The Big Takeaway: Rhyno returned to this show with a win against Titus O’Neil, and the team of Gran Metalik & Lince Dorado entertained against Drew Gulak & Tony Nese in the main event.
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Rhyno (w/ Heath Slater) defeated Titus O’Neil (5:15)
This was Rhyno’s first appearance on this show since last November. This week he is over with the pre-Raw crowd. He and Slater burst out of the curtain ready to fire things up. Rhyno and O’Neil exchange power moves to begin with as O’Neil takes the early going.
As Slater cheers him on outside, Rhyno gets some hope, hitting a shoulder block and then tossing O’Neil over the top rope to the outside. O’Neil manages to reverse things there and gets a near fall after rolling Rhyno back in the ring and hitting a big boot.
O’Neil slows things down with his usual chops and strikes in the corner, but Rhyno gets the heat with shoulder blocks and a belly-to-belly suplex for two. O’Neil hits a knee strike, but he misses a charge and runs into a spinebuster for the win.
Gran Metalik & Lince Dorado defeated Drew Gulak & Tony Nese (6:57)
Gulak comes out with a megaphone and a hand-made sign that says “No Fly Zone” on it. Although it’s an improvement on his normal entrance, it doesn’t seem to either generate heat or a reaction of any sort from this crowd.
Nese and Dorado start things off together with Nese overpowering Dorado in the early going. Dorado then hits a sunset flip and a rana and tags in Metalik. They use a series of quick tags and double team Nese with dropkicks. Gulak manages to shove Dorado off the top rope as we head to a break.
Dorado is maintaining the advantage as we return, but quickly Gulak comes in and stomps all over Dorado. He and Nese work quick tags, cutting the ring in half and isolating Dorado in their corner. Dorado hits the desperation superkick and makes the tag.
Metalik then hits his patented ropewalk elbow drop and Dorado hits a handspring cutter. The heels get clotheslined to the outside and Dorado and Metalik nail them with top rope dives. The finish then sees Metalik come back inside to hit the Metalik Driver on Gulak for the win.
Titus O’ Neil scored a win over Curtis Axel, and the team of Lince Dorado & Gran Metalik came up short by losing to Tony Nese & Ariya Daivari.
Show Recap —
Titus O’Neil defeated Curtis Axel
Curtis Axel runs out fired up to face Titus O’Neil. Corey Graves talks about The sky being the limit for the Titus Brand. Axel circles O’Neil before getting tossed into the corner. O’Neil slaps his head before eating kicks and then a mudhole stomp in the corner. Axel lands a running shoulder block in the corner before kicking him down out of a corner charge for two.
Graves talks about how a good showing on Main Event might mean that you can eventually get title shots or move higher on the card — offering up two valid reasons for this show being around still despite its prime being long gone.
O’Neil slugs Axel down before tossing Axel’s shoulder into the buckle. O’Neil dominates for a bit, but Axel lands chops and kicks to regain a bit of an edge. A dropkick sends O’Neil down before a Perfect neck snap gets a nice pop. A running knee lift hits and gets two for Axel.
Axel goes up top, but gets taken down by O’Neil with the Clash of the Titus to win. The finish looked impressive, and he does the Sky High quite well.
A recap then aired of the past two Raw angles between Dean Ambrose and The Miz. The women’s fatal four-way from Raw aired as well.
Ariya Daivari & Tony Nese defeated Gran Metalik & Lince Dorado
Gran Metalik and Lince Dorado come down to face Tony Nese and Ariya Daivari — so this is 3/4 of the main event from last week’s show. With Daivari being switched in, I’ll guess that he eats the fall here.
Dorado starts off hot with a sunset flip off the shoulders of Daivari to get two. Nese comes in to face Metalik, who uses a variety of backflips to get a rana and uses that to get a springboard elbow off the ropes for two.
Nese hits a running trip near the ropes and gets pulled to the floor. Nese hits a leg drop for a near fall before Daivari tags in and clubs away. Nese comes back in to kick away at Metalik before his cover is broken up by Dorado. Metalik flips onto Nese’s shoulders to hit a big DDT.
Dorado and Daivari come in, with Dorado hitting a series of lariats before hitting a big overhand chop to the chest. A quebrada gets two for Dorado.
