Coverage

Andrew’s Impact Wrestling Bound for Glory Results & Match Ratings: 10.24.2020

Impact Wrestling’s WrestleMania takes place tonight! Very possibly the culmination of the TNA title angle, and maybe we get a feel good underdog championship crowning! Let’s see what happened!

Published

5 years ago

October 24, 2020

Andrew Balaz

Impact Wrestling’s WrestleMania takes place tonight! Very possibly the culmination of the TNA title angle, and maybe we get a feel good underdog championship crowning!

Will Heath and Rhino figure out how to win the gauntlet match, or do they both leave Bound for Glory unemployed? Can the Motor City Machine Guns fend off three other elite caliber tag teams? Does Deonna Purrazzo defend her title and prove being nice is being weak?

Let’s see how Impact’s biggest dance measures up to the others in 2020!

Ratings:

6 Way Scramble: X Division Championship: Rohit Raju (c) vs Jordynne Grace vs TJP vs Chris Bey vs Trey Miguel vs Willie Mack: Rohit retains via Mamba Splash – *** ¾
Call Your Shot Gauntlet: Rhino vs Sami Callihan: Rhino wins via Gore – **
TNA Heavyweight Championship: Moose (c) vs EC3: Moose…wins? – ****
Ken Shamrock w/Sami Callihan vs Eddie Edwards: Ken Shamrock wins via Ankle Lock – ***
Impact Wrestling Tag Team Championships: The Good Brothers vs Ace & Fulton vs The North vs Motor City Machine Guns (c): The North win via Shot with the Belt – *** ¾ – TITLE CHANGE!!
Knockouts Championship: Deonna Purrazzo (c) vs Kylie Rae Su Yung: Su Yung wins via Panic Switch – *** ¼ – TITLE CHANGE!!!
Impact World Championship: Eric Young (c) vs Rich Swann: Swann wins via Phoenix Splash – **** ¼ – TITLE CHANGE!!!!!!

Results:

During the Countdown to Impact pre-show, we saw Mick Foley, Bret Hart and The Rock, all congratulate Ken Shamrock on his Impact Hall of Fame induction. Even if the Impact Hall of Fame is poo poo’d by many and even dismissed; it’s nice to see some big names in the business cross the line to congratulate a friend. Shamrock even put over Vince and WWF in his acceptance speech. Wholesome blurring the lines is nice once in a while. –ALSO- Matt Striker did the Pre-show match with Don Callis and presented the award to Ken Shamrock. So nice to see Impact finally using Striker; man is play by play gold.

6 Way Scramble: X Division Championship: Rohit Raju (c) vs Jordynne Grace vs TJP vs Chris Bey vs Trey Miguel vs Willie Mack

Start of the match is very much the story of everyone wants to get their hands on Rohit. Rohit tries to powder, they all go after him, he dodges and gets Willie, Trey and Jordynne to crash into each other. Chris and TJP start fighting over who get to hit Rohit and it turns into a stalemate of counter twists and jawing. After that we hit a moment where everyone starts to come in an get a little bit of offense against someone. Constant motion, so that makes for an interesting start. TJP has Willie in half a Muta Lock, Trey tries to get in, but TJP uses his free leg to apply an Indian Deathlock, then grabs a Front Necklock on Bey, but Jordynne starts loosening up the multi-pronged submissions, and Rohit takes full advantage.

Eventually Willie hits a Pop-Up Forearm and then we see Rohit become a pinball. Everyone gets in one clean hit, before Willie hits the Samoan Drop, Standing Moonsault and then everyone else breaks up the pinfall. This gets fun with some cool moves and signatures after this point. A big move was Jordynne in the Tree of Woe, with Trey, TJP and Bey fighting in the corner, so they do a variation of like a Tower of Doom, where Jordynne Spider’s up, grans TJP and Bey by the tights, and pulls them back with the Superplex to Trey.

Lots of fun spots, great moves, Trey eats a Grace Driver, Rohit breaks it up, TJP thinks he’s got the line and hits the Mamba Splash, Rohit flies in, Tiger Knee to TJP and he pins Trey to retain his title!

We get a bit of the wedding vignette, followed up by Heath and Rhyno. Yes, someone gave the camera guy a bad cue and we catch them being counted in, before the segment starts. It looks goofy, but let’s also remember they don’t do Live TV every week, at least the audio hasn’t been too messy so far.

Call Your Shot Gauntlet

Rhyno has to start after losing the IMPACT! Match, and Shawn Daivari comes out number 2! Looking real jacked baby, looking real jacked. After some outside brawling which makes Josh and Don whine like little girls, Larry D comes out at #3. A double team attempt to eliminate Rhyno proves futile, and Crazzy Steve comes out next. Not much happens here, but Acey Romero comes out next, so the team of XXXL is in the ring and makes a Crazzy Steve sandwich.

Tennile is out a #6, and like the smart influencer she is, she doesn’t want to get in. But she sends Kaleb with a K in. Not sure if he counts…but Havok comes out next with Nevaeh. Havok versus Acey is unexpected, but Havok hits him with a Tilt-A-Whirl Headscissors. Havok eliminates Kaleb…so what does that even mean? Brian Myers comes out next . Oh Tenille is in the ring now, so Kaleb was just a distraction I guess, maybe that means he has to go get in the Suicide outfit. Crazzy Steve is officially eliminated though. Oh Christ…Swoggle comes out next. Myers and Swoggle have a cute moment together eliminating Daivari, and then Myers chucks Swoggle showing his true colors.

