ROH 110 – War Of The Wire 2 – 28th July 2006
I really like both cards that have been lined up for the latest Ohio weekend. Both nights have really interesting things including the second ever barbed wire match in ROH tonight alongside a really solid set of matches, whilst tomorrow night has Danielson/McGuiness II, Christian Cage and Generation Next’s last match. Tonight’s main event is the final leg of the ROH/CZW feud, as BJ Whitmer – the guy who has taken more punishment than anyone else looks for a measure of personal retribution. He challenges Necro Butcher to his own style of match. There’s also a Briscoes vs Strong/Evans rematch, Nigel McGuiness renews his rivalry with Colt Cabana in defence of his Pure Title, Matt Sydal (as well as Jack Evans) is back from Dragon Gate and wants one more match with Chris Daniels and there’s also a packed four corner survival. Lets get to Dayton, OH and join Dave Prazak and Jared David. The sound for both shows this weekend is a little screwed up. Dodgy volume setting somewhere on the ROH end I’m afraid. Hopefully the problem is rectified by the next 2 shows.
ROH VIDEO RECAP (20/07/06) – As you’d expect, we open with numerous clips from Cage Of Death. Backstage afterwards BJ Whitmer says he can’t wait to hurt Necro some more at WOTW2.
- Jim Cornette is livid with Homicide for spitting in his face. He’s even more pissed off with the ROH fans for siding with Homicide after all he’s done to boost Ring Of Honor’s profile.
- Christian Cage says he wants to come back to ROH and will be back in Cleveland.
- GMC is after Colt Cabana but finds Irish Airborne and Delirious. Apparently he’s getting his groove on in a car outside…and the Crists do him a favour and lead the nosey Capetta away.
BJ Whitmer arrives at the building. Throughout the show there’s a series of clips of Whitmer preparing for the barbed wire match tonight - set to the goofiest generic metal music you’ll ever hear.
Homicide reels off a lengthy promo full of his inexplicable gangsta-isms. Apparently his kid was in the crowd in Philadelphia so he’s even more pissed off. He’s going to beat up Adam Pearce, he’s going to beat Steve Corino, he’s going to win the World Title and he’s going to get revenge on Cornette. Awful awful promo. He’s a charismatic wrestler but this just made so little sense and was full of errors.
Trik Davis vs Jimmy Jacobs
Last time we saw Jacobs was during the last Detroit/Chicago weekend where he put on two of the best matches of his ROH career. But he lost them both and, as we know, Lacey demands victories in order to retain her managerial services. If he wants that and her love he really needs to be beating one of ROH’s job-squad.
Davis works Jacobs’ arm to start with, but eventually misses an armdrag and Jimmy trampolines on his back. He sets Trik’s head up on the apron for the ringpost dropkick. Surfboard applied, then a dropkick to the spine as Jimmy works the midsection. TORPEDO HEADBUTT TO THE CHEST! Jacobs goes for a second ringpost dropkick but MISSES and crashes into the metal. Davis takes the opportunity to nail a nice tope suicida. Jacobs toehold’s Trik into the turnbuckles then slingshot double stomps the back. But Davis comes back as Jimmy tries to pull him out of the corner and he hits him with a lungblower. Jacobs with a DVD then the SENTON BOMB! Jacobs wins at 06:57.
Rating - ** - No real reason to care about it or re-watch it, but the work was fine. Jimmy is great at subtly focusing all his offence on one body part, and we saw it again here as everything he did worked the ribs/torso for the senton bomb. Trik is an able wrestler which makes him perfect for this new role as brief job-match worker. He’s got nothing to real make him stand-out or get over…but if you want to see him wrestle more check out his work in IWA-MS. With Delirious further up the card these days ROH needs a semi-decent worker to put their main talent over, looks like Trik is their guy.
Dave Prazak interviews both challenger and champion in tonight’s Pure Title match. It’s not a rebirth of their feud, just one match to see who the better man is. Nigel asks about the girl Colt was doing in the car. Colt says she had a great minge.
