NXT TakeOver: Portland was a 2020 professional wrestling livestreaming event produced by WWE, held exclusively for wrestlers from the promotion's NXT brand division. It was the 28th NXT TakeOver event and took place on Sunday, February 16, 2020, at the Moda Center in Portland, Oregon. The event aired exclusively on the WWE Network and was the first TakeOver to be held on a Sunday.
Six matches were contested at the event. In the main event, Adam Cole defeated Tommaso Ciampa to retain the NXT Championship. In the penultimate match, Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic winners The BroserWeights (Matt Riddle and Pete Dunne) defeated The Undisputed Era (Bobby Fish and Kyle O'Reilly) to win the NXT Tag Team Championship. In other prominent matches, Rhea Ripley retained the NXT Women's Championship against Bianca Belair, Keith Lee defeated Dominik Dijakovic to retain the NXT North American Championship, and in the opening bout, Finn Bálor defeated Johnny Gargano.
This was the last TakeOver event to take place before the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, which began affecting all of WWE's programming in mid-March with NXT's following episodes and events taking place in Florida as a result of the pandemic. It would subsequently be the final TakeOver to be held outside of Florida as the TakeOver series was discontinued in September 2021. It was also the final NXT event to take place outside of Florida until the brand's 2022 WrestleMania week event, Stand & Deliver. Additionally, this was the last standalone NXT livestreaming event to take place outside of Florida until the 2023 Vengeance Day.
Production Background
TakeOver was a series of professional wrestling events that began in May 2014, as WWE's NXT brand held its second WWE Network-exclusive livestreaming event, billed as TakeOver. The "TakeOver" moniker subsequently became the branding for all of NXT's major events held periodically throughout the year. Announced during TakeOver: WarGames on November 23, 2019, TakeOver: Portland was scheduled as the 28th TakeOver event and the first to be held on a Sunday—all prior TakeOver events were held on Saturdays. The event took place on February 16, 2020, at the Moda Center and was named after the venue's city of Portland, Oregon. Tickets went on sale on December 20, 2019, through Ticketmaster.
Storylines The card included matches that resulted from scripted storylines. Results were predetermined by WWE's writers on the NXT brand, while storylines were produced on WWE's weekly television program, NXT.
In March 2019, Tommaso Ciampa had to relinquish the NXT Championship due to having to undergo neck surgery that would put him out of action for at least six months. Adam Cole subsequently won the title at TakeOver: XXV that June. Ciampa then made his return on the October 2 episode of NXT, confronting Cole, and wanting a match for the title. At TakeOver: WarGames the following month, Team Ciampa defeated Cole's team, The Undisputed Era (Cole, Bobby Fish, Kyle O'Reilly, and Roderick Strong), in a WarGames match, with Ciampa pinning Cole. Over the coming weeks, Ciampa continued to set his sights on the NXT Championship, and a contract signing for the title match took place on the January 29, 2020, episode, where Ciampa fought off interference from The Undisputed Era, and sent Cole through the table, which he spray-painted. Ciampa then signed the contract, making the match official for TakeOver: Portland.
On the January 15 episode of NXT, Bianca Belair won a women's battle royal to earn an NXT Women's Championship match against Rhea Ripley at TakeOver: Portland.
On the October 2 episode of NXT, Finn Bálor made his return to NXT, confronting Adam Cole after the latter's title defense. Three weeks later, after the NXT North American Championship match, Bálor, Johnny Gargano, and Ciampa stared down The Undisputed Era (Adam Cole, Bobby Fish, Kyle O'Reilly, and NXT North American Champion Roderick Strong) when Bálor attacked Gargano, leading to The Undisputed Era attacking Ciampa. Afterwards, Bálor continued his attack on Gargano, performing a DDT onto the entrance ramp, putting him out of action. Gargano then returned on the December 18 episode, causing Bálor to lose his NXT Championship match. Three weeks later, Gargano addressed what Bálor was capable of when Bálor interrupted. Bálor told Gargano that if he wanted the moment, he would get it at TakeOver: Portland, if he could make it there. The match was made official the following week.
On the December 18, 2019, episode of NXT, it was announced that there would be a Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic. The tournament began on the January 8 episode of NXT. At Worlds Collide, it was revealed that the winner of the tournament would receive an NXT Tag Team Championship match at TakeOver: Portland. The final of the tournament took place on the January 29 episode of NXT, which saw The BroserWeights (Matt Riddle and Pete Dunne) defeat Grizzled Young Veterans (James Drake and Zack Gibson) to earn a match against The Undisputed Era (Bobby Fish and Kyle O'Reilly) for the title.
On the January 29 episode of NXT, Keith Lee, who won the NXT North American Championship the previous week, talked about his title win and elevating the title when Damian Priest and Dominik Dijakovic interrupted. They wanted their own shot at the title, and faced each other to determine the number one contender for the title that night, where Dijakovic won. The match was later scheduled for TakeOver: Portland.
During the women's WarGames match at TakeOver: WarGames, Dakota Kai attacked her teammate Tegan Nox as Kai was coming out of her cage, thus turning heel. As a result, Kai was dismissed while Nox was ruled unable to compete. On the January 15 episode of NXT, Kai eliminated Nox (who returned after a short hiatus due to a storyline injury) during the women's battle royal. Due to the animosity between Kai and Nox, the two faced each other in a match on January 29 episode of NXT, which Nox won after attacking Kai with her knee brace. On February 1, a street fight between Nox and Kai was made official for TakeOver: Portland.