Tommy Dreamer comes out in Road Warrior Animal paint and T-Shirt. Dreamer doing mostly Animal moves, and tells Swoggle to go up for a Little Doomsday. Alisha is #11, and somehow not the worst entrant since Swoggle existed. Myers uses Tenille as a shield. Myers eliminates Dreamer, Alisha hits Myers with a Kendo stick, Myers no sells and dumps Alisha out. Myers is looking like a beast.

Ahh Kiera Hogan is next, so my interest has peaked again. Myers and Tenille are taking pictures, Myers then lifts up Tenille like it’s a new picture, and just drops Tenille on Kaleb. Brian Myers is really looking like a man with a plan. Taya Valkyrie is up next. Taya actually out maneuvers XXXL and looks really good while taking over. Fallah is #14, still clutching the money like Gollum. Havok eliminates Kiera, but Taya eliminates Havok. Good, that’s what you get – WAIT James Storm is NEXT OUT! JOHNNY CASH LISTENIN!

"The Cowboy" @JamesStormBrand is BOUND FOR GLORY! #BFG2020

Order HERE: https://t.co/k6FQZR0uhy pic.twitter.com/O9x7Hb4E8k

— IMPACT (@IMPACTWRESTLING) October 25, 2020

Adam Thornestowe comes out after Cowboy. Cowboy did eliminate Larry D though. Luster the Legend is next, so we have another team in the mix. With Larry D out, Reno Scum is the only tag team currently all legal in the match. Heath is #17, and Rhyno is still in there, so that’s another team and it’s looking solid for the two with the most on the line. Heath takes out Acey and Brian Myers as Sami Callihan charges in at 19 and now we see Hernandez. Hernandez comes in to start his angle with Fallah and the money. Fallah just wants the money. Hernandez thought about it, but eliminates himself to go after Fallah and the money.

Final five are currently, Jimmy James Storm, Luster the Legend, Rhino, Heath and Sami. Rhino eliminates Luster and we’ve got a pretty solid final four. Heath looks legit hurt, Sami eliminates Storm, then Heath, and it’s a 1 on 1 with Sami Callihan and Rhino. #1 versus #19.

Sami hits the Piledriver, but Rhino kicks out! Sami goes for the chair, the referee stops him, and he eats The Gore! Rhino wins the gauntlet! As far as Battle Royals go, it was fine, but there may have been a pivot with what looked like Heath legit hurting himself fairly early.

Ethan Page taps into some of the WWF 80s cocaine for his portion of the promo, and damn was it good. Ethan Page is a treasure.

TNA Heavyweight Championship: Moose (c) vs EC3

So this does end up being cinematic like most people expected it to be. Moose goes to the facility where EC3’s first vignette was, the warehouse Fight Club setting. Starts off pretty cool, when the match eventually starts we get like some distorted German Techno/Rammstein fusion music. Not bad, and the pacing of the fight makes sense for a grudge match scene in a movie.

EC3 goes full Tyler Durden, and it’s pretty cool. EC3 pushes Moose to become a champion through actions not just by finding a relic of the past and proclaiming himself. This was cathartic seemingly for both men. EC3 kept pushing Moose to become what he wants, but EC3 himself was haunted by his past when he set Moose for the One Percenter, but the flashbacks gave Moose the opening to hit the Spear.

There was a moment at the end where Moose asked if this is what EC3 wanted, he said yes, Moose said thank you, and laid him out with the title shot. The other aspect of the framing was that Moose came out in full white, EC3 and his disciples had black hoodies. So the White Hat versus the Black Hat was very much present as well. EC3 effectively sacrificing himself for Moose’s sanity and understanding was a deeper message than you usually get in wrestling. It was just really cool.

Not sure if EC3 will be back in Impact any time soon since he did appear in ROH recently, but that was a cool build and pay off.

Ken Shamrock w/Sami Callihan vs Eddie Edwards

Eddie is known for his gas tank, so I like how he approached this match like a championship MMA match. He basically just lasted the first 5 or so minutes in Shamrock’s world and started to get the momentum after a Blue Thunder Bomb and a Dive to the outside. The big moves were really the bread and butter for Eddie in this match, but you could see the shots that Shamrock landed were taking its toll.

Eddie’s moves looked sluggish at time while he was selling, and even sold exhaustion to give Shamrock a spot to pop up and try for a Sleeper submission. Right as Eddie was looking to finish the match, Sami hops on the apron and pushes the button on his phone. Lights out, lights back on where Sami has the Baseball bat, but Eddie has Kenny the Kendo Stick! Eddie fights off Sami, turns and gets caught with the Belly to Belly. Ankle Lock next up and Eddie taps out.

This is nice for Shamrock to punctuate his Hall of Fame induction with a match win, but the fun aspect was Eddie catching on to Sami’s crap to a degree. One has to assume Shamrock isn’t full time, so maybe we can see Sami and Eddie come together in all of their feuding.

Impact Wrestling Tag Team Championships: The Good Brothers vs Ace & Fulton vs The North vs Motor City Machine Guns (c)

The North jump the Guns before the match even starts. Ethan hits a Big Boot on Sabin and Josh lands a Jay Driller on Shelley on the stage. Shelley gets taken to the back with an “injury” but Sabin hits the ring effectively handicapping himself.

