McXal's Reviews

It is always dangerous to allow yourself to get excited about a current-day ROH show, particularly a pay-per-view. But the card for this show is outstanding. One of my favourite New Japan talents - Minoru Suzuki - makes his ROH debut, challenging for the World Title currently held by Cody. Every title is on the line, which means the Young Bucks pull double duty this evening - defending the Six-Man Titles first then facing Motor City Machine Guns for the Tag Titles later in the evening. Kenny King gets his rematch for Kushida's TV Title too. If that wasn't enough, there is a grudge match double-header on the undercard as the Jay Lethal/Silas Young and Jay White/Punishment Martinez feuds come to a head. Ian Riccaboni and Colt Cabana provide commentary from Las Vegas, NV.

The winners of this match challenge the Hung Bucks later in the night for the Six-Man Championship. Both teams have held that title previously. The Kingdom were the first ever champions, winning the tournament to crown them at Final Battle 2016. But their run was curtailed abruptly when TK broke his leg defending the belts at the 15th Anniversary Show...putting him on the injured list and forcing his partners to rely on a replacement partner as the Briscoes and Bully took the championship from them. The Kingdom have target the Briscoes in recent weeks - giving Jay Briscoe a concussion in a theatrical display which doubled as the reveal that O'Ryan has now healed from his busted leg. The Briscoes have suffered a number of high profile losses recently, with relations growing increasingly strained between all three members of their team. Can they get back on the same page tonight to regain the belts they lost at Best In The World?

Mark and Marseglia start - both equally weird and equally willing to exchange big strikes. Jay soon gets a tag and comes in swinging punches at all three opponents simultaneously. The Kingdom quickly use their fluidity as a team and superior numbers to overwhelm him. Mark recognises the danger and tags in...but he too is mugged by their opponents illegally entering the ring in numbers. The Briscoes need a hero obviously...and Bubba Ray is their man. He has no interest in selling - he's here to stiff poor TK and pose to the fans. O'Ryan goes to the eyes trying to stop him...which Bully sells by hitting back body drops on all three opponents. The fight spills to the floor, and as it does so Ian and Colt are quick to remind us that it was in this very building that TK broke his leg! Cactus Elbow on him by Mark! Vinny counters with a springboard corkscrew senton. AIR TAVEN NAILED! O'Ryan climbs to the apron...in a BRILLIANT tease on trying another Asai moonsault, only to flip off the crowd instead. Jay makes him pay with a crazy elbow suicida. TOP ROPE SUICIDE DIVE by Bully! Taven and Vinny crotch Mark against the ringpost which puts him at a distinct disadvantage as order is restored. He takes a couple of minutes of punishment...before making a hot tag to Bully so he can perform his second rescue act of the match. Even Jay looks pissed off at that - and walks in past Bully to start dishing out Day One Neckbreakers. Taven shoves Jay into Bully, knocking the former ECW star to the ground. German suplex/springboard elbow drop combo on Jay gets 2. Twist Of Fate/Redrum combo blocked with knees! Mark tags...and watches as his partner hits a Bubba Bomb on Vinny. Froggy Bow blocked by TK! DOOMSDAY DEVICE on O'Ryan! Bully and the Briscoes win at 12:08

Rating - *** - As I've said before, the current Kingdom line-up is very under-rated as a trios act. All three have weaknesses as singles wrestlers, but they make an enjoyable three-piece and that really showed here. The focus was largely on their opponents, mostly because Bully Ray is massive and desperate to be the centre of attention. But The Kingdom were great here. Great as villainous heels, cheating to outwit their heroic opponents. Great in hitting fun combo moves. TK may well have stolen the show in the first match with his awesome tease on having another go at his leg-breaking Asai moonsault spot. The Kingdom were, in short, on fire. Jay and Mark are great to watch right now too, gradually morphing into a more aggressive, overtly heel team. Those five largely carried Bubba, who didn't sell a bunch and hogged the spotlight like always. And even he contributed something, via that big top rope dive to the floor. One of Bully's best ROH matches to date (although he didn't have much to do with it)...and a fun start to the show.

