Ring Of Honor
Date: July 31, 2026
Location: WJCT Studios, Jacksonville, Florida
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

It’s time for the regular show after Tuesday’s bonus show. In this case that means we have three weeks to go before Death Before Dishonor and it’s time to start getting the card ready. Hopefully that is covered this week, though we already have the Pure Title match as Lee Moriarty is defending against Angelico. Let’s get to it.

Here are Tuesday’s results if you need a recap.

We open with a look at Moriarty vs. Angelico, with the focus still being on their first match nearly two years ago. I’m really not sure how big of a deal that actually is.

Pure Rules Title: Lee Moriarty vs. Angelico

Moriarty is defending. They fight over wrist control to start and Angelico spins out of a wristlock. Angelico’s full nelson is countered into a cravate, which allows Moriarty to go after the arm again. Angelico slips out of that as well and does his dance before pulling him into a leglock, which has Moriarty burning his first rope break.

Back up and Moriarty spins around into the Border City Stretch, which has Angelico using his own first rope break. Moriarty works on the arm and fingers so Angelico goes to the ropes for the second time. With that not working, Moriarty loads up a Scorpion Deathlock but reaches down and grabs Angelico’s head before leaning back and stretching…well pretty much everything.

That’s the third rope break from Angelico, which thankfully means that I don’t have to try to describe that nutty hold again. Angelico grabs something like Konnan’s old Tequila Sunrise to send Moriarty to the rope again, leaving him with one. A triangle choke doesn’t get Moriarty very far and Angelico pulls him into…we’ll say it’s the Rings Of Saturn but with Angelico using his legs. Moriarty burns his last rope break and they trade some rollups for two each. Moriarty’s Border City Stretch goes on again and Angelico gives up at 12:31.

Rating: B. Yeah there were some cool spots in there (some of those submissions were absolutely insane) but it’s the same kind of thing that we’ve seen from Moriarty literally for years now. It would be a bit better if Angelico was built up for the title shot but it was basically just “they had a match about two years ago”. Do you know how many pure matches Angelico has had since then? One, which he lost. It’s really not that hard to set up a title match, but instead we get “Hey remember what we did almost two years ago? We’re doing it again.” Try harder than that.

Bandido is asked about his World Title defense at Death Before Dishonor against…Nick Wayne. This brings in Wayne, who promises to win the title, though Bandido says Wayne has no honor. Bandido promises to show why he’s the most wanted. I’m not sure what that means but it’s not like logic matters around this title anyway.

The World Title match for one of the few PPVs that ROH does every year was announced in a random backstage segment between two people who have no history together. Not one of the three or four people who have beaten Bandido on an AEW PPV lately, because everyone in the company wants to be “insert name here” Two Belts, unless it’s a Ring Of Honor title because who could possibly want one of those? Oh and Wayne was last seen losing on Dynamite, because that’s how you build up a World Title challenger. Good grief this place is ridiculous sometimes.

Viva Van vs. Emi Sakura

Sakura knocks her into the corner to start but Van is back up with a running hurricanrana. Sakura goes outside…and appears to be crying, but it’s just a ruse so Sakura can send her into the steps. Back in and Sakura hits a running crossbody in the corner but Van kicks her away. A missile dropkick gives Van two but she can’t get the Ocean Cyclone suplex. Van is back up with an ax kick and they both block and counter quite a few things. Finally Sakura grabs the Queen’s Gambit for the pin at 8:15.

Rating: B-. This is a good example of where you need a better explanation of things around here. Sakura hasn’t wrestled in AEW since 2025 and hasn’t wrestled in ROH since 2023 (this is her fifth ever match here). It came off like we’re just supposed to remember her like she’s a regular and that isn’t the case. She comes in, she works a few matches, and she leaves. It isn’t a case of her talent, but rather she’s gone for long stretches of time and that doesn’t really work in wrestling. Tell us, or better yet, show us, a bit more about her.

The Kingdom uses AI to pick their partners for tonight: the Grizzled Young Veterans! This gives them an 87% chance of winning the match, but the Veterans aren’t sure about this AI stuff. Neither am I, but it’s certainly topical at the moment so points for something new.

Diamante vs. Allie Katch

Diamante grabs a headlock to start but gets pulled down into a quickly broken headlock. Back up and Diamante pulls her out of the corner and fires off some crossface shots to the jaw. A hard whip into the corner lets Diamante pose a bit but Katch is back up with a seated senton. The cannonball gives Katch two but Diamante is right back with a Stunner. Katch’s enziguri gets two more but Diamante gives her a hot shot into One In The Chamber to give Diamante the pin at 4:52.

Rating: C+. I still like Katch and could go for having her around to do some more stuff around here. At the same time, Diamante is still good enough in the ring most of the time but she only gets so many chances to show what she can do as the third person in Athena’s group. The match was a pretty good back and forth showcase too so I’ll take this.

Post match Diamante stays on her but Queen Aminata runs in for the save.

Caprice Coleman sits down with Shane Taylor, who doesn’t like Coleman’s previous suggestions that Shane Taylor Promotions do gangster things. Coleman apologizes and asks Taylor about his matches with Jon Moxley. Taylor brags about laying out Moxley multiple times, which no one else has done. He likes finding the diamonds in the rough and he and his team trust each other. That’s how they’ll accomplish their goals but he wants to remain the person he was raised as being. As usual, Taylor is quite the talker when things are toned down a bit and I could see him having a future as a commentator.

AR Fox vs. Soleil

They go with the grappling to start and Soleil rolls backwards, all the way out to the floor. Back in and Fox uses a handstand to block a cutter (it was cool when I saw him do it live at the WrestleCon Supershow and it’s still cool here). They nip up into a standoff and Soleil flips away and hits a Meteora, landing on his feet before he hits the ground.

Back up and Fox rolls through into a neckbreaker before elbowing away in the corner. The elbows continue against the barricade and we’re off to the chinlock back inside. That’s broken up and they hit stereo crossbodies to leave both of them down. Soleil is up with a high crossbody for two but Fox is right back with a rolling cutter. A fisherman’s buster gives Fox two more but he misses the 450. They go up top until Soleil is shoved away, allowing Fox to give him a jumping Stunner. Lo Mein Pain into the 450 finishes Soleil at 11:00.

Rating: B. Fox has grown on me like few others around here as he wrestles a very different style but does it so well. That makes him stand out, along with being so smooth in the ring. This was good stuff as Soleil is as unique as it gets around here and the whole thing meshed together rather well. Good stuff here.

Athena is sick of people trying to come after her, including Hazuki. They can have their title match at Death Before Dishonor. In case you’re wondering, Hazuki hasn’t wrestled in ROH since before AEW existed and has wrestled four times in AEW. At least she had a brawl with Athena in her match this week on Collision. Athena defending against the woman who beat her in the Owen Hart Cup? You should know better than that.

Steph de Lander vs. Rachael Ellering

Pure Rules and de Lander uses her first rope break in less than twenty seconds. Ellering takes her down without much trouble and hits a basement dropkick to the head. The second rope break is quickly used, as is de Lander’s punch to the face for the warning. Back up and de Lander kicks her in the face but Ellering is right back with a spinning elbow. Something like the dragon sleeper makes de Lander use her last rope break. Ellering tries a charge so de Lander hides behind the referee, with Ellering throwing him down. That lets de Lander get in another right hand and it’s a sitout F5 for the pin on Ellering at 4:49.

Rating: C. I can absolutely go for someone who cheats in this division as that’s not something you often see. De Lander cheating every chance she could makes a lot of sense and I could go for seeing what she can do in the division. It’s not like there is anything else interesting going on in the division.

Juice Robinson has glistening nipples and is coming to ROH.

Trish Adora vs. Angelica Risk

Adora sends her into the corner for a running splash to start before pulling Risk out of the air. A bridging northern lights suplex gets two and it’s time to go after Risk’s arm. The sit on the back double arm crank, followed by the rapid fire hips to the face in the corner. Risk is back up with a hurricanrana faceplant into a 619 and they trade some rollups for two each. Back up and Adora kicks her in the face, setting up the Lariat Tubman to finish Risk at 5:55.

Rating: C+. Adora got to do her usual stuff here and as a result it was entertaining while it lasted. It’s also just the kind of stuff that we’ve seen from her for a long time now and that kind of puts a limit on what she can do. That’s not likely to change and unfortunately that’s going to keep her in the same spot for however long she’s around.

Steph de Lander is coming for the Women’s Pure Rules Title. She’s already gotten a better build than Angelico so why not.

Vertvixen vs. Julissa Mexa

Mexa grabs the leg and rolls around a lot, allowing her to dance. Vertvixen grabs the leg though and slaps on a half crab, followed by a running boot in the corner. Back up and they trade some forearms until Mexa gets up top for a missile dropkick. Mexa strikes away but charges into a Blue Thunder Bomb for two. They go up top at the same time and strike it out, where Mexa grabs a super Samoan Driver for the pin at 5:29.

Rating: C+. Mexa has been around here a few times before and she’s done well enough in those limited appearances. She has some good charisma and that finish was quite the crash landing. Vertvixen continues to be someone who feels like she could be something if given the chance but that has yet to happen.

Nigel McGuinness wants the Pure Rules Title and is willing to put his ROH career on the line.

Von Erichs/Bustah And The Brain vs. Kingdom/Grizzled Young Veterans

Hold on though as AI says that Drake should start against Price, who takes him down with an early wristlock. Gibson saves Drake from a suplex and it’s off to Taven for a clothesline and dropkick to Oliver. The Von Erichs come in for a bunch of slams so the villains bail out to the floor. Back in and Gibson takes over on Ross, with a cravate sending him face first into the mat. Bennett comes in for a front facelock but Ross gets out and dropkicks his way to freedom.

Everything breaks down and Gibson gives Oliver a Death Valley Driver. Price hits a pop up dropkick to Bennett and spins over into a crossbody to Taven (that was awesome). The Von Erichs hit stereo cannonballs on the Veterans and the Claws go on. That’s broken up though and the distracted referee misses the low blow to Marshall, with Drake getting a rollup for the pin at 10:05.

Rating: B-. As much as my eyes rolled at seeing the Von Erichs back, the match wound up being good and I could go with the AI Kingdom as a thing. It’s been thirty five years since the York Foundation (oh dear) so why not? Go with something to see if it works, as it’s not like the Kingdom has been lighting things up since they returned. At least the numbers backed them up this time.

Zayda Steel vs. Sara Leon

Steel takes her down by the arm to start and Leon is surprised. For some reason Leon is surprised again when she gets pulled into an armbar and Steel wrestles her down again without much trouble. Steel misses something off the top and gets snapmared down into a running kick to the head. Leon’s kick from the apron is blocked though and Steel starts in on the leg, followed by a scorpion kick. A hanging Codebreaker gets two but Leon rolls into a German suplex to drop Steel hard. Steel is able to block a second attempt though and a leglock finishes Leon at 5:55.

Rating: C+. Steel worked on the leg, countered a move and then put on a leg hold for the win. It’s not much of a steel but it’s certainly better than what you get a lot of the time. That’s all you need here and at least Steel got a win, even if it’s against someone who might not be so well known around here. It’s better than nothing and it might lead to…oh give me a break.

Deonna Purrazzo is down to face Steph de Lander at Death Before Dishonor.

Juice Robinson vs. Anthony Henry

Henry wrestles him down to start and works on the arm but Robinson grabs a waistlock to cut that off. It’s enough for Henry to need a breather on the floor before coming back in for a dragon screw legwhip. Robinson has to bail to the ropes to escape a leglock but a backsplash hits raised knees.

Henry goes right back to the knee so Robinson snaps off a spinebuster. Now the backsplash connects for two but Henry knocks him down again, setting up the Figure Four. They slap it out until the hold is broken and Robinson is up to snap off the jabs. The forward DDT pins Henry at 7:54.

Rating: C+. Yeah fine. I’m not sure what I’m supposed to think about this as it’s basically just a guest star from AEW showing up here for what is likely a one off match. As usual that’s hardly exciting but Robinson is so quirky and odd that he winds up keeping me interested. Not bad for a match, but as usual, a completely random choice for a main event.

Overall Rating: C+. As usual, the show was far too long and did little more than showcase how random this place is. McGuinness and de Lander technically earn title shots while Nick Wayne is just handed one while Hazuki at least interacted with the champion to get hers. It feels like every story has its own rules and that’s not exactly a great way to run a show. At least things should have something close to a focus for the next three weeks, but as usual there was a bunch of stuff that felt like it was here because Tony Khan has to film everything and air it as we approach three and a half hours of ROH this week. How lucky.

Results
Lee Moriarty b. Angelico – Border City Stretch
Emi Sakura b. Viva Van – Queen’s Gambit
Diamante b. Allie Katch – One In The Chamber
AR Fox b. Soleil – 450
Steph de Lander b. Rachael Ellering – Sitout F5
Trish Adora b. Angelica Risk – Lariat Tubman
Julissa Mexa b. Vertvixen – Super Samoan Driver
Kingdom/Grizzled Young Veterans b. Bustah And The Brain/Von Erichs – Rollup to Marshall
Zayda Steel b. Sara Leon – Leglock
Juice Robinson b. Anthony Henry – Forward DDT

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

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

Ring Of Honor
Date: July 16, 2026
Location: WJCT Studios, Jacksonville, Florida
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

We’re coming up on Death Before Dishonor and that should be a big deal around here. Granted we do have another Bandido loss to get through first, but it’s not like another is going to make a difference after all of his other AEW PPV losses. Other than that, we might be seeing some more with the Tag Team Titles after their rather long hiatus. Let’s get to it.

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

Lio Rush is still weird with his title.

Opening sequence.

Six Man Tag Team Titles: Dalton Castle/Outrunners vs. Beef/Premiere Athletes

Beef and the Athletes are challenging. Magnum and Nese start things off and of course it’s time to pose. Magnum’s headscissors takes Nese down and it’s off to Castle for a double splash. Floyd comes in and Beef’s clotheslines don’t do much to him so Beef grabs the armbar. Nese gets in a cheap shot from the apron and Daivari gets to stomp away, followed by a neckbreaker for two.

We hit the chinlock for a bit, followed by Beef’s side slam for two more. Magnum backdrops his way out of trouble and it’s back to Floyd for a bunch of slams. Beef’s crossbody cuts him off for two and we hit the chinlock, only for Magnum to get up with a clothesline. Castle comes back in to clean house but the triple elbow is broken up. Daivari shoulders Nese by mistake though and it’s the Mega Powers Elbow and fist drop combination to retain the titles at 11:07.

Rating: C+. Even if Beef and the Athletes were just a quick set of challengers, what matters here is they had a title match. Castle and the Outrunners are fine as champions as they are the entertaining act who can win for a good while without being boring. Beef and the Athletes are a quick set of opponents and now the Athletes can yell at Beef a bit more, which works fine as the Athletes apparently have to be on every show.

Post match the champs are glad to have won but a mention of the Lethal Twist upsets Castle’s tummy. Either way, the champs are ready for them.

Angelico vs. Tim Bosby

Angelico wrestles him down by the arm to start but Bosby, who looks to be an amateur star, goes to the rope for the break. A spinning slam drops Angelico and a release belly to belly gets two. The chinlock doesn’t last long and it’s Angelico back up to strike away, including a kick to the head from the mat. The leglock makes Bosby tap at 3:15.

Rating: C. Much like the Premiere Athletes, Angelico is someone who has to be on almost every show and it gets a bit tedious. He’s completely fine but he doesn’t exactly add much and when the show goes long, this is the kind of match that just feels like it stretched things out. It would help if Angelico had done ANYTHING important in forever but that just hasn’t been the case.

We look at Bandido’s recent wins and tease of him going after the International Title.

Main Man Oro vs. Mark Davidson

Feeling out process to start with Davidson grabbing a flying mare to take Oro down early. Back up and Oro scores with a rolling kick to the head before taking the leg out. A t-bone suplex puts Davidson down for two more but he’s back up with a rolling cutter for two of his own. Oro gives him the running kick in the corner though and a leg trap suplex finishes Davidson at 5:01.

Rating: C+. Oro has popped up a few times around here and he continues to feel like someone else who just occasionally wrestles here. That’s about all there is to say about him as there are so many wrestlers kind of floating around without getting to do much. As usual, do something with these people and it might matter, but until then, they’re simply more names on a long list of filler.

The Kingdom vs. Workhorsemen

Taven and Henry trade wristlocks to start until Henry snaps off a spinwheel kick. Bennett comes in and can’t get the Proton Pack, instead settling with a clothesline for two. It’s off to Drake to chop away before Henry twists Bennett’s neck a bit. Drake’s belly to belly drops Ciampa again but the Vader Bomb misses.

That’s enough for the tag back to Taven to clean house with the kicks to the face. A pop up right hand gets two on Henry but he reverses a suplex into a quick brainbuster. Drake and Bennett chop it out, to the point where Drake has to put the straps back up for extra protection. Taven is sent outside and a Skysplitter of all things gets two on Bennett. Drake and Bennett strike it out again until Taven rolls Drake up with feet on the ropes for the pin at 9:06.

Rating: C+. Another perfectly good match between two teams who don’t feel like they’re doing a thing around here. The Workhorsemen are the designated jobbers of the division and the Kingdom disappeared for several more weeks. I do like having the Kingdom back for a bit as they have the credentials to back it up, but the Workhorsemen are another team I could use a break from seeing for a good while.

AR Fox is upset over his title loss but Alan Angels comes in to mock him. Angels yells at him for never being there for him and a match is made.

AR Fox vs. Alan Angels

They trade rollups for two each to start and Angels hides in the ropes. Fox spins out of a wristlock into one of his own but Angels snaps off a hurricanrana. Back up and Fox strike away to get a breather, setting up a leg lariat to knock Angels back down. A Stunner out of the corner and the anarchist suplex give Fox two more but Angels moonsaults him out of the corner for two of his own.

Angels chops away some more and catches him in the corner for a double stomp to the back on the apron. Fox is able to give him a hanging DDT, setting up the running flipping double stomp. Back in and Fox pulls him into a cutter for two more, followed by a Swanton for another near fall. Fox misses a 450 and gets kicked in the head to give Angels two. Angel’s Wings is broken up though and Fox grabs Lo Mein Pain to the 450 for the pin at 11:11.

Rating: B-. As usual, Fox is capable of doing a bunch of things in the ring and looks so smooth out there while doing a rather unique style. At the same time, I’m not sure how interesting it was to have him facing a student who has been mad at him for what must have been a good thirty five seconds before the entrances started. I guess this was the way to get Fox back on his feet after his title loss and I can go with having him around more often.

We go to Arena Mexico for a CMLL match.

Tag Team Titles: Sky Team vs. Los Hermanos Chavez

Los Hermanos (Angel de Plata/Angel de Oro, whose NJPW Strong Tag Team Titles and CMLL Tag Team Titles aren’t on the line) are challenging and we get a quick ceremony honoring them for being in the ring for twenty years. Mistico and Oro start things off and look so much alike that commentary has to explain the way to tell them apart.

Mistico’s headscissors takes Oro down and Sky Team send them outside for the suicide dives. Back in and Mistico gets kicked out to the floor, with Dorada being sent out next to him. Mistico gets a running start though and is tossed into a hurricanrana to send Plata to the floor. Dorada does the same to Oro and it’s a pair of corkscrew dives to take the challengers down again.

We settle back down to Dorada clearing both of them out, setting up Mistico to get in some hurricanranas for the same. Back in and Mistico’s Code Red gets two on Oro, with Plata breaking it up for two of his own. A Michinoku Driver plants Dorada for two, with Mistico making a save of his own. Everything breaks down again and stereo springboard hurricanranas get two on Los Hermanos. Plata and Mistico strike it out until Dorada snaps off a running hurricanrana to the floor. La Mistica makes Oro tap at 13:55.

Rating: B. It was another entertaining match from Sky Team, though I’m hoping that this is just wrapping up their stuff from the CMLL shows and we get back to ROH for some regular title defenses. I absolutely get the idea of having something like this once in awhile, but we’ve kind of covered it for the time being. Otherwise, Guevara and Mortos could have kept the titles.

We get a sitdown interview with Sammy Guevara, who brags about being in everyone’s head. Guevara is like water because he can adapt to anything but some people don’t like water. He has been a success around the world but some people still won’t show him respect. Guevara is happy with how he has been a role model for his daughter (who he loves) and wants the World Title in another arm to hold alongside her. That’s a nice thought.

Bustah And The Brain vs. MxM Collection

After a hug off, Oliver and Mansoor start things off. Oliver takes him down by Mansoor is up to strike a pose, allowing Mason to come in with a running hip attack to the face. Oliver is back up with something close to a Pounce and Price comes in. That means a double clothesline to put Oliver and Price down, meaning Mansoor gets to drop Oliver with a forearm. Mansoor stomps away and Mason gets in some choking, followed by a tie in the Tree Of Woe.

Oliver slips out without much trouble though and it’s back to Price to pick up the pace. Price whips out a brush covered in hair to tease going after Mansoor, freaking him out in the process. With that blocked, it’s a double running boot in the corner but a double Styles clash is broken up. Price grabs a pop up Stunner to Madden and uses him for a tornado DDT to Mansoor. Back up and Mansoor gets dropkicked out of the air, setting up the double Styles Clash for the pin at 10:12.

Rating: B-. Bustah And The Brain have grown on me a lot since their start around here and it’s good to see them having some success. If the titles are actually around, I’d love to see them getting their chance at them. That might not be happening anytime soon, but at least they’re getting in the ring and not overstaying their welcome.

Dezmond Xavier vs. Brandon Cutler

Cutler works on a headlock to start so Xavier spins out, only to get crushed with a backsplash. Back up and Cutler springboards into an armdrag to put Xavier down again. Xavier is fine enough to dropkick him outside for a suicide dive but a 450 misses back inside. Cutler pops up to the top back inside for a hurricanrana but Xavier knocks him back into the corner. The tornado DDT gives Xavier two, only for Cutler to grab a cutter. The Shining Wizard gives Cutler two more but Xavier catches him with a Cardiac Kick for the pin at 7:05.

Rating: C+. Xavier getting a singles push isn’t a bad idea but he’s in the middle of the incredibly crowded midcard. I’m not sure if this was enough to really make him stand out but that’s the case for a lot of people around here. The match was completely fine and did in fact remind me that Cutler is in fact still around.

Shane Taylor Promotions vs. Adam Priest/Tommy Billington/Ortiz/Eddie Kingston

Bravo flips Ortiz off to start fast and they run the ropes for a crisscross. Ortiz puts him down and the good guys start taking turns on the arm. It’s off to Taylor, who blocks a double drop toehold but gets taken down with a middle rope bulldog. Priest gets taken down though and the Promotions take over on him, with a quadruple teaming on the floor making it worse.

Back in and the Promotions start taking turns on Priest, with Taylor hitting a heck of a clothesline. Dean adds his Bronco Buster but Priest fights up and brings Kingston in to clean house. Everything breaks down and we get the parade of knockdowns until Priest is the only one close to standing. Bravo gets in a huge dive to the floor and it’s Priest left alone with Dean back inside. Dean goes to pick him up but gets small packaged for the pin at 12:31.

Rating: B-. This had some nice action as the Promotions have some talented stars. As has been the case with far too many people on this show though, they’re around so often that it stops making much of an impact. At the same time, I’m not sure why you would tease having Tehuti Miles join them last week and then have them lose here. Either way, not a bad match at all.

Athena/Billie Starkz vs. Lacey Lane/Viva Van

Diamante is here with Athena and Starkz. Van and Starkz start things off with the former hitting a nice rolling kick to the head. A high crossbody puts Starkz down again but Diamante offers a distraction, allowing Athena to get in a boot of her own. The chinlock with a knee in the back goes on but Van enziguris her way to freedom.

That’s not enough for the tag though as Starkz breaks it up and drops a Swanton. Van fights back again and brings in Lane to start the comeback. A springboard spinning legdrop gives Lane two but Starkz gives her a Backstabber. Van comes back in for a double armdrag and dropkick but Athena knocks her down without much trouble. The curb stomp finishes Van at 7:23.

Rating: C. Athena is right back where she was before, which has literally been the case for years now. Hopefully it doesn’t continue the seemingly never ending tease of Starkz being the one to get the title off of her, but there are some options out there to get the spot instead. For now, though, Van and Lane have another loss but are fine for a low level women’s team.

Post match Athena wrecks Van a bit more.

TV Title: Lee Johnson vs. Lio Rush

Rush is defending but Johnson steals the title before the match, which feels like a rather dumb idea. That earns him a quick takedown, followed by a bunch of chest scratches. What looks like a BFT is escaped and Johnson bails to the floor, allowing him to chop away. Naturally this makes Rush laugh and he strikes away to start his comeback.

A snapmare lets Johnson kick him in the chest, setting up a standing moonsault for two. Back up and Rush hits a quick spear, followed by a Stunner for the 1998 special. Rush knocks him to the floor for the suicide dive, setting up a Jackhammer (ok I was kidding about the 1998 thing) for two more. Back up and Johnson backflips over him out of the corner, setting up a reverse DDT for two of his own.

A half snapdragon just wakes Rush up for the spinning kick to the head, with the springboard Stunner getting two more. Rush loads him up for something…but seems to start hearing voices. He goes outside to look for something and gets caught by Johnson’s big running flip dive. Back in and Johnson misses something off the top, allowing Rush to grab the cutter into the cutter choke to retain at 13:06.

Rating: B-. Rush does indeed deserve credit for everything he has gotten out of this, as there was no reason to believe that it was going to work and then it is coming off pretty well. He’s certainly dedicated to the thing so points for trying this hard. The fans are into him too so this is about as much as you can ask for here.

Overall Rating: C. Oh goodness no. This was every issue that the old Ring Of Honors had, as we had 11 matches and a bunch of people clogging up the show. The wrestling was fine, but it was a horrible presentation because there was too much going on. As usual, Ring Of Honor goes with the idea of quantity over all things and it made for a rather bad show. The wrestling worked and the people are doing what they can, but this could have been three if not four different shows. That’s way too much, as it’s ok to either not put so many people on every show or just not film it all. You know, just for a change.

Results
Dalton Castle/Outrunners b. Beef/Premiere Athletes – Mega Powers Elbow/fist drop combination to Beef
Angelico b. Tim Bosby – Leglock
Main Man Oro b. Mark Davidson – Leg trap suplex
The Kingdom b. Workhorsemen – Rollup to Drake with feet on the ropes
AR Fox b. Alan Angels – 450
Sky Team b. Los Hermanos Chavez – La Mistica to Oro
Bustah And The Brain b. MxM Collection – Double Styles Clash to Mansoor
Dezmond Xavier b. Brandon Cutler – Cardiac Kick
Adam Priest/Tommy Billington/Ortiz/Eddie Kingston b. Shane Taylor Promotions – Rollup to Dean
Athena/Billie Starkz b. Lacey Lane/Via Van – Curb stomp to Van
Lio Rush b. Lee Johnson – Cutter choke

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

Global Wars: Cincinnati Week Two
Date: June 25, 2026
Location: Andrew J. Brady Music Center, Cincinnati, Ohio
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

We’re back in Cincinnati for the second of what I’m assuming is two weeks of the show. It’s another case of the international stars showing up, along with AEW stars, who apparently count as guests. These things can be a lot of fun and hopefully it lives up to what we got last week. Let’s get to it.

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

I was in attendance for some of this show, sitting in the ninth row on the floor with the entrance to my right.

Opening sequence.

AEW National Title: Ace Austin vs. Mark Davis

Davis is defending. Austin grabs the arm to start so Davis gives him a heck of a running shoulder. Back up and Austin low bridges him to the floor but Davis is right back in with a hard slam. A backsplash crushes Austin and he realizes he’s in trouble with this kind of power. Davis sends him hard out to the floor and Austin seems to come up favoring his hand, only to come back in with some chops anyway.

