Kevin's Top 130 Matches of 2017: Match #1 Posted

[lucas_lee]

Jan 2, 2018 11:41:54 GMT -5 The Kevstaaa said:

89. PROGRESS Atlas Championship: WALTER [c] vs. Matt Riddle – PROGRESS: New York City 8/12/17

In their first match at Chapter 46, Riddle retained over WALTER. WALTER dethroned him at Chapter 51 in an even better match (more on that later) and this was the rubber match. They began this with mat work that was fairly even. WALTER took to brutally laying in the chops. Never afraid to give back as much as he takes, Riddle responded with chops of his own. It’s a staple of their matches. In their second outing, WALTER had Riddle well scouted and it led him to victory. This time, Riddle was ready, doing just enough to alter his game and avoid a repeat loss. He started deadlifting WALTER and throwing him around, which is never not impressive. Both guys picked up near falls down the stretch that the fans totally bought into. Riddle’s first senton attempt caught knees, but his second worked. He went into the Bromission, adding a series of chops, to make WALTER submit and become a two-time Atlas Champion after 15:58 of action. Not quite on the level of their second match, but better than the first. They played off their previous outings and the sheer viciousness of their strikes was jaw-dropping. [****]

*It is the final match from PROGRESS: New York City.

I was there live for that, those strikes were some of the most brutal shots I've seen (also if you're eagle eyed, look for me in the front row, I'm wearing a Tomhiro Ishii shirt and a Punisher hat)

[The Kevstaaa]

88. NXT Women’s Championship: Asuka [c] vs. Ember Moon – NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn III 8/19/17

Over three months prior, Ember Moon came closer to dethroning Asuka than anyone else. Watching this live, I gave it ***¼, and people weren’t pleased. Looking back, I don’t know why I couldn’t get into it, because I thought it was great on the second viewing. Asuka’s special. I’ll come into a match thinking I’m okay with her losing and then I see her entrance and am like, “KILL ASUKA KILL!” Onto the match, Ember felt she had Asuka’s number and dropkicked her instantly, not letting the champ get out of the gate. Even when Asuka managed to take control, Ember fought valiantly and it felt like her life depended on winning this match. Asuka wisely targeted Ember’s shoulder, which she injured in between the two matches. In their first meeting, Asuka shoved the referee to the ropes to avoid the Eclipse. This time, Ember hit it and the crowd bought it as the end of Asuka’s run. The reaction to Asuka kicking out was insane. At a loss, Ember went for it again and Asuka used a slight referee distraction to get an opening. She survived a superkick, frustrating Ember more, and then retained via Asuka Lock at 14:46. Way better than I remembered. [****]

*It is the final appearance of Ember Moon.

[The Kevstaaa]

87. Hiromu Takahashi vs. Jushin Thunder Liger – NJPW Best of the Super Juniors 5/18/17

Jushin Thunder Liger declared that the 2017 would be his final Best of the Super Juniors. The now 53-yeard old legend came in tied for the most tourney wins with 3. On this, the second night, he met the new ace of the juniors division and IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Champion, Hiromu Takahashi. After a night one loss, Liger didn’t want to lose his final Korakuen BOTSJ match, so he came out firing and hit a brainbuster in the aisle in the opening minutes, leading to a countout tease. That set the tone for a wild sprint that was 8:05 of pure action. Liger threw everything in his arsenal at the champion. Unfortunately, it was never quite enough. The beauty of this lied in the pin at the end. After Hiromu hit Time Bomb, he got the three count, but you could see Liger kicking his feet and desperately trying to kick out. He wanted nothing more than to continue, he just didn’t have it in him to do so. Depending on how much longer he wrestles, this very well could be the final great match of Liger’s career. [****]

*It is the final appearance of Jushin Thunder Liger.

