NXT North American Champion Johnny Gargano has his challenger for TakeOver: Stand & Deliver night two.
Gargano will defend his North American title against Bronson Reed at TakeOver: Stand & Deliver night two tomorrow (Thursday, April 8). Reed challenging for Gargano’s title was confirmed when he won the number one contender’s Gauntlet Eliminator match at TakeOver: Stand & Deliver night one tonight.
Reed won the Gauntlet Eliminator match by last eliminating Isaiah “Swerve” Scott. Cameron Grimes, LA Knight, Dexter Lumis, and Leon Ruff were the other participants in the gauntlet. Reed also eliminated Knight during the match.
After the Gauntlet Eliminator match, Gargano came out to the stage and exchanged words with Reed.
Gargano is a three-time NXT North American Champion. His current reign with the title began when he defeated Ruff and Damian Priest in a triple threat match at TakeOver; WarGames last December.
TakeOver: Stand & Deliver night two is airing live on Peacock in the United States and the WWE Network elsewhere. The main card will begin at 8 p.m. Eastern time. There will also be a pre-show starting at 7 p.m. Eastern.
Here’s the updated lineup for night two of TakeOver: Stand & Deliver:
NXT Champion Finn Balor defends against Karrion Kross
Unsanctioned match: Adam Cole vs. Kyle O’Reilly
Ladder match to determine undisputed NXT Cruiserweight Champion: Jordan Devlin vs. Santos Escobar
NXT North American Champion Johnny Gargano defends against Bronson Reed
NXT Women’s Tag Team Champions Shotzi Blackheart & Ember Moon defend against Candice LeRae & Indi Hartwell
NXT TakeOver: Stand & Deliver kicks off tonight with night one airing live on the USA Network and Peacock in the United States, and the WWE Network internationally.
In the main event, Io Shirai will put her NXT Women’s Championship on the line against Raquel Gonzalez. Shirai, who has been NXT Women’s Champion for more than 300 days, was last pinned by Gonzalez in WarGames this past December.
The NXT United Kingdom Championship will also be up for grabs as WALTER defends against Tommaso Ciampa tonight. WALTER’s reign as champion recently reached the two-year mark.
New NXT Tag Team Champions will be crowned as MSK (Wes Lee & Nash Carter), The Grizzled Young Veterans (Zach Gibson & James Drake), and Legado Del Fantasma (Raul Mendoza & Joaquin Wilde) face off in a triple threat match. The NXT Tag Team titles were declared vacant last month after Danny Burch suffered a separated shoulder.
A Gauntlet Eliminator match on tonight’s show will decide NXT North American Champion Johnny Gargano’s challenger for TakeOver: Stand & Deliver night two. The Gauntlet Eliminator participants and their order of entry were decided by a battle royal last week. Leon Ruff will enter first, followed by Isaiah “Swerve” Scott, Bronson Reed, Cameron Grimes, Dexter Lumis, and LA Knight.
The Gauntlet Eliminator will begin with Ruff and Scott in the ring, then a new entrant will be added every three minutes. Eliminations can occur via pinfall or submission.
Pete Dunne vs. Kushida in a match to prove who’s the superior technical wrestler rounds out the main card. On the pre-show, Toni Storm will face Zoey Stark. The pre-show begins at 7 p.m. Eastern time and will air on Peacock in the U.S. and the WWE Network elsewhere, along with WWE’s social media platforms.
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Media personality Sam Roberts and MMA commentator Jimmy Smith welcomes viewers to the pre-show. Smith reportedly had a recent audition with WWE. Now he is hosting the pre-show alongside Roberts.
Sports media journalist Arash Markazi joined the show via a virtual link. He offered his thoughts on the show.
The pre-show so far has separate sit-down interviews conducted by Samoa Joe with both WALTER and Tommaso Ciampa. LA Knight cut a promo during a backstage interview with McKenzie Mitchell. Lots of hard sell too, of course.
Mickie James and Vic Joseph are on commentary for the pre-show match that is up next.
Zoey Stark defeated Toni Storm
Stark upset Storm via pinfall in a good match. This was not your average WWE pre-show match. They worked really hard, and the live crowd in the CWC helped to make it more dramatic.
They started with grappling where they traded headlocks. Stark on offense and Storm was reeling, until she cut off Stark. Storm grounded Stark, and Strorm began working her over. Stark was able to superplex Storm, and the tide began to turn.
Trading strikes, and they trade counters. Stark with a suplex and a running knee for a near fall. Storm answered back with a sit-out facebuster for a two count. Stark countered Storm’s finisher, and she leveled Storm with a kick.
Storm with German suplexes, and she went for Storm Zero. Stark then countered into an inside cradle, and she pinned Storm for the upset.
Samoa Joe did interviews with Raquel Gonzalez and NXT Women’s Champion Io Shirai ahead of their title match later on.
By the way, there is ramp leading to the ring like Clash of the Champions back in the day.
The main card opened with Nita Strauss playing an instrumental version of the “Star Spangled Banner” on electric guitar.
Pete Dunne defeated Kushida
Dunne pinned Kushida in a great opener. This was quite possibly Kushida’s best match in NXT. More matches between these two, please.
They started by each trying to catch the other in a submission hold. The grappling continued as they fought for control. Dunne with joint manipulation, and he tripped up Kushida on an attempted handspring. Dunne gave Kushda the X-plex on the apron.
A slugfest developed, and the fight spilled onto the ramp. Great sequences as they went back-and-forth. Dunne snapped Kushida’s fingers, but Kushida answered back with a fisherman’s buster into a small package. On USA the show went to a picture-in-picture commercial break, but Peacock stayed on full screen with the match.
They both went for cross-armbreakers, and they traded lots of strikes. Awesome stuff so far, and it was only getting better. They fought on the turnbuckles, and Kushida with a flip off the top into a Hoverboard Lock. Dunne escaped, but Kushida tied up Dunne in another hold.
Kushida with a flying knee drop on Dunne’s elbow. Back to the Hoverbaord Lock. Dunne escaped again, and he targeted the fingers. Kushida went for his big punch, but he sold his own hand. Dunne a moment later executed the Bitter End, and he covered Kushida for a pinfall.
Bronson Reed won the Gauntlet Eliminator
Reed with the win earned a title shot at NXT North American Champion Johnny Gargano. The match overall was good and action-packed.
Leon Ruff during his entrance crawled onto the ramp. Isaiah “Swerve” Scott was close behind, and he had apparently attacked Ruff before the match. Ruff fired up and they brawled around ringside before getting into the ring. All of this took place during a commercial break on USA, but it aired live on Peacock. After the break, the match began in the ring.
Scott with heat on Ruff, but Ruff came back by springing off the announce desk into a cutter on the floor. Scott soon cut off Ruff. They fought on the turnbuckles, and Ruff sent Scott flying with a Super Frankensteiner.
