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Post by The Kevstaaa on May 28, 2021 8:59:39 GMT -5
145. Juice Robinson vs. Tetsuya Naito – NJPW G1 Climax 28 7/21/18
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| In 2017, Juice Robinson pinned Tetsuya Naito in a tag match, but ultimately lost an Intercontinental Title shot at him. That match ruled (****¼) and was one that helped solidify Juice as a star in NJPW. The tables had turned here, though. Juice was now the man holding championship gold and on something of a hot streak even though he dropped his first two G1 matches. He also came in with a heavily bandaged hand that was broken a few weeks prior. Naito honed in on it. He was vicious in attacking it. Naito’s assault went so far, he got booed in Korakuen Hall. This isn’t 2013. Getting the crowd to boo Naito, the most popular star in Japan, is no easy task. The combination of his brutal offense and Juice’s babyface fire made for one hell of an atmosphere. Naito would modify his signature offense to specifically target the hand. It was genius. When Juice fired up and got going, Naito spat at him, hoping to entice him to use the cast as a weapon and get disqualified. Super good guy Juice refused to give in. He came close to pulling out the huge win on several occasions and even survived Destino. However, he couldn’t get up from a second, losing after 16:38 of incredible action.
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144. WWE Championship: Daniel Bryan [c] vs. Kevin Owens vs. Mustafa Ali – WWE Fastlane 2019
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| You know those times when something is announced for a match and it seems like a disaster? That was nearly the case here. Scheduled to be Kevin Owens vs. Daniel Bryan, this was announced to be a Triple Threat match at the last minute. Following the events of Elimination Chamber, the fans wanted Kofi Kingston to be the third man. Mustafa Ali getting the spot was a great idea, especially since he never got his chance at the chamber. However, the fans greeted him with “we want Kofi” chants. It had all the makings of a debacle where the crowd turns on a match and gives them nothing. They booed loudly as soon as the bell rang. I appreciated how commentary didn’t try to act like things were good. They pointed out how Ali usually got energy from the crowd but that wasn’t the case here. At least, not early on. After a few minutes, that negative reaction was gone. Ali, Owens, and Bryan put on a match that was too engaging to ignore. For 18:39, we were captivated by these three having one of the greatest Triple Threat matches in history. In the end, Ali had a moonsault countered into the Busaiku Knee. An incredible match. Ali showed how great he was with a stellar performance that brought the crowd back from the dead. Owens showed babyface fire that helped propel his later face run and Bryan was perfect in his role.
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143. Shingo Takagi vs. SHO – NJPW Best of the Super Juniors 5/13/19
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| Every year, there are a handful of matches in the Best of the Super Juniors that stand out above the rest. In 2019, it was clearly this opening night contest. In fact, I was more pumped for this than anything else in NJPW last year by a wide margin. It was built so well. Shingo Takagi was the undefeated unstoppable junior monster. SHO was an underrated powerhouse himself. Their exchanges in tags leading up to this had everyone salivating. SHO was out to prove he could match Shingo in strength. When he couldn’t, Shingo reminded us why he was unlike the rest of the division. He didn’t go high risk. He worked it at his pace and played to his strengths. SHO couldn’t hit a spear because his power waned from a beating but it worked later after he wore down Shingo. The little things matter in wrestling. SHO continually had to resort to try new offense and he did some impressive things. He also survived the best Shingo could throw at him. What really made this match was how it affected Shingo. After months of dominating, he got trapped in an armbar and panicked. His desperation to reach the ropes really sold how much trouble he was in. SHO finally stayed down at the 25:07 mark after getting hit with Last of the Dragon. An absolute war from the two of the best. It never felt long and told exactly the story it needed to for their feud.
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142. Kenny Omega vs. Tomohiro Ishii – NJPW Wrestling Dontaku 2017
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| Upset with his loss to Tomohiro Ishii in the opening round of the New Japan Cup, Kenny Omega looked to even the score. However, it was Ishii who came out firing, overwhelming Omega with a flurry of offense. Kenny battled back as the match kept a pretty frantic pace throughout. Commentary continued the trend of selling the One Winged Angel as a big deal. Omega hadn’t hit it in his last two big singles matches (both losses), but beat Ishii with it in a tag. Kenny got a little overconfident, leading him to a strike exchange. That’s a battle he simply can’t win against Ishii. Kenny resorted back to aerial offense and keeping a quick pace. There was a cool spot where Ishii hit his own version of a One Winged Angel for a great near fall. Ishii also busted out a reverse rana One Winged Angel counter because he’s a madman in the best possible way. Omega got another big near fall by using Ishii’s own Brainbuster, before hitting the One Winged Angel to pick up the win at 23:55. The Ishii/Omega trilogy was a highlight of 2017 and the best for both men (above Omega/Okada and Ishii/Naito). They played off their first meeting well, worked at a wild pace and had some great moments throughout. It was their best outing together, which is saying something.
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141. Katsuhiko Nakajima vs. Katsuyori Shibata – NJPW G1 Climax 26 7/24/16
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| When the G1 Climax blocks were announced, this was instantly my most highly anticipated match. Katsuhiko Nakajima is my favorite NOAH guy and, while Katsuyori Shibata is only my second favorite NJPW guy, I knew their styles would make for a great match. It's two guys that hit and kick hard and they don’t hold anything back. Shibata started with stiff shots, but Nakajima gave them right back, including to Shibata’s taped shoulder. Shibata sold it well, rolling back outside to rest right after Nakajima brought him in. Nakajima began to do some of Shibata’s offense, playing the brash youngster heel role. That was actually when he was at his best in this tournament. They would pop up after offense from the other to show how evenly matched they were. Despite Shibata firing up and kicking ass, Nakajima found himself in control down the stretch. He got too big for his britches though because when he tried to win with Shibata’s Penalty Kick, Shibata caught it. He withstood shots from Nakajima, slapped on the sleeper hold and won with the PK at 14:09. I know people loved a lot of the last few days of the G1, but this was my favorite G1 match this year. Shibata has earned that distinction two straight years now.
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Post by The Kevstaaa on May 29, 2021 6:53:42 GMT -5
140. Kazuchika Okada vs. Tetsuya Naito – NJPW 40th Anniversary Show
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| People talk a lot about Kazuchika Okada and Tetsuya Naito, especially after they headlined multiple Wrestle Kingdom events. However, this match is often overlooked. That’s probably because it came before NJPW World existed and before either was a true star. You see, Okada came over from TNA and Gedo boasted about him being a huge deal but nobody believed it. Okada won the IWGP Heavyweight Title in a great match with Hiroshi Tanahashi but considering how Tanahashi was, it seemed like anybody could have greatness with him. Here, Okada had to do it against someone not quite on that level. They delivered a masterpiece. It even changed the way Dave Meltzer felt about Okada, who he’d give billions of stars to in the future. Their chemistry was ridiculous and they put on a clinic. It doesn’t count as a passing of the torch but it did feel like a case of proving that Okada was the future. He retained his title after 28:50 and honestly, these two have never topped this performance against each other.
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139. NEVER Openweight Championship: Tomoaki Honma vs. Tomohiro Ishii – NJPW New Beginnings in Sendai 2015
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| Shortly after I had to cancel my New Japan World account early in the year, this show was held. I heard nothing but incredible things about the NEVER Openweight Title match between Tomoaki Honma and Tomohiro Ishii. I was finally able to check it out and didn’t really enjoy it the first time around, though I blame that on me being preoccupied when I saw it. I’ve see it twice more now and think it’s great, but I’ve never gotten the full five star vibe from it that a lot of people had. So, Togi Makabe was the NEVER Champion but was out injured and these two wrestled for the vacant belt. It was a brutal affair, with both guys just going to war with each other. The crowd absolutely loves Honma, meaning they are not only completely into everything he does, but they bite on every near fall, despite his terrible win/loss record. That red hot crowd reaction added to this. The match goes 24:46 which is not the usual case for my favorite matches these guys have. They both, especially Honma, excel in the G1 style shorter matches, but this was pretty great. Ishii won back the title with a Brainbuster after they beat the hell out of each other for the whole match.
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138. Six Sides of Steel: Kurt Angle vs. Mr. Anderson – TNA Lockdown 2010
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| This had no business being as good as it was. Kurt Angle was still kind of insane in 2010 but Mr. Anderson was never really that guy to put on high quality matches. He had the gift of gab but his in-ring lacked. However, when they shared the ring on this night, it was magic. This was an absolute war and one of the best cage matches in history. It was bloody, violent, and Angle did some insane things like a top rope German suplex and a moonsault off the cage. I swear Angle was trying to moonsault off of everything in this era. People said this was on par with the famous Shawn Michaels/Undertaker retirement match from that year and they’re not far off. Angle won by escaping the cage and basically surviving after 20:54 of might’ve been his best TNA match, which is saying something.
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137. IWGP Intercontinental Championship: Tetsuya Naito [c] vs. Michael Elgin – NJPW New Beginning in Osaka 2017
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| In September 2016, Tetsuya Naito won the Intercontinental Title from Michael Elgin. Elgin got hurt and missed his rematch, but returned to start 2017 and got it here. Elgin started hot, hitting a somersault off the apron and catching a diving Naito into a suplex on the ramp. Naito slowed the pace and focused on the leg, which made sense because he attacked it during the buildup. When Elgin fought back, he modified his offense to sell the leg, which was appreciated. The story of Elgin’s power against Naito’s cunningness was well done throughout. Naito bumped like a rag doll for a lot of Elgin’s offense and that made everything work just that much better. They called back to their past outings on more than one occasion, including Elgin countering a second Destino, which was how he lost to Naito before. Naito got hit with an apron bomb, bomb into a guardrail and Elgin Bomb, yet still kicked out. If I had a major gripe with this match, it was that. The false finishes were a bit much and, at 36:17, it went a bit too long. It could’ve told the same story in about ten less minutes. Still, this was the best match of Elgin’s year and probably his entire NJPW run, while being another feather in the impressive cap of Naito.
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136. NXT Championship: Adrian Neville [c] vs. Sami Zayn vs. Tyler Breeze vs. Tyson Kidd – NXT TakeOver Fatal-4-Way
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| I loved these four in 2014. Tyson Kidd’s FANTASTIC work in NXT doesn’t get talked about nearly enough. All four men brawled to the outside, highlighted by Sami using Tyler’s phone as a weapon and to take a selfie. I appreciated Breeze and Kidd teaming up to double suplex the champ on the stage. Gotta take out the guy who keeps beating you. Although, they also did it to Sami, just because. Zayn got isolated from there, though the heels eventually turned on one another. During that segment, Kidd starred. When Neville got back into the mix, the match kicked into the next gear. Everyone got shine and some close calls. There was some great spots involving multiple guys. The best of those was a great tower of doom. It looked like Breeze would win after stealing a pin on Zayn following a Red Arrow. Somehow, Sami kicked out. When Kidd nearly won with the Sharpshooter, Neville slid in and prevented Breeze from tapping. Amazing spot. The finish was tremendous, as Zayn went into an incredible flurry, that included him knocking Neville into the crowd. He hit the Helluva Kick on Kidd and would’ve won, but a desperate Neville pulled the referee out to stop the count. Unbelievable. Zayn went after Neville and ate a superkick. Neville added the Red Arrow on Kidd to retain in 24:10. People don’t mention it, but this is a top five NXT main event ever (Almas/Gargano, Neville/Zayn, and Sasha/Bayley are the others). An incredible match that had awesome action, while also telling a great story. Neville was willing to do anything to remain champion, even if it meant screwing over his friend. Everyone was great in their roles, making for a special match.
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Post by The Kevstaaa on May 30, 2021 7:04:49 GMT -5
135. IWGP Intercontinental Championship: Shinsuke Nakamura [c] vs. AJ Styles – NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 10
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| Only one dream match remained in NJPW. The top guys (Shinsuke Nakamura, AJ Styles, Hiroshi Tanahashi, Kazuchika Okada, etc.) had all wrestled each other repeatedly, except for one pairing. Nakamura and Styles. AJ finally challenged Nakamura and the match was set for NJPW’s biggest show of the year. On a major event that almost never felt special, this felt like a huge deal. Hell, this match was the main reason I stayed up to watch this show live. They had an awesome interaction where AJ did the Bullet Club gun taunt only for Nakamura to eat the bullet and spit it back up. It was small but really cool. AJ came in with a back injury and played possum after landing on it, giving him an upper hand. Nearly everything they did in this match came off well. The only move I saw them mess up was AJ’s moonsault DDT. They nailed everything else. Styles had Boma Ye well scouted, avoiding it three times before getting hit with it, but Nakamura was too hurt to cover. Though Boma Ye is Nakamura’s move, AJ struck with a knee that seemingly knocked Shinsuke out. AJ hit a variation of the Styles Clash but it wasn’t enough. After some incredible exchanges (including a second rope Michinoku Driver by Shinsuke), Nakamura retained with two more Boma Ye strikes at 24:18. Post-match, the men fist bumped in a show of respect before heading to WWE. Sometimes, you just know you’re witnessing something special. There was a lot of hype coming into this and they more than lived up to it. AJ Styles is the best in the world and when Nakamura wants to step up his game like he did here, he can be right on that level.
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134. PROGRESS Tag Team Championship: British Strong Style [c] vs. The South Pacific Power Trip – PROGRESS Chapter 45: Galvanize
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| The South Pacific Power Trip made a strong case for the top tag team of the first half of the year. This was their shining moment. They showed no intimidation towards their bigger star counterparts. The opening exchanges were great, punctuated by TK Cooper hitting an awesome corkscrew dive to the outside. TK did end up taking the heat for next chunk of the match. That worked well, because Travis Banks is one of the best hot tag guys in the business. He was sensational in that aspect here. From there, the match entered an absurdly paced portion. All four men got involved in an incredible series of spots that brought the fans to their feet. When the champs got overconfident near the end, Dahlia Black entered to help her guys out. Still, Bate and Seven were too much for the challengers. Banks took a second rope piledriver and Tyler Driver ’97 to end it after an awesome 14:16. The best PROGRESS Tag Team Title match I’ve ever seen and the best opening contest of any show this year. Unfortunately, their rematch got cut short when Cooper suffered a horrific injury.
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133. The Golden Lovers vs. The Young Bucks – NJPW Strong Style Evolved 2018
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| For some fans, here may not have been a hotter match in all of 2018. To get it out of the way, this was in no way the two best tag teams in wrestling facing off. They billed it that way, but it just isn’t true. With that behind us, it’s time to appreciate all that this match did well. The Young Bucks were once my least favorite act in all of wrestling, but over the past two or so years, they’ve improved vastly. A perfect example was here. Gone are the overly grating personality traits. Instead, we get stuff like Matt Jackson selling a back injury for MONTHS. It played a major role in this. While both teams brought out their biggest guns, it never felt like moves were being done with no purpose. Kenny Omega was conflicted about taking it to his friends, but Kota Ibushi was happy to hit them as hard as he could. Going back to Matt, I loved how much of an antagonist he was here. He yelled at both opponents and basically dared them to bring it on several occasions. When Kenny got Matt up for the One Winged Angel, he couldn’t bring himself to pull the trigger. Matt demanded he do it and when Kenny did, that should’ve been the finish. Instead, the pin got broken up and the match went on for a bit longer. The Lovers won with the Golden Trigger on Matt after 39:23. It was a long match with great spots and story elements, but it would’ve been better and tighter had it ended on the note it needed to. Still, one of the best tag matches all year.
