While night one was great, night two promised even more. The Dragon Gate six man tag returned from a third consecutive year. The Ring of Honor world title and the FIP world title were scheduled to be defended. The Briscoes feud with Age of the Fall was going to come to an end?
-Taped on March 29, 2008 from Orlando Florida
-Your hosts are Dave Prazak and Lenny Leonard
-Delirious vs. Go Shiozaki
Explanation is fairly simple. Neither guy had anything to do for night two, so they get paired off against each other. Stalling to start. Delirious shouts “STOP” and “GO.” Go isn’t sure what to make of the situation. Delirious tries to chops and goes for a series of shoulder tackles. Go tries one more chop and Delirious flees. Delirious uses quickness but flees to the floor again when Go teases a chop. More chop attempts, so Delirious tells him to look at the crowd. Finally, Go hits a series of chops. They are as brutal as Delirious dreaded. Delirous comes back with a flying clothesline. Facefirst into the buckle and Delirious and a belly-to-back suplex. Elbows from Delirious. Charge into the corner, but Go places him on the top. Various chops to the body. Throatfirst into the rope and an immediate knee to the throat by Go. Chop to the back of the neck, and Go applies a chinlock. Sunset flip by Delirious. Even more chops by Go. What is this, a Roderick Strong match? Fisherman Buster. Slam but Go hits the knees of Delirious on a moonsault try. Delirious with a leaping lariat and a Fireman’s carry slam. Back senton gets two. Cobra clutch, but Go hits strikes. Drop toehold into the turnbuckle. Panic attack by Delirious leads to a superkick by Shozaki. German suplex for two. Chops to the side of the heads. Cobra stretch by Delirious, but Go makes the ropes. Series of reversals ends in a lariat by Go. Go Flasher gets the win for Go.
-Winner (s)/Time/Rating: Go Shiozaki/12:14/**1/2
-This was perfectably acceptable wrestling. Some fun comedy to get the show started and the crowd warmed up. Go Shiozaki had an odd run in Ring of Honor. He wasn’t as highly regarded as Marifuji, KENTA, or Morishima, but he had his share of good matches. I guess where he came up short was in the personality department.
-Larry Sweeney and Shane Hagadorn are still in a private locker room, and Sweeney makes it clear the window of opportunity is closing for Ring of Honor to book Chris Hero and Daniel Puder. Thankfully, the Puder was closed quickly.
-The Y.R.R (FIP Florida Heritage Champion Sal Rinauro, FIP Tag Team Champion Kenny King, and Chasyn Rance)(w/random broads) vs. Bushwacker Luke, Alex “Sugarfoot” Payne, and Dingo
I love how Ring of Honor fans get high and mighty about how much better their company is because they focus on wrestling, but then they go nuts for Bushwacker Luke, the ultimate representation of sports entertainment. I can’t stand four out of the six guys in this match, so my expectations are monumentally low. I guess this came about because of Y.R.R harassing Luke the previous night. Dingo starts for the faces, since he’s the most competent wrestler on his team. Considering he spent a lot of time in IWA-MS, that should tell you all you need to know. Heels work over Alex Payne for the heat segment. If there wasn’t a parade of awesomeness following this, I might be a bit more bitter. Dingo comes and actually shows a little bit, which makes me sad he can’t wrestle anymore because of a back injury. Luke does minimal work, and he’s barely mobile when he tries. Lots of punching and clotheslines. Even a couple battering rams. Luke, Dingo, and Payne do the Bushwacker walk, but this comes back to haunt them. Triple team series of moves by the Y.R.R leads to a victory over Dingo. Lovely.
Winner (s)/Time/Rating:The Y.R.R/ 8:13/*
-We rejoin Supercard of Honor II already in progress.
-Rocky Romero and Davey Richards stand in the ring kind of looking like geeks, especially out of the context of having not seen the tag team title match. Larry Sweeney and Hagadorn come out once again to offer the other two members of the No Remorse Corps. spots in Sweet ‘n’ Sour Inc. without Roderick Strong to run interference. Strong is apparently paying attention to monitors in the back because he runs out and turns Sweeney down once again. Here comes Erick Stevens to clear the ring. Jigsaw and Ruckus return to take out Romero and Richards.
