Welcome to another edition of The ROHbot Report – the only article you need for all the Ring of Honor news you have to know. One of ROH’s original big events returns after a year of dormancy due to the pandemic. But instead of one night, the men & women of ROH will fight in Philadelphia for two consecutive evenings with the latter featuring a Steel Cage main event. Lets find out what will go down in the “City of Brotherly Love”.
“Glory By Honor XVIII: Night 1” Preview; August 20th, 2021; Philadelphia, PA
ROH World Championship: Bandido defends against Flip Gordon
Ring of Honor’s return to Baltimore on July 11th wasn’t just monumental for the fact it was the first ROH event in seventeen months to be attended by fans, it also marked the night Bandido became the best in the world. Against all odds, Bandido capitalized on both his Survival of the Fittest tournament victory to earn the title shot as well as the hateful nature of then-champion RUSH when the latter attempted to unmask his challenger; leaving RUSH open for a roll up that resulted in “The Most Wanted” becoming the second man in ROH history to pin “El Toro Blanco”. Though Bandido’s title celebration was cut short, the reality remained he was now the ROH World champion. During those seventeen months since ROH was forced to deal with the Covid-19 pandemic like the rest of the world, Flip Gordon’s destiny to win the ROH World Championship was put on hold. Having won a top contender battle royal prior to the pandemic, “The Mercenary” has been forced to sit on his title opportunity due to a mixture of Gordon going for Pure gold and suck in feuds & rivalries with the likes of Mark Briscoe and EC3 until now.
This will mark the third time Bandido and Gordon have clashed in the honorable ring. Following the historic “G1 Supercard”, the two fan favorites wrestled in the main event of ROH’s first “War of the Worlds 2019” event. After twenty minutes of thrilling action, Gordon won via the Flip-5. The honor and respect shown between the two existed no longer by the time they fought again. In Las Vegas during what should’ve been ROH’s “18th Anniversary” weekend, Ring of Honor taped a few matches that didn’t air for months. One of those bouts just so happened to be Bandido-Gordon II with Flip being much more methodical & vicious compared to that night in Buffalo ten months earlier where the two wanted to prove who was the best high-flyer in ROH. But the outcome was the same as Gordon overcame Bandido with his patented Flip-5.
The challenger, though not having the same success as Bandido in regards big matches in 2021, enters with the knowledge of what it takes to beat the champion more than anyone else on the current ROH roster. Though it may seem out of the realm of possibility Bandido would lose in his first title defense, it has happened in the recent past when Adam Cole defeated new champion Kyle O’Reilly in the latter’s first defense. With that being stated, one must believe that Bandido will start his reign in stellar fashion here by proving Gordon doesn’t have his number.
ROH Pure Championship: Jonathan Gresham defends against Rhett Titus
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. Since that night last summer when “The Octopus” became the first Pure titleholder in fifteen years, Gresham’s successfully defended the title six times while going 11-0 in Pure Rules matches. Gresham has been utterly unstoppable in his element as seen most recently at “Best in the World” where he stopped would-be champion Mike Bennett in a show-stealing bout.
Ironically enough, Rhett Titus has found success in his wrestling environment as of late. Once a champion-caliber duo alongside Kenny King as the All Night Express, Titus finally found a partner in Tracy Williams where he could recreate tag team greatness. After overcoming Kenny King & La Bestia del Ring for the ROH World Tag Team Championship, The Foundation’s Titus & Williams held onto the gold for over three months. Before their title victory, Titus & Williams won the first Pure Rules Tag Team match; doing the same when they were champions together against LFI’s King & Dragon Lee. In 2021, however, Titus has only one ROH singles victory.
Rhett’s only Pure Rules singles match in 2021 wasn’t successful as well. So why would Titus seem like a viable opponent for someone so dominant as Gresham? Less than two years ago, these two men stood across the ring from one another and by the final bell it was Titus’ hand raised in victory. Even in an environment made for Gresham, Titus knows what it takes to disable “The Octopus”. Expect another fantastic Pure Championship match with the potential of a title change not being the most predictable, but stranger things have happened in regards to ROH title reigns in 2021.