Jay Briscoe skulks into the ring with a chair - and launches it into O'Ryan's face even as Mark and Bully try to reason with him.

BREAKING NEWS - Kenny Omega is announced for all four dates of the upcoming Global Wars 2017 Tour. 

EARLIER TODAY - The Being The Elite crew search the building for Hangman Page. This is, of course, spill-over from a 'Being The Elite' plot where, having served cease and desist letters to stop them using 'Too Sweet' or referencing The Revival, it was hinted that WWE 'stooges' had abducted Adam Page. It is a pressing issue, given that he's supposed to be defending the Six-Man Titles later...

This is billed as 'Villain vs Gentleman', which I quite like. Taylor debuted in ROH with a win over Marty's Bullet Club friends. Taylor is an associate of CHAOS' Trent Beretta. All of this puts him in the firing line as Marty looks for a high profile PPV victory after falling out of the TV Title picture...

Taylor is an unorthodox performer, but is happy to trade holds with Scurll in the first couple of minutes. Chuck is far more at home with a quicker pace; utilising flips and lucha springboards off the rope to outwit The Villain. Pescado misses though...and Marty violently dumps him into the guardrail. With Taylor's threat nullified, the door is now open for Scurll to start targeting the arm. But he goes for the Chickenwing too early, allowing Chuckie to deliver a couple of jumping kicks to the neck. Scurll stomps the arm but still can't lock in the Chickenwing for any length of time...and Taylor drops him on his head with a belly to belly suplex into the turnbuckles. Falcon arrow follows that, even though Taylor's arm continues to cause him a spot of bother. MOONSAULT MISSES! HEAT SEEKING TORNADO DDT TO THE FLOOR BY SCURLL! Back in the ring...where Taylor counters Marty with a sit-out powerbomb for 2! Sole Food counters the Finger Snap! But when Chuckie climbs the ropes for another moonsault Marty snaps his fingers up there instead. AWFUL WAFFLE OUT OF THE CORNER! SCURLL GETS HIS FEET ON THE ROPES! TOPE ATOMICO BY CHUCK! He throws Marty into the crowd...then hurdles the guardrail with a plancha into the crowd! CANNONBALL SENTON back inside the guardrails too! Marty is desperate and tries to use the ropes in a bid to end the match and escape. CHICKENWING! Taylor taps, giving Scurll victory at 12:06

Rating - *** - This was heaps of fun. Had it gone a couple of minutes longer I could easily have gone to 4* on it. There wasn't much to dislike, other than Taylor's limited efforts to sell the arm...and the fact that twelve minutes didn't give them enough time to properly put over the story they were going for, meaning the finish felt hugely rushed. Taylor is a great addition to the roster. He has masses of experience and, most crucially, works the spot-heavy, 'in with the fans' style that the Young Bucks have made so popular and is therefore the prevalent style in ROH right now. This was a blast, he looked right at home...and the quality of the match he helped put together means Marty's victory came off as all-the-more significant.

This grudge match has been brewing for a long time. Since ending his association with BJ Whitmer earlier in 2017, Martinez has threatened to become ROH's breakout star. But preventing that has been Jay White. Despite the violence and intimidation that comes with opposing the Punisher, White as a 2-0 record over him - successfully using flash pins to beat him on each occasion. The first defeat was inflicted at Masters Of The Craft...which Martinez took so badly that he attacked Jay straight after the match. He attacked the Kiwi again after his star-making MOTYC with Will Ospreay at War Of The Worlds 2017 in New York too. After a second loss to White on Episode 308 of the SBG  show, Martinez put him through a table with a vicious powerslam. Rules can no longer contain the animosity between these two men - there must be a winner tonight.

