NJPW involved in two title matches on Ring of Honor

Ring of Honor programming this week featured a pair of championship bouts with NJPW involvement, as Katsuyori Shibata faced the challenge of Alex Coughlin for the ROH Pure Championship, and Zack Sabre Jr. was challenged by Rocky Romero for the NJPW World TV Championship. 

Both fought over control of the wrist, before the champion came up with a headlock. Romero would come back with a tijeras however, and elevated Sabre to the apron, where he snapped the arm over the ropes and dropkicked ZSJ’s shoulder. A pair of topes suicida followed, but the champion caught a third with a cravate and homed in on his opponent’s neck. 

Sabre set to work on Romero, and was in full control five minutes deep in the match. Romero was unable to create space for long. A snap suplex would finally give the challenger room to breathe, but another attempt at a tijeras would be caught into an ankle lock. Pained, Rocky landed a rewind kick, before going to the sneaky style playbook with a poke to the eyes, and then a tornado DDT to draw a two count. 

Sliced Rocky looked to follow, and though ZSJ blocked the move, he left himself open to an armbar in the ropes. The champion responded with a punishing knee bar, and repaid the snap suplex favour dead center, but could only get two from the referee. Not giving in, Romero unleashed a flurry of strikes and hit a running Sliced Rocky for two, before looking for the Diablo Armbar; both men traded punishing submissions before Sabre caught Romero for the tapout. 

Also on the broadcast, after protege Alex Coughlin won a Pure Rules match at Collision in Philadelphia back in April, the Android finally got his shot in a student versus teacher match against Pure Champion Katsuyori Shibata. Shibata was quick to force his challenger to use the first of his three rope breaks by using a straight armbar, and then a second as he dominated Coughlin on the mat. The Android tried to power out of Shibata’s painful holds, but the champion found a Palo Special, Coughlin forced into his third and final rope break using his teeth. 

Schooled throughout, Coughlin was prone to a soaring dropkick in the corner and a half hatch. The Wrestler would move into a groin stretch, but Coughlin sat up, and then powered his mentor into a massive vertical suplex. Coughlin fired in chops to the champion and got two from a fallaway suplex, before a deadlift gutwrench for another nearfall. 

Coughlin looked to transition a second gutwrench into a submission, but was countered into a triangle choke. Coughlin powered his way out the hold, and threw a shoulder tackle that bowled Shibata over, before looking for a Jackhammer. The challenger gave up his back in the process as Shibata landed on his feet however, and a PK would get three. 

Zack Sabre Junior next defends his NJPW World TV Championship Friday night on Rampage against Action Andretti, defending against Jeff Cobb Sunday at Dominion if successful. Shibata defends the ROH Pure title on Rampage against Lee Moriarty.