ROH – Fighting Spirit DVD Review

ROH – FIGHTING SPIRIT – APRIL 14, 2007 – LONG ISLAND, NEW YORK

Introduction

BG says: The Video Wire for this weekends’ shows start off with clips from Jonny Fairplay’s appearance in ROH. They show Erick Stevens’s victory over Alex Payne in full (beings as short as it is), Rocky Romero’s introduction to the No Remorse Corp, highlights of Dragon Gate’s presence over WrestleMania weekend and Jim Cornette’s return to (and final appearance in) ROH. It finishes up with hype for Nigel McGuinness’s upcoming title shot against Takeshi Morishima, showing clips of both wrestlers and wrapping up with Nigel’s dominance over Fairplay and Chris Hero. No new footage this time around.

Nigel begins the show by talking about his title shot tonight. He talks about watching the British Bulldog beating Bret Hart live at SummerSlam ’92 for the Intercontinental title in England. He was 15 and decided then to be a wrestler and he’s proud to have accomplished his dream. His dream now is to become World Champion to secure his legacy. He’s not young and he’s sacrificed a lot. It’s time to stop having great matches and start winning great matches. Tonight is special. This was one of those promos where Nigel looked away from the camera, but it worked this time around.

JZ says: Nigel McGuinness is backstage cutting one of those stupid promos where he’s looking off to the side. He talks about the impression that Bret Hart vs. British Bulldog at Summerslam ’92 left on him. It’s what made him want to be a professional wrestler. Nigel cuts a really good promo putting over the importance of the match to both ROH and himself personally. He’ll win the belt this year I think, but not quite tonight.

MATCH #1: Chris Hero & Tank Toland vs. Jason Blade & Eddie Edwards

BG says: From the main event to the opener in one night for Hero. Edwards and Hero start. They knuckle up and Hero puts on a wristlock. Edwards hits a dropkick and tags to Blade. Hero puts on a headlock and dances around. Blade gets a series of armdrags and puts on an armbar. Toland tags in and blocks an armdrag. Blade manages to hit a pair and puts the armbar on him. Edwards tags in and hits a double axe handle on the arm. Blade tags in and does the same. Edwards tags in and they hit a double hiptoss and a double elbowdrop for 2. Toland hits a bodyslam and Hero hits a boot from the apron. Toland hits a springboard double forearm for 2. I didn’t expect that. Hero tags in and hits a senton for 2. He hits an elbowdrop and tags to Toland. Toland hits a clothesline in the corner and a spear for 2. He hits a legdrop for 2. He hits a one-armed powerslam for 2. Hero distracts the referee as Toland chokes Edwards with his resistance bands. Hero tags in and hits a chokeslam for 2. He misses a forearm and Edwards comes off the top with a dropkick. Toland and Blade tag in and Blade unloads with dropkicks. He hits a back bodydrop on Toland and a leg lariat on Hero. Hero and Toland get sent to the floor so Edwards and Blade dive out onto them. Back in the ring Blade gets 2. He hits a blue thunder bomb for 2. Edwards makes a blind tag and hits a German suplex after a superkick from Blade for 2. Toland and Hero hit a double stomp/DVD combo for 2. Blade hits Hero with a superkick and rolls Toland up for the win. The fans and I think the wrong team went over here, and the match did nothing to convince me otherwise.
Rating: **

Claudio Castagnoli has found that the more he puts into something the more he gets out of it. When he was a tag champion with Chris Hero he put a lot into it. When the WWE came calling his mind wandered and he lost the tag titles. When ROH asked him to join their team against Dragon Gate he was wary at first, but he saw it as a great opportunity. He trained as hard as he could and focused more than ever before. He saw that the ROH fans respected his dedication. So he continued to put everything into his training and he defeated tag champ Jay Briscoe. Now he gets a tag title shot, and the only question left is who will be his partner. This was another great character-making promo.

