RADICAN'S ROH DVD REVIEW SERIES: 2/7 "Proving Ground: Night 2" Danielson-Generico, Steen-Richards)

Radican's ROH DVD review series
Proving Ground 2009: Night 2
Orlando, Fla.
February 7, 2009

Star ratings and results

(1) Jerry Lynn beat Shawn Osbourne. This wasn't a very good opener, but the crowd was into Lynn, who took a sustained beating, but managed to mount a short comeback before nailing Osbourne with the cradle piledriver for the pin. (*)

(2) Kenny King & Rhett Titus beat The British Lions. This was a solid match with some good action. Taylor and Gray didn't do anything to stand out, but their work was solid. The finish with the springboard blockbuster from King with Titus holding Gray over his shoulders was sweet. (**1/4)

(3) Bison Smith beat John Kermon. Smith is impressive in small doses, as he finished off Kermon quickly with a chokeslam here. The real test will come when Smith actually has to work a full match with a credible opponent. (n/a)

(4) Kevin Steen beat Davey Richards. This was an awesome singles match. Richards is a total machine in the ring right now and has his character down pat. Richards worked Steen's leg the entire match, but Steen managed to counter the cloverleaf into a rollup for the win moments later. (***1/2)

(5) The Necro Butcher & Tyler Black beat Jimmy Jacobs & Delirious via DQ. This was getting really good until the DQ finish. With a clean finish, I would have rated this match much higher, but for these guys to basically have a solid tag match that turned into an all-out brawl before the DQ was a bit of a letdown. That being said, this was a lot of fun to watch while it lasted and the crowd ate it up from start to finish. (***)

(6) Austin Aries beat Brad Attitude. This match was all about watching Aries be great, as Attitude wasn't very impressive outside of landing a nice corkscrew body press off the top. Aries is a lot of fun to watch against just about anybody these days, but this wasn't a very exciting match, although it was solid. I don't think Attitude will be back unless ROH returns to the Florida area at some point. (**1/2)

(7) Brent Albright & Erick Stevens & Roderick Strong beat The Dark City Fight Club & Francisco Ciasto. The match got off to a solid start, but the action really broke down the stretch and they lost the crowd, as the action slowed to a snails pace at time when all six men were trying to set up their spots in the ring. Davis & Chavis were impressive, but their performance the previous night against Steen & Generico was much better. (**1/4)

(8) El Generico beat Bryan Danielson. This was a really good match that got serious after some fun comedy during the early stages of the contest. It dragged a little at times, but the last 10 minutes were excellent. Bison Smith's interference didn't bother me because it sets up something down the line between him and Danielson. The crowd was hot for most of the action here. This was easily the best match on the show so far. (***3/4)

(9) ROH World Champion Nigel McGuinness beat D-Lo Brown. The crowd really wasn't into the action at first, but they got behind Brown once the action picked up. Brown had a good showing for himself against McGuinness, but didn't prove himself worthy of a main event slot in ROH. The action was good down the stretch here and this certainly wasn't a disappointment, but this wasn't one of Nigel's better title defenses during his incredible reign as champion. (***1/4)

Virtual time analysis

-The show started with the YRR in their own private gym. Durden introduced Kenny King, who introduced the other members of the YRR who were working out in the background. King said his match would be easy tonight. Rance and Rinauro invited all of the ladies to gyrate with them later that night. Titus was then interviewed and said the third "R" in YRR stood for Rhett Titus. Everyone then shared a laugh. This was goofy.

