March 26th: This weekend is the big double shot in Detroit. This
Friday will be "All Star Extravaganza III" featuring a chance to
meet a true hall of famer in Bruno Sammartino. You will be able to
get Sammartino's autograph. This Saturday will be "Supercard Of
Honor II" featuring a rematch of last year's Wrestling Observer
Newsletter and Pro Wrestling Torch match of the year. It will be a
pure Dragon Gate six man just like last year, but with some new
faces. Make sure to check out the scouting report on the Dragon Gate
talent on the main page of ROHwrestling.com to get familiar with
these sensational athletes. You have one last chance to save big on
tickets, as they are only 20% off now at ROHwrestling.com. The eyes
of the wrestling world will be on ROH so you better believe this
will be an epic weekend.

March 26th: ROH World Champion Takeshi Morishima is now official for
May 11th in Hartford, CT and May 12th in Manhattan, NY. You have
never had an opportunity to see this many of NOAH's top stars
compete under one roof. Morishima, KENTA and Naomichi Marufuji will
all be in main event quality matches in both Hartford and Manhattan.
You can now save 20% on tickets to both shows at ROHwrestling.com,
but act now because the sale ends Wednesday night. There are plenty
of great seats available for Hartford. ROH is going for its fourth
consecutive sellout of the Manhattan Center so don't risk getting
shut out. Save 20% on all tickets to both shows now!!!

March 26th: There will be lots of happenings in Detroit around the
ROH events. You can catch ROH on the Fox 2 morning show this Friday.
Several of the top stars of ROH will be appearing on the show. You
can meet ROH stars at the Detroit Beer Co. on 1529 Broadway in
downtown Detroit on Saturday afternoon. Check the main page of
ROHwrestling.com for all the info to save money at the Detroit Beer
Co. on both Friday and Saturday.

March 26th: In case you haven't figured it out, there is a 20% off
EVERY ITEM at www.ROHWrestling.com sale until Wednesday night. Save
on over 1000 items including the latest FIP and SHIMMER releases
like:
-SHIMMER Vol. 6 (Cheerleader Melissa vs. MsChif in a Last Women
Standing Match)
-SHIMMER Vol. 5 (Sara Del Rey vs. Mercedes Martinez in a rematch
from Vol. 1)
-FIP "Evening The Odds" (Roderick Strong, Jay Briscoe, Mark Briscoe,
Erick Stevens & Pelle Primeau vs. Bryan Danielson, Davey Richards,
Shingo, Steve Madison & Shane Hagadorn in an Elimination Match)
-FIP "All Or Nothing" (Bryan Danielson vs. Roderick Strong)
-FIP "Southern Justice" (Bryan Danielson vs. Davey Richards,
Roderick Strong vs. Matt Sydal)
-FIP "Fallout 2006" (Roderick Strong vs. Davey Richards)
-Check out these releases plus more from TNA, WWE, NOAH, 1PW and
many other promotions for 20% off until Wednesday night at
ROHwrestling.com.

March 26th: Shingo vs. Matt Cross has been signed for April 14th in
Edison, NJ. This brings another exciting match to what is shaping up
to be a loaded card. Save 20% on tickets now at ROHwrestling.com.
Here is the current lineup for April 14th in Edison, NJ:

ROH World Title Match
Takeshi Morishima defends vs. Nigel McGuinness

Grudge Tag Team Match
Jack Evans & Delirious vs. Roderick Strong & Davey Richards

Special Challenge Match
Colt Cabana vs. Doug Williams

Special Attraction Match
Shingo vs. Matt Cross

Plus more with Rocky Romero, Jay & Mark Briscoe, Kevin Steen, El
Generico, Eddie Edwards, Jason Blade, Claudio Castagnoli, Chris Hero
and more to be added!!!

Credit: ROHWrestling.com

WWE.com reported the immediate release of Joey Mercury today. Several
news sites are reporting it was the result of Mercury attacking
Stephanie McMahon because MNM will not be included at Wrestlemania on
Sunday. Apparently, Steph needed to be taken to the hospital over this.


You almost have to feel for Johnny Nitro. His girlfriend pisses
everyone off backstage and his tag team partner attacks the boss'
daughter.

March 22nd: A tag team grudge match has just been signed for 4/14 in
Edison, NJ. The No Remorse Corps of Roderick Strong & Davey Richards
have been making a lot of enemies lately. They will be faced with
two of them in New Jersey. It will be Strong & Richards vs. Jack
Evans & Delirious when ROH returns to New Jersey. Tickets are now on
sale at www.ROHwrestling.com or by calling 215-781-2500.

March 22nd: BJ Whitmer and Jimmy Jacobs will both be forced to sign
waivers before their Steel Cage Match at "Supercard Of Honor II" on
3/31 in Detroit. ROH officials fear the lengths that these two men
will go to in order to try to cripple each other.

March 22nd: There are now three new matches up at www.ROHvideos.com
from recent DVDs that you can watch completely FREE!!! Check out
action from 2007 including Jack Evans vs. Eddie Edwards, Adam Pearce
vs. Pelle Primeau and a bout from ROH's final weekend of 2006 as
Austin Aries takes on Edwards. Make sure to check out the latest ROH
Video Wire for free at ROHvideos.com to see Samoa Joe's emotional
goodbye to ROH. You can download all these matches and the Video
Wire to your Ipod or PSP. There is no excuse not to watch ROH now
because it's FREE at ROHvideos.com.

March 22nd: Make sure to check www.ROHwrestling.com now for all
these new DVDs:
-1/27/07 "Battle Of The Icons" (Jack Evans, Austin Aries & Roderick
Strong team for the last time vs. Shingo, Delirious & Davey Richards)
-1/26/07 "Dedicated" (Jay & Mark Briscoe vs. Austin Aries & Roderick
Strong 2/3 Falls)
-12/23/06 "Final Battle 2006" (Bryan Danielson vs. Homicide World
Title Matched rated "****1/4 or higher" by Dave Meltzer)
-12/22/06 "International Challenge" (Christopher Daniels & Matt
Sydal vs. CIMA & Shingo for the ROH World Tag Team Titles)

March 22nd: The international media will be in full force at both
the 3/30 and 3/31 Detroit events. In addition to seven of Dragon
Gate's top stars, Dragon Gate's top prospect will also be on the
events. YAMATO is set for his ROH debut and will be on both shows.
He is considered the top rising star in Dragon Gate and he will be
watched carefully by the Japanese contingent.

March 22nd: The sleeper match of 3/30 "All Star Extravaganza III"
will feature two true all stars as Homicide takes on Christopher
Daniels. These are two of the founding fathers of ROH and they were
both on the very first ROH event. Homicide pinned Daniels during the
Fifth Year Festival and now Daniels wants to even the score.

March 22nd: Davey Richards has sent word that he has increased his
MMA training to prepare for Mochizuki on 3/30. Richards wants to
make international headlines by scoring the win for the No Remorse
Corps in this battle of hard kickers.

Credit: ROHWrestling.com

Mitsuharu Misawa vs. Takeshi Morishima
March 5th 2006
They lock up with Misawa getting the head lock. Morishima pushes him
off and they exchange shots. They take turns bouncing off the ropes,
and Morishima takes control with a series of clotheslines. Morishima
clotheslines Misawa into the corner and unleashes a furious series
of punches. Misawa is tossed to ringside, but reverses and Irish
whip, sending Morishima into the steel. Morishima recovers and drops
Misawa with some hard strikes. Morishima tosses Misawa back into the
ring and corners him again. Morishima whips Misawa into the opposite
turnbuckle and hits a big boot before tossing Misawa through the
ropes onto the stage. Morishima hits a hard clothesline, and Misawa
drops like a rock. The action spills back into the ring, and
Morishima locks on a strong headlock. Misawa has barely gotten any
offense in at this point, and remains trapped in the headlock for a
good period before Morishima breaks it to hit him some more. Misawa
tries to mount some offense, hitting his own punches, and finally
knocks Morishima down. Morishima falls out of the ring, and is an
easy target to Misawa and a suicide dive through the ropes! Misawa
tosses Morishima into the ring, but gets knocked off the apron when
trying to get back in. Morishima then climbs to the top turnbuckle
and all 300 plus pounds of him go flying onto Misawa on the floor!

Morishima tosses Misawa back to the ring and hits a running big
boot. This is followed up with a strong power bomb and a near fall.
Morishima goes for a side suplex, but Misawa blocks it long enough
to get into the ropes. They spill back onto the stage, and Misawa
reverses a power bomb into a head scissors takedown. Misawa hits a
running forearm shot to the head. Misawa tosses Morishima back into
the ring and goes high risk. Misawa hits a flying shoulder tackle
and then goes high risk again for a frog splash. Misawa gets a near
fall, but the monster Morishima is still in this. Misawa goes for an
under hook suplex, but Morishima counters. Misawa tries again and is
successful, complete with a near fall. Now in firm control, Misawa
attempts the double under hok suplex off the ring apron. Morishima
blocks it and they exchange strikes. They then both leap off the
apron, and I'm not positive who got the brunt of that exchange, as
Misawa hit the mat and Morishima hit the steel barricade. Morishima
is first to his feet, and tosses Misawa back into the ring.
Morishima hits a clothesline off the top turnbuckle. Morishima hits
some series punches and a big clothesline into a cover attempt. Now
showing signs of frustration, Morishima hits a back suplex and goes
for the cover again. Morishima and Misawa then exchange some hard
strikes, with Misawa getting the upper hand. Misawa slams Morishima
and goes for the cover.

Misawa goes for the double under hook suplex again, but Morishima
reverses it into a back body drop. They fight back to the ring
apron, and Morishima attempts to back suplex Misawa off it. They
exchange strikes, and Misawa succeeds in suplexing Morishima off the
apron, with his feet bouncing off the steel barricade! That was
awesome! Misawa rolls back into the ring, while Morishima faces
potentially being counted out. Misawa, being the good sport that he
is, returns to the crime scene and rolls Morishima back into the
ring for a cover attempt. That was unwise, as Morishima kicked out.
Misawa hits a hard forearm shot and gets another near fall. Misawa
then applies the headlock. Morishima fades enough for Misawa to try
another cover, but it's only a two count. Morishima suddenly fires
back with some shots and gets a sick looking side suplex! Morishima
follows up with an even nastier looking side suplex, and Misawa
kicks out again. Morishima goes for the lariat and gets another near
fall! Morishima gets another sick side suplex in and Misawa refuses
to stay down. Misawa gets his second wind and unleashes some furious
strikes, dropping Morishima into the corner. Misawa goes ballistic
and shoves the referee out of the way to continue his assault.
Misawa hits a big forearm and gets a very close fall. They both get
up and exchange shots again. Misawa has to hit his huge forearm
twice before Morishima goes down, and gets yet another near fall in.
Misawa unleashes some more hard strikes and finally pins Morishima
at 18:35. Good lord, the last ten minutes of this was intense, with
some awesome high risk spots and a dramatic series of near falls
towards the end, ****.
Winner: Mitsuharu Misawa

Orlando To Host WrestleMania(R) 24 At Citrus Bowl In 2008
Wednesday March 21, 10:30 am ET

ORLANDO, Fla.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The City of Orlando announced today
that it has acquired the rights to present one of the world's
largest annual pop culture events. WWE®'s WrestleMania 24 will take
place on Sunday, March 30, 2008, at the Citrus Bowl in downtown
Orlando. A crowd of more than 60,000 fans from around the world is
expected to attend.

The announcement was made by Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer and World
Wrestling Entertainment® Chairman Vince McMahon at a news conference
at Orlando City Hall. Joining them was John Saboor, President of the
Central Florida Sports Commission, who has negotiated the
arrangement on behalf of Mayor Dyer. In addition, a number of WWE
Superstars, including WWE Champion John Cena® and World Heavyweight
Champion Batista(TM), participated in the news conference, which was
attended by hundreds of local business and community leaders.

"The advantage of aligning our community with one of the world's
most famous and exciting brands is immeasurable," said Orlando Mayor
Buddy Dyer. "Tens of thousands of visitors from around the world
will visit our city next March for WrestleMania 24. Additionally,
for the next twelve months, Orlando will be recognized as the home
of the Super Bowl of sports entertainment to millions of WWE fans
around the world, creating invaluable exposure. We are tremendously
honored to welcome this great event to the City of Orlando for the
first time."

"We are always attempting to align our community with gold standard
events," noted John Saboor, president of the Central Florida Sports
Commission. "Today we accomplished that goal by working with our
partner at the City of Orlando to welcome WrestleMania 24. The
Sports Commission has a great interest in pursuing additional sports
entertainment events, and we eagerly look forward to working with
Vince McMahon and the WWE to make next March the best WrestleMania
yet."

"It's about time Florida hosted a WrestleMania," said Vince McMahon,
WWE Chairman. "We could not be more excited about bringing
WrestleMania, the world's No. 1 sports entertainment event, to
Orlando, the No.1 tourist destination in the world."

WrestleMania has grown into a global sensation. In less than 2
weeks, on Sunday, April 1st, WrestleMania 23 at Detroit's Ford Field
will host fans from 23 countries, all 50 states and 9 Canadian
provinces. Millions more in 90 countries will watch it on pay-per-
view.

According to figures generated by the Central Florida Sports
Commission, WrestleMania 24 is expected to pump an estimated $25
million into the local economy, while creating jobs and generating
the type of excitement that a world class event brings to a world
class city.

WrestleMania is more than a one-night event. This year in Detroit
during the week of WrestleMania 23, WWE will present the 2007 Hall
of Fame Induction Ceremony, the annual Bacon, Bagels and Biceps
Brunch, the National WrestleMania Reading Challenge, as well as
opportunities to meet WWE Superstars and Divas at various public
appearances around town, including visits to local schools and
libraries. Fans in Orlando can expect the same up-close and personal
experience when WrestleMania 24 comes to their city.

Trademark Note: All World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. programming,
talent names, images, likenesses, slogans, wrestling moves, and
logos are the exclusive property of World Wrestling Entertainment,
Inc. ECW is a trademark of WWE Libraries, Inc. All other trademarks,
logos and copyrights are the property of their respective owners."

Several staff members high up in TNA were reading online reports and
opinions on the Destination X PPV, calling it one of the company's
worst events. Dave Sahadi read the reports to Jim Cornette, Don West
and Mike Tenay at a backstage meeting. Cornette said "Why are we even
listening to this?" and Tenay cracked up the room saying "Because the
New York Times doesn't cover our PPVs!" Don West was said to be upset
with the negative reports.


TNA wants Jay Lethal, who is now using entrance music similar to Randy
Savage's old music, to also wear a robe to the ring like Savage used
to.


Despite his original agreement with TNA, Kurt Angle will be working a
U.S. independent show for Northeast Wrestling on April 22 in Bristol,
CT. There might be some sort of discount on his booking price for
them, but Angle has been getting over $10,000 per show for companies
overseas.

This is my home message board:

http://z7.invisionfree.com/Da_Wrestling_Board/index.php?act=idx

WWE Unforgiven
September 12th 2004

Witness the first and only World title defense Randy Orton ever made!

-We open with a recap of Randy Orton winning the World Championship
at Summerslam, getting kicked out of Evolution, and then spitting in
the face of Triple H. This hype video makes the feud seem better
than it actually was, so kudos to the WWE production guys.

-Our hosts for the evening are Jim Ross and Jerry "The King" Lawler.
This show is from Portland, Oregon.

Ric Flair and Batista vs. Chris Benoit and William Regal
Damn, I really miss the old Evolution music. "Evolution is a
Listerine…" I kid, I kid. Chris Benoit and Batista start the match
off. They tie up and Batista is the stronger man. Batista is
arrogant and almost gets locked into the Crossface in the early
going. The match restarts, and Batista starts slugging away on
Benoit. Benoit takes Batista down by the leg and tags in Regal.
Batista takes a cheap shot at Benoit, allowing Regal a chance to
lock onto the Animal. Regal takes Batista down with a suplex, and
actually gets to dominate Batista for a few seconds! Tag is made to
Benoit, and Batista regains control. Ric Flair is tagged in and his
some chops on Benoit. Benoit does what he does best by responding
with some chops of his own. Flair is helpless, as both Regal and
Benoit get their shots in for several seconds. So far, this booking
would suggest that Regal and Benoit are the heels. Flair is knocked
loopy and takes his trademarked fall to the mat. Regal tags back in
and suffers a thumb to the eye from old man Flair. Flair and Regal
exchange locks for a bit before Benoit is tagged back in. Benoit
floors Flair with a chop, causing Flair to beg for mercy. They go
back to exchanging chops. Benoit hits an enziguri and Flair passes
out while making the tag to Batista. Benoit tags in Regal, and
Batista stupidly gets stuck in the arms of William Regal. The faces
continue to tag and double team Batista in the corner. Benoit goes
for the sharp shooter, but Batista is too strong. Batista
clotheslines Benoit, and gets the first near fall of the match!
Benoit tags Regal back in, and he hits a couple of European
uppercuts. Batista takes control again, with that ever so wonderful
corner thrusting move set. Flair is tagged in, and continues the
choppity chop chop game with Regal. Flair rakes Regal's eyes and
this a lateral press suplex, allowing him to get a near fall. Flair
tags in Batista, who dominates Regal. Batista's methodical offense
can put a guy to sleep sometimes. Batista drags Regal to the edge of
the apron, allowing him and Flair to take some convenient shots on
the goodwill ambassador. Flair is tagged back in, and locks Regal
into the figure four leg lock! Regal is on the verge of tapping out,
when Benoit interrupts. Flair tags Batista back in, so he can drop
some elbows on Regal. Batista takes his time hitting a rather
impressive looking suplex. Benoit breaks up another near fall.
Batista follows up with a REST HOLD! Yay! Okay, it's a reverse chin
lock, but giving it a pretty name doesn't make it any less boring.
After they catch their breaths, Regal fights out of it and knocks
skulls with Batista. Benoit and Flair are tagged in simultaneously,
so the chopping game resumes. Benoit hits the second big back body
drop of the match on Flair, and follows it up with German suplexes
on both his opponents. Benoit locks onto Flair for two more Germans,
and the Rabid Wolverine is ready to take to the sky. Benoit hits a
beautiful flying head butt! Benoit goes for the sharp shooter again,
but Flair rakes the eyes. Benoit goes for the Crossface instead.
Batista saves Flair by lifting him up and slamming him down. Batista
drops Benoit in time to hit a good spinebuster on Regal. Regal and
Batista brawl outside the ring, with Batista basically taking
himself out by charging into the guard rail. In the ring, Benoit
catches Flair in the Crossface, making him tap out at 15:05! The
last three minutes of this match were great, but it really dragged
for a bit, so **1/2 I says.
Winners: Chris Benoit and William Regal

-Backstage, Trish and her boyfriend, Christian are breaking up.
Christian is insisting that Tyson Tomko is his problem solver and
not Trish's. Trish is worried about someone jumping her from behind,
since there is a cross dressing Steven Richards after her. Trish
basically offers Tomko some post show favors for him to escort her
to the ring. Christian finishes the segment with "She is a slut"
proving that Christian is the best heel in the business when he's
allowed to be.

WWE Women's Championship:
Trish Stratus © (with Tyson Tomko) vs. Victoria
Victoria comes out to her horrible stripping/dancing routine. These
were the days when Trish was the evil slutty bitch, and Victoria was
the spunky babyface dancer. Victoria tries to intimidate Trish in
the early going. They tie up, and Victoria drags Trish to the mat.
Victoria follows up with another takedown and gets a near fall.
Trish exits the ring to try and regain herself. Trish returns and
charges at Victoria a couple of times, but misses. Victoria hits
some punches and whips her into the corner. Trish fights out and
slams Victoria's head into the turnbuckle. Trish chokes Victoria on
the ropes, just to remind us all of what a bad-ass heel she is.
Trish applies a rear naked choke while sitting on the turnbuckles,
which reminds me of why I love Trish. Trish bows to the crowd, but
gets caught with a slap from Victoria. Victoria press slams Trish
into a gut buster! So far, this is a kick-ass match. Victoria kicks
Trish to ringside and prepares to leap off the turnbuckle. Tomko
picks up Trish and carries her to safety, foiling Victoria's plan.
Victoria forces Trish back into the ring, but gets her head slammed
into the ring post. Trish gets a near fall out of the cover attempt,
and follows up by kicking Victoria in the stomach. I love evil
Trish! Trish chokes Victoria again and puts her into a modified
abdominal stretch. I smell a rest hold! Trish goes for another cover
after dishing out the punishment, but it's only a two count. Trish
tosses Victoria around by the hair, and takes another cover attempt.
Trish puts Victoria into a sleeper, and Victoria predictably fights
out of it. Victoria runs into a spinebuster by Trish, and Trish gets
another near fall! Trish applies the sleeper again, for fun.
Victoria takes a bit longer to heroically fight out of this sleeper,
but believe it or not, she does! Victoria punches away at Trish, and
hits a running shoulder tackle into the corner. Victoria hits a
modified swinging sidewalk slam, and the landing moonsault, but the
following cover attempt is a mere two count. Trish uses the Matrix
move to dodge an oncoming attack, but it won't save her from a head
butt. Victoria takes a moment to hit a crossbody over the ropes onto
Tomko. It backfires, when she gets back to the ring Trish hits the
Stratusfaction to retain the title at 8:20! I really liked this
match, it featured some classic Trish heelness, **1/4.
Winner and still Women's Champion: Trish Stratus

-After the match, Tomko attacks Victoria. This brings out Steven
Richards in drag to make the save. The crowd chants "Stevie" but Jim
Ross insists that he does not know who this "mystery woman" is!
Tomko gets on the microphone and challenges the mystery woman to a
match.

