Ring of Honor Wrestling

As Ring of Honor heads to their biggest show of the year, Final Battle, it's no surprise that one of the top matches features ROH originals, Jay and Mark Briscoe.

The Briscoes have been with the company since the first show in 2002.  Although the brothers took a break between August 2004 and late 2005, their time with the company is unmatched by anyone still there.

The six-time ROH Tag Team Champions will be going for a seventh reign at Final Battle as they battle the current champs, Charlie Haas and Shelton Benjamin, Wrestling's Greatest Tag Team.

"It's no different (than any other match)," Jay Briscoe said.  "People look at Haas and Benjamin as Kurt Angle's boys from the WWE.  We know they're under contract to ROH, but we been here since day one and we see them as new guys, as WWE guys."

Jay Briscoe said he and his brother have all the confidence in the world going into their biggest match of the year at the biggest show of the year.

"We're going to be the seven-time tag team champs," he said.  "Not saying the WWE guys are a step above or anything, but we know it's a David vs. Goliath matchup.  It's ROH vs. WWE."

For Ring of Honor, this year has been a huge one due to the purchase of the company by Sinclair Broadcasting Group in May, which has led to a weekly television show on various Sinclair channels.

  After a bumpy start with the first television tapings in Chicago, Jay Briscoe said the relationship has really hit its stride.

"They (Sinclair) told us a couple weeks ago that over a million people are watching the show across the country," he said.  "It seems like a bigger deal (than the TV deal ROH had previously with cable network HDNet).  They fly us in the day before the show and we do a lot of pre-tapes for the different markets, and it seems like we're reaching a lot more people."

The deal has also opened up new markets, where Sinclair stations are located, for Ring of Honor to have shows at including South Carolina, where the company debuted earlier this month.

"We were a little skeptical about South Carolina, but it ended up being a good show and we're looking forward to going back," Jay Briscoe said.  "A lot of the guys live on the East Coast and we're used to driving to the shows and now we're flying to some of them."

Another thing that the Sinclair Broadcasting Group deal has done is create a re-focused Briscoes tag team.  Jay Briscoe admits that, while the Briscoes have been with the company since day one, they had slacked off a bit at times and the fans made it clear to them.

That's not happening any more.

"There was definitely a time then when we were feuding with the Kings (of Wrestling, Chris Hero and Claudio Castagnoli) that the fans were booing us," Jay Briscoe said.  "Maybe we did get a little lazy there for a minute, but with the Sinclair deal the fire has been lit. We got the ball now and we're going to run with it."

Jay Briscoe said that, with former ROH talents like Brian Danielson (currently Daniel Bryan in WWE), Hero and Castagnoli moving on, the Briscoes plan to help keep the company strong, as they've done for years.

ROH recently released a DVD of some of the Briscoes' greatest matches called Briscoe Brothers: The Baddest Tag Team on the Planet.  Jay Briscoe said it was a good reminder of everything the brothers have done in ROH.

"Those matches go back awhile, some I didn't even remember," he said.  "Like the (Austin) Aries/(Roderick) Strong match in England where we tore the house down or the (El) Generico/(Kevin) Steen match in Boston where we had the street fight.  I know we had the Ladder War with them but that Boston match was my favorite."

That's about all the reminiscing the Briscoes want to do.  They're focused on the future.

"We're getting ready for this match at Final Battle," Mark Briscoe said. "We ain't never had this many eyes on us so we going out there and showing them what the Briscoes are all about."

The self professed "next President of the United States," (to understand that, watch the 10 questions with the Briscoes video attached to this story), Mark Briscoe did say that there is one team he'd like to take on with his brother before their careers are through.

"I want the Bushwackers," he said. "I'm talking the Bushwachers that went into the Royal Rumble and got thrown right back out."

Final Battle is live from the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York City on Friday, Dec. 23.  You can watch the show live on Internet pay-per-view.

Darryn Simmons is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report. Unless otherwise noted, all quotes and were obtained first-hand.

Ring of Honor held their last TV tapings before their big PPV of the year—Final Battle—on Saturday at the Davis Arena in Louisville, Ky.

The Davis Arena had an almost full house of fans who stayed hot for most of the four-hour taping.

Match 1: Ohio Valley Wrestling Dark Match:  Adam Revolver and Randy Terrez Defeated Rudy Switchblade and Mohamad Ali Vaez    

OVW, the former World Wrestling Entertainment Developmental Territory, was well represented at the ROH tapings.  Revolver is one half of the OVW tag champs and Switchblade just won the OVW heavyweight title at this week's TV tapings.

The match was a showcase for Terrez, a high-flying Latino who got the win on Vaez, who is doing the usual evil foreigner gimmick. 

Match 2: Mike Mondo defeated Alex Silva

ROH announcer Kevin Kelly kicked to comments from Mondo that weren't available for the live crowd to hear, so apparently this match between two OVW talents will air on the ROH show.

Both appeared on televised matches from last month's tapings with Mondo losing to T.J. Perkins and Silva to Tommaso Ciampa.  It will be interesting to see if both are signed and will appear on shows that aren't taped in Louisville.

Mondo won with a double underhook DDT.

Match 3: Mike Bennett w/Brutal Bob Evans defeated Jamin Olivencia

Olivencia is another OVW talent that recently wrestled on the horrid Awesome Wrestling Entertainment Night of the Legends PPV defeating Sonjay Dutt.  According to PWinsider, he's also being looked at for the new promotion TNA Wrestling is starting in India.

Olivencia looked good and the OVW fans gave him a babyface reaction—made easier by the fact that Bennett is an effective heel.  Bennett, after a recent draw with TV champ Jay Lethal, is claiming to be the TV champion and "offered" Olivencia a TV title shot.

Bennett won with his Box Office Smash finisher.

Match 4: Davey Richards defeated Kyle O'Reilly in a Team Richards Challenge Match

This match was insane.

Richards, who has a new T-shirt with American Strong Style on the back and was wearing both the ROH title and the IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Tag title he holds with Rocky Romero, came out saying he wanted an American Strong Style fight.  If American Strong Style means "beat the crap out of each other," then mission accomplished.

These men threw stiff kicks galore and mixed it with stiff forearm shots and some submissions.  The finish came when Team Richards member Tony Kozina threw in the towel for O'Reilly, who was in Richards' ankle lock and refused to tap out.