La Faccion Ingobernable (ROH World Television champion Dragon Lee, RUSH, Kenny King & La Bestia del Ring) vs. VLNCE UNLTD (ROH World Tag Team champion Homicide, ROH World Tag Team champion Chris Dickinson, Brody King & Tony Deppen)
ROH’s “19th Anniversary” pay-per-view was monumental for several reasons including the debut of VLNCE UNLTD. The four-man faction featuring former ROH World champion Homicide, “Final Battle” main eventer Brody King, then-future ROH World Television titleholder Tony Deppen, and renowned independent star Chris Dickinson. During the war between the Pure Rules-minded Foundation and the unruly La Faccion Ingobernable was now this dividing line between the two factions. For VLNCE UNLTD there is honor through unmitigated violence & brutality. Though prone to anger and ready to spill anyone’s blood, the foursome that is VLNCE UNLTD lives by the Code of Honor – a philosophy even the likes of Homicide adhered to during ROH’s earliest events. Unlike their opposing stables, LFI lives with a “by any means necessary” mantra. There is no shame in victory for LFI even if it means using weapons, interference, or even attempting to unmask a fellow luchador.
On ROH TV episode 501 LFI and VU faced off for the first time in eight-man tag action – a match that ended in a no contest as the referee couldn’t control the brawls that ensued barely five minutes after the bell officially rang. But beyond that moment are many little battles between all the competitors. La Bestia del Ring interfered and cost Brody King the ROH World Championship when he faced RUSH for the gold at “Final Battle” last year. Dragon Lee defeated Tony Deppen to become the new ROH World Television champion at “Best in the World” last month. Kenny King and Homicide have crossed paths in ROH and elsewhere. There’s no doubt this will be the wildest bout of the evening with the potential of another no contest due to the barbarity unleashed by everyone involved.
Six-Man Mayhem: Mike Bennett vs. Dak Draper vs. Eli Isom vs. PJ Black vs. Danhausen vs. Demonic Flamita
One of ROH’s staple match stipulations, Six-Man Mayhem, returns to Philadelphia with a sextet of competitors who have been all over the various divisions in hopes of attaining ROH gold. Most recently at ROH’s “Best in the World” pay-per-view, Mike Bennett unsuccessfully challenged Jonathan Gresham for the Pure Championship. Rivals Dak Draper and Eli Isom failed to put aside their differences to win ROH World Six-Man gold alongside Dalton Castle; resulting in the two wrestling on ROH TV weeks later in a match Draper won – putting their record against each other at 1-1-1 up to that point. Isom unintentionally made up for the loss during a recent episode of “Week By Week” where “Infinite” was attacked by Castle again, resulting in a Draper disqualification.
While Castle was playing mind games with Isom and Draper, Flamita embraced his darkside; earning a spot in the Survival of the Fittest tournament finale where he came up short courtesy of former ally, eventual SotF tournament winner, and future ROH World champion Bandido. Both Danhausen and PJ Black have their sights set on the ROH World Tag Team Championship with the prior becoming a successful tandem alongside PCO while “The Globe-Trotting Guru” hasn’t been able to consistently win with his protege Brian Johnson.
As expected from the match’s name alone, Six-Man Mayhem bouts can start off pretty calm before escalating into series of big moves where one person has to be at the right place at the right time to gain the pin fall or submission. In truth these type of matches are less about talent and more about luck with a bout like this really being anyone’s to win at any time. No matter the winner they will post a grand threat against the ROH World champion whomever that may be at the time.
EC3 vs. Brian Johnson
For the first time two very polarizing figures with philosophies they preach on a constant basis will do battle in a ROH ring. Following his second stay in WWE, EC3 found a fire within himself unlike anything he imagined; wanting to dictate the narrative of his career going forward instead of simply being a cog in the machine. Entering the realm of Honor allowed for EC3 to question everything about the company Brian Johnson has called home for several years. EC3 would only find honor through fights with Jay Briscoe, even offering to follow the Code of Honor after being spit on by Flip Gordon after their “Best in the World” ’21 clash. But EC3 isn’t the only one controlling the narrative of his career.
