EVOLVE 53: Results and 5 Great Moments

EVOLVE 53 kicked off the first round of the tag team title tournament, here are the full results, and some of the best moments from the night.

The night started out with EVOLVE champion, Timothy Thatcher, who told the fans a staph infection in his calf was the reason he was off the card this weekend. He wasn’t happy about it, but was soon interrupted by the Premier Athlete Brand, who basically talked some smack and wanted a shot at his title. Thatcher said the fans weren’t here to listen to people talk, he then got out of the ring, to allow for the first match to get underway. Here’s how all the matches went down on Friday night.

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• EVOLVE Tag Team Title Tournament 1st Round Match: Chris Hero & Tommy End def. Sami Callihan & Zack Sabre Jr.
• EVOLVE Tag Team Title Tournament 1st Round Match: Harlem & Lancelot Bravado def. Caleb Konley & Anthony Nese (with So Cal Val & Andrea)
• EVOLVE Tag Team Title Tournament 1st Round Match: Trent Baretta & Rocky Romero def. Dan Barry & Bill Carr
• EVOLVE Tag Team Title Tournament 1st Round Match: Johnny Gargano & Drew Galloway def. Drew Gulak & TJ Perkins
• Style Battle Round Robin Tournament Match: Tracy Williams def Fred Yehi
• Style Battle Round Robin Tournament Match: Matt Riddle def. Peter Kaasa
• PJ Black def. Ethan Page
• Jason Cade def. Joe Coleman

Here are five great moments from the night:

1) High Flying Early On

In the second match of the night, Jason Cade, who is one of the more popular wrestlers in Florida area, came out hot with aerials from pretty much everywhere. His opponent, Joe Coleman never had a chance against the speed and talent of Cade who eventually won with a frog splash. The next match brought out Peter Kaasa against Matt Riddle, and as usual Kaasa went nuts with a huge Fossburry Flop over the top rope to the outside. Near the end Kaasa went for a double twisting red arrow, but missing in spectacular fashion. If that’s a move he can connect on regularly, it will be one heck of a finisher.

2) Ethan (Trying to Turn the) Page

After a rough 2015, Page is trying to “do the right thing” and not only win matches, but win them the right way. Indeed, he got the 1-2-3 on PJ Black, but Black’s foot was clearly under the rope, which the ref missed. Once Page saw what happened, he got on the mic and demanded the match be restarted, it was, and soon after he got pinned by Black. Another tough loss for Page, but it continues his story of working his way back up the ladder in a respectable manner.

3) Roppongi Vice vs. Team Tremendous

This would have been match of the night for me, but coming in second is not too shabby either. The back and forth between these two teams was a lot of fun to watch and put in doubt that RPG Vice was going to get the win. First time seeing Dan Barry (blue shirt in the above gif), who was extremely athletic, but had a nice dose of comedy, nothing over the top like a Santino Marella, but very much enjoyed his mannerisms throughout. The heels get away with a low blow that lead to Strong Zero (Cradle back-to-belly piledriver (Baretta)/Diving double foot stomp (Romero) combination) to get the win.

4) Physicality Personified

Fred Yehi took on Tracy Williams in what turned into the most physical match, in terms of striking, of the night. There was a ridiculous amount of chops that left both men battered and bruised by the end of it. The match of the night came when Sabre and Callihan took on Hero and End in what was not only physical, but punishing, brutal action that was non-stop from both teams. Sabre continued his technical mastery, but it was tough going against End and Hero who wanted this match to be a completely different style, and with that, Sabre took an insane amount of punishment in this one. Aside from a few matches from Wrestle Kingdom 10, this has been the best match I’ve seen in 2016!

5) Main Event Switch

Johnny Gargano ended up working twice in once night, once for NXT, then getting on the road, and perform at an EVOLVE event, unfortunately, he was running behind schedule. His partner, Drew Galloway came out and tried to call Gargano live on the PPV while he was driving, but had to leave a message. So, to give the team more time, their match became the main event, which ended up being a tough challenge, having to follow what Sabre, Callihan, End, and Hero did minutes before. Galloway eventually came out on his own, although, Ethan Page offered his services, Galloway passed on the offer, and started the match one-on-two. Part way through the match, Gargano showed up to help get the win and advance to the second round.

Next: American Alpha's Rise In Popularity

Sabre/Callihan vs. Hero/End was easily the best match of the night, and one of the best matches in all of wrestling in 2016, if you can, get your eyes on that one. The action will continue tonight at 8pm with the second round of the tag team title tournament, as well as the style battle, and much more.