NXT TakeOver: In Your House
June 7, 2020
Full Sail University
Winter Park, Florida

Watch: WWE Network

Meet our previewers

Steve Case: For as bland/stale as NXT TV has been (FIGHT PIT notwithstanding), this show looks to be pretty solid match wise on paper. Can this show continue the legacy of Takeover being the surest thing in wrestling? At the very least, the In Your House gimmick should provide some fun with the classic house set and some old school graphics. GIVE US TODD PETTINGILL. Follow Steve @Coachcase44 or @midcard_matinee if you’re into movies starring pro wrestlers!

Rich Kraetsch: Never bet against a TakeOver… no matter what we may think going in, TakeOvers almost always deliver. Oh and hey how cool is it the In Your House branding has made a return? What’s that? Yes, I do have a series on the Voices of Wrestling Flagship Patreon where I’ve been going through all of the previous In Your Houses (up to 11 as of this writing). You can listen to all episodes for only $5 now at voicesofwrestling.com/patreon.

Mia Yim, Shotzi Blackheart and Tegan Nox vs. Candice LeRae, Dakota Kai and Raquel Gonzalez

Steve: For a thrown together match at the last minute, this actually has some good build. Why it isn’t Mia/Candice and a regular tag match just reminds you this is 2020 NXT and not 2017. Still, the pull apart on NXT TV this week was solid and Nox/Kai alone should carry this match. Taking nothing away from the others in the match, because they are all solid (even Gonzalez as a monster), but almost every time Nox and Kai touch it’s been great. Whoever wins, this likely won’t be the last we see of two of these competitors. Prediction: Mia Yim, Shotzi Blackheart and Tegan Nox

Rich: Legit one of the better built and intriguing matches on this entire show was seemingly thrown together at the last minute. Despite that, we have a six-woman tag match with multiple twists and turns, stories are woven into one another, deception, jealousy, revenge and more. I’m actually pretty excited to see it. Nox and Kai have had a great feud and the inclusion of Raquel Gonzalez has been perfect. Yim and LaRae’s feud is interesting even if I’m not following invested in LaRae’s heel turn and Shotzi has been shockingly competent thus far on NXT. I don’t know, I’m really looking forward to this match even if I can’t definitively tell you which team will win. Prediction: Candice LeRae, Dakota Kai and Raquel Gonzalez

NXT North American Championship
Keith Lee © vs. Johnny Gargano

Steve: I’m pretty into Gargano as the arrogant, delusional, chicken shit heel. He can now lean into the dorky and overdramatic aspects of his character. That said, after the first Gargano family dinner segment, which I thought was a really nice change of pace, the rest have been dropping in quality. Enter Keith Lee and Mia Yim, the Yimitless ones. Yeesh. Keith Lee needs to be elevated. He was liquid fire hot after Survivor Series, and they did nothing. He got some of that fire back after the rumble, and they gave him a meaningless mid-card title run. I hope this is where he finally begins his ascension, which means Gargano beats him and he either moves to the main roster (where he should have been since January) or into an NXT title feud. As long as the wife/girlfriend involvement is kept to a minimum, this should be a banger.  Prediction: Johnny Gargano

Rich: Where the opener has me surprisingly hyped this match is the polar opposite. Despite featuring two tremendous pro wrestlers in Keith Lee and Johnny Gargano, I’m just not feeling it. The current Gargano heel character isn’t landing with me the same way Johnny did all those years ago in DGUSA and Keith Lee has been stagnant since Survivor Series. I have no doubt these two have the ability and the desire to have a tremendous, potential Match of the Show but I can’t lie and pretend that I’m going to care all that much. Prediction: Johnny Gargano

Finn Balor vs. Damian Priest

Steve: This sure is a match that is happening isn’t it? Priest was Balor’s mystery attacker about a month ago……and that’s about it. I’ve enjoyed Priest in NXT and I think he still has quite a bit of potential. Finn had a tremendous match with Johnny Gargano at the last Takeover which really showed his vicious side. He was on a roll with that character, but after the attack, he’s been largely absent. The match should be solid, and Priest will likely look good, but Finn should stay at or near the top of NXT. Priest’s time will come, but not yet. Prediction: Finn Balor

Rich: The first of eight matches on this show to be built up by a mystery assailant attacking someone. In this case, the ARCHER OF INFAMY Priest who attacked Finn Balor some weeks back on NXT television. Hey, that’s an okay jumping off point for a feud. No problem there. The problem is Finn, uh, hasn’t really been back since then. I don’t know why we’re supposed to care about this match, why we’re supposed to be excited or why it’s happening with so little build but chances are it’s pretty good. Prediction: Finn Balor

