champion

Make Reigns the John Cena Champion

27th May 2015 by Scott Keith

Hey Scott,

After watching Payback, I started thinking about Reigns. I know it's just a matter of time before he's champ because WWE are waiting for the crowds to accept him. But, if John Cena has taught us anything, it's that the Smark contingent will change it's mind about a wrestler. Once you're a heel/face, in their eyes, it doesn't matter how well you're work or how well you're booked, you'll always be their first impression of you. So by that logic, Reigns will never be "ready."

But, if all that is true, why the heck does Reigns even need the title? Why not just make whatever match he's in the main event, regardless of what's at stake. In other words, make him the John Cena Champion. You could even christen this new era by having him beat Cena in a main event, while Rollins fight whomever. As you said, the title is not the title. As an added benefit, if Smarks start seeing Reigns fighting, and winning, in the main event enough, they might even became resigned the fact that, ehhh, who cares. Might as well make him champion. At this point, that's the best you can hope for, I think, with Reigns.

I suppose they could always build up to him finally being the guy to win the John Cena Open Challenge, too. But yes, in general if you start treating a guy like a main eventer, eventually fans will accept him as a main eventer. Sometimes you just have to do it like HHH in 2000 and completely sacrifice a guy to get there, but it’s generally do-able. It’s still a problem that Reigns is getting title shots and not winning, but at least fan support for him is becoming a tad more organic now without Bryan around.

Place to be Nation Presents: Real World Champion (2008-2014)

13th May 2015 by Scott Keith

The staff over at Place to be Nation have voted to determine which wrestler in North America earned the title of the “Real World Champion” for each given year. Wrestlers were determined by the following factors: workrate, drawing ability, influence, and general overall presentation. Don’t think of this as which actual champion was the best but rather which wrestler of a given year best represented a combination of all these factors, the factors in which you would look for in a champion. Click on the link below to read the article and comment here too to voice your opinion on the selections.

http://placetobenation.com/ptbns-real-world-champion-2008-2014/

Place to be Nation Presents: Real World Champion (2001-2007)

6th May 2015 by Scott Keith

The staff over at Place to be Nation have voted to determine which wrestler in North America earned the title of the “Real World Champion” for each given year. Wrestlers were determined by the following factors: workrate, drawing ability, influence, and general overall presentation. Don’t think of this as which actual champion was the best but rather which wrestler of a given year best represented a combination of all these factors, the factors in which you would look for in a champion. Click on the link below to read the article and comment here too to voice your opinion on the selections.

http://placetobenation.com/ptbns-real-world-champion-2001-2007/

Place to be Nation Presents: Real World Champion 1995-2000

29th April 2015 by Scott Keith

The staff over at Place to be Nation have voted to determine which wrestler in North America earned the title of the “Real World Champion” for each given year. Wrestlers were determined by the following factors: workrate, drawing ability, influence, and general overall presentation. Don’t think of this as which actual champion was the best but rather which wrestler of a given year best represented a combination of all these factors, the factors in which you would look for in a champion. Click on the link below to read the article and comment here too to voice your opinion on the selections.

http://placetobenation.com/ptbns-real-world-champion-1995-2000/

Place to be Nation Presents: Real World Champion 1989-94

24th April 2015 by Scott Keith

The staff over at Place to be Nation have voted to determine which wrestler in North America earned the title of the “Real World Champion” for each given year. Wrestlers were determined by the following factors: workrate, drawing ability, influence, and general overall presentation. Don’t think of this as which actual champion was the best but rather which wrestler of a given year best represented a combination of all these factors, the factors in which you would look for in a champion. Click on the link below to read the article and comment here too to voice your opinion on the selections.

http://placetobenation.com/ptbns-real-world-champion-1989-1994/

Lenny Lane: The Forgotten Cruiserweight Champion

3rd March 2015 by Scott Keith

Often times when people think about the WCW/WWE Cruiserweight Championship wrestlers such as Rey Mysterio Jr., Eddie Guerrero, Billy Kidman, Chris Jericho, Dean Malenko Juventud Guerrera and Chavo Guerrero Jr. are likely to come to mind. Rightfully so as those guys continually put on incredible matches in the mid to late 1990s for World Championship Wrestling. The WCW Cruiserweight Championship became a championship match that fans were almost guaranteed a fantastic match.

Eventually, the repetitive championship switches started to annoy fans. How many times could we deal with seeing Rey Mysterio Jr. beating Juventud or Psychosis to win the championship before it was no longer interesting? WCW took notice and in the summer of 1999 they made a controversial decision.

By the summer of 1999, Rey Mysterio Jr. was once again the WCW Cruiserweight Champion and wasn’t regularly defending the title due to a feud with the West Texas Rednecks.

During the same period, WCW had debuted two new characters named Lenny and Lodi. A little backstory would be helpful, I’d imagine. Lodi had gotten some fame thanks to his run with Raven and the Flock but hardly ever won any matches. He was essentially the manager for Lenny, who was positioned as the star of the group.

Lenny Lane had been with the company since 1995 and for the first few years he mainly competed on WCW Saturday Night and WCW Worldwide where he was mostly used as enhancement talent. While Lane would win a few matches here and there, he wasn’t given a lot of momentum. However, many WCW fans saw him as a future star for the company.

There were moments where he shined but it wasn’t followed up on. For instance, in 1998 Chris Jericho used Lenny Lane as his lackey to help retain the WCW Cruiserweight Championship, but Lane wouldn’t be used in a prominent role afterward.

With no sense of direction and creative not looking to provide anything for Lenny, he formed a team with Lodi known as the West Hollywood Blondes. Apparently, the tag team was inspired by the Saturday Night Live cartoon The Ambiguously Gay Duo. As you might have guessed, their characters were that of two homosexuals, but WCW played it off as if they were “brothers.”