Jimmy Rave/Sal Rinauro vs Davey Richards/Jerrelle Clark
Last time we saw Mr 630 was in February so it’s good to see him back since I’m a fan. He’s in two big matches this weekend as well. Tonight he teams with rookie sensation Davey Richards to face the new Embassy of Rave and Rinauro. They put on an awesome undercard tag with Cabana and Lethal at DBD4 and have great chemistry as Crown Jewel and male footstool respectively. Jimmy will be desperate to get a win over Davey having lost two consecutive singles matches to him last month. No Nana this weekend, but Daizee “hate me” Haze is here – almost in a pre-match ruck with Davey.
Naturally Sal has to shoulder the responsibility of starting the match, and Clark makes his arm the focus of all his early offence. Jerrelle plants a dropkick in his face but Rave is still slow to tag his partner out. He acts like he wants Davey…then runs away. The two rivals finally go to the mat for a terrific waitlock battle ending with a kick from Richards. Rave spits in his face and gets kicked to the floor. Rinauro tags and is met with the chops/stepover kick combo. Jerrelle is tagged, and Rave opts to get a cheap shot on Richards before helping Sal out with him. Rave then slaps Sal in the face for his sh*ttitude. Clark blocks a monkey flip and turns it into an overhead throw on Rinauro for 2. Rave blindsides Jerrelle with a clothesline from the apron then tags in to work him over. Having successfully incapacitated Mr 630 he brings Rinauro back into the match. Jerrelle almost fights back until the Haze and Rave crotch him against the ringpost. Richards argues with the referee as all three Embassy members hit the ring for a THREE-WAY BASEMENT DROPKICK. Clark nails Rave with a MEROSAULT PRESS and gets the hot tag. Davey wants Jimmy but he has to deal with Sal, and does so with a series of kicks. Jerrelle sends Rave to the floor and wipes him out with a pescado. Handspring moonsault on Rinauro for 2. Rave is back for the SUPERKICK SPEAR! Clark kicks out at 2 and buts Rave in the Clarkbar. Richards in with the HANDSPRING ENZIGURI on Jimmy. Sal slaps Richards in the face and gets the crap stiffed out of him. Gutbuster on Jimmy, then a powerbomb, then the horse collar – again Sal saves. Swinging stunner for Davey, who still has enough to counter the Crappy Wizard with the HORSE COLLAR AGAIN! Rave taps at 15:49 – he just can’t beat Davey!
Rating - *** - Another really fun match from the new Embassy team. Rave and Rinauro work so well together and have clicked immediately into their respective team roles. It makes for entertaining matches, and when you throw in the skill of Davey Richards, the existing/simmering heat between Richards and Rave, and the exciting spots of Clark it only can only add to them.
BJ Whitmer (w/ GRUNGE METAL) tapes up his wrists in the locker room on Whitmercam.
Nigel McGuinness vs Colt Cabana – ROH Pure Title Match
I’m looking at Nigel’s t-shirt, and realising I’ve been spelling his name wrong for years. Sorry about that Nige! Anyway, these two had a long feud in 2005. It started respectfully but soured after Cabana couldn’t take their team seriously. McGuinness had his number in a number of singles matches, but Cabana was finally able to end the feud in a memorable Soccer Riot Match in August. Nigel blamed him for their Tag Title loss to Aries and Strong last month so they decided to settle it man to man in a Pure Title match.
It shouldn’t surprise anyone that these two open up with a flurry of extravagant hold and counter-hold sequences mixed with some pseudo-comedy and neither man getting an advantage. It’s nothing new but these two are so fluid in the ring with each other. Eventually McGuinness gives him a shady closed fist, and when Cabana punches him in the face right afterwards he gets a warning. Nigel bridges out of a pin then hurts his knee nipping up. Cabana bridges on top of McGuinness and refuses to get off which is quite amusing. Equally amusing is their battle to get a roll-up victory, then pinning each other and doing synchronised kick-outs. Nigel is still feeling his knee. He clubs Colt in the back then dumps him into the corner, demonstrating he’s had enough of the mat stuff. Cabana puts together a series of strikes, the flying asshole then a lariat for 2. He lands the quebrada press and Nigel rolls out and limps off up the ramp. He says he’s too injured to continue, especially considering he has a World Title match tomorrow, so he asks Cabana for a sporting double count-out. Colt refuses…so McGuinness cracks him in the head with the microphone and rolls in the ring (technically just after the 20 but…) just in time to get a count-out win at 13:46. The knee injury was a work all along.
