ROH Pure Championship
Encyclopedia
The Ring of Honor Pure Championship was a professional wrestling
championship
contested for in the American professional wrestling promotion
Ring of Honor
. The championship was generally contested in professional wrestling matches
, in which participants execute scripted
finishes rather than contend in direct competition.
While not a rule itself, it is worth noting that unlike other championships, the ROH Pure Championship could change hands on a disqualification or count out.
defeated CM Punk
in the finals of an 8 man, one night tournament to crown the first champion. The tournament took place at the Second Anniversary Show and also featured John Walters
, Chris Sabin
, Doug Williams
, Matt Stryker, Josh Daniels and Jimmy Rave
.
The ROH Pure Championship was created after Styles was forced to vacate the Pure Wrestling Title in the wake of the Rob Feinstein controversy that resulted in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling
abruptly ending its talent-sharing agreement with ROH (pulling all of its contracted performers, including Styles, from all ROH shows). However, ROH considers the "Pure Wrestling Championship" and the "ROH Pure Championship" two distinct titles -- not a single title that was merely re-named/re-branded. There is no mention of Styles on ROH's website as having held the "ROH Pure Championship," and it was seldom, if ever, acknowledged in commentary that Styles held the previous version of the title or that it even existed. Doug Williams
would become the first recognized holder of the ROH Pure Championship after he defeated Alex Shelley
in the finals of a one night mini-tournament at Reborn: Completion.
Weekend of Champions: Night Two, on April 29, 2006, saw the first ever title vs. title match in Ring of Honor as ROH World Champion
Bryan Danielson
took on ROH Pure Champion Nigel McGuinness
. The match was contested under Pure Title rules, but both the World and Pure Titles were on the line. McGuinness won the bout by countout, but since only the Pure title can change hands on a countout, he did not win the ROH World Championship. The two faced each other again on August 12, 2006 in Liverpool
, England
, with Danielson defeating McGuinness to unify the ROH Pure Championship with the ROH World Championship. Danielson and McGuinness competed in a rematch for the ROH World Championship later that month, wrestling to a one hour draw. After the match, Danielson announced that the ROH Pure Championship had been officially retired, and gave the belt back to McGuinness to keep.
{| class="wikitable sortable" width=98% style="text-align:center;"
!style="background:#e3e3e3" width=0%| #
!style="background:#e3e3e3" width=23%|Wrestlers
!style="background:#e3e3e3" width=0%|Reign
!style="background:#e3e3e3" width=15%|Date
!style="background:#e3e3e3" width=5%|Days
held
!style="background:#e3e3e3" width=13%|Location
!style="background:#e3e3e3" width=15%|Event
!style="background:#e3e3e3" width=0%|Successful defenses
!style="background:#e3e3e3" width=40% class="unsortable"|Notes
|-
|
|
|
|
|
|Braintree, MA
|Second Anniversary Show
|1
|align=left|Defeated CM Punk
in a tournament final. Reign no longer recognised.
|-
|
|
|
|
|
|N/A
|N/A
|—
|align=left|Vacated when Styles was pulled from all ROH shows by Total Nonstop Action Wrestling
following the Rob Feinstein controversy
|-
|
|
|
|
|
|Elizabeth, NJ
|Reborn: Completion
|3
|align=left|Defeated Alex Shelley
in a tournament final. ROH only recognizes reigns from here on.
|-
|
|
|
|
|
|Elizabeth, NJ
|Scramble Cage Melee
|6
|align=left|
|-
|
|
|
|
|
|Philadelphia, PA
|Trios Tournament 2005
|2
|align=left|
|-
|
|
|
|
|
|New York, NY
|Manhattan Mayhem
|6
|align=left|
|-
|
|
|
|
|
|Buffalo, NY
|Dragon Gate Invasion
|17
|align=left|
|-
|
|
|
|
|
|Liverpool, England
|Unified
|
|align=left|Unified with Danielson's ROH World Championship
.
