Recap and Review of NXT Takeover: In Your House 2021
For the second year in a row, NXT gave us a blast in the form of In Your House. Going into this Takeover, it felt different with how it was built up and presented. I feel like their is a major shift coming to NXT and WWE as a whole, but before that happens, here is what went down at Takeover In Your House.
-Bronson Reed and MSK defeated Legado Del Fanstama to retain the North American
-Xia Li defeated Mercedes Martininez
-LA Knight defeated Cameron Grimes in a Ladder Match to become the new Million Dollar Champion
-Raquel Gonzales defeated Ember Moon to retain the NXT Women’s Championship
-Karrion Kross defeated Kyle O’Reilly, Adam Cole, Pete Dunne and Johnny Gargano to retain the NXT Championship
The opening match of the night was the Six Mag Winner Take All Tag Team Match MSK and Bronson Reed put their titles on the line against all three members of Legado Del Fanstama. I love that they put Bronson with MSK, because as great as their style is, they are not heavy hitters. The clash of styles is what made this match great. Bronson Reed reminds me a lot of Bam Bam Bigelow in the way he moves and carries himself in the ring. Even though, Legado came up short tonight, I have a feeling they have a bright future ahead. Santos Escobar is a superstar in the making.
Another clash of styles and personalities featured Xia Li and Mercedes Martinez. Li has evolved since her first appearance in the Mae Young Classic. She has gotten more aggressive since turning to the dark side. Like any new character, you need some credible wins against credible opponents. There is no one more credible than Mercedes Martinez. She is a veteran of women’s wrestling and helped paved away for a lot of the women in pro wrestling today. I have a strong feeling big things are in store for Xia Li, but I would really love to see Martinez win a Women’s Championship in WWE before her career is over.
The theme of the night really seemed to be about clash of personalities and styles. If there were ever two polar opposites it would be Cameron Grimes LA Knight. This match had a lot on the line because they were competing in a Ladder Match for the prestigious Million Dollar Championship, which has been brought back by Ted Dibiase. The onscreen feud between Grimes and Dibiase has been a lot of fun to watch on television. This match was a slugfest and just flat out brutal. There were some moments in this match that were a little scary with some of the risks they took, but when you’re chasing after something that historic it’s absolutely worth it. I’m not at all surprised that LA Knight is the new Million Dollar Champion. His character, his style and the way he carries himself on the microphone is perfect for the Million Dollar Championship. I have a feeling that this feud with Grimes is far from over and hopefully the Million Dollar Championship is defended regularly on NXT programming.
In the history of NXT, there have only been women to hold the NXT Women’s Champion on two separate occasions. Shayna Baszler and Charlotte Flair have been the only two to do. Tonight, Ember Moon came in looking to be the third women to hold the championship twice. Raquel Gonzales is another woman who has made strides over the last year. She has also had the help of her partner and friend Dakota Kai during her rise. Kai made her presence felt in the match, but was finally taken out of the equation by Shotzi Blackheart. It wouldn’t surprise me if Blackheart is the next challenger for Gonzales given the events that went down tonight.
Tonight, featured one of the most insane NXT Championship matches that I can ever remember. Karrion Kross put the championship one the line in a Fatal Five Way against Adam Cole, Kyle O’Reilly, Johnny Gargano and Pete Dunne. This match was insane all and all five men left it in the ring. I loved the psychology of this match because everyone was trying to take out Kross, while still trying to fight each other in order to win the championship. In the end, Karrion Kross was able to withstand the challenge of all four competitors to retain the NXT Championship. With Kross fending off the top four challengers in NXT, I am really curious to see who steps up to the plate as a contender. I also wonder where those four challengers go next? There a lot of questions left unanswered, but the biggest question of them all, is what is the future of NXT after General Manager William Regal hinted that it might be time for a change.
Takeover In Your House was a solid pay-per-view for NXT. My rating for the show is an 8 out of 10. All the matches were solid as they always are, but I felt something was missing. There were no epic returns or debuts. None of the championships changed hands. It felt like something was off. Regardless of that, I still love and support NXT. It’s a great show and a great brand, but I have a feeling they are in the middle of another transition period. Stay tuned because in a few short weeks, NXT will be bringing back the Great American Bash. Look for a solid show on July 6th.