Rating - ** - It gets the same rating as Nigel/Homicide from Chi-Town Struggle, but as a match I enjoyed it much more. As always the chain-wrestling stuff to begin the match was a joy to behold. They do some really complex stuff without even blinking, and I love the finish because McGuinness heeling it up with the Pure rules is always fun. However, there were a few dodgy moments with the officiating (not unusual in Pure Title matches) and…as a match it just didn’t develop. It started really well and had an amusing/entertaining finish but there didn’t seem to be any transition between the two.
Clips of Bryan Danielson attacking Samoa Joe during Cage Of Death. Joe is injured and misses this weekend but has promo-time on both releases. Dragon/Joe is signed for next weekend.
Matt Sydal vs Christopher Daniels
Despite enjoying a year of real break-out success with big performances in ROH and now a gig with Dragon Gate in Japan, Matt Sydal has tried three times to beat Christopher Daniels and finally get a big victory to go with the aforementioned big performances – and each time has been unsuccessful. Daniels came up triumphant at Dissension, Weekend Of Champions and Ring Of Homicide before Sydal left for DG. Now he’s back with newly acquired skills from the orient to help him.
Both men go for armdrags at the same time and end up getting hurt. Sydal tries to control Daniels with headlocks, whilst Daniels looks for dominance with arm holds. Sydal is the first to take to the air as he hits a SPRINGBOARD satellite headscissors! Daniels goes out and Matt goes after him with a RUNNING MOONSAULT! Cannon ball leg drop scores 2. Daniels throttles Sydal over the top rope to turn the offensive momentum in his favour. Tilta-whirl backbreaker, and he holds on to nail a running powerslam as well. Daniels goes for a second backbreaker but Sydal is able to counter with a crucifix. NECK DROP STO on the Dragon Gate star gets 2. Daniels applies a ground abdominal stretch then kicks Sydal in the face when he escapes that. The Arabian press scores but still isn’t enough to put Matt away. He spinning heel kicks Daniels in the face to start his comeback, and drops him again with the Slice. The poor volume settings for this release make Allison Danger’s screams insanely annoying. Daniels goes to the top rope but Sydal drags him off with a STANDING SUPER RANA! Daniels with the urinage slam then the BEST MOONSAULT EVER for 2. Sydal to the top for a FLYING DDT! He goes for the SSP but lands on his feet. STANDING MOONSAULT MISSES…KOJI CLUTCH! Daniels goes for Angels Wings but Matt counters…INVERTED TOMBSTONE! That’s the big win he’s been looking for at 13:26.
Rating - *** - The best crowd of any of their matches – but the worst match. Far too many rest hold in the first 10 minutes for that short a match. In between there was some good stuff, and stretch was really hot, with the familiarity factor playing a part in lots of blocked finishing moves. It’s these guys so it was never going to be bad, but…eh – put it this way, if AJ Styles wrestled this match it’d get a lot of heat. Sydal hasn’t changed much in Japan…although his strikes are a lot crisper now, and if he keeps that inverted Tombstone, it’ll make a nice additional finishing move for him.
Daniels thinks about walking out, but comes back to show Matt Sydal the respect he deserves. He then asks Matt Sydal to be his tag team partner in the future. Sydal will accept - he’ll team with anyone.
Whitmercam shows him…SITTING IN A CHAIR! This is a neat idea to build to the main event but that music is so bad!
Delirious vs Homicide vs Austin Aries vs Bryan Danielson
Obviously this is non-title. Danielson has heat with everyone, and is a target anyway since pinning him would get a title shot. Delirious almost beat him a couple of times earlier in the year. Danielson and Homicide have a lengthy past in ROH, now Homicide wants to beat him again to make a statement, and having vowed to win a belt before the end of 2006, obviously wants a title shot. Danielson/Aries is one of the best ever wrestling rivalries in ROH history and they’ve got a string of great matches behind them already. With one half of the Tag Champions in this match as well, it definitely has potential championship ramifications no matter who wins.
