Tag: ROH TV

Ring of Honor TV live results: Athena vs. Emi Sakura, Vikingo in action

Posted on by Suit Williams

The first Ring of Honor pay-per-view go-home show of the Tony Khan era has arrived with Thursday’s TV show on HonorClub.

ROH Women’s Champion Athena will defend her title against Emi Sakura with the winner moving onto Friday’s SuperCard of Honor in a title defense against Yuka Sakazaki.

AAA Mega Champion El Hijo del Vikingo will take on Blake Christian.

All five teams involved in Friday’s ladder match for the vacant ROH Tag Team titles will be in action as Rush, Dralistico & The Kingdom face the Lucha Brothers & Top Flight while Aussie Open battles Tony Nese & Ari Daivari.

Thursday will also feature ROH Six-Man Tag Team Champions The Embassy in action ahead of their title defense Friday.

Mark Briscoe will be on hand with some words to say ahead of his challenge of ROH TV Champion Samoa Joe Friday.

Miyu Yamashita will make her ROH debut as she faces Shazza McKenzie.

**********

This week’s ROH was taped on Wednesday as part of the AEW Dynamite taping. from St. Louis, Missouri. Ian Riccaboni and Caprice Coleman are on the call.

This week’s ROH was taped on Wednesday as part of the AEW Dynamite taping. from St. Louis, Missouri. Ian Riccaboni and Caprice Coleman are on the call.

Aussie Open (Kyle Fletcher & Mark Davis) defeated The Varsity Athletes (Tony Nese & Ari Daivari) (w/ Smart Mark Sterling)

Aussie Open made their way to the ring to a big pop from this St. Louis crowd. Fletcher and Daivari started off. Davis tagged in and took down both Varsity Athletes before Fletcher came in to hit tandem offense on both men. Aussie Open were set up for the double forearms, but Sterling hooked Davis’ leg. As Davis was tied up with him, Nese and Daivari worked on Fletcher on the outside.

The Athletes isolated Fletcher in their corner, losing the advantage when Daivari missed a top rope splash. He made the hot tag to Davis, who ran wild on Nese and Daivari with big strikes. Nese escaped a Waterslide attempt but ran right into a pop-up powerslam from Davis for a nearfall. Fletcher tagged in and went for the Dental Plan, but Daivari got in the ring to cut it off.

Aussie Open isolated Nese for the Coreolis, but Sterling got on the apron and cut them off. Nese dumped Davis out of the ring, allowing the Athletes to get tandem offense in on Fletcher. Nese capped off the offensive flurry with a 450 Splash, but Fletcher kicked out.

Fletcher fought off them off long enough for Davis to get in and hit the Dental Plan on Nese. They hit an assisted cutter on Daivari, then ran the Athletes into each other on the floor. They superkicked Sterling, hit the forearm smashes on Nese, then scored the win with Coreolis.

Miyu Yamashita defeated Shazza McKenzie

Yamashita took control early, laying in the kicks to McKenzie’s midsection. McKenzie tripped her up and scored a nearfall with a bulldog. McKenzie hit a set of kitchen sink knees before hitting a Northern Lights Suplex for a two count. Yamashita fought out of an Octopus hold before hitting a triangle corner kick for a nearfall.

A forearm in the corner got Yamashita another nearfall. Yamashita countered an O’Connor Roll and hit a running kick for a two count. McKenzie got Yamashita tied up in the ropes and hit a set of kicks before getting a nearfall with a high crossbody. Yamashita caught McKenzie with a set of mid kicks before hitting a spinning roundhouse kick to score the win.

ROH World Six-Man Tag Team Champions The Embassy (Brian Cage, Toa Liona, & Kaun)(w/ Prince Nana) defeated JD Griffey, Dak Draper, & Arjun Singh

Cage and Draper started, with Cage powering around the 6’7” Draper. After a Cage German suplex, Griffey and Kaun tagged in. Griffey rocked Liona with some strikes, but Liona sent Griffey flying with a beel.

Singh tagged in but got caught with a crossbody from Liona. Kaun tagged in and hit a backbreaker on the top turnbuckle. Liona followed it with a senton on the apron before Cage finished Singh off with the outside-in superplex. A total squash.

Metalik & AR Fox defeated The Infantry (Carlie Bravo & Shawn Dean)

Metalik and Dean started off, with Metalik hitting his signature offense on Dean. Metalik lost Dean on a tilt-a-whirl and Dean looked to land on his head. Dean was well enough to hit tandem offense with Bravo on Metalik soon after. Bravo hit ten punches in the corner on Metalik before sending Dean into Metalik in the corner. The Infantry hit an offensive flurry of splashes and elbows for a nearfall.

Bravo and Dean did more work on Metalik, with Dean hitting a Sky High on Metalik for a nearfall. Bravo put Metalik on the top rope, but Metalik got out and hit a sunset flip powerbomb. Fox tagged in and ran wild on Bravo. He hit a twisting suplex on Dean before dropping Bravo with an enzuigiri. Fox hit the roll through cutter on Bravo for a nearfall.

Metalik took out Dean with a springboard moonsault, but back in the ring, Bravo rolled into a facebuster for a nearfall. After some confusion on a tag, Fox hit Lo Mein Pain on Bravo before Metalik followed it with a rope-walk elbow drop for the win.

ROH Women’s World Championship: Athena © defeated Emi Sakura (w/ Mei Suruga & Baliyan Akki)

Not only would this have fit right in on a Bloodsport card, but it would have been one of the best matches of the night. This was an intense, hard-hitting battle that I highly recommend. My hope is that Sakura gets regular work in ROH, as she’s really been able to get over in her last few appearances on AEW/ROH television.

The winner of this match would go on to defend the title at Supercard of Honor against Yuka Sakazaki.

Sakura brought the fight to Athena to start, sending her to the apron with forearms, and sending her to the floor with a crossbody. Athena sent Sakura into the post before dropping her with a side suplex on the apron. Athena hit a shotgun dropkick that sent Sakura into the apron. Suruga tried to hit a crossbody on Athena, but Athena caught her and dropped her with a bodyslam on the floor. Sakura took advantage of the distraction and sent Athena into the steps, before hitting a crossbody into the steps.

Back in the ring, Athena cut Sakura off on a moonsault attempt and stuck her in the Tree of Woe. Athena drilled Sakura with kicks before clubbering on her in the middle of the ring. After a pair of splashes from Athena, Sakura cut off a third with a chop. Sakura hit a delayed butterfly backbreaker for a nearfall as the crowd chanted her name. Sakura hit a top rope moonsault, but only scored a two count.

The two engaged in a forearm battle that devolved into a chop battle that Sakura won with a lariat. Athena cartwheeled out of Sakura’s reverse DDT and hit a big boot for a nearfall. The crowd gave this a This Is Awesome chant as Athena went to the top rope for the O Face, but Sakura caught Athena and hit the reverse DDT for a nearfall. Sakura followed up with a Tiger Driver for another nearfall.

Sakura hammered Athena with palm strikes before Athena cut her off with a forearm. Athena hit Sakura with the double knee facebuster and transitioned into the Crossface for the win.

After the match, Athena went after Sakura’s knee and trapped it in the stairs. After Suruga tried and failed to cut Athena off, Yuka Sakazaki fought Athena off. The two got into a pull-apart brawl, with Athena beating up security for stopping the fight. Sakazaki hit a crossbody into Athena and a bunch of security before standing tall with the ROH Women’s Title.