Davis’ charge only hits the corner though and Austin Russian legsweeps him into a legdrop. The Death Valley Driver with a squat gives Austin two and he kicks Davis in the head to cut off the running clothesline. They crash out to the floor and Davis hits the post but the Fold is blocked. A bridging cradle gives Austin two more but the big clothesline connects. Davis’ piledriver retains the title at 9:18.

Rating: B-. This was starting to roll at the end and it’s good to see Austin getting a chance. It would be better to see him win something, but at least he’s in a spot like this instead of sitting on the bench. What matters is that he’s getting in the ring and Davis gets to continue a rather nice roll.

Viva Van/Lacey Lane vs. Harley Cameron/Mina Shirakawa

Cameron is rather pleased with fans holding Mini Mones, which were somehow only made available after all these months. Lane and Shirakawa start things off with Lane taking her down into a front facelock. With that broken up, Van holds Shirakawa in the ropes for a running dropkick but Lane misses a charge in the corner. It’s off to Cameron with a high crossbody and a Shining Wizard gets two on Van.

Lane comes back in to catch Cameron in the corner with a running dropkick, setting up an armbar. That’s reversed into a belly to back suplex and it’s back to Shirakawa to clean house. A top rope double dropkick puts Lane and Van down and it’s off to the parade of knockdowns. Van kicks Shirakawa out of the corner and stereo running shots in the corner give Lane two. Shirakawa makes a quick running tag to Cameron though and That’s Her Finisher takes Lane out at 8:26.

Rating: C+. Cameron and Shirakawa are doing well enough as the team of two people whose partners left them and they happened together. It’s not like either of them have anything else going on so this is as good of an idea as they have. Give them a title shot and let them lose so we can move on to something else.

We recap the Women’s Owen Hart finals, with Athena helping Mercedes Mone attacking Maya World.

Billie Starkz vs. Syuri

They fight over a waistlock to start and Syuri hits a running knee in the corner. A running boot in the ropes knocks Starkz silly and her suicide dive is cut off with a forearm. Starkz is back up with a hanging Eye Of The Hurricane and a suplex gets two. A slap in the corner seems to wake Syuri up and it’s already time to trade the forearms. What was supposed to be a wheelbarrow bulldog doesn’t go very smoothly for Syuri but she’s able to grab a cross armbreaker.

With that broken up thanks to the ropes, Starkz plants her on the ramp but misses the Swanton. Back in and they trade rollups for two each but Syuri gets the cross armbreaker again. Starkz makes the ropes so Syuri kicks her in the head. The Electric Chair is broken up and a Last Shot gives Starkz two. The Swanton hits raised knees though and Syuri gets something like a reverse Octopus for the tap at 10:36.

Rating: B-. This was the match designed to give Syuri her win back after last week’s loss to Athena. The problem is it came against Starkz, which only means so much. At the end of the day, Starkz is little more than Athena’s lackey who loses just about every big match she has. Syuri is good, but she needs a bigger opponent.

Lio Rush is still creepy, but he’s now the TV Champion.

We look at the title match.

Action Andretti rants about how Rush shouldn’t have been in the match. Rush needs to enjoy his time with the title because Andretti is coming for it.

Premiere Athletes vs. The Opps

Nese poses at Bowens to start and Bowens is fine with posing right back. Bowens chops away in the corner and gets two off a quick suplex. Hook comes in and gets hit in the throat, allowing Beef to come in for a dropkick. A release northern lights suplex sends Beef flying before Shibata suplexes him on the apron and floor. Back in and Shibata grabs a Figure Four, with Beef grabbing the rope.

Nese comes back in and pulls Bowens outside for the group stomping. Back in and Daivari grabs a chinlock but Bowens is right back up with a running jumping Fameasser. Shibata gets to strike away as everything breaks down. Nese stomps Hook and Beef’s top rope splash gets two on Shibata. Some chops just wake Shibata up so he dropkicks Beef in the corner. The Athletes walk out and it’s the sleeper into the PK to finish Beef at 9:59.

Rating: C. Why was this on Global Wars? That’s been the question with three of the four matches on the show thus far, as Syuri has been the only star from outside AEW/ROH. Unless I’m supposed to believe that AEW is some big outside promotion, this has been quite the useless second week of a special in a long time. It doesn’t help that the Athletes feel like they’ve been in the same place since the start of ROH and the Opps are just sad without Joe.

Sammy Guevara brags about his success in Mexico with the Beast Mortos and he’s heading back to CMLL. Mistico can pick a partner and get a Tag Team Title shot. This will air next Friday on ROH, because apparently there’s an ROH show on Friday.

We look at Zack Sabre Jr.’s time in ROH.

Aaron Solo vs. Mike Nicholls

Like Sabre was going to be on this show. Nicholls starts fast and takes him outside for a drop onto the apron. A basement clothesline cuts off Solo’s comeback but he’s able to get in a suplex. Solo’s top rope double stomp gets two but Nicholls is back with a Deep Six for the pin at 4:25.

Rating: C-. This is a match that took place and I have no idea how this was the best use of someone like Nicholls. He won a squash match over someone who has never done anything important around here. It’s a case where the best thing that can be said is at least it was short, which isn’t a good sign in the slightest.

We recap Dalton Castle/The Outrunners vs. the Lethal Twists.

Dalton Castle and the Outrunners don’t think much of the Twists. Castle: “What the heck?”

Queen Aminata vs. Hanako

Aminata backs her up against the ropes to start and they trade shoulders to no avail. A shot to the leg takes Hanako down for the hips to the face and Hanako isn’t happy. They grasp hands and trade forearms until Hanako knocks her outside for the beating around ringside. Back in and Hanako Falcon Arrows her into the Boston crab, sending Aminata over to the rope. Aminata’s comeback is countered with a swinging suplex for two but Aminata kicks her in the face. The running kick in the ropes finishes for Aminata at 6:55.

Rating: C. Well, at least someone on her way to a title match in AEW didn’t lose this nothing match. I guess this counts as an international star having a big match against an AEW/ROH star as it’s not like there is much to compare it to. Aminata winning is a good thing, though it’s another ice cold match on a show full of them.

The Opps want a Trios Titles shot on Collision. These guys continue to feel pathetic.

Women’s Pure Rules Title: Deonna Purrazzo vs. Olympia

Purrazzo is defending under Pure Rules. They fight over wrist control to start until Olympia nips up and armdrags her down. Purrazzo realizes the power is an issue and goes with the wrestling, meaning it’s the Fujiwara armbar. Olympia makes the rope for the first break and knocks her into the corner for the slingshot Bronco Buster.

A basement dropkick gets two on Purrazzo and Olympia cranks on both arms. Purrazzo fights up and hits some running shoulders, setting up another Fujiwara armbar. That’s broken up as well and Purrazzo catches her up top, only for Olympia to gorilla press her down. A Last Chancery sends Purrazzo to the rope for her first break and the Fujiwara armbar retains the title at 8:52.

Rating: C+. Well thank goodness Olympia got the win here. It’s a smart thing to do when she’s on the way to a big title shot on a much bigger stage in three days. She’s been around AEW and ROH with middling results at best so giving her a win over someone like Purrazzo and establishing her as someone who matters and can win in an upset over a dominant champion is a great idea. Imagine how dumb you would have to be to have her lose in a taped show after giving her a title shot on the upcoming AEW card. That would just be plain ridiculous, so it’s great that she absolutely won here.

Overall Rating: D+. This was one of the biggest wastes of time that I have seen in years in wrestling. The matches were mediocre for the most part, the guest stars were barely a factor, the matches were ice cold and the ending result was idiotic. There was zero need to have this be a two week event, as a bunch of the matches here were just regular ROH matches that could have been on any given week. This was absolutely nothing and a big waste of the Global Wars name.

Results
Mark Davis b. Ace Austin – Piledriver
Mina Shirakawa/Harley Cameron b. Lacey Lane/Viva Van – That’s Her Finisher to Lane
Syuri b. Billie Starkz – Reverse Octopus
Opps b. Premiere Athletes/Beef – PK to Beef
Mikey Nicholls b. Aaron Solo – Deep Six
Queen Aminata b. Hanako – Running kick to the face
Deonna Purrazzo b. Olympia – Fujiwara armbar

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

Global Wars: Cincinnati
Date: June 18, 2026
Location: Andrew J. Brady Music Center, Cincinnati, Ohio
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

This is one of those big shows with a bunch of guest stars as Ring Of Honor basically does its own version of Forbidden Door. The big match is Athena defending the Women’s Title against Syuri and the rest…well it’s hard to say as a lot of these matches aren’t advertised. In other words, how Ring Of Honor of the show. Let’s get to it.

Here are Tuesday’s results if you need a recap.

I was in attendance for part of this show, sitting in the ninth row on the floor with the entrance on my right.

Opening sequence.

The opening video looks at Lio Rush and Action Andretti challenging AR Fox for the TV Title. Rush and Andretti were partners but then split up, with Rush being all insane.

TV Title: Action Andretti vs. Lio Rush vs. AR Fox

Fox is defending. Andretti is outside to start and Fox isn’t sure what to do with Rush. This means Rush whispering something into Fox’s ear and it’s time for both of them to go after Andretti. Rush starts running the ropes and Andretti gets kicked out to the floor as the fans seem to like Rush over the champion. Andretti is back up but Fox moonsaults onto both of them on the floor.

Fox goes after Andretti on the ramp and avoids a 450 but gets planted with a DDT. Andretti goes after Rush but winds up breaking an umbrella and sending Rush into the barricade instead. Fox is back up to dive onto both of them but gets small packaged to give Andretti two. Andretti’s springboard clothesline hits Rush and a springboard twisting splash gets the same on Fox.

Back up and Fox dropkicks Andretti in the corner, followed by a cutter to Rush. Fox’s tornado DDT and anarchist suplex drop Rush for two but Andretti sends Fox outside. A springboard Stunner gives Rush two on Andretti and Andretti’s falcon arrow gets the same. The pumphandle Side Effect gets two on Fox so Andretti goes up, with the two of them catching him at once.

With everyone back down, a triple knockdown leaves all of them needing a breather. Fox slugs away at both of them to take over but Andretti cuts him off with a low blow. Rush Stunners him though and grabs a choke, with Fox diving in for the save. Fox is sent outside though and Black Thunder gives Rush the pin and the title at 14:53.

Rating: B. I get it. I’m not wild on Rush’s whole deal, but he is clearly popular with the crowd and being presented as a big deal. Giving him something, even as low as the ROH TV Title, is a smart thing to do. My bigger issue is Fox losing the title so soon, as I became a much bigger fan after some of his recent promos. As for Andretti….well Fox is rather awesome.

Lacey Lane/Viva Van vs. Red Velvet/Thunder Rosa

Van runs Velvet over to start and they trade bridging escapes. Lane and Van hit stereo dropkicks but it’s quickly off to Rosa for some chops and armdrags. Back up and Lane takes over on Rosa, allowing Van to come back in for a rolling kick to the head. Rosa neckbreakers her way out of trouble though and Lane is sent into the corner so Velvet can hammer away. Rosa gets caught in a fireman’s carry but Velvet tags herself back in, with Lane taking over again. Everything breaks down and we hit the parade of knockdowns before Van and Velvet trade rollups for two each. Rosa’s package powerbomb finishes Van at 7:40.

Rating: C. This was a weird one as it’s a cold match between a pair of teams who don’t really work together all that often. Maybe this leads to Rosa showing up here to take a run at Velvet (it’s not like either of them have anything else to do). Other than that though, this felt like a match that was just thrown out there to burn up some time.

We look at Syuri beating Athena in February.

Diamante vs. Maika

Diamante wrestles her to the mat in a hurry and gets in the slaps to the back of Maika’s head. Back up and Diamante pulls her down by the hair, meaning it’s time to hammer away on the mat. Some Kawada kicks have Maika in more trouble and Diamante grabs a headlock. Maika fights up and hits a dropkick in the ropes, followed by a delayed suplex for two. A big clothesline connects but Diamante reverses into a German suplex. Diamante misses a clothesline though and the Michinoku driver finishes for Maika at 6:25.

Rating: C+. This is where Global Wars/Forbidden Door runs into a problem. Maika is a talented star from Stardom but she was debuting here. Odds are she’s not staying for any significant amount of time so this was little more than a pit stop. The match was fine and that’s about all, but it’s kind of hard to get interested in people who haven’t been around here before in a match with no story.

We look at LFI winning the Tag Team Titles in December.

And now, to Arena Mexico for LFI’s first title defense in three and a half months.

Tag Team Titles: La Faccion Ingobernable vs. Los Villanos

Los Villains (El Hijo de Villano Tres (“Tres”) and Villano Tres Jr. (“Jr.”) are challenging. Guevara flips over Tres to start and sticks the landing on a hurricanrana. They trade nipups so Mortos comes in to run Tres over. Jr. comes in with a springboard knockdown but the champs are right back up for some posing. Guevara teases something off the top but drops down for a stomp instead.

The champs go after Jr.’s mask to no avail and it’s Tres back up to start the comeback. A spinning springboard dive hits Mortos and it’s a Codebreaker into a double stomp back inside. Guevara gets thrown from the ramp onto Mortos but Mortos clotheslines both of them down without much trouble. Guevara adds a dive of his own, followed by a corkscrew version from Mortos.

Back in and a rolling cutter drops Tres before Mortos wrecks Jr with a backbreaker and discus lariat. Tres is back in with a tornado DDT to Mortos, who is back up with a super gorilla press for two on Jr. A Doomsday Device doesn’t work though and it’s a poisonrana to Mortos. Guevara takes out Jr. on the floor though and a moonsault gives Mortos the pin on Tres at 14:39.

Rating: B-. Remember what I said about how it’s hard to care about people who aren’t around here and don’t do much in a promotion? That’s the case for both of the teams, as LFI haven’t been in a match in three and a half months but their title reign has to continue for whatever reason. It’s an entertaining match, but this might as well have been a bunch of guest stars doing high spots for about fifteen minutes.

