As the second arm of All Elite Wrestling, Ring of Honor shares AEW’s connections with NJPW, CMLL, and Stardom, often seeming more connected than AEW does. Meanwhile, TNA has a very open connection to NXT, and this week was the first edition of WWTR where NXT women wrestled in the TNA Knockouts TV Championship Tournament.
The most interesting of the lot, however, is Major League Wrestling, who, like ROH, are also connected to NJPW and CMLL. Where AEW just held Forbidden Door a few weeks ago and ROH had a pair of Global Wars shows air prior to the start of this series, this week, MLW took part in Fantastica Mania USA, an annual crossover between NJPW and CMLL which this year roped in MLW for their American dates.
This week, NXT’s Thea Hail appears on IMPACT, CMLL has an anniversary ceremony on ROH TV, and MLW Middleweight Champion KUSHIDA has challengers from CMLL, NJPW, and technically one ROH wrestler on this week’s Fusion. It’s a huge week for crossovers here on Wrestling with the Rest as we look at ROH, TNA, and MLW TV for the week of July 12–18, 2026.
ROH on Honor Club, July 16, 2026 – The Strength of Character
Ring of Honor has a stellar roster with great in-ring competitors, and while it may not always be the very best show of the week among the three shows covered here on WWTR, it pretty handily has the best wrestling matches. However, this week, ROH seemingly locked in on character work, as not only were the matches great on the whole (even the two presumed squash matches announced as “ROH Regular in Action”), but they went out of their way to give us a whole interview segment before AR Fox and Alan Angels’s match.
Fox made his return to ROH after losing his TV Title to Lio Rush a few weeks back and was looking to get back on his horse, but Angels interrupted Fox’s pity party to remind Fox of their history, telling Fox that Angels was a student of his whom Fox never properly rated. Where Fox wants to recover from a loss, Angels wants to prove that he’s not only no longer a student, but he’s also better than his former teacher.
It’s a small thing, but this one promo segment got me incredibly invested in a match that otherwise only would’ve had my attention because it had two good wrestlers. Looking at the rest of the card, a lot of investment came from the characters in the match. The 6-Man Championship match had six of the most interesting people in Ring of Honor — seven if you count “Smart” Mark Sterling. Lio Rush added a new layer to his character in the main event, as even his championship belt has a split personality (sometimes coming out silver and sometimes coming out all-black as “Shadow). And, when we get to the match and wrestlers of the week, you’ll see how much character work can affect investment in a match.
This was easily the best episode of ROH on Honor Club I’ve watched so far, and I would recommend it to you without question if it wasn’t 2 hours and 39 minutes long. You should still watch the whole thing, but don’t try to do it all in one sitting like me.
Match of the Week: The Workhorsemen vs The Kingdom
I have to admit something: I am a huge Matt Taven mark. I have always laughed at him yelling, “I’m Matt Taven!” I smile every time he calls someone a Melvin. I love the chemistry that he has with Mike Bennett. It’s a shame that, when Taven’s name comes up, people will often think about his maligned ROH Championship win in Madison Square Garden or, more recently, his role in the less-but-still-fairly maligned Undisputed Kingdom storyline in AEW, because when you accept Taven for the upper midcard comedy heel he was born to be, you start to appreciate his work.
Much less controversial is my love for the Workhorsemen, who were as great as ever in this match. Anthony Henry is so freaking mean when he wrestles, and watching him do a back bridge mid-submission just so he could flip off his opponent in the corner was a perfect microcosm of that. JD Drake is equal parts threatening and hilarious, slamming an opponent down with a mean belly-to-belly before full-on yelling Vader’s “It’s Time!” catchphrase ahead of attempting (and missing) a Vader Bomb. Mike Bennett also decided that, for this match, he was going to play up his muscular frame and wrestle like a monster, entering a minute-long chop fest with Drake full of intensity.
This match was especially fun because, though I leaned toward the Kingdom, I wasn’t entirely sure who was going to win here. And, now that we have a winner, the indecisive nature of the ending leaves the door open for another potential bout in the future—one which I would certainly be here for.
