‘Ring of Honor: Best in the World 2021’ PPV Review

Welcome to this review of Ring Of Honor’s Best In The World 2021, right here on Nerdly. I’m Nathan Favel and we have a twelve match card to get to, so let’s get to it. Woback Gohanson: Stop! I shall have jelly beans! Me: Excuse me? WG: Jelly beans! Me: I don’t have any. WG: Bull-dyke! Jason Voorhees: Chih chih chih chih ah ah ah ah. WG: Oh s–t! Not my ass! Me: Ew! He’s dead. Poor guy. He just wanted some f–kin’ jelly beans. JV: … Me: You great big jerk. You killed a perfectly good idiot. He was gonna get that frisbee off the roof. JV: Uhh! Me: Uhh yourself. Go sweep a desert. JV: Ugg. Me: Best In The World. Here we go.

Match #1: Rey Horus b. Demonic Flamita

The following is courtesy of rohwrestling.com:

In a battle of former MexiSquad teammates, Horus pinned Demonic Flamita after slipping out of a powerbomb attempt and rolling him up. Demonic Flamita attacked Horus after the match.

My Score: 7 out of 10

Macth #2: PCO & Danhausen b. The Bouncers (Beer City Bruiser & Brawler Milonas w/Ken Dixon)

The following is courtesy of rohwrestling.com:

ROH’s oddest couple gained their first victory as a team after PCO hit a moonsault on Bruiser. During the match, Sledge came out and stared at PCO.

My Score: 5 out of 10

Match #3: Jay & Mark Briscoe b. PJ Black & Brian Johnson

The following is courtesy of rohwrestling.com:

The recently reunited Briscoes scored an impressive win after Jay hit the Jay Driller on Black, and Mark followed with Froggy Bow.

My Score: 7 out of 10

Match #4: EC3 b. Flip Gordon

The following is courtesy of rohwrestling.com:

Gordon controlled the majority of the match by working over EC3’s knee. EC3 eventually planted Gordon with a butterfly facebuster and applied a crossface, forcing Gordon to tap out. After the match, EC3 twice offered to shake Gordon’s hand, but Gordon slapped him. On EC3’s third attempt, Gordon spit in his face. It was a big win for EC3, as Gordon entered the match ranked No. 3 in the World Title rankings and will face new champion Bandido in a title match at Glory By Honor Night 1 in Philadelphia on Aug. 20.

My Score: 7 out of 10

Match #5: Shane Taylor Promotions (Shane Taylor & Soldiers of Savagery’s Moses and Kaun) b. Dalton Castle, Eli Isom & Dak Draper – ROH World Six-Man Tag Team Champions

The following is courtesy of rohwrestling.com:

Not surprisingly, the challengers did not get along, but they still gave the champions some anxious moments. In the end, Taylor hit Welcome to the Land on Draper for the win.

My Score: 7 out of 10

Match #6: Josh Woods b. Silas Young – Last Man Standing Match

The following is courtesy of rohwrestling.com:

The former tag partners punished each other with tables, chairs and a ladder. With two tables set up on the floor, Woods German-suplexed his former mentor through the tables. Woods got to his feet just before the count of 10, but Young did not.

My Score: 8 out of 10

Match #7: Brody King b. Jay Lethal

The following is courtesy of rohwrestling.com:

Lethal hit Lethal Injection early in the match but King kicked out at one. King eventually seized the advantage and punished Lethal with heavy blows before finishing off the two-time former ROH World Champion with two Gonzo Bombs. This was arguably the biggest win of King’s career.

My Score: 8 out of 10

Match #8: Jonathan Gresham b. Mike Bennett – ROH Pure Championship Match

The following is courtesy of rohwrestling.com:

Bennett did not win the title but he earned Gresham’s respect by going hold for hold with him for nearly 20 minutes. Bennett hit a powerbomb followed by a piledriver and made the cover. The referee counted to three, but then waved off the pin because he saw that Gresham’s foot was under the bottom rope. Having dodged a bullet, Gresham caught Bennett in a leglock and forced him to tap out.

My Score: 10 out of 10

Match #9: Dragon Lee b. ROH World Television Champion Tony Deppen

The following is courtesy of rohwrestling.com:

These two went at each other right from the start in a hard-hitting, back-and-forth bout. Early in the match, Deppen sent Lee outside the ring and hit an awesome suicide dive into a Canadian Destroyer. In the end, Lee lowered his knee pad and hit the Incinerator knee strike to regain the title he technically was never defeated for.

My Score: 7 out of 10

Match #10: Violence Unlimited (Chris Dickinson & Homicide) b. The Foundation (Rhett Titus & Jonathan Gresham) – Fight Without Honor For The ROH World Tag Team Championship Match

The following is courtesy of rohwrestling.com:

With Williams not medically cleared to compete, Lethal was originally going to take his place in the match. However, Lethal was banged up from his match against Brody King, so Gresham replaced Lethal. This was an all-out war, which played to the strengths of Dickinson and Homicide. Dickinson delivered a low blow to Titus and then hit a Razor’s Edge off the second rope that sent Titus crashing through a table. Then Homicide planted Gresham with the Cop Killa for the win.

My Score: 8 out of 10

Match #11: Bandido b. RUSH – ROH World Championship Match

The following is courtesy of rohwrestling.com:

RUSH attacked Bandido at the opening bell and hit Bull’s Horns. He placed his foot on Bandido’s chest but removed it after a one count and signaled that he wasn’t ready to beat the challenger yet. RUSH punished Bandido throughout the match, but Bandido continued to fight back. Bandido rallied and hit 21 Plex, but RUSH kicked out just in time. RUSH ripped off the top half of Bandido’s mask and then shoved down the referee. Bandido took advantage of RUSH’s preoccupation with the referee and rolled him up for the three count.

My Score: 9 out of 10

Final Verdict: 8/10

Now this was a big hit. Matt Taven and Vincent will fight in a Steel Cage Match for Taven’s World Title shot. Chelsea Green debuted here for the Women’s Tournament and she seemed right at home. As for the matches themselves, by and large, they were a massive success. That Pure Title match was incredible. The Fred Yehi bout from ROH TV underwhelmed, but the match with Bennett was outstanding. Go figure. Now, the main event was also incredible. Bandido winning was a true shock. I was not expecting him to win. I’m glad to see Bandido get a chance to be a big star. I don’t know if he is ready to go, but here he is and now we have Bandido as World Champion. Woods and Young beat the hell out of each other. Somebody get those guys a Band-Aid. Gresham pulled double-duty and he has my respect. I’m an asshole. For a card that didn’t look exciting on paper, this sure as hell delivered like few other ROH cards in the past five-six years. Wow. It’s great to see ROH have a great showing. This company has done a great job over the past several months of putting itself back together as a company that produces reliable wrestling shows. I feel very comfortable watching Ring Of Honor these days and seeing this major show work out so well only seals the deal. I hope you enjoyed this show as much as I did.