This weekend Ring of Honor brings two of its hallmark events to the Midwest as “Survival of the Fittest 2011” hits Dayton, OH on Friday night and “Glory by Honor X” comes to you from Chicago Ridge, IL on Saturday. Each of these events carries with it a rich tradition of wrestling excellence, a history of making careers, and litany of defining moments for ROH as a whole.
“SOTF” has been the proving ground for many an ROH wrestler in the past, putting the likes of Bryan Danielson, Roderick Strong, Delirious, Chris Hero, Tyler Black, and Eddie Edwards to the ultimate test as well they battled for a shot at the ROH World Title.
“GBH”, along with “Final Battle” and the Anniversary Events, are the definitive Ring of Honor events; the events that have set the tone for what ROH is in the present, and strives to be in the future. Those three events are the only ones that have gone down every year since ROH’s inception, and as such, are regarded with great respect by ROH officials, the locker room, and the fans alike. “Glory by Honor” has seen some of the classic bouts & moments in our nearly ten year history, including Samoa Joe vs. Low Ki, Bryan Danielson & Roderick Strong capturing the ROH World Title, the debuts of legends like Mick Foley & Terry Funk, as well as farewells to the aforementioned Danielson & Nigel McGuinness. It is an event where all involved step up their game and truly strive to make that lasting impression, to have a defining moment in their ROH careers.
"Survival of the Fittest 2011"
November 18, 2011 - 8:00pm
Montgomery County Fairgrounds
1043 S. Main Street
Dayton, OH
Champions' Challenge
ROH World Champion Davey Richards & World TV Champion Jay Lethal vs. World Tag Team Champions Wrestling's Greatest Tag Team (Shelton Benjamin & Charlie Haas)
All four Ring of Honor champions will collide in a huge tag team match worthy of ROH’s storied history in the Montgomery County Fairgrounds. Davey has squared off against WGTT in the past in tag team encounters alongside Eddie Edwards, and has also beaten Charlie Haas in singles competition, but this is the first time that Richards & Lethal will ever team up as well as the first time the TV Champion will face the Tag Champions in any form of competition here in ROH. This fight may be called a “Champion’s Challenge” but it could just as well be called “Bragging Rights” because whoever scores the victory in this one will certainly have a cause to claim that they are the top champion in Ring of Honor.
Survival of the Fittest 2011 Qualifying Matches
Rhett Titus vs. Roderick Strong with Truth Martini
Eddie Edwards vs. "The Prodigy" Mike Bennett
Jay & Mark Briscoe vs. The Bravado Brothers
Kenny King vs. Michael Elgin vs. Adam Cole vs. Tommaso Ciampa
Kyle O'Reilly vs. Andy "Right Leg" Ridge
14 men will fight it out in these 5 Qualifying matches over the 6 spots in the Elimination finals, and to the winner goes a future shot at the ROH World Title. While 8 of the individuals invested in this contest have competed in “SOTF” before, and two of them have actually won the whole tournament, only Eddie Edwards has successfully parlayed that 2010 victory into a ROH World Championship reign, and he actually did it at the expense of Roderick Strong, the only other man involved this year to have won SOTF back in 2005. Kenny King has tasted the finals having been the man Edwards beat to secure his title shot; Adam Cole, Rhett Titus, & The Briscoes have all been part of the elimination match, while Kyle O’Reilly fought in a Qualifying bout last year, leaving Elgin, Ciampa, Bennett, & The Bravados as men in virgin territory. But when a future World Title opportunity is at stake, all bets are off, and every man in the picture is going to sacrifice whatever they must to earn that chance. Tag teams may have to battle one another, friends will need to trade blows, and enemies will have that much more motivation to fight their foes. This is the opportunity of a lifetime and no wrestler wants to be the one to look in the mirror Friday night and admit they didn’t give it their all…
Special Challenge Match
Steve Corino with Jimmy Jacobs vs. El Generico
This bout has only just come together in the last few days, but in truth it has been hanging over the head of Steve Corino since “Death Before Dishonor IX” when he, at the behest of Jimmy Jacobs, traveled to Japan to avoid a fight with Generico. Jacobs took up the cause that night, and everyone knows what happened in NYC in Corino’s absence. So now, at Steve’s request…demand rather…ROH officials have made this match once again, and perhaps through this Corino can find some closure to the drama he quite consciously began at the close of 2009. As for Generico, he has not communicated much to ROH officials beyond his desire to accept the match but recent events that have unfolded on “Ring of Honor Wrestling” television have to at least caught his attention, and given the nature of certain…interruptions...in recent months, one can only speculate how focused both Corino & Generico will be on the matters at hand.
