ROH Action

Ring of Honor never fails to disappoint when they visit southern Ohio. I love the grit and the effort of their entire roster. The main event between Chris Hero and Nigel McGuinnes for the ROH World Title in a steel cage was entertaining but probably only the third best match of the evening. Sweet and Sour Incorporated are so 'over' it is almost amazing. Chants of 'Bobby Dempsey' during the heat of the Hero/McGuiness battle was amusing. It prompted Hero to shout back to the crowd "pay attention to me!" In the end Dempsey cost Hero the match by slamming the cage door on his head when the fat one thought he was getting McGuiness.

The tease of the evening was the new Age of the Fall member. It is none other than Joey Mercury who is actually returning to ROH. He was a competitor on their early cards. He and Roderick Strong could pass as brothers and they squared off in a tag team match. It was Jimmy Jacobs and Mercury against Strong and Rocky Romero (No Remorse Corps). The crowd was brutal on Mercury. 'Where's the ladder' was a frequent refrain in our section. He gave an impassioned plea about his past 'demons' which prompted shouts of 'Call his dealer'. You have to love the crowd interaction some times and the connection between the fans is so much greater than anything WWE could hope to accomplish. The match disappointed with Jacobs tapping out like the bitch he is.

Tyler Black followed that match with the second best tussle of the night with the 'American Dragon' Bryan Danielson. The Dragon's performance was so-so, it was Black who made the match. He really showed me something and the crowd was really into him. There were so many near falls that brought the crowd to the edge of their seat. Black fought out of so many of Danielson's finish submission holds you started to think it was going to go his way. The respect the crowd has for Danielson is undeniable though as his hand was raised in victory. "Best in the world, best in the world" were chanted for him as he made his way back to the locker room area after the hard fought victory over Black.

For my money the best match was the NO DQ free for all between The Hangman Three team of Brent Albright and BJ Whitmer against Delirious and El Generico. The action was hot and heavy all over the Montgomery County Fairgrounds with leather belts belonging to crowd members being liberally used. Albright's back had a very noticeable gash from the belt straps. Tables were used, barricades broken down, and it was pure mayhem. Delirious used the black mouth spray trick all over the Hangman Three wannabe Shane Hagadorn. It ended with Albright and Whitmer getting the hard fought victory.

ROH returns June 25th to Dayton and I will be in attendance once again. You should visit their website at www.rohwrestling.com for more info.

Returning home late last night I tuned into Espn Classic and they have been showing old UWF matches circa late '80's. I saw David Sammartino versus Cactus Jack last night as well as 'Dr. Death' Steve Williams against 'Mr. Wonderful' Paul Orndorf. I also saw Billy Jack Haynes, The Blackhearts with Luna Vachon, and many others. It is definetly worth a look see just to hear Bruno Sammartino on the announcing side of things and the Captain Lou Albano interview segments. Wow! He had 'Cowboy' Bob Orton on last night and it was as entertaining as anything else I have seen on the wrestling side of things lately. Check the listings but next week they are due to have Nikita and Ivan Koloff in tag team action. Certainly worth programming in your DVR if your a fan of the old school.