ROH news and video thread

[mcmahonfan85]

from PWInsider:

RING OF HONOR NEWS AND NOTES
by Mike Johnson @ 2:05 PM on 9/8/2014

In an update on Michael Elgin, rumors that recent comments by him about his interest in trying out for a Major League Baseball team led to him losing the belt to Jay Briscoe are incorrect. We are told that had no bearing on ROH booking him to lose the ROH title over the weekend. We are also told the visa issues had no bearing on the title loss. That would leave how the belt was portrayed on the independents as being the primary factor.

ROH officials are assisting Elgin in getting back into the United States. I am told that the issue was something that Elgin was responsible for handling.

ROH announced that Matt "Evan Bourne" Sydal will officially return to the company at the 9/27 TV Taping in Wheeling, West Virginia. He was booked to return at the "Best in the World" PPV in Nashville but WWE, after approving the date, changed their minds and pulled him.

If you haven't seen the All Star Extravaganza show, you really need to go out of your way to see the top three matches, especially Adam Cole vs. AJ Styles. You can order the VOD now at www.rohwrestling.com.

In an update on Silas Young, it should be noted that the way ROH announced his broken leg was that "were told" he had suffered one. Young was dealing with an injury the last week, but whether it was actually a broken leg, I cannot confirm.

[Steveweiser]

Mike Johnson has retracted his report from last night, saying that (a) the baseball comments did not play a part in the decision to take the title off Elgin, and (b) the visa issue did not play a part. It seems to be how he was being booked in PWG and other indies that was a large factor. Johnson also says that ROH are assisting Elgin in making sure he is able to return to the United States as soon as possible.

[CATCH_US IS the Conversation]

Sept 8, 2014 10:05:08 GMT -5 @nichotine said:

Anyone else think that's an antiquated way of thinking for pro wrestling organizations? I understand ROH's concern but at the same time as fans does anyone really hold the continuity of one fed to another? If Elgin is champ of ROH and loses frequently in PWG I don't hold one to the other any more than I would if Harrison Ford is a fugitive in one movie and a president in the other.

My personal belief is that all wrestling exists in one universe. That's why I'd really like it if Indy wrestlers to keep their names when coming into WWE and for WWE to allow their performers to keep their WWE-given names when they are released.

[Steveweiser]

Elgin wrote this note to Legend City Wrestling in Canada before this all blew up...

www.facebook.com/legendcitywrestling/posts/641112225987802

"I want to apologize as I am unable to participate in the tour this September. This is out of mine and LCW hands, as lawyers and Immigration have my paper work all tied up still. This meaning if I travel to Canada without proper paperwork it could prevent me from entering back to the states before my paper work is finished. I own a house, am married and we have 2 pets as well as trying to start a family so it's not something I can risk at this time. Not only that wrestling is a way of living for me so I am also greatly effecting by this financially as much as emotionally. Nothing excited me more than being in front of a new crowd, a love crowd and my home country fans.

I truly am sorry and promise that I will make it up to any and all fans that were looking forward to seeing me live. LCW has been great in waiting on me to try and deal with these issues, unfortunately the paperwork has not been dealt with as of yet. Once it has I hope to reschedule and see you all. But LCW has a great line up of talent and produces some amazing shows, so please show then your support and enjoy septembers amazing tour!"

[Deleted]

Sept 8, 2014 10:05:08 GMT -5 @nichotine said:

Anyone else think that's an antiquated way of thinking for pro wrestling organizations? I understand ROH's concern but at the same time as fans does anyone really hold the continuity of one fed to another? If Elgin is champ of ROH and loses frequently in PWG I don't hold one to the other any more than I would if Harrison Ford is a fugitive in one movie and a president in the other.

It is antiquated, but I like wrestling tradition in instances like these. This is like that story about Jericho refusing to acknowledge a little kid that wanted his autograph when he was in SRS Jericho mode, it seems out-dated but it's all about protecting aura and mystique and all the other stuff that's been stripped away from wrestling over the years. Well, maybe not all about that, it can also be used to be a petty douche hiding behind "THIS BUSINESS", but those ideas exist because, at least at some point, they were successful.

[543Y2J]

So damn happy to hear Sydal is back with the company. Always been a mark for him. Everyone has a rough transition back or to WWE, but I think he has done really well. Judging by the PWG BOLA N2 trailer he seems back in full force and is doing most of all his old indy moves again. I thought he even did well in his Dragon Gate tag match, considering it was his first match back after WWE.