Bronson Reed entered the match. Ruff went for a flying crossbody on Reed, but Reed caught him. Reed then flung him into the ring. Reed proceeded to clean house. Power moves by Reed, and then he sat on Ruff. Triple German spot with Reed suplexing Scott while Scott also suplexed Ruff.
Cameron Grimes strolled down the ramp as the next entrant. Grimes moonsaulted into the ring, landing on Reed. After Reed was sent outside, Grimes bribed Scott with a fistfull of cash money. Scott then teamed up to help Grimes.
Ruff was taking all kinds of big bumps, including an exploder into a corner. Good grief. He was also the first eliminated.
Dexter Lumis joined the match as the next entrant. Lumis cleared the ring, and then he faced off with Reed. Everybody was sent out of the ring just before the newest entrant.
LA Knight came out cutting a promo. He kicked a downed Reed on his way to the ring. Reed interrupted Knight’s promo to begin kicking his butt. Reed made a comeback on everybody.
Lumis was eliminated when Knight cradled him for a pinfall. Reed then eliminated Knight via pinfall. Lumis grabbed Knight, and he put him to sleep. Great three-way dance develolped between Reed, Grimes and Scott.
Scott eliminated Grimes after reversing an O’Connor roll with a handfull of tights. That left Scott and Reed as the final two.
Reed took a Death Valley Driver on the apron. It looked very painful. Scott with a 450 splash for a near fall. Reed kicked out after another two count moments later.
Reed powerbombed Scott, and he also planted Scott with a Air Raid Crash. Reed finished the match with the Tsunami off the top to score the deciding pinfall.
NXT United Kingdom Champion WALTER defeated Tommaso Ciampa to retain his title
WALTER pinned Ciampa to retain in a slobberknocker. Great bout. Highly recommend. They beat the heck out of each other.
Ciampa was notably back in trunks instead of his more recent gear. He has also shaved his head again.
Just when Ciampa thought he was in control, the monster inside WALTER awoke. WALTER struck down Ciampa, and WALTER pummeled him at ringside. Ciampa ducked a chop, and WALTER almsot chopped the anounce desk in half. That is no exaggeration.
Ciampa in the ring blocked another chop, but he could not lift WALTER. Ciampa targeted a hand, but WALTER mowed him down with a big boot to the face.
WALTER grounded Ciampa on the mat, and WALTER again booted him the face. WALTER punished Ciampa, but WALTER kept selling his hand. Ciampa fought back with lariats, yet he was unable to knock WALTER off his feet. Ciampa kept hitting WALTER countless times with lariats before finally knocking WALTER off his feet. Ciampa followed with an Air Raid Crash for a near fall.
WALTER with a backdrop for a two count, but Ciampa answered back with Devil’s Wings for another near fall. WALTER caught Ciampa in a sleeper, and Ciampa used the injured hand to break the hold. Suplex by WALTER, and the he hit Ciampa with a lariat from hell. Ciampa somehow kicked out.
Ciampa countered WALTER to apply a Fujiwara armbar. WALTER looked to be in trouble as Ciampa stomped on him. WALTER with a counter, and he clubbed Ciampa with his good hand. They fought on the top turnbuckle, and Ciampa gave WALTER an avalanche Air Raid Crash.
They traded vicious chops. WALTER targeted the neck, and twice powerbombed Ciampa. Nonetheless, Ciampa managed to kick out. Sleep suplex by WALTER, and he followed with a hard knife edge chop before covering Ciampa with a pinfall.
MSK (Wes Lee & Nash Carter) defeated Grizzled Young Veterans (James Drake & Zack Gibson) and Legado del Fantasma (Joaquin Wilde & Raul Mendoza) in a triple threat match to win the vacant NXT Tag Team Championship
MSK won the three-way to become the new champs. This was pretty dang good. Sometimes there was so much action it was hard to keep up with it all, but everybody worked extremely hard.
So three wrestlers are legal at a time, and their partners can tag in from the apron. Lots of action at the start, and too much to name. The Vets slowed things down, but MSK fired up into a flying comeback. Wilde himself also did a dive to the outside. Legado del Fantasma with stereo coast-to-coast flying dropkicks.
Legado del Fantasma in control throughout a commercial break with heat on Carter. Hot tag to Lee, and he ran wild with high flying offense. Lot of action with everybody involved.
The Vets smashed Lee’s hand in a turnbuckle, and Lee was trapped in an arm bar by Gibson. Carter went to make a save, but he was put to sleep by Drake. Legado del Fantasma rushed into the ring to hit several double team moves.
MSK takes out Legado del Fantasma with double team moves. The match comes down to MSK against the Vets. They all four face off heading into the finish. Carter with a double cutter on the Vers. MSK then execute a Doomsday Blockbuster, and Gibson took the pinfall.
Raquel Gonzalez defeated NXT Women’s Champion Io Shirai to win the title
Gonzalez pinned Shirai to win the championship. They match was really good, and it felt like a special match. Maybe not the best match on the show, but it was still good nonetheless. Gonzalez looked like a powerhouse, and Shirai looked tough as nails.
Shirai used quickness to outwit Gonzalez during the early portion of the match. Shiari eventually flew trough the ropes with a dive to the outside.
Dakota Kai was in the corner of Gonzalez, but Kai was ejected from ringside mere minutes into the match. Kai interfered, and the referee ejected her. The distraction did allow Gonzalez to cut off Shirai. Gonzalez with power moves, but Shirai kept kicking out at two.
Gonzalez worked over Shirai, and Gonzalez applied a modified Gory Special. Shirai escaped to mount a comeback. Shirai came back with a Tiger Feint Kick and a springboard missile dropkick, which led to a near fall.
Shirai countered a power move to catch Gonzalez in a crossface. Shirai off the top turnbuckle with a moonsault on the ramp, and she followed that by hitting Gonzalez with double running knee strikes. There was a huge skull on the ramp as part of the set, and Shirai climbed on top of it. Shirai leapt off the skull into super plancha on the ramp. She did it better than when Sabu jumped off the “R” on Raw back in the day. It was impressive like an Aerostar dive.
Shirai with her signature moonsault press, but Gonzalez kicked out. Gonzalex soon cut off Shirai’s momentum, and she talked trash to Shirai. That fired up Shirai for one final flurry, but Gonzalez was too powerful. She lifted Shirai with a one-arm powerbomb, and then Gonzalez covered Shirai for a pinfall.
Editor’s Note: The following is an opinion-based preview and reflects that of the writer. This is the second part of a two part preview of both nights of NXT TakeOver: Stand and Deliver. Check out Mike’s look at night one.
NXT Women’s Tag Team Champions Shotzi Blackheart & Ember Moon vs. The Way’s Candice LeRae and Indi Hartwell
This is fine, I guess. Against all odds, The Way have endeared themselves to me…except Austin Theory. He’s real bad! Seemingly every week, LeRae adds bigger wings to her entrance gear and I’m fully expecting her to actually fly to the ring come SummerSlam. She’s a perfect partner for someone like Hartwell who is clearly talented but still very green in the ring. You can see her getting more and more comfortable by the week and that’s not a coincidence. Being paired with someone as talented and experienced as LeRae will do wonders for her career. (Can we please give her a title at some point soon?)
