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Here’s a preview of this weekend’s episode of “Ring of Honor Wrestling:”
Mike Bennett vs. Vincent
This is Bennett’s first match in ROH in five years, and while Vincent is no stranger to him, Vincent certainly is much stranger than the man Bennett once considered a close friend.
Bennett, Vincent and Matt Taven all came up together on the New England independent wrestling scene. But Bennett knew Vinny Marseglia, as he called himself then. Vincent, the cult leader of The Righteous, bears no resemblance — physically or mentally — to Vinny.
“I don’t really want to call him Vincent, because that’s foolish. He’s Vinny,” Bennett said. “He’s always been Vinny. I don’t know what he’s trying to portray now, but it’s disgusting to me.”
Bennett made his dramatic return to ROH two weeks ago when he saved Taven from an attack by Vincent and Bateman.
“I am really, really pissed off, and a pissed off, motivated, hungry, driven Mike Bennett is not somebody I would want to mess with,” Bennett said.
Back in 2014, Bennett welcomed Taven into The Kingdom. After Bennett left ROH at the end of 2015, Taven went on to form a new Kingdom and invited Vinny and TK O’Ryan to join him. But Vincent violently turned on Taven last year and formed The Righteous.
“Mike, I’m a little confused. Why am I the bad guy?” Vincent said. “Taven, when you destroyed your knee, didn’t Mike leave you all by yourself, man? To the point where I was all you had left? I didn’t mind because that’s what brought me here in the first place.”
Vincent asked Taven to deliver a message to Bennett from him.
“Tell Bennett that this is the biggest mistake he’s ever made — since you,” Vincent said.
Pure Rules Match: Tracy Williams vs. John Walters
The resurrection of the ROH Pure Championship has not gone unnoticed by Walters, who held the title for 189 days in 2004-2005, making him the second-longest reigning champion in the title’s history.
“I’m back because the Pure Title is back,” Walters said. “I want the ROH Pure Title and I’m going to move [Williams] out of the way convincingly to get that belt.”
Walters, who has not wrestled in ROH in 14 years, was scheduled to make his return at the Past vs. Present show in March, but the event was cancelled due to the pandemic. Walters made it clear, however, that he is not a nostalgia act.
“Tracy Williams made a statement that he wants to be the modern-day version of the former Pure wrestling champions,” Walters said. “Modern day? I’m here. I’m modern day. I’m not a thing of the past.”
In Williams, Walters will be facing a competitor at the very top of his game. “Hot Sauce” scored the biggest win of his career by defeating Jay Lethal to advance to the Pure Title Tournament final, where he came within an eyelash of defeating Jonathan Gresham.
Williams said that Walters is someone he always dreamed of wrestling.
“John, you had what it took to beat guys like Doug Williams, Jay Lethal, Alex Shelley, Homicide. You had what it took back then, but now the shoe is on the other foot,” Williams said. “You are a name that I’m going to prove myself against. I am going to have what it takes to beat you.”
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