We go a good bit of time where The North and Ace & Fulton just take turns (sometimes unintentionally) of cutting The Good Brothers out of the match and just beating the hell out of Chris Sabin. It felt like the first 10 minutes were just different ways of beating the snot out of Chris Sabin. Sabin finally counters Fulton when he tries the Snake Eyes to the knees, nice quesadora roll through to DDT Fulton and tag in Karl Anderson.

The Good Brothers give Sabin a breather, but then crazy ass Chris Sabin tags himself back in and starts flying around with a second wind. You gotta assume that Sabin should’ve stayed out a little longer, but after things settle a bit we see Sabin versus Anderson for a while, nice back and forth. Ace blind tags Karl, tries to come in from off camera but Sabin catches him with a drop kick. Damn Sabin is looking great.

This does get crazy in a fun way, since we get a nice Freak the Mighty moment with Ace & Fulton. Where they look for a tandem move with Ace on Fulton’s shoulders, but The North come in, chop down Fulton, with Ace looking helpless on his shoulders, Ace tries to wake Fulton back up, and then they knock him out. Good Brothers had a shot at the Magic Killer, but Josh Alexander wouldn’t allow it. Karl Anderson starts coming back, O’Connor Roll for 2, he gets shoved to the ropes and Ethan clocks him with the tag title belt. Josh gets the pin, and neither Big LG nor Chris Sabin could make a save. The North wins the belts back!

Knockouts Championship: Deonna Purrazzo (c) vs Kylie Rae Su Yung

Kylie’s music hits, but Kylie doesn’t come out which gives Deonna the chance to run her down on the mic. Deonna says she promised Impact a defense, so anyone can come out, and Su Yung shows up. Donna and Kimber both look pretty damn scared.

This match starts off with commentary asking questions about where is Kylie, and Deonna is reeling. The early goings could be defined as Deonna trying to get her footing and figure out what to do. There was an interesting spot where Deonna tried to put in the Fujiwara Armbar, but Su hooked the Mandible Claw with her free hand, causing the champion to break to the attempt. We even got the return of Su’s red mist to deal with Kimber Lee.

Referee for this match was practicing being a god actor, since after the ref bump he sold mid heart attack or dead or something for way longer than most would. Su absorbs a few kicks from Deonna bouncing off the ropes and basically fixing her arms from the damage, goes after Deonna, hits a Stunner, followed by Panic Switch, and we have a new champion! Also it should be noted that Deonna pulled off a Paradise Lock in the ropes, so that was neat to watch.

With all of the story threads in this match, it played out interestingly. Hopefully Kylie is alright, and Su’s return and subsequent capture of the title was cool. As for the match, it was mediocre at best, but the story elements helped put it over a little.

Impact World Championship: Eric Young (c) vs Rich Swann

Early on EY was obvious with his offense, as he kept shooting for the leg and Rich flipped over him. EY went as far to very audibly say “ I will get that…” as if it was his major life goal in the match. However, that all changed when Rich and EY were on the outside, EY Back Dropped Rich, and Rich was going to land in a Handstand on the apron, but apparently didn’t land right and messed up his neck.

After fighting back in before the 10 count, EY had a new target. EY peppered multiple shots to the head and neck and went for a huge Avalanche Wheelbarrow Neckbreaker, but only for 2, Savage Elbow to the back of the neck also for 2. This was Rich’s cross to bear in the match, and honestly, it may have served as a great distraction as to avoid damage to his ankle.

EY got very cocky, verbally berating Rich telling him to just stay down, and then when Rich got to his feet and dragged himself to the corner, EY was condescending with the “You’re almost there, so close, good job!” and then he’d pummel him some more. But boy when the match flipped, hot damn it fired up fast.

Rich was finally over the verbal assault by the third turnbuckle and just absorbed a few shots before charging EY, landing a few palm strikes, then throws him into the corner, EY Flair Flops the corner, walks to the other turnbuckle, climbs it and Rich jumps up in an Avalanche Takedown or something, it looked cool. The pacing became more of Rich’s forte at this point and it was blistering.

EY had the story thread spot, when he was able to slow things down enough to grab the Spinning Toe Hold, which prompted him to basically tell Rich he told him he was gonna get the ankle. Rich fought valiantly, landed some big moves, EY tried to counter with a Reverse Fireman’s TKO, but Rich fired well. Rich laid out EY with a stiff kick, Lethal Injection, then he went to the ropes, Phoenix Splash, and we have a new champion!

.@GottaGetSwann is BOUND FOR GLORY. #BFG2020 pic.twitter.com/q0HvsvEoee

— IMPACT (@IMPACTWRESTLING) October 25, 2020

Overall Score: 6.75/10

So not gonna lie to anyone here, after Slammiversary and Victory Road were so good, this was a little bit of a letdown. Now I mean that more from an overall presentation aspect, since we know Impact isn’t followed closely by the larger portions of the wrestling community. Each match (except for the Knockouts, need to find out what happened with Kylie), played well off of story threads and brought most things to a head. Just the in-ring work for this show seemed to be a little off or not quite as good as the last couple. Hell even Josh’s commentary was worse than usual (I don’t mind the nerd boy gimmick, but he was flubbing, getting lost in sentences and catching himself mid dumb comment causing awkward air).

The cinematic match doesn’t officially count as a match to me, since that’s how I’ve handled them all, but I thought it was really cool and the highlight of the night, before the main event. Su Yung return was cool, if not possibly premature. Hopefully Heath is alright since he did look to be moving gingerly at times. The North regaining the titles is perfectly fine. They’ve done great work, Ethan’s in great shape and it just works nicely since you can’t immediately put the titles on the Good Brothers; we need some tension, sheesh. Lastly, Rich Swann’s big win was a great match, told a great story and allows EY to rethink a rematch or some other big scheme.

