Match of the Year: Adam Cole vs. Johnny Gargano – 2 out of 3 Falls Match for the vacant NXT Championship
A few months ago, I wrote a nice, long piece about Johnny Gargano’s redemption coming full circle with his NXT Championship win at NXT TakeOver: New York. Here’s part of why that story and, by extension, his match with Adam Cole was so great:
"To overcome Ciampa and attain sustained success in NXT, Gargano believed that he needed to embrace the darker portions of his personality to achieve his goals. It worked for a while, but as we’ve gotten used to seeing from Gargano, the success didn’t last. But once Gargano turned the clock back and once again became the man who was near-universally adored by the fans — a man who fought with honor and determination — the end result was a rewarding conclusion to a year-long championship journey."
Some fans may prefer the straight singles match these two had at NXT TakeOver: XXV or the Three Stages of Hell match that followed in Toronto a few months later, but Cole and Gargano’s inaugural NXT Title classic represented peak storytelling and drama that gave the fans – well, the ones who wanted Gargano to win – a satisfying conclusion.
If you wanted to argue that one of the other two Cole/Gargano matches were better because they build on the template established in this match, that’s fine. Again, wrestling is subjective in some respects, so what you think makes a match better than another often depends on your interpretation of the story their telling (and whether you enjoyed the story or not).
But in terms of crafting a satisfying beginning, middle, and end, nothing outside of the Rhea Ripley/Shayna Baszler match from a couple of weeks ago (which wasn’t among the nominees) topped Cole and Gargano’s first effort.