Ring Of Honor
Date: February 26, 2026
Location: H-E-B Center At Cedar Park, Cedar Park, Texas
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

I’m back to the point where I don’t know what to expect from these shows and that’s a weird feeling. There are so many titles around here but a bunch of them are either never defended or defended at random and that makes the shows hard to predict. Maybe it’s different this time around so let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Shane Taylor Promotions are ready to win their matches tonight, with Trish Adora promising to end Deonna Purrazzo’s luck.

Opening sequence.

JD Drake vs. Adam Priest

The much bigger Drake easily wins a slugout and shoulders Priest down. Priest’s comeback is cut off in a hurry and Drake drops a leg for a quick two. Drake slowly takes him into the corner for the chops but misses a sitdown splash. Priest throws him down for two but Drake takes him up top, where a Priest’s sunset bomb gets two. Drake gets two more off a Shining Wizard so he tries a spinebuster, only to get countered into a rollup to give Priest the pin at 7:25.

Rating: C. Decent enough match between two people who don’t have much going on, at least when it comes to singles status. Drake has just been floating around for a long time now and while he’s a good hand, there isn’t much that makes him stand out. Priest still feels like someone with potential, but his smaller size is going to be a lot to get around.

We look at Skyflight beating TMDK last week in a six man main event.

Frat House vs. TMDK

Garrison slugs away at Tito in the corner to start and a clothesline connects as well. A flapjack/running boot combination drops Tito for two but it’s off to Haste. That means a release Falcon Arrow to Garrison and everything breaks down. Tito takes out Garrison and Haste’s fireman’s carry swung into a spinebuster finishes Karter at 3:37.

Rating: C+. It was a fast paced tag match and TMDK looked dominant, which is why you bring them in for a match against a team like the Frat House. I can’t imagine TMDK sticks around but having them in a two match series like this is fine. Not a great match, but it was entertaining while it lasted.

Women’s TV Title: Zayda Steel vs. Red Velvet

Steel, with her one match winning streak after losing everything else, is challenging. Velvet snaps off some armdrags into an armbar to start before missing some right hands. They trade near falls off some small packages until Steel’s Backstabber out of the ropes gets two. An exchange of running shots in the corner goes to Velvet, who grabs a powerbomb for two more. Steel is back with a spinwheel kick for two but Velvet’s Iconoclasm gets the same. A TKO gives Steel two more and she can’t believe the kickout. Velvet is right back with a spinning kick to the face to retain at 6:02.

Rating: C. This didn’t have much of a story to it as they were just kind of trading moves back and forth until Velvet got the pin. Steel still feels like an interesting prospect, but she needs to string together some wins to shake off the early losing streak. There wasn’t much of a reason for her to get a title shot here, but I’ll take it over the title sitting on the shelf.

Post match respect is shown.

TMDK is happy with their win but they get jumped by Shane Taylor Promotions.

Grizzled Young Veterans/Big Bill/Bryan Keith vs. CJ Tino/Richie Slade/Che Cabrera/Dom Kubrick

Isla Dawn is here with the villains. Keith throws his gear at Tino to start and shoulders him down for two. Slade comes in and gets his arm twisted, allowing Drake to come in as well. Drake lets Slade forearm away to no avail before Gibson unloads with forearms of his own in the corner. Slade slips out of a slam though and hands it off to the muscular Guevara (Latino Meat, which made me chuckle), who wants Bill. That’s what he gets before actually winning a slugout. The Veterans come back in to clean house and Bill’s big boot finishes Tino at 4:32.

Rating: C. This was almost but not quite a squash as the villains ran through everyone but Guevara. I’m not sure why they need to be teaming together but I do like seeing the Veterans actually winning something for a change. It’s a quick match and that’s all it needs to be so I’ll take what I can get.

Post match the winners split some money but are interrupted by Skyflight, who give them a staredown.

Skyflight vs. Adrian Quest/Ricky Gee/Danny Rose

I do appreciate the jobbers having their names on their gear. Quest and Sky start things off with some wristlocking before Darius comes in instead. That earns him a quick triple teaming down and a front facelock from Rose. That’s broken up and Dante comes in to pick up the pace, including an enziguri and springboard high crossbody for two on Gee. Everything breaks down and Gee is catapulted into a cutter to give Dante the pin at 4:34.

Rating: C+. This was another fast paced match and it was nice to see them staying to the point here, with both teams getting to look good. Quest/Gee/Rose seem to be a regular team and I could go for seeing some more of them in the future. They were smart to keep this fast and it worked well enough.

We look back at Jay Lethal turning on Bandido and joining the Swirl.

Jay Lethal vs. Tommy Billington

Billington was barely shown in the clip but at least commentary explains how he’s connected to Lethal. They start fast with Lethal being sent outside for a suicide dive, followed by a backdrop back inside. Lethal is back up with a suplex onto the apron and then a cutter back off of it and they head back inside.

One heck of a chop drops Billington in the corner and Billington hammers away. It’s time to start in on the leg with the Figure Four going on rather quickly. The rope is reached and Billington rolls away from the threat of Hail To The King. Billington catches him up top with a superplex but Lethal is back up again. Lethal takes over again and tries Hail To The King, which is reversed into a crossface. Cue Lee Johnson for a distraction, allowing Lethal to hit the Lethal Injection for the pin at 8:15.

Rating: B-. Lethal having the best match of the night thus far is hardly a surprise as he’s still one of the best in-ring stars in the company. I do like him being added to the biggest story around here as it adds some credibility. I’m just not sure who is going to step in and take him out, though actually getting to the Christian vs. Bandido match that has been teased for months would be nice.

Satnam Singh vs. Jordan Oasis

Oasis slugs away with forearms to start but is quickly sent into the corner. The loud (or in this case, not so loud) chops have Oasis in trouble and we hit a nerve hold. That’s broken up and Oasis goes after the leg, only to get sent to the apron. The chokeslam brings Oasis over the top and plants him down for the pin at 2:54. Pretty standard Singh match.

Deonna Purrazzo says her Pure Rules match against Trish Adora means it’s the two of them, one on one.

Persephone vs. Johnnie Robbie

Persephone rudely backs her up against the ropes to start but gets armdragged down a few times. Robbie’s sunset flip is rolled through for a basement dropkick and a hard kick to the back has her in more trouble. A judo throw and some forearms have Robbie in more trouble and Persephone powers her into the corner. We’re off to the chinlock but Robbie is back up with some kicks to the head for two. Robbie’s knee to the face drops Persephone again but she counters a rollup into a Razor’s Edge to finish Robbie at 5:43.

Rating: B-. Robbie got in a lot of offense here and it was a nice performance from someone who hasn’t been around very often. At the same time, commentary continues to treat Persephone as a huge deal and that is likely going to continue. I’m not sure what she’s going to do, but it doesn’t feel as important when Athena has already beaten her in a big match.

Tony Nese vs. Komander

Before the match, Mark Sterling complains about luchadors like Komander, saying Nese is going to clear them out. Nese backs him into the corner to start and then flips over Komander out of said corner. Komander sends him outside for a suicide dive and chops away against the barricade. A Daivari distraction lets Nese get in a kick to the head and we hit the waistlock.

Nese double stomps the ribs into another waistlock, which has Komander slapping his stomach, which doesn’t count as a tap. Back up and Nese misses a charge into the post, allowing Komander to strike away. A quick DDT drops Nese for two and a double moonsault gets the same. Komander’s regular moonsault hits raised boots but Nese’s pumphandle driver is countered into a rollup for two. The very springboardy DDT plants Nese and Cielito Lindo finishes him at 8:31.

Rating: B-. Komander continues to get in a bunch of offense, though it doesn’t exactly lead to much no matter what he’s doing. Hopefully he gets to do something as he’s right there to go after one of the titles. Then again wins and losses only mean so much around here, which is one of Ring Of Honor’s biggest issues.

We look at Nick Wayne winning the TV Title from Komander last April.

Nick Wayne vs. Lucas Riley

Non-title Proving Ground match, because Wayne being gone since JULY isn’t enough to warrant a title defense. Wayne snapmares him down to start and messes with Riley’s hair, only for Riley to take him down and do the same. Normally this would mean war, but normally this would be a title match. Well actually normally he would have been stripped of the title somewhere in the last six plus months but oh well. Back up and Wayne chops him against the ropes but Riley grabs a Michinoku Driver for two. Wayne’s dragon suplex gets two and he kicks Riley in the head for the pin at 3:45.

Rating: C. I have no idea why this wasn’t a title match. Wayne has been gone for the better part of a year and yet here we are with a Proving Ground match. This is a perfect example of the title situation not making sense around here, as wrestlers will get title matches out of nowhere or after winning one match, but Wayne gets to go into yet another month without defending his title. I get that things might be different, but some kind of logic would be nice.

Women’s Pure Title: Deonna Purrazzo vs. Trish Adora

Purrazzo is defending for the first time since winning the title on December 5. They fight over wrist control to start and Adora bails from the threat of the Fujiwara armbar. Adora pulls her throat first into the ropes, which apparently counts as a rope break. A small package gives Adora two and they forearm it out.

The Lariat Tubman misses and Purrazzo is back with her own clothesline to put them both down. Adora’s bridging German suplex gets two, as does Purrazzo’s nasty powerbomb. The Fujiwara armbar doesn’t work as Purrazzo’s arm gives out thanks to the neck damage. The Lariat Tubman connects but Purrazzo rolls outside. Back in and Purrazzo rolls her into the Fujiwara armbar and leans back to make up for the bad arm for the tap at 9:15.

Rating: B-. Yeah it was fine. There’s still no need for this to be a title, as we went almost two months without the thing being defended and pretty much nothing was lost. Purrazzo is a rather talented star and it’s fun watching her in the ring. That doesn’t mean she needs a title basically customized for her.

Post match Diamante and Billie Starkz run in to beat down Purrazzo, with Adora joining in.

Athena is proud of her minions and wants to beat up Maya World, who attacked her at Global Wars. Therefore World has earned a match with Athena. A Proving Ground match of course. Because Heaven forbid it’s a title match.

Overall Rating: C. This show was back in the good old Ring Of Honor format of frustrating me to no end, as it’s over an hour and forty minutes long with matches seemingly pulled out of a hat. You could have easily dropped a handful of these matches and not lost a thing, but I’m wondering if this was due to the rumored studio show starting soon. Since Ring Of Honor had absolutely no choice but to tape and air all of these matches, they just didn’t have a choice otherwise.

Then you have the title situation, which is somehow getting worse. Either you have people getting title matches after almost no success (Zayda Steel), titles being defended at random after months of activity (Deonna Purrazzo), titles not being defended after a hiatus approaching enough time to conceive and have a baby (Nick Wayne) or just not being defended for three months (Athena, Shane Taylor Promotions, Bandido as of next week), I have no idea how the title process works around here.

