Column of Honor: 11.11.06

Hello Internet.
Wrestling Haiku—no DQ.
Begin column now.

ROH Results: Philadelphia, PA 11/04/2006
Matches
-Christopher Daniels defeated “M Dogg 20” Matt Cross via pinfall with Angels Wings.
-Ricky Reyes defeated Shane Hagadorn via submission.
– Pelle Primeau defeated Colt Cabana, BJ Whitmer, and Tank Tolland in a Four
Corner Survival via pinfall with a roll up over Tolland.
-Samoa Joe and Nigel McGuinness defeated ROH World Champion “American Dragon” Bryan Danielson and Jimmy Rave when Nigel pins Rave with the rebound closeline.
-The Briscoes defeated Delirious & Davey Richards after a Spike J-Driller on Delirious.
-ROH Tag Team champions The Kings of Wrestling (Chris Hero & Claudio Castagnoli) retained the titles by defeating Austin Aries & Roderick Strong via disqualification.
-KENTA defeated Matt Sydal via pinfall with the Go 2 Sleep.
-Homicide defeated Steve Corino via pinfall with a lariat in Fight Without Honor.

Angles and Issues
Barber Shop of Horrors: After their final blow off match and with Corino left the loser, Homicide proposed that a fitting way to end their feud would be for him to shave Corino’s head, like they did in Mexico. Corino said that if they were putting away their feud, he would be man enough to start the shaving first. The two men also shook hands, thus bringing their years-long beef to an end. This got a mixed reaction live and on the boards, but as it turns out these two planned the after match angle themselves and did not tell booker Gabe Sapolsky about it.

Commision-OUT: Konnan also made himself a factor in the show by getting into a verbal argument with Cornette over the treatment of minorities in ROH. He got Ricky Reyes a match. Cornette went ape crazy, changing all sorts of rules in the main event, stacking the deck against Homicide. He said ‘Cide would need a ten count to win the match not a three count. He also made Shane Hagadorn a special referee. When Shane was choked out by Reyes and could not ref, Cornette threatened to cancel the main event. Konnan returned and said that he had permission from ROH’s owner and booker (Cary and Gabe were never named) to have a vote by the fans as to who should go—Homicide or Cornette. Of course, the fans chose Cornette to go and he was tossed by security, kicking and screaming. Cornette had been dethroned as commissioner of ROH.

Bitchslap Heard Round the World: Samoa Joe came out after KENTA and Matt Sydal’s big match and declared that he had changed his mind about KENTA. He was impressed with his run in ROH. However, he had a message for KENTA to bring back to his mentor Kenta Kobashi. He then proceeded to slap the hell out of KENTA, and thus bringing out the entire locker room to separate the two competitors. I’ll have more next week on the burgeoning issues between Joe and Japan.

BUT WAIT! THERE’S MORE!
Live from the Road with Stu Carapola

Stu is back with his live takes from the weekend that was in Philadelphia. His comments are in italics; any comments I make are in bold.

The crowd was definitely down from the ROH vs CZW days, but not embarrassingly small by any stretch. They did seem unusually dead for a Philly crowd, however, and a lot of times there was this uncharacteristically awkward silence.

Stu

Many thanks to Stu for these reports he does for the column. Stu does a wonderful job in his own columns and is a hell of a man.

Honorarium

-There is surprisingly not all that much to talk about this week as I’m a bit behind on watching the newest ROH releases (I have about half of Gut Check and all of Glory By Honor V Night 1 to get through) and can’t comment too much on the happenings of those shows. I did get to watch the two main event matches from GBH V night 2 and let me say, they definitely hold up on video. In fact, watching Dragon vs. KENTA again gave me almost as much of a rush watching it on video as it did live. The video presentation at the beginning of the tape also looks top notch. The show itself visually translates very well, as the camera view from the balcony is excellent. Even better are the transitions from the hard cam to the handhelds as it really looks super professional. It’s a definite step up from other shows as it regards to production.

-I and my buddies Chris, John and Jon are also all over the tape. Check out the line up of four dudes with goatees and facial hair on the left side of the hard camera. Chris has on his red ROH hat, and I’m three seats down sporting my beige jacket and black ROH cap. I have to say though…the expression the camera adds ten pounds to your weight has never been truer for me. I feel ashamed.

-I actually am halfway interested in WWE Survivor Series this year—basically because of the three elimination matches they have announced. I am a huge fan of the traditional elimination matches and wish that they could just go back to having the entire PPV that way. Also, CM Punk teaming up with DX and the Hardyz what what? How sick is that? Some people are saying (LARRY) that Punk will be buried by HHH by being the first eliminated, but honestly even if he is first out, it’s not a big deal. When it comes to seniority he and Knox are low on the totem pole, so I’m fine with it. It’s enough to know WWE thinks enough of Punk to put him in this match as well as the ECW PPV main event (elimination chamber).

-According to an interview Gabe Sapolsky did this past week, there are thoughts of reinstituting a secondary title in ROH somewhere down the line, just not a Pure rules title. I am all for a secondary title being established again. It provides that extra depth in the card and helps gauge who’s “getting there” in terms of moving up the roster to the main event. In the right context, this could work out well.

