Hero Vs. Claudio - The Battle Comes To ROH

The true battle of the two competitors most fit to claim the moniker of king in the wrestling community will be waged this Friday at the Manhattan Center, when Claudio Castignoli and Chris Hero. The anticipation for this match is so great that it stretches all the way back to last year when the Kings were still a cohesive unit. December 23rd, 2006, at Final Battle 2006 was meant to be Claudio Castignoli’s last match with Ring Of Honor. He had just signed a developmental deal with the WWE and would report to them at the start of 2007. Hero would bring in super agent Larry Sweeney to help him acquire a locker room and a permanent spot on the ROH roster, and promised that he would pay tribute to his friend and protégé on his last night with the company the two had attempted to defeat months earlier during the ROH-CZW war. Many hoped that “tribute” would translate into “one-on-one match,” but it was not to be, as the tandem challenged the Briscoe Brothers to a rematch from their match in Hartford the previous night.

After nearly twenty minutes of tremendous back and forth actions, miscommunication between Claudio and Hero lead to their downfall, as Claudio went for a briefcase shot on one of the brothers with his Halliburton, but ended up hitting Hero instead, allowing the Briscoes to gain the pin fall and a measure of revenge in the process. After the match, Claudio thanked the fans and he would stick around for a little longer to show us all what the Kings had in store for everyone in 2007. Sweeney interjected, stating that he had big plans for Chris Hero this year and that those plans did not involve Claudio. Claudio extended a hand to his friend, who shook it, but ended up leaving with Sweeney to the dismay of the crowd.

Disputes over his work visa lead to Claudio never even reporting to Deep South for the WWE, and the most money making man almost immediately went back to work for ROH. He was once again, as he had been during his opposition to ROH, an outcast, as he was not welcome in the locker room and had to enter the ring through the crowd. Hero, on the other hand, would see his stock rise. His first match in 2007 saw him challenge the newly crowned Homicide for the ROH World Title, a match many assumed Hero would win the gold though he failed to do so.

The two would finally end up on opposite sides of the ring at ‘The Battle of the Icons,’ when they were involved in a three way dance also involving former rival and co-Tag Champion Christopher Daniels. Hero and Claudio seemed as though they were headed for a reunion of sorts, as they double-teamed Daniels constantly throughout the match. Hero, however, caught Claudio off guard at one point, rolling him up and earning the victory. Claudio was beside himself, but he would not get the chance to challenge Hero for some time, as Hero would venture to Japan to compete for Pro Wrestling NOAH. In the meantime, Claudio remained a target of Larry Sweeney, who even went so far to pay off Brent Albright to injured Claudio during the Fifth Year Festival.

Claudio would persevere, joining the ROH Team to battle the Dragon Gate Team at All Star Extravaganza III. More and more, the fans began to embrace Claudio with each passing night. He completely redeemed himself at ‘Respect Is Earned’ during his show stealing Tag Title match with Matt Sydal against the Briscoes. Hero would return and found himself now involved in a feud with Nigel McGuinness, who came to the aid of Bruno Sammartino at ASEIII when Hero challenged the legend to a fight. The next night at Supercard of Honor saw Hero on the losing end of a Number One Contender’s match against Nigel after a jawbreaker lariat.

Because of their excellent showing that night Claudio and Sydal were allowed to select a partner of their choosing to challenge the Briscoes in separate two of the three falls matches. ‘Domination’ in Philadelphia would be Claudio’s shot, in which he chose Hero to be his partner. The former Kings of Wrestling would be shut out in two straight falls, and after the match, Hero would leave Claudio alone in the ring. Then, at ‘United We Stand,’ Sydal chose Claudio to be his partner in return for selecting him for the initial encounter, though once again, they were unsuccessful in their bid for the gold. During the ‘Driven’ PPV taping in Chicago, Claudio was able to defeat his one time partner Sydal. After the match, Hero and Sweeney approached Sydal and offered him a hefty sum to abandon Claudio and join the ever-growing Sweet ‘N Sour International. Sydal denied the offer, but then turned on Claudio before Hero and Sweeney would join in on the attack.

Claudio was down but not out. He continued to strive forward on his own. Hero, meanwhile, had Sweet ‘N Sour International in his corner, and looked to be unstoppable. Both men were favorites in the upcoming two night ‘Race To The Top Tournament,’ in which the winner would skyrocket to the main event scene. Hero would lose in a Quarterfinal Match to El Generico, but Claudio’s story would turn out a little differently. He would go on to defeat Generico in the finals to win the tournament. As a result, he would receive a World Title match against Takeshi Morishima at the recent Death Before Dishonor event in Boston, which he came within centimeters of winning. The following night in Philadelphia, Hero attempted to maim Claudio by driving the ‘RTTT’ trophy into his eye after Hero was victorious over Claudio in a tag match.

Now, finally, as Larry Sweeney has put it, the money is right. Chris Hero and Claudio Castignoli will meet for the first time in an ROH ring. Wrestling fans have been pining for it for almost a year now, and now it is time to dance. Chris Hero will face Claudio Castignoli in their first one on one match in ROH this Saturday at the Manhattan Center. It may be the first time, but I am certain that it won’t be the last time. There is no doubt in my mind that whoever wins this first match will truly strike first blood in a feud that is bound to give us more than one classic encounter.

Bryan Danielson: Still The Best In The World?

