Moments Ago: A New RoH Champion and Faction Wars 2k7
Any fans that were worried about the direction of Ring of Honor on February 15th should have had all of those doubts assuaged by the events of the first two nights of the Five Year Festival. You can read my thoughts on the shows, night one and thoughts from Night Two. You can also see what Pulse Glazer thought about the shows here for night one and here for night two.
There were some big doings in RoH to be sure, and the biggest of which was certainly the Japanese Gargantuan and Smoothest Pimp of the Century Takeshi Morishima. Also RoH’s upper mid-card is getting some new life with developments involving members of Generation Next. The break-up of the Original Nation of Domination this isn’t.
Ring of Honor crowned its ninth World Champion over the weekend, and this may be the biggest surprise winner since Xavier cut short the reign of Ring of Honor Founding Father Low Ki way back at Unscripted. Morishima upended Homicide cutting short his reign after only seven weeks and three defenses. I have previously expressed my opinion of Homicide as champion and even predicted that Morishima would get the title, but the question is, “What does this entail for Ring of Honor?â€Â
In the unlikely event that BJ Whitmer defeats Morishima tomorrow night, most of these points will be moot, but Ring of Honor is looking at putting on four of their biggest shows of the year, the end of the Fifth Year Festival and the Wrestlemania Double Shot, without a World Champion being present. Not since RoH’s inception have they gone so long without a top singles titlist.
While RoH’s actions may be angering UK and Detroit fans by not giving them World Title matches, Ring of Honor is raising its profile in the land of the rising sun. Morishima, by all reckoning, will be defending his newly won RoH championship in Japan at Budokan Hall on a NOAH show against KENTA. While the title most certainly will not change hands it builds hype for Ring of Honor’s two big shows in Japan this summer, and cements the RoH belt as truly a World Title and one of the most prestigious titles in wrestling.
Business is picking up for Ring of Honor as it slowly becomes a global entity in the wrestling world. Ring of Honor is nowhere near the influence of WWE on a global scale, but they have run successful shows on two continents already and all accounts indicate that they will add Asia to that list this summer. It is a great time to be an RoH fan because not only are they growing by leaps and bounds, but there are some very intriguing storyline developments on the horizon.
Roderick Strong and Davey Richards have formed the No Remorse Corps at the expense of one of the top tag teams in RoH history, Aries and Strong. Roderick is in the midst of one of the most successful heel turns in Ring of Honor, and oddly that is not the most interesting development in the whole angle. Austin Aries has declared war on Strong and assumed that he had Evans as an ally. The last time there was a coup within their group and dissension among the members Evans readily sided with Aries. This time, however, Evans would not get in the middle and tried to play peace maker.
Strong immediately decided that since Evans was not with the NRC he was against them. Aries informed Evans that if he was not going to join with him, then Aries would scout the independent ranks for the next generation of top wrestlers and he would lead them to the Promised Land in much the same way that he led Generation Next. Evans not to be outdone teased that he too would be starting his own faction. The way this all played out can be viewed (for free) at Pulse Wrestling and of course at RoHVideos.com.
The question is, “What does this all mean?†It means that Ring of Honor is just about guaranteeing itself top quality match ups and fresh talent for the next few months. Roderick Strong and Jack Evans produced a classic match in FIP, Strong and Aries only showed the tip of the iceberg of their possibilities as opponents at Survival of the Fittest 2005, and I can only assume that Evans and Aries would put on one hell of a show if and when they are given the chance. Throw into this mix Davey Richards and before anyone else is added you have great matches for months.
But who will they add? The list is as long as the list of independent wrestlers currently plying their trade but I am going to look at a few that could join up with the former Gen Nexters. I am going to focus on Austin Aries as he is the only one that guaranteed going outside of the current RoH regular roster to make his stable.
First up Kevin Steen and El Generico – They impressed the hell out of me, Pulse Glazer, and the rest of the Philadelphia crowd last Saturday, but could they be Aries “diamonds in the rough?†I say no to these guys. Steen and Generico deserve full time roster spots for their performance, but I think they would be better left making their own way in RoH.
Joey Ryan – he already looks a bit like Austin Aries and they both have killer moustaches. Ryan could be too comedic for Aries based on his character in Pro Wrestling Guerilla, but he could show a serious side and join up with Aries and dominate RoH.
Tyler Black – Black has gained some notoriety as the intense one in the team of D.I.F.H. when he tags with Jimmy Jacobs in WSX. He seems to have a style that suits Ring of Honor, and could be just the man Aries is looking for.
Chuck Taylor – Taylor is the current IWA: Mid South Champion and Ring of Honor is no stranger to athletes who have made their name in Ian Rotten’s promotion. Look no further than RoH Icon CM Punk, Colt Cabana, BJ Whitmer, Matt Sydal, Jimmy Jacobs, or Delirious to see a list of athletes who first made their mark in IWA. Something tells me that Taylor probably needs a little more time before RoH makes the call though.
Gran Akuma – Akuma has wrestled a few matches in FIP so Gabe Sapolsky has already taken notice. His style of hard strikes and high flying could help to compete with Davey Richards, and he has already had a lot of success in the Kings of Wrestling stable in Chikara so he is no stranger to dominant factions. His regular partner Icarus could also make Austin Aries short list.
TJ Perkins – The wrestler sometimes masked as Puma debuted sans hood last Saturday and put up a great fight against Nigel McGuinness. He may be the speed that Aries is looking for to counter Jack Evans as it seems both factions will eventually cross paths in the ring.
Matt Cross – But if Aries is looking for a spectacular high flyer he should look no further than Cross. The former M-Dogg 20 has wowed RoH fans in his limited appearances, and can probably go flip for flip with Mr. Evans.
The list goes on and on, but those are just a few names to ponder as possible additions to Aries’ faction. Strong and Evans both need some members to add to their group as well. I would not rule out Claudio Castagnoli or Rocky Romero as members of the No Remorse Corps. Romero seems the more likely candidate as his style meshes better with Strong and Richards, but Claudio is a man without a country at the moment and could easily side with this new renegade group and only add to the heel heat that they already generate.
It seems very likely that Shingo will be added to Jack Evans group. The other Ring of Honor athlete with Dragon Gate ties, Matt Sydal, most likely won’t be joining any of these factions as he seems to be on his own arc with the tag straps and his newly developed cocky attitude.
I don’t know which has me more excited the unlimited possibilities of the Morishima title reign or the unlimited possibilities of Faction Wars 2k7. Notice the commonality between the two, “unlimited possibilities.†It has been a long time since I could say that about WWE. Man I love Ring of Honor.
I’ll see you next time