JZ says: Hero is slimming it after last night’s main event. Blade & Edwards are looking to impress here, and beating a guy like Hero could make them look really good. Beating a guy like Toland could make them look really average. Hero and Edwards start it off, and Edwards hangs with Hero in the early going. Blade comes in and he gets a shot with Hero. Toland gets tagged in, and Blade uses his quickness on the much more powerful Toland. Edwards and Blade work over the arm. I like the easy, basic strategy. Toland comes back and slams Edwards and hits a nice springboard axe handle for two. He and Hero use quick tags now to isolate Edwards. Toland’s incorporation of his workout routine into his offense is kind of funny. Blade makes the hot tag and both Hero and Toland get dumped to the floor, so Blade and Edwards each hit a dive on one of them. Back in the ring it’s broken down to a brawl and a bit of a contrived finishing sequence leads to Edwards and Blade getting the upset victory at 11:20. I like the new guys going over, and it was a solid match, but it was a little weird to see Hero in the opening match with guys like that.
Rating: **¼

Claudio Castagnoli is backstage to talk about his time in Ring of Honor, including his tag team title reign with Chris Hero. He talks about training, etc., working with the ROH all-star team a few weeks ago in Detroit. He moves on to his defeat of Jay Briscoe last night. He says that Jay has granted his challenge for a World Tag Team Title shot, and the only question is who Claudio will choose as his partner. Something must be in the promo-water tonight.

MATCH #2: Top of the Class Trophy Match – Shane Hagadorn vs. Pelle Primeau

BG says: Hagadorn attacks Primeau during his entrance. Primeau rams Hagadorn into the post and then hits a hurricanrana off the apron onto the floor. In the ring Primeau unloads with strikes. Hagadorn comes back with a gutbuster for 2. Primeau hits the head scissors takedown and puts on a cross armbreaker. Hagadorn rolls him into a pin to escape. He hits a running knee and a side Russian legsweep for 2. He puts on a chinlock and hits a back elbow for 2. He hits a back suplex for 2. Primeau comes back with a DDT and a springboard Thesz press. He hits a double stomp and a senton for 2. He gets a roll up for 2. Hagadorn stomps the back of Primeau’s head and puts on a sleeper hold. Primeau escapes with a roll up for 2. Hagadorn hits the inverted headlock takeover but Primeau gets to the ropes. Hagadorn pulls foreign object out of his trunks but Bobby Dempsey runs out and tells the referee. Primeau rushes in with the stunner and a roll up for the win and the trophy. Nothing special as a match, but it’s nice that the actual top student has the trophy. After the match Dempsey hits the cannonball on Hagadorn and Primeau crowd surfs.
Rating: *½

JZ says: Hagadorn has held the trophy since 6.3.06, and this is his twelfth defense. Hagadorn attacks Primeau on the floor during his entrance. Primeau soon fights back and takes the advantage as they work their way into the ring. They trade moves for a minute or two before Hagadorn takes over and uses his size to his advantage. That’s going to happen a lot to Primeau I’m sure. Primeau gets a few flash pin attempts, but Hagadorn stays in control, using the Crossface maneuver he’s used to defeat such ROH students as Bobby Dempsey. Speaking of that turd, out he comes to thwart Hagadorn’s attempts to use brass knuckles. That gives Primeau the chance to hit the Flying Stunner and roll Hagadorn up to win the match and the trophy at 7:19. Primeau is really over, so the match was at least fun, but Hagadorn bores me. Dempsey takes his straps down and delivers a running cannonball on Hagadorn, just to add insult to injury. Primeau is the fourth guy to hold the trophy, but the first one to crowd surf after winning it.
Rating: *½

MATCH #3: Claudio Castagnoli vs. Rocky Romero

BG says: They lock up and fight to the mat. Romero dropkicks the knee but Claudio comes back with a roll up for 1. He puts on a headlock but Romero comes back with an octopus stretch. He rolls Claudio up for 2. He opens up with kicks and does the sugar dance. Claudio shows off his Cuban moves so Romero spits in his face. Claudio hits a pair of European uppercuts and hits the giant swing for 2. Romero ducks a bicycle kick and hits a knee to the gut. He kicks the back for 2. He spits at the referee and hits a neckbreaker. He hits the 619 but Claudio blocks a Manhattan drop and tosses Romero into the turnbuckle. He hits a rotating Match Killer for 2. Lenny Leonard actually called it! Romero victory rolls Claudio to the floor. He goes for a dive but Claudio catches him with a European uppercut on the way down. Romero rams Claudio’s leg into the barricade and then hits a suicide dive. Back in the ring Romero hits a crossbody off the top and then climbs again to dive down with and hit a DDT for 2. Claudio counters a kick to the Ricola Bomb for 2. Romero blocks the Alpamare Waterslide and swings Claudio into an armbar. Claudio gets to the ropes. He hits a pop-up European uppercut for 2. Romero blocks the Waterslide again and hits a buzzsaw kick. Claudio comes back with a bicycle kick. Romero spins around Claudio and gets a roll up for 2. The fans hate the outcome, but I dug the match.
Rating: ***

Sara Del Rey is going to show that last night’s loss to Daizee Haze was a fluke by beating whoever they put her against tonight. Why are women wrestling on a men’s wrestling show? Does the Detroit Shock play during halftime at Pistons games? No, they don’t.

