Thursday night of WrestleMania week ended with Beyond Wrestling’s “Lit Up,” which featured a full card of intergender matches.
– Matt Riddle defeated Deonna Purrazzo
This was both Riddle and Purrazzo’s first-ever intergender match. It was also Riddle’s third match of the day. They exchanged holds and did chain wrestling early until Riddle won with a powerbomb and knee strike combo.
After the match, Riddle let the crowd know that he had to finish it because Purrazzo was kicking his ass. James Ellsworth then attacked Riddle from behind with his Intergender Championship before running off scared when Riddle took the mic to say that everyone knows Ellsworth F’d up. They have a match at Joey Janela’s Spring Break II tonight.
Grace and LuFisto used their powerbomb/muscle buster combo and won in a fast-paced and action-packed bout.
– Josh Briggs defeated Davienne
Briggs won with a huge chokeslam backbreaker.
– Thunder Rosa & Holidead defeated Chris Dickinson & Jaka
They had a hard-hitting back-and-forth match, with Rosa and Holidead winning after a flurry of huge moves — including a pedigree and an off the top foot stomp.
– Jonathan Gresham defeated Karen Q
Gresham is one of the best technical wrestlers in the world and Karen Q was with him every step of the way here. Gresham won with a bridging pinning combination. The crowd applauded this when it was over.
– Solo Darling & Travis Huckabee defeated Joey Ryan & Laura James
Ryan tried his Sweet Tooth Music on Darling, but the lollipop gave her a burst of energy that allowed her to apply the cloverleaf for the submission victory.
– Powerbomb TV Independent Champion Tracy Williams defeated Kimber Lee to retain his title
Kimber Lee was returning to Beyond Wrestling after being released by WWE. It took everything Williams had for him to submit her with a crossface.
– Tessa Blanchard defeated Maxwell Jacob Friedman (w/ Stokely Hathaway, Wheeler Yuta, and Mia Yim)
Yim had been out of action due to injury and was returning here. MJF was the instigator in this one until he refused to let anyone go for the banned piledriver, which took his focus away and allowed Blanchard to get the victory.
– Jessicka Havok defeated Jimmy Havoc
Two chokeslams and a sit-out powerbomb ended this one after Havok kicked out of the Acid Rainmaker.
– Joey Janela & Penelope Ford defeated Orange Cassidy & Session Moth Martina
This was the most wild, all-over-the-place comedy match that could happen at 2:30 a.m. Cassidy used the slowest Canadian Destroyer ever, which is a banned move in the state of Louisiana. Ford hit him with a crossbody for the pin.
– Toni Storm defeated Timothy Thatcher
Good match here at nearly 3 a.m. Thatcher was busted open along the way, then Storm put him away with an armbar.
The following are some news and notes from night 1 of the wXw 16 Carat Gold tournament in Turbinenhalle, Oberhausen/Germany submitted by reader Markus Gronemann.
– Bobby Guns won an alternate spot in a four-way over Absolute Andy, Michael Dante and Francis Kaspin
First Round Results:
– Cody Rhodes d. Da Mack
The match went 10:48, and Rhodes won after hitting Cross Rhodes in what was a hot opener. Cody was really popular and kissed the mat before and after the match.
– Marius Al-Ani d. JT Dunn
Al-Ani got the pin at the 7:16 mark. after a frog splash. This was a hard-hitting match and both were bleeding from the mouth.
– Timothy Thatcher d. Koji Kanemoto
Thatcher won via cradle in 8:11. Kanemoto kicked the hell out of Thatcher in what was essentially a mean guys match. Post match, Bobby Gunns came out to confront Kanemoto.
– Ilja Dragunov d. The Avalanche (Robert Dreissker)
Dragunov won with the Torpedo Moskau in 8:08. These two former partners had a war and beat the living hell out of each other. After basically killing each other, Ilja took the win with his flying headbutt. Dreissker had Adam Polak (their old tag team manager) with him, but eventually destroyed him after the match.
– Matt Riddle d. Donovan Dijak
Good back and forth match with Riddle doing some impressive spots. He submitted Dijak with the Bromission at the 8:50 mark.
– Bad Bones John Klinger d. Paul London
Klinger was all over the smaller London, who got the upper hand eventually. Bones just destroyed him at the end. London was over big with the crowd, but lost to the Wrecking Bal Knees at 7:39.
