The Intro
Six days after Ring of Honor put on a surefire “Wrestling Card of the Year” contender with Manhattan Mayhem, the organization kept up the momentum with a double-shot weekend with The Final Showdown in Dayton, OH, and Nowhere to Run in Chicago Ridge, IL.
Alex Shelley is still reeling from his world title loss to champion Austin Aries. Yeah, he’s still upset, but Shelley realizes that gave him the champ the fight of his life. So much that Shelley is backstage relishing his revenge against Generation Next, and the piece he got against Aries at Mayhem. Bang! Bang!
We cut to the notorious Homicide standing outside the wrestling venue and admiring a hospital across the street. He figures it is such a lovely day for American Dragon to visit the infirmary, once Homicide defeats him inside the Steel Cage, tonight!! Better be something special since this feud dates back to April 24, 2004.
And now it’s time to go to the ring as Generation Next makes its entrance. Austin Aries is sporting a dress shirt and slacks, and he has his belt draped over one of his shoulders. When he starts talking, Aries goes on and on like a Triple H clone. All that was missing was a mouthful of water shooting into the air. Apparently Aries’ diatribe wore thin with Alex Shelley as he sneaks up behind the group and punches Aries in the face and throws Jack Evans to the floor.
Alex Shelley is here and Alex Shelley is angry. He wants Roderick Strong, and he wants him now!!
Match #1: Alex Shelley vs. Roderick Strong
For this unscheduled opening bout, Shelley tries to tie up Strong in a few submission maneuvers. Don’t want to trade shots with Strong, or you will die. Counters galore as the two go for their specials. Strong counters an early Shellshock as Shelley counters Strong’s DVD/Stomach Crusher combo. Around 5:50 in, Shelley gives Strong a variation of a Tope Con Hilo much to the delight of those in attendance. (The wit of CM Punk: “Roderick Strong has a concrete head.” Oh how I love Punk on the mike.) But then the delight turns a small jeers as Strong botches a hotshot attempt of Shelley. When Strong gets the advantage he gives Shelley a dropkick to the face 11 minutes in. You can just see the pain etched in Shelley’s face. Up until this point, both men were slowing down, favoring submissions instead of power moves. The objective being that it would be harder for an opponent kick out of a pinfall attempt once a power/finishing maneuver is utilized. The finish comes as Roderick Strong whiffs on a Yakuza Kick and Shelley hits a Super kick and a Shellshock. 1-2222…,but wait. Strong kicks outs. Shelley, realizing that Strong has some fight in him, picks him up and delivers another Shellshock. 1-2-3 for the victory.
Winner: Alex Shelley at 15:14.
Verdict: ***1/4 (Not bad for an unscheduled, opening bout, as I understand this is a grudge match. The need to kick and punch is warranted, heck it is expected. But it does get tedious. Perhaps there should have been another element to add some heat to tonight’s match up.)
Outside with the Embassy
Prince Nana and Jimmy Rave cut a promo outside the building as the two are just arriving by helicopter from New York. Rave talks about how he will end Punk’s career inside the Steel Cage tomorrow night at Nowhere to Run.
Match #2: Masked Chicago Superstar vs. Matt Stryker
You know things are going bad when the crowd starts chanting, “Let’s Go Jobber!” Pretty sad, actually. The Superstar’s early advantage is short-lived as Matt Stryker takes control. Stryker dropkicks his knee to set up the Stryker Lock, which he applies at 3:22. The self-proclaimed “Superstar” can’t take the pain and taps out. This match can be described as “Filler material with a time of 3:22.” The match is perfectly suitable for Monday Night Raw (or Friday Night Smackdown). Besides, who needs 15-to-20-minute wrestling matches when you can give the fans 3-minute matches where wrestlers don’t break a sweat. Oh, let’s not forget to bookend the match with a stupid backstage segment and a 20-minute interview.
Winner: Matt Stryker at 3:22.
Verdict: * (‘Nuff said.)