JZ says: These two were recently on the same side in the big eight-man tag team match against the stars of Dragon Gate. Castagnoli goes for the handshake but Romero balks, and we’re underway. Prazak says that Aries is injured after the kicks to the head Romero gave him last night, so Castagnoli better watch out. Castagnoli is quite a bit taller, but Romero kicks so hard. Castagnoli goes after the arm in the early going, and makes light of Romero being short. Romero responds with kicks, oddly mirroring what I said just sentences ago. Castagnoli maintains control and uses the Giant Swing. Romero comes back with some chicanery and kicks. Romero then hits a 619 (I’ll count on Brad to figure out the area code in Havana). The fight spills to the floor where Romero stays in control and hits a suicide dive onto Castagnoli. Romero hits a DDT from the top rope but it only gets two. Romero tries a big kick but Castagnoli is able to hit the Ricola Bomb out of it for two. He tries the Alparmare Water Slide but Romero counters it to a Fujiwara armbar. Castagnoli and Romero all of a sudden start acting like they’re in a NOAH match, kicking each other in the head and no-selling it. Romero gets a small package out of nowhere to get the pin at 10:36. Odd finish aside, this was a solid matchup that I wouldn’t mind seeing again.
Rating: **½

Backstage, Sara Del Ray is telling the cameraman how Daizee Haze’s victory last night was a fluke. She says she’s going to send Haze a message tonight by taking out whoever they put in the ring with her.

MATCH #4: Jay Briscoe & Erick Stevens vs. Kevin Steen & El Generico

BG says: Stevens is of course subbing for the injured Mark Briscoe, making this a non-title match. Mark isn’t even at ringside as Steen aggravated his head injury the night before. Jay shoves Steen around before the bell but has to start with Generico. He knocks Steen off the apron a couple times and dives out onto him. Stevens, having made a blind tag, kills Generico with a lariat. He hits a shoulder tackle but Generico comes back with armdrags. Stevens counters a leg lariat to a backbreaker for 2. He hits an elbowdrop for 2. Steen tags in and shoves Jay off the apron. He hits a back elbow on Stevens and goes after Jay again. Generico tags in and gets hit with the Choo-Choo avalanche. Stevens hits an overhead suplex and tags to Jay. Our heroes hit the Briscoes’ double shoulder tackle and Jay knocks Steen off the apron again. Jay and Stevens hit the double throw out of the corner but Generico sneaks a chinbreaker in on Jay and tags to Steen. Steen hits a DDT for 2. The No Remorse Corp runs out and Stevens gets pulled out of the ring. Davey Richards powerbombs him into the barricade, taking him out of the match. Steen hits Jay with a back elbow and tags to Generico. Generico hits a backbreaker for 2. He hits a standing moonsault for 2. Steen tags in and beats Jay in the corner. Generico tags in and hits a snap suplex for 2. Jay starts to fight back but Generico boots him down. Steen tags in and hits a back suplex and the somersault legdrop for 2. He gets in the Briscoe corner to taunt Jay and then hits an elbowdrop. He covers Jay’s ears to keep him from hearing the encouragement from the fans but Jay fights back and hits a neckbreaker. Steen hits an inverted lung blower and a senton for 2. Generico tags in and comes off the top with a crossbody for 2. Steen tags in and hits a double stomp. He hits a bodyslam for 2 and puts on a chinlock. Jay comes back with a superkick and both men go down. Steen tags to Generico as Jay crawls to his empty corner. Jay hits a dropkick on Generico and dumps Steen to the floor. He hits the falcon arrow on Generico for 2. Steen hits him with a powerbomb just before Mark Briscoe runs into the ring from the crowd!

