In matches from last week’s AEW visit to Arena Mexico, Ring of Honor will go to battle with CMLL in tonight’s Global Wars on HonorClub.
The show is headlined by ROH World Champion Bandido defending against Mascara Dorada. Dorada is looking for his first ROH title while Bandido is looking to secure his second title defense.
In a non-title bout, ROH Pure Champion Lee Moriarty will take on the legendary Blue Panther which was followed by a very big run-in (spoiler).
ROH Women’s World Champion Athena teams with ROH Women’s TV Champion Red Velvet take on Thunder Rosa and Persephone.
In a Proving Ground match, ROH Men’s TV Champion Nick Wayne takes on Titan who needs a win or draw to earn a future title shot.
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The Global Wars kick off here and an hour earlier to boot! It’s ROH vs CMLL and with five ROH champions in action, it’s going to be a battle we won’t soon forget!
ROH Women’s World Champion Athena & ROH Women’s Television Champion Red Velvet vs Persephone & Thunder Rosa
Persephone is a rising star in CMLL and has a win over Red Velvet from a couple of weeks ago in Mexico. Her partner is the notorious Thunder Rosa, who’s a former AEW Women’s World Champion. Their opponents are a duo of women who’ve each dominated in ROH. Red Velvet has held the ROH Women’s TV Title for just under a year and the ROH Women’s Forever Champion, Athena, has held her belt for… well, forever.
Athena has stopped bringing the belt with her face pasted on it to the ring and I feel like that’s going to hurt her in the long run. There was a bit of stare down between her and Velvet as the entered and I’m sure they will end up in a feud soon enough.
Athena and Rosa, who have a date at Supercard of Honor in July, kicked things off with the crowd firmly behind Rosa. Velvet hit a blind tag and tried to double team Rosa, but she ducked both Velvet and Athena, sending the latter out of the ring.
Rosa brought in Persephone and they delivered a double dropkick to a sitting Velvet. Athena re-entered the match and started jawing at Persephone, leading to a lock up and a quick pin attempt by each. Athena nailed her with a high knee, but Persephone was barely affected. Athena resorted to shoves and tagged Velvet in.
Isolating Persephone in the corner, Velvet and Athena traded tags and double teams. Velvet got a little too excited and tried a high knee that almost missed Persephone entirely and almost sent Velvet over the top rope.
Rosa got a hot tag from Persephone and took the fight to Athena with a huge dropkick. Rosa tried a couple of pins, but Velvet broke them up. Velvet sent Persephone out and battled Rosa while Athena recovered. Athena hit Rosa with a face breaker and Velvet followed it with a Stir It Up kick, but Persephone broke up the pin.
Persephone got planted by Athena with an O-Face, but that left her open to get hit by Rosa. Rosa grabbed Velvet in the fray and pinned her for the win.
Match Result: Persephone & Thunder Rosa defeat Athena & Red Velvet
Pretty good opener, but with that much talent in the ring it was always gonna be! Loved Athena and Velvet working together and wouldn’t hate to see her join the MiT program.
ROH World Television Title Proving Ground Match: Nick Wayne [c] vs. Titan
Wayne won the ROH Television Title from Komander back in April on the Spring Break Thru edition of AEW Collision. Since then, he’s defended it three times, but never on ROH TV. So, yes, this Proving Ground match is the ROH Tv Champion’s first ROH TV match since winning the title. Titan has been holding the CMLL World Welterweight Championship for a staggering 2027 days as of this writing (quick math: just over five and a half years).
Titan seemed really annoyed by Wayne’s fun-fur accented ring attire, glaring at him as he entered the ring. At least I assume he glared, the mask made it had to see. Wayne was unfazed though as the match kicked off with a lock up. Wayne got the early advantage, setting Titan up in the corner.
Titan tried to turn up the speed, but Wayne was able to dodge and roll away from whatever he threw at him. Eventually, Wayne caught Titan and set him up on the top rope, sending him to the outside in the process. Wayne then showboated in the ring before sending Titan into the barricade outside the ring.
