2015 was a big year for NXT and 2016 seems to be picking up right where last year left off.
The show kicks off with NXT GM William Regal taking the stage and thanking the crowd for making NXT the fastest growing promotions in wrestling history. It’s always great to see Regal. I’ve always considered him to be one of the most underrated talents in the business. No matter what the role is, he always seems to portray an entertaining character.
From there, Regal introduces another man making his long-awaited return to the NXT Arena – Sami Zayn! Zayn comes down and lets us know that he is ready to become the first two-time NXT Champion. Apparently Samoa Joe did not agree with this proclamation as he came down to tell Zayn the same and that HE should get the next title shot!
To which Baron Corbin decided to come down and let Zayn and Joe know that, in his opinion, both of their opinions were incorrect and HE should be the next #1 contender! Hhmmm…if only there was some way to clear this confusion.
Well later in the night William Regal came back and let us know that in two weeks on NXT we will see what should be a classic triple threat match with Zayn, Joe and Corbin.
Dash and Dawson continued their dominant run as they took out NXT longest reigning tag team champions in history – The Ascension. Hey, remember when the Ascension looked like they were on their way to stardom? Yeah, me neither.
The main event gave us a new #1 contender for Bayley’s Woman’s Championship. If you watched the first season of Breaking Ground on the WWE Network, you could kind of see the writing on the wall. Bayley and Carmella are great friends, so obviously at some point these two would end up battling for the title.
That time has come now with Carmella’s win in the battle royal. Not only that, but we also got a tease from Asuka with her signature somewhat creepy smile after her elimination. Could we see her involved in the title match somehow? Or was that smile directed to the one who eliminated her – the ever popular Eva Maire.
Carmella is due! She has show great strides since coming on to the NXT scene along with Enzo Amore and Big Cass. The trio have been one of the more entertaining acts on the show. Not only that, but The Staten Island Princess has continuously improved in the ring. The two should continue the amazing recent tradition of NXT Womans Championship matches.
Obviously new stars in the woman’s division in NXT with so many being called up to the main roster this past year. A battle royal main event was a great way to showcase new talent – along with a short promo from all of the participants. Some were better than others but it really showed that the woman’s division is still deep.
We also found out the winners of the inaugural NXT Awards –
TAG TEAM OF THE YEAR – Enzo Amore and Big Cass – Don’t know I feel about this one. The tag team division in 2015 didn’t exactly have a lot of consistency, but it’s hard to make Enzo and Cass the Team of the Year without winning the titles.
MATCH OF THE YEAR – Bayley vs Sasha Banks – NXT Takeover: Brooklyn – Pretty easy to call this the match of the year when it received consideration for match of the year for all of WWE.
FEMALE COMPETITOR OF THE YEAR – Bayley – Again, pretty hard to argue here. Bayley spent the first half of the year chasing the woman’s title and the second half of the year holding the title. That’s a pretty productive year.
MALE COMPETITOR AND OVERALL COMPITOR OF THE YEAR – Finn Balor – The exact same description for Bayley can be used for Balor. That and the fact that The Demon character has captivated the NXT Universe like nothing else has!
DID NXT START OFF ON THE RIGHT FOOT? WHO WILL BE THE NEXT TO CHALLENGE FINN BALOR FOR THE NXT CHAMPIONSHIP? DO YOU AGREE WITH THE AWARD WINNERS? FOLLOW US ON TWITTER @FROM_THETOPROPE AND LET US KNOW!
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