{"id":3254,"date":"2017-11-18T19:00:18","date_gmt":"2017-11-19T01:00:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/cnjradio.com\/blog\/?p=3254"},"modified":"2017-11-19T14:38:40","modified_gmt":"2017-11-19T20:38:40","slug":"nxt-takeover-wargames-recap-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cnjradio.com\/blog\/nxt-takeover-wargames-recap-review\/","title":{"rendered":"NXT Takeover: WarGames &#8211; Recap &#038; Review"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/cnjradio.com\/blog\/?cat=255\">NXT<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/cnjradio.com\/blog\/?cat=1756\">Takeover: WarGames<\/a><\/strong><\/span><br \/>\n#WWENXT<\/p>\n<p><strong>Original Air Date: November 18, 2017<\/strong><br \/>\n<strong>Event Date: November 18, 2017<\/strong> (aired live)<\/p>\n<p><strong>City: <a href=\"https:\/\/cnjradio.com\/blog\/?tag=houston-tx\"><span style=\"color: #800080;\">Houston<\/span><\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/cnjradio.com\/blog\/?tag=texas\"><span style=\"color: #800080;\">TX<\/span><\/a><\/strong><br \/>\n<strong>Venue: <a href=\"https:\/\/cnjradio.com\/blog\/?tag=toyota-center\"><span style=\"color: #800080;\">Toyota Center<\/span><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Commentary: Mauro Ranallo, Nigel McGuinness, Percy Watson<\/strong><br \/>\n<strong>Ring Announcer: Mike Rome<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Theme Songs: &#8220;Executioner&#8217;s Tax (A Swing of the Axe)&#8221; by Power Trip, &#8220;Play&#8221; by Marmozets<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>Video<\/em><\/span><br \/>\nIn war, what do you fight for?<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><strong>Match 1<\/strong><\/span><br \/>\n<strong>Kassius Ohno vs Lars Sullivan<\/strong><br \/>\n(referee: Tom Castor)<\/p>\n<!-- Content Reveal v2.3.1 -->\n<div class=\"scrhead\" onmouseover=\"document.body.style.cursor='pointer'\" onmouseout=\"document.body.style.cursor='default'\" onclick=\"acr_swap_display('ran_69e5e67ad9a50','0','','')\">\n<script type=\"text\/javascript\">document.writeln('<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cnjradio.com\/blog\/wp-content\/plugins\/simple-content-reveal\/images\/image1.gif\" class=\"scrimg\" id=\"scrimg_ran_69e5e67ad9a50\" alt=\"Reveal content\" title=\"Reveal content\"\/>');<\/script> Show\/Hide Results\n<\/div>\n<script type=\"text\/javascript\">document.writeln('<div style=\"display: none\" class=\"scrdiv\" id=\"scrdiv_ran_69e5e67ad9a50\">');<\/script>\n<\/p>\n<p><strong>Result: Lars Sullivan wins via pinfall after a Freak Accident<\/strong><br \/>\n<strong>Time: 5:15<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><script type=\"text\/javascript\">document.writeln('<\/div>');<\/script>\n<!-- End of Content Reveal -->\n\n<p><strong>Match Thoughts<\/strong><br \/>\nThis was an okay match, but I didn&#8217;t care for it much personally. Ohno looked pretty good. He used many strikes that looked really solid and hard. I liked that. Unfortunately, they&#8217;re building Sullivan as an unstoppable monster, so there was a lot of no-selling and yelling from him. I fell like Ohno did as much as he could, but I wasn&#8217;t entertained much by this. I&#8217;m not really a fan of generic monsters who yell and flex when they&#8217;re hit but don&#8217;t do much else.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>Ring Area<\/em><\/span><br \/>\nTyler Bate, Trent Seven, Mark Andrews, and Wolfgang are in the front row.<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>Backstage<\/em><\/span><br \/>\nThe Undisputed Era discusses strategy when William Regal walks up. We can&#8217;t hear anything they&#8217;re saying though.<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>Video<\/em><\/span><br \/>\nBuildup for Velveteen Dream versus Aleister Black.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><strong>Match 2<\/strong><\/span><br \/>\n<strong>Aleister Black vs Velveteen Dream<\/strong><br \/>\n(referee: Drake Wuertz)<\/p>\n<!-- Content Reveal v2.3.1 -->\n<div class=\"scrhead\" onmouseover=\"document.body.style.cursor='pointer'\" onmouseout=\"document.body.style.cursor='default'\" onclick=\"acr_swap_display('ran_69e5e67ad9b3a','0','','')\">\n<script type=\"text\/javascript\">document.writeln('<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cnjradio.com\/blog\/wp-content\/plugins\/simple-content-reveal\/images\/image1.gif\" class=\"scrimg\" id=\"scrimg_ran_69e5e67ad9b3a\" alt=\"Reveal content\" title=\"Reveal content\"\/>');<\/script> Show\/Hide Results\n<\/div>\n<script type=\"text\/javascript\">document.writeln('<div style=\"display: none\" class=\"scrdiv\" id=\"scrdiv_ran_69e5e67ad9b3a\">');<\/script>\n<\/p>\n<p><strong>Result: Aleister Black wins via pinfall after Black Mass<\/strong><br \/>\n<strong>Time: 14:40<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><script type=\"text\/javascript\">document.writeln('<\/div>');<\/script>\n<!