ROH TV Report
March 15, 2015
Taped 3/7 in Baltimore, Md.
Report by Mike Metzger (@mD0uble), PWTorch contributor

The ROH TV opening aired.

The camera panned the sold-out Baltimore crowd and a new addition to the set- a 15’ video screen. It’s nowhere as as big as the TitanTron, but a huge step up for ROH!

Tonight: The Kingdom takes on the Young Bucks!

1 - MATT SYDAL & A.C.H. vs. THE ADDICTION (Christopher Daniels & Frankie Kazarian)

The teams made their entrances, as Kevin Kelly announced we would hear from ROH World Champion Jay Briscoe for the first time since successfully defending his title at the 13th Anniversary PPV. Kelly also informed the audience that Tommaso Ciampa was out indefinitely with a broken rib suffered during the PPV main event. All four men shook hands and then the bell rang. Sydal, who is now sporting a Prince Iaukea-like pony-tail bun, and Kazarian started out. They went into a chain wrestling sequence for the first minute, until Kaz tagged Daniels.

Daniels back-suplexed Kaz onto Sydal and then followed up with a springboard moonsault of his own. Daniels scored a nearfall and then tagged Kaz back in. They went for a double-team, but Sydal was able to fight his way out and tag A.C.H. Sydal held up Kaz in the ropes, which enabled A.C.H. to hit a double foot stomp. A.C.H. got a two count and then chopped Kaz in the corner. A.C.H. followed up with a big dropkick. Daniels tried to run in, but A.C.H. dropkicked him as well! Sydal tagged back in and he and A.C.H. hit a double bulldog on Kazarian! A.C.H. tagged in and scored a two count, as Kevin Kelly ran down several upcoming ROH events, including the co-promoted shows with New Japan Pro Wrestling this spring.

Kaz fought back and sent both of his opponents to the outside. Daniels was right there to hit a big moonsault onto both Sydal and A.C.H. Daniels threw Sydal into the hockey boards on the outside, while Kazarian scored a nearfall on A.C.H. in the ring. The show then went to a break at the 5:20 point in the match.

[Commercial Break]

Back at 7:50, The Addiction was still in control of the match, Daniels hit a springboard elbow drop onto A.C.H., followed up with a springboard leg drop from Kaz, which was good for a two count. Kevin Kelly then pitched an ROH 1-800 number, although I’m not quite sure why. (Author’s Note: I called the number and was not only informed that Roderick Strong’s father is an Elvis impersonator, but I was then transferred to someone who offered to save me money on my car insurance! And, that is the state of pro wrestling hotlines in the year 2015.)

Back to the match, Kaz dropkicked A.C.H. and scored another nearfall. Daniels tagged back in and delivered a back drop to A.C.H. Daniels followed up with a chin lock in the center of the ring. A.C.H. struggled for about 30 seconds and elbowed his way out. The separation was only temporary, as Daniels dragged A.C.H. to his corner and tagged his partner. Kazarian hit another springboard leg drop and then applied a chin lock of his own. Kaz went to follow up, but A.C.H was able to reverse into a tornado DDT! A.C.H. finally made the hot tag to Sydal!

Sydal came in and attacked both Addiction members. Kaz and Daniels tried to double-team, but Sydal was able to reverse into a cool move where he hit a jawbreaker/legrdrop combo on both Kaz and Daniels at the same time! Sydal followed up with a standing moonsault onto Daniels, but could only get a two count. Sydal jumped at Kaz, but was caught and then reversed into a neckbreaker/powerbomb combo from both Addiction members! Daniels covered Sydal, but he kicked out at two! Daniels held Sydal for yet another springboard legdrop from Kaz for yet another nearfall. Daniels went for the BME, but Sydal moved out of the way and kicked Daniels in the face. This put Daniels in perfect position for a double foot stomp from A.C.H.! He went for the cover, but Daniels kicked out.

