SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...
The following is a report originally published here 20 years ago this week…
RING OF HONOR RESULTS
OCTOBER 28, 2006
CHICAGO RIDGE, ILL.
REPORT BY CHRIS VETTER, PWTORCH CONTRIBUTOR
Estimated Attendance: 800-850, fairly identical to the June and August shows here. I purchased my four new ROH DVDs, talked with friends, and then the pre-show started!
(a) Rhett Titus defeats Mitch Franklin at 4:48.
Rhett wore red trunks, and Franklin wore a black & white singlet. Mitch worked the left arm. Rhett hit some stops and a nice dropkick for a nearfall, then a nice sideslam. Franklin hit some chops and a hurricanrana. Rhett nailed a Tornado Clothesline for the pin. Solid.
(b) CJ Otis & Bobby Dempsey defeat Alex Payne & Ernie Osiris at 3:55.
The fans popped with a huge “Sugarfoot!” chant for Payne. Payne & Osiris wore identical green trunks. Osiris, at first glance, made me think of a white Chavo Guerrero, with short black hair, and his hairline has receded a bit. Dempsey wore a black singlet; he’s lost a bit of weight, but he’s still quite large. Otis wore pink & black trunks. The match began with Otis and Osiris trading armdrags. Dempsey overpowered Payne and hit some bodyslam. Payne hit an elevated flying kneedrop on Otis’ chest. Osiris & Payne worked over Otis. CJ hit a flying kick to Osiris’ face for the pin. Basic.
(c) Angel Armani defeats Pelle Primeau at 4:33.
Armani is in his 40s, and he does the Rick “the Model” Martel gimmick, spraying his aerosol can at the fans, and he wore all black. Pelle wore blue bicycle shorts. Armani stalled and claimed Pelle pulled his hair. Pelle hit a hard slap to the face. Armani missed an elbow drop; Pelle missed a dropkick, and he hurt his knee on the landing on the mat.
Armani went to work on the leg, and he was in charge. He hit some chops. Armani (who has worked Full Impact Pro in the past, and I’ve seen him for years in MN & WI) was getting some great heat. Pelle hit an enziguri, and they were both down. Pelle did a nice dive from the apron back into the ring and getting a rollup for a nearfall. However, Armani got a rollup with his feet on the rope for the pin.
The main show got started at 7:35 p.m.
(1) Adam Pearce & Shane Hagadorn defeat Jake & Dave Crist (Irish Airborne) at 8:44.
The Crists wore identical orange trunks. The heels attacked the Crists from behind. Jake hit a nice dropkick, and the Crists hit simultaneous Asai Moonsaults to the floor, and the crowd chanted “Irish Airborne!” In the ring, Jake hit a nice dropkick to the side of the head. Dave gave Jake a monkeyflip, with Jake flying mid-air and hitting a headscissors takedown on Pearce! Wow! Cool spot. Pearce kicked Jake in the gut. Pearce hit a hard chop that knocked Jake down at 3:30.
Pearce hit a top-rope elbow drop for a nearfall. Jake hit a nice standing neckbreaker. The ref missed Jake getting a hot tag. Pearce hit a powerslam for a nearfall. Hagadorn hit an elevated elbow drop for a nearfall. Pearce hit a spin kick. Jake hit a springboard spin kick, and he made the hot tag to Dave at 7:30. Dave hit some punches. Pearce accidentally hit Shane with a clothesline!
Dave hit a springboard spin kick. Dave climbed the ropes to go for the Irish Air Raid, but Pearce shook the ropes, and Dave got crotched in the corner. Shane hit Dave with (I believe) a weapon. Pearce then nailed a sitdown piledriver for the pin on Dave Crist.
Jim Cornette hit the ring to a nice babyface pop. Cornette praised wrestlers that are loyal like Pearce & Hagadorn. He then talked about guys that aren’t loyal, like Homicide, and the crowd booed Cornette.
(2) Shingo defeats Roderick Strong at 15:28.
