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At “Chikarasaurus Rex: King of Show”, it was announced that Smart Mark Video would have the DVD up for sale TOMORROW! If you were going to buy the DVD anyway, this is an opportunity to go into the show spoiler-free. While I am particularly proud of this edition of my column, I’d rather you buy it without spoilers if that is what you wish. Just a friendly heads up. Click the cover below to purchase the show!

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This edition of CHIKARMY Insider covers last night’s Chikara show “Chikarasaurus Rex: King of Show”, which has been confirmed as the biggest show in the history of the company. Among other exciting moments: two huge six-man tags featuring Chikara Pro talent taking on the stars of Dragon Gate, the reemergence of a certain cyborg long thought to be a figment of imagination, the announcement of the American and Chikara debut of a wrestling legend, and F.I.S.T. simultaneously kicks a member out and welcomes a new member to the family. Big thanks got to various Twitter users and Chikara101 members for little snippets of information and for a few pictures, but the biggest thanks goes to Jerome Cusson. He texted in the live results to me and even called me after the show with more info. What a guy! This event will be talked about for a very long time to come, that’s not the only thing you’ll get in this column. As a nice bonus, I’ve listed my TOP TEN Chikara vs. Dragon Gate Dream Matches for your viewing pleasure. 3…2…1…MAKE COLUMN GO NOW! *presses button*

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Chikarasaurus Rex: King of Show

July 25, 2010 ~ Philadelphia, PA

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1. Eight-Man Tag: The BDK (Donst/Sanchez/Dorado/Tursas) d. Frightmare & The Colony (14:31). Pinkie Sanchez pins Frightmare with the Burning Snicklefritz. Young Lions Cup VIII preview anyone? After the match, the lights begin to flicker and…Vökoder appears! OH MY. Pinkie has been complaining the last few months that Chikara fans are out of touch with reality, believing in robots and ants from the future. So the appearance of Vökoder caused the psycho Sanchez to lose his mind as the rest of the Bruderschaft stared in shock.

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2. Chikara vs. DG #1: Shingo Takagi d. Jimmy “Equinox” Olsen (10:02). Jimmy Jam took a nasty bump off of a dive and may have hurt his shoulder. Shingo killed him with the Pumping Bomber for the victory. Said to be a good match.

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3. Dream Women’s Tag: Sara Del Rey & Daizee Haze d. Amazing Kong & Raisha Saeed (11:31). Haze gets the win for her team thanks to a German Suplex on Kong. That’s insane. Apparently it was ****ing Bridging German Suplex, too. That Daizee delivered. TO KONG. That’s like balancing your wallet on a matchstick! That’s like a bamboo stick flipping a panda! That’s like…okay I’ll stop. Seriously, I can’t wait to see this.

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4. Chikara vs. DG #2: CIMA, Super Shenlong, & Masaaki Mochizuki d. F.I.S.T. (15:17). The so-called Friends In Similar Tights are all wearing different outfits. So either there’s a break-up on the horizon…..or F.I.D.O. has risen! CIMA pins Gran Akuma with Meteora in the best match so far. Afterwards, Johnny Gargano shows up. There’s a discussion and…Icarus pedigrees Gran Akuma! GRAN AKUMA IS OUT OF F.I.S.T.! They take off his gauntlets and give them to Gargano. All three men pose together! WOW! As Akuma rose from the Pedigree, the fans chanted his name and really got behind him.

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5. Grudge Six-Man Tag: Drake Younger & The Osirian Portal d. The UnStable (13:57). Younger is wearing Osirian Portal tights, so I guess “Drake’s On A Plane” is officially a team…or maybe it’s just a fancy one-off. Colin Delaney is wearing a tie for some reason. Younger took a Tombstone on the ringsteps from STIGMA. Vin ended up in a garbage can. The Osirian Portal get the victory after the Osirian Sacrament on STIGMA. After the match, Younger danced with Amasis & Ophidian! Said to be an insane brawl and a really fun match.

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6. Grudge Tag Match: Claudio Castagnoli & Ares d. Eddie Kingston & Tommy Dreamer (15:24). Derek Sabato is out as the referee…that’s not good. Claudio’s Very European Mohawk is apparently ridiculous-looking. Finish comes when Claudio hits a release Ricola Bomb on Dreamer for the dubya. Lots of slow counts from Sabato in this one. There was an insane amount of heat, but it was not a great match. Dreamer unsurprisingly got a lot of heat but he can’t really go anymore. BDK goes undefeated on the weekend.

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7. Chikara vs. DG #3: Mike Quackenbush, Jigsaw, & Hallowicked d. WORLD-1 (16:53). Quackenbush pins Doi with the Quackendriver II in a really awesome match and may be the best of the entire show! The finishing sequence was said to be insane. Whether this leads to a future title shot for Quack in DGUSA against Hulk or Dragon Gate against Yoshino remains to be seen.

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Various Degrees of Awesomeness:

- Jacob Hammermeier was wearing a neck brace thanks to Kingston’s Backfist to the Future and Dreamer’s DVD back at Aniversario Elf. The bad news: it doesn’t cover his mouth.

- Eddie Kingston came out to induct Tommy Dreamer into the Arena Hall of Fame. Classy speech from Dreamer…and he didn’t cry!

- UltraMantis Black stated on his Twitter that he would be coming to “C-Rex”…and that he wouldn’t be alone. He was flanked at his merch table and the Commentation Station by two hooded figures. Couple that with the return of Vökoder and it appears that The Neo Solar Temple may be rising from the ashes.

- The legendary Manami Toyota will be making her American debut in Chikara Pro on September 18th in Baltimore, MD and September 19th in Brooklyn, NY! Word right now is that she will be hand picking her opponents for both nights. This is a HUGE honor, and anybody saying, “Well it doesn’t raise Chikara’s profile…” needs to be shot in the face with a Nerfzooka. Do those exist?

- The announcement that “Chikarasaurus Rex: King of Show“ would be up for sale TOMORROW at Smart Mark Video still has me in shock. According to LFC on the Chikara101 boards, Chikara “specially recruited a dedicated video editor to work through the night, and he is already capturing the footage from tonight’s show to start cutting the matches.”

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Overall Thoughts

This event can only be viewed as an unmitigated, smashing, rousing achievement for Chikara Pro. Over 750 fans were in attendance to witness a really good show with some amazing moments: the return of Vökoder and three awesome-sounding six-man tags are just the tip of the iceberg on the DVD. While I haven’t heard that any specific matches are match of the year candidates or anything, every match has received compliments in some way or another, especially the Main Event. Dreamer/Kingston vs. Claudio/Ares was, as expect, not so great, but everything else is getting high marks. I will be buying this first thing tomorrow morning, and I’d suggest the rest of you nerds do the same.

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It was a big night for Chikara wrestlers at EVOLVE 4: Danielson vs. Fish on July 23 in Union City, NJ as the spectacular event saw several of the company’s finest come out on top. Despite Hallowicked & Jigsaw being a less-than-familiar tag team with one another, they still managed to beat Aeroform is a crazy match. Ricochet AKA Helios was involved in a 4-Way Match, but he was uninvolved with the finish. Brodie Lee fought Jon Moxley to a Double DQ with fans already clamoring for a rematch. The Osirian Portal fell to former Chikara roster members Cheech & Cloudy in a fun tag match. But the big winner was “The Kentucky Gentlemen” Chuck Taylor who beat the current Win Leader Jimmy Jacobs in a great match to claim that title as well as that of Longest Winning Streak in EVOLVE.

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DGUSA’s Philly return PPV, Enter the Dragon 2010, is one that Chikara fans will not want to miss. While Lince Dorado wrestled Super Shenlong to a ten minute draw on the Bonus Card, Chuck Taylor once again made a name for himself by winning a 4-Way Match that many called the show-stealing match of the pay-per-view. Taylor pinned longtime rival Ricochet with the Omega Driver for the victory. He placed himself at the head of the line to join the International WARRIORS with the victory. Seriously, when CIMA asked on Twitter who he thought would be a good fit for his International WARRIORS, I tweeted him Taylor. So…you’re welcome Chuck. YOU’RE WELCOME. Also of note was Brodie Lee, who did not have a match but intruded several times on other people’s contests, destroying everything in sight like a Godzilla villain. The PPV Main Event was an Elimination Match between Mike Quackenbush, Jigsaw Hallowicked & Masato Yoshino against the KAMIKAZE USA team of YAMATO, Jon Moxley, Gran Akuma & Akira Tozawa. This was original set to end the feud between Chikara Pro and KAMIKAZE USA, but due to the adding of Bryan Danielson to face SHINGO, this contest would simply fan the flames of war. Hallowicked was eliminated first via YAMATO and his devastating Gallaria piledriver. Moxley drilled Jigsaw with a chair and earned a disqualification. Jimmy Jacobs ran him off. YAMATO eliminated Jigsaw with easy after the chair shot, leaving Quackenbush and Yoshino to fight off YAMA, Akuma & Tozawa. Quackenbush eliminated Gran Akuma to even the odds. The finish saw a double submission as Quack tapped Tozawa with The Chikara Special and Yoshino tapped YAMATO with Sol Naciente! Chikara Sekigun and Masato Yoshino got a huge victory and the momentum going into the inevitable feud-ending future match!

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There are many things to mull over when compiling a list of dreams matches. It would be easy to just put the best Dragon Gate has to offer against the stars of Chikara Pro and call it a “Dream Match”. However, with the diverse characters of Chikara and the rich history in DG, there is more to be considered than just which two guys might have the best possible match. A common gripe I have with the indy scene at large is that too often wrestling bookers are concerned with creating high drama with forty minutes slugfests between two over but very flawed performers. Sometimes, I get more joy out of a well-conceived squash match than these so called “epic contests”. Now, I know that the fact that ROH owes Dragon Gate money makes any wrestler on their roster off-limits, but we’ll just pretend Ring of Honor didn’t stiff DG out of some dough. Just for this piece. With that in mind, here’s my list of the TOP TEN Chikara vs. Dragon Gate Dream Matches.

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NOTE: These matches have not been announced, nor are they at present scheduled to take place. I made these banners myself to lend authenticity to the piece and, well…for giggles. I even left the damn watermark so that no one would get confused…though I imagine some people still will…

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Honorable Mentions

- Jigsaw vs. Naoki Tanisaki – Outside of them both sharing the same devastating finisher, I couldn’t think of many other good reasons to pair these two excellent workers together. They are both criminally underrated performers in the shadows of more popular grapplers. Both have some nasty strikes in their arsenals, Jig with his superkicks and Naoki with his various knee strikes. With Jigsaw in DGUSA, this actually could happen someday…but Tanisaki would have to get booked there first. Ya here me, Gabe?

- Cyber Kong vs. Lince Dorado – While both performers have suffered serious head injuries in the past, comparisons between them stop there. Kong is a hulking brute who could run through the diminutive Dorado like a knife through warm water. But Cyber works well with smaller guys, so I imagine the beating would be short, but ever so sweet.

- Jagged & Shane Matthews vs. The Florida Express – 3.0 are comedy geniuses, and they would be the perfect fit in a match against Jackson and Johnson Florida, who haven’t faced quality comedic competition in a very long time. Just the looks on 3.0’s faces as Jackson stumbles to the ring on his gimp knee might be worth the price of admission.

- DEEP DRUNKERS vs. The UnStable – A common theme I had when conceiving these contests was pairing top heels with top heels and the faces against one another. I don’t know why, but the idea of the perpetually hammered Kenichiro Arai, an unhinged Kzy, and…Yasushi Kanda…teaming against Vin Gerard, Colin Delaney, & STIGMA brought a smile to my face.

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10

This was just a no brainer. Amasis, a former holder of the Campeonatos de Parejas with Osirian Portal stablemate Ophidian, has a penchant for funky dance moves. He started his career as a heel but, as time wore on, fans got tired of feeling like they had to boo they guy and just started cheer him on. BxB Hulk, the current Open the Freedom Gate champion in DGUSA, is the fan-favorite in his home promotion, and like Amasis, he has an affinity for getting down with his not-so-bad self. A dance contest between the two would be epic, and the winner would simply be whoever’s backyard they were in. It’s a classic styles clash between a choreographed pop dancer and a freestyle rhythmic rumpshaker. Also, they’d probably find time to wrestle. Both are high-flyers, and Amasis even uses a retro Hulk move that BxB rarely ever busts out anymore. “The Funky Pharaoh” calls it the Twist of Funk while Hulk calls the BxB Smash. A stipulation where the winner of a dance contest between the two got to name the move permanently would be beyond awesome. It’d be shmawsome.

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9

Tim Donst may be the best heel in Chikara Pro today. At the ripe age of 24, the current Young Lions Cup holder has already earned a reputation for his smart, lengthy promos and his solid in-ring work. He also has a nasty side, known for using various cheating methods such as using ropes for leverage during pins and working the nipples of his opponents. His perfect foil would be a man not unlike himself, known for his ruthless personality and questionable tactics in the ring. That man is Gamma, a former Twin Gate, Triangle Gate, & Brave Gate champion in Dragon Gate. Gamma utilizes his trusty kendo stick to not only smack you across the head, but he’s just as likely to catch you where the sun don’t shine, too. Like Donst, Gamma is a man who seems to revel in his lack of scruples. Unlike Donst, people have gotten behind the veteran Gamma after years of intense hatred. He has made up with longtime nemesis CIMA and they now team as Osaka06 to the delight of the fans in Dragon Gate. Donst may think he’d have the upperhand against Gamma, but the first time Gamma gargled water and sprayed him with it like a devious fountain…he’d know forever the lengths that a truly disgusting guy would go and whether or not he could rise to his level.

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8

Incoherence is one of Chikara’s best-known and well-liked tag teams. Hallowicked, a Chikara veteran and former Campeon de Parejas, was still teaming with Delirious when he first started bringing Frightmare to the ring, usually with a steel chain wrapped around him to keep him in check. After Delirious was torn away from the trio, ‘Wicked started teaming with his young protégé, keeping the Incoherence name and attitude. Both would be elevated in stature by leaps and bounds over the next few months, as Frightmare would be declared the 2009 Rookie of the Year in all of professional wrestling  and Hallowicked would start working in EVOLVE and Dragon Gate USA. Similarly, Super Shisa and Shisa BOY also share the same relationship as master and charge. While Super Shisa is a former Triangle Gate and Brave Gate champion, Shisa BOY has yet to have his big break out in Dragon Gate. But this match isn’t about accolades and accomplishments; it’s about talent. From a pure lucha standpoint, The Shisas are two of the best and most innovative on the DG roster. Incoherence had also shown to be two of Chikara’s best with it comes to innovative flips and death-defying dives. But these four guys in the ring together and I’m betting they crap out some magic. There’s gotta be a better way to say that, but I’m drawing a blank. The…the match would rule. There.

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7

Even the crankiest, most narcissistic independent wrestling fan has to see some upside in a match between the jabbering, excitable veteran know as Delirious and the…jabbering, excitable young wrestler Akira Tozawa. Delirious was Hallowicked’s partner when the two won the Campeonatos de Parejas back in 2007, but he has since joined The Neo Solar Temple and now the Bruderschaft de Kreuzes. The current Delirious is a mind-wiped drone…and no fun. I loved the laughing, chatty Delirious when he was wearing the trademark green mask, and that’s the Delirious you’d want to face Tozawa, a former Triangle Gate champion and a future main eventer in Dragon Gate. Even as a teenager, Tozawa rose above his fellow students with his loud mouth and vibrant personality. Tozawa will go on long rants about…I don’t know. I don’t speak Japanese. But he’s definitely prone to tirades, with his mouth constantly trying to cash checks his ass can rarely cash. But against Delirious, he may find someone just as loud and crazy as he is.

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6

It doesn’t take that many neurons to realize that teams like Incoherence, QuackenSaw, The Osirian Portal, and The Colony would turn out better matches against the team of Naruki Doi & Masato Yoshino. Doi, a former Dream Gate champion and the first man in Dragon Gate history to hold every major company title, is joined at the hip with heterosexual life partner Yoshino, the current Dream Gate champion and the most decorated champion the Dragon Gate history. They have looked like they were breaking up many times over the years, but the two have weather storms and can lay claim to being the best tag team in DG history and perhaps in all of wrestling. They have a lot in common, a big one being that they both come from baseball backgrounds. Hell, Doi started his DG career as under a baseball gimmick as Second Doi. Enter Dasher Hatfield & Sugar Dunkerton: The Throwbacks. After a match in Chikara back at Hiding in Plain Sight that is now simply known as “The Baseball Game”, it became clear that Chikara knew how to use sports in a variety of comedic ways. Just imagine Yoshino, the fastest man in wrestling, having a footrace around the baseball diamond-esque ring with Dasher. Imagine Dunkerton trying to baffle Doi with some slick basketball moves. This is the type of hilarious imagery that lead to this match coming to fruition on this list. Speed Muscle has proved time and time again that they can have amazing matches with just about anybody. But to pull off a comedy match outside of Japan would be a new type of challenge, one that, knowing them, they’d rise to the occasion for.

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5

I’m sure a lot of people will be baffled by this pairing, as Gran Akuma makes more sense in a discussion about the stiff kicks and nasty head drops of Masaaki Mochizuki, a former Dream Gate, Twin Gate, & Triangle Gate champion. I honestly found that pairing a little too obvious, and I had plans for Akuma elsewhere. In his twenty years in the wrestling business, Mochizuki has faced his fair share of hard-kicking opponents. I felt like the concept of Mochi versus a young striker is being done to death, and Masaaki is usually able to enforce his will upon them given time. Even at age forty, he is taking on all comers and seems to be in the best condition of his life. His many kicks aren’t just inventive. They may be the hardest and nastiest kicks in wrestling. He is as legit as you can get in modern wrestling, so the idea of putting him in the ring with someone not in his own mold intrigued me. It hit me like a Yakuza Kick…”Big Rig” Brodie Lee, a Chikara mainstay known for his devastating Big Boot and intimidating size. He would present Mochi with all kinds of problems: he’s at last half a foot taller, a hundred pounds heavier, and has the length to keep out of Masaaki’s kick range while still inflicting significant damage. Of all the guys in Chikara Pro, Brodie would provide literally and figuratively the biggest challenge for Mochizuki. It would be difficult for Mochizuki to even get his leg high enough to fire off a headkick, but I’m sure the crafty veteran would find a way.

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4

It would be a battle of the two true, undisputed aces of their home promotions. It would be a war between two of the top athletes in wrestling today. Claudio Castagnoli and CIMA have a helluva lot in common: both are the unrivaled top guys in their companies, both guys are known for their high-impact, innovative offense, both wowed WWE officials in tryout matches on Smackdown!, and both are among the most decorated members of their respective rosters. CIMA is Dragon Gate’s only two-time Dream Gate champion and the only man in company history to have held absolutely every active title at one point or another. Castagnoli has won almost everything there is to win in Chikara Pro: 2005 & 2006 Tag World Grand Prix, 2007 Torneo Cibernetico, 2010 King of Trios and the Campeonatos de Parejas…twice. As far as I know, they have only been in the same ring once: Claudio, alongside Austin Aries, Delirious, & Rocky Romero faced CIMA and members of Typhoon at All-Star Extravaganza III for Ring of Honor back in early 2007. Since then, both wrestlers have grown to become ever greater wrestlers, and hopefully one day they will face off again in a Chikara ring.

