West Mifflin, PA – 4.26.2003

Commentary is provided by Chris Lovey & Ray Murrow.

AJ Styles and Paul London were initially set to square off on this show. It was either to be a singles match, or AJ and Amazing Red defending the titles against London and a mystery partner. The day before the event, AJ Styles pulled off of the show due to a knee injury. Because of this, ROH decided to hold its second Round Robin Challenge tournament as a replacement.

The tournament would feature Paul London, the man without an opponent, The Amazing Red, Styles’ tag team partner who felt disrespected by London’s comments towards him last month, and Christopher Daniels, who was initially scheduled to face Michael Shane, and also was part of the first Round Robin Challenge in March 2002.

The show opens with Prophecy members Christopher Daniels, Donovan Morgan and Allison Danger sitting with each other in the locker room. Daniels says a lot can change in such a short period of time. The last time ROH was in Pittsburgh, the Prophecy held all the gold and all of the power. The carnage in the main event was so brutal they named the event “Revenge on the Prophecy.” Daniels says that night was the start of the Prophecy’s downward spiral. They’ve gone from holding all the gold to holding none of it, going from being the hunted to becoming the hunters. Tonight will begin the Prophecy’s retribution. Morgan then insinuates that ROH allowing Xavier to defend the tag titles while he was away in Japan was a punishment. While Morgan is only in ROH for the paycheck, he will still show his three opponents tonight what the Prophecy stands for. Daniels tells Samoa Joe that he is coming for him and his ROH Title, and that Steve Corino better not get in his way. It’s because Corino stuck his nose in Daniels’ business at Final Battle 2002 that he recruited Corino’s sister, Allison Danger, into the Prophecy. He says not only is Danger in the Prophecy to help them defeat Corino in the ring, but also to publicly humiliate him. As an example, Danger recalls a story of Corino’s girlfriend leaving him because he was a bed-wetter at 14 years old. She also remarks that Corino’s taste in women has not improved since.

Daniels then says that the Prophecy has only grown stronger in these tough times by adding to their ranks and welcomes the Prophecy’s assassin, Dan Maff. Maff says he had followed the Code of Honor since the beginning of Ring of Honor, and all that did was get him straight to the mid-card. Through Daniels’ guidance, he will make a name for himself. He also tells Daniels if he needs a hit put out on someone, he can count on him to take care of it. Daniels seems to have an idea after hearing Maff say this, but for now he is focused on tonight. First, he will prove that The Amazing Red won the tag titles on a fluke, and then he will take Paul London’s spot in the Top 5 rankings. Tonight, the hunt begins and the Prophecy will have its retribution. This was a good promo but there was also a lot of Daniels saying the same thing multiple times.

Round Robin Challenge Match #1
The Amazing Red vs. Christopher Daniels

Allison Danger is in Daniels’ corner. Daniels’ actions show how determined he is in proving Red’s tag title win over the Prophecy was a fluke. Just in scoring a nearfall via a surprise roll-up, Daniels’ ire is raised and he beats down Red. Red finally turns things back in his favor by countering a pop-up into an armdrag, and then pulling off a slingshot Frankensteiner on the floor. Red maintains control when he brings Daniels back inside of the ring until he is cut off by an inside out lariat. Danger aids Daniels by choking Red on the ropes behind the referee’s back. Daniels focuses his attack on Red’s neck. When Daniels catches Red’s baseball slide with a waistlock, Red flips out of it, kicks Daniels’ knee, and Magistral cradles him for two. Red also gets two with a flying Complete Shot. Daniels blocks a Frankensteiner and enzuigiri’s Red. Daniels applies more pressure to Red’s neck in a chin lock and sleeper hold. Red uses a chinbreaker to escape and follows up with the 718 and springboard huracanrana for two. Daniels takes a tornado enzuigiri for two, the same move that concussed Xavier during their tag match at Expect the Unexpected. Daniels halts Red’s tilt-a-whirl with an STO, followed by the BME for two. Red catches Daniels on the middle rope with a palm strike and a super Frankensteiner for two. Red also gets two with the Code Red and then heads to the top turnbuckle. Daniels shoves the referee into the ropes to crotch Red on the top turnbuckle. Red falls to the mat, and Daniels polishes him off with the Last Rites at 11:08. This was such an easy match to get into, with Daniels as the aggressive bully and Red as the sympathetic babyface. Even if he was off in a couple spots, the crowd was very behind each of Red’s comebacks and got excited for all of his nearfalls. The ending paid off Daniels’ working over Red’s neck the entire match, but also portraying that Red had been so effective in his comeback that Daniels needed to cheat in order to not lose. A really good start to the show and tournament. ***

