Next week’s Ring of Honor will feature the first match in the Survival of the Fittest tournament while Silas Young and Josh Woods will face off in a Pure rules match.
The 12-man tournament will play out weekly throughout June and will crown the next top contender for ROH World Champion Rush. The winners of six singles matches will then advance to a multi-man elimination match. It’s the first time this tournament has happened since 2018.
The kickoff for the tournament begins on ROH TV this upcoming weekend with Rey Horus vs. Flamita.
Both men are coming off a loss in a three-way to Bandido at March’s 19th Anniversary Show. Horus’ last singles win in ROH came at December’s Final Battle over Dalton Castle while Flamita defeated Bandido in a singles match in late-April.
Next week will also feature Woods vs. Young in a Pure rules match. After Young turned on Woods several weeks ago with a chair shot to the head followed by a singles win last week, Woods confronted Young backstage for cheating. A confident Young said he could beat him in a Pure rules match which Woods laughed at and accepted.
LSG defeated Joe Keys in a pick your top 5 ranking match
These two were the final participants in a 12-man rankings battle royal earlier this month. The stipulation here was the winner gets a top five ranking in either the Pure or TV title division.
Going into this, Keys said he didn’t want to be known as just “a dojo guy.” He recently lost in his challenge of Pure Champion Jonathan Gresham, the first of three straight singles defeats. This was LSG’s first singles match since a loss to Eli Isom in early-April.
This was a solid, albeit uninteresting, pro wrestling match. The end came when LSG countered a rollthrough pinning attempt into a tight crucifix for the pin and win.
After the match, LSG didn’t choose the TV division and chose the Pure division based on his respect for Gresham and The Foundation.
— Following recaps of the recent falling out with Silas Young and Josh Woods, Young was doing an interview with Quinn McKay after his win last week when Woods came in and said Young could never beat him fair and square. Young didn’t care and then said he could beat him in a Pure rules wrestling match. Woods laughed and accepted.
VLNCE UNTLD (Brody King, Homicide, TV Champion Tony Deppen and Chris Dickinson) defeated The Foundation (Tag Team Champions Tracy Williams & Rhett Titus, Jay Lethal, Pure Champion Jonathan Gresham)
Kenny King from LFI was out on commentary and didn’t care for anyone involved in the match.
There was a lot of heat between both teams going into this one, helped along by some intense pre-match promos. The commentary team really played up Homicide’s contributions to ROH and his history with some of the competitors whch was good as his World title reign there was 14 years ago.
With a lot of various parings, this felt like an appetizer for a few months worth of matches between these two teams in both singles and tag matches. Dickinson vs. Lethal especially felt like a featured match they could run on a pay-per-view. I could also see a Gresham vs. Homicide Pure rule title match with the right promos helping it make sense.
They gave this match some time as it went through a few commercial breaks. They really built up King as a monster late as it took Lethal, Williams and Titus to get King up for a dropkick/Attitude Adjustment combo. After that, all hell broke loose with everyone hit their signature moves. Homicide hit a running cannonball to the outside on Titus and Gresham, but was still on the ring apron as Lethal went for Lethal Injection, screwing it up. King then hit the gonzo bomb on Lethal for the win.
The two teams stared each other down and talked trash as the show went off the air.
Final Thoughts:
The eight-man tag was a solid main event that should lead to some good matches in the weeks ahead while the opener was just kinda there.
Next Week:
Josh Woods vs. Silas Young in a Pure rules match
Survival of the Fittest first round match: Rey Horus vs. Flamita
Lenny Leonard made a surprise return to the broadcasting crew, while Angelina Love and Mazzerati had a fun match and another Ticket to Gold was given out.
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Quinn — No! Lenny Leonard welcomed us to the show. A nice surprise. Leonard introduced the two competitors for tonight’s match: Angelina Love and Mazzerati. Love needs little to no introduction, but Mazzerati has a long list of accomplishments. She’s the current Women’s Champion for the Future Stars of Wrestling promotion in Las Vegas. She’s a former OVW Women’s Champion as well. Mazzerati has worked for ROH before, as well as Impact Wrestling.
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Angelina Love (w/ Mandy Leon) defeated Mazzerati (11:18)
Love applied a front facelock, but Mazzerati was able to escape quickly. Love took her to the mat, but Mazzerati was able to turn it into a pinning attempt for a two count. After being given a dropkick, Love rolled out of the ring to regain her composure for a second and to talk with Leon. Mazzerati went for a kick, but Love caught it and sent her face-first into the apron. When Love got back into the ring, Leon threw Mazzerati into the barricade while the referee wasn’t looking.
