10 Best Matches From WWE NXT Takeover History

At NXT Takeover: R Evolution, things were finally looking up for Sami Zayn. After coming up short time and time again, Zayn finally managed to capture the NXT Championship from Neville. Earlier that night, his best friend Kevin Owens made his debut, easily defeating his opponent. After Zayn's victory, the entire locker room came out to hoist him on their shoulders and parade him around the ring.

Amongst the crowd congratulating Zayn, Owens broke through to embrace Zayn. But as Zayn and Owens were walking up the ramp to leave, Owens viciously slammed Zayn headfirst onto the ramp, shocking everyone in attendance. Owens later explained that he was just trying to provide for his family, and the best way he could make money for them was to win the NXT Championship. For obvious reasons, his former best friend Zayn wasn't thrilled with this explanation.

Zayn was eager to put up his NXT Championship for a shot at revenge against Owens. Having competed against each other dozens of times before arriving in NXT, Zayn and Owens put on a tremendous match. In one of the more brutal finishes to a match in the modern era, Kevin Owens powerbombed Zayn over and over until the ref stepped in and stopped the fight, awarding the NXT Championship to Owens. Small touches like allowing the match to end in a TKO instead of a traditional pinfall illustrate NXT's boldness and willingness to try different things in an effort to keep their stories fresh.