Welcome to another edition of The ROHbot Report – the only article you need for all the Ring of Honor news you have to know. Originally organized in 2004, ROH’s Survival of the Fittest tournament has seen many alterations in regards to qualifying matches that set the stage for the big six-man elimination match finale. This year the tournament returns to its roots in terms of qualifying bouts by showcasing nothing but singles encounters.
What makes this year’s tournament different than any before it is the fact ROH officials made a conscious effort to include only those who have never won the ROH World title (though previous SotF’s contained all non-former champion entries). Lets see who has the chance of joining the illustrious list of winners like Bryan Danielson, Roderick Strong, Tyler Black, Adam Cole & Jay Lethal.
2021 Survival of the Fittest Tournament Preview
Survival of the Fittest Qualifier: Bandido vs. Bateman
While there are definitely opposing forces facing each other in the qualifying matches, very few have such different philosophies in regards to moving toward the promise land of Honor than Bandido and Bateman. Since debuting, Bandido has been nothing but a treat to watch with his obvious intention of having the best performances possible en route to winning any match he’s involved in quickly making the masked man a favorite among fans. Though having the talent to be a champion on his own, Bandido has specialized in tag team action for a majority of his ROH tenure including challenging for the ROH World Tag Team Championship when a part of Lifeblood with Mark Haskins, and winning the ROH World Six-Man Tag Team title as one-third of MexiSquad alongside fellow tournament entries Flamita and Rey Horus. 2021 has been less than stellar for Bandido’s trio having lost the Six-Man title to Shane Taylor Promotions, Flamita becoming tired of his partners, and being cheated out of a win by the aforementioned Flamita.
Though Bateman’s ROH in-ring appearances have been sporadic since the company’s returned during the pandemic, the unofficial crier of Vincent’s Righteous faction has kept busy. Similar to fellow SotF entrant Chris Dickinson, Bateman has found a chance to frequently wrestle via “New Japan Strong”; facing & defeating the likes of former Young Lions-turned-rising stars on the American indie scene Alex Coughlin and Clark Connors. Bateman, the master of a tombstone piledriver he dubbed “This is a Kill”, is incredibly versatile in the ring with no issues about getting dirty when the opportunity arises (and, at times, even if it means sacrificing a win to make a point like his recent ROH match with Mike Bennett). This should be an interesting clash of styles featuring a true dark horse in Bateman facing, arguably, the favorite to win the entire tournament. Even though Bateman is incredibly talented, expect Bandido to make it to the finale.
Survival of the Fittest Qualifier: Flamita vs. Rey Horus
The best laid plans of mice & men, and so was MexiSquad. Bandido, Flamita & Rey Horus found themselves working in the same company for the first time in the United States and immediately formed a trio that, almost instantly, became champions by defeating Villain Enterprises for the ROH World Six-Man Tag Team Championship. But like so many great teams in the past, ego got the better of MexiSquad after Flamita blamed his teammates for losing the Six-Man title, failed to regain the gold, and losing to the former ROH World Tag Team champions Jay Lethal & Jonathan Gresham. Flamita had enough and attacked Bandido during the bout with Gresham & Lethal; leading to a singles encounter between himself and Bandido where Flamita used a low blow behind the referee’s back to win. Flamita is tired of being in the shadow of his former allies and will gladly do anything to win – so what better way to prove himself than by eliminating one of those said allies in the qualifying round?
Rey Horus has attempted to be the mediator between his squad, but failed miserably. What Horus hasn’t failed at is impressing with his talent that many have compared to a young Rey Mysterio. Though talented, Horus’ win-loss record in singles competition isn’t the most stellar with him coming up short during an impromptu three-way at ROH’s “19th Anniversary” where he fell to Bandido in a match that included future opponent Flamita. But what Horus does have over his opponent is a victory against a former World champion on pay-per-view when Rey overcame Dalton Castle at last year’s “Final Battle”. These two a very familiar with each other beyond their time as a trio.
In Mexico and other North American promotions like PWG and MLW they’ve done battle in a variety of matches including tag team affairs and Triple Threat scenarios. The most interesting fact regarding their history as competitors is Horus hasn’t defeated Flamita in a one-on-one match since 2017. Though Horus is incredibly talented, Flamita’s recent change in attitude will make the difference between victory & defeat for Flamita. If Flamita can get away with cheating like he did against Bandido expect him to walk away with a spot in the finale. If not, Horus has all the tools to stop Flamita’s winning streak before it gets started.
Survival of the Fittest Qualifier: Eli Isom vs. Dak Draper
Eli Isom made his presence known very quickly when he returned to action shortly before ROH’s “Final Battle” last year. Isom’s first match back resulted in him pinning former Six-Man Tag champ and future-fellow tournament entry Rey Horus in an impressive outing. Isom kept his winning ways in singles matches going into 2021, overcoming LSG in another banger. While Isom was impressing in ROH’s Television Championship division, Dak Draper looked to prove ROH made a mistake by declaring him an alternate in the Pure Championship Tournament. Draper would go 3-0 in Pure Rules matches to earn his Pure title opportunity at “Final Battle”. Though Draper pushed Gresham to the limit, “The Mile-High Magnum” failed to wrest the title from “The Octopus”.
Draper switched gears and divisions, looking to become the TV champion; putting him in the ring with none other than Isom on an episode of ROH TV. The David versus Goliath battle that ensued went to a fifteen-minute time limit draw. Before the match could be restarted, Dalton Castle intervened and attacked both men; leaving the big question as to who was really the better man. With the SotF tournament placement of both competitors comes the opportunity for Draper or Isom to prove themselves superior while making it one-step closer to championship glory that has eluded them. Their ROH TV match was good and this should be no different with the most recent Top Prospect Tournament winner most likely ending Isom’s victorious ways in singles action.