Anyway, the gimmick started to get traction as they often had backstage segments of giving each other a massage or the humorous segment of talking in a closet. Considering the time period, these two were becoming an entertaining heel duo that fans would often chant “faggot” at. Yes, it was insensitive, but at a time when WCW wasn’t providing much of anything, the controversial angle was at least interesting.

The act got so over with fans that on the August 19th edition of Thunder Lenny won his first and only championship by pinning WCW Cruiserweight Champion Rey Mysterio Jr. It was a shocking win and an even more shocking booking decision. It’s exactly what WCW needed to do.

Following the win, Lenny would work with Juventud, Kidman, and a young Evan Karagias. His only pay per view defense was against Kaz Hayashi, who was probably the least likely contender for the belt at the time, but more accurately the only cruiserweight that would be fine with losing to Lenny, I’d imagine. That match took place at WCW Fall Brawl 1999.

So, with a champion that fans loved to boo and was getting crowd reactions that wrestlers would only hope to receive, WCW ended the gimmick and awarded the championship to Psychosis in October. When I say awarded, I mean they literally gave him the title after claiming that Lenny had lost the belt at a house show when they had not actually happened.

The main issue that the company faces was the complaint from the GLADD organization claiming that the company was endorsing people to think it is acceptable to beat up homosexuals. I understand that professional wrestling fans aren’t the brightest, but come on. With that logic, literally everyone would be going out and slamming each other just because they can. But, it was GLADD’s responsibility I guess to make a scene about it.

That was another difference between the WWF and WCW. The WWF would stand by their controversial content that fans enjoyed while WCW would fold quickly.

Personally, the duo was really enjoyable and talented. They found a gimmick that worked for them and they were heavily featured on television. WCW just didn’t stand by their own product and a long lasting act was cut way too short.

What are your memories of Lenny Lane? Do you remember this gimmick and what was your opinion of it?

For more reviews and columns, head over to WRESTLING RECAPS.

Thanks for reading.

Pedigree Of A Champion

4th February 2015 by Scott Keith

Scott,

I know that not everyone is on board with the push Roman Reigns is receiving, but I think there's something most may not be aware of. "The Powerhouse" has a championship pedigree unmatched by any WWE Superstar in history. His father is Sika, one half of the WWE Hall Of Fame tag team The Wild Samoans and a three time tag team champion. His brother Rosey also wrestled for the WWE and is a former tag team champion. As a member of the fabled Anoa'i family, the greatness in his bloodlines doesn't stop there. His cousins include former WWE Champion Yokozuna, Rikishi, Umaga, current tag team champs Jimmy & Jey Uso, and of course The Rock.

I'm sure there's lots I've left off here, but hopefully I've gotten the point across and the BOD audience can finally get behind "The Big Dog" with the rest of the WWE Universe.

Wait a minute, I Googled this Umaga guy and he apparently died…of DRUGS. That's not exactly the image I want of my WWE World Heavyweight Champion ™ and role model to children around the world. What if some kid discovers this and then thinks that it's OK to eat marijuana? FUCK ROMAN REIGNS.

Hardcore Hak Memorial WCW Hardcore Champion Invitational

8th January 2015 by Scott Keith

While we wait for the Main IC Title Tournament to begin, the Blog of Doom presents this no-holds-barred (and likely no holds used) free-for-all battle to determine the greatest WCW Hardcore Champion of all time!

Hardcore Hak WCW Hardcore Champion Invitational

RVD World Champion

5th December 2014 by Scott Keith

Hi Scott,

RVD had a wonderfully entertaining year in 1998 having some genuinely great matches against Bam Bam and Jerry Lynn that year, elevating the TV title into his own and becoming a very popular face for the company.
With the following years his popularity never dwindled and was a big fan favourite, so why did Paul Heyman never pull the trigger on giving him a World Title run especially towards the end? Were there back stage politics or did Heyman just not think it was worthwhile?

Thanks

Heyman was all about the chase and was kind of obsessively building up the perfect heel foil for RVD to dethrone and pay off his quest, but unfortunately Rob got injured and they never found the right moment to put it on him. It wasn't politics or anything, they had every intention of making him champion.

Debut to Champion

16th November 2014 by Scott Keith

The CM Punk and Miz ones had me dying laughing. This was great stuff.

Diesel as champion

31st August 2014 by Scott Keith

Dear Scott,

You recently claimed on your blog that JBL was the "lowest drawing champion since Diesel". This may lead your readers to assume that Diesel did not draw well during his title reign.

I think you will find that Diesel and the WWF/E enjoyed overwhelming success (both creative and financial) during his run as champion. He easily ranks as one of the greatest, if not the greatest, champion in wrestling history. I have included a link to verify this fact, which details the record-breaking profits the WWF/E made during his tenure as champion.

http://youtu.be/fob4r2N-upg

I believe after watching this video you will feel inclined to offer Kevin Nash an apology.

Wow. And I mean, if Scott Steiner has taught us anything, it's that math doesn't lie. Plus Nash had a chart and everything. Case closed, I guess.

Ring of Honor Crowning a Champion July 27th, 2002

27th July 2014 by Scott Keith

July 27, 2002

Murphy Rec Center Philadelphia, PA

Tonight, the first ever RoH Champion will be crowned in a four-way, sixty minute iron man match between Low Ki, Christopher Daniels, Spanky, and Doug Williams.

Low Ki starts with a promo about his memorable matches so far in RoH. He then tells Christopher Daniels that he will never be the champion as long as he is around and that tonight, the only thing his opponents can do is be ready.

A highlight package of the competitors in the Championship Match is shown set to an awful techno sound.

Steve Corino is backstage with Simply Luscious. He tells us that the big question in RoH is what’s going on between himself and Simply Luscious. He says that the chemistry is there and that her relationship with Christopher Daniels is business as part of the Prophecy but his business with her is personal. It ends with them kissing.

