| NXT TakeOver: New Orleans | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Promotional poster featuring various NXT wrestlers | |||
| Promotion | WWE | ||
| Brand | NXT | ||
| Date | April 7, 2018 | ||
| City | New Orleans,Louisiana | ||
| Venue | Smoothie King Center | ||
| Attendance | 13,955[1] | ||
| WWE event chronology | |||
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| NXT TakeOver chronology | |||
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NXT TakeOver: New Orleans was the 19thNXT TakeOverprofessional wrestlinglivestreamingevent produced byWWE. It was held exclusively for wrestlers from the promotion'sNXTbrand division. The event aired exclusively on theWWE Network and took place on April 7, 2018, at theSmoothie King Center inNew Orleans,Louisiana as part of theWrestleMania 34 weekend festivities.
Five matches were contested at the event. In the main event,Johnny Gargano defeatedTommaso Ciampa in anUnsanctioned match and was reinstated to NXT. On the undercard,Aleister Black defeatedAndrade Cien Almas to win theNXT Championship,Shayna Baszler defeatedEmber Moon to capture theNXT Women's Championship, andAdam Cole won a six-manladder match to become the inauguralNXT North American Champion.
The event received universal acclaim from wrestling fans and critics and both the NXT North American Championship match and the Unsanctioned match between Gargano and Ciampa both received five-star ratings by wrestling journalistDave Meltzer. It was the first time Meltzer gave five stars to two matches on the same North American show. It has since been described as one of the greatest wrestling shows of all time.
TakeOver was a series ofprofessional wrestling shows that began in May 2014, asWWE's then-developmental leagueNXT held their secondWWE Network-exclusive event, billed asTakeOver.[2] In subsequent months, the "TakeOver" moniker became the brand used by WWE for all of their NXT live specials. TakeOver: New Orleans was scheduled as the 19th NXT TakeOver event and was held on April 7, 2018, as a support show forWrestleMania 34. It was held at theSmoothie King Center and was named after the venue's city ofNew Orleans,Louisiana.[3]
This was also the first TakeOver event to feature Spanish play-by-play commentary live from ringside, as Spanish color commentatorMarcelo Rodriguez announced viaTwitter.[4] FormerIndianapolis Coltspunter andBarstool Sports personalityPat McAfee was announced to join the Pre-Show panel.[5]
The card comprised five matches. The matches resulted from scripted storylines, where wrestlers portrayedheroes,villains, orless distinguishable characters that built tension and culminated in a wrestling match or series of matches. Results were predetermined by WWE's writers on the NXT brand, while storylines were produced on their weekly television program,NXT.[6][7]
On the February 28 episode ofNXT,Andrade Cien Almas andZelina Vega boasted about their victory overJohnny Gargano. ThenAleister Black andKillian Dain came out and the three brawled.[8] The following week, Black defeated Dain to become the number one contender to the NXT Championship and would face Almas at TakeOver: New Orleans.[9]
AtTakeOver: Philadelphia,Ember Moon defeatedShayna Baszler to retain theNXT Women's Championship. After the match, Baszler attacked Moon.[10] On the February 7 episode ofNXT, Baszler stated that Moon was afraid of her. Later, a tweet from Moon was shown challenging Baszler to a rematch from TakeOver: Philadelphia for the title for the following week.[11][12] The following week, the rematch ended in a disqualification whenKairi Sane attacked Baszler, thus allowing Moon to retain.[13] Two weeks later, after defeating Sane, Baszler called out Moon.[8] On the March 14 episode, after a match that sawDakota Kai defeatLacey Evans, Baszler came down and attacked Kai. Moon came out and then proceeded to brawl with Baszler, which saw Moon stand tall after an Eclipse.[14] The following week after Moon defeatedAliyah, Baszler and Moon argued back and forth.[15]
