicking Shugars, then dropping Griffin into the mat.

OTM's title shot came after the pair called out DarkState from the WWE Performance Center parking lot last week, with Nima and Price vowing to show the reigning champions how real things can get when standing across from them in the ring. As of this writing, it's unclear how this week's series of events will impact the NXT Tag Team Championships next.