-I haven’t been to an ROH live event in almost two months and I won’t be able to attend another one until Final Battle 2006. I am going through some massive ROH live event withdrawls. Sometimes I spontaneous bang kitchen pots and pans in time to the beat of Black Sabbath’s “Supernaut!” Then I’ll take the toilet paper from the bathroom and toss it at my neighbor when he’s on his porch. Sometimes I’ll chant “ROH! ROH! ROH!” after a really good television show. Then when I get my take out, I shake the delivery man’s hand and say “Cary, thank you for such a great show.” It doesn’t even matter if the guy’s name isn’t Cary.

Clearly, I need to seek out help. Is there an ROHolics Anonymous out there? I need to know.

ROH Call
ROH Champions—As of 11/11/2006

ROH World Champion—American Dragon Bryan Danielson (champion since 9/17/05, 34 successful defenses)*, **, ***
ROH World Tag Team Champions—Kings of Wrestling (Chris Hero and Claudio Castagnoli) (champions since 09/16/06, 2 successful defenses)****

*ROH World and Pure Titles Unified on 8/12/06, Pure Title is folded
**Dragon makes successful defense of ROH title at ETW promotion in Texas on 6/10/06.
***Dragon retains the title in defense of ROH title in Connecticut on 9/30/06.
****Kings of Wrestling put the ROH tag titles on the line during a tournament on a CZW show 10/14/06. However, ROH officials are not recognizing this match as an official title defense.

ROH News
(via the ROHnewswire… and other sources when attributed

Claudio Signs with WWE
Claudio Catsagnoli announced he had signed with WWE under a developmental contract. After a week of contemplation where the offer was open but unsigned, Claudio finally sealed the deal and will be off shortly to Deep South Wrestling, run by trainer “The Assassin” Joey Hamilton.

As with most independent talents who are signed to the big E, Claudio should get some time to finish off his independent bookings, which is important in this case because he is co-holder of three tag team belts with Chris Hero—ROH, CZW and Chikara Pro. It’s very important for business to be done the right way so that these three belts retain momentum and prestige. The tag division in ROH has been critically acclaimed and it would be a bummer to go out on the year with a stripping of the titles. It think it could be relatively easy for the ROH and CZW straps to be dropped (and as it regards ROH, there’s a slew of title defenses already signed where the title change can happen)—however, things are a bit more complicated for Chikara. Under their rules for the campeones de parejas, a challenger for the tag straps has to win three matches in a row to earn the right for a title opportunity. Unless there is a super rush job of these wins, It will take a bit of time for that to happen.

ROH Wrestlers, Indy talent Signed to Appear on WSX
From 411 via PWInsider
Aaron Aguilera (Jesus during his WWE run), NWA Wildside star Luke, Puerto Rican star Ricky Banderas, CZW/PWG star B-Boy, female star Sara Del Ray, former XPW and ECW regular Vic Grimes, ROH’s Lacey, PWG’s Disco Machine, PWG’s Quicksilver, PWG champion Joey Ryan, PWG’s Youth Suicide, PWG’s Kaos, Alkatrazz, PWG’s Scorpio Sky Andrews, and PWG’s Babi Slymm are all confirmed for the Wrestling Society X tapings next week in Los Angeles.

WSX will hold tapings from 11/11 to 11/16 at a soundstage in Hollywood next week. For tickets, visit IWantMyWSX.com.
You can also add “M Dogg 20” Matt Cross to this list.

Well, Wrestling Society X has just turned from a promotion that could have ceased to exist at any moment into a promotion with some of the most talented and able independent wrestlers in the world. By gathering up some of the best independent talent from around the indies AND overseas, WSX makes it claim to becoming a must see promotion. I question how they are going to include all this awesome talent at once (six man matches and battle royals I guess) but it is the thought that counts. It will be good to see guys like Disco, Quicksilver, Ryan, Scorpio Sky, Jacobs, Cabana, Sydal, Tyler Black and Jack Evans featured on a national stage. Getting Yoshino and Horguchi is also a heck of a boost and gives them almost instant credibility.

Of course, it is an MTV production and will only be a half hour per episode, AND it will feature musicians playing during the show as well…so maybe this project will end up more screwed up than a Russo booked episode of a Impact.

KENTA vs. Danielson 2 Signed for NOAH show
As reported a few weeks back, current ROH champion Bryan Danielson is heading overseas during the last two weeks of November as part of a tour with Japan’s Pro Wrestling NOAH. In fact the tour will last from November 17th until December 2nd.

The BIG news is that for the 12/2/06 NTV / G+ semi main event, Danielson will fight KENTA in a rematch of what many including myself consider to be the current match of the year. If you weren’t there to see this match live in New York this past September or have not caught up with the Glory By Honor 5 Night 2 DVD, the match was fierce and closely contested and incredibly well received by the crowd. Expect the same to happen overseas in this reprise. The scary thing is that if all goes well, Danielson and KENTA may actually trump their match from September, thus bringing about even more discussion as to the MOTY debate!

