Moments Ago: WOW!!! Or Who RoH NEEDS to be a part of their PPV Roster
In what could be the biggest news in Ring of Honor history, Ring of Honor has announced its foray into the world of Video on Demand service and Pay-Per-View. You can read the specifics here and here.
The most intriguing bit of information besides the obvious big centerpiece is the report that 12 men have been signed to contracts to ensure that their top stars do not get taken by TNA or WWE. The question to be answer is who are these 12?
There are a few guys who are obviously going to be in that ambiguous 12 and from watching the video news of this announcement they have made strong hints at who the top guys are, but I am going to make my prognostications of who these guys are on this roster.
#1 “The Gun for Hire†Brent Albright : I put him at number one, not because he is the most valuable to the company, though his value has not been fully tapped yet. I put him at number one for the reason that he is the most likely of anyone on the Ring of Honor roster to be snapped up by World Wrestling Entertainment given his previous job with them. Albright could very well be on his way to being a top name in Ring of Honor and shows more and more with every appearance. Albright will be important to the future of Ring of Honor.
#2 “American Dragon†Bryan Danielson : The greatest wrestler of his generation is of course going to snatched up right away by Ring of Honor. He is the trainer at their wrestling school and was arguably the most successful Ring of Honor champion in the company’s five year history.
#3 Nigel McGuinness : Nigel was featured on the video after the current world champion and before the tag team champions. He was even ahead of the “Best Wrestler in the World.†Nigel is clearly the home grown focal point of the next few months in Ring of Honor. Many have decided that he is the guy to upend Takeshi Morishima for the world championship.
#4 and #5 Jay and Mark Briscoe : The boys from southern Delaware are the best thing going in tag team wrestling today, by a pretty good margin. They have put on the best match of the night on basically every show they have been at this year. They raise opponents up to a higher level and always put on the best show possible. I am amazed TNA did not try to capitalize on these tag team specialists at some point, but now they are exclusive to RoH in terms of on air product.
#6 Delirious : I am amazed at how prominently featured the man from the Edge of Sanity is featured in the video hyping the athletes that will be seen on the Ring of Honor pay per view. He is probably in little danger of being snatched up by either TNA or WWE, but it is nice to think that he will be one of the main focuses of Ring of Honor in the pay per view era.
#7 BJ Whitmer : Mr. This Bump’s for you has been a mainstay of Ring of Honor for a long time and his ties to Les Thatcher and HWA could probably help him obtain a look for a developmental detail. Many people have likened Whitmer to the Tommy Dreamer of RoH. He may not have the leadership qualities, but he certainly has shown his dedication time and time again.
#8 Roderick Strong : The leader of the No Remorse Corps has been a top player in Ring of Honor since 2004. He has had classic matches with Bryan Danielson, Jack Evans, Austin Aries, and others. It seems that the NRC will be the primary faction in Ring of Honor as all three members were featured in the video.
#9 Davey Richards : The second in command of the NRC has been awesome in his role as a heel. His match with Samoa Joe during the Fifth Year Festival is a sight to behold. He can take unbelievable levels of punishment and his focus on the details of his heel character have made him one of the more entertaining members of the RoH roster in 2007. It is no surprise that he was offered a contract.
#10 “Azucar†Rocky Romero : While he may have his share of detractors I have always extolled the virtues of the former Rottweiler. His involvement in the No Remorse Corps is probably the main reason he has been offered a contract.
#11 “The Most Money Making Man†Claudio Castagnoli : Claudio almost had a WWE contract offered to him this past winter. For one reason or another it was taken away from him. His possible contract is probably to protect him from getting that contract offer. He has been kind of directionless since the New Year, but my guess is that a new angle will be started for the snobby Swiss aristocrat next Saturday in New York.
#12 Erick “Choo Choo†Stevens : Stevens has gotten over more quickly than a lot of Ring of Honor’s recent debuts. His size and charisma make him attractive to any wrestling company and it is certainly a smart move if Ring of Honor snatched him up.
Other Athletes that may get contracts later
Takeshi Morishima is also featured prominently in the video, but my guess is that his Pro-Wrestling NOAH involvement will probably keep him safe from the clutches of WWE or TNA. He is the champion though and of course is a focus of the show.
The other big question is what will happen to the TNA talent like Austin Aries and Homicide. Homicide will probably be making his last appearances in Ring of Honor pretty soon. TNA talent cannot appear on TV for any other promotion and Homicide certainly falls into that category. Homicide has really done all he can in RoH and while he will be missed, it may just be time for him to move on.
Austin Aries, however, is a completely different story. He was recently suspended and rumors are now circulating that his suspension ends at around the same time as his current contract expires. They say that TNA does not want to renew his deal, but now that Ring of Honor is offering contracts TNA may want to lock up “The†Austin Starr. But, if they are unhappy with him, and he wasn’t playing a prominent role, then maybe he will not be missed, but I doubt it.
What About other prominent RoH guys
Chris Hero : He is not on the video in a prominent place, but the attention that has been paid him on Ring of Honor shows over the last few months leads me to believe that he will be a primary member of the roster for a long time to come. Hero is a great wrestler, and with his “Super Agent†Larry Sweeney he has been at or near the main event since the split of the Kings of Wrestling. I would love to see them reunite for the pay per view, but who knows.
Jack Evans : Evans may still be under is WSX contract, and that could be the only thing preventing him from signing an RoH contract. Ring of Honor seems to want to make a commitment to Evans because he has been getting a lot of top notch wins lately and seems to be poised for a run at the top of the card. He will not be at the May 12th taping due to Japanese commitments, but I highly doubt Jack Evans role will be decreased.
Kevin Steen and El Generico : They have won full time roster spots, and are in a tag feud with the Briscoes. “Nuff saud.
Matt Cross : The final member of the Resilience could fall into the same spot as Evans and they are just waiting for his WSX contract to run out.
In Closing
Some skeptics may say that this is the end of Ring of Honor as we know it. That may be true, but I think it is the end of Ring of Honor as we know it in the most positive sense of the word.
It is the end of Ring of Honor as a cult phenomenon. It is the end of Ring of Honor as an underground sensation. It is the end of Ring of Honor as a non-factor in main stream wrestling.
The old Ring of Honor is dead LONG LIVE RING OF HONOR!
I’ll see you next time
