WWN/EVOLVE Thread

[Mr. Mojo Risin]

Looks like they're positioning Evolve as the "NXT developmental." The Street Profits, Dan Matha, and Fabian Aichner all debuted over the weekend, with the Street Profits becoming the new tag team champions and Fabian Aichner as their main champion.

...or it's a feeble attempt at Gabe recreating ROH circa 2007 when the Doi and Shingo captured the tag titles while Morishima snagged the World title. Except back then it was cool, now Gabe is a corporate puppet.

Dude... Doi & Shingo winning the tag titles was never about them. It was about The Briscoes. They worked so hard to capture the tag titles and finally one them again one year after their big return, only to lose them unexpectedly in their very first title defense, so then they fought each other at Fifth Year Festival: Finale to toughen up, went back to the US and won the belts at the very next show, and then went on have a record-breaking title reign where they were even winning 2 out of 3 Falls match without losing a fall, to erase the same of their short reign. Doi & Shingo were just convenient people to put the belts on because they were booked on all of the necessary shows (the UK trip and Mania weekend) and because them winning the belts would be doubly unexpected (because they weren't ROH regulars as well as it being the Briscoes' first defense).

I totally get what you saying man. At the time, when it happened, it was a big deal and Meltzer even treated it like it was. I understand the whole story with The Briscoes, but in that moment at that time it was unique to have all the titles held by wrestlers from a different company. This thing in Evolve reeks of Gabe kissing ass to corporate overlords with talent inferior to a similar situation in 2007.

[Big Red Machine]

...or it's a feeble attempt at Gabe recreating ROH circa 2007 when the Doi and Shingo captured the tag titles while Morishima snagged the World title. Except back then it was cool, now Gabe is a corporate puppet.

Dude... Doi & Shingo winning the tag titles was never about them. It was about The Briscoes. They worked so hard to capture the tag titles and finally one them again one year after their big return, only to lose them unexpectedly in their very first title defense, so then they fought each other at Fifth Year Festival: Finale to toughen up, went back to the US and won the belts at the very next show, and then went on have a record-breaking title reign where they were even winning 2 out of 3 Falls match without losing a fall, to erase the same of their short reign. Doi & Shingo were just convenient people to put the belts on because they were booked on all of the necessary shows (the UK trip and Mania weekend) and because them winning the belts would be doubly unexpected (because they weren't ROH regulars as well as it being the Briscoes' first defense).

I totally get what you saying man. At the time, when it happened, it was a big deal and Meltzer even treated it like it was. I understand the whole story with The Briscoes, but in that moment at that time it was unique to have all the titles held by wrestlers from a different company. This thing in Evolve reeks of Gabe kissing ass to corporate overlords with talent inferior to a similar situation in 2007.

Unless Gabe's intention in 2007 was to (as you put it) kiss ass to corporate overlords, then I don't think the two situations are comparable.
That being said, I think that in this whole "WWE controls EVOLVE now" business, everyone is forgetting that Gabe already works for NXT, and is probably in a position to at least have some control over who he brings in. I'm currently only half way through Evolve 116, but all of the new additions have performed pretty well. PROGRESS has been in a similar spot, and the quality of their storytelling and in-ring product have not suffered, so why are we so worried about Gabe, who has an even better track record as a booker? He's one of the few guys I'm willing to give the benefit of the doubt to.

[Mr. Mojo Risin]

Dude... Doi & Shingo winning the tag titles was never about them. It was about The Briscoes. They worked so hard to capture the tag titles and finally one them again one year after their big return, only to lose them unexpectedly in their very first title defense, so then they fought each other at Fifth Year Festival: Finale to toughen up, went back to the US and won the belts at the very next show, and then went on have a record-breaking title reign where they were even winning 2 out of 3 Falls match without losing a fall, to erase the same of their short reign. Doi & Shingo were just convenient people to put the belts on because they were booked on all of the necessary shows (the UK trip and Mania weekend) and because them winning the belts would be doubly unexpected (because they weren't ROH regulars as well as it being the Briscoes' first defense).

I totally get what you saying man. At the time, when it happened, it was a big deal and Meltzer even treated it like it was. I understand the whole story with The Briscoes, but in that moment at that time it was unique to have all the titles held by wrestlers from a different company. This thing in Evolve reeks of Gabe kissing ass to corporate overlords with talent inferior to a similar situation in 2007.