Love was back in control until Mazzerati was able to hit a big pump kick that caught Love off guard. Love snatched back her momentum by hitting a great neckbreaker. Love positioned Mazzerati on the second turnbuckle and hit a great diving cutter. Love went for a pin after this, but Mazzerati kicked out just in time.
Love began to let her frustrations get the best of her, opening another door for Mazzerati. She used her opening to nail Love with a kick to the skull, which was followed up by lifting Love in a fireman’s carry position. Love was able to break free and hit a flatliner, then turned it into a Koji Clutch.
Mazzerati was able to get her feet on the ropes to break the hold. She wasted no time following up her escape with an Eat Defeat, which got her a very close two count. Love was able to duck another pump kick after the pin and hit her own Botox Injection pump kick for the win.
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Ticket to Gold: Mazzerati
Maria Kanellis-Bennett returned to offer another Ticket to Gold. Bennett said she was impressed with Mazzerati and offered her a Ticket to Gold, to which she accepted. Rok-C, Love, Miranda Alize, Trish Adora, Allysin Kay, and Mazzerati are the first six entrants confirmed for this summer’s ROH Women’s World Championship tournament.
Mazzerati said she’s thankful for the opportunity because ROH always has the best locker room environment, with people willing to help all the time. Mazzerati noted that The Hardy Boyz and the Attitude Era are what helped her get into pro wrestling.
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Final Thoughts —
Love and Mazzerati’s match started off kind of slow, but it picked up in a big way in the final half of the match. Love plays her heel role very well, but I genuinely couldn’t think of a worse outcome than her winning the tournament/championship. It’s not the right precedent to set when restarting an entire division. I also thought Love got maybe too much action in this match, i wanted to see more from Mazzerati
Nonetheless, Mazzerati impressed in this match and deserved a Ticket to Gold. I’m excited to see what she can do.
Mazzerati is the latest addition to the lineup for Ring of Honor’s Women’s World Championship tournament.
On this week’s ROH Women’s Division Wednesday episode, Maria Kanellis-Bennett presented Mazzerati with a “Ticket to Gold” that grants her a spot in the Women’s World Championship tournament. The tournament is taking place this summer.
Mazzerati was in action on this week’s Women’s Division Wednesday. She lost to Angelina Love in a match that included interference by Love’s The Allure stablemate Mandy Leon.
Mazzerati previously wrestled for ROH twice in 2019. She’s the current Women’s Champion of the Las Vegas-based Future Stars of Wrestling promotion. Mazzerati also formerly held the OVW Women’s Championship.
Rok-C, Angelina Love, Miranda Alize, Trish Adora, Allysin Kay, and Mazzerati are the first six entrants that have been confirmed for the ROH Women’s World Championship tournament. As a stipulation of Love defeating Quinn McKay on ROH TV earlier this month, Love will be getting a first-round bye in the tournament.
The ROH Women’s World Championship is a new title that’s replacing the former Women of Honor World Championship.
Ring of Honor has revealed the participants for Survival of the Fittest 2021.
On today’s episode of ROH Week By Week, it was announced that this year’s Survival of the Fittest will begin in two weeks. The tournament will take place on ROH television throughout June. It will feature six singles matches, with the winners of those matches advancing to a multi-man elimination match. The tournament winner will receive a future shot at the ROH World Championship, which is currently held by Rush.
Here are the first round matches for the tournament:
Left side of the bracket —
Rey Horus vs. Flamita
Eli Isom vs. Dak Draper
Bandido vs. Bateman
Right side of the bracket —
Brian Johnson vs. Sledge
Chris Dickinson vs. O’Shay Edwards
Danhausen vs. Rhett Titus
It was stated on ROH Week By Week that the participants were chosen because they’ve all never held the ROH World Championship and aren’t currently in the World title rankings.
Survival of the Fittest was first held in 2004 and most recently took place in 2018. It won a poll on the ROH The Experience Facebook page that asked fans which of ROH’s annual events they would most like to see return in 2021.
Fred Yehi defeated Rocky Romero in a great match, while The Foundation made their first ROH Tag Team title defense against The OGK.
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Quinn McKay made her return as host and checked in from the ROH studio. McKay gave thanks to all the fans who guided her to her first ROH match. McKay said while it was her first, it certainly won’t be her last.
McKay previewed the main event of tonight’s episode, pitting The Foundation’s Tracy Williams & Rhett Titus against The OGK in an ROH World Tag Team Championship match. McKay revealed that Vincent is still on voluntary hiatus, so Matt Taven & Mike Bennett should have a clear path to regain the gold they once held.