Backstage with the Woodsman
Bryan Danielson’s “I-look-like-a-woodsman-so-what-are-you-going-to-do-about-it” character is in the back, contemplating his cage match later in the evening. He may be fingering his beard with a thumb and forefinger, but he’s staring at a New York Yankees jacket. A source of inspiration, or something to drape over Homicide’s bleeding carcass tonight?
Quick status update on Jay Lethal’s neck. He suffered a vicious neck injury as the result of Low Ki and Homicide’s Super Cop Killer finisher at Manhattan Mayhem. CM Punk tells the fans to log on to ROHwrestling.com. for more info.
Match #3: Four Corner Survival – Delirious vs. Ebetaroh (formerly known as Esseban) vs. Jack Evans vs. Pure Champion Samoa Joe (Non-title match)
The Crowd wasn’t lying about “Joe’s going to kill you (Evans)!!,” when they yelled catcalls at Generation Next during its in-ring promo at the start of tonight’s event. It’s strange how all four intros are in shown in their entirety. No cutting to get straight to the opening bell action. Usually, low card matches clip the intros. But, all four competitors have a distinct look about them. Delirious is what happens when Mortis’s gimmick died in WCW and his mask, and colors green and black, go to the Independents. The crowd is putty in Ebetaroh’s hands as he excites them with a montage of Hulk Hogan cheap pops. Evans freestyles his way to ring. And Joe’s just Joe, sporting the Pure Title championship around his waist while “The Champ is Here” blares from the sound system in back. Jimmy Bower joins Dave Prazak on the mike as Punk prepares for his tag title opportunity later tonight.
When the opening bell rings, Delirious scampers out of the ring and hides underneath. Delirious, indeed. Before Joe and Evans hookup, Ebetaroh wants in the match. Evans and Ebetaroh have a dance face off where Evans gets served big time.
Apparently, no body wants to fight as Evans tags in Delirious and both he and Ebetaroh start shouting at each other. But the referee is tired of these shenanigans and orders the two to fight. So they have a slow-motion exchange of headlocks and lariat attempts. The crowd is eating up the comic gold of Ebetaroh and Delirious. It is so wild, I can’t help but laugh at the absurdity of it all. Even Joe has a look of “What the hell have I gotten myself into?”
The match gets back on track as Ebetaroh and Delirious tag out and Joe and Evans go at it. Joe makes Evans his bitch, giving him a palm slap to the face. Somehow Evans loses a shoe and it comes into play, switching between competitors. As Delirious has Ebetaroh in the corner (and Evans’ shoe in his mouth), he takes it out and tries to put it in the ref’s mouth.
Ebetaroh tags in Joe at 12:15 and Joe takes care of Evans and Delirious. But what’s this? Evans gets a blind tag on Joe and now he and Delirious are the legal men. So as Joe chocks out Ebetaroh, Evans hits Delirious’ back with a dropkick from the top, and follows it with a 630 and scores the pin at 13:24.
Winner: Jack Evans in 13:24.
Verdict: ****1/4 (I don’t care if people disagree with the high rating. 4-star matches aren’t all about headlocks, armbars, or scientific chess matches. Give me comedy. The fact that four guys can go out there, act the fools, and still put on a show, is so money, baby! Even the crowd agrees, giving the spectacle “Match of the Year” kudos.)
James Gibson Backstage
Gibson cuts a promo about how much he wants the World Title. He congratulates the fans about his last stop in Dayton and how well his match with Spanky was received by his friends.
Match #4: ROH Tag Team Title Match – CM Punk & Ace Steel (Challengers) vs. BJ Whitmer & Jimmy Jacobs (Champions)
BJ Whitmer and CM Punk have a checkered path with one another. The two met one-on-one at ROH’s The Epic Encounter in April 2003. In January 2004, at The Battle Lines Are Drawn, Whitmer (as a part of Christopher Daniels’ Prophecy) lost to Punk and his Second City Saints (Steel and Colt Cabana). At Death Before Dishonor II, Night Two, they met again in tag team action as the Second City Saints and the Prophecy had a hellacious Chicago Street Fight.
