Match Ratings For ROH Best In The World 2019 From Sean Ross Sapp

Dalton Castle defeated Dragon Lee
5.5/10

• Dalton Castle has targeted Rush by challenging Dragon Lee.
• Lee comes out and attacks with two big dropkicks, but gets powerbombed on the apron.
• Castle is being really aggressive and tossing Lee around. Ironic that his heel work is going to get him over as a babyface again.
• Castle methodically works over Lee, who finally comes back with a week double underhook backbreaker.
• The offense gets a lot better with a Lee outside in dropkick, and a couple of dueling suplexes.
• This work isn’t great. A little sloppy, off base, and doesn’t connect.
• I see you with the Angel Hernandez reference @IanRiccaboni, and I respect you for it.
• Castle does Bangarang and Cabana says “WELL LADIES AND GENTLEMAN THAT HAS TO BE THE END OF THE MATCH.”
• It wasn’t. The Battle Cry finishes it for Castle. Or the Devil’s Horns, or the Peacock’s Feathers.
• This just didn’t click for me.

The Allure (w/ Velvet Sky) defeated Kelly Klein & Jenny Rose
4.5/10

• Angelina Love shoulder blocking Kelly Klein to the mat is something that probably shouldn’t ever happen.
• There’s some miscommunication, but Angelina has a great spot where she dives off the top rope to the floor.
• Jenny Rose flattened Mandy with a spear.
• Klein has an ambitious falling front DDT that I think could be a good move. Her fallaway slams are already great. She hits another from the second ropes.
• Kelly Klein gets hit with a high heel, and Angelina pins her with a kick.
• The lights go out and Maria Manic debuts. Allure escapes.
• Maria Manic beats up a bunch of security guards. Torture Rack and an Awesome Bomb. She won the crowd over.
• LMAOOOOO Colt Cabana: “THAT’S TATTOOED ON HER STOMACH!?”

Rubber Match
Kenny King defeated Jay Lethal
5.75/10

• We’re for SURE getting some slow chain wrestling with some kip ups to start this one.
• We do, but then King eats a drop toe hold into a chair.
• Kenny King suplexes Lethal into the apron.
• Lethal uses King’s Royal Flush against him.
• King catches Lethal on a suicide dive with a spinebuster… kind of.
• King does a Blue Thunder Bomb and doesn’t bother trying to pin. He connects with one of the ugliest shooting star presses you’ll ever see.
• Lethal is busy blaming Amy Rose for him not winning with Lethal Injection.
• Kenny King beats Lethal with a Lethal Injection and Royal Flush. The crowd reacted great to the finish of this.

Pure Rules
Jonathan Gresham defeated Silas Young
6/10

• Here are the rules — no closed fist punches to the face, and only three rope breaks per wrestler.
• The first five minutes of this match are them going through rules spots and burning rope breaks.
• This entire match has been explaining the pure rules. Silas gets his warning for a punch and burns a second rope break.
• There is some really good wrestling, and counters and transitions, including a rolling half crab from Young for a second rope break on Gresham.
• Silas Young has the tiniest goddamn trunks I have ever seen.
• Young has a great backbreaker into pin into sitting full nelson that leads to Gresham’s last rope break.
• Gresham has no rope breaks so has to work transitions and reversals in and out. Gresham forces Young’s hand into a rope break on an Octopus hold.
• There’s a great double suplex over the top rope.
• Jonathan Gresham punched Silas in the balls! The way Silas has beaten him. Gresham wins with an Octopus hold.
• I think if they run this back without killing a bunch of time having to explain the rules, it’ll resonate better. The finish ruled.

Briscoes vs. Team NWA (Eli Drake & Nick Aldis)
6/10

• Nick Aldis comes out during the pre-show to reveal who his replacement tag team partner for tonight will be.
• James Storm comes out, who is interrupted by Eli Drake. It’s him, and he’s signed with the NWA.
• Drake and Aldis aren’t exactly on the same page early on, but it’s their first time teaming.
• Drake does a nice neckbreaker and Aldis does a nice Michinoku Driver.
• Eli Drake impresses with a Burning Hammer and a run up superplex.
• Eli Drake is having a really good showing in his ROH/NWA debut.
• He eats a Redneck Boogie, but Aldis breaks it up.
• The action spills outside and we get a double countout.
• Drake and James Storm end up battling it out.
• Aldis is jumped by Briscoes. Colt Cabana isn’t medically cleared and Ian hilariously talked Colt out of helping. “As a man who is my friend, who has been to my house, as a man who once picked me up a delicious left side Twix on the way to the venue, as a man who recommended me a great Thai place to eat that one time, I can NOT let you go out there”- @IanRiccaboni went above and beyond.
• Kamille tries to help and couldn’t. Aldis gets elbowed through a table.
• Marty Scurll comes out after the beatdown to help Nick Aldis.

