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Post by Jonathan Karate on Jan 12, 2018 18:23:52 GMT -5
Here we go ladies and gentlemen.
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Post by tylerbreezee on Jan 12, 2018 18:25:51 GMT -5
Bate vs Dunne at Takeover #1 ? 🧐
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Post by The Kevstaaa on Jan 12, 2018 20:35:10 GMT -5
2. Kenny Omega vs. Tetsuya Naito – NJPW G1 Climax 8/13/17
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| Last year, these guys met for the first time to determine the winner of the B Block. This year, Kenny Omega won the B Block, while Tetsuya Naito won the A Block, setting the stage for the rematch in the finals of the G1 Climax. Often, big NJPW matches go long for the sake of it and spend a lot of time on a slow build. Not here. Everything they did meant something. Naito remembered the failure against Omega last year, so he changed things up a bit. Instead of his normal fake dive and taunt, he faked the taunt and hit the dive. He even reached deep into his bag of tricks for the Stardust Press. He targeted Kenny’s neck in brutal ways, including a bunch of neckbreakers and a sickening piledriver on the edge of a table. Kenny sold it very well, even while on offense. They used so many slow motion replays and all the bumps were mind blowing. Naito taking a DDT onto the ring post was particularly nasty. Naito’s become the master of the last second kickout, doing it better than anyone else and making for some truly breathtaking near falls. The final stretch saw great counters, including Naito countering the One Winged Angel into Destino. That led to more exchanges before Naito added two more Destinos to win in 36:35. An incredible match worked at an absurd pace. The work made sense and was brutal at times. The crowd was red hot from the start. There were so many insane spots and the match had a sense of urgency that you want from something with stakes as high as this. If I had one issue, it was that some of it felt like overkill, though that’s nitpicking at this point. [*****]
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*This is the final appearance of Kenny Omega and Tetsuya Naito. *It is the final G1 Climax. *It is the final match from NJPW.
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Post by punksnotdead on Jan 12, 2018 20:36:43 GMT -5
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Post by The Kevstaaa on Jan 12, 2018 21:24:58 GMT -5
1. WWE United Kingdom Championship: Tyler Bate [c] vs. Pete Dunne – NXT TakeOver: Chicago 5/20/17
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| These two were great everywhere they went in 2017. They were at their best against each other. And they were never better than on this night. Bate won their first match in the finals of the UK Title Tournament. This was proof that a match doesn’t need to go 30+ minutes to be a classic. Dunne and Bate filled 15:27 with masterful storytelling and breathtaking action. Dunne brought even more brutal offense than he did in their first outing. Bate showed a ton of heart, never giving up. With Dunne on another level, he stepped his game up with offense we hadn’t seen from him before. Seeing him bust out the spiral tap and counter the Bitter End into a sick DDT were incredible highlights. There were some sequences during this match that literally had me shaking. It’s a feeling I’ve only had a few times watching wrestling in the past few years. Bate’s risks proved too risky, as a dive outside saw him eat a vicious forearm. Dunne rolled him inside and captured the title with the Bitter End. Crisp mat wrestling, aerial acrobatics, stiff strikes, emotion, a molten crowd, spectacular exchanges and jaw-dropping moments. This match literally had everything. [*****]
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*This is the final appearance of Pete Dunne and Tyler Bate. *It is the final match from WWE and TakeOver: Chicago. *It is the final UK Title match.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 12, 2018 21:30:26 GMT -5
I'm surprised that Omega/Naito didn't make your #1 based on the original love for it, but it's hard to argue against the brilliant match that was Bate/Dunne. Great list as always! Thanks for doing these, it's a great way to find matches that may have slipped under the radar, and also provide a nice read.
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Post by Sizzle on Jan 12, 2018 22:07:35 GMT -5
I was waiting for that Hell of War match. Damn good brutal wrestling, that was.
