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BALTIMORE — When Brody King said he was dedicating himself to becoming ROH World Champion several months ago, he made it clear that he was his own man and no longer a member of a group.
It turned out to be his undoing at the Final Battle pay-per-view Friday night. With no one to watch his back, King fell victim to the numbers game during his ROH World Title Match against defending champion RUSH in the main event at UMBC Event Center.
Just when it appeared King was going to win the championship, RUSH’s brother and fellow La Faccion Ingobernable member Dragon Lee distracted the referee, and their father, La Bestia del Ring, nailed King over the head with a chair. RUSH then hit Bull’s Horns to pin King and retain his title.
As RUSH, Lee and Bestia celebrated the tainted victory, The Foundation (Jonathan Gresham, Jay Lethal, Tracy Williams and Rhett Titus) came out to the stage and shook their heads in disgust at what they had just witnessed.
ROH Pure Champion Gresham, World Television Champion Lee and World Tag Team Champions Lethal and Gresham also successfully defended their titles, marking the first time since 2014 and fifth time in Final Battle’s 19-year history that no championships changed hands at the event.
Here are the complete results from the action-packed, four-hour extravaganza:
Four Corner Survival Match: Tony Deppen defeated LSG, Dak Draper and Josh Woods in 11:43 to earn a shot the ROH World Television Title later in the show
Draper spent the most time in the ring and was in control for the majority of the match, but it was Deppen — the only competitor in the contest not on the ROH roster — who pulled off the upset and earned the title shot against Dragon Lee.
After LSG hit a splash off the top rope onto Woods, Woods managed to roll out of the ring to avoid being pinned. The opportunistic Deppen immediately pounced on LSG and rolled him up for the three count.
Backstage interview with Shane Taylor and Soldiers of Savagery (Moses and Kaun)
Quinn McKay informed Taylor and SOS that ROH officials were awarding them the ROH World Six-Man Tag Team Title by forfeit because MexiSquad (Bandido, Flamita and Rey Horus) were pulled from the show due to pre-travel COVID-19 testing protocols.
Taylor and SOS refused to accept the title. Taylor said when they make history they will do it the right way.
Backstage interview with Jay Briscoe
Quinn McKay asked Briscoe for his thoughts about his scheduled match against EC3 being cancelled due to EC3 being pulled from the show because of the testing protocols. Briscoe remarked that EC3 was “licking door handles.”
Briscoe walked over to his brother Mark’s dressing room door and pounded on it. After Mark came out, Jay said he’s free tonight and they can team together to take on ROH World Tag Team Champions Jay Lethal and Jonathan Gresham. Mark said he already has a partner (PCO) and hopes Jay learned a lesson from this.
Shane Taylor walked up to Jay and challenged him to a match tonight since both of their scheduled matches were called off. Jay quickly accepted.
First-Ever Pure Rules Tag Team Match: The Foundation (Tracy Williams and Rhett Titus) defeated Fred Yehi and Wheeler Yuta in 13:51
Yehi had Williams trapped in a Koji Clutch, and Titus couldn’t save him because The Foundation were out of rope breaks. Yuta then caught Titus in a Dragon Sleeper outside the ring. Titus was able to slip out of the hold, and he lawn-darted Yuta into Williams to cause Yehi to release the Koji Clutch.
Williams applied the crossface to Yuta and put his feet on the ropes for additional leverage. Yehi and Yuta were out of rope breaks, and Yuta had no choice but to tap out.
ROH World Tag Team Title Match: Champions Jay Lethal and Jonathan Gresham defeated Mark Briscoe and PCO in 12:50
The story of the match was that the champions wanted to wrestle and the challengers wanted to fight. Briscoe and PCO used their roughhouse tactics to gain the advantage, but they couldn’t put Lethal and Gresham away.
As Briscoe stood on the apron and held Gresham, PCO charged across the ring. Gresham moved and PCO ran into Briscoe, knocking him to the floor. Gresham rolled up PCO for the win.
Rey Horus defeated Dalton Castle in 9:10
This match was made when Castle, who had been on commentary with Ian Riccaboni and Caprice Coleman for the first two matches, realized Horus was in the building and did not have a scheduled match.
Horus used his speed advantage to stay one step ahead of Castle for most of the match. He eventually hit a Tornado Driver off the top rope on the former ROH World Champion to pull off a shocking upset.
