By Jason Powell
Ring of Honor TV
Taped September 23 in Las Vegas, Nevada at Sam’s Town Live
Aired in syndication over the weekend, Mondays on the FITE TV app
The show opened with Christopher Daniels and Frankie Kazarian arriving at the building. They were stopped by security, who informed them that they were not allowed to enter. Kazarian was hot. Daniels said they were just doing their job and said he’ll see if he can get them a raise. Kazarian told them to enjoy their studio apartments… The opening montage aired… The broadcast team of Ian Riccaboni and Colt Cabana checked in and discussed Bullet Club holding their in-ring celebration later in the show…
1. Kushida vs. Scorpio Sky. Sky performed a nice head-scissors takedown and also hit a neckbreaker for a two count. Ryan went up top for a move, but Kushida caught him in the Hoverboard Lock on the way down. Sky reached the ropes. Christopher Daniels showed up blowing an airhorn. While Kushida was distracted, Kazarian entered the ring and kicked him below the belt. The Addiction duo performed Celebrity Rehab on Sky. Jay Lethal ran out for the save… [C]
Kushida fought Scorpio Sky to an apparent no-contest.
Powell’s POV: The appearance of Sky was a pleasant surprise. He worked as “Harold” in WWE for the Daniel Bryan and Kane anger management skits, and he also worked as Mason Andrews in TNA. He’s been around a long time and is a talented guy. He’s based on the west coast, so I assume he is merely in for the tapings and is not being added to the roster. Meanwhile, the angle was fine, but it seemed odd that they showed security not allowing Daniels and Kazarian inside the building to open the show and then had them interfere without explanation in the opening match.
Footage aired from “during the break” of Lethal delivering an in-ring promo to Daniels and Kazarian. Lethal said that if they have a problem with ROH then they have a problem with him because he won’t stand by while the company is disrespected. Lethal challenged the duo to face him and Kushida later in the show…
The broadcast team spoke about the angle and announced that the tag match was made official as the main event of the show… A video package aired on Bully Ray, Tommy Dreamer, and Jay Briscoe…
Bully Ray came to the ring and apologized for wearing shades and not having entrance music and for being “really low.” Bully said he was doing exactly what his doctor told him to do. He said he took a bad shot to the head at the Death Before Dishonor pay-per-view. He said head trauma is not something he can deal with anymore. He said everything from loud music to bright lights was affecting him. He said he appreciated the respect the fans have given him. The fans applauded. Cabana said Bully appreciates the applause, but he doesn’t need it at this time.
Bully said there’s nothing more he would rather do than come out and yell and scream and tell Jay Briscoe that he’s going to get his revenge on him, but he doesn’t know if he will ever get his revenge. Bully said that he was considering stepping away. The fans chanted no. Bully said he doesn’t know what he’ll do, but he doesn’t have a choice right now. He said he has to think about himself, his health, and his family. Bully thanked the fans and said he would see them down the road. The fans applauded.
Bully left the ring and Mark Briscoe walked out and shook his hand. Mark told him that the issue with Bully isn’t with the Briscoe Brothers, it’s with Jay Briscoe. Bully said he appreciated it and they hugged… [C]
Powell’s POV: A good promo from Ray. Mark coming out at the end to tell him that his issues are with Jay was the tell that this is an angle. Bully cut a more enthusiastic promo at the Global Wars pay-per-view, yet continued to play up the possibility of retirement.
Footage aired from last week of ROH TV Champion Kenny King talking about being a fighting champion only to have Shane Taylor, Chucky T, Punishment Martinez, and Mark Briscoe come out to throw their names in the hat to get a title shot… A graphic listed Mark Briscoe, Taylor, T, and Martinez for next week, but it didn’t offer any specifics…
Cody, Brandi Rhodes, Hangman Page, and their business manager Brian Wittenstein made their entrance. Shane Taylor came out and Cody ended up giving him some cash. Cody said ROH finally ponied up and offered him the most lucrative contract in company history. Some fans chanted “you deserve it” while others followed with “no you don’t.”
Cody said it was November 2015 when Matt Jackson and Nick Jackson were fielding offers from every major wrestling company. Cody said they often blur the line in pro wrestling, but he said this was an authentic moment. Cody said the Bucks made the choice at the time, and now he is choosing ROH. Cody put on an ROH hat and signed a contract.
