The ROH Pure Championship will be defended on AEW Dark.
Wheeler Yuta is set to defend his belt against Tony Nese on the show.
This will be Yuta’s second defense of the title since winning it from Josh Woods at ROH Supercard of Honor on April 1. He then successfully defended the belt against Woods in a rematch on an episode of Dark taped May 1.
This week’s edition of Dark was filmed on June 11 from Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida.
AEW Dark airs Tuesdays beginning at 7 p.m Eastern time on YouTube. The full lineup for the show is as follows:
ROH Pure Champion Wheeler Yuta defends against Tony Nese
JD Drake & Ryan Nemeth vs. Evil Uno & 10
Fuego Del Sol vs. Marcus Kross
Dante Martin vs. Lucky Ali
Athena vs. Amber Nova
Ariya Daivari vs. Caleb Konley
Willow Nightingale vs. Ashley D’Amboise
Nick Comoroto & Aaron Solo vs. Matt Vandagriff & Knull
For the first time since last December, the Ring of Honor Pure Championship will be defended in an ROH ring as Josh Woods will defend the gold against Wheeler Yuta at next Friday’s Supercard of Honor pay-per-view.
This will be the first time ever they have wrestled against each other.
Woods won the title from Jonathan Gresham at last September’s Death Before Dishonor and has seven defenses of the gold with the last three coming on indie shows.
Before Tony Khan purchased ROH, the old leadership’s plan was to focus on the World, Women’s World and Tag Team titles after returning from their three-month shutdown, forgoing the Pure and Six-Man titles. At least with the Pure title, that appears to not be the case anymore.
Yuta is under an AEW deal but frequently works high-level indies as well as New Japan Strong. Woods has worked some AEW Dark tapings in Orlando, Florida, since the initial ROH shutdown.
Here’s the current lineup for next Friday from Garland, Texas:
Jonathan Gresham vs. Bandido in a winner takes all match to determine the ROH World Heavyweight Champion
The Briscoe Brothers vs. FTR for the ROH Tag Team titles
Josh Woods vs. Wheeler Yuta for the ROH Pure title
Quinn McKay joined the broadcast from the holiday-decorated ROH Studio and wished the viewers Happy Holidays. McKay then ran down the card for the show, which will feature the annual Christmas surprise twelve man tag, as well as an ROH Women’s Championship match between current champion Rok-C and Holidead.
A special vignette aired showing Josh Woods and Brian Johnson opening special “presents” that featured the names of their respective teammates. Although the names weren’t revealed, Woods was delighted with his team while Johnson was not.
ROH Women’s World Champion Rok-C defeated Holidead in a title match (13:30)
This was a good title match between two competitors that seemed to match up very well.
Holidead tried to use her size advantage to control the champion throughout the beginning stage of the match, but Rok-C read the room and fended it off well. When Holidead went to the outside, Rok-C attempted a dive but was stopped dead in her tracks when Holidead caught her and slammed her into the turnbuckle.
After a short commercial break, Holidead started to lose her grip on the match. Rok-C hit a knee to the face, and followed it up shortly after with a pair of double knees to the rib area of Holidead. Holidead went on to respond with a swing out flatliner that warranted a near fall, but Rok-C would deliver a running knee shortly after.
In the final stages of the match, both women continued to trade big moves. Holidead hit a backbreaker that resulted in the closest near fall of the match, but Rok-C was able to find that final wind and hit her modified Code Red shortly after for the win.
Dalton Castle had a backstage vignette celebrating Christmas with Dak Draper and his “boys”. Things went awry quickly and Draper started throwing things around.
Christmas Wildcard Twelve Man Tag Team Match: Team Woods (Bandido, Jay Briscoe, Josh Woods, Mark Briscoe, Matt Taven & Silas Young) defeated Team Johnson (Brian Johnson, Flip Gordon, Homicide, Kenny King, Rey Horus & Rhett Titus) (20:45)
This was a blast as always.
