Ranking Every 2-Out-Of-3 Falls Match In NXT Ever
Where does American Alpha vs. The Revival rank among these other 2-out-of-3 Falls classics?
WWE NXT is very much like an old-school territory in the sense that they don't do hardcore matches every week to attract attention or absuse stipulations. When a gimmick match is held, you know it's necessary and, more often than not, they are used to blow off ruthless rivalries.
Only a handful of gimmick matches have ever occurred in NXT, including Ladder and No Disqualification matches, but perhaps the most prominent (as well as the most exciting) stip in NXT is the 2-out-of-3 Falls match.
Fans recently witnessed the culmination of the classic series of matches between The Revival and American Alpha over the NXT Tag Team Championship. The two teams split victories on TakeOver specials this year, and thus a third match was in order. They clashed in an outstanding 2-out-of-3 Falls match on the July 6 episode, but it was far from the first time that stipulation had been implemented in NXT.
From this critically-acclaimed contest to Adrian Neville vs. Corey Graves, 2-out-of-3 Falls matches have long been a part of the promotion's illustrious history, but can the third and final instalment in the Revival vs. Alpha trilogy lay claim to being the best of them all?
6. Sami Zayn Vs. Leo Kruger: January 1, 2014
After falling short of beating Bo Dallas for the NXT Championship in November 2013, Sami Zayn had to start working his way back up the card and was forced to face several obstacles en route to challenging for the championship again, including Leo Kruger.
Best described as a deranged mercenary, Kruger targeted Zayn in the final few weeks of the year and looked to make an example out of the promotion's most beloved babyface.
By this point, however, the Kruger character was on its last legs. As excellent of an in-ring competitor as he was, the gimmick just wasn't getting over the way officials hoped, so this program marked the end of Leo Kruger on NXT TV. Thus, it was only fitting to blow off the feud in a 2-out-of-3 Falls match on the premier NXT episode of 2014.
Zayn had already competed in a 2-out-of-3 Falls match months earlier against Cesaro, so he had the experience advantage over his adversary. It isn't fair to compare the contests because Kruger is obviously no Cesaro, but he and Zayn still managed to produce a solid matchup with the future NXT Champion putting Kruger away in two straight falls.
As noted, the crazed Kruger was set to be repackaged into Adam Rose not long after, so his decisive loss to Zayn came as no surprise.