[The Kevstaaa]

86. EVIL vs. Kazuchika Okada – NJPW G1 Climax 8/5/17

362 days. Coming into this match, that’s how long it had been since Kazuchika Okada was last pinned in singles competition. This was the fourteenth night of the G1 Climax and Okada was 5-0, while EVIL was 4-2. With Okada seemingly running away with the block, EVIL needed to win to stay alive. For the first time in a long time, it felt like Okada wasn’t in control of a match. Instead of his usual cross body over the guardrail spot, EVIL beat on him with chairs. He wasn’t allowing Okada to get going. Okada was forced to fight from behind because EVIL always had an answer for him. There was quite the big spot where Okada took Darkness Falls onto a pile of chairs in the crowd. It had to suck for him. When he beat the countout, it set up the traditional Okada closing stretch. High energy, great action and the usual Rainmaker stuff. After hitting one from out of nowhere, he subtlety positioned himself to land on his back so he could do his wrist hold stuff that everyone goes nuts for. I usually hate it, but liked it here because he was in serious trouble and because it finally backfired. EVIL ducked a third Rainmaker (like everyone else after eating two), but won the exchange by avoiding it again and hitting the STO to win at 22:47. Biggest win of EVIL’s career. Though the rematch for the Heavyweight Title disappointed, this was awesome and cemented EVIL as the MVP for the B Block of the G1. [****]

*It is the final appearance of EVIL.

[2coldMack is even more baffled]

I have to ask: Matt Riddle's a heel right? Because every picture I've seen of him in this thread has given me tremendous douche-chills, and I really hope that that's deliberate on his part?

[lucas_lee]

Jan 2, 2018 12:43:21 GMT -5 The Kevstaaa said:

88. NXT Women’s Championship: Asuka [c] vs. Ember Moon – NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn III 8/19/17

Over three months prior, Ember Moon came closer to dethroning Asuka than anyone else. Watching this live, I gave it ***¼, and people weren’t pleased. Looking back, I don’t know why I couldn’t get into it, because I thought it was great on the second viewing. Asuka’s special. I’ll come into a match thinking I’m okay with her losing and then I see her entrance and am like, “KILL ASUKA KILL!” Onto the match, Ember felt she had Asuka’s number and dropkicked her instantly, not letting the champ get out of the gate. Even when Asuka managed to take control, Ember fought valiantly and it felt like her life depended on winning this match. Asuka wisely targeted Ember’s shoulder, which she injured in between the two matches. In their first meeting, Asuka shoved the referee to the ropes to avoid the Eclipse. This time, Ember hit it and the crowd bought it as the end of Asuka’s run. The reaction to Asuka kicking out was insane. At a loss, Ember went for it again and Asuka used a slight referee distraction to get an opening. She survived a superkick, frustrating Ember more, and then retained via Asuka Lock at 14:46. Way better than I remembered. [****]

*It is the final appearance of Ember Moon.

I'll always remember this match. Was there live for this one and this match had my ex's heart skipping a beat (she's not a wrestling fan)

[The Kevstaaa]

85. Open The Twin Gate Championship: CIMA and Dragon Kid (c) vs. Masato Yoshino and Naruki Doi – Dragon Gate Kobe Pro Wrestling Festival 7/23/17

Naruki Doi and Masato Yoshino were formerly known as DoiYoshi or Speed Muscle. They were one of the most exciting tag teams I’ve ever seen, but they hadn’t teamed regularly in a few years, at least from what I could gather. For Dragon Gate’s biggest show of the year, they got a shot at the Twin Gate Titles against two other company mainstays, CIMA and Dragon Kid. When I was first introduced to Dragon Gate eleven years ago, these were four men who stood out. This was a beautiful match. They moved at an absurd pace, yet everything was precise and expertly executed. It takes true brilliance to do what these guys did and make it look as easy as they did. Not everyone loves the Dragon Gate style of tag matches, and that’s understandable, but this was something I think everyone could enjoy. After 21:37 of wild action, Dragon Kid busted out the Dragonrana, which we don’t see often anymore, to retain the titles. I disagree with the decision, since CIMA and Dragon Kid have had a lackluster reign. Lackluster outside of this match though, which was tremendous. [****¼]

*This is the final appearance of Masato Yoshino.
*It is the final match from Kobe Pro Wrestling Festival.

