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NXT TakeOver: New Orleans Recap and Review


source: WWE

Again, NXT finds a way to steal the whole weekend with another amazing TakeOver. Read here to find out what went down in New Orleans the eve before WrestleMania.



source: WWE

EC3 vs. Killian Dain vs. Lars Sullivan vs. Ricohet vs. Adam Cole vs. Velveteen Dream

North American Championship Ladder Match

Winner: Adam Cole


Highlights:

  • Killian Dain delivers a suicide dive to Sullivan

  • Sullivan throws a ladder at the other 5 men at once, and then indvidually

  • EC3, Ricochet, Dream, and Dain superplex Sullivan off the ladder, leaving Adam Cole at the top of it

  • Dain sends Ricochet into a ladder propped in the corner

  • Adam Cole delivers super kicks to everyone

  • Velveteen Dream hits the Purple Rainmaker on Sullivan off the top of the ladder

  • EC3 power bombs Dream onto a ladder

  • When Sullivan starts pushing a ladder over, Ricochet backflips out of the ring onto Cole and Dain

  • Dreams delivers a rolling Death Valley Driver onto a ladder held up by another ladder

  • Ricochet jumps onto Sullivan, the ladder crumbling beneath them

  • Adam Cole knocks Ricochet off the ladder and grabs the belt


Opinion:

Wow. What a way to kick off TakeOver. It’s hard to top a match like that—it was full of crazy spots and painful moves, but it didn’t use that as an excuse to shy away from storytelling. I loved how Killian Rain and Lars Sullivan constantly tried to one up each other, from throwing Ricochet around to doing identical moves and dropping two men each through ladders suspended between the apron and announce table.


All in all, this match was fantastic, and clearly showed every participant’s capabilities. Fans who knew of EC3 and Ricochet finally got to see them in action, and those who didn’t got to see what they were able to do in the ring—I would say that no one is unimpressed after this.



source: WWE

Ember Moon vs. Shayna Baszler

Winner: Shayna Baszler


Highlights:

  • Baszler slams Moon face first onto the apron

  • Shayna steps on Ember’s hand, but Ember reverses and stomps on Shayna’s hand

  • Baszler runs her shoulder into the ring post twice to try and pop a possibly dislocated shoulder back in

  • Moon delivers an Eclipse to Baszler to the outside of the ring

  • Baszler locks in the Kirifuda Clutch, but Ember reverses by picking her up and slamming her

  • Moon goes for the Eclipse but is caught into a Kirifuda Clutch, putting her to sleep for the victory


Opinion:

Nearly every move in this match looked incredibly painful. Watching Baszler pop her own shoulder back into its socket could have earned her the title alone. Whether that was planned or not, Baszler now looks stronger and willing to do anything to win.


Ember Moon is ready to be called up to the main roster, for sure. Her Eclipse finisher is probably the best finishing move in the NXT and WWE women’s divisions, and her charisma shone through in this match. I can’t wait to see her success on Monday or Tuesday nights.



source: WWE

Authors of Pain vs. Pete Dunne and Roderick Strong vs. the Undisputed Era (Kyle O’Reilly and Adam Cole)

NXT Tag Team Championship Match and Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic Finals

Winners: Undisputed Era


Highlights:

  • Akam and Rezar send Adam Cole through the announce table

  • Kyle O’Reilly captures Roderick Strong in a triangle submission and Rezar in a leglock

  • Akam throws Pete Dunne onto O’Reilly

  • O’Reilly gives Dunne a German suplex, but Dunne lands on his feet and kicks O’Reilly in the back of the neck

  • Dunne snaps Rezar’s finger back and Strong hits an olympic slam on him

  • Roddy drops Kyle onto the apron and Pete double stomps him

  • Dunne delivers a Bitter End to O’Reilly, but when he goes for the pin, Strong breaks it up

  • Strong attacks Dunne and gives him an End of Heartache, pulling O’Reilly on top of him for the pin

  • Roderick Strong takes Adam Cole’s Undisputed Era arm band and puts it on his arm


Opinion:

I’m struggling to find the words to say. I did not see this coming at all, but I also can’t think of a better way to finish this match. Just when I started to think that Dunne and Strong could pull off a victory due to their amazing teamwork in this match, the switch was flipped.


This has not only been the Undisputed Era’s night, but it’s also been Kyle O’Reilly’s coming out party. We knew he could put on a good match, but the pain he withstood was insane. He was able to bounce back as well as hit some rough moves. I’m almost disappointed that Undisputed Era was so successful at this TakeOver because I know that at the level they’re performing at, they could main event a main roster PPV.



source: WWE

Aleister Black vs. Andrade “Cien” Almas

NXT Championship Match

Winner: Aleister Black


Highlights:

  • Black hits Almas with a backflip off the top rope to the outside the ring

  • Zelina Vega delivers a hurricanrana into the steel steps

  • Black counters a springboard by giving him a knee to the face

  • Almas backflips off the top rope, but when Black rolls out of the way, he lands on his feet and immediately does a standing backflip press onto him

  • Andrade bounces off the middle rope and into a corkscrew plunger outside the ring onto Aleister

  • Vega gives Almas the title, creating a distraction and allowing her to deliver a spike hurricanrana on Black

  • Zelina puts Almas’ foot on the bottom rope just before a three count

  • Almas hits Black with a running double knee on the apron into the steel post

  • Vega jumps off the top rope and is caught by Almas, and Black delivers a Black Mass to Almas, getting the pin


Opinion:

In this match, Almas and Vega showed that they’ll do anything to get an advantage. I love whenever Zelina Vega shows off her in-ring skills, and I think it’s a good idea to draw it out for a while before making her a full-time wrestler.


I wouldn’t be surprised to see Almas and Vega on Raw or Smackdown soon, and based on this fantastic match, it’s clear they deserve it. Aleister Black is the right person to drop the title to, with his unorthodox skills and in-ring capabilities.



source: WWE

Johnny Gargano vs. Tommaso Ciampa

Unsanctioned Match

Winner: Johnny Gargano


Highlights:

  • Ciampa comes out with no music, just the sounds of loud boos and negative chants

  • The two unload on each other when the match begins, and Gargano hits Ciampa with a slingshot spear

  • Ciampa tears up the mat on the ground, exposing the concrete

  • Gargano sends Ciampa rolling across the announce table

  • Tommaso suplexes Johnny off the announce table

  • Ciampa stomps on Gargano’s head that hangs off the edge of the apron

  • Ciampa takes an injured fan’s crutches

  • Gargano slams Ciampa’s back onto the concrete and fans chant “you deserve it”

  • Johnny repeatedly attacks Ciampa with the crutch

  • Ciampa elbows Gargano in the jaw, knocking his tooth out

  • Gargano locks in the Gargano escape submission, but Ciampa eventually frees himself by poking him in the eyes

  • Gargano counters Ciampa’s running knee by smacking his knee with his own knee brace

  • Johnny breaks the crutch, but can’t make himself hit Ciampa in the head

  • Ciampa swings the knee brace at him, but Gargano reverses into a modified STF with Ciampa’s knee brace, forcing Ciampa to tap



Opinion:

This grudge match was one of the most brutal matches I have ever seen. It was such a feel-good moment watching Candice LeRae congratulate her husband on his victory—Gargano has never been able to get the big win until now.


The storytelling in this match was on par with main event matches on the WWE main roster. I believe that Gargano is more than ready for the main roster, and he can bring Candice with him. It sort of defeats the point, considering he “just got his job back” in NXT, but nothing he will do in NXT could top this. If this feud is continued, it should be on the main roster.

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