Nese tosses Metalik out before Dorado hits a superkick to Nese and a spinebuster from Daivari gets two. Dorado hits the handspring stunner — sending him outside, so the faces hit stereo Asai moonsaults. Dorado goes up, but gets tossed into the barricade by Daivari and eats a big lariat to win this. The heels have once again won on Main Event!
A recap of Braun Strowman’s destruction of Roman Reigns airs before the Strowman vs. Big Show match from Raw is shown in full.
The Big Takeaway: Big Cass destroyed Titus O’Neil, who at least booted Enzo Amore on the floor. Tony Nese & Drew Gulak then got a surprising win over Lince Dorado & Gran Metalik.
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Big Cass defeated Titus O’Neil
Enzo Amore mixes up his usual promo by responding to “How you doin’?” with “Great — thanks for asking!” Sometimes, just small changes in the routine really help out and prevent every intro from feeling the same, and that helped this out a lot.
Tom Phillips and Corey Graves are on commentary, and their NXT chemistry is back — it’s a shame it’s for a secondary show. Cass hits a big fallaway slam that sends O’Neil outside, where he kicks Amore on the floor.
Cass beats up O’Neil on the floor before tossing him in the ring and missing a Stinger splash. O’Neil clubs away before a long chinlock, but eats a pair of knees. Cass hits a big slam and an Empire Elbow before the big boot ends it.
Seth Rollins’ speech from Raw is shown in full. Roman Reigns’ interview with Michael Cole, and the subsequent beating from Braun Strowman is shown in full as well. Strowman came off as such a badass beating up Reigns and then the sheer ridiculousness of him tipping over the ambulance put things over the top.
It did an excellent job putting Strowman over, but hurt Reigns, who always had a chance to at least be in the fight — but couldn’t stand up to Strowman.
Drew Gulak & Tony Nese defeated Gran Metalik & Lince Dorado
The babyfaces come out first, followed by the heels and their incredibly generic theme music. Gulak hits a knee to the gut of Metalik before chopping away. Metalik hits a double backflip into an armdrag off the ropes to Gulak.
Nese goes for Metalik, but eats an elbow — giving Gulak a chance to lock on a dragon sleeper with a bodyscissors. Metalik escapes and dropkicks both men to the floor before Dorado hits an Asai moonsault. Gulak hits a sloppy swinging powerbomb into the barricade.
Nese and Gulak double team Metalik, who fights back with chops. A calf kick hits Gulak and allows Metalik to tag in Dorado. Dorado hits a moonsault block for two, before a frog-style crossbody on Nese gets a near fall.
Dorado hits a two-man Lethal Injection with a stunner instead of a cutter. Metalik walks the rope to moonsault on Gulak before Nese gets two off an O’Connor roll. Nese crotches Dorado before hitting shotgun knees in the corner to win.
The show closes with the Kevin Owens vs. Dean Ambrose match from Raw.
This was a solid little show — it’s a shame that it’s relegated to obscurity without a global TV deal because it was a fine showcase for the cruiserweights on this episode. It was neat to see the heels actually win the main event, especially given that they’re two of the most bland guys in the division and it would be easy to assume the faces would win.
Neville defeated TJ Perkins in the main event, continuing to further his momentum, though Jack Gallagher sent him packing to close out the show. Gran Metalik made his 205 Live debut, defeating Drew Gulak. Rich Swann returned from injury, and Akira Tozawa made it clear he wanted nothing to do with Brian Kendrick.
Show Recap —
Rich Swann took the mic before the opening match, mentioning Alicia Fox’s name and telling her you can’t handle this. Neither Fox nor Dar liked that.
Rich Swann defeated Noam Dar
Very good match, and the last few minutes were great. This was the best Dar has looked since joining WWE.
Swann controlled much of the match early. Dar kicked Swann in the knee, which sent him tumbling off the middle rope to the floor. Dar gained the advantage until Swann took him out with a kick. A good back and forth contest went on until Swann laid out Dar and hit a phoenix splash for the win.
TJ Perkins and Neville were seated backstage as Corey Graves conducted an interview. Graves asked if Neville really does think Perkins is more of a threat than Jack Gallagher.
After some back and forth banter about the Cruiserweight Classic, Neville said that Perkins isn’t at his level. TJP said Neville’s arrogance will be his downfall. Perkins said he was making a name for himself while…well, was Neville even on Raw at all then? He doesn’t seem to remember. Neville said by the end of tonight, he’ll regret those words.
