Kevin Kelly and Mr. Wrestling III introduce the show and note that the Young Bucks have announced that there will be a new member of The Bullet Club tonight.
ACH vs Roderick Strong vs Dalton Castle vs Adam Page
This match is to determine a new #1 contender for the ROH TV Title. ACH and Page start off and Page hits a leg lariat. Page hits some chops but ACH comes back with a dropkick. Strong tags in and beats down Page. Strong chops him but Page hits a back elbow and a missile dropkick. Castle tags in and gets a drop toehold on Page who blocks an O’Connor Roll. Strong tags in and Page hits an elbow on Castle before comes in and attacks Castle from behind. Strong gives Castle a back suplex. Page tags in and hits Castle with an elbow. Castle hits a back elbow but Page gives him a powerslam. Page attempts a pin that is broken up by Strong who comes in and lays into Castle with chops. Castle suplexes Strong and hits a knee-strike. Castle takes Strong to the top and then hits Page with a back elbow and a suplex. Strong comes off the top at Castle who catches him and hits a suplex. ACH tags in and this a facebuster on Castle. Castle avoids a clothesline from Page and hits a tope on Strong. Page hits a lariat on ACH but who fights back with kicks. Page goes to the apron and hits a standing shooting star press on Page and Strong. ACH then hits a step-up tope on all three opponents. ACH takes Strong inside and goes up top but Strong crotches him on the top rope. Castle attacks Strong but takes a back elbow. Strong knocks Page off the apron and slams Castle. Strong gives ACH a superplex and this a double-knee gutbuster. Strong hits a sick-kick on Page but Castle grabs Strong and gives him the bang-a-rang onto Page and gets the pinfall. Castle is now the # 1 contender for the ROH TV Title after a fun opener.
Jushin Liger and Cheeseburger vs Frankie Kazarian and Christopher Daniels
Cheeseburger comes out wearing a mask but takes it off for the match. Cheeseburger starts against Daniels who refuses to shake his hand. Cheeseburger gets his back but takes a back elbow. Cheeseburger kicks Daniels in the gut and goes for a shotei palm strike but Daniels avoids it. Kazarian and Liger tag in and Liger quickly take over. Liger hits a shotei on Daniels and then he and Cheeseburger hit a double dropkick on Kazarian. Cheeseburger and Kazarian trade slaps and Cheeseburger starts throwing elbows at both opponents. Daniels hits a strike to Cheeseburger’s back and Kazarian hits him with a knee-lift. Kazarian runs Cheeseburger’s head into Daniels’ boot. Daniels hits a slingshot elbowdrop followed by Kazarian hitting a slingshot legdrop. Daniels suplexes Kazarian onto Cheeseburger and then hits Cheeseburger with a quebrada. Daniels grabs a half-nelson and Cheeseburger fights out with elbows. Cheeseburger gets a sunset flip a headscissors and gets the hot tag to Liger who hits a shotei on Kazarian. Liger gives Daniels a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker and a shotei followed by a Liger-bomb. Kazarian breaks up the pin but Liger hits him with a koppo-kick. Liger goes for a brainbuster on Daniels but Kazarian stops it and they give Celebrity Rehab to Liger, dropping him on his head. Cheeseburger makes the save and hits Kazarian with a shotei. Daniels gives Cheeseburger an STO and goes for another one but Cheeseburger gets a victory roll and pins Daniels to win his pay-per-view debut. Kazarian and Daniels attack them after the match and do the Best Moonsault Ever version of the Meltzer Driver on Cheeseburger.