Danielson wants no part of Homicide – fortunately for him Delirious has no such problem, and he punks Cide out with a barrage of lizard-speak. Austin Aries ends up going with Delirious who fervently blocks his attempts to hit the headscissors dropkick. Instead Delirious runs to the floor and takes out the legs of Danielson to much laughter. Delirious dropkicks Homicide into the corner and lands the Panic Attack. Cide chases Dragon around the ring but in turning his back on the lizard man leaves himself open to a back suplex. Slow motion knee from Aries gets 2. Danielson finally does tag and starts aggressively with Austin. He rakes the eyes numerous times and generally scams his way into keeping the explosive tag champion down. He applies an abdominal stretch, and grinds his arm across Austin’s nose which is bleeding again. Aries counters the airplane spin and hits a roaring elbow to make a tag. Delirious looks for the Cobra Stretch but settles for taking both himself and the World champion to the floor. Homicide and Aries have a few shots at him there as Delirious goes to the top for a SOMERSAULT PLANCHA! Dragon gives Delirious the airplane spin then ascends the ropes to miss a diving headbutt. Homicide misses his own diving headbutt. Aries misses a frog splash allowing Delirious to hit SHADOWS OVER HELL for 2. Aries dishes out the shinbreak back suplex then a RUNNING DROPKICK! Homicide takes Delirious out of the corner with a BRUTAL super Ace crusher. LARIAT ON DANIELSON! Austin saves Dragon from the Cop Killa and gives Homicide the HEAT SEEKING MISSILE! MMA ELBOWS ON DELIRIOUS…COUNTERED TO DELIRIOUS MMA ELBOWS! COBRA STRETCH APPLIED! AmDrag just about finds the ropes as Homicide clobbers Aries with a chair. CATTLE MUTILATION! Aries tags and goes to the top rope…450 SPLASH! He pins the World Champion at 18:18.
Rating - **** - The four corner from Throwdown was better I felt, but this was really good too. The first few minutes were slow but made amusing by the antics of Dragon and Delirious but when the action picked up it got chaotic in a good way. I liked how all the major stories involving Danielson were paid off. Homicide was desperate to get to him all match, but you’d assume Dragon/Homicide is the big time match to round off 2006 – so their actual interaction was minimal. Danielson/Delirious had a fun mini-feud earlier in the year so there was more good stuff between those two, and by Aries pinning Danielson it continues that rivalry, and means that a member of the Tag Team champions has pinned the World Champion. Now all we need is for Danielson to retain against McGuinness tomorrow night and all the champions have beaten each other.
Roderick Strong/Jack Evans vs Jay Briscoe/Mark Briscoe
Like Sydal, Jack is back from Dragon Gate and he returns to this, a rematch from their stellar match at Best In The World – which many feel was better than the KENTA/Marufuji main event tag. The Briscoes are feuding with (the former) Generation Next in pursuit of the tag belts and have jumped Strong and Aries repeatedly. A win for them tonight could see them get another shot at the tag belts. Evans actually has ring gear – and really swish ¾ lengths too!
Strong and Evans sprint up the aisle to get the fight started out there. Strong takes Jay into the ring to dish out a big backbreaker then launches himself over the ropes after him with a pescado. Mark tries to attack Evans’ leg like they did last match but Jack doesn’t play ball. He flips all over the shop to avoid that and hits a nice springboard corkscrew enziguri. Jay is finally able to level Evans and the Briscoes try to wear him down. Roddy with a fallaway slam to stop that, and this match is barely 2 minutes old. Double stomp standing moonsault by Evans, but Mark lures him between the ropes where Jay kicks him square in the head. The Briscoes hit a double team hotshot but almost allow Evans to tag out after he manages to double dropkick both of them. They almost throw him into the ceiling with a big double-team pancake throw. Jack goes for another double dropkick which is blocked, but he’s still able to flip off the ropes with a double moonsault press and get the hot tag. Mark tries to give Roderick the Cut-throat Driver but settles for the urinage suplex for 2. BACK SUPLEX/BLOCKBUSTER combo by Strong and Evans. The Briscoes get thrown to the floor and Strong BACK BODY DROPS Jack on top of them. They hang Mark up in the middle rope for the POWERBOMB MOONSAULT DOUBLE STOMP TO THE BACK! Half nelson backbreaker blocked and Mark hoists Strong up for a guillotine leg drop/sidewalk slam combo for 2. They try to pin Strong again off a big boot but Evans blocks it with a springboard swanton. He levels Jay with his version of the Busaiku knee. SKIPPING A GENERATION MISSES! Evans gets clotheslined to the floor but Roddy almost wins it with a big boot on Jay. Gibson Driver blocked…SPIKE JAY DRILLER! Strong is pinned in 12:36.
