Last Week: Eddie Kingston overcame another would-be ROH World champion in the form of former titleholder Dalton Castle.
ROH on HonorClub Episode 39
Ontario, CA
November 23, 2023
– The ROH Women’s World champion Athena was here with her number one Minion to issue and open challenge for anyone ready to take them on tonight. When they walked off screen, Marina Shafir arrived in front of the camera before making a call to someone. Sadly, the commentators spoil the reveal alongside a match title card right after the opening video package.
ROH Pure Championship: Katsuyori Shibata (c) vs. Trent Beretta
The judges for this one if it went the time limit was former ROH World champion Jerry Lynn, multi-time ROH World Tag Team titleholder Jimmy Jacobs, and former Knockouts champ Madison Rayne.
A nice single-leg takedown by the champ put Trent Beretta in position for an early two count. They were very even in size & agility with both having their opponent scouted in terms of their patented finishing maneuvers. Unfortunately for Beretta, he sacrificed his first rope break to avoid the cross arm bar.
Wisely, Shibata positioned his challenger near the ropes to set up an arm-based stomp off the wrist lock. It was Trent’s left arm that the champ targeted, landing a blistering kick propelling his opposition to the apron. When Shibata got a running start for a subsequent attack, Trent came through the ropes with a spear. Running knee strike landed for Trent, but it didn’t end this one in a three count. Another flying knee sent Katsuyori out of the ring for a plancha that connected clean.
Missile dropkick by Beretta after pushing the champ back in only saw Katsuyori rolled through the attack and kick him off his feet. Shibata’s fighting spirit allowed him to forearm Trent into the corner for that hesitation dropkick topped by a butterfly suplex. With nearly seven minutes gone, Beretta found himself swept into an ankle lock after he blocked the waist lock. Beretta opted to use another rope break to save the match for himself.
The champ stayed on Beretta, walking into a forearm that actually energized “The Wrestler”. Ripcord palm strike by the champion put Beretta in line for the PK. Shibata made the cover, pinning another would-be winner.
Winner: Katsuyori Shibata
Match Review: A fine Pure Rules encounter with the champ proving how comfortable he is in this environment. Beretta was game as game could be even if he seemed like he was destined to lose from the time the opening bell sounded.
Diamante vs. Trish Adora vs. Willow Nightingale vs. Kiera Hogan
Diamante wanted nothing to do with the Code of Honor, almost missing her chance to get a flash pin on one of her unaware opponents. Instead, Diamante yanked Kiera Hogan out of the ring to deck her with a forearm. In the ring, Willow Nightingale almost took Trish Adora’s head off via the clothesline. Diamante stopped a Willow pin, executing a rope-assisted neck breaker on Nightingale. Diving through the ropes, Diamante wiped out Trish at ringside while Kiera did the same on Willow. Hogan turned her attention to Diamante, knocking her down before climbing the ropes. Willow met Hogan on the ropes, causing a tower of doom power bomb sequence with Diamante and Trish driving Willow down. Hogan came flying off the top, using the cross body block to down both Diamante & Adora.
All four women rose, throwing right forearms until Diamante got ganged up on. Big boot by Adora to Hogan set up the Bubba Bomb on Kiera. Diamante dropped Adora on her head, only to get Death Valley driven by Willow. Nightingale turned into a super kick from Hogan, almost getting pinned if not for Diamante’s interference. Dumping Hogan out of the ring, Diamante took a roundhouse kick from Adora. Willow grabbed Adora, using the Babe With the Power Bomb to pin Trish.
Winner: Willow Nightingale
Match Review: Exciting, yet relatively short Four Corner Survival with Willow getting a much-needed win and, unfortunately, Trish taking another loss. The big question is whether or not this victory will mean anything for Willow going forward.
– Footage of the tag match from Pro Wrestling Revolver where Athena & Billie Starkz avoided a complete loss to Ronda Rousey & Marina Shafir was shown to set the stage for tonight’s main event.
Ethan Page vs. Tony Nese w/ Mark Sterling
“Smart” Mark Sterling announced group training was canceled for the week. Putting over how Tony Nese defeated Ethan Page once before, tonight he’ll be 2-0 against “All Ego”.