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3

Their rivalry stems from one simple truth: YAMATO doesn’t respect Mike Quackenbush and he doesn’t respect Chikara Pro. At the very first Dragon Gate USA show, Quack made a challenge to any Dragon Gate wrestler to take on any Chikara Pro wrestler and see who the better man was. YAMATO emerged and claimed not to know who the hell “Lightning” Mike was and proceeded to low-blow him. YAMATO enlisted the help of his own student Gran Akuma, and at DGUSA’s second show, Quack teamed with Jigsaw to gain a measure of revenge against YAMATO & Akuma. Soon after this, YAMATO’s Dragon Gate faction went international and KAMIKAZE USA was born. Now, the fight was between two entire stables of wrestlers as YAMATO, Akuma, Akira Tozawa, Jon Moxley and Shingo Takagi began attacking Quackenbush, Jigsaw, and the rest of the Chikara wrestlers. At the latest DGUSA event, Enter the Dragon 2010, Quack got a measure of revenge by teaming with Masato Yoshino & his Chikara brood to defeat YAMATO and KAMIKAZE USA in Main Event Elimination Match. Naturally, a singles showdown between the two looms. Both men are known for their cunning ingenuity in the ring, and in a battle of not only physicality but their very scruples, they’ll need to be firing on all cylinders to best the other man.

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2

This is another fantasy match-up where the accolades of the competitors speak for themselves. The trio of Icarus, Gran Akuma & Chuck Taylor has been through a lot as a trio. Last year, they ended their three year war against The Colony in one of the biggest matches in Chikara history. They beat The Death Match Kings, The F1rst Family, The Future Is Now and Team Uppercut in winning the 2009 King of Trios tournament. Akuma and Icarus won the 2005 and 2006 Torneo Cibernetico matches respectively and then teamed together to win the Campeonatos de Parejas, holding them for longer than any other team thus far. Likewise, the team of Dragon Kid, Ryo Saito, & Genki Horiguchi is Dragon Gate’s most decorated triumvirate. They are the only threesome to win the Open the Triangle Gate titles more than twice, and with them recently reunited in the WARRIORS, they could earn even more. But the major reason that these men are known together is simple: Ring of Honor. 2006. Supercard of Honor. Against the Blood Generation, Do FIXER inspired the raucous crowd and the six men put on a performance that not only won Match of the Year in 2006, not only earned a 5-Star rating from Dave Meltzer, but helped popularize and broaden the reach of a company for years to come. They are the two finest trios in their companies…and thanks to Johnny Gargano, this match is never gonna happen. Gargano…YOU’RE ON NOTICE.

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1

This was the match that not only inspired this list but the very intellectual fabric behind it. As you may have noticed, I’m not content to just throw people in the ring together. I want to see the most decorated trio face the most decorated trio, the best athlete face the best athlete and the amateur baseball players face the old timey ball chuckers. Yeah, I’m pretty deep. This battle of hard-hitting heavyweights was inspired by one specifically shared trait between Shingo Takagi, a former Open the Dream Gate champion and leader of the KAMIKAZE faction, and “The Last of a Dying Breed” Eddie Kingston. That trait is ego. Shingo and Eddie are both their worst own enemies. Late in 2009, Shingo injured his knee and it became a focal point for the attacks of his opponents. The situation was exacerbated by Takagi’s repeated pounding of his own knee, as if he were baiting the challenger to break him. While Shingo’s ego is fueled by physical scars, Kingston’s comes from emotional ones. Eddie feels that he always misses out on the big matches in Chikara, that he’s always playing catch-up with the guys in the masks. He’s felt some level of dejection his entire life, and he uses the pent-up aggression to unleash a flurry of violence on his adversaries. Sometimes, this pride leads to disappointing losses, but more often than not, it acts as jet fuel for their fighting spirit and pushes them to succeed. So when it’s laid out like this, one wonders what would happen if they were to stand across the ring from one another. Two tireless warriors, both drunk on rage…ten feet apart. That’s a potential nuclear holocaust of lariats and arrogance…and that’s why it’s number one.

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- Please leave any comments or questions you might have and I’ll do my best to respond with as much colloquial Irish gossip as I can conjure. I’d like to do a contest or something cool like that, but I’m not sure how much interest there’d be. Let you voice be heard! Also, let me know if there’s anything you’d like to see in the column, like fantasy booking, treasure hunts, wish-lists, secret handshakes, etc.

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Look! CHIKARMY Insider is back! Seriously…you’re staring at it right now. In this week’s edition, you get must-have info on three new Chikara DVDs, a potential break-up for one of Chikara’s best triumvirates, details on this year’s Cibernetico event, a sleek visual aid that updates this year’s Young Lions Cup VIII participants, a full rundown on Chikara’s monumental show next week, Chikarasaurus Rex: King of Show, featuring Dragon Gate stars such as CIMA, Naruki Doi, Masato Yoshino, and Dragon Kid! Tickets are selling like warm muffins, as Chikara has already stated that this will be the biggest event in Chikara history! HISTORY! So hop aboard your starship and set a course for The Awesome Nebula. Also, if you could swing by my house, that’d be great. My address is 427 [EDIT: Justin, don’t list your actual address, ya dingus]. Once again, that’s 427 [EDIT: Why would you type this twice?!]. WOOSH!

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New DVDs: Danielson Returns + The Best of 2006!

Wanna see Bryan Danielson’s return to the independents? Do you want to see him mangling goons and kicking in skulls in ways that would make Vince McMahon soil his “Oops, I Crapped My Pants”? Then pick up We Must Eat Michigan’s Brain, featuring Bryan Danielson vs. Eddie Kingston, Frightmare vs. Tim Donst for the Young Lions Cup, and a crazy Eight-Man Main Event, as well as Faded Scars and Lines, featuring Danielson taking on Donst, Kingston battling Delirious, and The Future Is Now challenging The Bruderschaft for the Campeonatos de Parejas in an epic 2 out of 3 Falls Match! Also released is Chikara: The Best of 2006. This is very different from the Big Vision title that came out previously, as it features many, many more matches, including Arik Cannon vs. Eddie Kingston, F.I.S.T. vs. The Kings of Wrestling, a match between Mike Quackenbush & Ares that predates the Chikara vs. BDK Wars, and seventeen other stellar contests with former Chikara stars like Blind Rage, Chris Hero, Mr. ZERO and Larry Sweeney.

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The Fall of F.I.S.T.?

There’s no question that the blogs between Chuck Taylor and Johnny Gargano have been hilariously catty. Seriously, they’re like bunkmates fighting over Army men…and it grows more and more apparent that somebody in F.I.S.T. is gonna get stuck with the Minesweepers. Since the verbal slapfight began, both Gran Akuma and Icarus have weighed in on the madness, and it looks like all the talk and innuendo will come to a head at “Chikarasaurus Rex: King of Show”. If you’re totally lost and want to catch-up, here’s the blogs in the order they occurred: [Taylor - Gargano - Taylor - Akuma - Icarus - Gargano]. Prepare to laugh yourself unconscious.

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Behold…The Dark Ciberknetico!

Chikara has announced the return of its annual manic multi-man match known as Torneo Cibernetico! This is the seventh year of the sixteen man contest that traditionally sees two sides of eight face off in an elimination-style contest, with the surviving members of the winning team battling it out until there is only one man left standing. Last year at Cibernetico Increible, the theme was “partner vs. partner”, and it was Carpenter Ant who emerged victorious, utilizing the Inverted CHIKARA Special in the first instance of any wrestler using the devastating submission. Of course, Carpenter Ant turned out to be Pinkie Sanchez in disguise, and he has not let the Chikara Tecnicos forget his shocking victory. This year, in the midst of the war between Chikara and the BDK, The Dark Ciberknetico will have more emotion and meaning than all the previous Cibernetico matches combined. For Chikara, this is about pride. For the Bruderschaft, this is about supremacy. If they can beat the Chikara faithful here, it may just be the disheartening blow that finally takes the wind out of the sails of Quack, Kingston and their tecnico brethren. On October 23rd in Easton, the battle lines will be drawn! The day after The Dark Ciberknetico, Hamden, CT will see the final New England card of 2010. Rendezvous at Big Gulch will take place Sunday, October 24th and, in the direct aftermath of Cibernetico, should be a humongous show.

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Young Lions Cup VIII

Entrants into the seventh Young Lions Cup tournament are coming fast and furious and the open spots are filling up quickly. Over nine different companies have announced representatives, three companies have announced participation but have not named reps, and six spots remain completely unassigned. In total, 24 wrestlers from 18 wrestling companies will be announced for the competition, which is shaping up to be the biggest and best YLC tourney ever! You can find a full list of all of the announced competitors below in a nice, neat format that I put together in that whole Photoshop thing.

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Mike Quackenbush is one helluva multitasker. While he continues to lead the CHIKARA Tecnicos in their war on the Bruderschaft for Chikara Pro’s very soul, he has continued to draw the ire of YAMATO in Dragon Gate USA. What started as a disrespectful act extended from YAMATO to Quack on the very first DGUSA show has snowballed into an all-out fight between YAMATO’s KAMIKAZE USA and the Chikara Sekigun. YAMA and his stablemates continue to jump Quack & company from behind and disrespect him, while Quack continues to lead his students in an effort to prove once and for all that his wacky band of youngsters can hold their own against the Japanese and independent elite. If not for one Bryan Danielson getting booked in a dream match against Shingo Takagi, this Eight-Man Elimination Match between the two sides in Philadelphia would have been the feud-ender. However, with Shingo’s removal from contention for the bout, the war will continue and this match provided Quack a chance to get in on the mind games. While YAMATO unsurprisingly chose Gran Akuma, Akira Tozawa & Jon Moxley for his side, Quack went with tag partner Jigsaw, top student Hallowicked and the man who very recently defeated YAMATO for the Open the Dream Gate, Masato Yoshino! “Lightning” Mike gets the last word in to YAMATO before this epic contest via the Chikara blog: “Go on, stick your tongue out on July 24th. Jigsaw will superkick it into the cheap seats. Or maybe Hallowicked will jam his boot down your throat the second you open your mouth. Prepare all you want. Try to be ready. Then get ready to lose. Your 15 minutes are up.”

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Perhaps the most beloved Dragon Gate wrestler on their roster, CIMA is never one to shy away from a challenge. He is the only two-time Dream Gate champion in DG history and he is their unofficial ambassador abroad. He has faced top competition at every level of professional wrestling, working dates for ROH, NOAH, IWRG, wXw, and he even had try-out matches on WWE Smackdown!. He has traveled the world and he has seen it all…everything except this. On July 25^th, in Philadelphia, he meets his antithesis. His opposite. The Anti-CIMA. Icarus is a CHIKARA’s most reviled performer, drawing the furious boos of a tyrant. He is unathletic, unoriginal, unfriendly, and undoubtedly one Chikara’s most decorated wrestlers. The only thing CIMA and Icarus have in common is their propensity for success within their home promotions. 2006 saw Icarus with both the Torneo Cibernetico and Campeonatos de Parejas and 2009 saw his faction F.I.S.T. stake their claim as the greatest Chikara trio in company history by winning the year’s King of Trios tournament. Both decorated, but worlds apart otherwise. CIMA is the Gallant to Ick’s Goofus, the snake to his mongoose. The Superman to his Bizarro. Now they will meet face to face in an extraordinary turn of events, and they won’t be alone. CIMA will be flanked by WARRIORS stablemate Dragon Kid and longtime ally Masaaki Mochizuki as they stand across from Icarus and the rest of F.I.S.T., Gran Akuma & Chuck Taylor. CIMA and Icarus eye to eye. Dragon Kid flying around the ring, flipping Taylor on his head. Mochizuki & Akuma, trading furious kicks. It’s a Chikara dream, and with Johnny Gargano threatening the very fabric of F.I.S.T. and it’s members, it may be the swan song for Chikara’s grandest and toughest trios.

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Eddie Kingston was a young man who had given up on wrestling. Disenchanted with the soft, watered-down product on current TV, the boy who would become “The Last of a Dying Breed” nearly missed his destiny. A fateful day at a friend’s house exposed him to the kind of wrestling that, to this day, keeps the fire behind his eyes burning in the face of constant demon and crippling depression. It was ECW. It was real. So many characters spoke to the young man from Yonkers. Shane Douglas, with his nasty mean streak. Raven, with his ability to turn a crowd on his head with only a few words. Tommy Dreamer, a young man who also hailed from Yonkers that, like Kingston, possessed the heart and determination of a lion. In Tommy, Eddie had found someone like him and realized that becoming a wrestler wasn’t impossible. If Tommy found a way outta Yonkers, so could Eddie. Thanks to Dreamer and ECW, the young lion rediscovered his love of wrestling, and he would eventually find his own personal jungle in Chikara Pro. But Eddie’s not just a dreamer; he’s a realist, too. Too slow, too gruff, too fat to get further than the indys. He used this bitterness to dismantle his opponents, knowing full-well that “his time” to reap the benefits of hard work would never truly come. Then…it did. Tommy Dreamer innocently strolled out onto the Arena floor just after Kingston had bested Christopher Daniels, and offered to give Kingston a crack at his idol. It would be Kingston vs. Dreamer, a decade in the making that no one thought possible. And when the time came for Kingston to live out an unlikely fantasy, to face the man that inspired him to compete, Claudio Castagnoli & Ares stole from him in an act of cowardice and hatred. The BDK generals interfered in the match, sullying a special moment for Kingston. The war between Claudio and Eddie that stemmed from a torn friendship has turned into as personal a fight as Chikara Pro has ever witnessed. Now, Dreamer and Kingston will join forces to teach the leaders of the Bruderschaft a lesson: you can kill the dream, but the dreamer never dies. Claudio and Ares will surely bring their soldiers, and that’s just fine. Two Dreamers against an entire army. They wouldn’t have it any other way.

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Daizee Haze & Sara Del Rey wanted competition. They begged for it. Pleaded for it. In July of last year, after Haze bested Rayna VonTash in less than four minutes, she screamed that she wanted to face someone stronger. Someone tougher. In an October tag match with Bullfight Sora, she was given Del Rey, an opponent she’s faced millions of times, and La Malcriada, a somewhat comedic competitor. This time it was Del Rey who showed frustration, beating Sora so badly that she was disqualified for Excesivo de Castigo. After the match, the two lethal ladies got together and decided to join up with Ares and the Bruderschaft. Since then, they have face mostly male competition and have held their own. However, the mean streak that consumed them both remains. They’ve continually been disqualified for blatant cheating and repeated violent acts without cause. Now, for the first time since that fateful tag match in October of last year, the two ladies will be involved in a tag match with two other ladies. This time, Death Haze is a united front, and they’ll have to be if they have any hopes of beating two of the toughest women in wrestling today: Raesha Saeed & Amazing Kong! This is perhaps their stiffest competition yet, as Kong and Saeed won’t hesitate to strike like Amasis, Mike Quackenbush and Hallowicked have in the past. They will be looking to squash the women of the BDK by any means necessary. And while most people would justifiably be worried, Haze seems very confident in a post on the Chikara blog: “Sara Del Rey and I, along with the rest of the BDK warriors, are recreating the definition of impact, incursion and havoc as we have – and will continue to – destroy everyone that crosses our paths. Everything that CHIKARA holds dear, we are taking for ourselves. We refuse to be ignored or overlooked anymore! So if you two can get on the same page long enough to make it to the ring next Sunday at Chikarasaurus Rex, be prepared to learn what [havoc] is all about. You think you’re going to bully Sara and I around the ring like you did all those precious TNA Knockouts? Think again Kong. I’ll be happy to put you in your place and show you what real wrestlers can do. We’re as good as the best and as bad as the worst. So don’t test us, just save yourselves and move out of our way. We are the best – the best on planet Earth! As you will find out.”

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Liars. Degenerates. Rudos. None of these labels are very surprising when used in the same sentence as Vin Gerard, Colin Delaney, and STIGMA, The UnStable. But because of some uncharacteristically sporting behavior early this year, the harsh language had been stifled by cheers of praise for Gerard and STIGMA’s performances. A series of hard-fought matches had Gerard expressing his desire to “go straight” and turn over a new leaf. STIGMA looked like he was missing his lovable “Shane Storm” days, using That Japanese Move to defeat Ophidian. Delaney wasn’t happy about all this, so here interfered on Vin’s behalf in a match against Amasis. Afterwards, when The Osirian Portal questioned Gerard about this, he apologized and claimed not to have been a part of it. They agreed to a tag team rematch with Colin barred from ringside. At Faded Scars and Lines, Colin showed up anyway, costing Amasis and Ophidian the match. Vin was furious afterwards, demanding that Colin tell the Portal that he had no part in any of it. Colin smiled and said that he could not. The UnStable then beat down the Egyptian duo, showing a returned mean streak and united front. It was all a ruse. Well, the Osirian Portal don’t like to be played, so when Amasis & Ophidian were challenged to a six-man tag at Chikarasaurus Rex, they turned to “The Psycho Shooter” for help.  Drake Younger has been waiting years to get his hands on The UnStable for their constant interference and cheating ways in his past Chikara appearances. Now, the team informally called “Drakes on a Plane” will seek retribution against a faction of wrestlers who proved to be calculated and malicious outside the ring, but still need to prove they can once again perform at a top level in-ring after their shocking exit from this year’s King of Trios.

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While The Colony may not have completely toppled the Bruderschaft at this year’s King of Trios, they at least showed that the faction has cracks and weaknesses. The BDK can be beaten, and Fire, Soldier and Green Ant plan to prove this again at Chikarasaurus Rex when they team with Frightmare to take on the BDK fearsome foursome of Young Lions Cup champion Tim Donst, “The Perfect 10” Lince Dorado, reigning Cibernetico winner Pinkie Sanchez, and the immovable, indestructible Tursas. While The Colony may hold a high-profile win over the BDK, the Bruderschaft have them in sheer volume. Donst’s last two successful defenses of the YLC championship were Frightmare and Soldier Ant. At Aniversario weekend, Fire Ant lost matches to both Pinkie Sanchez and Lince Dorado. Tursas not only destroyed Green Ant in a singles match early this year, but the 6 foot 7 inch monster has yet to be knocked down inside the ring. Tursas is the x-factor in every atomico match of the BDK’s, as he seems to make up for his team’s shortcomings with blunt focus and brute force. So if the Tecnico quartet can find a way to get Tursas off his feet –and keep him there –they have an excellent chance at coming away with a victory. But that if weighs almost 400 pounds, so you can bet that it’s going to take all four guys to put him down.

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One particular phrase popped into my head upon learning of this match-up: Sweet Merciful Zeus. Perhaps the most exciting and dynamic faction in Dragon Gate, WORLD-1 has come to Chikara and are well represented by their three figureheads: leader Naruki Doi, Dream Gate champion Masato Yoshino, and Freedom Gate champion BxB Hulk. With a trio that strong, one would think that Chikara officials would find it tough to match that kind of electric trio. Fear not, Chikara faithful: Mike Quackenbush captains a team with his tag partner and top student, Jigsaw and Hallowicked. While this bout may not have the natural match-ups the way WARRIORS/F.I.S.T. does or the heated exchanges of Kingston & Dreamer versus the BDK, it does possess as much talent as any match Chikara has put on this year. If you’re looking for you potential match of the show, your search should start here. While WORLD-1 might be considered a lock by some, don’t count out Quack and his Lightning Breed. Also, the Chikara squad has proven to be very cohesive the past year thanks to their joined struggles against the BDK while W-1 could suffer from some recent turmoil. See BxB Hulk in the avatar above? Well, he ain’t lookin’ like that when he shows up in Philly. He lost a match against Shingo Takagi at DG’s Kobe World PPV on July 11th, and as a result, he had his head shaved bald. Shingo demoralized Hulk afterward, calling him by his real name of Terumasa Ishihara, telling him to go back to dark matches and start his career over. On the same show, Yoshino captured the Dream Gate, DG’s top prize, and Naruki Doi won a tag match with PAC that may grant him a future DG tag title shot. So while it appears that W-1 has a lot on its plate, they are also coming in with a psychological advantage. Yoshino will be teaming with this Chikara trio the night before in DGUSA, so he should get a good look at what this awesome Chikara trio is all about, and Naruki Doi holds a win over Quack & Jigsaw in DGUSA with partner PAC. It’s gonna be six of wrestling’s most energetic performers in one match, and the only thing we can expect is the type of fast-paced, non-stop action that only Chikara and Dragon Gate can bring you.

