[2003-10-23-ROH-Empire State Showdown] Homicide vs Samoa Joe (No Holds Barred)

[Edwin]

Crazy match. Not a classic by any chance or anything, but two guys who just hate each other brawling it out. Homicide is coming in off a loss to Samoa Joe in a world title match and his frustration due to lack of title wins is starting to kick in. Worth noting Julius Smokes is an incredible hype man. His ringside work never gets the proper recognition it deserves. The match itself is just built around both guys just hitting each other with stiff strikes for 12 or so minutes while it slowly escalates to a brutal finish with Homicide using a noose to choke out Joe.

[ohtani's jacket]

Joe delivers a thoughtful promo before the bout, but he doesn't have a great voice. Dominant performance from Joe up until the noose spot. He wipes the mat with Homicide. Homicide does one spectacular tope con hilo spot that has Julius Smoke sprinting around the ring, but for the most part it's all Joe. That should have been a giveaway re: the finish, but it still took me by surprise. Homicide's my boy, so it was all good. Love Julius going mental over the win.