Yet again, they knocked it out the park. To directly quote Triple H shortly after NXT Takeover: R Evolution came to it's shocking end - "I'm missing a whole load of brass rings." It may sound cliche as shit, but do you disagree with him? If you do, have numerous words with yourself. Every single performer realized the opportunity in front of them, and swung for the fences in attempt to make a name for themselves. I hate to sound like a typical modern day wrestling fan, but the time for change is surely fast approaching. Where the quality of NXT may not stop us from watching RAW every Monday, there's no debating that from top to bottom, NXT kicks utter fuck out of the main shows in terms of quality. The sooner Vince retires and Hunter takes the reigns properly will be the day that WWE finally starts to evolve. That's what this show was about. This was not only the evolution of each NXT superstar, this was the next stage of NXT's evolution. That was to include three title matches, some BIG surprises, and one of the most highly anticipated debuts in WWE history. Well, since Itami... and Balor... but that's besides the point. This was one for the ages yet again.
Pre-Show
Wouldn't really have bothered including the pre-show in this, but there's a particular reason that I am. Corey Graves was on there to state once and for all where he stood in his career. Unfortunately, it's not good news. The many concussions that have been niggling away at him have ultimately led doctors to advise him never to wrestle again, and he officially announced his retirement from pro wrestling. Heart-wrenching. He was welling up. I was welling up. We were all welling up. Graves has been one of my favorite guys since I started watching NXT and to see his career end is just horrible. In some slight compensation, we get to hear him say words every week as part of the NXT announce team, and he is was making his debut on this very show! We also received word that no time would be wasted. Kicking off the main show would be...
Kevin Owens vs CJ Parker
The very first entrance of the night was the bold man formerly known as Steen. Out he rolls to a massive pop and with some tears in his eyes. His whole life's work led up to that moment, and he milked every single second of it. Then CJ Parker happened. Owens started off with a huge splash in the corner, followed up by a Roll n Slice. Tipping his hat to our Grado there. WHAT AN ENDORSEMENT. Parker tries to get a breath of air on the outside. Nut. Kevin Owens is all business, and business means launching himself over the top rope with a picture perfect senton onto Parker. It wasn't to be the perfect start to his NXT career though, as an open palm strike seemed to break Owens nose. All cut up anyway. In saying that, Parker's hand has a big cut on it as well, so it's a bizarre one. Seemed as though it had to be cut slightly shorter so they could both be attended to, and Owens planted CJ with an emphatic catch powerbomb to give him a win in his first match with NXT. Beautiful things all round. Owens arrives. Owens bleeds. Owens wins. Owens leaves. Or does he...
Lucha Dragons (c) vs The Vaudevillains (NXT Tag Team Championship Match)
These four guys unfortunately had the arduous task of keeping Full Sail on it's feet after they had just witnessed the debut of Kevin Owens. Good thing is, Kalisto was in the ring, and he's quite good at doing stuff that tends to excite crowds. Stuff involving flips, jumps, and a particularly cool finisher. Sin Cara has gained my respect at least for the way he's adapted to being a tag wrestler, and particularly his lack of botches in NXT. Good on him. The Vaudevillains will have the gold one day, they are an unbelievably unique tag team, with all the comedy-ish stuff but are undoubtedly talented as shit in that ring. Tonight wasn't to belong to them though as Kalisto hit Simon Gotch with aforementioned cool finisher, named Salida del Sol, to retain the tag gold.
Baron Corbin vs Tye Dillinger
I like Tye Dillinger man. He and Jason Jordan are a team who, despite being blatantly used as enhancement talent, always seem to be able to showcase at least some of their ability in a match. They'll find their way climbing the ranks soon enough, but for now, Dillinger had to face the squash machine himself, Baron Corbin. Some people seem to have a problem with Baron, but I like him. He's the most sorrowed looking man on the planet and has a really cool and edgy finisher name. Emo4Lyf. In all seriousness though, the guy is scary. Intense. If only he would have a match that lasted over half a minute. Business as usual for him here. Thirty seconds. End of Days. See ya bye Tye. Bull Dempsey was stood at ringside, and there was a tense stare-down between the two. Just make it happen folks. Lets see if either men can work a lengthy match together and have us enjoy it.