ROH World Tag Team Titles: War Machine (Raymond Rowe and Hanson) vs Jay and Mark Briscoe
They show a nice video package to build this up, putting over that War Machine has never beaten the Briscoes as well as the Briscoes not holding the titles in three years. Hanson powers Mark into the corner to start and they trade strikes. Hanson throws Mark to the floor where Rowe throws him into the barricade. Rowe throws him inside and tags in and hits Mark with an elbow. Rowe hits Mark with knee-strikes and then bodyslams Hanson onto him. Hanson charges Mark in the corner and takes a shoulder to the gut. Hanson and Jay go outside and Mark hits a dropkick through the ropes on Rowe. Jay and Mark give Hanson a double suplex in the ring. Jay clotheslines Hanson in the corner and hits a seated dropkick. Jay splashes Hanson in the corner and Mark gives him a legsweep. Mark clotheslines Hanson and then he and Jay double-team him. Mark hits a flying forearm but Hanson backdrops Mark to the floor where Rowe attacks him. Hanson then hits a tope suicida on the Briscoes. Rowe hits an elbow on Mark in the ring but Mark dropkicks Hanson and gives Rowe a uranage. Jay puts Hanson on a table at ringside and gives him a double stomp. Jay gives Rowe a reverse neckbreaker in the ring. Jay kicks Rowe in the head but Rowe fights back with an elbow. Jay gives Rowe a uranage but Rowe fights back and hits one of his own. Rowe and Jay charge each other and trade elbows to knock each other down. Hanson hits Mark with a lariat and all four men are down. They get up and face off. Hanson gives Mark a side-slam but Mark gives him a boot to the face. Rowe and Jay trade punches and strikes. Mark hits a flying elbow on Rowe and Jay clotheslines him to the floor and hits a tope suicida. Mark hits a blockbuster onto Hanson on the floor. Jay hits a clothesline on Rowe in the ring and goes for a Jay Driller. Rowe blocks it but eats a lariat. Jay goes for the Jay Driller again but has to duck a clothesline from Hanson. Jay kicks Hanson and Rowe hits a strike on Jay. War Machine goes for Fall-Out but Mark dropkicks Hanson. Jay gives Rowe a Saito Suplex and Mark gives Hanson the Iconoclasm. Mark hits a splash followed by Froggy Bow by Mark for a two-count. Jay takes Hanson to the top rope but Hanson throws him off. Mark hits a forearm on Hanson who throws him off. Jay whips Mark into Hanson who gives him a chest-splash (I guess). Row powerbombs Jay and Hanson does a moonsault but Jay gets out of the way. Jay gives Hanson a Jay Driller and Hanson gets his shoulder up at the last second of a pin attempt. Jay and Mark set up Hanson for the Doomsday Device but Rowe takes out Jay’s knee and gives Mark a pop-up German suplex. Jay fights back with headbutts and strikes but takes Death Rowe followed by a spinkick from Hanson. War Machine then hit Fall-Out on Mark to get the pinfall. This was wild and out-of-control and the execution wasn’t always crisp but I l don’t care as I loved it.
Kyle O’Reilly vs IWGP Heavyweight Champion Tetsuyo Naito (non-title)
Naito throws his title belt down on the entrance ramp. Naito kicks O’Reilly in the gut out of a test of strength. O’Reilly throws elbows then takes Naito down and throws palm-strikes from the mount. O’Reilly tries to get a cross armbreaker but Naito gets the ropes. Naito throws O’Reilly to the outside and O’Reilly gets to the apron and gets a cross ambreaker in the ropes. Naito hits a back elbow and a seated dropkick. Naito hangs O’Reilly in the tree of woe and hits a corner dropkick. Naito gives O’Reilly a reverse neckbreaker and O’Reilly fights back with elbows and uppercuts. Naito hits an inverted atomic drop and gets a dropkick on O’Reilly in the corner. Naito goes after O’Reilly’s back but O’Reilly fights back with more elbows and knee-strikes. O’Reilly gets a legsweep on Naito and kicks Naito in the chest. Naito boots him in the chest but O’Reilly hits a knee-lift. O’Reilly grabs a guillotine choke and transitions into an armbar/ankle-lock combination. O’Reilly transitions again into a Nagata-style armlock. Naito hits a back elbow out of the corner and dropkicks O’Reilly then gives him a DDT. Naito gives O’Reilly a neckbreaker and gives him a top-rope hurracanrana. Naito hits O’Reilly with elbows but O’Reilly fights back with elbows and a knee-strike. Naito misses an enzuiguri and O’Reilly hits a Nigel lariat. Naito blocks a Regal-plex and they trade strikes. Naito hits an enzuiguri and a flying forearm. Naito tries for Destino but O’Reilly blocks it and gives Naito a Regal-plex for a two-count. O’Reilly goes for a suplex but Naito floats over and then hits a side suplex. Naito goes for Destino again but O’Reilly hits a big knee. Naito then gives O’Reilly a spinebuster followed by Destino to get the pinfall win. Naito gives O’Reilly a low blow after the match and throws the title belt into the ring. This was a fun match where O’Reilly looked really credible against Naito who also looked great.
