5 results predictions for NXT Takeover: New York

It has become a tradition at WrestleMania weekend, for NXT to put on their biggest show of the year. Takeover has become a thing of its own, usually taking place on the night before a Big Four pay-per-view. These shows are some of the best shows of the year across the entire wrestling industry. In less than a week, NXT will have possibly it's biggest Takeover yet.

The show is returning to the Barclays Center for the fifth time, with a slight name change. Takeover: New York looks like a stellar card, characteristic to the NXT norm. There is some real potential for WWE's third brand to be changed forever. Five huge title matches will help kick off the WrestleMania festivities on Friday, as us fans will sit hopeful and expect the excellence and perfection of Takeovers past.

There had to be major changes made to the card due to an unfortunate injury, but the quality of the card has hardly been compromised. NXT Takeover: New York looks to be another Triple H masterclass.

Here are the results predictions for all five matches on this exciting card.

#5 War Raiders vs Aleister Black and Ricochet (NXT Tag Team Championship)

This was the last match to be confirmed, with Aleister Black and Ricochet winning the 2019 Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic on NXT TV. They are set to challenge the War Raiders in what is almost certainly their NXT swansong.

Black and Ricochet have been teaming up on Raw and Smackdown and have shown tremendous chemistry together. They could go into this match as the Raw Tag Team Champions as well, but it is still weird to see two men who have done so well in singles competition forming a tag team.

The War Raiders dethroned Roderick Strong and Kyle O'Reilly at Takeover: Phoenix with an incredible performance. Hanson and Rowe have looked pretty great on the yellow brand so far and there is no reason for that not to continue this week.

Unless NXT is going with the Undisputed Era dominating the show this year, the War Raiders should absolutely hold the tag titles for a really long time. The two big men are athletic as they are powerful, a stellar combination in any tag team. Also, with Black and Ricochet moving over to the main roster, they will make the powerhouses look like killers.

Prediction: War Raiders def. Black and Ricochet and send them off to the main roster

#4 Shayna Baszler vs Kairi Sane vs Bianca Belair vs Io Shirai (NXT Women's Championship)

Over the past year, Shayna Baszler has been the Queen of NXT. She forcefully took the NXT Women's Championship from Ember Moon at Takeover: New Orleans before dominating the entire division. Aside from a surprise loss to Kairi Sane the last time NXT was in Brooklyn, Baszler has been unstoppable. She won back the belt at Evolution, this time with Jessamyn Duke and Marina Shafir by her side. That being said, this match might be her biggest challenge to date.

She will defend the title against Kairi Sane, Bianca Belair, and Io Shirai. Sane and BelAir both had Takeover matches with the Queen of Spades, so a victory for either of them would be doubtful.

Shirai, on the other hand, is receiving her first championship match in NXT here. She has looked pretty good so far, with her beautiful Moonsault standing out by far. NXT could book a title change in a way that Baszler would not even be defeated before she moves to the main roster. It makes so much sense and keeps Shayna Baszler as the second most dominant female in NXT history, after Asuka.

Prediction: Io Shirai wins but Shayna Baszler does not get pinned

#3 Velveteen Dream vs Matt Riddle (NXT North American Championship)

The NXT North American Championship will turn one during WrestleMania weekend, with the title enjoying a pretty incredible first year. We got some tremendous classics, from the 6-way ladder match to Adam Cole vs Ricochet to Ricochet vs Johnny Gargano.

This match, while possibly not at the level of the aforementioned bouts, will still be a great one. Matt Riddle has come in and done a great job and while he could have been booked a bit better, is really looking fantastic and is a legitimate threat to anyone in the WWE.

He will challenge Velveteen Dream, who has been one of the most consistent performers in NXT. It is astonishing that a 23-year-old man is so good at every aspect of professional wrestling.

While he could easily stay in Full Sail for a couple more years and it wouldn't shorten his main roster career, Velveteen Dream is absolutely ready to move to the main roster. The first step to his NXT yellow brand farewell would be putting over the undefeated former MMA fighter. This could potentially make Matt Riddle on the yellow brand.

Prediction: Matt Riddle wins the North American title

#2 Pete Dunne vs WALTER (WWE United Kingdom Championship)

The WWE United Kingdom Championship was first introduced in January 2017. For its entire existence, bar the first four months, Pete Dunne has held the title. The Bruiserweight won it from Tyler Bate in an excellent match at Takeover: Chicago and has kept it ever since.

For the entirety of last year, including the start of NXT UK, there looked to be no end in sight for Dunne's reign as the top champion in the area. Many challengers stepped up, but there was nobody really at his level. That was until the end of NXT UK Takeover: Blackpool.

It finally looks like the Bruiserweight has met his match when WALTER marched down to the ring and confronted the United Kingdom Champion. The Austrian giant looks like a killer and has been doing a lot of impressive stuff over the past few years, particularly for wXw in Germany.

Just look at him. That look alone would be enough to defeat opponents. WALTER's chops are so brutal and leave a mark on every chest he puts his hands on. He is the man who should take Dunne's UK Championship away from him, simply because there doesn't seem to be any other option beyond him or any match better than this.

Prediction: WALTER ends Dunne's 685-day title reign

#1 Johnny Gargano vs Adam Cole: 2-out-of-3 Falls Match (NXT Championship

The scheduled main event for NXT Takeover: New York was Tommaso Ciampa defending the NXT Championship against Johnny Gargano in a 2-out-of-3 Falls Match in what would have been the perfect culmination to the greatest feud in NXT history. Unfortunately, Ciampa's neck was to messed up and the match was called off. luckily though, the backup plan is also a potential classic NXT main event. Adam Cole won a Fatal-5-way match to earn this match against Gargano, which will remain 2-out-of-3 Falls.

There is a lot of history at stake in this match. Whoever wins will be NXT Champion for the first time and will be the first-ever NXT triple crown champion, after both men were tag team and North American champions as well.

This will be an absolute barnburner that will likely go beyond half an hour combined. Cole is just so good and it is no wonder why he is one of the most over wrestlers on the planet. Gargano is rightfully called Mr Takeover, as he always steals the show and the weekend as a whole. This weekend might be no different, as we should expect another thrilling NXT Championship main event.

Any of these men could possibly pick up the victory. Gargano was likely supposed to win the title from Ciampa, but now the victory seems more doubtful. NXT might need strong main event level heels and what better way to establish one than to crown him the new champion?

The rest of Adam Cole's stablemates are not booked for anything on this card, meaning they could play a really big part in this match. Could this be the big step for complete and utter domination for the Undisputed Era? It seems likely. Slightly more likely than Johnny Wrestling standing tall in Brooklyn at the end of possibly the biggest Takeover in history so far.

Prediction: Adam Cole becomes the undisputed NXT Champion