Unless Gabe's intention in 2007 was to (as you put it) kiss ass to corporate overlords, then I don't think the two situations are comparable.
That being said, I think that in this whole "WWE controls EVOLVE now" business, everyone is forgetting that Gabe already works for NXT, and is probably in a position to at least have some control over who he brings in. I'm currently only half way through Evolve 116, but all of the new additions have performed pretty well. PROGRESS has been in a similar spot, and the quality of their storytelling and in-ring product have not suffered, so why are we so worried about Gabe, who has an even better track record as a booker? He's one of the few guys I'm willing to give the benefit of the doubt to.

You and I have similar perspectives on how wrestling should be presented. I have not watched the show and will read your reviews as you seem to be quite high on the product. I still think Gabe has sold out as he has said disparaging comments about the WWE before (Jericho had some harsh words for him in return), and when money was thrown at him he changed his tune.

[Big Red Machine]

Evolve 116 (11/10/2018)- Oak Lawn, IL

PRELIMINARY MATCHES:

ZERO-1 USA WORLD JR. HEAVYWEIGHT TITLE #1 CONTENDERSHIP MATCH: Jake Lander vs. Joey O’Riley- 5/10
The match was fine and I’d have no problem with EVOLVE giving either of these guys another look. And speaking of giving things looks…
I understand that they are trying to use these FaceBook Live pre-show things to get people to sign up to Club WWN to see the rest of the show so I understand the focus on trying to recruit WWE-only fans who might be curious and thus concentrating on the appearances of Ali and Ohno (though, oddly, I don’t think the Street Profits were mentioned at all)… but for the love of G-d, don’t point out that fans “might recognize” one of these guys from a match he had on 205 Live against Jack Gallagher, because anyone who remembers this guy from that match will see him as nothing but a jobber who can’t go on a “WWE level” and you are essentially burying your entire product by association.

BARRETT BROWN vs. ADRIAN ALANIS- 5.75/10

MAIN SHOW:

JASON KINCAID vs. JOSH BRIGGS- 6.75/10
A very good opener, telling the power vs speed story.

FREELANCE WRESTLING TITLE MATCH: Isaias Velazquez(c) vs. GPA- 6.75/10

ANTHONY HENRY vs. FABIAN AICHNER- 8.5/10
Apparently Henry’s promo last night that I had trouble understanding was a promo on both Ohno AND Aichner. He is angry at Aichner (and the Street Profits, and others) because he doesn’t think they have earned their spots in EVOLVE, and is angry at Ohno for thinking he could come back from NXT and just reclaim his spot as leader of the locker room. The idea is pretty clearly for him to be a heel, but with wiggle room to quickly revert back by having the NXT guys earn his respect. This is a smart move because Henry now gives fans who are unhappy about the NXT guys swooping in and taking the titles an outlet to cheer for rather than getting annoyed and leaving, and Henry is a good choice for the role due to being a late-breaking indy grinder with no WWE connection, and being the tag partner of the much-beloved J.D. Drake, who has a similar background.
Another reason Henry is a good choice for this role is the fact that despite being a babyface everywhere else, he usually gets heel reactions from the Chicagoland crowd due to his heel work in Freelance Wrestling, which they have played up a bit, so having him be more heelish here meant you had a crowd that would have an easier time booing him. That being said, I’m not yet ready to officially call this a heel turn because Henry (for the moment) feels more like a babyface very unhappy with a decision management has made, rather than an outright heel like Drew Galloway did in 2016-2017 (notably, Henry has been frustrated but hasn’t done anything morally wrong yet, as opposed to Galloway who began his anti-WWE/Evolve relationship angle by kicking Johnny Gargano in the nads).
In addition to all of that, when this match was signed, Aichner had offered to put his Evolve Championship on the line, but WWN officials wouldn’t allow it, citing their general rule that the Evolve Title and WWN Title not be defended on the same show unless it is one of the biggest shows of the year. So yeah… Anthony Henry is not feeling particularly happy with EVOLVE management right now.
All of this made it natural for Henry to start this match off by charging right at Aichner, and to play the structural role of the heel. He worked over Aichner’s knee and Aichner sold it very well. He did one or two big spots where he had to run or jump, but they were always brief and far between, and he always sold his knee even more afterwards, really making it feel like adrenaline rather than just forgetting to sell so you can do a big spot. One little thing they did that I absolutely loved was that when Aichner was going for a superplex, rather than counter it with the usual punches to the stomach or ribs, Henry started clubbing away at Aichner’s knee instead.
Henry is also the FIP World Heavyweight Champion, and with Aichner being the Evolve Champion, I kind of figured we were going to get some sort of non-finish here (Henry beating Aichner cleanly, or even semi-cleanly, like after a cheap-shot to the knee after a break, could have helped build the feud, but I understand not wanting to be Aichner so soon, especially when they just beat WWN Champion J.D. Drake last night on the first show after Drake won it). Said non-finish came in the form of Henry thinking he had won the match when the ref counted three on a pinfall, only to immediately notice Aichner’s foot on the ropes, and the frustrated Henry wound up shoving the referee down after the referee told him the match was still on-going. While a finish like this always frustrating, I did really like Henry’s reaction when he realized what he had done. He sold his frustration beautifully, and J.D. Drake coming out to help calm him down was not only a good way to once again emphasize their friendship, but also got Henry into the ring for the…