Blackheart and Moon continue to not do it for me. It’s clear they are both having the time of their lives, but the high school drama class levels of camp in their characters is a bit too much for me. They’re both good, but it’s just not clicking all the way. My feelings aside, it’s obvious NXT has big plans for Blackheart provided she doesn’t, you know, kill herself in the ring. Kota Ibushi watched that and even he thought that was too much. I’m begging every wrestler that reads this to please stop taking unnecessary neck bumps because it makes my tum-tum take up permanent residence in my throat.
I would say it’s too soon for a title change here, but the first NXT Women’s Tag Team title reign lasted all of an hour. Still, this match didn’t have enough build to warrant a title change so Blackheart and Moon retain.
North American Champion Johnny Gargano vs. the winner of the gauntlet eliminator match from night one
It’s finally happened. I’m a full-on Johnny Gargano fan and I just hope my friends, girlfriend, and you, my dear readers, will still love me. Since I’m writing this before night one of Stand and Deliver, I think that Dexter Lumis should win the battle royal and the title here. He should win the battle royal because he’s the only one that makes sense. He’s been around the North American title scene for a while and probably would have already won it if he didn’t get hurt a few months back. His story with Gargano and The Way has gone on long enough and deserves a proper blowoff here. Plus, it would be interesting to have a guy who never speaks carry a mid-card title. Let’s do it. Let’s strap up Lumis one time.
Cruiserweight Champion Jordan Devlin vs. Interim Cruiserweight Champion Santos Escobar title unification match
One of these guys is a bilingual luchador crime boss and the other is just an Irish guy with the biggest head on the planet and abuse accusations. One of these guys has something we can connect with and appreciate and the other is Jordan Devlin. Tough choice. Escobar is just so smooth. He looks great, he talks great, and he wrestles great. He is everything the company should be looking for in a Latino superstar. But then again, so was Andrade.
Has anyone really missed Devlin? Was anyone out there clamoring for his return? Sure, he’s fine at wrestling but there are 1000 guys that are good at wrestling and he could be replaced by, like, four dudes in NXT UK and no one would notice.
All of this is to say Escobar should, and will, become the undisputed cruiserweight champion on Thursday night. His legacy continues.
Adam Cole vs. Kyle O’Reilly in an unsanctioned match
This is the real main event for NXT Wrestlemania week. For a long time, The Undisputed Era was what people thought about when they thought about NXT. They are synonymous with the brand. From the second Cole debuted at TakeOver: Brooklyn III, Cole and O’Reilly were linked. Their individual identities mixed with the identity of the group, one spearheaded and dominated by Cole. They supported each other, they held each other up, and became the most successful group in NXT history.
It’s fitting that Cole’s ego and insatiable drive for individual success is what broke them up. As soon as O’Reilly stepped up and as soon as Cole’s ego was even somewhat threatened, he snapped and brought the whole Era down.
This is a history that spans Ring of Honor, New Japan, PWG, and now, NXT. 10+ years of history, 10+ years of Cole always being just that much better than O’Reilly and knowing it. Cole was the celebrated signing, he was in Bullet Club when it was still cool, he was the marquee. No matter how much we love Kyle, and we really, really love Kyle, he was always outshined. These two are forever linked, forever tied, forever destined to do this forever (full apologies to Kevin Steen and El Generico). Just watch the prime target video package NXT released. It’s an absolutely incredible video and does a better job setting this up than I ever could.
He might have been cast as one, but O’Reilly is no sidekick. From bell to bell, he’s as good as it gets. This is really the last story for The Undisputed Era to tell in NXT and I wonder if it is Cole’s last as well. Like Io Shirai, he’s done it all. Is it time for him to move on and how fitting it would be for O’Reilly to end his run in NXT? This is the match of WrestleMania week and one that sees Kyle O’’Reilly come out on top.
NXT Champion Finn Balor vs. Karrion Kross
Sorry for the very obvious pun, but the clock on Kross’ time in NXT has been ticking ever since he debuted. A big, muscular dude that wrestles a slow, deliberate style is a Vince McMahon dream and pairing someone like him with someone like Scarlett is a Vince McMahon wet dream. It’s surprising that they aren’t already on the main roster and the only explanation has to be that Vince doesn’t watch his own product. (And why would he?) He simply can’t resist a boring big man with a good look.
His entrance is a spectacle and the music is great, but that’s kind of it. He and Scarlett look outrageously good, but man, is he all caps BORING bell-to-bell. Ok, maybe he’s not that boring, but he just happens to wrestle a slower, less dynamic style than just about everyone else, so he stands out and not in a good way.
Finn, however, does stand out and is exciting. He remains one of the best things going in wrestling today. He is, without a doubt, the Wednesday night MVP of the Pandemic Era and has a case for MVP of the whole company. The only three people with better cases are Bayley, Sasha Banks and Asuka. He carried NXT for the better part of a year while continuing to get better week after week. The confidence, the charisma, and the quality of his matches really make you wonder how all Vince saw in this guy was “big time smiles.” The men’s division is somewhat lacking in star power, but that’s not something their champion lacks.
Balor is still too good to take the title off of him now. He’s elevated everyone he’s been in the ring with and should carry the title until the next generation of top stars is ready. Kross takes the loss and moves on while The Prince leads the gold brand to Tuesday nights.
A second musical performance has been announced for NXT TakeOver: Stand & Deliver.
It was announced via Billboard today that Grammy-nominated pop-rock and nu-metal artist Poppy will perform and debut a new song at NXT TakeOver: Stand & Deliver night two this Thursday. Night one of TakeOver: Stand & Deliver on Wednesday will begin with rock musician Nita Strauss performing the national anthem.
Poppy has performed on NXT programming multiple times in the past, most recently appearing at NXT Halloween Havoc in October of last year.
“Music has always been such a big part of WWE,” Paul “Triple H” Levesque told Billboard. “Music adds so much to the emotion of what it is we do and that connection has been there since the very beginning when you had the rock and wrestling connection with Cyndi Lauper as part of the WWE.”
In response to a question from Billboard about Bad Bunny’s involvement in WrestleMania 37, Levesque noted that Poppy has told him she’s interested in getting into the ring: “Bunny finds himself at a place in his career where he can just say I want to be in the WWE and that’s amazing to me. He got a place in Orlando and he’s been training three times a week for the past three months. He has taken it so seriously. I love those collaborations. And Poppy is like Bunny in the way that every time I see her, she wants to get in the ring and wrestle and start training.”
TakeOver: Stand & Deliver night one will air live on the USA Network and will also be simulcast on Peacock in the United States and the WWE Network everywhere else. Night two of TakeOver: Stand & Deliver will air live on Peacock in the U.S. and the WWE Network everywhere else.