|-
{| class="wikitable sortable"
!style="background:#e3e3e3"|Rank
!style="background:#e3e3e3"|Wrestler
!style="background:#e3e3e3"|# Of Reigns
!style="background:#e3e3e3"|Combined Days
!style="background:#e3e3e3"|Combined Defenses
|-
|1.||Nigel McGuinness||1||350||17
|-
|2.||John Walters||1||189||6
|-
|3.||Samoa Joe||1||112||6
|-
|4.||A.J. Styles||1||69||1
|-
|5.||Jay Lethal||1||63||2
|-
|6.||Doug Williams||1||42||3
|-
|7.||Bryan Danielson||1||0||-
|}
Professional wrestling
Professional wrestling is a mode of spectacle, combining athletics and theatrical performance.Roland Barthes, "The World of Wrestling", Mythologies, 1957 It takes the form of events, held by touring companies, which mimic a title match combat sport...
championship
Championship (professional wrestling)
A Championship or "title" in professional wrestling is a recognition promoted by professional wrestling organizations.Championship reigns are determined by professional wrestling matches, in which competitors are involved in scripted rivalries...
contested for in the American professional wrestling promotion
Professional wrestling promotion
A professional wrestling promotion is a company or business that regularly performs shows involving professional wrestling. Promotion also describes a role which entails management, advertising and logistics of running a wrestling event...
Ring of Honor
Ring of Honor
Ring of Honor ' is an American professional wrestling promotion, founded in 2002 by Rob Feinstein and Gabe Sapolsky. From 2004 to 2011, the promotion was under the ownership of Cary Silkin before being sold to the Sinclair Broadcast Group in May 2011...
. The championship was generally contested in professional wrestling matches
Professional wrestling match types
Many types of matches, sometimes called "concept" or "gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, can be found in the form of performing art that is professional wrestling....
, in which participants execute scripted
Screenplay
A screenplay or script is a written work that is made especially for a film or television program. Screenplays can be original works or adaptations from existing pieces of writing. In them, the movement, actions, expression, and dialogues of the characters are also narrated...
finishes rather than contend in direct competition.
Pure wrestling rules
Matches for the ROH Pure Championship were conducted under Pure Wrestling Rules. The three Pure Wrestling Rules are:- Each wrestler has three rope breaks to stop submission holds and pinfalls during the match. After a wrestler exhausts his rope breaks, submission and pin attempts under the ropes by the opponent are considered legal.
- There are no closed-fist punches to the face allowed in a Pure match, only open-handed slaps or chops to the face are allowed. Punches to other parts of the body (save for low-blows) are permitted. The first use of a closed fist will get a warning, and the second will cause the wrestler to be penalized a rope break. If he is already out of rope breaks, he will be disqualified.
- A wrestler is subject to a twenty count by the referee if the wrestler goes to the floor.
While not a rule itself, it is worth noting that unlike other championships, the ROH Pure Championship could change hands on a disqualification or count out.
History
The title was originally named the Pure Wrestling Championship and A.J. StylesA.J. Styles
Allen Neal Jones , better known by his ring name A.J. Styles is an American professional wrestler currently working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling...
defeated CM Punk
CM Punk
Phillip Jack "Phil" Brooks , better known by his ring name CM Punk, is an American professional wrestler currently signed to WWE and working on its Raw brand currently serving his second title reign as WWE Champion....
in the finals of an 8 man, one night tournament to crown the first champion. The tournament took place at the Second Anniversary Show and also featured John Walters
John Stagikas
John Stagikas is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, "Hurricane" John Walters and in Lucha Libre USA as RJ Brewer, the kayfabe son of Arizona Governor Jan Brewer...
, Chris Sabin
Chris Sabin
Joshua Harter is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Chris Sabin. He is currently working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , where he currently teams with Alex Shelley as The Motor City Machine Guns.After being trained by Scott D'Amore, Sabin debuted in 2000 for...
