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EVENT:
RING OF HONOR HOUSE SHOW-041908
EVENT REVIEW BY:
Andrew Schumann
EVENT DATE:
Saturday, April 19th, 2008
LOCATION:
Chicago Ridge Frontier Fieldhouse,
Chicago Ridge, Illinois |
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"If
the WWE wants to get the tag team division moving again
Ring Of Honor has the blueprint of success." |
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MATCH 1:
Austin Aries vs. Silas Young
This was the opening match of the night. This match had a
basic beginning with each wrestler trying to get the
advantage first. Aries gained control first by sending Young
to the outside and following up with a suicide dive through
the ropes. Silas regained control of match and nailed
several moves to put Aries on the ropes. Aries was looking
for the brain buster and Silas blocked several attempts.
Silas tried to hit his springboard Hindu press but Aries got
his knees up. Aries than kicked him in the head that allowed
him to finally land the brain buster. Aries finally got the
pin with a submission maneuver. After the match Jimmy Jacobs
came down to welcome Aries into the Age of the Fall. For the
last few months Jacobs has been recruiting Aries into the
group. Aries declined the offer and said that Lacey would be
leaving with him.
Star Rating: 2 Stars. This was basically an energetic match
that got the whole crowd pumped up for the night. Aries is a
guy who has been on top of the card but is okay working at
any spot. Silas Young has shown that he can work their
style. This match was a great opener full of energy. |
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MATCH 2:
Alex Payne versus Mitch Franklin
This match only lasted a couple of minutes before Jacobs
sent Necro Butcher down to the ring. The Necro Butcher just
destroyed the two guys within seconds. Necro Butcher busted
both guys open with barbed wire. Necro finally picked up the
pin after a slam.
Star Rating: N/A. The one thing that was bad is that most of
the time when we see a student. That unfortunately means
that they are going to get crushed. Necro Butcher is someone
that works a very stiff style that only a few guys on their
roster who could handle it. |
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MATCH 3:
Pearce& Albright vs. Castagnolli &
Primeau
Pelle Primeau started of the match against Adam Pearce.
Pearce and Albright used their strength and size advantage
to control Primeau. Claudio Castagnolli at times would sneak
in and inflict damage. Albright nailed Primeau with several
suplexes. Pearce tagged in and came of the top rope with a
huge splash onto Primeau. Primeau finally got the hot tag
onto Claudio. Claudio proceeded to nail both Pearce and
Albright with several European Uppercuts. Claudio nailed
Albright with a giant swing for several seconds. Primeau
vaulted into the ring and nailed Pearce with a Lou Thesz
press and followed up with a foot stomp. Pearce rolled out
to ringside and Primeau came off the apron and landed a
running dropkick. Pearce recoiled back into the barricades.
Albright got a firm grip on Claudio and Shane Hagadorn tried
to hit Claudio with the briefcase and nailed Albright
instead. Claudio than got the victory with the Ricolla Bomb.
Star Rating: 3 stars. Brent Albright last summer was someone
that Ring Of Honor I do believe prepping for a title run.
Brent matches what a typical champion is for them a good
worker that meshes with other styles. Claudio Castagnolli is
another wrestler that is right on the cusp of being a true
superstar. Pelle Primeau is the further along of the school.
Pearce plays the perfect bully character. |
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MATCH 4:
MsChif vs. Daizee Haze vs. Lacey
vs. Ashley Lane
This match showcased several roster members of Shimmer
wrestling. Shimmer wrestling is the sister promotion of Ring
of Honor. The match began with MsChif and Ashley in the ring
exchanging several basic holds. Daizee was the first one
tagged into the match. The first time Daizee was down Lacey
tagged her in to focus on Daizee. After a couple of minutes
MsChif tagged backed into the match. MsChif flipped Ashley
over with a reverse body lock and picked up a near fall.
Daizee followed up and hit MsChif with the heart punch and
yakuza kick. MsChif picked up the victory over Ashley Lane
with her desecrator DDT.
Star rating: 3 stars. Three of the four wrestlers have
wrestled each other multiple times and knew how to make each
other look good. Unfortunately Ashley Lane’s sloppiness in
the ring brought down the match. Daizee Haze and Lacey have
had a long running feud with each other for years. This was
a great match to show what women can truly do in the ring. |
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MATCH 5:
Delirious vs. Chris Hero
This match featured the two guys currently on the roster get
the best crowd reactions. Delirious started out by mocking
Hero doing his usual athletic routine. Hero and Delirious
exchanged several basic moves. Delirious used several chain
wrestling moves and picked up several near falls. Hero was
trying to use several strikes and abandon his wrestling
move. Delirious landed several head scissors. Delirious
nailed the heart punch and yakuza kick onto Hero for a near
fall. Hero picked up the victory after a couple roaring
elbows.
