By Anish Vishwakoti, ProWrestling.net Staffer, (@AVX_9001)
WWE 205 Live (Episode 231)
Orlando, Florida at Capitol Wrestling Center (WWE PC)
Streamed May 14, 2021 on WWE Network
Tom Phillips and Nigel McGuinness were on commentary and welcomed us to the show before introducing the first match…
1. Ariya Daivari vs. Asher Hale. WWE’s Titantron graphics led me to believe that Daivari would be facing ‘Asher Kale’ but alas his name was confirmed to be ‘Hale.’ The two circled and locked up with Daivari muscling Hale round the ring and into the corner before Hale grabbed a headlock. Daivari didn’t seem fazed and while Hale took him over for a grounded headlock, Daivari pushed him off into the corner again.
Daivari propped Hale onto the top rope, but Hale shoved him and hit a middle rope headlock takeover to win the position again. Hale continued using the headlock to try and wear down Daivari but Daivari was able to shoot him off the ropes and hit a knee and dropkick combo to down Hale. Daivari tried to follow up with ground and pound but Hale struck back and rallied with strikes of his own and an Irish Whip rebound dropkick for a two count.
Hale rocked Daivari with an uppercut and whipped him to the outside, following up with a running knee from the apron before rolling him back into the ring. In the ring, Hale from the apron tried to launch over Daivari and hit a running clothesline but Daivari caught him coming in with a running forearm. Daivari then trapped Hale in the middle rope and slotted him with punches before using a Sleeper hold to try and wear Hale down.
Daivari dragged Hale to the mat and continued to squeeze but Hale eventually got to his feet and hit a jawbreaker to break it up. Hale and Daivari then had a running exchange in which Hale hit Daivari with a snap powerslam for a two count. Hale then hit Daivari with a pair of belly to belly suplexes before hitting a Northern Lights and following up with a cross armbreaker. Daivari rolled through and forced Hale to settle for a tornado DDT, netting him a two count.
Hale went to the top rope to try for a dive but Daivari rushed him with a palm strike, an Iconoclasm and a Frog Splash for a two count. Daivari then tried to hit the Devil Lock Lariat but Hale rolled through and rolled him up to get the pinfall victory.
Ariya Daivari defeated Asher Hale.
Anish’s Thoughts: I really liked this match because of the way that Hale was presented. Given that he’s new to 205 and was set for a roll up win, they could have easily given him the ‘1-2-3 Kid’ treatment, but instead Hale got some good offense in, controlled a lot of the match and planted the idea of the roll up early on before coming back to it and trapping Daivari clean.
After the match, a BollyRise sketch aired in which all four members were chatting about the previous match and the events of previous 205 Live episodes as well as discussing whether the Bollywood Boyz had been watching ‘Ever-Rise Live’ on the French Canadians’ social media channels. That was the whole segment (well it left me wanting more at least)…
2. Tony Nese vs. Ari Sterling. The two men didn’t bother locking up with Nese batting away a strike before snatching a wrist lock. Sterling forced Nese to the corner and prompted a running exchange and while Nese stopped to do jumping jacks for a second, Sterling won out and hit a head scissors whip and used a cravat. Nese muscled out and smacked Sterling to the mat before picking him up and prompting another running exchange which ended with a Slingshot Senton and a Corkscrew Moonsault from Sterling.
Nese and Sterling exchanged chops on the outside before Sterling rolled Nese into the ring. As Sterling tried to get back in, Nese wrapped him up in the apron skirt and beat him into the ground before ramming him into the barricade. Nese tried to continue the assault back into the ring, but Sterling hit Nese with a Pele kick and a Lariat to the back of the head.
Sterling tried to follow up with a Sunset Flip but Nese rolled through and kicked him in the face. Nese got a two count and transitioned into a Body Scissors, squeezing the air out of him. Nese then hammer tossed Sterling into the corner and propped him onto the top rope. Nese couldn’t land any offense however as Sterling jumped off and hit a Middle rope Frankensteiner for a two count.
The two once again ran at each other, with Sterling hitting an awkward clothesline to the jaw of Nese and dropkicking him to the outside before hitting a springboard moonsault directly onto the head of Nese. Sterling tried to follow up back in the ring but Nese caught him with a palm strikes. Nese missed the subsequent 450 Splash attempt prompting a slugfest which ended with Sterling hitting a front Suplex and a rolling heel kick for a two count.
Sterling rolled Nese to the apron and tried to Suplex him back in but Nese pushed him off and kneed him in the face, following up with the Package Driver for a two count. Sterling barely made it to his feet and tried to strike with Nese but Nese shook him off. This nonchalance allowed Sterling to hit a knee and a powerbomb for a two count. Sterling went to the top rope and tried for a Splash but Nese dodged and shoved him down into the corner for the running Nese and the pinfall victory.
Tony Nese defeated Ari Sterling.
Anish’s Thoughts: This was a great match that went back and forth and gave Nese a good win where Daivari couldn’t get the job done earlier. I liked how this match played in contrast to the opener as even thought Sterling lost, the way he battled Nese made him look just as good as Hale, who won via roll-up. Nese and Daivari splitting the results leads me to believe that there might be some conflict or split between the two sometime soon. Whatever happens, I laud the booking that gave us a solid show tonight and allowed all four men to come out better than they did coming in, without any complicated finishes. Great stuff.
Hale went to the top rope to try for a dive but Daivari rushed him with a palm strike, an Iconoclasm and a Frog Splash for a two count. Daivari then tried to hit the Devil Lock Lariat but Hale rolled through and rolled him up to get the pinfall victory.
Ariya Daivari defeated Asher Hale.
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