The "WWE EVOLVE" Championship has been featured on an episode of "NXT" for the first time in its young history. Inaugural titleholder Jackson Drake took to the ring during Tuesday's episode of "NXT: Gold Rush" to defend his championship against "Superior" Sean Legacy, and after a violently spectacular match, Drake walked out of "Gold Rush" still the EVOLVE Champion.
Legacy came out the gate swinging, with his strikes quickly overwhelming the young champion. Violence spilled out to the ring early on in the match, and while Drake got a few hits on the challenger courtesy of The Vanity Project, Legacy largely controlled the pace of the match. Things did not change once the two men returned to the ring, and for a moment, it seemed as if Legacy would walk out of "Gold Rush" with a new title in hand.
A violent Double-Knee Gutbuster from Drake quickly changed the tone of the match. After knocking the challenger's wind out of him, Drake draped Legacy over the ropes before going for a Springboard Double Knee Drop to the back of Legacy's next. With the challenger's lights sufficiently snuffed, Drake landed his finisher, The Unaliving, to end the match.
With this title defense, Drake is set to continue his 215-day-and-counting reign with the EVOLVE Championship. Drake became the first-ever titleholder on the April 25 episode of "EVOLVE," where he bested Edris Enofe, Keanu Carver, and Legacy to claim the title. Since then, Drake has defended his title seven times against the likes of Lince Dorado, Brooks Jensen, Bryce Donovan, and inaugural WWE ID Champion Cappuccino Jones. As of writing, no new challengers have stepped forward to stake their claim on Drake's title.