– Speedball Mike Bailey d. ACH
These two had a great, fun, face/face match with lots of shenanigans and some comedy, combined with hard hits, kicks and other stiff things you don’t wanna take. They had a dance-off early. Things got harder and harder until they got into it really hard. Bailey won after hitting the shooting star double knees at the 14:25 mark.
– WALTER d. David Starr via TKO
This was a tremendous main event and a strong style match. Starr is over big here and the and people were trying to will him to win. WALTER did mostly power moves, But Starr held his own, including almost finishing WALTER with a Canadian Destroyer. WALTER won when Starr passed out in the rear naked choke at the 16:24 mark.
– Post-match, they set up a wXw title match between champion Axel Dieter Jr. and Jurn Simmons for Saturday.
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
With Johnny Gargano and TJ Perkins bidding farewell at EVOLVE 69 last month, Saturday night’s show represented something of a new era for the company.
But for the EVOLVE Championship, there was unfortunately only more of the same. Timothy Thatcher continued his lackluster title reign with one of its lower points in a title defense against Ethan Page at EVOLVE 70.
Prior to the show, EVOLVE did a good job effectively promoting the match and made it feel like a big deal. It even felt like there was a real possibility of Page winning the title. But, like most of Thatcher’s recent title defenses, the match was again placed in the mid-card and it failed to deliver.
Thatcher won the match and regained his title after tapping Page out with the Fujiwara armbar. Many of the early parts of the match were rough, and the finish was convoluted with interference and multiple ref bumps. A couple of near falls near the end that worked fairly well were the only redeeming parts of the match.
It seemed that Thatcher had taken a more aggressive turn, if not outright went heel after his title defense against Drew Gulak in August. But that wasn’t really evident here.
There have undeniably been high points in Thatcher’s title reign, but it feels like it has overstayed its welcome. After a compelling feud with Catch Point, I’m not sure where Thatcher goes from here after beating Page.
What’s next for Page isn’t clear either. And having him lose in his first match after his angle with Gargano at the conclusion of EVOLVE 69 seems illogical. They had spent months building to Page revealing that his attempts to regain Gargano’s trust were all a ruse, and he seemed to be positioned as one of the top heels in the company as he aligned with The Gatekeepers.
Page losing immediately after that angle felt like an undeniable step backwards. And it undid a lot of what EVOLVE had been effectively building with him. He’s someone that really needs to be booked well and needs to have a clear direction to thrive.
After being positioned as the new face of the company at EVOLVE 69, Matt Riddle got an opportunity to reaffirm that decision in the main event of EVOLVE 70. And Riddle again proved that he was the only correct choice to carry Gargano’s torch. Riddle defeated AR Fox, who filled in for an injured Drew Galloway, with the Bromission in what may have been the match of the night.
By the end of the show, Riddle was realigned with his Catch Point stablemates. DUSTIN hit the ring to attack Riddle after the main event, and Fox joined in on the beat down after the loss. An injured Galloway even made his way into the ring before Gulak, Fred Yehi, and Tracy Williams cleared the ring. Gulak asked Riddle if he was still with Catch Point, and Riddle told him that he never left.
Gulak and Williams were also involved in the other two best matches on the show. Gulak took the loss against Chris Hero after being hit with a roaring elbow to the back of the head, and Williams was defeated by Zack Sabre Jr. after he submitted to a double armbar.
Despite having his thumb broken by Thatcher earlier this year, Stokely Hathaway attempted to recruit the champion to the Dream Team after TJP moved on to WWE. But Hathaway seemed to still be looking for his next client after Thatcher left without giving an answer to Hathaway’s proposal.
Earlier in the show, The Gatekeepers looked impressive in their first EVOLVE tag match since aligning with Page as they dominated Bunk and Funk. And Darby Allin was equally impressive as he again showed his athleticism and willingness to do anything inside of the ring in a win against Anthony Henry.
Ahead of his match with Sabre on Sunday’s show, Yehi picked up the win against DUSTIN after submitting him with the Koji clutch. And in a match where both made their EVOLVE debut, Nathan Cruz defeated Jason Kincaid. Cruz’s win was put over on commentary as a continuation of EVOLVE’s relationship with PROGRESS Wrestling, where Cruz regularly wrestles. PROGRESS will present shows, including a co-branded supershow with EVOLVE, on the World Wrestling Network over WrestleMania weekend next year.