For this encounter, all the competitors, except for Ace Steel, are sporting small tights. All Ace has is his long tights. He must feel so left out. Jimmy Bauer talks about the Prophecy/SCS feud and basically reiterates everything I have written above.
CM Punk and Jimmy Jacobs go hold for hold to start the match, and the crowd gives great applause to Jacobs the Hussman as he displays “the power of his furry boots.” At 4:30, HussJesus show why individual stars can make a good tag team, double-teaming Steel with a dropkick and elbow drop combination. Sadly, they botch the pin attempt. Whitmer was the legal man, but Jacobs goes for the pin fall.
The SCS mount a comeback making Jimmy Jacobs their target of choice. Jacobs is a tough little Huss, though. He gets worked over by Punk and Steel for quite a while. Steel hits Jacobs with a vicious powerbomb as Jacobs’s head bounces off the mat. I got visions of Benoit and Guerrero’s first Nitro match-up back in 1995.
With the ref’s back turned at 11:35, Whitmer breaks up a CM Punk submission with a big boot to the face. Still, it isn’t enough to get a tag into a match. BJ finally gets a tag into match about two minutes later and he’s a powder keg. But Punk hits a Shining Wizard to slow down the Hillbilly Jesus. Jacobs tries a flying body press from the top turnbuckle, but gets a backbreaker for his troubles.
Business picks up and the tag match turns into a four-man brawl. Punk gets Whitmer in the corner, and Steel gives BJ a dropkick to the back to soften him up. Punk then drops BJ on his head. Steel does battle with Jacobs on the top turnbuckle while Punk locks BJ in the Anaconda Vice. Steel is deposited to the outside as Jacobs hits a Senton Splash on Punk to break up the submission. Whitmer gets his bearings, hits a superkick and his Exploder finisher for the 1-222222…..NO! Punk kicks out at a 2 and nine-tenths. Enough of this child’s play. Whitmer sets up Punk for the Doomsday Rana. Jacobs hits it and goes for the cover, 1-2-3.
Winners and still Tag Team Champions: BJ Whitmer and Jimmy Jacobs at 16:43.
Verdict: ***1/2 (Good, formulaic tag-team action. The HussJesus Experience is in full effect. Sure, some ROH fans may not like them as a tag team, but this odd couple has intangibles that you don’t usually get when singles team up together.)
Prince Nana comes down to the ring talking smack, like how he took Punk out in his hometown of Chi-town. He even went as far as referring to Punk as the Triple H of Ring of Honor. Punk has muttonchops, since when? Bedlam ensues as Jimmy Rave sneaks up on Punk and starts with the knuckle sandwiches. Other members of the Embassy come out and start attacking graduates of Punk’s/ROH’s Wrestling School. Matt Sydal makes his presence known by getting into the ring and flying off the top turnbuckle, like Haley’s Comet, onto the Embassy members outside.
This is the perfect segue into the next match: Sydal vs. Rave.
Match #5: Matt Sydal vs. Jimmy Rave
Sydal is looking for redemption and payback as a result of Rave giving him the Styles…um, excuse me…Rave Clash the last time Ring of Honor was in Dayton. I don’t want to mince words, but Sydal is quite an acrobatic talent. A picture-perfect moonsault is no easy feat. And yet, Sydal’s standing moonsault on Rave early into the match is seamless.