The Christopher St. Connection are talking about practicing on bananas. They open a door and see Special K dancing around (They were not yet named at this point). One of the CSC guys get’s their banana stolen.

Tony Mamaluke and James Maritato are backstage when the Natural Born Sinners arrive. They ask Maritato about shooting as Mamaluke tells the Sinners that the only thing they know about shooting is with a gun in a dark alley. Homicide challenges them to a tag match in Boston (Actually, the show was in Wakefield, MA, about fifteen minutes North of Boston) and while Maritato says that he would never tag with Mamaluke as he wants to keep the FBI gimmick going, a challenge was made and the match will happen.

Jeremy Lopez vs. Tony Mamaluke

This match does not feature commentary. Lopez wrestled some matches on WCW Saturday Night in 2000 and I am shocked that he never wound up working for TNA during their infancy as basically everyone who was based out of the South got at least one TNA match. Match starts with both guys taking it to the mat. Lopez is noticeably shorter than Mamaluke. Lopez puts Mamaluke in a bow-and-arrow lock then they go back and forth on the mat until Mamaluke works a side headlock. Lopez is hanging over the bottom rope then Mamaluke hits a slingshot leg drop. Lopez blocks a suplex attempt then comes back with a discus forearm smash that gets two. Neckbreaker gets two. Lopez places Mamaluke on top but ends up getting hit with a tornado DDT. Loepz then takes down Mamaluke and locks on a crossface. Lopez then chops Mamaluke until he gets taken down by a hiptoss. Mamaluke goes to work on the arm. Lopez blocks a tornado DDT then hits Mamaluke with a double underhook DDT that gets two. Tiger Driver gets two! They trade go behinds until Mamaluke hits a double underhook DDT then turns that into a Butterfly Stretch for the win via submission (7:24) **1/4.

Thoughts: A decent enough match to start off the show. A lot of it was mat based but still enjoyable.

Backstage, the Christopher St. Connection offer Divine Storm bananas after hitting on them. A lot of the CSC on this show tonight.

Prince Nana & Jacobs Ladder vs. Christian York & Joey Matthews w/ Alexis Laree

The crowd chants “Low Ki killed you” at Nana. Jacobs is covered in tattoos and bald. Never heard of the guy but a quick search on the web reveals that he has wrestled some death matches for IWA Mid-South several years ago. Nana gets on the mic and asks his opponents not to hit him as he has permanent injuries but he and his partner end up jumping York and Matthews. Nana chops Matthews in the corner then the match breaks down as Nana gets hit with a double enziguiri and rolls out of the ring and heads up the aisle then Matthews puts Ladder across his shoulders as York comes off of the top with a leg drop for the win (1:45) DUD.

Thoughts: A waste of time, really. This was all just a set up for the following segment and to start a storyline for Nana, who was not getting over.

Backstage, the Christopher St. Connection try to help out Nana, who is pissed and orders them to stay away. The CSC then arrive to the ring with Allison Danger and kiss a few guys in the stands before arriving in the ring to confront York, Matthews, and Laree. The CSC then say that they find one of York & Matthews attractive but Danger says they are not “butch” enough for the CSC and that sparks a catfight between Laree and Danger then York & Matthews beat up the CSC. The crowd and commentary wasn’t as homophobic as usual. The CSC win that then go in the ring and bend Laree over their knee as Danger puts sparkles on her hand and spanks her.

The TWA guys arrive to the arena as Michael Shane acts like he is better than everyone else, including his partner Bio-Hazard, who then complains about Shane to Rudy Boy Gonzalez.

Michael Shane & Bio-Hazard vs. Paul London & Don Juan

Whoever scores the pinfall wins an RoH contract. Bio-Hazard and London start off then Shane tags as they trade stuff until London takes Shane down with a pair of armdrags. We are then shown Shane outside with his partner as London hits them with a flip dive, nearly killing himself in the process. No wonder London is the way he is today. Dude half-killed himself doing these moves. Back inside, Shane stomps Don Juan as Corino rags on TWA trainer Rudy Boy Gonzalez. London tags and Shane sends him into the corner with an overhead suplex. Bio-Hazard and kills London with a back suplex that gets two. London escapes and tags Juan, who gets hit with a jawbreaker then a Northern lights suplex. Shane tags and gets two with a superplex. Bio-Hazard tags and hits a snap suplex then he and Shane keep tagging each other in as the winner of this gets a contract with the company. Juan gets his knees up on a springboard moonsault then makes the tag. London goes wild and busts out a dropsault and a moonsault. Shane catches London with a super kick. Bio-Hazard tags but London kicks him down. Shane breaks up a pinfall attempt then stretches out London with Charlie Haas’ old finishing move (Haas of Pain) until Juan breaks that up. The match breaks down again then London breaks up Juan’s pinfall and they argue but as that happens, Shane catches Juan with an enziguiri then immediately after that London hits Bio-Hazard with a DDT and the ref counts to three as there are two pin attempts going on but Shane gets the win as he had the pin first (8:34) *3/4. After the match, Shane grabs the mic and calls out Spanky because he is in the Championship match and is not as good as him. Shane then likens himself to his cousin, Shawn Michaels, but London grabs the mic and talks about his outstanding moves and this leads to a brawl that is eventually broken up by Rudy Boy Gonzalez. The camera follows them all to the locker room as they have a war of words. Rudy Boy then says they will face each other at the next show.

Thoughts: The match itself was disjointed but this set up the feud between Shane and London, which ended up being very good for RoH and put both guys on the map. It also helped make London a valuable commodity in the world of professional wrestling.

