I was recently on the Ring Of Honor Media Call with Matt Taven and Kelly Klein who were promoting ROH Final Battle. I asked Klein about the area that she’s improved in most since Sumie Sakai beat her at SuperCard Of Honor XII, and what Women Of Honor will look like with her as champion:
I think that when I faced Sumie [in the Women Of Honor tournament finals] I took a lot for granted because I had beaten her before, and because I had beaten a lot of really wonderful and challenging competitors. That was something where maybe because I already looked at myself as the winner and maybe rested on my laurels a little too much. I didn’t stay as focused or didn’t take her as seriously as now. Even in some of my more recent matches, I may take it a little more seriously if I feel like somebody is starting to get a little bit of traction against me. I react more quickly, I don’t wait it out and I don’t laugh it off; I start to change gears more immediately.
With me as the champion, I’m still going to be The Gatekeeper. I’m going to be in a position where not only do I have the ability to force people to prove themselves just to be in Women Of Honor, I’m going to be the keeper of the championship and the face of the division, and really try to make a point that only people that truly deserve it and work for it and earn it appear in that division and in the ring with me. And certainly, those people would ever have an opportunity to challenge for the title.
I also asked if Klein could impartially grade Sumie Sakai’s title reign, to which she said:
It would have been improved had she granted me a rematch a little sooner. That would have made her look stronger I’m sure—it would have shortened her reign as well.
Kelly Klein is part of the Four Corners Survival match for the Women Of Honor World Championship along with Karen Q, Madison Rayne and champion Sumie Sakai at Final Battle tomorrow night at the Hammerstein Ballroom.
ROH Final Battle airs LIVE from New York City on Friday, December 14 at a new start time of 8pm Eastern (Please use your local time) on traditional pay-per-view providers, free for HonorClub VIP, at a 50% discount for HonorClub Standard, and on FITE TV. Please visit ROHWrestling.com or the ROH App for more information.
Matt Taven On Ring Of Honor Putting More Stock In Him, Asks ‘What More Proof Do They Need?’
