SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...
ROH TV REPORT
MARCH 17, 2019
LAKELAND, FL AT RP FUNDING CENTER
AIRED ON SINCLAIR AFFILIATES & ROHWRESTLING.COM
REPORT BY HARLEY R. PAGEOT, PWTORCH CONTRIBUTOR
Commentary: Ian Riccaboni, Colt Cabana
Opening theme.
-In the arena we opened with Cheeseburger’s ninja squad making their entrance for a trios tag.
(1) SILAS YOUNG & THE BRISCOES (Jay Briscoe & Mark Briscoe) vs. SHINOBI SHADOW SQUAD (Cheeseburger, Eli Isom, & Ryan Nova)
Isom and Jay Briscoe started. Nova tagged in against Mark but quickly tagged back out to Burger. [C]
Mark with a delayed vertical suplex to Burger. Mark bit Burger’s head behind the referee’s back. Nova took out Young with a suicide drive. Jay with a death valley driver + Mark with a froggy-bow. Isom kicked out. Isom with a brainbuster to Jay but he kicked out. War Raiders’ Total Elimination to Isom from the Briscoes. Jay Driller.
WINNERS: Young & The Briscoes in 7:43.
(Pageot’s Perspective: Young never tagged in once. Odd. The purpose of this match seemed to be about the continued rise of Isom following his upset pinfalls last year over guys Christopher Daniels. He was allowed to kick out of one of the Briscoes’ signature tandem moves and get a near-fall on the former world champion. For that reason I’m not sure why they had him take the pin here. Nova could have easily tagged in after Total Elimination and taken the Jay Driller instead.)
-Rhett Titus was in a stairwell backstage. He addressed the NWA national champion Willie Mack, who he faces next week. The smooth jazz played in the background as Titus said he was going to end Mack’s quest to defend the title in all fifty states. [C]
-Future Of Honor competitor Brian Johnson was already in the ring, looking like a poor man’s Q.T. Marshall. He was joined by “not Tyler Breeze” Joe Keys. They insulted the fans for drinking beer. The Bouncers headed out from the bar with Bruiser’s keg and a couple cans of Beer City Brew. The Bouncers took the mic and said they were here to kick ass and drink some beer.
(2) THE BOUNCERS (Beer City Bruiser & Brian Milonas) vs. “#1” BRIAN JOHNSON & JOE KEYS
Bruiser and Keys began. Keys wanted a test of strength. Bruiser slapped him. Atomic drop. Chops. Keys hurriedly tagged in Johnson. Back elbow from Bruiser. Keys grabbed Bruiser’s foot behind the ref’s back, which allowed the heels to take control. They teamed up to body slam Bruiser. Hot tag to Milonas. He tossed both rookies around. Splash on Johnson in the corner. Closing Time for the win.
WINNERS: The Bouncers in 5:30.
(Pageot’s Perspective: I’m all for enhancement matches like this to help continue to establish The Bouncers as faces and build them up for something bigger down the line.)
-Madison Rayne was backstage. She addressed Twisted Sisterz and said they go against everything Women Of Honor stands for. Their behavior isn’t why she came to ROH. [C]
(Pageot’s Perspective: Hilarious, since she has now left to return to Impact.)
-Willie Mack had a pre-tape promo about his match next week. The show in Florida will mark state #5 on his 50-state tour. I believe it’s a non-title match but that wasn’t made clear.
(3) MADISON RAYNE (w/Sumie Sakai) vs. THUNDER ROSA (w/Holidead)
Rayne tackled Rosa before the bell and ran her into the turnbuckles. Basement dropkick. Holidead advanced on Sakai at ringside so Rayne dropkicked her through the ropes. This allowed Rosa to take over. She hit some kicks to Rayne’s spine. Body slam. [C]
Very basic offense from Rosa, just some kicks and a slam. Rayne with a spear. Crossbody. Enziguiri. Gory special from Rosa for two. Rayne with an inverted DDT.
WINNER: Madison Rayne in 8:13.
(Pageot’s Perspective: That felt longer. Rosa got a long stretch of offense out of the commercials but did nothing memorable with any of it. Just really basic stuff, even compared to Keys, Johnson, and Nova in the previous matches. The gory special was the only real “move” she did. Rayne was fine. I still find her terribly bland and I doubt WOH will miss her much. Oh gosh, we need some new blood in this division and soon.)
-Coast 2 Coast (LSG & Shaheem Ali) were in the locker room. They were away for a while, rediscovering themselves. Next week they take on the world champ Jay Lethal and his friend Jonathan Gresham.
-Rocky Romero made his entrance for the main event. Zack Sabre Jr. was out for his opponent. [C]
(4) ZACK SABRE JR. vs. ROCKY ROMERO
Chain wrestling to start. Romero dropkicked Sabre to the floor. Submission counters. They traded snapmares. [C]
Romero went on a flurry of offense including a springboard crossbody. He hit two running clotheslines in the corner before being cut off. STF from Sabre. Rope break. They traded strikes. Romero with a high knee on Sabre lying across the top turnbuckle. Dropkick to Sabre’s knee wrapped around the middle rope. Springboard dropkick. Sabre kicked out. Sliced bread. Romero looked for a second but Sabre avoided it and locked in Hurrah! Another Year, Surely This One Will Be Better Than The Last; The Inexorable March Of Progress Will Lead Us All To Happiness. Romero tapped.
WINNER: Zack Sabre Jr. in 14:22.
(Pageot’s Perspective: A very odd choice for a TV main event with two New Japan stars who only show up sporadically in ROH. This was okay but I’m not a devout NJPW follower so I’m not particularly invested in either guy and ROH has done nothing to tell me who they are or care about who wins. Sabre is now 4-0 in ROH. He’s clearly being built up for something big but exactly what is not obvious yet. A world title match at Best In The World in June?)
-Next week: it’s ROH World Champion Jay Lethal & Jonathan Gresham vs. Coast 2 Coast and NWA National Heavyweight Champion Willie Mack vs. Rhett Titus.
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