Pro Wrestling Love vol. 35: Greatest TNA Wrestling Matches 2002-2009 (AJ Styles, Samoa Joe, Christopher Daniels)

Hey Yo Stud Muffins & Foxy Ladies,

Pro Wrestling Love vol. 35:

The Best of TNA Wrestling 2002-2009

Objective:  Break up the Greatest Match Ever Project (hosted at http://gweproject.freeforums.net/) into more manageable chunks to help me build my Top 100 List for the project.

Motivation: Contribute to the discussion around these matches to enrich my own understanding of pro wrestling and give a fresh perspective for old matches and even hopefully discover great pro wrestling matches that have been hidden by the sands of time.

Subject: This thirty-fifth volume of Pro Wrestling Love is the Top 6 countdown of the best matches to take place in TNA Wrestling from 2002 to 2009. TNA Wrestling was founded by Jeff & Jerry Jarrett in 2002 as a response to closing of WCW and ECW in 2001. It began with a weekly PPV model on Wednesdays from TNA Asylum (Nashville Fairgrounds). Being on PPV only, it was supposed to be edgier pro wrestling and Vince Russo could realize all his perverted fantasies. Even though Jarrett & Russo dominated the main event scene, the X-Division (aka the workrate division) carried the show thanks to AJ Styles, Low-Ki and Amazing Red among others. AJ Styles, who I consider the greatest American wrestler of the 21^st century, was booked as Mr. TNA showing that Jarrett and Russo did have some brains. He captured the NWA World Heavyweight Championship in 2003. In 2004, they switched over to the weekly Free TV/Monthly PPV model. They had an amazing 2005 with the arrival of Samoa Joe and the push of Christopher Daniels to accompany the Phenomenal AJ Styles. My peak TNA fandom was from 2005-2007. In October of 2006, Jeff Jarrett needed to take leave to tend to his dying wife who ultimately passed away from cancer. I believe in 2008/2009 he lost complete control of the company to Dixie Carter. The reason this countdown stops in 2009 is because the arrival of Hulk Hogan & Eric Bischoff completely shifted the TNA landscape in January of 2010 thus 2009 is a reasonable stopping piint. You can revisit past Pro Wrestling Love Volumes at ridingspacemountain.blogspot.com. You can check out the full version of these reviews in ProWrestlingOnly.com by going to the forums and finding the folders associated with the date of the match.

Contact Info: @superstarsleeze on Twitter, Instagram & ProWrestlingOnly.com.

The Three TNA GOATs

Honorable Mentions

AJ Styles vs Samoa Joe – Sacrifice 2005

X-Division Champion Christopher Daniels vs AJ Styles vs Samoa Joe – Unbreakable 2005

Samoa Joe vs Christopher Daniels – Final Resolution 2006

X-Division Champion Samoa Joe vs Christopher Daniels vs AJ Styles – Against All Odds 2006, TNA Match of the Year 2006

X-Division Champion Samoa Joe vs Christopher Daniels vs AJ Styles – Destination X 2006

TNA World Champion AJ Styles vs Christopher Daniels vs Samoa Joe – Turning Point 2009

The Unbreakable Triple Threat is probably the most famous match in TNA history and is the most usual choice for best TNA match ever. I think it is a great spotfest, but AJ Styles & Co. out did themselves in plenty of singles matches. I think a lot of people forget that they ran the same triple threat three more times, twice in early 2006 and once in 2009. The other three are great too in fact I think you can make the argument that the Against All Odds triple threat is the best version of this trio because of how smartly it is worked with Daniels & AJ working together to try to defeat the unstoppable, undefeated Samoa Joe, but ultimately coming up short. In addition, this trio had three more classics that make the top 6 list, but AJ vs Joe Sacrifice 2005 (their first TNA encounter) and Joe vs Daniels Final Resolution 2006 (the marquee Joe vs Daniels encounter) should be watched.

X Division Champion AJ Styles vs Amazing Red – NWA-TNA 10/30/02

AJ Styles vs Amazing Red – NWA-TNA 12/11/02, TNA Match of the Year, 2002

AJ Styles is obviously the TNA GOAT and was pretty much the best wrestler on the roster from the very first show to his very last show. I love his matches with Low-KI, but his matches with Amazing Red in 2002 were his best output from that year. We don’t get to see AJ against a smaller opponent often so this a great change of pace and AJ is at his cocky heel best against Red.

AJ Styles vs Low-Ki – NWA-TNA 9/25/02 2 Out of 3 Falls

NWA World Champion AJ Styles vs Low-Ki – NWA-TNA 8/13/03 TNA Match of the Year, 2003

AJ & Low-Ki were two of the best wrestlers in the world in 2002 & 2003 and it is no shock they had some great matches. The only thing holding them back from that classic status is how TNA was run they just didn’t have the time and storyline that really allowed to put on a stone cold classic.

Alex Shelley vs Chris Sabin – Genesis 2009 Vacant X-Division Championship

I thought this was a terrific, avant-garde pro wrestling match. I love babyface vs heel dynamics, but I thought they wrestled this fantastically without babyface vs heel dynamics. It was not face vs face with a subtle heel. It was just two wrestlers who were friends and tag team partners that respected each other that were fully invested in winning the match and it never degraded into a spotfest. I definitely recommend this one.

TNA World Champion Kurt Angle vs Samoa Joe – Lockdown 2008, TNA Match of the Year 2008

Oh what could have been! The idea of this match is for the bout to resemble a shoot fight. What makes it different from RINGS or other Japanese shoot-style is this incorporates a lot more Jiu-Jistu. At the time of RINGS & other Shoot Style, Catch Wrestling & Judo were the kings of Martial Arts. However, due the success of the Gracies in the UFC, Jiu-Jitsu caught as the premiere Martial Art. This match is wrestled shoot-style but very different from in Japan as there is a lot more guard positioning, full mounts and ground & pound. They do work pro-style moves, but there are no Irish Whips and no rope running. So it feels really distinct and I think this would be a great way for a pro wrestling match to stand out in today’s landscape. I would love to get more people’s take on it because I think it is a really unique match in American pro wrestling.

TNA Knockouts Champion Gail Kim vs Awesome Kong – Turning Point 2007

TNA Knockouts Champion Gail Kim vs Awesome Kong – Final Resolution 2008

It pains me to leave these two matches off. If you believe the WWE, women’s wrestling didn’t get good until 2014, but Gail Kim and Awesome Kong prove them wrong having two amazing back to back matches on PPV. Really great David vs Goliath stuff. Kong is the female Vader, hard-hitting, athletic and fearsome. Kim to her credit never dies. He is always scrappy and always fighting back. These matches are the last cuts and I implore everyone to watch them it is really great stuff!

Top Six Matches of TNA Wrestling, 2002-2009

#6. America’s Most Wanted vs XXX (Christopher Daniels & Elix Skipper)

 Turning Point 2004 Six Sides of Steel

TNA Match of the Year, 2004

There have been a lot of crazy spots in the history of pro wrestling, but I still think this one is the craziest. Skipper really could have died in the spot that made this match iconic and I think everyone knows the spot I am talking about: the tight rope walk across a top of the cage into a hurricanarana. I mean that was a narrow pipe we was walking across. I dont blame TNA one bit for constantly replaying that for the next five years. That was truly incredible and insanely dangerous. If he lost his balance, it was over man. They were chanting "Please Dont Die" and you know what it was earned. Probably the single most iconic spot from TNA. It is funny the match is so known for that spot that you forget there is a great match going on before and after the spot. I thought this was a great combination of spotfest and bloodbath. Daniels gets busted open early during the shine. AMW take him to task. Skipper ends up saving him and they work over Harris. Nice little mini-comeback for AMW where they go for the Death Sentence (badass name for the move)n but settle for the high crossbody. The match goes to the next level when they use AMW's handcuffs to cuff Harris to the turnbuckle. I have seen this match before and my recollection was that this kinda drags, but it was shorter than I remember. I really love Daniels jabbing the key into Storm's head. AMW are both bleeding at this point. Good heel miscommunication and then spear by Storm to get the key. Then it is a lot of great double team moves and cage spots. XXX hits both the crossbody/suplex spot and the Death Sentence. When that does not work, Daniels wants Skipper to go all the way up and this leads to the iconic spot. After that, Daniels hits a top of the cage elbow drop which would be insane if it was not for what just happened. Nice barrage of highspots and nearfalls ensue. They cuff Daniels in retribution and then XXX's finish to pin Skipper, win the match and XXX can never team again. One of the best non-AJ Styles TNA Matches of all times and a great confluence of blood & guts with highspots and of course it will never be forgotten due to that insane Skipper spot.

#5. X-Division Champion AJ Styles vs Christopher Daniels 

 Against All Odds 2005 Ironman Match 

There is no doubt in my mind that AJ Styles was Wrestler of the Year in 2005. He had three match of the year contenders including this one and was really good in every role he was called upon in TNA.  

First Fall: They did a great job building to the first fall in the opening 15 minutes of this classic. I really liked how Daniels made AJ earn his dropkick. Leapfrog->nope Daniels Rollup. Dropkick -> nope Daniels holds the ropes. Then AJ just nails one when Daniels is unaware. Shows they really know each other. Good chain wrestling early and strong quick covers. AJ Gets a couple big highspots. AJ's balance on the ropes is so good! When Daniels pulls in the ref, AJ is able to pause on the rope and come back down. Daniels uses the momentary hesitation to knock AJ off the apron onto the railing. Daniels works a clinic on AJ's ribs. AJ sells so well sucking for air and bumping in such a way that he lands on his ribs. The Split Leg Moonsault was a good nearfall. AJ gets a mini-comeback where he hits a lot of his low-grade signature spots. However, when AJ goes for 450 splash he eats knees. "Where?" Mike Tenay asks, "RIGHT ON THE RRRRRIBBBBBSSSSS" - Don West exclaims! I loved it. AJ did a full layout on this because he is All Man and he takes the Angels Wings full layout too. Great stuff. Daniels goes up 1-0 in a super tight 15 minutes. 

