http://www.cheap-heat.com WWE, TNA, ROH, NJPW - Blogs, Reviews, Top Lists, Indy News & Results Wed, 30 Sep 2015 21:33:02 +0000 en-US hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=4.3.1

http://www.cheap-heat.com/honorable-mention-roh-tv-9915/ http://www.cheap-heat.com/honorable-mention-roh-tv-9915/#comments Thu, 10 Sep 2015 15:20:09 +0000 Mark Adam Haggerty Indy/Puro/Lucha Other Blogs Reviews Bullet Club Christopher Daniels Destination America Frankie Kazarian Jay Briscoe Jay Lethal Maria Kanellis Matt Taven Michael Bennett Ring of Honor Roderick Strong ROH The Addiction The Kingdom TNA WWE Young Bucks http://www.cheap-heat.com/?p=14080 Welcome to a very special edition of Honorable Mention – the once-weekly Ring of Honor breakdown exclusively available at Daily Wrestling News. Wait a tick. This isn't Daily Wrestling News, this is Cheap-Heat! What's going on here? It's like when Vince McMahon hosted ECW talent on Monday Night Raw in 1997; Cheap-Heat patrons get something […]

Welcome to a very special edition of Honorable Mention – the once-weekly Ring of Honor breakdown exclusively available at Daily Wrestling News. Wait a tick. This isn't Daily Wrestling News, this is Cheap-Heat! What's going on here? It's like when Vince McMahon hosted ECW talent on Monday Night Raw in 1997; Cheap-Heat patrons get something special, and Daily Wrestling News gets a little promotion. It's win/win. So without further ado, let's blast off into this week's 2-match show from the Meyer's Pavilion in Baltimore.

2. Lethal and Truth

This is a star-studded event with just two bouts—both of which for championship gold, however. The opening contest features the Ring of Honor World Tag Team Champions the Addiction, as they defend against the Young Bucks. It's Ring of Honor versus New Japan; it's experience versus youth; it's the Knights of the Red Dawn versus the Bullet Club . The Young Bucks get an early advantage over the champions, but Chris Sabin—who's conveniently located at ringside—pulls his friend from the action, in an attempt to save the titles. The referee immediately ejects Sabin from ringside, but not before the Young Bucks send him packing with a Super Kick. The �Bucks deliver another kick to Daniels, but Kazarian breaks up the monotony with a tornado DDT into the first commercial break. When we return, the Addiction is doing a number on Matt Jackson, who manages to squeeze from a body lock with an impressive corkscrew attack, and makes the hot tag.

3. Kaz and Nick Jackson

The Young Bucks are in the lead, using their quickness to cut their opponents down to size. It's no use, as the first available pin attempt is broken up by Kazarian. Kaz eats a Super Kick—that's three so far, if you're keeping track. A fourth to the face of Daniels following an attempted "Best Moonsault Ever. Daniels hits a suicide dive on Nick Jackson on the outside, but the Kingdom makes the presence felt when they blindside Daniels. Inside the ring, the �Bucks are preparing to deliver an IndyTaker to Kazarian, but opts to go the opposite way—landing a moonsault on the Kingdom and Daniels. After a successful IndyTaker, the �Bucks go for the pin, but the Kingdom pulls the official from the match. Daniels uses the distraction as an opening, and hits Nick Jackson across the skull with the championship belt. Maria distracts Matt Jackson, and Frankie Kazarian gets the pin with a roll up. The Addiction are still Ring of Honor World Tag Team Champions.

4. Maria is so hot

After the match, we see ROH Matchmaker Nigel McGuinness, who says the outcome of the previous bout doesn't work for him. Therefore, Nigel says, the Young Bucks will be added to the championship match at All Star Extravaganza . On October 18 th it'll be the Addiction vs. the Kingdom vs. the Young Bucks. I'm really excited for this year's All Star Extravaganza. Certain people might scoff at a Friday night pay-per-view when the designated night for wrestling has always been Sunday. But WrestleMania 2 was on a Monday. And boxing and UFC fights go down on Saturday all the time. I say if Ring of Honor wants to differentiate itself by promoting shows on a different day of the week, more power to them. And hey—this isn't the first Friday night show they've done—there must be some magic glue inside those gentle walls. That's from the Family Matters theme song.

5. Roddy Strong

It's time for the main event. If it seems soon, remember that this is a world championship match, and the last time these competitors squared off, they went to a one-hour time limit. So it's probably smart to give them as much time as necessary. Both men adhere to the " Code of Honor, " but refused to relinquish the other man's hand. Jay Lethal is such an interesting personality; "a character babyface," as JR would say. There's nothing inherently evil about Jay Lethal, who doesn't really cheat to win, and very rarely attacks someone from behind. Jay is like Keanu Reeves in "The Devil's Advocate." Too much? Okay, let's move on. But seriously, go watch the "The Devil's Advocate"—it's fucking BONKERS: "I've got my hand up Mona Lisa's skirt!" Okay seriously, I should talk about the match, right?

6. Strong Roddy

Once things get underway this match turns into an all-out brawl with both men using whatever kind of offense they can muster. After a quick commercial, we return to find them still at odds, but now on the outside of the ring. Strong attacks Lethal's underlings—Jay Diesel and Donavan Dijak—but gets kicked in the face by Lethal in the process. Strong is juicing. If you're wondering if there's juice in this match—there's juice. Roddy gets hardwayed, and Lethal follows up with a sleeper hold—as if to pump all of Strong's blood out of his face. Strong makes his comeback when Dijak and the rest of the goons on the outside decide to get involved again; Strong uses the distraction and comes back with nearly 2 dozen vicious chops to the chest of Jay Lethal. Roddy hits Jay with a slam, but can only manage a 2-count as Jay returns to his very own Lethal Combination for the same count of two. Strong counters the Lethal Injection with a Sick Kick as we head into the final break of the night. We return and Jay Lethal is choking Roderick Strong with his wrist tape. The referee takes the tape, giving Lethal the chance to hit Strong with his title belt. There seems to be a lot of that going on tonight. After two Lethal Injections , Jay Lethal remains the undisputed Ring of Honor Champion, as he'll walk out of Baltimore with both belts once again.

7. Lethal

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http://www.cheap-heat.com/results-ring-of-honor-roh-13th-anniversary-winner-takes-all-3115-las-vegas-nv/ http://www.cheap-heat.com/results-ring-of-honor-roh-13th-anniversary-winner-takes-all-3115-las-vegas-nv/#comments Mon, 02 Mar 2015 20:32:45 +0000 Cassidy Haynes Indy/Puro/Lucha 13th Anniversary ACH Adam Page Adam Thornstowe AJ Styles Alberto El Patron BJ Whitmer Bobby Fish Cedric Alexander Christopher Daniels Frankie Kazarian Hanson J. Diesel Jay Briscoe Jay Lethal Jimmy Jacobs Karl Anderson Kyle O'Reilly Luster the Legend Maria Kanellis Mark Briscoe Matt Jackson Matt Sydal Matt Taven Michael Bennett Michael Elgin Moose Nick Jackson ODB reDRagon Reno SCUM Ring of Honor Roderick Strong ROH Shayna Baszler Stokely Hathaway The Addiction The Decade The Kingdom Tommaso Ciampa Truth Martini Veda Scott War Beard Winner Takes All Young Bucks http://www.cheap-heat.com/?p=10117 The following results are from a recent Ring of Honor live event. В The event took place on March 1st, 2015 from theВ Orleans Hotel & Casino, in Las Vegas, Nevada:   Dark Tag Team Match The Decade (Adam Page & Jimmy Jacobs) defeat Reno SCUM (Adam Thornstowe & Luster The Legend) Singles Match Matt Sydal defeats […]

The following results are from a recent Ring of Honor live event. В The event took place on March 1st, 2015 from theВ Orleans Hotel & Casino, in Las Vegas, Nevada:

Dark Tag Team Match
The Decade (Adam Page & Jimmy Jacobs) defeat Reno SCUM (Adam Thornstowe & Luster The Legend)

Singles Match
Matt Sydal defeats Cedric Alexander (9:39)

Singles Match
Moose (w/Stokely Hathaway & Veda Scott) defeats Mark Briscoe (5:15)

Three Way Tag Team Match
The Kingdom (Matt Taven & Michael Bennett) defeat Karl Anderson and The Addiction (Christopher Daniels & Frankie Kazarian) (11:58)

Singles Match
Roderick Strong defeats BJ Whitmer (w/Adam Page) (11:01)

Singles Match
ODB (w/Mark Briscoe) defeats Maria Kanellis (w/Michael Bennett) (5:21)

Singles Match
AJ Styles defeats ACH (15:31)

ROH World Tag Team Title Match
reDRagon (Bobby Fish & Kyle O’Reilly) (w/Shayna Baszler) (c) defeat The Young Bucks (Matt Jackson & Nick Jackson) (15:42)

ROH World Television Title Match
Jay Lethal (w/J. Diesel & Truth Martini) (c) defeats Alberto El Patron (12:35)

ROH World Title Four Corner Survival Match
Jay Briscoe (c) defeats Hanson and Michael Elgin and Tommaso Ciampa (16:22)

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http://www.cheap-heat.com/honorable-mention-roh-tv-21415/ http://www.cheap-heat.com/honorable-mention-roh-tv-21415/#comments Wed, 18 Feb 2015 17:34:10 +0000 Mark Adam Haggerty Other Reviews Reviews ACH AJ Styles Alberto El Patron Bullet Club Cedric Alexander Christopher Daniels Hanson IWGP Jay Briscoe Jimmy Jacobs Kevin Kelly Matt Jackson Matt Sydal Michael Elgin Moose Nick Jackson R.D. Evans Ring of Honor Roderick Strong ROH Steve Corino The Romantic Touch The Young Bucks Tommaso Ciampa Veda Scott http://www.cheap-heat.com/?p=9815 Honorable Mention ROH TV 2/14/15 Written by Mark Adam Haggerty Love is in the air, everywhere you look around! It's Valentine's Day at the 2300 Arena in Philadelphia and Ring of Honor is back in action with another star-studded hour of power, just two weeks away from the Thirteenth Anniversary Show in Las Vegas. I'll […]

Honorable Mention
ROH TV 2/14/15

Written by Mark Adam Haggerty

Love is in the air, everywhere you look around! It's Valentine's Day at the 2300 Arena in Philadelphia and Ring of Honor is back in action with another star-studded hour of power, just two weeks away from the Thirteenth Anniversary Show in Las Vegas. I'll be heading out to Sin City, as it's just a quick car ride out of Southern California, and I'll be looking forward to shooting some dice with the Young Bucks and perhaps having an appletini or two if Chris Daniels is around. This week's episode of ROH TV helped further establish the rivalries going into their biggest show of the year so far. What was the match of the night and what could we have done without seeing? Let's waste no time and get right into the thick of things with our commentators Kevin Kelly, Steve Corino, and very special guest ROH world heavyweight champion Jay Briscoe.

The show begins as Ring of Honor world champion Jay Briscoe makes his way to ringside, getting set to join the usual duo of Kevin Kelly and Steve Corino on commentary. Tonight's episode of Ring of Honor TV will include four bouts, three of which feature participants in the upcoming four-way championship match in Las Vegas. Jimmy Jacobs is set to go one-on-one with the "Sicilian Psychopath" Tommaso Ciampa. Jacobs has been making waves in recent weeks, scouting the Top Prospect Tournament in search of the Decade's newest "young boy." The match is off to a rough start for the "Zombie Princess," as Ciampa quickly resorts to his signature blend of striking offense. Announcers at ringside made mention that Jacobs has just as much fight as anyone, despite weighing-in at just 185 pounds. The onslaught of lariats and running knee-strikes took its toll on both Jacobs and the Philadelphia audience; the fans inside the 2300 Arena were silent during the unnecessary roughness of Ciampa, except for one man who yelled, "What a maneuver!" Ciampa obliterated Jimmy Jacobs in less than five minutes, leaving the Decade member broken on the outside of the ring. The official opted to forgo a count, and declared Ciampa the winner. This breathtaking display by the �Psychopath left the champion speechless. He stood to face Ciampa, sizing up what could be his most violent competition at the Anniversary Show in two weeks.

