Adam Cole was not dethroned as WWE NXT Champion by Tommaso Ciampa as he was able to retain his title.
Cole did so in the headliner of the WWE NXT TakeOver: Portland event from the Moda Center. This marked his first title defense on a TakeOver special of the new year. Johnny Gargano ran down to the ring to even the odds against The Undisputed Era. This was when Ciampa went for the NXT Title, but he was hit in the head with it by Gargano.
Cole’s previous title defense came in December on an episode of NXT on the USA Network in Winter Park, Florida at Full Sail University over Finn Balor.
This contest was officially announced on the January 29th episode of NXT when there was a segment on the show where Ciampa attacked Cole in the ring where he put him through a table and signed a contract in his own blood.
This was Ciampa’s first chance to get his goldie back. In the early stage of 2019, Ciampa suffered a neck injury that ultimately led to him getting surgery and relinquishing the title.
Ciampa made his return to NXT television back on the two-hour premiere of NXT on the USA Network back on October 2nd.
What are your thoughts on Adam Cole retaining the NXT Title? Was this the right call by WWE officials? Sound off in the comment section.
Current NXT Champion Adam Cole has revealed who his WrestleMania dream match would be against. For the black-and-gold brand Superstar, there’s only one name that comes to mind: “The Phenomenal” AJ Styles.
“[…] if I could have a WrestleMania match with anybody right now in WWE, really in the world, I would love to wrestle AJ Styles at WrestleMania,” Cole told FLO WWF. “I’ve wrestled him a couple of times before. He’s one of the absolute best I’ve ever faced before, but I’ve never beat him.”
“So he’s a guy I definitely want to get the chance to get in the ring with again. But, to me, when I think about, like, the top 3 lists of the best performers on the planet today, AJ Styles is always on my list. [He’s] just an unbelievably great athlete and I think we could have a really, really great match, especially on a stage like WrestleMania. Yeah, so AJ Styles would be my pick.”
Adam Cole Versus AJ Styles
The Undisputed Era had a run-in with AJ Style and his O.C. cohorts, Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson, a few months ago. The O.C. invaded NXT, attacking Cole and his stablemates before the show had a chance to start.
They would end up in the main event of that episode against the team of Tommaso Ciampa, Matt Riddle and Keith Lee. Following their NXT appearance, it was reported that AJ Styles attempted to pitch a matchup between the two stables for last year’s Survivor Series.
Adam Cole is scheduled to defend his NXT Championship against Tommaso Ciampa at NXT TakeOver: Portland. The event takes place on February 16th from the Moda Center in Portland, Oregon.
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Adam Cole was not dethroned as WWE NXT Champion by Finn Balor as he was able to retain his title.
WWE opened Wednesday’s episode of NXT on the USA Network in Winter Park, Florida at Full Sail University with Cole making his latest title defense against Balor.
This match aired commercial-free and saw Cole successfully retain the NXT champion.
WWE set up this contest last week on NXT when they held a match that would determine who was next in line for a title shot.
A Triple Threat Match between Finn Balor, Keith Lee, and Tommaso Ciampa took place with the winner becoming the next challenger to Cole’s title. Balor was victorious, earning the right to challenge Cole for the NXT Championship.
Adam Cole Previous Defense
Cole’s previous title defense came against Pete Dunne last month at the Survivor Series pay-per-view event in Chicago, Illinois at the Allstate Arena.
This was an important episode of NXT as it will serve as the final show of 2019 due to WWE taking the night off on December 25th for Christmas.
What are your thoughts on Adam Cole retaining the WWE NXT Title? Was this the right call by WWE officials? Sound off in the comment section.
Wednesday’s episode of NXT is gearing up to be one of the biggest since the show moved to the USA Network. Two big title matches will take place on the show including Finn Balor challenging Adam Cole for the NXT Championship.
WWE recently announced that the Balor vs Cole title contest will open up NXT this week and the match will air commercial-free.
Cathey Kelley recently broke the news on social media:
Rhea Ripley will also challenge Shayna Baszler Wednesday night on NXT.
Finn Balor vs Adam Cole – NXT Championship
Finn Balor has spent more time as NXT Champion than anyone else in history. He’s also had the longest single-reign in the lineage of the title.
Balor’s 292-day title reign between July 4th, 2015 until losing the title to Samoa Joe on a house show in Lowell, MA on April 21st, 2016 is the longest in the history of the title.
