Eck’s Files: Brian Johnson Hosts ROH Week By Week; Alex Zayne Guests On ROHStrong Podcast; Josh Woods’ First Interview Since Winning Pure Title

Eck’s Files: Brian Johnson Hosts ROH Week By Week; Alex Zayne Guests On ROHStrong Podcast; Josh Woods’ First Interview Since Winning Pure Title

September 24, 2021

By Kevin Eck

Everyone looks forward to seeing the smiling face and perky personality of Quinn McKay on ROH Week, but we’re all about to be in for a rude awakening.

Get ready to see the scowling face and petulant personality of Brian Johnson on the upcoming episode of the show, which premieres Tuesday at 1 p.m. Eastern on YouTube.

With McKay taking a week off, Johnson has been chosen to fill in as host.

My initial thought upon hearing this was that the irascible Johnson has to be the worst choice for a guest host since Dr. Oz on “Jeopardy!”

However, after thinking about it further, Johnson hosting ROH Week By Week does have a car-crash quality that will make it difficult to look away from.

Want more “Mecca?”

Johnson, fresh off his tainted win in a Pure gauntlet last weekend, will face his mentor, PJ Black, in a Pure Rules Match on this weekend’s episode of Ring of Honor Wrestling.

The show is headlined by a Four Corner Survival Match between Violence Unlimited’s Brody King, La Faccion Ingobernable’s Kenny King, The Foundation’s Jay Lethal, and Shane Taylor Promotions’ Shane Taylor.

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I had the honor of conducting the first interview with Josh Woods since he won the ROH Pure Title from Jonathan Gresham at Death Before Dishonor on Sept. 12.

During the conversation, Woods gave credit to his former mentor, Silas Young, for playing a significant role in his success.

“Silas had a lot of faith in me and faith in what we were doing, and essentially without him I wouldn’t be in this position,” Woods said. “He didn’t give me the tools to get to where I’m at, but he kind of pushed me in the right direction and he certainly helped. He’s definitely a contributing factor, so there will always be a part of me that’s very grateful for having Silas in my corner.”

Woods also discussed his big victory over Gresham; his father dying just a couple weeks prior to the match; the former Pure champions he would like to face, and more.

You can watch the interview here.

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“The Sauce” Alex Zayne was my guest on the latest episode of the ROHStrong Podcast, which drops this Monday morning on ROHWrestling.com and most podcast platforms.

Zayne talked about his surprise return at Death Before Dishonor and winning the Honor Rumble; his upcoming title match against ROH World Champion Bandido; defeating Bandido in his ROH debut last year; his release from WWE and his experience there; his backyard wrestling days and the insane move that made him a viral sensation, and more.

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Speaking of Zayne, he and Taylor Rust will face the Briscoes on Ring of Honor Wrestling the weekend of Oct. 2

Also on the show, Violence Unlimited (Brody King, Tony Deppen, Chris Dickinson and Homicide) have issued a challenge to “any four wrestlers who want to get violent” to face them in an eight-man tag match.

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Expect an announcement soon about another female competitor signing a contract with ROH, as the company continues to bolster its women’s division.

ROH Women’s World Champion Rok-C, Miranda Alize and Max The Impaler have all signed new deals with ROH recently.

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Ashley Vox is returning to ROH to compete on upcoming episodes of Women’s Division Wednesday on YouTube.

Vox, who was scheduled to participate in the original Quest for Gold tournament last year that ended up being canceled due to the pandemic, made two appearances in ROH in 2018.

***

Until next time, keep safe and stay #ROHStrong!

Kevin Eck is a veteran pro wrestling journalist who has worked for The Baltimore Sun, WWE and WCW before joining ROHWrestling.com. Eck’s Files appears every Friday.

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Be sure to visit Ring of Honor for more news and updates

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