411’s Buy or Sell 12.17.10: Final Battle Predictions, Serena Deeb Joins Sara Del Rey and More

Welcome everyone to Week 185 of BUY or SELL. For those of you who haven’t been with us since the beginning, here’s the Reader’s Digest version of what this column is all about. BUY or SELL is very much like 411’s long-running Fact or Fiction column. The main difference is that BUY or SELL focuses on topics like the U.S. Independent scene, Lucha Libre, Japanese Wrestling and pretty much anything else that isn’t mainstream wrestling, WWE and or TNA. This allows for these areas to get a bit more press and for you, our loyal readers, to learn even more about the sport of professional wrestling.

Questions are sent out on Tuesday Night.

Serena Deeb appearing at Final Battle does more to help Serena than it does to help Ring Of Honor.

Ari Berenstein: BUY. Serena is in need of exposure and a comeback in order to re-establish her career post-WWE or be able to enact a return to WWE sooner rather than later (hey, it worked for Eddie Guerrero in 2002 and Jamie Noble in 2005, among others). Or if all else fails, TNA (cymbal break). No insult to SHIMMER intended (as I am and remain a fan of the work done there), but ROH is Serena’s best chance right now to re-establish her name and then use that exposure to further or to continue her career. ROH benefits from her being a very capable wrestler and having some name-value from her stay in WWE, but a good number of ROH fans already fans knew of her at least in passing if not more than that before her WWE run. I’d say if anything, Amazing Kong is the definitive draw of the women’s tag match and she will do more to help ROH in getting this match over (especially in NYC, where she received a hero’s welcome back in May).

Samuel Berman : BUY. This one is obvious to me. As talented as Serena Deeb is, women’s wrestling is rarely if ever a draw, especially to the ROH audience. While SHIMMER has put on some consistently good matches throughout its existence, the women’s matches on ROH shows have been, even at their best, an augmentation of the show’s existing excellence. I cannot think of a single instance where a women’s match on an ROH show has been the event’s highpoint. Serena’s involvement in Final Battle is clearly a bigger deal for her than it is for the company overall.

1 for 1.

Eddie Edwards’ losing the World Television Title was done simply to prep him to be in the main event sooner rather than later.

Samuel Berman : SELL. I think the move had a lot more to do with featuring an established star like Christopher Daniels as a cornerstone of ROH television. Edwards is a very solid talent, who has put on some outstanding efforts in tag matches over the last few years, but I’m not sure he’s really destined to be a regular main eventer in ROH. Having him main event shows sporadically is one thing (see also: Cabana, Colt, and Rave, Jimmy), but there’s a difference between main eventing and being a main eventer. Edwards is, in my opinion, the kind of performer who does the former and is not the latter.

Ari Berenstein: SELL. Edwards is advancing quickly up the ladder in ROH, but those who follow ROH results (SPOILERS AHEAD) know he is sticking around the TV Title division just a little bit longer in 2011 when he wrestles Christopher Daniels at the Chicago iPPV. Maybe he goes up from there and cashes in his title shot that he won at Survival of the Fittest 2010, but I don’t see him winning the ROH World Title on his first opportunity, so it won’t be that he will stay in the main event scene. While I definitely enjoy his matches and believe he has matured into the kind of wrestler who is well-suited for success in ROH, I just have a gut feeling it’s a bit early to pull the trigger on Edwards in the main event / World Title scene at this time.

2 for 2.

No matter what happens, the stipulations from the Kevin Steen vs El Generico will not be broken.

