SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...
ROH TV REPORT
MARCH 3, 2019
LAKELAND, FL AT RP FUNDING CENTER
AIRED ON SINCLAIR AFFILIATES & ROHWRESTLING.COM
REPORT BY HARLEY R. PAGEOT, PWTORCH CONTRIBUTOR
Commentary: Ian Riccaboni, Colt Cabana
Jeff Cobb cut a backstage promo while footage aired of Silas Young defeating Eli Isom one month ago on TV to become #1 contender to the television title. He congratulated Young but said he wouldn’t become a three-time TV champ off of him. Instead he’d give Young a first-class tour of the islands.
-Opening theme.
-In the arena Young’s music hit for what is apparently not the main event. Young had a full beard in lieu of his usual mustache.
(1) JEFF COBB vs. “THE LAST REAL MAN” SILAS YOUNG – ROH WORLD TELEVISION CHAMPIONSHIP
Cobb wrestled Young into the corner. Rope break. They locked up again and Cobb wrestled him down to the mat. Rope break again. Cobb with another takedown and Young scrambled to ringside to try to regain his composure. [C]
Young tried for an Irish whip but took a back elbow instead. Cobb with a dropkick and standing moonsault. Young dropped Cobb throat-first across the top rope and ran him into the guardrail. Cobb drive into the ring post. Young with his slingshot stomp. He avoided another dropkick attempt and wrenched in a chinlock. Back rake. Cobb charged but tumbled over the top rope. Springboard clothesline from Young to Cobb on the apron. [C]
Young with a death valley driver and double-stomp. Cobb with some right hands and a jumping back elbow. Young Combination for two. High knee and anarchist suplex for another two-count. Young yelled at him to get his ass up. Cobb obeyed and hit a series of shoulders to the gut and an overhead belly to belly suplex. Spinning side slam. Young grabbed the top rope to block a tour. Four German suplexes from Cobb with him refusing to let go between each one. Tour Of The Islands!
WINNER: Jeff Cobb in 14:55 to retain the TV title.
(Pageot’s Perspective: A little plodding along the middle stretch but a good showing overall. Not quite pay-per-view-quality but then it wasn’t even booked to be the main event so fair enough. I believe this is the longest we’ve seen Cobb on the defensive in an ROH match so that’s progression for his character. Quite surprised we didn’t get a post-match appearance from Shane Taylor as he’ll be challenging Cobb at next week’s 17th Anniversary PPV.)
-Video recap of PCO & Brody King defeating Finjuice at Road To G1 Supercard: San Antonio on January 26 to earn a tag title match at the 17th Anniversary PPV. They brawled with the champion Briscoes after the match. [C]
-Matt Taven was in a hallway backstage. He derided ROH for putting a poser (Jay Lethal) as world champion. He’ll be heading to the ring later in the show to issue an open challenge defense of his “real” world title to anyone but that melvin (Lethal).
-Video recap of February 3 TV which saw Young and Shane Taylor double-team and lay out Cobb including Taylor hitting Cobb with Greetings From 216.
-Video recap of Mayu Iwatani defeating Kelly Klein to capture the Women Of Honor World Championship at Bound By Honor on February 10. They face off for the title again at the 17th Anniversary PPV on March 15.
-As Vinny Marseglia entered alone for the next match footage aired of The Kingdom attacking Rush on January 20 TV after he successfully defeated TK O’Ryan in his ROH debut. The six-man champions would end up hitting him with a triple conchairto.
(2) ROH WORLD SIX-MAN TAG TEAM CHAMPION VINNY MARSEGLIA vs. RUSH
They charged at each other out of the bell. Marseglia took over with a Russian leg sweep. Rush bailed to ringside. Marseglia hurled him into the guardrail. [C]
Marseglia ran Rush into the guardrail twice more and ripped up the ringside mat to expose the concrete. He looked for a suplex but Rush blocked. Marseglia with a knee. He rolled Rush back into the ring for another suplex. Marseglia did the Ingobernables’ tranquilo pose. Rush ran Marseglia into the guardrail and timekeeper’s table. He grabbed a steel chair but referee Paul Turner convinced him to drop it. Marseglia into the guardrail again. Rush with another chair. Turner again told him to drop it but Rush chased him off. Rush with a boot to Marseglia’s face in the corner and he followed with the tranquilo pose. Rolling German suplex from Rush. Side effect from Marseglia. Jumping pump-kick from Marseglia and double-underhook backbreaker. Rush hit a running basement dropkick on Marseglia seated in the corner.