Here are the cards for both nights of TakeOver: Stand & Deliver:
TakeOver: Stand & Deliver night one (Wednesday, April 7) —
NXT Women’s Champion Io Shirai defends against Raquel Gonzalez
NXT United Kingdom Champion WALTER defends against Tommaso Ciampa
Triple threat match for the vacant NXT Tag Team titles: MSK (Wes Lee & Nash Carter) vs, The Grizzled Young Veterans (Zack Gibson & James Drake) vs. Legado Del Fantasma (Raul Mendoza & Joaquin Wilde)
Gauntlet Eliminator match to determine NXT North American Champion Johnny Gargano’s challenger for TakeOver: Stand & Deliver night two (Leon Ruff, Isaiah “Swerve” Scott, Bronson Reed, Cameron Grimes, Dexter Lumis, and LA Knight are the Gauntlet Eliminator participants)
Pete Dunne vs. Kushida
TakeOver: Stand & Deliver night two (Thursday, April 8) —
NXT Champion Finn Balor defends against Karrion Kross
Unsanctioned match: Adam Cole vs. Kyle O’Reilly
Ladder match to determine undisputed NXT Cruiserweight Champion: Jordan Devlin vs. Santos Escobar
NXT North American Champion Johnny Gargano defends against the winner of the Gauntlet Eliminator match from night one
NXT Women’s Tag Team Champions Shotzi Blackheart & Ember Moon defend against Candice LeRae & Indi Hartwell
Editor’s Note: The following is an opinion-based preview and reflects that of the writer.
The Wednesday night war was over before it really began, but don’t tell that to NXT.
After announcing their obvious AEW driven move to Tuesday nights, NXT is putting on their biggest and most ambitious TakeOver card to date with ten matches over two nights, all on a new live streaming service. It’s almost like they are trying to run a card so big it distracts from being “bullied” out of “their” time slot! Curious!
This is not a results focused column (even though I predict the result of every match), but if the results lead to ten midweek bangers that set up the next few months of NXT, I’m willing to slightly overlook the process.
With the move to Peacock, it’s fair to wonder if this is the end for a lot of the current NXT mainstays. With the Undisputed Era breaking up, is this Adam Cole’s last “Bay Bay” at the Performance Center? Is Karrion Kross, a main roster act masquerading as an NXT one, moving up already? That doesn’t even mention Io Shirai, who warrants her own full section, possibly being ready to move on. Or, do the new Peacock overlords want established stars at the top? Who knows? Let’s find out! If it’s time for some mainstays to move on, I’m with it. I’ll be as proud as Jaime Escalante was after his students passed that calculus test.
Kushida vs. Pete Dunne
A crazy thing: this match might open night one meaning arguably the two best pure wrestlers in NXT are gonna jerk the damn curtain. I refuse to sell this match, because everyone should already be at full blood flow just thinking about it. I am frothing at the mouth for it. As soon as Dunne made the claim to being the best technical wrestler in the world, my brain, and just about everyone’s brain, went to Kushida. I’m just glad to be right for once.
Two guys who are great at this getting the chance to be great at this together is a beautiful thing. Dunne’s last TakeOver match with Finn Balor was great, but Kushida’s last TakeOver match was even better. It was easily his best match since he came to NXT and it’s curious that they haven’t pulled the trigger with him yet. Maybe they never will. Who knows? Wrestling is weird!
Kushida’s momentum has been stopped and started so many times that I can’t let myself get excited for another aborted push. He’s yet to get that defining win that really spurns him forward and he isn’t getting it Wednesday. Dunne takes this one.
MSK vs. Grizzled Young Veterans vs. Legado Del Fantasma triple threat for the vacant NXT Tag Team titles
God, this is going to be so good.
Unfortunate injury notwithstanding, the rollout of MSK (Wes Lee and Nash Carter) in NXT has been a masterclass in how to rocket an exciting new team to the top of the card. They were an established brand prior to NXT and once there, they didn’t get a weird rebrand; they kept their identity in and out of the ring. Legado Del Fantasma (Raul Mendoza and Joaquin Wilde) is a bit slept on, but you can absolutely count on them to show out when they get time in the ring. Wilde has been doing this for a long time and Mendoza is one of the more underrated talents in NXT.
Both these teams go a thousand miles an hour at all times and Grizzled Young Veterans (James Drake and Zack Gibson) are the perfect foils for them. In any triple threat, there always needs to be one person or team that holds everything together and that’s exactly what GYV is great at doing. They will gladly let the other four ping pong around the ring while they keep the action grounded.
AEW has done a lot in a year, but no one does tag matches like NXT. Whether it’s multi-team sprints or a standard tag affair, NXT is the gold standard in pro wrestling. The list of tag champs is a veritable who’s who in tag team wrestling over the past eight years or so: The Wyatt Family, The Undisputed Era, DIY, The Revival, I could go on forever, baby. All three of these teams have the skills and bonafides that wouldn’t be out of place on that list.
This will be the spotfest of the first night. In all likelihood, MSK was winning the belts right after the Dusty Cup, but Lee’s injury delayed those plans. Their coronation happens during WrestleMania week.
Leon Ruff vs. Isaiah “Swerve” Scott vs. Bronson Reed vs. Cameron Grimes vs. Dexter Lumis vs. LA Knight: Six-man gauntlet eliminator match to determine who challenges NXT North American Champion Johnny Gargano on night two
I’m all for getting as many people on the card as possible, but there had to have been a less convoluted way to get here. I needed some Alex Jones recommended brain supplements to make sense of Wednesday’s qualifying match. (Please don’t buy those or even try to Google them. Oh god, why did I leave this lame joke in wow I really didn’t have much to say here!)
I have like 4000 words to write so I’m dropping some bullets here. People who I would like to see win this match, ranked:
Cameron Grimes: One day we’ll all wake up and Cameron Grimes will rule the world.
Swerve Scott: The new character is working and the in-ring has always worked. His time is coming.
Dexter Lumis: Makes all the storyline sense in the world. Been floating around the North American title scene for awhile now.
Leon Ruff: No real strong feelings here.
LA Knight: Him yelling ‘Yeah’ always pops me. Him in the ring never pops me.
Bronson Reed: Nope!
As much as I want Grimes to win this and every match, sadly, I don’t see it happening. The only real story with meat on its bones involves Lumis. Not having Lumis win here would just be weird. He’s been involved with the Garaganos for months now and will move on to night two.
NXT UK Champion WALTER vs. Tommaso Ciampa
There will be nothing pretty about this: a giant baby vs. the oldest looking 35-year-old in history. It’s gonna be painful and it’s gonna be kind of gross, but all of WALTER’s matches are kind of gross. They are all these beautifully violent spectacles that are entirely his own. WWE is a whole bunch of (largely terrible) things, but they are becoming more and more homogenous by the day.
Who is truly unique? Who stands out for having their own individual style? The answer, folks, is not many of them. Even in NXT, every color is a similar shade. WALTER is one of the unique ones — a stark contrast to the Diet-PWG style of NXT as a whole. And, WALTER’s gonna kill you.