Here is the list of other NOAH matches involving Danielson. They mostly involve him in tag and six man tags with other Gaijin.

NOAH, 11/17/06 (NTV/G+)
Tokyo Korakuen Hall
2. Akitoshi Saito, KENTA & Ricky Marvin vs. Bison Smith, Bryan Danielson & Eddie Edwards

NOAH, 11/29/06
Sendai Sun Plaza Hall
2. Jun Akiyama & Makoto Hashi vs. Bison Smith & Bryan Danielson

Credit to Fallen Angel 45 and Dirk off of the ROH message boards for bringing this information to the light of day.

ROH Top 100 Matches of the First 100 Shows
ROH is featuring a message board derived list of one hundred best matches of the first one hundred Ring of Honor shows (which was back in April of this year, so clearly ROH is well past that).

Here are the top ten as selected by the fans.

1. Samoa Joe vs. Kenta Kobashi- Joe vs. Kobashi
2. Samoa Joe vs. CM Punk- Joe vs. Punk II
3. Blood Generation vs. Do Fixer- Supercard of Honor
4. Low-Ki vs. KENTA- Final Battle 2005
5. Samoa Joe vs. CM Punk- All-Star Extravaganza II
6. Bryan Danielson vs. Roderick Strong- Vendetta
7. Bryan Danielson vs. Roderick Strong- Supercard of Honor
8. Samoa Joe vs. Bryan Danielson- Midnight Express Reunion
9. AJ Styles vs. Paul London- Night of the Grudges
10. Team ROH (Samoa Joe, BJ Whitmer, & Adam Pearce) vs. Team CZW (Chris Hero, Necro Butcher, & Super Dragon)- The 100th Show

You can read the entire list here

Jim Cornette Impeached
ROH Commissioner Jim Cornette has been impeached. Cornette and ROH have now parted ways. There are no plans to name a new commissioner. One of the things that originally made ROH different was the fact that there weren’t any authority figures dominating the mic time. ROH will go back to that principal. You can read a complete timeline of Cornette’s descent into insanity that ultimately cost him his commissioner job on the main page of ROHwrestling.com.

Well, at least ROH realizes it got it wrong on this one. I think that many including myself were thinking ROH could put a new twist on the much used heel authority figure angle, but it turns out they couldn’t. Cornette was starting to influence other wrestler’s career paths such as Delirious. I’ve put up with this angle for YEARS on WWE Tv and even to some extent on TNA, and it’s just time to end it. .That paradigm is washed up, used, abused and worn out. I’m just sick and tired of it. I could go with NEVER watching a heel authority figure angle ever again. Then I read the results from WWE Raw…and I read that Eric Bischoff was back (and better than ever) as a heel authority figure…and I just about shot myself. Then I remembered I hardly ever watch Raw anymore. I was glad. Back to ROH, for so long the company was focused on the wrestlers and their issues, and it’s time to refocus back on that aspect.

ROH has an article more clearly explaining the timeline and the reasons why Cornette was impeached (other than and including becoming a no good corrupt backstabbing two timing son of a gun) here.

Dethroning the Kings
ROH World Tag Team Champions Chris Hero & Claudio Castagnoli are two of the most wanted men in ROH. They will be faced with two tough title defenses on 11/24 in Long Island and 11/25 in Edison. Long Island will see the final match pitting Hero & Castagnoli vs. Austin Aries & Roderick Strong. Last Saturday in Philly saw Aries & Strong disqualified when Aries used Claudio’s metal briefcase. This won’t happen in Long Island because the match will be No DQ!!! The feud will get settled in Long Island.

If Hero & Castagnoli make it past Aries & Strong, they will defend the belts on 11/25 in Edison, NJ against Christopher Daniels & Matt Sydal. This match will take place whether the titles are on the line or not. Daniels & Sydal defeated Hero & Castagnoli respectively in singles matches last Friday in Braintree, MA. Hero & Castagnoli attacked Daniels and hit him with the KRS-1 last Saturday in Philly. Now Edison, NJ will see the match and depending on what happens in Long Island it could be for the World Tag Team Titles!!!

The pairings of Aries and Strong as well as Daniels and Sydal are very realistic possibilities for winning the straps. I don’t see Aries and Strong getting it back however, because that would leave us where we started back in September. I think Daniels and Sydal pick up the straps next, if not here then sometime in December on one of the Chicago shows or even at Final Battle. Even though the Kings reign is likely to be cut short, it still looks as if there will be some solid to great matches to talk about as a result of their title reign.

No More TP, but plenty of Nigel for Rave
The days of toilet paper showers in ROH is over. After last Saturday’s ugly incident where Jimmy Rave snapped after a roll was thrown at him after his match, TP is now banned (except in the bathrooms obviously). The TP was something for The Embassy, but now Rave is trying to move onto the next chapter of his career. Nigel McGuinness had some words for Rave after the incident and now Rave has challenged him to a match. It will be Rave vs. McGuinness on 11/25 in Edison, NJ.