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132. AJ Styles vs. Tetsuya Naito – NJPW G1 Climax 24 7/26/14
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| From the start, AJ Styles targets Naito’s head injury from the previous night. During his TNA run, I always felt that AJ made a far better face, but he’s become so good at playing the heel. Naito hits AJ’s trademark dropkick and even does the pose. Because of that, when AJ actually hits his, Naito flips inside out and it feels earned. Naito starts bleeding from the cut. With everything that AJ does, he just has this asshole look on his face, which is great. Naito has to work from behind because of the blood and it works better here than last night since Styles is a much bigger threat than Yano. Naito continues to try comebacks, but Styles is prepared for them all and stops them with various moves, including a Pele kick followed by Bloody Sunday. We nearly see a super Styles Clash, but Naito escapes and hits a gorgeous bridging German suplex for a VERY close two count. Naito is able to hit the Stardust Press and pin the IWGP Heavyweight Champion in 15:55. As I said, I really liked their Wrestle Kingdom 9 match, but I liked this one more. AJ Styles playing the dick heel while also being vicious and attacking Naito’s weakness was so damn good. It was a side of him that wasn’t seen much until recently. Naito has disappointed me since I’ve been watching him as a face, but this was his best performance for sure. The blood added to his resilient performance in a big way.
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131. IWGP Intercontinental Championship: Hiroshi Tanahashi [c] vs. Kota Ibushi – NJPW Power Struggle 2017
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| During the G1 Climax, Kota Ibushi scored a win over Hiroshi Tanahashi, which put him in line for this shot at Tanahashi’s Intercontinental Title. Though Ibushi missed a fair amount of time in NJPW, he has quite the history in big matches. In 2015 alone, he came up just short of winning the IC, NEVER Openweight and Heavyweight Titles. A win here, in a big match, would cement his comeback as a success. Tanahashi came in with a game plan, relentlessly going after Ibushi’s leg. He knew to cut that part of his offense out, especially considering his loss in the G1 was to a Kota knee strike. Each time Kota got something going, Tanahashi had a dragon screw ready. Ibushi’s rally saw him nearly break Tanahashi’s neck on a lawn dart. The replay looked gruesome. From there, the physicality got revved up. Ibushi kicked away at Tanahashi in the corner and stopped the referee from counting to five, just so he could continue the assault. The Last Ride wasn’t enough, so he went for the Kamigoya knee. Tanahashi had it scouted and countered it, before hitting two High Fly Flows and retaining in 29:26. The best post-G1 NJPW match. With better selling of the leg from Ibushi, I’d have ranked this higher. He did a great job showcasing his desperation and both guys used the right amount of heel tactics in their desire to win.
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Post by The Kevstaaa on May 31, 2021 7:43:10 GMT -5
130. IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Championship: Dragon Lee [c] vs. Will Ospreay – NJPW Dominion 2019
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| I wasn’t too happy when Will Ospreay won the Best of the Super Juniors. I appreciated Shingo Takagi moving to the heavyweight division and I understand that Will is a notable name. However, all was forgotten when we were treated to this match. These guys have wrestled before but this was different. They were seemingly determined to put on their best outing together. Right off the bat, my issue with the match was the opening quick paced exchange. It's a trope matches fall victim to often. With that out of the way, I can praise the rest of this. It was kind of like the insane Hiromu Takahashi/Dragon Lee matches. A ridiculous pace and some of the wildest spots you’ll ever see. Lee’s tope suicida as Ospreay was seated on the guardrail was one of my favorite spots of the entire year. Another highlight was Lee blocking the Oscutter with a knee strike. These guys can blend freakish athletic moves with stiffer strikes than you’d expect. It’s kind of just what I want from this division. Ospreay hit the Oscutter and added Storm Breaker to become champion after 20:07. Once again, Willy stays in that 15-20 minute range and shines brightest. Lee is always awesome.
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129. TNA World Heavyweight Championship: Bobby Roode [c] vs. Austin Aries – TNA Destination X 2012
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| The whole “Option C” concept in TNA really only worked to perfection here. Bobby Roode was reigning as a pretty dominant TNA World Champion for most of 2012. Meanwhile, Austin Aries was on fire as the X Division Champion. Aries had the opportunity for a shot at Roode if he gave up the X Division Title. When they met in the main event of Destination X, it proved to be something special. The crowd was molten hot for Aries and he actually won in a great match. It was a case of TNA pulling the trigger at the right time. This match doesn’t hold up quite as well considering Roode’s lackluster career afterward and Aries being a total undesirable these days. Still, this was a fantastic 22:18.
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128. IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Championship: Kota Ibushi [c] vs. Ricochet – NJPW Dominion 2014
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| Sometimes, a match is really easy to book. Just put two of the best and most athletically gifted wrestlers in the ring together and let them do their thing. That’s what NJPW did in 2014. After Ricochet won the Best of the Super Juniors tournament, he earned a shot at Kota Ibushi’s Jr. Heavyweight Title and the two put on a classic. The feats they pulled off were out of this world and honestly, way better than anything that Ricochet did with Will Ospreay even though those got way more appreciation and love. The whole thing only lasted 13:37 but it’s filled with non-stop action to the point where you’re blown away and a bit exhausted by how great it is. Ibushi retained and it’s the kind of thing that almost anyone can actually appreciate.
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127. ROH World Championship: Jay Lethal [c] vs. AJ Styles – ROH Final Battle 2015
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| I saw these two wrestle during their TNA run but this was something different. Both men have not only evolved as performers, but they’ve matured and are better than ever. In the opening video package to the show, they discussed the fact that AJ Styles is a pioneer for ROH, yet has never worn the top prize. Jay Lethal considered himself to be the best in the world, but his title run up to that point had been largely disappointing. They worked the kind of start I expected, feeling each other out. Lethal had to go out and talk strategy with Truth Martini, so when he went back in, the focus turned to AJ’s injured back. Not only was the attack smart, but the things done here worked so well. Lethal was so well prepared that he had a counter for nearly everything AJ did and still focused on the back. Hell, even when AJ nearly got the Styles Clash and looked to be rallying, Lethal launched him outside through a table. The Clash was very well protected too, as Lethal never got to kick out of it. Lethal needed two Lethal Injections and a Cradle Piledriver, complete with smack talk to Jerry Lynn on commentary, to finally keep Styles down after 22:12. Not only was the match itself fantastic, but Styles did what no other challenger in the Lethal World Title reign had done and that was lose cleanly. This marked a massive win for Lethal as he beat the top star on the indies, fair and square, sending him off into 2016 as absolutely the man to beat. When wrestling is kept simple and done right, it can be beautiful.
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126. IWGP Heavyweight Championship: Hiroshi Tanahashi [c] vs. Kazuchika Okada – NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 9
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| This is one of the greatest rivalries in pro wrestling history. Each time these two meet, it’s pretty much a guarantee you’ll get something that is four stars or better. Their match at King of Pro Wrestling 2013 is a top three match that I have EVER seen. This wasn’t quite on that level, but it was still a fantastic main event. With this being the main event of the biggest show of the year and featuring the top two guys in the company, it was given 30:57. They made sure to use as much of it as possible, going through a long feeling out process. It wasn’t the most exciting thing but it made sense given how well they know each other. Getting an advantage was a struggle. Tanahashi hit a massive High Fly Flow to the outside in the biggest highlight of the match. The second half of this was spectacular. Okada was a dick at times, so Tanahashi was one right back to him. Tanahashi had Okada and the Rainmaker in particular, very well scouted. When he finally got hit with one, he kicked out. This wasn’t your ordinary finisher kickout. This was how it should be because the Rainmaker is such a protected move that when someone does get up, it’s a big deal. A flurry of High Fly Flows made Tanahashi 2-0 against Okada at Wrestle Kingdom after an all-around awesome match.
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Post by The Kevstaaa on Jun 1, 2021 9:47:21 GMT -5
125. Tomoaki Honma vs. Katsuyori Shibata – NJPW G1 Climax 24 8/3/14
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| Going into this, I knew it would be awesome and it delivered. The crowd is always molten hot for Tomoaki Honma. The start of this match was intense, as Shibata beat the f*** out of Honma with some shots, only for Honma to just scream at him and take it like a man. The mixture of the hot crowd with the vicious hard hits of the match made for something really enjoyable to watch. Near the end, Shibata hit a sick slap on Honma but Honma came right back with that headbutt. Honma caught the Penalty Kick attempt so Shibata lit him up with slaps only for Honma to hit one major one of his own that took down Shibata. Shibata then finally won with a GTS and PK, ending a fantastic match in 10:47. The more I watch Shibata, the more I like him and I can honestly say the same for Honma. The fans just eat up everything Honma does and they buy into the possibility of him winning, hook, line and sinker. He did have some really close calls here too. I feel like I’m going to have bruises just from watching this. It was two guys who didn’t let up and worked the whole match at a fantastic breakneck pace
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124. WWE United Kingdom Championship: Pete Dunne [c] vs. Tyler Bate – NXT 12/20/17
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| After killing it in their first two matches, Pete Dunne and Tyler Bate had one final meeting in 2017, with the score tied at one. This got off to a methodical start, with neither guy wanting to make a mistake. Dunne was more aggressive and mutilated Bate’s arm and fingers in horrible ways. I cringed at how brutal some of it looked. Once Bate began his comeback, this truly got going. Their suplex off the steel steps spot was great, as I’d never seen it before. They went nuts as they traded huge lariats and strikes with the fans on their feet. There was a great moment where Bate might’ve won by countout, so he hit a sweet tope on Dunne to break it up and try to win the title inside. Bate survived the Bitter End, while Dunne kicked out of the Tyler Driver ’97. When Bate tried using a super German suplex, Dunne landed on his feet and delivered the Bitter End to retain the title in 22:48. Another incredible chapter in this rivalry. This capped off the best trilogy in history. Yes, not just 2017, but in all of history. The only competition it has is Flair/Steamboat. It’s that good.
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123. Kazuchika Okada vs. Tomohiro Ishii – NJPW G1 Climax 26 8/6/16
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| In 2013, these two had a damn good G1 Climax match but disappointed against each other in last year’s tournament. Here there broke out with what was easily their best outing together. Coming into this match, the seventh for each guy, Kazuchika Okada had been coasting through the G1. A lot of lackluster matches with minimal effort from Okada but that all changed on this night. Okada looked like he was going to take his CHAOS stablemate lightly but Ishii woke him up with an early lariat. Both men countered each other’s finishers within the first minute, setting the tone for the match. Ishii laid in the chops and Okada tried to man up and take them but he’s no Shibata or Honma, so he couldn’t. In one of my favorite moments all year, Okada’s Rainmaker pose was interrupted by a chop from Ishii. Sometimes you just gotta shut the cocky prick up. The fans and commentators lost their minds several times as Ishii just is a master at getting you emotionally invested. Having the champ well scouted, Ishii countered three more Rainmakers and nailed two headbutts. He followed with the Owen Hart Driver and a lariat for an insane near fall. Ishii nailed a brainbuster to finally score the win at 18:47, defeating the IWGP Heavyweight Champion in arguably the match of the tournament. Instead of giving us a rematch, Gedo chose to book Okada vs. Fale again the following month. Tomohiro Ishii is incredible and a top five wrestler in the world.
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122. Kota Ibushi vs. Zack Sabre Jr. – NJPW G1 Climax 27 7/21/17
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| It’s the match everyone expected to be the Cruiserweight Classic Finals. They both had excellent G1 openers, with Zack Sabre Jr. beating Hiroshi Tanahashi and Kota Ibushi losing to Tetsuya Naito in a phenomenal effort. They both went to their strengths early. Sabre took it to the mat, while Ibushi delivered stiff strikes and kicks. Sabre took much less damage than Kota on night one and it came into play. Each time Kota found an opening, all Sabre had to do was attack the neck and regain control. He caught a moonsault into a submission and though I’ve seen him do it before, it’s always cool. The fans popped for heel Sabre slamming Ibushi by the leg and going right into one of his trademark pins, purely because it was awesome. Near the end of the 15:51 runtime, they just battered one another. Sabre caught a Pele into an ankle lock, because he’s awesome like that. When he locked in a triangle choke, Ibushi powered out with a fantastic Last Ride to score the victory. Simply amazing. They did what works best for them and it blended into an excellent match that more than lived up to the hype. A top five G1 match of 2017.
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121. KUSHIDA vs. Kyle O'Reilly – NJPW Best of the Super Juniors 5/21/16
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| In my opinion, the two best junior heavyweights in New Japan Pro Wrestling were KUSHIDA and Kyle O’Reilly until Kyle moved to heavyweight. In the finals of this tournament last year, these two faced off in the finals. KUSHIDA won and went on to win the IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Title because of it. In the first main event of this year’s tournament, they had their big rematch. Their finals match went 30 minutes so both guys tried for their signature submissions out of the gate. I loved the way O’Reilly altered his game after losing last year. He didn’t just go after the arm, instead adding in some leg work to hurt KUSHIDA as much as possible. Their work is so smooth together that watching them catch each other in various submissions is a thing of beauty. That even played into possibly my favorite spot of the year, when O’Reilly sat KUSHIDA in a chair and leapt off the apron to attack him, only to get caught in a mid-air armbar. It sounds so difficult to pull off but they nailed it perfectly. After some spectacular counter wrestling and playing off past matches, O’Reilly nailed a Brainbuster and took the kickout right into stomping on KUSHIDA’s face. He turned that into an armbar and made sure to grab at the leg, again playing off earlier work. KUSHIDA fought hard but fell into a tough position and had to tap at 20:08. Unfortunately, O’Reilly didn’t even make the finals, so we never got the NJPW tiebreaker. Still, this is a tremendous must see match.
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Post by The Kevstaaa on Jun 2, 2021 8:56:23 GMT -5
120. Super Strong Style 16 Finals: Travis Banks vs. Tyler Bate – PROGRESS Chapter 49: Super Strong Style 16 5/29/17
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| Super Strong Style 16 was in contention for the best tournament of the year. To get to the finals, Travis Banks had to beat Jimmy Havoc, Flamita and Zack Sabre Jr., while Tyler Bate went through Pastor William Eaver, Mark Haskins and Matt Riddle. The atmosphere here was incredible, with the crowd being very pro-Banks and anti-Bate. They went through a feeling out process, before things picked up, only to lead to two ref bumps. I was worried that would ruin the match. Instead, we got something fun that made sense with the characters. Bate’s buddies Pete Dunne and Trent Seven got involved, only to be evened out by the debuting #CCK, who are friends of Banks. With that out of the way, the rest of the 22:51 was left for them to go one on one and things got nuts there. Tons of great spots, near falls and we even got to see Terminator Travis as he just started forearming steel chairs that were thrown at him. Banks survived a Tyler Driver ’97, then countered one off the top for an avalanche Kiwi Krusher. Bate somehow kicked out, but was put in the Lion Clutch and tapped out. This was an emotional roller coaster that hit every note it needed to. It cemented Banks as the next top guy, continued the strong year for Bate and was loaded with action and drama.
