NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn
NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn | ||||
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Promotional poster featuring various NXT wrestlers with the upper right side being taped and the left side for the show | ||||
Theme song(s) | "We Like it Loud" by Sleeping with Sirens[1] | |||
Information | ||||
Promotion | WWE | |||
Brand(s) | NXT | |||
Date | August 22, 2015 | |||
Attendance | 15,589[2] | |||
Venue | Barclays Center | |||
City | Brooklyn, New York City, New York | |||
WWE Network event chronology | ||||
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NXT TakeOver chronology | ||||
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NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn was a major professional wrestling show in the NXT TakeOver series that took place on August 22, 2015. The NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn event was produced by WWE, showcasing its NXT developmental brand, and streamed live on the WWE Network. The event took place in the Barclays Center of Brooklyn, New York City, New York - the first night of what was billed as a WWE "triple-header" at the arena, with SummerSlam taking place the following evening, and Raw the night after that.[3] This was the first NXT TakeOver held outside of Full Sail University; WWE promoted it as NXT being "on the biggest stage yet". Starting with NXT Arrival on February 27, 2014, WWE's developmental league NXT has held major shows broadcast live on the WWE network, with the August event being the seventh event in the series and was sold out.
There were two main events for the show, a ladder match for the NXT Championship with reigning champion Finn Bálor defending the title against former champion Kevin Owens, in a rematch from The Beast in the East show from Tokyo, Japan where Bálor won the championship, and a singles match for the NXT Women's Championship, where Sasha Banks defended her title against Bayley. A match for the NXT Tag Team Championship was also part of the show with The Vaudevillains capturing the championships. NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn was the first WWE promoted event appearance of Japanese Jushin Thunder Liger who was making a one time appearance on the show, facing off against Tyler Breeze. The show also marked what was billed as the NXT in-ring debut of Apollo Crews, formerly Uhaa Nation, who started working for WWE/NXT during the summer of 2015.
Production
Background
The NXT TakeOver series of professional wrestling shows started on May 29, 2014 as the WWE developmental league NXT held their second ever WWE Network exclusive live broadcast billed as NXT TakeOver.[4] In subsequent months, the "TakeOver" moniker became the brand used by NXT and WWE for all of their NXT live specials as they held NXT TakeOver: Fatal 4-Way, NXT TakeOver: R Evolution, NXT TakeOver: Rival and finally NXT TakeOver: Unstoppable at three to four month intervals.[5][6][7][8]
In July 2015, WWE announced that their latest NXT TakeOver show would take place on August 22, 2015, the day before the 2015 SummerSlam show and would be in same location as SummerSlam, the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York City, New York.[9] This would make the first NXT TakeOver held outside of the Full Sail University arena in Winter Park, Florida. WWE promoted the show as "featuring the next generation of WWE... on the biggest stage yet" referring to the 13,000+ capacity of the Barclay Center compared to the 400 seat Full Sail University or the various the arenas NXT had held shows at in the United States that generally could accommodate a couple of thousand spectators at most.[9][10]
Storylines
This event featured professional wrestling matches involving different wrestlers from pre-existing scripted feuds and storylines that played out on the NXT television program prior to the show. Wrestlers portrayed faces (the 'good guys') or heels (the 'bad guys') as they followed a series of events that built tension and culminated in a match or a series of matches.[11][12]
The main event of the show saw Finn Bálor defending his NXT Championship against Kevin Owens in a ladder match. The storyline between the duo started in February 2015 at NXT TakeOver: Rival, when Owens captured the NXT Championship while Bálor won a tournament to become number one contender.[7] Bálor got his title shot on the March 25 episode of NXT; despite claiming that he did not need 'the Demon' to beat Owens, the champion prevailed over his unpainted challenger by taking advantage of a storyline leg injury.[13] However, Bálor once again became number one contender at NXT TakeOver: Unstoppable in May when he beat Tyler Breeze.[14] This earned Bálor another title match against Owens, set for the July 4 at The Beast in the East WWE Network special event. After using body paint to transform into 'the Demon', Bálor defeated Owens to become the new NXT Champion in his 'second home' of Japan.[15][16] At the 2015 San Diego Comic-Con International on July 9, a title rematch was announced as the main event for NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn.[17] On the August 5 episode of NXT, Owens requested for the stipulation of a ladder match, claiming he did not want to suffer NXT General Manager William Regal costing him the title in a situation alike the Montreal Screwjob; this was accepted by Bálor,[18] and made official the next week.[19]