O'Reilly got over huge in this match and, like he once did with his American Wolves partner Eddie Edwards, Richards put him over big, imploring the crowd to cheer for him.

Truth Martini was out during the match, then entered the ring to kiss up to Richards afterward and was beaten by him and O'Reilly for his trouble.

Match 5: Caprice Coleman and Cedric Alexander vs. Jay and Mark Briscoe went to a No Contest

The "C and C Wrestling Factory" of Coleman and Alexander debuted on ROH television at the tapings last month in Louisville and had an unimpressive match with Charlie Haas and Shelton Benjamin with a few botches.  They came back and looked much better tonight.

Not surprisingly, the Briscoes were over huge with the Southern fans in Louisville.  They're the best act in Ring of Honor—it's not really close.

"Dem Boys," as the Briscoes are being known recently, were about to be disqualified for excessive double teaming of Alexander and shoving down the referee when Haas and Benjamin hit the ring with chairs and ran the duo out.

Match 6: Michael Elgin defeated Sean Casey and Raphael Constantine in a handicap match

Elgin is no less than a monster.  He didn't get the kind of reaction he should have early as the OVW fans got behind the two OVW wrestlers, but Elgin's feats of strength eventually had the crowd hooked.

He won with an impressive double Alabama Slam.

Match 7: El Generico vs. Jay Lethal for the TV title went to a time limit draw

I get the time limit is a key part of the TV title, but they have had way to many draws and calls for "five more minutes" with that belt since its inception.

Bennett and Evans came out to watch the match, with Evans seeming to have bought out the snack bar with the collection of food he had on hand.

A slow-paced match early, the two got the fans into it toward the end.  Lethal hit the Lethal Combination and was going for the pin as the clock was counting down only to have Bennett distract the ref long enough for time to expire.

Lethal went after Bennett, who had taken the TV title, and Evans on the outside only to have Generico wipe everyone out with a dive.

Lethal and Generico then asked the referee for five more minutes but was denied, which led to some heat between the two—teasing a possible three-way for the TV Title at Final Battle.

Match 8: Tommaso Ciampa defeated Shiloh Jonze

Ciampa was accompanied by Prince Nana, Ernesto Osiris and Mia Yim in the shortest and tightest dress in the history of the world.

Men were thrilled, women were in full hater mode.

Jonze is a popular OVW babyface so the match worked as he had a few underdog babyface comeback spots before Ciampa killed him and finished him with Project Ciampa.

Next was one of the biggest surprises of the night.

Kelly, announcer Nigel McGuinness, Steve Corino, Jimmy Jacobs and Jim Cornette all entered the ring where Kelly said this was part of a settlement and introduced Kevin Steen.

The crowd went nuts as Steen came to the ring with lawyer Christian Mascagni.  Mascagni is an actual lawyer in Louisville who also serves as one of the top heel managers in OVW.

Cornette told Steen this was against his better judgement and, while he thought Steen was a great wrestler, he was also crazy and an asshole.  Steen agreed with this and told Cornette that it was one of the nicest things he heard all week, but that Cornette was really made because he became a star in Ring of Honor without Cornette's help since he was kissing Richards' butt instead.

Cornette then handed the microphone to Corino to make the settlement offer as it was his idea.  Corino told Steen that all that had happened was Corino's fault and that his recovery had brought him to this point.

He said to keep going in his change, he had to finish things and challenged Steen to a match at Final Battle.  If Steen wins, he's reinstated in Ring of Honor.

Of course, Steen agreed.  Cornette then added a wrinkle to the match by making Jacobs the special guest referee for the match.

Steen agreed to this too but also demanded Cornette to be at ringside to watch him win and be reinstated since Cornette laughed the hardest at Steen's career ending at Final Battle last year.

So it's Steen vs. Corino with Jacobs as guest referee and Cornette at ringside with Steen's reinstatement to Ring of Honor on the line.

Match 9: The Young Bucks defeated Future Shock (Adam Cole and Kyle O'Reilly)

The Bucks are still milking their refusal to shake hands.  Not sure where they can go with this since the two that started the whole not shaking hands issue with them, Rob Van Dam and Booker T aren't in the company.

This was a good match that was the second showcase for O'Reilly tonight.  He took another beating—including holding on to a guillotine choke as the Bucks continued to pummel him in the head.

However, O'Reilly would eventually fall to More Bang for Your Buck.

Match 10: Coleman and Alexander defeated the Bravado Brothers

Coleman and Alexander looked good again here, getting a crowd that wasn't too familiar with them behind them.  Harlem Bravado was the recipient of a number of "Justin Bieber" chants.

C and C won with some kind of double team suplex/neckbreaker combo.

Before the match started, Kelly mentioned that Coleman and Alexander have unfinished business with the Briscoes after the match taped earlier so that may be seeds for a later feud.

Match 11: T.J. Perkins defeated Chris Silvio

Silvio is another OVW regular who is doing a psychedelic superstar gimmick where he looks like a homeless man's Randy Savage.

Not much to this match as Perkins won with a modified GTS.

Match 12: The All Night Express defeated Wrestling's Greatest Tag Team in a Proving Ground match

ANX now has a title shot against the winner of the WGTT/Briscoes match at Final Battle.

In both Louisville tapings, ANX has struggled to get over with the fans—mainly due to being paired with the Briscoes, who are huge with the Southern crowd as already mentioned and WGTT, who are treated like hometown boys made good because of their long stints in OVW during the WWE territorial days.

The Briscoes came out and laid out Benjamin, allowing ANX to do a double team top-rope knee drop Demolition-like move for the finish.  They really played it like Benjamin was seriously injured (mainly buying time to allow the turnbuckle pad to be put back on as it had fallen off during the match) and Haas did an angry promo saying it's time for WGTT to get back to being bad SOBs.

WGTT will never be WGP (Wrestling Greatest Promo).

Match 13: Eddie Edwards defeated Andy "Right Leg" Ridge

Edwards beat Ridge with a new Dragon Sleeper submission finisher that I assume he's learned from his new mystery trainer (Hmmm, now who uses that move?).  Edwards destroyed Ridge's chest with chops to the where it looked like bad hamburger meat.

