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#7 Asuka vs. Ember Moon
As 2017 began, Asuka looked untouchable atop the NXT Women's Division. With a genuinely thin division throughout the months between TakeOver: Brooklyn II and TakeOver: Orlando, NXT did the wise thing in making its champion look a world apart from any feasible competition, beginning to promote her undefeated streak which would soon shatter Goldberg's record. Throughout the winter, we all knew that Ember Moon would eventually be the one to step up, we just wondered when.
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In another wise move, it was decided that the clash would be saved for the WrestleMania TakeOver. Many thought that Ember Moon would be the one to dethrone Asuka as champion, with the big story behind the match being her devastating Eclipse finisher. If the move landed, we were told that Asuka's run would be at an end. It didn't, as Asuka shoved the referee into the turnbuckle to avoid the attack and pick up the victory.
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After such shenanigans, a rematch was inevitable. NXT did the best at selling it by working a legitimate injury Ember sustained into the feud itself, furthering the idea that Asuka was afraid of her and the Eclipse. Things got personal. The feud boiled throughout July and August.
The decisive encounter happened in Brooklyn in one of the best matches of the year. To our astonishment, the hype surrounding the Eclipse proved to be just that - hype - at least as far as Asuka was concerned. She kicked out, shocking the crowd, and defeated Ember. Out of competition, Asuka soon vacated the NXT Women's Championship and moved on to Monday Night RAW.
Though the ending to the story wasn't the classically "happy" one that everyone expected, it put Ember Moon over as a sympathetic figure and showed the world just how good she really is, ultimately preparing the way for her big title win at TakeOver: War Games.
As for Asuka, this feud took her streak and overall run from record-breaking to legendary. Nigel McGuiness described her correctly as "an icon in her own time" and it was hard to argue with him.