, Doug Williams
Doug Williams (wrestler)
Douglas Clayton Durdle is an English professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Doug Williams. He is currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling under the ring name Douglas Williams...
, Matt Stryker, Josh Daniels and Jimmy Rave
Jimmy Rave
James Guffey is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Jimmy Rave. He is best known for working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling...
.
The ROH Pure Championship was created after Styles was forced to vacate the Pure Wrestling Title in the wake of the Rob Feinstein controversy that resulted in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling
Total Nonstop Action Wrestling
Total Nonstop Action Wrestling is a privately held professional wrestling promotion founded by Jeff Jarrett and Jerry Jarrett. The company broadcasts its events on television and the Internet fifty two weeks a year with over a million weekly viewers on its primary television program, Impact...
abruptly ending its talent-sharing agreement with ROH (pulling all of its contracted performers, including Styles, from all ROH shows). However, ROH considers the "Pure Wrestling Championship" and the "ROH Pure Championship" two distinct titles -- not a single title that was merely re-named/re-branded. There is no mention of Styles on ROH's website as having held the "ROH Pure Championship," and it was seldom, if ever, acknowledged in commentary that Styles held the previous version of the title or that it even existed. Doug Williams
Doug Williams (wrestler)
Douglas Clayton Durdle is an English professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Doug Williams. He is currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling under the ring name Douglas Williams...
would become the first recognized holder of the ROH Pure Championship after he defeated Alex Shelley
Alex Shelley
Patrick Martin , is an American professional wrestler, better known by the ring name Alex Shelley. He wrestles for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he currently teams with Chris Sabin as The Motor City Machine Guns. He previously gained fame on the independent circuit, working most notably for...
in the finals of a one night mini-tournament at Reborn: Completion.
Weekend of Champions: Night Two, on April 29, 2006, saw the first ever title vs. title match in Ring of Honor as ROH World Champion
ROH World Championship
The Ring of Honor World Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in Ring of Honor. The championship has also been through other companies in cooperation with ROH through the Global Professional Wrestling Alliance , the governing body of many independent wrestling...
Bryan Danielson
Bryan Danielson
Bryan Danielson is an American professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE where he wrestles on its SmackDown brand as Daniel Bryan, and currently holds the SmackDown Money in the Bank briefcase, which enables him to have a World Heavyweight Championship match at any time of his choosing...
took on ROH Pure Champion Nigel McGuinness
Nigel McGuinness
Steven Haworth is an English professional wrestler, better known by the ring names Desmond Wolfe and Nigel McGuinness. As McGuinness he first gained notoriety working for Ring of Honor in the United States and Pro Wrestling Noah in Japan...
. The match was contested under Pure Title rules, but both the World and Pure Titles were on the line. McGuinness won the bout by countout, but since only the Pure title can change hands on a countout, he did not win the ROH World Championship. The two faced each other again on August 12, 2006 in Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, with Danielson defeating McGuinness to unify the ROH Pure Championship with the ROH World Championship. Danielson and McGuinness competed in a rematch for the ROH World Championship later that month, wrestling to a one hour draw. After the match, Danielson announced that the ROH Pure Championship had been officially retired, and gave the belt back to McGuinness to keep.
Title history
Key| Reign | The reign number for the specific set of wrestlers listed |
| # | Numbers in bold indicate that a reign is current and changes daily |
| Event | The event promoted by the respective promotion in which the titles were won |
| Successful defenses | Accounts how many defenses the champion had during their reign |
{| class="wikitable sortable" width=98% style="text-align:center;"
!style="background:#e3e3e3" width=0%| #
!style="background:#e3e3e3" width=23%|Wrestlers
!style="background:#e3e3e3" width=0%|Reign
!style="background:#e3e3e3" width=15%|Date
!style="background:#e3e3e3" width=5%|Days
held
!style="background:#e3e3e3" width=13%|Location
!style="background:#e3e3e3" width=15%|Event
!style="background:#e3e3e3" width=0%|Successful defenses
!style="background:#e3e3e3" width=40% class="unsortable"|Notes
|-
|
|
|
|
|
|Braintree, MA
Braintree, Massachusetts
The Town of Braintree is a suburban city in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. Although officially known as a town, Braintree adopted a municipal charter, effective 2008, with a mayor-council form of government and is considered a city under Massachusetts law. The population was 35,744...