POST-MATCH SEGMENT- good
With Drake and Henry in the ring and Aichner limping to the back, Austin Theory & Priscilla Kelly came out. Theory “took a long look” at Evolve Champion Fabian Aichner as they passed in the aisle, then cut a promo on J.D. Drake for being fat. Drake responded with a fiery promo in which he called Theory an “entitled Millennial” and actually got people to respond to it like a real insult (I mean… it is an insult, but the “Millennial” part makes it sound kind of silly and vaguely political. And this is coming from an author who eagerly describes himself as a “self-hating Millennial”). The reason this worked is because it felt very genuine, as Drake continued to cut a promo about everything he had sacrificed for his career in the wrestling business and he was not going to be disrespected by a young punk like Theory, and said he wanted to kick Theory’s ass right now. This brought out the third man in their scheduled WWN Title match tonight, Harlem Bravado, for the…

WWN TITLE MATCH: J.D. Drake(c) vs. Harlem Bravado vs. Austin Theory (w/Priscilla Kelly)- 6.75/10
They had some convincing nearfalls in here, but otherwise this match (unfortunately) nothing special. Even the pre-match stuff between Drake and Theory really didn’t lead to too much once the first few minutes had passed. Drake retained by pinning Bravado so the door is open for a rematch, but this match here tonight was solid but completely forgettable.

BSHP KNG vs. CYRUS SATIN vs. MIKE FIERRO vs. MATT KNICKS- 5/10
So Barrett Brown beats BSHP KNG in a preliminary match last night, but it’s KNG who gets a spot on the main card tonight while Brown is still wrestling in preliminaries? How does that make any sense? I know this is just a post-intermission popcorn match, but still... the other one was labeled as a preliminary match and this one wasn’t and the whole kayfabe point of the preliminary matches is that it is guys trying to get wins to earn their ways onto the main card, so having the loser wind up on the main card while the winner doesn’t hurts the credibility of the entire concept.
They all did stuff for a while as Lenny Leonard pimped the WWN training school, where Matt Sydal is the head trainer. Considering how much they talked up the fact that Cyrus Satin had moved to Florida to continue his training there and has been getting opportunities in ACW because of it, I figured he would get the win, but they gave it to hometown guy Matt Knicks instead. KNG didn’t do anything stupid tonight so that’s a plus for him, though once again Mike Fierro is the guy who impressed me the most. He really knows how to use his size well.

SHANE STRICKLAND vs. KASSIUS OHNO- 7.75/10
Matches that “can only be seen in EVOLVE” (read as: WWE contracted talent vs. indy guys) are apparently the new thing they’re pushing.
Ohno stole Ishii’s stupid “I block your punches with my face” spot, which hopefully does not become a regular feature of his matches. Other than that these two had a GREAT slugfest, with the added stories of Ohno’s ability to use his size to his advantage and Strickland working over Ohno’s knee. Ohno just kind of stopped selling at the end, which was not the kind of mistake I would expect from him.