The Kingdom (Matt Taven & Mike Bennett) & Los Faccion Ingobernable (Rush & Dralistico) (w/ Maria Kanellis-Bennett & Jose The Assistant) defeated Top Flight (Dante & Darius Martin) & The Lucha Brothers (Rey Fenix & Penta El Zero Miedo)

This was a constant flurry of offense. It was very fun to watch, and a lot harder to do play-by-play for. A great preview for the Reach For The Sky ladder match tomorrow night.

Riccaboni brought up how Taven once lost the ROH World Title to Rush, his partner tonight. After some glove frivolity with Penta and Taven, the match quickly devolved into a Pier Six brawl. The Kingdom cut off a Top Flight dive, allowing LFI to take out the Lucha Brothers on the floor. The rudo team isolated Penta, with the Kingdom hitting tandem offense on both Lucha Brothers. Penta tagged out to Dante Martin, who LFI quickly cut off. Bennett tagged in, with Taven hitting Just the Tip on Martin for a nearfall.

Penta tagged in, and the Lucha Brothers hit superkicks to all four of their opponents. A wheelbarrow splash from Fenix got a nearfall on Taven. Taven hit the Kick of the King on Fenix to set up the Proton Pack, but Penta cut them off and kicked them away. Darius Martin tagged in, with Top Flight hitting tandem offense on Rush and Dralistico. Dralistico hit a springboard codebreaker and followed it with a springboard destroyer. Rush followed up with the Bull’s Horns for the win.

– Mark Briscoe made his way to the ring. He talked about how he wasn’t going to win the ROH TV Title just for himself. He was going to win it for himself, for his kids, for Jay’s kids, and for everyone who has ever rolled with the Briscoes. Briscoe said that winning the TV Title was his destiny. Samoa Joe interjected on the video screen. He said that Briscoe had forgotten who Joe was, but Joe would quickly remind him at Supercard of Honor.

– Dasha Fuentes interviewed Jay Lethal, who asked for this time. He wanted to say something to Mark Briscoe, who was coming back from the ring. Lethal wished Briscoe luck in his title match against Samoa Joe. Lethal played this as a complete babyface.

ROH Pure Championship: Wheeler Yuta © vs. Leon Ruffin

BJ Whitmer, Dean Malenko, & Jerry Lynn were the judges for this Pure Title match. The winner of this match would go on to defend the title against Katsuyori Shibata tomorrow night. Yuta came out with the new design of the Pure Championship.

Yuta quickly tied Ruffin up with a single leg crab, but Ruffin slipped out into a pin cover. Yuta caught Ruffin on an evasion attempt and dropped him with a German suplex. Yuta tied Ruffin up with a Cobra Twist, forcing Ruffin to use his first rope break. The announcers made the connection of Yuta using the foundational hold of training in New Japan as a call out of Shibata.

Yuta tied Ruffin up with a dungeon leg lock, before walking Ruffin closer to the ropes so Ruffin would have to use his second rope break. The announcers made it clear that this was Yuta’s strategy – to force his opponent to exhaust their rope breaks. Ruffin dodged a charge and hit a neckbreaker. Ruffin used springboards to get away from Yuta, but Yuta knocked him out of the sky with a forearm. Yuta locked on a crossface to get the tap and retain the title.

After the match, Yuta ran down the names he’s beaten before saying that Shibata’s efforts wouldn’t be enough. Katsuyori Shibata then made his way to the ring. Yuta tried running him down, but Shibata ripped the microphone out of his hands and went nose-to-nose with him before Yuta left the ring.

El Hijo del Vikingo defeated Blake Christian

Vikingo is as incredible as advertised. He is one of the most breathtaking professional wrestlers that I’ve ever seen in real time. Christian kept up with him, and gave us a fantastic match. Seek this one out.

The AAA Mega Championship was not on the line here. There were people in the St. Louis crowd jumping for joy as Vikingo’s name came up on the video board. They started fast, with no one gaining a clear advantage. Vikingo sidestepped a dropkick and hit a running shooting star press for a nearfall. Vikingo hit a handspring into the corner before hitting a step-up hurricanrana. Vikingo followed it up with a springboard inverted 450 to the floor, which looked as insane as it sounds.

Back in the ring, Vikingo laid some shots into Christian. Christian came back with a low dropkick and a bottom-rope 619. Christian hit a handspring kick that sent Vikingo to the floor, then followed him to the outside with a Fosbury Flop. Christian brought Vikingo back into the ring and scored a nearfall. Christian laid on Vikingo with a chinlock as the crowd chanted for Vikingo. Christian sent Vikingo into the ropes, but Vikingo bounced off the ropes with his arms and hit a hurricane kick.

Vikingo caught Christian on a dive and hit a uranage. He followed it with an outside-in Phoenix Splash for a nearfall. Vikingo went up for the inverted 450, but Christian cut him off and took him down with a German Suplex. Christian met Vikingo on the apron and lifted him up in an electric chair, but Vikingo took him down with a poisonrana. Vikingo went for a Shooting Star Press to the floor, but Christian moved and hit a Spanish Fly. Christian followed it with a 450 splash in the ring, but only got a two count.

This Is Awesome chants rang out as Vikingo fought out of a suplex. Vikingo set Christian up on the top rope before following him to the top. Vikingo went for a reverse Spanish Fly, but they both landed on their feet. Christian hit a lariat and went to follow it with a powerbomb, but Vikingo rolled through with a Frankensteiner for the win. Fans bowed at the men in the ring as Christian and Vikingo shook hands and adhered to the Code of Honor.

– Dasha interviewed Blake Christian in the back. Christian was quickly cut off by Prince Nana, who asked him to bail on tomorrow’s Six-Man Title match before getting his heart broken. Christian said no, so The Embassy jumped him before Christian’s partners – AR Fox & Metalik – ran them off.

Eddie Kingston defeated Christopher Daniels

Dueling chants for both men broke out as they started off. Kingston cut off Daniels with a back elbow before hitting a kitchen sink knee and a butterfly suplex for a nearfall. Kingston hit a Saito Suplex and called for the Backfist, but Daniels ducked it and hit a neckbreaker. Daniels tied Kingston up in the ropes and clubbered on him before sending Kingston into the corner with a hard Irish Whip.

Daniels hit the STO for a nearfall. Kingston peppered Daniels with strikes to the knees, but Daniels hit a facebuster and transitioned into a Koji Clutch. Kingston got to the ropes and initiated a forearm battle that Daniels cut off with a knee to the bread basket. Kingston fought out of an Angel’s Wings attempt and laid in the chops to Daniels. Daniels dropped the straps and laid in the chops to Kingston. We then got one hell of a chop battle as the crowd fired up.

Kingston ducked a chop and hit an enzuigiri, following it with a big boot for a nearfall. Kingston hit a T-Bone suplex that sent Daniels into the corner. Daniels cut off the machine gun chops in the corner before pulling the straps back up. Kingston hit another enzuigiri before scoring the win with two Backfists. Daniels shook Kingston’s hand before ROH World Champion Claudio Castagnoli came out with a brand new World Title belt.

– Kingston and Castagnoli went face-to-face as Claudio held the title up high. Kingston challenged Castagnoli to a title match right here in St. Louis. Castagnoli disrobed and looked ready to fight but bailed at the last second. Kingston got a mic and called Castagnoli an “upside-down diamond.” The crowd smartened me up to what that meant.