As of this writing, Adam Cole’s title reign is currently at 198 days.
The next challenger to NXT Champion Adam Cole will be Finn Balor.
During Wednesday’s episode of NXT on the USA Network, WWE held a match that would determine who is next line for a title shot.
A Triple Threat Match between Finn Balor, Keith Lee, and Tommaso Ciampa took place with the winner becoming the next challenger to Cole’s title. Balor was victorious, earning the right to challenge Adam Cole next week.
WWE holds next week’s episode of NXT in Winter Park, Florida at Full Sail University and it’s looking like a stacked card. Not only will Cole defend the title but also NXT Women’s Champion Shayna Baszler will defend her championship against Rhea Ripley.
Outside of those two matches, this will be an important episode of NXT as it will serve as the final show of 2019 due to WWE taking the night off on December 25th for Christmas.
Rumors of CM Punk joining the Undisputed Era as its fifth member were quickly shot down by Adam Cole before the baseless rumor could get any more traction.
Appearing for an interview for the Sports Illustrated, Cole was asked about WWE Backstage where Punk made his surprise return. Punk has had a major influence on Cole, so he was more than happy to see someone he looks up to return on Backstage.
He, however, shot down the rumors of Punk joining Undisputed Era by saying that their team is perfect and he wouldn’t add anyone, not even CM Punk into the mix. NXT North American Champion Roderick Strong, NXT Tag Team Champions Kyle O’Reilly & Bobby Fish and NXT Champion Adam Cole himself couldn’t get any better.
“The Undisputed Era, the four that we are, couldn’t get any better,” Cole said when asked. He added, “We’re the flag-bearers of the NXT brand, and we are perfect the way we are. I wouldn’t add a male, I wouldn’t add a female, and we won’t add CM Punk.”
NXT Champion Adam Cole has reflected on his past month in WWE. Cole has not only recently been featured on RAW and SmackDown, he also competed on both Saturday and Sunday for TakeOver: WarGames and Survivor Series, respectively.
Cole wrote the following on Twitter, “This past month, I have proved over and over again that my @WWENXT championship is going nowhere. It’s where it belongs…and the #ERA of #AdamColeBayBay is just getting started.”
The Undisputed Era lost the WarGames match at TakeOver after Tommaso Ciampa sent Cole crashing from the top of the cage through multiple tables, courtesy of an Air Raid Crash. Despite this considerable bump, Cole would subsequently defend his NXT Championship the next night against “The Bruiserweight” Pete Dunne. Despite stiff competition, he successfully retained.
“I Am Undisputed”
Following his victory over Dunne, Cole was interviewed backstage. He stressed that not only is the NXT Championship the most prestigious title in the industry, but he is the best pro wrestler on the planet.
“Yeah, it’s not new to me being questioned. My entire career, people have said ‘No, no, Adam Cole can’t be a World Champion,’ ‘Adam Cole won’t be a World Champion,’ and I knew deep down that I was gonna prove everybody wrong and spit their face while doing it.”
He continued, “This past month, not 24 hours, but month I have show the world that I am the best pro wrestler on the planet. Nobody is better than me. No championship is more prestigious. I proved that at Survivor Series, and I will continue over and over and over again to prove it. Hurt or not, banged up or not, nobody can stop me ‘cause I am the freaking man. I am the freaking show, and most notably, I am undisputed.”
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Triple H, has shared some high praise for both “The Bruiserweight” Pete Dunne and the current NXT Champion, Adam Cole.
Taking to Twitter following their clash at last night’s Survivor Series pay-per-view, Triple H called their matchup “AMAZING.” He also highlighted Cole’s performance, labelling the Undisputed Era leader as NXT’s Iron Man.
“.@PeteDunneYxB. @AdamColePro. AMAZING. Adam Cole = #WWENXT’s iron man. #WeAreNXT #SurvivorSeries”
Given the hectic, physically demanding nature of Cole’s week leading up to Survivor Series, Triple H’s comment is more than justified. During Wednesday night’s episode of NXT, Cole faced off against Dominik Dijakovic in a ladder match. The winner of this match would determine which team received the advantage for their WarGames matchup on Saturday. Cole was able to emerge victorious, granting Undisputed Era that much needed edge.
Saturday saw the stable compete in the WarGames matchup. They clashed against the team of Tommaso Ciampa, Keith Lee, Dominik Dijakovic and a returning Kevin Owens. Cole took a serious bump from the top of the cage through a couple of tables, courtesy of Ciampa’s Air Raid Crash. This move saw Team Ciampa able to secure the win.