We look at Athena beating Hyan.

AEW TV Title: Konosuke Takeshita vs. Lee Johnson

Takeshita is defending and Blake Christian/Jay Lethal are here with Johnson. I can’t even bother getting annoyed at commentary saying that Johnson is on a roll when his last singles win around here was in December. Johnson’s headlock doesn’t last long so he goes with a dropkick out to the floor. The suicide dive connects and Johnson hammers away back inside.

A hard whip into the corner has Takeshita in more trouble and Johnson grabs the chinlock. Takeshita fights up but his ankle is banged up, meaning he can’t get up top. Instead they knock each other down again, with Takeshita getting up to take over again. A big clothesline gives Takeshita two but the running knee is blocked. Johnson superkicks him down and ducks a clothesline, setting up a cradle for two. Takeshita is right back with the Blue Thunder Bomb into the running knee to retain at 9:30.

Rating: B-. Well at least we know these people. Takeshita is a great star and doesn’t have much to do with Ring Of Honor but I’ll take someone who is around on these shows one way or another. I have no idea why Johnson was the one getting a title shot here, but logic in title shots is not exactly Tony Khan’s strong suit.

The Opps want to fight Beef and the Premiere Athletes. Anthony Bowens wants violence and Hook thinks he’s starting to get it.

Takumi Iroha vs. Hyan

Iroha is Syuri’s partner. We get a hug to start but Iroha wants to get going so they fight over a lockup. Iroha’s big kick to the head misses though and Hyan realizes this isn’t going to be easy. Hyan misses a dropkick and she gets caught with a quick DDT for two. A sliding knee drops Hyan again but she slips out of a Razor’s Edge. That earns her a kick to the chest and Iroha grabs a quickly broken Scorpion Deathlock.

Hyan muscles her up with a suplex and a belly to back version gets two. Iroha is right back with a running knee to the face and they strike it out. Hyan is knocked down but avoids a Swanton, allowing them to go out to the apron. Iroha gets planted down and a spear gives Hyan two back inside. A big kick knocks Iroha silly but Hyan picks her up instead of covering, allowing Iroha to kick right back. The running Razor’s Edge out of the corner finishes Hyan at 9:49.

Rating: B-. Well, for someone who has never been around here before and likely won’t be again, Iroha looked good enough in beating a midcarder. That’s about all there is to this one, as it’s not like either of them are a big deal around here. The match was fine, but much like a lot of this show, it’s just there.

Lethal Twists/RPG Vice vs. Outrunners/Mike Bailey/Mistico

Mistico gets the big singalong entrance and while the fans wave their hands, I’m not sure if they knew the words (Bailey on the other hand sang every word to the thing multiple times, looking like he was having a great time). Vice teases walking off but comes back for the opening bell as Mistico and Romero start things off. A flying mare takes Romero down and a running hurricanrana does it again.

Everything breaks down though and Mistico gets beaten down, followed by the running clotheslines in the corner. The Outrunners and Bailey are back in for the save though and hammer away with ten right hands each in various corners. We settle down to the Outrunners taking over on Romero but Christian spears Magnum on the apron to cut him off. Lethal stomps him down in the corner and the Figure Four goes on. Christian adds a slingshot hilo but Magnum slams his way out of trouble.

Floyd comes in to clean house, including a swinging suplex to Lethal. The Mega Powers Elbow is broken up though and it’s Bailey coming in to clean house. The running shooting star press gets two on Beretta but Romero is back in with a Shining Wizard for two of his own. Mistico dives onto Romero, leaving Bailey to get cuttered. The Outrunners break up the Lethal Twist’s Mega Powers Elbow and the four of them brawl off to the back. That leaves Mistico to La Mistica Romero for the tap at 11:46.

Rating: B-. This was a wild match and that’s what it should have been, with the fans clearly understanding that it’s a big deal to have Mistico around. At the same time, RPG Vice are a good choice for foils as it’s not like they mean anything in AEW/ROH anyway. Throw in the Outrunners (though oddly not Dalton Castle) and this was fun. Granted so was getting a photo with Mistico to end the night but maybe that’s just me.

Ring Of Honor Women’s Title: Athena vs. Syuri

Only Athena is defending. They go with the grappling to start and it’s an early standoff. An exchange of wristlocks gives us an exchange of flipping escapes so Syuri knees her in the ropes. Somehow Athena manages to go from leaning on the ropes to powerslam her onto the apron.

Back in and Athena knees her down so a backsplash can connect for two. Syuri rolls her up for two more and a facebuster sends Athena out to the ramp. The slugout goes to Athena and she hits a Wasteland to drop Syuri again. Back in and Syuri gets sent hard into the corner for two but she grabs a sitout bulldog. A running knee and right hand give Athena two more but Syuri pulls her off the top into a hammerlock.

The double arm crank sends Athena over to the rope and she’s back up with a superkick. The Black Widow has Athena in more trouble so she faceplants her way to freedom. Syuri gets her cross armbreaker and even crashing over the top doesn’t break it up. A tornado DDT off the barricade plants Athena again and they both have to beat the count back in at nine.

Back in and they slug it out until Syuri grabs a German suplex. Athena snaps off one of her own but Syuri is back with a powerslam. A big knee and kick to the head put Athena down again but she pulls Syuri into a pumphandle Tombstone. The O Face retains the title at 16:18.

Rating: B+. This lived up to the hype of a main event and it felt like Athena’s title was in jeopardy more than once. That’s a good sign that the match is going well, as there was no reason to believe that Syuri was going to win here. This felt like a big time match and I got into what I was watching so rather well done.

Athena shows respect to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. This is one of the weirder shows that Ring Of Honor has, as there are parts of it that were good to even better than that (the opener, the eight man, and especially the main event), but there is a big chunk in the middle that is just there to stretch out the run time. I’m not at all saying these wrestlers are bad or untalented or anything close, but they’re just names on a list of people wrestling on this show and that is only so interesting. I’m not a fan of this concept but we’re nowhere near done, with seven more matches to go from the tapings.

Results
Lio Rush b. Action Andretti and AR Fox – Black Thunder to Andretti
Red Velvet/Thunder Rosa b. Lacey Lane/Viva Van – Package powerbomb to Van
Maika b. Diamante – Michinoku driver
La Faccion Ingobernable b. Los Villanos – Moonsault to Tres
Takumi Iroha b. Hyan – Running Razor’s Edge
Mike Bailey/Mistico/Outrunners b. Lethal Twist/RPG Vice – La Mistica to Romero
Athena b. Syuri – 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:

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

Ring Of Honor
Date: June 9, 2026
Location: Propst Arena, Huntsville, Alabama
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

Here we have a bonus episode of the show, which can go in a bunch of ways. The show wasn’t announced (at least in any meaningful way) so I have no idea what to expect. If nothing else, we have Global Wars coming up next week so maybe we’ll get a preview of what will happen on the special. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Dralistico/Lethal Twist vs. Dalton Castle/Adam Priest/Outrunners

Castle talks about freeze dried astronaut food because…well he’s a bit strange at times. Lethal and Castle start things off with Castle backing him into the corner but getting shoved away. A clothesline puts Lethal down and it’s off to Christian, who is thrown down in a hurry. Magnum comes in for an exchange of armdrags but Christian dropkicks him down and mocks the spin.

It’s off to Floyd for a double belly to back suplex before Priest comes in. That’s fine with the villains, who quickly strike him into the corner with Johnson throwing in some mocking kicks. Priest fights back and fires off some right hands of his own but Lethal cuts off Castle with a belt shot. The distraction causes Priest to be sent back into the corner and Dralistico’s running basement dropkick gets two.

Priest tries to fight all four of them off at once and gets caught in the Figure Four for his efforts. The Outrunners come in for the save and the diving tag brings in Castle. House is quickly cleaned but Dralistico counters the Bang A Rang into a rollup for two. We hit the parade of knockdowns but the villains have to save Dralistico from the Mega Powers Elbow. Everything breaks down again and Priest is left to slug it out with Priest. A running crucifix driver gives Dralistico two but Priest is back with a piledriver for the pin at 11:18.

Rating: B-. Nice choice for an opener here, with another fast paced match that let Priest get some shine on his own. It’s a rather weird way to go as neither of these sides are particularly feuding at the moment, but the Twists going after the Trios Titles makes perfect sense. Dralistico is just kind of there, but I guess this is better than going for the title match right off the bat.

We look at Shane Taylor attacking Wheeler Yuta on Collision to set up their match this week on Dynamite.

Trish Adora vs. Queen Aminata

Shane Taylor Promotions are here with Adora, who works on an armbar to start. Aminata is right back out of that with a bit of wiggling and Adora isn’t pleased. The hips to the face make it worse for Adora so she pulls Aminata down by the hair. A backsplash sends Aminata outside and she gets whipped into the barricade. Back in and Adora cranks on both arms, followed by that weird over the leg stretch that she often does. Aminata fights up with some forearms and a Sling Blade to put them both down.

One heck of a running boot connects with Adora in the corner but she’s right back with a boot to the face. A ripcord Lariat Tubman drops Aminata out of nowhere but she can’t cover. Instead they slug it out from the mat, with Aminata getting up for a sneer. Aminata headbutts her into the corner and a running knee finishes Adora off at 9:00.

Rating: B-. These two beat each other up rather well with Aminata getting ticked off to win in the end. That was a good way to go and that’s something Aminata could use going into her chance at the TBS Title. It’s a fairly cold match but they were slugging it out here and it was a good way to go.

IInspiration vs. Harley Cameron/Mina Shirakawa

Cameron knocks Lee into the corner to start and it’s off to McKay to grab the hair. A Sling Blade gets Cameron out of trouble and she slides down for a kick to the head. Shirakawa comes in and avoids a kick to the head, meaning it’s time for the four way chest shake off. Cameron and Shirakawa clear the ring as Riccaboni talks about being a married man for what I’m sure are innocent reasons.

Back in and the IInspiration take Cameron down and strike their pose, with Lee grabbing a chinlock. Cameron fights up and brings Shirakawa back in and everything breaks down. A double slam off the top brings Cameron crashing down but she trade rollups for two each with McKay. Something like a Widow’s Peak gets two on Cameron but Shirakawa flips Lee and McKay down. The spinning backfist into That’s Her Finisher finishes Lee at 8:08.

Rating: C+. This was a comedy match that wound up being fine, with the big shaking thing being the thing you knew was going to happen at some point. Shirakawa and Cameron don’t really have anything else to do besides team with each other so why not. On the other hand you have the IInspiration, who are some of the most “oh yeah they’re here too”, as somehow there is nothing for them to do at the moment. I’m not sure how, but this match was the norm for them.

Caprice Coleman sits down with AR Fox, who talks about how his match for the TV Title felt different. He’s been doing this for a long time and he’s finally getting the success. Wrestling is all he’s been doing for more than half of his life and he’s having issues not getting emotional. Fox has seen people doing things he invented, even long sequences of them, and it makes him excited to see it on a bigger stage. Back to the title match, he was stunned that he won the title and he was so excited that he didn’t break down.

Fox starts crying because he’s never gotten this kind of a chance. Since he won the title, all kinds of wrestlers have talked to him about what an inspiration he has been. Naturally the first person he called when he won the title was his mother, who knows what he’s doing every day. It’s going to take a lot to get the title off of him and he wants to show what he can do. This was really, really good and it’s very interesting to see Fox finally getting his chance after all this time. It’s working too.

Lio Rush has an umbrella and says it’s fine because he knows. It’s always been him. The rain (I think) is coming. The black goo coming out of his mouth took me out of this a bit.

Beef vs. Action Andretti

Andretti won’t shake hands to start so he goes with a wristlock instead. Beef reverses into one of his own and does his own posing, much to the fans’ delight. They go to a crisscross and Beef needs to pause for a breather. Andretti stomps him down in the corner and a springboard corkscrew splash gets two. A handspring Stunner gets two more but Beef cartwheels away and hits a dropkick. Back up and Beef snaps off the right hands before a running bulldog gets two. Andretti crotches him on top though and the torture rack neckbreaker finishes Beef at 5:56.

Rating: C. Beef is one of those guys who is put out there every so often to a nice reaction and then loses every time. That’s perfectly fine, but it doesn’t make for the most dramatic matches. Andretti is someone else who has nothing going on and hopefully he finds something that doesn’t involve a weird feud with Lio Rush and his Cru goo.

And now, a music video from Dalton Castle and the Outrunners (I knew that was an awesome band name) called Shortage Of Love. Think of something that is very 80s and then make it even more 80s.

Viva Van says she wasn’t ready when she faced Deonna Purrazzo before but now things have changed. She respects what Purrazzo has done but this division has changed and so has Van.

Women’s Pure Wrestling Title: Viva Van vs. Deonna Purrazzo

Purrazzo is defending under Pure Rules. They fight over hammerlocks to start with Van not being able to get very far. A cross armbreaker attempt is broken up and they get to a standoff. Purrazzo pulls her into an armbar and slaps on the Fujiwara armbar, sending Van over to the ropes for the first time. Back up and Van hits a rolling kick to the head before starting in on the leg.

Purrazzo goes right back to the arm but gets kicked in the head again for two more. Van’s springboard…something (commentary said forearm so we’ll go with that) gets two and she’s right back to Purrazzo’s leg. A stretch muffler sends Purrazzo over to the rope and they kick each other down. Another Fujiwara armbar is countered into a rollup to give Van two but Purrazzo escapes an electric chair. A powerbomb sets up Venus de Milo to make Van tap at 8:42.

Rating: B-. This was a fine title defense for Purrazzo and I’ll take that over going months and months without getting a shot. Purrazzo feels basically unbeatable in these things anyway so it’s not like anyone is going to feel like a threat. If nothing else, Van getting to showcase herself more is a good thing, as the division could use some fresh blood.