Shingo wore a black singlet; Strong wore blue trunks. The crowd was hot. Shingo worked the left knee, and they traded shoulder tackles. Strong hit a nice leg lariat and an armdrag. Strong unloaded some hard chops, and the crowd popped. Shingo hit some stiff forearms. Shingo caught Strong flying toward him, and Shingo slammed him to the mat. Shingo hit a nice STO uranage at 7:00, then he applied a single-leg crab, but Strong reached the ropes.
Strong hit some chops, then he NAILED a dropkick. Shingo hit some kicks and stomps in the corner, then he hit a guillotine legdrop as Strong was tied up in the ropes at 10:00. Shingo hit a flying clothesline off the apron to the floor. In the ring, Strong hit a backbreaker over his knee for a nearfall. Shingo placed Strong’s feet on the ropes, and he hit a DDT on Strong. Shingo nailed a second-rope flying kneedrop. Strong came back with a superplex for a believable nearfall. Strong tried to apply the Stronghold/vertical Boston Crab, but Shingo immediately grabbed the ropes. They traded stiff forearms, and Strong nailed a Mafia Kick to the jaw!
Shingo hit a modified Angle Slam for a believable nearfall at 13:30. Strong hit an enziguri, then his gorilla press gutbuster across his knees. They fought on the ring apron, and Shingo hit a DDT off the apron through a table set up on the floor! The crowd popped for the move, chanting, “holy sh–!” Shingo rolled Strong in the ring, and he hit a Falcon Arrow slam – with a cocky cover – for the pin. An upset in my eyes.
(3) Jimmy Jacobs & Colt Cabana (w/Lacey) defeat Sal Rinauro & Jimmy Rave at 13:43.
No change in Rave & Rinauro – the gimmick is still the same, and the crowd still pelted them with toilet paper. The crowd was hot, as Jacobs and Rave opened with some mat wrestling. Jacobs hit a hard clothesline. Colt tagged in, and Rave immediately tagged in Sal. The crowd chanted that “Rave’s a pu$$y!” Colt did some fun comedy tie-ups on Sal, and the crowd laughed at the silliness. Colt got a Schoolyard Takedown. In a team spot, Colt gave Jacobs a drop-toe-hold, sending Jacobs crashing onto Sal at 6:00.
The faces hit a team Russian Legsweep on Sal. Rave entered and hit some shoulder blocks to Jacobs’ gut, and he spit at Colt! Sal hit a Pele Kick on Jacobs out of the corner at 9:00. Nice move. Rave hit a back suplex, as the heels worked Jacobs over. Colt made the hot tag, throwing some punches and Dusty Elbows. Colt sent Sal flying into Rave’s crotch. Colt then nailed his flying buttbump on Sal.
Sal fought back with a Stunner on Colt. Jacobs hit the Contra Code/overhead flip bulldog on Sal. Rave and Colt traded punches. Jacobs hit a top-rope senton splash, and Colt immediately followed it with a moonsault, for a pin on Rave. After the match, Rave slapped Sal for not breaking up the pinfall.
Lacey, Colt and Jacobs celebrated in the ring, and Jacobs wanted some affection. “I got the win to make you happy,” Jacobs told Lacey. Lacey corrected Jacobs, saying it was COLT who got the win. Lacey said it’s time to make her relationship with Colt official, and she offered Colt a spot in Lacey’s Angels! Colt said Lacey needs to know the difference between “personal time” and “business.” Colt carried on about doing the “horizontal mambo” with Lacey. Jacobs was sobbing in the ropes as Colt went on and on about his “personal” relationship with Lacey.
Colt said he realized something about Lacey during their time together. “Lacey, you are a huge b!tch!” Colt said, which got a HUGE pop. “All you do is yell and scream.” He said their relationship is over, but he thanked Lacey for “The good times and the great memories.” Colt then turned to Jacobs, and told him to leave Lacey. “You are like the little sister I never had,” Colt said. Funny. “You need to drop the ball and chain.” Colt said that if Jacobs stayed with Lacey, Jacobs would be pu$$ywhipped.