Homicide and Jay Briscoe locked up as the tags began to roll in. Woods and Titus got a nice sequence in on the mat, with Woods heavily targeting the arm and scoring a few near falls out of it.
After a commercial break, Flip Gordon and Matt Taven became the legal men. They had a small back and forth before the focus shifted to a face off between Rey Horus and Bandido.
Everybody else included in the match hopped off the apron and let the two luchadors do their own thing. Bandido was the first to strike, springing off the ropes and jumping over Horus. They traded a few hurricanranas before coming to a stalemate — which was applauded by their respective teammates.
King and Mark Briscoe began to tee off on one another shortly after, which led to Titus and Jay Briscoe entering the ring. The commentary team sold the “nostalgia” aspect of the showdown, as the history between the two teams dates back to 2009.
The match fell apart at this point, with everybody in sight hitting a big dive to the outside onto various opponents. Flip Gordon rushed to the commentary booth and began to chat up a storm, before realizing he was still in the match and making a massive dive off the stage.
The final moments of the match saw Brian Johnson try to roll up Mark Briscoe with a handful of tights. After the fall was unsuccessful, Briscoe scolded Johnson and told him to “be a man”. This led to both men teeing off on each other with forearms, but Jay Briscoe eventually came in and helped his brother. The duo scored the win for their team after a Doomsday Device on Johnson.
Everybody in the match celebrated in the ring as the show went off the air.
Final Thoughts: This was a great sendoff show for this era of Ring Of Honor.
Thanks to all that have kept up with my weekly ROH recaps for the past 16 months. Although I’m not sure what the future holds for both me and the supposed return of ROH in April, I appreciate anybody that has stuck around along the way.
Quinn McKay welcomed the audience to the show from her usual spot in the ROH studio. McKay revealed that this week’s episode is a “Top Prospect” special. Some of the rising stars in the company will be in action, and the two most recent winners of the Top Prospect tournament will face off in singles action as ROH Pure Champion Josh Woods takes on Dak Draper in the main event.
Rayo defeated Joe Keys, Adrian Soriano, and Eric Martin in a four-way match (7:57)
Adrian Soriano was on a different level early on in the match, hitting a combination of moves on all of his opponents. After downing Rayo with a great standing dropkick, Soriano was stopped dead in his tracks by Joe Keys, who executed a few German suplexes.
Eric Martin ran in and tried to stop the momentum of Keys, but he was met with another German suplex. Keys was in control of the match headed into a commercial break.
Rayo nailed Soriano with a butterfly backbreaker as the bout returned from commercial. Rayo tried to capitalize by going to the top rope, but Soriano met him up there and was able to hit a superplex. Keys found his way back in the match — but before he could do anything of substance, he was shoved into the corner post by Soriano.
Soriano and Keys kept focusing strictly on each other, while Rayo and Martin were more focused on winning the match. Martin tried for a spinebuster, but Rayo reversed the move and hit a standing kick to Martin’s face. Rayo followed it up with a springboard DDT, then a springboard elbow drop that was able to secure him the victory.
**********
Matt Makowski (w/ Rocco) defeated Dante Caballero (12:06)
Matt Makowski took Dante Caballero to the mat with a headlock early on, focusing on that area heavily. Caballero virtually got no offense in on Makowski into a commercial break.
Makowski was still in full control of the match when the break returned. He nailed Caballero with a few forearm strikes. But after Makowski celebrated for a split second, Caballero was able to pick him up and hit a very quick Falcon’s Arrow for a near fall.
Caballero used the momentum to his advantage, hitting a spinebuster on Makowski shortly after. After kicking out of Caballero’s pin attempt, Makowski took back control of the match and delivered a kick to the face of Caballero before locking in an armbar. Caballero submitted to the maneuver almost immediately.
**********
ROH Pure Champion Josh Woods defeated Dak Draper to retain his title (13:45)
Although this was supposed to be a non-title match, Dalton Castle and Dak Draper convinced Josh Woods to put his Pure Championship on the line shortly before the bell rang.