White comes out through the crowd in street clothes and smashes Punishment with a chair to get us started. Martinez bails...only to be suplexed on the metal ramp! Jay grabs another steel chair, but takes too long about it and turns to find Martinez coiled to cyclone kick the weapon into his own face. Punishment fishes out a trash can - except now he takes too long and allows White to dropkick it back at him. Pescado attempted by White...COUNTERED with a mid-air swipe of a trash can lid. White barely has time to recover from that when Martinez scoops him up for a powerslam through the garbage can to the floor. He tries to set up a Psycho Driver through an open chair only for Jay to grab it and throw the chair into his face. Flatliner on a chair nailed! GERMAN SUPLEX ON A CHAIR AS WELL! And still it is barely enough to get a 2-count. Punisher is right back up to counter an attempt at the Kiwi Crusher into a release falcon arrow. He hammers at White relentlessly with the chair, stopping only to start setting chairs up in the corner of the ring. JUDO SUPLEX INTO THE CHAIRS by White! Still Punisher gets back up and demands more! TOPE SUICIDA OVER THE RINGPOST NAILED! No sold by Jay...who smashes him with a chair some more. AVALANCHE urinage suplex nailed for 2. Kiwi Crusher...GETS 2! Has anyone kicked out of that yet? The New Zealander wastes valuable seconds filling the ring with more chairs - opening them out to make a stack of about six in the middle of the ring. LAST RIDE THROUGH THE CHAIR STACK BY MARTINEZ! He's not done! PSYCHO DRIVER THROUGH THE CHAIRS AS WELL! AND WHITE KICKS OUT! Somewhere Super Dragon is not impressed. Martinez is fuming and covers the ring with thumb tacks. SOUTH OF HEAVEN ON THE TACKS! Punishment wins at 13:45

Rating - **** - Anyone not associated with Bullet Club and/or Being The Elite tends to get overlooked in 2017 ROH. That has been particularly harsh on these guys, who are outstanding pro-wrestlers that have largely been lost in the shuffle, totally overlooked despite the good work they've been doing. This was exactly the match it should have been. White fought like hell and got an absolutely bad-ass kick-out spot from that Psycho Driver in the chairs...but like a Terminator, Martinez kept getting up and marching ominously towards his victim. Having succumbed to defeat twice previously, Punisher was hell-bent on avenging those losses and putting his issue with White to bed - which he did emphatically. Structurally this worked, it didn't feel like they out-stayed their welcome and the crowd were VERY into it (which isn't always the case for non-Bullet Club matches). As ever with Delirious-booked ROH, the key here is that he needs to follow up. He needs to have a plan to allow Martinez to continue to develop, grow and improve beyond this. History, i.e. the ROH careers of Cedric Alexander, ACH, Adam Page, Donovan Dijak and more, suggest there won't have one...

So many mysteries surround this contest. Obviously the sea of Bullet Club shirts in the crowd will be most interested in the location of Adam Page. He has been missing for several weeks and his whereabouts remain unknown as we go into this title match. On the other side of the ring though, questions remain about the stability of the Briscoe/Bully union. Jay's temper and fragile mental state have alienated him from his partners. An alternative camera angle on the finish to their earlier match showed him looking furious that Bully had helped Mark hit the Doomsday Device rather than him. After that match he again lost his temper - and assaulted TK O'Ryan with a chair even though his partners tried to stop him. Will the shared goal of regaining the Six-Man Titles be enough to unite this trio? And will they even have to beat three men to do it?

