Lee Moriarty is set to defend his Ring of Honor (ROH) Pure Championship against Katsuyori Shibata at the upcoming Death Before Dishonor event. The match was confirmed after Shibata won a No. 1 contender match, following Nigel McGuinness's withdrawal due to injury.
Moriarty, who also wrestles for All Elite Wrestling (AEW), holds the longest reign in the history of the ROH Pure Championship, exceeding 755 days. He captured the title from Wheeler Yuta in July 2024 at the Death Before Dishonor event. Moriarty expressed confidence in his versatile wrestling style, stating that his extended reign demonstrates his ability to adapt and overcome any opponent.
"Me having this championship for over two years is a very big deal because I'm now the longest reigning Ring of Honor men's pure champion of all time," Moriarty told OutKick in a recent interview. "And I think what it says about me is the fact that my style is so versatile that I can out wrestle any form of competitor."
Shibata enters the championship match with a notable history against Moriarty. Shibata previously defeated Moriarty in a singles match on AEW "Collision" in April 2024 and ended Moriarty's first pure championship reign in May 2023 on AEW "Rampage." Moriarty acknowledged these past defeats but emphasized the elevated stakes of their upcoming encounter.
"But I've never beaten Katsuyori Shibata in a singles match. We've had two. And I haven't figured it out, but now the stakes are higher than they ever been," Moriarty said. "And like I said before, when this title's on the line, I can out wrestle anybody and that includes the wrestler in Katsuyori Shibata."
Despite the rivalry, Moriarty expressed enthusiasm for competing in Philadelphia, viewing it as a familiar territory being within his home state of Pennsylvania. He recalled positive fan energy from previous matches in the city.
"I mean, for me, I know there's a rivalry between Pittsburgh and Philly, but it's all Pennsylvania, so it's home to me and it's a distant home, but it's a home," he stated. "So, and Philly has always been good to me. Like I was here last year to defend this title against Xelhua and the fans just gave me that energy that I was talking about earlier to help me pull through and get the victory and tonight I'm hoping for the same thing and it's going to be really sweet."
Death Before Dishonor will be held at the 2300 Arena in Philadelphia. Moriarty described the ROH experience as a blend of energetic young talent and seasoned veterans like Shibata, offering an intimate atmosphere for fans.
"I think you can expect a lot of high energy and passion from the people there in Ring of Honor," Moriarty said. "Obviously, the 2300 Arena is famous. Ring of Honor is famous in this area, in the Northeast. And then this generation of Ring of Honor is a lot of the young talent mixed with the veteran talent, experienced names like my opponent tonight and Katsuyori Shibata."
Fans unable to attend the event can watch on ROH TV.