7/8 ROH TV RESULTS: Cody vs. Titán, Bully Ray vs. Cheeseburger in No DQ & No Count Out, Women Of Honor tag action, Coleman’s Pulpit

ROH TV REPORT
JULY 8, 2018
NEW YORK, NY AT HAMMERSTEIN BALLROOM
AIRED ON SINCLAIR AFFILIATES & ROHWRESTLING.COM
REPORT BY HARLEY R. PAGEOT, PWTORCH CONTRIBUTOR

Commentary: Ian Riccaboni, Colt Cabana

Cody and Brandi Rhodes were backstage. Cody spoke about how pirates and marauders would leave just one person behind. That’s what he’s going to do to Titán. He’s going to leave with him just enough strength to go back to CMLL and send the message that if they want to continue to compete with ROH they need to send someone bigger. Brandi assured her husband that there’s no one bigger than him. Cody cackled.

(Pageot’s Perspective: I guess he’s a heel this week.)

-Opening theme.

(1) WOH WORLD CHAMPION SUMIE SAKAI & STELLA GREY vs. RILEY SHEPARD & GABBY ORTIZ

Code of honor followed by all four women. Shepard and Grey started things off. When Grey took her down with a drop toe-hold Sakai slipped into the ring for a quick dropkick before returning to the apron. Shepard tagged out, though, and Ortiz took control on Grey. [C]

Grey reversed a suplex attempt from Ortiz. Tags on both sides. Sakai with some Mongolian chops to Shepard and ran the ropes to take down Shepard. Ortiz came in but she and Shepard took a double clothesline. The champ continued to effortlessly outwrestle both opponents at the same time, including a top rope dropkick on Ortiz and a spinning neckbreaker on Shepard for a two-count. DDT from Ortiz. Shepard with some kicks to Sakai. Big spear from Grey to Ortiz. Shepard gets rid of Grey but a Smash Mouth from Sakai ends it.

WINNERS: Sakai & Grey in 6:23.

(Pageot’s Perspective: Lately it had been feeling like Sakai, Dashwood, Klein, & Rose were the only competitors in the Women Of Honor division so this was a welcome breath of fresh air. This was Shepard’s ROH debut, Ortiz’s first ROH match in 2018, and only Grey’s third match this year. They’re all rookies so not yet on the level of those aforementioned women but with a veteran like Sakai to guide things along you can end up with a nice little match like this one.)

-The commentators fed to a video package on the Cheeseburger-Bully Ray feud that began with Ray’s heel turn on Burger at Supercard Of Honor in April. It continued with two matches on the War Of The Worlds tour in May. The first saw Ray purposefully get himself counted out while the second saw him get himself intentionally disqualified for attacking Burger with a chain, hence the stipulations tonight. [C]

-The ring was flooded with streamers for Cheeseburger. He wore his cowboy hat and sunglasses and carried his cheeseburger hat but, as he posed on the middle rope for the fans, Bully Ray ran down to the ring with a Singapore cane. Low blow from Ray to Burger and the bell rang to start the match.

(2) BULLY RAY vs. CHEESEBURGER – NO DQ, NO COUNT OUT

Burger collapsed to the floor, holding his crotch. “He’s so disgusting,” Cabana vented. Riccaboni asked if they could go to break so we didn’t have to show this. Ray grabbed a plastic garbage can from the crowd and hit Burger over the back. The crowd chanted “E-C-dub” even though they were just showering Burger with streamers 20 seconds earlier. Ray whipped Burger into the guardrail. He threw Burger onto the timekeeper’s table and shoved Cary Silkin. Referee Todd Sinclair put himself in front of Silkin to try to protect him. Ray threatened to smack Silkin as Burger writhed in the ring. Ray hung Burger upside down in the corner and stood on his groin. Burger cried out in agony. Ray started verbally abusing Sinclair as well. Burger tried to pull himself to his feet. Ray lifted him above his head and dropped him with a press slam. Ray mocked the fans and went to the apron to yell something at ring announcer Bobby Cruise. Ray picked up the Singapore cane and threatened Sinclair with it. Burger took a hard strike across the back. Ray looked like he was going to hit Sinclair in the crotch with the cane but Riccaboni pleaded again to cut the cameras and someone backstage finally listened, sending to break. [C]

Ray lifted Burger up with the cane and jabbed him in the gut. Ray hit some jabs to Burger’s face but, as he stopped to play to the crowd, Burger grabbed the cane and went nuts on Ray. The crowd popped huge as Ray collapsed to the mat and Burger kept hitting him. Burger tried to choke Ray with the cane from behind but Ray powered out and power bombed Burger across the ring. A loud “we want tables” chant from the crowd who couldn’t decide whether they were on Burger’s side or not. Ray took his steel chain out and whipped Burger across the ribs and back. Riccaboni suggested Sinclair should just call the match. The referee looked like he was considering it but Ray told Sinclair to get out of the way. When Sinclair said that Burger had enough, Ray disagreed. He threw Sinclair down and whipped him with the chain.

Colt Cabana had enough. He threw down his headset and charged the ring, tackling Ray to an enormous pop. He grabbed Ray’s chain and clotheslined him with it to a deafening “Colt Cabana” chant. A cheese grater somehow appeared in the ring. Cabana handed it to Burger and helped him up. Cabana then held Ray in Wassssup? position and Burger came off the top rope with a cheese grater shot to Ray’s crotch. Burger followed by rubbing the grater back and forth across Ray’s crotch to a huge “Cheesburger” chant. Cabana told Burger to get the table! He did but Ray cut him off as Burger was setting it up. Ray with a back body drop to Burger. Cabana looked on from ringside, unsure what to do. Ray set up the table as Cabana encouraged Burger. Ray laid Burger across the table and went to the second rope but Burger moved and Ray crashed stomach-first through the table! Burger covered, referee Paul Turner ran out, and counted the one… two… no! Ray kicked out! Burger called for the shotei palm strike attempt but Ray hit a big boot to put Burger away.

