SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...
WWE EVOLVE TV REPORT
APRIL 22, 2026
ORLANDO, FLA. AT WWE PERFORMANCE CENTER
AIRED ON TUBI
REPORT BY DAVID MILLER, PWTORCH CONTRIBUTOR
Commentators: Peter Rosenberg, Blake Howard
Ring Announcer: Byron Saxton
-Cappuccino Jones and Brooks Jensen cut promos on each other for their upcoming bullrope match.
-New Evolve Women’s Champion Wendy Choo made her ring entrance, looking like a million bucks. She said she went from being in therapy a few months ago to being the champion now, and told the fans they can call her Champ Choo. She said she asked Foreman Timothy Thatcher to let her pick her first challenger, and he allowed her to do so. She announced someone who she said took a similar career path, Laynie Luck, as her first challenger. Luck bounced out to the ring and nervously thanked Choo. She said maybe her luck was changing after being eliminated last week by Sloane Jacobs. Nikkita Lyons interrupted and told Choo she got lucky by pinning her with a rollup. Sloane Jacobs slid into the ring and attacked Luck from behind while Big Kat Kita thumped on Choo. Luck and Choo fought back and cleared the ring of the heels. Tag team match, Mr. Foreman?
-A video package on Romeo Moreno aired. Nice introduction piece.
(1) KAM HENDRIX & HARLEY RIGGINS vs. TATE WILDER & LUCA CRUSIFINO
Wilder and Crusifino were in revenge mode as they attacked their opponents before they even made it halfway to the ring. They brawled as extra referees and a couple of guys with headsets on tried to restore order. With Wilder and Riggins finally in the ring, the referee called for the bell. Wilder continued the assault on Riggins by whipping him into the corner hard a couple of times and gaining an early near fall. He grabbed Riggins by the hair as they cut to a quick commercial break. [c]
Back to the match, Riggins and Hendrix had taken control of the match with some good teamwork. The beatdown on Wilder continued for an extended period of time as Crusifino chomped at the bit for a tag. Wilder finally got away from Riggins to make the tag, but Hendrix swiped Crusifino’s legs out from underneath him to prevent him from tagging in. The heels continued to dominate until Wilder moved out of the way of a high/low, resulting in the heels colliding with each other.
Wilder finally made the hot tag to Crusifino, who came in and cleaned house. He got backdropped over the top and to the floor, leaving Wilder to fend for himself. Crusifino recovered and hopped back on the apron, took the tag from Wilder, and shot over the ropes with a shoulder block to Hendrix. He climbed to the top but got shoved off by Riggins. Hendrix hit his Lights, Kam, Action finisher on Crusifino for the pin.
WINNERS: Kam Hendrix & Harley Riggins at 8:54.
(Miller’s Take: Pretty good stuff here, but not a good look for Wilder and the new and improved Crusifino, as they couldn’t get the job done even after attacking their opponents before the bell. It looks like it’s going to take a little longer for them to exact proper revenge on the bullies of Evolve.)
-Harlem Lewis cut a promo on his upcoming triple threat match for the Evolve title. He told Aaron Rourke he didn’t have anything bad to say about him because he worked hard to get to where he is. Braxton Cole, on the other hand, he claimed was privileged and set something off in him he couldn’t control. Lewis became subdued as he recounted how his mom worked 14-hour shifts just to keep the lights on. He said he had two younger brothers that he looked after, and mopped floors and mowed lawns to help out. He admitted that was probably the reason why he comes off as aggressive, but he said that’s what fuels him, and he has to be champion. This was the video package that Harlem Lewis desperately needed. [c]
(2) LAYLA DIGGS (w/Masyn Holiday) vs. KALI ARMSTRONG
Diggs and Holiday did their usual dance routine on the way to the ring, while Armstrong marched to the ring with a purpose. She immediately went after Diggs as the referee called for the bell. She speared Diggs in the corner and threw fists at Diggs. Layla came back with some spirited offense, but took way too much time climbing the ropes for a moonsault, allowing Armstrong to easily get her knees up. She hit a Kali Konnection for the easy win.
WINNER: Kali Armstrong at 1:51.
(Miller’s Take: Diggs has shown some talent, but hasn’t found her footing in Evolve yet. Armstrong, on the other hand, has crazy momentum despite being eliminated from the gauntlet match last week. This was exactly what it should have been: a quick, decisive victory for Armstrong.)
-After the match, Armstrong called out Tyra Mae Steele, who was responsible for her elimination last week. Steele answered the challenge, but Foreman Thatcher came out to keep control of the situation. He said they would find out who is the better out of the two, but next week in an official match.