Rating - **** - What a damn match. Not that it was in the same league as their first match (which is miles better), but because they packed an absolute sh*tload into less than 13 minutes. I don’t think they stopped for a second and that makes it an amazing effort – and really puts the amount of restholds in Sydal/Daniels into perspective. As you’d expect with these four, lots of high-impact stuff, lots of big moves and the finish opens the door for the Briscoes, who have now won 5 straight tag matches since losing at Destiny, to get a third shot at Aries and Strong.
Samoa Joe delivers a promo from the Inoki Dojo in California – a place that both he and Danielson are familiar with. He’s been rehabbing in preparation for the “Fight Of The Century” and saws it’s inevitable that he’ll be the new World Champion.
Last BJ-TV shot, with Whitmer dressed and ready to go – psyching himself up in the parking lot.
INTERMISSION – Jimmy Rave blames Sal Rinauro for losing to Davey Richards again. He calls the win tonight another fluke.
Claudio Castagnoli and Nate Webb walk out through the crowd to disrupt the show. The ring has been set up for the main event now so there’s no way they want to get inside it. Double C gloats that he has an ROH contract which means even though CZW lost, he’ll still be booked. Either he starts talking in a foreign language or sound is so poor now I can’t understand what he’s saying. Whatever…Ace Steel and Colt Cabana (and cowbell) come from the back to brawl with them. Necro Butcher strolls through the crowd amidst that fight and starts loading up the ring with chairs. The ROH students come to break things up and BJ Whitmer comes from behind them…so I guess we can get our main event started.
BJ Whitmer vs Necro Butcher – Barbed Wire Match
Throughout the feud between ROH and CZW, it’s constantly been BJ Whitmer getting pulvarised. He got humiliated in the ECW Arena when he was held hostage by the entire CZW roster. At The 100th Show Super Dragon gave him a Psycho Driver through a table, and he was beaten again at Weekend Of Champions Night 1, whilst competing with an injury. At Chi-Town Struggle he had a barbed wire crown forced onto his head and so, despite ROH beating CZW in Cage Of Death, he wants some personal revenge. He’s challenged Necro, perhaps the premium death match worker in the States today, to his type of match in order to gain the retribution he craves. Homicide is in Whitmer’s corner tonight, having been a part of the only other barbed wire match in ROH history.
Butcher is wrestling without a shirt, whilst BJ is actually even crazier – he’s wrestling in his normal tights! They inevitably jostle to be the first to introduce their opponent to the barbed wire. Necro works a headlock and gets back suplexed onto his neck. Whitmer is first to taste the barbed wire as Butcher shoves him chest-first into it then waffles him in the back with a chair. The chair slam gets Necro the first 2 of the match. He folds a chair over BJ’s head then grabs a second chair to hit it with, and Whitmer is bleeding. Butcher takes him to the “rope” and starts gouging the cut with a barb. That’s pretty sick. Whitmer is hung up in the barbed wire again which is just disgusting considering he’s not wearing a shirt. Finally he blocks a chair shot and ROARING ELBOWS it back into Necro’s face. Now the CZW guys is bleeding too. IRISH WHIPS INTO THE WIRE! He get an ultra-close up of the barbs jagging into Butcher’s back. BODY SLAM OVER THE TOP STRAND OF WIRE! Whitmer drops Necro on his head with a piledriver, and when he kicks out of that he gets planted on his cranium again with a brainbuster. Homicide has positioned a barbed wire table on the floor. There are pools of Necro’s blood on the canvas and BJ floors him again with another roaring elbow. Necro blocks an attempted powerbomb through the table and rocks Whitmer with a lariat.