Wrestler(s) of the Week: Alec Price, Jordan Oliver, and MxM Collection
We’re three weeks in and I’m already stretching my rules, but listen: this match also ruled, though as I said in the intro, it was great for character reasons. Price and Oliver were hired because they’re great wrestlers, but as “Bustah and the Brain,” respectively, the two of them have found a way to stand out beyond being “that team with young guys.” As “The Brain,” Jordan Oliver is great at countering moves and staying one step ahead of his opponents, something that Mansoor made abundantly clear as a perfect foil for Oliver’s offense and reversals. As for Price…well, I have to explain MxM’s bit, first.
For this match, Mason Madden came out with a hairbrush, carefully brushing Mansoor’s hair during their entrance. During the match, the MxM boys tried to use the brush as a weapon, but the ref kept stopping it. After Alex Price tagged in, however, he decided to steal the brush and throw it straight down his trunks. In what I’m going to call the nastiest moment in wrestling in 2026, Price then retrieved the brush, grappled with Mansoor, and finally held Mansoor down and started brushing Mansoor’s BEARD with the comb. I laughed almost as much as I gagged.
Up there with Athena, Bandido, and Lee Moriarty, I truly believe Mason Madden and Mansoor are two of the best parts of Ring of Honor, and this match only solidified that. But going forward, I think it’d be wise to keep an eye out for Bustah and the Brain.
Results and Recap:
- We open the show with Lio Rush choking on black slime and talking about the rain and/or the reign.
- ROH Trios Championships: Dalton Castle & The Outrunners [c] def. The Premier Athletes & Beef w/Smart Mark Sterling and Story Denali
- After their match, Dalton Castle and the Outrunners are interviewed by Ian Riccaboni. After some great jokes, Dalton tries to send it home by saying that they are the best trio in the business, but Riccaboni mentions that the Lethal Twist are also undefeated as a trio. This offends Castle and the Outrunners, who double down and say that they’re better than all the rest.
- Angelico def. Tim Bosby
- “Main Man” Oro def. Mark Davidson
- The Kingdom def. The Workhorsemen
- Backstage, AR Fox says the last time he was here, he was a champion and he was crying. Alan Angels comes out of nowhere to pile on trash talk, reminding Fox that he used to train Angels but never believed in him. Angels says he got signed before AEW even knew who Fox was, but Fox shoots back, saying Angels isn’t here anymore. Angels says he wants a fight, but it’s not going to be teacher versus student. It’s going to be equal versus equal.
- AR Fox def. Alan Angels
- Before their match, a re-masked Ángel de Oro and Niebla Roja — wearing a throwback to his old Ángel de Plata outfit — are given a plaque celebrating 20 years of wrestling.
- ROH Tag Team Championships: El Sky Team [c] def. Los Hermanos Chavez
- In this week’s edition of Caprice Coleman Chops It Up, Sammy Guevara talks about how he’s a history maker as the only man to hold the ROH tag titles three times in a row with three partners and never lose it himself. He calls himself water, something that people might not like but do need and someone who can work with a partner of any size or style. Sammy says he feels a lack of respect despite winning titles all over the world, but he does at least feel like it all works out if his daughter loves him. Caprice asks if Sammy thinks he’s setting a good example for his daughter, and Sammy says she knows that he is a man trying his best who will one day hold her in one arm and a world title in the other arm.
- Bustah and the Brain def. MxM Collection
- Dezmond Xavier def. Brandon Cutler
- Eddie Kingston, Ortiz, Adam Priest & “Dynamite Kid” Tommy Billington def. Shane Taylor, Lee Moriarty & The Infantry w/Anthony Ogogo and Christyan XO
- Athena & Billie Starkz w/Diamante def. Lacey Lane & Viva Van
- ROH Television Championship: Lio Rush [c] def. Lee Johnson
TNA IMPACT, July 16, 2026 – You Can’t Beat the System
The System made it a point this week to prove that their motto is not just a catchphrase but a warning and a threat. At Slammiversary, Eddie Edwards lost a big blowoff match to Moose, and last week, Bear Bronson and Brian Myers lost a three-way tag match to Leon Slater and Ricky Sosa. This week, Bronson was intent on getting revenge on Sosa for pinning him last week, and Cedric Alexander vowed to retain his X-Division Championship against Fabian Aichner in the main event.
The story of both matches was an attack on the ribs. Despite some light interference from Myers, Bear Bronson’s gameplan was what won him his match, as a steady barrage of elbows and banzai drops made it so that Ricky Sosa couldn’t hit his finish on Bronson, nor could he kick out when Bronson hit him with back-to-back power moves.