Tyson Tomko vs. Steven Richards
At this point, Richards is wearing women's clothes and a wig.
Richards slaps Tomko to start off, resulting in Tomko angrily
slapping him back and stripping him of his shirt. Tomko rips off
Richard's wig and removes the pants. So yes, Steven Richards is now
wrestling in his underwear. Tomko rips off Richard's shirt,
revealing that he is also wearing a bra. By the way, the crowd
absolutely hates this match. Tomko continues an assault of punches,
stomps, and chokes for a bit. The crowd is giving Tomko a "you suck"
chant. I don't understand why, I mean Tomko just used a wig as a
weapon, how could they not appreciate that? Tomko continues the
assault with his nonexistent move set. Tomko sucks so badly, I
really don't know what else to say. Tomko puts Richards into a rest
hold, because they are working so hard and all. Richards fights out
of the hold, actually gets a shot in, but Tomko mauls him back to
the mat. I really just want this match to end… please end it now.
Richards gets fired up a bit and no sells some shots, but this only
pisses Tomko off. Who booked this shit? Really, did anyone think
this match was a good idea? Richards grabs Tomko by the testicles
and shoves him into the turnbuckle, earning a pop. Richards fires
away with some punches, and hits some drop kicks. Richard's come
back is short lived, and Tomko drops him with the swinging
neckbreaker, and finally ends the match at 6:24. And by 6:24, I
actually mean six hours and twenty four minutes, -***.
Winner: Tyson Tomko

Intercontinental Championship:
Chris Jericho vs. Christian
The Intercontinental title is vacant heading into this match, which
is a ladder match! Edge was actually stripped of the title due to
injury, which is a rarity for the WWE to actually do with a
secondary title. Christian starts off by slapping Jericho, who
retaliates with a closed fist. Jericho hits a vertical suplex and
follows up with a back suplex. Jericho chops Christian into the
corner, but Christian reverses. Christian chokes Jericho under the
ropes, not that the referee can do a whole lot about it. There is
a "CLB" chant from the crowd, which I just to be just neat. Jericho
ends up flipping Christian over the ropes onto the floor. Rather
than going for a ladder, Christian crawls back in, so Jericho gets a
ladder himself. Jericho throws the ladder at Christian, but it gets
caught on the ring post. They return to the ring, minus the ladder,
and Christian takes control with some kicks and choking. Jericho
hangs Christian on the ropes, charges, and hits his running
enziguri. Jericho goes after a ladder. Christian tries to slide the
ladder into Jericho, but Jericho dodges, and hits him with the
ladder. Jericho charges again with the ladder, but Christian ducks,
and the ladder bounces off the ring post. Christian and Jericho
brawl into the ringside area, which you can see Christian do every
Thursday night on TNA iMPACT ™, only on Spike TV®. They brawl back
to ringside. Christian reverses and Irish whip, sending Jericho into
the steps. Jericho is ready and avoids getting hurt, but is caught
with an Unprettier onto the floor! That was cool. Christian grabs a
ladder and actually brings it into the ring. Christian sets up the
ladder and starts climbing. Christian reaches the gold before
Jericho finally catches up and yanks him off the ladder. Christian
shoves Jericho into the ladder, knocking both Jericho and the ladder
down. Christian positions the ladder on the turnbuckle. Chris
Jericho reverses and Irish whip and Christian hits the ladder head
first! This earns Jericho a "Y2J" chant. Jericho throws the ladder
at Christian again, and sets it up himself. Christian recovers, but
gets chopped across his goofy chest. Jericho inadvertently runs into
the ladder, knocking it over in the process. Christian sets the
ladder up in the corner, between the ropes. Christian positions
Jericho under the ladder and catapults him into it face first! I've
always enjoyed that spot. Christian takes the chance to climb the
ladder again, but Jericho stops him. Christian sandwiches Jericho
into the corner with the ladder and goes to charge. Jericho throws
the ladder at the oncoming Christian, knocking him down. Jericho
leans the ladder against the ropes, and climbs the turnbuckle.
Jericho sits on the ladder long enough to drop it on the fallen
Christian. That spot was great. Jericho is now focusing on the
previously injured back of Christian, so the touch of psychology is
a neat touch in a ladder match, rather than a full out spot fest.
Christian recovers and hangs Jericho up on the ladder. Jericho's leg
is stuck, allowing Christian to drive a running knee into Jericho's
gut. Christian struggles to set the ladder back up, but is able to
resume his climb towards the title. Jericho is too weak to stop him,
but he flips Christian the bird. The plan works, as Christian climbs
down and picks up the ladder. Jericho drop kicks the ladder into
Christian. Jericho bull dogs Christian into the ladder face-first.
Jericho then makes a Christian sandwich with the ladder, and
repeatedly slams the top half into Christian. Jericho goes for the
lionsault, but Christian moves out of the way so Jericho hits
nothing but ladder! Christian picks up the ladder and rams it into
Jericho's forehead. Christian sets the ladder back up in the ring
and slowly climbs up. Christian touches the gold, but Jericho climbs
up behind him. Jericho causes the ladder to fall over, leaving
Christian hanging! Jericho takes the ladder and rams it into
Christian in mid-air! Christian hits the mat with a sickening thud!
Jericho positions the ladder over Christian, and begins to climb up.
Christian gets up and lifts the ladder up, forcing Jericho to fall
off and lands on the top rope. Christian tries climbing the ladder
again, but Jericho interferes. Jericho applies a modified Walls of
Jericho right there on the ladder! Jericho grabs the belt, but
Christian shoves the ladder over! Jericho landed really awkwardly,
hitting the ladder with his ankle. Seriously, I'm surprised that
Jericho didn't break his ankle. Christian brings a bigger ladder
into the ring, which means that the show-stopping big bump of the
match is coming up soon. Jericho sets up the other ladder parallel
to Christian's ladder. They both climb to the top and slug it out.
Jericho whips the belt out of Christian's reach, and both men fall
off the top, I think it was Christian's offensive move, but I really
can't be sure. Jericho is back to his feet first and climbs up his
smaller ladder. Jericho unhooks the title to become the new
Intercontinental Champion at 22:28. I was really digging this match
for the first half when they were having a good blood feud match,
that happened to also feature ladders. It went downhill once it
turned into a "slowly climb the ladder until the other guy knocks me
off" routine. Still, the bumps were cool, and while nothing was
overly innovative in this one, it did click, so I say ***.
Winner: Chris Jericho

-Backstage, Todd Grisham is trying to interview
KAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANE! Lita comes out of Kane's dressing room. Oh
yeah, Lita is still Kane's wife at this point. Lita wants Shawn
Michaels to beat the hell out of her husband tonight. Kane comes out
in time to hear the end of Lita's rant. Kane sarcastically says "My
wife is so supportive" which earns some laughter from the crowd. Oh,
it turns out his match with Michaels is now "no disqualification" so
yay! Well, it would only be a month later when they would become a
loving couple, brought together by Gene Snitsky killing Lita's
unborn baby.

-We skip over to Coach standing by with Chris Jericho. Jericho talks
about being the first ever seven time Intercontinental Champion.
Edge comes in and sarcastically applauds Jericho. Edge promises to
take the title back.

Note: After this portion of the review, I was interrupted. I am now
finishing this review something like seven months later. Let this be
a testament to how enthusiastic I am about this particular show.

No Disqualifications:
Shawn Michaels vs. Kane (with Preggo)
Kane drags Lita to the ring by the arm. I can totally see how their
relationship ended up working out for a bit. As you may remember,
this match was a result of Kane putting HBK on the shelf with a
vicious attack on his throat. HBK is making his dramatic return,
even after having been seen hanging out at the Republican National
Convention a few days earlier. Yes, this rebellious DX member voted
for Bush.

The match starts off slowly, with Kane making some goofy faces. They
tie up and Kane dominates early. HBK gets a running knee lift, and
soon a Lou Thesz press to take the big man down. HBK beats Kane into
the corner, before falling out of the ring. Kane takes out his anger
by threatening Lita, and barely misses a baseball slide from
Michaels. They brawl at ringside, and Kane accidentally charges into
the ring post. They head back to the ring, with HBK going up top,
and flying right into Kane's fist. Kane is in charge again, beating
the iron man into the corner and choking his "injured" throat. Kane
goes for a cover, and the match surprisingly doesn't end at the 2:35
mark. HBK fights back with a chop, but gets power slammed. Kane
misses a leg drop, and HBK dumps him back to the floor, and skins
the cat himself. Kane turns his attention back to Slutty McSkant and
HBK takes advantage slingshotting himself over the ropes. HBK
continues the assault, but Kane uses Lita as a shield and regains
control. Kane prepares the Spanish announce table for some crushing,
and attempts to put HBK through it. Things don't quite work at
first, but Kane manages to suplex him through the table. Jim Ross
reminds us that this is a "no disqualifications" match, which is
good because I had forgotten. The action returns to the ring, and
Kane is in charge, hitting a lot of his trademark spots. Kane sets
HBK up on the side of the ring and gets some shots in from ringside.
Kane continues his beating at ringside, where a couple of fans
remind HBK that he screwed Bret. They aren't even in Canada, jeez.
Back in the ring, Kane gets a side slam and a near fall. Kane
responds with a rest hold, twisting HBK's head with his hands. HBK
fights out of it with some shots, but soon gets caught in a double
Chokeslam! Kane gets a close near fall out of it, as HBK's throat is
injured. Kane goes back to the same rest hold from before. That Kane
sure does know how to wrestle a scientific match. Just like before,
Michaels overcomes the odds and fights out. His momentum comes to an
immediate halt as Kane gets a clothesline and another near fall. HBK
soon escapes a back suplex attempt and gets a desperate DDT. Kane
and HBK exchange shots after taking a short nap, and HBK gets a
flying forearm in. Both men are down again, resuming their nap. I'm
not sure exactly what they are selling. After catching his breath,
Kane sits up and HBK kicks up. Kane throws HBK to the outside area
and then sends his head into the steel steps. Kane grabs a chair,
giving HBK a chance to blade. Back in the ring, Kane misses a chair
shot, and has to rely on his fists. HBK keeps getting up and gains
some momentum until running into Kane's elbow. Back to ringside,
Kane prepares to kick HBK's head into the ring post, but Lita
distracts him long enough for HBK to get out of the way. Kane
straddles the ring post, which is probably less comfortable than
straddling Lita, but more safe. The action returns to the ring, and
HBK hits an inverted atomic drop and a clothesline. HBK climbs to
the top and hits the flying elbow drop! HBK signals the sweet chin
music but ends up eating Kane's boot instead. Kane gets a near fall
and heads to the top rope himself. Kane gets his flying clothesline
and signals the Chokeslam. HBK escapes with a low blow, which is
legal. HBK grabs the chair and cracks it over Kane's skull. Both men
are having sleepy time again, selling this epic battle. Kane is the
first to sit up and goes for the chair, but Lita pulls it out of the
ring. Kane spends so much time arguing with Lita, that he doesn't
see HBK get up. Kane blocks the sweet chin music, goes for the
Chokeslam, but HBK escapes and hits the sweet chin music for real,
earning him the pinfall victory at 18:03! My snide remarks aside,
this was actually a pretty good match, as HBK is a master of playing
the little guy against the monster, ***.
Winner: Shawn Michaels

We are treated to a hype video for Shelton Benjamin, who is
returning from a minor injury. He is calling himself "Mr. Benjamin"
in the video. That nickname sure didn't stick.

Todd Grisham is standing by with Triple H and asks him about his
title match against Randy Orton tonight. Triple H says that Orton is
just like everyone in the arena tonight in that he is a regular guy.
He says that Orton was a loser before he met him. Don't you love it
when Triple H shoots? He says he chose Orton for greatness. For two
years he has been saying that Orton is very good, but he isn't as
good as Triple H. Without him, Orton wouldn't have all those nice
suits, cars, and the World title. Orton is nothing without him.
Actually, Batista is nothing without Triple H, Orton is fine on his
own. Triple H rants on for another couple of minutes. Because Randy
Orton spat in his face, Triple H will spit in the fans' faces
tonight by winning his ninth world title. Typical Triple H promo
from the era.

World Tag Team Championship:
La Resistance © vs. Rhyno and Tajiri
La Resistance consisted of Rob Conway and Sylvan Grenier at this
point, for those of you keeping track. Before the match Grenier
takes a microphone and breaks into his horrendous rendition of
Canada's national anthem. I sure can't wait for that blue collar
hero, Rhyno, to end this crap. Rhyno and Tajiri run down the ramp
and are eager for the match to begin. Jim Ross puts Tajiri over as
having an economics degree. How insightful.

Tajiri starts things off with Grenier. Grenier gets the side head
lock in, and puts Tajiri down with a running tackle. Grenier goes
for the cover in the early going to no luck. They tie up again,
Tajiri takes Grenier down and ends up going for the front head lock.
They run around each other for a few seconds, before Tajiri gets a
shot in and grounds Grenier with an arm drag. Grenier tags in
Conway, who runs right into an arm drag. Rhyno is tagged in, and he
exchanges shots with Conway. Rhyno gains control with a back body
drop, but Conway flees the ring when Rhyno goes for the gore. Conway
returns and the match restarts. Rhyno is over eager and falls to
Conway. Grenier is tagged in and he drops a series of stomps and leg
drops. Grenier centers his attacks on one of Rhyno's arms. Conway is
tagged in, and gets suplexed. Tajiri is back in and hits some stiff
kicks, and gets a near fall which Grenier interrupts. Tajiri gets a
sunset flip in and performs an Oklahoma Roll. Tajiri does some
flips, knocking Grenier off the apron in the process, but Conway
regains control. Rhyno accidentally distracts the referee as La
Resistance double teams Tajiri. La Resistance switch team mates even
with no tag, which the referee chooses to ignore. Grenier twists
Tajiri's head before getting a back breaker in. La Resistance turn
Tajiri into the face in peril, with some double teams and tags. The
crowd could really not care less about this match, by the way. This
reminds me of in EWR when Sophie tells you that the "crowd is still
pumped up from the previous match, so this is a let down." Back to
the match, Conway puts Tajiri into another rest hold for him to
fight out of. Tajiri escapes and gets in a head scissors take down.
There are tags on both sides, and Rhyno cleans house. Rhyno gets a
beautiful belly to belly suplex on Grenier and gets a very close
near fall. Grenier fires back, but Rhyno hits a spinebuster and gets
a near fall interrupted by Conway. La Resistance hits a double flap
jack on Rhyno, and get a near fall. Tajiri interrupts with some
kicks and dumps Conway to ringside. Grenier is handed the Quebec
flag, but circumstances lead to the flag nailing him in the crotch.
Rhyno hits the gore and this would've been the finish had Conway not
interrupted yet again. The referee is distracted by Conway and
Tajiri fighting at ringside, allowing Grenier to knock Rhyno in the
head with the flag pole and then pick up the victory at 9:44. This
was solid, if unspectacular. Nothing really went anywhere, which is
sad because they had enough time to, with the match clocking in at
close to ten minutes. The crowd was out of it, *.
Winners and still World Tag Team Champions: La Resistance

World Heavyweight Championship:
Randy Orton © vs. Triple H
Orton enters to a lukewarm reaction from the fans. He was the
youngest World Champion ever, being only 24. The bell rings and we
get a main event stare down from the competitors. They tie up and
fall into the ropes, followed by a cautious break. The exchange
slaps. That Orton is such a man. In honor of his manliness, I shall
refer to him as "Randall" from here on out. Randall and HHH roll
around each other for a few before Randall lands another slap across
the face and does his stupid douche bag pose (to some boos, by the
way). Randall then spits at Triple H. Randall punches the Game into
the corner, but Triple H turns the table. This doesn't matter as
Randall punches him across the ring again, lands an Irish Whip, and
then a big back body drop. Randall hits a great uppercut and a snap
mare. Randall hits a high knee drop and a near fall. Randall goes
for his patented head lock. Just as things were picking up, they are
slowed right back down again. Triple H gets back to his feet and
pushes Randall into the ropes so the hold has to be broken. They
exchange some shots, with Randall overcoming the Game yet again.
Randall whips Game into the turnbuckle so hard that he falls to
ringside. Randall follows and hits a big clothesline and slams
Game's head into the apron. They head back into the ring, where
Randall hits some more uppercuts. I enjoy those, so I'll start
calling him Orton again. Triple H counters what looked like another
back body drop attempt and tackles the back of Orton's knee. Triple
H decides that this knee is his new target and tries to slam it into
the ring post. Orton counters, and Triple H's skull bounces. Triple
H gets in a drop toe hold and puts Orton in a leg grapevine. Orton
is selling the knee like death now, as Triple H is in murder mode.
Triple H succeeds in slamming Orton's knee into the ring post. Orton
limps around the ring, to my amusement, and suffers another chop
block from Mr. Game. Triple H stomps away at Orton's leg, while
Orton desperately tries to mount some offense. Triple H drops an
elbow on the knee and turns this into a rest hold. Orton breaks the
hold by beating on Triple H's face with his healthy knee. That was
kind of cool. Sir Randy is back on his feet and gets some shots in,
but takes a face buster from Gamey. Triple H hooks the leg for a
cover, but only gets two. That certainly would have been a
lackluster finish.

The match continues with Triple H slamming Orton's knee into the
canvas. HHH drops a series of elbows onto the injured knee and goes
for the figure four! Orton manages to take the hold well considering
his knee has been killing him for several minutes. This makes Orton
look like nothing less than an iron man, which was the point. Orton
tries to counter the hold, but Triple H grabs the legs to keep
control. Orton has been in the leg lock for an eternity by this
time. Triple H is finally caught grabbing the ropes by the referee
and is forced to break the hold. Triple H gets another tackle to the
back of Orton's knee and prepares for the figure four again. This
time Orton counters, sending Triple H bouncing into the ring post.
Triple H actually blades too, making this match even more
ridiculous. Orton connects with some punches, momentarily forgetting
that his knee is supposed to be hurting him. Orton gets a power slam
in and almost gets a three count. Orton is punching away at HHH and
walking around quite comfortably, even hitting a drop kick! Orton
remembers to sell the knee again, and I'm ready to start calling him
Randall again. Randall gets a near fall, and punches HHH back into
the corner. Orton hits a DDT and gets another near fall. Triple H
goes for a sleeper, but Orton counters with a sleeper of his
own. "Sleeper" is a good name for this match. HHH and Orton counter
each other and hit the canvas hard. Triple H climbs to the second
rope, but Orton lifts his knee and catches HHH in mid-air. Orton
comfortably climbs to the top rope himself. Orton hits the flying
crossbody into a cover, but Gamey kicks out. Orton clothesline Gamey
over the ropes. Orton gets some shots in at ringside and slams the
bloody head of HHH into the steps. Back in the ring, Orton gets even
more shots in! Orton slams Triple H again and gets a near fall. I
think I need a new paragraph.

Orton signals the RKO as Triple H takes his sweet time getting up.
Triple H blocks the move and shoves Orton into the referee. Triple H
goes for the pedigree, but Orton escapes and hits the RKO! But there
is no referee! Why, I have never seen anything like this happen in a
Triple H main event before! Ric Flair runs in and attacks Orton, but
gets clotheslined over the ropes. Batista is next and is a bit more
successful. Orton ducks a charging Batista, sending him shoulder
first into the turnbuckles. Orton goes back to HHH and suffers a low
blow. The referee is still out. Next out is Coach, who puts on a
referee shirt and nearly gets there in time to give Triple H a
pinfall victory. Orton knocks Coach out, but Batista runs back in
and hits a spinebuster on young Randall. Triple H covers Orton,
Coach counts, but Orton still kicks out! Orton counters another
cover and takes a moment to RKO the Coach. Flair comes back with a
chair, but Orton thumbs him in the eye and hits yet another RKO!
Batista is back in, but Orton grabs him by the balls to save
himself. Triple H crawls to the chair and cracks it over young
Randall's head. Triple H falls on his back and "dramatically" crawls
over to Orton. Triple H hits a pedigree on Orton right onto the
chair, just to make sure that we all knew how much it took to beat
Orton. Batista throws the real referee back into the ring, in time
for a slow count, giving the win and the World title to Triple H at
24:54. This match was absolutely ridiculous. Sure, the wrestling was
solid for a bit, but became incredibly hard to buy when Orton spent
several minutes in a figure four and then was walking around minutes
later. The predictable Evolution screw job finish did not help
matters either, **.
Winner and the new World Champion: Triple H

Final Thoughts: There is some decent stuff on this show, as the
ladder match and Kane/HBK were both pretty good. The rest of the
card was either disappointing or awful (that Tomko/Richards match is
among the worst matches I've ever seen). The main event had some
potential to be good, but fell apart quickly in the last fifteen
minutes. As mentioned before, it took me seven months to finish
writing this review, mainly due to the boring nature of this show.

Recommended to avoid.

ROH: Joe vs. Punk II
October 16th 2004

It is high time I try reviewing a Ring of Honor show. I doubt my
usual play by play style of recapping matches will work with the
fast paced ROH style, so this review may be a little rough around
the edges.

The show opens with CM Punk hanging out in the ring before the show.
Punk talks about his first match against Samoa Joe, which went to a
60 minute draw. Punk is optimistic that since they are in his home
town of Chicago Ridge, IL, he will prevail tonight. Punk reminisces
about his past fights from high school (and after seeing that year
book photo of him that surfaced online, I can see why) and how some
kids came to his house to beat him up.

Elsewhere, Generation Next (Alex Shelley, Roderick Strong, and Jack
Evans) is hanging out. Alex Shelley talks some crap about Ricky
Steamboat. Shelley is pissed that Steamboat caused them to lose to
the Second City Saints. But tonight, Shelley has Jimmy Jacobs in
an "I quit" match. Evans and Strong will be taking on Homicide and
Rocky Romero. Evans then cuts a nerdy white boy promo and does some
break dancing.

Davey Andrews vs. TJ Dalton
These two men tie up and are immediately attacked by the Carnage
Crew for the no contest finish at 0.13. This makes for an obvious
DUD.
No contest

Loc takes the microphone and cuts a promo against Mick Foley and
his "ring of hardcore." He believes that there would be no hardcore
in ROH if not for him and Devito. Devito takes the mic and talks
some trash against BJ Whitmer and Dan Maff. I really freaking hate
the Carnage Crew, and this promo was particularly bad.

Jay Lethal vs. Delirious
The match starts off lively enough with Delirious and Lethal
reversing several moves until Delirious unleashes some furious
strikes. That action is mainly stalemate, though Lethal manages to
sneak some near falls in. Lethal hits a snap suplex and gains the
upper hand, but is soon caught in a sit-down power bomb. Delirious
rakes Lethal's face, but gets a rope break. They trade some shots
and Lethal gets a big leg lariat. Lethal keeps the upper hand with a
back suplex and another near fall. They head to the top rope,
Delirious blocks a superplex and hits a hurrancarana. They exchange
strikes again for a bit. Delirious falls out of the ring, and
narrowly avoids a baseball slide. They brawl and Lethal gets sent
flying into the guard rail. Delirious attempts an off the top move,
but Lethal cuts him off and Delirious hits a unique slingshot move
in the ropes. Delirious then cannonballs off the ropes. The action
backs in the ring, and Lethal dodges an off the ropes splash and
hits a huge clothesline. Lethal remains in control, but Delirious
blocks the dragon suplex and hits a drop kick. Lethal blocks
Delirious and hits a swinging neckbreaker. Lethal goes up top for a
head butt, but Delirious counters this into an ace crusher.
Delirious goes top rope again and gets a very near fall which the
crowd chants "bullshit" to. Delirious gets a running forearm and
gets yet another near fall in. Lethal gets back up, grabs Delirious
by the mask and finally hits the dragon suplex for the victory at
8:15. This was a good (official) opener, with some good spots by
both men, **3/4.
Winner: Jay Lethal

Backstage, Samoa Joe talks about his first match against Punk. Punk
might think that being in his hometown gives him an advantage, but
Joe reminds Punk that he failed in their last encounter and he will
fail again tonight.

