WWE EVOLVE RESULTS (4/1): Five new faces in the Men’s Division after Evolve hits reset button after NXT call-ups

WWE EVOLVE TV REPORT
APRIL 1, 2026
ORLANDO, FLA. AT WWE PERFORMANCE CENTER
AIRED ON TUBI
REPORT BY DAVID MILLER, PWTORCH CONTRIBUTOR

Commentators: Peter Rosenberg, Blake Howard

Interviewer: Chuey Martinez

Ring Announcer: Kelly Kincaid

-Evolve Champion Aaron Rourke introduced the show via a video package. He spoke of the women’s gauntlet match and the new ID prospects debuting tonight. He announced that the winner of the match would be his first challenger.

-It’s Gal came out and called everyone dummies. He invited the new talent to come out, and Dorian Van Dux answered the challenge.

(1) IT’S GAL vs. DORIAN VAN DUX

Gal held the ropes open for Van Dux to enter, then offered a handshake. Van Dux accepted, then blasted him. As he rolled out to the floor, he was heckled by Tristan Angels and Romeo Moreno, new talent who were seated in the VIP Lounge. The referee called for the bell when Gal crawled back into the ring. Gal went on the offensive but was soon overpowered by Van Dux. Gal caught his breath and landed a discus clothesline for a near fall. He chopped him in the corner while calling him a dummy and posing, then hit a gutbuster for another near fall.

Gal continued his arrogant offense with a suplex, followed by a set of pushups. He flexed and proclaimed, “It’s Gal!” until Van Dux fired up and chopped him hard. Gal quickly regained control of the match and briefly grounded his opponent, but Van Dux, who the announcers mentioned hailed from Belgium, came off the ropes with a blistering elbow. He hit Blue Thunder powerbomb variation for the final pin.

WINNER: Dorian Van Dux at 5:18.

(Miller’s Take: I can never have enough It’s Gal on my screen. He is so comically arrogant that it’s easy to forget he’s a pretty solid hand in between the ropes. He got in plenty of offense, but the new guy took the W in the end. Van Dux is sturdily built and obviously talented. Good debut for one of the new kids on the block.)

-In the back, Zena Sterling was pleading her case to Evolve Foreman Timothy Thatcher why she should be in the eliminator gauntlet. He told her he was aware of her effort, but these decisions were results-based, and she needed to pick up a few more wins. After he walked off, Sterling angrily picked up a chair and smacked stuff with it in a fit of rage. [c]

-Tate Wilder tore into an empty dressing room, looking for Kam Hendrix and Harley Riggins. He looked into the camera and told them to keep their heads on a swivel.

-Chuey Martinez stood mid-ring with three new ID prospects: CJ Valor, Chazz “Starboy” Hall, and Santi Rivera. Valor, a short but stocky, muscular prospect, spoke of the ethics he learned at Rhodes Wrestling Academy. He vowed to keep stepping until the Evolve championship is his. Rivera, the tallest of the three with a cut physique, said he was on top of the world. He said he would feel even better after he wins the Evolve title next week. He mentioned that he came out of the New England Pro Wrestling Academy and wrestled for Chaotic Wrestling and Wrestling Open. He said he was built by divine design and had Boricua blood running through his veins. Hall, a very young-looking guy who was wearing bib overall jorts and looked nothing like you would imagine a “starboy” would, said he was already a 12-year veteran, which is astounding considering he looks to be about 18. He ran down his stomping grounds as Gold Rush, GCW, West Coast Pro, and NOAH. He promised to leave everyone starstruck and called himself the “Denim Dragon”.

(2) CJ VALOR vs. SANTI RIVERA vs. CHAZZ “STARBOY” HALL – #1 Contender’s Triple Threat Match

Santi swatted away Hall as he went to work on Valor. Despite the goofy-looking overjorts, Hall showed he’s no joke with some impressive agility. He nailed a blockbuster on Rivera as he was perched on Valor’s shoulders. [c]

Mike Cunningham was shown observing from the VIP Lounge as Hall continued to impress in his indyriffic ring gear. Valor shot out of the corner with a Superman punch to Rivera, but only got a two-count out of it. He turned his energy to Hall, who deftly ducked a clothesline, then hit a beautiful double pele kick onto both opponents. Valor speared Rivera when Hall moved out of the way, but couldn’t lock in an armbar. Hall broke it up with a standing shooting star press. Valor tried to intercept Hall as he prepared to dive over the ropes onto Rivera, but ate another pele kick.