Da Hit Squad (Dan Maff & Steve Mack) vs. The Second City Saints (Ace Steel & Colt Cabana)

Allison Danger is in Da Hit Squad’s corner. Tough Enough III participant Scott Chong is the special guest timekeeper for this match. As this match was signed before Maff joined the Prophecy, Da Hit Squad is fulfilling their contractual commitment with one final match as a tandem. Maff is confident in his new attire, while Mack is morose. His feelings don’t keep him from upholding the Code of Honor, nor from controlling the opening portion of the match against Cabana. He does not approve of Maff blind tagging himself in and blasting Steel with a leg lariat. Maff ends up taking a dropkick from Steel in the corner, though he falls to avoid Cabana’s double knees and crawls over to tag in Mack. Mack takes down Cabana with an Orange Crush with Steel breaking up his pin attempt. Maff misses a cannonball in the corner on Steel and is dropkicked to the floor. An assisted Colt .45 puts down Mack for the pin at 8:12. This went exactly as you would expect – Maff and Mack clearly are not as cohesive as they once were and it led to them being defeated. Aside from the historical footnote of it being Da Hit Squad’s final match in ROH (and also Mack’s final ROH match), this was nothing special. **

Maff, still outside of the ring, seems to show some remorse for Mack, but Danger talks him out of it. Maff and Danger head backstage without shaking the Saints’ hands.

Earlier in the night, The Ring Crew Express took some time while setting up the ring to say that they’re going to rock their opponents tonight like a hurricane. The Outcast Killaz, who are also helping set up the ring, say they want interview time just like Dunn and Marcos. After introducing themselves (Oman Tortuga and Diablo Santiago), and failed catchphrase attempts from Santiago, Tortuga says they’re done paying their dues and that they will take their opportunities. The Ring Crew Express chuckle at the Killaz hubris and continue setting up the ring.

The SAT (Joel Maximo & Jose Maximo) vs. Special K (Brian XL & Hydro) vs. The Ring Crew Express (Dunn & Marcos) vs. EZ Money & Sterling James Keenan

This is Keenan’s ROH debut (the future Corey Graves). Angel Dust and Slugger are in Special K’s corner. Mega is watching the match from the crowd, and Scott Chong is still ringside as the special timekeeper. It’s funny that XL started wearing actual wrestling attire after joining Special K. Money was by for the most over wrestler in the match. He pulled off some cool suplexes and was by far the most polished of everybody in the match. There were some ugly moments, like Dunn falling off of the top turnbuckle when looking for his stage dive. They recovered in the final few moments, thanks to Joel’s multiple powerbombs to Marcos and Joel’s multiple brainbusters to Dunn refocusing the bout. Dunn went back to the top turnbuckle where Money cut him off. Money pivoted when he had Dunn in his grasp on the top turnbuckle and dove onto everybody else on the floor. The SAT took advantage of the situation and hit the Spanish Fly on Dunn for the pin at 9:14. These types of matches had become more cohesive and interesting on the past couple of shows, and this felt like a regression back to the messier multi-team bouts. **

After the match, Slugger takes out Joel with a big boot. Mega makes his way into the ring while Slugger is fighting Jose on the outside. Mega gets in Hydro’s face, but Slugger gets in between them. Slugger then allows for Hydro to attack, and Mega takes him out with a sit-out chokeslam. Slugger pretends to reason with Mega, and when he turns around, Dust superkicks him in the mid-section. Slugger then takes down Mega with a double choke bomb.

As CM Punk makes his way out for the next match, a fan jumps into the ring. The fan is wearing flannel around their waist and sitting in the corner, similar to how Raven would. The fan gets in Punk’s face and strikes Raven’s pose. From behind, Daffney of WCW fame attacks the unknown person and drops him with a DDT. Punk grabs a microphone. He tells Raven through the camera that he was anticipating an attack from Trinity, so Punk has gotten back up in the form of Lucy, fka Daffney. Punk says he is better than Raven, and every single individual in the crowd.