Jacobs turned to Lacey and said, “Baby, I need a sign. Just give me a hug.” Lacey’s response? “Jimmy, you absolutely disgust me!” Jacobs got a chair, and the fans chanted for him to hit Lacey. Instead, Jacobs went to leave. As Colt went through the ropes, Jacobs crotched him! Jacobs got one of Lacey’s high heel shoes, and he jabbed it into Colt’s forehead, and Colt was bleeding heavily! B.J. Whitmer ran out (to a HUGE pop), and he chased off Jacobs! Very good segment; the crowd was definitely into this.
(4) Steve Corino defeats Delirious at 15:44. Corino wore pink pants.
The crowd was hot, as Delirious jawed with his gibberish. Finally, it appeared they were going to tie up, when Delirious rolled to the floor and ran some laps; the crowd popped, and Corino just looked annoyed. They locked up, and Corino applied a headscissorslock, and jawed at the fans. Delirious flexed his muscles at 5:30, drawing a huge pop. They did a comedy spot of arguing over who should hit the ropes. Delirious hit a crossbody block for a nearfall. Corino came back with a leg lariat. Corino pulled out a tassel out of Delirious’ mask, drawing ridiculously loud boos!
Corino choked Delirious in the ropes. Delirious hit an enziguri for a nearfall. Corino applied an abdominal stretch, and with his free hand, it appeared he was jabbing Delirious in his, um, anus, at 9:30. Seriously. The crowd chanted, “You sick f**k!” at Corino. Delirious got free, and he forced Corino’s thumb into Corino’s mouth! Delirious nailed the BAM leaping lariat, then maybe 30 short-arm clotheslines in the corner, and a bulldog. Delirious went for the Panic Attack/running knee, but Corino cut him off with a superkick.
Delirious bit Corino’s thigh, and he nailed the Panic Attack at 12:00 for a nearfall. Corino hit a Death Valley Driver for a nearfall, then an STO uranage. Corino hit a low blow kick and a clothesline, and the crowd rallied for Delirious. They fought on the ropes, and Delirious nailed a headbutt, sending Corino crashing to the mat. Delirious nailed the Shadows Over Hell Backsplash, and he slapped on the Cobra Stretch! Suddenly, Hagadorn & Pearce hit the ring, distracting ref Sinclair. Corino hit Delirious with the Top of the Class trophy to get the pin.
Ref Sinclair found out about the cheating, and he reversed the decision, declaring Delirious won! This brought Jim Cornette out from the back, and he was furious. Cornette admonished Sinclair, pointing out that Sinclair only saw one man knocked out, and he counted a pin. Cornette threatened Sinclair to go by his original decision, or Sinclair would be out of a job! Sinclair quickly raised Corino’s hand in victory, and the crowd booed!
(5) Christopher Daniels defeats Austin Aries at 18:04.
Good match. They had an intense lockup, as the fans were hot and equally split. Daniels hit a leg lariat. Aries hit a nice flying back elbow and a shoulder tackle. Daniels gave Aries a monkeyflip at 5:30, and he avoided the Aries’ basement dropkick. Daniels beat up Aries on the floor. Daniels tried an Arabian Press to the floor, but Aries avoided it. Aries then dove through the ropes to the floor, crashing onto Daniels! In the ring, Aries hit his catapult senton and a flying elbow for a nearfall, then a Divorce Court Armbreaker. Daniels fought back with a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker at 9:30, and a back suplex for a nearfall.
Daniels hit a Samoan Drop and some knee shots to the back. Daniels again went for an Arabian Press, but Aries got his knees up to block it at 12:00. Aries hit a Roaring Forearm and a catapult twisting press off the apron, then a Lionsault for a nearfall. Daniels hit a Blue Thunder Bomb for a nearfall. Daniels was bleeding from a cut on his back. Daniels went for the Angel’s Wings/spinning pedigree, but Aries blocked it, and Aries hit a hurricanrana. Aries nailed his running dropkick to the face in the corner for a nearfall at 14:00.
