#8 Tyler Bate vs. Tucker
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Tucker is from Belfast and describes himself as a technical wrestler. Tyler Bate was the guy from Dudley taking on the old style gimmick. He had the older boots, the old fashioned tache with the short back and sides hairdo.
The was an exhibit of fantastic athleticism from both men. Lots of kip-ups, flips and fast catch as catch can action wowed the crowd as we ended the night. Bate sucker-punched Tucker with a left hand that looked like a knock-out punch. It was a fantastic sell. Dolph Ziggler would be proud. The crowd was firmly behind Tyler Bate. It was an extremely unorthodox style from the man from Dudley.
The match slowed down into headlocks as the crowd began to entertain themselves with “Woo’s”. They sensed it and an impactful spinning kick from Tucker sent Tyler to la-la land. Tucker took advantage from here and controlled that match with a fast pace, using his agility, however, Bate came back and regained control. Momentum switched back and forth more often than the other matches earlier in the night.
A suicide dive from Tucker was caught with an uppercut and it was another fantastic sell as he hung from the ropes on the apron. Tucker then executed a head scissors from the stairs to the ramp after recovering quickly.
An airplane spin from Tyler Bate signaled the end. He teased the crowd as he slowed down and went again the other way! It was a brilliant bit of old fashioned wrestling akin to the giant swing from Cesaro.
Tucker kicked Bate all the way out of the ring and prompted ‘Holy Sh*t’ chants from the crowd. A near fall followed. There was a failed Swanton Bomb by Tucker then a wheelhouse kick from Tyler Bate. This allowed him to execute the Tyler driver ’97 and he picked up the win. Fantastic display from both to end the night and send the crowd home happy!
Result: Winner by pinfall – Tyler Bate
Special presentation
A quick presentation followed with William Regal and Nigel McGuinness to announce the participants in the Quarter Finals of the tournament. They were as follows:
Tyler Bate vs. Jordan Devlin
Trent Seven vs. Wolfgang
Pete Dunne vs. Sam Gradwell
Mark Andrews vs. Joseph Conners
Pete Dunne attacked Gradwell to end things and Regal went mental. I thought he was going to lamp Dunne! It’s fantastic that they’re adding little one night only storylines and building heel characters. There is a fine art to getting someone over in a matter of two nights and the WWE has come so far in the past 3 years, that they are adept once again at appealing to the niche audiences.
I look forward to seeing what happens tomorrow in the finals! Did you enjoy the first night? Let us know in the comment section!
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