Da Hit Squad vs. Divine Storm

Both teams go face-to-face to start then end up brawling. In the ring, Monsta Mack catches Quiet Storm with an overhead suplex as Mafia and Divine brawl outside then come back into the ring. Divine escapes from the Burning Hammer then catches Mafia with a Death Valley Driver and a spinebuster for nearfalls. Mafia blocks a cutter from Divine then tags Mack and he destroys Divine for a bit. Storm knocks down Mack and hits a frog splash for two. Divine escapes from another Burning Hammer then gets clotheslined. Storm is tossed outside then Divine takes Mack over with an overhead suplex but tries a rana and Mack turns that into a powerbomb for the win (4:35) *1/2.

Thoughts: This felt like more of an exhibition than an actual match as it was just a collection of moves without any rhyme or reason. Despite that, it was entertaining enough and seeing how these two teams were not exactly the greatest, this style of match was probably for the best.

Backstage, Xavier wishes Low Ki luck and to keep him in mind when he wins the title.

Jay Briscoe w/ Mark Briscoe vs. James Maritato

They start the match with matwork as Briscoe does a fine job keeping up with Maritato. Briscoe takes Maritato down and applies an STF. The announcers talk about how Mark is jealous that he is too young to wrestle in Pennsylvania because of that, wants him to lose. Maritato keeps targeting the left arm of Briscoe, who comes back with a jawbreaker that gets two. Briscoe gets caught coming off of the top with a forearm as Maritato attacks the arm. They each miss a pair of jumping attacks then Briscoe hits a Death Valley Driver. Dropkick gets two. Brisco hits the Niagara Slam then they fight on top until Briscoe gets shoved off then drilled with a missile dropkick that gets two. Briscoe counters a superplex with a front face suplex that gets two. Maritato gets powerbombed but comes back with a low dropkick. Briscoe blocks the Kiss of Death then hits a DDT for two. Mark Briscoe then heads back to the locker room, flipping off Jay who looks confused and that allows Maritato to hit the Kiss of Death for the win (8:30) **1/2.

Thoughts: Solid match. The storyline between Mark and Jay Briscoe has been excellent so far. Jay is very impressive in the ring considering his age too.

Christopher Daniels is backstage with Simply Luscious and says that the Code of Honor is based on lies and hypocrisy. He talks about the three-way between the American Dragon and Low Ki at the RoH debut show and how it took two men to beat him. The Fallen Angel gimmick was such shit and probably held Daniels back to be honest. He has loads of charisma and was stuck doing this crap that just about anyone could pull off.

Doug Williams has some kid in a stretch muffler as he talks about how this kid is going to end up just like his opponents tonight.

Bunkhouse Stampede Match

Natural Born Sinners vs. Carnage Crew

Match starts as all four competitors are brawling. The camera focuses on barbed wire wrapped around the ringpost as Devito uses it to bust open Homicide. At this point, there is actually blood on the camera lens. Outside of the ring, Devito is destroying Homicide with unprotected chairshots to the head. Good lord these are brutal. In the ring, HC Loc busts open Boogaloo with a cowbell. These guys are damn near killing each other in this match, especially Homicide and Devito who are brawling in the crowd. Now, Devito is destroying Boogaloo outside of the ring with chairshots to his back. Homicide is now whipping Loc and Devito with a leather belt. In the ring, Homicide hits Devito with a shining wizard for two. Devito flips out of a Cop Killer attempt and takes down Homicide with a clothesline. He then sends him into the corner with an overhead suplex as he is tangled in the barbed wire. Devito takes the barbed wire and puts it on Homicide then hits him with a moonsault as both men feel the pain. Devito covers as Homicide kicks out at two. Boogaloo wraps the barbed wire around his arm then takes down Devito with a lariat. Loc is outside of the ring sitting in a chair against the guardrail as Homicide flies out with a tope and ends up in the crowd. Homicide took a crazy bump with that move. Inside of the ring, Boogaloo wraps the barbed wire around Devito’s mouth then pulls him back in a surfboard or sorts as Devito submits (9:36) ***1/2. Holy shit was that a sick finisher. The crowd starts chanting “ROH” then Loc and Devito attack the Sinners with hubcaps until Da Hit Squad run out for the save. However, Homicide yells at Da Hit Squad for helping them out, screaming “I don’t need your fucking help” before storming off.

Thoughts: A wild, brutal brawl. Some of these chair shots were absolutely sickening and the finish was something that I have never seen before. A feud with the Sinners and Da Hit Squad seems like it is coming soon.

Spanky talks about how he has beaten Low Ki and Daniels and has sacrificed more than anyone else in wrestling as he has moved all over the world sleeping on floors trying to be a better wrestler. He closes by saying he has giving up his soul for wrestling. Spanky showed some solid promo ability here.

Danny Drake is being wheeled in by his partner, Mike Tobin. They run into Rob Feinstein and Tobin says that he has no partners in the six-man tonight but Rob gives then Dunn & Marcos as partners, which does not make Tobin happy at all.

Elimination Match

NWA-TNA X Division Championship Match

Adam Jacobs vs. David Young vs. AJ Styles

Jacobs worked in NWA Wildside but never for NWA-TNA. He has “All That” written on the back of his trunks. This starts off with all guys going back and forth. Young takes down AJ with a rana then Jacobs fucks up a twisting neckbreaker that the crowd boos. They then work a cool sequence that saw Jacobs slingshot in with a sunset flip on Young, who hit AJ with a German suplex but AJ flipped out of the move and broke up the pin. AJ hits Jacobs with a dropkick then tries a moonsault off of the apron on Young, who sidesteps the move and smashes AJ’s head against the apron and busting him open. Young hits AJ with a quebrada then Jacobs takes them all out with a senton. Back inside, Young and Jacobs slug it out then try a double clothesline on AJ but he ducks and hits them both with the Phenomenon. The crowd loves AJ by the way. AJ hits a moonsault kick on Jacobs but walks into a German suplex from Young. AJ attempts to hit Young with the Styles Clash but Jacobs breaks that up. AJ and Jacobs fight on top and Jacobs gets shoved off and Young hits him with a spinebuster. AJ then takes down Young with a Dragonrana that gets two. AJ dodges a charge from Young then hits him with the Spiral Tap for the pin (5:30). Jacobs immediately attacks AJ then plants him with a super kick that gets two. AJ comes back with a flying forearm as both men are down. AJ is up first and they go back and forth for a little bit until Jacobs hits him with a tornado DDT for two. Jacobs tries a rana but AJ Blocks that and turns it into a Boston Crab. AJ goes up top but Jacobs cuts him off. He tries a top rope rana but AJ blocks that and hits a Super Styles Clash for the win (8:00) **1/2. Crowd chants for AJ after the match.

