4 reasons why NXT TakeOver: New Orleans will be better than WrestleMania 34
The latest NXT tapings cleared up most of the remaining cobwebs ahead of NXT TakeOver: New Orleans. Four matches have been confirmed:
- Aleister Black vs. Andrade "Cien" Almas (c) for the NXT Championship
- Shayna Baszler vs. Ember Moon (c) for the NXT Women's Championship
- Velveteen Dream vs. Adam Cole vs. Lars Sullivan vs. Killian Dain vs. EC3 vs. Ricochet in a ladder match to determine the inaugural NXT North American Champion
- The Authors of Pain vs. Roderick Strong and Pete Dunne vs. The Undisputed Era (c) for the NXT Tag Team Championship
We'll probably see one more match added to the card. The big question is whether or not it will be Johnny Gargano vs. Tommaso Ciampa, who he attacked in the latest round of tapings. That match would be the jewel in the crown, but whatever winds up happening, it's still a monster card.
NXT TakeOver has almost always surpassed the main roster events it precedes. This has been the case with WrestleMania for the past few years. With the exception of the women's match, it looks set to happen again.
#1 The 2-hour format
One of NXT's biggest strengths is its format. The hourly weekly shows and 2-hour TakeOver specials are an ideal length for a wrestling show. NXT uses the limited time it gets as efficiently as possible, stacking tremendous quality into a short space that leaves the viewer wanting more.
In contrast, the main roster content has dragged on and on as the years have gone by and nowhere is this truer than WrestleMania. It's become a 7-hour show and fans are thoroughly spent by the end of it.
NXT TakeOver: New Orleans will have 2 hours worth of high-quality content. WrestleMania will have ~7 with hits and misses. This alone puts it behind the 8 ball in comparison.