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- My brother’s birthday was July 10^th, and my gift to him on his twenty-first birthday was this very tasteful BIRTHDAY CARD. Classy, no? My father’s birthday was July 17^th, and he enjoyed a nice time at the beach. Just wanted to wish them both Happy Birthdays and I hope both of their rashes clear up soon. It’s weird that they both got them at the same time…and in the same places…but I didn’t wanna ask.

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- Please leave any comments or questions you might have and I’ll do my best to respond with as much colloquial Irish gossip as I can conjure. I’d like to do a contest or something cool like that, but I’m not sure how much interest there’d be. Let you voice be heard! Also, let me know if there’s anything you’d like to see in the column, like fantasy booking, treasure hunts, wish-lists, secret handshakes, etc.

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Wrestler of the Year: Yamato

Other contenders: John Cena, Tyler Black, Davey Richards, Austin Aries, Roderick Strong, Chris Jericho, Claudio Castagnoli, Chris Hero, El Generico, Kevin Steen, Masaaki Mochizuki, Naomichi Marifuji, Prince Deavitt

Instead of coming up with numbers  for the other contenders, I’m just going to come up with a random list of guys who deserve mention and will be guys to watch the rest of the year.

When it comes to this award, I’m more basing this on their in-ring ability. I’m not sure how much wrestlers even have an impact on drawing power, so I think a better idea is to focus on what wrestlers do inside the ring. In all honestly, this was such an easy choice for me. Yamato is a guy who’s had tremendous matches in Dragon Gate Japan and Dragon Gate USA. In a company known for high flyers who aren’t the best at selling, Yamato has brought a more technical style to the main event scene. The two best examples of this are an Infinity match with CIMA and his Mercury Rising contest with Susumu Yokusuka. That doesn’t even take into account matches with Naruki Doi and two matches Masaaki Mochizuki. I’d say Tyler Black or John Cena are tied for a distant second.

Tag Team of the Year: The Young Bucks

Other Contenders: BDK (Claudio Castagnoli and Ares), The Colony (Soldier Ant and Fire Ant), The Briscoes (Mark and Jay Briscoe), Kings of Wrestling (Chris Hero and Claudio Castagnoli), Switchblade Conspiracy (Jon Moxley and Sami Calihan), Age of the Fall (Jimmy Jacobs and Tyler Black), House of Truth (Josh Raymond and Christian Able), Mike Quackenbush and Jigsaw, K-nuska (Susumu Yokusuka and K-ness)

Tough call. Kings of Wrestling and Briscoe have had a very good feud, but Hero and Claudio haven’t really had many matches as the champions. Same goes for Claudio’s other duo with Ares. I’d say the second half of the year with each team getting more title defenses will move them up the list. Age of the Fall have had a great run in AAW. Quack ‘n’ Saw has delivered on some excellent in-ring performances but haven’t had much better than a .500 record nor have they held any gold.

‘It all comes back to the Bucks, a team I said was the best team of 2009. The Bucks continues defending their tag team titles in great matches before finally losing the belts at DDT4 2010.  And having seen that tournament? They ended their title reign  in the best possible way.They had a pair of four star matches in DG USA before their eventual departure. They even had some memorable matches during King of Trios 2010. I think the Bucks will be usurped by another team on the list, but the Bucks PWG tag team title reign ending might go down as one of the top moments in independent wrestling this year.

Non-Wrestling Performer of the Year: Bryce Remsburg

Other Contenders: Jacob Hammermeier, Truth Martini, Prince Nana, Jim Cornette, Gavin Loudspeaker, Excalibur, Rick Knox, Phil Colvin

I swear I didn’t give him the award because he was (and might be again) on the show. Is there anyone who better represents CHIKARA than Bryce? He’s one of the best referees in the business. Want proof? Look at all the Indy companies he’s refereed for. This doesn’t even take into account his announcing for CHIKARA which gets better with every show. He seems to show a genuine level of excitement for what’s going on in the ring. He also does a fine job getting storylines over. And think about this. When wXw came to Philadelphia in March, who announced the show Bryce Remsburg. And I’m also counting the Fan Conclave for the purposes of this award because of how awesome an experience it was for me and everyone involved.

If Jacob Hammermeier had a slightly more active role, he so would have won this award going away. I don’t think there’s a BDK member more hated than he. He’s so gloriously annoying as a ring announcer that when he gets taken out once and for all, the pop might be as loud as when the BDK lose the tag team titles or Cibernetico.

Comeback of the Year: Steve Corino

Other Contenders: Colt Cabana, Paul London, Ring of Honor (yes, the whole company), Brian Kendrick, Cyber Kong, Edge

What I like about this category is the many criteria you can judge it by. You can go to injuries and say a guy like Cyber Kong or Edge deserves it since both of their careers could easily be in jeopardy right now. Then I look at Brian Kendrick, a guy I buried at the end of 2009. He’s had good efforts in DG USA and TNA of all places. London is sort of an unknown because a lot of his standing with this award will be determined by his PWG tag title reign. His three matches during DDT4 2010 were a positive sign. Cabana focused too much on comedy and not enough wrestling. His focus in 2010 has been much improved. Ring of Honor- I’ll put it this way. Anyone who watched the company in 2009 and thought they were just fine was watching the shows with rose-colored glasses. Period. This company was putting on a lot of useless shows with bad booking and horrendous finishes. The finishes still aren’t great, but everything else has gotten so much better.

That brings me to the guy who’s going to win this award easily. Steve Corino meant nothing for indy fans last year. A lot of people looked at Corino coming back to Ring of Honor as a negative. All he’s done is consistently put on some of the best performances in recent years and been a major reason for the success of the El Generico vs. Kevin Steen rivalry. His year can be summarized when he took a chair shot to the heat while his head was in barbed wire at Bitter Friends, Stiffer Enemies. It was a brutal shot that exemplified Corino’s seemingly full commitment to Ring of Honor.

Most Improved of the Year: Zero Gravity (Bret Gakiya and C.J. Esparza)

Other Contenders: Malachi Jackson, Green Ant, The Cutler Brothers, AIW

I think I’ll have more of a sense of this award in December.  Zero Gravity have been a part of AAW for a couple years actually. Their growth started in last year, but anyone who’s watched an AAW show would notice it a lot more this year. Gravity has made spot appeareance for CZW, but AAW is where they’re breaking out. They’ve had two excellent matches with House of Truth. They were part of my favorite main events, an eight man tag at Appetite for Destruction. I know Aeroform gets all the publicity, but I think Gravity has more to offer in a similar type of role.

Malachi Jackson was a guy who I thought blew in 2009. He put on an impressive performance on night one of King of Trios and is at least putting on tolerable matches in PWG. Cutlers weren’t exactly stiffs last year, and Green Ant’s “improvement” might have more to do with the booking rather than just natural improvement.  Even if Drew Cordeiro wasn’t a friend of the show, I’d have to give Absolute Intense Wrestling a lot of credit. AIW was a rinky dink promotion out of Ohio not too long ago. They’ve show-horned their way into a crowded indy wrestling scene thanks to a number of well-done DVDs. Two were shoot interviews. One with a freshly released Colt Cabana and the other a hilarious interview with Matt Classic. Next was the Jack of All Trios that featured a number of talented wrestlers where the winner would get into the King of Trios. Guys like Flip Kendrick, Louis Lyndon, and Johnny Gargano have received opportunities throughout the northeast and Midwest. A relationship with CHIKARA leading to a doubleheader a couple weeks ago is another step in the evolving of AIW.

Most Underrated: Silas Young

Other Contenders: Arik Cannon, Northstar Express, House of Truth, Ryan Taylor, Brandon Bonham, Ares

I almost feel like I should just put AAW under this category, but I don’t want to come off as biased. Nonetheless, there are a lot of roster members who don’t get their just desserts. A lot of the PWG locals might not be household names, but they’re putting on some of the best matches in the company.  I guess none of these guys work in the northeast, so no one talks about them. If you haven’t watched any AAW or PWG, it’s well worth buying a DVD. I included Ares because the guy doesn’t get any credit for his in-ring work. Yes, he ‘s involved with the BDK, but beyond him being eeeeeeeeeevil, he’s a really strong talent inside the ring. Despite all the names on this list, there really is one guy who stood out above the rest.

The king of underrated this year is Silas Young because of his consistency as the AAW heavyweight champion. He’s had a number of good matches with Shane Hollister, Tyler Black, and Matt Cross. I could make an argument Colt Cabana’s best match since returning to the indies came against Young back in April at Point of No Return. He might be the best heel champion of the last couple years based on his ability to draw genuine heat from the Berwyn Eagles  Club. Even though he won the title in November, I see no signs of Young’s title reign ending.

Best Weekly Wrestling Show: Infinity

Not even bothering with other contenders here. Smackdown was actually pretty good the first couple months, but it has decreased rapidly with such an emphasis on Drew McIntyre and taking away much of the star power. Raw has too much comedy and too much of the writers not being able to make up their minds about angles. The Nexus angle brings some improvement to the show lately thankfully. NXT is a joke, or the WWE at least treats it like one. Impact… I don’t even need to go there. ROH is decent but has a few important flaws.

Infinity has some of the best wrestling on a weekly basis. I can think of multiple four star matches without even thinking. There are storylines, video packages, and an emphasis on promoting the product. If  none of the shows in the states can bother producing a show as good as this, then I’m going across the Pacific to find a great weekly wrestling show.

Feud of the Year: Kevin Steen vs. El Generico

Other Contenders: The Briscoes vs. Kings of Wrestling, Tyler Black vs. Austin Aries, Tyler Black vs. Roderick Strong, BDK vs. CHIKARA, World-1 vs. Warriors, The Young Bucks vs. PWG Fans, John Cena vs. Batista, C.M. Punk vs. Rey Mysterio, nXt vs. WWE

I don’t even know what to say. This is a remarkably simple feud. Generico and Steen were former partners, championship partners no less, who broke up in Ring of Honor. They’ve feuded in other places, yet what used to be old is new again. Steen’s presentation at Final Battle 2009 no doubt helped kick this feud off in an impressive way. While the trashing of the main event is well-deserved, it also needs to be said that the Steen and Generico feud kicked off in classic fashion. From the promo to the chairshot. It was all perfect. The promo work by Steen has had a lot to do with the success of the feud as well.

The efforts of Colt Cabana and Steve Corino shouldn’t be left behind either. Generico doesn’t do promos, so Cabana’s presence has become invaluable to lend a little bit of verbal sparring. And it’s not really fair for Cabana to be on Generico’s side without Steen getting a partner of his own. It also allowed ROH to put off a singles match between the former partners until Death Before Dishonor mere weeks ago. In what other feud in recent memory has it taken six months for two guys who are feuding to have a one-on-one match. Just an incredible feud, and if this doesn’t end up winning “Best Feud of 2010.” I’ll be floored.

Company of the Year: Ring of Honor

Other Contenders: CHIKARA, PWG, AAW, Dragon Gate

WWE and TNA aren’t on this list because they don’t deserve to be. Evolve doesn’t make the cut because they can’t decide on their own rules and have only run three shows. That leaves five companies, all of which I follow. I’m pretty much digging everything that is going on with all five companies I mentioned for this award. I don’t think CHIKARA nor PWG are as good as they were last year, but their shows are still worth checking out. Dragon Gate has a produced a number of incredible matches, but they’ve also had some negative moments (Abdullah the Butcher and L.A. Park anyone?)

Ring of Honor has streamlined the number of shows they’re running. They’ve become the first wrestling company to regularly experiment with the iPPV concept. The video packages, which can all be seen for free on YouTube and the website, has also helped improve the way ROH promotes their shows. The television show has at least become more focused on promoting the Pay-Per-Views. ROH has upgraded their announcing (not much but it’s a start) and the way they produce their DVDs. Tyler Black has been a major upgrade when it comes to being the ROH champion, mostly from an in-ring standpoint. El Generico and Kevin Steen has been one of the most compelling feuds in all of wrestling. Kings of Wrestling against the Briscoes is a solid number two. I wouldn’t say ROH is perfect, but they’ve reclaimed their spot as a top wrestling company.

Match of the Year: The Undertaker vs. Shawn Michaels(****1/2) (Wrestlemania XXVI)

Other Contenders:

DG/DG USAWorld-1 vs. Warriors (****1/2)(Mercury Rising) World-1 vs. Warriors (****1/4)(Dead or Alive 2010) Yamato vs. Naruki Doi (****1/4)(Compilation Gate), Yamato vs. Masaaki Mochizuki (****1/2)(Infinity), Yamato vs. CIMA (****1/4 (Infinity)

ROH: Tyler Black vs. Austin Aries (****1/4)(8^th Anniversary Show)Kings of Wrestling vs. The Briscoes (****1/4)(The Big Bang) Tyler Black vs. Austin Aries vs. Roderick Strong (****1/4)(The Big Bang), Kevin Steen and Steve Corino vs. El Generico and Colt Cabana (****1/4)(Bitter Friends, Stiffer Enemies II)

AAW: The Phoenix Twins vs. The House of Truth (****1/2) (The 6^th Anniversary Show)

EVOLVE: Davey Richards vs. Kota Ibushi (****1/2)(Evolve 1)

PWG: The Young Bucks vs. The Cutler Brothers (****1/2)(DDT4)

Basically, these are all the matches I’ve given ****1/4 or above. It’s honestly a pretty sad list when you look at it. Neither CHIKARA or PWG make the cut. Not to say they haven’t had any great matches, but they haven’t had any MOTYC. Sorry guys. This is the weakest year I can ever remember for great matches. By this point last year, I’d given one match ***** and another ****3/4. This year, I’ve given three matches ****1/2 and that’s it. ‘Taker and Shawn from Wrestlemania 25 was number three on my list last year. If it wins this year? That’s just sad. Shouldn’t be surprised by WWE only having one contender considering how poor the Pay-Per-Views have been and all the departures. Ring of Honor will always have matches on the list because of the talent involved. Here’s to better wrestling in the second half of the year, and some matches that light my world on fire. I fully expect PWG and CHIKARA’s summer run to produce multiple candidates that will make me change the list drastically.

These ten awards should give you an idea what the year 2010 has been all about. Tomorrow I will look at a burning question facing each company.

March 27, 2010 – Phoenix, Arizona | Aired May 14, 2010

The show starts showing the World-1 and WARRIORS’ locker rooms.

Shingo {K} vs. Genki Horiguchi {W5}
I hope this is better than their King of Gate match. Horiguchi has all of the WARRIORS with him. Last time we saw him he was a bad guy in Real Hazard teaming with Ryo Saito. Now he’s a colorful good guy with the WARRIORS. No explanation is given as to why for fans who don’t follow Dragon Gate in Japan. Shingo comes out alone. He puts on a headlock to start. He hits a shoulder tackle and blocks an armdrag. Horiguchi dropkicks the knee. He splashes the leg. He dropkicks the knee again. Shingo blocks a moonsault with his knees. He hits a gutbuster, a DDT and a senton for 2. He puts on a chinlock. He hits a vertical suplex. He avoids Horiguchi’s elbow by hitting an exploder for 2. He goes back to the chinlock. Horiguchi gets to the ropes. Shingo puts on a choke hold but Horiguchi hits an armdrag to escape. Shingo hits a powerslam for 2. He puts on the Manriki but Horiguchi gets to the ropes. Horiguchi hits a head scissor takedown. He hits a swinging DDT but Shingo pops up. Horiguchi hits a vertical suplex. Shingo pops up again so Horiguchi hits an inverted DDT for 2. Horiguchi hits a dropkick to the back. He hits a hurricanrana. Shingo hits a powerbomb. He hits a lariat and the STAY DREAM for 2. He hits another lariat. Horiguchi gets the Backslide from Heaven for 2. Shingo hits the DVD, the Pumping Bomber and MADE IN JAPAN for the win at 10:07. This was an extended showcase for Shingo, who got to do all his moves while treating Horiguchi like a persistent nuisance. I’m all for that given that Shingo is a featured guy in DGUSA and Horiguchi isn’t as much, but I don’t think this was the best choice for an opener. Still, it was better than the match they’d have in Japan a couple weeks later.
Rating: **¾

A video package explains why the next match has the stipulation it has. Brian Kendrick brought Lacey with him to screw with Jimmy Jacobs in their match at Fearless. This meaning something to you relied entirely on your having watched Jacobs’s heel run in Ring of Honor. Jacobs retaliated by recruiting Kendrick’s friend and former tag team partner Paul London on a house show the night before this show in Arizona. London turned on Jacobs on that show, so we get a loser leaves town tag team match in which former Dragon Gate gaijin Jack Evans has agreed to side with Jacobs.

Jimmy Jacobs & Jack Evans vs. Paul London & Brian Kendrick {TNA}
Loser of the fall leaves DGUSA. Based on faction identification, who do you think is going to drop the fall? London and Kendrick attack Jacobs before the bell. Evans runs out to even things up. He dives off the ramp to hit knee kicks on both opponents, and then comes off the ramp again to hit a head scissor takedown. That was awesome. In the ring Evans dropkicks London. He hits a standing SSP for 2. He hits another dropkick, using Kendrick as a base. That was less awesome. Jacobs goes for the End Times on London but Kendrick makes the save. London hits Jacobs with a back elbow for 1. He hits a double stomp. He hits a dropkick for 2. Jacobs hits a chinbreaker. London hits a legsweep and a standing SSP for 2. He hits a butterfly suplex for 2. He hits another double stomp. Evans tags in and cleans house with a back flip into a double back elbow. He hits dropkicks on both opponents. He dumps both opponents on the floor and hits the Space Flying Tiger Drop. Back in the ring Evans hits a springboard 450 splash on London for 2. London hits a superkick and Kendrick hits the Complete Shot for 2. Jacobs hits Kendrick with a spear. He hits London with a hurricanrana. London hits another double stomp for 2. Jacobs hits a huge DDT with Evans’s help. Evans hits a standing phoenix splash for 2. He sends Kendrick to the floor with a hurricanrana. London hits Jacobs with a facebuster. He punts his face. Evans kicks London up top and drags him to the mat. London blocks the 630 senton with his knees. Jacobs hits Kendrick with a lariat. Kendrick avoids the spear. Jacobs avoids Sliced Bread #2. Kenrick kicks his face and hits an enziguiri. He hits Slide Bread #2 for 2. Jacobs gets a roll up out of nowhere for 2. He puts on the End Times for the win at 10:44, knocking Kendrick out of DGUSA. The finish came out of nowhere, but up until that point this was an intense brawl with some flashes of the typical Dragon Gate style from Evans and London.
Rating: ***

Jon Moxley and Brian Kendrick got some promo time back at Fearless. Moxley was unhappy that Tommy Dreamer was in attendance at the show. Kendrick insists that beating Dreamer won’t do anything for Moxley because Dreamer is a loser and a coward. Moxley still wants to fight, so he tells Dreamer to come out and make him shut his mouth. Dreamer didn’t come out then, but tonight at Mercury Rising he comes out to the ring wearing MMA gloves. He thanks the fans for coming out to an indy show during WrestleMania weekend. He says he fought Tajiri the night before in SMASH in Japan and flew to America tonight to have a hardcore match. He calls out Moxley so that can happen now.

