Former Cruiserweight Champion Akira Tozawa battles The Irish Ace in a brutally hard-hitting inter-brand showdown. Video courtesy of the award-winning WWE Network.

Former Cruiserweight Champion Akira Tozawa had the clear support of the WWE Universe in his battle against NXT UK’s Jordan Devlin, as The Stamina Monster’s fans mimicked his patented war cry throughout the contest. The shouts of encouragement propelled Tozawa in the early going, but Devlin shut down the Japanese Superstar by slamming him back-first into the steel guardrail and the ring apron. For the remainder of the match, The Irish Ace stayed dialed in on Devlin’s lumbar.

Tozawa, however, is nothing if not resilient. He twice signaled for his top-rope senton splash, but Devlin twice got out of harm’s way as if his life depended on it. Even after Devlin twice evaded his top-rope senton splash, the Japanese Superstar stayed on the attack. Tozawa bested Devlin in a vicious exchange of strikes, folded him in half with a snap German suplex and, finally, took flight on his third attempt at the senton.

There was one major problem with Tozawa’s otherwise flawless plan: Devlin got his knees up, ensuring a painful landing for the 205 Live Superstar, especially considering the damage that had already been done to Tozawa’s spine. The Irish Ace then added one last, painful touch, trashing Tozawa with a vertebrae-crunching Saito Suplex en route to victory.