Bully is seen trying to calm an agitated Jay Briscoe down during their entrance. Hangman apparently is not here - the Bucks come out without him, holding his unclaimed championship belt. But as the bell rings Page runs in! He is in his clothes and has his wrists bound with tape! HANDS TIED MOONSAULT TO THE FLOOR BY HANGMAN! The Bucks embrace him and celebrate the return of their friend! Mark leads the fightback for his team, dropping Matt with a urinage...but then walking into the Buckshot Lariat. The challengers need someone to no-sell all the Hung Buck offence...enter Bubba. But even he is powerless to stave off a Superkick. SHOOTING STAR TORPEDO to the floor by Page! Bully blocks More Bang For Your Buck with a Bubba Bomb on Matt, followed by a Bubba Cutter on Nick. Wassup Froggy Bow nailed by the challengers. Bully orders the Briscoes to get the tables...but only Mark obliges. When he tosses it into the ring Jay SMACKS Bully in the head with it. Bubba is KO'd, and Page covers him to win at 05:05

Rating - ** - I'm torn in how to rate this. On the one hand it was a hugely exciting five minutes of action. But on the other it basically serves as a roadmap for how and why ROH went so badly down the toilet in 2019 - demonstrating a massive over-reliance on the Young Bucks and the content of their YouTube show to drive creative direction (and allowing Bully Ray to be relevant as well). I love Being The Elite, but it did feel awkward watching their comic capers bleed into ROH so obviously with the 'Where's Hangman' stuff paying off. Of more interest to me was Jay pulling the trigger and turning on Bully. Jay is so good at character work, and his mannerisms and body language built up brilliantly to watch felt like a legitimately shocking moment. Even under those circumstances, I was also pleased to see Hangman being the beneficiary of a rare pinfall victory over Bubba Dudley too.

Mark looks like he doesn't have a clue what just happened. Jay reminds him that they are the 'baddest tag team on the planet...not that motherf*cker' (gesturing at Bully). Jay walks out as Mark stays behind to check on Bubba...

King became #1 contender to Kushida's TV Title in Chicago, on Episode 302 of the TV show. After seeing The Rebellion forcibly disbanded at Best In The World, he got his opportunity at Episode 308 only for it to be snatched away from him after Bullet Club's Hangman Page and Marty Scurll ran in and forced a no-contest. Kenny, now growingly popular on the back of his favourable appearance on The Bachelorette, vowed to train hard for the rematch - and comes into this off back-to-back victories over Hangman Page. On his part Kushida has been a fighting champion. After winning it from Scurll on TV, he won a spectacular rematch against The Villain at Best In The World. He then staved off international challengers like Jay White in Lowell, Titan in London (in a hell of a match) then a PPV dream four corner bout against Scurll, Hiromu Takahashi and Dalton Castle. The champion is having a spectacular year - and even in King's hometown it would be a significant upset were he to win his first ROH singles championship tonight.

It is a family affair tonight with Kenny's daughter and Kushida's mother both in attendance. King is fired up...but taken to the deck and taught a wrestling lesson by the champ. He regroups on the floor, then returns to make a statement; repeatedly grounding Kushida with Japanese armdrags. Last Chancery applied early, causing the champion to grope desperately for the ropes. King misses a corkscrew pescado...and EATS a guardrail flatliner right in front of his daughter! A step-up dropkick off a chair into the railings follows as Kushida's big-time match experience starts to show. He effectively drives Kenny back into the ring where he can start picking apart the arm with precision. CATTLE MUTILATION! A blast from ROH's past has King in real trouble - and even when he makes the ropes to escape Kushida is all over him again with an armbreaker right after. The challenger is wounded and sluggish...and ducks his head straight into the Pele Kick. Kushida kicks at the arm, only for King to fight back with a corkscrew enzi, quickly followed by a spinning heel kick. Royal Flush blocked...Tanaka Punch ducked! King back flips into Shotgun Knees, then lands a capture suplex for 2. Again he tries the Royal Flush...COUNTERED to a triangle choke. Kenny powerbombs free, leaving both champion and challenger on the deck in real trouble. RUNNING RANA INTO THE RINGPOST! TOP ROPE SENTON BOMB TO THE FLOOR! Kushida is upping the ante here and King can't keep up. Rolling Thunder DDT...into the Hoverboard Lock, but King is right in the ropes. The champ looks for the flying Hoverboard Lock, only for King to backflip away. Royal Flush blocked...Back To The Future blocked...HOVERBOARD LOCK! COUNTERED TO AN ARIES BRAINBUSTER! Both men down! Flying hammerlock DDT by Kushida destroys the arm still more, allowing him to transition back to the Hoverboard Lock for a third time. Kenny escapes but cannot get his opponent up for the Royal Flush. Tanaka Punch NO SOLD! Spinebuster by King...and they are both down again. From their knees they pepper each other with big elbows and refuse to back down. Kushida kicks at the arm, but King counters the Tajiri Elbow...INTO THE ROYAL FLUSH! King wins the title at 16:22