Before ROH hit the air I knew we'd be getting a dose of The Romantic Touch—it is Valentine's Day, after all! �Touch enters the arena with a heart-shaped box of chocolates and two beautiful ladies hanging on each of his arms. As he struts to the ring, Kelly and Corino question whether the champ has enough time for romance when preparing to defend his title in two weeks. Jay Briscoe says, "Well, we've been married for seven years…" Steve Corino immediately cuts him off, "Oh don't tell me the romance is all gone!" But Jay was quick on his feet, joking back, "Oh shoot no, I'm just tryin' not to have another kid!" The Romantic Touch has a prerecorded promo wherein he warns viewers at home to treat their ladies well, otherwise he's prepared to do so. His opponent tonight however, is a little less loving than �Touch might have hoped. This is the second exhibition featuring the three number one contenders to Jay Briscoe's world title, and this time it's "Warbeard" Hanson. The impressive Hanson stands at 6'2" and weighs in at 275 pounds—not a massive individual by "New York" standards, but a menacing force inside the Ring of Honor locker room. The Romantic Touch and "Warbeard" Hanson meet to engage in the "Code of Conduct," where �Touch offers Hanson a chocolate. Hanson responds with a disastrous kick, dubbed the "Spin Kick of Doom." Hanson defeated the Romantic Touch in less than thirty seconds, and even ate one of the chocolates when he was through. After the match, Hanson met eye-to-eye with Briscoe, just the same as Ciampa before him. Hanson shouted, "Look what I did," in reference to laying out his opponent. Jay responded in kind, letting Hanson know that he "ain't no Romantic Touch."

The third and final bout featuring challengers for Jay Briscoes coveted belt pits the undefeated Moose against the former Ring of Honor world heavyweight champion Michael Elgin. Moose is escorted to the ring, per usual, by Veda Scott and Stokley Hathaway. Since defeating R.D. Evans at Final Battle in December, Moose has established the "New Streak" in Ring of Honor, and will put it on the line tonight in his greatest test to-date. Elgin enters to a chorus of boos, but doesn't allow the Philadelphia fans to breach his skin as he prepares to dismantle Moose. Both men adhere to the code of conduct before quickly engaging in battle. Elgin takes advantage of the former Atlanta Falcon within the opening seconds, lifting him into a brain buster position, and holding him there for over 10-seconds before driving him into the mat. But Moose was back up just as quick as Elgin, ready to continue with a dropkick, sending the former champion barreling to the outside. This match is already more competitive than both previous bouts on the card, which makes sense; aside from Jay Briscoe, Michael Elgin is certainly the odds-on-favorite heading into Las Vegas. Michael Elgin returns to the ring and dodges a clothesline, returning with a big boot of his own. Elgin pumped his arm, mocking the choreographed way in which Moose and his entourage enter the arena. The former champion climbed the ropes, but was distracted by Veda Scott. Elgin fought her away and cartwheeled off the turnbuckle and away from and imposing Moose. He proceeded to deliver a devastating powerbomb, and then lifted the 300 pound athlete from the canvas, into the air, for another grueling power bomb. A near-three count and the contest continues with both men reeling against the ropes. Moose then shoved Elgin through the ropes and to the outside where he was face-to-face with Jay Briscoe. Just the same as Ciampa and Hanson, Elgin stared into the eyes of the champion, but unlike the �Psychopath and "Warbeard, Michael Elgin pushed Jay Briscoe back and over his chair. Briscoe wasn't going to stand for such disrespect and immediately charged the ring where he was caught in the line of fire between Elgin and a Spear by Moose. The referee called for the bell and before long all four combatants in the Thirteenth Anniversary main event were warring inside the squared-circle, with a great deal of focus placed on the reigning world champion. Luckily Jay Briscoe was saved by his brother Mark who engaged all-comers before being put down by Moose's spine-shattering Spear.

It's time for the main event at the 2300 Arena—a trios match with Ring of Honor babyfaces squaring off against Bullet Club villains. ACH, Matt Sydal and Cedric Alexander are the first team introduced, and although all three men are among the most-over in ROH, their popularity pales in comparison to their opponents. The Bullet Club coming to America and performing on Ring of Honor TV is akin to British rock bands touring America or the Harlem Globe Trotters playing in North Korea. The Young Bucks enter first wearing black pants with fringe complete with a Bullet Club logo on the side. Just before they make it to the ringside area, the lights go down and the music slowly begins. It's as if a spiritual leader of some sort has just entered this holiest of hallowed halls; the audience is almost completely silent until AJ Styles makes his dramatic appearance. They chant, "AJ, AJ, AJ," as both Styles and the Bucks cruise into the ring amidst a sea of colored streamers. All six wrestlers shake hands before returning to their respective corners and this match is underway. It's interesting to note, as this was filmed several weeks ago, AJ is without the IWGP championship title belt. AJ, of course, won the IWGP world heavyweight championship from Hiroshi Tanahashi just this past week in Japan. The �Bucks begin by each taking turns on Matt Sydal who soon trades out to his former tag team partner ACH. The Bucks work like a well-oiled machine, working their opponents down to the mat in whatever way possible. When AJ tags into the contest he is met with immediate praise from the live audience, and sets to work attacking ACH just the same as his fellow Bullet Club members. The show goes to a commercial and when we return ACH and AJ Styles are standing in the center of the ring trading knife-edge chops with deadly precision. Nick Jackson tagged back in, hitting ACH with his patented blend of Young Bucks chicanery, poking the decorated superstar in the eyes and "too sweeting" his tag team partners in the corner.

The action heats up with all six combatants seeking to get involved at the same time. Sydal finds himself alone inside the ring with the Bullet Club, who triple team the former WWE tag team champion, before Matt Jackson takes the lead, continuing to take the fight to "Reborn" Matt Sydal. The quick tags from the Bullet Club work to their advantage as one-by-one AJ and the Bucks trade shots on their opponent, isolating him from his partners. After managing to reach his corner, the contest works toward the favor of the ROH wrestlers. Cedric Alexander takes to the skies, performing an exhilarating splash, followed by "two-out-of-three Amigos." Nick Jackson countered and proceeded to superkick ACH, who was standing on the outside, from the apron. He spring-boarded into the ring where he face-busted Cedric Alexander, only to slide back out of the ring and hit ACH once more, this time with a Tornado-DDT. Not to be outdone by his brother, Matt Jackson joined the action with a misguided Swanton bomb, crash-landing on the knees of Cedric Alexander. Cedric lifted Matt Jackson up into a powerbomb predicament, complimented by a jumping knee smash courtesy of Matt Sydal. Sydal then went toe-to-toe with AJ Styles in a battle of rights-and-lefts until he was taken off his feet by a superkick from Matt Jackson. Nick and Matt Jackson were ready to deliver superkicks to whomever may ask for one, but were caught off guard with the equally-quick superkick-game of ACH. AJ attempted a 450-splash but to no avail, once again countered by the educated knees of Cedric Alexander. This time ACH would be the one going for a 450, landing expertly on Styles. Matt Sydal would hope to follow-up with his own high-risk maneuver, the Shooting Star Press. As Sydal leapt from the top turnbuckle, he was forced to make an emergency landing on his feet, met almost immediately by duel superkicks. Nick and Matt then proceeded to superkick ACH and Cedric Alexander out of contention. The end would come for Matt Sydal as the trio put him through a combination of the "Meltzer-Driver," a hanging upside down double superkick, followed by a "Styles Clash" for the 1-2-3. Your winners are the Bullet Club.

This was an excellent edition of ROH TV, which believe it or not, I'm almost getting sick of saying each week! Ring of Honor delivers at least three—in some cases FOUR highly athletic wrestling contests every time it airs. In addition, ROH isn't bogged down by heavily scripted talking segments, instead allowing for the story to be told inside the squared-circle. That might sound like a cliché, but that's only because I've said it before. Just two more episodes of ROH TV to go until Sunday March 1st and the Thirteenth Anniversary Show in Las Vegas. Next week will feature two main-event caliber bouts—Alberto El Patron will go head-to-head with ACH, and the world television champion Jay Lethal will battle Roderick Strong. Until then, my name is Mark Adam Haggerty and this has been "Honorable Mention."

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http://www.cheap-heat.com/christopher-daniels-appearing-as-guest-on-the-bored-wrestling-fan-podcast-this-sunday/ http://www.cheap-heat.com/christopher-daniels-appearing-as-guest-on-the-bored-wrestling-fan-podcast-this-sunday/#comments Fri, 23 Jan 2015 20:34:36 +0000 Cassidy Haynes Indy/Puro/Lucha AAA CHIKARA Christopher Daniels ECW NJPW ROH TNA WCW WWE http://www.cheap-heat.com/?p=9195 For over 20 years, he's traveled the world.  ECW, WCW, WWE, ROH, CHIKARA, AAA, TNA, NJPW, you name it, he's been there.  And now The Fallen Angel has come to BoredWrestlingFan.com.  On Sunday, January 25, 2015, Christopher Daniels will be the guest on BWF Radio, BoredWrestlingFan's weekly podcast. A champion everywhere he's been, Daniels is […]

For over 20 years, he's traveled the world.  ECW, WCW, WWE, ROH, CHIKARA, AAA, TNA, NJPW, you name it, he's been there.  And now The Fallen Angel has come to BoredWrestlingFan.com.  On Sunday, January 25, 2015, Christopher Daniels will be the guest on BWF Radio , BoredWrestlingFan's weekly podcast.

A champion everywhere he's been, Daniels is currently wrestling for Ring Of Honor as a singles competitor and as part of the tag team known as The Addiction with Frankie Kazarian.  He is an avid comic book collector and we'll be sure to ask him about the recent news that Marvel is rebooting their entire franchise, as well as his involvement in the Headlocked: The Last Territory comic (written by BWF Radio episode 150 guest Michael Kingston).

BWF Radio airs live every Sunday at 2PM Eastern in the Podcast section of BoredWrestlingFan.com , with the podcast available for download shortly after the show ends. В The podcast is available on iTunes , Stitcher , Blubrry , Cheap-Heat , and directly from BoredWrestlingFan.com .

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http://www.cheap-heat.com/honorable-mention-roh-tv-11715/ http://www.cheap-heat.com/honorable-mention-roh-tv-11715/#comments Fri, 23 Jan 2015 05:58:08 +0000 Mark Adam Haggerty Other Reviews Reviews 13th Anniversary Adam Cole Alberto Del Rio Alberto El Patron Ashley Sixx BJ Whitmer Bruiser Brody Caprice Coleman Cedric Alexander Christopher Daniels Dalton Castle Donovan Dijak Frankie Kazarian Hanson Jake Dirden Jay Briscoe Jay Lethal Kazarian Kevin Kelly Maria Kanellis Matt Morgan Matt Taven Michael Bennett Michael Elgin Nigel McGuinness Ring of Honor ROH Steve Corino The Addiction The Briscoes The Kingdom Todd Sinclair Tommaso Ciampa Top Prospect Tournament Truth Martini WWE X-Division http://www.cheap-heat.com/?p=9165 Honorable Mention ROH TV 1/17/15 Written by Mark Adam Haggerty It's that time of the week once more when I return to discuss the most recent events from Ring of Honor TV. With the Thirteenth Anniversary show just over one month away, what is matchmaker Nigel McGuinness prepared to do regarding the number one contender […]

Honorable Mention
ROH TV 1/17/15

Written by Mark Adam Haggerty

It's that time of the week once more when I return to discuss the most recent events from Ring of Honor TV. With the Thirteenth Anniversary show just over one month away, what is matchmaker Nigel McGuinness prepared to do regarding the number one contender situation? Last week's episode ended as "Warbeard" Hanson, Tommaso Ciampa and Michael Elgin's three way dance imploded and devolved into an all-out street fight with referee Todd Sinclair caught in the crossfire. This week the ROH World Title is on the line with Jay Briscoe defending against an unnamed member of the Kingdom. In addition, Alberto El Patron is set to make his Ring of Honor debut. What does the former WWE Champion have to say about the no compete clause he was issued just four months ago? Ladies and gentlemen my name is Mark Adam Haggerty and this is "Honorable Mention," the once-weekly critique of what's been called by many "the best hour of wrestling on television"—Ring of Honor TV.