When Ciampa looks at WALTER, he sees himself. He sees himself as the biggest, toughest dog in the yard; the man who intimidates everyone. That’s fine, I guess, but there is a big ol’ reality check coming, one with frying pan hands. This should be disgustingly hard hitting. I’m not anticipating it being at the level of WALTER’s match with Ilja Dragunov, but there’s a decent chance it’s in the same ballpark. Very few matches even approach that level of brutality. If you haven’t yet, find it on the Network and just push play.
I would take it as a betrayal if Ciampa actually beat WALTER for the belt here, a personal affront that I simply could not stand for. It would make no sense. WALTER’s reign continues and should last for as long as he wants it to.
NXT Women’s Champion Io Shirai vs. Raquel Gonzalez
I have written about every match Shirai has ever had at a TakeOver. Part of that is because I will never log off, but a bigger reason is her transcendence. She’s one of my favorite wrestlers and is, in my opinion, one of the two or three best wrestlers in the world. She’s also the best non-Asuka Women’s champion in the history of the company.
I write a lot about how the most important thing for a wrestler to do is matter, how we should feel something when they are on the screen, how they should leave an impression on us, and how they should require our attention. For almost three years, Shirai has demanded our attention. She is a flawless, peerless performer — one that came in with high expectations and has exceeded them. Whatever we have done to deserve her, surely it isn’t enough.
There’s never a bad time to be effusive with praise for Shirai, but I’m doing it here because I think this is the end of her run on NXT. She’s done it all time and again and with WrestleMania kind of being the unofficial season finale in WWE, it would make total sense for her to drop the belt and move on. It doesn’t matter which brand she moves to as stars that bright shine regardless.
Raquel Gonzalez is ready now to be at the top of the women’s division for as long as she wants. It’s the first time where it really feels right for someone to take the belt. If this really is Shirai’s last match in NXT, you know she’s going to do everything she can to make it memorable.
If she does move on, the women’s division is in more than capable hands with Gonzalez. She can be the dominant champ that a very talented, very capable women’s division can come after. It’s time for Big Mami Cool to get a run at the top.
Peacock’s simulcast of NXT TakeOver: Stand & Deliver night one won’t have commercial breaks.
On Friday’s pre-TakeOver: Stand & Deliver media call, Paul “Triple H” Levesque was asked about the logistics of producing a two-night event that’s airing on multiple platforms. Levesque said during his answer that there won’t be commercial breaks on Peacock’s feed for the live simulcast of TakeOver: Stand & Deliver night one. Night one of the event is taking place next Wednesday (April 7) and will be simulcast live on the USA Network and Peacock in the United States. Night two will be live on Peacock in the U.S. next Thursday (April 8). Outside of the U.S., both nights will be live on the WWE Network.
“In essence it’s almost like two TakeOvers happening within two days of each other,” Levesque said. “One being on USA — again, with potential commercial breaks. And also simulcast at the same point in time on Peacock where there won’t be those breaks. So you have to approach it differently,”
Levesque said the logistics with the night one simulcast is a process they’re working through and it will likely be a mild work in progress up until the start of the show.
Both nights of TakeOver: Stand & Deliver will have a pre-show starting at 7 p.m. Eastern time. The pre-shows will air on Peacock in the U.S. and the WWE Network everywhere else, along with airing on WWE’s social media platforms. The main cards will then start at 8 p.m. Eastern.
Here are the lineups for both nights of TakeOver: Stand & Deliver:
TakeOver: Stand & Deliver night one —
NXT Women’s Champion Io Shirai defends against Raquel Gonzalez
NXT United Kingdom Champion WALTER defends against Tommaso Ciampa
Triple threat match for the vacant NXT Tag Team titles: MSK (Wes Lee & Nash Carter) vs, The Grizzled Young Veterans (Zack Gibson & James Drake) vs. Legado Del Fantasma (Raul Mendoza & Joaquin Wilde)
Gauntlet Eliminator match to determine NXT North American Champion Johnny Gargano’s challenger for TakeOver: Stand & Deliver night two (Leon Ruff, Isaiah “Swerve” Scott, Bronson Reed, Cameron Grimes, Dexter Lumis, and LA Knight are the Gauntlet Eliminator participants)
Pete Dunne vs. Kushida
TakeOver: Stand & Deliver night two —
NXT Champion Finn Balor defends against Karrion Kross
Unsanctioned match: Adam Cole vs. Kyle O’Reilly
Ladder match to determine undisputed NXT Cruiserweight Champion: Jordan Devlin vs. Santos Escobar
NXT North American Champion Johnny Gargano defends against the winner of the Gauntlet Eliminator match from night one
NXT Women’s Tag Team Champions Shotzi Blackheart & Ember Moon defend against Candice LeRae & Indi Hartwell
Prior to next week’s busy schedule before WrestleMania, Paul “HHH” Levesque talked to the media about the impending two nights of TakeOver, the move to Tuesday nights, the Undertaker’s recent comments about the current day product, and more.
Full audio is available below.
Levesque said he didn’t know about Chris Jericho doing the Steve Austin podcast until today, but wasn’t surprised as Vince McMahon has always said they are open for business.
Asked about Undertaker’s recent comments about the product being “soft,” Levesque said everyone is welcome to their own opinion and that he respects Undertaker’s opinion and will take it into account. He is looking forward to working with him again and elevating things on a variety of levels.
He said Wednesday’s TakeOver simulcast on WWE Network/Peacock will not feature ad breaks on the Peacock side of things. They are still working with USA and Peacock to figure out how it’s going to work logistically.
He talked positively about the move to Tuesday nights and about how they progressing in moving from WWE Network to USA, maintaining the audience, and being in this for the long term.
He put over how hard Omos and Bad Bunny have been working at the Performance Center, noting their daily appearances and work ethic in getting better.
He answered a question about AJ Styles pestering him for a WrestleMania match and that he views his in-ring days as a bonus and doesn’t have the time to commit to the preparation for such a match. He was flattered at Styles asking and didn’t completely shut the door on an in-ring return, adding Ric Flair bugs him all the time about getting back in the ring.
For more, including his thoughts on some amateur wrestling prospects for WWE, the Heritage Cup being defended in NXT, and more, click below.
A new member of the NXT UK women’s division has made their WWE in-ring debut.
On this week’s episode of NXT UK, Bobbi Tyler debuted in a loss to Aoife Valkyrie. Tyler is now using the name Stevie Turner in WWE.
Tyler’s character has a futuristic gimmick. As she was entering for her NXT UK debut match, a promo aired with Tyler introducing herself and talking about how she has a habit of taking things to the next level. Tyler said the world is beautiful, but it’s very two-dimensional. Tyler said she’s four-dimensional.
The 24-year-old Tyler is from London, England and has been wrestling since 2016. Revolution Pro Wrestling and Stardom are among the promotions she’s wrestled for during her career. She was part of the Tokyo Cyber Squad in Stardom.
