#walter vs. bate

[colossal-niamh]

Saw Kenny Omega talking about rating matches and it reminded me how dumb Meltzer's star ratings are. So now I wanna list of my Totally Better Than Dave 5-Star List of matches that cap out at 5 because who makes a serious ranking system then breaks it 59 times:

Macho Man vs Ricky Steamboat, Wrestlemania 3

Ric Flair vs Ricky Steamboat, Chi-Town Rumble

Ric Flair vs Terry Funk, Clash of the Champions 9

Mitsuharu Misawa vs Jumbo Tsuruta, 6/8/90

Bull Nakano vs Aja Kong, 11/14/90

Super Generation Army vs Tsuruta Gun, 4/20/91

Mitsuharu Misawa vs Toshiaki Kawada, 10/21/92

Sting vs Vader, 12/28/92

Shinobu Kandori vs Akira Hokuto, Dream Slam 1

Bret Hart vs Owen Hart, Wrestlemania 10

Terry Funk vs Atsushi Onita, 5/5/93

Mitsuharu Misawa vs Toshiaki Kawada, 6/3/94

Akira Taue vs Mitsuharu Misawa, 4/15/95

Manami Toyota vs Aja Kong, 6/27/95

Juventud Guerrera vs Rey Misterio, 3/9/96

Kaientai DX vs Gran Hamada, Gran Naniwa, Masato Yakushiji, Super Delfin, and Tiger Mask 4, 10/10/96