Hiroshi Tanahashi and Michael Elgin vs Moose and Kazuchika Okada
Tanahashi and Okada start out to a strong ovation from fans. Tanahashi avoids the Rainmaker and gets an armdrag. Moose and Elgin tag in and shoulder-block each other repeatedly. Elgin gives Moose a delayed vertical suplex but Moose gets right back up and starts throwing punches. Moose charges Elgin in the corner but Elgin hits him with two big forearms. Tanahashi tags in and throws punches at Moose before Moose gives him a shoulder-block. Okada tags in and he and Moose go for a double-suplex but Elgin breaks it up. Okada and Moose sit Tanahashi and Elgin on the turnbuckles and hit them with big dropkicks. Moose then goes to the top rope and hits a plancha on Elgin and Tanahashi on the floor. Okada then stretches Tanahashi in the ring and gives him a neckbreaker. Moose tags in and bodyslams Tanahashi then hits a diving headbutt followed by a senton from Okada. Moose and Okada double-team Tanahashi who fights back with dropkicks on Moose but Moose gives him a spinebuster from the top rope. Okada throws Elin to the outside and Moose then charges Tanahashi and hits the turnbuckle when Tanahashi escapes. Elgin hits him with a shoulder-tackle from the top rope. Elgin knocks Okada to the floor and then knocks Moose to the floor with an enzuiguri. Elgin brings Okada back into the ring with a slingshot powerslam. Elgin gives Moose a bridging German suplex. Elgin goes for a buckle-bomb on Moose but gets backdropped. They then hit each other with clotheslines. Moose hits a boot to Elgin’s face but Elgin hits him with a clothesline. Okada and Tanahashi tag in and trade several forearms. Tanahashi gives Okada a dragon-screw legwhip. Tanahashi bodyslams him and hits a rolling senton from the top rope. Okada comes back and hits an elbow in the corner followed by a DDT and an uppercut. Okada knocks Elgin off the apron and goes for a tombstone but Tanahashi fights out and goes for a Rainmaker. Okada avoids it and tries a Rainmaker but takes a slingblade. Tanahashi and Elgin both hit Okada in the corner and then Elgin gives him a powerslam off the top rope. Elgin then gets Tanahashi on his shoulders and slams him on Okada. Tanahashi dives onto Moose on the outside. Elgin gives Okada a buckle-bomb and goes for an Elgin-bomb but Okada gives him a neckbreaker. Elgin hits him with an enzuiguri and a rolling elbow to the back of the head. Okada dropkicks Elgin and Moose hits Elgin with a spear. Moose dropkicks Tanahashi off the apron and Okada hits a Rainmaker on Elgin to get the pin.
