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WWE’s developmental brand returns to the Windy City for the second WWE NXT Takeover: Chicago. On this five-match card, which wrestlers will leave Chicago victorious?
As has become the tradition during “Big Five” pay-per-view weekends, NXT will present WWE NXT TakeOver: Chicago on the night prior to Money in the Bank. Similar to previous TakeOvers, this show received a much stronger build than the main roster PPV. The five-match event should once again give their RAW and SmackDown counterparts a tough act to follow.
In terms of possible match results, this TakeOver may be one of the more predictable shows in recent memory. That isn’t necessarily a bad thing; there’s no need to book unpredictable finishes for the sake of shock value. Keeping things simple often works the best–especially in wrestling–and NXT does that well.
So which finishes will Triple H and company deem best for the future of WWE’s developmental arm? Will Velveteen Dream and Riccochet steal the show? Will Aleister Black turn back the challenge of Lars Sullivan? Can Shayna Baszler continue her dominance over the NXT women’s division? Will this show exceed Money in the Bank in terms of quality and fan interest? We won’t know any of these answers until Saturday (well, maybe the one about the show being better). In the meantime, I will look at the matches and predict how each one could turn out.
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Aleister Black (c) vs. Lars Sullivan- NXT Championship
Sullivan earned this title shot by virtue of paving through nearly every big name in the developmental fed–including Kassius Ohno, Velveteen Dream, Ricochet, and Killian Dain.
I have gushed about Sullivan in the past (in fact, I pegged him as a potential breakout star back in January) and for good reason. The NXT writers have wisely presented Sullivan as an unstoppable monster and he has held up his end with his performances on the mic and in the ring.
Of course, Black has gotten a similarly dominant push. The NXT Champion has eaten only one pin since debuting for the company in April 2017–which occurred due to outside interference. Between his strong booking, layered character work, and cool entrance, the creative team has hit all the marks with Black.
Although this is an NXT Title match, I could see this bout serving as the semi-main event to the Johnny Gargano/Tommaso Ciampa Street Fight (there is a precedent for this). If these two indeed get bumped down the card, it should take some of the pressure off of them to deliver an epic clash.
Sullivan fits the mold of an old-school, upper midcard, monster heel. Historically, bookers would have guys like him run through almost every jobber and midcarder on the roster to build up his credibility so that he can put over the top babyface when the time comes. At Takeover: Chicago, the bell will toll for Sullivan.
The story of the match will probably revolve around Black’s ability–or inability–to hit the Black Mass on Sullivan. I think Black ultimately hits his devastating finisher on the challenger and retains his title, but the creative team will make Sullivan look strong in defeat.
Prediction: Aleister Black pins Lars Sullivan
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Johnny Gargano vs. Tommaso Ciampa- Chicago Street Fight
Gargano and Ciampa will add another chapter to arguably pro wrestling’s hottest feud of 2018 (some rule in favor of the Bullet Club saga) in the same building where this rivalry began. The street fight stipulation suggests that this will be the blowoff for this feud, at least for the time being. It also gives Ciampa a pathway to winning while protecting Gargano.
Much like the Unsanctioned Match in New Orleans, I expect this bout to close the show. I also expect this match to overflow with drama, aggression, violence, and emotion. It may not reach the level of their previous match, but this one should still be a ton of fun.
As for who wins, I think Ciampa will score the pinfall. If he loses two straight matches to Gargano, he won’t have much of a leg to stand on as a top heel in NXT. As one of the few antagonists that Black hasn’t run through, Ciampa needs to maintain some level of credibility. I expect the “Sicilian Psychopath” to challenge for the NXT Championship at some point in the near future, so him winning on Saturday makes sense.
Gargano doesn’t necessarily need to be protected, but I think the writers will give him an out via interference courtesy of EC3. Let’s not forget that Gargano interrupted an EC3 enhancement match two weeks ago to announce that he signed the contract for the street fight. The obnoxious and meticulous EC3 could take umbrage with that and ultimately cost “Johnny Wrestling” the match.