For someone who has a cage match with Punk tomorrow night at Nowhere to Run, Rave is sure taking his time with Sydal. Working on his midsection instead of Sydal’s legs is not the wisest of decisions. Though, taking away a person’s ability to breathe can be advantageous. At 8:50, Sydal signals for the Styles Clash only for Rave to recover and delivers a few chop. Still, it is not enough to take control of the match; and less than a minute later, Sydal’s body careens with a ring post. But Sydal still has fight in him, and he hits a belly-to-back moonsault. 1-2…no. Only a 2 count and the crowd is pissed. They yell expletives. One far goes as far to say, “that’s why we hate you Sinclair,” expressing his displeasure with the refereeing. A little after 12 minutes into the match Rave attempts the Rave Clash, but Sydal uses his trusty kicks to break up the attempt. He succeeds but the victory is short as Rave hits a Shining Wizard and follows it up with his Clash to pick up the victory.
Winner: Jimmy Rave in 12:37.
Verdict: ***1/4 (Nice tune-up match for Rave in preparation to face CM Punk inside the Steel Cage. It would have made better sense for Rave to work over Sydal’s legs, instead of the mid-section. Working the legs would have clipped Sydal’s explosiveness and kept him grounded to the mat. Nonetheless, Matt Sydal is a good in-ring competitor and these 12 minutes with Rave can only help him as he tries to climb the ranks of ROH.)
Match #6: Nigel McGuinness & Chad Collyer vs. Colt Cabana & Doug Williams
Doug Williams gets a well-deserved “Welcome Back” chant from the crowd and the Unibrow is back in action tonight.
The rivalry between McGuinness and Cabana continues, but this time each opponent has a tag team partner. Maybe Nigel needs backup in case Colt mistakenly hits him below the belt. Prior to the opening bell, CM Punk returns to his commentary duties.
At the start, there is a feeling out process between Williams and Collyer as the two trade hip tosses and pinfall attempts. Nigel tries to interfere but he gets locked up Williams’ submission. This is an interesting tag team match as the teams warm up with submissions before even thinking about closed fists or palm strikes.
The comic revelry continues from Manhattan Mayhem as Colt Cabana wraps his legs around a vertical Night McGuinness and gets an assist from his partner as Doug pushes Nigel down.
Apparently neither Nigel nor Chad liked that, so when Williams gets a tag into the match both opponents work over Doug’s left arm. Nigel tries to work on Doug’s arm with a key lock, but Doug breaks the hold lifting Nigel on his shoulders and walking to the ropes. Unable to get an advantage, Nigel and Chad work over Doug Williams for a few more minutes until he is able to get an opening and hit a neckbreaker on Nigel.
Williams finally tags Cabana at 11:30, and the guy’s fired up, taking shots on both McGuinness and Collyer. Colt attempts to pin both men, but they kick out. The tag match breaks down to four-man mayhem as Colt busies himself with Nigel and Doug with Chad.
Like their encounter at Mayhem, the pinfall seemingly comes out of nowhere. Colt hits Nigel with a forearm that sends him into the ropes, and Nigel springs back trying to roll up Colt for a pinfall. Colt reverses the pin, hooks Nigel’s legs in a roll up and is able to get the win.
Winner: Colt Cabana & Doug Williams at 14:47.
Verdict: ***1/2 (Unlike the Jimmy Jacobs & BJ Whitmer title defense, this tag team affair was more scientific; though both matches have similar traits. The two matches feature moments where a competitor is struggling to make a tag, getting pummeled for several minutes. And each match chronicles a dated feud between two competitors. The disparity lies in the aggressiveness. One match chose chain wrestling while the other favored heavy strikes.)
MATCH #7: ROH World Title Match – James Gibson vs. Austin Aries II
This is a rematch of a double-pinfall draw at ROH’s Stalemate. Both men are cautious at the start, with a feeling out process between the two competitors. Five minutes into the match the feeling out process is over as Austin Aires slips out of the ring to avoid a Gibson forearm as he was coming off the ropes. Aries stalls on the floor leaving himself open for a Gibson slide kick to the face. James Gibson takes control but his advantage is short. As Gibson tries an outside-the-ring attack on Aries from inside the ring, Austin Aries pulls the rope down. This allows Aries to go to work on Gibson after the nasty spill. Back in the ring Gibson has a starry-eyed look as he keeps his left arm to his body. As Aries continues the assault, whipping Gibson to the ropes, Gibson ties up Aries in a small package at 10:35. Only a two count, but Aries still maintains his focus on the arm.
