Ring of Honor
Date: September 30, 2020
Location: UMBC Events Center, Baltimore, Maryland
Commentators: Caprice Coleman, Ian Riccaboni

It’s week three of the Pure Title Tournament and that means we could be in for another good show. The first two weeks were both pretty solid as it’s a relatively easy concept to grasp. There is something smart about just running bare bones wrestling matches and that’s what they have been doing around here. Just keep doing that for a bit. Let’s get to it.

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

Quick video on the Pure Title.

Opening sequence.

Quinn McKay welcomes us to the show and we look at the end of David Finlay beating Rocky Romero.

Finlay is proud to win but wants to beat a legend in Jay Lethal.

Matt Sydal beat Delirious and he’s proud to beat his long time wrestling rival. He thanks the wrestling gods and now he’s going for the finish against Jonathan Gresham.

Fred Yehi talks about growing up in a very drug heavy environment but he saw wrestling as a kid and knew it’s what he wanted. He saw that as his way around drugs and crime so he gave it everything he had. Yehi wound up wrestling D1 in college and always admired Bryan Danielson. Now it’s time to make Silas Young tap on his way to the Pure Title.

Silas Young grew up with five older brothers so he knows what it’s like to take a beating. He grew up in this business wrestling against some big guys and now he is one of the few multiple time ROH TV Champions. While he has been away, he has been training in Brazilian ju-jitsu so you can’t prepare for him. Young hasn’t seen much of Yehi but he has seen enough to move on. He was in the most recent Pure Rules match before the tournament and Jonathan Gresham had to cheat to beat him, so Yehi shouldn’t be a problem.

Pure Title Tournament First Round: Fred Yehi vs. Silas Young

I love the stats they throw in, such as Young’s record against everyone in the tournament. They fight over a lockup against the ropes to start and I guess it’s a referee’s decision to not call it a rope break. Yehi elbows him in the face and we have another standoff. Young’s wristlock doesn’t last long so it’s a hammerlock on the mat for a change. Back up and we hit the test of strength until Yehi sweeps the leg for the break.

Young is already frustrated and gets taken down again in another knuckle lock. This time it’s Young pulling on the leg to take over but Yehi reverses into a standing Indian deathlock. Young rolls over for the first rope break and we take a break. Back with Yehi pulling Young off the middle rope as commentary calmly explains what happened while we were away (simple, quick, effective).

Yehi starts stomping on the fingers and it’s a Koji Clutch to keep Young in trouble. Young slips out though and hits a running big boot in the corner. A tornado DDT gives Young two and they both need a breather. Yehi is back up and grabs a German suplex but Young hits a regular suplex of his own. A quick small package has Young in more trouble but he’s right back with the Regal Roll. The springboard moonsault misses though and Yehi gets in another small package for the pin at 13:00.

Rating: C+. That’s quite the relief as they were teasing a time limit judges’ decision or Young winning and Yehi is a lot more interesting at this point. Giving Yehi a win over Young is a nice surprise and something that could mean a little something for him going forward. I’ve liked what I’ve seen from Yehi in the past and it’s a good thing to see him getting another chance in the next round.

Josh Woods talks about being the Top Prospect in 2017 and winning all kinds of college and amateur championships. He has Kenny King, who is a little arrogant and doesn’t seem to think much of Woods’ abilities.

Kenny King is ready to win the Pure Title to make another step towards total dominance of ROH. Woods is dangerous but King has been training in MMA to be ready for this match. He doesn’t care about the rules and Woods can call Shredder, Mr. Miyagi or the Ghostbusters but it won’t help.

Pure Title Tournament First Round: Josh Woods vs. Kenny King

They go to the mat to start before fighting over arm control. King wins a battle of the armbars before it’s time for more grappling on the mat. Woods tries a Kimura and then a triangle choke but can’t get either in full as we take a break. Back with grabbing some weird double ankle lock, sending King to the rope for his first break. King doesn’t seem to agree so he pulls Woods to the floor and hammers away, setting up the Tranquilo pose on the apron.

Back in and Woods knees away, only to get dropped with a right hand. That’s good for a warning so the frustrated King grabs the chinlock. Woods breaks it up in a hurry and a running knee in the corner gets two on King. Back up and the Royal Flush connects but Woods uses the rope break for the save.

