Ring Of Honor – May 21, 2026: Oh…It’s Back

Ring Of Honor
Date: May 21, 2026
Location: Wicomico Youth And Civic Center, Salisbury, Maryland
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

We’re done with Supercard Of Honor and that likely means a return to normal around here. Bandido and Athena retained their titles while the Tag Team Titles continued their tradition of not being defended. Other than that, we’re likely back in the deep freeze until the next big show is announced. Let’s get to it.

Here is Supercard Of Honor if you need a recap.

We open with a quick preview of the show. That’s a new way to go.

Opening sequence.

Action Andretti vs. QT Marshall

Before the match, Andretti mocks the fans and says it started with Marshall. Andretti cuts off Marshall’s introduction and asks for some applause. The thing is, Andretti used to be a dreamer like him but then the fans booed him. The reality is that Lio Rush turned on him and now Marshall does all kinds of things just to get attention. Now Andretti is going to embarrass Marshall like he embarrassed Rush. I really hope this doesn’t mean that Rush, who is basically a monster, is supposed to be the good guy in all of this.

Anyway, Andretti headlocks him down to start but gets reversed into a headscissors. Back up and Andretti snaps off a running headscissors, followed by a springboard clothesline. A springboard corkscrew splash gives Andretti two and a handspring elbow cuts off Marshall’s comeback. The second attempt works a bit better as Marshall scores with a handspring kick to the head.

A rolling Stunner gives Andretti two but Marshall knocks him back down, setting up a Lionsault for two. Andretti dropkicks him into the corner for a split legged moonsault and he blocks a running cutter. Another springboard is countered into a cutter but Marshall misses a nice moonsault. A tornado DDT and the torture rack neckbreaker finish for Andretti at 8:51.

Rating: B-. They got into a nice groove here and it was good to see Andretti win a match for a change. Since we’re apparently getting into a Rush vs. Andretti feud, he needed to win something to give him at least the tiniest of value after so many losses. Marshall as a good guy is kind of weird but he’s actually making it work well enough thus far.

Hyan/Maya World vs. Allie Katch/Kaia McKenna

Hyan and McKenna start things off with Hyan taking over, allowing World to come in for a double clothesline. Katch comes in for a rollup but World takes her down for a double stomp. World actually gets taken into the corner for some stomping so it’s a double neckbreaker to get her out of trouble. Hyan comes back in to clean house and spears McKenna, setting up Around The World (wheelbarrow slam/running Downward Spiral combination) for the pin on McKenna at 4:35.

Rating: C. This wasn’t quite a squash as Katch and McKenna got in a bit of offense but it was never in doubt. Hyan and World are fine as a team and could wind up going after the Women’s Tag Team Titles at some point. Katch and McKenna were ok here as well and I could go for having them around more often.

Shane Taylor praises AR Fox but it’s the wrong place and wrong time for him to win his first title. Tonight, Taylor is getting his title back.

Rush vs. Ryan O’Neil

Bull’s Horns in 1:00. The post match catchphrase makes this exactly the same thing he did on Collision.

We look at the Kingdom returning at Supercard Of Honor to confront Bustah And The Brain. Not wrestle them mind you, but they did in fact confront them.

Premiere Athletes vs. Bustah And The Brain

The rest of the Athletes are here too. Oliver and Nese start things off with Nese pausing for some posing. They start running the ropes until Oliver stops and just walks over him in a funny bit. Daivari comes in for a double suplex but Price easily escapes and goes after the arm. Oliver and Price are sent outside where a distraction allows the rest of the Athletes to get in some stomping.

Back in and Oliver jumps over Daivari but Nese pulls Price off the apron in a smart move. Nese grabs the Randy Savage neck snap on Oliver, who is back up with a crossbody to Daivari. Price comes back in and cleans house, including running up the ropes for a spinning Blockbuster (that looked good).

Mark Sterling trips Price from the floor though and everything breaks down. Price gives Daivari the Tyler Bate head bounce off the ropes rebound lariat but Nese is back in to kick him in the head. Back in and Oliver kicks Nese down and then hits a dive on the floor. The Price Is Right (top rope double stomp Doomsday Device, also known as OUCH) finishes Nese at 9:51.

Rating: B-. What matters the most here is that Bustah And The Brain are getting a steady rise up the ranks. That’s a lot more than most teams around here get and if Ring Of Honor can figure out the whole Tag Team Title situation (which would be a change after the last year and a half or so), they should already be near the title situation. On the other side you have the Athletes, who were built up and then put someone else over, as they should.

Eddie Kingston and Ortiz sit down with Caprice Coleman. Kingston is back to get better and he wants to see people prove they want it. Everyone wanted to come to Ring Of Honor when he was breaking in and he wants that back. As for Ortiz, they’re friends and business partners. Kingston: “I get to pay off my home and I get to have YouTube with no commercials.” Coleman asks Ortiz what Kingston isn’t telling them, which is apparently that they want to change the wrestling business. Kingston thinks this place is better than the AEW locker room and they want to make things better.

Dalton Castle and the Outrunners are happy about winning the Six Man Tag Team Titles and now they’re ready to face everyone.

Dalton Castle/Outrunners vs. Danny Grandview/Chulo Montana/Ykies

Non-title Proving Ground match. Montana chops Magnum in the corner to start and gets chopped down for his efforts. It’s off to Floyd, who is wearing the title as he knocks everyone down and poses. Castle fires off the suplexes and the Bang A Rang sets up the Mega Powers Elbow/ax handle drop for the pin on Ykies at 2:40.

AR Fox is ready to face Shane Taylor, who only had to ask for a title shot. Isn’t that what Taylor did?

We look at Fox winning the TV Title last week.

Lio Rush vs. Aaron Solo

Solo is scared to shake Rush’s hand and gets sent into the ropes for his efforts. Rush chases him around the ropes and then crawls around a lot. Solo is knocked outside as the black goo is coming out of Rush’s mouth. The chase goes up the aisle until Solo hits a superkick and they go back inside. Some chops just wake Rush up again and he hits a spinning kick to the head. They run the ropes until Rush grabs a powerbomb and sends Solo outside. The suicide dive connects and Black Thunder gives Rush the pin at 5:39.

Rating: C+. This was your latest reminder that “Rush is weird but really athletic”. That’s about all there is to this as the details of why he’s suddenly a monster haven’t been explained. Odds are that’s better as this is hardly something that I want to see explained after how it has gone so far.

Post match Rush sounds like he says something about someone being strong and promising to reign supreme.

Deonna Purrazzo is proud of beating Diamante and is ready for her next challenger.

Deonna Purrazzo vs. Janai Kai

Non-title Proving Ground Pure Rules match. They wrestle around to start with neither getting very far. Purrazzo goes after the arm but gets caught in an Eye Of The Hurricane. Kai kicks her in the chest and back for two but Purrazzo breaks out of a sleeper. Another big kick puts Purrazzo down for two more and the sleeper goes on again. Purrazzo breaks it up again and grabs the Fujiwara armbar, which is actually reversed into a rollup for two. That’s enough for Purrazzo, who knocks her down and grabs the Fujiwara armbar for the win at 7:00.

Rating: C+. This was fairly long and just reminded us that the most successful women’s Pure Rules wrestler ever is still the best women’s Pure Rules wrestler ever. There is no one on the horizon coming for the title, but that could change rather quickly as it’s not like there is much of a process to set up challengers. Kai got in her usual strikes and kicks and that’s about all, as tends to be the case in her matches.

Video on Swerve Strickland vs. Bandido.

Billie Starkz/Diamante vs. Queen Aminata/Mina Shirakawa

Diamante and Shirakawa start things off with Shirakawa knocking her down and hitting her slingshot corkscrew splash. Aminata comes in for her hips to the face while Shirakawa kicks Diamante in the back. Diamante jawbreaks her way out of trouble and brings Starkz in to take over. A double suplex puts Shirakawa down and it’s back to Diamante for a chinlock. Shirakawa fights up and hits a basement dropkick, allowing the tag off to Aminata.

A Helluva Kick and running shot in the corner get two on Starkz, setting up Shirakawa’s missile dropkick. The top rope Sling Blade gets two with Diamante making the save but stereo Figure Fours are reversed into small packages. Shirakawa is right back with the Figure Four on Starkz until Diamante…well actually doesn’t make the save as Aminata knocks her away. That leaves Starkz to tap at 8:44.

Rating: C+. Athena’s goons losing again isn’t much of a surprise, though Shirakawa getting a win out of the thing is nice to see. She’s someone who could easily be put into a higher level on the card but it’s hard to figure out how that goes around here. You also have Starkz’s downfall continuing, which is likely going to result in her getting yet another big title shot.

Post match (and I mean maybe a tenth of a second after it’s over) Athena shows up to choke Shirakawa (who Athena is facing in the Women’s Owen Hart Tournament) with a towel. Aminata cuts that off but the villains beat Aminata and Shirakawa down.

TV Title: Shane Taylor vs. AR Fox

Taylor, with his Promotions, is challenging and spits on Fox’s hand to start fast. Fox gets knocked into the corner and his high crossbody is caught. That’s escaped and Fox sends him outside for the big dive, only for Taylor to punch him right in the face. There’s the apron legdrop for a rather delayed one and we hit the chinlock.

Fox is sent into the corner but avoids a legdrop for a breather. Taylor gets kicked to the floor and there’s the big running flip dive. Back in and a Swanton gives Fox two but Taylor is back with a chokeslam and splash for the same. The Marcus Garvey Driver is countered into a cutter and Fox dives at Taylor while kicking Anthony Ogogo at the same time. Back in and a 450 retains the title at 9:05.

Rating: B-. This was a perfectly acceptable title defense for Fox, as he got to beat a monster with a reputation. As usual, Fox’s dives looked good and it felt like he was working his way through getting around Taylor throughout. It made for a good main event and it’s great to see Fox getting this kind of a chance.

Overall Rating: C+. Well that was long. This was just a step above the regular weekly show, with a bunch of content that didn’t feel like it was doing anything more than getting people on the show. That’s fine once in awhile, but it seems to be the case more often than not. I do like that some of these things feel like they’re building to something, though we need them to actually pay off before without having to wait months on end.

Results
Action Andretti b. QT Marshall – Torture rack neckbreaker
Hyan/Maya World b. Allie Katch/Kaia McKenna – Around The World to McKenna
Rush b. Ryan O’Neil – Bull’s Horns
Bustah And The Brain b. Premiere Athletes – The Price Is Right to Nese
Dalton Castle/Outrunners b. Danny Grandview/Chulo Montana/Ykies – Mega Powers Elbow/ax handle drop combination to Ykies
Lio Rush b. Aaron Solo – Black Thunder
Deonna Purrazzo b. Janai Kai – Fujiwara armbar
Queen Aminata/Mina Shirakawa b. Billie Starkz/Diamante – Figure Four to Starkz
AR Fox b. Shane Taylor – 450

 

 

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Ring Of Honor – May 14, 2026: All At Once Now

Ring Of Honor
Date: May 14, 2026
Location: SoFi Center, Palm Beach Gardens, Florida
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

It’s the night before Supercard Of Honor and this is the second Ring Of Honor show of the week. The bonus show from Tuesday was a big preview for Supercard and it worked out pretty well. There is a good chance that this will be a slightly longer version of that, though the TV Title is on the line here. Let’s get to it.

Here is Tuesday’s show if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Maya World/Lacey Lane/Yuka Sakazaki vs. Marina Shafir/Athena/Billie Starkz

Athena flips out of Sakazaki’s hiptoss to start and they’re already in a standoff for a handshake. Shafir comes in and easily takes Sakazaki down so it’s off to Lane, who has to escape a choke. We get the fight over a six woman suplex with Athena’s team getting the better of things. Everything breaks down and Athena holds up World and Lane at the same time until a superkick knocks them all down.

Sakazaki gets caught in the wrong corner and Athena hammers away but also runs over to the corner to knock the other two off. Starkz comes in for two but Sakazaki fires off some elbows to Athena. That’s not enough for the tag though as Sakazaki gets pulled back into the middle.

A discus forearm drops Athena so Shafir comes in, leaving World and Athena to brawl on the floor. Sakazaki gets over for the tag to Lane, who cleans house and Death Valley Drivers Lane for two. Shafir and World brawl on the floor until Sakazaki takes them both out with a dive. Lane and Starkz trade kicks to the head with Starkz getting the better of things. The Swanton connects but Athena tags herself in and steals the pin at 11:28.

Rating: B-. Take a bunch of people in a title match and put them into a six woman tag with a few others thrown in to fill out the card. It’s a good preview for the match and Athena gets to look strong on her way into what is probably her toughest title defense to date. Athena almost has to lose tomorrow night I’ve been saying that for….years now?

Tommy Billington/Adam Priest vs. Death Riders

Of course it’s Wheeler Yuta/Daniel Garcia and Jon Moxley/Pac are with them. Garcia takes Billington down and gives him a quick kick, which has Billington annoyed. Priest comes in and Garcia hands it off to Yuta, likely out of fear. A double suplex drops Billington ribs first onto the top rope and a knee drop gives Garcia two. Yuta ties up the leg and Priest gets knocked off the apron to prevent a tag that wasn’t even being attempted.

Billington pops up and runs over for the tag (that was sudden), allowing Priest to clean house. The half crab goes on and Yuta’s kicks just annoy Priest, who grabs the same hold on him instead. Priest lets go to slug it out with Garcia and Yuta’s running knee misses. Billington gets piledriven and an STO/running knee combination finishes Priest at 10:37.

Rating: B-. This is a good example of a technically acceptable match which wasn’t overly interesting because neither team is doing anything. Billington and Priest had that feud with the Lethal Twist to boost them up a bit and now they’re stuck in the same place as so many other teams. On the other hand you have Garcia and Yuta, who are on every hand because the Death Riders have to be involved in everything.

Added to Supercard Of Honor: Mark Davis defending the AEW National Title against Xelhua.

Satnam Singh vs. CD Bennett/James Tapia

Singh throws them around and hits the double crossbody before shrugging them off again. The double chokeslam finishes for Singh at 1:32. This is something that is mainly for the live audience so they can see the giant but since EVERYTHING MUST BE FILMED AND AIRED around here, this is what we get.

Angelico vs. Josh Woods

Pure Rules. They fight over arm control to start with Woods spinning around and grabbing a snapmare. Angelico grabs the arm and that makes Woods accidentally back into the ropes for the first break. Woods is mad enough to drive Angelico into the corner and then plant him down, where Angelico gets in a kick to the head. That’s shrugged off and Rolling Chaos Theory finishes Angelico at 3:44.

Rating: C+. Yeah cool. Now that Woods has been built up as the most amazing technical wrestler anywhere, how many months do we wait before he gets his title shot? I’m going to go with fewer than whomever gets the random title match at the pay per view, because Ring Of Honor likes to play the REALLY long game with title shots. Or they do the opposite and hand them out at random. Either way, there is pretty much no need for one Pure Rules Title, let alone two.

