WWE Evolve returned from its Thanksgiving break with a lean but loaded hour from the WWE Performance Center in Orlando, streaming on Tubi. With just three matches on the card, the purple brand put its focus squarely on the women’s division and the future of its champions, spotlighting a gritty EVOLVE Women’s Championship main event between Kendal Grey and Chantel Monroe, a character-defining win for Arianna Grace over Carlee Bright, and a wild tag team bout that dissolved into chaos as the race to challenge EVOLVE Champion Jackson Drake heated up. 

Here is everything advertised for tonight’s show

• Arianna Grace def. Carlee Bright  
• Marcus Mathers & Aaron Rourke vs. Cappuccino Jones & Mike Cunningham ended in a No Contest after an attack by Harley Riggins & Jax Presley  
• Kendal Grey (c) def. Chantel Monroe to retain the WWE Evolve Women’s Championship  

Setting the stage at the Evolve Arena

The December 3 episode—taped at the WWE Performance Center and listed as WWE EVOLVE #40—marked the brand’s return after a one-week hiatus, with Peter Rosenberg and Robert Stone back on commentary. 

Before the matches officially began, cameras caught EVOLVE Women’s Champion Kendal Grey arriving earlier in the day, laser-focused on her defense against Chantel Monroe and promising she was ready to fight “anywhere, anytime” if it meant keeping her title. It set the tone for an episode centered on who can rise through Evolve’s ranks and who can actually break through at the top. 

Arianna Grace vs. Carlee Bright – A mean streak makes the difference

The night opened with Carlee Bright looking to ride her crowd support into a statement victory, only to run into the polished, ruthless strategy of Arianna Grace. 

Grace quickly imposed herself in the corner, shoving and pie-facing Bright and even slapping her across the face to establish dominance. Bright fired back with her athleticism—hitting dropkicks, a running knee in the corner and a burst of offense that got the crowd behind her. But a missed follow-up allowed Grace to yank control back, sending Bright crashing to the floor and punishing her on the outside. 

Back in the ring, Grace made a point of taunting Bright and the audience, promising to “make her ugly” while raking Bright’s face across the top rope. Bright fought from underneath, trading elbows and landing more dropkicks, but Grace cut her off one last time and hit Graceland to score the decisive pinfall. 

It was a character piece as much as a result: Grace came off every bit the smug, second-generation-style villain who knows she’s good and wants everyone else to suffer for it, while Bright continued to look like one of Evolve’s most likable underdogs who just needs the right momentum swing to break through.

ID Program spotlight and Nikkita Lyons’ next challenger

Between matches, Evolve doubled down on its role as WWE’s talent incubator. A WWE ID Program video package introduced viewers to Yayne Harrison, a new ID prospect out of the Elite Pro Wrestling Training Center, underscoring the brand’s pipeline from independent and training schools to the WWE system. The same package noted that Layne Luck captured the WWE Women’s ID Championship through Wrestling Open, earning herself an ID contract in the process—another example of Evolve’s broader scouting reach. 

Later, a locker-room segment pivoted the spotlight to main-roster-adjacent star power. Nikkita Lyons attempted to clear the energy in her space, only for Layla Diggs and Masyn Holiday to roll in with some serious attitude. Lyons bristled at their “bad vibes,” and the confrontation escalated into a challenge. By the end of the segment, Nikkita Lyons vs. Layla Diggs was made official for next week’s episode, giving Evolve another women’s match with clear stakes and plenty of personality. 

These short pieces did exactly what Evolve is designed to do—introduce new names, deepen characters, and plant seeds for future episodes while the in-ring action carries the hour.

Marcus Mathers & Aaron Rourke vs. Cappuccino Jones & Mike Cunningham – Tag showcase devolves into chaos

The evening’s lone tag team contest saw Marcus Mathers & Aaron Rourke collide with Cappuccino Jones & Mike Cunningham in a match that was as much about the wider tag scene as it was about picking up a win. 

From the opening bell, Mathers and Jones traded crisp mat wrestling, counters, and pin attempts, with dueling chants suggesting the Evolve Arena is starting to pick favorites in the midcard. Rourke and Cunningham added their own flavor: heavy European uppercuts, rope-running exchanges, and tandem offense from the Mathers–Rourke pairing that showcased why they’re quickly becoming one of the more inventive acts on the show. All the while, It’s Gal lounged in the VIP area, watching the teams closely like a scout in search of a new partner. 

The pace escalated after the break. Rourke and Mathers strung together unusual double-team sequences, while Jones exploded off a hot tag with flying neckbreakers and strikes that had the crowd roaring. Cunningham chipped in with top-rope offense and creative near falls, including roll-ups that nearly stole the match. The move of the bout might have been a picture-perfect Molly Go Round from Rourke before things completely broke down. 

