ROH on Sinclair – Episode 095 – 13th July 2013
This is my first ROH review in some time. I’ve been really enjoying digging into WWF’s ppv’s from the year 2000 and, if I’m honest, my last ROH recap (Reclamation Night 2) really frustrated me in how poor it was. The workrate for much of the show wasn’t great but it was the booking I found particularly abject. Between that show, the inconsistencies in how the TV show is being booked generally and the decision to vacate the ROH World Title for the first time in the history of the promotion I am struggling to get motivated right now. That being said, some of the shows I now have sitting unwatched in my DVD rack have been getting real buzz so I’m anxious to get round to watching them. Also, to give credit where it’s due, we have three weeks until Steel Cage Warfare which should be great, and last week’s episode was very decent indeed. Kevin Kelly and Steve Corino are in Baltimore, MD.
QT Marshall vs Tommaso Ciampa
This is a grudge match almost a year in the making. It was at Survival Of The Fittest last year that RD Evans revealed QT Marshall as his newest project, instructing ‘God’s Gift’ to assault the already-injured Ciampa and take his spot in the tournament. Tommaso was on the shelf for months, but finally returned at Border Wars to deliver a wicked beating on Marshall and Evans. After an outstanding match with Michael Elgin at Best In The World (which he lost), Ciampa will be looking to end his weekend with an emphatic victory over his enemy tonight.
Ciampa almost makes this the shortest ROH match ever as he decimates Marshall with a knee strike for an instead nearfall. QT tries to flee but is speared through the guardrails by the enraged Sicilian Psychopath. Next Marshall tries to wrap Tommaso’s knee around the ringpost, only to be kicked away into another violent guardrail excursion. RD Evans distracts Ciampa as he rattles QT’s jaw with exposed knee strikes…enabling Marshall to hit a clothesline. QT tries to further provoke Ciampa by stealing his avalanche Air Raid Crash finisher…and when Tommaso knocks him away he springs back into a tremendous dropkick which traps his surgically repaired knee in the ropes. When we come back from commercials Ciampa is down on the outside cradling his knee whilst Marshall and Evans look on gloatingly. KNEEBREAKER, followed by a fierce chopblock. KNEE-FIRST BODY SLAM ON AN OPEN CHAIR! Ciampa can’t stand properly but still finds a way to throw punches at his opponent. He puts his good knee through Marshall’s face…but then sees his attempt at an Air Raid Crash blocked. Ciampa goes to the top. ONE-LEGGED SUICIDE DIVE TO THE FLOOR! That was so impressive that it brings Prince Nana out onto the stage to get a closer look. Marshall peppers Ciampa with right hands, then sees one countered into the Air Raid Crash. Evans saves QT from Project Ciampa…but is shoved into the ring by Nana! PROJECT CIAMPA ON EVANS! Marshall capitalises, locking in a Stretch Muffler! Ciampa escapes…KNEE STRIKE! KNEE STRIKE WITH THE BRACED KNEE! Ciampa collapses on top of Marshall to cement the victory at 10:09 (shown)
Rating - *** - I wasn’t expecting this one to be as good as it was. Certainly I have some issues with QT Marshall (who has been a comedy character for the last couple of months) suddenly being portrayed as a credible threat to Tommaso but the match itself was hugely exciting. Ciampa dominated (as he should). Marshall cheated, acted like a dick and attacked the knee (as HE should) – and we got the great pay-off of Nana and Tommaso getting one over the Barrister before Ciampa scored the clean win. It was a nice book end to the demise of The Embassy, and I hope Ciampa is now moved right up the card and well away from guys like QT. His performances since his return certainly warrant it
INSIDE ROH – Kevin Kelly announces that, after their war at Best In The World, Mark Briscoe is out injured, whilst Jay Briscoe will be defending the World Title against Matt Hardy next week carrying severe injuries himself. As a result of Mark’s injuries Kevin Steen is in Steel Cage Warfare on Team ROH. Elsewhere Michael Elgin demands to be in the main event at the next Toronto show (the debut at the renovated Maple Leaf Garden).