Second Fall: Daniels continue his work on the ribs. I like how he has added taunting and trash talking to each move now that he is up 1-0. Lots of great gutbusters and selling by AJ. I loved the abdominal stretch as a cutoff against one of AJ's comebacks. It was sudden and tight. AJ never died and kept fighting. The Phenomenal Forearm was a good nearfall. I love the Pele Kick. It is just a great transition. It comes from out of nowhere and it is a head kick so it stuns the opponent and really feels like a momentum change. They throw out a little too much stuff here. The takeaway is AJ hits the Angel Wings to get two. AJ wants the Styles Clash, but thats reversed and he reverses into a rollup for three to tie it up. 

Third Fall: I love Daniels reaction to Styles' pin. He very forcefully shoves AJ out of the ring. He has snapped and wants the title. He drives AJ's head hard into the ringpost busting him wide open. Daniels works the cut great lots of punches and headbutts. That one headbutt was a great nearfall. AJ shows some fire under a minute, but Daniels plants him into the Koji Klutch. Great visual with clock winding down and the blood pouring from AJ's head like a faucet. The match goes to a draw or does it...Daniels feels like he would have won the match if he just had one more minute. He calls for Sudden Death and Dusty Rhodes agrees! Daniel beats AJ down and crosses himself with AJ's blood. Cool visual but the follow up move was pretty lame. He should have hit Angel Wings or the Best Moonsault Ever. AJ throws him off the top rope and then hits a rana to set up the Styles Clash and win. 

Awesome match from an awesome year from AJ Styles! Not quite as good as his matches with Abyss and Samoa Joe, but this still ruled. Great ribs work that was sold well and Daniels did a great job working on top. I thought the third fall was awesome in its urgency and a great comeback for AJ

#4. Chris Harris vs James Storm – Sacrifice 2007 Texas Death Match

TNA Match of the Year, 2007

To me, this epitomizes the power of pro wrestling. Take two guys I dont care about. I am not being mean. I dont have positive or negative feelings about the Wildcat or Cowboy. Great pro wrestling transcends that. You invest when the wrestlers are invested. I have generally enjoyed James Storm during my strong TNA fandom from 2005-2009. My memories of Chris Harris are fainter. This is a hellacious bloodbath stands up there with some of the best Southern brawls of the 80s. Two plot points is all you need to know they were a tag team called America's Most Wanted and James Storm turned heel and blinded Chris Harris in one eye. Bang! Im sold. Lets do this. I thought the early brawling through the crowd was great and heated. Chris Harris as the babyface dominated, he was pissed and his emotion was carrying the day. My two favorite parts of the shine were Storm throwing the drink in the face, but Harris responding with a hard Irish Whip. Then Harris guzzling a beer before doing a top rope splash over the railing onto Storm for the first fall. That was totally unexpected! Harris' nonchalant demeanor worked there. Traditional Death Match rules here as it is a pinfall that precedes the 10 count. I actually prefer this to current Last Man Standing rules. We will get into this later in the match. Wildcat gets hung up in a tree of woe and Storm blasts him with a chair. Harris gigs himself. Wildcat is a really cool nickname for a pro wrestler. Harris tries to valiantly fight back. He catapults Storm into the underside of the table in wicked spot and Storm is busted too. Double juice! Storm has a five alarm bladejob. Storm punts him in the balls as his only recourse to stem the metaphorical bleeding and Harris succumbs to the Eye of the Storm through a table! I thought the table bumps were great in this match. Well setup and use for maximum impact. Believe the hype, match has been absolutely tremendous thus far. Hate-filled, blood, punches, big time spots. Storm is looking to add weapons to meter out more punishment. He wants to hurl Harris over the top rope through a table, but that is blocked and instead Harris goes all Big E and spears Storm off the apron through the table! HOLY SHIT! Wow! Jacqueline (in a Confederate Cowboy Hat I might add) stops the Wildcat from getting a pin. Now this is the part of the match where I think traditional Death Match rules shine. They trade nearfalls. Storm hits a wicked desperation Van Daminator (Harris was about to take his head off with  a chair) and Harris hits the Catatonic on a trash can. Both cases both men kickout at two out of pride. This is saves the audience for another long 8-9 count. Also, the pinfalls give a clear delineation of when a knockdown count should begin. It also saves us from the silly double knockout finish. I had never given much thought to this before, but I think traditional Death Match rules are superior to today's Last Man Standing. Jacqueline tries to save Storm after that Catatonic and thats when Gail Kim comes down and drags her out. If I remember correctly, Gail Kim was AMW's manager in late 2005/early2006 so good callback there. The finish is short and sweet, both men have a beer bottle. It is back to the OK Corral who has the quicker draw. Storm goes to spin Harris around, but BANG! Harris cracks him with the beer bottle for the pinfall and knockout victory. DAMN! Thats how you do a Southern-Fried, Revenge Bloodbath match! I love the efficiency of this match. Every highspot is so meaningful and so sticky. Hate, efficiency and blood you cant beat that! I think I am kinda underrating this right now, but just doesnt feel Top 100, but its damn close. Definitely a contender for best TNA match ever!

#3. TNA World Heavyweight Champion AJ Styles vs Christopher Daniels – Final Resolution 2009

TNA Match of the Year, 2009

Daniels puts on a career performance and AJ puts on a performance that is on par with his best. It is very rare I think someone outshines AJ, but I thought Daniels was doing so many of the little things so well and suffocating AJ that I have got to give the nod to Daniels as the better wrestler in this match.  This match is worked so much differently than most TNA matches as they let spots breathe, use strikes effectively to set up spots and has psychology that actually follows the angle surrounding the match. I was really floored how friggin good this match was both when I watched it initially in 2013 and now in 2019. The story is how AJ would overcome Daniels' combination of ruthlessness and familiarity with his moves.

Daniels takes advantage of two early rope breaks to take cheap shots at Styles. He also rushes in after each cheap shot and cinches in a hold on AJ. He is not gloating. He is here to win. I love his attitude. He takes advantage of AJ's good nature, who still has a soft spot for his friend. There are two really good spots that I just loved from Daniels they showed he was not going to give AJ anything in this match and AJ was going to have to earn every bit of offense.  The first one  is Daniels is able to counter an AJ kip up by sitting down on an armbar and the second is he is able to pick an ankle on a criss-cross spot because he knows AJ just that well. When the hell do ever see those two spots absolutely quashed. Nothing should ever be taken for granted and I like that Daniels turns the tables.  They really work the mat effectively I wish they would work this way more often. I liked the dueling dropkicks. Daniels tries to hit AJ's signature dropkick combination, but AJ is too wise for that and sets up his own and nails it.  When AJ does take control because Daniels gets cocky he really lets the fists fly and talks some trash to Daniels. Hate in a TNA match??? Whaaaaaattttttt? They do a great job climaxing AJ's shine. Daniels powders because he is a coward. So AJ baits Daniels by coming out to the apron causing Daniels to charge, but AJ evades and Daniels runs into the post and then as Daniels is selling AJ catapults himself over the top rope crashing down on Daniels. 

There is a great two spot combination that gets Daniels back in control. The first is a wicked monkey flip that sends AJ crashing into the corner causing a bad landing. The second is a rudimentary clothesline while AJ is on the apron. What makes this so special? Watch how AJ takes this bump. It is so gnarly. Yes, I said Daniels was the better wrestler on this night but if Daniels was wrestling at a A+ level then AJ was wrestling at an A level that's how high quality this match was. When Daniels regains control, he sets up AJ to get smacked with a chair and as the ref discards that chair he Rock Bottoms AJ through an chair (obviously silly as the mangled chair is left behind, but I am going to let it slide). This sets up the back psychology and a really damn good heat segment. AJ gets a hope spot and goes up top to capitalize, but Daniels wails on his back. Then Daniels manages to hoist AJ up and basically do a backbreaker but use the top turnbuckle as his knee. If you are going to do innovative spots, then at least make them violent and that fit in perfectly. Daniels continuing working the back with strikes and holds.

I like how AJ re-establishes control first it is by big time punches to the head but when Daniels throws him out of the ring AJ hits a nasty powerbomb on Daniels onto the floor when Daniels tries to hit a huricanrana. Up until that point, Daniels had almost no highspots. Everything was fundamental and ruthless and AJ made him pay. AJ follows up with more strikes and trash talk. This does not feel like a TNA match at all and the TNA crowd does not how to react. I hate to admit, but it was pretty heatless even though this was an insanely great match. There is a great moment when Daniels not only hooks the top rope, but has his foot hooked on the bottom rope too to ensure AJ will not be able to take him over.  Daniels uses AJ's own momentum against him crotches him on the ropes (AJ's bumpis great here). I really liked the suplex from this position. Now Daniels is using some wicked open hand palm strikes. They fuck up a super Franeknsteiner. They fight over a suplex and AJ hits a wicked brainbuster on Daniels' injured head. At some point, Daniels has this massive lump on his forehead that just looks gnarly. Phenomenal Forearm gets two when Daniels gets his leg on the ropes. I like that Daniels used this foot there. It showed that the Brainbuster/Forearm would have done him in. 

They struggle over Styles Clash; AJ hits him with the Pele which is usually the setup for the Styles Clash, but Daniels scrambles for the ropes where AJ hits him with a stiff kick to the back. Daniels throws a desperate open hand strikes. AJ is trying for the German suplex, but Daniels uses the ref and he rakes the eyes to hit an Urnage then hit the BME. Daniels takes his frustration out on AJ's head by punching his head repeatedly and then clawing the eyes. I love the hate and violence. AJ gets a catapult and then follows up with a Styles Clash kickout. AJ gets set up on top rope (maybe Spiral Tap); Daniels hits a big palm strike; goes for another super Frankensteiner this time he eats a super Styles Clash for the 1-2-3! 

This match unlike most TNA matches actually followed the story of the angle. It was two wrestlers pissed off at each other trying to prove they were better than the other. Daniels was great at heeling it up and he left most of the goofy moves at the door. He was out to use his guile and experience to best AJ. He started off really working the arm well before zeroing in on the back with ferocity rarely seen in TNA. AJ is such a great babyface at both selling and those fiery comebacks. His punches were really on point and he too did not work all his usual offensive spots and instead focusing on executing moves that fit the match and would finish his opponent. I liked the finish a lot because it combined smart escalation (Top Rope Styles Clash) with Daniels going to the well once too often (2nd attempt at Super Frankensteiner). I think this is one of the grossly underrated matches in the history of pro wrestling and easily the Match of the Year for 2009 

#2. X-Division Champion AJ Styles vs Samoa Joe – Turning Point 2005

I wrote in 2013: Greatest AJ Styles Performance Ever? I will say his performance against Bobby Roode in an ironman match at Final Resolution 2012 is his greatest performance of all time, but this is probably a Top Ten AJ Performance and thats saying a lot because he has had so many great ones.

