NXT Takeover London Coverage: Finn and Bailey Shine

December 17, 2015 Patrick Hickey Jr. Professional Wrestling 0

It’s so crazy that NXT is so much better in the ring than the main roster offerings from the WWE. Powered by five great matches and enough storytelling to fuel a few new angles moving forward. Although there were no new champions crowned, the in-ring action was some of the best of 2015.

Matches:

Asuka vs. Emma w/Dana Brooke: Tons of strikes and near-falls from both competitors. Aggressive throughout, Emma brought the fight to Asuka, but the Japanese Import never gave up and consistently fought back. After Asuka nearly won with a Running Hip Attack, Emma used the Tarantula and a Butterfly Suplex into the turnbuckle, followed by an Emmavite Sandwich, but she couldn’t get the win. After she escaped the Emma Lock, Asuka transitioned into an Ankle Lock and then hit a Shining Wizard and a German Suplex for a near-fall. After she couldn’t latch on the Asuka Lock and the referee got taken out, Brooke threw something in the ring that Asuka stole and nearly got thrown out for. After Emma got a Rollup reversed, Asuka latched on the Asuka Lock, but Brooke distracted the referee. After Brooke got thrown out, Emma went to hit Asuka with the foreign object, but Asuka landed a vicious Roundhouse Kick for the win.

NXT Tag Team Champions Dash and Dawson vs. Enzo Amore and Colin Cassady w/Carmella: Amore got his ass kicked throughout the match, but he hit a crucial DDT that allowed Cassady to come into the match. However, using Chop Blocks, Slingshot Suplexes and Gordbusters, Dash and Dawson were the Brainbusters personified. Latching on the Reverse Heel Lock, Dash nearly got the submission win, but Cassady got to the ropes. After Amore helped eliminate Dawson, Amore hit the Rocket Launcher, but Dawson broke up the pinfall and then the duo hit their Assisted Code Breaker from the top rope for the epic win.

Baron Corbin vs. Apollo Crews: Corbin was tough as hell, but Crews nearly won a few times thanks to the Standing Shooting Star and a ton of strikes. However, after he countered the Powerbomb variation, Corbin finally hit the End of Days for the win.

NXT Women’s Champion Bayley vs. Nia Jax: Bayley fought hard and Jax brought the power game thanks to strikes and a trio of Samoan Drops and her Leg Drop, but Bayley kicked out of Jax’s finisher. After Avalanches in the corner and more mayhem, Bayley continued to kick out and eventually got the win with the Guillotine Choke after several attempts at it.

NXT Champion Finn Balor vs. Samoa Joe: A lengthy, excellent and engaging back and forth. This was almost in the same league as the AJ Styles/Joe encounters in TNA. Both competitors hit their signature maneuvers, but there was always a return from their foe. Nothing was easy or handed over. Balor eventually got the win with the Coupe De Grace after he avoided the Kokina Klutch.

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About Patrick Hickey Jr. 14321 Articles
Patrick Hickey Jr. is a full-time Assistant Professor of Communication & Performing Arts and Director of the Journalism program at Kingsborough Community College and is the chairman of the City University of New York Journalism Council. He is the Founder and Editor-In-Chief of ReviewFix.com. He's also a former News Editor at NBC Local Integrated Media and National Video Games Writer at Examiner.com where his work was mentioned in National Ad campaigns by Disney, Nintendo and EA Sports. Hickey was also the Editor-In-Chief of two College Newspapers before he received his BA in Journalism from Brooklyn College. Hickey's work has been published in The New York Daily News, The New York Times, Complex, The Hockey Writers, Yahoo!, Broadway World, Examiner, NYSportScene Magazine, ProHockeyNews.com, GothamBaseball.com, The Syracuse Post-Standard, Scout.com and the official sites of the Brooklyn Aces and New York Islanders. His first book, The Minds Behind the Games: Interviews With Cult And Classic Video Game Developers was released in April 2018 and is chock full of interviews with legendary developers. His second book in the series, The Minds Behind Adventures Games, was released in December 2019. His third book, The Minds Behind Sports Games, was released in September 2020. His fourth book, The Minds Behind Shooter Games, was released in March 2021. The Minds Behind Sega Genesis Games and The Minds Behind PlayStation Games were released in 2022 and The Minds Behind PlayStation 2 was published in January 2023. Hickey is also a contracted comic book writer, currently penning his original series, "Condrey," as well as "The Job," "Brooklyn Bleeds" "Dem Gulls" and "KROOM" for Legacy Comix, where he serves as founder, owner and Editor-in-Chief. Hickey Jr. is also a voice actor, having starred in the 2018 indie hit and 2019 Switch, PS4 and Xbox One release, The Padre (also serving as English language Story Editor), from Shotgun With Glitters. The sequel, The Padre: One Shell Straight to Hell was released in February 2021- Hickey also served as a Story Editor and Lead Voiceover performer. He has also done narration and trailers for several other titles including The Kaiju Offensive, Relentless Rex and Roniu’s Tale. Hickey is also the lead voiceover performer on Mega Cat Studios’ upcoming title WrestleQuest, responsible for nearly 90 characters in the game, as well as Skybound's Renfield: Bring Your Own Blood, where he voices both Dracula and Renfield, as well as several other characters. He also stars in Ziggurat Interactive’s World Championship Boxing Manager 2, where he performs the VO of nearly every male character in the game. He also worked on the Atari VCS’s BPM Boy.

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