EVOLVE 24 on September 22nd, 2013 in Brooklyn, New York
Opening Match: Green Ant vs. Mike Rollins vs. Mr. Touchdown vs. Lince Dorado
Rollins shoulder tackles Dorado to the floor. Touchdown and Rollins get into a shoulder block battle. Dorado snaps off a hurricanrana on Green Ant but falls victim to a gourdbuster. Touchdown teases a dive but opts instead to do the Tebow pose. Green Ant lands a dive to the floor onto Rollins. Dorado headscissors Touchdown to the floor and follows out with a moonsault onto everyone. In the ring, Green Ant connects with a missile dropkick on Rollins. They do a tower of doom spot in the corner. Rollins hits an air raid crash on Green Ant and connects with a facewash kick on Touchdown. He follows with a tiger driver on Dorado. Green Ant hits a piledriver on Rollins but Dorado breaks up the pin attempt with a flying double stomp. Touchdown plants Dorado with a nice ace crusher. Green Ant hits a german suplex on Dorado. They connect with enzuigiris at the same time. Dorado catches Green Ant with a springboard hurricanrana for the win at 9:21. Both crowds this weekend have wanted nothing more than to see Green Ant win. Everyone looked solid here and Rollins showed some real potential. The finish came at an awkward time and the crowd was not receptive to Dorado winning, but this was a decent enough opener. **½
Match #2: Matt Jackson vs. Shane Strickland
This is an open challenge from Matt. Of course, the crowd is unhappy that Green Ant didn’t answer the challenge. Matt hits a spear at the opening bell and reigns down punches. Strickland lands a kick-flip dive to the floor that barely hits Matt. Back in, Strickland hits a gutbuster. Matt connects with a timely superkick and takes control. Strickland takes him down with a monkey flip and lands a flying crossbody. Strickland connects with a series of kicks and hits a leaping DDT for a nearfall. He misses a flying double stomp and runs into a powerbomb. Matt powers him into a bucklebomb and hits a springboard ace crusher. Matt connects with a superkick and lands a flying elbow drop for a nearfall. Strickland flips out of a german suplex, connects with a double stomp, and comes off the top rope with a flying double stomp for the victory at 9:57. The crowd was not into Strickland as much as they wanted but they really hit a higher gear once they found their rhythm down the stretch. It’ll be interesting to see if anything comes from these losses by Matt. Perhaps Konley and Strickland receive a tag title shot somewhere down the line because, well, Konley was once apart of a successful tag team in DGUSA. That’s certainly a reach, but both Konley and Strickland need something interesting to do. **¾
Match #3: Ivelisse vs. Su Yung
I have absolutely no desire to see this match after what happened in last night’s main event. They aggressively lockup and Ivelisse connects with a few kicks. Mr. A trips Ivelisse from ringside, allowing Yung to take over. Ivelisse blocks a charge and comes off the middle rope with a dropkick. Ivelisse connects with a nice kick but snaps off a sloppy hurricanrana. Yung avoids an enzuigiri and quickly pins Ivelisse for the win at 3:28. Let’s just move on. *
Match #4: Anthony Nese vs. Josh Alexander
They trade control on the mat. Nese goes after the right leg and Alexander quickly grabs for the bottom rope. Alexander hangs onto a headscissors and transitions into a side headlock. He hits a powerslam and sends Nese to the floor with a crossbody. Nese cartwheels off the apron and connects with a lariat. He takes control until Alexander comes back with a northern lights suplex. Nese blocks a sunset flip and just kicks Alexander in the head. They exchange strikes and Alexander hits a superplex. Nese responds with a superkick but runs into a lariat. Both men are down. They battle over a tombstone position and Nese hits snake eyes. He dead-lifts Alexander into a one-armed powerbomb. Alexander answers with a tiger driver and a dragon suplex for a nearfall. Nese rips off Alexander’s head gear. As the referee yells at Nese, Mr. A grabs Alexander’s legs. Nese hits a reverse hurricanrana and lands a 450 splash for the victory at 14:52. They were rocking until the frustrating and unnecessary finish. Alexander should undoubtedly be brought back and I think he’ll be even more effective in front of a crowd that 1) is into the action and 2) is familiar with his offense. The finish leaves less of a bad taste because of how good Alexander looked in this match. ***
Match #5: Trent Baretta vs. Maxwell Chicago