On the February 21 episode ofNXT, NXT General ManagerWilliam Regal announced that there would be aDusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic and the winner would receive a shot atNXT Tag Team Championship at Takeover: New Orleans.[16] The tournament began on the March 7 episode ofNXT. Over the next couple of weeks,Authors of Pain,Sanity,Street Profits andPete Dunne andRoderick Strong, who replaced the previously announcedTyler Bate andTrent Seven after Bate suffered a knee injury, advanced to the next round by defeatingTM-61,Riddick Moss andTino Sabbatelli, Heavy Machinery andDanny Burch andOney Lorcan, respectively.[9][14] The semifinal saw The Authors of Pain and Dunne and Strong advance to the finals by defeating Street Profits and Sanity, respectively.[17] The finals featured The Authors of Pain face the team of Strong and Dunne, which ended in a no contest whenThe Undisputed ERA interfered. Regal then scheduled a triple threat tag team match for the tag team titles and the Dusty Classic trophy at TakeOver: New Orleans.[18]
On the March 28 episode ofNXT, NXT General Manager William Regal announced the introduction of the newNXT North American Championship. He was interrupted byEC3, who was making his return to WWE after previously appearing under the ring name Derrick Bateman. EC3 was subsequently announced by Regal as one of six wrestlers who would compete in a ladder match at TakeOver: New Orleans to crown the inaugural champion. Later that night, Regal also announced the other five participants asAdam Cole,Velveteen Dream,Lars Sullivan,Killian Dain and the debutingRicochet.[17]
AtTakeOver: Chicago in May 2017,Johnny Gargano andTommaso Ciampa, then teaming together inDIY, were defeated by The Authors of Pain in a ladder match, failing to win back the NXT Tag Team Championship. After the match, Gargano and Ciampa stood on the stage, expressing sadness of defeat. Ciampa then turned on Gargano, attacking him and putting him through two tables.[19] Ciampa explained his attack by revealing that he had sustained an ACL injury and would be out for several months, during which time he suspected that Gargano would try to replace him in their team. At TakeOver: Philadelphia, Gargano was defeated by Andrade "Cien" Almas to retain the NXT Championship. After the match, with Gargano leaving up the ramp, Ciampa made his first appearance since the betrayal by attacking Gargano with a crutch.[10] Gargano subsequently put his NXT career on the line for another title shot against Almas, only to lose after interference from Ciampa, costing Gargano his NXT contract. Over the next few weeks, Gargano developed an obsession for getting back at Ciampa, going as far as ambushing him outside theWWE Performance Center and attempting to break into his house. Anunsanctioned match (due to Gargano no longer being contracted to NXT) between the two was made official on the March 28 episode ofNXT, with the added stipulation of Gargano being restored to NXT if he won.[17]
| Role: | Name: |
|---|---|
| English commentators | Mauro Ranallo |
| Nigel McGuinness | |
| Percy Watson | |
| Spanish commentators | Carlos Cabrera |
| Marcelo Rodríguez | |
| Ring announcer | Mike Rome |
| Referees | Tom Castor |
| Drake Wuertz | |
| Eddie Orengo | |
| Darryl Sharma | |
| Pre-show panel | Charly Caruso |
| Sam Roberts | |
| Pat McAfee |
The event opened with a musical performance fromCane Hill. The first match on the card was aladder match for theNXT North American Championship involvingEC3,Ricochet,Adam Cole,Velveteen Dream,Lars Sullivan andKillian Dain. In the end, Ricochet attempted to retrieve the title but Cole pushed the ladder, causing Ricochet to fall. Cole retrieved the title to win the match.[3]
Next,Ember Moon defended theNXT Women's Championship againstShayna Baszler. Moon went for the"Eclipse", but Baszler countered and applied the"Kirifuda Clutch" on Moon, who passed out. As a result, Baszler won the title by technical submission.[3]
After that, theDusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic tournament finals took place withThe Undisputed Era (Adam Cole andKyle O'Reilly) defending theNXT Tag Team Championship against TheAuthors of Pain (Akam andRezar) andRoderick Strong andWWE United Kingdom ChampionPete Dunne. Dunne performed the"Bitter End" on O’Reilly, but Strong attacked Dunne, voiding the pinfall at a two count. Strong performed"End of Heartache" on Dunne and placed O'Reilly on top of Dunne, thus The Undisputed Era retained the titles and won the tournament in the process.[3] After the match, Strong put on Cole's Undisputed Era armband, turningheel and joining and celebrating with the group.