Page avoided a Pearl Harbor job before the bell, leading to the following of the Code of Honor. This grudge match started with them standing on the ropes to get the crowd to cheer for their favorite. When Tony Nese lost the contest, he shoved Page into the corner for a thrashing. Turning an Irish whip across the ring against Nese, Ethan lit his opposition up with right hands. Sidewalk slam worked to get Page a two count.
Using the referee’s positioning against Page, Nese caught his unsuspecting opponent with a back elbow that set up Nese’s Macho hotshot to the floor. As if that wasn’t enough, Nese slung “All Ego” against the steel ring steps. Page fought his way through Nese’s grip, missing the Head Shot and getting roundhouse kicked for a body lock. Punching his way out of the body lock, Page was on fire with right hands to set up the Head Shot … that gave Page a near fall!
Mark Sterling jumped onto the apron for a distraction, only for the ref to eject him from ringside. A frustrated Nese confronted the referee, only to turn around and got kicked in the face via a big boot. Making the cover, Page evened up this feud via a pin fall.
Not happy with the outcome, Nese attacked after the bell; leading to a pull-apart brawl with security stopping the fight (Death Watts sighting!).
Winner: Ethan Page
Match Review: Similar to their previous out, this was good, but felt like it was missing that special something to make it must-see; especially considering this was a highly-touted grudge match. Hopefully their third match will reach the promise their talents present.
– At AEW’s “Full Gear”, Eddie Kingston retained the ROH World Championship over Jay Lethal with some help from Ortiz before MJF successfully defended his ROH World Tag Team title alongside foe Samoa Joe against The Gunns of Bullet Club Gold.
The WorkHorsemen vs. The Iron Savages vs. The Infantry vs. The West Coast Wrecking Crew
It was JD Drake of The WorkHorsemen offering his chest for a chop from The Infantry’s Carlie Bravo. The chop didn’t help Bravo, but a little help from his partner Shawn Dean allowed him to knock down Drake and double team slam an incoming Bronson. Dean ran into a Bronson flapjack, feel the power of Boulder’s motorboat. Isaacs from The WCWC stopped Bronson from busting by knocking him into The WCWC’s corner for a double team sequence. Sadly for Isaacs and Nelson, The WorkHorsemen knocked them down as they celebrated with a pose. Bronson got a little help from his partner to dive on everyone at ringside.
In the ring, Boulder executed a spinning sidewalk slam on Nelson; putting him in position for the double team avalanche splash. The WorkHorsemen’s Anthony Henry got knocked out of the way as Drake got caught in Boulder’s grip. Isaacs got behind Boulder, using a German suplex on Boulder as Boulder tossed Drake with the fall away slam. Henry found himself alone with The WCWC after they stopped The Infantry’s Boot Camp. Nelson got caught on the wrong part of the ring, cornered for a Drake cannonball splash into the double team where Drake dropkicked Nelson into a sidewalk slam and the subsequent three count.
Winners: The WorkHorsemen
Match Review: Similar to the first four-way of this episode, it was exciting from bell to bell; though felt a little too overwhelming with so many bodies doing a lot in a rather short period of time. The WorkHorsemen finally winning a tag bout against more than just “no name” talent is great to see considering how good they are at getting the crowd into all of their matches. The WCWC came to play and, hopefully, this isn’t the last time they show up on ROH programming.
– Lexy Nair was with Mark Sterling & Tony Nese so they could declare the previous match between Nese and Page should be thrown out after he was wrongfully ejected from ringside. Sterling declared they aren’t done with Page just yet.
Pure Rules Match: Wheeler Yuta vs. Lee Moriarty
The judges for this one if it went the time limit was former multi-time ROH World Tag Team titleholder Jimmy Jacobs, former Knockouts champ Madison Rayne and Pat Buck.
The fans weren’t too kind to Wheeler Yuta at the sound of the bell. Pulling off a beautiful bridge, Wheeler stopped a straightjacket submission to set off a series of counters. Using an arm lock, Lee Moriarty almost dislocated Yuta’s left elbow. Ducking a running kicked aimed at the arm, Yuta had the chance to lock in the Octopus Stretch. Wheeler stopped the pin, executing a high-angle slam. Yuta used a Superfly splash for a two count. Stopping the pin, Lee snatched the former Pure champ. Both men got bitey as they climbed the ropes; leading to a superplex.
