The Independent Mid-Card 04.01.08: Delirious vs. Reyes
Posted by Samuel Berman on 04.01.2008
An IMC event two-years in the making! (Just kidding.)
Hello and welcome to an April Fools' Day edition of The Independent Mid-Card. This week it seemed only appropriate to spotlight Ring of Honor's resident fool' (and I mean that in a good way) by celebrating the two-year anniversary of his earning a permanent spot on the ROH roster. So without further ado, we take a look back at "this day in ROH history" this week in the IMC.
Delirious vs. Ricky Reyes
Ring of Honor Better Than Our Best Chicago Ridge, IL April 1, 2006
The Wrestlers:
Delirious Known for his masked appearance and wacky antics, the gibberish-speaking Delirious debuted for Ring of Honor in mid-2004 against longtime rival Matt Sydal. That match, which Sydal came away from with the victory, would be a sign of things to come for Delirious in ROH; that is to say that he would put on an incredibly solid performance only to end up the loser. As time wore on, Delirious would become increasingly over with the fans, but a marquee victory in ROH continued to elude him. Finally, after taking a pair of losses on the two shows leading into this one (in a tag team match teaming with then-ROH World Champion "American Dragon" Bryan Danielson against The Embassy of Jimmy Rave & Alex Shelley and also in a Four Corner Survival to Ricky Reyes of the Rottweilers), Delirious was given one last opportunity to earn a win or else be dropped from the Ring of Honor roster.
Ricky Reyes A charter member of "The Notorious 187" Homicide's Rottweilers stable, Ricky Reyes is probably best known for his work as a part of The Havana Pitbulls tag team with partner Rocky Romero. With the Pitbulls first gaining fame for their work in a variety of West Coast Independents, Reyes & Romero made their way to ROH for the first time in early-2004. A hard hitting tandem, Reyes was the bruiser of the pair, and would become the more consistent presence in ROH between the two, as Romero was often overseas competing for a number of Japanese promotions. Most recently, with Romero on extended hiatus from ROH competition, Reyes and Homicide had begun to tag more regularly, even earning a shot at the ROH Tag Team Titles at the company's upcoming 100th Show. As noted above, on the day before this show, Reyes won a Four Corner Survival by forcing Delirious into submission with a Dragon Sleeper.
The Match:
We begin with comments from ROH Commissioner Jim Cornette, though for the purposes of this column I'm going to skip ahead to him calling for Delirious to come down to the ring. Hybrid Stigmata the Apostasy hits and Delirious begins his usual frantic run to the ring. The crowd is on their feet for him and they even throw some green and yellow streamers for him. He stalks around the ring in circles as Cornette addresses him. Cornette, by the way, is literally becoming wrapped in the streamers that Delirious is dragging with him around the ring. Cornette puts over Delirious' efforts the night before, but notes that he hasn't been able to earn a singles victory yet in ROH. Cornette offers Delirious the opportunity to challenge anyone on the roster to a one-on-one contest, but makes it clear that Delirious has to win to stay in ROH. Cornette then hands the microphone to Delirious who cuts a pretty funny promo (all in gibberish, of course) that riles the crowd up big time, before challenging Ricky Reyes to come down to the ring. Cornette calls for Reyes to come down to the ring, making the matchup official. Rage Against the Machine's Bulls on Parade begins to play and Ricky Reyes, as usual accompanied by his manager Julius Smokes, makes his way to the ring. Delirious blitzes Reyes on the ring apron and the bell rings to start us off.
Delirious immediately comes running with a baseball slide dropkick that sends Reyes over the barricade and into the crowd. Delirious then pulls Reyes back to ringside and goes to town on him with a variety of strikes before whipping him into the guardrail. Delirious then hits a clubbing forearm and a headbutt before continuing the assault with a forearm smash. Delirious sets up with a front facelock, but Smokes interjects himself with a back rake. Things don't end well for Smokes, however, as Delirious responds by putting him down with a forearm. Reyes uses the opening to hit a kick to the midsection and a clubbing forearm before rolling Delirious into the ring.
Delirious takes advantage again by stomping away at Reyes as he slides into the ring. A long series of clubbing forearms follows and then Delirious waits for Reyes to get to his feet before hitting a chop to the chest and a headbutt. Reyes ducks under a kick on the rebound from an Irish whip, but Delirious gets in a kick to the midsection and then takes a moment to mock Reyes. That proves to be his undoing, as Reyes quickly responds with a spinning back kick and a swinging neckbreaker. Reyes hits another neckbreaker and then quickly applies the Dragon Sleeper, but Delirious is too close to the ropes and Reyes is forced to break the hold.