-- End of Content Reveal -->\n\n<p><strong>Match Thoughts<\/strong><br \/>\nGreat match! Velveteen Dream really surprised me in this one, and Aleister Black continues to show more of what he can do. I didn&#8217;t expect Dream to get as much offense as he did in this, and most of this match really was fought at an even level. Either man could have won this, and there were a few moments for each of them where I would have believed and been satisfied by their victory. The action was great with lots of strikes and unique moves, and the personality clash between these two was a lot of fun to watch. I&#8217;ll definitely watch this match again.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>Ring Area<\/em><\/span><br \/>\nWith Velveteen Dream still recovering on the mat, Aleister Black, sitting down next to Dream, tells his opponent to enjoy infamy. He also calls Velveteen Dream by his full name. Black slowly walks away as Dream smiles slightly.<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>Backstage<\/em><\/span><br \/>\nSAnitY is approached by William Regal in their locker room. Nikki Cross runs away as they speak.<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>Ring Area<\/em><\/span><br \/>\nAsuka, Funaki, and Finn Balor are in the crowd.<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>Video<\/em><\/span><br \/>\nBuildup for the NXT Women&#8217;s Title Match.<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>Ring Area<\/em><\/span><br \/>\nWilliam Regal hands the NXT Women&#8217;s Title belt to referee Eddie Orengo prior to the next match. The four women competing for the title come out, but Billie Kay chooses to let Peyton Royce head to the ring by herself.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><strong>Match 3<\/strong><\/span><br \/>\n<strong><a href=\"https:\/\/cnjradio.com\/blog\/?tag=fatal-four-way-match\">Fatal Four Way<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/cnjradio.com\/blog\/?tag=nxt-womens-title-match\">NXT Women&#8217;s Title Match<\/a><\/strong><br \/>\n<strong>Nikki Cross vs Kairi Sane vs Peyton Royce vs Ember Moon<\/strong><br \/>\n(referee: Eddie Orengo)<\/p>\n<!-- Content Reveal v2.3.1 -->\n<div class=\"scrhead\" onmouseover=\"document.body.style.cursor='pointer'\" onmouseout=\"document.body.style.cursor='default'\" onclick=\"acr_swap_display('ran_69e5e67ad9b72','0','','')\">\n<script type=\"text\/javascript\">document.writeln('<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cnjradio.com\/blog\/wp-content\/plugins\/simple-content-reveal\/images\/image1.gif\" class=\"scrimg\" id=\"scrimg_ran_69e5e67ad9b72\" alt=\"Reveal content\" title=\"Reveal content\"\/>');<\/script> Show\/Hide Results\n<\/div>\n<script type=\"text\/javascript\">document.writeln('<div style=\"display: none\" class=\"scrdiv\" id=\"scrdiv_ran_69e5e67ad9b72\">');<\/script>\n<\/p>\n<p><strong>Result: Ember Moon pins Nikki Cross after an Eclipse and becomes the new NXT Women&#8217;s Champ<\/strong><br \/>\n<strong>Time: 9:52<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><script type=\"text\/javascript\">document.writeln('<\/div>');<\/script>\n<!-- End of Content Reveal -->\n\n<p><strong>Match Thoughts<\/strong><br \/>\nGreat match! All four women looked great here, but Moon felt like the heavy favorite here not just because of the crowd, but because of the way the match went. Most of the action in the match seemed to revolve around Moon, and she seemed to be on the offensive more than any other woman (and Nikki Cross seemed to take most of the beatings). That&#8217;s not to say the other women didn&#8217;t have great moments though. Everyone had nice moments and there were some pretty decent false finishes, though I never really felt like the match was going to end until it actually did. This was a good way to crown a new champ.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>Ring Area<\/em><\/span><br \/>\nAfter the match, William Regal enters the ring to hand the NXT Women&#8217;s Title to the new champ. Asuka runs into the ring and asks to hand the belt over, which Regal allows.<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>Backstage<\/em><\/span><br \/>\nWilliam Regal approaches AoP, Roderick Strong, and Paul Ellering.