In the main event, Alexander also dropped Aichner with two back-to-back moves, this time hitting him with both an STO and an X-plex on the apron. Though Aichner had both power and explosive speed to his advantage going into the match, he spent the rest of the match trying to hold his ribs together. Even when Aichner was on offense, missing a move like a springboard crossbody was enough to rattle Aichner with the landing. However, despite the injury, Alexander could not put Aichner down himself. As Aichner rolled out of the ring to recover, Alexander distracted the ref just long enough for Eddie Edwards to hit a Boston Knee Party on Aichner, making it easy for Alexander to hit a Lumbar Check and retain his title. Though Ricky Sosa and Leon Slater stopped a post-match beatdown to end the show, The System have all the momentum in the world heading into Alisha Edwards’s match in the Knockouts TV Title Tournament next week.
Match of the Week: Thea Hail vs Harley Hudson
The commentary team described this match as “scrappy,” and I think that’s accurate. We got hard chops, punches thrown, a headbutt, and quite a few instances of one wrestler using a submission hold to stop the other’s momentum before transitioning into another power move. That last note ties directly into this tournament’s and the TV title’s special stipulation of 10-minute time limits, so if you don’t think your submission move is going to win the match, get back to throwing bombs ASAP.
Thea is impressively flippy and does great rolling into and out of Harley’s offense. Harley, meanwhile, is deceptively strong, and whether she’s catching Harley out of a move or setting up some offense herself, Harley’s power was a key part of her arsenal. I’ve heard great things about Thea Hail, but this was my first time seeing her or Hudson in action, and I think that both of these Knockouts not only looked great but were also perfect opponents for each other.
Wrestler of the Week: M by Elegance (and the Elegance Brand)
Regarding this week and this match, it was fun to see that M by Elegance’s move set is based around the fact that she has long legs. Whether she’s hitting a rocket kick to Rosemary as she hangs off the apron, blocking an Irish whip by kicking the middle rope, or even using her legs to lock in a small package for the pinfall (after, of course, spitting champagne in her opponent’s face), M’s legs are basically a lethal weapon. However, more than just being impressed by M, I have to admit that I was also fully caught off guard by her win.
See, when I write the recap notes, I sometimes try to pre-write what I assume the match’s finish will be so that I can focus all of my attention on watching the match and transcribing the promos around it. However, after fully writing that Rosemary defeated M — much like I incorrectly assumed that Allie would probably beat Heather two weeks ago — the Elegance Brand took a second win off of the Knockouts tag champions in this tournament. It took me a while to warm up to Ash by Elegance’s name change when she first debuted, and I didn’t imagine I would care much about M, Heather, or their Personal Concierge once I started watching TNA more regularly, but TNA is making it clear that these two Knockouts are ones to be watched, and this week, M by Elegance was certainly worth watching.
Results and Recap:
- TNA Knockouts TV Championship Tournament, Round 1: M by Elegance w/Heather by Elegance and The Personal Concierge def. TNA Knockouts Tag Team Champion Rosemary w/Allie
- Alisha Edwards denies the allegations that the System is falling apart. Eddie Edwards says one bad night is not cause to panic. Brian Myers says Ricky Sosa got lucky last week, but Bear Bronson says that lucky is an understatement because pinning Bronson only pissed him off and might lead to Ricky’s death tonight. Cedric says he will represent both the System and the X-Division when he beats Fabian Aichner tonight.
- Moose def. A.J. Francis w/Expressions Oozing by DQ after Frankie Kazarian (who was on commentary) attacks Moose. After the bell, all three men attack him.
- Elayna Black says that next week NXT’s Wendy Choo is in her way in the TV Title Tournament, but she won’t let their past affect the match. Black calls herself the greatest knockout in TNA history, prompting Xia Brookside to come in and say that she’s the Knockouts World Champion and has beaten everyone put in front of her, meaning she is the greatest in history. Brookside reminds Black to stay in her lane, and Black says she sees that Brookside is scared of her and must realize that Black is everything Brookside will never be.