Cole’s weekend was then capped off with an NXT Championship matchup against Dunne. “The Bruiserwight” had won the right at the belt during his triple threat match against Killian Dain and Damian Priest on TakeOver: WarGames. Cole successfully defended his precious NXT Championship.
Adam Cole was not dethroned as WWE NXT Champion by Pete Dunne.
In a rare instance, the top title in NXT, which is considered WWE’s third/developmental brand, was defended on the main card of one of the big four pay-per-view events – Survivor Series – on Sunday night in Chicago, Illinois at the Allstate Arena.
Cole successfully defended the title against Dunne. This comes after the two stars worked matches the previous night.
WWE held a match that would determine who was next in line for a title shot on Saturday night at the WWE NXT TakeOver: WarGames III event.
A Triple Threat Match between Pete Dunne, Killian Dain, and Damian Priest took place with the winner becoming the next challenger to Cole’s title. Dunne ended up winning it and thus this match was booked.
Also at this show, Tommaso Ciampa, Donovan Dijak, Keith Lee and Owens beat The Undisputed Era (Adam Cole, Bobby Fish, Roderick Strong & Kyle O’Reilly) in the men’s WarGames match that ended up serving as the headliner.
There is a new #1 contender to the NXT Championship and that’s Pete Dunne. This will be the next title defense for Adam Cole.
During WWE NXT TakeOver: WarGames III event in Chicago, Illinois, WWE held a match that would determine who is next line for a title shot.
A Triple Threat Match between Pete Dunne, Killian Dain, and Damian Priest took place with the winner becoming the next challenger to Cole’s title.
As seen in the match, Dunne ended up winning it. As a result, Dunne has earned the right to challenge Cole for the NXT Title at the Survivor Series pay-per-view event.
Cole was also in action at this show as The Undisputed Era (Cole, Bobby Fish, Roderick Strong & Kyle O’Reilly) took on Tommaso Ciampa, Donovan Dijak, and Keith Lee in a Men’s WarGames Match.
At Survivor Series, each member of the Undisputed Era will be in action. Fish and O’Reilly will take part in a triple threat match against SmackDown Tag Team Champions New Day and RAW Tag Team Champions Viking Raiders while Strong will take on Intercontinental Champion Shinsuke Nakamura and WWE United States Champion AJ Styles.
What are your thoughts on becoming the new #1 contender to challenge Cole for the NXT Title? Was this the right call by WWE officials? Sound off in the comment section.
Adam Cole was in the main event of this week’s episode of NXT which managed to beat AEW Dynamite in TV ratings for the first time since the Wednesday night wars began.
Cole recently had an interview with The Wrap after the numbers came out and during the interview, the NXT Champion was asked about his thoughts on their victory.
Replying to it, the NXT star first claimed that he doesn’t “focus too much on the ratings,” but later acknowledged that winning is cool and he went on to say that they had a blast with the guys from Raw and SmackDown joining their show:
“We’re just mainly focused on trying to put on a really exciting, cool show. And last night’s show was just an absolute blast, with the guys from ‘Raw,’ the guys from ‘SmackDown,’ the matches that happened, it was just a really, really cool night and so I’m glad so many people enjoyed it.”
Adam Cole competed in a ladder match against Dominik Dijakovic on NXT this week and won the bout. His win in the match helped him earn the advantage for his team in the upcoming WarGames match.
Though Cole is not the only star who has reacted to this news and both Cody Rhodes and Chris Jericho have also shared their thoughts on this week’s ratings recently. You can check out their reactions at this link.
It’s going to be a busy week for NXT Champion Adam Cole. The Undisputed Era leader is not only set to compete tonight on NXT in a ladder match, he will also be featured in a WarGames matchup this Saturday at NXT TakeOver: WarGames. In addition to these physically demanding matches, it’s now been announced that Cole will be defending his NXT Championship the day after this hellacious encounter at Survivor Series. All of this while the Superstar continues to deal with an injury.
WWE made the announcement that a new number one contender will be determined on tonight’s episode of NXT. A Triple Threat match between Pete Dunne, Killian Dain and Damien Priest will face off for the opportunity on Sunday.
Dunne has been feuding with both Dain and Priest in recent weeks. Last week, he and Dain were meant to compete in the ring. Their match would never start, however, as Dain was attacked by Priest during his entrance. It didn’t take long for things to devolve into an all-out brawl between the three of them.