Post match Woods goes after the arm and beats up Serpentico as well. Nigel McGuinness runs in for the save, but Woods bails from the threat of a fight.

Red Velvet talks about going way back with Viva Van and knows how hard Van has worked to get here. Velvet has carried this division on her back (What division?) and it’s time for Van to step in the ring with the backbone of this division (WHAT DIVISION?). Yeah that’s all well and good. Forgive me for not thinking that someone who is 1-17 in Ring Of Honor is a threat to the title.

Six Man Tag Team Titles: Eddie Kingston/Ortiz/Mance Warner vs. Shane Taylor Promotions

The Promotions are defending and it’s a big brawl before the bell. Ortiz and Bravo start things off and it’s off to Warner for some Snake Eyes. Kingston comes in to shoulder Taylor to no avail so Kingston goes with a shot to the face instead. A suplex doesn’t work though and Taylor takes him into the corner for some clubberin.

Dean adds a Bronco Buster into a chinlock, with Kingston getting back up. Kingston chops away at Taylor and manages to plant him off a charge. Warner comes in to clean house, including the big poke to Bravo’s eyes. Everything breaks down and Warner’s running knee gets two on Bravo. Christian XO offers a distraction though and it’s a belly to back suplex neckbreaker combination to finish Warner and retain the titles at 8:52.

Rating: C+. This was every “champions vs. thrown together team” title match that you would see. It’s the same idea of most of the Pure Rules Title matches: the champions are more experienced and know how to do this kind of match so they retain the titles. If only there were a few challengers who had done this same kind of match over and over as well, they might actually have some more interesting challengers.

Video on Blake Christian vs. Bandido.

Blake Christian vs. Evil Uno

This is Christian’s first singles match in Ring Of Honor this year and he has the rest of the Lethal Twist with him. Christian jumps him to start fast and gets knocked into the corner for some rapid fire clotheslines. Uno’s piledriver is countered with a backdrop though and Christian gives him a basement dropkick out to the floor.

Back in and a springboard elbow puts Uno down and Christian gets to talk trash. Uno comes back with a running boot into a DDT for two, only for Christian to send him into the ropes. Christian puts on the Bandido mask but the 21 Plex is blocked. Instead it’s a Lethal Injection into a Shining Wizard into the Vanilla Choke Zero to give Christian the win at 4:15.

Rating: C. Well, it’s better than not having him wrestle before the title match. I have no idea why I’m supposed to care about Christian’s singles success when he hasn’t done it for about five months but that’s the likely co-main event for the show. Uno was just cannon fodder here and that’s what he should be in bigger matches.

Post match Christian promises to win the World Title.

Lee Moriarty gives Ace Austin a Pure Rules Title shot.

Austin is undefeated in Ring Of Honor and even though he’s lost in AEW, he’s getting better! It’s inevitable that he’ll be a champion and it will happen tomorrow.

Deonna Purrazzo vs. Kaci Lennox

Non-title Pure Rules Proving Ground match. The bigger Lennox tries to go with the power to start but has to get out of a piledriver attempt. Back up and Lennox knocks her into the corner for some trash talk, followed by a clothesline for two. Purrazzo has had it with this though and pulls Lennox into the Fujiwara armbar for the win at 3:36.

Rating: C-. This was in fact Purrazzo doing the Pure Rules thing that she has proven she’s great at for…like a year plus now? I’m really not sure why we needed to see her do it again and the match didn’t have time to get anywhere. At least Purrazzo has an actual feud coming up at Supercard, which puts her further than most of her other title defenses.

Post match Diamante runs in and hits Purrazzo with the belt before giving her a Fujiwara armbar.

Outrunners/Dalton Castle vs. Baby Keef/Charlie Malachite/Xander Maddox

Magnum and Malachite fight over a headlock to start until Magnum chops him into the corner. For some reason Keef comes in to try some shots to the back, meaning the Outrunners get to beat up all three of them at once. Castle comes in to fire off the suplexes and it’s a triple slam to Malachite. There’s the Mega Powers Elbow to give Castle the pin at 3:14.

Rating: C. Cool now the Outrunners and Castle, who have been winning six man matches for months on end, get their title match right? I mean of course they probably won’t because that’s not how Ring Of Honor works, but it’s certainly the logical way to go. Otherwise, it’s just the same win that they get ever time, albeit against an opponent named Baby Keef this time.

Athena is ready to win but Billie Starkz comes in to ask what that was about. Athena doesn’t want to hear about this because she has kept Starkz around for three years now and it’s time for everyone to acknowledge what she has done. Starkz is annoyed but thanks her, with Athena telling her to follow the plan tomorrow night.

Survival Of The Fittest Qualifying Match: Hyan vs. Zayda Steel

Maya World and Christopher Daniels are here too. They trade small packages to start and pop up for a standoff. Hyan nails a basement dropkick but gets sent face first into the buckle. Steel knocks her outside, where Hyan blocks a suicide dive and hits a suplex on the floor. Back in and Steel pulls her into an STF so Hyan crawls to the rope, which she grabs with her teeth. That lets them trade rollups for some near falls until Hyan blocks an Unprettier attempt. Instead Steel grabs a swinging Unprettier for the pin at 5:04.

Rating: C+. This was a case where something had to be covered and they did it in a rather simple way. That’s not a bad thing either, as Steel or Hyan going forward is fine. If nothing else, it was nice to have a match that felt like it had some stakes, as it’s hard to imagine that Athena leaves with the title. Why not Steel? I mean other than she’s still relatively new and feels like a longer term project, but at least she’s in there.

Post match respect is shown.

TV Title: AR Fox vs. Nick Wayne

Fox is challenging and Wayne’s associates are here with him. They start fast with an exchange of rollups for two each until Fox slingshots in for an anarchist suplex. Wayne bails to the floor where he catches Fox with a shot to the ribs. That just earns him a step up moonsault from the middle rope, allowing Fox to clothesline away back inside. Kip Sabian crotches Fox on top though and Sliced Bread off the steps drops Fox on the floor. Mother Wayne adds some choking and Nick’s legdrop gets two.

The seated abdominal stretch keeps Fox in trouble but he’s right back up with a running hanging DDT. Fox pulls him into a cutter and hits a package powerbomb for two more. Nick is right back with a standing Sliced Bread for two of his own and a shot to the back keeps Fox in trouble. Code Red gives Nick two more but Fox seems to get ticked off. Fox knocks him outside for the big running flip dive but the Swanton hits raised knees back inside. Back up and Fox grabs a small package out of nowhere for the pin and the title at 12:58.

Rating: B. Cool. I was wrong about Ring Of Honor never doing anything with Fox and it’s nice to see him get some gold. That’s a nice surprise and rather long overdue, but it also gives you a reason to believe that someone could get a title win out of nowhere. It’s not like Nick was doing anything with the title so this is a nice change of pace.

Post match Lio Rush (he’s crazy again) pops up issue the challenge for the title for Supercard and the match is immediately made. Please don’t put it on Rush. Please?

Premiere Athletes vs. Ernest R. Alexander/Jacey Love/Ricky Martinez

Because this show can’t just end already. Nese backs Alexander into the corner to start and gets in some quick jumping jacks. Alexander tries to do the same and gets clotheslined down, allowing Daivari to come in to hammer away. Denali drops Love onto the turnbuckle but Love gets over to Martinez. That earns him a beatdown of his own and Denali chokeslams Love for the pin at 3:29.

Rating: C-. The Athletes are the perfect example of “they’re just kind of here” in Ring Of Honor. They don’t have feuds and they don’t have anything to go after at the moment, but they’re around almost every week. I have no idea why anyone would want to see them that often, but that has been the case since Ring Of Honor came back.

Bandido vs. Action Andretti

Non-title Proving Ground match and this is Bandido’s first singles match in Ring Of Honor since September. Bandido flips around to start but Andretti sticks the landing on a hurricanrana attempt. Back up and Bandido sends him into the corner, earning a handshake from Bandido. Andretti sends him into the corner and does a quick dance before knocking Bandido outside.

That means the big flip dive can connect and Andretti grabs a belly to back suplex for two. Bandido muscles him up and over with a suplex though and adds a corkscrew high crossbody. The frog splash misses for Bandido so Andretti gives him a hurricanrana for two more. Back up and Bandido grabs the one armed gorilla press for two and Andretti flips into the X Knee for the pin at 7:45.

Rating: B-. Oh yeah Bandido works here. Given that he hadn’t wrestled in Ring Of Honor for nearly four months, it was kind of hard to remember. The match was fast paced enough, but dang it’s hard to get interested in this after two hours tonight alone. Bandido vs. Christian doesn’t feel important, but at least Bandido was here to promote the match.

Post match Blake Christian comes out to throw Bandido the mask, because he only cares about the title.

Overall Rating: C. This was a Ring Of Honor show and while it felt important for the sake of the big push towards Supercard, this and Tuesday’s show combined for about three hours. That doesn’t make me want to watch the pay per view, but rather take a break from Ring Of Honor. It was like they had to cram the build for Supercard into the last two shows and that doesn’t make for a fun way to go. This show felt WAY more important than usual, but trim off a good forty five minutes (it wouldn’t be hard) and maybe do some of this stuff over the last two weeks instead of two days. You know, what Ring Of Honor won’t do.

Results
Marina Shafir/Athena/Billie Starkz b. Maya World/Lacey Lane/Yuka Sakazaki – Swanton to Lane
Death Riders b. Tommy Billington/Adam Priest – Running knee/STO combination to Priest
Satnam Singh b. CD Bennett/James Tapia – Double chokeslam
Josh Woods b. Angelico – Rolling Chaos Theory
Shane Taylor Promotions b. Mance Warner/Ortiz/Eddie Kingston – Belly to back suplex neckbreaker combination to Warner
Blake Christian b. Evil Uno – Vanilla Choke Zero
Deonna Purrazzo b. Kaci Lennox – Fujiwara armbar
Outrunners/Dalton Castle b. Baby Keef/Charlie Malachite/Xander Maddox – Mega Powers Elbow to Malachite
Zayda Steel b. Hyan – Swinging Unprettier
AR Fox b. Nick Wayne – Small package
Premiere Athletes b. Ernest R. Alexander/Jacey Love/Ricky Martinez – Chokeslam to Love
Bandido b. Action Andretti – X Knee

 

 

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Ring Of Honor – May 7, 2026: Nothing Else Matters

Ring Of Honor
Date: May 7, 2026
Location: WJCT Studios, Jacksonville, Florida
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

We’re eight days away from Supercard Of Honor and a good chunk of the card has already been set up. There is still a lot that needs to be done for the show though, including the build up towards the World Title match. If nothing else, it would be nice for Blake Christian to do some stuff on his own. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Eddie Kingston/Ortiz vs. Infantry

Shane Taylor is here with the Infantry. Bravo punches away at Ortiz to start and gets leg lariated down for his efforts. Ortiz gets knocked into the corner and stomped in the Tree Of Woe to make it worse. A dropkick in the corner hits Ortiz again and it’s back to Bravo for a slingshot elbow. Kingston is knocked off the apron and a Bronco Buster hits Ortiz as well.

The chinlock doesn’t last long as Ortiz fights up and brings Kingston in to clean house. A Russian legsweep/STO combination gets two on Dean but a Backstabber drops Kingston. Dean’s top rope splash gets two on Ortiz but Boot Camp is broken up. Ortiz rolls Dean up for the pin at 7:56.

Rating: C. If there is an appeal to the Ortiz/Kingston team, I’m not seeing it. Kingston feels like a star and Ortiz feels like someone who is just there because he has nothing else to do. At the same time, the Six Man Champions lose again isn’t the most appealing and it isn’t like Kingston and Ortiz are anywhere near a title match as far as you can see from here.

Post match the Infantry and Taylor get in a beatdown but Mance Warner makes the save. Let me guess: that’s now a title match.

Josh Woods vs. Beef

Pure Rules. They fight over arm control to start and Beef sends him to the apron for a right hand. That’s a warning and Beef is right back up for a series of clotheslines in the corner. Woods pulls him down into the ankle lock but can’t hit the Beast Plex. Instead he pulls Beef down into another leglock for the tap at 3:42.

Rating: C+. Woods basically shrugged off everything Beef threw at him and then got the submission. In theory all of these wins should get him a title shot at Supercard Of Honor but instead he’s set for a match which might get him a title shot in the future if he wins. In other words, it’s more of the same problem that always comes up on here and there is nothing to suggest that it’s changing anytime soon.

Deonna Purrazzo dares Diamante to use the Fujiwara armbar on her and watch what happens.

Workhorsemen vs. Bang Bang Gang

Austin and Henry fight over wrist control to start until Austin dropkicks him into the corner. Robinson and Drake come in with Robinson shouldering him down. Henry offers a distraction though and Drake scores with a spinning belly to belly. Drake holds Robinson so Henry can hit a running double stomp to the back.

A clothesline gives Drake two but he almost splashes Henry in the corner, allowing Austin to come back in. Everything breaks down and Henry gets caught in the wrong corner. Drake punches Austin on the floor though and a Shining Wizard gets two on Robinson. Drake’s moonsault gets two more as Austin makes the save. Robinson grabs the forward DDT to pin Drake at 9:48.

Rating: B-. Again, it’s another match which is fine on its own, though it feels like it could have been on any given show rather than one of the last ones on the way to Supercard Of Honor. That being said, I do like Austin quite a bit and I could go for seeing him doing something somewhere. I’d even take him going for the Tag Team Titles around here, for whatever that’s worth.

We look at Persephone getting injured, meaning she’s out of Supercard Of Honor.

Zayda Steel is ready to face Hyan for the final spot in Survival Of The Fittest next week.

Maya World gives Hyan a pep talk. They’re both ready to beat Athena and everyone else.

Action Andretti vs. Nathan Cruz

They fight over wrist control to start before running the ropes, with Andretti snapping off a headscissors. A dropkick gives Andretti two but Cruz is back with a double arm crank. That’s broken up and Andretti sends him outside for an Asai moonsault. Back up and Cruz snaps him throat first across the top, followed by a Samoan driver for two. Cruz takes way too long going up though and here is Lio Rush, looking normal, for a distraction. Andretti hits a super Spanish Fly, followed by a torture rack neckbreaker for the pin at 5:30.

Rating: C+. They were going as fast as they could here and that made for an entertaining match. At the same time, I really could go for not having to see Cru be a thing again. They weren’t exactly an interesting team and they didn’t make much of an impact, but apparently they might be back together. Granted I’ll take it over “LIO RUSH IS SO TOTALLY WEIRD!”

Bustah And The Brain vs. Frat House

The House jumps them to start fast with a running boot to the face getting two on Price. A double belly to back suplex gets two more but Price flips over them for the tag off to Oliver. Everything breaks down and the House is in trouble, only for the rest of the House to get up on the apron. Garrison takes over on Price but Oliver is back in to beat Karter down. A belly to back suplex/top rope elbow combination gives Oliver the pin at 3:44.