Woods hoisted up Draper in a clutch, but Draper caught the top rope with his feet, therefore costing him his first rope break. Draper was frustrated, but he would turn his frustration into an ankle pick that took Woods off the mat. Woods escaped the hold rather quickly and began unloading on Draper in the corner with open hand strikes.
Draper responded to the offensive onslaught with a closed fist, which he was issued a warning for. A commercial break ensued shortly after.
Draper had control of the match when the break ended, but Woods changed course with a springboard knee strike that landed right between the eyes of Draper. Woods kept it going with a few running strikes in the corner. But when he attempted a pin, Draper got his foot on the rope.
Draper escaped an armbar and turned it into a powerbomb, but it wasn’t enough to score the victory. Draper attempted another move, but Woods reversed it and positioned Draper in the tombstone before launching him over his head with a suplex. Woods picked up the victory via pinfall shortly after.
**********
Next Week —
ROH Women’s World Champion Rok-C defends against Holidead
Christmas tag team match
**********
Final Thoughts —
Although these matches still fail to bring much of a purpose to the table, they were all still solid bouts that entertained me thoroughly. Woods vs. Draper was especially very good, and I’m excited to see what the two can do if they are brought back to ROH in the future.
Ring of Honor Pure Champion Josh Woods made his AEW debut Friday at the company’s Dark tapings at Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida.
During the second set of tapings, Woods lost to Shawn Spears and had just one match on the show. Woods’ former rostermate and ROH mainstay Jay Lethal recently signed a full-time deal with AEW.
Woods will soon be a free agent as ROH goes into a three-month hiatus starting in January 2022 as they reassess how to approach the future with a hopeful return for April. All contracted talent will be released as ROH is looking to move toward using non-contracted talent upon their return.
It’s assumed he will be part of ROH’s Final Battle pay-per-view later this month.
A standout amateur collegiate wrestler, Woods defeated Jonathan Gresham for the Pure title at September’s Death Before Dishonor pay-per-view. The 2017 Top Prospect Tournament winner has been with ROH since 2016, spending nearly two years in WWE NXT prior to that.
The 32-year-old had his first match outside ROH since 2019 on a late-November indie show against Rickey Shane Page where he defended the Pure title.
The following are AEW Dark spoilers from Friday’s double session of tapings at Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida.
Session 1
Lee Moriarty defeated Misterioso. They later did a reshoot of both of their entrances and then played rock/paper/scissors which Moriarty won.
Brandi Rhodes defeated Angelica Risk
Red Velvet defeated Jordan Blu
Lio Rush defeated Rayo
Emi Sakura (w/ Mei Suruga) defeated Ryo Mizunami. Post-match, Riho made the save after a two-on-one attack on Mizunami.
Anthony Ogogo (w/ The Factory) defeated Baron Black
Shawn Spears and Wardlow defeated Jay Marte and Richard King
Fuego Del Sol defeated Luke Sampson
Team Taz (Ricky Starks, Powerhouse Hobbs and Dante Martin) (w/ Hook) defeated The Bollywood Icon, Kekoa and JT Dunn. In a post-match interview, Team Taz and Tony Schiavone were interrupted by Lio Rush who said no member of Team Taz will win the Dynamite Diamond ring.
Thunder Rosa defeated Sofia Castillo. Post-match, Rosa’s interview with Schiavone was interrupted by Mark Sterling who said Jade Cargill wasn’t there because she’s doing rich people things. Rosa and Sterling went back and forth to build up the TNT title tournament match until Jade snuck in and laid her out.
John Silver defeated Aaron Solo. In a post-match interview with Schiavone, Silver said he’s going to beat Bryan Danielson.
