McXal's Reviews

The Global Wars Espectacular Tour ends this evening and although there are some potentially decent singles matches on the card (Scurll/Hendry could be fun), the focus tonight is very much on tag team wrestling. The Allure face Kelly Klein and Stacy Shadows in Women Of Honor tag action, Matt Taven and Vincent face top World Title contenders Jeff Cobb and Rush in the main event, Lethal and Gresham face Jay's old rival Silas Young and his protege Josh Woods, whilst in trios action we have another CMLL lucha exhibition - plus the Briscoes teaming with Barbaro Cavernario to face Lifeblood in a preview of Death Before Dishonor's Tag Title Match. Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman and Colt Cabana call the action in Milwaukee, WI.

We start the night with a clash between two heavyweight tag teams, both of whom have much bigger priorities than this match. The Bouncers are feuding with The Kingdom, in particular Vinny Marseglia. Brody and PCO are part of the Villain Enterprises faction which is engaged in a spectacular series of matches with arch-rivals Lifeblood. 

Bruiser and Brody start, skipping the formalities and clubbing the sh*t out of each other. That is until BCB decides he needs to sell his t-shirt so does his 'I can't bite' skit, which was sort of funny once, but now he's done it in every match for a year or more has become incredibly tedious. Watching PCO and Milonas thud into each other as they trade tackles is incredibly fun though. TOP ROPE SUICIDE DIVE to the outside by Bruiser! He tries to follow that with a cannonball on the floor, but King moves causing him to crash into the guardrail. The Villains show him how it's done - getting Milonas down in the corner and taking turns flattening him with cannonball sentons! He is too heavy for them to lift for a double chokeslam...and builds up enough momentum to wipe out both Villains with a crossbody block. Twisting Vader Bomb from Bruiser to PCO...and now BCB does get to hit his cannonball off the apron. Milonas tries to throw Brody out of the ring - but he recovers to hit a tope suicida on Bruiser instead! Milonas then back body drops PCO into a somersault plancha to the floor! Kingpin teases a dive of his own - but thankfully is intercepted by some clubbing lariats from King. The Brawler takes Brody to the top rope for Last Call...but doesn't see that Vinny Marseglia has run out and pulled Bruiser to the floor. POWERBOMB from Brody to Milonas, followed by the PCO-SAULT! Villain Enterprises bag the win at 10:04

Rating - *** - I really enjoyed this. It certainly wasn't pretty, but ten minutes of big lads trying crazy dives and clubbing the crap out of each other is always rather entertaining. They sensibly didn't try much traditional wrestling or formulaic tag work - instead starting hot with lots of big strikes, and never really slowing down. It definitely made for a much more lively opener than the two Top Prospect Tournament semi-finals that we got on the first two nights of the tour.

Why is this a title match? Taylor tries to explain it by saying if Dysfunction can last five minutes then he will hand the title over...but it remains a total joke. Why did Joe Hendry have to wrestle a fifteen-minute Proving Ground Match to get a title shot yesterday, when this newcomer just gets handed one? This kind of crap is what destroys the credibility of a championship. Dysfunction is a veteran/journeyman independent worker in the region - and has been placed into this match because Taylor wasn't initially on the card, and felt disrespected by ROH.

As you'd expect, given that Taylor has offered to forfeit the title if Dysfunction can last five minutes, the veteran decides his best approach is to run away and stall. To lure him into the ring Shane offers him free punches...then rocks the challenger with a headbutt and a lariat. Greetings From 216 sees Taylor to victory at 02:11

Rating - DUD - No issue with the squash victory for Taylor, but I have a major issue with this being a championship match. I struggled to get past how annoying I found that to be honest.

We've almost made it to Death Before Dishonor, where we will finally see Kelly Klein and Angelina meet with the WOH Title on the line. That means this is the final chance for The Allure to soften up The Gatekeeper. Their job is made somewhat more difficult by Klein's recruitment of Shadows as her partner. Stacy is a strong, powerful presence capable of manhandling either Mandy or Angelina.