TV Title: Sammy Guevara vs. Angelico vs. Ace Austin vs. AR Fox

Fox is defending and flips onto Angelico and Guevara to start fast. A slingshot hilo hits Guevara and Fox adds a big dive over the top to the floor. The flipping double stomp hits Angelico on the apron, leaving Guevara to whip Austin into the barricade. Guevara gets a running start to run around the ring and poke Angelico into the eyes. Fox is back to take Guevara down and everyone goes inside for a strike off.

Angelico and Guevara are sent outside so Austin drops a leg on Fox, with Guevara running back inside for the save. Guevara goes up top but drops down to poke Fox in the eyes instead (it was better when he did the same idea the first time). Angelico tries his double submission but gets jumped by Guevara to break it up.

Austin is back up with a double fireman’s carry to Angelico and Guevara, so of course he throws in some squats. With Austin and Fox on the floor, Angelico ties up Guevara’s leg until Fox makes a diving save. Austin’s spinning faceplant gets two on Fox but here is Dralistico to distract Austin, allowing Guevara to hit a superkick. Cue Lio Rush to chase Guevara into the crowd so Fox small packages Angelico to retain at 10:21.

Rating: B-. This was pretty much a sprint from start to finish and it was nice to see Fox getting a main event slot. It was an interesting choice of challengers, as Angelico is technically sound but mainly a low level tag wrestler. Guevara is the same person he’s been for the better part of ever and that isn’t going to make him a singles champion. Finally you have Austin and can AEW/ROH PLEASE find something important for him already? He’s been on a roll lately and stands out. Do something with him.

Overall Rating: B. For a seemingly unadvertised show with a lot of random matches, this was perfectly good, with a shorter than recently average run time. That’s a fine way to go, though it’s going to make the regular show this week feel all the longer. I do like that they made this show feel more important just by having some title matches included, as it’s an improvement over some of these specials. Throw in the rather awesome music video (it’s that 80s) and this was a good show.

Results
Dalton Castle/Adam Priest/Outrunners b. Dralistico/Lethal Twist – Piledriver to Dralistico
Queen Aminata b. Trish Adora – Running knee
Mina Shirakawa/Harley Cameron b. IInspiration – That’s Her Finisher to Lee
Action Andretti b. Beef – Torture rack neckbreaker
Deonna Purrazzo b. Viva Van – Venus de Milo
AR Fox b. Angelico, Sammy Guevara and Ace Austin – Small package to Angelico

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

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

Ring Of Honor
Date: May 28, 2026
Location: WJCT Studios, Jacksonville, Florida
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

We’re done with Supercard Of Honor and now we’re probably past the fallout as well. That means we could be in for more of the norm around here, which means a bit of a slower pace. I’m not sure how well that’s going to go week to week, but the wrestling being as good as it usually is should help. Let’s get to it.

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

Athena is rather proud of her win at Double Or Nothing and warned everyone this was going to happen.

Opening sequence.

AEW National Title: Mark Davis vs. Adam Priest

Davis is defending and Priest shoulders away to start, which really doesn’t work so well. A hard whip sends Priest crashing out to the floor and Davis beats him up against the barricade. Back in and Davis fires off some corner clotheslines before knocking him outside for a crash into the barricade. Priest gets smart by pulling Davis’ hand into the post, allowing him to go after said hand back inside.

The double arm crank goes on but Davis fights out and takes him up top. A diving tornado DDT plants Davis and Priest gets the cross armbreaker. That’s reversed with a sitout powerbomb and they’re both down again. Priest goes to the hand to escape a sleeper attempt and takes out the leg, setting up a quick STF. Davis makes the rope and hits a big clothesline from the apron. Back in and another clothesline sets up the piledriver to retain the title at 11:40.

Rating: B. It was a random match with a challenger who had no chance of winning the title, but they had a heck of a match here. Priest was fighting against the monster every chance he could and knocked him down a few times, making this a lot more entertaining than I was expecting. Davis has been on a roll in recent months and it is rather fun to see.

Anthony Ogogo vs. Darian Bengston

The rest of Shane Taylor Promotions are here with Ogogo. Bengston grabs an armbar to start and gets thrown down rather quickly. A knee lift staggers Ogogo and Bengston bails out to the floor, where he seems to annoy the Promotions. Back in and Bengston decides to try swinging, which isn’t a good idea against a former Olympic boxer. A powerslam gives Ogogo two but Bengston gets in a quick shot, setting up a Whisper In The Wind for two of his own. Something like a Rings Of Saturn is reversed into a spinning slam to give Ogogo two so he knocks Bengston out for the win at 6:09.

Rating: C-. I would assume this was Bengston getting a tryout, as it was much more about him than anything Ogogo was doing. Bengston did well enough in his chance, though he needs someone better than Ogogo across the ring from him. Ogogo’s matches are pretty much “do basic stuff, get frustrated, punch opponent for win”. That isn’t interesting and a big reason Ogogo has never taken off in any way.

Mance Warner wants the Pure Rules Title. Sure. He’s getting a shot at Lee Moriarty next week, though it is at least just a Proving Ground match.

Viva Van vs. Rachael Ellering

Pure Rules. Blanchard takes her down by the arm to start but Van reverses into an armbar of her own. Van’s Fujiwara armbar is broken up and Ellering has another armbar. Back up and Van flips forward into a pose but gets sent to the apron. Ellering knocks her down again, setting up a backsplash for two.

The double arm crank has Van using her first rope break and something like a Tequila Sunrise has Ellering getting to the rope as well. Ellering escapes an electric chair out of the corner and gets two off a running elbow. The Boss Woman Slam is countered into a spinning backfist and Van’s bridging electric chair suplex gets the pin at 7:16.

Rating: C. This was a good example of a match that didn’t need to have Pure Rules and they didn’t add much of anything. Van is at least getting somewhere around here and just having her win some matches is a way to shake off some of her bad reputation. She has a long way to go, but at least she’s not losing over and over.

Angelico vs. Oro

Oro charges at him with a running spinwheel kick in the corner to start. Angelico strikes away to come back but gets dropped again. Something like a Downward Spiral out of the ropes gives Oro two but Angelico’s lifting Downward Spiral gets two more. Oro hits a kind of Pele off his shoulder, only for Oro to pull him into a leglock for the tap at 5:07.

Rating: C+. I get that Angelico has talent and he can make others look good, but it’s really hard to get interested in his matches. He’s been established as someone who is not going to do anything beyond put other stars over and that doesn’t help on shows that are just match after match most of the time. Angelico certainly has talent, but he’s been doing the same thing for what feels like forever in Ring Of Honor.

Athena sits down with Caprice Coleman, who praises her quite a bit to start. She talks about how she started her reign as this innocent girl but then she realized how great she was and became what she is now. Now she has become the person people think of when they think of Ring Of Honor and she doesn’t want to be disappointed with her career. You should watch her and when someone better comes along, they’ll get the title, but that isn’t happen.

Maya World vs. Trish Adora

World flips over her to start and snaps off a running hurricanrana. World goes up and gets chopped down to the floor, followed by the double arm crank back inside. That’s broken up and World kicks her in the head, only to get butterfly suplexed for two. A Sling Blade and springboard moonsault give World two of her own and Adora goes outside.

That works rather well as World charges into a pump kick, meaning Adora can hit a brainbuster for two back inside. World’s springboard back elbow gets two but she walks into a spinning backbreaker for a double down. The German suplex drops World, who is right back with a small package for the pin at 8:32.

Rating: C+. Adora wrestles a rather unique style and you can see some wrestlers having to adjust. That was the case here and it wound up being a good enough match. World is still someone who could be put back into the title picture sooner than later, even if it doesn’t have to be another shot at Athena.

Stori Denali vs. Brooke Havok

Mark Sterling is here with Denali, who mocks Havok’s lack of size. Havok gets sent hard into the corner and booted down, setting up Snake Eyes. Another knockdown has Havok in more trouble and Denali boot chokes her in the corner. Havok connects with a few kicks to the leg but gets sent flying. The chokeslam finishes for Denali at 4:03.

Rating: C. At some point, Denali has to get in the ring on her own like this and learn how to have matches. That’s why you put her in something short like this and she was….well she was a giant squashing someone. The match was just what you would expect, and while Denali is a long term project, at least she’s getting started.

Queen Aminata is back next week.

Frat House vs. Dalton Castle/Outrunners

Non-title Proving Ground match. Karter knocks Magnum into the corner to start and the House starts taking turns firing off the chops. Floyd (wearing the belt) comes in off a blind tag to clean house but the House takes him into the corner. Karter steps onto Magnum for a low blow in the Tree Of Woe but Magnum kicks Garrison down. The tag brings in Castle to clean house (again) but the Bang A Rang is broken up. The Mega Powers Elbow is broken up as well, only for the second attempt to connect for the pin on Garrison at 5:38.

Rating: C. It certainly does help to have a regular team coming after the champions as it gives you the change that they could pull off the upset. At the same time, it was nice to see Castle and the Outrunners getting a win shortly into their title reign. They still need some opponents, but we can get to that soon enough.

Post match the Lethal Twist runs in to beat the champions down. The Twist brags about their uniqueness and abilities and seem to want the titles. For now though, they’re just getting a match.

Lethal Twist vs. Il Cartello Grillo

Christian kicks Seal to the floor at the bell and it’s off to Johnson for a basement running forearm. Seal manages a suplex though and it’s off to Grillo, who gets caught with a Helluva Kick. The Twist takes turns striking away at Grillo in the corner, with Christian adding a moonsault to the floor to take out Impala. Lethal’s Figure Four, plus Christian’s springboard 450, make Grillo tap at 3:25.

Rating: C+. If you’re going to have the Twist, who are already an established team, jump the champs, you don’t need to have them win a short match as well. We got the point after seeing them jump the champs and then it was just another match. Let the angle stand instead of doing something else to make the fans forget about it.

From last week in Mexico City.

Ring Of Honor World Title: Volador Jr. vs. Bandido

Bandido is defending. Stereo flips give us an early standoff so Bandido sends him outside for an early suicide dive. Volador fights up back inside and knocks Bandido outside for a dive of his own. Back in and Bandido runs the ropes to get in his finger gun pose. Volador knocks him back down and yells a bit, meaning it’s time to stomp Bandido down in the corner.

More posing ensues but Bandido gets up a boot to cut off the charge. A spinning high crossbody sends Volador outside for the big running flip dive as Bandido gets to take over again. Volador snaps off a running hurricanrana from the apron and the referee is rather concerned. Bandido is fine enough to block a hurricanrana and swing him into the barricade.

Back in and Volador powerbombs him out of the air for two more but Bandido counters a charge into a flipping faceplant. Bandido powerbombs him down for two more but gets backdropped out to the floor. The slingshot hurricanrana connects for Volador but Bandido sends him over the barricade for a running flip dive. Another hurricanrana brings Bandido crashing off of the barricade and they go back inside, where Volador’s frog splash gets two.

A Code Red gives Volador another near fall but he walks into a pop up cutter to leave them both down. Back up and Bandido’s German suplex out of the corner sets up a shooting star press for two more. The X Knee into the 21 Plex gives Bandido two, as does Volador’s running Canadian Destroyer. Volador takes too long to go up and it’s a reverse super fall away slam (with Volador landing on his face). The 21 Plex retains the title at 21:17.

Rating: B+. This was definitely a different style from Ring Of Honor and they had a rather entertaining match, which was quite the treat to see. Bandido can adjust to any style and he certainly knows what to do here. Volador is a big enough star to come after the title and worked well here, with Bandido actually defending the title more than once for a change.

TV Title: Dezmond Xavier vs. AR Fox

Fox is defending and Xavier seems honored to be in there with him. They fight over wrist control to start with Fox taking over. Xavier works on the arm and a rollup sends Fox bailing out to the floor. We pause for Fox to look at the title and then go back inside, where Xavier sends him right back outside. The suicide dive sends Fox crashing into the barricade, followed by a slingshot hilo for two back inside.

Xavier ties up the leg for a bit until he knocks Fox into the corner for an enziguri. Fox hits his own enziguri and clotheslines away in the corner. A basement cutter gives Fox two so Xavier hits him in the face. The Cardiac Kick gets two more but Fox is back with a DDT into the springboard tornado DDT into a spinning suplex for two of his own. Xavier kicks him back down but slips on the top and crotches himself. Lo Mein Pain and the 450 retain the title at 12:29.

Rating: B-. This was another good match from Fox, even with Xavier dominating for a big chunk. You can bring in challengers like Xavier for the TV Title as it’s kind of the random match championship. Xavier, a member of a trio, wasn’t likely to win the title here but letting him fly around with Fox for a bit was a fun way to go.

Respect is shown to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. The last two matches were good but, say it with me, this was far too long. There were so many things that could have been cut off to get this down to a more manageable length. As usual, there are so many matches that a lot of them are forgotten so quickly. Hopefully they get the time issues under control, because dang this show could be so much better if it got things down to an hour a week or so. Just focus a bit more and trim some time off and it’s that much better.

Results
Mark Davis b. Adam Priest – Piledriver
Anthony Ogogo b. Darian Bengston via knockout
Viva Van b. Rachael Ellering – Bridging electric chair suplex
Angelico b. Oro – Leglock
Maya World b. Trish Adora – Small package
Stori Denali b. Brooke Havok – Chokeslam
Dalton Castle/Outrunners b. Frat House – Mega Powers Elbow/ax handle combination to Garrison
Lethal Twist b. Il Cartello Grillo – Figure Four to Grillo
Bandido b. Volador Jr. – 21 Plex
AR Fox b. Dezmond Xavier – 450

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

We’re back to what might be the signature AEW pay per view and the card is certainly big enough. As usual there are a lot of matches and people on this show, with quite a few of them involving high stakes. That includes the main event, which is the rare mask vs. title match. We also have some wacky gimmickery on the docket so let’s get to it.

Kickoff Show: Megan Bayne/Lena Kross vs. Zayda Steel/Viva Van

This is one of the non-title five minute deals as Bayne and Kross get to toy with the two of them for a bit before destroying them. That doesn’t make for the most interesting matches, but it does help when the match is guaranteed to be relatively short. Van and Steel could be any two breathing humans here and it wouldn’t make much of a difference, which is kind of the point.

