7 Ups & 3 Downs From Last Night's NXT (23 Jan)

2. A Takeover Makeover

Not having an NXT TakeOver show at the Royal Rumble is a problem. However, it's nowhere near as bad of a problem if we're just going to get TakeOver quality matches on TV instead.

Next week will give us the final of the Dusty Cup and Dakota Kai vs Tegan Nox, but this week's main event was something that would have felt right at home on any single "developmental" showcase you'd care to mention. It's easily amongst the best ever matches to be contested over the North American Championship, and it might well be (yet another) career highlight for Kieth Lee.

Getting given around 20 minutes to close out a TV episode is a daunting prospect, especially with management constantly having one eye on the ratings, but Strong and Lee paced it to perfection. A dominant start for the challenger, manipulation of the ankle injury to level the playing field, a furious final stretch with false finishes and genuine desperation from the champion's pals at ringside, this had it all.

Lee's reputation for innovative spots (read; just launching his opponent through the air) was on full display here, as was Undisputed Era's gift for match manipulation that randomly deserted them at the beginning of the show. It feels like an incredibly basic review but, honestly, watch this match. While I standby the statement that NXT is one-note, when they can play it this well it probably doesn't matter.