Kiera Hogan defeated Shalonce Royal
Diamante defeated Shawna Reed
Nick Comoroto defeated Dean Fleming
Riho and Ryo Mizunami defeated Emi Sakura and Mei Suruga
Kris Statlander defeated Marina Shafir
Arjun Singh defeated Tony Vincita
Jade Cargill (w/ Mark Sterling) defeated Valentina Rossi
Angelico defeated Invictus Khash
Tay Conti (w/ -1 and Anna Jay) defeated Heather Monroe
Brock Anderson and Lee Johnson (w/ Arn Anderson) defeated Tony Donati and Faboo Andre. Post-match, Colten and Austin Gunn interrupted and challenged Anderson and Johnson.
Chuck Taylor (w/ Wheeler Yuta) defeated Ryan Nemeth (w/ Cezar Bononi and Peter Avalon)
There were also a pair of Cody Rhodes appearances telling dad jokes.
Session 2
2point0 and Daniel Garcia defeated Dark Order’s Alex Reynolds, Evil Uno and Colt Cabana
Julia Hart defeated Xtina Kay. Post-match, QT Marshall and The Factory asked her to join The Factory. Varsity Blonds ran in and a scuffle broke out.
Shawn Spears defeated Josh Woods (current ROH Pure Champion)
Nyla Rose defeated Zeda Zhang
Gunn Club (Austin and Colten) defeated Lee Johnson and Brock Anderson (w/ Arn Anderson)
Brandi Rhodes defeated Robyn Renegade
Eddie Kingston defeated Colin Delaney
Penelope Ford defeated Willow Nightingale
Jorah Johl defeated Julius Coleman
Isiah Kassidy defeated Carlie Bravo
Abadon defeated Charlette Renegade
Shawn Dean defeated Lucas Chase. Post-match, Marshall was back out and attempting to recruit Dean to The Factory and was turned down.
Bear Country defeated Zack Clayton and Mike Orlando. Post-match, Bear Country said they wanted more competition. The Acclaimed then challenged them for the next show.
10 (w/ -1) defeated Leroy Patterson (w/ Howdy Price). This match was absurd. Patterson ended up in his underwear as Vance destroyed him. Post-match, -1 took Price’s cowboy hat and rode him like a horse. Tony Khan, from the stage, gave this one five stars.
Varsity Blonds defeated QT Marshall and Nick Comoroto
Matt Sydal defeated Serpentico (w/ Luther)
Red Velvet defeated La Rosa Negra
Anna Jay (w/ Tay Conti) defeated Reka Tehaka
The Blade (w/ The Bunny) defeated Toa Liona
Wardlow destroyed Casanova
Tony Nese defeated Anthony Greene
The Bunny (w/ The Blade) defeated KiLynn King
The Acclaimed defeated Bear Country
Skye Blue defeated Ashley D’Amboise
Orange Cassidy and Wheeler Yuta defeated Cezar Bononi and Peter Avalon
Joey Janela (w/ Kayla Rossi) defeated Sonny Kiss in a no DQ match that saw Janela bleed and do a piledriver off the stage through a table.
ROH has added a new title match to the card for Final Battle.
Josh Woods will defend his ROH Pure Championship against Brian Johnson at Final Battle, which takes place at Chesapeake Employers Insurance Arena in Baltimore on Saturday, December 11. The pay-per-view will mark an end of an era for ROH as the promotion then goes on hiatus to “reimagine” the company in the first quarter of 2022. ROH talent won’t have their contracts renewed after Final Battle.
Woods won the Pure title from Jonathan Gresham at Death Before Dishonor this September. Gresham, who moved to the World Championship division after losing the Pure title, will challenge for Bandido’s ROH World Championship in the main event of Final Battle.
Johnson defeated John Walters in a Pure Rules match on the latest episode of ROH TV. ROH is hyping up Johnson’s match against Woods at Final Battle as one of the dirtiest wrestlers in the promotion challenging for the Pure wrestling title.