(1) Shawn Osbourne vs. Jerry Lynn. Lynn controlled Osbourne with a headlock early on in the contest. Lynn hit his signature legdrop through the ropes moments later and the crowd cheered. Osbourne fired back and hit Lynn with a belly to back suplex. Osbourne continued to use mostly punches on offense while hitting the occasional power move on Lynn. Lynn finally mounted a comeback and went to town on Osbourne before finishing him off with the cradle piledriver. (*)

(2) Kenny King & Rhett Titus vs. The British Lions (Christopher Gray & Tommy Taylor). Titus and King jumped their opponents at the bell. The British Lions fired back and hit dropkicks on Titus and King a short time later. The action settled down and Gray ended up in the ring on the offensive against Titus. Taylor and Gray made frequent tags and continued to beat down Titus while keeping him away from King. King tried to interfere, but Taylor caught King in a headscissors and took down Titus and King at the same time, as he was also holding Titus in the headlock position. Titus ended up crotching Gray on the top rope and King nailed him with a sweet spinning kick behind the ref's back to give his team control of the match. Titus and King took turns tagging in and out of the ring to work over Gray and showcased some good double team maneuvers.

Taylor tried to run into the ring to help his partner, but the ref stopped him, which allowed King and Titus to get in some cheap shots on Gray. The crowd tried to rally behind Gray, who finally ducked a double team attempt and tagged in Taylor, who ran wild. King managed to tag out to Titus, who was immediately cut off by Gray. Titus cut off Gray and tagged in King. King hit the double knees to Gray's back, but he got his foot on the rope. The action broke down, as Taylor ran into the ring to attack King, but Titus cut him off. Titus thwarted a double team attempt and King hit a doomsday blockbuster on Gray for the pin. (**1/4)

(3) Bison Smith vs. John Kermon. Smith got a big pop for his entrance. Smith slammed Kermon into the turnbuckles early on and the crowd roared. Smith then hit a chokeslam for the pin. (n/a)

-Durden interviewed Brad Attitude backstage. He said he would give the fans something to cheer about after Aries had turned his back on them.

(4) Davey Richards (w/Larry Sweeney) vs. Kevin Steen. Both men shoved each other before engaging in combat. Richards taunted Steen after escaping an arm bar and Steen slapped him right across the face. Steen took down Richards several times with a series of shoulder tackles and the crowd popped as Richards walked to the back. Sweeney ran after Richards to the back and convinced him to come back to the ring. Richards finally got back into the ring, but Steen took him down and nailed him with a front flip legdrop, which caused Richards to bail to the outside and he walked through the crowd. Once again, Sweeney followed Richards and convinced him to get back into the ring. Richards spit at Steen from the apron and Steen chased him around the ring. Sweeney threatened Steen with a chair, which allowed Richards to nail him with a flying knee from behind.

Richards began to target Steen's knee and applied a leg lock on the mat. Richards teased doing a figure 4 moments later, but flipped off the crowd when they began cheering the hold. Richards missed a diving headbutt moments later and the crowd clapped as Steen struggled to get to his feet. Steen managed to get up to the second rope and nailed Richards with a dropkick. Steen then hit a big rolling senton in the corner, but Richards managed to kick out at 2. Steen tried for the package piledriver, but couldn't hit it because of the pain in his leg. Steen nailed Richards with a powerbomb moments later and tried to lock in the sharpshooter, but his knee gave out again.

Richards ducked a charge from Steen and locked in a half-crab in the middle of the ring. The crowd tried to rally behind Steen, who eventually got the ropes to break the hold. Moments later after exchanging snot rockets with Steen, Richards nailed him with a German suplex for a nearfall. Steen fired back moments later and nailed Richards with a pump-handle neckbreaker, but Richards was able to kick out because Steen was slow to cover. Steen then limped to the top rope and went for the swanton, but Richards got his knees up. Richards nailed Steen with a big running kick and locked in the cloverleaf in the center of the ring. The crowd chanted "please don't tap," as Steen managed to counter the hold into a small package for the win. Awesome singles match. (***1/2)

-The crowd chanted for Steen after the match as he was helped to the back. Steen told the cameras that Richards would never beat him no matter how many cheap shots he took.