Rating: C+. As usual, Bustah And The Brain are a fun team but they don’t really do much that makes them stand out from others around here. That being said, at least they’re actually around on occasion, as we’re over two months removed since we last saw the Tag Team Titles defended. The House was their usual selves, meaning they were in fact there.

Colons/Spanish Announce Project vs. Better Together/Alexander Lev/Hunter James

Angelico and Gold start things off and it’s an assisted backbreaker, allowing Serpentico to grab an armbar. Orlando adds a slingshot hilo for two but Better Together gives him a double basement dropkick. Better Together get in a hug and crank on Orlando’s arms for two more. James and Eddie come in with Eddie getting in a Figure Four. That’s broken up as everything breaks down. Serpentico hits a suicide dive and Lev gets caught in a Backstabber into a frog splash for the pin at 5:22.

Rating: C. So are we moving towards eight man titles? I have no idea why we would need to see something like this in multiple weeks. It’s the kind of match that doesn’t really do much other than stretching the show out, which certainly wouldn’t surprise me either. The Colons and the Project work well enough together but….it’s the Colons and the Project.

Action Andretti isn’t sure what is going on with Lio Rush and has no answers at the moment.

Main Man Oro/Kiran Grey vs. Premiere Athletes

Daivari and Oro fight over a hammerlock to start before the Athletes take over with double teaming. Mark Sterling and Stori Denali offer a distraction though and Grey gets caught in the Tree Of Woe. That lets Nese kick away at his ribs but it’s back to Oro to clean house. Nese’s pumphandle slam is broken up but the Athletes give Oro a DDT/Big Ending combination for the pin at 4:45.

Rating: C. Hokey smoke can we please see something interesting on this show? This was just another tag match between a team who is doing nothing important and a team who was thrown out there to lose. The Athletes aren’t going to do anything and if they do, it isn’t likely going to matter, as has been the case since they debuted.

Caprice Coleman sits down with the Lethal Twist, with Jay Lethal saying that the team asked him to join them to light a fire under him. It turns out they needed him more, with Coleman asking about Lethal betraying Jeff Jarrett and company. Lethal mocks him for bringing it up and saying Blake Christian is coming for the World Title.

Coleman asks if Lethal gets the first title shot if Christian wins…and Lethal Twist leave. Christian didn’t say anything. Good grief this is actually getting worse. Bandido can’t even be bothered to show up and Christian doesn’t wrestle or talk. Either build the match or just let the Premiere Athletes and Workhorsemen go out there and do their thing for 30 minutes instead, as they seem to be more important than the World Title.

Rachael Ellering vs. Red Velvet

Non-title Proving Ground match. Ellering powers her down to start and then hits a gutwrench suplex. Back up and Velvet sends her throat first into the rope for a running crotch attack. A standing moonsault misses, allowing Ellering to hit a running backsplash. Ellering’s spinebuster gets two more and the Boss Woman Slam drops Velvet for the same. Velvet blocks another Slam though and hits a left hand, followed by the spinning kick to the head for the pin at 5:18.

Rating: C. I guess that’s a step up, though I’m almost scared to see who is going to get the random title shot against Velvet. That’s how so many of these titles tend to go and odds are it’s going to go that way again for the pay per view. Ellering got in more offense than usual here, though at the end of the day, you know what you’re going to get with her in the end.

Post match it’s announced that Velvet will be defending against…Viva Van. OH COME ON! Last week Van won her first match in Ring Of Honor in almost THREE YEARS and now she gets a title shot on pay per view. Forget everyone else who has been winning matches and building up momentum because this is the best we’ve got. Geez if you absolutely have to, send someone from AEW down here to challenge instead. It would at least make more sense. This place can be another level of dumb when the pay per views come around.

Video on Blake Christian vs. Bandido. Well that’s nice of them.

Tommy Billington/Adam Priest vs. Grizzled Young Veterans

Gibson powers Billington down to start until Billington reverses into a wristlock. Drake comes in for a hard running shoulder but Billington brings Priest in for a double elbow. A double suplex puts Drake down for two and it’s a belly to back suplex into a slingshot hilo. Drake’s forearms out of the corner just annoy Priest but Gibson gets in a cheap shot to put him down. Drake puts on a sleeper so Priest suplexes his way out. The chinlock doesn’t last long as Priest is back up with a swinging neckbreaker.

Billington comes back in to wreck the Veterans, including a crossface to Drake. That’s broken up and Priest and Billington hit stereo dives to the floor. Back in and they knock each other down until Priest and Billington grab stereo submissions. Those are broken up and Gibson and Billington go to the floor. The other two clothesline each other but Gibson is back in for a Doomsday Device for two on Priest. Billington is back in to crossface Gibson, leaving Priest to roll Drake up (with trunks) for the pin at 13:43.

Rating: B. This was easily the best match on the show, though it still feels like a match between two teams who are there to fill in spots on the roster. In other words, it’s the exact same thing that has been happening up and down the show. Billington and Priest do feel a bit more important than some, but maybe give them something to do that matters? And soon?

MxM TV vs. Rascalz

Mansoor and Reed start things off with Reed shouldering him down, allowing Mansoor to, eventually, nip up. Wentz comes in for a jumping double stomp to the back and it’s off to Xavier, who gets caught in the wrong corner. That doesn’t last long as it’s back to Reed, who scores with a dropkick to the back. Reed gets sent outside though and caught in a choke, followed by TV’s chinlock back inside.

A Flying Chuck into a German suplex puts Reed down for two and the Collection hits a side slam/legdrop combination for the same. TV and Madden go high/low for two but Reed jawbreaks TV away. That and a Stundog Millionaire allow the tag to Wentz so house can be cleaned. Everything breaks down and Reed is catapulted into a swinging Boss Man Slam. Madden gets poked in the eyes and chokeslams Mansoor by mistake so a triple superkick puts him down. The Swanton into the 450 into the Spiral Tap finishes Mansoor at 9:49.

Rating: B-. This was at least somewhat different as it was a six man tag instead of yet another two on two tag match. MxM continues to be funny enough in defeat and it’s not like anyone is going to take them seriously. It would be nice to have this set up a Six Man Title match and it still may, even with no mention of it here.

Oh and if this, next week’s show and next week’s pay per view aren’t enough for you, we get a special show on Tuesday. Because MORE MEANS BETTER!

Overall Rating: C-. I do not remember the last time I was so uninterested in a show. Supercard Of Honor is next week and the majority of this show feels like it has nothing to do with the card. Most of the people on here aren’t currently set for the pay per view (two people who wrestled here currently have matches, one of which was announced after she wrestled this week) and odds are the majority of them won’t be.

This place continues to feel like there is almost no planning done in advance and my goodness it gets frustrating. If you want to me to watch the pay per view, could you just try to make me care in the slightest? As usual, the wrestling was fine, assuming you ignore it having pretty much no consequences whatsoever.

Results
Eddie Kingston/Ortiz b. Infantry – Rollup to Dean
Josh Woods b. Beef – Leglock
Bang Bang Gang b. Workhorsemen – Forward DDT to Drake
Action Andretti b. Nathan Cruz – Torture rack neckbreaker
Bustah And The Brain b. Frat House – Belly to back suplex/top rope elbow combination to Karter
Colons/Spanish Announce Project b. Better Together/Alexander Lev/Hunter Jones – Frog splash to Lev
Premiere Athletes b. Main Man Oro/Kiran Grey – Big Ending/DDT combination to Oro
Red Velvet b. Rachael Ellering – Spinning kick to the head
Tommy Billington/Adam Priest b. Grizzled Young Veterans – Rollup with trunks to Drake
Rascalz b. MxM TV – Spiral Tap to Mansoor

 

 

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 – April 23, 2026: Sync Up

Ring Of Honor
Date: April 23, 2026
Location: WJCT Studios, Jacksonville, Florida
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

Last week was a big one as we actually had some qualifying matches for Supercard Of Honor. The show is in less than a month and I’m wondering what we’re going to get on the way there. Multiple title matches are already set and that’s a bit out of the ordinary for this place. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Brandon Cutler/Angelica Risk/Terry Kid vs. Premiere Athletes

Denali and Risk start things off, with only about a foot of size difference. Risk gets pulled down with ease and forearmed in the corner, followed by the knees to the ribs. It’s quickly off to Cutler to strike away on Daivari, including a springboard crossbody. The men fight out to the floor, leaving Denali to chokeslam Risk for the pin at 2:35. Of all of the Athletes’ six person tags that I’ve seen, this was the most recent.

Mark Davis vs. Beef

Beef grabs a headlock to start and knocks Davis out to the floor with a running shoulder. Davis fires off the chops and knocks Beef off the apron, where he sits on Beef’s chest for a unique crash. Back in and Davis chops away some more but Beef scores with a dropkick. Beef strikes away, only to charge into a German suplex.

The big clothesline puts Davis down again but he catches Beef on top with a superplex. The running forearm connects in the corner for two but Beef reverses the piledriver attempt into a rollup for two of his own. Davis chops him down but still can’t hit the piledriver, allowing Beef to hit a belly to back suplex. The Swan Dive misses though and Davis hits a big clothesline for the pin at 7:22.

Rating: C+. So to recap: last night on Dynamite, Davis beat Will Ospreay, the resident AEW superhero, but here he went move for move with freaking BEEF and couldn’t even hit his finisher. Now in theory, since this show is taped in advance and this match advances nothing for either of them, one might think it could have been cut or aired at another time, but nah. Instead it NEEDED to air here because no one pays attention to this show so doing something dumb is fine.

We look at Johnny TV losing his hair in CMLL about two months ago. He’s appeared without his hair in ROH since then so….why are we seeing this?

MxM TV vs. Main Man Oro/Keagan Garland/Angel Fashion

Garland is the son of Scotty 2 Hotty. Fashion and TV start things off with the latter knocking Fashion into the corner to hammer away. Oro comes in to kick Mansoor in the head and Garland comes in to run the ropes. A Hart Attack (leg lariat version) puts Garland down, with Mansoor yelling that he just beat up Scotty’s son. An Alabama slam lets the villains pose but Fashion and Oro break it up.

Garland pounds on Madden in the corner but Madden walks out to hit a powerbomb/double chokeslam at the other two (ok that was nice). TV hits a suicide dive onto all of them but Garland ducks the Flying Chuck. The Worm almost connects but Madden cuts it off at the last second. The Glossy Centerfold finishes Garland at 3:58.

Rating: C. I was worried this was going to go even longer but this was more “hey Scotty 2 Hotty’s son is wrestling”, which was a nice little bonus. You can definitely see the resemblance and while it’s too early to tell how it’s going to go, it’s nice to see Garland getting a shot. Other than that, MxM TV is exactly what they have always been.

We look back at Lee Moriarty beating Marshall Von Erich to retain the Pure Wrestling Title last week.

Caprice Coleman sits down with Moriarty and asks him about being all honorable and then part of Shane Taylor Promotions. Moriarty says he’s the best Pure Wrestler in the world and it’s him being himself. He and Shane Taylor won’t always get along but they work well together. Moriarty is also apparently a talented painter and says it’s similar to being an artist in the ring.

On one hand, I definitely do appreciate these interviews as ANYTHING giving these people some more personality is a good idea, but my goodness maybe build up some people to take the title from him? Or just drop the title altogether because it stopped feeling important years ago?

Diamante vs. Rachael Ellering

Pure Rules. They fight over wrist continue to start and the threat of a Fujiwara armbar sends Ellering straight to the rope. An ankle lock sends Ellering to the ropes again so Diamante starts working on the leg (why Ellering being in the corner doesn’t count as a rope break isn’t clear). Another ankle lock means Ellering is out of rope breaks but she comes back with a big clothesline. Diamante is right back with a top rope double stomp to the back, setting up another ankle lock to make Ellering tap at 5:34.

Rating: C-. Yeah wow that was thrilling. Someone burned off their rope breaks and then gave up. This felt like someone playing No Mercy and wanting to get through Championship Mode while using the same hold to get a submission. That might make for a logical path and match under these rules, but dang it doesn’t make for much in the way of excitement.

Frat House vs. Colons/Spanish Announce Project

Orlando backs Garrison into the corner and it’s off to Eddie for a quick dropkick. It’s off to Karter, who gets hit with a slingshot crossbody into a backbreaker. Angelico comes in to hiptoss Serpentico onto Karter but he knocks Serpentico into the corner to take over. Garrison grabs a suplex DDT on Serpentico but misses a top rope backsplash (making him lose his hat).

Serpentico Dudley Dogs Vance and Angelico comes back in to clean house. Everything breaks down and Garrison’s torture rack powerbomb gets two. Coleman says that he’s finishes a lot of people with that move. I’d love for Coleman to name say….three. Angelico and Serpentico get stereo holds on Jameson and Vance for the double tap at 7:25.

Rating: C+. This was a very Ring Of Honor match, as it featured people who pretty much don’t work on any other shows in any meaningful ways and wrestled the same match they have almost every time they’re on this show. None of these wrestlers have moved up or down the card in months and that is likely going to be there case for the next several months. The match was perfectly acceptable wrestling but it changes nothing. The problem with Ring Of Honor is that a lot of their shows are comprised of that exact same kind of match. It can get exhausting in a hurry and that is definitely happening here.

Billie Starkz vs. Hyan

They fight over a test of strength to start and Starkz bites her hand to escape. Starkz misses a charge though and gets knocked to the floor, where she sends Hyan crashing into the barricade. Back in and Starkz strikes away in the corner, though Hyan does manage a sunset flip for two.

A belly to back suplex gets two more and Hyan takes her up top for a superplex, followed by a falcon arrow for the same. They go to a pinfall reversal sequence for two each until Starkz Alabama Slams her into the corner. The Swanton only gives Starkz two as she pulls Hyan up. Instead it’s the pancake to finish Hyan at 9:15.

Rating: B-. Hyan has come a long way since her debut around here and it’s nice to see someone developed like that. At the same time, it was nice to see Starkz get a win, even if she is still only so much of a star. Granted a lot of that is due to having Athena dominate the division for such a long time and making everyone else look secondary.

Survival Of The Fittest rundown.

Swirl vs. Adam Priest/Tommy Billington

Tornado Tag and at least this has been a feud for a good while now. It’s a brawl to start fast with Johnson getting slammed on the floor and Christian, still in his robe, getting beaten up inside. The Swirl fights back by sending Priest into the steps, allowing Christian to hit a Blockbuster off the steps.

Back in and Billington gets double teamed, including in the Tree Of Woe. Priest is knocked to the floor again and Billington gets beaten down in the corner again. A chair is brought in and a running shot to the head knocks Billington silly for two. Billington fights back though and manages to load Johnson up in a Tombstone, with Priest coming off the top to spike him down (with a sick sound) for two.

Christian’s handspring kick to the face hits Johnson for two and Priest drops Johnson with a DDT. They go to the corner for a Tower Of Doom with a super Spanish Fly off the top for an even bigger crash. The Swirl wins a chop off but Priest clotheslines both of them down. The top rope elbow only hits chair though and the top rope double stomp/Death Valley Driver combination finishes Priest (Johnson gets the pin of course) at 12:03.