Next we saw a highlight reel for Gran Metalik, including him losing to TJP in the finals of the CWC. He said Perkins was a great wrestler, but he was disappointed in how things turned out. He said this is a beautiful opportunity, and the best is here.
Gran Metalik defeated Drew Gulak
This was a mixed bag, as for the most part it was fine with Metalik doing some good stuff and he did fine in showcasing his work, but there were spots in this match that were pretty rough.
Gulak jumped Metalik early. Metalik slipped on the ropes and Gulak took advantage. Metalik came back and did some good offense. Gulak cut him off with a boot as Metalik was coming off the turnbuckle. Metalik came back with the brillo Metalik, a step-over senton. He followed with the Metalik Driver to end the bout.
Akira Tozawa was backstage when Brian Kendrick came up to him, mentioning how he might be a bit intimidated being mentored by a legend like him.
Kendrick wanted to know if he would be his protege. Tozawa said no. Kendrick said that he realizes there might be a language barrier, so he asked him again. Tozawa said he understands, he just doesn’t like him. He walked off as Kendrick fumed.
Neville defeated TJ Perkins
This was just as good as the opener, but the crowd was absolutely dead for this match, except at one point during the bout where they chanted “Austin Aries.” The work was there, but the crowd wasn’t.
There was some good back and forth early until Neville gained control and wore down TJP. He floated over Neville and laid him out with a neckbreaker, dropkicked Neville on the apron, and leapt off the ropes with a springboard DDT. TJP tried to work an arm, but Neville deadlifted him and countered with a sit-out powerbomb.
Neville caught TJP on the top rope and tried for the superplex, but TJP threw him off. Neville caught him coming off and tried to lock on his new submission but TJP countered into a roll-up. Neville drilled him with an enzuigiri, then laid him out with the double arm submission and TJP had no other alternative but to tap out.
Jack Gallagher came out with his umbrella, running to the ring. Neville jumped him as he slid in. Neville threw out the umbrella, but this allowed Gallagher to make a comeback, sending Neville reeling with a headbutt. He seethed as the show closed.
Final Thoughts —
Good show with a lot of great action, especially in the opener and main event. I think the guys are becoming more comfortable with doing what they can under WWE parameters as the match quality has improved noticeably in recent weeks.
Not everything was smooth in Metalik’s debut, but he was still pretty over, at least as over as you can be on 205 Live. It should be interesting to see how Gallagher fares in a big time title match.
NXT was in Winter Haven, FL tonight in front of approximately 250 people.
– Angelo Dawkins & Kenneth Crawford defeated The Bollywood Boyz
Dawkins punched one of the Sihra brothers as a cheap shot to allow Crawford to steal a pin.
– Daria Berenato defeated Mandy Rose
A spinebuster got the win for Berenato.
– Steve Cutler defeated Adrian Jaoude
Cutler won with a new front slam finish.
– TJ Perkins defeated Gran Metalik
Perkins won with the kneebar in a good match.
– Lana defeated Sarah Bridges
This was a shorter match than last night. Lana won with her fisherwoman sit-out spinebuster.
– Cedric Alexander defeated Dan Matha
This was a big vs. small match as Matha is a large man. Alexander kept fighting off all of Matha’s power moves and was finally able to hit his lumbar check for the impressive victory. He was interviewed after the match and proclaimed he’s coming for Rich Swann’s cruiserweight title.
– SAnitY (Eric Young & Big Damo) w/ Alexander Wolfe and Nikki Cross defeated Heavy Machinery (Otis Dozovic & Tucker Knight)
Cross and Wolfe ran distractions when possible. Dozovic was going for a Vader bomb when Cross distracted him allowing Young to get his feet on the ropes to steal the win in a physical match. Heavy Machinery cleared house after to send everyone home happy.
NXT was in Tampa, FL tonight in front of approximately 250 people.
– Jack Gallagher defeated Tozawa
This was the NXT Florida debuts for both CWC alums. It was an entertaining match that did all the comedy early, the hog tie spot, Gallagher standing on his head on the buckles, then they really got going. The finish was Gallagher winning with the corner dropkick.