Tracy Brooks vs. Daizee Haze
This is apparently the first women's match on a main ROH show since
Alexis Laree took off for WWE land. Good tie up to start things off,
Brooks gets a fireman's carry. They do a little chain wrestling,
with Haze getting the upper hand. They go through a series of
pinfall combinations. The match restarts as the crowd is politely
into this match. They go for a test of strength which leads to a
cover attempt by Brooks and a monkey flip by Haze. They go through
another pinfall combination. Brooks hits a knee and gets a near
fall. Brooks hits some impressive chops. Haze fights back with some
strikes of her own and a clothesline into a cover. Daze goes high
risk and hits a missile drop kick. Haze almost gets the pinfall.
Brooks reverses a couple of stunner attempts but Haze succeeds on
her third attempt. Brooks no sells and hits a lariat for the win at
3:42. This was a very good women's match (far better than the
average dreck on WWE television) but was way too short, *1/4.
Winner: Tracy Brooks

Four Corner Survival:
Angel Dust vs. Trent Acid vs. Matt Sydal vs. Josh Daniels
This match is a sad testament to the downfall of Trent Acid, as his
every move in this match suggests that he really just doesn't give a
damn. Daniels and Angel Dust start things off with a basic stalemate
sequence. The match restarts with Angel Dust goofing around with the
referee. Daniels hits a couple nice chops but another stalemate
sequence sets in. This thrilling battle ends with Daniels tagging in
Sydal. Sydal gets a side head lock in which the crowd responds with
a "We want Acid" chant. Angel Dust works a side head lock of his
own. Sydal gets out, but is soon the victim of a few sick back
breakers. Acid tags himself in and charges at Matt Sydal. Acid
tosses Sydal up top, but Sydal slips to the floor. The ref lets Josh
Daniels take Sydal's place in the ring. Acid is tossed out, to which
Sydal hits a double stomp on Daniels while landing on Acid in the
process. That was pretty cool. Angel Dust joins the fray with a
moonsault on all three men. Acid is up first and tosses everyone
back into the ring, where Daniels goes on a chopping spree. Acid
attacks everyone in range and slams Daniels down for a near fall.
Angel Dust tags himself in, snap mares Daniels, hits some stiff
kicks, but Daniels takes control anyway. Dust soon hits a double
stomp off the ropes on the neck of Josh Daniels. Sydal is tagged in
and almost hits a shooting star press. All hell breaks loose with
all four men in the ring. Acid thought he had the win, but Daniels
pinned Angel Dust with a German suplex at 6:34. This was your
typical lower card spot fest, though Matt Sydal provided some fun
spots and Daniels provided some fun stiffness, *1/2.
Winner: Josh Daniels

Acid is really pissed about this loss, as he was attempting to be
the king of multiple man matches. He shakes Daniels' hand anyway.

Up next, Ricky Steamboat leads Nigel McGuinness and Chad Collyer to
the ring. Steamboat is representing pure wrestling. Mick Foley comes
out next with BJ Whitmer and Dan Maff, as they are representing
hardcore wrestling. Of course, when I think about hardcore
wrestling, these are not the two men I think of, but Whitmer has
gone on to have some really good hardcore matches in the midst of
the CZW feud of 2006.

Steamboat and Foley are left alone in the ring for a dueling
microphones segment. Steamboat does not feel that his guys are
better than Foley's, but he feels the pure style is better than the
hardcore style. Steamboat plays the "garbage wrestling" card, which
earns him some heat from the crowd. Foley rags on Steamboat for
actually saying something entertaining. Foley gets his cheap
hometown pop in while mentioning Steamboat's NWA title victory over
Ric Flair in 1989 (the crowd boos at the mention of Flair). Foley
puts Steamboat over as being perhaps the greatest pure wrestler of
all time. Foley turns this around into saying that he might as well
say that Steamboat is the greatest soft-core porn actor of all time
because it just isn't the real deal. Foley asks Steamboat how much
longer he plans on riding on the coat tails of a "washed up loser
like Ric Flair" which earns a monster pop. Steamboat takes offense
and tells Foley that he is nothing like Ric Flair. Foley takes his
opportunity to make fun of Flair some more, comparing him to Barbara
Bush in drag. I wonder if Flair, Triple H, and company ever saw this
segment, because I don't think they would've found this funny. The
banter goes back and forth a bit longer, which is worth the price of
admission alone.

Nigel McGuinness and Chad Collyer (with Ricky Steamboat) vs. BJ
Whitmer and Dan Maff (with Mick Foley)
The match finally starts and it is a shame that it will likely not
be anywhere nearly as entertaining as the Steamboat/Foley promo
segment. Nigel and Whitmer start things off with some chain
wrestling. Its good stuff as Nigel hits a beautiful arm drag and the
chain wrestling continues. Collyer is tagged in and works on the arm
of BJ Whitmer. Dan Maff is tagged in and he puts Collyer into a side
head lock. Collyer reverses the head lock, takes Maff down, and
applies a front face lock. This is solid, if unspectacular. Maff
tries to mount an offense, but takes a monkey flip and Collyer
retakes control. Nigel is tagged in and works the arm. Maff hits an
ugly power slam, but Collyer gets a tag and retakes control. Collyer
applies yet another wrist lock, Maff fights out and goes for a power
slam, but foolishly walks into Nigel's corner, who tags himself in.
The action picks up a bit, as Maff drops Nigel with an elbow and
tags in Whitmer. Nigel takes control with a deep arm drag and tags
in Collyer for a double team. Meanwhile, the Carnage Crew are back
to annoy me and attack Foley. In the ring, all four men are now
brawling, as the Carnage Crew are involved, and the ref calls for
the double DQ at 4:45. Total bullshit, ¾*.
No contest

Ricky Steamboat is outraged over the interference and calls the
Carnage Crew "dickheads." Steamboat unleashes his fury on the
Carnage Crew and chases them out of the ring with a chair. Foley
suggests that the match restart under hardcore rules.

Ring of Hardcore:
Nigel McGuinness and Chad Collyer vs. BJ Whitmer and Dan Maff (with
Mick Foley)
Nigel and Whitmer start things off again, with them sticking to
plain wrestling for the early going. Collyer tries getting involved
with an off the ropes elbow, but misses. All hell breaks loose as
Dan Maff gets involved and the brawl takes to ringside. Foley gets
involved, attacking Nigel McGuinness with a microphone. Maff and
Collyer are meanwhile brawling in the crowd. Maff throws a garbage
bin at Collyer, thus proving Steamboat right. Maff tosses Collyer
back to ringside, where Foley gets a chair shot in. Maff then smacks
Collyer over the head with someone's drink. Elsewhere, Nigel takes a
sick chair shot from Whitmer. The brawl continues, as the match
turns into a sort of handicap match as Foley keeps hitting Collyer
when given the chance. Maff soon sits Collyer onto a table at
ringside and chokes him. Nigel and Whitmer are back in the ring, and
Maff joins them for a double team. Collyer recovers and runs in for
the save and the brawl continues. Whitmer hits an exploder suplex on
Collyer right onto a chair. Steamboat returns and is furious at what
he is seeing. He tells Nigel to use his wrestling skills, and Nigel
follows suit, engaging Whitmer in a chain wrestling sequence. Nigel
ends up getting the victory over Whitmer in a pinning combination,
ending round two of this encounter at 5:33. The crowd is displeased
and chants "bullshit" yet again, and I would have to agree. This was
awkward and not a good representation for the talent involved, ½*.
Winners: Nigel McGuinness and Chad Collyer

It's intermission time already! Backstage, Trent Acid is slumped in
a corner, looking like he hasn't showered in months. Acid feels like
an outcast and looks distraught, as if his drug dealer is late or
something.

Carnage Crew vs. TJ Dalton and Davey Andrews
Just what I wanted, more Carnage Crew! The action starts with Dalton
and Andrews taking the fight to the Crew, hitting double drop kicks
and then double teaming Devito. They hit a double flap jack on Loc.
The double team ends when Loc sets Dalton up for the Doomsday
Device. Devito is pissed and dominates Dalton, the newly established
legal man. Loc is tagged in and hits an elbow drop. Devito tags back
in and hits some stiff Crossface strikes. Loc tags in and the Crew
double teams Andrews. Dalton tags in and tries to mount an offense.
Andrews is quickly tagged back in and cleans house on the Crew. The
comeback is short lived as he eats a Carnage-plex. Dalton tries to
make the save and eats the Splash Mountain neckbreaker (as the
commentators call it). The Crew finish things with the Carnage-plex
on Andrews, which looked brutal. That was enough for the win at
4:22. This was a complete squash, as Andrews and Dalton only got
token offense in, ¼*. If this was EWR, Sophie would note that the
Carnage Crew were used too much, and the crowd got tired of seeing
them.
Winners: The Carnage Crew

Loc cuts another promo after the match, which I am just delighted to
hear.

Homicide and Rocky Romero vs. Roderick Strong and Jack Evans
Yes, this is a heel vs. heel match up, not that it really matters to
a ROH crowd. A two on two brawl kicks things off, as Romero and
Strong go to the floor, leaving Evans and Homicide in the ring.
Evans hits a moonsault kick and then a suicide dive on Homicide.
Strong and Romero are in the ring next. I'm not sure who the legal
men are supposed to be at this point, until Romero tags in Homicide,
answering my question. Things slow down as Homicide takes control of
Strong, choking him in the corner and hitting some chops. Romero is
tagged in for a double team, establishing Strong as the de facto
face in peril. Homicide tags in and hits a double foot stomp.
Homicide follows up with a northern lights suplex into a pin
attempt, and tags Romero in. Romero looks good with his hard hitting
offense, but Strong fires back with a vicious knife edge chop. This
doesn't mount to anything, as Romero maintains control and keeps
making frequent tags with Homicide. Strong finally pushes Homicide
into Evan's corner, allowing Evans to tag himself in. Evans gets the
upper hand and tags in Strong for some double team moves. Evans hits
a lovely 450 off of Strong for a near fall on Homicide. After some
double teaming, things slow down to Strong vs. Homicide. Evans is
tagged in for a flying cross body on Homicide, but soon suffers a
slingshot DDT. Romero is tagged in and slaps the taste out of the
mouth of Jack Evans. Romero gets the cobra clutch locked on Evans,
but Strong breaks it up with a chop to the back. Homicide is tagged
in, and he and Romero both choke Evans with their boots. Homicide
and Romero make frequent tags, isolating Evans and brutalizing him
with some hard offense. Evans is more or less murdered during this
sequence, finally being tossed over the ropes onto Strong. Homicide
then rips off the metal ROH sign from the barricade and throws it at
Strong. Back in the ring, Homicide continues the assault on Evans.

The tide turns when Homicide misses a diving head butt, and Strong
is finally tagged in. Strong destroys Homicide with a personalized
back breaker. Romero charges in, but Strong catches him and holds
him over his shoulders. Evans then moonsaults off of Romero onto
Homicide while Strong crushes Romero's back in a truly awesome spot!
Strong covers Homicide, who somehow kicks out of this one. Homicide
then hits a blind low blow, rakes Strong's back, and sets him up for
Romero to hit an off the ropes bull dog. Romero gets a close near
fall on Strong, who is clearly frustrated now. Evans gets tagged and
springboards onto Romero. All hell breaks loose with all four men in
the ring. Homicide hits a piledriver on Strong, ending his momentum.
Strong sets Evans up on the top rope but gets pushed down. Evans is
knocked down by a charging Homicide. Homicide hits a double
underhook suplex off the top, power bombs Evans, and sets him up for
a cover attempt by Romero. Strong breaks the near fall. It doesn't
matter, as Homicide destroys Evans with a lariat, and the referee
finally realizes that Evans is not the legal man. Homicide and
Romero continue the double team assault on Strong, who keeps kicking
out of pinfall situations. Strong fights both of them off, hits a
double knee shot to Homicide's gut, and plants Romero with an ace
crusher. Homicide hits a lariat on Strong while Evans hits a 630
splash on Romero for the victory at 17:47. I lost track of who the
legal men were supposed to be several minutes ago. The match should
have ended with Evans' moonsault off of Romero, as everything after
that felt anticlimactic. The selling was very spotty as well, though
some great spots and hard offense give this match some points, ***.
Winners: Roderick Strong and Jack Evans

After the match, Homicide puts Generation Next over on the
microphone. Homicide wants to shake their hands, which of course
turns into an attack. Homicide plants Evans with the Cop Killa. This
only earns Homicide and Romero a face pop, of course. This
continues, even as Homicide tells the fans he hates them all and
asks them to kiss their Puerto Rican asses.

"I Quit" match:
Alex Shelley vs. Jimmy Jacobs
Shelley slaps Jacobs to start things off and spears him. Shelley
slams Jacobs into the ring post, but Jacobs is too pissed off to
sell it. Jacobs fires back with some stiff shots. Shelley dumps him
to ringside, but Jacobs trips Shelley on the apron. Jacobs hits a
hurrancarana off the apron. Jacobs almost botches another
hurrancarana off the apron, but saves the spot. Shelley recovers and
grabs some chairs. He drives Jacobs into a chair by the throat.
Jacobs counters and goes for a sliced bread #2 off the guard rail,
but Shelley counters and throws him into the steel. Shelley then
hits a side Russian legsweep on Jacobs into the barricade. Shelley
DDT's Jacobs onto the apron and then continues using the barricade
as a weapon. Shelley plants Jacobs on the apron for a sick double
stomp on the head. The action spills back into the ring. Shelley
uses his knees to drive Jacobs' skull into a chair, a move which is
apparently called the "Skull Fucker." Jacobs soon counters a suplex
with a neckbreaker. Jacobs gets some chair shots on Shelley and
wraps it around his neck for a choking spot. With Shelley's head
trapped in the chair, Jacob adds a half Boston crab, but Shelley
refuses to quit. Jacobs had a spike wrapped in his boot. Shelley
blocks the spike and hits a super kick. Shelley drives the spike
into the skull of Jimmy Jacobs and plays to the crowd for some
Jericho-esque heat. Shelley proceeds to carve Jacobs' skull with the
spike. Shelley sets up a chair, but Jacobs fights back with strikes.
Shelley counters a sliced bread attempt with a sick piledriver onto
the chair! That looked like it hurt. Jacobs still won't quit.
Shelley fetches a kendo stick from under the ring as well as some
duck tape. Shelley tapes Jacobs to the turnbuckle as a fan
shouts "Would TNA ever let you do something like this?"

With Jacobs trapped to the turnbuckle, Shelley cracks the kendo
stick across the back! Instead of quitting, Jacobs only
yells "Huss!" and manages to low blow Shelly while still trapped.
Jacobs pulls another spike out of his furry boots and frees himself
from the duck tape. Jacobs charges at Shelley with the spike but
takes another kendo stick shot. Jacobs manages to grab the stick and
nails Shelley with it. Jacobs uses the stick in a camel clutch, but
Shelley won't quit. Jacobs goes for a senton, but Shelley moves.
Shelley takes the spike in one hand and the kendo stick in the other
and takes turns hitting Jacobs with both weapons. Shelley puts
Jacobs in a border city stretch, giving Jacobs a perfectly good
reason to quit. Jacobs teases passing out, but fights out. Jacobs
plants Shelley's skull to the mat, and sets him up for the senton,
hitting the move this time around. Jacobs nails Shelley with the
kendo stick again and puts him into the border city stretch himself.
Shelley counters with a shot to the eyes. Shelley is hurt, giving
Jacobs a chance to set up some chairs, making a mini table out of
it. Shelley counters Jacobs and hits a suplex right onto the chairs!
Shelley puts Jacobs back into the border city stretch, who finally
calls it quits at 16:48! This was an absolutely brutal grudge match,
which featured some satisfying violence. Jacobs came off as a
perfect sympathetic babyface, with Shelley being the aggressive and
sadistic villain, ***3/4.
Winner: Alex Shelley

After the match, Shelley takes a microphone and talks some crap. He
refuses to continue if he hears another fan yell "huss" which of
course brings on the "huss" chants. Shelley is not through with
Jacobs, and Roderick Strong joins Shelley in beating down Jacobs.
Ricky Steamboat runs in for the save! The Generation Next members
flee the ring, but the fucking Carnage Crew run in for a beat down
on Steamboat. Not again. Foley, Whitmer, and Maff run in for the
save. Foley rubs it in that Steamboat was saved by hardcore
wrestling. Well, he was also under attack from hardcore wrestlers.
That is like being thanked for putting out a fire that he started.

ROH World Championship:
Samoa Joe © vs. CM Punk
This match is going to be a long one, so I'm going to start a new
paragraph every ten minutes. CM Punk comes out to a hero's welcome.
There are some funny looking fans in Chicago, just thought I'd
mention that. The fans chant "new champ" as Joe's music hits the
airwaves. Joe gets quite a good reaction as well, considering he is
up against a hometown guy. Punk and Joe shake hands as the bell
rings.

They tie up and Joe pushes Punk to the mat. They circle each other
again, clearly pacing themselves. They take a break to soak in the
dueling chants from the crowd. They tie up again and Joe pushes Punk
down yet again. They tie up a third time, Punk drop toe holds Joe,
and gets a sneaky near fall in the early going. The match restarts
with a side head lock by Joe on Punk. Punk reverses the hold. Joe
wrenches Punk's wrist and drops him to the mat. Punk rolls back to
his feet, but still caught in the wrist lock. Punk counters with a
fireman's carry and backs into the corner. The match restarts with
another lockup. Joe pushes Punk into the corner and cleanly breaks.
There is so much good sportsmanship here, I don't know if I can
handle it! Joe reverses a hammerlock and forces Punk to the mat. Joe
falls away on the hammerlock, punishing the wrist. Punk reverses the
hammerlock, but Joe reverses that as well. They have another clean
break in the corner, and the match restarts yet again. Joe and Punk
tease a test of strength, but Joe gets a kick in. They grasp hands
again, and the action picks up, resulting with Joe getting a camel
clutch on Punk. Punk escapes and gets a side head lock. Joe fights
out of the hold, and misses a chop. Punk puts Joe right back into
the side head lock. Joe reverses with a head scissors. Punk frees
his head, and trades shots with Joe. Punk escapes a reverse full
nelson and goes back to the headlock. Joe tries to mount a comeback,
but it is right back to the side headlock. Joe rolls Punk onto his
shoulders, but Punk doesn't break the hold. They get to a vertical
position and get into the ropes, and Punk breaks the hold. Joe
thrusts his shoulders, snapmares Punk, but Punk sneakily traps Joe
in the front headlock. Punk transitions this into another side
headlock on the mat.

Ten minutes are down, only fifty left. The side headlock continues,
Joe pushes Punk into the corner. Joe unleashes some chops, obviously
pissed about all those headlocks. Typically, Punk hits a hip toss
and puts Joe back into a side headlock. Joe tries to break the hold
in the corner, but Punk kicks off the turnbuckle, keeping the side
headlock on. Joe hits a back suplex, but Punk refuses to let go of
the headlock! Punk is wrestling a cautious match, and doesn't want
to take any big risks thus far. Joe pushes Punk off into the ropes
and they collide in the middle of the ring. Punk bounces off the
ropes right back into Joe. Joe refuses to budge and pie faces Punk.
Punk goes for a cheap shot, but Joe strikes away and hits an arm
drag. Punk comes back with an arm drag of his own and they go
through a series of fast faced striking until Punk gets a very close
near fall! Joe flees to ringside for a breather. Joe takes his sweet
time returning to the ring and the match restarts again. They lock
up, and Punk goes behind Joe for a reverse waistlock take down. A
fan starts chanting "boring" but is quickly told to "shut up." They
reverse submission hold attempts, and Joe is forced to break. Joe
slaps Punk on the back before separating. They lockup again and Joe
catches Punk off guard with some head butts. Joe unleashes some open
hand slaps, but Punk fires back with a series of strikes. This ends
when Joe catches Punk in the head with his boot. Punk falls out of
the ring for a breather. Punk takes a minute before reentering the
ring so the match can restart. Joe goes for some strikes, but Punk
wants a lockup. Joe forces Punk down with a knucklelock. Punk gets
his feet around Joe's neck, but his shoulders are down for a couple
of near falls. Punk counters with a monkey flip, but is soon trapped
in a knucklelock again. Punk flips around to break the hold and
knocks Joe down. Punk gets an arm drag for a cover attempt. Punk
hits a drop kick to the head as the twenty minute mark passes.

Punk and Joe take turns chopping each other in the corner. Punk then
takes Joe to the mat with a hammerlock. The regain a vertical
position, and Punk continues to work Joe's wrist. A fan criticizes
the match, and Punk reminds him where the exit is. That was awesome.
Punk climbs the turnbuckle and leaps off the ropes with a leg drop
on Joe's arm! Punk rolls Joe into a rear chinlock. This transitions
into a hammerlock, which Joe counters with some elbow shots. Joe is
unable to mount a comeback, as Punk rolls him into another armlock.
It is surprising how Joe has been dominated for the majority of this
match thus far. Punk hits a drop kick to the arm he was working
over, and Joe appears to be in trouble. Punk wrenches the wrist, but
Joe tries to fight back with some strong forearm shots. Joe finally
knocks Punk off his feet. Joe snapmares Punk and chops his back. Joe
goes for the kick to the chest, but Joe grabs the leg and rolls Joe
into a rear chinlock. They get back to their feet and Punk keeps
favoring the side headlock. Joe pushes them both through the ropes
to the floor, but Punk won't let go of the headlock. Joe responds by
dropping Punk to the floor with a back suplex! Punk appears to be
dead. Joe takes too long getting Punk into the ring, and only gets a
two count on a cover attempt. Joe once again goes for his kick to
the chest, but Punk blocks it again. This time Joe fights Punk with
a shot to the back and drops his knee. Joe strikes Punk into the
corner, and drops him off his feet. Joe washes his boot on Punk's
face, but Punk flees in time to miss a running boot. Punk corners
Joe and hits a running elbow. Punk washes his boot on Joe's face and
hits a running boot of his own! Punk goes for the cover, but it's
only two. Punk sets up Joe in the corner and drives his knee into
the back. Punk goes for another cover, but Joe got a foot in the
ropes. Punk tries another cover, but Joe is far from defeated. Joe
blocks a kick and grabs the leg, dropping Punk. Joe goes for an STF,
but has to improvise a different submission attempt. Joe stretches
Punk in half, but Punk doesn't tap!

