Ring of Honor returns to action for the first time since the “Best in the World 2013” weekend in late June with three shows this week. The company will try to put the disastrous end of June behind it and move forward to a successful second-half of 2013. That all begins with this weekend’s huge triple shot.
The weekend kicks off in Chicago with Ring of Honor’s first ever unauthorized event as Truth Martini presents “A Night of Hoopla.” Nobody is really sure what to expect from this show, but it should be one of the most entertaining shows of the year with Martini’s involvement. The video packages hyping the show have been hilarious, and the show itself should be fun.
“A Night of Hoopla” probably won’t be like most ROH shows, but that’s exactly what makes it so special. It’s going to be something different and it’s great to see the company take chances like this. If it works, then they have another type of show they can occasionally run. If not, well at least they tried.
Although the buildup around the show has been focused on Martini and the Hoopla, there are still some interesting and fresh matches. ROHCast favorite Cheeseburger will make his ROH in-ring debut when he teams with Roderick Strong to challenge reDRagon for the ROH World Tag Team Titles. Cheeseburger has been one of the most entertaining characters since his debut earlier this year and his wrestling debut shouldn’t be any different. This is going to be a fun match.
Other notable matches include Davey Richards going one-on-one with Silas Young, a three-way match pitting ROH World TV Champion Matt Taven against Eddie Edwards and Adam Cole, and an intergender six-person tag team main event with Michael Elgin, BJ Whitmer and MsChif take on Adrenaline RUSH and Athena.
We also can’t forget that Delirious will make his return against Jay Lethal with Maria as the guest referee. This match could be memorable for one reason: Martini mandated that the refs cannot wear pants during the show. Sure, Maria doesn’t wear much more than nothing already, but I’ll be just fine seeing her in even less.
Ring of Honor will return to its regular shows Friday night, July 12, in its return to Milwaukee. This is another show that features some very good matchups.
The American Wolves and reDRagon will battle each other in a series of singles matches. Davey Richards will go one-on-one with Bobby Fish, while Eddie Edwards will take on Kyle O’Reilly. All four men have had great matches against each other in the past and have tremendous chemistry. Their styles mesh together perfectly, and these could be the two best matches of the night.
ROH World TV Champion Matt Taven will be in another multi-man non-title match as he will compete against Jay Lethal, Adam Cole and Michael Elgin. This should be a fun match as it pits four of ROH’s biggest names against each other. This gives Taven another opportunity to cement himself as one of the top performers in the company and a win could bolster his reputation as an upper card act.
Another intriguing match is Tommaso Ciampa vs Rhino. Ciampa had his breakout match against Elgin at “Best in the World 2013,” which helped establish himself as a top contender despite coming up just short. He will be looking to gain momentum heading into the 16-man tournament to crown a new ROH World Champion. A victory over Rhino could give him the momentum he needs to carry himself to championship gold.
Michael Bennett (as he is now referred to) will get a rematch against BJ Whitmer. Bennett and Maria blamed Brutal Bob for his loss against the Buzzsaw, and Bennett has undergone a character change. It’s going to be interesting to see how his new character evolves in the coming months, and it all gets put in motion in Milwaukee.
Other matches include Kevin Steen vs Silas Young and Athena vs MsChif. It’s a very strong card on paper and could be one of the year’s best house shows.
ROH’s massive weekend concludes July 13 in Dearborn, Mich. The card doesn’t look as stacked as the previous night’s show, but that doesn’t mean it can’t be just as good.
It features a star-studded main event as the American Wolves face the team of Michael Elgin and Jay Lethal. This should be a fantastic match with four of Ring of Honor’s best competing against each other in one match. Elgin and Lethal have teamed together before at “Border Wars 2013,” but it ended with a loss after Kevin Steen replaced an injured Lethal.
Speaking of Steen, he will be wrestling ROH World TV Champion Matt Taven in a non-title match. Taven will really get the chance to showcase himself against a former champion and fan favorite. This is the final match of his high-profile weekend and he’ll want to go out with a bang (in more ways than one I’m sure). This could potentially be one of the best matches of the night since it’s a fresh match that features one of the newer roster members trying to establish himself against an ROH legend.
reDRagon will split up once again on this show when Bobby Fish takes on ACH and Kyle O’Reilly goes one-on-one with TaDarius Thomas. The two teams had an awkward match at “Live and Let Die” in early June, but singles matches should be much better.
The card is rounded out with Adam Cole squaring off against BJ Whitmer. We’ve seen this match before, but it’ll be the first time since Cole has undergone the heel turn. It’s going to be fun to see how that develops.
Keep checking ROHWorld.com for full results from all the shows this weekend. Be sure to join the ROHWord Forum to discuss all the action with other Ring of Honor fans.