One night before his planned 205 Live debut, Hideo Itami appeared on WWE Raw.
The former KENTA ran to the aid of longtime friend Finn Balor on Raw, saving him from a 2-on-1 beat down from Miztourage members Curtis Axel and Bo Dallas. He would then join Balor to take on the two in a tag team match after making the save. In a twist of irony, Balor actually saved Itami from a beat down during his 2014 NXT debut.
You can see an excerpt from the match thanks to our live coverage.
Itami nails Axel with a knee strike followed by a top rope clothesline for a near fall, Itami then attacks Axel with a series of strikes that ends with a bicycle knee. Dallas interferes and Balor takes care of him, Itami catches Axel with a running drop kick in the corner followed by a Go To Sleep for the three count.
Winners: Finn Balor & Hideo Itami
Itami hasn't appeared on NXT television throughout the entire fall, and has had vignettes running on 205 Live to hype his eventual debut. He experienced a stop-and-start career in NXT due to injuries and other setbacks, but received a nice farewell from the brand this past weekend.
Despite seeing his Raw debut, he's appeared on several main roster events, including WrestleMania 31 as a part of the Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal, and a few live events.
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