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It's the one after TakeOver: Brooklyn II with a couple matches filmed before last Saturday, Aug. 20’s event and probably a bevy of interviews and highlights. Here's what to expect from the show.
The Headliner
It was a little surprising Shinsuke Nakamura defeated Samoa Joe to become the ninth ever NXT champion, but no one was completely shocked. If the King of Strong Style isn’t headed to the main roster - he says he wants his English to be better before that happens - he deserves to be holding the biggest prize in the brand.
What will his reign look like? How long will it last, and who are the credible contenders to face and eventually replace him?
We’ll start to find that out tonight.
Joe didn’t show up on Raw or SmackDown, as had been rumored, and he’s got a rematch clause coming to him... if General Manager William Regal doesn’t somehow try to screw him out of that, too. Then there’s the matter of the jaw injury he suffered at the knee of the new titleholder.
We should get an idea of where this scene is going tonight.
The Title Scene
With Bayley on Raw, it’s smooth sailing for the Women’s champ. Asuka has two straight wins over the Hugster, anyway, and her other previous challenger is also on the red brand. Wouldn’t be shocking to see the Empress of Today fade into the background for this episode, giving them a little more time to build her next victim/contender.
Matches of the night are top guy business, as The Revival proved when they cheated to keep their tag titles and deliver another MotN on Saturday in Brooklyn. Johnny Gargano & Tommaso Ciampa have grounds for a rematch, you’d think, provided they can stay on the same page. Should be fun to watch Dash & Dawson try to wiggle out of another go just like they cheat their way to victories.
Other stuff to keep an eye on:
- Austin Aries taught No Way Jose a lesson, and then got his eardrum ruptured by the master of the GTS. Hideo Itami vs. A-Double looks to be the path... where will Jose dance next?
- The Glorious Bobby Roode couldn’t have scripted a better debut than his Brooklyn win over Andrade “Cien” Almas. The luchador showed flashes that have allowed him to connect to house show crowds. Will he win over Full Sail, starting at tomorrow’s taping? What doesn NXT do with yet another popular heel in Roode?
- After a victorious debut at TakeOver, there are obviously big plans for the enigmatic Ember Moon. But the women’s scene has a bunch of fresh faces after the debuts of Nikki Storm/Glencross/Gross and Mandy Rose last week.
- No one who’s stepped to Paul Ellering’s Authors of Pain has been concious to talk about it afterwards. Will TM61, who were thrown from the ring when they defied the big men a few weeks back, regroup and try again?
- Who is Sanity, and when will we meet him/her/them?
NOTE: Spoilers are out there for these pre-taped broadcasts, but many Cagesiders don't partake. If you are going to post or discuss spoilers for this show before they happen, or results of future shows, please use the spoiler bar in your comment.
See you tonight for NXT, Cagesiders!