The updated card for Final Battle is listed below:
ROH World Champion Bandido defends against Jonathan Gresham
ROH Women’s Champion Rok-C defends against Willow Nightingale or Mandy Leon (Willow and Leon will face off in a number one contender’s match on the Saturday, December 4 episode of ROH TV)
ROH Tag Team Champions The OGK (Matt Taven & Mike Bennett) defend against The Briscoes (Jay & Mark Briscoe)
ROH Pure Champion Josh Woods defends against Brian Johnson
Shane Taylor vs. Kenny King
Shane Taylor Promotions (Moses, Kaun & O’Shay Edwards) will defend the ROH Six-Man Tag Team titles
ROH has also announced that, during the week leading into Final Battle, they’ll be uploading Road to Final Battle matches on their YouTube channel each day. Those matches are:
Monday, December 6: Jonathan Gresham vs. Dragon Lee
Tuesday, December 7: ROH Television Champion Dalton Castle & Dak Draper vs. PJ Black & Flip Gordon
Wednesday, December 8: Caprice Coleman vs. Beer City Bruiser
Thursday, December 9: ROH Six-Man Tag Team Champions Shane Taylor Promotions (Shane Taylor, Moses & Kaun) defend against Violence Unlimited (Homicide, Chris Dickinson & Tony Deppen)
Josh Woods defeated Jonathan Gresham for the Pure title at Ring of Honor’s Death Before Dishonor pay-per-view Sunday, one of four title matches on the show.
In a spot where the two exchanged inside cradles for a double pin, the referee was going to call the match a draw before Gresham demanded it be restarted.
Gresham was attempting a move when Woods caught him in a piledriver position, launching him over his head via a rotating German suplex for the pin and title change.
The win ends a long title reign for Gresham who won the title in a tournament filmed last summer that aired in October. He was looking for the eighth defense of the title.
A fixture in the promotion since 2016, this is the first ROH gold for Woods, the 2017 Top Prospect tournament winner. It was also a bit of revenge as Gresham defeated him in the semifinals of last year’s aforementioned tournament.
Josh Woods is getting a Pure title shot at ROH’s next pay-per-view.
ROH has announced that Woods will challenge for the ROH Pure Championship at Death Before Dishonor on Sunday, September 12. Jonathan Gresham is the current Pure Champion. He’s defending the title against Rhett Titus at Glory By Honor night one on Friday, August 20.
Woods is the top-ranked challenger in the Pure division rankings. He defeated Silas Young in a Last Man Standing match at last month’s Best in the World PPV.
Gresham retained his title against Mike Bennett at Best in the World.
Gresham and Woods faced off in the semifinals of ROH’s Pure Championship tournament last year. Gresham defeated Woods and then advanced to defeat Tracy Williams in the finals.
Death Before Dishonor is taking place at the 2300 Arena in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The PPV was originally set to be held at the RP Funding Center in Lakeland, Florida, but ROH announced that they were moving the location of the show due to the current surge of COVID-19 in Florida.
The finals of ROH’s Women’s World Championship tournament will also take place at Death Before Dishonor.
A Last Man Standing match between former tag team partners is set for ROH’s Best in the World pay-per-view.
On this week’s edition of ROH Week By Week, it was announced that Josh Woods will face Silas Young in a Last Man Standing match at Best in the World. The PPV is taking place at the Chesapeake Employers Insurance Arena in Baltimore, Maryland on Sunday, July 11.
Woods defeated Young in a Pure Rules match on the latest episode of ROH TV. Young then interrupted a post-show interview with Woods. Woods wanted to get back on the same page with Young and asked if they were good. Young faked like things were fine between them, but he then low blowed Woods and challenged him to the Last Man Standing match at Best in the World.
Young turned against Woods at ROH’s 19th Anniversary PPV this March. They’re 1-1 in matches against each other since then. Young’s win against his former protege came when he used the ropes for leverage while pinning Woods during a match on ROH TV last month.
Best in the World will be the first ROH show with fans in attendance since February 2020. Brody King vs. Jay Lethal has also been announced for the PPV.
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.
**********
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.
**********
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.
**********
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.
**********
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
**********
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:
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.