There we go, we got some good work, though not as much as expected, and a lot of stories were told. Now even though this felt like a mediocre episode of IMPACT! at times, it still wasn’t bad. I just sit back and wonder if Daivari and/or James Storm are more than one off appearances.

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Up Next

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AEW Coverage

Mitchell’s AEW Collision Results & Report! (5/8/25)

Collision on a Thursday?!

Published

27 minutes ago

May 8, 2025

Steven Mitchell

Will Dax & Cash learn to Fear The Red Death?

FTR put the blame on Daniel Garcia for how things went down between them, but now Garcia plans on taking one of the Top Guys out!

OFFICIAL RESULTS

Ricochet VS Angelico w/ Serpentico; wins.
“Speedball” Mike Bailey VS Dralistico; wins.
Willow Nightingale VS Kris Statlander; wins.
Konosuke Takeshita & Josh Alexander VS The Dark Order; win(s).
8 Man Tag: The Don Callis Family VS The Outrunners, Bandido & AR Fox; win(s).
Anthony Bowens w/ Billy Gunn VS Lee Johnson w/ Blake Christian; wins.
Daniel Garcia VS Dax Harwood w/ Cash Wheeler & Stokely Hathaway; wins.

PLAY BY PLAY

Toni Storm is here!

Or rather, she’s still here given just last night, the TIMELESS AEW Women’s World Champion won a Fatal 4 Way Eliminator. And now she’s in the special box seat “balcony” with mic in hand. Detroit cheers and she blows kisses before saying, “So many men have taken a shot at me in here, I’m feeling like Abraham Lincoln. I will never forget my first. It was messy, it was sweaty, and painful. But I only wanted more. Once a month, once a week, twice a week, I was hooked. But then, it only became more risky. One at a time, then two at a time. And three at a time! Incorporating random objects, all the while being watched by perverts.”

The fans cheer being perverts but then Toni says, “One day, it will not end well for me. It will break my body and soil my soul. But in the end, I know it’s what I was born to do. And if you think I was referring to sexual intercourse, then get your minds out of the gutter!” Toni takes a moment before she continues, “Because the best bang could not compare to fighting for this!” She holds up the title and the fans cheer more! “I am not waiting for a Hayter or a CEO. So next week, line up the next batch of slop tarts, because baby wants to binge!” The fans also like the sound of that! Toni says spit on it and sit on it, and let’s get TIMELESS~!

The fans applaud and Toni takes a bow. Beach Break just got that much bigger, but who will take their shot at The Tramp that is The Champ?

Backstage interview with Paragon.

Lexy Nair is with Adam Cole, Roderick Strong & Kyle O’Reilly to ask them about the 2 Out of 3 Falls last Saturday. Roddy says that to say they’re disappointed is an understatement. He and Kyle are one of the best teams on this planet, and they thought it’d be like riding a bike. But it has been a bit more difficult than they thought. Kyle agrees that they’re frustrated and disappointed, but what they aren’t doing is taking anything away from themselves. They’re the Paragon and they’re still one of the best tag teams out there. And any other day, any other time, 99 out of 100, Kyle & Roddy win that match.

Cole agrees, and he knows that was tough last week. But they are one of the best teams in the world. There will be plenty of chances to prove that this year. But in step the Grizzled Young Veterans and Zack Gibson says say that again. He can’t believe Paragon has the nerve to stand here sulking and complaining. Honestly, this three are three of the best ever. The problem is, they’ve gone soft! They’ve forgotten what it is to fight for their sport. So any time they’re ready, GYV will remind them what that’s like. Kyle & Roddy say why not. GYV will be the first time that gets stomped on Paragon’s way back to the top!

GYV laugh that off then take their leave. But when and where will Liverpool’s Number One & Mr. Mayhem take on the Savior of the Backbreaker & the Violent Artist?

Ricochet VS Angelico w/ Serpentico!

The One & Only just got a big win last night alongside the Young Bucks, but now he looks to get a win on his own. Will Ricochet make Detroit #OuttaThisWorld two nights in a row? Or will tonight belong to Spanish Announce Project’s South African Stud?

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SATURDAY - The Mindless Wrestling Podcast

SUNDAY - The Front and Center Sports Podcast

CHAIRSHOT RADIO NETWORK PODCAST SPECIALS

Attitude Of Aggression Podcast & The Big Five Project (chronologically exploring WWE's PPV/PLE history)

TheChairshot.com PRESENTS...IMMEDIATE POST WWE PLE REACTIONS w/ DJ(Mindless), Tunney(DWI) & Friends

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Coverage

Mitchell’s WWE Evolve Results & Report! (5/7/25)

Hear ye, hear ye!

Published

5 hours ago

May 8, 2025

Steven Mitchell

The Prime Minister of Evolve has calls a town hall!

Stevie Turner wanted to say something last week on Evolve, but now she’ll have the proper time to tell us all what she has planned for the future!

OFFICIAL RESULTS

Wendy Choo VS Summer Sorrell; Wendy wins.
Jackson Drake w/ The Vanity Project VS Drako Knox; Drake wins.
Nikkita Lyons VS Kendal Grey; Lyons wins.

PLAY BY PLAY

Stevie Turner is in the ring.