The match hits the halfway point, and the action picks up. Punk goes
for a crossbody off the ropes, but Joe casually walks out of the
way. I always enjoy that spot. Joe hits a vicious backbreaker. Joe
sets Punk up in a long vertical suplex. Joe goes for the cover, but
it isn't even enough for a two count. Punk comes back with some
chops. Punk dodges a legsweep and drop kicks Joe in the head. Joe
then hits the legsweep for real, and Punk is dead again. Joe traps
Punk in a full Boston crab. Punk desperately tries to get to the
ropes, but Joe sits all the way back on the crab! Punk luckily gets
to the ropes. Joe violently whips Punk into the turnbuckles as hard
as he could. Joe follows up with a series of kicks to the face. Punk
responds with a slap. They then exchange strong shots, but Joe drops
Punk with a beautiful uppercut. Joe goes for a cover and then drives
Punk back into the turnbuckles. Punk is still evidently dead, as
this portion of the match has slowed down quite a bit. Joe washes
his boot on Punk's face and hits the running boot to the face! Joe
takes a moment to intimidate the referee, who kept breaking the
corner attack, giving Punk a chance to get back to his feet and
mount some offense. Joe casually drops Punk with a head butt, and
goes for the cover again. It is worth mentioning that Punk has a
black eye by this point. With Punk in a daze, Joe continues to drive
his elbow and forearm. Punk is sent into the turnbuckle again, but
gets a boot to Joe's face and then a hurrancarana! Joe falls out of
the ring, and Punk throws himself through the ropes with a suicide
dive! Punk is newly reenergized and sets Joe up for the "ole, ole"
kicks and manages to connect! Punk sets Joe up for another round
of "ole, ole" kicks and succeeds! Joe appears to be out of it! Punk
goes for a hurrancarana off the apron, but Joe grabs him in mid-air
and swings him into the barricade! Joe furiously sets Punk up for
the "ole" kicks, but Punk cuts him off!

Forty minutes down, and Punk and Joe are exchanging chops at
ringside! Joe sets Punk up for the "ole" kicks again and nails him
in the head! They make their way back to the ring, and Joe is in
charge now. Punk head scissors Joe into the corner. Punk goes for a
splash, but Joe hits a vicious one handed spine buster. Joe goes for
the cover, but Punk gets out of it. The crowd is loudly supporting
Punk by this point. The dueling chants come back. Punk is knocked to
ringside and Joe hits a flying forearm suicide dive through the
ropes! Both men are down. The commentators are calling it a night to
go "join the fans in the crowd." The last 18 minutes of this match
will have no commentary, which can only be a positive thing. Joe and
Punk are back up on the apron. Joe DDTs Punk onto the apron. The
fans are having a clap-fest to Punk's music in support of the
hometown hero. Joe returns to the ring, and waits for Punk to reach
the apron. Joe tries to suplex Punk into the ring, but Punk reverses
and hits a drop kick. Joe spears Punk to the mat and gets a near
fall. Joe hits a scoop slam and goes to the top rope. Joe misses a
flying head butt! Both men are on their knees and exchange shots.
Joe takes control, but Punk responds with a kick to the face. Punk
hits Joe in the head with the back of his boot several times, but
then runs into a powerslam! Joe gets a near fall and then puts Punk
into a wristlock! Punk barely manages to roll into the ropes! Punk
reverses a power bomb and gets a big boot into a near fall! The
atmosphere in the building is pure electricity by now. Punk plants
Joe on the turnbuckle for a neckbreaker and then another near fall.
Punk calls for the Pepsi Plunge, but Joe throws Punk off. Punk hits
a huge tornado DDT and gets the closest of near falls I think I have
ever seen! Joe barely kicked out! Punk desperately tries to get Joe
to tap out as the 50 minute mark approaches.

There are only ten minutes left before the sixty minute time limit!
Joe fights a suplex, goes for one of his own, but Punk counters. Joe
drops Punk to the mat and almost gets the victory. Joe press slams
Punk into a gut buster. Joe hits a sick suplex and gets another
close fall. Punk does some chain wrestling to sweep Joe off his feet
into another close fall of his own! The tension in the building is
unbelievably intense at this point. Joe then gets a big power bomb
in, and transitions into the STF! If I did not already know the
finish to this match, I would've been fooled by many of these false
finishes. Punk is trapped in the STF for a good stretch of time
before finally getting to the ropes. Joe goes for a full nelson, but
Punk stomps on Joe's foot. Punk directs a drop kick at Joe's knee
and runs into a sunset flip for a severe near fall. Punk gets a
shining wizard and the crowd thought he had it again with the near
fall! Punk hits a big clothesline and a moonsault, but Joe kicks out
of another cover attempt. Most of the fans are standing. Punk tries
to lift Joe, but Joe snaps and hits several open handed slaps. They
go through a chain wrestling sequence until Punk locks himself on
Joe's back with a reverse chinlock! This is one of the few times I
would ever believe that hold as a finisher. Joe escapes the hold
with a suplex, but Punk is back on his feet immediately and they
take each other down with running clotheslines. The clap-fest from
the audience is back in full force, there are less than three
minutes left! Punk climbs the turnbuckle, and Joe comes after him,
maybe wanting a muscle buster. Punk pulls Joe up the turnbuckle with
him. Punk wants the Pepsi Plunge. Joe fights out and punches the
hell out of Punk. Punk fires away with some forearms of his own and
goes for the Plunge again, but Joe butts him out. Joe then hits a
big superplex on Punk off the top! The crowd is not pleased with
that particular turn of events. There is less than a minute left
now, and Joe is in charge. Joe sets Punk up for the Muscle Buster,
but Punk fights his way to freedom. Still on the turnbuckle, Joe
climbs up and Punk goes for the Pepsi Plunge, but Joe counters into
another suplexplex! As they hit the mat, the time limit expires at
60:00! This match is a draw! This finish earns some huge heat from
the crowd, as well as "five more minutes" chants. This match was
incredible as the action and conflict built and built and built
until exploding in the final twenty minutes. The sequence on the top
where Punk kept going for the Pepsi Plunge is among the most
dramatic moments of any wrestling match I have ever seen. Put your
prejudices aside, this match is a classic, *****.
No contest

After the match, CM Punk grasps the ROH belt and gazes at it. He
hands it back to Joe and they have a far less sportsmanlike
handshake than they did when the match began. Joe celebrates the
match as his music plays, even though he did not win the match.

We then clips to a backstage CM Punk promo. Punk wants another shot
at Joe, this time in a no time limit match. That match will decide
who the king of ROH is.

Next is a clip of Joe. Joe says that Punk could not get the job done
on his second attempt. His job was to beat Joe, not to survive him.
Joe says it was a good effort, but it will be his last one.

Final Thoughts: The undercard was pretty underwhelming, but the
Jacobs/Shelley match saved this event from being a one match show.
If I saw the Carnage Crew one more time I was going to snap and go
on a killing spree. The main event is more than enough reason to add
this show to your video library, as you really owe it to yourself to
see it.

Recommended

ECW December to Dismember
December 3rd 2006

I was going to pass this one up, but seeing as it was free on
Youtube, I figured I could stomach this. I sure do feel sorry for
the fans in attendance.

I'm going to keep the "Hot poker up the ass" system for this show,
with the proud recipient being Vince McMahon, for not letting Heyman
control this brand.

Our hosts for the evening are Joey Styles and Tazz. Styles slips
that a new champion will be crowned in the first ever "extreme"
elimination chamber match. The Spanish announcers made the trip to
this event too! This is truly the big time!

Oh, and I think 15 hot pokers are in order for making the theme song
to this show the same song that opens every episode of ECW. They
couldn't be bothered to pay for royalties other than "Bodies" by
Drowning Pool.

MNM vs. The Hardy Boyz
That's right, the show is being kicked off with Raw and Smackdown
stars. I'd say one fiery poker up the ass for that fact alone. At
least this match stands a chance of being good. Oh, this is also the
first of two previously announced matches for the event, so another
four hot pokers up Vince's ass for that genius strategy.

The bell rings, and Tazz is checking out Melina. After a few seconds
Mercury ties up with Matt. Matt drags Mercury into a side headlock,
Mercury tries to pick up the pace, but Matt gets the hold back. It
breaks and Matt reverses a hip toss and they go into a stalemate.
Jeff and Nitro enter the ring, threatening a brawl, but the referee
keeps control. The match restarts, and Mercury wrenches the arm of
Matt Hardy. Matt reverses and shoves him into the turnbuckle. Tag is
made to Jeff, who continues to work on Mercury's arm. Matt tags in
goes for the hammerlock. Mercury tags in Nitro, who runs into a hip
toss. Matt works Nitro's arm over too, and tags in Jeff, who drop
kicks his way into Nitro and gets a near fall. Matt tags in and the
Hardys double team Nitro and an invading Mercury. Jeff tags in, but
Nitro counters a jaw breaker. Nitro tags in Mercury for a double
team, and a near fall. Nitro tags in and hits a neck breaker. Nitro
has been earning some big heat from the crowd all night. Matt comes
back and quickens the pace. Nitro gets a shot and climbs the
turnbuckle, but Matt catches him and hits a cool sit-out power bomb.
Melina grabs Matt's leg to stop his momentum, so Matt chases after
her, running into a trap by Mercury.

Thanks to the trap, MNM is in clear control of Matt, hitting a
double team gut buster. MNM makes frequent tags, and double team
Matt at every opportunity. Matt refuses to stay down for near falls.
This match has become so formulaic and basic, I don't even want to
do play by play for it anymore. Nitro takes a moment to knock Jeff
off the apron, giving him and Mercury time for some double teams.
Jeff tries to enter, but that is apparently not allowed by Mr.
Referee. The match is so boring now that Tazz is reminiscing about
his Smackdown days. Seriously. Back in the match, Matt reverses a
double suplex into a double neck breaker. Matt nearly makes the tag,
but MNM knocks Jeff down again. MNM copy the Hardy's poetry in
motion, while Melina screams in celebration. Mercury tries to steal
the twist of fate, but Matt shoves him into Nitro, who was on the
turnbuckle. Jeff is finally tagged in and cleans house. Jeff gets a
close fall on Mercury, but Nitro ruins it. MNM tries to double team,
but Matt clotheslines Mercury to the floor and springboards onto
him. This sparks an "ECW" chant. Nitro then leaps over the ropes
onto both of them. Jeff finishes the set with a crossbody off the
turnbuckle onto MNM. The crowd is desperate for some fun and give
this a "holy shit" chant.

Back in the ring, the Hardys hit the poetry in motion, twist of
fate, but miss on Jeff's Swanton bomb. Nitro springboards into a
missile drop kick onto Jeff, as Matt and Mercury are both back on
the floor. Nitro goes to work on Jeff's lower back, capitalizing on
the missed Swanton bomb. Mercury tags in and they double slingshot
Jeff into the turnbuckle. Jeff is the new face in peril and suffers
the inevitable surfboard stretch from Mercury. Jeff fights out, so
MNM continue the tag and double team strategy. The crowd entertains
themselves with a "she's a crack whore" chant directed towards
Melina. Jeff is planted onto the floor, and Melina gets some cheap
shots in. MNM goes back to the frequent tags, and this match is
dead. On the plus side, MNM's offense looks good. Matt runs in and
interrupts a cover attempt. Jeff tries to fight back with a sunset
flip, but Nitro made a blind tag. Mercury goes for another rest
hold. I guess they are stalling for time while the writers are out
back throwing darts at names to decide what the rest of the card
looks like.

Nitro continues the attack on Jeff while Mercury pulls Matt off the
apron. MNM tries to double sling shot Jeff into the turnbuckle
again, which of course means that Jeff transitions this into the
whisper of the wind. Matt is FINALLY tagged in and cleans house.
Matt hits the side effect on both members of MNM and nearly pins
Nitro. Matt hits the off the ropes leg drop, but Nitro kicks out!
Jeff tags in and goes for a powerbomb off the ropes, but Mercury
stops them and inventively flips Jeff onto the mat. I'm adding a ½*
for that spot alone. Matt and Jeff set Mercury and Nitro up on
opposite turnbuckles for superplexes. Jeff gets a cover, but Melina
is on the apron for a distraction. Jeff angrily confronts her, and
Nitro accidentally drop kicks Melina off the apron. Jeff gets a very
close roll-up. MNM hit the snap shot on Jeff, and Matt just barely
breaks up the following cover attempt. MNM plant Jeff on the
turnbuckles and try to hit a super snap shot! Matt makes the save
and hits a double neck breaker off the top! Jeff hits a Swanton on
both members of MNM and finally gets the pinfall victory at 22:23!
This match had some very inventive spots, but also some really dead
and boring spots. I would say **1/2, but I have to factor in that ½*
I promised, so **3/4. No hot pokers necessary here.
Winners: The Hardy Boyz

Backstage, Rob Van Dam cuts a promo putting over the extreme
elimination chamber match. RVD knows he might not walk out of the
match, but the risks are worth the prize: the ECW title.

Matt Striker vs. Balls Mahoney
Vince gets five hot pokers for booking Mahoney in a non extreme
rules match on pay-per-view. Before the match, Striker takes the
microphone and puts himself over to some surprisingly potent heat
from the crowd. Striker announces that his opponent is Mahoney,
which the crowd is pleased to hear. Striker then puts over the
extreme elimination chamber match too. Striker feels like he owes it
to the crowd to restore order in a violent society. Striker teases
making the match extreme rules, but swerves it into being fought
under extreme enforcement of the rules. That's right, give the crowd
something else to be angry about. No hot pokers, since this was one
of the better Striker promos I have heard.

Striker names his own rules for the match, including "no profanity."
Striker also has his own face on the back of his tights. That is
extreme, man. Tazz and Styles have some good times making fun of
this. Mahoney goes for Striker's leg, but Striker gets a rope break.
They tie up and Mahoney takes control after some running around.
Mahoney gets an arm toss and locks his legs around Striker. Striker
breaks free and hides in the ropes. They tease a tie up again, but
Striker aggressively strikes Mahoney instead. Striker dodges a
rampaging Mahoney, causing him to plummet shoulder first into the
turnbuckle. Striker goes to work on the arm. A "Striker sucks" chant
breaks out, while the arm attacks continue. Mahoney rolls Striker
into a cover attempt, but Striker kicks out and goes back on the arm
attack. The crowd threatens to turn on this match if things don't
pick up soon. Mahoney tries to mount a come back with some punches,
and a side walk slam. Mahoney gets a near fall and goes high risk.
Striker shakes the ropes, and Mahoney plummets to the mat. Striker
rolls into an armbar. Mahoney almost taps, but gets into the ropes.
Mahoney mounts another come back with his specialty punches and back
body drop. The crowd is polite enough to chant around with the
punches. Mahoney gets a sit-down power bomb for the victory at 7:22
after Striker teased a comeback! This match felt like a glorified
Heat match, but Striker showed some good stuff with his vicious arm
attacks, *1/4.
Winner: Balls Mahoney

Backstage, CM Punk is getting pumped up for the elimination chamber.
He doesn't say anything, just throwing punches. Three hot pokers for
not playing to Punk's strengths.

Elsewhere, Sabu has been found pummeled. Paul Heyman takes him out
of the main event. 20 hot pokers for waiting until after the show
started before removing Sabu from the match, and another 20 hot
pokers for replacing him with Hardcore Holly. The crowd
chants "bullshit" and I couldn't agree more.

Sylvester Terkay and Elijah Burke vs. The FBI (with Trinity)
Terkay was released almost immediately after this show. Burke takes
the microphone before the match and puts himself over. Like a wild
animal in heat, they will leave their mark on ECW. Two hot pokers
for that stupid comment. The FBI make their entrance, and Tazz is
drooling over Trinity now.

Burke starts with Little Guido and they do a little chain wrestling.
Little Guido steals Burke's obnoxious hat and puts it on himself.
Now that's entertainment! Mamaluke tags in and goes for the side
headlock. This transitions into some arm wrenching, and a tag to
Guido. The FBI double teams Burke and Guido tries a cover. Burke
manages to fight his way to Terkay and makes the tag. The FBI are
more or less dead now, as Terkay is a manbearpig. Terkay
methodically slugs away on Mamaluke, but misses a splash into the
corner. Guido tags in and goes for a crossbody, but Terkay catches
him. While holding Guido, he kicks Mamaluke with a big boot, and
throws Guido at him over the ropes. This earns a "you still suck"
chant. The tag is made to Burke, who gets an upper cut and then the
reverse chin lock on Guido. Guido tries to fight back, and gets sent
flying into Terkay's corner. Guido quickly strikes at both men, but
Terkay knocks him down. The crowd chants "FBI" as Guido suffers some
double team shots. Burke hits a nice clothesline and a legsweep.
Mamaluke interrupts a cover, but Burke goes for the headlock. Tag is
made to Mamaluke, who hits a couple of drop kicks and a flying
forearm. Terkay enters, and gets drop kicked by both FBI members
into the knees. Burke suffers a double flap jack, and Mamaluke goes
for the cover. Burke barely kicked out. Terkay pulls Guido out of
the ring, meanwhile Burke drops Mamaluke into Terkay's elbow and
hits "The Elijah Express" for the win at 6:41. This was actually
decent, as Burke and the FBI looked promising. Terkay was
inoffensive, but this felt like another glorified Heat match, *1/2.
Five hot pokers for the lack of extreme rules.
Winners: Sylvester Terkay and Elijah Burke

After the match, Terkay hits a muscle buster on Mamaluke as one fan
chants "TNA."

Backstage, Sabu is being loaded into an ambulance. CM Punk and Rob
Van Dam watch in concern.

Daivari (with The Great Khali) vs. Tommy Dreamer
Daivari continues the trend of the evening of having the heel cut a
prematch promo. Daivari is speaking Arabic, which still makes more
sense than Khali's English. Five hot pokers simply for Khali's mere
presence. Dreamer makes his entrance, and he looks legitimately
grumpy. I can't say I blame him.

The fans are chanting "extreme rules" and "ECW" but they are in for
another disappointment. 10 hot pokers for continuing to upset this
crowd. They tie up, and Daivari immediately takes control. Dreamer
reverses and Irish whip, so Daivari escapes to ringside. Daivari
sneaks back in and aggressively assaults Dreamer. Dreamer hits an
arm drag, sending Daivari to ringside for another breather. Daivari
charges, but Dreamer drop toe holds him to the mat. Daivari rakes
the eyes and hits a drop kick. Dreamer falls to ringside and eats a
baseball slide. Dreamer reverses an Irish whip and sends Daivari
into the barricade. Khali helps Daivari up, so this thrilling bout
can continue. Back in the ring, Dreamer hits a suplex and runs into
the ropes, but Khali pulls the ropes, causing Dreamer to crash to
the floor. The referee kicks Khali out of the arena. The match
restarts with Daivari hitting some basic offense. The crowd is
chanting "we want hardcore." I can't help but think the Vince
interpreted that chant as the crowd wanting Bob Holly.

Daivari has a headlock on Dreamer, because this match really needed
a rest hold. Dreamer fights out, but that crafty Daivari continues
with the generic offense and another rest hold. The crowd is
chanting "fuck him up, Dreamer." Daivari gets a sleeper in and the
crowd is absolutely shitting on this now. They were patient up until
now, I give them credit for that. 30 hot pokers just for the hell of
it. Dreamer drops Daivari back to the mat, and both men are down.
They trade shots while standing up, with Dreamer winning the
exchange. Dreamer hits a back body drop and a scoop slam. Dreamer
hits an inverted DDT and gets a close fall. Dreamer goes for the
Dreamer Driver, but Daivari goes for the eyes and escapes. Daivari
climbs up top, but Dreamer follows, only to get knocked down.
Daivari misses a flying cross body. Dreamer places Daivari in the
tree of woe and the crowd wakes up. Dreamer hits a drop kick to the
head. Daivari almost immediately comes back with a roll up and pulls
on the tights for the victory at 7:23! The crowd did not like that
one single bit. 50 hot pokers for continuing to piss off an already
angry crowd and DUD.
Winner: Daivari

After the match, Khali reemerges and hits the double Chokeslam on
Dreamer right onto the stage. Something the WWE does not seem to
realize is that if they wanted the new ECW to work, they needed to
treat the ECW originals like stars, even if they weren't in the
larger scaled of the WWE. Treating Dreamer like a jobber only pisses
off the old ECW fans and makes the new fans wonder why Dreamer was
such a big deal in the first place. 50 more hot pokers for using
Dreamer to put over Daivari and Khali, both of which would be
shipped to the other brands soon after.

We are treated to some hype for See No Evil. 50 hot pokers for using
the brand that is supposed to be rebellious against all things WWE
to promote a WWE movie.

Backstage, Paul Heyman is wandering around. He finds Hardcore Holly
and officially puts him into the main event as an attempt to
do "what is best for ECW." 15 hot pokers for making Heyman say such
a crock of shit. The crowd is pissed off that Holly is in the main
event.

Mike Knox and Kelly Kelly vs. Kevin Thorn and Ariel
Kelly takes the microphone before the match and wishes CM Punk good
luck in the extreme elimination chamber. Knox is not pleased with
this, and a great "CM Punk" chant breaks out. Thorn and Ariel have
an awesome entrance, thought I'd mention that. I actually enjoy the
entire vampirism gimmick, I just wish that they'd given Thorn a more
bad-ass name. Imagine if in 1998, the Brood had consisted of David
Fang, Adam Edge, and Christian Cage? Well, the last part kind of
stuck, but sue me.

Knox and Thorn kick the match off, while Tazz and Styles speculate
about "bite clubs." They tie up and shove each other off. Knox
misses a clothesline and Thorn fires away with some shots. Thorn
whips Knox into an elbow and stomps away at the back. Knox pulls
Thorn by the hair and hits a great looking lariat clothesline. Knox
angrily punches away at Thorn. This doesn't last, as Thorn comes
back with a clothesline. The crowd is dead, but at least they aren't
openly booing. Thorn beats Knox into the corner and is pulled off by
the ref. This seemingly turned Ariel on. Knox comes back with a
snapmare, but is unable to keep long term control. He does hit a big
boot and gets a near fall. Knox goes for a sleeper, because we
haven't seen enough of those tonight. 15 hot pokers just for the
boring nature of these matches. Thorn pushes Knox into his corner
while trapped in the head lock and tags in Ariel. Knox reluctantly
tags in Kelly. Ariel dominates Kelly right away. Kelly is totally
inexperienced, so they are limited in what they can do. Ariel tries
to cover by stomping, punching, and choking. Kelly tries to make the
tag to Knox, but Ariel keeps up the attack. Kelly kicks Ariel off of
her, but Knox decides he'd rather not make the tag and walks off.
Ariel finishes Kelly with a legsweep for the victory at 7:43. This
was horrible, but at least something significant happened, ¼*.
Unfortunately, this match didn't do any favors for any of the
participants.
Winners: Kevin Thorn and Ariel

After the match, Ariel keeps attacking Kelly, but The Sandman makes
an unscheduled appearance. 25 hot pokers for not booking Sandman in
a match. The crowd is happy to see Sandman, who has a kendo stick in
hand. Sandman unleashes his fury on Thorn, and the crowd comes alive
at the sight of some actual violence!

