Welcome to another edition of The ROHbot Report – the only article you need for all the Ring of Honor news you have to know. The end is near as ROH gets ready for its biggest event of the year with what should be a monumental night in Baltimore.
Final Battle Preview
December 18th, 2020
Baltimore, MD
ROH World Championship: RUSH defends against Brody King
When the world was turned upside-down due to the Corona Virus, Ring of Honor found itself at a crossroads like every other sport and entertainment medium. While some companies & promotions took a chance in continuing to produce fresh content, ROH management opted to shut the live portion of its promotion down with the intent of only returning when they could control a working environment to the best of their abilities. The “ROH Bubble” took cues from the NBA and has proven successful thus far. Unfortunately for current ROH World champion RUSH, Covid-19 and concern over traveling prevented the man who was last seen overcoming PCO and Mark Haskins to earn his second World title in ROH. Though unable to come back to ROH and defend the title, RUSH seemed content in enjoying time with his family, showcasing his celebrity & reminding everyone he’s ungovernable.
Brody King, however, has gained a chance to continue plying his trade in ROH with a new mission: dethrone RUSH as the ROH champion. King’s journey began on ROH TV where he overcame former ROH World & Six-Man Tag champion Dalton Castle. Matched up with another potential title contender in Shane Taylor, the former ROH World Tag Team & Six-Man titleholder engaged in one of the hardest-hitting bouts seen anywhere in North American during 2020. Thanks to a series of lariats, King put Taylor’s shoulders to the mat; making it undeniable that he is the man to beat that isn’t a ROH champion. One year after his fellow “Villain” PCO did the seemingly impossible by overcoming RUSH, King gets his chance to achieve a dream cemented in nothing but pure violence.
Though King enters this bout with both a great amount of momentum from the aforementioned wins and a size advantage, RUSH is the perfect counter wrestler for someone like the brawl-heavy King as the World champ usually finds success in chaotic scenarios such as at “Death Before Dishonor” 2019 when he defeated Matt Taven for his first World title. Similar to “Final Battle 2004” where a somewhat unsuspecting challenger in Austin Aries overcame the most dominant ROH champion in history in Samoa Joe to begin a new era in the company, this could be the beginning of ROH’s most violent era with King at the helm.
ROH World Tag Team Championship: Jay Lethal & Jonathan Gresham defend against Mark Briscoe & PCO
“Final Battle 2019” saw the end of The Briscoes’ tenth ROH World Tag Team title reign at the hands of Jonathan Gresham & Jay Lethal in a thriller of a bout. Before Dem Boys could receive their contracted rematch, the pandemic occurred and shut everything down. When ROH TV returned with new programming so did The Briscoes with the intent of regaining the gold they lost; that was until Jay Briscoe found himself disrespected by EC3. With Jay focused on putting EC3 in check came baby brother Mark partner-less in his quest for Tag Team glory. So Mark made a call and found someone ready to too regain the ROH World Tag Team Championship: PCO. The freak that is PCO isn’t just a master at tag team wrestling with the likes of Jacque Rougeau & Brody King, but is also very familiar with his partner having defeated Mark to win his first and thus far only ROH World Tag Team title at ROH’s “17th Anniversary”.
Both challengers have shown their ability to adapt in any situation before making it their own in, usually, the wildest & craziest of ways. The ROH World Tag Team champions will be looking to avoid a brawl as The Foundation’s Lethal & Gresham have taken great pride in recent months in restoring the Pure style of ROH’s legacy. The biggest factor in this bout will be when it occurs. With Gresham pulling double duty at “Final Battle”, “The Octopus” could be disappointed with the outcome of his previous outing, extremely tired, or both if this match occurs after his Pure Championship defense; forcing Lethal to work double hard for both himself & his partner. There’s a believable chance new champions could be crowned here, but considering the unpredictable nature of PCO & Mark with their penchant for putting themselves in dangerous situations it may be less about talent and more about the champions taking advantage of a scenario that goes awry for their challengers.
ROH Pure Championship: Jonathan Gresham defends against Flip Gordon
Jonathan Gresham created a campaign to restore Pure Wrestling in ROH. After months of teasing the return of ROH’s first secondary championship, Gresham finally found himself squaring off with the best grapplers wrestling had to offer for the chance to become the first ROH Pure champion since 2006 when Bryan Danielson defeated Nigel McGuinness to unify the title with the ROH World Championship. Gresham made it through Wheeler Yuta, Matt Sydal, Josh Woods and fellow Foundation member Tracy Williams to claim his spot on the top of the Pure mountain. Interestingly enough, Flip Gordon – a man with MMA credentials and someone who has had the ability to watch from afar the Pure division return to form – didn’t compete in the tournament; surprising everyone with a return on ROH TV with the announcement he had challenged Gresham for the gold and it was accepted by “The Octopus” and ROH officials. Gordon followed up by overcoming Josh Woods on ROH TV a week later to prove that he is ready for the talents of a man like Gresham.