Of course I’ll take Bayne and Kross to win, as there is no reason to suggest that a makeshit pair, including Van with her one win ever in Ring Of Honor, is going to score the upset. Kross and Bayne are waiting on real challengers to show up and there is a good chance that won’t be until we get to Wembley with the Brawling Birds. For now, they run through another thrown together team in short order.

Kickoff Show: Death Riders vs. Opps

This is a fine example of the “let’s get everyone on the show” match, as there is little reason for the match to be happening other than to fill in time on a pre-show. At least the teams have been having some issues, but it is a little difficult to get excited over a match involving Wheeler Yuta and Hook. It’s a match that feels like it could open any given edition of Collision and that only means so much.

We’ll flip a coin and say the Opps win here, as they could use the victory. This is especially true of Anthony Bowens, who is still new to the team and would benefit from picking up a win. It’s not like Yuta or Daniel Garcia are going to be hurt by taking a loss and Claudio Castagnoli will be there to keep things from getting too dull. The match should be ok, though it’s something that could easily be dropped.

Kickoff Show: Boom & Doom/Conglomeration vs. Shane Taylor Promotions

And we’ll wrap up the pre-show with ten more people in a match, including a way to get QT Marshall of all people on the card. I’m really not sure how much value there is to have Big Boom AJ on the show again but he’s here one more time, likely with his son again as well. Other than that we have the Promotions, who might as well be AEW’s version of the Job Squad given their success rate.

Naturally I’ll take the good guys to win here, as there is really no reason to suggest something else is going to happen. Hopefully they keep this quick, as it’s a match that doesn’t serve much of a purpose on an already crowded show. I’m not sure what the appeal is if having AJ around anymore, but at least it’s mainly just once in awhile and rarely outside of something like this.

Men’s Owen Hart Tournament First Round: Samoa Joe vs. Will Ospreay

So here we have one of the first matches of the tournament and as usual, the two of them have been doing something to set up the match. Joe wanted Ospreay to join the Opps but Ospreay has been training with the Death Riders instead. That’s a fine enough way to go and hopefully they have enough of a story to make this work. Ok to be fair, there is almost no way that Ospreay vs. Joe won’t work in the first place.

I’ll go with Ospreay to win here, as he is fresh off the new training with the Death Riders and is going to be doing some fresh things in the ring. Joe is someone who can work with anyone and it should be a blast to see these two wreck each other for a good while. I can’t imagine Ospreay losing in a tournament with the right to challenge for the World Title in his home country on the line so I’ll go with Ospreay winning here.

Men’s Owen Hart Tournament First Round: Bandido vs. Swerve Strickland

We might as well do the other first round match as well and as usual, the Ring Of Honor World Title hasn’t been mentioned in the slightest. That’s hardly a surprise, as Bandido’s match at Dynasty didn’t see it mentioned whatsoever either. Hopefully the title either moves on or becomes a thing people actually want. Anyway, this is about moving forward towards All In and that should be going in one way.

I can’t imagine this goes anywhere other than Strickland going over, as he’s that much of a bigger star in AEW. Bandido can do just about anything in the ring with anyone but Strickland is someone who should be going forward. It’s going to be a rather awesome match either way due to their impressive talent, though it winds up with Strickland beating Bandido and moving on.

Women’s Owen Hart Tournament First Round: Athena vs. Mina Shirakawa

These two have had some recent interactions in Ring Of Honor, which is better than nothing. This is one of the trickier matches, as both of them tend to lose their bigger matches in AEW. That leaves this as a more of a sad tossup than anything else, as I could see either moving on to lose in the next round. They both need a win of their own though and one stands out more than the other.

I’ll take Athena to win here, as she has the crazy long title reign to make her seem important. Unfortunately that tends to mean absolutely nothing in the long run, but at the moment she’s higher up than Shirakawa. Neither is going to win the whole thing, but Athena going over makes a lot more sense. Now just find a way for Athena to get up to the main roster already because GOOD GRIEF ALREADY!

Women’s Title: Thekla(c) vs. Hikaru Shida vs. Kris Statlander vs. Jamie Hayter

Ah yeah we have title matches on this show too. This is kind of a weird way to go but there is something about having so many challengers trying to take the title. Thekla has done rather well for herself in recent months and become one of the best things in all of AEW. I could go for seeing her keep the title for a good bit longer, though I’m not entirely sure that’s going to happen.

While I could see one of the other three taking the belt here, I’ll go with Thekla retaining. If nothing else, that’s partially due to wanting to see her do her insane yet entertaining promotions from week to week. She’ll have to lose the title one day and that might not be until All In, so for now we’ll go with her stealing the win to retain, possibly with an assist from the rest of the Triangle Of Madness.

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

This is an I Quit match after FTR beat Copeland and Cage in Canada earlier this year. Since it’s a rematch, Copeland and Cage are putting up their careers (as a team) and that should make it a bit more interesting. In theory it should guarantee how the result goes, though that isn’t always the way AEW goes. I’m kind of curious to see how it goes, which is more than I could say about their first match.

I’ll go with the sake of sanity here and say that Copeland and Cage win the titles and get their big moment. If nothing else, FTR has held the titles for a very long time now and there isn’t much for them to do at the moment. It’s time for someone new to get in the title picture and naturally that means giving the titles to a team who are almost a hundred years old combined. The Canadians win here after things get rather violent.

Chris Jericho/Hurt Syndicate/Elite vs. Demand/Don Callis Family/The Dogs

Oh boy here we go. We have fourteen people in this version of Stadium Stampede and I’m not exactly looking forward to this. These matches wind up being fun, but at the same time it might as well be a short film. This is AEW’s version of a cinematic match as it’s all about doing whatever insanity they get together and think of this time around. Hopefully they don’t go insane with the time, but it’s an AEW pay per view.

I’ll go with the good guys winning here, even if it’s a total guess as to who is going to win this thing. The match is designed to be a big spectacle and nothing more, so hopefully they don’t go too far (ok you know better) and then we move on. If nothing else, Jericho can actually get a win without having to get the win himself. It could be fun, though I’m more than a bit uninterested.

International Title: Kazuchika Okada(c) vs. Konosuke Takeshita

This is one of the longer built matches on the card, as it has been teased for the better part of ever. They had a match back in the Continental Classic, about five months ago, though that was part of a tournament rather than the grudge match they’ve both been wanting. I’m curious to see how it goes, as Okada is capable of having a rather good match if he’s trying. If that’s the case, it should work here.

I’m expecting one of them to be kicked out of the Don Callis Family and that person is going to leave without the title. In this case, I’ll take with Okada retaining the title here, likely with Don Callis turning on Takeshita and setting up a third match down the line. Okada has already held the title for way too long and ultimately Takeshita will take it from him, but I’ll go with AEW waiting a bit longer to pull the trigger.

Continental Title: Jon Moxley(c) vs. Kyle O’Reilly

Here we have another AEW trope: a rematch from a long match from less than a week ago with possibilities of the rematch going even longer. That’s the case here, as we’re just waving the title’s time limit rule (again) after the two of them went to a twenty minute time limit draw on Dynamite. That’s not the most promising thing, though I’d bet on seeing a lot of forearms exchanged, which must be good right?

I’ll go with Moxley retaining here, as the solution for Moxley seems to be “he can have long matches and wins because he’s awesome”. Last year Moxley kept tapping out to O’Reilly but not he even better so he won’t do that again. That seems to be the story here and odds are Moxley needs to get his win back. It should be hard hitting, but you kind of know what you’re getting with Moxley most of the time.

AEW World Title: Darby Allin(c) vs. Maxwell Jacob Friedman

Title vs. hair and…I have no idea where to go here. The idea seems to be that Allin is wearing himself out with the title defenses, though I’m still not sure I can imagine MJF getting the title back so soon. That’s one of the things that makes a match that much more interesting, though Allin’s title reign has already worn me down on him. The matches have been fun, but I don’t really need to see him going crazy long again. So who wins here?

Geez where does this go? The logical way to go would see to be MJF but I’ll go with the twist of Allin retaining and MJF losing his hair. Maybe Allin loses the title soon after, but him losing here seems so simple. MJF losing his hair has some great potential and I could see him going there, but I’m not sure I need to see him get the title back. I’ll take Allin retaining here, though with a grant total of no confidence.

Overall Thoughts

This is a heck of a card and there could be some rather good matches on it, though as usual the idea of how long these matches are going to go is just draining. I’m interested in some of them though and Double Or Nothing does tend to be one of the better shows on AEW’s calendar. The wrestlers will definitely put in the work though, and that’s going to help this go a long way.

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

Supercard Of Honor 2026
Date: May 15, 2026
Location: Wicomico Youth And Civic Center, Salisbury, Maryland
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

It’s time for another big show and there are some important matches this time around. In this case, we have the World Title being defended for the first time since December, along with a six way elimination match for the Women’s Title. Basically we have a bunch of title matches up and down the card with a few other things included. Let’s get to it.

The opening video, with the audio not working (though you can hear the production team talking about the issues) looks at the bigger matches on the card. Nothing wrong with that.

Thankfully the audio is fine for the show itself.

Kickoff Show: Sammy Guevara vs. Action Andretti

So I guess the Tag Team Titles aren’t being defended. Thanks for wasting months talking about how teams are moving up the ranks and all that jazz. The answer is Beast Mortos “can’t be here tonight”. And that’s fine enough for the titles not being defended since March I guess.

Anyway, Guevara flips Andretti off instead of shaking his hand before the bell and gets his wrist cranked instead. Some rollups give Andretti some near falls and Guevara isn’t sure what to do early on. Another offer of a handshake lets Guevara slick back his hair, which Andretti then messes up. A clothesline sends Guevara outside for a suicide dive, only for Guevara to hit a fast dropkick back inside.

The big running twisting dive connects but Andretti is back with a running dive of his own. Back in and Guevara’s knee knocks Andretti out of the air for two and it’s time for Guevara to get cocky again. The Samoan drop, with squats, drops Andretti and Guevara says he should be getting the World Title shot. Andretti is back up with a backflip into a Stunner and they’re both down. They trade shots to the face until Andretti comes back with a handspring elbow.

Guevara rolls outside before Andretti can come off the top…so Andretti bounces to the apron and hits an Asai moonsault in a pretty awesome sequence. Back in and the running shooting star press gives Andretti two but the torture rack neckbreaker is broken up. A flipping powerslam gives Andretti two more but Guevara flips him into a DDT. The GTH finishes for Guevara at 11:30.

Rating: B-. Nice opener here, though finding out that the Tag Team Titles won’t be defended is quite the disappointment. The titles have basically disappeared for a long time now and this isn’t going to help things. At least both of them got to fly around and pop the crowd a good bit, which is why you have a match like this as the opener.

Post match Guevara introduces Rush, who beats up Andretti before starting his match.

Kickoff Show: Rush vs. LSG

Bull’s Horns finish LSG in 42 seconds.

Kickoff Show: Lacey Lane/Janai Kai vs. Mina Shirakawa/Queen Aminata

Kai rolls Shirakawa up for two to start but Shirakawa gets to slide into the dancing. Shirakawa takes over before it’s off to Aminata to suplex Lane. The sliding knee gives Aminata two and Shirakawa grabs the Figure Four. The other two get in a fight, which breaks things up and everything breaks down.

Aminata headbutts the heck out of Lane and they all need a breather. Back up and Aminata and Shirakawa win a forearm off but Aminata gets double teamed to the apron. That’s broken up as Shirakawa comes in with a dropkick, setting up the Figure Four to make Kai tap at 7:43.

Rating: C+. This was another added on match which did little more than let Shirakawa and Aminata be out there. Lane and Kai were fine enough but they were more or less glorified crash test dummies. It was completely acceptable, but it was only there to fill in a spot on the card.

Kickoff Show: Rascalz vs. Premiere Athletes

Xavier blasts Nese with a dropkick to start and busts out some jumping jacks. It’s off to Reed, who gets sent into the corner and hammered down to put the Athletes in control. That doesn’t last long as Xavier fights back and hits a running shooting star press. Mark Sterling offers a quick distraction though and a DDT puts Xavier down.

A bunch of choking on the floor gives Daivari two on Xavier as the massive cheating is on. Xavier fights up and hits a heck of a right hand, allowing the tag off to Reed. Everything breaks down and Xavier gets elevated DDTed. An other the shoulder Tombstone gives Nese two on Reed but Daivari knocks Nese down by mistake.

The Athletes are sent outside for Reed’s big running cutter off the apron. Wentz cutters Mark Sterling on the floor and Reed kicks Daivari down. Back up and the hammerlock DDT into the Magic Carpet Ride gives Daivari two, with Wentz flipping in for the save. Nese gets put in a fireman’s carry, with a top rope double stomp setting up a reverse Samoan driver to give Reed the pin at 11:26.

Rating: B-. It’s another fast paced and entertaining match, though it’s also a match that didn’t add much. I’m not sure what the point was in having the Athletes lose here after they were on a winning streak, but at least it was to a talented team like the Rascalz. As usual, the key is to do something with them and you never know if or when that might happen.

And now, the show proper.

Nigel McGuinness vs. Josh Woods

Pure Rules. McGuinness can’t get a wristlock to start and his front facelock earns him a trip into the corner. McGuinness grabs the ears of all things and Woods goes to the ropes for his first break. A short armscissors makes McGuinness use his own first break but he’s right back to work on Woods’ arm. That’s reversed into a sleeper and McGuinness has to go to the rope again. McGuinness rolls outside and grabs a headset, saying this isn’t going how he was expecting.

Woods gets on a headset and says this is going EXACTLY as he was expecting. Referee: “Gentlemen, I don’t know how you expected this to go. If you don’t get in the ring by the time I get to 20, you can expect to be counted out.” Hahahahahaha! They do in fact get back inside where McGuinness gives him a quick forearm (legal), which has Woods driving the two of them into the corner. McGuinness grabs a guillotine choke and Woods has to use his second rope break, causing McGuinness to do pose in celebration.