– Kingston said that if the fans didn’t order the PPV, they would feel like crap. Kingston said he couldn’t give his mother a daughter-in-law or a granddaughter because he was too focused on pro wrestling. He said that Castagnoli met his parents and shook their hands, but didn’t do business for Kingston when it was time to do it. He left to dress up like a f*****g clown and be an entertainer. Kingston said that the spirit of ROH and former champions like Daniels, Homicide, Xavier, & Low Ki ran through him, and that he would win the ROH World Title.

AEW Rampage & Ring of Honor TV spoilers from St. Louis

Posted on by F4W Staff

The following are spoilers for this Thursday’s Ring of Honor on HonorClub and Friday’s AEW Rampage, taped Wednesday in St. Louis, Missouri, after Dynamite.

Thursday’s ROH show will be the go-home edition ahead of Friday’s Supercard of Honor pay-per-view from Los Angeles.

A total of ten ROH matches were taped, but it is not clear if all will air Thursday.

The spoilers:

Ring of Honor TV on HonorClub:

  • Miyu Yamashita defeated Shazza McKenzie. This was Yamashita’s ROH debut, but she did debut for AEW and work two matches in the summer of 2022.
  • ROH Six-Man Tag Team Champions The Embassy defeated Dak Draper, JD Griffey & Arjun Singh
  • Aussie Open defeated Tony Nese & Ari Daivari
  • Rush, Dralistico & The Kingdom defeated Lucha Brothers & Top Flight
  • Mark Briscoe did an in-ring promo that was interrupted by Samoa Joe building up their match on Friday.
  • ROH Women’s Champion Athena defeated Emi Sakura to retain the title. Yuka Sakazaki made the save for Sakura after a post-match attack. Athena has previously challenged Sakazaki for Supercard of Honor.
  • ROH Pure Champion Wheeler Yuta defeated Leon Ruffin. Katsuyori Shibata, Yuta’s Supercard opponent, appeared for a staredown with Yuta.
  • AR Fox & Metalik defeated Shawn Dean & Carlie Bravo
  • El Hijo Del Vikingo defeated Blake Christian
  • Eddie Kingston defeated Christopher Daniels. Kingston did an interview about his Supercard match against Claudio Castagnoli for the ROH Championship. Castagnoli also appeared during this segment.

AEW Rampage (Friday):

  • Sammy Guevara defeated Konosuke Takeshita
  • Best Friends defeated Kings of the Black Throne by DQ
  • Taya Valkyrie defeated Marina Shafir
  • Juice Robinson defeated Action Andretti

Ring of Honor TV live results: Samoa Joe vs. Cheeseburger

Posted on by Suit Williams

Ahead of their clash at this month’s Supercard of Honor, TV Champion Samoa Joe and Mark Briscoe will be in separate matches on Ring of Honor’s weekly HonorClub TV show.

Joe will defend the title against Cheeseburger in an open challenge while Briscoe takes on Tony Nese.

Former ROH Tag Team Champions Christopher Daniels & Matt Sydal will reunite to take on Aussie Open who is looking to remain undefeated in ROH action.

ROH Six-Man Champion Brian Cage will face former TV Champion Tony Deppen while Matt Taven faces Darius Martin following the events of Dynamite where The Kingdom interfered during Top Flight’s AEW Tag Team title opportunity.

Blake Christian, AR Fox & Metalik will face The Trustbusters’ Ari Daivari, Slim J & Jeeves Kay.

Other matches include Rush & Dralistico vs. Rhett Titus & Tracy Williams, Skye Blue vs. Lady Frost, Billie Starkz vs. Miranda Alize, and Shane Taylor vs. Silas Young.

**********

– The show starts with Lexy Nair in the back with Samoa Joe issuing an Open Challenge for the ROH TV Title tonight to show Mark Briscoe what’s in store for him at Supercard of Honor. Well, I wonder who will answer that one.

Ian Riccaboni and Caprice Coleman were on the call as always as the Varsity Athletes made their way to the ring.

Mark Briscoe defeated Tony Nese (w/Josh Woods & Smart Mark Sterling)

Nese jump-started the match against Briscoe while Briscoe was praying in the corner, but Briscoe quickly got himself on offense. Briscoe took Nese to the floor and threw him around before landing the Cactus Jack elbow off the apron. Sterling took Briscoe’s attention, which allowed Nese to send Briscoe into the ringpost.

Nese took the referee’s attention as Woods laid out Briscoe on the floor with a suplex. Back in the ring, Nese got Briscoe in the tree of woe before doing crunches and kicking a defenseless Briscoe in the chest. Nese sent Briscoe into the corner, but Briscoe countered with a boot. Briscoe went for the Jay Driller, but Nese got out and hit a spin kick to the head for a nearfall.

Briscoe fought out of a body scissors, but Nese hit a hot shot to Briscoe over the ropes. Nese missed a springboard moonsault, allowing Briscoe to unload with chops in the corner. Iconoclasm out of the corner from Briscoe only got a nearfall. Briscoe hit a capture suplex and the big neckbreaker for a nearfall. Nese slipped out of a Redneck Boogie attempt, but Briscoe hit a brainbuster.

Nese escaped another Jay Driller attempt, but Briscoe caught Nese with the Spicolli Driver. Briscoe hit the Froggy Bow to score the win. We got a Big Murph sighting as Briscoe embraced his family in the crowd.

AR Fox, Blake Christian & Metalik defeated The Trustbusters (Ari Daivari, Jeeves Kay & Slim J) (w/ Smart Mark Sterling)

This match had a pretty hot finish, but I’m very tired of the Trustbusters. That may not bode well for me as the Ring of Honor reviewer.

Fox kicked off the match with Jeeves Kay, who took Fox down with some quick offense before Fox answered with fast offense of his own. Christian and Daivari tagged in, with Christian using his speed to run Daivari down. Christian hit a springboard crossbody for a nearfall. Daivari sent Christian into the corner where Christian got clubbered on by the Trustbusters.

The Trustbusters worked over Christian for a while before Christian got the tag into Metalik. Metalik fired up on Daivari, walking the ropes before hitting a splash for two. Metalik got sent to the floor where Daivari sent him ribs first into the apron. More clubbering on Metalik before Metalik hit a handspring elbow on Kay. Daivari cut off a tag before taking a springboard elbow.

Eventually, Fox got the hot tag in and fired up on all three Trustbusters with cutters. Fox used Kay as a base to hit a dive on Daivari and Slim J on the floor. Christian hit a twisting dive to the floor onto all three men. Kay used a Sterling distraction to hit an underhook suplex for a nearfall. There was a Tower of Doom spot that took Kay and Slim J out, leading to Fox hitting a cutter and a 450 for the win.

The bell rang and The Embassy immediately jumped Fox, Christian, and Metalik before standing tall.

Skye Blue defeated Lady Frost

Frost is a great athlete with a lot of impressive offense and a good look. I’d be looking at locking her down if I were in the ROH office.

Blue caught Frost with a pair of armdrags, before Frost sent her into the corner and hit a high boot. Frost hit a hurricane kick to Blue in the corner before hitting an acrobatic cannonball for a nearfall. Frost kept control with a kneesault before booting Blue off the apron. Frost hit another cannonball off the apron to Blue on the floor.

Frost and Blue traded kicks before they both went down to the mat. Blue picked up the pace on offense, ending with a spinning ground kick for a nearfall. Frost cartwheeled her way into an Air Raid Crash for a nearfall. Blue cut Frost off on a moonsault attempt, hitting a high crossbody of her own for a nearfall. Blue hit the Skyfall to score the win.