While the connection of TP to The Embassy is a legitamite point, I still consider the TP thing more of a Jimmy Rave thing than anything else. It was and is still tons of fun to do this, but it’s understandable for ROH to say enough is enough with it. The TP throwing has been going on for over a year and a half now, and every single time out the scene was something special. Even wrestlers like Colt Cabana and Delirious would get into the act and throw TP at Rave during their matches. I guess ROH fans need to come up with something new to entertain themselves.

It looks like Nigel McGuiness will have Jimmy Rave as his next feud. While some could say it is a step down from the World title fights Nigel has had lately, I look at it more as a step up for Rave, who has been on a losing streak lately and could use a nice hot series of matches to reclaim positioning in ROH.

HD(anielson) TV
The new ROH Video Wire will be up later today at www.ROHvideos.com and it is totally free. The new Video Wire will focus on ROH World Champion Bryan Danielson as it will show the complete Danielson vs. Sal Rinauro match from Dayton. Danielson is better than TV and if you’ve never seen him wrestle this is a great opportunity to do so for free. The Video Wire is also available on Google Videos (where you can download it to your Ipod or PSP) and rohvideos.com.

I’m not exactly sure about the assertion that Danielson is better than TV. ALL TV? Including Satellite and Digital Cable? Ah, who am I kidding, OF COURSE HE IS! The match against Rinauro is a bit of a squash, but a fun squash at that. It’s also quick so for those who don’t want to sit through hour draws it’s a nice little primer on what Dragon can do. There’s also a great promo by Homicide and Konnan which should be checked out.

Chicago Gets Even More Spectacular
We are only one month away from “The Chicago Spectacular” on 12/8 and 12/9 at the Frontier Fieldhouse in Chicago Ridge, IL. This will be a huge weekend of wrestling for Chicago. Friday, 12/8, will be headlined by a World Title Steel Cage Match as Bryan Danielson defends vs. Samoa Joe. Saturday, 12/9, will see the rematch from “Gut Check” as Austin Aries & Roderick Strong take on Christopher Daniels & Matt Sydal. If either of these teams win the ROH World Tag Team Titles on Thanksgiving Weekend the belts will be on the line here.

The Friday show has the huge world title cage match and I suspect that the Saturday tag match will be for the belts and will be in the main event position. Booking the cage match on Friday is a deliberate strategy to boost tickets for that day and I can’t blame them for doing so. In fact I think this should perhaps be done more often for marquee main events so that the so called “Friday” shows don’t become the official “B shows” of ROH events. Keeping every show a must see is important not just for live attendance but for DVD sales as well.

Manhattan is kind of Cool Too.
Brent Albright and Jimmy Jacobs have been added to the 12/22 East Windsor and 12/23 Manhattan events. The complete talent list for that weekend now has: ROH World Champion Bryan Danielson; ROH World Tag Team Champions Chris Hero & Claudio Castagnoli; Homicide; Shingo and another top Dragon Gate star; Samoa Joe; Roderick Strong; Austin Aries; Jimmy Rave; Matt Sydal; Delirious; Christopher Daniels; Adam Pearce; Colt Cabana; Davey Richards; Jay & Mark Briscoe; Nigel McGuinness; BJ Whitmer; Jimmy Jacobs; Brent Albright plus more to be added!!!

Quite the jam packed talent list to close out the year—I’m really excited to see Brent Albright live in action and definitely wondering who will show up from Dragon Gate.

…Now it’s time for
Hero’s Sandwich

There have been a lot of rumors lately about myself and Claudio Castagnoli. Some of those rumors are untrue (no we are no lovers you homophobic mutants). Unfortunately some of those rumors are true. Sooner rather than later the Kings are going to have to come to an end. Perhaps…that means it is time for my involvement in this pathetic column to end as well. All good things must come to an end, as the saying goes, and yes, this is really the only good thing at all about this column. I will remember the good times, such as when I smacked Samoa Joe upside his head and ended his pathetic middle of the column mediocrity. Then I took over this column and went on to insult its writer many, many times over. I was even happy to see my good buddy Claudio help out last week. Alas, it’s time to end. As an overly trite and sappy 80’s song once went “hey now, hey now, don’t dream, it’s over.” So, with a broken heart and a broken spirit, I must bid you a fond goodbye…

See you next week, marks.

This has been Hero’s Sandwich.

The Money Players: October 2006

Who are the money players? In the sports industry, money players are the athletes who are making the right plays at the right moments.

In wrestling, the concept of the money player is not all that different. The wrestler who has a great match or gives an impressive impression upon the audience ups their worth to the wrestling promoter. While you may be helping your team, you are also helping yourself and your career.

So once a month here at Column of Honor, I’ll be looking at some of the money players in Ring of Honor. We’ll see who’s hot, who’s not, who’s making those key plays and who is dropping the ball, so to speak. I’m also going to manage a “stock portfolio” during the year. We’ll see how the wrestlers I picked perform over the course of time.

Here’s the ground rules: a player’s “stock” can go up or down dependent on a number of factors. Most importantly, from a “shoot” perspective, we’ll be looking at a wrestlers’ position on the roster and on the cards, any political quandaries and the future possibilities of being booked onto shows. Injuries can also impact the well being of a wrestlers’ stock. From a “work” perspective, it’s important to consider wins and losses, feuds and rivalries, entanglements and championship runs. Simply put, the more a wrestler impresses in the ring through talent and through W-Ls, the more likely a chance their stock goes up and vice versa.