There are WAY too many titles though and no sign of them ending, much like there is no sign of this place being well put together. Maybe the studio thing will help that, but I’m having fears of those nearly three hour shows that are just like this, with random matches up and down the card and talks of getting into title contention for hours on end. Not an awful show here, but good grief figure out how things are supposed to go around here and stick to it already.

Results
Adam Priest b. JD Drake – Rollup
TMDK b. Frat House – Fireman’s carry slam to Karter
Red Velvet b. Zayda Steel – Spinning kick to the face
Big Bill/Bryan Keith/Grizzled Young Veterans b. CJ Tino/Richie Slade/Che Guevara/Dom Kubrick – Big boot to Tino
Skyflight b. Adrian Quest/Ricky Gee/Danny Rose – Slingshot cutter to Gee
Jay Lethal b. Tommy Billington – Lethal Injection
Satnam Singh b. Jordan Oasis – Chokeslam
Persephone b. Johnnie Robbie – Razor’s Edge
Komander b. Tony Nese – Cielito Lindo
Nick Wayne b. Lucas Riley – Kick to the head

Remember to follow me on Twitter and Bluesky @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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Ring Of Honor
Date: January 15, 2026
Location: eSports Stadium Arlington, Arlington, Texas
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

I’m not sure what to expect from this show because things are kinds of all over the place here, as usual. The only big story is Blake Christian coming after the World Title and now has Jay Lethal in his corner. Other than that, we have the usual assortment of people allegedly trying to get into title contention. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Spanish Announce Project vs. Grizzled Young Veterans

Angelico and Drake start things off with Drake wrenching the arm before sending Angelico into the corner. Some alternating elbows in the corner drop Angelico, who fights right back without much trouble. Serpentico comes in to work on the arm and drops a backsplash for two. The Veterans shrug that off and kick them down, with Drake working on Serpentico’s leg.

Gibson grabs a half crab, which is broken up, so Serpentico hits a quick backbreaker. Angelico comes back in to clean house with everything breaking down. Drake sends Angelico into the steps, leaving Gibson to give Serpentico the middle rope Codebreaker. Drake’s springboard dropkick finishes Serpentico off at 8:47.

Rating: C. In case you were wondering what a tag match between two teams going nowhere looks like, here you are. I’m assuming this was the way to heat the Veterans up before they get wrecked by Eddie Kingston and Ortiz, which makes me wonder about the logic when it’s in two different places. Either way, the technical stuff was fine, but these teams are so low on the totem pole that it just doesn’t matter.

Post match the Veterans promise the same for Kingston and Ortiz. Cue the two of them with chairs for the save.

Lance Archer vs. Vin Parker

Chops and a crossbody take Parker down and the Blackout finishes at 1:52. Total decimation, which will in no way get Archer closer to a title shot, even though he’s 15-0 here.

Kiran Grey vs. Shane Taylor

The rest of the Promotions are here with Taylor. Grey gets in a shot to the face and grabs a choke, which is broken up with pure power. A knee to the face rocks Grey and Taylor fires off some shoulders in the corner. Taylor’s big clothesline gets two but Grey sweeps the leg and gets two off a jumping splash. Taylor is back with a release Rock Bottom and his own big splash for two, followed by the right hand for the pin at 5:01.

Rating: C+. They pretty clearly see something in Grey and that’s not a bad thing. He certainly has something of a mystique to him and it’s interesting to see some fresh blood around here. It also helps that he got in a bit of offense and wasn’t totally squashed, so at least there was some protection here.

Frat House vs. Aaron Solo/QT Marshall/Von Erichs

Karter gets dropkicked by Ross to start and it’s off to Marshall for a dropkick of his own. Solo comes in to neckbreaker Garrison, who catches him with a slingshot powerslam. The House takes Solo into the corner for some stomping before Jameson misses a middle rope backsplash. Marshall comes in to clean house and Vance clotheslines Karter by mistake. Stereo Claws set up the cutter to give Marshall the pin at 6:25.

Rating: C. This was about what you would expect from these guys, though I did appreciate it being a bit shorter. The Von Erichs were their usual bland selves and Solo got to be the punching bag for a good chunk. The good thing is that it wasn’t long enough to get dull, making it more “well it could have been worse”, which is about the best you can hope for with these guys.

We look at Trish Adora beating Zayda Steel in last week’s mixed tag.

MxM TV vs. Shane Taylor Promotions

Rare heel vs. heel mixed tag here. Valkyrie and Adora start things off, with Valkyrie hitting a basement clothesline to take over. Madden comes in to elbow Bravo in the back, setting up a finger tip double elbow drop. Mansoor gets caught in the wrong corner though and some clubberin sets up a chinlock. A belly to back suplex gets Mansoor out of trouble and the diving tag brings Valkyrie back in.

The running knees in the corner get two on Adora and they forearm it out. They clothesline each other and it’s back to Madden to clean house as everything breaks down. Mansoor spinebusters Bravo and hits a dive but we pause for a fan to get Mansoor’s attention. Bravo gets in a cheap shot (Bravo to the fan: “BE RIGHT BACK!”) to Mansoor, followed by the double stomp for the pin at 7:04.

Rating: C+. I’m curious about the fan getting involved as it’s better than the same nothing matches that they have over and over. The Promotions are still about the same as usual, meaning they’re only so interesting, but MxM TV playing the heroes for a change made things a bit better. Just find something different for both of them to do already and things could improve.

Post match Bravo brings the fan over the barricade and she’s rather tall.

Red Velvet vs. Robyn Renegade

Non-title Proving Ground match, meaning if Robyn can win or last the time limit, she gets a future title shot. Renegade uses the hair to pull her down to start but Velvet is right back with a short armscissors. That’s reversed into a fall away slam and Renegade throws her out to the floor. Back in and a springboard double stomp to the back gives Renegade two. They trade missed hand licking chops in the corner until Renegade grabs a sitout gordbuster for two more. Velvet gets fired up and hits a leg lariat, followed by the big left hand for the pin at 5:27.

Rating: C. There have only been so many success stories in modern Ring Of Honor but Velvet has been added to the list in recent months. Something has clicked since she returned from her injury and she feels like a star. That’s a nice thing to see and her matches are becoming one of the highlights around here.

Tony Khan announces that Ring Of Honor will be teaming up with Metro Plex Wrestling, run by Athena, on January 29. Athena is rather pleased. Eh it’s something different at least.

Dark Order vs. Swirl

Jay Lethal is here with the Swirl. Christian and Uno start things off, with Christian flipping him off in a few different ways. Uno is back with a knockdown into his own strut, allowing Reynolds to come in for a double basement dropkick. Reynolds fights out of the wrong corner but gets kneed in the face for his efforts. They go outside, with Christian using the chair for a step up forearm to the back.

The chinlock goes on back inside but Reynolds fights up and ties him in the ropes for something like a Black Widow. The tag brings in Uno to clean house, including a big boot into a DDT for two. Christian fights out of a Gory Bomb though and everything breaks down. A Lethal Injection is countered into a Gory Bomb/Codebreaker combination to drop Christian again. Johnson is back in for the save and a pair of basement superkicks knock Reynolds silly. The Death Valley Driver/top rope double stomp combination finishes Reynolds at 7:05.

Rating: C+. The Swirl are the top heels around here, though I’m not sure where that is leading. In theory it sets up Christian getting a World Title shot, though he’s been ready for that for a rather long time now. At least they’re looking like a dominant team at the moment and I could go for seeing that continue for a while to come.

Post match the beatdown is on again until Tommy Billington and Adam Priest make the save.

Overall Rating: C. There were parts here that I liked, but one of the biggest issues was the simple fact that it featured so many of the same people that we’ve seen time after time. How many Lance Archer squashes can we see? Or Shane Taylor Promotions for that matter? Meanwhile, the Women’s Pure Title, Tag Team Titles, Six Man Titles and Women’s Title have not been on the line in about six weeks. Fix this, as it’s making for quite the annoying show.

Results
Grizzled Young Veterans b. Spanish Announce Project – Springboard missile dropkick to Serpentico
Lance Archer b. Vin Parker – Black Out
Shane Taylor b. Kiran Grey – Right hand
Aaron Solo/QT Marshall/Von Erichs b. Frat House – Cutter to Vance
Shane Taylor Promotions b. MxM TV – Double stomp to Mansoor
Red Velvet b. Robyn Renegade – Left hand
Swirl b. Dark Order – Death Valley Driver/top rope double stomp combination to Reynolds

Remember to follow me on Twitter and Bluesky @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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Ring Of Honor
Date: January 8, 2026
Location: eSports Stadium Arlington, Arlington, Texas
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

It’s time for a regular show this week after three in one week. That’s quite the lineup, but last week did feature a heck of a swerve in the featured tag match. Hopefully they can follow up on that, as it’s certainly an interesting story. As usual, there are pieces in ROH that can work, but they need the right presentation. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

The opening recap looks at Jay Lethal’s turn last week.

Opening sequence.

Aaron Solo vs. Ace Austin

They go with the grappling to start with Austin taking him down into a headscissors. Solo reverses into a headlock but Austin breaks it up and kicks him in the back. That earns Austin a trip to the floor though and Solo hits a slingshot dive. Back in and we hit the front facelock, followed by a running dropkick for two.

They head out to the apron, where Solo is sent outside for a kick to the chest. The Fold is blocked so Solo is catapulted into the corner, where he bounces right back out with a double stomp for two. Solo’s charge in the corner misses though and Austin hits a nice springboard spinning kick to the face. The Fold finishes Solo at 7:35.

Rating: C+. I like Austin a good bit, but dang it shouldn’t be taking him seven and a half minutes to get rid of Solo. I’ll take that over a loss though, as at least he’s getting some ring time and starting to establish himself. Just maybe let him be a bit more dominant next time around?

Athena knows she is the best in the world but she keeps having to deal with problems. She has a massive target on her back and she kept failing to prove her greatness in 2025. Who is she if she can’t bring home any gold for her minions? How did she get in this position? The only person she can depend on is herself.

Cru vs. Will Allday/Jay Alexander

Lacey Lane is now with Cru and Andretti starts with Allday. Hold on though as Allday springboard kicks Rush off the apron and hands it off to Alexander. Everything breaks down and Cru hits stereo dives to the floor. Back in and Cru goes with the misdirection to take Alexander down. Allday’s missile dropkick hits Alexander by mistake and a double Falcon Arrow finishes Allday at 2:19. This has been your reminder that Cru is in fact still around.

Christopher Daniels talks about how Leila Grey is out of action for a long time with an injury. Now though, Zayda Steel is taking her place. I’m not sure how well that is going to fit but it’s something.