The co-main event was for the NXT Women's Championship, contested between champion Sasha Banks and challenger Bayley. It was described as the "arrogant and ultra-talented champ" taking on the "lovable ... ultimate underdog" by The Baltimore Sun.[20] This was the culmination of a rivalry between the duo and a long storyline for Bayley which began over two years prior. In June 2013, both Bayley (debuting an innocent character) and Banks participated in the tournament to crown the first NXT Women's Champion, but both exited in the first round.[21][22][23] Banks allied herself with Summer Rae from September,[24] morphing into the character of "The Boss",[25] while Bayley allied herself with Charlotte. Despite Rae and Banks attempting to woo Bayley to join them,[26] it was Charlotte who turned on Bayley in November 2013 to join the BFFs (Rae and Banks).[27] In early 2014, Bayley, now backed up by Natalya, scored multiple wins over Banks while feuding with the BFFs,[28][29] but Banks (who was later eliminated) defeated Bayley in May during the first round of a tournament for the vacant NXT Women's title.[30][31] In July, the BFFs went their separate ways, and Bayley failed to defeat Rae for a title shot.[32][33] Bayley finally became the number one contender for the NXT Women's title by beating Banks in August,[34] only to lose to champion Charlotte at NXT TakeOver: Fatal 4-Way in September,[5] and again in a title rematch the next month. After the first match, Charlotte saved Bayley from an attack by Banks; after the second, the duo shook hands.[35] In October 2014, Bayley's friend Becky Lynch turned on her to ally with Sasha Banks, so Bayley again allied with Charlotte to feud against Banks and Lynch.[36] An attack by Banks and Lynch caused a storyline knee injury for Bayley in November,[37] while Charlotte beat Banks at NXT TakeOver: R Evolution to retain her title in December 2014.[6] Bayley returned in January 2015, saving Charlotte from Banks and Lynch. Charlotte then snatched her title belt from Bayley, resulting in Bayley attacking her. This caused a fatal-four way match to be set up between the quartet at NXT TakeOver: Rival,[38] where at the event, Banks won the match and the NXT Women's Championship.[7] When Bayley refused to turn her back on her supporters despite her failings, Emma slapped her to start a feud in March 2015.[39] In April, Becky Lynch beat Bayley and Charlotte in a triple threat match for a title shot.[40] Bayley's woes continued when she lost to Emma in May,[41] as well as being ruled out of action with a hand injury for which she blamed Emma for.[42] Meanwhile, Sasha Banks racked up successful title defenses in singles action against Charlotte (twice),[43][44] Alexa Bliss, and at NXT TakeOver: Unstoppable, Becky Lynch.[13][14] Bayley returned on the July 22 episode of NXT, where she defeated Emma and announced her championship aspirations, but first challenged Charlotte to prove her credentials.[45] After Bayley bested Charlotte on the August 5 episode of NXT,[18] she earned a title shot by beating Becky Lynch on the August 12 episode of NXT, earning a title match for Sasha Banks' NXT Women's Championship at NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn.[19]
On the undercard. the NXT Tag Team Championship was defended by Blake and Murphy against The Vaudevillains. On the January 28 episode of NXT Blake and Murphy defeated the Lucha Dragons to win the NXT Tag Team Championship for the first time.[46] Over the summer of 2015 the team known as the Vaudevillains (Aiden English and Simon Gotch) started to push for the team to get a match against Blake and Murphy for the tag team championship, strengthening their argument when they defeated Colin Cassady and Enzo Amore to be named the number one contenders.[47] They would later lose the match to Blake and Murphy.[48]
In the weeks following the announcement of NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn, Tyler Breeze would often complain to on screen NXT General Manager William Regal that he "wanted competition", which Regal later announced in the form of New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW) wrestler Jushin Thunder Liger.[49] The unusual deal between the two promotions had come about when WWE approached NJPW about bringing Liger in for the event as a special guest, which was accepted by NJPW.[50]
