WHO WILL BE THE NEW #1 CONTENDER?

The Wing Collectors open up the final Evolution before Christmas with a match against Nathan Rotunda and Chandler Marcy. The Gotti Crime Family team was looking to derail the former champs before they battle the Demon Wolves at Winterfest. This was a classic Wing Collectors match as both men performed in sequence and with perfect timing to dominate the two bigger men. Wesley sent Rotunda out of the ring while Franky Omega dominated Marcy and defeated him with a powerful combination. It was confirmed later the Wing Collectors would be facing the Demon Wolves for the Tag Titles at Winterfest though Jon Gotti questioned whether the team would stay together given their fraught history.

Backstage, TJ Frost accepts HTO’s challenge for a trios match at Winterfest.

Isis wins her second match in a row over local product Mary Santana and she won this contest with a Rainmaker in a clear challenge of Rise Champion Yamamoto.

Eddie Hernandez came out immediately afterword and gave an inspiring holiday speech about his upcoming title match with Kurt Andrews. The Apex Champ of course answered his challenger but Hernandez demanded Andrews meet him in the ring right now. Instead, it was Wolf Stormsong who, for the second week in a row, tried to do Andrews’ dirty work. But Hernandez was too ready this time, ejecting Stormsong from the ring and then dealing with an incoming Andrews attack. Hernandez stood tall in the ring in his last true clash with Andrews before their title match!

Evolution sends its final representative to the Challenger Briefcase Ladder Match as Jacob Ace battles Takahashi in a qualifier. Ace has been a serious threat in the singles arena but Takahashi was too good for him on this occasion. The Rookie of the Year showed his incredible versatility by taking to the skies and outstriking his opponent en route to a win to send him to Winterfest.

In the main event, Igris and Yun-Son Park faced off in a #1 contenders match. The match started at a slow pace as both men tried to feel each other out and neither was willing to make a mistake. It seemed like Park had the match won seven minutes in with a Miracle From LA but Igris somehow kicked out. Both men seemed to lose track of the time limit entirely as emotion took over in the late stages. The match ended in a draw with neither man willing to give up. It was announced immediately afterword that the two would rematch in a no time limit #1 contenders match at Winterfest!