Reyes rips one of the tassels from Delirious' mask and chokes him with it until the referee makes him stop. Reyes hits a stiff kick to the back and then a clubbing forearm before methodically landing a backdrop suplex and making the cover for one. Reyes hits some more clubbing forearms, but Delirious is able to counter a fisherman's buster into an inside cradle for a two count. That said, Reyes immediately regains control with a running lariat and then rakes his boot across Delirious' face. Reyes hits a series of strikes but is only able to knock Delirious down to his knees. Reyes whips Delirious cross-corner, sending the masked man chest-first into the turnbuckle. Reyes' follow-up is a kick to the back that hypes Julius Smokes up so much that he jaws particularly loudly with some ringside fans.
Reyes looks to set up for the Dragon Sleeper again, but Delirious counters by climbing his way to the top turnbuckle and elbowing out of an inverted facelock. Reyes charges into the corner, but gets hit with a boot to the face. Delirious then comes down with Shadows Over Hell (flying splash to the back of a bent-over opponent) as the crowd begins to get behind him again. Delirious hits the Bizarro Driver (inside leg hook Michinoku Driver II), but it only gets a two count.
The crowd is beginning to really heat up now as Smokes crazily runs around ringside. Delirious pulls off his elbow pad and comes off the ropes looking for the Leaping Lariat. Reyes is able to cut him off with a knee to the midsection, however, and plants him with another swinging neckbreaker. Reyes hits a second swinging neckbreaker and then absolutely plants Delirious with a fisherman's buster, but the masked man improbably gets his shoulder up at two. Reyes, whose facial expression is fantastic, by the way, stupidly loses focus and argues the count with the referee, allowing Delirious time to recover and the crowd the opportunity to get behind him.
Reyes sets up for the Dragon Sleeper yet again, but Delirious avoids the hold by hitting Reyes with a knee to the head. Delirious then snapmares Reyes to the mat and rolls right into the Cobra Stretch. Delirious really wrenches in the hold, but Smokes hops up on the apron, distracting the referee from seeing Reyes tapping out. Thankfully, the referee pushes Smokes back down to ringside and turns around in enough time to see Reyes pounding the mat for mercy. Delirious earns his first singles victory in ROH at 6:21. The crowd's reaction is really a sight to behold as Delirious hops to the outside and then dives into the arms of some of the ringside fans.
The Analysis:
This match was essentially a formality, set up to provide a feel-good moment for the live crowd by having Delirious earn his first singles victory in ROH. There was little by way of ring psychology or true build to the finish. I will give Reyes credit for focusing on Delirious' neck and head to work towards applying the Dragon Sleeper, but the truth is that the match was too short to have it be of any true consequence. And in fairness, the work contained in the match was remarkably solid throughout.
But the story here was Delirious' getting the win, and in that it was a rousing success. The masked man looked convincing in victory over an opponent that had bested him just one night earlier. The real issue here would actually turn out not to be getting Delirious the win, but what ROH would do with him once they had established him as a mainstay of the roster.
I will say, however, that I really liked the head fake at the end of the match, that led the crowd to think Smokes' interference might cost Delirious the match, only to have the referee turn around and see the submission just in time. A very nice bit of subtle booking there, to be sure.
The Aftermath:
Ricky Reyes & Homicide would lose their upcoming bid for the ROH Tag Team Titles, and though they would continue their association for most of the rest of 2006, the Rottweilers faction was essentially dissolved by the time Homicide won the ROH World Title at the end of the year. Though Reyes would briefly reunite with Rocky Romero at the outset of 2007, Romero would go on to join the newly formed No Remorse Corps along with Roderick Strong and Davey Richards, leaving Reyes the odd man out, so to speak. Reyes' exit from ROH in early-2007 was unceremonious at best, and he has yet to return to action for the company in the time since his departure. Sadly, Reyes has been able to have a number of very good singles matches in other companies, showing that his inability to become a serious player in Ring of Honor may have been due to a lack of opportunity as opposed to a lack of talent.
Delirious would use his victory in this match to catapult himself to a career year in Ring of Honor throughout the remainder of 2006. He would become an improbable challenger to then-ROH World Champion Bryan Danielson mere weeks later, and would actually go on to challenge for that belt a total of three times throughout the year. Though he would come up short in that trio of title bouts, the masked man would become a true cult icon amongst ROH fans, with his star shining the brightest on a pair of nights in late-2006. First, Delirious would outlast a field that included career-long rival Matt Sydal and former ROH World Champion Austin Aries to win the 2006 Survival of the Fittest Tournament. Then, in early-December, Delirious would captain a team of "Classic" Colt Cabana, Nigel McGuinness & BJ Whitmer to a win in an elimination main event, capping off the night by forcing "American Dragon" Bryan Danielson into submission. In so doing, Delirious became one of only two men to force Danielson to tap out during his epic fifteen-month title reign (the other for those interested was Roderick Strong in January of 2006).
Since his unlikely upset of the champion, however, Delirious' ROH run has been essentially a hit-or-miss proposition. A feud with No Remorse Corps leader Roderick Strong was met with lukewarm reactions from live crowds, while an ongoing issue with the Hangmen 3 group later in 2007 would fail to truly elevate anyone involved. The fact is that ROH booking has moved Delirious away from his greatest talent: producing comedic elements while simultaneously providing solid in-ring work. Due to his deep connection to the ROH fanbase, Delirious remains perpetually over with live crowds, but it remains to be seen how his mismanagement over the past year-and-a-half will truly affect his career long-term.
The Final Word:
Delirious is one of my favorite workers on the Independent scene, as much because of his comedic acumen as anything. In fact, for anyone who hasn't seen his trilogy of matches against CM Punk in IWA Mid-South, do yourself a favor and check them out at your earliest possible convenience. I guarantee you will gain a new appreciation for how much fun a wrestling match can be. Hopefully, Ring of Honor will find an interesting angle for Delirious soon, as in recent months he has once again become firmly entrenched in the mid-card treadmill, trading wins and losses with a host of other guys with little-or-no rhyme or reason to any of the outcomes. ROH might be well served to program Delirious with newcomer Eddie Kingston in a feud where Kingston gets upset at Delirious' refusal to take a match between the two seriously. That's the kind of angle that would benefit both men immensely.
To see this week's contest, Better Than Our Best is available from rohwrestling.com. The show is far and away one of the best shows Ring of Honor has ever produced, with a pair of fantastic bouts featuring Dragon Gate talent, as well as the blowoff to the truly classic (no pun intended) Colt Cabana vs. Homicide feud. In addition to those matches, there's a fantastic Four Corner Survival featuring Samoa Joe, "The Phenomenal" AJ Styles, "The Fallen Angel" Christopher Daniels, and Jimmy Yang, and Lance Storm's bid at "American Dragon" Bryan Danielson's ROH World Title. An absolute must-own for any wrestling fan, this show gets my highest endorsement.
This week on 411 there are a number of columns and reviews for you to check out. Ari's Column of Honor, Bayani's Truth B Told, and Short's Navigation Log are always must-reads. There's a great edition of Buy or Sell that turns up the heat on the Domingo-Cook rivalry, as well as the most recent ROH Roundtable. There's also a ton of Wrestlemania coverage, so you can hunt around for that if Sunday's show wasn't enough for you. In terms of reviews, be sure to check out RB's look at ROH Man Up and Campbell's 2CW Review. Dunn's got ROH Breakout and SHIMMER Vol. 3. Oh, and lest you forget to go back and read Brad's last Special Edition here on 411. Seriously, now Brad's exclusive to The Cool Kids' Table Dot Net, so you're going to have to swing over there to read his stuff from now on.
This week's Buy or Sell is Lansdell & Campbell, so be sure to check that out on Friday. No ROH shows, no ROH Roundtable.
iTunes flyby looks like this:
1. "Everlong" by Foo Fighters from Skin And Bones
2. "Is This Love" by Bob Marley & the Wailers from Legend
3. "Electric Relaxation" by A Tribe Called Quest from Midnight Marauders
4. "I Write Sins Not Tragedies" by Panic! At the Disco from A Fever You Can't Sweat Out
5. "A.M. Radio" by Everclear from Songs from an American Movie, Vol. 1 Learning How to Smile
Ok, so maybe Texas, Tennessee and Wisconsin weren't the best picks for the Final Four. That said, nothing ventured, nothing gained. Now the only team left I would even tolerate seeing win the title is UCLA, so I guess it's Go Bruins from here on out
And the Brewers won their opening day contest with the Cubs in the 10th, so hopefully that'll be a sign of things to come.
