The winner of this year’s Survival of the Fittest tournament will be determined on the next episode of ROH television.
ROH has announced that the Survival of the Fittest finals will take place on the ROH TV episode that premieres this weekend (Saturday, June 26). The finals are a six-way elimination match where the winner will receive a future shot at the ROH World Championship.
Demonic Flamita, Eli Isom, Bandido, Brian Johnson, and Chris Dickinson have already advanced to the Survival of the Fittest finals. Danhausen vs. Rhett Titus is the final first-round match. Danhausen vs. Titus will air on this Tuesday’s edition of ROH Week By Week on YouTube.
Flamita defeated Rey Horus in the first round of the tournament, Isom defeated Dak Draper, Bandido defeated Bateman, Johnson defeated Sledge, and Dickinson defeated O’Shay Edwards. ROH said the participants for the tournament were chosen because they’ve all never held the ROH World Championship and aren’t currently in the World title rankings.
The ROH World Championship is currently held by Rush.
Matt Taven vs. Dutch will also take place on this weekend’s episode of ROH TV. Dutch (Bill Carr) is a member of Vincent Marseglia’s The Righteous stable and is making his ROH in-ring debut in the match.
Two women were awarded with a Ticket to Gold, while Rok-C and Laynie Luck continued their respective rises in the wrestling world.
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Lenny Leonard checked in and announced that Maria Kanellis-Bennett would be giving out not one, but two Tickets to Gold on this episode. Leonard also revealed that tonight’s featured match would see Rok-C pitted against Laynie Luck.
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Ticket to Gold: Mandy Leon
Kanellis-Bennett said it was important to include all different types of women in the ROH Women’s World Championship tournament, and she then introduced Mandy Leon. Leon was snarky and claimed that she already knew she was going to be in the tournament.
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Rok-C defeated Laynie Luck (9:46)
The first portion of this match saw Rok-C show off a more aggressive side, while also displaying a showboat attitude as well. Every time Luck would do a dance move, Rok-C mounted a little more frustration.
Luck eventually realized it was go time and flipped her switch, delivering some stiff slams. It’s important to note that commentary played up the fact that Rok-C could be the youngest Women’s Champion in ROH history — potentially could be foreshadowing.
Luck has really educated feet and throws a great dropkick. She also throws a superb knee strike.
Rok-C eventually shifted to another gear after hitting a great top rope Thesz press. She followed that up with a few stiff strikes before hitting an outstanding Code Red for the win.
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Ticket to Gold: Nicole Savoy
Kanellis-Bennett returned and called Nicole Savoy. Bennett revealed that fans on ROH’s The Experience Facebook page overwhelmingly voted to see Savoy in the tournament. Savoy was grateful for the opportunity and discussed her previous experience in ROH.
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Final Thoughts —
Rok-C is really, really good. She’s been the standout of the newly introduced women and it seems as if ROH is high on her as well. I hope she goes far in the tournament — if she doesn’t win the whole thing.
No discredit to Laynie Luck though, she’s really impressive as well.
The tournament did need recognizable faces, and Mandy Leon is just that. I don’t want Leon or Angelina Love to win the tournament, but they were needed to draw eyes to the tournament.
I’m a big fan of Nicole Savoy’s work. She rightfully deserved a spot in the tournament as well.
This summer’s ROH Women’s World Championship tournament has a couple of new entrants.
It was announced on this week’s ROH Women’s Division Wednesday episode that Nicole Savoy and Mandy Leon will be taking part in the Women’s World Championship tournament. Both wrestlers were presented with Tickets to Gold by Maria Kanellis-Bennett. The Tickets to Gold grant competitors a spot in the tournament.
Savoy was voted into the tournament through the fan support she received on ROH’s The Experience Facebook page. Savoy made her ROH debut in December 2019 and is returning to the promotion for the first time since February 2020.
Savoy was an entrant in WWE’s 2017 Mae Young Classic. She also took part in AEW’s women’s Casino Battle Royale at All Out 2019 and teamed with Big Swole in AEW’s Women’s Tag Team Cup last year.
