NXT TakeOver: Back to Brooklyn: Samoa Joe v Shinsuke Nakamura

Since his arrival, The King of Strong Style’s quest for NXT’s top prize has seen him take on the best NXT has to offer. He made a huge statement in his debut at TakeOver: Dallas, defeating Sami Zayn in an instant classic that was the talk of WrestleMania weekend. Nakamura has built upon his first victory ever since, including a huge victory over Austin Aries at TakeOver: The End of The Beginning.

However, The King of Strong Style has always had his eye on the NXT Championship. Nakamura believed he had one last thing to accomplish before challenging for the title, so he challenged the longest-reigning NXT Champion in history, Finn Bálor. In their epic battle, Nakamura emerged victorious after clocking The Demon with the Kinshasa.

While Nakamura was on his journey toward the title, Samoa Joe has been busy carving a path of destruction through NXT. The submission specialist has taken out the likes of Eric Young and Rhyno, and vanquished Bálor in a brutal Steel Cage Match. Despite his domination, Samoa Joe wasn’t happy to find out that he would be defending his title against The King of Strong Style in Brooklyn. The NXT Champion, furious that he was not consulted on the matter, tried to cancel the match and demanded an apology from NXT General Manager William Regal. Regal refused to give in, however, and instead laid down an ultimatum: Fight Nakamura at TakeOver or forfeit the NXT Championship. Joe finally relented and agreed to the match, but warned that Nakamura might not make it to Brooklyn.