Edwards showed no signs of a heel turn in this match.

Match 14: Davey Richards defeated Michael Elgin in a Proving Ground match

Richards won a good match with a minute left with a roll up.  Kind of surprising as Elgin would have gotten a title shot under Proving Ground rules with a draw and Elgin definitely should be getting some main event title push with the way he's been in the ring lately.

However, as great as the match was, it was mainly about the finish.  Martini and Elgin attacked Richards, which led to Edwards coming out.

Edwards took the title from Martini, who was going to use it on Richards, and went to use it on Elgin, who pushed Richards in the way resulting in him taking the belt shot from Edwards.

Richards recovered and attacked Edwards, who immediately put him in his new submission before Kozina and O'Reilly pulled him off.  The two then had a good old-fashioned wrestling pull apart with Edwards claiming that the American Wolves were done, and that Richards had killed it, to close the tapings.

The tapings went very smoothly with really no delays or technical errors.  It seems like Sinclair Broadcasting Company and ROH have gotten into a rhythm with the TV tapings.

Hello Ladies and Gentlemen, my name is Alex "Grim" Baker, and I would like to start off by thanking you for reading this article.

Because of the time it took me to finish last weeks article, I've decided to make a slight change in how I review the show. From now on I'll only provide the winner of each fight, my thoughts on the fight and the rating, dropping the play by play of the fight in favor of a more condensed, easy to read summary.

As always, feel free to comment bellow because universal agreement doesn't exist, and I always find it interesting to hear others opinions on things, especially wrestling.

I will grade each match from one to five stars, with one being Sting vs. Jeff Hardy at Victory Road and five stars being Eddie Edwards vs. Davey Richards at Best in the World (or Cena vs Punk at MITB if you "don't watch indy wrestling," despite the fact that 1. ROH isn't independent and 2. your reading an ROH review).

We open up this weeks Ring of Honor show with a video package of last weeks main event, which saw Jay Lethal become the new TV Champion after he beat El Generico in a great match.

The show then kicks off with Jim Cornette introducing the Briscoe Brothers. Jim explains that this is the first time he's talked to them since he fined them $5,000 for their actions at Best in the World. Mark Briscoe says that that money could have bought them a lot of beer and bullets, but it's not a big deal. What is a big deal, Jay Briscoe adds, is that they haven't been given a shot at the ROH tag titles yet.

Cornette says that if they want a title shot they have to earn it, so next week the Briscoe Brothers will meet the All Night Express to determine the new No. 1 contenders.

The crowd loves this announcement.

The Briscoes say they will destroy ANE next week and then they're coming for their belts

My Thoughts: Once again, ROH has announced their main event the week before the next show, which is something that is missing in wresting today—building shows up and getting fans to tune in. Most weeks on SmackDown Teddy Long just comes down, makes some random tag match for the main event, says "Holla!" a few times, and leaves. I hope TNA and the WWE some how pick up this noble approach to booking.

As far as the segment itself goes, I thought it was good, I'm not looking forward to a Brisicoe/WGTT feud and would rather see ANE/WGTT, but I guess I'll take it.

After commercial break we get a ROH Focus On segment featuring the only undefeated man in Ring of Honor, Tomasso Ciampa. The video package is pretty good with Ciampa, Prince Nana and the Embassy being introduced to new ROH viewers.

Match 1) Andy Ridge vs. Tommaso Ciampa w/Prince Nana

Steve Corino was on commentary for this match, i hope he maybe gets brought in to be the third guy more often, because he and Nigel have good chemistry. Also, it gets a new face announcer so Nigel can explore his hand at being a heel announcer, while Kevin Kelly maybe plays the straight man.

Winner by pinfall Tommaso Ciampa via Project Ciampa

My Thoughts: This was basically a glorified squash match, but it did get Ciampa introduced, and as far as squash matches go it could have been worse. A little slow for my taste, but overall a decent opener.

Rating: 2.5 Stars

After the break Nigel asks a fan to pick a winner for tonights match, but instead the fan uses the time to beg Kevin Steen to come back to ROH. I for one agree, Kevin Steen is the reason I started watching Ring of Honor, and seeing him back would be a huge mark out moment for me.

We then get a video package with Strong and Richards basically talking about what the championship means to them. This is an important segment because it lets new viewers know who they're about to watch. Segments like these are being handled perfectly by ROH in my opinion, and I think it's one of their strongest points so far.

Match 2) ROH World Championship Match: (Champion) Davey Richards vs. Roderick Strong w/Truth Martini

Winner by Submission, and still ROH World Champ, Davey Richards via Ankle Lock

My Thoughts: This match was amazing, to the point where it quite literally might be the best TV match we see all year. It was over 20 mins, put the champion over as being strong and overall was everything great about Ring of Honor's Heavyweight Division.

If I have any complaints, it slowed down a bit in the middle, but that's only because it was just so long, and so, so good, with the closing moments being some of the best storytelling I've seen in a long time.

The crowd loved it and so did I, this was ROH's best match so far on TV.

Rating: 4.5 Stars

The show closes with Richards celebrating in the corner with the belt.

Final Thoughts: I thought this show was ROH's best so far, that being said I still have to dock it a few points for production. The Richards/Strong match was awesome, and the video packages and interviews were once again handled with the type of quality you'd expect from a company trying it's hardest to break through. I'm still not a big fan of Ciampa, and I think they have to start highlighting the House of Truth more, but for now this show was solid.

Show Grade: A-

Match of the Night: Richards/Strong

Move of the Night: The Entire Finish to Richards/Strong (Runner Up: Ciampa's Finisher, it is sick)

Performance of the Night: Davey Richards, he's the face of Ring of Honor for a reason.

Thanks for reading and as always comment bellow.

See You Space Cowboy....

Hello everyone and welcome to my second ROH review.

Let me start off by saying that I'm sorry this was late, I missed the show over the weekend and had to wait for it to go up on the website today, I'm sorry for that.

After last weeks show kicked off the new era of Ring of Honor in amazing fashion, will this week maintain the momentum, or will it fall flat?

As always feel free to comment bellow because universal agreement doesn't exist, and I always find it interesting to hear others opinions on things, especially wrestling.

