NXT Takeover: Toronto Review 11/19/2016

Hello Misfits! It’s the Wrestling Classic here with my NXT Takeover: Toronto review. Tonight my home country of Canada hosted their first ever NXT Takeover the night before Survivor Series in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Unfortunately, I didn’t make the effort I wish I would have now to make a trip out to the East Coast for this amazing weekend of wrasslin’ in Canada. However, I’ll do my best to enjoy it from home as much as I can. The first night of wrestling in Toronto kicks off with NXT Takeover tonight with the main event of Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Samoa Joe for the NXT Championship. However, the rest of the card is stacked with a crowning the winners of the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic, Mickie James returning to try to defeat the undefeated Asuka, the tag titles being defended among top-notch talent and two of the most popular Canadian born stars going to war against each other. The video packages were put together very well and really did get you excited for this event, even if you missed a NXT episode here or there. I’m saying that from experience to so trust me LOL. Anyway, here are my results and review for tonight’s NXT spectacular.

WWE Hell in a Cell comes to us from the Air Canada Centre in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

– The show opened a video package highlighting the great WWE stars and legends who were born in Toronto, as well as historic moments and hyping up tonights card.

Bobby Roode def. Ty Dillinger
in 16:21 via pinfall
Bobby Roode had a choir singing “glorious” before his music hit and then he came out in a beautiful robe. I really liked Charlotte’s black robe from this earlier this Summer but Bobby Roode’s NXT Takeover robe from tonight is in close in winning the best robe of 2016 award. Rodeo’s entrance was majestic though and the rowdy Canadian crowd sang along with it. Due to my Network lagging I wasn’t able to see Ty Dillinger’s entrance but I bet it was great too. They had a brief stare down which was embraced with “this is awesome chants” until it broke out into a brawl. Both of these guys are from Canada so the crowd was behind both of them most of the match. The match was very back and forth with a bunch of near falls. The crowd being as into it as they were really took this match to another level. I mean they were really alive during this match with chants. Roode played the perfect heel and Dillinger had the fans who were sympathetic towards him and cheering for him. This match was filled with suspense not knowing which way it was going to go. It picked up right from the beginning and never really slowed down. This was a really good and fun opening match that set the pace for the rest of the show. Following this Ty Dillinger really needs a big win soon in the future. This rivalry really got the crowd behind him. However, Bobby Roode picked up the victory with a DDT. I can’t wait for him to be on the main roster, he’d be the perfect fit for Smackdown Live. It would be Glorious. The crowd chants “10” as Dillinger is in the ring following the match telling them he’s sorry.
Rating – ***3/4

Finals of the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic Tournament
The Authors of Pain (Rezar & Akam) w/ Paul Ellering def. TM61 (Nick Miller and Shane Thorne)
in 8:20 by pinfall
This is the finals of the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic Tournament and the winners will be awarded the cup. The extra gimmick here was that the Authors of Pain’s manager, the legendary Paul Ellering, would be locked in a sharks cage above the ring. This way Ellering would have no way of getting involved in the match assisting the Authors of Pain to victory. The Authors of Pain look like beasts and TM61 look like those two friends who are up to overcome the challenge. This match was action packed right off the gecko and wasnt your typical tag match. The match broke out into brawls more than one time. There were a bunch of cool spots. TM61 were really impressive with their highflying tactics and unexpected feats of strength. Shane Thorne hit dived off the structure holding up the shark cage on his opponents outside the ring and Nick Miller hit a beautiful moonsault inside the ring for a near fall. Miller and Thorne even hit their Thunder Valley finisher on Rezar but Akam broke it up. Unless you’ve seen how big Akam and Rezar are you can’t appreciate the strength shown by Miller and Thorne. Ellering still found a way to intervene in the match when he dropped a chain to Akam but when Akam failed to use it. Adam and Rezar hit the Last Chapter on Thorne for the win. The Authors of Pain get awarded the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic cup as Triple H, William Regal and Dustin Rhodes join them in the ring. This match wasn’t a classic by any means but kept the flow going for the night and had its highlights.
Rating – **1/4

