WWE NXT TakeOver New York Results, Grades, and Review

https://twitter.com/WWEUniverse/status/1114339757528502278

Adam Cole vs. Johnny Gargano for the NXT Championship, Two out of Three Falls

Result: Johnny Gargano is your new NXT Champion

Grade: A+, a beautiful moment

So it’s main event time, and this match has basically sold itself. Adam Cole and Johnny Gargano are two of WWE’s best. Gargano received bows from the NXT Universe when he made his entrance into the Barclays Arena, and the way the crowd chanted “Boom” and “Adam Cole Bay Bay” with the Undisputed Era’s leader gave me straight up chills.

While the Barclays Center has been kind to Cole, who made his debut here at SummerSlam 2017, it has been far from kind to Gargano, who has lost three matches at this venue in Brooklyn.

The match began with some tremendous grappling from both men to a stalemate, though Gargano is the more highly regarded technician of the two of them. He is, after all, Mr. TakeOver.

Cole and Gargano started trading fists, and it was a battle Cole won as he sent Gargano sprawling into the corner. But Gargano found his groove in short order, hitting a lovely dropkick before sending Cole out of the ring. He tried to set up a big move, but Cole countered, only to get hit by a dropkick through the ropes.

Johnny Wrestling brought Cole back into the ring, but Cole slid back out, baiting Gargano for an enziguri to regain the momentum. Cole set up Gargano for some chops and strikes in the corner, and after trading some more moves, both men ended up on the ground together after simultaneous running crossbodies.

There’s nothing that gets people back into a match quite like Gargano’s slingshot spear, and Gargano called Cole’s psych-out superkick attempt on the top rope with his own big move.

The two started reversing pinfalls, desperate for the first fall in this match. Gargano made a beautiful counter off the top rope, but Cole rolled through and ended up hitting a nasty kick. Cole exposed the knee and nearly paid with a roll-up, but he made his own counter into a roll-up. The counters came thick and fast, as the two have such an innate understandig of each other. We had plenty of kicks, and Cole ended up grabbing the first fall via The Last Shot for a quick 1-0 lead.

Down 1-0, Gargano became the clear underdog in this match, needing to grab two falls from behind in order to pick up the win. But as Percy Watson and Nigel McGuinness reminded the NXT Universe, Gargano has to stay calm, since a 1-0 deficit isn’t insurmountable by any means.

Cole was quick to follow up on his lead, beating down Gargano in the corner. The Rebel Heart, however, got back in it, only to be taken down with a suplex and another Last Shot that Gargano BARELY got out of. In fact, that was the first time anyone kicked out of The Last Shot. It’s like he has this power-up where he can only kick out of big moves when the match is truly on the line.

https://twitter.com/WWENXT/status/1114344955047100416

Desperate to tie the game, Gargano hit Cole with a slingshot DDT on the APRON. Both men struggled to get to their feet, and Gargano could have won a fall by count-out. He was too proud, though, as he wanted to win the fall by pin or submission. He’s OK with hitting someone head-first into the apron, but not with winning the easy way out.

That said, Gargano did pick up the second fall via submission, knotting things up 1-1 to cause a decisive third fall. The Gargano Escape remains powerful as hell.

Both men attacked each other with gusto with everything on the line for the final fall, and it was Cole who looked more spry, hitting some power moves and getting a nearfall on a bleeding Gargano.

Gargano hit a tremendous suplex on Cole for a nearfall, and this match just hit another level of speed and wrestling greatness. Both men spent the first fall playing mindgames, the second fall wrestling cautiously, and for the third fall, they were determined to go all-out.

The kicks, counters, and strikes continued, as both men kept nailing each other with the same moves, having the same ideas. With both men desperate for the final fall, their knowledge of each other’s moves has become even more glaring. Each man is going for the fatal blow, but the other knows exactly how to counter it – and still, the opponent knows the counter to the counter.

Cole hit a huge bridging, straight-jacket German after a superkick, but Gargano was just barely able to kick out of a last-ditch effort from the Undisputed Era superstar.

Gargano spiked Cole with a reverse-rana and nailed a devastating superkick, but Cole showed his guile by rolling out of the ring to prevent what could have been a loss. It didn’t take long for the tide to turn yet again, as Cole hit a NASTY wheelbarrow suplex to Gargano on the apron.

But Gargano spiked Cole with a DDT, then hit another slingshot DDT in the ring for one more close call that Cole had to kick out of. After hitting a suicide dive, Gargano may have made a huge mistake by going for the slingshot spear. Cole had this move scouted all the way with a superkick counter, but Gargano somehow kicked out of Cole’s Canadian Destroyer!

Enraged that Gargano kicked out of the move, Cole started berating Gargano on the outside as a failure, getting in his face and screaming insults at the top of his lungs. This was a huge mistake, as it simply lit a new fire under Gargano, who threw Cole over the announce table, cleared the announce table, and set up Cole for a big move.

https://twitter.com/WWEUniverse/status/1114349143311306753

It. Backfired. A “Fairytale Ending” followed from Cole, sending Gargano through the table in a heartbreaking moment that may have spelled the end for Gargano’s NXT Championship hopes. And of course it referenced Tommaso Ciampa. The referee started counting to 10, because Cole, unlike Gargano, is cool with winning by countout. Gargano stirred at five and barely got into the ring before 10!

And Cole quickly hit Gargano with a superkick once the underdog came into the ring. Dream over for Gargano? It seemed likely at that point.

But Gargano reached down deep and kicked out! That said, it truly seemed like he was on the ropes after absorbing yet another big move.

Gargano hit a superkick, Cole responded with his own, Gargano countered a top rope move and locked in the Gargano Escape to go for the lead. But Roderick Strong came to distract Gargano briefly, and Kyle O’Reilly and Bobby Fish were right there.

So while Gargano submitted Cole with a second Gargano Escape, Strong’s interference blocked off the referee. And Strong later caused a referee bump, allowing Kyle O’Reilly and Bobby Fish to interfere. At that point, it seemed academic when Cole covered Gargano, but Gargano somehow kicked out AGAIN! This man is a superhero! He then dumped Cole out of the ring onto the rest of the members of Undisputed Era, sent Strong crashing into the ring post, and beat up the rest of the Undisputed Era.

But he couldn’t end the numbers game with Cole lying in wait inside the ring. Last. Shot.

KICK OUT!

Where is Gargano getting this from? After owning Undisputed Era on the outside, he kicked out of Cole’s best shot, countered the Last Shot again, and strapped Cole in the Gargano Escape for a third time.

AND COLE TAPPED OUT!

Johnny Gargano finally received his crowning moment! It’s been a long time coming, but this was the perfect moment for it. WrestleMania Weekend at the Barclays Center, a venue he usually loses at, overcoming the Undisputed Era, the Fairytale Ending, a 1-0 deficit, and two Last Shots. On this night, Gargano reached the summit of NXT, became the brand’s superhero, exorcised his demons, and put together another instant classic.

Plenty of praise should go to the Undisputed Era for playing the role of the villains perfectly in this match, despite the fact that this wasn’t the original plan. Adam Cole is truly a star in his own right, even if this was Gargano’s big moment.

And at the end of the match, Ciampa came out to hug Gargano and raise both his and Candice LeRae’s hands. What a moment. And yes, I shed a tear.