I want ACH vs Sydal. Imagine the selling between the two of them!!!

[weaselboy]

Ring of Honor was featured on UK telly last night, as part of "Almost Royal" on E4.

The show which sees Ed Gamble and Amy Hoggart play Georgie and Poppy Carlton, minor royals sampling American culture, saw the two get into an altercation with Truth Martini. Fellow Brit Nigel McGuinness was also involved in the segment.

Don't know if anyone else saw it, but I thought Ed Gamble gave a pretty strong promo.

[Deleted]

Sept 8, 2014 15:29:35 GMT -5 @lovehater said:

Sept 8, 2014 10:05:08 GMT -5 @nichotine said:

Anyone else think that's an antiquated way of thinking for pro wrestling organizations? I understand ROH's concern but at the same time as fans does anyone really hold the continuity of one fed to another? If Elgin is champ of ROH and loses frequently in PWG I don't hold one to the other any more than I would if Harrison Ford is a fugitive in one movie and a president in the other.

It is antiquated, but I like wrestling tradition in instances like these. This is like that story about Jericho refusing to acknowledge a little kid that wanted his autograph when he was in SRS Jericho mode, it seems out-dated but it's all about protecting aura and mystique and all the other stuff that's been stripped away from wrestling over the years. Well, maybe not all about that, it can also be used to be a petty douche hiding behind "THIS BUSINESS", but those ideas exist because, at least at some point, they were successful.

I can understand that. I can also appreciate that ROH is taking measures to protect their title, but I'm a real stickler for the legacy of a company's title history and there aren't many blemishes in ROH's case, and though I wouldn't consider this Elgin loss a dealbreaker, it's a bit upsetting to me. From what we're told, sounds like a really kneejerk move for a company with a pretty solid history as far as their titles go, so to make Elgin look like a bit of a flash in the pan.

It's kind of convenient because I don't know if there's a lot of juice to a long-term Elgin reign, and if they're gonna push the fact that Jay Briscoe hasn't been pinned in 2 years I think it would have been wasted on Elgin to be the guy to break the streak, so for the show I like that it wound up this way better. I just wish that was the reason it happened, like who's to say they wouldn't have done this to Adam Cole if he agreed to the wrong match in PWG?

So yeah I'm not overly upset by Elgin losing but I wish it were for a better reason. I get wanting the champ to look good on the indies but PWG is a bit of a madhouse anyways, no one really leaves a PWG show feeling any worse about any particular wrestler regardless of their spot on the card or wins/losses.

[Deleted]

Sept 8, 2014 16:08:57 GMT -5 @nichotine said:

Sept 8, 2014 15:29:35 GMT -5 @lovehater said:

It is antiquated, but I like wrestling tradition in instances like these. This is like that story about Jericho refusing to acknowledge a little kid that wanted his autograph when he was in SRS Jericho mode, it seems out-dated but it's all about protecting aura and mystique and all the other stuff that's been stripped away from wrestling over the years. Well, maybe not all about that, it can also be used to be a petty douche hiding behind "THIS BUSINESS", but those ideas exist because, at least at some point, they were successful.

I can understand that. I can also appreciate that ROH is taking measures to protect their history, but I'm a real stickler for the legacy of a company's title history and there aren't many blemishes in ROH's case, and though I wouldn't consider this Elgin loss a dealbreaker, it's a bit upsetting to me. From what we're told, sounds like a really kneejerk move for a company with a pretty solid history as far as their titles go, so to make Elgin look like a bit of a flash in the pan.

It's kind of convenient because I don't know if there's a lot of juice to a long-term Elgin reign, and if they're gonna push the fact that Jay Briscoe hasn't been pinned in 2 years I think it would have been wasted on Elgin to be the guy to break the streak, so for the show I like that it wound up this way better. I just wish that was the reason it happened, like who's to say they wouldn't have done this to Adam Cole if he agreed to the wrong match in PWG?

So yeah I'm not overly upset by Elgin losing but I wish it were for a better reason. I get wanting the champ to look good on the indies but PWG is a bit of a madhouse anyways, no one really leaves a PWG show feeling any worse about any particular wrestler regardless of their spot on the card or wins/losses.