ROH TV Title: Tomohiro Ishii (champion) vs Bobby Fish
Fish hits a shoulder-block and elbow to start but Ishii throws him to the mat. Fish hits leg-kicks and a shoulder-block and throws a knee-lift. Fish takes a break outside and then comes back in and throws kicks. Ishii starts blocking kicks but Fish hits him with elbows instead. Ishii throws Fish in the corner and hits chops and elbows in the corner. Fish fights back but Ishii floors him with a chop. Ishii starts kicking Fish in the head but Fish fights back with elbows. Ishii headbutts Fish who throws leg-kicks and hits a head-kick. Ishii gives Fish a vertical suplex and then starts chopping him. Ishii clotheslines Fish in the corner. Ishii kicks Fish in the back. They trade elbows and Ishii starts slapping Fish who headbutts Ishii and then falls down in the corner. Ishii takes Fish to the top rope and they trade elbows. Ishii attempts a superplex but Fish knocks him off with elbows. Fish misses a diving headbutt but then gives Ishii a hurracanrana. Fish starts kicking Ishii in the legs and chest. Fish hits Ishii with knee-lifts and an exploder suplex. Fish hits an uppercut in the corner but Ishii knocks him down with a headbutt to the chest and jaw. Ishii sits Fish on the top rope and gets the superplex this time. Ishii goes for a sliding lariat but Fish avoids it. Ishii gives Fish a Saito suplex followed by a powerbomb. Fish hits Ishii with a flying knee and gets on his back with a sleeper. Ishii drives him into the turnbuckle and hits him with a release German suplex. They go the apron and trade elbows and chops and they fall to the floor. Fish beats the twenty-count and takes a headbutt from Ishii. They trade elbows again and Ishii throws another headbutt. Fish hits a back-kick but Ishii hits him with a lariat. Fish gets Ishii’s back and applies a sleeper and then starts throwing elbows. Fish rolls forward into a rear choke and Ishii passes out for a referee stoppage. Fish is the new ROH TV Champion after a strong victory and probably the best match I have seen out of Ishii’s TV Title matches.
Matt Sydal, Kushida, Alex Shelley and Chris Sabin vs The Young Bucks, Tama Tonga and Tanga Roa
Mr. Wrestling II introduces the Superkick Counter graphic for this match. Sydal and Matt start with Sydal controlling the mat wrestling until Matt hits an eye-poke. Sydal hits a leg-kick and goes to the floor. Matt follows and takes a big kick from Sabin. Shelley and Sydal hit tope suicida’s. Shelley gives Matt an inverted atomic drop setting up dropkicks from Sabin and Kushida. They work over Matt’s arm and Kushida takes a knee to the back from Nick and then gets dropkicked to the floor. The Bucks give Kushida a neckbreaker and Nick dropkicks Sabin to the floor. The Bucks go for dives but Sabin and Shelley come in and hit superkicks. Tonga and Roa come in and take superkicks but then clothesline Sabin and Shelley. Nick dropkicks Sabin and Shelley through the ropes on the floor and Matt hits a dive. The Bucks then double0team Shelley and Nick hits a knee-strike. Tonga tags in and hits a Stinger splash on Shelley followed by a vertical suplex. Roa tags in and he and Tonga hit a Samoan Drop/neckbreaker combination. Roa gives Shelley a running powerslam. Shelley fights back with chops and throws a headbutt but Roa headbutts him to the mat. Roa slams Shelley and Tonga drops an elbow on him. Matt tags in and works over Shelley. The Tongans hold him outside for a dropkick through the rope by Matt. Shelley fights back against the Tongans inside and gets the tag to Kushida who gets an O’Connor Roll/ German Suplex combination on the Bucks. Kushida goes for a hoverboard lock but Matt stops it and tries a tombstone. Kushida escapes and tags in Sydal who faces Tonga and gives him double-knees to the chest. Sydal gives Tonga a headkick followed by his standing moonsault. Sabin and Shelley hit superkicks on the Tongans. The Bucks miss superkick attempts. Sabin, Shelley and Kushida team up on Matt and Sydal hits him with double-knees off the top ropes. Kushida does a plancha onto the Tongans on the outside and Sabin and Shelley hit an inverted DDT/splash combination inside. The Bucks continue to miss superkicks inside but then hit the Meltzer Driver on Shelley to get the win. Mr. Wrestling III freaks out on commentary saying he spent $6000.00 on the superkick counter and the total at the end is 0.
