5 surprising moments from NXT Takeover: Brooklyn III

That is why I am a wrestling fan.

In what is likely one of the best WWE events in a long time, NXT put on a show that was exciting through the amazing night in Brooklyn. We had a rare show where all the matches were good to great.

It was a show that had a logical booking with smart title changes. It also had many wonderful surprises as well. It is amazing to me that the so-called developmental brand of the WWE constantly exceeds the main roster pay-per-views time and time again.

With all of this in my still racing mind, I present my list of the top five most surprising moments of WWE Takeover: Brooklyn III:

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#5 Almas Wins

Almas actually won a match!

I have felt really sorry for Andrade “Cien” Almas. He is a very talented wrestler who is constantly losing on the major Takeover stage time and time again. He started as a face but was quickly booed by the crowd. I fully expected his losing ways to continue at Takeover: Brooklyn III. I was happy to have been proven wrong.

It seems to have been a good idea to give Almas a manager in Zelina Vega. Her whole character is focused on making him more serious and focused.

It was strange to see Almas win with a T-shirt toss but this was clearly his best match in his lengthy Takeover history. It was a wonderful surprise to see him win on such a big stage.

#4 Sanity wins the title and Nikki Cross takes a heck of a bump

Sanity wins the tag title and becomes good guys.

Sanity is a unique faction. They act insane, cheat and are still loved by the NXT audience. After months of winning every major match they have been in, it was time to see them get a title match finally.

The match with Authors of Pain was another good one. Alexander Wolfe showed an impressive amount of offence. It was great to see everyone rise on the big occasion.

And Nikki Cross proved once again how crazy she is. Being sandwiched between two massive wrestlers into a brutal table spot.

I think it was time to move the title off of Authors of Pain. I don’t know if they will go to the main roster but they have shown amazing growth in the last few months. However, it isn’t like Sanity doesn’t have a new opponent.

#3 ReDRagon arrives

The tag division has changed in a hurry.

It was a big surprise to see the new tag feud set up instantly after the tag match. Bobby Fish and Kyle O’Reilly seemed to be afterthoughts after losing their debuts against Aleister Black on NXT television. That was changed with one shocking attack.

It is interesting that the WWE played on fan knowledge of ReDRagon’s success outside the WWE to get them over. Judging by the NXT crowd’s reaction, it worked.

It set up the new feuds perfectly and puts the tag division in good hands for months to come. It was a wonderful surprise for sure.

#2 The streak continues

Ember Moon almost had Asuka in another amazing match

It is hard to believe that Asuka had held the NXT Women’s title since the WrestleMania 32 weekend. That is an insane streak that will really be difficult to ever see duplicated in any WWE show in the years to come. But Asuka is already 35 years old and Ember Moon has been established as a credible threat. Then Asuka won again.

Ember Moon certainly didn’t look bad in defeat. In one of the best WWE women’s matches, it had many believable near falls on both sides. Asuka even kicked out of Ember’s finisher.

While Asuka cheated a bit earlier in the match, her submission finishing sequence was clean. It left me wanting for more and maybe another match between the two. But in the mean time, Asuka’s streak continues.

#1 Drew wins and meets Adam Cole

Drew wins the big one and meets a new challenger

Bobby Roode has carried the NXT Championship wonderfully since January. His heel work and fun opening has carried the Takeover shows for 2017. Since Drew has only had a handful of matches since his return, it would have made sense to have him chase the title for a while. That didn’t happen on Saturday night.

In a match that built to an exciting finish, Drew showed his impressive offence for a guy of his size. He has improved a lot since his WWE return.

After a lot of credible pin fall attempts, Drew won the NXT Championship and Bobby Roode simply left. It would be a surprising end to see Bobby Roode simply vanish into the sunset and onto the main roster.

This would have been a wonderful show if it ended at that point but it didn’t. It seemed like the show was going to end; the crowd went crazy about something TV viewers couldn't see -- an amazing way to build suspense.

I loved the surprise of seeing ReDRagon appear first and then the appearance of Adam Cole. Cole is a supremely talented wrestler who will carry the brand well for the rest of this year and into 2018.

To see him instantly entered into the main event picture with a stable of past Ring of Honor wrestlers, that is the best surprise to end an amazing night of wrestling.