NXT had arguably one of its strongest showings in 2019. The Black and Gold brand churned out critically acclaimed matches week in and out. Stars such as Johnny Gargano and Adam Cole kept the momentum strong with incredible action.
The advent of AEW and the “Wednesday Night Wars” motivated Triple H and his NXT stars to put on a great show every week. NXT TV, in particular, thrived with some great in-ring storytelling.
That being said, these are the best NXT TV matches of 2019:
Dominik Dijakovic vs. Keith Lee vs. Roderick Strong (Triple Threat NXT North American Championship Match)
Roderick Strong’s NXT North American Championship doesn’t get enough appreciation. The Messiah of the Backbreaker gave fans some excellent matches on TakeOvers and NXT TV during his 126-day title reign.
One of his great matches came against both Dominik Dijakovic and Keith Lee on the October 23, 2019, episode of NXT. All three men displayed in-ring brilliance in this 20-minute main event. Dijakovic and Lee vowed the crowd with their chemistry. The post-match angle wherein Finn Bálor turned heel on Johnny Gargano was also perfectly executed.
Aleister Black, Ricochet & Velveteen Dream vs. Johnny Gargano, Adam Cole & Tommaso Ciampa (Halftime Heat 2019)
Triple H made the bold decision to revive WWE Halftime Heat in 2019. The Game brought six of his top NXT stars together and pitted them inside the ring. The match featured multiple stories, all of which were tied into each other.
You had Aleister Black chasing Tommaso Ciampa for the NXT Championship. Ricochet wanted to get his hands on NXT North American Johnny Gargano. Finally, Velveteen Dream had bad blood with Adam Cole.
The ring-ring action was spectacular, with all six men showcasing their craft for over 25 minutes. The tremendous display of in-ring psychology and athleticism made this six-man tag team bout one of the best NXT TV matches of 2019.
Rhea Ripley vs. Shayna Baszler (NXT Women’s Championship Match – December 18)
Rhea Ripley had pinned Shayna Baszler in the Women’s WarGames match three weeks prior to their title showdown. The Queen of Spades wanted to extend her title run with a win over the Nightmare.
Unfortunately, she got more than she bargained for as Ripley ran roughshod over Baszler in the match. The champion did get some offensive but that wasn’t enough to put away the resilient challenger.
This bout remains one of Rhea Ripley’s best WWE matches to this day.
The Undisputed Era vs. The Revival (NXT TV #376)
Fans who grew up on the Black and Gold era of NXT were lucky enough to see this spectacular tag team match on free television. The Revival made their surprise return to NXT for one night to take on then-NXT Tag Team Champions Bobby Fish and Kyle O’Reilly.
Their meeting turned out to be the match of the night as well as one of the best NXT TV matches in 2019. Scott and Dawson and Dash Wilder brought their hard-hitting style to match the technical prowess of Fish and O’Reilly.
Though the Revival were unable to pick up the win in their comeback match on the Black and Gold brand, they ended up stealing the show with their performance.
Adam Cole vs. Finn Bálor (NXT Championship Match – December 18)
Finn Bálor made his shocking return to NXT on an episode that went head-to-head (for the first time) against AEW Dynamite. The former leader of the Bullet Club went on to became a regular fixture on the Black and Gold brand.
Finn Bálor challenged Adam Cole for the top title in December 2019. Both men put on a Match of the Year contender on free television. The challenger got extremely close to winning the match, but a distraction from Johnny Gargano sealed the win for the champion.
Honorable Mentions
- Velveteen Dream vs. Johnny Gargano (February 20)
- Fatal Five-Way Match (March 20)
- Damian Priest vs. Pete Dunne (October 16)
- Adam Cole vs. Dominik Dijakovic – WarGames Advantage Ladder Match, November 20)
- Angel Garza vs. Lio Rush – NXT Cruiserweight Championship Match, December 11)
Also read: Best NXT TV Matches Of 2020