ROH Championship #1 Contender’s Trophy Match
CM Punk vs. Homicide

Julius Smokes aka J-Train is in Homicide’s corner (officially, for the first time), while Lucy is in Punk’s corner. The winner of this match challenges for the ROH title on May 31st in Philadelphia. Homicide has Punk’s number until Punk avoids a Manhattan Drop and immediately lands a Shining Wizard. Punk busts out the Pepsi Twist for the first time when they’re back in the ring, and that impresses the crowd. Homicide struck Punk with a knee in the corner earlier, so Punk responds with a running facewash kick as Homicide is in a tree of woe. After a couple of backbreakers, Punk misses a slingshot senton, and Homicide instantly knocks him down with a running back elbow. Punk is able to slip on an STF after escaping a Romero Special. Homicide slips Punk into a seated hammerlock Octopus stretch, though Punk pummels Homicide’s back in order to counter a suplex into one of his own. Punk also scores big with an overhead suplex on the floor. The crowd and J-Train rally behind Homicide so he can get back in the ring before the count. Homicide discreetly low blows Punk before delivering a Saito suplex. Punk again clobbers Homicide’s back to stop his offensive stride, this time as Homicide climbs the ropes. Punk brings down Homicide with the Pepsi Plunge and the crowd goes wild when Homicide kicks out at two. Homicide catches Punk coming off of the ropes and delivers an Ace Crusher. He then lariats Punk for two. When he tries another, Punk blocks and drops him with a hammerlock DDT for two. Punk kicks out of a nasty looking scoop slam so Homicide sets him up for the Cop Killer. Punk escapes that, and Homicide escapes a waistlock, and Punk finally lands a Death Valley Driver when blocking a Shining Wizard. Punk lands an enzuigiri and goes after Punk’s neck. Homicide rolls with Punk’s movements and trips him back into a modified STF until Punk taps out at 15:27. I am pretty annoyed at how quickly they moved on after Punk’s Pepsi Plunge. I simply would not have done the move if Punk wasn’t going to win the match with it, especially its first use case in the company. That said, it was an exciting moment and led to an exciting ending stretch for the match too. These two had better chemistry than you may think, and it will be interesting to see what kind of match Joe and Homicide have together as Homicide has transitioned into more of a mat wrestler the past two events. ***¼

No Disqualification Match
Texas Wrestling Academy (Don Juan, Fast Eddie & Hotstuff Hernandez) vs. The Carnage Crew (DeVito, Loc & Masada)

Rudy Boy Gonzalez is in the TWA team’s corner. Juan showed his fearlessness by taking a chair to Masada in the early going. Fast Eddie coast-to-coast dropkicked a chair into Masada’s face and also put him through two chairs on the floor with a Frankensteiner. Hernandez gave DeVito an incredible looking Dominator, and tossed Masada half way across the ring with his release Razor’s Edge. Hernandez also tossed Eddie to the floor onto Loc and DeVito. All of the Carnage Crew bled, with Loc especially looking gruesome with the entire back of his head and neck covered in blood. The Carnage Crew takes Hernandez out of the equation when he dives over the top rope and is creamed in mid air with a chair shot from DeVito. Earlier in the match, Masada had taken out Juan for a long time with a Super Death Valley Driver, and Masada kicked him out of the ring as Juan had just come to after the Carnage Crew gave Eddie the Carnage Plex. All three of the Carnage Crew then delivered a triple spike piledriver to Eddie for the pin at 9:12. This was a spectacle, and one that toughened up the TWA in the eyes of the fans. Even in losing, they made the Carnage Crew scratch and claw for their win, and bloodied them up in the process. It successfully raised the profile of the TWA team and gave the Carnage Crew one of their better outings. ***¼

Rudy Boy chases off the Carnage Crew with a chair and then checks on Eddie. The Carnage Crew then attack Scott Chong, who is still sitting ringside at the timekeeper’s table, until Rudy Boy once again chases them away.