Mark gets up on the apron so ROH peons and his own mother beg him to get down. Steen hits a slingshot double stomp on Jay for 2. Generico tags in but Jay hits Steen with a German suplex and knocks Generico from the top rope to the mat. Mark tags in and the hits a yelping dropkick. He hits a backdrop on Steen and an axe kick on Generico. He hits an exploder on Generico and Steen tags in. Steen hits an enziguiri so Jay nails him with a big boot. Mark hits a guillotine kneedrop for 2. Jay hits a fisherman buster for 2. He climbs the ropes but Generico cuts him off and Steen hits Mark’s head, sending him to the floor. Generico tags in and kicks Jay on the top rope. Mark rushes in and hits the Ace Crusher off the top. Jay follows up with a splash for 2. Steen shoots Mark to the floor and Generico hits Jay with a swinging DDT. Steen hits a fisherman neckbreaker and a swanton bomb on Jay for 2. Mark tags in (?) only to get hit with a forearm and the Yakuza kick from Generico. Mark is out on his feet as Generico hits him with a half nelson suplex. He hits another Yakuza kick and another half nelson suplex. Mark comes back with a clothesline but Steen drags him to the floor and rams his head into the barricade. Jay tries to save but Steen rushes into both Briscoes. Back in the ring Steen hits the package piledriver and rolls Mark into Generico who hits a brainbuster for the win.

I can appreciate why Jake loved this so much, but I feel just a little differently about it. Jay’s hatred for Steen showed through so clearly here it was brilliant. During Jay’s one-man-show Steen’s heel tactics were hilarious but the action was predictably slow. Once Mark hit the ring the match was all emotion. The action picked up considerably, and though it made no sense logically for Mark to be allowed into the match legally it made for a hell of a story. This feud just jumped to the top of my “favorites in wrestling” list.
Rating: ***¾

JZ says: I like how Steen and Generico have really caught on with the crowd and this feud with the Briscoes looks promising. Stevens fights in well with the Briscoes’ style, so he’s a good substitute for Mark. This is Jay’s third tag team partner in two weeks, after his brother Mark and Delirious, whom he tagged with in Detroit. Jay and Steen get into it right away, because of the cheap shot Steen took on Mark last night. Jay and Generico start it off. Jay just kills Steen off the apron with a big boot, which allows Generico to take control. He then hits a dive on Steen, as its clear he’s the one Jay wants to fight. Stevens comes in the ring to battle Generico now. Generico makes the tag to Steen, and he and Stevens trade strikes in the middle of the ring. I’m not much a fan of Steen’s work, but I think he’s a dynamite heel so far. Generico comes back in the ring and Stevens is able to take control of him and hit a belly-to-belly suplex and makes the tag to Jay. Steen tags in too, and he hits a nasty DDT on Jay. Rocky Romero comes out to distract Sinclair, allowing Roderick Strong and Davey Richards to attack Stevens and powerbomb him onto the guardrail. Bastards! Jay is once again flying solo, with no partner. Referees and Bobby Dempsey come out to help Stevens to the back. Steen and Generico dominate Jay, and Steen mocks him to boot. Jay finally gets a second wind but he can’t put Generico away. Mark Briscoe finally can’t stand it any more and he comes out to the ring in his street clothes. Referees and wrestlers are trying to stop him, and so is his mother actually. What a great angle. Mark is on the apron waiting to get a tag, and Jay finally gets to him and Mark is a house-a-fire. Generico targets the head and makes the tag to Steen, who immediately hits an enziguiri. The Briscoes soon take control but can’t put Steen or Generico away. Generico hits the running Mafia kick in the corner on Mark, and follows it up with a couple of suplexes right on the head. Mark gets tossed outside, and Steen launches Mark head first into the barricade. Mark crawls back into the ring and Steen delivers the Package Piledriver followed immediately by an El Generico brainbuster, and that is all at 24:45. I pretty much love everything about that match, with Stevens starting it and Mark finishing it, and the drama of Mark’s head injury, and Steen and Generico just ruthlessly attacking it. There’s no doubt that the action was really good, but the storyline made it even better.
Rating: ****¼