Shimmer and Stardom are also among the promotions Savoy has wrestled for during her career.
Leon is a veteran of the ROH roster. She joins her The Allure stablemate Angelina Love among the tournament entrants. Love is getting a first-round bye in the tournament, which was a stipulation of her defeating Quinn McKay on ROH TV last month.
Savoy and Leon had also been set to participate in the ROH Women’s World Championship tournament when it was originally supposed to take place last year. The tournament was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The ROH Women’s World Championship is a new title that’s replacing the former Women of Honor World Championship. Here’s the updated list of participants for the tournament:
Ring of Honor is returning to Philadelphia this summer.
ROH announced today that Glory By Honor 2021 will take place at the 2300 Arena in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania over two nights this August. Night one is taking place on Friday, August 20. Night two is set for Saturday, August 21.
Both nights of Glory By Honor will stream live on HonorClub. In the main event of night one, Flip Gordon will challenge for the ROH World Championship. Gordon got the title shot by winning a battle royal in February 2020. The ROH World Championship is currently held by Rush.
Rush & Dragon Lee vs. Bandido & Rey Horus has been announced for Glory By Honor night two.
The Briscoes, La Faccion Ingobernable, Violence Unlimited, The Foundation, EC3, and The OGK are also advertised for both nights of Glory By Honor. Ticket on-sale information for the shows is to be announced.
Next month’s Best in the World pay-per-view will be the first ROH show with fans in attendance since the COVID-19 pandemic began. The PPV is taking place at the Chesapeake Employers Insurance Arena in Baltimore, Maryland on Sunday, July 11. ROH had been holding closed set television tapings and PPVs in Baltimore since returning to TV production last August.
Two great matches carried us closer and closer to the highly anticipated Best in the World PPV on July 11.
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Host Quinn McKay welcomed viewers to the broadcast. She discussed the Survival of the Fittest bracket and the upcoming qualifying match on today’s edition of ROH TV: Eli Isom vs. Dak Draper.
This is a rematch of Isom and Draper’s first encounter that took place a few weeks ago that went to a time limit draw.
McKay also revealed that Tracy Williams & Rhett Titus will defend their ROH Tag Team titles against Kenny King and the returning Dragon Lee.
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Survival of the Fittest first round match: Eli Isom defeated Dak Draper (11:17)
Draper’s pre-match promo was simple but great. He’s very well-spoken and has grown on me a lot.
Right before the bell rang, Dalton Castle appeared on the stage. He danced his way to ringside with four “boys” and said he was just here to watch the match.
Draper booted Isom right before the match began, which gave Draper a clear advantage throughout the first portion of the match. Both guys got distracted at different times due to Castle and his Boys’ clapping profusely and walking around the ring. Draper nailed Isom with a big clothesline that led into a commercial break.
Draper is so athletic. Coming back from the break, he casually ran up the turnbuckle and hit a twisting springboard ax handle like it was nothing. Draper then took another risk and hit a crossbody that saw him and Isom tumbling over the top rope and onto the floor.
The story of this match was that Draper is performing a high-risk style in order to beat Isom, something he couldn’t do in their first encounter.
Draper continued with his big move offense throughout. Eventually, Isom sprung back to life with a stunning sidewinder powerbomb.
In the final moments of the match, Draper had a chance to put away Isom with the Magnum but instead perched him on the top turnbuckle. At this point, Castle and his boys walked out on the match, citing that Castle was “late for a meeting\.” Isom took advantage of Draper’s distraction and hit his signature Promise Brainbuster for the win.
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ROH Tag Team title match: The Foundation (Rhett Titus & Tracy Williams) defeated La Faccion Ingobernable (Kenny King & Dragon Lee) by disqualification (16:09)
This match was contested under Pure Rules.
Titus and King began the match, but Williams quickly made himself the legal man. Almost immediately after being put in a cloverleaf, King used his team’s first rope break.
Lee and Williams had a chopping exchange later on in the match that was great. Lee went for a top rope suicida but when Williams moved, Lee hand planted on the apron and landed on his feet.