-A bell is never officially heard, but Stevens and Strong engage in one of the most epic brawls in the history of Ring of Honor. Their feud encompassed two companies and was one of the best in 2008 regardless of whether they were wrestling in ROH or FIP. I’d actually recommend their match from FIP Redefined 2008 most of all. If I had done a top ten list, that likely would have been number three or four. This was almost as bad as what happened with Homicide/Cabana in 2006 and Jacobs/Whitmer in 2007. Strong’s chest is bleeding after two chops. Referee Kentucky Jordan is decked early on. Vicious shots and strikes abound throughout this contest. While Strong bleeds from the chest, Stevens is busted open across his forehead. Stevens with a BRUTAL TKO as Strong goes into a chair headfirst. Crowd actually shouts “FIP” in a very surreal moment. Strong’s head bleeds a gusher after the TKO. Pace picks up and these two start throwing bombs. What makes this brawl so amazing is the sheer stiffness of these shots. Even if you know professional wrestling is fake (and I hope everyone reading this does), you could almost plausibly believe the hatred just based on contact made. The brawl only ends when Strong nails Stevens in the head with a chair. Richards and Romero return to give Stevens a haircut. Good night Mohawk. Maybe not the payoff the crowd was expecting, but this was a great to build even more heat for this feud. Although there was no bell and this no official match, I’d give this segment ****. Believe me though. We’re just getting started.
-Relaxed Rules Match: The Briscoes (Mark and Jay) vs. The Age of the Fall (Jimmy Jacobs and Tyler Black)(w/Lacey and Rain)
Speaking of feuds. Age of the Fall debuted in September at the Man Up Pay-Per-View by hanging Mark Briscoe. They’d go back and forth for months with Age of the Fall winning the tag team titles at Final Battle 2007. Although Black and Jacobs lost the titles just a month later, this feud persists. Relaxed Rules essentially means you have to murder someone in order to get disqualified. And even then , it’s referee’s discretion. I was never a fan of faction warfare, and Age of the Fall symbolized my disinterest in that garbage. Make no mistake about it though. This is a fantastic match in a series of them that these two had over almost a full year. Since intermission is next, these two teams go wild against each other. Interesting note that while the Briscoes have had a number of matches against Age of the Fall, this is their second match against the Jacobs/Black incarnation. Mark Briscoes shows how little he’s learned in a year by doing a moonsault off the top on to all of the other men. Mark also dives off a trampoline nto Black and Jacobs in the crowd. That was different. Into the crowd and Jacobs drinks some booze a fan snuck into the building. Awesome. These four go all over the place and use all kinds of chairs. This was sort of awkward placing with another brawl taking place just before this match, but it was at least different. Stevens and Strong was like a fight. This was a wacky brawl. The lighting is also a little better in this building, meaning we can actually see what the hell is going on when they fight in the crowd. One thing you can’t accuse any of these four men of doing is phoning it in. Ceazy bumps taken everywhere. And then a table gets introduced…
Jacobs and Mark end up on the second level with the table being on the first. Tyler Black is laid prone on the table. Milio Beasely from Full Impact Pro moves Tyler off the table. Beasely is put on the table, and Briscoe dives on top of him. Table done. Mark done. Jay takes Black to the ring, but Jacobs runs in with a plastic bag. Double team by both Age of the Fall members. Mark putting someone that wasn’t in this match through a table… not the brightest idea ever. Peroxism by Black leads to a back senton by Jacobs. Jay barely kicks out. Jay comes back and puts Jacobs face first into the middle turnbuckle. Big boot on Tyler. Falcon arrow on Jacobs. DVD on Black gets two. That looked nasty too. Jay driller but Jacobs gets the low blow while Black gets the small package. I love how they’re playing off what happened last year as Jay fights two men while Mark gets hurt again. Super contra code by Black and Jacobs. 1-2-NO! Black goes for the Phoenix splash, but MARK PUSHES HIM OFF! SPRINGBOARD DOOMSDAY DEVICE. NO! END TIME BY JACOBS! MARK PASSES OUT! WHAT AN AMAZING FINISH!
