Csonka’s ROH Supercard of Honor Preview

WELCOME back to column time with Larry! Today, I am going to discuss and preview the ROH Supercard of Honor event. The 2018 Supercard of Honor event will be the biggest and most financially successful event in the company’s history, with well north of 5,000 paid attending the show, and many more watching on iPPV & Honor Club. 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 “have a take, be respectful, and don’t be a dick.”

Jonathan Gresham vs. Chuckie T: I have a feeling that the best Friends vs. The MCMG were going to be on this show, but due to Trent’s injury, that was scrapped. This match has no background, it’s just two guys that are popular and that I happen to be a big fan of getting on the card, and I am ok with that. Chuckie T has had a really good 2018, getting more run in NJPW, and Gresham remains one of the more underrated indie guys out there. Gresham recently had a great match with Lethal and will be rematching him soon, so I think that he picks up the win here in a good and fun match. WINNER: Jonathan Gresham

Women of Honor Title Tournament Finals: Kelly Klein or Mayu Iwatani vs. Sumie Sakai or Tenille Dashwood: The semifinals will take place the day of this show, with the finals taking place on the Supercard of Honor PPV show. Dashwood should beat Sakai, they’ve given Sakai a nice thank your run. But it’s time for it to be over. At age 46 and the fact that she’s merely ok these days, there is no justification to put her in the finals or have her win. You can tell a nice story later on with the old veteran going on a run and getting a title shot. Also, you do not bring in Dashwood to lose to a 46-year-old average wrestler and not make the finals. So Dashwood is in the finals in my book. The Kelly Klein or Mayu Iwatani pairing, to me, is a lot more unpredictable and harder to lock in. Klein is a woman that the company has put a lot of time into, she was undefeated for over 500 days, and does a ton of media for the company. If Dashwood hasn’t signed a deal to work more dates, Klein appears to be the safe option, rewarding the loyal company worker. She’s not a great performer, but she’s solid and a way better option than Mandy Leon. She’s facing Iwatani, and truth be told, ROH hasn’t exactly made great use of the STARDOM women in the tournament. I think if they want to have the best quality final, that Iwatani winning to advance and facing Dashwood is the best call. But I think that they will play it safe and go Dashwood vs. Klein, with Klein winning. WINNER: Kelly Klein

Tomohiro Ishii vs. Punishment Martinez: I love the fact that ROH is bringing in Tomohiro Ishii, as he’s one of my personal favorites. Punishment Martinez is a guy that’s really improved over the last 15-18 months, and has delivered well in his bigger matches. Like his 2017 Honor Rising match with Hirooki Goto, this is a big chance for Martinez to shine on a huge show against a true international star. This isn’t a match Martinez needs to win (although it wouldn’t hurt), he just needs to step it up again and make it look as if he belongs in the same ring as Ishii. This has a chance to be a hell of a hoss fight. WINNER: Tomohiro Ishii

Kota Ibushi vs. Adam Page: I absolutely love that ROH is bringing in Kota Ibushi for the show. Ibushi has had an awesome 2018, with a great match with Cody at WK 12, the reunion of the Golden Lovers, some great tag matches at Honor Rising, and an absolutely excellent match with Zack Sabre Jr during the New Japan Cup. Ibushi is back and may be better than ever. ROH & NJPW absolutely love Adam Page, and to Page’s credit, he’s stepped up over the last year, going from “just a guy,” to an improving talent that had done well to play off of his relationship with the Bucks and his popularity from being the Elite. With ROH & NJPW really high on Page, I think he picks up the big win here.WINNER: Adam Page

ROH Tag Team Champions The Briscoes vs. Jay Lethal & Hiroshi Tanahashi: This match feels completely thrown together, Tanahashi was the first NJPW talent announcer for the show and the last to get booked. It completely feels like Lizardman was making the card and then realized he forgot to book the tag team champions. He looked over his talent sheet and discovered that Lethal & Tanahashi weren’t booked so made the super team and found his out. And to be honest with you, I am completely fine with it. A rematch with the Guns would be too soon, and our other options are shit like Chuckie T & Cheeseburger, The Dawgs, and Bruiser & Milonas. Pass, pass, and pass. Plus it saves us from a useless multi-man match. The Briscoes are great, Jay Lethal & Hiroshi Tanahashi are great, the fans will be into the match and as long as they give them 15 and let them do their thing, this match could be a really great addition to the card, even if there’s no real chance of the titles changing hands. WINNER: ROH Tag Team Champions The Briscoes