Darius Martin/Zayda Steel vs. Lee Moriarty/Trish Adora

Mixed tag and the rest of their teams are here. Moriarty works on a cravate to start before taking Martin down by the arm. With that going to a standoff, Adora comes in to take over on Steel, including a mocking arm crank. Steel is back with a sunset flip but the referee is distracted, meaning no count. They trade kicks to the face and it’s back to the men. Everything breaks down and Steel jumps onto Adora to hammer away, followed by a Canadian Destroyer to Moriarty. Shane Taylor offers a distraction though and Steel gets dropped with the Lariat Tubman for the pin at 6:15.

Rating: C+. So Steel joins the team and loses ten minutes later. Great to see that kind of a start, as they made sure she gets no momentum for the debuting team. But at least Adora, who is pretty much exactly where she was years ago, gets a pin. I’m sure that will put her in titl….oh you get the idea already.

We look back at Madison Rayne’s retirement match last week.

Billie Starkz/Diamante vs. Reiza Clarke/Shay Karmichael

Athena is here with Starkz and Diamante. Karmichael and Starkz lock up to start with the former yelling a lot. Starkz takes Karmichael into the corner and it’s a double toss to send her crashing down for two. Clarke comes in and gets caught with a quick Stunner, leaving Diamante to hit a rolling cutter to pin Karmichael at 3:48.

Rating: C. Pretty much a total squash here with Starkz and Diamante getting to dominate the jobbers to please Athena. That’s all this needed to be and now we get to see what is next for them. In theory it’s a run towards the Women’s Tag Team Titles and I’m not quite sure I see that actually happening.

Cru says they’re back with new member Lacey Lane.

Rachael Ellering/Demo Diamond/Delynn Cavens vs. Premiere Athletes

Daivari and Cavens start things off with Cavens being taken into the corner for the double beatdown. Nese’s bridging northern lights suplex gets two, with the rather tall Diamond making the save. Denali comes in to stare at him and it’s off to Ellering, with Denali not being impressed. Some running shoulders don’t do much to Denali, who drops her with a big boot. Everything breaks down and a chop block puts Diamond down, leaving Nese to pumphandle driver Cavens for the pin at 4:30.

Rating: C. And now I’m sure the Premiere Athletes will be launched into the stratosphere, just like I’m sure they will be after every single win they have. They’ve been around since the beginning of Ring Of Honor and do just about the same things they did at the start. Yet they’re still trotted out there, thankfully with Denali there to at least change the act just a tiny bit. Either drop them, change them up in a big way or do something with them already.

Frat House vs. Dalton Castle/Outrunners

Magnum and Garrison start things off with Magnum grabbing a hiptoss. It’s off to Floyd for a running knee and a double hiptoss. Garrison drives him into the corner and a grab of the leg from the floor lets Karter hit a clothesline. Floyd gets sent into the corner for the beating, including a collection of choking. Vance and Floyd collide, followed by the tag off to Castle for the house cleaning. A triple slam drops the villains and the Mega Powers Elbow into the Bang A Rang finishes Karter at 6:01.

Rating: C+. At least Castle and the Outrunners are fun and seem to be having a good time out there. It makes for some more entertaining matches, though the Frat House lost its charm a long time ago. It’s also not a great sign that a match this short was one of the best on the show, though maybe it moves them closer to a title shot.

Johnny TV and Taya Valkyrie aren’t happy with Red Velvet, as Valkyrie wants a title shot. Velvet just happens to be there to offer Valkyrie a Proving Ground match.

MxM Collection vs. Von Erichs

Oh joy the Von Erichs are back. I had forgotten how pathetic these losers were. Mansoor gets shouldered down to start and a double dropkick does it again. The Collection takes over on the floor, with Ross’ hand being crushed underneath the steps. Ross’ cowboy hat is stolen as the Collection keeps working on the hand, which is put in the turnbuckle for a kick from Mansoor.

A big boot gets Ross out of trouble and the tag brings in Marshall to clean house. Marshall’s running clothesline in the corner sets up a pop up powerslam but Madden is back in for the save. A leg lariat Hart Attack connects but the Centerfold is broken up. Ross’ hand is fine enough to claw slam Mansoor for the pin at 6:32.

Rating: C. This has been the latest example of the Von Erichs living off their family name because they aren’t good enough or interesting enough to do anything on their own. The idea of having the Von Erichs continue their legacy in Texas is fine, but the team couldn’t be less interesting if they tried. The “aw shucks, we’re just two good old boys from TEXAS” stuff is terrible and we’re probably going to be stuck with them while this whole residency goes on.

We look at LFI winning the Tag Team Titles at Final Battle. Probably not a good sign that we need a reminder about a month later.

Kiran Grey vs. Sammy Guevara

Guevara flips him off to start, marking the first and only time anyone has ever done that in wrestling. Grey sweeps the leg to start and they fight outside with Grey sending him hard into the barricade. Back in and a clothesline turns Guevara inside out but he knocks Grey out of the air. The GTH ends Grey at 2:38. This was the “get Guevara some momentum back, even though he really didn’t have any in the first place, after he lost to Bandido on Dynamite because there was no one but Guevara to take that loss” special.

Swirl vs. Tommy Billington/Adam Priest

Jay Lethal is here with the Swirl. Johnson and Billington start things off with Johnson cutting off a charge in the corner. Priest comes in to chop Christian hard in the corner, causing Christian to fake a knee injury. That lets Johnson get in a cheap shot from behind to take over, with Lethal adding a strut. The chinlock doesn’t last long as Priest gets up to hit a clothesline, allowing the tag off to Billington.

Everything breaks down and Johnson gets spiked for two. The half crab has Christian in trouble and Johnson gets crossfaced at the same time. Johnson powers up and Death Valley Drivers Billington onto the other two for the save. Christian hits a 450 for two on Billington, earning Billington a toss to the floor. A suicide headbutt drops Priest on the floor, leaving Billington to Tombstone Johnson. Christian is back in to drop Billington though and the Vanilla Choke Zero gets the tap at 10:12.

Rating: B-. Above all else, it was nice to have a story that actually felt important. This is by far the biggest story in Ring Of Honor and it was a fine way to go to move things forward. Christian winning the World Title doesn’t sound like the worst idea, though it might take some time before we finally get there.

Post match the big beatdown is on to end the show.

Overall Rating: C-. I cannot get my head around how they manage to make this show so uninteresting week to week. There are some watchable enough matches, such as the main event, but so much of the problem is Ring Of Honor/AEW has gone out of its way to show just how unimportant a lot of these people really are. That was on full display here, as it feels like you could have seen some of these matches at any point in the last year plus. That makes for a very tedious show and it took me more than a few sittings to watch this one. Please either shorten the thing or put in more effort on the stories, because this was drek.

Results
Ace Austin b. Aaron Solo – The Fold
Cru b. Will Allday/Jay Alexander – Double Falcon Arrow to Allday
Trish Adora/Lee Moriarty b. Darius Martin/Zayda Steel – Lariat Tubman to Steel
Diamante/Billie Starkz b. Shay Karmichael/Reiza Clarke – Rolling cutter to Karmichael
Premiere Athletes b. Rachael Ellering/Demo Diamond/Delynn Cavens – Pumphandle driver to Cavens
Dalton Castle/Outrunners b. Frat House – Bang A Rang to Karter
Von Erichs b. MxM Collection – Claw slam to Mansoor
Sammy Guevara b. Kiran Grey – GTH
Swirl b. Tommy Billington/Adam Priest – Vanilla Choke Zero to Billington

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Ring Of Honor
Date: December 26, 2025
Location: Hammerstein Ballroom, New York City, New York
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

It’s a special Boxing Day edition, logically called Boxing Day Brawl. That should mean a big special show, with the Pure Rules Title on the line as Lee Moriarty defends against Komander. Other than that, it’s hard to say what we might be getting around here, as tends to be the custom. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

James Drake vs. Eddie Kingston

Zack Gibson is here with Drake and insults New York City, which brings Kingston out with a chair to smash both of them. Drake gets up and jumps Kingston to officially start things off, with commentary saying we have to make sure it’s a fair beginning. After one of them got smacked with a chair.

Kingston chops his way out of the corner but a neckbreaker is cut off. A kick to the head misses for Drake though and Kingston pulls him into the Stretch Muffler. Gibson offers a distraction though and Drake is back with a middle rope dropkick. Kingston is back with another neckbreaker but Drake’s running dropkick in the corner gets two. Drake goes up but dives into an exploder suplex, setting up the DDT to give Kingston the pin at 5:33.

Rating: C. The match wasn’t exactly in doubt, but it served as a way to give the fans something to cheer over because the loudmouthed heel. That’s a smart path to take on the opening match on a show like this as it’s worked forever in wrestling. If nothing else, Kingston needs the reps to get back to his old self after being out for so long.

Post match Gibson jumps Kingston and Drake adds a low blow. Drake’s top rope dropkick leaves Kingston laying and the villains talk a lot of trash.

Santa Claus is in the ring before the next match but the Premiere Athletes interrupt. Claus isn’t a fan of the team (who apparently helped with his weight loss) so Stori Denali gives him a chokeslam.

Premiere Athletes vs. VSK/Jon Cruz/Ashley Vox

Nese poses at VSK to start but VSK jumps over him and poses as well. Cruz comes in and gets taken into the corner to keep up the beating before it’s off to Vox. The chokeslam is broken up and Nese hits a dive over the top, leaving Denali to chokeslam Vox for the pin at 3:29.

Rating: C-. Well that was in fact a Premiere Athletes squash and that’s pretty much what they do a good chunk of the time. I’m not sure what makes this one any different than how they do it most of the time but here we are. Denali continues to be impressive, albeit in rather short sports. I’m just not sure what the three of them can do anytime soon.

Komander, wearing a backpack, is ready to face Lee Moriarty for the Pure Title.

Video on Athena/Mercedes Mone challenging the Babes Of Wrath for the AEW Women’s Tag Team Titles.

Mina Shirakawa vs. Rebecca Scott

Commentary says Shirakawa is trying to get back in Women’s TV Title contention. Why wouldn’t she want to go after Athena? She’s already lost to Athena as well so why go after the midcard title? Shirakawa gets to dance to start before dropping her with a Sling Blade. A top rope Sling Blade connects as commentary says Shirakawa took the Interim Women’s TV Title to new heights. As in the title she held for three months and successfully defended one time??? I love Riccaboni but he says some questionable things at times. The figure four makes Scott tap at 2:01.

Jay Lethal wants to team with Bandido to get rid of the Swirl. Sure.

Swirl vs. Alec Price/Jordan Oliver

Christian cuts Price off to start and sends Oliver outside. That doesn’t last long as Oliver is back in for a Fameasser but the Swirl knocks both of them to the floor. The flip dive connects for Johnson so the Swirl gets to pose a bit. Back in and Christian chinlocks Oliver, who manages to fight up for something of a hip attack. Price comes in to clean house, including a springboard clothesline to drop Johnson. A rebound clothesline does the same to Price and something like a springboard Steiner Bulldog (close enough) gets two. Price is sent outside though and it’s the Lethal Brainbuster to finish Oliver at 6:37.