Thoughts: Some good stuff here. Jacobs badly botched a neckbreaker and after that, the crowd never reacred to him, no matter what he did. He was alright after that mess up. AJ is a fan-favorite in RoH and continues to showcase loads of ability. Young had a decent showing and was a solid worker but had nothing in terms of personality.

They announce that at the next RoH show in Philadelphia on 9/21, Steve Corino will face off against Rudy Boy Gonzalez. Also, Mike Modest from Pro Wrestling NOAH will be there. Rudy Boy comes out and runs down Corino for a bit.

We are shown a one minute-long highlight package of the six-man tag between Mike Tobin & Dunn & Marcos vs. Brian XL & Izzy & Dixie. It looked terrible. After the match, a huge Rastafarian man wearing a black suit destroys the winners. This man would later be revealed as “Slugger.” I am shocked that he did not get even a look from the WWE due to his size and look alone.

Scoot Andrews vs. Xavier

This match has no commentary. Andrew starts by getting a rollup after a handshake. He stays on the attack as this match is clipped and now shows Xavier chopping away. The editing in this match is brutal by the way. Xavier is now busted open then gets hit with a leg lariat that gets two. Tiger Bomb gets two for Andrews. He tries the Force of Nature but Xavier turns that into a rollup. He then fights back and knocks down Andrews with a forearm smash. He destroys Andrews in the corner then gets two with a Splash Mountain. Andrews fights back and hits a front slam as both men are down. Andrews whiffs on a dropkick then Xavier hits him with a pumphandle slam for two. They mess up when Xavier overshoots a moonsault block. Andrews blocks a kick then hits the Force of Nature for the win (5:01) shown **.

Thoughts: What was shown was solid. Neither guy has built any momentum since the company has started though.

RoH Championship Match

Low Ki vs. Spanky vs. Doug Williams vs. Christopher Daniels

The rules are that only two men can be in the ring at the same time. The scoring system is that you gain two points for scoring a pinfall but lose one point when you are pinned. Daniels begs Low Ki to come into the ring then immediately tags Williams. Low Ki and Williams start things off on the mat. Williams hammers Low Ki while grounding him then puts him in a butterfly lock that Ki turns into an armbar as Corino puts over the Williams vs. Dragon match from last month. Williams works an armbar as Ki tries to fight out. Ki escapes but Williams takes him down with a judo throw and they end up in a standoff. Williams uses some wacky holds on the mat but Ki escapes and tags Spanky, who the crowd cheers for loudly. Williams turns a test of strength into a chokehold using both of Spanky’s arms. Williams grounds Spanky and grabs a front facelock but Spanky escapes then Daniels tags himself into the match. Williams grabs Daniels in an armbar then rams him into the corner a few times. Williams tags Spanky, who comes in and works the arms of Daniels. Spanky switches to a headlock and works that for a couple of minutes but Daniels counters it with a back suplex then takes control. Daniels tags Ki and sneaks out of the ring immediately afterwards. Ki uses a figure four necklock on Spanky but that is quickly broken up and Spanky makes the tag to Williams, who works the leg of Ki and softens him up before tagging Daniels, who quickly beats on Ki until tagging Spanky. Ki manages to put on a dragon sleeper but Spanky slithers out and tags Daniels. Ki floats over on a slam attempt and chops him down but Daniels quickly takes control. Williams tags but Daniels kicks him down. Williams no-sells some headbutts then takes down Daniels and puts him in an armbreaker. He targets the arm some more then lays into Daniels with European uppercuts. Daniels kicks Williams when he ducks his head then cheapshots Ki. Williams hits a lariat for two before tagging Spanky, who grabs a nearfall with a discus forearm smash. Spanky works the arm of Daniels, which has been targeted all throughout the match. Daniels comes back with a neckbreaker then drags Spank into the middle of the ring. He tags Williams and he puts Spanky in a surfboard. Spanky escapes and tags Ki, who puts Williams in a reverse chinlock. Williams breaks free and goes to work on Ki’s leg. These two start striking each other on the mat as Williams has Ki in a leg lock. Daniels runs in and stomps Ki before the ref backs him away. Williams then puts Ki in the stretch muffler (Brock Lock) then tags Spanky. These two have a slugfest but Spanky stops that with a dropkick to the leg of Ki. Spanky hits a shinbreaker and goes back to work on the leg. Ki fights back with a vicious kick to the back off the head that gets two. Daniels cheapshots Spanky from the apron as Ki gets a nearfall with a suplex. He hangs Spanky from the top rope then kicks him hard. Daniels tags himself in and beats on Spanky. Suplex gets two. They take it to the mat and Daniels wins that then grabs a neck vise as Donnie B lets us know that Donovan Morgan will face the American Dragon at the next show. Ki tags himself in and chops the shit out of Daniels. He then kicks him but Daniels ducks and chop blocks his leg. Daniels cheapshots Spanky again but Ki grabs him as Spanky heads up top. Daniels dodges Spnaky’s missile dropkick that hits Ki. Daniels then goes for the Last Rites but Williams hits him with a flying clothesline then the match breaks down. Williams hits Daniels with a Tornado DDT then Spanky hits him with the Sliced Bread #2. Ki then immediately hits Spanky with a release tiger suplex then Daniels hits Ki with a Flatliner as all four men are down with the fans going crazy. Ki pushes Spanky off of the top rope then Williams gets tossed outside. Ki tries a kick but Daniels hits him with antoher chop block, setting up for the Last Rites and the first pinfall of the evening (25:59)