I will grade each match from one to five stars, with one being Sting vs. Jeff Hardy at Victory Road and five stars being Eddie Edwards vs. Davey Richards at Best in the World (or Cena vs Punk at MITB if you "don't watch indy wrestling," despite the fact that 1. ROH isn't independent and 2. your reading an ROH review).

At the end of the show I give it a letter grade and give out a few awards that I make up on the spot.

So lets get this review started.

We kick off this weeks episode with highlights from last weeks contest between the World's Greatest Tag Team (Charlie Hass and Shelton Benjamin) and the King's of Wrestling (Chris Hero and Claudio Castagnoli).

After the opening fades we are greeted with everyone's favorite ranter (and if your a Botchamania fan, your favorite face) Jim Cornette. He calls out Hass and Benjamin and proceeds to put over the tag team and talk about how they are one of the best teams, if not the best, in wrestling today (I tend to agree).

He then explains that there is one team in the back that wants to get their hands on those belts, the Briscoe Brothers. The Briscoes get a big pop from the fans despite turning heel a few weeks back.

He explains that the Briscoes were fined $5,000 for what they did in New York at Best in the World, but Hass and Benjamin want more then that.

The team says that they will get their hands on the Briscoes sooner or later.

My Thoughts: A strong opening to the show, it both put over the Tag Team Champs and let new comers to the product know who the Briscoes are, and what feuds are about to start. Also, anytime Cornette is on the mic I can't help but watch, I almost wish he was a third man in the commentary team.

The only negative I have right now is that the lighting and production still don't look quite right. ROH has had this problem for years, but they really need to fix it if they ever want to be more then a niche product that appeals to hardcore fans.

We then get a video package hyping up "The Prodigy" Mike Bennett

Match 1: Jimmy Jacobs w/ Steve Corino vs. Mike Bennett w/ Bob Evans

Code of Honor is followed, glad their not doing the every face follows the code, every heel doesn't BS, it's refreshing.

I also like the "Tale of the Tape" it gives the illusion that this is an actual sporting event, adding to the drama of the match.

Match starts off with the typical singles moves. Bennett is really the type of sports entertainment guy that ROH should focus on as their future if they want to appeal to a larger audience. While I personally prefer the smaller, faster guys, he's the type of wrestler that appeals to the masses that are disgruntled with TNA and WWE.

The match continues back and forth until Bennett takes control after Jacobs misses a sling shot cross body on the outside. He rolls Jacobs back into the ring and hits a series of backbreakers only to get a near fall.

Jacobs gets a second wind and after conecting with a few neck breakers and clotheslines, hits a huge ace crusher for a near fall. Jacobs goes to the top rope for a Senton Bomb, but crashes and burns.

Bennett follows up with his finisher, the Box Office Smash for the pinfall.

Winner: Mike Bennett via pinfall by Box Office Smash at 5:57

Rating: 2.5 stars

My Thoughts: I'm not a big Jacobs guy, he just doesn't do it for me. I'm glad that it looks like they're going to use Corino as a way to get Bennett over with new fans. He's a recognizable name and is doing what legends his age should be doing, passing on the torch (I'm looking at you Hogan, Sting, Steiner and Flair).

As far as the match goes it was just ok, not the best by either guy.

Nigel McGuiness is interviewing a fan at ring side about the main event tonight between El Generico and Jay Lethal, the fan picks Generico to retain. I like that they are getting the crowd involved in ways like this, it's a classic concept from an era of wrestling long forgotten.

We then get a solid video package that puts over Eddie Edwards as a warrior that puts his body on the line, and how he got the nickname "Die Hard."

Yet again the production of these video packages is great, the rest of the production team could take a note from how these are being done. It did a good job selling one of ROH's toughest and best singles wrestler's to the new fan, no complaints.

We are told that Davey Richards and Rodrick Strong will face off next week for the ROH Title. Should be a good match between two great wrestlers.

Match 2: Jay Lethal vs El Generico for the ROH TV Title

The match opens with trading wristlocks until Generico hits a big running head scissor takedown. Lethal replys with one of his own and helps Generico up as both men stare each other down.

Lethal takes control of the early goings of the match after he hits a snap mare into a dropkick. He follows up by doing some kind of submission that I don't recognize.

After that Lethal stomps on Generico's face and gets a near fall. He follows that up with another submission, but the fans get behind Generico who gets up and throws Lethal around a bit until Lethal rolls out onto the floor. Generico then hits a suicide dive out onto the floor and the crowd goes wild.

We come back from break to see them going back and forth in the ring. Some impressive chain moves lead to both men being knocked out on the ground. The ref gets to five and both men are up.

Two mins to go until the time limit and Generico counters Lethal's powerbomb attempt into a springboard tornado DDT.

The "Ole!" chats are going and we have one minute to go. Things are about to hit fifth gear.

Generico gets a waist lock, Lethal counters and goes for a roundhouse, Generico counters that into a Blue Thunder Bomb for a near fall. Generico tunes up the band for the Yakuza Kick but Lethal ducks it and rolls Generico up for a near fall. He follows up with an attempted uranage, but Generico again counters it and hits a big suplex as time expire.

Both men look disappointed as the crowd chants for five more minutes. They beg the ref but he says he can't do it. Jim Cornette comes out and says that he can't give them five minutes, but he can give 'em three.

Here we go again, if I miss some stuff I'm sorry but this is kind of too fast to follow it all.

The bell rings and the punches are flying. Lethal gets the better of the exchange and backs Generico into a corner. He starts to set up a move but Generico recovers and hits a Yakuza Kick followed by a Dragon Suplex for a near fall.

He starts motioning for the Brain-Bustahhhhhhh, but Lethal fights out and hits his own suplex. He goes for the Macho Elbow. Generico gets up and dodges it and sets up for the top rope Brainbuster, Lethal punches out of it and hits Generico and hits the Macho Elbow, but only gets two.

Generico rolls to the corner to recover and as Lethal walks over to him to follow up, Generico hits a big T-Bone suplex. He calls for one more Yakuza kick but as he's going for it he eats a superkick from Lethal who hits The Lethal Combination for the pin.

Winner by pinfall via The Lethal Combination, and NEW ROH World Television Champion: Jay Lethal at 17:00

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

My Thoughts: This match was amazing, everything about it was great. From the front 15 minutes, which were very good, to the fast paced, edge of your seat finish that was jammed in those final three minutes, everything was great.