Rating - **** - At the 14th Anniversary Show in Vegas, King was part of an All Night Express team which beat their bodies to hell in a No DQ Match with War Machine...only to have the fans sit on their hands because they went on after the Young Bucks had murdered the crowd with an insane spotfest. It must have been a cathartic experience for him to deliver this kind of match in front of a far more appreciate audience in the same building...and leave with his first ROH singles championship. It was far from the perfect match (a harsher critic would point out that Kenny's selling of the arm was atrocious) but they told a great story, paced it extremely well and built to a thrilling finish. As the match started we were told how King was more motivated than ever, whilst Kushida was battling fatigue as a champion in both ROH and New Japan - crossing the globe from Japan to Europe to the US and contesting elite-level matches. King's hunger shone through here - continually finding ways to escape Kushida's famed Hoverboard Lock and repeatedly fighting to hit his Royal Flush finish. Kenny has returned from his reality TV stint looking, as I just said, extremely hungry. The jury is out on whether he has the chops to sustain a babyface push at this level, but this was great. Kushida, by the way, is an absolute freak. In 2017 few, if anyone, can have been better than him from an in-ring performance perspective. Even this short ROH TV Title run has brought us Kushida/Scurll, Kushida/White, Kushida/Titan and now Kushida/King which have all been superb (on top of the killer matches he'd already had with Jay Lethal and Silas Young during the War Of The Worlds 2017 Tour!).

This bitter rivalry gave birth to a war which has raged for a year. Silas was fed up at what he perceived to be preferential treatment that Sinclair doled out to their 'golden boy'. He produced one of the feel-good moments of 2017 when he beat Lethal in his hometown of Milwaukee at Unauthorized, but the issue didn't end there. Jay got a win back over him at Best In The World - but the night belonged to Silas when he and Beer City Bruiser viciously attacked Lethal's ribs, causing to miss 'more than a month' of competition. When Lethal did return he was given Bruiser in a No DQ Match...and promptly destroyed BCB's leg in a vengeful act of violence. The feud went international when they engaged in a wild Street Fight in Edinburgh during the War Of The Worlds UK Tour. Young was again the victor that night. Who leaves Vegas as the victory with the bragging rights? Who will be the last (real) man standing?

