411’s NXT Takeover: Stand & Deliver (Night Two) Preview

Hello 411 guys, gals, enbies, and everyone else! Welcome to 411’s WWE NXT Takeover: Stand & Deliver Night Two preview! I’m Jeremy Thomas as always, and with the first night of Stand & Deliver in the books we’re moving right along to night two because there’s no rest for the wicked this week. Night One saw a couple of new champions crowned and a new match set for tonight’s show, giving us another strong five-match card. We have a ton of potential here and I’m just interested in talking about them, so let’s dispense with the pleasantries and wade right in.

NXT Women’s Tag Team Championship Match
Shotzi Blackheart & Ember Moon vs. The Way

The NXT Women’s Tag Team Championships have the opportunity to find new champions for the third time in their short lifespan on night two, as Shotzi Blackheart and Ember Moon defend against Candice LeRae and Indi Hartwell. I’ve always felt that Blackheart and Moon deserved a bit more of a push in NXT, and was happy to see when they got a tag team title run by beating the initial champs in Dakota Kai and Raquel Gonzalez immediately after they were awarded the titles. The babyfaces have made for a good tag team so far, but they’ve also only had a few weeks with the titles. LeRae and Hartwell are also a strong pairing, but even with WWE’s tendency to hotshot secondary titles I don’t see them switching the titles again quite so soon if they really want these belts to get established. There will probably be some sort of chicanery by the heels here, but in the end I expect to see Shotzi and Ember walk away still holding on to their titles.

WINNER: Shotzi Blackheart & Ember Moon (STILL NXT Women’s Tag Team Champions)

NXT Cruiserweight Championship Ladder Match
Santos Escobar vs. Jordan Devlin

This match has been a long time coming, with WWE having two Cruiserweight Champions for almost a year now thanks to the pandemic. After Jordan Devlin was stuck in the UK with his title, WWE made the decision to hold an eight-man tournament that ultimately saw Santos Escobar win the interim title. Escobar has defended the title multiple times since then while Devlin has railed against Escobar being champion, calling himself the “real Cruiserweight Champion.” All of that leads into this ladder match to unify the titles, which obviously should be an exciting affair. Looking at the logistics here, I have to imagine that Escobar will be standing tall when the bell rings. Devlin seems likely to go back to NXT UK, which already has a secondary championship in the NXT UK Heritage Championship. And Escobar has Legado del Fantasma to back him up, which will allow him to win without hurting Devlin too much. Unless WWE and Devlin have made the decision to bring him over to the US full-time, Escobar should be the sole Cruiserweight Champion at the end of this match and Devlin can go back to continue his run of good matches on NXT UK.

WINNER: Santos Escobar (NEW & STILL NXT Cruiserweight Champion)

NXT North American Championship Match
Johnny Gargano vs. Bronson Reed

So I don’t mind getting this out of the way; I didn’t call the winner of the Gauntlet Match correctly. Instead of Dexter Lumis, Bronson Reed went on to win the match and will face Gargano for the North American Championship on night two. Hey pobody’s nerfect. Anyway, that really doesn’t change my call on this match, other than to say I’m just as intrigued to see this one as I was for Lumis vs. Gargano. Reed isn’t one of my personal favorite NXT guys, but I certainly won’t deny that he’s talented and has every ability to deliver a good match against Gargano. Gargano has held the championship for over four months if you include his short initial run, and it seems like a good time to take the title off of him and give an up and comer a chance to prove himself with the title. Lumis not winning gives them an opportunity to cost Gargano the match without a clean job if they so wish, but I could also absolutely just see them have Reed get the win. Either way, I see a new champion coming out of this match and am looking forward to the possibility of Reed getting a chance to hit that next level.

WINNER: Bronson Reed (NEW NXT North American Champion)

NXT Championship Match
Finn Bálor vs. Karrion Kross

Finn Balor’s run as NXT Champion has certainly been a reinvigorating one for him. Balor has clearly been enjoying his time in the midweek brand and he took an opportunity given when Karrion Kross was put out with injury to keep the title scene stable, delivering strong matches with a host of top NXT talent. Meanwhile, Karrion Kross hasn’t quite had the same mystique since he returned from that injury — an understandable situation, but it doesn’t change what it is. Even with all that being said, it has been pretty clear that Balor’s been holding the title for Kross who is surely planned for more than just a one-night title reign. While I would actually rather see Balor hold onto the title and Kross move on to Raw or Smackdown, I am pretty sure that’s not the plan. Balor will have a very good match with Kross here, but will ultimately put him over and we should have a new champion when the bell rings.

WINNER: Karrion Kross (NEW NXT Champion)

Unsanctioned Match
Kyle O’Reilly vs. Adam Cole

All due respect to Balor and Kross, but this Unsanctioned Match is the obvious main event for the show. Kyle O’Reilly and Adam Cole’s feud has the backing of story behind it and follows the dissolution of the most dominant force in NXT. Cole and O’Reilly have done a hell of a job building this rivalry, and there’s every reason to think they’ll have a ridiculous match (in a good way, obviously) to assumedly close out Takeover. All that said, Cole doesn’t have a lot left to do in NXT and I don’t necessarily see what he does with a win. O’Reilly, on the other hand, has been very overtly set for a real push and he would make a great challenger for Kross. I expect to see Takeover end with O’Reilly’s hand raised in victory, and maybe (MAYBE) a reconciliation with Cole out of respect before the latter goes on to the main roster. And even if Cole doesn’t go on to Raw or Smackdown, he has more storyline options with a loss than he does with a win.

WINNER: Kyle O’Reilly

And that’s all we have for NXT Takeover: Stand & Deliver Night Two! It’s a very good set of five matches and hopefully they can deliver in the way fans are looking forward to. Anyway, thanks once again for reading, and remember that we will have live coverage of WWE Takeover: Stand & Deliver Night One courtesy of Robert Winfree, right here on 411mania.com. My time is up, so I’d better skedaddle…