Thanks to an overly enthusiastic stomp from Davey Richards, ROH didn’t get to record a match between Paul London and Michael Elgin at their Toronto TV taping. It was an unfortunate turn of events, especially for the concussed London and fans in attendance, but it may turn out to be a blessing in disguise for the promotion.
On-screen matchmaker Nigel McGuinness assured viewers that the London versus Elgin match will take place in the future. He didn’t say when but that the match has been announced certainly indicates London has agreed to a return date. That’s obviously a good thing for Ring of Honor and its fans.
That ‘The Intrepid Traveller’ was due to oppose Elgin on TV makes it seem likely that the postponed encounter will take place at a TV taping. As ROH has been recording three or four TV episodes the night after a pay-per-view for the last few months the chances are high that London will be in town when ROH are putting on a PPV. If that’s the case there’s a very good chance he’ll be added to the card. Which, y’know, is another good thing for the promotion and its fans.
This ties in neatly to the wish of many for London to return to Ring of Honor full-time. His outing against Richards shows that he’s still as popular as ever and more than capable of having a great match. He’d be an excellent addition to the roster, even if he only worked TV tapings and iPPVs.
There are plenty of great matches and interesting stories ROH could promote featuring London. As they’re both “ROH originals” it would be nice up see London challenging Jay Briscoe for the ROH world championship. That same status would make him a natural choice to join the fight against SCUM. ROH could even look into wooing Brian ‘Spanky’ Kendrick away from EVOLVE to reunite the former WWE tag champs for dream matches against the Briscoes and the American Wolves.
Alone, as part of a tag team or as part of a group there’s plenty Ring of Honor can do with Paul London. Let’s hope we see more of him in the company he helped build.