Jon Moxley vs. Tommy Dreamer [Hardcore Match]
Moxley has Christina Von Eerie with him that weirdo indy fans are into. They start their hardcore match by fighting over a waistlock. Lame. Even Lenny Leonard notes that chain wrestling doesn’t belong in this kind of match. Thankfully it’s short-lived, as Moxley starts slugging and chopping Dreamer. He hits a weird leg lariat for 2. He bites Dreamer for 2. Dreamer hits a bulldog. He clotheslines Moxley to the floor and hits a baseball slide. He dives off the ramp onto Moxley. He hits Moxley with the ring bell. He rings the bell against Moxley’s crotch. He spits water in Moxley’s face and hits him with a fan’s crutch. They brawl to the back where it’s too dark to see. He hits Moxley with a plastic cup. He hits a suplex on the ramp. That’s more like it. He brings out a trash can from the back and throws it at Moxley’s head. Moxley crotches Dreamer up top and hits him with the trash can. He chokes Dreamer on the turnbuckle before hitting a superplex. He hits a clothesline for 2. Dreamer is bleeding. Moxley puts on the STF. Dreamer comes back with a cloverleaf. He stomps on Moxley’s hand. He hits a clothesline for 2. He hits a chair shot to the back. Moxley hits a drop toehold onto the edge of the chair. Dreamer hits a Rydeen Bomb. He slams the back of Moxley’s head into the seat of the chair for 2 when Von Eerie makes the save. That was a SICK spot. Dreamer tries to hit her with a piledriver but the referee isn’t having it. Dreamer slugs the referee in response. Von Eerie slaps Dreamer so he hits the piledriver. Leonard makes oral sex jokes. YAMATO runs out and puts the sleeper hold on Dreamer. Dreamer sends him to the floor. Shingo runs out and hits Dreamer with the DVD. Moxley rolls into the ring and covers Dreamer for 2. He misses a chair shot. Dreamer hits a piledriver for 2. Moxley goes to the eyes and hits a DDT on the chair for the win at 12:30. This was a lot like an old ECW match, in that weapons that would hurt less than fists were used in abundance and there was plenty of interference. I actually don’t mind the interference because the match wasn’t amazing to begin with and it was a fine way to get Moxley into Kamikaze. Points for Moxley’s nasty spill onto the chair too.
Rating: **¼

YAMATO © {K} vs. Susumu Yokosuka [Open the Dream Gate Championship Match]
This is the first time the Open the Dream Gate title has ever been defended outside of Dragon Gate in Japan. It is YAMATO’s first defense, as he won the title five days earlier. This is a rare example of a match being booked before the title was put on the line. This is the second time that kind of booking has benefitted Yokosuka, as he was the first challenger for BxB Hulk’s Open the Freedom Gate title for the same reason. Leonard mentions all of this. I’m impressed. Yokosuka powers YAMATO to the ropes to start. They trade shoulder tackles. Yokosuka gets a roll up for 2. He clotheslines YAMATO to the floor. Back in the ring YAMATO goes to the eyes. Yokosuka hits a lariat. YAMATO goes for an armbar but Yokosuka gets to the ropes. The fight spills to the floor where YAMATO goes after the arm. Back in the ring YAMATO hits a backbreaker. He puts on an armbar. He hits a low blow. Yokosuka returns the favor. He hits the exploder. YAMATO returns the favor. Yokosuka pops up and hits another. YAMATO does the same. Both guys are down. Yokosuka hits a super exploder for 2. YAMATO goes back to the arm to keep Yokosuka from hitting the Jumbo no Kachi. Yokosuka dropkicks the leg. He hits the Ashi Yokosuka. He puts on a figure 4 leglock, which gets a bigger response in the States than I’m sure Yokosuka is used to. YAMATO gets to the ropes. He blocks a powerbomb and puts on an armbar. Yokosuka gets to the ropes. YAMATO hits a running elbow. Yokosuka comes back with an avalanche DVD. YAMATO pops up and trades elbows with Yokosuka. They up the ante with lariats and rolling elbows until Yokosuka lays YAMATO out for 2. YAMATO ducks the Jumbo no Kachi and puts on the sleeper hold. Yokosuka counters to the DVD. He hits the Jumbo no Kachi but there isn’t much behind it. He hits it again with even worse results. He hits a third crappy Jumbo no Kachi. YAMATO goes to town on the arm. Yokosuka hits a powerful lariat out of nowhere for 2. He hits the Jumbo no Kachi as hard as he can but his arm is too hurt to cover. Eventually he gets 2. He hits the Mugen for 2. He goes for another but YAMATO avoids it and puts on the sleeper. YAMATO hits a German suplex. He ducks a lariat and reapplies the sleeper. He hits a sleeper suplex for 2. He punts Yokosuka’s head and hits a brainbuster for 2. He hits the Galleria for the win at 21:42. This was just awesome. YAMATO completely neutralized the Jumbo no Kachi and then used his always awesome catch skills to counter everything Yokosuka had left down the stretch to pick up the win. It was great stuff that he’d use in later title matches, but so far this is the best example of it that I’ve seen.
Rating: ****

BxB Hulk {W1}, Masato Yoshino {W1} & Naruki Doi {W1} vs. CIMA {W5}, Gamma {W5} & Dragon Kid {W5}
Four of the six original participants from the 2006 version are in this match. Yoshino and Kid start. They move at an insane speed until Kid hits an armdrag. Gamma hits a shoulder tackle. He spits in Yoshino’s face. Hulk hits a dropkick. He armdrags CIMA but misses a dropkick. He hits a senton for 2. Kid works Doi’s arm. Yoshino hits a bodyslam. CIMA hits the Superdrol. He and Kid hit sentons for 2. CIMA and Yoshino fight over a surfboard stretch. CIMA hits Doi with a hiptoss. He and Gamma hit a double dropkick. They hit stereo back suplexes. Gamma spits in Hulk’s face. He gives Hulk the Sweet Angel’s Kiss. He hits a dropkick. CIMA swings Kid into Hulk. The WARRIORS hit a triple dropkick for 2. Gamma canes Hulk’s crotch. Hulk cleans house with kicks. He hits Gamma with the uranage. He hits Kid with a dropkick. Doi grabs the cane and bops Gamma on the head. He comically hits him a few more times before nailing a back suplex. Kid hits Yoshino with the Diamond Dust. He hits a stunner for 2. He hits a hurricanrana. Yoshino ducks the 619 and hits a powerbomb. Doi hits an elbow for 2. Yoshino hits a double stomp on the arm. Speed Muscle double-teams Kid. Hulk hits a roundhouse kick for 2. He puts on an abdominal stretch. He hits a senton for 2. Doi hits the hanging senton for 2. Yoshino hits an elevated double stomp for 2. Kid comes back with a head scissor takedown. CIMA hits a double stomp. He suplexes Doi while keeping Hulk in a toehold. Gamma hits a dropkick. Kid hits the Déjà Vu. He hits the Bermuda Triangle. Doi unloads elbows on Gamma. Gamma blocks the Doi 555 and hits a dropkick. He hits a powerbomb for 2. Yoshino hits an elevated facebuster for 2. He avoids the Venus and puts on the Coumori. CIMA hits a dropkick. Yoshino hits the Sling Blade for 2. He puts on From Jungle. Kid puts Hulk in the Christo and has a slap fight with Yoshino. He hits the Messiah on Hulk for 2. CIMA hits a baseball slide on Yoshino. He misses the Tokarev. Yoshino hits the shotgun senton combo. Doi hits Kid with a German superplex. Hulk botches a springboard leg lariat. He hits a Michinoku Driver for 2. Yoshino dropkicks Doi by mistake. CIMA and Gamma hit a double superkick. CIMA hits the Perfect Driver for 2. Kid and Gamma hit a double Tokarev while CIMA hits a dropkick. Gamma hits the…

CIMA misses the Meteora. Doi hits the Bakatare Sliding Kick. Yoshino rolls CIMA up for 2. CIMA hits a superkick. Hulk hits the Mouse and the EVO for 2. CIMA hits the Venus. Gamma canes Hulk and Kid hits a super reverse hurricanrana. Gamma hits a reverse hurricanrana. Kid hits the Ultra Hurricanrana for 2. Hulk avoids the Dragon Rana. Kid hits Yoshino with the Bible for 2. Yoshino hits the Lightning Spiral for 2. Speed Muscle double teams Gamma. They hit a Sling Blade Bomb for 2. Hulk hits the First Flash for 2. Doi hits the Doi 555 and the Bakatare Sliding Kick. Yoshino hits the Lightning Spiral for 2. Yoshino hits the Torbellino and puts on the Sol Naciente. Kid fails to make the save. Hulk stops CIMA from saving with a dropkick and Gamma passes out at 27:25. The second half of this match was as good as anything Dragon Gate has done in the States. Sure Hulk botched a spot, but the hurricanrana sequence and the way World-1 dominated down the final stretch both more than made up for it. Dragon Gate’s perfect record on WrestleMania weekend continues.
Rating: ****½

After the match we get the following, hilarious exchange, all in English:
Yoshino: Hulk, I want the title.
Hulk: Are you serious?!
Yoshino: Of course!
Hulk: OK OK OK OK OK, in Toronto. [In Japanese (subtitles available on DGUSA’s channel on YouTube): If it’s going to be a title match, it will be a different story. I won’t go easy on you. Get ready for it.]
Doi: Yoshino, are you sure?
Yoshino: Yes!
Doi: BxB, are you sure?
Hulk: Yes!
Doi: I wish for a good match! Title match, Freedom Gate! OKAY! Everybody, thank you for coming tonight! Did you enjoy the show? Hey one more time, DID YOU ENJOY THE SHOW? Okay, thank you, gracias! DRAGON GATE DRAGON GATE DRAGON GATE!

Japanenglish is my favorite.

In a hallway backstage Jon Moxley, Shingo and YAMATO are hanging out. Moxley lets us know he’s formally aligned with these men to create Kamikaze USA.

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Hey, Justin Houston here. I do the Chikara column and DVD Reviews, along with the much-neglected Pushing Puroresu. Now, I consider myself a pretty patriotic fellow. My curtains are all semi-sheer red, white and blue. I don’t eat French Fries or Bratwursts unless they are surrounded by American cheese. I would take a bullet for a bald eagle, unless it was super old or something. While I sleep, I listen to “Toughen Up, Brah”, an inspirational audio book by Dog the Bounty Hunter. I have a back tattoo depicting Randy Couture planting the American Flag on Mars. Despite all of this, I currently harbor a deep-seeded jealously of Canadians in the Ontario area. Dragon Gate USA is coming to Canada this Friday & Saturday, and while any foreigner with a passport can attend these potentially awesome shows (it’s insanely close to Detroit), the residents of America Jr. have easy access to see DG stars like Dragon Kid, CIMA, BxB Hulk, SHINGO, Naruki Doi, YAMATO and Masato Yoshino. Here’s a rundown of what you can expect.

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“Open the Northern Gate” DVD Taping

May 7^th, 2010 ~ Windsor, Ontario

The Windsor Armory ~ 8:00pm Bell Time

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The Main Event of DGUSA’s debut in Canada will also mark the DGUSA debut of Pac, world-renowned high-flyer and member of the WORLD-1 faction. He will team with fellow WORLD-1 member and Open the Freedom Gate champion BxB Hulk to take on teammates of the KAMIKAZE faction: its leader, Shingo Takagi (or SHINGO as he’s billed in the U.S.) and the Open the Dream Gate champion YAMATO. Before he beat Naruki Doi for the Dream Gate, the top belt in Dragon Gate, YAMATO made it to the final two of the tournament to crown the very first holder of the Freedom Gate, the singles title of DGUSA. Hulk pinned YAMATO to win the title, and he made his first defense at the next show. It was there that YAMATO and SHINGO took their frustrations out on him post-match, as YAMA wanted the title and SHINGO had yet to manage a win. BxB Hulk and YAMATO also share the distinction of being in the first ever match on a DGUSA show, where YAMATO beat Hulk. And as long as the history between those two are, the one between Takagi and Hulk dwarfs it in intensity. Shingo has bested Hulk in most every confrontation between the two, beating him for the recently-vacated Dream Gate back in 2008. The deck is stacked against Hulk once again, but with an innovator and risk-taker like Pac by his said, anything can happen.

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Their rivalry started on the very first DGUSA show and it will finally end in Canada. Dragon Kid, one of the best high-flyers in the business, bested Masato Yoshino, the fastest wrestler on Earth, on the first and second DGUSA shows. He rejected DK’s congratulations and it lead to a tag match between involving the two. Yoshino’s team got the victory, forcing this match-up. Dragon Kid and Masato Yoshino know each other better than just about anyone on the Dragon Gate roster. They have faced each other numerous times over the years, recently rekindling their feud during the 2010 King of Gate tournament. In the semifinals, it was Kid who scored an upset over “Speed Star”, nailing a satellite crucifix pin for a three count that Yoshino immediately protested. Now, in a 2 out of 3 Falls Match, the score will finally be settled.

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The match between Naruki Doi, leader of the WORLD-1 faction, and Masaaki Mochizuki, a hard-hitting and respected veteran, is a long time coming. 2008 saw the rise of Shingo Takagi in Dragon Gate. He would attempt to become the first new generation Dragon Gate wrestler to become a credible force, beating BxB Hulk in July for the ultimate prize in Dragon Gate, the Open the Dream Gate Title. He would only hold the title to the end of the year, where he was bested by Naruki Doi, who had gone through a never-before-witnessed, meteoric rise to the top levels of DG. He would shatter every Dream Gate record in the books, becoming its greatest champion ever. Shingo has yet to get revenge on Doi, and Mochizuki will now attempt to get his. You see, it was a win against Mochizuki that won Doi the King of Gate 2008 title and a title shot at Shingo, which he would win. Two years have passed, and, insane as it may sound, Masaaki Mochizuki is, at age 40, the best he’s been in years. He has gone from a calculated striker to a relentless buzzsaw, mowing down even the stiffest competition, sometimes against grapplers half his age. Now is as good a time as any for Mochizuki to gain a measure of retribution, but with a looming Dream Gate title match again YAMATO at the Korakuen Hall on May 13th, who knows what’s on his mind.

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At first glance, CIMA looks to be the better of Jimmy Jacobs in every conceivable way that matters in a wrestling match. He’s faster, taller, stronger and more experienced. He’s also tanner, but that’s probably extraneous. Or is it? Perhaps that’s why “Daniel Bryan” isn’t doing so well at the next level. That, or Michael Cole knows voodoo, or at least has a “male friend” who does. But I digress. Despite the physical factors against him, do NOT count out Jacobs in any contest. He has proved many times over that underestimating him can lead to more than just a pinfall loss. BJ Whitmer was never the same after their Cage Match. Austin Aries went from a razor-focused mat machine to a flamboyant, mouthy jerk after they met in an I Quit Match. He’s never the biggest dog in the fight, but he may be rabid…and he’ll never let up.

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At the very first DGUSA show, Gran Akuma turned on Mike Quackenbush and Jigsaw, natives of the Chikara Pro wrestling promotion, aligning himself with YAMATO for his fight against the “unworthy” Chikara luchadors. But, with YAMATO and Shingo Takagi joining up with Jon Moxley, it appeared that Akuma might have been left out of the mix. Enter the debuting Akira Tozawa, the youngest member of Shingo’s stable KAMIKAZE. So while YAMA focuses on other projects with Mox and SHINGO in KAMIKAZE USA, it appears that Akuma is still in the mix with them, tagging with Tozawa for the young, brash wrestler’s United States debut!

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FIP World Heavyweight Title: Jon Moxley© vs. Phil Atlas

I have no clue who Phil Atlas is, but he’s in for a world of hurt when he faces the psychotic, garrulous Jon Moxley. When Atlas takes on Mox for the FIP World Title, he’ll be looking to move up the independent ladder and earn future bookings in both FIP and DGUSA. After doing a little research, I’ve found that Atlas has toured with All Japan Pro Wrestling, facing the likes of Katsuhiko Nakajima and Kaz Hayashi. He is also an Ontario native, but Moxley is used to being the least favorite person in the ring, so I don’t imagine he’s sweating it much.

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Maximum Pro Wrestling Showcase: Tyson Dux & Jon Bolen vs. Brad Martin & Xtremo

I know of Tyson Dux, and I think he’s a solid wrestler that shows a lot of unique personality. The other three…no clue. Professionalism! So instead of talking about the four wrestlers aka make shit up for a paragraph (Bolen starred in Species 7!) I’ll comment on “showcase” matches in general. Back in 2006, Dragon Gate put six of their best guys in a ROH ring and became the talk of the wrestling word the next day. Lethal Wrestling Alliance threw four guys into the ring during Chikara’s King of Trios 2009, and they were booed out of the arena and met with “Don’t Come Back” chants. There’s a lot of pressure on guys who have to not only represent themselves, but an entire company. Some rise to the occasion, some work for the Lethal Wrestling Alliance. It’s a risky endeavor that can pay off in the future or bury your company’s reputation…*ominous voice*…FOREVER. Good luck, guys.

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- On the Bonus Card for those who purchased Row 1-3 Tickets, Johnny Gargano will take on a mystery opponent. Gargano’s a lot of fun as a performer, so it’s a nice treat for those select folks.

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“Uprising” Pay-Per-View Taping

May 8^th, 2010 ~ Mississauga, Ontario

International Centre ~ 8:00pm Bell Time

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Masato Yoshino is either the most understanding man of all-time or he is convincingly hiding his anger towards BxB Hulk. Yoshino and Hulk are members of WORLD-1 and occasional tag partners. At the end of last year, Hulk turned his back on Yoshino during the Hair vs. Mask Survival Cage Match, leaving him 2 on 1 versus K-ness & Yokosuka and ultimately causing him to have his head shaved as the match’s loser. Yoshino managed to get to a flag earlier, allowing him to escape, but he saw Hulk was in big trouble, so he came back down to help him. Then Hulk managed to get to the hard-to-reach flag with the help of a pair of gloves and a rope. Yoshino was in big trouble now…but BxB Hulk, with tears in his eyes, grabbed the flag and hopped down, hanging Yoshino out to dry. Yoshino was in disbelief that his friend could leave him like that, and Hulk, showing severe regret, screamed in support of Yoshino, as did all of WORLD-1. It was the first time I’d ever heard Hulk get booed in a Dragon Gate ring, and quite loudly, too. It was a selfish act by Hulk to preserve part of his identity, as Yoshino had run to Hulk’s aid just minutes before, sacrificing a golden chance to exit. Everyone took turns shaving the head of a deeply depressed-looking Yoshino, except Hulk. When he tried to leave, Yoshino grabbed Hulk by the arm and shoved the electric razor into his hand, forcing Hulk to face the same fate as Hulk’s enemies. Hulk could only shave a little bit before the impact of his betrayal was too much and he collapsed. They have played nice for almost six months, but with BxB Hulk’s Open the Freedom Gate title on the line, it may be anything goes.

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This feud stems from Dragon Kid’s involvement with YAMATO & SHINGO in their KAMIKAZE stable. As you can see IN THIS VIDEO, they turned on DK and he had to be saved by his longtime friend CIMA. Days prior to this, Dragon Kid had left the KAMIKAZE faction and joined CIMA’s faction, the WARRIORS-5, after a laundry list of miscommunications between the men. CIMA and Dragon Kid will be facing an uphill climb, as they have been unsuccessful in recent matches against the pair. Much like Naruki Doi earned his status as the company’s top dog by first defeating Masaaki Mochizuki, YAMATO earned the respect of CIMA by tapping him out to begin his road to the Dream Gate championship. Shingo Takagi faced underdog Dragon Kid in the finals of the King of Gate 2010, where he defeated him and earned a title shot against his own partner. However, despite the recent wins, the Dream Gate match between the two caused much friction, nearly fracturing their unit beyond repair. The in-fighting within KAMIKAZE is the biggest advantage CIMA and DK will have, and they must find a way to exploit it if they’re to win.

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While their first tag match of the weekend will be more heated, Mike Quackenbush and Jigsaw will have just as much to prove in their match against WORLD-1 members Naruki Doi and Pac. With Chikarasaurus Rex on the horizon for Chikara Pro in July (see below), QuackenSaw will be looking to scout talent for the huge Chikara vs. Dragon Gate weekend. In all likelihood, they could face Doi again on familiar ground soon enough, as he is one of the biggest stars of DG. Pac has worked several dates for Chikara in the past, so he could show up, too. But Quack & Jig have a golden opportunity this weekend to also, perhaps, earn themselves a shot at the Twin Gate, Dragon Gate’s tag titles, just as The Young Bucks did. In fact, QuackenSaw beat The Bucks on their way to TNA! So, despite an innocent exterior, there’s quite a lot on the line here.