Hall continued on his mission, performing a cartwheel flip dive over the top rope onto Rivera. Back in the ring, Hall dropped his straps (I bought this as a kid watching Jerry Lawler back in the 80s, but it just seems overdone now) before going on the attack. He nailed a perfect shooting star press off the top onto Valor for the pin.

WINNER: Chazz Hall at 10:05 to become the #1 contender to the Evolve championship.

(Miller’s Take: A guy with a ’70s hairdo wearing overjorts just has to be the star of the match. With a nickname like “Starboy”, I would expect him to look more like Paul Stanley than Cousin Junior, but he was impressive, nonetheless. Hall had a fan following for this match, as the crowd seemed to be aware of who he was. This was a pretty tight little triple threat match among the three newbies.)

-Chuey Martinez caught Hall for a ringside interview after the match. He thanked Aaron Rourke for the title opportunity, but warned him that when the straps come down, the denim dragon comes out.

-Tate Wilder was still roaming the back in search of Hendrix and Riggins when he stumbled upon the newly hippified Luca Crusifino lounging on an equipment case, just feeling the vibe. He pitched a tag team match to Wilder with the two of them against Hendrix and Riggins, which he dismissed at first, then accepted. [c]

-Mike Cunningham rambled about main man energy before Peter Rosenberg hyped women’s championship qualifier ID prospects for next week.

ARTICLE CONTINUED BELOW…

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(3) WENDY CHOO vs. LAYNIE LUCK vs. P.J. VASA vs. KALI ARMSTRONG vs. NIKKITA LYONS – Evolve Championship Eliminator Gauntlet Qualifier Fatal 5-Way Match

Rosenberg reiterated that the winner of this match will be the final participant in the upcoming eliminator gauntlet to determine a new Evolve champion after the title was vacated by Kendal Grey a few weeks ago. Vasa showed her dominance early in the match, but got pitched out by Armstrong and Lyons, who then fought each other. All of the ladies took turns with pinfall attempts before Armstrong began womanhandling the competition. Big Kat Kita asserted her dominance before it was Luck’s turn to shine. Choo then took everyone out and landed a flying press off the top turnbuckle onto all four of her opponents on the floor. [c]

Back from the break, Vasa hit a tower of doom onto Lyons and Armstrong out of the corner. Choo woke up and went to town on all of her opponents, then got an assist from Lyons in executing a double sliced bread on Armstrong and Luck. She then landed a beautiful double DDT on Lyons and Luck before flattening Armstrong for a near fall. Everyone hit a series of big moves before Choo hit a cannonball to Vasa on the floor, nearly spiking herself in the process. It wasn’t anywhere near the level of nastiness of Iyo Sky eating the floor on Raw two nights ago, but it still could have been bad. Armstrong leaped to the top turnbuckle, then sprang off with a flying press to Choo and Vasa on the floor.

Lyons intercepted Luck before she could get in on the floor action, but missed a Vader bomb when Armstrong pulled Luck out of the ring and out of harm’s way. She slid back in, picked up speed, and nailed a Kali Konnection on Lyons, who wisely rolled to the floor. Choo sneaked up behind an astonished Armstrong to apply a Dirt Nap, but the former champ escaped and Konnected with Choo after a powerbomb. Luck smartly pitched Armstrong out of the ring before she could make the cover, but took a Samoan drop from Vasa, who executed a fireman’s carry slam on Choo for the pinfall.

WINNER: PJ Vasa at 9:42 to win the final spot in the Evolve Women’s Championship Eliminator Gauntlet Match in two weeks.

(Miller’s Take: With the late addition of former champion Armstrong, I completely expected her to emerge victorious rather than the unproven Vasa, but that was obviously not the case. Luck and Kita had their moments, but it seemed throughout the bout that Choo, Vasa, and Armstrong were highlighted. Although I’ve always been a huge proponent of Choo, she’s really gone nowhere since ditching her sleepy psycho gimmick. Armstrong, in my opinion, is ready to hang with NXT, but the Evolve women’s roster needs her worse at the moment. Vasa is powerfully built, but vertically challenged, so I’m not so sure how well she would fare against more sizeable powerhouse wrestlers like Nia Jax, Lash Legend, or even Jordynne Grace.)

FINAL THOUGHTS: We got to see five new faces in the men’s division this week after Evolve seemingly pressed the reset button after call-ups to NXT. Next week promises to reveal new faces in the women’s division. The one-hour format of the show limits storyline development, with the Wilder vs. Hendrix & Riggins feud being the only one even referenced this week. It’s worth a look if you’re interested in seeing some new faces, including a shaggy-haired guy in overjorts that calls himself “Starboy.”