They tease starting it as a wrestling match but within seconds they are out on the floor trading punches. Lethal hits a superplex off the guardrail before the 90-second mark is reached. Young responds with a vertical suplex on the floor as well. Lethal gets up, exposes some of the hard wood floor of the building and gives Young a Russian legsweep on it. He opens up a table on the floor...but it takes too long and Silas hits back with a suplex on the apron. The Last Real Man rips Bobby Cruise's belt away from him, only for Jay to grab it and flog Silas with it. And SILAS YELLS FOR MORE! Lethal wears him the f*ck out with the belt! Beer City Bruiser tries to hobble out and help - getting in a few punches as the camera zooms in on Silas' body now covered in welts. Young is arranging the table on the floor, seemingly looking to recreate the Best In The World table spot. Bruiser's face and selling of the leg as Young orders him up the ropes is utterly brilliant. TOP ROPE FROG SPLASH THROUGH A TABLE ON THE FLOOR...F*CKING MISSES! Bruiser is dead! LETHAL ACE CRUSHERS SILAS THROUGH ANOTHER TABLE! Both men barely beat the ten-count after that. Silas grabs the leather belt used so brutally on him earlier...and goes to town on Lethal! With the former World Champion on the ropes he blasts him with a Killer Combo. When Lethal answers the ten-count on that Young starts hammering him in the back and ribs with a chair. LETHAL COMBO THROUGH THE CHAIR! He starts smashing Young's leg with a chair, just as he did to Bruiser on television. In kicking Lethal away Silas accidentally knocks Todd Sinclair over too. He knocks heads with Lethal - and Jay comes up bleeding. MISERY nailed! But the bloody Lethal refuses to stay down. LETHAL INJECTION BY SILAS! And again Jay crawls back up. The Last Real Man drags a ladder into the ring to finish him - but walks right into the Lethal Injection. Silas answers the ten-count...so Jay hits him with the Injection for a second time. To the floor Jay goes again - setting up the ladder out there then opening up a table in front of it. He tries to climb the ladder...but Young drills a chair into his ribs. Punching him in his gashed, bloody head - Young uses zip-ties to fasten Lethal to the top of the ladder. THEY BOTH FALL THROUGH THE TABLE! But since Lethal is tied to the ladder, he can't get up! Young crawls to his feet at nine...and is confirmed the last (Real) man standing at 21:25

Rating - **** - This was more gimmicky than some of their other matches, although in many ways that makes sense as this is supposed to be the final escalation and conclusion to a year-long rivalry. It didn't touch the Unauthorized match for emotion and drama...but it was a hell of a fight and probably told a tighter narrative than the Edinburgh match. Ordinarily I'm not a huge fan of outside interference, but bringing Bruiser out to reprise the Best In The World spot, only to have it blow up in his face, was a great payback spot for Lethal. I also thought the finish was incredibly inventive and violent - meaning Young gets a clean victory but giving Lethal some 'wiggle' room too. I didn't particularly like the ref bump. I don't know whether the bleeding after that was intentional or not...but the entire sequence felt hokey and out of keeping with the tone they set in everything else they did. This feud has been my favourite thing in ROH all year though - and I felt they blew it off well. Giving Silas the big win is another huge moment for him as well. Although - as I said with Punishment Martinez earlier - the kicker is how Delirious manages him from this point. My suspicion is he'll be back playing a grumpy midcard heel (which is how he started this feud) before you know it...

In Concord the Machine Guns and the Bucks contested a heated Tag Title Match, but we didn't a finish since The Addiction ran in and ruined it to spite the ROH fans. A brilliant sit-down interview with Sabin and Shelley frames the significance of this match. Shelley talks about their failure to win the Tag Titles in the past - be it against the Briscoes, the Kings Of Wrestling, or the Bucks and The Addiction. He says they've won gold everywhere else, and laments that the Bucks have hijacked and 'built upon' the style that the Machine Guns helped to pioneer. They want to be the 'franchise team'. They feel they still have what it takes to gun down the Young Bucks...

