Ring of Honor's latest pay per view event, Death Before Dishonor XV, has concluded. Las Vegas got a heck of a show, but what else do you expect from North America's finest?
Up-and-comer Donovan Dijack defeated three other men to become the number one contender for the ROH TV Title, after cutting Lio Rush off at the pass with a big boot and a Feast Your Eyes. "The Last Real Man" Silas Young was choked out by New Japan NEVER Openweight Champion Katsuyori Shibata, followed by a kick to the head that left Mr. Mustache out cold. Team CHAOS lost to Team Bullet Club in a six an tag match, with BC's Yujiro scoring the pinfall on the ever-shrugging Toru Yano.
Following Team CHAOS's defeat, Hangman Page tried to hang Yano, only to be halted by Jay Briscoe. This transitioned into an "Anything Goes Grudge Match" between the two. Nice way to go from match to match, ROH. I like it! This was the token blood-and-guts match for the evening, with Hangman Page eventually picking up the win and sliding a noose around Jay Briscoe's neck. Both men gave their all, but this was not an encounter for the faint of heart.
New Japan's Heavywight Champion Kazuchika Okada took on one of ROH's hottest new acts in Dalton Castle. This match had a much lighter tone than the previous one, with Dalton's manservants mimicking Okada and Dalton playing a cowardly Ric Flair-like heel throughout. Okada finishes Castle off with a piledriver and his patented Rainmaker lariat. Fun match; kind of a cool down after the brutal Briscoe/Page match.
Bobby Fish and Mark Briscoe had the most traditional ROH-style match of the evening, right down to the show of respect between the two at the end. Fish retains after a hella fast suplex and a Falcon Arrow. ROH tag champs The Addiction also retained in a triple threat tag match against Naito/Evil and Elgin/Tanahashi. I like the Elgin/Tanahashi team. It's like Mr. Perfect teaming with a Japanese Shawn Michaels. Good Stuff.
And finally, the main event! Adam Cole barely came out on top against Jay Lethal to win the ROH World Title. There were a lot of great spots here, with both men showing an almost palpable animosity for one another. Cole was a nasty heel here, and by the end of the match even I started to wonder if my hate for him was just "wrestling hate" or if I really did hate the person I was seeing on my screen. What really put it over was ROH owner Cary Silkin presenting Cole with the belt; even he looked disgusted. Looks like Lethal is going back to the end of the line. A dark new era dawns in ROH, bay-bay.
Good show. Not the best ROH PPV I've ever seen, but a bad ROH or NJPW show is like the equivalent of a really good WWE show, so as a wrestling nut I sometimes have to adjust my expectations when going from promotion to promotion. I'll be back tomorrow with some last minute Summerslam predictions. As always, I can be found on Twitter (@ChrisBComics) and via e-mail (backissuechris@gmail.com).
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