Providence, RI – 8.11.2012

Commentary is provided by Kevin Kelly and Nigel McGuinness.

Championship Rundown
ROH World Champion: Kevin Steen
ROH Television Champion: Adam Cole
ROH World Tag Team Champions: Vacant

Roderick Strong vs. Mike Mondo

Truth Martini is in Strong’s corner. Mondo ends a wristlock exchange by tripping Strong onto the second rope. Strong scurries to the floor before Mondo can grab a hold. They trade chops. Mondo throws a headbutt to the chin. Strong chops Mondo out of the corner. Mondo shoves him back to the corner. He rolls Strong into a bridging key lock. Strong chops his way out. He shoves Mondo to the floor. He chops Mondo around ringside. Mondo headbutts Strong in the chest to create some distance, but Strong comes back with some hard kicks. A sliding kick gets him two back in the ring. He chops Mondo back to the floor and throws him into the barricades. Mondo makes a comeback in the ring. Strong sends him to the apron. Mondo however throws some knees while holding onto a cravate. Mondo traps him between the ring skirt and the ring apron and stomps on his shoulder. He gets two with a moonsault press. Mondo throws him back first into the ring apron, then headscissors him into the barricades. Mondo charges from the entrance way, shoulder tackling Strong into the barricades! Mondo takes a brunt of that charge too and is grabbing his shoulder back in the ring. Strong gets two with a uranage backbreaker. Mondo drops him with a regular uranage for two. Strong grabs Mondo’s shoulder and puts him in a crossface armbreaker. Strong hits the Death by Roderick after Mondo escapes and gets two. Strong hits the Sick Kick for the pin at 12:38. Mondo needs to be recognized for the hard work he puts in during his matches, despite his character (or lack thereof). Strong always delivers the goods, and he and Mondo had a terrific, intense opening match. ***

Winner Gets a ROH Contract
Matt Taven vs. Antonio Thomas vs. QT Marshall vs. Vinny Marseglia

Taven and Thomas criss-cross the rope. Taven lands a hip toss but Thomas kicks him away and gives Taven one of his own. Marseglia tags in when Taven pushes Thomas to his corner. He and Taven each go for a quick pin. They reach a stalemate, causing Thomas and Marshall to attack them from behind. Marseglia dropkicks Marshall to the floor. Taven clotheslines Thomas out too. Marseglia goes for a dive but eats a punch from Marshall. Taven dives onto both him and Thomas. Marshall blind tags in when Marseglia sends Taven to the corner. Marshall nails Marseglia with a hard clothesline. Marseglia gives him a Side Russian legsweep for two. Thomas gets two with a Northern Lights suplex on Marseglia. Marshall tags in and dropkicks Marseglia to the apron. Marshall holds up Marseglia, and Thomas comes in with a crossbody. Marshall breaks his pin. Thomas locks Marshall’s leg and suplexes Marseglia while holding on. Taven comes in and splashes onto everybody. Taven huracanrana’s Thomas and backdrops Marshall. A rope assisted Roll of the Dice on Thomas gets him two. Thomas hot shots him in the corner. Marshall comes in with a slingshot leg lariat. Marseglia breaks the cover. Taven hits a springboard face kick. He gets two with a quebrada press. Taven counters Marshall’s powerslam with a DDT. Marshall gets his foot on the ropes. Marseglia slingshots onto Thomas and Marshall on the floor. Taven enzuigiri’s Marseglia on the top rope. With Thomas’ help, Marseglia sunset bombs Taven off the top rope. Thomas gets shoved to the floor and Marshall crotches Marseglia on the ring post. Taven cyclone kicks him. Marshall ducks a springboard kick. He drops Taven with a running Dominator DDT for the pin and the contract at 10:55. All four men had their working boots on and seemed like they were really working for a contract. Marshall certainly looked good, but if I were ROH I’d keep my eyes on Taven as well. This could have been a dud but ended up very entertaining. ***