Bret Hart vs Stone Cold, Wrestlemaina 13

Mitsuharu Misawa vs Toshiaki Kawada, 6/6/97

Rey Misterio vs Eddie Guerrero, Halloween Havoc 97

Vader vs Mitsuharu Misawa, 10/30/99

Kenta Kobashi vs Vader, 2/27/00

Atlantis vs Villano III, 3/17/00

Steve Corino vs Yoshihiro Tajiri, 5/14/00

Triple H vs Cactus Jack, Royal Rumble 2000

E&C vs The Hardy Boys vs The Dudley Boys, Wrestlemania X-7

Kenta Kobashi vs Mitsuharu Misawa, 3/1/03

Brock Lesner vs Kurt Angle, 9/18/03

Eddie Guerrero vs Brock Lesner, 2/15/04

Samoa Joe vs CM Punk, 10/16/04

Kurt Angle vs Shawn Michaels, Wrestlemania 21

Kenta Kobashi vs Kensuke Sasaki, 7/18/05

Mitsuharu Misawa vs Toshiaki Kawada, 7/18/05

Necro Butcher vs Samoa Joe, 6/11/05

Kenta Kobashi vs Samoa Joe, 10/1/05

AJ Styles vs Samoa Joe 12/11/05

John Cena vs Rob Van Dam, 6/11/06

Bryan Danielson vs Nigel McGuinness, 8/12/06

KENTA vs Bryan Danielson, 9/16/06

Samoa Joe vs Takeshi Morishima, 2/16/07

The Briscoes vs El Generico and Kevin Steen, 8/10/07

Nigel McGuinness vs Takeshi Morishima, 10/6/07

Undertaker vs Edge, wrestlemania 24

Samoa Joe vs Kurt Angle, 4/13/08

Nigel McGuinness vs Bryan Danielson, 11/22/08

Bryan Danielson vs Takeshi Morishima, 12/27/08

Undertaker vs Shawn Michaels, wrestlemania 25

KENTA vs Ricky Marvin, 10/15/09

Undertaker vs Shawn Michaels, Wrestlemania 26

El Generico vs Kevin Steen, 12/18/10

Eddie Kingston vs Claudio Castagnoli, 3/13/11

CM Punk vs John Cena, 7/17/11

Daniel Bryan vs Randy Orton, 6/24/13

CM Punk vs John Cena, 2/15/13 Daniel Bryan vs John Cena, 8/18/13

Sami Zayn vs Cesaro, 2/27/14

Daniel Bryan vs Randy Orton vs Batista, Wrestlemania 30

Sami Zayn vs Adrian Nevile, 12/11/14

Bayley vs Sasha Banks, 8/22/15

Atlantis vs La Sombra, 9/18/15

Shinsuke Nakamura vs AJ Styles, 1/4/16

Sami Zayn vs Shinsuke Nakamura, 4/6/16

Kenny Omega vs Hiroki Goto, 8/14/16

DIY vs The Revival, 11/19/16

Kenny Omega vs Kazuchika Okada, 1/11/17

AJ Styles vs John Cena 1/29/17

Katsuyori Shibata vs Kazuchika Okada, 4/9/17

Kenny Omega vs Kazuchika Okada, 6/11/17

Allister Black vs Adam Cole, 1/27/18

Kenny Omega vs Kazuchika Okada, 6/9/18

Undisputed Era vs Danny Birch & Oney Lorcan, 6/16/18

Brock Lesner vs Daniel Bryan, 11/18/18

Briscoes vs SCU vs The Young Bucks, 12/14/18

WALTER vs Pete Dunne, 4/6/19

Kofi Kingston vs Daniel Bryan, Wrestlemania 35

Cody vs Dustin Rhodes, 5/25/19

WALTER vs Tyler Bate, 8/31/19

Jon Moxley vs Kenny Omega, 11/9/19

Kenny Omega & Hangman Adam Page vs The Young Bucks, 2/29/20

Cody vs Brody Lee, 10/7/20

WALTER vs Ilja Dragunov, 10/29/20

Wheeler Yuta vs Daniel Garcia, 8/8/21

WALTER vs Ilja Dragunov, 8/22/21

Bryan Danielson vs Kenny Omega, 9/22/21

CM Punk vs Eddie Kingston, 11/13/21

Hangman Adam Page vs Bryan Danielson, 12/15/21

Hangman Adam Page vs Bryan Danielson, 1/5/22

Jon Moxley vs Wheeler Yuta, 4/6/22

FTR vs The Briscoes, 4/1/22

FTR vs The Briscoes, 7/23/22

Bryan Danielson vs Daniel Garcia, 8/17/22

Jon Moxley vs CM Punk, 8/24/22

El Desperado vs Jun Kasai, 9/12/22

Atlantis jr vs Stuka jr, 9/16/22

Pentagon jr. vs Villano IV, 10/15/22

FTR vs The Briscoes, 12/10/22

Hangman Adam Page vs Jon Moxley, 3/5/23

GUNTHER vs Drew McIntyre vs Sheamus, Wrestlemania 39 night 1

Athena vs Willow Nightingale, 7/21/23

CM Punk vs Samoa Joe, 8/27/23

Jon Moxley vs Orange Cassidy, 9/3/23

Eddie Kingston vs Claudio Castagnoli, 9/20/23

Takuya Nomura vs Fuminori Abe, 10/12/23

Sting & Darby Allen vs The Young Bucks, 3/3/24

There's a few big gaps in my watch history, namely 90's NJPW, 10's Noah, most joshi post 2000 and anything wrestling pre 80's. I'll edit this if I find a new 5 star match but not rn because this took me literal hours I'm beat

[sxvnthcircle]

for the new @ringratradiofm ep we decided to talk about our comfort matches! here are mine in case you want to watch or rewatch if you've seen them before. i've tried my best to link as many as i could hope you like them as much as i do <3 can you see the theme

imperium vs undisputed era @ worlds collide (2020)*

WALTER vs tyler bate @ nxt uk takeover: cardiff (2019)*

timothy thatcher vs minoru suzuki @ over the top wrestling

ilja dragunov vs WALTER II @ nxt takeover 36*

alex shelley vs jay white @ tna sacrifice 2022

alex shelley vs daniel garcia @ beyond wrestling

*available on peacock

[samijey]

i am once again begging all of you to watch WALTER (Gunther) vs Tyler Bate from TakeOver Cardiff if you've never seen it - it's one of the best matches in wrestling history imo and it has a long (and very good) documentary style video package explaining the feud

[grave-queen-jakrabitt]

Dissecting the failure of NXT UK because I’m bored

Now don’t get me wrong I fucking loved nxt uk but I was apparently part of a very small group of people. The word of the day here is mismanagement, the wrestling ruled…so let’s look at why it failed from another perspective.

Not being advertised properly

Most of the time I saw any hype for it was when it was advertised by or with its American counterpart, now I’m not saying it has to be mentioned every week on the main roster but seriously they could have mentioned the uk takeovers. And most of the exposure it got was through either a full on colab with NXT USA like worlds collide, or its main title being defended at US takeovers. Speaking of

Only UK Title showcases at American takeovers

This is two problems in one, it only showed off one division of nxt uk when the tag and women’s division fucking ruled. I get that it feels bigger but half those matches were just Pete Dunn and Tyler bate so this somewhat causes a depth perception problem, we could have had something like Andrew’s and Webster vs the coffee brothers at takeover Chicago or something like Kay Lee ray vs meiko satamoura.

The 2020 dusty classic was a brilliant move they could have done every year, half USA half UK. I get the travel cost might get high for the semi finals but it would have been worth it.