“Simply my life goal achieved,” Tyler tweeted on Thursday. “I’ve signed with @WWE & @NXTUK. What a crazy, cool life I live. I love what I do so much & I can’t wait to keep working hard and achieve all my dreams.”
The NXT UK women’s division also got a new addition with Millie McKenzie, who is now using the name Emilia McKenzie in WWE, arriving on this week’s NXT UK episode. It was reported this February that McKenzie had signed with WWE. She previously wrestled for NXT UK multiple times in 2018.
A new match has been added to the lineup for NXT UK: Prelude.
WWE has announced that NXT UK Women’s Champion Kay Lee Ray will team with Isla Dawn against Meiko Satomura & Emilia McKenzie at NXT UK: Prelude next Thursday (April 8). Emilia McKenzie is Millie McKenzie’s new in-ring name in WWE.
During a segment on this week’s NXT UK episode, KLR addressed defeating Satomura last month to retain the NXT UK Women’s Championship. McKenzie then made her debut as a member of the NXT UK roster by interrupting KLR. McKenzie said she’s here because she wants to defeat the best. McKenzie warned KLR that their paths will cross soon.
KLR told McKenzie that she doesn’t see why their paths can’t cross right now. McKenzie went to go face-to-face with KLR but was attacked by Dawn. After Satomura ran out to make the save, she and McKenzie fought off KLR and Dawn.
NXT UK authority figure Sid Scala then informed KLR & Dawn backstage that they’ll be facing Satomura & McKenzie in tag team action next week.
It was reported this February that McKenzie had signed with WWE and would be joining NXT UK. She previously wrestled for NXT UK three times in 2018, including having two televised matches.
NXT UK: Prelude will stream on Peacock in the United States and on the WWE Network everywhere else at 3 p.m. EST/ 8 p.m. BST next Thursday. Here’s the updated card for the show:
NXT United Kingdom Champion WALTER defends against Rampage Brown
Heritage Cup rules match: Tyler Bate (w/ Trent Seven) vs. Noam Dar (w/ Sha Samuels) (winner becomes the number one contender to A-Kid’s Heritage Cup Championship)
NXT UK Women’s Champion Kay Lee Ray & Isla Dawn vs. Meiko Satomura & Emilia McKenzie
We’ll hear from Heritage Cup Champion A-Kid, NXT Cruiserweight Champion Jordan Devlin, and Ilja Dragunov
Turner, 24, who previously wrestled as Bobby Tyler, started in 2016 and spent most of 2019 in Japan wrestling for Stardom. She was a semi-regular in RevPro and appeared for a number of UK promotions and also held a number of championships in various smaller promotions. She has a very futuristic gimmick and during an inset promo, she talked about her world being “four dimensional.”
Valkyrie held onto a headlock early but Turner eventually countered it with some wacky offense. Valkyrie came back with a dropkick, but Turner quickly worked over her leg and scored a near fall. Valkyrie came back with a springboard spin kick from the turnbuckle. Turner turned a corner charge by Valkyrie into a backstabber for another near fall. Valkyrie caught a kick, hit a spin kick, and finally hit the top rope split leg drop for the pin and the win.
— A-Kid talked about his career path thus far and how people in his home country of Spain watched him win the Heritage Cup tournament. He said he was looking forward to watching the no. 1 contender’s match between Tyler Bate and Noam Dar next week at NXT UK: Prelude.
— Piper Niven and Jack Starz were at the UK Performance Center. Starz was all excited and had set up a number of exercises for them. Niven calmed him down and told him he already was the best at exercising. She wanted to train with him in the ring as she was no Miss Olympia but could beat the daylight out of anyone on the roster “including the boys”. She made him train with a bag in the ring and he ran wild on it.
Teoman submitted Josh Morrell (5:23)
Teoman worked over Morrell’s arm early and nipped a quick comeback attempt by Morrell in the bud, then hitting a number of punches and European uppercuts. Teoman hit a handspring back elbow off the ropes before both men traded forearms. Teoman got his knees up on a standing moonsault and hit a missile dropkick off the top. He followed that with a running double foot stomp before locking in the crossface for the submission victory.
WALTER and Rampage Brown face-to-face meeting
Both men were sitting at a table with Sid Scala. Scala asked WALTER if he considered himself the greatest champion in NXT UK history. WALTER said Scala could answer that question himself as he was the longest reigning UK champion in history and the longest reigning WWE champion in modern history. So yes, he considers himself that.
Scala asked Brown how he prepared for the match. Brown said he doesn’t take wrestling lightly and doesn’t take WALTER lightly. This is his job and he takes it serious. WALTER sneered and said to Brown it was his job, but to WALTER, it’s his life. Every time he steps into the ring, he works at restoring the honor of his sport and sees things differently than anyone else. Scala then asked him if he respected Rampage Brown. WALTER said no.
Scala asked why not and WALTER said Brown was just like everybody else. Brown took offense and said when WALTER first came to England, he beat him. WALTER confirmed, but said when he first came to England, Brown was the guy to beat but what had he done since then? WALTER said what he did was travel the world. Brown said he did that before WALTER and was watching WALTER the whole time and watching him bully everyone.
WALTER said he waited for Brown to finally arrive and to step up. He said Brown was like everyone else, wanting to ride his coattails. Brown called him a bully and told him he couldn’t bully him. He said WALTER was full of himself. WALTER said he was the most selfless person on the brand and didn’t step into the ring for himself but for his sport. He got up and said Brown would never understand and that’s why he would never respect him. He would never be a champion, would never understand what it meant to be in his shoes, and would never be the NXT UK champion. Brown said we would see about that.
— A cool video aired showing Gallus training in a boxing club with Joe Coffey having his right arm in a sling. They sort of ran their own fight club as a side hustle. Mark Coffey talked terms with someone and then sent Wolfgang into an enclosed area. Wolfgang knocked the guy out with one hook punch and added some ground and pound for good measure so Mark had to pull him off. This was much cooler and grittier than I can describe here.
Kay Lee Ray addresses the NXT UK roster
KLR said she was Women’s champion for 510 days, asked for the best and NXT UK delivered. She faced Meiko Satomura, not just one of the best female wrestlers in the world, but one of the best wrestlers period. She beat the legend and everyone who thought she would lose her title was wrong. She was the forever champion and asked who could take the title off her.
Millie McKenzie walked out, who was last seen in NXT UK in August of 2018. She said she had been traveling, training and waiting to make her return and now was the time as she wanted to beat the best. She said one day soon, their paths would cross.
KLR stepped out of the ring and told “Ms. McKenzie” that she saw no reason their paths couldn’t cross right now. Just as they were about to face off, Isla Dawn flew in and attacked McKenzie. KLR got back into the ring and looked on. Dawn was looking to set Millie up for a kick by KLR when Satomura’s music hit and she ran in for the save. She hit a head kick on KLR and McKenzie hit a German suplex on Dawn, sending both women packing.
— A video showed Tyler Bate and Noam Dar preparing for their match next week. Dar said he was all fun and games until he was not. Bate said he liked Dar and wished him well, but he stood between him and a title shot. He said he had claimed he was “like water” in the past but now was a tidal wave and hoped that Dar brought his lifeboat.
