NEW ROH CHAMP AUSTIN ARIES: "I'D BE THRILLED WITH HALF OF SAMOA JOE'S REIGN."

By: Harry Burkett
credit: Pro Wrestling Illustrated: June 2005

Samoa Joe was the first to congratulate Austin Aries after Aries ended his 21-month reign as Ring of Honor champion. Whoever ended that reign deserved praise. But Joe deserves accolades as well, as Aries was quick to point out.

Ring of Honor champion Samoa Joe seemed well on his way to another successful title defense at "Final Battle II," and the crowd at the National Guard Armory in Philadelphia didn't sense anything out of the ordinary: another terrific match, but not necessarily a historic night.

For much of the bout, Austin Aries had tried to overpower Joe, most notably with one attempted brainbuster after another. It appeared to be an ill-conceived strategy. Why would the 5'9", 202-pound Aries waste his time trying to lift and manhandle the 6'3", 290-pound ROH champion? Most likely, he was following a strategy pioneered by Chris Benoit against Triple H and Kane over the past year. Instead of playing a defensive cat-and-mouse game against larger opponents, Aries, like Benoit, favors a toe-to-toe slugfest with bigger men, and then relies on his superior endurance and technical skill to outfox and outmaneuver his foes. That might have worked for Benoit, but it didn't seem to be working for Aries on this night.

Samoa Joe repeatedly foiled Aries' attempts to overpower him and had dominated most of the match. ROH fans had witnessed it many times over the past 21 months against an array of world-class challengers, including Masato Tanaka, Doug Williams, Paul London, Low-Ki, and the man he defeated for the title way back on March 23, 2003, the unpopular Xavier. Then there were the title defenses in late 2004 that helped Samoa Joe's reign become an unfolding epic: a 40-minute match against Bryan Danielson, and his series of matches against CM Punk, include two sensational 60-minute draws.

Compared to those bouts, Samoa Joe seemed to be having it easy. After foiling all of Aries' questionable brainbuster attempts, Joe hoisted Aries for his finishing maneuver, the island driver. On this night, Joe's island driver was unusually sickening, as Aries' head hit the canvas from an awkward angle and with increased force.

But that was the first indication this night might turn out differently for Samoa Joe. Austin Aries, summoning all his strength, kicked out.

The Philadelphia crowd did a collective double-take and galvanized its attention on the action inside the ring. Although Joe had been fairly popular and highly respected champion, the fans sensed that change was in the air - and the chilly wind was at Aries' back. They began stomping and chanting, anything to breathe life into the struggling Milwaukee native.

Aries slowly and steadily fought back, putting Samoa Joe on the defensive with a strong series of punches, kicks, and high-impact moves. With Joe laid out on the mat, Aries climbed to the top turnbuckle and unleashed his patented 450 splash. He hit his target with precision, but Joe escaped the pin attempt.

Who said miracles were easy?

The champion tried to regain his momentum with another one of his signature moves, the muscle buster, but Aries reversed the attempt, caught Joe with a front facelock, grabbed a handful of tights, and lifted the big man for a brainbuster. That elusive, frustrating, impossible brainbuster! His obsession with the brainbuster, which had seemed like a fool-hardy strategy before, now seemed brilliant … as Joe's 290 pounds were finally used against him - with all that weight spiriting the champion's head and neck into the mat with an even greater velocity. By the time Aries stood high upon his perch, read to execute the 450 splash, the noise was deafening. Aries went into the 450 with the speed of a spinning top, flattening Joe and scoring the three-count.

Never before had there been such an eruption at a Ring of Honor event. The feverish reaction and celebration continued for more then 10 minutes. History was made at "Final Battle II" as the Samoa Joe era came to a close … at least for the time being.

"Hell, yeah, I'm angry tonight," fumed Samoa Joe after the match. "No, I don't have anything against Austin - no more then I did against Xavier, Danielson, or Punk. You saw how I went out of my way to congratulate him. But I'm damn angry at myself. I'm always angry when I lose. And when I get him in the ring again, it's going to be up to me whether I'm going to win it or not. Remember, Aries, it's up to me - not you. Enjoy your time in the sun, you're a great athlete, you deserve it … because it's going to come to an end sooner instead of later."

The scene backstage was just as remarkable as the crowd reaction inside the arena. One bye one, each ROH wrestler showed his respect to the new champion. Friends gave him a hug, some of his foes offered modest handshakes or a brief touch of the knuckles. Everyone was in a good mood - and, unfortunately, it all seemed to come at Samoa Joe's expense.

"He definitely shouldn't look at it that way," said Aries between breaths. "I understand that all champions want to last forever. But Samoa Joe's done something remarkable. He was a major champion for 21 months. Maybe that wasn't a big deal for Bruno Sammartino or even Hulk Hogan, but today, that's a huge deal. I'm proud just to be a part of that, especially part of the closing chapter, so to speak, I'd be thrilled with half of Samoa Joe's reign."

Some would fault Aries for not aiming higher. But Aries is absolutely correct that he should be very proud just to end that incredible 21-month reign. What made Aries' victory even more remarkable is the fact that it came out of nowhere. Someone with an international reputation, like Bryan Danielson, or someone who had already pushed Joe to the limit, like CM Punk, would have been considered more likely to dethrone him.

But Joe should have known better. After all, Aries first gained prominence in the 2004 ECWA Super 8, where he defeated Shawn (Khosrow) Daivari and current ROH pure champion John Walters - both with the 450 splash. Although Aries heart and determination weren't enough to overcome the wily Christopher Daniels in the tournament final, his reputation skyrocketed on the Indy scene.

"Believe me, no one should have underestimated Austin Aries," said Danielson, who lost to Aries in an epic best-of-three-falls match on August 7, 2004. "Yeah, you get to know a guy when you wrestle him for almost 80 minutes. I could've told Joe how tough Aries is. Wasn't anybody paying attention? He beat me. That should've been enough to set off the alarm bells.

"One thing against Aries, though, is his size. The secret to Joe's success was that he was such a big guy but was as technically sound as any of the smaller guys. Aries doesn't go into every match with a height and weight advantage. That means all you have to do is outwrestle him, which is tough enough. I don't know about everybody else, but that's what I plan on doing."

Despite all the challengers now hunting for him, the fourth Ring of Honor champion is determined to show as much tenacity and pride as his predecessor. Aries is fully aware that it will be very difficult to surpass Samoa Joe's reign of 21 months. Even a reign of 10 months and two weeks wouldn't be so bad.