WINNER: Rush in 9:26. [C]
(Pageot’s Perspective: I liked this one better than Rush’s match with O’Ryan simply because the moments when Marseglia was in control seemed more credible due to his use of things like the guardrail. Hopefully we get a full heel Rush sooner than later as ROH is always in need of more heels. Perhaps his match with Bandido at the 17th Anniversary PPV will be our jumping off point for that.)
-Video recap of Kenny King pinning Marty Scurll in a four-corner survival match at Bound By Honor on February 10 via a low blow and handful of tights. They face off on-on-one at the 17th Anniversary PPV in King’s hometown of Las Vegas.
-The Kingdom entered together for Taven’s open challenge. Taven said everybody knows there’s only one world champion in the building and we’re looking at him. He said Lethal can say what he wants because he just looks foolish. Taven’s real beef is with ROH management for fostering this. Taven’s a fighting champion and he’ll do something Lethal’s never had the guts to do – issue an open challenge (to any doofus in the locker room except Lethal). Lethal’s best friend accepted. [C]
-Referee Todd Sinclair ordered Marseglia and O’Ryan to the back. Paul Turner came out to back up the decree. They left through the crowd while complaining.
(3) ROH WORLD SIX-MAN TAG TEAM CHAMPION MATT TAVEN (w/Vinny Marseglia & TK O’Ryan) vs. “THE OCTOPUS” JONATHAN GRESHAM – MATT TAVEN’S REAL WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP
Gresham out-wrestled Taven. He looked for the octopus early. The goons ran back down to ringside and jumped onto the apron for the disqualification.
WINNER: Jonathan Gresham in 1:28. Matt Taven is still your “real” world champion.
-The henchmen pummeled Gresham. O’Ryan clubbed him with his baseball bat. Lethal hit the ring and fended off the cronies. He and Taven threw hands but the trio regrouped to take down Lethal. Taven slid a table into the ring. They lay Lethal across the flat, folded-up table. Juice Robinson hit the ring with the rest of Lifeblood close behind. The Kingdom walked off nonchalantly.
As they reached the top of the ramp Mark Haskins realized that Taven’s purple title had been forgotten about at the timekeeper’s table. Haskins urged them to come back and collect it. Bandido grabbed O’Ryan’s baseball bat and beckoned him forward while Tenille Dashwood grabbed Marseglia’s ax. Dashwood grabbed a mic. She said as long as the fake title belt exists it’s a slap in the face to everyone. She said it was time to destroy it. Lethal laid the purple belt across the folded-up table and Dashwood handed him the baseball bat. The Kingdom lost their minds on the stage but couldn’t get past the wall of Lifeblood members at the foot of the ramp. Lethal spit on the fake belt and unloaded with bat shots. Dashwood handed him the ax. Lethal chopped away at the title belt. The show closed with Taven yelling that Lethal would pay over a close-up of the mangled purple belt, the metal facing hacked to shreds.
(Pageot’s Perspective: That was terrific. Lots of heat on Taven for all his big talk and for the guys ruining the match as quickly as it began. Lots of babyface shine on Lethal looking like an honorable, likable person with lots of friends who are quick to come to his aid and back him up when he needs it. Any time we get more integration between the women and men in ROH I’m very happy so letting Dashwood be the one with the mic here instead of Robinson or Lethal was a small thing but very nice to see. And for the first time ever Marseglia’s ax is actually used as a weapon. The end with Lethal full-on chopping away at the belt was truly memorable. Will WWE steal this idea when the time comes for Daniel Bryan to lose his title?)
-Next week: it’s Dalton Castle vs. Kenny King, WOH World Champion Mayu Iwatani vs. Holidead in a non-title match, and Marty Scurll & PCO vs. Vinny Marseglia & TK O’Ryan.
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