Rating: B-. Oliver and Price are a good enough team to warrant another look and despite being presented as boring or uninteresting, Swirl is more than fine in the ring. If nothing else, it was nice to have something a bit more competitive on the show, even if there was no reason to believe Oliver and Price were going to win. Bring them back though, as the tag div…ok there pretty much isn’t a tag division but it would be nice to have them around again.

IMG Credit: Ring Of Honor Wrestling

Zack Gibson vs. Bryce Donovan

Donovan is fresh out of the WWE ID Program and gets taken down to start. Back up and Donovan gets in a running clothesline, only to get kicked out to the floor. They get back inside and Gibson kicks him down, setting up a neck crank. Donovan fights up and hits a running clothesline into a swinging Boss Man Slam for two. A charge in the corner misses though and it’s a middle rope Codebreaker to drop Donovan. Gibson clotheslines him for the pin at 5:15.

Rating: C. During the match, Gibson vs. Eddie Kingston was announced for the Worlds End Zero Hour. That made this match the warmup for tomorrow, which probably wasn’t needed after Gibson laid Kingston out earlier tonight. Donovan showed about the same talent that was on display in the ID Program, meaning bringing him back won’t make much of a difference one way or another.

Dalton Castle and the Outrunners are jumped by MxM TV, who want a Fight Without Honor next week.

IMG Credit: Ring Of Honor Wrestling

Boom & Doom vs. Frat House

Big Justice, Aaron Solo and the rest of the Frat House are here too. Karter ducks Marshall to start and poses, meaning it’s Marshall being taken into the corner for some shots to the head. That’s broken up and AJ comes in for a quick powerslam to Garrison. Back up and Garrison chokes on the rope, with Marshall trying to come in, allowing Karter to get in a cheap shot.

A belly to belly suplex gets AJ out of trouble and the tag brings in Marshall to clean house. Marshall hits a big running flip dive to the floor but a cheap shot earns him a group stomping on the floor. Back in and Garrison’s armbar keeps Marshall in trouble, allowing Karter to kick him down. Garrison misses a splash in the corner but AJ is knocked off the apron.

A flapjack/big boot combination gets two on Marshall, who is sent outside. Big Justice and Solo won’t let him get smashed by a chair but they all do get ejected. Back in and Marshall Downward Spirals Garrison, allowing the tag off to AJ. The Powerboom is broken up and everything breaks down, with Garrison breaking it up. A Powerboom/Blockbuster combination finally finishes Karter at 12:01.

Rating: C+. Well that was rather long, which isn’t the most positive way to describe a Frat House match. AJ isn’t likely to lose any match he’s in and his novelty has already worn off. He’s perfectly fine, but that doesn’t make for the most thrilling time in the ring. The match was acceptable enough, but it wasn’t exactly anything different than what you would expect from AJ and company.

Lee Moriarty is ready to beat Komander again, as he tends to do with everyone.

Lio Rush vs. Katsuyori Shibata

Shibata won’t shake hands to start but will take over with a knuckle lock. That’s broken up and they run the ropes until Rush gets two off a rollup. Shibata takes him outside for a suplex on the floor, followed by a ram into the barricade. They head back inside, with Shibata getting kicked right back to the floor for a suicide dive. Shibata is fine enough to grab a suplex but the springboard Stunner brings him right back down for two. The Final Hour is broken up though and it’s a low blow to set up Shibata’s cross armbreaker for the tap at 6:11.

Rating: C+. Rush was bringing his usual energy here and it made for a fairly nice match while it lasted. That being said, Shibata as a heel isn’t exactly interesting, especially when he’s currently doing something as part of a team in AEW. I have no idea why he’s in Ring Of Honor, though he’s now 21-0 and nowhere near a title match, though that’s a bit too logical around here.

Pure Title: Lee Moriarty vs. Komander

Moriarty is defending and bounces out of an early hammerlock attempt. Komander gets out of a cross armbreaker and a Border City Stretch, the latter of which is from the first rope break. Moriarty’s wristlock is broken up and Komander backflips out of the corner for a staredown. That earns him a spinning faceplant and Moriarty is looking rather confident.

A waistlock keeps Komander down and it’s off to a seated abdominal stretch, complete with a stomach claw. That’s broken up and Komander goes to the ropes (not for a break) so Moriarty pulls on a regular abdominal stretch. Komander breaks out of it again and tries a springboardy armdrag, which is reversed into an STF. That means the second rope break before Komander dropkicks the leg out. A running DDT gives Komander two and he walks the ropes into a crossbody.

The Fang gives Moriarty two more as Komander uses another rope break. The Border City Stretch is countered into a rollup for two and a standing Spanish Fly gives Komander the same. Moriarty is sent outside for a heck of a springboard moonsault but bangs up his own ribs in the process. Back in and poisonrana gives Komander two, followed by a cross armbreaker to make Moriarty use his first rope break. Cielito Lindo hits raised foot though and a Gory Special in the ropes makes Komander give up at 14:37.

Rating: B-. It was the usual fine Moriarty match and that’s about all. While Komander did feel like someone who could take the title and the match was built up, it feels like Moriarty is going to finally drop the thing on a much bigger stage. At least it felt like a main event and was treated like one though and that helps a lot.

Overall Rating: C. Apparently this qualifies as some kind of a special episode around here, with one match that felt big and I guess Boom & Doom as the second biggest match on the card. Other than that, it was just the usual cast of characters doing the same stuff they do so often around here. That’s why Ring Of Honor is such an afterthought so much of the time, and if this special is any indication, it’s going to remain that way for a long time.

Results
Eddie Kingston b. James Drake – DDT
Premiere Athletes b. VSK/Jon Cruz/Ashley Vox – Chokeslam to Vox
Mina Shirakawa b. Rebecca Scott – Figure four
Swirl b. Alec Price/Jordan Oliver – Lethal Brainbuster to Oliver
Zack Gibson b. Bryce Donovan – Clothesline
Boom & Doom b. Frat House – Powerboom/Blockbuster combination to Karter
Katsuyori Shibata b. Lio Rush – Cross armbreaker
Lee Moriarty b. Komander – Gory Special in the ropes

Remember to follow me on Twitter and Bluesky @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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Ring Of Honor
Date: December 11, 2025
Location: Greater Columbus, Convention Center, Columbus, Ohio
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

We’re done with Final Battle and the big story is that Bandido retained the World Title. That means he should be a few weeks (at least) away from his next meaningful title defense so we’ll have to see what else is going on. We do at least FINALLY have a Women’s Pure Rules champion and it’s the person who was the favorite to win the whole thing the entire time. Now we begin the months long build towards the next pay per view, whenever that is. Let’s get to it.

Here is Final Battle if you need a recap.

Final Battle recap.

Opening sequence.

Here are Athena, Diamante and Billie Starkz to celebrate Athena’s three year reign as Women’s Champion. Athena brags about her success and the various women she has defeated. It’s a reason to celebrate, but Starkz didn’t win the Pure Rules Title, so the plan didn’t come out perfectly. She can make up for it in a tag match with Diamante though. I can’t believe they are still teasing Starkz taking the title. How can they drag it out this long?

Spanish Announce Project vs. LSG/Josh Crane

Angelico and Crane start things off with an exchange of wristlocks. Serpentico comes in with a top rope double stomp to the arm and a rollup gets two. It’s off to LSG to stomp Serpentico down in the corner but he rolls away for the tag off to Angelico. The rapid fire strikes have LSG in trouble and the lifting Downward Spiral gives Angelico two. Everything breaks down and the Project grabs stereo submissions for the double tap at 5:08.

Rating: C. The Project is perfectly fine in the ring, but my goodness it’s hard to care about what they’re doing. It’s the same stuff we’ve seen for months now and they never move up the totem pole at all. They pretty much have no stories and they’re just out there to fill in some time about every other week. If that’s all they’re going to do, find somewhere else for them to go, as it’s just filler.

Frat House vs. Dark Order

Silver runs Garrison over with a shoulder to start and it’s off to Uno to crush him in the corner. Vance comes in and gets stomped down in the corner as well, only for Uno to be sent outside for some rapid fire stomping. Back in and Uno tells Vance to kick him more, one such kick is sent at the referee, allowing Uno to kick Vance in the head. Everything breaks down and Garrison rolls through Reynolds’ high crossbody for two. The Order’s striking sequence into a rollup gets two on Garrison but Vance clotheslines Karter by mistake. The Order’s triple flipping slam finishes Karter at 7:18.

Rating: C+. This was another six man with one of the multiple trios who aren’t doing anything around here beating another. It isn’t like either of them are going to get a title shot soon but they certainly had time to have a run of the mill match. Perfectly watchable match but not much more than that, as is almost always the case for these teams.

Deonna Purrazzo is emotional after winning the Women’s Pure Rules Title.

Zayda Steel vs. Rachael Ellering

They fight over wrist control to start with Ellering taking her down into an armbar. Steel’s headlock doesn’t last long and she uses the ropes to flip out of a wristlock. Ellering chops her down a few times, setting up a gutwrench suplex into a backsplash for two. Steel comes back with a neckbreaker and they fight over a suplex. Ellering manages to muscle her over, followed by the Boss Woman Slam for two. Back up and Steel grabs a spinning DDT for the pin out of nowhere at 6:07.

Rating: C. This was about what you would have expected, as Ellering never wins anything and Steel needed a win after the loss in her debut. It wasn’t a bad match, but there’s only so much to get out of something like this. At least Steel won her second match and is getting off to a decent start. The division needs some fresh blood so why not see what she can do?

Post match respect is shown.

The Swirl isn’t happy about their losses at Final Battle but Blake Christian still wants the World Title.

Jay Lethal vs. Nathan Cruz

Cruz jumps him during the handshake and hammers away to start fast. Lethal is right back with a strut but it’s too early for the Figure Four. Instead, Cruz’s neckbreaker gets two and a Hennig necksnap gets the same. Lethal fights out of a chinlock and then does it again, only to get caught with a slingshot belly to back suplex for two. A missed charge in the corner lets Lethal get some rollups for two each and he dragon screw legwhips Cruz down. The Figure Four sends Cruz straight to the ropes so it’s the Lethal Injection to give Lethal the pin at 5:48.

Rating: C+. Cruz was making his debut here and he got to have a nice showcase here, as he had a good look and was fine enough to hang in there with Lethal. I could go for seeing some more from Cruz, which is a good sign his future. Lethal is still at his best when he gets the chance to give someone a rub, which was the case here.

We look back at the opening segment.

Billie Starkz/Diamante vs. Deonna Purrazzo/???