Backstage, Michael Cole is pimping Smackdown's pay-per-view,
Armageddon. 10 hot pokers for this blatant shilling, and for holding
so many pay-per-views in such a short amount of time. And to think,
the WWE actually are confused as to why the buyrates to all of those
late 2006 shows were so pathetic.

Backstage, some random diva is standing by with Bobby Lashley. They
take a look back at Lashley's match against the Big Show from a
couple weeks ago. The match ended when Heyman orchestrated a beat
down on Lashley, thanks to Test and Show. 15 hot pokers for giving
Lashley mic time. Lashley doesn't give a damn what Heyman throws at
him, because nothing can stop him. He is one man with one mission,
and that's to be the ECW World Champion.

That's right, it is time for the main event after only about an hour
and a half. 30 hot pokers for holding such a short pay-per-view,
this was barely longer than one of those old TNA weekly shows.

ECW World Championship:
Extreme Elimination Chamber
Big Show © vs. Rob Van Dam vs. Hardcore Holly vs. Bobby Lashley vs.
CM Punk vs. Test
Rob Van Dam and Hardcore Holly are the first two in the match. RVD
takes control with his trademark offense, until running into a
clothesline. Holly tries to pin RVD in the early going. Holly kicks
away, but RVD fires back with some punches. The action spills over
the ropes into the steel area. RVD leaps off the ropes but misses
Holly. RVD bounces off the cage but misses Holly again, landing in
the ropes. Holly rams RVD head first into the cage, and the crowd is
actually enjoying this. Holly slams RVD onto the steel and climbs
the turnbuckle. RVD gets a boot to the face of an incoming Holly, in
a seriously contrived spot. RVD then hits a rolling thunder over the
ropes onto Holly on the steel. RVD should really participate in more
of these matches. Holly reverses a suplex and drops RVD back into
the ring. Holly goes for a cover, but RVD is still alive. Holly soon
hits a big drop kick and goes for another cover.

The first man out of the chamber is CM Punk, who immediately throws
a chair at Holly and springboards off the ropes into RVD. Punk
tosses the chair at RVD, who catches it and throws it right back at
him. RVD then sloppily monkey flips Punk onto the chair. Punk then
dodges some kicks from RVD and leg drops him onto the chair. Punk is
in control of RVD, hitting some elbow shots and driving his head
into a chair positioned in the ropes. Punk goes for a head scissors
on Holly on the steel, but Holly catches him and swings him into the
cage! Big "CM Punk" chant from the fans, as Holly dominates him.
Holly plants Punk gut first on the ropes and kicks him in the head.
Holly sets Punk up on the top rope and chops him. Holly hits a big
superplex. RVD goes for the cover on Punk, who kicks out. That would
have been really lame. Holly goes for a cover too, but Punk kicks
out again. Punk reverses an Irish whip on Holly, and goes for a bull
dog but gets kicked in the face by RVD. Test is the next man in the
match.

Test has a weapon and goes straight to rubbing it in RVD's face.
Test then chokes the life out of Punk. The weapon appears to be a
cane. Test goes back to Punk, who surprises him with a stunner. RVD
is meanwhile battling Holly, but takes a moment to hit Test with a
chair. RVD then drop kicks the chair right onto CM Punk's face! RVD
goes top rope and hits the five star frog splash and eliminates CM
Punk at 12:22. 15 hot pokers up the ass for making Punk the first
elimination. Test big boots Holly and almost pins him. Actually, it
counted as an elimination, even though Holly appeared to kick out.
So, Holly is eliminated at 12:40. That was pointless, let's give
another 10 hot pokers to Vince's ass. RVD climbs to the top and hits
a flying kick on Test. RVD goes for the five star frog splash again,
this time on top of Big Show's chamber. Show grabs RVD through the
ceiling, allowing Test to climb up and hit RVD with a chair. Test
drops RVD to the mat and places the chair on top of him. Test climbs
to the top of Show's chamber and hits a HUGE flying elbow! That was
awesome! Test then eliminates Rob Van Dam at 13:58, which is awful
booking, 25 hot pokers for that. It would have been more, if Test's
elbow drop had not been awesome. The crowd is pissed off, and
rightfully so. They eliminated Punk and RVD only so that they
wouldn't get more crowd support than Lashley, and if that was the
case than 50 hot pokers for Lashley being in this match in the first
place.

Lashley joins the match, but Heyman's cronies prevent the official
from opening his chamber. Test taunts him from outside, so Lashley
grabs the table in the chamber and uses it to break through the
ceiling. Test climbs up to meet him, but gets kicked down. Lashley
hits a flying clothesline off the turnbuckle. Lashley dominates
Test, throwing him into the cage walls. The action spills back into
the ring, where Test regains control, choking Lashley with his boot.
Test takes a chair, but Lashley kicks it into his head. Lashley hits
a series of clotheslines, as the crowd boos. Lashley connects with a
snap suplex and dodges a chair shot. Lashley spears Test and
eliminates him at 19:38. The crowd is not happy with how this match
is turning out. There is still more than a minute before Big Show
enters the ring, so he takes advice from a screaming Paul Heyman at
ringside. Lashley prepares for Show by getting the table out of his
chamber. The minute goes by really slowly, and Lashley throws a
chair at Show's chamber to try and keep things interesting.

Big Show finally enters the match, and is yielding a baseball bat
wrapped in barbed wire. Show swings the bat, but Lashley blocks it
with the chair. Show gets the bat stuck in the cage, allowing
Lashley to get a chair shot in. Lashley rams Show's head into the
steel and poses to a great amount of jeers from the jaded fans.
Lashley then whips Big Show into the bullet proof glass chamber,
shattering it. Lashley violently pursues Show, who is bleeding now.
Lashley is then tossed over the ropes into the ring. Show hits a
clothesline and signals the Chokeslam. Lashley blocks the Chokeslam
and hits a DDT. They trade shots until Show pushes Lashley into the
corner. Lashley then runs into Show's arms, but escapes a slam.
Lashley hits a big spear for the win at 24:41 and becomes the ECW
World Champion! This definitely gets a mixed reaction from the fans.
I'm watching this with Spanish commentary on, so I'm sure I'm
missing some awesome crowd chants, but oh well. 25 hot pokers for
Lashley winning the ECW title about two weeks after joining the
brand, an extra 30 hot pokers for eliminating RVD and Punk so
quickly, and 50 pokers for making Big Show's final pay-per-view
match before retirement go down this way. Aside from the bad taste
of the booking here, the match was pretty solid, had some great
spots involving the chamber, and kept a good pace, **3/4.
Winner and new ECW World Champion: Bobby Lashley

Final Thoughts: Reviewing this show has given me a headache. This
pay-per-view is a study in awfulness. It was like Vince and company
wanted this show to fail in the worst way possible. From removing
Sabu from the main event, to rubbing it in the fans faces that the
midcard matches weren't extreme rules, to eliminating RVD and Punk
because they knew they would be favored over Lashley, to having the
show just barely reach the two hour mark, I don't even know how to
begin to comprehend how anyone backstage at WWE thought this show
was a good idea. If this wasn't blatant sabotage, then Vince is
really out of his mind.

What is even more amazing is that Vince thinks the tactic of only
announcing two matches beforehand was a good idea and that it will
be used for other brand pay-per-views in the future. I really hope
the abysmal buyrate of 90,000 snapped him out of that mindset.

Finally, they had SIX MONTHS to build this show after One Night
Stand. And what did they do with those six months? Did they develop
meaningful feuds and push a strong midcard? No, they jobbed the ECW
originals to guys who weren't going to get over anyway, and had
frequent guest stars from Raw and Smackdown to try and boost
ratings. The few feuds they did have going (RVD vs. Show, Punk vs.
Knox) were basically forgotten about. The devolution of ECW from One
Night Stand to December to Dismember is remarkable and a study of
how NOT to run a wrestling show.

Thumbs down about as far as possible.

WWE Raw
March 19, 2007

I must say, the Papa Roach opening theme actually gets me pumped up
for Raw. Maybe that is because we all had to suffer through four
years of "Across the Nation" but I digress.

Advertised for tonight are two "Wrestlemania Reversal" matches,
pitting John Cena against Chris Benoit and Shawn Michaels against
JBL.

Our hosts for the evening are Jim Ross and Jerry "The King" Lawler.

The show immediately starts off with Shawn Michaels coming to the
arena, so we get to find out right away if his match with JBL is
really a bait and switch. JBL's limo arrives in the arena and JBL
steps out in his normal business attire. JBL takes a microphone and
talks about being annoyed at having a match. He says that no one
tells him what he's going to do or when to come out of retirement.
If he comes out of retirement, it'll be in New York City, not
in "freaking Indianapolis!" JBL is a hell of a heel, by the way. JBL
berates HBK for having countless opportunities to take Cena out, and
he hasn't done it yet, and calls him an egotistical prick. JBL
claims that HBK knows that "deep down he cannot beat John Cena." JBL
goes on to pick on HBK for being a "good guy" so that the fans will
like him. JBL claims he would beat HBK's ass if it weren't for his
retirement, because HBK makes him sick. HBK takes the microphone.
HBK has his own point of view. HBK assures victory against Cena at
Wrestlemania. HBK reminds us that no one tells him what to do. HBK
then hits JBL with the sweet chin music while in mid-sentence. I was
expecting a bait and switch, so I'm not angry about it, and this
gave HBK some momentum heading into Wrestlemania, so this worked.

They have a graphic hyping the "Battle of the Billionaires" match at
Wrestlemania, and I have to laugh that McMahon and Trump are in
front of Lashley and Umaga, you know, the actual match participants.

Backstage, Orton gets into Edge's face for "selling him out" on last
week's ECW show. Edge takes a drink and tells Orton to calm down.
Orton talked to Mr. McMahon and got Edge removed from the Money in
the Bank match. Orton says Edge really lost his Money in the Bank
spot over disappointing Mr. McMahon on ECW. The tension breaks
without incident, as Orton leaves Edge to storm around. I really
hope this doesn't lead to Orton turning face.

Chris Masters is in the ring for a Masterlock Challenge. They have a
brief video package showing numerous stars failing the Masterlock
Challenge. Could tonight be the night someone breaks it? Could be,
as the challenger is none other than ECW "World" Champion Bobby
Lashley! Masters goes for the hold, but can't quite get it, so he
slaps the back of Lashley's head instead. Lashley smacks him back
and sits down again. Masters finally applies the Masterlock and
Lashley appears to be fading. Lashley then breaks it cleanly! Well,
there goes what little of Masters' career was left. Playing that
video package before the segment really made it obvious that
Masters' two year streak was over. No complaints here because Chris
Masters is really worthless and it gives Lashley some momentum
heading into his high profile Wrestlemania match.

We get yet another behind the scenes look at Ashley Massaro in
Playboy. I get the feeling this video package will immediately be
followed by a Melina whining session. Ashley's commentary continues
to be worthless with gems like "I was just like, oh my God, I can't
believe…" The photographer likes her tattoos. Fascinating.

Half an hour into the show and there has been no wrestling. Weren't
people picking on TNA for doing this last week? Anyway, Lashley is
backstage and Vince McMahon, Coach, and security are waiting for
him. McMahon applauds and congratulates in an insincere manner.
McMahon tells Lashley that Umaga will beat him at Wrestlemania and
then Trump will be shaved bald. Lashley just smiles and lets
security usher him out. Stone Cold would have never tolerated that
horse crap. Maria makes a cameo and then Eugene walks into Vince,
spilling his drink. I guess this means Eugene is wrestling Khali or
Umaga tonight. Vince tells Eugene to get ready for competition,
tells Coach to get Umaga, and then Ron Simmons walks in and
proclaims "… DAMN!" in response to the stain on Vince's suit. This
was a rather strange segment, to say the least.

J.R. and King take a moment to acknowledge the passing of Arnold
Skaaland. This leads to a video package for the legend.

40 minutes into the show, and we have a battle royal to qualify for
Money in the Bank, which Edge has lost his spot in . Ric Flair,
Johnny Nitro, Carlito, and Edge get their entrances on television.

Money in the Bank Qualifier Battle Royal:
The bell rings and the action is everywhere. Everyone gangs up on
Viscera, you know, because he's fat and hard to eliminate. They
succeed and Viscera is gone at 40 seconds. Edge targets his former
brother-in-law, Val Venis. Edge then rolls out of the ring because
his knee apparently hurts. In the ring, Flair is fighting Super
Crazy, and Kenny Dykstra is battling Venis. I also see Shelton
Benjamin and Charlie Haas in there. Super Crazy is dumped out by
Haas and Benjamin at 3:00 after attempting an off the turnbuckle
headscissors/arm drag on both. We then head to a commercial. Pretty
dull so far, and Edge pulling an injury leads me to believe he's
going to sneak back in at the last minute and pull off a cheap
victory, which makes sense because he fractured his jaw against Rob
Van Dam several weeks back.

The match comes back and there were some eliminations during the
commercial. Nitro eliminated Val Venis, and Charlie Haas was
eliminated by Carlito. Edge is still being attended to by a trainer
over his "injured" knee. Carlito and Kenny battle it out on the top
rope, which isn't very smart in a battle royal. Kenny gets knocked
to the mat, and Benjamin leaps up for a sneaky move, but Flair
pushes him down around 8:10 for an elimination. Kenny and Nitro are
then eliminated almost simultaneously after the nine minute mark,
and its down to just Flair and Carlito. They chop each other around
a bit, and Carlito hits a springboard elbow. Carlito tries to
eliminate Flair, but the crafty veteran hung on to the ropes.
Carlito then tries to headscissor Flair over the ropes, but no luck
there. Flair then back body drops Carlito to the floor, seemingly
winning the match. Edge then runs in and eliminates Flair at 10:56!
Did I call that or what? The crowd is not happy about this turn of
events, but Edge has his spot back, *1/2.
Winner: Edge

Mr. McMahon comes out to the arena, and the stupid barber shop set
is on the stage. I just keep telling myself that I only need to see
that for two more weeks. Vince has his evil security team move the
barber stuff into the ring, as we're going to be treated to a Vince
interview after the commercial break.

WWE Slam of the Week: last week Donald Trump introduced his
photoshop image of what Vince will look like bald, which led to
Trump shoving McMahon over a table. That was brutal.

After the break, Vince has the microphone and introduces his
Wrestlemania representative, Umaga. It is time for Eugene to get
crushed by Umaga! And that barber set is right there by the ring. I
wonder if Eugene gets shaved afterwards?

Umaga (with Armando Alejandro Estrada and Vince McMahon) vs. Eugene
Umaga knocks Eugene off the apron as the bell rings. Umaga
introduces Eugene to the steel steps and tosses him into the ring.
Umaga stomps on poor Eugene for a little bit, as it seems hard to
believe that Eugene was a potential main event character only three
years ago. Umaga pummels Eugene into a corner for the running ass
shot. Umaga then hits the Samoan Spike for the victory at 1:44. You
know, I could just copy and paste Umaga's squash matches and change
the names of his opponent, and no one would ever know the
difference, DUD.
Winner: Umaga

After the match, Umaga sets Eugene into the barber chair. They strap
him in and McMahon pretends that Eugene is Trump. McMahon starts
cutting Eugene's hair off. Eugene needed a haircut anyway. McMahon
then makes some contrived statement about how this symbolizes him
cutting the hair of every fan in the arena. That is pushing it a
bit. Vince follows this up with a "Billionaire Bitch Slap ™." While
this is effective in putting Vince and Umaga over as heels for
Wrestlemania, it really doesn't add to the feud. Are we supposed to
believe that Trump and Lashley are going to be upset that Eugene was
shaved?

After a break, Candice Michelle is in the ring and is trash talking
Melina. Candice puts over her Playboy cover from a year ago, and
calls out Melina. There is real heat between these two, as Candice
has been trash talking her online and on the radio. If they wrestle,
I surely expect Melina will kill her. Melina comes out on the stage
and says that Candice only has a job because she knows how to take
off her clothes. I can't argue with that statement. Melina makes fun
of Candice's Go Daddy ads, which is pretty hilarious. Melina is
breaking Heel Work 101, she shouldn't be pointing out flaws in the
babyface that are true! Oh well. Melina claims that Playboy has
begged her to do a photo shoot, but she turned them down. Candice
makes the cheap joke about "Melina not turning much of anything
down." If Melina won't get naked, then Candice will, and challenge
her to a Bra and Panties match. Melina accepts and I can't wait to
see what Melina botches this week. We head to a commercial.

Bra and Panties match:
Melina vs. Candice Michelle
Melina's Women's title isn't on the line, as Candice didn't want a
shot for whatever reason. The match started during the commercial
break. Candice tries to take Melina's shirt off, but it's blocked.
Candice inventively uses the ropes and her legs to remove Melina's
bottom. This only pisses Melina off, who viciously pulls Candice's
shirt off. Why the hell am I doing play by play for this? Candice
hits a snap mare and goes for the shirt, but Melina blocks with
strikes. Melina applies a head scissors and goes for Candice's
bottom, but Candice rolls into the ropes. The battle a little more
and Melina succeeds in stripping Candice for the win at 2:33
(television time). This was obviously a DUD.
Winner: Melina

After the match, Ashley Massaro comes to the ring and confronts
Melina. Ashley then finishes stripping Melina, who desperately tries
to cover herself. Ashley celebrates, when suddenly The Great Khali
comes into the arena to zero reaction. The distraction allows Melina
to jump Ashley. Khali poses in the ring and gets some boos. Melina
leaves Ashley alone with Khali. Khali lifts Ashley by the neck, and
Jerry Lawler runs in for the save. Khali grabs Lawler and hits the
crappy double chokeslam. I guess Khali was trying to send Kane a
message? Who knows, this whole segment was awful.

After the commercial, there is another promotional video for the
Battle of the Billionaires, as numerous celebrities talk about
wanting to see Trump shaved. It is worth mentioning that Todd
Grisham has taken Lawler's place at the commentator's booth.

Jeff Hardy vs. Randy Orton
Whoa, it's Druggie McCrackhead vs. Suck Bag! I'll let you guess
which is which. I would have had a field day with this match in
2004. Hell, I'm going to have a field day anyway. J.R. also goes
overboard hyping Skittles again, I got numerous comments for not
acknowledging this in the past. Anyway, they lock up and go through
the usual early match motions. Orton runs into arm drags like an
idiot and gets trapped in an arm lock like the pansy he is. Orton
fights out and hits the inverted back breaker. Orton then goes for
the half-assed Boston Crab that everyone on the boards was picking
on him for last week. Hardy makes it to the ropes and gets up to
trade shots. Orton bounces off the ropes and runs into Hardy's arms.
Mule kick from Hardy gets him a near fall. Hardy hits the Whisper of
the Wind, and it is about this time that Edge runs in and slides a
ladder into the ring. Orton grabs the ladder and disqualifies
himself at 3:34 by hitting Hardy with it. The match was there, ¾*.
Winner by disqualification: Jeff Hardy

After the match, Orton and Edge exchange words, allowing Hardy to
hit the Twist of Fate on Orton. Jeff sets up the ladder and climbs
to the top for a big leg drop onto Orton! This really seemed to hurt
Orton too, hope he's alright. I couldn't think of a better way to
hype up the Money in the Bank match.

After a commercial break, it is time for the theatrical preview to
WWE Films' The Condemned, which stars Steve Austin. It actually
looks pretty good.

Backstage, Vince is on his cell phone, with Coach sitting nearby.
Vince says he is going to drop a bomb on the audience, as next week
Bobby Lashley will take on Vince himself. Coach questions the logic
behind this match. Vince is offended, and promises to beat Bobby
Lashley. I don't see why Vince is so excited, it's not like he can
shave Lashley's head or anything. Maybe he'll glue a wig onto
Lashley instead? I'd like to see that.

Shawn Michaels comes back to the arena to watch the main event.

After the break, the newly bald Eugene is crying.

John Cena vs. Chris Benoit
There are no titles on the line here. Match starts off fast with a
tie up. Benoit corners Cena with chops and knee strikes. Benoit hits
some head butts and aggressively chops Cena out of the ring. Benoit
slams Cena's head into the announce table and tries to hit a German
suplex. Cena countered and almost hit HBK, but stopped himself. Cena
gets tossed into the ring. Benoit hits a snap suplex and gets a near
fall. Benoit hits a couple more chops and a back suplex. Elbow drop
by Benoit and a near fall. HBK is talking about
potentially "snapping" against Cena at any time, as Cena finally
gets a boot to Benoit's face. Cena clubs Benoit and whips him into
the turnbuckle. Cena charges, but Benoit counters. Benoit gets the
sharp shooter! They're in the middle of the ring, leaving Cena to be
trapped in the maneuver for a lengthy period of time. Cena finally
gets to the ropes, and gets to his feet to trade shots. Benoit hits
a trio of German suplexes. Benoit goes top rope and misses a flying
head butt. They get up and Cena hits his shoulder tackles to kick
start his five moves of doom. Cena gets the five knuckle shuffle,
but counters out of the F-U. Benoit goes for the crossface, but Cena
locks in the STFU. Benoit uncharacteristically taps out at 6:05.
2004 called and they want their Cena match back, *3/4.
Winner: John Cena

After the match, Shawn Michaels leaps into the ring and teases a
sweet chin music, but instead says "gotcha." HBK offers a handshake.
Cena accepts the hand shake, but goes for the F-U… but doesn't
follow through, returning the "gotcha" favor. JBL then shows up on
the stage. JBL must have been the guy Vince was talking to on the
phone, because he has an announcement for next week. It is going to
be HBK and Cena against The Undertaker and Batista in a No Way Out
rematch. The Undertaker's music plays as the show goes off the air.

Final Thoughts: Wow, Raw took a nose dive in the quality department
this week. It was mostly an early hard sell for Wrestlemania, and
the build for the matches went along nicely for the most part, but
unfortunately, Raw as it's own show, took a hit. This was the worst
Raw I've seen in a while.

Thumbs down.

MTV2 has quietly started airing episodes of WSX. Episode five and six
aired last night with no advertising. MTV Tr3s is airing WSX every
Wednesday at 5:30PM.

So one could assume that the finale, which has yet to air, will end up
airing at some point on MTV2 or MTV Tr3s.

Credit: PWInsider.com

Yeah, the match was horribly booked. It reminded me of Cena's 2004
matches, where he got his ass kicked for a few minutes and then made a
big comeback with his three moves of doom. Just awful.

Good to see you around here again. How's the wrestling career going?

--- In chrisbenoitandperrysaturn@yahoogroups.com, "Bear Gel"
<kender_ten@...> wrote:
>
> Are ya friggin' kidding me? They just cemented Benoit in the midcard
> forever with that match. At least make him lose from a roll up or
> something that's even remotely believable... Whatever, I hate WWE.
>

Edge has posted a message on his MySpace Blog responding to the
Sports Illustrated article that links him to HGH. The blog entry is
below.