Cole joins his Undisputed Era stablemates Roderick Strong, Kyle O’Reilly and Bobby Fish this Saturday. They take on the tea of Tommaso Ciampa, Keith Lee, Dominik Dijakovic and a yet to be announced partner in a WarGames match.
NXT TakeOver: WarGames takes place from the Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Illinois.
Adam Cole defeated Daniel Bryan on Smackdown this week. It was the first time the two have ever faced each other and according to Cole, Bryan is as good as everyone says he is. Cole appeared on “WWE After the Bell” with Corey Graves recently and talked about his experience having to rush to the show.
“I got a text message about 2:15 saying ‘hey, there’s a chance you might be needed for Smackdown’ and then 2-minutes after that it was ‘you’re needed for Smackdown and a plane leaves in an hour and a half.”
“Fortunately, I was home. So, I quickly get all my stuff together, get all rushed, we get there and we’re waiting for the plane to show up because the plane’s late. Then the plane gets there, we end up landing, and we’re kind of figuring out the idea of what we’re going to be doing while we’re in the air. When we do land we land at about 7:30 but again this is in Buffalo so there is a decent little trip yet to get there.”
“We walk into the arena at around 8:15/8:20, Brock Lesnar and Paul Heyman were just finishing in the ring and that is kind of how the whole process started. It was definitely one of the wackiest days of my career because I think at that point, me and Bryan ended up walking out to the ring around 9:30 so I had about an hour to get ready and get focussed and get in the zone and all that jazz. Totally wild day.”
The conversation between Graves and Cole can be listened to in the player below:
NXT Champion Adam Cole has revealed that, although there may eventually be an opportunity for Undisputed Era to move to either RAW or SmackDown, he’d prefer to remain a part of NXT.
Speaking with Metro, Cole shared how “Eventually there’s the thought process of maybe the Undisputed Era would like to take our body of work and go to RAW or SmackDown. I don’t wanna speak for them, but personally I’ve never been more adamant about wanting to stay part of NXT than I am right now.”
He explained how there’s something special about being a part of the black-and-gold brand as it continues to grow, adding that “[…] I hope so badly that me and the rest of the guys are here for a long time.”
“We generally get the vibe that they [WWE officials] love that we’re so passionate about this place. One of the coolest things about this place is everyone who works here is so pumped to be part of NXT. I think WWE really appreciates that.”
In the run-up to WWE’s Survivor Series pay-per-view, it was reported that Cole has been competing despite suffering from an injury.
This is the first time that NXT will be featured on the Survivor Series event, competing against RAW and SmackDown Superstars. It is not known at this time whether Cole will take time away from the ring to heal before the show on November 24th.
Despite recently wrestling in two main event matches against high-caliber opponents, it turns out that NXT Champion Adam Cole is competing while injured.
According to PWInsider, Cole has been dealing with a fractured wrist. He recently wrestled against SmackDown’s Daniel Bryan last week on SmackDown. Cole also competed this Monday on RAW against former-Universal Champion Seth Rollins.
Cole was reportedly injured in September and had subsequently missed several NXT Live Events because of it. WWE revealed that Cole had a right arm fracture during an NXT storyline with Matt Riddle. He was featured in their NXT Injury Report, which is usually used for storyline purposes. It turns out, however, that he has unfortunately been suffering from a legitimate injury.
Survivor Series
WWE’s November pay-per-view, Survivor Series, will see NXT compete against Superstars from RAW and SmackDown. This is the first time that the black-and-gold brand has been involved with the event.
Although he has competed against top talent, Cole has yet to be scheduled for a match at Survivor Series. It is not known at the time of writing whether he will be taking any time away from the ring in order to allow the fracture to heal.
His Undisputed Era stablemates, Bobby Fish and Kyle O’Reilly, are scheduled to compete in a Triple Threat Tag Team match. They face off against fellow tag team champions, RAW’s Viking Raiders and SmackDown’s The Revival.
Pro wrestling legend “Superstar” Billy Graham made headlines yet again when talking about a popular WWE star which in this case is WWE NXT Champion Adam Cole.
Graham took to his official Facebook account where he noted that after watching Cole beat Daniel Bryan on this week’s episode of Friday Night SmackDown, he thought that Cole was too small to be in that position.
This is when he suggested that Cole take steroids but insisted not to abuse them but rather just to use them in order to improve his physic to a certain point. He would then take a shot at Triple H.