King and Lee exchanged tags over the middle portion of the match, working on the shoulder of Williams. Williams sold the shoulder pain very well. Williams was eventually able to tag Titus in for the hot tag.
Titus came in and went crazy on King, his former tag partner. Titus hit a big powerslam on King and then went for a cover, but King used his team’s second rope break.
Williams eventually got a hot tag and locked King in a crossface, but King used his team’s third and final rope break. King showed visible frustration and looked to tag out to Lee.
All hell broke loose in the final stages of the match. Titus hit King with a hydraulic dropkick that seemed to take him out of the match. Lee was setting up for an incinerator knee strike but Williams caught him. Williams perched Lee on the top rope and was able to hit a super piledriver. Williams seemed to have the match in the bag, but King broke up the pin.
Referee Todd Sinclair rang the bell and called for a DQ. Since pinfall breakups count as rope breaks in Pure Rules tag matches and Lee/King were out of them, Williams and Titus won by DQ.
After the match, Bestia Del Ring rushed the ring and attacked Williams and Titus. Lethal and Gresham came to assist their stablemates while Violence Unlimited stood on the stage and watched.
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Final Thoughts —
The reason I enjoy ROH so much is just because it’s simple but sweet. The storytelling both inside and out of the ring is easy to understand. The wrestling is outstanding and they have arguably two of the top 15 wrestlers in the world on their roster in Dragon Lee and Jonathan Gresham. I’m really excited for fans to come back and hopefully, more eyes will be on the product then.
Isom vs. Draper was good, but I’m ready for the payoff with Castle’s new direction. He’s always been one of the better characters in the company.
The Tag Team title match was great as well, and I’m intrigued to see where they go next with the titles. It does seem like King will get booted from the group sooner rather than later, as he has cost LFI a lot of opportunities.
ROH has announced a new addition to the lineup for next month’s Best in the World pay-per-view.
EC3 vs. Flip Gordon will take place at Best in the World on Sunday, July 11. The PPV is taking place at the Chesapeake Employers Insurance Arena in Baltimore, Maryland. It will be the first ROH show with fans in attendance since February 2020.
EC3 formerly hired Gordon as a mercenary during his feud with Jay Briscoe. EC3 lost to Jay at ROH’s 19th Anniversary this March, but they shook hands after the match and showed each other respect. Gordon defeated Mark Briscoe at 19th Anniversary after hitting a low blow near the end of the match.
On ROH TV last month, EC3 & Gordon defeated The Briscoes after Gordon hit Mark with Jay’s chain. EC3, who didn’t see Gordon use the chain, pinned Mark to get the win. When he was informed what Gordon did during a post-match interview, EC3 promised that violence would be coming to Gordon.
EC3 later interrupted a promo by Gordon on ROH TV and told him, “You have been warned.”
“In addition to this match being personal, it also could have implications for the ROH World Title picture,” ROH wrote. “Gordon is owed a title shot and is No. 3 in the current rankings. EC3 recently stated that his mission is to become ROH World Champion.” The ROH World Championship is currently held by Rush.
Here’s the updated lineup for Best in the World:
Brody King vs. Jay Lethal
Last Man Standing match: Josh Woods vs. Silas Young
Three upcoming competitors in the ROH Women’s World Championship tournament got a chance to shine in a tag team bout, while another Ticket to Gold was given to another deserving wrestler.
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Miranda Alize & Sumie Sakai defeated Trish Adora & Mazzerati
Sakai and Adora started off this tag bout. Sakai tried a test of strength, but Adora had about a foot in height on her. Sakai stomped on Adora’s foot and both women tagged out.
Mazzerati and Alize came in. Alize did a few arm drags and followed with a great headscissors/pinning combination, but it wasn’t enough to put away Mazzerati. Alize and Sakai did a couple of good double-team maneuvers. They have pretty good chemistry despite never teaming together.
Mazzerati was able to get some offense in after Sakai missed a top rope crossbody, eventually leading to a tag out to a fresh Adora. Adora hit a great standing suplex and followed it up with the Cattle Mutilation submission. You almost never see those anymore, and Adora was really good on the bridge.