The partner is….Madison Rayne, the hometown girl. Purrazzo gets knocked out to the floor to start but Rayne takes over on Starkz in the corner. Everything breaks down in a hurry and Purrazzo is taken into the wrong corner. A basement dropkick connects on Purrazzo and Starkz is back in for a chinlock. That’s broken up and they clothesline each other down for a double breather. Rayne comes back in with a quick cutter and then a double cutter for a bonus. It’s back to Purrazzo, who Fujiwara armbars Starkz for the tap at 4:49.

Rating: C. Well that was quick, though it’s nice to have a match which feels like it might actually tie into one of the bigger stories around here. At the same time, this again feels like Starkz finally having enough of Athena and coming after the title. I would say I can’t imagine that happening, but in Ring Of Honor, it would absolutely not surprise me as we’re only three years into the story.

Red Velvet is happy with her win over Mercedes Mone and the kitchen is officially open.

Josh Woods vs. Hechicero

They go to the mat to start and neither of them can get very far. Hechicero takes over on the leg but Woods is right back with some quick rollups for two each. A front facelock doesn’t work either and we’re off to an early standoff. Hechicero grabs a DDT and starts in on the arm before twisting on the legs instead. Some shots in the corner stagger Woods, who is right back with some running forearms. Woods’ big knee to the head gets two but Hechicero gets something close to a la majistral into a Black Widow on the mat for the submission at 7:11.

Rating: B-. This was the kind of technical showcase where you knew how good it was going to be due to the people involved. They both got to showcase their skills, though it would have been nicer to have the match go a bit longer. Or for Woods to have been given a chance to be built up before he’s put into this spot. Either way, it was different in a good way here and I’ll take that.

Outrunners/Adam Priest/Tommy Billington/Dalton Castle vs. MxM TV/Premiere Athletes

The villains jump them from behind to start on the floor but the Outrunners take over on TV inside. The Mega Powers Elbow is broken up and Magnum gets taken down. Magnum avoids the frog splash though and a bunch of elbows miss too, allowing Castle to come in and snap off the suplexes. Castle is sent into Billington though and it’s back to the Outrunners for a double slam on Madden as everything breaks down. The extra villains are ejected and it’s a German suplex/clothesline combination to pin Nese at 4:30.

Rating: C. Well that was…messy. I’m not sure why they needed to have everyone involved here other than “they’re here for Final Battle so we’ll put them on this show too”. That seems to be a recurring theme this week and it’s giving us matches like this. The speedy offense was fun, but I could barely tell who was in the match most of the time, which isn’t a good sign.

Shane Taylor Promotions heard the fans cheering for them but they only care about titles and checks. Their biggest accomplishment though: making SkyFlight interesting. Now if only you could make yourselves interesting.

Red Velvet vs. Lacey Lane

Non-title Proving Ground match, meaning that if Lane wins or survives the ten minute time limit, she gets a future title shot. Velvet takes her down by the arm to start but Lane is back with a front facelock. A backslide gives Velvet two and she knocks Lane outside for an early breather.

Back in and Lane ties her in the corner for a running dropkick, followed by a springboard legdrop for two. Velvet is back up with some running knees in the ropes but Lane grabs a Death Valley Driver into a standing legdrop (that was cool….I think). That doesn’t get her very far though as Velvet is back with a superkick into the flipping faceplant for the pin at 5:20.

Rating: C+. It makes sense to give Velvet a win after her big upset on Friday so this was a good use for her here. She needs to be reestablished after so much time away and hopefully it works, as her final Battle match was pretty awesome. Lane is another good hand who I could go for having around a bit more often, though she’ll need to get something going around here.

Death Riders vs. Willie Mack/Aaron Solo

Oh come on can we just wrap this show up already? Mack is knocked outside to start fast and Yuta drops a middle rope elbow for two on Solo. Everything breaks down and Marina Shafir offers a distraction, meaning Solo can get tied in the ring skirt for some double teaming. Mack comes back in for some hard spinebusters but Solo gets sent into the corner for the running clotheslines. The top rope splash into the Dragontamer finishes Solo at 4:48.

Rating: D+. Sweet goodness I hate this show. This was a squash from the Death Riders, who feel like they’re on every show every week and here they are again, winning a match that won’t get them anywhere closer to a title match or anything serious. But hey, at least they go to make this long show even longer in a match over two established losers. Thank goodness for that.

Shane Taylor Promotions vs. Komander/SkyFlight

Moriarty and Komander start things off and trade escapes for a standoff. Dante and Bravo come in, with Dante taking him into the corner by the arm. It’s off to Darius for a dropkick into an armbar before Dante flips over a charge to send Bravo outside. Taylor comes in to headbutt Dante and knock him outside, followed by the beating in the corner back inside.

Bravo’s knee drop gets two and we hit the chinlock. Dante manages to jump over Moriarty and brings Komander in to clean house. The very springboardy hurricanrana gives Komander two on Moriarty as everything breaks down. Dante drops Bravo and it’s Cielito Lindo to give Komander the pin at 9:04.

Rating: C+. The idea here was to push Komander vs. Moriarty for their title match on December 26, though there were no rope breaks here so I have no idea what it has to do with a Pure Rules match. Other than that, the Promotions have already beaten SkyFlight so there’s not much of a need for them to fight again. Then again it isn’t like the six man division is in any way of a division, so odds are it keeps going anyway.

Overall Rating: D+. This show actually got on my nerves more than once and that’s not a good sign. After a five hour show on Friday (plus the regular show on Thursday and a bonus show on Tuesday), here’s one of the longest editions of the weekly show in probably a year or two. It was a bunch of the same people who were around at Final Battle in less interesting matches that are done week after week.

While there were a few stories being moved forward, it’s not like they’re interesting in the slightest. The wrestling was decent enough, but my goodness I am absolutely sick of seeing these same people trotted out there week after week so they can do the same stuff. If this is the best booking they can have, at least cut the shows down to an hour or so at most because MY GOODNESS this felt like it went on for days.

Results
Spanish Announce Project b. LSG/Josh Crane – Double submission
Dark Order b. Frat House – Triple flipping slam to Karter
Zayda Steel b. Rachael Ellering – Spinning DDT
Jay Lethal b. Nathan Cruz – Lethal Injection
Deonna Purrazzo/Madison Rayne b. Billie Starkz/Diamante – Fujiwara armbar to Starkz
Hechicero b. Josh Woods – Black Widow
Outrunners/Adam Priest/Tommy Billington/Dalton Castle b. MxM TV/Premiere Athletes – German suplex/clothesline combination to Nese
Red Velvet b. Lacey Lane – Flipping faceplant
Death Riders b. Aaron Solo/Willie Mack – Dragontamer to Solo
Komander/SkyFlight b. Shane Taylor Promotions – Cielito Lindo to Bravo

Remember to follow me on Twitter and Bluesky @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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Ring Of Honor
Date: December 2, 2025
Location: The Pinnacle, Nashville, Tennessee
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

It’s Final battle week and we’re getting a special edition of the show. That could mean just about anything, but there is always the chance that it doesn’t mean much at all. This one is also airing on YouTube, which doesn’t have the best track record for special editions. I’m more than a bit worried so let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

The Beast Mortos vs. Gravity

Gravity won’t shake hands to start and can’t get an early sunset flip. Instead a headscissors takes Mortos down and Gravity does his slow walk, earning himself a knockdown. A snap powerslam gives Mortos two and he twists Gravity’s neck around for two more. Gravity’s spinning sunset flip out of the corner gets two more, setting up the running flip dive out to the floor. The pop up Samoan drop gives Mortos another near fall and he grabs a powerbomb backbreaker. The discus lariat finishes Gravity at 4:47.

Rating: C+. It was a basic power vs. speed match here with Mortos getting the dominant enough win on his way to the World Title match later this week. It’s also nice to have this stay short, as there is no reason for it to go any longer. Gravity being the designated victim makes sense given that he’s Bandido’s brother, though that’s only so much of a connection to the Final Battle match.

Frat House vs. Dalton Castle/The Outrunners

Magnum and Jameson start things off but Jameson immediately hands it off to Rosario Grillo (a pledge). Magnum chases him into the corner and Grillo’s cheap shot from behind has no effect. Castle comes in for the falling splash and it’s off to Garrison to face Magnum, who gets sent into the wrong corner.

Magnum’s comeback is cut off and he’s sent outside for the triple teaming. Back in and a chokeslam gives Jameson two but Magnum flips over Grillo to make the needed tag off to Castle. The quick suplex drops Garrison and the Frat House walks out on Grillo, who gets Mega Powered elbowed. The Bang A Rang finishes for Castle at 6:29.

Rating: C. Pretty basic match here, though it’s nice to see Castle and the Outrunners actually built up. They have enough to be a threat to the Six Man Tag Team Titles and it’s nice like many teams fit that description. Commentary said that the winners might be in line for a titl….yeah I don’t believe it either.

Leila Grey vs. Trish Adora

They fight over a lockup to start and Adora takes her down a few times. A running dropkick and a faceplant have Adora in trouble and a crucifix bomb gives Grey two. Grey’s powerslam gets two more but Adora is back with some kicks to the back. The cobra clutch doesn’t last long and Grey slugs away for the comeback. A superkick sets up the German suplex but Adora grabs one of her own. They trade rollups for two each until Grey grabs a sitout Pedigree for the pin at 6:10.

Rating: C. Grey continues to feel like she could become something if she can take it up another level. She’s not there yet, but there is enough charisma to at least give her a chance. Adora is a much more polished star in the ring, though she feels like she’s pretty firmly stuck in the midcard at the moment.

Dark Order vs. Vin Parker/Jimmy House/Jay Alexander

Silver grabs a hammerlock on House to start before it’s off to Reynolds for a running elbow to Alexander. House offers a distraction though and Reynolds gets caught in the wrong corner. A neckbreaker gets Reynolds out of trouble and it’s Uno coming in to clean house. The double DDT connects as everything breaks down, including the triple flipping slam to pin Parker at 4:29.

Rating: C. Pretty much a squash here, with the Order getting to showcase themselves for a bit. They’re still popular despite not having much in the way of success in bigger matches, which is why they’re still around on the show. Just let them do stuff like this and not much more and they’re fine.

Leila Grey (who has apparently taken a shower, changed clothes and redone her hair and makeup in about ten minutes) meets Zayda Steel, who challenges her to a match. Sure.

Final Battle rundown.

Diamante vs. Persephone

Neither can get very far with the power to start until Persephone shoulders her down. The fall away slam has Diamante flying but she faceplants Persephone on the apron. A running hurricanrana to the floor has Persephone in trouble and a running dropkick sends her into the barricade.

Back in and Diamante hammers away in the corner but Persephone hits a running dropkick. Diamante grabs a quick Stunner for two and she reverses a Razor’s Edge attempt into a hurricanrana for two more. Code Red gives Diamante two, with Persephone getting a foot on the rope. Persephone is right back with a spear into a moonsault for the pin at 6:25.

