SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...
WWE EVOLVE TV REPORT
APRIL 16, 2025
ORLANDO, FLA. AT WWE PERFORMANCE CENTER
AIRED ON TUBI
REPORT BY DAVID MILLER, PWTORCH CONTRIBUTOR
Commentators: Peter Rosenberg, Robert Stone
Interviewer: Chuey Martinez
-A recap of last week’s highlights aired, with the spotlight on the events leading up to tonight’s women’s fatal four-way match.
-Chuey Martinez conducted a sit-down interview with Kendal Grey. She said she followed in her brother’s footsteps into contact sports and touted her college wrestling experience.
(1) TRILL LONDON vs. HARLEM LEWIS
Ice Williams was shown sitting in the VIP section, which is a ringside area with a plush white couch cordoned off by movie theater-style red ropes. The announcers mentioned that London’s attire is similar to that of his idol, Jeff Hardy. London performed a good standing dropkick but was stopped cold with a huge German suplex from Lewis. London came back with an innovative flip over the top rope into a dropkick, but ate a big fist when he attempted a dive off the top turnbuckle. Lewis followed that up with the Boomslang (a jackhammer variation) for the quick victory.
WINNER: Harlem Lewis at 1:57.
(Miller’s Take: Quick and to the point. That flipping dropkick from London was super impressive. This guy might have a future. Lewis has a good look and great intensity.)
-Chuey Martinez interviewed Lewis at ringside. He said he wanted a face-off with Keanu Carver, and Evolve GM Stevie Turner needs to make it happen. At that point, Gallus (Joe Coffey & Mark Coffey & Wolfgang) hit the ring and taunted Lewis, who was ushered to the back by other wrestlers.
(2) GALLUS (Joe Coffey & Mark Coffey & Wolfgang) vs. JACK CARTWHEEL & CAPPUCCINO JONES & JORDAN OASIS
Cartwheel showed off why he goes by that name, cartwheeling out of a hiptoss. Quick tags from the face trio. Cartwheel and Jones showcased a couple of excellent double dropkicks, followed by stereo dives over the top rope, as they cut to a commercial break. [c]
Back from the break, the announcers were talking up the excitement of it being WrestleMania week as the two teams traded exciting offense. A double hot tag was made to Oasis and Joe. Oasis landed an incredible blackout cannonball that would take too many words to describe here. Gallus eventually double-teamed Oasis with a hard right hand, followed by a lariat for the win.
WINNERS: Gallus at 7:02.
(Miller’s Take: Very exciting match. We’ve seen Gallus before in NXT, but Oasis & Cartwheel & Jones got to show off some flashes of brilliance here. Not once was the irony of a couple of wrestlers named Coffey battling a wrestler named Cappuccino mentioned. Missed opportunity, there.)
ARTICLE CONTINUED BELOW…
Check out the latest episode of “Wrestling Coast to Coast” with Chris Maitland and Justin McClelland, part of the PWTorch Dailycast line-up: CLICK HERE to stream (or search “pwtorch” on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or any other iOS or Android app to subscribe free)
-Chuey Martinez conducted a sit-down interview with Chantel Monroe. He asked how she got from Auburn to WWE. She said she was scouted at the gymnastics nationals and didn’t think it was for her at first because she’s very prissy and girly, but she realized that since she likes to perform and connect with an audience, this might just be for her.
-In the VIP section, Ice Williams was joined by Luca Crusifino. Williams didn’t look thrilled about it. [c}
-Kali Armstrong sat down for an interview with Chuey Martinez. He called her the pride of Inglewood, California. Highlights from her matches were shown. They hyped up the upcoming fatal four-way.
(3) ORO MENSAH vs. JAVIER BERNAL
The two men traded chops, armdrags, and suplexes to open the match. The announcers talked about Bernal’s seeming lack of confidence lately. Mensah taunted Bernal, who answered with some windmill punches. He superkicked the taste out of Mensah’s mouth and got a two-count. Mensah hit a fancy back flip-kick onto Bernal, who was perched on the top turnbuckle. A somersault kick to the back of the neck of Bernal, and that was all she wrote.
WINNER: Oro Mensah at 4:48.
(Miller’s Take: The storyline of Bernal trying to regain his confidence continues. Mensah looked impressive, as always.)
-The last of the sit-down interviews with the four women involved in the main event was conducted with Brinley Reece. She said she’s going to go in there and prove that she’s going to be the face of Evolve. [c]
-Evolve GM Stevie Turner announced Timothy Thatcher vs. Bryce Donovan, Jackson Drake vs. Sean Legacy, and Carlee Bright in a return to action next week. Bright was shown in the VIP section being overly happy.
(4) BRINLEY REECE vs. CHANTEL MONROE vs. KENDAL GREY vs. KALI ARMSTRONG – Fatal Four-Way
Armstrong got teamed up on by the other three and tossed out of the ring. Quick pin attempts by them all until an angry Armstrong re-entered the ring. Armstrong piled all three of her opponents in the corner and speared them at once. A four-way submission was applied mid-ring, which looked pretty cool. Armstrong followed up a double pin attempt with a double clothesline. Grey dove onto all three women with a flying press as they were fighting on the floor. [c]
Back from the break, Reece was at the bottom of a pyramid superplex exactly like the one we saw in the men’s fatal four-way last night on NXT. A “this is awesome” chant broke out. Reece and Grey slugged it out on their knees. Grey took down all women with consecutive fireman’s carry takedowns. Armstrong caught a crossbody attempt by Grey and turned it into a powerslam.
Reece threw Armstrong out and attempted a leverage pin on Grey with her feet on the ropes, but the referee saw it and broke the count. Monroe tried a rollup on Reece, who reversed it. Armstrong slipped back in the ring and clotheslined Reece to the floor. She then shot Monroe into the ropes for a powerslam and the pinfall.
WINNER: Kali Armstrong at 10:35.
(Miller’s Take: This was very good, given the level of experience of these women. Armstrong has “star” written all over her. Grey’s personality and athleticism also stand out. We’ve already seen what Reece can do in NXT. Given the ranting and raving that Armstrong has been doing lately, it’s no surprise she came out on top.)
-Evolve GM Stevie Turner applauded the victorious Armstrong as the show closed.
FINAL THOUGHTS: Pretty decent showing tonight. I really love the old-school studio wrestling feel that Evolve cultivates with the sectioned-off area of the Performance Center that they use for these tapings. With a crowd of only several dozen people, the wrestlers have to learn how to connect with fans on an intimate level. The use of lower-tier NXT wrestlers in Evolve is a nice touch, and it helps to have a more experienced worker in the ring to carry the rookies through their matches. Evolve matches are kept relatively short in comparison to NXT and the main roster, so the limitations of the Performance Center and ID athletes are not exposed.
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