(5) Jimmy Jacobs & Delirious vs. Tyler Black & The Necro Butcher. Necro and Black charged the ring and both teams went at it right away until Jacobs and Delirious bailed to the outside. The announcers talked about debuting on HDNet in a short time and their hopes it would open up some new options for ROH to grow as a company. Necro and Black stomped on Jacobs and Delirious in opposite corners as the action broke down early. Black then used Necro as a springboard to nail Jacobs and Delirious on the outside with a flip dive as the crowd roared. Necro then teased going up top for a dive, but Delirious cut him off and tossed him into the guardrail. Delirious snapped Black's neck over the top rope and Jacobs nailed him with a spear to give the Age of the Fall the upper hand. Delirious and Jacobs isolated Black from Necro and tagged in and out of the match to work him over.

Delirious and Jacobs made a wish with Black's legs and Necro tried to run in, but the ref cut him off. Black tried to fire back on Jacobs, but Jacobs nailed him with a knee to the mid-section to take him down. Black finally took out Jacobs and Delirious and tagged in Necro, but the ref didn't see the tag and Delirious and Jacobs put the boots to Black while the ref held back Necro. Delirious complained to the ref about the fans booing him before tagging Jacobs back into the match. That was funny. Black tried to fire back again, but Jacobs poked him in the eye. Moments later, Black nailed Jacobs with a powerslam and finally tagged in Necro, who ran wild. Necro absolutely obliterated Delirious with punches and chops before taking him down to the mat with a Necrocanrana. Jacobs ran into the match, but Black nailed him with a springboard lariat.

The action broke down with all four men going at it. Jacobs speared Black off the apron to the floor. Necro set up Delirious on a table and hit a running legdrop off the ring to put him through the table and the crowd chanted for Necro. The ref's count neared 20, but Delirious and Necro managed to dive back into the ring to beat the count. That was a cool spot. Necro nailed Delirious with a chokeslam and held on and followed up with a tiger driver, but Jacobs broke up the pin. Jacobs suplexed Necro from the apron into the guardrail. My god, these guys are nuts. The crowd went nuts as Black and Delirious went at it inside the ring. Black nailed Delirious with the buckle bomb, but Jacobs ran into the ring and nailed him with the chair for the DQ. (***)

-Jacobs continued to nail Jacobs with the chair after the match until Necro ran into the ring for the save. Delirious and Jacobs then walked out through the crowd.

-Durden interviewed D-Lo Brown backstage. Brown said he felt like proving himself tonight. Brown said he'd watched McGuinness's career grow. Brown said he's known McGuinness for a long time, but tonight he would show him how a real man becomes world champion. Solid promo.

-An ad for "Ring of Homicide 2" aired.

(6) Austin Aries vs. Brad Attitude. Aries offered a clean break against the ropes early on and made some funny faces when the crowd booed. Aries totally schooled Attitude on the mat and slapped him several times across the back of his head before lying down across the top ropes. Aries escaped a headscissors on the mat and dropkicked Attitude right in the head. Aries told Attitude to spare himself the embarrassment and leave the ring now. Attitude managed to mount some offense as he military pressed Aries and then dropped him to the mat. Attitude then went up top, but Aries pushed him right into the barricade. Aries followed up with the heat seeking missile and the crowd erupted, so Aries yelled at them and told the fans to sit down.

Attitude tried to fire back, but Aries tripped him down to the mat and nailed him with the power elbow. Attitude fired back moments later and nailed him with a running neckbreaker. Attitude then hit an interesting variation of the springboard senton where he sprung off his calves for a 2 count. Aries fired back and nailed Attitude with a neckbreaker through the ropes for a 2 count. Aries followed up with the last chancery, but Attitude got the ropes. Aries followed up with the leaping back rake in the corner and the fans erupted in mock applause. Attitude avoided a charge in the corner and nailed Aries with an impressive corkscrew body press off the top for a 2 count. Attitude signaled for the finish, but Aries countered and pushed him shoulder first into the ringpost. Aries hit a big dropkick in the corner and followed up with his kick to the head/brainbuster combination for the pin. (**1/2)