ROH is off and running with a pre-recorded promo per Jay Briscoe, speculating on the fate of his championship come the end of tonight's mystery main event against the Kingdom. Briscoe's original title belt was stolen and revamped, currently clad in pink fur by Maria, dubbed her "Title of Love." Jay says that if he's willing to put his title on the line, they should be willing to do the same. Kevin Kelly and Steve Corino welcome fans back to the Tennessee State Fairgrounds in beautiful Nashville, where they can now confirm tonight's main event will in fact be a world title match. The opening contest of the show features the 17-year veteran Frankie Kazarian as he gets set to square off against the incomparable Cedric Alexander. Kazarian comes to the ring accompanied by his tag team partner, "The Fallen Angel" Christopher Daniels, who makes residence alongside Kelly and Corino at the broadcast position. The match is an evenly-paced back-and-forth contest between two individuals with a ton of respect for one another. The last time these wrestlers stood inside the same squared circle was at Final Battle when they stood on the same side in a six man tag match. Kelly and Corino ask Christopher Daniels how someone who's use to tag team competition might fare in a singles match, implying that "The Addiction" might work better together than apart. I suppose the announcers forgot both workers and their stellar singles careers including multiple X-Division titles between the two of them. Daniels is obviously insulted, although keeps his cool and insists that Kazarian will be just fine. The experience gap is uncanny as Frankie Kazarian made his professional debut in 1998, eleven years before Cedric hit the ring in 2009. Both men are tremendous wrestlers, but Kazarian puts his wealth of knowledge on display by systematically picking Cedric apart, concentrating on specific body parts and targeting them until Alexander has no choice but to give in. Back on the outside, Kelly asks Christopher Daniels about his match next week against former WWE champion Alberto El Patron. Daniels appears to have great respect for "Dos Caras," but insists that he will defeat Patron next week, serving him his first loss in his debut match. As Alexander's high-risk offense started to hinder the mat-based-game of Frankie Kazarian, the tag team competitor decided to take it upstairs as well. In an attempted powerbomb from the top rope, Kazarian tossed Alexander into the air, a move that Cedric skillfully reversed by landing clean on his feet. Cedric kicked Kaz in the side of his head, followed by another impactful boot to the other side. Things looked to be going in Cedric's favor until an ill-fated top-rope move was caught in a cutter by Kazarian—I guess the "RKO" really can come outta nowhere, even in a Ring of Honor Ring! Staggered, Cedric stepped directly into the sights of Frankie Kazarian who sealed the deal, delivering a Tomikaze inverted double underhook facebuster.

With the main event looming, the Kingdom decides it's time to announce who Jay Briscoe will be defending his ROH World Title against in less than one hour. Matt Taven appears backstage, and says he always thought Jay was the smarter of the Briscoe brothers, but he must have been wrong if Jay Briscoe is willing to put the belt on the line—against him. Taven warns Briscoe and fans around the world, that he's going to beat Jay Briscoe and become the new ROH World Champion. Back at ringside, Caprice Coleman is back to assist Kevin and Steve in covering the upcoming first round match in the Top Prospects Tournament. This week the rookies featured are Jake Dirden and Donovan Dijak. Kevin Kelly is floored at the sheer size of these individuals, each standing at around 6'7" and weighing 275 pounds; what's considered average in the WWE is gargantuan in other promotions. Dirden reminds me Luke Harper, Bruiser Brody, or any number of crazy-haired unkempt brawlers, set to take on a 2-sport college athlete in Donovan Dijak. Once things get underway we're privy to a one-sided battle with Dijack taking the lead. From bell to bell, Dirden has his patches of considerable offense, but this match served as the "Coming Out Party" for Donovan Dijak. After a few moments of wrestling a very spirited contest, the Decade appears in the entry way. BJ Whitmer leads the trio and says, "Continue! Continue! Impress us!" The Decade is obviously on hand looking to scout the next potential diamond in the rough from this Top Prospect Tournament. Graduating from UMass after four years of basketball and football, Dijak has the power and unpredictable force of a super heavyweight, with the agility of a luchador. He reminds me of Matt Morgan—just an all-around impressive talent with a plethora of positive qualities just one year into his wrestling career. Once he was finished promoting his bottomless well of power-based offense, Dijak opted to showcase his aerial abilities by performing a beautifully executed swan dive over the top rope to the outside. It was at this point that Jake Dirden began his comeback, beginning with clasping his fingers around the throat of Dijak and choke slamming him into a 2-count. Dirden made quick work of evening the odds, and was soon ready to pin the dynamic Donovan Dijak. But rather than covering his opponent to advance in the tournament, Dirden instead chose to finish things with the crippling, "Asiatic Spike," a thumb strike similar to the move Umaga used in the WWE. After pacing around the ring waiting for an opportune occasion, Dirden was blindsided by the former football player. Dijak lifted the humungous Dirden onto his shoulders in a "Torture Rack," and finished with a variation of the GTS called "Feast Your Eyes." Dijak advances in the tournament and will wrestle the winner of Ashley Sixx and Dalton Castle in the second round.

Backstage once more and a mysterious figure is sitting in front of a television monitor, currently tuned to Ring of Honor programming. The figure was completely unrecognizable due to the shadow effect and the way in which their voice as disguised. The only words we're given from this masked vigilante are, "We are coming. And we are bringing change with us." So maybe it's Barack Obama? With his tenure as president nearing an end, would working a wrestling program really be such a dramatic downgrade? Back at the Tennessee State Fairgrounds, Kevin Kelly is on hand awaiting the arrival of Alberto El Patron. The crowd give the former-Del Rio a huge ovation and chant, "Si! Si! Si," before Patron can even say a word. Once inside the ring alongside Kevin Kelly, Alberto has quite a bit to get off his chest relating to his "no compete clause" and his unnamed former employers. "Four months ago," he began, "Somebody said I was not going to be able to wrestle in the United States—for one year!" The live audience is loving the anti-WWE shoot, and get even further behind the second-generation athlete when he went on to say, "I said Wrestlers, because that's what we are! I am not a �sports entertainer,' I am a WRESTLER!" Alberto says that the real reason he's in ROH is to compete with the best, and issues a challenge to ROH World Champion Jay Briscoe in the process. Instead of "Reach for the Sky," we hear the demonic laughter of Truth Martini, who escorted the record-setting TV champion to the ring. Truth begins by saying, "I don't care about anything you've done in your career. When you said you wanted to face the best, you failed to mention this guy." Truth pointed at Lethal, who was now in possession of the microphone. "Do your homework before you come to class! The number one man around here is not Jay Briscoe." Both Lethal and Truth argue the merits of the television championship, even calling it "the greatest title in the world." Jay Lethal demands an apology from Patron, a request that Alberto initially obliges, until disrespect makes room for stupidity. "Let's dance," El Patron exclaimed, shredding his t-shirt! Jay Lethal too began preparing for war until Truth Martini interrupted, saying that Patron hasn't yet earned the right to wrestle Lethal. I really like this rivalry as a way to incorporate Patron into the TV title picture; with so many viable world title contenders, I was worried ROH would immediately strap the belt around Patron's waist. But instead it appears as though Patron might be the one to take Lethal's TV title, just short of 300 days since winning it last year.

The events of last week's three way dance are explained, and the announcers at ringside begin to speculate as to who the number one contender is. Before they can come up with any names, former ROH champion and matchmaker Nigel McGuinness appeared presumably to address the situation head on. Nigel says he wants Jay Briscoe to come down the aisle so that he may give the champion the news to his face. Briscoe walks down the entry way and already has his own ideas for the Thirteenth Anniversary: "Vegas is a gamblin' city, and I'm a gamblin' man. Let's just make all three of them [the number one contender]!" Briscoe pitches a simple 4-way match under the banner, "High Stakes Four Corners Survival Match"—perhaps meaning that this will be an elimination style contest? Briscoe continues his walk to the ring, where he patiently awaits the Kingdom and Matt Taven. Alongside the challenger is Michael Bennett and Maria Kanellis, stacking the deck even higher against the self-confessed "gamblin' man." Jay Briscoe did more than give Matt Taven a schooling in ringwork, he proceeded to squash the former TV champion in order to send a message to Adam Cole. Bennett makes his presence known throughout the match, getting involved several time including landing an exceptionally executed superkick to the side of Briscoe's head. Maria puts herself in the match as well, tripping Briscoe into a near-fall attempted victory for Taven—but Briscoe powers out just before three. Briscoe fights the junior heavyweight competitor into the corner where he delivers nine solid punches as the audience in Nashville counts along. Before the final tenth punch however, Taven slid out of harm's way and was once again on the offense. Taven attempted a top rope hurricanrana, and got nearly 75% of it until Briscoe reversed the maneuver in md-air. The wind was knocked out of Taven, allowing him zero chance of kicking out. Your winner and still ROH World Champion: Jay Briscoe. After his successful title defense however, Bennett and Maria hit the ring to obliterate the world champion. Maria is one of the best female promos in professional wrestling today, and the finale of ROH TV was no different. Maria told Jay, who was now in the clutches of Bennett and Taven, that he didn't have the BALLS to fight her. This was all the finest practitioner of redneck kung-fu needed to storm the squared circle and save his brother. Mark Briscoe says that this feud has gone on long enough, and next week he wants Taven and Bennett against the Briscoes in the opening match!

Another incredible hour of professional wrestling courtesy of the promotion who does it better than anyone this side of the Pacific Ocean. Next week's episode will of course continue the "Top Prospect Tournament," as well feature the tag team bout between the Kingdom and the Briscoes. Perhaps most important-of-all, next week's episode of ROH TV will include the in-ring debut of the man once known as "Alberto Del Rio," Alberto El Patron. My name is Mark Adam Haggerty and until next time, thanks for joining me for this installment of, "Honorable Mention."

