The Story So Far: 205 Live is a weekly column that catches you up on the previous weeks of 205 Live and its storytelling, so if you miss a week (or what to just jump into the show for the first time), you have a summary of where the storylines are at and where they’re headed.
Last week’s episode, concluded with another terrific bout, this time between Buddy Murphy and Kalisto in the main event. Once again, logical booking moves the stories forward here, as Murphy who had interfered in Kalisto’s singles match against Tony Nese three weeks ago by tripping him, and Kalisto return the favor two weeks ago during the awesome Tornado Tag Team match between Lucha House Party and Nese & Murphy (seriously, go check that out if you haven’t yet). Murphy got a definitive win here, and so it was no surprise that it was announced that Murphy would challenge Cedric Alexander for his Cruiserweight Championship in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, at WWE Super Show-Down on October 6th. Murphy, a Melbourne native, will no doubt be cheered as a homecoming hero, as he had wrestling for the main local promotion there Melbourne City Wrestling from 2010-2013 as Matt Silva before signing with NXT, and even had a stint as MCW Heavyweight Champion. Alexander, on the other hand, is not only dealing with that championship date in Melbourne, but also Drew Gulak nipping at his heels. Alexander rolled Gulak up to successfully defend his title at the SummerSlam Kick-Off Show a few weeks ago, but Gulak was not satisfied with the result. He’s been insulting and prodding Alexander, hoping to goad him into granting another title shot, but 205 Live General Manager Drake Maverick has said this rematch will not place. This rematch will almost certainly take place, as almost all of the angles for the title picture right now involve Gulak. Whether it will happen before or after Super Show-Down is unclear, although one would think that it wouldn’t be dragged out more than the five weeks it would take to get to Melbourne, and then some.
So, expect there will be a Cruiserweight Championship match in the next week or two between Alexander and Gulak, although Triple H (the head booker for the show) may prove to be more patient than that. It’s entirely possible that Buddy Murphy grabs the gold in his hometown. He’s proven himself to be a tremendous worker, and has had killer matches all year. If you’re going to pull the trigger on him, Melbourne would be the perfect place. Tens of thousands of people will be behind him, and it may help put some eyes on the weekly product. The next six weeks will be very interesting for the Cruiserweight division. Deeper into the future, Lio Rush is definitely being groomed to be a challenger, and maybe even a brief challenger, in the coming months. One would believe Alexander will ultimately be the title holder walking into WrestleMania next year, but that doesn’t mean he can’t trade the belt briefly a time or two on the way, and Rush and Murphy would be near the top of the list for choices to do so.
Akira Tozawa, after losing twice to Lio Rush and having a match called off due to Gulak’s interference before it even started, finally was featured in a real match where he got the win. He defeated The Brian Kendrick with his top rope Senton. He’ll probably have a match with Kendrick’s buddy Jack Gallagher in the coming weeks, although after that it’s unclear what his long term direction is.
The heart and soul of 205 Live, Mustafa Ali, made his return last week, after taking some time off due to a storyline injury from working too hard. He chased Hideo Itami from the ring in the middle of Itami’s match, wherein he was unnecessarily beating on the jobber he was facing. It was Itami who capitalized on Ali’s exhaustion a few weeks ago to get the win. Ali will no doubt get his rematch soon, and will likely get his win back from Itami. Ali is shaping up to be the heir apparent to the division. He lost to Alexander at this past WrestleMania’s Kick-Off Show, and the booking looks to be heading to a rematch between the two at the same stage. Alexander may drop it briefly on the way back to WrestleMania (i.e. Buddy Murphy) but will regain it quickly, and will have been the champion for most of the year walking back into WrestleMania. More and more of the show has been dedicated to Ali this summer, and it is shaping up to be his by next spring when he most likely captured his first Cruiserweight Championship. This week, look for the start of the building of the feud between Murphy and Alexander, mingled in with Gulak’s angle. The top of the card for the show is starting to get crowded.