The wrestler known as Uhaa Nation signed a WWE contract in early 2015 and on April 6 he reported to the WWE Performance Center, the home of NXT.[51][52][53] Uhaa made his first televised appearance on the May 6 episode of NXT, presenting him as signing an NXT contract, at the result of NXT General Manager William Regal. This was followed by a vignette promoting his upcoming debut.[54] Uhaa started working NXT house shows the following month, retaining the Uhaa Nation ring name.[55] On August 5, it was announced that Uhaa would be known under the ring name "Apollo Crews", and that he would be making his televised NXT debut on August 22 at NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn.[56] His opponent was later identified as Tye Dillinger and the match was announced as the sixth match of the actual NXT TakeOver broadcast.[10] Crews, however, made his actual NXT in-ring debut at the August 13 tapings, defeating Martin Stone. The match against Stone was not aired, WWE showed the first four matches taped in Brooklyn prior to the live broadcast instead.[57]
Broadcasters
The commentators were Rich Brennan, Corey Graves and Byron Saxton. The pre-show panel consisted of Graves, Saxton, Renee Young, and Hall of Famer Lita.
Reception
"NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn" received widespread critical acclaim, particularly for its two main-events.
Nick Tylwalk of Canoe.ca rated the event 8 out of 10, stating that "while it might not have been the best NXT card to date, it didn't disappoint, as it was headlined by two title matches that matched great in-ring action with solid build-ups." Tylwalk's best rated match was the NXT Championship ladder match at 9.5 out of 10, and the worst rated match was Corbin-Joe at 4 out of 10. He also highlighted the progress of NXT, writing that it "would have been unthinkable even a few years ago" that "as many people in the same venue that will take in SummerSlam" would pay to "watch the developmental arm of the WWE". Overall, Tylwalk felt that with NXT, it "sure looked" like "WWE has finally manufactured for itself what it's lacked since the heyday of WCW: real competition".[58]
Benjamin Tucker of the Pro Wrestling Torch Newsletter attended in person both NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn and WWE SummerSlam (a day later in the same venue). He gave Brooklyn a 9.0 score, noting that it was "met with near-universal praise", higher than SummerSlam, which rated 6.5 and "was met with ridicule and scorn by the night's end". Apart from approving of its "excellent wrestling", Tucker praised and contrasted the superior writing of Brooklyn with SummerSlam: "NXT provided simple stories, but they were easy to follow and made the viewer root for the good guys to prevail", in addition to "no chicanery". Yet SummerSlam had convoluted stories, "confusingly-presented characters" and "terrible" swerves. The NXT Women's Championship match, a "grueling 20-minute match that put over both competitors and the title they were fighting for", was said to be a "serious Match of the Year contender" and a cut above all the SummerSlam matches a day later.[59]
Darren Gutteridge from Pro Wrestling Dot Net described the event as "fantastic", while declaring that the "brand didn't look out of place on the bigger stage of the Barclays Center, and that is truly remarkable given how young NXT is." He felt that the Women's Championship match was the match of the show and a "perfect crescendo of build, character, and in-ring work", the NXT Championship match was a "very admirable effort" with high "storytelling value" for a ladder match. Gutteridge praised the tag title match as "both teams put forward some of their best work to date". For the remaining singles matches, he felt that the quality of Joe-Corbin was a pleasant surprise, declared that Crews "looked liked he belonged from the second he walked out", but wrote that the Breeze-Liger opener "felt a little ordinary".[60]
Dave Meltzer's Wrestling Observer Newsletter rated the Women’s Championship match as the best of the show at 4.5 out of 5 stars, and the NXT Championship match 4.25 stars. The worst rated match was Crews-Dillinger at 1.5 stars, with the three other matches on the live special episode rated between 2 and 3 stars.[61]
NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn won the 2015 Show of the Year Award and Sasha Banks vs Bayley won Match of the Year at the inaugural NXT year-end awards on January 13, 2016.[62]
It was later announced that WWE would have similar NXT: TakeOver/SummerSlam/Raw triple-headers at Barclays Center in 2016 and 2017.[3]
Results
See also
References
- ↑ "Sleeping With Sirens’ "We Like It Loud" to serve as theme song for WWE NXT event". Alternative Press. Retrieved July 20, 2015.