I don't think it's worth taking the title from someone over, unless they were just looking for a reason. I don't know how he's been performing so it's hard to say if there was other reason, seems like it was for a number of reasons and doing ill-advised jobs on the indy circuit was justpart of it.

[Apricots And A Pear Tree]

Simple way to avoid stuff like this in the future:Pay the champ enough money so they don't have to take outside bookings.

[OVO 40 hunched over like he 80]

Sept 8, 2014 16:32:57 GMT -5 Apricots And A Pear Tree said:

Simple way to avoid stuff like this in the future:Pay the champ enough money so they don't have to take outside bookings.

well we're not that far away, the stupid indy contracts don't allow for dgusa guys to work in roh and vice versa, I think that in a coulpe of years there will come a point where ROH will prohibit their guys to work anywhere else.

[AdamAFL was sooooo wrong]

Aside from all the Elgin controversy and confusion I like that Mike made the point of mentioning the AJ/Cole match. I haven't heard too much praise since I returned to the internet wrestling forums (I wanted to remain unspoiled for the show) after watching ASE earlier today but I thought it was a phenomenal (pun very much intended) match.

[kingoftheindies]

Sept 8, 2014 16:45:00 GMT -5 OVO 40 hunched over like he 80 said:

Sept 8, 2014 16:32:57 GMT -5 Apricots And A Pear Tree said:

Simple way to avoid stuff like this in the future:Pay the champ enough money so they don't have to take outside bookings.

well we're not that far away, the stupid indy contracts don't allow for dgusa guys to work in roh and vice versa, I think that in a coulpe of years there will come a point where ROH will prohibit their guys to work anywhere else.

Well that's mostly because of bad blood between Gabe and ROH. ROH did have a stipulation that said their wrestlers couldn't do IPPVs with other companies but they have been pretty lax with that.

[OVO 40 hunched over like he 80]

I was gonna make a thread asking these but seems kinda redundant when we're talking about the Elgin situation here. Ok my question to you guys, is Michael Elgin the worst champion in ROH history?
Sure, nobody remembers Xavier, and James Gibson and Jerry Lynn were only transitional champions, but I'm picking Elgin because in my opinion he's the biggest bust in recent history, I'm choosing him as the worst roh champion compared to the other guys because he failed to reach the expectations the company and the fans had in him.

He had, as far as I know, against Davey one of the few 5 star matches in ROH history, I only remember Joe vs Punk 2 and Joe vs Kobashi if there are more I apologize.

His downfall came when he couldn't have great matches with other workers that weren't Davey. He cuts a below average promo. The only interesting thing he had going on was his mullet they cut it, on that same angle when Cole attacked his wife, Elgin barely showed emotion.

I often have joked about Japan booking everyone but him, someone gave an excelent explanation on another thread here at FAN, the poster noted that Elgin's offense heavily borrowed from Japanese stars, and the Japanese resented that an indy guy with barely any name did the moves, and that's why new japan doesn't book him.

My final reason for naming him the worst champion in roh history is because in 12 years, not a single world champion has been basically "striped" from the title by the company, like as far as I know (again if I'm wrong please point it out) this was the first time the plan changed at the last minute to get the belt out from Elgin...I don't believe that Jay was supposed to win at this event.

This is a list of all the roh world champions since the company's creation
Low Ki
Xavier
Samoa Joe
Austin Aries
CM Punk
James Gibson
Bryan Danielson
Takeshi Morishima
Nigel McGuiness
Jerry Lynn
Tyler Black
Roderick Strong
Eddie Edwards
Davey Richards
Kevin Steen
Jay Briscoe
Adam Cole
Michael Elgin

As far as I know, all of this men but one, lost the belt without any controversy, it all went according to plan, except for Elgin, wonder how he's gonna recover from this, if he can't enter the us, how is roh gonna keep using him?

[kingoftheindies]

In some ways yes because they have been building Elgin up for the better part of 2 years. So for them to take the title off of him because they got pissed wasted a lot of time.

...Still Xavier wasn't over then so it's him.

[OVO 40 hunched over like he 80]

Sept 9, 2014 9:32:16 GMT -5 kingoftheindies said:

In some ways yes because they have been building Elgin up for the better part of 2 years. So for them to take the title off of him because they got pissed wasted a lot of time.