Star rating: 3 stars. Chris Hero is a wrestler that during a
match you can start to hate and by the end loves. Delirious
is a true fan favorite with the crowd. Right now Hero has
the microphone skills and work ability to be an outstanding
WWE superstar. Delirious has the gimmick that could work and
move set for a bright future. They put on a great match with
different styles and meshed well. |
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MATCH 6:
Motor City Machine Guns vs. The
Briscoes Brothers
This was a rematch that was a year in the making. They faced
each other last April here in Chicago and tore the house
down. The pace of the match was faster than the last years.
Motor City got the early advantage of the match. Sabin
locked Jay Briscoe into a side headlock and Shelley came of
the ropes and dropkicked Jay’s knee. Chris Sabin than
floated over and left Jay’s head open for another dropkick.
Briscoes regained control of the match and hit several of
their trademark double team moves. Motor City Machine Guns
locked in double submission maneuvers for a few seconds.
Towards the end of the match the pace was amazing non- stop
action. Mark had Alex Shelley on the top turnbuckle trying
to execute his cut throat driller. Chris Sabin came back in
and nailed a huge German suplex of the top rope. Jay came
back in and Shelley nailed the sliced bread no. 2 of the top
turnbuckle and picked up the victory. After the match
Shelley and Sabin and the Briscoes showed mutual
appreciation by hugging each other and giving respect to
each other. After the match The Age of the Fall came down to
the ring and attacked the Briscoes.
Star rating: 4 stars. Ring of Honor has embraced and put the
emphasis on the tag team division. The series of matches
between the 2 is tied at one apiece. If the WWE wants to get
the tag team division moving again Ring Of Honor has the
blueprint of success. This match showcased probably the two
best tag teams on the independent scene. I’m hoping for a
third match between these 2 teams. |
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MATCH 7:
Kota Ibushi vs. El Generico
Kota Ibushi is a top independent wrestler out of Japan. His
home promotion is the DDT promotion and this was a one time
tour for Ring Of Honor. They booked him with someone who was
an excellent worker. The beginning part of the match was
very slow as they felt each other out. El Generico and Kota
traded several stiff kicks. Kota hit a double back spring
knee drops onto Generico and knocked to the outside. Kota
followed up by sprinting to the one corner and landing on
the turnbuckle on the outside. Kota than hit a moonsault of
the middle turnbuckle to the floor. El Generico nailed a
strong lariat in the corner. Generico tried a couple of
times to nail his brain buster on the top turnbuckle. Ibushi
kept blocking the move and knocked down Generico. Ibushi one
time attempted a back senton and landed on his feet and then
proceeded to land the manuever. Ibushi than missed an kick
and landed a senton. Generico finally connected on the brain
buster for a near fall. Ibushi finally picked up the victory
with a twisting 630 splash. After the match Ibushi and
Generico hugged each other and gave each mutual
appreciation.
Star Rating: 3 ½ stars. Kota Ibushi is the most natural
aerialist I have seen in wrestling since the premiere of Rey
Mysterio. Once the match took off nobody sat down. I hope
that Ibushi would make semi regular trips and work for Ring
of Honor. Ibushi and Generico worked well with each other. |
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MATCH 8:
The Vulture Squad vs. The Age of
The Fall
The team of the Age of The Fall was Tyler Black, Joey
Mercury and Zach Gowen. Joey Matthews and Jack Evans started
out the match. The Vulture squad taken hold of the match
early on with all three attacked a unit. Joey Matthews was
the work horse of the team. Zach Gowen tagged in and hit a
couple of moves using his natural agility. Tyler Black
eventually picked up the victory with his small package
driver.
Star Rating: 3 stars. Joey Matthews is someone that Ring Of
Honor is lucky to have on there roster. He’s a good solid
veteran of the ring who’s worked with a lot of different
styles. Meanwhile Zach Gowen is someone who is a one trick
pony. This match was fast paced and over before we noticed. |
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MATCH 9-World Title
Match:
Kevin Steen vs. Nigel McGuiness
This was a rematch from the Edison event the previous week.
Steen grabbed the early advantage by attacking Nigel before
the bell. Nigel regained control of the match by kicking the
rope as Steen was coming in. Nigel than targeted Steen’s
shoulder by ramming it into the ring post. Steen regained
control by reversing several of Nigel’s lariat attempts.
Steen locked Nigel into the Sharpshooter a couple of times.
Nigel than went back to work on Steens’ shoulder with
several moves. Nigel locked in his new arm submission
maneuver keep working it over. Nigel finally picked up the
win with a massive rebound clothesline.
Star Rating: 3 stars. The matches between these two over the
last week could build into a great feud. Steen seems to
bring the best out of his opponents in every match. Which is
odd for them they’re booking Nigel as a champion that will
just try anything and everything to retain the title. |
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EVENT
RATING:
Overall the show was outstanding. Kota Ibushi match had
everyone standing and in awe just like the dragon gate six
men match from the Chicago wrestle mania weekend shows. The
rematch of Briscoes and Motor City Machine Gun lived up to
the hype. |
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Photo ©
2008 Ring of Honor
Article © 2008 Alternate Reality, Inc. |
