Welcome to another edition of The ROHbot Report – the only article you need for all the Ring of Honor news you have to know. ROH took the East Coast for its first events of the year. Lets find out what went down in Atlanta & Concord.
Saturday Night at Center Stage Results; January 11th, 2020; Atlanta, GA
– ROH World Television Championship: Dragon Lee defeated Andrew Everett to retain
– The Allure defeated Sumie Sakai & Nicole Savoy
– Dak Draper defeated Jason Cade
– Jonathan Gresham defeated Josh Woods via count-out
– Triple Threat: The Briscoes defeated Jeff Cobb & Dan Maff and LifeBlood
– ROH World Six-Man Tag Team Championship: Flamita, Bandido & Rey Horus defeated Villain Enterprises (Marty Scurll, Brody King & Flip Gordon) to become NEW champions
– ROH World Championship: PCO vs. RUSH went to a no contest
ROH’s return to Atlanta for the first event of 2020 (just like last year) proved both memorable for its action & some interesting developments including new ROH World Six-Man Tag Team champions. Flamita, Bandido & Rey Horus found themselves in a title match that wasn’t promoted as such beforehand, but gave the fans everything one would expect from teams either trying to win or retain a championship. After some dominance by the champs, the match became a back & forth affair with the crowd roaring during much of the bout including during the big “everyone hits a move that leaves everyone down” spot that is the norm now in trios matches. The closing stretch proved incredibly simple, yet effective both for Bandido as he pinned Marty Scurll by countering the Chicken Wing; causing the fans to go wild in approval for new champions being crowned. As expected, the trios match stole the show and delivered more than expected due to the title change.
The Six-Man title wasn’t the only championship on the line with Dragon Lee not-so-shockingly having fantastic chemistry with Andrew Everett. Similar to the title tag match that followed later in the show it was the champ looking great in the early going before the momentum continuously swung in each’s favor for a short time until Lee unleashed that Incinerator Knee Strike for the pin fall. The main event for the ROH World Championship was also better than expected, but didn’t reach the enjoyable highs of other bouts on the show, let alone its title match contemporaries. The post-match antics following the ROH World title match – which was better bell-to-bell than their previous encounter at “Final Battle” by sticking to a weapon-less brawl presentation mostly throughout – was more memorable than the match itself. After RUSH obliterated two referees and Los Ingobernables faction tried to end PCO without an official, the match was called off.
Suddenly, NWA World’s champion Nick Aldis attacked, laying out Flip Gordon after Flip made the save for PCO. In the building NWA has been taping its much-acclaimed “Powerrr” program, Aldis stood tall proclaiming Center Stage was his “house” until old friend & former title challenger Marty Scurll chased him away. ROH and NWA split ties a few months ago so the latter could focus on producing its own show. Now that it appears NWA has found its footing as a broadcast presentation they have the opportunity to work alongside ROH again that could provide things like Aldis-Scurll II for the NWA title on ROH programing, or the return of Colt Cabana. As if that wasn’t enough, La Faccion Ingobernable stood tall to close the show after bashing Scurll with a chair, Pillmanizing Brody King & putting PCO through a table; setting the stage for the war to come between them and Villain Enterprises in Concord.
There was some very enjoyable action up & down the card including the Triple Threat tag team bout where The Briscoes overcame LifeBlood and Jeff Cobb & Dan Maff with Tracy Williams feeling the Jay Driller before the three count. As expected, Jonathan Gresham vs. Josh Woods was unlike anything else on the card, sticking to a more grappling-based battle that really showcased “The Goods’” potential in a high-profile singles situations. Interference from Lethal cost Woods in the end as a chop block left him prone to “The Octopus’” figure four on the floor to end Josh’s night via count-out. After Maria Manic’s attempt to get revenge on Bully Ray failed thanks to The Allure and Ray putting her through a table, Sumie Sakai surprisingly turned on Nicole Savoy after the two failed to defeat Mandy Leon & Angelina Love. Hopefully this will mean big things for Savoy as ROH, hopefully, tries to restore its Women’s title picture with Savoy becoming the centerpiece.