Rating: B. This was by far the best match on the show and it felt like it was the culmination of a big feud. It also boosts up the Swirl as a team, which is a good idea. Of course it isn’t as good of an idea as having Christian wrestling some singles matches (he hasn’t had one since December) to build him up for his World Title match in less than a month or talking about it or something. But insert complaints about Ring Of Honor being a disaster here.

Overall Rating: C+. While it’s hardly a big surprise, it’s becoming more and more obvious that this stuff is thrown together with the important matches being added later. That’s fine enough, but it also feels like the regular matches are made without any connection to the bigger matches. It makes these shows very frustrating as the wrestling is fine, but it feels completely disconnected from what is being talked about and promoted. In other words, PUT SOME EFFORT INTO THIS THING ALREADY!

Results
Premiere Athlete b. Brandon Cutler/Angelica Risk/Terry Kid – Chokeslam to Risk
Mark Davis b. Beef – Clothesline
MxM TV b. Main Man Oro/Keagan Garland/Angel Fashion – Glossy Centerfold to Garland
Diamante b. Rachael Ellering – Ankle lock
Colons/Spanish Announce Project b. Frat House – Double submission
Billie Starkz b. Hyan – Pancake
Swirl b. Tommy Billington/Adam Priest – Top rope double stomp/Death Valley Driver to Priest

 

 

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 – April 17, 2026: Pick Your Reason

Ring Of Honor
Date: April 17, 2026
Location: WJCT Studios, Jacksonville, Florida
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

We’re on a Friday this time as Collision was in the usual Ring Of Honor spot. In this case that probably doesn’t mean much, though Supercard Of Honor is in about a month and it’s time to start getting some matches together. That would be nice to see, though this place hardly works on a traditional schedule. Let’s get to it.

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

The opening video looks at the Women’s Survival Of The Fittest at Supercard Of Honor, with qualifying matches tonight. Well at least that’s something.

Opening sequence.

Survival Of The Fittest Qualifying Match: Lacey Lane vs. Billie Starkz

Athena is here with Starkz. An early armdrag sends Starkz outside, with Lane superkicking her from the apron and hitting a crossbody. On the way back in, Starkz plants her on the apron though and they head back inside with Starkz looking cocky. Some hair mares have Lane down but it’s way too early for the Swanton.

Lane rolls away and hits a basement superkick for two but Starkz has a knee injury. A fake injury that is but an injury nonetheless. Starkz slams her into a Swanton for two, with Lane reversing into a rollup for two of her own. A suplex gives Lane two and a neckbreaker connects for the same. Another exchange of rollups gets some near falls until Starks knees her in the chest and grabs a pancake for the pin at 7:27.

Rating: C+. I still don’t get the appeal behind Starkz but it makes sense to have her in the match. At the same time, it’s rather annoying because Lane was looking rather awesome in this one. She has a certain confidence to her style and it works well when she’s in the ring. It would be nice if they could both go, or if Starkz could be a bit more interesting.

Survival Of The Fittest Qualifying Match: Yuka Sakazaki vs. Viva Van

Van grabs a headlock to start and easily wins a battle of the shoulders. Sakazaki avoids a charge to send her outside though and hits the dive to take over. Back in and Van gets painful with a dragon screw legwhip before working on the knee. One heck of a Boston crab sends Sakazaki over to the ropes but she’s able to kick Van down. A basement clothesline drops Van again but she’s right back with a spinning kick. Van’s flipping kick to the head gets two so Sakazaki nails her with a discus forearm. The spinning slam and Magical Girl Splash finish Van at 7:10.

Rating: C. Well at least her knee healed up so fast. This was one of those matches with zero drama about who was going to win so Van working on the knee was a nice enough story. At the same time, it really doesn’t matter if Sakazaki shrugs it off and does her big moves to win in the end anyway.

We look back at Ace Austin pinning Carly Bravo last week in an eight man tag. Naturally, this leads to the following.

Pure Rules Title: Marshall Von Erich vs. Lee Moriarty

Von Erich is challenging in his first singles match in ROH and commentary makes it clear that the eight man tag set this up. I’m sure there’s a logic in there somewhere but please don’t explain it to me as I don’t want my mind working that way. Moriarty grabs a hammerlock to start and Von Erich uses his first rope break less than fifty seconds in. Back up and Von Erich hits a dropkick to try the Claw, causing Moriarty to use his first break

Moriarty works on the arm and even bends the fingers to try and take the Claw away. Von Erich burns another rope break and hits a running corner clothesline to take over for a change. There’s a cannonball for two but Moriarty Saito suplexes him for the same. The Border City Stretch goes on and there’s Von Erich’s last rope break. The Claw goes on but Moriarty pulls him into the ropes and grabs a triangle choke to retain at 6:51.

Rating: C+. Well that was quite the side trip. Von Erich, who isn’t a singles wrestler and is barely a tag wrestler, lost his title shot which was set up when his partner pinned someone other than the champion. This is an example of something that was thrown out there in an attempt to give the match a story and it didn’t work because it made no sense. This stuff really shouldn’t be that hard and yet…well you make sense of it.

Josh Woods is bored with the lack of competition so it’s an open challenge for a Pure Rules match as he tries to get to the Pure Rules Title. So, to recap, Woods wins a streak of Pure Rules matches but can’t get another title shot while Von Erich….you know what, never mind. It’s so dumb at this point I’m not even going to waste my time.

Survival Of The Fittest Qualifying Match: Hyan vs. Trish Adora

Christian XO is here with Adora. They fight over a lockup to start with Adora backing her into the corner. Hyan gets in a dropkick so Adora rolls outside, where Hyan scores with a dive. Back in and Hyan goes up top, only to get knocked down. XO gets in a cheap shot and Adora cranks on the arms (while sitting between them) back inside.

The weird kneeling stretch has Hyan in more trouble and her chops are cut off with a crank of the arm. Hyan gets up for a pump kick and a belly to back suplex for two. A spear drops Adora for two more but an Unprettier is blocked. Adora’s bridging German suplex (with that weird knee bend) sets up the Lariat Tubman to finish Hyan at 7:28.

Rating: C+. It was nice to have a match which could have gone either way, as Adora is someone who could knock anyone out but Hyan has been near the title for a little while now. I could go for some more of Hyan getting a chance, while Adora making the match is fine enough. Another perfectly fine match, though at least it had some drama about the result.

Survival Of The Fittest Qualifying Match: Isla Dawn vs. Persephone

Persephone’s CMLL Women’s Title isn’t on the line. They fight over a lockup to start with neither getting very far so they break it off. Persephone snaps off a running headscissors but Dawn is back with a running shoulder for a knockdown. Dawn hits a Backstabber and starts in on the leg in the corner, followed by a Saito suplex.

The chinlock goes on but Persephone fights up, only to get blasted with a clothesline. Persephone fights out of a cobra clutch, followed by a fall away slam to put Dawn down for a change. A middle rope moonsault misses though and Dawn gets something close to a dragon sleeper. Persephone manages to spin around and get on top for the pin at 8:16.

Rating: B-. This was a better match with Dawn mostly escaping with the win, which made for a good result. Persephone is on fire at the moment and it wouldn’t shock me to see her win the title at Supercard Of Honor. As a result, she wasn’t about to lose here but at least she had to work hard to get there.

Nick Wayne, Mother Wayne and Kip Sabian (who still has a job) sat down with Caprice Coleman to talk about Nick going to compete in the Best Of The Super Juniors. He was gone for eight months, came back for like six weeks, and is leaving for a Japanese tournament??? Good grief. Well, granted it’s not like the title is going to be missed anyway.

TV Title: Evil Uno vs. Nick Wayne

Uno is getting this title shot due to his success in Mystery Wrestling, Maple Leaf Wrestling and Ring Of Honor. Dang it. Hang on. Uno’s record in:

Mystery Wrestling – 2-6 (with his one singles win coming in 2019)
Maple Leaf Pro – 3-1 (his one singles win was in October)
Ring Of Honor (this year) – 0-5 (all in tag matches, with his last singles win coming in 2014)

Three promotions, one with a winning record and most of that was in tag matches. But sure, let’s do this. Uno backs him into the corner to start and Wayne hides in the ropes for a bit. Wayne grabs a headlock and snapmares him down but Uno sends him outside for a hug from Mother. Uno runs him over and they go back inside for some corner clotheslines. Wayne goes back to the arm and hits it with a top rope double stomp.

Some less than respectful slaps to the head wake Uno up a bit but Wayne is right back on the arm. A jumping neckbreaker gets Uno out of trouble and he DDTs Wayne for two. The piledriver gets two but Wayne is right back with a standing Sliced Bread for the same. Wayne’s Kimura sends Uno over to the rope and it’s a Last Shot to rock Wayne for a change. Back up and Wayne kicks him in the head for the pin to retain at 10:13.

Rating: B-. They had a better match than I was expecting as Wayne is starting to look more polished in the ring. That’s a good sign for his future, as he could be a bigger deal in the future. At the same time, I have completely given up trying to figure out how title matches work around here and apparently the promotion has too. Apparently I now need to follow two other promotions (minimum) to get why matches are taking place here, though it doesn’t seem like ROH has any idea how math works anyway.

Post match Wayne says it’s his world and you’re just living in it. AR Fox comes out and has a staredown with Wayne. Now that at least makes a bit of sense.

AR Fox vs. Daisuke Sasaki

Sasaki shoulders him down to start and tries an early crossface, with Fox slipping out. Fox kicks him to the apron for the running flipping stomp but Sasaki twists the leg around in the corner. More leg cranking sets up a kneebar and Fox makes it over to the rope. Back up and Fox rolls over for a suplex and they’re both down for a bit. Fox elbows and kicks away, setting up the basement cutter.

A rolling cutter gives Fox two but a 450 misses. Sasaki is back on the leg and DDT has Fox in more trouble. The crossface almost makes Fox tap, with his foot having to reach the rope. Sasaki goes for the arm again but gets pulled into a cutter to send him outside. Fox hits a big dive and hangs him in the corner for a slingshot Canadian Destroyer and the pin at 9:37.

Rating: B. The more I see from Fox, the more I appreciate how unique he really is. He’s able to make things look different than anyone else and while he is a good example of a moves guy, he’s able to do it so smoothly that it’s fun to watch. Let him into the TV Title picture or just have him beat Wayne for the title already.

Nigel McGuinness will face Josh Woods at Supercard Of Honor. Is it just me or are the same three or four people fighting for the title for years?

Supercard Of Honor rundown, with Bandido vs. Blake Christian for the World Title FINALLY being set.

Christian says it should have always been his title shot. Well yeah.

Aaron Solo/QT Marshall/Nick Comoroto vs. Lethal Twist

The Twist jumps them to start fast with Lethal being left alone against Comoroto. That earns Lethal a quick gorilla press as Lethal is in early trouble. Solo comes in to chop away at Lethal but gets knocked into the corner for some stomping. It’s off to Johnson to kick at Solo before Lethal is back in to work on the leg.

Johnson’s stalling suplex gets two but Solo manages to crotch Lethal and Johnson on the top rope. Christian can’t cut off the tag and it’s Marshall coming in to fight back. Everything breaks down and Solo gets dropkicked in the Tree Of Woe. Comoroto gets struck down and it’s the double stomp/Death Valley Driver combination to finish him off at 8:52.

Rating: C+. Maybe it’s the old school fan in me but maybe the it would make more sense to have the #1 contender for the World Title in a singles match rather than yet another six man tag against low level competition. I don’t know, like, building him up for the title match? Maybe? Just a thought of course.

We look at Maya World almost beating Athena for the Women’s Title three weeks ago.

Survival Of The Fittest Qualifying Match: Maya World vs. Robyn Renegade

World works on a headlock to start and they trade wristlocks for an early standoff. Renegade knocks her down but misses a pump kick in the corner, allowing World to snap off an anklescissors. A snap suplex gives World two but Renegade superkicks her off the ropes and out to the floor.

Back in and a dropkick gives Renegade two but World blocks a kick and gives her a German suplex. World’s dropkick gets two, only for Renegade to stomp her onto the apron. The twisting suplex gives Renegade two and she goes up, where a slip causes her to miss a moonsault. World’s Shining Wizard is enough for the pin at 8:54.

Rating: B-. There wasn’t exactly much drama to this one as World has been around the title picture for awhile now and Renegade…well she hasn’t. That being said, it felt like Renegade was giving it all she had here and they wound up having a nice back and forth match. World is getting better every week, though it isn’t going to matter if she doesn’t win something eventually.

Zayda Steel vs. Athena

Non-title Proving Ground match. Steel’s headlock takeover is countered into a headscissors so Athena grabs a headlock of her own. That actually sends Steel over to the rope, followed by a running headscissors. A fireman’s carry doesn’t work for Athena as Steel armdrags her down but gets sent outside. Athena nails a dive and it’s time to start slowing things down a bit. A dropkick cuts Steel off again and Athena drives some knees into the back.

The standing crossface has Steel in more trouble but she elbows her way out of the corner. There’s a neckbreaker to drop Athena and Steel rolls a kick into the head for two more. Athena pops back up with a superkick into a tiger suplex but the O Face is broken up. A tornado DDT gives Steel two but another attempt is countered into a kind of Boss Man Slam. The reverse Koji Clutch makes Steel tap at 9:34.

Rating: B-. Well thank goodness they tacked this on because Steel hadn’t lost a match in long enough. She’s the latest in the “well yeah she’s losing a lot but she’s losing to big names so it’s ok”, which has worked….maybe a few times? Anyway, this was another hard fought match with Athena getting close to being in trouble but Steel doesn’t win big matches so it wasn’t going to happen.

Overall Rating: C+. While I liked that this show had a theme with the qualifying matches, it’s a glaring example of how little sense this whole place makes. Continuing with the theme of earning title shots, you had people either trying to get title shots or earning title shots on this show. This week saw:

• Marshall Von Erich gets a shot because his partner pinned someone who wasn’t the champion
• Evil Uno gets a shot because of his success in other promotions
• Five women get a shot because they won qualifying matches
• Josh Woods trying to get a title shot because the matches he’s won don’t count
• Blake Christian gets a shot because he should have had a one on one title shot even though he hasn’t won a singles match since December

This is what I’m talking about when I say it’s like they make things up as they go around here. The rules change depending on whomever is going after a title because it’s like no one remembers anything that happened more than five minutes ago. I get that Ring Of Honor isn’t a promotion or anything close to one, but I should be able to figure out what is going on and how it makes sense in the span of a two hour (because THIS SHOW needs to be that long) broadcast.

