Csonka’s ROH Global Wars 2018 – Lowell Preview

WELCOME back to column time with Larry! Today, I am going to discuss and preview the Global Wars 2018 – Lowell event. The show will see the stars of ROH & NJPW competing and feature the Young Bucks vs. The Kingdom vs. KUSHIDA & Sabin vs. Lethal & Gresham and more. Today, I will give my predictions, and break down the show match by match. Feel free to make your picks in the comment section. Thanks for reading! It’s wrestling, we love it and will disagree. The only rules are to “have a take, be respectful, and don’t be a dick.” Thanks for reading.

BUSHI vs. Matt Taven: This match has potential if they just work it straight and play off of both men’s lucha experience and not overbook it. Taven has worked really hard on the ROH specials this year and since he’s in line for a big push, I see that continuing here. BUSHI is an odd dude, he clearly has skills and can have great matches when he wants, but all too often, he seems to be too content being the low man in LIJ and does the minimum to get by. Hopefully both guys are motivated here. According to what we know going in, Taven should win. He’s on his way to an ROH Title shot and likely victory, and BUSHI is a junior, and while not a slave to it, ROH tends to follow NJPW booking themes on these shows. WINNER: Matt Taven

Jay Briscoe vs. Scorpio Sky: The Briscoes just recently lost the tag titles to SCU, so this is follow up to that as Jay Briscoe looks for revenge against Scorpio Sky. Sky has been really fun and solid during his ROH run, always working hard, and I think that many forget that Jay Briscoe is still a really talented singles performer. I think this will be good, and see Briscoe winning, possibly with the help of Mark. Although a DQ finish wouldn’t surprise me as they’ve done that a lot in Briscoes singles matches this year. WINNER: Jay Briscoe

Christopher Daniels vs. Jeff Cobb: This should be a good match as Jeff Cobb is the new ROH star on the rise, while Daniels is the proven and reliable veteran. I fully expect Cobb to win here, but the question will be, how he wins. Will it be a Punishment Martinez style destruction to keep Cobb looking like a complete beast, or will Daniels give him more than he expects and makes Cobb work for the win. No matter how it shakes out, I see Cobb picking up the clean and definitive victory here. WINNER: Jeff Cobb

Bully Ray & Silas Young vs. EVIL & SANADA: I like Silas Young, he plays his role very well and works hard. I love EVIL & SANADA; they are a great team and have big futures as singles stars for NJPW. I have absolutely no time for Bully Ray in 2018. I am sick of his lazy matches, the fact that he does nothing, hasn’t helped anyone get over, and the fact that just because he can push a few buttons that he’s some legendary heel now. I find that he has completely overstayed his welcome in ROH and just can’t get excited for anything he’s involved in. Bully Ray & Silas Young are associates; they aren’t a team while EVIL & SANADA are former IWGP tag team champions. The LIJ boys should take this one, and hopefully it will be better than I think, although I expect low blows, chain shots and Bully doing the least possible, while calling the former champions “young boys” and other stupid shit. WINNER: EVIL & SANADA

Cody vs. Mark Briscoe: The Briscoes vs. Best Friends vs. Cody & Hangman face off in Buffalo, while The Briscoes vs. Cody & Adam Page in Lewiston, so this is part of that overall arc. I see Cody and Page losing in these tag matches, since they aren’t a regular team. But when it comes to this match, Mark isn’t “the star” of his team, while Cody (whether you like it or not) is a star. While his team will be losing in the tag matches, this is where he picks up a win for sure. Both guys are talented, and this should be good and with an invested crowd. I just hope we get more Cody than the circus. WINNER: Cody

Kazarian vs. Flip Gordon: this one has a lot of potential, I just hope that they can keep that sack of shit Bully Ray away from it. Flip has had a quality 2018, improving, evolving, becoming a star and getting chances in Mexico and Japan. He has the chance to be a big star for ROH. Meanwhile, Kazarian is the 41-year-old veteran, arguable in the best shape of his career, and working smarter and at a high level. He’s a great guy to pair with Flip here. I think that this will be a good and tremendously fun match, and if kept clean, Flip picks up a big and much-needed win ahead of Final Battle. WINNER: Gordon

Juice Robinson & Dalton Castle vs. The Bouncers : A common thought through my previews is the thought that this tour will see both Juice Robinson & Dalton Castle picking up a lot of wins and momentum which both need for different reasons. Robinson has been on a slide since the G1 and Castle is returning from injury and losing the ROH Title. I like both guys and expect good work from them throughout the tour. The Bruiser can be quite fun and even a good performer when motivated, but I really have no time for Milonas, I’m sure he’s a nice guy, but I just don’t find him to be all that good, and I feel he drags many matches down. If Juice Robinson & Dalton Castle lose, the Lizard man is even stupider than I thought. WINNERS: Juice Robinson & Dalton Castle

Tetsuya Naito vs. Adam Page: Adam Page has had a really great 2018,growing as a performer, and putting in some great efforts. He got a shot in the G1 this year and gets another chance to impress against a to NJPW name here in Tetsuya Naito. I have hopes that this will be at the very least a good match, but if we get hoodie wearing Naito who just gives no fucks and is only here to play the hits, the quality could be questionable. While I don’t expect this to be great, I hope that Naito is motivated enough that we get a good match here with Page impressing before losing. WINNER: Tetsuya Naito

The Young Bucks vs. The Kingdom vs. KUSHIDA & Sabin vs. Lethal & Gresham: Oh what’s that? THAT’S THE CERTIFIED BANGER ALERT BEING SOUNDED for this match. KUSHIDA & Sabin were great in the Super Jr tag tournament, the Bucks had a banger with Lethal & Gresham in the UK, plus the Bucks tend to steal the show on these Honor Club specials. Vinny & TK thrive in multi-man and chaotic matches like this, and when you add all of that together, I think that it will be great. Lowell is a Kingdom town; they are always over there and likely will be here. Plus, with the push of Taven to the world title ongoing, I see Vinny & TK picking up more wins and solidifying themselves as legit threats along with Taven. WINNER: The Kingdom

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– End Scene.

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“Byyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyye Felicia!”