RADICAN’S EVOLVE 40 iPPV REPORT
MARCH 27, 2015
SAN JOSE, CALIF.
AIRED LIVE ON WWNLIVE.COM

(1) EVOLVE Champion Drew Galloway vs. Uhaa Nation in a Non-Title match. After some back and forth action, Nation sent Galloway to the floor with a dropkick. They went at it on the floor and Galloway dropped Nation over the guardrail. They went back and forth near the apron. Uhaa flipped off the apron over Galloway who ducked him. Nation landed on his feet, but Galloway caught him and slammed him on the apron. Galloway began targeting Nation’s leg back inside the ring. Galloway continued to dominate the action for a long period of time. Nation fired back with a clothesline out of the corner. He followed up with a leaping lariat a short time later. Nation held on for three German suplexes and managed to get a 2 count. Nation went up top and hit a big splash to Galloway’s back for a 2 count. Galloway fired back and caught Nation with a sit out slam as he came off the ropes. Galloway signaled for the finish and the fans booed. Nation countered a DDT and eventually caught Galloway with an enzuguri. Galloway fired back and hit a big German into the turnbuckles followed by a sick kick for a 2 count. They went back and forth and Nation hit a big boot followed by a sit out powerbomb for a near fall. Galloway countered a backslide attempt and hit his double underhook DDT for the win.

Galloway got on the mic after the match and put over Nation. He told Nation this might be the last chance they get to work together for a while. He put over Nation and the fans chanted his name. Galloway asked who the first timers were tonight. He said this is EVOLVE and the fans applauded. He said this was the home of the greatest in-ring professional wrestlers. Galloway put over the fans and said he’s a hardcore fan and wants to show the fans his love for this business. Galloway said he loves watching this show too. Galloway said the EVOLVE Championship is the most important thing in the world today. He talked about Gargano and their match on the next show. Galloway said both titles are on the line and tomorrow he will keep moving to the top. He said tomorrow would be the show of a lifetime. He said the fans should tell everyone about the show because they’re watching the best in the world. The fans applauded to end the segment.

WINNER: Drew Galloway

Star rating: (**1/2) – This was fine for what it was. The fans were flat for the action and didn’t really get into the match. They had some nice exchanges late in the mat, but overall this match didn’t live up to expectations. Once again, Galloway’s post-match promo was a blast to listen to.

(2) Tommy End (w/Chris Hero) vs. Timothy Thatcher. Big pop for Thatcher when he was introduced. Thatcher took End to the mat and they struggled before Thatcher got on top of him. They went back and forth on the mat. End got to his feet and went for a kick, but Thatcher got out of the way. They went to some great stuff on the mat with Thatcher looking for an opening and End holding him off. Thatcher eventually got a single-leg crab, but End got out of it and hit some slaps from the mount before they came to a stalemate. Hero taunted Thatcher from the outside, but he ignored him. They went on it on the mat and End tried to apply a triangle choke. End hit a kick to Thatcher’s head and they separated once again. End surprised Thatcher with a body scissors and went for a cross-arm breaker, but Thatcher blocked it. They went back and forth on the mat with End doing a good job of not leaving any openings for Thatcher. Thatcher got a kimura, but End immediately got his foot on the bottom rope. End hit a kick to Thatcher’s leg and he backed away and smiled. End caught Thatcher with another leg kick and he backed away again. Thatcher blocked a kick and took End down to the mat.

End countered him and went for a cross-arm breaker, but Thatcher pressed his weight on top of him for a 2 count. End escaped a submission from Thatcher and nailed him with a big kick to the chest. Thatcher got up and told End to come out of the corner. They went at it again and Thatcher took End down to the mat once again. Thatcher went to work on End’s arm. End got on top of Thatcher and they continued to struggle on the mat. End hit an open hand slap, but Thatcher fired back with a headbutt. Both men staggered and End nailed Thatcher with a big kick to the head and he collapsed to the mat. The ref began counting Thatcher out, but He made it to his feet at 8.

Thatcher sent End to the outside with an uppercut. He went out to the apron and charged at End, but End kicked his feet out from under him and he went face first into the apron. End broke up the ref’s 20 count and tossed Thatcher back into the ring for a near fall. End brought Thatcher to his feet and nailed him with a big punch. End hit several big kicks to the chest and Thatcher tried to fire back with an uppercut, but End sent him to the mat with a big boot to the head for a 2 count. Thatcher ducked a knee to the head and grabbed a neck crank. End drove Thatcher into the corner to break the hold. They went to a big exchange and End caught Thatcher with a jumping knee strike and German with a bridge for a 2 count. Thatcher grabbed a kimura after he kicked out, but End got out of it and hit a jumping knee strike for a 2 count. Thatcher got a cross-arm breaker and end got out of it, but Thatcher immediately grabbed a Fujiwara arm bar for the win. Wow!