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Akira Tozawa will make his debut the night before, getting thrown into a feud he has no real part in. However, he second match in the company and first singles match will be against a man who’s been picking at him for years: Masaaki Mochizuki. Since he was a rookie, Masaaki as seemed to take perverse joy in throttling young Tozawa with vicious kicks…and who wouldn’t? Tozawa has a reputation for yelling at the top of his lungs in an attempt to rattle his opponent. While its actual effect has not been verified, for the most part, it has just lead to worse and worse beatings, specifically from veterans like Mochizuki and Don Fujii. But, with Tozawa getting closer and closer to breaking through in Dragon Gate, a win over Mochizuki could propel him from the back of the line to a future Brave Gate or even Dream Gate shot. It could happen!

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John Moxley and Jimmy Jacobs may be the biggest non-DG feud in the company right now. Moxley started at the side of Brian Kendrick in his efforts to screw with Jacobs, but Jacobs pinned Kendrick at the March 27^th Phoenix show, banishing him from DGUSA and leaving Mox on his own against Jimmy. At said Phoenix shows, Moxley showed he can handle himself just fine, going undefeated on the weekend, including beating Tommy Dreamer in a Hardcore Match. Moxley also won the FIP Title recently, so he’s on a hot streak. Things will get extreme when Jacobs tries to cool him off with a big loss.

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Special Attraction Match: Tyson Dux vs. Gran Akuma

Once again, I don’t know a ton about Tyson Dux. I know he loves comic books, so he’s automatically a hero in my book. He’ll have to handle potential KAMIKAZE USA member Gran Akuma, who I’m quite familiar with. For the benefit of Mr. Dux, here’s the scoop on Akuma: he gonna kick you. Hard. OFTEN. The Rubik’s Cube sounds like a silly name for a finisher, but if he manages to get you on his shoulders, you won’t be laughing much longer. He’s an unforgiving, unflinching striker who always aims high and rarely misses. Good luck, dude. If they allow it, wear a helmet. And wear a cup, because…he WILL kick there.

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- Like the previous night, the Bonus Card will be for those who purchased Row 1-3 Tickets. FRAY! makes its return to DGUSA. It starts with two competitors. Every 2 minutes another one enters the ring. Eliminations can take place anytime by pinfall, submission or DQ. The last man standing is the winner. Those competing so far: Phil Atlas, Brodie Lee, Cheech, Cloudy, Xtremo, Brent B, Anthony Fiasco and Michael Elgin. Any match involving the Miracle Ultraviolence Connection gets a thumbs up from me. Also, there will be a match consisting of wrestlers chosen by CIMA from the Seminar/Tryout that will be held that afternoon.

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From Chikara Pro: “A year ago, CHIKARA partnered up with a revolutionary new brand in the American wrestling scene – Dragon Gate USA! Now that partnership will bear some truly unique fruit…on Sunday afternoon, July 25th, the stars of both CHIKARA and DG USA will come together for a giant spectacle that could only be called “Chikarasaurus Rex: King of Show“! Some once-in-a-lifetime encounters will take place, as DG USA sends six of their most acclaimed superstars into a CHIKARA ring for this epic event. Get your tickets in advance through our online store and save!”

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If you’re looking for the best Dragon Gate reviews that also just happen to be the quickest to the net, look no further than Brad Garoon’s groin-grabbingly awesome blog, “Open the Garoon Gate”. You’d be a fool not to read his reviews…a fool I’d pity. So…I guess I’m saying I’d pity the fool who didn’t read his blog. Pity to the max. He also posts them here, so for the sake of hits, read both his blog and his column here. Don’t make me beg…

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Download above or listen to it live after the jump

While night one was great, night two promised even more. The Dragon Gate six man tag returned from a third consecutive year. The Ring of Honor world title and the FIP world title were scheduled to be defended. The Briscoes feud with Age of the Fall was going to come to an end?

-Taped on March 29, 2008 from Orlando Florida

-Your hosts are Dave Prazak and Lenny Leonard

-Delirious vs. Go Shiozaki

Explanation is fairly simple. Neither guy had anything to do for night two, so they get paired off against each other. Stalling to start. Delirious shouts “STOP” and “GO.” Go isn’t sure what to make of the situation. Delirious tries to chops and goes for a series of shoulder tackles. Go tries one more chop and Delirious flees. Delirious uses quickness but flees to the floor again when Go teases a chop. More chop attempts, so Delirious tells him to look at the crowd. Finally, Go hits a series of chops. They are as brutal as Delirious dreaded. Delirous comes back with a flying clothesline. Facefirst into the buckle and Delirious and a belly-to-back suplex. Elbows from Delirious. Charge into the corner, but Go places him on the top. Various chops to the body. Throatfirst into the rope and an immediate knee to the throat by Go. Chop to the back of the neck, and Go applies a chinlock. Sunset flip by Delirious. Even more chops by Go. What is this, a Roderick Strong match? Fisherman Buster. Slam but Go hits the knees of Delirious on a moonsault try. Delirious with a leaping lariat and a Fireman’s carry slam. Back senton gets two. Cobra clutch, but Go hits strikes. Drop toehold into the turnbuckle. Panic attack by Delirious leads to a superkick by Shozaki. German suplex for two. Chops to the side of the heads. Cobra stretch by Delirious, but Go makes the ropes. Series of reversals ends in a lariat by Go. Go Flasher gets the win for Go.

-Winner (s)/Time/Rating: Go Shiozaki/12:14/**1/2

-This was perfectably acceptable wrestling. Some fun comedy to get the show started and the crowd warmed up. Go Shiozaki had an odd run in Ring of Honor. He wasn’t as highly regarded as Marifuji, KENTA, or Morishima, but he had his share of good matches. I guess where he came up short was in the personality  department.

-Larry Sweeney and Shane Hagadorn are still in a private locker room, and Sweeney makes it clear the window of opportunity is closing for Ring of Honor to book Chris Hero and Daniel Puder. Thankfully, the Puder was closed quickly.

-The Y.R.R (FIP Florida Heritage Champion Sal Rinauro, FIP Tag Team Champion Kenny King, and Chasyn Rance)(w/random broads) vs. Bushwacker Luke, Alex “Sugarfoot” Payne, and Dingo

I love how Ring of Honor fans get high and mighty about how much better their company is because they focus on wrestling, but then they go nuts for Bushwacker Luke, the ultimate representation of sports entertainment. I can’t stand four out of the six guys  in this match, so my expectations are monumentally low. I guess this came about because of Y.R.R harassing Luke the previous night. Dingo starts for the faces, since he’s the most competent wrestler on his team. Considering he spent  a lot of time in IWA-MS, that should tell you all you need to know. Heels work over Alex Payne for the heat segment. If there wasn’t a parade of awesomeness following this, I might be a bit more bitter. Dingo comes and actually shows a little bit, which makes me sad he can’t wrestle anymore because of a back injury. Luke does minimal work, and he’s barely mobile when he tries. Lots of punching and clotheslines. Even a couple battering rams. Luke, Dingo, and Payne do the Bushwacker walk, but this comes back to haunt them. Triple team series of moves by the Y.R.R leads to a victory over Dingo. Lovely.

Winner (s)/Time/Rating:The Y.R.R/ 8:13/*

-We rejoin Supercard of Honor II already in progress.

-Rocky Romero and Davey Richards stand in the ring kind of looking like geeks, especially out of the context of having not seen the tag team title match. Larry Sweeney and Hagadorn come out once again to offer the other two members of the No Remorse Corps. spots in Sweet ‘n’ Sour Inc. without Roderick Strong to run interference. Strong is apparently paying attention to monitors in the back because he runs out and turns Sweeney down once again. Here comes Erick Stevens to clear the ring. Jigsaw and Ruckus return to take out Romero and Richards.

-A bell is never officially heard, but Stevens and Strong engage in one of the most epic brawls in the history of Ring of Honor.  Their feud encompassed two companies and was one of the best in 2008 regardless of whether they were wrestling in ROH or FIP. I’d actually recommend their match from FIP Redefined 2008 most of all. If I had done a top ten list, that likely would have been number three or four. This was almost as bad as what happened with Homicide/Cabana in 2006 and Jacobs/Whitmer in 2007. Strong’s chest is bleeding after two chops. Referee Kentucky Jordan is decked early on. Vicious shots and strikes abound throughout this contest. While Strong bleeds from the chest, Stevens is busted open across his forehead. Stevens with a BRUTAL TKO as Strong goes into a chair headfirst. Crowd actually shouts “FIP” in a very surreal moment. Strong’s head bleeds a gusher  after the TKO. Pace picks up and these two start throwing bombs. What makes this brawl so amazing is the sheer stiffness of these shots. Even if you know professional wrestling is fake (and I hope everyone reading this does), you could almost plausibly believe the hatred just based on contact made. The brawl only ends when Strong nails Stevens in the head with a chair. Richards and Romero return to give Stevens a haircut. Good night Mohawk. Maybe not the payoff the crowd was expecting, but this was a great to build even more heat for this feud. Although there was no bell and this no official match, I’d give this segment ****. Believe me though. We’re just getting started.

-Relaxed Rules Match: The Briscoes (Mark and Jay) vs. The Age of the Fall (Jimmy Jacobs and Tyler Black)(w/Lacey and Rain)

Speaking of feuds. Age of the Fall debuted in September at the Man Up Pay-Per-View by hanging Mark Briscoe. They’d go back and forth for months with Age of the Fall winning the tag team titles at Final Battle 2007. Although Black and Jacobs lost the titles just a month later, this feud persists. Relaxed Rules essentially means you have to murder someone in order to get disqualified. And even then , it’s referee’s discretion. I was never a fan of faction warfare, and Age of the Fall symbolized my disinterest in that garbage. Make no mistake about it though. This is a fantastic match in a series of them that these two had over almost a full year. Since intermission is next, these two teams go wild against each other. Interesting note that while the Briscoes have had a number of matches against Age of the Fall, this is their second match against the Jacobs/Black incarnation. Mark Briscoes shows how little he’s learned in a year by doing a moonsault off the top on to all of the other men.   Mark also dives off a trampoline nto Black and Jacobs in the crowd. That was different. Into the crowd and Jacobs drinks some booze a fan snuck into the building. Awesome. These four go all over the place and use all kinds of chairs. This was sort of awkward placing with another brawl taking place just before this match, but it was at least different. Stevens and Strong was like a fight. This was a wacky brawl. The lighting is also a little better in this building, meaning we can actually see what the hell is going on when they fight in the crowd. One thing you can’t accuse any of these four men of doing is phoning it in. Ceazy bumps taken everywhere. And then a table gets introduced…

Jacobs and Mark end up on the second level with the table being on the first. Tyler Black is laid prone on the table. Milio Beasely from Full Impact Pro moves Tyler off the table. Beasely is put on the table, and Briscoe dives on top of him. Table done. Mark done. Jay takes Black to the ring, but Jacobs runs in with a plastic bag. Double team by both Age of the Fall members. Mark putting someone that wasn’t in this match through a table… not the brightest idea ever. Peroxism by Black leads to a back senton by Jacobs. Jay barely kicks out. Jay comes back and puts Jacobs face first into the middle turnbuckle. Big boot on Tyler. Falcon arrow on Jacobs. DVD on Black gets two. That looked nasty too. Jay driller but Jacobs gets the low blow while Black gets the small package. I love how they’re playing off what happened last year as Jay fights two men while Mark gets hurt again. Super contra code by Black and Jacobs. 1-2-NO! Black goes for the Phoenix splash, but MARK PUSHES HIM OFF! SPRINGBOARD DOOMSDAY DEVICE. NO! END TIME BY JACOBS! MARK PASSES OUT! WHAT AN AMAZING FINISH!

-Winner (s)/Time/Rating: Age of the Fall/15:04/****

-Unless you watch the replay, there’s possible way for you to see how the Doomsday got reversed. I loved that finish so much. That alone is worth a half star

-Erick Stevens vows revenge against Strong. The war hasn’t ended. It’s only begun.

-Age of the Fall gloat and look ahead to Austin Aries’ joining the group. Lacey has a back-up plan if things fall through. Hmm.

-ROH vs. Dragon Gate: BxB Hulk and Shingo vs. Kevin Steen and El Generico

We get the Hulk entrance proper tonight. If only Shingo had danced. That’s the only this match could have been better. Off all the wonderful four star matches this weekend, this might be the cream of the crop. I think the best part about this match is that these two teams are practically mirror images of each other as far as styles go. Plus, Steen and Generico work very well with the Dragon Gate teams, no doubt because they’ve done tours before. Steen and Generico have of course gone 1-0 this weekend after defeating Naruki Doi and Masato Yoshino, while Shingo and Hulk defeated Age of the Fall.

Generico and Hulk start with a token mat wrestling sequence. Steen in and he overpowers Hulk a bit before a flying kick sends Steen down. Shingo in and it’s a battle of the bulk. Series of shoulder tackles and no one wants to go down. Heard that before. Steen tosses Shingo to the floor. Generico front flip sentons him on the floor. Wow. Steen goes for the cover and gets two. Steenerico tries a double team, but that doesn’t last long. Shingo hits Generico hard. Lenny Leonard even uses the phrase “Epic Fail.” If he only would have saved that for the years to come. Double team by Shingo and Hulk. Generico ends up too close to his corner, and Steen returns to the ring. Double team on Hulk again. Standing moonsault by Generico. Drop toehold by Generico leads to Steen doing a flipping legdrop. Back and forth with Generico and Hulk. Series of kicks by Hulk quickly countered by a knee. Leg lariat. Ole. Steen mocks Hulk. Awesome. Missile dropkick by Hulk onto Generico. Standing dropkick on Steen leads to a standing moonsault on Generico. Shingo with a hot tag and he wipes out both Steen and Generico. Lenny Leonard mocks the Steenerico nickname. Shingo spinebuster. Standing shooting starpress by Hulk gets two. Cue the insanity and crazy spots. These four men wipe each other for what seems like ten minutes. Breakneck speed is the order of the day. Crowd is deeply into this one, as they have for everything the entire weekend. Steen breaks his moonsault out. Too bad he misses. Burning hammer slam hit by Shingo on to Steen. Somewhat ate their Spinach that morning. Hulk moonsaults Steen on the floor. LARIAT BY SHINGO. TOP ROPE DVD ON GENERICO! 1-2-NO!!!LARIAT BUT GENERICO UP! ANOTHER LARIAT! LAST FALCONCERY ON GENERICO’S NECK! 1-2-3!!!

-Winner (s)/Time/Rating: BxB Hulk and Shingo/17:48/****1/2

-Absolutely phenomenal match between two of the best team teams in the world at that point. All four guys brought their A games. Crowd practically begs them to come back. Those poor poor fans.

-Erick Stevens shaves his head bald in the bathroom. Might as well.

-Ring of Honor World Championship: Nigel McGuinness (champion) vs. Austin Aries

Both champion and challenger are coming off submission victories from the previous night. Fantastic booking if you ask me because both submission finishers could potentially end the match, and even the casual fan who’s only been to these two Orlando shows have something to watch out for. These two had a MOTYC back at the Rising Above Pay-Per-View, which took place on the last weekend of 2007. Compared to a lot of the zaniness with previous matches, this was a traditional Ring of Honor world championship match. Slow start as they go back and forth working various body parts. Aries goes for The Last Chancery early, but Nigel flees. Tease of the missile dive while Nigel is facing the crowd , a callback to a spot that happened at Rising Above, which gave Nigel a concussion. Aries goes to work on the head and neck of the champion.  Aries hooks the leg and neck of McGuinness in a submission hold. Nigel counters and grabs at the eyes. Hard chop in the corner by the champion. Aries fires back with a series of over-hand chops. McGuinness rams Aries’ shoulder into the ringpost. Aries to the outside, but Nigel brings him back for some more shoulder work. Aries comes back with chops, including a tomahawk chop from the top rope. That was different. Nigel with his patented kick to the back, forearm to the chest spot. Tower of London try but Aries hits a series of elbows. Front facelock, but the shoulder gives out. London Dungeon! Aries quickly gets to the ropes. To the corner for more strikes. Aries interrupts a charge and gets The Last Chancery. McGuinness scratches at Aries’ eyes. Nigel with more strikes in the corner. Running European uppercut. Tower of London try but Aries hits a missile dropkick. Aries‘ dropkick in the corner countered by a boot to the face. Third time is the charm for the Tower of London. Aries placed along the top rope. Nigel misses a lariat because Aries locks in a submission across the ropes. Aries hits an elbow off the top turnbuckle to a standing McGuinnes on the floor. Into the guardrail goes the champion. Dropkick and Nigel crumples to the ground. Dropkick in the corner back inside the ring. Two more and McGuinness ends up on the mat once again. The champion barely kicks out at two. Brainbuster attempt, but McGuinnes blocks. Hand stand in the corner but Aries dropkicks him. Aries off the ropes… LARIAT! Champion and challenger are down and only get up at nine. That was intense. Slap exchange. Forearm exchange. Aries hit s clothesline as Nigel was prepping for a jawbreaker lariat. Brainbuster hit but a 450 misses. London Dungeon! Drags him to the center and really cinches him in. Aries ALMOST gets two on a roll-up. Last Chancery! McGuinness works his way out and once again applies the London Dungeon once again. To the center of the ring. Kick to the head by Aries. Backslide. Another kick to the head. BRAINBUSTAH! 450 SPLASH! 1-2-NO! FOOT ON THE ROPES! Nigel flees to the outside. Aries goes for the heat-seeking missile and goes shoulder first into the guardrail. Yeeouch! Back inside for a 1-2-NO! Short arm lariat. Aries gets a crucifix bomb for two. Finally, Nigels gets a jawbreaker lariat for the victory.

-Winner (s)/Time/Rating:  STILL ROH World Champion-Nigel McGuinness/24:44/****1/2

-Incredible match between these two. I think the final couple minutes went a little too far, but this was one of the best matches in Ring of Honor during 2008. I would have preferred Aries just losing after throwing himself into the barricade.

-After the match, it’s decision time for one Austin Aries. Jacobs makes the offer, but Aries doesn’t respond to him. Lacey makes an offer of her own, and Aries leaves with her. Jacobs is not a happy man. Tammy Sytch comes down because she wants Aries inside of her. She questions his sanity. I question her sobriety. Aries leaves with Lacey. Jacobs, Black, and Rain appear set to beat up Sytch. The Briscoes (speaking of sobriety) come out to make the save. This would lead to a series of really good matches with Jacobs and Aries. I’m not sure it could ever be considered a great feud since Aries dominated much of it

-CIMA, Ryo Saito, and Dragon Kid vs. Naruki Doi, Masato Yoshino, and Genki Horiguchi

This was very similar to their matches back in 2006 and 2007. I guess you really have to look hard to find the subtle differences between every one of these matches. It’s pretty sad because this would be the last time the Dragon Gate stars performed on U.S. total for Ring of Honor. Lots of great action between the six guys who came together for the original six man tag two years ago. Guess you could say things came full circle for the Dragon Gate guys in ROH. After over 25 minutes, Naruki Doi pins Genki Horiguchi with the Muscle driver.

-Winner (s)/Time/Rating: Doi, Masato Yoshino, and Genki Horiguchi/25:44/****3/4

-Larry Sweeney celebrates. Based on all the great matches this weekend, I doubt he was the only one.

Final Thoughts: This is undoubtedly one of the best shows in the history of Ring of Honor. It’s a bit bittersweet for a number of reasons. The Dragon Gate stars wouldn’t appear in the states until July of 2009 for the new DG USA. Gabe Sapolsky’s booking lost some its luster over the following months, and he would be replaced with Adam Pearce in November 2008. The economy tanked badly, and DVD sales reflected this downturn. Unfortunately, Ring of Honor’s 2009 Wrestlemania couldn’t come close to matching 2006-2008. Kevin Ford will that story next week.