Proving Ground Match
Adam Cole vs. “Brutal” Bob Evans

If Evans is able to last fifteen minutes or defeat Cole, he will earn a future TV title match. He is, of course, the trainer and manager to Mike Bennett. Cole goes after Evans’ left leg. Cole ducks a clothesline and dropkicks Evans in the back. He forearms Evans to the floor. Evans hot shots Cole onto the barricades. He gives Cole a backdrop on the ring apron. In the ring, Evans counters a sunset flip and elbows Cole’s neck a few times. Evans drives him neck first into the mat with his elbow for two. Evans keeps on the neck until Cole nails him with a running knee strike. Cole enzuigiri’s him from the apron. Cole misses a crossbody and Evans clotheslines him for two. He ducks Cole’s superkick and slams him for two. Cole superkicks him from out of nowhere for two. Cole puts on a leg lock. Evans taps out at 10:02. For a match absolutely no one wanted to see or asked to see, this was good. The psychology was on point anyways. That being said, this wasn’t terribly exciting and not at all the best way to capitalize on Cole’s momentum he had earned at Best in the World. **1/2

Mike Bennett and Maria attack Cole after the match. Eddie Edwards and Sara Del Rey make the save. They will meet in an inter-gender tag bout later tonight.

Truth Martini comes out with Roderick Strong and Michael Elgin. He predicts Kevin Steen will retain the title tonight, only to lose it to Michael Elgin when ROH comes to Toronto. He says that in ROH’s upcoming tag team title tournament that Strong and Elgin are going to prove those who think the HoT are having issues wrong. Strong tells Elgin that Martini said that he was going to take Elgin’s title shot. Strong calls out Martini as a liar and declares himself on strike from the House of Truth. He plans to sit front row in Toronto to watch Elgin’s “fat ass” lose. Strong leaves, bringing us to our next match.

Michael Elgin vs. Charlie Haas

This is a rematch from “Death Before Dishonor IX.” Haas charges at Elgin. Elgin picks Haas up by his legs and brings him to the corner. He splashes him in the opposite corner and comes off the second rope with a shoulder block. He gets two with a delayed vertical suplex. Haas kicks out Elgin’s leg thanks to Strong’s distraction. Haas slams Elgin’s leg into the barricades right in front of Martini and Strong. Elgin kicks Haas into the barricades from the apron. Elgin tries to suplex Haas in from the apron. Haas kicks his legs out to crotch him on the middle turnbuckle. He throws Elgin’s knee into the ring post a few times. Elgin kicks away at Haas to stop his attack on his knee. Strong meanwhile is drinking beers and watching the match. Haas accidentally crotches himself on the second rope. Elgin German suplexes him for two. Strong is cheering on Haas as he rolls to the floor. Elgin goes to yell at Strong and gets tripped by Haas on the apron. Haas throws beer into Elgin’s face. Elgin throws Haas into Strong and into the barricades. Elgin pours a beer on Strong while drinking one of his own. Elgin goes for the spinning powerbomb. Strong spits beer in his eyes, allowing Haas to roll up Elgin and hold his tights for the pin at 14:41. Well that’s just great; give the overrated guy that ROH fans seem to be burnt out on the victory over a guy who’s destined to be a World champ. I understand it was done for the sake of progressing the dissension amongst the House of Truth, but it not the direction the fans wanted this match to take. **1/2

The Briscoes (Jay & Mark Briscoe) vs. S.C.U.M. (Steve Corino & Jimmy Jacobs)

Corino and Jay start. Jay gets the first shot with a heel kick. He and Mark double shoulder tackle Corino for two. He slides out to the floor, but Mark dropkicks him from inside the ring. He throws Jacobs into the barricades. Corino suplexes Jay to the floor. Mark spinwheel kicks him to the floor. Mark moonsaults onto everybody! The Briscoes get control before throwing Corino back in the ring. Mark comes off the second rope with a senton for two. Corino throws Mark into Jacobs’ boots then dropkicks him. He fights out of Corino’s backdrop and tags in Jay. Jay boots both members of S.C.U.M. They however turn the tide with a neckbreaker/STO combo. Jay throws Crino into the second turnbuckle with a Complete Shot. Mark tags in who uses redneck kung-fu on Jacobs. He Jon Woo dropkicks him into the corner for two. Jacobs fights off the Iconoclasm and hits a DDT. Corino drops Mark with the Colby Shock DDT for two. He gives Mark two suplexes. Jay breaks his pin. Mark gives him a chinbreaker so he can tag in Jay. Jay only gets two with a Death Valley Driver. Same goes for a neckbreaker. Jacobs tags in and comes off the top with a senton. He spears Jay and Mark breaks the cover. Mark trips Corino and Side Russian leg sweeps him into the barricades. Jay gives Jacobs a spinebuster and Mark follows with the Froggy Bow for two. Jacobs gets two with a spring back Ace Crusher on Jay. Mark suplexes Corino on the floor. Jay blocks the Contra Code. The Briscoes hit the Doomsday Device on Jacobs for the pin at 12:45. This was pretty much what you would expect these two teams to produce without escalating it to a crazy level of chaos or violence. I anticipate their upcoming cage match with Steen and Titus also involved. That should be wild. ***