Hero jawed at Thatcher, but he ignored him. Thatcher shook hands with End and Hero broke it up and continued to jaw at Thatcher. Thatcher just stared at Hero. Thatcher walked by Hero and bumped his shoulder. Thatcher turned around and smiled at Hero before leaving the ring. The fans chanted for End after the match.

WINNER: Timothy Thatcher

Star rating: (****) – This was an enthralling technical battle between End and Thatcher. They had some great exchanges on the mat and End’s striking is amazing to watch. Thatcher is so good with his facial expressions and he played things perfectly during this match to show concern for End’s striking ability. This one is worth going out of your way to see.

(3) T.J. Perkins vs. Drew Gulak (w/Team Gulak). Gulak hit a judo throw during the early going and worked a headlock on the mat. They had a really good exchange and Perkins grabbed an arm bar, but Gulak escaped and began working over Perkin’s arm. He then hooked Perkins in a combination arm/leg submission. Perkins fired back and caught Gulak in an octopus submission, but Gulak countered it into a stretch muffler. Perkins countered it into a small package for a 2 count. Perkins went for a kick on the apron a short time later, but Gulak snapped his leg over the middle rope. Gulak came off the turnbuckles a short time later, but Perkins kicked him in the arm. He then drove Gulak shoulder-first into the turnbuckles. Perkins worked over Gulak’s arm for a long period of time. Gulak finally fired back and snapped Perkin’s leg over his shoulder. Gulak got the upper hand and went after Perkins’s leg. Gulak continued to work on Perkin’s leg with a single leg crab, but he managed to get the ropes. Perkins countered a slam and eventually got a cross-arm breaker, but Gulak countered into one of his own. Perkins stood on top of him and applied a single leg crab. He then turned it into a Fujiwara arm bar, but Gulak escaped and grabbed an ankle lock. The great exchange ended with Perkins getting the ropes.

They went back and forth. Perkins hit some big slaps, but Gulak grounded Perkins with a slap of his own. Gulak rolled through on Perkins and got the ankle lock again. Perkins got to his feet, but Gulak nailed him with a slap and applied the ankle lock again. They went back and forth. Perkins tried to get out of an ankle lock with an enzuguri, but Gulak ducked and maintained the hold. Perkins kept trying to roll through and eventually got an ankle lock of his own. This is really good stuff between these two. Gulak fired back and got the ankle lock again and Perkins tapped.

After the match, Perkins shook hands with Gulak before leaving the ring. Gulak motioned for his seconds to leave and he then exited behind them.

WINNER: Drew Gulak

Star rating: (***3/4) – This was a really good technical match that I would put just a notch below the previous match. They had some really good exchanges on the mat with Perkins going for Gulak’s arm and Gulak going after Perkins’s leg. The counter sequences on the mat down the stretch were fantastic and I’m a big fan of this style.

(4) Ethan Page vs. A.R. Fox. Page grabbed a headlock and came away with Fox’s doo rag. Page then out it on his head and the fans gasped. Fox tried to take Page down with a clothesline, but he wouldn’t go down. Fox finally took him down with an enzuguri. Leonard mentioned this wasn’t the humble Page we saw in his YouTube video. Fox sent Page to the floor with a springboard dropkick and nailed him with a pair of dives through the ropes. Fox then went for a third dive, but Page got out of the way. Fox flipped over the ropes and nailed Page with a kick flip off the post to the floor and the fans went nuts chanting for Fox. Fox caught Page with a leg drop off the top to the apron. He went for sliced bread on the outside, but Page countered it and hit a spinebuster on the apron. Page then hung Fox up on the guardrail and hit a big backbreaker on the floor. The fans fired up for that sequence. Page began working over Fox back inside the ring. Fox went for a springboard, but Page caught him in the scorpion death drop position and lifted him up before slamming him down to the mat. Fox finally fired back and hit a springboard ace crusher to cut off Page.

Page rolled to the floor and Fox nailed him with a huge flip dive over the top to the floor. Fox nailed Page with a big running kick in the corner and went up top and connected with a swanton. Fox went for a 450. Page got out of the way and ended up hitting a lawn dart on Fox. He then hit a big spinning slam for a 2 count. Page sold frustration after Fox kicked out. Fox fired back and hit a springboard code breaker for a 2 count. They went at it on the apron. Page clotheslined Fox over the ropes and into the ring. Page went for a slingshot ace crusher, but Fox turned it into a code breaker after a slight delay with Page coming off the top. Fox went up top, but Page cut him off on the apron and nailed him with an ace crusher. Page then tossed him into the ring for a near fall. Fox fired back and nailed Page with an enzuguri up top and followed up with Lo Mein pain. He then went right back up top and hit a 450 for the win. Wow!