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Post by Funk The Revival on Jan 12, 2018 22:07:37 GMT -5
Excellent write up, Kev. Always enjoy these
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Post by Tim of thee on Jan 12, 2018 23:00:12 GMT -5
I pretty much agree with the top 3
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Post by The Kevstaaa on Jan 12, 2018 23:17:08 GMT -5
For anyone interested, here are my Match of the Year winners for every year of my life.
1990: United States Tag Team Championship: The Midnight Express [c] vs. The Southern Boys - The Great American Bash - ****½ 1991: Retirement Match: Randy Savage vs. Ultimate Warrior - WrestleMania VII - ****¾ 1992: War Games: The Dangerous Alliancs vs. Sting's Squadron - WrestleWar - ***** 1993: King of the Ring Semi-Finals: Bret Hart vs. Mr. Perfect - King of the Ring - ***** 1994: Bret Hart vs. Owen Hart - WrestleMania X - ***** 1995: WWF Championship: Bret Hart [c] vs. British Bulldog - Season's Beatings - ****¾ 1996: Bret Hart vs. Steve Austin - Survivor Series - ***** 1997: Submission Match: Bret Hart vs. Steve Austin - WrestleMania 13 - ***** 1998: WWF Championship Falls Count Anywhere: Steve Austin [c] vs. Dude Love - ****½ 1999: ECW Television Championship: Rob Van Dam [c] vs. Jerry Lynn - Living Dangerously - ****½ 2000: Last Man Standing: Chris Jericho vs. Triple H - Fully Loaded - ***** 2001: WWF Tag Team Championship TLC Match: The Dudley Boyz [c] vs. Edge & Christian vs. The Hardy Boyz - WrestleMania X-Seven - ***** 2002: WWE Tag Team Championship Tournament Final: Chris Benoit and Kurt Angle vs. Edge and Rey Mysterio - No Mercy - ****¾ 2003: WWE Championship: Kurt Angle [c] vs. Chris Benoit - Royal Rumble - ****¾ 2004: ROH World Championship: Samoa Joe [c] vs. CM Punk - Joe vs. Punk II - ****¾ 2005: TNA X Division Championship: Christopher Daniels [c] vs. AJ Styles vs. Samoa Joe - Unbreakable - ***** 2006: ROH World Championship: Bryan Danielson [c] vs. KENTA - Glory by Honor V - ***** 2007: ROH World Championship: Nigel McGuinness [c] vs. Austin Aries - Rising Above - ***** 2008: ROH World Championship: Nigel McGuinness [c] vs. Bryan Danielson vs. Claudio Castagnoli vs. Tyler Black - Death Before Dishonor - ****¾ 2009: Shawn Michaels vs. The Undertaker - WrestleMania XXV - ***** 2010: Shawn Michaels vs. The Undertaker - WrestleMania XXVI - ****¾ 2011: WWE Championship: John Cena [c] vs. CM Punk - Money in the Bank - ***** 2012: IWGP Heavyweight Championship: Hiroshi Tanahashi [c] vs. Minoru Suzuki - King of Pro Wrestling - ***** 2013: IWGP Heavyweight Championship: Kazuchika Okada [c] vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi - King of Pro Wrestling - ***** 2014: NXT Championship: Adrian Neville [c] vs. Sami Zayn - TakeOver: R-Evolution - ****¾ 2015: NXT Women's Championship: Sasha Banks [c] vs. Bayley - TakeOver: Brooklyn - ***** 2016: NXT Tag Team Championship Two Out of Three Falls Match: The Revival [c] vs. #DIY - TakeOver: Toronto - ***** 2017: WWE United Kingdom Championship: Tyler Bate [c] vs. Pete Dunne - TakeOver: Chicago - *****
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Post by Tim of thee on Jan 12, 2018 23:30:20 GMT -5
just flippin amazing
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Post by hbkbigdaddycool on Jan 12, 2018 23:33:10 GMT -5
