What a tremendous way to begin WrestleMania weekend. NXT Takeover has done it once again with arguably an early match of the year contender between Johnny Gargano and Adam Cole.
If you haven’t seen that match then go check it out it now. It was a stellar bout that had me on the edge of my seat from beginning to end. This match had great moves, no doubt, but it also had clever booking, which helped create a dramatic story.
The involvement of the Undisputed Era was superb. I thought at that moment it was over for Johnny wrestling, but NXT creative was smart and used that expectation to create a strong near fall.
Move after move, counter after counter, and near fall after near fall, I was hooked until that final three count. I’m happy that Johnny Gargano won the NXT championship. The man has been on an incredible journey for the last couple of years and he deserves to be at the top of the mountain.
Tommaso Ciampa hugging Gargano was a nice moment. Though with the recent WWE videos and Ciampa coming out to embrace his former partner, it does seem like he's turning face, which I don't want; however, Ciampa can always return as a heel and spin this situation in a different manner.
I hope this gives Adam Cole more to do as well. In truth, I was mostly rooting for the Undisputed Era leader to walk out of Brooklyn with the title. There’s not much else that the group can do down in the developmental brand.
However, I do remain worried on how they’ll be treated on the main roster as Cole, Strong, O’Reilly, and Fish may not be seen as stars in the eyes of Vince McMahon, which would be a shame. Nevertheless, I look forward to seeing what’s next for both Gargano and Cole coming out of this event.
However, my praise doesn’t end there.
The NXT Tag Team title bout was a strong opener and a great send off for Black and Ricochet. I’m not a fan of these two being a tag team all of the sudden, especially since their gimmicks are polar opposites. These guys can be stars as singles competitors, but this was still an excellent match-up that put over both teams strong.
Riddle/Dream was an interesting bout. I was curious to see how these two would clash based on their styles and damn it, this was a great title match. Riddle did come across as a bit heelish towards the end of the match-up, so I wouldn’t be surprised if he turned down the road. Either way, I’m looking forward to a rematch as these two delivered big time.
WALTER vs. Pete Dunne was my 2
nd favorite match of the night. A slow, methodical, fight that never bored in the slightest. I always love a big man vs. a little man story and these two had great chemistry.
Last, but not least, is the NXT Women’s title match. A chaotic fatal 4 way with a surprising outcome in my book. Baszler is main roster ready, so I figured she would drop the title here. I like that Sane and Shirai fought during the match. It puts over the value of the women’s title and shows that the tag team partners have something to fight for.
I assume that Baszler vs. Shirai is the next one-on-one encounter unless they build up a new challenger. That’s definitely a match I look forward to. Also, congrats to KUSHIDA for signing with NXT. I look forward to seeing what he’ll do in the developmental brand.
If it wasn’t clear, then Takeover was an amazing show that you should see. Beyond the great moves was storytelling at its finest. Every match had a different story from the last, which made it feel fresh and new.
Feel free to check back here early Sunday for the ROH-NJPW G1 Supercard special, as I’ll have a reaction to that as well.