By Holden McNeil
Both Davey Richards and Kenny Omega have had a strong 2009 here in Ring of Honor. For Richards, who has been here since 2006, it has without a doubt been the strongest year of his pro wrestling career. For Omega, who only made his ROH debut at “Northern Navigation” in July ’08, it’s been a year of establishing himself as a true threat.
Omega’s run truly kicked off in December 2008 with victories over Kenny King and Claudio Castagnoli at “All Star Extravaganza IV” and “Final Battle 2008” respectively. Impressive showings at “Stylin & Profilin” and “Insanity Unleashed” really started to show the ROH faithful how talented an athlete Kenny Omega is, and a victory over Austin Aries at “The Hunt Begins” cemented the Canadian as a force to be reckoned with. So after Aries captured the ROH World Title at “Manhattan Mayhem III”, fans began to wonder who would step up to challenge “A Double”. Many names got thrown out there, and chief among them was Omega as a result of that pinfall victory.
Since Aries considered that pinfall a fluke, he refused to give Omega a title match when ROH returned to Canada during “Death Before Dishonor VII” weekend. But both men tangled in a 6-Man Tag. Aries took Kenny King & Rhett Titus as his partners (both men whom Omega had defeated), while The Briscoes allied with Kenny in a victorious effort where Kenny once again pinned the ROH World Champion. If that second victory didn’t put Omega into contention than nothing was going to.
As for Davey Richards, many ROH fans have considered him the MVP of 2009 with multiple outstanding matches as a singles wrestler as well as part of the outstanding ROH World Tag Team Champion American Wolves. From “Proving Ground ‘09” to “Supercard of Honor IV” to “Double Feature II”, Richards has been on fire throughout the year, especially since he and Eddie Edwards captured the ROH World Tag Team Championship in a tables match from Kevin Steen and El Generico during episode 11 of ROH on HDNet (taped 4/10/09; aired 5/30/09). Another of Richards’ crowning moments came during a weekend when Edwards was competing in Pro Wrestling NOAH and Davey entered into the Toronto Gauntlet during “Death Before Dishonor VII, N.2”. The victor in the gauntlet would earn themselves an ROH World Title shot in the future, and in a bit of irony, it was Jimmy Rave whom Richards submitted to capture his title opportunity, the first title opportunity of his ROH career.
The gauntlet win for Richards paralleled Omega’s second pinfall victory over Austin Aries, and now the two men both stand in a position to challenge for the ROH World Title. That’s what makes this match-up in Collinsville this Friday night so intriguing. Not only is it the first meeting between these fighters here in ROH, but it may also go a long way to determine who will receive the next shot at “A Double” and the ROH World Title. Both men are extremely athletic, Davey’s a vicious striker, and Omega’s a high-flying dynamo with deceptive strength. They are both hungry, and both want a shot at Aries for very different reasons. Richards craves competition and desires to prove himself the best, Omega wants to beat some respect into Austin Aries, but ultimately it is all about the ROH World Title. Every competitor in ROH has their sights set on the most prestigious championship in pro wrestling, and this singles competition will have an immediate impact on the future of that title.
Tickets are still available right here at www.rohwrestling.com for THIS Friday night, October 9th in Collinsville, IL, and will also be available at the door the night of the event! And don’t forget you save $10 off your reserved seating until Thursday at noon EST.
