Top 10 NXT Matches of All Time

Incredible wrestling matches from the "developmental" brand.
The Top Ten
1 Johnny Gargano vs Andrade "Cien" Almas - NXT Championship - NXT Takeover: Philadelphia

Two of the best wrestlers in the world squaring off for half an hour. The action and emotion carried this match and made it so memorable, especially with Zelina Vega and Candice LeRae getting involved and Tommaso Ciampa attacking Johnny Gargano after the match.

Result: Andrade "Cien" Almas defeats Johnny Gargano via pinfall

My Star Rating: 5*/5*

2 Tyler Bate vs Pete Dunne - WWE UK Championship - NXT Takeover: Chicago

Absolutely incredible. Deserving of a 5 star rating or higher. The action, selling and athleticism are all on point and the crowd's enthusiasm made this match even better. There are so many memorable spots from this match, just go and watch it.

Result: Pete Dunne defeats Tyler Bate via pinfall

My Star Rating: 5.5*/5*

This match was the best. No questions asked. This match is why Tyler Bate is my favorite wrestler.

3 Johnny Gargano vs Tommaso Ciampa - Unsanctioned Match - NXT TakeOver: New Orleans

This is storytelling at its finest, both Gargano and Ciampa threw everything at each other, it was a fight and I feel this isn't just one of the best matches in NXT but one of the best matches of all time.

4 Velveteen Dream vs Adam Cole vs Lars Sullivan vs Killian Dain vs Ricochet vs EC3 - 6 Man Ladder Match to Decide the First Ever NXT North American Champion - NXT Takeover: New Orleans

Carnage, carnage and more carnage. If you love matches like TLC 2, you're going to love this even more. Everyone had a part to play here. EC3 being the cocky, sneaky heel. Sullivan and Dain being two giants out to kill everyone (and each other). Adam Cole, the badass looking to make Undisputed Era even more dominant. Velveteen Dream, the cocky underdog looking to make a statement. And Ricochet, the undisputed MVP of the match, wanting to make a name for himself by doing the craziest moves and winning the big one in his Takeover debut. The spots here were incredible. Ricochet's springboard shooting star press to the outside. Velveteen Dream's elbow from the top of one of the biggest ladders I've ever seen in my life. Ricochet's moonsault of a ladder to the outside. Killian Dain's splash onto a ladder (which by the way had EC3 underneath it) with Adam Cole on his back. Everything was amazing here.

Result: Adam Cole defeats Velveteen Dream, Lars Sullivan, Killian Dain, Ricochet and EC3 by retrieving the NXT North American Championship.

My Star Rating: 5*/5*

5 D.I.Y vs The Revival - 2 out of 3 Falls Match for the NXT Tag Team Championships - NXT Takeover: Toronto

"One match is great, three is superb". Emotion seems to be a huge factor in pretty much every great Johnny Gargano match, but everyone's performance here was brilliant. This match could've genuinely ended about 10 times, but D.I.Y clawed back from a 1 fall to 0 scoreline to come back and win 2 more falls and become the NXT Tag Team Champions. That finish with Scott Dawson and Dash Wilder tapping out at the same time to submissions from D.I.Y was bliss, and the eruption from the crowd after D.I.Y won proves why this was such a great match.

Result: D.I.Y defeats The Revival via submission

My Star Rating: 4.75*/5*

6 Shinsuke Nakamura vs Sami Zayn - NXT TakeOver: Dallas

"Fight Forever! " *clap *clap* *clap* *clap *clap* "Fight Forever" *clap* *clap* *clap* *clap* *clap*. Jesus Christ was this amazing. Nakamura came into NXT with all the hype in the world, and they put him up against NXT fan favourite, Sami Zayn. The next 20 minutes of wrestling that followed was brilliant, making the crowd yell so much, I wouldn't be surprised if 10% of them just had a nap due to pure exhaustion. Just go and watch this, because it's something that every wrestling fan has to see.

Result: Shinsuke Nakamura defeats Sami Zayn via pinfall

My Star Rating: 4.75*/5*

7 Bayley vs Sasha Banks - NXT Women's Championship - NXT Takeover: Brooklyn
8 Sami Zayn vs Cesaro - NXT ArRival

Some people prefer their 2 out of 3 falls match, and I'm not saying that match wasn't good, but for me this match had the 3 main components that make a great wrestling match.

1. Emotion
All Sami Zayn wanted to do was gain Cesaro's respect and beat him in a match, and the lengths he went to were outstanding. A match that makes you feel emotion is perfect, and this match did that for me. It was made even better that they were opening the first special live NXT event on the WWE Network.

2. Energy
This can be put into a match in several ways, whether it's the crowd, the wrestlers in the ring or others at ringside. Many spots were full of energy, and the crowd didn't let up to let the two know how much they were enjoying their match. The spot where the two keep punching each other until Sami Zayn ducks and hits a snap German suplex was one of my favourites from the match.

3. Memorable/Shocking Moments
This match took the p*ss with how many of these there were. Zayn's hurricanrana from the top rope, Cesaro catching Sami Zayn on the outside mid-way through a springboard moonsault and slamming him on the ramp and Cesaro kicking out of the Helluva Kick were all amazing moments.

Result: Cesaro defeats Sami Zayn via pinfall

My Star Rating: 4.5*/5*

9 The Revival vs D.I.Y vs Authors of Pain - Triple Threat Elimination Tag Team Match - NXT Tag Team Championships - NXT Takeover: Orlando

Not only is the action here great, but the story is brilliant. After putting on 2 of the best matches in NXT history at 2 previous Takeover events. D.I.Y and The Revival put aside their differences for one night to take down their much larger and more powerful opponents, The Authors of Pain. Yes they did fight each other at some points but eventually they realised that wasn't going to help either of them. They helped each other hit their finishing moves on the two big men, but their efforts, although valiant, weren't enough to secure a victory for either of them, as AOP eliminated both of them.

Result: Authors of Pain defeat D.I.Y and The Revival via pinfall

My Star Rating: 4.5*/5*

10 SAnitY vs Undisputed Era vs Authors of Pain w/ Roderick Strong - War Games Match - NXT Takeover: War Games

Spot after spot after spot after spot. This was a lot to take in. Now, if you don't know how War Games works, I'll just explain it right now. Warning, it's quite confusing.

2 Rings.
3 Teams of 3.
A Cage surrounding the rings.
1 Member of each team starts off the match while the other members are in seperate shark cages on the stage.
After 5 minutes, the remaining 2 members of a random team enter the cage.
After 3 minutes, the remaining 2 members of another team enter the cage.
After another 3 minutes, the final team enters.
The match doesn't officially start until all 3 teams have entered the cage, meaning there are no pinfalls or submissions until all teams have entered the cage.
If you exit the cage, you forfeit the match for your team.
No disqualifications, you can only win via pinfall or submission.
First team to gain a fall wins.

Got it?

Now close your eyes and imagine what these 3 teams did. Did you imagine Killian Dain locking the door and swallowing the key? Did you imagine Alexander Wolfe busting himself open because he German suplexed one of the AOP members through two tables? Did you imagine Roderick Strong superplexing Adam Cole from the top of the cage onto everyone else? Did you imagine Killian Dain hitting a coast to coast? If you answered yes to any of these questions, you're a god damn liar. No one really cared about the result, we were just all hoping that no one had been seriously hurt.

by the way any smarks who complained about the cage not having a roof and the new 3 team format had to eat their words.

Result: Undisputed Era defeats SAnitY and Authors of Pain w/ Roderick Strong via pinfall

My Star Rating: 4.5*

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