McXal's Reviews

The focal point of ROH's emergency from Covid-19 shutdown has been the Pure Title Tournament. Weeks of gruelling competition has seen sixteen competitors cut down to our final two who meet tonight with the Pure Championship on the line. Jonathan Gresham vs Tracy Williams isn't necessarily the final fans were expecting...but you won't find two more deserving participants. And if that weren't enough we also have EC3's in-ring debut, teaming with the Briscoes to face Shane Taylor and his associates the Soldiers Of Savagery. Quinn McKay, Ian Riccaboni and Caprice Coleman welcome us to Baltimore, MD.

You can find my previous Pure Tournament Reviews below:

Quinn McKay announces that both Matt Taven and Vincent have been issued fines for their recent conduct and actions...

The Briscoes and Shane Taylor are familiar with each other and have fought multiple times over the past few years. For Moses and Kaun of the SOS, getting a chance to lock horns with the Briscoes is a serious opportunity to increase their stock and one they'll be looking to grasp. Of course, the big story is the ROH in-ring debut of EC3. He has announced he wants to fight the best that ROH has, listing the names of potential opponents and omitting Taylor. In response Shane triggered a heated backstage argument, resulting in the match we'll see tonight...

ROH didn't use the Covid shutdown to replace the Briscoes terrible entrance music sadly. EC3 starts for his team, but Taylor refuses to face him and sends Kaun instead. Carter showcases his power...so Kaun tries to punch his lights out. Mark asks for - and gets - a tag. He uses his speed and experience to make Kaun look rather foolish. Moses Maddox makes the difference for his team; lifting his partner into a double tackle which flattens Mark in the corner. Jay quickly rectifies things by joining his brother to steamroll through Moses. During the commercials Mark laid Kaun out on the floor with a pescado, bringing Taylor in to destroy him with a Tower Of London. Big knee strike rattles Jay's jaw for a 2-count...before he hands off to the SOS to put a beating on the former World Champion. Taylor gets distracted by throwing slaps at EC3 though, allowing Jay to escape his team's clutches and tag Mark back in. Cannonball off the apron from Maddox to Jay! TOP ROPE CORKSCREW SENTON to the floor by Mark! Taylor avoids Froggy Bow and hits GREETINGS FROM 216! Taylor pins Mark to score a huge victory at 08:14 (shown)

Rating - ** - I'm glad Shane Taylor got the win here. He was getting a big push before the pandemic and I was concerned they were going to have him be an immediate doormat to put EC3 over. Clearly EC3 is a big money player in the new ROH, but in six-man action it was nice to see Taylor presented as a real threat. He was, in some ways, the highlight of the match in how he bludgeoned and destroyed all who crossed his path. Aside from him, this felt like a rather generic TV-format six-man tag. The finish was exciting, EC3 was enigmatic and well-protected...but nothing felt like essential viewing and it certainly comes across as an inauspicious debut for EC3 himself. 

Tracy Williams admits that his past in ROH is littered with mistakes and failures...but feels that being on a 'world stage' vying for the Pure Championship with someone he considers a great contemporary and rival in Gresham is where he is 'meant to be'. Each of his opponents has pushed him to the limit but he proved his worth by tapping Lethal out. Even if he and Gresh 'share the same ethos', he thinks he will be the man leading 'The Foundation' come the end of the night...

Jon Gresham uses his interview time to agree that he and Tracy share the same outlook. They want to restore the identity and honour to a company which has lost itself in recent years. But he still believes that HE is the best 'pure professional wrestler' in the world. Their goal is achieved, regardless of who wins, the Pure Title is 'coming home to The Foundation' however Gresh thinks he is the best and plans to beat Hot Sauce this evening.

The winner tonight will leave Baltimore as ROH's first reigning Pure Champion since 2006 when Bryan Danielson defeated Nigel McGuinness to unify it with the World Championship. Gresham has dealt with the weight and pressure of expectation throughout the tournament. An immensely skilled technician; he has called for the return of the Pure Championship  for years and has re-modelled himself as 'The Foundation'; a focal point for pure professional wrestlers to rally around and restore the integrity to Ring Of Honor. Despite that pressure, and despite picking up a leg injury along the way, he has beaten Wheeler Yuta, Matt Sydal and Josh Woods to make it here...and desperately wants to be Pure Champion so he can rebuild the promotion in the name of pure wrestling. As I said last week, his opponent is the MVP of the tournament however. Tracy Williams spent all of 2019 working through nagging shoulder injuries, and his opponents have weakened that body part again throughout the tournament. But his gutsty, hard-fought wins over Rust Taylor, Fred Yehi and Jay Lethal have all been outstanding. His win over Lethal was a bracket-buster which denied people the Lethal vs Gresham final they'd been expecting. Just one more win will see him as the man who gets to rebuild ROH in the name of pure wrestlers everywhere...