-Taped on March 31, 2007 from Detroit, MI

-Your hosts are Dave Prazak and Lenny Leonard

-Another Jimmy Jacobs interview. This one is about B.J. Whitmer and his need for acceptance. Jimmy talks about being in the same place with Whitmer ultimately and the fight for love. Lacey, looking like she wants to bang the next thing that moves, is there. Jacobs says that Whitmer has already lost.

-Video package showing highlights of last year’s six man tag.

-Jay Briscoe opens the show and calls his brother unlucky. That’s one way of putting it. Mark is still in the hospital, but Jay says they’re still the champions. Christopher Daniels and Matt Sydal, who were scheduled to face the Briscoes tonight, come out and they’re not happy. They want their rematch from Fifth Year Festival: Chicago. Since Mark isn’t there, Daniels wants them to hand over the belts now. Jay does have a partner though…

-Jay Briscoe (ROH World Tag Team Champion) and Delirious vs. Christopher Daniels and Matt Sydal

Sydal and Daniels might be the most forgotten about tag team champions of all time. They held the belts from Thanksgiving weekend 2007 until February 24, 2007. Daniels and Sydal against The Briscoes was supposed to be one of the main events. Briscoe and Daniels start out going back and forth, until Daniels flees to the outside to commiserate with his partner. Sydal and Delirious tag in, and there’s a lot of history here. Their first match in Ring of Honor was against each other. Delirious hip tosses everyone in site after Sydal and Daniels try to double team him. Once again to the outside where the four men brawl. Back inside where Briscoe and Delirious work over Sydal. Daniels kicks Delirous in the back to give his team the advantage. Double team work by the former champions now. Extended heat segment on Delirious. Jay comes in a house of fire. Sick superkick on Sydal and stunned on Daniels. Falcon arrow on Sydal almost gets three. Daniels and Sydal try a double team, but Jay leaps on to them outside the ring. Same side where Mark conked his head. Splash on Sydal but Daniels breaks up the pin. Daniels and Sydal regain the advantage once again. Uranagi by Daniels appears to set up the BME, but Briscoe ducks. Palm thrust and iconoclasm by Daniels. Koji clutch. Delirious dives in for the save and sets up for a panic attack. Shadows over Hell only gets two. Here It is Driver by Sydal. Delirious with a Cobra clutch, which  gets reversed quickly. Sweep of the legs and a standing moonsault by Sydal. Back elbow and Bizarro Driver by Delirous. Briscoe and Daniels engage in fisticuffs. Forearm by Daniels with Briscoe prone on the top rope. Gordbuster by Briscoe off the top. Jaydriller attempt by Sydal hits a kick. STO by Daniels. Angel’s Wings but Delirious punts Daniels in the head. Shooting star press attempted by Sydal, but Delirious works his way out of it. Chemical Imbalance #2 by Delirious on Sydal gets three.

-Winner (s)/Time/Rating: Jay Briscoe and Delirious/18:06/***1/2

-I think this match would have been scary good if Mark had been involved. As is, it was just a very good tag team match. Obviously, this was probably as good as could be expected given the circumstances.

-B.J. Whitmer promo. Should have just let Jimmy do all the promo work cause nothing of substance is said here.

-Claudio Castagnoli vs. Yamato

If either company announced this match for Wrestlemania weekend this year, I think people would literally jiz themselves in excitement. Sadly, this is not even close to a dream match. It’s just a chance to get Claudio a singles win over Mania weekend. Yamato shows a little of the personality that has made him such a superstar in the current Dragon Gate landscape. Yamato is too short for a test of strength, so he gets up on the second rope. Claudio pulls him off and shows how much stronger he is. Shift into a feeling out process. Yamato hits the ropes, but he can’t get Claudio to go down. Claudio goes off the ropes, and Yamato eventually gets a shoulder tackle. Series of chops by Yamato. European uppercut by Claudio. Bodyslam/legdrop combo. Leg submission by Claudio. Spear by Yamato. Big boot from Claudio in the corner. Exploder finally hit by Yamato. Bicycle kick by Claudio now into another European uppercut. Strike exchange. German suplex by Yamato only gets two. Water slide gets two for Claudio. Gut buster position but Claudio turns into a piledriver. This gets three.

-Winner (s)/Time/Rating: Claudio Castagnoli/6:58/**

-The move Claudio uses to get the win was apparently a new finisher he’d been working on. Judging by the fact that it could take such a heavy toll on the neck, of an opponent you can see why this move was quickly dropped out of Claudio’s repertoire. As far as the match itself, it was merely okay, but you can see the potential in Yamato. Better days ahead for him.

-Erick Stevens vs. Mitch Franklin

Franklin immediately does better than Payne since he actually gets a little offense in. Stevens with a TKO and Doctor Bomb to quickly end it once again.

-Winner (s)/Time/Rating:  Erick Stevens/:40/N/R

-I love how Erick Stevens was introduced. He got to quickly squash two jobber students and not be exposed right away. The fact that it was Mania weekend and such a large audience makes a huge difference too since Stevens debuted in front of large audiences.

-Larry Sweeney is now out talking about all the “A-list” celebrities he’s been hanging out with over the last few months. Chris Hero comes out, but he’s not alone. Johnny fucking Fairplay is with Hero, and the crowd is on him like snow in the mid-atlantic region this winter. Normally, this would cue a rant, but the payoff makes Fairplay’s appearance all worth it. My personal favorite chant is “You’re not famous.” We need more of those kinds of chants directed toward alleged celebrities.  Fairplay cuts a promo and is getting ridiculous heat. Hero talks about almost breaking the neck of Bruno Sammartino and he calls out Nigel McGuinness.

-Nigel McGuinness vs. Chris Hero (w/Larry Sweeney and Johnny Fairplay)

Prazak goes on quite the rant about Fairplay. Jimmy Bower talks about some of the other infamous guest stars that have appeared in Ring of Honor, including an allusion to Teddy Hart. Least Teddy would die for us. Meanwhile, there is a back and forth match developing in the ring. Hero gets tossed over the top to the outside as Fairplay acts like a complete goof. They go on a tour of the Michigan State Fairgrounds and Nigel introduces Hero to the various guardrails. Big boot gets Hero back into the match. Series of moves , but this is all taking a backseat to the goofy shenanigans going on with Fairplay. Even the announcers are having trouble staying into the match, very unusual for them.  Nigel comes back with lariats, strikes, and a back body drop. Short lariat. Tower of London attempt but Sweeney and Fairplay interfere. Hero with a giant boot from the top. Cravat by Hero with Nigel placed on the top rope. Tribute top Tracy Smother, but Nigel hits another lariat. Hero gets countered into a Tower of London. Fairplay pulls Nigel out of the ring. Fairplay ends up in the ring. Uh oh. In one of the all-time great moments, maybe in Ring of Honor history, Nigel hits a disgusting lariat on Fairplay. Crowd loses its’ mind. Hero with a boot since there’s still a match going on, and Nigel hits a jawbreaker lariat. 1-2-3!

-Winner (s)/Time/Rating:  Nigel McGuinness/9:39/**1/2

-Okay match although these two would do much better in a pair of even better matches later on in the year. An announcement is made that Nigel is going to face Takeshi Morishima for the world title in Edison on April 13. They should have given him the belt then.

-The No Remorse Corps. of Roderick Strong and Davey Richards come out to introduce the newest member of their faction. This was in the formative days of Faction Warfare, back when there was still hope this concept hadn’t failed yet. The idea was that Roddy would form his own faction and feud with the other members of Generation Next and their stable. Roddy’s started the No Remorse Corps. in New York City a month-and-a-half earlier, and Davey was the first member. The next member was to be introduced on this night, and everyone basically figured Rocky Romero was the mystery man. And indeed he was the mystery partner. Whoever said Roddy cutting a live promo was a good idea should be shot, however. Davey thankfully makes the announcement.This leads to…

-Naruki Doi and Jack Evans vs. Davey Richards and Rocky Romero

Good to see Doi recovered nicely from his tag team title loss the previous night. Doi and Romero get right into it. Big chop exchange and a series of counters leads to a standoff. Doi wants a handshake but gets spit instead. Richards tags in. Evans does as well. They also don’t take long to get going. Headscissors and a flying kick by Evans. Doi splashes Richards in a prone position. NRC try a double team but Evans pele kicks Richards. Finally, Richards pulls Evans off into the apron head first and tosses him around. Heat segment on Evans as you’d be hard-pressed to see someone take a beating better. Doi makes the hot tag  and holds his own against both members of the NRC. Romero tries a springboard moonsault and gets decked. Doi dives on to him. Richards tries a baseball slide dropkick but misses. He gets back in the ring and hits an enziguri. Falcon arrow gets two. Dou with a modified Rydian bomb. He sets both Richards and Romero in the corner. Doi sends Evans feetfirst into both team members. Place once again in the corner, Doi hits a cannonball for two. Big boot from Davey on to Doi and Romero hits an overhead suplex. Back and forth with strikes. Romero DDTs Doi off the second rope. To the top and the two men battle. Doi goes for a sunset bomb but Doi turns around and gets a German suplex off the ropes. Richards in and Doi sets him up for a Doi 5. Evans hits Romero on the outside. The Doi 5 only gets two. Richards tries to tag in. Reverse headscissors, but Romero breaks that up. Running dropkick by Doi on Romero. Evans goes up to the top but Richards knocks him down. Evans hits double knees and does indeed get the 630 for three.

-Winner (s)/Time/Rating: Jack Evans/14:31/***1/2

-Very enjoyable tag team match between these two. The biggest issue I have is that the NRC introduced a new member, and in their first match, lost. This was one of the many problems that faced Faction Warfare from the beginning. Inconsistent booking and teams losing when they shouldn’t have been losing. I could write a book on Faction Warfare’s failure and why I think it ultimately did Gabe Sapolsky in as booker, but I digress. This was an entertaining match. Moving on.

-Brent Albright vs. Homicide

Albright attacked ‘Cide the night before, so we have this match. Makes sense to me since these guys had a running issue for a few months prior to this.  These two men start out quickly, but Adam Pearce runs out and the bell rings. LAME!

-Winner (s)/Time/Rating: Homicide/1:33/DUD

-Colt Cabana saves the day and says that since it’s the one year anniversary of the epic Chicago street fight, they can have a match against two guys who’ve been annoying them lately.

-Brent Albright and Adam Pearce (w/Shane Hagadorn) vs. Homicide and Colt Cabana

Albright and Pearce try to run away, but that fails. Cabana and Homicide brings them back to ringside. They go on an extended tour of the facility with some brawling in the crowd. Hey, now everyone gets a front row seat. They battle through the entire building, and you can almost see what’s going on despite the crappy lighting.

Back into the ring, AND THE BELL RINGS. Guess now is as good a time as any. Hagadorn comes in to save the day for Pearce, but Pelle Primeau  quickly follows  to counter. Jim Cornette comes out for the second straight night. German suplex by Albright almost gets two. Cornette chills at ringside as the crowd chants “FIRE RUSSO!” This actually becomes a traditional tag team match with the heels in control. Albright nearly wins the match with a powerbomb. Piledriver by Pearce, but ‘Cide rolls out of the ring. Battle on the rope with Homicide biting Pearce. Hot tag to Cabana and it’s right hands for everyone. Vertical suplex by Cabana only gets two on Pearce. Headscissors on Pearce. Flyina apple onto Albright. Running knee from Homcide. Cabana dropkicks Pearce. Inside and Homicide sends Albright outside. Tope con helo.  Cornette tries to spray something in Pearce’s eyes, but Cabana uses the bottle to punch Pearce and get three. There’s your revenge for the brass knuckles Pearce used the previous night.

-Winner (s)/Time/Rating: Colt Cabana and Homicide/8:45/**1/2

-Decently entertaining match. Nothing special or offensive. Good to see these two have one last match together before both departed the company shortly thereafter.

-Erick Stevens interview. It’s just the beginning. Austin Aries is watching.

-Steel Cage Showdown: B.J. Whitmer vs. Jimmy Jacobs

Throughout the evening, clips of previous matches and incidents were shown to illustrate how far this feud has come. Whoever decided this should not be the main event? Stupid. This was one of the biggest and most epic non-title matches in company history. The Dragon Gate six man tag had no business as the main event of this show. All that being said…

Thankfully, this match isn’t escape rules. It’s either pinfall or submission as it should be, especially for a match like this.  After months and months of fighting, this epic feud came down to one match. Jacobs has improved greatly as a worker, and his darkness shows itself in this match. Tables, chair, barbed wire bats, and spikes are all used. Spots from past matches are harkened back to, particularly with the spike. They just stab each other in the head, a disgusting spot for sure.  The crowd’s reaction to this insanity is also very interesting. With Jacobs being from this area and I’m sure with some people being able to identify with his cause, a great number of fans cheered for Jacobs. I know I’ve almost comes off as a bit of a prude when it comes to violence in professional wrestling, but for the most part, I think the violence in this match made sense. These two have gone so far that they almost needed to have a match like this as a means of ending this rivalry once and for all. Words can’t even begin to do this match justice. This cage match might be the best violent brawl Ring of Honor has ever done, and that says considering the number of these types of matches that were done in 2006 and 2007. And if you think this was just a match where they maimed and bled like stuffed pigs, it wasn’t. there was also some great wrestling and psychology involved, particularly with the spots that flashed back to prior matches. You can also notice when Jacobs blows his left knee out, the spot where he executed the contra code.  After nearly 24 minutes of incredible action, Jacobs sentons Whitmer through a table to mercifully end the match.

-Winner (s)/Time/Rating: Jimmy Jacobs/23:41/****3/4

-It takes over eight minutes to get the cage down and get the two combatants out of the ring. Neither man looks all that great leaving the ring. Man that’s a hell of a way to end a show.

-FIP World Heavyweight Championship: Roderick Strong (champion) vs. Austin Aries

Oh lord. The show goes on, and two of Ring of Honor’s best get the equivalent of a death slot, between the epic cage match and the Dragon Gate six man tag. For this being the first match of a feud, they deserved better. Aries and Strong much most of 2006 as the Ring of Honor tag team matches. Tension was teased in the early part of 2007 until Roddy hit a backbreaker on Aries at Fifth Year Festival: New York. It started a heel turn for Strong and the beginning of Faction Warfare. Strong’s group was the No Remorse Corps. and they already had their three members. Aries’ group was The Resilliance, and his only member was Matt Cross. One more person would get added soon after this show.

Crowd is pretty into the match, even after the mayhem they had just seen. Aries and Strong wrestle a good solid match. I think this gets over better on a different show after a different match. Strong and Aries never did have that signature match against each other where you walked away thinking you just saw a match of the year candidate. That saddens me cause I think both guys are capable of doing such. Much of the first minutes is Strong teasing chops but not delivering. He only does so when the situation gets dire. Strong controls much of the match by working over Aries’ back as the crowd mockingly chants “RODERICK!” Aries almost wins the match and the title with a Death Valley Driver on the apron. Yeesh, was that nasty. Aries and Strong battle on the top rope, and Strong shoves Aries to the ground. Before hitting the crowd, Aries goes through that little table on the outside.  Strong rams Aries into various guardrails and rearranges furniture so he can hit a Gibson driver ON THE GUARDRAIL! Aries crawls in somehow and almost wins with a small package. Flying boot, half nelson backbreaker, Gibson driver, and stronghold finally get the win for Strong.

-Winner (s)/Time/Rating: STILL FIP World Champion-Roderick Strong/21:45/***1/2

-Long and good but unspectacular.

-Delirious chases Strong from ringside.

-Whitmer tells Daizee he just couldn’t get it done.

-Shingo , CIMA, and Susumu Yokosuka vs. Masaaki Mochizuki, Ryo Saito, and Dragon Kid and Susumu Yokosuka

Bringing the Dragon Gate announcer was a nice touch this year. It added something, a certain importance to the match-up. Also made it feel special as well. To illustrate how spoiled Ring of Honor fans were getting, there was almost a feeling of annoyance. Not that the wrestling was bad or anything close to it, but since there weren’t issues to be resolved, the Dragon Gate six man tag was more of an exhibition than a wrestling match where you care about who wins. I also had an issue with this being the main event considering you had a steel cage match which could have easily served as the lasting image of this show.

Okay, now with all the complaining and griping out of the way, this was still a fantastic match. Regardless of what these six men did, they’d have to deal with expectations from last year. The chemistry of the match was also different with  Shingo, Yokusuka, and Mochizuki in the match. People take this match for granted because of the incredible work done in 2006, but this was a nice complement to what happened in the previous match. It was a bit different, and I don’t feel it worked as smoothly; however, it’s still an awesome match and one of the best in 2007. I’m sure you asked Mr. BG Says, he’d be hard-pressed to find many matches on the regular Dragon Gate shows better than this one.  I did appreciate the callbacks to the previous match and the fact that the Dragonrana is countered. In fact Yokosuka counters the Dragonrana into a sunset flip for the win

-Winner (s)/Time/Rating: CIMA. Shingo, and Susumu Yokosuka/27:16/****1/2

-Still an incredible exhibition and anyone who gets to see these six men do what to they do best should consider themselves lucky.

-Rebecca Bayless tries to talk to Jimmy Jacobs and Lacey. They’re too busy comforting each other though.

Final Thought: One thing I can say about this show and the weekend overall was that it’s nowhere near as good as last year. Considering Mania weekend 2006 was the greatest weekend in the history of Ring of Honor, these are awfully high expectations to meet. If nothing else, Supercard of Honor II is an easy thumbs up based on the main event and the steel cage match, a match that could easily be considered one of the best matches ever for this company. I’ve also got three other matches at ***1/2, so I’d recommend buying this show for certain if you don’t already own the show, I’d for sure go back and watch the cage match and Dragon Gate six man tag. If you want to weep, it’s okay. No one will judge.

Next week, Ring of Honor hits Florida for the first time. Dragon Gate and Ring of Honor engage in another challenge. The world title returns from Japan, and Sunny days are ahead for Ring of Honor’s 2008 Wrestlemania weekend.

This also happened to be my first Ring of Honor show ever. But I’ll talk more about that in a couple weeks. Right now, it’s time to look back at the show some consider the best in Ring of Honor history.

-Taped on April 1, 2006 from Chicago Ridge, Illinois

-Your hosts are Dave Prazak and Lenny Leonard

-Colt Cabana comes out during the pre-show while a women’s match is going. Feminists would not approve of that. He says if Homicide is going to kill him, kill him right there. BUT THE MAIN SHOW HASN’T EVEN STARTED YET! Derreck Dempsey comes out to inform Cabana that Homicide isn’t at the building yet.

-Jack Evans vs. Jake Crist vs. Dave Crist vs. Matt Sydal vs. Jimmy Jacobs(w/Lacey) vs. Ace Steel

It is announced at the beginning of the show that this is the largest crowd in Ring of Honor history. At Our Best drew over 1,600 people. This show had 1,800. Sydal and Evans start off. They had faced off in a tag match the night before. Ace Steel defeated Chad Collyer in a first blood match. Jimmy Jacobs got choked out by Samoa Joe. This is the main show debut for Irish Airborne. Jacobs and Jake Crist are in next and Jacobs gets a headscissors. Facebuster and neckbreaker by Jake. Dave is on and they double team Jacobs. LARIAT by Ace. Another one. Powerbomb on Jake. That’s what’s known as making an impact. Armdrag by Jake and another coming off the top. Evans back in. Rolling senton and corkscrew press. STO by JacobsSydal breaks that up. Ace tries a powerbomb on Sydal, but he gets a standing moonsault. Three men end up on the shoulders of  their opponents, and they chop each other. Airborne, Jacobs, and Sydal end up on the outside. Evans leaps off Ace for a moonsault. Wow. You know it’s a special night cause Ace tries to break out a dive, but Airborne stops that. Airborne turn their attention to Sydal. Dropkick off the second rope by Jake. Evans tossed into the guardrail. Sydal drives the leg into Dave before dropkicking Jake who was coming off the top rope. Sydal moonsaults the other five men outside the ring. Jesus. Running dropkick by ace into Dave Crist in the corner. Tigerdriver and Ace goes to the top. Jacobs crotches him and hits a senton that only gets two. Evans kicks the legs and one more to the jaw. He springboards on to Jacobs to the floor. Ace tries to powerbomb Sydal from the top.  Good God. Neckbreaker by Ace on to Sydal and Jake Cirst. Ace has the match won but Lacey is distracting the referee. Ace goes after her and Jacobs makes the save. Evans with a 630 on Jake for the victory.