Rating: B-. Persephone getting a win over a known name around here is fine, as it’s not like she’s done much in the way of being built up for the title match later this week. Diamante’s status isn’t hurt by such a loss and Persephone gets what she needs. There are far worse options for a main event.

Post match Athena comes in for the brawl but Diamante makes the save, getting Athena out of trouble to end the show.

Overall Rating: C-. Outside of maybe the main event, this show was quite the waste of time. Nothing on here is overly good (not that it’s bad, but entirely mediocre) and it barely boosted anything for Final Battle. With the regular episode airing on Thursday, this felt like some deleted scenes thrown together as a special. In other words, it’s Ring Of Honor.

Results
The Beast Mortos b. Gravity – Discus lariat
Dalton Castle/The Outrunners b. Frat House – Bang A Rang to Grillo
Leila Grey b. Trish Adora – Sitout Pedigree
Dark Order b. Vin Parker/Jimmy House/Jay Alexander – Triple flipping slam to Parker
Persephone b. Diamante – Moonsault

Remember to follow me on Twitter and Bluesky @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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Ring Of Honor
Date: November 28, 2025
Location: Agganis Arena, Boston, Massachusetts
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

We’re on Friday this week due to the avoidance of Thanksgiving. It’s a week before Final Battle and thanks to AEW TV, we actually have some of the bigger matches set for the show. This includes the World Title match, but more importantly than that, we’re actually finishing the first round of the Women’s Pure Title tournament, a mere three months after it started. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Sammy Guevara reveals that due to Rush’s injury, the Tag Team Titles have been held up, so he’s teaming with The Beast Mortos to win the titles next week at Final Battle.

Opening sequence.

We run down the card.

Shane Taylor Promotions vs. Dark Order

Silver takes Moriarty down to start and poses, allowing the rest of the Order to come in for some rapid fire triple teaming. Taylor comes in so Reynolds goes for his leg, only to get dropped with a hard clothesline. It’s off to Ogogo for some knees to the ribs and a slam for two and it’s back to Moriarty for a front facelock. Reynolds gets his feet up in the corner though and cuts off a charging Taylor, allowing Uno to come in for the house cleaning. A double DDT plants Moriarty and Ogogo as everything breaks down. Taylor breaks up the triple flipping slam and Moriarty Border City Stretches Uno for the win at 7:17.

Rating: B-. This was….fun? I liked a Dark Order match? Geez it must be the holiday still impacting me or something as that’s not something that often happens. These guys went out there and had a heck of an entertaining match, with everyone working hard. This was a pretty awesome surprise and I’ll take that every time.

Blake Christian is in the World Title match on a technicality and that’s ok with him. All that matters is he can win the title.

Von Erichs vs. Zack Mason/Warren Johnson

Kevin Von Erich is here too. Ross takes Mason down to start and it’s off to Marshall for a dropkick. Marshall gets taken into the corner so Johnson can come in and whip him around a bit. A backdrop out of the corner gets Marshall out of trouble and it’s back to Ross to clean house. The Claws are good enough to give the Von Erichs the double pin at 3:57.

Rating: C. Nothing to see here as it’s the same Von Erichs stuff you’ve seen time after time. They’re perfectly fine in the ring but just dull in almost every imaginable way. If nothing else, they’re a logical choice to go after the Tag Team Titles, as they have a history with LFI and are at least an established team. Just please find something to make them more interesting. There has to be a way.

Jay Lethal apologizes to Adam Priest for accidentally hitting him with a Lethal Injection. Priest’s neck is still sore but he seems to accept the apology.

Frat House vs. Adam Priest/Jay Lethal/Tommy Billington

It’s a brawl to start fast and Lethal hits Garrison with a basement dropkick. Priest comes in and gets choked in the corner, setting up the triple teaming. Lethal’s save attempt doesn’t do any good as it’s off to Jameson for an elevator slam. Taking a drink takes too long though and Jameson misses his middle rope backsplash. Priest avoids a charge into the post and brings Billington in to clean house. Everything breaks down and it’s the Lethal Injection into the Swan Dive to give Billington the pin at 6:35.

Rating: C. Nothing to this one, with the Frat House being their usual self and the other guys getting to prove that they still have it. That doesn’t really matter if they’re going to keep losing in AEW, but it’s not like wins or losses on this show matter when it comes to the bigger shows anyway. I do like Billington/Lethal/Priest as a team though, as they have some nice chemistry and it gives Lethal something to do.

Post match we’re told that Billington and Priest are in the Tag Team Title match at Final Battle. As usual, enjoy your hearty laugh at commentary so constantly telling you that teams winning title matches gets them into title contention. That’s the case with probably half a dozen teams but who gets the title shot? A team who hasn’t actually wrestled a two on two tag match in Ring Of Honor (and are winless in AEW). Again: nothing that happens around here matters because it’s just stuff being thrown together to make a card, with continuity having no impact.

Women’s Pure Rules Title Tournament First Round: Yuka Sakazaki vs. Serena Deeb

We’re told that the semifinals are taking place next week as Sakazaki starts in on the arm. Some armdrags send Deeb outside for a clothesline, followed by an ankle lock back inside. That means the first rope break from Deeb, who sends her hard into the ropes to take over. Something like a Black Widow on the mat has Sakazaki in trouble, only for her to reverse into an arm crank of her own.

Deeb uses the ropes again and crabs Sakazaki’s arm, making her use the rope for a break as well. Sakazaki hits a slingshot knee to the head and a suplex gets two. An STF makes Deeb use her third rope break so Sakazaki grabs a superplex. Sakazaki gets suckered into a slugout until it’s a Snowplow to drop Deeb. The Magic Girl Splash hits raised knees but it’s a spinning hammerlock faceplant to pin Deeb (whose foot on the rope doesn’t matter) at 10:31.

Rating: B-. Nice enough match here, even if it continues the tradition of this tournament feeling like nothing. It took about four months to complete the first round but it’s ok because we’ll have the last three matches in the span of two days. At least they had a good match on the way to the second round, though sweet goodness I lost any potential interest in the whole thing a long time ago.

Video on Persephone vs. Athena.

Premiere Athletes vs. Carrie King/Gino/Exodus Prime

Denali powers King into the corner to start and brings in Gino, with Nese hitting a quick dropkick. Prime gets the tag and is planted by Denali, setting up the Magic Carpet Splash (complete with carpet) for the pin at 3:03.

Rating: C-. It’s not a good sign when I have to figure out the jobbers’ names by listening to commentary as they didn’t even get a graphic. The match was the usual squash and therefore I have no reason to believe it changes anything for the Athletes. They’re one of the acts that gets on a lot of shows but doesn’t seem to go anywhere, which makes their continued use feel like nothing more than filler.

Main Man Oro/Beef vs. Swirl

So Christian is in a World Title match in a week and he’s in a tag match here. Right. Johnson and Oro start things off with Johnson taking it over. Christian comes in for a whip into the corner and a running dropkick to the back. It’s off to Beef, who is quickly beaten down, only to come back with a double crossbody. Oro gets the tag and is sent outside for a suicide dive, followed by a double superkick to Beef. Back in and the Swirl Stomp finishes Oro at 6:16.

Rating: C+. So again, the Swirl looks dominant here and continues their winning ways, but for some reason they’re nowhere near the Tag Team Title match. As usual, this promotion’s wins/losses have no impact on anything, which makes for quite the tedious show when there are so few storylines. It’s even more annoying when Swirl is getting better and are actually fun to watch most of the time.

We get Ricochet’s victory promo from Collision.

We run down the Final Battle card and….wait. Sammy Guevara and The Beast Mortos are in both the Tag Team and World Title matches? BUT THE REGULAR TEAMS HAVE NOTHING TO DO? If they can do that, why isn’t Swirl in the Tag Team Title match? Or the Von Erichs? Or ANYTHING THAT MAKES MORE SENSE???

Nigel McGuinness wants a thirty minute Iron Man match with Lee Moriarty at Final Battle.

Mansoor vs. Komander

The rest of MxM TV is here with Mansoor, who armdrags him down and poses in the corner. A quick rollup gives Komander two and he kicks Mansoor in the back of the trunks. Mansoor bails to the floor for a bit before his cheap shot is cut off. Instead Mansoor kicks him out to the floor and strikes a pose earning a trip out to the floor.

Valkyrie offers a distraction though and Johnny TV powerbombs her onto Komander. Back in and they slowly trade forearms until Komander grabs a middle rope facebuster. A DDT gives Komander two but TV offers a distraction. Komander uses him as a stepping stone to set up a moonsault to TV, followed by a satellite DDT to Mansoor. Cielito Lindo gives Komander the pin at 9:09.

Rating: B-. I guess this counts as building towards Komander in the World Title match. To their credit, there is something to be said about having him go through multiple people on his way to an elimination match. It’s not quite the same challenge, but you have to take what you can get around here.

Overall Rating: C+. Well it wasn’t boring and things were set up for Final Battle. If you can ignore how head scratch inducing some of those matches are, you can call this something of a success. The show still features WAY too much filler and is dying for something to break up the monotony, but at least the six man and women’s matches were good and they made Final Battle seem important. I’ll take that over the usual around here.

Results
Shane Taylor Promotions b. Dark Order – Border City Stretch to Uno
Von Erichs b. Zack Mason/Warren Johnson – Double pin
Adam Priest/Jay Lethal/Tommy Billington b. Frat House – Swan Dive to Karter
Yuka Sakazaki b. Serena Deeb – Spinning hammerlock faceplant
Premiere Athletes b. Carrie King/Gino/Exodus Prime – Magic Carpet Splash to Prime
Swirl b. Beef/Main Man Oro – Swirl Stomp to Oro
Komander b. Mansoor – Cielito Lindo

Remember to follow me on Twitter and Bluesky @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

Ring Of Honor
Date: November 20, 2025
Location: Erie Insurance Arena, Erie, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

We now have three shows to go before Final Battle and that means it is time to get the card together. While there are some matches that will be set up in the coming weeks, there are several title matches that still need to be set up. Hopefully they get some of that covered here, just for the sake of having a few weeks of build. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Billie Starkz is told that she’s “on a roll” in the Pure Rules Title tournament (where she has won one match) but Athena comes in to….not be able to say she’s proud. Athena is worried about her title defense tonight and asks who she is if she can’t beat Harley Cameron. The interviewer, and former Minion, recites her statement and has to cut the segment before she gets hugged.

Opening sequence.

We run down the card.

Women’s Title: Harley Cameron vs. Athena

Athena is defending. Cameron starts in on the arm and cuts off an escape attempt. Athena fights up again and they go outside with Cameron being rammed into the apron. Back in and Athena smiles a lot while beating Cameron down, followed by a cravate. Cameron avoids a backsplash though and snaps off a headscissors but Athena rips at her face. That’s broken up and Cameron knocks her down for two as the fans are getting behind the comeback.

