By Anish Vishwakoti, ProWrestling.net Staffer, (@AVX_9001)
WWE 205 Live (Episode 227)
Orlando, Florida at Capitol Wrestling Center (WWE PC)
Streamed April 16, 2021 on WWE Network
The broadcast team of Vic Joseph and Nigel McGuinness welcomed us to the show and introduced the first two competitors…
1. Jake Atlas vs. Ashante ‘Thee’ Adonis. The two circled before engaging, with Adonis landing some kicks before Atlas dodged a third kick and used an arm lock to try and muscle Adonis to the ground. Adonis and Atlas battled in the arm lock for a second with Adonis trying to roll out but only being met by an arm drag.
Adonis tried to gain the advantage by prompting a striking exchange, goading Atlas into a rope rebound clothesline before uppercutting him in the corner. Atlas fought back from the corner and chopped at Adonis, but Adonis ate the chops and returned fire.
The two battled from corner to corner, exchanging control each time until eventually Adonis was able to drape Atlas over the top rope and dropkick him to the outside. Adonis rammed Atlas into the barricade and steel steps, targeting his arm. Adonis went for a cover, but Atlas kicked out at two. Adonis hit some arm uppercuts and applied a Fujiwara armbar, but Atlas struggled and while he looked in danger, was able to alleviate the pressure and get to his feet.
Atlas kicked Adonis a couple of times and tried to follow up with a German Suplex, but settled instead for a series of forearms and a heel kick to the face before hitting the suplex. Adonis kicked out of the cover and when Atlas went to the top rope, he chased him up there and tossed him off, hitting a top rope cross body of his own.
Adonis kicked Atlas to the apron and tried for a roll up, but Atlas kicked out and hit a knee, forearm and front suplex combo. From here Atlas was able to force Adonis into the corner where he hit the Cartwheel DDT to get the pinfall victory.
Jake Atlas defeated Ashante ‘Thee’ Adonis.
Anish’s Thoughts: Another great match from Atlas and Adonis. I like the continued story between them trying to outdo one another without getting completely vicious, as we don’t need to get into that personal a feud yet. They work really well together and I liked the story of Adonis targeting the arm to take away the Cartwheel DDT, only to forget about it for a second and get caught.
A video recapped Kushida beating Santos Escobar to win the NXT Cruiserweight Title followed by the challenge from Jordan Devlin on NXT television…
2. August Grey vs. Tony Nese. Ariya Daivari sat in on commentary. Grey and Nese went right at each other with Nese muscling grey to the ground. They re-engaged with Grey grabbing a headlock and staying on it even as Nese tried to shove him off. Nese got away for a second but got hit with a headlock takeover and was pummeled back to the ground multiple times. Grey and Nese had a running exchange in which they both taunted each other doing jumping jacks in the ring. Nese was finally able to get some space by winning the running exchange and hitting a back suplex. Nese then tried for a pump-handle slam, but Grey countered and tripped him to the rope and hit a kick hotshot.
As Grey tried to get back into the ring, Nese caught him on the ropes with a kick to the ribs and followed up with a Gutbuster for a two count. Nese then pushed Grey into the corner and as Grey tried to strike out, he hit another back suplex. Nese feigned going to the top rope and this moment allowed Grey to toss him into the corner. Nese flipped out and caught Grey with the Pump-Handle Driver for a two count.
Grey and Nese exchanged chops before Grey hit a running huracanrana and a running elbow for a two count. Nese rolled out and kicked Grey in the face before locking in the body scissors. Nese and Grey chopped each other before again before entering a running exchange which ended with Grey hitting a running neckbreaker.
Grey then hit a flying cross body and a Back Suplex of his own for another two count. Nese got up first and tried to hit the running hotshot but Grey countered and hit Nese with a reverse hotshot of his own. The two exchanged slams in the ring before Grey kicked Nese to the outside and hit a suicide dive. The referee was about to count Nese out but Grey stopped the count, rolled Nese back into the ring and while he got distracted by Daivari allowing Nese to roll him up, he reversed the roll up to get the pinfall victory.
August Grey defeated Tony Nese.
Anish’s Thoughts: This was a pretty solid match. Nese and Grey have chemistry and I liked their manipulation of the headlock to show Grey frustrating Nese and making him make mistakes later into the match. Grey looked on the back foot for a lot of this match even if he wasn’t on the mat, and I think that was a unique way to structure the match and make it stand out.
Overall, this was a nice comeback to 205 Live after the break for WrestleMania week. If I had one complaint it would be that I wish we saw Kushida on this show it would have been great to see the new champion defend his title. I sure hope we do see him soon. The matches we did get were good though and I hope for more of the same next week.
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