[The Kevstaaa]

Jan 2, 2018 17:21:25 GMT -5 2coldMack is even more baffled said:

I have to ask: Matt Riddle's a heel right? Because every picture I've seen of him in this thread has given me tremendous douche-chills, and I really hope that that's deliberate on his part?

He's actually super popular everywhere he goes and mostly plays a face.

[AdamAFL was sooooo wrong]

Jan 2, 2018 17:21:25 GMT -5 2coldMack is even more baffled said:

I have to ask: Matt Riddle's a heel right? Because every picture I've seen of him in this thread has given me tremendous douche-chills, and I really hope that that's deliberate on his part?

He's the King of Bro's, bro

[Facetious]

Jan 2, 2018 19:16:32 GMT -5 The Kevstaaa said:

Jan 2, 2018 17:21:25 GMT -5 2coldMack is even more baffled said:

I have to ask: Matt Riddle's a heel right? Because every picture I've seen of him in this thread has given me tremendous douche-chills, and I really hope that that's deliberate on his part?

He's actually super popular everywhere he goes and mostly plays a face.

Best way to describe it is he has that RVD-vibe to him. I've met him a few times and he's cool as hell.

[2coldMack is even more baffled]

Jan 2, 2018 20:10:35 GMT -5 Facetious said:

Jan 2, 2018 19:16:32 GMT -5 The Kevstaaa said:

He's actually super popular everywhere he goes and mostly plays a face.

Best way to describe it is he has that RVD-vibe to him. I've met him a few times and he's cool as hell.

Okay, that might explain it, I've never been able to stomach RVD, either. Just a thing, I guess. From what I've heard, he's wicked talented.

[The Kevstaaa]

84. Evolve Championship: Timothy Thatcher [c] vs. Zack Sabre Jr. – Evolve 79 2/25/17

Timothy Thatcher’s Evolve Title reign was kind of a train wreck. His rise to the top and early title matches were great. In 2015, he killed it against the likes of Johnny Gargano and Zack Sabre Jr. However, his 2016 was atrocious, with his style hampering him and leading to far too many shit matches. Due to that, the crowd turned on him and were very pro Sabre on this night. They came out with stiff strikes and submissions attempts, playing to their strengths. Thatcher got his leg trapped in a brutal looking submission on the ropes, so Sabre went right after that leg with his usual vigor. The heat from the crowd added so much. They hated everything Thatcher did. Down the stretch of this 18:47 bout, there were tons of counters and exchanges of submissions. Sabre applied a sick octopus hold, complete with elbow strikes, extra wrench on the arms and stomps to Thatcher’s head, to finally end his reign of terror. The pop for the Sabre win was incredible. This was easily the best Thatcher match since 2015. He nailed the mannerisms and everything he had to in order to play to the crowd. Great stuff. [****¼]

*This is the final appearance of Timothy Thatcher.
*It is the final Evolve Championship match.
*It is the final match from Evolve 79.

[The Kevstaaa]

83. IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship Tournament Quarterfinals: Tetsuya Naito vs. Tomohiro Ishii – NJPW G1 Special in USA 7/1/17

AJ Styles is my pick for the best wrestler in the world, but these guys are #2 and #3. Their chemistry together is killer. I’ve never given them less than ****, which is rare. They came into this with totally different mindsets. Ishii always leaves everything out there and gives his all, while Naito said if he won the US Title, he’d throw it in the trash. Naito was his disrespectful self, slapping Ishii around, stopping to taunt and laughing while getting hit. Though Naito didn’t care about the title, you could tell he still wanted to win, maybe even just to throw it in NJPW’s face. There were several moments where we got a glimpse at how well they know each other. Ishii countering Naito’s signature rebound attack with a headbutt was a highlight. There was a spot I hated, though. Naito failed on his tornado DDT twice and instead of changing it up, Ishii had to stand there while Naito went for it a third time. As it neared the 15:51 finish, they had some great exchanges. Ishii’s neck was worked on throughout, and he sold it expertly, as always. Ishii had Destino well scouted, before winning with the Brainbuster to advance. I liked this more on a second viewing. On NJPW’s first show in the States, it was the first match to stand out and fit the NJPW style. [****¼]

[lucas_lee]

Jan 2, 2018 20:55:21 GMT -5 2coldMack is even more baffled said:

Jan 2, 2018 20:10:35 GMT -5 Facetious said:

Best way to describe it is he has that RVD-vibe to him. I've met him a few times and he's cool as hell.

