The 10 Best Ring Of Honor Events, According To Cagematch.net

The era of honor is officially over. On December 11, 2021, one of professional wrestling's most celebrated promotions put a sign in their window saying "We're Closed Until Further Notice." Ring Of Honor, in its almost 20 year history, has produced some of the finest talents and finest wrestling matches the world will ever see, and yet the company has shut up shop for the time being.

RELATED: The 10 Best Ring Of Honor Matches, According To Cagematch.net

From technical wizards like Bryan Danielson to high-flyers like The Young Bucks. From hard hitting brutes like Samoa Joe to charasmatic ring generals like CM Punk. ROH has its fingerprints all over the modern landscape of professional wrestling, and with the company on hold for the time being, with the assistance of cagematch.net, we will take a trip down memory lane, for old time's sake.

10 2007 MAN UP (RATING: 9.25)

It's difficult to fathom for anyone who wasn't around in the mid-to-late-2000s just how much of a machine Takeshi Morishima was. A man who had the face of a baby and the strength of an entire army, who in 2007, was on a roll the likes of which hadn't been experienced by a Japanese talent in America for quite some time. On this night Morishima took one of his greatest rivals.

For the ROH World Championship, Morishima defended the title against "The American Dragon" Bryan Danielson in a match that was one of the weaker of their series. Elsewhere, there was a Gauntlet match between members of The Resilience and No Remorse Corps; a Four Corners Survival match featuring Nigel McGuinness, Claudio Castagnoli, Chris Hero, and Naomichi Marufuji; and a brutal Ladder War between Kevin Steen and El Generico.

9 2005 MANHATTAN MAYHEM (RATING: 9.28)

The New Yorker Hotel in Downtown Manhattan is a venue that holds a special place in the hearts of ROH fans. While the finest match to take place in that building was Samoa Joe vs. Kenta Kobashi, the finest all-around event was the inaugural Manhattan Mayhem 2005.

CM Punk continued his violent feud with Jimmy Rave in a Dog Collar match. BJ Whitmer and Jimmy Jacobs retained the Tag Team Championship in an entertaining bout. Samoa Joe and Jay Lethal pulled double duty as they faced off for the Pure Championship before teaming to take on Homicide and Low-Ki. Austin Aries successfully defended the World Championship against rising star Alex Shelley.

8 2006 UNIFIED (RATING: 9.32)

It's fair to say that this event can be considered a one match show. After all, the card is literally referencing the main event title unification match between ROH World Champion Bryan Danielson and ROH Pure Champion Nigel McGuinness. However, when the match in question is as good as this one, it's enough for a good rating.

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For almost half an hour, Danielson and McGuinness beat the life out of each other, dragging each other to the limit and back. Elsewhere, Roderick Strong and Austin Aries defeating The Briscoes in an underrated classic, and in front of a hometown Liverpool crowd, Robbie Brookside picked up the win against Chad Collyer.

7 2006 FINAL BATTLE (RATING: 9.34)

It's one of the biggest feel good moments in the history of ROH. In front of a red hot Hammerstein Ballroom crowd in New York City, ROH original Homicide finally reached the pinnacle of the company and dethroned the seemingly unbeatable Bryan Danielson in a match that had everyone on the edge of their seats.

The Briscoes and The Kings of Wrestling put on a solid performance for the Tag Team Championship. Jimmy Rave and Nigel McGuinness had a surprisingly physical showdown. And a hyper-paced Dragon Gate Rules Tag Team match between CIMA, SHINGO, and Matt Sydal versus the team of Austin Aries, Roderick Strong, and Delirious was also a nice touch.

6 2008 DEATH BEFORE DISHONOR 6 (RATING: 9.35)

With a card featuring the best ROH had to offer, combined with guest appearances from wrestlers representing companies like CHIKARA, NWA, and NOAH, Death Before Dishonor 6 is widely regarded as the best edition of the yearly event, and it's not hard to see why. Even trying to pick a match of the night is enough to give even the most decisive of fans a nose bleed.