...Still Xavier wasn't over then so it's him.

Yeah to this day I don't know anything about Xavier other than he was roh champ...
It seems like Elgin never embraced his role and the opportunity he was given, it's almost damn near impossible to be roh champion for a second time, jay and Aries being the exceptions, so it's safe to say that there's a real possibility that Elgin never wins it back again...
Oh yeah Elgin just tweeted back and forth with Joe Rogan defending pro wrestling, that was random.

[Mondai Rogue]

Sept 9, 2014 10:21:12 GMT -5 OVO 40 hunched over like he 80 said:

Sept 9, 2014 9:32:16 GMT -5 kingoftheindies said:

In some ways yes because they have been building Elgin up for the better part of 2 years. So for them to take the title off of him because they got pissed wasted a lot of time.

...Still Xavier wasn't over then so it's him.

Yeah to this day I don't know anything about Xavier other than he was roh champ...
It seems like Elgin never embraced his role and the opportunity he was given, it's almost damn near impossible to be roh champion for a second time, jay and Aries being the exceptions, so it's safe to say that there's a real possibility that Elgin never wins it back again...
Oh yeah Elgin just tweeted back and forth with Joe Rogan defending pro wrestling, that was random.

Joe Rogan's bizarrely decided to start slamming pro wrestling pretty hard on Twitter. Although I haven't seen Elgin & Rogan's exchange.

[OVO 40 hunched over like he 80]

Yeah lol, Rogan was trolling the really passionate wrestling fans, you gotta read his exchange with Elgin, it's just so random.

[Steveweiser]

ROH TV DEBUTING IN ATLANTA, FIRST IN NEW SYNDICATION DEALS
by Mike Johnson @ 12:35 PM on 9/9/2014

Sinclair Broadcast Group issued the following today:

Sinclair Broadcast Group Announces Syndication Deal For Ring Of Honor Wrestling

BALTIMORE (September 9, 2014) -- Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc. (Nasdaq: SBGI) (the “Company” or “Sinclair”) announced today that it has entered into its first syndication deal for the Company’s Ring of Honor Wrestling product (“ROH”). WATL-TV, the MyNet affiliate in Atlanta, Georgia will air ROH weekly on Saturdays, beginning September 13, 2014.

“This is a very exciting start to developing ROH’s broader syndication distribution,” stated Joe Koff, COO of Ring of Honor Wrestling. “Since purchasing ROH three years ago, we have upgraded the production quality, added live events and expanded the audience footprint to 76 television markets reaching over 44 million households. We will add an additional 2.4 million television households through today’s announcement and are in discussions with additional companies for syndicated distribution. This is an excellent product with a loyal fan base, which has helped ROH become one of the fastest growing major wrestling franchises in the country. We look forward to expanding ROH’s footprint and continuing to offer entertaining original content.”

About Ring of Honor Wrestling

Ring of Honor Wrestling is owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc., the largest and one of the most diversified television broadcasting companies with affiliations across all the major networks. Sinclair’s television group will reach approximately 38.2% of U.S. television households, including pending transactions. The Company regularly uses its website as a key source of Company information which can be accessed at www.sbgi.net.

[mcmahonfan85]

Sept 9, 2014 10:21:12 GMT -5 OVO 40 hunched over like he 80 said:

Sept 9, 2014 9:32:16 GMT -5 kingoftheindies said:

In some ways yes because they have been building Elgin up for the better part of 2 years. So for them to take the title off of him because they got pissed wasted a lot of time.

...Still Xavier wasn't over then so it's him.

Yeah to this day I don't know anything about Xavier other than he was roh champ...

Xavier was a midcard babyface in a rivalry with Scoot Andrews for the first half of 2002, then turned heel and joined The Prophecy when he beat Low Ki for the title. problem then was he was still booked as a midcarder. During his entire run as champion he was only in the main event three times, two tag matches and then him dropping the title to Joe. he then took several months off from ROH to heel up, coming back still a heel but no longer a member of The Prophecy. he competed in the Field of Honor in late 2003 which led to a heated feud with John Walters. had a few matches in early 2004 and was the first member of The Embassy before disappearing from ROH.

if they kept him a midcard babyface or booked him like a main eventer when he was champ (the title match at Final Battle 2002 being followed by a number one contenders match says it all) then he wouldn't be remembered as a joke