finn-balor-johnny-gargano-nxt.jpg
WWE

The upcoming NXT TakeOver: WarGames card was dealt a blow on Tuesday during this week's edition of "WWE Backstage" on FS1 with news Johnny Gargano is officially out of his planned match with Finn Balor. The two were set to face off after Balor's epic heel turn on the Oct. 23 edition NXT's weekly show on the USA Network. Gargano's removal from the match is due to a neck injury, which has left medical officials unable to clear him for an in-ring return.

While Balor has wrestled on four NXT house shows recently since his return to the brand, he has not had a televised match since August's WWE SummerSlam pay-per-view. He made a surprising return to NXT on Oct. 2, and on Oct. 23, Balor came to the ring as Gargano and Tommaso Ciampa were facing down The Undisputed Era, seemingly to provide backup. He quickly turned heel, however, delivering a kick to Gargano before ultimately driving him into the entrance ramp with his signature 1916 maneuver.

Big fan of WWE? Subscribe to our podcast -- State of Combat with Brian Campbell -- where we go in depth on everything you need to know in WWE each week.

Gargano has only wrestled once since August, a match with Shane Thorne on the Oct. 2. There's no word on who -- if anyone -- Balor will face on the WarGames card in replacement. NXT TakeOver: WarGames takes place on Saturday, Nov. 23 at Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Illinois.

More WWE news, rumors

  • There was some more breaking news we learned Tuesday night during "WWE BackStage" as The Miz and Paige have both signed multi-year extensions with WWE. Miz wrestled his first WWE match at Armageddon 2004. Paige debuted for NXT in May 2012 before eventually becoming the youngest Diva's champion in company history. She wrestled the final match of her career in December 2017, and has operated as a backstage talent and briefly as an on-screen authority figure since.
  • Nick Jackson of The Young Bucks responded to a fan inquiring about AEW's win-loss records and potential issues down the road by claiming the records will "reset." This furthers the  sports-feel of the promotion by effectively breaking things into seasons, in theory.
  • Wednesday Night War preview: NXT this week features a ladder match between Mia Yim and Io Shirai to determine which team will have the advantage at WarGames. Lio Rush defends the cruiserweight championship against Angel Garza while there have been teases of further invasions from Raw and SmackDown. AEW Dynamite features Chris Jericho and Sammy Guevara challenging SCU for the AEW tag titles and the rubber match between PAC and Adam "Hangman" Page.