(7) Roderick Strong & Erick Stevens & Brent Albright vs. Jon Davis & Cory Chavis & Francisco Ciasto. Stevens cut off Ciasto and nailed him with some hard chops in the corner. Ciasto fired back on Albright moments later and tagged in Davis, who nailed Albright with some chops in the corner. Albright countered with some chops of his own on Davis and nailed him with an elbow before tagging in Strong, who nailed Davis with a few more chops. Davis's chest was busted open and Prazak speculated that Strong had barbed wire on his hands. Strong fended off Ciasto and Chavis and sent them to the floor. Strong then wiped them both out with a twisting body press to the floor and the crowd erupted as all six men brawled on the floor. Strong went for a running kick on Ciasto, but Davis nailed him with the pounce and Strong went flying into the barricade. That was sweet.

Davis isolated Strong near his own corner and tagged in Chavis, who sent Strong to the mat with a punch. Stevens and Albright tried to run in, but that only allowed the heels to triple team Strong while the ref held them off. Strong tried to chop his way out of the corner, but couldn't overcome the numbers game. Strong cut off Chavis and nailed him with a missile dropkick. Strong struggled, but eventually tagged in Stevens, who ran wild. The crowd chanted for Stevens and then Albright, who ran in and dished out some suplexes as the crowd went nuts. Stevens hit a shoulder tackle on Ciasto off the second turnbuckle, but Davis broke it up.

Albright and Stevens isolated Ciasto in the ring. Albright tossed Ciasto into a clothesline from Stevens, but Davis broke up the pin. Stevens ended up alone in the ring with Chavis and Davis, who nailed him with a double team bulldog. The action slowed to a snails pace as the wrestlers tried to set up some spots. Ciasto eventually ended up alone in the ring with Ciasto, who almost got the pin with a surprise rollup. Strong tagged in and nailed Ciasto with a yokuza kick, but Davis broke up the pin. Strong followed up with a gutbuster on Ciasto and another yokuza kick before applying the stronghold and Ciasto immediately tapped. (**1/4)

- Generico got a good pop coming out, but Danielson got a superstar reaction. Generico also offered Danielson a hug instead of a handshake before the match. The crowd chanted "hug him back" at Danielson. Danielson hesitated and teased the hug, but didn't engage, so the crowd booed. Generico looked upset and hung his head, so the crowd chanted "say you're sorry" at Danielson. Generico pouted and looked over his shoulder at Danielson. Danielson eventually apologized to Generico in Spanish. Generico ran over and gave Danielson a huge hug and the crowd erupted and chanted "that was awesome."

(8) El Generico vs. Bryan Danielson. Generico escaped a wristlock from Danielson by flipping around on the mat several times and looked to have made himself dizzy in the process. Danielson had Generico in a leg lock, but Generico got the ropes. Generico got an arm bar, but Danielson escaped and nailed Generico with a dropkick and jumped up and did Generico's "ole" pose. Danielson escaped a headscissors on the mat and seamlessly transitioned it into a leg lock on Generico. Danielson then transitioned the hold into a pinning combination, but Generico managed to kick out at 2. Both men did a fantastic sequence of chain wrestling on the mat that ended with Danielson launching Generico across the ring with a monkey flip.

Danielson applied a leg lock on Generico once again, but he was close to the ropes and immediately broke the hold. Danielson looked upset. Generico nailed Danielson with a series of forearms. Danielson got angry and nailed him with a European uppercut. The action picked up, but Generico managed to take Danielson down and he went for the surfboard submission, but Danielson kicked him off and waved his finger at Generico. Danielson then grabbed Generico in the surfboard position while holding Generico's nostrils. The ref tried to count to 5, but Danielson interrupted him and politely informed him he had until 5 and the crowd popped. Leonard said the fun and games were over, as Danielson grabbed a nasty leg submission on the mat and then transitioned to an arm bar. Generico struggled, but managed to get the ropes.

