NXT TakeOver: San Antonio Preview and Predictions

NXT is still a thing.

Giving their thoughts and predictions on what to expect from the PPV are members of the site @JoeyOnEarth, @TimWelcomed and @TomBlargh.

Roderick Strong vs. Andrade “Cien” Almas

Joey:

I don’t watch NXT television. I have no idea what the hell is going on here. My assumption is Andrade Almas is now a bad boy doing bad things and Roderick Strong is still wearing his jacket to the ring. I can’t remember watching a Roderick Strong match in WWE. He hasn’t wrestled on a TakeOver special, right? This match looks alright on paper.

Interest Level: 7/10
Prediction: Andrade “Cien” Almas wins.

Tim:

I’m looking forward to this! I am excited to see Roderick Strong wrestle on a big NXT show. Andrade “Edward James” Almas has made me give him a second chance now that he’s a jerk. He hasn’t impressed since being in NXT so hopefully we will finally see him do what we always knew he could. Roddy is Roddy, and that’s always a little bland character-wise but the guy can go with the best of them when he wants. Lets see what this match brings.

Interest Level: 7/10
Prediction: Roderick Strong wins.

Tom:

Almas is a LOT more palatable now he’s a dirty, sexy boy and Roddy’s still in his NXT honeymoon period, so this should be a fun time. Something to spice Strong up would be nice, because he’s definitely one of the blander guys on NXT, especially as a face. Maybe an even fancier jacket? I DUNNO.

Interest Level: 6/10
Prediction: Almas wins.

Eric Young vs. Tye Dillinger

Joey:

This sounds horrible. I don’t have anything against either guy, but I can’t envision caring about this in the slightest. Sanity seems like a horrible faction. They were very boring at that one NXT house show I attended a few months ago.

Please stop chanting ten at the referees. Let them do their jobs!

Interest Level: 2/10
Prediction: Tye Dillinger wins. 

Tim:

Out of all the NXT signings of TNA guys, Eric Young is the most questionable. Sanity just really isn’t my cup of tea although I like two of its members a good bit. Tye Dillinger really won me over against Bobby Roode at the last Takeover in a really good opener but I just can’t get into the thought of this match-up. I get it. Eric Young offered Dillinger an ugly jacket and Dillinger said no. That’s great entertainment but I don’t think I’ll ever be interested in EY again.

Interest Level: 3/10
Prediction: Eric Young wins.

Tom:

I still like Tye Dillinger! I can’t say I understand the motivations behind this feud or care about Eric Young, but I’m not dreading this match. I like seeing the crowd get into Dillinger, even if the “10” chants are already pretty dreadful, though it’s mostly outside of the context of his matches that they’re truly painful. The SAnitY stable doesn’t do much for me – I would hope that Young gets replaced as the leader and mouthpiece because he still has a lot of TNA stink on him that’s hard to shake.

Interest Level: 4/10
Prediction: Tye Dillinger wins.

Asuka vs. Billie Kay vs. Peyton Royce vs. Nikki Cross for the NXT Women’s Championship

Joey:

Where is Ember Moon? We like Ember Moon. I don’t know much about anyone here aside from Asuka. We like Asuka. Hopefully everyone involved is impressive and gives me something to care about in NXT.

I can see one of the challengers winning here to get the title off Asuka without pinning her, but Asuka vs. Ember Moon seems too perfect for WrestleMania weekend.

Interest Level: 6/10
Prediction: Asuka wins.

Tim:

I enjoy the Billie Kay and Peyton Royce pairing a lot. They really work well with one another and seem to be more comfortable. Nikki Cross is awesome, of course. Very excited to see her on a Takeover card against these three. I expect Asuka to continue her dominant run until Wrestlemania for a big match against Ember Moon but this is a fun little roadblock in her path.

Interest Level: 8/10
Prediction: Asuka wins.

Tom:

I don’t dislike any of the women in this match, but it seems horribly crammed together. Like, remember the old NXT women’s four ways, where everyone seemed to be built up as having at least some chance? And now we have this, which is basically a glorified gauntlet match for Asuka. I assume they’re saving the Ember Moon match (and title switch) for the ‘Mania NXT show, but it definitely feels like they’re treading water.

Interest Level: 5/10
Prediction: Asuka wins.

DIY vs. Authors of Pain for the NXT Tag Team Championship

Joey:

Gargano and Ciampa rule. Authors of Pain stink. This should be a hot mess. WWE seems to love the Authors of Pain bros. I’m fully expecting them to win the titles here and bore the hell out of me every few months.

Interest Level: 2/10
Prediction: Authors of Pain win.

Tim:

DIY is one of the best tag teams in the world. Authors of Pain is… not. I get the need for a tag team like Authors of Pain but I think there is a way to do it with people who are actually worth watching. I worry DIY is losing here. Authors of Pain have been built up too much to just lose here but it would be a shame to go ahead and take the belts off of them. NXT needs more tag teams!

Interest Level: 3/10
Prediction: Authors of Pain win.

Tom:

I have some faith in Gargano and Ciampa to pull something out of the two big lads, though man, it seems like it’ll be a struggle. They were both incredible at the Toronto TakeOver show and I think if they keep it simple, it’ll be a perfectly good match. I just hope they don’t rush things and take the titles off DIY this early.

Interest Level: 5/10
Prediction: DIY wins.

Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Bobby Roode for the NXT Championship

Joey:

The only guys I can name in NXT via an instant reaction would be Shinsuke Nakamura and Bobby Roode. I’m really excited about the atmosphere for this match. My expectations are for two incredible entrances to set the stage for the importance of the match. We love cool entrances. The match could go either way but I’m optimistic. This match is essentially how this entire show will be remembered.

Interest Level: 8/10
Prediction: Shinsuke Nakamura wins.

Tim:

This match-up is so weird that I am pretty excited to see how it unfolds. It’s just one of those matches I had never expected to see. The crowd will be hot. Bobby Roode’s entrance will be amazing but Nakamura’s will be overdone and stupid because they used the best idea for his entrance at NXT Takeover: Brooklyn II. This time the whole crowd is getting handed violins and have to mime with the music, Real exciting stuff. Look, Shinsuke Nakamura is something special. He’s captivating. His charisma is on another level but it has carried him through NXT outside of his incredible debut match against Sami Zayn and that’s fine but we know how good of a wrestler he can be when he goes all out and I’m ready to see that again. I am a Roode fan and I expect him to bring it here as he seems to want to prove he deserves to be in the spot he is in. It might not be the best match but I am very intrigued by it.

Interest Level: 9/10
Prediction: Shinsuke Nakamura wins.

Tom:

I still have very fond memories of Roode’s TNA title run, and I’m curious to see how he fares with Nakamura. They don’t seem like they’ll have particularly complimentary styles, but hopefully the energy of their entrances bleed into the match itself and they put together something entertaining.

Again though, it’s another match that feels like they’re treading water – the existing NXT roster feels very thin when it comes to guys who could take the title off Nakamura, and as encouraging as it is that they’re signing new guys, all of them seem a good six to 12 months away from being main event level in NXT.

I can’t imagine they’ll keep Nakamura on NXT much longer than ‘Mania, so maybe Roode will be the guy who’ll be the next guy to hold the title? Possibly Itami, assuming he’s healthy? Honestly, I hope NXT, the Cruiserweight division and the UK guys start mixing and matching some more, because right now, they all seem too limited to really exist as individual entities.

EDIT: Oh yeah, Kassius Ohno is back. COOL, NEVER MIND THEN. I still think they should mix and match talent between NXT and the other WWE pretend indies!

Interest Level: 7/10
Prediction: Nakamura wins.