Wayne continued to showboat and throw Titan around outside the ring, seemingly unaware that there was a ten minute time limit on this match, as there is with all Proving Ground matches.
Back in the ring, Wayne ate up more time, slowing the pace of the match to a crawl. He tried to take Titan’s mask, which incensed the crowd. Wayne dropped a leg and went for a pin, but no dice as Titan kicked out at two.
Titan suddenly exploded with a series of, for lack of a better term, ninja kicks followed by a springboard crossbody. Wayne was back on his heels and Titan gave him a reciept from earlier and sent him into the barricade on the outside.
In the ring, Titan set up Wayne up for a piledriver, but Wayne reversed it and hit a springboard Cutter, but it wasn’t enough to finish Titan off. Wayne tried to switch gears and put on a full nelson hold, but Titan punched his way out of it and the two started trading chops.
Wayne tried a standing acid drop, but Titan wasn’t done yet. He grabbed Wayne for a spinning toss and climbed the ring post. Wayne rolled out of the way as the announcement of “one minute remaining” rang out.
Titan picked up the pace, trying to put Wayne down quickly, but that caused a mistake and Wayne almost won with an inside cradle. Titan took a little too long to lock in a grapevine submission and the bell rang, ending the match. Good for Titan, because he gets his title shot as in Proving Ground matches, the tie goes to the challenger.
Match Result: Time limit Draw. Titan earns a shot at the ROH World Television Title.
Boy, I love to hate Nick Wayne. That means he’s pretty good at what he does, heel-wise. Titan is fantastic, but the match was a little uneven pacing wise. I wouldn’t hate it if ROH started putting a clock on the screen during Proving Ground matches, just to up the anxiety.
ROH World Title Match: Bandido (c) vs Mascara Dorada
Bandido has been racking up the title defenses since winning the ROH World Title from Chris Jericho at AEW Dynasty. He’s been doing the one thing that the few ROH World Title holders before him did not do, which is defend the Ring of Honor Title in Ring of Honor. His challenger for the evening is Mascara Dorada, who is a double champion in CMLL, holding 1/3rd of the World Trios Championship as well as the World Historic Welterweight Championship. A couple weeks ago, Dorada saved Bandido from an attack by Blake Christian.
Lots of respect shown off the top as the two locked up. Dorada came out on top, but stepped back to give Bandido another chance. Like I say, respect.
Dorada and Bandido then started putting on a lucha clinic with throws and tosses at an absolutely breakneck speed. Dorada went for a 450 from the top but Bandido dodged and set him up for a 21 Plex. Dorada avoided it though and the crowd was absolutely going nuts.
Bandido sent Dorada to the outside and started a suicide dive, but Dorada leapt back into the ring sending Bandido out on the other side! Dorada then flew over the top rope and knocked the air out of Bandido.
Dorada was in control now, bringing Bandido back into the ring and stunning him against the ropes. Dorada went up for another 450 attempt and landed this one. But it only got a two-count as Bandido kicked out.
Bandido hit a pop-up cutter which flipped Dorada out of the ring. Bandido followed with a Plancha and climbed into the crowd to celebrate.
Once everyone was back in the ring, Bandido caught Dorada on the top turnbuckle and suplexed him into the ring. Dorada fought back though an sent Bandido into the corner. The two traded shots in the corners until Bandido hit a huge flipping splash over the ring post onto Dorada on the outside. He threw Dorada back into the ring and went up for a frog splash.
Dorada wouldn’t go down though and hit a standing hurricanrana on the champion, standing on top of his shoulders! Bandido recovered and was clapping, it was so impressive. The two began trading chops in the middle of the ring with no clear winner in sight.
The fight moved to the ring apron (the hardest part of the ring!) where they traded superkicks. A double dropkick caused them to collide and land on the outside. Both beat the count back into the ring with Dorada pounding the mat in frustration.
The began fighting up the entrance ramp, trading hip tosses. Dorada climbed up the entrance staircase (allegedly 10 feet up) and hit a crossbody on Bandido, crushing him into the ramp. He threw Bandido back in the ring, then ran the full length of the entrance ramp to deliver a flipping leg for a two count.