Merch missed opportunity

Yeah they had T shirts and stuff but as an avid collector of action figures let me tell you they’re a very underrated tool for creating buzz, if you get a figure of someone you’ve never seen your probably gonna seek out some of their work. You know the only people to get figures from nxt uk? Imperium, pretty deadly, Jordan Delvin, Noam dar, Pete Dunn, and to my knowledge the only dedicated NXT UK figure Tyler bate. That’s just counting the men. What do they all have in common? They got moved to NXT USA or the main roster. I know Nxt figures roll out slower but your telling me you signed alllll these people to contracts and you couldn’t even put out a line of uk basics? You could have saved the elites for the champions if you really had to. Thankfully the games treated them better.

2k19 Pete dunne, Tyler bate, Noam dar, I’ll even throw in Chris hero and jack galiger, and the uk title for a total of 5 people

2k20

Trent seven, mark Andrew’s, Rhea ripely were added and I could have sworn Walter was but I can’t find him on the roster page THE PROBLEM IS NOBODY PLAYED THE GAME

2k22

Lorcan and birch, a kid, team kick imperium, dragunov was dlc, I’ll put Walter in officially here

2k23

Blair Davenport, pretty deadly, piper niven and Nathan Fraser

2k24

The unholy union, gallus, Lyra Valkyrie

What would I do instead?

look I don’t have an answer for that, dissecting why a company failed is always easier than running it and I’m not stupid enough to say I could handle it but I think it could have gone better. I hope they don’t do Nxt Europe to be honest. I hope you enjoyed my dumb little breakdown

[maximumwobblerbanditdonut]

Who has been nominated for a NTA Award?

The NTA longlist was unveiled on Tuesday 21st May.