– The Bollywood Boyz defeated Adrian Jaoude & Cezar Bononi
Another NXT Florida debut with The Bollywood Boyz, who won with a double superkick on Jaoude.
– Macey Estrella defeated Sara Bridges
The former Crazy Mary Dobson made her NXT FL debut as well tonight. Estrella won via submission.
– Big Damo defeated HoHo Lun
A classic big vs. small match where Damo toyed with Lun until hitting his huge side slam finish.
– Kishan Raftaar defeated Blake
Raftaar caught Blake with a roll-up for a surprise win.
– Tommy End defeated Murphy
Physical match, End jumped Murphy before the bell and the ref had to regroup to ask Murphy if he wanted to wrestle. End won with a jumping knee to the face.
Mada, formerly of Tough Enough, cut an in-ring promo where he badmouthed America and talked about being from Egypt and his desire to make all our favorites suffer.
Long back and forth match that picked up for the finish. Crawford hit a standing SSP for a near fall, but Sabbatelli and Moss hit a double team Gory Bomb for the finish.
– Andrade “Cien” Almas defeated Gran Metalik
Great match, there was back and forth action and both looked amazing. Metalik hit a dive to the outside, and Almas hit the running knees for a near fall. Metalik went for the driver to finish it off but Almas escaped and rolled Metalik up with his feet on the ropes to steal the win. Metalik ran off Almas after the match to send everyone home happy.
Show starts with a highlights package narrated by Triple H looking at the final four participants.
Mauro and Bryan open the show, putting over the likes of Tiger Mask and Dynamite Kid, saying that again the cruiserweight are putting it all out there tonight. Bryan also mentions the New Japan Super J Cup tournaments of the 1990s. They go over the two semifinal matches tonight. They show another video package where the four semifinalists talk about the significance of the tournament. Highlights are shown of all four men. All say they’re here to win.
Gran Metalik defeated Zack Sabre Jr. in the first semifinal
Very good match. Metalik is explosive but also showed off some great mat skills as well. Sabre did really well even though you’d think there would be a styles clash, but there wasn’t. The last few minutes were really great.
Gran Metalik wastes no time with a giant flying senton to the floor. Sabre catches him jumping off the apron with a kick, then kicks his arm. He focuses on Metalik’s neck, twisting his head with his feet and employing his mat-based grappling.
Metalik comes back with some fierce offense but Sabre catches him in a springboard and tries to go for a submission, but Metalik gets to the ropes. Metalik mounts his own offense, superkicking Sabre, hitting a standing shooting star press.
Sabre manages to get back in here with a guillotine choke but Metalik is able to transition to a Boston crab. Sabre cuts him off and hits a penalty kick for a near fall. Fans are getting into Sabre and not so much into Metalik at this point in the match.
Sabre Jr. locks in the octopus stretch. Metalik gets off his knees and gets to the ropes. Metalik cuts off Sabre, who gets crotched, then gives him a big hurricanrana off the top rope.
Metalik went for a dive but Sabre caught him in a triangle. Metalik escaped. Sabre charged out of the corner but walked right into the Metalik driver as Gran Metalik gets the win, advancing to the finals. Metalik is awarded a medal by William Regal as he is interviewed, being asked about how he is preparing for the finals since he doesn’t know who his opponent is. Metalik gives a response in Spanish, but also thanks the fans.
Both TJ Perkins and Kota Ibushi are shown preparing for their match. Tommaso Ciampa and Johnny Gargano are interviewed. When asked about his knee injury, Gargano says he’s 100% cleared and ready to rock and roll. Ciampa says no disrespect to Noam Dar or Cedric Alexander, but they only have one thing in mind – the Revival. They’re scared, that’s why they play the numbers game but they’re coming for the NXT tag team titles.
TJ Perkins defeated Kota Ibushi in the second semifinal match
Excellent match, about on par with the Alexander/Ibushi match from a few weeks ago. Just tremendous mat work and back and forth striking and wrestling. The last few minutes were insane.
They start off with some mat work early. TJP tries for a kneebar but Ibushi quickly escapes. Ibushi targets TJ Perkins with a dropkicks that sends him to the floor. Kota tries for the Golden triangle moonsault, but TJ kicks him and sends him reeling back to the floor.
