It's been a rollercoaster of a year for NXT. No longer the black and gold 'Super Indie' that fans and critics around the world raved about for close to a decade, NXT is now in its '2.0' phase of going back to its developmental roots in an attempt to create and mold its own stars rather than bringing in established names from the outside.
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A lot has changed for Triple H's baby over the past 12 months, but the one thing that remained consistent is the quality of matches the stars of NXT put on. From an in-ring perspective, it's been another stellar year for WWE's third brand, and according to cagematch.net, these 10 matches are the best of the best.
10 KARRION KROSS VS. ADAM COLE VS. KYLE O'REILLY VS. JOHNNY GARGANO VS. PETE DUNNE - TAKEOVER: IN YOUR HOUSE (RATING: 8.17)
Beating out the Last Woman Standing match between Rhea Ripley and Raquel Gonzalez by three 10/10 scores (that match also scored 8.17), the main event to TakeOver: In Your House was everything you would expect when you see these five names at the top of the bill. These men pulled off a match that was creative, physical, and intense, all while being portrayed at an unrelating pace.
From Pete Dunne taking a double superkick whilst upside down in mid-air, to Kross clearing-house with a multitude of german suplexes, to O'Reilly having the life squeezed out of him to conclude the bout, this match is a true testament to what NXT had to offer at the time of this event. What leaves a sour taste in the mouths of fans is out of the five men in the contest, only Pete Dunne is still with the promotion at the time of writing.
9 IMPERIUM VS. KYLE O'REILLY/VON WAGNER - WARGAMES (RATING: 8.33)
Just because NXT is multicolored rather than black and gold doesn't mean that great matches can't be produced, case-in-point, the NXT Tag Team Championship match from WarGames 2021 between Fabian Aichner and Marcel Barthel of Imperium and the team of Kyle O'Reilly and Von Wagner.
With the experience of the champions and O'Reilly in the match, it was a great way to showcase new talent Wagner on a large stage. Out of everyone, however, it was Aichner who proved himself as the MVP of the match with a combination of strength and athleticism that will really make him stand out in the new era of NXT. A solid match that seemed to be a nice swan song for O'Reilly who moved on to new pastures shortly after this match.
8 ADAM COLE VS. KYLE O'REILLY - THE GREAT AMERICAN BASH (RATING: 8.36)
The Undisputed Era managed to avoid the dreaded bug in WWE that somehow manages to break up tag teams on an alarmingly regular basis. That was until 2021 where the stable imploded and gave fans a hotly anticipated feud between Adam Cole and Kyle O'Reilly. Their battles throughout the year were sometimes brutal and violent but always engaging.
Their clash at The Great American Bash special on July 6th was a straight wrestling match rather than a weapons-filled car crash, but what a match it was. Arguably the most emotionally fuelled match of their series, Cole and O'Reilly used storytelling and limb-based offence to put together one of the best NXT matches of the entire year.
7 ADAM COLE VS. KYLE O'REILLY - UNSANCTIONED MATCH - TAKEOVER: STAND & DELIVER (DAY 2) (RATING: 8.37)
It can be argued that the main event to the two-day TakeOver event Stand & Deliver went a little too long. But for a match with so much animosity and history, it was only right that this match threw everything but the kitchen sink at the audience. Chairs, chains, and toolboxes were just a selection of the weapons on display in this 40-minute trainwreck.
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Cole and O'Reilly managed to pack almost four years of history into a match that destroyed the ramp, the ringside area, and the two men involved. O'Reilly got the win in this bout, setting up a series of matches that spanned the entire summer which would eventually be settled in the 'Undisputed Finale' at TakeOver 36. With that being said, it was this unsanctioned war that stands as the best of the bunch.
6 MSK VS. GRIZZLED YOUNG VETERANS - TAKEOVER: VENGEANCE DAY (RATING: 8.44)
It was the classic high-flyers taking on the grounded mat-technicians in the final of the 2021 Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic. MSK (formerly The Rascalz in Impact Wrestling) made an immediate statement by debuting in the tournament and getting to the final on their first attempt. Whereas their opponents, The Grizzled Young Veterans, were aiming to make up for finishing as runners-up in the previous year's tournament.