McKay also previewed the opening contest, where we will see the “Savageweight” Fred Yehi take on Rocky Romero in a Pure Rules match.
**********.
Right before the opening match started, the camera cut backstage and showed Matt Taven laying on the ground in pain. Mike Bennett came to Taven’s aid and helped him to the trainer’s room.
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Fred Yehi submitted Rocky Romero in a Pure Rules match (14:44)
The Code of Honor was adhered to.
Yehi and Romero went to the mat quickly, which resulted in Yehi applying a deathlock. Romero swept the leg and got out of the hold rather easily. Both guys attempted to apply a couple of different holds, but they all resulted in a stalemate.
Romero had a great headlock applied through a commercial break until Yehi used a rope break to escape the hold. Yehi took advantage of the opening he was afforded and powerslammed Romero.
Romero kept trying to hit big moves, but Yehi had him scouted very well. Yehi applied a wristlock at one point and hit a chokeslam with the wristlock still applied. Romero eventually was able to recover and attempted his Forever Clothesline, but Yehi again had it scouted. This took us into a commercial break.
Back from the break, Romero was able to lock in his signature armbar, but Yehi used his second rope break to escape. Romero went to the top turnbuckle and was positioned, but Yehi yanked him off. Yehi followed it up with a brutal looking T-Bone suplex. Yehi applied the Koji Clutch, but Romero used his first rope break.
As we approached the 15-minute time limit, Romero and Yehi made it back to their feet. Romero tried to deliver a knee to the face, but it was blocked swiftly. Yehi clocked Romero with a forearm that sent him crumbling to the canvas, then applied the Koji Clutch again. Romero hesitated but then eventually submitted.
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Flip Gordon speaks
Flip Gordon came to the ring. Gordon said he was sick of waiting around for ROH World Champion Rush and seeing everybody else fail to beat him. Gordon demanded that Rush come to the ring and give him his World title match right now (despite Rush being suspended from ROH last week).
EC3 came out instead. EC3 said “You’ve been warned” to Gordon and walked off.
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ROH Tag Team Champions The Foundation (Tracy Williams & Rhett Titus) defeated The OGK (Matt Taven & Mike Bennett) to retain their titles (16:01)
Williams and Bennett began the match. Both men exchanged wristlocks, followed by a few headlocks. Williams was able to take Bennett to the mat first though, giving The Foundation an edge. Bennett was able to get back to his feet fast, tagging in Taven.
Taven traded strikes with Williams before being Irish whipped into the corner, where he avoided a running Williams by using the ropes to lift himself into the air. Taven was sent back to the canvas ankle-first, and he immediately limped to tag out.
Bennett worked on Titus throughout a commercial break, but Taven eventually tagged back in. Titus and Williams were able to perform a few double team maneuvers on Taven before Williams cinched in a beautiful cloverleaf submission.
Taven tried to muster up some momentum after clocking Titus with an enzuigiri, but it was stopped after Williams tagged back in and continued to cut the ring in half. Taven was able to deliver his Just The Tip knee strike to Williams eventually, allowing for Bennett to come in for the hot tag.
Titus and Bennett came in and Bennett took control of the match immediately, backing Titus in the corner and delivering about 20 chops. Williams came in to help his partner but was dropped with a hammerlock DDT from Bennett. Bennett kept the heat on and tagged back out to Taven, allowing the duo to hit a great superkick/spear combination. Taven tried to put away Titus with a pin, but it only resulted in a two count. This took us into a commercial break.
Back from the break, Williams tagged in and brutalized Taven with a clothesline. A few moments later, Taven was able to hit a flatliner and turn it into a crossface. Williams lifted himself up and just tossed Taven over his head with ease. A hell of a performance by Tracy Williams here.
As the match continued, there was a great moment where Bennett had Titus in a vice grip. Williams responded by putting Taven in a Boston crab right in front of Bennett. The two had a slap off before both men spiked their opponents with the same style of piledriver. A little bit of an ego-off.
Bennett and Williams continued their face-off, trading stiff forearms. Titus eventually was able to tag in and position Taven in the corner for a big boot, which connected swiftly. Titus then dropkicked Taven into Williams’ grasp — and Williams spiked him with a piledriver for the win.
After the match, Taven and Bennett were discussing his ankle injury when Vincent appeared on the screen. Vincent taunted Taven with Taven’s own catchphrase before vanishing.