Hideo Itami & Finn Balor vs The Ascension
He promised it would be something we hadn't seen before. Finn Balor promised a surprise. Us smarky cunts knew what he meant. But still. The last of the four men to enter the ring here, instead of getting immediately hit with that belter of a theme which I LOVE. There was some flashing red lights. Some smoke made it difficult to see the stage. He was lurking in there though. As the intensity levels were upped, the music hit, and there stood Finn Balor in all his glory. That body paint. In what was apparently his take on the Lickers from the Resident Evil franchise. The most majestic entrance I've ever seen. In that moment, he became a money-making machine, and I firmly believe that. Finn Balor will be world champion one day. Never to disappoint, the crowd started a "marking out" chant. Excellent stuff. Everyone was hyped bar Konnor and Viktor, who had shite running down the back of their tights. They would go on to use that as an excuse for the bursting they received at the hands and feet of our lads. No really like, but they did get a pastin'. They get right to work with the simultaneous dropkicks in the corner and used their quickness throughout to stay on top of The Ascension. Balor hit a lovely diving senton to both guys on the outside, before trying for a double foot stomp in the ring, which missed Viktor. Balor immediately hit him with an inverted brainbuster suplex for the two count, which was broken up by Konnor. Itami flew at Konnor, sending them both out the ring, and Balor attempted a spinning kick before being taken down with an STO for a two count, this time broken up by Itami. Then the age old question was answered. How do you make an arena filled with independent wrestling marks simultaneously ejaculate? You have Hideo Itramo tease fuck out of a GTS. Up Viktor went, the crowd exploded, but were ultimately let down when Konnor dragged his partner off. The Ascension set up for the Fall of Man, but Itami won't be beaten tonight, dragging Konnor out of the ring. Viktor throws a clothesline at Balor, who dodges and connects with a beautiful Pele kick. Hideo and Konnor come back into the ring, with Konnor eating a Busaiku Knee Kick. Both men went up top and hit some stomps with the highest of hang times to wrap up the win. An excellent match, and you get the feeling now that Itami and Balor are settling in properly to their roles at NXT. Onwards and upwards.
Charlotte (c) vs Sasha Banks (NXT Women's Championship Match)
See when it's done right, women's wrestling is an absolute wonder to behold. This was one of those matches that I wouldn't tire of watching. The pace of the match was perfect. The fact that Charlotte and Sasha Banks put on an absolute clinic in a co-main event spot speaks volumes about NXT. The main event was undoubtedly THE main event, but this match could have closed any other show that it was put on, that's how good it was. From the get-go, Charlotte took it to Sasha, getting her to the mat and elbowing her the face. Sasha retorts with a cracker of a chop in the corner. In-ring psychology in a WWE Divas match, ever heard the likes? Of course, Charlotte took exception to be being hit with a strike made famous by her dad, so Sasha was soon on the receiving end of a chop or two herself. Charlotte takes a stiff kick to the face, before Sasha launches her into the ring steps, which led to Sasha getting a near fall. A back and forth in the corner led to Charlotte being laid across the middle ropes, and taking a huge double knee drop right down onto her mid-section. Sasha was all about disrespect though, and instead of trying to seal the win, she mocked Ric Flair's famous strut, before trying to slap Charlotte in the face. She dodged it and rolled Sasha up for a two-count. Banks managed to lock in Charlotte's own Figure-4 Headlock, rolling Charlotte over and slamming her face onto the mat, before Charlotte used her core strength to stand up, hitting a thunderous electric chair drop in the middle of the ring. A suplex was reversed by Banks, but Charlotte held on, hitting a spinning neckbreaker, all in one motion, for another near-fall. Charlotte was then sent to the outside, and Banks threw caution to the wind as she flew at Charlotte with a suicide dive, and back in the ring, Banks only picks up another two. A back and forth of forearms, chops and knees is broken up by Charlotte