soup23

Sydal & Big Mike vs. Romero and Yoshi-Hashi – A fun opener in comparison for New Japan in that this involved some unique lineups and pairings. Sydal and Elgin do make a fun big guy/little guy tag team and Yoshi-Hashi perpetually is someone that has a niche in these undercard matches and does a good job keeping the action moving no matter who is in there with. Elgin does a double slam on both opponents in a nice spot and actually takes some offense from Hashi forcing him to tag out to Sydal. The tease of Romero winning his arm on the ropes was also well done. After a few more reversals, Romero is able to gain the victory and they are really pushing him so far throughout the tournament. I am used to a certain expectation with New Japan openers and this really exceeded them and went an appropriate amount of time. I expect Hashi/Romero to maybe challenge Sydal and Ricochet down the road to mix things up. *** Finlay/O’Reilly/Nakanishi/Nagata/Tenzan vs. Taguchi/White/Juice Robinson/Shibata/KUSHIDA – One of the things I enjoy about getting just the BOSJ matches is avoiding the stiffs like Nakanishi and Tenzan. Things start with Kushida vs. O’Reilly which is smart given the crackling match they had in the same building days before. Robinson vs. Nakanishi pairing up is terrifying. Taguchi dancing in front of Tenzan did make me laugh. This is the pedestrian match that I usually expect where people just do moves. Shibata and Nagata show a littler fire to build up their match but besides that, a whole lot of nothing. *1/2 Tiger Mask vs. Chase Owens – Wasn’t expecting anything from this but at least Owens jumps TM at the bell to make things slightly exciting. TM gets dragged to the back and the referee isn’t counting for some reason. TM returns after choking out Yujiro. Anyone complaining about Adam Page in Bullet Club only needs to look at Yujiro as a more disposable member. TM makes his comeback and the match totally betrays its pace and slows down to a halt. To complicate things, we get a ref bump and Yujiro interference. Owens hits a nut shot and retrieves the referee but TM reverses the package piledriver and gains the flash win. Probably the worst match so far in the BOSJ and block B has produced some stinkers. *1/2 Bobby Fish vs. Beretta – Speaking of clunkers, Trent has had a rough go so far. This had the advantage of Fish being on top for the majority of the match which helped rein in some of Treents more annoying qualities. Still, there is many instances here where you get the sense that Trent saw an awesome gif and wanted to implement that into his match. Stuff like the suplex to the outside didn’t really fit the narrative being told at all and makes the match seem disjointed. The finishing sequence with Trent still feeling the effects of the leg damage was well done. I was glad that this was paid out with the leg submission in the end. A perplexing match in that some portions were really well done but there was some annoying stuff thrown in. A mixed bag, and I may be giving it the benefit of the doubt in calling it good overall. *** Fale/Omega/Yujiro vs. Captain New Japan/Yoshi Tatsu/Kojima – The face side here is hilariously bad. The BC contingent isn’t much better. Anything above ** would be considered a big accomplishment. Did Kojima kick Capt New Japan in this to try to wake him up to tag him? That was at least one innovative spot in this. My Taguchi hate can run deep but he looks world class compared to what Yujiro and Yoshi Tatsu have been offering up. Kojima gets the hot tag, does a scary clunky DDT to Omega and then goes on a tear. He gets in a lot of offense on Omega and I wonder if a spot challenge for the IC belt is in his future after Omega gets done with Tanahashi. Finishing stretch was nothing until Omega does the slingblade and High Fly Flow on Captain to end this. I guess this hit their maximum quota as while not entertaining, it wasn’t absolutely awful either. ** Gedo/Ishii/Okada/Goto vs. Senada/Naito/Bushi/Evil – I really liked the fire that Okada showed at the onset here. He does a big dive to Naito and really drives him into the announce table. This was great as both Naito and Okada are playing different stoic/uninterested character takes so one being the aggressor makes sense and Okada is the challenger so it is a good role for him to have. I have no idea if anything will happen between Milano and Naito but I always enjoy them bickering with each other. This feud has been really entertaining with me and all the iterations. I have liked Senada working his way in here and the build with Goto and EVIL going after each other and that giving way to Naito stepping in with Okada was really well done. Finish continued the tension well and the feud keeps chugging along. ***1/4 Liger vs. Volador – I thought this was a good popcorn style match. Liger took some great bumps and may be honestly having his best in ring year in the last 6-7. He was a good base for the big dive of Volador and mixed in some nice near falls like the La Magistral cradle. The count out tease after the high crossbody was well done. It is these little touches that give Liger’s matches some context and prove he is one of the best of all time. Liger taking the Spanish Fly was impressive at his age and gave Volador a huge win. *** Ricochet vs. Will Ospreay - ****1/2

