How NXT Takeover: New York 2019 Should Be Booked

 

Hey everyone! Ever since Night Of Champions 2015, through multiple accounts, every month before major WWE pay-per-views, I’ve come on here and booked the cards to make them as exciting, intriguing, and best possible scenarios for the future. I do both NXT and main-roster pay-per-views, as well as the occasional big RAW or Smackdown weekly show. Without further ado, here is how NXT Takeover: New York 2019 Should Be Booked!

> WM-WEEKEND TAKEOVER POSTS FROM PREVIOUS YEARS:

* NXT Takeover: Orlando (2017): https://www.reddit.com/r/SquaredCircle/comments/62hdet/how_nxt_takeover_orlando_should_be_booked/

* NXT Takeover: New Orleans (2018): https://old.reddit.com/r/WWE/comments/8abp8f/how_nxt_takeover_new_orleans_should_be_booked/

> KICKOFF-SHOW:

* We get the usual panel of Charly Caruso, Sam Roberts and Pat McAfee, the man who single-handedly carried the WWE Fastlane Watch-Along ON HIS BACK. The kickoff shows for Takeovers are never anything special and have no matches, but the trio run down the card and give their predictions, hype up the matches, and show us video packages. We get backstage interviews with both Matt Riddle and The War Raiders, and Adam Cole actually comes out to the panel and invades, stirring up trouble with the other 3 and vowing to walk out as the new NXT champion. We close out the kickoff with the final panel predictions for the main event ⅔ Falls match, and without further ado, we officially begin the wrestling portion of WWE’s Wrestlemania weekend.

 

> MAIN-SHOW:

 

* Usually in this portion before the first match description, I give my brief thoughts on the card and gauge some opinions on how we’ve lead up to this point. That being said, for Takeovers, I can’t begin to tell you that I’m at a loss for what to put here anymore. We all know every Takeover tops the last one, every takeover holds 5 equal show-stopping, weekend-stealing matches every damn time, but this is something special. Tonight, NXT RETURNS to their home turf. Barclays Center. Some of NXT’s most famous moments have taken place in this building, no more fuckin talk, only do. Let’s kick off the biggest wrestling weekend of the entire year with a bang. LET’S DO THIS.

 

**1ST MATCH: Pete Dunne (c) vs. WALTER (Singles match for the WWE United Kingdom Championship)**

 

* Dunne is out first followed by WALTER. **The match goes 21 minutes and we get formal ring introductions**. The aurora around this match from bell to bell is just going to be absolutely epic. Pete Dunne has boasted the longest reign with any WWE Championship of the modern era, and rightfully so. His entire reign has really been one big waiting game, waiting for the right guy to come in and dethrone the UK wrestling scene monster that he is. Finally in recent times, the perfect man came along. The perfect man was signed. That man is WALTER. WALTER. WALTER. And once Walter wins the title here, it's gonna be a matter of time until we find that next top guy, the next guy worthy enough to take the title off Walter. It could be a matter of months or a matter of years. Either way, pray for Pete Dunne's chest. **The match ends when Pete Dunne is like a fish in water, skin peeling from his chest after a disturbingly violent wrestling WAR, and Dunne grabs a hold of WALTER's hand and snaps every single finger he can find, but WALTER is immune to all pain. WALTER doesn't even flinch. Dunne looks up with puppy eyes as he can see his entire life flashing before him. WALTER lets out a war cry and hits his big boot, his lariat and his powerbomb. That's it. 1,2, DUNNE KICKS OUT. DUNNE STILL HAS JUICE LEFT. He wasn't champion for over 600 days for no reason. Dunne's kickout doesn't phase Walter in the slightest and WALTER CHOPS PETE DUNNE INTO OBLIVION FOR A FULL 60 SECONDS AND KILLS HIM AND PINS HIM**. This finish kinda would remind me of the end to Austin/Rock at Mania 17, where Rock kicks out of the big finisher, the Stunner, (or the Walter powerbomb in this case) and then Austin lays in an endless flurry of chair shots (or chops in this case) to absolutely break the other man mentally and physically. That's what happens here. *Walter literally chops Dunne into submission. Into a little man. Dunne can take no more. He enjoys living. So he gives in, and a storied reign of one of the greatest UK wrestlers alive comes to an end*. He is the guy to do it. All hail Big Daddy Walter.

