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Night One of NXT Takeover: Stand & Deliver was filled with the kind of action you'd expect from a Takeover card. There were plenty of impressive showings from some of the best superstars to grace a wrestling ring. If Night Two is anything like it, fans are surely in for a treat.
On this night, we saw high stakes matches, like the NXT UK Championship, the Tag Team titles, and the Women's Championship, all hanging in the balance.
As with any important card, some stars outperformed the rest. On a night like Stand & Deliver, the bar is high for wrestlers to put on a performance worth remembering.
Some of the names on today's list came as no surprise while others were looking to make a name for themselves on the big stage.
Let's look at the 5 superstars who were the top performers on NXT Takeover: Stand & Deliver Night One.
#5. Swerve Scott is the iron man of NXT Stand & Deliver
"Swerve Confidence" truly planted his flag in NXT. Scott has had an up-and-down journey since transitioning from 205 Live. It seems he's normally a stepping stone for other talents who are looking to get over.
Scott set out to change this narrative tonight. Isaiah came in with Leon Ruff as the beginning participants of the Gauntlet Eliminator match. He would go on to be the bout's iron man, lasting longer than all the others.
Isaiah Scott also did everything there was to do in the match. When it was him and Ruff, the two put on a high-flying spectacle. When Bronson Reed entered the match, he bumped like crazy. He even had a chance to show off his personality by allying with Cameron Grimes.
Most impressively was Scott's resistance. Many times, it truly seemed he would go the distance and win the Gauntlet match. If NXT is looking for a star in the making, they need look no further than Swerve Scott.
#4. Bronson Reed moves to NXT Takeover: Stand & Deliver Night Two
Bronson Reed has made his claim at NXT Takeover: Stand & Deliver Night Two. The resident big, thick boy survived five other superstars in the Gauntlet Eliminator match. He will now face Johnny Gargano on Night Two of Takeover for the North American Championship.
Multi-man matches often feature some sort of monster that participants have to overcome. Reed was the monster in this match, and showed his abilities in the ring in the best ways possible.
Reed hit both Ruff and Scott with a double German suplex. There was also a point in the match where he just sat on people in one of the most brutal ways possible.
This match also proved that Reed could hang with smaller and more conditioned guys. Bronson was able to last through the entire match from the number three spot. This would be impressive for anyone, let alone someone of Reed's size.
He will surely give Gargano a run for his money on NXT Takeover: Stand & Deliver Night Two.
#3. Wes Lee impresses during the fight for the NXT Tag belts
In a scramble for the NXT Tag Team titles, all teams impressed. One individual performance, however, stood above the rest. Wes Lee, one-half of MSK, proved himself as a potential singles star.
Along with his partner Nash Carter, Lee overcame the Grizzled Young Veterans and Legado del Fantasma to become the newly crowned Tag Team Champions.
Lee proved to be the MVP of his team. His hot tags throughout the bout were pure beauty. The man flew effortlessly around the ring in a manner NXT fans hadn't seen before.
Lee also seems to get to the core of wrestling. Throughout the bout, he displayed great psychology both from tag team fundamentals and how he sold his recently-healed hand throughout the match.
MSK will clearly have a successful and exciting reign atop the tag division. I look forward to seeing what they bring to one of the industry's best tag leagues. However, all this does peak our interest in seeing what Wes Lee can do solo.
#2. The NXT Women's champ Io Shirai looks as good as ever
Has Io Shirai ever put on a bad match in NXT? The Genius of the Sky seems to put on spectacular bouts like it's her second nature. For almost a year, Shirai has proved she's the most valuable asset in NXT today.
Io put on a grueling and brutal-looking match against Raquel Gonzalez. It was her toughest challenge yet as NXT Women's Champion. Sadly, she came up short, and this ended one of the most impressive title reigns ever seen.
Despite losing the match, Io still was one of the most impressive performers of the night. She put on a show while everyone else was putting on a match.
She managed to captivate the crowds with her daring moonsault onto the entrance ramp and her insane crossbody off the top of the stage set skull.
Shirai also managed to make Gonzalez look like a million bucks. If the titles were meant to change hands tonight, Io put on a brave final performance as the champion.
#1. WALTER reminds NXT why he's the man to beat
It seems no one can topple WALTER for the NXT UK Championship. The champ may be the most dominant man in wrestling today. Tonight further solidified that legacy when he took on Tommaso Ciampa in a grueling match.
After minutes of back-and-forth action, the bout got brutal in a way we'd expect from a Ciampa and WALTER match. Stiff strikes aplenty rocked both men to their cores. This was a test of will, and WALTER was never going to break.
Beth Phoneix summarized it best when she described the match as a hybrid between WALTER's bouts with Tyler Bate and Ilja Dragunov. This was a fight.
What this match did well was showcase WALTER in a way we've never seen before. Ciampa seemed to be in control for most of the bout as the big man injured his chopping hand by breaking it through the announce table. But WALTER fought from underneath like never before.
It's a welcome addition to his character as he's proven he will go to hell and back to retain his NXT UK title.