The Big Takeaway: On the go-home episode for Final Battle, Mark Briscoe and PCO defeated The Bouncers, and Flip Gordon defeated Josh Woods. We also saw promos from Brian Johnson, Flip Gordon, Tracy Williams, and Taven/Bennett.
Quinn McKay welcomes us to the broadcast. She runs down tonight’s card, including Flip Gordon vs Josh Woods in a Pure Rules contest. Also, Mark Briscoe and PCO take on The Bouncers.
She also ran down the Final Battle card.
McKay then cut to a recap of the aftermath of the contest between Mike Bennett and Vincent last week. A promo that took place after the match aired featuring Bennett and Taven. Taven said that at Final Battle the original Kingdom will put an end to the feud with Vincent for good.
*****
A pre-match promo aired for The Bouncers. Beer City Bruiser claimed he has a legacy to live up to. Bruiser mentions that his tag partner Brian Milonas’ mentor is Killer Kowalski. Milonas mentions that they used to be the fun guys, but they’re now switching gears as a team and focusing on winning matches and tag team gold.
Another pre-match promo aired for Mark Briscoe and PCO. Mark Briscoe says he’s more than happy to throw down with the new version of the Bouncers. PCO says that they’ll rest in hell.
Mark Briscoe and PCO pinned The Bouncers (11:04)
Beer City Bruiser and Mark Briscoe began the contest. Briscoe laid in some elbows early, but Bruiser started a chopping war, which Bruiser won. Briscoe tagged in PCO. PCO came in hot and clotheslined Bruiser, which prompted a Milonas tag. PCO stayed on the attack, delivering constant knife-edge chops. Milonas gained control back with a crossbody and followed it up with a trip to the top rope. PCO brought him down quickly and delivered a knife-edge chop that sent Milonas out of the ring. We went to a commercial break.
Coming back from a commercial, PCO and Bruiser had another chopping war. With Bruiser down, Briscoe pulled him to the apron while PCO headed to the top. PCO dove off, but Bruiser rolled out of the way, causing PCO to hit hard on the apron. Bruiser eventually tagged Milonas in, who threw Briscoe into the turnbuckle. Milonas tagged Bruiser back in, who delivered a spine buster to Briscoe. Milonas went outside and tossed a chair into the ring, but Briscoe used it to his advantage, setting it up and springboarding onto Milonas and Bruiser at ringside. Briscoe rolled Bruiser back in and held him in place for a PCO assault for the pinfall victory.
Quinn McKay met the winners after the match. Briscoe said they’ll beat Jonathan Gresham and Jay Lethal at Final Battle. PCO says they’ll rest in hell.
*****
A promotional video aired for Final Battle. The package ran down the card, including matches like The Righteous vs. Matt Taven and Mike Bennett, Danhausen vs. Brian Johnson, Flip Gordon vs. Jonathan Gresham, and Brody King vs. Rush.
*****
Flip Gordon cut a pre-match promo. He took off a mask with a bunch of holes in it. Gordon claimed he loves the competitive aspect of a Pure rules contest. He says while he’s failed at capturing ROH gold so far, it’s still his primary focus in ROH. Gordon said he wants to be known as more than a high-flyer.
Josh Woods also spoke before the match. He said the Jay Lethal victory has him at a loss for words and is easily the biggest win of his career. Woods said that Gordon’s style of wrestling doesn’t belong in a Pure Rules match.
Flip Gordon pinned Josh Woods in a Pure Rules contest (9:33)
Both men adhere to the Code Of Honor. Woods immediately caught Gordon in an ankle lock, causing Gordon to use his first rope break. Gordon took back the momentum and locked Woods in a side headlock. Gordon tossed Woods out of the ring and dove through the ropes for a suicide dive. Commentary sent us to a commercial break.
Back from the break and Gordon has Woods in an armbar. Gordon sent Woods to the corner and charged him with a forearm. Gordon got Woods on the ropes and began raining in elbows, which cost Gordon a rope break. Woods uses the argument between Gordon and the referee as an advantage, charging Gordon in the corner with a knee. Woods poached Gordon on the top rope, then followed him up there and delivered a superplex. Woods followed up the superplex with a gut-wrench powerbomb, and then tried to lock in a cloverleaf submission. Gordon escaped, went to the top rope, and delivered a moonsault for a two count. Gordon followed it up with a curb stomp for the pinfall victory.