Final thoughts:
The title match was a low point that the show couldn’t quite overcome. Riddle vs. Fox, Hero vs. Gulak, and Sabre vs. Williams are all worth watching but nothing was at the level where you need to go out of your way to see it. EVOLVE return with another show on Sunday night, with Thatcher vs. Gulak, Hero vs. Riddle, and Sabre vs. Yehi as the show’s highlights.
EVOLVE 70 results:
Matt Riddle defeated AR Fox
Chris Hero defeated Drew Gulak
Zack Sabre Jr. defeated “Hot Sauce” Tracy Williams
EVOLVE Champion Timothy Thatcher defeated “All Ego” Ethan Page to retain his title
With Joey Styles making his first post-WWE appearance on commentary, Timothy Thatcher walked out of EVOLVE 67 in Brooklyn, NY on Saturday afternoon still holding the EVOLVE Championship.
This weekend was teased as Thatcher’s redemption with title defenses against Catch Point’s Matthew Riddle on Friday and Drew Gulak on Saturday, but the live crowd didn’t seem to think Thatcher was redeemed at its conclusion.
Thatcher defeated Gulak with a stiff head-butt in a 20-plus minute title defense. The result is surprising given all the time spent on the Thatcher vs. Catch Point feud. And though the match wasn’t bad, it was clearly the wrong match in front of this crowd.
Thatcher showed more of a mean streak than usual, but the crowd struggled to retain much interest in the match. They were occasionally vocal in their dislike of Thatcher and actively booed him retaining at the finish. The post-match featured a possible heel turn as Thatcher locked in a sleeper on Gulak as he was trying to show Thatcher respect.
What’s next for Thatcher isn’t immediately clear. Zack Sabre Jr. mentioned challenging for the title earlier in the night and that’s a potential direction. But it felt like a huge missed opportunity to come out of the weekend without a title switch.
There were exciting possibilities for the future if either Riddle or Gulak won the title, and Thatcher retaining feels like starting over after ending a program without the conclusion it required.
In stark opposition to the Thatcher vs. Gulak match, Chris Hero and Cody Rhodes worked the exact match they should have in front of the Brooklyn audience.
The match started with some wild crowd brawling and led to Hero obliterating Rhodes with strikes for much of the match. There was a spot where Hero grabbed a sign of Dusty Rhodes’ head from a fan in the crowd and started beating Rhodes with it. Rhodes made a comeback and kissed the sign.
Hero was able to pick up the win after interference from Drew Galloway. Hero capitalized by hitting three rolling elbows in the corner and following it up with a huge elbow to the back of the head for the victory.
Hero was fantastic in this match, which isn’t surprising given the outstanding year he is having. The dynamic of the match worked well with Hero playing the bully heel and Rhodes taking a great beating.
There was still much to be desired in Rhodes’ work as his offense looked unconvincing when matched against Hero’s, but this was a good second outing for Rhodes as he looks to find his footing outside of WWE. Whether he will be able to adapt when working against opponents that don’t compliment him as well as Hero remains to be seen, and there is still a clear learning curve ahead.
The show peaked in the middle of the card with back-to-back fantastic matches. Riddle followed up his incredible performance against Thatcher on Friday night to defeat Tommy End. The crowd was behind Riddle and it felt even more like not putting the title on him was a mistake given the reception he got.
They worked a hard-hitting match that saw Riddle again show how great he is at legitimately selling offense. Riddle was able to lock in the Bromission on End to pick up the submission win.
End said farewell to EVOLVE after the match as he gets ready to head to the WWE Performance Center soon.
Following that, Cedric Alexander took on Sabre in a WWE Cruiserweight Classic Spotlight match. The crowd was split early, but Sabre became the clear heel as the match went on. He interacted with the segment of the crowd that was taunting him during the match, then finished it in violent fashion as he delivered kicks to Alexander’s head.
The show’s main event featured an out of sync brawl pitting Galloway, DUSTIN, and Ethan Carter III against TJP, Fred Yehi, and Ethan Page with Galloway and DUSTIN’s EVOLVE Tag Team Championship on the line. “Hot Sauce” Tracy Williams was supposed to team with his Catch Point partners, but was taken out by EC3 and DUSTIN before the match began.
Page came out during the match to even the odds, but Galloway and DUSTIN retained their titles when DUSTIN hit a second piledriver on TJP after a botched pin on the first one where the referee didn’t count the finish.
Galloway has been leading a crusade against EVOLVE and their relationship with WWE, and he tried to recruit a new member in Brooklyn as he asked Joey Styles to join his team. Styles made a surprise appearance earlier as he opened the show and was on commentary for the title match.
