By Jon
COMMENTATORS: Vic Joseph & Nigel McGuinness
Ariya Daivari puts 10,000 dollars on the line against two new Performance Center recruits and Isaiah “Swerve” Scott takes on Brian Kendrick.
LINEUP
- Anthony Greene vs. Ariya Daivari (**)
- Curt Stallion vs. Ariya Daivari (**)
- Isaiah “Swerve” Scott vs. Brian Kendrick (***)
*****
–Ariya Daivari comes out, briefcase and mic in hands. He announces a special edition of the “Daivari Dinero Division” and will wrestle two Performance Center recruits; if they pin him or make him submit then they will win 10,000 of his dollars (and also a cool briefcase, but that’s just a bonus).
“Retro” Anthony Greene vs. Ariya Daivari
Greene fires off some strikes to start then runs into a back elbow. Greene dodges a splash, rolls Daivari up for a two-count, then hits a crossbody for another two-count and finally a surprise hurricanrana for the, you guessed it, two-count. Daivari dodges a high crossbody attempt and connects with the Hammerlock Lariat for the win.
Ariya Daivari defeated Anthony Greene via pinfall (3:20)
- Fun while it lasted. I think I’ve seen Greene once on an EVOLVE show but am not super familiar with the guy; he’s pretty kickass though. The whole “Retro” gimmick is goofy but it’s pretty on point since all of us are desperate for the nostalgia of our youth. (**)
Curt Stallion vs. Ariya Daivari
There’s no bell or anything and out comes Stallion to try his hand. Daivari peppers him with kicks as he slides in, Stallion responds with a lariat for a two-count. Daivari sends Stallion to the floor and rams his head on the announce table, yelling at him for wanting his money. McGuinness tries to fan the flames and say Stallion has been bragging about taking it backstage, throwing a little color into the thing. Stallion sends Daivari to the floor with a headbutt followed by a tope suicida into the plexiglass. He rolls Daivari in but in comes Tony Nese with the Running Nese to cause a DQ.
Curt Stallion defeated Ariya Daivari via DQ (2:43)
- Stallion got the better shine here and I enjoyed the brief match we got. I’m more familiar with him pre-WWE and know he’s capable of some good sh*t. Cool that WWE is letting these PC folk wrestle on “television” before they’ve been fully integrated/adapted into the WWE style. Nese once again interfered in Daivari’s match to save him; rekindled friendship or hired gun? YOU DECIDE. OR THEY’LL EXPLAIN IT LATER. ONE OF THE TWO. I LOVE YELLING. (**)
Daivari leaves with the case full of money; he gets to keep it since he wasn’t pinned or submitted in the loss. Gotta love a good loophole. Good build to for when someone can counter Nese’s interference to get the win and the cash. Wonder who they’ll get to do that. I’d love it if they just said to hell with weight limits and like Drew McIntyre showed up to do it just for the extra spending cash.
Isaiah “Swerve” Scott vs. “The” Brian Kendrick
This is Scott’s first match since coming up short against Santos Escobar at NXT TakeOver 31; Kendrick lose to Ashante Thee Adonis last week, who appears to be a friend of Scott so there’s a little continuity there.
Chain wrestling to start, Scott hits a rolling thunder flatliner and Kendrick lands weird on his left arm trying to block it, giving Scott a limb to go to work on. Scott goes for a cross armbreaker, Kendrick rolls under the ropes and chucks him to the floor, then sends him into the steps when his arm is too weak to lift him for a suplex. Kendrick connects with a big boot and a Rude Awakening-style neckbreaker for the 1…2…Scott kicks out. Kendrick tries to lock in the Captain’s Hook but his left arm is in too much pain and doesn’t get all of it, so he switches to a neckbreaker over the middle rope. Scott blocks a Sliced Bread #2 attempt and connects with a suplex. Kendrick gets sent to the floor, Scott damn near knocks his teeth out with a mini-pump kick from the apron. Kendrick uses his good arm and connects with the Sliced Bread #2 for the 1…2…Scott kicks out once more. Kendrick goes for a sunset flip, Scott rolls through it and hits the JML Driver for the 1…2…3.
Isaiah “Swerve” Scott defeated Brian Kendrick via pinfall (10:14)
- Very good match here, and a good showing from Scott to give him some momentum after his loss at TakeOver 31 (you know if anyone else besides me watches/pays attention to this show). Kendrick was great here, trying to fight through the pain of his left arm and modifying moves to compensate. I love little things like that. (***)
Scott asks for a handshake, Kendrick tries to brush him off but Scott says he’s better than that. Kendrick agrees and they shake hands, Scott celebrating as the show goes off the air.
*****
FINAL THOUGHTS: Good night of action this week on 205 Live as a couple of Performance Center recruits got some TV time and Scott/Kendrick had themselves a little mini-banger of a match. I liked Kendrick bucking at the handshake at the end; I think his whole respect veneer is about to slip and he’s going to wail on somebody soon.
