NXT kept things rolling with Takeover’s Night 2: Stand and Deliver.
The stakes were high on the second night: four titles were on the line and a heated rivalry sat atop the card as former undisputed Era members Adam Cole and Kyle O’Reilly battled each other in an uncontrolled match.
More: NXT Takeover: Stand and Deliver Night 1 result, match grade
The new champion was crowned and the show ended with violence that deserves to go out of your way.
Here’s how it all went down.
Defeated Santos Escobar. Jordan Devlin to unite NXT Cruiserweight Championship
The match went on for a long time when Pandemic prevented Devlin from defending his title in the US Escobar and picked up a version of the title and held onto it for almost a year. This gave us a much razor Ramon vs. Sean Michaels ladder match element in the integration between the talents yet to meet at NXT. On paper, it looked like it could be a night match, with odd styles and two excellent workers.
It did not reach those peaks, but it was a solid opener.
Escobar controlled the early part of the match and the action gradually increased with more daring moves and counters. Things became more violent when Escobar saw Escobar slam his knee into Devlin’s face. Devlin attacked a beautiful beak from the top of the ladder.
Legado del Fantasma attacked Devin as he was climbing the ladder. It felt completely unnecessary and nothing was added to the match, especially as the Devils recovered relatively quickly and placed a ladder at Escobar to prevent them from reaching the title. Ladder had a Spanish fly on top and eventually, the wrestlers came back to the top with titles within reach. Escobar climbed to the top of the titles to gain the head-butted Devlin title and become the undisputed champion. A very good match, but it could just execute the two that didn’t hit the heights.
grade B
Defeated Shotazi Blackheart and Amber Moon. How to retain the NXT Women’s Tag Team Championship
The match did not have a significant build-up and the teams had to suffer losses as the team had not yet started early. It was not as if they did not work hard, but it felt as if there was no edge in the match. They also seemed to hide the inexperience of Indy Hartwell well, but the champions eliminated most of the notable offense.
And then we had an unintentionally dangerous venue that was the highlight of the match and could have gone awry.
A top suicide attempt by Blackheart left an audible gasp as it flew right between Hartwell and Lira and into the railing. Fortunately, Blackheart did not injure himself and Moon dove in to find a way out.
The match ended with a double eclipse of the moon, which was intercepted by a Blackheart senton bomb.
this was good. Not bad, not great. Just fine.
An even bigger question is how will NXT keep the women’s tag team division afresh, given that there are very few tag teams?
grade B-
Defeated Johnny Gargano. Bronson Reid retains NXT North American Championship
The match felt like something had been put in to fill the time and to ensure that Gagano was featured on the takeover despite not having a fuss.
That being said, Gargano is a completely stellar wrestler who rarely, if ever, stumbles, and Reid has played his best match at NXT.
There is no question that Gargano is the best wrestler competing in the NXT, and he continues to do so whenever called upon. Not to mention, he always brings out the best in his opponents.
In the beginning, Reid used his significant size advantage to make any attempt by Gargano to rewrite his plus-size opponent. Poignana of Gargano led a Gagano escape, which Reed managed to maneuver from outside. Reid punched the one-final beat and landed Gargano in the ring with a razor edge.
Of course, Austin Theory had to get involved by putting Gargano’s leg on the ropes during a pin attempt. Reed countered the two and showed his athleticism with a suicide dive that put an end to Theory. Gargano tried to sneak in the One Final Beat, but was countered for another near collapse. Reid got the upper hand in the Battle of the Superkick, but missed Monsault was attempted by Gargano to retain Reed on the title with a pair of One Final Beat finishers.
No story There is no problem.
Gargano does it again.
Grade: B +
Karrion Cross Diff. Finn Baylor for NXT Championship
Kroos is yet to have a truly spectacular match at NXT, while Balur’s comeback after signing with WWE has been a great one.
Kroos needed this match to be great and the psychology behind it allowed it to be his best match in the NXT by a country mile.
Interestingly, Balor took it to the crosses in conjunction with strikes and presented wrestling for the first half of the match, while the challenger struggled to keep pace. It was a surprising turn that suggested Balor entered the match with a game plan to neutralize Crenk’s Pantheon to overthrow his opponent on the force of ruthlessness.
It was smart and a well-played strategy. Kroos was forced to work from the bottom as Balor tore apart his opponent. Each time the cross was seen to be in motion, it was cut off each time by an attempt or truncation, which inflicted harm on the undefeated monster.
Balor again knocked out his opponent with a counter pele kick that led to the coup de grace, but Kroos reversed the pin attempt into a chokehold that Balor ran with a double stomp.
With Scarlett’s insistence, Kroos survived a stomach strain and mortgaged Balor with a series of elbows until the champion was nearly knocked unconscious. With the momentum on his side and knowing that he might not allow Balor to get his second wind, Kroos immediately hit a doomsday sato suplex and finished the job with a pair of ferocious pairings on the back of the neck .
If Croce could have such matches, he would have a terrific run as champion. But it cannot be understood how important psychology was in shaping the narrative of the match.
grade A-
Defeated Kyle O’Reilly. Adam Cole in an irrepressible match
It was the most easily produced feud in takeovers due to members of the pre-emptive era going to war.
The worst thing of the match, so far, was his new entry. Wow. The second complaint is that it was a bit long and on the verge of welcoming it. But O’Reilly gave his friend a comeback with a brutal finish. O’Reilly put a knee wrapped in a steel chain in Cole’s head, which was mounted on a chair.
It took a while to get there, but once it was up, the end of the match was solid as well.
As expected, Cole and O’Reilly regretted and beat each other without regrets. Okay, maybe a little regret. This uncontrolled match had more wrestling matches than blood feuds between bitter rivals.
Eventually, the business was contested with chairs and chains that were brought into the fray. The use of the series was constructive as the couple used it for neckbreakers, backstabbers and submission holds.
O’Riley was having a fight with his former friend, causing him to hesitate for a moment. But he gets back into it and hits Cole with a brainbuster above the announcer’s table, which doesn’t break. O’Reilly followed Cole, but was slammed into his face. Cole brought a toolbox to the ring and attempted to use the players on O’Reilly. When he failed, he tried to hit his opponent with a tire iron.
The strike exchange was broken by a low strike from Cole. Cole knocked the referee out for attempting to use a chair, which was awkward because the match was irresponsible. Cole slammed the Panama Sunrisers, but the referee left him to count the pin. And then Cole called the referee an idiot. And that was also strange.
It was somewhere around the point that the length of the match was beginning to be felt. Fortunately, he took action on time.
There was some back-and-forth until O’Reilly drowned in the guillotine. But Cole drove O’Riley through the ramp floor. Cole pitted O’Reilly with a brainbuster on the steel steps and then drove them back into the ring, but O’Reilly barely managed to lift a shoulder to avoid pinfall. O’Reilly avoided the last shot and went for the heel hook. But Cole kills O’Riley with a chain to break the hold. O’Reilly countered the Panama Sunrise, hit Cole with a punt kick and then fell to the pass with the final shot.
The two fight again but Cole makes the mistake of negotiating too much and does not fight enough. This allowed O’Reilly to return the favor with one less blow and complete the task with that violent finish.
The final stretch was very good but the match could have ended for a few minutes and given the “uncontrolled” stipend, became a bit more violent.
grade B
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