"Glory By Honor X"
November 19, 2011 - 7:30pm
Frontier Fieldhouse
9807 Sayre Ave.
Chicago Ridge, IL
ROH World Title Match
Davey Richards defends vs. El Generico
Richards captured the ROH World Title at “Best in the World 2011” with a victory over Eddie Edwards, that same night El Generico claimed the ROH World TV Title by beating Christopher Daniels, but beyond that night’s similarity, the following 5 months have been very different. Generico lost the TV Title in his first defense while Richards has successfully retained the title on 3 occasions, including one against Roderick Strong that aired on an episode of “Ring of Honor Wrestling”; the same Roderick Strong whom Generico bested inside a Steel Cage at “No Escape” shortly before that match occurred. Richards captured the IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Tag Titles with Rocky Romero while Generico had his “Death Before Dishonor IX” marred by violent interference. On the other hand, Generico took Jay Lethal to the limit in a TV Title rematch while Richards has seen a rift between he & his American Wolf partner Eddie Edwards growing. Both men come into this fight with distractions lingering all around them, but both are professionals capable of putting it all aside and focusing on the task at hand. For Richards successfully retaining the World Title he has sacrificed his entire life to gain; for Generico, claiming the same championship and becoming only the 2nd Triple Crown Winner in ROH’s history. These two warriors know one another quite well, their respect for one another is evident, but when the title is on the line, and the belt rings, there are no friends and respect is something thrown out the window…
World Tag Team Title Match
Shelton Benjamin & Charlie Haas defend vs. The All Night Express (Kenny King & Rhett Titus)
If anyone in ROH could consider 2011 their breakout year, it would indeed be The All Night Express. Their wars with The Briscoes pushed Titus & King to their absolute limits and beyond, forcing the duo to push themselves like never before, and at “Death Before Dishonor IX” it all paid off. That night in Ladder War III, Kenny & Rhett, blood soaked and bruised, earned a shot at the ROH World Tag Team Titles the hard way. Haas & Benjamin, the men who have held the belts since April, have used 2011 to reestablish themselves as a tag team force, and they have done so in spades. A pair of victories over The Kings of Wrestling, including the one in which they became champions, truly set the tone, and their subsequent dominance over every team they have faced has earned them the Wrestling’s Greatest Tag Team moniker. In Chicago Ridge, the two teams with the most momentum in ROH will collide over the most important prizes in tag team wrestling. Will ANX finally bring the tag team titles into their possession, capping off what has been a banner year for Titus & King? Or will Haas & Benjamin continue the roll they have been in throughout 2011?
Proving Ground Match
World TV Champion Jay Lethal vs. Roderick Strong with Truth Martini
The Proving Ground was established by ROH officials to determine contenders for the various ROH championship titles whenever said champion enters into non-title competition. If the opponent beats the champion, or lasts the established time limit, than he will receive a future title opportunity. In this case it is TV Champion Jay Lethal, and that potential challenger is Roderick Strong. To say Strong, a former World & Tag Champion, feels disrespected in having to prove himself would be an understatement, and maybe there is a bit of irony in having to do it against the man he faced in his very first ROH match oh so many years ago, but Lethal is a man on a mission to establish his championship legacy. He defeated Generico to claim the title and retained the title in their subsequent rematch. Mike Bennett could not claim the title nor could Mark Briscoe meet the challenge of The Proving Ground. Lethal is indeed a fighter, and almost looks at this match as his own Proving Ground, putting himself to the test against every opponent. Strong’s goal is obviously to make Lethal fail that test and put himself one step closer to claiming the ROH World TV Title, and completing a Triple Crown of his own.