Aries missed a frogsplash. Daniels missed the Best Moonsault Ever. Daniels hit a Flatliner, and he slapped on the Koji Clutch, but Aries reached the ropes. Aries applied a Rings of Saturn/double armbar. Aries NAILED a brainbuster for a nearfall. Aries went to the top turnbuckle, but Daniels caught him with a STIFF uppercut to the jaw! Daniels hit the Angel’s Wings for the pin! They shook hands after the match. Very good back-and-forth action.
Intermission.
(6) Brent Albright defeats Trik Davis at 5:20.
Wow, Brent is a perfect fit for ROH. He’s cut his long hair off; I barely recognized him as WWE’s “Gunner Scott.” Albright wore a white trenchcoat to the ring, with white trunks. Trik wore black pants. (I’ve seen Trik for a few years, and he’s great at taking a beating in a one-sided match.) Brent immediately tossed Trik around. Trik hit a headscissors takedown, and they had a standoff. Brent shook Trik’s hand, but he immediately hit a T-Bone suplex, a European Uppercut, and a hard clothesline.
Trik came back with a nice snap headscissors takedown. Brent hit a running back elbow that sent Trik flying! Brent hit a delayed back suplex at 3:00, a loud back chop, and a standing powerbomb for a nearfall. Trik hit a springboard Sliced Bread #2! Brent nailed a German Suplex, a Dragon Suplex, then he applied a Fujiwara Armbar, and Trik submitted. The crowd chanted, “Please come back!” at Brent. I sincerely hope this match makes the final edit of the show, as Brent came across like a beast.
Ref Todd Sinclair came out for the next match, and the fans chanted, “You sold out!” at him.
(7) Matt Sydal defeats Jay Briscoe at 14:45.
Excellent match. They took turns playing to the crowd, but Jay jumped Matt from behind and hit some punches, a spin heel kick, and a headscissors takedown. Matt nailed a dive over the top rope to the floor! Matt whipped Jay twice into the guardrails! Sydal hit a guillotine legdrop in the ring, then a Catapult Basement Dropkick in the corner for a nearfall at 4:30. Jay hit a nice dropkick and a chop, then a release overhead suplex. Jay nailed a nice European Uppercut, and he beat up Sydal on the floor.
In the ring, Briscoe went for a Gorilla Press DVD, but Sydal escaped it and hit a DDT at 8:30! Sharp spot. They traded stiff forearms and chops. Sydal hit a spin heel kick and his Floatover Famouser for a nearfall. Jay NAILED a hard Mafia Kick. Sydal nailed a top-rope moonsault to the floor at 11:00, and the crowd went nuts! Jay whipped Sydal into the guardrail. Back in the ring, Jay hit the Gorilla Press DVD for a believable nearfall.
Jay went for a frogsplash, but Sydal got his knees up to block it. Sydal hit a standing moonsault at 13:30, and the crowd was chanting, “This is awesome!” They fought on the top turnbuckle. Sydal tried to hit the belly-to-belly suplex, but Jay blocked it, and Jay hit a top-rope X-Factor faceplant! Jay went for a running clothesline, but Sydal sidestepped it, got a rollup and scored the pin!
Mark Briscoe hit the ring, and the Briscoes worked over Sydal. Davey Richards came to the ring for the save.
(8) Davey Richards defeats Mark Briscoe at 14:46.
Good match, and this was STIFF. Mark lost his three front upper teeth last week, and it’s quite noticeable when he opens his mouth. They traded stiff forearms, and Richards hit his hard spin kicks to the chest. Mark wore red basketball shorts, while Richards wore his white trunks. Richards hit a nice belly-to-belly overhead suplex at 3:00, then some chops and kicks to the chest and back. Mark fought back with a catapult doublestomp for a nearfall and a hard headbutt.
Mark hit a gutwrench suplex and a kneedrop to the head, then a Samoan Drop for a nearfall at 6:00. Richards hit a missile dropkick and a running Field Goal Kick to the head, then a Northern Lights Suplex for a nearfall. Richards went for the handspring-back-enziguri, but Briscoe caught him, and Mark hit a half-nelson suplex for a nearfall! Mark went for a springboard move, but Richards caught Mark’s left arm and he turned it into a Fujiwara Armbar on the mat. They traded stiff forearms at 10:00, and Richards flipped Mark in the air, and he hit a hard kick to the chest as Mark came back to the ground!