Woods charges at him and accidentally burns his third rope break as McGuinness outsmarts him again. They go outside and Woods rams him into the barricade to take over, followed by a backbreaker for two back inside. The ankle lock makes McGuinness use his last rope break but he hits something like a Tower Of London (more like a reverse Sling Blade than a stunner) on the floor.

They forearm it out on the floor and then keep it going inside until stereo boots to the face leave both of them down. Woods backbreakers him into a hard lariat for two and the ankle lock goes on again. McGuinness sends him into the corner for the break but can’t get the London Dungeon. The rebound lariat gives McGuinness the pin at 14:53.

Rating: B. Uh, ok then. This felt like it was going to be Woods beating the legend to finally get another Pure Rules Title shot and end Moriarty’s crazy long reign. Instead, McGuinness outsmarts him and scores something of an upset. I like the idea of McGuinness outsmarting him, but Woods losing here is quite the surprise.

Post match respect is shown.

We recap Viva Van challenging Red Velvet for the Women’s TV Title. Velvet is on a roll and has been rather awesome since her return. Van won one match and got the title shot. Literally her first win in ROH after seventeen losses. Commentary explains that a lot of it is due to her success outside of ROH, which basically says that promotions outside of ROH are more important.

Women’s TV Title: Viva Van vs. Red Velvet

Velvet is defending and dances a bit to avoid a test of strength. Van pulls her into a cross armbreaker but Velvet reverses and sends her out to the apron. Back in and Van grabs a dragon screw legwhip, followed by a Brock Lock to stay on the leg. The bow and arrow is broken up and they trade forearms from their knees, with Van doing a cool sit up to get back in Velvet’s face.

Velvet sends her into the corner and hammers away but gets caught in an electric chair. That’s reversed into a hurricanrana and they trade spinning shots to the face for a double near fall. Velvet’s basement superkick connects but Straight Outta Your Mama’s Kitchen is blocked. They go into the corner where Velvet has to escape an electric chair and grabs an Iconoclasm for two. Van’s implant DDT gets two and they trade rollups for two each, only for Velvet to hit the spinning kick to the head and retain at 11:18.

Rating: B-. It was a pretty nice match but there was zero reason to believe that Van was going to win here. I get the idea of “she’s done well everywhere else” but that means very little in ROH. There are all kinds of other people who could have gotten the title shot here and while Van is talented, she needed a MUCH better build up to get the title shot.

We look at AR Fox winning the TV Title last night and immediately being challenged by that wacky Lio Rush.

TV Title: Lio Rush vs. AR Fox

Fox is defending and gets suckered into the corner by the rather out there Rush. A cheap shot doesn’t get Rush very far as Fox sends him into the corner for some creepy speaking into the camera. Back up and Rush hits a running clothesline to send Fox out to the apron. Rush charges into a boot though and the running flipping double stomp on the apron connects for Fox.

Some elbows in the corner have Rush in more trouble so he bites Fox’s ear. Fox is sent outside for a big dive and a hard whip into the barricade. Back in and Rush hammers away, with an elbow to the face getting two. The chinlock goes on until Fox fights out and grabs a swinging DDT. A suplex neckbreaker drops Rush for two and here is Action Andretti at ringside.

Fox’s rolling cutter gets two more but he has to bail out of the 450. Rush spears him for two of his own and a springboard Stunner sends Fox outside. Of course that means a suicide dive, followed by a running Spanish Fly back inside. The Final Hour gives Rush two and it’s time to grab the belt. The referee doesn’t approve and takes it away, allowing Andretti to shove Rush off the top. Fox drops the 450 to retain at 15:41.

Rating: B. I was digging this a lot more until Andretti got involved. Fox wasn’t beaten, but I’m not wild on having someone help him in his first title defense. At the same time, at least Fox keeps the title and Rush seems to be spun off into something of his own. Andretti vs. Rush isn’t the most thrilling feud, but I’ll take something with a personal story over a bunch more random matches any day.

Sammy Guevara is upset about not defending the Tag Team Titles so he wants the World Title. The AEW World Title that is, as why would he want the Ring Of Honor version?

We recap Diamante challenging Deonna Purrazzo for the Women’s Pure Rules Title. Purrazzo is the inaugural champion while Athena wants her minions to hold all of the titles. Therefore, Diamante is trying to steal the Fujiwara armbar to get the title.

Women’s Pure Rules Title: Diamante vs. Deonna Purrazzo

Purrazzo is defending under Pure Rules and takes her into the corner to start. The short armscissors sends Diamante to the ropes for her first break and she pulls Purrazzo outside to strike away. Back in and Diamante fires off some chops in the corner, with Purrazzo having to use her first break to escape an ankle lock (interesting as she was already holding the rope when it went on, which feels like it could be a loophole).

A right hand earns Diamante a warning but she ties Purrazzo’s leg over the top rope. That means a running dropkick to the back can send Purrazzo crashing out to the floor for a crash. Back in and Purrazzo hits a desperation boot to the face and they’re both down. Diamante’s German suplex gets two and she gets the Fujiwara armbar.

Purrazzo is right back up with her own right hand, followed by a DDT for two. Purrazzo’s Fujiwara armbar has Diamante burning through her second break and she escapes again, earning herself a piledriver for two more. Diamante flips her off so it’s a powerbomb into the Venus de Milo to retain the title at 13:01.

Rating: B-. This worked well enough and a lot of that is because they had built up a story between the two of them. There was a reason to want to see Purrazzo beat Diamante and get some revenge, particularly by hurting the arm. I’m not sure who is supposed to beat Purrazzo, but I can go with the idea of building someone up instead of just a random title match.

Action Andretti says he turned on Lio Rush because Rush wasn’t there for him earlier tonight. He felt forgotten and that isn’t working for him. Cru is done.

We recap the Pure Rules Title match, which is the opposite end of the spectrum. Lee Moriarty is the seemingly unbeatable champion and he’s just giving Ace Austin a shot (yes they have a history elsewhere, but not around here so it’s basically cold).

Pure Rules Title: Ace Austin vs. Lee Moriarty

Moriarty is defending under Pure Rules. Moriarty takes him to the mat but his headscissors is reversed into a leglock. That’s countered into an armbar but Austin nips up and gets in a knockdown of his own. Moriarty’s armbar has Austin using his first break but he pulls Moriarty into a Muta Lock. A snap of the fingers gets Moriarty out so Austin drives him into the corner.

Moriarty twists the neck and works on the arm, with a suplex connecting for two. They fight over a cross arm choke until Moriarty goes back to the fingers. That’s reversed as well and Austin pulls him into a Koji Clutch, with Moriarty using his first break. A Death Valley Driver rocks Moriarty again but he cuts off a charge and snaps Austin’s arm over the top. Back in and the Border City Stretch goes on, with Austin reversing into a rollup for two more.

A leg trap cradle gets two as Moriarty has to use his second break. Back up and one more armbar makes Austin use his last rope break so Moriarty goes for the arm again. This time Austin sends him crashing out to the floor for the break and a breather. Back in and the Koji Clutch makes Moriarty use his last break, allowing him to grab a chickenwing. With Austin escaping, Moriarty switches into a European Clutch while grabbing the rope to retain at 16:07.

Rating: B. Heck of a match here as Austin is on an absolute roll. At the same time, I have no idea what is next for the title. Josh Woods lost and we’ve done Nigel McGuinness vs. Moriarty. That’s the problem with basically a three person “division” and a bunch of thrown out there challengers. Either way, rather good match here, with Austin needing to get a big win sooner or later. He has stood out when he gets a chance, but he needs to turn that into something.

Red Velvet is annoyed that she’s not in the Women’s Owen Hart Tournament. Willow Nightingale is, so Velvet is coming for the TBS Title on Collision.

Bustah And The Brain want the Tag Team Titles. For now though, they’ll settle for facing anyone who wants a piece of them. This brings out the Kingdom of all people for quite the surprise. They’re in for the challenge.

Six Man Tag Team Titles: Shane Taylor Promotions vs. ???

The Promotions are defending in an open challenge (which came after Bustah And The Brain’s open challenge and Red Velvet accepting an open challenge) with….Dalton Castle and the Outrunners accepting. Thank goodness, as they’re the absolute most logical challengers. Bravo knocks Floyd into the corner to start and gets elbowed in the face for his efforts. It’s off to Castle vs. Dean, who has to grab the ropes to escape Castle’s suplex attempt.

The Bang A Rang is blocked as well so it’s Magnum coming in and welcoming Bravo’s chops. A slingshot cutter works a bit better for Bravo and the champs crush Magnum on the apron. Back in and a clothesline gives Bravo two and Dean grabs a front facelock. The backdrop gets Magnum out of trouble but it’s too early for the tag, as Bravo pulls Floyd off the apron. A flip over the back allows the tag off to Floyd though and house is quickly cleaned.

Taylor breaks up the Mega Powers elbow (that monster) and one heck of a right hand knocks Floyd silly. Dean hits a Bronco Buster and some elbows get a quick two. Taylor even crotches Floyd against the post to keep him in trouble. The delayed suplex drops Floyd again and Taylor comes in for an even more delayed suplex. Floyd atomic drops his way out of trouble but Magnum is knocked off the apron again.

Taylor plants Floyd for two and we hit the chinlock. Back up and Taylor misses a charge into the corner, allowing Floyd to hit a slam. Castle gets back up for the tag and manages a German suplex on Taylor. The Bang A Rang is blocked again and Christyan XO’s distraction sets up a Marcus Garvey Driver for two. The Outrunners cut the Infantry off though and it’s a Bang A Rang to Taylor. That sets up the Mega Powers Elbow for the pin and the titles at 17:46.

Rating: C+. This was rather long but absolutely the right result, as the Promotions are hardly the most thrilling team in the world and it was time for them to lose the titles. Castle and the Outrunners have been built up as a successful three man team and then they beat the champions. They missed the peak of the Outrunners’ overness and didn’t give them anything then, but at least they finally got something. This isn’t rocket science and they made it work just fine here. Just maybe trim the match down a bit, as seventeen minutes was a good while too long.

Post match the rest of the Promotions come in for the beatdown but Orange Cassidy and Mark Briscoe make the save. Cassidy and Floyd do the big handshake.

We recap Mark Davis defending the AEW National Title against CMLL’s Xelhua. The match was announced earlier this week. End of recap.

AEW National Title: Mark Davis vs. Xelhua

Davis is defending. Feeling out process to start until Davis kicks him into a headlock. A hammerlock sends Davis over to the rope so Davis knocks him down for a backsplash. Back up and Xelhua ties up the arms and poses, with Davis having to bail out to the floor. That means Davis can hit a running shoulder and fire off the rather loud chops. Back in and a hard kick to the chest gives Davis two, followed by the hard shots in the corner.

Xelhua is sent crashing out to the floor, with Davis throwing him back inside and going for the mask. That fires Xelhua up for a high crossbody and a northern lights suplex for two. A hammerlock drop gives Xelhua two more but Davis enziguris him into the ropes. The lariat is reversed into an ankle lock, sending Davis over to the ropes for the break. Xelhua slams him down but misses a top rope backsplash. Davis hits the piledriver and running clothesline for the pin at 14:15.

Rating: B-. It was a fine power vs. power match but it was ice cold coming in and that’s not the best way to go. I get the idea of the National Title being the traveling title, but that doesn’t mean much when you have so many other people jumping back and forth between ROH and AEW. It doesn’t feel special and that needs to change if this title is supposed to mean something around here.

Shane Taylor Promotions want the AEW Trios Titles and the challenge is on for Collision.

Here’s what’s coming on Collision.

The Conglomeration is ready to fight on Collision so the Promotions’ challenge is accepted. Mark Briscoe’s word of the day is “home town a** whupping”. That’s…never mind.

We recap Bandido defending the World Title against Blake Christian. Bandido won Survival Of The Fittest to retain the title over five challengers, including Christian. Now Christian wants his one on one title shot. Ignore that we are five and a half months removed from Survival Of The Fittest.

Ring Of Honor World Title: Bandido vs. Blake Christian

Bandido is defending and Lee Johnson/Jay Lethal are here with Christian. Naturally Christian bails to the floor to start before coming back in so Bandido can flip around him. Bandido knocks him into the corner for the chops, which seem to hurt his own hand. A headscissors sends Christian outside for the suicide dive but he’s right back up with one of his own.

Back in and Christian starts in on the leg, including a double knee stomp. Bandido fights up and heads to the top, where Lethal grabs his leg. That means a double ejection but Christian uses the distraction to hit a Death Valley Driver for two. Christian grabs a short armscissors but Bandido rolls away as Christian goes up top. Bandido gets tied in the Tree Of Woe for the double stomp and a triangle choke has him in more trouble.

That’s reversed into the sitout powerbomb and Bandido jumps up top for the corkscrew crossbody. A running knee gives Bandido two but the 21 Plex is blocked. Christian goes after the leg but Bandido muscles him up for a suplex. Some rolling northern lights suplexes give Bandido two but an exchange of kicks goes to Christian. Bandido is knocked outside for a suicide tornado DDT, followed by the Lethal Injection for two back inside. Christian knocks him back to the floor and let’s load up the announcers’ table.

That earns him a suplex onto the table and they go back inside, where the 21 Plex gives Bandido two. They go up top, where Christian hits a super poisonrana into a springboard 450 for two more. Christian’s 21 Plex is blocked and Bandido knocks him down again. The shooting star press his raised knees though and they’re both down.

Bandido avoids another Lethal Injection but gets superkicked into a Spanish Fly for two. With nothing else working, Christian grabs the belt and uses the distraction to hit Bandido low. A double stomp to the head gives Christian two but Bandido is back with a Styles Clash. The 21 Plex, with Christian on the mat instead of on the ropes, retains the title at 26:03.

Rating: B+. It felt like a big match and Bandido continues to deliver while he’s around. The problem is simply that he isn’t around very often and that makes for a weird World Title situation. This match should have happened a few months ago to really hit the peak of the story, but it was SO refreshing to have a story built up rather than just throwing it out there. Heck of a match here, which shouldn’t be a surprise at all given who was out there.