http://placetobenation.com/titans-of-wrestling-61-wwf-at-the-philadelphia-spectrum-september-18th-1982/ The Titans take a Quantum Leaping Lanny back a month to September 82 to soak up the penultimate moments of Kal Rudman on colour commentary. On the docket tonight: SWEDE HANSEN vs. SALVATORE BELLOMO PAT PATTERSON vs. BOB ORTON CHARLIE FULTON vs. JEFF CRANEY JOSE ESTRADA & JOHNNY RODZ vs. TONY GAREA & STEVE TRAVIS (2/3 Falls) WWF World Title: BOB BACKLUND vs. JIMMY SNUKA (Special Guest Referee – S.D. JONES) WWF Intercontinental Title: PEDRO MORALES vs. BUDDY ROSE MR. FUJI, MR. SAITO & BLACKJACK MULLIGAN vs. THE STRONGBOW BROTHERS & ANDRE THE GIANT (2/3 Falls) Highlights include: – Sal Bellomo: A man of contradictions – Super 8 sighting! – Jeff Craney: worst worker ever? – Johnny Rodz and Jose Estada: lost super workers? – Exclusive outtakes while the boys wait for the snoozing Pete to turn up for the recording

Night 5 Gedo vs. Matt Sydal - Once again, Sydal is a great face to put in there against these dastardly heel contingent. Gedo jumps him from the bell and doesn't let up in this spirited seven minute match. Each person played their role well and the payoff of Sydal wining with the SSP felt sufficient and triumphant given the damage he had taken. *** Kyle O"Reilly vs. Bushi - I am in the bag for these two but this was a damn good match. The slingshot clothesline is by far my least favorite thing O"reilly does and they somehow made that seem organic here. Bushi really focused on the neck and that helped bridge the first portion of the match. Kyle's strikes again looked on point during the comeback and it is really feeling he is the man to beat so far. ***3/4 David Finlay vs. Kushida - I thought this did a great job of presenting Finlay as not on the level as Kushida and rightfully so. This featured a multitude of great work on the arm from Kushida and Finlay sold it like a champ. When he did get in some offense, he maximized by having some powerful throws and even applying a stretch muffler which had me thinking for a second, he could pull out the huge upset. The arm work led right into a great Hoverboard submission. A strong match to pad out both guys year. ***1/2 Taguchi vs. Romero - Blah. I think one problem I have with Taguchi is I feel his work on top is aimless. Is he comedy? Is he serious now? What is his plan of attack in the ring? These are things I would like conveyed in the last match of the night setting. Instead, we get about 15 ass shots, some Nakamura impersonating from both me and the ankle lock submission that was applied twice but that was the only time the ankle was a point of emphasis for Taguchi. I get that snap submissions are a thing now but it is tough for me to take this ankle lock at the same value as someone like Sabre who has the rep and demeanor of someone that can snap your arm at any moment. **1/2

Night 4 Volador vs. Tiger Mask - Maybe the most unanticipated match of the whole tournament for me and they didn't do much to sway me from that notion. Volador removes his mask mid match and gets his dives in. TM does a big on grumpy work but then forgoes it. Really a nothing match. ** Chase Owens vs. Jushin Liger - Liger is just great here. A different kind of match than his first one and this time he has to overcome a bevy of cheating. While the prior match did paint by the numbers stuff, this one packed a neat story into 8 minutes and was much more successful. **3/4 Ricochet vs. Bobby Fish - Yeah, I am not digging Ricochet at all so far. I didn't think I was that heavy on wanting a limb emphasis in matches, but Ricochet feels so aimless on top. Fish starts working over the stomach here mid match and I thought it would lead to interesting territory but then it was deserted. A match with some good moments and highspots but not much substance behind it. **1/2 Will Ospreay vs. Baretta - Even more disjointed than the previous match. This felt like a pretty big blemish for Ospreay as someone that is an elite to 10 guy for the year. He came out trying to do a PWG style spotfest and it just didn't have any flow or connection with me in the slightest. This capped off an overall disappointing day of wrestling. **1/4

Political hit on Roman Reigns

Thanks Russian for the thoughts.

