For those who still care, Ring of Honor is having their second pay-per-view of the year on Friday with Death Before Dishonor 2024. As I am writing this on Wednesday, only five matches have been announced, which is disappointing and sad. However even if I amongst 12 other people still care about this brand, one this is for certain: the wrestlers competing will still put on great matches. So let’s predict ROH!
Zero Hour:
MXM Collection (Mansoor and Mason Madden) vs TBA:
Kimmy: The TBA is probably Bronson and Boulder or another enhancement talent. This won’t be anything big, MXM will get the win here as they chase down the ROH Tag Titles that they will win before the end of the year.
Winners: MXM Collection (Mansoor and Mason Madden)
Bill: Iron Savages does make the most sense as they’re great at bouncing around for bigger opponents and faster opponents. They’ll make MXM Collection look like a million bucks, as they should as Mansoor and Mace are destined for big things in ROH.
Winners: MXM Collection (Mansoor and Mason Madden)
Main Show:
Survival of the Fittest for the ROH World Television Championship: Atlantis Jr. vs Lio Rush vs Shane Taylor vs Brian Cage vs Lee Johnson vs Johnny TV:
Kimmy: This is just lazy booking. Someone like Cage who has not been on ROH in a hot minute should not be in this match. Since the Arlington Residency just started I do not see us crowning a new champ. However, given how dominant he was last night on ROH, Taylor and Atlantis should be the final two.
Winner: “And Still” Atlantis Jr.
Bill: When you have a loaded roster, you have the opportunity to throw a stacked match like this together. Atlantis Jr. is someone CMLL has been high on since he debuted (his dad is a staple in the promotion) and given the region AEW is doing this PPV and subsequent ROH and Collision tapings, they’re going to want to keep the belt on a luchador. There is an outside shot that former TV Champ and Texas native Shane Taylor takes the belt (only to lose it before the residency is up), but I think they keep the belt on AJR.
Winner: “And Still” Atlantis Jr.
The Winners Will Face Undisputed Kingdom for the ROH Six Man Championships at Battle of the Belts: Dustin Rhodes and The Von Erichs (Marshall and Ross Von Erich) vs The Dark Order (Evil Uno, John Silver, and Alex Reynolds):
Kimmy: I did not know we could quietly un unify championships… I think Dustin and the hometown boys get the win and they defeat the Kingdom the next night on Battle of the Belts. I think the Von Erichs are going to play a crucial part in the Arlington residency and what better start than putting the titles on them?
Winners: Dustin Rhodes and The Von Erichs (Marshall and Ross Von Erich)
Bill: The Von Erichs and Dustin are going to go over big time here. Kevin Von Erich is putting the Iron Claw on Evil Uno. This is going to be a ton of fun.
Winners: Dustin Rhodes and The Von Erichs (Marshall and Ross Von Erich)
ROH World Tag Team Championships: The Kingdom (Matt Taven and Mike Bennett) vs The Conglomeration (Kyle O’Riley and Tomohiro Ishii):
Kimmy: I thought this would be the match they put the MXM Collection in, but I digress. This is a sleeper on this show as this could be one of the matches of the night. Since Ishii is not signed to AEW or ROH he can take the pin in this match while protecting O’Riley as he continues to feud with the rest of the Undisputed Kingdom.
Winners: “And Still” The Kingdom (Mike Bennett and Matt Taven)
Bill: As much as I’d love to see The Conglomeration hold the belts, this will stay on The Kingdom until Mason and Mansoor are ready to sashay away with the belts.
Winners: “And Still” The Kingdom (Mike Bennett and Matt Taven)
Komander vs The Beast Mortos:
Kimmy: Now this match is a bit random and should just be added to Zero Hour. Since Komander has been dominant throughout the ROH brand and he consecutively shows up unlike some of the other people on this card, he should win this match.
Winner: Komander
Bill: My head says Komander, but my heart says the former Black Taurus aka The Beast Mortos. He’s a great talent and deserves the push after stellar matches with Darby Allin and Claudio Castagnoli. If he wins he will make a great opponent (in the short term) for Atlantis Jr.’s Television Title.
