The world is still reeling from several nights ago, where we perhaps saw, without any hyperbole, the most shocking moment in NXT history. The Undisputed Era were in the ring, reigning terror as usual when Tomasso Ciampa and Johnny Gargano came out to confront them, in spite of the 4-on-2 odds. That’s when Finn Balor, who had previously confronted the NXT Champion Adam Cole, arrived to seemingly back them up.
As the threesome stared the foursome down, I’m sure many were anticipating the next man in. Surely someone else was also on the way to even up the odds. It felt like a mega babyface team was being formed right before our eyes, coming together to take down the Undisputed Era once and for all.
And then… came the unthinkable.
What does this mean? Could this be a glimpse into @FinnBalor's future? #WWENXT pic.twitter.com/LzJ9jpDGLs
— WWE (@WWE) October 24, 2019
Out of nowhere, Finn Balor made beautiful use of the pele kick, to strike an unsuspecting Johnny Gargano who stood just behind him, ready to back him up. Before Ciampa could react, the Undisputed Era swarmed in on him, whilst Finn stood with his back to the action, quietly kicking Gargano out of the ring.
What proceeded was one of the most brutal and shocking assaults in NXT history.
The four on one assault to Ciampa was merciless enough, pummeling him before Bobby Fish and Kyle O’Reilly held him on his knees to take running knee strikes from Roderick Strong and Adam Cole – one to the face and one to the back of the head. Balor watched this, emotionless, before coolly slipping outside to finish off Gargano.
And did he ever. Finn calmly stripped off his jacket and delivered a ruthless running dropkick to Gargano that sent him through the ringside barrier and into several fans. (Plants, of course.)
But that pales in comparison to the finishing blow…
This is hard to watch. 🙈 #WWENXT @FinnBalor pic.twitter.com/mE4Oecd5Ck
— WWE NXT (@WWENXT) October 24, 2019
Finn Balor spiked Gargano headfirst onto the steel ramp with the Bloody Sunday, his old New Japan finisher.
There was a brief period in NXT when Finn used a faux version of this move. Much like how in the old days, people would use vertical suplexes and call them brainbusters, his lifting DDT which was referred to as the 1916 was a safer variation that didn’t drop them on their heads.
But this was the real deal, a perfect way to cap off Finn’s transformation back to the dark old days.
The reaction was overwhelming, and every statement since has been the same message: The Prince is back.
What took you so long, Prince..? https://t.co/zkpNM4eEb9
— Karl Anderson (@MachineGunKA) October 24, 2019
This is of course a play on his old days as the original leader of the now legendary Bullet Club. Prince Devitt was once a feared villain, to be sure.
After demolishing Gargano, he made sure to give a small nod to this, pointing the finger guns Johnny’s way. As he did this, the Undisputed Era did their usual pose in the ring. Cole and Balor shared a meaningful glance…
It should be noted that Cole, too, was once a key Bullet Club member. The faction traversed back and forth between ROH and New Japan, and the multi-time ROH World Champion was more or less the unofficial leader stateside.
There’s much speculation as to where we go from here, especially with TakeOver: WarGames on the horizon next month. But one thing’s for sure. The Prince has returned, and NXT may never be the same…