Just when it looked like either team might pull away, Harley Riggins and Jax Presley stormed the ring, attacking both units and turning the contest into a full-blown brawl. The referee had no choice but to throw the match out, ruling it a No Contest at just under 13 minutes. 

Post-brawl, the commentary and backstage follow-up revealed another wrinkle: Riggins and Presley had been on the phone with Keanu Carver last week, and Carver made his presence felt in the aftermath, signaling that he’s back in the mix and ready to “wreck shop” on the Evolve brand. 

The result left the tag division in disarray—but in a productive way. Multiple teams now have issues with one another, and the return of Carver gives the brand another heavy-hitting wild card to plug into both tag and singles scenes.

Video highlights: Jackson Drake & Kendal Grey’s championship standards

Midway through the show, Evolve reminded viewers what everyone is fighting toward with a video package built around EVOLVE Champion Jackson Drake and EVOLVE Women’s Champion Kendal Grey. Clips from NXT Gold Rush at Madison Square Garden replayed both champions successfully defending their titles, establishing Drake and Grey as the standard-bearers of their divisions and reinforcing that Evolve’s biggest prizes are already tied into WWE’s broader ecosystem. 

This package did double duty heading into the main event, positioning Monroe’s challenge as more than just another defense: if she could topple Grey, she’d instantly join the short list of Evolve talents ready for the NXT spotlight.

Main Event – Kendal Grey (c) vs. Chantel Monroe

EVOLVE Women’s Championship

The main event delivered on that build, giving Kendal Grey and Chantel Monroe the space to tell a full championship story that started slow, escalated methodically, and hit a fever pitch in the closing minutes.

The early going was a battle for control. Grey grounded Monroe with repeated waist-lock takedowns, asserting her mat-wrestling advantage and forcing her challenger to regroup on the floor. When Grey dragged Monroe back in by the arm, Monroe shifted gears, using elbows and repeated stomps in opposite corners to turn the match into a more physical fight. 

Momentum swung back and forth. Grey’s slick leg trips and basement dropkicks gave her windows to build combinations, but Monroe’s strikes—and a smart shoulder to the gut from the apron followed by a crossbody to the floor—reminded everyone why she’d earned this title shot in the first place. A back suplex against the apron heading into the break put Grey in serious trouble. 

After commercials, the challenger’s onslaught continued. Monroe connected with a cutter and a big knee to the head for close near falls. Grey battled back from her knees, hitting a running back elbow and another leg trip on the apron, but Monroe’s head kick and relentless offense kept the champion a step behind. Grey landed a sit-out powerbomb for two, only for Monroe to answer with a roll-up, stiff kicks, and then the move of the match: a Meteora from the top rope that had the crowd believing a title change was seconds away. 

The turning point came courtesy of outside interference. With Grey reeling on the floor and the referee occupied, Wendy Choo blindsided Monroe, slamming her into the ring post behind the official’s back. Grey never saw the attack; from her perspective, she was just capitalizing on a dazed challenger. She snatched an armbar, but Monroe rolled through into another pin attempt, forcing Grey to adjust on the fly. 

In the final exchange, both women traded brutal chops and knees center-ring before Monroe ran into a superkick. With the Evolve Arena now fully invested, Grey pulled down her straps and hit Shades of Grey, finally keeping Monroe down for the three count at just over 12 minutes to retain the EVOLVE Women’s Championship. 

From the VIP area, Karmen Petrovic watched with clear interest, visibly impressed by Grey’s resilience. Given Diva Dirt’s coverage and social media chatter, Petrovic is already being talked about as a potential next challenger, especially after Choo’s interference muddied the waters around Monroe’s loss. 

Closing tease – Tate Wilder, Sean Legacy, and Jackson Drake’s next challenger

The show wrapped with interviewer Chuey Martinez standing by backstage with Tate Wilder and Sean Legacy. It was announced that the two will face each other next week, with the winner earning the next shot at Jackson Drake’s EVOLVE Championship, raising the stakes for both men and tying directly into the video package earlier in the night. 

As the camera focused on Wilder, a mysterious hand reached into frame to pat him on the back, with no reveal of who it belonged to—an intentionally ambiguous cliffhanger designed to keep viewers talking and ensure that next week’s show feels must-see for anyone invested in the Evolve title picture. 

Overall thoughts

This week’s WWE Evolve wasn’t about quantity; it was about focusing the brand’s identity after a short break. Arianna Grace’s win over Carlee Bright sharpened her villainous edge, the tag team melee raised an entire division’s profile while reintroducing Keanu Carver, and the main event between Kendal Grey and Chantel Monroe—complete with near falls, outside interference, and a looming Karmen Petrovic—cemented the women’s division as the heart of the show. Layer in the ID Program spotlight, Nikkita Lyons vs. Layla Diggs being set for next week, and the Wilder–Legacy number one contender’s match, and Evolve continues to feel like a crucial bridge between developmental prospects and WWE’s bigger stages, with championships and opportunities that genuinely matter.  

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