My only complaint is that Generico has earned to be more then just a transitional champion who took the belt off Christopher Daniels and proceeds to drop it to Jay Lethal, but I understand it, Lethal is the big name.

Overall Thoughts on the Show: Just like last weeks this was a great show, and better yet we didn't have 45 minutes of ROH advertising their DVD's. The first match was ok, but the second match was amazing, it alone is worth watching the show.

Only complaints on the show were yet again the production quality, the camera angles, and the fact that we have still not seen the ROH champion on television in something other then a backstage pre-tape. Add to that the fact that we yet again only get two matches, both similar styles, and I have to knock the grade down, but only a little.

Overall I felt this weeks episode was just a little better then last weeks and as such deserves a better grade.

Final Grade: A-

Awards of the Night

Holy $h*t Moment of the Night: Jay Lethal Hitting a Superkick out of Nowhere

Match of the Night: El Generico vs Jay Lethal

Wrestler of the Night: Jay Lethal, after what he's been through he deserves to be the face of the company

Runner-Up Wrestler of the Night: Mike Bennett, I see a bright future for this guy, he will one day be the face of the company

As always please comment bellow, thanks for reading, and take care.

See You Space Cowboy...

Hello ladies and gentlemen. My name is Alex "Grim" Baker and I would like to start off by thanking you for reading this article.

Some of you may recognize me from my TNA reviews (which have been sporadic as of late, my bad guys, I'm going to reboot them next week so be on the look out), but this article is about a different brand, a new era in wrestling and the start of what could be the spark that sets the wrestling world ablaze.

That's right everyone, a new challenger appears and it goes by the name Ring of Honor.

Over the past few months, I've been writing reviews and stories on B/R, I've noticed that most of the wrestling fans on here are looking for an alternative to the main stream wrestling scene, something different. I've also noticed that many of the writers on here tend to forget about the independent scene for a variety of reasons.

Because of this, I have decided to take up the proverbial flag and try to expose many of you to what, in my opinion, is the gateway to the hidden world that is independent wrestling, and that is ROH.

I have been a fan of Ring of Honor for several years now and have seen great wrestlers come and go. I watched one of the greatest feuds of all-time last year between El Generico and Kevin Steen and have over the years found that it as a whole offers the wrestling community a great alternative/supplement to main stream wrestling. 

Before we get started, let me explain my grading system. I grade from one to five stars, with one being Sting vs. Jeff Hardy at Victory Road and five stars being Eddie Edwards vs. Davey Richards at Best in the World. At the end of the show I give it a letter grade and give out a few awards that I make up on the spot.

Without further ado let me kick into my review of the debut show of the new ROH.

The show opens with several of the wrestlers shown getting ready and a few shots of the various ROH titles before we get a cut to a packed crowd that is seems psyched for some great wrestling. "ROH" chants fill the arena as we cut to the ring where Kevin Kelly is standing.

He announces that the main event for tonight's show will be The King's of Wrestling (Chris Hero and Claudio Castagnoli, appears this will be their last match in ROH due to the fact that Claudio signed with the WWE. No word on the status of Hero) vs. Wrestling's Greatest Tag Team (Charlie Hass and Shelton Benjamin) for the Ring of Honor Tag Team Titles.

He also announces that tonight there will be a brand new commentator. He is a multi-time ROH champion and one of the greats: Nigel McGuiness (a.k.a. Desmond Wolfe).

The crowd goes nuts as Nigel comes out and explains that he knew he had to be apart of the new era of ROH and that he's ready for the ride.

We then get two video packages. One from Adam Cole and Kyle O'Reilly talking about their role as an up and coming tag team in wrestling today. The other is from their opponents the Bravado Brothers, who emphasize the importance of a win tonight.

My Thoughts

Great way to kick off the new ROH. Nigel coming back was a huge pop and the video packages were able to introduce the two young teams to new ROH viewers, overall a very effective use of time. Side note, I'm glad that the promos and graphics look professional and high grade, production quality will be a big hurdle that ROH will have to overcome and so far they've done very well.

Match 1: FUTURE SHOCK (KYLE O'REILLY & ADAM COLE) vs. THE BRAVADO BROTHERS

The wrestlers are introduced and we get a tale of the tape. My inner old-school wrestling fan just did flips, it seems ROH is actually going to go the route of maintaining their "Wrestling is Real" and not being sports entertainment. That's awesome.

Nigel explains the two teams backgrounds and does a solid job selling both teams as future stars. So far, he's doing a very solid job as a color commentator.

The match starts with Future Shock hitting some big double team moves before sinking in a quick double submission that the ref breaks up. The match then goes into a standard tag team rhythm.

The heels (The Bravado Brothers) separate Cole and start working him over with a series of moves. The Brothers follow this up with a nice kick into a German Suplex that gets them a near fall.

O'Reilly gets the hot tag and clears house. Future Shock then hits a double team move that looks something like a Rolling Butterfly Suplex into a German Suplex that looks awesome.

Cole does a suicide dive out of the ring and takes out one of the Bravados while O' Reilly dropkicks the other one into a chair outside the ring before hitting their finisher, Ride the Lightning, for the pin.

Winners: Future Shock via pinfall by Ride the Lightning at 7:25

Rating: 4 stars

My Thoughts

Great opening match that showed what is so great about ROH's Tag Team Division. It was fast paced, showed a good sample of what these teams tend to do in the ring together and that Future Shock is a top team in the company. It made the Bravados look strong as well, overall a very solid opener to the new ROH.

During the match, Kevin Kelly introduced a new tweet of the week segment that shows how they are embracing 2011 and not 1990's crash TV.

We then get a 1980's-esq promo with Kevin Kelly and Davey Richards selling the classic "COMING TO YOUR TOWN!" line. Reminds me of WCW Saturday Night as a kid. Oh nostalgia, you make the past seem brighter.

Kevin Kelly then narrates some footage of the Best in the World PPV and tour. It shows Richards beating Edwards for the belt and the after match speech. If you haven't seen this match, you need to, it is currently my ranked as the best match this year by me and worth the $15 for this DVD alone.