Baretta instructs Chicago on how to put him in a wristlock. Baretta quickly goes from sarcastic to serious when Chicago starts applying pressure. Chicago avoids a charge and hits a rolling neckbreaker. He teases a dive but doesn’t end up following through with it. Baretta connects with a running knee strike and hits the Dudebuster for the win at 4:58. Chicago received a chance to showcase his comedy and the match was short enough that Baretta didn’t look silly for messing around. Baretta is starting to establish an identity in DGUSA and EVOLVE, which is a good thing. *½
Caleb Konley comes out after the match and challenges Baretta, leading to…
Match #6: Trent Baretta vs. Caleb Konley
Baretta attacks before the opening bell. Konley connects with a dropkick and hits a powerslam. Baretta sends him throat-first into the ropes. Konley fights off a sunset bomb and connects with a double stomp. Baretta trips him up on the apron and sends him into the guardrail. Baretta takes over until he misses a charge and falls to the floor. Konley follows out with a moonsault. He snaps off a headscissors in the ring and connects with a missile dropkick. Baretta attempts the Dudebuster but Konley reverses into a code red. Both men are down. Baretta connects with a double stomp out of the corner. Konley answers with a tornado DDT. Baretta snaps his neck across the top rope but falls victim to a german suplex. They battle up top. Konley avoids a hurricanrana and tries a sunset flip for a nearfall. They collide on crossbody attempts and exchange strikes. Konley hits a michinoku driver for a two count. He misses a double-jump moonsault and Baretta connects with a running knee strike. Baretta follows with the Dudebuster for the victory at 11:25. I’m glad that they went all the way with Baretta instead of just having him win against Chicago and lose the follow-up match. This was a pretty solid back and forth contest but I don’t think the crowd got behind Konley as much as they could have to make everything come together. I think the play with Konley at this point is to have him lose a series of close matches and throw out the idea on commentary “if only he had Larry Dallas in his corner…” If that isn’t the general direction that they’re going in, Konley challenging Baretta only to lose doesn’t make much sense. **¾
Match #7: Eddie Cruz and Jay Rios vs. Harlem and Lance Bravado vs. Chuck Taylor and Orange Cassidy vs. Jigsaw and The Shard
Harlem takes down Taylor with a shoulder tackle and he casually tags out. Los Ben Dejos hip toss Cassidy. The Gentleman’s Club respond with a double team neckbreaker on Rios. The Shard shows some freaky strength and biels Rios across the ring. Harlem connects with a dropkick on Taylor and hits a back suplex. The match settles down with control being traded back and forth between all four teams. Taylor hits Sole Food on the Shard and Cassidy adds a big lariat. Cruz snaps off a hurricanrana on Jigsaw and lands a flying crossbody. Jigsaw and the Shard catch Cruz with some tandem offense and isolate him. He rolls through a clothesline from Jigsaw and makes the tag. Rios snaps off a headscissors on Jigsaw and hits a springboard leg drop on the Shard. Lance blocks a dive from Cruz and military presses him to the floor onto a group. In the ring, Taylor and Cassidy hit a double stomp-DDT combination on Lance. Harlem hits a regalplex on Cassidy. The Shard alabama slams Harlem into the turnbuckles and Jigsaw adds a flying double stomp for a nearfall. Los Ben Dejos superkick the Shard and punt Jigsaw in the face. Cruz lands a dive to the floor and Rios follows out with an asai moonsault. In the ring, Taylor and Harlem trade forearms. There’s a series of exchanges resulting in all eight men being down. The crowd starts getting into the action. Rios hits a springboard ace crusher on Jigsaw. Everyone connects with superkicks. Cassidy hits a michinoku driver on Jigsaw and applies the claw. The Bravados interrupt with the Gentleman’s Agreement on Cassidy for the win at 23:09. Twenty-three minutes was way too long for what they were going for. The beginning portion of this match was painfully slow, with wrestlers just entering the match, having an exchange, and tagging out. The heat segment on Cruz gave the match focus. However, the extended finishing stretch, despite having some decent exchanges, felt way too ambitious given the small and unenthused crowd. The Bravados were a great choice to win, though I have to wonder why nothing was added to Taylor’s character over the course of the weekend. **½
Matt Jackson comes out afterwards but refuses to shake the Bravados’ hands. The Bravados demand a match against the Young Bucks.