Money Player of the Month—October 2006

Delirious (DELI) / Matt Sydal (SYDL)

-For the second month in a row I have to give two people the “money player” award. Delirious and Sydal have done a remarkable job both against each other and against plenty of other opposition over the last few months. With energetic in ring performances and increasing fan support, Delirious and Matt Sydal have staked their claim to name value in ROH. Delirious has won the survival of the fittest tournament and earned another main event title fight against Bryan Danielson. Meanwhile Sydal has been defeating EVERYONE and anyone, including ROH Tag Team champions Kings of Wrestling. He now can make good on an opportunity to win the ROH tag team titles.

ROH STOCK INDEX

Breadwinners

–Pelle Primeau (PPRM): Holy shit! Out of the penny stocks comes Pelle Primeau, breaking through the roof of the ROH stock exchange. Two huge upset wins over the last month have given Pelle his biggest chance ever of making a name for himself in ROH. The man has perpetually been a challenger for the ROH Top of the Class Trophy (currently held by Shane Hagadorn) but he may be even better than that trophy at this point. Things may continue to go way up for Pelle freaking Primeau.

–Homicide (HOMI): Homicide’s huge win against Corino gives him closure on a near four year long feud. Homicide continues to develop his name and reputation even stronger than ever over these past few months. The World title shot is in sight and everything points to huge gains in that area.

–Davey Richards (DAVE): After an initial slow period this month, Richards rockets back to the forefront with wins against The Briscoes and strong performances overall

Loss Leaders

–Jimmy Rave (RAVE), and Sal Rinauro (SALR) For the second month in a row, Rave and Rinauro are big losers. Rave is on a seemingly never ending losing streak, but Rinauro is even worse off—he has been dumped by Rave and is now seemingly gone from ROH.

Trendsetters

–Shingo(SHGO): Last month Shingo Takagi was removed from the penny stocks, seemingly gone and not coming back. Talk about a turnaround—Shingo is not only back in ROH but he’s back for a good number of ROH events. Plus, he’s winning! The stock market always loves a winner and right now Shingo is setting the trend of coming in and winning big. The market also approves of dropping his last name and going by one name only. The only thing that could make his stock rise even more is if he forgoes the first name entirely and becomes referred to as a symbol.

Future Outlooks

(+) POSITIVE: Homicide, The Briscoes, Delirious, Samoa Joe, Colt Cabana, Matt Sydal, Nigel McGuiness, Brent Albright (new) M Dogg 20 (new), BJ Whitmer (up)

(/) NEUTRAL: Chris Hero (drops), Claudio Castagnoli (drops), Austin Aries, Jack Evans, Christopher Daniels, Adam Pearce, Roderick Strong, Irish Airborne, , Jimmy Rave, (up) Tank Toland (new)

(-) NEGATIVE: Jimmy Jacobs, Ace Steel (drops), Ricky Reyes, Sal Rinauro, Zack Gowen (new)

Penny Stocks
Looking for a cheap bargain? This is the place to speculate on the next possible big things…but look out; there could also be a few duds here.

–More than a penny for your thoughts
Shane Hagadorn (HAGA):–huge win against Irish Airborne increases Hagadorn’s momentum.
Irish Airborne (IAIR)—steady improvements in their matches have made a slight stock increase.
Pelle Primeau (PPRM)—huge wins are helping Pelle’s cause. Maybe soon to be out of penny stock!

–Still just one cent
ADDED:Tank Toland (TANK)–Opens up with two losses, will he make good in ROH?
ADDED:M Dogg 20 “Matt Cross” (MD20)–opens up with a loss, but has potential to rise up quickly.
Dunn and Marcos (RCEX)–inactive in ROH since September 15th.
Trik Davis (TRIK)–MIA
Jerrelle Clarke (JRLE)—MIA
Jay Fury (FURY)—MIA

REMOVED:
Sterling James Keenan (SJKN)—MIA
Conrad Kennedy III (CDK3)—MIA

-The Students-
Perhaps the purest of the penny stocks since these guys are at the very start of their career. Each shows promise but each has risks at this stage. Will any of these stocks show maturity in the future?

Mitch Franklin (MFRN)
Bobby Dempsey (BDEM)
Derek Dempsey (DDEM)
Rhett Titus (TTUS)
Alex Payne (PAYN)

Ari’s Stock Portfolio

These are the wrestler’s I’ve chosen to look at over the next few months. I’ve also assigned a conditional starting stock price for each of them, assigned of course by myself (we’ll let the kinks work out in the system). I have a total of $150.00 to spend on these stocks and I must pick two pennies for my portfolio. I was also not allowed myself to make any stock moves until AFTER the third month, but now can buy and sell at will.