(Daniels 2, Spanky 0, Williams 0, Ki -1)

Daniels tries another pin but Ki is able to kick out. Spanky tags and dropkicks Daniels for two. Daniels fights back and tags Williams, who works a neck vise. He targets the neck but Spanky comes back with a jawbreaker before tagging Daniels. Williams works the arm on the mat then tags Spanky. Daniels hits Spanky with a DDT for a nearfall then targes the neck. Spanky is able to lock on an armbar then tags Williams who also targets the arm. Daniels now is in control and works on the neck and after a visible spot call by Daniels, he hits Williams with a spinebuster. He tags Spanky who immediately covers Williams but only gets two. Spanky escapes a rear choke hold with an eye rake then Williams tags Daniels for some reason. Daniels takes Ki off of the apron but Spanky is able to grab a few nearfalls then tags Williams, who goes back to work on the arm of Daniels. Spnaky tags Daniels and hits Williams with a pair of dropkicks. Daniels hits Williams with a backbreaker and holds him over his knee as Spanky comes in with a tope con hilo. Williams fights off both men then hits Spanky with the Chaos Theory but Daniels breaks up the pin then hits Williams with the Last Rites and turns that into a Koji Clutch. Ki breaks that up with a double stomp from the top rope. Daniels backs into Ki, who was on the apron, then gets chopped and Ki tags himself into the match. Williams has Ki in the Gory Special and rams into the corner a few times before taking him down with a dropkick as the fans go nuts. He puts Ki on the top rop. Ki fights back and comes off the top with a rana but Williams rolls through that and puts Ki in the Triangle Sleeper then slams him down. Ki works the arm but Williams eventually lifts up Ki and slams him down. Ki hits double chops and a forearm smash before sending Williams In the corner. Spanky blind tags himself into the match as Williams hits the Chaos Theory on Ki, who flips out of the move and takes down Spanky with a Dragon Sleeper and Spanky taps out (41:51).

(Daniels 2, Low Ki 1, Williams 0, Spanky -1)

Daniels tags himself into the match and goes right after Ki. He hits a springboard moonsault that gets two then puts on a leg lock that Spanky breaks up after tagging himself into the match. Spanky then hits Daniels with a flying forearm but misses a frog splash. Spanky manages to catch Daniels with a pedigree that gets two. Daniels tags Williams, who hits Spanky with three consecutive facebusters but that still cannot score a pinfall. Daniels tags himself in but Williams takes him down with a flying knee smash. Ki sneaks in and covers Daniels but Williams breaks that up with a flying knee drop. Spanky then takes them both down with a double clothesline. Spanky fails to hit Williams with the Sliced Bread #2 then Ki tags himself into the match and repeatedly headbutts Williams. Daniels tags and hits an STO then the Best Moonsault Ever but that only gets two as Daniels is in disbelief. Williams backdrops Daniels to the floot but Spanky hits him with a crossbody after tagging himself into the match. Ki tags Spanky and ends up putting Williams in the Hanging Dragon but has to break before the five count. Daniels comes as the match breaks down. Spanky and Daniels both spill outside as Ki hits Williams with the Phoenix Splash for the pin (48:45).

(Low Ki 3, Daniels 2, Spanky -1, Williams -1)

Daniels and Ki trade chops until Daniels hits an uranage. Ki rolls away from the BME but comes off of the top as Daniels gets his knee up just in time. Both men are down until Daniels tags Spanky. He quickly covers Ki but just gets two. Ki then blocks a Sliced Bread #2 attempt and hits Spanky with a tombstone piledriver but Daniels breaks up the pin and tosses Ki outside. Daniels hits Spanky with a reverse Death Valley Driver then Williams tags himself in and piledrives Daniels, who gets his foot on the ropes. Williams then catches Ki’s Tidal Wave and turns that into a sitout powerbomb but Spanky breaks up the pin. Ki tosses Spanky off the top then hits him with a 450 splash but is in pain and rolls outside. Daniels throws Ki inside then tags in the match but Spanky hits him with a DDT for a nearfall then a frog splash that Ki breaks up at two. Ki tags Daniels but Spanky hits a back suplex and that almost gets a pin. Williams trips up Spanky, who flies out and hits him with a plancha. Daniels is inside and hits a front Russian leg sweep that gets two. Ki charges at Daniels but gets caught with a Blue Thunder Bomb as the fans are on their feet. Williams and Spanky are on the floor outside as an “ROH” chant breaks out. Ki blocks a Last Rites attempt but Daniels puts him in a dragon sleeper in the middle of the ring. Ki starts punching him in the face, as the crowd counts down the final seconds of the match. Ki counters the Dragon Sleeper with the Last Rites as time runs out and Low Ki becomes the first ever Ring of Honor Champion (60:00) ****1/2. Daniels complains that while he actually pinned Ki in the match, he is not the champion. The crowd then yells at Daniels to shake Ki’s hand.

Thoughts: Excellent match and a “Match of the Year” candidate for sure. The last several minutes were a bit messy as the rules seemingly changed to allow guys to enter the match without tagging. I thought the story-telling was tight too, with guys working over a certain part of the body and the side-story between Daniels and Ki. Each guy looked like a star in this match too.

Backstage, Ki breaks down and is on the floor. He then sits in a chair with the RoH title belt over his shoulder and dedicated his win to Russ Haas (Brother of Charlie Haas who passed away several months before this match of a heart attack. They wrestled together for Maryland Championship Wrestling) and tells Charlie that it is for him too when he gets a hold of the tape. I thought this whole segment was excellent and made the match look even more meaningful and the belt look more prestigious.