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http://www.cheap-heat.com/lucky-thirteen-2-top-13-years-of-the-past-2-decades/ http://www.cheap-heat.com/lucky-thirteen-2-top-13-years-of-the-past-2-decades/#comments Tue, 13 Jan 2015 02:16:40 +0000 Mark Adam Haggerty Blogs Other Blogs Top Lists 2 Cold Scorpio Adrian Neville AJ Styles Austin Aries Batista Bill Goldberg Bobby Lashley Booker T Bret Hart British Bulldog Bryan Danielson Chris Benoit Chris Jericho Christian Christian Cage Christopher Daniels CM Punk CZW Daniel Bryan Darren Young Dave Batista Davey Boy Smith Davey Richards David Arquette Dean Malenko Degeneration X Dwayne Johnson Eastern Championship Wrestling ECW Eddie Guerrero Edge Elimination Chamber Eric Bischoff Extreme Championship Wrestling Four Horsemen Goldberg Hell in a Cell HHH Hollywood Hogan Impact Jake Roberts Jeff Jarrett Jerry Lawler Kane Ken Shamrock Kevin Nash King Booker King of the Ring Kurt Angle Latino Heat Mankind Matt Sydal Mick Foley Money in the Bank Montreal Screwjob Mr. Perfect New World Order Nigel McGuinness Nitro NJPW NWA NXT One Night Stand Owen Hart Paul Bearer Paul Heyman Perry Saturn Phil Brooks Psycho Sid Radicalz RAW Razor Ramon Ready 2 Rumble Rey Mysterio RF Video Ric Flair Ring of Honor Rob Feinstein Rocky Maivia Roddy Piper ROH Royal Rumble Ryback Sami Zayn Samoa Joe Scott Steiner Sean Waltman Shane Douglas Shane McMahon Shawn Michaels Smackdown Starrcade Stephanie McMahon Steve Austin Stone Cold SummerSlam Survivor Series TAKA Michinoku Ted DiBiase The Alliance The Rock TNA Todd Gordon Total Nonstop Action Triple H UFC Ultimate Warrior Undertaker Vampiro Vince McMahon Vince Russo Wade Barrett WCW Wolfpac Wrestlemania Wrestling Society X WSX WWE WWF XFL http://www.cheap-heat.com/?p=8812 Lucky Thirteen #2 Top 13 Years of the Past 2 Decades Written by Mark Adam Haggerty I can’t remember back to a time before I was a wrestling fan. I can recall being six-years-old and thumbing through my parents modest little library of movies, suddenly stumbling upon a set of black Disney-like big boxes that […]

Lucky Thirteen #2
Top 13 Years of the Past 2 Decades
Written by Mark Adam Haggerty

I can’t remember back to a time before I was a wrestling fan. I can recall being six-years-old and thumbing through my parents modest little library of movies, suddenly stumbling upon a set of black Disney-like big boxes that contained the first five Wrestlemanias. From that day I was hooked. I began tuning into WWF Superstars and WCW Saturday Night every single week, and by the spring of 1993 I was begging my parents to order Wrestlemania 9 on pay-per-view. Over the past 20 years I’ve had my share of favorite moments, but I often ask myself, what was the best year in professional wrestling? Maybe not best, but how about the most influential? Most impactful? Okay here it is: What was the Most Important Year since I Became a Fan? When other sites limit their lists to Top Ten, we take it a Step Further with the Lucky Thirteen—counting down the Top Years of the Past 2 Decades.

13. 2003
The list had to start somewhere and after cutting away seven years of nonsense I thought, what better place to begin than with 2003. Looking back I feel as though the year felt much bigger than it really was. Momentous occasions like Wrestlemania XIX and Stone Cold's retirement drew considerable attention but it's hard to isolate many other memorable moments. By this point Total Nonstop Action Wrestling and Ring of Honor were both open and doing business, although nowhere near the level of success that they'd each see within a few short years. WCW had been closed since 2001, so WWE was slowly filtering out the Turner-holdovers and rebranding wrestlers like Booker T and Rey Mysterio as WWE Superstars. Twenty-oh-Three was the year Bill Goldberg made his long-awaited debut on Monday Night Raw where he famously told Dwayne Johnson, "You're next Rock!" In addition to a handful of interesting gimmicks and storylines scattered across the calendar, 2003 featured must-see-TV for anyone curious as to what lurked beneath the red and black mask of "The Devil's Favorite Demon" Kane. While it may appear dull in hindsight, 2003 was a fun time featuring the sex and violence of the Attitude Era, mixed with the incredible in-ring action so many of us value today.

12. 2010
Twenty-Ten proved to be an auspicious time for all wrestling organizations. Wrestlemania 26 featured the final match in the venerable career of "The Heartbreak Kid" Shawn Michaels when he failed to defeat The Undertaker in Glendale. But as one man's career ended, eight more were just getting started; the initial NXT program was a far cry from the extraordinary show we see each week on the WWE Network, but it did introduce the WWE Universe to Superstars such as Ryback, Wade Barrett, Darren Young, and even the future WWE World Heavyweight Champion Daniel Bryan. Twenty-Ten was the year in which the unimaginable happened when Bret "The Hitman" Hart made his return to WWE television after a thirteen year hiatus. But 2010 was big for the competition as well. Not only were independent promotions the world-over hitting their stride due to the added exposure brought-on by social media, but TNA was enjoying one of its most visible years to date thanks to signing Hulk Hogan, Eric Bischoff and a number of other established talents. In addition to inflating their roster, TNA made several changes to their product; they would begin to implement a traditional four-sided ring, and even attempted to compete live on Monday's with WWE Raw. The year 2010 was an exciting time for wrestling fans across the planet, and is the most modern year on my countdown.

11. 2007
It’s true that 2007 can hardly be considered a great year for professional wrestling, let alone the WWE. For a while it seemed that active wrestlers appeared on Nancy Grace more than they ever did on Raw or Smackdown. But if I'm here to countdown the most important years in wrestling, this certainly had its share of newsworthy events. In the summer of 2007, the WWE suspended more than half of its active roster in response to a litany of wellness violations for a variety of substances, most notably Human Growth Hormone. This year was historic for being the official end of "The Ruthless Aggression Era"—a period of time significant for exposing younger talent and transitioning the product out of the overtly controversial Attitude Era. In 2007 TNA expanded its flagship show IMPACT to two hours and embarked on what would be a defining age for the promotion. One of my favorite events in history happened in 2007, "The King of Europe Cup." The �Cup was a one-off event that took place over a two day period in the United Kingdom. A must-watch event that is readily available on YouTube and features well-known workers such as Adrian Neville, Sami Zayn, Matt Sydal, Davey Richards and a man who won the ROH World title in 2007—Nigel McGuinness. Sadly it's safe to say the most infamous moments of 2007 occurred between June 22nd and June 25th as the world became aware of the chilling circumstances surrounding Nancy, Daniel, and of course "The Crippler" Chris Benoit. Unfortunately for all of the positives, 2007 will forever be marred by the heinous actions of a troubled man that led to irreparable changes across the industry and what has been dubbed, "The PG Era."

10. 2006
It would appear as though 2006 was the last year representing any semblance of what was once regarded as a pop culture phenomenon. The ECW One Night Stand pay-per-view the previous year was such a success that WWE officials opted to resurrect Extreme Championship Wrestling complete with a one-hour timeslot on the Sci-Fi Channel. Edge and Rey Mysterio each made history in 2006 by becoming world champion; first Edge at New Years' Revolution and then Rey at Wrestlemania 22 in Chicago. Poised to be a contributing factor in the �New ECW', former champion Kurt Angle shocked the world in 2006 when he signed with TNA Wrestling. This year was famous for launching the career of current TNA Champion Bobby Lashley, as well as helping to define that of former Ring of Honor World Champion CM Punk. There were over a dozen debuts throughout the year due to ECW on Sci-Fi and Smackdown's "New Superstar Initiative." In Ring of Honor, the world title picture was dominated by Bryan Danielson who secured his spot atop the card from September 2005 until December 2006. In addition to WWE and TNA, MTV delivered an over the top unreal wrestling experience known as "Wrestling Society X." WSX only lasted one short season but familiarized fans with future names such as Matt Sydal and reintroduced established stars like Sean Waltman and Vampiro. Twenty-oh-Six was a great year for good storytelling that included Vince McMahon's rivalry with Shawn Michaels, Booker T becoming King Booker, and the continuing drama between Edge and John Cena. Rounding out the top ten, 2006 was an enjoyable year without much in the way of defining moments but never short on excitement.

9. 2000
When the new millennium dawned on the world of professional wrestling, so too did a number of landmark milestones and controversial occurrences. WCW released the unsuccessful "Ready 2 Rumble," starring a variety of World Championship Wrestling athletes and the man who would soon become WCW Champion—David Arquette. Not only was 2000 the year all WCW titles would be stripped and reassigned, it was also the year in which the World Championship was devalued and strapped to a B-list Hollywood celebrity. But not all was bad in the world of sports and entertainment as 2000 marked the first time Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson hosted Saturday Night Live, which he did to rave reviews. While Eric Bischoff returned to WCW, a new set of "Radicalz" debuted in the WWF; Chris Benoit, Eddie Guerrero, Perry Saturn and Dean Malenko all jumped ship and began appearing on WWF TV in the early months of the new millennium. The Year Two-Thousand was a defining era for the Undertaker who chose this year to swap his demonic demeanor for the apparel of the "American Badass." Hulk Hogan would say his final goodbye to his WCW fans thanks to a scenario gone wrong involving the Hulkster, Jeff Jarrett, and head-writer Vince Russo. An exciting year for wrestling of course with Kurt Angle capturing his first of many world titles, but perhaps the biggest thing to happen in 2000 was the debut of Vince McMahon's now defunct football league—The XFL. Whether you're a football fan or an admirer of the "Scream" film franchise, 2000 had something for everybody to get excited about.

8. 2005
If ever a year signaled things to come it was 2005. For fans of the WWE, 2005 was the year Monday Night Raw returned home to the USA Network after a five year run on Spike TV. Two first-time world champions were crowned at Wrestlemania—John Cena and Dave Batista. But TNA had its own share of successes in 2005: the company made its highly anticipated debut on Spike TV; Christopher Daniels, AJ Styles, and Samoa Joe had the only 5-Star Triple Threat Match in history; and Christian Cage signed a deal, opening the gates to a deluge of ex-WWE Superstars. ECW was in the midst of a resurrection that would culminate in 2006, but 2005 was the year the WWE hosted the first "ECW One Night Stand," in New York City. On the independent scene, a former backyard wrestler named Phil Brooks won the ROH World Heavyweight Championship from the highly decorated Austin Aries, thus placing CM Punk on WWE's radar. Later that year another future WWE Champion would capture the ROH World Title and hold it for over four hundred days—"The American Dragon" Bryan Danielson. Back in the WWE, six daring individuals were getting ready to introduce the world to "Money in the Bank," and later that year Shawn Michaels faced Hulk Hogan for the first time ever at Summerslam. Chris Jericho was fired by Eric Bischoff and then Bischoff himself was released resulting in Eric leaving the arena in the back of a garbage truck. But even in the silliest of times, sadness rears its ugly head and it was in 2005 that the world was forced to say goodbye to the former WWE Champion, "Latino Heat" Eddie Guerrero. From the highs to the lows, 2005 was an important year that no one will ever forget.

7. 1994
Not such an enormous year for the industry-leading WWF, but a landmark time period for much of the competition. Having survived his battle with the US Government, Vince McMahon was back in full control of his company; 1994 was the year of Wrestlemania X and the infamous bout between Razor Ramon and Shawn Michaels that would set the bar for ladder matches to come. The Undertaker mysteriously disappeared at the Royal Rumble and come Summerslam, the WWF fans were privy to not one—but TWO Undertakers! Of course this was the year that the Hart Family rivalry between Bret and Owen kicked into high gear, including a match of the year contender at Wrestlemania and a championship cage match at Summerslam. But outside the confines of the WWF, events began to take place that would lay the foundation for the Attitude Era. The NWA was the longstanding governing body of professional wrestling in the United States and Japan for several decades. In 1994 the NWA title was to be decided in Philadelphia at Todd Gordon's Eastern Championship Wrestling, with Shane Douglas set to win the gold. Instead Douglas disregarded the title, disgracing the NWA in the process by claiming he would not represent a company that, "died, R.I.P. seven years ago!" ECW broke away from the NWA and declared themselves Extreme Championship Wrestling with "The Franchise" as their champion. Down in WCW, Eric Bischoff was moving ahead by leaps and bounds thanks to an array of positive changes in production, including the debut of WCW Saturday Night at Disney's MGM Studios in Orlando. But perhaps there was nothing in '94 as monumental as when WCW signed Hulk Hogan. Bischoff wasted no time in booking the dream contest WWF refused to feature at Wrestlemania VIII two years earlier. In his debut match alongside Mr. T and Shaquille O'Neil, Hulk Hogan defeated "The Nature Boy" Ric Flair for the WCW Title. Who's to say if things had gone differently in �94, the industry of today might be something else entirely.

