wrestling / Columns

411’s NXT Takeover: War Games II Preview

November 17, 2018 | Posted by Larry Csonka
NXT Takeover: War Games II

~THE STAFF~

* 411 columnist, Mr. Justin Watry.
* 411 contributor, Mr. Ken Hill.
* 411 contributor, Mr. Rob Stewart.

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Johnny Gargano vs. Aleister Black


Justin Watry: Logic says Aleister Black gets his revenge and kicks the head off Johnny Gargano. That is the easy way out. My little scenario? Black finally gets the call up to the main roster and begins losing on the downside of his NXT run. Gargano appears to be staying for the long haul with this new character. Win here and go back to his Tommaso Ciampa story, heel or face.

WINNER: Johnny Gargano

Ken Hill:

It feels like forever since I’ve been a part of a PPV roundtable and now we’ve got a twofer this weekend!

Gargano being revealed as Aleister’s attacker wasn’t the BIGGEST shock in the NXT world (the top two suspects were him and Ciampa), but he revealed some very fascinating, heelish and delusional reasons for why he left Black laying that fateful night; that HE, Johnny Wrestling, is the only one who can upend Ciampa’s notorious reign as NXT Champion and no one else, not even the former champion Black, who in Johnny’s warped mind was merely collateral damage in his crusade to take down his former friend. Black, as we all know, is nobody’s victim, and has every intent of wreaking vengeance on Johnny this coming Saturday. It’s going to be a banger of a grudge match, no doubt, but my money’s on Aleister; he’s yet to receive his proper rematch for the NXT title and getting revenge with a big personal win over a delusional “hero” in Gargano would be as good and proper a rebound as any. Sorry Johnboy, but you either die a hero or live long enough to become the villain.

WINNER: Aleister Black

Rob Stewart: Ah, Johnny Gargano. Of the Sami Zayn/Becky Lynch/Daniel Bryan “They Turned WHO Heel?!” School. This is what we get for years of insisting WWE turn Cena or Reigns heel; they are going to turn every other babyface into a heel instead. Zayn was enjoyable enough, but widely underused as a heel. Becky only became the hottest thing in WWE with her heel turn. And it’s too soon to call on Bryan. Gargano, meanwhile, has really seemed to be enjoying playing mentally-broken, self-rationalizing heel, and his social media activity has been wonderful. It’s unusual seeing him on the wrong side of the fans’ favor, but he’s making lemonade with it. This is the hardest match of Takeover to call for me, but I think Gargano wins it. Black has the built-in excuse of being rusty from injury, and Johnny Failure needs a win to justify his turn (and delusions).

WINNER: Johnny Gargano

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NXT Women’s Title Best 2 out of 3 Falls Match: Champion Shayna Baszler vs. Kairi Sane


@JustinWatry: The only correct call I made of these two wrestling each other was last year’s Mae Young Classic when I predicted the finals before the tournament even started. I was wrong about their August 2018 battle and was wrong about their WWE Evolution battle. Thus, do not be shocked if I am wrong here again. Shayna retains thanks to her MMA buddies helping out. That has to be the outcome, right? Even with the two out of three falls, I cannot imagine yet another title change. Not how NXT does things. What Kairi Sane does after this is anybody’s guess…

WINNER: Shayna Baszler

Ken Hill: I won’t say I was a huge fan of the finish to the latest Baszler-Sane encounter at WWE Evolution, but it did an overall good job of introducing Duke and Shafir to the NXT audience. As long as it leads to the eventual “WWE vs. UFC Horsewomen” marquee match, I’ve got no serious complaints. This match stipulation feels like the best way to not only cap off the Baszler-Sane feud in a big way, but also get Kairi some substantial brownie points before shipping her off to the main roster while Shayna and her Horsewomen crew solidify their hold on the NXT Women’s Division for the coming months.

WINNER: Shayna Baszler

Rob Stewart: Their last encounter at Evolution did a great job working me and getting me all upset over the finish, that’s for sure! I was legitimately sitting at my TV and angrily saying “NO! Come on! This is bull! Call the DQ, ref!” and what-have-you. I’m such an easy mark. These two have wonderful chemistry together as the best pure heel and pure baby in the women’s division, and another battle–an extended one with the stipulation, no less!–is definitely welcome. I don’t picture Kairi coming away with the victory, though, because it would make their last few title swaps meaningless. Kairi will fight hard, get a win in one of the first two falls… but ultimately succumb to Shayna’s tenacity.

WINNER: Shayna Baszler

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NXT Title Match: Champion Tommaso Ciampa vs. The Velveteen Dream


Justin Watry: I have all heels winning on this show. Does not matter because I recall a few Takeovers like that in the past. For this Saturday night though, I don’t know if that is the way to go. Los Angeles should be a rowdy crowd for the Survivor Series festivities. They will want to cheer a major moment, like a MAJOR moment. That may be right here. Ciampa winning and moving on is what my gut is telling me. The Velveteen Dream kinda came out of nowhere as a challenger. Might be a one off to fill time…or it may be an audible to put the championship around his waist as soon as possible! The NXT fans have taken to him, and that face pop might be tempting to pay off this weekend. Him with the gold would create a huge shakeup in the wrestling world and reward a man who deserves the spotlight. Even when he was laughed at and called a bust early on his NXT run, I knew he had something there. Gut says Ciampa wins. Heart will be rooting for The Velveteen Dream, so LA can party like it’s 1999 and go crazy.

WINNER: Flip A Coin

Ken Hill:

Dream’s rise through the ranks in NXT has certainly been remarkable, if not outright amazing. From his character-establishing moments with Aleister Black and Kassius Ohno to breathtaking, body-breaking moments in the inaugural North American Title ladder match to stealing the show with Ricochet and Johnny Gargano, Velveteen has ground his way, naturally risen his stock to the point where he is now on the playing field for the NXT Championship. There isn’t a point in the young man’s journey that hasn’t felt organic; his run hasn’t been perfect, but it needn’t have to. He’s scratched and clawed against far more established opponents and, while he’s come up short on one occasion or another, has not only established himself as a big-time player in NXT but has also earned the respect and adulation of fans through his fantastic promo work, hard-working attitude and tireless dedication to developing his character.

With that in mind, I have no doubt that he will put in an amazing effort against Ciampa, but will come up just short thanks to Tommaso’s nefarious ways and/or the possible involvement of one Lars Sullivan.

WINNER: Tommaso Ciampa

Rob Stewart: Two of NXT’s greatest personalities, on a collision course for the brand’s key title. Can’t wait. These two have each had a dynamite 2018, but I anticipate Ciampa retaining at War Games. It just feels like his evil bastard title reign has so far yet to go, and so many more challenges yet to face. And Dream has proven himself as a guy that can eat L’s here-and-there without any long-term adverse effect. This will be a great match with Dream screwing around with Tommaso and riling him up, though. Are we long past the point where remarking that an NXT Takeover match is probably going to be great means anything? Eh, I don’t care. This is probably going to be great.
WINNER: Tommaso Ciampa

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War Games: The Undisputed Era (Adam Cole & Kyle O’Reilly, & Roderick Strong & Bobby Fish) vs. Ricochet & Pete Dunne & War Raiders


JUSTIN WATRY: I said it last November and will here again. I don’t care for the entire War Games gimmick. Just like the nWo coming to WWE and The Great American Bash making a few appearances after WCW, there is a reason why certain things are better left in the past. No, it isn’t the tired ‘Vince McMahon is petty’ garbage. It is because some things just kinda…aren’t very good. Take off the rose colored goggles. The War Games structure is pretty much a giant cluster and will only work with certain competitors. Luckily, it worked last year and should work again this Saturday night. The Undisputed Era have a great chance to make this THEIR live special annually. That means a victory. Must happen.

WINNER: The Undisputed Era

Ken Hill: It’s the first big match for the full-strength, unified front of The Undisputed Era with Bobby Fish back in the fold. That and the team advantage going into the match would seemingly give Cole and the Gang the edge to go 2-0 in War Games. However, I think with Hanson and Rowe being lined up as the next challengers to the NXT Tag Team Titles, Dem Raider Men will end up being a critical factor in Ricochet’s team coming away with the big win.

WINNER: Team Raid-Dunne-Chet

Rob Stewart: Ah, now we shall witness a fully armed and operational Undisputed Era! There are two lines of thinking here. The first being that UE won last year’s War Games, so they are “due” to lose at this year’s show to maintain the perfect balance (as all things should be). The other being that the Era could win again and really establish themselves as a perennial force in War Games that no one has been able to overcome. Which is the better story? Personally, I think the latter would be engaging, but only if the quartet stays in NXT for another year. That said… I have three other heels predicted as winners here, and what are the odds of a villainous sweep? To move the War Raiders Along as the likely next NXT Tag Team Champs, they have to continue to prove a thorn in Undisputed Era’s side, so…

WINNER: Ricochet, Dunne, and the War Raiders

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