Ring of Honor

Wow.  Stacked.  

When you look at tag team wrestling, reDRagon (Kyle O’Reilly and Bobby Fish) ranks among the best in the world today.

Until recently, O’Reilly and Fish held the Ring of Honor tag team belts and New Japan Pro Wrestling’s IWGP junior heavyweight tag titles simultaneously.

That was until the Young Bucks won the NJPW gold in Japan from them.

The longtime opponents will go head-to-head again when reDragon defend the ROH tag titles against the Young Bucks 8 p.m. EST Sunday, March 1 during ROH’s 13th Anniversary Show in Las Vegas.

“I think the last year-and-a-half or more our paths with the Young Bucks are intertwined,” O’Reilly said. “We have such great chemistry with them as a team. We had tremendous matches in the U.S. and in Japan. It’s going to be a thrill ride. It’s going to be an incredible match. There is a lot of pressure. Being on PPV, the 13th anniversary and being in Las Vegas. We’re going to bring the goods. The Young Bucks are going to bring the goods. So it’s going to be epic, looking forward to it.”

Fish considers the Matt and Nick Jackson their biggest rivals.

“I don’t know if there are any other teams that we have gone out and tore it up the way we have with them. The Bucks have an outstanding track record of putting on great matches with whomever. We have the same track record. Every time we go out I feel like it’s a challenge to raise that bar even higher than we have previously. Any time we face them it’s something special. It’s that much more given the recent history with them. We’ve traded the Ring of Honor and IWGP junior tag titles, having lost it to them in Japan. It’s a special deal and down the road we will look back and realize just how special it was. Even in the moment, it’s certainly not lost on any of us.”

reDRagon was formed in 2012 when the duo faced the American Wolves’ Eddie Edwards and Davey Richards. O’Reilly and Fish had experience wrestling each other on the independent scene, but never really as a unit.

“There seemed to be some chemistry there,” he said. “…I think it was only three months or so after our debut that we were world tag team champions. It was like a rocket had been strapped on us. I don’t think anyone expected us to click like we did or get over like we did. It just seemed to be a really organic thing. We complimented each other and helped each other out quite a bit. So it worked out for the best.”

“Knowing Kyle previously, my hunch was it was going to go well,” Fish said. “I think after the first couple of matches where we really kind of go into things with Eddie and Davey, it was pretty apparent something was there.”

The two have become close friends.

“Whether it’s we just have the same sense of humor or having the same mentality and beliefs in what pro wrestling should be,” O’Reilly said. “Same goes with our promos or vignettes. It basically started out with us trying to make each other laugh, but we ended up coming up with some pretty decent content that people seem to really enjoy. I think we have something here. I think we both have the same vision of what we wanted to be. We both really support each other and believe in each other. I think that is something hard to fake, and it translates on screen.”

No matter where the talented team goes or does next, they plan to do it together. They are in it for the long haul.

“When negotiating for new contracts in ROH, we both went into it as one,” O’Reilly said. “We are a package deal. Regardless of ROH or wherever we look on the horizon, I think we know there is value for us as a team. We both enjoy working as a team so much. It’s so fun getting to work tag team matches with Bobby. I think we look forward to many years down the road having each other’s back.”

Fish agrees.

“I think it’s unfortunate when a lot of times teams have to break up to do a singles thing,” he said. “I think if we ever get away from this, we can come back to it without having to be done as a team. As of right now, I don’t think there is any interest in not working together.”

The exciting performers are planning to make the reDRagon brand even stronger. The name for the team came from Fish reading a book Jason Ellis, who, a radio host and mixed martial arts fighter. Fish has been an MMA fan since the age of eight when he started training in jiu-jitsu. His influences come from the wrestling and MMA world.

“For myself, I was heavily influenced by the Great Muta, the Dynamite Kid,” Fish said. “I’d say we are heavily influenced by Tully Blanchard and Arn Anderson. I know that’s a team I gravitate towards, especially when we kind of put this thing together. Outside of wrestling, I really like what Conor McGregor does. He fights for the UFC. I’ve also always been a big fan of Chael Sonnen.”

O’Reilly and Fish take pride in the fact ROH and NJPW have such confidence in their abilities.

“I think when you’re in the midst of what is going on, I think you lose track,” Fish said. “I don’t say you don’t appreciate it because it’s a tremendously humbling. There is this rarity of having the ROH tag titles and the IWGP junior heavyweight tag championship at the same time, representing both companies and doing it on two continents. Even at times you realize what you are doing for a living and the way you are paying the bills is to travel to other countries on somebody else’s dime to perform in front of thousands of people. When you are so busy, it can be easy to lose track of how fortunate you are and how awesome the opportunity is.”

