Jay Briscoe is a Ring of Honor original. He’s fought for the ROH World Championship several times but has come up short each time. Now, he takes on the dominant champion, Kevin Steen, with the chance to wrestle control back from SCUM. But could Briscoe cash in when the chips were down?
Emanating from the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York City, ROH Supercard of Honor VII features three championship matches.
In the opening contest, ACH & TaDarius Thomas defeated QT Marshall and Barrister RD Evans.
Shelton Benjamin is here, upset that he doesn’t have a match tonight because Charlie Haas decided to quit. Well, out of nowhere, here comes Mike Bennett, Maria and Brutal Bob, who make their return. He talks about how he’s the hottest free agent in all of pro wrestling and entertainment. Right before he can make his big announcement, the man known as “Cheeseburger,” who Benjamin brought in the ring, rips the mic away from Bennett.
Well, he gets knocked out by Bennett for calling Maria some unsavory names. Benjamin says, well, he guesses he found his match.
Match #2 – Shelton Benjamin vs. Mike Bennett
Back and forth start. Bennett hit the Box Office Smash but Benjamin kicks out at two. Benjamin counters Bennett and locks in the half crab. Maria hops on the apron and this allows Brutal Bob to come in and level Benjamin with a shoulder. Bennett goes to the top and lands a guillotine leg drop and then makes out with Maria.
Benjamin hits a spinning heel kick as Bennett comes back too slowly. Benjamin backs softly into Maria, who thinks it’s Bennett, so she grinds on him, only to find out it’s not him. Bennett comes in with a superkick, but Benjamin ducks, it hits Maria and Benjamin lands one of his own and then a bridging German suplex, but Bennett barely kicks out.
The two trade moves until Bennett drops down on a cover and Brutal Bob grabs Bennett’s arms for extra leverage and that’s it.
Winner via pinfall: Mike Bennett
Match #3 – No. 1 Contender’s Match – Michael Elgin (Toronto, Ontario) vs. Jay Lethal (Elizabeth, N.J.)
Some chain wrestling to start the match, with Elgin getting the better of it. The two trade blows in the centre of the ring, probably not the best idea for Lethal. Elgin wants a Boston crab but can’t get it. Lethal escapes and hits a dropkick. Elgin with a nice counter into a power slam. Elgin with a delayed vertical suplex that the crowd counts along with for 31 seconds before he drops Lethal to his back. Elgin now wants the Crossface, and has it locked in, but not completely, before Lethal makes it to the ropes.
Lethal, though, fires up and hits three suicide dives. Back in the ring, he hits a corner forearm and then a Death Valley Driver. Lethal goes to the top, but Elgin cuts him off. Lethal fights him off, but Elgin charges right back with a dropkick, somehow able to get up to the top on it.
Elgin shows off some impressive strength with a dead-lift superplex but Lethal kicks out at two. The two start slugging it out again. Elgin gets ahead and lands a flurry of punches and then a Boss Man Slam for two. Elgin sidesteps a Lethal charge and hits a spinning elbow to Lethal’s neck and then a German suplex into the buckle. Elgin goes to the top, but Lethal gets his knees up on the corkscrew senton.
Lethal gets going. He hits an STO and then the Koji Clutch, but Elgin is able to maneuver and get his foot on the bottom rope. The two go back-and-forth. Great action here. Elgin with a spinning backfist that catches Lethal flush. He hits a buckle bomb but Lethal fires back with a superkick. More trading, until Elgin smashes Lethal with a lariat, but Lethal kicks out at two.
Elgin loads Lethal up and hits a buckle bomb. He grabs Lethal again and wants the Elgin Bomb but Lethal counters into the Lethal Injection, but Elgin no sells it. He hits the Lethal Combination and then goes up top and hits the Flying Elbow but Elgin kicks out at two!
Both men struggle to get to their feet. Lethal loads Elgin up on the top turnbuckle and chops him. He wants something, but Elgin power bombs him off the top, hits the backfist, a buckle bomb and then finishes him with the Elgin Bomb. Great match!
Winner via pinfall: Michael Elgin
As Elgin is getting back up, SCUM hits the ring and beats up both Elgin and Lethal. Steve Corino tells Team ROH to get out to the ring and they hit the ring and here we go.
Match #4 – Team SCUM vs. Team ROH
After a huge brawl to start, things settle down and it’s SCUM in control of Mike Mondo. Things break down, though, and Mark Briscoe hits the Flying Chicken onto four members of SCUM. It has broken down here again. Cliff Compton hits a Michinoku Driver on Caprice Coleman but Cedric Alexander is cut off by Jimmy Jacobs. Too much going on it. The referee has lost control.
Now Steve Corino gets involved and SCUM handcuffs BJ Whitmer to the bottom rope. Compton throws powder in the eyes of Mondo. In the ring, Rhino hits the Gore on Coleman and that does it.
