EVOLVE officially announced today that they would be streaming tonight’s show in Summit, Illinois on WWNLive.com.
This had been expected when they, at the last minute, streamed last night’s show in Livonia, Michigan on their own after FloSports announced they would no longer be broadcasting any of the WWN events. This came one week after FloSports filed suit against WWN alleging they were defrauded regarding business information.
WWN announced tonight’s show would be available as an iPPV for $9.99, which includes the live broadcast and video-on-demand showing. However, if you have proof of a subscription with FloSlam you can get a $5 refund so the price would be $4.99. To get the discount you have to send proof of your subscription to [email protected].
The show tonight from the Summit Park District, near Chicago, will start at 9 p.m. Eastern time:
Matt Riddle vs. Tracy Williams in an anything goes match for the WWN title
Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Keith Lee for the EVOLVE title
Ethan Page & ACH vs. Chris Dickinson & Jaka for the EVOLVE tag team titles
Stevie Fierce vs. GPA vs. Matt Knicks vs. Bryce Benjamin for the championship of Freelance Wrestling
Darby Allin vs. DJZ
James Drake vs. Austin Theory
Anthony Henry vs. Jason Kincaid
There will also be a live Cedric Alexander vs. Fred Yehi opener, but that will take place before the broadcast goes on the air since WWN was not given permission to put Alexander on its streaming portion of the show.
Submitted by reader Sidney Pullar III from the Elmcor Center in Queens, NY
EVOLVE 91
– ACH vs. Ethan Page
Since these two are affectionately being known as The Troll Boyz, they came out together even though they were wrestling each other to their Troll Boyz theme in the tune of Bad Boyz. This was a pure and simple comedy match trolling on different types of wrestling from catch to highflying to strong style. The finish came on a Drizzle-maker where Page went for the Rainmaker and ACH fell before he even landed it for the win. Not for everyone but funny overall.
– Timothy Thatcher (w/Stokely Hathaway) vs. Darby Allin
Nice match with strength and submissions vs highflying daredevil style. Allin pulled out the win with a leg lock into a pin combination. After the match, Thatcher and Hathaway had a discussion and staredown which ended with them hugging and Stokely begging Thatcher not to go.
– EVOLVE Tag Team Champions Anthony Henry & James Drake vs. Fred Yehi & Jason Kincaid
Good back and forth match. A little sloppy at times, but a lot of high risk offense and double team maneuvers throughout. The Troll Boyz joined commentary, possibly teasing them going after the tag titles. The story was about Yehi & Kincaid being less experienced as a team than Henry & Drake which winded up costing them. The highlight spot featured a struggle on the top between Drake & Kincaid which ended with Kincaid hitting a sunset flip powerbomb on Drake to the floor onto both Henry & Yehi. Henry got the win with a huge moonsault on Kincaid. After the match, Kincaid and Yehi had a heated staredown which ended with them shaking hands.
– Austin Theory (w/Priscilla Kelly) vs. Mark Haskins
Huge pop for the UK’s own Haskins. Kelly got involved a lot, but in the end Haskins got the win by submission tapping Theory out.
– Catch Point (Jaka and Chris Dinkinson) vs South Pacific Power Trip (Travis Banks and T.K. Cooper) w/Dahlia Black
This is a rematch from Mercury Rising 2017 which started a lot of the buzz around these two teams. Great back and forth tag team contest with many cool spots, reversals and counters from both teams throughout. Jaka and Dinkinson won the match after hitting their finisher, The Death Trap.
– Fatal 4 Way Match for the WWN Championship: Matt Riddle (c) vs Tracy Williams w/Stokely Hathaway vs PROGRESS Atlas Champion WALTER vs Keith Lee
This started with a staredown with the Big Lads, WALTER and Keith Lee which was broken up by Williams and Riddle. Williams played the a-hole who tried to pick the scraps and sneak out a win. WALTER played the role of destroyer, brutalizing the other 3 with chops and throws around the ring. Lee was his usual amazing self, showing off his charisma, strength and athleticism including the spot of the match in which WALTER attempted a German suplex on Riddle where Lee came behind WALTER and gave both men a German that almost flipped Riddle out of the ring.
Riddle was the never say die face in this match, taking punishment from all and never backing down until it came down to him and Williams in which he reversed a crossface into the Bromission for the win. Overall a great display from all four men and match of the night. Post match, Lee teased a heel turn as he once again hesitated to give Riddle a fist bump. Riddle also offered WALTER a fist bump which he walked away from previewing their match later at PROGRESS.
There was about 150-200 people for the EVOLVE portion of the show, but an hour later, it was standing room only (1500 or so) with no a/c which made for tough conditions.
PROGRESS
Jim Smallman came out to kick off the show to a huge pop and loud “This Is PROGRESS” chants. After welcoming us, the crowd started a “Please Come Back” chant which Jim responded that it was first time he heard that two minutes into the show. He then introduced the WWE UK and PROGRESS Champion Pete Dunne who came out for a promo informing us of his injury and being off tonight’s show. He cut a fantastic heel promo claiming to own PROGRESS, the WWE and NYC.
This brought out 205 Live’s own “Gentleman” Jack Gallagher who was supposed to fight Dunne tonight. He wanted to shake Dunne’s hand and do their match at a future date but Dunne left after smacking Jack’s hand away. Zach Gibson came out to interrupt Gallagher to huge heat and very loud “Zach is Crap” chants. His promo led into the first match:
– “Gentleman” Jack Gallagher vs Zach Gibson
Good match with excellent psychology throughout. Jack got the win with his corner dropkick followed by a top rope elbow drop.
– Deonna Purazzo & Jinny vs Dahlia Black & Dakota Kai
This was a auality ladies tag match with some good heat for Jinny and a helluva pop for the duo of Black & Kai. Very good match with Purazzo getting the win with a hanging neckbreaker.
Good technical affair with Dijak as the standout, showing off his amazing athleticism. Thatcher focused on the arm for the match and after a Hathaway distraction got the win with Fujiuwa Armbar.
– No DQ Match: Joey Janela vs Jimmy Havoc
This was probably the match that had the crowd most invested in it. It was hardcore wrestling at its best with chairs, tables, thumbtacks and even cinder blocks. A great spot saw Jimmy set up Joey in the corner sitting in a metal folding chair, Havoc then ran and tried a monkey flip which Janela flipped with the chair and landed sitting down with his legs crossed. The finish saw Havoc take off Janela’s boots, bite his toes, then drop him feet first onto the thumbtacks which then led into a German suplex into the cinder blocks followed by the Acid Rainmaker for the win. Insane spectacle.
Intermission to get some air. The building has to be in the 90 degree territory. Even with the heat, the place packed right back up for the second half of the show
– Fatal 4 Way Match: Mark Andrews vs Mark Haskins vs Austin Theory vs Keith Lee
Theory makes his PROGRESS debut in this match replacing Gibson who was supposed to be in this match as a 3 way with Haskins and Andrews until the Dunne injury changed the card. This was a really good match here with each man getting the spotlight, but based on skill and reaction Keith Lee was the star. Haskins got the win on his Evolve opponent Theory, once again tapping him out.
– PROGRESS Tag Team Titles Match: British Strong Style (Tyler Bate & Trent Seven) w vs South Pacific Power Trip (Travis Banks & T.K Cooper) w/Dahlia Black
Five minutes into the match, Banks did a suicide dive onto Seven & Bate at ringside and then Cooper got on top while Banks held BSS and did a crazy twisting shooting star. He landed directly down on the floor feet first between all 3 men as no one really broke the fall for him. When Cooper landed, his right foot was twisted to the left in an image eerily reminiscent of Sid at WCW Souled Out 2001. Once Dahlia saw his ankle, she was visibly distraught. The crowd got silent as staff and medical attendants looked after T.K. Jim asked that we all show support for Cooper which led to a loud “T.K.” chant. One of the best displays of support from a wrestling crowd that I have ever seen for an injury especially here in New York City. Cooper was carried out by EMTs and some wrestlers. Afterward, Banks took the mic from Jim and requested a handicap match against British Strong Style.