The Machine Guns are, of course, treated like outright heels by the Bullet Club-loving crowd, and have their ring introduction loudly boo'd. The champs look for the IndyTaker in the first minute...then spit gum in Shelley's face when he blocks it. Nick tags and is too quick for Sabin, so Chris shuts him down with a backbreaker. Next they run through an awesome sequence where both teams keep countering each other's double-team combo moves. It gets almost zero reaction from the crowd, which is a shame, because it was f*cking incredible! Nick takes a cheap shot at Shelley to get the advantage, then keeps Sabin at bay so they can now hit a couple of their signature double-teams. Sabin gives Nick a PK from the apron - sending the Bucks to the floor so the challengers can hit stereo pescados. Sabin, in particular, is revelling in being an outright heel for this audience. Dream Sequence nailed on Matt! Nick retaliates with a strike flurry that sends both Machine Guns reeling. Worst Case Scenario on Sabin! The Machine Guns attempt a Doomsday Missile Dropkick...but Matt BACKFLIPS INTO A SUPERKICK! Stereo Sharpshooters applied, driving Sabin and Shelley into the ropes. Nick accidentally blasts his own brother with a kick. SLICED BREAD #2 ON THE FLOOR by Shelley! Fans are actually chanting for the Machine Guns now! Sabin lands the through-the-legs tope, then returns to the ring for Skull & Bones on Matt. SWANTON BOMB by Nick to break the pin! Made In Detroit nailed...but only for 2. SUPERKICK DUEL! Paul Turner eats one as well, giving us our second ref bump in a row. The Addiction run in - ruining what had been a phenomenal match. Colt Cabana on commentary points out how against ROH's core principles this is! First they attack the Machine Guns - then turn their focus on the Bucks as well. They try to set up an Arabian Press Best Meltzer Ever, but find it blocked. The Bucks and the Machine Guns join forces to hit a DOUBLE INDYTAKER ON THE FLOOR! Daniels and Kazarian are done! Now the four competitors crawl into the ring to settle it like men. As ROH fans chant 'this is awesome' at a match that was just completely ruined. Superkicks by the Bucks. More Bang For Your Buck COUNTERED TO A SPRINGBOARD GERMAN SUPERPLEX BY SABIN! DOUBLE RUBIX CUBE! Sabin pins Matt to win the titles at 15:43

Rating - *** - Delirious is atrocious at his job. There, I said it. Why, oh why, does he insist on having every single major title change occur in matches with run ins, ref bumps and shenanigans like it's late-90's WCW? This isn't what ROH is supposed to be about. And the worst part is that these four were absolutely KILLING IT by themselves. They didn't need the goofball extra-curricular stuff to get over. The atmosphere was red-hot, the story of the ageing but wily Machine Guns taking the fight to the Young Bucks at the absolute peak of their powers was fantastic. They bounced off each other wonderfully; dancing back and forth with combination sequences and counters at a dazzling rate. The Machine Guns were delivering a vintage performance, the Bucks were at the exceptional level they always deliver at. The biggest testament I can pay their work is that, at the ten minute mark Sabin and Shelley, who were vehemently boo'd during the intros, were getting chants and pops - achieved solely through how f*cking GREAT they were in the ring. And that is what ROH is supposed to be. Cue Delirious bullsh*t, cue The Addiction - and worst of all, cue the fans F*CKING CHEERING IT! As I've said before, this isn't the ROH I fell in love with anymore, and the fanbase as it stands isn't one which enjoys the ROH product I remember. The double IndyTaker spot on the floor was cool. The moment they all got back into the ring saying 'lets finish this' was really cool. But they were already delivering great spots and cool moments. It didn't need the over-booking. For me this match, good as it was, was spoiled by Delirious' booking. And I say that SO often about major ROH matches. Somebody taking the belts off the Young Bucks should have felt like a big deal...and it doesn't. Because the booking sucks ass. Oh, and if the idea is to build to another Bucks/Addiction/Machine Guns Ladder War there are many better ways to get there than this. I was SO pissed off by the end of this one...

Minoru is one of my absolute favourite performers in NJPW. I don't always enjoy Suzuki-gun as a faction, but when Minoru himself is motivated and in a singles environment his matches are absolutely superb. I know people love the NJPW talent exchanges, but when the relationship became a regular thing the guys I wanted to see where Omega, Ibushi, Shibata and Suzuki (and Yuji Nagata). Now here he is, making his US debut to answer Cody's open challenge for a World Title shot. As ROH Champion Cody has been every bit as controversial as expected. Outspoken and ultra-confident - we've seen him contest stall-heavy messes against the likes of Frankie Kazarian and SANADA, but also a fantastic 2/3 Falls bout with Chris Daniels on Episode 307 of ROH on SBG. The big question here is 'how much an asshole will Cody be tonight...and will Suzuki rip his head off as a result'? His entrance, accompanied by wife Brandi and a gaggle of Vegas showgirls, suggests he isn't taking this seriously...