MATCH #5: Colt Cabana vs. Doug Williams

BG says: This is the European style stop on Cabana’s farewell tour. The tour of course highlights each style Cabana has used in ROH while on his way out. Cabana grabs a wristlock but Williams gets to the ropes. This happens a few times before Cabana crotches both Williams and the referee on the middle rope. He swears to Moses he didn’t do it on purpose. Williams gets a wristlock and holds on through many attempts by Cabana to counter. Cabana finally uses that old European foot trick to escape. Cabana dives into a lateral press for 2. Williams bridges so Cabana sits on his belly. Williams rolls him up for 2. They knuckle up and run through a chain wrestling sequence. Williams goes back to the arm and gets a headlock takedown. Cabana counters to the head scissors and hits a mini piledriver. Williams can’t put on the Mexican surfboard because Cabana’s fear after seeing Bryan Danielson do it is too great. They go for roll ups but nobody can even get one. Williams hits a gutwrench suplex for 2. That’s makes one more bump than I expected there to be in this match. Williams sets up for the Bomb Scare but Cabana dodges it. Cabana hits the Flying Asshole and a hiptoss for 2. He hits a moonsault press for 2. He hits a series of elbows but Williams comes back with the Chaos Theory out of nowhere for the win. See how Cabana is putting everyone over one his way out? Why couldn’t Samoa Joe do that? And who needs bumps anyway? This wasn’t particularly exciting or anything but they definitely accomplished what they set out to do.
Rating: **¾

After the match Cabana gives a farewell speech to the last East Coast indy crowd he’d perform in front of for a while. He talks about coming up with CM Punk and how important it was for them to wrestle out on the East Coast. He considers it a huge milestone in his career. He says that if a fat guy in the front row can like both Burger King and McDonald’s then ROH fans can enjoy Colt Cabana in WWE and still love ROH. He thanks the fans and the office to close out the speech. I just can’t get over how much classier Cabana’s farewell tour is than Samoa Joe’s was.

JZ says: This is Cabana’s last match on the East Coast for ROH before finally heading to WWE. These two are both experts in the British style, and they’re not shy about showing it off in the early going. They continue to use the British style all throughout the matchup, with both guys throwing in some of their signature highspots as well. Williams is finally able to land the Chaos Theory on Cabana to get the pin at 12:26. I said almost nothing about the match, because knowing Brad does play-by-play I don’t feel like there was really much to add. Not that it was a bad match by any means, because I think these two could have a good one in their sleep. The crowd shows appreciation to Cabana after the match, so he makes a speech. He talks about his history with the company and he makes a pretty funny connection between wrestling and Burger King / McDonalds. He strongly puts over ROH and the fans agree.
Rating: ***

INTERMISSION

BG says: Rebecca Bayless catches up with Chris Hero and Tank Toland at halftime. She asks where Larry Sweeney was tonight. Hero lets her know that Sweeney is out wheeling and dealing for the group tonight. He and Toland argue over who really lost the match for their team tonight. Steen and Generico barge in and talk about the success they’ve had as a team in ROH. He wants everyone, fans and talent included, to demand that they get a tag title shot. This is the best show promo-wise in a long time, and it’s only half over!

JZ says: Rebecca Bayless is backstage with Chris Hero and Tank Toland, and she wants to know where Larry Sweeney is. Hero says he’s wheeling and dealing all over the country. Hero and Toland have a funny exchange about why they lost the tag team match tonight. Steen and Generico come in and interrupt to demand their title shot for winning the match tonight.

MATCH #6: Sara Del Ray vs. Ernie Osiris

BG says: I believe this is the first one-on-one intergender match in ROH history. Osiris is the first new ROH student to debut on the main show in a while. At this point he’d been working pre-shows for almost a year. Sara hits a German suplex for 2. She hits a senton as Daizee Haze watches from the ramp. Sara hits a double kneedrop off the middle rope for 2. Osiris hits a back suplex but Sara jumps up and hits a big boot before getting the submission victory with the Royal Butterfly hold. The best thing I can say about this is that Sara’s entrance music is catchy.
Rating: ½*

JZ says: Del Ray hits a German Suplex right off the bat as Daizee Haze watches on from the entrance ramp. Del Ray continues to control Osiris, who has gotten no offense in. He does get a boot to the face and a suplex, but that doesn’t last long. She locks on the butterfly lock and Osiris taps at 1:39, before she can execute the powerslam. She does so anyway, just to be a jerk.
Rating: ¾*

