‘ROH: Death Before Dishonor’ PPV Preview & Predictions
Welcome to this preview of Ring of Honor’s next Pay Per View event, Death Before Dishonor. I’m Nathan Favel and we are going to talk about the card and I’ll give you my predictions for every match at the major event. So, let’s just jump right in, here on Nerdly!
BULLY RAY & SILAS YOUNG vs. COLT CABANA & FLIP GORDON – TABLES MATCH
The following is courtesy of ROHWrestling.com:
For months, the cowardly actions of Bully Ray have drawn the rightful ire of international wrestling star and color commentator Colt Cabana. Week after week, month after month, Cabana has listened to Bully Ray complain about millennials, young wrestling stars and more, while cowardly attacking these stars like Cheeseburger, Flip Gordon, Eli Isom and others while robbing fans of matches by intentionally getting himself disqualified. Cabana has had enough, wants Ray in the ring and is heading to Vegas with a tag team partner to get justice! Flip Gordon was on the precipice of defeating Bully Ray one-on-one at Best in the World before Ray got himself disqualified. Then, Ray attacked Gordon on an episode of ROH Television prior to a six-man tag team match, with Cabana running ringside to take his place. Now, Cabana and Gordon will get their shot to get their hands on Ray but in an environment in which Bully may be most at home! This environment plays right into the hardcore legacy of Ray, who is one of the best of all time in matches involving tables, ladders, chairs, and any sort of weapon. That environment likely will very much help Silas Young unleash the fire that Ray has seemingly lit inside of him. However, Cabana and Gordon have proved that they can successfully send Ray crashing through a table! Will Cabana and Gordon get their ultimate revenge or will the match stipulation work in Ray and Young’s favor?
My Take: With the tables in play, this match ought to go pretty well. I expect that this match may lean a bit too much on the tables and, with a run time that will go a bit too short, you can expect this match will get rushed into the finale. That being said, this bout will be a lot of fun. I’m predicting that Colt and Flip will win to give Flip a big win to lead him towards a match with Silas Young later this year.
KENNY KING vs. JUSHIN “THUNDER” LIGER
The following is courtesy of ROHWrestling.com:
Kenny King will look to continue his winning streak when he takes on the legendary Jushin “Thunder” Liger in a huge, first-time bout in Las Vegas at Death Before Dishonor! But the real test will come in his environment. With his best friend Aries’ encouragement, King has demonstrated he can dip into a dark side to gain an edge to win big time matches. But with what should be a record ROH Las Vegas crowd on hand, will he stoop to those levels with his family and friends in attendance to try to defeat a legend like Jushin Liger? Liger returns to ROH for the first time since the War of the Worlds Tour and looks to pick up a big victory against a top contender for the ROH World Championship. With victories over multiple former ROH World Champions like Low Ki, Bryan Danielson, and Dalton Castle and with a legendary resume, Liger is always one win away from earning a championship bout. A win against King would assuredly put him in line for a title shot of his choosing! Which Kenny King will we see in his hometown? Can King pull out yet another victory or will the legendary Liger be too much to overcome?
My Take: This will be an excellent match regardless of length and will see King beating the legendary Liger.
WOMEN OF HONOR WORLD CHAMPION SUMIE SAKAI vs. TENILLE DASHWOOD – WOMEN OF HONOR WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP
The following is courtesy of ROHWrestling.com:
Sumie said there is one competitor left she must defeat before she believes she is a true World Champion and that woman is Australian international superstar Tenille Dashwood! Tenille has among the best records in Women of Honor and many believed it would be just a matter of time before the two faced with the Championship on the line! Tenille sent shockwaves throughout the wrestling world when she inserted herself as the 16th competitor in the tournament to crown the first-ever Women of Honor Champion and has done nothing but win matches ever since. Like Sumie, Tenille left much of her life behind in Australia when she chose to move to Canada to train under Lance Storm then wrestle in the United States! This is a first-time Championship match, as this is Tenille’s first opportunity competing for the Women of Honor Championship. With the chips pushed all in to the center of the table, Sumie needs this win to define her reign and define herself as a true World Champion while Tenille looks to win the championship in her first opportunity. Who will leave Las Vegas with the Championship around her waist?
My Take: This will be another excellent match that will see Tenille win the strap. I believe that we will see a rematch at Final Battle that Sumie will win, so I predict that this match begins a rivalry for the title. Tenille needs to win the title more and having Sumie chase the belt will give people more of a reason to support her later.
ROH WORLD TAG TEAM CHAMPIONS THE BRISCOES (JAY & MARK) vs. THE ADDICTION (CHRISTOPHER DANIELS & FRANKIE KAZARIAN) – ROH WORLD TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP
The following is courtesy of ROHWrestling.com:
The Briscoes and The Addiction will meet for just the fourth-time EVER two-on-two in Las Vegas and richest prize in tag team wrestling will be on the line! Shots have been fired with the attacks on The Briscoes. Are the two-time ROH World Tag Team Champions The Addiction fighting from a place of desperation with the clock ticking away on their ROH lives? Can the nine-time Champion Briscoes channel their own focus and maintain their 3-0 record in two-on-two tag team bouts against The Addiction? Who will walk out of Las Vegas World Tag Team Champions?
My Take: This should be a great bout that gets more than a couple of minutes, if you catch my drift. I predict that The Briscoes retain here to set up a bigger match between these two teams for Final Battle.