Day 3 Thoughts: Matt Sydal vs. Bushi- Man, do I love Bushi going to every corner and sitting on it and then faking out his dive by laying down and staring at Sydal. This match really lent itself to a great face/heel dynamic and they played that up. It didn't go overboard and resulted in a very enjoyable match overall. *** Gedo vs. Kyle O'Reilly - O'Reilly was able to hit some great kicks in the ending of this match especially his ending combo. He seems primed to make another deep run in the tournament. I thought Gedo was fine but could have been more vicious and dickish on top. Another good match that felt really different from the first one. ***1/4 David Finlay vs. Taguchi - I am not getting the Taguchi love. Maybe I just hate the guy but he didn't show any focus here to me, relied on his comedy stuff that didn't have Finlay reacting much to and still wants to use the ass offense. ** Rocky Romero vs. Kushida - I am starting to really get behind Kushida as the best wrestler in the world. This was a a really good match that felt worthy of the main event slot. The work was back and forth but told a compelling story and Romero held his own in working on top. Kushida now has his back against the wall but a bevy of challengers for his belt. ***1/2

I am really excited for this tournament and have enjoyed watching the matches that have rolled out so far: My review of Night 1 is here: http://placetobenation.com/new-japan-best-of-the-super-juniors-2016-day-1-review-05212016/ Night 2 Quick Hits: Ricochet vs. Tiger Mask: This wasn't bad but I did want a little more aggression shown from Tiger Mask. I thought Ricochet looked good when he hit his signature spots when he needed to, but he does still falter a bit with putting together the connective tissue of a compelling match. **1/2 Jushin LIger vs. Bobby Fish: I dug this a lot. A simplistic match but one where Fish was able to target the arm of Liger and Liger sold it wonderfully all the way throughout. I don't really want to spoil the finish but it was one of my favorite moments of the year from any promotion and made perfect sense. This was never intended to be a MOTYC with the crowd chanting "these two guys", but for the story they tried to accomplish, this was spot on. ***1/2 Berretta vs. Volador: Pretty much a spot fest and while the last match showed a lot of restraint, this threw all of that to the wind in order to gain a reaction. Not my bag at all. ** Chase Owens vs. Will Ospreay: A slightly better version of the TM vs. Ricochet match because I like Owens as a base better than TM and I think Ospreay is even more dynamic than Ricochet. I did think Ospreay's strikes looked adequate here and I appreciated the way Owens cut him off with his highspots. The finish was a nice surprise. ***

the keyboard was typing furiously on my end on goggle when Dylan said Lisa Frank.

http://placetobenation.com/ptbn-reaction-show-extreme-rules-2016/ Will is joined by Kris Zellner, Dylan and Devon Hales, and Johnny Sorrow to break down Extreme Rules 2016. The IC four-way is dissected. Is the main event a MOTYC? All this and much more!

Watched the highly rated stuff from both shows. CIMA vs. Tozawa was really great. It was a short, compact match but it had a really good pace without going into a ridiculous sequence of nearfalls. I also appreciated the character work of CIMA and liked how he played a dickish veteran character that was protecting his spark. Tozawa was made to look like his equal here and the results were well done.**** Watching that had my psyched for Tozawa vs. Eita and I was completely let down. I don't require a whole lot for selling but when Eita really tears up your arm and you cant be bothered to even hold it mimicking pain, then I check out. To add insult to injury, Tozawa insisted on using that arm as the basis for almost all his offense in the match. T-Hawk vs. Mochi also disappointed me. I didn't get the sense of the violence that Case talks about in his review, but I don't think T-Hawk brings much to the table overall. I would like to see Eita and Mochi given the chance to deliver. The Jimmy's vs. Monster Express match was a really fun six man. I especially liked Punch being in there in the final segments. I continue to prefer the Dragon Gate style of more guys in there helps hide the flaws that I have with the singles matches. ***1/2 Yamato vs. Shingo showed some good restraint and I was thankful for that. I was weary of this match so soon after Dead or Alive as it looked like the one slam dunk match DG has in their back pocket. The interference was kept to the end and a minimum and it didn't detract for me wanting to see these two in a big time match later down the road. ***