La Faccion Ingobernable (Dralistico & Rush) (w/Jose The Assistant) defeated The Foundation (Rhett Titus & Tracy Williams)

We got a hot start to this one, as LFI shunned the Code of Honor before brawling with Titus and Williams. Rush and Dralistico isolated Williams, as Dralistico hit a hurricane kick to take Williams down. Williams took a lot of punishment, but eventually hit a crotch-lift suplex on Dralistico to get the tag out to Titus.

Titus and Rush got into a mighty forearm battle before Titus caught Rush with a belly-to-belly suplex. Titus hit a pair of yakuza kicks before Williams joined him in tandem offense. Titus pinned Rush before Dralistico fell into the pile. I think he meant to break up the pin. Everybody took each other out, with the exchange ending with Williams spearing Rush out of a Bull’s Horns attempt.

Rush suplexed Titus into the corner as Dralistico dived onto Williams on the outside. Rush set up the Bull’s Horns, with the crowd finishing Rush’s catchphrase – Mess with the bull, you get the horns – as he hit the dropkick in the corner for the win.

– Caprice Coleman had a sit-down interview with Eddie Kingston and ROH World Champion Claudio Castagnoli. Castagnoli apologized for saying Kingston didn’t have honor, but restated his claim that a person like Kingston couldn’t hold the title. Kingston said that the ROH Title was in his lineage, as his mentors held the same title. He called Castagnoli a coward who didn’t do business – referencing Castagnoli leaving the CHIKARA promotion when he signed with WWE while feuding with Kingston – and said he would force him to do business this time. Castagnoli called Kingston a quitter who always quit when the work got too hard. Castagnoli accepted Kingston’s title challenge for Supercard of Honor, saying that after he loses, Kingston will complain and quit again. Castagnoli called Kingston the biggest waste of potential he’s ever seen, and that he will not be able to handle Castagnoli at his best. I couldn’t do this justice, this was a fantastic interview setting up the World Title match for next weekend.

Matt Taven (w/Maria Kanellis-Bennett & Mike Bennett) defeated Darius Martin

This was good, but it had a few too many shenanigans for my liking. ROH has done well at not utilizing interference too often, so I’m not upset at it. But I prefer the clean wrestling the ROH arm usually employs.

Martin started hot, sending Taven to the floor with a dropkick. Martin worked on Taven’s arm before Bennett and Maria got involved, allowing Taven to hit a springboard kick to Martin on the apron. Maria took the referee while Bennett forearmed Martin on the floor. Taven hit a backbreaker to Martin in the ring for a nearfall.

Taven hit a legsweep but missed a springboard senton. Martin picked up the pace, avoiding Just The Tip for a nearfall. Taven hit a spin kick to take Martin down again, but Martin caught him with a Manhattan Drop as he came off the top rope. Martin hit an outside-in flatliner for a nearfall. Martin countered the Climax and hit a Spanish Fly for a nearfall that Taven immediately turned into a crucifix pin for a nearfall of his own.

Taven caught Martin with Just the Tip before catching knees on a frog splash. Martin went after both Taven and Bennett on the floor but Maria tripped him up on his way back into the ring, allowing Taven to hit the Climax for the win. They went to do more damage before Dante Martin came in to stop the extracurriculars.

Brian Cage (w/Bishop Kaun, Prince Nana & Toa Liona) defeated Tony Deppen

Tony Deppen looked a lot better this week than he did against Samoa Joe. His work was cleaner, and the crowd took to him.

Deppen landed a couple of slaps on Cage as he bounced around him, but Cage caught him with a superkick before hitting the outside-in superplex. Cage kept control of Deppen but took time to toy around with him. Deppen slipped from Cage’s grip and hit a lungblower out of the corner. Deppen followed it up with a cannonball dive to the floor and running knees to the face.

Deppen hit a double stomp off the top rope for a nearfall. Cage avoided a Shining Wizard before hitting a rebound lariat. Deppen caught Cage with a small package and got a jumping knee in before Cage shut him down with a Drillclaw for the win. The Embassy beat down Deppen after the match before Metalik, Blake Christian, & AR Fox came out with weapons to avenge the attack from earlier.

Shane Taylor (w/JD Griffey) defeated Silas Young

This crowd is into Shane Taylor, as am I. Taylor was a highlight of the previous era of ROH, as well as the Final Battle show in December, so I hope he’s got big things in his future.

The crowd was behind Taylor as the men locked up. Taylor took down Young with a shoulder block, but Young hung Taylor up on the ropes. They traded forearms before Taylor sent Young to the floor with a heavy elbow. Taylor missed a legdrop on the apron, with Young hitting a knee that sent Taylor to the floor.

Young worked on Taylor, with Taylor sneaking in a crucifix pin for a nearfall. Young kept Taylor on the mat with elbow drops. Young talked trash, allowing Taylor to catch Young with a lariat. Taylor went on the offensive, catching Young with a knee and a Sky High for a nearfall. Young caught Taylor with knees of his own and a tornado DDT for a two count.

Young tried to pick Taylor up, but Taylor took him down with a headbutt before picking him up into a uranage for a nearfall. Young avoided the package piledriver, hitting Taylor with the spinning knee. Young got Taylor up for the rolling slam but missed the Pee Gee Waja Plunge. Taylor hit a running knee before planting Young with the Package Piledriver for the win.

Billie Starkz defeated Miranda Alize

Alize was called the Lucha Baddie, and after slapping the hand of Starkz, she definitely displayed rudo tendencies. Alize bit the hand of Starkz, but Starkz hit a half-and-half suplex before diving onto Alize on the floor. Starkz missed the double stomp, leading to Alize yanking her down by the hair to the mat. Alize clubbered on Starkz in the corner before catching her with a back elbow.

Alize sent Starkz into the ropes before hitting the La Mistica – which she calls the Miranda Rights – before Starkz escaped and hit a knee that got Alize off of her. Starkz hit a pinpoint back heel kick before hitting a Spicolli Driver for a nearfall. Alize cut her off on the apron before hitting a basement rana for a nearfall. Starkz hit a brainbuster on the knee for a nearfall before missing a senton.

Alize went for the Drive By shining wizard, but Starks avoided it with a rollup for two. Alize went for the Miranda Rights again, but Starkz caught her with a Tombstone Piledriver for the win.

Aussie Open (Kyle Fletcher & Mark Davis) defeated Christopher Daniels & Matt Sydal

Aussie Open has been the unquestioned highlight of Ring of Honor television, as they have had several excellent matches on the show. This was no exception, as Daniels and Sydal worked so well with them here in front of a red hot crowd. I can’t recommend this one enough.

Daniels & Sydal must have the advantage here, with all the flying Aussie Open have been doing between the US and Japan. Flatcher and Sydal started, with Sydal catching Fletcher with a rollup for two. Daniels came in, with Fletcher quickly slamming him down and tagging out to Davis. Davis laid in chops to Daniels, but Daniels tripped him into the corner before landing a lariat to the back of the head.

Sydal and Daniels double teamed Davis, with Sydal throwing Daniels up and over onto Davis before landing a standing moonsault. Daniels went for a sunset flip on Davis, but Fletcher got a blind tag. They took out both Daniels and Sydal before crashing them into each other on the outside.

Aussie Open worked on Daniels, with Davis starting a vertical suplex before passing him off to Fletcher. Daniels caught Fletcher in an inside cradle for two. More work on Daniels, but as Aussie Open went for the tandem cutter, Daniels fought his way out with a flatliner to Davis.