At 13:30, Aries delivers a Tornado Divorce Court – basically dropping Gibson’s left arm to the mat from the top rope – and getting a two-count pinfall. Should be enough to pin a jobber, but Gibson is tough. He gets a second wind, but it’s tough to mount a comeback with one good arm. Still, Gibson tries to go for Aries left leg with a drop kick. Good strategy as a bad leg could prevent Aries from hitting his patented brainbuster. 17 minutes into the championship bout, both competitors are on the outside and Gibson tries for a TIGER DRIVER ON THE FLOOR!!! No, Aries reserves it a tries a brainbuster. No, again!! Gibson straddles Aries on the barricade and knocks him to the front row with a clothesline. Gibson sees this as an opportunity. He climbs to the top turnbuckle and nails Aries with a flip into the front row.
Just when you think Gibson is in control, Aries proves why he is a fighting champion. Inside the squared circle, Aries mounts a comeback. First, as Gibson tries to grab Aries and pull him back into the ring, the champ blocks a suplex attempt and another. Aries grabs Gibson’s bad arm and drops it over the top ring rope as he drops down to the floor. Bodyblocks and a moonsault follow, but the champ only get a two. Trying to deliver a brainbuster, Gibson reverses and nails Aries with a big boot and a neckbreaker for a two-count pinfall. Gibson tries a Tiger Driver, but it’s blocked and reversed into a Fireman’s Carry rollover and like clockwork Aires is alert and goes for the 450 finisher. Success!! 1-2…and still your ROH Champ…NO!!! Gibson kicks out!!! Aries can’t believe it, nor can I. Shocking is what it is. Like CM Punk says, “Gibson fights back like a wounded animal.” The champ misses a dropkick to the corner on Gibson and the challenger is able to lock on a choke. Aries has enough strength to ram Gibson into the corner, but Gibson is able to set him up for the Tiger Driver at 22:00. With a wounded arm, though, Gibson can only get two.
Austin Aries is able to collect himself long enough to hit a brainbuster. But miraculously as Aries goes to the top, Gibson springs up and puts Aries in the Trailer Hitch. If only this title match had Pure Title rules and Aries had used his third rope break already. The champ raises up and is able to grab hold of Gibson and send both of them crashing to the mat with a Spinebuster. (It should be noted that at first I thought this maneuver was botched and both competitors fell to the mat. Upon a second viewing, Aries knew what he was doing.) It may have not looked pretty, but it served its purpose – sucking all the air out of Gibson. Aries makes pinfall and successfully defends his title for the 13th time.
Winner and still ROH World Champion: Austin Aries at 23:44.
Verdict: ***3/4 (Very good match. Unfortunately I haven’t seen their first encounter from Stalemate, so I couldn’t tell you if the original is better than the sequel. Gibson sold the arm like a pro up until the final minute, as he is able to lock the Trailer Hitch onto Austin Aries on the top rope. Now, that’s not to say it took away from the match. I mean it was a mishap on Gibson’s part, but it wasn’t AJ Styles-2nd Anniversary bad.)
Intermission Time – Time to set up the Steel Cage!!
Dave Prazak is with the Champ. No, not Austin Aries, but rather Pure Champion titleholder Samoa Joe. Joe talks about the pure wrestling title and how it was the title he tried to discredit. But now, it is a new day and a new game. Samoa Joe will build the title to a status just like his 21-month, 29 defenses title reign. Alex Shelley butts in becoming the C in an A-B conversation. He tells Joe that he wants a shot. Joe one-ups Shelley saying that instead of fighting him, maybe he should look for friends in his fight against Generation Next.
After the backstage promo wraps, an American Dragon/Homicide highlight reel of their feud is shown.