My favorite moment when I watched in 2013 is the same as when I just watched it again: When Styles does a float-over off a Joe suplex attempt onto the apron instead of doing it fluidly he lands on the ropes to sell the exhaustion. I was in awe. He takes that extra couple seconds to really sell. Consequently instead of immediately following his forearm on the apron he sold more exhaustion before finally to trying to hit a springboard and ate a Joe powerbomb. Sublime. What I think stands out the most about this match compared to so many X-Division matches is the physicality. This match was a fuckin war and AJ got a nice busted up lip for it. Each wrestler earned everything they got.

AJ set the tone charging at Joe and manhandling him. You dont see Joe manhandled too often, but AJ was all piss & vinegar. AJ hits fucking hard and he was blasting Joe. I love how pumped AJ was after his snap suplex and his trademark dropkick. This does not get brought up enough, but AJ is so good at his dropdown. The whole point of the dropdown is trip your opponent while he running the ropes OR mess up his timing. Watch that Joe really has to step over AJ because AJ does his dropdown so tight. Since Joe is thinking about that, he does not think about the dropkick. Once Joe gets a hold of AJ the match really gets brutal. These are some of the sickest, stiffest kicks you will ever see. AJ did that sick bump off the apron onto the floor again and took Joe's offense like a champ. Joe kicked is leg out from under him and took a header on the apron. Then the real exclamation point is how Joe just slung him into the railing. This was a total shitkicking. Credit to AJ that he sold like a champ and bumped like a madman, but he never died. He always let us know he life left in his body. Thats huge. There is a great moment when AJ was looking to start a comeback but Joe just shoves him down and then hits a flying kick right to the face. I love how simple & brutal the match is. I loved the transition to AJ's comeback as it was Joe being overzealous and AJ having the presence of mind to back body drop outside the ring. Then he capitalized with a beautiful Fosbury Flop. I love how after each move AJ was going after pins because he knew he was weak and this was his shot. It really sold the urgency, you could feel that his time was fleeting and if he didnt capitalize now everything was lost. I loved the cat and mouse game they did late in the match with AJ duckin' and divin' not allowing Joe to get that full 100% impact. The busted lip happens here and it really had a big fight feel and that moment epitomized it. AJ continues back with flying kicks especially that wicked spinkick that rocks Joe. AJ needed those big bombs and head shots. Tenay & I think he going Styles Clash, but he hits a massive powerbomb for two. AJ tries to charge Joe, but it is a WICKED LARIAT (this lariat is insane; JBL would have creamed his pants for sure) and then a  wicked Tiger Driver, but each time AJ kicks out at one. FIGHTING SPIRIT~! There is a great vicious sequence, Joe hits a wicked slap and then AJ hits his Pele Kick. That's the head rocking, stun kick, AJ usually uses to set up the Styles Clash, but here AJ sets the big man up on the top rope. which I dont love. The one flaw is the fact that AJ tried twice to setup Joe for moves on the top turnbuckle, which seemed odd. The second time it led to an awkward sequence and a lame AJ powerbomb (more like a double leg takedown), which only existed to give AJ a way to hit the Styles Clash. It was a minor flaw. AJ goes for a victory roll, but Joe traps him in the clutch and it is Goodnight Irene for AJ. After the match, Joe beats up AJ and tries to give him a musclebuster on a chair, but Daniels saves. I liked this match a whole lot, but I think I liked AJ/Abyss a hair more (I wrote that in 2013 and still feel that way now), but both are neck and neck for Best TNA match ever at this point. I have no idea why the Unbreakable match is the more famous match. This match blows that match outta the water. Again, it is the finish that holds this match back from being *****. To me this combines BattlArts brutality with really awesome bumping from AJ and start of the art offense with a strong story of urgency from both men really wanting to win.

#1. AJ Styles vs Abyss – Lockdown 2005 Six Sides of Steel

TNA Match of the Year, 2005

So in a card full of cage matches, what do AJ and Abyss do to ensure differentiation they spend the first half brawling outside. I actually think that is pretty smart given the circumstances of the match, which Don West poignantly points out. This is actually one of the best Don West calls ever. His hyperbole is well-suited for a match as violent and as brutal as this and he actually does well to describe the strategy. AJ would find the cage restrictive as opposed to outside the cage where he would have more freedom to evade Abyss and create opportunities to attack. That's why AJ decided to start the match outside the ring by flying through the door wiping Abyss out. The spots AJ hits during the babyface shine are ridiculously awesome and breath-taking. It was the perfect way to establish AJ's speed as a threat to Abyss' unmitigated power. I loved how Abyss remained strong during this. AJ could not Irish Whip Abyss. He had not done enough to earn that. So when Abyss reversed the Irish Whip, AJ slid under the railing to avoid that shot and then hit the rana. In a similar moment, AJ avoided the stairs and flew into the stands soaring above the fans. He then went flying with a beautiful forearm on Abyss back over those same fans. That could be one of the single coolest spots in the history of pro wrestling. As Don West so eloquently describes, AJ goes to the well one too many times and ends up tumbling over the railing and crashing on the floor. AJ did such a fantastic job setting up his aerial maneuvers to make them plausible. Abyss sold them as exactly as they should with a register but not enough to do serious damage to the monster. 


I thought the arena brawling was good. I liked Abyss' response to AJ's defiance, goozling him and then hurling him back first into some steel fencing. The match really kicks into the next gear when AJ decides he will die for our sins. AJ takes like 8 million ridiculously awesome bumps in this match. First it is the crazy snap back bumps after Abyss whips the steel cage door into his face, which causes AJ to bleed. Then in the ring, AJ just get ridiculous elevation on all sort of bumps as Abyss hurls him. The best part of this match is AJ never dies. He keeps fighting back and he keeps letting us know he is there. I loved how AJ spun out of cover instead of kicking out. Great way to sell within a cover. Once in the cage, Abyss did some great power offense and a classic Southern-style, bloodbath cage match developed with AJ timing each hope spot for maximum effect. I loved how the hope spots were all about driving Abyss' head into hard metal objects and they were also a taste of his own medicine because Abyss was setting these spots up but AJ was countering them. Really good shit here. AJ was averting disaster but it looked like his nine lives ran out when Abyss finally wrangled him in the Black Hole Slam, which was a great nearfall from Abyss, the first really strong nearfall of the match. Abyss understands he needs to up the ante so he pours out the thumbtacks. Loved the struggle and drama of who would go into the thumbtacks. It is AJ hitting a Styles Clash into the thumbtacks! I love how both men sell. My only nitpick is that really should have been the finish. I thought the finish was a little overwrought. AJ realizes he needs to up the ante so he ascends to the top of the cage. Abyss throws the ref into the cage and this causes AJ to lose his balance, which by the way is insane. Like AJ could have killed himself there, he is a nut. What I didnt like was the whole hanging with the chain it didnt feel like much and didnt like how AJ was able to survive, climb back in and hit a sunset flip powerbomb on the tacks for the win. It was a literally perfect match up until the chain hanging spot.

If someone wanted to argue this is the greatest David vs. Goliath match, I would listen. AJ shined throughout this match. He came in with an excellent gameplan, he bumped like a madman, wrestled a smart counterwrestling match, hit two massive moves late. Really awesome performance. Credit to Abyss for not just being an imposing monster, BUT not wrestling small. He resisted the Irish Whips early and he did not let himself look vulnerable at all until he started having head bashed into steel. Abyss made himself a mountain to scale. That made AJ's victory all the sweeter. My pick for the best match of 2005 anywhere in the world (have watched Low-Ki vs KENTA since and now it is very close)! *****

Pro Wrestling Love vol. 34 Best of Other Puroresu 1989-1995 (Nobuhiko Takada, Genichiro Tenryu, Vader)

Hey Yo Stud Muffins & Foxy Ladies,

Pro Wrestling Love vol. 34:

The Best of Other Puroresu 1989-1995

Objective:  Break up the Greatest Match Ever Project (hosted at gwe.freeforums.project.net) into more manageable chunks to help me build my Top 100 List for the project.

Motivation: Contribute to the discussion around these matches to enrich my own understanding of pro wrestling and give a fresh perspective for old matches and even hopefully discover great pro wrestling matches that have been hidden by the sands of time.

Subject: This thirty-fourth volume of Pro Wrestling Love is the Top 6 countdown of the best matches to take place in Heavyweight Puroresu NOT in New Japan, All Japan. Promotions include Genichiro Tenryu’s SWS & WAR, Nobuhiko Takada’s UWFi, Yoshiaki Fujiwara’s PWFG, Akira Maeda’s Fighting Network RINGS, Atsushi Onita’s FMW. The year 1990 of UWF REBORN is covered in Pro Wrestling Love vol. 18. The years are selected to include the beginning of decentralization of the Puroresu promotions starting with Onita’s FMW then continuing with Tenryu starting his own promotion in 1990 and then the splintering of Shoot-Style into three rival promotions. I stopped in 1995 because honestly 1996 is when RINGS gets really good and just wanted to covered that in a different volume. You can revisit past Pro Wrestling Love Volumes at ridingspacemountain.blogspot.com. You can check out the full version of these reviews in ProWrestlingOnly.com by going to the forums and finding the folders associated with the date of the match.

Contact Info: @superstarsleeze on Twitter, Instagram & ProWrestlingOnly.com.

You Might Know Him Better As God

Honorable Mentions

Terry Funk vs Atsushi Onita - FMW 5/5/93 Exploding Barbed Wire Time Bomb Death Match

Read the title of the match if that does not sound like the craziest thing you have ever seen then you have seen some crazy shit. With 5 minutes to go a countdown clock appears and sirens are blaring for the impending doom! Also the ref is dressed as the world’s coolest beekeeper!