Styles seemed to consider Galloway’s offer, but rejected the group after the match and took shots at Galloway and EC3’s employers in TNA Wrestling. Rhodes made the save after the main event concluded and sent the crowd home with a promo.
Rhodes said that he was born a wrestler and would die a wrestler, and just like the crowd, he was born a wrestling fan and would die a wrestling fan. He thanked the audience as the show went off the air.
Earlier in the afternoon, Page made quick work of Kobe Durst in the show’s opener. And Tony Nese defeated Peter Kaasa in a match that showed the athletic ability of both men.
For just Riddle vs. End and Sabre vs. Alexander alone, this show is worth watching. But the puzzling booking of the title match and the flat main event made it ultimately a disappointment.
EVOLVE will return to New York with EVOLVE 68 in Long Island on September 10th and EVOLVE 69 in Queens on September 11th. The latter show will see Johnny Gargano’s farewell to the promotion, and it was announced on Saturday that Gargano would team with Rhodes to take on Galloway and Hero in his final EVOLVE match.
EVOLVE 67 results:
Drew Galloway, DUSTIN, & Ethan Carter III defeated TJP, Fred Yehi, & Ethan Page with Galloway & Dustin retaining their EVOLVE Tag Team Championship
EVOLVE Champion Timothy Thatcher defeated Drew Gulak to retain his title
On a show that felt more like a prelude to tomorrow’s card in Brooklyn than one of their standout events of the year, Cody Rhodes made his return to professional wrestling on Friday night at EVOLVE 66.
Rhodes faced Zack Sabre Jr. in his first match since leaving WWE earlier this year in the show’s main event and was able to defeat the highly touted British star after tapping him out with a leg submission.
In a promo after the match, Rhodes said he previously claimed that he didn’t take the safe bet after leaving the WWE, but it was EVOLVE and the crowd that actually bet on him. He said he grew up in front of the fans and existed in the shadow of his father, but he was fine with it because he loved that shadow. After the loss of his father, he didn’t know what to do without that shadow until this match.
During the promo, Rhodes refused to join Drew Galloway’s crusade against EVOLVE. Galloway had implied that he and Rhodes had similar interests as Galloway led a group of disgruntled wrestlers against EVOLVE because of their relationship with WWE, but Rhodes said that he has no interest in the past.
Rhodes took everything that Sabre had to offer during the match, always coming back and refusing to be defeated. Rhodes was clearly motivated for the match, and it was solid but far from spectacular. He now turns his attention to tomorrow’s match against Chris Hero in Brooklyn, which may be the biggest test Rhodes faces in his post-WWE run.
Hero has somehow improved on his previous stellar resume of work to turn in what is easily the best year of his career. He’s had so many great matches against so many opponents and worked so many different styles. He’s managed to make it work against almost every opponent thrown at him. And if Rhodes is going to truly shine outside of WWE, it’s going to be in this match.
Timothy Thatcher will also enter tomorrow’s show with something to prove after retaining his EVOLVE Championship against Matthew Riddle.
Riddle has shown this year that he’s not only someone with tremendous potential; he’s actively among the best wrestlers in the world already. It wouldn’t be entirely surprising if Riddle was only a good worker. He has a combat sports background from his time in mixed martial arts and is an excellent athlete. But it’s mind-blowing that he grasps so many of the little things already.
Riddle knows how to work the crowd better than most veterans and already has a defined character. And his ability to realistically sell offense was fully on display in this match. He made you believe that every hold Thatcher was applying and every strike he was dishing out was causing legitimate pain.
This was the best match of the night, and Thatcher was able to pick up the victory by submission with the no holds barred rules allowing him to keep hold of an armbar on Riddle as he tried to escape to the floor.
This felt like the right opportunity to put the title on Riddle before the match, and I’m still not sure that Thatcher retaining wasn’t a missed opportunity. But there is more story to be hold here with Riddle and his Catch Point stablemates.
Thatcher has had a disappointing year as champion, though it has included standouts like his match against Riddle tonight and against Hero at EVOLVE 62. And it feels like tomorrow’s match against Gulak is finally time to switch the title and move on to Riddle eventually challenging Gulak for it.
Gulak competed earlier in the show in one of the night’s best matches against Tony Nese in a WWE Cruiserweight Classic Spotlight match. Their styles meshed well with Nese constantly using his athleticism to escape Gulak’s attempts to ground him. The finish to the match came when Gulak was able to pick up the victory with a well-timed sunset flip.