With the entire Evolve roster at ringside, the Evolve “Prime Minister” stands behind a table with two items under purple velvet. Stevie welcomes us to the show, and says they are going to kick the night off with her monumental announcement that’ll change the landscape of Evolve forever. “For over two months, on Tubi and YouTube, these men and women have been fighting to showcase their skill in the hopes that one day, they will make it to NXT!” The fans cheer that! “Now in addition to those big NXT dreams, the women of Evolve will be fighting to become… the Evolve Women’s Champion” REVEAL of the belt and its white strap!

The fans cheer and Stevie continues. “In just three weeks, the Evolve Women’s Champion will be determined in a Fatal 4 Way Elimination Match. When I became Evolve Prime Minister, I asked all of these competitors to step up and impress me. And impress me they have! But three women in particular have really stood out to me. And those women are… Kali Armstrong! Kendal Grey! And Wendy Choo!” The fans cheer each name as they get fired up ringside. Stevie promises that even if she didn’t say their name, all the other women of Evolve still have a chance. There’s one spot open in that Fatal 4 Way, and it’s time to step up and take it!

Stevie then says, “And now for the men.” REVEAL of the THE Evolve Championship and its black strap! The men’s champion will be crowned in four week’s time. The men in that Fatal 4 Way Elimination Match will be… Sean Legacy! Keanu Carver gets upset that he wasn’t named first, and then It’s Gal gets mad. Only for Harlem Lewis to YANK the guy off the apron and storm into the ring, same as Keanu! These two titans want their spot, and Stevie tells them to calm down. But Vanity Project jumps in! Keanu & Harlem easily toss Jackson Drake & Swipe Right out, but then here comes Gallus! Now a real brawl is on!

The fans fire up as Harlem & Keanu take on Wolfgang, Markus & Joseph 3v2! Stevie wants this to stop, but it spills out of the ring! Refs rush out and the other Evolve stars help out, this brawl moves on to the back! Kali and Kendal then get in the ring to admire the Evolve Women’s Championship, only to then push each other! They brawl now, and the other ladies of Evolve hurry to stop this! Kali CHOP BLOCKS Kendal!! The fans boo that cheap shot, Stevie reprimands Kali, and now Kendal has to prepare for a match with a bad leg! Will she be easy pickings for #BigKatKita, Nikkita Lyons?

Backstage interview with Summer Sorrell.

Chuey Martinez is with the debuting star, and asks her how she feels drawing Wendy Choo as her first opponent here. Summer admits, she’s very nervous. This is the biggest dream come true, but facing Wendy right out the gate is a nightmare. Make no mistake, Summer is scared. But she uses fear as fuel to push and motivate her. When she gets in there, she’ll heat things up. It’s Summer Time, and these Summer nights will get you ready for a fight! Will Summer have a bright future? Or will Wendy make it a very dark one?

Nikkita Lyons meets with Stevie Turner in her office.

Lyons asks who Kendal thinks she is clapping back like that on socials. That is crazy! Stevie says yes, she’s seen the posts, and- Lyons says if Kendal thinks she can hang with “Nikkita Multimedia,” then Lyons is ready to pounce. Stevie says Kendal has been on a roll here in Evolve, which is why Lyons and Kendal are in the main event. Zayda Steel walks in, makes nice with Lyons, and says Lyons will handle Kendal just like her boy, Jackson Drake, will handle that… uh, Drako Knox! Stevie, that town hall meeting, that fourth spot in the Fatal 4 to crown THE Evolve Women’s Champion? Look no further! Just put Zayda right in!

Stevie says Zayda can’t just talk her way into the match. Uh, but she’s the Real Deal! They all know that! And Vanity Project runs Evolve. So let’s be real, when you think of Evolve, you think of Real Deal Zayda Steel! Stevie says no, Zayda still has to earn her way into it. Lyons says hold on, though. She sees Zayda has heart and guts. Maybe Big Kat Kita and the Vanity Project can collab. Zayda loves that. They head out together and Stevie asks for her minute back. Will the Real Deal understand she has to prove herself worthy instead of just thinking she’s worthy?

Wendy Choo VS Summer Sorrell!

The sleepy psycho made Kylie Rae take another Dirt Nap, and now she’s headed into the Women’s Evolve Championship match. But will the “Gatekeeper of Evolve” put Summer to sleep? Or will Summer turn up the heat and keep Wendy up all night?

The bell rings and the fans rally. Wendy and Summer step up, and then Summer cartwheels to dodge! Wendy isn’t amused and she runs up on Summer. Summer gest around to waistlock, but Wendy elbows free! Wendy Alabama Lifts, Summer sunset flips, TWO! Summer headlocks, Wendy powers up and out, and the two RAM shoulders! Wendy wags her finger, but Summer runs. Wendy follows to run Summer over! Wendy smiles, runs, but Summer drops down, hurdles over, and CROSSBODIES! Cover, TWO! Wendy RAMS Summer into a corner! Wendy RAMS her again and again but the ref counts.

Wendy backs off, then UPPERCUTS Summer! Wendy snapmares Summer, then hits a NECK TWIST! Summer writhes and flounders away, but Wendy grins. Wendy creeps up and creeps Summer out! Summer goes up and over, but Wendy ELBOWS her down! Wendy drags Summer up, and THROWS her across the wing! Wendy storms up in the corner, ROCKS Summer, then runs up. Summer BOOTS Wendy, goes up, and FLYING SUNSET FLIPS! But Wendy rolls through to BOOT Summer in the face! Wendy drags Summer up, hammerlocks, and PEPSI TWISTS! Wendy isn’t done, time for a DIRT NAP!! Summer TAPS, Wendy wins!

