Published: Jan 17, 2019 by Liam | Last Updated: Jan 17, 2019 by Liam
Liam has been reporting & analyzing wrestling news for over eight years, and is currently the Managing Editor at WrestleTalk.com. Immersed in wrestling for 18 years, he has over 11,000 published articles in addition to leading and overseeing WrestleTalk.com's coverage.
Two new matches have been announced for NXT TakeOver: Phoenix as Ricochet will defend his North American Championship against Johnny Gargano, and Matt Riddle will take on Kassius Ohno in a TakeOver: WarGames II rematch.
Gargano appears to have somewhat reformed an alliance with NXT Champion Tommaso Ciampa, after the two enjoyed the undisputed best feud in all of wrestling throughout 2018.
A couple of weeks ago, Ciampa suggested that Gargano go after Ricochet’s North American Title, so that #DIY would be on top of the brand once more. At first, Gargano was pretty cautious about the idea, but after Superkicking Ricochet last week, he has become obsessed with winning the strap.
The other new match is Matt Riddle vs. Kassius Ohno. The two paired off in an impromptu bout at TakeOver: WarGames in November, with Riddle picking up the win in mere seconds in his TakeOver debut over the NXT veteran.
Since then, Ohno has made it his mission to poop on the parade of NXT’s newcomers, which includes the ‘King of Bros’ himself, aswell as the likes of Keith Lee. Ohno beat Lee after using a low blow on NXT last night.
The card for NXT TakeOver: Phoenix is now as follows:
- Tommaso Ciampa (c) vs. Aleister Black – NXT Championship
- Shayna Baszler (c) vs. Bianca Belair – NXT Women’s Championship
- Undisputed Era (c) vs. War Raiders – NXT Tag Team Championships
- Ricochet (c) vs. Johnny Gargano – NXT North American Championship
- Matt Riddle vs. Kassius Ohno
TakeOver: Phoenix takes place on January 26, the night before the Royal Rumble.
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