6. 1998
The Attitude Era might have started in �97, but 1998 was the year in which the world was introduced to the brand new World Wrestling Federation. WCW turned up the heat on the competition by introducing a brand new Thursday night program on TBS titled, "Thunder." This was the year that saw The Four Horsemen reunite on Monday Nitro including Ric Flair who had since left the company. The NWO was continuing to grow and would eventually split into two entities: NWO Hollywood with Hulk Hogan, and NWO Wolfpac lead by Kevin Nash. WCW cornered the video game market in �98 with one of the most prolific wrestling games in history—WCW/NWO Revenge for the Nintendo 64. Over in the �Federation, Superstars were beginning to get "hardcore" and a new title with a 24/7 stipulation was introduced on TV. Not only were the �falls' taking place backstage and in the audience, but from on top of the Hell in a Cell as Mick Foley was launched from the structure, and then drilled through it at the 1998 King of the Ring. WCW continued to beat the WWF in the Monday Night War due to a consistent strategy based on booking their top matches on cable, rather than pay-per-view. Bill Goldberg, who had already made a name for himself by maintaining an unprecedented winning streak made history when he became the WCW World Heavyweight Champion. But Bill was far from the only bald-headed badass to win gold in 1998. Earlier that year, Stone Cold Steve Austin captured his first world title after defeating Shawn Michaels at Wrestlemania XIV in Boston. It was a profitable year for all wrestling companies including ECW, but 1998 would be the last year WCW would succeed in dominating the WWF in the ratings.

5. 1996
Maybe it's because Shawn Michaels' boyhood dream came true at Wrestlemania XII; or the initial formation of the NWO at Bash at the Beach; even the insane rivalry between "The Excellence of Execution" and "The Texas Rattlesnake." Whatever it was, my personal favorite year in professional wrestling was 1996. The spring began with a bang as Scott Hall made his first appearance on Turner Television, joined just a few weeks later by Kevin Nash. In June of 1996, Stone Cold Steve Austin broke from Ted DiBiase and became the King of the Ring; during his royal coronation, Stone Cold uttered a phrase that would change his career forever—"Austin 3:16 says I just whipped your ass!" But just as heels began to turn face, so did longtime heroes turn to the dark side. Along with the debut of the New World Order was the introduction of the evil Hollywood Hogan, who won the WCW title in August 1996 and held it just six days shy of one year. The Survivor Series that fall was famous for memorable main event matches as well as a number of debuts including that of the first ever third generation WWF Superstar, Rocky Maivia. Paul Bearer made the turn on �Taker in favor of the far more deranged Mankind; The Ultimate Warrior and Jake Roberts returned for a short period, each feuding with Jerry Lawler; Roddy Piper was featured on both WWF Wrestlemania and WCW Starrcade; ECW was beginning to break out nationwide. But most importantly—the Monday Night War was just getting underway. WCW debuted Nitro on TNT in the autumn of �95, and it was in 1996 that WCW finally succeeded in stealing Vince McMahon's spotlight.

4. 2001
In terms of the industry changing forever, 2001 might have been the most cataclysmic year in wrestling history. It was this year that WCW fans became aware of what was to become of their preferred promotion. Although many familiar faces were involved in negotiating the resurrection of WCW, it was Vince McMahon who purchased his competition for a mere $2.2 million dollars—a price that included licensing, tape libraries, and the contracts belonging to twenty-two WCW performers. In addition to the end of World Championship Wrestling, Paul Heyman signed a deal with Vince McMahon in 2001 some months after ECW was unseated by the WWF as Spike TV's premier wrestling program. The World Wrestling Federation was the winner of the Monday Night War and the Attitude Era was at an end. The summer of 2001 was highlighted by the Invasion storyline featuring an enormity of former WCW and ECW talents rallying together against the WWF with Shane and Stephanie McMahon leading the charge. This would be the year that Stone Cold Steve Austin would turn heel twice, first by joining forces with Vince McMahon at Wrestlemania and then by turning on the WWF and joining the Alliance. Speaking of Wrestlemania, Houston hosted the Seventeenth annual extravaganza—an event like none other that included the highly revered TLC triple threat tag match won by Edge and Christian. On September 13th, Vince McMahon and the WWF Superstars set a national precedent by appearing in Texas just days removed from the World Trade Center attacks in what Vince called, "the largest public gathering of its size since the events of Tuesday." In December of 2001 the two world titles were unified in a competition that would see Chris Jericho beat The Rock as well as Steve Austin in the same night to become the first ever Undisputed WWF Champion in history. The year 2001 was a peculiar period for the wrestling industry as it was the only year in which the WWF was faced with no immediate competition.

3. 1999
With the Attitude Era in full swing, 1999 was an enormous year for the WWF both inside the squared circle as well as on Wall Street. The WWF became the first wrestling promotion in history to go public in 1999, and followed the success with a series of groundbreaking business decisions still in effect today. The company introduced Smackdown on the UPN Network on Thursday Nights as competition to WCW's Thunder on the TBS Superstation. The Rock was enjoying his inaugural championship title reign and would face Steve Austin for their first of three �Mania encounters at Wrestlemania XV in Philadelphia. Unfortunately the good can often be overshadowed by the tragic; on May 23, 1999 the world of professional wrestling lost one of its favorite stars when Owen Hart fell to his death in Kansas City, Missouri. Owen will never be forgotten as his passing was one of the most earth-shattering moments in history—wrestling or otherwise. Behind the scenes, longtime WWF head writer Vince Russo had become disenfranchised by the �Federation and jumped ship to rival WCW where Eric Bischoff was forcibly removed from his post as president. As WCW struggled during turbulent times, the WWF continued to prosper with the continuation of the McMahon/Austin saga, the further explored escapades of Degeneration X, and the debuts of The Big Show and Chris Jericho. The WWF would experience its first Monday night ratings victory since 1996 when Mick Foley defeated The Rock for the WWF Heavyweight Championship on a taped episode of Raw airing January 4th 1999. Titles changed hands that same night on TNT when Hollywood Hogan won the WCW title from Kevin Nash for a fifth time thanks to a booking misstep nicknamed "The Finger Poke of Doom." The Land of Extreme was also abuzz in �99 as this was the year ECW would debut on national cable television thanks to The Nashville Network, soon-to-be-known as Spike TV. The last year of the 20th Century was a period of growth for the WWF, but proved to be an unpredictable era for WCW, making it difficult to compete in the coming years of the new millennium.

2. 2002
If 2001 was the end of an era, 2002 was the dawning of a new age across the varied landscape of professional wrestling. The WWF began by changing its name to World Wrestling Entertainment in light of a conflict regarding the World Wildlife Fund. The campaign was dubbed "Get the �F' Out" and would help introduce audiences to an entirely new breed of "Ruthless Aggression," in the now-WWE. Two new promotions would rise from the ashes of the fallen WCW and ECW. There was former WCW Champion Jeff Jarrett's Southern-based Total Nonstop Action Wrestling—a subsidiary of the National Wrestling Alliance. TNA was originally intended to be a pay-per-view only promotion hosting ten dollar events once a week. In 2002 they crowned their very first Heavyweight Champion, former UFC and WWF competitor "The World's Most Dangerous Man" Ken Shamrock. Meanwhile RF Video—a pro wrestling video distribution company, was looking for a new promotion now that ECW was gone. Rather than working with established groups such as CZW, RF owner Rob Feinstein founded Ring of Honor and ran their first event, "The Era of Honor Begins" in April 2002. Back in the WWE, the entire roster was split into two warring halves—one set for Smackdown and the other relegated to Raw. The year was infamous for the seemingly relentless parade of surprise appearances that lasted the entirety of 2002. Former Superstars like Mr. Perfect and Scott Steiner became part of the current roster once more; Eric Bischoff debuted as the new General Manager of Monday Night Raw; the NWO opened No Way Out; but perhaps most surprising of all was the return of Shawn Michaels after more than four years away from the ring. Michaels captured the World Heavyweight Championship in the first ever Elimination Chamber Match when he defeated five other superstars including Triple H. Maybe one of the greatest years in the past two decades, but not quite number one.

1. 1997
The Number One Year of the Past Two Decades is 1997, and it shouldn’t be hard to see why. This year was the official launch of The Attitude Era in the WWF, signifying Vince McMahon's intention to compete with WCW on a whole new level. The competition didn't waiver however, as World Championship Wrestling was eager to meet the demand of audiences across the world. The "New Generation" made way for D-Generation X, a heel group similar to the NWO featuring Shawn Michaels and Triple H at the forefront. It was DX at the center of one of the most scandalous nights in wrestling—"The Montreal Screwjob." WCW was having its best year since Eric Bischoff took control of the company and bested their direct competition every week thanks to compelling storylines and the introduction of a former Atlanta Falcon named Bill Goldberg. The NWO storyline had yet to run its course and was complimented by the slow-build and impending confrontation between Hollywood Hogan and Sting at Starrcade. The Undertaker would become the WWF Champion for the first time in nearly six years when he defeated Psycho Sid at Wrestlemania XIII in Chicago, the same night Bret Hart and Steve Austin would wrestle their Match of the Year to a stunning conclusion. Paul Heyman's third party promotion dubbed Extreme Championship Wrestling would present their first ever pay-per-view event Barely Legal thanks in part to the promotion they received during the ECW Invasion of Monday Night Raw. The WWF became far more innovative during this period and introduced audiences to the Hell in a Cell and by circumstance the demonic younger brother of the Dead Man, Kane. It was also in 1997 that a hapless play-by-play announcer named Vince McMahon became one of the most detestable villains in professional wrestling history. The WWF would also begin debuting a number of midcard titles including the European Championship first held by The British Bulldog, and the Light Heavyweight Championship won by Taka Michinoku. WCW continued to maintain their edge in the ratings due to quality in-ring performances as well as plot twists and surprise appearances from WWF Superstars-turned-WCW Big Boys. It's not really a question: when asked about the single most action-packed and influential year from the past two decades of wrestling, I don't hesitate when I say 1997.

Conclusion
This list is ripe for discussion and debate, just as any other countdown featured in The Lucky Thirteen. You might agree, you probably disagree, I may have even listed your favorite year toward the bottom. It’s nothing personal, I promise. This list lives outside of the WWE Universe, but is of course greatly influenced by it. In regards to not including 2014, I didn’t want to include a year that hadn't yet concluded when I began compiling my information. I will say however with NJPW, the birth of the WWE Network, the salvation of TNA, and the first ROH Classic PPV, 2014 is sure to climb higher than any other year of the “Reality Era.” Whatever your feelings may be, I hope to see you again next week for another exciting countdown exclusively at Cheap-Heat. My name is Mark Adam Haggerty and this has been—The Lucky Thirteen.