Match #8: Style Battle Finals: Drew Gulak vs. Biff Busick
The VOD cuts into this one mid-match, but it appears as though the opening bell just rang. Busick backs Gulak into the corner and gives him a clean break. They trade control on the mat and find themselves at a stalemate. Gulak applies an octopus hold but Busick rolls out. Gulak grabs hold of a side headlock. Busick powers out of the hold and recovers in the ropes. Gulak reapplies the side headlock. Busick counters into a side headlock of his own. Gulak counters with a headscissors and they’re back at a stalemate. Busick opens fire with a lariat and lays in a few chops. Gulak is able to avoid a chop but gets kicked in the midsection. Busick hits a dragon suplex. Gulak fights back with a wave of strikes and comes off the top rope with a lariat. He slams Busick legs-first into the ropes. Busick uppercuts Gulak to the floor and follows out with a huge dive. In the ring, Gulak applies a dragon sleeper out of nowhere. Busick counters into a dragon sleeper of his own. Gulak reverses by elevating Busick into the ropes. Chuck Taylor and Orange Cassidy come out to support Gulak. Busick synchs in a choke but Gulak is able to reach the bottom rope. Busick hits a powerbomb. Gulak avoids a bucklebomb and hits a suplex into the turnbuckles. Both men are down. Busick ducks a chop and hits a half nelson suplex. Gulak is up! He connects with a discus lariat and they reset. They start slapping each other. Gulak chops Busick in the face and knocks him down. Gulak reigns down punches and applies a dragon sleeper to win the Style Battle at 21:43. This match would have defined EVOLVE back in its early days when people still bought into the concept. There’s no reason why Gulak and Busick should not be major players in the promotion after these performances. Bryce Remsburg did an excellent job on commentary explaining the in-ring action as well. It was absolutely awesome watching them counter wrestle (they very rarely escaped a submission by grabbing the ropes). Typing thoughts about this match won’t do it justice. Go out of your way to check this one out. ****
Match #9: Open the Freedom Gate Title: Johnny Gargano © vs. Rich Swann
Gargano asks Swann to lay down for him. That goes about as well as you’d expect. Swann teases a dive but Gargano cuts him off with a clothesline. Swann hits a back suplex and lands a splash. Gargano enzuigiris him off the apron. Swann blocks a dive attempt but runs into a slingshot spear. Gargano takes control until Swann creates an opening with a dropkick and lands a dive to the floor. In the ring, Swann connects with an axe kick. Gargano reverses a hurricanrana into a sit-out powerbomb. He spits at Swann but only manages to fire him up. Swann lays in a roundhouse kick. They trade superkicks and Swann gets the advantage with a flying knee strike. Both men are down. They exchange strikes. Gargano shrugs off a handspring back elbow and hits a lawn dart. He transitions into the Gargano Escape. Swann gets his foot onto the bottom rope. They battle on the floor and Swann propels off the ropes and hits an ace crusher. Back in, Gargano avoids a splash and reapplies the Gargano Escape. Swann is able to reach for the bottom rope. Gargano connects with a knockout kick. Swann hits the Hurts Donut and applies the Gargano Escape! Gargano survives but Swann plants him with a reverse hurricanrana. Gargano misses a low blow but Swann accidentally superkicks Bryce Remsburg. Swann connects with an enzuigiri but there’s no referee. Gargano kicks Swann low and grabs his title. Swann ducks a belt shot and connects with a bicycle kick. He goes for the standing 450 but Gargano hits him with the belt. Gargano kisses Swann and applies the Gargano Escape to retain his title at 20:52. I don’t think anyone was ready to buy into the feud here as much as possible given how long this show has run and the knowledge that we still have a main event. However, Gargano and Swann had a really great match and they played off their history together to reward those who have followed them from their days in Ronin until now. Some people will love the finish while others will hate it, but Gargano’s mannerisms and delivery made it tolerable to me. It’ll be interesting to see where Gargano’s title reign goes from here. ***½