After the match, Page got on the mic. He said the fans should be booing him after he lost two matches in a row. The fans booed Page. He said he wanted to boo himself in front of the fans. He said Gargano, who was the man in WWN, endorsed him. He said Gargano put his name on the line for him. Gargano said in WWN, he wants to be just like Gargano. Page said tonight he is sorry. Gargano made his way down to the ring. Gargano got on the mic and told Page to shut up. He said he brought Page here because he believes in him. He said Page had given everything he had and he didn’t let anyone down. He said he showed he belonged in this ring. Gargano told Page it’s about how he picks himself back up, which he knows about from his past six years in EVOLVE to be the man for the people in attendance. Gargano said it all comes to a head tomorrow. He said for the first time it would be title vs. title tomorrow. He said if Galloway think he’s going to waste six years of his life, he’s mistaken. Gargano said this is his life and he loves what he does. Gargano says he doesn’t stop. Gargano said Galloway would have to kill him to beat him and as long as his heart is beating, he would walk out of his ring with both titles. Great promo from Gargano.

WINNER: A.R. Fox

Star rating: (***1/2) – This was a really good showing for Page. He showed his heel side during the match and seems to be getting more comfortable in this setting than he has been in the past. Fox was really good in this match as well selling a beating from Page and kicking out of some big moves before eventually finishing him off in the end.

Hero came out to face Busick wearing a black ski mask. Busick came out second to a good reaction.

(5) Chris Hero vs. Biff Busick. Leonard hit the bullet points for the storyline heading into this match with Hero saying Busick hadn’t earned the right to say his name and Busick saying he’s going to choke him out. They exchanged chops during the early going. They began trading bigger shots with Hero hitting running boots and Busick hitting uppercuts. Busick got dropped with a big slap to the face. Hero continued to no-sell Busick’s uppercuts and he went for a rolling elbow, but Busick got out of the way. Leonard mentioned Busick is ranked #2 in the rankings. Hero decked Busick with a big right and told Busick he was going to knock him out. Busick stood up and Hero decked him with a straight jab for a 2 count. Hero is currently ranked #5. Busick fired back with some big chops, but Hero shrugged them off. Busick climbed the turnbuckles and Busick got hung up by the leg before dropping down to the floor after he freed his leg. Hero jawed with some fans and didn’t notice that Busick was held up in the ropes for around ten to twelve seconds. Hero decked Busick with a big forearm on the floor. Hero nailed Busick with kicks to the face as he tried to get back into the ring. Busick slumped to the apron and sold intensity. Busick ducked a running kick and nailed Hero with a big German. Hero sold like he was completely dazed after taking the German. Hero got up and nailed Busick with a series of forearms in the corner to ground Busick. Hero brought Busick to his feet and nailed him with a huge forearm and the ref began counting Busick down. The fans taunted Hero with Hacksaw chants. Busick barely made it to his feet before the ref counted to 10.

Hero chanted Biff and then nailed him with a running forearm in the corner, but Busick surprised him with a pair of jumping neck breakers off the ropes. Busick got a running start and nailed Hero with a European uppercut that sent Hero over the guardrail. Busick hit a pair of running European uppercuts on the floor and Hero was down on the floor. Busick surprised Hero with another running European uppercut on the floor. Busick dragged Hero over the apron and tried to get a rear naked choke, but Hero rolled into the ropes. Busick hit a big dive over the top to the floor. Hero stayed on his feet, but Busick grabbed a choke. Hero tried to drive Busick into the guardrail and the apron, but he couldn’t get Busick to break the choke. Hero eventually rolled into the ring with Busick on his back. Busick got the rear naked choke with Hero on his feet, but Hero drove himself backwards on top of Busick and both men were down on the mat. Hero got up and nailed Busick with a piledriver, but only got a 2 count. Hero slapped Busick’s face and taunted him. He then began nailing Busick with light kicks and slaps to the face. Busick countered Hero and hit a half-nelson suplex. Busick hit a second half-nelson suplex and Hero stumbled up to his feet. Busick connected with a huge running lariat, but Hero managed to kick out at 2. Busick put Hero on the top turnbuckle and got on top of Hero’s back, but Hero fought him off. Busick went up top and hit several headbutts. He then went back behind Hero and hit a half-nelson suplex for a near fall.