Ari Berenstein: BUY for El Generico, SELL for Kevin Steen. Ah, that’s a new way to answer one of these eh? Okay, El Generico: I believe that once Generico takes off the mask, it will be permanent. It’s going to be hard to step away from everyone having already seen your face without the mask. Jigsaw and Rey Mysterio are the lone exceptions I can think of, but most others in lucha and wrestling history keep that mask off once they lose it. I think Generico won’t be able to regain the mystique he once had should he lose the match and then at some point put on the mask again. However, I also don’t believe that he is going to lose the match. So, Kevin Steen: It will be difficult for ROH to lose one of the best heels they’ve ever had in the promotion, but then again, maybe this is a backstage deal where Kevin needs the time away anyway. So the way I see it, Steen gets a semi-extended vacation from ROH, but at some point he will make his surprise return and make life horrible for Generico and other ROH wrestlers. So the stipulations are honored to a degree, but ultimately ROH will have to break it so it can get back one of their best contributors.

Samuel Berman : SELL. I’d actually be concerned about the backlash from fans if they weren’t. That said, I’m going to add the caveat that Steen’s absence from ROH would be for a year rather than ‘forever’. I would most certainly consider Steen losing and then not appearing for ROH at all in 2011 being adhering to the stipulations, even if he were to return in 2012. I’m leaning towards that being the case, too, because I’m not sure how El Generico’s career would be affected in terms of his work in various other companies. For example, he currently holds the PWG World Tag Team Titles with Paul London; how is he supposed to simply unmask in ROH and then go back to PWG under a hood?

2.5 for 3.

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If Roderick Strong loses the Ring of Honor World Title to Davey Richards, he will be considered Ring of Honor’s worst champion in history.

Samuel Berman : BUY . I hate to say so, but without a real marquee win or even match since defeating Tyler Black for the strap, Roderick has almost been an absentee champion. Some might be quick to bring up examples like Xavier, Homicide or James Gibson, but each of them brought something very specific to ROH with their various wins and reigns. Xavier defeating Low Ki was an unexpected twist at the time and helped to further the ongoing Prophecy storyline. Homicide and James Gibson each won the ROH World Title in matches that were the culmination of a hot, long-term storyline. Strong, unfortunately, feels like something of a consolation champion, winning the belt only because Tyler Black was leaving the company. While the same could technically be said of James Gibson as it relates to CM Punk, Strong has far more of an ‘always a bridesmaid’ feel to him than Gibson did in 2005.

Ari Berenstein: BUY. Yes, he will be considered worse than Xavier, sorry to say. I won’t feel that way personally but I believe that’s how the majority of the ROH fan base and the internet media will label it. At least Xavier would have defended the championship successfully more than once and held it for seven months. Only one other ROH Champion has dropped the title after one defense—Low Ki in 2002. However, Ki was already the uncrowned people’s champion for many months and no one looked at the loss as an embarrassment to Ki since it was part of a larger program. However, people are going to say that Strong was given the ROH World Title only because Tyler Black was leaving and it was convenient, that he had boring promos, that Truth Martini didn’t work as a manager for him, that it took two months for him to even defend the title and that he didn’t live up to the championship position. Even if some of that is more opinion than the truth, I believe those would be the talking points about his championship run should he lose in New York City this weekend. It is a tough dilemma though—Davey Richards is “The Guy” for a lot of ROH fans and as the hot hand. Strong is very cold as champion (though it is early and some fans haven’t even seen his first defense or episodes of HDNet where he is the champion). It is apparent Davey Richards should be the champion sooner rather than later. He should by all rights win the title this weekend, because he is ready for it and also to avoid the same mistake made with Tyler Black being labeled as “choker” and losing popularity due to booking decision. But can ROH switch the title without doing irreparable damage to Strong’s career?

3.5 for 4.

In some way, shape, or form, Samoa Joe will become the third former TNA wrestler to return to Ring of Honor on Pay Per View in 2010.

Ari Berenstein: SELL. Christopher Daniels and Homicide were primed and ready to leave TNA for something, anything else when they made their surprise returns to ROH. However, despite being booked abysmally in 2010 (what with storylines like being kidnapped for weeks on end and no one caring, losing to Jeff Jarrett in what should be Joe’s specialty style match, an impromptu, illogical feud with The Pope or being barely used at all) I don’t get that vibe or buzz from Joe. He seems willing to continue to negotiate with TNA and let’s face it, he probably should sign with them if he needs or wants a larger pay day. ROH can’t give that to him. I don’t see Joe showing up at Final Battle 2010 in any way, shape or form.