Winner: Wendy Choo, by submission

Still undefeated, still unnerving, and still unkind! But before Wendy can doodle on Summer’s face, here comes Kylie! Kylie runs in and fires off hands! But Wendy slips around, DIRT- NO, Kylie snapmares free! SUPERKICK! Wendy runs for it now! The Kylie RAGE is burning, will she give Wendy a wakeup call?

A car pulls up.

It parks, and out steps… Lexis King! The Drama King is here, but what business could he have with Evolve?

Lexis King heads to the ring!

The fans cheer as the former Heritage Cup Champion grabs a mic and says, “Ladies and gentlemen, The King has finally arrived in WWE Evolve. And I do say finally, because once upon a time, The King was just so eager to debut for Evolve. Back before I was such a big star, of course. Evolve was the place to be. Evolve is where everyone wanted to work, because Evolve is a portal to NXT. Alright, Evolve is a new place where new things are happening. Fresh faces are coming in, spotlights are being shined on new talent. And let’s face it, nobody knows more about spotlight than Lexis King.” The fans are bit torn there.

Lexis says he loves it, he lives for it, and he thrives in it. That’s why he’s here and now. He wants a taste of that spotlight! That’s why he is standing here a living, breathing superstar! The KING of NXT! “And to all the men and women in that locker room, let me just inform you that I’m the portal now. Nobody comes and goes from my NXT Kingdom without MY say.” But wait! Here comes Sean Legacy! The fans cheer as “Super Sean” has a mic to tell Lexis, “Welcome to Evolve! Now, I was gonna let you ramble on and on and on, because I just know you love hearing yourself speak. But there was one thing that didn’t sit right to me.

“You may be the King of NXT, but that doesn’t let you decide who’s a superstar and who isn’t; the WWE Universe does.” The fans cheer, but Lexis tells Sean and the fans to simmer down. Sean “thanks” Lexis for gracing us with his presence. But if Lexis thinks Sean’s gonna sit back there and let Lexis disrespect the men and women putting in all the hard work to make it to NXT… Oh, so is Sean the guy? He’s the big cheese around here? The locker room leader superhero? Tell him more! The fans cheer on “LEGACY! LEGACY!” but Lexis says okay, shut up. Sean says there’s nothing special, he’s just being himself. One fans says Sean can jump pretty high and Sean admits that’s true.

But Sean’s just some kid from Augusta, Georgia. He is someone that has been told countless times that he wouldn’t be standing in a WWE ring. He has paid his due, made the trips, done the sleepless nights and the 16 HOUR car drives for a $20 bill and a handshake. Hell, he’s still doing it cuz he loves this! He’ll be damned if someone like Lexis talks down to him when he’s busting his ass to get to NXT! When an NXT superstar comes out here and cuts down this place, a place that is giving Sean the opportunity of a lifetime, Sean will stand up for that one. Oh, he’ll stand up and defend everyone in the back?

Then Lexis dares him to stand up and defend something in this ring next week, against Lexis. It’ll be the biggest night of Sean’s life. Lexis offers a handshake, Sean takes it, and the fans cheer. Sean then tells Lexis, “That sounds super.” But then Lexis pulls Sean in close to tell him, “You have a long way to go to becoming a king.” Next week, Lexis and Legacy go 1v1, but will conquering Evolve be the King’s next crowning achievement?

Kendal Grey gets checked by medical.

She swears she’s okay, but Carlee Bright is very worried. How could Kali do that to Kendal? Doc, please say Kendal’s okay to compete. Kendal says she is, seriously! Nothing and no one is going to stop her. Carlee wants to have Kendal’s back but Kendal says no, she wants to do this alone. Kendal hobbles off and Carlee tells the ref that “her bestie” is tough. But will this bravado only get Kendal taken out of the Fatal 4 Way? Or can Kendal step into Lyons’ den and come out the conquering hero?

Keanu Carver is hunting Gallus!

He won’t let things just go down like that! Where them boys at? Stevie has him stop, and she says Gallus already left. Then he’ll just track them boys down! Harlem Lewis storms in, he wants Gallus, but Stevie repeats Gallus left. Harlem says Gallus are “big bad Irishmen when security’s around.” Harlem will go find them himself. Keanu says hold up, no he’s not. Keanu handles them first. Stevie has them stop arguing. They want a crack at Gallus, they’ll get one next week. But in a tag match. Harlem and Keanu don’t like that, but Stevie says if they want Gallus that bad, then they will. Stevie heads off, Keanu tells Harlem to stay in his lane but Harlem tells Keanu to mind his business.

We’re getting another “Can they or won’t they?” with the two alpha males of Evolve, but will it still be Gallus Boys on Top?

Jackson Drake w/ The Vanity Project VS Drako Knox!

Speaking of grudges, this one has been a long time coming. The Vanity Project mocked the Hard Knox & Cowboy Tate after they lost, and considering Tate is out with injury, that was just salt in the wound. Will Knox knock Drake down a peg? Or will the Carolina Reaper be too spicy for Knox to handle?

The bell rings and the two circle. They tie up, Knox puts Drake in a corner, but Drake turns things around. The ref counts, Drake lets off at 4, but Knox seethes. Drake talks trash, but Knox DECKS him! Knox then headlocks, grinds Drake down, but Drake fights up and out. Knox runs Drake over! The fans fire up as Knox headlocks again, but Drake powers up and out. Knox ducks ‘n’ dodges, Drake trips him up, and the fans boo. Drake runs in at the corner, but Knox dodges! Drake BOOTS Knox away, goes up, and leaps, but into a clinch! EXPLODER! The fans fire up for the #RedBone, and then Knox LARIATS in the corner!