You can read an excerpt here:
“Damn, Adam Cole is soooooooooo small. I am not telling him to abuse roids, just use them correctly to enhance your physique, HHH will show you exactly how to do it, but just DO IT for the sake of your championship title…..you should look like a champion !!!!!!”
Leading up to WrestleMania 35 and even after, Graham made some harsh comments about Kofi Kingston.
This is where Graham stated that Kingston being in a main event spot and WWE Champion was a “joke” because he was not thrilled about a “145 pound WWE Champion.” That’s when Graham suggested that Kingston should take steroids to get bigger.
Kingston, who won the WWE Title from Daniel Bryan at WrestleMania 35, handled the comments with class at the time.
As of this writing, Cole has yet to respond to Graham’s comments. You can read the full post here:
The Undisputed Era is at the top of its game in NXT. All four members are currently champions: Adam Cole is the NXT Champion, Bobby Fish, and Kyle O’Reilly are the NXT Tag Team Champions, and Roderick Strong the NXT North American Champion.
With all the talented members making up this seemingly perfect stable, is there a place for another wrestler in the team?
Adam Cole answered this question recently in an interview. Cole thinks the only wrestler that can join the Undisputed Era is a legend – whose name is Shawn Michaels.
“I’m not just saying him because I think he’s the greatest to ever,” Cole told Digital Spy during a tour of the WWE Performance Center in Orlando, Florida. “But I feel like Shawn Michaels would be such a cool fit in the Undisputed Era.”
Fish and O’Reilly also share the same thought, but they believe Michaels could fit the assistant role more for the stable. “He could be someone to shine the belts for us,” Fish said. “Or help us carry our bags.”
The Undisputed Era debuted on August 19, 2017, at NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn III. Fish and O’Reilly first won the NXT Tag Team Championship in November 2017, and Cole became the inaugural North American Champion. The stable has since seen championship success, having captured the gold and black brand’s championships six times collectively.
Adam Cole is also one of the only two NXT Triple Crown winners – he has held the NXT Championship, NXT North American Championship, and the NXT Tag Team Championship in his career. He completed the NXT Triple Crown the fastest, doing so within 420 days, between April 2018 and June 2019.
In an interview with GameSpot, current NXT Champion Adam Cole shared his thoughts on stables in pro wrestling and explained why Undisputed Era will probably never add new members to its ranks.
“When a stable it’s done correctly, it’s so important. It’s so huge. It opens up so many different stories that that roster can tell,” Cole said. “So many different scenarios that guys can go. It just keeps things very fresh and different. Like you can do a million different tag matches, but at the same time, we’re individuals. Obviously, I’m NXT Champion, so I’m going to have a bunch of NXT Championship title defenses, but then the next week we can do a wild eight-man tag team match with all of us.”
Cole explained how the Undisputed Era’s genuine friendship is the key to their success. He reflected on their ten-year friendship and how he has attended his stablemates weddings in the past. He believes this translates to screen and is a contributing factor behind the fans support of the Undisputed Era.
“Never Say Never”
When it comes to expanding the group, however, Cole confessed he thinks it is important the group stays small. Not only that but that their lineup doesn’t change.
“As far as adding new people, no, I actually think it’s very important. I remember when it was me, Bobby, and Kyle at first. We were convinced it was just going to be the three of us, and then it was brought to us about Roderick Strong joining all of us. At the same time, we’re like, ‘man…’ [but] if anyone’s going to join us, he’s the perfect fit. And now that he’s there, we can’t imagine anyone else being involved either. So I think it’s going to stay with just the four of us. But again, it’s pro wrestling. Never say never.”
Adam Cole recently successfully defended his NXT Championship against Matt Riddle. He appears to have new competition, however, in the form of both Finn Balor and Tommaso Ciampa.
Adam Cole was not been dethroned as WWE NXT Champion by Matt Riddle.
Cole beat Riddle to retain the title during Wednesday’s episode of WWE NXT in Winter Park, Florida at Full Sail University on the USA Network.
After the match, former NXT Champion Finn Balor made his return after being absent for two months. Balor walked down to the ring and told Cole that he’s back in NXT.
This contest was set up on last week’s episode when WWE held a second Street Fight between Riddle Killian Dain. This comes after their original Street Fight last week went to a no contest.
WWE NXT General Manager William Regal added some big stakes to this match as it was supposed to determine who will be next in line for a championship match.
