Survival of the Fittest is a professional wrestling tournament held by Ring of Honor (ROH). The inaugural tournament took place in 2004, and - with exceptions (2008, 2013, 2019–2020) - has become an annual tradition in ROH ever since.[1]
Wrestlers compete in a variety of "qualifying" matches, usually either singles matches or tag team matches, with the winner(s) of each match advancing to an elimination match where the last remaining competitor would be deemed the Survival of the Fittest winner, and receive a future ROH World Championship match.[1]
The tournament setup is based on Maryland Championship Wrestling's Shane Shamrock Memorial Cup, as ROH was to continue the Shane Shamrock Memorial Cup following the shutdown of MCW in 2003. However, following a controversy with ROH's owner in early 2004, MCW dropped their association with Ring of Honor, and ROH renamed the already scheduled tournament "Survival of the Fittest".[2][3] [4]
In 2019, it was announced the event would take place on November 9 and 10, but the shows were ultimately cancelled.[5]
| # | Winner | Event | Year | Championship match |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bryan Danielson | Midnight Express Reunion | 2004 | Danielson unsuccessfully challenged Samoa Joe for the ROH World Championship. |
| 2 | Roderick Strong | This Means War | 2005 | Strong unsuccessfully challenged Bryan Danielson for the ROH World Championship. |
| 3 | Delirious | Honor Reclaims Boston | 2006 | Delirious unsuccessfully challenged Bryan Danielson for the ROH World Championship. |
| 4 | Chris Hero | Glory By Honor IV - Night 1 | 2007 | Hero unsuccessfully challenged Nigel McGuinness for the ROH World Championship. |
| 5 | Tyler Black | Final Battle | 2009 | Black wrestled ROH World Champion Austin Aries to a sixty-minute time limit draw. Black defeated Aries in a rematch to win the ROH World Championship at the 8th Anniversary Show. |
| 6 | Eddie Edwards | Manhattan Mayhem IV | 2010 | Edwards defeated Roderick Strong to win the ROH World Championship. |
| 7 | Michael Elgin | Showdown in the Sun - Night 2 | 2011 | Elgin unsuccessfully challenged Davey Richards for the ROH World Championship. |
| 8 | Jay Lethal | 11th Anniversary Show | 2012 | Lethal unsuccessfully challenged Kevin Steen for the ROH World Championship. |
| 9 | Adam Cole | Final Battle | 2014 | Cole unsuccessfully challenged Jay Briscoe in a Fight Without Honor for the ROH World Championship. |
| 10 | Michael Elgin (2) | All Star Extravaganza VIII | 2015 | Elgin unsuccessfully challenged Adam Cole for the ROH World Championship. |
| 11 | Bobby Fish | Manhattan Mayhem | 2016 | Fish unsuccessfully challenged Adam Cole for the ROH World Championship. |
| 12 | Punishment Martinez | Ring of Honor Wrestling (February 10, 2018) | 2017 | Martinez unsuccessfully challenged Dalton Castle for the ROH World Championship. |
| 13 | Marty Scurll | G1 Supercard | 2018 | Scurll challenged Jay Lethal in a three-way ladder match for the ROH World Championship, also involving Matt Taven. Taven won the match. |
| 14 | Bandido | Best in the World | 2021 | Bandido defeated Rush to win the ROH World Championship. |
ROH's first Survival of the Fittest tournament took place on June 24, 2004 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.[3][7]
ROH's second Survival of the Fittest tournament took place on September 24, 2005 in Boston, Massachusetts.[7][8]
ROH's third Survival of the Fittest tournament took place on October 6, 2006 in Cleveland, Ohio.[7][9]
ROH's fourth Survival of the Fittest tournament took place on October 19, 2007 in Las Vegas, Nevada.[7][10]
ROH's fifth Survival of the Fittest tournament took place on October 10, 2009 in Indianapolis, Indiana.[7][11]
ROH's sixth Survival of the Fittest tournament took place on November 12, 2010 in Dearborn, Michigan.[7][12]
ROH's seventh Survival of the Fittest tournament took place on November 18, 2011 at the Montgomery County Fairgrounds in Dayton, Ohio.[13][14]
ROH's eighth Survival of the Fittest tournament took place on September 22, 2012 at the Du Burns Arena in Baltimore, Maryland. The tournament was recorded in a single day for Ring of Honor's television show, and aired on a taped delay over the span of several weeks.[1][6][15]
ROH's ninth Survival of the Fittest tournament took place on November 8, 2014 at the Seagate Convention Center in Toledo, Ohio. The tournament took place over a span of 2 days.
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Main article: Survival of the Fittest (2015) |
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Main article: Survival of the Fittest (2016) |
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Main article: Survival of the Fittest (2017) |
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Main article: Survival of the Fittest (2018) |
ROH announced the tournament would return in 2021, taking place throughout the month of June on ROH's flagship TV program Ring of Honor Wrestling, and their online show ROH Week by Week.
There were 12 participants competing in six qualifying matches, with the winners advancing to a six-way elimination finals (aired June 26 on Ring of Honor Wrestling) where the winner received an ROH World Championship match at Best in the World.[16]
Participants:
Qualifying matches:
Finals: