NIGEL 2008
You started your year
Beginning a long divorce
With Ring of Honor fans
Because they thought you lacked
Heart
Due to early injuries
In your first months
As World Champion
By the end of it
You were stronger and tougher
Than anyone before you
You were
In It to Win It
6th Anniversary Show
You cemented your villain hood
Decimated the American Dragon
Then on a Video Wire
March 12 to be exact
One line set you off
“McLariat can’t carry the company.”
The look of anger
The feeling of frustration
The dread and disgust
That one line set you
Onto a completely different
And absolutely necessary path
You were on a mission
And now legitimately
In It to Win It
You Took No Prisoners
With Tyler Black in Philly
You went to a New Level
With Claudio in New York
You started an Age of Insanity
And showed Glory By Honor
With El Generico twice
Battled Injustice
Overcame a Return Engagement
And Navigated the North
To combat Kevin Steen
You were Driven against Strong
Pummeled Aries in a Supercard
Beat Stevens in Beantown
Earned Go’s Respect
And rose against the Fall against Jacobs in Tokyo
Various defenses
Different types of competitors
Even defeating Mr. Honor Rumble
Ruckus in Virginia
And going to FIP
To defeat Sweet and Sour in Florida
So many wins
And still no love from the fans
Even though you 1000% proved to yourself
You were
In It to Win It
But your moment came
November 22
Chicago
Frontier Fieldhouse
Pay-per-view
Against your greatest rival
The Babe Ruth of ROH
Bryan Danielson
Almost 30 minutes
Picking apart the Dragon
Brutal strikes
Attacking the knee
Even using Castagnoli’s hatred
To your favor
And after everything
One Jawbreaker Lariat
The coup de grace
And the torch was passed
The fans respected you
You rose above
The new Best Wrestler in the World
But you truly didn’t care anymore
About the ROHbots approval
You were your own man
And like rocking the belt backwards
Everyone was forced to
Kiss your ass
Because you believed
In yourself
That you were
In It to Win It
You finished your year
Humbling the New F’N Show in Nashville
And Marufuji at ROH’s Final Battle
Wire-to-wire
The full year as the man
Seems to be
McLariat DID carry the company
Showcased your dominance
One of the greatest years
In company history
You did it your way
And over the years
Your 2008 gets overlooked
But to true fans
We know
The consummate pro
A warrior inside the ropes
Dastardly as a villain
You are Nigel McGuinness
And you were
Are
And forever will be
In It to Win It
Jon Harder
