Adam Cole Wins North American Championship in NXT TakeOver Ladder Match

Adam Cole became the inaugural NXT North American champion when he survived a six-man ladder match to kick off NXT TakeOver: New Orleans on Saturday at Smoothie King Center.

Ricochet had one hand on the title before Cole overturned the ladder, which knocked Ricochet out of the ring. That allowed Cole an unimpeded route to his first NXT singles title. WWE showed the leader of The Undisputed Era holding the gold:

The match didn't disappoint, as all six men put their bodies on the line to put together one of the strongest opening matches in NXT TakeOver history.

Ricochet, in particular, played a starring role, delivering a number of high spots to send the New Orleans crowd into a frenzy. In one instance, he leaped backward off a falling ladder and onto the pair of Cole and Killian Dain outside of the ring, courtesy of WWE Universe:

Although Ricochet narrowly missed out on capturing an NXT championship, he clearly has a bright future in the company.

For Cole, the ladder match was only the start of his duties at NXT TakeOver: New Orleans. He's filling in for an injured Bobby Fish to help Kyle O'Reilly defend the NXT Tag Team Championship.