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Final Thoughts —
What a phenomenal episode of television for ROH. Both matches more than exceeded expectations, especially the Tag Team title match. It’s definitely worth going out of your way to watch. Matt Taven has really improved as an all-around wrestler, especially when it comes to selling. Rhett Titus, who once was an afterthought for ROH, is on the run of his career right now with constant great performances. Tracy Williams might be the best wrestler in the company. Mike Bennett looked great.
Rocky Romero putting over Fred Yehi was an excellent decision as well. Yehi has true star potential and is a really good wrestler.
I don’t have too much to say about the Gordon/EC3 promo. Gordon is a really awkward promo, and did nobody inform him of Rush’s suspension? EC3 should have just dropped him right then and there.
One complaint I have: I think the Taven/Vincent stuff has gone on too long at this point. The feud should have ended with their match at the 19th Anniversary PPV. I personally want to see Vincent and The Righteous explore new feuds and opponents. Same with Taven.
Both Max The Impaler and Hyan returned to ROH’s WDW to face each other while Maria Kanellis Bennett gave a former NWA Women’s World Champion a ticket to gold.
Max The Impaler defeated Hyan (8:02)
Max intimidated Hyan early on with Hyan backing into the corner after avoiding a shove. Hyan used the moment to apply a front facelock, but Max escaped quite easily.
Hyan tried to dropkick Max, but it was to no avail. Max kept their dominance by tossing around the self-proclaimed “Renaissance Woman” with ease and keeping Hyan grounded. Hyan was eventually able to jump on Max’s back to apply a sleeper. She applied and reapplied it before Max slung Hyan over their shoulder and then into the canvas.
Hyan was able to recover rather quickly and positioned a stunned Max in the corner, both setting up and delivering a great running knee.
In the final sequence, Hyan attempted to continue her momentum, but was stopped quickly by a backbreaker from Max, followed by a shoulder backbreaker for the win.
Ticket To Gold: Allysin Kay
Maria Kanellis Bennett welcomed us to another edition of Ticket To Gold. Bennett said while the first three entrants had to have tryout matches, she has known this next competitor for a long time: Allysin Kay. Kay said she’s excited to sink her teeth into ROH, citing she’s only been with the company a few select times.
Kay ran down her championship history: two-time Impact Knockouts Champion, NWA Women’s World Champion and two-time SHINE Champion. Bennett asked Kay what her biggest asset going into the tournament was and Kay said it was her MMA background.
Final Thoughts:
Allysin Kay is now my favorite in the women’s tournament. I didn’t really think of her when brainstorming names as I have been hoping that she would be picked up by AEW. I’m really excited to see what she can do in ROH.
This is the second time we’ve seen Max The Impaler and Hyan on WDW and they both did a great job once again. ROH seems to be big on Max as this was a borderline squash match which works very well for the character. Max has dominated in both matches and feels like an eventual lock for the tournament.
A former Impact Wrestling and NWA Women’s Champion is the latest addition to Ring of Honor’s Women’s World Championship tournament.
This week’s ROH Women’s Division Wednesday episode ended with the announcement that Allysin Kay will be taking part in this summer’s ROH Women’s World Championship tournament. She’s the fifth entrant confirmed for the tournament, joining Angelina Love, Rok-C, Miranda Alize, and Trish Adora.
Kay was presented with a “Ticket to Gold” by Maria Kanellis-Bennett, granting her entry into the tournament. Kanellis-Bennett said Kay didn’t need to have a tryout match because her work speaks for itself.
Kay, who is a free agent, said she’s excited to sink her teeth into ROH after previously only making one-off appearances for the promotion.
In Impact Wrestling, Kay was formerly known as Sienna. She held the Impact Knockouts Championship twice during her time with the company.
Kay held the NWA Women’s World Championship from April 2019 to January 2020. Kay announced last November that she had departed the NWA.
Kay wrestled for AEW on the pre-show for last November’s Full Gear pay-per-view. She unsuccessfully challenged Serena Deeb for the NWA Women’s World Championship.
Kay also took part in WWE’s Mae Young Classic in 2018, losing to Mia Yim in the first round.
As a stipulation of Angelina Love defeating Quinn McKay on ROH TV earlier this month, Love is getting a first-round bye in the Women’s World Championship tournament.
The ROH Women’s World Championship is a new title that’s replacing the former Women of Honor World Championship.
The Big Takeaway: A 15 man battle royale took place with a spot in the rankings on the line. Also, Shane Taylor Promotions defended their tag team titles against up and coming trio Primal Fear. And in the main event, Josh Woods looked to settle the score with former tag team partner and mentor Silas Young
Ian Riccaboni checked in from ROH Studio again, subbing in for Quinn McKay. Riccaboni ran down the card for the evening, including a “Rankings Battle Royale”. It was noted that any ROH wrestlers who are not currently ranked in any division may participate in this battle royale. The last two men remaining will face off in a future singles match. The winner of that match is guaranteed to be ranked in either the Pure Championship division or the Television Championship division, whichever they may choose.
