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WWE delivered a great event in the form of NXT TakeOver 31 on Sunday, where all four of the singles Championships of the brand were up for grabs. Io Shirai put her NXT Women's Championship on the line against Candice LeRae, while Johnny Gargano challenged Damian Priest for the NXT North American Championship.
Santos Escobar faced Isaiah "Swerve" Scott to defend his NXT Cruiserweight Championship, while Finn Balor defended his NXT Championship against Kyle O'Reilly in the main event of NXT TakeOver 31.
That wasn't all, as KUSHIDA faced The Velveteen Dream in singles action, while we saw two surprise returns and an even more surprising attack to end NXT TakeOver 31.
With so much action and drama during the night, there were several things NXT did very well to keep the fans entertained.
In this article, we will look at the five things NXT got right at TakeOver 31.
#5 KUSHIDA picks up a big victory at NXT TakeOver 31
KUSHIDA faced The Velveteen Dream in a singles match at NXT TakeOver 31 after weeks of animosity on NXT. The more aggressive KUSHIDA came in with a different energy and looked to put away Dream from the get-go.
In typical fashion, Dream mocked another one of his opponents with his ring attire, as he came out dressed as Doc Brown from Back to the Future to poke fun at KUSHIDA's Time Splitter persona.
The Japanese Superstar attacked Dream before the opening bell, but Dream was soon able to break his momentum by using his size and power advantage.
The fans seemed to be behind KUSHIDA as he targetted Dream's arm once again and pulled him shoulder-first into the ring post a couple of times. He then delivered a dropkick to the stairs into Dream's arm.
Later on, His Purple Highness attempted the Purple Rainmaker, but KUSHIDA countered with an arm breaker. Dream made it to the ropes and poked his opponent in the eye. He delivered a powerbomb for two, following which KUSHIDA applied another armbar.
Dream finally hit the Purple Rainmaker but could not take full advantage because of his injured arm. KUSHIDA then pulled off a great move with Dream off the top rope to apply the Hoverboard Lock. Dream delivered the Dream Valley Driver, but KUSHIDA held on and forced Dream to tap out to pick up the victory at NXT TakeOver 31.
The match was good, and it was KUSHIDA who came out as the real star in this one. Dream proved to be the perfect opponent for him, and his new attitude shone out in this contest. KUSHIDA added insult to injury by viciously attacking Dream after the match and had to be stopped by the referees. With his new attitude, it looks like it only a matter of time before KUSHIDA is on top of the NXT roster.
#4 Damian Priest shoots down Johnny Gargano at NXT TakeOver 31
WWE wanted to kick off NXT TakeOver 31 with a big match, and they gave us Johnny Gargano vs. Damian Priest for the North American Championship first up.
Priest got the first major strike, but Gargano recovered to try and end things early with the Gargano Escape. Priest countered and almost hit the Reckoning to pick up the victory.
There was no stopping these two Superstars from there on as they continued to deliver big moves. Gargano used some submission maneuvers to his advantage to keep the bigger man down.
The action soon spilled to the floor where Priest caught Gargano with a Razor’s Edge onto the ring apron. They continued to fight from there and Gargano’s taunts almost proved costly at one point as Priest went for the chokeslam. However, Gargano managed to counter it into a roll-up but couldn’t keep the big man out.
Johnny Wrestling did everything he could to stop the Archer of Infamy and even pulled two security men into the line of fire. After that, he hit Priest with a low blow and a superkick but still could not put the Champion away. Priest fought out of another Gargano Escape and hit Gargano with the Reckoning to pick up the victory and retain his title at NXT TakeOver 31.
This was an excellent match to kick things off at NXT TakeOver 31. Priest put up a good performance and Gargano did his level best to put the Champion over.
#3 Io Shirai retains her title against Candice LeRae at NXT TakeOver 31
This was one of the most anticipated matches of NXT TakeOver 31 as Candice LeRae challenged Io Shirai for the Women’s Championship. While LeRae’s husband wasn’t able to bag the gold early in the night, she had a huge chance to pick up her first title in WWE.
Shirai took the fight to her challenger early and both women worked over each other with holds and submission maneuvers. The Poison Pixie and The Jodi Judas continued to deliver some breathtaking moves in a back-and-forth contest.
Shirai locked LeRae in the crossface at one point in the match, and The Poison Pixie countered it with the Gargano Escape. The referee was knocked out by LeRae, following which Johnny Gargano appeared in a referee’s shirt to pose as the official in the match.
The couple tried to end Shirai’s reign as the NXT Women’s Champion together, but she kept fighting to stay on top.
Johnny Wrestling slyly slid the title belt to LeRae as he argued with the actual referee, and LeRae blasted Shirai with it. However, The Jodi Judas still kicked out of the pin. She recovered to plant LeRae with the Spanish Fly followed by a moonsault to pick up the victory at NXT TakeOver 31.
Shirai is arguably the best female wrestler in WWE today, and she proved once again how good she is with a great title defense. LeRae was the perfect opponent who gave Shirai a lot to play with at NXT TakeOver 31, and we hope that WWE will give us a few more matches between the two women in the coming weeks.
#2 The big surprises and returns at NXT TakeOver 31
After Io Shirai was done with Candice LeRae at NXT TakeOver 31, a pre-recorded message from Toni Storm hit the screen where she announced her return to the Black and Gold brand. Storm's return further strengthens NXT women's roster and gives the fans something new to look forward to.
Right after that, former NXT Women's Champion Ember Moon made her way out to send the WWE Universe in a frenzy at NXT TakeOver 31. Moon, who had a great first stint on the Black and Gold brand, did not find the same level of success on the main roster.
It now looks like Shirai will have her hands full in the months to come as both Storm and Moon will target her title.
Later in the night, after the NXT TakeOver 31 main event between Finn Balor and Kyle O'Reilly, Ridge Holland surprised the fans in attendance and at home by coming out with a lifeless Adam Cole over his shoulders. He deposited the former NXT Champion at ringside before leaving.
This was an interesting spot that catapults Holland to the top of NXT with a new rivalry on the cards. Where were Bobby Fish and Roderick Strong when Holland attacked Cole? A lot of questions will be answered in the upcoming weeks.
#1 Finn Balor and Kyle O'Reilly put on a clinic at NXT TakeOver 31
The final match of NXT TakeOver 31 not only stole the night, but it also gave fans a 'Match of the Year' contender. Finn Balor defended his WWE NXT Championship against one of the most underrated performers in WWE, Kyle O'Reilly.
The Prince of NXT met his match in the middle as both men tried their best to outperform each other but could not get the upper hand for too long.
Both men tried to lock on their best submission holds to force their opponent to tap out, and then resorted to some hard strikes that took a toll on their bodies.
The Prince started bleeding from the mouth as it seemed like he's injured his jaw at some point in the match. However, he didn't slow down and delivered a couple of double stomps, followed by the Coup de Grace to retain his title at NXT TakeOver 31.
The NXT TakeOver 31 main event not only brought the best out of Balor but showed us just how good O'Reilly is. He deserves to be in the main event picture more often, and one can hope that he wins NXT Championship someday.
As for now, it seems like the Undisputed ERA have some problems to deal with in the weeks to come.
