By Zack Zimmerman
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NXT Takeover: Dallas
Aired live on WWE Network
Dallas, Texas at the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center
A Pre-Show graphic aired before cameras panned Wrestlemania Axxess… Samoa Joe and Finn Bálor were shown arriving earlier in the day… Inside the arena, Renee Young, Lita, and Mauro Ranallo checked in as the pre-show panel. Renee plugged the Network and WrestleMania before turning first to a graphic of Bayley vs. Asuka for the NXT Women’s Championship. They then aired one for the NXT Title match between Bálor and Joe.
Ranallo said there is a high likelihood of a title change and Lita predicted a shift in the course of NXT. Renee then welcomed new broadcaster Cathy Kelly who was standing out with the fans in Axxess. She hyped an interview with Sami Zayn coming up in a bit and got the fans to chant “NXT…” A graphic hyped The Revival vs. American Alpha for the NXT Tag Team championships before the panel discussed the resurgence in the tag division. Ranallo hyped up Dash and Dawson as a short video aired, and then Lita did the same for American Alpha. They predicted winners accordingly…
They then turned to Baron Corbin vs. the debuting Austin Aries. A good video package recapped the feud going back to Regal essentially benching Corbin, leading to his attack on Aries. Ranallo talked up Aries after the video, noting he has wins over guys like Samoa Joe, Seth Rollins, and Daniel Bryan. Mauro predicted Aries and Lita predicted Corbin… A Takeover Dallas promo aired… They thanked Halestorm…
A really good video package aired on the NXT Women’s Championship match. It built up Bayley as the standard bearer for the NXT women’s division first, and then built up Asuka as the threatening newcomer with incredible momentum, culminating in their clash tonight. Lita said that Bayley seems to come in the underdog quite often and we’ve seen how that ends up working out. Ranallo contended that Asuka is unlike anyone ever before in the NXT women’s division. Again, they predicted accordingly…
They turned their attention to Sami Zayn vs. Shinsuke Nakamura and a good video package aired. Ranallo dropped some awesome Nakamura facts. They went backstage to Cathy Kelly who was standing by with Sami Zayn. Zayn said Sunday will be the biggest match of his career, but this weekend is the biggest of his career. He said he has a responsibility to cement his legacy as the heart and soul of NXT tonight. He said he knows Nakamura has something to prove, but it won’t be at his expense…
A video package aired on the reveal of the Dusty Rhodes statue at Axxess. My feed rose and I had to restart my feed, so I missed the Dusty Rhodes chat unfortunately… They thanked another band… They finally turned their attention to the NXT Title match, and a video package aired recapping the history between Finn Bálor and Samoa Joe leading to tonight’s match. Bálor maintained that Joe is obsessed with the wrong things, whereas he is obsessed with being the best. The video aired with Bálor declaring he’d win and retain the title. Ranallo predicted that this would be a trilogy for the two, meaning that Samoa Joe wins tonight. Lita said both guys will bring something new, and it really matters what those new aspects are…
Renee gave a final plug for the Network and WrestleMania before sending it off to start Takeover…
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