– As previously reported, Matt Hardy made his ROH debut last night in Connecticut, beating Christopher Daniels after two Twists of Fate, a CM Punk run-in AND a submission finisher. This seems to have been booked to “protect” ROH fan favorite/TNA X Division Champ Christopher Daniels, but to still make Hardy look strong in his big come-back.
– Matt Hardy had camera crews there filming for TheMattHardyShow.com, and he wore an “Us vs. Them” t-shirt.
– Matt appeared in the ring after the lights went down as Prince Nana was verbally abusing Jade Chung, and got a huge reaction with some boos. He cut a promo on Johnny Ace, getting a “Fuck Johnny Ace” chant started, and saying WWE should watch ROH DVDs rather than sign 300 lb. big guys who can’t wrestle.
– Some fans booed Hardy, but according to InsidePulse’s Widro – who was there live – Hardy was received very well despite a few “hecklers,” and at one point there were dueling Hardy/Daniels chants.
– Some are reporting around 600 in attendance last night, including a large walk-up due to the Matt Hardy-related publicity; other reports have come in at up to 1000 although that number seems very high.
– CM Punk claimed that he had taken out Daniels and beaten Gibson (Jamie Noble), so he was done with ROH and would take his title to WWE. After Punk’s win over Gibson, however, Daniels took Punk’s belt and told him he’ll have to take it from him. ROHWrestling.com is reporting the following:
Punk vs. Daniels This Saturday In Philly
7/17/05
ROH
Fans have waited since the original “Do Or Die” over two years ago for CM Punk vs. Christopher Daniels one-on-one. In less than a week Ring Of Honor will present ROH World Champion CM Punk vs. Christopher Daniels in Philadelphia at the National Guard Armory with the World Title on the line!!! July 23rd is the date of this highly anticipated match and tickets are on sale now at ROHwrestling.com, by calling 215-781-2500 or at Ticketmaster outlets.
Punk swore that he would never wrestle Daniels. However, that all changed last Saturday in Woodbridge, CT when Daniels ruined Punk’s plan. Woodbridge was set to be Punk’s last night in ROH and Punk wanted to take the ROH World Title belt with him to WWE. However, Daniels stole the belt and ruined Punk’s plan. Now Punk wants it back and Daniels wants a shot to become the legitimate ROH World Champion.
Punk vs. Daniels for the World Title is signed for this Saturday in Philadelphia. We will have much more later this week at ROHwrestling.com.
Credit: ROHWrestling.com, Jonathan Widro and various Internet reports