NXT Women’s Championship
Charlotte Flair © vs. Rhea Ripley vs. Io Shirai

Steve: This has a chance to be the match of the night. Once you get over the fact that Charlotte is even in NXT, you remember she’s one of, if not the best women’s wrestlers in the world. Io Shirai has been great since coming to NXT and Rhea is a superstar in the making. The video packages on NXT TV this week were tremendous in showing each of these three are VERY different, but all of them have legitimate reasons and desires to be on top. Rhea and Charlotte had the match of Wrestlemania and arguably one of the best no-fan matches of this short period. Rhea and Io have been contenders and crossing paths on the way to the top. Io’s dream opponent is Charlotte and she got screwed out of her shot a few weeks ago. They can go a lot of different ways here. With the women’s division as loaded as it is, and Charlotte has made ZERO difference in the ratings, I think Io pins Charlotte and sends her back to the main roster for good, thus setting up a great feud with Rhea through the summer. I don’t see Rhea getting her win back of Charlotte until a future Wrestlemania down the line. Prediction: Io Shirai

Rich: I cannot wait for this match. Three of the most talented women in WWE. A well-built match where each wrestler has a very clear motivation. What more can you ask for? Io Shirai is ready to prove after years that she’s ready to become NXT Women’s Champion. Rhea Ripley is looking to put the first half of 2020 behind her and return to the top of the division. Charlotte is trying to prove that SHE is the greatest of all time and the one that built the NXT Women’s Division. That’s it. Super simple but super effective, most great wrestling fits into that description. As far as who comes out on top, it’s a tough call. Charlotte has no need to retain here and really shouldn’t given her ratings patterns. She was brought to NXT to help them gain ratings over AEW and that just has not happened. You now risk overexposing her if she’s not out of the brand soon so I think this is her swan song (for now at least). Rhea is still re-building after her WrestleMania loss, winning the title back seems… I don’t know, premature? I think there’s a lot more rehab that can be done to get Ripley back to where she was. That leaves us with Io Shirai. Without any obvious move to the main roster, Shirai needs this win more than Ripley. You have years to tell Ripley’s story before she’s scooped up and brought to the main roster. What would become of Shirai if she doesn’t win here? This has been one of many opportunities she’s had and it feels like a shit or get off the pot moment for Io to finally take her spot among the top of the NXT Women’s division. Prediction: Io Shirai

Tommaso Ciampa vs. Karrion Kross

Steve: I think I may be one of the few people that doesn’t hate Ciampa. In fact, I typically enjoy his work. As long as he and Gargano are as far away from each other for as long as possible, I’m set. I’ve always liked Cross’s character and have enjoyed what little he’s done in NXT so far. I think he and Scarlett will be RAW or Smackdown bound before they have to worry about pigeonholing him into a title feud. I expect a short, high impact brawl where the old psycho and the new one crash into each other until the new psycho is too much. Prediction: Karrion Kross

Rich: While I have next to no interest in either man at this time, I’m really excited about this match. Knowing the style these two like to employ and knowing the limitations of a Karrion Kross I’m expecting a high-impact brawl that is a nice and tight 5-10 minutes. I know it’s TakeOver. I know it’s Ciampa. Still, in building Kross you need to show how dominant he is, even against a former NXT champion so I want to see him get the win in fairly dominant fashion. Prediction: Karrion Kross

Last Chance Match – NXT Championship
Adam Cole © vs. Velveteen Dream

Steve: This may be the most intrigued, yet least excited I’ve ever been for a Takeover main event. If this were the late 2018-early 2019 Dream I’d be much more excited. But he has not been close to good for a long time, even before the lack of crowds were exposing him further. Adam Cole has been great in NXT, and the Backlot Brawl should provide some ample editing, but I just don’t see this match being any more than serviceable. That’s not the intrigue though. The intrigue is who wins. I am predicting Cole, because I think it’s the smart logical thing to do. He’s really the only viable main event champion heel on the roster right now. Plus, do you really want Dream on top with everything that entails? But this is not golden-era NXT. Do they make a switch to create some buzz? Do they move Adam Cole and the Undisputed Era to RAW or Smackdown to really free things up? Do they see the current climate and try to take advantage of it? If Dream does win, who are his challengers? Does he turn heel soon after? I can see any of the above happening. You used to be able to see what directions they were going with stories in NXT. Now it’s just the third main roster brand where nothing really matters. Like I said, I’m sticking with Cole, but I’m very intrigued. Prediction: Adam Cole

Rich: I, like many others, wish the culmination of the Velveteen Dream story had happened two years ago. Now, he feels out of place, unfamiliar and more than anything, mundane without fans in the audience. I may even support a Dream title win today if we had fans but without them, he’s doomed to have a very Drew McIntyre-esque wet fart title win and disappointing reign. Dream simply does not work without a crowd to play off him. Some may see that as a criticism but it’s really a good problem to have. What Dream lacks in polished in-ring, he makes up for all-time great charisma. You can’t teach what Dream has and it’s connected with audiences for years on NXT. Right now though (and for the semi immediate future) there will be no audience to connect with leaving his inexperience and lack of bell-to-bell skills exposed. If the world was in a different place, I’d try to make a better case for Dream winning here but I just can’t. Adam Cole retains and kicks off the second year of his NXT Championship reign. Prediction: Adam Cole