Survival of the Fittest Qualifier: ROH World Tag Team champion Rhett Titus vs. Danhausen
When ROH returned during the COVID-19 pandemic it did so with the intent of going back to what made the company so great in the first place: an emphasis on high quality in-ring competition. With ROH going back to its roots so were The Foundation of Jonathan Gresham, Jay Lethal, Tracy Williams & Rhett Titus leading to way as they wanted to bring “Pure Wrestling” back to the forefront. Gresham started off his faction’s mission in tremendous order by winning the reinstated ROH Pure Championship last year. Titus, though happy to be involved in Pure Rules matches where he could showcase his highly underrated skill set, started going back to what made him a star in ROH as he & Tracy Williams formed a bond in the Tag Team division that culminated at ROH’s “19th Anniversary”. During ROH’s most recent pay-per-view, Titus & Williams overcome Kenny King & La Bestia del Ring to win the ROH World Tag Team title – a championship they’ve successfully defended since in a stellar match with Matt Taven & Mike Bennett on ROH TV.
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 could win a single match in ROH in 2020. With the clock against him, Danhausen used the cunning of a cult-like leader looking forward a trip to Blisstonia to overcome the self-proclaimed “Number 1” Brian Johnson.
This will mark Rhett’s sixth time attempting to win the tournament, coming oh-so-close in 2010 when he made it to the finals for the first & thus far only time. Though Titus has been on the top of his game lately, Danhausen is one of the trickiest adversaries one could face; utilizing cunning, whit & some evil to overcome opponents arguably more skilled when he comes to grappling & simply keeping someone’s shoulders to the mat. This should be an incredibly entertaining clash of styles that may produce a shocking result with Danhausen stealing a victory from one-half of the ROH World Tag Team champions.
Survival of the Fittest Qualifier: Brian Johnson vs. Sledge
“The Mecca” Brian Johnson (or “Johnstone” if you’re talking to Danhausen) has the both the gift of gab and a high opinion of himself. Once a laughing stock on the ROH roster pre-pandemic, Johnson has asserted himself as someone who talks a big game and backs it up win, lose or draw. Thanks to his feud with Danhausen, Johnson has picked up some wins and even got a chance to enter bouts where title opportunities were on the line. But Johnson is missing that big win on his ROH resume that takes him from want to be contender to the man standing across the ring from the champ.
Though Johnson’s mouth is one of the biggest things not only on him, but also in the entire ROH roster, his body structure isn’t that imposing; especially compared to someone like Sledge. Making his rounds on the ROH Youtube-exclusive show “Week By Week”, the mammoth Sledge is paying his dues & working his way up the ladder while having hoss battles with fellow SotF entry O’Shay Edwards. Sledge made a grand impression during the contender battle royal seen on ROH TV recently where he and PCO – the latter having recently defeated Johnson on ROH TV – almost choked each other out before Sledge was eliminated. This will be an incredible test for Johnson as he has to overcome a strength & size disparity in hopes of entering the six-way elimination finale. Though Johnson surprised many with wins unexpectedly, but it’s hard to bet against someone with the physical advantages Sledge has over someone like “The Mecca”.
Survival of the Fittest Qualifier: Chris Dickinson vs. O’Shay Edwards
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, future ROH World Television titleholder Tony Deppen, and renowned independent star Chris Dickinson. Dickinson, who has been girding on the indies for years including making sporadic ROH appearances, had a breakthrough 2020 when he found himself competing in New Japan via the American-based “New Japan Strong” show. Dickinson found like-minded grapplers to work alongside side before going after the Strong Openweight Championship held by Tom Lawlor. Since his ROH return, Dickinson has only competed in one singles match; destroying Eric Martin during an episode of ROH “Week By Week” on Youtube. But Dickinson wasn’t the only person impressing on the indies before coming to ROH full-time.
O’Shay Edwards had been making waves with a mixture of his imposing presence, explosive move-set, and consistency in terms of appearing on a variety of events across the continental United States. “The Big Bad Kaiju’s” work gained the attention of Shane Taylor and thus ROH as the big man signed with Shane Taylor Promotions before heading to the ROH Dojo for some in-ring seasoning. In a fantastic turn of events for Edwards, O’Shay immediately found himself challenged by another monstrous force in Sledge. These two have been tearing each other apart, culminating in an extended time limit match after their first time encounters ended in time limit draws where Edwards won. Of the six qualifying bouts this may be the hardest to pick a winner. Dickinson has the tools in the grappling department, but Edwards is no slouch when the match goes to the mat. Edwards is bigger than his opponent, but “The Dirty Daddy” is freakishly strong. Not only is this bout anyone’s to win, the victor could become the favorite to win the entire tournament.
The next chapter in the fierce faction rivalry between The Foundation and Violence Unlimited features the first-ever singles match between Jay Lethal and Brody King at the Best in the World pay-per-view on Sunday, July 11 at Chesapeake Employers Insurance Arena in Baltimore.
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 will only mark the third time these two have shared a ring in ROH or elsewhere, and the first chance for these two vanguards of opposing wrestling philosophies to fight in singles competition. This match not only means a lot to the equity of The Foundation and VLNCE UNLTD, but also the World title rankings. In ROH’s two most recent pay-per-views, King and Lethal have unsuccessfully challenged for the ROH World title. Both would love another shot at RUSH or whomever is the ROH World champion to prove themselves worthy of being called the best in the world. This should be a wonderful clash of styles with the winner shooting up the ranks to, potentially, establish himself as the next in line to challenge for ROH’s biggest prize. King and Lethal need a big victory and this is anyone’s match to win on ROH’s grandest stage in over a year.
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