The fans fired up with both men down on the mat. Busick lifted Hero up, but Hero countered a choke sleeper and hit a rolling elbow. Busick no-sold it and went for the judo throw, but Hero slipped out of it. Hero hit the death blow and covered Busick for a near fall. Hero hit another rolling elbow, but didn’t go for the cover. Hero hit another rolling elbow, but Busick kicked out at 1 and yelled at Hero from his knees. The fans chanted for Busick, who ate another rolling elbow and a tombstone for the win.

The fans chanted for Busick after the match.

WINNER: Chris Hero

Star rating: (****) – This is the best in-ring performance I can recall from Hero in quite some time in terms of having a big-time presence and carrying himself like a badass heel. Hero shook off all of Busick’s offense early and decked him with straight rights and huge forearms. Busick finally got some momentum going and really took it to Hero down the stretch, but it wasn’t enough. This was a heck of a hard-hitting match.

The PAB was out next to face Ronin. Ronin made their entrance next with Swann singing “All Night Long” once again. This will never not be awesome.

(6) Caleb Konley & Brian Cage (w/The PAB) vs. Ronin (Open the Freedom Gate Champion Johnny Gargano & Rich Swann). The fans wanted a dance off between Swann and Konley during the early going. Konley didn’t want any part of it and he went after Swann. Swann frustrated Konley by making him do the wave. The pace picked up and Swann eventually hit a dropkick to the back of Konley’s head. Gargano tagged in and continued to work over Konley while the fans sang “All Night Long.” Gargano did a little dance, but he was no Swann in that department. Swann and Gargano hit a series of moves on Konley. Cage ran into the ring and took a series of moves as well. Konley fired back on Gargano and tagged in Cage, who began working him over. Gargano fired back and took Cage down with a tornado face buster. Swann tagged in, but Cage cut him off right away and choked him on the ropes. Swann fired back and came off the top, but Cage caught him in the vertical suplex position and turned it into a jackhammer. That was impressive and the fans actually booed Cage hitting the move. Swann took a beating for a long period of time. Swann went for a handspring ace crusher, but Cage dumped him down to the mat. Swann finally slipped out of a suplex from Konley and tagged in Gargano, who ran wild until Cage caught him coming off the ropes and hit a DVD onto Konley’s knees.

Cage and Konley tagged in and out to work over Gargano. Val yelled at Konley from the floor. The fans tried to rally behind Gargano, but he continued to take a beating from Cage. Gargano ended up on the floor and Andrea put the boots to him with the ref distracted. Gargano fired back and tossed Andrea into the post, but Konley cut him off right away. It appeared that Swann was hurt and down on the outside, as Gabe Sapolsky could be seen running down to ringside to check on him. Cage and Gargano went up top and Cage hit him with a delayed superplex. Gargano mounted a comeback and hit the hurts don’t it on Konley for a 2 count. Gargano locked in the Gargano escape and Konley tapped out. That was a strange finish, but understandable given Swann’s condition on the floor.

It was announced the match had been stopped due to an injury. Cage & Konley were then announced as the winners. Huh? Several officials came down to help Swann to the back.

WINNERS: Brian Cage & Caleb Konley due to injury – The match was off to a good enough start until Swann got hurt on what looked to be a pretty basic maneuver where Cage dumped him down to the mat. There was a lot of confusion after the match due to Swann’s injury to what appeared to be his ribs.

Ricochet told the fans Swann was hurt, but he didn’t want it to bring the fans down. He said he was facing Black and noted his sweet tights. The fans fired up for Ricochet trying to get some energy back in the room. The fans started a “You’ve got sweet trunks” at Black. They are pretty cool with a neon green and purple theme.

(7) P.J. Black vs. Ricochet. A.R. Fox entered the commentary booth! He said he was scouting Black for his match against him on the WWN Supershow. They had a crazy exchange that went back and forth during the early going. Both men ended up hitting head scissor takedowns before coming to a stalemate. Ricochet offered Black a handshake after the exchange. Fox said he was trying to hope in on commentary yesterday, but they “fabed” him. Hilarious! Ricochet got the upper hand and went for the people’s moonsault. He landed it successfully for a 2 count. The fans chanted people’s moonsault and Ricochet flexed. Black fired back and lifted up Ricochet over his head before slamming him down to the mat. Black began working over Ricochet and hit a butterfly suplex. Fox said that could be a finish somewhere after Ricochet kicked out at 2. Fox said he would have to counter that move tomorrow. Fox saw Black apply a modified abdominal stretch and said he was going to use the move somewhere next weekend. They went back and forth and Black followed Ricochet to the ropes and clotheslined him to the floor. Black went for a dive right away, but Ricochet nailed him with an enzuguri. Ricochet went for a dive, but Black cut him off. Black went for a springboard, but Ricochet dropkicked him right out of the way. Ricochet then hit a twisting moonsault over the top to the floor and the fans went nuts. Ricochet hit a springboard frog splash for a 2 count back inside the ring. The fans fired up with Ricochet in control.