Love and Klein start, surprisingly enough with a tense and competitive wrestling exchange. Shadows tags in and tosses The Allure around with effortless body slams. They try to walk out - but find their way blocked by The Gatekeeper, then get massacred on the floor by Shadows. Mandy retaliates by hiptossing Stacy into the guardrails! It immediately changes the tone of the match, giving The Allure all the time they need to isolate Stacy. Leon soon gets over-confident though and fails to execute a vertical suplex, allowing Shadows to make the hot tag. The champ makes a beeline for Angelina, as Leon side-steps Shadows for a second time, on this occasion causing her to ping off the ringpost. Cannonball off the apron by Leon! Kelly lays Love out with a DDT...and wins at 07:03

Rating - * - Filler, not particularly exciting and disappointingly flat considering this is a feud that has been running since G1 Supercard and we're building up to what should be a hotly anticipated championship grudge match. Kelly and Angelina have to carry most of the blame for that. Neither of them worked this match with much intensity, and never gave off the impression that they were bitter enemies desperate to fight one another. In fact, most of the energy here came from their back-up acts. Shadows was actually rather lively as Klein's enforcer and took a couple of hefty bumps, whilst all of the aggression and risk coming out of The Allure was coming from Mandy. 

Klein stands over Angelina and poses with the belt - and doesn't see Mandy rushing in to blast hairspray in her face again. Love decks Klein, steals her title and raises it aloft. She gestures that it will be her belt come Death Before Dishonor

EARLIER TONIGHT - Rhett exchanges pleasantries with Caprice Coleman and Mark Haskins, who look pleased to see him. Kenny King walks in and wants to know why Titus is being friends with Haskins, when the Lifeblood-member submitted him in Dearborn. Titus walks away, but not before reminding Kenny that he got 'knocked out by a punk-ass cameraman'...

This is a big match to sneak onto the undercard here. Hendry has recently signed a contract, and has already secured himself a TV Title shot too. He is, essentially, treading the same path that Marty walked before him. The Villain also came out of the UK scene, spent a little time with TNA/Impact then signed a full-time deal with Ring Of Honor. Clearly bragging rights are up for grabs here, but as both men have aspirations to be World Champion pulling out big wins in high pressure bouts like this is essential.

The bell rings and Hendry instantly backs The Villain into the ropes then takes him to the canvas. It's an immediate demonstration of the fact that he has the same grappling skills as Marty, but also more height and weight behind him. Scurll responds by wrestling Hendry to the ground to demonstrate his own skill. He actually knocks Joe out of the ring...and when Hendry moves to evade the Apron Superkick Scurll instead gets him on the canvas and stomps the arm. On the floor he sits Joe in a chair and nails him with a running uppercut into the guardrails. Next he looks for a tornado DDT...but Hendry CATCHES him and muscles him over for a vertical suplex. He then Irish whips Marty into the buckles with such force that the Englishman collapses. Cobra clutch applied, with a focus on wrenching the neck. Running uppercuts by Marty to escape...then the Apron Superkick scores when Joe leaves the ring. Just Kidding into a folding powerbomb gets 2. Black Plague blocked and Hendry levels his opponent with a double underhook facebuster. Freak Of Nature blocked, setting Scurll up for the Kobashi-plex. Marty seems to hurt his leg looking for a Package Piledriver - and Hendry INSTANTLY pounces on it by wrenching the leg into the Hendry Lock (ankle lock). Scurll makes the ropes...so Hendry drops him with a Codebreaker for 2. He looks set to hit the Freak Of Nature, only to be distracted by Dalton Castle's entrance theme. Castle is carried onto the stage by a suited flock of Boys, and as Hendry watches on furiously Marty sneaks up behind him for the Chickenwing! Hendry taps at 13:38

Rating - *** - Like Hendry/Taylor from Night 2, this was a solid midcard bout. It felt like they had higher gears they could have gone into, and that a lot of the wrestling felt a little too conservative (for my liking at least). However, even working within themselves they had some great ideas though and left enough on the table here that I came away wanting to see a rematch. Hendry having a lot of the same experience and influences as Marty, but being stronger and taller, gave the match a unique chemistry since there aren't many wrestlers in ROH who could have THIS kind of match with Marty. I found the finish somewhat frustrating though, particularly since we'd already had interference and a run in influencing the conclusion of the conclusion of the between with Bouncers vs Villains. It has been a solid start to his full-time ROH career for Hendry; this weekend he has had lots of time in the ring, he has worked multiple high-profile opponents and given glimpses of his charisma and showmanship too. He has so much potential...if ROH could just help him connect with their fanbase (who thus far seem largely confused, indifferent and/or silent to everything Hendry has done).