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http://www.cheap-heat.com/results-ring-of-honor-roh-tv-tapings-1315-nashville-tennessee/ http://www.cheap-heat.com/results-ring-of-honor-roh-tv-tapings-1315-nashville-tennessee/#comments Sun, 04 Jan 2015 14:21:56 +0000 Cassidy Haynes Indy/Puro/Lucha ACH Adam Cole Adam Page Alberto El Patron Ashley Sixx Beer City Bruiser BJ Whitmer Cedric Alexander Chris LeRusso Christopher Daniels Dalton Castle Donovan Dijak Frankie Kazarian Hanson Jake Dirden Jay Briscoe Jay Diesel Jay Lethal Jimmy Jacobs Maria Kanellis Matt Sydal Matt Taven Michael Bennett Michael Elgin Mikey Webb Moose Nigel McGuinness ODB Ring of Honor ROH Stokely Hathaway The Briscoes The Decade The Kingdom The Romantic Touch Tommaso Ciampa Truth Martini Veda Scott Will Ferrara http://www.cheap-heat.com/?p=8492 The following results are from a recent Ring of Honor TV Taping. The taping took place on January 3rd, 2015 at the Tennessee State Fairgrounds/Expo in Nashville, Tennessee. Pre-Show Match Cheeseburger defeated Chris LeRusso. TAPING ONE Singles Match Roderick Strong defeated Mark Briscoe. In Ring Segment Nigel McGuinness came out to open the show and […]

The following results are from a recent Ring of Honor TV Taping. The taping took place on January 3rd, 2015 at the Tennessee State Fairgrounds/Expo in Nashville, Tennessee.

Pre-Show Match
Cheeseburger defeated Chris LeRusso.

TAPING ONE

Singles Match
Roderick Strong defeated Mark Briscoe.

In Ring Segment
Nigel McGuinness came out to open the show and announced that Hanson vs. Michael Elgin would be a #1 Contender's Match for the ROH World Championship and then called out Tommaso Ciampa, informing him that he wouldn't be fired by Ring of Honor and would owe one to Nigel for him going to the higher-up. Ciampa said that he wanted a ROH World Championship match because of the match that he had with Brsicoe in the United Kingdom. Michael Elgin came out and said that Ciampa lost to him at Final Battle, however Ciampa said that no one wanted Elgin in Ring of Honor, while Elgin stated that himself and Nigel were former ROH World Champions and belong in ROH. McGuinness announced that the match between Elgin and Hanson would now be a triple threat match with Ciampa now involved and that it would still be a number one contender's match.

Top Prospect Tournament Match
Will Ferrara defeated Jay Diesel (w/Truth Martini).

Triple Threat #1 Contender's Match
Michael Elgin vs. Hanson vs. Tommaso Ciampa was declared a no contest when the referee was hit. Post-match, there was a brawl between all three men.

TAPING TWO

Singles Match
Frankie Kazarian defeated Cedric Alexander.

Top Prospect Tournament Match
Donovan Dijak defeated Jake Dirden.

In Ring Segment
Alberto El Patron came to the ring and said that he is not a sports-entertainer and that he is a wrestler and he's after the ROH World Championship. ROH TV Champion Jay Lethal came to the ring with Truth Martini and said that the ROH TV Championship is the title in Ring of Honor and not the title that Jay Briscoe holds. El Patron attempted to get Jay Lethal into working a match, however Truth told El Patron to get in line and left the ring with Lethal.

In Ring Segment
Nigel McGuinness came to the ring and brought out Jay Briscoe. Jay declared that he wants a fatal four way match in Las Vegas for his World Title with Ciampa, Hanson and Michael Elgin, which McGuinness said that he would consider. Jay then called out The Kingdom.

ROH World Championship Match
Jay Briscoe (c) defeated Matt Taven. Post-match, Michael Bennett attacked Jay Briscoe until Mark Briscoe came out and made the save.

TAPING THREE

Tag Team Match
The Briscoes (Jay Briscoe & Mark Briscoe) (w/ODB) defeated The Kingdom (Michael Bennett & Matt Taven) (w/Maria Kanellis) via DQ.

Top Prospect Tournament Match
Beer City Bruiser defeated Mikey Webb.

Singles Match
Alberto El Patron defeated Christopher Daniels. Post-match, Jay Lethal and Jay Diesel attacked Alberto, however Christopher Daniels and Frankie Kazarian made the save.

TAPING FOUR

Singles Match
Moose (w/Veda Scott & Stokely Hathaway) defeated The Romantic Touch.

6 Man Tag Team Match
The Decade (Jimmy Jacobs, Adam Page & Chris LeRusso) (w/BJ Whitmer) defeated ???, ??? & ???.

Top Prospect Tournament Match
Ashley Sixx defeated Dalton Castle. Adam Cole came out the ring after the match was over to address the crowd, but instead brought a chair into the ring, looked at the camera, dropped the mic and gave it the finger before leaving.

Triple Threat Match For The ROH World TV Championship
Jay Lethal (w/Truth Martini) (c) defeated Matt Sydal and ACH.

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http://www.cheap-heat.com/honorable-mention-roh-tv-122714/ http://www.cheap-heat.com/honorable-mention-roh-tv-122714/#comments Sun, 04 Jan 2015 04:16:27 +0000 Mark Adam Haggerty Blogs Other Blogs ACH Adam Cole AJ Styles Bobby Fish Brian Kendrick Bryan Danielson Cedric Alexander Christopher Daniels CM Punk Corey Graves Daniel Bryan Drew Gulak Frankie Kazarian GFW Global Force Wrestling Jay Briscoe Jay Letal JBL Jerry Lawler Kevin Kelly Kyle O'Reilly Mark Briscoe Matt Sydal Michael Cole Minoru Suzuki New Japan Pro Wrestling Nigel McGuinness NJPW reDRagon Ring of Honor ROH Silas Young Steve Corino Tag Wars The Addiction The Briscoes TNA WWE http://www.cheap-heat.com/?p=8478 Honorable Mention ROH TV 12/27/14 By Mark Adam Haggerty Everybody needs somebody sometime and for me it's the internet wrestling community, because as annoying as I may find you on a daily basis I cannot imagine life without you! I apologize for my week-long absence as I was visiting family for the holidays in my […]

Honorable Mention
ROH TV 12/27/14
By Mark Adam Haggerty

Everybody needs somebody sometime and for me it's the internet wrestling community, because as annoying as I may find you on a daily basis I cannot imagine life without you! I apologize for my week-long absence as I was visiting family for the holidays in my home state of New Jersey. Since touching back down in Southern California however I've felt the journalistic itch and here I am scratching away per usual! While most televised promotions have already cut production weeks back in an effort to capitalize on maximum viewership going into the New Year, ROH is delivering another flawless program complete with not one but two main event caliber contests.

The entire show had a hint of seasonal celebration, and not just for the generic holidays as most ROH talent made no bones about explicitly saying, "Christmas" rather than one of the more politically correct alternatives. Not that I care—this is "Cheap-Heat" not NPR, and nobody loves a good unsecular slip up more than this guy, I just thought it was peculiar as Ring of Honor is the property of the multi-media juggernaut known as Sinclair Broadcasting. The warm wishes from ROH alum were surprisingly heartfelt and included The Briscoes talking gibberish or whatever it is that they do; Jay Lethal's especially jolly disposition claiming that he would be the TV champion forever; but Adam Cole clearly won the Battle of the One-Liners when he said, “More and more women are ending up on the Naughty List this year because they want some �Cole' in their stocking.” Missed opportunity, Michael Cole. A tragically missed opportunity.

Kevin Kelly is always so excited as soon as the cameras start rolling and the crane cam comes swooping in toward both he and his broadcast colleague. If I was looking as festively plump as Mr. Kelly this holiday season, I would cherish the moments that I wasn't paraded around in front of a national television audience, but that's just me—self-conscious as always, I suppose. Steve Corino on the other hand may in fact be one of the best competitors-turned-commentators in the sport today, although who else even falls into that category anymore? Jerry Lawler, JBL, and Corey Graves? The man is far more entertaining and unquestionably more knowledgeable than any of the aforementioned WWE personalities, not to mention he's far more likeable by comparison. Although I'm not sure whether I should attribute the endearing facets of Steve Corino to his personality or what appears to be either a lazy eye or some insanely strong spectacles. In any case and regardless of the fun I may poke at both ROH desk jockeys, Kelly and Corino are perhaps the best pair of wrestling announcers working today and I salute them for an incredible year calling some amazing action.

Whenever I have a friend who's eager to learn more about ROH but I know they're more commonly caught up on the WWE product, I generally preface their viewing pleasure by asking that they give the lesser-known talents the same chance they afford workers whom they already know. Everybody's excited to see Matt Sydal and Jay Lethal square off, and who isn't all about AJ Styles whenever he makes a rare ROH appearance courtesy of his contract with NJPW? But it's important not to ignore the Cedric Alexanders and Silas Youngs of the world who've yet to make their mark as action figures or on Slurpee Cups. More often than not when I attempt to sell an independent or international event to a friend their first question is, "Who's going to be there?" Meaning: "Who from the WWE or TNA is going to be wrestling? Because I don't care about Drew Gulak or Minoru Suzuki." I try and compromise with the "McMahonequins" of the world by stressing the importance of witnessing a rising star before it bursts high above for the world to see; if you watch Ring of Honor, you might see the next CM Punk or Bryan Danielson before they even become a blip on WWE's radar.

Sort of a strangely placed spot for a pro-indie wrestling rant, but that's how I'm going to segue into my thoughts on a somewhat unknown talent to the casual cable wrestling fan—Adam Cole, bay bay! I have quite a bit to say both about Cole, as well as his hotly-contested throw-down with former WWE World Championship contender Brian Kendrick. First of all, I think it's fairly clear that Adam Cole could be the next gem plucked by Connecticut Talent Scouts from ROH's highly lucrative diamond mine. Standing at what easily passes for six feet tall on television, Cole seems to possess the charismatic nuances that the big leagues value, as well as the same athletic edge that makes most former ROH World Champions such extremely hot commodities. Unlike a majority of his peers on the independent circuit who rely more on cultivating their mat-based ability than perfecting their theatrical presentation, Cole is able to develop a consistent character that translates to any audience, whether he's performing in front of hundreds or thousands, in Kentucky or at Korakuen Hall. When a cliché is warranted, I'm happy to dust it off and toss it in with the rest of my writing—Adam Cole has, "IT" plain and simple.

I was among the many viewers who welcomed Brian Kendrick back with open arms and justified jubilation, as it's almost flattering whenever a big name returns to perform for a smaller yet in some ways more appreciative fan base. Kendrick wasted little time in reconnecting with those who may have forgotten what an incredibly talented worker he truly is. From the get-go I was happy to witness a handshake, even if it was quickly thwarted by Kendrick's impeccably educated feet, appearing to be a reaction to Cole's unequivocal arrogance. I found Steve Corino's shallow attempt at putting Kendrick over to be comical yet questionable as relates to the matter at hand; Corino went into expressed detail about how he and Kendrick have known one another for thirteen years and even have the same birthday, when all I wanted was clarification as to why Kendrick stood any chance of beating the former world champion. I understand that Brian Kendrick is just as talented and has several years' worth of experience on the far younger Adam Cole, but Kayfabe will undoubtedly die when we continuously choose to ignore it. What an incredible match when you take into account the number of eyeballs on any given episode of Ring of Honor Television—I'm not even sure that's the official name of the show, I've just fallen into the habit of calling it ROH TV. You hear a lot of old timer's try to remain relevant nowadays, giving the younger generation condescending advice as it relates to not bumping the same for a house show as they might for pay-per-view events. And while that makes all the sense in the world, there's still a lot to be said for the ROH talent who give 110% of themselves on a weekly basis despite knowing nobody's watching except for a handful of die-hard fans like you and me.