Wayne (Ken) Shamrock vs Naoki Sano - PWFG 5/19/91

Yoshiaki Fujiwara vs Wellington Wilkins Jr (PWFG 05/19/91)

I only watched three matches from PWFG as it was not too renowned, which kinda bums me out because I love Fujiwara. These matches are from the same show which is the second show PWFG ever did. The Fujiwara match is the closest thing to a Fujiwara exhibition, spotfest you will ever see and it is wicked cool. The Shamrock vs Sano is a total surprise in how awesome it is. It is probably Shamrock’s best worked bout. He looks so explosive. Very technical mat work with an exciting stand up.

WCW World Heavyweight Champion Vader vs Kazuo Yamazaki - UWFi 8/13/93

SUPER Vader vs Kiyoshi Tamura - UWFi 6/10/94

Vader & John Tenta vs Gary Albright & Kazuo Yamasaki - UWFi 10/14/94

Vader just ruled in UWFi. UWFi is the least shoot style shoot style promotion. Basically it is pro wrestling without rope running and Irish Whips, which is my least favorite part of wrestling anyways. Vader vs Yamazaki or Tamura is just excellent because Vader is so, so good at selling. The anguish on his face as he is getting kicked in the leg is magnificent but you know he is only one bear paw away from ending it. Really strong chemistry with both Yamazaki and Tamura.  

Volk Han vs Dick Vrij - RINGS 8/21/92

Volk Han vs Yoshihisa Yamamoto - RINGS 12/19/95

Some people find God, I found Volk Han. I mean I cant believe I waited all these years to finally watch Volk Han. An absolute master at every facet of pro wrestling (well I guess bumping does not really exist in shoot style). He is a magnificent seller (when he scrambles for the ropes it is a big deal or when he crumples in a heap), his character work is awesome (I love his celebrations or when he is pissed he lost) and of course his offense. He is Russian Mat Wizard, he makes every submission move look like the coolest thing ever and his double wristlock rip takedown are so forceful and compelling. If you have not watched this Soviet Maestro perform his craft change that pronto and let his saving grace wash you anew.  

Naoki Sano vs Yoji Anjo (UWFI 08/13/93)

Most people prefer this match, I prefer the ’95 match. The best non-Takada/Vader matchup in UWFi by a country mile. Great work and great characters.

Hulk Hogan & Genichiro Tenryu vs Legion of Doom - SWS Tokyo Dome 3/31/91

Hulk Hogan vs Geinchiro Tenryu - SWS Tokyo Dome 12/12/91

Hulk Hogan had quite the violent 1991 between the barbaric Desert Storm match with Sgt. Slaughter and insane out of control brawl with Tenryu against the Road Warriors. Then he goes straight up against Tenryu in a really fun icon vs icon match that most don’t even know exists. It is pretty amazing Tenryu had amazing matches with Hogan and Flair inside a year in the early 90s!

Real World Heavyweight Champion Nobuhiko Takada vs WCW World Heavyweight Champion Vader - UWFi 12/5/93
Real World Heavyweight Champion Super Vader vs Nobuhiko Takada - UWFi 4/20/95

The feud that basically fueled the UWFi fire from 1993-1995 (that Takada vs Gary Albright). Takada used the ‘ol Inoki model taking on big, bad gaijin and vanquishing them. The Vader vs Takada trilogy is amazing shows them both at their best Vader as the monster and Takada as the conquering hero. Vader is so good at playing the wounded bear role. His best individual performance could be the December 1993 match where Takada “breaks his arm” with a cross-armbreaker to win the match. Vader hollering in pain is a sight to below and that is the match that MADE Nobuhiko Takada the top draw he was in the mid-90s. That match is my last cut.

Top Six Matches of Heavyweight Other Puroresu 1989-1995

#6. Volk Han vs. Mitsuya Nagai - RINGS 12/24/94

There is cool and then there is Volk Han cool and none of us will ever be Volk Han cool. Volk Han is just so damn accessible. He makes every takedown and submission look like the coolest thing you have ever seen. I think this may be the best match to introduce someone to shoot style because there is so many cool moments, the point structure gets involved, theres a lot of struggle and some great character work down the stretch. I found this is actually the climax of a series of matches so I kinda feel bad jumping in at the end, BUT theres not much time left before Greatest Match Ever. I guess if you want to introduce someone to Han maybe start at the beginning of the series, but I still think this is a damn good place to start. 

Nagai wants to do this standup pretty much the whole match and I dont blame him as Volk Han is a wizard on the mat. That first armbar takedown is fucking sublime. Sublime is the only word to describe it. Then they both end up with figure-4s on each other. RINGS: Human Pretzel-Making. Han gets an armbar out of this. He is a Wizard, Harry, he is a wizard, I tells ya! Volk Han is also only person who has ever gotten me excited about the bundle of legs lock because he does such a great job selling and executing. His double ankle cross actually looks good. Nagai is the first to use the ropes. Old RINGS rules so it is Two Escapes = One Down. Nagai on reset is all about that stand up game and Volk Han nips that in the bud with a Triangle takedown. Volk Han is also the master of applying the figure-4 from crazy positions in the most organic way possible have them be deep as fuck. Somehow Han ends up in an STF a deep one too and has to go to the ropes. Volk Han happens to be the best seller in shoot style history too. If you did not already realize he was a God from this review. So Nagai just starts blasting him with kicks again so Han just SLAMS him to the mat. Han grabs this tight double wristlock. You know what this match is missing is one of those classic Volk Han double wristlock RIP TAKEDOWNS! Han gets a cross armbreaker for a rope break. It is 1-0 Volk Han. I love that Volk Han can throw an axe kick out of nowhere to create separation. Nagai is stunned and Han makes a fucking pretzel out of him. I dont know how else to describe it. Another rope break, this is too much fun. Volk Han is taking this man to school with a nice hammerlock and suplexes him on his fucking head! For a knockdown! Volk Han 2-0! He is killing this dude. Nagai sneaks in a liver punch and Han crumples to the mat. Volk Han, what a salesman. 2-1! Ruh roh! Nagai throws a wild spin kick, Han avoids but falls over. Intense ankle cross from Volk Han, great selling here from Nagai. Volk Han ends up getting him in this intense front crab with his leg in between for a rope break. 3-1...classic Volk Han takedown single leg and then KICKS OUT THE PLANT LEG! Volk Han is The Man! Volk Han has a double wristlock but for some reason the ref breaks it. Volk Han is starting to throw some meaty strikes. Nice rolling heel hook from Nagai to close the gap 3-2. Nagai does a great job quashing a Volk Han takedown here. Just close contact, gritty holds and wrestles Volk Han down to the mat. Good for him. Han does a bunch of twisting and turning but ends up in a bad position for a cross armbreaker and needs to use the ropes. Now Volk Han starts acting like he has abs of steel and throwing big smacks. Nagai tauns him sticking his face out twice. Han is not fucking around anymore and isnt going to sell shit it looks like. He kicks Nagai off in the face, but is still wrapped up. Nagai is not going away you got to give him credit. Han forces a figure-4 out of nothing and Nagai needs the ropes. 4-2 Han and one more knockdown wins it. Volk Han is Superman now and those fists of fury dont affect him anymore. He is just going to brutally force him to submit to a Full Nelson just wrestles him to the ground uncles him. Volk Han's celebration is just the best! I had the biggest grin of my face. 

I watched that match twice back to back. Couldnt not stop smiling. What a fucking clinic from Volk Han! If you want to get into Volk Han watch this match. I need to go back and watch the Yamamoto '95 and Kohsaka '96 matches because I think underrated those in retrospect.

#5. Naoki Sano vs Yoji Anjoh – UWFi 6/18/95

I feel that RINGS is to UWFi as AJPW is to NJPW, but just as in the AJPW-NJPW relationship, UWFi is occasionally able to come close to their more heralded competitor. This is one of those cases where Sano/Anjoh match RINGS in their ability, energy and organic feel. The opening features an amazing 5 minutes of shooting on the mat in amazing fashion that is gritty as it is intense ending with amazingly muscular Boston Crab by Sano. Where Sano and Anjoh have one up on their RINGS counterparts is their pro wrestling background and as a pro wrestling fan that means good character work and lots of great selling and of course ZEBRA PRINT~! (thanks Anjoh!). I feel like the Sano STF on Anjoh was incredibly compelling in a totally pro wrestling way that RINGS could never duplicate because of their shooty nature. I also loved the story of this match. Sano gets a big knee in the corner and then a dropkick to a head to score a knockdown putting it at 14-11. Anjoh spends the rest of the match digging out of the hole working hard to make it 10-10 through a ton of submission work dripping with struggle. Him getting out of that aforementioned STF and converting into his own submission was huge. I love just as Anjoh worked his way back into the match Sano just blows him out of the water with two huge knockdowns one being a deadlift German suplex. Both of their selling before of this war of attrition was great and Anjoh spent all his energy trying to get back into the match and Sano was able to score. Anjoh was spent and blocked the last German, which would have lost him the match, but falls prey to the deep cross armbreaker for the quick submission. Brutal, flashy, energetic match which used the points system really well to create a compelling narrative, loved it. 

#4. Genichiro Tenryu vs Shinya Hashimoto – WAR 6/17/93

I really need to watch the NJPW vs WAR build to this match. This is the feud that makes Shinya Hashimoto into The Man. Chono may have won the first two G-1 Climaxes and Muta may have been the first one to win the IWGP Championship, but neither was tapped to be the Leader of New Japan to face off against the invading Genichiro Tenryu. Tenryu defeated Choshu at 1/4 Dome show, but lost to Choshu at the April Sumo Hall show. The New Japan vs. WAR feud continued with a greater emphasis placed on Shinya Hashimoto in his quest to defeat Tenryu.