Sydal and Kaz found themselves alone in the ring. Sydal hit a half-nelson slam, but couldn’t put Kaz away. A.C.H. hen hit a big dive onto Daniels, where he changed position in mid-air! Sydal had Kaz in perfect position for the Shooting Star Press, but one of the masked Knights of the Rising Dawn nailed Sydal in the leg with a chair. The Addiction didn’t witness the interference, but they capitalized and nailed their finisher, in which Kazarian flips his opponent over his back and then into a Codebreaker from Daniels.

WINNERS: The Addiction via pinfall in 15:00.

ANALYSIS: Wow, that was a chore to watch. The match was fine, but there was just a lot going on. The commentary during the first half of the match sounded right out of a 1990s Raw squash match, with Kelly basically running down everything going on in ROH right now. And then there was that whole 1-800 number plug. The match seemed to drag at times, especially after I lost count of how many times Kaz hit his springboard leg drop. More interference from the KRD certainly did not help matters. Apparently, this was a #1 contender match, as Kelly announced that The Addiction would receive a title shot in the future. That would have been nice to know going into the match. Would it kill ROH to include a pre-match interview? It’s great that these teams are getting some TV time, but the presentation is very inefficient. (**3/4)

[Commercial Break]

Video Package: Samoa Joe returned at the 13th Anniversary PPV. He’s on a mission to regain the ROH World Title. The video also covered the over-booked finish to the main event, which included interference from the Knights of the Rising Dawn and the return of Raymond Rowe. It closed with a stare down between Jay Briscoe and Joe.

Jay Briscoe - Samoa Joe Confrontation

ROH World Champion Jay Briscoe came out to the ring with the ROH World Title and his “Real World Title” belt draped over his shoulder. He grabbed the mic and first thanked ODB for retrieving his title belt from Maria and the Kingdom. He then addressed the critics who called him vulnerable and lucky. He said that they also have to call him “champion.” He talked about not being pinned in the last two years and then declared himself “the baddest man in pro wrestling.”

Samoa Joe’s music began playing and the crowd went nuts! Out came Joe, who was greeted with plenty of streamers from the crowd. Joe said he hadn’t been around in a long time, but when he left there were two men who “manned up” and showed the ROH fans what it was all about, referring to the Briscoes. He complimented Jay on his victory at the 13th Anniversary PPV, saying he “manned up and handled business.” Joe said he saw a little of himself in Jay, but told him he couldn’t call himself the “baddest man in pro wrestling” because Jay never beat him.

Joe challenged Briscoe to a title match at Supercard of Honor during WrestleMania weekend. Briscoe appeared to accept the challenge by shaking Joe’s hand. Joe warned Briscoe that last time he bled him and the next time he would break him. They stared each other down, and then Joe left the ring.

[M.M. Reax: Joe wasn’t perfect on the mic, but the crowd ate it up. Simple, yet effective way to announce Briscoe’s next challenger.]

[Commercial Break]

Back from break, Jimmy Jacobs was in the ring with a microphone. He complained about Briscoe and Joe booking themselves in an ROH World Title match. He bashed Joe for not wrestling in ROH for a long time, considering his last in the company was against Tyler Black. Jacobs was upset that Joe got a shot for simply reappearing in the promotion. He went into the usual Decade schtick of how he had been there since day one, and then demanded an ROH World Title shot from ROH Matchmaker Nigel McGuinness.

[M.M. Reax: Borderline babyface promo from Jacobs, although he did his best to come across as a whiny heel. It will be nice to see Jacobs have a world title opportunity before joining the WWE writing team, as Sean Radican has reported.]

Video Package: Highlights of the Kingdom vs. Briscoes blow-off match from February 21 in Atlanta were shown. The Kingdom were shown to be victorious, in what was billed as “the final chapter” of their feud with the Briscoes. The show is available for purchase on ROHWrestling.com.

