Welcome to another edition of The ROHbot Report – the only article you need for all the Ring of Honor news you have to know. 2020 is here and ROH is on the road for its first events of the year. Lets see what will happen over those two nights of action.
Saturday Night at Center Stage Preview; January 11h, 2020; Atlanta, GA
ROH World Championship: PCO defends against RUSH
For RUSH wrestling is in his blood as he’s a second generation grappler who certainly reached a level of success expected of him including title wins that saw him hold CMLL’s Light Heavyweight, Tag Team & Trios championships as well as forming Los Ingobernables, earning the Most Hated Wrestler of the Year, and having a perfect record in Hair vs. Hair matches. RUSH added another credential to his impressive resume in Las Vegas when he defeated Matt Taven to become the new ROH World champion.
The night after “Final Battle” – the same night that RUSH made his ROH debut – Marty Scurll found himself surrounded by The Kingdom while they declared he was friendless & unable to defeat three men at one time. In a shocking turn of events, “The Villain” unveiled his new friends & allies as a new era of Honor began – PCO and Brody King. PCO proved that he had what it took to pin the ROH World champion. Coming into “Masters of the Craft”, The Kingdom had the chance to continue their winning ways while making Villain Enterprises finally bow to them. Instead, PCO pinned the World champion in a wild Six-Man Tag Team Championship defense that set the stage for him, at fifty-one years old, to earn a ROH World Championship opportunity. PCO came up short on that night through controversial means; putting him on the journey back to another ROH World title shot.
Finding somewhat unexpected success by defeating Kenny King in the opening round of a tournament to become the top contender to the ROH World Championship at “Final Battle”, PCO continued winning until he was standing across the ring from Marty Scurll at “Glory By Honor”. The battle was that of one made for Scurll to win thanks to interference from King and Flip Gordon, but it was PCO’s night to reign as the premier villain in ROH. PCO continued that momentum by winning all the way up to “Final Battle” where he finally faced of with the undefeated “Bull” in a match that became one of the wildest in ROH history featuring broken doors, sick chair shots, and PCO actually being electrocuted so he could continue. All the pain, setbacks & suffering were worth it as PCO overcame when few thought he would and became the new ROH World champion.
Infuriated, RUSH has now gone a different route with his ROH career; opting to find allies in his quest to not only regain the ROH World title, but also end Villain Enterprises. Their first official singles encounter was nothing short of crazy, filled with plunder and this one should be no different. The biggest variable will be whether or not La Faccion Ingobernable and/or Villain Enterprises get involved that could result in PCO’s reign going forward or that man who isn’t human becoming the second man in ROH history to not get one successful defense.
ROH World Television Championship: Dragon Lee defends against Andrew Everett
The always exciting Dragon Lee will find himself in the ring with someone who can go high-flying move for high-flying move with him unlike what happened at “Final Battle”. Outweighed & out-muscled, Lee entered Baltimore with size, stats & even some of the crowd against him when facing then-Television champion Shane Taylor. The stellar match that followed the first bell ringing ended with Lee’s hand raised in victory as he was declared the new ROH World Television champion following his patented running knee strike ended the match for him via pin fall. Andrew Everett isn’t the most familiar name to newer ROH fans, but he left a noticeable mark for a short time years ago. The highflier seemed to be on the verge of becoming a ROH full-time competitor when he tore his ACL almost six years ago. By the time Everett had healed his moment to continue his ROH career wasn’t viable; giving him the opportunity to wrestle across the globe and make his name in Impact Wrestling by becoming an X-Division champion. Everett is one of the premier highfliers in the world today. While the chance of a title changes seems unlikely, the must-see quality is pretty much guaranteed.
The Briscoes vs. LifeBlood vs. Jeff Cobb & Dan Maff
The former eleven-time, history-making ROH World Tag Team champions The Briscoes are back on the figurative horse in an attempt to get their next crack at beating their own record again by regaining said title. Dan Maff & Jeff Cobb – one being a former ROH World Tag Team champion and the other a World Television titleholder – have found themselves bonded over the fact they love colliding with each other when the bell sounds. And then there’s LifeBlood featuring two of the three remaining official members still attempting to prove that winning through talent & honor is the only way to go in ROH. This has all the makings of being a fantastic outing with obvious title implications. It’s actually any team’s match to win and no loss would be considered an upset.