Dear Blogees (did I just create a word?)

If you are reading this blog and it sees the light of day, than that
means that an article has been written by a Sports Illustrated
writer that states I received HGH from a pharmacy in 2003. So, I'll
cut right to the chase like I always do. It's true. However, it's
not exactly breaking, earth shattering news. It's actually old news.
I admitted to this on national television in Canada in 2004 on Off
The Record. When host Michael Lansberg asked me if I'd ever taken
steroids, without consulting me before the show, I was perturbed,
but answered without hesitation, "Yes, I have."

In hindsight, I'm glad he asked the question. It got it out in the
open and anyone who follows my career or supports me already knows
this information about me. I won't try to defend my actions. I took
them when coming back from my spinal fusion neck surgery when I was
told by doctors that it would help the bones grow back around the
screws and plate that were now inserted in my neck. I'm not
glorifying. I'm not condoning. Just telling you why I decided to
take them. I took blood tests, consulted doctors, read up, studied
them, got prescriptions, and decided to do it. That's pretty much it
folks, but I wanted you to get my response straight from me and not
through the words of another write. Now as I'm sure most you can
tell, I don't take steroids and haven't in a very long time, long
before the WWE drug testing wellness policy was implemented. Hell, I
barely see the inside of a gym anymore, let alone take performance
enhancing substances!

So, in closing, to the columnist (not the Sports Illustrated
columnist, but actually another one) who said a "roided up thing
called Edge" was at the NHL ALL Star Game a few weeks ago, in 2003,
this may have been true. Now, not in the least, as my random urine
tests, which have always been negative will attest. I guess I'll
take the fact that he thought I was as somewhat of a compliment. To
the fact that I've been lucky enough to have been gifted with a 6
foot 5, 240lb body naturally. And finally made it to the top of my
industry last year on my own, clean as a whistle. To those, like
that columnist and any other naysayers that will hold my past
against me? I've made mistakes. Will do so again in the future I'm
sure. But I won't hide from them. If you're reading this, you know
that's not my style.

Until next time, from everybody's favorite, clean urine,
Edgemiester!

Yeah, the match was horribly booked. It reminded me of Cena's 2004
matches, where he got his ass kicked for a few minutes and then made a
big comeback with his three moves of doom. Just awful.

Good to see you around here again. How's the wrestling career going?

--- In chrisbenoitandperrysaturn@yahoogroups.com, "Bear Gel"
<kender_ten@...> wrote:
>
> Are ya friggin' kidding me? They just cemented Benoit in the midcard
> forever with that match. At least make him lose from a roll up or
> something that's even remotely believable... Whatever, I hate WWE.
>

Are ya friggin' kidding me? They just cemented Benoit in the midcard
forever with that match. At least make him lose from a roll up or
something that's even remotely believable... Whatever, I hate WWE.

March 19th: KENTA is set to make his ROH return on May 11th in
Hartford, CT and May 12th in Manhattan. KENTA and Naomichi Marufuji
already give both these shows a huge NOAH presence. There are still
great second row seats available for Hartford. ROH is 3-3 in selling
out events at the Manhattan Center and it looks like May 12th will
be the fourth consecutive sellout. Don't risk getting shut out on
tickets. The Manhattan Center is the place to be for ROH!!! Go to
www.ROHwrestling.com or call 215-781-2500 for tickets to both
events. KENTA will be in main event quality matches in Hartford and
NYC.

March 19th: The new ROH Video Wire is up now at www.ROHvideos.com
and you can watch it completely FREE!!! Witness Samoa Joe's final
moments in ROH including the emotional final scene backstage. Plus
highlights of Shingo & Naruki Doi winning the ROH World Tag Team
Titles from The Briscoes, a wild BJ Whitmer vs. Jimmy Jacobs
bloodbath and more. The Samoa Joe footage is must see and now its up
at ROHvideos.com for FREE!!!

March 19th: Make sure to check the main page of ROHwrestling.com
several times a week for new articles. An article detailing why
mystery surrounds the 4/13 Long Island show went up on the main page
last week. There were two new matches announced in that article. A
rematch of one of the best matches of the Fifth Year Festival will
have Jay & Mark Briscoe vs. El Generico & Kevin Steen. Two of the
top women athletes going today will wrestle at Sports Plus when
Daizee Haze takes on Sara Del Rey. Long Island is one of ROH's most
supportive markets so April 13th will be biggest show yet especially
with the Takeshi Morishima & Chris Hero vs. Nigel McGuinness & Doug
Williams international main event. This one will be making news from
England to Japan. Be there and experience it for yourself.

March 19th: The buy 3, get 1 free ROH DVD sale is back!!! Check the
main page of www.ROHwrestling.com for details, but act now because
the sale ends Wednesday night. Save on all ROH show, Straight
Shootin' and Secrets Of The Ring titles. This includes new releases
like 1/27/07 "Battle Of The Icons" featuring Homicide vs. Samoa Joe
for the World Title. Check out the entire card of action including
the show stealing six man as Jack Evans, Austin Aries & Roderick
Strong team for the last time to take on Shingo, Davey Richards &
Delirious plus: Jay & Mark Briscoe vs. Ricky Reyes & Rocky Romero;
Colt Cabana & Sara Del Rey vs. Brent Albright & Lacey; BJ Whitmer
vs. Jimmy Jacobs in a Last Man Standing Match; Christopher Daniels
vs. Claudio Castagnoli vs. Chris Hero with Larry Sweeney; Adam
Pearce vs. Pelle Primeau; Nigel McGuinness vs. Jimmy Rave in an I
Quit Match plus more!!! Check out "Battle Of The Icons" and other
new releases now at ROHwrestling.com.

March 19th. Two new matches were announced for March 30th and 31st
in Detroit in a main page article on ROHwrestling.com last
week. "All Star Extravaganza III" on March 30th will open up with a
ROH trademark match. It will be a Four Corner Survival pitting Matt
Sydal vs. Colt Cabana vs. Adam Pearce vs. Chris Hero with Larry
Sweeney. This one is sure to kick off the weekend with some exciting
action.

March 19th: A grudge match has been added to "Supercard Of Honor" in
Detroit on March 31st. Homicide wants the match and now he has Brent
Albright one-on-one. Albright took a payoff from Bryan Danielson and
tried to injure Homicide's shoulder last December. Now Homicide is
focused on teaching Albright a lesson.

March 19th: The days are counting down for Bryan Danielson's return
to ROH.

Credit: ROHWrestling.com

SI.com (the Sports Illustrated website) has an article up where they
interview Luis Fernando Llosa and L. Jon Wertheim, the writers
responsible for breaking the February story about a Florida steroid
ring. In the February article, Kurt Angle's name was linked to the
ring.

In today's interview, the writers name several WWE wrestlers
including Edge, Rey Mysterio, Eddie Guerrero, and Randy Orton as
being linked to the same steroid ring, claiming the wrestlers have
purchased steroids and HGH (human growth hormone).

Here are some highlights from the article.

"According to the official documents we reviewed, (Arizona Dr.
David) Wilbirt was billed for HCG and the steroid stanozolol that
were sent to WWE star Eddie Guerrero in early 2005. (Guerrero died
on Nov. 13, 2005, in a Minneapolis hotel room due to what a coroner
later ruled as heart disease, complicated by an enlarged heart
resulting from a history of anabolic steroid use.) Wilbirt also
allegedly issued prescriptions for the steroids nandrolone and
stanozolol to Oscar Gutierrez, whose stage name is Rey Mysterio.
(Through the WWE, Gutierrez declined comment.)"

"In total, there were 11 professional wrestlers listed in the
documents that we saw. Some of these wrestlers are working as
independents; some are out of the business entirely; others are
first-tier stars. Consider Randy Orton, who allegedly received eight
prescriptions for six different drugs -- stanozolol, nandrolone,
anastrozole, Clomiphene citrate, oxandrolone and testosterone --
between March 2004 and August 2004. (Through the WWE, Orton declined
comment.) Interestingly, according to the documents, Orton's
prescriptions came from the same two doctors whose names appeared on
the prescriptions in major league outfielder Gary Matthews Jr.'s
file."

"The skill-set required for pro wrestling is obviously different
from that of most other competitive sports. According to the
documents two prominent wrestlers, Adam Copeland, a.k.a. Edge, and
Shane Helms, a.k.a. The Hurricane, received HGH. (Through the WWE,
Copeland and Helms didn't respond to a request for comment.) But
virtually all the others allegedly received a wide variety of
anabolic steroids. In each case these were supplied by Applied, the
Mobile, Ala., compounding pharmacy that was raided last fall."

March 15th: The Detroit events on March 30th and 31st are shaping up
as the biggest events in ROH history. Fans will be attending these
shows from over 35 different states. There will also be a huge
international fanbase as ROH fans are coming to Detroit from
Ireland, England, Canada, Netherlands, Switzerland, Spain,
Australia, Germany, Sweden, France, Denmark as well as a tour from
Japan. When the eyes of the wrestling world are on ROH you know that
ROH always delivers. Get ready for two of the biggest ROH events
ever. Save 20-25% on tickets until 10pm TONIGHT at ROHwrestling.com.

March 15th. Two more matches have been signed for "All Star
Extravaganza III" on March 30th in Detroit. A battle of ROH icons
from the very first ROH event will see "The Fallen Angel"
Christopher Daniels vs. Homicide. An Anything Goes Mixed Tag Team
Match has also been signed as BJ Whitmer & Daizee Haze take on Jimmy
Jacobs & Lacey. ROH's most hate-filled feud will intensify in
Detroit with anything goes mixed tag action!!!

March 15th: The Jacobs vs. Whitmer feud will explode on 3/31
at "Supercard Of Honor II" on March 31st in Detroit. Jacobs has
accepted Whitmer's challenge for a Steel Cage Match. Jacobs response
is currently on the main page of www.ROHwrestling.com and it is a
must read. Jacobs really has a twisted view on this huge match.

March 15th: The huge 20-25% off everything at www.ROHwrestling.com
ends TONIGHT!!! This is your last chance to save 25% on over 1000
items at ROHwrestling.com for a long time. This sale includes live
event tickets to all upcoming shows plus merchandise from all over
the world. Save 20-25% on these new DVDs & items:
-ROH 1/26/07 "Dedicated" (Briscoes vs. Austin Aries & Roderick
Strong 2/3 Falls)
-ROH 12/23/06 "Final Battle 2006" (Homicide vs. Bryan Danielson
World Title Match given ****1/4 by Dave Meltzer)
-ROH 12/22/06 "International Challenge" (Chris Daniels & Matt Sydal
vs. CIMA & Shingo)
-Takeshi Morishima autograph 8x10
-ROH red script and old english skull caps
-Dangerous Divas (editions with Traci Brooks, Lollipop and April
Hunter)
-FIP 11/10/06 "All Or Nothing" (Bryan Danielson vs. Roderick Strong)
-Heros Of World Class Director's Cut Two Disc Set
-The Hardy Show Season 2
-Save 20-25% on all these titles and so much more!!! Also make sure
to check www.ROHwrestling.com on Friday for the release of
1/27/07 "Battle Of The Icons" with Homicide vs. Samoa Joe, Jimmy
Jacobs vs. BJ Whitmer bloodbath brawl and more including a big six
man pitting Austin Aries, Roderick Strong & Jack Evans teaming for
the final time as they take on Shingo, Davey Richards & Delirious.

March 15th: Sara Del Rey has been added to 4/13 in Long Island and
4/14 in Edison.

March 15th: Another big main event quality match has been signed for
4/13 in Long Island. It will be an Elimination Match. However, we
don't know how many people will be on each team. One team will have
Austin Aries as captain. He has already selected Matt Cross to be on
his team. The other team will be the No Remorse Corps. They already
consist of Roderick Strong and Davey Richards. We know a new member
will debut on 3/31 in Detroit. That new member will be in Long
Island to give the No Remorse Corps three members. Who will Aries
get to join his team? Will other new members join the No Remorse
Corps? There is no telling what match you will see in Long Island.
You are guaranteed to see an epic battle when Austin Aries & Matt
Cross square off with the No Remorse Corps in a multi-person
Elimination Match!!! Save 20-25% on tickets until TONIGHT at
ROHwrestling.com.

March 15th: The first talent roster for May 11th in Hartford and May
12th in Manhattan has been announced. Signed to appear on ROH's huge
May weekend are: Naomichi Marufuji; FIP Heavyweight Champion
Roderick Strong & Davey Richards of the No Remorse Corps; Jay & Mark
Briscoe; Austin Aries; Homicide with Julius Smokes; Daizee Haze;
Delirious; Matt Sydal; El Generico; Colt Cabana; Matt Cross; Adam
Pearce; Kevin Steen; Nigel McGuinness plus many more to be announced
including some huge names. Save 20-25% on tickets to both these
events until 10pm TONIGHT at ROHwrestling.com.

Credit: ROHWrestling.com

WWE has announced that all future PPVs will include talent from all
three WWE brands. The press release below says the policy will begin
with Backlash, although No Way Out also featured talent from all
brands. The decision to do this was made back in January after
continued decline in WWE PPV numbers compared to the huge growth of
UFC PPV numbers. The buyrates for the single branded PPVs in
November and December also helped push WWE to make this decision.
[WrestlingObserver.com]

WWE(R) Pay-Per-Views To Follow WrestleMania(R) Formula

STAMFORD, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--In the spirit that has made
WrestleMania the premier brand in the pay-per-view industry, every
future World Wrestling Entertainment pay-per-views will feature
talent and storylines from all three WWE programs: -- "Monday Night
RAW®," "Friday Night SmackDown®," and "ECW®: Extreme Championship
Wrestling(TM)."

Starting with Backlash® on April 29, WWE fans will see all their
favorite Superstars on every pay-per-view. This is a change from
2005 and 2006, when only four of WWE's 16 pay-per-views featured
talent from more than one WWE brand.

"We have seen over the past two years that WWE pay-per-views have
significantly better buy rates when more than one WWE brand is
involved," said Kurt Schneider, Executive Vice President,
Marketing. "WrestleMania, with an average of one million buys per
event over the past three years, is the perfect example. This new
direction will give our fans more of what they want in every one of
our pay-per-views."

Schneider said that the tri-branded WWE pay-per-views will benefit
from promotion on all three WWE prime time programs - "Monday Night
RAW," (USA, 9/8C), "Friday Night SmackDown," (CW, 8/7C)and "ECW:
Extreme Championship Wrestling" (Tuesdays, SCI FI, 10/9C). WWE has
had the No. 1 prime time shows on USA, SCI FI, and The CW each week
in January and February among households and total viewers, compared
to programs with two or more telecasts. Throughout January and
February, WWE programs reached 15.7 million viewers in 10.8 million
households during the average week.

Additional information on World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. (NYSE:
WWE - News), can be found at wwe.com and corporate.wwe.com. For
information on our global activities, go to
http://www.wwe.com/worldwide/.

Trademarks: All World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. programming,
talent names, images, likenesses, slogans, wrestling moves, and
logos are the exclusive property of World Wrestling Entertainment,
Inc. ECW is a trademark of WWE Libraries, Inc. All other trademarks,
logos and copyrights are the property of their respective owners.

Forward-Looking Statements: This news release contains forward-
looking statements pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, which are subject to
various risks and uncertainties. These risks and uncertainties
include the conditions of the markets for live events, broadcast
television, cable television, pay-per-view, Internet, feature films,
entertainment, professional sports, and licensed merchandise;
acceptance of the Company's brands, media and merchandise within
those markets; uncertainties relating to litigation; risks
associated with producing live events both domestically and
internationally; uncertainties associated with international
markets; risks relating to maintaining and renewing key agreements,
including television distribution agreements; and other risks and
factors set forth from time to time in Company filings with the
Securities and Exchange Commission. Actual results could differ
materially from those currently expected or anticipated. In addition
to these risks and uncertainties, our dividend is based on a number
of factors, including our liquidity and historical and projected
cash flow, strategic plan, our financial results and condition,
contractual and legal restrictions on the payment of dividends and
such other factors as our board of directors may consider relevant.

-The reason that Edge hasn't wrestled for the last two weeks is that
he suffered a fractured jaw in his Money in the Bank Qualifying match
with Rob Van Dam. He likely will not wrestle until WrestleMania.

-Kane vs. The Great Khali is now official for WrestleMania.

-The USA network was the top rated basic cable network in prime time
again for the week ending on March 11th. They led in all of the major
demographics and both hours of Raw from March 5th were the highest
rated shows on basic cable that week.

Credit: Pwinsider.com

According to WWE.com, The "Golden Boy" Arnold Skaaland passed away
late Tuesday evening at the age of 82. He died with his wife at his
side.

Skaaland is a member of the WWE Hall of Fame and has been a member of
the WWE family for over 50-years. He was a known manager, wrestler and
promoter and one of the stockholders of the early Capitol Wrestling
Corporation.

1967 saw he and Spiros Arion win the WWE United States Tag Team
Championship. Another career highlight was when he served as the
referee for the famous 1962 match in Japan between "Classy" Freddie
Blassie and Rikidozan. What most fans remember Skaaland for is
the "throwing in of the towel" in the Bob Backlund vs. Iron Sheik WWF
Title match in 1983.

Our condolences go out to the family, friends and fans of Mr. Skaaland.

--------------------------------------------------------------------

This has been a really sad couple of months for the wrestling industry.

Tons of ROH News!

March 14th: The card for 3/31 "Supercard Of Honor II" in Detroit is
beginning to take shape. Just signed is a big tag team match as Jack
Evans teams with Naruki Doi to take on Davey Richards and the newest
member of the No Remorse Corps. Richards tag partner might not be
revealed until the night of the show. Evans just joined forces with
Doi in Japan and now they are bringing the team to ROH to battle the
No Remorse Corps!!! Save 20-25% on tickets until tomorrow night at
ROHwrestling.com.

March 14th: Jay & Mark Briscoes are so confident that they will win
the ROH World Tag Team Titles on 3/30 from Shingo & Naruki Doi that
they have already signed for their first defense on 3/31. "Supercard
Of Honor II" will see a rematch of one of the best matches of the
Fifth Year Festival as The Briscoes take on the team they defeated
for the World Tag Team Titles in Christopher Daniels & Matt Sydal.
If The Briscoes do not win the titles on 3/30, Briscoes vs. Daniels
& Sydal will still take place in Detroit on 3/31. This match stole
the show in Chicago, will it do the same in Detroit?

March 14th: It was revealed in this week's FullImpactPro.com
Headlines that Roderick Strong will put the FIP World Heavyweight
Title on the line against Austin Aries on 3/31 in Detroit. Aries has
a lot of experience in FIP and will head back soon if he wins the
belt. Strong cherishes the FIP Title and Aries would love nothing
more than to take it from him.

March 14th: The 20-25% OFF EVERYTHING SALE at www.ROHwrestling.com
continues until tomorrow night. This is your chance to save big on
live event tickets to all upcoming shows plus merchandise from all
over the world. It includes ALL ITEMS at ROHwrestling.com even new
releases like 1/26/07 "Dedicated" from Boston. Check out the first
ROH show of the year with a big double main event as The Briscoes
battle Austin Aries & Roderick Strong in a 2/3 Falls Match and
Homicide defends the ROH World Title vs. Chris Hero. This is one
stacked card with one quality match after another including
Christopher Daniels vs. Jimmy Rave vs. Shingo vs. Jason Blade in an
action packed Four Corner Survival; Samoa Joe vs. Nigel McGuinness
in a hard-fought contest; Jimmy Jacobs, Brent Albright & Lacey vs.
Colt Cabana, BJ Whitmer & Daizee Haze in a No DQ war; Delirious &
Pelle Primeau vs. Adam Pearce & Shane Hagadorn; Jack Evans vs. Eddie
Edwards and a great opener to begin the year with Rocky Romero vs.
Davey Richards. Save 20-25% on this release and over 1000 more items
now at ROHwrestling.com.

March 14th: In case you missed it on the main page of
ROHwrestling.com, Jimmy Rave suffered a broken jaw in the brutal
Fight Without Honor against Nigel McGuinness on 3/4 and underwent
emergency on Monday. Rave will be out 8-12 weeks. Check the main
page of ROHwrestling.com for more details including a look at the x-
ray of Rave's broken jaw.

March 14th: Congratulations to Erick Stevens for becoming the first
ever Florida Heritage Champion by winning a one night 8 man
tournament last Saturday in Florida. Stevens defeated Roderick
Strong in a match of the year candidate in the finals. Stevens will
make his first defense of the title against any member of DP
Associates on 4/21 in Crystal River, FL.

March 14th: We'll be back tomorrow with the first talent lineups for
5/11 in Hartford and 5/12 in Manhattan as well as some more new
matches for upcoming shows.

March 14th: Jimmy Jacobs' response to BJ Whitmer's challenge for a
Steel Cage Match could be on the main page of ROHwrestling.com by
the time you read this.

Credit: ROHWrestling.com

The split could take place as early as this Sunday. It is a result of
TNA not paying fees to the NWA for holding live events in NWA
territories. Also, part of the agreement of TNA using the NWA World
and Tag Team titles was that the NWA would be informed of title
changes, and TNA hasn't been keeping up their share of the agreement.
It seems that new titles will be created and will share the lineage
the NWA titles had while in possession of TNA.

February 22nd: Where were you five years ago? Tomorrow (Feb. 23rd)
will see the Fifth Year Festival come to the Montgomery County
Fairgrounds on 1043 S. Main St in Dayton, Ohio with a zip code of
45409. There will be tickets available at the door and the show
starts at 8:00pm. This event will be five years to the day of the
very first ROH show. International eyes will be on this one as new
ROH World Champion Takeshi Morishima defends the ROH World Title vs.
BJ Whitmer and Matt Sydal defends Dragon Gate's Open The Brave Gate
Championship against Austin Aries. If Morishima wins, he will defend
the belt in Tokyo on March 4th. If Whitmer wins, he will defend the
belt on ROH shows in England on March 3rd & 4th. This is going to be
a very special night for Whitmer since he is from Ohio. He will have
a chance to do what Homicide did at "Final Battle 2006" and win the
ROH World Title in front of his hometown friends, family and fans.
Whitmer promises that he will dish out the hard-hitting action to
Morishima in an effort to win the title. Whitmer could be one wrist
clutch exploder away from being the next ROH World Champion. Check
the main page of ROHwrestling.com for a feature article on this
event.

February 22nd: This Saturday will see ROH return to Chicago, but
this time ROH will be in the heart of Chicago at the Windy City
Feildhouse on 2367 W. Logan Blvd. in Chicago, IL with a zip code of
60647. It is sure to be an emotional night as Samoa Joe makes his
final ROH appearance as a regular in the United States. Joe will be
part of an epic main event as he teams with Homicide to take on new
ROH World Champion Takeshi Morishima & Nigel McGuinness. This one
doesn't need any hype. It will be under relaxed rules to let these
guys fight it out. Check the article on this event on the main page
of ROHwrestling.com to find out why Homicide is angry at Morishima.
This is going to be a war!!!