Sydal got the tag in and laid in the kicks on both men. Sydal hit an incredible frankensteiner for a nearfall. Sydal hit a jumping frankensteiner to Fletcher out of the corner for another nearfall. Davis cut Sydal off as he went to the top rope, allowing Fletcher to hit a boot in the corner. Daniels low bridged Davis to the floor, and helped Sydal hit a powerbomb/meteora combination for two. A run of big moves left Fletcher and Daniels in the ring as the crowd chanted ROH.

Davis hip tossed Daniels to the floor before going for the Close Your Eyes piledriver on Sydal. Sydal caught Davis with a frankensteiner and fought both men off before getting caught with the Dental Plan and the tandem cutter for a nearfall that Daniels broke up. Daniels dragged Sydal to the corner to tag in. Daniels hit a double noggin knocker before getting a nearfall on a Blue Thunder Bomb.

Angel’s Wings attempt got cut off, but Daniels avoided the Dental Plan. Sydal tried cutting off Aussie Open, but Fletcher cut him off with a spinning Tombstone. Daniels went for the Angel’s Wings on Fletcher, but Davis cut him off with a forearm. Aussie Open hit the double forearms on Daniels before landing the Coreolis for the win.

ROH World Television Title Match: Samoa Joe (c) defeated Cheeseburger

Ah, ok. Joe immediately drilled Cheeseburger with punches in the corner and a lariat. A Muscle Buster ended this one almost immediately. After the match, Joe landed a second Muscle Buster while calling out Mark Briscoe. Joe grabbed a chair and went to do more damage, but Mark Briscoe came out with a chair of his own as the show went off the air.

Daniels & Sydal vs. Aussie Open announced for next week’s ROH TV

Posted on by Ethan Renner

Christopher Daniels & Matt Sydal vs. Aussie Open is one of six matches announced for next week’s Ring of Honor TV.

After defeating The Outrunners on this week’s ROH TV, Daniels & Sydal were challenged by Kyle Fletcher & Mark Davis of Aussie Open to a future contest. That match was made official for next week’s episode. 

Ahead of challenging Samoa Joe for the ROH TV title at Supercard of Honor, Mark Briscoe will be in action on next week’s show against Tony Nese. 

In a women’s division contest, Skye Blue will take on Lady Frost on next week’s episode.

Continuing the issue between Top Flight and The Kingdom, Darius Martin will be in singles action against Matt Taven next week.

The Trustbusters will face AR Fox, Blake Christian, and Metalik in a trios bout on next week’s show. 

Also announced, Silas Young will take on Shane Taylor. 

Next week’s lineup: 

Ring of Honor TV, Thursday, March 23, 7 p.m. Eastern time on Honor Club —

  • Christopher Daniels & Matt Sydal vs. Aussie Open
  • Mark Briscoe vs. Tony Nese
  • Skye Blue vs. Lady Frost
  • The Trustbusters vs. AR Fox, Blake Christian & Metalik
  • Darius Martin vs. Matt Taven
  • Silas Young vs. Shane Taylor

Ring of Honor TV live results: Claudio Castagnoli vs. Willie Mack

Posted on by Suit Williams

Ring of Honor World Champion Claudio Castagnoli and ROH Women’s Champion Athena will each be in Proving Ground matches on Thursday’s ROH on HonorClub.

Castagnoli will face Willie Mack while Athena takes on Hyan. If either challenger beats the champion or goes to the time limit, they earn a future title shot.

ROH Pure Champion Wheeler Yuta will defend his title against NJPW standout Clark Connors while ROH Six-Man Champions The Embassy (Brian Cage & Gates of Agony) defend against former champions Dalton Castle & The Boys.

Eddie Kingston will continue his pursuit of both Castagnoli and a title shot as he takes on Jeeves Kay of the Trustbusters. Kay’s teammates Ari Daivari & Slim J will battle the newly-formed team of Blake Christian & Gran Metalik.

Some of the other action will include Christopher Daniels & Matt Sydal, Rush & Dralistico, Trish Adora, Dante Martin, Silas Young and more.

**********

Ian Riccaboni and Caprice Coleman are on the call as I pull myself away from March Madness coverage to give you your Ring of Honor coverage!

Proving Ground Match: ROH World Champion Claudio Castagnoli vs. Willie Mack

A solid showing from Mack against the World Champion. Mack is always a crowd favorite, and he had the crowd behind him here.

This match has a 10-minute time limit. If Mack lasts the time limit or beats Castagnoli within the 10 minutes, he will get a title shot in the future.

After an early feeling-out process, Mack sent Castagnoli to the floor with an armdrag. Back in the ring, Mack hit a headscissors for a nearfall. Mack loaded up Castagnoli for a suplex, but Castagnoli powered him up for a suplex of his own. Castagnoli sent Mack off the ropes, but Mack came back with a running kick for a 2 count.

Castagnoli cut off a uranage attempt, sending Mack into the corner and drilling him with forearms. A lariat gave Castagnoli a nearfall, and a butterfly suplex scored another nearfall on Mack. Mack caught Castagnoli with a pop-up samoan drop. After a double down that almost resulted in a double knockout, Mack nipped up and hit a standing moonsault for a nearfall.

A forearm exchange ended in a spinebuster from Mack for a nearfall. Mack went to the top for a frog splash, but Castagnoli moved and knocked Mack out with a running uppercut to score the win.

Dante Martin (w/ Darius Martin) defeated Mike Bennett (w/ The Kingdom)

This was a quite good singles match from these tag team specialists. Bennett has consistently improved since his WWE run, becoming a sneaky highlight on most shows he’s on. Him and Dante Martin worked well together here heating up this tag team feud.

Bennett refused the Code of Honor to start. I believe he’s the first person to do that since the reboot, so put that on your Trivial Pursuit cards.

These two quickly got into a chop exchange that Martin won before drilling Bennett with a dropkick and a plancha to the floor. Maria got in Martin’s way, which allowed Bennett to hit a rebound forearm. Bennett dropped Martin with a piledriver on the ramp before booking it to the ring for the countout. Martin made it back in at 17, with Bennett going for a quick cover that only got a one count.

Bennett dropped Martin with a hammerlock DDT. After jawing at Darius Martin on the floor, Dante did his evasion springboard before hitting a big enzuigiri. Martin got Bennett into package piledriver position before pulling him up into a powerbomb for a nearfall. The men traded strikes before Bennett cut Martin in half with a spear. Martin kicked out of the cover, but Bennett immediately transitioned into the London Dungeon submission.

Martin got to the ropes to break the hold. Bennett went to the top rope, but Martin cut him off with punches and a gamengiri. Martin went to follow him, but Bennett got him on his shoulders. Martin got up just enough to hit a hurricanrana before hitting a frog splash for a nearfall. Bennett tried to catch Martin with a kimura, but Martin turned it into a pinning predicament that forced Bennett to kick out. Martin hit a full-nelson slam to score the win.

After the match, Matt Taven attacked Martin, but Darius Martin cut him off quickly and sent them packing.

Metalik & Blake Christian defeated Ari Daivari & Slim J (w/ Smart Mark Sterling)

Riccaboni informed us that Slim J wears and tears $350 designer t-shirts to the ring. Wear it if you got it, I suppose. Metalik got the first advantage with a backbreaker and a Slingblade-style bulldog. Metalik hit the ropewalk dropkick for a nearfall. Daivari got the advantage with a back elbow after Metalik involved himself with Slim J. The crowd greeted Slim J with Slim J Sucks chants. A double suplex on Metalik got a nearfall for the Trustbusters.

