TOP ACT GONE FROM RING OF HONOR, ROH TITLE UPDATE

ROH champion Jay Briscoe and Mark Briscoe have both wrestled their final matches for Ring of Honor, possibly for good.

As we broke on Monday in the PWInsider Elite section, Ring of Honor ran an angle over the weekend where Jay Briscoe was beaten down by SCUM, writing him out of the promotion. Mark Briscoe was written out with the story being that he was injured wrestling Jay at the Best in the World iPPV.

The exit had been the planned departure for the brothers for some time and pre-dated the Jay Briscoe Twitter debacle from a month ago. It was not something rushed at the last second and was planned prior to Jay winning the ROH title over Wrestlemania weekend.

The implication from different sources is that Briscoe vs. Briscoe taking place in Baltimore (not far from their hometown in Delaware, with TONS of family members in attendance) was designed to be something of a send-off for the pair, who have been with the promotion since their first event in February 2002. This past weekend's ROH TV was entirely dedicated to the brothers as well.

With WWE hiring so many new talents in advance of their WWE Performance Center opening on 7/8, the initial belief among ROH talents was that the Briscoes had finished with ROH en route to signing a WWE deal. WWE sources have stated no deal is on the table, but admitted there was past interest. It's possible the Briscoe Twitter issues may have led to WWE pulling back on that interest, given the magnifying glass the company is under politically, but no one has definitively told me that.

As noted on Monday in the Elite section, at the very least, the brothers are taking a hiatus from the company and will not be back anytime in the near future. They are not currently figured into any short-term plans for ROH, although that obviously could change at any time.

As of today, the Briscoes are not under ROH contract. That said, should they not sign elsewhere, it stands to reason that at some point they will be back in some capacity. Both Briscoes have long stated that being around to see their children grow up was of the utmost importance to them, something that the insanity of a WWE schedule would not allow as much freedom to do in comparison to working for ROH. They are pretty much legends within the company and can walk back in for a top position at whim.

The current status of the ROH title is also up in the air. ROH sources remain tight-lipped on the belt, but if Jay Briscoe isn't figured into the current plans, obviously the promotion will have to do something. A tournament to crown a new champion seems to be most likely, but that would also break the lineage of the belt for the first time since Low Ki won the championship in June 2002. With ROH TV taped through late July, the promotion will be in no rush to address that situation, since it won't have played out to their TV viewers until then. A lot can change in that much time, but as of now, it would appear we've seen Jay Briscoe's last ROH title defense.

ROH sources indicate they have remained in contact with the Briscoes and all relations between the two sides is 100% amicable. There is absolutely no heat between the two sides, at all.

If you enjoy PWInsider.com you can check out the AD-FREE PWInsider Elite section, which features exclusive audio updates, news, our critically acclaimed podcasts, interviews and more by clicking here!