Knox whips, Drake hurdles over, then he slips around to throw Knox down by his durag! The fans boo but Drake ELBOWS Knox down! Cover, TWO! The fans boo but Vanity Project hypes up their guy. Drake ROCKS Knox, CLUBS him, but the fans taunt him as “Jackson Jackass!” Drake clamps on with a chinlock but Knox endures. The fans rally but Drake pulls back on the hold. Knox fights around, the fans rally behind him, and Knox fires body shots! Knox arm-drags Drake away, then BACKDROPS him on the return! The fans fire up and Knox runs up to DECK Drake! And CLOBBER him! And then scoop and SLAM!

The fans fire up and Knox slips around Drake for a facelock. Drake wrenches out and whips, but Knox reverses and sends in the KITCHEN SINK KNEE! The fans fire up as Knox keeps moving, SLIDING LARIAT! Cover, TWO! Drake toughs it out but Knox gets mad now. Knox clamps onto Drake, but Drake fights the back suplex! Drake wrenches and clinches, FLATLINER! The fans boo but Drake goes to a corner. Drake runs up, but Knox trips him up! Knox runs, SLIDING- NO, Drake ducks it to hit a ghost pin, TWO! Drake kips up, ENZIGIRIS, and Vanity Project cheers! Drake runs, handsprings, but Knox catches him to the RED THUNDER BOMB! Cover, TWO!

Drake flounders to the apron but Knox is on him! Knox stands Drake up, only for Drake to HOTSHOT! Drake rushes in, only for Knox to LARIAT him inside-out! Knox scoops again, but Drake pulls the ears! Drake CLUBS Knox, the ref reprimands, but Drake handsprings! LETHAL IN-JACKSON!! Drake aims from a corner, runs back in, UNALIVING!! Cover, Drake wins!

Winner: Jackson Drake, by pinfall

The fans may not like it, but at least Drake won without help from his friends. With three spots still open in the Men’s Evolve Championship Fatal 4 Way, will the Carolina Reaper look to spice things up?

Backstage interview with Javier Bernal.

Chuey is now with Big Body Javi, who per the shirt is feeling a bit more emo right now. But Chuey asks how he is and Javi says he’s good. But to address the elephant in the room, this new look. It is definitely a different look than we’re used to. But Javi was on the shelf for eight MONTHS. And every day, he wondered if he’d ever be able to do what he loves again. And as he was making his way back, he heard about Evolve and thought, “That is an excellent opportunity for me to hit the ground running.” So while he hit the ground running, he realized he isn’t “Big Body Javi” anymore. Then who is he now?

Javi says to really understand Javi, we have to see that maybe he was never really “Big Body Javi.” You ever been to metalcore concerts? Javi went, listened to the music, felt the energy of the crowd, even screamed out loud. For a moment, he thought he’d be judged. But then he heard everyone else scream back and all the anxiety just washed away. In that moment, Javi felt genuine. That version of Javi is what he’ll bring to Evolve. He finally feels comfortable in his own skin, and that’s a blessing. But then It’s Gal walks in and says, “Oh, boo hoo, what a cute story, right? Well too bad nobody cares!

“Nobody cares about this version of Javi or any version of Javi, for that matter. You should’ve been interviewing the Real-Life Action Figure, It’s Gal! It’s Gal, it’s Gal, it’s Gal!” Gal leaves laughing, and Javi says he just found his next opponent. Will Javi show he’s finally free by winning big? Or will Gal be laughing all the way to the bank?

Lexis King crosses paths with The Vanity Project.

Brad Baylor unironically says, “What up, King?” Ricky Smokes compliments the beard as “extra crispy,” and says ladies must love the King. Lexis says they are correct. And speaking of crispy, Swipe Right looked real crispy against Fraxiom. And Jackson did great tonight. Drake is honored to have a fan in The King. The Project was just talking about how great it’ll be watching King knock Legacy off his pedestal. Lexis thanks them for that, and Bryce says if he needs anything from them, just let them know. Zayda says he can even slide into the DMs. Say less, darling. Lexis will see them around. He heads out, will Vanity Project become the King’s court?

Nikkita Lyons VS Kendal Grey!

#BigKatKita is back on the prowl, looking to pounce on fresh meat before they evolve and are too much to handle. However, Kali Armstrong may have done all the hard work for her tonight, given she chopped Kendal out at the legs. Will #GrapplerGrey still be undefeated? Or will Stevie Turner have to rethink her plans for the Women’s Evolve Championship?

The big fight introductions are given, and Lyons shows off that she can still use both legs. The bell rings and the two circle. Lyons KICKS and Kendal is already hobbling! Lyons KICKS again, but then Kendal ducks the spin kick! Kendal goes for a leg but Lyons picks her up! Kendal slips fere but the bad leg jams! Kendal still ELBOWS Lyons away, but then runs into a scoop! Kendal slips free, Lyons bucks the O’Conner, and Lyons CLOBBERS Kendal! Lyons bumps Kendal off buckles, CHOPS her, and then talks trash. Lyons swings again but Kendal dodges to CHOP! Kendal hobbles, whips, but Lyons reverses.