MATCH #7: Shingo vs. Matt Cross

BG says: Cross’s entrance music starts with a clip from The Karate Kid, one which Frankie Kazarian hysterically used in PWG while training Chris Sabin and Petey Williams. Shingo and Cross trade holds to start. Shingo hits a shoulder tackle but Cross comes back with an armdrag. Cross hits a hurricanrana and Shingo bails. Cross goes for a hurricanrana on the floor but Shingo catches him and swings him into the barricade. He whips Cross into the barricade but Cross comes back with the Flagpole into a hurricanrana on the floor for 2 back in the ring. He hits a dropkick for 2. He hits a snap suplex for 2. He blocks a blind charge but Shingo catches him with a hanging facebuster for 2. He hits a chinlock for 2. He blocks a roll up and hits a vertical suplex for 2. Cross hits a chinbreaker but Shingo catches him with a gutbuster and a DDT. He hits a senton for 2. He puts on a half crab and floats into a crossface. Cross escapes and hits a hurricanrana. He hits an enziguiri and a DDT. Shingo bails so Cross follows him out with a somersault plancha. Back in the ring he hits a springboard double stomp and a standing moonsault for 2. He puts on a cross armbreaker but Shingo counters to a powerbomb. Cross hits a hurricanrana for 2. He climbs the ropes and hits the twisting press for 2. He climbs again but Shingo dodges the shooting star press and hits a Manhattan drop and the Gallon Toss for 2. He hits a lariat but Cross counters the Blood Fall to a crucifix bomb for 2. Shingo comes back with the Last Falconry for the win. The crowd wasn’t into this and it took a lot of steam out of the match.
Rating: **½

JZ says: Prazak ruminates on the possibility of Shingo challenging Takeshi Morishima for the ROH World Title, since it would be Dragon Gate vs. NOAH. They mat wrestle to start, with Cross using his quickness and agility to try and gain an advantage. They go outside the ring and the much larger Shingo is able to take control. Back in the ring Cross fights back but can’t keep Shingo down. Cross can’t maintain control very long, as Shingo overpowers him and proceeds to wear Cross down. Shingo gets dumped to the outside and Cross nails him with a big dive. Cross keeps trying high risk maneuvers but he can’t put Shingo away. Shingo gets Cross up on the shoulders and Cross executes a crucifix bomb but only gets two. Moments later Shingo hits the Last Falconry and that’s it at just over 10 minutes. That was a solid big man vs. little man match, but it lacked any true heat.
Rating: **½

MATCH #8: Davey Richards & Roderick Strong vs. Jack Evans & Delirious

BG says: Delirious and Evans rush the ring and attack before the bell. Evans hits slingshot dropkick from inside the ring to the floor on Strong and follows up with a moonsault press off the barricade. Delirious sends Richards to the floor with a back elbow and then dives onto Richards and Strong. Back in the ring the match gets started officially so Delirious hits a back suplex. Richards comes back with a Manhattan drop and tags to Strong. Evans tags in and kicks Strong around. He hits a back elbow and the Stompsault. He hits a cartwheel kick on Strong but Richards kicks him to the floor. Strong throws Evans into the post and rolls him back into the ring for 2. Richards comes in and hits a back suplex for 2. Strong tags in and hits a fall away slam for 2. He throws Evans to the floor where Richards hits him with a Yakuza kick. Evans tries to fight back but Delirious is unable to help him and the NRC keep him down. Back in the ring Strong stomps him for 2. He hits a suplex and tags to Richards. Richards puts on the Gory Special and Strong hits a chop before Richards pins him for 2. Richards hits a legdrop for 2. He puts on the body scissors but Evans gets to the ropes. Strong tags in and holds Evans up before distracting the referee and hitting a low blow for 2. He casually tosses Evans into the turnbuckle and tags to Richards. Richards hits a clothesline for 2. Strong tags in but Evans catches them with a double springboard back elbow and tags to Delirious. Delirious cleans house with clotheslines. He hits a leaping clothesline on Richards and a soccer kick on Strong. He puts the NRC in the corner and hits them both with the Panic Attack. He climbs the ropes and hits a dropkick to the back on Richards. He hits the Bizarro Driver on Strong for 2. He hits Strong with a hanging neckbreaker for 2. He smacks Richards but gets caught with a clothesline. Strong hits him with the gutbuster for 2. Richards unloads with kicks and hits the Alarm Clock. He hits a German suplex for 2 when Richards breaks it up with a double stomp. Evans hits a spinning roundhouse kick on Strong and climbs the ropes. He catches Richards in the Tree of Woe and Delirious hits a dropkick. Evans follows up with the Ong Bak kneedrop for 2. He hits a Shining Wizard off Delirious’s back on Strong for 2 and follows him to the floor with the Space Flying Tiger Drop. He hits a dropkick and a reverse hurricanrana on Richard. Delirious follows that with the Shadows Over Hell. Evans hits Strong with a neckbreaker and Delirious puts the Cobra Stretch on Richards. Richards hits a low blow to escape and rolls Delirious up for 2. Delirious gets a roll up for 2 but Strong hits him with a chair and Richards hits the DR Driver for the win. That turned into a crazy match that, like the night before, made the No Remorse Corp look unstoppable.
Rating: ***½

