By Chris Vetter, ProWrestling.net Contributor (@chrisvetter73)
WWE Evolve (Episode 1)
Taped February 7, 2025 in Orlando. Florida at the WWE Performance Center
Streamed March 5, 2025 on Tubi in the United States and YouTube.com internationally
* The show opened with Shawn Michaels greeting the Evolve roster at the training center. I see the 19 WWE ID prospects, but there are more wrestlers than that — I see several of the NXT LVL Up wrestlers that never appeared (or barely appeared!) on a main episode of NXT. Michaels said he was making the matches for tonight, including our opener.
* To the arena! Lights are low outside the ring, and we have curtains making it feel really small and cozy. The ring is predictably well-lit. There are only two rows of fans, so the crowd is maybe 120. Peter Rosenberg and Robert Stone provided commentary.
1. Kendal Grey and Carlee Bright vs. Kali Armstrong and Dani Palmer. All four were regulars on LVL Up. Dani (think Katana Chance) had her hip replaced not too long ago. Kali is taller than everyone else in this, and she opened against Grey. Palmer and Bright traded rollups on the mat. Kali worked over Carlee’s left arm. Grey got in and kept Kali grounded in a hammerlock. Kali hit a slam at 6:00 and she dragged Bright to her corner. [C] (mid-match commercial break; I’m leaving the clock running, at least for this first episode. You can’t fast-forward, either. It was maybe two minutes.)
Back to the venue, Kali and Dani were still working over Carlee. Kendal got the hot tag at 9:30 and she hit a DDT. Grey hit an overhead release suplex on Dani. Kali picked up Grey and hit a Bulldog Powerslam for a believable nearfall. Dani made a blind tag. Kendal hit a top-rope superplex on Kali, but Dani immediately hit a frogsplash on Kendal for a believable nearfall. Dani hit an enzuigiri on Grey, but Grey hit a spear on Dani for a believable nearfall. Kendal shoved two wrestlers to the floor, so it was just her versus Dani. Dani hit a top-rope corkscrew moonsault to the floor, but she hit Kali! In the ring, Grey applied a cross-armbreaker, and Dani tapped out. Good match; the in-ring product felt absolutely no different than what these four would have done on LVL UP a few months ago.
Kendal Grey and Carlee Bright defeated Kali Armstrong and Dani Palmer at 13:22 (including two+ minutes of a commercial break.)
* A new interviewer talked to Grey and Bright at ringside.
* A video package aired that showed the history of Evolve, including footage of Cody Rhodes, Drew McIntyre, the Street Profits and others.
* Backstage, we heard from Jackson Drake and “Swipe Right” Brad Baylor & Ricky Smokes. Yes, they are all keeping their in-ring names and the tag team name. Baylor and Smokes couldn’t wait to meet the ladies in the area; Jackson urged them to stay focused. Uh-oh…
* In the VIP section, “It’s Gal” sat with Luca Crusifino. (Why can’t they just call him Gal?)
* Backstage, Sean Legacy, Jack Cartwheel and Cappuccino Jones talked about being in the main event of the first-ever Evolve.
2. Keanu Carver vs. Trill London. I know Keanu as he has been on LVL UP before. I don’t think I’ve ever seen Trill; he’s also a Black man (think New Jack) but he’s much thinner than Keanu. He was apparently on the Miami Dolphins roster as a backup QB. Keanu grabbed him at the bell, applied a sleeper, and whipped him to the mat! Keanu is much, much thicker, and he hit some bodyblows — he’s comparable to Trick Williams, and he hit a fallaway slam. Keanu hit a Pounce that sent Trill flying! He hit a Sky High Powerbomb for the pin. Wow, Trill didn’t get in a single move. Not one.
Keanu Carver defeated Trill London at 1:38.
* It’s Gal was posing in the VIP section. Peter Rosenberg went over and interviewed Luca Crusifino, who said he’s here to make sure everyone stays in line… [C]
* Another commercial break. When we came back, we had a little vignette that highlighted some of the other NXT talent we haven’t seen lately.
3. Jackson Drake and “Swipe Right” Brad Baylor and Ricky Smokes vs. Sean Legacy, Jack Cartwheel, and Cappuccino Jones in a six-man tag. I want to point out that he is being called Jack Cartwheel, not Jack Summit. Rosenberg noted that SR have been teaming for a few years. The crowd chanted “Swipe left!” at them. Smokes opened against Jones (think Kevin Knight), and Cappuccino hit a dropkick. Legacy hit a standing moonsault. Cartwheel got in and hit a dropkick on Drake; all six got in and argued. Smokes clotheslined Cappuccino to the floor, and the heels began working over Jones in their corner. (We had a graphic in the corner, noting that at age 20, Baylor is the youngest of the ID prospects.)
Drake hit a fisherman’s suplex on Jones for a nearfall at 4:00. Robert Stone noted that Kevin Owens and Seth Rollins both started out as indy wrestlers, just like these guys did. Jack got in and did some cartwheels and hit an enzuigiri. Jack hit his slingshot senton and that popped the crowd. The babyfaces hit a triple dive to the floor. Back in the ring, Drake hit a Lumbar Check move to Jack’s ribs at 5:30, and the heels now began working over Cartwheel. They joked that Baylor looks like “Evil Matt Damon,” which is pretty accurate. Jack hit a tornado DDT and he made the hot tag to Legacy at 8:00. Sean hit a German Suplex on Drake, then a backflip into an inverted DDT. Ricky hit a dropkick on Legacy.
Legacy hit a headbutt. Cappuccino hit the Decaffinator (swinging neckbreaker). Jack hit his rolling Death Valley Driver. Jones hit a top-rope froggy-brew (get it?) elbow for a believable nearfall at 10:30. Baylor and Legacy got back in, and Brad hit a spinning neckbreaker. Drake hit a mid-ring Spanish Fly on Jones. Cartwheel hit his Crucifix Driver. Legacy hit a swinging neckbreaker move and pinned Baylor. That was a blast. I’m assuming that most viewers of this show will have never seen any of these six before, but people should come away very impressed.
Sean Legacy, Jack Cartwheel, and Cappuccino Jones defeated Jackson Drake and “Swipe Right” Brad Baylor and Ricky Smokes at 11:44.
* Kali Armstrong immediately walked up to the commentators table and yelled at them. It was unclear what she wanted.
* Backstage, Shawn Michaels told Ava he liked what he saw here, and he’s leaving her in charge.
* Next week, Harlem Lewis will be in action.
Final Thoughts: Yes, the in-ring product felt like NXT LVL UP, but I liked the smaller intimate venue. The episode clocked in at 47 minutes. I have never used Tubi before, but I had no problem with the quality of the stream, and it seems like it would be easy to fast-forward in the show (except during the commercials.)
The show was taped last month, but it felt fresh… the way they talked about the D’Angelo Family while talking to Luca Crusifino made this feel more tied to NXT, and not in its own universe.
Palmer was amazing, just not sure wtf she was wearing