I liked the beginning. Hashimoto was raring to go, but Tenryu is tentative. In a lot of ways, this was Tenryu first major contest against a star of the 90s. He had matches with Misawa, Kawada and Kobashi but he left before any of them were pushed. In the New Japan feud, he was faced against his old rival, Choshu. After leading that Revolution against Jumbo, the tables have been turned and it now Hashimoto who is the upstart and Tenryu is the establishment. He has become an elder statesman and now he has to weather that storm of rage that he knows all too well that causes a man to throw off the chains and topple the establishment. There is a great lock up in the corner where you see Hashimoto give Tenryu the death stare. Hashimoto throws a barrage of kneelifts up against the ropes and Tenryu has to powder. Hashimoto is pissed and throws a wild overhand chop. Hashimoto finally gets a hold of Tenryu starts to blast him. Tenryu goes to the eyes and just rips into Hashimoto. That chop to the throat was just nasty. Reverse top rope elbow. Tenryu wants the win early. Tenryu headbutts Hashimoto in the midst of headbutts, Hashimoto kicks Tenryu's leg and LEG SWEEP! Hashimoto does a great job working holds on the legs and using strikes against the legs. Hashimoto has the best standing elbow drop this side of Lex Luger. Tenryu did a great job selling all the leg work. Tenryu has two hope spots built around Sumo Slaps which of course draw blood from Hashimoto's nose. I love how Hashimoto used the weakened leg to set up his big bomb offense: DDT, powerbomb and rainbow heel kick. He goes for the death sentence the jumping DDT but Tenryu shoves him off. Enziguiri from Tenryu! I love how all of Tenryus offense has been targeting the head during his comeback. Powerbomb 1-2-NO! Tenryu is in shock. Hashimoto hits his own enziguiri; I like how Hashimoto has used the powerbomb and enziguiri in this match. Tenryu hits a couple really bad enziguiris, but thats Tenryu for you. The finish sequence is absolutely amazing. Tenryu tries with all his might to get Hashimoto up for his second powerbomb, but cant do it. Kawada kicks by Tenryu and then two BADASS CHOPS! Hashimoto kicks him in the head with a roundhouse kick and Tenryu responds with a KAPPO KICK! That popped me! POWERBOMB! 1-2-3!

One of those matches where Hashimoto gained as much in a loss as he would have with a victory. Helluva effort from him. Totally in the zone once the bell rang, great job working the leg and hell he had Tenryu where he wanted him after the finish sequence and was one move away from winning. Tenryu showed his veteran poise giving a totally selfless performance selling so well for Hashimoto and giving so much of the match to him. Then coming back with the perfect amount of vulnerability and credibility. You come away feeling that is not a matter of if but when Hashimoto will upend Tenryu and take his place among legends of puroresu and the Ace of New Japan Pro Wrestling.

#3. WWF World Champion Ric Flair vs Genichiro Tenryu 

SWS 9/15/92 Two Out Of Three Falls

Flair has since regained the World Championship from Savage and is about to transition it to Bret Hart. There's such a big fight feel/dream match feel to this even though Flair has been wrestling Tenryu since at least 1981 if not even earlier. I think it feels so different because this is now Tenryu's promotion and Flair is in the WWF with shorter hair. 

First Fall: Two distinct differences from Flair right off the bat is that there is a lot more American Flair heel character work in this match than in his previous matches. Lots of trash talking and bravado. Second, he wrestles this match completely differently from an offensive perspective. Tenryu gets absolutely zero shine. Yes, folks you read that right, heel Flair did not bump 'n' run for his babyface opponent. This was NOT a fire fight either initially. This was a domineering Flair performance. Put that in your pipe and smoke, Flair haters. Flair works the arm with a ton of great holds and lots of tight pinning combinations. Flair shows how you are supposed to actually pin a man by cradling the leg & neck and then clasping your hands! Can we please bring back good pinning! Flair starts working these nasty short punches to Tenryu's face, repeatedly. Tenryu sells as if his nose has been broken. Tenryu had another good delayed sell of a chop. Flair uses his kneedrop on the injured nose and again that tight cradle pinning combination. Flair tries to use the sleeper to no avail. Tenryu armdrags him off and as he comes in Flair throws a wild chop and catches him in throat. This match is really damn good. Tenryu finally nails a lariat that causes Flair to powder. I love how Tenryu always had the puncher's chance. Flair could pour on all the offense he wanted but it was just one lariat that could change the complexion of the match. Tenryu press slams Flair off the top and NAILS an enziguiri. Flair blocks the Lariat! Flair tries for a kneecrusher to stymie Tenryu's momentum, but Tenryu shifts his weight and they topple over backwards, another enziguiri and Tenryu is rolling. Powerbomb...1-2-3! Tenryu up 1-0. Awesome first fall!

Second Fall: Wow! I waited far too long to watch this match! This could be heel Flair's best offensive performance ever. Babyface Flair has great offense, but for everyone who has wanted to see offensive-minded Flair needs to check this out. This starts with Tenryu refusing to break on a sleeper and even gets some boos. The Japanese are sticklers for rules. A great fire fight breaks out. This has not been Flair vs Garvin in terms of sustained chopping, but the chops that have been throws have been brutal. Flair begs off and Tenryu is like "C'mon, brutha" and Flair pokes him in the eye! Flair is just firing on all cylinders. Tons of great suplexes and tight pinning combinations. Tenryu tries to mount a comeback and then it is an eyepoke. Flair chop block. Flair works a clinic working the leg and even busts out a new leg move. He looks great. I wish Flair worked full-time in Japan in 1993 instead of going back to WCW. Imagine Tenryu & Flair invading New Japan together! They battle over the Figure-4 maybe the most compelling use of the Figure-4 ever. Eventually succumbs to the Figure-4 via pinfall. It is important that he is does not tap out. I love 2 out of 3 falls matches because moves that are badass like the Figure-4 actually get put over as real finishes. I am loving this match!

Third Fall: They fell back to Earth in this fall. I think if they went 5 minutes in this fall instead of close to 15 minutes they would have been much better off. There were a lot of stilted moments where they were sort of thinking of what to do next to fill time. Flair just started strutting around for no reason to kill time. Here's a complaint you never thought would be written...I thought Flair was too focused on working the leg. There was not much forward progression. Also the urgency was lost. The finish was kinda lame. Flair was just on the apron for no reason strutting and Tenryu enziguiris him and Flair hits the post and it is a countout loss. I have no problem with a countout. It was the finish I was expecting. Negative complaints done, there is some good from this fall. The chops are brutal and the leg work is good. The best part is the first five minutes. Flair applies an STF, AN STF!  He then goes back to the figure-4. This is just smart. Tenryu gets a kneebar! Flair is hollering in agony. Flair comes up limping. There is this great fight and then Tenryu applies the kneebar on Flair and what a sell! Great job! If they went home right after that, I would be tempted to give this the full monty *****, I really thought the first two falls were spectacular. They bite off a little more they can chew and go longer than necessary, but 35 minutes out of 45 minutes being ***** is still fantastic and I highly recommend watching this very unique Flair performance oh and that Tenryu guy is pretty damn fantastic himself.

#2. Volk Han vs Yoshihia Yamamoto – RINGS 6/17/95

To me what separated Han from Yammamoto was his selling. When he got trapped in a submission hold, the way he squirmed, lunged for the ropes or would quickly counter made that hold matter so much more. Yammamoto is just 24 at the time of this match and at the beginning it shows in a completely kayfabe way. He is just doing things that are stupid and giving Han opportunity after opportunity to put him away. He drops to his back like he is a fucking Gracie and Han shows him up completely stepping on his ankle and applying the craziest single crab. He was all over Yammamoto before he got to the ropes. For a while Yammamoto just felt outclassed by the technical wizardy of Han (the way he finds organic ways to put on pro wrestling holds is great) however Volk Han does get caught napping. In a Scorpion Deathlock, Yammamoto picks the ankle and applies a heel hook that sends Hand scrambling for the ropes. I love that selling there. Treat the holds with respect and the match gets treated with respect. That is the story of the match in a nutshell, Han is clearly superior, but he is giving Yammamoto enough rope to hang himself. You see Yammamoto come up with some very nice counterwrestling that makes you believe Han could lose. I really liked the Han STF. Han loves using the double wristlock as his base to create offense and one time just rips Yammamoto down in the hold. Wicked takedown that gets the doctors involved. I thought this was a red herring and that Yammamoto was going to get the win. BOOM! Blast him in the face with a palm strike and Han was down for a 8. Han gets right up shakes it off, but is clearly woozy. Yammamoto actually applies a tight guillotine choke that looks to be it, but Han wriggles out and gets the cross armbreaker for the submission victory.

Told a great little story of Han's dominance, but Yammamoto perseverance through counterwrestling, but ultimately coming up short. The last 90 seconds after the double wristlock takedown was sweet and you totally did not know which way it was going to go. Great shoot style match!

#1. Real World Heavyweight Champion Nobuhiko Takada vs Super Vader – UWFi 8/18/94

What if Goliath wins? 

Yngwie Fucking Malmsteen of all people is there to present Takada with the flowers. I did a little digging and I guess Malmsteen composed/plays Takada's theme. That has to rank as one of the most Japan things ever. Lou Thesz says that his Original World Championship is on the line. I think viewing this through a shoot style lens is pretty unfair. It is an old school pro wrestling in the sense that there are no Irish whips and rope running, but the idea was to present realistic pro wrestling as opposed to realistic fighting in my opinion. It is all a work anyways. I am choosing to watch this as if I am watching a New Japan match rather than get hung up on the fact that Vader ain't Volk Han out there. Interesting start as there is no shine. Takada is trying to avoid early, but gets caught in the corner with those rhythmic Vader forearms. Vader THROWS HIS ASS DOWN not once, but twice. Takada is starting in a hole. Takada goes after the legs and anytime he can he is trying to apply the cross-armbreaker, which had won him the match in December,. Takada is such a great valiant babyface in this match. This reminds me of a Puroresu version of Vader vs Sting from GAB '92. Sting & Takada get in their hope spots, but neither one has a chance when Vader is in this zone. I think they told a tremendous story of for every three Takada shots, one Vader shot could put Takada down. This is some of the best stand up you will ever see. It was hard hitting and dramatic. Vader was lighting Takada up with palm strikes and forearms. Takada's kneelifts were vicious. Of course, Takada caught him a couple times with that trademark kick combo where the left foot catches you right under the chin. Really strong stand-up. On the mat, I liked it. It was not Volk Han vs Kiyoshi Tamura. It was ugly but effective. Vader used his weight well and when ever he was in trouble he would just palm strike Takada in the face. Works for me! At one point, Takada got pissed about this and just start blasting Vader in the face. Takada never did get his cross-armbreaker applied. It really became a great stand up battle as the match worn on. Just a slobberknocker. The turning point was when Vader was getting rocked and he just grabbed a waistlock on Takada and hurled him in a wicked German suplex. Takada would get a few more hope spots, but they were few and far between. Vader just dominated from there on out with some massive forearms. That deadlift powerbomb as insane. I remember that as the finish, but Takada stood up. The finish was inevitable and eventually succumbed to the might of Vader. 

