Three of NXT's best clash in a Triple Threat Match for the right to challenge NXT Women's Champion Asuka at TakeOver. Video courtesy of the award-winning WWE Network.

With an NXT Women’s Championship match hanging in the balance, all three Superstars were willing to do whatever it took to get the huge opportunity. For Alexa Bliss, that meant watching the bout from ringside and letting her two rivals duke it out, waiting for the right moment to strike. For Carmella, it meant showing no fear and going after the towering Nia Jax. For the powerful Jax, it meant using her strength to punish The Princess of Staten Island.

That is how the bout played out early on, with Carmella showing a ton of heart, withstanding the devastation caused by Jax, only for Alexa to sneak in and try to steal the title opportunity. The small but fierce Bliss took advantage of Nia diving shoulder-first into the ring post, pummeling Carmella and hitting Jax with the Sparkle Splash.

Jax reasserted her dominance, simultaneously suplexing her two rivals before catching a diving Carmella on the arena floor. The Princess of Staten Island recovered and tried to earn a submission victory, first with an inverted triangle hold on Bliss, then a sleeper hold on Nia. Carmella tried to stay on the attack, but the powerful Nia Jax caught her in the corner, slammed her to the mat and crushed Carmella with a leg drop to move on to TakeOver.

Though Jax was riding high after her victory, she soon found herself face to face with the NXT Women’s Champion, who smiled before taking another step closer to the new No. 1 contender. The towering challenger warned Asuka not to get that close again before TakeOver, but the NXT Women’s Champion answered only with the devilish smile that has spelled the demise of her foes. Will it be the same for Jax in two weeks at TakeOver: The End...?

TakeOver preview: Asuka vs. Nia Jax