Danielson applied a nasty wristlock and Generico writhed in pain on the mat. Danielson then used his foot to press Generico's shoulder to the mat in a nasty-looking pin, but Generico managed to kick out. Generico fired back and nailed Danielson with a dropkick. Danielson fired back moments later and took Generico back down to the mat. Danielson stood over Generico and slapped him across the face several times. Danielson then set up Generico's arm in an unnatural position on the mat before stomping down on it. Generico fired back moments later and nailed Danielson with a crossbody off the top. He then sent Danielson to the outside with a clothesline before nailing him with a huge flip dive to the outside and the crowd erupted in applause and chanted the "ole" song.

Danielson fired back moments later and nailed Generico with a German for a 2 count. Generico took Danielson down with a hurricanrana and they exchanged nearfalls on the mat. Danielson caught Generico with the rolling cradle, but Generico ended up on top and got a 2 count to end the sequence. Out of nowhere, Danielson grabbed Generico in the triangle, but Generico bridged over Danielson and nearly got the pin and both men were slow to get up. Danielson got up and looked pissed. He nailed Generico with a running forearm, but Generico chased after him and nailed him with a running yokuza. Generico hit a second yokuza kick and set up Danielson for the brainbuster on the top turnbuckle, but Danielson countered and hung Generico upside down in the corner before nailing him with a dropkick. Danielson then nailed Generico with a super belly to back suplex, but Generico kicked out. Danielson began nailing Generico with a series of elbows and then he applied the cattle mutilation as the crowd roared.

Generico teased tapping, but eventually got his boot on the rope. Bison Smith ran out, but Danielson dropkicked him to the floor. Danielson then nailed Smith with a dive through the ropes. Danielson tried to go up top, but Generico nailed him with a yokuza kick and then the brainbuster on the top turnbuckle for the pin. (***3/4)

-Smith attacked Generico after the match. He then nailed Danielson with a huge powerbomb. Several people ran out from the back and eventually managed to hold Smith back. Generico got back into the ring after Smith left and checked on Danielson, who was lying motionless on the mat selling the effects of Smith's powerbomb. Several officials then came into the ring and helped carry Danielson to the back.

-An ad for the "The French Connection" DVD aired.

-D-Lo got a good pop coming for his debut. McGuinness also got a big pop coming out. Bobby Cruise did the formal introductions. Brown got a descent pop and a small "D-Lo" chant. McGuinness was then introduced to a mixed reaction.

McGuinness got on the mic. He said it was an honor to be in the ring with a legend like D-Lo. McGuinness said D-Lo couldn't make it, but Savio Vega was here. McGuinness said he was just joking. McGuinness said 2009 saw the first black president, who wasn't really black. He then said D-Lo would be the first black person to get a title shot in ROH, but he wasn't really black either.

D-Lo grabbed the mic and it wouldn't work. D-Lo said, "I guess that's why I got fired. I couldn't work a mic. The crowd responded by chanting his name. D-Lo said he had done some investing and found out McGuinness wasn't really British and lived in Alabama. Brown said he also talked to McGuinness's girl and she said he wasn't even a real man. Nigel responded by trying to show the ref his junk. Brown said when he looked across the ring all he saw was a little child. Brown then slapped McGuinness across the face and the match started.

(9) ROH World Champion Nigel McGuinness vs. D-Lo Brown. McGuinness bailed after an early flurry from Brown. Brown tried to offer McGuinness a handshake, but booted McGuinness in the gut and continued his assault, so Nigel bailed to the floor again. Brown went for a dive through the ropes, but McGuinness nailed him with the title, which somehow wasn't a DQ. McGuinness taunted Brown as he began to methodically pick him apart. McGuinness tossed Brown to the floor and he took a big spill. Brown was slow to get to his feet as the ref counted, but McGuinness pounced on him as soon as he got to his feet and threw him hard into the guardrail.

