The ROH Pure Championship changed hands in the main event of tonight’s (November 25) episode of Rampage when Wheeler Yuta cheated to defeat Katsuyori Shibata.
Earlier in the night, Wheeler gave a promo in which he stated that he was a bit of an idiot who would take advantage of Shibata’s brain injury from 2017 to win back the Pure title. Commentators later reminded viewers that Shibata almost died of a brain injury in 2017 after wrestling Kazuchika Okada. Shibata collapsed after this fight and was taken to the hospital where he was diagnosed with a subdural hematoma.
Shibata was never supposed to wrestle again, but this year he has become a staple in ROH as Pure Champion. However, his reign ended tonight when Wheeler delivered a low blow to him, causing his head to hit the mat:
Shibata was understandably skeptical of Yuta’s handshake offer after the match, so Wheeler hit him again with a low blow, causing his head to fall to the mat again. Then FTW Champion HOOK made the save.
As the show ended, Shibata seemed fine, but then he fell to his knees, holding his head in pain. Commenters immediately noted that Shibata wasn’t feeling well and “that’s exactly what happened in 2017.”
What do you think about the ending of this game, Cagesiders?
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