Baiting Yuta into throwing a right punch for a ref’s warning for using a closed fist, Lee initiated a strike exchange that ended with Yuta using the ropes to spring back and German suplex his opponent. Using a bite to Lee’s right shoulder when Moriarty tried to turn a failed pin into an arm-based submission put Lee in prime position for those MMA elbows. Out of it, Lee couldn’t stop the three count that followed from Wheeler tying him up with the cradle.
Winner: Wheeler Yuta
Match Review: Nice to see some non-title Pure Rules matches on ROH programming, but it would be nice to spread them out instead of doing both on a single episode. With that being stated, these guys were perfect for this rule set and had a nice technical encounter. The only issue is Lee losing so early in his run as a new member of Shane Taylor Promotions in a match where the winner may not be involved in the upcoming “Final Battle” event or even upcoming future ROH programming as Yuta has been pretty much non-existent in ROH since losing the Pure title to Shibata.
Lee Johnson vs. Fred Rosser vs. Willie Mack vs. Jack Cartwheel
Fred Rosser came in with a big boot to level Willie Mack. Jack Cartwheel & Lee Johnson joined forces to knock Fred out of the ring, only for Mack to head scissor Lee and dropkick Jack. Cartwheel pulled off a head scissors of his own on a running Willie. Jack pulled off a beautiful Sasuke Special on all three opponents. Jack’s momentum was halted by an overhead belly-to-belly suplex by Fred. Using Fred’s Irish whip to back drop Jack over the top rope, Johnson jumped into a Rosser power slam.
Fred got up to confront Willie. Mack took everything Rosser had to throw, landing a leg lariat in response. Cartwheel back flipped to avoid a clothesline and kick Willie, only for Lee to take down Jack. Big forearm from Rosser dropped Lee, giving Fred a chance to go for pins on everyone unsuccessfully. Rope-assisted leg sweep by Jack on Fred set up a gorgeous twisting slingshot elbow drop. Jack missed the shooting star press, landing on his feet and running into a Sky High from Willie. Mack moved to the top rope, only for Fred to shove him off the top to the floor. Before Fred could turn around, Lee rolled him up for the pin fall.
Winner: Lee Johnson
Match Review: This may sound redundant, but it must be stated that this was another exhilarating four-way encounter that went a mile-a-minute without any slowing down. Lee winning was a shock considering Rosser and even Mack – who loses a lot in ROH – are higher on the figurative totem pole. Like Willow and The WorkHorsemen’s victories, how much will this mean in the long-run for both ROH and their respective careers is something we’ll have to wait and see.
– Lexy Nair had Ethan Page in the interview zone trying to understand how his issues with Tony Nese aren’t over. Page cut an impassioned promo agreeing that he isn’t done with Nese and will make sure Tony accepts defeat when they fight again.
ROH Women’s World champion Athena & Billie Starkz vs. Marina Shafir & Ronda Rousey
They dubbed over Ronda Rousey’s entrance music (yep, no “Bad Reputation” tonight). Ronda started off for her team, trying to get a hold of Athena. Instead, Billie Starkz ended up getting Judo thrown around the ring until Marina Shafir tagged in to kick the life out of the Minion. Blocking a suplex with a knee strike, Billie tagged out. Shafir found her way to Ronda before Athena could grab “The Problem”, tagging Starkz back in so Ronda could abuse her Minion some more including Rousey utilizing a hanging arm bar from the top rope.
Athena used an illegal kick to stop a running Marina, only for Shafir to knock her off the apron. Billie found a chance to dropkick Marina when “The Fallen Goddess” tripped Shafir from the outside. Athena finally got physical as the legal competitor, taunting Ronda between strikes to Marina. The fans wanted Ronda, but the champ had Shafir on the wrong part of town. When Shafir attempted to make it to Ronda after ducking & dodging Athena’s strikes, the champ exploded with a spear that allowed Billie & Athena to double choke “The Problem”. Blocking a suplex by Billie, Shafir chopped, forearmed & kicked Starkz. Marina found Ronda’s tag as Billie did the same.