Winner: The Beast Mortos
ROH Pure Championship: Wheeler Yuta vs Lee Moriarty:
Kimmy: Props TK, you remembered the Pure Championship existed. With all the hype Moriarty has posted on social media about winning this title as well as him posting the former champions, it makes most sense for him to win. Unlike Yuta, he has been a regular on the ROH brand so I’d rather have him win here and compete consecutively to bring some prestige to the Pure Championship.
Winner: “And New” Lee Moriarty
Bill: This is probably the toughest match to call. Yuta just came back, but Taigastyle desperately needs a meaningful win in the company. If AEW wants to rekindle their tag team division they should focus on Yuta & Claudio as a unit. I’m going to flip a coin and take…
Winner: “And New” Lee Moriarty
Texas Death Match: Diamante vs Leyla Hirsch:
Kimmy: This match honestly should not be happening. Hirsh has beaten Diamante five times before their feud has restarted, and the only reason this is happening is because Diamante won in the Lights Out Match last week. Hirsch will get the win here to “even out the feud,” but this is pointless, I would have rather seen Rachael Ellering or Nyla Rose in this spot instead.
Winner: Leyla Hirsch
Bill: This match will be one of the sleepers of the night. They both got a nice buzz from their Lights Out Match and this could further elevate two women who have stuck in neutral over the past year. As Kimmy said, The Legit One takes the win to even things out.
Winner: Leyla Hirsch
ROH Women’s Television Championship: Billie Starkz vs Red Velvet:
Kimmy: I love it when my friends get the pay-per-view spotlight. The problem I have with Starkz’s title reign is that she has not had any real matches yet. The only thing she has done is have five-minute matches against enhancement talent, which is not highlighting the title like it should be. Especially since this is a TV Title, she should have had more matches and real feuds take place instead of Proving Ground Matches. This match should be fun, but Starkz will get the win here.
Winner: “And Still” Billie Starkz
Bill: It’s too soon for Billie to drop the belt.
Winner: “And Still” Billie Starkz
ROH Women’s Championship: Athena vs Queen Aminata:
Kimmy: If this match happened at Final Battle instead, I would have picked Aminata but were still in the age of the Fallen Goddess. I don’t have a lot to say about this. I think having the injury storyline with Athena has been brilliant and it was something new. This match is a sleeper on this card as both women are going to show out in this one.
Winner: “And Still” Athena
Bill: I don’t think they have the Forever Champ drop it in her home state. However, I don’t think this is the last time these two tangle. I can easily see this feud extending maybe until Final Battle — with Starkz and Red in the mix — with Aminata ultimately winning the belt, allowing Athena to return to AEW.
Winner: “And Still” Athena
ROH World Heavyweight Championship: Mark Briscoe vs Roderick Strong:
Kimmy: Now this match I have problems with. One, I am glad Briscoe remembered what show he was champion on so he could show up and defend his title. Two, why is this match happening between two people who compete on AEW regularly instead of someone like Shane Taylor who called out Briscoe weeks ago? Finally, who thought it was a good idea to put Briscoe in Blood & Guts two days before this show and risk him getting injured? Regardless of who wins, let’s just get a champion on our weekly show.
Winner: “And Still” Mark Briscoe
Bill: This one is another tough one. On one hand, Mark Briscoe is awesome. He’s a draw, a great promo and can work with anyone — so keep the belt on him! On the other hand, does he honestly need a title to remain relevant? The answer is no. He’s slotted in nicely as a crowd favorite in AEW. Roddy has a nice midcard role in AEW, but a title would be nice (his run with the International Belt was too short) as he’s a terrific heel. However, ROH does not have babyface that could step up to win the belt from him. Dalton Castle was a guy I’d use for the belt, but he’s gone for the year. Who else could make a run for the belt? Unless they shift Kyle O’Reilly to ROH to continue the feud, I’m not sure who would be the next guy. But listen, fortune favors the bold, so let’s get nuts. Let’s go against the current and give “The Messiah of the Back Breaker” a run.
Winner: “And New” Roderick Strong
The current record in Bill vs Kimmy is 5-2-4 in favor of Bill
