Bayley is right about it being time for a second Evolution show. It’s long overdue, but it could initially face a significant hurdle.
The WWE women’s champion fired off the idea in a tweet last Friday while watching the Queen of the Ring matches and doubled down again on Sunday while posting a clip of her appearance on WWE’s “The Bump” to talk about the women’s effort in the tournament.
“It’s such a great highlight for women who haven’t really gotten the time to show who they are and what they can do,” Bayley said. … “They’re having some of the best matches. These are PLE-level matches … I feel like they deserve more matches like this, spotlights, more tournaments”
It shined a light on WWE’s reluctance to make an all-women’s show a semi-regular occurrence.
I don’t think you need to do it every year in an already crowded calendar, but having one and then six years later not doing one again makes it look like the show was simply a way to maximize Ronda Rousey’s star power at the time — I’m not sure the show happens without her — and to prop up the women’s evolution when it was a popular talking point around the company at the time after how unequally WWE had treated its women for years.
But here is why WWE needs to bring it back.
1. The women’s divisions — including NXT — are chock-full of fresh, top-level talent. So there is no shortage of matches to make across the three shows. Tiffany Stratton, Lyra Valkyrie, Kiana James, Jade Cargill and others are all new to a main roster that has established draws at the top. In NXT, you have Cora Jade, Roxanne Perez, Fallon Henry, Thea Hail, Gigi Dollin and Jacy Jane, all of whom should have no problem in the ring with the main roster stars.
2. The depth of that talent has led to WWE using women’s legends less in the Royal Rumble, so fans should be happy to see a few if you bring them back for an Evolution show. Mickie James replied to Bayley’s tweet with “Not without Me!” and we still haven’t gotten a payoff to Trish Status turning on Lita.
3. WWE is doing a very limited number of matches on its premium live events — anywhere from five to eight matches — so it’s not like there are a ton of opportunities for women to wrestle regularly on pay-per-view. So Evolution can either be a place to showcase a Nikki Cross, Candice LaRae or Chelsea Green on an extended card, or you build around the best five or six matches you can make.
4. There are plenty of avenues to make this work business-wise. WWE has been charging site fees for many of its premium live events, and adding another will surely be good for business. Maybe you do Evolution outside the U.S. in a city that will be happy to have WWE there. Perth, Australia embraced Rhea Ripley. Croke Park Stadium in Dublin holds 82,000, so build a weekend around Becky Lynch.
Maybe you couple it with a SmackDown or a Raw or have it on the Saturday before a normal PLE so your male stars perform in the city, too. WWE is contracted for four network specials on NBC. What if one of them is Evolution and you cross-promote it with the power of NBC’s stars behind it?
What could make WWE hesitant to put on an all-women’s show in the near future is the cloud of sexual assault and sex trafficking allegations against former owner and chairman Vince McMahon and the negative light Rousey put the company’s treatment of women in under McMahon in her memoir.
Maybe Evolution II is a way to push that this is a new era, but it could open those promoting it in the media to some very uncomfortable questions.
It would be a shame if the fear of that holds up Evolution coming back because the women’s division is stacked, over and talented enough to deserve it.
Cody Rhodes’ WrestleMania changing call
Brian Gewirtz, The Rock’s head writer, made a pretty stunning admission on The Ringer’s “Masked Man Show” that on the SmackDown in Alabama after this year’s Royal Rumble, Cody Rhodes was supposed to be more rah-rah about surrendering his WrestleMania 40 match against Roman Reigns to The Rock. Instead, he was the exact opposite.
“Cody, it was supposed to be, in some form, ‘Yeah, F–kin A! Go get ’em, Rock!” Gewirtz said. “You’re going to get your ass kicked, Roman! Let’s do this!’ and this uplifting promo. Instead, he looked like someone shot his dog in the face in the parking lot. … Certainly, on paper, and I don’t blame Cody for that, he’s real and one of the realest people I’ve ever met.