turning Banks inside out with a Spear. A catch suplex by Charlotte is followed up by a moonsault attempt, which initially was dodged, but she landed on her feet and hit Banks with a standing senton for yet another near-fall. Banks drives Charlotte head first into the middle turnbuckle, then tries to hit a superplex. Charlotte powers out though, sending Banks crashing face first down onto the mat, before hitting Natural Selection from the top rope to successfully defend her Women's championship. This was women's wrestling done right, and not to say that the main roster doesn't have talent. With the likes of Natalya, Naomi, Paige, Alicia Fox and Emma up there, why aren't Divas matches getting the time nor the trust to go out there and steal the show? Well it's obviously because of who's in charge, and when the day comes that Triple H starts the full handling of main roster talent, we will see a new and improved Divas division... with pure loads of WRESTLING. All the credit on the planet to Charlotte and Sasha though. Holy fuck what a match. One to be proud of. One to watch 2 million times and never tire of it. Aye, I really liked this match.
Adrian Neville (c) vs Sami Zayn (Neville's NXT Championship vs Zayn's Career Match)
In what seemed like a rash call at the time, Sami Zayn offered to put his career in NXT on the line if he failed to win the NXT Championship from Adrian Neville. These two are great friends, but there's only so many times you can screw your pal out of a championship before he snaps. In the last episode of NXT before this show, Zayn slapped Neville in the face and insisted it's not about respect anymore, he NEEDED to win the NXT Championship at all costs. His pursuit of the title for the regular viewer of NXT has been one of the most compelling stories in ages, and - dare I say it - may even equal Daniel Bryan's pursuit of the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. A fantastic story told through even better wrestling matches. This match would close a chapter in Sami Zayn's career, and start a brand new one almost immediately. Well, not that brand new. His story is more like a Chuck Palahniuk novel, seemingly bringing a particular part of the story to an end but then picking it back up again later on in the book. Hope you enjoyed that wee metaphor there, but I've not written an actual word about the match itself yet, so I'd better get going with that.
We start off with some mat-based wrestling, headlocks and head-scissors all night long! Neville broke that up by working on the arm of Zayn, using hammerlocks and chicken wings to try and wear Zayn down, but he wriggled free and managed to hit the fastest motioning tilt-o-whirl backbreaker ever, after which Neville rolled out the ring. Staying on him though, Zayn went to the apron and hit a lovely springboard moonsault. Neville came to his senses, and let the referee get to a nine count before choosing to go back in the ring... only to be greeted by a heel kick. Then it was Neville's turn to enjoy a period of dominance, pulling together a succession of near falls with a massive forearm smash, a snapmare-low dropkick combination, a corner uppercut and a top rope dropkick. Zayn was out on his feet, but got a head of steam with two stiff lariats followed by a dropkick. Neville again left the ring, and Sami tried his senton. Making his way back into the ring, Neville sent Zayn to the outside and tried a dive of his own, but Sami was quick to respond, sliding back in and sending him over, before successfully hitting the diving senton. Back in the ring, Zayn went up top and connected with a flying crossbody for another near fall. Neville rallied, but his handspring was caught up on Zayn's shoulders, who reversed it into his spinning sit out powerbomb for yet another two. After sending Sami into the ropes, Neville caught him on the rebound and hit a lovely German suplex with a bringing pin for a two, and then reversed Zayn's tornado DDT into a sit-out powerbomb of his own, but it still didn't get the job done. Both men were exhausted, and they got the crowd to electric levels of intensity with some traded forearm shots, before Zayn exploded with a huge clothesline which turned Neville inside out. He attempted the Helluva kick, but Neville was wary of it, managing to get a boot up, and he ascended the top rope looking for the Red Arrow. The bold Zayn would not be denied