An O’Connor roll gives Athena two but the kickout sends Athena into the ropes, where she hits a springboard splash for two. They head outside with Cameron being sent into the barricade, allowing Athena to remind us that this is her show. Back in and Cameron grabs a superplex and a pumphandle suplex gets two. They both counter That’s Her Finisher so Cameron kicks her in the face, setting up a Backstabber. An STF has Athena in trouble but she bites the hand to escape. Athena pulls her into the Koji Clutch to retain at 12:36.

Rating: B. Cameron continues to feel like a rising star but there was no way she was going to be the one to end Athena’s now legendary reign. If nothing else, it’s nice to see Athena defending the title, though it would make sense to have this one set up for Final Battle, which needs the match. For now though, it did feel like a big match and Cameron brought it in her chance.

Billie Starkz vs. Katie Arquette

Pure Rules. Starkz grabs her to start and Arquette has used her first two rope breaks in about thirty five seconds. Arquette gets a headlock and backs Starkz into the ropes, which apparently counts as Starkz’s first break. Starkz hits her in the face for the official warning and then rams Arquette into the buckle over and over. Arquette takes her into the corner for a running hip attack but Starkz is fine enough for a brainbuster onto the knee. The Swanton finishes for Starkz at 4:22.

Rating: C-. The worst kind of Pure Rules (or any gimmick matches for that matter) are the kinds where you can take the gimmick away entirely and nothing changes. That’s the case here, as there was nothing added on with the Pure Rules deal, which again makes me wonder why we need a title for this non-division. But what else were we going to spend 7+ months on otherwise?

Post match Deonna Purrazzo comes out for her match and gets in a staredown with Starkz.

Deonna Purrazzo vs. Viva Van

Another Pure Rules match. Purrazzo takes her down without much trouble to start so they trade forearms. A quick running ax kick gives Van two but Purrazzo is back with a kick to the face. The Fujiwara armbar sends Van over to the rope for her first break before it’s a powerbomb to drop her again. The second Fujiwara armbar finishes for Purrazzo at 3:33.

Rating: C. It’s the second Pure Rules match and we’re just over half an hour into the show. Naturally neither of them was a tournament match, but thank goodness I’ve only got a few more weeks before this title can be basically forgotten for months at a time. Purrazzo is the big favorite to win the whole thing, which has me thinking she loses in a surprise.

Post match Billie Starkz comes in to jump Purrazzo.

Persephone challenges Athena for Final Battle, citing two things. First of all, she beat Athena at Global Wars. Technically true, as her partner did pin Athena…..’s partner (in June). Second, she’s “been running through all the women of Ring Of Honor”. She’s had three matches in Ring Of Honor and is 2-1, most recently in July (a loss). In other words, sounds perfect for a Final Battle title match.

Satnam Singh vs. JP Grayson

Singh chops him in the corner to start and then does it again in a different corner. A gorilla press drop and a chokeslam finish for Singh at 2:13. Exactly what he does.

Jakked Jameson vs. QT Marshall

The Frat House is here with Jameson so Marshall brings out the Costco Guys. Jameson is sent outside to start and Marshall takes him down with a quick dive. One heck of a backdrop sends Marshall outside, where the Frat House gets in some cheap shots. Back in and a spinebuster gives Jameson two but Marshall is up with the clotheslines. The Cookie Cutter finishes for Marshall at 2:34.

Post match the Frat House goes after Big Boom AJ and Marshall, who clear the ring. RPG Vice come in and lay the good guys out. AJ’s hand is crushed with a chair.

Mercedes Mone brags about winning the Ring Of Honor Women’s TV Title. Well kind of, as she uses it as proof that she’s ready to beat Kris Statlander. Note that Mone never specifically mentions what she just won or ROH in general, but that’s about how important the title is for her.

Persephone vs. Valentina Rossi

Persephone runs her over with a shoulder to start but Rossi is back with a quick legdrop for two. They trade rollups for two each until Persephone plants her for the same. Rossi wins a fight over a suplex for two of her own but Persephone knocks her right back down. The running Razor’s Edge finishes Rossi at 3:09.

Rating: C. I’m not sure what the thinking was here, as Persephone is likely a few weeks away from challenging for the Ring Of Honor Women’s Title. While she won and the finish looked good, Rossi got in a lot of offense rather than being squashed. That’s not the best way to make Persephone look good, and I’m not sure what the thinking was here.

Post match Athena comes out for the staredown, which seems to set up the title match. Cue Diamante to jump Persephone from behind and Athena sends her face first into the title.

Infantry vs. Top Flight

SkyFlight is here with Top Flight. The Infantry jumps them at the bell to start, which doesn’t last long as Top Flight clears the ring in a hurry. Back in and Dante gets taken into the corner for the beatdown, setting up the running hip attack for two. An enziguri into a jumping neckbreaker gets two and we hit the chinlock.

The villains switch without making a tag until Dante monkey flips his way to freedom. Darius comes in to clean house, including a cutter to Bravo. A suplex/neckbreaker combination gets two on Dante as everything breaks down again. The referee sees Dean bringing in a belt and the distraction lets Dante grab a sunset flip for the pin at 8:14.

Rating: C+. The match was a fine enough way to set up the pretty obvious Six Man Tag Team Title match for Final Battle. That’s a completely acceptable way to go, with the best aspect being the fact that SkyFlight have been a regular team in recent months. Hopefully they wind up getting the titles, as they have interesting potential as champions.

Post match Shane Taylor runs in for the beatdown but Scorpio Sky makes the save, setting up a Six Man Tag Team Title match at Final Battle to close the show.

Overall Rating: C+. Well, it was the match that set up a bunch of stuff for Final Battle, which was needed, but the Persephone stuff just made me shake my head. Other than that, there was a good bit of stuff that set up Full Gear rather than Final Battle, which continues to show you what this show means. They actually did something here though, and that’s one of the best things that you can say week to week in Ring Of Honor.

Results
Athena b. Harley Cameron – Koji Clutch
Billie Starkz b. Katie Arquette – Swanton
Deonna Purrazzo b. Viva Van – Fujiwara armbar
Satnam Singh b. JP Grayson – Chokeslam
QT Marshall b. Jakked Jameson – Cookie Cutter
Persephone b. Valentina Rossi – Running Razor’s Edge
Top Flight b. Infantry – Sunset flip to Dean

Remember to follow me on Twitter and Bluesky @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

Collision
Date: October 25, 2025
Location: Boeing Center At Tech Point, San Antonio, Texas
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Nigel McGuinness

We’re done with WrestleDream and it’s time to start getting ready for Full Gear. That could make for some interesting issues around here, though we already have something special this week. This time we’ll be seeing the Young Bucks teaming with FTR in an attempt to win $400,000, which is a thing again here. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Here is Hangman Page for a chat. Page talks about how you either die a hero or you live long enough to see yourself become the villain. That’s what the Opps did after spending a year fighting the Death Riders. After all of those battles, Page gave Samoa Joe a World Title match where he beat Joe, just as he promised. Then the Opps stabbed him in the back and now Page is ticked off. Page promises to ruin Joe’s life to wrap it up. This was pretty much a big recap.

Pac promises to hurt Tomohiro Ishii.

Pac vs. Tomohiro Ishii

Thank goodness they had a match scheduled. Otherwise Pac might have had trouble fulfilling his promise. The Death Riders are here with Pac, who trades forearms with Ishii to start. They both miss big shots and that’s good for an early staredown. Ishii’s suplex sends Pac out to the apron, where Daniel Garcia offers a distraction so Pac can take over. A missile dropkick drops Ishii again and we take a break.

We come back with Ishii chopping away and running him over, setting up a delayed vertical superplex for two. A powerbomb gives Ishii two but Ishii comes up favoring his arm. Pac snaps the arm across the top rope and they trade German suplexes. They knock each other down before Pac gives him a Tombstone into another German suplex. Pac’s brainbuster gets two more and he sends Ishii outside for the running knee from Wheeler Yuta. That’s enough for Pac to hit a running clothesline for the pin at 12:10.

Rating: C+. This was pretty much exactly what you would have expected it to be, with both of them hitting the other hard. Pac cheats with the Death Riders and the designated jobber of the Conglomeration loses again. It was entertaining, but absolutely nothing out of the norm from these guys.

Thekla vs. Mina Shirakawa

Shirakawa dances a lot to start but misses a charge into the corner. A running dropkick works better for Shirakawa and we hit the surfboard. Some dancing stomps onto the hands have Thekla in even more trouble but she cuts off another dance and throws Shirakawa down. That’s broken up and Shirakawa starts in on the leg as the Sisters Of Sin come out to watch.

Thekla uses the distraction to knock Shirakawa outside and we take a break. We come back with Shirakawa hitting a Sling Blade and running knee to take over. A slingshot corkscrew splash gives Shirakawa two but it’s too early for the Figure Four. Thekla catches her up top with the spider superplex but Shirakawa strikes her down again. The spinning backfist drops Thekla for two and the top rope Sling Blade gets the same. That’s enough for the Sisters to offer a distraction, allowing Thekla to hit a spear into the Death Trap for the tap at 13:55.

Rating: C+. The ball of charisma that is Shirakawa loses again, as tends to be her custom in recent weeks. That’s not exactly encouraging, though she should be fine when she teams with Toni Storm coming up. Thekla needs the win to build her up for the likely spot in Blood & Guts (lineups would be nice) so I guess there was no choice than to have Shirakawa lose again.

Anna Jay and Tay Melo have been getting ready for the Women’s Tag Team Titles for years. Cue Miranda Alize and Nixon Newell (Tegan Nox) to issue the challenge for a tag match. Game on.

Here is MxM TV for their Casting Call. First though, Mansoor mocks the ring announcers’ weight, because reasons. Anyway, the match.

Taya Valkyrie vs. Olympia

Valkyrie isn’t happy and gets stomped in the corner to make it worse. A running seated senton crushes Valkyrie again, leaving Olympia to dive onto the rest of the team. Back in and a sitout F5 (with squats) finishes Valkyrie at 2:35.

On Dynamite: Hook vs. Ricochet vs. Bobby Lashley vs. Samoa Joe for the World Title shot at Full Gear.

Ace Austin vs. Bryan Keith

Feeling out process to start with Austin kicking away. That’s broken up and Keith fires away before sending Austin out to the apron. Austin’s springboard high crossbody connects and they head outside with Austin winning a strike off. The handstand on the apron sets up a kick to Keith’s chest but Keith knocks him right back down. Keith boots him in the face on the floor and we take a break.

We come back with Austin rolling through an exploder suplex and striking away again. A Russian legsweep gets two on Keith, who is right back up with a running headbutt. Austin is right back with a kick to the head though and the Fold (running Blockbuster) finishes Keith at 11:40.