— KLR and Dawn were backstage when Scala ran up to them and said they would face Satomura and McKenzie (who he called Emilia McKenzie, so maybe that’s her new name) in a tag team match next week. Dawn kept staring at Scala, which clearly made him very uncomfortable.
NXT UK Tag Team Champions Pretty Deadly (Lewis Howley & Sam Stoker) beat Kenny Williams & Amir Jordan to retain (15:23)
Howley and Jordan started, but the champs quickly tagged in to overwhelm Jordan. Williams tagged himself in and faced off with Howley. Williams started out aggressive, but got his arm worked over. He escaped and began working over Howley’s leg. After some back and forth, Williams and Jordan quickly tagged in and out. Jordan ran wild on both champs and WIlliams joined in. Pretty Deadly regrouped at ringside. Jordan missed a blind tag and ran into an ambush by Stoker at ringside.
Pretty Deadly took turns at dismantling Jordan, including a double team big splash/leg drop combination. Jordan got worked over until he finally made the hot tag to Williams, who ran wild. He hit a springboard double back elbow and then consecutive dives on both men on opposite sides of the ring. After Stoker narrowly made the save on a near fall, Jordan got tagged in but Pretty Deadly wiped both Jordan and Williams out with Crossing Swords. Williams hit a wheelbarrow destroyer followed by a top rope senton by Jordan and a spinning DDT by Williams for a close near fall.
Some chaotic scenes later, the referee got wiped out when Howley got in the way of Williams’ see-saw clothesline. Williams grabbed a tag belt and threw it to Jordan who refused to use it. Williams grabbed the belt to use himself, but Jordan told him they didn’t need to cheat. Williams seemingly left the ring and threw the belt away, but grabbed the other one from the corner, returned into the ring and clocked Jordan into the back of the spine with it before walking out on him.
Pretty Deadly then hit Spilled Milk on Jordan for the win.
Final Thoughts:
This was a fun show that was more heavy on angles and segments (all of them good) than actual wrestling, even though the main event went more than 15 minutes and was a fun tag match.
The WALTER and Rampage Brown sit-down interview was strong as both men, especially WALTER, were great and told a really good story of their past and present. Millie McKenzie returning adds more depth to the women’s roster and getting a more aggressive Isla Dawn and player-coach Meiko Satomura involved is both smart and intriguing.
Pretty Deadly also looked good in their first title defense and Kenny Williams vs. Amir Jordan is a nice midcard feud which will deliver some good matches and may even catapult Williams up a notch or two. It might even make him a viable contender for either the NXT Cruiserweight or NXT UK Heritage Cup title down the line.
Next week’s NXT UK: Prelude card also looks to be great and on a level with the TakeOver matches the two previous nights.
Next week’s NXT UK: Prelude card:
NXT UK Champion WALTER vs. Rampage Brown title match
Heritage Cup title no. 1 contender match: Tyler Bate (w/ Trent Seven) vs. Noam Dar (w/ Sha Samuels)
UK Women’s Champion Kay Lee Ray & Isla Dawn vs. Emilia McKenzie & Meiko Satomura
Promos and appearances by A-Kid, Jordan Devlin and Ilja Dragunov
NXT’s final build to TakeOver: Stand & Deliver took place last night.
In the main event of last night’s go-home show, a battle royal decided the participants for the Gauntlet Eliminator match at TakeOver: Stand & Deliver night one. LA Knight won the battle royal and will enter the Gauntlet Eliminator last. Leon Ruff will enter first, followed by Isaiah “Swerve” Scott, Bronson Reed, Cameron Grimes, Dexter Lumis, and Knight.
The winner of the Gauntlet Eliminator will challenge for Johnny Gargano’s NXT North American Championship at TakeOver: Stand & Deliver night two.
After a confrontation earlier in the show, Pete Dunne and Kushida simultaneously eliminated each other from the battle royal. It was then announced that Dunne vs. Kushida will take place at TakeOver night one. A new match was also added to night two, with Shotzi Blackheart & Ember Moon defending their NXT Women’s Tag Team titles against Candice LeRae & Indi Hartwell.
Last night’s show featured promos and video packages building up matches for TakeOver, including a Prime Target special feature focused on Adam Cole and Kyle O’Reilly’s unsanctioned match at TakeOver night two. Io Shirai and Raquel Gonzalez, who will face off for the NXT Women’s Championship in the main event of TakeOver night one, brawled throughout last night’s show. It ended with Shirai standing tall after hitting a springboard crossbody to the outside.
Taya Valkyrie’s NXT debut appears to be less than two weeks away.
On tonight’s NXT episode, there was a series of videos where a Pomeranian dog was shown entering the WWE Performance Center and running around the building. The final video ended with the dog finding a woman who was wearing heels. Only the women’s legs were shown, but a message on the screen said “See you April 13th!” The message was signed by “Franky.”
The dog in the videos was Valkyrie and John Morrison’s Pomeranian Prince Presley.
It was announced last month that Valkyrie had signed with WWE and joined the Performance Center. Valkyrie, who is a former Impact Wrestling Knockouts Champion, finished up with Impact Wrestling this January. Valkyrie has also held the AAA Reina de Reinas Championship three times during her career.
The April 13 edition of NXT will be the show’s debut on its new night. It was officially announced earlier this week that NXT is moving to Tuesdays starting with the April 13 episode.
We now know the six wrestlers who will be taking part in the Gauntlet Eliminator match at NXT TakeOver: Stand & Deliver.
LA Knight, Dexter Lumis, Cameron Grimes, Bronson Reed, Isaiah “Swerve” Scott, and Leon Ruff will face off in the Gauntlet Eliminator match at night one of TakeOver: Stand & Deliver. The winner of that match will challenge for Johnny Gargano’s NXT North American Championship at TakeOver: Stand & Deliver night two.
An 11-man battle royal on tonight’s NXT determined which six wrestlers would advance to the Gauntlet Eliminator match. Knight won the battle royal and will enter the Gauntlet Eliminator last. Ruff will enter the Gauntlet Eliminator first, followed by Scott, Reed, Grimes, Lumis, and Knight.
The Gauntlet Eliminator match will begin with Ruff and Scott in the ring. Every three minutes, a new entrant will be added. Eliminations can occur via pinfall or submission.
Tonight’s battle royal was originally supposed to feature 12 wrestlers, but there was a storyline where Roderick Strong left the building after losing to Grimes earlier in the night. Jake Atlas, Tyler Rust, Austin Theory, Pete Dunne, and Kushida also took part in tonight’s battle royal and were the first five wrestlers eliminated. Dunne and Kushida will face off in a singles match at TakeOver: Stand & Deliver night one.
Night one of TakeOver: Stand & Deliver is taking place on Wednesday, April 7. It will air live on the USA Network and will also be simulcast live on Peacock in the United States and on the WWE Network everywhere else. Night two is taking place on Thursday, April 8 and will be live on Peacock in the United States and live on the WWE Network everywhere else.