After an Honor Club commercial we return to the ring to see that Brian Johnson has crashed the show and rants about not being booked despite being the Top Prospect. He starts throwing his gear into the crowd in a rage...but is interrupted by Maria Manic. Johnson bails, so once again Maria beats on ringside staff and security personnel. ROH have started playing her music whilst they run these segments, presumably looking to evoke some of the lawless dangerousness of a New Jack match.

Riccaboni points out that this tag match pits two teams with a mentor/student relationship against each other. Both Lethal and Gresham have feuded with Silas Young; Lethal's probably longer and more violent, but Gresh's feud with the Last Real Man became a genuinely transformative experience. He realised that honour in ROH was dead, and resolved to become more cut-throat and selfish; revealing a more aggressive and violent style and a carefree approach to following the rules - which has pissed Jay Lethal off and caused dissension between them. Woods and Silas are undefeated as a team, even if they haven't always seen eye to eye either. They do appear to be having a positive impact on each other too. Young's mentorship has seen Woods become more dangerous and start winning big matches for the team, whilst Josh's happy smile and positive attitude has been rubbing off on Silas, to the extent that he finally shook hands to end his issue with former tag partner Beer City Bruiser. Lethal has spoken publicly about wanting to win the Tag Titles for the first time, and has pinfall victories over both Briscoes in 2019. He knows his team just need a couple more high profile wins to cement a title shot.

Young orders his protege to start for their team, and since Gresham is in the ring with him they immediately go to ground for a delicious grappling sequence. Fans seem to like that, so Gresh walks away and tags out - hopping off the apron as a perplexed Jay Lethal steps in to replace him. Woods absolutely dominates Lethal on the mat, countering everything Jay tries and coming close to submitting him with an armbar. Even Lethal shakes hands with 'The Goods' in admiration for his skill, much to the annoyance of Silas - who immediately insists that Josh tag out. Young and Gresham pick up where they left off earlier in their rivalry; Silas playing the 'Technician Of Honor' and perpetually trying to throw Gresh off his game with verbal taunts. They battle to a stalemate, with such quality that Woods is essentially hopping up and down on the apron with excitement. Young offers to shake Gresham's hand to show him the same respect Lethal showed Josh...but The Octopus punts the hand away and starts striking. He throws a piece of wrist-tape down to distract referee Todd Sinclair...then back-fists Silas in the balls behind Todd's back! Lethal fumes, tags Gresham out...and gets even more irritated when Gresh simply low-bridges Young and continues the attack on the floor! Lethal and Gresham argue - and the result is that Young lays Jay out with a cutter. Tag to Woods, who charges in throwing suplexes at Lethal for fun. He then OBLITERATES Lethal with kicks, booting him clean out of the ring, where Silas is waiting to hit a LARIAT on the floor! CATAPULT KNEE STRIKE COMBO gets 2 for Woods and Silas! Lethal is struggling - and absorbs a series of rolling gutwrench suplexes from The Goods. But he shows his courage by getting back up and landing a Lethal Combination, which sets up a hot tag to Gresham. A chop duel ensues between Silas and Gresh...then Jon leapfrogs Silas, causing him to hit a spear on Woods! Silas tries to punish him with a back suplex - only for Gresh to back-flip off his shoulders into a moonsault on Josh as well! Bridging German on Silas gets 2. All four men take turns blasting each other with strikes, until Gresham delivers a stalling German to Woods and Lethal delivers a tope suicida to the Last Real Man. Quebrada - into a tope suicida by Gresh! Hail To The King COUNTERED TO A CROSS ARMBREAKER! Lethal counters back to the Figure 4! COUNTERED TO THE ANKLELOCK! LEG CAPTURE GERMAN! Gresham breaks the pin! KNEE STRIKE KILLER COMBO by Josh and Silas! Young threatens to bring a steel chair in...so Gresham hands Lethal one as well! Jay refuses to use it - MISERY BY SILAS! He beats Lethal again at 17:12