Travis Banks vs British Strong Style in a handicap match
High energy and frenetic pace from Banks in this. You can tell that he was reeling and using the emotion of seeing his friend get hurt. Banks got the win on Seven to set up his big PROGRESS Title Match against Pete Dunne in September.
– PROGRESS Atlas Champion WALTER vs Matt Riddle
This was the match of the day from either company and a very worthy main event for such a high energy, engaging show. This was a hard hitting fight with some of the hardest chops of the entire year. WALTER impressed the New York crowd with some hard hitting chops that landed with vicious thuds. But, it was Riddle with some amazing fighting spirit, selling and his innovative offense who put WALTER away with the Bromission to win his second PROGRESS Atlas Championship.
EVOLVE was back at La Boom in Queens, New York today with a show headlined by Matt Riddle defending his WWN Championship against Keith Lee. Here are the results:
– Tracy Williams defeated ACH
Williams submitted ACH with a crossface. ACH let it be known after that he wasn’t happy to be in the opening match.
– Timothy Thatcher (w/ Stokely Hathaway) defeated Jason Kincaid
Thatcher won with an armbar. Kincaid offered him a post-match handshake, but Thatcher turned his back and walked away as Hathaway pointed and laughed.
– Fred Yehi defeated Chris Dickinson (w/ Jaka)
This was a physical, hard-fought match. Yehi caught Dickinson with the Koji Clutch to pick up the win.
– EVOLVE Champion Zack Sabre Jr. defeated Jaka to retain his title
Sabre won with his bridging pinning combination after a battle. The crowd showed Jaka respect for hanging in there with the champ.
Hathaway was out to talk to Sabre after the match, but Darby Allin tried to take the mic and continue his quest for a title match. Thatcher didn’t allow Allin to and instead took the mic himself. He demanded that the next time he sees Sabre it’ll be for the EVOLVE Championship in a no holds barred match.
Thatcher then destroyed Sabre with a headbutt and attacked Allin, putting his injured arm in a hold as Hathaway taunted Allin.
– Ethan Page defeated Thomas Sharp (the former Gatekeeper)
Sharp put in an impressive performance and stood up to his former employer, but Page won with the Spinning Dwayne.
– Trent Barreta defeated Austin Theory
A Dudebuster from Trent ended this one. Priscilla Kelly then made her way to the ring, with the distraction allowing Theory enough time to hit a low blow on Trent and lay him out with a TKO. Kelly bit Trent’s neck before leaving with Theory.
– WWN Champion Matt Riddle defeated Keith Lee to retain his title
This was an incredible match, with Riddle being ragdolled by the powerhouse that is Lee. Lee hit a huge pounce early. Riddle was able to lift him up for a gutwrench suplex, a Bro to Sleep, and a German suplex. The crowd was into both men with dueling chants as they battled at a great pace.
Riddle retained after hitting Lee with a flying knee and collapsing onto him for the pin.
The crowd gave the two of them a huge reaction until Page came down to ruin the moment. He stomped Riddle and Lee while they were down and said he hates them for their favored positions in EVOLVE
Williams and Hathaway also came out. Williams said he would be facing Riddle for the WWN title on August 12th before holding him up and allowing Hathaway to slap him. Lee and Riddle eventually recovered and ran Page off so they could share a fist-bump to show their respect. The crowd cheered as the show went off the air.
There was also an EVOLVE show in Melrose, Massachusetts last night. Here are the quick results from that event:
EVOLVE Champion Zack Sabre Jr. defeated WWN Champion Matt Riddle in a non-title champion vs. champion match
The first EVOLVE show of this weekend took place in Summit, Illinois this afternoon. Here are the results:
– Keith Lee defeated Donovan Dijak
This was one of the most unique “Hoss Fight” matches in a long time. They worked a high-risk style. The match included a reverse rana, a dive into the crowd, and kip ups. These men are so athletic for their size. Lee hoisted Dijak to the second rope and delivered a Spirit Bomb to win this battle.
– Fred Yehi defeated Jason Kincaid
Yehi has some of the most explosive offense in wrestling and has the ability to overpower larger men. Kincaid wasn’t able to escape the Koji Clutch and was forced to submit.
– Lio Rush defeated Austin Theory
Theory held the advantage early before Rush could run wild. A tope to the outside by Rush had the place on their feet. Rush got great height on a frog splash to pick up the win.
Priscilla Kelly made her way to the ring after the match to tell Theory that she sees something in him and he belongs with her.
– Tracy Williams (w/ Catch Point and Stokely Hathaway) defeated Jeff Cobb
Cobb’s power was on display here, but Williams avoided the Tour of the Islands at all costs and countered into a roll-up to score the pin.
– EVOLVE Tag Team Champions Jaka & Chris Dickinson defeated Matt Knicks & Isaias Velazquez to retain their titles
The crowd loved the challengers from Freelance Wrestling in their hometown here. They put on a quality showing, but Catch Point was just too much for them. A huge series of powerbombs and suplexes led to Catch Point hitting their finish and retaining.
– EVOLVE Champion Zack Sabre Jr. defeated Ethan Page to retain his title
This was a battle. Sabre locked in a dragon sleeper to wear down Page, and it took four penalty kicks to finally put away All Ego.
Darby Allin (with his arm in a sling) made his way to the ring after the match to say he wants to become EVOLVE Champion someday.
– WWN Champion Matthew Riddle defeated Kyle O’Reilly to retain his title
There was physical striking all through this match. They did kicks to the chest, strong style forearms, chokes, and holds. Riddle hit a jumping tombstone and locked in the Bromission for the victory.
EVOLVE closed out its two-show weekend in New York with EVOLVE 83 taking place in Brooklyn on Sunday night. Here are the results:
– Ethan Page defeated Austin Theory with the Spinning Dwayne.
Page hit his finisher out of nowhere to get the pin, but this was a decisive victory for him. He only came out with one Gatekeeper (Blaster McMassive) after the other one (Flex Rumblecrunch) was written off on Saturday and posted that he’s leaving pro wrestling due to injuries taking their toll.
Theory has aided Darby Allin in his feud against Page, including getting involved in their last man standing match at EVOLVE 82. Allin is out of action for a while after a shovel shot fractured his elbow in that match. Priscilla Kelly once again came out to ringside here, though her intentions weren’t made any more clear.
– Stokely Hathaway and Tracy Williams made their way to the ring for a special announcement. Williams said that Catch Point always spends more time talking and bickering than fighting, and that management wasn’t his strong suit. Hathaway then announced that, as of today, he will be representing Catch Point.
That brought out Fred Yehi, Chris Dickinson, and Jaka. Yehi said this wasn’t what he signed up for and quit the stable, while Dickinson and Jaka agreed to stay on. Dickinson mentioned that he was still with the group as long as it remained about competition. Williams said that it was as the two agreed to face off.
– Tracy Williams defeated Chris Dickinson by making him submit to the crossface.
Dickinson had the advantage following a striking sequence near the finish. He connected with an enzuigiri and went for a springboard until Williams caught him in a crossface and submitted him. They did the Catch Point handshake after it was over, while Jaka called out ACH for the next match.
– Jaka defeated ACH after hitting a tiger bomb.
ACH taking the loss here was surprising, though it was probably the right call. It wouldn’t have made much sense for both Jaka and Dickinson to lose after winning the EVOLVE tag titles on Saturday. They had a good back and forth match as neither was able to stay on top for long. ACH seemed to be going for a brainbuster, but Jaka was able to get out of it and hit the tiger bomb for the win.