Villain Enterprises (Marty Scurll, Brody King & Flip Gordon) vs. Flamita, Rey Horus & Bandido
Villain Enterprises comes into the first event of ROH’s 2020 looking to make a major statement following a highly successful first year as a unit. Their opponents for the evening won’t be foreign adversaries of Scurll, King & Gordon with the latter physically introducing Rey Horus to ROH & the abilities of Villain Enterprises two nights after Bandido & Flamita were able to defeat Scurll & Flip at “Final Battle”. Considering the talent involved this should be nothing short of a phenomenal encounter that could become an early ROH Match of the Year candidate that will most likely see the Six-Man Tag Team champions walk out with the victory.
ROH World Tag Team champion Jonathan Gresham vs. Josh Woods
Since taking a seat under the learning tree of Silas Young to form 2 Guys 1 Tag, Josh Woods has found the most success of his career since winning the 2017 Top Prospect Tournament. Woods & Young have gone undefeated with their biggest win coming at “Final Battle Fallout” when they overcame The Briscoes in a top contender match to earn a future shot at the ROH World Tag Team Championship. But the win didn’t come through talent alone as 2G1T got a little unwanted help from the new ROH World Tag Team champions Jay Lethal & Jonathan Gresham. It was obvious after the match the champs believed their upcoming title challengers would prove to be a layup though the last time these two teams shared a ring it was 2G1T that walked away victorious. When it comes to singles competition Gresham is undefeated against “The Goods”, last besting Woods almost two years ago to the day that 2G1T became top title contenders. Gresham is considered one of the best technical wrestlers in the world today while Woods is certainly no slouch in the grappling department. This match may come down to less about who is more skilled when they lock up and more about what lengths either man (or their seconds) will go to break the rules & win.
The Allure vs. Sumie Sakai & Nicole Savoy
ROH’s final event of 2019 was supposed to be a great one for Nicole Savoy as the former SHIMMER champion made her Women of Honor debut against the first titleholder in the division, Sumie Sakai. Instead of being able to celebrate a great victory over the first Women of Honor champion, Savoy was attacked by The Allure alongside the veteran. Instead of being on opposing sides again, Savoy & Sakai will join forces against The Allure with revenge in mind. This will mark the second time in three months Sakai has teamed with someone in an effort to take out The Allure, coming up short alongside Jenny Rose. Savoy is still something of an unknown variable in a ROH ring, but if her actions in Philadelphia are anything to judge her potential as a title contender & someone who could restore some stability to the division there’s a great chance The Allure will get more than they bargained for in Atlanta. The biggest question has to be Maria Manic & if she’ll come for The Allure like she did in Philadelphia with Bully Ray being Angelina Love & Mandy Leon’s only savior.
Dalton Castle & Joe Hendry vs. Master & Machine
Last being seen during “The Experience” where they fell short to The Briscoes for the ROH World Tag Team Championship, Master & Machine return in hopes of overcoming the self-proclaimed “Most Entertaining Tag Team in All of Wrestling”. M & M have some slight knowledge in regards of taking on Dalton Castle as their ROH TV debut saw them fall to Castle’s former Boys. This should make for a solid win for Castle & Hendry with more of a comedy flair than anything else seen during the show.
Honor Reigns Supreme Preview; January 12th, 2020; Concord, NC
ROH World Six-Man Tag Team Championship: Villain Enterprises (Marty Scurll, Brody King & PCO) defend against La Faccion Ingobernable (RUSH, Dragon Lee & Kenny King)
Since forming following 2018’s “Final Battle”, Marty Scurll’s Villain Enterprises have dominated ROH’s Six-Man division after winning the title. VE overcame The Kingdom on night two of ROH’s “17th Anniversary” celebration, with their reign as champions lasting ever since with impressive defenses against the likes of LifeBlood in various forms including alongside PJ Black, a star-studded trio featuring Jeff Cobb, Yuji Nagata & Satoshi Kojma, and even teams that include their opponents in this upcoming encounter. During “Steel City Excellence” last April, RUSH found himself on the losing end of a Six-Man title match alongside Jay Lethal & Jeff Cobb when they fell to VE.