Rating - **** - This match typified what ROH's style should have looked like by 2019. It got enough time to deliver something substantial, without getting bloated and running long. It featured a tight narrative, spotlighting two teams who's tag team dynamics appear to be going in contrasting directions. The wrestling was technically proficient, whilst also being exciting, well-paced and serving the wider story of the relationships between the two duos. In short it was a superb wrestling match, with minimal bullsh*t. I spent the second half of the match trying to work out if Silas and Josh were fortunate enough to have effortless and natural tag team chemistry, or if Lethal and Gresham are SO good that they made it seem that way (it's probably a little bit of both in truth). Regardless, this felt VERY different to most matches on the Global Wars Espectacular but turned into one of the best bouts of the weekend.

Gresham and Lethal argue about who is responsible for their loss. The brilliance here is that both believe they are right and have a completely legitimate reason for doing so - Lethal blaming Gresh and his rule-breaking for distracting them, but Gresham pointing out Lethal should have used the chair since Silas already had one. It's simple, but very effective booking and absolutely right that we praise Delirious and whomever else is responsible for it. My favourite line is when Lethal says 'I'm not a cheater', and Gresh immediately retorts with 'you were in House Of Truth' (where he and Truth Martini routinely broke the rules). It quickly degenerates and the two come to blows - eventually needing to be separated by referees and security. FANTASTIC segment...

Ian rather generously bills this as an 'international dream match'...and international it certainly is. Triton is one of the CMLL contingent in for the weekend, has looked lively on every show and has returned to his impossibly skimpy trunks 'by popular demand' (after ditching them last night). Flip is now a member of Villain Enterprises, but is still feeling his way back into action after being dogged by injuries in 2019; most recently hurting his elbow by putting Tracy Williams through a table at Best In The World. Black is friends with Lifeblood, so he'll no doubt be looking to put a beating on Flip in particular.

Gordon walks out and takes a seat at ringside, refusing to wrestle from the bell. Black and Triton leave him to it, fighting among themselves in a fast-paced and exciting opening exchange. In truth Triton fights as hard to stay in his trunks as he does to stay in the match though. Black eventually leaves Triton and flies and Gordon with a tope suicida. DOUBLE SPRINGBOARD MOONSAULT TO THE FLOOR BY TRITON! Flip doesn't like the luchador stealing the spotlight, so dumps him into the barricades...but in the time it takes him to do that PJ gets back to his feet and hits him with a pescado. He looks to monkey flip Gordon...who tries to land on his feet and immediately collapses as if his knee has blown out again. Flip is immediately carried to the locker rooms for medical attention it seems. He isn't gone for long, sneaking back to the ring to attack both opponents from behind. He refuses to do a standing moonsault to irritate the fans - but does level Triton with a neckbreaker for 2 instead. Slingshot tornado DDT nailed as well, but when he tries a similar DDT on Black the Darewolf counters with a brainbuster. Springboard moonsault onto both men by PJ gets 2...although he does somewhat fall over and botch a tilta-whirl backbreaker on Triton moments later. Kinder Surprise by Flip - sets up a SPRINGBOARD FRANKENSTEINER by Triton! SPANISH FLY on Flip gets 2. He armdrags PJ, springboards off the ropes and transitions seamlessly into a flying headscissors on Gordon too. ROPE RUN SPRINGBOARD SUICIDE DIVE! Five Star Frog Splash (he literally does the RVD thumbs taunt) gets 2 for Triton! FLIP RIPS HIS MASK OFF! Whilst the ref tries to help Triton put his mask back on Gordon tries to use a chair...but is chased to the locker room by Tracy Williams! Triton moonsaults into PJ's boots and eats the springboard 450 Splash. Black wins at 12:13

Rating - *** - Triton was awesome here, to the extent that I came away feeling like he'd been under-utilised on this tour and I wanted to see more from him (in a wrestling sense, not in a physical sense - his attire means you can see quite enough of the gentleman). His lucha antics, combined with 'Villain Flip's new heel style meant this remained interesting for the full duration. PJ Black was comfortably the least interesting personality in the match. Even in victory his contributions will be forgotten quickly - whilst Triton's high-flying and Flip actually de-masking him will remain far more memorable.

