Adam Cole shocked the system in the closing moments of NXT TakeOver: Vengeance Day, assaulting both Finn Balor and his Undisputed ERA partner Kyle O’Reilly!
Following a brutal main event that saw Balor just barely retain over Pete Dunne, ‘The Prince’ was attacked by Dunne’s Kings of NXT brethren Oney Lorcan and Danny Burch. Balor would be saved, however, by Adam Cole, Kyle O’Reilly and Roderick Strong who chased off Dunne and the NXT Tag Team Champions.
Afterwards, O’Reilly would bring Balor to his feet and the four men posed in what seemed to be the long-awaited inclusion of Finn Balor in Undisputed ERA’s ranks. Alas, it was not meant to be as Cole would superkick the NXT Champion, much to Kyle’s horror. The NXT Grand Slam Champion would take his treachery to a new low, though, when he delivered a second superkick – this time to his own teammate!
STOP. WHY ADAM WHY?!? #NXTTakeOver@KORcombat@roderickstrong@AdamColePropic.twitter.com/J7SbwOpqy6
— WWE NXT (@WWENXT) February 15, 2021
Cole would exit through the ropes, encouraging a conflicted Roderick Strong to leave too, before making his way up the ramp alone as the show went off the air with Balor and O’Reilly still lying motionless in the middle of the ring.
The reasoning behind Cole’s betrayal is currently unclear, though it could be speculated that O’Reilly’s recent rise as a singles star is, at least in part, responsible. Since challenging Finn Balor at both TakeOver 31 and New Year’s Evil, O’Reilly has arguably outshone the two-time NXT Champion – with Cole most recently failing to advance beyond the quarterfinals of the Men’s Dusty Classic alongside Strong.
Elsewhere on Vengeance Day, former IMPACT and NWA star Eli Drake made his NXT debut – proclaiming himself as LA Knight – and Dakota Kai & Raquel Gonzalez became the inaugural winners of the Women’s Dusty Classic!
Find out everything that went down on NXT TakeOver: Vengeance Day with our live results coverage!