Results
Billie Starkz b. Lacey Lance – Pancake
Yuka Sakazaki b. Viva Van – Magical Girl Splash
Lee Moriarty b. Marshall Von Erich – Triangle choke
Trish Adora b. Hyan – Lariat Tubman
Persephone b. Isla Dawn – Rollup
Nick Wayne b. Evil Uno – Kick to the head
AR Fox b. Daisuke Sasaki – Slingshot Canadian Destroyer
Lethal Twist b. QT Marshall/Aaron Solo/Nick Comoroto – Death Valley Driver/top rope double stomp combination to Comoroto
Maya World b. Robyn Renegade – Shining Wizard
Athena b. Zayda Steel – Reverse Koji Clutch

 

 

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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AEW Dynasty 2026: Bold Choice

Dynasty 2026
Date: April 12, 2026
Location: Rogers Arena, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Commentators: Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Nigel McGuinness

We’re back on pay per view for what doesn’t feel like the biggest show. That’s been the case before though and things have wound up going rather well so maybe they have another one up their sleeves here. The main event is MJF defending the World Title against Kenny Omega so let’s get to it.

Zero Hour: Alex Windsor vs. Marina Shafir

Windsor’s New Japan Strong Women’s Title isn’t on the line. They go right to the slugout to start with Windsor taking her down. Shafir can’t get the armbar all the way in but there’s enough damage to put Windsor in trouble. Another armbar on the ropes sends Windsor outside and Shafir sends her hard into the barricade. Back in and a judo throw takes Windsor down and Shafir steps on her face, which has the fans rather upset.

A whip into the corner has Windsor in more trouble but she manages to send Shafir outside for a breather. Shafir gets back inside and is shouldered down a few times but blocks a Sharpshooter attempt. Back up and another armbar has Windsor in trouble and they strike it out again. A kick to the face puts Windsor down and they get a double breather. Windsor tells her to bring it before grabbing….call it a t-bone DDT for the pin on Shafir at 8:42.

Rating: C+. This was almost a squash until Shafir came out of nowhere with the surprise pin. I do like Windsor winning here though, as Shafir is kind of locked into her spot as one of the Death Riders’ enforcers and doesn’t really need to win anything. On the other hand you have Windsor, who could be turned into a title contender pretty quickly if need be. I’m not sure why this was on the pre-show, as it had enough of a story to be a main roster match, but they got the result right.

Zero Hour: Kamille vs. Big Anne

So Kamille attacked Willow Nightingale and ruined the open challenge for the TBS Title so she gets this instead, ending her 500+ day hiatus from AEW. Kamille stomps away in the corner and hits a pump kick, followed by a torture rack powerbomb for the fast pin at 1:25 to complete the squash. Cool. Now do something with her.

Post match a taped up Nightingale comes in and gets beaten up again.

National Title: Mark Davis vs. Jack Perry

Perry is defending. Davis throws him down to start and knocks Perry’s flying shoulder out of the air. Back up and Perry dropkicks him to the floor but Davis grabs a dive out of the air. That’s escaped as well and Perry hits a quick 619 around the post. They get back inside, with Perry getting knocked back into the corner for a running elbow and backsplash to give Davis two. The chinlock goes on but Perry is right back up to low bridge him to the floor.

Perry grabs a Sliced Bread out of the corner but can’t grab a piledriver. Instead Davis sends him to the apron for a big running shoulder and a suplex slam drops him onto the apron. The piledriver is broken up back inside though, with Perry eventually swinging around into a DDT. Perry hits his own piledriver for two but Davis is back with an enziguri. A quick hurricanrana is enough for Perry to retain the title at 8:30.

Rating: B. I liked this one way more than I was expecting to, as they told a good story out there. It was Perry in over his head physically so he had to pick some shots where he could. That wound up working well, partially because Davis is becoming pretty awesome at being a powerhouse. Good stuff here and a rather nice surprise.

Zero Hour: Women’s Tag Team Titles: Hyan/Maya World vs. Megan Bayne/Lena Kross

Kross and Bayne are defending and Kross knocks World down to start. World pops right back up and brings in Hyan to face Bayne. A hurricanrana out of the corner takes Bayne down but she knocks both of them outside without much trouble. Bayne’s suplex sets up a basement crossbody for two and some running pump kicks in the corner drop Hyan for two. Hyan manages to low bridge Bayne to the floor but it’s still not enough for the tag.

Bayne misses a charge into the post though and it’s back to World to pick up the pace on Kross. Everything breaks down and a running knee into a neckbreaker drops Kross for two. That doesn’t last long as Kross kicks her way out of trouble and Bayne fall away slam/Samoan drops the challengers. The double chokeslam is broken up and World is back with a double DDT. Hyan dives onto the floor and World adds a moonsault onto both villains. A TKO gets two on Kross but Bayne boots World into a German suplex. The double chokeslam retains the titles at 10:38.

Rating: B-. The champs had to break a sweat here and I’ll take that as a nice surprise. Hyan and World aren’t a successful team and were little more than cannon fodder here but at least the action wound up being good. I’m not sure who is going to take the titles from Kross and Bayne, but this was closer than I was expecting.

And now, the show proper.

Konosuke Takeshita/Kazuchika Okada vs. Young Bucks

Don Callis is on commentary. Takeshita shoulders Nick down to start so it’s off to Okada, who shakes Takeshita’s hand on the way in. Okada’s slingshot hilo connects but Nick is up with the springboard wristdrag/armdrag combination. Matt comes in to sunset flip Nick, who German suplexes Takeshita at the same time. The TK Driver is loaded up but Nick headfakes Okada into missing a dropkick in a funny spot.

Matt gets knocked down and Takeshita grabs a chinlock, leaving Callis to call for getting Matt’s eye (he’s offering money). Callis goes after Matt’s eye on the floor and Okada is over to pull Nick to the floor, meaning there’s no tag. That lets Okada grab the Bucks’ gear for some posing (Callis: “What a fiery young babyface!”) but Matt manages to knock both of them down. Nick comes in to make the rapid fire comeback and the fans certainly approve.

The Bucks are sent to the apron but come back with stereo sunset flips into Sharpshooters. That leaves Okada and Takeshita facing each other and slapping one another in the face rather than tapping. They eventually make the ropes so the Bucks take them down with the superkicks. A top rope elbow and Swanton get a double near fall but Okada breaks up another TK Driver attempt. The Family hit a Tombstone each and Matt gets sent flying with an overhead release German superplex.

Nick is back in for the save and everyone is down again. Okada is up with his falling top rope elbow to Nick but it’s a sunset flip into a German suplex to put everyone down again. Takeshita’s running knee drops both Bucks but he can’t cover as the fans are rather enthused. Back up and they slug it out until Okada hits Takeshita and they forearm each other.

Matt gets between them and then sends them into each other so Takeshita’s running knee hits Okada. Takeshita breaks up the BTE Trigger but Okada Rainmakers him by mistake. The BTE Trigger gets two on Okada…and Takeshita leaves him to take the TK Driver for the pin at 20:12.

Rating: B+. This got rather good and they were doing a nice job of tying the story between Takeshita and Okada into the match. There was only so much of a reason for these teams to fight so having the Family fighting among themselves (again) was a good idea. If nothing else, we might finally gets the Takeshita vs. Okada grudge match, which has been built for…ever?

Post match Takeshita leaves and Callis is livid.

We recap Chris Jericho vs. Ricochet. Jericho returned, Ricochet didn’t like it, the match was set.

Chris Jericho vs. Ricochet

The Gates Of Agony are here with Ricochet. Jericho takes him down to start fast and mocks Ricochet a bit, followed by his stolen camera deal. Ricochet flips into his pose and gets chopped down, setting up Jericho’s running bulldog. The Lionsault is shoved off though and the Death Valley Driver plants Jericho on the apron. Jericho is sent shoulder first into the post and Ricochet nails his slingshot dropkick in the corner.

The bad arm is bent around the ropes, with Liona getting in some pulling of his own. Ricochet cranks on the arm but Jericho gets back up to avoid a dropkick. Now the Lionsault connects but the Walls attempt is countered. A kick to the back lets Jericho try it again, only for Liona to offer a distraction so Kaun can send him into the corner. Jericho fights up and they slug it out from their knees but Ricochet grabs the Detonation Kick.

Vertigo gets two so Ricochet goes up and gets crotched back down almost immediately. Ricochet kicks him away and tries the shooting star press but gets Codebreakered out of the air for two instead. The Walls go on so of course the Gates get involved for the save. Jericho dives onto all three of them and hits a Judas Effect on Kaun. That doesn’t get rid of Liona though, who is right there with a running clothesline. Back in and Ricochet hits a shooting star press for two, followed by a Spirit Gun. That’s not enough for a cover though, as Ricochet adds a Lionsault for the pin at 19:12.

Rating: B. This had its moments and I was a bit surprised by the result, but I’m more worried about this being the high point for Jericho’s return. There is a good chance that he goes to find some new lackeys to help him deal with the Gates and that’s not the best sign for his future. It was a nice return and the fans liked it, though I’m worried about how long those good feelings are going to last.

We recap Darby Allin vs. Andrade El Idolo. Allin wants the World Title and MJF has paid the Don Callis Family to stop him. Therefore, if Allin wins here, he gets the title shot.

Darby Allin vs. Andrade El Idolo

Idolo powers him into the corner to start so Allin comes back with a rather aggressive headlock. That’s broken up rather quickly and Idolo pulls him into a surfboard to have Allin in some early pain. Idolo is up with the Tranquilo pose in the ropes so Allin gets smart by knocking him to the floor. A woman at ringside inspires Idolo to fight back and grab a suplex while walking Allin up the steps.

Now it’s time to meet said woman, allowing Allin to take him out with a dive. They fight into the crowd and go up the steps, with Allin dropkicking him back down. Allin throws him back inside (after three minutes and fifteen seconds on the outside because countouts are a thing of the past) and gets caught in the Three Amigos, with the third sending him into the corner. Andrade’s running knees miss though and Allin grabs the flipping Stunner. They go up top with Allin grabbing…some kind of a flipping slam into a crossface, which sends Idolo into the ropes.

Idolo heads back outside and gets caught with a suicide dive, though Allin hits the announcers’ table instead. A bite to the head has Idolo in more trouble and they slowly get back inside. Andrade goes to the apron and suplexes Allin to the floor, because of course he’ll take that bump.

Back in and the running knees hit Allin in the corner for two so Idolo takes his (I’ll let you guess whose) pants off. The double moonsault gets two on Allin but he’s back up with a Scorpion Death Drop out of the corner. The Coffin Drop gets two, with Idolo having to grab the referee’s arm. Back up and the spinning elbow gives Idolo two but Allin grabs a quick Last Supper for the pin at 16:33.

Rating: B. Allin seems to be on his way to the main event scene and that’s pretty overdue. There are very few wrestlers who get the same kinds of reactions as Allin and it was nice to see him not do a bunch of stupid stuff. Allin has the wrestling abilities to make something like this work and he did rather well here, though Idolo loses something without the pants.

We recap FTR vs. Adam Copeland/Christian Cage for the former’s Tag Team Titles. Copeland and FTR were really close but FTR turned on him, even attacking his wife. Copeland left for a bit and came back with Cage to reform their famous team to get revenge. And the titles. FTR did attack Cage’s arm on Dynamite so he’s coming in banged up.

Tag Team Titles: Adam Copeland/Christian Cage vs. FTR

FTR, with Stokely, is defending. Copeland and Wheeler won’t shake hands to start so the four way brawl is on. The Canadians take over and it’s a side slam/reverse DDT combination to put Harwood down. We settle back down but FTR takes over on Copeland anyway, with Harwood grabbing a chinlock. Wheeler misses a charge in the corner though and it’s off to Cage, who puts both champions in the ropes.

Cage stands on their back and a low blow cuts Harwood off. FTR is sent outside for a big dive out to the floor, which sets up the Unprettier for two as Wheeler makes the save. Cage’s arm is wrapped around the post and slammed into the post, followed by the seated armbar. The piledriver is broken up and Cage blocks the PowerPlex. A Swan Dive hits Harwood and it’s back to Copeland for the top rope clothesline.

Copeland and Cage load up a PowerPlex of their own but Cage’s splash hits knees. Harwood’s does as well though and we get stereo crossfaces on FTR. Those are broken up so Wheeler tries to bring in a title, which knocks Copeland silly. A 3D gets two on Harwood as Copeland is busted open. Stokely’s distraction sends Copeland running into the Shatter Machine, with Cage shoving Stokely into the cover for the save.

Copeland is back up with a spear for two and Cage goes to grab a chair. That earns him a posting and a toss over the announcers’ table, leaving Copeland to slug it out with FTR. That’s reversed into FTR’s version of the Young Bucks’ kicks, only for Copeland to spear both of them down. Back up and Copeland charges into the Shatter Machine to retain the titles at 21:05.

Rating: B. The match had the good moments you would expect as Copeland and Cage still have their chemistry together but having them lose here is quite the surprise. It felt like a layup to change the titles in the big moment for the Canadian fans but they went the other way instead. Copeland was the big star here, which isn’t a surprise, though Cage did look good in his return. FTR is still a heck of a team, but I’m not sure who is supposed to take the belts. As long as this doesn’t lead to another ladder match (it probably will), it should work out.

We recap the TNT Title match. Kyle Fletcher is injured, Casino Gauntlet match, end of recap.

TNT Title: Casino Gauntlet

For the vacant title with random intervals, first fall wins (can happen at any time so there is no guarantee of how many entrants you’ll get) and Tommaso Ciampa in at #1 and Rush in at #2. They slug it out to start and seem to enjoy an exchange of chops. Rush gets the better of things and knocks him into the corner for the cocky kick to the face. Ciampa is back up with a running knee in the corner and it’s Bandido in at #3.

Bandido starts fast with a running clip dive to Ciampa and a frog splash hits Rush, with Ciampa making the save. Rush is back up to throw Bandido down and go for the mask as Mike Bailey is in at #4. As usual, that means Bailey gets to clean house, with a running shooting star press hitting Ciampa for two. Rush chops Bailey down and El Clon is in at #5. Clon gets to fire off some kicks but we’re already up to Pac in at #6.

Pac’s corkscrew moonsault to the floor takes out a bunch of people and we get a Pac vs. Bandido vs. Bailey showdown. Hurricanranas abound and it’s Daniel Garcia in at #7. Garcia tries some fast rollups but gets superkicked by Clon for two. Anthony Bowens is in at #8 and gives Clon the running Fameasser. The wind up DDT out of the corner drops Pac for two and it’s Kevin Knight in at #9.

Jet Speed gets the better of the fight against the Death Riders and knock them to the floor for the stereo dives. Rush is back in to unload on Bowens in the corner and Bandido’s 21 Plex hits Garcia for a VERY close two. Wheeler Yuta is in at #10 and joins the pile, with Ciampa superplexing Knight onto a bunch of people. Pac throws Bailey back inside but Garcia is back with the Dragontamer to Bailey. Knight breaks that up with the UFO Splash and pins Garcia for the title at 21:21.