Black tried to fire back, but Ricochet caught him by surprise with an ace crusher and a running SSP for a 2 count. Ricochet went for the benadriller, but Black grabbed the ropes and hit a STO for a 2 count. They went to another fast-paced exchange. Both men hit a series of big kicks to the head and both men went down as the fans applauded. Both men got up and exchanged big chops and strikes. Ricochet hit a northern lights suplex and floated over into a big vertical suplex, but Black kicked out at the last second. Ricochet went for a springboard 450, but Black got out of the way. Black then hit a springboard 450, but Ricochet kicked out at the last second. Fox said the more you got to the middle of the ropes, the looser the ropes are. Fox said Black had excellent balance to execute the springboard 450 from the middle of the ropes. Ricochet crotched Black up top. Black fought Ricochet off, but Ricochet nailed him with an enzuguri from the apron. Ricochet then got on top of Black and hit a top rope reverse hurricanrana, but Black kicked out at the very last second. Holy s---t! Fox couldn’t believe that Black kicked out and speculated that his tights helped him kick out. Ricochet went up top, but Black cut him off and hit some big chops. Black went for a hurricanrana, but Ricochet turned it into a powerbomb. Good lord! Ricochet then hit a sick 630 for the win. Wow!

Both men hugged after the match. Ricochet got on the mic and said Black is the man. The fans applauded. Ricochet said he didn’t know what to expect, but Black is the man. The fans began chanting for Black. Ricochet thanked Black and they shook hands again. Black got on the mic and said he’s not a promo guy, but had something to say. Black said he left WWE because one year ago he saw Gargano vs. Ricochet during WM and it made him want to push the limits every single night. Black said he couldn’t wait to finish Ricochet again and left the ring. Ricochet went out to the outside and sang to Heather Lynn. I believe Wale was in the crowd and he appeared to approve of Ricochet’s song.

WINNER: Ricochet

Star rating: (****) – This was an awesome main event. I wasn’t super excited to see this match going into it without the context of a rivalry between these two men, but boy did they deliver a terrific high-flying spectacle with some crazy back and forth exchanges. This was a fantastic way to end an outstanding EVOLVE show.

Overall thoughts: (9.0) - This show was a barn burner. Excellent matches up and down the card? Check. A variety of exciting matches and a hot crowd? Check. Interesting character development to build towards the WWN Supershow to conclude the weekend? Check.

Thatcher-End was the kind of technical battle that has become almost common in EVOLVE during their round of shows. Both men played the match like a game of chess with End trying to stay out of Thatcher’s submissions and Thatcher trying to avoid End’s deadly knee’s and kicks. This match ruled and Thatcher has been so good in EVOLVE. They did a really nice job of building up Thatcher vs. Hero for the next night as well here. I loved Thatcher’s reaction to Hero jawing at him after the match.

Ethan Page finally appears to be comfortable on the EVOLVE stage. He’s really good working heel. Page showed his heel side during the match and Fox sold well for him. I think Page is capable of doing big things this year in EVOLVE.

Hero did a good job of playing the badass heel in his match against Busick. Busick talked all weekend about how he was going to choke Hero out and Hero shook off his offense during the early going and dominated the match early with straight rights and forearms to work over Busick. It took a lot for Busick to turn the tide, but Hero managed to fend off his choke throughout the match and finished him off with a tombstone. Thatcher-Hero is such an intriguing match and I can’t wait to see it.

The main event didn’t have any storyline supporting it. It was Ricochet and P.J. Black matched up for the first time and they did a heck of a job holding up the main event spot. Black has been good to very good so far in EVOLVE, but these two had great chemistry and put together a spectacular match filled with fast-paced exchanges and eye-popping moves. Ricochet’s inverted hurricanrana off the top for a near fall was just insane down the stretch. Ricochet is so good right now and EVOLVE is lucky to have access to him. Black held up his end of the match as well and delivered a really good performance and despite saying that he isn’t much of a promo guy after the match, he delivered a good promo about why he wanted to compete in EVOLVE.

This is a show well-worth going out of your way to see. There were a string of matches in the four star range that were a blast to watch. Hero-Busick and Ricochet-Black were both fantastic, as was End-Thatcher. EVOLVE has one heck of a roster right now and this show is worth going out of your way to see.

***

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