Round Robin Challenge Match #2
The Amazing Red vs. Paul London

London wears an AJ Styles shirt to the ring, both alluding to Styles as his original opponent tonight, and mocking Red as he was supposed to be Styles’ tag team partner on the night Red and Styles ended up tag team champions. Despite being the fresher opponent, London finds himself bettered by Red, who has already wrestled, in the opening portion of the match. There’s an aggression behind London’s flying knee strike off of the middle rope that conveys his frustrations with Red. London also hits a pretty aggressive dropsault. Red rolls over London’s back and nails him with a rolling enzuigiri. A second enzuigiri sends London outside, and when Red comes after him, London Hot Shots Red onto the guardrails. London carries more of a swagger now that he is firmly in control when he brings Red back inside of the ring. He dazes Red in a grounded double underhook submission, though Red comes back with a German suplex. London counters Red slingshot in from the apron with a pair of Northern Lights suplexes and then plants him with a swing-out slam. London mocks Red with Styles’ pose, but that wasted time results in him only getting a two count after the slam. Red catches London on the middle rope and brings London down with a Code Red. Red kicks London in the face when London tries to sweep out his legs from the mat, and Red jumps right into a Red Star Press for two. When London gets to his feet, Red comes in with a springboard, looking for a Frankensteiner. London powerbombs him out of mid-air and then pulls Red up into the Styles Clash for the pin at 10:09. London puts the Styles shirt back on after the match and once again mockingly does Styles’ pose. A really good story of Red essentially being punished by London for taking his “spot” as Styles’ tag partner. He proved his point while also setting up the inevitable match with Styles. Red did a good job in the role of proving his worth to London, which made London angry. On a night where both participants didn’t have to wrestle twice, this may have been better but it accomplished what it needed to. ***

During intermission, Gary Michael Cappetta interviews Matt Stryker about his match later in the evening against BJ Whitmer, Chad Collyer, and Donovan Morgan. He asks how Stryker gets prepared for a match like this. Stryker says the two most important things in a match like this are physical and mental conditioning. With that, he excuses himself so he can strategize for the match. Chad Collyer confronts him before he can leave and tells Stryker that he is going to make him tap out for the third time to his cloverleaf. He also mocks Stryker’s unibrow. Stryker says he’s proud of the matches they have had together, and lately, he’s been doing research to learn from his mistakes. He promises that he is going to make Collyer submit. The two of them shake hands.

GMC then finds Michael Shane and Ronnie Stevens talking in a nearby stairwell. Shane says he no longer has a match tonight, he still wants some camera time. He doesn’t blame Christopher Daniels for not wanting to get superkicked again. However, The Group does what they want when they want, and that they’re going to have a little fun tonight.

Alexis Laree vs. Persephone

This is Persephone’s ROH debut. She is best known from NWA Wildside/WEW, and is not to be confused with CMLL/AEW’s Persephone. Laree is clearly the superior wrestler, and Persephone resorts to hair pulling and throwing around Laree by her hair to take the advantage. Laree maneuvered her way out of a front facelock and dropped Persephone with an inverted DDT for the pin at 5:28. The wrestling was quite solid but the commentary was very distracting. I know he’s since apologized for his commentary during this time, but that doesn’t make “Lovey” talking about Laree’s “flat tummy” any less cringey. They wanted you to watch this match and think it could be the start of a women’s division in ROH, and all of that was undermined by how much commentary focused on the competitors’ looks and discussing how they “liked particular camera shots.” This was a totally solid match that was sabotaged by its own commentary. Calling it the best women’s match in ROH to date is the faintest of praise. **

Ronnie Stevens and Michael Shane hit the ring, and Stevens takes out both Laree and Persephone. Shane grabs the microphone, but Lovey doesn’t want to give him the time of the day, so we instead cut to the Second City Saints backstage. Punk says his life is a war, and that Ace Steel and Colt Cabana are his soldiers. He stayed one step ahead of Raven by bringing in Lucy, and next time Trinity tries to get in his face, she will find out exactly what it’s like to be a loser. He knows Raven has been in a lot of wars, but this one he won’t survive. After Gabe calls cut, Punk tells Lucy that now that she is a Saint, she needs to obey the Code of Honor. They don’t need her interfering in their matches. Steel and Cabana then change the subject about other things the Saints do, like the music they listen to in the car, which annoys Punk.