This is billed as a classical Lucha Libre rudos vs tecnicos match. Volador and Stuka have already picked up a win as a team on this tour, beating The Kingdom's Matt Taven and Vinny Marseglia in Dearborn. It has been less successful for the rudo trio, who haven't picked up a win between them across the two nights of combat thus far.

The tecnicos are competing in matching sky blue outfits which is a nice touch. Stuka and Hechicero start and as two of the more powerful men in the match we begin a deceptively methodical pace. Hechi takes the first to his opponent with strikes and submissions, sensibly keeping him grounded. Volador and Rey in next, with Volador quickly ensuring that the pace livens up - dumping his foe to the floor with a headscissors. Okumura and Caristico in next - and it's another interesting match-up as the Japanese veteran tries to slow the former Sin Cara down...only to be taken out with a corkscrew pescado. Things get a little sloppy, with sequences not being timed particularly well and a few instances where a luchador sits in the ring almost instructing an opponent to hit them. The rudo trio hit a Leap Of Faith, then a flying cutter by Okumura gets 2. Stuka powers through all three opponents, then vacates so Volador and Caristico can take turns flying across the ring. TRIPLE DIVES TO THE FLOOR by the tecnicos! Hechi levels Volador with a climbing knee strike in the corner though - before draping him over the knees so Bucanero can hit him with a corkscrew senton. Caristico tags and finds ways to fight off both Rey and Hechicero simultaneously. Stuka then stacks up all three opponents in the corner for Volador to monkey flip him into a cannonball senton on top! Tower Of Doom spot from one corner...but Stuka steers clear and this the Torpedo Splash onto Hechicero instead. Caristico hits a tope suicida through Stuka's legs - and Stuka stays on the ropes to hit a springboard moonsault to the floor as well. Hechicero and Volador battle on the top rope, until Volador hits the springboard super rana! He wins it for his team at 13:11

Rating - ** - I'm not the biggest fan of Lucha Libre so it may be that this didn't resonate with me because I'm not the target market for this particular style of wrestling...but something about this felt incredibly laboured. There were countless instances where they didn't appear to be on the same page; guys would be waiting around for someone to hit a move on them, or move with uncertainty like they weren't clear on whether their opponent knew what was happening next. There wasn't a whole lot of substance to this, and if you're going to do a spot-filled exhibition style match then the execution needs to be perfect - and it was FAR from that here. Whether they were having an off night, whether they were taking it easy, or whether this just didn't land as a typical example of CMLL's product - I didn't particularly enjoy this one. It felt a world away from the speed, fluidity and ambition of the Dragon Gate WrestleMania weekend trios matches.

Silas Young and Josh Woods come back out, which the Milwaukee fans love - particularly since it is Young's birthday. Silas congratulates Josh on helping their team go 3-0 for the Global Wars Tour, then asks for The Bouncers (including Milwaukee's own Beer City Bruiser) to come out as well. He offers a handshake to Bruiser and wants to put their differences aside. Bruiser gets the fans to sing 'Happy Birthday'...at the end of which Silas attacks BCB. Vinny Marseglia runs out with a chair to take out Milonas as well. Josh Woods tries to stop it - but Silas and Vincent beat the sh*t out of The Bouncers. Silas zip-ties Milonas to the ropes...whilst Vinny busts Bruiser's mouth open with a wrench. He has apparently knocked one of Bruiser's remaining teeth out of his mouth, in scenes so violent that even Josh Woods decides to walk out. 

This is another preview for Briscoes vs Lifeblood for the Tag Titles at Death Before Dishonor. In Dearborn Bandido defeated Jay in a spectacular main event, indicating that the belts the Briscoes fought so hard to get back from GOD are in serious jeopardy once again. Haskins too has beaten former World Champions like Jay Lethal in recent shows. Tonight the Briscoes team with a different kind of wild-man, in CMLL's Barbaro Cavernario. Are they wild, chaotic and violent enough to overcome the experience edge that Lifeblood have after working as a group all year?