These two have fought three times in singles competition with Gordon winning two of those three bouts. But Pure Rules matches are nothing like the average wrestling encounter. With only three rope breaks allowed per wrestler, no allowance for closed fist strikes, and no interference without termination, this encounter will test the mettle of Gordon like no other while Gresham will enter with experience second to none in how to make the rules work in his favor (a factor seen in Gordon’s match with Woods where he lost rope breaks fairly early due to instinct). Like the Tag Team Championship match, this bout’s result could go hand-in-hand with where it’s placed on the card. If “The Octopus” has to defend his championship against a fresh Gordon after wrestling against PCO & Mark Briscoe he may be into too rough condition to overcome the mix of high flying expertise & underrated grappling acumen of challenger. If Gresham is fresh, it’s hard to believe anyone can beat him in a Pure Championship match including the former “Mercenary” of Villain Enterprises. No matter the outcome it’s hard to believe this won’t steal the show.
Winner Gets an Immediate Shot at the ROH World Television Championship: Josh Woods vs. Dak Draper vs. LSG vs. Tony Deppen
A massive opportunity awaits one of four talented individuals looking to finally breakthrough the pack and earn ROH gold. Top Prospect Tournament winner Josh Woods found himself close to becoming a ROH champion for the first time courtesy of the Pure Wrestling Championship Tournament. Woods, who has spent the better part of his ROH career simply trying to prove his worth, found a kinship with Silas Young that seemed to be fostering a ROH World Tag Team title reign.
But with the Covid-19 pandemic came Woods switching his goals to something a lot more in his wheelhouse. Woods impressed thoroughly during the tournament; only failing to overcome eventual overall winner and current Pure champion Jonathan Gresham. Instead of challenging for the Pure title as many expected him to do after getting the biggest win of his career by pinning Jay Lethal on ROH TV, Woods is gunning for another championship – one that he’s unsuccessfully challenged for in the past.
Similar to Woods, Dak Draper has both won the Top Prospect Tournament and failed to wrest the ROH TV Championship from its titleholder. Draper, just like Woods as well, changed his career game plan by showcasing his pure wrestling talent by defeating Brian Johnson on ROH TV. Draper comes into this one as the most imposing force not only in the match, but also on the entire ROH roster with the knowledge of what it takes to take Television titleholder Dragon Lee to the limit (and potentially overcome the masked man).
LSG’s early ROH success came courtesy of being one-half of Coast 2 Coast alongside Shaheem Ali. After the two agreed to take their careers in their own hands without the other in their corner, LSG immediately bet on himself by challenging Jay Lethal. The match didn’t end in LSG’s favor, but only due to the bout reaching the fifteen minute time limit and the judges declaring that Lethal had done enough to win. LSG is rightly still soar about the loss and could use that anger to fuel him in during a match that will allow him to fight for a ROH singles title for the first time in his career.
Last but not least is Tony Deppen. Considered one of the best all-around wrestlers going today, Tony Deppen spent the last few years making waves in such promotions as the defunct CHIKARA and, most recently, Game Changer Wrestling where he ruled as the company’s Extreme champion for almost a year. Deppen has also done well in tournaments; winning the 2020 Synergy Garden State Invitational that aired on FITE TV.
PJ Black spoiled Deppen’s ROH debut during the opening round of ROH’s Pure Title Tournament, but the lasting impression left was a positive one. Deppen may have the one tool in his arsenal made for a match like this where a quick blow for an even quicker three count is necessary for victory: his patented Knee Trembler. ROH’s Four Corner Survival bouts are usually the most exhilarating matches on a card and this should be no different with a potential new star being born in the process.
The Righteous (Vincent & Bateman) vs. Matt Taven & Mike Bennett
It’s nothing more disheartening in not only wrestling, but in all human relationships when it appears a bond forged by hardship, stress & even blood is broken due to apparent jealously & greed. Following “Death Before Dishonor XVII”, The Kingdom couldn’t catch a break with Taven having lost the ROH World Championship to RUSH and TK O’Ryan & Vinny Marseglia failing to push back the force of The Bouncers. Then O’Ryan & Marseglia were attack by an unknown assailant(s). Taven took the devious act as both a sign of attrition & cowardice. Marseglia seemed beside himself trying to discover the truth; creating a united front that literally blinded Taven to the truth like a spotlight to the face. In Columbus during “The Experience”, Taven stood in the ring trying to get a fight with the person responsible for hurting his friends when the spotlight suddenly shown into his face. Blinded, Taven couldn’t stop an attack by someone who soon revealed as Vincent himself.