Brian Johnson has spent the better part of his ROH tenure shouting his own praises, all the while insulting every opposing figure in his path be it someone like The Briscoes at “Best in the World” or interviewer-turned-grappler Quinn McKay. For Johnson, it’s “Mecca versus Everyone” every time he steps into the squared circle – a belief that won’t change when facing the imposing figure that is EC3. Unlike Johnson, who failed to win at “Best in the World”, EC3 enters Philadelphia with momentum on his side having defeated ROH World title top contender Flip Gordon at the show. Though Johnson has pulled off some shocking wins in the recent past including overcoming the much larger Sledge to make it into the Survival of the Fittest tournament finale, it’s hard to believe he’ll be able to stop EC3’s story before it truly begins in ROH.
The Briscoes vs. The Righteous (Bateman & Dutch)
The Briscoes are back on the road to their former glory as ROH World Tag team champions. Following several setbacks and in-fighting, Jay and Mark have the chance to rise up the Tag Team division. Standing in their way after a great night in Baltimore during “Best in the World” are a pair who can get just as wild as Dem Boys. Bateman has proven since his leader Vincent has been feuding with Matt Taven that he’ll sacrifice wins and his body for the cause.
Dutch, on the other hand, hasn’t had to make the same choices as his ally due to him simply being a monster of a man who seemingly isn’t affected by pain as most competitors. While it’s certain this will be nothing short of a brawl, one must wonder if there will be a definitive winner considering Dutch’s frequency for disqualifications and The Briscoes not being afraid of going to war in a good ol’ fashioned fistfight.
Silas Young vs. Rey Horus
Ring of Honor’s Television division has been incredibly turbulent since ROH’s “19th Anniversary”. Then-champion Dragon Lee couldn’t compete at the pay-per-view event, resulting in Tracy Williams winning the title from Lee’s La Faccion Ingobernable stablemate Kenny King. Tony Deppen would attain the title from Williams before Lee regained the championship from Deppen at “Best in the World”. All the while the TV division’s rankings have fluctuated with names rising and falling before they could get an established title opportunity. One of those men who has gained a spot in the TV Championship rankings is the former ROH World Six-Man Tag Team champion, Rey Horus.
Horus got the biggest singles win of his career thus far by defeating Demonic Flamita at “Best in the World”. On the opposite end of the spectrum is Silas Young. Young failed to overcome former protege Josh Woods in a Last Man Standing match at “BitW”. But being a former two-time TV champion, Young is always one big win away from getting into the title rankings of a division he ran just a few years ago. This will mark their first-ever in-ring encounter and a true clash of styles as the more scientific brawler that is “The Last Real Man” will have to ground & pound a high-flyer with the heart of a true champion. Like several bouts on both nights, this is anyone’s match to win with the victor most likely challenging for Television gold come, at the earliest, “Death Before Dishonor” in September.
The Allure (Angelina Love & Mandy Leon) vs. Vita VonStarr & TBA
The Allure of former two-time Women of Honor champion Angelina Love & the vanguard of Women of Honor Mandy Leon have been running through ROH’s Women’s division competitors since they united at “G1 Supercard” over two years ago. During that time, The Allure overcame the likes of Kelly Klein & Jenny Rose, Nicole Savoy & Sumie Sakai, and even sent intended roster additions packing. Leading up to the ROH World Women’s Championship tournament, The Allure attempted to keep Quinn McKay out of the tourney through nefarious means until McKay defeated Leon in a singles bout on ROH TV. Looking to restart their winning ways as a duo, The Allure will enter Philadelphia without a good idea of what to do against their competition.