NEXT WEEK – Jay Briscoe defends the World Championship vs Matt Hardy
TWO WEEKS AWAY – ROH vs SCUM in Steel Cage Warfare
Up next Mike Bennett makes his way to the ring – to win an enhancement match against the debuting Nick Merriman in an impressive 11 seconds. He then pulls out the Ring Of Honor contract offer he’s been sitting on for months. Instead of signing it he invites Cheeseburger into the ring – planning to offer it to him instead. Of course, it’s a set-up to attack the hapless ROH Dojo graduate. As he dishes out the beating, Brutal Bob tries to pull Bennett off him…so Mike decimates his trainer with the Box Office Smash. He proclaims that ‘The Prodigy is dead’ then walks out. So has he signed or not?
It’s supposed to be main event time, but Jay Briscoe makes his presence known. His back and shoulder are heavily bandaged, he was indeed reinjured at Best In The World – but he doesn’t want to forfeit the title and will be here next week to defend it against Hardy. ‘WHAT DOES THIS MEAN???’ – Kevin Kelly. I think it means he’ll be in the SCHEDULED MAIN EVENT next week Kev. Anything can happen in ROH. Scheduled main events. Over the top commentary. Pointless promo skits which take value TV time from their wrestling matches…
reDRagon vs Caprice Coleman/Cedric Alexander – ROH Tag Title Match
The C&C WrestleFactory have been on the cusp of achieving great things in the Ring Of Honor tag division for some time, but for some reason whenever they get a shot at the belts something seems to go wrong. There’s always some interference, or there is always a third team booked in the match. They just want a straight forward opportunity to test their skills against the team currently sitting at the top of the mountain. Is this to be their night?
O’Reilly and Cedric start with some pretty slick exchanges – which Alexander gets the better of it seems. Kyle has to retreat to his corner to bring Fish in. Bobby locks up with Coleman, quickly eating the jumping leg lariat from Caprice for 2. The challengers have started strongly and emphasise that point as they counter some reDRagon double team attempts into a double dropkick. Caprice rolls off Bobby in the corner for a moonsault to the floor! Cedric sprints at the ropes next, and with the champs expecting the somersault plancha he FAKES THEM OUT with a tope suicida instead! We go to commercials from there, and come back with the challengers still dominating. We’ve also been joined by the American Wolves who are pulling a Prince Nana and watching from the entrance stage. O’Reilly manages to catapult Coleman out of the ring into the path of Fish – who plants him with a spear into the rails. MISSILE DROPKICK OFF THE APRON! And Kyle is even up in time to plant Cedric with a lariat on the floor too! The Wolves get into an argument with Steve Corino…leading to Cliff Compton and Rhett Titus coming out to jump them. Adrenaline RUSH (TD & ACH) appear to randomly add to the brawl meaning there is chaos at ringside. In the ring O’Reilly puts Alexander in a cross armbreaker, only for Coleman to save with a diving headbutt. Fish hits a back drop driver on Cedric for another nearfall. Security is at ringside trying to separate all the wrestlers who aren’t involved in the match, whilst in the ring C&C hit the IRISH AIR RAID for 2! Alexander celebrates with a RANDOM SOMERSAULT PLANCHA ON EVERYONE! Fish saves O’Reilly from Overtime then joins Kyle in the ring for Chasing The Dragon. The champs retain at 09:57 (shown)
Rating - ** - Another potential breakout match for C&C ends in a bit of an over-booked mess. I get what ROH are looking to accomplish: that being putting over the competitiveness of their expanding tag division. But when you’re doing that at the expense of putting on title matches people actually want to see then you’re pretty much cutting the legs out from under it before you even get started. Some of the action was decent, although there was no flow. reDRagon did some heel stuff, C&C just threw random spots around. Alexander abandoning his partner to hit a random flip to a load of guys who weren’t even involved in the match was completely retarded and meant it finished on a bit of a downer too.
Tape Rating - *** - I’ll be generous with this rating, as I actually felt the show, on the whole, was decent. I also think a lot of fans may actually have enjoyed the main event more than I did. It didn