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119. Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Tomohiro Ishii – NJPW G1 Climax 23 8/2/13
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| Wisely, Tanahashi takes Ishii to the ground game. Ishii is a guy who likes to hit fast and hard, so this is a great strategy. Ishii turns things around though, playing to his strength. He takes the action outside, where he just beats up on Tanahashi for a bit. They continue to go back and forth until Tanahashi sends Ishii outside this time. He skins the cat back in, paying homage to his favorite wrestler, and then does a plancha onto Ishii. Interestingly, Tanahashi just gets into a forearm exchange, keeping up with the hard hitting Ishii. That is until Ishii just murders him with a slap. He follows with a powerbomb for a near fall. Tanahashi answers with slingblade and a German for two. They just trade big blows, with Ishii scoring a second rope Brainbuster. Tanahashi continues to prove to be a tough guy to keep down. Ishii smells blood though, pouring it on and hitting a big headbutt and lariat. Tanahashi still somehow kicks out and hits a dragon suplex. Slingblade follows but Ishii gets a shoulder up. Tanahashi goes up for High Fly Flow but misses. Ishii rolls Tanahashi into a pinning combination for a near fall that the fans completely bite on. They go back to a strike exchange that Tanahashi nearly wins this time. Ishii hits the Brainbuster for two and the fans have pretty much lost their minds at this point. Realizing the Brainbuster isn’t enough, he goes all Scott Steiner and hits a goddamn screwdriver to win in 17:42. Just a tremendous main event. Tanahashi knows how to step up in the big matches and this was the biggest win in Ishii’s career. The crowd and commentator gets tons of credit from me for being insanely excited about this. The near falls and frantic final few minutes were insane. Seeing Ishii have to hit the screwdriver was nuts.
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118. IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Championship: Will Ospreay [c] vs. Hiromu Takahashi – NJPW Dominion 2018
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| I’ve made my feelings on Will Ospreay very clear. He has the talent to be one of the best in the world, but doesn’t even crack my top 50. He gets in his own way more often than not and holds himself back with horrible tropes. However, thanks to his talent, he can deliver in big matches against superior opponents. Hiromu Takahashi, the best junior heavyweight in the world, is kind of the perfect opponent for him. These are two reckless warriors and the match played right into that. Within a minute or so of this 20:20 match, Ospreay nearly killed himself with a dive off the ramp. Surprisingly, Will slowed the pace from there. I liked it because the quicker the match, the better it is for Hiromu. He thrives there. Hiromu rallied and brought out strikes that would’ve been at home in a heavyweight bout. They built to the bigger spots and made it so each shift in momentum mattered. It wasn’t hollow like the Ospreay/Scurll match from earlier in the year. Their closing stretch was as wild as you’d expect. It saw Hiromu counter Storm Breaker into a triangle choke that was successful for him en route to winning the Best of the Super Juniors. Will didn’t quit, but was hurt enough to fall to a corner DVD and Time Bomb. I love the idea that Hiromu lost in February, saw Will had a bad neck, came back with a submission that impacted that, and used it to regain Mr. Belt. It’s a shame Hiromu got injured, because he was on one hell of a roll in 2018.
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117. IWGP Heavyweight Championship: Kazuchika Okada [c] vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi – NJPW Wrestling Dontaku 2018
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| It has been called the greatest rivalry in pro wrestling history. While I disagree, there’s no denying that it ranks near the top. Most of their battles are classics. Their 2013 match at King of Pro Wrestling is legitimately in my top three all time. But, this was about 2018. Kazuchika Okada bested Hiroshi Tanahashi at Wrestle Kingdom in 2016 (in their worst match) and was officially the new “ace.” Tanahashi was not one to go away quietly, though. He is still called the “ace” by many, including himself. Okada had broken almost every IWGP Title record imaginable. Tanahashi stood in the way of the one left, for most defenses in a single reign. Of course, it was also Tanahashi who held that record. Ever the master, Tanahashi avoided the tired Okada formula in this. Okada, again at his best when forced to do something different, was aggressive and a cocky prick. Douchebag Okada is the best Okada and Tana was as resilient as ever. When Okada did his trademark Rainmaker pose, Tanahashi stood up in his face, defiant as ever. He wasn’t going down without a fight. They called back to their previous match, a 30 minute draw in the G1 26, with the same exact moves at the same exact time. That takes something special to get right. The closing stretch was incredible, and we even got Tanahashi hitting Rainmakers of his own. Okada eventually retained after 34:36 in what was one of their best matches in history. A classic.
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116. NXT Tag Team Championship: The Authors of Pain [c] vs. #DIY vs. The Revival – NXT TakeOver: Orlando
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| It was the best match of WrestleMania weekend. The Authors were arguably the best tag team in 2017, while #DIY and Revival were the best in the world before a split and injuries stopped that. This hit all the right notes from the opening bell to the finish at 23:39. #DIY and Revival put aside their rivalry to gang up on the large champions. When they finally did have to go at it, they had splendid callbacks to their incredible matches from 2016. Them working together was the best, though. The crowd reaction for them putting Rezar through a table was fantastic. The spot where Gargano and Dawson hit Meeting in the Middle, followed by Wilder and Ciampa doing the Shatter Machine was one of my favorites of the entire year. What kept this from ranking higher was the ending. DIY got eliminated and, while it gave us the fresh matchup of AOP/Revival, I think it would’ve worked better to have the babyface team against the dominant champs. Especially since they’re the ones who had a rivalry going. AOP bested Revival to retain in another high point for NXT’s stellar tag division.
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Post by The Kevstaaa on Jun 3, 2021 8:37:25 GMT -5
115. Best of the Super Juniors Finals: KUSHIDA vs. Kyle O'Reilly – NJPW Best of the Super Juniors 2015
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| The first time I watched this, I thought it was great, but not on the level that a lot of people saw it. The second time around, I loved it more and bumped up the rating. These are two of my favorite juniors, while also being two of my favorite wrestlers period. With no animosity in this tournament final, they shook hands at the start before going to the mat. The things they did were so seamless while working the ground game. They both targeted the arm since Kyle O’Reilly is known for the armbar and KUSHIDA has the hoverboard lock. There was a sequence where they just traded attempts to get these on. When they graduated from the mat work, it led to some fantastic spots. KUSHIDA hit a Brainbuster on the apron, Kyle busted out a bunch of suplexes and, in a massive highlight, KUSHIDA went for a moonsault, but Kyle caught his arm in an armbar. It was perfectly done. I even marked a bit seeing KUSHIDA use his partner’s Sliced Bread finisher. Finally, after so many phenomenal back and forth moments, KUSHIDA won with the hoverboard lock at 30:45. Maybe shave a few minutes off and put this in front of a hotter crowd and we could be talking five stars. As it stands, it’s still a tremendous outing from both men. I’d like to see Kyle win next year and KUSHIDA be junior champion, to set up the rematch.
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114. NXT North American Championship: Ricochet [c] vs. Adam Cole vs. Pete Dunne – NXT 10/10/18
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| During the big Title vs. Title match between Ricochet and Pete Dunne, Adam Cole and his Undisputed Era buddies got involved. It led to a no contest ending to a great match. With Cole still waiting for his rematch at the North American Title, he was granted it with the condition that Dunne also get his shot at the same time. That set the stage for an unreal match. These three managed to deliver one of the best triple threat matches of all time. Yes, I said all time. Almost every move came off smoothly, they were innovative with the spots, kept a great pace, and brought some great drama. Even with the results known beforehand, I still bit on several of the near falls. That’s special. Dunne hitting Cole with the Bitter End and immediately catching a Ricochet Shooting Star Press into a triangle choke was one of the better spots of the year. They also did well to avoid many typical tropes expected from this match type and gave us something completely different. Dunne had Cole trapped in the end, only to get hit with a springboard 450 splash that allowed Ricochet to retain at 18:29. A stellar, all time great match from these three.
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113. Two Out of Three Falls Match: Antonio Cesaro vs. Sami Zayn – NXT 8/21/13
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| People don’t talk about it enough but this was the match that put Sami Zayn on the map. After debuting with a win and then scoring an upset over Cesaro, the two entered into a feud. I had seen them clash as El Generico and Claudio Castagnoli in some bangers in Ring of Honor but this was something else. Their matches were way better in NXT. This 2 Out of 3 Falls bout was tremendous. The crowd chanted “Match of the Year” and they honestly weren’t that far off. This was basically two of the best wrestlers in the world putting on a showcase of their offensive talents and making everyone’s jaws drops. Zayn scored the first fall with a flash pin in about seven seconds, which you rarely see in this kind of match. Cesaro won the second fall via submission, which again subverted my expectations. When Cesaro wrapped this up after 14:07, I was completely hooked and sold on NXT as a product.
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112. Andrade vs. Rey Mysterio – WWE Smackdown 1/15/19
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| This kind of came from out of nowhere. There wasn’t much in the way of an existing rivalry or anything. It was just a case of two great wrestlers being pitted against each other on a weekly TV show. In fact, these two had a very good match back in November under similar circumstances. But this was different. This was special. They did things that still baffle me. The sitout powerbomb on the outside, Rey Mysterio’s snap rana off the apron, and the countless exchanges they crafted during this 20:36 encounter were all great. They worked through several commercial breaks and I’m just sad we don’t get to see it all when rewatching on the WWE Network. In the end, it ultimately took a little bit of help from Zelina Vega, but Andrade hit a draping variation of the hammerlock DDT to score the victory. It was easily the high point of their awesome rivalry. Their 2 Out of 3 Falls rematch was great, as was their match on Raw later in the year, and it was Rey who Andrade won the United States Title from. However, none of those matches could top what they did here. The best TV match since Punk/Cena in 2013.
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111. IWGP Championship: Kazuchika Okada [c] vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi – NJPW Dominion 2012
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| Though Okada was new to the main event scene, there was a big fight feel here. I love all their matches except one (Wrestle Kingdom 10) but this was my first watch of this particular one. Tanahashi controlled the early stages with mat work and took it to Okada’s knee. Okada sold it well, nearly falling while being sent into the corner. He shook it off enough to dropkick Tanahashi to the outside. Once there, possibly out of desperation, Okada used the guardrail to work Tanahashi’s neck. Okada continued to focus on the neck and hit a few more dropkicks. I was okay with him not selling the leg too much since Tanahashi didn’t get the chance to work it a ton to this point. Tanahashi’s comeback saw him fire off strikes and then hit High Fly Flow to a standing Okada outside. He was in his domain now, ripping off dragon screws on the middle rope. Okada frantically reached the ropes to prevent a submission and took over for a bit. After the big elbow, Tanahashi countered the Rainmaker into slingblade. Tana’s cloverleaf spot brought the crowd to their feet but Okada reached the ropes. He called for the Rainmaker this time but ended up with a straightjacket suplex before Okada avoided High Fly Flow. Red Shoes is beyond overdramatic at this point. Tanahashi hit High Fly Flow to Okada’s back but turned him over for a second and Okada got his knees up. This led to a fantastic series of reversals including a tombstone battle won by Tanahashi. He again countered the Rainmaker into the slingblade and hit High Fly Flow to regain the title. Tremendous match and one of their best. Great reversals and overall wrestling with some awesome small details sprinkled in throughout. I realize that I prefer their matches in these venues more than their Tokyo Dome stuff.
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Post by The Kevstaaa on Jun 4, 2021 9:04:48 GMT -5
110. WWE Cruiserweight Classic Semi-Finals: Kota Ibushi vs. TJ Perkins – WWE Cruiserweight Classic Finals
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| My two favorite competitors in the Cruiserweight Classic were Kota Ibushi and TJ Perkins. I knew there was a chance they could meet in the semi-finals but didn’t believe it until it became official. Perkins was a cocky son of a gun throughout the tournament, but with so much at stake, he was serious here. No dabbing, no nonsense. He was the first person to check Kota’s kicks, bringing a game plan to this big match. He had an answer for everything and targeted the knee to eliminate Kota’s brutal kicks and set up the knee bar. This got better as it progressed. Their exchanges were tremendous, while the strikes and near falls all delivered. The reaction to TJ kicking out of the Golden Star Bomb was one of my favorite things in 2016. Perkins would counter a second powerbomb attempt into the knee bar. When that wasn’t enough, he trapped Kota’s other leg and then added torque to Kota’s surgically repaired neck. Kota had to tap at 14:50, putting TJ in the finals and cementing a major upset. Too bad TJ is a big doofus these days.
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109. IWGP Intercontinental Championship: Hiroshi Tanahashi [c] vs. Shinsuke Nakamura – NJPW Invasion Attack 2014
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| Though I feel like their outing at WK8 disappointed, this still has a big fight feel. Tanahashi comes in with a clear game plan and it is to go after Nakamura’s leg. He’s done it before and it makes sense considering Nakamura’s Boma Ye. He’s the top babyface but I’ve said it before; Tanahashi is at his best when he heels it up. He does it at certain times and it almost always works. He draws boos while viciously working the leg, even involving the guardrail in some of it. Nakamura does a top notch job selling the leg. They get into an exchange of strikes and afterwards, Nakamura is on the ground, smacking his leg to regain some feeling. Each time it seems like Nakamura has momentum, Tanahashi is there to destroy his leg. He even hits High Fly Flow right onto the leg before hitting a second onto a standing Nakamura outside. Tanahashi is all too happy to try and take a cheap countout win here. Nakamura does hit Boma Ye, but it doesn’t have much effect. Again, Tanahashi cuts him off and applies a twisted looking cloverleaf. Some more great leg work and great selling by Nakamura throughout. Nakamura gets an armbar on but Tanahashi reaches the ropes. When they get up, Nakamura sees an opening and drills Tanahashi with a Boma Ye to the back of the head. A second rope knee and TWO more Boma Ye strikes still aren’t enough to put away the “Ace.” One final fantastic looking one does the trick and we have a new champion after 26:49. Up until their G1 final a year later, this was probably their best match together. Tanahashi played his role perfectly and Nakamura’s job of selling and showcasing desperation was perfect. It’s one of those matches where you don’t need to know the language to know what the story is.
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108. CMLL World Lightweight Championship: Dragon Lee (c) vs. Kamaitachi – NJPW/CMLL Fantastica Mania 1/24/16
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| This was apparently the tenth match between them and it was nuts. They knew each other so well that the pace throughout was bonkers. Their chemistry is a sight to behold. From Dragon double stomping Kamaitachi outside to Kamaitachi’s insane senton to the floor, the spots were out of this world. Seriously, this was one of the greatest spot fests I’ve ever seen. The crowd at Korakuen Hall ate it all up and added a lot to the atmosphere. There was a great intensity in the things they did and even if you didn’t know about the feud, you could buy into it by watching this. There is something truly special about these two together. Kamaitachi won the title after countering a Phoenix plex into a ridiculous flipping piledriver at 18:33. An absolute must see match. I would have done more play-by-play or talked more about specific moves but it wouldn’t have done it any justice. Kamaitachi would return to Japan for good at the end of the year and jump right into the IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Title picture.