Backstage, Mark teases Jay about losing his match. Jay then shoves Mark into the wall, who says that he is not allowed to wrestle here in Pennsylvania. Jay then reminds Mark that next month in Boston (Again, it was Wakefield) they do not have a commission and he challenges him to a match. Mark accepts, saying that Jay will just end up losing again.

Simply Luscious consoles Daniels backstage, who sees the referee and pins him against the wall and threatens him for how he called the match.

Final Thoughts:The best RoH show to date. I thought the Championship match was awesome and gave the belt prestige as a result, which was really the main goal of the show. Not all of the matches were good but there was an entertaining Bunkhouse Match and the company is starting to build feuds and improve character development. Sure, there were some segments that were painful and overall, the tag team division is garbage but top to bottom, a solid show.

Here is a schedule of my upcoming reviews:

Sunday: WWF Championship Wrestling 8/2/86
Tuesday: WWF Championship Wrestling 8/9/86
Thursday: RF Video Shoot Interview with Shawn Daivari
Friday: WWF Championship Wrestling 8/16/86
Saturday: RoH Honor Invades Boston 8/24/02
Sunday: WWF Championship Wrestling 8/23/86

Email me at [email protected] with any questions or feedback

Follow me on Twitter at twitter.com/mrbayless1982

KENTA – New IC Champion?!?!?!

3rd July 2014 by Scott Keith

Could it happen?

KENTA is due to sign for WWE in early July (if not already a done deal), its due to be announced in Osaka, Japan on 12th July, WWE Battleground happens on 20th July.

Do you think WWE will put KENTA into the Intercontinental Championship Battle Royal as a special surprise entrant, and he'll win the whole damn thing?

Make a lot of the press conference, get a top notch, hoghly produced highlight package (which we know they can do) out on Raw on 14th, Main Event on 15th and SmackDown on 18th July, and bang your new IC Champion?

Leave him in the ring with those that can go with him, a final four of Cesaro, RVD and Kofi or Ziggler, have him eliminate a few in the match and get rid of the final 3 to win it.

Way to make a star?

I think you misspelled "spend the next year or so in NXT".

Test as champion?

18th March 2014 by Scott Keith

You just reviewed the smackdown before Survivor Series 99, and all the sense would've been for Test to win the title there. The fans loved him since the Shane match at Summerslam, and he looked like a more agile Kevin Nash. Wouldn't all logic have been to see him get a one month reign, before jobbing to Triple H at Armageddon where Stephanie turned on him. I remember watching SS 99, hoping it was Test and being disappointed by Big Show's music.

Two months later he was in T&A with Albert and a new Trish. I don't get it

Test basically flopped in the role he was put into in the WWF's eyes, and they seemed to lose faith in him really quickly after the Stephanie turn. And I think in hindsight if they had put the title on him for a month we'd look at it today with the kind of incredulous scorn that we reserve for things like the Miz main eventing WM27. Yes, it would have made sense, but that doesn't mean it would have been the right thing to do. If it makes you feel better, back in the day when we were watching it live we were all expecting Test to be the third guy as well.

Reliving A Title Run: CM Punk As ROH World Champion

16th February 2013 by Scott Keith

Taking a look back at CM Punk’s first and only ROH World Championship run.

Ring of Honor has had only fifteen World Champions since the
promotion debuted in February 2002. The champions include Low Ki, Samoa
Joe, Austin Aries, Daniel Bryan (Brian Danielson), Homicide, Takeshi
Morishima, Nigel McGuiness, Jerry Lynn, Tyler Black, Roderick Strong,
Eddie Edwards, and Davey Richards.

All of those guys have gone on to be quite successful wrestlers in
the business. Low Ki worked for TNA for several years where he won the
X-Division Championship on a few occasions and won a season of NXT in
the WWE. Austin Aries is currently competing in TNA as the X-Division
Champion, and Daniel Bryan is the WWE World Heavyweight Champion.

But, there is one guy who has achieved the greatest success. That one
man is CM Punk. Punk is the current WWE Champion and is becoming more
popular as the days go by. Not a lot of WWE fans know what ROH is or
that CM Punk competed for them. I figured a look back at Punk’s ROH
World Champion run will be a good one to start off. So, let’s revisit
it, shall we?

It was June 18th, 2005 from Morrisville, NJ. CM Punk had competed in
numerous ROH World Championship matches prior to this night, but he had
been unable to realize his dream of winning the most important
championship in ROH. After this night, CM Punk would be off to the WWE.
He had one last opportunity to win the ROH World Championship from
Austin Aries. Would CM Punk be able to go out on a happy note with a ROH
World Championship victory?

After thirty minutes of incredible wrestling, CM Punk was able to pin
Austin Aries after hitting the Pepsi Plunge (a top rope pedigree).
After the match, the babyface Punk took the microphone and proceeded to
turn heel telling the fans that he was leaving with the championship and
going to WWE as an undefeated champion. Christopher Daniels made his
return to ROH and chased Punk from the ring. Punk closed the show by
leaving through the crowd.

On July 8th, 2005 the new ROH World Champion appeared at Sign of
Dishonor in Lake Grove, NY. Punk is a new man at this point. He came out
with a new haircut and was wearing a suite. He told the fans that he
built ROH and no one respected him. Instead, they wanted guys like
Christopher Daniels to comeback to the promotion. Punk felt like
slapping them all in the face and signed his WWE contract right in the
ring on the ROH World Championship! James Gibson and Christopher Daniels
run out to attack Punk, who is able to escape through the crowd.

Later on in the show, Mick Foley appeared and told Punk that he
needed to do the right thing. Foley is able to pressure Punk into
defending the championship against a young talent, named Jay Lethal.
Lethal gave it all he had but Punk was able to retain the championship
by choking Lethal out and is on his way to the WWE with the championship
in hand.

