Bull James vs. Adam Cole from Ring of Honor 2016

This was a PROVING GROUND opportunity for Bull James.

This contest was a total embarrassment for Ring of Honor. The only silver lining was that this might actually serve as a great piece of evidence for historical purposes for explaining that ROH objectively eventually became a laughingstock of a company.

Bull James appeared so woefully unqualified (or unprepared) to make this match mean something for his credibility as a performer in any way. You actually almost feed so bad for him by the end.

The first four or five minutes suggested a 60-minute pace for this 15-minute match. All they did was trade some weak af headlocks for purposes that defy logic and reason. You’re not making a Joe/Punk 60-minute match in 2004 here, you guys.

We were then treated to some (TBS) VERY FUNNY comedy. Bull tried to chase Cole around the ring but got out of breath! It could have just been a clever ruse though! Regardless, Cole tried to take advantage of it, but it backfired! Oh ho ho ho!

Ring of Honor fans were then treated to a classic Adam Cole “work the leg” heat sequence. This was of course some scintillating stuff with all the brutality, violence, and intensity required to actually make something like that work. Adam Cole still being a thing companies push in 2016 of course makes perfect sense and is working out wonderfully.

How could Bull James fight back against such a devastating sequence targeting his leg you MUST be asking yourself? Well, now it was time for some PWG (VERY FUNNY) dancing! He first did Dusty Rhodes cosplay and then did Triple H cosplay (complete with screaming “SUCK IT!” before a pedigree). The people reacted to it so it must have been good.

The eventually ending sequence then involved Punisher Martinez running in for a distraction so Cole could more easily finish James off with a superkick to the injured leg (never mind, this match was the definition of substantive!) before finishing him off with his Wizard variation.

You really see how bad shit is getting for ROH in these smaller moments. When you have a small house show that few people are going to see, all you have to do is deliver something fun, memorable, and something that makes your loyal fans happy. Instead you give them this shit sandwich that could only make self-respecting fans embarrassed for the company. (DUD)

It got worse AFTER the match by the way. BJ Whitmer and Punisher attacked Bull James for a bit only for Steve Corino in Mr. Wrestling gear (with a Dusty twist – feel free to correct me if I misunderstood it though) making the save. At least Adam Cole was smart enough to get the fuck out of there before he was tied to that segment too.

(All photos credited to @MrJacobCohen – The Scoop King)