In the penultimate match,Andrade Cien Almas, accompanied byZelina Vega, defended theNXT Championship againstAleister Black. Whilst the referee was distracted, Vega performed ahurricanrana off the ring apron into the steel steps on Black; Almas subsequently scored a near-fall. Black performed the"Black Mass" on Almas, but Vega placed Almas’ foot on the bottom rope, voiding the pinfall at a two count. Almas performed adouble knee smash on Black, who was seated in the corner, for a near-fall. Almas performed another double knee smash on Black, who was seated against the ring post, and attempted anelevatedhammerlock DDT, but Black countered and performed atopé con hilo on the outside. Almas performed a hammerlock DDT on Black for a near-fall. Vega dove off the top rope, though Black ducked, and Almas caught Vega, allowing Black to perform the "Black Mass" on Almas to win the title.[3]
In the main event,Johnny Gargano facedTommaso Ciampa in anunsanctioned match. Ciampa performed asuplex on Gargano off the announce table. Gargano performed apowerbomb on Ciampa off the ring apron onto the exposed concrete. Gargano struck Ciampa with a crutch and performed aslingshot DDT on Ciampa for a near-fall. Gargano applied the"Garga-No-Escape", only for Ciampa torake Gargano's eyes. Ciampa performed a"Project Ciampa" on Gargano for a near-fall. Gargano performed a"Lawn Dart" into an exposed turnbuckle and twosuperkicks on Ciampa, who was kneeling, for a near-fall. Ciampa then performed a "Project Ciampa" from the second rope on Gargano for a near-fall. In the end, Ciampa attempted to strike Gargano with his knee brace, however Gargano countered and applied the "Garga-No-Escape", transitioning into anSTF using the knee brace. Ciampa submitted, thus Gargano won and was reinstated in NXT.[3]
The event received universal acclaim from fans and critics. Gene Guillot ofThe Times-Picayune described the show as "wrestling at its finest", involving "spectacular wrestling and incredible story telling" with "moment after moment of high impact". Guillot wrote that the "show kicked off with one of the best matches in NXT history and finished with another Match of the Year candidate that told one of the great stories in wrestling history".[20] John Moore of Pro Wrestling Dot Net wrote that "each match delivered at a main event level", describing the main event between Gargano and Ciampa as a "perfect end of their year long tale".[3] Matty Paddock ofThe Independent wrote that the event "delivered in breathtaking style", calling it "a classic night of wrestling that will be hard to match".[21]Dave Meltzer of theWrestling Observer Newsletter gave both the ladder match for the NXT North American Championship and the unsanctioned match five stars.[22]
| First Round NXT (March 7, March 14, March 21) | Semifinals NXT (March 28) | Final NXT TakeOver: New Orleans (April 7) | ||||||||||||
| Street Profits (Angelo Dawkins andMontez Ford) | Pin | |||||||||||||
| Heavy Machinery (Otis Dozovic andTucker Knight) | 3:39[14] | |||||||||||||
| The Street Profits | 2:31[29] | |||||||||||||
| The Authors of Pain | Pin | |||||||||||||
| TM-61 (Nick Miller andShane Thorne) | 8:03[9] | |||||||||||||
| TheAuthors of Pain (Akam andRezar) | Pin | |||||||||||||
| The Authors of Pain The Undisputed Era (Adam Cole andKyle O'Reilly)ii | Piniii | |||||||||||||
| Pete Dunne and Roderick Strongiv | 11:38[3] | |||||||||||||
| Riddick Moss andTino Sabbatelli | 3:45[14] | |||||||||||||
| SAnitY (Alexander Wolfe andEric Young) | Pin | |||||||||||||
| SAnitY | 10:23[29] | |||||||||||||
| Pete Dunne and Roderick Strong | Pin | |||||||||||||
| Danny Burch andOney Lorcan | 8:29[15] | |||||||||||||
| Pete Dunne andRoderick Strongi | Pin | |||||||||||||
i^ Dunne and Strong replaced the previously announcedTyler Bate andTrent Seven after Bate suffered a knee injury.
ii^ Undisputed Era was not originally part of this tournament, however they interfered in the original final on the April 4 episode ofNXT, causing a double disqualification.
iii^ This was aWinner Takes Alltriple threat tag team match that was also for theNXT Tag Team Championship, held by The Undisputed Era.
iv^ Strongturned on Dunne during the match, joining The Undisputed Era and helping them win the match.