The next night on July 9th, 2005 at Escape From New York, Mick Foley
threatened to toss Punk off a balcony if he didn’t make a match with
Roderick Strong a title match. It worked, and the title was on the line.
After twenty five minutes, Punk was able to steal a victory from Strong
with a roll up. After the match, Samoa Joe, Mick Foley and James Gibson
trapped Punk from leaving and Gibson challenged Punk to a title match
in Connecticut.

James Gibson got his shot against CM Punk on July 16th, 2005. Gibson
is all about protecting the ROH World Championship from going to the
WWE. Before their match, Punk attacked Gibson with a chain to weaken his
opponent before their big title match. Punk was able to roll Gibson up
and used the ropes for leverage yet again to retain the title in a match
that had plenty of emotion and was one of the best title defenses in
ROH history. But, Punk wouldn’t leave with the championship. No, instead
it would be Christopher Daniels. Daniels came out and attacked Punk and
left with the championship. This would set up Punk defending the ROH
World Championship against Christopher Daniels in Philadelphia, PA.

July 23rd, 2005 in Philadelphia, PA it is time for Christopher
Daniels to challenge ROH World Champion CM Punk. Daniels is the last guy
to prevent Punk from leaving the company with the championship. These
two battled for one whole hour with neither man being able to earn a pin
fall or submission victory. Yes, CM Punk escaped with the championship
yet again. Was the championship really going to WWE?

August 12th, 2005 saw ROH World Champion CM Punk defend the
championship against Samoa Joe, Christopher Daniels and James Gibson in
an elimination match. It is the ultimate match to see if Punk can really
be able to leave ROH with the championship and do god knows what in the
WWE with it. Punk was involved in eliminating both Daniels and Joe from
the match. He also hit Gibson with a chair that seemingly disabled him
from competing in the rest of the match. Punk thought he had done it,
but Gibson ended up returning to the match and was able to pin Punk
following a super Tiger Bomb to win the title and prevent Punk from
bringing the championship to the WWE with him.

Punk does the right thing and after Gibson does a little speech, he
hugs Gibson. The perfect ending the greatest ROH World Championship
reign in ROH history.

Yes, the reign may have less than two months long, but the story
behind it make it the most memorable angle to have ever taken place in
ROH. Every single match that happened during the title reign delivered
and never left the fans disappointed. In my opinion, this is the best
work that Gabe Sapolsky has ever put together. I suggest that anyone who
hasn’t watched the feud should find the events and enjoy everything. It
needs to be seen by every wrestling fan.

Feel free to share any memories of CM Punk’s title reign below!

Also, check out my Wrestling Recaps. My blog filled with wrestling reviews from all the major companies.

Thanks for reading.

World Champion Hassan

3rd January 2013 by Scott Keith

Hi Scott, just wondering if you could shed some light on something I'm reading all over the net. Was Muhammad Hassan set to win the world championship from Batista at sumerslam the year he was released? did any somewhat refutable source report this. Thanks for your time

Yes, Meltzer mentioned this on a radio show a few months ago. He was going to win the belt in Washington DC, although plans changed once he failed to set the world on fire as the big new heel. I can only imagine the storyline that Vince would have run if Hassan had made it and stuck around until Bin Laden was killed.

WWE Lists Ten Biggest Names To Never Be World Champion

3rd September 2012 by Scott Keith

This should spark a decent debate.

– The current
“10 Count” with Matt Striker on WWE Classics on Demand ranks the top 10
Superstars to never win a world championship. The list is as follows:

Honorable Mentions: Killer Kowalski, Lance Storm

10. Arn Anderson
9. Chief Jay Strongbow
8. Paul Orndorff
7. Nikita Koloff
6. Junkyard Dog
5. Scott Hall
4. Jake “The Snake” Roberts
3. British Bulldog
2. “The Million Dollar Man” Ted DiBiase
1. “Rowdy” Roddy Roddy Piper

Thoughts?

But I Was The Champion!

14th August 2011 by Scott Keith

Hi Scott,
I was wondering if there have ever been an occasion when winning a championship was actually detrimental for a wrestler or tag-team? In that, the wrestler’s career would have been better off in the long-term if he, or she, did not win a title when he, or she, did.
The only examples I think come close are Tommy Rich and Ronnie Garvin. Neither guy was believable as champion during his respective reign and was unable to keep any momentum after he lost the gold.
One could argue that winning the gold did Jack Swagger no favors. However, his career is still ongoing. So things might turn around for the All-American American.
Are there any others that fit this bill?

Oh, what a great question! Ron Garvin actually should have won the title much earlier. There was a while there on the old NWA shows on 24/7 where I was hoping I could change history by willing it and have him beat Flair at the Bash instead of Dusty Rhodes, because he was pretty awesome at times. By 87, though, he was getting overshadowed by his brother (well, stepson, but let’s keep this simple) and he just had no momentum going when he won the title. Jimmy Garvin was no great shakes as a worker, to say the least, but that Precious storyline was begging for him to give Flair his comeuppance, and it just never happened. Here’s a controversial pick for you: The Road Warriors should not have won the NWA tag titles in 1988. They didn’t need them, and there was no way to change them because the Warriors didn’t do jobs. It actually made them weaker because before then they were “above” the titles, and now they were just another tag team. David Flair winning the US title in 1998. 99? Whatever, it sucked. It also ruined any future career he might have, because the whole thing was a sort of broad satire of promoters pushing their idiot kids to undeserved titles (during Flair’s “crazy WCW president” phase), and now no one would ever be able to take David seriously following that. Once you’re booked as the buffoon, it’s hard to go back. Ask Matt Borne and Nick Dinsmore. I can think of some other good examples, but I’ll let others play.