“He said what he had to say in the promo, but you couldn’t mask what he was really feeling, and I think the fans felt that a lot. They felt like ‘he doesn’t mean a word of this. This is being forced for him to say.’ ”
Whether Rhodes not masking his emotions was on purpose or he just couldn’t keep himself from being rightly upset, it only increases my appreciation of his genuineness. The Undisputed WWE champion gave some insight into his feelings after finding out at the Royal Rumble that The Rock getting switched in was possible.
“I had to leave that room, head up, and make sure no one knew what could possibly happen,” Rhodes said on “Busted Open Radio.”
“One of the more difficult days I’ve had in the wrestling business. But also, how could you complain when you’re winning the Royal Rumble, when you’re pointing at the sign?”
Rhodes, in his own way, rightly protested being fake happy about his moment being taken away, put the power in the hands of the people and won. It only adds to the completion of this story.
The 10 Count
While his match with Gunther was the main event of Raw, all “Main Event” Jey Uso does is lose big matches now. The pop when he does finally break through will be something, but it leaves me feeling we are headed for Gunther and Nia Jax as our respective King and Queens of the Ring.
Don Callis’ interest/recruitment of Orange Cassidy is potentially one of the most under-the-radar stories if it leads to a character change for Cassidy.
I know why WWE did it, and adding Jade Cargill’s daughter into the mix made it make more sense. But I was completely buying Jax swung the chair to bait Cargill into a DQ but leaving her back wide open help. At least it turned the heat up on their rivalry and opened the door for a fun rematch. Now, does Cargill’s emotion toward Jax cost partner Bianca Belair in the Queen of the Ring semifinals?
Paul Heyman is in a no-win situation. Either Solo is lying to him or Roman Reigns is no longer answering the Wise Man’s calls.
Paul Walter Hauser has entered MLW’s Battle Riot, with the winner getting a match with world champion Satoshi Kojima as the Emmy winner’s quick assent up the wrestling ladder continues. MLW president Court Bauer is someone who just might have him win the thing knowing how much attention that would bring to his company.
If finally defying and fighting back against Chad Gable — likely Saturday in Saudi Arabia, though I wish it was built even longer — gives a less pushover and goofy Otis along with Gable as a heel, it will truly be an A+ job by WWE.
I’m very curious about what Kyle O’Reilly’s role — outside of being Adam Copeland’s backup — turns into during this House of Black feud. Someone suggested to me he looks ready to turn heel. If he does, does he get folded back into the Undisputed Kingdom?
My lord, did this Hook-Chris Jericho storyline need some floral shirt Samoa Joe energy! If there is anyone’s learning tree Hook needs, it’s Joe and not Jericho in this story.
Matt Justice may have taken the bump of the week — through a table, off a balcony — during his wild match against Mads Krugger at MLW’s Fury Road.
Finally, got around to seeing “Iron Claw”, which is a fine film that balances the good and bad of the wrestling business while explaining enough that one wouldn’t have to be a fan to feel the gravity of the Von Erich’s tragic story. Some of the scenes that hit the most were seeing the pain grow in Maura Tierney’s (Dori Von Erich) face after the deaths of her sons.
Wrestler of the Week
Willow Nightingale, AEW
Feuding with Mercedes Moné has allowed Nightingale to complete her evolution from the overly enthusiastic competitor who is over because of her energy, smiles and in-ring acumen to someone with some bite and overwhelming confidence in herself that the audience now has in her.
It started with a feud with Julia Hart and now the 30-year-old Long Island native looked and sounded every bit a champion and star during their contract signing on Dynamite. Their TBS championship match at Double or Nothing feels less than a forgone conclusion, now.
Social Media Post of the Week
Match to Watch
Young Bucks, Kazuchika Okada, Jack Perry vs. Bryan Danielson, Darby Allin, FTR in Anarchy in the Arena at AEW Double or Nothing (Sunday, 8 p.m., Bleacher Report, Triller)
AEW’s Anarchy Arena matches have always been a ton of fun and it will be pretty intriguing what Darby Allin — even if banged up — pulls out for this. This is the first true act of the biggest story in AEW right now as the new Elite tries to “save” the company nWo-style. If done right, this should build some individual feuds and likely include one big surprise to advance a storyline AEW has invested a lot into.
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