- ↑ Witner, Emerson (22 August 2015). "WWE NXT TakeOver live results & main card: Finn Balor vs. Kevin Owens, Sasha Banks vs. Bayley, Samoa Joe, Jushin "Thunder" Liger". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Archived from the original on 2015-08-23. Retrieved 22 August 2015.
- 1 2 Brooklyn Triple Header - Uproxx.com
- ↑ Howell, Nolan. "Neville tops Kidd at NXT Takeover". canoe.ca. Retrieved 3 July 2015.
- 1 2 Howell, Nolan. "Neville shocks, defies odds at NXT Takeover: Fatal 4 Way". Canoe.ca. SLAM! Wrestling. Retrieved 13 September 2014.
- 1 2 James, Caldwell. "Caldwell's WWE NXT Takeover results 12/11: Complete virtual-time coverage of Neville vs. Zayn for the NXT Title, Itami & Balor, Charlotte, Kevin Steen/Owens's debut, Corey Graves retires". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved 15 December 2014.
- 1 2 3 Caldwell, James. "NXT News: Big title changes on "Takeover" special, tournament finals, pre-show dark match, more". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved 13 February 2015.
- ↑ James, Justin. "WWE NXT "TakeOver: Unstoppable" report 5/20: Owens vs. Zayn for the NXT Title ends in wild fashion with a major debut of Samoa Joe, plus spectacular NXT Women's Title match, more; Overall Reax". PWTorch.com. Retrieved 21 May 2014.
- 1 2 "NXT TakeOver comes to Brooklyn during SummerSlam 2015 Week". WWE. Retrieved July 3, 2015.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 Caldwell, James. "New matches announced for "NXT: Takeover" in Brooklyn". PWTorch.com. Retrieved August 19, 2015.
- ↑ Grabianowski, Ed. "How Pro Wrestling Works". HowStuffWorks, Inc. Discovery Communications. Archived from the original on November 18, 2013. Retrieved March 5, 2012.
- ↑ "Live & Televised Entertainment". WWE. Archived from the original on November 18, 2013. Retrieved March 21, 2012.
- 1 2 "WWE NXT TV report 3-25-15". f4wonline.com. Retrieved 4 September 2015.
- 1 2 Trionfo, Richard (21 May 2015). "'NXT TakeOver: Unstoppable' Recap – Samoa Joe Saves the Day". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 31 August 2015.
- ↑ Caldwell, James (4 July 2015). "Caldwell's WWE Network special report 7/4: Complete "virtual-time" coverage of "Beast in the East" - Lesnar's in-ring return, Owens vs. Balor for NXT Title, more". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved 4 July 2015.
- ↑ Montgomery, James. "WWE 'Beast in the East': Finn Balor's Reign Begins". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 4 September 2015.
- ↑ Pruett, Will. "WWE Panel at San Diego Comic Con 2015 Live Coverage". prowrestling.net. Retrieved 6 September 2015.
- 1 2 Zimmerman, Zack (August 5, 2015). "8/5 Zim's WWE NXT Coverage". prowrestling.net. Retrieved September 6, 2015.
- 1 2 Witner, Emerson (August 12, 2015). "WWE NXT August 12 TV results: Bayley vs Becky No. 1 contender's match, Finn Balor vs. Marcus Louis?". f4wonline.com. Retrieved September 1, 2015.