- In his State of the Order Address, Mustafa Ali says what stands behind him should be the most dominant faction in wrestling, “but apparently only one of us got the message.” Ali says he needs help holding Hotch, Skyler, and Steelz accountable for their failures, so he’s bringing in a new secretary of strategic affairs, Mila Moore. Mila calls this an opportunity of a lifetime and says she knew she was the solution to his problem. Mila says they’ve got a lot of work to do, but in Ali she trusts. Steelz clearly hates this, but Ali says he really likes Mila, then moves on to saying that he needs a new challenger for his International Championship. He proposes an international vote, then clarifies that he does not mean the idiots in the crowd but actually the roster, who will vote on a rightful number one contender.
- In this week’s TNA injury report, Moose is under medical evaluation after the attack earlier, Léi Ying Lee is out with a head injury after last week, Cedric Alexander and Fabian Aichner are both at 100% going into their match tonight, and TNA World Champion Nic Nemeth is in pristine shape.
- The Righteous open an envelope wherein they find a hologram message from Matt and Jeffy Hardy. The Righteous have been cordially invited to the Hardy Compound for the Righteous Deletion.
- Bear Bronson def. Ricky Sosa, with Brian Myers on commentary.
- Moose asks Elijah for help with Frankie Kazarian and A.J. Francis. Elijah said Moose has no need to try to convince Elijah to fight those two. The match is set for next week.
- TNA Knockouts TV Championship Tournament, Round 1: Thea Hail def. Harley Hudson
- TNA World Champion Nic Nemeth comes out and starts talking about how he’s the best thing going and no one can claim to be next in line. KC Navarro interrupts, and starts to say he understands what Nic’s doing, but Nic tells him that this moment is for serious inquiries only and shouts, repeatedly, for Navarro to get out his ring. Navarro leaves, but when Nemeth goes back to taunting the crowd, Navarro snaps on the mic. He says he lost a lot of title shots and thought by now his career would’ve been different — inspiring some kids, proving those who used to bully him wrong. But Navarro knows one way to get where he wants to be is by taking that title off of Nic Nemeth’s waist. Navarro challenges Nemeth to a title match next week, saying he’s “here to show the world” that he can be champion. Nic says he’ll only give Navarro the match if he promises he’ll lose Nemeth’s number and never bother the champ again.
- TNA X-Division Championship: Cedric Alexander [c] def. Fabian Aichner after interference from Eddie Edwards.
- Eddie Edwards and Cedric Alexander continue to attack Fabian Aichner, but Ricky Sosa and Leon Slater both come out to scare off the System and end the show with a big dive to the outside from Slater.
MLW Fusion, July 18, 2026 – Fantastica Mania USA Kicks Off
It’s a new taping this week as MLW moves from Center Stage in Atlanta to their new hometown of Charleston, South Carolina. Despite the new venue, this episode continues a lot of themes from previous episodes. The Contra Mercs are fighting a two-pronged war against Contra Unit and the Skyscrapers. Labron Kozone still gets to murder a dude in the middle of the show. Contra continues to grow in influence, and this week, they also grow in numbers.
This final note about Contra Unit is the most interesting tidbit, as KUSHIDA’s opening match led right into the feed being hacked and the mysterious leader of Contra, The Serpent, speaking about his history with MLW. He proclaims that he’s been in MLW before but he cannot be held down any longer. The Serpent also proclaims that Contra is not here to lead an invasion but rather to execute a crusade. Though we see a full silhouette of this Serpent, I’m not certain I know who he is quite yet, but what I do know is that Contra has added another giant to their ranks, with Big Damo officially throwing in his weight with the group during the main event. Between KUSHIDA, Ikuro Kwon, Okumura, Kananga, and now Damo — plus this mysterious Serpent and his ability to keep hacking the feed — Contra Unit is proving to be a real threat to MLW and its roster.
Match of the Week: MLW Middleweight Championship: KUSHIDA [c] vs Templario vs Alan Angels vs Taiji Ishimori
Speaking of the threat of Contra, with his last appearance being more of a brawl than a match, this was my first time seeing how KUSHIDA wrestles as a dastardly villain. KUSHIDA was able to seamlessly weave his technical prowess with a few cheap tricks here and there, though the fact that he was outnumbered meant that KUSHIDA’s near-success with cheating was regularly stopped by outside men.
All four of these competitors went crazy in this show-opening bout. Templario did sick dives followed by a spin-a-roonie. Ishimori tried to both out-fly and out-cheat KUSHIDA, including going for Templario’s mask. Angels was able to consistently string together offense which took out two men at once. Finally, the Middleweight Champ commanded presence of the ring, with the first half of the match showing KUSHIDA regularly empty out the ring so that he could focus his offense on just one opponent. This was easily the best match on Fusion and one of the best matches all week.