Rating: B. I love the result as Knight has felt like he has been ready to jump up to the next level for a long time now. Having him hopefully break out on his own is a good idea as we get to see where he’s going. At the same time, the match was fun but these things haven’t nearly reached the heights of the first editions. There were no surprising names here and it felt more like a big scramble, which isn’t quite as fun. Thankfully we aren’t seeing them as often, but throw a few curve balls in there next time.

We recap Jamie Hayter challenging Thekla for the Women’s Title. Thekla attacked Hayter when she arrived and now Hayter wants revenge.

Alex Windsor wishes Jamie Hayter luck.

Women’s Title: Thekla vs. Jamie Hayter

Thekla, with the Sisters Of Sin, is defending. Hayter slugs her down to start and hammers away but Thekla hits a quick spear to send Hayter outside. They trade right hands against the barricade with Hayter getting the better of things and trying a rather delayed suplex on the ramp.

She also tries one off the ramp but Thekla fights out and knocks Hayter down the ramp in a heap. Thekla’s big dive to the floor connects and a slap to the face drops Hayter again. The Black Widow is broken up as Hayter gets over to the rope so Thekla kicks her hard in the face. Hayter manages a suplex on the ramp and fires off some running clotheslines in the corner.

A Liger Bomb gives Hayter two and a Tombstone connects for the same. Hayter catches her up top with the spider suplex, followed by a top rope double stomp to the back. Hayter’s chokebreaker looks to set up the Hayterade but Thekla reverses into a rollup, while grabbing the rope, for the pin at 16:33.

Rating: B-. Another good one here, with Hayter feeling like just enough of a threat to take the title. That’s all this needed to be, as Hayter was little more than a filler on the way to the next really big challenger. I’m not sure who that is going to be, but Hayter is being built up rather well with these title defenses.

Post match Alex Windsor runs out and protests the rope hold but gets nowhere.

We recap Will Ospreay vs. Jon Moxley for the latter’s Continental Title. Moxley and the Death Riders hurt Ospreay’s neck so it’s time for more revenge.

Continental Title: Will Ospreay vs. Jon Moxley

Moxley is defending. The bell rings and Ospreay hits the Hidden Blade about a second later but doesn’t cover. Another Hidden Blade puts Moxley on the floor so Ospreay follows him for a hanging neckbreaker from the apron. Back in and Moxley tries a triangle choke, which is countered into a powerbomb. They head back outside with Ospreay loading up the steps but missing a running knee. Moxley snaps off a sleeper suplex back inside and things slow down a bit.

Back up and they slug it out before heading to the apron, where Ospreay takes over. Ospreay’s springboard is knocked out of the air though and they chop it out again. Ospreay tries a Spanish Fly but gets pulled into the bulldog choke. That’s broken up as well and Ospreay flips out of a belly to belly superplex. Some kicks to the face rock Moxley, who grabs a Paradigm Shift, only to get Hidden Bladed for a double down.

The referee almost gets bumped before Ospreay grabs a Styles Clash into a bulldog choke of his own. That’s broken up but Ospreay hits a third Hidden Blade, only to come out with his arm banged up. They head outside again, where Moxley hits a piledriver onto the steps. Ospreay beats the count so Moxley hits a Stomp and two Paradigm Shifts…for two. The Death Rider retains the title 18:12.

Rating: B. That ending is a bit of a surprise, but I’m assuming the idea here is that Ospreay was going too far after revenge and his body couldn’t hold up. That feels like more of a long term story, though it’s quite the move to have Ospreay lose here. Moxley is being built back up into the evil Superman and I’m not sure who is supposed to take the title from him. Either way, another good match.

Darby Allin is getting his World Title shot on Dynamite.

The Dogs won the Trios Titles last night on Collision. Now the Conglomeration wants the titles and have a mystery partner to come after them.

Trios Titles: Conglomeration/??? vs. The Dogs

The Dogs are defending but we cut to a Conglomeration sitcom set. Roderick Strong comes in (Orange Cassidy wants more sleep) but Kyle O’Reilly pop in to be the mystery partner. Makes sense. The Dogs break down the set and do various unpleasant things to the couch. O’Reilly takes Finlay down to start and sends him into the corner for the rapid fire kicks. Everything breaks down and the Conglomeration sends them outside to hit some dives.

The Dogs take over again and Cassidy gets sent into the corner as we settle down a bit. That doesn’t last long as Cassidy fights up and brings Strong in to clean house. Strong gets double teamed to put him in trouble but hang on as Kidd seems to be injured. The medics check on him as Strong fights up and hands it off to O’Reilly for the real comeback. The kicks abound and an ankle lock makes Connors tap the titles away at 9:50.

Rating: C+. This was fine and O’Reilly was a nice bonus (not the biggest surprise but that’s ok), though Kidd’s injury might have cut things short. Hopefully he’s ok as you never want to see someone get hurt, especially when the Dogs were finally starting to win a bit. The Conglomeration are fine as the new champions, as they’re certainly popular enough to hold the titles.

We recap MJF vs. Kenny Omega for the former’s World Title. MJF is the rather cocky champion and Omega wants the title back. Let’s go.

AEW World Title: Kenny Omega vs. Maxwell Jacob Friedman

Omega is challenging. They circle each other for a bit to start before MJF tries an early Salt Of The Earth. That’s reversed into a rollup for two and Omega scares him out to the floor (oh yeah they’re going long). Back in and Omega snaps off a hurricanrana to send MJF outside again, this time for a slingshot dive. MJF drops him onto the barricade but Omega moonsaults off of it for the knockdown. A table is stomped onto MJF but Omega takes too long setting up the table.

That lets MJF get in a knockdown and the chinlock goes on back inside. An Alabama slam gives MJF two so he fakes a knee injury and grabs a piledriver for two on Omega. MJF’s V Trigger misses and Omega grabs a snapdragon, setting up the Fameasser from behind of two. MJF bails outside again and gets taken out by the big running flip dive. Back in and MJF bites in the corner but can’t hit a super Tombstone. Instead Omega fights back..but gets caught with a poisonrana.

Omega pops up with a running knee for two and they’re both down. The Heatseeker is blocked so MJF settles for the slingshot cutter for two instead. Omega breaks up You Can’t Escape and hits a V Trigger for two of his own. MJF escapes You Can’t Escape but gets hurricanranaed out to the floor. The means a moonsault from Omega and they both need a breather on the floor. Back in and MJF goes after the stomach before stereo crossbodies leave them both down again.

Omega’s dropkick gets two…and a super One Winged Angel knocks MJF silly. Omega can’t cover due to the stomach though and MJF manages to roll outside. Back in and another snapdragon gives Omega two so he tries another One Winged Angel. That’s reversed into a Cross Rhodes and a package piledriver for a rather near fall and MJF is ticked off. MJF slowly strikes away but Omega gets mad and beats him down in the corner, setting up a heck of a V Trigger.

The One Winged Angel is broken up though and the referee gets bumped. A low blow puts Omega down and MJF finds the Dynamite Diamond. The big shot misses and it’s another One Winged Angel…and another referee comes in to count two. That counts as kicking out of it for the first time, though it should have an asterisk. They go to the apron where MJF hits him in the stomach with the ring. A Tombstone through the table sets up the Heatseeker to retain at 38:50.

Rating: B+. It did feel like this big epic struggle and MJF beating Omega is going to be a big deal for him. The match probably went a bit longer than necessary, but the result was the right call as Omega can come back and win the title later. MJF gets to continue to establish himself as this big villain and it’s working well so far. Omega might not be as great as he was before, but he can still put on a heck of a performance. Great main event here, which isn’t a surprise.

MJF poses on his throne to end the show.

Overall Rating: B+. This was another very good show, with the main event and a lot of other things delivering. At the same time, it was another show where I was just wanting it to be over with about an hour and a half to go. That’s par for the course for AEW, along with having a bunch of rather awesome matches. On on top of that, the villains won most of the top matches, which is quite the choice for a show like this. It’s a show worth a look, though as usual you might want to watch it in shifts, which isn’t the greatest feeling.

Results
Alex Windsor b. Marina Shafir – T-bone DDT
Kamille b. Big Anne – Torture rack powerbomb
Jack Perry b. Mark Davis – Hurricanrana
Megan Bayne/Lena Kross b. Hyan/Maya World – Double chokeslam to Hyan
Young Bucks b. Don Callis Family – TK Driver to Okada
Ricochet b. Chris Jericho – Lionsault
Darby Allin b. Andrade El Idolo – Last Supper
FTR b. Adam Copeland/Christian Cage – Shatter Machine to Copeland
Kevin Knight won the Casino Battle Royal – UFO Splash to Garcia
Thekla b. Jamie Hayter – Rollup while holding the rope
Jon Moxley b. Will Ospreay – Death Rider
Conglomeration/Kyle O’Reilly b. The Dogs – Ankle lock to Connors
Maxwell Jacob Friedman b. Kenny Omega – Heatseeker

 

 

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




AEW Collision – April 11, 2026: Just Get There

Collision
Date: April 11, 2026
Location: Rogers Center, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
Commentators: Nigel McGuinness, Tony Schiavone, Excalibur

It’s the night before Dynasty and we have something of a warmup title match this week. The Trios Titles are on the line as Mistico and Jet Speed defend against the Dogs, who have barely won anything but get a title match anyway. Other than that it’s likely time for the final hard sell to the pay per view so let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Trios Titles: The Dogs vs. Mistico/Jet Speed

Mistico and Jet Speed are defending and get jumped by the Dogs to clear the ring to start. Back in and Bailey flips away from Kidd but gets knocked out to the floor. Mistico gets back in to grab a headscissors to send Connors outside. Kidd runs back in to take Mistico down but all six are back inside for the slugout. The champions all hit dives to the floor so they load up more, only to get knocked down as we take a break.

We come back with Knight fighting to his feet and bringing Mistico back in, meaning more dives can put the Dogs down again. Bailey hits a moonsault to the floor and Knight drops Finlay but the UFO Splash is broken up. Kidd piledrives Mistico but Bailey is back up with the Ultimate Weapon to put Kidd down. A straitjacket sunset flip gets two on Kidd, who is right back with a heck of a clothesline. Connors picks Bailey up for a suplex and a top rope spear gives us new champions at 13:39.

Rating: B-. It was the kind of wild match you would expect from these guys and while the Dogs don’t have the best win/loss record, it wasn’t like Mistico was going to be a regular around here. The titles are hardly some mega serious thing so having them bounce around might be the best option for them. They still don’t really need to exist but this is better than having them sit on a shelf for months at a time.

Post match Orange Cassidy and Roderick Strong pop up on screen for a challenge, suggesting they have a third. Kyle O’Reilly I’m guessing?

Will Ospreay introduces the United Empire and then says they won’t be there at Dynasty. Ok then.

Kris Statlander/Hikaru Shida vs. Ava Lawless/Gigi Rey

Shida strikes away at Lawless to start and puts her down with a Falcon Arrow. Statlander comes in with some suplexes to Rey and Staturday Night Fever finishes at 1:40.

Post match Shida isn’t happy with Statlander tagging herself in to win the match.

Hyan and Maya World are getting a Women’s Tag Team Title shot at Dynasty. Their AEW record as a team: 0-5.

Jon Moxley says no one can hang with the Death Riders and if Will Ospreay is so determined to break his neck again, so be it.

Rush vs. Anthony Bowens

For the #2 spot in the Casino Gauntlet. They trade headlocks to start and then shove each other a bit. The exchange of strikes goes to Rush but Bowens is back up to send him outside. Rush is sent into various things, including the steps, but he whips Bowens into the barricade and we take a break.

We come back with Rush hitting a basement dropkick to the back of the head before they strike it out again. Rush misses a kick in the corner and gets caught with a hanging wind up DDT for two. Back up and Rush sends him into the corner but the Bull’s Horns is broken up. A running dropkick sends Bowens outside, where Rush sends him into the barricade. Back in and the Bull’s Horns finishes Bowens at 11:10.

Rating: B-. They had a hard hitting match here, but what mattered the most was the fact that either of them could have pulled this off. Bowens winning wasn’t out of the question as Rush hasn’t been the most consistent star in AEW. Odds are Bowens will be in the match anyway, but in this case the numbers actually matter so he’s at a disadvantage. Oh and is Bowens to the Opps still a thing?

The Brawling Birds are ready for their singles matches at Dynasty, as they want revenge and the Women’s Title.

Hurt Syndicate vs. Andy Anderson/Mo Jabari

Lashley shoves Anderson into the corner to start and gives him a delayed vertical suplex. Benjamin comes in and gets annoyed at Jabari’s chops. That earns him a knee to the head, followed by a spear to Anderson. Benjamin superkicks Anderson for the pin at 2:19. Total squash.

Mina Shirakawa and Harley Cameron are sad that their partners are gone. They opt to drink instead.

Young Bucks vs. Don Callis Family

Hechicero/Clon for the Family. Matt and Clon start things off with Matt grabbing a wristdrag/headscissors combination to put the Family down. The Bucks hit some dives, only for Hechicero to knee Matt in the face back inside. The rather spinning rollup gives Hechicero two, followed by the spinning backbreaker for the same.

We take a break and come back with Matt rolling the northern lights suplexes. Nick comes in with a double high crossbody and everything breaks down. The Bucks go with stereo sunset flips into stereo Sharpshooters, which are quickly broken up. The Family grabs a pair of bridging rollups for two each and everyone is knocked down for a breather. Back up and Clon flips out of a DDT, only to get superkicked down. Hechicero throws Matt into a choke with Nick making the save. The EVP Trigger misses but the Bucks are right back with the TK Driver to finish Clon at 14:49.

Rating: B. This was little more than a way to get the Bucks on the show, which is all it needed to be. The Bucks are one of those acts who are able to pop the crowd just by being in the ring and that’s what we got here. It’s a good enough match too, even with the D-list Family opponents.

We look at Chris Jericho and Ricochet’s meeting on Dynamite to set up their match at Dynasty.

International Title: Myron Reed vs. Kazuchika Okada

Okada is defending and both of their associates are here too. Okada misses a clothesline in the corner to start and sends Reed to the apron. That’s fine with Reed, who is back with a springboard kick to the face. A springboard is blocked though and Okada dropkicks him out to the floor as we take a break.

We come back with Okada hitting a DDT for a cocky one but the falling top rope elbow hits raised knees. Reed ties him in the ropes for a slingshot legdrop as Don Callis is starting to panic. Okada is sent outside and taken out with a dive but comes back in with the Air Raid Crash onto the knee for two. Now the top rope elbow can connect but Reed is right back up with the diving cutter to the floor. Back in and Reed’s springboard 450 hits raised knees and the Tombstone into the Rainmaker retains the title at 11:22.

Rating: B-. Reed was able to get in some stuff here but it wasn’t quite what he’s done before. At the same time, he has been treated as the singles star from the Rascalz, which isn’t the worst move. He’s one of those guys who puts everything into his matches and that makes for a nice feeling. At the same time, Okada is (still) gearing up for his match with Takeshita and this was a way to keep him warm.

Willow Nightingale wants some of the new talent to come after her title.