Adora hit a German suplex, but Sakai kipped up immediately and retaliated with the same move. Both women were down with their partners reaching for tags. The hot tags were made, and Alize came in and sent both Adora and Mazzerati to the corner. She then hit a nasty running dropkick on both women.
The pace picked up in a big way at this point, with competitors flying all over the place. Sakai hit another German suplex and Alize flew over her head to attempt a stack-up pin. Mazzerati tried to pin Alize after a DDT a few moments later, but Sakai hit a rolling neckbreaker on Mazzerati to break it up.
In the final moments of the match, Alize and Mazzerati were trading moves on the inside of the ring while Adora and Sakai were fighting on the outside. Alize was eventually able to cinch in her Miranda Rights crossface submission, to which Mazzerati submitted to.
After the match, Max The Impaler jumped all four women from behind. Max then attacked the timekeeper and hit The Impaler on her.
Amy Rose came out after and clapped her way down to the ring. She invited Max to go with her backstage.
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Ticket to Gold: Vita VonStarr
Vita VonStarr and Bateman approached Maria Kanellis-Bennett backstage. Bateman vouched for VonStarr to get an opportunity in the ROH Women’s World Championship tournament, since Kanellis-Bennett is all about giving opportunities.
Kanellis-Bennett hesitated for a moment but then agreed to Bateman’s proposal. Kanellis-Bennett had one stipulation though: if VonStarr interferes in any men’s matches before the tournament, she loses her spot. Kanellis-Bennett said she only wanted to give opportunities to women who are focused on being in the women’s division.
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Final Thoughts —
As we inch closer to the Women’s World Championship tournament, Women’s Division Wednesday provided another great match. The two standouts to me were Alize and Mazzerati, although all of the women involved did really well.
I don’t really think I’m a fan of the Amy Rose/Max The Impaler partnership. I’ll save judgement, but that’s just my first feeling. Rose has never come off to me as a good manager, and Max isn’t the type of competitor to need a manager. Let their brutality and dominance do the talking for them.
Vita VonStarr is just another fantastic choice for the tournament. Her match with Sumie Sakai on Women’s Division Wednesday last month was really good, and I’m glad to see her getting an opportunity.
The Righteous’ Vita VonStarr is the latest addition to the field for ROH’s Women’s World Championship tournament.
It was announced on this week’s edition of Women’s Division Wednesday that VonStarr will be a participant in this summer’s ROH Women’s World Championship tournament. VonStarr’s inclusion comes with the stipulation that — if she interferes in any men’s matches between now and the tournament — she’ll lose her spot in it.
VonStarr is part of ROH’s The Righteous stable with Vincent Marseglia, Bateman, and Dutch.
On Women’s Division Wednesday, there was a segment where VonStarr and Bateman approached Maria Kanellis-Bennett backstage. Bateman wanted to know why VonStarr wasn’t in the tournament. Kanellis-Bennett said she only wanted to give opportunities to women who are focused on being in the women’s division. Kanellis-Bennett agreed to give VonStarr a spot in the tournament but said VonStarr will be out of it if she gets involved in any of the men’s matches between now and then.
VonStarr wrestled on Women’s Division Wednesday last month, losing a match against Sumie Sakai.
Here’s the updated list of entrants for ROH’s Women’s World Championship tournament:
Rok-C
Angelina Love
Miranda Alize
Trish Adora
Allysin Kay
Mazzerati
Willow
Vita VonStarr
Love is getting a first-round bye in the tournament, which was a stipulation of her defeating Quinn McKay on ROH TV last month.
The winner of the tournament will become the first-ever ROH Women’s World Champion. The title is replacing the former Women of Honor World Championship.
A triple threat Television title match will be taking place on ROH TV later this month.
Tony Deppen will defend his ROH Television title against Tracy Williams and Dragon Lee in a triple threat match on the ROH TV episode that premieres the weekend of Saturday, June 19. The announcement of the title match was made on the latest edition of ROH Week By Week.