Here are the updated cards for TakeOver: Stand & Deliver:
TakeOver: Stand & Deliver night one —
NXT Women’s Champion Io Shirai defends against Raquel Gonzalez
NXT United Kingdom Champion WALTER defends against Tommaso Ciampa
Triple threat match for the vacant NXT Tag Team titles: MSK (Wes Lee & Nash Carter) vs, The Grizzled Young Veterans (Zack Gibson & James Drake) vs. Legado Del Fantasma (Raul Mendoza & Joaquin Wilde)
Gauntlet Eliminator match to determine NXT North American Champion Johnny Gargano’s challenger for TakeOver: Stand & Deliver night two (Leon Ruff, Isaiah “Swerve” Scott, Bronson Reed, Cameron Grimes, Dexter Lumis, and LA Knight are the Gauntlet Eliminator participants)
Pete Dunne vs. Kushida
TakeOver: Stand & Deliver night two —
NXT Champion Finn Balor defends against Karrion Kross
Unsanctioned match: Adam Cole vs. Kyle O’Reilly
Ladder match to determine undisputed NXT Cruiserweight Champion: Jordan Devlin vs. Santos Escobar
NXT North American Champion Johnny Gargano defends against the winner of the Gauntlet Eliminator match from night one
NXT Women’s Tag Team Champions Shotzi Blackheart & Ember Moon defend against Candice LeRae & Indi Hartwell
WWE has announced a couple of new additions to the lineup for NXT TakeOver: Stand & Deliver.
Pete Dunne vs. Kushida has been announced for TakeOver: Stand & Deliver night one. At TakeOver: Stand & Deliver night two, NXT Women’s Tag Team Champions Shotzi Blackheart & Ember Moon will defend their titles against Candice LeRae & Indi Hartwell.
In the main event of tonight’s NXT, Dunne and Kushida simultaneously eliminated each other from the battle royal to determine the participants for the Gauntlet Eliminator match at TakeOver: Stand & Deliver night one. Kushida then refused to let go of a Hoverboard Lock that he had Dunne locked in.
There had been a segment earlier on tonight’s NXT where Dunne interrupted an interview with Kushida. Dunne took exception to Kushida calling himself the best technical wrestler in the world last week. Dunne said he already holds that crown and dared Kushida to answer his challenge and try to prove him wrong.
The NXT Women’s Tag Team title match was announced for TakeOver: Stand & Deliver after a challenge that was issued by LeRae & Hartwell tonight. LeRae & Hartwell defeated Gigi Dolin & the debuting Zayda Ramier (formerly known as AQA) on tonight’s show and then challenged Blackheart & Moon to an NXT Women’s Tag Team title match at TakeOver. Blackheart & Moon came out in Blackheart’s tank and accepted the challenge.
Blackheart & Moon defeated LeRae & Hartwell in the semifinals of the women’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic last month. In the finals, Blackheart & Moon lost to Dakota Kai & Raquel Gonzalez. Kai & Gonzalez later became the inaugural NXT Women’s Tag Team Champions when they were awarded the titles, but Blackheart & Moon defeated them to win the titles that same night.
TakeOver: Stand & Deliver is taking place on Wednesday, April 7 and Thursday, April 8. Night one will air live on the USA Network and will also simulcast live on Peacock in the United States and on the WWE Network everywhere else. Night two will be live on Peacock in the United States and live on the WWE Network everywhere else. Here are the updated cards for the event:
TakeOver: Stand & Deliver night one —
NXT Women’s Champion Io Shirai defends against Raquel Gonzalez
NXT United Kingdom Champion WALTER defends against Tommaso Ciampa
Triple threat match for the vacant NXT Tag Team titles: MSK (Wes Lee & Nash Carter) vs, The Grizzled Young Veterans (Zack Gibson & James Drake) vs. Legado Del Fantasma (Raul Mendoza & Joaquin Wilde)
Gauntlet Eliminator match to determine NXT North American Champion Johnny Gargano’s challenger for TakeOver: Stand & Deliver night two (Leon Ruff, Isaiah “Swerve” Scott, Bronson Reed, Cameron Grimes, Dexter Lumis, and LA Knight are the Gauntlet Eliminator participants)
Pete Dunne vs. Kushida
TakeOver: Stand & Deliver night two —
NXT Champion Finn Balor defends against Karrion Kross
Unsanctioned match: Adam Cole vs. Kyle O’Reilly
Ladder match to determine undisputed NXT Cruiserweight Champion: Jordan Devlin vs. Santos Escobar
NXT North American Champion Johnny Gargano defends against the winner of the Gauntlet Eliminator match from night one
NXT Women’s Tag Team Champions Shotzi Blackheart & Ember Moon defend against Candice LeRae & Indi Hartwell
WWE has announced an additional way to watch NXT TakeOver: Stand & Deliver night one.
During tonight’s episode of NXT, it was announced that night one of TakeOver: Stand & Deliver will be simulcast live on Peacock in the United States and on the WWE Network everywhere else at the same time as it’s airing on the USA Network. Night one of TakeOver: Stand & Deliver is taking place on Wednesday, April 7. Night two is taking place on Thursday, April 8 and will be live on Peacock in the United States and live on the WWE Network everywhere else.
Following TakeOver: Stand & Deliver, NXT will move to airing on Tuesday nights live on the USA Network starting on April 13. Episodes will be uploaded to Peacock the day after they premiere.
Night one of TakeOver: Stand & Deliver will be headlined by Io Shirai defending her NXT Women’s Championship against Raquel Gonzalez. Here are the announced cards for both nights:
TakeOver: Stand & Deliver night one —
NXT Women’s Champion Io Shirai defends against Raquel Gonzalez
NXT United Kingdom Champion WALTER defends against Tommaso Ciampa
Triple threat match for the vacant NXT Tag Team titles: MSK (Wes Lee & Nash Carter) vs, The Grizzled Young Veterans (Zack Gibson & James Drake) vs. Legado Del Fantasma (Raul Mendoza & Joaquin Wilde)
Gauntlet Eliminator match to determine NXT North American Champion Johnny Gargano’s challenger for TakeOver: Stand & Deliver night two (Leon Ruff, Isaiah “Swerve” Scott, Bronson Reed, Cameron Grimes, Dexter Lumis, and LA Knight are the Gauntlet Eliminator participants)
Pete Dunne vs. Kushida
TakeOver: Stand & Deliver night two —
NXT Champion Finn Balor defends against Karrion Kross
Unsanctioned match: Adam Cole vs. Kyle O’Reilly
Ladder match to determine undisputed NXT Cruiserweight Champion: Jordan Devlin vs. Santos Escobar
NXT North American Champion Johnny Gargano defends against the winner of the Gauntlet Eliminator match from night one
NXT Women’s Tag Team Champions Shotzi Blackheart & Ember Moon defend against Candice LeRae & Indi Hartwell