Samuel Berman : SELL. I was going to sell this hard until the announcement that Kenny Omega was ruled out for this weekend’s events. Samoa Joe would be a more than fitting replacement for Omega, but it remains unclear whether Joe is set to return to Independent action. I’d put Joe’s odds of appearing in Omega’s spot at 5%, so there’s a chance, but it’s very unlikely.

4.5 for 5!!

The 185th edition of BUY or SELL finishes off with these almost agreeing all the way, if not for a non-answer from Ari! Stay tuned for next week as two new people step up to the plate on Buy or Sell!

BONUS!
With Ring of Honor’s Final Battle this weekend, we asked the 411 staff to give us their predictions for the upcoming Pay Per View. Let’s take a look!

Note: Due to Kenny Omega’s injury and last second replacement, none of the writers will be predicting the Eddie Edwards vs. Sonjay Dutt match.

Ari Berenstein

ROH World Title Match – Roderick Strong defends vs. Davey Richards: Davey Richards

The Final Battle At Final Battle – Fight Without Honor – Kevin Steen vs. El Generico: El Generico

Jay, Mark, and Mike “Papa” Briscoe vs. The Kings of Wrestling and Shane Hagadorn: The Kings of Wrestling (win the match, Briscoes and Papa get their revenge on Shane afterward)

“The Fallen Angel” Christopher Daniels vs. “The Notorious 187” Homicide: Homicide

Daizee Haze and Awesome Kong vs. Sara Del Rey and Serena Deeb: Daizee Haze & Awesome Kong

Colt Cabana vs. TJ Perkins: Colt Cabana

The All Night Express vs. Kyle O’Reilly and Adam Cole: All-Night Express

Chad Nevett

ROH World Title Match – Roderick Strong defends vs. Davey Richards: Davey Richards

The Final Battle At Final Battle – Fight Without Honor – Kevin Steen vs. El Generico: Kevin Steen

Jay, Mark, and Mike “Papa” Briscoe vs. The Kings of Wrestling and Shane Hagadorn: The Kings of Wrestling and Shane Hagadorn

“The Fallen Angel” Christopher Daniels vs. “The Notorious 187” Homicide: Christopher Daniels

Daizee Haze and Awesome Kong vs. Sara Del Rey and Serena Deeb: Daizee Haze and Awesome Kong

Colt Cabana vs. TJ Perkins: Colt Cabana

The All Night Express vs. Kyle O’Reilly and Adam Cole: The All Night Express

Jeremy Thomas

ROH World Title Match – Roderick Strong defends vs. Davey Richards: Davey Richards

The Final Battle At Final Battle – Fight Without Honor – Kevin Steen vs. El Generico: Kevin Steen

Jay, Mark, and Mike “Papa” Briscoe vs. The Kings of Wrestling and Shane Hagadorn: The Kings of Wrestling and Shane Hagadorn

“The Fallen Angel” Christopher Daniels vs. “The Notorious 187” Homicide: Christopher Daniels

Daizee Haze and Awesome Kong vs. Sara Del Rey and Serena Deeb: Sara Del Ray and Serena

Colt Cabana vs. TJ Perkins: Colt Cabana

The All Night Express vs. Kyle O’Reilly and Adam Cole: The All Night Express

Benjamin Waller

ROH World Title Match – Roderick Strong defends vs. Davey Richards: Davey Richards

The Final Battle At Final Battle – Fight Without Honor – Kevin Steen vs. El Generico: Kevin Steen

Jay, Mark, and Mike “Papa” Briscoe vs. The Kings of Wrestling and Shane Hagadorn: The Kings of Wrestling and Shane Hagadorn

“The Fallen Angel” Christopher Daniels vs. “The Notorious 187” Homicide: Christopher Daniels

