Major Title Change At WWE NXT TakeOver XXX

Gold changed hands on NXT's latest TakeOver special.

by Andy H Murray
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WWE

Karrion Kross is your new NXT Champion.

The relative black-and-gold newcomer felled former champion Keith Lee in the main event of tonight's TakeOver XXX special, putting 'The Limitless One' away with an avalanche Saito suplex. Lee had already kicked out of the regular version of the move, having traded bombs with Kross in a relatively competitive big boy battle before he was eventually put away, capping one of the most successful monster pushes in NXT history.

Kross has hit WWE like a whirlwind, with his run living up to pre-signing reports that he was headed straight to the top after productive discussions with Triple H. WWE has gone out of its way to make him look like an unstoppable monolith, and while squashing Tommaso Ciampa at the last TakeOver was effective, winning the NXT Championship in just his ninth match with the brand is something else entirely. The monster has risen.

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Lee's reign ended after 52 days. He mounted just one successful title defence against Dominik Dijakovic in July, and will ultimately go down as a transitional champion between Adam Cole and Kross. A move to Raw or SmackDown could now be in his future.

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Andy has been with WhatCulture for six years and is currently WhatCulture's Senior Wrestling Reporter. A writer, presenter, and editor with 10+ years of experience in online media, he has been a sponge for all wrestling knowledge since playing an old Royal Rumble 1992 VHS to ruin in his childhood. Having previously worked for Bleacher Report, Andy specialises in short and long-form writing, video presenting, voiceover acting, and editing, all characterised by expert wrestling knowledge and commentary. Andy is as much a fan of 1985 Jim Crockett Promotions as he is present-day AEW and WWE - just don't make him choose between the two.