NXT Tag Team Championship
2-Out-Of-3-Falls
#DIY (Johnny Gargano & Tommaso Ciampa) def. The Revival (Dash Wilder & Scott Dawson) (C)
in 27:16 by submission
The fans are really behind Ciampa and Johnny Gargano. The crowd started a long “Johnny Wrestling” chant. This match similar to the last ones kicked off fast paced with non stop action. This was honestly classic tag team wrestling at its finest. However, I find myself saying that in every tag team match that involves The Revival. Dash Wilder and Scott Dawson just bring that old school wrestling style back to wrestling and they work as if they’ve been teaming with each other for years. The match started with a lot of back and forth. The Revival got the first fall after Johnny Gargano went for his slingshot spear but was caught by Dawson in mid-air, leading it Wilder and him hitting Johnny with the Shatter Machine. It was really a thing of beauty and the timing of it shows how The Rival are tag team specialist.
Following this Gargano took the beating for a little bit, even getting hit by a Heart Attack and kicking out. After some dram he was able to make the hot tag to Ciampa. Wilder and Dawson set up a spike piledriver, but Ciampa breaks it up with a diving cross body. DIY hits their running knee/superkick combo on Dawson and Ciampa covers Dawson to get the three count.
This tied the two teams for falls at 1-1. The match really picked up from here with suspense and near falls. The crowd chanted a much deserved “this is awesome!” chant. From this point forward Gargano was the legal man most of the time as The Revival worked on him and tried to take out his legs. There was a near fall after a sweet double team move by The Revival on Gargano but Ciampa broke it up before the three count. This had the crowd chanting “holy shit!”. There was even the use of one of the tag titles to try to take out Gargano’s legs as he went for a kick to the head but kicked the title instead. There were a few times it looked as if Gargano was going to tap in submissions that focused on his legs but either he made the rope or the maneuver was broken. At one point The Revival tried executing the finishing maneuver of DIY but failed when Dawson kicked Wilder. DIY hit the Shattered Machine on Dawson for a near fall when Wilder broke the fall. The “holy shit” chants break out again. awson plays hurt and suckers Gargano in for a 2 count. Dash pulls Ciampa off the apron and shoves him into the ring post. Gargano sends Dawson to the floor. Dash takes Gargano’s leg out from behind. Dash goes for a submission but Gargano rolls him up for 2. They trade pin attempts now. Gargano with a submission. Dawson comes in but Ciampa applies the variation of the Rings of Saturn armbar to him. The Revival are down in submissions right next to each other. The Revival tap out to end it. Gargano and Ciampa are your new tag team champions.
WATCH THIS MATCH. It had me on the edge of my seat. It was a tag team clinic and the best match of the night thus far without a question. The Revival can put on a great tag team match with any team team because they’re just that great. This was also dubbed DIY’s last chance at the tag titles, and I couldn’t be happier that they won. They deserve it. Amazing talent in a spectacular match.
Rating – ****3/4

NXT Women’s Championship
Asuka (C) def. Mickie James
in 13:07 by submission
Former WWE “Diva” and Canadian wrestler Mickie James comes out to a warm reception from the crowd. Tons of “Welcome Back” chants. Asuka comes out and her fans are in the crowd as well. During the introductions of each woman there were “Welcome Back” and “Asuka going to kill you” chants. The two trade holds early on until Mickie hits Asuka with a dropkick. This made the crowd burst out with “you still got it” chants. The match was very back and fourth from here. It broke out to the outside after James hit brings Asuka down to the floor with a scissors take down. Asuka hit a nasty german suplex on Mickie James on the outside. Mickie makes it back in at the 7 count but Asuka goes right back to work. Asuka tosses Mickie across the ring and keeps control for a 2 count. Fans do dueling chants now. Asuka mounts Mickie with strikes. Asuka argues with the referee but keeps control. They start going back and forth again. They did a really good job making it look like Mickie James was a threat and the biggest challenge to Asuka thus far. They made James look like Asuka’s kryptonite. Mickie was countering a lot of Asuka’s offence in a way we haven’t witnessed anyone do as well as continuing to fight through Asuka brutal attacks. Asuka blocks Mickie’s DDT but can’t get the Asuka Lock applied. They continue to tangle on the mat. Mickie taps out. This was a great showing for both women. Although the match might not have been the greatest women’s matches every, it told a great story. It had me intrigued and entertained. It was great showing for both women and the first time we’ve seen Asuka really challenged by an opponent. Great stuff. Definitely with checking out, even if it’s just to see Mickie James back in a WWE ring. The two shook hands after the match as a sign of mutual respect.
Rating – ***1/4