Rebecca Bayless talks to Haze before the main event. Haze was impressed with Sara Del Rey’s victory over Osiris. However, last night she was the winner. She is open to a rematch. Why is this feud in ROH? Where did this come from? I like SHIMMER as much as the next guy but this is completely out of place.

JZ says: Delirious and Evans charge the ring and we’ve got a big fight on the floor with Delirious and Evans taking the early advantage. They control for a few minutes until Strong and Richards cheat to gain the advantage and abuse Delirious and Evans on the floor. They throw Evans back into the ring and they unload on him for several minutes. Strong and Richards are so great when they’re on offense. Strong delivers an unnecessary but actually pretty funny low blow. Evans takes quite a bit of abuse before finally making the hot tag to Delirious, who is the proverbial House of Fire. He hits a few of his big moves and tries for the Cobra Stretch, but Strong blocks it. Evans is still recovering, so the NRC uses that advantage to double-team Delirious and regain control. Evans makes his way back in and no one cares about tags at this point. Delirious eventually locks the Cobra Stretch on Richards, who is able to escape the hold with a low blow. A small package gets two. Delirious tries the O’Connor Roll on Richards but he gets kicked into a chair shot from Strong and Richards hits the D.R. Driver to get the pin at 17:37. That’s two straight big wins for the No Remorse Corps, and two pretty good matches.
Rating: ***½

Rebecca Bayless is backstage with Daizee Haze, who cuts a promo on Sara Del Ray. She reiterates that she did pin Del Ray last night and it wasn’t a fluke. She says she’ll accept a rematch anytime, anyplace.

MATCH #9: ROH World Title Match – Takeshi Morishima vs. Nigel McGuinness

BG says: Morishima opens up with forearms to start. He puts on a headlock and bullies Nigel out of the ring. He hits a shoulder tackle off the apron and rams Nigel into the barricade. Nigel hits the Rebound Lariat Mark 2 and a running European uppercut. He climbs the ropes and hits a crossbody onto Morishima on the floor. Morishima goes for a clothesline but hits the post. Nigel rams his arm into the barricade. Back in the ring he hits an armbar takedown and works the hold. He goes for a sunset bomb to the floor but Morishima sits on his chest on the apron. He goes for a backdrop driver from the apron to the floor but settles for ramming Nigel’s face into the ground. He hits a vertical suplex on the floor and gets back in the ring to gloat. Nigel gets back inside so Morishima hits a handspring avalanche. He climbs the ropes and hits a dropkick. He blocks the Jawbreaker Lariat with a butt butt. He hits the butt lariat and taunts the crowd. He hits another butt lariat for 2. He works over Nigel’s neck and hits a bodyslam. He hits a legdrop for 2. Nigel comes back with the Tower of London for 2. He hits the corner combo for 2. Morishima counters the Jawbreaker Lariat to a side slam. He climbs the ropes but Nigel catches him with a superplex. Morishima powers up and hits a big boot but Nigel sneaks in the short-arm lariat. He slaps the top rope into Morishima’s face and hits him with a splash while Morishima is sprawled out on the apron. He hits the Tower of London from the apron to the floor and gets 2 back in the ring. He dodges a butt splash and hits a series of six superkicks. Morishima never goes down and hits a lariat. He hits the backdrop driver for 2. He climbs the ropes and hits another dropkick. Nigel absorbs it and hits a lariat for 2. Morishima hits another butt butt but Nigel comes back with the Jawbreaker Lariat for 2. Knowing he’s finally hit the move and that it wasn’t enough extinguishes Nigel’s fire. He goes for another Jawbreaker Lariat but Morishima boots him in the face and hits two lariats for 2. He hits a backdrop driver and blocks the Jawbreaker Lariat to hit another backdrop driver for the win. Morishima looked like a real champion for the first time. A worthy competitor will do that for you. There was very little selling except for moves that occurred on the floor, but they worked that into the internal logic of the match. Nigel’s need to hit the Jawbreaker Lariat and Morishima’s avoidance of it was a thing of beauty. When he finally hit it and didn’t get the pin he came to the conclusion that the only thing he could do was hit it again. That ended up undoing him as Morishima now had it well scouted and unloaded with his own big moves, the Northern Lariat and the backdrop driver, to put Nigel down. This was fantastic. After the match Morishima shows respect to Nigel, something he hadn’t done for an opponent yet.
Rating: ****¼