<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>Ring Area<\/em><\/span><br \/>\nKevin Owens (wearing an Undisputed Era shirt) is in the crowd. Samoa Joe is as well. They&#8217;re not sitting together.<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>Video<\/em><\/span><br \/>\nBuildup for the NXT Title Match.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><strong>Match 4<\/strong><\/span><br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/cnjradio.com\/blog\/?tag=nxt-title-match\"><strong>NXT Title Match<\/strong><\/a><br \/>\n<strong>Andrade &#8220;Cien&#8221; Almas<\/strong> w\/ Zelina Vega <strong>vs Drew McIntyre<\/strong> (NXT Champ)<br \/>\n(referee: Darryl Sharma)<\/p>\n<!-- Content Reveal v2.3.1 -->\n<div class=\"scrhead\" onmouseover=\"document.body.style.cursor='pointer'\" onmouseout=\"document.body.style.cursor='default'\" onclick=\"acr_swap_display('ran_69e5e67ad9ba4','0','','')\">\n<script type=\"text\/javascript\">document.writeln('<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cnjradio.com\/blog\/wp-content\/plugins\/simple-content-reveal\/images\/image1.gif\" class=\"scrimg\" id=\"scrimg_ran_69e5e67ad9ba4\" alt=\"Reveal content\" title=\"Reveal content\"\/>');<\/script> Show\/Hide Results\n<\/div>\n<script type=\"text\/javascript\">document.writeln('<div style=\"display: none\" class=\"scrdiv\" id=\"scrdiv_ran_69e5e67ad9ba4\">');<\/script>\n<\/p>\n<p><strong>Result: Andrade Almas wins via pinfall after a hanging piledriving DDT and becomes the new NXT Champ<\/strong><br \/>\n<strong>Time: 14:54<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><script type=\"text\/javascript\">document.writeln('<\/div>');<\/script>\n<!-- End of Content Reveal -->\n\n<p><strong>Match Thoughts<\/strong><br \/>\nFantastic match! This match was constructed extremely well. It had a great buildup from beginning to end, so it progressed nicely from some early back-and-forth to a very hard-hitting and exciting finale. It even had a lot of logic in Vega&#8217;s shenanigans throughout the match. She picked her spots, and when one didn&#8217;t work, she figured out how to do it better later on in the match. Both guys were very impressive here. McIntyre showed incredible strength and agility. Every move he did looked like he put his entire body into it. Almas showed great ring awareness and agility. He put together some big moments to combat McIntyre&#8217;s superior strength. A great match-up and a great match.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>Video<\/em><\/span><br \/>\nBuildup for the War Games match.<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>Ring Area<\/em><\/span><br \/>\nDustin Rhodes and Arn Anderson are in the crowd to watch the main event.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><strong>Match 5<\/strong><\/span><br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/cnjradio.com\/blog\/?tag=war-games-match\"><strong>War Games Match<\/strong><\/a><br \/>\n<strong>SAnitY<\/strong> (NXT Tag Champs) <strong>vs Undisputed Era vs Roderick Strong &amp; Authors of Pain<\/strong> w\/ Paul Ellering<br \/>\n(referees: Drake Wuertz, Eddie Orengo; stage referees: Tom Castor, Darryl Sharma)<\/p>\n<!-- Content Reveal v2.3.1 -->\n<div class=\"scrhead\" onmouseover=\"document.body.style.cursor='pointer'\" onmouseout=\"document.body.style.cursor='default'\" onclick=\"acr_swap_display('ran_69e5e67ad9bd4','0','','')\">\n<script type=\"text\/javascript\">document.writeln('<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cnjradio.com\/blog\/wp-content\/plugins\/simple-content-reveal\/images\/image1.gif\" class=\"scrimg\" id=\"scrimg_ran_69e5e67ad9bd4\" alt=\"Reveal content\" title=\"Reveal content\"\/>');<\/script> Show\/Hide Results\n<\/div>\n<script type=\"text\/javascript\">document.writeln('<div style=\"display: none\" class=\"scrdiv\" id=\"scrdiv_ran_69e5e67ad9bd4\">');<\/script>\n<\/p>\n<p><strong>Result: Undisputed Era wins when Adam Cole pins Eric Young after a running knee strike through a chair<\/strong><br \/>\nStarting Competitors: Eric Young, Adam Cole, Roderick Strong<br \/>\n5 Minute Entrants: Bobby Fish, Kyle O&#8217;Reilly<br \/>\n8 Minute Entrants: Authors of Pain<br \/>\n11 Minute Entrants: Killian Dain, Alexander Wolfe<br \/>\n<strong>Time: 36:32<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><script type=\"text\/javascript\">document.writeln('<\/div>');<\/script>\n<!