What followed was a bout that resembled a classic Hardyz/Dudleyz clash from the early 2000s. Carter and Lee's unrivaled acrobatics were a fantastic contrast to Gibson and Drake's gritty technical stylings. With the added incentive of an NXT Tag Team Championship match in the future, all four men put on the sleeper hit of TakeOver: Vengeance Day, an event in the running for show of the year.
5 TEAM BLACK & GOLD VS. TEAM 2.0 - WARGAMES MATCH - WARGAMES (RATING: 8.71)
In most combat sports, in order to usher in a new era, the old are fed to the young and the young grow strong off that recognition. The main event of NXT WarGames was a prime example as it was literally marketed as NXT 1.0 vs. NXT 2.0. Despite having a bit of a messy story going into it, this wargames outing was just like any other, chaotic, frantic and entertaining.
Fans got to see all the classic storytelling aspects that the match brings, weapons galore and the match even managed to squeeze in a cheeky DIY reunion that resulted in the false finish of the night. In the end, it was the new boys that came out on top in a match that is most certainly a high bar to set when it comes to best NXT 2.0 matches, and it was also a great send off for Mr. NXT himself, Johnny Gargano.
4 FINN BALOR VS. PETE DUNNE - TAKEOVER: VENGEANCE DAY (RATING: 8.75)
England vs. Ireland has always been a rivalry that may never get resolved, and in 2021 that animosity spilled over into NXT when Pete Dunne challenged Finn Balor for the NXT Championship at TakeOver: Vengeance Day. Balor rocked his insanely charasimatic 'Prince' gimmick that borrows from his days as 'Prince Devitt' in New Japan Pro Wrestling, while Dunne had become a more unhinged 'Bruiserweight' than ever before.
Due to the birthplace of both of these men, the match was an excellent technical showcase that paid homage to the British 'catch-as-catch-can' style that the UK wrestling scene made famous. The bout was intense and physical with Balor getting the win in the end. What followed after the bout was the beginning of NXT's angle of the summer; the implosion of The Undisputed Era.
3 TOMASSO CIAMPA VS. WALTER - TAKEOVER: STAND & DELIVER (DAY 1) (RATING: 8.81)
The ring general wanted the black-hearted Ciampa, the 2018 Ciampa, the Tomasso Ciampa who clinged and clutched 'Goldie' at all costs at the peak of his powers. At NXT TakeOver: Stand & Deliver, that Tomasso Ciampa showed up and challenged WALTER for the NXT UK Championship in a match that was as entertaining as it was brutal.
The history of neck injuries for Ciampa made every suplex, powerbomb, and chop to the back of the neck from WALTER even more wince inducing. Ciampa put up, what was at the time, one of the toughest tests for the Austrian. The Avalanche Air Raid Crash false finish had fans leaping from their seats and the match ended in a way that only a WALTER match could.
2 JOHNNY GARGANO VS KUSHIDA - TAKEOVER: VENGEANCE DAY (RATING: 8.95)
The idea of having 'Mr. NXT' Johnny Gargano taking on the junior heavyweight ace of New Japan Pro Wrestling KUSHIDA one-on-one just a couple of years ago was something that fans would have paid money for hand over fist. Fortunately, 2021 gave the NXT fans said dream match and it was the technical showcase you would expect from the two men involved.
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KUSHIDA's unique technical skills combined with elite athleticism mixing it up with Gargano's "never say die" attitude (especially when it comes to TakeOver matches) resulted in one of the most aesthetically-pleasing bouts of the entire year. The fact that Gargano's arm was still in one piece after the closing sequence of the match is something that defies the laws of reality.
1 WALTER VS ILJA DRAGUNOV - TAKEOVER: 36 (RATING: 9.64)
If it wasn't for Bret Hart vs Steve Austin at WrestleMania 13, the first encounter between WALTER and Ilja Dragunov would be the highest-rated WWE match ever on cagematch.net. So the rematch had a lot to live up to when it was penciled in for NXT TakeOver: 36. While it is .01 of a rating shy of matching their first match, this 22-minute war is nothing short of a wonderfully violent masterpiece.
The best matches in wrestling always have a simple yet engaging narrative running through them. The story here is very simple, WALTER is the unstoppable Goliath to Dragunov's unhinged and courageous David. What follows is a match filled with the sharpest of knife-edge chops, extraordinary feats of strength and endurance from both men, and without a shadow of a doubt the best NXT match (and possibly WWE too) of 2021.