Finally was able to watch Virus vs. Hechichero today after BOSJ Night 1 and it was great stuff. Gritty, glue like sequences with a smooth escalation and some brutal strikes actually to add emphasis. I would love to see a 25 minute tricked out mat classic between these two. ****

Mick, I am going to be getting that together. I have a general idea of the ones I want to view but I really want to just do 10-12 so it only takes up one show.

Was amused by Fray busting on the pronunciation of Gulf Shores and then totally botching how to pronounce Senoia, Georgia.

http://placetobenation.com/where-the-big-boys-play-84-clash-of-the-champions-21/ Chad and Parv review Clash of the Champions 21: [0:04:35] – Wrestling Observer roundup: Vadar paralyses a jobber; Tony Atlas cuts racially questionable promos; Jakes goes to rehab; Paul Orndroff comes in. [00:45:41] – Review of Clash 21: angles galore including Paul E. Dangerously vs. Madusa and Pillman on crutches vs. Brad Armstrong; the general awkwardness of Erik Watts; Vinnie Vegas cuts one of the all-time hilariously awful promos; girls watch out … Tom Zenk is back with a new partner, Johnny Gunn; Tony Atlas wears some terrible pants; 2 Cold Scorpio flips into town; and is Rick Rude’s 1992 is all it is cracked up to be? [1:54:56] – End of show awards

Really enjoyed the Stevens and Rocky Johnson bios so far. You could tell Kelly really dug researching the Johnson one.

Well, I type all that and go on twitter to see the revised lineup for Saturday that is shitty and looks really slanted toward NJ: *MAIN EVENT** BULLET CLUB vs NEW JAPAN vs RING OF HONOR Bullet Club (Adam Cole & Matt Jackson) vs “Rainmaker” Kazuchika Okada & Tomohiro Ishii vs ROH World Champion Jay Lethal & Roderick Strong NON TITLE IWGP Heavyweight Champion Tetsuya Naito vs ACH Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Reborn Matt Sydal ROH WORLD TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP RE-MATCH Addiction vs War Machine Cedric Alexander vs Donovan Dijak w/ Prince Nana Jushin “Thunder” Liger & the Briscoes vs Guerrillas of Destiny & “Hangman” Adam Page CHOAS (Beretta & Gedo) w/ Rocky Romero vs Motor City Machine Guns NON TITLE IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion KUSHIDA vs “Pro Wrestling’s Last Real Man” Silas Young FOUR CORNER SURVIVAL Michael Elgin vs Moose w/ Stokely Hathaway vs Dalton Caslte w/ the Boys vs Lio Rush reDRagon vs All Night Express