Event + Other on-screen personnelRole:Name:CommentatorsMauro RanalloNigel McGuinnessBeth PhoenixSpanish commentatorsCarlos CabreraJerry SotoRing announcerAlicia TaylorRefereesDrake WuertzDarryl SharmaD.A. BrewerInterviewerCathy KelleyPre-show panelCharly CarusoSam RobertsMansoor
Preliminary matches The event began with Keith Lee defending the NXT North American Championship against Dominik Dijakovic. The match began hot when Lee performed a Hurricanrana on Dijakovic to a massive ovation. The match became a hard-hitting affair from then on. Lee would later perform three Grizzly Magnums to Dijakovic on the outside that were heard all across the arena. Dijakovic would bounce back by performing a Superkick and a Springboard Swanton Bomb on Lee on the outside. After trading some near-finishers, Lee would perform a Spirit Bomb, only for Dijakovic to land on his feet. Lee would then perform another Spirit Bomb for a close nearfall. Dijakovic would go on to perform a massive Super Spanish Fly for a nearfall. Dijakovic would try to go for Feast Your Eyes, but his back gave out, allowing Lee to perform a Big Bang Catastrophe on Dijakovic to retain the title. After the match, the two showed their respect for each other.
In the second match, Tegan Nox took on Dakota Kai in a street fight. The two had used different weapons all throughout the match like chairs, trash cans, a laptop, and a cricket bat. In the end, Nox had given Kai a Shiniest Wizard, but she was not done yet. Nox had Kai propped up on a table with a chair wrapped around Kai's neck. Suddenly, Raquel González, in her first appearance in WWE since the Mae Young Classic in 2018, appeared, and slammed Nox through the table, allowing Kai to pin Nox for the win.
After that, Johnny Gargano faced Finn Bálor. During the match, Gargano attacked Balor and landed a Slingshot Spear for a nearfall. Meanwhile, Gargano attempted a Slingshot DDT, then Balor got away and landed a knee. In the end, after Gargano performed a Shotgun Dropkick to Balor into the barricade, Balor recuperated and gave Gargano a Shotgun Dropkick of his own. Balor then followed this up with a Coup de Grâce and a 1916 for the victory.
In the fourth match, Rhea Ripley defended the NXT Women's Championship against Bianca Belair. In the end, Ripley performed Riptide on Belair to retain. Suddenly, Charlotte Flair, the 2020 Women's Royal Rumble match winner, attacked Ripley and Belair, accepting Ripley's challenge for an NXT Women's Championship match at WrestleMania 36.
In the penultimate match, The Undisputed Era (Bobby Fish and Kyle O'Reilly) defended the NXT Tag Team Championship against the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic winners The BroserWeights (Matt Riddle and Pete Dunne). This match was filled with many high-risk spots and physical double-team action. Near the end, Riddle ran in and accidentally gave Dunne a Spear. O'Reilly and Fish then capitalized by performing Chasing the Dragon on Dunne for a dramatic nearfall. Dunne fought out of High Low and tagged Riddle in. Riddle tossed O'Reilly into Dunne's Enzuigiri to give Riddle and Dunne the victory and the titles.
Main event The main event was the long-anticipated NXT Championship match between champion Adam Cole and challenger Tommaso Ciampa. Not long into the match, Cole performed a Wheelbarrow Suplex on Ciampa to the broadcast table neck-first. Eventually, Ciampa countered an elevated Panama Sunrise and performed a top-rope Air Raid Crash on Cole for a nearfall. Ciampa then gave Cole two Powerbombs onto the Spanish announce table. Following a Superkick by Cole and a massive Lariat by Ciampa, Ciampa performed a Project Ciampa on Cole for another nearfall. Cole later went for a Suicide Dive, but Ciampa caught him with a Rocket Launcher Toss. Cole then performed a Draping Piledriver and a Kneecap Brainbuster for a nearfall. Cole then performed a Last Shot, but Ciampa rolled out before he could make the cover. Ciampa then gave Cole another Air Raid Crash onto the ring apron, but Cole followed up with the Panama Sunrise onto the floor. As Cole was getting back into the ring, Ciampa surprised him with a Willow's Bell and then performed the Fairytale Ending for a jaw-dropping nearfall. Soon after, the rest of the Undisputed Era interfered, but Ciampa took out every member with a Slingshot Corkscrew Plancha and fought them off. Cole, however, delivered three Superkicks and a second Last Shot for a dramatic nearfall. Cole then shoved Ciampa into the referee and performed a low blow on Ciampa, but Ciampa bounced back with a low blow of his own and performed a Fairytale Ending, but there was no referee to count the pinfall. Suddenly, Johnny Gargano came back and told Ciampa to use the NXT Championship as a weapon, only for Gargano to pull it away. After a few seconds, Gargano swung around and struck Ciampa in the head with the title, turning heel to the shock of everyone in the audience. Cole then covered the unconscious Ciampa to win the match and retain the title.
Reception TakeOver: Portland received critical acclaim from both fans and critics, with many deeming this one of the best TakeOvers WWE had produced.