Match #8: Best of Five Series – Match 5 / Steel Cage Mach – “American Dragon” Bryan Danielson vs. Homicide
Homicide means business when he comes to the ring, throwing two chairs into the steel cage. Before the match can even commence, Homicide jumps Danielson during his entrance and attacks him with his ghetto fork. He rams Danielson into the ringside barricade. When the two combatants (calling them opponents doesn’t suit this match). It’s the final battle to settle the score.
As Homicide throws American Dragon into the ring, and the match finally commences, Jimmy Bauer reminds the audience watching at home that there is no escape clause; the only way to win the match is by pinfall or submission. A match like this needs no feeling out process. This is the culmination of a blood feud that began on April 24, 2004, at ROH: Reborn Stage 2. In that match, Homicide defeated Dragon with a lariat. They wouldn’t meet again until December of that year, with Dragon getting the pinfall back. These two matches were the motivation behind a Best of Five series with each match having a different stipulation. Since you know this is the fifth match in the series, you also know that the series is tied at two apiece. Now, back to the match.
“Do unto others as you would have them do unto you,” is a good rule. So good in fact that American Dragon decides to attack Homicide with the ghetto fork, digging it deep into his face. In a strange change of pace, Danielson hits a Butterfly suplex. Wrestling in a Steel Cage match where chairs and a fork can come into play? Weird. But at 4:15 a suplex attempt onto two chairs is reversed, and Dragon suffers the punishment. Homicide tries to take advantage, but Danielson has a burst of energy, hitting Homicide with forearms and a steel chair strike in the corner. He wraps him up in a Surfboard and bends Homicide’s neck back for more leverage. Breaking the hold, Dragon goes to the top, but Homicide fights him on the top rope and hits an Ace Crusher!! DANGEROUS!!!, Bower exclaims. But instead of going for the pin, Homicide sets up for his Lariat finisher. Dragon reverses and hits a Cradle Regal Suplex. Emulating the wrestler many compare him to, Danielson hits a diving headbutt from the top of the cage onto Homicide’s left arm.
The action intensifies as Dragon hits a belly-to-belly suplex from the top and then performs the longest Airplane Spin in the history of professional wrestling. (I lost count at around revolution no. 52.) Dragon drops Homicide to the mat, staggers to a nearby corner, but is able to come out and lay himself on top. 1-2-3 and Dragon is victorious.
Winner of the Best of Five Series: American Dragon at 14:14.
Verdict: ***3/4 (This match was headed for a ***1/2 rating but Dragon’s Airplane Spin kicked this rating up by a ¼*. I’ll have to see if the four other matches in this series does the Best Of justice, but I seriously doubt it. It’s nice to see the transformation Dragon has made going from his chain wrestling background to a wrestler who can incorporate comedy, strong style, or brawling, if it is called for.)
The Aftermath
Trainers and referees attend to the fallen combatants after the match. When both rivals are able to stand, the crowd chants for Homicide to “shake his (American Dragon’s) hand.” The two shake and have a congratulatory hug. Then, Homicide nails Danielson with an Ace Crusher. Once a Rottreiler, always a Rottreiler. Homicide vos the feud is far from over and Dragon admits Homicide choked just like the Yankees in the playoffs. Danielson will make Homicide his first challenger once he wins the World Title from Austin Aries tomorrow night.
There you go folks.
Let me know if the review works for you. I’m always open to suggestions.
Send me an e-mail at Rltleamons@netzero.net
For news, views, and ROH merchandise visit ROHwrestling.com.
The Inside Pulse
For the month of May, there is no slowdown in sight for Ring of Honor. Though there was only one 4-star match, there is enough here to keep you satisfied. Don’t worry about the * star affair between the Chicago Masked Superstar and Matt Stryker. It’s quick, filler material. So if you like chain wrestling or mat classics, enjoy McGuinnes/Collyer vs. Cabana/Williams and Gibson/Aries II. But if you want a blood feud watch the main event as the rivals use eating utensils to prove just who is the best.