Whether it's the NWA World Championship match betwen Adam Pearce and Brent Albright, the strong-style proceedings of Naomichi Marufuji and Go Shizaki, or The Motor City Machine Guns taking on Kevin Steen and El Generico, the card was as stacked as any during this era. And to top it off, Bryan Danielson, Nigel McGuinness, Claudio Castagnoli and Tyler Black competed for the ROH World Championship.

5 2005 FINAL BATTLE (RATING: 9.43)

The NOAH promotion formed out of the mass exodus of All Japan Pro Wrestling in 2000, BUT despite having some of the finest heavyweight wrestlers in the world, it was the junior heavyweights that stole the show on every occasion.

ROH recognized this and decided to put the GHC Junior Heavyweight Champion KENTA in the main event against Low Ki in a hard hitting dream match. Further up the card, Bryan Danielson defended his ROH World Championship against the other breakout junior heavyweight from NOAH Naomichi Marufuji. Roderick Strong and Austin Aries captured their first Tag Team Championship together, and Nigel McGuinness went at it with Claudio Castagnoli for the ROH Pure Championship.

4 2008 FINAL BATTLE (RATING: 9.44)

How could Takeshi Morishima and Bryan Danielson possibly top their Match of the Year candidates from the year before? Simple, A Fight Without Honor. Taking away all possible restrictions for a man who loves kicking people's heads in and a man who could chop someone so hard their nipples would fall off, is the perfect way to round out the final ROH event of 2008.

RELATED: ROH Final Battle: The 10 Best Main Events In Event History

But that wasn't all. Nigel McGuinness defended his ROH World Championship against Naomichi Marufuji. Austin Aries and Tyler Black putt each other through their paces to determine who would be the man to face the winner of Marufuji and McGuinness, and it opened with a modern day dream match, Cluadio Castagnoli vs Kenny Omega.

3 2008 SUPERCARD OF HONOR 3 (RATING: 9.46)

At the inaugural Supercard of Honor in 2006, the stars of Dragon Gate put on a showcase exhibition that could be considered one of the most influential matches in American wrestling. Two years later, at Supercard of Honor 3, it was time for round two. The Dragon Gate performers took the main event slot as CIMA, Dragon Kid, and Ryo Saito took on Genki Horiguchi, Masato Yoshino, and Naruki Doi.

Elsewhere, a 25-minute war between Nigel McGuinness and Austin Aries for the ROH World Championship took place. Kevin Steen and El Generico took on other Dragon Gate stand outs in SHINGO and BxB Hulk. And in a Teacher vs. Student grudge match for the FIP World Championship, Roderick Strong defended against Erick Stevens.

2 2007 DRIVEN (RATING: 9.48)

Driven 2007 has two different listings on Cagematch.net. The event portion of the show, which includes the rematch between KENTA and Bryan Danielson which clocks in at an 8.33 rating, and then, the pay-per-view portion of the show, when put all together, gives fans one of the most jaw dropping nights of wrestling the United States has ever seen.

Knowing that Danielson pulled off double duty, the fact he put on another Match of the Year candidate with Nigel McGuinness is simply awe-inspiring. As too is the demolition of Jimmy Rave by World Champion Takeshi Morishima, who also squashed Adam Pearce on the night as well. Throw in another installment of The Briscoes vs. Steen and Generico, and you have yourself one of the most celebrated events in Ring of Honor history.

1 2006 GLORY BY HONOR 5 (NIGHT 2) (RATING: 9.52)

This event is the exact reason why the wrestling business has ended up the way it has. ROH in 2006 was putting on events that were other worldly, carving out a niche in the market by having a simple premise: have the best matches. The second night of the Glory by Honor weekend in September 2006 had one of those matches.

While matches like The Briscoes vs. Samoa Joe and Homicide, The Kings of Wrestling vs. Austin Aries and Roderick Strong, and Nigel McGuinness vs. Naomichi Marufuji for the GHC Heavyweight Championship were all excellent in their own right, this night belonged to Bryan Danielson and KENTA. This could be considered the best match of the deacde, which proves why wrestling fans have been lucky to have Ring of Honor for the past 20 years. Here's hoping to a successful relaunch.