For 462 days, “American Dragon” Bryan Danielson – who carries the self-proclaimed moniker of best wrestler in the world today – was truly on top of the world. As ROH World Champion, Bryan Danielson – who sent open contracts around the world in search of fresh challengers – took on all comers, and defeated everyone that was put in the ring with him. He avenged a loss that caused him to temporarily quit ROH against Austin Aries in his first defense. He defeated Roderick Strong in each of their one-on-one encounters in what turned out to be a classic trilogy. He won classic series against Samoa Joe, Colt Cabana, KENTA, and Nigel McGuinness, who all fell short against the champion. The McGuinness feud in particular saw an instant classic between the two in which Danielson not only successfully defend his title across the pond in Liverpool in front of a crowd that was firmly against him, but it also saw him rest away the Pure Title from McGuinness to unify the two belts. There was no doubt in anyone’s mind that 2006 was the Year of the Dragon.

Danielson, however, was starting to feel the strain of being such a fighting champion. On August 26th, 2006, during the opening minutes of a two out of three falls match with Colt Cabana in Chicago Ridge, Cabana sidestepped Danielson, sending him through the ropes and crashing to the floor. Danielson landed on his shoulder, causing two ligaments to tear. Danielson then fought through the next 50 minutes of the match with the agonizing pain in his shoulder. In wake of the injury, doctors told Danielson that it would be wise of him to opt for surgery, but physical therapy was not out of the question. ROH officials even offered Danielson some time off to recover without stripping him of his title. But Danielson denied anything – no surgery, no physical therapy, no time off. Instead, the champion lessened his load, defended the title only once a month, and continued his reign past the one-year mark. Danielson downplayed the injury, proclaiming, “Pain is temporary, pride is everything.” The classic reign of Danielson would come to an end on December 23rd of last year, as Homicide was finally able to end the curse and beat the Dragon in his hometown of Manhattan at Final Battle. Danielson handed the belt over to Homicide, but let it be known to the new champion that he would be coming for it again.

For five months, ROH was without the Dragon. He took time off to rehabilitate the injured shoulder, and then went on an extended tour with Pro Wrestling NOAH, where he was on the winning side more often than not. Then, the announcement fans had been waiting months for finally came – Danielson would make his triumphant return to Ring of Honor at “Reborn Again” in Hartford. Danielson found himself victorious that night over both Shane Hagadorn and Adam Pearce in singles matches, as well as embroiled in the No Remorse Corp-Resilience feud. The next night at “Respect Is Earned,” ROH’s first PPV taping at the Manhattan Center, Danielson made his first claim for the World Title when he challenged Takeshi Morishima. Later that night, he found himself on the same team as the champion against his old rivals McGuinness and KENTA. Danielson would pick up the victory for his team, submitting KENTA for the second time in the Manhattan Center with the Cattle Mutilation.

From there, Danielson has gone on to have an incredible comeback. In addition to the victories over Hagadorn, Pearce, and in the aforementioned dream tag match, Danielson has earned victories in singles matches against Jimmy Rave, Go Shiozaki, and against Nigel McGuinness in a match many are calling a classic, that was taped for ROH’s second PPV “Driven.” He has also been on the winning side of several tag and multi-man matches with various partners, particularly of note in a match where he and McGuinness teamed up to defeat the NOAH tandem of Morishima and Naomichi Marafuji. Danielson’s only official loss came at the hands of KENTA in a match that took place during the second half of the “Driven” taping. But it was at the ROH debut show in Tokyo after Danielson’s highly-praised victory over Shiozaki that he said over the house mic, “I want a title shot!” Later in the night, Danielson stood face to face with Morishima, who just had a successfully defended the against McGuinness. Danielson held the belt in his hands, claiming it to be his, before slapping Morishima in the face and quickly retreating, only to be stopped by McGuinness.

While both Bryan Danielson and Takeshi Morishima have other hurdles to jump before their World Title clash on August 25th at the Manhattan Center, this will no doubt be the biggest match since their return and debut respectively. Morishima has the busiest and most challenging month of his tenure as ROH World Champion, as he will defend the belt against ‘Race To The Top’ Tournament winner Claudio Castignoli and Brent Albright on back to back nights during “Death Before Dishonor” weekend. Danielson will be equally busy, as he squares off against Matt Sydal and Mike Quackenbush in two matches unique to ROH fans during the same double shot. While Danielson can’t overlook these two matches, as they will no doubt be crucial to his momentum heading into Manhattan, one can’t deny that his true focus is on Morishima. And with the challenges getting tougher and tougher for Morishima as his reign continues, one has to wonder what kind of condition he will be in when the Danielson match rolls around. Morishima’s matches have been going longer and longer since he won the belt, and that might be something that will work to Danielson’s advantage, as he was known during his reign to drag matches out as long as possible in order to turn the tide in his favor.

This month will prove to be the biggest month in the career of Bryan Danielson thus far. His matches with Sydal and Quack will be difficult, but will more than likely be warm up matches to his first shot at the title since he lost it last year. Morishima - who will more than likely be the man Danielson will face for the belt at the NYC event - will (literally) be his biggest challenge to date, one that he certainly cannot afford to take lightly. If he were able to defeat Morishima and recapture the title that he feels is rightfully his in the same building that he lost it in, there would be no question that he is truly the best in the world.

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Later this week, I'll take a look at the Matt Sydal-Delirious feud - which has been actually going on for almost three and a half years now - and why I love it oh so much. Until then, stay honorable.