Winners via pinfall: SCUM
Match #5 – Roderick Strong vs. Karl Anderson
Here we go with this much anticipated match. A nice, technical match underway here. Anderson goes to work on the leg. They head to the floor and Strong drops Anderson gut-first onto the railing. Strong takes control of the match, as he delivers a high knee to Anderson and then a running elbow and an Angle Slam for two.
They exchange some chops. Strong with a big boot but Anderson delivers a spinebuster for two. They head out onto the apron and Strong hits a back elbow, but Anderson responds with a big bicycle kick that flattens Strong. Anderson is rolling now. He hits a sitout power bomb for two. Strong, though, comes back with a double knee gutbuster and another kick for two.
More chops. Anderson hoists Strong up and drops him on his head for two. Series of elbows hits for Strong but, after a series of reversals, Anderson hits the Ace Crusher and that does it.
Winner via pinfall: Karl Anderson
Match #6 – Three-Way Elimination Match for the Ring of Honor World Television Championship – © Matt Taven vs. Adam Cole vs. Matt Hardy
Apparently there’s a match going on as Nigel McGuinness is getting a lap dance at ringside from Scarlett, the Hoopla Hottie.
Hardy has a Figure Four on Cole, but Taven comes down and hits a top rope splash on Cole. Tower of doom spot with Hardy getting the brunt end of it. Hardy hits the Twist of Fate on Taven but Truth Martini took the ref. Cole comes in and low blows Hardy and gets a small package and eliminates Hardy.
As the crowd chants the goodbye song to Hardy, Corino gets in the ring and is knocked out of the ring by Cole. Taven comes up from behind and hits the Bus Driver on Cole and that does it.
Winner via pinfall and STILL ROH World Television Champion: Matt Taven
Match #7 – ROH World Tag Team Championship – © Bobby Fish & Kyle O’Reilly vs. Davey Richards & Eddie Edwards
Richards in on his former protege O’Reilly. They trade holds until O’Reilly and Fish are able to isolate Richards and take over. Richards makes the tag to Edwards, who comes in on Fish. He lays in a brutal chop, then hits a fisherman’s/buster suplex combo.
It starts to break down as the Wolves hit stereo suicide dives, crushing the champs into the barricade. Now the champs fire back and plaster the Wolves on the outside. They work on Edwards in the ring, but he’s able to bring in Richards, who hits a big drop kick on O’Reilly. He lays in kicks to Fish and then O’Reilly.
He hits a corner forearm on O’Reilly and then a corner dropkick on Fish before snapping off a bridging German suplex on O’Reilly for two.
Now O’Reilly is slapping both the Wolves and Dragon Screw Leg-Whips both challengers. Fish back in the mix, but he gets kicked. Richards locks in ankle lock. Fish tries to break the hold but Richards takes the punishment and puts him in the hold as well, but O’Reilly makes the ropes.
The Wolves hit the Alarm Clock but Edwards clocks Richards after with a kick by mistake. They survive the mistake and the action gets fast and furious here. Too much to call. Edwards is out of it and now Richards is in alone against both men. O’Reilly drops Edwards on his head for two.
Fish grabs Richards as O’Reilly goes to the top. Richards throws Fish to the outside after crotching O’Reilly. Now Edwards snaps off a ‘rana on Fish and Richards hits a superplex and then Chasing the Dragon on O’Reilly, but he kicks out of his own move at two.
The Wolves each hit a double stomp on O’Reilly, but he can’t be put away, as he kicks out at the last moment again. Fish gets back involved, as he kicks Richards in the head and O’Reilly rolls him up, grabbing the tights, which allows him to get the pin./p>
Winners via pinfall and STILL ROH World Tag Team Champions: Kyle O’Reilly & Bobby Fish
Match #8 – ROH World Championship – © Kevin Steen vs. Jay Briscoe
Back-and-forth action, certainly not as fast as some prior matches, but Steen working over Briscoe’s injured shoulder, using every move and hold in the book to put the pain on Briscoe. Steen hits a nasty suplex/shoulderbreaker combo and then locks in an armbar, but Briscoe is able to get his bottom foot on the rope.
Briscoe starts to fire up, but Jimmy Jacobs hit the ring, only to be warded off by Mark Briscoe. But that stunted any of Briscoe’s momentum. Steen takes him to the top turnbuckle, but Briscoe fights him off, only to have his arm snapped on the top rope. Steen follows by hitting the cannonball for two.
The action spills to the outside and Steen power bombs Briscoe on the ring apron. He throws him in and goes to the top for the Swanton Bomb but Briscoe gets his knees up and hits a neckbreaker for two. Now SCUM comes flying down to the ring. Everyone at ringside trying to keep SCUM out of the ring.
And then the stream just dies.
It finally comes back with a big celebration in the ring, the entire Briscoe family celebrating.
Winner via pinfall and NEW ROH World Champion: Jay Briscoe
Steen gets a mic, but instead of saying anything, drops it and leaves. The Briscoes celebrate as we go off the air.