New Drama

A Gentleman in Moscow

After The Flood

Baby Reindeer

Breathtaking

Coma

Criminal Record

Fallout

Fifteen-Love

Fool Me Once

Hijack

Interview with the Vampire

Mary & George

Masters of the Air

Mr Bates vs The Post Office

Murder Is Easy

One Day

Passenger

Red Eye

Renegade Nell

Shardlake

Shōgun

The Couple Next Door

The Long Shadow

The Marlow Murder Club

The Reckoning

The Sixth Commandment

The Tattooist of Auschwitz

The Woman in the Wall

Wilderness

Wolf

Drama Performance

Adeel Akhtar, DS Sami Kierce, Fool Me Once

Aidan Turner, Glenn Lapthorn, Fifteen-Love

Ambika Mod, Emma Morley, One Day

Anna Próchniak, Gita, The Tattooist of Auschwitz

Anne Reid, Ann Moore-Martin, The Sixth Commandment

Arthur Hughes, Matthew Shardlake, Shardlake

Ashley Jensen, DI Ruth Calder, Shetland

Ashley Walters, Dushane Hill, Top Boy

Austin Butler, Major Gale 'Buck' Cleven, Masters of the Air

Brenda Blethyn, DCI Vera Stanhope, Vera

Callum Turner, Major John 'Bucky' Egan, Masters of the Air

Cliff Parisi, Fred Buckle, Call the Midwife

Cosmo Jarvis, John Blackthorne, Shōgun

Cush Jumbo, DS June Lenker, Criminal Record

Danielle Macdonald, Helen Chambers, The Tourist

Daryl McCormack, Detective Colman Akande, The Woman In The Wall

David Tennant, The Fourteenth Doctor, Doctor Who

David Jonsson, Luke Fitzwilliam, Murder Is Easy

Dominic West, Charles, Prince of Wales, The Crown

Eleanor Tomlinson, Evie, The Couple Next Door

Ella Lily Hyland, Justine Pearce, Fifteen-Love

Ella Purnell, Lucy MacLean, Fallout

Emilia Fox, Nikki Alexander, Silent Witness

Ewan McGregor, Count Alexander Rostov, A Gentleman in Moscow

Gary Oldman, Jackson Lamb, Slow Horses

Gemma Whelan, Detective Sergeant Sarah Collins, The Tower

Georgie Glen, Miss Millicent Higgins, Call the Midwife

Idris Elba, Sam Nelson, Hijack

Imelda Staunton, Queen Elizabeth II, The Crown

Jacob Anderson, Louis de Pointe du Lac, Interview with the Vampire

Jamie Dornan, Elliot Stanley, The Tourist

Jared Harris, Hari Seldon, Foundation

Jason Watkins, Simon, Coma

Jenna Coleman, Liv Taylor, Wilderness

Jennifer Aniston, Alex Levy, The Morning Show

Jeremy Allen White, Carmen 'Carmy' Berzatto, The Bear

Jessica Gunning, Martha, Baby Reindeer

Jing Lusi, DC Hana Li, Red Eye

Joanne Froggatt, Dr Abbey Henderson, Breathtaking

Jonah Hauer-King, Lali, The Tattooist of Auschwitz

Julianne Moore, Mary Villiers, Mary & George

Kane Robinson, Gerald 'Sully' Sullivan, Top Boy

Katherine Kelly, Emily Jackson, The Long Shadow

Angela Van den Bogerd, Mr Bates vs The Post Office

Kris Marshall, Humphrey Goodman, Beyond Paradise

Leo Woodall, Dexter Mayhew, One Day

Lesley Sharp, DI Hannah Laing, Before We Die

Louisa Harland, Nell Jackson, Renegade Nell

Luke Newton, Colin Bridgerton, Bridgerton

Martin Short, Oliver Putnam, Only Murders in the Building

Michelle Keegan, Maya Stern, Fool Me Once

Monica Dolan, Jo Hamilton, Mr Bates vs The Post Office

Ncuti Gatwa, The Fifteenth Doctor, Doctor Who

Nicholas Galitzine, George Villiers, Mary & George

Nicholas Ralph, James Herriot, All Creatures Great and Small

Nicola Coughlan, Penelope Featherington, Bridgerton

Nicola Walker, DI Annika Strandhed, Annika

Oliver Jackson-Cohen, Will, Wilderness

Paapa Essiedu, George, The Lazarus Project

Peter Capaldi, DCI Daniel Hegarty, Criminal Record

Ralf Little, DI Neville Parker, Death in Paradise

Reese Witherspoon, Bradley Jackson, The Morning Show

Richard Armitage, Dr Matthew Nolan, Red Eye

Joe Burkett, Fool Me Once

Richard Gadd, Donny Dunn, Baby Reindeer

Robert Carlyle, Robert Sutherland, COBRA: Rebellion

Ruth Wilson, Lorna Brady, The Woman In The Wall

Sam Heughan, Danny, The Couple Next Door

Sam Reid, Lestat de Lioncourt, Interview with the Vampire

Samantha Bond, Judith Potts, The Marlow Murder Club

Selena Gomez, Mabel Mora, Only Murders in the Building

Siân Brooke, Grace Ellis, Blue Lights

Sonequa Martin-Green, Captain Michael Burnham, Star Trek: Discovery

Sophie Rundle, PC Joanna Marshall, After The Flood

Steve Coogan, Jimmy Savile, The Reckoning

Steve Martin, Charles-Haden Savage, Only Murders in the Building

Suranne Jones, Amy Silva, Vigil

Timothy Spall, Peter Farquhar, The Sixth Commandment

Toby Jones, Alan Bates, Mr Bates vs The Post Office

DCS Dennis Hoban, The Long Shadow

Tom Hiddleston, Loki, Loki

Ukweli Roach, DI Jack Caffery, Wolf

Vicky McClure, Lana Washington, Trigger Point

Wunmi Mosaku, DI Riya Ajunwa, Passenger

https://www.nationaltvawards.com:80/terms

Shows and individuals are nominated in the longlist for the 2024 National Television Awards. This year is so competitive 😉

Posted 22nd May 2024

[wweallresultspage]

2K24 Raw results 4/15/24

Kane Taker vs Randy Orton Edge

Kane and taker won

Goldberg vs Hulk Hogan

Goldberg won

Walter vs Damien Priest

Walter won

R Truth Miz vs Creed Brothers vs Pete Dunn Tyler Bate

Creed brothers won

Becky Belair Naomi vs Damage control

Beckey belair naomi won

Veer Jinder vs KO Sami

Ko and sami won

Nakamura vs Rey Mysterio

Rey mysterio won

Main event

Bobby Lashley Street Profits vs Cody Seth Jey

Bobby and street profits won

Dark matches

LWO vs NWO

Nwo won

Rhea Ripley vs Liv Morgan

Rhea won

Dragon Lee vs Ricochet

Ricochet won

[rodnxt]

NXT TakeOver: Blackpool

Trent Seven vs Eddie Denis

Alba Fyre vs Piper Niven vs Toni Storm (NXT UK Women's Championship)

Tag Team

Jordan Deblin vs Tyler Bate

Walter vs Joe Coffey

[just-another-schadenfreude]

Thinking about the Takeover Cardiff main event between Walter and Tyler Bate and well it proves that Walter is not a parody of a kings road wrestler, he is the real deal. And Tyler Bate may be the greatest athlete currently in WWE.