-Winner (s)/Time/Rating: Jack Evans/10:08/***1/4

-Much like At Our Best, this was a great way to open the show and get the crowd rocking right away. This may have been crazier than the other mayhem match too. Fun opener.

-Jim Cornette comes out with a baseball bat. He says the only people who soiled the previous evening were the hardcore wrestlers. Cornette points out Adam Pearce and says he’s the bouncer for the evening. Fitting. Then it’s time for Cornette to call out…. No, wait. Colt Cabana is out. Cabana wants to be at peace and asks for a non-sanctioned match with Homicide. Not just any match but a Chicago street fight. Cornette accepts and we have our main event. Cabana leaves and Cornette next calls Delirious out. The lizard man has yet to win a singles match in Ring of Honor, and he’s going to get just one more shot. It’s win or go home. His opponent is only fitting based on the events of the night before.

-Ricky Reyes (Julius Smokes) vs. Delirious

Reyes made Delirious pass out to the dragon sleeper the night before.  Delirious beats up Reyes on the outside of the ring. He even gets a shot in on Smokes. Reyes comes back and they head in the ring. I never heard a bell. Reyes works over the neck and gets his dragon sleeper. It’s too close to the ropes though. Reyes rips at the tassles. Belly-to-back suplex. Cradle by Delirious but Reyes immediately hits a clothesline. Chestfirst to the buckle goes Delirious and it’s dragin sleeper time. No, Delirous climbs to the rope. Elbows and a boot to the face. Shadows over Hell. Bizarro driver only gets two. Knee by Reyes followed by a neckbreaker. Another one and a fisherman buster. Smokes and Reyes are shocked by the kickout. Dragon sleeper reversed. Cobra clutch  by Delirious. Reyes is tapping, but the referee misses it. He quickly turns around and Delirious WINS.

-Winner (s)/Time/Rating: Delirious/N/A/*1/2

-Not a great match but a great moment as Delirious finally got his first win in Ring of Honor. The pop from the crowd is incredible. Delirious going into the crowd to celebrate was awesome too.

-The Embassy (Alex Shelley, Jimmy Rave, and Masato Yoshino)(w/Prince Nana and Daizee Haze) vs. Do Fixer(Dragon Kid, Genki Horiguchi, and Ryo Saito)

Do Fixer is coming off a win in the mind-blowing six man tag from the night before. Yoshino was on the losing team while Shelley and Rave have won each of their two matches over the weekend.Yoshino biffs Saito in the head with toilet paper. That’s the spirit. Fast start by Saito and Shelley. Shelley grabs a wristlock but Saito counters into a submission hold focusing on the legs. Shelley with a leg submission of his own. Hiptoss by Saito and he nails Yoshino. Shelley seeks comfort as Kid and Yoshino tag in. Much quickness shown as Kid hits a headscissors on Yoshino. Embassy regroups on the outside. Horiguchi and Rave face off. Dropkicks by Horiguchi and Rave takes a powder. Yoshino’s luck isn’t much better. Double team in the face corner. Heat segment on Yoshino. Great double teams by Do Fixer. Yoshino manages to make back to his corner to tag in Shelley. Attempted suplex, but it only leads to more offense from Do Fixer. Triple dropkick but Yoshino grabs Horiguchi’s hair. The Embassy works over Horiguchi and perform various double and triple teams themselves. Crowd gets behind Horiguchi and he responds with a back elbow to Shelley. Saito tags in and things break down very much like they did last night in the six man tag. It’s not as chaotic though, a positive considering this is just the third match on the card. Saito and Shelley have a great mini-sequence. Kid and Rave have a dandy too. What a spear by Rave. Kid hits a stunner. Yoshino comes off the top tope but gets hit by all three of his opponents. Kid with a springboard moonsault, but that only gets two. Spear and a clothesline combination by Shelley and Rave. Rave with a shining wizard for two. Yoshino says it’s over, but Saito fights back. Nana trips Saito, but Yoshino hits Nana. German suplex, but Yoshino kicks out. Dragonrana, but Shelley breaks the pinfall. Superdragonrana, but Yoshino knocks Todd Sinclair into the ropes. Acecrusher from the top. Genorrheas from both Rave and Yoshino. Backslide from Horguchi gets two. Greetings from Ghana  on Horiguchi ends this sucker.

-Winner (s)/Time/Rating: The Embassy/16:13/****

-There were three six man tags this weekend, and despite the fact that this was four stars, this was the worst of the three. It’s not an insult either. Considering four of these six men tore the house down with each other the night before, it was easy to plug in two pros like Shelley and Rave and not miss a beat. Great match here. It should also be noted that The Embassy went undefeated this weekend and were set to challenge for the tag team titles later on in the month.

-Lance Storm talks about why he retired and now why he’s coming back for one night.

-A.J. Styles vs. Christopher Daniels (w/Allison Danger) vs. Samoa Joe vs. Jimmy Yang

TNA had three of these guys go at it, and it ended up being one of the greatest matches in the last ten years. It’s almost like Yang doesn’t belong. Fittingly, he starts against Daniels. Basic mat work as the crowd chants for both men. Pace quickens as Yang hits a couple hard chops. Kick blocked and missed. Daniels with a chop. Armdrag exchange by both men. Joe comes into face Daniels. They trade shots, and then they stare at each other. Chops missed by Joe. Daniels flees and tags Styles. Stiff kicks by Joe, but Styles sweeps Joe’s legs and goes to work. Tag in comes Daniels and he hits leg lariat. Headscissors. Yang comes in and they double team Joe. Standing moonsault by Yang. Leaping kick. Superkick. Joe slumps in the corner. Double suplex by Styles and Yang. Kneedrop by Styles. Hard kicks by Joe but Styles gets a dropkick. Into the corner and Joe boots Styles coming off the top.  Hard tag to Yang. Series of kicks in the corner. Hard chop. Styles counters but Yang re-counters and hits sidekick. Chestfirst Styles goes into the corner. Styles reaches the ropes, but he gets backdropped by Yang. Series of strikes by Styles. Chop in the corner. Vertical suplex by Yan. Joe’s not happy and comes in kicking hard. Whip into the corner followed by a running knee strike. Facewash and a knee in the corner. Yang tags Daniels. STO by Daniels. Yang hits a leaping kick on to Styles in the corner. Joe back in kicking Styles. Exchange of forearms. Bicycle kick by Styles and he finally tags Daniels. Daniels is a house of fire on Yang and Joe. Blue thunder on Yang only gets two. Yang comes back with a leg lariat. Jockeying so Styles hits a clothesline on them. Forearms for everyone. Styles tries to dive on Joe, but Yang shakes the ropes. Joe tries an ole ole kick Styles on the outside but he has to settle for a flying leg kick. Yang soars on to Joe. Daniels with a springboard moonsault. STO by Daniels reversed to a kick to the back of the head by Yang. Reverse hurancanrana by Daniels. Wow. You don’t see that from Daniels very often. Yang hits a moonsault on Daniels, but Joe stops the pin. He chips both men and hits an over the head suplex on Daniels. Powerslam on Yang, but Styles breaks the pin up. Inverted DDT by Styles. Joe hits a front forward suplex and rolls throiug. LARIAT! Daniels and Yang break the pin. Daniels ends up with a Koji clutch, but Styles breaks that up. Styles and Daniels go back and forth. Styles gets kicked, and Joe hooks the choke. Styles to the top but a running boot and musclebuster end Styles’ night

-Winner (s)/Time/Rating: Samoa Joe/17:32/****

-Very exciting fast-paced match between these four guys. Daniels and Joe weren’t going through the motions on this night, and Styles was game too.

-Joe grabs the microphone, and he makes it clear that he wants to be the Ring of Honor world champion once again. This brings out Bryan Danielson, and they have a fairly funny exchange. Danielson trying to get the crowd to chant “Lose some weight Joe, lose some weight” still cracks me up.

-Since we’ve got three fairly significant matches to get to in the second half, the CZW/ROH brawl takes place just before intermission. Hero comes from behind and throws Joe over the top rope. Pearce is in for a fight as Danielson and Joe brawl to the back. Pearce and hero go through the record crowd and evetntually end up in the ring. Claudio comes in as Pearce seemingly is doing well for himself. Claudio “accidentally” hits a European uppercut on Pearce. Necro and hero then beat up Cornette. Whitmer tries to help, but he gets nailed in the leg with a chair. Pearce tries to protect him, and Ring of Honor doesn’t look so good.

-It’s intermission time. Prince Nana is happy over The Embassy’s undefeated weekend. Shelley is just happy to be getting laid by hookers.

-Ring of Honor Tag Team Championships- Generation Next (Austin Aries and Roderick Strong)(champions) vs. Blood Generation(CIMA and Naruki Doi)(Masato Yoshino)

If you’ll notice, I’ve left my memories alone when it comes to my seeing the various matches live. When it comes to this match, I really can’t. I’d only seen Aries and Strong in TNA, but I really liked what I had seen. I  had never seen a match involving Doi or CIMA before. Hell, I’d never heard of Dragon Gate before April 1, 2006. Unlike many of the fans in attendance who may have seen the six man tag, I didn’t know what to expect.

Blood Generation defeated Generation Next in a six man tag two nights before, and they lost a five star tag team match against their number one rivals in Dragon Gate, Do Fixer. Aries was in a tag team match, and partner Jack Evans was on the losing end. Strong was in a 56 minute classic against Bryan Danielson for the ROH world title.

I didn’t know what to expect, but what I got was one of those matches that blew me away. I’d never seen a tag team match like this anywhere, not on television and especially live. My experience had been going to a few WWE house shows and television tapings. Matches like this just didn’t happen in that company. It starts out as a normal tag team match as Generation Next goes to work on CIMA. The pace is quick and sudden throughout the match. Drama is added early in the match as Aries’ nose bleeds in a nasty way. Aries plays face in peril, and one of the nastiest spots in the entire match is when Doi powerbombs Aries into the bottom turnbuckle. What a nasty thud that was. Strong tags in and things break down. Some of the same spots Blood Generation used the previous night are broken once again. Some new stuff is as well. It’s all hit crisply, and both teams came out of this match looking fantastic. Generation Next pull out the victory with a Strong backbreaker followed by an Aries 450 splash.

-Winner (s)/Time/Rating: Generation Next/20:21/****1/2

-Fantastic match from all four men involved. Be nice if we could see these Dragon Gate guys again next year.

-Ring of Honor World Championship: Bryan Danielson (champion) vs. Lance Storm

Part of what made Bryan Danielson’s title reign so special was him defeating so many of the TNA guys like Daniels, Sabin, and Styles. Also, he defeated international guys like Marifuji, an established like Steve Corino, and a lot of the top Ring of Honor guys too. Then there was this match against a man  coming out of retirement and who’d achieved success in a number of top companies across North America but had never been the world champion.

Feeling out process to establish that yes, Lance Storm does still have it. Lance finishes the sequence with a dropkick that sends Danielson to the outside. After some stalling, they head back inside for a test of strength. Storm comes away on top. Another stand-off. Back to basics as they exchange holds with neither man gaining an advantage. Crowd gets into it big time when Storm hooks the half crab. Pace picks up with Storm hitting chops on the outside of the ring. He introduces him to various guardrails, and they head back inside. Storm goes to the second, but Danielson knocks the challenger to the floor. Chops by Danielson and he tosses him into barricades as well. Back inside and Danielson works the back. Storm comes back with a kick to the chin. Forearms by Storm. European uppercuts by Danielson gets him the advantage once again. Backbreaker across the knee. Danielson rams the knees out of the surfboard position. Danielson tries to cheat to win, but a high leg kick gets Storm back in the match. Legdrop on the neck but Danielson hits a vertical suplex and goes for a series of covers. Lance hits an enziguri and hits a back. Left-armed clothesline and a leg lariat. Tiger driver. Powerslam. Danielson reverses an attempted rana into a powerbomb. Bow and arrow by Danielson. Back and forth again leading to a Storm superkick. Storm  blocks a sunset bomb, but Danielson gets the super belly-to-belly suplex. Chickenwing by Danielson but Lance reaches the ropes. Attempted headbutt from the top, but Storm moves out of the way. CRADLE PILEDRIVER! 1-2-NO! Half crab, and Danielson seems ready to tap. Crowd is deeply into it. Danielson hooks the same roll-up as he did against Strong the night before. Only a two count this time though. Hard forearm and Regalplex by Danielson gets two. Cattle mutilation but Storm ends up on top. 1-2-NO! Tiger suplex by Danielson. Cattle mutiliation and Storm has no choice but to tap.

-Winner (s)/Time/Rating: STILL ROH World Champion-Bryan Danielson/26:24/***3/4

-This was missing just that little something to make it a four star match, but this was still one of the best purely technical wrestling matches you’ll ever see. Both men shake hands as a sign of respect for one another. Excellent psychology that paid off in the end with Danielson’s finishing submission move. The crowd wants to Lance to come back, and based on his performance in this match, I’m kind of sad he didn’t have a few more matches in Ring of Honor.

-Video package showcases the highs and lows of this feud. The Drano. The coat hanger. The blood. The going through tables. The rapping. This feud certainly had it all.

-Chicago Street Fight: Colt Cabana vs. Homicide

Cabana coming out with a deadly serious look on  his face and beard for this match wonders why he didn’t stick with a more serious outlook instead of going back to being a goofball all the time. That’s not say every match is going to be as serious as this one, but one of the reason I dislike Cabana these days is because he’s constantly going for laughs instead of trying to have serious wrestling matches. This is a legendary feud as far as Ring of Honor goes. There is no basic wrestling sequence, no feeling out process, just a good old-fashioned. It’s not just that Cabana winning the match, it’s about him getting Homicide back for all the actions that took place in the months previous. You pretty much knew Cabana was going to win the match, but in a blowoff like this, THIS IS HOW IT’S SUPPOSED TO GO! The fun isn’t in the ending. The fun is the journey getting there and the moment when the babyface finally picks up the big victory or wins a long-awaited championship. Professional wrestling isn’t complicated if the people in charge can get out of their own way.

Every single trick Homicide used in the past to try and take Cabana out comes back to haunt him, from the coathanger to the fork to the ladder to a table and even the Drano. A barbed wire board was used in a prior Chicago street fight , and it’s also once again introduced in this street fight. I wonder if they borrowed it from IWA-MS. Somehow I don’t see Ring of Honor having one of those things lying around. Also, just as the street fight between the Second City Saints and Prophecy two years ago, here come the chairs. A good old-fashioned chair riot really is the only way to end this weekend. It’s likely the only thing the crowd hasn’t seen over these three fantastic shows.  The action is almost too insane to describe, but this is an epic, violent match  that is well-deserving as being considered a feud ender. After almost 30 minutes, Cabana hits a Colt 45 to put this feud to bed and get peace for himself

-Winner (s)/Time/Rating: Colt Cabana/26:33/****1/2

-An absolutely incredible match that might be each man’s best. Rickey Reyes and Julius Smokes attempt to continue the beatdown, but Homicide stops them. The two men shake hands and hug.

- Bryan Danielson is signing… SOMETHING!

Final Thoughts: A lot of arguments can be made about the greatest year in Ring of Honor history. Whether it be 2004, 2005, or 2006. One thing should not be doubted though. This tripleshot is the greatest weekend in Ring of Honor history. Period. I don’t want to hear any arguments to the contrary. Ring of Honor never came off better, more professional, and like the number one independent wrestling organization then they did over these three days. It featured great technical wrestling. It featured spotfests, some of which re-wrote the book on what wrestlers could do in a ring. It featured an epic feud come to a violent, bloody end. Finally, it featured the biggest attendance figured the company had ever seen. For all these reasons, Wrestlemania weekend 2006 was when Ring of Honor hit the big time.

Next week, we go back to 2007 where Jimmy Jacobs is all grown up and where a high risk almost ends the career of one of the competitors. Also, for the remainder of the countdown, I’ll be reviewing two shows a week instead of one.

-Taped on March 30, 2006 from Chicago Ridge, Illinois

-Your hosts are Dave Prazak and Lenny Leonard

-Jim Cornette announces that Low Ki is the one who hit him with a chair some months ago back in Dayton. Ki is suspended for life, a suspension that has lasted to this day.

-Clips of the past Bryan Danielson and Roderick Strong matches are shown. They meet in the main event later on tonight. Much much later. These two chop each other hard. That came across loud and clear.

-Chris Hero meets some of the crowd outside the building.

-CIMA says Dragon Gate is cutting edge pro wrestling. I need some sort of match to illustrate this point. Wonder if we’ll find that this evening.

-Bobby Cruise announces Colt Cabana isn’t competing because of a concussion. Good lord, the crowd is enormous. Jim Cornette comes out with a baseball bat to cut his rah rah promo and make fun of CZW. B.J. Whitmer is on  crutches, likely due to the spill he took with Jacobs the previous night. People boo the mention of Wrestlemania. Considering it’s number 22, I can’t say I blame them. Considering it’s STILL WRESTLEMANIA, I can blame them. Cornette ends his spiel by inviting two “hardcore wrestlers” to the ring. Two masked guys come down  as I realize we’re 15 minutes into the DVD, and the first match hasn’t started yet. Samoa Joe and Adam fucking Pearce come down to beat up the hardcore wrestlers. Yes, Adam Pearce is out to defend the honor of Ring of Honor. Lots of irony there. Least Joe gets a warm-up in advance of his three way later on. Big splash and Pearce gets the pin.

-Ricky Reyes (w/Julius Smokes) vs. Delirious vs. Flash Flanagan vs. Shane Hagadorn

From Adam Pearce to Shane Hagadorn. Fitting. Reyes is coming off a victory over Chad Collyer while Delirious suffered the fall against The Embassy. Flanagan is a local guy filling out this four corner survival. Delirious goes for a run. The other three men stare at him. Flanagan and Reyes face off, and you can just feel the charisma oozing out of these two.  Delirous runs around the ring before that got annoying. Hagdorn goes to work on Reyes, but that doesn’t last. Big forearm and belly-to-belly. Tag in to lizardman. Shoulderblock. Chicago crowd is into him big time. Armdrag into a crucix on Hagadorn. Triple team as the other the other two join in. Reyes beats up Hagadorn. Flanagan hits a German suplex and goes to the top rope. Delirious knocks him off and tries Shadows over Hell. Reyes moves.  Flanagan and Delirious end up in the ring. Shadows over Hell almost gets the elusive win. Hagadorn gets dropped on his neck, but Delirious takes care of him. Reyes applies a neckbreaker on him before going into the Dragon Sleeper. Delirious has no choice but to tap.

-Winner (s)/Time/Rating: Ricky Reyes/6:43/*1/2

-An okay way to start the show. Nothing too exciting. After the match, Reyes actually gets on the stick and makes rips on Delirous while also slapping him. Smokes joins in on the fun.

-Chad Collyer talks about his first blood match with Ace Steel coming up later.  They show the clip of Ace bleeding. That’s got to be one of the more disgusting sites I’ve ever seen in a wrestling ring. Ace Steel  responds.

