ROH War of the Worlds Dearborn
Event Date: May 10, 2017
available on VOD on ROHWrestling.com
City: Dearborn, MI
Venue: Ford Community & Performing Arts Center
Attendance: 1,000
Series: War of the Worlds
Commentary: Ian Riccaboni, Kevin Kelly, Colt Cabana
Ring Announcer: Ian Riccaboni
Match 1
Bobby Fish vs Dalton Castle w/ The Boys
(referee: Paul Turner)
Result: Dalton Castle wins via pinfall after a Bang-A-Rang
Time: 14:01
Match Thoughts
A good opening match. It started with a little comedy but quickly moved into something more serious. The action was rather methodical for the most past, though there were bursts of offense from both guys throughout. Fish seemed like he was gaining an advantage throughout the match, but Castle never seemed too far away from a big move. I liked the “friendly competition” feeling that this match had.
Match 2
The Rebellion (Rhett Titus & Caprice Coleman & Shane Taylor) vs Search and Destroy (Jay White & The Motor City Machine Guns)
(referee: Todd Sinclair)
Result: Jay White pins Rhett Titus after Skull and Bones (falling neckbreaker/diving crossbody combo) from the MCMG
Time: 11:41
Match Thoughts
This was a fun match. It was pretty chaotic, but in a good way. Both teams took turns using teamwork to overwhelm their opponents, but Search and Destroy seemed to get the better, more exciting moments tonight. This match was full of fast action and big moves.
Match 3
Silas Young vs KUSHIDA
(referee: Paul Turner)
Result: Silas Young wins via pinfall after Misery
Time: 13:28
Match Thoughts
A good match. KUSHIDA was able to use his speed to compensate for Young’s size and strength advantage for much of the match. It took a little while, but KUSHIDA eventually started going for arm submissions to set up the Hoverboard Lock, but Young kept coming back with powerful moves. I liked this one, though it felt a little slower than some of KUSHIDA’s other matches.
Ring Area
After the match, Silas Young offers his hand to KUSHIDA, but KUSHIDA doesn’t shake it. He shoves Young then walks away. Afterwards, Young kicks Riccaboni out of the announce position and takes his place for the next match.
Match 4
Jay Lethal & Hiroshi Tanahashi vs War Machine (IWGP Tag Champs)
(referee: Tiger Hattori; guest commentary: Silas Young (replacing Ian Riccaboni))
Result: Raymond Rowe pins Jay Lethal after a combination pop-up powerslam
Time: 15:34
Match Thoughts
Good match. Tanahashi and Lethal started strong by hitting some big moves immediately as the opening bell rang, but War Machine survived the early onslaught and began to dominate with their size and strength. Lethal got beat up an awful lot throughout this match, but he still managed to hit some short bursts of offense here and there. I think this match had a good contrast of styles, and it was fun to see two of the best singles wrestlers take on one of the best current tag teams in the world.
Match 5
No DQ ROH World 6-Man Tag Title Match
Los Ingobernables de Japon (BUSHI & EVIL & SANADA) (NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Champs) vs The Briscoes & Bully Ray (ROH 6-Man Tag Champs)
(referee: Todd Sinclair)
Result: Jay Briscoe pins BUSHI after a second-rope powerbomb through a table by Bully Ray
Time: 12:37
Match Thoughts
Good match. This was, as Bully Ray called it before the match started, “a fight,” and it was a lot of fun. Bully Ray declared this title match would be contested under No DQ, so the clear advantage went to the champs. LIJ is great at manipulating rules, but when there are no rules their advantage is minimized. The Briscoes and Bully Ray brawled in and around the ring for about half the match, then when things started to settle down somewhat they still had an advantage in the ring. A lot of that had to do with their size advantage, but they also just seemed to be one step ahead of LIJ at almost every turn.
Match 6
Punishment Martinez vs Tetsuya Naito (IWGP IC Champ)
(referee: Tiger Hattori)
Result: Tetsuya Naito wins via pinfall after Destino
Time: 11:18
Match Thoughts
A good match. This was more competitive than I thought it might be, and more than it maybe should have been, but it was entertaining. Naito was his usual arrogant yet calm and likable self. He took his time throughout much of the match, but he was also pressured by Martinez’s size and strength advantage at times. I liked this finish. The outcomes was expected for Naito, but it was a good match for Martinez even if I’m still not 100% sold on him yet.
Ring Area
Everyone comes out for the next match, but before it can start Vinny Marseglia comes out. He wants to add himself to the Proving Ground match. Kazarian gets on the mic and asks the crowd what they think of Vinny. They don’t like him. Kazarian then defers to Marty Scurll to decide if Marseglia should be added to the match since he is the champ. Scurll says “why not” and hits Marseglia with the mic.
Match 7
Proving Ground Instant Reward Match
Beer City Bruiser vs Gedo vs Will Ferrara vs Cheeseburger vs Frankie Kazarian vs Marty Scurll (ROH TV Champ) vs Vinny Marseglia
(referee: Paul Turner; special stipulation: the winner gets an instant TV Title match)
Result: Cheeseburger wins via pinfall on Beer City Bruiser after a shotei
Time: 10:38
Match Thoughts
This was goofy. I’m not a huge fan of silly comedy matches, but if you are, then I think this was pretty good. There were some ridiculous multi-man holds like a five person submission pyramid thing and a human centipede Boston crab. There was also a chakra battle between Cheeseburger and Marseglia. For that kind of match, it was quite fun.
Match 8
ROH World TV Title Match
Cheeseburger vs Marty Scurll (ROH TV Champ)
(referee: Paul Turner)
Result: Marty Scurll wins via submission with a crossface chickenwing
Time: 2:09
Match Thoughts
This wasn’t much of a match. It was a little bit of comedy, but it didn’t last long.
Match 9
ROH World Title Match
Matt Taven w/ Vinny Marseglia vs Christopher Daniels (ROH World Champ)
(referee: Todd Sinclair)
Result: Christopher Daniels wins via pinfall after the Best Moonsault Ever
Time: 21:36
Match Thoughts
Very good match. This was very competitive, and Taven looked very good against Daniels. Taven took the fight to the outside early in the match and punished Daniels. That set Daniels up to fight from behind which was a great way to go. The addition of Marseglia at ringside helped cast some doubt on if Daniels might lose the title since I don’t think there was a lot of belief that the belt would change hands tonight.
Match 10
Bullet Club (Young Bucks (ROH Tag Champs) & Hangman Page & Cody) vs Chaos (Roppongi Vice (IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Tag Champs) & Will Ospreay & Hirooki Goto)
(referee: Paul Turner)
Result: Will Ospreay pins Nick Jackson after an OsCutter
Time: 23:44
Match Thoughts
This was very much a chaotic spot-fest, but is was a very well done chaotic spot-fest. There were lots of fun sequences and over-the-top setups. Personally, I could do with fewer superkicks, but whatever. This was probably the most fun match of the night for its sheer craziness.
Show Impressions
This was a good show with a bunch of different types of matches. Some of the matches were serious, some not so much. Some were chaotic and fast paced while others were more methodical. There was a little something for most tastes here which is good. The matchups didn’t always feel particularly important, but the action was good throughout.
Match of the Night
Matt Taven vs Christopher Daniels
This felt like the most serious and important match of the night. I didn’t expect Taven to win, but it was still a good title defense from Daniels.