NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn III preview for tonight:

The Glorious One faces an undefeated challenger
Drew McIntyre looks to fulfill a prophecy against NXT Champion Bobby Roode, Ember Moon takes
aim at Asuka’s historic NXT Women’s Title reign, and so much more at TakeOver: Brooklyn III,
streaming tonight on WWE Network.

NXT Champion Bobby Roode vs. Drew McIntyre

The undefeated Drew McIntyre has decimated every opponent thrown his way, and tonight at TakeOver:
Brooklyn III, the Scottish Superstar will finally get what he’s been in search of: The opportunity
to challenge NXT Champion Bobby Roode.
McIntyre has maintained a laser focus on NXT’s top prize since he signed with the brand in April.
He earned the title match the old-fashion way, piling up one win after another. With a smash-mouth
style, he conquered the likes of Oney Lorcan, Andrade Almas and Killian Dain. McIntyre’s win over
the previously undefeated Beast of Belfast secured an opportunity to face Roode.
With such an impressive resume, McIntyre might rightly be considered Roode’s most dangerous
challenger to date. However, don’t expect The Glorious One to be intimidated. The resourceful
and calculating veteran champion has consistently found ways to keep hold of the NXT Title
against the stiffest competition. McIntyre says it’s no longer “Bobby Roode’s NXT,” but Roode
will stop at nothing to prove otherwise.

NXT Women’s Champion Asuka vs. Ember Moon

NXT Women’s Champion Asuka is not only faced by a worthy challenger at NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn III,
but one that could spell the end of her historic title reign and undefeated streak. Tonight at
Brooklyn’s Barclays Center, Ember Moon will challenge The Empress of Tomorrow for the NXT
Women’s Title in a highly anticipated rematch.
It’s hard to bet against Asuka, who has thwarted every opponent thrown her way since arriving
in NXT in 2015. However, there is one competitor who had her on the brink of defeat during their
first encounter at TakeOver: Orlando in April. The supremely talented Moon was mere moments away
from nailing Asuka with her devastating Eclipse finisher during the match, only for the champion
to shove the referee into the ropes and claim victory once again.
The debate continues as to whether Asuka, perhaps fearful that getting hit with Moon’s Eclipse
would spell the end of her historic title reign, pushed the referee on purpose. Either way, Moon
will get another opportunity to try to hit her acclaimed Eclipse finishing move and end the
Empress’ title reign.
It hasn’t been easy for Moon to get back to this point, having been sidelined for more than a
month after Asuka, of all people, threw her through the ropes to the floor, injuring Moon’s
shoulder and keeping her out of TakeOver: Chicago.
Moon has since returned with a vengeance, looking more determined than ever to capture the NXT
Women’s Championship. As for the titleholder, she went on a brief hiatus following her epic
title defense against Nikki Cross in a vicious Last Woman Standing Match. The champion made it
clear that she wasn’t going to return until a challenger worthy of her time stepped up.
That challenger has since come forward, and her name is Ember Moon. Can Moon do what no other
woman has been able to and take the title away from Asuka? Or will the NXT Women’s Champion
continue her unprecedented title reign?

NXT Tag Team Champions The Authors of Pain vs. SAnitY

The Authors of Pain will face their craziest challengers yet when they put their NXT Tag Team
Championship on the line against SAnitY’s Killian Dain & Alexander Wolfe at TakeOver: Brooklyn III.
Led by WWE Hall of Famer manager Paul Ellering, Akam & Rezar have paved a path of destruction
through NXT’s tag team division, laying to waste esteemed tandems such as #DIY and The Revival
in the process. However, they have yet to face opponents like Dain & Wolfe, who can not only
rival their size, but their love for inflicting pain.
Since arriving on the scene at NXT, SAnitY has targeted multiple Superstars, from Tye Dillinger
to Drew McIntyre. Each time, the Eric Young-led faction used their strength in numbers to wreak
havoc. SAnitY turned their attention toward the NXT Tag Team Champions on the July 12 episode of
NXT when they menacingly stood on stage after Akam & Rezar’s successful title defense as pages
from a book dropped from the sky.
Two weeks later, after disposing of Akam & Rezar’s opponents, the chaos-seeking tandem of Dain
& Wolfe threw down with the titleholders in the middle of the ring. Their brief brawl provided a
glimpse of the bedlam that is sure to ensue when these tag teams collide in Brooklyn.

Johnny Gargano vs. Andrade “Cien” Almas

Intent on making a fresh start as a singles Superstar in NXT, Johnny Gargano offered to take on
anyone and everyone at TakeOver: Brooklyn III if it meant being part of NXT’s summertime tradition.
Luckily for Gargano, Andrade “Cien” Almas and Zelina Vega were listening and all too happy to
oblige.
Vega, the mysterious woman who now appears to be calling the shots for Almas, accepted the open
challenge on her associate’s behalf, paving the way to what will surely be a technical masterpiece
in Brooklyn.
Though no championship nor title opportunity is on the line, both Gargano and Almas are in a
state of reinvention, and both Superstars are searching for a tone-setting victory in what will
be a high-stakes bout at TakeOver.
Now that Gargano has returned from injury, he is eager to forge his own path and move past the
heart-wrenching betrayal by his former best friend and tag team partner, Tommaso Ciampa, at TakeOver:
Chicago last May. The beloved Superstar declared that TakeOver will be the “birth of Johnny Wrestling.”
With the help of Vega, meanwhile, Almas has seemingly refocused his attention on his in-ring
career after a series of costly losses.

Aleister Black vs. Hideo Itami

Knockout blows will not be in short supply when Aleister Black, still undefeated inside the
yellow ropes, takes on the increasingly volatile Hideo Itami at TakeOver: Brooklyn III.
The two scary-intense warriors crossed paths on the Aug. 2 edition of NXT when Black, who was
entering the ring for a match, interrupted Itami’s mid-ring diatribe. Itami took exception,
but Black cleared him from the ring with Black Mass. Later in the evening, after NXT went
off the air, Black and Itami got into it again as Itami tried to ambush Black in the parking lot
It hasn’t taken much to provoke Itami’s temper recently. For weeks, the Japanese Superstar has
decried his station and treatment in NXT. His demeanor has turned bitter and his actions
unpredictable, such as his post-match attack against onetime ally Kassius Ohno.
If it’s respect that he wants, Itami need not look any further than his showdown against Black
in Brooklyn. Itami is in search of a big win that will catapult him back into the main-event
picture, and a victory against the tatted terror — who has decimated everybody he has faced so
far — might just accomplish that. Black does not seem particularly interested in starting beefs,
but he might be all too happy to settle them. The pencak silat master has vanquished mighty
competition since making his NXT debut. Black, however, has yet to face a Superstar with the
credentials of Itami, making TakeOver’s battle of elite strikers even more compelling.