Metalik escaped a back suplex to get a tag out to Christian. Christian ran wild on both men before Slim J cut him off and hit a bodyslam on the floor. Back in the ring, Slim J hit a springboard reverse DDT for a nearfall on Christian.

Christian hit a handspring kick to Daivari before getting the hot tag into Metalik. Slim J cut Metalik off with a rana and a big move in the corner for a nearfall. Slim J missed a moonsault, allowing Metalik to hit a moonsault of his own. As Christian took out Daivari on the floor with a Fosbury Flop, Metalik hit the Metalik Driver for the win.

– We got a video package hyping up Samoa Joe vs. Mark Briscoe for the ROH World TV Title, a match made official for Supercard of Honor. Ian Riccaboni stated that Samoa Joe has never lost to Mark Briscoe.

– Mark Briscoe challenged Tony Nese for next week to clear up his issues with Smart Mark Sterling and his Varsity Athletes before Supercard of Honor.

– We get a recap of Mark Briscoe’s appearance on Rampage announcing the Reach For The Sky Ladder Match for the ROH World Tag Team Titles at Supercard of Honor.

Eddie Kingston defeated Jeeves Kay

Claudio Castagnoli took a seat in the crowd early into this match. Kingston quickly took the match to the outside in Castagnoli’s direction, throwing Kay into the barricade in front of Castagnoli. Castagnoli stood up with coffee all over his shirt, clearly upset before leaving ringside.

Kay hit a suicide dive on Kingston while he was distracted. Kay followed it up with a frog splash for a nearfall. Kingston took control right back, ending things in short order with the Stretch Plum.

– Lexy Nair interviewed the Trustbusters. Smart Mark Sterling tried to talk away the losses, but Daivari angrily challenged Metalik and Blake Christian to a trios match if they could find a partner.

Proving Ground Match: ROH Women’s World Champion Athena defeated Hyan

Proving Ground rules – If the challenger lasts 10 minutes or wins, they get a future title match.

Athena drilled Hyan with a forearm to start before clubbering on her in the corner. Hyan went for a set of flash pins before landing kicks that only scored a one count. Athena caught Hyan off the ropes with a spinning chokeslam before menacing the referee.

Hyan fired up, landing a front slam and a legdrop on Athena that scored another one count. Athena cut Hyan off the top rope with a forearm. Athena dropped Hyan off the apron with a powerbomb to the floor. She sent Hyan into the stairs before throwing her into the ring for a nearfall. Athena immediately locked on a crossface for the quick tap out. After the match, Athena threw Hyan face-first into the Women’s Title before celebrating with the belt.

– Lexy Nair was backstage with Metalik and Blake Christian. Christian introduced their partner for next week – AR Fox – before letting everyone know that they would keep an eye on the ROH Six-Man Title match tonight.

Silas Young defeated Marcus Kross

Kross countered a Young suplex with an inside cradle for a nearfall. That led to a pinning predicament, which ended with Young taking Kross down with a lariat. Young dropped Kross with a heavy Irish Whip into the corner. Kross countered another whip before hitting a springboard crossbody. Young cut off Kross and hit the Pee Gee Waja Plunge for the win.

– After the match, Young took the mic and hyped himself up. After calling himself the best ROH TV Champion in history, Shane Taylor stepped up. He took issue with Young’s claim and made a challenge for next week.

– Lexy Nair interviewed Athena. Athena took the mic and asked Lexy the whereabouts of Yuka Sakazaki. Athena said that since Sakazaki was wrestling in Japan despite being injured at Athena’s hands, that meant that Sakazaki was afraid of her. Athena challenged Sakazaki to a title match at Supercard of Honor.

ROH World Six-Man Championship: The Embassy (Brian Cage, Toa Liona, & Kaun) (w/ Prince Nana) defeated Dalton Castle & The Boys (Brent & Brandon)

Castle started with Kaun, quickly catching him with a suplex. The Boys tagged in to hit trios offense, but Kaun quickly took control of Boy Brent. Liona tagged in and mauled Brent before Brandon got a quick tag in. All three men worked on Liona, with their work only scoring a one-count. Castle got caught in the wrong corner, but evaded to make a tag to Boy Brandon.

Cage tagged in and caught Brandon on a springboard with a slam as Liona sent Castle into the ring steps. The Embassy isolated Brandon, with Kaun dropping him with a backdrop on the top rope. Liona crushed Brandon with a senton on the apron before Cage took him up and over with a superplex. After hitting a trios pose, Liona dumped Brandon with a spinebuster for a nearfall.

Brandon avoided a Liona charge to get a tag out to Castle, who sent Cage and Kaun flying with suplexes. Castle got Kaun in position for Bangarang, but Prince Nana cut it off. Cage took out Castle with an F-5 before the Boys hit tandem offense to take Cage out. Liona and Kaun double-teamed the Boys before slamming Brandon onto Brent to score the win.

After the match, the Embassy put the boots to Castle and the Boys before AR Fox, Metalik, and Blake Christian made the save. Good thing they were keeping a close eye on this one.

Trish Adora defeated Madison Rayne

Adora took Rayne over with a Northern Lights Suplex out of an arm lock for a nearfall. Rayne tried a Crucifix Bomb, but Adora held her up and rolled through into a pinfall for a two count. Rayne got a boot in for a nearfall, but Adora caught Rayne off the ropes with a back elbow. Adora hit another Northern Lights with control of the arm for a nearfall.

Rayne countered the Lariat Tubman with a DDT for a nearfall. Rayne eventually hit a Cloud Cutter for a nearfall, before hitting the Crucifix Bomb for another nearfall. Somewhere in here, the ref told Rayne the time. Adora worked her way out of the Cross Rayne by yanking on the bad arm before hitting the Lariat Tubman for the win.

– Lexy Nair was backstage with Top Flight. Darius Martin let Matt Taven know ahead of their singles match next week that this Kingdom was theirs for the taking.

Christopher Daniels & Matt Sydal defeated The Outrunners (Truth Magnum & Turbo Floyd)

A great use of two talented veterans, re-uniting their team steeped in ROH history.

The Outrunners double-team Daniels to start. Daniels worked his way to the corner to get the tag to Sydal, who quickly took Floyd down with a cross-legged slam. Daniels and Sydal took them both out before Sydal finished off Floyd with the Lightning Spiral.

– After the match, Aussie Open made their way to the stage. Kyle Fletcher stated their desire to be World Tag Team Champions before making the challenge for a future tag team match. After they left, Daniels made sure to accept.

– We got a video hyping the main event.

ROH Pure Championship: Wheeler Yuta defeated Clark Connors to retain

Another great title defense from Yuta. His heel edge stands out within the rules of Pure Title matches, and it has gotten this crowd to turn on him quickly. The match of the night. The challenge made in the post-match is incredibly exciting, making for a huge possible title defense for Supercard of Honor.

The judges for this match were Dean Malenko, BJ Whitmer, and Colt Cabana. As always, both men get three rope breaks before any holds in the ropes are legal. A closed fist punch gets a warning, a second gets a disqualification.

Connors overpowered Yuta, laying him out with shoulder blocks. Yuta baited Connors into throwing a shot before tying him up with a submission, forcing Connors to use his first rope break. Connors caught Yuta with a vertical suplex for a nearfall. Connors went for the Trophy Kill, but Yuta kicked Connors and caught him with a Cobra Twist. Connors walked to the ropes and used his second rope break.