In the show’s opener, Cedric Alexander followed up his Match of the Year candidate against Kota Ibushi in the CWC two weeks ago by taking on TJP in another tournament spotlight match.
Alexander has become accustomed to opening EVOLVE shows after facing Tommaso Ciampa, Johnny Gargano, and Fred Yehi in openers on the company’s three previous events. And he put in another good performance in a more than solid match against TJP, but it didn’t live up to the great matches that he had against Gargano and Ciampa previously.
TJP worked on Alexander’s leg all match and picked up the victory with a submission targeting it.
Also on the show, Jigsaw and Peter Kaasa defeated the Catch Point team of “Hot Sauce” Tracy Williams and Yehi in a shocking upset. Williams slapped Yehi after the match, but it was only to fire his partner up. Yehi responded by laying out Jigsaw with a rolling elbow then hitting Williams with one. The two Catch Point members flashed their group’s symbol and shook hands after the loss.
And in a disjointed brawl full of physicality, Ethan Page picked up a win over one half of the EVOLVE Tag Team Champions when he pinned DUSTIN (the former Chuck Taylor) after hitting a package piledriver.
There was a lot to like on this show, with Thatcher vs. Riddle standing above the rest. But it was far from EVOLVE’s best show of the year and felt a lot like the appetizer to tomorrow’s main course in Brooklyn.
That show starts at 3 p.m. ET and features Thatcher defending his EVOLVE title against Gulak, Rhodes vs. Hero, Riddle vs. Tommy End, and Sabre vs. Alexander as the highlights of the card.
EVOLVE 66 results:
Cody Rhodes defeated Zack Sabre Jr.
EVOLVE Champion Timothy Thatcher defeated Matthew Riddle to retain his title
Drew Gulak defeated Tony Nese
Ethan Page defeated DUSTIN
Jigsaw & Peter Kaasa defeated “Hot Sauce” Tracy Williams & Fred Yehi
Yehi won via submission after clamping on the Koji Clutch. Nese did a promo afterward saying despite his losing streak, he wants an opportunity in the WWE Cruiserweight Classic and he wants it Saturday night.
– Darby Allin vs. Ethan Page
Page won after hitting a package piledriver. Earlier in the match, Page gorilla press slammed Allin over the ropes and into a support beam that was said to be a big spot.
– Cedric Alexander vs. Matt Riddle
Riddle submitted Alexander with a neck crank after hitting a fisherman’s buster.
– Evolve Tag Team Champs Catch Point (Drew Gulak & Tracy Williams) vs. Bravado Brothers (Harlem & Lancelot Bravado)
Champs retain after Williams pinned Lancelot after a big DDT spot. Post-match, Catch Point are cutting a promo and calling out Evolve Champion Timothy Thatcher. Thatcher came out, and told the guys to get lost.
– Evolve Champion Timothy Thatcher vs. Chris Hero
Said to be a great match. Thatcher retained the gold by submitting Hero with a cross armbar.
Post-match, Riddle, Gulak, Williams, and Stokely Hathaway all came out to contront Thatcher. Williams wants his title shot Saturday and Thatcher agrees.
– Drew Galloway & Ethan Carter III vs. Johnny Gargano & TJ Perkins (Unsanctioned Street Fight)
Wild match that spilled everywhere including on the bar inside the arena and outside the arena. Big action, table spots, you name it. Gulak came out to check on Perkins after Galloway powerbombed him through a table. This brought Hero out who hit a piledriver on Gulak and then booted Gargano and piledrove him to turn on Evolve. ECIII hit the One Percenter on Perkins for the win.
Post-match promos by Galloway and Carter reveal a fourth member of their crew: Cody Rhodes! Rhodes will debut for the promotion on August 19th in Maryland against Gargano.
**********
Evolve 63 card — Saturday from Orlando, FL:
– Evolve Champion Timothy Thatcher vs. Tracy Williams
– WWE Cruiserweight Tournament preview: Johnny Gargano vs. Drew Gulak vs. TJP vs. Lince Dorado vs. Tony Nese elimination match. If Nese wins, he’s in the tourney.
– Anything Goes: Drew Galloway vs. Ethan Page
– ECIII open challenge to anyone on the Evolve roster
– Matt Riddle vs. Trevor Lee
– Fred Yehi vs. Cedric Alexander
– The Bravado Brothers vs. Jason Cade & Darby Allin