Tag Team Challenge Match
Jay & Mark Briscoe vs. The Young Bucks
It has been quite some time since these two teams have faced one another in ROH competition and it was certainly under different circumstances. That version of Matt & Nick Jackson had yet to let fame & celebrity go to their head while that version of The Briscoes was calm, or at least less angry at the world, and more interested in the competition of wrestling. Now we look at Young Bucks who spit in the face of the Code of Honor, who see themselves as bigger than professional wrestling in some ways, and certainly as being above Jay & Mark. In The Briscoes, we now have a pair angry at the world, and looking to take that anger out on any hapless foe that enters the ring with them. It is less about competition and more about the obsession to claim that 7th ROH Tag Title reign, and inflicting pain & misery on whomever they need to in order to get that opportunity. It has paid off, a championship opportunity is in The Briscoes future at “Final Battle 2011”, but what does it mean for life after December if The Young Bucks win at “GBH X”? Can Matt & Nick jump straight into contention if they knock Jay & Mark down a peg on Saturday night?
Special Challenge Match
"Die Hard" Eddie Edwards vs. Kyle O'Reilly
This has been brewing for a few months now, since Edwards inadvertently hurt Kyle at “No Escape” with the Achilles Lock, and after the revelations earlier in the week pertaining to Dan Severn, things may have heated up just a bit more. See it was apparently Kyle O’Reilly who informed Davey Richards of just who Eddie has been training with in secret these recent weeks. How does Eddie feel about Kyle’s “stooging”? ROH officials would love to know the answer to that question but Eddie has remained relatively tight-lipped since Monday when the news broke, so one can only guess at his state of mind pertaining to Kyle. What we will bet on though, is that this will be a hard-hitting affair between two of ROH’s most vicious strikers. But the question still floating out there is how personal has this gotten?
Singles Action
Jimmy Jacobs with Steve Corino vs. “The Dominant Male” Tommaso Ciampa with The Embassy
“Dominant Male” may be the understatement of the year when discussing Tommaso Ciampa. He remains unpinned in Ring of Honor since making his debut, nor has he been submitted. The only blemishes on his record have come from multi-man matches in which Ciampa was never the individual who suffered the defeat. He has beaten the likes of Adam Cole, Colt Cabana, and Homicide, and could very well come to Chicago Ridge as the 2011 Survival of the Fittest Champion. Jimmy Jacobs, on the other hand, has only competed in a handful of matches since making his return to ROH over the summer and been rather unsuccessful unfortunately. Still, in many ways Jacobs finds this to be penance for the sins of his ROH past, and is willing to battle through these shortcomings in hopes of finding that redemption in the long run. Scoring that victory over a man who has been so…dominant…would prove a true boon for the process in which Jacobs has committed himself, while a win for The Embassy would continue to justify Prince Nana’s demands for championship opportunities for his client.
Four Corner Survival
Adam Cole vs. “Unbreakable” Michael Elgin vs. “The Prodigy” Mike Bennett vs. Grizzly Redwood
In many ways this is the battle of 2011, this is a fight between four men who have strove to make 2011 the year in which they made their mark, and 3 of them could very well do that in Dayton with “Survival of the Fittest 2011” one night prior. Cole, Elgin, and Bennett all have that SOTF chance while Redwood, if he aims to have his moment this weekend, must make it here. Youth, speed, power, technique, and heart….those are the qualities that define this match, those and perhaps one more word: hunger.
“Survival of the Fittest 2011” goes down Friday night in Dayton, OH while “Glory by Honor X” comes to Chicago Ridge, IL on Saturday. Tickets for both events will be available at the door each respective night so don’t miss out on your chance to see, live, just why Ring of Honor is the definition of professional wrestling
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