– Keith Lee defeated David Starr with a powerslam.
While these two definitely have a better match in them, this connected with the crowd as much as anything else on the show and was really good. Lee controlled most of the match and got a needed win. Starr did well the few times he was on offense, with the crowd giving him a good ovation and chanting “Please come back.”
– Kyle O’Reilly defeated Fred Yehi by submission as he locked in an armbar.
They were clearly trying to have a great match and mostly delivered. It may have come off even better with a crowd that was more responsive. They predictably utilized a lot of striking and mat wrestling, with Yehi being presented as nearly equal to O’Reilly. He evaded O’Reilly’s armbar attempts until getting hit with a brainbuster and being unable to fight it off any longer.
– EVOLVE Champion Zack Sabre Jr. defeated Lio Rush to retain his title after trapping Rush in a pin.
Rush was able to wrestle with Sabre early until the champion took over. Rush was finally able to make a comeback and get some momentum towards the end. He got a big near fall off of a standing Spanish fly and a frog splash, then mostly stayed on offense until Sabre trapped him in a pin to retain in a really good match.
Page and the remaining Gatekeeper walked out to the stage after the match was over. Page mentioned Sabre ending the other Gatekeeper’s career at EVOLVE 82. He said that he could have brought him out with a sling, but fired him instead. A new Gatekeeper then debuted and tried to attack Sabre. Both Gatekeepers ended up laying out Sabre as Page said that he was going to take his title next month.
– WWN Champion Matt Riddle defeated Drew Galloway in an I Quit match to retain his title after Galloway gave up while Riddle had the Bromission applied.
The stipulation predictably didn’t help here. Riddle took a lot of damage, including a short piledriver, three Future Shock DDTs in succession, and a Future Shock DDT on a chair but wouldn’t give up. Galloway grabbed a rope from under the ring, tied Riddle’s arms behind his back in the ring ropes, and started punching him.
Riddle refused to give up, with Galloway turning his attention to the referee to continue the storyline that he believed there was a conspiracy against him. Riddle kicked Galloway and the referee untied him. Galloway later got a sledgehammer from under the ring and low blowed Riddle when he tried to stop him from using it. Galloway again turned his attention to the referee, then Riddle locked in the Bromission to win.
Williams, Dickinson, Jaka, and Hathaway had watched most of the match from the stage. They entered the ring when it was over to ask if Riddle was with them. He laughed at Hathaway and said that he wasn’t before being attacked from behind by Galloway. Hathaway told Riddle that he was getting what he deserved as the members of Catch Point left. Galloway once again got the sledgehammer, but Keith Lee made the save.
Hathaway was in Lee’s face when Lee pushed him into a Bro to Sleep from Riddle. Lee and Riddle fist-bumped to end the show after Lee placed the WWN title on Riddle’s shoulder to make it known that he had his sights set on the championship.
– WWN Champion Matt Riddle defeated Timothy Thatcher (w/ Stokely Hathaway) to retain his title
The crowd was taunting “Trashy Tim” much more than usual tonight. Ground work and holds by Thatcher kept the explosive Riddle controlled early on. After some ground work of his own, Riddle was able to score a victory over the former EVOLVE Champion with the Bromission to the dismay of Hathaway.
– ACH defeated Austin Theory
This was an Impressive showing by the teenager Austin Theory against ACH, who is consistently at a top level. ACH won with a brainbuster.
– Drew Galloway vs. EVOLVE Champion Zack Sabre Jr. did not officially happen
Galloway was worried that referee DA Brewer would cost him this match like Galloway claimed happened the last time he was in La Boom, so he destroyed Brewer with a headbutt. Sabre ran out to confront Galloway and the fight was on until Ethan Page and The Gatekeepers got involved.
Page was holding Sabre as Galloway made his way to the back to retrieve a sledgehammer, which Galloway wanted to use on the EVOLVE Championship. Keith Lee made the save by plowing through both Gatekeepers and running off Galloway. Page and one Gatekeeper escaped, yet Sabre was able to catch the other one and proceeded to attack his arm with a vicious hold.
– Kyle O’Reilly defeated Keith Lee
The people love Keith Lee in EVOLVE, which set the tone for this match. The referee stopped this at one point due to a low blow on Lee, but the big man asked for the match to be restarted. After the two battled some more, O’Reilly hit a brainbuster and scored the pinfall victory. The crowd was not happy with Lee losing here.
– Chris Dickinson & Jaka defeated Tracy Williams & Fred Yehi to win the EVOLVE Tag Team Championship
Both teams were representing Catch Point and had an excellent match. It took everything Jaka and Dickinson had to put away the former champions. At one point Jaka cleared the guard rail and ended up in the front row on a dive. A huge release powerbomb by Dickinson finished it off and we had new champions.
The two teams shook hands in a show of respect before Larry Dallas appeared to stir the pot, insinuating that Williams was negotiating with Stokely Hathaway to represent Catch Point. Fred Yehi had enough, and snapped and destroyed Dallas with a series of German suplexes. Dallas stayed down in the ring so long that the ring crew rolled him up in the canvas they were changing to prepare for our last man standing main event and simply carried him away.
– Ethan Page defeated Darby Allin in a last man standing match
They had a brutal last man standing match. They fought all over ringside, including Allin doing a stage dive. There were chairs, a shovel, a body bag, and thumbtacks all used in this one.
A Gatekeeper, Austin Theory, and Priscilla Kelly were all caught in the crossfire during the match. Page was busted open and it only made him more vicious. Allin took an incredible amount of punishment, including a package piledriver, a powerbomb while trapped inside a thumbtack-filled body bag, a shovel shot, and multiple chair shots before Page was declared the winner.
Given that there’s so much going on in Orlando that hasn’t been streamed live or released for consumption yet, it’s probably premature to declare anyone the standout performer of WrestleMania week.
But still, it’s hard to believe that anyone has had three matches as good as Keith Lee has had. His week began against Ricochet on Thursday night at EVOLVE 80 and continued hours later opposite Lio Rush at Joey Janela’s Spring Break. On Friday, Lee again put on the best match at EVOLVE 81 against Donovan Dijak.
Lee has been fortunate to face opponents who can enhance what he does in the ring. Ricochet was the perfect matchup for him to show his power and athleticism. Rush was just as motivated to prove himself. And Dijak is another one of the most impressive big men on the indies.
Unlike the previous night, Lee was victorious at EVOLVE 81 in what was a total showcase of his abilities. At one point, Dijak went for a flip to the outside, but Lee mostly caught him as they fell backwards to the barricade before transitioning into an apron powerbomb.
Lee finally connected with a moonsault that he’d been trying to hit all match, but Dijak kicked out. They traded chokeslam attempts, then Lee hit his Spirit Bomb for the win. Lee showed respect to Dijak after it was over, and both put in memorable performances.
While Lee and Dijak grabbed everyone’s attention, the main event was a strong contender for the show’s most memorable match. Ethan Page and Darby Allin went at it in an insane anything goes match, with Allin gaining the advantage in their rivalry when it was over.
Allin may be the most insane wrestler in the world. He was bloodied early on as Page took control, including throwing him into a bunch of chairs on the outside and hurling him into a wall. Allin was later attempting to climb a massive ladder when he got sidetracked by Page’s Gatekeepers, leading to Page slamming him off the ladder through tables that were set up outside of the ring.
Page hit a package piledriver between two chairs, but Allin wouldn’t quit and kicked out. The Gatekeepers attempted to get involved, which brought out Priscilla Kelly as she tried to get their attention. Austin Theory entered the scene to fight them off. While the action went into the crowd, Allin wiped out The Gatekeepers with a dive off of a balcony while he had a trash can covering most of his body.
Back in the ring, Allin clobbered Page with trash can shots until Page landed on a table. Allin climbed the ladder and hit a splash through the table for the victory.
