ROH Best In The World Recap and Review: 6/29/18

To say I was hyped for this PPV would a large understatement (given I'm an ROH fanboy, but it would still be true even if I wasn't). The card is stacked as fuck, so let's not waste any more time and unpack this bad boy.

The Kingdom (Matt Taven, TK O’Ryan and Vinny Marseglia) vs. Los Ingobernables De Japon (EVIL, SANADA and BUSHI), World 6-Man Tag Team Championship Match

EVIL and O’Ryan start the match out. The Kingdom try for some double-team offense, but to no avail. EVIL gets a thumb to the eyes for his troubles as O’Ryan tags in Taven, who immediately is planted with a sidewalk slam. SANADA is tagged in; after hitting a back elbow/standing moonsault combo, he and Taven jockey for position for a bit before BUSHI is tagged in. Marseglia is tagged in and immediately tries to remove BUSHI’s mask. Not long after, all six men brawl in the ring.

As LIJ are sent to the outside, Taven teases a tope but then taunts his opponents with their leader Tetsuya Naito’s signature “Tranquilo” pose. SANADA responds with a sliding dropkick, then hip-tosses O’Ryan onto Taven. EVIL is tagged back in and just when he tries build up momentum, The Kingdom counter with a triple-team flapjack onto the ropes. The Kingdom then start working EVIL over, getting the upper hand for the moment.

After receiving much abuse, EVIL finally manages to tag in SANADA, who goes to work on The Kingdom with a series of dropkicks then a dual Paradise Lock dropkick to O’Ryan and Taven. Following a distraction from Marseglia, SANADA is knocked off the top rope and The Kingdom attempt their Rock Star Supernova triple-team powerbomb finisher. SANADA counters with a hurricanrana and he and EVILattempt their Magic Killer finisher on Taven, who counters with a hurricanrana of his own.

After O’Ryan spears EVIL, Taven connects with a running knee to SANADA. After a kick-out. Taven attempts his Climax finisher; SANADA counters and tags BUSHI in, who missile dropkicks Taven then hits Taven and O’Ryan with a double hurricanrana. LIJ then nail Taven with some triple-team offense, only for O’Ryan to break it up, allowing The Kingdom answer back with some triple-team offense of their own (a particularly impressive german suplex/springboard elbow drop combo from Taven and O’Ryan).

The action breaks down once again as EVIL breaks up the pinfall as O’Ryan nails him with a pele kick; Sanada attempts to lock O’Ryan in the dragon sleeper, only to be met with Taven’s Kick Of The King. Despite Marseglia being momentarily subdued, Taven and O’Ryan still manage to hit BUSHI with Rock Star Supernova to secure the victory and retain their titles.

Thoughts: Despite the somewhat abrupt finish, it was still a fun match and a nice way to start the show. The counters and triple-team were all crisply executed; exactly what you need in a good 6-man tag match. It was a much more grounded tag title match, focusing on ring psychology and double/triple-team maneuvers rather than over-the-top spots; it was certainly a treat to see, though I’m not entirely opposed to the former.

A solid opener to what should be a great show. The Kingdom are a great 6-Man Team, and they proved why once again with this match. Here’s hoping they keep the belts for a while, because they definitely deserve it.

Flip Gordon vs. Bully Ray

Ray tries sneak up on Gordon to start the match; Gordon evades, nailing a combo of superkicks, then a spear and a slew of punches. This opening flurry of offense culminates with a pescado from Gordon to Ray on the outside. Gordon continues it with a somersault tope then an outside springboard forearm, Ray in a state of utter disarray at the moment. Back in the ring, Gordon gets Ray up for a samoan drop, then connects with a standing shooting star press/second-rope moonsault combo.

Ray counters Gordon’s offense, taking some time to collect himself and absorb the heat he’s receiving. He then attempts a vader bomb, only for Gordon to move out of the way. Gordon attempts his Star-Spangled Stunner finisher, only for Ray to counter with a low-blow, ending the match in disqualification. He then proceeds to beat down Gordon and other young ROH talent before Colt Cabana comes down to the ring to break it up.

