Match 1: The Briscoes def. BLKOUT (Ruckus and BLK Jeez) in a Tag Team Title tournament first round match in 9 minutes.
CROWD: BLKOUT! BLKOUT! BLKOUT!
Fun note: Rashad Cameron (BLK Jeez) in TNA had the gimmick where he kept an afro comb in his hair. I saw him walking around backstage before the show and he was still teasing out his hair with the comb. Apparently that’s no gimmick!
Despite this being their first ROH appearance (at least in Baltimore), BLKOUT was getting a great reaction. There were even dueling “BLKOUT” , “Man up!” chants. A lot of fans were individually chanting for Ruckus. Everyone earned their cheers tonight as this was a fun match.
Early on, Jeez launches over the top rope, taking out both Briscoes. Ruckus runs along the ropes and does a running shooting star press onto the pile! Jeez poses!
Mark Briscoe regains control. He begins his second rope shimmy where he chants like a Native American and then jumps off, missing a senton. Jay was great here. He looked perturbed at Mark the whole time he was doing this nonsense. When he missed, he yells, “Man, I told you to cut that sh*t out!” Hilarious.
BLKOUT execute a coordinated series of three tag team maneuvers, a la the Motor City Machineguns. Mark makes the hot tag to Jay, who hits consecutive axe handles followed by a big boot to Ruckus. Ruckus tries two flippy-dippy moves and hits the first, but Jay counters and lays him out during the second.
Mark’s running dropkick sends Jeez out of the ring and disrupts a BLKOUT tag team maneuver. Jay hits a neckbreaker on Ruckus. Mark hits the big froggy elbow off the top rope. Jay gets the pin.
BLKOUT receives a really nice standing ovation after the match. The Baltimore ROH fans clearly want them to come back.
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Match 2: “Rock and Roll” Mike Sydal def. Mike Bennett in 5 minutes – Moments after the match begins the crowd chants “you can’t wrestle” at Bennett. He then goes into a keylock rest hold to prove them right.
Bennett attempts a piledriver, but referee Todd Sinclair warns him not to do it. This allows Sydal to get a near fall. He escapes Bennett’s charge with a matrix manoeuvre and hits a neckbreaker slam.
Bennett fights back and hits a big boot followed by the Box Office Smash. He goes for the pin, but pulls Sydal’s head up at two. Bennett tries instead to tap him out, but Mike Mondo comes to ringside and forcibly kisses Maria. This draws Bennett. Mondo eggs him on. Bennett chases Mondo around the ring two full times before Mondo runs to the back with Bennett in hot pursuit. Maria yells to Bennett that he’s about to be counted out, but it’s too late. Mike Sydal picks up the win via countout.
CROWD: Mondo! Mondo! Mondo!
Barrister R.D. Evans is on commentary.
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Match 3: Tommaso Ciampa def. Mike Posey in 2 minutes – Chiampa plays the early aggressor with a kick to the face and stomps on Mike Posey. Posey reverses a Kryptonite Krunch attempt, but Chiampa responds by just throwing him over the top rope to the floor. Posey hits a big leg lariat over the top rope, but Chiampa’s up quick and hits a strong clothesline. He pulls down his knee pad and does four running knees to Posey’s head. He drags Posey to the middle of the ring, deadlifts him and hits Project Chiampa.
Chiampa’s celebration music stops and we notice that Prince Nana is attacking R.D. Evans at the commentary position. In the fray, they knock the entire commentary desk to the floor. Chiampa is furious and charges towards the commentary position. He’s clearly very upset. He starts throwing chairs. After they break things up, six members of the crew work for several minutes putting the desk back together.
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Match 4: Michael Elgin (with Truth Martini) vs. Adam Cole for the ROH Television Title goes to a no contest – Michael Elgin abides by the code of honor, much to the disappointment of Truth Martini who grimaces, stares at the ground and walks away.
Cole and Elgin exchange something like 14 low-impact, fast, technically sound countermanuevers to start the match followed by about 6 near-fall pinning combinations. Fun stuff! Cole charges Elgin near the ropes. Elgin dodges and hits a release German suplex. Cole misses a sunset bomb but hits a backcracker. The men trade shots from their knees. Elgin attempts to counter Cole’s top rope splash into a powerbomb, but Cole escapes and hits a superkick. He follows with Cole-ateral (I think…it looked like a scoop brainbuster to me). Two count.
There are dueling Cole/Elgin chants. Cole sunset flips from the middle turnbuckle, but Elgin catches him, deadlifts him and hits a bucklebomb…but oh no! Todd Sinclair was stuck in the corner and got crushed.
The Guardians of Truth run in.
ELGIN [grabbing Guardian]: What are you doing!? This is my match! It’s the TV Title!
Corino and Jacobs run out. They tangle up with the Guardians. Kevin Steen runs out and into the ring. He and Elgin have a stare down.
CROWD: Ooooooooooo!!!