They hit double clotheslines, and both men were down. Richards hit an STO. They fought on the top rope, and Mark hit a top-rope bulldog for a nearfall. Richards hit a top-rope release German Suplex, and they both crashed to the mat at 14:00. Richards hit a double-arm DDT, and he tied up Mark on the mat, similar to Milano Collection’s “AT Lock.” Mark tapped out. Hard hitting!
Matches announced for the Dec. 8 and 9 Chicago double-header include Jacobs vs. Colt, Daniels & Sydal vs. Strong & Aries, Pearce-Homicide, and matches with Albright, Shingo, Toland, Nigel, the Briscoes, Delirious, Samoa Joe and American Dragon. (After the show, the Crists told me they also will be on both shows.)
(9) Samoa Joe defeats American Dragon Bryan Danielson at 21:34 in a no-DQ match.
This was non-title. This was violent right from the beginning, and I immediately knew this wasn’t going an hour! The fans again booed Sinclair. Joe immediately hit a punch and a dive to the floor on Danielson! They fought on the floor, with fans chanting, “Joe’s gonna kill you!” In the ring, Joe hit the front kick & back chop & knee drop combo for a nearfall. Joe hit some bootscrapes, but Dragon avoided the Facewash. Dragon applied a front headlock on the mat, and he stomped on Dragon’s elbow at 4:30. Dragon went for a move off the ropes, but Joe caught him with an STO.
They again fought to the floor, and Joe swung Dragon head-first into the guardrail. Joe hit an Ole Kick! The action spilled into the crowd at 8:30. Fans chanted, “Dragon Sucks!” I couldn’t see any of the fighting, as they went around the hard cam and the merchandise table. They re-entered the ring at 13:00, and Dragon had a black club! Dragon hit Joe with the club, and used it to choke Joe, while applying a cross-face chickenwing! Joe escaped and hit some hard chops and forearms, then a powerslam for a nearfall at 15:30. Dragon hit some elbow shots to the head.
Joe hit some stiff forearms, and he hit some elbow shots to the head! Joe hit an enziguri. Dragon applied the Cattle Mutilation at 18:00. Dragon ran over to Sinclair and took off Sinclair’s belt! Dragon whipped Joe on the back with the leather belt! Joe hit an enziguri as Dragon sat on the top turnbuckle. Joe grabbed the belt, and he whipped Dragon with it! Joe went for the Musclebuster, but Dragon escaped. Dragon went for a rollup with a Backlund Bridge, but Joe wrapped the belt around Dragon’s neck, and Joe applied the rear-naked choke! Dragon fought valiantly to escape, but he passed out, and Joe was the winner!
Joe got on the mic, and he said Dragon is talented, but he’s an asshole! Joe challenged Dragon to a rematch next time here in Chicago, but this time, in a steel cage! The place went NUTS when Joe mentioned the cage! Joe left, and Dragon woke up, hurt and perplexed, as the fans chanted, “You tapped out!” at him. (I don’t think he tapped out, though.)
FINAL THOUGHTS
Show ended at 11:25 p.m. This was another good show. The main event was awesome, and even though I couldn’t see any of the fighting on the floor, the action I saw was great! The excitement – the buzz in the building — for the return match was cool.
Second best goes to Sydal vs. Jay, as they worked incredibly well together, and the match was just really fluid. I’ll give third-best to Daniels-Aries, just ahead of Richards-Mark Briscoe. Those are four good matches to top a show! No match of the year candidates here, but this was a good show.
The opening half of the show felt hit-or-miss. Hagadorn didn’t do much, as Pearce was in the ring most of the time. I like comedy stuff, but it felt too much in back-to-back matches (Colt tag, then Delirious-Corino.) I can’t say I’ve ever seen the spot before where Corino stuck his thumb into Delirious’ rear. Ugh. Shingo was solid, but outside of the DDT on the table, he ultimately didn’t do anything really memorable. Albright got more of a buzz in his Chicago debut than Shingo did.