ROH WORLD TELEVISION CHAMPION PUNISHMENT MARTINEZ vs. CHRIS SABIN – ROH WORLD TELEVISION CHAMPIONSHIP
The following is courtesy of ROHWrestling.com:
It is hard to hide a near 6’7”, 265 lbs frame but Punishment Martinez did just that, lurking in the shadows until the time was right to attack the number one contender and his long-time best friend and tag team partner following an emotional series of revelations by Alex Shelley about the status of his professional wrestling career. Martinez, who captured the title at State of the Art: Dallas by pinning Silas Young in the main event, was looking to fire the first shot and hit Sabin both physically and proverbially where it hurts. Now, Sabin, knowing his partner is taking a sabbatical, has quickly climbed the singles ranks and not only is motivated by gold but also by the fact that he could get revenge against Martinez! Last year’s Death Before Dishonor in Las Vegas saw both men pull the equivalent of three 7s or straight flushes: Martinez dispatching of “Switchblade” Jay White in a Vegas Street Fight to end their feud while Sabin and Shelley defeated the Young Bucks to win the ROH World Tag Team Titles. But this year, someone will hit the jackpot while the other will draw a bad beat. Who will walk out of Las Vegas World Television Champion?
My Take: Punishment seems to be the favorite to win the match and retain. I believe both men will put in a good effort, but Sabin will likely be the one who looks the best between the two in his grand return to singles work. The last time Sabin held a major singles title, he was the TNA/Impact World Champion. Hopefully, this match will lead to Sabin challenging for the strap at Final Battle and winning, even if that is in a multi-man match.
BULLET CLUB (“AMERICAN NIGHTMARE” CODY, ADAM PAGE, “THE VILLAIN” MARTY SCURLL, & IWGP HEAVYWEIGHT TAG TEAM CHAMPIONS THE YOUNG BUCKS) vs. CHAOS (KAZUCHIKA OKADA, “STONE PITBULL” TOMOHIRO ISHII, ROCKY ROMERO, & BEST FRIENDS (BERETTA & CHUCKIE T.))
The following is courtesy of ROHWrestling.com:
It is Bullet Club versus CHAOS LIVE in Las Vegas! Cody, Adam Page, “The Villain” Marty Scurll, and the IWGP Heavyweight Tag Team Champions The Young Bucks head to Sin City to take on perhaps the greatest IWGP Heavyweight Champion of all time Kazuchika Okada, former ROH World Television Champion and perhaps the greatest NEVER Openweight Champion Tomohiro Ishii, one of only two men to hold championship gold in ROH, NJPW, and CMLL Rocky Romero, and the returning Best Friends! Okada has seemingly lost his mind after losing the IWGP Heavyweight Championship to Kenny Omega but is still displaying why he is among the greatest wrestlers in the world throughout the G1! He brings Ishii with him to the United States for the first time since Supercard of Honor where they will team with one of the greatest junior heavyweights of all time Rocky Romero, and one of the best teams in the world, Best Friends, who are jumping right back into big-money matches following the return of Beretta! Can Okada find what made him arguably one of the greatest champions in the history of wrestling to lead his team to a victory over perhaps the most popular group in the world or will Bullet Club rack up a gigantic win LIVE on Pay Per View in front of what is expected to be the largest Las Vegas crowd in ROH history?
My Take: This match will be very interesting when you consider that Jay White was booked to have made a hostile take-over of CHAOS at last weekend’s New Japan Pro Wrestling card. What part, if any, will Jay White play in this match, now that Okada is no longer in charge of this group? Who is Cartman’s father? Is it Mr. Mackay, Chef, Jimbo or the 1979 Denver Broncos? I’m expecting this match to be a wild fight that goes all over the place. I’d go with Bullet Club beating CHAOS.
MAIN EVENT – RING OF HONOR WORLD CHAMPION JAY LETHAL vs. WILL OSPREAY – RING OF HONOR WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP
The following is courtesy of ROHWrestling.com:
Will Ospreay made history when he successfully challenged and defeated Bobby Fish for the Ring of Honor World Television Championship in his very first ROH match. The victory capped of a banner year when he became both the youngest-ever and the only British winner ever of the Best of Super Juniors Tournament. Since then, Ospreay has been categorically one of the biggest stars in professional wrestling whether it is Ring of Honor, New Japan Pro-Wrestling, in his native UK, Australia, and in other countries! Ospreay answered Lethal’s open challenge in Philadelphia, in a move that surprised many. But for Lethal, the challenge was not surprising at all. Ospreay’s last match in Ring of Honor was in December 2017 in a losing effort against Jay Lethal. Lethal made a quest of avenging all previous losses before he would challenge again for the ROH World Championship. The parallels to Lethal’s quest are striking and are not lost on either man in this World Championship clash! Ospreay possesses an array of aerial maneuvers that are difficult for anyone to counter or even anticipate. The variety of Will’s offense has put him in a position to surprise even the most accomplished and well-studied athletes. Will Ospreay, the former IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Champion, has his sights set on the biggest prize in ROH! Who will leave Las Vegas with the Championship around their waist?
My Take: This is a last-minute main event that could be the show-stealer. I’m expecting to see Jay Lethal retain. Ospreay makes for a big opponent and if he were to win, people all over the world will go nuts for Will as the new champion. This match, more than all of the rest, has my interest, which is the way the World Title match should be.