Vita VonStarr has proven to be one of the most unpredictable members of Vincent’s Righteous stable. VonStarr’s wild nature actually cost her a chance to become the first World Women’s champion for ROH, but broke the rule stipulated by ROH Board of Directors member Maria Kanellis-Bennett that stated Vita couldn’t interfere in any match before or during the tournament, or be ejected out of the tourney. Though Vita can’t win ROH gold, she could defeat the tournament’s eventual winner before the new champion is crowned. The biggest question is who will be by Vita’s side of this match. Considering the list of people who don’t care for The Allure, the chance of them facing an enemy is highly probable. With that being stated, Vita doesn’t work well with others outside of The Righteous – a fact that will most likely mean her team’s downfall against the united Love & Leon.
– Chelsea Green will also be in action against an unnamed opponent.
“Glory By Honor XVIII: Night 2” Preview; August 21st, 2021; Philadelphia, PA
Steel Cage Match: Matt Taven vs. Vincent
There’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 ax 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 ax, 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 returned to the site of his then-most recent greatest defeat with revenge in mind and a fire in his heart that allowed the original members of The Kingdom to overcome The Righteous.
But in victory came another loss for Taven as The Righteous performed the same ankle-breaking technique on Bennett after the match. Refusing to fight Taven in a ring, Vincent laid out the challenge: lets do battle at where it all began. Sitting inside PAL Hall in Fall River, Massachusetts, Vincent put out the word that if “The Trend” wanted to settle their issues once & for all it would only happen in PAL Hall. This “cinematic”-formatted match witnessed both Taven and Vince plummet off a balcony through several tables thanks to the intervening Dutch, another member of The Righteous. With Vincent missing after that night in PAL Hall, Taven attempted to move on with his career. But the ghost of Matt’s past wouldn’t stay down and eventually sicced his hounds on Taven and his OGK brethren Bennett.
Growing ragged and tired of Vincent’s constant appearances in his matches, Taven threw out the challenge for one last battle between himself and his former tag team partner: a fight inside a Steel Cage. Vincent loved the idea, but only if Taven put up his spot in the top contender rankings; thus Taven would have to sacrifice the chance of becoming a two-time ROH World champion to finish this long-running problem between two former friends. Taven has proven himself inside the fifteen-foot-high steel cage, but victory hasn’t been in his favor when surrounded by the chain-link walls – that fact will most likely change in Philadelphia. But even with the slaying of a monster, Taven will still be haunted in the same way Colt Cabana was after his horrific feud with Homicide that put Colt in a headspace where he couldn’t avoid the simplicity of a small package.
ROH World Six-Man Tag Team Championship: Shane Taylor Promotions (Shane Taylor, Kaun & Moses) defend against Incoherence (Delirious, Hallowicked & Frightmare)
Shane Taylor is determined to be a man who dictates his worth in wrestling. By creating “Shane Taylor Promotions”, Taylor has slowly gained clients, allies and, most importantly, respect from those who always looked at him as the lesser part of the Pretty Boy Killers alongside Keith Lee. By Taylor’s side are two men who too are looking to prove themselves as men who can call their own shots in wrestling: Kaun & Moses, The Soldiers of Savagery. The SOS left a lasting impression prior to “Final Battle 2020” by taking The Briscoes to the limit; almost defeating the record-breaking ROH World Tag Team champions. Though The SOS came up short, the match proved they have the tools to become titleholders. The SOS lived up to that belief during the February 3rd episode of ROH TV. It was on that night in Baltimore that Shane Taylor Promotions put everything together and did what they claimed they could do for months: become champions if given the same opportunities as other ROH competitors when they defeated MexiSquad to become the new ROH World Six-Man Tag Team champions.