Goliath won with exactly what brought him to the dance, raw, unadulterated power and brute force. Vader really sold Takada's attacks well. His register is so good. He would take three heavy shots and then come back with a wild swipe and knock Takada's ass down. Takada would have to start from square one. I think Takada got enough "nearfalls" in his few knockdowns to make it dramatic, but Vader was on fire here, very much like GAB '92. So what happen when Goliath wins? Well David gets a rematch of course. 

Pro Wrestling Love vol. 33: Best of 90s New Japan Heavyweights (Shinya Hashimoto, Great Muta, Genichiro Tenryu)

Hey Yo Stud Muffins & Foxy Ladies,

Pro Wrestling Love vol. 33:

The Best of New Japan Pro Wrestling Heavyweights 1990-1999

Objective:  Break up the Greatest Match Ever Project (hosted at gwe.freeforums.project.net) into more manageable chunks to help me build my Top 100 List for the project.

Motivation: Contribute to the discussion around these matches to enrich my own understanding of pro wrestling and give a fresh perspective for old matches and even hopefully discover great pro wrestling matches that have been hidden by the sands of time.

Subject: This thirty-third volume of Pro Wrestling Love completes the Top 13 countdown (I couldnt make the cut and had to put a tie for #12) of the best matches to take place in New Japan Pro Wrestling in the Heavyweight Division between 1990-1999. New Japan has a vibrant junior heavyweight scene in the 1990s led by Jushin “Thunder” Liger that has overshadowed the work of the heavyweight division in America. Make no mistake about it however, the heavyweights led by the Three Musketeers, Shinya Hashimoto, Keiji Mutoh & Masahiro Chono were the draws for the major shows at Tokyo Dome, Sumo Hall and other large shows. The Three Musketeers had back up in the form of Hiroshi Hase & Kensuke Sasaki along with the old guard of Antonio Inoki, Riki Choshu and Tatsumi Fujinami. In addition, two major invasion angles (WAR & UWFI) led by Genichiro Tenryu and Nobuhiko Takada bolstered popularity. Their counterparts in All Japan are defined by the decade of the 1990s thus it is just easier to cluster New Japan in the same way. You can revisit past Pro Wrestling Love Volumes at ridingspacemountain.blogspot.com. You can check out the full version of these reviews in ProWrestlingOnly.com by going to the forums and finding the folders associated with the date of the match.

Defender of New Japan, Hashimoto The Destroyer, Rest in Peace

Top Six New Japan Heavyweight Matches 1990-1999

#6. IWGP Heavyweight Champion Nobuhiko Takada vs Shinya Hashimoto - 4/29/96

The only thing greater than the Right Hand of God is the RIGHT HAND OF HASHIMOTO! Incredible Dome match with insane heat! Nobuhiko Takada is a genius for a dude who cant fight a lick he made the entire world believe that he is the greatest fighter. He had the successful UWFi, three Dome matches in the 90s and then a big feud with Tenryu after this and then started PRIDE & Hustle. He may be the greatest worker of all time in the truest sense of the word meaning he made people believe the unbelievable. 

Takada gives a very selfless performance here for Hashimoto. He does not just lose clean as a sheet in the middle of the ring via submission. He sold every Hashimoto kick like it was death and he had fear in his eyes. That first kick to his leg look how nervous he looks and then how Hashimoto is staring a hole right through him. Hashimoto gives one of his greatest performances ever as Hashimoto The Destroyer just stuffing everything and mercilessly brutalizing the leader of the UWFi leader. Is there anybody you would want defending your territory against invaders? I dont think this is quite as good as Hashimoto vs Tenryu matches, but this is great. You do need to create drama so when it comes time for Takada to get offense it feels electric. My favorite moment besides the finish might be Takada rifling Hashimoto's left leg with kicks and then hitting this tremendous kick combination to the head that fells Hashimoto to the mat. The crowd went crazy. Takada went for the cross armbreaker but Hashimoto scrambled for the ropes. Hashimoto destroying the legs comes back later and boy does Takada sell his ass for it. Credit to Takada for not letting his shooter badass character get in the way of looking vulnerable. Hashimoto applies a figure-4 and the heat is off the charts. The one problem with focusing on Takada's legs is that is the source of his offense so he blows it off to hit his trademark kicks and a backdrop driver, but againt cant finish the mighty Hashimoto who powers out of a Boston Crab. On the next standup is when the Right Hand of Hashimoto sends the crowd into a frenzy. The ref tries to back him off but he runs through and hits a big meaty elbow drop while Takada is under the ropes. I love the big fight feel! Takada tries to kick his way out of trouble...he is landing some big shots...he is rocking the head...he pushes Hashimoto off to create distance for a full extension...Takada throws HASHIMOTO SWEEPS THE LEG! OH MY FUCKING GOD! I LOST MY MIND!

The rest of the match becomes about Hashimoto trying to hit the Brainbuster and Takada desperately trying to avoid it. Takada's last gasp is a Fujiwara armbar, but Hashimoto makes the ropes and Takada reapplies it in the ropes to Booos. Great heeling there. Hashimoto caves in the solarplexus with a massive kick. Takada is still avoiding his death sentence. Hashimoto rips him down with a DDT. BRAINBUSTER! Headscissors/armbreaker finishes him with a submission. 

All will bow down to Hashimoto The Destroyer! Perfect Dome match for these two, the Takada knockdown of Hashimoto feels huge then Hashimoto's offense feels like the coolest most badass thing ever. This match also gets a boost for being a really damn great blowoff match to a hot angle and being really influential in not just Japanese wrestling, but in American wrestling as the NWO was born from this match.

#5. IWGP Heavyweight Champion Shinya Hashimoto vs Riki Choshu - G-1 Climax '96
New Japan Heavyweight Match of the Year, 1996

"CHOSHUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!!!!"

I am so glad I finally watched this. Incredible tour de force. Best Dome match to not take place in a Dome. I look forward to their '97 Dome encounter. The Lock Ups here are just incredible. Tight and snug. I loved Hashimoto getting the headlock and then grapevining the leg causing them to tumble over. This is one of those rough & tumble matches where nothing is gonna be pretty, but you best believe everything will be earned. The battle over that first suplex feels gargantuan. Like whoever gets it will win the match. Oddly enough that is the truth as Choshu gets the Champ over and then applies Scorpion Deathlock.But after that Choshu runs out of gas and this becomes the Hashimoto asskicking show. Hashimoto is OBLITERATING Choshu with kicks. Choshu is left gasping from breathe but he is defiant as ever. He is the Old Gunslinger with one last go around at the OK Corral. No matter how hard Hashimoto hit him and believe you me he hit hard and repeatedly, but Choshu never stayed down. Choshu would not be denied. DDT, massive second rope elbow and a barrage of kicks did not stop Choshu. Hashimoto was literally kicking Choshu so hard he kicked him out of the ring. Choshu kept getting back up. The Old Man was not going down just yet. Hashimoto hurls his entire body at him as Choshu is climbing back on the apron sending Choshu crashing back to the floor. Hashimoto looked ready to destroy the Rockstar of the 80s on the floor, but as he went for his rainbow heel kick Choshu blocked it with a big forearm to the knee. From there, Choshu alternated between attacking the knee and trying to floor the Champ with massive mack truck lariats. Some of the most brutal lariats ever and Hashimoto ate them and his appetite would not be satiated as he kept asking for more. Those lariats, the smack of flesh and Hashimoto not taking a bump is what Clash of the Titans means. Hashimoto blocks a lariat with an overhand chop. Liked the symmetry of how Choshu blocked that rainbow heel kick. Choshu goes back to the knee. I loved the Superplex for Choshu as it is just a huge spot. Choshu only gets two and Hashimoto is great at selling. You can sense he is not just selling the knee, but the fact he knows he is doomed and that The Old Man got one up on him. Hashimoto has his defiant last stand and with one last bellow of "CHOSHUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!!!" it was all over as Choshu finally floors Hashimoto with a MONSTER LARIAT!

This is pro wrestling, muthafuckas. 

#4. Keiji Mutoh vs Masahiro Chono - G-1 Climax '91 Finals
New Japan Heavyweight Match of the Year, 1991

It is funny, I was watching this match and thinking to myself why did I like this so much a couple years ago and then it kicked me in the teeth. This match is all about build & escalation. 

First 20 Minutes: The opening matwork was perfectly solid NWA Championship style chain wrestling, but it did eventually become more important as time progressed. Chono took an early lead with a short arm scissors that made Mutoh powder. Mutoh had to go after the left arm which had a bandage around the left bicep. Mutoh did not press this instead he hit his power elbow drop for the first high spot. He could not complete his back handspring elbow and as he ricocheted off the turnbuckles, he was met with a back drop driver. Good spot that reset the match. Big strike exchange. You dont think of these two as preeminent strikers, but this came off well. Mutoh goes for the leg to set up his deathlock spot, which seems weird with the arm injury but Mutoh loves his deathlock spot. The match gets really good once Mutoh busts out Cattle Mutilation. Mutoh was bridging for whole minutes in both the deathlock and cattle mutilation, which is INSANE! Mutoh was in amazing shape. Mutoh goes for the cross-armbreaker on the bad arm. Chono boot rakes the eyes. Now it is on! Chono goes for the Yakuza kicks to the head and kicks him straight off the apron as Mutoh was trying to powder. This time Chono presses his advantage with not one, but two dives. I love this mentality. Chono was losing his grip on the match. Mutoh was dominating him on the mat and could have won the match with the cross-armbreaker. So Chono has that go for broke mentality and wants to dig himself out of a hole. He goes too far though as he hits two piledrivers, but instead of covering he goes for the STF and Mutoh scrambles out of the ring. Chono looks to put a nail in the coffin with the piledriver on the floor, but Mutoh backdrops out. It is Mutoh dragging him over into the stands that hits the piledriver on the exposed concrete. High risk leads to mistakes and now Mutoh is in control of the match. Great transition, Mutoh hits a missile dropkick in the ring and goes for the cover. Mutoh hits two more suplexes and gets a nearfall after each. Mutoh is thinking about winning. Was the opening matwork a little tedious and lacking struggle, yes, but it was NOT perfunctory. It did matter. Mutoh had to go to the arm, but he abandoned that strategy and paid for it. Then he went back to the arm and it freaked Chono out. This triggered the bombfest. Strong transitions right now and everything matters. I am really interested to see the back end. 