The sadistic “Horror King” used that infamous axe he’s been carrying around for months to slice open Taven’s forehead and drink the blood that came forth. Marseglia gave no answer as to why, but his actions forced Taven’s hand; culminating in a match at “Final Battle”. During the match’s closing moments Taven retrieved Vincent’s axe, only for Vincent to stop a slashing with Sliced Bread #2 that allowed him to pin the former ROH World champion. Bateman shockingly arrived and laid out Taven with his tombstone piledriver “This is a Kill” to showcase his allegiance with Mr. “You Know What I’m Saying?” As if that wasn’t enough they went full blown “Misery” on Taven’s legs; shattering his ankle.
ROH would temporarily shut down alongside the rest of the world, returning in September with wrestling purity in mind, But bloodshed still lurked in the shadows as Vincent reminded everyone that Taven brought the wrath of The Righteous upon himself by never giving credit to Vincent for saving Matt’s career by accepting a position in The Kingdom when everyone Taven aligned himself with left for “greener pastures.” Taven under the guise of a new mantra – “Follow the Trend” – made his ROH return and immediately came after Vincent. Their brawls on ROH TV resulted in the two fighting until security & ROH officials had no choice but to separate them. One of those uncontrollable fights came after Taven pinned Bateman. Bateman and eventually Vincent took out their aggression on Taven; only for one of those men Vincent claimed left Taven high & dry being the only person able to save him: Mike Bennett.
“The Miracle” returned in prime condition and ready to to go war – something he displayed on ROH TV when he and Vincent fought after the latter was disqualified for choking Bennett beyond the referee’s five count. The ensuing melee featuring the aforementioned Bennett and Vincent saw Bateman and Taven join the fray before they were separated by security & ROH officials. With an ally by his side that he can trust, Taven returns to the site of his most recent greatest defeat with revenge in mind and a fire in his heart. Vincent earned his biggest ROH win to date at last year’s “Final Battle” and that could be topped here if he & Bateman can use their opponents’ anger against them just like he did a year prior against Taven. This could and should be the wildest match of the evening with The Kingdom standing tall after the final bell.
Pure Rules Match: The Foundation (Tracy Williams & Rhett Titus) vs. Fred Yehi & Wheeler Yuta
For the first time in ROH history, Pure Rules will dictate a tag team encounter. Wheeler Yuta and Fred Yehi make their ROH returns after impressive outings during the Pure Title Tournament; Yehi actually making it to the Block A semi-finals before falling to overall runner-up Tracy Williams. Yuta showcased his grappling talents against eventual new Pure champion Jonathan Gresham; proving he has what it takes to ensure pure wrestling never dies in ROH again. Standing across the ring from them will be familiar faces indeed. As noted, Williams eliminated Yehi from the Pure Title Tournament by making him submit. Though Rhett Titus has no collided with Yuta or Yehi in the past, he is a stalwart of ROH that has seen so many come & go; yet Titus hasn’t earned the respect from the fans or his peers like the people who came before him or even started in ROH after he began his Ring of Honor career.
Now with The Foundation rebuilding him in the image of purity, Titus is here to showcase what fans have been denying all these years alongside Williams. Beyond the standard Pure Rules such as each wrestler only having three rope breaks and no closed fist strikes, three other mandates have been attached to this match and any Pure Rule Tag Team match going forward: a legal tag requires the wrestler on the apron to reach over the top rope and tag his partner hand-to-hand while holding the tag rope with his other hand; each wrestler has five seconds to exit the ring after a tag is made; each time a team breaks up a pin fall or submission, that team will lose a rope break while breaking up a pin fall or submission when a team is out of rope breaks will result in a disqualification. It’ll be incredibly interesting to see how this experiment works and whether or not “Final Battle” is a clean sweep for The Foundation.
Danhausen Must Win to Earn a ROH Contract: Danhausen vs. Brian Johnson
Danhausen has not only become one of the oddest characters in all of wrestling, he’s also amassed a cult-like following of fans who want nothing more than to see him at the top of the mountain. But Danhausen’s ridiculous contractual demands (not to mention a worldwide pandemic) put a halt to the negotiation process between himself and ROH. Thankfully ROH finally settled on Danhausen’s demands and signed him to a temporary contract that could become permanent if and only if he can win a single match in ROH in 2020. With only one event left, Danhausen’s back is against the figurative wall as he has to channel all of his energy into being the best wrestler he can possibly be against the self-proclaimed “Mecca” Brian Johnson. Originally “Number 1”, Johnson has come up short in a majority of his ROH matches thus far including his most recent televised encounter with Dak Draper. Though a match with Johnson may seem like a layup for Danhausen, the protege of PJ Black is just as determined as his opponent to finally achieve monumental status in ROH. It would be really unfortunate if Danhausen didn’t get signed to ROH as it would make for a terrible day by the big cooling tower.
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