NXT has been doling out the five men who will compete in the first ever Gauntlet Eliminator this Wednesday (Sept. 23) on a show they’re now dubbing the “Take Off To TakeOver.” They announced the unsurprising final man a short time ago...
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Bronson Reed’s been on a tear, and barely missed out on becoming North American champ in the ladder match won by Damian Priest at August’s TakeOver: XXX. He joins Kushida, Kyle O’Reilly, Timothy Thatcher, and Cameron Grimes in the fight to challenge new NXT champ Finn Bálor at the Oct. 4 TakeOver. The full rules for their staggered-entry, eliminations via pinfall or submission match can be found here.
Women’s champ Io Shirai also needs a challenger for TakeOver, but that division will go about things differently.
Eleven women have been named for the #1 contender battle royal that will take place this Wednesday night on USA Network at 8 p.m. Eastern:
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Former champ Rhea Ripley and recent challengers Tegan Nox & Dakota Kai are probably the front-runners, but Shotzi Blackheart, Candice LeRae, and Kai’s enforcer Raquel González have all been featured on television and could get the nod. Kacy Catanzaro, Kayden Carter, Xia Li, Aliyah, Indi Hartwell have to be considered dark horses.
But it’s a short notice event, and Shirai’s character works opposite heels and faces, so who knows?
Join us on the 23rd and we’ll find out more about the card for TakeOver together.