Dorada’s insane core strength came into play as he did situps in Bandido’s arms to avoid a three-count. Three times. Bandido tried a driver, but again, Dorada wouldn’t go down. Bandido sent him to the corner and they climbed the ropes. Dorada did a standing superrana OFF THE TOP RINGPOST sent Bandido flying. He hit 450 for good measure, but Bandido kicked out at two.
Bandido caught Dorada off the rope and and hit an X-Knee. That set him up for the 21 Plex, but Dorada kicked out! The crowd was insane!
Bandido went for a splash in the corner, but Dorada blocked it. They climbed to the top rope and Bandido hit a moonsault slam setting Dorada up for a second 21 Plex. This one got it and Dorada was pinned, ending an excellent, excellent match!
Match Result: Bandido defeats Mascara Dorada
Wow! That was REALLY fun!! This match not being the main event is kind of mind blowing to me, but perhaps that’s for good reason. Either way, what a banger! With the ROH Title Match for Supercard of Honor not set yet, I wouldn’t be upset if they revisited this matchup.
-Next, as if they heard what I was thinking, they answered that question by issuing a challenge to Bandido for the ROH Title at Supercard of Honor, from none other than Konosuke Takeshita! I’ll take that!
-It was also announced that Top Flight and the Infantry would duke it out next week for the opportunity to to take on the ROH World Tag Champions at Supercard of Honor!
Non-Title Match: ROH Pure Champion Lee Moriarty (w/Carlie Bravo, Shane Taylor & Shawn Dean) vs Blue Panther
Before the match a very babyface promo from Moriarty aired, in which he talked about what a dream it is to compete in Arena Mexico. The belt is not on the line in this match, but ROH Pure Champion Moriarty brought backup anyway. Shane Taylor Promotions was at ringside as Moriarty took on the legendary Blue Panther who steps into the ring at 64 years young. Panther began wrestling in 1978. That’s two years before even this old-ass reporter was born!
Moriarty showed respect off the top and shared a code of honor with Panther while wearing his Tiga Style mask. He took it off when the bell rang though and the two locked up. Panther wrenched on Moriarty’s neck via headlock until Moriarty reversed it into a wristlock.
The two stomped around the ring as Panther wrenched Moriarty’s arm. He moved into a full nelson hold, but Moriarty reversed it into an abdominal stretch. Panther powered out of it and the two created space, circling each other. A smiling Moriarty seemed to be having a blast trading holds with the lucha legend.
Moriarty delivered a few uppercuts in the corner and Panther responded with some hard chops while Shane Taylor shouted on the outside. Moriarty went for a splash in the corner and Panther dodged, throwing a series of elbows as they ran the ropes. Moriarty sent Panther to the outside and hit two suicidas while the Infantry trash talked.
Panther climbed back into the ring and up to the top rope. Moriarty met him there and delivered a superplex to a 64 year old man. Somehow, Panther kicked out of the pin attempt. From there, Moriarty tried a Border City Stretch, but Panther wouldn’t give up, trying desperately to get to the ropes. Eventually he did and Moriarty broke the hold.
The chop trading began with Panther coming out on top with a lariat out of nowhere, followed by a clothesline that sent Moriarty out of the ring. Panther ran up the entrance ramp and delivered a leaping crossbody to Moriarty on the outside.
Panther tossed Moriarty back into the ring and sent him to the corner for a flipping crossbody into a shoestring armbar, causing Moriarty to tap out! Panther wins clean!
Match Result: Blue Panther defeats Lee Moriarty
After the match, the Infantry and Shane Taylor started a beatdown on Panther. Taylor delivered a huge splash, and then a second-rope– wait, what’s that music? It’s BRIAN DANIELSON!!!! He sent Hologram, Mascara Dorada and… a friend (?), down to the ring to clean house before delivering a high knee to Taylor himself!! The crowd chanted YES! and so did I, much to my attempted-napping wife’s chagrin!
After the ring cleared, Danielson grabbed a mic and thanked the crowd and telling them that they are loved by AEW and ROH.
What to say about that?!? other than AMAZING!