ROH Television Title
Shane Taylor (c) defeated Bandido
5.5/10

• Bandido is so athletically gifted, but so much of what he does doesn’t make much sense.
• Bandido does a roll up facebuster and Fosbury Flop.
• Taylor drills Bandido with a punch.
• There’s a lot of times when opponents have to wait for Bandido to do his moves, so they’re just left standing there.
• The 21Plex gets blocked, and Taylor hits a great powerbomb.
• Package Piledriver gets kicked out of, and Bandido is alive.
• Holy shit. Bandido caught Shane Taylor in midair. I have never. That was one of the more impressive strength displays I’ve seen. He follows with a Shooting Star Press for two.
• I’ve been really underwhelmed by Bandido’s ROH run, but that spot with Shane Taylor was nuts.
• Greetings from 216 gets the win for Taylor.

ROH Six Man Tag Team Titles
Villain Enterprises (c) defeated LifeBlood
6/10

• Villian Enterprises have new title belts and LOD spikes.
• We are only 15 months removed from PCO vs. WALTER at Spring Break 2 and it feels like 3 years ago
• Haskins and Scurll have great chemistry, something that happens when you work with someone dozens of times.
• Brody does a 7-10 Split dive off the apron, followed by a monkey flip senton onto PCO.
• Villain Enterprises work so, so well together.
• Brody King has great corner lariats, but PJ Black stays there readied to eat them and it doesn’t look hot.
• Scurll does a Quebec Crab into a backbreaker senton with Brody. Somehow PCO doesn’t die on a suicide somersault senton.
• Tracy Williams has a great streak, including a spiked piledriver on PCO.
• There was a complete trash fire kickout spot where PCO didn’t kick out on time.
• PCO does, however, get powerbombed off the top rope to the apron. Sick.
• PJ Black with a beautiful lionsault, but it’s shown up quickly.
• Brody does a spot that gets the hottest reaction of the night — a springboard, slingshot arm drag to two opponents, followed by a tope con hilo.
• PCO slips but gets his moonsault.
• This was a really good match that was unfortunately mired by miscommunication.
• The Soldiers of Savagery come out to attack LifeBlood. Bandido makes the save. However, Bully Ray attacks from behind.
• Flip Gordon comes to help, too, and is putting on a Lifeblood shirt.
• Marty Scurll is on the screen, already dressed after his match that just happened, teasing his new member. It’s Flip Gordon.
• PCO goes up to the rop rope, and can’t do it. Yep Flip Gordon just ate shit super hard on a 450 from the top rope through a table right after joining Villain Enterprises.
• I’ve already reached out to ROH in hopes they’ll send an update on Flip Gordon when available. That looked rough.

ROH World Championship
Matt Taven (c) defeated Jeff Cobb
5.75/10

• Cobb catches Taven with several dead lift suplexes.
• Taven yanks Cobb into the apron, and suicide dives him into the barricade.
• Taven works over the arm to prevent suplexes, but it doesn’t work too well.
• Cobb goes right back to high crotch suplexes.
• Taven clobbers Cobb with a big knee, but not a lot of reaction.
• Taven keeps going for Climax, but Cobb won’t let it happen.
• Taven pins Cobb with one of the sickest Climaxes ever, clean in about nine minutes
• Major timing issues.

Rating guide

10- Perfect, 9- MOTY Territory, 8- Excellent, 7- Great, 6- Good, 5- Average to above average, 4- Slightly below average, 3 or below: Poor

Each match starts at a 5 and slides up and down based on entertainment, execution, time, environment, reaction and stakes. The ratings are in no way an indication of a “star rating,” which is a completely different system. A standard, non-offensive “TV match” lands at a 5. The gap between 5.75-6 is generally the largest, with anything reaching 6 being recommended viewing.
These are opinions, and incredibly inconsistent ones. Don’t take them too seriously, and have (and share) your own!