Samoa Joe (SAMO) (September value: $36.50) STOCK UP! –> 37.00
Bryan Danielson (ADBD) (September value: $50.00) STOCK NEUTRAL! –> 50.00
The Briscoes (BRSC) (September value: $12.75 ) STOCK DOWN! –> 12.25
Delirious (DELI) (September value: $10.00) STOCK UP! –> 11.00
Davey Andrews (DAVE) (September value: $1.00) STOCK UP! –> 1.25
Homcide (HOMI) (September value: $25.25) STOCK UP! –> 26.00

Sold in July: Chris Hero (HERO) (September value: $21.00) STOCK NEUTRAL! –> 21.00

Previous Balance entering October 2006: $135.61
Current Balance end October 2006: $137.66
Net Change: PLUS $2.05

Analysis: Stocks continue to go up or hold steady for the most part this month. Joe’s stock increased thanks to a non title win back on October 28th. Danielson holds steady thanks to title defenses, so that loss to Joe doesn’t hurt his status all too much. Long term speculators worry that Danielson’s shoulder pains may be catching up to him and it may be soon time to sell. I’ll hold onto him this month, but maybe next month will hold a different story. Huge wins all across the board by Delirious, Andrews and Homicide have increased their stock, but the question is whether or not to hold onto them in the long run. The Briscoes have a slight market correction in light of recent losses but remain top contenders for the tag titles and as a result have some value. For at least one more month I am going to hold steady and not change anything, but as we head into 2007 I’m anticipating making some speculating moves and shaking things up. We shall see.

DING! DING! DING!

Here’s Delirious to ring The Closing Bell. Oh no! He’s eating it instead! I guess that means it is the end of the Money Players / Stock market for this month. Now I have to go buy a new cowbell. Maybe Dusty Rhodes is around and has an extra.

Going Home

**The Independent Buy In**
Support independent pro wrestling, ROH or non ROH, I don’t care. But if you out there are spending so much time complaining about how WWE sucks, then dammit, spend some money so you won’t have to spend so much time complaining. This list stays in the column and will be added to as the year goes on. Remember: don’t bow out, BUY IN!

Recommended for purchase:
**IWC No Excuses (Styles vs. Matt Hardy, John McChesney vs. Claudio Castagnoli, Jason Gory vs. Shima Xion)
**FIP New Years Classic (Strong vs. Joe, Homicide vs. James Gibson)
**Hardcore Homecoming (2 Cold Scorpio vs. Kid Kash, 3 Way Dance Barbwire Match Funk vs. Douglas vs. Sabu)
**TNA Lockdown (AJ Styles vs. Abyss, Daniels vs. Skipper, Lethal Lockdown 6 Man Tag, AMW vs. Team Canada + Bonus Chris Candido tribute)
**ROH Fate of an Angel (James Gibson vs. CM Punk, Christopher Daniels vs. Matt Hardy, Roderick Strong vs. AJ Styles, Samoa Joe vs. Jimmy Rave)
**TNA Anthology: The Epic Set (available only through Walmart and Walmart.com at a ridiculously cheap price) (Victory Road 2004, Turning Point 2004, Lockdown 2005)
**ROH Redemption (4 Way Title Elimination—Punk vs. Gibson vs. Joe vs. Daniels, Matt Hardy vs. Homicide, Gen Next of Aries, Strong and Sydal vs. The Embassy of Rave, Shelley and Abyss)
**ROH Punk: The Final Chapter (CM Punk vs. Colt Cabana plus post match celebration, Matt Hardy vs. Roderick Strong, Samoa Joe and Jay Lethal vs Low Ki and Homicide, Austin Aries vs. Jimmy Rave)
**IWC Summer Sizzler 2 (AJ Styles vs. Samoa Joe, Steve Corino vs. Shirley Doe, Glen Spectre vs. Chad Collyer, Shima Xion vs. Nigel McGuinness)
**ROH Glory By Honor IV (Dragon vs. Gibson, Styles vs. Rave, Low Ki vs. Jay Lethal) **ROH Joe vs. Kobashi (Samoa Joe vs. Kenta Kobashi, Christopher Daniels vs. Matt Sydal vs. Azriael, Gibson vs. Yang)
**TNA Best of the X Division MATCHES Volume 1 (Joe vs. Sabin, Ultimate X AJ vs. Williams vs. Sabin, Ironman match: AJ vs. Daniels)
**FIP Bring the Pain (Punk vs. Danielson 2/3 Falls, Aries vs. Strong)
**OVW October 2005 Television Showcase (Ken Doane vs. Brent Albright III, Johnny Jeter vs. Matt Cappotelli, and CM Punk, CM Punk, CM Punk, CM Punk)
**OVW November 2005 Television Showcase (CM Punk vs. Ken Doane (c)—TV Title, CM Punk vs. Brent Albright, Matt Cappotelli vs. Johnny Jeter (c) II-Heavyweight Title)
**ROH Unforgettable (Samoa Joe / Low Ki vs. Homicide / Kenta Kobashi, Dragon vs. Strong, Daniels vs. Yang, Cabana vs. Evans)