2 out of 3 Falls
Jay Lethal vs. Tommaso Ciampa

Barrister RD Evans is in Ciampa’s corner. He offers to shake Lethal’s hand on Ciampa’s behalf. Lethal slaps him in the face. Ciampa charges. Lethal sends him to the floor and superkicks him upon re-entry. He hits the Lethal Injection right off the bat, but Ciampa is able to kick out. Lethal then hits the Lethal Combination and takes the first fall at 1:28. Lethal hip tosses him into a dropkick. Lethal’s suplex sends both him and Ciampa to the floor. Lethal dropkicks Ciampa off the apron. Ciampa throws him into the barricades. He promises to break Lethal’s back on commentary. With that, he pulls up the mats on the floor. Lethal turn things against Ciampa by suplexing him and Evans onto the exposed floor (separately). In the ring Lethal attacks Ciampa in the corner. Ciampa turns things around catching Lethal with a knee to the face. He follows that with Project Ciampa to pick up the second fall at 7:58. Ciampa spits in Lethal’s face. This causes them to trade strikes mid-ring. Lethal gets the better of the exchange, continuously striking Ciampa in the ropes. Ciampa knocks him down in the corner. He sets up for the running knee, but takes the Lethal Combination into the turnbuckles instead. Lethal fights him off the top rope. He comes down with a double axe handle, then suplexes Ciampa into a neckbreaker for two. Lethal suicide dives onto Evans for good measure. He comes off the top with a flying elbow to Ciampa for two. Ciampa gives Lethal an Air Raid Crash on the ring apron! Both men make it back in the ring just before being counted out. Both men seem worn out as they begin to exchange blows. Lethal superkicks Ciampa for two. Evans distracts the referee so Ciampa can low blow Lethal. Suddenly, Prince Nana trips Evans off the apron and throws Evans into the barricades. Lethal sends Nana into the crowd. With the referee distracted by the commotion in the crowd, Lethal kicks Ciampa in the groin behind his back. He hits the Lethal Injection to take the third and final fall at 17:59. Poetic justice, you are so fine. I liked that finish because it didn’t quite finish things between both guys (I’ve enjoyed all their matches together, so I don’t mind the feud continuing) and it gives Lethal another win before his World title shot in Rahway. Unlike the Elgin/Haas match, the stuff with the managers didn’t muck things up and actually made the match better. It stinks that Ciampa would end up being put on the shelf after this because he has been one of the best people to watch in ROH this past year. ***1/4

Eddie Edwards & Sara Del Rey vs. Mike Bennett & Maria Kanellis

Kanellis tags in Bennett right away when her and Sara are left to start out. This brings in Edwards who huracanrana’s Bennett to the ropes. He gets two with a senton. Edwards kicks out his leg and kicks him in the chest. Bennett gives him a chinbreaker. Edwards and Sara throw some tandem offense Bennett’s way. Kanellis pulls Sara’s hair from the apron. Bennett holds Sara’s arms so that Kanellis can boot her in the stomach. Bennett also chokes her on the ropes while Kanellis distracts the referee. Sara kicks Bennett while he tries to pick her up. Edwards comes in with a top rope dropkick. Edwards blows Kanellis a kiss before dropkicking Bennett in a tree of woe. Sara throws her own kicks before Edwards baseball slides in from the floor. A momentary distraction from Kanellis allows Bennett to spear Edwards as Edwards jump off the ring apron to the floor. Edwards fights back with a Code Breaker and superkick. Bennett turns him inside out with a clothesline before collapsing. Kanellis tags in and pins Edwards for one. Edwards grabs her leg, shoves her down and tags in Sara. Sara goes for the Koppu Kick. Bennett shoves Kanellis and takes the bullet for her. Edwards suicide dives after him. He misses a double stomp back in the ring. He does however give Bennett the Chin Checker for two. Edwards flips out of a super Box Office Smash attempt and rolls Bennett into the Achilles Lock. Kanellis comes in to try and break it. Sara comes in and puts her in an ankle lock until she slips to the floor and under the ring. In the ring Bennett transitions into a Half Crab. Sara reemerges from under the ring with Kanellis’ clothing. Bennett gets distracted. Sara kicks him back into the Achilles Lock. Bennett taps out at 13:07. That was a lot of fun. The Maria under the ring stuff was a bit needless, but it added to the fun nature of the bout. This was a decent enough send off for Sara in ROH. ***