We then get Jim Cornette and Kevin Kelly (who's getting a ton of work done tonight), introducing a new segment where they will go inside ROH every week. This week it's the Code of Honor, which are:

Cornette explains that the Code is there to make wrestlers respect each other and show sportsmanship. He also adds that wrestlers don't have to follow the Code, but if they don't management might not consider them deserving of shots down the road and the locker room might dislike them.

This is followed up by a taped segment where Jay Lethal challenges El Generico next week for his TV Title and puts over Ring of Honor's focus on wrestling instead of 90's nostalgia (a little jab at TNA there).

My Thoughts

  Another good use of time. Everything they were trying to accomplished was done and it helped new fans understand an integral part of Ring of Honor, while announcing the main event for next week, again no complaints. Also, Kevin Kelly just sold me on going to another ROH house show, he is really a talent on the mic.

We then get a video package of the WGTT winning the four team elimination match at Best in the World. We then cut to Nigel who asks a fan who he think will win tonight's main event. The fan picks Wrestling's Greatest Tag Team.

Both teams make their way down to the ring.

Match 2: ROH Tag Team Champions CHARLIE HAAS & SHELTON BENJAMIN vs. KINGS OF WRESTLING (CHRIS HERO & CLAUDIO CASTAGNOLI w/Shane Hagadorn and Sara Del Rey) for the ROH Tag Team Titles

Wow, that was a mouth full. Anyone else think The Kings need a couple more members to the posse, maybe another manager or two, because I don't think they have enough people at ring side for this match.

The Code of Honor is not followed this time, as these two teams "Just plain don't like each other."

Claudio and Hass start things off before Hass blind tags in Benjamin. Benjamin hits a series of clotheslines before Claudio grounds him and tags in Hero. Benjamin hits Hero with an Arm Drag to maintain control and works him over until the Kings double team him while the ref is distracted by Sara Del Rey (but in all honesty, who wouldn't be).

Kevin Kelly then once again does a fantastic job of selling the importance of staying tuned. He has once again proven that he is the best announcer in wrestling today.

We return from commercial break to get a video showing us Claudio dominating Benjamin during the break. 

Benjamin hits a stiff inverse enziguri and tries to tag out but Hero pulls Hass off the apron to stop it. Hass then tries to come in but the ref stops him and Hero hits a big Rolling Elbow on Benjamin while the ref has his back turned.

Benjamin then reverses a double suplex into a double neckbreaker and tags out to Hass who comes in and cleans house. He hits a big time release German suplex on Hero and a T-Bone suplex on Claudio for a near fall. Hero gets the tag and stats hitting Hass with vicious elbows and then hits a Helicopter Crash that has to be broken up by Shelton.

The Kings went for the KRS-1, but Benjamin ran in and hit a big spear on Claudio before hitting the World's Greatest Finisher on him to retain.

Winner: WGTT via pinfall by Wrestling's Greatest Finisher at 15:28

Rating: 3.5 stars

My Thoughts

Not their best match, but a good main event for TV. If this was the Kings last match in ROH then it was one to be proud of, good job guys, to me you are one of, if not the best, tag team in the world. So for possibly the last time I'll say this: KING'S REIGN SUPREME!

The show ends with Hass and Benjamin celebrating with fans and holding their belts up victoriously.

Final Thoughts on the Show

 A very good way to start off a new era of ROH. They showed that they will be focused more on the wrestling as opposed to the WWE or TNA who are more about the sports entertainment side of the business. The matches were good, and got enough time, I just wish they had maybe had one more match in there, but it's only one hour so I'll take what I can get.

My biggest problem with the show was that the matches they showed had been done before and were nothing new, but at the same time were done well. Another problem I had was with the lighting in some of the shots, you can tell that their production budget is nowhere near the WWE's, but this should fix with time.

Overall, it was a very good opening show that gives me hope for the new era of wrestling.

Final Grade: B+

Awards

Used Car Saleman of the Night Award: Kevin Kelly who sold the hell out of this product

M. Night Shamalamadingdong Award For Biggest Twist: Nigel McGuinness returns

Psycho Sid's Broken Leg Award for Stiffest Move: Shelton Benjamin's Enziguri of Death on Claudio, I thought he knocked the guy out. Not Very European Shelton.

Shockmaster Award for Most "Shocking" (Best) Match: Future Shock vs The Bravados

Thank you for joining me and as always be sure to comment bellow.

See You Space Cowboy...

This is a review of the National Geographic (Nat Geo) TV Channel special Slammed: Inside Indie Wrestling that aired August 24^th at 10:00 pm and again on the 25^th at 1:00 am, and my observations and review is based on the latter airing. Enjoy.

It started off on a good note, as the Nat Geo channel was hyping the show as it was coming up, and made sure to say it was fixed, not fake.

It started with a montage involving footage from National Wrestling Superstars (NWS) and Ring of Honor (ROH). It made it obvious that the main focus of the show would be about Danny Gimondo and Michael Paris, otherwise known as Danny Inferno and Shiima Xion.

It began with the owner of NWS, Dapper Johnny Falco, saying his show was fun and family friendly. Then, he gets a call from Danny Inferno saying he will be late to the show, as he went the wrong way because of the bad directions on the NWS website. This angers Falco, and has him confront his partner Gino Moore. Inferno finally shows up, and apologizes for him being late.

He then talks about him being on a path for redemption, to stay clean and make his way back to the WWE. He then goes out for his match with Luke Gallows as his backup. He faced a guy who reminded me of the Junkyard Dog. During the match, the fake Junkyard Dog made fun of the Straight Edge Society and called them chickens, and began to act like one. Danny still won the match and dominated, with the crowd really being into the show.

It then goes to Dapper talking about the show flopping financially and he mused that the entire wrestling business was beginning to really feel the effects of a stagnate economy. It then goes to them at their next show in Flemington, NJ where they are setting up the ring.

Dapper began to talk about the fans and how they act, and went to talking about how wrestlers are weekend warriors in most cases, like that of J.D. Smoothie, who is normally a man in the vacuum business but also wrestles and is a ring guy. He talks about his desire to become the best entertainer in the business. We then learn somebody canceled on Dapper, which led to him yelling about that aspect of the Indies.