- ↑ Oster, Aaron. "NXT women debut on WWE Raw, shake up divas division". The Baltimore Sun. Retrieved 26 August 2015.
- ↑ James, Justin (6 June 2013). "James' WWE NXT Results 5/29 & 6/5: Wyatts defend Tag Titles, NXT Women's Title introduced, #1 contender battle royal, Parade of released NXT wrestlers in matches". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved 10 July 2013.
- ↑ Chiverton, George. "Chiverton's NXT scouting report: Latest Rankings & Evaluation of top WWE prospects, including Wyatts". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved March 17, 2014.
- ↑ Trionfo, Richard Trionfo. "WWE NXT report: Wyatt Family in six man action; women's tournament continues; Zayn/Cesaro III is coming". PWInsider. Retrieved June 19, 2013.
- ↑ Trionfo, Richard. "WWE NXT report: The show starts off S-A-W-F-T but picks up steam with women's action and Kruger vs. Woods". PWInsider. Retrieved September 11, 2013.
- ↑ Namako, Jason. "WWE NXT Results – 9/26/13 (new GM announced)". WrestleView. Retrieved August 30, 2015.
- ↑ James, Justin. "James WWE NXT results 11/6 – Week 71: Luke Harper Week continues with Harper vs. Ohno/Hero, NXT tag champs in action, Summer Rae, more, Overall Reax". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved March 17, 2014.
- ↑ James, Justin. "James WWE NXT results 11/13 – Week 72: Must-see 2/3 Falls main event, Flair's daughter turns, Overall Reax". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved March 17, 2014.
- ↑ Namako, Jason. "WWE NXT results - 1/29/14 (contract signing)". wrestleview.com. Retrieved 30 August 2015.
- ↑ Zimmerman, Zack. "3/20 Zim's WWE NXT Live Coverage". prowrestling.net. Retrieved 30 August 2015.
- ↑ James, Justin (May 1, 2014). "James' WWE NXT Report 5/1". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved February 15, 2015.
- ↑ James, Justin (May 22, 2014). "James's WWE NXT Report 5/22 – Week 99: Final hype for Take-Over Live Special, Bo Dallas written off, Overall Reax". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved June 7, 2014.
- ↑ Namako, Jason. "WWE NXT Results - 7/3/14 (Zayn vs. Gabriel)". wrestleview.com. Retrieved 31 August 2015.
- ↑ James, Justin. "WWE NXT Results 7/10". PWTorch.com. Retrieved 31 August 2015.
- ↑ James, Justin. "WWE NXT report 8/14 - Week 111". PWTorch.com. Retrieved 30 August 2015.
- ↑ James, Justin (October 2, 2014). "James' WWE NXT Results 10/2". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved February 15, 2015.
- ↑ Melok, Bobby. (October 23, 2014). "WWE NXT results – Oct. 23, 2014: Neville defends NXT Title against Titus, Bayley betrayed by Becky Lynch". WWE. Retrieved November 4, 2014.
- ↑ James, Justin (November 27, 2014). "James' WWE NXT Report 11/27". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved February 15, 2015.
- ↑ Namako, Jason (January 26, 2015). "WWE NXT results – 1/21/15". WrestleView. Retrieved February 15, 2015.
- ↑ Namako, Jason. "WWE NXT Results - 3/25/15 (Kevin Owens vs. Finn Balor)". wrestleview.com. Retrieved 31 August 2015.
- ↑ Namako, Jason. "WWE NXT Results - 4/22/15 (Owens vs. Riley)". wrestleview.com. Retrieved 31 August 2015.
- ↑ Namako, Jason. "WWE NXT Results - 5/27/15 (Owens vs. Crowe)". wrestleview.com. Retrieved 31 August 2015.
- ↑ Witner, Emerson. "WWE NXT July 8 TV results & recap". f4wonline.com. Retrieved 31 August 2015.
- ↑ Witner, Emerson. "WWE NXT TV Report 3-4-15: Sasha Banks vs. Charlotte". f4wonline.com. Retrieved 31 August 2015.