BJ Whitmer vs. Chad Collyer vs. Donovan Morgan vs. Matt Stryker vs. Michael Shane

Ronnie Stevens is in Shane’s corner. The result of the previous promo was Shane inserting himself into the previously scheduled four way match. Morgan and Shane being in warring factions (Prophecy and Group) made them honed in on one another, with Stryker and Collyer also honed in on one another based on the promo earlier in the night. Whitmer was the odd man out in the equation. At some point, Shane attacked Collyer’s left leg, and the rest of the match followed suit. It lasted forever. Finally, Collyer tagged, leading to a battle between Shane and Morgan. A series of offenses led to Collyer in the ring with Stryker after surprising Stryker with a high crossbody. Stryker also got a two count with a scoop slam. Stryker tripped Collyer out of a waistlock and went for the Stryker lock. Collyer however booted Stryker away and then took him down with a dragonscrew leg whip. He put Stryker in a cloverleaf and pulled him to the middle of the ring. Shane superkicked Collyer to break the hold, but Morgan then took him down with the Golden Gate Swing. A distraction from Stevens to Morgan allowed for Whitmer to sneak in an exploder suplex on him. Stryker leg lariated Whitmer into a German suplex from Collyer, unknowingly. Collyer then drop toe holed Stryker into a Gedo Clutch. Stryker escaped and put Collyer in the Stryker Lock, leading to Collyer tapping out at 19:28. Trimming a few minutes in the middle would have definitely helped the overall package, but as it was, this was still pretty dang good. The last few minutes were especially interesting to watch, and Stryker finally submitting Collyer did feel like a legitimate triumph. Of course, since it was in a five way match, Collyer still can deny Stryker the satisfaction of having defeated him “fairly” and continue holding his singles victories over his head. The Shane and Modest stuff did feel a little perfunctory but was executed off well. Whitmer also did a fine job being the glue to hold everything together. ***

Round Robin Challenge Match #3
Christopher Daniels vs. Paul London

Allison Danger is in Daniels’ corner. London frustrates Daniels first by getting the better of him on the mat, and they by mocking him with his pose. Daniels gets on the microphone and tells London if he does not respect him that he will kick his ass. London responds by saying if he wants respect, then maybe he should shake hands. Daniels looks to be amenable to a handshake, but it’s a ruse to open London up for a kick to the stomach. Although London makes a quick comeback after, a knee to the stomach back in the ring from Daniels leads to the Fallen Angel staying on top of London by working over his mid-section. London sneaks in a quick schoolboy after dodging a corner attack, but Daniels quickly takes him down with a lariat and counters a backdrop attempt with the Angel’s Wings for two. After taking more shots to the mid-section, London comes back with a desperation springboard forearm strike. Daniels sends London to the apron. London snaps Daniels’ neck on the top rope to take him down, but he misses a slingshot moonsault, landing right on his injured mid-section. A palm strike leads to Daniels bringing London off of the middle rope with Daniels misses the BME, resulting in London trying a sunset flip pin. Daniels elbows him on the ribs after kicking out. London looks for multiple pinning combinations to end the match earlier but can’t cinch it. London makes the questionable decision of hitting the London Star Press after fighting Daniels off of the middle rope, but it connects. Due to the pain, it takes London some time to follow up with a cover. When he does pin Daniels, Danger jumps on the ring apron to distract the referee. London forces a kiss on her and then backdrops a charging Daniels onto her. We almost made it through a show without man on women violence or sexual assault, but didn’t quite make it. London suicide dives onto Daniels and then in the ring gives him the leg-capture DDT for two. London positions Daniels for another London Star Press. This time, Daniels gets his knees up to block the move. Daniels drops London with a Complete Shot and then lands the BME for the pin at 18:54. These two made the most out of Daniels working over London’s ribs for the majority of the contest. The fans really wanted London to get the win, and once again he was screwed out of a victory because of the Prophecy’s willingness to break the Code of Honor. Take out the Allison Danger nonsense and this would be an even stronger match. As it stands, Daniels makes a statement going 2-0 in the tournament and builds momentum towards regaining ROH gold. ***½