The tag champs don’t take anything for granted. Looking back at the history of ROH, they are proud to be a part of it.

“For me as a fan, I remember being in high school and stumbling across the very first Ring of Honor show on DVD,” O’Reilly said. “I just found it randomly. I hadn’t heard of ROH before. I just remember being blown away by the main event. It was a triple threat match with Bryan Danielson, Low-Ki and Christopher Daniels. It got me hooked on ROH. I knew I wanted to be a wrestler, but I knew then I wanted to work for ROH because it was a company built around in-ring wrestling. You had to be a great wrestler to make it there.”

For Fish, the success came with hard working and earning every opportunity he was given within the company. He recalls training under Tonny DeVito. The upstart would set up chairs and perform other tasks as he paid his dues. Fish was able to witness some of ROH’s greatest moments firsthand.

“I saw the build of Samoa Joe’s reign kind of start,” he said. “…I was inexperienced to independent wresting. I didn’t know what it was. I saw a lot of bad independent wrestling. Then to be exposed to Ring of Honor, that was the first independent wrestling where I saw guys like Samoa Joe and AJ Styles. I’ve been an athlete my entire life, playing football in college. Pro wrestling was a new endeavor. I felt I didn’t have a place on these independent shows. I felt I was a better athlete than the guys I was watching. Then to be exposed to Ring of Honor and see these guys, I felt challenged and thought this is the wrestling I want to do.”

- reDRagon defend the Ring of Honor tag team titles against the Young Bucks 8 p.m. EST Sunday, March 1 on pay-per-view from Las Vegas.

ROH champion Jay Briscoe defends against Michael Elgin, Tommaso Ciampa and Hanson.

AJ Styles faces ACH.

ODB with Mark Briscoe against Maria Kanellis with Mike Bennett.

Jay Lethal with Truth Martini defends the ROH Television championship against Alberto El Patrón.

For information and full card, visit www.ROHWrestling.com

- Follow Kyle O’Reilly on Twitter @rohreilly

- Follow Bobby Fish on Twitter: @thebobbyfish

- Follow me on Twitter @smfishman

Read more here: www.miamiherald.com/sports/fighting/article11055341.html#storylink=cpy

Dreamy.....




Samoa Joe's second announced ROH match, on 3/14 in Chicago, will be against Michael Elgin it was announced today by the promotion.

The show will be held at the Frontier Fieldhouse in Chicago Ridge.

Hmmm... I will be in town (kind of)... Intriguing.

ROH Wrestling ‏@ringofhonor 13m13 minutes ago
. @njpw1972 star @shinsuken signed for #WaroftheWorlds & #GlobalWars. ROHWRESTLING.com for more info

War Machine might be my latest most favoritist things.

That's a damn interesting contract that Joe secured for himself.








- ROH announced today that AJ Styles and Samoa Joe vs. Christopher Daniels and Kazarian is booked for the June 20th event. Here is the full announcement…

Ring of Honor returns to Terminal 5 in New York City – and to pay-per-view – on June 19th for BEST IN THE WORLD! This is a can’t-miss event headlined by the “Battle of the Belts” between ROH World Champion Jay Briscoe and ROH World Television Champion Jay Lethal. But the very next night, the stars of Ring of Honor will be BACK at Terminal 5 on the first stop of the AFTERSHOCK tour!

The entire landscape of ROH is guaranteed to change on June 19th – new number one contenders, possible new champions, and a lot of new hostility. And all of that will spill over into June 20th! Nigel McGuinness will no doubt have his hands full sorting through the fallout from BEST IN THE WORLD. But until then he’s been busy signing matches NO ONE expected to happen, and today he wants to announce to the world what he’s lined up for June 20th…

– THE ADDICTION (CHRISTOPHER DANIELS & FRANKIE KAZARIAN) vs. AJ STYLES & SAMOA JOE

This is the definition of a DREAM MATCH! That distinction gets thrown around perhaps too often, but in this situation there is simply no other way to describe it. The four men battling against each other on June 20th represent so much history and competition, not just in Ring of Honor but in all of professional wrestling. And, of course, The Addiction are the current ROH World Tag Team Champions. We have confirmed that as of now no titles will be on the line for this contest…meaning the stakes are even higher with respect and honor hanging in the balance!

The long, competitive history between AJ Styles and Samoa Joe could fill an entire volume of professional wrestling history. These two giants of the sport have spent over a decade trying to outdo each other and there is no doubt that rivalry remains heated even as they are set to team up on June 20th. Currently, AJ Styles is at the absolute top of his game, the current IWGP Heavyweight Champion who many unequivocally name the absolute best in the world. But Samoa Joe’s return to his roots has made him the hottest, most in demand athlete in the sport. These are two men who just keep getting better. Is there any way to stop the team of AJ Styles and Samoa Joe?

