wrestling / TV Reports
Cook’s ROH TV Review 1.28.22
Image Credit: ROH
Loading...Hey kids! We conclude our look back at Final Battle by watching the main event & the Women’s Championship match. Sounds like a good time to me!
Cook’s ROH TV Review 1.28.22
Ian Riccaboni’s voice informs us we’ll be continuing to take a look back at Final Battle this week. Rok-C defended the ROH Women’s World Championship against Willow while Jonathan Gresham & Jay Lethal fought for the ROH World Championship.
Rok-C promised to be a fighting champion, and has done just that, going around the world to find the best competition. At Final Battle, she defends against Willow, who inspires her to be herself. Willow says she came to ROH at the right moment. She says she & Rok-C have heart, and tonight Willow will find out if she’s as good as she thinks she is. Rok-C wants to represent ROH forever.
Quinn McKay joins Ian & Caprice on commentary.
ROH Women’s World Championship Match: Willow vs. Rok-C (c): Code of Honor is adhered to, and both women get cheers from the crowd early on. Rok-C & Willow exchange wristlocks & waistlocks. Willow evades a move from Rok-C as we go to commercial.
Willow with a cartwheel and some gesticulations. Rok-C goes to the headlock, then the hammerlock. Willow with some counters, then smashes Rok-C to the mat. Rok-Knees get caught by Willow, then Willow catapults Rok-C into the corner. Mexican arm drag and headscissors from Rok-C. Willow counters the springboard arm drag, then squashes Rok-C in the corner. Cannonball! Crowd gets behind Willow, Rok-C gets out of the powerbomb, but Willow hits two of the three amigoes. Arm clutch into an Angle slam gets two for Willow. Willow with some shoulderblocks, but Rok-C starts striking back. Springs up top into a rana on Willow, then hits the Thesz press. Running uppercut in the corner, then a Russian leg sweep into the standing Rok-sault gets two. Rok-lock leads to a rollup for Willow and a two count. Willow with the pooooouuuuunnnnnccccceeee period! Two count and we go to commercial.
Rok-C with some strikes, but Willow counters the Code Rok with a sitout driver for a two count. Rok-C blocks the moonsault attempt, goes for a powerbomb at first, then follows Willow to the middle rope. Repeated strikes from Rok-C, then she hits the sitout powerbomb. Cover gets two. Willow superplexes Rok-C, then hits the moonsault! Only twoooo. Rok-C slips out of the Babe Bomb, gets kind of superkicked. Willow gets kneed and kicked, and Rok-C hits the Code Rok for the three count.
Winner: Rok-C (9:50 via pinfall)
Match Rating: ***
Rok-C gets some boos. Seems weird to me since it’s not like she cheated. Indy crowds don’t seem to like women that actually win matches, if recent ROH & GCW crowds are any indication. Willow gets a hug from Rok-C, but then Deonna Purrazzo’s music hits! The AAA Reina de Reinas hits the ring and says that Rok-C has something she wants. She also says she’ll be Knockouts Champion after beating Mickie James at Hard to Kill, and challenges Rok-C to a winner take all match. Rok-C immediately accepts. We’ll have to wait & see if that match airs on a later ROH episode.
Colt Cabana talks about how much ROH has meant to him over the years. He puts Gabe Sapolsky over for his wrestling knowledge & talks about his feud with Homicide. He had great matches with Nigel McGuinness, BJ Whitmer & Dan Maff, and his neck still hurts from a Burning Hammer Maff gave him. ROH has been a great part of his career & wrestling history, and will continue to do great things after this hiccup.
Bryan Danielson talks about how he was on the very first ROH show, and how he wouldn’t be where he is today if not for ROH. Final Battle was an important show to him, where he wrestled the likes of Homicide & Takeshi Morishima. Bryan hopes it continues and keeps doing great things.
We see a montage of previous ROH World Champions.
ROH World Championship Match: Jay Lethal vs. Jonathan Gresham: Lethal is 5-2-1 against Gresham, and 10-3 at Final Battle. Gresham has been 17-2 in singles matches since the end of 2019. Bandido’s covid status resulted in this match, whose winner would receive the “original” ROH World Championship belt. Handshake, then the bell. The fans chant for ROH. Double shoulderblock after some grappling. Headlock takeover by Lethal, Gresham headscissors his way out of it as we go to commercial.
Lethal powers Gresham down for some near-falls, Gresham snaps his way out of it and works an armbar. Lethal Combination puts Gresham down, he goes to the corner. Lethal gets placed on the apron so Gresham can dropkick him off it. Arm drag by Gresham, who is targeting the left arm of Lethal. We’ve seen Gresham do this a lot lately. Lethal hits the hiptoss-cartwheel-dropkick combo. Chops are exchanged, Lethal jams his wrist on an Irish whip attempt, but kicks Gresham outside. Tope suicida by Lethal. Gresham is sent back into the ring and Lethal heads up top. Leads to nothing, but Lethal hits a powerslam a few seconds later. Lethal was going for something, but Gresham blocks it. Lethal then slaps Gresham in the neck. Lethal hits a reverse suplex into a flapjack as we go to commercial.
Lethal sets up for the Injection, but Gresham blocks it, rolls up Lethal for a nearfall. Lethal gets Gresham in the corner. Gresham goes for a missile dropkick, Lethal blocks it, goes for the figure 4, Gresham blocks that. Series of reversals. Gresham with a bridging pin for two, then a kick to Lethal’s left arm. Gresham with a chop. Lethal returns the favor. Chops are exchanged. Gresham goes down, but Lethal wants more. Lethal with the powerslam, then he goes up top. Gresham rolls to the other side of the ring, forcing Lethal to go back down. Gresham chops Lethal in the corner, then places him up top. Lethal knocks Gresham down to the mat, goes for the elbowdrop, but Gresham blocks. Sunset flip by Gresham, then they exchange some rollups. Gresham gets caught by Lethal, who puts him in the torture rack. Lethal places Gresham down, then goes up top and hits the elbowdrop before we go to one last commercial.
Lethal goes for the Injection, but the left arm won’t allow it. Gresham goes for the crossface chickenwing. He doesn’t quite have it locked, Lethal eventually reverses it into a cutter. The Foundation and the rest of the locker room head down to ringside to watch the rest of the match. Gresham & Lethal exchange shots. Gresham hits an enziguri and a German suplex for two. Running forearm gets two. One more gets another two count. Gresham runs into a superkick. Lethal can’t lift Gresham, so Gresham hits another forearm for two. He should probably just go ahead and remove that wrist tape at this point, but instead opts to lift Lethal up. Lethal hits a clothesline, then goes for the Injection. Gresham reverses into a backslide for two. Inside cradle gets two for Gresham, then he goes for the Octopus. Lethal has to submit.
Winner: Jonathan Gresham (15:35 via submission)
Match Rating: ***3/4
Cary Silkin presents Gresham the original ROH championship belt. Jordynne Grace!
A brief clip hypes April 2022.
Next Week: An ROH Hall of Fame special! Looks like we’ll get something from the Briscoes.
