NXT is going old school on Sunday with TakeOver: In Your House. There are rumors the card will be presented with the old school In Your House graphics and sounds. Will the action be full of instant classics as well? The card for TakeOver: In Your House has six quality matches, but who will win? Here are the predictions of our staff for NXT TakeOver: In Your House
Mia Yim, Shotzi Blackheart, & Tegan Nox vs Dakota Kai, Candice LeRae, & Raquel Gonzalez
Billy MacDonald, FPC Contributor: Either team can win here, I’m going with the heels.
Pick: Team Candice
Evan Gomes, FPC Wrestling Editor: I feel like the team with more momentum is Team Candice. She has particularly been given a spark after turning heel with Johnny Gargano. In a pick that influences one of my future picks, I think the heels take it here.
Pick: Team Candice
Javier Melo, FPC Contributor: I think the heels need a win here more than the babyfaces. Candice is still fresh in her heel run and Kai and Gonzalez need to continue building heat. Interested to see if Shotzi does anything crazy. She has a ton of upside.
Pick: Team Candice
Kaden Hanafi, FPC Contributor: Candice’s team wins. I think Candice will be the next challenger for the NXT women’s championship so she needs to win this match. I don’t really care much about this and not sure why it’s not on regular NXT tv and should’ve been replaced by the Cruiserweight tournament.
Pick: Team Candice
Finn Balor vs Damien Priest
Billy: Priest has serious potential to be the top heel in NXT one day and a win against one of NXT’s best, and a former Universal Champion would be huge for The Archer of Infamy. This may not be a one-off match and this feud could continue down the road. I expect Balor to win but Priest to win it down the line.
Pick: Finn Balor
Evan: Would a loss here hurt Finn Balor as much as it would hurt Damien Priest? WWE sees big things in Priest and keeps giving him featured opportunities. He’s going to have to string some of them together into wins – that starts here.
Pick: Damien Priest
Javier: I’d hate to have Priest lose a big match at a Takeover, but Balor needs this win after losing a bit of steam in the last few months. Really get him going again and have him ascend up the ladder of NXT and hopefully migrate some to NXT UK when that’s possible again.
Pick: Finn Balor
Kaden: Priest needs a win here to take him to the main event level in NXT. Balor has had a great run in NXT but at this point he needs to move on, and getting over Priest would be a good way to go out. Priest wins.
Pick: Damien Priest
Keith Lee (c) vs Johnny Gargano – NXT North American Championship
Billy: Keith Lee has been a dominant force since his emergence at Survivor Series in November and then later on winning the NXT NA title. His biggest match to date is against the once heart and soul of NXT in Johnny Gargano, whose new attitude would look perfect with a championship around him.
Pick: Johnny Gargano
Evan: I truly hope that Lee only loses this belt once he’s won the NXT Championship. He is the complete package as a performer. Gargano’s heel work has been very different and quite captivating, but I don’t think he gets it done here.
Pick: Keith Lee
Javier: I don’t know how they’re going to do this, so I’ll say that Lee wins by disqualification. Gargano just turned heel and is coming into this match needing to capitalize on his momentum. With that said, I don’t like the idea of taking the title off of Lee. A DQ is perfect, albeit disappointing.
Pick: Keith Lee
Kaden: Similar to my prediction for Priest and Balor, Lee needs to move on to the main event level in NXT and drop the North American belt. Gargano also needs a big win with his new persona.
Pick: Johnny Gargano
Karrion Kross vs Tommaso Ciampa
Billy: This is going to be awesome. Kross is heading for huge things in NXT and just being in a match with Ciampa has elevated him to the main event scene. Win or lose Kross is my pick to eventually dethrone Cole as NXT Champion. This could very well be a war, but one that Kross will win.
Pick: Karrion Kross
Evan: It has to be Kross, right? He is the hot new prospect that WWE has big plans for. Ciampa will always be a main event level talent for NXT, so a loss doesn’t hurt. It does establish Kross as the next big thing.
Pick: Karrion Kross
Javier: I get that Ciampa is coming off a loss to Gargano to end their LONG feud, but Kross needs this win. A victory over one of NXT’s best will surely establish him as a true force to be reckoned with and it wouldn’t shock me if it leads to bigger things down the road.
Pick: Karrion Kross
Kaden: The match I’m most excited about also has my most certain prediction. Kross 100% wins here in what should be the match of the night.
Pick: Karrion Kross
Charlotte Flair (c) vs Rhea Ripley vs Io Shirai – NXT Women’s Championship
Billy: I really can’t see Charlotte Flair dropping the title this early as much as I would rather see Ripley or Shirai as champion. Although this could be a very exciting match. I fully expect Flair to retain.
Pick: Charlotte Flair
Evan: Recently on a media call, Triple H said Charlotte is being used to build up other women in the division. With Io Shirai being rumored for a main roster call up, the woman to build here is Rhea Ripley. It doesn’t have as much behind it as it would have at Wrestlemania, but a win here would still be huge for Ripley.
Pick: Rhea Ripley
Javier: Of course she’s winning. Ripley just lost the belt so I don’t see her doing anything except eating a pin. Shirai is an interesting piece, and I think she may very well win the match, but WWE put Charlotte on NXT for a reason and I don’t see them stopping that anytime soon. My guess is Charlotte wins by stealing the pin from Shirai.
Pick: Charlotte Flair
Kaden: Charlotte is 100% dropping the belt here, but to who. I think Rhea pins Io to win, protecting Charlotte and sending off Io. We’ve heard she wants to leave so I’m not sure why they would put the belt on her now other than to convince her to stay, which clearly didn’t work in the past *cough* FTR *cough*
Pick: Rhea Ripley
Adam Cole (c) vs Velveteen Dream – Last Chance Backlot Brawl for the NXT Championship
Billy: Cole is in the midst of over a year long reign as NXT Champion and has solidified himself as possibly the best champ in the brands history. This match is rumored to be another cinematic matchup by WWE and with two guys as talented as Cole and Dream the match has high expectations. I feel when Cole finally drops the title it will be on a bigger stage and with a crowd.
Pick: Adam Cole
Evan: The year-plus reign of Adam Cole continues. Somehow, someway, this remains Undisputed.
Pick: Adam Cole
Javier: It’s looking like this is going to be a Backlot Brawl, which makes me very happy because Eddie Guerrero and John Cena had one back in the day that I still think about a lot. Anyways, Cole’s reign has started to drag and he’s outgrown NXT. With guys like Gargano, Kross or Balor on the rise again, I think it’s time for a babyface champion who can drop the belt to one of those guys. Dream is the best option, so Dream gets the belt.
Pick: Velveteen Dream
Kaden: Adam Cole retains his title. I’m honestly not feeling this feud at all and I don’t think Dream is the right person to take the title off Cole, especially in a parking lot.
Pick: Adam Cole
Those are our picks for NXT TakeOver: In Your House. Agree with us? Disagree? Let us know in the comments or on Twitter at @FPC_Wrestling.
