Ranking every NXT Championship match on an NXT TakeOver (and Arrival)

4. Adam Cole v. Johnny Gargano- 2 out of 3 Falls Match for the vacant NXT Championship- NXT TakeOver: New York

Look, I know what I’ve already written about how played out the lengthy, epic NXT takeOver main event was in matches before and after this took place, and I know that this match also has several flaws that I hold against matches lower on this list, except those flaws are even more exacerbated here. But the culmination of Gargano’s underdog story, while not the best version that NXT has ever done (including one later on the list, and Gargano and Ciampa’s own ascension as DIY in 2016), still is too awesome to rank any earlier than this.

Again, as I previously noted, this match has significant flaws, and I absolutely understand anyone who wasn’t particularly invested in Gargano, or NXT, not liking or even hating this match. This match runs for THIRTY-EIGHT minutes, and the third fall, in particular, goes on and on. Gargano systematically kicks out of several finishers, including Undisputed ERA’s tag finish after his eye was raked, and two superkicks and the Last Shot after that. Plus, the stipulation didn’t feel particularly necessary here; the action was merely fine for the first two falls, and they easily could’ve been cut out with little impact on the larger match (although Cole instantly tapping out to the Gargano Escape to save himself for the next fall was a nice touch). And you could argue that how long and epic this match was set up the failure that was the third match.

But ultimately, the strengths of this match are so great that they mask the flaws, or even make them positive contributions to the match. The wrestling itself was superb, as you’d expect from these two guys, and the crowd was raucous on this night, embracing Cole and, eventually, Gargano. But the real standout portion of this match is Gargano refusing to die, refusing to lose again,  and finally winning the big one. This lifts the match up significantly, and despite how long Gargano’s underdog story

3. Velveteen Dream v. Tommaso Ciampa(c)- NXT TakeOver: WarGames II

The last TakeOver of 2018 gave us a great NXT Championship match. Dream and Ciampa provided a fresh change of style that was very welcome in a sea of matches with lengthy blood feuds fueling ridiculous levels of finisher kickouts.

This match was incredible the entire way, from a fun opening featuring Dream Hulking Up, to an excellent middle where Dream proved he could hang with Ciampa, to a brutal finish where Dream went for one move too many, missing the Purple Rainmaker on the apron and allowing Ciampa to hit a brutal DDT on the steel divider between the two rings to finish Dream off. And they did all this without going 10 minutes too long *glares at every TakeOver main event in 2019, including the one I just complimented*

2. Sami Zayn v. Adrian Neville(c)- If Sami Zayn loses, he’ll leave NXT- NXT TakeOver r-Evolution

This match was the culmination of a year of struggle by Sami Zayn to win big matches. Entering this night, he was 0-3 on NXT live specials, and had lost a few #1 contendership matches on NXT TV. However, Zayn walked a personal “road to redemption,” avenging his losses to Tyson Kidd, Titus O’Neil and Tyler Breeze before facing Adrian Neville for the NXT Championship on NXT TV. Unfortunately for Zayn, when he had Neville on the ropes, Neville faked an injury in order to catch Neville off-guard and roll him up to retain. Zayn was given another shot at the title, and over the objections of Neville and NXT GM William Regal, decided he’d leave NXT if he lost.

This match was both a reflection of what had made NXT a cult hit, and what would make NXT a more mainstream phenomenon. This match was a well-paced affair, with great intensity and dazzling sequences working in lockstep with a simple yet satisfying story in order to create a strong main event to end the evening, continuing the tradition started with the first two TakeOvers. However, Zayn/Neville was the first match where NXT was truly able to convey the sort of epic scale that would become used more frequently, then overused, in NXT’s later years. There has been a lot of criticism of Full Sail crowds over the years, most of it earned, but on this night, their emotional investment in Zayn’s journey, combined with Zayn’s own emotional performance, solidified this match as one of NXT’s best.

Zayn finally conquered his demons on this night, winning the NXT Championship, and doing so without turning to the same measures Neville used to try to retain. He celebrated with longtime buddy Kevin Owens and the rest of the NXT locker room, and I remember at the time thinking that the image of him being held on the shoulders by the rest of NXT would be an iconic image for years to come.

But just as Zayn/Neville was the first in a long line of epic main events and underdogs finally achieving their title dreams, so too did the aftermath mark the first in what would become a proud tradition: the post-signature twist. Owens slammed Zayn to the ground, then powerbombed Zayn onto the apron, setting themselves up for their blood feud in the opening months of 2015, and for a couple years beyond.

1. Johnny Gargano v. Andrade Almas(c)- NXT TakeOver: Philadelphia

This match is on another level from anything on this list, and probably anything that NXT’s put on in its entire existence. Once Almas turned heel, he always delivered electric performances, particularly so on TakeOvers, and Gargano was at his best, arguably the best fiery underdog babyface that NXT ever had, even more so than Zayn or Bayley.

This match is the good version of all the melodramatic, overly-long Gargano matches that linger at the bottom of the list. So what’s the difference? Perhaps it’s because the crowd is fully behind Gargano, having not yet been subjected to the “why am I so violent” storytelling and the aforementioned later matches. Speaking of storytelling, perhaps it’s because the focus is not on a feud that has become overly concerned with its own references, and instead, focused on Gargano trying to finally win the big one. Perhaps it’s because, at their best, few can perform better than Almas or Gargano, and they were at their best on this night.

Whatever the case may be, nothing comes close to touching just how spectacular, intense and beautiful this match is.