POST-MATCH SEGMENT- good
Anthony Henry came out and said he wants apologizes to Ohno for his comments last night. He then did a much better job of articulating his frustrating (as explained earlier in this review) than he did last night. He then very respectfully asked Mr. Ohno for a match, at which point Ohno noted that Henry had not actually apologized yet. Henry then apologized not just for his rudeness to Ohno last night, but also to Fabian Aichner, and also to referee Brandon Toley for pushing him earlier tonight. Ohno said he understood where Henry was coming from and would see if he could get them booked against each other. Lenny Leonard then noted that Henry’s frustrations with the NXT guys coming into EVOLVE actually mirror Ohno’s frustrations with indy guys (many of who are from EVOLVE) coming into NXT and being given the opportunities he feels he deserves. Interesting.

EVOLVE TAG TEAM TITLE MATCH: The Street Profits(c) vs. A.R. Fox & Leon Ruff (w/Ayla Fox & The Skulk)- 8/10
Another excellent outing for all involved. Ruff did not look at all out of place with the big boys, and he and Fox were a very fun babyface team. Ruff was the babyface in peril and played his part very well, and liked some of the mirror image offense that he and Fox hit as an artistic nod to the fact that he is one of Fox’s students.

POST-MATCH SEGMENT- fine
The Street Profits cut a good celebratory babyface promo (Ford is from Chicago), and then we got the dance-off that everyone knew was inevitable with the Street Profits and The Skulk in the same place.

MUSTAFA ALI vs. DARBY ALLIN- 7/10
I popped for the “ALI, BOMA YE!” chants. Then I realized that Ali was wrestling Darby Allin, and got scared because Darby Allin is the kind of guy who seems perfectly willing to try a spot that might result in his own death.
They kept calling this a “dream match” but I never thought of it that way. These guys are similar in their in-ring style (both are never say die babyfaces who win their matches via high risk maneuvers and flash pins), but that is a style that seems to me to require someone who can be a real antagonist and provide a daunting challenge to overcome, as opposed to having both guys down and selling a bunch. Neither of them are well equipped to play the structural role of the heel.
I think that was part of the problem with this match. The other problem was that the match ended pretty abruptly after it had just started to really get going. There was a story of Darby’s head getting worked over, but it felt like Darby passed out in the Koji Clutch way too early.

POST-MATCH SEGMENT- meh
Ali put Darby over and said he’d give him a shot at the Cruiserweight Title if he won the belt at Survivor Series. This, plus some other things that Ali said came off as… condescending isn’t quite the right word because Ali wasn’t being condescending to Darby at all, but let’s just say it did have me a little worried about the way EVOLVE is allowing itself to be portrayed in this relationship with WWE. Even with the very open nature of Ali’s phrasing- he told Darby that if Darby keeps working hard “you will get to where you need to be,” which could have meant “Evolve Champion” just as much as it could have meant “signed by WWE” or anything else- felt like it meant “signed by WWE” simply because it was coming from a WWE guy.
Darby was very upset with himself for losing and didn’t really want to listen to Ali or talk to anyone, which was good. It also meant that Ali got to give the “thanks for coming speech” show-closing speech. It makes perfect sense for him to do so because he’s a Chicago native and having his family there was nice and he put over indy wrestling, but the fact that he is a WWE guy doing it just made it feel a little wrong to me. Maybe I would have been fine with Ohno doing it because of his EVOLVE pedigree, but even a guy like Ali who worked Chicago indies for years left a bad taste in my mouth as the guy getting to be in the big babyface show-closing spot at an EVOLVE show.


This was another pretty great show from EVOLVE, even if the main event and one of the title matches didn’t quite deliver. I liked most of the booking (with a few little things, like the Barrett Brown/BSHP KNG thing still bugging me) and I thought the WWE guys performed well, but at the same time, some of the stuff that was said has kind of rubbed me the wrong way about this relationship. A chunk of it is self-inflicted wounds, as I feel that it’s really EVOLVE’s portrayal of themselves rather than the actual results of the matches that make them feel like a WWE feeder-league, but as I said above, so of the stuff Ali said just rubbed me the wrong way because it was a WWE guy saying it, no matter how open and diplomatically it was worded.

[Big Red Machine]

I totally get what you saying man. At the time, when it happened, it was a big deal and Meltzer even treated it like it was. I understand the whole story with The Briscoes, but in that moment at that time it was unique to have all the titles held by wrestlers from a different company. This thing in Evolve reeks of Gabe kissing ass to corporate overlords with talent inferior to a similar situation in 2007.