Both men are introduced as 'representing The Foundation'. Tracy is back to wearing the shoulder support which he wore throughout 2019. Despite their injuries they quite literally sprint across the ring at each other so they can lock-up and start trading holds. First blood to Tracy who hiptosses Gresh over the top rope...but that only leads to a frenetic and intense chain-wrestling exchange on the outside! Back inside the ring Williams makes an early move at working the arm, potentially to set up with the Crossface. Gresham is more than capable of working his way free and for the first time he starts attacking Williams' arms. Keen to protect his pre-existing injury, Tracy is quick to utilise his first rope-break to keep The Octopus at bay. He locks onto a cravat with such ferocity that even Gresham needs a break to escape (and protect his neck from being softened up for the Crossface). SPEAR by Gresh! A big, uncharacteristic move from The Octopus! It hurts his neck but really catches Williams off guard. Jon scoots away from the turnbuckles as Hot Sauce teases that turnbuckle DDT. Gresh looks for another spear, but this time Tracy is ready to block it! He uses is height and striking power to frustrate Gresham; annoying him so much that he actually tries to nip-up off the canvas and exacerbates his own pre-existing knee injury. Bridging German gets 2 for Gresh...but seemingly can't maintain the bridge due to his knee and is clocked with a lariat. In the end both men collapse over the top rope and lie in a sweaty mess on the arena floor. Williams tries a swinging DDT...Gresham blocks...so Tracy DUMPS him with a brainbuster instead! Crossface locked in! Gresh screams in pain as he desperately fights to utilise his second rope-break (as many as he's used in all three previous rounds apparently). EVEREST GERMAN by Gresh, dropping Williams right on his bad shoulder! RUNNING ELBOWS get 2. He maintains hold of the injured arm and puts it in a kimura! Octopus Stretch blocked...but Williams is too injured to hit the Piledriver. ONE-ARMED PILEDRIVER INSTEAD! Gresh has to use his last rope-break to kick out of that. Williams tears off his shoulder support in a rage...only for Gresh to grab his arm for the OCTOPUS STRETCH! TRACY TAPS! Gresham is the Pure Champion at 14:07 (shown).

Rating - **** - Whilst it wasn't either man's 'best match' in the tournament it was a punchy, fitting finale to what has been an excellent eight weeks of solid pure wrestling. The injuries each combatant picked up along the way were referenced in the final but, bravely I felt, they weren't the main focus. Instead the story here was of 'The Foundation'; two immensely talented and like-minded technical wrestlers largely cancelling each other out. They battled for supremacy in and out of the ring, the momentum veered from man to man repeatedly. It had been billed as two of the best 'pure professional wrestlers' on the planet and they delivered on that premise. Gresham has proven himself a ruthless technician, capable of putting opponents away quickly, suddenly and without mercy from multiple situations. That paid off in the final as he was the first finalist to find a definitive way to exploit the pre-existing injury of his rival, securing him victory. 

Jay Lethal rushes to the ring to celebrate with his tag partner. Gresham himself stares at the Pure Title belt as if he doesn't quite believe what he has accomplished. Pyro blasts from all sides of the empty arena as the show goes off air

Tape Rating - *** - Whilst the STP vs Briscoes/EC3 tag felt a little flat in my estimation, the rest of the episode dedicated to the Pure Title Tournament Final really delivered. Great sit-down interviews, the intriguing revelation that Gresham and Williams are actually allies in 'The Foundation'...then the intense, gripping final itself. I can't call it the best match in the tournament, but it felt like a fitting conclusion to a super eight weeks of wrestling. When ROH convened for this TV taping they faced many questions about the future of the company. There is still more work to be done of course, but after years of questionable creative decisions and a disastrous 2019 (for so many reasons) Ring Of Honor deserve credit for the success of these episodes. Every wrestling promotion is grappling with the harsh realities of running shows in the midst of a Covid-19 pandemic. Few have grasped the opportunity to refocus, revitalise and actually IMPROVE their product in the way ROH have done for the past two months...

7) Jonathan Gresham vs Matt Sydal (*** - Episode 473)

6) Josh Woods vs Kenny King (**** - Episode 471)

5) Jonathan Gresham vs Tracy Williams (**** - Episode 476)

4) Jonathan Gresham vs Wheeler Yuta (**** - Episode 469)

3) Tracy Williams vs Rust Taylor (**** - Episode 472)

2) Tracy Williams vs Fred Yehi (**** - Episode 474)

1) Tracy Williams vs Jay Lethal (**** - Episode 475)