Butcher tries to F*CKING STAB BJ with wire cutters but Whitmer is able to block it. The ROH guy uses the wire cutters to cut away the barbed wire ropes from one side of the ring. They brawl to the edge of the ropeless side, Necro grabs Whitmer…POWERBOMB THROUGH A BARBED WIRE TABLE! The referee, Homicide and other assorted characters have to organise a team effort just to cut BJ and his hair free of the wire. He gets a big pop for getting up and getting back in the ring. BRAINBUSTER ON AN OPEN CHAIR! Butcher kicks out at 2 though. Homicide hands Whitmer a bag of tacks because this wasn’t violent enough. Unforunately Necro grabs BJ…TIGER DRIVER ON THE TACKS FOR 2! Necro is walking around BARE FOOT in thumbtacks! Whitmer gets hoisted up for a THUMBTACK SIDEWALK SLAM! HE KICKS OUT AGAIN! BJ throws tacks into his eyes then drops him FEET FIRST! EXPLODER IN THE TACKS…FOR 2! Necro has Whitmer again…DVD THROUGH A BARBED WIRE TABLE! Again it needs a team effort to cut BJ free as Necro positions a barbed wire board between two chairs. Whitmer boots the board into Necro’s face then THROWS IT ON TOP OF HIM! He starts whacking the board with a chair, driving the barbs deeper into Necro’s skin. Homicide hands him a ladder! SHAWN MICHAELS SPLASH OFF THE LADDER ON TO THE BOARD! NECRO BUTCHER KICKS OUT AGAIN! HEAD DROP EXPLOIDAAAAA! BJ gets the biggest win of his ROH career at 26:10.
Rating - **** - As a hardcore stunt show it was streets ahead of Corino/Homicide. The brutality of this match was almost disturbing to watch. The sequence with the tacks is downright vile as both men are rolling around bare-chested in tacks. It’s sickness up there with that close-up of Homicide forking Samoa Joe in the head at Generation Next. However, this lacked the psychology and intensity of Corino/Homicide. The fact is, Whitmer and Necro are nowhere near as charismatic performers as those two, and whilst they out-did WOTW1 by a long way in terms of hardcore stunts, they never got close to conveying the level of hatred that Cide and Steve did in November 2003. That’s why this gets the same rating. However, give these two athletes the respect they deserve for a really gutsy effort, and a great match to end the ROH/CZW feud once and for all. Necro Butcher is apparently heading back to Texas and really cutting down on his east coast bookings so…don’t expect him to be back anytime soon. Congratulations to BJ Whitmer for finally having his big, break-out, unforgettable match after 3+ years of busting his ass in Ring Of Honor. He deserves this moment…
The fans give this the standing ovation it deserves, and both Whitmer and Necro get ‘thank you’ chants for their brave efforts.
Tape Rating - *** - Another really solid show with all three bouts at the top of the card delivering. In 2003/4 this probably would’ve edged into 4* show territory but the bar has been raised since then. However, considering that I’ve rated an absolute plethora of ROH shows at 3*, I’d definitely say this is one of the better 3* DVD’s out there. Whitmer/Necro will stand out as one of the more memorable matches of the year and deservedly so since it was brutal to an almost uncomfortable degree. I mildly preferred Corino/Homicide but that doesn’t stop me appreciating their phenomenal efforts tonight. The Briscoes/Strong&Evans rematch is well worth seeing simply for how much they cram into such a short time, whilst the four corner and the Embassy tag are good as well. Mildly disappointing matches from Nigel/Cabana and Daniels/Sydal really don’t drag it down at all. If you’re into your deathmatch stuff this is a Ring Of Honor release you need to add to your collection.
Top 3 Matches
3) Austin Aries vs Bryan Danielson vs Delirious vs Homicide (****)
2) Jay Briscoe/Mark Briscoe vs Roderick Strong/Jack Evans (****)
1) BJ Whitmer vs Necro Butcher (****)