As seen on the show, Riddle ended up winning it. As a result, Riddle had earned the right to challenge Cole for the WWE NXT Title.
Cole beat Johnny Gargano to become the champion in the main event of WWE NXT TakeOver: XXV event in Bridgeport, CT on June 1st.
What are your thoughts on Adam Cole retaining the NXT Title? Was this the right call by WWE officials? Sound off in the comment section.
Last night on NXT, Matt Riddle defeated Killian Dain in a street fight. The win earned Riddle an NXT championship match against Adam Cole next week. After his win over Dain, Riddle locked in a Fujiwara armbar on Cole after the champion came to the ring to confront his upcoming challenger.
WWE correspondents spoke with Riddle backstage after his match last night to get his comments on challenging for the NXT championship next week.
Matt Riddle Comments On Facing Adam Cole
Cole remarked after Riddle’s match last night that the Original Bro isn’t in his league. Riddle was asked about Cole’s comments backstage.
“I’ve already beaten Adam Cole before he was champion, and you know I’m going to beat him next week and become the new NXT champion,” Riddle said. “So it’s ludicrous for him to even say those things and I think I made him tap out tonight. And I think I heard something snap or crackle, or pop in his wrist or arm or somewhere. He’s not as big as me so once I get a hold of him, I snap him like a twig. So, I don’t know, I think those were bold statements and I think he’s going to eat his words.”
There is a new #1 contender to the WWE NXT Title held by Adam Cole and that’s Matt Riddle.
During Wednesday’s episode of NXT, WWE held a second Street Fight between Riddle Killian Dain. This comes after their original Street Fight last week went to a no contest.
WWE NXT William Regal added some big stakes to this match as it was announced that this contest will determine who will be next in line for a championship match.
As seen on the show, Riddle ended up winning it. As a result, Riddle has earned the right to challenge Cole for the WWE NXT Title on next week’s episode of NXT.
WWE is loading up the show as two previous title matches have been announced that includes NXT Women’s Champion Shayna Baszler vs. Candice LeRae and The Undisputed Era defending the NXT Tag Team Titles against The Street Profits.
The obvious reason for booking a title match on this NXT episode is due to the hope of increasing ratings as they will be in for a big fight.
NXT will be going head-to-head with AEW Dynamite that will air at the same time on TNT. All Elite Wrestling has loaded up the show as well.
WWE has decided to put NXT against AEW’s TV show and being the current NXT Champion means that Adam Cole is one of the top prospects of this competition dubbed as ‘Wednesday Night Wars’.
The NXT Champion recently had an interview with Fox Sports, where he talked about a number of things and also commented on going head to head against the upstart promotion on the same night of the week.
Cole said that he doesn’t mean to speak for the people at AEW but he has a feeling that they also want to make their show the best wrestling program on Wednesdays:
“I don’t mean to speak for them, but I have a strong
feeling this is how they feel, because I know at NXT we have a strong focus on
making sure it is the best possible show that we can make it on Wednesday’s and
that’s all we have the energy to focus on. And I’m sure those guys feel the
exact same way.”
Cole went on to say that this is exciting for the wrestling
fans because they will get to compare and watch both the events. The move to
Wednesday night means more eyes to the product.
Apart from this, Adam Cole also talked about the growth of NXT from being a development territory to a third brand of WWE. You can check out his full interview here.
It’s no secret that Undisputed Era wants to drape themselves in NXT gold. Adam Cole is the current NXT Champion, Bobby Fish and Kyle O’Reilly hold the NXT tag team championships, and Roderick Strong has an opportunity to claim the NXT North American Championship on the black-and-gold brand’s debut on USA Network.
Speaking with ComicBook.com, Adam Cole recalled starting Undisputed Era on their path towards NXT domination.
“I think that was just something that I just said at one point where I talked about how I wanted Undisputed Era to have all the gold, and it was something that kind of just stuck, so it’s something that we’ve gone with kind of ever since then,” Cole said. “We’ve been adamant about saying, ‘Undisputed Era needs to get all the championships,’ and it just fits for our group. You know the tagline ‘Shock the system?’ Now, that’s evolved into wanting to have all the championship gold. I just feel like it’s a natural progression for the Undisputed Era and the next thing that we would say that we’re going to do.”
“If We’re Going To Add One Guy, It Needs To Be Roddy”
Cole continued, explaining how Undisputed Era was originally only ever going to be comprised of himself, Kyle O’Reilly and Bobby Fish. When Roderick Strong debuted for NXT, however, their mindset changed.