After teasing a count out loss, Kota gets back in and soon after wipes out TJP with the Golden triangle moonsault. Ibushi went for a moonsault, but TJP manages to get the knees up and works on a leg submission, but not for long as Ibushi escapes.
Ibushi catches TJP on the apron with a series of kicks to the chest. He tries for the deadlift German suplex but Ibushi but TJP escapes. TJP went for something off the top rope but Kota cut him off with a big pele kick. Ibushi went for the last ride powerbomb, but TJP countered with a DDT and the dodon.
Ibushi again went for the pele kick but TJP sunk in the kneebar again.Ibushi escaped and they had a strikefest. Ibushi hit the last ride powerbomb but TJP kicked out in a big spot, since that’s been his finisher the entire time he’s been here. Fans started to chant “this is awesome”.
Ibushi went for the Phoenix splash but TJP dodged at the last minute. Ibushi came back with a ganso bomb but TJP still kicked out. Ibushi drilled him with a kick and went for the last ride powerbomb but TJP transitioned into the kneebar again. He added a crossface and after struggling, Ibushi tapped. TJP gets the other medal. It’s he and Gran Metalik in the finals. His goal has always been to win one, then win one more. Now he just has to win one more.
Noam Dar and Cedric Alexander talk about their match against DIY (the new tag name for Gargano and Ciampa). Dar says they just need to be on the same page for the 1-2-3. Cedric says they know they’re the best two cruisers around, and tonight they’re going to show that they are the best in the world. Sasha Banks, Kalisto, Rich Swann, Jack Gallagher and Bayley were all shown in the crowd.
Johnny Gargano & Tommaso Ciampa defeat Cedric Alexander & Noam Dar
Crowd chanted “All these guys” as the match started. Both teams started out strong, with the highlight being Cedric wiping out Ciampa with a running senton to the floor. He looks like he’s lost even more weight since this tournament has started.
Dar is caught in the electric chair position as he’s wiped out by a Gargano superkick. When Cedric enters the right, Gargano gives him a spear through the middle rope. Cedric springs back with a giant Michinoku driver for a near fall. Great series of moves that wipes everyone out.
Action gets crazy as everyone goes 90 miles an hour. Alexander nearly got a near fall but a replay showed Ciampa just barely got his shoulder up. DIY isolate Dar and get the win with stereo superkicks DIY motion they want the NXT tag titles after the match.
Mauro and Bryan bring in William Regal as he talks about his involvement in this tournament. He said Triple H picked him to find the best, and he exceeded their expectations. He mentions how he was trained by the likes of Rollerball Rocco and Marty Jones and saw Tiger Mask before he was Tiger Mask. He puts over the cruiserweights of the new millennium, saying they’re strikers, submission artists, grapplers and more. They bring in Corey Graves, who talks for a moment about Kota Ibushi and Brian Kendrick.
Before the main event starts, Triple H comes out and says tonight history will be made. Right now you see two of the best in the world. But we’re not looking for two – we’re looking for one, THE one. We are looking for the one will be known as the best in the world. We are looking for the one who will win the Cruiserweight Classic. But even more importantly than that, we are looking for the one who will be the new cruiserweight champion. Triple H reveals the new title and shakes both men’s hands as the match will now not only be for the trophy, but for the revitalized Cruiserweight championship…
TJ Perkins defeated Gran Metalik to become CWC Champion and the new WWE Cruiserweight Champion
Great match. Not as good as TJP/Ibushi but a really fun final match in a tournament full of fun matches. Dorada did some of his craziest stuff he has been known for in the past and TJP is probably the best all around guy that’s been signed for this division.
Fans are totally into Metalik early. The two do some good back and forth until TJP sinks in a Muta lock. Metalik gets to the ropes. TJP went to go for a springboard but Metalik dropkicks him face first on the apron then wipes him out with a tope suicida.
More fast paced back and forth until Dorada did a crazy flying hurricanrana, jumping off the ring, catching TJP on the apron and sending him out to the floor. Metalik followed with a crazy step up senton and landed flat on the floor as TJP really didn’t grab him. Ouch.
Metalik missed the standing shooting star press and TJP countered by sinking in a kneebar. Lots of back and forth action. TJP hit the dodon and sunk in the kneebar again. Dorada tried to get to the ropes but TJP dragged him back in. As Metalik tried to get to the ropes again, TJP tried to drag him back in but Metalik countered with a roll up for the near fall.