February 22nd: The buy 3, get 1 free sale on all ROH show, Straight
Shootin' & Secrets Of The Ring DVDs will be in effect at the live
events this weekend in Dayton and Chicago.

February 22nd: Make sure to check www.ROHvideos.com later today for
the new ROH Video Wire featuring highlights of Morishima winning the
World Title and battling Samoa Joe. If you've never seen Morishima
before you need to see the new ROH Video Wire. The best part is that
it is completely FREE at ROHvideos.com so there is no excuse not to
watch ROH now. The Video Wire also details the Austin Aries,
Roderick Strong and Jack Evans split.

February 22nd: There are a lot of great non-ROH releases now at
www.ROHwrestling.com including:
-FIP 10/14/06 "Southern Justice" (Bryan Danielson vs. Davey
Richards, Roderick Strong vs. Matt Sydal)
-FIP 10/13/06 "Fallout 2006" (Roderick Strong vs. Davey Richards,
Matt Sydal vs. Shingo)
-NOAH 1/27/07 "First Navigation 2007" (Misawa vs. Morishima, Jay &
Mark Briscoe vs. Ricky Marvin & Kotaro Suzuki)
-SHIMMER Vol. 6 (Cheerleader Melissa vs. MsChif, Rebecca Knox vs.
Allison Danger)
-WWE New And Improved DX (3 discs of HHH & HBK with their crazy and
wacky antics)
-TNA Genesis (Samoa Joe vs. Kurt Angle, Sting vs. Abyss)
-Plus much more including Dangerous Divas now at ROHwrestling.com.

February 22nd: We have huge news for ROH's event on March 4th in
Liverpool. Another big match has been added. It will be the No
Remorse Corps of Roderick Strong & Davey Richards vs. the Dragon
Gate representatives of Naruki Doi & Shingo!!! This is going to be
athletic tag wrestling at its best. We'll have more big matches for
this show in the next ROHwrestling.com Newswire.

February 22nd: A major match has been signed for this Saturday in
Chicago. Austin Aries and Roderick Strong will square off for the
first time in ROH. It will be the No Remorse Corps of Strong & Davey
Richards vs. Austin Aries and the first member of Aries' new next
generation stable. Aries will not give us any clues as to who his
partner will be and we will have to wait until the night of the show
to find out. Chicago on Saturday will see the start of the Aries vs.
Strong war!!!

February 22nd: Chicago's own Colt Cabana has promised a bloodbath
this Saturday when he battles Jimmy Jacobs in a Windy City Death
Match. This issue has been building for months. Cabana will have
Daizee Haze to keep an eye on Lacey. Make sure to check out the
1/19/07 ROH Video Wire for free at www.ROHvideos.com to see a recap
of this vicious feud.

February 22nd: The complete lineup for Chicago this Saturday has
been released. Get your tickets at the door and help celebrate ROH's
5th birthday at the Windy City Fieldhouse. Check out this lineup:

Dream Tag Team Main Event- Joe's United States Farewell To ROH
ROH World Champion Takeshi Morishima & Nigel McGuinness vs. Samoa
Joe & Homicide

Windy City Death Match
Colt Cabana vs. Jimmy Jacobs with Lacey

World Tag Team Title Match
Christopher Daniels & Matt Sydal defend vs. Jay & Mark Briscoe

Grudge Tag Team Match
FIP Heavyweight Champion Roderick Strong & Davey Richards vs. Austin
Aries & ???

Special Challenge Match #1
BJ Whitmer vs. Jimmy Rave
*if Whitmer wins the World Title in Dayton this will be a title
defense

Special Challenge Match #2
Brent Albright vs. Claudio Castagnoli

SHIMMER Special Attraction
Allison Danger & Sara Del Rey vs. MsChif & Serena

Four Corner Survival
Shingo vs. Matt Cross vs. Trik Davis vs. CJ Otis

Plus Daizee Haze, Larry Sweeney, Delirious (listed as doubtful due
to an injury last weekend) and more!!!

Visit www.windycityfieldhouse.com for building info.

This is an easy location to get to on public transportation as it is
in the heart of CHICAGO itself. The Windy City Fieldhouse is located
on 2367 W Logan Blvd which is located on the corner of LOGAN &
WESTERN. The Windy City Fieldhouse is in a very SAFE and PUBLIC part
of Chicago, IL located right next to a huge TARGET and KERASOTE
MOVIE THEATRE with both FREE and affordable parking available. It is
visible directly off the I-90/94 Highway and accessible right off
the WESTERN AVE exit. The Windy City Fieldhouse is also extremely
easy to get to using the CTA or Public Transportation from either
anyway in Chicago or both Midway and O'Hare Airports. Visit
TRIPSWEB.RTACHICAGO.COM to map out YOUR easiest way to get to the
WINDY CITY FIELD HOUSE.

Credit: ROHWrestling.com

February 21st: The entire Dayton lineup for this Friday is finally
ready to be announced. Delirious is now doubtful for this weekend
after the head injury he suffered in Philadelphia at the hands of
Roderick Strong. The card will now have Jimmy Rave vs. Sterling
Keenan. Can Keenan score the upset and earn a spot?

February 21st: The mother of all Six Man Mayhem's has been signed
for this Friday in Dayton. This isn't going to be any typical Six
Man Mayhem. Just take a look at these participants: Roderick Strong
vs. Mark Briscoe vs. Shingo vs. Claudio Castagnoli vs. Matt Cross
vs. Delirious (if he is able to wrestle). If Delirious is unable to
compete a substitute will be added to the match. This promises to
bring innovative, athletic action at its best to Dayton. The entire
lineup for this Friday in Dayton is at the bottom of this
ROHwrestling.com Newswire.

February 21st: The buy 3, get 1 free sale at www.ROHwrestling.com on
all ROH show, Straight Shootin' and Secrets Of The Ring DVDs ends
TONIGHT. Act now and save big on all ROH releases. This includes the
new release of "Final Battle 2006" from the sold out Manhattan
Center. This DVD is already getting rave reviews!!! 12/23/06 in
Manhattan saw Bryan Danielson defend the World Title against
Homicide in one of the most emotional bouts in ROH history. This is
a stacked card with one great match after another including: Austin
Aries, Roderick Strong & Delirious vs. CIMA, Shingo & Matt Sydal in
a must see Dragon Gate Rules Match; Nigel McGuinness vs. Jimmy Rave;
Briscoes vs. Chris Hero & Claudio Castagnoli in the show stealer;
Jimmy Jacobs & Brent Albright vs. BJ Whitmer & Colt Cabana; Adam
Pearce vs. Ricky Reyes; Christopher Daniels vs. Davey Richards vs.
Jimmy Rave vs. El Generico plus more with Samoa Joe, the women of
ROH and others!!! This is one of ROH's best releases to date so get
the DVD now at ROHwrestling.com.

February 21st: We have major news about this Saturday's Chicago
event. ROH is set to debut at the Windy City Fieldhouse in the heart
of Chi-town. Last weekend saw the shocking split of Austin Aries and
Roderick Strong. Their first collision will be this Saturday in
Chicago when they anchor opposite sides of a tag team match. We'll
have all the details in tomorrow's ROHwrestling.com Newswire.

February 21st: ROH returns to Dayton this Friday, February 23rd, at
the Montgomery County Fairgrounds Coliseum. This will be a special
night of the Fifth Year Festival as it is five years to the day of
the very first ROH event. The show will open with the introduction
of new ROH World Champion Takeshi Morishima. It is tradition in ROH
for the new champion to address the crowd to open the show after he
wins the belt.

February 21st: There is no way you can celebrate five years of Ring
Of Honor without bringing the Fifth Year Festival to Chicago. This
Saturday, February 24th, will see ROH head into the heart of Chicago
at the Windy City Fieldhouse for the debut show in that building.
Tickets will be available at the door on the night of the show and
belltime is 7:30pm. It will be an emotional night as Samoa Joe has
his final match in ROH as a regular in the United States. It will
truly be an end of an era in a city where Joe has had some of his
most legendary matches. No one will ever forget the five star "Joe
vs. Punk II" battle against CM Punk. Chicago has always been Joe's
town. Now this Saturday the fans will get to show their appreciation
and say goodbye to Joe while Joe can thank the fans. This is sure to
be a moment like "Punk: The Final Chapter" in Chicago when CM Punk
said goodbye to ROH. Joe will not have an easy night in Chicago. He
will team with Homicide to battle the NOAH duo of new ROH World
Champion Takeshi Morishima and Nigel McGuinness. Joe has brawled
with both these men on recent shows. Homicide lost the World Title
to Morishima last week. Homicide felt disrespected when Morishima
didn't let him present him with the belt and instead stormed out of
the ring with the title. This is going to be a flat out fight. The
ramifications of last weekend's shows will be felt in Chicago when
Austin Aries and Roderick Strong face off for the first time in a
match that has just been added to the show. It will be the new
faction the No Remorse Corps of Roderick Strong & Davey Richards vs.
Austin Aries and the first member of his new faction. Aries has
stated that he will lead the next generation just like he did
generation next. Aries is looking to add the best prospects to his
faction. Aries will not reveal his tag partner until Saturday night
at the show. It could be someone already on the show or someone from
another promotion. The war between Aries and the No Remorse Corps
including the first Aries vs. Strong battle will be this Saturday in
Chicago. Chicago's own Colt Cabana will try to settle his violent
feud against Jimmy Jacobs and Lacey this Saturday. It will be Cabana
vs. Jacobs in a Windy City Death Match. There are no rules and after
the last few Chicago shows this is sure to be a bloody war. Make
sure to watch the 1/19/07 ROH Video Wire at www.ROHvideos.com for
FREE to see a complete recap of this feud. In addition to these
three big matches you'll see Jay & Mark Briscoe try to finally
achieve their destiny and win the ROH World Tag Team Titles from
Christopher Daniels & Matt Sydal, Larry Sweeney pays the big money
to Brent Albright to try to take out Claudio Castagnoli, SHIMMER
action with the best women's wrestling going today and more.



Credit: ROHWrestling.com

February 19th: Last weekend was one of the most newsworthy weekends
in ROH history. Of course the big story is that Takeshi Morishima
won the ROH World Title from Homicide last Saturday in Philadelphia.
There is an article on the main page of ROHwrestling.com detailing
the title win. We will have much more on this all week right here in
the ROHwrestling.com Newswire. Morishima will make his first defense
of the title against BJ Whitmer this Friday in Dayton. Morishima has
stated that if he makes it past Whitmer, he will defend it in Tokyo
at Budokan Hall on March 4th against KENTA. If Whitmer does not win
the World Title in Dayton, there will be no ROH World Title defenses
on the big shows in Liverpool and Detroit. The pressure is on
Whitmer this weekend. The ROH Video Wire this week will have
highlights of Morishima's matches against Samoa Joe and Homicide. If
you are unfamiliar with the new ROH World Champion you need to see
this week's ROH Video Wire. It will be available for FREE later this
week at ROHvideos.com.

February 19th: The other major news story is ROH's 2006 tag team of
the year split up. Roderick Strong shocked everyone at the sold out
Manhattan Center last Friday by turning on Austin Aries. Check out
the article on the main page of ROHwrestling.com for the details. By
the end of the weekend, Strong, Aries and Jack Evans all said that
they would put new factions together. This will be a very
interesting story to follow and we'll have more details this week in
the ROHwrestling.com Newswire.

February 19th: Due to the Davey Richards injury last weekend, Davey
Richards vs. Samoa Joe will take place this Friday in Dayton. ROH
officials are still working out the card due to the lineup switch
and we will have some new match announcements tomorrow. There is one
major match to announce right now. This Friday's event in Dayton
will be five years to the day of the very first ROH event. The first
ROH show was made by a three way pitting Low Ki vs. Christopher
Daniels vs. Bryan Danielson. This Friday in Dayton will see a three
way and it will include the three athletes that competed on the very
first ROH show. Dayton will witness ROH World Tag Team Champion
Christopher Daniels vs. Homicide vs. Jay Briscoe!!! Get tickets now
at ROHwrestling.com or by calling 215-781-2500.

February 19th: The buy 3, get 1 free sale is back at
www.ROHWrestling.com on all ROH show, Straight Shootin' and Secrets
Of The Ring DVDs. Out now is 12/22 "International Challenge" with a
fantastic main event as Christopher Daniels & Matt Sydal defend the
ROH World Tag Team Titles against the Dragon Gate duo of CIMA &
Shingo. Plus: Roderick Strong defends the FIP Heavyweight Title vs.
Davey Richards in an excellent match; Bryan Danielson vs. Homicide
vs. Jimmy Rave vs. Nigel McGuinness; Jay & Mark Briscoe vs. Chris
Hero & Claudio Castagnoli; Colt Cabana vs. Brent Albright; BJ
Whitmer & Daizee Haze vs. Jimmy Jacobs & Mercedes Martinez; Adam
Pearce vs. Delirious; Austin Aries vs. Eddie Edwards; Jason Blade
vs. Pelle Primeau and more including the debut of Larry Sweeney. You
can include this and "Final Battle 2006" with Homicide vs. Bryan
Danielson in the buy 3, get 1 sale now at ROHwrestling.com.

February 19th: Make sure to check www.Tickets.com for great seats to
almost every ROH show.

February 19th: We'll have much more on this Saturday's debut at the
Windy City Fieldhouse in Chicago in tomorrow's ROHwrestling.com
Newswire. We have one big match to announce today. Last time in
Chicago, Jimmy Rave made BJ Whitmer tap to the heel hook after Jimmy
Jacobs attacked Whitmer's ankle with a chair. Now Whitmer wants his
win back on Rave. It will be BJ Whitmer vs. Jimmy Rave this Saturday
at the Windy City Fieldhouse. This is an easy location to get to on
public transportation as it is in the heart of CHICAGO itself. The
Windy City Field House is located on 2367 W Logan Blvd which is
located on the corner of LOGAN & WESTERN. The Windy City Field House
is in a very SAFE and PUBLIC part of Chicago, IL located right next
to a huge TARGET and KERASOTE MOVIE THEATRE with both FREE and
affordable parking available. It is visible directly off the I-90/94
Highway and accessible right off the WESTERN AVE exit. The Windy
City Fieldhouse is also extremely easy to get to using the CTA or
Public Transportation from either anyway in Chicago or both Midway
and Ohare Airports. Visit TRIPSWEB.RTACHICAGO.COM to map out YOUR
easiest way to get to the WINDY CITY FIELD HOUSE.

Credit: ROHWrestling.com

http://www.411mania.com/wrestling/tv_reports/50944/411s-WWE-No-Way-
Out-Report-2.18.07.htm


-JBL and Cole welcome us to the show, Hugo and Carlos are here and
JBL stops Cole from the introduction because he is sick of Bilingual
TV and schools in America! Man, three minutes in and the man is on
fire already! Cole seems to have a scratchy throat tonight, no joke
there; I think he is sick, which may not bode well for him tonight.

Chris Benoit © & The Hardy Boys vs. MNM & MVP

Matt and Mercury to begin. Lock up and to the corner they go. Rights
by Mercury, then Matt back with some and a knee by Mercury. Rams
Matt to the corner, elbows to the head now. Irish whip and Mercury
eats a boot as he charges in. 2nd rope elbow by Matt, tag to Jeff.
Dropkick to Mercury and a cover for 1. Matt tags back in and Mercury
slams him down. Tag to Nitro, hip toss by Matt. Wristlock and shots
to the arm by Matt. Nitro takes him to his corner, tag to MVP and
rights and lefts to Matt. Misses an elbow drop, tag to Benoit and
chops to MVP. Knees now, rake of the eyes by MVP and rights to
Benoit. Snap mare and kick by MVP gets 2. Benoit back with a PIMP
SLAP on MVP and he tags out, but MNM doesn't want to tag in. MVP has
to stay in, Benoit with a back elbow and then a snap suplex and
cover for 2 by Benoit. Jeff tags in and rights to MVP. To the corner
and boots to MVP by Jeff. Rake of the eyes and Nitro tags in and
beats down Jeff. Reverse kick by Jeff and a leg drop to the nads. He
and Nitro bitch slap each other and stand off. Nitro bails, Jeff
chases and Mercury grabs him and slams him to the barrier. Rolls him
in and Nitro covers for 2. Neck vice by Nitro, snap mare into a
headlock follows. Jeff elbows out, boot by Mercury and he tags in
now. Ax smash to the face of Jeff and an elbow drop to Jeff and
cover for 2. Neck vice by Mercury, Jeff to his feet and Mercury rams
him to the corner. MVP in and lays the boots to Jeff. The ref backs
him off and MNM beat down Jeff. Suplex and a cover for 2 by MVP. Tag
to Nitro, Irish whip and Jeff hits sternum first. Nitro sets him up
top now, follows up and Jeff with elbows…whisper in the wind by
Jeff! Tries for a tag and Matt is in. Rights to Nitro and off the
ropes, elbow to Nitro. Mercury in and Matt with a
clothesline/bulldog/clothesline combo on MNM. Side effect gets 2 on
Nitro. Benoit rushes in to take out Mercury, but MVP sneaks in and
gets a back suplex on Matt. MVP in now and a snap mare into a neck
crank on Matt. Matt battles out, but MVP with a gut wrench suplex on
Matt. Dancing elbow drop by MVP gets 2 as Benoit makes the save.
Mercury tags in now, rights to Matt. Thumb to the eye now. Off the
ropes and a clothesline by Mercury, cover for 2. Slam to the corner
and a tag to Nitro. Rights to Matt, a neck breaker follows and a
cover for 2. Front face lock by Nitro applied, Matt battle out and
gets a clothesline to Nitro. Tag to Mercury and he nails Jeff,
Suplex by Matt and Benoit is in! Clotheslines and backdrops for all
by Benoit. Slam on MVP, suplex to Mercury onto MVP! DOUBLE GERMAN ON
MNM~! EVERYONE is in now! Faces clear the ring, poetry in motion
connects. Twist of fate by Matt. Senton to Mercury! Head butt by
Benoit! Cover 1…2…MVP makes the save. MVP to the floor, Jeff tries
to sunset flip bomb on Nitro, but Nitro levels Jeff. MVP tries to
nail Benoit with the US Title, CROSSFACE! Nitro stops that. Jeff
takes MVP out. Mercury levels Benoit. Snap shot try o Benoit…Matt
stops it, but actually misses Nitro. Crossface on Mercury after some
miscommunication and he taps.

Winners: Benoit and The Hardy's @ 14:25 via pin


-We see Krystal with Vicky Guerrero. Vicky feels great, and she has
done some soul searching. She says what they talked about a few
weeks ago is almost here. She will talk about it this Friday and she
thanks Krystal.

-Little Bastard argues with Finlay. He is scared of Boogeyman and
Boogeyman-Cito. Bastard says little people are scary! Finlay says to
stay here and he'll be back. He then says he needs a hug! HAHAHA! He
picks him up and THROWS him in a trashcan! He says maybe he'll feel
safer in there. BOOGEYMAN CITO IS IN THERE! He leaps out and runs
away.

WWE Cruiserweight Title Cruiserweight Open Match - Gregory Helms ©
vs. Daivari vs. Chavo Guerrero vs. Shannon Moore vs. Funaki vs.
Jimmy Yang vs. Scotty 2 Hotty vs. Jamie Noble

Order done by drawing earlier today. Gauntlet rules, one on one,
once you pin or submit you are gone, and when we get down to the
final two, the last one to get a pin or submission is the winner.

Scotty is #1, Daivari is #2. Daivari with kicks to Scotty. Irish
whip and Scotty hits hard. Cover for 2. Slam by Daivari, elbow drop
and a cover for 2. Rights by Daivari, but Scotty fights back. Off
the ropes and Daivari misses a charge, bulldog by Scotty. W…O…R…M!
CHOP connects! 1…2…3! SCOTTY WINS @ 2:00.

#3 is Helms. They battle, exchange rights and Helms in control.
Helms chokes out Scotty, Catapult in the ropes to Scotty. Cover by
Helms gets 2. Butterfly lock by Helms, knees to Scotty as well.
Scotty up and rams Helms to the corner, rights to Helms and a knee
to Scotty. Backdrop Suplex by Scotty. Worm set up, stun gun and a
crazy knee to the face buster and Helms wins @ 3:47.

Funaki is #4, Helms lays the boots to him now. Irish whip and Funaki
up top, cross body, Helms rolls through with the tights and pins him
@ 4:20.

Moore is #5. He pulls Helms to the floor, rams him to the apron and
a head scissors follows. Back in and Moore covers for 2. Swinging
Uranage into a back breaker for 2 by Helms. To the corner, rights by
Moore and a roll up gets 2. Boot by Moore, blockbuster by Moore gets
2. Moore up top…Helms over and nails him. Up top…DOUBLE UNDERHOOK
SUPERPLEX by Helms. Knee buster again and that's all @ 6:13.

Yang is #6. Chops to Helms, off the ropes and a back elbow and
standing moonsault gets 2 for Yang. Rights in the corner by Yang,
leg sweep and a roll up for 2 by Yang. Russian leg sweep and an
octopus type stretch by Yang. Roll up for 2 by Yang. Boring chants
now. Yang misses a moonsault, right by Helms levels him. Yang with a
RANA and roll up and he pins Helms @ 8:06. Nightmare on Helms street
to Yang.

Noble is #7 and gets a cover for 2. Helms is pissed at ringside.
Clothesline by Noble and a cover for 2. Neck breaker follows and a
cover for 2. Slam and a leg drop by Noble, now the million-dollar
dream applied. Yang battles out, chops by Yang, but misses a charge
and hits the post. Roll up by Noble for 2. Sleeper by Noble,
jawbreaker by Yang. Noble misses a boot and crotches himself. Atomic
drop and clotheslines by Yang gets 2. Noble counters a suplex,
running knee strike by Noble gets 2. Noble sets Yang up top…rights
and chops to Yang. Noble up top as well…suplex try, countered and
tossed off. Moonsault connects and Yang wins @ 11:50.

CHAVO is here as they were about to name Yang the winner, he
looks "well". Boots by Chavo, uppercuts follow. Suplex by Chavo now.
Kicks to Yang. Uppercuts again, boots to Yang in the corner and a
face wash. Off the ropes and a spin kick by Yang. Rights by Yang,
off the ropes and Chavo tossed to the floor. Yang up top…HUGE dive
onto Chavo! Back into the ring, Yang up top…and they dropkick each
other, sort of. Three Amigos by Chavo. Chavo up top…Yang up and
kicks him. Rights by Yang, he follows…RANA connects! 1…2…NO! Yang up
top…Chavo crotches him. Chavo up top…Yang with elbows and knocks
Chavo off the top. YANG TIME misses. Chavo up now…FROG SPLASH
connects! 1…2…3.