But before STP was even a concept in Taylor’s mind, Delirious ran wild alongside fellow masked grapplers in the Philadelphia-based promotion CHIKARA. Delirious alongside Hallowicked and Frightmare were known as “Incoherence” and found great success in their home promotion including Delirious & Hallowicked reigning as CHIKARA’s tag team titleholders for almost a year. Hallowicked isn’t foreign to the honorable ring, teaming with Jigsaw almost a decade ago to challenge The Briscoes for the ROH World Tag Team Championship. Just like that night in Chicago, Hallowicked will fight alongside like-minded talents in hopes of becoming an ROH titleholder. Unfortunately for Incoherence, their first match as a unit in over ten years will be against a fearsome threesome who have gone 5-0 in the Six-Man division; successfully defending their title three times so far. While it’s hard to believe STP won’t make it four for four, hopefully this won’t be the last of Incoherence in ROH.
MexaBlood (ROH World champion Bandido & Rey Horus) vs. La Faccion Ingobernable (ROH World Television champion Dragon Lee & RUSH)
In pro wrestling to reach the mountaintop is easy, but staying there is a different story. RUSH has proven what it takes to stay atop the honorable mountain during his two reigns as ROH World champion. From Jay Lethal, to Brody King, to Shane Taylor, to Silas Young, RUSH went through a plethora of different challengers and styles until “Best in the World” ’21. On that night stood a fellow luchador and someone he was very familiar with waiting to test his skills against the very best ROH had to offer, Bandido. RUSH’s arrogance during his onslaught on Bandido eventually cost him when he attempted to unmask the would-be champion. Turning the disrespectful action into a pinning combination allowed Bandido to pin RUSH and become the new ROH World champion. Bandido didn’t get a chance to celebrate the monumental act as La Faccion Ingobernable attacked Bandido prior to RUSH disrespectfully laying the World title belt across the new champion’s chest.
Before Bandido became the ROH World champion and drew the ire of RUSH & LFI, “The Most Wanted” attained the ROH World Six-Man Tag Team Championship alongside Rey Horus & Flamita, MexiSquad. Unfortunately for MexiSquad inner scrabbling ended both their title reign and their alliance. Horus and Bandido remained friends while Flamita turned demonic. Collectively known as “MexaBlood”, Bandido & Horus take on a tandem bound by blood. Brothers RUSH & Dragon Lee enter this one with a perfect two-for-two record in ROH. Their first ROH match together resulted in a stellar victory over The Briscoes. This should be one of the wildest matches of the entire weekend and a chance for Bandido to prove his superiority over RUSH yet again, or, more than likely, RUSH & Lee keeping their ROH-undefeated tandem alive.
The Foundation (ROH Pure champion Jonathan Gresham, Jay Lethal, Rhett Titus & Tracy Williams) vs. VLNCE UNLTD (ROH World Tag Team champion Homicide, ROH World Tag Team champion Chris Dickinson, Brody King & Tony Deppen)
ROH’s “19th Anniversary” event shook up the honorable world. After RUSH overcame his latest challenger in none other than the former two-time ROH World titleholder Jay Lethal, Brody King arrived to “congratulate” RUSH – the man who dashed his dreams of winning the ROH World Championship at “Final Battle” three months earlier. But King wasn’t just there to put out another challenge or anything in the like – Brody was ready to bring violence to ROH unlike anything seen since the days of The Carnage Crew, Maff & Whitmer, and Homicide. Ironically enough, the former ROH World champion Homicide would arrive alongside Chris Dickinson – an independent wrestler who has been making waves throughout North America including in New Japan USA – and recent free agent-turned-consistent ROH performer Tony Deppen.
Siding with Brody King, the trio attacked La Faccion Ingobernable before doing the same to The Foundation. VLNCE UNLTD was born in Baltimore that night and they were ready to take over. Under Brody’s watch, Tony Deppen shocked everyone by ending The Foundation’s Tracy Williams’ Television title reign during his first defense. VLNCE UNLTD has gone to war in tag team action with the most prominent factions ROH contains on ROH TV and stood victorious including King most recently pinning Lethal to stop a stellar encounter.