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107. G1 Climax Finals: Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kota Ibushi – NJPW G1 Climax 28 8/12/18
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| I don’t care how much I love Kota Ibushi. The second it was clear that Hiroshi Tanahashi had Katsuyori Shibata in his corner, there was no way I couldn’t root for him. That’s Shibata. Much better than Ibushi having Kenny Omega at ringside. Their three previous meetings got ****¼, ****¼, and ****½ from me. And while they had an IC Title match last year, the stakes were highest here. Tanahashi wanted another shot at the top, while Ibushi wanted to get there for the first time. Also, a win for Kota would make him the first person to win the G1, New Japan Cup, and Best of the Super Juniors. Onto the match, there was a lot to like. They had each other completely scouted, making for sequences that featured counters upon counters. There were little touches like Tanahashi hitting a Shibata style dropkick after avoiding the Lawn Dart that did so much harm in his prior loss to Ibushi. Tanahashi’s tried and true game plan against Ibushi’s unexpected high impact stuff. I loved how Ibushi was winning their strike exchange down the stretch, only for Tanahashi to channel Shibata and find a way to win out. Then, their fight continued while they were on the mat. It was a war. As usual with big NJPW matches, they went a bit too long and too overboard with some of the late stuff. Tanahashi endured a ton before winning with three High Fly Flows in 35:01. Shave about ten minutes off to avoid the ridiculousness and you’d have a classic. As it stands, it’s still fantastic.
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106. IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship Tournament Finals: Kenny Omega vs. Tomohiro Ishii – NJPW G1 Special in USA 7/2/17
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| In the New Japan Cup, Tomohiro Ishii beat Kenny Omega. At Wrestling Dontaku, Kenny evened the score. Their tiebreaker came with high stakes, as the winner would be crowned the first ever IWGP United States Heavyweight Champion. Because Ishii is awesome, he sold the arm damage from earlier match that night with Zack Sabre Jr. This was the longest of their three matches (31:21), and had a bit more of a calm pace, at least early on. There were still plenty of wild spots throughout. It felt like they knew how tough the other was, so they knew it couldn’t end quickly. The Young Bucks set up a table for Kenny outside, leading to the best spot of the match. Kenny tried a German off the apron, but Ishii continually blocked it. Kenny grabbed him in a full nelson, so with no arms left to use, Ishii bit down on the rope to block the move. It was awesome. Kenny still fought him off and hit a dragon suplex off the apron and through the table. As cool as that was, it couldn’t match the rope biting spot before it. There was still a ton of action left. Too much for me to detail, but just know that the match is nuts. Kenny went a bit too V-Trigger happy down the stretch, before winning with the One Winged Angel. This was a great capper for their trilogy and the first set of US shows for NJPW. A great match that sits nicely as their second best together.
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Post by The Kevstaaa on Jun 5, 2021 7:08:32 GMT -5
105. Kazuchika Okada vs. Shinsuke Nakamura – NJPW G1 Climax 25 8/15/15
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| The G1 Climax 24 last year was the greatest wrestling tournament I had ever seen. The finals that year was between these two men. Kazuchika Okada and Shinsuke Nakamura are the top two members of the CHAOS faction, so there isn’t really animosity there. Last year, Okada won. This year, he entered this match with just one loss, while Nakamura had two (including a forfeit one). The winner of this would win their block. As noted, this wasn’t the kind of match you’d see any personal war in, but there were some interesting moments. After early exchanges, both men got a bit cocky and taunted each other. Later on, Okada stole a signature move of Nakamura’s but things still didn’t get too heated. Okada nailed a tombstone on the outside but, out of respect for his friend, chose not to get the countout win, instead rolling Nakamura back inside. Near the end of this 23:31 battle, Nakamura went for the Boma Ye but ate a gorgeous dropkick from Okada. That began a tremendous finishing stretch that was among the best all year long. With the Boma Ye failing, Nakamura countered the Rainmaker into a sick armbar. Okada tried to get free, but rolled over into a worse situation, with the camera perfectly capturing his look of desperation before tapping out. Nakamura advanced to the finals in a match that was better than their G1 final last year. I think there’s a phenomenal tiebreaker coming up somewhere down the line.
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104. NXT Tag Team Championship: The Revival [c] vs. Johnny Gargano and Tommaso Ciampa – NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn II
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| 2014 was the year of great NXT Title matches. 2015 was the year of great NXT Women’s Title matches. 2016 was the year of the tag teams in NXT and The Revival was a large reason why. After regaining the titles from American Alpha, The Revival needed a new challenge. Enter Gargano and Ciampa, fresh off a great match against one another in the CWC. These two teams took what AA and the Revival did so well and managed to best it. Tag team wrestling is simple to get right. It’s about deprivation and hope spots and the Revival have mastered it. As for Ciampa and Gargano, they had the crowd in the palm of their hands. There was an emotional impact to this match (and their rematch) that other tag matches lacked. Ciampa left ROH a while back and his future was uncertain, while Gargano left a comfy spot as WWN’s ace. You felt that the fans badly wanted them to succeed here. #DIY were great sympathetic faces, while the Revival nailed every heel tactic and mannerism. I seriously can’t say enough about them. The false finishes were perfectly done. The reaction when the fans thought it ended but Dawson put Dash’s foot on the bottom rope at the last minute was priceless. Just when it looked like we’d have new champions, Dawson pulled Ciampa out and sent him into the post. An inverted figure four was placed on Gargano who desperately tried but had to give up at 19:10. A fantastic blend of indy style and old school tag work. The emotion of this put it over the top. It was one of those cases where the losers gained a ton. Gargano and Ciampa became stars on this night.
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103. AJ Styles vs. Kota Ibushi – NJPW G1 Climax 25 7/26/15
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| Of the many, many matches that come with the G1 Climax each year, a few always stand out when you see them on paper. This was absolutely one of them. As seen earlier, they had an IWGP Heavyweight Title match earlier in the year at Invasion Attack, which was great. However, they bested it with the rematch. Playing off of that, both men were able to counter a lot of the things the other would do even more than in their first match. Kota Ibushi used his quickness and athleticism to overwhelm AJ Styles, who is not the same man he was ten years ago. Now, AJ is a much smarter worker and it showed in the way he turned things around. At one point, Ibushi hits a backflip kick only for AJ to respond with a Pele, showing he’s still got it. Everything done in this match made sense and they built to a fantastic finish. Ibushi continually avoided the Styles Clash, but AJ had an answer for a lot of the big spots Ibushi tried, like a top rope rana and deadlift German. Ibushi would survive Bloody Sunday and win with the Phoenix Splash that was countered in their first match at 19:11. This made Ibushi only the fourth man in New Japan to pin Styles, joining Okada, Tanahashi and Naito.
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102. NEVER Openweight Championship: Tomohiro Ishii [c] vs. Tetsuya Naito – NJPW Invasion Attack 2014
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| These two are just magic together. They had a classic a few months earlier at the New Beginning show and would go on to have some awesome matches in 2016 as well. This program with Ishii saw the first signs of dick heel Naito. He arrogantly slapped Ishii around early on. He has some reason to be confident as his speed gives him the upper hand. That is, until he runs into a powerslam from the champion. Still, Naito gets back in the driver’s seat and dropkicks Ishii into the corner before getting two on a Frankensteiner. Ishii starts coming back and hits a superplex. They start wailing on each other. Naito doesn’t look like it, but he goes toe to toe with the hardest hitters. In a great moment, Ishii counters a T-Bone into a DDT at the last second. The moves get bigger and better down the stretch, including a near fall on a beautiful German by Naito. Ishii starting laying in some brutal chops but runs right into the Koji Clutch. Ishii fades bur finds the will to make it to the ropes. Both guys kick out at one on separate kicks before slapping the shit out of each other. Ishii gets tired of that and just drills him with a lariat. They go into one final exchange before Ishii retain with the Brainbuster in 17:45. Just a tremendous match that shows why these are two of my favorite guys in NJPW. Hard hitting, dramatic and full of great wrestling.
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101. Team Raw vs. Team Smackdown – WWE Survivor Series 2016
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| When a match goes 52:49, it can either feel like it took an hour or feel like it kind of flew by. The latter was the case for this match. AJ Styles, Dean Ambrose, Bray Wyatt, Randy Orton and Shane McMahon took on Chris Jericho, Kevin Owens, Braun Strowman, Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins in a huge traditional Survivor Series match. I’m a sucker for those kinds of matches and this one certainly delivered. It was handled so well, especially when you consider the sheer amount of stuff going on. Several angles and moments were weaved into one gigantic match. For the first fifteen or so minutes, there were no eliminations and everyone got some shine. The Styles/Ambrose rivalry was touched upon when they got into it and Dean was eliminated first. I disagreed with him going out first, but it worked out well. They made good use of Smackdown’s mascot, James Ellsworth, when he held Braun’s leg to get him counted out. Guys like Braun and Owens were protected by countout and DQ eliminations, while a guy like Styles got protected by going out only after a brief (and awesome) Shield reunion. We got the big spots we love from Shane including his elbow through the table and he took a spear that nearly killed him. Best of all, the Wyatts got to look strong. When everyone thought Seth and Roman would overcome the odds for Team Raw, Orton caught Seth in a top five RKO ever before sacrificing himself for Bray, allowing Bray to beat Reigns with Sister Abigail.
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Post by The Kevstaaa on Jun 6, 2021 7:03:04 GMT -5
100. NEVER Openweight Championship: Katsuyori Shibata [c] vs. Tomohiro Ishii – NJPW The New Beginning in Osaka 2016
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| People can give all their praise to the Tanahashi/Okada rivalry, but for my money, this is the best rivalry I’ve ever witnessed in terms of pure in-ring quality. I’ve watched all their matches since 2013 and have never gone lower than ****¼ on one. Though they had a match I gave the full five to back in 2013 (in this same city no less), their two matches this year were among the best they’ve ever done. After stealing a show a month earlier at Wrestle Kingdom, this was Tomohiro Ishii getting his rematch for the NEVER Title. Ishii and Shibata know what works for them and they deliver it each time. For 18:47, they beat the living hell out of each other for our enjoyment. They follow a similar pattern but each time out feels unique. For example, this time around, there was an emphasis on submissions as they built to the climax. At one point, Shibata hit a spinning back fast that made me gasp loudly. They’re known to trade big strikes so they upped the ante and traded brainbusters. They’re that insane. The closing moments were nuts and Shibata finally hit a shot hard enough to knock Ishii loopy. He used the sleeper hold and penalty kick to retain the title in another fantastic war between two incredible wrestlers.
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99. PWG Championship Ladder Match: Kevin Steen [c] vs. El Generico – PWG Steen Wolf
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| “You and I are destined to do this forever.” That has never been more true in wrestling than with Kevin Steen and El Generico. From teaming on the indies to brutal feuds there to their NXT run together to main roster matches, and somehow even all the way to WrestleMania. Watching something like their PWG Title match at Steen Wolf will make you wonder how they even still have careers at this point. This was brutal and they took some bumps that are even hard to watch at points. It’s the kind of thing that needs to be seen to really be believed. They went all in for 26:54 and blew away pretty much everyone. The only thing that I didn’t really like about this was the interference from The Young Bucks. While it helped set up the next angle, I think it took a bit away from this. Generico’s win was a true feel good moment.
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98. WWE World Championship: Dean Ambrose [c] vs. AJ Styles – WWE Backlash 2016
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| After beating John Cena cleanly at SummerSlam, the next logical step for AJ Styles was to challenge for the WWE World Championship. Styles and Dean Ambrose had a simple but effective buildup to this match and it worked. This felt like a big fight. Like the matches against Cena, Styles was in control for a good chunk of the 24:56 outing. AJ nailed every cocky mannerism as he just continued to be a step above everyone else in the world. Dean more than held his own though and his wild offensive style made for a great contrast to AJ. There were some scary moments in this, like a super back suplex spot and AJ taking a ridiculous bump into the ring post. I’m honestly surprised he didn’t injure himself on it. AJ worked the leg to set up some great Calf Crusher teases, though Dean’s selling of it could have been slightly better. Both guys busted out the big spots, from AJ’s springboard 450 splash to Ambrose’s diving elbow into the crowd. The final few minutes of this were among the best in WWE all year. Styles hit the Pele and Dean answered with the rebound lariat. Some people didn’t like the finish but I loved it. Sure Styles used a low blow before winning with the Styles Clash, but it wasn’t like he came off as a weak heel who needed it. It felt like he was capable of beating Dean and was a cunning enough competitor to take advantage when he found one. AJ’s win cemented his legacy. Everywhere he goes, he reaches the top. TNA Champion. IWGP Heavyweight Champion. WWE World Champion. Phenomenal is more than just a moniker for him.
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97. Royal Rumble Match – WWE Royal Rumble 2010
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| Keeping this one short and to the point, the first Royal Rumble match of the decade was easily one of the best ever. Sure, it only lasted less than 50 minutes (47:25 overall) but it was packed to the brim with great moments. CM Punk entered #3 and dominated while giving straight edge sermons. Shawn Michaels, desperate to win and earn a shot at The Undertaker, had a heroic effort in his final Rumble. Beth Phoenix made a rare appearance. The real kicker came right near the end though. Chris Jericho was floored when Edge arrived at #29, returning early from an injury to get revenge on Jericho. Batista got rid of Michaels in a heartbreaking moment before Edge ended up winning, putting a bow on a stellar Rumble and a smile on the faces of fans everywhere.
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96. Kenny Omega vs. Tomohiro Ishii – NJPW Wrestling Dontaku 2017
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| Upset with his loss to Tomohiro Ishii in the opening round of the New Japan Cup, Kenny Omega looked to even the score. However, it was Ishii who came out firing, overwhelming Omega with a flurry of offense. Kenny battled back as the match kept a pretty frantic pace throughout. Commentary continued the trend of selling the One Winged Angel as a big deal. Omega hadn’t hit it in his last two big singles matches (both losses), but beat Ishii with it in a tag. Kenny got a little overconfident, leading him to a strike exchange. That’s a battle he simply can’t win against Ishii. Kenny resorted back to aerial offense and keeping a quick pace. There was a cool spot where Ishii hit his own version of a One Winged Angel for a great near fall. Ishii also busted out a reverse rana One Winged Angel counter because he’s a madman in the best possible way. Omega got another big near fall by using Ishii’s own Brainbuster, before hitting the One Winged Angel to pick up the win at 23:55. The Ishii/Omega trilogy was a highlight of 2017 and the best for both men (above Omega/Okada and Ishii/Naito). They played off their first meeting well, worked at a wild pace and had some great moments throughout. It was their best outing together, which is saying something.