This will be Deppen’s first title defense since becoming ROH TV Champion. Williams and Lee were the two most recent champions prior to Deppen.
Lee was ROH TV Champion heading into March’s ROH 19th Anniversary pay-per-view but had to miss the tapings for the show due to a ruptured eardrum. Lee’s La Faccion Ingobernable stablemate Kenny King defended the title on behalf of Lee at the PPV but lost it to Williams. Deppen then defeated Williams for the TV title last month.
Lee & King were also the ROH Tag Team Champions heading into 19th Anniversary. Lee’s father Bestia del Ring filled in for him at the PPV, but Williams & Rhett Titus defeated King & Bestia del Ring to win the titles. Lee & King will challenge for Williams & Titus’ Tag Team titles in a Pure Rules match on the episode of ROH TV that premieres this coming weekend.
Quick note: Best wishes go out to Tracy Williams after his accident last week. Here’s to a speedy recovery for Hot Sauce.
The Big Takeaway —
As the build toward the return of fans at the Best in the World PPV continued, ROH delivered two fantastic matches that furthered two heated rivalries.
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The episode opened with a video package recapping some of the best moments in Survival of the Fittest history. Quinn McKay then welcomed us to the show and ran down the tournament as a whole. Survival of the Fittest features 12 wrestlers competing in a round of singles matches. The six winners to emerge from these matches will go on to a six-man elimination bout with a future shot at the ROH World Championship on the line.
ROH is really making this tournament feel like a big deal. Although some of the competitors are questionable choices, I’m extremely excited.
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Survival of the Fittest first round match: Demonic Flamita defeated Rey Horus (11:02)
With the name change, Flamita also had a new titantron and new gear. He also had dark eyeliner on.
Flamita seemed to be cordial with Horus early on despite their recent tension, but that ended quickly. Horus matched Flamita’s intensity early on, and he hit a beautiful tornado bodyscissors. Flamita responded with a spear to the arena floor.
Flamita kept Horus grounded on the outside for as long as possible until Horus was able to slide back in the ring and hit a wonderful looking dive over the ropes. Flamita stayed outside the ring until a 15 count where he stuck half of his body in the ring to break the count. Horus followed Flamita to the outside and hit a brutal looking Spanish fly on the floor. This led into a commercial break.
Returning from the break, Horus tried to hit a Canadian Destroyer, but it rolled through into a pin attempt. Flamita was able to remain in control after this, hitting a stunning slingshot DDT. Flamita kept in control until Horus made an attempt to get back in a groove, but it didn’t pan out. Flamita ended up hitting a great musclebuster/gutbuster combo for the win.
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A video package promoting Sledge vs. Brian Johnson for the Survival of the Fittest tournament aired. It was also announced that some SOTF matches will take place on ROH’s YouTube show Week By Week. Personally, I’m not a fan of some of these matches airing on YouTube instead of TV.
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Pure Rules match: Josh Woods defeated Silas Young (21:29)
They began trading various submissions and holds back and forth to start off, but neither man really gained any advantage. Around six minutes in, Young struck Woods with a closed fist. Referee Joe Mandak didn’t see it, therefore Young wasn’t caught.
A few moments later, Young used another closed fist while the referee was bending down. Out of anger, Woods struck Young with a closed fist that sent Young tumbling outside the ring. Woods was issued a warning. Woods then took the fight back to the mat, cinching in multiple holds targeting the feet and arms. This led into a commercial break.
Returning from the break, Young had Woods backed into the corner, delivering constant chops and forearms. Young positioned Woods on the top rope for a superplex, but Woods was able to turn it into a swinging neckbreaker. Woods tried to capitalize quickly by applying a rear naked choke, but Young turned it into a pin for a two count.
In the final sequences of the match, Young used both of his remaining rope breaks. Woods would eventually hit a running swinging neckbreaker into the turnbuckle, but Young responded by attempting his Plunge. Nobody was home, allowing Woods to lock in his signature Beast Lock. After some hesitation, Young tapped.