Woods is sat on top but comes back with a super spinning suplex and they’re both down in a heap. They’re back up again and Woods’ Seismic Toss is countered so he grabs a rollup for two more. We have a minute left and they trade strikes in the corner until Woods misses a running kick, setting up a half crab from King as time expires at 15:00.

Rating: C+. This was a different kind of King and that’s a good thing compared to his usual self. King is good, but his normal style doesn’t really suit a tournament like this. It’s nice to see him switching things up to be more appropriate for something like this as a lot of people might not do so. At the same time, Woods is pretty much a perfect fit for the thing and didn’t need to change a thing. Good match too.

Woods wins via decision with Sumie Sakai and Will Ferrara voting for Woods while Gary Juster voted for King. Cool, as he’s the more interesting of the two.

Overall Rating: B-. We’re done with the third week and I’m liking this more and more every time. They have stripped everything else away and all we have left is a pair of wrestling matches between people who can have entertaining wrestling matches. They have laid out the rules and are seeing who can win under said rules, which means the first time someone cheats, it is going to be a big deal. This is a nearly completely fresh start and it is working out very well. Check these shows out if you are looking for something bare bones but still rather well done.

 

 

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

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

Ring of Honor
Date: September 16, 2020
Location: UMBC Events Center, Baltimore, Maryland
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

For the first time in nearly six months, we have a fresh show from Ring of Honor and they are starting with a bang. It’s the return of the Pure Title, a championship which has a special set of rules and hasn’t been around in nearly fifteen years. If nothing else it will be nice to see something other than Best Of lower level wrestlers for a change. Let’s get to it.

There’s a new opening sequence for the first time in years.

The opening video looks at the tournament, which will feature sixteen men and will focus on the principles the company was founded upon.

Quinn McKay gives us a quick history of the title.

We see the sixteen men in the tournament in no particular order:

Jay Lethal

Matt Sydal

Jonathan Gresham

Tracy Williams

PJ Black

David Finlay

Silas Young

Josh Woods

Kenny King

Rocky Romero

Delirious

Dalton Castle

Tony Deppen

Wheeler Yuta

Rust Taylor

Fred Yehi

There are alternates just in case someone can’t wrestle. In Block A, it’s Dak Draper and in Block B it’s Brian Johnson.

We’ve got brackets and it’s single elimination:

Block A

Jay Lethal

Dalton Castle

David Finlay

Rocky Romero

Silas Young

Fred Yehi

Tracy Williams

Rust Taylor

Block B

Jonathan Gresham

Wheeler Yuta

Delirious

Matt Sydal

Josh Woods

Kenny King

PJ Black

Tony Deppen

We’re not done with the rules.

First round matches have a fifteen minute time limit, second round is twenty, third is thirty and the finals are sixty.

Each match will have three judges in case of a time limit draw.

And now for the actual Pure Rules as they somehow haven’t been mentioned yet.

Each match begins and ends with a handshake.

You have three rope breaks per match. After they are gone, pins and submissions in the ropes count, but they still must take place in the ring.

Closed fist punches to the face are not allowed though open handed strikes are legal. Closed fists to other parts of the body, save for low blows, are legal. One closed fist to the face is a warning and the second is a DQ.

Standard 20 count.

Any interference means you are FIRED FROM THE COMPANY.

Jay Lethal talks about being around ROH for thirteen years and Samoa Joe giving him his first major break. He is the only former Pure Champion in the tournament and wants to be the first ever two time champion. We see some clips of Lethal defending his title against some legends and he isn’t changing anything up because it had gotten here this far. Dalton Castle has beaten him before and that is all that is in his head.

Dalton Castle talks about being a really good wrestler and how good he has been since he was eleven. Then he became the Ring of Honor World Champion and this is the perfect environment for him. No he hasn’t wrestled in five months but he has been wrestling for over twenty three years. You think he can’t just turn it on? The rules are different though and Castle is ready to suplex Lethal a lot. Castle worries that people are forgetting how dangerous he is because of all of the funny stuff he does. He is a dangerous man and he is showing it in the tournament. This was WAY different from Castle and I liked the new side.