Winner and NEW CRUISERWEIGHT CHAMPION Chavo Guerrero @ 15:56 via pin


-Krystal is here with Cena. Cena is not concerned. He says he and
HBK aren't friends, he isn't HHH. They are the tag team champions,
but it isn't hunky dory. They got the titles by accident. He will
stare down an animal and a dead man…and that concerns him. Tonight
is history, main event of WM staring down, it is tense. Will someone
turn on someone? He has no idea. Tonight he will fight as hard with
HBK as he does against him at WM.

Finlay & Little Bastard vs. The Boogeyman & Boogeyman Cito

Boogeyman and Finlay circle, boot by Finlay and a wristlock applied.
Reversal by Boogeyman and a take down. Boots by Boogeyman, Irish
whip and rights by Boogeyman. Trips Finlay and pulls him to the
floor. Slams him to the barrier and rolls him back in. Finlay misses
an elbow, and a shot to the throat by Boogeyman. Big boot by
Boogeyman. Slams Finlay to the corner, off the ropes and a powerslam
by Boogeyman. Boogeyman Cito in and a but splash to Finlay. Another
to Finlay. Boogeyman Cito gets worms, Little Bastard reaches out
from under the ring and he is in! He puts his hat on Finlay and
drops the coat! Finlay KICKS Boogeyman Cito's head off! Finlay has
him, roll up by Boogeyman Cito gets 2. Clothesline from the knees by
Finlay. Elbow drop by Finlay, but splash by Finlay. FINALY WORKS A
SMALL ARM BAR! A short arm scissors if you will. Finlay tosses him
to the floor and Little Bastard pulls him under the ring. Finlay
looks for him and Boogeyman comes out and gets beat down. Back in
the ring now, clubbing shots by Finlay and a charge by Boogeyman.
Clotheslines follow. Atomic drop and another. Throat shots by
Boogeyman. Catapult on Finlay. Irish whip and Boogeyman in control.
Corner splash connects. Clothesline by Boogeyman. Boogeyman Cito up
top…Rocket Launcher and Little Bastard makes the save with the
SHACKALAKCI. Boogeyman goes after Little Bastard…he has worms and
chases him to the floor and through the crowd. SHACKALACKI SHOT to
Boogeyman Cito and that is all.

Winners: Finlay and Little Bastard @ 6:54 via pin


-Cole's voice is quickly going away.

-Krystal is with HBK. He says he can't trust Cena. He only has that
with HHH. But he gave Cena his word that he will watch his back and
he will do that no matter what. Nothing will happen to Cena between
now and WM.

-We get a video package for King Booker vs. Kane.

King Booker w/Queen Sharmell vs. Kane

They circle to begin. Big rights by Kane to kick it off, elbows now.
More rights follow. Kane pulls the hair and boots to King Booker.
Side kick by King Booker, rights now and chops. Kane tosses him to
the corner, beats him down now. King Booker laid on the apron,
elbows by Kane. Rights now. Back into the ring, off the ropes and a
back elbow by Kane. Elbows by Kane and a big boot. Eye poke by King
Booker, rights follow. Irish whip and an elbow by King Booker. Side
slam by Kane into a back breaker. Kane lays the boots to the back of
King Booker. Goozle by Kane, knee by King Booker and then a big
boot, again, by Kane. A clothesline takes King Booker to the floor.
Kane follows, rights to King Booker. Kick to Kane and then King
Booker slams him into the steel steps. Again and King Booker lays
the boots to Kane on the floor. Missile dropkick by King Booker and
a cover for 2. King Booker works what looks almost like a kimura on
Kane. Kane battles to his feet, arm drag to King Booker.
Clotheslines by Kane. Rights follow, off the ropes and a big boot,
again, to King Booker. Kane up top…clothesline is stopped by a
leaping sidekick from King Booker. Sidekick by King Booker gets 2.
Rights by King Booker. Kane battles back with rights though, misses
and a leaping forearm shot by King Booker. Cover for 2. Rights by
King Booker as Kane tries to cover up. Chops by King Booker and
rights now in the corner. King Booker picks up Kane, suplex try…
countered by Kane. Leaping kick by King Booker and a cover for 2.
Kane sits up and they exchange shots. Kane in control, off the ropes
and a goozle! Kick by King Booker, another and off the ropes, ax
kick misses, and a clothesline by Kane turns King Booker inside out.
Both men are down and the ref counts. King Booker works to his feet,
Kane sits up and rights to King Booker. Slam to the corner by Kane.
Mounted punches now. Irish whip and a corner clothesline by Kane.
Another. Side slam by Kane. Kane up top…clothesline connects!
Sharmell distracts the ref, Kane sees her and scares her. Ax kick by
King Booker, goozle now! Choke slam on King Booker. 1…2…3.

Winner: Kane @ 12:41 via pin


-Cole is really struggling, he must be sick because he is almost
shot and has a lot of time to go.

-Krystal is with Batista. He says it is WM main event vs. WM main
event, SD vs. Raw. SD will beat down Raw. She wants to know how he
and Taker can work together, and we see Taker chokeslamming Batista
from Raw. Batista isn't intimidated by Taker, or anyone.

WWE Tag Team Titles Match - Brian Kendrick & Paul London © vs. Deuce
& Domino w/Cherry

London and Domino to begin. They shove each other and lock up. To
the corner, and they break. London pie faces Domino, they slap each
other and off the ropes, counters and a dropkick by London. Double
team on Domino, arm bar by Kendrick. Arm drag and into the arm bar.
Tag to London, top rope stomp to the arm by London. Tosses Deuce and
double dropkick to Domino and they clear the ring. Deuce and Domino
push each other, back in and a drop toehold by London. They double
team London, and Deuce covers for 2. Short-armed clothesline by
Deuce gets 2. Domino is busted in the mouth the hard way. London
battles and Deuce slams him to the corner. Domino in, and Deuce
slams London to his knees. Domino slaps London and then beats him
down. A slam and surfboard by Domino now. London to his feet, but a
butterfly suplex by Domino gets 2 as Kendrick makes the save. Tag to
Deuce, London battles back with rights, off the ropes and Deuce
grabs him and SLAMS him into the corner and London lands on his
head, ouch. Deuce lays the boots to London, tag to Domino and a knee
to the back of the head to London. Tag back to Deuce, off the ropes
and a double backdrop by D&D gets 2. Rear chinlock by Deuce. Deuce
stops a tag as London fought out. London escapes a tilt a whirl and
battles for a tag. Domino misses a shot and London does something
sloppy and dives for a tag. Kendrick in now and a dropkick to
Domino. Wacky backslide to Deuce for 2. Kicks now by Kendrick, off
the ropes and eats a clothesline. Boots by Deuce, Kendrick up top
and Domino nails him. D&D MISS a doomsday device and Kendrick rolls
up Deuce for the win.

Winners: London and Kendrick @ 8:20 via pin


-We get a Lashley video package, same stuff from the ECW shows they
have been showing.

-Krystal is with Kennedy. He says his thoughts on Lashley are like
his thought son people in LA, wanna be's! How many people came here
to be rich and famous? You walked the walk and talked the talk, but
you all got SQUAT! You had a dream, I had a dream. I am standing
here and you are there, paying to see me. Lashley tonight, he thinks
he can win but I already beat him. When I win and stand there the
ECW champion…Lashley arrives. They stare down and Lashley says he
has halitosis. Ok. Lashley lays him out.

ECW Title Match - Bobby Lashley © vs. Mr. Ken Kennedy

Ken attacks him during the entrance and they brawl. They stay up
there for a minute, and do about nothing, finally to the ring and
here we go. Boots by Lashley, Irish whip and then a toss by Lashley.
Ken tries to run and gets to the floor. Elbows by Lashley as he goes
to the floor. Ken fights back, Lashley with elbows and back into the
ring we go. Kicks by Ken, rights now and off the ropes, and a big
backdrop by Lashley. Shoulder block by Lashley. Slam by Lashley,
Irish whip and Ken sidesteps him but eats a clothesline. Lashley
tries a suplex, stalling one at that and nails it. Cover for 2.
Knees by Ken, forearms now and a slam to the corner by Ken. Boots
and knees to the back on Lashley. Clothesline by Lashley. Back
breaker…eye rake by Ken and a dropkick to the knee of Lashley.
Running boot by Ken and a cover for 2. Inverted figure four by Ken.
Lashley works to escape, but Ken keeps the hold on. Lashley escapes,
but Ken keeps working the leg. Leg lock now and rights to the knee
of Lashley. Lashley escapes and Ken with mounted rights. Lays the
leg on the ropes and drop downs ala Flair onto the leg. Ken covers
for 2. Ken stomps on the knee of Lashley, continuing the assault.
Single leg crab by Ken applied. Lashley gets the ropes finally. Ken
lays the boots to him, but Lashley back with rights. Crowd pretty
much hates this by the way. Lashley tries a slam, too weak and Ken
takes him down and covers for 2. Ken grabs Lashley, to the corner
and Lashley battles back with rights but Ken lays the boots to the
knee. He wraps the knee around the ropes and then gets a running
dropkick to the knee, cover for 2. Eye rake by Ken, and then knees
to the head. Ken slams Lashley to the corner, boots to Lashley and
then rights. Ken beats him down in the corner and works the 5 count.
Lashley back with rights, but Ken chokes him with the boot. Lashley
battles out again, Belly to belly try, but kicks to the legs by Ken.
STIFF DDT by Ken gets 2. Lashley tries for a rear choke, but Ken
escapes. Grabs the leg as we get boring chants now, single leg crab
again by Ken. Lashley rolls through and Ken gets the front rolling
senton. Up top now…KENTON BOMB eats knees. Belly to belly by
Lashley. Both men down, ref counts, they get to their feet and
Lashley with rights. Boo's and yay's on the punches. Exploder by
Lashley, backdrop on Ken gets a cover for 2. Torture rack by
Lashley, Ken punches him but Lashley gets the drop down back
breaker, doesn't sell the leg and covers for 2. Rights by Lashley,
off the ropes and a neck breaker by Ken gets 2. Ken goes to get up
and falls into the ref…FOR THE BUMP! Powerslam countered by Ken, he
goes to the floor and gets a chair. KILLS Lashley with it, boot by
Lashley now and he has the chair. Misses Ken and then nails him and
the ref calls for the DQ. BOO FN URNS.

Winner: Ken Kennedy @ 16:29 via DQ

-Lashley chases Ken up the ramp and beats down Ken with the chair.
Like 10 chair shots as Ken is on the floor as officials try to break
it up.


-Cole's voice is about as gone as it can be without it being
completely gone.

-They hype Rey returning to Smackdown this Friday.

-We get the trailer for "The Condemned" starring Steve Austin.

-Cole is with Vinnie Jones, co-star with Austin in the movie (and
Juggernaught in the last X-Men Movie). He says HE is the star of the
movie, not Austin. Just like in real life, he kicked Austin's ass.
Oh yeah, they are setting something up here.

-The Miz comes to the ring to host the Diva Talent Invitational.

Miz says to forget about all of the other talent shows, because this
is the real deal. HOO RAH.

ECW's Extreme Expose is first. They are just like the Nitro girls.
They are hot, can't dance together and the worst one of them all is
the one they created this for to get her over (Kelly), ala Kim Page.

Next is Jigglin Hall. It's her big break apparently; she will wow
all the music executives and us. She will sing a Jigglin original.
She "warms up." She is so horribly bad it is funny.

Mix stops her and calls her a female William Hung. Jigglin rants
about the other chicks and says the Expose couldn't even be backup
dancers. She rants on the divas and says the other girls are
talentless bitches. Here come the other chicks, Candace, Ariel and
Maria. Candace spears her and we have a big old orgy catfight.
Officials come out to break it up. Now Ashley comes out to the ring.
Pryo hits and she drops her Playboy cover down again. She takes her
top off and has Playboy bunnies painted on her breasts. Miz declares
her the winner. The bitches argue in the ring.


-We get a video package to hype the main event.

-Cole is really bad off now as his voice is constantly cracking.

Shawn Michaels & John Cena vs. The Undertaker & Batista

Batista and Cena to kick things off. Lock up and to the ropes,
shoulder block takes Cena down. Rights by Batista, shoulder rams in
the corner to Cena and then more rights by Batista. Irish whip, boot
by Cena and right to Batista. Rolling front slam by Batista. Jack
knife on Cena for 2. In the corner and an Irish whip, Cena moves and
Batista hits the post. To the corner and a tag to HBK. Chops to
Batista, Irish whip and a reversal…HBK caught in the corner, kick by
Batista and a clothesline to HBK. Another levels HBK and a cover for
2. Tag to Taker now, Rights to HBK, arm bar and shoulder rams by
Taker. Leg drop to the arm and a wristlock again. Taker to the
corner, climbs…Old school connects. Boots by Taker, rights to HBK
now. Head butts by Taker. Irish whip and a back elbow by HBK. Chops
to Taker, corner mounted shots by HBK. Taker tosses him off, HBK
back with shots and tossed off again. Big boot to HBK and a cover
for 2. Tag back to Batista. They work the arm of HBK in the corner,
rights by HBK but Batista works the arm. Chops by HBK, but a slam by
Batista and then misses an elbow drop and a tag to Cena. Rights to
Batista, off the ropes and a back elbow to Cena. Cole has stopped
commentating right now, his voice is gone and it is all JBL on
commentary. Tag to Taker, big rights to Cena. Slams him to the
corner, running knee by Taker and a cover follows for 2. Taker goes
for old school on Cena…Cena fights with rights, goes up top as well
and tries a suplex. Taker fights and head butts Cena to the mat.
Cena back over, rights to Taker…SUPERPLEX by Cena. Both men down as
Taker sits up now. Rights by Cena, and he eats a clothesline by
Taker. Elbow drop misses, HBK back in and chops to Taker. Flying
forearm, kip up by HBK. GOOZLE by Taker! Boot by HBK, off the ropes
and a press slam by Taker on HBK TO THE FLOOR! Batista grabs HBK and
drops him face first to the steel steps. Taker to the floor now and
rights to HBK. Back into the ring now, Taker covers for 2 as Cena
makes the save. Taker and Batista double-team HBK. Snap mare and
running boot by Batista, cover gets 2. Batista slams HBK to the
corner, back elbows and rights. Tags Taker, HBK tries to fight but
Taker levels him with a big right. Irish whip and a running boot
MISSES by Taker and he crotches himself. Taker grabs HBK, they
exchange shots and HBK has some fire. Chops to Taker, Irish whip and
a side slam by Taker, and a cover for 2. Tag to Batista, clothesline
to HBK and another. A third and a cover for 2. Neck vice with the
body scissors by Batista now. HBK to his feet, rights to Batista
now. Chops now. Off the ropes and a DDT counters the spinebuster.
HBK with the tag and Cena is everywhere. Rolling neck breaker on
Batista. Up top…FAMEASSER off the top to Batista! Taker in now and a
shoulder block to Taker. Clothesline takes Taker to the floor. PROTO
BOMB on Batista! Boo birds are out for Cena. 5-knuckle shuffle by
Cena connects. FU is stopped by a Taker big boot. HBK in and drops
Taker to the floor. HBK dives onto Taker, but he slams HBK to the
steel post. Batista gets a slam on Cena. Batista bomb try, HBK in
and chop blocks Batista. Cena takes Batista to the corner, tag to
HBK and he works over Batista with rights. Kicks to Batista now, and
Batista is down. Knees now by HBK, and then Cena lays the boots to
Batista. Clothesline by HBK. Stomp by HBK, tag to Cena. Elbow drop
by Cena gets 2. To the corner and an Irish whip, Cena eats a boot on
the charge and then levels Batista with a clothesline and covers for
2. HBK tags in and chops to Batista. Enziguri by HBK. Cover for 2.
Front facelock by HBK, Batista battles to move him to the corner for
a tag. Batista tosses HBK off, but HBK snags his leg and tags in
Cena. Rights by Batista, who is busted open on the bridge of the
nose. Cena with a sleeper, now to the front facelock. Backdrop by
Batista, he is in the wrong corner and HBK with a right. Drop
toehold by Cena…STFU is on. Batista fights and Taker makes the save.
Slam by Cena on Batista, tag to HBK, and up top he goes…ELBOW DROP
CONNECTS! HBK tuned up the Christian Rock band, misses and Batista
with the Black Hole Slam. Tags to Cena and Taker. Taker is on taking
everyone down. Irish whip and a snake eyes on HBK. Big boot! Cena in
and off the ropes, big shoulder block by Taker. Corner clotheslines
to HBK and Cena! DOUBLE GOOZLE! Batista in and a spinebuster on HBK.
Chokeslam on Cena. Cutthroat by Taker, SPINEBUSTER BY BATISTA ON
TAKER! "Payback is a bitch!" he says and drops to the floor. HBK up,
superkick to Taker, FU by Cena and that is all.

Winners: HBK and Cena @ 22:08 via pin

-Batista stares down Taker, and then grabs his belt and enters the
ring. He looks down at Taker and leaves.

-Taker slowly sits up and is not a happy man.

Overall, it was a great show with some terrific matches and
memorable moments.

The show started off with some skinny guy (I believe Pelle Primeau)
coming out to berate the crowd a little which triggered Samoa Joe's
music but instead of Joe coming out, it was Morishima who proceeded
to pretty much kill poor little Primeau.

Match #1: Delirious def. Adam Pearce
This was a fun little opener, but pretty much all Delirious matches
are fun to watch. The end of this match came when Pearce ran into
Shane Hagadorn, who was standing on the apron, which allowed
Delirious to finish him off for the victory.

Match #2: SHIMMER tag match
To be honest, the only woman I really knew in this match was Allison
Danger and I know that her team won. Sorry guys, I don't follow
SHIMMER.

Match #3: Jack Evans def. Shingo, Jimmy Jacobs and Xavier in the 4
way fray
I don't know why Davey Richards was taken out of this match, but for
some reason he was and he was replaced by former ROH Champion,
Xavier. Xavier got a nice reception when he first came out, but he
soon got eliminated by Shingo which prompted the crowd to
chant "Thanks for coming!" and "Hit the showers!" Gotta love that
crowd. Shingo was stiffing the shit out of people and Jack Evans was
absolutely amazing. Seeing him perform all those crazy moves live
was incredible. My girlfriend instantly fell in love with Jack and
thought he was just about the coolest wrestler ever. The match ended
when Jack hit the 630 splash on Shingo and that move is so pretty
live, even better than when watching it on TV.

Match #4: BJ Whitimer def. Brent Albright in a Tables are Legal match
This right here was the match of the night, at least in my view.
When a match starts off with someone being hurled off the top rope
through a table at ringside (which is exactly what Albright did to
BJ), you know you're in for a sick match. Some of the crazy shit in
this match included Albright back suplexing BJ off the top rope
through a table on the floor, Brent throwing BJ from the ring
through three tables that were stacked on top of each other on the
floor, and BJ belly to belly suplexing Albright off the top rope
through two tables set up in the ring (which ended the match). This
match was just absolutely brutal and very fun to watch.

Samoa Joe then came out and addressed the fans. The fans repeatedly
chanted, "Please don't go!" Joe thanked all the fans for all the
support they've given him and put New York over as a great place to
put on a show at. This was a great moment as the crowd chanted Joe's
name and the emotion felt genuine. Nigel McGuiness then came out to
try to talk to Samoa Joe about Morishima coming out to his music
earlier and tried to defend Morishima. Joe wasn't having any of that
and soon the two of them started to brawl and had to be pulled apart.

Match #5: Christopher Daniels and Matt Sydal def. Austin Aries and
Roderick Strong to retain the ROH tag titles
This right here was definitely the disappointment of the night.
Don't get me wrong, it wasn't a bad match, but people had such high
expectations for it that the fans started to turn on the match. The
match started off very slow and picked up by the end, but most of
the crowd was out of the match by the time it started
to get good with some even chanting, "End this match!" Austin Aries
also seemed to legitimately hurt his leg as he was limping
considerably after a blown spot, but he was a trooper and finished
the match. So maybe he was just selling the leg, but if so that's
one of the best sell jobs I've ever seen because he looked like he
was in some serious pain. The highlight of this match for me was a
fan who had a disturbing obsession with Homicide (chanting his name
all night, saying 5150 about a million times, etc) starting to
berate Christopher Daniels all throughout the match and another fan
saying the opposite of anything that guy just said. Example: The
first guy would say, "Daniels, you're the worst, you suck!" and the
second guy would say, "Christopher Daniels is the greatest wrestler
who ever lived!" This went on for about 10 minutes and was immensely
entertaining. Anyhow, the match ended when Daniels hit the Best
Moonsault Ever to retain the tag titles.

Match #6: Nigel McGuiness and Colt Cabana def. The Briscoes
This was an awesome match that featured some great interaction
between both teams. The Briscoes are just great and I heard one fan
say that he's never seen a bad Briscoes match and when I thought
about it, I had to agree with him. This was no difference as you
really had no idea who was going to win. The ending came when Jay
went for the Jay Driller, but got countered and had Nigel McGuiness
nearly take his damn head off with a vicious clothesline. Great,
entertaining match.

Match #7: Samoa Joe def. Takeshi Morishima
This match started impromptu style when Joe came out to attack Nigel
after his match, but that brought out Morishima. These two had an
absolutely brutal, stiff match that wasn't exactly the classic that
Joe/Kobashi was, but was still a fantastic match. Joe was able to
get the big man up for a muscle buster, but Morishima kicked out it.
Morishima delivered some wicked suplexes on Joe, dropping on his
head a bunch of times and in turn making my girlfriend turn from a
Joe fan to a Morishima fan. Damn traitor. The match ended when Joe
locked on the clutch and Morishima passed out. Great match,
definitely worth seeing.

Match #8: Homicide def. Jimmy Rave to retain the ROH title
The crowd was solidly behind Homicide for this one, but there were
quite a few Jimmy Rave fans in the crowd, much to my surprise. Rave
actually looked very good in this match and looked like he might
pull off the major upset when he locked on the heel hook in the
middle of the ring on Homicide. Homicide was able to escape the hook
due to interference from Julius Smokes and shortly thereafter hit
the Cop Killa to retain his title. Very good match that certainly
wasn't a classic match, but was still very entertaining.

Overall this was a great show to attend. There were a bunch of great
matches, memorable moments and a fantastic crowd. The crowd
definitely made this a great experience as the in-ring action was
top notch, but I was also dying from laughter due to some of the
things the crowd would randomly yell. A very fun time, I'd
definitely recommend to attend an ROH show anytime it comes through
your town.

This past Saturday night, Takeshi Morishima defeated Homicide to win
the ROH World Championship in Philadelphia. This is huge news and
could lead to some very exciting times in ROH.