Cody turned his attention to his opponent and said that he openly challenged him for the ROH Title. He said he is arguably the second most popular wrestler in ROH and has one of the greatest entrances in the company. A “Dalton Castle” chant broke out. Cody introduced Cheeseburger as the No. 1 contender. Cheeseburger made his entrance and then ring announcer Bobby Cruise delivered in-ring introductions for the title match… [C]
Powell’s POV: Wittenstein worked for WWE and TNA. In fact, TNA filed a lawsuit against him alleging that he shared confidential information about TNA once he was employed by WWE. Meanwhile, the contract signing announcement was solid and the build to the announcement of Cheeseburger as Cody’s contender rather than Castle was nicely done.
2. Cody vs. Cheeseburger for the ROH Championship. Cody wrestled the match in his dress shirt and pants, and cowboy boots. Cheeseburger wanted to shake hands. Cody wanted him to kiss his ring and then slapped him when he didn’t oblige. Shane Taylor remained at ringside while the Bullet Club members were absent.
Cheeseburger got the better of Cody early on. Cody removed his shirt and came back with a superplex. Colt laughed at Cody holding up “94-pound” Cheeseburger up in the air as if it was an impressive feat. Cody hit CrossRhodes and had the pin, but he picked up Cheeseburger before the referee count finish his count.
Cody removed his boot and the referee took it away from him. While the ref was distracted, Cheeseburger picked up Cody’s belt and whipped him with it before rolling him up for a two count. Cody tossed his jacket at Cheeseburger to distract him and then took him down and applied his leg lock submission hold for the win. Taylor gave Cody his ring back after the match…
Cody defeated Cheeseburger to retain the ROH Championship.
The Kingdom cut a promo backstage complaining about being placed in a contenders match rather than being awarded the ROH Six-Man Tag Titles once TK O’Ryan returned. They said no combination of Search and Destroy could hold a candle to them… [C]
Powell’s POV: A fun match with Cody playing the arrogant champion to classic underdog Cheeseburger. It’s fun to see Cody go back into heel mode now that the tapings are in Las Vegas rather than his home state of Georgia as he heads into the feud with Dalton Castle.
Caprice Coleman hosted the Coleman’s Pulpit segment and interviewed “The Dawgs” Rhett Titus and Will Ferrara. They both wore suit jackets without shirts underneath. Titus and Ferrara bickered and ended up hyping their match against the Tempura Boyz for next week’s television show…
Powell’s POV: I like the Coleman’s Pulpit concept, but this one was plagued by rough audio and church music playing throughout the entire segment.
Ring entrances for the six-man tag match took place. Footage aired of the Motor City Machine Guns beating The Young Bucks to win the ROH Tag Titles at Death Before Dishonor… [C]
3. “The Kingdom” Matt Taven, TK O’Ryan, and Vinny Marseglia vs. Chris Sabin, Alex Shelley, and Jonathan Gresham. The Kingdom members isolated Sabin and were in offensive control heading into a break. [C] Sabin performed a tornado DDT on Taven after kicking O’Ryan and Marseglia and then made the tag to Gresham, who cleaned house on the heels.
Gresham applied an ankle lock on O’Ryan while Sabin and Shelley took out the other Kingdom members with dives, but Taven recovered and broke it up. It was dive time with Sabin starting and then Marsglia hitting one. Taven followed up with a dive of his own. Gresham came up short on a moonsault off the ropes so the wrestlers at ringside ran forward to brace his fall. In the ring, the referee was distracted by O’Ryan trying to bring a bat into the match. Taven struck Sabin with a walking stick and pinned him…
Matt Taven, TK O’Ryan, and Vinny Marseglia beat Chris Sabin, Alex Shelley, and Jonathan Gresham.
A graphic listed Punishment Martinez vs. Mark Briscoe vs. Shane Taylor vs. Chuckie T in a four corner survival match for next week to determine the No. 1 contender to the ROH TV Title. It’s worth noting that Riccaboni stated during the match that the Lethal and Kushida vs. The Addiction match will headline the show in two weeks, meaning Riccaboni misspoke when he called it “tonight’s main event” earlier in the show (thought it may have been the main event of the overall taping)…
Powell’s POV: A decent match with an odd result given that Search and Destroy faced Bullet Club in one of the Global Wars online pay-per-view main events on Sunday night and this aired in most markets before then. It’s possible I sped through a video, but I didn’t catch any advertising for the Global Wars event on this show. If that’s the case, ROH never bothered to advertise their Global Wars event during any of their television shows, which is just plain bizarre. Nevertheless, the show was entertaining thanks thanks to the Cody and Cheeseburger segment, the Bully Ray promo, and the opening match angle. I will have more to say about this show in members’ audio later today.
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