Last Portion: Mutoh sold really well here. Great sells of the missed moonsaults and especially the first STF. Where we left off Mutoh was in total control, the Dragon Suplex is too close to the ropes. Mutoh calls for the finish and wants the moonsault, but Chono moves causing Mutoh to crash & burn. Chono wastes no time...Yakuza Kick...STF!!! Mutoh makes the ropes and he sold this really well. Chono is now in the driver's seat. Suplexes and an Octopus Stretch as he is trying to pour it on. This is commonly reviewed as something that is done in the style 90s All Japan and nothing rings more true than Mutoh winning suplex struggle to transition back to his offense. Mutoh tries his own Octopus Stretch. Mutoh leapfrogs over Chono's counterdropkick, but they both dropkick each other on Mutoh's springboard dropkick. Chono looks for the STF, but cant apply it fully before Mutoh makes the ropes. I love that drama was in the application of the hold rather than in the hold. They do a very All Japan spot of Chono kicking Mutoh who ricochets off the ropes with a flying forearm. Mutoh hits his backbreaker...MOONSAULT...EATS KNEE! Epic sell by Mutoh, great job! Chono powerbombs him for the win!

I loved the finish...Mutoh goes for his finish...is injured...then Chono hits his for the win. Efficient and powerful. I love how every transition meant something and they did a great job building this organically from matwork to bombs to the big bombs (STF, Moonsault). I think whats keeping this from ***** is the lack of struggle, some segments were just let me hit my moves, but there was still great drama down the stretch. Chono's best match by a wide margin. I think Mutoh had better matches against Tenryu. Hashimoto vs Tenryu is better in regards to New Japan heavyweights, but this is definitely still one of the best and a real feather in the cap of both men. The future seemed very bright for New Japan in 1991.

#3. Shinya Hashimoto vs. Genichiro Tenryu - 8/8/93

The rematch takes place just days after the finish of the G-1 Climax and this time the match takes place on New Japan's turf so Hashimoto has home court advantage.

Hashimoto is much more in control here than at the beginning of the last match. He seems more confident that he can improve and get the win here. Tenryu seems more offensive-minded. He knows he eeked out a victory last time. Tenryu goes with Sumo Slaps to start and Hashimoto mostly blocks, they lock up and get tangled in the ropes. Reset. Each hits a shoulderblock knocking the other off their feet. Hashimoto favors his injured left shoulder. Is this the DDP injured ribs of Japan? Did it ever heal? Tenryu goes low though and gets a drop toehold looking to work the leg, but that goes nowhere. Upon standup, Hashimoto targets the leg he attacked in the first match with kicks and then a toehold. Rope break. Then they stare at each other for uncomfortably long period of time. Tenryu opens a can of whoop ass. Chops to the throat that are just wicked and when Hashimoto tucks his chin to block Tenryu CHOPS HIM IN THE FACE! WOW! Hashimoto opens a can in return and starts chopping the hell out of him and kicking him. Hashimoto ends up just smothering him. I didn't like Hashimoto going for a hold right after that. They should have kept rocking because they were finally letting loose. Tenryu makes the ropes. Wicked kick and then chops him repeatedly up high in the throat and face. Hashimoto goes down in a heap. Kawada kicks to the head. This is a great dick heel performance from Tenryu and a great Hashimoto selling performance. Top reverse elbow from Tenryu. He hits a big lariat for two. Goes for another and Hashimoto says DONT BE BRINGING THAT IN MY HOUSE when he throws him DOWN with an Urnage. Hashimoto wants the DDT, but cant get it so he settles for trying to pull Tenryu's shoulder out of its socket with an armdrag and works Tenryu's lariat arm. Great verbal selling and physical selling from Tenryu. Tenryu starts kneeing him in the head. Tenryu has been brutal in this match. Bodyslam by Tenryu and goes up for his top rope reverse elbow but you cant do the same move twice and Hashimoto gets the electric chair. Crawls desperately for the cover but only gets two. Cross armbeaker on the bad arm and Tenryu quickly gets the ropes. I will never get tired of watching Hashimoto kicking people. Those kicks to Tenryu's bad arm are ferocious.

Hashimoto runs the ropes and gets caught in a desperation powerbomb. Hashimoto charging in has cost him twice now (in the first match, missed jumping DDT was the beginning of the end). Tenryu goes for the powerbomb and Hashimoto backdrops out. The selling is off the charts here with Hashimoto really selling discombobulated. Hashimoto cements his advantage with the enziguiri and then the rainbow heel kick. Tenryu's selling is so good you can feel the match slipping from his grasp. Now here is Hashimoto's finish sequence. Tenryu almost blocks the jumping DDT in the same way but this time, Hashimoto gets an armbar takedown on the bad arm. Hashimoto hits his DDT. I loved the urgency on the cover but only gets two. Tenryu is grabbing his head as Hashimoto is frustrated. He grabs the hair of Tenryu and takes him over with a German suplex cover again and only two. The anguish on Hashimoto's face is great. He pulls on the hair again to pull him up this time for a powerbomb. Tenryu almost collapses, nice touch. He picks him up and Tenryu kicks him in the head. ENZIGUIRI! LOOK AT THAT SELL BY HASHIMOTO! WOW! Kappo Kick and Hashimoto is bowled over. In the last match that was the prelude to the powerbomb and the finish. Tenryu is selling his left arm but he grits his teeth and hits a lariat anyways. Tenryu is pissed. Big chops again from Tenryu, great offensive performance from Tenryu. Hashimoto powerslam! Hashimoto gnashing his teeth. Pulling Tenryu up by his hair, German? Tenryu goes wild with elbows and punches to the head. Total survival mode. Bulldog out of that position. Great enziguiri from Tenryu. Tenryu loads him up, powerbomb, 1-2-NO! HUGE POP! Here comes the Defiant Fighting Spirit last stand. Rainbow kick and then falling chops. Hashimoto can barely stand is just throwing chops. Powerbomb again for two. This time Hashimoto has nothing left and Tenryu hits the third and final powerbomb to put away the challenger to his throne.

I just want to get this out of the way early, I thought the beginning was too tepid to give this a full five. Now let me praise the match. The finish sequence would inspire generations to come. That defiant last stand by a young upstart is a common trope in 2000s puroresu. It is cinematographic but it works so well here. The way Hashimoto throws those chops after the first powerbomb is just great. In the first match, Hashimoto got caught with a kappo kick to the head in the middle of a fight. It was a flash loss. Here Hashimoto showed great resiliency but had a dug too much of a hole for himself. What makes this match so great is not the offense per se, but the selling. Not just selling of the offense, but the selling of the importance of the match. Hashimoto was selling how badly he wanted to win the match. So many wrestlers forget that is what pro wrestling is about, it is about winning. Hashimoto wanted to win this one so badly. It was completely engrossing watching him try so hard. The way he gnashed his teeth for every Tenryu kick out, how he pulled him up by the hair and how he threw those last chops, Hashimoto putting everything he had into the match. When a wrestler is invested in the outcome of the match, the fans will be invested. Hashimoto comes up short in the match, but in reality he was the true winner.

#2. Keiji Mutoh & Hiroshi Hase vs. Shinya Hashimoto & Masahiro Chono - 11/4/93
New Japan Heavyweight Match of the Year, 1993

The tag team champions at this point I believe are the Jurassic Powers (Norton & Hercules) with the Hellraisers (Hawk & Power Warrior) as their main opponents. Mutoh & Hase are a full time tag team that have won the tag belts and would win them again. I dont know how often Hashimoto & Chono tagged. It is not my favorite way to watch wrestling, but now when I need to get as much wrestling in as possible I will be doing this style from time to time, which is writing the review as I watch the match.