 

**WINNER by PINFALL and NEW WWE United Kingdom Champion: WALTER**

 

* We get an ad for Wrestlemania on Sunday.

 

**2ND MATCH: War Raiders (Hanson and Rowe) (c) vs. Aleister Black and Ricochet (Tag Team match for the NXT Tag Team Championships)**

 

* The War Raiders are out first followed by BlackOchet. RicoBlack? Aleichet? BLackflips? (JUST A REMINDER WWE, I AM AVAILABLE FOR HIRE AS YOUR OFFICIAL TAG TEAM NAME COMER-UPPER-WITH. CALL ME). **The match goes 17 minutes**. Man, this is gonna be so great. **There are two schools of thought here**; Black and Ricochet have been working triple duty on NXT and the main roster for several months now and on the recent NXT tour loops they've been saying their goodbyes and thank yous to the fans every show, but also it's possible Triple H would want to give NXT the exposure of having Black and Ricochet carry NXT branded titles into their match at Wrestlemania two days later. I think there are many, much better ways to pull off the latter, and there's just no point in putting the titles on two guys who are very clearly on the verge of becoming breakout stars on RAW and SD. The War Raiders are fantastic at what they do and will only continue to impress. **The match ends in a tricky sequence when Aleister and Rico both whip Hanson and Rowe out of the ring, and then run as if they're about to pull off dives, but Black does his backflip into the sit and Ricochet does his Superman pose and both men stare down a Raider on the outside. This doesn't scare the Raiders though, as they both rush back into the ring and SANDWICH the challengers between them. Hanson and Rowe hit a Doomsday Device on Black followed by Fallout on Ricochet for the retain**. Post-match, all 4 men embrace and the Raiders leave the ring in order to allow the spotlight on Ricochet and Black to say their goodbyes. Two of the most important figureheads in NXT history. In the end, WAR reigned supreme.

 

**WINNERS by PINFALL and STILL NXT Tag Team Champions: The War Raiders**

 

* We get an ad for Tapout.

 

**3RD MATCH: Shayna Baszler (c) vs. Bianca Belair vs. Io Shirai vs. Kairi Sane (Fatal 4-Way match for the NXT Women’s Championship)**

 

* Bianca Belair is out first followed by Kairi Sane, then Io Shirai, and finally the champion, Shayna Baszler. **The match goes 15 minutes, the shortest of the night**. Even though I feel as if everyone can safely agree this will be the weakest match of the night, it could still definitely be a MOTY contender, five stars, and just absolute madness and greatness and awesomeness. Everything wrestling should be. I'm gonna cut to the chase and say that I'd definitely go with having Io score the victory in this match. Shayna has paid her time in NXT and improved massively and I get the feeling she's being called up shortly after Mania, and Bianca still has so much left in her storyline of chasing the title. She'll get her time very soon. But the biggest program to come out of this match is right in front of us. Something that could be the best Women's match NXT, or much less wrestling as a whole has ever seen. Friend vs. Friend, Io Shirai vs. Kairi Sane. No better time than the present. **The match ends in a finisher train as Bianca cracks the hair whip over the flesh of Io Shirai, followed by Baszler jumping Bianca from behind with the Kirifuda Clutch. Then, Kairi comes flying off the top rope out of nowhere and hits an INSANE ELBOW on both women, breaking up the hold. Bianca and Shayna both roll out of the ring. Kairi turns around into a brutal Shining Wizard from Kairi, and reluctantly, as Io realizes she must pin her best friend to win championship gold, swallows her pride and delivers that BEAUTIFUL MOONSAULT for the win and the NXT Women's strap**. Kairi and Io is a feud that is ripe now as ever, and it will be fantastic heading into the next Takeover in San Jose, which as always, I'll have a full card for at the end of this post.

 

**WINNER by PINFALL and NEW NXT Women’s Champion: Io Shirai**

 

* We get an ad for the Hall Of Fame ceremony tomorrow night.