Nothing else was quite as memorable as those bouts, but Matt Riddle and Fred Yehi had a solid semi-main event. Yehi worked over Riddle’s neck for much of the match, with Lenny Leonard alleging on commentary that Riddle had injured it the night prior. Yehi defeated his Catch Point teammate after countering a Bromission attempt into the Koji clutch. Riddle tried to reach for the ropes, but passed out as the referee called for the bell.
Catch Point left the scene mostly united, though there was some dissension within the group earlier in the night. Tracy Williams, Chris Dickinson & Jaka teamed up to beat Jason Kincaid, Austin Theory & Sammy Guevara in a six-man tag match, and it was Dickinson and Jaka who won it with a doomsday device chokeslam while Kincaid seemed to be on the verge of tapping out Williams.
Jaka got on the mic to ask about a tag title shot against Williams and Yehi for him and Dickinson. Williams told Jaka to focus on their match against the South Pacific Power Trip at the WWN Supershow on Saturday, but Yehi said that they deserved a shot and would be getting one.
Larry Dallas then arrived to announce Williams and Yehi vs. Dickinson and Jaka for the EVOLVE Tag Team Championship on April 22nd in Queens, New York.
After being laid out by Michael Elgin the previous night, Zack Sabre Jr. opened EVOLVE 81 where things had left off by calling out Elgin for the opener. Despite seemingly granting Elgin a title shot on Thursday, Sabre’s EVOLVE Championship wasn’t on the line. But he was still able to get the win by trapping Elgin in a pinning situation after Elgin seemed to have the advantage in the closing stretch.
Lio Rush then came out to the ring to say that he wanted his upcoming match against Sabre at EVOLVE’s next set of shows to be for the title. Sabre told him to hold his horses since he still has to defend against Mark Haskins at the Supershow, but said that he’d put his belt on the line once he does.
Drew Galloway interrupted them, telling Sabre not to disrespect the championship and chiding Rush for looking ahead of their match, which was up next.
It was announced that the winner would get a title match at the next set of events in New York, and Galloway ensured that would be him by hitting a huge swinging Future Shock DDT and a piledriver to get the win.
In the only other match on the card, Timothy Thatcher couldn’t keep any momentum that previously winning his first match since losing the EVOLVE Championship brought. Thatcher was pinned by ACH following a brainbuster, then threatened to fire Stokely Hathaway if he can’t get him into the WWN title match at the Supershow.
Final Thoughts —
Lee vs. Dijak was a strong contender for best match of the week so far. Page vs. Allin was everything that it should have been and is worth seeing if you like that type of hardcore style. Most of the other matches were good, but those were the two highlights.
The EVOLVE vs. PROGRESS Supershow on Saturday night should mix things up a bit by adding some people who aren’t usually on EVOLVE cards. Sabre vs. Haskins, ACH vs. Pete Dunne, Dickinson & Jaka vs. Travis Banks & TK Cooper, and Page vs. Jimmy Havoc all look pretty interesting. The WWN Championship elimination match (with Galloway, Riddle, Yehi, Williams, Parrow, and Jon Davis) should be fun as well.
EVOLVE 81 results —
Darby Allin defeated Ethan Page in an anything goes match
Fred Yehi defeated Matt Riddle
Tracy Williams, Chris Dickinson & Jaka defeated Jason Kincaid, Austin Theory & Sammy Guevara
ACH defeated Timothy Thatcher
Keith Lee defeated Donovan Dijak
Drew Galloway defeated Lio Rush
EVOLVE Champion Zack Sabre Jr. defeated Michael Elgin in a non-title match
With the non-WWE festivities surrounding WrestleMania now expanding to what has become nearly a full week of shows, promotions and wrestlers are afforded more opportunities than ever to prove themselves in front of some of the biggest crowds they’ll see all year.
EVOLVE kicked things off in Orlando with the first major show of the week that was streamed live. And by the time EVOLVE 80 was over, a clear candidate had emerged as the early breakout star of WrestleMania weekend.
With Ricochet helping to get the most out of him, Keith Lee had his best match since arriving in EVOLVE and came off as a star. Their styles seemed like they would mesh effortlessly before it even began, and the results were as expected. Lee used his power while Ricochet relied on his quickness and athleticism, though Lee attempted to keep up with him at points.
In the end, Ricochet won after needing a springboard 450 splash, two shooting star presses, and a 630 to get the job done. Lee attempted to fight back after the second SSP, but Ricochet connected with strikes to keep the advantage.
Lee looked great even in defeat. While it would’ve been ideal for him to win, this did more for him than beating almost anyone else on the roster would have.
ACH also had his best EVOLVE showing yet against Zack Sabre Jr. in the main event. They had the type of excellent back and forth title match that had been missing on most EVOLVE shows during Timothy Thatcher’s reign as champion, with Sabre retaining at its conclusion.
During the closing stretch, Sabre kicked out of ACH’s brainbuster. ACH got caught in a triangle choke after trying to follow up with a 450. He tried to power out, but ZSJ was able to trap him in a double armbar for the submission.
Though he kept his title, Sabre didn’t end the night on a high note. He was cutting a promo about his upcoming matches in Orlando when Michael Elgin came out to ask if Sabre would put his championship on the line when they face off tomorrow. Sabre said that he’d defend against anyone before Elgin laid him out to close the show.
Elgin teamed with Donovan Dijak in the semi-main event as they debuted by challenging Tracy Williams & Fred Yehi for their tag titles. The champions retained, though the challengers worked pretty well together. Williams and Yehi hit a double team powerbomb on Dijak, then Williams transitioned into a crossface. Dijak tried to get to his feet until Yehi dropkicked his knees and he fell back down to the mat and tapped out.
The night opened with Drew Galloway picking up a surprisingly dominant win over Matt Riddle. Their grudge match was as advertised with intense brawling on the floor. Galloway piledrove Riddle through a table and shortly after hit a Future Shock DDT and another piledriver for the victory.
That evened things for Galloway, who lost his last match to Riddle by ref stoppage. They’ll both be in the elimination match to crown the first WWN Champion at Saturday night’s Supershow.
Chris Dickinson and Jaka made the save for Riddle after his loss, but they were the only Catch Point members to come to his aid. Larry Dallas brought up Williams and Yehi’s absence after their tag title defense, attempting to create more tension within Catch Point. His efforts seemed to be effective as Dickinson and Jaka questioned when they would get their tag title shot.
Ethan Page and his Gatekeepers worked together as a more cohesive unit, though their troubles came externally. The Gatekeepers first demolished Facade and Michael Richard Blaze (who had attended the WWN seminar earlier in the day) and Page beat Austin Theory with the spinning Dwayne.
Page got on the mic after, vowing to continue bringing chaos throughout the weekend if he isn’t given an EVOLVE title shot. He threatened to ruin EVOLVE’s business relationship with PROGRESS until he was interrupted by Priscilla Kelly. A group of people dressed up as medics wearing face paint entered with a body bag like the one that Page and The Gatekeepers last left Darby Allin in.
Page and The Gatekeepers didn’t want to open it at first, instead trying to destroy it and throwing it to the outside. They finally relented, and Allin emerged with a metal pipe to run them off. He challenged Page to an anything goes match tomorrow and Page accepted.
Elsewhere on the show, Jaka vs. Jason Kincaid was turned into a surprise three-way bout with the addition of Lio Rush at the last minute. With his EVOLVE return pushed up a day, Rush showcased his offense and won by hitting the Rush Hour on Kincaid, connecting on a suicide dive to the outside on Jaka, and seamlessly coming back in with a frog splash on Kincaid.
Timothy Thatcher appeared for the first time since his marathon reign as EVOLVE Champion ended. He defeated Chris Dickinson with a choke to regain some momentum. Dickinson’s intensity served as a good matchup for Thatcher, and the show was less reliant on Thatcher having a great match now that he’s without the title.