Lena Kross and Megan Bayne are ready for Hyan and Maya World.

Dynasty rundown.

Thekla/Marina Shafir vs. Brawling Birds

Thekla and Shafir jump them during the entrances and the brawl heads to the floor before the opening bell. Hayter gets choked with part of the barricade but Windsor drops Shafir onto the apron. The bell rings (the fans don’t seem thrilled) with the Birds getting beaten up again as we take an early break.

We come back with Windsor fighting her way out of trouble and bringing in Hayter to clean house. Thekla catches her in a Black Widow as everything breaks down again. All four are knocked down for a bit until Shafir is up to strike it out with Windsor. A shot to the face staggers Shafir and a quick Two Birds One Stone finishes her off at 9:01.

Rating: C+. There is nothing wrong with taking two PPV matches and having them do a tag match together to build it up. That’s all it needed to be here and it worked out fine enough. The Birds winning gives Hayter just enough momentum to make her feel like a bigger threat to the title. It’s not exactly a main event level match, but I’ll take what I can get.

Overall Rating: B-. This was a fine enough show, with just a show that got us over the final stretch to Dynasty. They added in a few matches to make the PPV card even bigger because we have to do that but nothing really big was changed. That’s all it needed to be and the show went by rather easily.

Results
The Dogs b. Mistico/Jet Speed – Suplex/top rope spear combination to Bailey
Kris Statlander/Hikaru Shida b. Ava Lawless/Gigi Rey – Staturday Night Fever to Rey
Rush b. Anthony Bowens – Bull’s Horns
Hurt Syndicate b. Andy Anderson/Mo Jabari – Superkick to Anderson
Young Bucks b. Don Callis Family – TK Driver to Clon
Kazuchika Okada b. Myron Reed – Rainmaker
Brawling Birds b. Thekla/Marina Shafir – Two Birds One Stone to Shafir

 

 

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 – April 10, 2026 (Special Episode): As Advertised (Includes Full Show)

Ring Of Honor
Date: April 10, 2026
Location: WJCT Studios, Jacksonville, Florida
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

It’s an AEW PPV week so that means we get a bonus Ring Of Honor. I’m guessing the theory is to get the wrestling happy people on the Ring Of Honor bandwagon but the show was barely mentioned on this week’s Ring Of Honor show, with no mention on AEW TV. In other words, expect the equivalent of the deleted scenes from a TV taping. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

MxM Collection vs. Top Flight

Mansoor and Darius start things off with Mansoor stopping to pose but Darius bends the finger back. Dante comes in with a top rope ax handle to the arm so Mansoor bails into the ropes. That lets Madden come in from behind with a leg lariat and a side slam/legdrop combination gets two on Dante.

Madden crushes Mansoor in the corner though and it’s off to Dante to start the comeback. Everything breaks down and Darius gets caught in a sitout powerbomb/leg lariat combination for a rather near fall. Mansoor gets crotched on top though and it’s a hurricanrana into a sitout powerbomb to give Darius two. Darius suicide dives onto Madden and Mansoor is slingshotted into a cutter for the pin at 6:01.

Rating: C+. While it might not have been the exact same match, this feels like the kind of match that we have seen several times now. They’re both entertaining teams, but neither of them are going anywhere. The Tag Team Titles aren’t defended very often and it’s not like the champions even appear very often. In other words, nice match, not going to mean anything.

Rush vs. Dante Leon

Rush knocks him to the floor and then takes him back inside for the forearms in the corner. The Bull’s Horns finishes Leon at 1:12.

The IInspiration are ready to face anyone around here.

Hyan/Maya World vs. IInspiration

World has to duck out of a right hand out of the corner to start but Lee drives her right back into another corner. Hyan comes in for a hurricanrana out of the corner and a bridging suplex puts Lee down for two. Lee makes a blind tag though and hits a knee to the face to put Hyan in trouble for a change.

The IInspiration gets in some posing before talking some trash, followed by an armbar to keep Hyan down. The chinlock doesn’t last long and Hyan comes out of the corner with a running clothesline. World splashes both of them in the corner and a moonsault gets two on McKay. A posting puts McKay down on the floor and a double chickenwing faceplant/Downward Spiral combination finishes Lee at 6:55.

Rating: C. Well, they were undefeated for about a day. I’m not sure what the point was in having the team win a match on one episode of Ring Of Honor and then lose the next night. It isn’t like there are many teams who matter much in Ring Of Honor and the IInspiration lose that soon? Hyan and World are established enough and don’t gain much here so…why?

Gates Of Agony vs. Daisuke Sasaki/Paul Virk

Sasaki is a big deal in DDT. Kaun leapfrogs Sasaki to start and chops him into the corner before handing it off to Liona. Sasaki gets pulled out of the air and driven into the corner, only to get over for the tag to (the rather tall) Virk. That means a mini hoss fight with Liona, who eventually drops Virk with a spinebuster. Open The Gates finishes Virk at 3:10.

Rating: C. Sasaki might not be the biggest star in the world but he felt way out of place as a jobber in a tag match. Other than that, this was a reminder that the big power team are till a big power team. That’s pretty much what you’ve seen from the Gates for years now and that doesn’t seem likely to change.

Sisters Of Sin vs. Nixi XS/Aminah Belmont

XS and Hart knock the other two off the apron to start and it’s off to those other two rather quickly. XS is knocked off the apron this time and Belmont gets caught in the Tarantula, allowing Blue to hit a running dropkick. A snapmare into a PK gets two on Belmont but she fights out of the corner. There’s no XS to tag though and a Black Widow makes Belmont tap at 3:42.

Rating: C. The string of fairly run of the mill tag matches continues, albeit with a team who aren’t regulars around here. The Sisters are fine enough in their role, but there isn’t exactly anything for them to do around here. The match was little more than a squash, though at least Belmont got in a bit of offense to keep it from getting dull.

Dalton Castle/Outrunners vs. Deonn Rusman/Devo Knight/Alex Findley

Castle is rather excited for the new ROH figures and wants them in your guest bathroom. Magnum headlocks Knight to start and it’s off to Floyd to work on the arm. A spinning belly to back suplex drops Knight and his partners both get chopped. Castle comes in for the suplexes and the Mega Powers Elbow finish Findley at 3:42.

Rating: C. Cool, now give them a title shot. I’m not sure what else is next for the Outrunners/Castle, but the only logical step is a title shot. They’ve won all kinds of regular matches in a row, they’re popular and they’re…not likely to face the champions, because the titles have been defended once since December so we just get to keep waiting, as always.

Dralistico vs. Komander

Dralistico is wrestling in a shirt, which is apparently rather disrespectful in lucha libre. They trade some early rollups for two each but Dralistico tells him to stop running. Komander does for some reason, allowing Dralistico to remove his shirt. Dralistico takes him down and hits a running knee to the face, followed by a running shot in the corner. Komander fights up and chops away, followed by a DDT for two.

Dralistico avoids a 450 but gets rolled up for two more instead. A gutbuster hits Dralistico but he pops back up to kick Komander down. That doesn’t last long as Komander knocks him off the top and hits a super crucifix bomb for two. A poisonrana into Cielito Lindo finishes Dralistico at 9:29.

Rating: B-. This was the kind of match you would have expected from the two of them and, while it doesn’t have the best competition, it did feel like the biggest match of the show. They had their high flying stuff and it worked pretty well, which shouldn’t be a surprise. Granted it’s the second Komander vs. a high flier match I’ve seen in two days but at least it was good.

Overall Rating: C. Yep this was exactly what I was expecting the second I saw this show being announced. Ring Of Honor turns these shows into big ads for the weekly show and that’s exactly what what it felt like: a bunch of mostly mediocre matches which don’t feel like they have any impact on the ongoing stories. If you like Ring Of Honor, you’ll like this, but after three plus hours of the same style in two days, I could go for a break from this stuff.

Results
Top Flight b. MxM Collection – Slingshot cutter to Mansoor
Rush b. Dante Leon – Bull’s Horns
Hyan/Maya World b. IInspiration – Double chickenwing faceplant/Downward Spiral combination to Lee
Gates Of Agony b. Daisuke Sasaki/Paul Virk – Open The Gates to Virk
Sisters Of Sin b. Nixi XS/Aminah Belmont – Black Widow to Belmont
Dalton Castle/Outrunners b. Deonn Rusman/Devo Knight/Alex Findley – Mega Powers Elbow to Findley
Komander b. Dralistico – 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:

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Ring Of Honor – March 26, 2026: All Over The Place

Ring Of Honor
Date: March 26, 2026
Location: WJCT Television, Jacksonville, Florida
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

We still don’t have a major show coming up at the moment, though odds are we have some fresh title matches this week anyway. As usual, it’s hard to tell what that means and we could be in for a bunch of random stuff this week. Well in addition to the usual bunch of random stuff. Let’s get to it.

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

Lacey Lane won a match a few weeks ago and it gets her a title shot…against CMLL Women’s Champion Persephone. You won’t want to miss this, so if you’re having a sandwich, hurry up and if you’re in bed with your partner, wrap it up already.

Persephone is from El Paso, Texas but she was raised in Mexico so she has a double nationality to bring to her fight. These interviews are a good idea, though another title of any kind around here makes my head hurt.

CMLL Women’s Title: Lacey Lane vs. Persephone

Lane is challenging after “going on a bit of a run here in ROH”. She’s 1-2 in ROH. Lane rolls her up for an early two so Persephone grabs a backslide and flips over her for the same. An armdrag sends Persephone outside, where she catches a kick and drops Lane face first onto the apron. Back in and Persephone starts in on the leg, followed by a headstand double knee to the ribs for two.

The chinlock goes on (Persephone: “ASK HER!”) but Lane gets out and sweeps the leg. A bridging suplex gives Persephone two and she knees Lane down, setting up an armbar. Back up and Lane rolls her into a basement superkick and they’re both down. A springboard spinning basement dropkick drops Persephone again but she’s back with a German suplex for two. The Razor’s Edge is broken up and Lane hits a reverse Nightmare On Helm Street. Persephone is back with a spear though and the Razor’s Edge retains the title at 9:28.

Rating: B-. Persephone does feel like a star, though it might have helped a bit more if Lane had won anything more than one match. They really need to find a better way to build up challengers around here, which is something that seems to be rather easy. Instead, we just seem to get random title shots, which doesn’t make for the most thrilling setups.

Quick video on the Grizzled Young Veterans/Isla Dawn vs. Skyflight.

Skyflight vs. Grizzled Young Veterans/Isla Dawn

That would be Zayda Steel/Top Flight. Drake and Darius start things off with a fight over arm control until Drake takes him down by the hair. Darius sends him into the corner but Gibson saves Drake from a suplex. Dante comes in for a springboard double clothesline and it’s back to Darius as everything breaks down.

Steel is sent into Darius in the corner and Dawn comes in for the rather aggressive lockup. Dawn gets snapmared down for a basement dropkick so she comes back with a hard backdrop driver. A knee to the head gets two on Steel and Dawn grabs a cobra clutch. Steel breaks out though and brings in Dante to clean house.

An enziguri and springboard high crossbody get two on Drake but Dawn cuts off a double dive from Top Flight. Steel punches her in the face and Darius rolls Drake up for two, with the kickout sending him into a forearm from Gibson. Drake’s rollup with tights gets two and Darius enziguris his way out of trouble. The women come in for a near hockey fight and Steel grabs a rolling kick to the head for the pin at 10:28.

Rating: B-. It’s nice to see Steel getting a win, as she’s been getting better over the last few weeks. Granted pinning Dawn only means so much, though I was starting to worry that Skyflight would lose again. Skyflight isn’t going to mean anything going forward, but I’ll take a one off win where I can get it.

We look at Bandido/Adam Priest/Tommy Billington chasing off the Lethal Twists last week.

The Swirl says Jay Lethal isn’t here…but he will be at Global Wars tomorrow night….when they’re fighting a team that has nothing to do with what we just watched!

Myron Reed vs. Mansoor

The rest of their teams are here too. Mansoor takes him down into an armbar to start so Reed uses the rope to flip out and take Mansoor down. A jumping Fameasser gives Reed two before pointing at him, much to Mansoor’s annoyance. Mansoor’s kick to the ribs is cut off and Reed drives him into the corner, only for Mansoor to hit a middle rope bulldog. An elbow gives Mansoor two and we hit the chinlock.

Back up and Reed trips him off the middle rope, setting up a jumping enziguri. A DDT drops Mansoor and a hanging Downward Spiral plants him again. Mansoor loads up the poke but gets rolled up for two, only to come back with a Death Valley Driver. The others on the floor get into it with Madden poking TV in the eyes by mistake, causing them to punch each other out. Reed is back up with his big running cutter to pull Mansoor off the apron and onto the pile. Back in and the springboard 450 finishes for Reed at 8:47.

Rating: C+. Well, this was in fact Myron Reed beating Mansoor in a match that ran almost nine minutes and had a bunch of comedy involved. I have no idea why this match was booked in the first place when neither is a singles star and they don’t have any kind of a feud going on, but it could have been worse. Reed is crazy athletic, though I still have no idea what is supposed to set the Rascalz apart.

We recap Athena defending the Women’s Title against Maya World, who got the shot through the Proving Ground.

TMDK vs. Better Together

Haste takes Hadar down by the arm to start and a dropkick makes it worse. A standing moonsault/fist drop combination connects for TMDK but Hadar fights out of the corner. Gold comes in to help Hadar with a double arm crank on Haste. A double Russian legsweep doesn’t work though and it’s off to Nichols to take over on Gold. Everything breaks down and the Elevator Slam finishes Gold at 4:06.

Rating: C+. Again, what am I supposed to say here? The match was a team we’ve barely ever seen around here beating a team who have never been around here. I get the appeal of having TMDK around, but it’s another case of having a team here without explaining why we should care. Just listing off titles doesn’t get much of a foundation and it’s not like the match was very good in the first place.

We do actually get an announcement for a match in two weeks, with TMDK facing Roppongi Vice. On one hand, cool for announcing something in advance. On the other hand, it’s a Rocky Romero match.

Deonna Purrazzo is ready to beat Gisele Shaw at Global Wars.

Deonna Purrazzo vs. Robyn Renegade

Non-title Proving Ground Pure Rules match. Renegade tries to go after the arm to start and gets absolutely nowhere, with Purrazzo not looking impressed. Purrazzo takes her down and grabs a headlock, followed by a rollup for two. Back up and Purrazzo backs her into the corner, which is enough for the first rope break. The threat of the Fujiwara armbar sends Renegade into the ropes again but she’s able to roll out of another attempt. They trade forearms until Purrazzo hits a clothesline but Renegade knocks her down again. A middle rope moonsault misses though and Purrazzo grabs the Fujiwara for the win at 6:24.

Rating: C+. Renegade continues to feel like someone who could be a bigger deal if she was given a chance but that wasn’t going to happen here. Purrazzo is miles ahead of anyone else in the, pardon my nonsense, division, and that basically makes it the same thing as the men’s version. The match was fine, but the Pure stuff could be dropped with very little being lost.