Next Week —
ROH Tag Team Champions Tracy Williams & Rhett Titus defend against Dragon Lee & Kenny King
Survival of the Fittest first round match: Eli Isom vs. Dak Draper
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Final Thoughts —
We were treated with another great episode of ROH TV this week. Flamita vs. Rey Horus was great. I preferred Flamita’s match against Bandido personally, but this match was still good. Flamita’s new presentation is quite demonic, no pun intended. I like it so far — we’ll see where it goes. Horus also had really cool angel-themed gear. I would have been fine with either guy winning, but it does seem like the company is bigger on Flamita right now.
Josh Woods vs. Silas Young was a fantastic Pure Rules match. It was the longest match on ROH TV since the Pure Rules gauntlet match back in March. It’s also the longest singles match on ROH TV since November 2018. Woods going over was the right decision, and I’m hoping they’re building toward Woods facing ROH Pure Champion Jonathan Gresham at next month’s Best in the World PPV.
I’m gonna try out a ranking system for these shows,. It will consist of five options:
Tracy Williams is recovering after being hit by a car.
Williams wrote on Twitter that he was crossing the street with his dog when he was “full on hit by a car”.
“Firstly, I’ll be okay,” he wrote. “I got full on hit by a car yesterday x-ing the street. Guy blew a red going ~25mph. I flew for what felt like a full second, landed high on my back. Just so unbelievably lucky & grateful that my dog who was walking with me was somehow not hit & she’s okay. I’d take the hit for her any day & it could’ve been so much worse.”
Williams later wrote that he was recovering at home.
“Pls look where you’re driving, not everyone out there chose to spend their life getting their body accustomed to being flung through the air,” he added.
Williams is part of Ring of Honor, where he is one half of the Ring of Honor World Tag Team champions. He also held the Television title earlier this year before losing it to Tony Deppen in a match that aired last month on ROH TV.
Two new competitors were introduced to ROH fans — and they did not disappoint. Also, another Ticket to Gold was given out.
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Willow defeated Alex Gracia (8:45)
A quick background on both of these competitors: Alex Gracia has been nearly everywhere in the business. She’s wrestled for AEW, NWA, ROW, CMLL, Shine, Stardom, Evolve, Shimmer, and Rise. Willow Nightingale has also been around the block. She’s wrestled for AEW, GCW, Beyond, Shimmer, WoW, and Rise.
When the bell rang, Willow had Gracia on the mat pretty fast in a headlock. Gracia fought out of it and the two exchanged a series of arm drags back and forth. Willow had a great series of offensive attacks before hitting a beautiful suplex.
Willow kept on with constant offense, eventually locking in a unique standing Figure Four and then also applying a Camel Clutch. Gracia was able to escape and attempted to find her footing in the contest.
While Willow was setting up for something big in the corner, Gracia was able to sneak in and hit a great looking lungblower, followed by a running knee in the corner. Gracia was only able to muster a two count out of her series of momentum.
Gracia had sent Willow reeling to the outside after the pinfall attempt, which allowed her to hit a great springboard crossbody to Willow on the outside. Gracia had all the momentum at this point and rolled Willow back in the ring.
Gracia went to the top rope and hit a cannonball onto Willow. Gracia then tried a springboard maneuver, but she was caught in mid-air by Willow. Willow body slammed Gracia and tried to put her away, but she kicked out at two.
In the final sequence of the match, Willow tried to hit a moonsault but nobody was home. The two women then had a standoff that involved trading forearms, which resulted in Willow being able to hit her Dangerous Babe gutwrench powerbomb for the win. What a phenomenal match.
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Ticket to Gold: Willow
Brian Zane was joined backstage by Willow after the match. Zane congratulated Willow on her win and asked if she thought her performance earned her a Ticket to Gold.
Willow said she thought she did great and hoped it was enough to earn a Ticket to Gold. Maria Kanellis-Bennett surprised Willow and praised her performance in the match. Kanellis-Bennett officially gave Willow a Ticket to Gold then and there, officially putting her in this summer’s ROH Women’s Championship Tournament.