Final Thoughts —
This was a good way to start WrestleMania week off. Lee vs. Ricochet and Sabre Jr. vs. ACH were both great matches that should still be remembered by the time everything in Orlando is over. Nothing else was at that level, but Friday’s card looks deeper on paper, with ZSJ vs. Elgin, Riddle vs. Yehi, Page vs. Allin, Lee vs. Dijak, and Galloway vs. Rush.
EVOLVE 80 results —
EVOLVE Champion Zack Sabre Jr. defeated ACH to retain his title
EVOLVE Tag Team Champions Tracy Williams & Fred Yehi defeated Michael Elgin & Donovan Dijak to retain their titles
Ricochet defeated Keith Lee
Ethan Page defeated Austin Theory
The Gatekeepers defeated Facade & Michael Richard Blaze
Lio Rush defeated Jason Kincaid and Jaka in a three-way match
That goes without saying given the state of, well, pretty much everything in the world. But the professional wrestling business has rapidly changed alongside everything else, with EVOLVE at the forefront of so many of those changes.
The company has furthered its relationship with WWE in that time period, even to the point where it once felt like they were an unofficial developmental territory. A new relationship was later formed with FloSlam as EVOLVE traded in its in-house options to become the featured product of the new streaming service.
So much talent has come and gone in that year-plus. Johnny Gargano moved on from his role as the face of EVOLVE to a full-time position as one of the better parts of NXT with Tommaso Ciampa. Chris Hero made an unlikely return to NXT and once again took the name Kassius Ohno. Drew Gulak, TJ Perkins, Tony Nese, and Cedric Alexander joined the WWE roster as featured players on 205 Live after the Cruiserweight Classic.
It seemed like the only thing that hadn’t changed since Timothy Thatcher won the EVOLVE title on July 10th, 2015 was that he remained the promotion’s champion. That ended on Saturday night at EVOLVE 79.
Zack Sabre Jr. became the new EVOLVE Champion as he submitted Thatcher in front of a lively crowd at La Boom in Queens, New York. The nearly-excellent match was one of the best of Thatcher’s largely lackluster reign. The audience played its part in a way that they hadn’t done in most previous defenses and Thatcher himself was better in this match too. He embraced being a heel better than he ever has in EVOLVE and seemed to play to the reaction that he was getting.
The crowd was desperate for the title switch, both to get the championship on Sabre and to take it from Thatcher, and they finally got it when Sabre wrapped up both of Thatcher’s arms in the Octopus hold and kicked him in the head to get the submission. There may have been better moments in the past to do the championship change, but it worked well here. And the title now belongs to the person who is arguably the best worker and biggest star in the company.
Sabre had been primed to take the mantle of best unsigned wrestler in the world from Hero. The torch was even passed during Hero’s final independent wrestling match. Sabre didn’t end up joining WWE after the CWC, but he will now be making his debut for New Japan Pro Wrestling and possibly finding a long-term home there. That schedule may keep him from becoming the new face of EVOLVE and having a reign as long as his predecessor, but there are plenty of options for the next title holder.
While Thatcher attempted to continue EVOLVE tradition and hand over the championship to Sabre after prying it from a distraught Stokely Hathaway’s hands, Ethan Page blindsided Sabre to set up a potential match down the road. He was ran off by ACH, who then vowed to become the next champion.
Sabre delivered a brief speech to the crowd. He spoke out against discrimination and said that both the world and pro wrestling are for everyone. The locker room had come out to hear his speech, and Sabre last exchanged a look with Keith Lee as the show closed.
ACH will be Sabre’s first challenger at EVOLVE 80 over WrestleMania weekend in Orlando, Florida. ACH earned that opportunity by picking up a win over Jason Kincaid earlier in the night. He hit two lariats and a brainbuster before getting the pin in the opener.
On the path to an inevitable championship match, Lee also continued his momentum with a victory over “Hot Sauce” Tracy Williams. Lee once again impressed, getting the win with his Ground Zero powerslam. While his victory over Sabre yesterday remains a questionable booking decision, he needed to be treated like he was nearly unstoppable after dropping his debut against Hero. And he’s added a ton of credibility with wins over two of the best wrestlers in EVOLVE since.
Aside from everything going on with the EVOLVE Championship, Saturday was a night of grudge matches. Matt Riddle got the advantage in his feud with Drew Galloway, though things between them remain far from over. Galloway had the upper hand on Riddle for most of the match. Riddle tried to make comebacks and finally transitioned a tombstone into an attempted Bromission. He couldn’t quite lock it on, but delivered a barrage of strikes as referee DA Brewer signaled for the bell and the referee stoppage without Galloway noticeably giving up.
That didn’t make Galloway happy. He tried to beat down Riddle until Catch Point stopped the attack. Larry Dallas then came out to the ring, with “The Big C” Earl Cooter as his security, to attempt to create more dysfunction within Catch Point. He announced that Riddle, Williams, and Fred Yehi would all be entrants in the multi-man elimination match for the WWN Championship at the company’s WrestleMania weekend Supershow.
Yehi went to extend the Catch Point handshake to Riddle, but he either didn’t see it or blew him off. Yehi took exception to that and called Riddle selfish because of all the times they’ve saved him without reciprocation. Riddle accepted Yehi’s challenge to a match at some point in the future, and Williams didn’t look happy with what had transpired.
The other grudge match on the show was between Page and Darby Allin. It wasn’t exactly a fair fight. Page put Allin in handcuffs early on and forced him to wrestle with his hands behind his back.
Allin used innovative offense in an attempt to work around it. He hit headbutts, a hurricanrana, and climbed up the turnbuckles without using his hands. He even took out Page’s Gatekeepers with a dropkick. But Page won with the RKEgo and a powerbomb after Allin had kicked out of a powerslam from the second rope.
It was in the aftermath of that where Page stated his desire to become EVOLVE Champion. He took the mic, mockingly telling the crowd to give it up for Allin and calling him the biggest loser in EVOLVE. He then said that he was going to take the trash out of his company and stuffed Allin into a body bag. Page said that he was the only reason that people care about Allin and told him to consider his career dead as he zipped the bag and the Gatekeepers carried Allin out.
There were problems between Yehi and another Catch Point teammate earlier in the show as well. Chris Dickinson prevailed in a four-way freestyle match over Yehi, Austin Theory, and Anthony Henry. Tensions between Yehi and Dickinson were more competitive than hostile, but Dickinson pinned Theory with a Border Toss as Yehi had the Koji clutch locked on Henry.
The match was fun and had constant action. Priscilla Kelly again appeared at ringside after being present for Allin’s match last night, though her intentions weren’t clarified here either.
Dickinson & Jaka remain on track to challenge Williams & Yehi for their tag titles, but Jaka wasn’t as successful as his partner on Saturday. He worked with Jeff Cobb as both men tried to show their power. They no sold a series of German suplexes at one point until Cobb finally got the advantage with his strength, hitting the Tour of the Islands to win a really good match.
Final Thoughts —
This should end up being one of EVOLVE’s best shows of the year. Every match was good, with the only minor complaint being that nothing was definitively excellent. It had the pacing that the promotion’s best show’s usually have. There were constant good matches for over two hours. The crowd and building in Queens also seem to enhance every EVOLVE show that is held there.
Thatcher losing the championship will make this a memorable show. His reign received justifiable criticism and went on for far too long, but the crowd was desperate for the title switch on Saturday and gave it the reaction it deserved.
EVOLVE will be back on March 30th in Orlando. Most of what WWN puts out during WrestleMania weekend is usually a highlight of one of the busiest periods for wrestling and this year should be no different.
