The news was sad. ROH was going on hiatus. It sucks because this peculiar promotion wasn't gimmicky as other wrestling companies. They promoted wrestling. Plain and simple. It was a change of pace and a breath of fresh air since the other big promotion on the block, WWE, wanted to focus on entertainment more than actual wrestling. Despite that, Ring of Honor was an underground sensation among the wrestling community. They used a method called The Code of Honor, where opponents shake hands before each bout. It reminds me of the traditional handshake after an NHL game. The company became a platform for future stars and legends such as CM Punk, Austin Aries, Samoa Joe, Bryan Danielson, Kevin Steen, El Generico....etc; etc. The issue with Ring of Honor is that talent will be set to leave the organization for greener pastures without really establishing a long-term stint. Some have, but a lot do not.
Ring of Honor was an independent circuit entity, and after almost 20 years, that's all they were. Should they have been bigger than they were? Without a doubt, yes. Certain situations have prevented them from becoming a huge force in the industry and having talent stay long-term.
Sinclair Broadcasting had taken control of Ring of Honor in 2011 and many thought this was the break ROH needed to become a huge player in the wrestling community. They decided to put Joe Koff as COO of the company. Here's the thing. Joe Koff has been a wrestling fan since childhood and has done everything to promote the company to his fullest extent. But Joe Koff didn't have experience in the wrestling business. People will point out that Tony Khan doesn't have experience in the business, also, and AEW is "successful". Khan is willing to spend his capital to make AEW "successful", while Sinclair seemed to give ROH a push, but not the push they needed. Sinclair was not going to be a FOX, TNT or a USA network. Hell, they're not an AXIS-TV, which airs Impact! Wrestling. The fact of the matter is finding a station that carried ROH programming was difficult. When you did find one, they would air commercials from local chiropractors or car dealerships. I never watched wrestling during the territorial days, so this was what I think this felt like. Sinclair was regional, and that's it.
Another reason for ROH's "downfall" was behavioral issues behind the scenes. Greg Gilliland, or as Jim Cornette calls him "Greg The Office Boy" was thrust into a role as GM of the promotion. He was the Corporate Business Manager at Sinclair. See any red flags here? Sinclair named two inexperienced men to run a wrestling promotion. They were corporate guys. Meaning, they care for the bottom line only. Gilliland as the GM has been a disaster....allegedly. After "parting ways" with the company, Joey Mercury went on a social media rant, stating several grievances and lack of structure when it came to paying the talent or taking care of the talent when they were hurt. Former employee B.J. Whitmer echoed Mercury's sediment. Kelly Klein was the reigning Women Of Honor Champion when she and the company "parted ways". She claimed she was fired and was working with a concussion. The most damning thing was that Klein filed a lawsuit against ROH, Sinclair, Koff, Gilliland, Hunter Johnston and Jay Lethal for a list of complaints, including sexual harassment claims against Lethal. Taeler Hendrix has also come out and claimed Lethal sexually harassed her. He has denied the claims and was still on the roster without any punishment or investigation into the matter. Then came the Marty Scrull fiasco. The promotion gave Scrull absolute power in his contract since he was one of the hottest acts in the independent scene. Everything was great until the #SpeakingOut movement came about and allegations against Scrull stopped everything in its tracks. ROH "parted ways" with Scrull after these allegations were made against him.
After all that I just listed here, the company was in peril. They had opportunities to make the ROH brand into a player. Yet after all this, there was something holding ROH back even before this transcended. Something that could have killed the company, even before they put their stamp on the wrestling business. That would come from the founder of ROH, Rob Feinstein.
Rob Feinstein has been behind the scenes in the wrestling business since the 90's. His RF Video business turned Feinstein into a made man with its shoot interview platform and its success in the made-for-DVD world. He was also a mainstay in the wrestling conventions across the country. With money and backing from the wrestling community, Rob Feinstein started ROH in 2002. The promotion was technically, the last refuge from the old ECW days as they had shows at the ECW Arena in Philadelphia. The buzz surrounding ROH was causing fans to give the promotion a second look. Under Feinstein's watch, ROH should have been an asset in the independent scene. Unfortunately, should never really happened.
About three years ago, I watched a video by a YouTube influencer (No, I dislike that word) YouTube contributor named Vee Infuso, who painted Feinstein as a person who is shady at times, when it comes to business and is an awful human being all around. Feinstein, himself,
DM'ed Infuso about publishing the video and making profit off of it. This video has since been taken down by YouTube. It stated that Feinstein bought a couple of prints of Roddy Piper from artist Christopher Ott from a convention in 2015. A few days later, Feinstein showed with the prints, allegedly signed by Piper. The thing was that Piper had recently passed away and many have claimed that the signatures were forged. Feinstein maintained the signatures were legit and would pass a forgery test. For a man who needed to rehab his reputation, this wasn't good. What am I'm talking about you say? The thing that nearly buried ROH.
Two years after launching ROH, Feinstein was caught during an internet sting operation, when he tried to solicit sex with what he thought was a 14 year old minor, but was eventually a decoy. He was also filmed by a "To Catch A Predator" type show at the boys house. Feinstein saw that and drove away. Shortly after, he tried his best to delete the video from the face of the earth. Even if he was successful, the damage was done. Other promotions working with ROH dropped their partnerships and the talent had a near mutiny if Feinstein continued to be a part of the company. Feinstein, reluctantly, resigned and Cary Silkin took over and did an adequate job of keeping ROH afloat for seven years. Feinstein claims to this day that Silkin and other front office staff colluded to get him out.
Can ROH come back? I hope so. It's as if a friend you know and love needs to go away for a little bit to clear their head. Hopefully, Ring Of Honor can clear their heads.
(Check out Vee Infuso's channel on YouTube)
(Sources: SI, Wrestling News Report, Web Is Jericho, Wikipedia, Heel By Nature, Wrestling News.Co, RF Video.com, Bleacher Report, Wrestlepedia)
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