NXT TakeOver: Dallas

NXT TakeOver: Dallas was the ninth NXT TakeOver professional wrestling livestreaming event produced by WWE. It was held exclusively for wrestlers from the promotion's developmental territory, NXT. The event aired exclusively on the WWE Network and took place on April 1, 2016, at the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center in Dallas, Texas. The event was held as part of the WrestleMania 32 weekend festivities, in turn being the first TakeOver to take place during a WrestleMania weekend.

Five matches were contested at the event. In the main event, Finn Bálor defeated Samoa Joe to retain the NXT Championship. Another prominent match included Asuka defeating Bayley to win the NXT Women's Championship: the match was also notable as the start of Asuka's record-breaking reign as champion. Additionally, Shinsuke Nakamura, in his WWE debut, defeated Sami Zayn, and Austin Aries, also in his WWE debut, defeated Baron Corbin. The event also saw the final match of Zayn in NXT and Corbin's final match in NXT for seven years.

Production

Background

TakeOver was a series of professional wrestling events that began in May 2014, as WWE's then-developmental league NXT held its second WWE Network-exclusive event, billed as TakeOver. In subsequent months, the "TakeOver" moniker became the brand used by WWE for all of its major NXT events. On December 12, 2015, TakeOver: Dallas was scheduled as the ninth NXT TakeOver event and the first to be held during a WrestleMania Weekend. Specifically, it was held on April 1, 2016, as a support show for WrestleMania 32. It took place at the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center and was named after the venue's city of Dallas, Texas. Tickets went on sale on December 19 through Ticketmaster.