Ring of Honor will present their annual “Best in the World” PPV this Friday, May 29th in Baltimore, Maryland at the brand new UMBC Event Center, and I’m lucky enough to be attending.
It’s a strong card.
ROH World Champion Dalton Castle vs. Cody vs. Marty Scurll
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zn_c3Q7wJ3o
What’s better than a main event for the ROH Championship? Two members of the Bullet Club are fighting each other for it! Dalton Castle has the in-ring skills and hilarious swagger to the carry the title for years to come if that’s what ROH wanted, but it’s hard to see Cody not walking away as the champ here. Will “The Villain” Marty Scurll fight to win – or will he end up aiding Rhodes in some way to help his fellow Bullet Club member?
This bout should be a great match given the top names involved, and it’s rare that ROH fails to deliver with their main events.
ROH World Tag Team Champions Mark and Jay Briscoe vs. the Young Bucks
Brothers vs. brothers! It’s hard to imagine this match going south, with two of the top tag teams in the business giving fans what could be the match of the night. It’s also hard to imagine current New Japan tag team champions Matt and Nick Jackson losing clean, yet winning would mean holding both the NJPW and ROH tag titles simultaneously.
Expect the Briscoes to retain the titles, but it’s not stretch to see Young Bucks coming out on top either.
Flip Gordon vs. Bully Ray
Flip Gordon’s star continues to shine in ROH as he squares off with a true legend. WWE Hall of Famer Bully Ray works so effectively as a heel that it would be easy to see him get the win here for a return match – but honestly, I have no idea who will win!
And that’s exactly how I like it. Told you this was a stacked card!
ROH World Television Champion Punishment Martinez vs. Adam Page in a Baltimore Street Fight
How many street fights end up in the literal street? Shouldn’t they be called “Arena Stands Fights?” (Yes, I know it means “anything goes” brawls).
Punishment Martinez just won the TV title in June, so it would be surprising to see it taken off him so soon. However, the Bullet Club’s “Hangman” Adam Page has been coming into his own this year. The first time I saw Page perform was at an NWA Legends Fanfest in Charlotte in 2016, and it’s been fun to watch his brand grow.
Jay Lethal vs. KUSHIDA
Will the longest running ROH World Champion in history go over the five-time IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion? Expect Lethal to do just that. Another potential match of the night contender.
Kenny King vs. Austin Aries
While the promotion crossover is a treat for fans, is Impact Wrestling going to let their world champion lose cleanly on an ROH PPV? Seems unlikely. Expect Austin Aries to win this, or Kenny King could prevail by DQ.
Sumie Sakai, Mayu Iwatani, Tenille Dashwood and Jenny Rose vs. Kelly Klein, Hazuki, Kagetsu and Hana Kimura
Expect Women of Honor Champion Sumie Sakai’s side to lose, setting up some exciting storyline possibilities for ROH’s women’s division.
*Side note – while a women’s wrestling revolution is taking place in WWE, ROH, Impact and most other promotions, why doesn’t Evolve have a women’s division? Evolve is one of my favorite promotions, but the lack of female in-ring talent is befuddling.