though, getting his knees up and then locking in the Koji Clutch. It looked as though Neville may tap but he managed to get his foot on the bottom rope to break up the hold. Zayn looked to put him away, but his exploder suplex attempt was countered with a rollup, and upon kicking out, inadvertently sent Neville into the referee. That's when things started looking pear-shaped, as Zayn's compassion took over, and checking on the ref led to him being superkicked and hit with a marvelous looking inverted hurricanrana, but he somehow managed to get the shoulder up again. Zayn went on the offensive again, hitting two German suplexes, before turning the third into a half nelson, with Neville landing face first. Squirming out of the ring, Neville thought he was safe, but soon found himself knocked spark out when Zayn hit him with the tornado DDT through the middle rope and onto the floor. This was it, Neville was set up perfectly for the Helluva kick, but just as Zayn made the connection, Neville pulled the ref into the way, resulting in both of them taking the force of Zayn's finisher. Neville left the ring and grabbed his title, intending on using it to get a cheap victory, but Sami saw him coming, kicking him in the face. With the referee still down, Sami picked up the belt and looked for all the world as though he was going to hit Neville with it, but eventually, and literally, said (or rather screamed) "FUCK THAT". He turned to throw the belt out the ring, but Neville rolled him up just as the ref came to, and Zayn's sportsmanship again cost him. OR NOT. He flew out of the pin in a rage, grabbing Neville and hitting his exploder suplex, before leveling his own mind, and connecting with the flushest of Helluva kicks, and three seconds later... we had a NEEEEEEEEEEW NXT CHAMPION!
Pure artwork. The ultimate payoff. Feel-good moment. I take pride in the amount of times I manage to stop myself from shedding tears over wrestling. However, when the roster emptied to the ring to celebrate with Sami, I couldn't hold it in. Kevin Owens stormed past everyone, getting into the ring first and giving the most emotional bro-hug the world has ever seen. Tears everywhere, Sami was crying. Kevin was crying. We were ALL crying - don't fucking lie. After Owens eventually let him go, and he was raised in the air like the king that he is, Sami was faced with his pal and opponent. Offering his hand to Neville, it lseemed Adrian was having none of it, kicking his hand away, but then giving him a hug of his own before raising his hand. Lovely wee touch. Everyone emptied the ring and gave Sami his moment as he soaked in the adulation of Full Sail University, and everyone watching at home. He sat on the apron staring at his title, when his besto came back down. Owens gave Sami another hug, and raised his hand as they began heading up the ramp together. An absolute fairytale ending.
Nope.
We should have saw it coming. I'm sure a lot of us did see it coming. Not this soon though. Not at that exact moment. The collective joy brought about by Zayn finally winning the NXT championship was crushed as Kevin Owens grabbed his best pal and sent him crashing onto the ramp by the back of his head. The expression had changed. Instead of the pure pride that was etched across Owens' face minutes earlier, it was now anger, determination, and a slight hint of sadness. He picked Zayn up, and powerbombed him straight onto the edge of the ring, leaving him barely conscious. He said in his VTs that it didn't matter who he went through, and I'm sure he'd have done the same to Adrian Neville, had he won the match. But it wasn't. It was Sami Zayn, and that's what makes it all the more painful. These two will continue doing what they've done for all these years better than anyone - batter utter fuck out of each other. It was always going to happen, the feud between these two has been so memorable. They really are best friends, but even greater enemies, and this feud will have the spotlight fixed firmly on NXT for a very long time.
This show was just fantastic. From top to bottom one of the best WWE products all year, and I believe it is well worthy of receiving top grades here. A flawless 2 hour special, with the feel-good moment to predominately top off a phenomenal night, only for the euphoria to die in a matter of seconds. NXT Takeover: R Evolution gets a mighty 10/10. Can't wait for the next one.
