NXT Takeover: Chicago II 06/16/2018

Hello Misfits! It’s the Wrestling Classic here with my NXT Takeover: Chicago II review. This NXT Takeover is taking place the night before WWE’s Money in the Bank PPV. The NXT Takeover shows always give the main roster PPV a run for their money to live up to the hangover this event leaves us wrestling fans. I was sure when looking at this card that it wouldn’t be any different this time around. The fact that this Takeover was taking place in front of a hot hardcore wrestling fan crowd in Chicago made it even more clear to me that this Takeover was going to be memorable. A hot crowd always creates a better atmosphere and the wrestlers feed off of it thus making their matches better. All the NXT Championships besides the North American Title were on the line. The tag champions of the Undisputed Era defended their tag titles against Locan and Burch. Two future megastars of the WWE in Velveteen Dream and Ricochet go toe-to-toe for pride and glory. Shayna Baszler defends her Women’s Championship against an opponent like none other in Nikki Cross. Aleister Black does whatever it takes to keep his World Championship and in keeping Lars Sullivan down. Finally, another chapter or the final chapter is written in the Gargano/Ciampa saga which started last year in Chicago in a street fight.

Image via WWE.com

NXT Takeover: New Orleans comes to us from the Allstate Arena in Rosemont, IL.

– Mauro Ranallo, Nigel McGuiness and Percy Watson are on commentary for this event.

NXT Tag Team Championship
Undisputed Era (Kyle O’ Reilly & Roderick Strong) (C) w/ Adam Cole def. Oney Locan & Danny Burch
in 16:00 by pin fall
This was the perfect match to kick off the show. Although they are heels, The Undisputed Era guys are over as fuck. This wasn’t a surprise since they were in a hardcore wrestling town of Chicago. Similar to every match on this card, this match was hard-hitting, aggressive and told a great story. It was more than believable that Locan and Burch could walk out as the new tag team champions. If this was their opportunity to prove themselves, they definitely did. This match went back and fourth with many near falls. It picked up and never slowed down. The Undisputed Era just keeps delivering and showing why they are such an important part of NXT. I thought Locan and Burch had the match in the bag after a doomsday uppercut but Cole saved the day by before being kicked out from ringside by the referee. The match went back and fourth again until the finish with some really creative transitions and the crowd was hot. In the end O’Reilly and Strong single out Locan and hit him with some devastating strikes before using the Eliminator to put them away. This was an awesome match and possibly the best match on the show. Right off the bat I was reminded why I enjoy NXT, especially the Takeover shows.

Ricochet def. Velveteen Dream
in 22:10 pin fall
Velveteen came out dawning the red and yellow in Hulkamania style brother, while wearing tights that reminded me of Prince Puma. I can’t continue without talking about how much I appreciate Velveteen’s effort to go above and beyond to make everything he does feel special. They did the classic stare down to mirror the Rock/Hogan stare down at Wrestlemania 18. Ricochet already feels unique and as if he’s a big star even though he’s fairly new to NXT.  There was some classic Ricochet choreography which longtime fans appreciate and new fans will be in awe with. This had a big match feel and you could tell these two wanted to steal the show. They had an awesome match and they told a great story in the ring. Each guy was surprised by their opponents tenacity. The story was that Dream wanted to show that anything Ricochet could do he could do better, but in the end it was his obsession with doing so that ended up costing him and Ricochet overcame and picked up the hard fought win. In the end both guys end up getting over because of their performance in this match. It ended with Ricochet picking up the victory after a 630 splash. Thus far this Takeover is 2-2 for great matches.

NXT Women’s Championship
Shayna Baszler (C) def. Nikki Cross
in 09:25 by submission
This match was exactly what it needed to be. It got over both characters exactly the way it needed to. Shayna continued to be a tough ass kicker and Nikki Cross came off like a psychopath. Baszler’s overall command an in ring confidence has also really grown in recent months, and she’s only getting better. Cross seemed to be the first person to throw her off her game but not in a wrestling way, but through psychology. Cross played it off as if she enjoyed the pain and would smile in moments where she should have been concerned to throw Bazler off. The finish, with Nikki passing it also played well into the story as she was too crazy and to focused on making Baszler keep attacking to tap. The shot of Nikki smiling and then passing out was amazing. This was good and exactly what it needed to be style wise and didn’t overstay it’s welcome. I felt like this allowed Bazler to continue her reign of terror but it was a new beginning for Nikki Cross.

NXT Championship
Aleister Black (C) def. Lars Sullivan
in 14:07 by pinfall
This was a great match between two big men. I was rooting for Black but Sullivan really impressed me here. This was the first time I saw Sullivan the way the officials of NXT must because I saw a future champion in him. This was a well laid out match, it didn’t go too long. Lars got to be the monster and gave Black a great battle, but the champion was just too much and while it took more than one, Black eventually put him away with black mass. I dont think Lars is going to be the one to dethrone Aleister Black but I do think this was a good outing for him. This had to be a one off and Black needs to move on. I’m not sure who his next foe will be but I’m definitely looking forward to it. I could definitely see Lars setting his eyes on Cole and the North American championship.

Street Fight
Tomasso Ciampa def. Johnny Gargano
in 35:29 by pin fall
The main factor that drives these matches between Ciampa and Gargano and gets us as fans so invested in them is the story that surrounds it. This all started at the first NXT Chicago and it is still going on strong. Each match plays off the last and these two know how to tell a story, having the right call back moments and make us really believe they want to hurt each other over being hurt over their old friendship. These guys fought all around the arena and made sure this match was different from their unsanctioned match. I think that there was some trepidation going into this, not due to the performers, but to going back to such a similar match after they delivered an absolute classic in that first match. They made sure this was different. They wore street clothes and got creative. Once again, although there were call backs such as the exact scene that played out at Chicago when these two broke up, they made this match new. Ciampa continued to prove he had no heart as he threw Gargano’s wedding ring into the crowd which lit a fire in Johnny. Gargano was so overcome with getting revenge that he got so carried away, allowing Ciampa to catch him and steal the win after he basically lost twice but there was no referee to make the call. Ciampa stealing the win and walking off on his own as he mockingly waved to Gargano was a great visual and that will play well into the build for the rubber match. I love the stone cold heartless personality of Ciampa compared to Gargano who fights with too much heart. It plays off well. Their story on top of their abilities in the ring allowed the sequel to be just as good as the first match which isn’t always the case. Be sure to check out this match if you get a chance.

Final Thoughts
Every time I watch a Takeover, I am reminded on why I love this business and the differences between the main roster and NXT really become apparent. Each match was special in its own way. They all had unique stories and great wrestling. The tag match further validated the Undisputed Era as a threat to NXT while still building two new stars in Locan and Burch. Velveteen Dream and Ricochet both showed why they are considered the future of not only NXT but the WWE generally. Shayna remained dominant while Nikki Corss has a resurrection in character. Aleister Black stood tall proving why he’s the champion but Lars Sullivan proved to be reputable threat. Gargano and Ciampa again proved that there was no loveloss between them and that good storytelling does matter. I do believe we’ll get a break from the Gargano/Ciampa rivalry though. As I see Ciampa unseating Black to win the title, and then finally building to the final clash where Gargano gets his final revenge so then wins the tile and can have a happy celebration between husband and wife. If you didn’t watch this event, go out of your way and watch it. It was really something special. Thank you NXT. Good luck main roster.
Final Rating – 10/10

What were your final thoughts on NXT Takeover: Chicago II? What final grade would you give the event? Where would you rate it on a scale of ten? Do you agree with my review? Leave your comments, opinions and thoughts below in the comments section.