NXT Minus 6: The End of an Era, Part I

The last three years of NXT have been the most fun I’ve had watching wrestling since the Attitude Era. If this week’s show is a predictor, that era is over. Now is a good time to look back and remember when NXT was the Black & Gold Standard of professional wrestling. Here is the best of the best.

6. The Most NXT Match: Samy Zayn versus Cesaro, Takeover Arrival      This is the match that best encapsulates everything great about NXT. The first match of the first Takeover set the bar for every other Takeover to follow. Typically the opening match warms up the crowd without stealing the show. Not in NXT. Start with the match of the night and force everyone else to work their ass off to top it. Tell a simple wrestling story. Above all else, good things happen when you let wrestlers wrestle. 

5. Best Announcer: Mauro Ranallo      At times, the Voice of NXT was over the top and his references were forced. Despite all of that, his energy was infectious and his excitement was real. He sprinted to the ring, hungry to get to work. Ranallo always felt like a fan first, announcer second. When he screamed Mama Mia, you know we had just seen something special. Speaking of…

4. Best Mama Mia: Ricochet’s Flip      I started the Mama Mia year end award to celebrate the single craziest move of the year, the one moment I could watch over and over and mark out every single time. Ricochet’s flip was the first winner and the move that inspired the award. It is still one of the most amazing moves I have ever seen in a wrestling ring. Mind blown. Every…Single…Time.

3. Most Improved Wrestler: Swerve Scott      Scott’s debut in the original Breakout Stars Tournament was underwhelming. I called him a boring, generic 205 Live guy. Lucky for us, he improved every single week, giving us memorable feuds with Santos Escobar, Tony Nese and Leon Ruff. Eventually he transformed into the maniacal head of Hit Row, and one of the must-see stars of NXT. I never saw this coming, but I’m glad I got to watch it happen. 

2. Best Tag Team: Undisputed Era      No matter what the combination was, Roderick Strong, Adam Cole, Kyle O’Reilly and Bobby Fish were the standard bearers of tag team wrestling in a place where tag team wrestling meant something. They were synonymous with War Games. Their sustained and enduring level of excellence is almost unmatched by anyone in NXT history, male, female or tag team.      

1. Lifetime Achievement Award: HHH      You can’t talk about NXT without mentioning the man who brought it to life. By creating NXT, HHH created opportunities for all independent wrestlers. Without NXT, there probably would be no Adam Cole, Johnny Gargano, Tommaso Ciampa, Samy Zayn, Neville, Finn Balor, the list goes on. He allowed indie darlings to make the moments and money previously unavailable to them in America. He made women’s wrestling important. He made tag team wresting important. NXT proved that there is a bigger market for wrestling, not sports entertainment. Without NXT, there would be no AEW. For that, HHH is all elite. That’s right. I said it.