Brown was down on the floor again as the ref counted. The crowd tried to rally behind Brown. The count neared 20 and Brown struggled towards the apron and barely beat the 20 count. D-Lo charged at McGuinness moments later, but Nigel got out of the way and nailed him with the clothesline/kick to the back combo. Brown ducked a charge from McGuinness moments later and nailed him with a lariat, but was slow to capitalize. Brown fired up and took McGuinness down before nailing him with a big senton and then a lariat for a 2 count. Brown went up top, but McGuinness cut him off and nailed him with the tower of London for a 2 count. McGuinness went for the jawbreaker, but Brown countered it into the sky high for a nearfall. The crowd really isn't into this match so far.

McGuinness fired back and nailed Brown with a big lariat, but he kicked out of the cover. McGuinness went for another tower of London, but Brown fought him out. McGuinness then went for a superplex, but Brown nailed him with a sky high off the top for a nearfall and the crowd roared. McGuiness cut off D-Lo up top. They battled on the apron and Brown eventually nailed Nigel with a DDT that sent both men spilling to the floor. Brown went up top and nailed Nigel with the frog splash, but he kicked out and Brown looked to be in shock. D-Lo nailed McGuinness with a leg lariat, but Nigel bounced off the ropes and hit the jawbreaker, but Brown kicked out and the crowd started to get behind Brown as they chanted his name.

Both men exchanged blows as the crowd did the "yay vs. boo" spot. Brown took McGuinness down with a shoulder tackle, but ended up taking a low blow in the process. Nigel then nailed Brown with the jawbreaker for the pin. (***1/4)

-After the match, McGuinness said Brown was old news like Jerry Lynn. Brown then picked up McGuinness and slammed him to the mat as he screamed. Brown posed with the belt over McGuinness to end the show.


Overall thoughts: (6.0) This show featured some good wrestling up and down the card. The crowd was into a lot of the action, but watching this show play out on DVD at times just wasn't very exciting. The new talent didn't really impress at all on this night, as most of their appearances were forgettable. The ROH regulars did their best to hold up their end of the bargain here, as they delivered a number of good matches on the card.

The show peaked with the Generico-Danielson contest. The match was very good and featured a lot of comedy early on before things got serious. This was the best match on the card, but it's not a match you have to see, as it dragged during certain points leading up to a very good final sprint featuring a cool run in from Bison Smith.

The other highlight of the show was the Steen-Richards match. Richards is one of the most underutilized talents in ROH right now. He's a total machine in the ring and comes across like a bad ass. Although Steen got the lucky rollup victory here, Richards was really impressive with his stiff offense and submission work on Steen's leg.

The main event was good, but McGuinness has set the bar so high for what you expect from ROH World Title matches that it was a letdown of sorts because Brown just isn't suited to wrestle long matches that are really good with a world class worker like McGuinness. Brown acquitted himself well here and certainly put on the best match I've ever seen him in, but the crowd didn't really get behind him like they did Lance Storm when he made his debut in ROH against Danielson for the title.

I can only give this show a mild recommendation. It certainly has some good moments, but it just isn't very exciting outside of a few matches. The show from the previous night was much better and I highly recommend picking up "Proving Ground: Night 1" if you pick and choose what shows to get from each doubleshot run by ROH.

Other thoughts: The footage shot for this DVD looked great in the ring. Some of the backstage promos were dark, but I thought the in-ring action looked fantastic with the new cameras in this building as it seemed like the production crew was able to get the lights back far enough as to not make the wrestlers glare inside the ring… These shows could really use more angles and hooks to transition from show to show. It seems like there's no fresh storylines going on in ROH right now. This show didn't really have anything going on outside of another small step in the Danielson-Smith feud, but it would be nice to see some new storylines launched to give these shows a real spark….

You can purchase "Proving Ground: Night 2" by clicking here.

Sean Radican and co-host Derek Burgan record ROH themed audios on the Radican Audio Showcase on most weekends that are made available exclusively to Torch VIP members. Sean also reviews nearly every ROH release for Torch VIP members. You can contact Sean at PWTorchSean@Gmail.com.

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