10 Best Rivalries In NXT History

4. Sami Zayn Vs Kevin Owens

NXT TakeOver: R Evolution remains one of the most pivotal nights in NXT's history.

Firstly, it saw the NXT debut of Kevin Owens, defeating CJ Parker as a babyface. Secondly, it saw Sami Zayn defeat Adrian Neville to become NXT Champion, after months of trying.

Owens came out to congratulate his legitimate best friend on his win and the show was seemingly going to end with both Owens and Zayn walking up the ramp together in victory. However, that was all thrown out the window when Owens brutally attacked Zayn, giving him a vicious powerbomb onto the ring apron.

Best friends in life usually make great enemies in wrestling and Zayn and Owens were no exception. They brought an element of realism to their feud unseen in WWE for years and things were only made more intense at TakeOver: Rival. Owens faced Zayn for his NXT Championship and beat Sami down so badly that the match had to be ended by referee stoppable. Owens was the new champ and Sami was left lying in a heap.

Zayn then lost his rematch to Owens at TakeOver: Unstoppable, before taking seven months out to deal with an injury. In this time, Owens ascended to the main roster, ending their rivalry just five months after it began.

Whilst the two have crossed paths on the main roster since - either as enemies or friends - WWE have failed to recapture the pure intensity of this rivalry. If the story had been allowed to run a longer course, then perhaps we'd be looking at the number one entry in this list.