The Briscoes and Barbaro jump Lifeblood, clearing the ring and singling out Haskins to punish whilst at a numerical disadvantage. Williams shows his skill by snagging a blind tag on Haskins, and in seconds Lifeblood have turned the tables with a TRIPLE dropkick spot on Jay! Mark barrels in to help his brother out, throwing Bandido around as Jay literally walks away down the aisle buying time to recover. The Briscoes try to keep Bandido in their corner, looking to avoid the mistake that led to Williams tagging Haskins earlier. They fail - and again Tracy tags in. This time he engages Mark in a tempestuous strike exchange...until Mark feeds him into a lariat from brother Jay. All six men brawl on the floor; an environment which the Briscoes and the Caveman look far happier in. Cactus Elbow nailed by Mark! Flying Rocker Dropper back into the ring by Williams...before Bandido hits the Tornillo. Satellite DDT on Barbaro! CRISS-CROSS DIVES by Haskins and Tracy! PLANCHA OVER THE TURNBUCKLES by Bandido! Hammerlock suplex by Cavernario gets 2. Redneck Boogie on Bandido - but Haskins breaks the pin! POP-UP CUTTER from Bandido to Cavernario! He and Mark trade strikes, then Briscoe drops him with a fisherman buster for 2. Bandido blocks the Jay Driller, into the TURNBUCKLE DDT by Tracy! SIT-OUT SOLDIER ROLL COMBO! ELEVATED 450 SPLASH by Lifeblood! Mark and Barbaro break the pin. Ushigoroshi from Cavernario...and he then clobbers two thirds of Lifeblood straight out of the ring. It leaves him alone with Bandido - delivering the rebound Vader Bomb. Froggy Bow by Mark...gets 2! Doomsday Device blocked...X-KNEE on Mark! SUPERKICK/PILEDRIVER COMBO! MOONSAULT TO THE FLOOR BY BANDIDO! DOUBLE STOMP BY HASKINS! He pins Mark to win at 15:05

Rating - **** - This was a blast, filled with the kind of fluent and fast-paced spots and sequences that we failed to get from the all-CMLL trios match that preceded it. Lifeblood and the Briscoes have been in incredible form all year, and continued that into battle with each other. Bandido felt like the star here (perhaps unsurprisingly). Even before beating Jay two nights ago he felt like the 'main event' talent in Lifeblood and he showed all his skill and versatility here; whether brawling with Jay, striking with Mark or doing lucha spots with Barbaro. Having Haskins pins Mark to win was smart too, since it means we go into Death Before Dishonor with both challenging Lifeblood members possessing a pinfall victory over a Briscoe brother.

The final bout of the Global Wars Espectacular focuses on the big matches still to come for Matt Taven. He teams with Kingdom stable-mate Marseglia to face the next two contenders for his ROH World Championship. Having survived the challenge of Volador Jr. last night, he awaits Rush at Death Before Dishonor - hoping to end his undefeated streak just like he did to Cobb at Best In The World. However, if he survives Rush then a rematch with Cobb will take place on the Honor United 2019 Tour, after Jeff won Defy Or Deny at Honor For All. Marseglia is no stranger to Rush either and has fallen to him twice in singles bouts himself. He comes out still showing off Beer City Bruiser's tooth like a trophy...

Marseglia is wresting with Bruiser's dried blood on his face. Perhaps he is still on a high from that segment because he starts by trying to wrestle with Cobb - and is of course tossed around with ease. Taven tries to take Jeff out early with The Climax, only for the Juggernaut to flatten him with a powerslam. Rush tags...so Taven walks away, refusing to face him. Cobb comes back in too and entertains himself by throwing Marseglia around again. Riccaboni and Caprice spot that Rush and Cobb seem to be enjoying working as a team - taking turns to beat up Vincent and showing the kind of fluency as a team which saw them win Champions vs All-Stars together. Cobb tries to suplex Taven, only for Vinny to save his partner by giving Jeff an Ace Crusher (even whilst he holds Matt in the air). The Kingdom work hard to cut the ring in half and isolate the former Olympian. They land some major offensive strikes, like a Saito suplex from Vincent or a DDT from Taven but can't a way to put Cobb down. There is an air of inevitability as Cobb smashes through Marseglia with a lariat...and unleashes Rush to finally get his hands on the champion. The Kingdom try to double-team El Toro Blanco, but he has so much momentum he just destroys the pair of them. Bull's Horns fake-out bootscrape on Taven, with Cabana applying some psychology to it by pointing that Taven had his hands up to block it anyway. Side Effect/Aurora Borealis combo by The Kingdom gets 2. Helicopter Toss from Cobb to Taven! The champ is helped back by his partner and they deliver a Just The Tip/Redrum combo - and Rush has to break the pin this time. Jeff blocks the Acid Drop INTO TOUR OF THE ISLANDS! Cobb pins Vincent at 15:19 