-The Embassy (Alex Shelley and Jimmy Rave)(w/Prince Nana and Daizee Haze) vs. Jimmy Yang and Claudio Castagnoli

Yang is coming off a loss to Ryo Saito. Claudio is coming off his win over Hagadorn. The Embassy are coming off a huge win against Delirious and Bryan Danielson.  Shelley and Yang start. Basic start. Yang slaps Shelley in the back of the head. Shelley draws a line and seemingly wants Yang to CROSS THE LINE! As soon as he does that, Rave tags in. Kind of like whenever I see TNA on Spike, I immediately tag my remote and put something else on. Rave complains over a hair pull. Claudio comes in and continues working the arm. Rave leverages out, but Claudio flips Rave over for two armdrags. Chops by Rave but Claudio turns the tables and hits Shelley. Claudio outsmarts both members of the Embassy and has Yang join the party. We get  a couple compromising situations involving The Embassy as they’re really not doing so well. Embassy finally get the advantage. Yang plays face in peril. Faces regain the advantage on Shelley. Some mocking of the Embassy by Claudio. Back elbow from the second rope. Yang with a chop, but Shelley gets a snapmare and kick to the back of the head. Yang in trouble once again. Yang posts his shoulder, and Rave sends him over the steel barricade. That wasn’t nice. Rave leaps from the top and gets kicked in the face. Yang desperately tries to make the tag, but Shelley stops that. Once Claudio gets in, it’s European uppercuts for everyone. Palm thrust on Shelley. Rolling European uppercut on Rave. Face and chest first but Shelley breaks the pin. Boot to the midsection on Claudio by Shelley. Shelley superkicks Yang. He and Rave attempt a double team suplex, but that doesn’t work. Rave rolls Claudio up with a handful of tights but only gets two. Claudio places Rave on the top rope. Series of roll-ups ends with Rave flash-pinning Claudio for three.

-Winner (s)/Time/Rating: The Embassy/16:04/***1/4

-Very good undercard tag team match from these four.

-Chris Hero somehow gets a microphone and verbally goes after Claudio once again. Geeks come out to stop Hero.

-First Blood: Chad Collyer vs. Ace Steel

God bless Ace Steel. He trained Colt Cabana and C.M. Punk, two of the best professional wrestlers to come out of Chicago in recent years. Unfortunately, I can count on one hand the number of good matches he’s had in Ring of Honor. This match is no exception. It’s a boring unexceptional brawl. At least Ace Steel gets creative by trying to use the Section B sign and threatening to kill his opponent. Crowd just wants Collyer to bleed. I can’t believe that of all the matches to use gimmicks, this is it. Collyer appears to set to win when he puts a chair around Ace’s neck. Ace tombstone piledrives Collyer on the guardrail that was brought to the ring. Chairshot to the top of the head. Collyer is bleeding, and this match is done.

-Winner (s)/Time/Rating: Ace Steel/11:50/1/2*

-How did this get 12 minutes?

-Dave Prazak catches up with Homicide and Julius Smokes. Homicide cuts a promo and calls Cabana every name in the book and says he’s done with him.

-Video package illustrating how Matt Sydal and A.J. Styles became a team and Sydal sort of turning his back on his Generation Next teammates. Naturally, this leads to…

-A.J. Styles and Matt Sydal vs. Austin Aries (ROH tag team champion) and Jack Evans

Usually, it’s Evans teaming with Roderick, but Roddy is in the main event tonight. Evans and Aries are coming off a six man tag team loss courtesy of Blood Generation the previous night. Styles and Sydal won their Dragon Gate challenge match. Evans and Sydal start out… and do some mat wrestling. Didn’t see that coming. Doesn’t last long as they quicken the pace and Sydal dropkicks Evans. Styles quickly tags in, and he wants Aries. The crowd is LOUDLY cheering Aries. They don’t stay in the ring long because Sydal wants in against his stablemate. Back to basics with these two. They exchange armbars and Japanese armdrags. Sydal puts Aries in a headscissors. Don’t… Aries reverses it, but Sydal uses the dropkick escape. Headscissors by Sydal, but Aries just kicks him. He wants Styles. Fierce lock-up. Pace quickens and neither man gains control. They face off, and Styles lets loose with a forearm. Sydal tags in and uses a headscissors. Aries plays face in peril briefly. He gets the knees up on the attempted standing moonsault. Sydal plays face in peril now. Swinging fisherman’s buster only gets two. Evans in and hits a double stomp on Sydal. Double knees. Aries flips Evans on to Sydal. Pendulum elbow. Running knee by Evans. Sydal German suplexes Evans on his head. Styles in and he goes apeshit. He even spinbusters Evans into the middle of next week. Very rare when Styles is actually the bigger man, so he can break out some power spots he wouldn’t ordinarily get to use. Heat segment on Evans now. Sydal springboars Evans with a kick. Jesus. Muta lock by Styles. Aries runs in and kicks him right in the stomach. Double team neckbreaker followed by a brief bow and arrow by Sydal. Aries tags in and forearms Styles and Sydal every which way. Elbow on Sydal in the corner. Dropkick on Styles in the corner. Finlay roll. Evans tags in and hits a big splash. Only two. All four men brawl in the ring. Evans tries a headscissors. Sydal kicks him. Styles tries a Styles clash, but Aries stops that and hits a crucifix bomb. Sydal hits a “Here it is” driver. Evans kicks Sydal and puts him on the top rope. They fight on the top rope. Evans  dives on Styles, but he eats a STYLES CLASH ON THE FLOOR. Aries hits a heat-seeking missile on Styles. Sydal hits a shooting star press on a prone Evans back in the ring for three.

-Winner (s)/Time/Rating: A.J. Styles and Matt Sydal/17:47/***3/4

-Tremendous tag team match between these four. Lots of crazy action, and the interplay with Styles and Aries brought this match up a bit. Sydal trying to prove himself to Aries also made for an interesting dynamic. I almost feel sorry for the match that has to try and follow this contest. Sydal seemed to earn his stripes and the respect of the crowd in a major way.

-Christopher Daniels feels things are turning around. Aliison Danger talks about the women’s match coming up after intermission. Daniels brings the subject back to Joe and ponders when he’s going to shake the hand of one of his Ring of Honor opponents.

-Blood Generation (CIMA, Naruki Doi, and Masato Yoshino) vs. Do Fixer (Ryo Saito, Genki Horiguchi, and Dragon Kid)

Oh right. It’s this match. Some of you may have heard of this one. Blood Generation is coming off a victory in a six man tag team match the previous night. Saito is coming off his victory over Jimmy Yang, while the other two members of Do Fixer suffered a loss to Styles and Sydal.

While this type of match has probably been done a thousand times in Dragon Gate Japan and done a number of times in the states, this was the very first one in the states. These two factions feuded in Japan, and this was the rivalry being brought to ROH. To even try and keep up with these six athletes is impossible. The first two-thirds of the match is a run of the mill tag team match, just a lot faster and with precision execution. Not to say that this is formulaic and boring by any means, but this wasn’t anything we haven’t seen before. Then there’s the final third of this match. If this had been my first Ring of Honor show, I firmly believe my head would have exploded in excitement. Words like mind-blowing and awe-inspiring seem more than appropriate. Kid gets to execute his déjà vu correctly on this night. Fittingly against Yoshino. Crowd of course chants “This is awesome.” Then an incredible chant starts, one that I had never heard before. “Please don’t stop.” What this match did was take six men who may or may not have been known in the United States and turned all six of them  into stars. I’m convinced DG USA’s presence in Chicago is related to the six man tradition starting right here. Even the announcers let the action speak for itself, and I can’t think of a better time. You really get to hear the crowd and see them lose their minds. Incredibly, someone actually had to win the match. Dragon Kid leaps off the top turnbuckle for a hurancanrana.

-Winner (s)/Time/Rating: Do Fixer/20:33/*****

-Fans give all six a standing ovation and ask… maybe in this case it’s plead… for them to please to come back. Thankfully they would be back. CIMA immediately shakes Do Fixer’s hands, but Yoshino and Doi just walk away.

-How do you follow the six man tag? A promo for FIP DVDs. Hell of a transition there.

-Pure champion Nigel McGuinness is not in Chicago. Instead, he’s wrestling for Pro Wrestling NOAH defending the Pure title. McGuinness feels the Pure title is the real world title and says Danielson isn’t as good of a champion. This kind of resurrects the angle that was teased two years ago at the show At Our Best. These two eventually hooked up throughout the spring and summer of 2006.

-Lacey vs. Rain vs. MsChif vs. Daizee Haze vs. Cheerleader Melissa vs. Allison Danger

This is the first ever six woman mayhem. They exchange a number of pinfalls to start as Ring of Honor begins the process of trying to integrate women’s wrestling on to the shows. It failed miserably despite four years of effort. It doesn’t help that a number of women ended up in TNA and others like Lacey left the business. SHIMMER had just started six months earlier, and there wasn’t even a champion at this point. You could also argue the best of the female wrestlers, Sara Del Rey, was not involved in the match. All six women get tangled up… with sexy results. Or not. Lacey just slaps them. MsChif and Haze each do separate dives on to various women on the outside.  Exchange of high-impact moves back inside the ring. Series of finishers now. Melissa gets misted and MsChif hits a desecrater on Melissa for three.

-Winner (s)/Time/Rating:  MsChif/8:43/*1/2

-Just an opportunity to get the women a chance to showcase themselves. Literally no other reason that I can think of other than that. Couple cool spots but a lot of sloppiness too.

-Homicide (w/Julius Smokes) vs. Mitch Franklin

This is a little jobberish, but Homicide doesn’t have much else to do with Colt Cabana nowhere to be found. You might know Mitch Franklin better as Grizzly Redwood. Homicide should know him better as the guy he dismantles in about two minutes.  Cop killer ends it.

-Winner (s)/Time/Rating: Homicide/2:35/N/R

-Colt Cabana comes out , and he’s not going to let a concussion keep him down. They begin brawling in the ring. The referee just kind of stands there. Cabana backdrops ‘Cide through a table outside the ring. Back insider and the crowd is behind the hometown boy. Cabana goes for the Colt 45, but Smokes provides a distraction. Homicide lays Cabana out with a chair. Homicide brings in a ladder, just as he did the night before. Cabana is bleeding.  Homicide DDTs Cabana on the side of the ladder. Chairshot to the ladder just like the previous night. More shots. Homicide gets on the mic and makes fun of the Cubs. He also threatens to end Cabana’s career the next night if he even sees him.

-Just when you thought the brawling was done… WRONG! Necro Butcher and Hero are out now to interrupt the show. Hero makes fun of the previous brawl and says CZW is ultraviolent. There’s something to be proud of. Claudio comes out to chase Hero away while Pearce and Necro brawl. Adam Pearce represents ROH so well the crowd is chanting Necro. Yet, somehow Pearce maintains employment with ROH to this day. It ends up with Necro and Pearce both going through a ringside table. Cornette comes in the ring and nails Necro with a baseball bat. Hero applies an armbar, which leads to Joe coming in and kicking Hero’s ass. Hero is trapped as Whitmer brings a chair. Joe has a bat. Pearce has a chair. Pearce hits him twice with the chair. Whitmer hits Hero with a chair as well. ROH stands tall. Oh my God. The crowd actually chants for Pearce. And since Joe is in the ring…

-Samoa Joe vs. Christopher Daniels vs. Jimmy Jacobs (w/Lacey)

Daniels finally got his one-on-one victory against Joe the previous night, and here they are wrestling once again. This time, Jimmy Jacobs is added as a third wheel. Wonder who’s jobbing here? Jacobs says he and Lacey are the match of the year. Joe and Daniels start beating each other up for the hell of it. Jacobs is like the younger brother trying to play with the big kids. Daniels and Joe show complete disregard for him. Jacobs comes back with a couple of dropkicks on both men. Leg lariat on Daniels. Clothesline from Daniels on both men. He tosses Jacobs into Joe, who shoulderbreaks him. Inverted DDT on Joe while throwing Jacobs on top of him. That was different. STJoe, and Jacobs fired away on the big man in the corner. That doesn’t last as Jacobs tries a springboard crossbody, but Joe moves out of the way. Leaping kick by Joe on to Jacobs. Daniels and Jacobs fight on the floor. Joe missiles into both men. Toss Jacobs into the guardrail. Ole ole kick time on Daniels. He tosses Jacobs into the ring and punches him in the corner. Jacobs moves out of the way of the running knee and does some kicks in the corner. Daniels tries a fireman’s carry on Jacobs, but Joe kicks him and back sentons him. Lacey comes on the apron. Joe grabs her, but Jacobs slaps Joe. Big mistake. Daniels knocks Joe into Lacey, who falls down. Roll-up gets two. Enziguri by Daniels. Joe uses crossfaces, but Daniels gets a Blue thunder. Powerslam by Joe into the cross armbreaker. Lacey and Jacobs argue on the outside. STO by Daniels but he misses a BME. Spear by Jacobs. Double stomp on Joe and a back senton. Jacobs goes after Daniels and he hits an implant DDT, Lacey’s finisher. This only gets two. Tilt-a-whirl backbreaker by Daniels. Angel’s wings reversed into a headscissors. Contra code attempt, but Joe gets the choke. Joe breaks it so he can superkick Daniels. Another contra code attempt, but Joe turns it into the rear-naked choke for the win.

-Winner (s)/Time/Rating: Samoa Joe/9:12/**1/2

-Joe and Daniels were content to go through the motions here. Nothing special here at all as Jacobs added little to the match except his tremendous interplay with Lacey.

-Ring of Honor World Championship: Bryan Danielson (champion) vs. Roderick Strong (ROH Tag Team Champion)

Danielson and Strong had quite the issue going leading into this epic title match. Danielson and Strong had a controversial match at This Means War. Danielson appeared to snap, and the finish came so quickly that people thought it may have been a shoot. The next week, these two has a return match at Vendetta that went about 50 minutes and is considered one of the greatest matches in ROH history. Danielson appeared to be done with Strong, until he tapped out to the Stronghold when he was competing for Strong’s tag team title at Tag Wars 2006.  Strong defeated B.J. Whitmer to become the number one contender at Unscripted II. Since their second match was so amazing and took place in Chicago, why not have the third and final match there as well? So here we are.

Prazak actually mentions the time as the bell rings. It’s ten minutes to midnight local time. This show began at 8:00 p.m. Meaning we’re four hours in and the main event hasn’t even begun. Oh, those were the days. You know we’re in for a long match because they do an extended series of basic moves. This is broken up intermittingly with chops by Strong. Danielson’s chest is already red after one chop. He quickly flees the ring since he don’t wanna get chopped no more. And who could blame him? More basic wrestling. Strong hits a second chop. Danielson heads outside again and teases leaving the building altogether. Strong gets on the stick and uses a naughty word. Danielson waltzes back inside. Danielson gets the advantage in a slap exchange. Strong comes back and tries to use Danielson’s surfboard. No dice.  More slaps from Danielson. Uh oh. Surfboard reversed by Strong now. Strong works the arm before Danielson uses a chop. Strong responds with one of his own. Back to the arm and Danielson hits a dropkick. Knucklelock by Danielson. Strong fights out, but Danielson elbows him. Drives the knee. Kick to the back and another kneedrop. Stranglehold as Danielson uses Strong’s own arms against him. Strong tosses him and takes control with chops.

We’re about 15 minutes in, and neither guy has broken a sweat. Danielson  hooks the leg and gets a bow and arrow. Strong gets to the ropes.  Danielson in control of the match as his chest starts bleeding. Chops delivered by the champion. After a European uppercut, Strong gets some chops in. Leg lariat. Backbreaker. LARIAT! This only gets two, but Strong does finally get the surfboard. Double pin but both men get their shoulders up. Another chop. Kick to the chest and a sunset flip. Exchange of nearfalls. Another chop by Strong. Danielson placed on the top rope, and Strong tries for a superplex. Danielson gets out of it and hits a flying European uppercut. Surfboard by Danielson, but he can’t go all the way through. Just a chinlock. Danielson brushes off the chops and gets an atomic drop… Bob Backlund style. Bodyslam and a flying headbutt. Abdominal stretch and use of the ropes as leverage. Todd Sinclair breaks the hold, but Danielson immediately applies the hold again. Roll-up only gets two. Series of attempts at a pin. Butterfly hold. Face-off off a clean break. Forearm. Danielson drives the knees into the mat. Cattle mutilation but Strong quickly gets to the ropes. Arm and wrist holds. Danielson’s facials throughout this match are fantastic. Danielson flips the fans off as he takes too much time to hit another headbutt from the top.

Strong with a flash cradle and Oklahoma roll about 30 minutes in. Backbreaker and chops as the pace picks up. Superplex by Strong only gets two. Stronghold but Danielson reaches the ropes. On the outside, Strong hits a forearm off the apron. Back in the ring and Danielson regains control. Series of German Suplexes ala a certain dead Canadian wrestler. Chickenwing applied, the same move that won him the world title months ago. Strong reaches the ropes. Strong reverses a belly-to-belly back but ends up getting crotched on the second rope. Strong rakes forearms across Strong’s face. Bridge on the knee followed by a seated Indian deathlock. Danielson poses. Slaps across the face. Danielson ties Strong up. Spinning toeholds. Man, Danielson is breaking out all the classics. Strong with a gutwrench powerbomb on his knee. Both men are down. Danielson applies a figure four leglock as our tour of former champion’s finishers continues. Roll-up by Strong, but Danielson puts him on the top rope. The two battle but Danielson dropkicks Strong coming off the top rope. Boston crab. Strong powers out and gets a Cattle Mutilation of his own. Crowd wakes up. Battle on the apron as Danielson tries to suplex Strong  back into the ring. Strong is the one who gets the suplex. Outside the ring and Strong gets more chops. He also gets a shot to the mouth. Danielson begins bleeding. Strong’s hand HITS THE POST ON A MISSED CHOP! Yikes. Back inside as Danielson works on the injured wrist and hand of Strong. Danielson screams at Strong as he applies a wristlock. Stomp on the wrist. Chops by Danielson in the corner. Kick as well.

Strong with a left-handed chop. Another. We’re 45 minutes in and neither man is showing signs of slowing down. To the outside for more left-handed chops. Forearm strikes but Strong is tossed into the crowd. Danielson leaps on to Strong in the crowd. Missile dropkick by Danielson back inside the ring. Strong gets out of a suplex. Danielson gets elbows to the side of the head, but Strong gets a gutbuster. His knee is still hurt so he can’t cover Danielson.  Flying kick. Gibson driver. 1-2-NO! Half nelson backbreakers. Another. Torture rack into another backbreaker but that only gets two. Another stronghold attempt. Danielson reaches the ropes. Strong climbs to the top, but Danielson gets him with a kick. Belly-to-back from the top rope. It only gets two though. Cattle mutilation, but Strong gets out and leans on the ropes. Danielson tries again but he drives some knees. Exchange of forearms. Roaring elbow and a Dragon suplex by Danielson. Another chickenwing. Strong incredibly reaches the ropes. Super Dragon suplex attempted by Danielson. Strong hits a super gutbuster too. Not very well. Bobby Cruise announces there’s five minutes left, and I think everyone saw a draw forthcoming. Strong hesitates but goes for a cover. Stronghold cinched in. Danielson rolls into a pinfall for a 1-2-3!!!! Incredible.

-Winner (s)/Time/Rating: STILL ROH World Champion- Bryan Danielson/56:02/****1/2

-As much as love Roderick Strong, I feel like Danielson carried this match in every conceivable match. He dictated the pace and controlled the psychology of the contest. Don’t make any mistake about it though folks. This was a fantastic match and one of the best matches in 2006. On most other shows, this would easily be the match of the night. Yet on this night, it’s a very distant second. Still a long epic title match. The crowd stayed with this match for most of it despite the late hour, and they were rewarded with a classic.

-Lance Storm is ready for his world title match with Bryan Danielson

-We end with Colt Cabana not wanting his feud to end like this.

-Final Thoughts: The fact that there are two matches this good makes this an easy recommendation. This show has a strong legacy for a reason. Two tag team matches in the first half round out this show to make it a classic night of Ring of Honor action. There’s no way the third night of the tripleheader can possibly top this though… right?