As the self-styled “World Tag Team Champions of the World,” The Addiction are THE team to beat in Ring of Honor. While this may be a non-title contest, The Addiction are more than happy to point out that their long tenure as partners puts them at an advantage over virtually any other team, and now they’ve memorialized their superiority in gold. On top of that, these competitors have a long history with each other, particularly Daniels and Styles – no matter the time or the place, The Fallen Angel and The Phenomenal AJ Styles have always been linked. They have been partners and rivals… and on June 20th they compete against each other one more time!

Styles & Joe are not being considered for a championship match due to the questionable stability of the team. But The Addiction, although claiming to be defending ROH Tag Team Champions, have not offered to put the titles on the line. Will The Addiction speak up? Will The Addiction even be the champions once June 20th rolls around?

This DREAM MATCH is just one bout signed for this huge event in New York City. Plus, our television cameras will be rolling as the entire night is filmed for future episodes of ROH TV! Don’t miss your chance to feel the AFTERSHOCK on June 20th! To get your tickets before they sell out, click HERE!

Signed to appear…
JAY BRISCOE
JAY LETHAL
MICHAEL ELGIN
MATT SYDAL
ADAM COLE
MARK BRISCOE
MICHAEL BENNETT
MARIA KANELLIS

AFTERSHOCK
National TV Taping
Saturday, June 20th, 2015
Terminal 5
610 West 56th Street – New York, NY
Doors open 5:30pm – Bell time 7:00pm

Just read this! Mad I don't get Destination America, but I found ROH to be on Saturday nights on a random network channel. So is ROH the lead in show? If that's true fans will be disapointed once impact comes on after the awesomeness of ROH.

Get ready to be sued for defamation Destination America!

DESTINATION AMERICA BRINGS MORE ACTION TO THE RING ACQUIRING THE RIGHTS TO RING OF HONOR’S WEEKLY TELEVISION PROGRAMMING

(Silver Spring, MD) –Destination America announced today that it has signed a national broadcast deal with professional wrestling league RING OF HONOR, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc., bringing one of the most respected wrestling organizations to the only network dedicated to all-American entertainment. Destination America is now the one-two-punch to professional wrestling, adding RING OF HONOR (ROH) to its line-up after launching IMPACT WRESTLING in early 2015. RING OF HONOR has been delivering top wrestling matches for ten years with captivating hard-hitting stars such as Jay & Mark Briscoe, AJ Styles, Samoa Joe, The Young Bucks, Maria Kanellis, Adam Cole and Jay Lethal. Destination America will pack on the action beginning Wednesday June 3 with the series premiere of RING OF HONOR at 8/7c leading into brand new premieres of IMPACT WRESTLING at 9/8c.

“With the electric and intense matches that RING OF HONOR provides, Destination America is the network for fans to get an entire evening of jaw-dropping entertainment on Wednesday nights,” said Marc Etkind, general manager of Destination America. “RING OF HONOR showcases tenacity, athleticism and passion and it serves as the place where America’s favorite wrestling stars are born.”

“We are very excited to be partnering with Destination America for the broader distribution of the ROH programming,” commented Joe Koff, Chief Operating Officer – Ring of Honor Wrestling. “ROH will now reach an additional 57 million households including those in New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago, Philadelphia and other large cities where Ring of Honor is not currently airing. ROH has a loyal fan base and is one of the fastest growing major wrestling franchises in the country. With this great partnership with Destination America, we can continue to expand our footprint and reach while producing entertaining, original content and continuing to provide wrestling fans some of the best wrestling content available.”

RING OF HONOR will premiere on Wednesday, June 3 leading into IMPACT WRESTLING, making Destination America the home for wrestling every Wednesday evening. The first match will feature the Briscoe Brothers, Mark and Jay, as they face off with the House of Truth in the main event. Also catch athletes of New Japan Pro Wrestling battle it out with the RING OF HONOR stars and follow former NFL lineman Moose compete against BJ Whitmer.

Since launching in 2012, Destination America has become one of cable’s top fastest-growing networks, and continues to earn telecast ratings records among key series. In 2015 to date, Destination America has acquired over 50 million unique viewers. With top series that explore unique American cultures and ways of life – including Paranormal Survivor, Hillbilly Blood, Buying the Bayou, and BBQ Pitmasters – Destination America’s programming spans the nation from Alaska, Hawaii and Colorado to Louisiana, West Virginia and communities in between. To find Destination America, go to destinationamerica.com/watchda.

Wait, it's a lead in to TNA? The hell?

This whole thing just blows my mind. And damn, it's already starting on DA next Wednesday! And yes, that is a TON of wrestling on Wednesdays.