Also wanting to be a centerpiece was Shane Taylor as he listed his demands after dominating in 2019: a World title shot at a time of his choosing, a Six-Man Championship opportunity alongside the much under-utilized Soldiers of Savagery, a fat contract, and his face & name on every ROH poster/promotional going forward. With ROH COO Joe Koff only having a day to meet his demands, this was easily the best way to present the story that has been buzzing around Taylor’s tenure with ROH during 2020. As per the norm with a majority of these HonorClub exclusive non-PPVs for the past year, this provided an easy watch capped off by an unexpected title change, a shocking appearance by Nick Aldis, and several enjoyable matches in a nice, three-hour package.
Honor Reigns Supreme Results; January 12th, 2020; Concord, NC
– Rey Horus defeated Andrew Everett
– Triple Threat: Joe Hendry & Dalton Castle defeated The Briscoes and PJ Black & Brian Johnson
– Sumie Sakai defeated Nicole Savoy
– Dak Draper defeated Danhausen
– Alex Zayne defeated Bandido
– LifeBlood defeated Vincent & Bateman via disqualification
– Jay Lethal, Jonathan Gresham, Jeff Cobb & Dan Maff defeated The Bouncers & 2 Guys 1 Tag
– Flip Gordon defeated Flamita
– La Faccion Ingobernable defeated Villain Enterprises
ROH’s second night of action to kick off 2020 provided another very good show missing that must-see moment unlike the night prior like a title change or a major talking point to close the show. The main event provided the fallout from the final scene at Center Stage with a stereotypical trios match where heated brawls were sprinkled throughout. LFI showed great chemistry as a unit, unleashing unique triple teams against all of their opponents. In the end it was Marty Scurll stuck on the top rope alone as he traded blows with Dragon Lee. Kenny King & RUSH took advantage of the situation, pulling Scurll off the top so Lee could unleash that double stomp into the double team power bomb by his partners to obliterate Scurll; gaining the pin fall for his team in one of the best bouts of the evening.
VE had a busy night beyond the main event including Flip Gordon defeating one-third of the new ROH World Six-Man Tag Team champions in a sprint of a bout that saw Gordon disrespecting the luchador by unmasking him afterward. Gordon has been involved in blood feuds in ROH including most recently against Tracy Williams; this could be the beginning of another feud that goes beyond championships for him. NWA World’s champion made his presence known once again by attempting to hijack the show at its start alongside Kamille & Thomas Latimer with Aldis explaining his actions in Atlanta were payback for Scurll trying to steal his spotlight by arriving at NWA’s recent “Into the Fire” pay-per-view. Villain Enterprises chased the NWA contingent away thanks to security getting between the potential fighters.
From an in-ring perspective there were several highly enjoyable matches with a few surprising results including the ROH debut of Alex Zayne where he pinned Bandido in what was nothing short of a shocking upset. Bandido and Zayne went from grappling, to highflying, to swinging for the fences until Zayne countered the 21-Plex to start an onslaught that he capped off with his pumphandle driver. The fact Zayne won his ROH debut match against one-third of the new ROH World Six-Man Tag champs is huge news for someone who hasn’t (as of this event) been announced for any future appearances – something that will definitely change in the near future.
The teams of Dalton Castle & Joe Hendry and Jeff Cobb & Dan Maff had marvelous nights as well after coming up short as of late. Thanks to Brian Johnson attempting to get his new “mentor”-“protege” relationship with PJ Black into the Tag title mix, Castle & Hendry were able to overcome The Briscoes second-handedly via a pin fall on “The Mecca” Johnson. Beer City Bruiser found himself the recipient of a Tour of the Islands that allowed Cobb & Maff and the Tag champs to win, arguably, the second best bout of the night that words can’t do justice including Jay Lethal’s running commentary. Sumie Sakai picked up her first win in a while, embracing a villainous side to her personality that has only been teased in the last year. Hopefully Nicole isn’t done with ROH and comes back for revenge – the same can be stated about Andrew Everett who didn’t win during the weekend in some very impressive outings and Danhausen coming up short against Dak Draper in the second Draper bout of the weekend where his opponent came across as a bigger future star for ROH than Dak himself.