After a commercial break, it goes to Inferno waking up and getting a breakfast of nearly a dozen egg whites for diet purposes, to counteract how he screwed up his body after he was fired by the WWE. After breakfast, he heads to his bathroom and begins talking about promos and how he is great at them He then cuts a promo in the mirror which was very serious. He talks about in depth about his release in the WWE and its aftermath, but then focuses on his ROH tryout that was coming up for him.

It then goes to a shot of ROH in Philly, and Cornette talked about how ROH was different from the other wrestling products. Roderick Strong also reveals his pet peeve of people thinking wrestling is fake and the Briscoes testified to that being the truth citing Mark and the teeth he lost because of Jay in a match. Cornette hyped up the upcoming tryouts.

Then it went to Chester, West Virginia as they introduced Xion at his mother’s home, which he went to in order to get his kneepad protector sewn. He then talks about his mother’s past as a mail-order bride and how she had to raise three kids by herself as Xion’s dad passed away when he was five, and his desire to get hired by ROH so he could give money to her as repayment of everything she had done for him.

Then, it went back to NWS, and how Dapper had to rewrite the show because of the people who canceled. JD Smoothie got mad as he went from a match he liked to facing the Nigerian Nightmares, a 900-pound duo of wannabe Kamala’s. Dapper said it was his ego, but I personally disagree.

Then, there was a quick scene of Inferno getting a tan and him saying it was something that he overdid, but he needed to do it for his look for the ROH tryout.

It went back to ROH, and had the Kings of Wrestling talk about their craft for a little while. Then, we see Chris Hero begin to talk to Zion, who is trying to get ready for his tryout. It showed Zion watching the Kings of Wrestling match, which encouraged Zion to say he was ready.

After a commercial break, it goes back to NWS and we see Smoothie talk negatively about those wrestlers who canceled, and then discussed the match with his competitors. The show began and the match occurred, which Smoothie did not like as he could not realistically do anything to the Nigerian Nightmares and was promptly crushed and defeated.

It then went to Dapper talking about how the show had lost money, but reassuring people that NWS was the best company at their level.

Then, Xion heads to the ROH tryouts. We hear Cornette speak to the try-outies while they show Inferno arriving. We hear then owner Cary Silken talk of the success of the tryouts. Xion then admits to being nervous, while Inferno talks about his age disadvantage (nearly 34). They begin promos, and show the other people at the tryout giving them and not getting good reviews from Cornette.

We head back to Dapper doing some things at his home base of operations, showing that the company was made there, from booking dates to flyers to ticket cutting.

Then, Inferno hypes the bigness of the moment and goes and cuts his promo, which focused on the lethalness of his right hand, which gave Cornette “goose bumps.” Inferno felt good and admitted hearing he gave Cornette goose bumps.

After Inferno leaves, Cornette talked him up and could not wait to see him in the ring. Then, Xion delivers a promo about how he will be an entertainer in ROH as he shows himself to be a narcissistic Filipino model turned wrestler. Cornette told him he liked it, and talked to him about his ability to progress, and before he left said he could not wait to see him in the ring.

We head back to NWS, now in Brick, NJ, where they finally had a perfect show. Everyone was on time, the crowd was nearly a sellout and the crowd was lively. JD Smoothie was shown to be happy with his role in a four-way match with people his size instead of the Nigerian Nightmare’s.

It flashed back to ROH, where they began the “matches” in between the try-outies. Inferno grappled his opponent well and received high praise for his look and the match. They showed clips of all the other matches and went to Xion’s, which was entertaining as he was very vocal, which was praised by Cornette. Silken announced both men were going to get another look, and ends with Inferno thinking he would get the job.

End of special.

As we know now, Inferno was not hired by ROH and Xion is now Xema Ion in TNA. This was a great watch and very entertaining, and can be considered a less dark version of Beyond the Mat. I advise you find time to watch it, and it makes me root for Inferno to find his way back to the top, maybe in the new company Wrestling Revolution?

Good. Bad. I’m the guy with the voice.

First of all, allow me to say that if you are a blind WWE, TNA or ROH smark, don't read this article because I will discuss a few issues I have with all the promotions.

To that same point, don't read this if you are a blind WWE, TNA or ROH hater, because I'm going to give all the companies compliments as well.

This article is to serve as a little food for thought for all fans of wrestling, sports entertainment or all things in between.

Now that that's out of the way, allow me to take you back in time a little.

In 1995, Eric Bischoff was asked by Ted Turner how WCW could survive against the wrestling superpower that was the WWF. Bischoff, not expecting Turner to grant his request, explained that they would have to go head-to-head against the WWF's flagship program, Raw, and take views away from them.

Turner thought this was a great idea and WCW Monday Nitro was born.

Six years later, both WCW and ECW were out of business and the WWF/E would become the sole mainstream wrestling company for the next six to eight years.

The cause of the two companies going out of business? Simple, they were too concerned about keeping up with the other product that they neglected to realize how much money they were spending trying to gain new viewers.

Now one could argue that the Monday Night Wars lead to some of the best things in wrestling, but I would argue that they also led to some of the worst.

For every NWO there was a "Lex Express." For every Goldberg there was a David Arquette. For every New Jack dive there was a Brawl for All. You get my point?

(On that note I would say that Butterbean deserves to be in the WWE Hall of Fame for two reasons. First, you let Drew Carry in and Butterbean at least had a match for you guys, and second, he finally got Bart Gunn off my TV.)

Another point one could make is that the ideas from all three companies diffused into one another, and this is true. However, I would argue that this would have happened regardless of the Monday Night Wars.

Wrestling companies borrow ideas and moves and gimmicks from each other all the time, regardless of whether they're on the same night.

They didn't need to drive themselves out of business forming a wrestling monopoly, because without competition your product gets stale (see WWE 2006-10).

Now all I hear these days is how TNA is going to take over WWE or how WWE is going to take over ROH, and here's my question: Why do we want that?

Why do we want the WWE to move SmackDown to Thursday nights to take on TNA? Why do we want ROH to fail? Why do we want someone to knock WWE off its No. 1 spot?

Why can't we just be happy with alternatives that are within their own well-defined spaces?

TNA seems to me like a company that has forgotten who it is and where it came from.

What got the company over in the first place was original match types and great, fresh young talent with some well-known names helping these young guys get over.

