Carmelo Hayes Turns On Trick Williams, Ilja Dragunov Retains At WWE NXT Vengeance Day

Trick Williams and Carmelo Hayes started "NXT" Vengeance Day by losing the finals of the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic, but the team had no time to mourn. Williams made his way out to face Ilja Dragunov for the "NXT" Championship, with Hayes by his side and hopes of walking away with gold. By the end of the night, however, Dragunov still wore the "NXT" Championship around his waist, and Williams was left broken on the mat — courtesy of a backstabbing Hayes.

Williams started the contest with aggressive offense that left the champion scrambling around the ring. In the early moments of the match, Dragunov injured his nose, and a cut on Williams' lip from his earlier match was split open. The main event of Vengeance Day was turned into a bloodbath, with crimson smears on the mat and both competitors. The remainder of the contest was highly competitive, with Hayes getting involve in a couple key moments. In the end, Williams was no match for Dragunov's Torpedo Moscow, and Dragunov pinned Williams for a three count to retain his title.

As Dragunov swiftly made his exit, title in hand, Hayes entered the ring to console a tearful Williams. But after Hayes whispered a few affirmations to his teammate, Williams turned his back, and Hayes dove for Williams' knee like a predator attacks its prey. As his former friend and teammate laid on the ground in agony, Hayes grabbed a steel chair andbegan smashing William's knee with reckless abandon. Hayes attempted to fold out the chair to sit on it, but upon realizing it was bent too far one way to sit on, he smacked Williams with it again until it bent back the other way. The "NXT" audience chanted expletives as Hayes bathed in their derision.

Hayes has currently been splitting his time between "NXT" and "WWE SmackDown". Williams himself recently made a main roster debut on "SmackDown" to support Hayes. It's unknown whether the feud will play out on "NXT," "SmackDown," or both.