ROH Championship
Samoa Joe vs. Doug Williams

Samoa Joe has been champion since 3.22.2003 and this is his first defense. Williams earned this match by winning the #1 Contender’s Trophy at “Night of Champions”, the same night Joe won the ROH Title. Joe has now added the Godzilla intro to his Faith No More theme music. Joe goes for the STF early on a few times, and each time, Williams makes it to the ropes. Joe raises the intensity when Williams counters a headlock into a Chaos Theory attempt. Joe enzuigiri’s him after escaping and does not let up with the attacks to Williams’ neck. Williams uses his legs to block a corner attack and to maneuver Joe into a cravate. Williams throws multiple knees to Joe’s face while keeping hold, and then Judo throws him down into a shoulder hold. Williams continues to attack Joe’s wrist, elbow, and shoulder, with Joe having to go to the ropes multiple times to free himself. Joe blocks a powerbomb and lifts Williams up, but Williams grabs a wristlock while upside down on Joe’s shoulders to free himself. Williams sends Joe to the corner, but when he comes charging, Joe takes him down with the STJoe. Joe powerbombs Williams into a STF which he transitions into a crossface. Joe releases the hold when it’s clear Williams won’t submit. Williams blocks a lariat which he turns into a Fujiwara armbar. Joe gets the ropes to escape. Williams lights him up with strikes and the three knee combo. When Joe kicks out of the pin after the Bomb Scare, he grabs a kimura lock, but Joe is close enough to the ropes to immediately make Williams break it. Joe hits a desperation enzuigiri and turns Williams inside out with a lariat for two. Williams manipulates Joe’s hands to block a chinlock. Williams then looks for the Chaos Theory. Joe holds onto Williams’ leg to stop him, and then rolls forward to deliver multiple knees to the top of Williams’ head. Joe locks in the Coquina Clutch and Williams taps out at 11:49. This was a very good and smartly wrestled contest. It’s only issue is that it falls short of expectations. I think it’s a rock solid first defense for Joe, but you can’t help but feel these two are capable of pulling off much better. ***¼

As soon as the match is over, Prophecy members Dan Maff and Donovan Morgan attack Joe. Michael Shane comes to his aid, but Christopher Daniels runs out and with Morgan takes Shane out with Revelations (their powerbomb/neck breaker combo.) Daniels drops Joe with Last Rites. Daniels says we just saw The Prophecy’s retribution. They celebrate as Joe and Shane lay on the mat. Daniels also says into the camera that he hopes Steve Corino was watching (he was on a ZERO-ONE tour during this event). Joe and Shane get to their feet and head backstage, title in hand, on their own accord.

We then cut to a pre-taped segment with Loc and DeVito, which the chyron informs us was taped right before the “Do Or Die” show in Philadelphia on May 31st. DeVito says that will be a special match. Loc guess that it will be special because they get to step in the ring with The Briscoes for the first time, and they’re going to show the teenage prodigies what they’re all about. They also don’t like the Second City Saints for looking down on people like them, and it will be special because they get to show Punk and Cabana what it’s like to be in the ring with two pissed off blue collar brawlers. It will also be special because they get to put the hurting on Special K. They say Special K are the type of people who laugh at them because they have rich parents who look down on blue collar workers like them. DeVito says the real reason the match is special though is because they won’t have to be at home that night.

The Prophecy are celebrating backstage. They recount what just happened to Allison Danger, who missed everything because she is nursing her knee which got injured earlier in the night. Daniels says the last show in Pittsburgh was called “Revenge On The Prophecy”, and now they’ll have to call tonight’s show “Retribution.” Michael Shane fired the first shot in the war against them, and they got retribution by taking him out with Revelations. Dan Maff is officially a full-fledged member of the Prophecy, and Daniels won the Round Robin Challenge, which puts him one step closer towards his goal of getting the ROH Title. He says the hunt is on. They then go off to get their paychecks.

Samoa Joe is in the venue after the show. He shows the camera his nose, which is now swollen as a result of the Prophecy’s attack. He says he is coming after Daniels. He won’t stop until he’s done more than break Daniels’ nose and neck. He is going to break Daniels and all his little thugs, and that’s the gospel according to Samoa Joe.

While this lacks the high quality standout match many ROH shows before this have had, this was easily the most consistent. It had the perfect mix of quality wrestling and story advancement and nothing terrible (Laree vs. Persephone commentary and London/Danger interaction aside.) The card wasn’t overburdened with dead weight bouts either. The titular tournament, Homicide vs. Punk, the TWA/Carnage Crew bout, and Joe vs. Williams are all worth your time.