****
LSG and Joe Keys were the last two men remaining in the Rankings Battle Royale
This seems like a harmless idea to propel someone to a future championship match. I like the idea.
Notable people in this battle royale included Danhausen, Mike Bennett, PCO, Mark Briscoe, LSG, World Famous CB, and O’Shay Edwards.
PCO and Mike Bennett were the only two competitors that got entrances. Bennett was jumped by Bateman while making his entrance. Dutch assisted Bateman shortly after and they dragged Bennett to the back. Ryan Mooney was the first one eliminated, by Mark Briscoe. PCO eliminated Eric Martin. Danhausen tried to double-chokeslam PCO and Briscoe but was thrown out quickly. The camera cut to Danhausen at ringside, who then put on a El Generico mask. Once GenericoHausen got back in the ring, he was immediately dumped out again by Briscoe.
Dante Caballero was eliminated by LSG a few moments later. Briscoe and O’Shay Edwards had a good standoff. While Briscoe was on the ropes, Joe Keys came in and eliminated him. Keys also eliminated World Famous CB prior in the match, a good showing for him. Sledge eliminated O’Shay Edwards, who he’s been feuding with on ROH Week By Week.
The final four competitors in the match were Sledge, Joe Keys, PCO, and Joe Keys. Sledge and PCO traded a few forearms and chops, which led to PCO tossing out Sledge with one hand. LSG and Keys were plotting to toss out PCO immediately after, to which they did. LSG and Joe Keys will compete on a future episode of ROH TV.
*****
Shane Taylor Promotions (Shane Taylor, Moses, and Kaun) defeated Primal Fear (Matthew Omen, Adrien Soriano, and Gabriel Hodder) to retain the ROH World Six-Man Tag Team titles
Moses and Omen began the match. Omen was cocky after landing a leg kick but Moses bulldozed him quickly. Omen tagged out to Hodder while Moses tagged out to Kaun. Kaun bulldozed Hodder immediately which caused Hodder to tag out to Soriano. Soriano demanded that he wanted to fight Shane Taylor. Kaun tagged out to allow that.
Taylor and Soriano locked up, but Taylor pushed him to the mat. Soriano popped right back up and slapped Taylor and taunted his catchphrase. Taylor responded by clocking Soriano with a forearm, making him crumble in the corner. This sent us into a commercial break.
Back from the break and Soriano is back on his feet. Taylor folded him with a forearm again and tried to hit a cannonball in the corner, but Soriano dodged the move at the last second. Soriano made a tag to Hodder, who came in with Omen and double-teamed Taylor in the corner for a minute. Soriano eventually tagged back in and was clotheslined by Taylor.
Both Taylor and Soriano used this opportunity to get the hot tag to each respective partner: Moses and Omen. Moses took down Omen a few times before getting on the apron. Moses attempted to cannonball onto Primal Fear at ringside, but they all moved in separate directions causing Moses to hit the floor.
In the ring meanwhile, Kaun hit a brainbuster on Soriano from the top rope. Moses had recovered at ringside and dumped Omen over the barricade. Moses joined Kaun in the ring and they hit their tag finisher “Victory Lap” for the win.
*****
Silas Young defeated Josh Woods
Young attacked Woods before the bell. Young threw him into the barricade and then grabbed a chair. Woods sprung up quickly and kicked the chair into Young’s face.
After some more outside brawling, the match finally began on the inside. Woods had an early advantage when he rushed Young in the corner, but Young turned the momentum in his favor rather quickly. Young kept Woods grounded for a good portion of the match early, locking in various holds. Young had his foot on Woods’ throat as a commercial break ensued.
Back from the break and Woods powered Young across the ring with a hip toss. Woods wasted no time and followed it up with a beautiful butterfly suplex. Young recovered quickly and hit a final cut that took both men out of it for a good bit.
Later in the match, Woods almost hit an O’Connor roll German suplex, but Young reversed it into a pin for a two count. Young is insanely athletic for being 41 years old. Woods and Young eventually both made their way out on the apron, where they traded strikes. Woods eventually clotheslined Young back in the ring and followed it up with a modified armbar. Young rolled it over into a pinning maneuver with his feet on the ropes and scored the victory.