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Post by The Kevstaaa on Jun 7, 2021 7:37:09 GMT -5
95. WWE Raw Women's Championship Hell in a Cell: Becky Lynch [c] vs. Sasha Banks – WWE Hell in a Cell 2019
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| With their Clash of Champions match ending in disqualification, you knew this was coming. Sasha Banks would step inside Hell in a Cell for the second time in her career against Becky Lynch for the Raw Women’s Title. It felt like the most important women’s match since WrestleMania. By now, we have seen over 40 Hell in a Cell matches. That makes it difficult to give us something new. Sasha and Becky did a good job of bringing in some innovative spots to go with their already impressive chemistry. You got the sense they were willing to do whatever it took to walk out as champion. Some of the spots during this 21:23 runtime were flat out brutal and way more weapons were used than I expected. Some of the moments involving chairs and kendo sticks were really cool. Sasha brought in a bunch of chairs but it backfired on her in the end. Becky delivered a huge avalanche Bexploder onto the pile of chairs before locking in the Dis-Arm-Her to retain her title. It was the highlight of Becky’s title reign and Sasha’s best singles match since the Ronda Rousey war at Royal Rumble.
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94. WWE Championship: CM Punk [c] vs. Daniel Bryan – Over the Limit
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| Considering their backgrounds, a major PPV Title match between these two was pretty much a dream. They started by trying to outwork each other on the mat a bit. It slowly progressed into something more. Bryan brought an old lariat spot to WWE from his matches with Nigel McGuinness. Punk hit the elbow, which I believe beat Bryan earlier in the year, but it’s not enough here. Bryan relentlessly drove knees into Punk’s ribs as the aggression picked up. Punk tried the knee strike/bulldog combo only to get countered into the Yes Lock. Punk rolled over onto Bryan and gets a three count, though he tapped out right after the bell rings at the 23:58 mark. A tremendous match and the pinnacle of CM Punk’s title reign from an in-ring standpoint. Also a top five Bryan WWE match off the top of my head, especially at the time. Great back and forth as they were played to be equals. They kept the crowd invested, sold well for one another and wrestled a very smart match.
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93. Jon Moxley vs. Tomohiro Ishii – NJPW G1 Climax 29 7/19/19
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| When Jon Moxley’s G1 Climax entry was announced, more than a few potential matches stood out. This was right near the top of the list. Both men came in with 2-0 records and both were champions at the time. Before the bell, they came face to face for an intense staredown that set the tone for a ridiculously wild match. I’m talking about a match where they wrestled all over Korakuen Hall, battered each other with chairs, headbutted each other like the Junkyard Dog, and Ishii busted out a splash off the top through a table. As good as the G1 Climax usually is, it is often the same kind of match over and over. Variety is welcome (which is why I love Toru Yano in it) and this gave us that. There was nothing else in the tournament like it. This was right up the alley of both men and they made it work by giving us something unexpected. Ishii kicked out of the Death Rider, which I didn’t love, but they made up for it when Moxley added the Regal Knee. An elevated Death Rider later and Moxley secured the win after an incredible 20:36.
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92. IWGP Heavyweight Championship Two Out of Three Falls Match: Kazuchika Okada [c] vs. Kenny Omega – NJPW Dominion 2018
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| After giving their first match six stars, breaking his own scale, and killing his limited credibility, Dave Meltzer continued to up the ante for matches between Kazuchika Okada and Kenny Omega. This one got seven stars. I’ll start by getting the reason why it’s not a perfect match out of the way. The one time Kenny beat Okada was when he overwhelmed him with a quick pace in the G1 Climax. Considering he never beat Okada at a slower paced game and how he bragged about having the stamina advantage, it would make logical sense for him to bring that high energy right off the bat. Instead, they didn’t play enough off their G1 meeting and that didn’t make sense. With that out of the way, let’s praise this match. In the first fall, Omega kept having Okada’s usual formulaic stuff scouted. He understood his opponent in that sense. Knowing he beat Okada the one time he hit the One Winged Angel, Omega went for it too often and Okada countered into a rollup to take the first fall in 28:47. Okada became cocky, knowing he had barely been pinned in two years, so getting pinned twice in one match seemed unlikely. Omega tried new things out of desperation before tying it with the One Winged Angel at 47:47. The final fall beautifully showed how exhausted these guys were. They were dazed, would fall over after moves, and looked to be way out of it. Omega hit two more One Winged Angels to finally end Okada’s reign at the 64:50 mark. It isn’t the greatest match ever, but it’s a fantastic one. Great callbacks, exceptional pacing, quality action, and they didn’t try to go overly long and set some kind of record for the sake of it. Neck and neck with their G1 outing for their best work.
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91. NXT Championship Two Out Of Three Falls Match: Adam Cole vs. Johnny Gargano – NXT TakeOver: New York
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| This was supposed to the final chapter for Johnny Gargano and Tommaso Ciampa. An injury to Ciampa halted that and this was what we got instead. The top heel against the top babyface, Two out of Three Falls, with the NXT Championship on the line. The first fall featured some stellar wrestling. Hold for hold, crisp exchanges, counters, etc. That sort of thing. There was a lot of well-crafted drama as they went for flash pins and came close to stealing a 1-0 lead. It was cool because a lot of these matches opt for the quick first fall and work from there. After Cole won that fall, he came out swinging in the next. He could smell the victory and it showed. Gargano had to play on the defensive. It looked like he made the ultimate mistake of pride by breaking out the chance to tie it up via countout. However, he managed to pull Cole into the Gargano Escape to even the score. That final fall was just two desperate men throwing bombs at each other. Cole was willing to win by countout but Johnny survived that and interference from the Undisputed Era. He eventually used Gargano Escape to finally capture the title after a grueling 38:10. When this happened live, I was moved by Gargano’s win but felt it went overboard on the late kickouts. I do still feel that way but I’ve grown to like the match more. It felt like an epic title fight culminating in a wonderful moment. Their follow up matches couldn’t touch it.
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Post by The Kevstaaa on Jun 8, 2021 7:59:43 GMT -5
90. TNA Tag Team Championship Match 5 in Best of 5 Series Two Out of Three Falls Match: The Motor City Machine Guns [c] vs. Beer Money Inc. – TNA Impact 8/12/10
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| I couldn't find the exact picture of it but for my money, this is probably the best match in TNA Impact history. There are times when TNA had something that stood out for them. It started with the X Division and their Knockouts Division was also top notch for a while. The tag division was another shining light, partially thanks to these two teams. Their Best of the Five Series is the stuff of legend. It came to an end on this episode of Impact in a spectacular match. Beer Money took the first fall with a sequence of moves that put Alex Shelley down. Just minutes later, MCMG tied it up by besting Roode. The last fall was filled with drama as these duos battled to see who was the best. MCMG pulled out the victory after 16:23 and won what could be considered the greatest “best of” series in wrestling history. It’s that good.
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89. Adam Cole, Johnny Gargano and Tommaso Ciampa vs. Aleister Black, Ricochet and Velveteen Dream – WWE Halftime Heat 2019
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| This is such an absurd match on paper. Basically, NXT took their top six guys at the time and let them do their thing in the Performance Center during halftime of the Super Bowl. It was an unexpected announcement but I’m so glad they did it. This was arguably the most fun match of the entire year. Simply put, it was six stellar wrestlers doing what they do best and putting on a show. You had interactions that called back to old feuds like Aleister Black/Johnny Gargano, Adam Cole/Ricochet, and Velveteen Dream/Tommaso Ciampa. There were new interactions that had us salivating at the possibility of singles matches in the future. Everything moved along at a brisk pace, meaning there was never any slow down during the 16:15 runtime. Ricochet had one of the best hot tags you’ll ever see and it started an insane run of excitement going forward. The moment where Black, Ricochet, and Dream all posed together was awesome and it was just one of many. The finishing stretch is one of the wildest I can recall. Adam Cole got hit with pretty much everything his opponents could dish out, resulting in him eating the pin to cap something incredible.
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88. Men’s Royal Rumble – WWE Royal Rumble 2018
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| Theoretically, the Royal Rumble sounds easy enough to book but it’s not. In an hour long match, there are often lulls and those can be tough to iron out. For the most part, the 2018 edition avoided that. Rusev and Finn Balor opened things, marking one of my favorite combos to start a Rumble in history. From there, we had a lot of strong moments. Heath Slater getting beat up by everyone who came out before he could even enter the match, only to throw out Sheamus in mere seconds. Andrade Almas and Adam Cole making surprise appearances. The Hurricane and Rey Mysterio returning. Another fun Kofi Kingston elimination avoidance. The final six gave us a new vs. old battle as Mysterio, Randy Orton, and John Cena faced off against Balor, Shinsuke Nakamura, and Roman Reigns. This was a lengthy, dramatic exchange. It was even more drama filled when it came down to Reigns and Nakamura. The crowd was completely enthralled, desperate for a Nakamura win and a Roman loss. That’s just what they got after 66:02 of one of the greatest Royal Rumble matches ever. From the atmosphere to the strong pacing to the comedic moments to the final two, this Rumble had a little bit of everything.
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87. WWE United Kingdom Tournament Finals: Pete Dunne vs. Tyler Bate – WWE United Kingdom Tournament 2017
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| Night two of the WWE United Kingdom Championship Tournament was a marked improvement on the first. Pete Dunne and Tyler Bate were the MVPs, so them being in the finals was fitting. Dunne attacked Bate earlier in the night, injuring his shoulder and giving him a target. Bate refused to back down from Dunne, who was the focal point of the tournament. He went blow for blow with him as best he could. Bate was wise enough to avoid using the bad shoulder, even mostly using just one arm for a crazy lengthy airplane spin spot. Cesaro would be proud. Bate continued with big spots, including a one-armed powerbomb, fosbury flop, and 450 knee drop. Dunne hit the Bitter End for an excellent near fall. Bate survived an armbar and turned it into an awesome brainbuster. The Tyler Driver ’97 was hit to crown Tyler as the first UK Champion after 15:12. It was an outstanding first chapter to their rivalry that established Bate and Dunne as stars in the WWE and the perfect capper to the stories of both in the tournament. Dunne was the perfect villain, while Bate sold his arm well and drew lots of sympathy. Tremendous.
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86. Kenny Omega vs. Kota Ibushi – NJPW G1 Climax 28 8/11/18
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| Probably the most highly anticipated match in the G1 this year. Best friends, tag team partners, and golden lovers. With this being the final match on the tour, in typical Gedo fashion, the winner would win the entire block. Kenny Omega began 6-0, yet dropped two straight before this. His overconfidence was becoming a problem. His recent struggles forced him to be more aggressive than he originally planned against his buddy. Kota Ibushi came in for a friendly bout and had to adjust. Omega didn’t even hold back in terms of going after his friend’s surgically repaired neck. It sounds weird, but I love that this didn’t feel like they tried to have an epic. Too often does a match feel like wrestlers tried too hard. Instead, this had a natural flow that made for one of the better outings from either guy in 2018. Omega’s V-Trigger to the back meant extra because of Kota’s bad neck. The Kamigoye kick out was special because Omega was the first man to do it and Kota is the only men to ever kick out of the One Winged Angel. Kota was dropped on his head several times, but weathered it all to hit a super Tiger Driver. He followed up with Kamigoye and advanced to the G1 Finals in 23:13. I love the G1 because it forces NJPW to cut the shit and give us sub-30 minute main events. This was brilliant, telling an excellent story and giving us non-stop action. Their chemistry ensured this clicked, they threw bombs at each other, and I loved the story of Ibushi having to match the surprising aggression of his partner.
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Post by The Kevstaaa on Jun 10, 2021 9:01:53 GMT -5
85. WWE Intercontinental Championship: Seth Rollins [c] vs. The Miz – WWE Backlash 2018
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| Seth Rollins made a strong case for being WWE’s top wrestler of 2018. So did The Miz. Actually, The Miz has been doing that for years now. Put them together and you got magic. The Miz had just moved to Smackdown, which had the United States Title. Add in how Seth only just won the Intercontinental Title about a month earlier and the outcome to this encounter was obvious. That often takes away from a match because it lacks drama. Nobody told these two. They completely made me believe Miz was walking out as champion on more than one occasion. Both times he nearly won with the Skull Crushing Finale were fantastic. He found creative ways to hit the move each time. I loved the spot where Seth missed the Kingslayer knee and hit the post. It looked and sounded brutal. Miz took instant advantage with a Figure Four and it came late enough in the match that Seth had already done some of his offense that required the leg so there was no selling issue. The finish was tremendous, with Seth finding a way out of a series of rollups to hit the Curb Stomp, complete with him stopping to sell, and retain in 20:30. An underrated gem. One of the best Intercontinental Title matches to ever happen. It was that goddamn good. Both men are incredible wrestlers.
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84. WWE Championship Elimination Chamber: Daniel Bryan [c] vs. AJ Styles vs. Jeff Hardy vs. Kofi Kingston vs. Randy Orton vs. Samoa Joe – WWE Elimination Chamber 2019
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| The formula to create a great Elimination Chamber match is simple enough. Just make sure to do one important thing. Utilize everyone to the best of their abilities. That’s what this match did. Samoa Joe was eliminated first but he got to shine. He brutalized everyone and is always at his best in short bursts. Jeff Hardy had one of the biggest spots of the match with a ridiculous Swanton Bomb, doing what he does best before getting eliminated. AJ Styles sold well for everyone and bumped like crazy. The RKO he took to get eliminated was fantastic and helped build towards their WrestleMania encounter. Also, who didn’t love seeing Kofi Kingston eliminate Randy Orton, getting some revenge for 2009? That left the match down to Kingston and Daniel Bryan. It was such a great role reversal for Bryan, who was the fan favorite underdog in a great Chamber back in 2014. This whole segment was wonderfully done. From Bryan’s shock at Kofi not staying down to the near falls picked up by Kofi to the crowd’s reaction to every bit of it. It was special. You seriously won’t find much better than the Trouble in Paradise pop and shock at Bryan’s inside cradle counter of the pin. Kofi fought valiantly but tapped to the LeBelle Lock after missing a splash off of a pod in 36:51. Probably the third best Chamber in history.
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83. Candice LeRae vs. Io Shirai – NXT TakeOver: Toronto II
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| My only question mark about this rivalry was that they tried to act like Io Shirai and Candice LeRae were longtime best friends. Other than that, everything about this was masterful. Then the match happened and took it to the next level. I loved this from start to finish. Candice, finally getting a chance to shine on a TakeOver, attacked before the bell because this was a heated rivalry. But within a minute or so, she was getting suplexed on the announce table. Io was ridiculously confident in everything that she did. That was combated perfectly by the babyface fire Candice showed. It was some of the best you’ll see anywhere. They continued to up the ante with each spot and built to something incredible. The big spots came at the right time, never feeling like overkill. When Candice kicked out of an avalanche Spanish Fly and the moonsault, Io lost her mind. She couldn’t believe it. Her answer? Slap on a Koji Clutch until Candice passed out at the 15:01 mark. It was a brilliant move as she realized Candice was too resilient. And the Koji Clutch was done in a manner that kept Candice’s hands from tapping so she had no choice but to pass out. Honestly, this was my personal favorite match of 2019. Simply outstanding pro wrestling from two of the best on the planet, regardless of gender.