2006 List
*ROH This Means War (Bryan Danielson / Roderick Strong, AJ Styles / Austin Aries, Claudio Castagnoli / Alex Shelley)
**ROH Vendetta (Bryan Danielson / Roderick Strong, Eight Man War: Generation Next + AJ Styles / The Embassy, Samoa Joe / Christopher Daniels)
**ROH A Night of Tribute (Bryan Danielson / Christopher Daniels, Aries + Strong / Joe + Lethal, Colt Cabana / Homicide, Claudio Castagnoli / Milano Collection AT)
**OVW December 2005 Television Showcase (CM Punk (c) vs. Ken Doane vs. Brent Albright—3 Way Dance TV Title, CM Punk vs. Brent Albright—TV Title)
**SHIMMER WOMEN’S ATHLETES Volume 1 (Cheerleader Melissa vs. MsChif, Sara Del Rey vs. Mercedez Martinez, Lacey vs. Daizee Haze)
**TNA Bound For Glory 2005 (Iron Man 2: Styles / Daniels, Monster’s Ball 2, Joe / Liger, 10 Man Gauntlet, Jarrett vs. Rhino)
**TNA Genesis 2005 (Jarrett & AMW / Rhino & Team 3-D, Styles / Williams, Elimination X: Joe, Daniels, Shelley, Strong / Sabin, Dutt, Aries, Bentley; Christian Cage Debuts)
**ROH Steel Cage Warfare (Generation Next / The Embassy, Dsanielson / Romero, Joe / Lethal, Corino / Homicide )
**ROH Final Battle 2005 (Low Ki / KENTA, Danielson / Marifuji, Claudio / Nigel, 4CS: Daniels / Joe / Lethal / Whitmer )
**ROH Tag Wars 2006 (All three Trios Tournament 2006 matches, Generation Next / Danielson and Lethal, Low Ki / Christopher Daniels )
**BCW International Incident (Jarrett / Raven, Daniels / Sabin, Petey Williams / Jerry Lynn, Bobby Roode / Abyss)
**SHIMMER WOMEN’S ATHLETES Volume 2 (Four Way Elimination Match: Daizee Haze vs. Sara Del Rey vs. Lacey vs. Mercedes Martinez / MsChif vs. Beth Phoenix / Alison Danger vs. Rain)
**PWG Astonishing X-Mas (December 16th, 2005) (Super Dragon vs. Kevin Steen / Eight Man Tag / Strong & Evans vs. Human Tornado & El Generico / Colt Cabana vs. Scorpio Sky)
**ROH Fourth Anniversary Show (Generation Next / Styles & Sydal, Danielson / Rave, Homicide / Cabana Ghetto Fight, CZW all out brawl)
**ROH Best In The World (KENTA &Marifuji / Joe & Dragon, Strong & Evans / Briscoes, Shelley / Daniels, Shimmer 4 Way)
**ROH Dragon Gate Challenge (Daniels / Joe, Generation Next / Blood Generation, Styles & Sydal / Dragon Kid & Horiguchi)
**PWG Battle of Los Angeles 2005 (2 DISC) (Steen/Dragon, Styles/Evans, Dragon/Reyes, Romero/Kazarian and tons more)
** ROH SUPERCARD of Honor (Danielson / Strong III, Do Fixer / Blood Generation, AJ Styles & Matt Sydal / Austin Aries & Jack Evans, Joe / Jacobs / Daniels)
**ROH Better Than Our Best (the whole damn card. No really, the whole damn card)
**SHIMMER Women’s Athletes Volume 3 (Knox / Danger, Del Ray / Haze, Cheerleader Melissa / Shantelle Taylor)
**FIP Big Year One Bash Night 1 (Strong / Gibson, Spanky & Rinauro / Rave & Lethal Homicide / McGuiness)
**IWC Super Indy V (Low Ki / Abyss, Sydal / Petey Williams, Delirious / Sydal, Shelley / Reyes, Gambino Bros. Moving Co. / Burning River Brigade—M Dogg 20 and Josh Prohbition)
**Hardcore Homecoming: November Reign PLATNIUM EDITION. (Lynn / Polaco Cage Match, Douglas / Pitbull Gary Wolfe Dog Collar, Matt Hyson / CW Anderson. Bonus DVD: Sabu / Al Snow, Chris Benoit / 2 Cold Scorpio, Psicosis / Rey Mysterio Jr., Lynn / Polaco)
**UWF-TNA Hardcore War July 9th, 2006 (Styles / Joe / Daniels, James Gang / AMW / Team 3-D (No Finish), Jarrett / Rhino, Lynn / Williams, Lethal / Dutt, Abyss / Runt)
**UWF-TNA Monster’s Ball July 10th, 2006 (Rhino / Joe / Abyss, AMW / Daniels & Styles, Homicide / Lynn, Lethal / Jarrett)
**Colt Cabana’s European Vacation II – World of Cabana
**SHIMMER Women’s Athletes Volume 4 (Rain / Sara Del Rey, MsChiff / Cheerleader Melissa Falls Count Anywhere, Daizee Haze / Rebecca Knox).
**ROH The 100th Show (Team ROH vs.Team CZW, Danielson / Delirious, Aries & Strong / Homicide & Reyes, Daniels / Castagnoli)
**ROH Ring of Homicide (Homicide / Necro Butcher, Aries & Strong / Briscoes, Daniels / Sydal, Danielson / Delirious, McGuinness / Lethal)
**ROH In Your Face (KENTA / Joe / Danielson, Homicide / Hero, Whitmer / Jacobs, Richards / Rave)
**ROH Throwdown (KENTA / Strong, Danielson / Whitmer / Jacobs, Pearce / Necro Butcher, Rave / Joe / Delirious / Richards)
**ROH Chi-Town Struggle (Danielson / Cabana, KENTA / Aries, ROH vs. CZW, Briscoes / Rave and Kennedy III)
**IWC Summer Sizzler 3 (Shirley Doe / Dennis Gregory IWC World Heavyweight Championship, Delirious / Troy Lords IWC Super Indy Championship, Kings of Wrestling / Rickey Reyes and John McChesney, McChesney / Shima Xion, Burning River Brigade / Cleveland Mafia / Gambino Brothers Moving Company IWC Tag Team Championship)
**FIP Impact of Honor (Aries & Strong / Fast & Furious ROH Tag Team Title Match, Bryan Danielson / Colt Cabana ROH World Title Match / Davey Richards / Shingo Takagi, Steve Madison / Erick Stevens)
**UWF-TNA House Show July 22nd, 2006 (Monster’s Ball Rematch: Samoa Joe / Rhino / Abyss, Jay Lethal / Alex Shelley / Daniels and Styles / James Gang)
**SHIMMER Women’s Athletes Volume 5 (Daizee Haze / Rebecca Knox 2 out of 3 falls, Sara Del Ray / Mercedes Martinez No Time Limit, Allison Danger / Cheerleader Melissa)
**ROH Death Before Dishonor IV (CZW vs. ROH Cage of Death, McGuinness / Strong, Dutt / Danielson)
** ROH Fight of the Century (ROH World Title: Joe / Danielson, KENTA / Richards, Daniels / McGuinness / Lethal / Castagnoli, Ultimate Endurance)
**ROH Unified (ROH World vs. Pure Title: Danielson / McGuinness, ROH World Tag Team Title: Aries and Strong / Briscoes, Cabana / Hero, Richards / Rave)

