Admittedly, this writer is biased about the ROH Pure Championship Match on Saturday. Having interviewed Brian Johnson three times, I’ve gotten to see his pure passion for wrestling up close, and more than maybe any other result on Saturday, nothing would make me happier than seeing “The Mecca” win the gold when he challenges Josh Woods.
That’s no knock on the champion whatsoever; Woods is an amazing talent, with an impressive background as an amateur wrestler. He has risen through the ranks, and “The Tactical Beast” defeated Gresham, the best pure wrestler in the world. Woods has certainly proven himself, and his future is very bright. But there’s something to be said about giving Johnson a major victory so he can conclude his time on ROH with an exclamation point. In a recent interview, he described how winning the title would change his whole outlook about his time with the company. Right now, he views his ROH career largely as a string of shortcomings with some highlights sprinkled in.
But emerging victorious on Saturday would completely flip that; ending Final Battle as the champion would ensure that “The Mecca” will go down in ROH history, and he deserves that. Johnson’s unmatched passion has been evident since his first major breakout promo, which aired last fall during ROH’s return after it went dark for a few months. Since then, he has continued to grow, and Johnson has become one of the most underrated members of the stacked ROH roster. “The Mecca” has been overlooked for far too long, and it’s time he gets his rightful moment on Saturday.
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All in all, the ROH Final Battle: End of an Era card is loaded. Shane Taylor Promotions (with O’Shay Edwards subbing in for “The Baddest of All Time) will seek to finish their incredible run as the ROH World-Six Man Tag Team Champions with a win over The Righteous. In doing so, STP would kick off its next chapter with a high-profile title defense. Likewise, Dalton Castle will hope to retain his relatively newly-won ROH World Television Championship against Silas Young, Rhett Titus and Joe Hendry in a star-studded match that will showcase three long-time ROH stars and one (Hendry) who severely had his run undercut by the travel restrictions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Outside of the title matches, the Fight Without Honor between Shane Taylor and Kenny King will be a brutal war that will bring their bitter rivalry to an end, and Dragon Lee and Rey Horus will collide in a clash between two electric high-flyers. From top to bottom, every single match promises to deliver ROH’s brand of excellent wrestling, and fans couldn’t realistically ask for a better way to end this outstanding era.
Tune in to ROH Final Battle: End of an Era to see ROH deliver “the best wrestling on the planet” one final time on December 11. The show will be available for streaming on pay-per-view and HonorClub.
The card for ROH Final Battle: End of an Era is as follows:
- ROH World Championship: Bandido (c) vs. Jonathan Gresham
- ROH Tag Team Championships: The OGK (Matt Taven & Mike Bennett) (c) vs. The Briscoes (Mark & Jay Briscoe)
- Fight Without Honor: Shane Taylor vs. Kenny King
- ROH Television Championship: Dalton Castle (c) Joe Hendry vs. Rhett Titus vs. . Silas Young
- ROH Pure Championship: Josh Woods (c) vs. Brian Johnson
- ROH Six-Man Tag Team Championships: Shane Taylor Promotions (O’Shay Edwards and Soldiers of Savagery) (c) vs. The Righteous (Vincent, Bateman and Dutch)
- ROH Women’s Championship: Rok-C (c) vs. Willow
- Violence Unlimited’s Brody King, Homicide & Tony Deppen vs. Taylor Rust, Tracy Williams & Eli Isom
- The Hex (Allysin Kay & Marti Belle) & Chelsea Green vs. Miranda Alize & The Allure (Angelina Love & Mandy Leon)
- Dragon Lee vs. Rey Horus
- Hour One: Ten-Man Wild Card Tag Team Match