Post match Swerve Strickland runs out to beat down Bandido before their match at Double Or Nothing.

We recap Survival Of The Fittest. Athena has been Women’s Champion for about 28 years now and is defending against five women at once. It’s not like most women feel like a threat to her so this is the best they can do.

Women’s Title: Athena vs. Zayda Steel vs. Maya World vs. Trish Adora vs. Yuka Sakazaki vs. Billie Starkz

Athena is defending under elimination rules. Steel is rapped to the ring and Athena gets a highlight video. Athena yells at Starkz to start and they go outside, which is broken up rather quickly. Back in and we get a four way crisscross until Adora spears Steel and World. That doesn’t do much as World is up for an Asai moonsault onto everyone else.

Back in and Steel’s top rope double stomp gets two on Adora, leaving Athena to toss World and Sakazaki at the same time. Steel throws a chair at Athena’s face and then uses it to clean house (remember No DQ). The chair is wedged into the corner but Steel is sent head first into it to give Athena the elimination at 5:03.

Athena kicks the chair out but World is there to kendo stick her down. Adora gets the stick and cleans house as Athena throws in a trashcan. Adora’s suplex drops World and everyone heads outside, with Starkz loading up a table (of course). Sakazaki is sent into the barricade and Adora is sent into Athena for a spear to put Athena down. Starkz’s slingshot piledriver gets two on World and Adora chokeslams Athena through a pile of open chairs at ringside, leaving Athena looking rather dead.

Starkz clears off the announcers’ table but Adora plants her with a Death Valley Driver. Sakazaki hits the Magical Girl Splash to put Athena through a table but walks into a backbreaker back inside. The Lariat Tubman hits Athena…and Sakazaki cuts off the cover, with commentary calling that out as a dumb move. Sakazaki gives Adora a spinning faceplant for the pin at 15:39.

A Magical Girl Splash with the trashcan hits Athena but Starkz makes the save (which makes a bit more sense). Starkz gives Sakazaki a super Pancake for the pin at 17:25 and we’re down to Starkz, World and Athena. A Canadian Destroyer gives Starkz two on World so Athena grabs some kendo sticks. Athena and Starkz use the sticks to unload on World and then bury her in chairs. Naturally it’s ladder time but World dropkicks it into Athena. Starkz goes up and gets punched by Athena by mistake, allowing World to hit a sunset bomb onto the chairs for the pin at 21:47.

The two of them head outside, where Athena misses a belt shot and gets planted onto the apron for two. An over the back faceplant gives World two and she grabs an ankle lock. Athena blocks Starkz from throwing in the towel and plants World onto the chair. An O Face off the ladder drops World and retains the title at 26:12.

Rating: B-. I could have gone for a lot fewer weapons here, with the ladder for the O Face being the only real highlight. The problem is we’ve seen so many weapons based matches around AEW in recent months that this really doesn’t mean as much. Athena winning is something of a surprise, as I have no idea how she is supposed to lose. As long as it isn’t to Starkz, it should be ok, but good grief that would be a lame ending to the title reign. For now though, good enough match, but not quite as awesome as I was expecting.

Post match Diamante comes out to celebrate but Starkz and Athena argue. Starkz leaves to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. There’s a lot of really good stuff on here, but as usual at the end of a Tony Khan produced pay per view, I do not want to see these people again for a long time. This show was really, really long and came after two other Ring Of Honor shows this week. The action was rather good throughout, but they could have easily dropped the National Title match and trimmed some others. As usual, too much going on, but that might be outweighed by the matches actually feeling important for a change. Just fix the Tag Team Title situation and it’s a lot better. Good show, and with some tweaks it could have been great.

Results
Sammy Guevara b. Action Andretti – GTH
Rush b. LSG – Bull’s Horns
Mina Shirakawa/Queen Aminata b. Lacey Lane/Janai Kai – Figure Four to Kai
Rascalz b. Premiere Athletes – Top rope double stomp/reverse Samoan driver combination to Nese
Nigel McGuinness b. Josh Woods – Rebound lariat
Red Velvet b. Viva Van – Spinning kick to the head
AR Fox b. Lio Rush – 450
Deonna Purrazzo b. Diamante – Venus de Milo
Lee Moriarty b. Ace Austin – European Clutch while holding the ropes
Mark Davis b. Xelhua – Running clothesline
Bandido b. Blake Christian – 21 Plex
Athena won Survival Of The Fittest last eliminating World

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

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

Ring Of Honor
Date: April 30, 2026
Location: WJCT Studios, Jacksonville, Florida
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

We’re coming up on Supercard Of Honor and the top of the card has mostly come together. That isn’t something that happens very often with big time Ring Of Honor events but they’re pulling it off this time. Unfortunately there is only so much of a connection between what we see here and what is being promoted for the show. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Konosuke Takeshita vs. Matt Menard

Well that’s a surprise. They take turns backing each other up against the ropes until Takeshita takes him down. A slam sends Takeshita outside, which feels like something of an overreaction. Back in and Takeshita knocks him into the corner for the knees to the head in the corner. Takeshita grabs the chinlock but Menard fights up and sends him into the corner for the right hands. The exchange of forearms goes to Takeshita and he hits a Blue Thunder Bomb for two. The running knee finishes for Takeshita at 6:43.

Rating: C. There wasn’t much to be seen here as there was only going to be so much you could get out of Takeshita vs. Menard. I’m not entirely sure why Takeshita was here and especially with no promotion, but it’s nice to have a surprise every so often. If nothing else it was nice to have a relatively quick match, as Menard losing pretty fast is a good thing.

Shane Taylor vs. Mance Warner

Dang they’re throwing some curves into this one and somehow Warner has never wrestled in Ring Of Honor. They forearm it out with Warner firing off some overhand chops to send him outside. That means a running poke to the eye but Taylor rams him back first into the post. Taylor’s running legdrop connects on the apron and puts Warner in a chair for a running elbow.

Back in and a big clothesline drops Warner again, followed by a release Rock Bottom. The big splash gives Taylor two but the middle rope version misses. Warner fires off some clotheslines and hits a belly to back suplex before going to grab the chair. Said chair is used for a running tornado DDT but Taylor’s knee to the face gets two more. The Marcus Garvey Driver finishes Warner at 8:07.

Rating: C+. This was a hard hitting fight and I get why you would have Taylor win, though if Warner is available, he’s worth having around. I could go with seeing him around to do some insane talking as he would certainly add some spice to the show. Of course that’s assuming this isn’t a one off appearance, though that would be a bit of a surprise.

The Premiere Athletes warn everyone against laying a hand on Mark Sterling.

Stori Denali vs. Jacey Love

Mark Sterling is here too and threatens anyone who even looks at him the wrong way. Denali shoves her into the corner and Love’s dropkicks to the leg don’t do much good. The tornado DDT is blocked and a chokeslam finishes for Denali at 2:27.

Alan Angels vs. Lio Rush

Just in case you thought you might not have to watch Rush be WEIRD for a week. Angels snaps off a running hurricanrana to start so Rush does his bug eyed crawling. They run the ropes until Rush takes him down for a spinning kick to the head. Rush goes outside and screams at a chop, only for Angels to stomp on his back on the way back inside. A bridging northern lights suplex gives Angels two so Rush starts moving faster and catches Angels on top.

Angels bites the ear but gets caught with the springboard Stunner for two. A powerbomb out of the corner plants Rush again and Angels’ spinning kick to the head gets two more. They go to a pinfall reversal sequence for a bunch of one counts each until Angels rolls some half and half suplexes. The top rope splash gives Angels two so they head to the apron, where Rush hits another Stunner. Rush does his weird (because he’s WEIRD) running around the ring into a suicide dive, followed by a toss Blue Thunder Bomb to finish Angels at 9:33.

Rating: B-. Yeah……this Rush thing is not for me at all. He wrestles pretty much the same match but now he does the big eyes and weird hopping stuff as well. I’d be fine with Rush being around in another form, say as himself rather than with Action Andretti in a low level tag team, but this isn’t working for me.

We look at Diamante mocking Deonna Purrazzo last week.

Deonna Purrazzo vs. Remi Reade

Non-title Pure Rules match. Purrazzo easily escapes a headscissors to start and mocks Reade a bit before grabbing a backslide for one. Reade slips away from her and gets in the same mock, with Purrazzo approving. Back up and Purrazzo backs her into the ropes, which counts as the first break. The threat of the Fujiwara armbar sends Reade over to the ropes (not a break) so Purrazzo goes with a powerbomb. Now the Fujiwara armbar makes Reade tap at 3:07.

Rating: C. This was hardly going to be some big, amazing match and that’s what we wound up getting. Purrazzo wrestled her down and won with a mixture of stuff, which is a good way to go for her. Purrazzo’s big match is in two weeks, even though there is little reason to believe that her title is in danger.

Top Flight vs. Soleil/Gringo Loco

Loco kicks at Darius to start but can’t get very far with a headscissors on the mat. Soleil comes in and picks up the pace (which was already up in the first place) and gets sent into the wrong corner. That doesn’t last long as Soleil hits a dive to the floor to take Darius out again. Some running kicks to the head get two on Soleil and Loco’s spinning split legged moonsault gets two.

Darius fights up and hands it off to Dante, who has to fight both of them off. A twisting Meteora puts Dante down and it’s Loco dropping a Swanton for two. Everything breaks down and Darius is back in for a German suplex. The double underhook DDT finishes Loco at 6:55.

Rating: B-. Well it was fast paced and energetic, with some good spots and absolutely no reason to believe that either of the teams are going to be doing anything important anytime soon. That’s the case with a lot of people around here and unfortunately it’s where Top Flight is as well. It would be nice to believe that there is a reason to believe otherwise but years of that not happening would suggest otherwise.

IInspiration vs. B3cca/Madison Maxx

Lee grabs a headlock on Maxx to start and the IInspiration clear the ring without much trouble. That means the double pose is on, followed by the double choking in the corner. B3cca comes in and gets beaten up as well, setting up stereo Pedigrees. The Idolizer finishes B3cca at 3:41.

Rating: C. I’m not sure what the IInspiration are supposed to do around here but they need some wins to boost them back up. Granted there is only so much value in having them win a match like this one, but it’s better than nothing. There are only so many women’s teams around in the first place so going with one of the few established ones makes sense.

We get a sitdown interview between Caprice Coleman and….Ian Riccaboni. Actually Riccaboni brings in Red Velvet, which would be a better interview, though Coleman looks nervous because he wasn’t ready for this. And I guess this is going to be on social media later. Ok then.

Viva Van vs. Sara Leon

Van rolls around with a wristlock to start and they go up to a standoff. Leon backs up a bit so Van rolls forward into a pose, leaving Leon to roll her up for two. A hurricanrana out of the corner drops Van, who is right back with a Brock Lock of all things. Leon has to escape a surfboard and gets two, only to get caught in a cross arm electric chair suplex to give Van the pin at 4:28.

Rating: C+. Van hasn’t done much around here but it’s nice to see her get a chance to actually win for a change. If nothing else, you need to have her win on occasion or beating her over and over only means so much. I’ve seen good things from Van elsewhere so maybe this is the start of something for her around here as well.

Paid In Full vs. Nick Halen/Vin Parker

Halen actually gives Keith a running STO for two to start but Keith rakes the eyes. Bill comes in for a running splash in the corner and the spinning Boss Man Slam plants Parker. The big boot finishes Halen at 2:21.

We look at Christian XO’s debut.

Christian XO vs. Frankie B.

The rather tall XO mocks Frankie with an offer of a test of strength and then knocks her down with ease. A Stratusphere has Frankie in trouble but she escapes a fireman’s carry. That just earns Frankie an ax kick (which looked more like a Fameasser) for the pin at 2:19.

TMDK vs. Don Callis Family

It’s RPG Vice and Mark Davis for the Family. Tito and Romero start things off but it’s quickly off to Beretta, who is powered into the corner. Everything breaks down and Davis knees Haste in the face. Haste is sent into the corner and stomped down but he fights up on Romero. The tag brings in Nicholls to clean house until everyone is knocked down for a big breather.

Tito and Davis come back in to slug it out and knock each other down again. They slug it out from their knees and then feet, with Tito hitting a brainbuster for two. A double spinebuster/powerbomb combination gets the same, with Romero and Beretta making the save. Back up and Davis runs Tito over for two before pulling Haste out of the corner for the piledriver. Strong Zero sends Nicholls outside but Tito is back up…and gets lariated for two. Another piledriver finishes Tito at 11:12.

Rating: B-. Another entertaining match with the Family getting to beat TMDK again. If nothing else, it’s nice to see Davis getting to hit that piledriver, which is becoming one of the more devastating moves in AEW/ROH. I’m not sure why we’re seeing so much from RPG Vice as of late, though if they’re signed they might as well be used in some way.

Overall Rating: C+. The pay per view is in about two weeks and one of the four matches announced got any real advancement this week (and that’s a stretch as Purrazzo winning a match isn’t much of an advancement). The rest of the show was just a bunch of stuff like you would see on any other show. I’m sure there will be a bunch of stuff added to Supercard Of Honor at the last minute and some of them will get on the show as a result, but this stuff doesn’t really make me care about most of these people. In other words, it’s Ring Of Honor at its most typical.

Results
Konosuke Takeshita b. Matt Menard – Running knee
Shane Taylor b. Mance Warner – Marcus Garvey Driver
Stori Denali b. Jacey Love – Chokeslam
Lio Rush b. Alan Angels – Toss Blue Thunder Bomb
Deonna Purrazzo b. Remi Reade – Fujiwara armbar
Top Flight b. Gringo Loco/Soleil – Double underhook DDT to Loco
IInspiration b. B3cca/Madison Maxx – Idolizer to B3cca
Viva Van b. Sara Leon – Crossarm electric chair suplex
Paid In Full b. Nick Halen/Vin Parker – Big boot to Halen
Christian XO b. Frankie B. – Ax kick
Don Callis Family b. TMDK – Piledriver to Tito

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

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

Ring Of Honor
Date: 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:

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