-A video package aired of Braxton Cole. It was the exact opposite of how Harlem Lewis was portrayed. He admitted to being privileged and said that it put more expectations on him, while nothing was expected from Lewis.
-An angry Tate Wilder cut a promo in the locker room on Kam Hendrix and Harley Riggins. He said he was going to keep his head on a swivel and they should too, because this isn’t over until he says it is.
-This time it was the champ’s time to cut a promo. He said Lewis talked about his anger and Cole about the pressure that comes with privilege, but neither of them has what it takes to be champion, but he does. He said he always stays clocked in, period. [c]
ARTICLE CONTINUED BELOW…
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(3) BROOKS JENSEN vs. CAPPUCCINO JONES – Bullrope Match
Jones took a final swig of java before handing it off to a fan as he made his ring entrance. Max Abrams, Santi Rivera, and Jacari Ball were shown watching from the VIP Lounge. Jensen attacked Jones as the referee was putting the bullrope around Jones’s wrist. The referee backed him off, secured the other end of the rope to Jensen’s wrist, and called for the bell. Jensen immediately wrapped the rope around his fist and clocked Jones with it. He took a swing at him with the cowbell, but Jones ducked and started giving Jensen a taste of his own medicine.
They got into a tug of war with the rope, with Jensen being on the floor and Jones in the ring. Jones forfeited the tug of war and dove through the ropes onto Jensen. They brawled on the floor for a bit before Jensen dragged Jones underneath the ring and out the other side. He jawed at the gents in the VIP Lounge before getting caught by Jones, who took control of the match before the commercial break. [c]
Back to action, Jensen pulled Jones off the turnbuckle with the rope, took off his boot, and clocked him with it. Back to the floor, Jones threw Jensen’s arm into the ring post a couple of times, then smacked him in the arm with the cowbell. He took the action back to the ring and hit a high cross body off the top for a near fall. Jones hit Jensen in the exposed ankle with the cowbell, then used it as a shield when Jensen threw a punch.
Jones grounded his opponent and used the rope to pull back on the fingers of the hand Jensen just injured. Jensen hung Jones over his back with the rope around his neck, but Jones slipped out. He went for his Froggy Brew splash but missed. Jensen pulled a table out from underneath the ring and slid it into the ring. By this time, Abrams made his way from the VIP Lounge to ringside as he cheered on Jones. Jensen set up the table and climbed to the top, but Jones met him on the top turnbuckle and delivered a crunching superplex through the table. Jensen crawled towards the cowbell to grab it, but Max Abrams entered the ring, stepped on the cowbell, and smiled at Jensen. He picked up the cowbell and grinned at a nervous Jensen, then turned and blasted Jones with the cowbell. Jensen moved in for the easy pin.
WINNER: Brooks Jensen at 11:51.
(Miller’s Take: Pretty good main event offering from Evolve this week. The announcers mentioned that Brooks had lost the last bullrope match he was in against Tate Wilder, so it was no surprise that he came out on top tonight. The surprise was Max Abrams turning on Jones and going to the dark side, especially after the vignette of him being trained by Lince Dorado. Abrams, with his cocky attitude, will probably do better as a heel. I hope they left the pot on in the back for Jones.)
-After the match, Abrams put the boots to Jones as Ball and Rivera looked stunned watching from the VIP Lounge. They hopped the barricade and slid in the ring to put a stop to the beatdown. Abrams backed off into the corner as they checked on Jones. The three men then smiled at each other, and all three of them began beating on Jones. An excited It’s Gal came to the ring and cheered them on. He leaned over Jones and yelled, “That’s what you get, dummy!” C.J. Valor ran to the ring and attacked It’s Gal, then celebrated with the other three as they stood over the fallen bodies of Jones and Gal. Peter Rosenberg said this 2.0 class of ID talent was ready to take over.
FINAL THOUGHTS: That was quite the show-closing angle with all the twists and turns. Obviously, they’re heading towards a Jones/Gal team, which I find intriguing. Both men are highly entertaining in somewhat different ways. It looks like a new faction of ID talent was born, this time in the role of heels. With the absence of The Vanity Project, there’s an opening for a new heel faction. They did a good job of highlighting the three wrestlers involved in next week’s main event triple threat championship match and gave us a reason to care about Harlem Lewis and more reasons to hate Braxton Cole. I’m not too big on the prospect of Wendy Choo picking the underwhelming Laynie Luck as her first challenger, but it looks like they are most likely headed for a tag team showdown with Choo & Luck vs. Jacobs & Lyons. I would look forward to that much more than a meaningless title defense at this point.
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