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Adam Cole and Finn Balor have been circling each other ever since the latter returned to NXT. They've battled each other a few times already, and Balor will defend the NXT Championship against Cole next week.
Balor challenged the Undisputed Era's former leader while confronting Roderick Strong in the middle of the ring on tonight's episode. The Prince said that the only way to get Cole's attention was with the NXT title.
Balor then insulted Strong, saying that he'd always be a follower until he changed. That led to a brief scuffle that resulted in the main-event match set for later tonight.
Cole didn't necessarily accept the challenge in person, but the match was made nonetheless. Strong might have something to say about the situation, though.
Balor and Cole fought for the title twice late in 2020 after Karrion Kross relinquished the title due to injury. They were both a part of the four-man title eliminator gauntlet and scored the same amount of pinfalls.
The two then fought in a one-on-one match the following week, which Balor won. The Prince then successfully defended the title against Cole in December.
Is a potential NXT title change in the cards?
The entire destruction of the Undisputed Era has engulfed Balor in its wake. Balor and Kyle O'Reilly garnered mutual respect after two hard-hitting classics over the belt.
The group's dissolution occurred after Cole attacked both O'Reilly and Balor at NXT TakeOver: Vengeance Day. That left Strong in the middle of the fracas, and he was attacked by Cole last week.
Next week's show is set to be a huge one as Io Shirai is also scheduled to defend the NXT Women's Championship against Toni Storm. That match was booked last week after Storm essentially goaded the Genius of the Sky into another shot.
Both matches feature two sets of opponents that have fought each other a lot over the last few years. For that reason, something we haven't seen already could come into play.
Storm beat Shirai in the finals of a Mae Young Classic. Shirai then beat both Storm and Mercedes Martinez in a triple threat at NXT TakeOver: Vengeance Day, but pinned the latter.
Shirai has held the title since last June and has defended it against every challenger put in her path. If there is a possibility of her dropping the belt, losing it to Storm could be likely. That outcome may also lead to a main roster move for the Genius of the Sky.