EVOLVE 79 results —
Zack Sabre Jr. defeated Timothy Thatcher to win the EVOLVE Championship
Matt Riddle defeated Drew Galloway
Ethan Page defeated Darby Allin
Keith Lee defeated Tracy Williams
Jeff Cobb defeated Jaka
Chris Dickinson defeated Austin Theory, Anthony Henry, and Fred Yehi in a four-way freestyle match
Timothy Thatcher has been EVOLVE Champion since July 10th, 2015, and that reign will continue for at least one more day after another successful defense on Friday night.
Thatcher submitted Fred Yehi to retain his title at EVOLVE 78. It wasn’t the best defense of his underwhelming reign, though it was likely in the upper half. The match was actually the main event, which is far from a guarantee for Thatcher defenses, and Yehi came off well in one of the biggest spots of his career thus far even though he lost the match.
He had the Koji clutch locked on at one point, which was presented well as a false finish even if it was hard to buy that the title would change hands here, but Thatcher was able to stretch out enough to get a rope break. He threw Yehi over and got the quick submission shortly after.
Whether Thatcher will hold the EVOLVE Championship heading into WrestleMania weekend will be determined tomorrow night as he puts his title on the line against Zack Sabre Jr. And though his opponent got a huge victory over Chris Hero in Hero’s last EVOLVE appearance, Sabre came up short in his match on Friday.
Keith Lee picked up a surprising win over Sabre as their styles meshed better than would be anticipated. Lee used his power to get the best of ZSJ, though there were plenty of points where Sabre had the upper hand as well. He bridged up on Lee to the delight of the crowd early in the match to set the tone and fought back as it went along, but he was eventually put away with a gigantic powerslam after Lee countered his submission attempts.
The decision to have Lee go over probably shouldn’t have been as surprising as it was. He was a significant addition to the EVOLVE roster and likely needed a big win after dropping his debut against Hero.
Whether Sabre wins the title from Thatcher or not, Lee is someone that should be one of the top contenders to take the championship soon. And ZSJ losing here and setting up a potential challenger may make it even more likely that he takes the title from Thatcher.
It was a mixed night for Catch Point in addition to Yehi’s loss in the main event of a show that was advertised as consisting of all fresh matchups.
“Hot Sauce” Tracy Williams was defeated by ACH earlier in the night in one of the better matches on the show. ACH came alive at the end of the match to hit a sequence of big lariats before getting the pin with a brainbuster. He was hyped up as another challenger for Thatcher’s championship, and he’ll be due a title shot if he gets past Jason Kincaid at EVOLVE 79.
Matt Riddle and Chris Dickinson & Jaka were able to redeem the night for Catch Point. Riddle opened the show with a win against Anthony Henry by connecting with a fisherman buster, a jumping tombstone, and finally locking on the Bromission. It was a solid match despite its few timing issues, and Riddle got on the mic after to state his desire to capture the EVOLVE, FIP, and WWN titles, as well as to call out Drew Galloway. He didn’t get what he wanted then, but he didn’t have to wait too long to clash with Galloway.
Galloway got on the mic to respond to Riddle following his match with Jeff Cobb. Both men were impressive, with Cobb able to throw Galloway around despite his opponent towering over him. Galloway worked over Cobb’s arm in an attempt to keep him from hitting the Tour of the Islands, and was later able to connect with a Future Shock DDT to get the pin.
After that was over, Riddle came out to the ring as Galloway said that they didn’t have to wait for their grudge match tomorrow. That led to Galloway pushing Riddle into Cobb, who took offense to it and laid out Riddle with the Tour of the Islands. Catch Point backed up Riddle as Jaka wanted to go at it with Cobb, but he was called off by his partners.
Jaka & Dickinson continued their unbeaten run as a tag team in EVOLVE with a victory over The Gatekeepers by utilizing their Doomsday Device double chokeslam. It was made clear that they would soon challenge for Williams & Yehi’s tag titles, including Larry Dallas again trying to create dysfunction within Catch Point as he interviewed the group.
Also on the show, Ethan Page went over Kincaid by hitting the RKEgo in what was billed as something of a prelude to him facing a similar rival in Darby Allin tomorrow. Allin wasn’t as successful, however, as he lost to Austin Theory.
Theory whiffed on an Asai moonsault to the outside at one point and crashed into the barricade hard. Allin’s FIP stablemate Priscilla Kelly was also at ringside.
Final Thoughts —
While an enjoyable time, this will hopefully be in the bottom half of EVOLVE shows this year. There were some good matches, but nothing stood out as being something that must be watched. With EVOLVE running monthly double-shots, the first show of the weekend often feels like it’s mostly setting up what’s to come the next night.
EVOLVE 79 looks to be a more interesting show on paper. Thatcher will defend the title against Sabre, Riddle and Galloway will finally face off, and the undercard looks pretty promising.
EVOLVE 78 results —
EVOLVE Champion Timothy Thatcher defeated Fred Yehi to retain his title
Sunday night brought a new era for Catch Point, but it seems that a new era for all of EVOLVE may soon be on the horizon.
“Hot Sauce” Tracy Williams defeated Drew Gulak in the main event of EVOLVE 75 to cement himself as the leader of the promotion’s top stable. The two worked hard and battled in a long match that culminated with Gulak tapping out to the crossface.
The storyline going into the night was that Gulak had said Catch Point was dead and a failure, while Williams was adamant that the group was bigger than Gulak. Gulak claimed that Williams would always be his protege, but he closed the show by passing the baton to him as Catch Point’s new leader.
Gulak won’t be able to participate in the upcoming WWN title tournament as a stipulation of the match, but that won’t matter as he said goodbye to EVOLVE and will be heading to WWE. After Chris Dickinson and Jaka hit the ring to ask to join the group, Williams made the decision to let them into the stable.
But the biggest news of the night was another impending farewell. We broke the news that Chris Hero would be heading back to WWE shortly before tonight’s show began. Losing Gulak and Hero is an obvious blow to EVOLVE. They are two performers that you can match pretty much anyone up against and expect a good match. And the departures come after the promotion had already lost Johnny Gargano, TJ Perkins, Tony Nese, and others to WWE recently.
Losing Hero hurts EVOLVE and independent wrestling as a whole, but no one is more deserving of a spot in the biggest wrestling company in the world than him. There is no stage too big for him. There is nowhere that he doesn’t belong. There is no card that he doesn’t improve. He’s worked seemingly every opponent, every style, and every place in the world this year while producing consistently mind-blowing results. I have no doubt that he will succeed in what comes next.
Hero was victorious tonight against DUSTIN after connecting with two piledrivers. It certainly wasn’t his best match in 2016, but it was another reminder that Hero can work well with almost any opponent.
In what was likely the best match on the show, Matt Riddle tapped out Ricochet with the Bromission after hitting the Bro to Sleep and jumping tombstone in the semi-main event. I’d love to see a longer contest between the two of them, but this was very good for the time it got. Their styles worked well together and the highlight of the match was Riddle catching Ricochet in a triangle after a People’s Moonsault attempt.
Dickinson and Jaka earned EVOLVE contracts earlier in the night after defeating Darby Allin and Peter Kaasa in a tag team match. They should be solid additions to a roster that needs bodies with so many people leaving. It would also be nice to see Kaasa in EVOLVE more, as he really seems to shine in tag team bouts.
Dick Togo completed his weekend in EVOLVE in losing fashion in a solid match against Ethan Page. Togo lost after Page pinned him with the Spinning Dwayne, but he stood tall after the match and fought off Page’s Gatekeeper (Blaster McMassive) to the delight of the crowd.
The show’s opener saw Jeff Cobb get his second win in as many nights. He defeated Fred Yehi after hitting the Tour of the Islands in a good match, then motioned that he wants the EVOLVE Championship after it was over.
Final thoughts:
EVOLVE 75 was a great live experience. This was far from their best card of the year, but everything was at least solid and worth checking out. It will be interesting to see where EVOLVE goes in 2017 with so much roster turnover.
