Hello!

[IanRiccaboni]

Hi everyone.

Wanted to introduce myself - my name is Ian Riccaboni. I am the Lead Announcer for Ring of Honor.

Now that that is out of the way, let me explain why I am here

For years, I have lurked these forums to get a feel for the perception of fans. Similarly, Reddit's Sub-Reddit r/ROH has a wide selection of fans from around the world that are invested in ROH, where we are, where we are going, etc.

In my short experience on r/ROH, we have been able to arrange some AMAs, answer some questions, provide some insight, and even break some news. I was hoping to do the same here on the ROH World Forums.

Over the years, I have interacted with Rich Laconi, Sean Sedor, Chris GST, and others for things like the PWP Podcast, interviews and more, so I know some but not all of you. Feel free to reach out with any questions, comments, or more. I have developed pretty thick skin over the years reading this very forum so really nothing is off limits or taboo. But some of the things I will not be doing is scooping ROH, providing dirt, or responding to direct feedback or criticism. This has always been a pretty honest and open place for feedback and I hope my participation does not change that.

If you send me PMs, I will do my best to respond but please understand I am not able to provide any inside information. I am hoping that my participation is able to open up a different window, as much as I am able to, inside the wrestling company we all love.

Sincerely,

Ian

[monster mafia]

this is great..welcome ian!

[AlexROH]

Woo! Great to have you here Ian, it's always great to see people working for the company reading the comments and opinions of their fanbase.

[AnHonorableMention]

Ian’s good people, even if his Phillies are gonna wind up with both Machado & Harper. A voice that would have fit in any era of ROH.

[famicommander]

1. Why aren't you Joey Styles? Be Joey Styles. C'mon.

2. As much as I enjoy your commentary with both Caprice Coleman and Colt Cabana, I would still rather see both of them in the ring. By the same token, I was extremely impressed with Brutal Bob Evans' commentary when he was working Top Prospect last time. Is there any chance of seeing Caprice and Colt in the ring more often, with Evans taking the headset?

3. The working relationship with NJPW has been pretty fruitful, but I know I speak for a lot of people here when I say we want more CMLL stars and more cohesion between the promotions. It is frustrating to see promotions like MLW making better use of CMLL stars when ROH is supposed to be their partner. Even when CMLL guys are on a card, there is usually no context. We don't get a sense of who these guys are or their relation to one another; they're just randomly thrown into a tag match as "team CMLL"

[BurningHammer]

Welcome Ian, I hope you can stay and enjoy this place despite what is said about any part of the company, for us it's just about making the company be better and be the best it can be.

Agree with Alex the company and yourself reaching out to us is really important and great, knowing we have someone aware of our voice is really important, well to me anyway.

I will hopefully see you again soon in the UK.

[IanRiccaboni]

1. Why aren't you Joey Styles? Be Joey Styles. C'mon.

2. As much as I enjoy your commentary with both Caprice Coleman and Colt Cabana, I would still rather see both of them in the ring. By the same token, I was extremely impressed with Brutal Bob Evans' commentary when he was working Top Prospect last time. Is there any chance of seeing Caprice and Colt in the ring more often, with Evans taking the headset?

3. The working relationship with NJPW has been pretty fruitful, but I know I speak for a lot of people here when I say we want more CMLL stars and more cohesion between the promotions. It is frustrating to see promotions like MLW making better use of CMLL stars when ROH is supposed to be their partner. Even when CMLL guys are on a card, there is usually no context. We don't get a sense of who these guys are or their relation to one another; they're just randomly thrown into a tag match as "team CMLL"

1. Very much like Joey! Joey is one of the few announcers that I grew up watching that I have not yet met in person but he has been kind with helpful pointers, especially when I was particularly new, communicating them through Colt before we knew one another. Similarly, Tony Schiavone has been extremely nice and helpful, as have Lenny Leonard, JR, Sean Mooney, and others. Obviously, Kevin Kelly has given me the most help and was a great mentor.

2. Colt and Caprice have A LOT left to give in the ring. Colt wrestles every weekend, frequently globally. I am excited that he will be in Tag Wars coming up and it is always awesome to call matches for he and Caprice. Brutal Bob, similarly to Colt and Caprice, is actually a great friend of mine. He does quite well on weekends doing training camps all over the country with Tim Hughes. They are still a part of the ROH family and you tend to see them pop up in HonorClub exclusives. But I think that you see less Bob and more Colt and Caprice because they are very good on the headsets, as well, and we have developed chemistry in the ring and out of the ring and Bob is making a very good living doing his camps. I am not opposed to working with anyone, especially Bob! Fun fact: Bob was one of the eleven partners I had during my first TV taping as the Lead Announcer! I have since had over 40 partners - everyone from my dear, close personal friend Joe Dombrowski to the World Champ Jay Lethal.

3. We love our CMLL partners and I hope to see more of them, too! To peel back the curtain, like ROH, I believe not every CMLL contract is the same. Much comes down to available dates and the potential for the athlete to be able to fill out their own calendar depending on the terms of their agreements.

[kovs27]

Hello Ian,

I hope I didn't get you in trouble with your wife on the plane to Chicago for All In. I completely forgot how ridiculously early that flight was.

[IanRiccaboni]

Hello Ian,

I hope I didn't get you in trouble with your wife on the plane to Chicago for All In. I completely forgot how ridiculously early that flight was.

No trouble at all! She was very flattered that folks recognized me!

I was so amazed that Zach was quiet for the flight there. Flight home... not so much. Poor Chuckie T...

[McXal]

Welcome Ian!

Thanks for taking the time to interact with us on here.

[KL_]

Welcome. Nice to see you there.
With all respect to Kevin Kelly and all his work for ROH, I really didn't like him as a commentator. Happy that you took this place; for me it's a progress for this position.

[famicommander]

How about some luchadoras? There is a distinct lack of luchadoras on wrasslin' TV. Plenty of Joshi, plenty of American and Canadian ladies, even decent representation for British women. But where all the luchadoras at?

[IanRiccaboni]

How about some luchadoras? There is a distinct lack of luchadoras on wrasslin' TV. Plenty of Joshi, plenty of American and Canadian ladies, even decent representation for British women. But where all the luchadoras at?

We have had Amapola and Marcela in the past and now regularly have Thunder Rosa compete for us. With that said, I love variety and would not be against more luchadoras.

[Chrisvegas27]

I hope this new streaming service sinclair came out with benefits ring of honor

[monster mafia]

how about the womens division ? you have plans on add some new faces? any plans on new woh shows or tv episodes?

[Big Red Machine]

Welcome Ian, I hope you can stay and enjoy this place despite what is said about any part of the company, for us it's just about making the company be better and be the best it can be.

Agree with Alex the company and yourself reaching out to us is really important and great, knowing we have someone aware of our voice is really important, well to me anyway.

All of this.

[IanRiccaboni]

how about the womens division ? you have plans on add some new faces? any plans on new woh shows or tv episodes?

Always on the lookout for more talent! Many of the last wave of top independent stars got a shot with us. I'm personally hoping we are able to sign some of the next wave and have them in WOH but I can't speak for certain.

[Mike Adamle]

Heh wow! From one announcer to another welcome to the board! Feel free to ask for any advice or pointers!

[IanRiccaboni]

Heh wow! From one announcer to another welcome to the board! Feel free to ask for any advice or pointers!

Thanks! Loved you on Gladiators.

[Mr. Mojo Risin]

Hi, Ian.

I like your work. You have a genuine passion for calling matches.

Watch out for Wilson the Mod. He takes his role here very seriously.

What was your favorite ROH match you called this past year?