2 - THE KINGDOM (Michael Bennett & Matt Taven w/ Maria Kanellis) vs. THE YOUNG BUCKS (Nick & Matt Jackson)

The crowd was firmly behind the Young Bucks and very much against the Kingdom. Bennett and Matt Jackson started the match. Jackson went for an early superkick, but Bennett wisely rolled out of the ring. He wasn’t safe for long, as he was hit with a baseball slide from Matt. Back in the ring, the Bucks hit some of their signature double-team offense on Taven, and then immediately turned around and dove onto Bennett, who was on the other side of the ring. Matt Jackson then hit a big moonsault onto both Kingdom members on the outside, as Kevin Kelly plugged the 1-800 number again.

Matt Jackson was tripped up by Maria on the outside, which allowed Taven to regain control and hit a nice moonsault. Bennett went for the cover, but Matt kicked out at two. Meanwhile, Maria walked over to the commentary desk and demanded to know what happened to her title. The Kingdom continued to double-team Matt, with Bennett applying a chin lock in the center. The only lasted a few moments, as Matt reversed into a jawbreaker. His comeback was short-lived, however, as Bennett countered with a dropkick. Taven tagged in and hit a neckbreaker. He taunted Nick with a crotch-chop and then applied a chin lock of his own to Matt.

Matt Jackson quickly fought out again and then hit a big move off the top rope, in which he changed motion in mid-air and hit a jawbreaker on Taven! He went for the cover, but Taven kicked out. Bennett then pulled Nick off of the apron, while Taven hit Matt with a kick to the face! The show then went to a break at the 5:30 mark.

[Commercial Break]

Back at 7:30, the Kingdom was still in firm control of the match. Matt Jackson created some separation, however, and tagged in his brother! Nick was house of fire, as he attacked both of his opponents. He hit a moonsault on Bennett, but Taven quickly regained control with a dive onto Nick on the outside. Back in the ring, Taven went for a frogspash but Nick got his knees up! The Bucks then hit a double-team Sliced Bread, but Taven kicked out at two. Maria got up on the apron, which allowed Bennett to attack the Bucks from behind. Bennett hit a Twist of Fate and then Taven immediately followed up with a Swanton onto Nick, but he kicked out at two!

Taven hit an enziguri on Nick. Bennett went for a superkick, but hit Taven by accident! Matt Jackson then nailed Bennett with a superkick of his own. The Bucks hit a splash/moonsault combo on Bennett, but he kicked out at two! The Bucks went for More Bang for Your Buck, but The Kingdom fought their way out. They hit a nice superkick/Stunner combo, but the Bucks fought back with a series of superkicks to the delight of Steve Corino on commentary! They hit a powerbomb/superkick combo in the corner and then Nick hit a denton on Taven for another near fall!

The Bucks set up for IndyTaker, but Bennett broke it up. The Kingdom went for a spike piledriver, but The Bucks reversed and nailed Taven with a superkick as he came off the top rope and then another one to Bennett for good measure! The Bucks then hit the IndyTaker on Taven. Nick went for the cover, but one of the KRD members yanked the ref out of the ring! The Kingdom capitalized on the distraction and hit a spike piledriver on Nick for the victory.

WINNERS: The Kingdom via pinfall in 13:35.

ANALYSIS: This was also a #1 contender match apparently, as Kevin Kelly announced that The Kingdom will face reDRagon for the ROH World Tag Team Titles at Supercard of Honor. Again, it would have been nice if this was brought up before or during the match itself. Still, this was way better than the opener, as you had a solid babyface vs. heel dynamic, as well as the Young Bucks who are just a spectacle to watch! (***1/2)

After the match, ROH World Tag Team Champions reDRagon appeared on the apron and stared down the Kingdom. The commentators also announced that Jay Briscoe would defend the ROH World Title against Jimmy Jacobs next week on ROH TV.

FINAL REAX: About as newsworthy as it gets for ROH. They’ve come a long way since last year in terms of TV scheduling and production values, but they still have some work to do in the booking department. While the opening match was good and the main event was great, there was absolutely no build-up or back-story for either match. The announcers didn't even bother to bring up the title implications until after each match. Call me old-fashioned, but it would just be nice to have a story to follow, other than mysterious men in red masks interfering in every single match.

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