For anyone interested, here are my Match of the Year winners for every year of my life. 1990: United States Tag Team Championship: The Midnight Express [c] vs. The Southern Boys - The Great American Bash - ****½ 1991: Retirement Match: Randy Savage vs. Ultimate Warrior - WrestleMania VII - ****¾ 1992: War Games: The Dangerous Alliancs vs. Sting's Squadron - WrestleWar - ***** 1993: King of the Ring Semi-Finals: Bret Hart vs. Mr. Perfect - King of the Ring - ***** 1994: Bret Hart vs. Owen Hart - WrestleMania X - ***** 1995: WWF Championship: Bret Hart [c] vs. British Bulldog - Season's Beatings - ****¾ 1996: Bret Hart vs. Steve Austin - Survivor Series - ***** 1997: Submission Match: Bret Hart vs. Steve Austin - WrestleMania 13 - ***** 1998: WWF Championship Falls Count Anywhere: Steve Austin [c] vs. Dude Love - ****½ 1999: ECW Television Championship: Rob Van Dam [c] vs. Jerry Lynn - Living Dangerously - ****½2000: Last Man Standing: Chris Jericho vs. Triple H - Fully Loaded - ***** 2001: WWF Tag Team Championship TLC Match: The Dudley Boyz [c] vs. Edge & Christian vs. The Hardy Boyz - WrestleMania X-Seven - ***** 2002: WWE Tag Team Championship Tournament Final: Chris Benoit and Kurt Angle vs. Edge and Rey Mysterio - No Mercy - ****¾ 2003: WWE Championship: Kurt Angle [c] vs. Chris Benoit - Royal Rumble - ****¾ 2004: ROH World Championship: Samoa Joe [c] vs. CM Punk - Joe vs. Punk II - ****¾ 2005: TNA X Division Championship: Christopher Daniels [c] vs. AJ Styles vs. Samoa Joe - Unbreakable - ***** 2006: ROH World Championship: Bryan Danielson [c] vs. KENTA - Glory by Honor V - ***** 2007: ROH World Championship: Nigel McGuinness [c] vs. Austin Aries - Rising Above - ***** 2008: ROH World Championship: Nigel McGuinness [c] vs. Bryan Danielson vs. Claudio Castagnoli vs. Tyler Black - Death Before Dishonor - ****¾ 2009: Shawn Michaels vs. The Undertaker - WrestleMania XXV - ***** 2010: Shawn Michaels vs. The Undertaker - WrestleMania XXVI - ****¾ 2011: WWE Championship: John Cena [c] vs. CM Punk - Money in the Bank - ***** 2012: IWGP Heavyweight Championship: Hiroshi Tanahashi [c] vs. Minoru Suzuki - King of Pro Wrestling - ***** 2013: IWGP Heavyweight Championship: Kazuchika Okada [c] vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi - King of Pro Wrestling - ***** 2014: NXT Championship: Adrian Neville [c] vs. Sami Zayn - TakeOver: R-Evolution - ****¾ 2015: NXT Women's Championship: Sasha Banks [c] vs. Bayley - TakeOver: Brooklyn - ***** 2016: NXT Tag Team Championship Two Out of Three Falls Match: The Revival [c] vs. #DIY - TakeOver: Toronto - ***** 2017: WWE United Kingdom Championship: Tyler Bate [c] vs. Pete Dunne - TakeOver: Chicago - ***** Kev, I totally agree with you about Living Dangerously 99 with RVD and Lynn. Everyone usually says, "Hardcore Heaven 99 match is better" but no way!! I never thought that. I thought the Living Dangerously one was just perfect. The way the referee was gonna give the TV Title to Lynn at the draw, saying Lynn out wrestled RVD was so cool. Then Lynn saying how he didn't wanna win it that way and wanted the match to continue was a great story.
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Post by BSR on Jan 13, 2018 1:29:33 GMT -5
Lmao ..
Aj didn't make top ten. Hah pass on this.
No offense
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Post by ThugSuperstar on Jan 13, 2018 8:04:11 GMT -5
Lmao .. Aj didn't make top ten. Hah pass on this. No offense YEP!