This match will also mark the first time Brody and Lethal have been in the same ring against each other since “Best in the World” where King decimated the former two-time ROH World champion; as well as new ROH World Tag Team titleholders Homicide & Dickinson after they overcame Rhett Titus & Jonathan Gresham in a “Fight Without Honor” to win the Tag gold. A big question will be the health of Tracy Williams. Williams was involved in a hit & run car incident prior to “BitW”, sitting out the pay-per-view event due to injuries sustained from said accident. If Williams isn’t able to hold his own when the match inevitably turns into a brawl like their previous eight-man tag outing did, “Hot Sauce” could be solely responsible for The Foundation falling to a faction that is the antithesis of everything the pure wrestlers stand for.
The Briscoes vs. Flip Gordon & Demonic Flamita
When “Final Battle 2020” wrapped up, Flip Gordon walked out of Baltimore title-less after unsuccessfully challenging for the ROH Pure Championship. Gordon was almost immediately banned from the Pure division for not following the Code of Honor & cheating to win following “Final Battle”. But “The Mercenary” still has a World title shot waiting for him to cash-in. Ironically enough it was Gordon cashing in on his moniker that started this whole mess between the two future competitors. During an episode of ROH TV where Gordon teamed with La Faccion Ingobernable, Flip found himself being abused by his opponents including The Briscoes. Understandably upset about the thrashing Dem Boys dished out on him during the match, Gordon took EC3’s payoff to interfere in The Briscoes’ top contender match against Kenny King & Dragon Lee that resulted in Mark being kicked in the face by Gordon and Jay left prone to a match-ending cradle. Mark paid Gordon back a few weeks later by using a chair to crack Flip’s head and put him in prime position for a pin courtesy of Flamita.
After ROH’s “19th Anniversary” pay-per-view where Gordon cheated Mark Briscoe out of a singles victory over him, Flip teamed with EC3 to battle their respective rivals Mark and Jay Briscoe. On that night it was Gordon using a steel chain to illegally attack Mark and knock him out for an EC3 pin fall. The loss to Gordon & EC3 sent The Briscoes on a spiral of aggression toward one another that culminated in a brawl on their family’s farm. Literally beating their problems out of each other, The Briscoes have gone 2-0 in tag team action. This will mark the first time Gordon and Flamita have teamed with the pair actually having problems of their own as in their previous singles encounters with one another (with a record standing at 1-1 for both), Flip attempted to unmask the luchador.
Since those matches, Flamita has embraced a dark region of his personality, transforming into someone who should work well with such a ruthless ally. Depending on the outcome of Gordon’s match with Bandido during “Night 1”, Flip may walk in as the new ROH World champion – thus being a big opportunity for Dem Boys to shoot up both in the Tag Team and World title divisions with a victory here. No matter if Gordon is a titleholder or not, expect The Briscoes to add another big win on their way to potentially regaining the ROH World Tag Team Championship.
Chelsea Green & Willow vs. Rok-C & Miranda Alize
“Best in the World” ’21 gave a glimpse into the future of ROH’s rebuilding Women’s Division. After the World Women’s Championship tournament brackets announcement came the revelation Chelsea Green had signed with ROH. Though not ready to compete, Green promised to earn a shot at the future champion after the tournament concludes. Chelsea’s journey to the top of ROH’s Women’s Division starts alongside someone who won’t be competing for the gold. Willow, though one of the favorites to win the entire tournament, was put out in the first round due to the submission skills of Allysin Kay. This is not only Green’s chance to start off her ROH tenure in fine fashion alongside someone hoping to get back her winning ways.
This first-time tandem will collide with another duo who haven’t had the privilege of teaming, but do know each other relatively well after traveling in the same circles including wrestling for Booker T.’s Reality of Wrestling. Unlike Willow, Rok and Alize have advanced into the Women’s Championship tournament’s second round and will most likely be bonded by the fact they don’t want to lose any match leading up to their hopeful clash in the title tournament finale where either “The Prodigy” or “The Lucha Baddie” will overcome their temporary ally to become the first ROH World Women’s champion. It’ll be interesting to see what team can overcome their lack of experience together and make some waves leading up to one of the biggest moments of the year for ROH when the company crowns its Women’s champion.