Okay, that might explain it, I've never been able to stomach RVD, either. Just a thing, I guess. From what I've heard, he's wicked talented.

He's super talented and super nice. He has that RVD vibe for obvious reasons if you catch my drift. He's also super nice when I've met him

[The Kevstaaa]

82. AJ Styles vs. Finn Balor – WWE TLC 10/22/17

Throughout the summer and fall, Finn Balor was mired in a completely garbage feud with Bray Wyatt. With the “Demon vs. Sister Abigail” billed for TLC, we were probably in for the worst of it. Then, viral meningitis happened and Bray couldn’t compete. To replace him, Raw borrowed AJ Styles to set up a battle of the first two Bullet Club leaders. They worked this first-time ever match like an NJPW main event. It was deliberately slow in the early stages, before building to the bigger spots. The atmosphere was tremendous. The crowd was into every little thing these guys did. Often, Finn doesn’t do enough to make the “Demon” different from his regular self. Here, he added small mannerisms and showed a more aggressive side at times, which was appreciated. For example, to break the Calf Crusher, he brutally smashed AJ’s head into the mat. We got to see them both do Pele kicks, which was cool, though I wish they both did Bloody Sundays. In the end, AJ missed the springboard 450, setting up Finn to use a flurry of offense to win. He capped it with the best Coup de Grace I can remember at 18:16. It was mostly two guys getting their signature stuff in, but that’s fine. They did this on short notice and delivered a high-quality match in front of a raucous crowd. I love that they didn’t go into a finisher kickout fest either. As good as this was, it felt like they had better in them, maybe with a story and AJ not being jetlagged. [****¼]

*This is the final match from TLC.

[The Kevstaaa]

81. Bobby Fish vs. Jay Lethal – ROH 15th Anniversary Show 3/10/17

What do you do when you have two top of the card guys without much to do at a PPV? You book them in a “top contender’s match,” which is what this was. These two met in a very good TV Title match in 2015, but this had World Title implications. Lethal wanted to get back to the top, while Fish wanted to reach there at least once. This opened with mat exchanges, but quickly got aggressive when Fish kicked the shit out of Lethal, sending him outside. Lethal then sent Fish outside to hammer home how evenly matched they were. When Fish sidestepped a tope suicida, Lethal crashed chest first, and that chest became Fish’s target. Lethal fought back and only tried another tope suicida when Fish was by the aisle and not a guardrail. Simple, yet smart. The intensity picked up down the stretch. The strikes got harder and Fish dropped Lethal on his head at one point. Fish had the Lethal Injection well scouted before countering it into the Fish Hook. The fans went nuts for that spot. Jay survived and finally hit the Lethal Injection to win in 15:07. Awesome stuff. They worked a smart, layered match where everything felt like it mattered. They had each other scouted, upped the intensity late, had great selling and a clean finish. [****¼]

*This is the final match from the 15th Anniversary Show.
*It is the final appearance of Jay Lethal.
*It is the final and only ROH match..

[AdamAFL was sooooo wrong]

Lethal/Fish was a massively underrated match from this year. Glad to see it get some recognition here.

[Ultimo Gallos]

Jan 3, 2018 9:56:18 GMT -5 The Kevstaaa said:

83. IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship Tournament Quarterfinals: Tetsuya Naito vs. Tomohiro Ishii – NJPW G1 Special in USA 7/1/17