Pure Title Tournament First Round: Dalton Castle vs. Jay Lethal

There are now graphics with some stats, including that Castle has won 85% of his matches with the Bang-A-Rang and that Lethal has won 88% of his matches in Baltimore. I love little things like that and they’re a nice touch that shows they have put in some effort during the time off. We also get a graphic showing that the judges (not shown) are Gary Juster, Will Ferrara and Sumie Sakai.

Castle gets a front facelock to start but Lethal rolls over into the ropes, with a voiceover saying that is his first rope break. There is even a clock on screen to show the match time. Dang there is some actual fresh effort around here. They go to the mat again with Castle working on the arm until Lethal spins out to pull on the arm. Castle stacks her up for two and it’s a standoff. Lethal misses a right hand and gets suplexed down and an overhead belly to belly sends Lethal hard into the corner.

Back from a break with Lethal working on the leg, including a shinbreaker. They trade forearms as Coleman talks about how this is real wrestling and not entertainment. The Figure Four is broken up and they’re both down for a bit. Back up and the Bang-A-Rang is countered into the Lethal Combination for two. Hail To The King is broken up and Castle pulls him down for the Bang-A-Rang, with Castle’s leg giving out in the middle. Lethal has to use his second rope break to save himself and comes back with some kicks to the head. The Lethal Injection connects for the pin at 13:11.

Rating: B-. Lethal was the safe pick here but that pre-match promo made me want to see Castle go forward here. That being said, if you want to make a new star, having them beat Lethal, perhaps in the finals, would be a great way to go. Lethal wasn’t wrestling like a heel here whatsoever, but if they’re going for just the basics, that is a little more acceptable.

Wheeler Yuta has been wrestling for six years now after turning pro at sixteen. He went to college in Philadelphia just so he could train in the city with Drew Gulak. Yuta trained in the Michinoku Pro dojo in Japan and trained in Germany as well. He is going to want to take people apart and find their weaknesses. Yuta praises Jonathan Gresham and knows Gresham isn’t worried about him, so Yuta can win.

Jonathan Gresham talks about being an amateur wrestler because he thought that’s what you had to do to become a pro. He saw Ring of Honor back in 2005 and knew it was where he wanted to go because of everything they combined. Gresham has wrestled around the world and his technique is winning the title. It’s time to reshape this company as the pure wrestlers see it.

Pure Title Tournament First Round: Jonathan Gresham vs. Wheeler Yuta

Gresham’s Tag Team Title is notably absent. They fight over a test of strength to start with the bigger Yuta taking him to the mat. Gresham bridges off the mat but gets caught in a bodyscissors. That is rolled into a rollup for two each but Gresham rolls over into a surfboard. The leg cranking takes us to a break and we come back with an exchange of head fakes until Yuta scores with a dropkick.

Gresham goes right back to the leg with an Indian deathlock (with Yuta’s eyes bugging out in fear). Yuta bails to the ropes for the break and then punches Lethal in the face, earning himself an official warning. Gresham is annoyed so the pace picks up as they slug it out (with legal open hand strikes). A quick arm trap cradle gives Yuta two and a springboard spinning crossbody gets the same.

There’s a high crossbody for the same but Gresham is right back on the leg. The Figure Four goes on but they roll over to the ropes (not announced as a break) and fall to the floor to bang them both up. They both beat the count and trade some rapid fire rollups for two each. Gresham stomps on the knee though and pounds it into the mat to make Yuta tap at 10:25.

Rating: C+. This was a different kind of match than the opener and that’s a good idea. Yuta frustrated Gresham here and it told an interesting story of Gresham fighting someone who is so similar to himself. Gresham finally just unloading on the knee to win was a good way to go and the match worked as a result. Yuta would be a nice addition if he’s sticking around, but Gresham wasn’t losing in the first round of this thing.

Overall Rating: B-. It’s nice to have this stuff back as the stakes are instantly higher when you don’t know who is going to win. The Best Of stuff was nice but when you have nothing more for over four months, there is only so much value. I could go for something other than the tournament going forward (as a supplement, not a replacement), but given how things are going, a tournament is the best idea for the time being and that’s understandable.

 

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

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