“I remember the three of us talking and saying, ‘Gosh, if we’re going to add one guy, it needs to be Roddy.’ He just fits so incredibly well in the group. I feel like the group was good. The group was really good with the three of us, but I feel like it’s perfect with Roderick in there, just the four of us, the way we play off each other. Many people know the four of us have known each other literally for 10 years. We’re all incredibly close. We talk every single day. We’re legitimate close friends. We travel all the time, so to have him added to the group I really feel like took the group of the Undisputed Era to the next level, for sure.”
Roderick Strong gets his chance to claim gold when he faces off against current NXT North American Champion Velveteen Dream. The two clash on September 18th when NXT debuts on USA Network.
With NXT moving to USA Network and extending to a new two-hour time slot, WWE’s black-and-gold ‘development brand’ are on the precipice of something fresh as they prepare to go head-to-head with All Elite Wrestling.
Speaking with Newsweek, NXT Champion Adam Cole openly discussed his brands extra hour, the move to USA Network, and whether the show can really be viewed as development any longer.
“It’s Something Our Team Is Ready For”
“It’s awesome, Cold state about the move. “I’ve said countless times that if more people got to see and experience NXT, they would be fans for life. And now we have this whole new avenue and outlet. So many new people get to check out NXT, and I’m convinced that a lot of people will watch this show on USA and go ‘I have to watch this every week’ just for the shows that we do deliver and put on. Going live on television is a lot more of a high-pressure situation, but it’s something our team is ready for.
He explained how the talent is used to big events thanks to their experience with NXT TakeOver shows, reiterating that, more than anything, he is excited. He also doesn’t believe NXT will change dramatically, despite its extension to two hours.
“I think we’re going to continue to do what we’ve done,” he stated. “I think it’s important for what we built with this brand, delivering exciting match after exciting match, week after week and that’s the game plan. Our crew is very passionate, we know the style of wrestling that we like, and we love the energy the NXT fans bring to the table. I can tell you this: we will bring the most exciting show we can every single week. That’s most certainly is the game plan.”
Switching Brands
So with a move to USA Network, an extension to two hours, and the intention of competing with AEW’s TNT television show is NXT really a development brand, or is it just WWE’s third brand alongside RAW and SmackDown?
“We’ve called it this for a while, but we look at NXT as the third brand. And now I feel this move to USA just solidifies it. Instead of calling it “moved up” it’ll just be “moving.” Some guys may move to RAW or SmackDown. Some guys on RAW or SmackDown can move to NXT. To me, this move to the USA totally solidifies NXT as the third brand. I’m sure you’ll see lots of guys moving to different brands as time goes on.”
NXT debuts on USA Network on September 18th, starting at 8/7 C.
Undisputed Era’s Adam Cole has revealed that WWE Hall of Famer Shawn Michaels has been instrumental in all of his NXT matches to date.
The NXT Champion shared the insight during a recent conversation with Lilian Garcia for her podcast, Chasing Glory. He discussed how Shawn Michaels and Michael Hayes helped to put together his TakeOver: Toronto main event before crediting Michaels with his guidance to date.
“The two gentlemen involved in producing our matches were Michael Hayes and Shawn Michaels,” Cole said. “Michael Hayes is great and brilliant. Normally he is involved with producing my matches. Shawn Michaels is involved in every one of my matches. At the Performance Center, I go and work with him directly. A bunch of us do. He is kind of like a mentor for so many of us right now at NXT, so he takes a liking and makes sure he has his hand in everything that we are doing.”
Coaching Style
Cole then extrapolated on Michaels’ coaching style, explaining how he doesn’t dictate what they should do. Instead, it becomes a somewhat collaborative process with ideas passing backwards and forwards between HBK and NXT Superstars.
“Lots of times, the best thing about Shawn Michaels is that he doesn’t tell us, ‘This is what you should do.’ He lets us come up with what we think, and he will be excited about the stuff that we are coming up with,” Adam said. “But randomly, if we are stumped on something and we think something is cool but aren’t crazy about it, in a matter of five-seconds, he would give us an idea and it’s amazing and so much better. It’s awesome to have those two to pick their brains. They played a big part in what we created in our match for sure.”
Adam Cole recently retained his NXT Championship against Johnny Gargano in a Two-Out-Three-Falls matchup at NXT TakeOver: Toronto.