*****
Next Week:
OGK vs The Foundation (Tracy Williams and Rhett Titus) for the ROH Tag Team Championship
Fred Yehi vs Rocky Romero in a Pure Rules match
Final Thoughts: Another very eventful episode of ROH TV. I always love a good battle royale, and despite not being a giant fan of either LSG or Joe Keys, the match was entertaining enough. The Danhausen/El Generico thing might be my favorite thing in wrestling history, definitely not an overreaction.
Shane Taylor Promotions continue to be my favorite promotion in wrestling, let alone the company. Their presentation is phenomenal and they are all really great wrestlers. Silas Young and Josh Woods put on a match similar to last week’s Quinn McKay vs. Angelina Love, where they didn’t give away too much offense and had the heel win in a heel way to set up an eventual rematch, potentially in front of fans.
Ring of Honor will join several of their peers in the pro wrestling industry by announcing this July’s Best In The World pay-per-view will have fans in the building.
The Sunday, July 11th event will be held live at Baltimore, Maryland’s Chesapeake Employers Insurance Arena with both limited capacity and pod seating of up to six people to ensure six feet of distance between each pod. They will also require masks to be worn throughout the show with temperature checks done upon entry.
This will the company’s first show in front of a crowd since their Gateway to Honor live show on February 29, 2020, in St. Charles, Missouri. After a hiatus, they began a schedule of running empty arena TV tapings at the Chesapeake Employers Insurance Arena.
Tickets will go on sale to the general public on Monday, June 7th with floor seats at $50 and all other seats for $40. HonorClub members will get the first shot at tickets starting next Monday, May 24th.
AEW announced they will start back on the road with Dynamite starting the first week of July while WWE is also eyeing mid-July as their target for a return to touring.
ROH has announced that the Survival of the Fittest tournament will return on ROH TV this June. The tournament will feature a series of qualifying matches, with the winners of those bouts advancing to a multi-man elimination match to decide the tournament winner.
The winner of Survival of the Fittest will receive a future shot at the ROH World Championship, which is currently held by Rush.
“You asked for the Survival of the Fittest tournament to come back and the ROH Board of Directors listened. The tournament returns in June on ROH TV,” ROH’s Kevin Eck wrote.
“Originating in 2004 and last held in 2018, the tournament is composed of a series of qualifying matches, with the winners meeting in a multi-man elimination match to determine the overall winner. The lone survivor will be rewarded with a future shot at the ROH World Championship. Past winners of Survival of the Fittest include Bryan Danielson, Tyler Black, Jay Lethal and Adam Cole.
“Survival of the Fittest was the overwhelming winner of a poll on the ROH The Experience Facebook page that asked which of ROH’s annual events fans would most like to see return in 2021.”
ROH will also be holding a Women’s World Championship tournament this summer. Rok-C, Angelina Love, Miranda Alize, and Trish Adora are the first four entrants that have been announced for it.
This week’s Women’s Division Wednesday featured another great women’s match with both competitors earning a spot in the upcoming ROH Women’s Championship tournament.
Miranda Alize defeated Trish Adora (9:54)
Some background:
Adora has competed in Game Changer Wrestling, Beyond Wrestling, and has also been on NXT once. She is a military veteran, having served eight years in the US Army. She was trained at the Dudley Boyz’ Team 3D Academy.
Alize has competed on both AEW Dark and Dynamite. She’s also appeared in AAA, Rise, and Shimmer and was a part of the second WWE Mae Young Classic as Miranda Salinas. She was trained by Booker T, Tessa Blanchard, and Daga.
Adora tried to wrestle Alize to the mat very quickly but Alize resisted. Adora instead did a version of an armdrag that sent Alize reeling to the outside. Alize slid back in the ring and attempted a hammerlock, only to be thrown out again.
Once Alize recovered, she lit her own fire and hit a series of springboard armdrags, followed by a great suicide dive. She wasted no time in tossing Adora back in the ring, but the tables were turned quickly when Adora applied a neck crank.
Adora kept on focusing on Alize’s arms, hitting on a few more armdrags and even trying a pin while one of the arms were restrained. Alize opened the comeback door with a great swinging neckbreaker. Adora wouldn’t stay down though and hit a stiff pump kick to regain the advantage.
Adora was frustrated after not being able to put Alize away and Alize took advantage, slamming her to the mat and locking in her Miranda Rights submission. Adora was able to get to the ropes to break the hold.
In the final sequence of the match, Alize ducked two of Adora’s signature Lariat Tubman maneuvers and hit a beautiful ripcord cutter, followed up with the Drive By running knee strike for the win.
Tickets To Gold
Maria Kanellis Bennett gave out not one, but two Tickets To Gold — a spot in the ROH Women’s Championship tournament coming this summer.
