10 Ways WWE Rebuilt NXT In 2017

6. Mixing Up The Mains

Johnny Gargano Tommaso Ciampa
WWE.com

In keeping with the preservation of TakeOver as the company's most protected enterprise, card formats this year were experimented with in order to place greater importance on the matches with the most emotional heft. Such logic is long lost on a main roster allergic to the tiniest of changes, but every shift elevated the beneficiaries without remotely burying the allegedly relegated parties.

TakeOver: Chicago was one of the year's most underrated cards almost entirely because of this. Hideo Itami was something of a lost cause by May, but had value enough to enter a short programme with Bobby Roode for the NXT Title. Still a brand where talent makes titles rather than the other way around, their match was the semi-main to the rip-snorting blowoff ladder match between the Authors Of Pain and #DIY that came in-built with a devastating post-match twist.

Asuka and Ember Moon's semi-main spot at TakeOver: Brooklyn 3 mirrored the placement afforded to Sasha Banks/Bayley and Bayley/Asuka in 2015 and 2016 respectively, and lived up to the lofty standards set by both. And TakeOver: WarGames couldn't not be headlined by its eponymous stipulation, but the layout keenly favoured Andrade 'Cien' Almas' low key yet memorable heel title win.

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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