ROH Best in the World 2017
#ROHBITW
Original Air Date: June 23, 2017
Event Date: June 23, 2017 (aired live on PPV)
City: Lowell, MA
Venue: Lowell Memorial Auditorium
Attendance: 2,500
Series: Best in the World
Commentary: Ian Riccaboni, BJ Whitmer
Ring Announcer: Bobby Cruise
Video
For over fifteen years, ROH has developed a reputation for showcasing the best of everything. Tonight, Cody is willing to risk everything to become the best in the world.
Match 1
Lucha Rules Tag Match
Matt Taven & Vinny Marseglia w/ TK O’Ryan vs El Terrible & Ultimo Guerrero
(referee: Mike Posey)
Result: Ultimo Guerrero pins Vinny Marseglia with a schoolboy
Time: 11:08
Match Thoughts
Good match. It didn’t really feel like a lucha match, but it was entertaining. The Kingdom looked really good as a team, but the CMLL stars hit some huge moves which kept them in the fight. The match felt fairly even most of the time with everyone all at the same time for most of the match. I liked the finish as well. It was simple, but it worked well.
Video
The history between Frankie Kazarian and Hangman Page.
Match 2
Strap Match
Hangman Page vs Frankie Kazarian
(referee: Todd Sinclair)
Result: Frankie Kazarian wins via submission by hanging Page over the bottom rope with the leather strap around his neck
Time: 11:57
Match Thoughts
Very good match. This one was pretty brutal and had a number of moves that made me flinch. Neither man came out of this unscathed. It wasn’t just the straps either (which they swung at every part of their opponents body, even their face). Page took some nasty falls on the outside, and both men took some shots from a leather strap studded with tacks and nails. This match really did feel like a fight between two guys that hate each other. A great grudge match.
Video
Buildup for the upcoming 8-man tag match.
Match 3
The Rebellion (Caprice Coleman & Rhett Titus & Kenny King & Shane Taylor) vs Search & Destroy (Alex Shelley & Chris Sabin & Jonathan Gresham & Jay White)
(referee: Paul Turner; special stipulation: the losing team must disband)
Result: Jonathan Gresham forces Rhett Titus to submit to an octopus stretch, The Rebellion has to disband
Time: 12:35
Match Thoughts
A very good match. The pace was very high throughout the entirety of this one. The fight started outside the ring as Search and Destroy came out, and there weren’t many times when either of the teams stayed in their corners like a normal tag match. The Rebellion seemed to be the more cohesive team for most of the match. They ganged up on Gresham first, then White, but SHelley and Sabin started working together to change the momentum of the match. This was a very fun match and there were only a few minor moments where a move didn’t go quite like they wanted it to.
Ring Area
After the match, Punishment Martinez enters the ring and attacks Jay White. He hits White with a chokeslam before leaving the ring.
Video
Chronicling the feud between Jay Lethal and Silas Young.
Match 4
Silas Young w/ Beer City Bruiser vs Jay Lethal
(referee: Todd Sinclair)
Result: Jay Lethal wins via pinfall with a kneeling roll-up
Time: 16:26
Match Thoughts
Great match! This was another grudge match that really felt like the two guys hated each other. It wasn’t as violent as the strap match, but it was certainly very hard-hitting. Both guys went for big moves and had a good combination of power and agility. I’m not the biggest fan of Silas Young’s characters, but I love the way he wrestles. He’s a big, bruising powerhouse, but every once in a while he’ll pull of some spectacularly agile moves that look really good. And of course, Jay Lethal is one of the best. Their styles work really well together, and this match showed them both off greatly.
Ring Area
Silas Young attacks Jey Lethal after the match. Beer City Bruiser joins Silas and sets up a keg in the ring. Young drops Lethal ribs-first on the keg. Bruiser then sets the keg in the corner. Young holds Lethal’s arms as Bruiser repeatedly splashes Lethal, crushing his ribs on the keg. They then set up Lethal on a table at ringside and the Bruiser dives from the top turnbuckle, splashing Lethal through the table.