Yuta threw his wrist tape to the side, distracting the referee so he could land an illegal closed fist punch on Connors. Yuta worked on Connors’ arm and shoulder, sending him into the turnbuckle in a hammerlock for a nearfall. Yuta tried his rebound into the ring, but Connors cut him off with the Jeep Flip. Connors ran wild, but the Trophy Kill got countered again, with Yuta hitting a drop toe hold into the corner.

Yuta hit a forearm off the top rope before following it up with a German suplex. Connors came out of the corner with the Trophy Kill, but couldn’t make a cover because he hit it with the bad shoulder. Both men rose to their knees before engaging in a strike exchange, but Yuta cut off Connors with a dropkick. Yuta locked Connors’ legs under him and taunted him, leading Connors to hit a closed fist punch to escape. Yuta followed it with a blatant closed fist punch – his second of the match, but the first seen by the referee.

Connors countered the hammer and anvil elbows with a roll-up that he turned into the ankle lock. Yuta used his first rope break, but Connors followed quickly with a set of suplexes. Connors lost him on a third suplex with the bad arm, and Yuta transitioned it into a crossface with the arm. Connors went to use his third rope break, but Yuta caught his arm and transitioned into the Seatbelt pin to score the win.

– After the match, Yuta restated his claim that the Blackpool Combat Club was the best training academy in wrestling. After beating a New Japan Dojo student, he now wants to graduate to the teacher. Yuta made the challenge official – he wants Katsuyori Shibata. Claudio Castagnoli comes out to celebrate as the show ends.

Eddie Kingston match part of updated Ring of Honor TV lineup

Posted on by Josh Nason

Several new matches have been announced for this Thursday’s Ring of Honor TV.

Eddie Kingston will make his return to ROH proper as he faces the debuting Ben Dejo (aka Serepentico/Jon Cruz). Last week, Kingston challenged Claudio Castagnoli for the ROH World title.

Kingston was part of ROH from 2006 through 2014 and also wrestled a match for the Jay Briscoe Celebration of Life earlier this year.

Past ROH Women’s title challenger Trish Adora will take on the debuting Billie Starkz.

Rush & Dralistico take on Angelico & Serpentico while The Trustbusters’ Ari Daivari & Slim J will be in action against Jake Crist & Man Scout.

The new additions join a lineup that will see three titles defended.

  • ROH Pure Champion Wheeler Yuta defends against Timothy Thatcher
  • ROH Women’s Champion Athena defends against Willow Nightingale
  • ROH TV Champion Samoa Joe defends against Tony Deppen
  • Aussie Open vs. Tracy Williams & Rhett Titus
  • Eddie Kingston vs. Ben Dejo
  • Trish Adora vs. Billie Starkz
  • Rush & Dralistico vs. Angelico & Serpentico
  • Dalton Castle & The Boys vs. C4 & Marcus Kross

Three title matches announced for next week’s ROH TV

Posted on by Ethan Renner

Three Championships will be on the line on the March 9 episode of ROH TV.

Timothy Thatcher answered an open challenge from ROH Pure Champion Wheeler Yuta on this week’s ROH TV, with the match made official for next week’s episode. 

The ROH Women’s World Championship will also be up for grabs on next week’s show, as Athena defends her title against Willow Nightingale. Willow issued a challenge to Athena on this week’s episode. After initially turning Willow down, Athena then accepted the challenge. 

The ROH World Television Championship will also be defended next week. Samoa Joe will defend the title against Tony Deppen, a former ROH TV Champion himself. 

Dalton Castle versus an unnamed opponent was also announced for next week’s show, as was a tag team match pitting Aussie Open’s Kyle Fletcher and Mark Davis against “Hot Sauce” Tracy Williams and Rhett Titus. 

The announced lineup for next week’s ROH TV: 

ROH TV, Thursday, March 9, 7 p.m. Eastern time on Honor Club —

  • ROH Pure Championship: Wheeler Yuta (c) vs. Timothy Thatcher
  • ROH Women’s World Championship: Athena (c) vs. Willow Nightingale
  • ROH World Television Championship: Samoa Joe (c) vs. Tony Deppen
  • Aussie Open vs. Tracy Williams & Rhett Titus
  • Dalton Castle in action 

NJPW World TV title match announced for ROH TV return episode

Posted on by Joseph Currier

Two new match announcements have been made for the return episode of Ring of Honor television.

It was announced today that Konosuke Takeshita vs. Josh Woods will air on this Thursday’s episode of ROH TV. 

It was later revealed that NJPW World TV Champion Zack Sabre Jr. will defend his title against Blake Christian on the show. This will be ZSJ’s third defense of the title since defeating Ren Narita to become the inaugural champion at Wrestle Kingdom 17. 

The show airs on HonorClub starting at 7 p.m. Eastern time.

The day before the ROH TV episode airs, Takeshita will be part of the Face of the Revolution ladder match on AEW Dynamite. Ortiz, Komander, Action Andretti, Sammy Guevara, Powerhouse Hobbs, Eddie Kingston, and AR Fox will be the other ladder match participants.

Woods has been part of the ROH roster since before the promotion was purchased by Tony Khan. Woods is a former ROH Pure Champion.

The first ROH TV tapings of the Khan era were held at Universal Studios in Orlando on Saturday and Sunday.

Here’s what’s been announced for the return episode:

  • ROH World Champion Claudio Castagnoli defends against AR Fox
  • NJPW World TV Champion Zack Sabre Jr. defends against Blake Christian
  • Konosuke Takeshita vs. Josh Woods
  • Mark Briscoe vs. Slim J
  • Willow Nightingale vs. Lady Frost

World title match set for ROH TV return

Posted on by Bryan Rose

The first main event for the return of ROH television has been set.

Tony Khan on Twitter confirmed that Claudio Castagnoli will defend the ROH World Championship against AR Fox on the first episode of ROH television that will air next Thursday, March 2, on ROH’s Honor Club streaming service.

“The New Era of Honor will begin this Thursday with ROH World Champion Claudio Castagnoli defending the title vs. a man who cost him $100,000 at Christmas, AR Fox,” Khan wrote.

The match Khan is referring to is the Three Kings Christmas Casino Trios Battle Royal that took place on the December 21 edition of AEW Rampage. Dante Martin last eliminated Castagnoli to win the match for himself, Darius Martin, and Fox, with all three receiving $100,000 in storyline.

ROH is taping television for the first time in over a year Saturday in Orlando, Florida. The promotion’s next pay-per-view will be Supercard of Honor, which takes place on March 31 in Los Angeles during WrestleMania 39 weekend.

Tony Khan reveals premiere date for weekly ROH TV

Posted on by Ian Carey

Ring of Honor’s new weekly television series has a premiere date. 

In an interview with SI.com released Wednesday, ROH owner Tony Khan revealed the show will debut Thursday, March 2, 2023, on HonorClub. The first episode will air exactly one year from the date that Khan announced he purchased the promotion. 

Khan also confirmed that the first set of tapings will take place Saturday, February 25, and Sunday, February 26, 2023, from Universal Studios in Orlando. 

Khan said:

Ring of Honor TV is coming Thursday, March 2 on HonorClub.

We’ll have our first tapings on Feb. 25 and 26 at Universal Studios in Orlando, and we’re going to put tickets on sale for the inaugural taping on Thursday. Those will be the first-ever tapings of the new Ring of Honor.

He would continue to promote Ring of Honor’s streaming service, HonorClub, which was relaunched in December. 