Rating - *** - A functional main event, rather than a spectacular one. However, I was interested in the premise of Rush enjoying teaming up with Jeff Cobb. It made sense after they won Champions vs All-Stars together and because they have a common enemy in Taven, but given that - other than his brother - Rush has largely been a loner for his ROH run it was certainly intriguing. Beyond that, we were essentially just keeping all the World Title picture plates spinning. Rush and Taven were kept separate for most of the match, bar a couple of feisty (and mostly verbal) exchanges, whilst Cobb winning reminds us that he is the next in line for a title shot. 

Rush bumps fists with Cobb after the match, which is pretty much the first time he's shown respect to anyone else in ROH. Vincent suckerpunches Jeff, whilst Taven gets on the microphone to trash-talk Rush. He lists his accomplishments as champion - which already includes ending undefeated streaks. Rush tries to give him the Bull's Horns but is held back by Vinny so Taven can smack him across the head with the title belt. Taven adds insult to injury by hitting the Bull's Horns on Rush to end the show...

Tape Rating - *** - While nothing reached the level of Briscoe/Bandido from Dearborn, I felt this was perhaps the most consistent top-to-bottom show of the Global Wars Espectacular Tour. Sure there were a few matches that sucked, and the CMLL trios bout was a real disappointment - but there was plenty of decent wrestling to be found, with the superb Lethal/Gresham vs Silas/Woods match at its core. The kicker for me was that this show also featured some pretty significant storyline advancements - which have usually been absent on ROH's live shows for a long time. Now that they don't use TV tapings, I'd hoped these VOD shows would have more of an over-arching impact on the direction of the product and that was the case here. The post-match Lethal/Gresham segment, for instance, was superb. I didn't care quite as much for the Silas/Vinny/Bruiser stuff but it does at least cover up for TK O'Ryan's absence and give us another match on the Death Before Dishonor card. I have to be honest and say that I enjoyed the Global Wars Espectacular Tour more than many of the recent ROH/NJPW shows. The relationship between Ring Of Honor and CMLL felt a lot more even-footed, and that allowed for ROH's stars and angles to be prioritised (as opposed to pushed aside so Naito, EVIL & SANADA and Goto can half-ass matches for the 20th time). The events FELT more like authentic Ring Of Honor events with guest stars, as opposed to the ROH guys being cannon-fodder for NJPW talents. On their own none of the three shows really set the world on fire - but they yielded plenty of solid content, suitable for the 'hardcore' fanbase who will watch the VOD and for the more casual fan who will catch the clip-show on television.

3) Marty Scurll vs Joe Hendry (***)

2) Tracy Williams/Mark Haskins/Bandido vs Jay Briscoe/Mark Briscoe/Barbaro Cavernario (****)

1) Silas Young/Josh Woods vs Jay Lethal/Jonathan Gresham (****)

7) Shane Taylor vs Joe Hendry (*** - Night 2)

6) Matt Taven/Vinny Marseglia vs Volador Jr./Stuka Jr. (**** - Night 1)

5) Tracy Williams/Mark Haskins/Bandido vs Briscoe Brothers/Barbaro Cavernario (**** - Night 3)

4) Tracy Williams/Mark Haskins/Bandido vs Flip Gordon/Brody King/PCO (**** - Night 2)

3) Matt Taven vs Volador Jr. (**** - Night 2)

2) Silas Young/Josh Woods vs Jay Lethal/Jonathan Gresham (**** - Night 3)

1) Bandido vs Jay Briscoe (****1/2 - Night 1)