I was also at Beyond Wrestling’s show earlier in the day. It streamed live on FloSlam and was a really fun time. Ricochet vs. Jonathan Gresham was probably the best match of the entire day, Brian Fury had his Beyond farewell in an emotional match against Donovan Dijak, and the Spirit Squad were in action.
EVOLVE 75 results:
“Hot Sauce” Tracy Williams defeated Drew Gulak
Matt Riddle defeated Ricochet
Chris Hero defeated DUSTIN
“All Ego” Ethan Page defeated Dick Togo
Chris Dickinson & Jaka defeated Darby Allin & Peter Kaasa to earn EVOLVE contracts
It was likely inevitable that EVOLVE would eventually encounter streaming troubles on FloSlam, but the timing couldn’t have been much worse than during Saturday night’s main event between Chris Hero and Dick Togo.
The stream went out completely for a decent portion of the match but returned with some minor issues for its conclusion. In what seemed to be the caliber of bout that everyone hoped it would be, the Japanese veteran pinned Hero with his second Pedigree of the night and a senton from the top rope.
FloSlam tweeted that they’re trying to get the full replay of the main event up as soon as possible and blamed the problems on a cable getting accidentally unplugged.
Hero put over Togo after the match and praised the crowd at La Boom in Queens, New York, by calling it a special place. That brought out DUSTIN with a chair. DUSTIN offered to face him right there instead of tomorrow at EVOLVE 75, but Hero struck him and walked off while flipping him off.
Prior to the stream issues, EVOLVE 74 was one of the most fun cards that the promotion has put on all year. The highlight of the show came prior to the main event when EVOLVE Tag Team Champions “Hot Sauce” Tracy Williams and Fred Yehi successfully defended their titles against the team of Ricochet and Peter Kaasa in an excellent match.
The finish came when Kaasa attempted a shooting star press on Williams but missed and got caught in a crossface. Yehi prevented Ricochet from breaking up the submission and the Catch Point team held onto their titles as Kaasa tapped out. The match was at its best when Ricochet and Yehi were in the ring, but Williams and Kaasa managed to shine as well.
Williams appeared earlier in the show in an in-ring interview segment with former stablemate Drew Gulak. The returning Larry Dallas interviewed Gulak after his win over Jaka. Dallas asked him if Catch Point was dead, to which Gulak replied that Catch Point is a failure and it’s time to focus on the next chapter of his career — maybe the WWN title.
That brought Williams out to the ring, where he said that Catch Point is bigger than Gulak and always has been. The two will face off in Melrose, Massachusetts, tomorrow.
Gulak was able to get back on the winning track against Jaka in the show’s opener. The match was really good and it was by far the best Jaka has looked in an EVOLVE ring. He held his own with Gulak, who was also excellent in the bout. Gulak won with the dragon sleeper after a great slapping sequence.
Jaka’s tag team partner was also unable to get a victory on the show as Chris Dickson fell to DUSTIN after he hit the Awful Waffle. Dickson and Jaka will take on Darby Allin and Kaasa tomorrow, with Dickinson and Jaka getting EVOLVE contracts if they win.
Allin was in action against Brian Cage tonight. The two put on the exact type of match that you would want to see them have. Allin dove onto Cage as he was making his entrance and then hit a trust fall inside of the ring. Cage took control on offense after that and was victorious after launching Allin onto the stage. Allin lost by countout despite his best efforts to dive back into the ring, but he was able to keep his promise that he wouldn’t be pinned by Cage.
Ethan Page and one of the Gatekeepers (Blaster McMassive) then came down to the ring. Page handed Cage a check and thanked him for taking care of business after his problems with Allin. Page cut a promo on Cody Rhodes before the Bullet Club’s newest member came out for their match.
The overbooked contest saw shenanigans at the end with ref bumps and interference. The Gatekeeper and Cage interfered, causing Allin to come back out and attack Cage. Rhodes gave him a too sweet, but then threw him onto the pile on the outside. Rhodes won with a low blow and the Cross Rhodes.
In his EVOLVE debut, Jeff Cobb defeated Matt Riddle with the Tour of the Islands. The two put on a good match that culminated with Riddle almost getting the win after the Bro to Sleep and jumping tombstone. Riddle tried to apply the Bromission, but Cobb was too big to put the hold on. The two were previously booked against each other in a tag match in PWG and a singles match in AAW before bringing their rivalry to EVOLVE.
Stokely Hathaway hit the ring after Cobb’s win. He said that for the first time in his life he was almost speechless. He attempted to recruit Cobb to the Dream Team by saying that he’d never have to work for anything in his life again. Hathaway said that if there was a dictionary that defined what a professional wrestler should be — the three examples would be TJ Perkins, Timothy Thatcher, and Cobb.
Hathaway offered him a contract to join the Dream Team, but Cobb said the only contract he wants is one for a shot at the EVOLVE Championship against Thatcher.
Final thoughts:
Despite the stream problems at the end, this was a fun show that is worth going out of your way to see. The tag title match was the obvious highlight for me, but Cobb vs. Riddle and the opener with Gulak and Jaka were also very good.
The highlights of tomorrow’s show look to be Williams vs. Gulak, Ricochet vs. Riddle, and Cobb vs. Yehi. I’ll be in the building for it and Beyond Wrestling earlier in the day.
EVOLVE 74 results:
Dick Togo defeated Chris Hero
EVOLVE Tag Team Champions “Hot Sauce” Tracy Williams & Fred Yehi defeated Ricochet & Peter Kaasa
Another promotion will soon be joining the World Wrestling Network roster on FloSlam.
It was announced on Tuesday that Gabe Sapolsky would be debuting a new promotion, called Style Battle, on the new streaming service at the beginning of next year. The promotion will feature a tournament on every show and Style Battle’s premiere event will take place on January 7th at The Orpheum in Ybor City, FL.
Events for the new promotion will occur “almost monthly” and will be structured in seasons. There will be nine events in each season, with the first eight shows all featuring an eight-man single elimination tournament. The winners of those tournaments will then face off on the season finale to crown a winner.
“Tournaments can provide drama and excitement unlike anything else in wrestling,” Sapolsky said. “This will be a unique opportunity for upcoming wrestlers, today’s stars and veterans looking to prove something to showcase their wrestling style.”
Dave Meltzer first reported on the new promotion in the October 31st edition of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
Though he’s been consistently incredible for the entirety of 2016, this week might prove to be the defining stretch in Chris Hero’s mind-blowing year.
Hero capped off a stretch that previously saw him wrestle Tomohiro Ishii and Katsuyori Shibata to rave reviews in England and included a genuine EVOLVE Match of the Year candidate against Tracy Williams last night by wrestling twice at EVOLVE 73 on Sunday.
In what was another excellent match, Hero concluded his trilogy with Matt Riddle in victorious fashion. Hero ended the match with a short piledriver, jumping piledriver, and Gotch piledriver combination to come out of the series ahead. They traded strikes all match long with Riddle selling Hero’s blows like they were death. At one point, Riddle hit the Bro to Sleep but Hero connected on a rolling elbow to send both men to the mat.
But that wasn’t the end of the night for Hero. Drew Galloway came out after the match and attempted to declare victory in his war against Catch Point and EVOLVE. That brought out “Hot Sauce” Tracy Williams and Fred Yehi, who wanted a shot at the tag team titles. Williams said that Catch Point wasn’t a failure despite what Drew Gulak had said, and he proved that by tapping out Hero last night.
Galloway said that he trusted Hero with his life, and the title match seemed to be set with Hero defending on Galloway’s behalf after noting that he was no one’s solider. But two more teams were added to a four-way elimination match as Gulak wanted to team with his WWE tag team partner Tony Nese and Ethan Page wanted his Gatekeepers to show their dominance.