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82. Daniel Bryan vs. The Miz – WWE SummerSlam 2018
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| The most excited I’ve been about a match in years. Daniel Bryan and The Miz are two of my favorite wrestlers of all time. Everything they’ve done together has been golden. From the first season of NXT to Bryan winning the United States Title from Miz to their Talking Smack beef to the build for this match. Here, with eight years of background, they made it all work. The little things were perfectly handled. Miz busted out the Nigel clothesline which he used in their Night of Champions 2010 match. Miz used his cunning personality to take control and when Bryan rallied, it was by using the style he’s famous for. The style he chastises Miz for not using. When Miz did the “YES” kicks, Bryan leaned into them as if to tell Miz that his kicks are nothing more than cheap knockoffs. The tease of Bryan, wrestling master, tapping out to Miz, reality TV star, was so well done because it came right after Bryan kicked the ring post hard and was put in the figure four. I loved Bryan’s hatred for Miz coming out as he punched him in the head while using the Yes Lock. I loved Miz desperately biting Bryan’s hand to break the hold. And then the finish. Masterful. Miz was handed a foreign object by Maryse at ringside. Bryan went for a tope suicida and got hit with it, giving Miz the win in 23:22. How beautiful is it that Bryan took a risk and the smart, safe wrestler used it against him? Miz, the guy willing to do whatever it takes to win, like he told Bryan in the build, did just that and won. I may still be underrating this, that’s how good it was.
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81. NXT Tag Team Championship: War Raiders [c] vs. Aleister Black and Ricochet – NXT TakeOver: New York
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| Who would have thought that the best tag match of 2019 would come from teams not named the Undisputed Era or the New Day? The winners of the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic, Aleister Black and Ricochet, took on the War Raiders to open this TakeOver and they set a high bar for the night. I often praise when teams use tag formula because it works and makes sense. This match mostly avoided it and that was for the better. I saw things in this match that still blow me away after multiple viewings. The cool character bits like Ricochet and Aleister sitting together, the dope tandem offense from the War Raiders, and the exhilarating finishing stretch. I swear, there were at least five to ten times that I thought this would end as it was filled with breathtaking dramatic near falls. They packed a ridiculous amount of action into the 18:39 runtime. In the end, the War Raiders retained with Fallout to cap what was an incredible tag team match. It was the best of the year and an insane way for Ricochet and Aleister to say goodbye to NXT.
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Post by The Kevstaaa on Jun 11, 2021 11:59:16 GMT -5
80. NXT Championship: Andrade Almas [c] vs. Aleister Black – NXT TakeOver: New Orleans
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| Aleister Black made his debut at TakeOver: Orlando and beat Andrade Almas. The crowd wasn’t very interested in it. Fast forward a year and Almas now reigned as a phenomenal NXT Champion, with Black hot on his heels. This match was masterfully done. Aleister had been unstoppable, so Almas and Zelina Vega came in with a plan. Whenever Black would get some momentum, she’d find a creative way to get involved. It’s a million times more entertaining than your traditional underhanded stuff. When she wasn’t doing her thing, Almas was showing that he could hang with Black in every facet. Aleister nearly won with Black Mass, only for Zelina to put Almas’ foot on the bottom rope. That set up an Almas double stomp to the outside, which was part of a wild series of back and forth offense from two of the best in the world. The Hammerlock DDT near fall was a thing of beauty. And when the finish actually arrived, it did so in PERFECT fashion. Almas’ title reign had seen Zelina play a major role and the same went for this match. Her attempted cross body was avoided by Black and Almas caught her. With Zelina in his arms, Almas had no defense for a Black Mass and we had a new champion after an outstanding 18:18. A legendary combination of storytelling and action. Almas deserves a standing ovation for his spectacular run as NXT Champion.
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79. IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Championship: KUSHIDA [c] vs. Will Ospreay – NJPW Invasion Attack 2016
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| Will Ospreay’s first appearance in NJPW was a video of him announcing that he joined the CHAOS stable and challenging KUSHIDA for the Jr. Heavyweight Title. Not a bad way to make your in-ring debut with a company. Ospreay came into this match in the midst of a string of awesome performances in the first half of 2016, while KUSHIDA has been the MVP of the juniors for a long time now. It hasn’t even been close to be honest. Onto the match, KUSHIDA had a game plan and made it work. He viciously attacked the arm, starting by kicking it in the middle of an Ospreay handspring. It worked on two levels because it took away some of Ospreay’s offense while setting up the Hoverboard Lock. Ospreay tried to handspring again but couldn’t due to the limb damage. Because Ospreay is a freak of nature, he did a handspring off the ropes WITH NO HANDS! It was brilliantly bananas. Ospreay went for the Rainmaker but KUSHIDA countered into the Hoverboard Lock and with the arm damage so bad, Ospreay scrambled to the ropes. Sometimes Will’s selling isn’t good but when he wants to, like here, it can be masterful and it makes all the difference. After some incredible exchanges, KUSHIDA won with the Hoverboard Lock at 15:11. Ospreay gave it his all but couldn’t overcome the champion’s great strategy. This had it all. Hard strikes, high spots, intensity, a hot crowd, selling, storytelling and the list goes on and on.
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78. WWE Smackdown Women’s Championship: Asuka [c] vs. Becky Lynch – WWE Royal Rumble 2019
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| The 2019 Royal Rumble pay-per-view truly was an all-time great. Part of the reason was the insanely hot start that the main card got off to. Asuka, one of the best women to ever hold championship gold in WWE, going one on one with Becky Lynch, who was the hottest thing in wrestling at the time. In a first-time ever clash. Probably due to being so hot at the time, Becky came in confident. She talked smack and acted like she had the match in hand. Asuka is no slouch and made her eat her words. This was hard hitting to the point where you believed Asuka might actually hit a German suplex off the apron. That tells you how legitimate this felt. Everything they did not only came off well but it seemed vicious. There was an intensity in this that was almost unmatched all year. Both women had scouted each other so well that they were able to apply each other’s submissions. The Asuka Lock wouldn’t get it done, so the champion turned it into a modified Cattle Mutilation, bringing me back to the ROH days of Daniel Bryan. This went 17:08 and was another shining example of how great the women of WWE are.
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77. IWGP Intercontinental Championship: Tetsuya Naito [c] vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi – NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 11
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| I know most people were excited for Omega/Okada at Wrestle Kingdom, but it was KUSHIDA/Hiromu and Naito/Tanahashi that I looked forward to the most. Three years after not getting the Tokyo Dome main event because of a Tanahashi Intercontinental Title match, Naito entered with that championship to face him. He was on a roll, while Tanahashi had lost several high profile matches in 2016, including shots at both the Heavyweight and IC Titles. Tanahashi brought out some heel tactics, like not giving clean breaks. He badly wanted the victory. They both targeted the leg. It’s kind of Tanahashi’s thing, while Naito used it to setup his knee bar. Each man sold the work well. They brought some cool spots, like Tanahashi hitting an apron slingblade. There was an awesome Destino near fall that I totally bit on. In the end, Naito survived High Fly Flow and hit two Destinos to retain in a fantastic 25:25. Naito got the big win on the big stage against the guy who bumped him from the main event three years earlier. To think, these two were just getting warmed up for 2017.
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76. WWE Championship: AJ Styles [c] vs. John Cena – WWE Royal Rumble 2017
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| In 2016, AJ Styles went 2-0 against John Cena, including a clean win at SummerSlam (which ranked #5 on last year’s list). The atmosphere for this was incredible. In their previous matches, AJ spent the early portions outwrestling Cena with relative ease. The challenger adjusted his strategy and threw big bombs early, setting the tone for a match full of them. Styles Clash, Attitude Adjustment, Calf Cutter, STF, etc. You name it, they pulled it out. Usually, I dislike the trend of tons of finisher kickouts and such. However, I think it worked very well here. It felt like two guys emptying the tank and using everything in their respective arsenals to leave the Alamodome with the WWE Title. It didn’t rely on those spots to be great, it made sense within the story of their past matches. AJ survived the Avalanche Attitude Adjustment like he did at SummerSlam, while Cena kicked out of the Styles Clash. AJ went for the Phenomenal Forearm, but Cena caught him with an AA, held on and rolled through into another AA to capture his record-tying 16th World Title at 24:08. I loved this. Cena holding on to hit his finish again made perfect sense. Like when Okada did it to Tanahashi at WK10, it was someone putting the stamp on the win he desperately needed. AJ again showed why he’s the best in the world, while Cena continued to be the best big match worker I can recall seeing. Not quite as good as their SummerSlam classic, but better than their MITB outing. Big Match John delivers.
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Post by The Kevstaaa on Jun 12, 2021 7:09:53 GMT -5
75. IWGP Heavyweight Championship: Tetsuya Naito [c] vs. Tomohiro Ishii – NJPW Wrestling Dontaku 2016
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| Tetsuya Naito and Tomohiro Ishii are, in my opinion, the two best wrestlers in NJPW since Hiroshi Tanahashi is finally slowing down. They make magic together too. Other than the night Naito won the title about a month earlier, this was the most excited for an IWGP Heavyweight Title match I have probably ever been (I started following at Wrestle Kingdom 9). You had Naito’s first defense and Ishii’s first ever title shot. Naito brought LIDJ to ringside, while Ishii had his CHAOS buddies with him. I love how this played off their New Japan Cup match. Ishii’s hard hitting style wasn’t enough there, so he came into this with a plan to work Naito’s surgically repaired knee. Credit to Naito for selling the damage so well. There were times where he would just leave that leg limp like he couldn’t use it for anything. Seeing Ishii go for submission was such a great change of pace. They’ve had classics in the past, but this was a different match that showcased their versatility. EVIL got involved a few times until he and BUSHI were finally driven to the back by Okada and Gedo, leaving the final stretch of this match to be a one on one encounter. Those closing moments were the best. Coming into this, Ishii didn't seem to have a chance at winning but they sucked you in and made you believe it would happen. He came close so many times, especially on an incredibly reverse brainbuster. Finally, after having it countered all match long, Naito hit Destino and retained at 30:33. Incredible sequences, heart pounding drama, a hot crowd and even the interference worked. Ishii may never get another shot that the title and if so, he made it count, putting on the kind of match that fits his character perfectly. This was the freshness I wanted from the title picture. It was the best IWGP Heavyweight Title match all year.
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74. Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Tetsuya Naito – NJPW G1 Climax 27 8/11/17
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| At Wrestle Kingdom, Tetsuya Naito beat Hiroshi Tanahashi. At Dominion, Tanahashi evened the score. This was the tiebreaker for the year and the winner would claim the A Block in the tournament. Four years prior to the date, Naito beat Tanahashi in a disappointing final to win the G1 23. The fans were way behind Naito, who commentary noted as the most popular Japanese guy on the roster. Tanahashi played into it masterfully. He slapped Naito instead of giving clean breaks, he stopped to taunt, and he interrupted Naito’s signature tranquilo taunt. It was clear he was in Naito’s head. To combat it, Naito relentlessly went after Tanahashi’s injured arm. Tanahashi targeted the leg, which helped him beat Naito in June. They constantly had great counters for one another and played so well off their history. When Naito got placed in the Texas Cloverleaf, it looked like he would tap out just like he did at Dominion. Tanahashi sunk it in deeper than ever. However, Naito found the will to make it to the ropes and survive. Putting all the pressure he used took its toll on Tanahashi’s arm. Naito won their closing exchange and used several Destinos to win in 26:41. They had the best NJPW trilogy of 2017 and this was their best work together. The limb work was top notch, as was Tanahashi’s tremendous heel work. A stellar match in every single way. Naito had an all-time great year.
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73. Money in the Bank: Alberto Del Rio vs. Cesaro vs. Chris Jericho vs. Dean Ambrose vs. Kevin Owens vs. Sami Zayn – WWE Money in the Bank 2016
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| Not counting the 2015 edition, the Money in the Bank match has been a lock for a big year-end list like this. This year’s field was one of the best ever. Alberto Del Rio was the only guy that didn’t enter with momentum. Everyone else seemed to have a legitimate shot at winning. The spots came early and often as pretty much everyone brought their A game. Though there were a lot of spots, it never felt like they were moving from one spot to the next. The match had a very natural flow to it. The emphasis on some of the personal issues throughout the match added something unique to this. Dean Ambrose and Chris Jericho were fresh off a feud while Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens continued their eternal rivalry. Jericho wanted revenge for Dean getting 69 thumbtacks stuck in his body and Zayn and Owens just hate each other. Some of the best spots saw Cesaro’s fun uppercut barrage, a cannonball barrage from Owens and Del Rio locking Cesaro in a cross armbreaker between ladder rungs. Cesaro swinging Jericho into a ladder was also great. Near the end, Zayn pretty much killed Owens with a Michinoku driver onto an open ladder. All six men battled on top of ladders, leading to a cool visual. Sami was close to winning but Owens pulled him away and powerbombed him onto a ladder. Dean stopped Owens from winning and pulled down the briefcase at 21:37. He would successfully cash in to end the night. This was the third best Money in the Bank match to me behind the original and the Smackdown one in 2013. Maybe the 2014 one has a case. Either way, this ruled.
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72. NXT Women’s Championship Ironman Match: Bayley [c] vs. Sasha Banks – NXT TakeOver: Respect
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| Coming off their classic in Brooklyn, fans were eager for a rematch between Sasha Banks and Bayley. We got what we wanted and more because not only was it going to be the first ever women’s Ironman match, but the first time ever that two women got to main event a TakeOver special. Naturally going thirty minutes is one thing, but executing an Ironman match can be tricky. These matches have been hit or miss throughout history. They did well working with the time. Things started slowly, before building to bigger and better things. Sasha scored the first fall with an eye poke and rollup and then Bayley tied it with the Bayley to Belly. It was here that the match moved into a “phase two” of sorts. It got physical, with the steel steps coming into play and Sasha going full on heel. She talked trash to Bayley superfan, Izzy, in the front row. After throwing Bayley into the stage, another rather brutal spot, Sasha stole Izzy’s headband and got a countout fall, making the little girl cry. That is just fantastic heel work that isn’t seen often enough now. Bayley tied it with a rollup, and time began to trickle down. The fight went outside again for more big spots like a steel step assisted clothesline and Bayley to Belly on the floor. Finally, Bayley survived the Bank Statement and pulled out a submission we’d never seen her do before. It took stomping on Sasha’s head before the former champion quit with three seconds left. To give it an even bigger feel, the locker room emptied to give them a standing ovation. Sasha’s sendoff from NXT was well done and well deserved, ending with a great match and tears.
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71. WWE Intercontinental Championship: The Miz [c] vs. Cesaro vs. Kevin Owens vs. Sami Zayn – WWE Extreme Rules 2016
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| An Intercontinental Title match featuring four of the WWE’s top performers in 2016? Yes, please. There were so many things to love about this. The Kevin Owens/Sami Zayn feud came right into play with a Helluva Kick after the opening bell. Cesaro then laid out Miz and gave us a renewal of the excellent Zayn/Cesaro rivalry from their NXT days. Besides the existing feuds being touched upon, each guy played their role perfectly. Owens was a total asshole, Zayn was the fiery babyface, Cesaro ran wild with his crowd pleasing offense and Miz played the cunning heel. Again, there were some great moments like a massive tower of doom spot to Cesaro German suplexing Zayn who was hitting Miz with an exploder. Owens did a cool cannonball barrage after Cesaro’s trademark uppercut train. These incredible sequences all featured some perfect timing from everyone involved. The fans totally bit on a Skull Crushing Finale near fall down the stretch. Miz tapped to Cesaro’s Sharpshooter but a Maryse distraction saved him. Not only did they expertly tease a Cesaro win, they had Miz nearly steal it several times. So much that it was to the point where you thought it wouldn’t happen. Just when Sami hit the Helluva Kick on Cesaro, Owens pulled him outside and they brawled, allowing Miz to sneak in and retain at 18:18. They nailed everything in this match. I love how they played with the emotions of the fans. The quality of IC Title matches dipped for the next two PPVs, but picked up for the rest of the year.