Bennett first officially welcomed Alize into the tournament — a great choice as she’s definitely one of the standouts of the WDW series so far.
Bennett also welcomed Adora into the tournament. Bennett said that Tickets to Gold aren’t just about winning, but showing heart, too. Bennett praised Adora’s performance in her match and her entry into the tourney was also very well deserved in my opinion.
Final Thoughts:
This edition of WDW might be my favorite so far. The match was really good with some great storytelling. Both Alize and Adora 100% deserved entry into the tournament. One gripe: I wish these shows were two matches long.
Two new entrants have been confirmed for ROH’s Women’s World Championship tournament.
ROH has announced that Miranda Alize and Trish Adora will both be entrants in this summer’s Women’s World Championship tournament. They got their spots in the tournament by being awarded “Tickets to Gold” by Maria Kanellis-Bennett at the end of this week’s ROH Women’s Division Wednesday episode.
Alize defeated Adora in their match on this week’s Women’s Division Wednesday.
ROH’s Women’s World Championship [tournament was originally supposed to take place in 2020 but was pushed back following the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Alize had also been announced as one of the original entrants for the tournament when it was supposed to take place last year.
Alize goes by the nickname “The Lucha Baddie.” She’s made several appearances for AEW and was an entrant in WWE’s inaugural Mae Young Classic in 2017. She went by the name Miranda Salinas in the Mae Young Classic.
Adora is a United States Army veteran who holds the Pan Afrikan World Diaspora Championship. Adora has been wrestling for five years. She trained at The Dudley Boyz’s Team 3D Academy and has also been trained by ROH’s Jonathan Gresham and Cheeseburger.
Alize, Adora, Rok-C, and Angelina Love are the first four entrants that have been announced for the ROH Women’s World Championship tournament. The ROH Women’s World Championship is a new title that’s replacing the former Women of Honor World Championship.
As a stipulation of Love defeating Quinn McKay on the latest episode of ROH TV, Love will get a first-round bye in the tournament.
Angelina Love is getting a pass to the second round of Ring of Honor’s Women’s World Championship tournament.
In the main event of the latest episode of ROH TV, Love defeated Quinn McKay to get a first-round bye in the Women’s title tournament. McKay, who is a host and backstage interviewer for ROH, was making her ROH in-ring debut in the match and would have secured a spot in the tournament if she defeated Love.
The story of Love vs. McKay involved McKay losing after interference by Mandy Leon. Leon is part of The Allure with Love.
Love had McKay in the Koji Clutch during the match but taunted McKay by willingly letting go of the move before she passed out. McKay then countered Love and hit a jawbreaker, but Leon interfered by grabbing McKay’s legs when she ran the ropes. Love went for her Botox Injection kick when McKay turned around, but McKay avoided it and hit a powerslam for a near fall.
McKay had Love locked in her Tangerine Dream submission in the middle of the ring, but McKay got distracted by Leon insulting her and saying McKay will never be a wrestler. After McKay let go of the submission and tried to go after Leon, Love hit the Botox Injection to get the win.
Fellow ROH broadcast team members Ian Riccaboni and Caprice Coleman gave McKay an ovation after the match.
ROH had been building to Love vs. McKay since Love attacked McKay on the set of ROH Week By Week last November.
The ROH Women’s World Championship tournament is taking place this summer. Love and Rok-C are the first two entrants confirmed for it. The ROH Women’s World Championship is a new title that’s replacing the former Women of Honor World Championship.
Love formerly held the Women of Honor World Championship one time. She’s also a former six-time Knockouts Champion in Impact Wrestling/TNA.
The Big Takeaway: Flip Gordon and EC3 took on The Briscoe Brothers in a fun TV match, while PCO answered Brian Johnson’s open challenge. Also, Quinn McKay made her ROH debut.
The broadcast began with Ian Riccaboni checking in from the ROH Studio, rather than Quinn McKay. This is obviously because McKay headlines tonight’s show against Angelina Love. Riccaboni also notes that the ROH board of directors teamed up Flip Gordon and EC3 to take on The Briscoes for tonight’s show.
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Flip Gordon and EC3 defeated The Briscoes (12:38)
Note: This match was filmed before EC3 was hospitalized with an infection. Best wishes go out to Ethan and I hope recovery is going well for him.
EC3 and Jay started the match out. Commentary put this over because of their phenomenal encounter at the 19th Anniversary show, which is currently in my top 5 matches of the year.
