- The NXT title picture was surrounded with controversy ever since the champion Finn Balor defended his championship against Sami Zayn in a very dubious faction at NXT TakeOver: Armageddon. The Irish superstar apparently pretended to have an arm injury before pulling a surprise roll-up on Zayn. The move created some waves but soon Balor decided to put a stop to the situation and went to apologize in front of the NXT audience. He then called Zayn out and both men embraced with Balor announcing that to make for it, he would be putting his title on the line against “The Underdog from the Underground” on the next edition of NXT! During their bout, Balor again apparently had an eye injury and the referee called for the bell, leaving Zayn clearly frustrated. The following weeks we saw Sami Zayn trying to get answers from the champion but Balor kept his version of the story and maintained that he was in no shape to compete for a while. Despite all this, NXT General Manager William Regal went to solve the mess himself by stating that doctors warned him that Balor was fine to defend his title on the next NXT TakeOver: Bad Blood and that if Balor tried any trick he would be stripped for the NXT Championship on the spot! At the event, both Balor and Zayn went all out but in the end it was Zayn who finally came out victorious despite Balor arguing with the referee about his leg. One could think this would be the end of this rivalry but the reality showed otherwise. During a rematch at NXT, Zayn was about to retain until former New Japan Pro Wrestling stars and Balor’s friends Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson made their presence felt and attacked the champion, allowing Balor to become a 2-time NXT Champion! Reunited with his “brothers”, the now villainous Balor issued a warning to NXT and the whole WWE, mentioning that they are ready to take everything, no questions asked. Nevertheless, one Sami Zayn wouldn’t give up on his revenge and despite being outnumbered, “The Underdog from Underground” was granted one final shot at the NXT Championship but this time, there would be some big consequences for the loser: whoever loses is forced to leave NXT! To make things even more interesting and unpredictable, NXT GM William Regal announced the first ever Hell in The Cell match in order to prevent Gallows & Anderson from interfering. During the event, the audience got an instant classic which saw Zayn win the NXT Championship for a record third time after Blue PowerBoming Balor into the steel steps in the middle of the ring! After getting rid of the Balor situation, Zayn managed to defend his title against the likes of Corey Graves or Baron Corbin until a new challenger appeared. Former Ring of Honor Champion Roderick Strong debuted on NXT and immediately made an impact by attacking Zayn during a backstage interview and taking the NXT Championship with him. Soon, both men faced each other at NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn in which Roderick Strong managed to win the title! After successfully retaining in a rematch, Strong began calling himself “Mr. NXT"!
- After losing a thrilling NXT Intercontinental Championship Match against Hideo Itami at NXT TakeOver: Armageddon, “The Wrestling Machine” Kurt Angle came before a full NXT crowd and surprised everyone by congratulating Itami for the victory, stating that he was indeed the better man. He then called Hideo to the ring and shaked “The Japanese Sensation” hand before stating he would be taking some time off but that we would be seeing him soon enough. Still, Hideo would be getting no time off as he quickly got a new opponent eager to make the news: Austin Aries. The former TNA superstar made his debut at NXT and went straight to Hideo’s championship but was not able to claim the gold. The rivalry continued with Baron Corbin getting in the mix, eventually leading to a Triple Threat which Hideo once again came out on top. Who else will try and take the gold from the red-hot Japanese superstar?
- “The Cowboy” James Storm created quite a mess on NXT. After being the main reason for sending Christian away from the brand, soon the redneck began managing “The Lone Wolf” Baron Corbin. Storm demanded a contract from William Regal, who refused after the events that transpired until they came to terms: if Storm managed to defeat Shinsuke Nakamura at NXT TakeOver: Bad Blood, he would be granted a full contract. On the event, we saw the first defeat of “The King of Strong Style” after Baron Corbin hit an End of Days and allowing Storm to cover for the win! With an official contract in hand, Storm began leading Corbin to multiple opportunities but unfortunately, they all failed to reach the desired end. Failed attempts at the NXT Championship, the NXT Intercontinental Championship and even the NXT Tag Team Championships made Corbin extremely frustrated but that’s not all. With Storm’s constant arguing over Corbin’s failures, “The Lone Wolf” had enough and put Storm out of commission after Powerbombing “ “The Cowboy” through the announcers table and letting the world know that “he doesn’t need anyone".
- Despite suffering a defeat against James Storm, Shinsuke Nakamura continued his roll on NXT, dominating and showing his incredible charisma. But not everyone liked seeing Nakamura on the spotlight…. Another Japanese superstar, Akira Tozawa took offense in seeing Nakamura getting such a great treatment while he was being left behind, both in Japan and now in the US. The envious superstar soon targeted Shinsuke and demanded a match to show the world that he’s the one who’s should be worshipped and not Nakamura. “The King of Strong Style” emerged victorious in a very stiff bout but was quickly jumped by no other than Tensai, who apparently joined forces with Tozawa, claiming that the Nakamura he once knew in Japan was gone and that he only saw a show-off who wanted to pander to the American crowds! Let the battle begin!
- NXT General Manager William Regal has a big problem and his name is Corey Graves. The disgruntled superstar continued to complain about Regal’s managing skills and showed no signs of slowly down on his quest to get Regal out. Meanwhile, a certain “Destroyer” returned to seek revenge on Graves; Samoa Joe returned with a vicious mean streak and went on a destruction path, attacking and even injuring several superstars in his path to Graves. William Regal tried to talk some senses to Joe but only received a Muscle Buster for his troubles and quickly decided to suspend Samoa Joe indefinitely until the board decides what to do with the rampaging superstar. Joe’s final words before being taken away by heavy security were “I’ll burn this place down!”. Somehow surviving the fury of Joe, Graves continued his quest and used the situation as a way to campaign against William Regal and decided to make a shocking announcement: that he would be running for the NXT General Manager position himself!
- The NXT Tag Team saw some new blood and faces entering the battlefield. The Lucha Dragons, who dethroned The Ascension for the titles, had to survive multiple foes in the likes of The Vaudevillains or The Revival. But their reign ended when they faced a very familiar team: The World’s Greatest Tag Team! After the departure of Kurt Angle, Shelton and Jack Swagger constant disagreements led to some heated confrontations until Charlie Haas made a surprise return and quickly dispatched Swagger, calling a him a “second rate phony”. With Benjamin and Haas once more reunited, they took on the Lucha Dragons and the newly signed team of Tommaso Ciampa and Johnny Gargano in a Triple Threat! Despite showing that time has not passed by them, Ciampa & Gargano managed to win the titles, which led to a huge outburst from Benjamin and Haas. Both teams then began a heated rivalry that is just getting started!
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