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Final Thoughts —
I’m still in awe over that match. It was the best women’s match we’ve seen from ROH since the women’s division returned, bar none. Willow and Gracia are very good performers and their styles meshed together perfectly. Willow especially stood out to me — she had a lot of power and grit behind all of her moves.
While Willow got a Ticket to Gold, I would say Gracia deserves one as well. She showed out in the match, has done great work on AEW Dark, and has a good fanbase behind her on the internet.
Willow is the seventh entrant to be confirmed for ROH’s Women’s World Championship tournament.
On this week’s ROH Women’s Division Wednesday episode, Maria Kanellis-Bennett presented Willow with a Ticket to Gold that grants her a spot in the Women’s World Championship tournament. Willow was given the Ticket to Gold during a post-match interview after defeating Alex Gracia on Women’s Division Wednesday.
Willow also goes by the name Willow Nightingale. She made her AEW debut on an episode of Dark: Elevation last month, losing to Thunder Rosa. Willow also lost to Diamante on Dark last month. Willow has been wrestling since 2015 and was trained at the NYWC Academy.
The ROH Women’s World Championship is a new title that’s replacing the former Women of Honor World Championship. The tournament to crown the first champion is taking place this summer. Here’s the updated list of entrants:
Rok-C
Angelina Love
Miranda Alize
Trish Adora
Allysin Kay
Mazzerati
Willow
Love will be getting a first-round bye in the tournament. Love receiving the bye was a stipulation of her defeating Quinn McKay on ROH TV last month.
ROH hasn’t announced how many entrants the tournament field will consist of. It was set to be a 16-woman tournament when it was originally supposed to take place in 2020, but the tournament was delayed following the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
This week’s Women’s Division Wednesday ended with it being questioned whether we’ll see Gracia again or if her tournament chances have slipped away.
For the first time since being forced to miss March’s 19th Anniversary pay-per-view due to injury, Dragon Lee is returning to Ring of Honor.
On the ROH TV episode that premieres the weekend of Saturday, June 12, Dragon Lee & Kenny King will challenge for Tracy Williams & Rhett Titus’ ROH Tag Team titles in a Pure Rules match. The announcement was made on the latest edition of ROH Week By Week.
Dragon Lee had to miss ROH’s 19th Anniversary PPV due to suffering a ruptured eardrum. Lee & King held the ROH Tag Team titles going into the PPV, but Williams & Titus defeated King & Bestia del Ring to become champions. Bestia del Ring was filling in for Dragon Lee in the match.
Dragon Lee was also ROH Television Champion heading into the 19th Anniversary PPV. King defended the TV title on his behalf and lost it to Williams. Tony Deppen has since defeated Williams to become TV Champion.
It was said on ROH Week By Week that Dragon Lee is also scheduled to get a TV title shot on ROH TV very soon.
A Violence Unlimited vs. The Foundation matchup is the first match to be confirmed for Ring of Honor’s next pay-per-view.
On the latest episode of ROH Week By Week, it was announced that Brody King vs. Jay Lethal will take place at Best in the World 2021. The PPV is being held at the Chesapeake Employers Insurance Arena in Baltimore, Maryland on Sunday, July 11. It will be the first ROH event with fans in attendance since February 2020.
King is part of Violence Unlimited with Tony Deppen, Homicide, and Chris Dickinson, while Lethal is part of The Foundation with Jonathan Gresham, Tracy Williams, and Rhett Titus. The two factions faced off in an eight-man tag match on the most recent episode of ROH TV. It ended with King pinning Lethal after hitting a Gonzo Bomb.
Violence Unlimited debuted as a faction at the end of ROH’s 19th Anniversary PPV this March. After Rush retained the ROH World Championship against Lethal in the main event, Rush and La Faccion Ingobernable beat down Lethal and The Foundation. Violence Unlimited then appeared and stood tall over La Faccion Ingobernable. King extended his hand to Lethal, but he then dropped Lethal with a lariat. Homicide laid out Lethal with a Cop Killa to close the show.
This will be the first time King and Lethal have faced each other in a singles match.
