Kairi Sane Will Challenge For NXT Women’s Championship At TakeOver: Houston

Warning: If you haven’t yet watched the Mae Young Classic, this post contains major spoilers!

The live finale of the Mae Young Classic aired exclusively on the WWE Network from Las Vegas Tuesday night, and it was quite the event. Everyone from Ronda Rousey and Charlotte Flair to Asuka and even Summer Rae were on hand to watch former UFC fighter Shayna Baszler take on Japanese sensation Kairi Sane.

Leading up to the finale, Baszler and Sane each bested four of their peers throughout the tournament. If you don’t watch any other matches of theirs from the Mae Young Classic, I highly recommend watching Sane vs. Bianca Belair and Baszler vs. Candice LeRae. In my opinion, those two matches sum up Sane and Baszler’s personas and in-ring styles perfectly: Sane is a scrappy technical wonder, while Baszler is a dominating brawler.

To be sure, their styles are diametrically opposed and each woman has her strengths. But last night, Sane proved to be the better woman when she picked up the win after hitting Baszler with her Insane Elbow drop.

Sane was crowned the winner of the inaugural Mae Young Classic – and ESPN has confirmed that she will challenge for the NXT Women’s Championship at NXT TakeOver: Houston on November 18.

As for Sane’s opponent? That’s to be determined, because the NXT Women’s Title is currently vacant.

Most Likely Opponents

WWE has not confirmed whether the NXT Women’s Championship will still be vacant heading into TakeOver: Houston, although Pro Wrestling Sheet’s James McKenna has indicated that that would be the case.

But, whatever the case, it seems most likely that Sane will square off against Ember Moon.

With Asuka moving onto Raw, Ember Moon is without a doubt the new top woman in NXT – and she’s had her sights set on the NXT Women’s Championship for quite some time. Moon twice challenged and twice failed to defeat former champion Asuka for the title, first at TakeOver: Orlando and again at TakeOver: Brooklyn III. She’s certainly put in her dues and is quite possibly more deserving than any other woman of a title reign.

If the match does indeed end up being a multi-woman match for the still-vacant title, two other top contenders to potentially compete include Ruby Riot and Nikki Cross. Besides Moon, they’re the only other two women on the current NXT roster who have had a real and viable presence in the title picture.

Sane’s Future

I became a huge fan of Kairi Sane during the Mae Young Classic, and I look forward to her having a bright future in WWE. That being said, I don’t really expect her to win the NXT Women’s Championship at TakeOver: Houston. Unlike the Cruiserweight Classic, which had a title specifically created for the winner of the tournament, Sane is seeking the same title fought for by women with years’ more experience than her. I think it would be overkill to give her the title so soon after being depicted as such an underdog in the tournament.

However, I do expect Sane to have a long career NXT/WWE that includes several title reigns. I’d love to see her square off against Asuka on the main roster. In the more immediate future, if WWE ever wises up and signs Candice LeRae that would be a match I’d love to see, as well. Overall, I think she absolutely has the potential to be one the best women on WWE’s entire roster.

Are you happy Kairi Sane won the Mae Young Classic? What would you like to see from her in NXT and WWE? Do you think she’ll win the championship at TakeOver? Share your thoughts below!