10 Things You Learn Binge Watching Every WWE NXT TakeOver

9. GOAT Follows GOAT Follows GOAT Follows GOAT Follows GOAT Follows GOAT Follows GOAT Follows GOAT

Sami Zayn
WWE.com

Did Triple H actually believe the rhetoric he used to spout about a revolution in women's wrestling happening under his purview? Regardless of the corporate speak chucked around on the main roster, he had about six years of showing rather than telling on the TakeOver stage.

There are fairly clear eras and dividing lines over the years, but the one constant is a sense of legitimately impressive change and growth with every step forward.

When Charlotte Flair and Natalya fought over the vacant Women's Championship at the first ever NXT TakeOver and it was the best WWE-branded women's match ever. Flair's defences against Bayley and Sasha Banks at TakeOver: Fatal 4-Way and TakeOver: R Evolution respectively and the Horsewomen at Four-Way at TakeOver: Rival continued the trend. Banks and Becky Lynch made each other at TakeOver: Unstoppable, and the Bayley/Banks matches to follow get their own entries elsewhere in this list.

Asuka picked up the mantle and dominated following her win over 'The Hugger' at TakeOver: Dallas in 2016, and when she departed for the main roster in 2017, the company had successfully prepped Shayna Baszler to re-do the entire thing but as a heel. The Women's Championship match routinely became a TakeOver highlight and/or show-stealer, with title changes typically being some of the hottest moments in the brand's history.

Emma and Saraya returning to mainstream roles in WWE and AEW respectively around the same time in late-2022 brought about conversations about them kicking all of this off with their awesome NXT Arrival showdown early-2014. Considering the snowball effect of that specific encounter...where's the lie?

Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett