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From The Shelf- ROH Race to the Top Tournament Night Two

June 11, 2014 | Posted by Dylan Diot
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From The Shelf- ROH Race to the Top Tournament Night Two  

ROH Race to the Top Tournament Night Two
7-28-07
Edison, NJ

Race to the Top Tournament Quarterfinals- El Generico vs. Chris Hero w/Sweet N’ Sour Inc.
Both men look for the early advantage and Hero shows off his athleticism. STF by Hero and he converts it into a cover for 1. Generico clotheslines Hero to the floor and back in, Generico hits some arm drags. Drop toe hold into an elbow drop to the back by Generico gets 2. Backbreaker by Generico gets 2. Chops by Generico and he rolls through a sunset flip attempt into a dropkick to the back for 1. Generico misses the Yakuza kick and Hero hits a sitting neck breaker. Hero drops Generico in the ropes and he hits a gut wrench suplex for 2 off the cocky cover. Hero steps on Generico and he hits a knee drop. Crucifix by Hero gets 2. Rolling elbow by Hero and he hits a release German suplex for 2. Hero stomps away and goes up for the double axe handle off the top for 2. Chops by Hero and he charges in the corner but eats elbow. Second rope hurricanrana by Generico and he hits a leg lariat. Forearms by Generico and he hits a flying forearm. Dropkick by Generico and he hits the assisted Tornado DDT for 2. Generico goes up but Toland ties Generico up with his weights, allowing Hero to take him off the top with a cravat suplex. Dislocator by Hero gets 2!!! Generico counters the Hero’s Welcome into the backslide for 3!!!
Winner- El Generico *** ( Solid opening match and this was a huge upset at the time as Generico was just a tag guy at this point and you figured this tournament was set up for a Castagnoli/Hero final. )

Kevin Steen interrupts Generico’s promo and says that he got the shaft last night. He says Generico is going to beat everyone that stands in his way and give him the trophy. They had weird lighting for these promos, as the room is bright red and there is a small circle on the screen to see their heads. It’s very odd.

Race to the Top Tournament Quarterfinals- Pelle Primeau vs. Davey Richards
Primeau breaks his Top of the Class Trophy as he enters the ring in a funny moment. Davey slaps Pelle so Pelle fires back with forearms. Tilt-a-whirl headscissors and a dropkick by Pelle. Slingshot headscissors sends Richards to the floor and he hits the dropkick off the apron. Back in, Pelle hits the springboard crossbody for 2. Davey rams Pelle in the corner and throws head butts at him in the corner. Corner forearm by Davey and he hits a lariat. Slam by Richards and he chokes Pelle with his boot. Back suplex by Richards and he snap mares Pelle into the bodyscissors. Pelle makes the ropes to break and Pelle counters a powerbomb into a hurricanrana. Pelle counters the DR Driver into the small package for 2. Jawbreaker by Pelle and he goes for the Ace Crusher but Davey counters into the Tombstone. Kimura by Davey and Pelle taps.
Winner- Davey Richards ** ( Pelle showed good fire and they played off the idea that there could be another upset but then Davey destroyed him. This was exactly what it should have been. )

Davey Richards warns El Generico that he is going to break him and that tonight is not about a trophy but about no remorse.

Race to the Top Tournament Quarterfinals- Brent Albright vs. Jack Evans
Albright hits a lariat at the bell for 2!!! Pele by Evans and Albright comes back with a back elbow for 2. Back suplex by Albright gets 2. Half Camel Clutch by Albright but Evans gets his foot on the ropes to break. Forearms by Evans and he hits a hurricanrana forcing Albright to bail. Baseball slide by Evans and Albright pulls him off the apron before he could dive. Evans escapes a powerbomb attempt and hits a springboard kick off the barricade. Back in, Evans covers for 1. Slam by Albright gets 2 and he goes to the sitting chinlock. Evans makes the ropes to break so Albright hammers the head. Albright HITS A RELEASE GERMAN SUPLEX SENDING EVANS TO THE FLOOR!!!! Back in, Albright gets 2. Roll-up by Evans gets 2. O’Connor roll by Evans gets 2 and he gets a backslide for 2. They trade slaps and forearms leading to a leaping knee strike by Evans. Springboard spinning front kick by Evans and he hits the standing corkscrew press for 2. Springboard moonsault back elbow by Evans and he hits a handspring elbow knocking both men to the floor. Evans goes for the summersault pescado but Albright blocks and HITS A RAZOR’S EDGE THROUGH THE TABLE ON THE FLOOR!!! Back in, Albright covers for 2!!! Albright goes for a press slam but Evans counters into a hurricanrana for 2. Crowbar by Albright but Evans gets his foot on the ropes to break. Spinning front kick by Evans and he goes up. 630 Splash by Evans gets 3!!!
Winner- Jack Evans *** ( Man, Evans took one hell of a beating in this match. The match was weird since it seemed like it going to be built as a long beating by Albright on Evans but it actually was more competitive with Albright tossing Evans around mostly for the big spots. )

Jack Evans says no one in the ROH locker room has heart like him and he’s looking forward to see who he is going to beat next.

Race to the Top Tournament Quarterfinals- Mike Quackenbush vs. Claudio Castagnoli
Both men battle for control and we reach a standstill. Arm drags by Quack and both men exchange holds on the mat. Claudio misses a dropkick and Quack hits an arm drag. He trips up Claudio and hits a springboard arm drag. Quack goes to suplex Claudio back in but he blocks and they fight on the apron. Quack monkey flips Claudio off the apron to the floor!!! Quack goes up and hits a corkscrew press to the floor!!! Back in, Quack hits a back senton for 2. Uppercut to the back by Claudio and he hits a reverse suplex for 2. Slam into a leg drop by Claudio gets 2 and he grabs a key lock. He converts it into a cover for 2 and Claudio snap mares Quack. He goes to the second rope and hits the elbow drop for 2. Front facelock by Claudio but Quack fights out so Claudio sweeps the legs into an elbow drop for 2. Dead lift gut wrench suplex by Claudio gets 2. Spinning face plant by Claudio gets 2. Tilt-a-whirl headscissors by Quack and he hits a senton in the corner. Palm thrust by Quack and he goes for the Frankensteiner but Claudio blocks. Quack blocks a super power bomb into the Frankensteiner. Quack goes up and hits the double knee strike off the top. BTS by Quack gets 2. Uppercuts by Claudio and he hits the bicycle kick for 2. Straight Jacket suplex by Claudio gets 2. Palm strike by Quack and he goes up. He leaps into the jackknife cradle for 2!!! Wheelbarrow roll-up by Quack gets 2. Claudio puts Quack on top and runs up with a head scissors off the top. Running uppercut by Claudio gets 3!!!
Winner- Claudio Castagnoli ***1/2 ( These two know each other so well that it’s impossible to not have a good match together. This was a great mix of technical and catch wrestling and it was a fun, competitive contest. )

Claudio Castagnoli says he proved once again he is better than Quack and he is going to win the tournament.

Becky Bayless introduces Bryan Danielson and Nigel McGuinness to pick their teams for the $10m000 Tag Team Challenge. Becky flips a coin to decide who picks first and Danielson wins, which he mocks Nigel for. Danielson picks the Briscoes for his first pick but Becky tells him he can only pick one person. Nigel says he won’t allow to pick both Briscoes with back to back picks so they are going to split the Briscoes. Danielson flips back and forth between which brother he wants and settles on Mark, so Nigel gets Jay. Danielson picks Jimmy Rave with his second pick but Becky tells him that Jimmy Rave is injured and can’t compete. Larry Sweeney comes out and Danielson threatens Sweeney if he offers Bobby Dempsey as a tag partner. Sweeney offers Danielson the services of Matt Sydal so Danielson picks him. Nigel picks Delirious as his second partner due to his history with both Danielson and Sydal. Danielson picks Austin Aries with his last pick and Nigel picks Roderick Strong. Nigel throws more insults at Danielson and declares the $10,000 is coming to him. ( This was a fun segment; Danielson is an awesome shithead heel. )

Race to the Top Tournament Semifinals- El Generico vs. Davey Richards
Rowboat by Davey to start and he converts it into a cover for 1. They go to the test of strength and Davey breaks with a kick to the chest. Crucifix by Davey gets 2 and he goes for the DR Driver but Generico blocks. Tilt-a-whirl backbreaker by Generico gets 1. Chops by Generico and he snap mares Davey for 2. Backbreaker by Generico and he goes for the split legged moonsault but eats knees. Chops by Davey and he hits a kick to the chest for 2. Camel Clutch by Davey and he releases to hit another kick to the chest for 2. Clothesline by Davey gets 2. Crucifix by Generico gets 2 and Davey dumps him to the floor. He follows out and sends Generico into the barricade. Davey toys with Generico and he rakes the face of Generico. Davey suplexes Generico on the floor and back in, he gets 2. Chinlock by Davey but Generico fights out. He goes for the sunset flip but Davey counters into the cross arm breaker. Generico gets the ropes to break and he hits a hammerlock Northern lights suplex. Leg drops to the arm by Davey and he hits a kick to the back. Generico hits some chops and Davey comes back with an overhead belly to belly suplex. Corner forearm by Davey but Generico dumps Davey to the floor to come back. Fosbury Flop by Generico and back in, he goes up. Crossbody off the top by Generico gets 2. Protobomb by Generico gets 2. Bridging roll-up by Davey gets 2 and Generico hits a jawbreaker. Davey counters the Yakuza kick into the exploder suplex into the corner!!! Davey puts Generico on top and he follows up. Superplex by Davey gets 2 and he grabs the Kimura. Generico gets his foot on the ropes to break!!! They trade slaps and Generico blocks a handspring attempt with a dropkick. Michinoku Driver by Generico gets 2. Generico goes for a Brainbuster but Davey blocks and hits the Tombstone for 2 as Generico gets his foot on the ropes!!! Davey goes up but Generico stops him and follows up. Davey fights him off and goes for the Shooting Star Press but eats knees. Yakuza kick by Generico and he puts Davey on top. Turnbuckle Buster by Generico gets 3!!!
Winner- El Generico ***3/4 ( Great match from these two. Generico played his role of underdog to perfection and withstood Richards’ vicious offense to continue his miracle run in the tournament. )

El Generico says he has one more to go.

Race to the Top Tournament Semifinals- Jack Evans vs. Claudio Castagnoli
Both men battle on the mat in the early going and they go to the test of strength. Monkey flip by Evans and they reach a standstill. Head scissors by Evans and he hits the Pele. Evans goes for the handspring but Claudio low bridges him, sending him crashing to the floor. Claudio follows and he drops Evans onto the apron. Back in, Claudio hits the slingshot elbow drop for 2. GIANT SWING~!!!!! Claudio covers for 2. Full nelson slam by Claudio gets 2. Deadlift gut wrench suplex by Claudio gets 2. Cabo Kick by Evans and Claudio bails. Evans goes for a plancha but misses and crashes on the floor!!! 619 on the apron by Evans and he hits a corkscrew press off the apron. 450 splash off the apron onto the floor by Evans and back in, Evans gets 2. Evans throws some kicks and goes for the flying knee but Claudio blocks. Uppercut by Claudio gets 2. Waterslide by Claudio gets 2. Yakuza kick in the corner by Claudio and Evans goes up with a hurricanrana off the top. Flying knee strike by Evans and he hits the standing corkscrew press for 2. Evans puts Claudio on top and he follows up. Dropkick to the back by Evans and he goes up. Ode to Jack by Evans gets 2. Spinning front kick misses and Claudio hits a tilt-a-whirl Ricola Bomb for 3!!!
Winner- Claudio Castagnoli *** ( Another good big man/little man contest for Jack where he finally fell to the freakiest strength of Claudio. )

Claudio Castagnoli says he feels great and says there is only one to go. Jack Evans congratulates Claudio and wants a rematch down the line.

Larry Sweeney says Sweet N’ Sour has been doing great except for a fat thorn in his side, Bobby Dempsey. Sweeney says he acquired the best training facility in New Jersey and they plan to put Bobby in their hot box of doom. Tank Toland said they put an exercise bike in the sauna to put the cherry on top. They lock the door on Bobby so he can train. Chris Hero bets five dollars that Bobby dies.

Hallowicked vs. Jigsaw vs. Erick Stevens vs. Matt Cross vs. Kevin Steen vs. BJ Whitmer
Steen attacks everyone to start, which is a big mistake as everyone fights back. Steen is dumped to the floor and Whitmer officially starts with Hallowicked. Chops by Whitmer but Hallowicked sweeps the legs to come back. Hurricanrana by Hallowicked and Cross dropkicks him from behind. Jigsaw arm drags Cross into the crucifix for 1. Tilt-a-whirl sit out face plant by Cross and he dropkicks Jigsaw into a sidewalk slam by Stevens. Leap frog back senton by Cross and Jigsaw bails. Whitmer and Stevens trade chops and Steen low bridges Whitmer. Hallowicked rolls Stevens up for 1 and he dropkicks Stevens to the floor. Jigsaw snaps Hallowicked’s neck off the ropes and Steen attacks from behind. Chops by Steen and he hits a back elbow. Summersault leg drop by Steen and Whitmer hits a big boot. Suplex by Whitmer to Hallowicked and he gordbusters Hallowicked onto the ropes. He knocks Hallowicked off the apron and Jigsaw catches him with a leg lariat. Suicide dive by Jigsaw to Hallowicked. Summersault plancha by Stevens!!! Steen goes up and hits the summersault senton to the floor!!! CORKSCREW PLANCHA INTO A HURRICANRAN BY CROSS TO WHITMER ON THE FLOOR!!!!! Back in, Cross hits a springboard hurricanrana to Steen. Steen puts Cross on top and follows up but Cross fights him off. Steen catches a crossbody attempt and hits a Samoan drop for 2. Big boot by Whitmer and he hits a knee strike. German suplex by Whitmer gets 2 as Jigsaw breaks with a splash off the top for 2 as Stevens breaks. Jigsaw counters the Doctor Bomb into a DDT for 2 as Cross saves. DVD backbreaker by Cross and he goes up. Corkscrew press off the top by Cross gets 2 as Hallowicked saves. Rydeen Bomb by Hallowicked gets 2 as Whitmer saves. Go to Sleepy Hallow by Hallowicked gets 2. Spinebuster by Whitmer gets 2. Whitmer suplexes Hallowicked to the floor and in the ring, Steen and Stevens trade forearms. Superkick by Steen and he misses the enzuigiri. Springboard double stomp by Cross to Steen and he eats a superkick from Jigsaw. Choo-Choo to Jigsaw and Stevens goes for a lariat but Jigsaw blocks. Enzuigiri by Jigsaw but Stevens presses him into the powerslam. Doctor Bomb by Stevens gets 3!!!
Winner- Erick Stevens ***1/2 ( Just all action from bell to bell and it was a blast to watch. Everyone got a chance to shine, especially Steen who was the best as the dickhead jerk. )

$10,000 Tag Team Challenge- Bryan Danielson, Austin Aries, Matt Sydal, and Jay Briscoe w/Larry Sweeney vs. Nigel McGuinness, Delirious, Roderick Strong, and Mark Briscoe
Delirious attacks Strong as Nigel’s team makes their entrance and they have to be separated. Nigel already looks like an idiot for putting two guys that are feuding on the same team. The crowd is relentless with their hazing of Roderick and his reactions to it are awesome. Delirious and Sydal start. Head butts to the midsection by Delirious and Strong gets the blind tag. Head scissors by Sydal and Aries tags in. Chops by Aries and Strong bails. Back in, Danielson and Nigel get the tag. Both men battle for the upper hand and Nigel knocks Danielson down with an uppercut. Dropkick by Danielson and Nigel comes back with a lariat. Tag to Mark and Jay!!! The Briscoes are reluctant to fight to start but then begin to chain wrestle. Hurricanrana by Jay but Mark comes back with a super kick. Super kick by Jay and they trade forearms. The Briscoes get cheap shots from the opposing teams so they knock everyone off the apron and trade forearms. Suddently, the Briscoes decide not to fight and get beer instead!!! Danielson is pissed and he slaps Jay so he faces KARATE MARK~!!!! The Briscoes clean house on everyone in the match and they finally just walk out. Sydal stomps away on Delirious and he chokes him with the tassels. Tag to Danielson and he grabs the Mexican surfboard. His teammates all get shots in on Delirious and Aries tags in. Hilo by Aries and he hits the leaping elbow drop for 2. Tag to Sydal and he hits the cannonball leg drop for 2. Sydal stomps away in the corner and he chokes Delirious with his boot. Tag to Danielson and they wish bone Delirious. He puts Delirious on top and follows up. Delirious fights him off and he hits Shadows Over Hell. Tag to Nigel and he works over Danielson in the corner. Lariat by Nigel gets 2 as Danielson gets his foot on the ropes. Second rope uppercut by Danielson and Sydal tags in. Cradle DDT by Sydal gets 2 and he goes for the standing moonsault but eats boot. Tag to Strong and he hits a gut buster over his shoulder. Hurricanrana by Sydal and Aries tags in. He cleans house and chops away on Strong. He clotheslines Strong to the floor and follows up with the Heat Seeking Missile. Back in, Strong crotches Aries as he was coming into the ring and Delirious tags in. He drop toe holds Aries into the corner and hits the Panic Attack. Enzuigiri by Delirious and he hits rapid corner clotheslines. Strong chops away and starts fighting with Delirious over who wants to attack Aries. Delirious and Strong brawl to the back, leaving Nigel alone. Nigel attacks but can’t withstand the attack from three opponents. Kick to the back, shot to the chest combo by Nigel to Sydal and he nails Danielson with a lariat. Lariat to Aries gets 2 as Danielson saves. Danielson dumps Nigel to the floor and he sends him into the barricade. Back in, Danielson covers for 2 and he throws some head butts in the corner. They trade slaps and Danielson hits some forearms. German suplex by Danielson gets 2 and he grabs Cattle Mutilation. Nigel gets his foot on the ropes to break. Danielson catapults Nigel into a springboard leg drop by Sydal for 2. Nigel fights out of the corner and Sydal catches him with a corner double knee strike. Nigel crotches Sydal and hits a second rope lariat for 2 as Sydal gets his foot on the ropes. Nigel puts Sydal on top and goes for the Tower of London but Aries hits a corner dropkick. Kick to the head followed by a Brainbuster by Aries. Sydal goes up but Danielson shoves him off the top!!! Danielson goes up but Aries shoves him off!!! 450 Splash by Aries gets 3!!!
Winners- Bryan Danielson, Austin Aries, Matt Sydal, and Jay Briscoe **** ( This was tremendous fun. There was great wrestling throughout the match combined with fun antics from the Briscoes and good storyline continuation between Aries, Strong, and Delirious. This match did not make Nigel look good though, as he formed a team with two guys who hate each other and pretty much looked like an idiot in the end. )

Sweet N’ Sour Inc. checks on Bobby Dempsey and HE COMES OUT SKINNY!!!!!!!! They are proud of Bobby and tell him to take a break. Suddently, they hear noises and they find Bobby Dempsey eating chocolate in the sauna!!! They lock Bobby in the sauna and plan to get him in the morning. Bobby continues to eat the chocolate. These segments were awesome.

Race to the Top Tournament Finals- El Generico vs. Claudio Castagnoli
They battle with the crowd between their Ole! and Hey! chants to start. Both men battle for control to start and they reach a stand still. Claudio over powers Generico but Generico comes back by working the left arm of Claudio. Inside cradle by Claudio gets 1 and he hits an uppercut. Fisherman’s suplex by Claudio gets 2. Backbreaker by Claudio gets 2 and he goes to the surfboard. Generico fights out and he hits a leg lariat for 1. GIANT SWING~!!!!!! Claudio covers for 2. Uppercut to the back by Claudio gets 2. Claudio puts Generico on top and hits some forearms. Claudio follows up and Generico blocks a superplex attempt. Claudio runs up with an enzuigiri and goes up but again Generico fights him off. Crossbody off the top by Generico gets 2. Claudio blocks the Brainbuster attempt and he hits the swinging faceplant for 2. Straight Jacket suplex by Claudio gets 2 and he grabs the Japanese Strangle Hold. He converts it into a roll-up for 2. They trade forearms and Generico hip tosses Claudio to the floor. Asai moonsault to the floor by Generico!!! Generico dives through the turnbuckles and hits a Tornado DDT on the floor!!! Back in, Generico goes up and hits a flying splash off the top for 2. Claudio blocks the Yakuza kick and hits the Bicycle kick. Generico counters the Ricola Bomb into the sunset flip bomb for 2!!! Claudio blocks the assisted Tornado DDT and presses Generico into the uppercut for 2. Waterslide by Claudio gets 2. Claudio puts Generico on top and follows up. Generico crotches Claudio and puts him in the tree of woe. SPRINGBOARD SUMMERSAULT COAST TO COAST BY GENERICO GETS 2!!! Brainbuster by Generico gets 2!!! Yakuza kick by Generico and he puts Claudio on top. He follows up and goes for the Buckle Buster but Claudio blocks. Super Waterslide by Claudio gets 2!!! Generico counters the Ricola Bomb into the hurricanrana for 2!!! Claudio rolls through a sunset flip attempt and hits the Ricola Bomb for 2!!! Uppercuts by Claudio and Generico catches him with a backslide for 2. Running uppercut by Claudio and Generico comes back with big boots. Springboard uppercut by Claudio and he hits the Ricola Bomb for 3!!! Claudio gives a nice victory speech to end the show.
Winner of Race to the Top- Claudio Castagnoli ****1/4 ( Outstanding match to conclude the tournament. A great back and forth contest with Generico matching Claudio every step of the way and looking like Claudio’s equal. The sequences these two can pull off together continue to blow me away. )

Excellent show to cap off what was overall a very good tournament. The weekend allowed guys to step their game up and prove themselves to be the future of ROH. Guys like Claudio, Generico, and Richards put out good performances and put themselves in a position to be featured in the promotion going forward. The final two matches are excellent but the whole show was very good and this is worth going out of your way to see.

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Dylan Diot