Athena couldn’t tag back out immediately, getting thrown and kneed by Rousey in position for that release tilt-a-whirl slam. Ronda stopped Billie’s interference, only for Athena to clothesline her to the floor. Athena held the ropes open for Starkz to dive on Ronda. Athena tripped Marina on the apron as Billie sent Ronda careening into the barricades. Athena showed incredible strength by executing a Samoan drop on Marina while using the fall away slam against Ronda at the same time! Rolling Ronda into the ring, Athena had the O-Face in mind.
Rousey avoided the maneuver, snatching the champ into the arm bar. Athena blocked the submission, using a power bomb. Before Athena could tap, Starkz used the swanton bomb to stop the arm bar. Shafir reentered, belly-to-back suplexing Starkz across the ring. All four women rose; slugging it out until Ronda stepped up the champ’s side to set up another arm bar. Athena bit her way out of the hold to execute Kroyt’s Wrath … for a near fall on Rousey!
Billie tagged in, finding herself having to kick Marina away as she climbed the ropes. Shafir refused to be stopped, kicking Starkz in position for something off the top when Athena used a blind tag to legally grab Marina. Ronda came in, sending a flying Billie into Athena. Shafir grabbed Athena’s legs, slinging her into Piper’s Pit … for a near fall!
Rousey was ready to finish Athena off when the champ flipped her way into landing a forearm strike. Rousey had to tag out as “The Fallen Goddess” did the same. Countering Shafir’s choke with a small package, Starkz stunned Marina long enough for Athena to get on the top rope. Codebreaker by Athena off Billie’s Gory Special ended in a two count thanks to Rousey’s interference. Shafir tripped Athena before tagging out so Ronda could snatch the champ in an ankle lock. Billie too got ankle locked by Shafir. Billie rolled through alongside her mentor, tagging herself in the process. Rousey staggered to her feet, feeling the O-Face. Butt Athena wasn’t legal. Starkz quickly climbed the ropes, coming off with the swanton again. Rousey avoided the bomb, forcing Starkz to tap with the arm bar.
Athena tried to attack Ronda with the title belt, only for Rousey to get the belt herself with a threat of bashing the champ’s face. Athena quickly exited the ring while Rousey dangled the title belt for her to yank back into her possession.
Winners: Marina Shafir & Ronda Rousey
Match Review: Very fun main event with the rather mundane crowd understandably getting into what was happening mostly because of Rousey’s involvement. They got a lot of time, produced a better match than what happened at Pro Wrestling Revolver, and actually teased the possibility of Athena-Rousey for the World title (please let it happen to give “Final Battle” something of a real hook).
Overall Review: Like last week’s episode that reached the ninety-plus mark, this one also stuck to similar time constraints without last week’s technical difficulties causing the stream to start an hour later than usual (though there was more buffering throughout than usual). And just like episode thirty-eight, this show flowed incredibly well even if a lot of it felt redundant thanks to the reliance on four-way bouts. But the episode’s most important aspect was Ronda Rousey’s ROH debut. The main event got a lot of time to get the fans emotionally gripped from bell to bell with Billie failing to do her mentor proud by tapping out. Hopefully this isn’t a one-off and Athena-Rousey happens at “Final Battle” for the title.
There wasn’t a bad match on the show, but too many similar ones including three Four Corner Survival matches and two Pure Rules bouts (Shibata-Beretta being, arguably, the episode’s second-best match following the main event). There were a couple of surprising victories as well with Lee Johnson and The WorkHorsemen ending their losing streaks. But, just like the previous episode, a majority of the matches didn’t feel necessary especially in correlation to the build toward “Final Battle”.
There was a tease for Athena-Rousey (though that’s somewhat questionable), the Page-Nese feud isn’t over, and Shibata is still defending the ROH Pure Championship Josh Woods wants again. The TV title announcement with the return of the “Survival of the Fittest” tournament leading to the finale & a new champion being crowned at “Final Battle” from last week wasn’t even mentioned here. There could’ve been a history lesson about the tournament or just a replay of Tony Khan’s announcement to inform the viewers.
As a stand-alone episode, this was one of the better presentations in quite some time and an easy recommendation. But in an effort to get people interested in “Final Battle” or even signing up for HonorClub to watch “Final Battle” live for “free”, this show fell incredibly short of the goal. There are only three episode left before the big show and there’s still a lot to do to fill out the card if it isn’t going to be just a bunch of random title matches and a tournament finale (which, unfortunately, seems like what the show is leaning toward being).