Unless Gabe's intention in 2007 was to (as you put it) kiss ass to corporate overlords, then I don't think the two situations are comparable.
That being said, I think that in this whole "WWE controls EVOLVE now" business, everyone is forgetting that Gabe already works for NXT, and is probably in a position to at least have some control over who he brings in. I'm currently only half way through Evolve 116, but all of the new additions have performed pretty well. PROGRESS has been in a similar spot, and the quality of their storytelling and in-ring product have not suffered, so why are we so worried about Gabe, who has an even better track record as a booker? He's one of the few guys I'm willing to give the benefit of the doubt to.

You and I have similar perspectives on how wrestling should be presented. I have not watched the show and will read your reviews as you seem to be quite high on the product. I still think Gabe has sold out as he has said disparaging comments about the WWE before (Jericho had some harsh words for him in return), and when money was thrown at him he changed his tune.

I wasn't aware of anything negative Gabe had said about WWE other than stuff he has said on ROH commentary back in the day. If I remember right, most of that was complaining that they didn't give the wrestlers time or "freedom" to show their skills, and I'm sure there was the standard early 2000's indy burial of WWE's product as too comedic and/or soft.
I think the idea of "selling out" for everyone is going to vary based on how willing one is to separate the Triple H-booked product from the Vince-booked product from the Gabe-booked product. If, for you, any working with WWE is selling out then that's going to be how you look at it. Personally, I haven't yet been given reason to think that this is anything other than Gabe taking WWE's money in exchange for using their talent but still being allowed to do his own kind of wrestling, which I don't think is selling out because he's still doing his art the way he wants to. If I think that starts to change, I won't be shy about saying so (just look at the things I've been saying about ROH for the past three years).

[Montana]

I thought the shows this past weekend over-delivered based on the card. Kassius Ohno being added last minute REALLY helped both these shows, adding a last minute bonus main event to each. Glad Ohno, beat Strickland in Chicago, but i have to wonder why Strickland got pushed to the moon for the first few months with the company, and then Strickland a few shows in a row. Not a Swerve fan personally, so i don't really care, but kind of surprising. Mustafa Ali wrestled two really good matches this past weekend too. He didn't phone it in, and looked very comfortable.

The NXT guys didn't overly impress, but I'd also say they didn't look completely out of place.

Last but not least, i've been really impressed with the Blue Collar Bad Ass JD Drake and Anthony Henry. They are probably two of the hardest working wrestlers today in the US. They are giving the fans their money's worth.

[Memphis Mark]

I wonder in Triple H was bought WWN with his own money. That the only way the WWE involvement makes any sense at all. To my knowledge the WWE has not purchased WWN , so maybe H used his own money?

[Wilson]

Gabe is a consultant for the WWE. The WWE trusts his ability to suss out talent. The company is spending some resources as an investment toward talent that might be fed in through the WWN system. That's the relationship.

[Big Red Machine]

I thought the shows this past weekend over-delivered based on the card. Kassius Ohno being added last minute REALLY helped both these shows, adding a last minute bonus main event to each. Glad Ohno, beat Strickland in Chicago, but i have to wonder why Strickland got pushed to the moon for the first few months with the company, and then Strickland a few shows in a row. Not a Swerve fan personally, so i don't really care, but kind of surprising. Mustafa Ali wrestled two really good matches this past weekend too. He didn't phone it in, and looked very comfortable.

You make a good point about Ohno really pulling the cards up. As for Stickland, my instinct is that his push was rushed in order to have someone ready to beat Riddle because Gabe knew Riddle was leaving. I think Strickland losing to him was necessary for someone like Henry to be able to get angrier at the NXT guys' prominence, and I guess Gabe thought Ohno losing and Henry then being angry at his presence would kind of prove Henry right, which isn't the point of the angle.

[Memphis Mark]

Gabe is a consultant for the WWE. The WWE trusts his ability to suss out talent. The company is spending some resources as an investment toward talent that might be fed in through the WWN system. That's the relationship.

The McMahons will buy WNN . It is only a matter of time. Gabe is just the point man is diverting talent from ROH/ NJPW . Evolve is a farm team for NXT . I don't think this is what Gabe and Sal had in mind, but I guess the checks clear the bank.

[kovs27]

Gabe is a consultant for the WWE. The WWE trusts his ability to suss out talent. The company is spending some resources as an investment toward talent that might be fed in through the WWN system. That's the relationship.

