Ring Of Honor TV – June 23, 2021: They’re Still At It
Ring of Honor
Date: June 23, 2021
Location: UMBC Events Center, Baltimore, Maryland
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman
We’re rapidly approaching Best In The World but at the same time we are well on the way through the Survival Of The Fittest Tournament. It would not surprise me to see those two things cross over, with either the finals taking place at the pay per view or the winner getting their title shot there. Let’s get to it.
Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.
Opening sequence.
Quinn McKay welcomes us to the show and runs down the card.
Bandido wants Bateman at his best because this is the first step towards Bandido becoming World Champion.
Bateman says it’s all about how much you want it. He and Bandido are polar opposites but anyone is going down to his elbow. Bateman will walk through anyone to get what he wants.
Survival Of The Fittest Qualifying Match: Bateman vs. Bandido
The rest of the Righteous is here with Bateman….and are ejected before the bell. We don’t get the Code Of Honor but we do get a fight over a lockup to start. A test of a test of strength gets Bandido a pat on the head so he tries a slam, sending Bateman bailing into the corner.
An exchange of shots to the face goes to Bateman and a chop cuts Bandido down again. Bandido gets smart with a running hurricanrana, setting up a dropkick to the floor. Another shot to the face drops Bandido for two though and we take a break. Back with Bateman planting him for tow more and slapping Bandido in the back of the head. Bandido twists the knee down and nails a Shining Wizard for two of his own.
Just to show off, Bandido hits a gorilla press driver into a standing shooting star press for two more. Bateman forearms a springboard out of the air for two more, only to have Bandido grab a crucifix bomb for the same. A rake to the eyes sets up a knee to the back of the head but This Is A Kill is countered with a headscissors. The 21 Plex finishes Bateman at 13:23.
Rating: C+. I’ll say the same thing I saw every time Bandido has a match: he’s really fun to watch and that is the kind of thing that deserves some extra praise. There is something about his style that works so well, and the crazy power display in the middle makes it even better. Good stuff here, with the right one advancing.
Post match, Vincent returns with the rest of the Righteous, to talk about a moment of clarity. Vincent wants the Ring of Honor World Title but Bateman has failed him. It is time for a Righteous rebirth because death is the greatest form of love. The beating is on, with Bateman standing still to take it.
Danhausen has lost every match since Final Battle and that is not good because his money sack is dwindling. Therefore, he needs to be more EVIL in Survival Of The Fittest.
Rhett Titus talks about being in the Survival Of The Fittest before but never being able to win the thing. Now he wants the World Title and Danhausen is standing in his way. He likes Danhausen, but now he will beat him because that is his profession.
We look at Flip Gordon and EC3 cheating to beat the Briscoes last month.
The Briscoes yell at each other over the loss when Papa Briscoe breaks it up. They can fight this out. On their farm.
Dragon Lee, who was never beaten for the TV Title, can’t believe that Tony Deppen is the champion. He’ll just win it back.
Tracy Williams took his eyes off the prize against Tony Deppen so now he is coming back for the title.
Tony Deppen is willing to do whatever it takes to retain the title.
TV Title: Tony Deppen vs. Dragon Lee vs. Tracy Williams
Deppen is defending, with Lee yelling at both of them and then dropping out to the floor. Lee comes back in to try and steal a pin on Deppen before going outside again. Deppen sends Williams’ arm into the buckle but Lee comes back in again. Williams chops Deppen by mistake to mess up a double team so Deppen gets kicked out to the floor. Lee is sent outside again, this time for a double suplex as we take a break.
Back with Deppen and Williams fighting over who gets to cover Lee. Deppen: “DO I LOOK THAT STUPID???” Williams: “YES YOU DO!” Williams is sent outside and Deppen hits a quick dropkick to Lee. With Deppen outside as well, Lee is back up with the big running flip dive to take both of them down again. Back in again and Lee unloads on both of them in opposite corners.
The running corner dropkick gets two on Deppen with Williams making a save. Williams hammers Lee down in the corner until Deppen knees him in the head. Deppen takes Williams up top but gets caught in the super DDT. Lee drops Williams and everyone is down as we take a break. Back again with a three way slugout from their knees until it’s a three way slugout from their feet.
They trade suplexes, with Williams German suplexing both of them at once. Lee dropkicks Williams to break up a piledriver attempt and everyone is down again. Williams and Lee slug it out with Williams hitting a discus lariat. The referee gets bumped so Lee hits Williams low, allowing Deppen to roll Williams up for the pin to retain at 11:27 (with Lee looking on instead of breaking up the count).
Rating: B-. The ending was a little weird but the action was good throughout. Deppen is working as a beatable champion who wants to prove himself while Williams is the technical guy who can do anything with anyone. Lee is a bit of a wild card and I’m curious to see where some of this goes. I mean, it’s going to continue the faction war because Ring of Honor loves that stuff, but it could be interesting to see how they go there.
Lee applauds a rather confused Deppen. Violence Unlimited comes out to celebrate as the Foundation checks on Williams. Cue La Faccion Ingobernable to laugh (and sing) about the Foundation falling apart. The strategy was to have Williams fall down the ranking, with Lee becoming the new #1 contender. Deppen can defend against Lee at Best In The World, or they’re coming to Deppen’s house and taking the title shot from his wife and kids. Violence Unlimited isn’t happy to end the show. They don’t do anything about it, but they aren’t happy.
Overall Rating: B-. Another easy to watch and entertaining show from Ring of Honor as you can start to see the Best In The World card coming together. That is a very nice thing to see as the company needs something to happen after building these stories up for so long. If their pay per view can be anything like the TV shows then they are going to be fine, as they are in the running for best weekly show at the moment.
Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:
http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6
AND
Remember to check out Wrestlingrumors.net for all of your wrestling headline needs.
Recent Comments