While Cole maintained the edge for the majority of the match, the superstar formerly known as, "Spanky" was not without formidable offense of his own. As the momentum waned and reversal attempts begot near-falls, a Super Kick battle broke out featuring two of the best in the business. If you need help putting Cole's ring presence into perspective, search no further than the almost archaic way in which he employs several all-but-extinct heel tendencies—pacing back and forth around Kendrick attempting to belittle the underdog at every turn. Corino continues putting over the colorful career of Brian Kendrick, this time adding to the match by making mention that Brian's toured Japan over forty times. Although the internet fans were more than likely able to predict Cole's success in this seemingly meaningless exhibition, Kendrick did all he could to convince even the smartest of marks that this contest could go any way at any time. Perhaps the most pivotal point occurred when Cole went for another kick to the jaw and instead caught Kendrick in the leg. It was only a matter of time before Cole was hip to Kendrick's assault pattern and was thus able to ward off even the most innovative pin-fall attempts. Adam Cole had victory in his sights, securing such by first properly placing another Super Kick, catching the now-desperate Kendrick in midair coming out of some sort of springboard attempt. The 1-2-3 was finally earned following Cole's cunning and colloquially named "Florida Keys"—a cross arm variation on the German Suplex, referred to by some as, "The Straight Jacket Suplex." A two and a half star match with plenty to get excited about from beginning to end.

The main event and last match for ROH in 2014 is ever-so-fittingly the finale of Tag Wars 2014. It's almost a daily basis by this point that I'll hear how the tag team scene is dead and needs to be resurrected, to which I say, "Get out from of the bubble in which you're living because tag team wrestling is alive and well." You also don't need to take a thirteen hour flight to Tokyo to catch some of the best and brightest talents to currently call themselves tag team wrestlers. This match was spectacular on a variety of levels, and if I don't first mention the championship stakes I'd of course be ignoring the most important part. The bizarre thing about ROH in contrast to much of their competition is that their championship titles actually carry with them a fair amount of prestige. ReDragon is arguably the best tag team in the world, and they've got the dual hardware draped across their shoulders to prove it. I've said it before, but as the world gets higher on the enormously talented Kyle O'Reilly I hold my ground that Bobby Fish is one of the best wrestlers in the world and the standout star of the two. While TNA might deliver a four-way comprised of eight mismatched wrestlers and WWE just calls the first four teams that aren't already booked, the Ring of Honor tag titles are being defended in a dramatic contest by the best team in the world against two of the other best teams in the world—plus ACH and Matt Sydal.

Nigel McGuinness finds his way to ringside as he regularly does during main event matches, and much to my delight as I love everything about Nigel. Seriously, if you haven't been reading my Top Podcast Countdown each week, you'd be interested to know that Nigel is among the many reasons I'm always so happy with Nerdist's Wrestling Compadres Slamcast. He's an incredibly intelligent man with lofty goals inside the industry that only someone of his character could ever hope to accomplish. As for his abilities as a broadcaster, Nigel never claimed to be the second coming of Gordon Solie and for what he provides I'm generally very pleased. Matt Sydal and ACH as I just mentioned are the wild card pairing standing toe to toe with three of the best tag teams of the last ten years. I have to say, Matt Sydal is a lot cooler than Evan Bourne; the hair, the jacket, the music all come together to generate a wrestling superstar the likes of which we've never seen before. And ACH? If a new age talent like Sydal was going to pick anyone to tag with, who better than the pride of Ring of Honor, the thrill-seeking, record setting ACH?

I find the blind tag nature of the match very enticing as I grew up during the Attitude Era where multi-team tag matches were the norm and elimination rules were all but the name of the game. Everybody knows that I have some political opposition to the Briscoe Brothers outside the squared circle, but Geeze Louise, I can't deny what Dem Boys are capable of when the bell sounds. Jay Briscoe never has any trouble proving why he is the deserving and more importantly defending ROH World Champion, and his brother Mark always has a habit of earning my admiration within the first few minutes of any match. When the Briscoes were the first team to be eliminated, all three men at ringside appeared utterly flabbergasted, which I thought was an awfully strange reaction. Once again, conserving Kayfabe is always on the tip-top of my list of priorities, but given your target audience I'm willing to bet the majority of viewers weren't shocked when the WORLD CHAMPION didn't win the Tag Titles, especially not on a taped program, and ESPECIALLY not mere days before reDragon's set to appear in Japan for Wrestle Kingdom 9. But still, the always elated Kevin Kelly just couldn't wrap his head around how the "clear favorites" were eliminated.

I have to admit that by this point in the match my interest in ACH and Sydal had gone the way of the dinosaurs and I was anxious to see the match break down into a two-on-two featuring The Addiction and reDragon. In fact at one point as the two presumably more formidable teams battled inside the ring, I couldn't spot ACH and Sydal anywhere and even thought out loud, "Were they eliminated and I missed it?" But man I must like the taste of leather because I keep putting my foot in my mouth; once my curiosity peaked I was privy to an onslaught of aerial assaults courtesy of the high flying duo who nobody thought could compete. As Kazarian made the ill-fated attempt for the Flux Capacitor, the gruesome twosome of Sydal and ACH managed to flip the script and catch The Addiction in the crosshairs of their most vicious combination yet. Following the elimination of The Addiction, it became clear that Fish and O'Reilly would retain their titles, but the questions became how would it happen and how long would it take? The answer to both would be one word: fast. ReDragon is a fundamentally fluid tag team who makes the most elegant of situations appear almost mundane; the pair uses more than just a variety of double-team maneuvers, but are instead able to turn the most regular of rest-holds into individually choreographed works of art. Despite a short lived upheaval by their last remaining challengers, Kyle O'Reilly and Bobby Fish were able to come out on top, not only in this championship contest but as the champions of Tag Wars 2014.

I thought this was an incredible hour of professional wrestling and I hope other promotions can borrow a cue from the ladies and gentlemen that work to make every episode of Ring of Honor as wonderful as it is. The lesson learned for larger companies is that less is more, why do in three hours what can be accomplished in one? I'm impressed with the detail and dedication that went into this December 27th edition of TV; when most of the competition has taken official breaks in programming, it would have been especially easy for ROH to take it slow themselves. I'm optimistic about what 2015 holds for Ring of Honor as 2014 was a monumental year in itself, the only thing for ROH to do now is move forward and continue to grow. Hopefully as GFW and NJPW work to draw more eyes to a non-WWE product, so too will ROH have a spike in popularity. Until next time, my name is Mark Adam Haggerty thanking you your loyalty and promising to be back each and every week delivering you "The Honorable Mention."

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http://www.cheap-heat.com/results-ring-of-honor-roh-tv-122814-baltimore-md/ http://www.cheap-heat.com/results-ring-of-honor-roh-tv-122814-baltimore-md/#comments Mon, 29 Dec 2014 17:18:23 +0000 Cassidy Haynes Indy/Puro/Lucha ACH Adam Cole BJ Whitmer Bobby Fish Brian Kendrick Christopher Daniels Frankie Kazarian Jay Briscoe Jay Lethal Kevin Kelly Kyle O'Reilly Mark Briscoe Matt Sydal Nigel McGuinness reDRagon Ring of Honor Roderick Strong ROH Steve Corino Tag Wars 2014 The Addiction The Briscoes http://www.cheap-heat.com/?p=8347 We start off the show with The Briscoes, Jay Lethal, and Adam Cole wishing everyone a Merry Christmas. We are in Baltimore, Maryland and your announcers are Steve Corino and Kevin Kelly. Before the match starts, we get comments from Adam Cole in the Cabana Corner and he says that for the first time he […]

We start off the show with The Briscoes, Jay Lethal, and Adam Cole wishing everyone a Merry Christmas .

We are in Baltimore, Maryland and your announcers are Steve Corino and Kevin Kelly.

Before the match starts, we get comments from Adam Cole in the Cabana Corner and he says that for the first time he faces Brian Kendrick. He says Brian is a talented wrestler. He wants Brian to look in the mirror and ask himself if he can beat Adam Cole. If he says no, he has already lost. If he says yes, then he is a fool. He says that he will prove to Brian what he has proven to everyone in Ring of Honor, his face is Ring of Honor.

Match Number One: Brian Kendrick versus Adam Cole

Kendrick with a boot to the head before the bell ring and Cole goes to the floor. Kendrick goes for a suicide dive but Cole with an enzuigiri. Cole sends Kendrick to the apron and Kendrick flips over Cole as Cole goes to the floor. Kendrick with a suicide dive onto Cole. Kendrick goes up top and he hits a cross body but he runs into a knee. Cole sends Kendrick into the turnbuckles and then he kicks Kendrick. The referee warns Cole as he continues to kick Kendrick in the corner.

Cole with an Irish whip and Kendrick floats over. Kendrick lands on his feet when Cole tries to flip him and Kendrick with a victory roll for a near fall. Kendrick with a side head lock take down. Cole gets to his feet and he backs Kendrick into the corner. Kendrick avoids a punch from Cole and he connects with forearms. Cole gets Kendrick on his shoulders as Kendrick tries to float over. Kendrick gets back to his feet. Cole tries for a German suplex but Kendrick lands on his feet and Kendrick with a super kick and then he tries for Sliced Bread #2 but Cole is able to send Kendrick to the floor.

We go to commercial and we get Christmas wishes from Roderick Strong.

We are back and Cole kicks Kendrick in the head as he shows him no respect. Kendrick with a shoulder and forearms. Cole with a kick and then he get Kendrick on his shoulder when Kendrick tries for a leap frog and Cole hits a Death Valley Neck Breaker for a near fall. Cole sends Kendrick into the turnbuckles and Cole with a forearm followed by a hard Irish whip.

Cole with a back breaker to Kendrick and he gets a near fall. Cole with a reverse chin lock. Kendrick with elbows but Cole with a sleeper. Kendrick with elbows but Cole tries for another sleeper but Kendrick drops down and gets a victory roll for a near fall. Kendrick with a backslide for another near fall. Cole with a bicycle kick to Kendrick. Cole runs into an elbow and then Kendrick with a boot. Kendrick with another kick and then Cole is sent into the apron.

Kendrick with a full nelson but Cole escapes and hits an enzuigiri followed by a Shining Wizard for a near fall. Cole pulls down his knee pad and he sets for another Shining Wizard but Kendrick ducks and Kendrick with a rollup for a near fall. Kendrick charges into the corner while Cole sets for a super kick so Kendrick stops short and covers his face. That forces Cole to hit a super kick to the knees and then Cole goes to the turnbuckles. Kendrick stops Cole with forearms. Kendrick tries for a superplex but Cole with punches to the midsection and then Cole with a sunset flip power bomb followed by a Shining Wizard for a near fall.

Cole tries for a suplex but Kendrick lands on his feet and hits a drop kick followed by a Burning Hammer for a near fall. Kendrick with a full nelson but Cole with an elbow to escape the hold. Cole misses an enzuigiri but Kendrick does not miss with a running back senton. Kendrick tries for Sliced Bread #2 but this time he is crotched on the top turnbuckle by Cole. Cole climbs the turnbuckles for German superplex but Kendrick lands on his feet and Cole is stuck in the Tree of Woe. Kendrick with a drop kick.

Kendrick with a Dragon suplex for a near fall. Kendrick goes to the apron and when he goes for a springboard move, Cole with a super kick followed by a brainbuster shoulder breaker and Florida Key for the three count.

Winner: Adam Cole

We go to commercial with the Briscoes talking about how they will become the tag team champions tonight when they win Tag Wars. Mark says tonight is the night they will finally slay the dragons.

We are back and Nigel McGuinness joins Steve and Kevin at the announce table .

We see how the three challengers made their way to the finals of Tag Wars.

Before our main event starts, we go to the Cabana Corner for comments from the tag team champions with Kyle dressed in a very appropriate Christmas themed sweater . Bobby tells Kyle it is that time of year. Bobby says that all he wants for Christmas is to be the best team on God's green. Kyle says that he loves Christmas, but there is one thing he loves more . . . gold.

Match Number Two: ACH and Matt Sydal versus Jay Briscoe and Mark Briscoe versus Christopher Daniels and Frankie Kazarian versus Bobby Fish and Kyle O'Reilly for the Ring of Honor Tag Team Titles in the finals of Tag Wars 2014

ACH and Kazarian start things off. They lock up and Kazarian with a waist lock and drop toe hold into a side head lock. ACH with a top wrist lock and take down but Kazarian with a front face lock. ACH counters into a side head lock. Kazarian with a forearm to the ribs and Daniels tags in and he clotheslines ACH. Daniels sends Kazarian onto ACH with a belly-to-back drop. Daniels with a quebrada for a near fall.