BJ Whitmer comes out in a mask and argues with Mr. Wrestling III (Steve Corino) and hands him a flash drive telling him that there is footage he will want to see.
ROH World Title: Jay Lethal (champion) vs Colt Cabana
The build for this feels reminiscent of Chi-Town Rumble ’89. Lethal is accompanied by Taeler Hendrix. They shake hands and Lethal goes for a kick to the gut but Cabana stops it and punches away at Lethal in the corner. Cabana hits a flying headscissors. They criss-cross and Lethal gives Cabana a hiptoss and a dropkick. They criss-cross again and Cabana rolls up Lethal and gives him a nerve-pinch and a stump-puller. Cabana hits a big elbow. Cabana ends up on the floor and Hendrix tries to distract him but Cabana avoids a tope suicida sending Lethal into the ring barricade. They’re back in the ring and Hendrix tries to distract Cabana again but Cabana backdrops Lethal to the floor. Hendrix then grabs Cabana on a criss-cross and Lethal knocks him to the floor. Lethal then hits two big tope suicida’s on Cabana. ROH matchmaker Nigel McGuinness and referee Todd Sinclair send Hendrix to the back. Cabana and Lethal return to the ring and Lethal hits Cabana with punches and kicks. Lethal chops Cabana in the corner and gives him a belly-to-back suplex. Cabana headbutts Lethal and rolls him up. Cabana hits Lethal with elbows and kicks, blocks a superkick and hits a lariat. Cabana starts throwing punches and hits atomic elbowdrops. Cabana hits his “Flying Asshole” in the corner followed by a splash. Cabana then gets another roll-up followed by another elbow. Lethal blocks the next elbow and hits a Lethal Injection. Lethal hits a top rope elbowdrop. Lethal takes Cabana to the top rope. Cabana fights him off but Lethal hits him with an enzuigirui. Cabana picks up Lethal on his shoulders and drops him face-first on the turnbuckles in a move he calls “Chicago Skyline”. Cabana and Lethal both reverse tombstone attempts with Lethal finally hitting it. Cabana prevents the Lethal Injection and rolls him into the Billy Goat’s Curse (reverse Boston Crab). Hendrix runs back to ringside and pulls Sinclair out of the ring. The Bucks come down and superkicks Sinclair and then Hendrix. They roll into the ring with Bullet Club t-shirts. Cabana and Lethal hold them and the lights go out. When the come back on, Adam Cole is in the ring with a Bullet Cub t-shirt on. The Bucks superkick Lethal and Cabana. Cole takes the mic and says they’re The Bullet Club and they then stomp down Lethal and Cabana. Security comes out Matt comes to the commentary table and asks for the Superkick Counter to come back up and it starts at 13. Tonga Roa and Tama Tonga come out as well and the Bucks give security an Indie-taker on the floor. The Tongans powerbomb a security member through a table. The Bucks superkick Kevin Kelly and Mr. Wrestling III. The Bucks then go on commentary and the Tongans tie Lethal to the top rope with Cabana trying to save him. Cole superkicks Lethal repeatedly. The Bucks’ father comes into the ring to stop them and he takes superkicks from Cole and the Bucks. The show goes off the air with Cole and the Bucks taunting the camera and the superkick counter having gotten over 50.
Final thoughts: This was overall a good show with a lot of good matches. The finishing angle was good and got the Bullet Club over but I do wish they had given us a finish to the match first as this was a pay-per-view. I know it is intended for heel heat but it could have worked just as well after the match. Fans were chanting for the Bullet Club so we shall see but they went from having the opportunity for a classic title match and went with NWO-style booking and that’s a slippery slope. Especially when you are charging old school pay-per-view prices in today’s market. All that being said, the Moose and Okada vs Tanahashi and Elgin match and the TV title change were very good as were Naito vs O’Reilly and the tag title match.