I have the PWG Battle of Los Angeles three night set in my hands right now. I don’t have time to watch it just yet, but I can almost guarantee that one, two or all three of these shows make it onto the Indie Buy In list. You can grab copies of the show at PWG’s website or highspots. They also have some of the coolest covers of the year—sepiatone face profiles of CIMA, Super Dragon and Davey Richards. Collect Them All!

ROH @ 411
Nick Marsico gets lead off in the links, as he gives you tons more thoughts about Ring of Honor’s last show in Philadelphia. Nick manages to plug this column not once, not twice, but three times or more in that column. Don’t read anything sexual into that! At least, I hope there’s nothing sexual to be read into that! Instead, check out RBR, the only radio show that has Indiana Jones sound effects! Now excuse me, I have to go file a TRO…

Stuart Carapola’s INSANE WACKY ROH ROAD TRIP focuses mostly on Stu’s traveling on the roads and going crazy with frustrating traffic and the weirdness of interstates.

Garoon and Zeigler have your low down on ROH Fight of the Century with Samoa Joe vs. Bryan Danielson in, well, the fight of the century. Duh.

Bayani puts the ROH World title right up there with the WWE title in his latest column. Truth B Told, I don’t know whether that’s a huge compliment or a huge insult.

Honor Bound Links
For a laugh, you must check out this ROH sucks “shoot.”I don’t know whether or not this guy was serious or just trolling for ROH fans, but either way, I laugh. I laugh and laugh and laugh. Hope you laugh too.

Mad Aussie man Scott Rutherford hopes back into the 411 Wrestling saddle to entertain you fine folks with the Saturday news.

Stu has This Week In Hardcore. Next week, I go hardcore. Not in porn, mind you, but rather I begin a three week stint as guest writer for the column. So I guess you can say that next week in hardcore I will have this week in hardcore. Now that’s hardcore.

High Road and Low Road on the Champion of Champions match.

I can’t agree with Weyer’s comments about how we should get over the way Eddie’s death has been used—in fact it was the last straw for me and the WWE.

Three R’s with the wrestling boss.

Fact or Fiction with the big boss.

When you Ask 411, you ask Steve Cook.

Of course 411 wrestling has tons more excellent columns that I don’t plug (for lack of time) but do read and enjoy. Check out one of the strongest writing staff’s ever assembled in 411 history!

Congratulations to my good friend Jon on his marriage this weekend. Jon is one of my running buddies for ROH and is point man for driving on these long, strange and fun trips we have around the tri state area. Jon, you’re a good man.

Next week, it’ll be “Beware of Bear Weekend” as I take over This Week In Hardcore and come back at ya with another edition of this very Column of Honor. I’ll have a write up on Joe vs. Japan, a new entrant into The Ring of Shame and more.

Final Column: 7 weeks and counting. Who came, who conquered and who left in the year 2006? You’ll find out inside the Final Column.
Brooklyn! DAH EM-BAH-SEE!
–Ari–