Final Thoughts: On the final stop to Final Battle, ROH put together a good go-home show. It was nice to see The Bouncers have a new layer added to their characters.
I still just don’t understand the PCO and Mark Briscoe pairing. I understand they are two crazy dudes, but it just seems awkward. The Matt Taven and Mike Bennett pairing is working really well; Bennett is a hard working dude who deserves to constantly be on TV. Josh Woods is a guy who is really entertaining for me personally, and a great wrestler. So I most definitely wasn’t a fan of him getting little action versus Flip Gordon. Gordon controlled 85% of the match, which doesn’t make much sense after Woods beat Jay Lethal just two weeks ago. Nonetheless, I’m excited for Final Battle.
Ring of Honor has revealed how Television Champion Dragon Lee’s challenger for Final Battle will be decided.
It was announced today that Tony Deppen, Dak Draper, LSG, and Josh Woods will face off in a four-way match at Final Battle. The winner will go on to challenge Dragon Lee for the TV title later in the show.
Woods picked up a big win on this week’s episode of ROH TV, defeating Jay Lethal in a Pure Rules match. LSG also recently impressed against Lethal. He went to a 15-minute time-limit draw against Lethal in a Pure Rules match on ROH TV last week. Lethal was declared the winner by split decision.
Deppen is a regular for Game Changer Wrestling. He made his ROH debut by losing to PJ Black in the first round of ROH’s recent Pure title tournament. The tournament was won by Jonathan Gresham.
Draper was the winner of last year’s ROH Top Prospect tournament.
After being on hiatus since March due to the COVID-19 pandemic, ROH returned to television production with closed set tapings in Maryland this August. Dragon Lee hasn’t appeared since ROH’s return.
Dragon Lee has been ROH TV Champion since winning the title from Shane Taylor at last year’s Final Battle.
Final Battle is taking place on Friday, December 18. It will air on pay-per-view and HonorClub. Dragon Lee’s brother and La Faccion Ingobernable stablemate Rush will defend his ROH World Championship against Brody King in the main event. EC3 vs. Jay Briscoe is also set for the show.
The Big Takeaway: Josh Woods defeated Jay Lethal in a Pure Rules contest. Brody King defeated Shane Taylor in a brutal, hard-hitting hoss fight. Matt Taven debuted a new talk show, and Mark Briscoe pondered his tag team future.
We began this week’s show with The Foundation. Jonathan Gresham introduced his illustrious faction, staking their claim on Ring Of Honor. Jay Lethal claimed that they aren’t the bad guys, and that they’re just trying to restore honor to their great company. Lethal revealed that the man under the red octopus mask is former ROH Tag Team Champion, Rhett Titus. Tracy Williams told Titus to not remove his mask just yet, because it would just lead to more lack of appreciation. Williams said that they’re here to rebuild Ring Of Honor brick by brick.
*****
We transitioned to the lovely Quinn McKay. She ran down the card for tonight’s show. Shane Taylor vs. Brody King and Josh Woods vs. Jay Lethal are on the schedule.
Next, a package for Josh Woods aired. Woods said he demanded perfection from himself in the Pure Tournament, but fell short to Jonathan Gresham. Woods said that his overall background is more impressive than Lethals career, touting his MMA and amateur wrestling experience. Woods said that he needs this victory over Lethal for fans to change how they feel about him.
We get another package, this time for Jay Lethal. Lethal said that it warms his heart to see pure professional wrestling back in ROH. Lethal called Josh Woods the most dangerous man in the company under pure rules.