Wrestler of the Week: Alan Angels
This time, I wouldn’t say that I’m cheating so much as Alan Angels is cheating, having wrestled in stand-out matches on two shows this week. However, his promo and match on Ring of Honor this week was great, and his performance in this four-way on Fusion showed that he can not only keep up with stars from around the world but also stand out from them. I’ve watched this match a few times for the sake of this write up, and each time a different wrestler stood out, but the first time, I was super impressed with Angels’ ability to make me think he had this match won on a few occasions.
While I’m talking about Angels being a stand-out in multiple promotions, I wanted to also throw in that Alan Angels was one of the most annoying heels on the indies in recent years, and I mean that in the best way. He would talk trash, outwrestle you, then cheat for the sake of cheating. I haven’t seen him have a chance to run a TV roster like he did in Prestige Wrestling a while back, and his two competitive losses this week show that he’s not being used in quite that capacity in any of the promotions he shows up in currently. That being said, I definitely think Angels is a great performer, and if MLW were to seriously give him a Middleweight Championship run in the near future, I believe he would knock it out of the park.
Results and Recap:
- The show opens with a video package showing that the Contra Mercs and the Skyscrapers have both history and unfinished business to be settled tonight.
- MLW World Middleweight Championship: KUSHIDA [c] def. Templario, Alan Angels, and Taiji Ishimori.
- After the match, as Contra hacks the feed, KUSHIDA steals Templario’s mask. Then, Contra’s mysterious leader, The Serpent, says that people thought he’d been taken down, but he’s been gone 5 years and he’s back for a holy war. He says that this is not an invasion but a crusade, and crusades are not negotiated but executed.
- Satoshi Kojima explores historic Charleston, SC, which is not only where this episode of Fusion takes place but also the new home of MLW.
- MLW Women’s World Champion Shotzi Blackheart hosts The Graveyard Shift with special guest Scarlett Bordeaux. Scarlett compliments Shotzi then cuts right to the chase and says she wants a title match. Shotzi tells Scarlett that she has to be prepared to bleed for that, and as they start to lightly argue about Scarlett’s worthiness, Lady Frost intervenes. Scarlett says this doesn’t concern Frost, but Frost says that, if it involves the title, it involves Lady Frost. Shotzi says this is easy because she’ll fight both of them.
- In a video package, MLW National Openweight Champion Austin Aries brags about recently beating up Blue Panther, Diego Hill, and Mistico, challenging any man anywhere to come against him.
- Diego Hill wonders what went wrong when he last challenged Austin Aries and says he mus have let Blue Panther down. Mistico cheers Diego up, saying he has a chance to get a huge win in Arena Mexico for the upcoming MLW vs CMLL show.
- During Manny Lo’s entrance, Rich Bocchini says he learned that MLW Southern Crown Champion Trevor Lee was attacked backstage and the crew is looking for security footage to see how this happened.
- Labron Kozone def. Manny Lo
- Rich Bocchini interviews Satoshi Kojima about his protege Labron Kozone. Kojima doesn’t answer and instead eats bread, so Kozone comes down, shares some bread, and says that — because both of them are nicknamed Kozy/Cozy — they should keep teaming up. Kojima announces that they’re off to get more biscuits.
- On his way into the building, MLW World Champion Killer Kross is asked about Satoshi Kojima. Kross says he’s ready to pit himself against one of the all-time greats in MLW history, and the title match is set for two weeks away.
- The Skyscrapers (Donovan Dijak, Josh Bishop & Bishop Dyer) def. Contra Mercs (Karl Anderson, Luke Gallows & Krule) w/Shotzi after Big Damo attacked Krule at ringside, revealing himself to be Contra’s new crusader.
The best show of this week is easily Ring of Honor, though that runtime was a serious problem. I do think (and this may be controversial) the show is a bit better if you fully skip the CMLL segment in the middle, but I also know that part of this is due to me not really knowing Los Hermanos Chavez as well as I know and love a team like Adam Priest and Tommy Billington.
However, if you don’t have the time, drive, or extra funds to watch any of these three shows, know that we’ll be back this time next week with another edition of Wrestling with the Rest!
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