Velveteen Dream stole the show at Takeover: WarGames II
No matter how many times he loses, The Velveteen Dream never fails to impress his fans. Looking absolutely amazing in the process, he seems to capture the hearts of wrestling fans over and over again every time he steps into the ring. For some people, the burdens of this business come naturally. That couldn't be any more true for Dream, and fans couldn't possibly be happier about it.
Though Dream is now 0-2 at the newly revived WarGames PPV, it can be argued that he outdid his breakout performance last year against Aleister Black. He has been able to do something that only happens with wrestlers that have "It". His ability to captivate an audience and keep them invested through the WHOLE match is second to none in NXT.
Taking absolutely nothing away from Ciampa, something that got the crowd invested early on was knocking Dream out with a swift running knee. If that didn't get you invested, nothing would've. Constantly hitting each other with what seemed like their best shots, this match was truly something to see.
Even though he was unsuccessful in capturing the NXT Championship, he constantly showed the heart of a warrior. Putting his skills on display is something that Dream has absolutely no problem doing. Showing tribute to Hall of Famer Hulk Hogan, and constantly dripping in finesse was perfect for his character. If anyone else tried to do it today, it wouldn't work.
What ultimately spelt the end for him though, was being quite a bit too anxious. Hitting a Purple Rainmaker that didn't get him the win, he immediately goes back to the top rope. Missing this time on the outside of the ring, this would be all that Dream had. Ciampa eventually hits his draping DDT on the connected part of the two rings and secured the victory.
This spectacular showing of both men's skills, we can only hope that both men will be huge success stories on the main roster. For Velveteen Dream, a future NXT Championship win, of course, is in the back of his mind. It just wasn't meant to be at NXT Takeover: WarGames II. He's one of the few who gets better with each loss.
He had nothing to be ashamed of because he looked absolutely amazing here. Will he ever lose his touch? That's quite the stretch as the "'Velveteen" chants get louder and louder at each Takeover. The biggest and best matches of his career have been losses and we can only hope that he can secure a victory where it matters somewhere down the line.
Either way, he is the epitome of "pure entertainment", and at 23, this is just the beginning for him.