Nick Comoroto vs. Anthony Ogogo

Comoroto wrestles him down to start and sends him into the corner for a running splash. Back up and Ogogo slugs away but a right hand is countered into a backslide for two. Comoroto hits a few ax handles and grabs a powerslam but the ribs (as earlier punched) give out. Ogogo’s suplex gets two and Comoroto rolls him up for the same. Shawn Dean gets in a cheap shot on Comoroto and a pop up right hand knocks him silly. Comoroto beats the ten count (even with Ogogo putting the UK flag over him) so Ogogo punches him again and gets the pin at 5:44.

Rating: D+. Oh sweet goodness I am sick of this show and everything about Ring Of Honor. This was a perfect example of why this show isn’t going anywhere. Ogogo was a prospect for AEW years ago and has meant NOTHING in his time around here. He hasn’t had a singles match in ROH (or AEW) in over a year and a half but they just trot him out here again to make a show that is already way too long even longer. As usual, Tony Khan insists on trying to get all of his 8573 wrestlers on various shows and it just drags everything out longer and longer with nothing being gained. But that TV deal is coming any day now right?

Women’s TV Title: Trish Adora vs. Red Velvet

Adora, on a three match losing streak and with Christian XO, is challenging and jumps Velvet from behind and knocks her to the floor. Velvet gets sent into the barricade for a seventeen count and gets caught in a weird over the shoulder stretch back inside. Adora bends the arms behind Velvet to make her clap before hammering away in the corner. Velvet manages to fight back with a DDT and punches right back in the corner as well

Some running knees hit Adora in the back on the ropes but XO gets up on the apron. Stir It Up misses and Adora’s very bridging German suplex gets two. A Stunner hits Adora, who is right back with a pump kick for two more. Straight Out Yo Mama’s Kitchen connects but XO gets on the apron because this needs to keep going. Velvet knocks her down but gets powerslammed for two. The Lariat Tubman misses though and Velvet gets a sunset flip for the retaining pin at 9:05.

Rating: C+. The match was fine but as usual, ROH has nothing resembling continuity or a standard for getting title shots. Adora hasn’t won a singles match since last August but sure, give her a title shot here. Then keep telling us that people getting wins could lead them to a title shot and assuming that no one notices because it’s that hard to remember.

Post match XO lays Velvet out but Zayda Steel makes the save. Commentary says that Steel had a great showing last night on Dynamite, likely because this was taped before the match she won earlier in the show. A lot of trash is talked and a tag match seems likely.

Women’s Title: Athena vs. Maya World

Athena is defending and goes after the arm to start, with World escaping into the corner. World grabs a quick fisherman’s suplex for two and Athena bails out to the floor. Athena is fine enough to load up a Vertebreaker before flipping World face first onto the steps. Back inside and Athena hammers away, setting up the chinlock.

World fights up and sends her into the middle rope with a swinging full nelson, followed by a German suplex for two. That’s shrugged off and Athena hits some basement dropkicks to knock World outside. Back in and a Koji Clutch goes on, with World having to get her foot on the rope. They trade running strikes against the ropes until World faceplants her on the apron. Athena stomps on the foot to break up a piledriver and suplexes World down onto the floor.

World barely beats the count and Athena is not pleased. They forearm it out from their knees and a pinfall reversal sequence gets some near falls each. The O Face misses and World sends her into the corner, allowing World to go up. Cue the Minions for a distraction so Hyan runs in to cut them off. Athena dives onto Hyan and grabs a rollup for two back inside.

A Canadian Destroyer gives Athena two more and she can’t believe the kickouts. Athena goes up and gets pulled down by a twisting sunset bomb. Something like a spinning Big Ending gives World two but she misses her own O Face. Athena cannot believe she tried that and unloads on her, setting up a Tombstone of all things for…two? World is dumped outside, where Billie Starkz jumps Hyan. The two of them head inside and Diamante slips Athena the belt to knock World silly. The O Face retains the title at 19:52.

Rating: B. Gah they were building towards something great here and then it fell apart with the interference and the belt shot. Athena was having to work here and there was an idea there to having her not be able to put World away. I have no idea who is going to take the title from Athena, but a showdown with Deonna Purrazzo seems likely. At the very least, this worked because they set up a story and this felt like a big showdown after it was put together. Imagine that.

Post match the beatdown stays on, with Starkz grabbing a Fujiwara armbar on World to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. This show continues to be incredibly annoying, as they went over an hour and forty five minutes this week with a bunch of that being spent on pure filler. Some of the wrestling was fine and the main event was good, but this show continues to feel like a bunch of stuff that is thrown out there week to week.

The World Title is coming up on four months without being defended while Trish Adora’s lost in the TV Title match extended her losing streak to five straight matches. Meanwhile, how many people are undefeated for months and never get close to a title shot? I would say fix it, but that’s just not going to happen around here so I’ll just have to settle for a good main event and a few other nice spots around here.

Results
Persephone b. Lacey Lane – Razor’s Edge
Skyflight b. Grizzled Young Veterans/Isla Dawn – Rolling kick to Dawn
Myron Reed b. Mansoor – Springboard 450
TMDK b. Better Together – Elevator Slam to Gold
Deonna Purrazzo b. Robyn Renegade – Fujiwara armbar
Anthony Ogogo b. Nick Comoroto – Right hand
Red Velvet b. Trish Adora – Sunset flip
Athena b. Maya World – O Face

 

 

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 – March 19, 2026: That’s Our Ring Of Honor

Ring Of Honor
Date: March 19, 2026
Location: WJCT Studios, Jacksonville, Florida
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

AEW Revolution has come and gone and the big story as it relates to Ring Of Honor is World Champion Bandido losing to Andrade El Idolo. The problem is that likely doesn’t mean much around here, as Andrade probably won’t come after the title. Instead Blake Christian still seems to be coming for the title, which is why he was beaten by Will Ospreay this week on Dynamite. Let’s get to it.

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

We look at tonight’s two title shots.

Women’s Pure Rules Title: Deonna Purrazzo vs. Billie Starkz

Purrazzo is defending and Starkz bails out to the floor to start fast. Back in and Purrazzo hits a running knee but Starkz grabs a tornado DDT to send Purrazzo outside. Starkz gets a suplex for one but gets a warning for right hands to the face. Purrazzo gets annoyed at the kicks to the face and they trade forearms until both of them are knocked down. Back up and Purrazzo sends her to the apron for a hanging DDT so Starkz grabs a sleeper. That makes Purrazzo use her first rope break, allowing her to powerbomb Starkz into a Fujiwara armbar. Purrazzo switches into the Venus de Milo to make Starkz tap at 7:59.

Rating: C+. They were building something here but it didn’t have the time to really go anywhere. Purrazzo was in trouble with Starkz using the sleeper to some solid effect. Then Purrazzo just pulled her into the armbar to retain out of nowhere. It’s hardly a bad match but it looked like they were building to something bigger.

Post match Hyan and Maya World run in to celebrate but Athena and Diamante run in for the beatdown. Purrazzo manages to Fujiwara Diamante to send the villains running.

We look at Mistico and Jet Speed winning the AEW Trios Titles at Revolution.

Mark Davis vs. Angelico

Angelico’s headlock is broken up so he gives a quick hip thrust. Davis misses a charge in the corner and gets hit in the face a few times but knocks Ospreay into the corner rather quickly. A seated senton misses for Davis though and Angelico kicks him in the head. Davis’ belly to back suplex gets two and one heck of a running clothes finishes Angelico at 4:22.

Rating: C. This was just a step above a squash for Davis, who looked good enough in the process. He continues to impress in his rather frequent appearances, which is impressive given how unimportant he seemed for so long. Let him be the midcard powerhouse that he’s been in recent months, as it’s working for him.

Dark Order vs. Bustah And The Brain

Price armdrags Reynolds down to start as commentary tries to figure out which one is Bustah and which one is the brain. Uno and Oliver come in with Oliver rolling him up and then grabbing a headlock. Price and Oliver kick Uno down for two but the Order catches Oliver with a double dropkick. With Oliver down on the apron, the Order gives Price a double powerbomb down onto him for the big crash.

Back in and the Order starts taking turns beating on Oliver, with Reynolds grabbing a seated abdominal stretch. Oliver gets in an enziguri though and jumps over Uno for the tag back to Price. House is cleaned until Uno fights his way out of the corner. Uno’s jumping piledriver gets two on Price and Reynolds drops Uno by mistake. Price dives onto Uno and gets caught in something like a reverse Razor’s Edge/top rope facebuster combination for the pin at 10:56.

Rating: B. This wound up being a heck of a match, with Bustah And The Brain finally getting a win. They’ve had a lot of potential in their time here thus far but it only gets them so far without winning some matches. Yeah it’s just the Dark Order but it’s better than nothing. The Order got to have probably their best win around here too and that’s nice to see.

Persephone is disgusted by a reference to her loss to Mercedes Mone and thinks she runs this place now, as it’s perfect for her. She storms off to wrap it up quickly.

Rachael Ellering vs. Robyn Renegade

They go with the grappling to start and Renegade gets two off an early la majistral. Back up and Renegade knocks her into the corner for a running elbow but Ellering is back with a spinning shoulder. A hard whip into the corner has Renegade in more trouble and Ellering backsplashes her for two. Ellering’s TKO gets another two but she charges into a boot in the corner. Renegade hits a middle rope moonsault for the pin at 5:01.

Rating: C. That was a fast ending as Ellering was starting to roll and then just got pinned out of nowhere. It’s a bit hard to believe that Renegade is going to be rising up the card but stranger things have happened. Ellering losing is no surprise though, as it’s pretty much the only thing she does here.

Big Bill vs. Logan Cruz

Bill backs him into the corner to start and pounds away with the forearms. Cruz tries to slug away and walks into a swinging Boss Man Slam for the pin at 1:46.

Christyan XO/Trish Adora vs. Kelsey Reagan/Dream Girl Ellie

Adora gives Ellie a delayed slam and it’s off to XO for a shoulder in the corner to Reagan. It’s back to Adora and the Lariat Tubman finishes at 2:22. Total squash.

Grizzled Young Veterans/Isla Dawn vs. Rosario Grillo/Valentina Rossi/The OXP

Drake works on Grillo’s arm to start and it’s off to Gibson for a spinwheel kick. Some knees set up a butterfly suplex and Grillo has to bring in Rossi to face Dawn. They trade some early rolls before Dawn kicks her down. OXP and Gibson come in with Gibson hammering away and Drake getting to talk trash in the corner. OXP manages to kick Drake in the face though and Rossi comes back in to strike away. Dawn suplexes her down and it’s back to Grillo, who walks into Grit Your Teeth to give Drake the pin at 4:53.

Rating: C+. The Veterans are a weird team as they have the in-ring abilities and feel like they should be a bigger deal than they are. However, for whatever reason almost nothing they do feels important. The tag division could use them, but if they stay where they have been, that won’t be happening anytime soon.

Post match the Veterans and Dawn keep up the beating until SkyFlight make the save.

We look back at the women’s brawl earlier.

Diamante vs. Hyena Hera

Athena is here with Diamante, who powers her into the corner to start. A German suplex drops Hera and Diamante kicks away at the chest. Hera’s kick to the face doesn’t get her very far as Diamante elbows her in the jaw. A Roll of the Dice finishes for Diamante at 2:07.

Post match Diamante says she’s the purest thing on the roster and grabs the Fujiwara armbar.

Lethal Twist vs. Superstarz

The chyron says Lethal Twist and the video screen says Lethal Swirl. Johnson works on Eight’s arm to start and hits a dropkick before it’s off to Christian vs. Mars. Christian takes over on him as well so Lethal comes in to strike away on Wild. Everything breaks down and Wild is tied in the Tree Of Woe for a string of running kicks in a nice sequence. Lethal hits a basement dropkick and the chinlock goes on. Wild manages a shot of his own and it’s back to Eight, who is quickly Death Valley Drivered. Hail To The King finishes for Lethal at 4:55.

Rating: C+. As has been the case for the last few months, Lethal and company have felt like they’re ready to go after the World Title for months now but they never actually challenge for the belt. Hopefully they get to the match already as it’s been set up for far too long now. At least there’s a story there and Christian taking the title wouldn’t be the worst idea, assuming he’s not 79 years old by the time the match happens.

Post match Lethal grabs a Figure Four and the Swirl beat on the other two, with Bandido, Tommy Billington and Adam Priest making the save.

TV Title: Nick Wayne vs. Komander

Komander is challenging. Wayne shakes his hand and rolls him up for an early two so Komander sends things outside. There’s the quick dive but it’s too early for Cielito Lindo as Wayne breaks it up. That leaves Komander favoring his knee and a dragon screw legwhip out of the corner makes it even worse.

Wayne cranks on the knee some more and the Figure Four sends Komander over to the ropes. Komander kicks his way out of trouble and hits some elbows to the face. The knee gives Komander some trouble though and he takes his time following up. That means Wayne can dragon screw the knee again, this time over the ropes. Wayne hits a superkick but gets caught with a poisonrana.

Komander goes up, with Wayne cutting him off. A top rope superplex into a frog splash sets up the Figure Four, with Komander having to make it over to the rope again. Wayne tells Komander to chop him and knocks him down for doing so, but Wayne’s World is blocked. Instead Komander gets in a Canadian Destroyer but Cielito Lindo can’t connect. Wayne kicks the knee out and a fisherman’s buster retains the title at 13:48.

Rating: B-. Well, it was his first title defense in about eight months and I’m not sure why he held the title after so much of a hiatus, but at least he’s back now. Wayne is good as a cocky heel who you want to see get punched in the face and he did a nice job of taking out the knee here to slow Komander down. It felt like a main event so I’ll take what I can get out of that.

Overall Rating: C. This was quite the Ring Of Honor, as the women’s division is picking up again, with a potential Athena vs. Purrazzo showdown on the rather distant horizon. The problem here was the big stretch of matches in the middle mainly featured squashes from lower midcard stars. Cut out three or so of those and the show feels a lot tighter without much being lost. In other words, pretty standard Ring Of Honor.

Results
Deonna Purrazzo b. Billie Starkz – Venus de Milo
Mark Davis b. Angelico – Clothesline
Bustah And The Brain b. Dark Order – Reverse Razor’s Edge/top rope faceplant combination to Reynolds
Robyn Renegade b. Rachael Ellering – Middle rope moonsault
Big Bill b. Logan Cruz – Swinging Boss Man Slam
Christyan XO/Trish Adora b. Kelsey Reagan/Dream Girl Ellie – Lariat Tubman to Reagan
Grizzled Young Veterans/Isla Dawn b. Rosario Grillo/Valentina Rossi/The OXP – Grit Your Teeth to Grillo
Diamante b. Hyena Hera – Roll The Dice
Lethal Twist b. Superstarz – Hail To The King to Eight
Nick Wayne b. Komander – Fisherman’s buster

 

 

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