Thoughts: I’m not really a fan of this new Bully Ray angle, but if it gets Flip Gordon over as an in-ring talent then I’m all for it. He’s really grown on me as a performer and he deserves the spotlight he gets. Plus, Ray still manages to draw a huge reaction from the crowd, so I guess it’s working. Not an interesting story, but decent display of Gordon’s in-ring ability nonetheless.

Oedo Tai (Hana Kimura, Kagetsu and HZK) and Kelly Klein vs. Jenny Rose, Mayu Iwatani, Tenille Dashwood and Sumie Sakai

Sakai and Kagetsu start the match out; Kagetsu throws numerous strikes and attempts to get Sakai up for her samoan driver finisher, only for Sakai to counter with attempt on her Smash Mouse finisher. Kagetsu and Sakai trade pinfall counters before Kagetsu rolls through and tags Kimura in. Sakai tags Dashwood in; Kimura taunts Dashwood, who responds with a tilt-a-whirl russian legsweep. She then tags in Rose, who nails Kimura with a bridging fisherman suplex.

Kimura dropkicks Rose and tags in Klein, who nails Rose with a lariat. Rose breaks out numerous pinfall attempts; Iwatani and HZK are tagged in. HZK throws elbows and Iwatani responds with a sling blade. Sakai is tagged and the two double-team HZK. Kagetsu trips up Sakai and the heels take out the faces, leaving her and HZK to double-team Sakai. Klein is tagged in and distracts the ref while Kagetsu and HZK continue the Sakai double-team.

Klein continues working Sakai over until she’s met with a DDT; Sakai tags in Dashwood who goes to work clotheslining all of her opponents. She sends Klein to the apron and hits her with a rope-hung neckbreaker. Kagetsu and Kimura attempt to double-team Dashwood, only for her drop toe-hold Kimura and deliver her signature Taste of Tenille corner crossbody. Dashwood then hits Klein with a diving crossbody after hanging her up in the rope with a tarantula hold.

Dashwood dodges another Kimura/Kagetsu double-team and tags in Iwatani, who missile dropkicks both of them. Kimura is then met with a butterfly suplex/frog splash combo from Dashwood and Iwatani. After a pinfall break-up, Oedo-Tai gangs up on Iwatani while Klein distracts the referee. Kimura gets Iwatani up in a vertical suplex, which Iwatani counters with guillotine choke. Kimura, however, powers out and delivers a delayed vertical suplex; Iwatani kicks out.

Chaos erupts as members of both teams brawl on the outside. Sakai goes up top for diving crossbody to the outside. Back in the ring, Iwatani plants Kimura with a bridging dragon suplex and picks up the win for her team.

Thoughts: A decent exhibition tag match that showed off the talent of both the women of STARDOM and Women of Honor. If I had to pick an overall standout from this match, it’d be Iwatani or Dashwood on the face side and Kagetsu for the heels, though to be honest, each competitor looked great out there considering the time each of them spent in the ring.

I like the partnership between ROH and STARDOM because it works two-fold; it exposes ROH fans to STARDOM and vice versa (as predicted, but whatever). Here’s hoping they keep it up.

Kenny King vs. Austin Aries

The two start the match jockeying for position with a series of rest holds, with neither side really getting the advantage. Aries manages to get King up over the ropes, only for King to slide right back in to block a suicide dive attempt. The two counter each other’s finishers before King hits Aries with a backbreaker/lariat combo. After a series of legsweeps, King puts Aries in a grounded abdominal stretch/chin lock combo.

Another legsweep on the outside, the two get back in the ring. Aries gets out of a chin lock and dropkicks the ropes just as King attempts to springboard. He then delivers a diving double axe handle to King on the outside, then whips into the guardrail and throws King back in the ring and hits him with a slingshot somersault senton. He then snapmares King and deliver a second-rope elbow drop to the back of King’s head, seemingly in control.

King rolls to the outside, baiting Aries, who is met with a springboard blockbuster. After corner back elbow and an exploder suplex, King seemingly has the advantage. This changes after an eye rake and ear clap from Aries, who then puts him the Last Chancery. King manages wriggle out of it and get to the outside, only for Aries catch him in a rope-hung neckbreaker. Aries attempts the suicide dive once again only to be met with a last-second enzuguiri from King.