Five months later it was Dragon Lee that fell to VE while teaming with The Briscoes when the gold was on the line. From a singles perspective things get incredibly interesting. The obvious stat is PCO being the only man to defeat RUSH in one-on-one competition since the former World champion’s ROH debut; becoming the ROH World champion in the process. Kenny King became something of a “Bullet Club Killer” when Marty was a part of the faction and actually overcame the man many believed would be a ROH World champion by now. King also failed to defeat PCO on the champ’s inevitable route to World champion status. This will be the first major test for this new La Faccion Ingobernable faction featuring the challengers as they take on the most consistently successful trio in ROH history in what should be not only a great match, but most likely will result in new titleholders.
Jay Lethal, Jonathan Gresham, Jeff Cobb & Dan Maff vs. The Bouncers & 2 Guys 1 Tag
Various stories & rivalries will collide during this first-time encounter. 2 Guys 1 Tag recently became the number-one contenders to the ROH World Tag Team Championship thanks to some help from the new titleholders & their opponents for this event Jay Lethal & Jonathan Gresham. On the same event that Silas Young & Josh Woods took a big step toward a potential title victory, Jeff Cobb & Dan Maff teamed unsuccessfully against Villain Enterprises – this was one event following Maff and Cobb beating the snot out of each other in Baltimore. Cobb, Gresham & Lethal have all found themselves on the same side of the ring in past while Maff and Lethal have history dating back over a decade & a half ago thanks to their mutual relationships with Samoa Joe. On the opposing side will feature another soured relationship considering how things fell apart between Beer City Bruiser and Young. These wild card pairings have all the makings of imploding and may open an opportunity for either someone to win through dastardly means or The Briscoes sticking their noses in the business of champions or number-one contenders.
Rey Horus vs. Andrew Everett
Rey Horus made his ROH debut during ROH’s “Final Battle” weekend in Philadelphia, coming up short in a match with Flip Gordon. Horus’ showcase definitely warranted another appearance & then some from the masked man that, if he stays around long enough, should warrant title opportunities & dream matches come true. Andrew Everett, a former X-Division champion in Impact Wrestling and a man who too has all the tools to make a legacy for himself in ROH, comes in with something to prove as his original ROH tenure was cut short due to injury. Everett was last seen in ROH during the opening round of Survival of the Fittest 2018 where he failed to make it past Guerrero Maya Jr. But that doesn’t mean Everett hasn’t be busy; competing around the world including facing ROH stars both past & present like Matt Cross and current TV champion Dragon Lee respectively. Depending on the outcomes of the action one night prior this could mean both men entering significantly lower than 100%, and, most importantly, the bout may have title implications if Everett wins the Television title in Atlanta. No matter if there is a title on the line or both enter with losses from their matches inside Center Stage, this one has all the makings of being absolutely a high-flying clinic.
Flip Gordon vs. Flamita
“The Mercenary” of Villain Enterprises has been nothing short of vicious since joining the faction. Gordon took Tracy Williams of LifeBlood to war on a continuous basis throughout the fall season in a variety of stipulation matches that were utterly barbaric at times. Between wild tag team matches with other members of LifeBlood and random moments of interference, Gordon’s high-flying skills haven’t been on much of a showcase. That fact somewhat changed during “Final Battle Fallout” when Gordon defeated Rey Horus in an excellent encounter where they went high, low, and threw strikes aplenty. Gordon’s opponent in Flamita should provide Gordon a similar challenge to Horus considering the style similarities of both masked men. Flamita enters this one having last won alongside Bandido at “Final Battle” – their opponents being Gordon & Marty Scurll. Gordon will be coming to avenge that loss in Baltimore and may do so through any means necessary like utilizing that infamous black kendo stick that’s become a trademark of his offense. Bell-to-bell, this bout has all the makings of stealing the show with either man being the likely winner.