- ↑ Witner, Emerson. "WWE NXT July 15 TV results and recap: Women's Champion Sasha Banks vs Charlotte". f4wonline.com. Retrieved 31 August 2015.
- ↑ James, Justin (July 22, 2015). "WWE NXT report 7/22 - Week 172: Balor-Owens contract signing for Brooklyn, Samoa Joe in action, Women's Division developments, more; Overall Reax". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved July 23, 2015.
- ↑ Parry, Josh (January 15, 2015). "NXT spoilers from Full Sail University". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved January 15, 2015.
- ↑ "WWE NXT #154". Cagematch.net. June 18, 2015. Retrieved August 20, 2015.
- ↑ "WWE NXT #157". Cagematch.net. July 17, 2015. Retrieved August 20, 2015.
- ↑ "Jushin ‘Thunder’ Liger to appear at NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn". WWE. Retrieved August 10, 2015.
- ↑ アメリカ現地時間・8月22日、なんとWWE・NXTのビッグマッチに獣神サンダー・ライガー選手が登場!!. New Japan Pro Wrestling (in Japanese). July 17, 2015. Retrieved August 21, 2015.
- ↑ Meltzer, Dave (December 31, 2014). "Jan. 5, 2015 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: 2014 business year in review, Daniel Bryan return, Wrestle Kingdom preview, death of Al Greene, and much more". Wrestling Observer Newsletter (Campbell, California): 51. ISSN 1083-9593.
- ↑ Caldwell, James (January 1, 2015). "NXT newswire: DGUSA star signs with WWE, Itami & Balor in tag action tonight on NXT". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved January 2, 2015.
- ↑ Johnson, Mike (April 6, 2015). "Former DG star starts with WWE, great reason why celebrity wrestler likely won't work SummerSlam, Battleground, NXT and more news". Pro Wrestling Insider. Retrieved April 7, 2015.
- ↑ Trionfo, Richard (May 6, 2015). "WWE NXT report: contract signing, interview with champion and challenger, Becky Lynch video profile, The Nation is coming, who is number one?". Pro Wrestling Insider. Retrieved May 7, 2015.
- ↑ Alston, Gary (June 21, 2015). "6/20 NXT results from Lakeland, FL". Pro Wrestling Insider. Retrieved July 10, 2015.
- ↑ Trionfo, Richard (August 5, 2015). "The former Uhaa Nation's debut on NXT is announced...as well as his NXT name". Pro Wrestling Insider. Retrieved August 5, 2015.
- ↑ Parry, Josh (August 13, 2015). "WWE news: NXT TV spoilers - results from Full Sail University for 8/19 pre-Takeover show and post-Takeover shows". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved August 22, 2015.
- ↑ Tylwalk, Nick. "Balor, Owens thrill packed Barclays Center at NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn". Canoe.ca. Canadian Online Explorer. Retrieved 22 September 2015.
- ↑ Tucker, Benjamin. "Live instant reaction - NXT: Takeover vs. Summerslam highlights the glaring difference between two products". Pro Wrestling Torch Newsletter. Retrieved 22 September 2015.
- ↑ Gutteridge, Darren. "WWE NXT Takeover: Brooklyn Hit List". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved 22 September 2015.
- ↑ "NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn". The Internet Wrestling Database. Retrieved 22 September 2015.
- ↑ Zimmerman, Zack. "1/13 Zim’s WWE NXT Live Coverage: Battle Royal to determine Bayley’s next challenger for the NXT Women’s Championship, Dash and Dawson vs. The Ascension, plus Elias Sampson and Tommaso Ciampa in action". prowrestling.net. Retrieved January 13, 2016.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 James, Justin. "JAMES'S WWE "NXT TAKEOVER: BROOKLYN" REPORT 8/22: Balor vs. Owens ladder match for NXT Title, epic Women's match, Tag Titles, Samoa Joe, Liger, dignitaries in the crowd; Overall Reax". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved 23 August 2015.
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