205 Live – July 31, 2018: They Need To Be Careful
IMG Credit: WWE
205 Live
Date: July 31, 2018
Location: Amalie Arena, Tampa, Florida
Commentators: Vic Joseph, Nigel McGuinness, Percy Watson
For the first time in the better part of a year, we actually have a pay per view match to build towards. Last week Drew Gulak became #1 contender by winning a four way match, earning himself a shot against Cruiserweight Champion Cedric Alexander. Other than that we have Lio Rush vs. Akira Tozawa in a pretty nice feud. Let’s get to it.
Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.
We open with a long recap of the four way, which was quite good.
Opening sequence.
Kalisto vs. Tony Nese
Feeling out process to start with Nese shoving him around but not stopping to count the abs. You can tell he’s serious here. A hard running elbow drops Kalisto again and Nese sends him hard into the corner. After mocking the lucha dance (as everyone does), Nese whips him again even harder, this time tying Kalisto in the Tree of Woe for some kicks to the ribs.
We hit the waistlock for a long time until Kalisto rolls out and kicks him in the face, followed by a good looking springboard crossbody. Nese trips him up but tweaks his knee coming off the top. He’s still strong enough for a buckle bomb but the kickout frustrates him even more. The delay lets Kalisto grab a very quick Salida Del Sol for the pin at 7:28.
Rating: C-. Nese is a good character but his offense doesn’t exactly inspire me. There’s only so much you can get out of having Nese work on the waist the entire time and that’s about as far as we got here. Buddy Murphy being there will definitely help in the eventual tag match so there’s hope for the feud. If nothing else though, Nigel going full heel on commentary here was a nice change of pace as something like that can enhance a show in a hurry.
Post match Murphy comes out to block Kalisto from leaving and gorilla presses him until Lince Dorado comes out for a save. A double superkick drops Murphy.
Earlier today we had the contract signing for the Cruiserweight Title shot. Drew is ready to sign first but has something to say. Cedric knows this is going to take some time and signs first to save some time. Gulak talks about how Cedric is undefeated this year but that doesn’t mean anything yet. Where was Cedric when the title wasn’t on the line? It was people like Gulak who built the show up while Cedric wrestles whenever he wants to. Cedric will be known as the Brock Lesnar of 205 Live and his reign ends at Summerslam. Gulak signs and leaves.
Lio Rush vs. Ricky Martinez
Before the match, Rush says fans aren’t happy with him for not giving Akira Tozawa a rematch. The problem is that he’s a hot commodity and everyone wants a piece of his time. That’s why he’s found a new opponent who is much more worthy of his time. Rush thinks this guy could put up a better fight than Tozawa so let’s see what he has. Martinez gets in a kick to the head in the corner but Rush flips up and hits two kicks of his own. There’s the suicide dive (ala Tozawa) and a rolling kick to the head. The frog splash (the Final Hour) puts Martinez away at 1:11.
Post match Tozawa chases Rush off. This will continue and that’s not the worst thing in the world.
Brian Kendrick vs. Cedric Alexander
Non-title and Cedric has a taped up thumb. Feeling out process to start with Alexander nipping out of a headscissors, sending Kendrick backing into the corner. Kendrick’s headlock works a bit better until Cedric snaps off a good looking armdrag. A chop brings Kendrick to his knees as they’re still in pretty slow motion early on. Cue Gulak for a distraction, allowing Kendrick to roll underneath the ring.
The sneaking around lets Kendrick send him into the steps and it’s time to choke on the ropes as Gulak joins in on commentary. An armbar keeps Cedric down but he pops back up for some forearms. The springboard clothesline is broken up though and Alexander takes a nasty fall onto the ropes. Those always worry me a bit but he’s fine enough to send Kendrick outside. The big flip dive to the floor drops Kendrick and Alexander is down next to him. Gulak: “What a bonehead.”
Alexander gets two off the springboard clothesline but he can’t hit the Lumbar Check. He can however hit the Neuralizer to send Kendrick out to the apron. Back in and Kendrick grabs a quick Captain’s Hook but Cedric makes the rope, much to Gulak’s chagrin. Another Hook is countered into a Michinoku Driver and Alexander can’t follow up. Kendrick superkicks him and tries Sliced Bread, but Cedric pulls him into the Lumbar Check (with a great sell job) to finish Kendrick at 12:20.
Rating: B-. This match did something that is almost impossible to pull off: having a match that has no drama turn into something rather entertaining. Cedric isn’t going to lose in a non-title match just before Summerslam but Kendrick helped turn this into a fun match. Piling up wins before Summerslam is going to make the likely title change mean more and Gulak seems primed to take the belt away. Much better than it should have been here.
Post match Gulak gets on the apron for a distraction, allowing Jack Gallagher to come in for a shot to the face. Gulak: “Cedric my boy! What happened to you?” Drake Maverick comes in and threatens to take Gulak’s title match away if anything else happens. Gulak and company back off to end the show.
Overall Rating: B. They’ve figured out the right balance around here and I’m sure none of that has anything to do with the title becoming a more active part of the show. They’ve found a good structure to the show and that’s exactly what they needed to do. If they can keep this going for a few more weeks and months, they might just have a good show on their hands.
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