May 12, 2017
(aired live)
#ROHWOTW
City: New York, NY
Venue: Hammerstein Ballroom
Tour: War of the Worlds
Commentary: Ian Riccaboni, Colt Cabana, Kevin Kelly
Ring Announcer: Bobby Cruise
Intro Video
The world is a wonder, and tonight the world goes to war.
Match 1
Four Corner Survival Match
Silas Young w/ Beer City Bruiser vs Bobby Fish vs KUSHIDA vs Dalton Castle w/ The Boys
(referee: Paul Turner)
Result: Dalton Castle wins vis pinfall on Bobby Fish after a Bang-a-Rang
Time: 8:04
Match Thoughts
Good match. The pace was crazy high throughout most of this match. There wasn’t much time to rest as the competitors were all in and out of the ring and attacking each other. There wasn’t a lot of structure to this one, but it was fun to watch.
Video
A brief history of the feud between Kazarian and Page.
Match 2
Frankie Kazarian vs Hangman Page
(referee: Todd Sinclair)
Result: Hangman Page wins via pinfall by countering a sunset flip and holding onto the ropes
Time: 4:44
Match Thoughts
This was pretty good, but surprisingly short. There was some decent anger in this match, but it appears as if they want to draw this feud out. The finish was fine, but it was fine because it was frustrating and will make the next match (hopefully) more intense and satisfying.
Match 3
Triple Threat Tag Match
EVIL & Sanada (NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Champs) vs Chris Sabin & Jonathon Gresham w/ Alex Shelley vs War Machine (IWGP Tag Champs)
(referee: Tiger Hattori)
Result: Raymond Rowe pins Chris Sabin after a pop-up powerslam
Time: 9:49
Match Thoughts
Good match. It started with EVIL and Sanada executing a very good game plan where they managed to keep War Machine out of the ring, but it all started to fall apart when Hanson got a tag. The match broke down (as expected) and everyone started fighting. War Machine was probably the most impressive physically, but I think EVIL and Sanada were the most impressive overall with their clever tactics.
Video
A brief look at the future. A brief look at Will Ospreay and Jay White.
Match 4
Jay White vs Will Ospreay
(referee: Todd Sinclair)
Result: Will Ospreay wins via pinfall after an OsCutter
Time: 13:16
Match Thoughts
Really great match! As expected, there was a ton of great high flying from Ospreay, but this was a surprisingly hard hitting match as well. White brought a lot of the Japanese strong style, and he and Ospreay even traded strikes a few times. The difference in styles between the two guys made for an extremely exciting match. Both guys looked fantastic.
Ring Area
After the match, White and Ospreay show each other mutual respect. White leaves the ring, but as Ospreay is celebrating with the crowd, Punishment Martinez attacks him. White returns to the ring to help Ospreay, but Martinez chokeslams him. Martinez then exits through the crowd.
Match 5
No DQ ROH World 6-Man Tag Title Match
Roppongi Vice (IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Tag Champs) & Hirooki Goto vs The Briscoes & Bully Ray (ROH 6-Man Tag Champs)
(referee: Paul Turner)
Result: Jay Briscoe pins Rocky Romero after 3B to retain the titles
Time: 12:45
Match Thoughts
This was a fun violence match. They were going for a classic ECW vibe with this one, and I think it delivered well. There were lots of chair shots, a table, and a whole lot of brawling. It’s the kind of match that Bully Ray and the Briscoes do very well.
Video
Clips of how Matt Sydal came to be challenging Marty Scurll for the TV Title.
Backstage
Marty Scurll says he is in ROH for an education, but Sydal is just here to play games.
Match 6
ROH World TV Title Match
“Reborn” Matt Sydal vs “The Villain” Marty Scurll (ROH TV Champ)
(referee: Todd Sinclair)
Result: Marty Scurll wins via submission with a crossface chickenwing to retain the title
Time: 11:28
Match Thoughts
Good match. This wasn’t as fast paced as a lot of what has come before it tonight, but that’s not a bad thing. Scurll was the clear crowd-favorite here, and the match felt like it was affected by that. Sydal had some good offense, but Scurll always seemed to find a way to get back at him.
Match 7
ROH World Tag Title Match
Tetsuya Naito (IWGP IC Champ) & Bushi (NEVER Openweight 6-Man Champ) vs The Young Bucks (ROH Tag Champs)
(referee: Paul Turner)
Result: Matt Jackson pins Bushi after a Meltzer Driver to retain the titles
Time: 13:36
Match Thoughts
Very good match. After Naito took his time to get started, this match built up nicely to an exciting finish. Both teams had a good amount of interesting offense, and both teams looked great. There was a little bit of comedy here and there as is usually the case in a Young Bucks match, but it wasn’t obnoxious here and it worked within the context of the match. Good stuff.
Ring Area
Kevin Kelly announces that New Japan has announced that an IWGP US Title will be debuted and the first champ will be crowned later this year.
Match 8
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Adam Cole
(referee: Tiger Hattori)
Result: Hiroshi Tanahashi wins via pinfall after a High Fly FLow
Time: 13:33
Match Thoughts
Good match. Both guys tried to outdo each other with similar move sets which made this feel a bit like a grudge match. They traded moves and strikes and stayed fairly even throughout the match. It built up nicely, and the finish was good.
Ring Area
After the match, The Young Bucks enter the ring and tease a pair of superkicks to Cole. Instead, the three of them hug in the center of the ring. Then, the lights go out and Kenny Omega appears on the video screen. Omega says Cole’s tenure in Bullet Club has been long, but he has been fired and replaced.
The lights come back on, and Scurll is in the ring. He opens up a Bullet Club umbrella as the Bucks superkick Cole. Scurll and the Young Bucks gloat over the fallen Adam Cole.
Video
Clips for how the main event came to be.
Match 9
Triple Threat ROH World Title Match
“The American Nightmare” Cody vs Jay Lethal vs Christopher Daniels (ROH World Champ)
(referee: Todd Sinclair)
Result: Christopher Daniels pins Cody after a Best Moonsault Ever (while Cody has Lethal tied up in a figure four) to retain the title
Time: 13:33
Match Thoughts
Very good match. The personalities of all three guys really came through in their differing game plans, and they all worked really well together. There was some interesting injury psychology with Lethal hurting his knee early in the match, and a lot of good back and forth with all three guys. The last segment of the match was particularly good, and the finish worked extremely well.
Show Impressions
This was another good ROH show. This night was easily better than the War of the Worlds show in Toronto on the 7th. The only match tonight that I really wanted to see happen differently was the Kazarian versus Page match, but that seems to be for story line purposes, so I understand why it went down like it did.
This show felt kind of important, but the lack of any title changes makes me wonder how this show will be remembered. It was definitely good, but the biggest event on the show seems to be Cole getting replaced in the Bullet Club by Scurll.
Match of the Night
Jay White vs Will Ospreay
I think this match and the ROH World Title match were the two best on the show, but my initial reaction is that White versus Ospreay was more exciting. Maybe upon reflection I’ll see that the triple threat was a better wrestling match, but right now, I think the flash that these two guys brought to the ring won me over.