 

**4TH MATCH: Velveteen Dream (c) vs. Matt Riddle (Singles match for the NXT North American Championship)**

 

* Never in Takeover history have two World Championship matches gone on back to back, and if we're gonna have Walter/Dunne kick off the show, there's a first time for everything. **After a video package recapping the feud so far, Velveteen Dream is out first followed by the hashtag original hashtag bro Matthew Riddle! The match goes 16 minutes and we get formal ring introductions**. This is a feud that could have some longevity to it. The interactions between these two have been golden in the build-up, and I don't see any reason that this should be the only match between these two. Dream's reign is still too young to end right now, and the general consensus seems to be that even some of the most hardcore fans aren't sold on Matt Riddle yet. Give Riddle some time to prove himself, give Dream more experience as a champion and add to his credibility, it's a win-win in the end for everyone. **The match ends when Riddle is going insane with strikes and knees on Velveteen but he just can't put him away. Riddle tries the Bromission but Dream rolls over and nails a Spinebuster. Dream calls for the Atomic Hogan Legdrop, but Riddle moves out of the way and picks Dream's leg for an Ankle Lock. It looks like Dream is about to tap but Dream rolls forward and sends Riddle crashing head-first into an exposed turnbuckle. Riddle is dazed and Dream capitalizes with a Schoolboy for the dirty retain**. Riddle takes a loss without looking too bad, and Dream continues to be slimy heel, and the feud continues into San Jose in June. It's just not Riddles time just yet. The two would have a rematch at the next Takeover.

 

**WINNER by PINFALL and STILL NXT North American Champion: The Velveteen Dream**

 

* We go to the commentators and they plug all the official theme songs of the show and thank the artists. WE ARE #NXTLOUD.

 

**5TH MATCH: Adam Cole vs. Johnny Gargano (2-Out-Of-3 Falls match for the Vacant NXT Championship)**

 

* Well, sweet lord Jesus, here we are. The match that could steal the weekend out of a card of 4 other matches that could steal the weekend. This is going to be the slobberknocker of slobberknockers and I don't think the world is ready to contain it. **The match goes around 33-35 minutes and we get formal ring introductions**. It's a full-blown PWG style match with the most batshit insane bumps that you would only see these two guys take. **The first fall occurs RIGHT AT THE BEGINNING OF THE MATCH. Both guys try to lock up and dance around the ring, and Cole goes dirty early, spitting in Gargano's face. Cole then tries to cheap-shot Johnny but Gargano catches Cole's arm and WITHIN THE FIRST 30 SECONDS OF THE MATCH JOHNNY WRESTLING WINS THE FIRST FALL BY TAPPING OUT ADAM COLE TO THE GARGANO ESCAPE**. The crowd, the commentary team, and even Gargano himself can't believe what's just happened. Cole rolls out of the ring and tries to retreat up the ramp to catch his breath and regroup, but Johnny is right behind him and the two brawl through the crowd for a bit before Cole clotheslines both himself and Gargano back into ringside over the barricade. **The second fall of the match occurs midway through, as Cole is choking out Gargano in between the ropes. The referee starts his count to 5, and at 4.5, the ref goes and tries to pry Cole off Johnny. Cole and the ref begin to argue, and when neither are looking, GARGANO NAILS A SLINGSHOT SPEAR, meaning to hit Cole, but instead Cole "inadvertently" pushes the ref into the way and Gargano spears the ref into the mantle of the earth. Cole capitalizes off the distraction with a big Shining Wizard to Gargano, and then signals toward the stage for his goons to come out. KOR, Bobby Fish and Roddy Strong all come down and drag Johnny out of the ring, and destroy him on the outside. They send him into the Steel steps, stomp him all over, and finish off the job with a Powerbomb by Strong through the announce desk**. Era all retreat to the back and Cole revives the referee for the count of 10. Gargano has been counted out. **The third and final fall to conclude the brawl comes when Gargano and Cole are trading stiff shots, sending each other back and forth into the ropes. Gargano makes a comeback now and is about to put the nail in the coffin of Adam Cole's NXT title dreams with the Gargano-Escape, but Johnny decides against it. He recoils into the corner of the ring and calls for a DIY knee strike to take Cole down. Suddenly, the crowd goes absolutely mental and Johnny slowly turns around to see Tommaso Ciampa, fresh off neck surgery, in a neck brace, dragging HIS WIFE CANDICE LERAE OUT ONTO THE RAMP. Candice looks beaten down, bruised, and battered. Gargano is incensed and Ciampa just stands there, waving and laughing. Gargano turns back around to try and finish the match and he runs right into a leaping Adam Cole who nails his Panama Sunrise (Canadian Destroyer) for the pin and the title**. The UE music hits and out runs Kool Kyle, Bobby and Roderick to celebrate. All 3 hoist Cole up on their shoulders and walk all around ringside as Cole poses with the belt. Gargano crawls to his unconscious wife, and Takeover goes off the air to the visual of Gargano sitting on the stage alongside Candice, with UE parading in the background. Obviously Ciampa isn't fit for any sort of physical altercations, but this would be a great way to further the storyline and keep him involved, at least for now, while he's out recovering. Ciampa was spotted in New York this week anyways, so it's not like he's seriously in bad shape right now. As far as the Candice attack goes, **OBVIOUSLY IT WASN'T CIAMPA WHO ATTACKED HER. That'd be domestic abuse and that's very bad**. You could make a storyline out of that for the next big woman's heel in NXT, maybe Shayna, Mia Yim, one of the horsewomen, who knows. Whoever attacked Candice backstage wanted to send a message, and Ciampa just happened to be backstage and took the opportunity to ensure the fate that Johnny Gargano, regardless of who he would've faced on this night, would never have walked out of Barclays with the NXT Championship. Blackheart always wins.

