Ring of Honor has put together a list of rules for matches in the upcoming Pure Title Tournament.
The promotion revealed the rules for the tournament, which include time limits that vary by round, judges that will determine the winner if the match goes to a time limit draw. In addition, closed-fist punches to the faces are not permitted and a limit on how many rope breaks a wrestler has. The winner of the tournament, which has no start date, will be the first Pure Champion since August 2006.
Below are the rules set for the tournament.
-- Every match begins and ends with the Code of Honor handshake.
-- Each wrestler has three rope breaks to stop submission holds and pinfalls. After a wrestler exhausts his rope breaks, submission and pin attempts on or under the ropes by his opponent are legal.
-- Closed-fist punches to the face are not permitted; only open-handed slaps or chops to the face are allowed. Punches to other parts of the body are permitted, excluding low blows. The first use of a closed fist will get a warning; the second will be a disqualification.
-- As in standard ROH matches, there will be a 20-count when a wrestler is on the floor.
-- Outside interference will result in automatic termination from the roster for the wrestler that interferes.
-- There will be two blocks, single-elimination format.
-- Round 1 matches have a 15-minute time limit.
-- Block semifinals have a 20-minute time limit.
-- Block finals have a 30-minute time limit.
-- The tournament final has a one-hour time limit.
-- There will be three judges for each match, and time-limit draws will go to a judges? decision.
Below is the latest list of competitors for the tournament. Ten of the 16 spots have been filled:
- Jay Lethal
- Jonathan Gresham
- Matt Sydal
- David Finlay
- Tracy Williams
- Josh Woods
- Wheeler Yuta
- Tony Deppen
- PJ Black
- Rocky Romero
Doug Williams, Mark Haskins, Slex, Joe Hendry, Yuji Nagata and Ren Narita, all previously announced for the tournament prior to the pandemic, have had to withdraw due to travel restrictions.
Ring of Honor has been on hiatus since the COVID-19 pandemic, but the promotion recently announced it will start producing its TV show this month in Baltimore. The company will institute necessary testing and safety measures and follow the guidelines of the Maryland State Athletic Commission. No fans will be present for the tapings.
Ring of Honor also detailed its COVID-19 protocols and can be seen at this link.