JZ says: Morishima has been the champion since 2.17.07, and this is his third defense. Morishima’s last title defense was on March 4 against KENTA in Tokyo, which was the first time the ROH Title was defended in Japan. That makes eight countries the ROH Title has been defended it, after the United States, England, Germany, Canada, Switzerland, Austria, and Mexico. The crowd wants Nigel to sodomize Morishima, which angers the giant, so he beats McGuinness into the corner and then lets him get up. Morishima batters Nigel in the early going, using his considerable bulk inside and outside the ring. Nigel is able to power back and go to work on the champion’s arm. Nigel tries to sunset powerbomb Morishima to the floor, but he gets sandwiched between the champion and the ring apron. Morishima slams Nigel’s face into the floor. Morishima maintains control and Jimmy Bower comes into the booth and announces that former World Champion Austin Aries will face the winner of this match at the next show in Minnesota. The champ tries the cartwheel forearm but Nigel avoids it and hits the Tower of London but of course Morishima kicks out. Boy does no one buy that as a finisher anymore. Nigel superplexes Morishima but that gets no sold and Morishima hits a boot to the face, and Nigel no sells that and hits a lariat and both guys are down. The fight spills to the floor again and Nigel hits the Tower of London out there. Back in the ring Nigel unloads a series of kicks to the champion’s face but they can’t faze him. He hits a lariat and the Back Drop Driver for a two count. Morishima hits the missile dropkick but Nigel no sells it and hits a lariat. The Jawbreaker Lariat follows soon after but Morishima kicks out and the crowd is pissed. Nigel tries another one but Morishima hits a series of strikes for a two count. Morishima hits another Back Drop Driver, and Nigel no sells it but Morishima hits one more to finally get the pin and retain the title at 17:08. Well that was a lot of fun and Morishima going over is the right move, but the no-selling in this one was out of control. I know its Fighting Spirit and that’s the name of the show, but come on. I still enjoyed it a great deal, but it’s not quite an elite match.
Rating: ***¾

Aftermath

BG says: The No Remorse Corp celebrate backstage. They’ve been nothing but successful so far. Strong thinks the night can be even more fun and takes Romero and Richards on a field trip. They find Alex Payne taking down the ring and hit him with a chair. Richards hits a few kicks, Strong hits a few chops and Romero laughs obnoxiously. That’s just plain illegal.

JZ says: The No Remorse Corps are backstage acting like nerds and being goofy, so Strong decides it would be fn to beat up the ring crew for no reason. Davey warns us all that we could be next.

MVP

BG says: I want to give it to Nigel or Morishima because they both amazed me in the main event. Since I can’t decide between the two I’m going to give it to Kevin Steen, who really fleshed out his unbelievable jerk character.

You can pick up this show, as well as all other ROH shows at ROH Wrestling Dot Com.

Coming soon will be our review of THE BATTLE OF ST. PAUL!

The 411: BG says: This show more than any before made Nigel look like a main event player in ROH. Yes, more than his unification match in England and way more than the sixty-minute draw. Between his promo and his match he moved up more than a few steps. Morishima also looked great. This show also did a lot to make the No Remorse Corp and Kevin Steen & El Generico look like key competitors. Between the character development, the Briscoes match, the NRC match and the main event this DVD is an easy recommendation. JZ says: There’s definitely a lot to like about this show, for me the first thing on the list is the Jay Briscoe & Erick Stevens versus Kevin Steen & El Generico match and Steen’s promo. This is such a great feud, and the first good tag team feud in ROH in a very long time, and it’s one of the best feuds they’ve had in recent memory, period. The main event was really good, and coupled with Nigel’s promo at the beginning he came out of this show smelling like roses. The No Remorse Corps had another good match and looked really strong, so there was a lot happening on this show, and some really good matches to boot. Buy this one for sure.

Final Score:  8.5   [ Very Good ]  legend