WINNER: Bully Ray in 13:37.

-ROH staff member B.J. Whitmer could be seen at ringside talking to Cabana and telling him to leave the ringside area because he was here tonight as a commentator, not a wrestler. Ray shoved Paul Turner even after his victory. Silkin could be seen looking on disapprovingly. [C]

(Pageot’s Perspective: Wow. A lot of people have really hated Ray’s role in ROH this year and I’ve been mostly on their side, although I think a bit more receptive to how he could be used. Whatever you feel about Bully Ray the character, though, there is no denying the arena-shattering pop when Cabana tackled him and when Burger had the cheese grater. You could feel the energy through the screen. If this doesn’t lead to ROH having Cabana wrestle again, even just part-time for the occasional story that makes sense, they are seriously dropping the ball. Ray didn’t get his final comeuppance here, which makes sense. Burger was the low-level hindrance. It will be up to Flip Gordon and possibly Cabana to finally take Ray down. With Ray attacking two referees and threatening Joe Koff and Cary Silkin now, when will ROH management finally step in and do something on their end? Maybe they should start considering hiring a new enforcer. Someone like Shane Helms?)

COLEMAN’S PULPIT with ROH WORLD SIX-MAN TAG TEAM CHAMPIONS THE KINGDOM (Matt Taven, TK O’Ryan, & Vinny Marseglia)

Taven and O’Ryan entered and told Coleman how much they love his show. They brought him “a purple beret” as a gift but they slipped it on his head without showing him and it turned out to be a purple dunce cap with Melvin written in rhinestones. Marseglia rose up into the shot behind Coleman with a red balloon. He had a manic grin on his face and a glass of wine. Taven took a sip. Marseglia squeezed some more wine into his hands out of a deflated balloon. Marseglia slurped the wine from his hand. Coleman tried to ask them about the six-man gauntlet match next week. Taven said it was just more proof of the Kingdom conspiracy. Coleman started rambling with a story about a rich 16 year-old kid who got an expensive car for his birthday and crashed it so his parents bought him a van instead and made him drive his siblings around. But the kid them pimped out his sedan and turned it into something cool. O’Ryan nodded along goofily. This was supposed to be a metaphor for The Kingdom and the six-man titles. Taven took offense at being called a sedan. O’Ryan called Coleman a melvin. Coleman called Taven a jive turkey. They yelled back and forth until The Kingdom walked off.

(Pageot’s Perspective: And here I was thinking that I had missed Coleman’s Pulpit and what it brought to the show. Never mind. This was terrible on every conceivable level.)

-Christopher Daniels and Scorpio Sky were backstage. Daniels addressed The Kingdom for stealing SoCal Uncensored’s six-man titles. Daniels claimed Taven set up the gauntlet match as another hoop for SCU to jump through in order to get a title shot.

-The Dawgs (Rhett Titus & Will Ferrara) were elsewhere backstage. Little Willy complained that they needed money in order to hire Shane Taylor to be their partner in the gauntlet match. Ryan Nova walked by. They tried to literally shake him down for some money with Titus picking him up upside down. Ferrara took Nova’s wallet but he only had six dollars. Titus punched out Nova.

-Caprice Coleman joined commentary to sub in for Cabana who was backstage checking on Cheeseburger. Brandi had her right arm back in a sling.

(3) “THE AMERICAN NIGHTMARE” CODY (w/Brandi Rhodes & Burnard The Business Bear) vs. TITÁN

Cody immediately begged off and then did some push-ups. They locked up for the first time at 1:15. Titán did a handstand but Cody kicked him to the mat. Titán with a springboard crossbody but Burnard tripped him as he ran the ropes. Then Brandi tripped Titán on the other side of the ring. [C]

Cody with a clothesline in the corner. Titán came back with some kicks and a springboard dropkick. Burnard tripped him again as he ran the ropes. Cody charged Titán at ringside but Titán moved and Cody took down Burnard. Titán followed with a flip off the ropes onto both man and bear that left Burnard beheaded. Brandi grabbed the bear’s head while the cameras stayed away from showing the person in the mascot costume. Cody hit a big boot in the ring. Brandi threw a canister of hairspray into the ring. As the referee discarded it Cody kicked Titán between the legs and followed with a Beautiful Disaster kick for a two-count. Titán ducked a clothesline and hit a jumping kick. Cody pulled the referee in front of him to block a move. He then yanked Titán’s mask off and rolled him up for the three.

WINNER: Cody in 10:06.

(Pageot’s Perspective: Yawn. If you were hoping for the same terrific kind of main event we got last week with Matt Taven and Último Guerrero you are out of luck. There was maybe three minutes of actual wrestling in there and I’m so tired of all the low blows in ROH lately. I guess the finish utilizing the luchador mask is a bit more creative than we usually get but Cody is one of the top three singles wrestlers in this company. He shouldn’t have to resort to six different types of shenanigans (Brandi, Burnard, low blow, hairspray, referee, mask) in order to beat someone like Titán who only appears sporadically for ROH and would lose nothing with a clean loss. And if we’re airing our grievances I’m also tired of the flip-flopping with Cody where he’s a babyface one week and a heel the next. He can be great in either role but pick a lane.)

-Next week: five trios compete in a gauntlet match to crown new #1 contenders to The Kingdom’s ROH World Six-Man Tag Team Championship.