AJ Styles is my pick for the best wrestler in the world, but these guys are #2 and #3. Their chemistry together is killer. I’ve never given them less than ****, which is rare. They came into this with totally different mindsets. Ishii always leaves everything out there and gives his all, while Naito said if he won the US Title, he’d throw it in the trash. Naito was his disrespectful self, slapping Ishii around, stopping to taunt and laughing while getting hit. Though Naito didn’t care about the title, you could tell he still wanted to win, maybe even just to throw it in NJPW’s face. There were several moments where we got a glimpse at how well they know each other. Ishii countering Naito’s signature rebound attack with a headbutt was a highlight. There was a spot I hated, though. Naito failed on his tornado DDT twice and instead of changing it up, Ishii had to stand there while Naito went for it a third time. As it neared the 15:51 finish, they had some great exchanges. Ishii’s neck was worked on throughout, and he sold it expertly, as always. Ishii had Destino well scouted, before winning with the Brainbuster to advance. I liked this more on a second viewing. On NJPW’s first show in the States, it was the first match to stand out and fit the NJPW style. [****¼]

This is my father's favorite match from last year. Keep in mind he grew up on southern style wrestling in the 50s and 60s. And stopped watching back in 87 or so when Watt's UWF folded. Last year he started watching NJPW on AXS and Lucha Underground with me. Plus a few of the ROH PPVs.

[chazraps]

Jan 3, 2018 13:15:05 GMT -5 The Kevstaaa said:

81. Bobby Fish vs. Jay Lethal – ROH 15th Anniversary Show 3/10/17

What do you do when you have two top of the card guys without much to do at a PPV? You book them in a “top contender’s match,” which is what this was. These two met in a very good TV Title match in 2015, but this had World Title implications. Lethal wanted to get back to the top, while Fish wanted to reach there at least once. This opened with mat exchanges, but quickly got aggressive when Fish kicked the shit out of Lethal, sending him outside. Lethal then sent Fish outside to hammer home how evenly matched they were. When Fish sidestepped a tope suicida, Lethal crashed chest first, and that chest became Fish’s target. Lethal fought back and only tried another tope suicida when Fish was by the aisle and not a guardrail. Simple, yet smart. The intensity picked up down the stretch. The strikes got harder and Fish dropped Lethal on his head at one point. Fish had the Lethal Injection well scouted before countering it into the Fish Hook. The fans went nuts for that spot. Jay survived and finally hit the Lethal Injection to win in 15:07. Awesome stuff. They worked a smart, layered match where everything felt like it mattered. They had each other scouted, upped the intensity late, had great selling and a clean finish. [****¼]

*This is the final match from the 15th Anniversary Show.
*It is the final appearance of Jay Lethal.
*It is the final and only ROH match..

How close was Danielson-Cole to making your list?

[The Kevstaaa]

Jan 3, 2018 14:18:30 GMT -5 chazraps said:

Jan 3, 2018 13:15:05 GMT -5 The Kevstaaa said:

81. Bobby Fish vs. Jay Lethal – ROH 15th Anniversary Show 3/10/17

What do you do when you have two top of the card guys without much to do at a PPV? You book them in a “top contender’s match,” which is what this was. These two met in a very good TV Title match in 2015, but this had World Title implications. Lethal wanted to get back to the top, while Fish wanted to reach there at least once. This opened with mat exchanges, but quickly got aggressive when Fish kicked the shit out of Lethal, sending him outside. Lethal then sent Fish outside to hammer home how evenly matched they were. When Fish sidestepped a tope suicida, Lethal crashed chest first, and that chest became Fish’s target. Lethal fought back and only tried another tope suicida when Fish was by the aisle and not a guardrail. Simple, yet smart. The intensity picked up down the stretch. The strikes got harder and Fish dropped Lethal on his head at one point. Fish had the Lethal Injection well scouted before countering it into the Fish Hook. The fans went nuts for that spot. Jay survived and finally hit the Lethal Injection to win in 15:07. Awesome stuff. They worked a smart, layered match where everything felt like it mattered. They had each other scouted, upped the intensity late, had great selling and a clean finish. [****¼]

*This is the final match from the 15th Anniversary Show.
*It is the final appearance of Jay Lethal.
*It is the final and only ROH match..

How close was Danielson-Cole to making your list?

I have it at ***3/4, but towards the bottom of those matches. I haven't officially ranked it, but it's close to 300 than 200.