King gets Aries up for his Royal Flush finisher, but Aries uses some mind games and convinces King to get the both of them back in the ring. Aries attempts for a small package, but King kicks out, who delivers a tossing variation of the Royal Flush; Aries gets his hand on the bottom rope. He tries to leave only to be met with a slingshot corkscrew plancha from King. He teases hitting Aries with one of his belts (a callback to Aries’ World TV Title match with Young), only to drop it, allowing Aries nail him with a brainbuster.

Back in the ring, Aries kicks out of a small package attempt, hits a rolling elbow then plants King with another brainbuster for the W.

Thoughts: A damn good match, but that’s to be expected from performers as talented as King and Aries. The back-and-forths these two had were excellent; it really did seem like it could’ve gone either way as no one really had control for that long in this. That also really speaks for the chemistry these two have with one another, having previously faced each other in TNA/Impact wrestling.

And apart from the in-ring work, the ring psychology/storytelling was also really good. They went at it with mind games, baiting each other when they could and pouncing when the other one fell for it. I dug the spot when King picked up one of Aries’ belts and teased hitting him with it; as I mentioned before, a nice callback to Aries’ World TV Title match with Silas Young. Another storytelling spot I really liked is when Aries talked King out of giving him the Royal Flush on the outside. At that point, it seemed like King was putty in Aries’ hands.

So yeah, this match was really fucking good. It provided a good balance between crisp in-ring action with solid storytelling.

Jay Lethal vs. KUSHIDA

It’s a battle for leverage at the beginning as the two competitors exchange various rest holds and counters. They bounce off the ropes for a bit before Lethal hip-tosses KUSHIDA, hoping for his signature cartwheel dropkick. KUSHIDA dodges and delivers one of his own, sending Lethal outside then nailing him with three consecutive somersault topes. Back in the ring, KUSHIDA hits Lethal with three consecutive diving double axe handles then a standing moonsault; Lethal kicks out.

KUSHIDA wriggles out of a suplex attempt and tries for a handspring back elbow, but Lethal counter with a kick to KUSHIDA’s legs. He then goes town on KUSHIDA, targeting the legs. He continues this attack on the legs with a cloverleaf variation and a series of legbreakers. He tries for the figure-four leglock, but KUSHIDA blocks; Lethal sends him to the ring apron and hits him with a springboard dropkick. Lethal is successful with two consecutive suicide dives but KUSHIDA blocks the third attempt with a fujiwara armbar.

Back in the ring, KUSHIDA delivers a series of arm-targeted to kicks to Lethal. He then counters a Lethal Combination with a roll-up pin attempt, only for Lethal to kick out, this time successful with his second Lethal Combination attempt. Teasing a figure-four, Lethal goes up top for his Hail To The King elbow drop. KUSHIDA gets back to his feet and Lethal evades him. KUSHIDA then attempts a rolling thunder DDT, only for Lethal to catch him.

Lethal blocks another KUSHIDA handspring attempt with a rolling torture rack slam and then goes up top once again. KUSHIDA catches Lethal in a cross armbreaker; Lethal fights out of it slaps on the figure-four, but KUSHIDA gets to the ropes. The two then deliver a series of shoot kicks, with Lethal targeting KUSHIDA’s legs and KUSHIDA targeting Lethal’s arms. Lethal bicycle kicks KUSHIDA, only to be met with a pele kick.

KUSHIDA delivers another kick to Lethal’s arms; he sets himself up in the corner only to be met with a bicycle kick/enzuguiri combo from Lethal. A Lethal Injection attempt is then countered with a Hoverboard Lock. Lethal gets up as KUSHIDA attempts his Back To The Future finisher; Lethal rolls through and attempts the figure-four once again but KUSHIDA counters with another BTTF attempt, but counters that with a cutter. Lethal finally hits the Lethal Injection and picks up the victory.

Thoughts: I know I’m one to gush and exaggerate about the quality of matches (what smark isn’t?), but trust me when I say this match was damn near perfect. Each sequence, each counter was delivered with the utmost precision, with nary a botch in sight, if at all. The chemistry these two men have is simply remarkable. It seems like they’ve been wrestling each other for their entire careers, that’s how good it is.