Piping generic piano music over Suzuki's entrance is absolutely sickening. His popularity is sufficient to split the Bullet Club popularity at least. Cody tries to make him kiss the ring...so Minoru BITES his finger and almost taps him out with an armbar. Rhodes runs to the floor, and is sent there again seconds later when Suzuki peppers him with strikes. The challenger lies down in the ring smirking as Cody hides behind his wife on the outside. When the champ returns Minoru boots him in the jaw...and again Cody leaves to hide behind his wife! This time he jumps out to trip Suzuki on the apron then put the boots to him on the floor. The issue is that Suzuki simply looks at him and demands to be hit harder! A dragon screw in the ropes works better, but as he follows in to capitalise Minoru nabs him for a hanging armbar! Cross armbreaker applied inside the ring, doing more damage to the champion. Rhodes counters a guillotine choke into a gourdbuster but is so wounded he can do little more than slump alongside his downed opponent. LeBell Lock applied, but he can't maintain the hold such is the damage done to his arm. Cody does still find time to randomly taunt Bryan Danielson though. Cross Rhodes COUNTERED to the Heel Hook. Into the Choke! Cody tries to fight it, and also blocks the Gotch Piledriver. Palm strikes...countered by the Disaster Kick. Cross Rhodes wins it at 12:29

Rating - *** - I've seen a lot of criticism of this match, and I don't know that's all justified. What we got of this match was actually very decent. The natural contrast between Suzuki and Cody's styles was fun to watch play out...and getting a clean win over Suzuki undoubtedly solidifies Cody's credentials as World Champion. The issue here isn't the match or the work, or the participants. It is, as ever with ROH, the booking and time management of these pay-per-views. Why fly Minoru Suzuki from Japan for a twelve minute match? How in the hell did we get to the point where there wasn't enough time left at this PPV to give them at least twenty?! Did we really need to pick this evening to have two Young Bucks matches? Or two Briscoe/Bully matches? I didn't hate this at all. It certainly didn't annoy me as much as the Bucks/MCMG match that preceded it. But it goes down as an enormous disappointment. Minoru Suzuki facing Cody in a PPV main event - it shouldn't have been difficult to f*ck that up. But ROH did. 

With Suzuki KO'd, Cody forcibly makes him kiss the ring. 

Tape Rating - *** - Up until the final forty minutes this was shaping up to be one of the best ROH pay-per-views ever. The card was stacked and, by and large, delivered. Martinez/White, Kushida/King and Lethal/Silas were all fantastic. Scurll/Taylor wasn't much below that level either. I found the crossover with 'Being The Elite' awkward, but even the Six-Man Title Match had the double-whammy storyline advancement of Hangman's return and Jay's turn on Bully. This show is an easy watch, has a couple of memorable title changes and barely has a bad match all night. On an in-ring level this was a really good PPV and I want to make it clear that I commend and respect the work of the wrestlers. Unfortunately - and it is almost boring to keep saying this about ROH - the booking is just painful. The way Delirious overbooked the Tag Title switch was dreadful to watch. The fact that he couldn't lay out his card or book the show well enough to give Cody/Minoru more than twelve minutes is a complete embarrassment and a waste of Suzuki's airfare. The fact that I come away from the PPV wondering exactly how he'll screw up Martinez and Silas' pushes on the same night that they each scored huge feud-ending victories, is a sad indictment of the faith I have in that man as lead booker. And it is such a shame. The inadequacies in creative genuinely put a dampener on an excellent night of wrestling. How I miss Gabe. Or even Adam Pearce. Hell, probably even Cornette...

3) Punishment Martinez vs Jay White (****)

2) Silas Young vs Jay Lethal (****)

1) Kushida vs Kenny King (****)