Interference from Darby Allin saw The Gatekeepers get eliminated first. And the champions were the second team out after DUSTIN tapped out to a crossface from Williams. With Catch Point facing off against Gulak, it was Williams and Yehi who won the titles after Yehi submitted Nese with the Koji clutch. Nese showed good sportsmanship after the match by shaking hands with the new champions, but Gulak denied the Catch Point handshake and walked out on the stable.
After the show went off the air, William Regal appeared in front of the live crowd and offered Nese a WWE contract. Another WWE contracted talent appeared before the show went on the air as well with Tommy End defeating Williams in a dark match that WWE allowed End to participate in after Galloway wasn’t able to wrestle due to injury.
The main event was the result of a change to the card after the scheduled EVOLVE Championship match between Timothy Thatcher and Nese had to be canceled due to Thatcher suffering a concussion last night. Gabe Sapolsky tweeted that Thatcher is doing much better today, but said Thatcher would be cautious in recovering after the injury.
Gulak was in action earlier in the show in an excellent match against Zack Sabre Jr. The two worked an incredibly unique and almost entirely mat-based bout with Gulak picking up the win after submitting Sabre with a dragon sleeper. Sabre tried to use his arm to get the ropes, but Gulak wrapped that up as well as Sabre tapped out.
The match went over 20 minutes as Gulak and Sabre worked their styles masterfully. They previously had a standout match in the Cruiserweight Classic and another in EVOLVE this year, with this around the level of both of those.
Earlier in the night, Page got his second win of the weekend by defeating Chris Dickinson in a largely uninspiring match. And Jason Kincaid continued to shine in EVOLVE in a match against seminar-attendee Icarus. During the finishing sequence, Kincaid hit a diving blockbuster to the outside before jumping off of a pole near the turnbuckle and connecting on a double stomp for the win. Jaka pinned Allin for the second straight night in the show’s opener.
Final thoughts:
The FloSports era kicked off with two good in-ring outings for EVOLVE. This show had two matches worth going out of your way to see. The third match in the Hero vs. Riddle trilogy lived up to the previous two matches, and Gulak vs. Sabre was excellent as well.
It should also be noted that the show was much better off not having Joey Styles on commentary. Aside from his garbage remarks, Styles was genuinely awful last night and really hurt the show. Lenny Leonard was again fantastic solo and continues to be a bright spot on EVOLVE shows.
EVOLVE 73 results:
Fred Yehi & Tracy Williams defeated Tony Nese & Drew Gulak, EVOLVE Tag Team Champion DUSTIN & Chris Hero, and The Gatekeepers in a four-way elimination match to win the tag titles
Chris Hero defeated Matt Riddle
Drew Gulak defeated Zack Sabre Jr.
Ethan Page w/ The Gatekeepers defeated Chris Dickinson w/ Jaka
The FloSlam era began at EVOLVE 72 with the promotion’s first show on the new streaming service, but that didn’t bring a change for the EVOLVE Championship.
Timothy Thatcher’s reign continued as he picked up the win over Drew Gulak in a Squared Circle of Survival match. The ropes were deconstructed before the battle began and there were no holds barred in the match. The two had another good brawl to follow up their street fight at EVOLVE 71, and the stipulations greatly enhanced the last two matches of the feud.
They tore apart the ring as the match went on. Gulak seemed to almost have the win with a sick looking dragon sleeper, but Thatcher fought out of it. Thatcher retained his title in a somewhat flat finish with a back suplex on the exposed ring.
A dejected Gulak said that Catch Point had failed after the match and left his partners behind. Drew Galloway came out and said that the only mission he’s concerned with right now is exterminating Matt Riddle, but Riddle only said “Bro” before leaving a furious Galloway and DUSTIN to close the show.
Unfortunately, what should have been a landmark night for EVOLVE was marred by comments made by Joey Styles on commentary shortly before the main event began. Styles was overbearing all night to the point where it became an annoyance, but an incredibly tasteless misogynistic and politically-themed joke he made was particularly heinous.
Gabe Sapolsky apologized for Styles’ comments almost immediately and confirmed that they have parted ways with him. The quick action should be applauded, but it was really the only choice to be made. You have to trust someone to give them a live microphone and Styles failed in the worst way tonight.
The high point in the show came right before Styles’ comments as Chris Hero and “Hot Sauce” Tracy Williams put on a genuine EVOLVE Match of the Year contender. The two have amazing chemistry, which was evident in their match earlier this year at EVOLVE 56. This might have been even better with Williams coming even more into his own since then, and Hero continues to show that he might be the best wrestler in the world. The sheer amount and variety of his great 2016 matches is becoming mind blowing.
Williams got the surprise win by getting Hero to tap out to the crossface. The match started hot with Williams taking it to Hero and they exchanged stiff strikes almost all match long. In a clever spot, Hero used Williams’ own shirt against him and threw it at him for a distraction before hitting a strike. They traded massive near falls with Williams kicking out of a piledriver and Hero kicking out at one after a lariat and then at two after another before Williams finally got the win.
The FloSlam era kicked off with Matt Riddle as the first wrestler to pick up an EVOLVE win on the streaming service. Riddle figures to play a huge part in both EVOLVE and FloSlam’s plans, and he started things off with a solid match against DUSTIN. Riddle won after hitting the Bro to Sleep and a fisherman buster into a cradle.
Catch Point was also successful with Fred Yehi beating Jason Kincaid in the next match. Yehi got the win with the Koji clutch, but Kincaid continued to impress in EVOLVE and would be a great addition to the promotion’s roster. He hit a nice looking sunset flip powerbomb into the guardrail earlier in the match.
In a match that’s likely to have future title match implications, Ethan Page stayed on the winning track by beating Zack Sabre Jr. The Gatekeepers were by Page’s side for the match, but he surprisingly got a clean win over Sabre by hitting the spinning Dwayne after a good closing sequence. Page called out Cody Rhodes after the match.
Tony Nese wrestled twice in the night, first getting a win over NXT’s Tommy End in a dark match that was added to the card after Galloway wasn’t able to compete due to injury. Nese then appeared on the live show by turning a scheduled Darby Allin vs. Chris Dickinson singles match into a tag team affair. Dickinson teamed with Jaka in a winning effort over Allin and Nese. At one point earlier in the match, Allin botched a dive to the outside multiple times before just flipping himself onto a sea of bodies.
Dickinson complained about not having a permanent spot in EVOLVE before the match, and seemed to possibly move towards that goal with his team getting the win with Total Elimination.
Final thoughts:
It would be hard for me to recommend giving EVOLVE and FloSports your money if Sapolsky didn’t come out so strongly against what Styles said, but they deserve credit for their quick action. I’m not sure if his failed joke will be edited out or not, but he was bad enough on commentary that his presence will still be unwelcome otherwise.
But it would be impossible for me not to recommend a show that had a match as good as Hero vs. Williams. Everything else was at least watchable, with Thatcher vs. Gulak, Riddle vs. DUSTIN, and Yehi vs. Kincaid as probably the other best bouts on the show.
EVOLVE returns tomorrow with a show from Joppa, MD with the third match in the Hero vs. Riddle trilogy, Nese vs. Thatcher for the title, Gulak vs. Sabre, and more.
UPDATE: Thatcher suffered a concussion on tonight’s show and won’t be able to compete tomorrow.
EVOLVE 72 results:
EVOLVE Champion Timothy Thatcher w/ Stokely Hathaway defeated Drew Gulak to retain his title
“Hot Sauce” Tracy Williams defeated Chris Hero
“All Ego” Ethan Page w/ The Gatekeepers defeated Zack Sabre Jr.
Chris Dickinson & Jaka defeated Darby Allin & Tony Nese
Fred Yehi defeated Jason Kincaid
Matt Riddle defeated EVOLVE Tag Team Champion DUSTIN