And the in-ring storytelling. OH. MY. GOD. THE IN-RING STORYTELLING (Andrew sneaks away to fap quick, then returns). Lethal attacking KUSHIDA’s legs, KUSHIDA attacking Lethal’s arms; you literally couldn’t ask for anything better. The way these two told this story might as well have been written by an Oscar-winning screenwriter. That kind of dedication to ring psychology is something you don’t see too much of nowadays.

And while we’re on the subject of storytelling, another facet of the match I loved was KUSHIDA taunting Lethal. He refused the standard ROH handshake (only to deliver it when Lethal was prone), did the diving double axe handle while mocking Lethal’s Randy Savage tribute and delivered three somersault topes, seemingly laughing at Lethal’s trio of suicide dives and taking it up a notch.

Another part of storytelling I loved was Lethal matching KUSHIDA’s cockiness. When working the legs over, he could’ve gone for multiple submissions, but chose instead to either attempt a pinfall or go for the Hail To The King. And when delivering his suicide dives, he was a bit more deliberate and delivered them with much more swagger, really morphing into a Randy Savage/Ric Flair combination.

I’ve written WAY too much about this match than I probably should have, so I’ll just end it right here. Go watch it. Right now.

Hangman Page vs. Punishment Martinez, Baltimore Street Fight for the ROH World Television Championship

Before Bobby Cruise can even finish announcing their names, Martinez and Page start throwing clobbering blows at each other. Page clotheslines Martinez over the top rope and the two brawl on the outside. Martinez tries to get the action back in the ring only to be met with a suicide dive from Page. After throwing Martinez into the barricade, Page then reaches for a table underneath the ring. Martinez stops him halfway then catches a breath while Page gets back in the ring with a chair.

Back in the ring, Page tosses the chair at Martinez, then sets it up in the corner. The two counter each other’s irish whips before Page manages to toss him back-first into the chair. While Martinez is out on the floor, Page attempts for his patented apron shooting star press. Martinez dodges, powerbombs Page on the ring apron then chokeslams him into the guardrail. And just as they get back in the ring, the action immediately returns outside as Martinez drives Page into the guardrails.

Martinez sets up an array of chair and attempts the South of Heaven chokeslam, but Page counters. Martinez then irish whips Page into a chair near the guardrail; Page manages to dodge a Martinez strike and suplex him off the guardrail. Back in the ring, Page tries to continue his momentum but is met with a Martinez lariat, who brings a chair into the ring. Martinez tries to slam Page down only for him to counter it into a cradle tombstone piledriver; Martinez kicks out.

On the apron, Martinez counters a Rite of Passage with a curb stomp. Back in the ring, he zipties Page and curb stomps into a chair; Page kicks out. Martinez sets a table up in the ring and attempts another chokeslam, which Page fights out of. Breaking the ziptie, Page goes to the outside and spears Martinez through a table, then delivers a moonsault to the outside. But as soon as they get back in the ring, Martinez then bicycle kicks Page out onto his chair structure, then just as quickly gets him back in.

Martinez brings in a bag of thumbtacks to the ring, hoping to powerbomb Page onto them. Page counters, then backdrops Martinez onto the thumbtacks. He tries for the Rite Of Passage, but Martinez counters and chokeslams Page through a table, securing the victory and retaining his new World Television Title.

Thoughts: While the ending was weird and somewhat abrupt, I quite liked this match. Eschewing the technical prowess of the match before it, this was just a straight-up brawl. Two dudes beating the piss out of each other from bell to bell. Martinez and Page are two of the best brawlers in wrestling right now, and they proved their prowess with this match.

The spots that were delivered were brutal and sold to absolute perfection. My favorite one has to be apron powerbomb/guardrail chokeslam spot; both men sold it like a million bucks. Outside of that, I loved the powerslam counter into a cradle tombstone piledriver onto the chair as well as the patented Page moonsault to the outside. You know it’s coming, but you always pop no matter the circumstance.

Not too much more to say about it. The story was simple, but effective: have two dudes who hate each beat the living shit out of one another through increasingly violent means. Add title gold onto it, and you can’t lose. While the ending was weird, this was nonetheless a great match.