I disagree with the statements regarding Kamaitachi, Castle, Dijak and Cheeseburger. Kamaitachi has been with the promotion all of two weeks. While he had a fabulous series with Dragon Lee, ROH does have guys they will already see in that junior role such as ACH and LIo Rush. If he sticks around and pulls a Watanabe run, then yes it is open to critique, but it feels premature now. Also, I haven't seen/heard of Kamaitachi been booked elsewhere so I do find it odd that ROH is being criticized for misusing him as a person that has a ton of buzz when no one else has used him period. Castle took a while to get going but he is solidly presented now as one of the 7-8 biggest people in the company. I don't think that is anything to sneeze at and actually ROH correcting itself in not realizing the potential he had when they first brought him in. The TV title match vs. Fish should be very good. I am not going to pretend I have been watching Dijak work in Beyond, but I have seen all of ROH this year with the exception of the San Antonio and Rhode Island house shows. Dijak is in a weird angle with Nana, but he hasn't looked like the most polished performed either. I compare it to Moose in 2014. In the SCOH Night 2 match with Will Ferrera, he botched and was out of position multiple times. I agree the stuff with Nana could better present his personality, but as far as his current standing on the overall roster, that feels fine. Cheeseburger has gotten tv title shots in competitive matches, teamed with his idol to defeat the now tag team champions (awful booking having Addiction win btw), and been used to help advance the world title angle. That feels like good placement to me for someone that will always be a niche performer to a degree. I'm weary about coming off as an ROH apologist and there is certain problems that are there, but I was relieved to see the Toronto results and do think ROH was presented at least on paper as being equal to NJ in most regards with sharing wins. I also want to compare to EVOLVE as that is what I think most people that follow independents would point to as the best promotion currently going. Here are the current EVOLVE booking issues I have: 1. Their championship is probably the third most important thing going on. I think this is being corrected on the next set of shows so it isn't a huge issue but Thatcher was someone that had a ton of buzz with the Supershow match vs. Hero and his rise to the title. I hope once he does drop the strap, they can get him back on track. 2. Zack Sabre Jr. did a "best in the world" series but has now gone 3-4 on that journey and lost to three different guys. I think Hero having his number is great storytelling but I didn't like Scrull beating him at all. 3. The TNA/EVOLVE Stuff just doesn't excite me. I am willing to give EC3 a chance in these upcoming shows but he was not someone that made me say "wow" when he debuted. I see this as a lot more lateral to what ROH is doing with Bullet Club than what most people do, but I still haven't heard a great argument as to why the EVOLVE stuff is fresher. 4. Catchpoint having Stokley around. Catchpoint is in the odd position of having 5 of the legit best 15 wrestlers in the world within one stable. More than that, they excel against each other and can present a beautiful contrast to most inter stable feuds in having uber competitive matches with each other but staying together as a unit. I thought there was potential for tons of interesting things down the future with them running the belt for a while and having matches within their grouping with only random challengers from the likes of Hero and Sabre who can break through the gatekeeper system set up below the champion to challenge. Instead, it looks like Stokley has TJP in his dream team and he is going after Riddle as well. Splintering those two away from Catch Point really loses the dynamic for me in a lot of ways. This is honestly the biggest issue overall I have as Catch Point has produced so many matches within my current MOTY list but the eavesdropping in on the dojo quality to them is a reason why. 5. This one is purely subjective and I can see arguments for the contrast but I would rather see Addiction and MCMG compared to the Bravados and Team Treemendous. I know the former are fossils but they have went out in the ROH shows I have watched and at least had competent performances. In certain times like Daniels at SCOH Night 1, they had a great one. The Bravados and Treemendous consistently make the EVOLVE shows drag a bit for me. They aren't horrible, but I still haven't thought of an EVOLVE show as good as SCOH Night 1 or the PHilly