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Post by The Kevstaaa on Jun 13, 2021 7:00:06 GMT -5
70. Evolution vs. The Shield – Extreme Rules – WWE Extreme Rules 2014
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| It was so surreal to see Evolution back together in 2014. There was certainly a big fight feel in the atmosphere. As expected, a brawl started this and the Shield cleared the ring of Evolution. From there, the whole thing was as wild as you’d want. The crowd brought every near fall. As the fight went on by the timekeeper’s table, Ambrose rand across the announce tables and jumped onto Orton and HHH, taking them out. That’s the perfect spot for the nutcase himself. Things get very Attitude Era like as those three and Seth fought through the crowd, which led to Rollins hitting a CROSS BODY OFF A BALCONY! Sick! Inside, Batista nailed a spinebuster on Roman, but before he could hit the Batista Bomb, Reigns nailed the Superman Punch. The spear followed and this was over after 19:51. It’s hard to live up to the hype sometimes, but these six men did just that. The Shield had an incredible run in 2014 before their split and this was no different. We got a ton of high spots, each guy got a chance to shine and Seth’s dive is still fondly remembered and should be for years to come. This is how you make a team look like a million bucks.
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69. Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Katsuyori Shibata – NJPW G1 Climax 24 7/26/14
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| Up until just before seeing this, I had no clue that there were issues here. Tanahashi had some negative things to say about Shibata in his autobiography. There seemed to be a buzz in the air for this that other matches in the G1 didn’t have. Tanahashi was surprisingly the first person to bring the strikes but had to scurry when Shibata tries to murder him. Shibata followed out and beats the hell out of Tanahashi. It’s like Shibata’s goal in this match was to just obliterate Tanahashi. Pretty much anytime that Tanahashi looked to gain traction, Shibata just took his offense and came back with something that looked vicious. When Tanahashi finally attacked the leg, it made sense because he doesn’t want to get kicked into oblivion anymore. He hit High Fly Flow, but his second attempt is stopped by Shibata’s knees. They went into a strike exchange where Shibata just DESTROYED Tanahashi with one particular blow. That’s part of an excellent finishing stretch that sees Shibata hit a go to sleep and the PK to hand Tanahashi his first loss of the tournament in 16:16. This was more Shibata’s style than Tanahashi’s, which worked for the better. The atmosphere was electric as the fans seemed to know that there was tension between the two men and they just went out and made sure to show it during the match. This was intense and worked in a great way.
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68. WWE Cruiserweight Classic Second Round: Cedric Alexander vs. Kota Ibushi – WWE Cruiserweight Classic 8/10/16
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| Johnny Gargano and Tommaso Ciampa easily had the best match of the first round of the Cruiserweight Classic. It was here, in the second round, where things were taken to the next level. The hype surrounding this after it was taped was enormous. Sometimes that doesn’t translate well since the live atmosphere adds a lot. It was all justified here though. This was two guys putting on incredible performances and creating magic. They put the crowd in the palm of their hands early and only got them more invested at the match went on. At times, Cedric Alexander made you believe he would pull off the upset. He had Kota Ibushi well scouted, avoiding kicks and the triangle moonsault, following up with a tope con hilo. They even made you believe that it could end in a time limit draw for a moment. Cedric’s near fall after a sick brainbuster and then another after a kick to the head were perfectly done. The one on his incredible snap Michinoku Driver was great too. Kota avoided a diving double stomp, snapped off a German suplex, hit another kick and won with the Golden Star powerbomb after 14:59 of grueling action. Not only was this a phenomenal match, it was a coming out party for Cedric. After ROH wasted him, he appeared all over, having damn good matches and this was his crowning moment. The “please sign Cedric” chants afterwards led to him joining the cruiserweight division, though they’ve failed to capitalize on the main roster. Kota may have won but Cedric gained more from this. I’m dying to see a rematch.
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67. IWGP Heavyweight Championship: AJ Styles [c] vs. Kazuchika Okada – NJPW Dominion 2015
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| Headlining a stacked Dominion show, the main event between IWGP Champion AJ Styles and Kazuchika Okada had to deliver. It did exactly that as, in my opinion, it was the best part of the card. A lot of Bullet Club matches feature an overabundance of interference. Early on, this seemed to be headed down that path, but Red Shoes ejected them and even hit them with a classic “SUCK IT!” Once they were booted, the match really started to click. Styles went from extremely cocky to seemingly vulnerable and worried. He knew that one on one with Okada, he was in trouble. The chemistry between them has become so great over time that their exchanges are effortless. There are some near falls in this that are incredibly close. Okada nails the Rainmaker, a very protected finish, and immediately goes for a second. AJ counters this one and it looks like Okada may have blown his chance. They continued to counter each other, making for a tremendous closing stretch that came to an end after another Rainmaker at 26:16, giving Okada his third IWGP Heavyweight Title. Styles and Okada are two of the greatest wrestlers alive and this was their best encounter together.
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66. Kevin Owens vs. John Cena – WWE Elimination Chamber 2015
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| Sami Zayn answered John Cena’s US Title Open Challenge, only to get injured before losing. Kevin Owens, Sami’s former best friend and ultimate rival, didn’t take too kindly to this, wanting the credit for injuring Sami. Owens would come out for an Open Challenge and attack Cena, leading to this match. There was pretty much no bigger match for Owens’ main roster debut. Even a WWE Title match wouldn’t have meant what this did. Some of the best Cena feuds in recent memory have seen him take on an “indy darling” like CM Punk or Daniel Bryan. That was the case here. Both guys brought their “A” games and had almost instant chemistry. Everybody knew that John Cena could deliver on the big stage, but Kevin Owens showed that he was a Superstar. My only major issue with this 20:47 match was that the Corpus Christ crowd wasn’t great. There were a few finisher kick outs, which I usually don’t like, but I’m okay with it in a situation like this. This was a big match that deserved something like that and it only took Owens to popup powerbombs to win. The biggest thing about this was that Owens beat Cena cleanly. In his debut. That’s insane. Their next two matches were good, but couldn’t capture the magic of this first night. Unfortunately, the rest of this feud went the typical way of Cena feuds, as he beat Owens the rest of the way, but for one night, this was glorious.
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Post by The Kevstaaa on Jun 15, 2021 8:38:50 GMT -5
65. Kenny Omega vs. Tetsuya Naito – NJPW G1 Climax 26 8/13/16
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| People were pissed at my original rating for this match. Granted, I still don’t believe it’s five stars but I have bumped up the score after watching again. On the final night for the B Block, it all came down to this match. Kenny Omega had to win here to take the block, while a win or tie would put Naito in the finals. Omega can be very goofy at times and it hurts his character. He came into this 100% serious and it made everything better. Early on, Omega tweaked his knee and did a great job of selling it throughout. He’d pull up lame, limp and have trouble hitting key moves. Naito did a great job of targeting the knee while selling Omega’s power advantage. Omega hit a powerbomb into the crowd and then took a big bump by somersaulting into the front row onto Naito. Omega hit a bridging tiger suplex and was wise enough to lift his injured leg off of the bridge, which may have cost him the pin. Naito went into his offense and hit Omega with nearly everything he had. He countered the One Winged Angel into his patented knee bar for a great close call. Just went it seemed like Omega had it won, Naito again counted the One Winged Angel, this time into Destino. Omega’s legs just weren’t strong enough to finish until he finally mustered enough strength to hit the One Winged Angel and win at 26:17. The back half of this match is ridiculously good. It’s the second best heel vs. heel match I can recall (Styles/Suzuki from the G1 24 is first). This was, far and away, the best performance of Kenny’s career. I still say Naito deserved this win way more but that’s not an argument I feel like getting into anymore.
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64. War Games: Team Rhea vs. Team Shayna – NXT TakeOver: War Games 2019
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| By this point, the women of WWE have competed in almost every gimmick match. Royal Rumble, Elimination Chamber, Money in the Bank, etc. This year, they added War Games to the mix. And as usual, they outclassed the men. Team Shayna comprised of Shayna Baszler, Io Shirai, Bianca Belair, and Kay Lee Ray. Team Rhea was Rhea Ripley, Tegan Nox, Candice LeRae, and Dakota Kai, who replaced Mia Yim after she was attacked earlier in the night. The match got off to a hot start. Shirai and LeRae renewed their incredible rivalry before Ripley and KLR brought the weapons into play. The match took a wild turn when Dakota entered, only to turn around and brutally attack her best friend, Tegan Nox. It was one of the best heel turns in recent memory. That left Rhea and Candice in a 4-on-2 situation. No help came either. They had to do it alone. And it was done in a way that made total sense. They never looked like they got “superman” booking. Their hope spots felt realistic. Shayna trapped Rhea in the Kirifuda Clutch and it looked like the end. But Rhea found a way to counter by handcuffing herself to Shayna. From there, she hit Riptide onto a pile of chairs to win in 29:37. One of the best finishes all year ending one of the best matches.
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63. WWE Championship Elimination Chamber: John Cena [c] vs. AJ Styles vs. Baron Corbin vs. Bray Wyatt vs. Dean Ambrose vs. The Miz – WWE Elimination Chamber 2017
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| Here, we had the debut of the new look Elimination Chamber. The padded mats didn’t look great, but allowed for a lot more freedom. This was great as soon as Bray stopped to stare down and intimidate each person in a pod during his entrance. Two weeks after a classic at the Royal Rumble, John Cena and AJ Styles were back at it to start this match. I liked that this wasn’t just a match with big spots. Granted, there were plenty of those, but there were multiple stories told. Dean and AJ reignited their rivalry, Cena and AJ continued theirs, and Dean got a new one started with Baron Corbin when he rolled him up to eliminate him. Corbin attacked Dean after, setting up their Mania match, and allowing Miz to eliminate him. Miz went next and surprisingly, the WWE Champion himself, John Cena, was out next. That left things down to Styles and Wyatt in a fresh matchup. Allowing Bray and AJ to go at it for a stretch at the end was the best decision. After some great back and forth, Bray caught a Phenomenal Forearm into Sister Abigail to win his first WWE Title in 34:25. Unfortunately, the WWE Title picture peaked in interest for 2017 on this night. Still, this was fantastic and is neck and neck with the original as the best Chamber match ever.
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62. IWGP Jr. Championship: Hiromu Takahashi [c] vs. KUSHIDA – NJPW Dominion 2017
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| At Wrestle Kingdom, these two had one of the better Jr. Heavyweight Title matches in a long time. At Sakura Genesis, KUSHIDA got his rematch and was promptly squashed in two minutes. He won the Best of the Super Juniors to get one more shot. It was the one Wrestle Kingdom rematch I was pumped for. Hiromu was in KUSHIDA’s head and his antics triggered KUSHIDA to be more aggressive and reckless. For example, he pulled a Sabu with a springboard move off a chair. Not your typical KUSHIDA. Everything they did looked like it had an extra bit of hatred behind it. The pace was insane and full of great spots. KUSHIDA took a particularly brutal bump on the apron sunset flip bomb. He nearly won with an avalanche Back to the Future, but was too hurt to cover. KUSHIDA won a strike battle and stomped on Hiromu’s head to a bunch of boos. The Hoverboard Lock made Hiromu tap and KUSHIDA was champion again at 19:12. Their best work together. I was sad Hiromu lost, but the story they told worked. KUSHIDA had to do things he usually doesn’t to beat his new rival. Hiromu broke him in every single way and KUSHIDA had to dig deep to put the pieces back together and overcome.
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61. Aztec Warfare II – Lucha Underground 3/23/16
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| Aztec Warfare is three for three in producing great matches. Season two’s edition was not just the best so far, it was also a top three Lucha Underground match ever. The reigning Lucha Underground Champion Fenix entered at one and the Temple came unglued when Rey Mysterio Jr. debuted at number two. That set the stage for a match filled with awesome moments. This match had a little bit of everything. Famous B at ringside scouting potential clients was hilarious, Joey Ryan being sleazy and handcuffing himself outside to avoid competing was perfect character work, the debut of Mysterio was handled expertly and several feuds were furthered. For example, Drago and Jack Evans continued their beef, while former champion Mil Muertes was taken out almost instantly thanks to interference from his rival Pentagon Jr. Pentagon wasn’t allowed to compete thanks to Mil’s manager Catrina, since she was running the Temple at the time. After all twenty participants entered and Mil (#20) was taken out, Catrina’s night got worse when Dario Cueto returned to take back his Temple. He brought out a 21st entrant, his debuting brother “The Monster” Matanza Cueto. Matanza proceeded to eliminate every remaining competitor in an incredibly dominant display before defeating Mysterio in the end to capture the title. When a match goes 52:49 (with commercials) and has non-stop action, while being an absolute blast, continuing existing stories and setting up future ones, you know you have something special. Even with everything I covered, there are still plenty of things I didn’t mention. This match was that awesome.
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Post by The Kevstaaa on Jun 17, 2021 8:42:46 GMT -5
60. Aleister Black vs. The Velveteen Dream – NXT TakeOver: War Games 2017
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| Where did this come from? Don’t get me wrong, I was fully into this feud and expected a very good match. What I didn’t expect, was a MOTY candidate. This was a fantastic look at how character work and storytelling are unbelievably important. The moves done in this match weren’t all must see, but these guys completely captivated me for 14:41. Aleister Black was consistently one step ahead of Velveteen Dream in the opening exchanges. It was when Black did his signature quebrada into a seated position that things turned around. Dream slid right into his face and mirrored him, with Black returning the favor. From there, it was two big personalities perfectly playing off each other. The near falls received absurd reactions and I fully bought into Dream winning more than once, despite going in fully expecting Black to remain undefeated. He eventually did, after hitting Black Mass. He got his win and then, after the match, finally said Velveteen Dream’s name, which is what Dream wanted from the start. This was a magnificent look at how to build a star in defeat. Both guys came out looking great and I loved everything about this. This didn’t need a ton of wacky indy spots or to go full throttle for 45 minutes. They used their personalities to give us one of the most compelling matches of the year.
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59. World Championship Street Fight: Christian [c] vs. Randy Orton – WWE SummerSlam 2011
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| This feud was great even if it was one-sided. A “Let’s go Christian” chant broke out during this even though he was the heel because he was putting on a show. The fans were totally into this from the start and it felt like a big deal. Orton had an RKO reversed into the Killswitch and everyone bought that as the finish but Orton kicked out. Orton’s snap powerslam through the table in the corner was wild. They just kept building and building with exciting hardcore stuff until the excellent ending. Christian springboarded off the second rope right into an RKO on the steps in 23:43. Who says you can’t do a great No Holds Barred match without blood and in the PG world? These two went out and had a fantastic match. It was creative, we had the storytelling of Christian going to darker places and the play off of their history, as well as some seriously big time spots. I loved this match.