LifeBlood vs. Vincent & Bateman
After a grand showcase against Jake Atlas during “Death Before Dishonor” weekend, Bateman made his presence known in the life & career of Tracy Williams. Attacking “Hot Sauce” after Williams defeated Flip Gordon in a sick No Disqualification match, Bateman laid waste to the LifeBlood member. Before Williams could gain some retribution Bateman attacked him again during “ROH Unauthorized”. This set the stage for Williams vs. Bateman for the first time at “Final Battle Fallout” – a match that ended with Bateman victorious after executing his This is a Kill tombstone piledriver. But this wasn’t the only thing so profound about Bateman’s win, but the post-match antics with the arrival of Vincent Marseglia’s Ring of Horror faction stood out more as Bateman stood alongside his leader as Marseglia spoke his gospel. Mark Haskins will join his LifeBlood brethren for this match that will potentially feature the more vicious Marseglia & Bateman overcoming in a sleeper hit of an outing.
The Briscoes vs. Dalton Castle & Joe Hendry
The Briscoes will go down as the best tandem in ROH history having broken their own record as multiple time ROH World Tag Team champions all the while producing a plethora of fantastic matches across all the ROH eras. Dalton Castle & Joe Hendry don’t have the credentials of their opponents, but the bond that formed between them in an effort to become the most entertaining team in wrestling today has been something of a mixed bag of success. Doing well during ROH’s UK tour prior to “Final Battle”, Castle & Hendry fell to 2G1T at the big event in Baltimore. This match not only allows Hendry & Castle the chance to regain some momentum as a unit, but also overcome the best of the best ROH has to offer that doesn’t involve the ROH World Tag Team champions. Considering how adamant the champs of Lethal & Gresham are in ensuring Dem Boys don’t get a title shot against them by costing them matches through interference, there’s a good chance Castle & Hendry could pick up their biggest win as a team yet following a fun encounter.
Bandido vs. Alex Zayne
Before he was a member of LifeBlood and considered a potential top contender for the ROH World Championship, Bandido was one of the most exciting unsigned talents in all of pro wrestling. Alex Zayne, though not a big of a name on the indies as Bandido was in 2018 before his signing with ROH, has made some significant waves as of late mostly thanks to his performances in Game Changer Wrestling and touring with New Japan (establishing himself as someone the company can potentially rely on with the solidifying of New Japan USA). Zayne comes into this one without the hype of a Bandido, but more than enough experience to potentially shock the ROH world by overcoming someone that is poised to become a ROH champion in the very near future. More than likely the outcome will be in Bandido’s favor, but hopefully this will be the continuation of big things for Zayne if he most likely impresses even in a losing effort.
On Sunday, Feb. 9th at Baltimore’s UMBC Event Center, Ring of Honor Wrestling presents “Free Enterprise”, a live event featuring the best professional wrestlers on the planet that is absolutely FREE to attend. “Free Enterprise” is an extension of the ongoing #ROHCares initiative in which ROH gives back to the community. This program has seen top stars regularly visit children’s hospitals and has provided veterans with free tickets to live events through a partnership with Vet Tix.
Now ROH is giving all professional wrestling fans the ultimate opportunity to feel the ROH Experience in its hometown of Baltimore, MD, absolutely FREE. Big matches have already been signed for this major event featuring the debut of top Australian star Slex versus Flip Gordon and The Briscoes versus Bandido and Flamita. Also, the dominant team of Dan Maff and Jeff Cobb will get their chance at ROH gold as they compete for the ROH World Tag Team Championship against champions Jay Lethal and Jonathan Gresham.
This is absolute huge news with ROH presenting not only a free event to support a wonderful cause, but will feature a slew of must-see matches. The debuting Slex taking on Flip Gordon should be a must-see encounter that will get Slex’s ROH career off on a perfect start. The ROH World Tag Team title match has all the makings of being the perfect two-on-two David vs. Goliath affair with the Davids being a lot more dishonorable than their biblical counterpart. And then you have The Briscoes taking on the ROH-undefeated MexaBlood. Considering the level of quality The Briscoes vs. RUSH & Dragon Lee was last year (the runner up for ROH’s 2019 Match of the Year), it’s hard to believe this won’t be an early ROH Match of the Year candidate. Already the card looks phenomenal and only three matches are official.
And there you have it. Show that love, or like, for The ROHbot Report on its Facebook page. Here’s to a great week for you and yours; and as always, thanks for reading.