The McMahons will buy WNN . It is only a matter of time. Gabe is just the point man is diverting talent from ROH/ NJPW . Evolve is a farm team for NXT . I don't think this is what Gabe and Sal had in mind, but I guess the checks clear the bank.

I doubt WWE buys Evolve. Maybe the tape library down the line. I would imagine the partnership ends when WWE no longer has a need for WWN.

[Memphis Mark]

I don't see why the WWE would not buy WWN. How much are the Evolve and FIP promotions worth ? Not a lot. Vince could shake enough money out of his sofa to buy Evolve.

[Big Red Machine]

I don't see why the WWE would not buy WWN. How much are the Evolve and FIP promotions worth ? Not a lot. Vince could shake enough money out of his sofa to buy Evolve.

But what would WWE gain from it? EVOLVE already serves all of the functions that WWE needs it to, so why buy the cow when you're getting the milk for free?

[Memphis Mark]

I wonder what Gabe was thinking when he booked the Impact tag champions against NXT talent ? You think he might have asked Don Callis and Scott D' Amore before announcing those matches .

[Big Red Machine]

I wonder what Gabe was thinking when he booked the Impact tag champions against NXT talent ? You think he might have asked Don Callis and Scott D' Amore before announcing those matches .

I assume he did, but then Callis and D'Amore changed their stances after WWE's recent talent restrictions.

[Memphis Mark]

I don't see why the WWE would not buy WWN. How much are the Evolve and FIP promotions worth ? Not a lot. Vince could shake enough money out of his sofa to buy Evolve.

But what would WWE gain from it? EVOLVE already serves all of the functions that WWE needs it to, so why buy the cow when you're getting the milk for free?

Just read that the WWE has an option to buy and shut down Progress and ICW . Their UK " partners ". The WWE will buy and shut down Evolve if it furthers their goals. Vince's goal is not money , it is control . VKM will do anything to maintain control of the business. So the WWE buying and shutting down their indies partners just might be the end goal.

Thisis Vince McMahon that these these companies are dealing with , not Santa. I recall Vince going into to Portland and buying Don Owen TV out from under him. He kicked Ole Anderson out of his own company. He bought Stampede from Stu Hart , then a year later defaulted on the deal. He took Joe Blanchard TV slot. He backed out of his contract with Bret Hart. I could go on forever.

This guy will do anything to achieve his goal of power and control. Vince has proved he does not care about money. The WWE investors went ballistic when they found out McMahon have dropping $ 250, 000 per year dragging a forklift for Wade Barrett and stage curtain for Fandingo around the world. Hell, they have lost $32 million in two years sending the likes of Roderick Strong and Bobby Fish to wrestling school .

I just saying that Vince will buy anything , destroy anything and cheat anyone to maintain control . So whatever it takes to destroy ROH , NJPW , CMLL ,Impact , MLW , Lucha Underground , Rev Pro or anyone else that has TV , PPV's and streaming services is on the table..

Just my take on the current landscape. i been watching wrestling since 1970 , so I witness Vince work his magic over the years. It is not my place to judge him , but he is such a bizarre and ridiculous character , yet people accept and admire him . I guess Vince is what makes the wrestling business interesting you never know what is coming next. Anyway that my two cents.

[dhads7161]

When wrestling companies are victimized by tactics they used against others the one that does it to them is the bad guys.
The NWA was just as predatory to "Outlaw" territories as Vince, they couldn't stand that someone unaffiliated with their boys club could run "their" territory and do just as good of a job drawing themselves.

Then there's the WWE propaganda we've seen for nearly an adult life now of how WCW tried to use predatory tactics to put them out of business in the 90s. All while WWE is trying to stomp out or take over anything outside of their "Universe" that may be picking up steam.

[Montana]

I feel like WWE gains next to nothing if they purchase evolve. Evolve is not competition by any stretch. Nor would if "control" the wrestling market further. Like others said, why buy the cow if your getting the milk for free. Evolve's role is to give indie wrestlers an alternative to ROH, and a quicker pass to NXT. WWE shutting it down, would help WWE"s competition.

[Wilson]

Mentioned on some of the more main ROH threads is that Shane Strickland is no longer in Evolve. Rough year.

[Big Red Machine]

Mentioned on some of the more main ROH threads is that Shane Strickland is no longer in Evolve. Rough year.

It's a shame, as I was really liking this heel Shane Strickland, as opposed to the happy, flippy babyface we get everywhere else.