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Post by The Kevstaaa on Jan 13, 2018 8:33:19 GMT -5
Lmao .. Aj didn't make top ten. Hah pass on this. No offense The responses from you and ThugSuperstar are very unsurprising. Fair game if you disagree. AJ Styles is legitimately my favorite wrestler of all time and the guy I consider the best ever, I just didn't love his 2017. Ah well.
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Post by ThugSuperstar on Jan 13, 2018 10:04:09 GMT -5
Lmao .. Aj didn't make top ten. Hah pass on this. No offense The responses from you and ThugSuperstar are very unsurprising. Fair game if you disagree. AJ Styles is legitimately my favorite wrestler of all time and the guy I consider the best ever, I just didn't love his 2017. Ah well. Admittedly, I don't watch nearly as much wrestling as you do these days, but I just think AJ had better matches than his one against Cena. Just a personal preference, I still appreciate the work you put into your list.
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Post by The Kevstaaa on Jan 13, 2018 11:21:15 GMT -5
The responses from you and ThugSuperstar are very unsurprising. Fair game if you disagree. AJ Styles is legitimately my favorite wrestler of all time and the guy I consider the best ever, I just didn't love his 2017. Ah well. Admittedly, I don't watch nearly as much wrestling as you do these days, but I just think AJ had better matches than his one against Cena. Just a personal preference, I still appreciate the work you put into your list. I appreciate that. Out of curiosity, which did you think were better? I'm not arguing, because it's all about personal preference.
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Post by marino13 on Jan 13, 2018 11:32:54 GMT -5
Really glad Dunne vs Bates made your number 1! Those two create magic when they are in the ring together.
Great list Kev. Lot of hard work to make a list this extensive. Hats off to you.
I know a FEW people had issues with this thread (any guesses?) being on the WWE board. But the way I look at it is, we should be celebrating all the great matches this year. It's much more fun than arguing constantly.
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Post by punksnotdead on Jan 13, 2018 11:50:45 GMT -5
AJ didn’t have a match that belonged in the top 10. It’s a knock on AJ’s opponents and WWE booking, not AJ. AJ is literally the best wrestler in WWE and arguably the world, but WWE still hasn’t figured out how to showcase him to the full extent of his ability. I mean he got great matches out of Jinder and Brock. Just because they weren’t 5 Stars doesn’t mean they weren’t impressive as hell.
That’s why so many people want to see him get Nakamura at WrestleMania since their WK match was so damn incredible. Everyone who is a fan of AJ wants him to have that Shawn Michaels level WrestleMania match that goes down in WWE history forever. I’d actually like to see him get another try with Balor since they have the Club angle now. Those guys definitely have more in them. Daniel Bryan if he’s cleared, Samoa Joe, Seth Rollins, Nakamura, probably heel Sami too, there are some massive potential 5 Star matches for AJ if WWE will do them and the timing/story is right.
AJ takes run of the mill weekly Smackdown matches and turns them into 4 Star affairs pretty much every single time out. That’s crazy how good he is right now. Chicken sh*t into chicken salad. Let’s not take that for granted just because he’s feuding with the likes of Jinder Mahal, and guys who aren’t even in the same stratosphere of the Ishii, Omega, Ibushi, Okada, Naito, Tana athletes of the wrestling world. We saw what AJ could do in Japan and it was legit BitW stuff. Someone in WWE needs to step up to his level.
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Post by IRS on Jan 13, 2018 12:21:21 GMT -5
Yeah, AJ's 2017 was underwhelming, but that had nothing to do with him, and everything to do with being stuck doing mediocre stuff most of the year. Just look at what he pulled out of Shane ing McMahon. The only thing that he did that was less than fantastic was the Owens matches, but a lot of that had to with the screwy finishes, imo. If WWE let him have a solid 25-30 minutes with guys like Zayn and Nakamura on PPV, they could create some insane magic. Even Orton, since they had such great chemistry the few times they faced each other. It really has to do with WWE's resistance to let these guys go full-throttle and fear of clean finishes. There's a reason that a lot of the top-rated matches are from NXT or NJPW, and that's because they don't do that.
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