-Winner (s)/Time/Rating: Age of the Fall/15:04/****
-Unless you watch the replay, there’s possible way for you to see how the Doomsday got reversed. I loved that finish so much. That alone is worth a half star
-Erick Stevens vows revenge against Strong. The war hasn’t ended. It’s only begun.
-Age of the Fall gloat and look ahead to Austin Aries’ joining the group. Lacey has a back-up plan if things fall through. Hmm.
-ROH vs. Dragon Gate: BxB Hulk and Shingo vs. Kevin Steen and El Generico
We get the Hulk entrance proper tonight. If only Shingo had danced. That’s the only this match could have been better. Off all the wonderful four star matches this weekend, this might be the cream of the crop. I think the best part about this match is that these two teams are practically mirror images of each other as far as styles go. Plus, Steen and Generico work very well with the Dragon Gate teams, no doubt because they’ve done tours before. Steen and Generico have of course gone 1-0 this weekend after defeating Naruki Doi and Masato Yoshino, while Shingo and Hulk defeated Age of the Fall.
Generico and Hulk start with a token mat wrestling sequence. Steen in and he overpowers Hulk a bit before a flying kick sends Steen down. Shingo in and it’s a battle of the bulk. Series of shoulder tackles and no one wants to go down. Heard that before. Steen tosses Shingo to the floor. Generico front flip sentons him on the floor. Wow. Steen goes for the cover and gets two. Steenerico tries a double team, but that doesn’t last long. Shingo hits Generico hard. Lenny Leonard even uses the phrase “Epic Fail.” If he only would have saved that for the years to come. Double team by Shingo and Hulk. Generico ends up too close to his corner, and Steen returns to the ring. Double team on Hulk again. Standing moonsault by Generico. Drop toehold by Generico leads to Steen doing a flipping legdrop. Back and forth with Generico and Hulk. Series of kicks by Hulk quickly countered by a knee. Leg lariat. Ole. Steen mocks Hulk. Awesome. Missile dropkick by Hulk onto Generico. Standing dropkick on Steen leads to a standing moonsault on Generico. Shingo with a hot tag and he wipes out both Steen and Generico. Lenny Leonard mocks the Steenerico nickname. Shingo spinebuster. Standing shooting starpress by Hulk gets two. Cue the insanity and crazy spots. These four men wipe each other for what seems like ten minutes. Breakneck speed is the order of the day. Crowd is deeply into this one, as they have for everything the entire weekend. Steen breaks his moonsault out. Too bad he misses. Burning hammer slam hit by Shingo on to Steen. Somewhat ate their Spinach that morning. Hulk moonsaults Steen on the floor. LARIAT BY SHINGO. TOP ROPE DVD ON GENERICO! 1-2-NO!!!LARIAT BUT GENERICO UP! ANOTHER LARIAT! LAST FALCONCERY ON GENERICO’S NECK! 1-2-3!!!
-Winner (s)/Time/Rating: BxB Hulk and Shingo/17:48/****1/2
-Absolutely phenomenal match between two of the best team teams in the world at that point. All four guys brought their A games. Crowd practically begs them to come back. Those poor poor fans.
-Erick Stevens shaves his head bald in the bathroom. Might as well.