ROH World Championship – Anything Goes
Kevin Steen (Champion) vs. Eddie Kingston

Jimmy Jacobs is in Steen’s corner while Steve Corino is on commentary. Kingston immediately punches out Corino. He throws a flurry of punches at Steen and throws him into the barricades. Steen and Jacobs interject, so Kingston wipes them out with a suicide dive and tosses them backstage. Back in the ring, Steen counters Kingston’s chair shot attempt by giving him a chair assisted Code Breaker and somersault legdrop. Steen suplexes Kingston on the floor. He props up a table against the barricades. Kingston stops Steen’s Irish whip and suplexes Steen through the table. Kingston brings another table up to the apron where Steen dropkicks it into his face. Steen sets the table on the guardrail and the edge of the ring upside down and powerbombs Kingston through it. Kingston is so out of it from this maneuver, that multiple officials and staff have to check on him. Steen gets on the microphone and riffs on a fan and Jim Cornette. Kingston is currently being carried out by the staff and officials. Steen reminds Kingston that he dedicated this match to Larry Sweeney and that Sweeney thinks he’s a pussy right now. Of course, this sets Kingston off, and he comes back to the ring swinging. He yakuza kicks Steen in the corner and gets a pin. It’s very apparent Kingston’s back is hurt, but he’s fighting through the pain. Kingston blocks the F-Cinq with a half nelson suplex. Kingston goes to the floor to grab a chair. Upon re-entry, Steen kicks the rope into Kingston’s balls and DDT’s him on a chair. He then cannonball sentons the chair into Kingston’s face. Kingston kicks out. Another table is brought in. Kingston fights to put Steen through the table with a Saito suplex. It’s only good for a two count. Kingston sets up a chair and Saito suplexes Steen onto that! Corino grabs the referee to break the count. Rhett Titus comes out to neutralize. Jimmy Jacobs comes in with a spike. Kingston Backfists him to block being spiked in the head. Steen hits a low blow, the same move that got him disqualified in CHIKARA, and only gets two. He follows up with the F-Cinq; Kingston kicks out of that too! Steen repeatedly slams a chair against Kingston’s bad back. Kingston spits in Steen’s face. Steen bites him and gives him the F-Cinq onto two upright chairs for the pin at 18:46. While the violence was not at the level I was hoping for, both Steen and Kingston played their roles really well. Nobody sells quite like Kingston, and even during his comeback he milked his hurt back for what it was worth. Had the violence gone up another notch, this would have been a step above their CHIKARA encounter. I feel it was just as good, which is ultimately a compliment. ***1/2

Pre-Show Match
The Bravado Bros. (Harlem & Lancelot Bravado) vs. Mike Sydal & Jorge Santi

Sydal fails to get an early pin on Lancelot. Santi tags in and applies a wristlock. Lancelot reverses. Santi stomps on his neck and slams him for two. Lancelot dropkicks Santi’s leg out so that he hits the second turnbuckle. He kicks Santi in the chest for two. Harlem tags in and throws some forearms. He gives him some shoulder blocks before dropping him with a belly-to-back suplex. The Bravados drop double elbows for two. Same goes for Harlem’s dropkick. Santi fights both Bravados off and tags in Sydal. He headscissors and dropkicks Harem. He swiftly kicks him in the head for two. Santi comes in to give Harlem a Side Russian legsweep. Sydal hits a standing shooting star press but Lancelot breaks the cover. The Bravados hit Santi with the Gentlemen’s Agreement. Sydal takes the Gentleman’s Approach, giving The Bravados the win at 5:40. This was your typical pre-show match. Everyone looked good which you can’t always say in these matches. I love the Bravados. **