NXT TakeOver (May 2014)

Original Airdate: May 29, 2014

From Winter Park, Florida; Your Hosts are Tom Phillips, Byron Saxton and William Regal

Opening Match: Adam Rose v Camacho: Rose plays some '96 Goldust-like mind games with Camacho, and gets smacked down. Double-underhook suplex gets Camacho two, and he goes to a cobra clutch, but Rose escapes. He actually tries hulking up, but Camacho puts him right back down with a big boot for two, then slaps on another cobra clutch. Why is Camacho dressed like he's taking casual Friday's to the extreme? He hits a legdrop for two, but a corner charge misses, and Rose starts making a comeback. Adam with a rotating spinebuster and a bronco buster, and the Party Foul finishes at 5:07. Nothing special, but watchable. *

NXT Tag Team Title Match: The Ascension v Kalisto and El Local: The champs attack at the bell, but run into stereo headscissor takedowns to send them to the outside. The challengers try stereo topes, but run into stereo forearms as they take the plunge. Nice timing there, which made for a great visual. The dust immediately settles on Ascension cutting the ring in half on Kalisto, but he manages to fight Viktor off in the corner, and get the tag off to Local. Local blitzes him, but Konnor breaks up a springboard moonsault, and Roseanne Barr the door, we've got a kettle on! The challengers try holding them off, but the Fall of Man finishes Local at 6:16. Another watchable undercard match. * ½

#1 Contender's Match: Sami Zayn v Tyler Breeze: Zayn dominates on the mat to start, and throws a leg lariat to take the pep out of Tyler's step. Sami goes up, but Breeze shoves him all the way down to the floor, and leaves him to die out there. Sami beats it in, but Tyler is waiting with a beating in the corner, and a kneedrop gets two. Bulldog into the turnbuckles gets two, and a facebuster is worth two. Breeze grounds him in a front-facelock, but Zayn powers to a vertical base, and escapes. He manages to dump Tyler to the outside off a charge, and he goes after him with a sweet slingshot moonsault press. Back in, Zayn hits a well executed flying bodypress for two, and the blue thunder bomb gets two. He goes up, so Tyler tries shoving him off again, but this time Zayn avoids it - only to run into a superkick and a jumping DDT as he tries regrouping! That combo only gets two, so Breeze hits him with a sitout powerbomb, but Zayn kicks out at two. Breeze gets frustrated, allowing Sami to sucker him into the exploder suplex into the buckles, but Zayn is so battered he can't capitalize. Both guys take the count, and the resulting slugfest is won by Zayn, but Breeze schoolboys him for two. Reversal sequence ends in Tyler superkicking him for a close two, as the crowd starts losing it after those two great sequences. They slug it out again, and another reversal sequence ends in Sami delivering one of the most insane modified powerbombs I've ever seen. So crazy that I don't even have a name for it. It truly has to be seen to be properly appreciated. Helluva Kick, but Breeze bails to the outside - which only serves to piss Zayn off, and he dives after him with a somersault plancha. Right back in for the Helluva Kick, but a dazed Breeze manages to duck, and the Beauty Shot finishes at 15:55. Great match here, with hard work from both guys throughout! ****

NXT Women's Title Match: Natalya v Charlotte: This is for the vacant title, with each girl having their legendary family member (Bret Hart and Ric Flair, respectively) in their corners. Feeling out process to start, until Nattie wins a criss cross with a victory cradle for two, then takes her down in a bodyscissors. Charlotte tries escaping, so Nattie shifts into a cross-armbreaker, but Charlotte's in the ropes. That leads to them trading slaps, and Nattie schoolgirls her for two. German suplex is blocked, so Nattie goes to a sleeper, but Charlotte escapes via a backpack stunner for two. She grounds Natalya with a headscissors, and rolls her into a near fall with it. Onto an abdominal stretch, but Natalya reverses, then shifts into a backslide for one. Charlotte responds by shining her wizard for two, but Nattie fires back with a double-underhook suplex. Snapmare sets up a seated dropkick for two, and Charlotte bumps to the outside with the Flair flip. Charlotte gets the best of an encounter out there, however, and brings Natalya back in for two. Flying moonsault, but Nattie dodges, and capitalizes with the discus clothesline for two. Sharpshooter, but Charlotte manages to counter into the figure four! Nattie reverses, but Charlotte rolls it back over, so Nattie rolls again into the ropes - only for Charlotte to purposely drop off the apron while still applying the hold! Wild, and a nice nod to Bret's own ring post figure four spot. Charlotte keeps after the knee on the outside, then back in she teases another figure four, but decides on applying the sharpshooter instead! Nattie fights, and is almost able to reverse, but Charlotte blocks, and snaps off the Natural Selection at 16:45. The look of pure exuberance on Charlotte's face as she hits the finisher, knowing she's got it, is a thing of beauty. Man, you've gotta wonder why their pay per view matches earlier this year sucked, because clearly they have chemistry. According to Charlotte, this was actually the first time her dad had ever seen her wrestle (ever), which is pretty astounding, if true. *** ½

Main Event: NXT Title Match: Adrian Neville v Tyson Kidd: Big stare down to start, and into a feeling out process, with Kidd dominating him on the mat in the early going. Neville hangs with him, and a nice criss cross sees both guys go to a stalemate after throwing simultaneous dropkicks. Kidd strings him up in a tree of woe for a cross corner dropkick, then pulls him down for a backelbow for two. He grounds the champion in a chinlock, as some smartass in the crowd holds up a 'rest hold' sign. Heh. Neville escapes, so Kidd hits a stungun to knock him to the outside - Tyson following with a somersault tope. Back in, it gets two, and a criss cross results in both men trying for bodypresses - and both going down. Ouch! Neville gets the best of it, and starts unloading with a kick combo, setting up his own tree of woe spot. Neville with a springboard forearm for two, and a dropkick puts Kidd on the floor - only for Tyson to cutoff a tope with a kick to the head for two! Kidd with a sunsetbomb off the top, but Neville back flips onto his feet to block, and delivers a pop-up sitout powerbomb for two! More kicks by the champion, but a springboard is beautifully countered with a Russian legsweep off the middle rope for two! The timing there was just incredible. Kidd with a flying splash, but Neville lifts the knees to block, and cradles him for two. Kidd keeps coming with an enzuigiri, but a vertical suplex is reversed - both men crashing over the top rope with it! They both manage to beat the count in simultaneously, and Kidd goes for the kill with the Sharpshooter, but Neville keeps blocking, so Kidd shifts down into the dungeon-lock! He gets it applied, but the champ makes the ropes, so Kidd punishes him with a somersault flying legdrop for two. Kidd goes up again to try and finish this damn thing, but this time Neville brings him down with a rana, the quickly follows up with the Red Arrow to retain at 20:54. Good effort here, with a nice, mirrored quality to it. *** ¼  

BUExperience: This is pretty much exactly what I want out of a wrestling pay per view. Lean, strong action, little filler. Take a lesson, main roster

****