Metalik hit the Metalik Driver, but Metalik hurt the knee and took time to cover TJP, who kicked out. He made a comeback and tried to go to the top rope but Metalik cut him off and tried for the Metalik driver but TJP countered with the kneebar again. Metalik struggled and eventually submitted, making TJ Perkins the CWC champion and the new Cruiserweight champion.
Triple H put the new belt around Perkins as he went and shook hands with Metalik.
TJ says he wears a key around his keychain back to a place he couldn’t go back to, but now he is no longer is wearing it as it is a place he never has to go back to. During that time he searched for something like this, and means the world for him to inspire someone else. This is bigger than me, this is not one person. This is 32 people, all of them. Tonight, at the end of this, all of them are his heroes. This is for everyone.
Final Thoughts:
This was a great show, filled with crazy back and forth wrestling with some terrific spots and moments up and down the card. It capped off a great tournament, showcasing athletes who can go with a presentation designed to get them over to the best of their ability. This is probably the best special WWE has put on in ages, and one can only hope that next year they do it all over again.
Gran Metallk says it’s a pleasure to represent Mexico in this tournament. He prides in trying to be as different as possible. His message to all of his fans is that he appreciates their support as they are his motivation. Tozawa says his biggest dream is to be in the WWE. He is the best in this tournament, and winning will be his first step in taking WWE by storm.
All quarterfinal matches have a 30 minute time limit.
CWC Quarterfinal: Gran Metalik def. Akira Tozawa
The last few minutes were pretty fun with the rest being good action. Tozawa has the charisma and ability to be here. I didn’t think Metallk looked as dynamic has he had in New Japan or CMLL, but he worked will with Tozawa here.
Metallk got the advantage early, working on Tozawa’s arm before wiping him out with a suicide dive on the outside. Metallik went for a handspring but Tozawa nailed him in the back with a dropkick and gave him a big boot to the floor. He had control for a while until Metallik started making a comeback which led to a back and forth affair. Metallk did a great step over senton dive to the floor, later crotching Tozawa on the ropes and hitting a hurricanrana from the middle rope.
Metalik floated over one German suplex, but Tozawa hit another and then went for a deadlift. It connected…but Metalik still kicked out! Tozawa went for another, but Metallik powered out and countered with the Metalik driver for the win.
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They replayed Brian Kendrick’s video, saying if he doesn’t win his dream is over. Ibushi says wrestling is not a job, it is something more important to him. In the first two rounds, he had showed the audience something he’d never seen before. He is going to win this tournament because he loves pro wrestling more than anyone else.
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CWC Quarterfinal: Kota Ibushi def. Brian Kendrick
Ibushi got the advantage early with a flurry of offense, sending Kendrick to the outside where he hit a giant Asai moonsault to the floor. Kendrick hit a neckbreaker on an exposed turnbuckle which was pretty unique and cool. Kendrick jumped him as he was getting into the ring. Ibushi made a brief comeback, but Kendrick wiped him out with a superkick. Mauro Ranallo and Daniel Bryan kept putting over that Ibushi has a surgically repaired neck.
Kendrick hit the sliced bread, but Ibushi kicked out. An Ibushi kick sent Brian to the apron. He then grabbed him, deadlifted him through the ropes and hit a German suplex in a great move sequence. Kendrick came back and after a few counters, he hit the bully choke but Ibushi escaped, only to walk into a BURNING HAMMER. Ibushi landed right on his neck on impact.
Kendrick hit the ropes but Ibushi cut him off, slamming him on his back. Ibushi went for the phoenix splash but Kendrick dodged and hit the bully choke. Ibushi countered with a roll up, kicked him in the head and hit the press powerbomb for the win.
This was a great match. Ibushi continues to be one of the most outstanding performers pretty much anywhere, and Kendrick didn’t look lost being in there with him. He looked to be in equal footing in some parts of this match with lots of great nearfalls and some pretty cool submissions to boot. The two shook hands and hugged after the match.
Fans chant “Thank you Brian” as he is visibly moved by their reaction. Bryan enters the ring and they both hug to close out the show.
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Next week, we’ll see who faces Ibushi and Metalik in the semifinals as Zack Sabre Jr. takes on Noam Dar and Rich Swann battles TJ Perkins.