-- End of Content Reveal -->\n\n<p><strong>Match Thoughts<\/strong><br \/>\nGreat match. This was mostly about chaos and violence, and it delivered a lot of both. The first third of the match was all about the anticipation of which team would enter the cage next, and it worked well as a warmup for what was to come. Once all three teams got into the cage, everything broke loose. There were people flying everywhere, and numerous weapons were used. Every member of SAnitY bled, tabled were broken, and gigantic multiple-man moves punctuated the chaos. The match did slow down somewhat towards the end when someone climbed the cage and spent a considerable amount of time at the top, but the payoff worked. I liked how the match ended. It came down to what was essentially a one on one, which was a great way to infuse this crazy match with a bit of story that will drive the feuds going forward.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><strong>Show Impressions<\/strong><\/span><br \/>\nThis was another great NXT Takeover. The opening match felt like it could have been a pre-show match (if Takeover ever had a match on their pre-shows), but everything else was highly entertaining. War Games was the main draw here, and it was deserving of its hype, but the singles matches before it did not disappoint at all. NXT continues to push against the main roster for pure excitement in the ring.<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><strong>Match of the Night<\/strong><\/span><br \/>\n<strong>NXT Title Match<\/strong><br \/>\nAs much fun as the War Games match was, McIntyre versus Almas was a better match in my opinion. The big moments felt more exciting, and the stakes were higher in my opinion since the NXT Title was on the line. I don&#8217;t really have anything negative to say about this match. I loved every minute of it.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>NXT provides another great Takeover with a series of fantastic matches leading up to the chaotic and violent return of War Games!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":3255,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[255,297,1756,622],"tags":[648,1040,1162,1093,850,844,556,1067,749,718,1146,539,182,1760,549,999,370,839,655,46,1626,1759,1150,514,1160,719,1480,1147,737,871,638,1095,567,687,558,852,1130,682,1039,801,170,1092,683,1757,1620,1133,1627,1135,1136,1761,1357,1758,76,1192,7,1675],"class_list":["post-3254","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nxt","category-show-results","category-takeover","category-wwe","tag-adam-cole","tag-akam","tag-aleister-black","tag-alexander-wolfe","tag-andrade-cien-almas","tag-arn-anderson","tag-asuka","tag-authors-of-pain","tag-billie-kay","tag-bobby-fish","tag-darryl-sharma","tag-drake-wuertz","tag-drew-mcintyre","tag-dustin-rhodes","tag-eddie-orengo","tag-ember-moon","tag-eric-young","tag-fatal-four-way-match","tag-finn-balor","tag-funaki","tag-houston-tx","tag-kairi-sane","tag-kassius-ohno","tag-kevin-owens","tag-killian-dain","tag-kyle-oreilly","tag-lars-sullivan","tag-mark-andrews","tag-mauro-ranallo","tag-mike-rome","tag-nigel-mcguinness","tag-nikki-cross","tag-nxt","tag-nxt-title-match","tag-nxt-womens-title-match","tag-paul-ellering","tag-percy-watson","tag-peyton-royce","tag-rezar","tag-roderick-strong","tag-samoa-joe","tag-sanity","tag-takeover","tag-takeover-wargames","tag-texas","tag-tom-castor","tag-toyota-center","tag-trent-seven","tag-tyler-bate","tag-undisputed-era","tag-velveteen-dream","tag-war-games-match","tag-william-regal","tag-wolfgang","tag-wwe","tag-zelina-vega"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cnjradio.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3254","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cnjradio.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cnjradio.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cnjradio.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cnjradio.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3254"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/cnjradio.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3254\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3257,"href":"https:\/\/cnjradio.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3254\/revisions\/3257"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cnjradio.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3255"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cnjradio.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3254"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cnjradio.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3254"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cnjradio.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3254"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}