ROH Six-Man Tag Team Titles Ladder Match: Champions SoCal Uncensored vs. Flip Gordon & The Young Bucks: This was originally going to be Champions SoCal Uncensored vs. The Kingdom, but the TV changed this as Flip Gordon defeated Scorpio Sky. SoCal Uncensored all attacked Flip, but The Young Bucks saved him and they all hugged, finally resolving their issues (detailed on Being the Elite) and showing that they are really friends. Bully Ray announced on the next TV that SoCal Uncensored vs. The Young Bucks and Flip Gordon in a ladder match for this show in a ladder match. My guess is that they realized that a heel vs. heel match wasn’t the best plan for the show, although the build was decent enough on TV, and I think that it would have been good as the Kingdom, despite the fact that I really don’t care for them all that much, have been very good to great in multi-man matches. But I won’t lie, Flip & the Bucks vs. SoCal Uncensored in a ladder match is a whole lot sexier on paper. The Bucks have traditionally worked extremely well with Daniels & Kazarian, Sky is looking to really prove himself, and Flip is in the same boat. This has a chance to not only steal the show but to be spectacular as all of these guys will almost try to kill themselves to get the match over. I think that it’s too early in the SoCal Uncensored story to have them drop the titles already, although the change to Flip Gordon & The Young Bucks would add a new element to the Bullet Club Civil War angle. WINNERS: Champions SoCal Uncensored

Last Man Standing TV Title Match: Champion Kenny King vs. Silas Young: Kenny King won the TV Title back at Death Before Dishonor XV, and this match is going to provide a full circle sort of moment. King had a solid run until losing to Silas young at Final Battle in a four-way match. It was a huge moment for Young, one many fans had been waiting for. Unfortunately, ROH did jack and shit with his title run, and after 57-days, King win the title back on ROH TV. They had a rematch that had absolutely no buzz at the anniversary PPV, which King retained. With the surprise appearance of Austin Aries, Young appeared to be the odd man out in the TV Title scene, but here we are. Young & King will resolve their issues in a Last Man Standing match, and that brings us full circle back to Death Before Dishonor XV. Because not only did King win the TV title on that show, but Young scored the biggest win of his a ROH career on that show, in a Last Man Standing match against Jay Lethal. The match is designed for Young, the story is designed for Young, and the table is set for him to win back the title, especially since we don’t know what’s going on with Aries. WINNER: The Last Real Man Standing Silas Young

ROH Title Match: Champion Dalton Castle vs. Marty Scurll: While Scurll is the challenger of the month in this match, on one hand, I’m surprised that he’s getting the title shot here and not on the upcoming UK tour. But with that being said, I’m very happy he’s getting the shot, as I am a big fan. Castle is coming off of an excellent defense against Lethal at the 16th Anniversary PPV, while Scurll defeated Punishment Martinez at the same show. The one thing about putting Scurll in the match is that with the crowd they are going to draw, the fans will be into him big time as a challenger, which should make for an excellent atmosphere. And they will need that because with very little drama surrounding Scurll actually beating Castle (unless they pull a HUGE swerve to have Scurll as champion for the UK tour) they’ll need the hot crowd buying into Scurll. I am sure that they will have a very good match, Castle is on a roll as champion right now and Scurll is very good and steps it up in big matches. WINNER: Dalton Castle

Cody vs. Kenny Omega: And here we are, the main event and one of the most anticipated matches of the whole Mania week, as the Bullet Club Civil War finally gives up Kenny vs. Cody. One of the biggest and most interesting stories in pro wrestling right now is the implosion of Bullet Club. It’s an angle that was nearly a year in the making, with the teases of issues between Kenny & Cody, leading to Cody eventually turning on Kenny and the reunion of the Golden Lovers. Everyone involved has been really great, and the Being The Elite series has been a great vehicle to carry the story. Cody’s descent into madness and a real villain has been spectacular, Kenny & Ibushi’s reunion has been received as a huge deal, Adam Page is snapping and fully on the Cody train, Marty Scurll has been conflicted and confused as his friends fight, the Bucks wanted to broker peace, and Owens is still loyal to Kenny. But then there is Yujiro, Hikuleo, Fale, Loa, & Tonga. They are staying away from all of this bullshit (although they did team with and back up Ibushi in Omega’s absence). In the past, Tonga (an OG Bullet Club Man) had shown displeasure with the separation in Bullet Club and the whole “Elite” concept. Cody is the mastermind right now, he thinks he’s in control, and he thinks he has everything right where he wants them to be. Cody has been on a roll since WrestleKingdom 12, doing the best work of his post WWE run, and Omega is a certified top-tier performer. The build has been excellent, everyone involved has been awesome, and Cody has stepped it up in the past in big matches (the bull rope match with Lethal, against Okada, & against Ibushi). This show is largely built around he and Omega, and with that being the case, I certainly expect one of if not the best Cody we’ve ever seen, stepping it up against Omega. This should be great, and by hook or by crook, I see Cody stealing the win here; but the war will be far from over… WINNER: Cody

JOIN 411 TONIGHT FOR OUR LIVE COVERAGE OF THE SHOW!

– End Scene.

– Thanks for reading.

“Byyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyye Felicia!”