|Second Anniversary Show
|1
|align=left|Defeated CM Punk
CM Punk
Phillip Jack "Phil" Brooks , better known by his ring name CM Punk, is an American professional wrestler currently signed to WWE and working on its Raw brand currently serving his second title reign as WWE Champion....
in a tournament final. Reign no longer recognised.
|-
|
|
|
|
|
|N/A
|N/A
|—
|align=left|Vacated when Styles was pulled from all ROH shows by Total Nonstop Action Wrestling
Total Nonstop Action Wrestling
Total Nonstop Action Wrestling is a privately held professional wrestling promotion founded by Jeff Jarrett and Jerry Jarrett. The company broadcasts its events on television and the Internet fifty two weeks a year with over a million weekly viewers on its primary television program, Impact...
following the Rob Feinstein controversy
|-
|
|
|
|
|
|Elizabeth, NJ
Elizabeth, New Jersey
Elizabeth is a city in Union County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city had a total population of 124,969, retaining its ranking as New Jersey's fourth largest city with an increase of 4,401 residents from its 2000 Census population of 120,568...
|Reborn: Completion
|3
|align=left|Defeated Alex Shelley
Alex Shelley
Patrick Martin , is an American professional wrestler, better known by the ring name Alex Shelley. He wrestles for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he currently teams with Chris Sabin as The Motor City Machine Guns. He previously gained fame on the independent circuit, working most notably for...
in a tournament final. ROH only recognizes reigns from here on.
|-
|
|
|
|
|
|Elizabeth, NJ
Elizabeth, New Jersey
Elizabeth is a city in Union County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city had a total population of 124,969, retaining its ranking as New Jersey's fourth largest city with an increase of 4,401 residents from its 2000 Census population of 120,568...
|Scramble Cage Melee
|6
|align=left|
|-
|
|
|
|
|
|Philadelphia, PA
|Trios Tournament 2005
|2
|align=left|
|-
|
|
|
|
|
|New York, NY
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
|Manhattan Mayhem
|6
|align=left|
|-
|
|
|
|
|
|Buffalo, NY
Buffalo, New York
Buffalo is the second most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City. Located in Western New York on the eastern shores of Lake Erie and at the head of the Niagara River across from Fort Erie, Ontario, Buffalo is the seat of Erie County and the principal city of the...
|Dragon Gate Invasion
|17
|align=left|
|-
|
|
|
|
|
|Liverpool, England
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
|Unified
|
|align=left|Unified with Danielson's ROH World Championship
ROH World Championship
The Ring of Honor World Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in Ring of Honor. The championship has also been through other companies in cooperation with ROH through the Global Professional Wrestling Alliance , the governing body of many independent wrestling...
.
|-
Combined reigns
This list includes all title reigns.{| class="wikitable sortable"
!style="background:#e3e3e3"|Rank
!style="background:#e3e3e3"|Wrestler
!style="background:#e3e3e3"|# Of Reigns
!style="background:#e3e3e3"|Combined Days
!style="background:#e3e3e3"|Combined Defenses
|-
|1.||Nigel McGuinness||1||350||17
|-
|2.||John Walters||1||189||6
|-
|3.||Samoa Joe||1||112||6
|-
|4.||A.J. Styles||1||69||1
|-
|5.||Jay Lethal||1||63||2
|-
|6.||Doug Williams||1||42||3
|-
|7.||Bryan Danielson||1||0||-
|}