Hashimoto and Hase to start, they had a pretty highly acclaimed match at this year's G-1 Climax, I thought their '94 title match was better. Hase is great for a good amateur wrestling contest. Even though Hashimoto is bigger, he understands leverage is able to take the big man down. He lets him back up in a wristlock which seems hard and is looking for the armbar, but Hashimoto reverses into his own. Hashimoto working the wristlock. Pretty standard New Japan opening to the match. Nice double wristlock takedown by Hashimoto into the headscissors great bridge by Hase. The New Japan wrestler are better than their All Japan counterparts in wrestling. Nice kip up out of the headscissors by Hase. Hashimoto catches Hase good with the right and each tag out. Mutoh and Chono squared off at the '93 Dome show, but Mutoh was Great Muta and also the victor. Mutoh wins the first shouldertackle.  Collar and elbow and shoot off to the ropes and Chono wins the shouldertackle this time. Mutoh works the headlock and Chono reverses into a headscissors towards his corner. This is not being worked at the break-neck pace of the 11/1/90 match. Chono headbutts Mutoh who powders and has a conference with Hase. Knucklelock and Chono gets the drop toehold into the facelock. Chono has been looking good even post-injury here. Chono rakes the face with the boot to re-establish his arm-stretcher. Wristlock by Chono as Mutoh stands up and Mutoh gets an armdrag. Mutoh tags in Hase, which seems wide. Hase and Chono had a highly acclaimed match in 1993 by Parv that is on my list to check out. Nice bridge by Hase and tags Chono in the face with a heel kick. Chono opts not to tag out and Hase tackles him over into his corner and tags out to Mutoh. Chono has been in there awhile. He tags out to Hashimoto. Hashimoto won his first IWGP Championship in 1993 from The Great Muta. Each man misses their first big strikes. Mutoh thinks it is time to tag out. Very cautious, strategic match thus far. Hase grabs a headlock and Hashimoto shoots him off. Hase cant get the big man off his feet. He wisely uses leverage to win the knucklelock showing that Hase is a thinking man's wrestler. Hase throws repeated chops at Hashimoto, but takes one kick from Hashimoto to take Hase off his feet. This is the first mistake of the match. Hase should have stuck to wrestling once he challenged in strikes he lost the advantage. Hashimoto tagged out. Chono went to work on the legs, but Hase is wily veteran and was able to reverse into his own leg holds. They roll into the ropes. Hase goes all Gracie and fights from his back. This confuses Chono and Hase actually wins control and tags in Mutoh. They double team Chono's legs and Mutoh grabs a standard toehold. Nice work by Hase to get himself out of a jam and get Mutoh in there. Mutoh works his usual deathlock hold on Chono. Hase is the real MVP thus far. They double team both driving Chono's knees into the mat and then Hase applies a figure-4. Strong work by the most experienced tag team. Chono makes the ropes. Hase is signalling for The Giant Swing and crowd reacts but Chono makes the ropes. Tag out to Mutoh we are seeing those quick tags. Chono hits an enziguiri and wisely tags out. Hashimoto says it is game time! He bulldozes Mutoh, then throws his ass down, then hits a GIANT ELBOW! Boston Crab by Hashimoto and Hase breaks it up with chops. Hashimoto definitely just escalated this match in response to Chono losing control. Tags Chono back in and Chono is looking to redeem himself. He comes off the top crashing down on Mutoh's arm. Chono tags in Hashimoto and he comes down with a double axehandle on Mutoh's arm. Hashimoto hits such vicious kicks that he knocks Mutoh into Hase. No matter as Hashimoto CRUSHES Hase with kneelifts and kicks. Thrust kick sends Hase in their corner, smart tag work. Chono applies a chinlock as Hashimoto has completely changed the game owning both Mutoh and Hase. It was like a great individual basketball player dominating a game. Chono goes up top, shaking my head. Hase hits a superplex. Far too early to go for such a high risk move. Hase hits his patented twisting Urnage for 2. Hashimoto must be pissed. Hase wants the Northern Light Suplex, but Hashimoto breaks it up with kicks to bail Chono's dumbass out. Mutoh attacks Hashimoto, but it is too late, the damage was done. It was quite the head-rocking enziguiri. Chono got a nearfall, but Mutoh saved. Then Hashimoto came in and knocked Mutoh off the apron and covered again, but Mutoh saved again. That one enziguiri really rang Hase's bell. Hashimoto is basically a one man wrecking crew. He hits his big rainbow spinning heel kick, but that sends Hase flying to his corner. Big mistake. Mutoh is full of piss & vinegar and hits a dropkick out of the gate. Back Handspring Elbow! Bulldog! Backbreaker! He is just going for it. Chono hits a Yakuza Kick to prevent the Moonsault! Mutoh knew his partner was toast and basically just hit everything in his arsenal to try to win the match right then and there, but the 2-on-1 was too much to overcome. Hashimoto hits his rainbow spinning heel kick on Mutoh. Tags in Chono who hits his Yakuza Kick on Mutoh and as Hase is finally getting up on the apron, Chono stomps his head. It does not look good for Mutoh and Hase. Chono holds Mutoh. HASHIMOTO MISSILE DROPKICK! 1-2-NO! Hashimoto enziguiri thats the move that put Hase down and only a two. They are running away with this. Hashimoto tags in Chono and kicks Hase off the apron. Chono hits a suplex for two. Gutsy performance from Mutoh, but it seems inevitable. Octopus Stretch...Chono breaks to Yakuza Kick Hase off the apron. Double team on Mutoh coming and it is a double tackle. Hashimoto knocks Hase off the apron. Single leg crab on Mutoh. I dont see how Mutoh & Hase can comeback but I will feel like it will happen. Chono just ran across the ring and knocked Hase off the apron as Mutoh was in the crab. Mutoh lunges for his corner, but Hase is not there, Excellent! HASHIMOTO TAKES THE MOST RIDICULOUS BUMP! He is charging into a neutral corner and misses his rainbow spinning heel kick over the top rope to floor. WOW! My eyes got huge! Well there is a fucking opening. Mutoh tags in Hase! Here. We. Go. Hase suplexes Hashimoto into the ring! Chono comes in. Twisting Urnage for Chono! Then one for Hashimoto! You know what lets do another for good measure since you were such an asshole this match! 1-2-NO! Crowd was wicked into that. Hase gets a Scorpion Deathlock and then hits a German Suplex! Crowd is really counting loud 1-2-NO, Mutoh is cheerleading. Hashimoto gets the kneelift and wants the DDT, but Hase backs into the ropes. Hashimoto kicks his chest. Still wants the DDT and Mutoh saves, but Hashimoto is persistent with kneelift after kneelift. DDT! 1-2-MUTOH SAVES and then elbows Chono. Another DDT and tag out to Chono! Yakuza Kick! Another one and he blasts Mutoh as a receipt. STF! Hase scrambles for the ropes and Chono is pissed. He slaps on another one and Mutoh saves. Chono misses and twisting Urnage. Tag out to Mutoh. Backbreaker can only mean on thing. Moonsault lands on feet. Hashimoto caves in Mutoh's stomach with a kick. Hase tackles Hashimoto! Chono Yakuza Kick, but Mutoh dropkicks...MOONSAULT...1-2-3! BIG POP!

What I think I love about this match the most is how fundamental it was. It was not flashy. It was a bunch of little mistakes that built up. Hashimoto was basically like LeBron James he just decided to turn it on and say Fuck It, we are winning. He bulldozed Mutoh & Hase. The enziguiri that put Hase down was a cheapshot. It was from behind. Mutoh & Hase were in this huge hole. I love Mutoh realizing the trouble Hase was in and going for broke before Chono hit him with a Yakuza Kick during his moonsault attempt. Hase could barely make it to the apron and Mutoh was getting the shit beat out of him. Hash & Chono were such asses always knocking Hase off even though Hase was not a threat. DAT HASHIMOTO BUMP DOE~! WOW! Talk about a game-changer. You wanted to see Hase's hot tag and that was a great way to get there. You know that may not be enough once Hashimoto DDTs Hase you think the comeback was snuffed out. Hase survives Chono and tags out to Mutoh. At this point, you want Mutoh & Hase to win so bad and Mutoh to finally get that Moonsault after three tries was huge. Nothing flashy, but holy shit did they take you on a ride. I love when every little thing matters. Go big or Go HOME...****3/4...FUCK YEAH BABY! 

#1. IWGP Heavyweight Champion Shinya Hashimoto vs. Genichiro Tenryu - 2/17/94
New Japan Heavyweight Match of the Year, 1994

Tenryu is coming off defeating Antonio Inoki at 1/4/94 in the Tokyo Dome, the last person to ever defeat Inoki. So to say the stakes are high in this match is an understatement. Hashimoto is 0-2 against Tenryu and Tenryu has defeated everyone on the New Japan roster. This is about pride.

If the first one is about psychology, the second one is about selling, this one is about sheer brutal offense. When you think of Hashimoto and Tenryu, you think of stiff, violent strikes, finally we get these two letting loose and ripping into each other on all their glory. Tenryu is chopping on rope breaks and Hashimoto is throwing wild kicks. Hashimoto takes him down to work the leg so Tenryu starts throwing nasty elbows into Hashimoto's side. Hashimoto throws the nastiest headbutt this side of Regal/Finlay totally out of nowhere. He just throws two more and a big kick. Then they just start firing into each other. Tenryu chops him in the throat and Hashimoto goes down in a heap. Tenryu goes for a rear naked choke. Hashimoto breaks loose and starts in on the arm. I loved how Tenryu got out by kneeing him in the head repeatedly. Tenryu is all about brutal strikes in this match. Knees and kicks to head. He constantly peppering these kicks to the head. Tenryu goes for the lariat and Hashimoto hits his armdrag and goes back to the arm and gets a cross armbreaker, but Tenryu's foot is on the ropes. Chop back to the throat. It is just violent watching this. Again, Jesus! Bodyslam and the top rope reverse elbow gets two. This has been a WAR!

Best part of the match: Hashimoto sick and tired of these chops to throat, kicks him low. Now Tenryu drops down in a heap as if he was kicked inthe fucking balls. The ref's reaction is great. He is so pissed Hashimoto did it. But there is a chance that Tenryu is faking but the ref is keeping Hashimoto back. Tenryu up on his feet and Sumo Slaps. Tenryu brutalizes Hashimoto in the corner. Now the ref is on Tenryu's case and Hashimoto LEAPS OVER THE REF AND NAILS AN ENZIGUIRI TO THE TENRYU'S HEAD!!! MARK OUT CITY! HASHIMOTO KICKS TENRYUS HEAD OFF! HASHIMOTO THE DESTROYER UNLEASHED!

Tenryu slumped down in the corner and Hashimoto seems very pleased with his corner. I loved Hashimoto finally letting loose and just letting the kicks fly and with most of them being aimed at the head. He hits an ugly version of his leaping DDT. After trying in previous matches, he finally gets it, but cant capitalize. Seems like he had his bell rung. Tenryu Kappo Kick! RUH! ROH! Tenryu hits an enziguiri. Tenryu slaps himself to shake out the cobwebs. POWERBOMB! But Tenryu is knocked silly. He cant capitalize due to all the shots to his head. Hashimoto is back up but Tenryu chops and kappo kick. Again his head is all messed up. Tenryu goes for a DDT, but Hashimoto throws him THE FUCK DOWN with an Urnage. DONT BE BRINGIN THAT IN MY HOUSE! HASHIMOTO DDT! 1-2-NO! CMON! FINISH HIM! Tenryu starts slapping the shit out of Hashimoto, he falls into a powerbomb. 1-2-NO! WOOOOO!!! Tenryu is slapping the shit out of Hashimoto. Duck. BELLY TO BELLY! HASHIMOTO ROUNDHOUSE KICK TO THE HEAD! DDT! YAAAAAAAHHHHHOOOOOOOO!!!! Chono & Hase in to celebrate with Hashimoto.

One of the best feel-good victories of all time, love these torch passing moments. They finally had the stiff, brutal war we wanted out of them. They beat the piss out of each other. Tenryu just ripped into Hashimoto with those chops. Hashimoto with the headbutts early and then those head kicks. Great Tenryu selling of the head kicks down the stretch. Amazing dramatic finish run. Hashimoto just would not be denied and Shinya Hashimoto is officially the Ace of New Japan Pro Wrestling!