NXT Championship
Samoa Joe def. Shinsuke Nakamura (C)
in 20:12 by pinfall
Samoa Joe comes out like a badass of course. Shinsuke Nakamura comes out with a group of violinist this time instead of just one. The fans singing a long with Nakamura’s entrance music. Honestly, his entrance was freakin’ amazing. I don’t know anyone that comes out with that much energy and charisma on the current roster.I know if I tried making an entrance like Shinsuke Nakamura, I’d be tired before the match even started. If these are Nak’s entrances at Takeover events, I can’t even imagine what his Wrestlemania entrance would be like. They did the introductions for each competitor, which got reactions and chants. The bell rings and Nakamura connects first. Joe comes back with kicks. These guys go at each other right away, which tells a great story in how personal this is for them and what being champion means to both men. The match goes back and forth with heavy strikes while the fans are still singing Nakamura’s theme which really creates this cinematic atmosphere for the match. They brawled to the floor where Nakamura kicked Samoa Joe over the barricade and that only very briefly calmed things down. Joe worked on Nakamura’s knee but it wasn’t sold very well as Shinsuke continued with brutal looking knee strikes. There were some near falls throughout the match but near the end is where it really got you sitting at the edge of your seat. Joe attacked the knees again, went for thru muscle buster, but Nakamura escaped and hit Kinshasa for a near fall. Joe avoided another Kinshasa and locked in the clutch. The crowd sang Nakamura’s music to try to bring him back to life. Joe than brutally assaulted Nakamura with a German, Dragon and straightjacket suplexes for a near fall. At this point you very well had it in your mind that Nakamura was gonna come back with the super babyface comeback with the beating he was taking. Joe left eye was busted open which lead to him getting even more enraged, however when he went after Nakamura he was met with another Kinshasa which knocked him out side of the ring. It was outside the ring Joe hit Nakamura with a low blow and slammed him onto the steel steps. Joe took the King of Strong Style back into the ring and hit the muscle buster for a shocking three count. It left the Toronto crowd stunned, but soon they were chanting “Joe! Joe! Joe!”
Once again, this match wasn’t Nakamura vs. Sami Zayn or anything but it had that real fight feel. It felt personal and intense. I was more invested in it than I was in Brooklyn match. The only flaw was the fact that no matter how much Joe worked on the knees of Shinsuke, Nak kept using his knees in the match with zero selling. The championship felt important, something I can’t say about the Universal Title since the Fatal Four Way when Owens won it. This was a great story. a great battle and surprised us with an outcome many of us could have predicted but no one really expected. (This makes me wonder why I don’t do predictions for NXT Takeover shows? I really show) This match was really the perfect way to cap off an incredible show.
Oh yeah, I also thought that Joe wouldn’t win because I wanted to him to appear at Survivor Series or Raw this Monday confronting Lesnar but I guess thats not the case. People already began speculating that Nakamura would be jumping to the main roster, which could be true, but I don’t see either of them leaving NXT just yet. Once, I thought about it more losing Nak or Joe just yet would be a huge blow to NXT.
Rating – ***1/2

Final Thoughts
This was an exceptional show. I don’t know how else to say it. I mean very rarely does NXT let you down on their Takeover shows.  As Adam Pearce said on Twitter “If you somehow didn’t know it already, you should now: @WWENXT ALWAYS delivers. Always.” The tag title match was the best match of the night which isn’t a shocker considering the four men involved in the match.   Mickie James return went very well and she definitely never lost “it”. Everything on the show was crisp and felt right. My fellow Canadians who attended live killed it as a live crowd. I want to give them a little more credit because their Canadian, but it’s what is expected of a NXT crowd. If for any reason any of us felt that NXT’s glory days were behind them, this show proved that they still remain….GLORIOUS.
Final Rating – 8.5/10

What were your final thoughts on NXT Takeover: Toronto? 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.