Now it seems like we're watching a re-run of WCW Nitro. They're so convinced that they can go toe-to-toe with WWE that they even tried to recreate the Monday Night Wars with disastrous results.

WWE seemed to ignore the competition during that same time and took no significant hit in numbers. Actually, I would argue that no one won the second chapter of the Wars because it wasn't a war, it was David going against Goliath without his sling.

Everyone seems to think that only one wrestling company can rule them all, but why is that? Why can't each company fill its own niche?

WWE is a place for people that enjoy sports entertainment that the whole family can enjoy. They do a great job of building Hogan-esque figures that are modern-day superheros (or anti-heros).

WWE also does a great job with production and have an established way of telling a story in the ring. Sure, they have become predictable and stale, but that's nothing that a simple creative shake-up couldn't fix.

TNA, on the other hand, is all about '90's crash TV. From the wrestlers to the booking, it's late '90's action at its finest (be it good or bad). They have plenty of good, young guys with a roster that supports many wrestling legends.

TNA is also known for ideas that are truly unique—some are good, others not so much. From time to time, TNA does make some bad booking decisions and some odd choices at champion (credit that to Vince Russo), but if you were to simply focus on the results and make it less chaotic, you would have some very solid booking.

Finally we get to ROH, a place that many are calling the alternative to the sports entertainment moment, and I have to agree. It's a company built on in-ring storytelling and fast pace. It's a company that trades production and big names for raw talent.

With solid booking and a great fanbase that reminds me of ECW, ROH looks to become a major contender in this new age of wrestling. Sure, they lack great mic workers and well-known names, and sure, they are a little cruiserweight heavy, but they really look like they could become the next ECW in a few years and maybe go beyond it.

Each of these companies brings something new and fresh to the table, so why would you want to get rid of that?

Honestly why can't all the companies succeed on their own day with their own fans?

Personally, I watch all three companies, and in an era where the Internet allows us to watch any match and we can record them at the touch of a button, a Monday/Thursday Night War would be pointless.

Competition drives success. You don't see Wal-Mart buying out Target of K-Mart, because they know that they can and will fail if they get stale, and competition keeps things fresh.

One thing I dislike about the IWC is that it's always "my wrestling promotion is better than yours," but at the end of the day they're all the same and all have something for each and every one of us.

I would argue that we are about to step into an age that will produce some of the best wrestling of all time, because of the choices.

If you want something you can watch with your kid, then WWE is for you.

If you were a big WCW fan back in the day, TNA's your place to be.

Like a fast-paced style with plenty of on-your-seat false finishes and pure wrestling? ROH fills your needs.

We don't need one company to rule them all, we need alternatives for everyone, be it WWE, TNA, ROH, or some other Indy promotion. Lets not compare the companies to each other when they are clearly different and have different creative teams and agendas.

Right now we have one of the best storylines in years coming out of WWE, a superb opening card for ROH's opening show, and a great faction war going on in TNA.

It's a great time to be a wrestling fan, because there's something for everyone, not because one company is winning any "wars."

Thanks for reading and please comment bellow, also go ahead and show that props button some love if you liked this article because I may start doing more pieces like this.

So until next time, thanks for reading.

See you Space Cowboy...

What's that, someone's actually writing an article that's not about the WWE and a certain man that set the wrestling world (and the IWC) on fire over the course of the past few weeks? Shocking.

But in all honesty, let me just give a quick tip of the hat to Punk for going back to his old ROH music, it's where I first realized that I was watching someone special. In a room of 10 wrestling fans, I was the only one that knew what was going on when "Cult of Personality" hit.

Alright, that's enough of that, now on to business.

Over the past few weeks, Ring of Honor has been signing several members of their roster to contracts leading up to the big taping on August 13th.

The following wrestlers have been confirmed as having extended their contracts:

Shelton Benjamin

Charlie Hass

Adam Cole

Kyle O'Reilly

Rhett Titus

Kenny King

“The Project” Tommaso Ciampa

Michael Elgin

“The Prodigy” Mike Bennett

Bobby Cruise (The Voice of ROH)

Todd Sinclair (Senior Referee)

Kevin Kelly (missed this one, credit goes to my buddy ShredderIsAlive for informing me) 

All these signings come on the heel of the news that ROH may have lost the Kings of Wrestling, Chris Hero and Claudio Castagnoli (about an 80 percent chance of this deal getting done in my opinion) and possibly Colt Cabana (speculation).

If these guys do end up leaving ROH/the Indy scene, I wish them the best of luck, all three men deserve to be top superstars in my books (Claudio will be the next big thing to come from the Indy scene in my opinion).

So far the following matches have been announced, signed and confirmed for the ROH debut show:

ROH World Title Match
Davey Richards defends vs. Roderick Strong with Truth Martini

World Tag Team Title Match
Wrestling’s Greatest Tag Team (Shelton Benjamin & Charlie Haas) vs. The Kings of Wrestling (Chris Hero & Claudio Castagnoli) with Shane Hagadorn

World TV Title Match
El Generico defends vs. Jay Lethal

“Defy or Deny” Rematch
Eddie Edwards vs. Michael Elgin with Truth Martini

The following wrestlers are also scheduled to appear on the show as well:

- Jay and Mark Briscoe
- The All Night Express (Rhett Titus & Kenny King)
- Adam Cole
- Kyle O’Reilly
- “The Prodigy” Mike Bennett
- Tommaso Ciampa with The Embassy
- The Bravado Brothers

I also expect the man ROH officials deemed "The Wrestler That Can't Be Named" after his tirade at Best in the World, Kevin Steen, as well as a couple of surprise returns (maybe The Young Bucks (a.k.a. Generation Me, or maybe a CM Punk sighting, he's been at a few of their shows in the past year.)

Now in my personal opinion, this looks like an amazing card and a great way to kick off what promises to be a good run for the promotion.

I have been asked by many people how they can view ROH when it launches. For information of ROH's schedule in your area, click here. Also, if it is not in your area, the show will be streamed for free on ROH's website (ROHWrestling.com).

Last bit of news, The ROH Best in the World Dvd is now on sale. It's $20 and in my opinion is well worth that price (I actually ordered my copy as I was writing this article).

I'll keep you guys up to date with all the breaking ROH news as it comes out.

Thanks for reading and as always comment your thoughts below.