Video
Dalton Castle and The Boys are hungry for a 6-man title. Jay Briscoe blames Castle and The Boys for their loss against Los Ingobernables De Japon during the War of the Worlds tour.
Match 5
ROH World 6-Man Tag Title Match
Dalton Castle & The Boys vs The Briscoes & Bully Ray (ROH 6-Man Tag Champs)
(referee: Paul Turner)
Result: Dalton Castle pins Mark Briscoe with a roll-up and Dalton Castle and The Boys become the new ROH World 6-Man Tag Champs
Time: 12:57
Match Thoughts
Good match. There was a lot of comedy in this one. As expected. Jay Briscoe was the weak link in this match. His anger and single-minded need to get at The Boys was a huge distraction for his team. Castle was able to use that to his advantage a few times throughout the match. Castle and Bully Ray also had a pose-off which was kind of fun. Overall this was very much a Dalton Castle match, meaning there were a lot of comedy bits and a lot of shenanigans going on so Castle and The Boys didn’t just get beat up the whole time.
Video
Clips of Marty Scurll joining the Bullet Club and losing the TV Title to KUSHIDA. Scurll says he’ll do anything to get the title back.
Match 6
ROH World TV Title Match
Marty Scurll vs KUSHIDA (ROH TV Champ, IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Champ)
(referee: Todd Sinclair)
Result: KUSHIDA wins via pinfall with Back to the Future (small package driver) and retains the title
Time: 14:58
Match Thoughts
Great match. I think it took a little while to really get going, but by the end I was completely invested in the match. It had a great build of intensity. There were a lot of very nice chains and counters here. At first it felt a little like the might have been going through the motions, but as the intensity picked up the moves and holds felt more and more impactful. A very nice title match.
Video
Clips of the Women of Honor match before tonight’s show featuring Deonna Purrazzo and Mandy Leon vs Sumie Sakai and Kris Wolf.
Ring Area
War Machine and The Young Bucks make their ways to the ring, but before Bobby Cruise can announce the title match, the Best Friends (consisting of Beretta and Chuck Taylor) come out to the stage. Beretta says they pinned the Bucks previously, so they want a title shot right now. The Bucks are eager to add them to the match, so the match is made.
Match 7
Tornado Triple Threat ROH World Tag Team Title Match
War Machine vs The Young Bucks (ROH Tag Champs, IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Tag Champs) vs Beretta & Chuckie T
(referee: Paul Turner)
Result: Nick Jackson pins Chuckie T after an Indytaker and the Young Bucks retain the titles
Time: 12:27
Match Thoughts
This was fun. It was kind of a chaotic spot-fest, but that’s what it was an entertaining chaotic spot-fest. There were lots of big choreographed set-pieces and lots of superkicks. The addition of Beretta and Chuckie T, while kind of fun, made me much less inclined to believe that there would be a title change though.
Video
Clips of how Cody made his way into the title match tonight with Christopher Daniels.
Match 8
ROH World Title Match
Cody vs Christopher Daniels (ROH World Champ)
(referee: Todd Sinclair)
Result: Cody wins via pinfall and becomes the new ROH World Champ
Time: 19:27
Match Thoughts
Great match. There were an awful lot of shenanigans for much of this match. THe ref got knocked out, there were weapons, people came out to the ring, etc. That was all good, but the match got very good towards the end. The final sequence of the match had some great counters and was quite exciting.
Show Impressions
This was a very good show. Some matches were better than others, but I liked them all. The styles of the matches were pretty different as well, so there a little something of everything on this show. I still want them to put women’s matches on their main shows, but other than that this was very solid.
Match of the Night
Marty Scurll vs KUSHIDA
This was a tough decision. I liked this one, Lethal vs Young, and Cody vs Daniels about the same. I think overall though, I got most excited during the TV Title match. Part of that is probably because I really like KUSHIDA, but I also think it was a very well put-together match with good technique on display. Young and Lethal was more of a fight, and Cody and Daniels had more of a pro-wrestling story plus shenanigans feeling to it. It’s just a matter of taste really, and on another day I might pick one of those matches instead.