WWE NXT Takeover Vengeance Day Results: Toni Storm vs. Mercedes Martinez vs. Io Shirai [NXT Women’s Championship Match]

Io Shirai has been on top of the NXT Women’s division for 252 days at this point, and shows no sign of slowing down. Tegan Nox, Dakota Kai, Candice LeRae & Rhea Ripley have all failed to take her down as champion, but tonight might be her biggest test yet. She faces both Toni Storm & Mercedes Martinez, two ladies who were actually a tag team for the first ever Women’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic.

Shirai had issues with Martinez after a previous attack, so would cost them their chance in the tournament. This caused Storm & Martinez to brawl with each other, with Shirai in the middle of the chaos. Triple Threat matches can be incredible, and with these three ladies? Expect another classic for this title. Storm is also the only woman on the NXT roster that has a win over Io Shirai, that hasn’t been avenged by The Genius of The Sky.

Mercedes Martinez Has Done Enough Waiting

Before we got the introductions, Martinez would attack Shirai to get to focus on Storm. Storm would take her out, and Shirai got back in to start controlling the ring. She’d roll Storm through and land the double stomp, before taking a boot to the jaw and a sliding lariat as she rested near the bottom rope.

Martinez got back into the mix, taking Storm off of the ring with a dragon screw neck whip, and dodging a moonsault from Shirai, who crashed into the barricade. She’d choose to focus on Storm, hitting a spinebuster, getting a near fall. Three amigos would get to two, before Shirai hit a missile dropkick, a running knee strike, but Storm caught her in a sidewalk slam.

Storm nailed a running hip attack, before Martinez dropped her and applied the Regal Stretch in the middle of the ring. Shirai broke the hold up with a dropkick, and applied the crossface on Storm. Martinez wouldn’t break the hold, instead, getting Shirai with a dragon sleeper. Shirai let her hold go, and Martinez got a reverse suplex.

Martinez took a surprise 619 from Shirai, being sent to the outside. Shirai wanted to dive to the outside, but Storm wanted to set up a superplex. Storm was interrupted and hit with a German Suplex off the top, before Shirai stomped Martinez into the mat.

Where Did Io Shirai Come From?

We’d get our first rest point of the match, before Martinez & Shirai threw blows on the outside. Shirai was rammed into the barricade, before Storm took her out and wanted to set up an announce table spot… but it just collapsed. Storm would look to hit Storm Zero on the wreckage, but take a DDT instead.

Shirai climbed up the set and dove onto both of her challengers, but would be thrown into the steel steps by Martinez. Back in the ring, Martinez took Storm down with a lariat, and some hard knee strikes. The Fisherman Buster would nail flush, but only get a two count. Martinez went for the Death Valley Driver, but took a headbutt and Storm Zero instead, getting a very close fall.

Storm was rattled after her best blow didn’t end it, and went up top for a flying headbutt, but as she crawled into the cover, Shirai came out of nowhere with a moonsault for the win!

If this match had about five more minutes, we could have had a classic on our hands. But instead, it ended just as it hit it’s stride, an issue with NXT Women’s Championship matches, especially when we have more than one challenger. All three women did a great job here, despite not having as much time as other matches. Match Rating: 3.75/5 (*** ¾)

Who will challenge Io Shirai next for the NXT Women’s Championship? Let us know what you think in the comment section down below.

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