Team Ciampa Beats Undisputed Era in WarGames Match at WWE NXT TakeOver: WarGames

Team Ciampa defeated Undisputed Era in the men's WarGames match at NXT TakeOver: WarGames on Saturday night.

Tommaso Ciampa captained a team also comprised of Keith Lee, Dominik Dijakovic and Kevin Owens, who made a surprise appearance as the mystery partner, to victory over the cohesive unit of NXT champion Adam Cole, North American champion Roderick Strong and NXT tag team champions Kyle O'Reilly and Bobby Fish.

A brutal finish saw Ciampa set Cole up for a Samoan drop off the top of the cage. Both men went crashing through a table set up in the ring, but Ciampa's body landed on top of Cole to get the pin. 

Ciampa returned to NXT several weeks ago after missing several months with a neck injury, and he immediately set his sights on Cole, who holds the championship that Ciampa had to relinquish and never lost.

It initially seemed as though Ciampa had Johnny Gargano and the returning Finn Balor on his side, but when Balor shockingly turned on Johnny Wrestling by hitting him with a Pele kick, Ciampa had to look elsewhere for reinforcements.

The first iteration of Ciampa's WarGames team featured Lee and Matt Riddle, who both had issues with Undisputed Era in recent weeks. Things got shaken up again, though, when a neck injury kept Gargano out of TakeOver and required Riddle to step in as Balor's opponent.

With Riddle out of the picture, Ciampa brought in Dijakovic, who helped even the odds during a brawl with Undisputed Era on NXT TV. That added a fun dynamic to Team Ciampa since Lee and Dijakovic had been rivals for many months.

Once Lee and Dijakovic buried the hatchet with a handshake, Ciampa needed to fill out his team, and he did so by choosing Owens.

Undisputed Era seemingly had the advantage at WarGames for several reasons. In addition to the fact that they have been a team for multiple years, this marked the third consecutive year they were involved in a WarGames match.

Ciampa's team had plenty of incentive to perform well and defeat Undisputed Era, though, not the least of which is the notion they would be in line for title shots if they did.

With Team Ciampa coming out on top in Chicago, it stands to reason that all four members could be wearing gold soon, but the main focus will be on Ciampa vs. Cole heading toward the new year.

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