Daizee Haze and Awesome Kong vs. Sara Del Rey and Serena Deeb: Sara del Rey and Serena

Colt Cabana vs. TJ Perkins: Colt Cabana

The All Night Express vs. Kyle O’Reilly and Adam Cole: The All Night Express

Greg DeMarco

ROH World Title Match – Roderick Strong defends vs. Davey Richards: Roderick Strong

The Final Battle At Final Battle – Fight Without Honor – Kevin Steen vs. El Generico: El Generico

Jay, Mark, and Mike “Papa” Briscoe vs. The Kings of Wrestling and Shane Hagadorn: Briscoes (Papa pins Hagadorn)

“The Fallen Angel” Christopher Daniels vs. “The Notorious 187” Homicide: Christopher Daniels

Daizee Haze and Awesome Kong vs. Sara Del Rey and Serena Deeb: Daizee Haze and Awesome Kong

Colt Cabana vs. TJ Perkins: Colt Cabana

The All Night Express vs. Kyle O’Reilly and Adam Cole: The ANX

Obi Justice

ROH World Title Match – Roderick Strong defends vs. Davey Richards: Davey Richards

The Final Battle At Final Battle – Fight Without Honor – Kevin Steen vs. El Generico: El Generico

Jay, Mark, and Mike “Papa” Briscoe vs. The Kings of Wrestling and Shane Hagadorn: The Briscoe Bunch

“The Fallen Angel” Christopher Daniels vs. “The Notorious 187” Homicide: Homicide

Daizee Haze and Awesome Kong vs. Sara Del Rey and Serena Deeb: Sara Del Ray and Serena Deeb

Colt Cabana vs. TJ Perkins: Colt Cabana

The All Night Express vs. Kyle O’Reilly and Adam Cole: The All-Night Express

Steve Cook

ROH World Title Match – Roderick Strong defends vs. Davey Richards: Davey Richards

The Final Battle At Final Battle – Fight Without Honor – Kevin Steen vs. El Generico: El Generico

Jay, Mark, and Mike “Papa” Briscoe vs. The Kings of Wrestling and Shane Hagadorn: Los Briscoes

“The Fallen Angel” Christopher Daniels vs. “The Notorious 187” Homicide: Homicide

Daizee Haze and Awesome Kong vs. Sara Del Rey and Serena Deeb: Haze/Kong

Colt Cabana vs. TJ Perkins: TJ Perkins

The All Night Express vs. Kyle O’Reilly and Adam Cole: All Night Express

Aaron Hubbard

ROH World Title Match – Roderick Strong defends vs. Davey Richards: Roderick Strong

The Final Battle At Final Battle – Fight Without Honor – Kevin Steen vs. El Generico: El Generico

Jay, Mark, and Mike “Papa” Briscoe vs. The Kings of Wrestling and Shane Hagadorn: The Briscoes

“The Fallen Angel” Christopher Daniels vs. “The Notorious 187” Homicide: Homicide

Daizee Haze and Awesome Kong vs. Sara Del Rey and Serena Deeb: Daizee Haze and Amazing Kong

Colt Cabana vs. TJ Perkins: TJ Perkins

The All Night Express vs. Kyle O’Reilly and Adam Cole: The All Night Express

Michael Bauer

ROH World Title Match – Roderick Strong defends vs. Davey Richards: Roderick Strong

The Final Battle At Final Battle – Fight Without Honor – Kevin Steen vs. El Generico: El Generico

Jay, Mark, and Mike “Papa” Briscoe vs. The Kings of Wrestling and Shane Hagadorn: The Kings of Wrestling

“The Fallen Angel” Christopher Daniels vs. “The Notorious 187” Homicide: Homicide

Daizee Haze and Awesome Kong vs. Sara Del Rey and Serena Deeb: Daizee Haze & Awesome Kong

Colt Cabana vs. TJ Perkins: TJ Perkins

The All Night Express vs. Kyle O’Reilly and Adam Cole: All-Night Express