This would allow the feud to cool for a bit before these two exchange hostilities again in a couple of months–possibly for the NXT Title.
Prediction: Tommaso Ciampa pins Johnny Gargano after EC3 interferes
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Ricochet vs. Velveteen Dream
Everything about this feud has been great. Between the flips, subtle jabs, and stellar athleticism, I don’t want this feud to end. Velveteen Dream’s recent tweets alone justifies this program’s existence.
I could see this match stealing the show at TakeOver. We got a glimpse of what a match between these two would look like several weeks ago on NXT. If that was what they had to offer in only a few minutes, imagine how great a full-length match would be. These two are that gifted in the ring.
I could also see them getting a bit too cute with the athletic feats, which could cause the match to devolve into a choreographed dance routine. I don’t think it will get that far though. Both men are smart enough to know when to execute big moves and know how to frame those moves’ significance within the context of the match.
Picking a winner for this one is tough; I could see either man scoring the W. Ricochet arguably needs the win more since he’s still relatively new to NXT and he needs marquee victories to establish himself as a player down in Florida. Dream needs a signature win too, but he can promptly get his heat back on the microphone. Besides, this is probably just the first in a series of matches between these two.
Prediction: Ricochet pins Velveteen Dream
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Shayna Baszler (c) vs. Nikki Cross- NXT Women’s Championship
Baszler has been excellent in the domineering heel champion role. She has done a great job conveying malice and arrogance in her interactions with the other female wrestlers, which she matches with her ruthlessness in the ring. Her MMA pedigree and the fact that she has only lost a couple of times only adds to her unbeatable aura.
While Baszler has been awesome over the past few months, Cross has been awesome over the year. She was arguably the only member of SAnitY that came across as a legit unhinged person and that manic commitment to her character endeared her to the NXT fanbase. Of course, having a bonkers Last Woman Standing Match with then-NXT Women’s Champion Asuka helped a bit too. But Cross has proven to be a steady performer and the fans adore her as a result.
I expect Cross to get a good deal of the offense in this one, which the writers could attribute to Cross’ unpredictability throwing the champion off her game.
Ultimately, I think Baszler will retain her title. With other pure babyfaces like Candice LeRae and Kairi Sane waiting in the wings, it makes sense to keep the belt on Baszler so either of them could take it from her. Cross could either serve as an upper midcard gatekeeper for the distaff division or move up to SmackDown Live with her stablemates–who still haven’t debuted yet.
Prediction: Shayna Baszler forces Nikki Cross to pass out to the Kirifuda Clutch
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The Undisputed Era (Kyle O’Reilly and Roderick Strong) (c) vs. Danny Burch and Oney Lorcan- NXT Tag Team Championships
This one should be good too. Danny Burch and Oney Lorcan have gelled nicely since forming their team in late 2017. On the other end, I have been impressed with how quickly Roderick Strong and Kyle O’Reilly have come together as a team over the last couple of months.
As I said when WWE announced this match, I expect these teams to put together a tremendous tag team title match. All four men gave us a taste of what to expect a few weeks ago on NXT and I expect them to up the ante on Saturday.
With teams like the Street Profits, War Raiders, and Heavy Machinery next in line to challenge for the gold, I don’t see any reason why O’Reilly and Strong should lose the titles in Chicago. Undisputed Era has a great deal of momentum and a loss at TakeOver–no matter how good the match is–could halt it.
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I think that Burch and Lorcan will eventually win the title from the Undisputed Era. That victory won’t come this weekend, however. I think this will follow the Revival/#DIY blueprint in the sense that Burch and Lorcan will come close to winning before O’Reilly and Strong eke out the win.
Prediction: Kyle O’Reilly and Roderick Strong retain the NXT Tag Team Championships (Strong pins Lorcan)