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WWE NXT put on a great show on Sunday night as fans tuned into the WWE Network to watch NXT TakeOver: In Your House. The card consisted of six well-crafted matches and ensured that no filler match would take the impact of the event away.
The women of NXT kicked off the night with a fast-paced six-women tag team match and The Prince of NXT took over from there as he shot down The Archer of Infamy.
Keith Lee managed to retain his NXT North American Championship after enduring everything The Rebel Heart Johnny Gargano could throw at him, while Karrion Kross made a great TakeOver debut by taking down former NXT Champion Tommaso Ciampa.
NXT Champion Adam Cole not only managed to retain his title but also ensured that Velveteen Dream would never get a shot at his title again. Charlotte Flair was not as lucky as Cole, as Io Shirai showed why she’s known as The Genius of the Sky as she pulled off some great high-flying moves to become the new NXT Women’s Champion.
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At the end of it all, fans have a few questions from the event that need to be addressed in the coming weeks.
In this article, we will look at the five biggest questions from NXT TakeOver: In Your House that need to be addressed by WWE in the weeks to come.
#5 Is this the end for Tegan Nox and Dakota Kai’s rivalry?
Dakota Kai turned heel during the NXT TakeOver: WarGames 2019 event back in November 2019 and attacked her best friend Tegan Nox during the women’s WarGames match at the event.
Since then, the two women have competed on and off for over six months while getting into other storylines which have led to confusion for the fans at times. Kai found a partner in Raquel Gonzalez soon after turning heel, while Nox has been working with Shotzi Blackheart lately.
At TakeOver: In Your House, Kai and Gonzalez teamed up with Candice LeRae to compete against Nox, Blackheart, and Mia Yim. Nox hit the Shiniest Wizard on Kai to pick up the win and give fans a good opening to the show.
While the match was good, the story was a bit rushed and once again revolved around Kai and Nox’s differences along with some heat between Yim and LeRae.
NXT needs to build a few faces for the Championship scene
Will this match finally end the rivalry between Nox and Kai that has stretched on for far too long and kept the two women tangled for over half a year? And was this a fitting end to their rivalry, even though it came during a six-women tag team match?
We’ll have to wait and watch what direction NXT decides to take for these two women heading on.
#4 Who can take down Keith Lee?
Keith Lee has been the NXT North American Champion for almost five months now and he has defended his title against some of the biggest names in NXT including Damian Priest, Dominik Dijakovic, and Cameron Grimes.
At NXT TakeOver: In Your House, Lee was up against his biggest competition yet, as former NXT Champion Johnny Gargano was set to take the title and become a two-time Champion.
While Gargano got most of the offense in the match and got close to victory several times, a series of big finishers helped Lee retain the title and continue his dominant reign since becoming the Champion.
The biggest force of NXT needs some big competition
Lee has now taken down almost all big mid-card heels in NXT and with Matt Riddle switching brands, he seems to be looking for some real competition.
Karrion Kross is the new big heel on the block, but it seems like NXT is building him up for an NXT Championship run rather than a run with the secondary title. With that in mind, fans are now wondering who can take down The Limitless One and end his reign as the NXT North American Champion?
Will Timothy Thatcher get the ultimate push and defeat Lee after his dominant performances against Riddle? Or will NXT continue to feed Lee some more mid-card Superstars?
#3 Will Tommaso Ciampa’s reputation take a hit?
Tommaso Ciampa has been the cornerstone of NXT for a few years now and he has helped develop the brand to what it is today along with Johnny Gargano.
Ciampa has won the NXT Championship in the past, but he was forced to relinquish the title due to an injury. However, he failed to win back the title from Adam Cole who continues to be the greatest NXT Champion of all time now.
Since December last year, Ciampa has lost some big matches to men like Finn Balor, Adam Cole, and Johnny Gargano. His victories have come against newer Superstars and mid-carders during the period.
Has The Blackheart of NXT taken too many falls?
At TakeOver: In Your House, The Blackheart lost a big match against the newcomer Karrion Kross quickly. While fans are aware of Ciampa’s bulletproof reputation, such losses can surely hurt his image on a brand that he never plans to leave.
With Ciampa making it clear that he does not want to switch out of NXT and go to any other brand of WWE, what will the brand do with him now to rebuild his reputation as all the major heels have gone over him in recent months? Will we see a change in The Blackheart’s character in the coming weeks?
#2 Is it time for The Nightmare to switch brands?
Rhea Ripley was a major force on NXT UK and made a great impact on NXT after she dropped the NXT United Kingdom Women’s Championship and moved to the brand.
She became one of the few women to defeat Shayna Baszler in NXT, and only the second woman after Kairi Sane to defeat her for the NXT Women’s Championship.
At WrestleMania 36, Ripley suffered a major setback as she clearly tapped out to Charlotte Flair and let go of her title as The Queen arrived to rule NXT. At NXT TakeOver: In Your House, The Nightmare got a chance to win back her title, but ended up being pinned by Io Shirai who took home the NXT Women’s Championship at the end of the show.
Is it time for Ripley to move out of NXT?
Such clean losses on NXT after building up a great reputation has dented The Nightmare’s rise and has seen her suffer at the hands of her competitors in NXT.
With that in mind, is it time for The Nightmare to switch brands and head over to SmackDown where the SmackDown Women’s Championship scene is wide open? While rumors were circulating that Shirai would be heading to RAW or SmackDown, it seems she will be taking over the NXT women’s division for now.
Does that leave an opening for the babyface Ripley to head over to SmackDown?
#1 Was taking a cinematic route the best option for the NXT Championship match?
Velveteen Dream has been one of NXT’s brightest young stars for some years now. From facing Aleister Black to going after Adam Cole’s NXT Championship, Dream has tried to do everything one can on the Black & Gold brand.
The former NXT North American Champion had been chasing the NXT Championship for some time now, but failed to win it at NXT TakeOver: In Your House once again. William Regal promised a fitting match for the two men, but was a Backlot Brawl the best direction for two men who can put up stellar matches in the ring?
NXT is better off with regular matches with big endings
WWE has switched to cinematic matches since the global pandemic affected their regular plans and gave fans a couple of good ones at WrestleMania 36.
They tried their hands with one on NXT between Tommaso Ciampa and Johnny Gargano, but that fell flat on its face. NXT could have done with a regular match with some other stipulation and the outcome could have ended up being even more impactful.
However, it feels like fans have been robbed off a stellar match between two of NXT’s best as we could see Dream head to another brand soon.
Fans would have loved to see the two men battle it out and stretch their limits. Cole’s victory then would have made him seem like an even bigger force.
