A name often associated with tag team wrestling, Kyle O’Reilly has both the Pro Wrestling Guerrilla and Ring of Honor world titles under his belt. In WWE he didn’t win an individual belt, but in the last year that he lived in the promoter he stood out through memorable matches against Adam Cole, in a very personal rivalry from which he came out on top.
Born March 1, 1987, in Delta, in the Canadian province of British Columbia, Kyle Greenwood by his real name has evolved over a dozen years on the independent circuit, starting in Extreme Canadian Championship Wrestling (ECCW) before appearing in the Ring of Honor, Pro Wrestling Guerrilla and New Japan Pro-Wrestling.
Much of this journey was done in the tag team reDRagon with Bobby Fish, a duo that also shone on NXT as part of The Undisputed Era. Together they signed to WWE in July 2017, having won the NXT Tag Team Championship twice. Four years later, after months in which O’Reilly was launched as a solo wrestler, both left the promoter and signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW). It’s therefore worth remembering Kyle O’Reilly’s ten best NXT fights, in chronological order.
NXT TakeOver 31 (October 4, 2020)
NXT Championship: Finn Balor (c) vs. Kyle O’Reilly
On the September 23 episode of NXT, Kyle O’Reilly won the gauntlet eliminator match in which Bronson Reed, Cameron Grimes, Kushida and Timothy Thatcher also participated to earn the right to fight for the NXT Championship from Finn Bálor at NXT TakeOver 31
NXT (November 25, 2020)
Ladder match to determine which team takes advantage of the WarGames match:
Kyle O’Reilly vs. Pete Dunne
At a time when The Undisputed Era ( Adam Cle, Bobby Fish, Kyle O’Reilly and Roderick Strong) were involved in a rivalry with the Kings of NXT (Pat McAfee, Pete Dunne, Danny Burch and Oney Lorcan) and both factions had a match scheduled in a WarGames match at NXT TakeOver: WarGaes, a Ladder match was scheduled for the November 25, 2020 episode of NXT between one member of each group to determine who would have a head start in the WarGames match.
The Undisputed Era chose Kyle O’Reilly to compete in the ladder match while Pete Dunne would represent the Kings of NXT
NXT (December 16, 2020)
Match to determine the main candidate for the NXT Championship :
Kyle O’Reilly vs. Pete Dunne
NXT champion Finn Bálor opened the December 9 episode of NXT by announcing that he was going to defend the NXT Championship at New Year’s Evil, but that he was not especially concerned about who his opponent would be, referring to this matter as a problem from William Regal ( NXT General Manager ).
Pete Dunne, Kyle O’Reilly, Damian Priest and Karrion Kross’ partner Scarlett claimed a title shot. Bálor dismissed Dunne, O’Reilly, and Priest, but seemed willing to accept the challenge from Kross, who appeared later in this episode to attack Priest, which led to a match between the two in New Year’s Evil. That said, a match was scheduled between Pete Dunne and Kyle O’Reilly to determine the main contender for the NXT Championship.
XT New Year’s Evil (January 6, 2021)
NXT Championship Finn Balor (c) vs. Kyle O’Reilly
On the December 16, 2020, episode of NXT, Kyle O’Reilly beat Pete Dunne to become Finn Bálor ‘s NXT Championship main contender with the title match scheduled for the New Year’s Evil special event.
NXT TakeOver: Stand & Deliver – Day 2 (April 8, 2021)
Unsanctioned match: Adam Cole vs. Kyle O’Reilly
At NXT TakeOver: Vengeance Day, after Finn Bálor defended the NXT Championship against Pete Dunne, he was attacked by Dunne, Danny Burch and Oney Lorcan, which led The Undisputed Era (Adam Cole, Kyle O’Reilly and Roderick Strong) to help Balor.
After the save, Adam Cole, performed a Superkick n Bálor O’Reilly questioned Cole s action but also suffered a Superkick which led to the break-up of The Undisputed Era. To top it off, Adam Cole and Kyle O’Reilly were in pursuit of the NXT Championship which increased tension between the two. On the March 24 episode of NXT, an unsanctioned match was scheduled between Cole and O’Reilly for the second night of NXT TakeOver: Stand & Deliver.
NXT (April 20, 2021)
Kyle O’Reilly vs. Cameron Grimes
In his first appearance since beating Adam Cole in an Unsanctioned match at NXT TakeOver: Stand & Deliver – Day 2, Kyle O’Reilly said he was considering the future, namely challenging the NXT North American Championship holders (Johnny Gargano) and the NXT Championship (Karrion Kross). However, he was interrupted by Cameron Grimes, who offered him an alliance that would be financially profitable for O’Reilly. O’Reilly initially appeared to be satisfied with the offer, but later declared that Grimes would be his first opponent in this return to NXT events.
NXT (June 22, 2021)
Kyle O’Reilly vs. Kushida
At a time when he was defending the NXT Cruiserweight Championship with some frequency, namely against Oney Lorcan, Santos Escobar, Carmelo Hayes and Trey Baxter, Kushida was challenged by Kyle O’Reilly during the June 15, 2021 episode of NXT to a non-title match in play the following week. And the Japanese accepted.
NXT; The Great American Bash (July 6, 2021)
Adam Cole vs. Kyle O’Reilly
After nearly two months of absence, Adam Cole returned to the NXT ring n June 1 to interfere in a triple threat match between Kyle O’Reilly, Pete Dunne and Johnny Gargano to determine the main contender or Karrion Kross’s NXT Championship at TakeOver: In Your Hose Once Cole attacked all three fighters, the match ended in a no-contest.
This result led to Kross confronting Cole and asking General Manager William Regal to defend the belt in front of Cole O’Reilly, Dunne and Gargano in a fatal five-way match managing to retain the title via submission, leaving O’Reilly passed out. through a Kross Jacket Two days after the vent, it was announced during the June 15 episode of NXT that Kyle O’Reilly and Adam Cole were going to meet at The Great American Bash.
NXT (July 20, 2021)
Kyle O’Reilly vs. Austin Theory
In the hours leading up to the July 20 episode of NXT, Johnny Gargano was interviewing Austin Theory when Kyle O’Reilly showed up to confront Theory, who had made fun of him. After an exchange of words, a fight was scheduled between the two.
NXT TakeOver 36 (August 22, 2021) Two out of Three falls match:
(Fall 1: Traditional Wrestling; Fall 2: Street Fight; Fall 3: Steel Cage)
Adam Cole vs. Kyle O’Reilly
After a win for O’Reilly at NXT TakeOver: Stand & Deliver and another for Adam Cole at The Great American Bash, during the August 11 episode of NXT, they announced the 2 out of 3 Falls matches (Sometimes known as Three Stages of Hell).