We also have the library on the HonorClub with 20 years of matches. All the Briscoes-FTR matches are available, including Final Battle from December, and those matches are going to stand the test of time in wrestling. Ring of Honor has a tremendous history. We have been able to introduce it with a further reach across the world this past year, and I’m excited to finally introduce weekly Ring of Honor shows.

HonorClub is available through the ROH app on IOS, Android, Amazon FireTV, and Roku as well as through WatchROH.com. A subscription to the streaming service costs $9.99 USD per month. 

Ticket information for the first set of ROH tapings will be announced tonight on AEW Dynamite during the Mark Briscoe vs. Josh Woods match. 

Tony Khan: ‘We’ll have great news soon’ about weekly ROH shows

Posted on by Joseph Currier

A new weekly Ring of Honor television series looks close to becoming a reality.

In an interview with Sports Illustrated that was published on Tuesday, AEW and ROH owner Tony Khan stated that there will soon be “great news” about weekly ROH shows.

Khan said there will be one more ROH pay-per-view before the end of the year, and ROH plans to follow that up with a weekly show in 2023.

“We’ll have great news soon about Ring of Honor weekly shows,” Khan said. “The success of Death Before Dishonor on pay-per-view has ensured there will be more Ring of Honor pay-per-views.

“Our goal is to have one more great pay-per-view for Ring of Honor in 2022 and then follow that up with a weekly show in 2023.”

ROH’s annual Final Battle event, which traditionally takes place in December, is likely to be the promotion’s last PPV of 2022.

Khan purchased ROH from Sinclair Broadcast Group this March. There have been two ROH PPVs held since Khan bought the promotion.

It was announced on Tuesday that Chris Jericho, the current ROH World Champion, has signed a three-year contract extension with AEW. Khan told Sports Illustrated that he thinks this has been one of the greatest years of Jericho’s career.

“I’m a huge fan of Chris Jericho. I’ve followed his career for over 27 years, and I believe he’s putting forth one of the greatest years of his career this year,” Khan said. “He is one of the biggest stars in pro wrestling, and he is incredibly valuable for AEW.”

ROH TV airs final episode on Sinclair Broadcast Group stations

Posted on by Ethan Renner

ROH TV’s 10-year run on Sinclair Broadcast Group stations has come to an end. 

This weekend’s episode of ROH TV was the final that will air on Sinclair stations, and Dave Meltzer reports that Sinclair did not have interest in continuing to air the product after selling the wrestling company to AEW owner Tony Khan. 

Dave writes: 

ROH finished up on Sinclair this weekend. So that tells you that the deal where Sinclair sold the promotion to Tony Khan didn’t include interest in keeping the show on the air. 

Sinclair purchased Ring of Honor Wrestling from Cary Silkin in a deal announced in May 2011. ROH TV began airing weekly on Sinclair-owned stations and some regional sports networks beginning in September 2011. 

Khan announced his purchase of ROH on the March 2, 2022 AEW Dynamite. He has since run one show under the ROH banner, Supercard of Honor. The ROH World title was defended on Saturday’s AEW Battle of the Belts special on TNT, and the ROH World Television title was defended on last week’s Dynamite. 

The final episode of the series aired this weekend, featuring a 2011 Roderick Strong vs. Eddie Edwards match, a Jay Briscoe vs. Jay Lethal match from 2015, plus a Jonathan Gresham vs. Dak Draper contest from 2021. 

ROH TV results: Women’s World title match

Posted on by Skylar Russell

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.

ROH TV results: Josh Woods vs. Dak Draper Pure title match

Posted on by Skylar Russell

Location: Baltimore, Maryland 

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.

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Next Week —

  • ROH Women’s World Champion Rok-C defends against Holidead
  • Christmas tag team match

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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.

ROH TV results: World Champion Bandido vs. PJ Black non-title match

Posted on by Skylar Russell

This week’s Ring of Honor hyped up Saturday’s Final Battle pay-per-view by featuring World Champion Bandido vs. PJ Black in a non-title match (with a twist) and Willow vs. Mandy Leon in a ROH Women’s title number one contender’s match.

Willow defeated Mandy Leon (w/ Angelina Love) in an ROH Women’s World title no. 1 contender’s match (11:30)

Current champion Rok-C was on commentary for this bout. 

Leon tried to ground Willow as soon as the bell rang, but was met with strength and resilience from the “Power Babe.” After the two traded a few strikes, action spilled to the ringside area. Leon tossed Willow into the barricade right before the first ad break.

Leon was stomping on Willow in the corner when the match returned before applying a headlock in the center of the ring. Leon stayed true to her strategy of grounding Willow to the mat, but was still met with strong resistance.

Leon took a breather and allowed Willow to climb back into the match, hitting a momentum-changing spinebuster on Leon. Willow followed it up with a cannonball in the corner before going to the top rope and attempting a moonsault. However, she missed as Leon moved out of the way at the last second. Leon tried to capitalize shortly thereafter with a running dropkick, followed by an Astro Projection, but Willow kicked out of a pin attempt at the last second. 

The finish was really overdone and didn’t need to happen. Leon called for Love to get a chair, but Quinn McKay ran down to the ring to stop Love from helping Leon. The rest of the women’s roster, separated by heels and faces, ran down and had a tug of war over this chair. Max The Impaler came down separately, threw Love into the heels, and seemed to turn face. Willow then struck Leon with a superkick and a Babe Bomb for the win. 

Willow will challenge Rok-C for the title at Final Battle.

ROH World Champion Bandido (w/ Rey Horus) defeated PJ Black (w/ Flip Gordon) by DQ in a non-title match (6:03)

In a pre-match promo, Black hypnotized Gordon by saying that when he clapped twice, he would become “The Mercenary” again. 

Black and Bandido wrestled to a stalemate early on with neither gaining a real advantage, despite having multiple wrestling exchanges that were very good. Bandido and Black eventually made their way on the apron where they traded a few strikes before hitting the floor.

Black showed frustration and asked Gordon to punch Bandido, but Gordon said that wasn’t “honorable.” When Black clapped twice, Gordon nailed Bandido with a punch, therefore awarding the win to Bandido by disqualification. 

Referee Todd Sinclair discussed this with both “sides” before then making the encounter a tag team match. 

Mexisquad (ROH World Champion Bandido & Rey Horus) defeated PJ Black & Flip Gordon (6:56)

Horus was isolated by Black and Gordon early on thanks to frequent tags. Gordon hit a Kinder Surprise that warranted a close two count into a commercial break. 

As soon as the bout returned from the break, Horus nailed Black with a tornado DDT off the top rope. Instead of attempting a pin, Horus sprinted and tagged Bandido in. Bandido immediately planted two kicks to the midsections of both Black and Gordon which sent them stumbling to the outside of the ring. Bandido then assisted Horus with a lift-up dive to the outside while the “Most Wanted” prepared to hit a frog splash on Gordon once he was rolled back in the ring by Horus. When the move was hit, Gordon kicked out at the last moment. 

Once Black regained his composure, he rushed the ring and isolated Horus again. After instructing Gordon to lift Horus up on his shoulders, Black went to the top rope and hit a South African Destroyer with the assist from Gordon, but the pin was broken up by Bandido.

The finish came quickly after with Bandido hitting a top rope Spanish fly on Black before following it up with a 21-Plex for the win.

Final Thoughts:

This week’s episode featured two very illogical booking finishes, but some good wrestling. I genuinely felt like I was watching a WWE pay-per-view. Although it was nice to see Willow win, the end of the match was completely unnecessary. I could have done without any of the Mexisquad/Black & Gordon stuff as well. My rating for this week’s episode is Avoid at all Costs.