wrestling / Columns
Csonka’s NXT UK Takeover: Cardiff 2019 Preview
WELCOME back to column time with Larry! Today, I am going to discuss and preview the NXT UK Takeover: Cardiff 2019 event. The show will feature UK Champion WALTER vs. Tyler Bate, UK Women’s Champion Toni Storm vs. Kay Lee Ray, and more. So today I will breakdown and preview the event. Feel free to make your picks in the comment section. Thanks for reading! It’s wrestling, we love it and will disagree. The only rules are “have a take, be respectful, and don’t be a dick.”
BREAKING NEWS: @WWECesaro is coming to take a look at #NXTUKTakeOver: Cardiff THIS SATURDAY!
And it sounds like he's looking to take a hands-on approach… pic.twitter.com/ztp0DeYRlW
— WWE UK (@WWEUK) August 27, 2019
CESARO TO APPEAR: Cesaro will be appearing at the event, which is really interesting to me. They are doing absolutely nothing with him on the main roster, so maybe a short sabbatical to the UK brand would be for the best. He would add some star power, a TON of fresh singles matches, and you could of course do a Kings of Wrestling reunion with Ohno, either way, the potential of Cesaro doing a 6-month stint or so in NXT UK is a very exciting prospect to me.
Noam Dar vs. Travis Banks: Banks was set to compete at the first NXT UK Takeover, but was taken out/injured by Jordan Devlin. Banks returned, overcame his injuries, gained momentum, and even a championship match against WALTER. He of course lost to WALTER, because he just wasn’t ready for the big fucking daddy. He looks to get back on track here competing at his first Takeover. Dar was in the Cruiserweight Classic, and an early part of 205 Live until he was injured. When he came back, he was in an odd limbo between 205 Live & NXT UK until the decision to bring him back to the UK brand became official. He started off with a short lived babyface run, which worked as the fans were excited to see him back and then quickly returned to his pure asshole ways. He claimed he signed a huge contract, was better than everyone. turned on former friend Kenny Williams, and claimed that his new big contract guaranteed him a spot in Takeover. Banks wanted that match, and had to win his way into it. He did just that and finally gets his shot on a Takeover 8-months after he was to get his first chance. Both guys are good, Banks has shown that he can step up in big matches, and we’ll have a clear face/heel dynamic here to play off of. It’s not the sexiest match on paper, but should be a strong addition to the card. I think that with WALTER retaining later in the evening, that Banks takes the win here to set up an eventual rematch with the champion. WINNER: Travis Banks
NXT UK Tag Team Champions The Grizzled Young Veterans vs. Gallus vs. Mark Andrews & Flash Morgan Webster: The Grizzled Young Veterans won the tag titles back at Takeover in January. Since then, they have controlled the tag division, retaining the championships and not only claiming to be the NXT UK locker room leaders, but the best tag team in the business. Gallus was the big faction in NXT UK, and Joe Coffey even challenged for the UK championship, but WALTER then arrived, won the title and formed Imperium who took over as the new dominant faction in NXT UK. They look to remain relevant as Mark Coffey & Wolfgang challenge for the tag team championships here. They made the challenge, but Mark Andrews & Flash Morgan Webster interrupted, stating that they deserved a title shot. They proved themselves in singles matches against Mark Coffey & Jams Drake and earned their way into this match. The Grizzled Young Veterans have been good champions, and I find them to be a highly enjoyable heel tag team. Gallus has been hit and miss with me, as they fall into that consistently good, but rarely great category. Mark Andrews & Flash Morgan Webster are a tremendously fun and over babyface team that will bring the sizzle to this match. I am feeling a title change to the babyface team of Mark Andrews & Flash Morgan Webster, which I think later sets up Imperium’s Aichner & Barthel winning the titles to feud with Mustache Mountain. WINNER: Mark Andrews & Flash Morgan Webster
Last Man Standing Match: Mastiff vs. Joe Coffey: The build to Mastiff vs. Joe Coffey feels almost identical to the build to Mastiff vs. Edie Dennis at the first NXT UK Takeover. While it’s not a bad formula, I feel that it paints Mastiff as a one-dimensional character that hasn’t changed since the beginning of the year. The good news is that the build has been solid and I think that they can have a good match as they will have some smoke and mirrors to use, and they like to hoss about and beat the shit out of each other. But you have to work the stipulation really well, and that’s not easy because last man standing matches can often become tedious with too many count teases, which kills momentum. Add in the fact that the match allows for no near falls and that can also hurt the drama unless you play to the stipulation extraordinarily well. I have faith in their ability to work a good and physical match, but the layout will be the key here. I think that Mastiff winning here is the play as I think that he can be positioned as a future challenger of the month for WALTER. WINNER: Mastiff
UK Women’s Champion Toni Storm vs. Kay Lee Ray: I love this Toni Storm vs. Kay Lee Ray match up on paper, as they have an established history outside of NXT UK to play off of (which they have dove into via video packages) and know each other well. I think that both are great perfumers and will deliver in the ring here at Takeover. Storm has been champion since January, and has been a fine champion, but I feel that it’s time for a shakeup. With that being the case, I see Kay Lee Ray winning the championship here and likely moving onto an eventual feud with another familiar opponent in Piper Niven. WINNER: Kay Lee Ray
UK Champion WALTER vs. Tyler Bate: I have really loved the build to this, WALTER beating Dunne, Imperium forming and running wild on British Strong Style, WALTER “hospitalizing” Bate, and then destroying Trent Seven as he looked for revenge for young Tyler. On paper, WALTER vs. Tyler Bate is an excellent main event for this show. They’ve worked together in the past and had bangers, and play their roles well because WALTER is an awesome asshole bully, while Bate is a tremendous babyface performer who is capable of amazing feats of strength. This will be without a doubt in my mind the match of the show, and possibly of a loaded weekend (remember, NJPW Royal Quest & AEW All Out also run that same day), that’s how much potential I see in this match. The story is strong, the perfumers are great and while I think that Bate will make for a great challenger that fans can get invested, in, the reality here is that the big fucking daddy WALTER will destroy him and retain the championship. WINNER: WALTER
Hopefully they debut WALTER’s updated theme song…
The 411 on Wrestling Podcast returns to the 411 Podcasting Network for episode 46. On the show, the good brother, Jeremy Lambert, joins 411’s Larry Csonka and the guys will breakdown and preview the huge weekend of events, including NJPW Royal Quest, NXT UK Takeover Cardiff, & AEW All Out. The show is approximately 117-minutes long.
* Intro
* NJPW Royal Quest Preview: 3:45
* NXT UK Takeover Cardiff Preview/Cesaro Possibly to NXT UK: 24:45
* AEW All Out Preview: 44:00
* Big Show Related Announcement: 1:48:30
You can subscribe and listen to the 411 on Wrestling Podcast via the above player on Transistor, or on the following platforms:
* iTunes
* Spotify
* Stitcher
* Google Play
– End Scene.
– Thanks for reading.
More Trending Stories
- Jake Roberts Details Challenges Of Traveling With A Snake
- More Details on Injured Shoulder for Rhea Ripley, Relinquishing Title
- Kevin Nash Says Will Ospreay’s Comments on Triple H Prove He’s Not Smart to the Business
- Mark Henry & Bully Ray on What’s Next for The Rock, Roman Reigns & The Bloodline in WWE