Dalton Castle vs. Danhausen
The former ROH World champion Dalton Castle has been very busy as of late. Beyond his in-ring activities, Castle has recently showcased his game show talents on “Celebrity Family Feud”. But his antics alongside former WCW World Heavyweight champion David Arquette didn’t reduce how wacky Castle has been in ROH over the past few months. That wackiness came at the expense of a match between Eli Isom and Dak Draper on ROH TV that resulted in both men getting kicked in the groin by Castle after the former World champion talked about being so impressed by them. Their rematch also saw Castle appear. This time, however, Dalton left during the match’s final minutes and distracted Draper in the process; giving Isom the chance to win with finisher, “The Promise”. After failing to unite Isom & Draper for a Six-Man Tag Team Championship match alongside Castle, Dalton helped Dak pin Eli in a Triple Threat encounter that also included “The Peacock”. There are very few people as unpredictable as Castle at this point in his career.
One of those few people is none other than his opponent for the evening, Danhausen. Following his hiring of PCO as someone to beat up Brian Johnson, Danhausen saw the chance to find someone who could help the very nice & very evil competitor make more money. With the offer on the table, PCO opted to do what made him a success in ROH initially by becoming one-half of a tag team. Their first night as a unit occurred at “Best in the World” where Danhausen & PCO overcame The Bouncers in something of an upset. Though Castle has been more focused on causing chaos than winning, he’s still a dangerous competitor; as dangerous as anyone Danhausen has faced in ROH one-on-one thus far. It may not be Castle’s talents that fail him in this one, but his actions against the likes of Isom who may be looking for revenge; gladly interfering to cost Dalton a victory against the man looking to make all the moneyhausen.
Pure Rules Match: LSG vs. World Famous CB
The man formerly known as “Cheeseburger” went through a complete transformation during the pandemic. Getting into this best shape of his life, World Famous CB returned to ROH with the intent of winning the recently reinstated Pure Championship. CB showed early how his wiry frame would allow him to cinch in submissions almost out of nowhere, as well escape the holds perfected by his opponents. 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. Since then, LSG has been floating between the Television and Pure divisions, with this match being a chance for either man to establish himself in the rankings potentially leading to a match with the current king of Pure Rules matches, Jonathan Gresham. Like several matches on these cards, this is anyone’s bout to win. Though not the most marquee match on the card, don’t expect this one to be forgettable as not only are both looking to make a claim at wrestling for the Pure Championship, but also want people talking about a pair of men who could become synonymous with the great wrestling ROH produces at every event.
“The Technical Beast” Josh Woods will get his shot at the ROH Pure Title at the Death Before Dishonor pay-per-view on Sept. 12 at Philadelphia’s 2300 Arena.
With the announcement that ROH’s eighteenth “Death Before Dishonor” is now coming to Philadelphia after being moved from Lakeland, Florida due to the rising “Delta” variant Covid-19 cases comes the inevitable match for Josh Woods: a crack at the ROH Pure Championship. Woods really made a name for himself last year during the Pure Championship tournament where he fought to the semi-finals after defeating Kenny King and PJ Black. It was during his semi-final bout that Woods faced eventual winner Jonathan Gresham in a match that almost ended in “The Technical Beast’s” favor.
Woods didn’t let the loss stop his progress, overcoming Jay Lethal, Dalton Castle, and Silas Young in Pure Rules matches between 2020 and 2021. It was during his match with Young that Woods’ abilities hit a new level as he dropped his old, somewhat goofy persona to embrace the dangerous submission specialist he truly is; winning a Last man Standing match against “The Last Real Man” at “Best in the World” ’21. Woods’ date with destiny will come down to who wins the Jonathan Gresham-Rhett Titus match at “Glory By Honor”. But no matter who walks out with the gold in Philly, Woods will be the man who most likely becomes the new ROH Pure titleholder when “Death Before Dishonor” concludes.
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