Match #10: Evolution’s End: AR Fox vs. Ricochet
Fox makes this match no disqualification and buries the stipulation before the match starts. Of course, the ring is pretty much broken with no ropes, so that’s understandable. Fox lands a dive to the floor. Ricochet throws a chair at his head and drives Fox throat-first into the edge of the chair. Fox hits a suplex across a 2×4. He misses a guillotine leg drop on the apron. Ricochet takes off the already-wobbly ring ropes and chokes Fox with them. Ricochet lands a standing moonsault while “standing” on the top rope. He drapes Fox across the guardrail and hits a leg drop. They go into the crowd. Ricochet hits a suplex onto a pile of chairs. He follows with an exploder onto the concrete floor. Ricochet notices an extremely tall ladder in the background and lands a moonsault off of it. They battle on the balcony with dueling steel pipes. Ricochet hits Fox across the head with a sheet of something. Fox uses the wall to hit sliced bread. They battle down the stairs. Ricochet repeatedly hits Fox with a kendo stick. Back in the ring, Fox hits a twisting brainbuster for a nearfall. They trade kicks and Ricochet gains the upper hand with an enzuigiri. Ricochet misses a standing shooting star press onto a chair. Fox hits a rolling death valley driver and lands a swantan. Ricochet responds with a well-timed knee strike and a regalplex for a nearfall. Fox drags him off the middle rope and puts weapons on top of Ricochet. Fox climbs to the top of the ringpost and connects with a flying double stomp for the victory at 22:43. Them not having a fully-equipped ring was unfortunate, but as expected, they made the best of it. I guess this feud has been all about them just trying to one-up each other, so it’s fitting that the conclusion would involve them doing crazy things around a warehouse. Despite this show being abnormally long, the crowd was invested because they had seen nothing like this all weekend. This wasn’t mind-blowing or anything, but they didn’t have a ring, went on after nine other matches, and still delivered a decent main event. ***¼
Fox and Ricochet shake hands and hug after the match, putting their feud to rest. The crowd chants for both of them. Ricochet says that it’s time to focus on the Open the Freedom Gate Title. Su Yung comes out and invites Ricochet to join the Premiere Athlete Brand. After rejecting the offer, Anthony Nese attacks Ricochet. Nese tells everyone that disrespecting the Premiere Athlete Brand is a huge mistake.
Overall: The first half of EVOLVE 24 was much like EVOLVE 23 in that matches with potential under-delivered and there was nothing interesting happening booking-wise. However, Gulak/Busick turned things around in a huge way with one of the most unique contests I’ve seen all year. This would also be a good time to note that this is a long show; probably too long by most people’s standards. We’re talking over three hours with the last four matches each going over twenty minutes. Then you start asking yourself why Su Yung vs. Ivelisse was on the card but let’s not go down that road. Anyway, my point is that despite the show already going long, both Gargano/Swann and Fox/Ricochet managed to come through and meet expectations for the most part. EVOLVE 24 features three worthwhile matches to end the show (with Gulak/Busick being “must see”) as well as a great performance from Josh Alexander in the first half. That’s enough to earn a recommendation. With that said, there are some serious problems with EVOLVE that need to be fixed and the show is difficult to get through in one sitting. Keep those things in mind and you should enjoy this one for the most part.