-Ring of Honor World Championship: Nigel McGuinness (champion) vs. Austin Aries
Both champion and challenger are coming off submission victories from the previous night. Fantastic booking if you ask me because both submission finishers could potentially end the match, and even the casual fan who’s only been to these two Orlando shows have something to watch out for. These two had a MOTYC back at the Rising Above Pay-Per-View, which took place on the last weekend of 2007. Compared to a lot of the zaniness with previous matches, this was a traditional Ring of Honor world championship match. Slow start as they go back and forth working various body parts. Aries goes for The Last Chancery early, but Nigel flees. Tease of the missile dive while Nigel is facing the crowd , a callback to a spot that happened at Rising Above, which gave Nigel a concussion. Aries goes to work on the head and neck of the champion. Aries hooks the leg and neck of McGuinness in a submission hold. Nigel counters and grabs at the eyes. Hard chop in the corner by the champion. Aries fires back with a series of over-hand chops. McGuinness rams Aries’ shoulder into the ringpost. Aries to the outside, but Nigel brings him back for some more shoulder work. Aries comes back with chops, including a tomahawk chop from the top rope. That was different. Nigel with his patented kick to the back, forearm to the chest spot. Tower of London try but Aries hits a series of elbows. Front facelock, but the shoulder gives out. London Dungeon! Aries quickly gets to the ropes. To the corner for more strikes. Aries interrupts a charge and gets The Last Chancery. McGuinness scratches at Aries’ eyes. Nigel with more strikes in the corner. Running European uppercut. Tower of London try but Aries hits a missile dropkick. Aries‘ dropkick in the corner countered by a boot to the face. Third time is the charm for the Tower of London. Aries placed along the top rope. Nigel misses a lariat because Aries locks in a submission across the ropes. Aries hits an elbow off the top turnbuckle to a standing McGuinnes on the floor. Into the guardrail goes the champion. Dropkick and Nigel crumples to the ground. Dropkick in the corner back inside the ring. Two more and McGuinness ends up on the mat once again. The champion barely kicks out at two. Brainbuster attempt, but McGuinnes blocks. Hand stand in the corner but Aries dropkicks him. Aries off the ropes… LARIAT! Champion and challenger are down and only get up at nine. That was intense. Slap exchange. Forearm exchange. Aries hit s clothesline as Nigel was prepping for a jawbreaker lariat. Brainbuster hit but a 450 misses. London Dungeon! Drags him to the center and really cinches him in. Aries ALMOST gets two on a roll-up. Last Chancery! McGuinness works his way out and once again applies the London Dungeon once again. To the center of the ring. Kick to the head by Aries. Backslide. Another kick to the head. BRAINBUSTAH! 450 SPLASH! 1-2-NO! FOOT ON THE ROPES! Nigel flees to the outside. Aries goes for the heat-seeking missile and goes shoulder first into the guardrail. Yeeouch! Back inside for a 1-2-NO! Short arm lariat. Aries gets a crucifix bomb for two. Finally, Nigels gets a jawbreaker lariat for the victory.
-Winner (s)/Time/Rating: STILL ROH World Champion-Nigel McGuinness/24:44/****1/2
-Incredible match between these two. I think the final couple minutes went a little too far, but this was one of the best matches in Ring of Honor during 2008. I would have preferred Aries just losing after throwing himself into the barricade.
-After the match, it’s decision time for one Austin Aries. Jacobs makes the offer, but Aries doesn’t respond to him. Lacey makes an offer of her own, and Aries leaves with her. Jacobs is not a happy man. Tammy Sytch comes down because she wants Aries inside of her. She questions his sanity. I question her sobriety. Aries leaves with Lacey. Jacobs, Black, and Rain appear set to beat up Sytch. The Briscoes (speaking of sobriety) come out to make the save. This would lead to a series of really good matches with Jacobs and Aries. I’m not sure it could ever be considered a great feud since Aries dominated much of it
-CIMA, Ryo Saito, and Dragon Kid vs. Naruki Doi, Masato Yoshino, and Genki Horiguchi
This was very similar to their matches back in 2006 and 2007. I guess you really have to look hard to find the subtle differences between every one of these matches. It’s pretty sad because this would be the last time the Dragon Gate stars performed on U.S. total for Ring of Honor. Lots of great action between the six guys who came together for the original six man tag two years ago. Guess you could say things came full circle for the Dragon Gate guys in ROH. After over 25 minutes, Naruki Doi pins Genki Horiguchi with the Muscle driver.
-Winner (s)/Time/Rating: Doi, Masato Yoshino, and Genki Horiguchi/25:44/****3/4
-Larry Sweeney celebrates. Based on all the great matches this weekend, I doubt he was the only one.
Final Thoughts: This is undoubtedly one of the best shows in the history of Ring of Honor. It’s a bit bittersweet for a number of reasons. The Dragon Gate stars wouldn’t appear in the states until July of 2009 for the new DG USA. Gabe Sapolsky’s booking lost some its luster over the following months, and he would be replaced with Adam Pearce in November 2008. The economy tanked badly, and DVD sales reflected this downturn. Unfortunately, Ring of Honor’s 2009 Wrestlemania couldn’t come close to matching 2006-2008. Kevin Ford will that story next week.