 

**WINNER by PINFALL and NEW NXT Champion: Adam Cole BAYBAY**.

 

> MATCH INFORMATION

 

Fall | Winner | Winning Method |

:--|:--|:--|

1 | Johnny Gargano | Via Submission after Cole tapped out to the Garga-No-Escape within the opening 60 seconds of the match

2 | Adam Cole | Via Countout after the rest of The Undisputed Era came out and beat down Gargano as the referee was down, ending in a Powerbomb through the announce table

3 | Adam Cole | Via Pinfall off a Panama Sunrise following a distraction where Tommasso Ciampa dragged a helpless Candice LeRae out on stage

 

> FINAL RESULTS:

 

No. | Results | Stipulations | Times

:--|:--|:--|:--|

1 | WALTER defeated Pete Dunne (c) by Pinfall | Singles match for the WWE United Kingdom Championship | 21 minutes

2 | War Raiders (Hanson & Rowe) (c) defeated Aleister Black and Ricochet by Pinfall | Tag Team match for the WWE NXT Tag Team Championships | 17 minutes

3 | Io Shirai defeated Shayna Baszler (c), Bianca Belair and Kairi Sane by Pinfall | Fatal 4-Way match for the NXT Women’s Championship | 15 minutes

4 | Velveteen Dream (c) defeated Matt Riddle by Pinfall | Singles match for the NXT North American Championship | 16 minutes

5 | Adam Cole defeated Johnny Gargano by Pinfall 2-1 | Two Out Of Three Falls match for the Vacant NXT Championship | 33 minutes

 

> MY CARD FOR NXT TAKEOVER: SAN JOSE (June 9, 2019; ???)

 

No. | Matches | Stipulations |

:--|:--|:--|

1 | Adam Cole (c) vs. Johnny Gargano vs. Pete Dunne | Triple Threat match for the NXT Championship

2 | Velveteen Dream (c) vs. Matt Riddle | Singles match for the NXT North American Championship

3 | Io Shirai (c) vs. Kairi Sane | 30-Minute Ironwoman match for the NXT Women’s Championship

4 | The War Raiders (Hanson and Rowe) (c) vs. Mustache Mountain (Trent Seven & Tyler Bate) | Tag Team match for the NXT Tag Team Championships

5 | Dominik Dijakovic vs. Keith Lee | Singles match

Thanks for reading. That was how I would book NXT Takeover: New York. Let me know what you liked and/or disliked from the post, and what from this you would like to see really happen on the show tomorrow night. Be sure to look out for my HOW WWE SHOULD BOOK WRESTLEMANIA POST tomorrow. The big daddy. It’s one of my best, and I’m very excited to share it with you all. Enjoy the show, and enjoy the beginning of Wrestlemania weekend, It’s gonna be unreal.