February 13, 2018 – Bakersfield, California
Mark Andrews def. Akira Tozawa {First Round Match}
Nigel McGuiness mentioned Tozawa’s singing skills at the top of this match because he’s the best color commentator in the business. This loss seems incidental to Tozawa’s goals, as he really wanted to be the 205 Live General Manager. I guess he can’t fire that random dude backstage now. The match had a good story, with a confident Tozawa being something of a brick wall that Andrews had to tear down, but in the end it wasn’t a submission or a high flying move that took Tozawa down but rather blocking la magistral and getting the pin at 12:28. ***¼
Drew Gulak def. Tony Nese {First Round Match}
If both of these guys weren’t goofy heels and the crowd had given a damn about either of them, this would have had a lot of potential. Gulak could have been compelling as a grappler that was totally outmatched in strength but fought back against it. But the crowd didn’t care so it didn’t feel genuine. Points for trying, as Nese had his working boots on and Gulak attempted to bring the character work. The finish felt disconnected from the story, as Gulak just lost it, sent Nese into the announce table, and then hit a couple of powerbombs before winning with the GuLock at 16:10. Wouldn’t it have worked better if Nese had lost simply because he violated Gulak’s rules for a better 205 Live? I dunno, I feel like they left a lot on the table here. ***