Kevin Steen pushes Elgin, and Elgin pushes him back and now they wailing on each other with punches. Rhino charges to the ring and starts attacking Steen. Michael Elgin is just a fuming ball of rage as he watches his chance to win the TV Title succumb to chaos.
Roderick Strong runs to the ring. He grabs Elgin by the shoulder, turns him around and then kicks Steen.
ELGIN (to Roderick): What are you doing here!?
Rockerick removes his shirt and stares down Elgin. Elgin pushes him.
ELGIN: You want this!? You want this, Roddy?
Elgin pulls down the straps. Meanwhile, Rhino and Steen continue to battle on the outside while Adam Cole is being assisted to the back. A swarm of referees descends upon the ring. Roderick grabs the Book of Truth.
ELGIN: Come on! Hit me with it! Hit me with it!
TRUTH: Hold on! Hold on!
ELGIN: Hit me! You want it you son of a bitch? Let’s go!
TRUTH: No no! Let’s not do this. Not here. Not at this time.
Roderick is pointing his finger right in Elgin’s face. Elgin, furious, continues to stare Roderick down. Roderick will not relent. He drops the Book of Truth and gets right in Elgin’s face. Elgin kicks the Book of Truth out of the ring. Truth stares at the book with dejection and picks it back up.
CROWD: Elgin! Elgin! Elgin!
TRUTH: Guys, hold on a second. Enough’s enough. We’re a cohesive unit. You need to stick together, especially for the next match because it’s going to be us three against some Baltimore punks named D-Line and the local moron DJ Christoff.
RODERICK: I’m going to tell you one thing, Elgin. If you lose this match tonight I swear to you I’m gonna slap you in that big fat kisser, porky.
Following his slight, Roderick immediately runs and jumps out of the ring.
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Bonus Match: D-Line (Black Ice & Bodysnatcher) and Christoff def. The House of Truth (Roderick Strong, Michael Elgin and Truth Martini) in 10 minutes – Michael Elgin shakes all his opponents’ hands while Roderick kicks them away.
CHRISTOFF: I want Truth! Get your ass in here!
Truth feins a hamstring industry. Roderick grabs Christoff’s beard and slaps him in the face.
RODERICK: Come on, Christoff!
A collar-and-elbow-tie-up between Black Ice and Elgin leads nowhere, but it’s clear that Elgin respects Black Ice’s strength. Elgin can’t seem to overpower him, so he just knees him in the gut and follows up with shots. Ice is whipped into the buckle but charges out with a clothesline. Elgin pushes him back into the corner.
Roderick tags in by slapping Elgin’s chest. Mocking D-Line’s football player gimmick, Roderick mimics like he’s being hiked the ball, hesitates, then delivers a big chop.
Truth tag in. He slaps Black Ice’s chest, but hurts his hand. Roderick’s back in, but Black Ice hits a belly-to-back suplex. Two count. Black Ice holds Roderick in a sidewalk slam position while Bodysnatcher comes in and hits a jumping leg lariat.
Christoff tags in. He throws two turnbuckle thrusts into Roderick’s midsection. Roderick kicks him in the gut. He’s down, but fights back up. Strong kicks him in the gut again. As Christoff fights to regain his footing, Bodysnatcher smacks Roderick to the ground. Christoff starts throwing kicks, not great kicks, but he’s throwing them.
Bodysnatcher’s in. His spear towards the buckle misses. Roderick catches Bodysnatcher’s big boot, throws it outside the ring, kicks him in the groin and lands a big kick to the side of his head..
RODERICK: [signaling touchdown] It’s good!
Roderick kicks out Bodysnatcher’s knees. Elgin reluctantly tags in. He keeps working Bodysnatcher’s left knee.
CROWD: Let’s go D-Line! Let’s go D-Line!
Bodysnatcher fights out of Elgin’s submission maneuver. He fights for the tag, but Elgin cuts him off, slamming him down.
Truth’s in. He kicks at Bodysnatcher knee. As Bodysnatcher recovers Roderick quickly tags in and promptly dropkicks him right in the face. He applies the figure-four then tags Elgin in. Elgin pauses then tags Roderick back in. Bodysnatcher fights back but his knee is giving him a lot of trouble. Roderick puts him in figure four variation in which he applies additional horizontal pressure to the knee with his left foot (I don’t know what this is called).
Bodysnatcher eventually escapes and Black Ice makes the hot tag. He knocks down Roderick, Elgin, Roderick and clotheslines Elgin. He splashes Elgin in one corner then does the same to Roderick. D-Line assumes side-by-side three point stances and performs a double-spear on Elgin. Roderick charges but Bodysnatcher cuts him off with a reverse spin kick. Knee by Black Ice. Boot by Bodysnatcher. Roderick’s out of the ring and Truth gets pushed in. He’s surrounded by both members of D-Line.
TRUTH: Oh no! Oh no!
Bodysnatcher grabs his hair and tags in Christoff. A helicopter spin makes Truth dizzy. Black Ice kicks him in the gut. Christoff gives Truth double middle fingers and hits him with a stunner for the pin. Truth never even took off his sunglasses.
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