Conquest show for this year based on that middle ground. Anthony Nese can be thrown in here too. I think if you look at the cases of guys like Castle or Dijak or Moose or whoever in isolation you can find justifiable reasons for why ROH might have misfired, intentionally didn't fire, pulled back, et. The problem is when you pull back and look at the whole. The reality is that there is a pattern with ROH of guys getting hot to one degree or another and the company cooling them off to the point where they barely matter at all. They are every bit as bad as the WWE at this, and in many respects worse because the WWE is in a position where they can coast on status, legends, and multiple revenue streams if need be. ROH needs new stars and fresh stuff at the top of the card and resist both things so much that I have to believe it's intentional. This is why when I really think about it the Evolve comparison falls so flat to me. Yes I agree with you about some things you list and disagree about others (most notably I think the Bravados are WAY better than The Addiction). But Evolve has guys like Tracy Williams and Matt Riddle who feel like they have made this year alone. The booking of Yehi to lose every match has been frustrating as hell, but at the very least it's been consistent and he has gained more from losing competitive matches than anyone I can think of in ROH this year off the top of my head. That's a disgrace. The most puzzling thing in your post was that you were relieved by the Toronto results. Maybe you weren't a fan of the Dearborn ones, but I look at those two shows together, and from my perspective the results are nightmarish on numerous fronts, and illustrate everything that is wrong with the company. Adam Page as a heel in the Bullet Club because NJPW wants it. The Addiction winning the tag belts the night after they lost clean to the Cheeseburger and Liger and the night after War Machine finally got their big wins other the Briscoes. Lio Rush losing in five minutes to ACH. The Dijak stuff with Lethal seemingly ending on t.v. and some reports indicating Dijak worked as the heel. It's just one big pile of trash. I loved Super Card of Honor Night 1 and really wanted to believe that it would rekindle my interest in ROH. But it's just not possible. They are the worst booked promotion on Earth. I think as far as the unwillingness to pull the trigger on the right guy as the champion of the promotion, ROH has historically done a bad job at this. Yet, Lethal was someone they got behind and given a major push too. He has ran roughshod over the promotion and now they do have an opportunity where when he does drop the strap (and this should for sure happen before the end of the year), it can seem like a big deal especially if someone like O Reilly or Moose is the one to do it. In comparison to EVOLVE, CatchPoint has been great and it is my #1 favorite thing in wrestling, but how much has booking factored into that? I am not more invested with Yehi because he has lost nearly every match. Riddle still has a great stigma to him in spite of the booking vs. Thatcher. Deerborn's results were really puzzling. Addiction winning the tag titles was one of the worst decisions in recent memory. They are a team to help build people, not to lead the division at this point.I also didn't like Moose losing at all. New York has plenty of matchups that if they go NJ way, an over-reliance on them will be more in the forefront. I guess my overall crux with the entire debate is the attitude to jump on something in order to destroy another. This feels more feverish in the piling on of ROH than any promotion I can remember in recent time. There is a swirling of inside sources talking about all the unrest going on, how many times the main event has been changed, etc. In the mean time, the analysis that I enjoy and look forward to are lost such as how good was the Rhode Island show? I wouldn't know because I haven't seen any reviews of it. That show was also posted on VOD less than a week after ROH when you heard such clamoring about how much the buzz was lost that they didn't get their shows out fast enough. This is a problem they have worked on fixing, and yet it hasn't resulted in any change. I'm very uninterested in promotions as a whole and ranking them because I think the ideal of a best or perfect promotion hasn't really existed for any substantial time in history. I am much more invested in the wrestlers themselves and the matches they perform. That is where despite the spotty booking, I have watched almost every 2016 ROH release and do think they stack up in ring with something like EVOLVE or AAW.

