NXT Takeover: San Antonio

Shows what I know.

As expected, Takeover SA was a pretty decent show. Not a great show. Slightly better than on paper, though, and the main event really exceeded my expectations.



Eric Young vs. Tye Dillinger: If Tye Dillinger doesn't win this, I don't understand anything anymore. I mean, he's got to be showing up as a surprise #10 entrant, right? Get called up to the main roster, where he can go to Raw and be Raw's Apollo Crews? (Sorry, Tye, but we both know that's what's gonna happen). So he's gotta win here.

Well, I was wrong about the win, but I hope this means the wrestling tradition holds true and Dillinger is going out putting Young over. I wish it hadn't, though. Dillinger's whole story is not getting the big win and here, once again, he didn't get the big win. Match was really good, though, and the crowd was super fucking hot for Dillinger. San Antonio's gonna explode if he shows up in the Rumble and then WWE's gonna waste it. (0/1)

Roderick Strong vs. Andrade "Cien" Almas: This one depends on whether they're gonna feud for a while or not. Almas hasn't done much of anything since he debutes and is a permanent fixture of the NXT midcard. Roddy Strong is new and hot and the greatest boring motherfucker in pro wrestling today. I have no doubt that Strong will eventually emerge on top, it's just a question of how many matches it'll be. I'm gonna say Almas cheats to win. 

And Strong wins in a competent but not terribly exciting match. I think Strong could be big in NXT with a little more time, but this match didn't do a lot to further it. At least a Strong win probably means there won't be an ongoing feud. (0/2)

NXT Tag Team Title Match: The Authors of Pain vs. DIY: I don't like this as a prediction. Basically, we either give DIY a one-Takeover run as champs, or we give the Authors of Pain their first defeat as monster heels. My gut's telling me this one goes to the Authors, making DIY chase the belts again and regain them. I expect the Authors to get called up before DIY does because, well, this is the WWE.

And the Authors take it. Match was decent, but it was basically just a series of momentum shifts - Authors dominate, DIY comes back, repeat until Authors counter the double kick into the SUpercollider and take the belts. (1/3)

Seth Rollins Takes Over Takeover

This was an awesome surprise, mixing HH's behind the scenes role as the brains behind NXT with his storyline feud with Rollins. It didn't amount to much, but it really did a nice job of connecting NXT with the other shows and making the whole "NXT isn't developmental anymore it's its own promotion" bullshit and making it sort of true.

NXT Women's Title: Peyton Royce vs. Nikki Cross vs. Billie Kay vs. Asuka: The story, to me, demands an Asuka win. But the Fatal Four Way format allows Asuka to lose the belt without being pinned, and that's a strong signal that Something Is Up. So I'm going to say they put the belt on Nikki Cross, possibly starting a Sanity Goes After All The Belts story.

Almost, but not quite. The match was amazing when the Aussie Mean Girls weren't in the ring, but the Fatal Four Way was the stipulation so that Nikki Cross could go through a a table and be out of the finish, where Asuka kicked the shit out of all of Australia and retained. Which means we're going to see Nikki Cross as Asuka's next feud, which I'm happy with. (1/4)

NXT Title Match: Bobby Roode vs. Shinsuke Nakamura: I have to assume Roode will be getting the belt when Nakamura gts called up, and not before. There's nothing for Nakamura when he drops the belt except getting it back again if he doesn't move to the main roster. And I don't think Nakamura's moving to the main roster yet, because they don't want to dilute Samoa Joe's debut. So Nakamura retains.

Wow. I was totally wrong on this, and also, for the record, I fell in love with this match almost despite myself. The pace was slower than I usually like, but it was really one of the most well-defined battles between two CHARACTERS that I've seen in a long time. Even an extended Nakamura knee injury sequence worked despite going on a minute or two longer than it should have. Roode won, but it took a knee injury and two Glorious DDT's to do it. But where does Nakamura go from here? Oh, and one for five. I was awful at predicting this.