WWE 205 Live Review - July 3, 2018

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Noam Dar def. TJP

TJP has been saying for weeks that he deserves better than 205 Live, yet he hasn't faced real competition until now. General manager Drake Maverick named TJP's opponent this time around, and it ended up being the returning Noam Dar. Dar originally returned at the WWE NXT U.K. Championship special last week and received a much reaction across the pond, but that was to be expected. He defeated TJP decisively and quickly here and appears to be back to being a babyface.

Akira Tozawa def. Jaysin Strife

I have been saying for weeks that Tozawa wasn't facing local athletes for no reason and now we know why: he was being built back up for a program with Lio Rush. You won't get any complaints out of me because that is the perfect first feud for Rush on 205 Live. Anyway, this was a standard showcase for Tozawa. I was more impressed by Rush's post-match promo. I didn't know how he would fare on the mic, but he did well with the material he was given to work with.

Mustafa Ali def. Buddy Murphy in a No Disqualification Match

The story here was that these two were tied 1-1 coming into this contest, and of course, the stipulation meant that it would be the blow-off. It definitely felt like one because they went above and beyond in delivering an exceptional main event and honestly one of the best bouts in the history of 205 Live. In addition to making the most of the extreme environment (and pulling off some insane spots in the process), they told a spectacular story with Ali battling back and refusing to give up. He plays the perfect babyface and never ceases to get a crowd to rally behind him, despite how unfamiliar with him they may be. I thoroughly enjoyed every second of this and strongly recommend it to anyone who is a fan of fantastic wrestling.

Overall Show

I don't know how many times I can say this, but if you aren't already tuning into 205 Live on a regular basis, you are doing yourself a major disservice. The program is infinitely better than it was at the onset of 2018 with virtually everything capturing my attention one way or another. As for this episode, the main event was outstanding and needs to be checked out. The rest of the show was filled out well with Dar's surprise return and the Tozawa vs. Rush rivalry kicking off, making it an above-average edition of 205 Live on the whole.