Last month, Hideo Itami earned a taxing victory over Mustafa Ali, brutalizing his opponent and leaving him on the shelf for several weeks, then heinously claimed that his only regret was not inflicting more damage to The Heart of WWE 205 Live.
With Ali seeking retribution after being cleared to compete by WWE 205 Live General Manager Drake Maverick and the WWE medical staff, the animosity was off the charts before the start of the rematch, and Itami was out to make his opponent regret ever coming back.
Itami avoided Ali’s early advances, forcing his opponent to give chase before he was pulled out of the ring and on the receiving end of several furious chops from the Chicago native. Itami attempted to fight back, but Ali used his speed to counter the attacks and keep the pressure on Itami. The Japanese Superstar managed to turn the tide by escaping the ring and pushing Ali head-first into the ring post.
Taking a moment to bark at the WWE Universe and demand respect, Itami pulled Ali from the ring apron to the arena floor before unleashing a series of kicks that devastated Ali. Trying to slow down the match, Itami methodically attacked and tried to keep his opponent grounded. However, the resilient and fast-as-lightning Ali unleashed a flurry of offense that was shut down with a strike to the gut.
Itami nearly secured victory with a well-timed DDT and applied a sitting Boston Crab into a single leg crab to leave the high-flyer writhing in agony. Even as the Japanese Superstar pressed his free foot on the back of Ali’s neck, the ever-resilient Heart of WWE 205 Live escaped the hold. Itami kept up the pressure, throwing Ali into the barricade and unloading a series of kicks that drew a warning from the official before suplexing his opponent on the ring floor.
Itami tried to pick up a count-out win, but the strategy backfired when he became the recipient of an eye-popping series of strikes – a kick, facebuster and sit-down powerbomb. Itami attempted a kick, but he was dumped to the outside of the ring before being flattened by Ali’s jaw-dropping dive to the outside. Reeling, Itami rolled through to the opposite side of the arena floor looking to catch his breath. Ali followed and tried to use the steel steps to execute a high-risk move but was met with a stiff kick to the face from Itami.
Back inside the ring, Itami prepared a running dropkick, but Ali rolled away and hammered his foe with a tornado DDT. Ali prepared for the 054, but Itami countered and dropped The Heart of WWE 205 Live with a super Falcon Arrow that was still not enough to secure victory. Itami attempted a second high-risk maneuver from the top, which did not pay dividends, as Ali pushed him away and immediately followed with a splash for another near-fall.
Itami tried to escape, but he was met with strikes from Ali and left on the ring apron. Without a second thought, Ali again climbed to the top and executed a ridiculous 450 splash to Itami on the apron. The impactful strike took Itami out of action, but Ali sustained too much damage to get to his feet for the official’s 10-count, resulting in a double count-out. After the match, WWE 205 Live General Manager Drake Maverick and WWE officials checked on both Superstars, each thoroughly exhausted from 205 Live’s jaw-dropping main event.
Article source: WWE.com