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58. Extreme Rules Match: Brock Lesnar vs. John Cena – WWE Extreme Rules 2012
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| On paper, this was as big as it got. Brock Lesnar had just returned to WWE and targeted the company’s top star. When it came time to deliver in the ring, the pair did just that. They used the stipulation well without overdoing it on weapons. This was violent, brutal, and made sure that Brock looked like a totally different beast from who he was in the early 2000s. His MMA background came into play and Cena sold like a champ. Who could ever forget the spot where Brock basically jumped over the top rope in an attempt to destroy Cena? It still looks wild to this day. The only real problem with this match is the outcome. There was really no reason for Brock to lose in his return match and there’s a reason why he didn’t really click after this until ending the streak. Cena beat him with the AA onto steel steps after an absurdly entertaining 17:43.
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57. Grave Consequences: Fenix vs. Mil Muertes – Lucha Underground 3/18/15
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| A Grave Consequences match is basically just a casket match. I love Lucha Underground and their first season was spectacular. The best match of that season was this encounter between Fenix and Mil Muertes. Considering the rivalry these two had and the booking of Mil Muertes up to that point, this was expertly done. Muertes, who has come a long way since his days as Judias Mesias, brutalized Fenix. Fenix sold like a champ throughout the entire match. The animosity between the men shines through the violent nature of the match. Muertes rips Fenix’s mask, giving us a great view of the amount of blood that he spilled. Neither guy even really tried to put their opponent in the casket during the 15:01. Their rivalry was so heated that they just wanted to hurt each other, The casket does come into play as a weapon more than a few times and it’s almost always used in a creative fashion. Not until the finish does someone go in, that being Muertes, as Fenix was able to defeat the monster. This is easily the greatest casket match in history.
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56. WWE Championship No Disqualifications Match: CM Punk [c] vs. Daniel Bryan – WWE Money in the Bank 2012
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| AJ Lee, who had been in a love triangle with both men, was the special referee. The opening exchanges were great, featuring loud chops, stiff strikes and brutal kicks. There’s more animosity to this than their Over the Limit classic. An early ref bump led to AJ being helped to the back and Bryan taking control. Bryan’s need to shout “YES” for everything hurt him, when it helped Punk sense a kendo stick attack, which he evaded. It was temporary though, as Bryan wailed on him with it and shouted “YES” with each one. Punk rallied and we saw a great series of counters that reminded me of their last match. Punk responding with his own kendo stick shots got a great pop. AJ Lee returned following a superplex and skipped around the ring, before getting a chair. She left it in between the men, allowing them to fight for it. Bryan got it first, destroyed Punk with it and did more damage with a series of kicks. At different times, AJ stopped each guy from using weapons, never fully picking a side. Punk missed the big elbow, landing on a chair, so Bryan applied the Yes Lock, with added leverage from the kendo stick. Punk fought free and hit the GTS, but was too hurt to cover instantly. Punk set up a table inside and battled with Bryan on the top rope. The fight was won by Punk, who hit a super back suplex through the table, scoring the three count at 27:45. Excellent match. The Over the Limit one is better as a standalone, but I may slightly prefer this one as part of their larger story. It’s so different, with the addition of AJ and the violence being upped a notch. AJ played her role perfectly, without becoming too much of a distraction to the great stuff in the ring. A fantastic blend of great wrestling, intensity and storytelling, making the gimmicks work very well.
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Post by The Kevstaaa on Jun 18, 2021 9:15:35 GMT -5
55. No Disqualifications Match: Buddy Murphy vs. Mustafa Ali – WWE 205 Live 7/3/18
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| If you made the mistake of ignoring 205 Live in 2018, then you missed out on one of the best rivalries in all of wrestling. Buddy Murphy and Mustafa Ali tore down the house every single time they shared a ring. This No Disqualifications match was their magnum opus. Ali had been built up as the “heart” of 205 Live, while Murphy called himself the “Juggernaut.” You couldn’t ask for a more perfect pairing. Ali took a beating in this match, yet never gave up. Whether it was a bump off the guardrail or a suplex onto the ramp, Ali was destroyed. Here wasn’t a No DQ match filled with weapons. Instead, they managed to give us something violent without needing to use too many of those. Buddy didn’t need it because he was vicious on his own. However, when Ali wouldn’t stay down, he brought them into play. It backfired a bit when Ali hit a superplex off steel steps and a Spanish Fly on a table. Murphy hitting better running knees than Kenny Omega while Ali was tied in the ropes made for beautiful, barbaric imagery. A pissed Murphy let him free for more damage, but Ali fought back and won with a tornado DDT off the steps in 22:43. The best work from two of the guys who stole 2018.
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54. NEVER Openweight Championship: Tomohiro Ishii [c] vs. Kota Ibushi – NJPW Back To The Yokohama Arena 2014
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| These are two of my favorite NJPW wrestlers. Though Ibushi was a junior, he more than held his own with Ishii’s hard strikes, winning out an early forearm exchange. Ishii started no selling them and firing back even harder, showing Ibushi who was in control. Ishii had Ibushi scouted, being ready for the triangle moonsault and hitting a staling superplex. Ibushi hit the moonsault on his next attempt, adding a standing SSP and springboard moonsault inside for two. He went to the well too much and Ishii got his knees up on the next aerial move. That led to some scary moments, including Ibushi landing on the back of his head on a powerbomb and again when Ishii tried countering a super rana. Both could’ve been bad. Ishii busted himself open with a headbutt and the match got kicked into next gear. They began trading slaps and palm strikes that looked absolutely brutal. Ishii kicked out at one from Ibushi offense and they went back to exchanging blows. Their closing stretch was out of this world and led to a wild finish. Ibushi went for a super rana, but Ishii murdered him with a lariat. Ibushi nearly landed on his head. Another lariat and Brainbuster finally kept Ibushi down at 19:19. An incredible match. Two of the best in the world going all out for a title. They even made their one botch work seamlessly into the match, which is hard to do. The fans bought Ibushi as a winner, even with him being a Jr. Champion. Ishii’s busted eye added to the drama of each strike he took. Up there with Ishii/Naito (New Beginning) and Styles/Suzuki (G1 Climax) as the best NJPW matches of 2014.
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53. Shingo Takagi vs. Tomohiro Ishii – NJPW G1 Climax 29 8/8/19
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| After Shingo Takagi vs. SHO in the BOSJ, this was my most anticipated match of 2018 from New Japan. Tomohiro Ishii is kind of the perfect opponent for Shingo. It’s just two dudes who hit hard and will go to war with one another. I’m a simple man with simple pleasures. They laid this match out perfectly to suit their strengths. It was a hell of a battle for all 22:41. If you really want a look at how this match went, there’s one moment that stands out. After Ishii got his ear busted open on a strike, he simply shouted that he wanted to get hit harder. He got so caught up in the battle that he seemingly forgot about the two points on the line and instead looked to prove he was tougher. I loved that Ishii did his no sell gimmick only for Shingo to lay him out with a clothesline. He wasn’t having any of that. This match was helped by the fact that the winner wasn’t obvious. With 8 and 6 points apiece and neither man set to win the tournament, we had no clue who would prevail. That added so much to the drama and is something G1 matches often lack. Shingo finally got the victory with Last of the Dragon.
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52. Daniel Bryan vs. Triple H – WWE WrestleMania XXX
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| Judging by their entrances, Triple H is a megastar and Daniel Bryan doesn’t belong in his league. What made this match work so well was how simple it was. Triple H is often known for being at his best in gimmick matches but this was straight wrestling with nothing over the top happening but that was the beauty of it. Just two great performers doing their thing. HHH went for the Pedigree again but Bryan countered and blocked it before hitting a kick. He missed a second big kick but landed on his feet when HHH tried a back suplex. Bryan charged and scored with the knee, earning the victory in 25:57. Almost everything about this match was masterfully executed. From the contrasting entrances up until the finish, this was all just great. There aren’t many high spots but everything has a purpose and it might be the smartest worked match in the WWE over the past few years. Extra props to Stephanie McMahon, who played her role perfectly and only added to this. Just a brilliant start to the show.
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51. PROGRESS World Championship: WALTER [c] vs. Zack Sabre Jr. - PROGRESS Chapter 77: Pumpkin Spice Progress 10/28/18
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| WALTER is kind of the perfect opponent for Sabre. The challenger likes to apply submissions to different parts of the body at the most opportune times. He managed wrap up WALTER’s arms, which took away his brutal strikes, but then transition to the leg, to chop down the champion, and it all made sense. Zack was brilliant in this. He goaded WALTER into chops, taking damage so he could eventually catch one and wrench at his hand. WALTER sold the arm by having to change up his chops, saving them for when he was in trouble. This didn’t rely on a ton of finishers and near falls, instead focusing on the little things throughout that built up to a big finish. Sabre’s technical acumen against WALTER’s strength. Though neither advantage overwhelmed the other, they worked as game changers. Sabre would turn the tide with a hold, while WALTER did the same with a strike. The closing few minutes were outstanding and just when Sabre went for his European Clutch, his neck gave way. It was damaged by a pissed off champion earlier in the match. WALTER pounced like a shark smelling blood. He pounded on him and retained with the Fire Thunder Driver in 29:26. It was the best PROGRESS Title match I can ever recall. They just made every little detail work, nothing was wasted, and it had nearly everything you could want in a match.
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Post by The Kevstaaa on Jun 19, 2021 7:01:40 GMT -5
50. Death Match: Jimmy Havoc vs. Mark Haskins – PROGRESS Chapter 55: Chase the Sun
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| I remember feeling that this rivalry didn’t feel big or personal enough to warrant such a stipulation. Even if that was the case, they went out and had an absolutely barbaric match that stole the show on the biggest event in PROGRESS history. Jimmy Havoc brought out a f***ing axe. Just think about that. This was his wheelhouse, but Mark Haskins controlled a lot of it. When Havoc did get going, he used paper cuts and salt to add so much violence to his offense. A paper cut on a man’s tongue is something I can never watch without cringing. Mark’s wife, Vicky, got involved and convinced him to use a barbed wire baseball bat instead of a chair. That’s a good woman right there. Thumbtacks were also brought into play, leading to a tremendous spot where Jimmy dropkicked Haskins into a barbed wire board and landed on the tacks, sacrificing himself. However, Mark put the brakes on, making it all for naught. Havoc hit his best moves, but Haskins refused to stay down. He finally did at 23:08 after taking an Acid Rainmaker with the barbed wire bat. Incredibly brutal, while telling a masterful story. Haskins got as violent as Jimmy in some parts, but wasn’t able to beat the death match king. It all led to them teaming up, which has been the highlight of the chapters following this.
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49. Kota Ibushi vs. Shinsuke Nakamura – NJPW G1 Climax 23 8/4/13
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| This was insane. Shinsuke Nakamura was a jerk early on, putting G1 newbie Kota Ibushi in his place. He hit some vicious shots that I thought would end Ibushi, but Ibushi fought back with a vengeance. It was one of the earliest times where Ibushi looked like he could truly hang with heavyweights and hit as hard as them. He came out of this looking like a million bucks. The timing of Ibushi kicking out at one after a Boma Ye was masterful, bringing the electric crowd to their feet. I can’t say enough about this match. They would top it in the Tokyo Dome in 2015, but this was spectacular and put Ibushi on the map. Nakamura used a second Boma Ye to put him down after an incredible 19:18.
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48. NXT North American Championship Ladder Match: Adam Cole vs. EC3 vs. Killian Dain vs. Lars Sullivan vs. Ricochet vs. The Velveteen Dream – NXT TakeOver: New Orleans
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| NXT TakeOver: New Orleans is honestly the best top to bottom wrestling show I have ever seen. Four of the five matches were ****+. It all began with this. Give six talented guys a bunch of ladders and let them crown the first ever North American Champion. There was a lot to juggle here. You had the red hot Velveteen Dream and Adam Cole. The monsters in Killian Dain and Lars Sullivan. And two guys making their debuts in EC3 and Ricochet. They made it all work. Ricochet was given plenty of room to show off his aerial offense, while EC3 may have taken more bumps than anyone. The big guys destroyed people. Everyone played their part perfectly. And this wasn’t just guys doing spots. They all spent early moments going for the title, but kept getting cut off. From there, it was clear they needed to take each other out to win, which set up the bigger offense we eventually saw. It’s a brilliantly layered match. There were just so many action filled moments, great character stuff, and some truly creative spots. I’d be here forever if I tried listing them all. Just know there were a ton and this match was madness. It seemed like Ricochet had it won, only for Cole to sneak in and knock him off, pulling down the title after 31:16.
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47. Katsuyori Shibata vs. Kota Ibushi – NJPW G1 Climax 25 7/29/15
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| There is just so much to love about this match. It is absolutely must-see and one of my all-time favorite matches already. Katsuyori Shibata and Kota Ibushi are two of my favorite New Japan performers and putting them together just made magic. Shibata is known for his hard hitting style, while Ibushi is not one to shy away from that kind of fight. That’s exactly what this was. Two guys having a fantastic war of strong strikes. The things they do in the match are all smartly executed. Ibushi does a Penalty Kick, which pisses off Shibata, who responds with a loud kick of his own. Ibushi again amazes with his effortless ability to blend strong style with his high flying athletic skill. One minute he’s laying into Shibata and the next he’s hitting a standing corkscrew moonsault. This was similar to the phenomenal Ishii/Shibata wars in the past, but had its own identity to differentiate it. Shibata would deliver a ridiculous slap before applying the sleeper hold and winning with the Penalty Kick. At 13:25, it is the second best under 15 minute match that I’ve ever seen (Ishii/Shibata from the G1 23 is the best) and is one of the matches you should instantly watch when signing up for New Japan World. If this would have happened in Korakuen or in front of the Osaka crowd, it could have elevated it to the full five stars.
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46. IWGP Heavyweight Championship: Kenny Omega [c] vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi – NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 13
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| Remember Kenny Omega in New Japan? That was a thing that happened. In 2019, no less. He and Hiroshi Tanahashi got to headline the Tokyo Dome and they put on the best Wrestle Kingdom main event since I began watching the company in 2015. This whole match was built on the idea of old vs. new. Omega had the Young Bucks in his corner, while Tanahashi had the New Japan Dads in his. Even things like bringing out a table were done to build this. It was like Omega did that to say his style of wrestling was superior. After Omega took rough landings on his knees, Tanahashi targeted them. It’s his bread and butter. Tanahashi also reached deep into his bag of tricks, even pulling out a Styles Clash. There’s a lot behind that move when you consider Styles’ history with both men in NJPW. I think the best moment came when Tanahashi tried to beat Omega at his own game and missed High Fly Flow through a table. Omega remained a jerk throughout, using some of Tanahashi’s moves only for the challenger to kick out at one. He eventually captured the title after 39:13. GO ACE! There were a few moments of overkill but this still rocked.
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