Rating: B-. That’s what we needed to see here, as Austin needs to be established around here and winning matches is the way to make that happen. Austin might not be the biggest guy but he can hang with the more talented stars. If nothing else, the Fold continues to be a sweet finisher that he can hit on just about anyone, so there is some potential here.

Don Callis talks about how families have issues at times and that is the case with Kazuchika Okada and Konosuke Takeshita. He’s in charge though and the Family is having a summit on Dynamite.

The Outrunners and Dalton Castle are interrupted by the still bickering Anthony Bowens and Max Caster. The Outrunners mumble a lot, which Castle says is the secret to their success.

Hook vs. Griff Garrison

Eddie Kingston and the Frat House are here too. Garrison works on the arm to start and gets taken down with a quick suplex. Hook takes him to the mat and hammers in some forearms to the face but Garrison is back with a running boot. That’s shrugged off and Hook grabs Redrum for the tap at 2:08.

Olympia wants the CMLL Women’s Title and challenges Mercedes Mone for Collision.

Jamie Hayter and Queen Aminata are ready to take out the Sisters Of Sin and win the Women’s Tag Team Titles.

Here’s what’s coming on various shows.

Young Bucks/FTR vs. Jet Speed/Jurassic Express

Perry brings a beach ball with him, which Wheeler crushes with a chair (good man). Matt headlocks Knight to start and gets dropkicked for his efforts. Bailey comes in off a blind tag for a double hiptoss so it’s off to Wheeler. Some kicks take Wheeler down just as fast but he’s able to drop Perry with a clothesline. It’s off to Harwood, who gets backed off by Luchasaurus. Some slams drop FTR as everything breaks down, with Bailey missile dropkicking Matt. The non-dinosaur good guys hit dives to the floor, leaving Luchasaurus to grab a chokeslam back inside.

We take a break and come back with the villains cleaning house and Wheeler hitting a dive of his own. A standing Sliced Bread to Perry sets up Harwood’s Sharpshooter, which is broken up rather quickly. Knight comes back in to clean house and Jet Speed hit stereo slingshot dives to the floor. A super hurricanrana sends Matt into Bailey’s sitout powerbomb for two but Nick throws powder in Knight’s eyes. Matt superkicks Knight for two and we take another another break.

We come back with Knight fighting his way out of trouble and handing it back to Luchasaurus. Everything breaks down and Perry hurricanranas Matt off the apron onto Harwood. Back in and the PowerPlex drops Luchasaurus into a 450 for two. The Bucks and FTR hit a Shatter Machine apiece but the double EVP Trigger misses. The Countdown To Extinction hits Harwood and the tornado kick gives Bailey the pin at 20:33.

Rating: B. Hey look: the Bucks are still broke. I wonder if they’ll be given another chance to make a bunch of money in a match because they’re oh so wacky with their money. I have no idea why this is supposed to still be entertaining because the joke has been told multiple times now. I’m also pretty much over seeing the Bucks and FTR interact, as it’s been done enough already.

FTR and the Bucks argue.

One more thing: these four teams will be in a four way match on Dynamite for a Tag Team Title shot at Full Gear. Well of course they are.

Overall Rating: B-. This was certainly an episode of Collision, with the usual action and little being done other than having some matches announced for Dynamite. That’s often the featured attraction for this show, unless you want to see Olympia built up before she gets to lose to Mercedes Mone next week. Run of the mill show here, meaning it’s fun if you watch it but nothing you need to see.

Results
Pac b. Tomohiro Ishii – Running clothesline
Thekla b. Mina Shirakawa – Death Trap
Olympia b. Taya Valkyrie – Sitout F5
Ace Austin b. Bryan Keith – The Fold
Hook b. Griff Garrison – Redrum
Jet Speed/Jurassic Express b. FTR/Young Bucks – Tornado kick to Harwood

Remember to follow me on Twitter and Bluesky @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

Ring Of Honor
Date: October 23, 2025
Location: Daily’s Place, Jacksonville, Florida
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

We’re at the AEW home base for a change and that could make for a bigger show around here. Then again you never can tell with Ring Of Honor, as they have an interesting definition of a big event. I’m sure we’re still on the way to the next match in the Women’s Pure Rules tournament, which is approaching seven months since its announcement as we still need to finish the first round. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

We run down the card.

Angelico vs. Mascara Dorada

They trade takedowns to start and stare at each other, followed by an exchange of legsweeps. Back up and Dorada snaps off a headscissors to the floor, setting up a big dive. Angelico is right back with a two arm and one leg crank but Dorada kicks him in the head. A top rope armdrag sends Angelico outside for another dive as he can’t get anything going here. Back in and a 450 gives Dorada two before Angelico dropkicks him out of the air. Dorado knocks him right back down and hits the shooting star press for the pin at 7:21.

Rating: C+. The dives and flips were nice as usual and Dorada gets some momentum before next week’s World Title shot against Bandido. Not that he’s had any interaction with Bandido or anything like that, but it’s not like this show is known for its quality storytelling. As usual, Angelico looks nice in the ring before losing, which is hardly a surprise these days.

Jay Lethal/Tommy Billington/Adam Priest vs. Dark Order

Reynolds and Lethal trade takedowns to start and it’s off to Silver, who sets up the triple pose on Lethal’s back. Lethal kicks his way out of trouble and hands it off to Priest, who feeds Silver into a backdrop from Billington. Silver fights out of the corner and suplexes Billington and Priest at the same time. Uno comes in to clean house with the Order’s signature sequence getting two on Billington. The Order gets taken down by a trio of German suplexes and Lethal Figure Fours Uno. They’re not legal though so it’s Billington grabbing a half crab to make Reynolds tap at 5:44.

Rating: C+. The result is a surprise and I can go for that, as Billington and Priest are fine enough for a “we have nothing else for these guys to do” team. Lethal needs something to do as well so this is as good as anything else for them. It’s surprising to see them beat the Dark Order, but they have to start somewhere.

We look at Mercedes Mone winning the ROH Interim Women’s TV Title.

Red Velvet (hey she’s back) talks about how she has been rebuilding herself and she’s still the Women’s TV Champion. Yeah….really not that impressive, though if it gets rid of a title, I’m all for it.

Deonna Purrazzo vs. Angelica Risk

Pure Rules. Purrazzo stomps away in the corner to start but misses a running knee. Risk slaps her on the back and pops her hips a bit. The Fujiwara armbar sends Risk into the ropes for her first break and she’s back up with a hurricanrana driver for two. Purrazzo throws her into the Tree Of Woe for a spear and a powerbomb drops Risk hard. The Venus de Milo makes Risk give up at 3:09.

Rating: C-. Basically a squash here, with the pure rules changing pretty much nothing whatsoever. That’s been the problem for a long time now and unfortunately I don’t see it changing. The tournament has been a joke for a long time now and while it probably ends at Final Battle, there was pretty much no reason for it to exist if this is what they’re doing.

Yuka Sakazaki/Alex Windsor vs. Aleah James/Billie Starkz

Starkz takes Windsor down to start but gets taken down with a running shoulder. Sakazaki comes in for two off a rollup and it’s back to Windsor to hammer away in the corner. Starkz sends her into the corner as well though and James is in for a hurricanrana. Windsor takes her into the corner though and it’s Sakazaki coming back in with a missile dropkick. The Magical Girl Splash misses though and Starkz is back in to knock Windsor off the apron.

Something like a Last Shot gives Starkz two but Sakazaki fights out of trouble without much trouble. Windsor grabs a Blue Thunder Bomb for two and it’s back to James, who gets in an argument with Starkz. Windsor’s Sharpshooter goes on but Starkz walks away and James manages to get out. Not that it matters as a pumphandle driver finishes James at 7:45.

Rating: C+. The point here was Starkz walking out, and I could go for something between her and James. Again, it’s not like there is a lot going on in the women’s division so throw something against the wall and see if it works. Windsor is in the AEW Women’s Tag Team Title tournament, albeit with Riho as a partner, so it’s not like this helps her very much. I’ll take having Windsor around though, as she’s good to have in the ring.

Jay Lethal, Adam Priest and Tommy Billington are ready to team again. For now though, they’re off to get something to eat.

Grizzled Young Veterans/Isla Dawn vs. Dream Girl Ellie/Leeroy Shogun/Bryce Cannon

Gibson takes Cannon down to start and it’s off to Drake to stay on the arm. Cannon is knocked outside and the women come in with Dawn taking over. Shogun comes in and shrugs off Gibson’s shoulder so it’s off to Drake. That’s fine with Shogun, who knocks him down for a big elbow. The women are back in with Dawn taking her down and Cannon making a save. Everything breaks down and Dawn gives Ellie a reverse inverted DDT for the pin at 5:27.

Rating: C. The Veterans and Dawn work well together so maybe this is what the team has been needing to get something going. There’s something to the Veterans and oddly enough it seems to be working well for them as good guys for once. Again, why not see what you can get out of them? They’re already there, so try it out.

We look at the Frat House at WrestleDream.

Komander vs. Griff Garrison

Komander starts fast and takes him to the floor, where Garrison moves away before the dive. While Komander manages to cut himself off, Garrison drops him onto the barricade to take over. Back in and Komander fights back but Preston Vance gets in a cheap shot from the floor. Komander is sent outside again for a beating from the Frat House but he’s back in with a series of strikes.

A Backstabber into a standing Spanish Fly puts Garrison down but a 450 misses. Garrison knocks him out of the air and a pendulum facebuster gets two. The spinning torture rack powerbomb gets two more but Komander kicks him in the head. Komander has to take Vance out on the ramp and then dives onto the rest of the House. Back in and a springboard tornado DDT sets up Cielito Lindo to finish Garrison at 10:58.

Rating: B-. Match of the night here with Komander getting in his usual high flying stuff for some good results. He’s one of the more accomplished regulars around here, though you’re only getting so much out of having him beat Garrison. At least they have some time and could put together a more complete match, which is often lacking on this show.

Overall Rating: C. This was the usual effort from Ring Of Honor, as the wrestlers were trying but there is only so much that you can get out of having a bunch of matches with little impact. That’s been the problem with Ring Of Honor for a long time, as it goes weeks if not months without anything important happening. Fix that up and the show is a lot better, but I can’t picture it happening anytime soon.

Results
Mascara Dorada b. Angelico – Shooting star press
Jay Lethal/Adam Priest/Tommy Billington b. Dark Order – Half crab to Reynolds
Deonna Purrazzo b. Angelica Risk – Venus de Milo
Alex Windsor/Yuka Sakazaki b. Aleah James/Billie Starkz – Pumphandle driver to James
Grizzled Young Veterans/Isla Dawn b. Dream Girl Ellie/Leeroy Shogun/Bryce Cameron – Reverse inverted DDT to Ellie
Komander b. Griff Garrison – Cielito Lindo

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