Ranking Every Demon Finn Bálor Match In WWE And NXT
2. Vs. Samoa Joe (NXT TakeOver: Dallas)
At NXT TakeOver: London, Finn Bálor barely escaped his battle with Samoa Joe with his title intact. Joe then had to jump through several hoops to earn another opportunity to contend for the NXT Championship, and once he did, it was apparent he'd be walking into this rematch at TakeOver: Dallas even more dangerous than he was before.
What made Bálor's series of matches with Joe in 2015-16 so special was that each of their outings had something different to offer. This one in particular was incredibly physical, fast-paced and just all-around exciting.
Bálor busted Joe open a minute or so into the melee, but that didn't stop Joe from taking the fight to The Demon. If anything, Joe seeing his own blood infuriated him and only added to the thrill of the bout. The referees tried to stop the action to clean Joe up but were thwarted every time, much to the delight of the crowd.
The Demon's babyface fire was in full force here while Joe was back to being the dominant monster he once was. Unlike in London, Joe was protected in defeat, so despite falling short yet again, he remained a threat to the title.
It was quite the perfect way to kick off WrestleMania 32 weekend (spoiler: nothing on that 'Mania card came close to topping this).