From a story perspective, Maria Manic made Bully Ray pay for his big splash on her the night prior that ended with her being driven through a table by propelling Bully through his patented weapon of choice. Shane Taylor apparently didn’t get his demands; opting out of ROH while promoting his future appearances in other promotions. While it’s hard to believe this is the way Taylor leaves ROH, one has to wonder what is the endgame with this story. Once again this show provided a mostly easy watch with some surprising results & potential seeds planted for future rivalries & match-ups including the revitalization of ROH’s Six-Man division.
The undefeated 2 Guys 1 Tag (Silas Young and Josh Woods) get their shot at the ROH World Tag Team Championship, currently held by Jay Lethal and Jonathan Gresham, in Nashville on February 28th.
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 in Atlanta at the start of 2020 thanks to some interference by Lethal. The other halves of each team have a grand history as Jay Lethal and Silas Young went to war throughout a majority of 2017 that saw “The Last Real Man” victorious in the end. Though the champs may think they are the better team – an argument that can be made against them considering one of 2G1T’s early wins came at Lethal & Gresham’s expense during a time where the future champions weren’t on the best of terms – this could provide Young & Woods the perfect chance to cap off their undefeated streak in championship glory. While the obvious outcome results in no title change, expect this one to be a fun encounter better than their previous outing.
Dak Draper will challenge for the ROH World Television title, currently held by Dragon Lee, in St. Louis on February 29th.
The 2019 Top Prospect Tournament winner is finally cashing in his ROH World Television Championship opportunity gifted to those who can win the single-elimination tournament. Dak Draper is a physical specimen if there ever was one with great size, strength & athleticism while sporting a certain level of charisma usually associated with a future star. Dragon Lee is too an amazing athlete who utilizes his blistering speed to make up for his lack of height & strength against larger or even similarly sized opponents. Lee has proven that he can overcome adversaries larger then himself including former ROH World TV champs Jeff Cobb and Shane Taylor with the latter resulting in the masked man becoming the new ROH World Television champion. Statistically, Draper has the numbers against him considering the fact only one TPT winner has won the TV title in his post-tournament shot, Matt Taven. Though Draper most likely won’t change that ratio of TPT winners to ROH TV title holders, this match could provide a breakout moment for him that establishes Dak as someone fans will be eager to see more of going forward.
Ring of Honor announced on their official Facebook page that they have signed Bandido to a new contract.
This is absolutely fantastic news as Bandido has become one of ROH’s most impressive stars and someone just brimming with potential as a World champion. ROH seemingly has as much faith in him as the fans considering the revelation that he would’ve defeated Jay Lethal and at least made it to the semi-finals of ROH’s “Final Battle” Top Contender Tournament that was won by PCO en route to PCO becoming the new ROH World champion. Who’s to say Bandido wouldn’t have won the entire tournament? Now one-third of the Six-Man titleholders, the sky still seems the limit for Bandido both in ROH and elsewhere like CMLL & New Japan.
Marty Scurll is no longer a free agent, having signed a new contract to stick with current employers Ring of Honor while also becoming a major part of the creative team alongside long-time booker Delirious.
Easily the biggest news connected to ROH in 2020 thus far. In an era where being a highly-sought free agent pretty much guarantees big money whatever major promotion a wrestler decides to sign with, Marty Scurll has put himself in position to think beyond his own career. ROH’s 2019 wasn’t the worst year in the promotion’s history, but it was its most high profiled in regards to negative press & dwindling fan support. Considering who Scurll is known for being around & befriending, “The Villain’s” finger is apparently on the pulse of what modern-day wrestling fans want. As I’ve stated time & time again, ROH still has an incredibly talented roster – a roster that’s been made better just in the last month – but the execution of certain characters & stories has been so lackluster over the past few years. Hopefully this is the beginning of ROH’s return to prominence in the eyes of fans both new & old in a landscape where wrestling fans have so many choices to spend their time & money and decide that Ring of Honor is worthy of the investment.
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