Rating the Reign: Davey Richards

Who: Davey Richards

What Title: ROH World Champion

How long of a reign: 322 days. 6/26/2011-5/12/12

Best Matches

Davey Richards vs. Eddie Edwards (c) - Best in the World 2011 (A)

Davey Richards (c) vs. Jay Lethal - ROH TV (B+)

Davey Richards (c) vs. Michael Elgin - Showdown in the Sun (A+)

Summary

Davey's reign can be seen two ways. One way was that he was a transitional champion that really didn't do to much in terms of being able to build stories and rivalries, and that the true champion (and face) of the company was Kevin Steen. The other way was that Davey was the right guy to be the champion because he's able to churn out fantastic matches in a time where the company had been truly gutted of most of their talent. It's very clear that Davey Richards on the mic can be dreadful, but during his time as champion, he put out several fantastic main event matches. With that being said, he's also main evented some matches that went on for 15-20 minutes too long. I think I had Davey's reign at about a C+ until his 5-star match with Michael Elgin at Best in the World, one that is clearly the 2012 Match of the Year for now.

Overall Grade: B+