NXT TakeOver: XXX

NXT TakeOver: XXX was a professional wrestling show and WWE Network event produced by WWE for their NXT brand. It took place on August 22, 2020 at Full Sail University in Winter Park, Florida, preceding SummerSlam.
The event was originally scheduled to take place as NXT TakeOver: Boston at the TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts, but Boston mayor Marty Walsh announced the suspension of all large-scale gatherings and that no permit would be issued for an event that could draw a large crowd before September 7. On July 22 during NXT NXT General Manager William Regal announced the event would be renamed NXT TakeOver: XXX.
==Production==
===Background===
NXT TakeOver is a series of professional wrestling shows that began on May 29, 2014, as the WWE developmental territory NXT held their second WWE Network exclusive live broadcast billed as NXT TakeOver. In subsequent months, the "TakeOver" moniker became the brand used by WWE for all of their NXT live WWE Network specials.
====Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic====
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, WWE has had to present the majority of its programming from the WWE Performance Center in Orlando, Florida since mid-March with no fans in attendance, though in late May, the promotion began using Performance Center trainees to serve as the live audience, which was further expanded to friends and family members of the wrestlers in mid-June. Broadcasts of NXT as well as TakeOver: In Your House, however, have emanated from NXT's home base of Full Sail University in Winter Park, Florida. TakeOver: Boston, as well as the following night's SummerSlam, were originally scheduled to take place in Boston, Massachusetts at the TD Garden. On May 8, the ongoing pandemic forced Boston mayor Marty Walsh to suspend all large-scale gatherings until September 7, effectively canceling WWE's planned events in the city.
=== Storylines ===
The card included matches that result from scripted storylines, where wrestlers portray villains, heroes, or less distinguishable characters to build tension and culminate in a wrestling match or series of matches, with resulted predetermined by WWE's writers on the NXT brand. Storylines are produced on the NXT television program.
On the July 22 episode of NXT, then double champion Keith Lee reflected on his career and all of the opportunities he had gotten, and stated that he now needed to pay it forward, so he voluntarily relinquished the NXT North American Championship to allow other wrestlers a chance at the title, while he would focus on defending the NXT Championship. A series of triple threat matches were then set up on NXT as qualifiers for a five-man ladder match to be held at TakeOver XXX to crown a new North American Champion. That same night, Bronson Reed defeated Roderick Strong and Johnny Gargano to become the first to qualify for the match. The following week, Dexter Lumis became the second person to qualify by defeating Finn Bálor and Timothy Thatcher, but was later taken out due to an ankle injury. On August 5, Damian Priest became the third person to qualify by defeating Oney Lorcan and Ridge Holland. Due to Lumis' injury, two singles matches will take place to fill Lumis' spot, and to determine the fifth and final competitor. The wrestlers in those matches will be the ones who were not pinned or submitted in the triple threats, which are Balor, Gargano, Holland, and whoever is not pinned/submitted in the Triple Threat match between Kushida, Cameron Grimes, and a mystery opponent on the August 12 episode of NXT.
On August 5 episode of NXT, Dakota Kai defeated Rhea Ripley to earn a NXT Women's Championship match against Io Shirai at TakeOver XXX.
On July 23 during Pat McAfee's radio program on CBS Sports Radio, Adam Cole got into an altercation with McAfee, due McAfee accusing Cole of hiding behind The Undisputed Era during his record NXT Championship reign, and mocking Cole for his smaller stature, resulting in Cole cussing out McAfee, and shoving a producer. On July 27 during McAfee's radio show, Triple H offered McAfee the opportunity to work things out with Cole on the August 5 episode of NXT. At that event, McAfee mocked Cole while serving as guest commentator, got into another altercation, which ended with McAfee punting Cole in the head while Cole was being restrained, before being thrown out of Full Sail University. The following day, Triple H issued a challenge to McAfee on behalf of Cole for a match at TakeOver XXX on the ESPN's Get Up, which McAfee later accepted in a video.
==Match Preview==
Triple Threat Tag Team Match 	Preview
Ladder match for the vacant NXT North American Championship	Preview
Io Shirai vs. Dakota Kai 	Preview
Adam Cole vs. Pat McAfee 	Preview
Keith Lee vs. Karrion Kross 	Preview
Finn Bálor vs. Timothy Thatcher 	Preview
==Results==
;
;
*Pre-Show: Breezango (Tyler Breeze & Fandango) defeated Danny Burch & Oney Lorcan and Legado Del Fantasma (Joaquin Wilde & Raul Mendoza) in a Triple Threat Tag Team Match to become the #1 Contender for the NXT Tag Team Championship (6:55)
*Finn Bálor defeated Timothy Thatcher (13:32)
*Damian Priest defeated Bronson Reed and Cameron Grimes and Johnny Gargano and The Velveteen Dream in a Five Way Ladder match to win the vacant NXT North American Championship (21:25)
*Adam Cole defeated Pat McAfee (w/ AJ Hawk, Darius Butler & Nick Maraldo) (16:11)
*Io Shirai (c) defeated Dakota Kai (w/ Raquel González) to retain the NXT Women's Championship (17:14)
*Karrion Kross (w/ Scarlett) defeated Keith Lee (c) to win the NXT Championship (21:50)
==Other on-screen talent==
;Commentators
*Corey Graves
*Beth Phoenix
*Vic Joseph
*Carlos Cabrera
*Marcelo Rodriguez
;Pre-show Panel
*Scott Stanford
*Sam Roberts
*Booker T	
;Interviewer
*McKenzie Mitchell
;Ring announcer
*Alicia Taylor
;Referees
*Drake Wuertz
*Darryl Sharma
*D.A. Brewer
*Tom Castor
*Stephon Smith
==See also ==
*List of NXT pay-per-view events
==External links==
* NXT TakeOver: XXX at WWE.com
* NXT TakeOver: XXX Pre-Show on WWE Network
* NXT TakeOver: XXX on WWE Network
* NXT TakeOver: XXX Pre-Show at CAGEMATCH.net
* NXT TakeOver: XXX at CAGEMATCH.net
Category:World Wrestling Entertainment pay-per-view events
Category:2020 NXT pay-per-view events
Category:NXT Takeover
Category:2020 events
Category:Events with Ladder matches