Grudge Tag Team Match: OGK (Matt Taven and Mike Bennett) defeated The Righteous (Vincent and Bateman w/Vita VonStarr) in 16:19
Taven and Bennett went on the attack right from the opening bell. They maintained the advantage until VonStarr provided a distraction to halt their momentum. The hatred between the two sides was evident from the ferocity in which they went at each other. Eventually, Bennett pinned Bateman after OGK’s Shining Wizard/Backpack Stunner combination.
As Taven and Bennett celebrated their hard-fought victory, VonStarr came up from behind and delivered a low blow to both of them. Vincent hit Orange Sunshine on Taven, and Bateman tackled Bennett. Vincent used zip ties to trap Taven in the ropes, and VonStarr used her legs to choke Taven.
With Taven being forced to watch, Vincent placed a wood block between Bennett’s ankles and slammed a steel chair on his right ankle. Bennett, in excruciating pain, was carried to the back. Last year at Final Battle, Vincent did the same thing to Taven’s ankle.
Danhausen defeated Brian Johnson by disqualification in 8:44
Danhausen needed to win this match in order for the ROH contract he signed to go into effect. Johnson was in control most of the way, and he grabbed a microphone from ringside and taunted Danhausen throughout the match.
Johnson seized Danhausen’s jar of teeth and poured them into Danhausen’s mouth. Johnson then kicked Danhausen in the face, sending the teeth flying. Some of the teeth hit the referee in his eyes. Johnson landed a cutter and covered Danhausen, but the referee was still trying to clear his eyes.
Danhausen grabbed the microphone, smacked it with his hand to make a noise, rubbed it in his face paint and handed it to Johnson. Danhausen then laid down on the mat and held his head. The referee regained his sight, surveyed the scene and concluded that Johnson hit Danhausen in the head with the microphone. The referee disqualified Johnson.
ROH World Television Title Match: Champion Dragon Lee defeated Tony Deppen in 11:50
Deppen got off to a fast start and scored a couple of near falls. After several minutes of hard-hitting action, Deppen scored two more near falls. Lee answered with his Incineration knee strike to the face, but Deppen kicked out at two. Lee hit the move again, and this time Deppen did not kick out.
Shane Taylor (w/Soldiers of Savagery) defeated Jay Briscoe in 13:49
Two of the toughest, hardest-hitting competitors in the sport squared off and the match did not disappoint. Taylor and Briscoe exchanged one devastating blow after another and kept coming back for more.
During the match, Mark Briscoe came out to support his brother. Jay hit a Rude Awakening for a near fall, and Taylor answered with a package piledriver for a near fall. Taylor finished off the two-time former ROH World Champion with Welcome to the Land. This was one of the biggest victories of Taylor’s career.
After the match, Mark offered a forearm bump to his brother. Jay hesitated before eventually accepting the gesture, but then he left the ring without Mark.
ROH Pure Title Match: Champion Jonathan Gresham defeated Flip Gordon by referee stoppage in 24:37
Gordon, competing in just his second Pure match, used all three of his allotted rope breaks within the first seven minutes. Gresham worked over Gordon’s left arm. The tide turned after Gresham came up empty on a crossbody off the top rope and hurt his left knee. Gordon immediately went to work on the knee.
Gordon caught Gresham in the STF, but Gresham used his final rope break. Gordon applied the submission maneuver again. Gresham, out of rope breaks, managed to partially break free, as both men tumbled out to the floor.
Back inside the ring, Gresham hit a hammerlock back superplex for a near fall. With Gordon dazed and on his knees, Gresham rocked him with two running forearms. As Gresham was about to deliver a third forearm, the referee stepped in front of him and stopped the match because Gordon was out.
Afterwards, Gordon refused to adhere to the Code of Honor.
ROH World Title Match: Champion RUSH defeated Brody King in 16:35
King was the aggressor early, but once RUSH gained the advantage, he was relentless. The champion took the fight outside the ring and threw King into the barricade. Then he got ahold of some cables from under the ring and choked and whipped the challenger with them.
King, however, proved resilient and began to dish out some punishment of his own. When RUSH set up for Bull’s Horns, King charged out of the corner and speared him for a near fall. RUSH was in trouble after King nailed him with a lariat and set up for the Gonzo Bomb.
That’s when Dragon Lee and La Bestia del Ring showed up and helped RUSH steal the victory.
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