Josh Woods pinned Jay Lethal in a Pure Rules contest. (14:02)
Code Of Honor was adhered to. Woods gained control early with a high wristlock. Woods attempted an armbar early which forced Lethal to use his first rope break. Each competitor gets 3 rope breaks under Pure rules. Woods began ground and pound on Lethal, holding him down for multiple pinning maneuvers. Lethal got back some control by countering an armbar with a cartwheel dropkick.
Back from commercial, Lethal had Woods in a camel clutch. This caused Woods to use his first rope break. Woods tried to lift Lethal up for a brainbuster, but his back gave out mid-maneuver. Lethal and Woods began trading brutal forearms to the skull when out of nowhere Woods hit a bridging German Suplex for a two count. Woods rolled out of the ring, but was immediately hit with a Lethal suicide dive.
Lethal threw Woods back in the ring, went to the top rope and attempted his Macho Man elbow drop, but Woods caught him in an armbar. Lethal escaped quickly and went for the Lethal Injection, but Woods caught him again with a rear naked choke. Lethal motioned out quickly, but Woods locked in a knee bar as Lethal was crawling away. Lethal again found a way out of the kneebar, but Woods trapped his legs again and rolled him up for the 3 count.
*****
Matt Taven now has a talk show called Trending With Taven. His first guest was the returning Mike Bennett. Bennett said that he has earned his way back to ROH, and that it’s good to be reunited with Taven. Bennett said Taven needed someone to have his back. A message flashed across the screen telling us that the rest of the interview was available on HonorClub.
*****
We got a promo from Mark Briscoe. He said being 12 time ROH Tag Team champions sounds better than being 11 time champions. He also stated his disappointment in Jay Briscoe for being so focused on EC3. Mark said he’s going for the tag titles with or without Jay.
*****
Brody King spoke on his upcoming match with Shane Taylor. King said he has many similarities with Taylor, but also a lot of differences. Brody said what motivates him is championship gold, while Taylor always feels like he’s owed something. He finished the promo saying that both him and Taylor are both rocks, but King is being shot out of a cannon.
Shane Taylor was next. Taylor said he had a weight lifted off his back after the match with Kenny King. The hypocrisy runs wild in Brody King’s fanbase because if he was running around in a ski mask like King is, everyone would judge him. Taylor said he has nothing against Brody King, but he’s going to beat him.
Brody King pinned Shane Taylor (13:03)
King and Taylor both attempted running shoulder tackles early, but neither man moved an inch. They traded forearms to the jawline before Brody took control and gave Taylor multiple chops and forearms to the chest. Both competitors spilled to the outside and King threw Taylor skull first into the ring post.
Back from commercial, Taylor planted King with a draping DDT off the apron to the floor. Taylor took control, hitting King with hard forearms every time he tried to stand up. Taylor backed up and drove his knee into King, which sent both men through the barricade. Taylor rolled back in the ring, starting a count on King. King rolled in at 19, but Taylor went and began stomping on him immediately. King gained control of the contest by draping Taylor on the ropes and hitting a cannonball on Taylor’s back, giving King a two count. King lifted Taylor’s dead weight and hit a Death Valley driver into the turnbuckle.
Both men are exchanging open palm strikes and forearms following a commercial break. King hit a running swing slam, only getting a two count on Taylor. King tried to follow up with a powerbomb, but Taylor hit a package piledriver with King kicking out at 2.9. King sprung up fast and hit a burning lariat on Taylor, who powered out at a 1 count. King followed up with another burning lariat, which resulted in a pinfall.
*****
Final Thoughts:
I have a hot take: Shane Taylor has been the MVP of ROH since its return. He has put on four high quality matches, and he’s such a great talker. He’s being booked very strongly, even being protected in a loss to Brody King, who also looks phenomenal and seems to be on a collision course with Rush heading into Final Battle.
The Foundation has potential to be an all-time great ROH stable, on the levels of The Age Of The Fall or Generation Next. I’m not sure about the addition of Rhett Titus, but i’ll give it a chance. Lethal vs Woods was a fun watch; Woods has that smug star quality about him that a wrestler needs to succeed.