Both men grappled for a minute and exchanged a few head scissors, eventually coming to a stalemate. EC3 sent Jay to the other side of the ring where Gordon cheap shotted him. EC3 questioned Gordon’s antics, to which Gordon responded by tagging himself in.
Jay came in on a blind tag and sent Gordon to the mat with a headbutt. The Briscoes did a great job keeping in the fresh man in this match. Mark came in and started choking Gordon with his bandana. Gordon eventually was able to tag out to EC3, which sent us into a commercial break.
Back from the break and EC3 was in control of Jay until Gordon tagged himself in. EC3 stared him down for a few moments before stepping out of the ring. Gordon tried a springboard stunner but Jay shoved him down in mid air. Mark got a hot tag and demolished Gordon with the help of Jay. EC3 tagged himself in and got hit with the redneck boogie, but Gordon broke up the pin.
In the final sequence of the match, referee Joe Mandak was distracted by a chair that Mark Briscoe had introduced to the match. Gordon took advantage of this and punched Mark with a chain, letting EC3 hit his inverted DDT for the win. EC3 didn’t see Gordon hit Mark with the chain.
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Brian Johnson had his best promo of his career before his open challenge. Johnson touched on how faction heavy ROH is, and boasted himself for standing alone. Johnson whined about not getting talked about and said he would do whatever it takes to get noticed, even if it included “bankrupting the Mercenary, mocking the narrative, cooking the Octopus into calamari, lassoing the Bull, ending the Purple Reign or making The Franchise fall.”
Another great quote from the promo: “Before you say the names Danielson, Punk, Nigel or Joe, Aries, Black, Richards, Cole, Lethal, Briscoe, Cabana or Steen; you better clear your throat and say the M.E.C.C.A. Because i don’t care who you are or who you align with, it’ll always be Mecca vs Everybody.”
PCO defeated Brian Johnson (6:57)
PCO accepted Johnson’t open challenge. Danhausen came out and said since he’s beaten Johnson multiple times, he has a gift for him. PCO came out.
Johnson tried to jump PCO before the bell but to no avail. PCO came back with fiery chops and sent Johnson over his head with a back body drop into a commercial break.
Back from the break and PCO back body drops Brian Johnson over the barricade. PCO started to “malfunction” as commentary put it and ran around ringside before launching himself into a barricade. Johnson took advantage of this and threw PCO into the barricade himself.
Johnson slid PCO back in the ring and went to the top rope. Johnson hit a great splash, but PCO sat up immediately after and “malfunctioned” again. Johnson was sent to the mat with a few punches while PCO climbed to the top rope and hit a PCOsault. Johnson surprisingly kicked out.
PCO chased referee Joe Mandak out of the ring and then returned to the ring, where he started ripping Johnson’s jaw apart. It was played off as a submission and Johnson submitted.
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Angelina Love (w/ Mandy Leon) defeated Quinn McKay (8:01)
Love and McKay started the match with a lock up, which is a weird choice after having a almost year long feud. Love sent McKay to the mat with a wrist lock and then walked on her back. This sent us into a commercial break.
Back from the break and Love is bashing McKay’s head into the mat. Love eventually picked up McKay and nailed her with a flat liner, followed by locking in a Koji Clutch. McKay fought to get a rope break but was on the verge of passing out when Love let her go. Leon exclaimed at ringside that it wasn’t gonna end like that.
Love was showboating when McKay took advantage of an opportunity and hit a stunner. McKay followed it up with a great running powerslam that opened the door for her to get back in the match. McKay then locked in a standing cobra clutch, which Love didn’t really sell at all.
McKay still had the clutch cinched in when Leon stood on the apron and started yelling at McKay. McKay let go of the hold and entertained Leon’s bickering, allowing Love to recover and nail McKay with the “Botox Injection” kick for the win. As a stipulation of her winning, Love will get a first-round bye in ROH’s Women’s World Championship tournament this summer.
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Final Thoughts: A lot to unpack here on a very eventful and newsworthy episode of ROH TV. The Briscoes and EC3/Flip Gordon had a great match. Briscoes lost again though, and I’m sticking with my theory that they are headed for a split.
Brian Johnson had the best promo I’ve ever heard from him personally and the best promo on ROH TV in some time. But then he loses to a 53 year old PCO. that hasn’t been on TV in months and has no general direction. It was an awful decision in my opinion, and had the results been reversed could have done a lot for Johnson.
Quinn McKay and Angelina Love was short, but sweet. In roughly 8 minutes they told a great story without giving away too much action. With the distraction finish, it’s clearly a story ROH wants to continue and have a bigger payoff for in the future, which is great, if it ends with McKay standing tall.