ACH escapes a suplex attempt and he sends Daniels into a boot from Sydal. Sydal tags in and he hits a running clothesline into the corner. ACH with a sliding clothesline to the floor. Sydal with a jumping leg lariat followed by a standing moonsault for a near fall. Sydal has a suplex blocked and then Daniels with a back body drop before he tags in Fish. Fish with a kick to the back of the leg. Sydal with a jumping back heel kick. Sydal tries for a springboard move but Jay makes the tag. Sydal doesn't know why that happened so Jay apologizes with a forearm to force Sydal to the floor.

Fish with a knee and he tags in O'Reilly. Jay with a European uppercut and then he sends Kyle into the corner and follows with a kick and he chokes Kyle. Mark tags in and he hits a running clothesline into the corner followed by a belly-to-belly suplex for a near fall. Mark with an arm bar and modified camel clutch but Mark adds some cross faces to Fish. Mark with a belly-to-back into an uranage and then he tags in Jay who kicks Kyle.

Jay with head butts followed by a drop kick but Daniels tags in and Jay and Daniels argue. They shake hands and Jay goes to the corner but Kyle pushes Daniels into Jay and since Jay didn't see that Daniels was pushed into him (and Mark couldn't tell Jay what happened), Jay and Daniels exchange punches. That brings Mark and Kazarian into the ring to try to break things up. Meanwhile, on the other side of the ring, Fish and O'Reilly go after ACH and Sydal on the apron.

Fish and O'Reilly go to the apron where they celebrate what they just did while The Briscoes and Addiction fight in the ring by posing for the fans. Then they see Fish and O'Reilly on the apron so they have a Christmas Cease Fire to set their sights on Fish and O'Reilly. They bring Fish and O'Reilly into the ring and they pinball the champions before they fall to the floor.

Jay with a flying clothesline that sends Kazarian and himself to the floor. Mark with a kick to Daniels but Daniels with a back body drop and Mark lands on his feet. Daniels avoids an enzuigiri and Daniels hits an STO. Daniels sets for a dive to the floor but Jay intercepts and gets Daniels on his shoulders for a Death Valley Driver . Kazarian sends Jay to the apron and then Jay goes for a shoulder from the apron but Kazarian sees it coming and he avoids it and hits a leg drop that has Jay hanging on the middle rope. Kazarian with a plancha into a sunset flip power bomb that sends Jay to the floor.

Fish picks up Kazarian and runs him into the guardrails. Fish sets for the flying drop kick off the apron but Daniels clotheslines Kyle on the apron and he goes to the floor. ACH taps Daniels on the back and chops him. ACH ducks a clothesline from Daniels and hits a Fosbury Flop onto Fish and O'Reilly on the floor. Daniels tries for a hip toss to send Sydal over the top rope to the floor but Sydal stops himself on the top rope and he hits a double sledge onto Kazarian, Fish, O'Reilly, and his own tag team partner.

Daniels figures that so many people are stopping his runs to the floor that he goes for an Arabian press onto Sydal and ACH. Back in the ring, Mark Briscoe sees Daniels going after his brother on the floor for Angel's Wings so Mark goes up top but Kazarian with a boot to the head to knock Mark back into the ring.

Sydal is sent into the guardrails while Kazarian hits a belly-to-back onto Daniels' knees for a gutbuster to pin Mark.

Jay and Mark Briscoe Eliminated

Fish and O'Reilly go after Daniels and Kazarian in the ring and the send Kazarian to the floor. Fish and O'Reilly kick Daniels.

We go to commercial with Christmas wishes from ACH.

We are back and Kyle kicks Daniels and chokes him in the corner. Fish comes in and Daniels sends Kyle into Bobby and he tags in Kazarian. Daniels with an elbow and then he hits a curb stomp on Kyle followed by a forearm to Fish while Kazarian gets a near fall on Kyle. Kazarian with a gutwrench suplex for a near fall. Kazarian sends Kyle into Daniels' boot and he tags in. Daniels with a hard Irish whip followed by a suplex for a near fall.

Daniels with a forearm to Kyle. Kyle spits at Daniels and then he goes to the floor with Daniels following after him. Kyle stops Daniels in the ring and that allows Fish to kick Daniels in the back of the leg. Kyle with an arm wringer to take Daniels to the mat while Fish knocks Kazarian off the apron. Fish gets a near fall. Fish with a wrist lock and uppercut to the injured arm. Fish with a snap mare followed by a double jump slingshot senton for a near fall.

Kyle tags in and he hits a knee to the ribs while Fish keeps Daniels from getting to his corner. Kyle with a knee drop to the midsection for a near fall. Kyle with a rear chin lock into a quarter nelson and chin lock. Daniels with elbows to Kyle and he tries for a sunset flip but Kyle counters into a cross arm breaker. Fish keeps Daniels from getting to the ropes on one side but Daniels gets to the ropes to force Kyle to release the hold.

Fish tags back in and he kicks Daniels. Fish with a suplex and he gets a near fall. Fish mocks Kazarian but that allows Daniels to recover for a moment and he gets in a few punches. Fish with a kick and Kyle tags in and he connects with a running boot to Kazarian to knock him off the apron. Daniels with punches and chops to Kyle. Kyle with kicks but Daniels with an enzuigiri and both men are down.

Fish tags in and Daniels cannot tag in Kazarian because Fish hits a baseball slide on Kazarian. Daniels with an STO and Sydal tags in. Sydal with a head scissors and drop kick to Fish. Kyle comes in and he tries for a German suplex but Sydal blocks it. ACH comes in and he hits a drop kick on Kyle. Sydal with the step over leg lariat drop for a near fall. Sydal goes up top and Kyle pushes Fish out of the way so he can take the double knee drop from Sydal since he is not the legal man in the match.

ACH, who made the tag, hits a cross body on Fish for a near fall. ACH with a chop. Kyle with a knee to ACH's back and ACH knocks Kyle off the apron with a forearm. Fish tags Kazarian in and Frankie with a shoulder and a drop kick and back elbow. Kazarian with a float over into a swinging neck breaker on Sydal.

ACH with chops followed by an Irish whip and he tries to monkey flip Kazarian towards Sydal but Kazarian turns it into a modified spear that sends Sydal into the turnbuckles. Kazarian with a hip toss neck breaker and he tags in Daniels. Daniels ties up ACH for Kazarian to hit a springboard leg drop to the back of the neck and Daniels gets a near fall that is broken up by Sydal. Daniels punches Sydal but Sydal with a leaping knee to Daniels. Kazarian with a forearm to Sydal and then Sydal goes for a springboard move but Kazarian counters it into a cutter.

ACH misses two enzuigiris, but he does not miss the third and Kazarian goes down. ACH with chops and forearms Daniels. Both men go for cross bodies and they both go down.

We go to commercial.

We are back and Daniels with a running palm thrust to ACH. Daniels puts ACH on the turnbuckles and connects with another palm thrust. ACH pushes Daniels off the turnbuckles. Kazarian with a kick to ACH and he climbs the turnbuckles but Sydal stops Kazarian. They push Kazarian off the turnbuckles to the floor. Daniels climbs the turnbuckles and he goes for a superplex on Sydal but ACH holds on to Sydal. Sydal knocks Daniels off the turnbuckles. Sydal with a Shooting Star Press followed by a 450 splash to pin Daniels.

Frankie Kazarian and Christopher Daniels eliminated

Kyle and Bobby attack ACH and Sydal now that we are down to two teams. Fish sends Sydal to the floor as they focus on the legal man. Fish with an elbow to ACH and he tags in Kyle. They set for Chasing the Dragon but ACH gets to his feet and he pushes Kyle into Bobby. Sydal with a leaping knee strike to the head of Fish. Kyle with a knee to ACH but Sydal with a leaping knee to Kyle.

Sydal with a body scissors to send Kyle to the floor and then Sydal sets for an Asai Moonsault onto Kyle, but Fish with a leg sweep that knocks Sydal off the apron and to the floor. ACH with the springboard flip dive onto Fish and O'Reilly on the floor. ACH sends Kyle into the ring and he goes up top for the 450 splash but Kyle moves and ACH hits the mat hard. Fish with a running knee into the corner followed by a running kick from Kyle.

Fish with a back breaker and Kyle comes off the turnbuckles with a knee to the head while ACH is on Fish's knee. Kyle gets a near fall but Sydal breaks it up. Fish with a forearm to Sydal but Sydal with chops and kicks to Fish and O'Reilly. Kyle blocks a kick form Sydal and Fish with a back heel kick to Sydal. Kyle with a kick and forearm to Sydal followed by a Saito suplex to Sydal that sends him to the floor.

Kyle with a forearm to ACH followed by a high low combination to ACH and Chasing the Dragon for the three count.

Winners: Bobby Fish and Kyle O'Reilly

We go to credits with BJ Whitmer refusing to wish people a Merry Christmas.

Credit: PWInsider

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http://www.cheap-heat.com/watch-episode-84-of-the-candice-joey-show-featuring-the-young-bucks-the-addiction-johnny-gargano-bobby-eaton-and-more/ http://www.cheap-heat.com/watch-episode-84-of-the-candice-joey-show-featuring-the-young-bucks-the-addiction-johnny-gargano-bobby-eaton-and-more/#comments Fri, 19 Dec 2014 07:22:33 +0000 Cassidy Haynes Indy/Puro/Lucha Bobby Eaton Candice LeRae Christopher Daniels Darin Corbin David Starr Frankie Kazarian Joey Ryan Johnny Gargano JT Dunn Matt Jackson Nick Jackson The Addiction The Candice & Joey Show The Young Bucks http://www.cheap-heat.com/?p=8166 Episode 84 of The Worlds’ Cutest Tag Team YouTube show cleverly titled, The Candice & Joey Show. Watch us show our chemistry and teamwork while we hang out with special guests from around the world. The Candice & Joey Show Starring Candice LeRae: http://www.twitter.com/CandiceLeRae Joey Ryan: http://www.twitter.com/JoeyRyanOnline Episode 84 with Appearances by Frankie Kazarian: http://www.twitter.com/FrankieKazarian […]


Episode 84 of The Worlds’ Cutest Tag Team YouTube show cleverly titled, The Candice & Joey Show. Watch us show our chemistry and teamwork while we hang out with special guests from around the world.

The Candice & Joey Show
Starring
Candice LeRae: http://www.twitter.com/CandiceLeRae
Joey Ryan: http://www.twitter.com/JoeyRyanOnline

Episode 84
with Appearances by
Frankie Kazarian: http://www.twitter.com/FrankieKazarian
Matt Jackson: http://www.twitter.com/MattJackson13
Nick Jackson: http://www.twitter.com/NickJacksonYB
Christopher Daniels: http://www.twitter.com/facdaniels
Bobby Eaton: http://www.twitter.com/BobbyEatonMovie
Kali Ann: http://www.twitter.com/Kali___Ann
Johnny Gargano: http://www.twitter.com/JohnnyGargano
Darin Corbin: http://www.twitter.com/DarinCorbin
JT Dunn: http://www.twitter.com/TheJuiceee
David Starr: http://www.twitter.com/TheProductDS

Filmed at Dreamwave Wrestling ( http://www.twitter.com/DWWrestling ) on December 6th, 2014 in LaSalle, IL

Buy #CandiceAndJoey shirts available in tees & tanks and men & women sizes at:
http://www.prowrestlingtees.com/joeyryan

To book Candice LeRae & Joey Ryan for your next wrestling event, email
joeyryan@hotmail.com

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