http://placetobenation.com/digging-in-the-crates-6/ Phil is joined by Childs Walker as they discuss Ricky Morton v. Nick Bockwinkle 7/2/82 from NWA Classics Scotty Blaze v. Preston Quinn NWA Virginia August 2005 https://www.youtube....h?v=JQttRLnu3Ok Hijo Del Santo/Negro Casas v. Bestia Salvaje/Scorpio Jr. 2/5/99 https://www.youtube....h?v=1zHa0LM64hc Genichiro Tenryu/Masa Fuchi v. Nobutaku Araya/Toshiaki Kawada 6/30/01 http://theditch.us/T...raya6-30-01.avi We also recommend some tunes from Gallant https://www.youtube....h?v=qh7BCluk3wc and Wussy https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PdtUwzK1dWE​

Stop planning sandwiches and start making towns.

I presume the idea was that he would get some kind of Punk-at-MITB reaction in Chicago, which did not seem to be the case. The hometown kid makes good story wasn't effectively told IIRC. They should have put the return promo more readily available to watch and the Honor Rising tv leading up to Global Wars put Cabana on the backburner until the final week before the PPV. I did think the actual heat for Cabana was good when he came out for the match.

I disagree with the statements regarding Kamaitachi, Castle, Dijak and Cheeseburger. Kamaitachi has been with the promotion all of two weeks. While he had a fabulous series with Dragon Lee, ROH does have guys they will already see in that junior role such as ACH and LIo Rush. If he sticks around and pulls a Watanabe run, then yes it is open to critique, but it feels premature now. Also, I haven't seen/heard of Kamaitachi been booked elsewhere so I do find it odd that ROH is being criticized for misusing him as a person that has a ton of buzz when no one else has used him period. Castle took a while to get going but he is solidly presented now as one of the 7-8 biggest people in the company. I don't think that is anything to sneeze at and actually ROH correcting itself in not realizing the potential he had when they first brought him in. The TV title match vs. Fish should be very good. I am not going to pretend I have been watching Dijak work in Beyond, but I have seen all of ROH this year with the exception of the San Antonio and Rhode Island house shows. Dijak is in a weird angle with Nana, but he hasn't looked like the most polished performed either. I compare it to Moose in 2014. In the SCOH Night 2 match with Will Ferrera, he botched and was out of position multiple times. I agree the stuff with Nana could better present his personality, but as far as his current standing on the overall roster, that feels fine. Cheeseburger has gotten tv title shots in competitive matches, teamed with his idol to defeat the now tag team champions (awful booking having Addiction win btw), and been used to help advance the world title angle. That feels like good placement to me for someone that will always be a niche performer to a degree. I'm weary about coming off as an ROH apologist and there is certain problems that are there, but I was relieved to see the Toronto results and do think ROH was presented at least on paper as being equal to NJ in most regards with sharing wins. I also want to compare to EVOLVE as that is what I think most people that follow independents would point to as the best promotion currently going. Here are the current EVOLVE booking issues I have: 1. Their championship is probably the third most important thing going on. I think this is being corrected on the next set of shows so it isn't a huge issue but Thatcher was someone that had a ton of buzz with the Supershow match vs. Hero and his rise to the title. I hope once he does drop the strap, they can get him back on track. 2. Zack Sabre Jr. did a "best in the world" series but has now gone 3-4 on that journey and lost to three different guys. I think Hero having his number is great storytelling but I didn't like Scrull beating him at all. 3. The TNA/EVOLVE Stuff just doesn't excite me. I am willing to give EC3 a chance in these upcoming shows but he was not someone that made me say "wow" when he debuted. I see this as a lot more lateral to what ROH is doing with Bullet Club than what most people do, but I still haven't heard a great argument as to why the EVOLVE stuff is fresher. 4. Catchpoint having Stokley around. Catchpoint is in the odd position of having 5 of the legit best 15 wrestlers in the world within one stable. More than that, they excel against each other and can present a beautiful contrast to most inter stable feuds in having uber competitive matches with each other but staying together as a unit. I thought there was potential for tons of interesting things down the future with them running the belt for a while and having matches within their grouping with only random challengers from the likes of Hero and Sabre who can break through the gatekeeper system set up below the champion to challenge. Instead, it looks like Stokley has TJP in his dream team and he is going after Riddle as well. Splintering those two away from Catch Point really loses the dynamic for me in a lot of ways. This is honestly the biggest issue overall I have as Catch Point has produced so many matches within my current MOTY list but the eavesdropping in on the dojo quality to them is a reason why. 5. This one is purely subjective and I can see arguments for the contrast but I would rather see Addiction and MCMG compared to the Bravados and Team Treemendous. I know the former are fossils but they have went out in the ROH shows I have watched and at least had competent performances. In certain times like Daniels at SCOH Night 1, they had a great one. The Bravados and Treemendous consistently make the EVOLVE shows drag a bit for me. They aren't horrible, but I still haven't thought of an EVOLVE show as good as SCOH Night 1 or the PHilly Conquest show for this year based on that middle ground. Anthony Nese can be thrown in here too.

Person that didn't get any votes that will be highest in 2026: Matt Riddle Highest person this time that will be in top 100 in 2026: Rush

Yeah the unit disband match is my #3 MOTY currently so I don't want to down play how much I really enjoyed it. Giving something the same ranking as These Days is something that I deliberated with before making the post. Hoping to watch Dead or Alive in full before the next week.

Negro Casas vs. Hechicero I don't think there was any way I wouldn't have dug this match. It built beautifully and showed how grappling can lead to frustration and convey painful and violent wrestling. It was even more welcome after seeing the great Rush sprint as this was such a different match from casas. I really would like to see them have a series with each other. A welcome treat. ****1/4 Rush vs. Ultimo Guerrero Yesterday I put Rush in my top 10 current workers and I feel better about that after seeing this match and the negro one. Once again, Rush is a great bully vs. the veteran and it makes it so rewarding seeing him get his justifiable receipt at the end of the match. Guerrero showed great fire here and I loved him standing on Rush in the bleachers and his big clothesline dive from the ramp. In addition, the finish was brilliant here and played off the Dandy vs. Satanico feud. ***1/2 LA Park vs. Atlantis in Liga Elite was fine for what it was. PARK took some big bumps and it was good to see Atlantis mix it up a bit in a brawling type match.