The Briscoes (Mark and Jay) vs. The Young Bucks (Matt and Nick Jackson), ROH World Tag Team Championship

Nick and Mark start the match out attempting to gain leverage over the other. Nick delivers a springboard somersault arm drag to Mark and then attempts a dropkick, which Mark blocks. Nick takes down Jay, who quickly recovers and assists Mark in irish whipping him to the floor. Nick nails Jay with a side kick and evades Mark back in the ring, only to be met with a back elbow from Jay. Matt dropkicks Mark, Jay throws punches at the two teams square up.

The Bucks superkick The Briscoes, then hit them with an elevated dropkick/crossbody combo. Matt is tagged in and the two hit their dual hip toss/backflip dropkick on Jay. They then try to hit their headscissors/dropkick combo, only to be met with a couple of Jay Briscoe clotheslines. Matt gets hit with the Redneck Boogie (Razor’s Edge/neckbreaker combo), but kicks out and The Briscoes continue working him over.

On the outside, Matt superkicks Jay then dodges a sliding dropkick from Mark and hits him with a somersault cutter off the apron. He tags Nick in, who delivers a springboard corkscrew plancha to The Briscoes; Nick then brings his trademark hot tag offense to the outside. The Bucks then deliver dual suicide dives to them; as the action gets back inside, Nick hits Jay with a corner knee strike. He attempts a superplex, only for Mark to momentarily trap him in a rear naked choke.

After Jay plants Nick with a lariat, Mark hits Matt with a wrecking ball dropkick, then an apron blockbuster. The Briscoes then try for a super Redneck Boogie, only for Matt to pull Jay off the apron; Nick then counters Mark’s crucifix powerbomb with a super hurricanrana. Matt is tagged in and he immediately throws punches at Jay and Mark; The Briscoes try to double-team and Matt counters with a double leaping clothesline. Matt goes off the ropes only to be met with a death valley driver from Jay.

After Jay taunts Nick, Matt superkicks him, then Nick superkicks Mark. The Bucks attempt more superkicks but are met with superkicks from The Briscoes. Matt and Nick respond with superkicks of their own and just as they’re about to follow up, The Briscoes plant them with dual clotheslines. Jay spikes Matt with his Jay Driller finisher, but Nick breaks up the pinfall. The Briscoes then set up Matt for the Doomsday Device, only for Nick to nail Mark with a springboard cutter and Matt to roll up Jay, who kicks out.

The Bucks pull off a springboard variation of the Doomsday Device, but Jay kicks out. They then deliver More Bang For Your Buck, only for Mark to Froggy Bow the referee. While the referee is down, Mark brings a chair in, only to be met with a double superkick from The Bucks. They hit Jay with the Meltzer Driver only for Mark to break it up. They try for a Meltzer driver again, only for Mark to throw a chair at Nick and Jay to plant Matt with a Jay Driller on the chair; surprisingly, Matt kicks out.

Despite The Bucks putting up a fight, The Briscoes deliver a super Redneck Boogie to Matt to pick up the W and retain their titles.

Thoughts: There’s a reason I call these two teams my absolute favorites, and it’s because of matches like this. While it may not fit the traditional mold, this is still a damn good example of when tag team wrestling is at its best. The sequences they pulled off were mind-blowing; a spot in particular I’d like to point out is the moment right before the finale. I have it detailed above, so here are the cliff notes: Bucks pull off Briscoes’ offense, then their own, Briscoes play dirty, but Matt fights through.

Spots like that are an example of the picture-perfect chemistry these two teams have with one another. They’ve faced each other several times before, but every time they do it somehow feels fresh and exciting. That’s because they work so well with one another, they know how to change it up and make it unique, topping what they did before. I can watch these guys duke it out 1000 times and never get bored, and that really speaks to how talented they are as teams.

Was it the overall best tag team match of the year (so far)? No, but it’s still great and deserves to be talked about. You’re really doing yourself a disservice by not partaking in one of the best long-running tag teams feuds wrestling has to offer.

Cody vs. Marty Scurll vs. Dalton Castle, ROH World Championship

Right off the bat, Scurll attacks Cody and sends Castle to the outside. The two trade blows and jaw-jack for a brief spell for Cody goes to the outside. Castle irish whips him into the ring barricade then gives Cody a running knee strike. Scurll attempts to get Castle back in the ring, only to be met with a rebound hurricanrana off the ring apron. Back in the ring, Castle starts working Scurll over while Cody watches on the outside.