Kendal reverses, trips Lyons up, and basement DROPKICKS! Lyons bails out, Kendal hobbles again, and Kendal slides, only for Lyons to block! Lyons SLAMS the bad leg on the apron, spins Kendal around, and ROCKS her with a right! Lyons goes to the apron, does a standing splits into the #YamSlam on the apron! Kendal sputters and Lyons stalks her. Lyons drags Kendal from the ropes, turns her over, and SMASHES that bad leg on the mat! The fans boo and Kendal writhes, but Lyons puts her in a corner. Lyons wraps the bad leg around the ropes and pulls! The ref counts, Lyons stops, but then she ROCKS Kendal!

Lyons puts the leg back in the ropes, ROCKS Kendal again, and then STOMPS the leg down! The fans are torn while Kendal crawls away. Lyons clamps onto the leg and she works to turn Kendal! Kendal fights the turn, kicks from below, and Lyons staggers back. Lyons comes back with the HEEL KICK! Cover, TWO! Kendal stays in this but Lyons KICKS away on the bad leg, and YANKS it! Lyons drags Kendal up, has the bad leg, and SHIN BREAKERS! Kendal falls, Lyons puts the bad foot on the ropes, then HIP DROPS the knee! The fans are torn but Lyons twerks before she YANKS the bad leg again.

Lyons SMASHES the bad knee off the mat again, then looms over Kendal. Lyons stands Kendal up to SHIN- NO, Kendal sunset flips! TWO and Kendal kicks. Lyons blocks, ducks the enzigiri, and lifts the leg again! But Kendal uses that to stand up and ROCK Lyons with forearms and CHOPS! The fans fire up as Kendal DROP- NO, Lyons blocks the dropkick to CATAPULT Kendal, into the HALF CRAB! Lyons sits deep on the leg as she pulls way back! Kendal still endures, fights forward, and reaches out to the ROPEBREAK! Lyons lets go at 4 and looms over Kendal again. Lyons drags Kendal from the ropes, runs, but Kendal avoids the splash!

Kendal and Lyons rise, and Kendal fires body shots! Then SLAP, CHOP, and repeat! Lyons blocks a shot, KICKS low, then winds up, but into an ARMBAR TAKEDOWN!! Lyons clasps hands but Kendal pulls on the grip! Lyons stacks Kendal, deadlifts her, but Kendal lets go to KNEE low! Kendal hops on for a SLEEPER! The fans fire up as Lyons flails! Lyons RAMS Kendal into the corner, then runs up. Kendal KNEES Lyons, goes up, and FLYING SHOULDER TACKLES! Kendal has to crawl to the cover, TWO! Lyons survives, Kendal hobbles up, but she ducks Lyons’ roundhouse! Kendal goes up the corner, but her leg gives out!

Kendal falls into the drop zone, Lyons says she’s an idiot. Lyons steps on Kendal, goes up and up, VADER BOMB! Cover, Lyons wins!

Winner: Nikkita Lyons, by pinfall

Kendal may have had one good leg but she had a lot of heart. Even so, Lyons at 100% was too much, and now Lyons has her first win in Evolve! But then Kali rushes out here to pick the bones! She stomps the bad leg, drives it down with DDT after DDT, then she puts on a STRETCH MUFFLER!! The refs rush out here, Kali drops Kendal, and now Kendal’s spot in the Fatal 4 Way really is in jeopardy! Is this how the Ironwoman of Inglewood intends to inspire the next generation? By ending Kendal’s future before it can begin?

My Thoughts:

A great Evolve here, but rather bittersweet given some of the cuts that happened before this episode could air. It’s a real shame that Gallus was cut, I can’t really be sure why they never got to go very far. And instead of their tag match with Harlem & Keanu being this week, it’s next week, so I guess technically we can say they’re WWE superstars for a little longer. Javier being cut stings a bit more now as he was literally on the verge of a new persona. He had a good promo to help put “Emo Metalcore Javi” into perspective, and It’s Gal picking a fight with him was also good, but I guess Javi’s last match will be next week, too.

As such, I feel like there was awkward editing on who will be in the Men’s Evolve Championship Fatal 4 Way. Stevie only naming Sean Legacy seemed odd, but I suppose it still works that Keanu and Harlem would each take offense to not automatically being named. I would think after they beat Gallus, we get them named to the match and then we get something special for the fourth spot. The same should happen in the Women’s Evolve Championship Fatal 4 Way. Maybe a gauntlet to essentially give ranks 5 through 10 their chance at being in the match. We can get some great combinations through a match like that to really add something to the different Fatal 4 Ways.

Wendy of course beat poor Summer, but good move to have Kylie rush out there after her. Honestly, make Kylie the fourth contender via a gauntlet or whatever, she needs to settle things with Wendy while potentially going for the gold. Great match from Lyons and Kendal, but even if Kendal wasn’t “hurt” going into the match, I feel Lyons was going to win. I just don’t get what’s going on with Kali Armstrong now. Her interview gave us an idea of who she was as a person, how she wants to be a role model, but then she doubles down on being a Heel here. Just odd really.

Lyons being a new addition to Evolve is fine. It is just unfortunate that injuries slowed down her NXT run and now the title scenes have moved past her. Her and Zayda getting along is an interesting move, but I feel like the title will drive a wedge there. Lexis King showing up in Evolve is a huge surprise, I thought he was going to be moving up from the Heritage Cup to the North American Championship. Great promo between him and Legacy, and then King being friendly with Vanity Project is also interesting. Lexis VS Legacy will be a great match next week, maybe with Vanity Project getting involved, certainly interesting possibilities from here.