This past Sunday the WWE once again gave its female talent the chance to make history in the first ever all women’s Pay Per View. With fifty women past, present, and future set to take part in this historic event the night was for sure a must from the get-go, however, less than twenty-four hours later and its safe to say Evolution was one of the best WWE PPV’s of the entire year. From extremely well-booked matches, storytelling, and wrestling excellence Evolution was a major success and a huge congratulations goes out to every single woman involved. Today, let’s look back at the historic event!
Results:
Lita & Trish def Alicia Fox & Mickie James
Nia Jax Wins 20 Woman Battle Royal
Toni Storm def Io Shari (MYC Finales)
Banks, Baley & Natalay def The Riott Squad
Shayna Baszler def Kairi Sane
Becky Lynch Def Charlotte
Ronda Rousey def Nikki Bella
The night kick-started with a nostalgic tag team match seeing WWE Hall of Famers Trish Stratus and Lita team up to take on against Mickie James and Alicia Fox. Originally, Alexa Bliss was scheduled to compete in this match but due to an injury the switch was made and Foxy took on the role instead. Bliss introduced Mickie and Alicia while also remaining at ringside throughout playing her role very well. The match itself was truly satisfying. An amazing moment seeing Lita and Trish share a ring once again but also the collisions between Stratus and James made for a goosebump moment of the night. The Hall of Famers were effortless throughout barely missing a beat and the decision to open the night with this contest was a brilliant booking decision; the bout got the crowd loud, excited, and ready for a night full of excellent wrestling. The finish may not have been super clean but none the less this was a strong opener.
Initially, the announcement of a Battle Royal taking place on the Evolution card appeared to come across a touch lazy. Twenty women of the past and the present were set to collide in the hopes of earning a future women’s championship opportunity and the announcement at first did have many fans concerned, however, it’s more than safe to say this was yet another success of the night. The Battle Royal was booked extremely well and while the end result was questioned by many fans the contest itself was very entertaining. Every single woman that took part had their moment in the spotlight and had a chance to shine. Tamina had one of the standout moments of her entire career, Ember was a major crowd favourite as well as having a highlight moment during the match with Asuka, the IIConics cut a promo and were first eliminated, we had the then vs now moment, as well as Mandy Rose eliminating Sonya and Zelina Vega’s big spotlight towards the end. Nia taking the win may not have gone down all too well with everyone but with such a well booked Battle Royal can we really complain?
There is no denying that Toni Storm vs Io Shari was one of the most anticipated matches of the night with many believing it could steal the show and truly stand out on the night and they did exactly that. While it may not have been the match of the whole night, Toni and Io showed the world what the future of the WWE women’s division looks like and how amazing does it look? The Mae Young Classic has been a highlight of twenty eighteen and it cumulated this past weekend in a brilliant pure wrestling match up. Io showed just how comfortable she is up top executing a beautiful dropkick allowing her to then perform a stunning moonsault from the top rope to the outside taking control of the bout but it still was not enough and moments later Toni Storm was crowned the two thousand and eighteen MYC winner and after her yearlong story this was a satisfying and special moment.
One of the matches fans initially didn’t have as much of a major interest in was the six-woman tag team match between Bayley, Sasha Banks, and Natalya and the Riott Squad. Announced last minute it wasn’t a bout that got the WWE universe truly full of excitement, however, what we did actually get this weekend was yet another entertaining and solid contest. There were flaws, botched moments, and it wasn’t super clean but overall it was a strong tag team match up. The Riott Squad finally were given enough time to truly show how good they are with Liv Morgan in particular really having her night. We saw the heel team showcase their talents amazingly well and work exceptionally good as a team but in the end, it was the trio of Banks, Bayley, and Natalya who scored the win. It wasn’t the match of the night but none the less the wrestling was good, a story was told, and fans were entertained throughout making it safe to say this was better than many expected it to be.
As the night grew we moved over to the NXT Women’s Championship match that saw year-long rivals Shayna Baszler and Kairi Sane collide once again. Throughout their WWE careers, these two women have faced off several times before and in the star of this matchup they really showed just how well they now know each other in the ring. Both looked to gain the upper hand early yet so familiar with each other’s arsenal it wasn’t an easy job. As the bout progressed the action grew even more intense with Baszler focusing on the arm of Sane taking control of the contest, however, a beautifully executed crossbody from the top rope to the outside slowed down the moment of the challenger and after being sent into her friends at ringside the pace changed once again. The collision between Baszler and Jessamyn Duke and Marina Shafir allowed the two fellow four horsewomen stars to make their own impact and their perfectly timed attacks on the champ gave Shayna the chance to again get the upper hand, however, this time it got her the win and her second NXT Women’s Championship win. The match overall was again another strong one from these two and the closing moments gave it the edge and extra excitement.
Not only was Charlotte Flair vs Becky Lynch the match of the night for many but also Widely considered to be one of If not the WWE main roster match of the year. A career-making performance from Becky Lynch the champ worked her role as a heel perfectly. Burying Charlotte under a sea of chairs amongst other things, attempting to leave the arena with the title, and her intense character work throughout was simply excellent and the fans in attendance were completely hooked from the get-go. The women of the blue brand tore the house down in an epic Last woman standing match, making history themselves. They involved, chairs, tables, ladders, and kendo sticks using everything around them to their advantage. Performing at a level we don’t see women compete at often enough in the wrestling world Charlotte and Lynch got the world talking and after Becky managed to still walk out champion she silenced any critiques proving the top spot is where she belongs while Charlotte left fans with no doubt that she is one of the best all-round performers in the WWE possibly of all time.
And to conclude, the main event, of course, saw Ronda Rousey defend her RAW women’s championship against Nikki Bella. A feud and a match that divided fan opinion from the start was, in fact, a solid main event. Topping the matches that had taken place throughout the night was not going to be an easy job and the main event did not steal the show, however, what we did get was very interesting and entertaining. Rousey had her dominant moments throughout as champion, Brie played her role well, and Nikki was very impressive. Despite her history with neck injuries the former divas champion took hard bumps and worked very well from the get-go. Her facial expressions and character work added to this match and the storytelling from start to finish gave this match an edge. Nikki put up a solid and impressive fight against the champ but in the end, the badest women on the planet walked out still your RAW Women’s Champion.
To conclude, WWE Evolution was a huge success. A special, important, well done night was presented and despite a poor build, this was not a pay per view to sleep on with the women’s division raising the bar even higher and sending a huge message to the world. Women are here and they are taking over.