Cody tries to springboard dropkick Castle, who moves out of the way and he hits Scurll instead. The two go back-and-forth, Castle landing a few strikes and Cody planting him with a rope-hung flatliner. They get to the outside, where they are met by Scurll on the ring apron. He superkicks Castle, delivers a tornado DDT to Cody. Back in the ring, Cody pleads for mercy from Scurll; the two throw chops and forearms before Cody pulls off a tossing vertical suplex on Scurll.

Castle gets back in and starts unloading on the two with a series of knees and elbows, tossing Scurll to the outside while leaving him and Cody alone in the ring to duke it out. Castle places Cody on the top rope, hits him with an apron knee strike before tossing him from the second rope. Scurll breaks up a Castle submission attempt with his patented Crossface Chickenwing, then Cody slaps a figure-four leglock on Castle, who gets to the ropes and leaves Scurll and Cody alone in the ring together.

Scurll tries to lock in the Chickenwing, but Cody counters with a DDT. Frustrated, he exits the ring and grabs the ROH Title belt, looking to hit Scurll with it. When the referee is distracted, Cody attempts to low-blow Scurll, who blocks, teases a finger break but slaps him instead. Following a distraction from Brandi Rhodes, Cody low-blow Scurll then attempts a small package pinfall; Scurll kicks out. Cody calls for his signature ring and demand Scurll kiss it; he obliges, then not long after breaks Cody’s fingers.

He takes the ring from Cody and attempts to punch Castle with it, only for Castle to counter it with his Bangarang finisher. The NWA World Heavyweight Champion Nick Aldis, at ringside the whole time, pulls the referee out of the ring, a nod to his possible title match with Cody at All In. After Aldis tosses The Boys around, Cody hits him with a springboard plancha. With the referee distracted, Scurll hits Castle with the ROH title belt; Cody then pulls the referee out of the ring to break up the pinfall attempt.

The three men trade roll-ups, then strikes for a brief respite. Scurll teases a superkick to Castle only to stomp on Cody fingers, sending to the ring apron. Castle knocks him off, then he and Scurll throw clobbering blows at each other. Cody brings Scurll’s signature bag of white powder into the ring; Scurll smacks the powder into his, but Cody is still able drill him with the Cross Rhodes. Castle tosses Cody out of the ring and attempts the pinfall; Scurll kicks out.

Scurll counters a Bangarang attempt, then locks in the Chickenwing. Cody breaks it up, attempts the Cross Rhodes, only for Scurll to counter with one of his own. Castle then hits Scurll with the Bangarang to pick up the W and retain his title.

Thoughts: Going into this match, I had some nagging doubts. Given there wasn’t that much time left in the show, I feared the match would be quick and empty, ending abruptly and not being allowed to breathe. While it was quick, I was dead wrong about my other suspicions, because hot damn they managed to pull off a great match, all things considered. They managed to jam pack a whole mess of action in the small time window given.

What I liked most about this match was the story being told between Scurll and Cody. The way they interacted with each other was brilliant. Granted, allegiances are usually always thown out the window in triple-threat matches, but this one felt different. Each time they faced off, you could tell the relationship is fracturing and it’s only a matter of time before one turns on the other. But let’s not take anything away from Castle. He fulfilled his role and then some as the babyface champion determined to take on all comers in order to hold onto his title.

There were two particular sequences I loved: the double submission attempt on Castle and the spot before the finale where three men traded roll-ups and strikes. They were executed with crisp precision, which to just how well these guys move inside a ring.

Was it the best world title match? No, but still pretty damn good all things considered.

Overall

A great show from start to finish. While not as good as Supercard (one of my favorites of the year so far), it still manages to be an absolute delight and was definitely better than a lot of other PPVs this year. Match of the night by far goes to Lethal/KUSHIDA, though Briscoes/Young Bucks and the main event definitely managed to be great, rounding out the top three.

It’s honestly one of the best shows I’ve seen all year. It absolutely fits the description of being well-rounded. The negatives were minute at best; the only thing I can muster up is that the endings for some of the matches were a little weird. Other than that, I can’t anything bad about this show. Do yourselves a favor and check it out ASAP.