[sxvnthcircle]

y’all know that part in walter vs tyler bate where walter just falls on tyler?? need that to happen to me rn might cure all my back problems

[wrestlesideblog]

I just watched the Tyler Bate vs Walter match at Takeover Cardiff and now I’m in my feelings about British Strong Style again.

[darkarfs]

My 10 Favorite WWE Matches of All Time (updated)

10: The 2001 Royal Rumble No matter how daft and stupid the product gets, I will never not stoke my head in around January. The Royal Rumble is my favorite match, but this one is my favorite favorite instance of that match. The pacing, the beautiful endurance of Kane, the hardcore interval (which Kane just decides to destroy), the Big Show returning after 4 months just to get shit-canned a minute into his run. There is so much to love about this mess. The preview of Rock and Austin that year for their Wrestlemania showdown. The fact that 4 or 5 of them (Rock, Austin, Kane, Undertaker, even Rikishi) could have been main event contenders. The best midcard in WWE history. Scotty 2 Hotty having the worst night of his life. Drew Carey just showing up. Bradshaw just cliffing everyone, because he's gotta get his shit in. Good Rumbles are like a 3 course meal, and this one is like all your courses at once, and then dessert is a treat you could die on. 9. Tyler Bate vs. WALTER - Takeover Cardiff Crowds make a lot of matches for me (thanks, 2020) but this crowd is especially electric, and for 24-year-old Tyler Bate, who is taking on a TANK, and that tank's name is WALTER, a TANK. But I will never not be a sucker for a David vs. Goliath story, and it was never better told than the boy made of thighs vs. the destroyer made of shattering palms. It is SO CARNY, so many feats of strength, so many OOOOOFS AND UUUUUURGHS that make this so great. Tyler was a hero on this night, but everyone knew he wasn't ready to win. Every feat is a magnificent reach. And it all means something to everyone. Make them what they know SHOULD happen and still surprise them with it. His "refusing to quit!" only to get shut down by a fucking chop. HE STANDS but is immediately ruined. It makes me. This shit fucking makes me. 8. Sasha Banks vs. Bayley, 30-Minute Iron Woman Match - Takeover Respect Most of this is just a remix of their epic and warranted classic in Brooklyn. but then Sasha takes the headband off of Izzy. And then they both stepped it up and were *amazing*. We somehow lost Bayley's "RAAAAAH'S and that's sad for me. But then they RAMP IT UP. NOBODY LIKES YOU. FUCK YOU. WE'RE HAPPIER NOW. (WE'RE NOT.) But seriously, Sasha taking Izzy's headband and then THROWING IT AT HER started something special, something grand. THE OUTRAGE. The bastion of heel heat. And then the match got better. They hugged at the end of their encounter in Brooklyn, but then they started poisoning one another. And it all started with this amazing match. (Also, Bayley's amazing red and gold robot tights.) 7. Kurt Angle vs. Shawn Michaels, Wrestlemania 21 Listen. HBK's 'Mania outings with the Undertaker are solid "match of the decade" contenders, piss-easy. They are peerless, they are in a league of their own. But saying they're your favorite? Unless you are an actual wrestler, that's like saying "UH, MY FAVE BAND IS THE BEATLES." Ya boring, ya basic, and we can all do better. And seeing how I'm in my late 30s, I understand wrestling a little different than I did when I made this list in...2016??? Christ. I bet AJ Styles vs. John Cena was on it that year. Two of the best performers, both in their prime, and looking back on it, I just prefer the mix of character dynamics at play. Angle is easily one of the best in the world, but he has such an inferiority complex, because he's an Olympic gold medalist who is told *nightly* that he sucks, and he CAN'T best Michaels. He keeps coming back, and he's so charming, so effortlessly good at this whole "wrestling" thing, and it's slowly making Angle, who SHOULD be all of those things, absolutely *spare.* And that informs so many spots and story moments in the match itself, specifically when Angle LOSES it and starts shouting at him, only to have a superkick partied under his face. Angle is one of the best ever because his wrestling acumen served his character, never once defined it. 6. Vince McMahon vs. Shane McMahon, Wrestlemania 17 I haven't gone back to watch the whole of Vince vs. Shane THAT many times. What I have done is watch the finish about 65 times. There is something so addictive and magical about that one pop, when Linda stands up from her chair, and the ENTIRE crowd stands with her. And I'll 100% agree that Vince's comeuppance - one slap, one hoof to the balls, a Mandible Claw and a Coast-To-Coast dropkick - is not NEAR the actual comeuppance he should have gotten for some of the deplorable shit his character got up to from around the Rumble to this match (two of which they've done their very best to scrub from history, they're THAT bad.) But it's the purest example I can think of, of that pantomime aspect of wrestling. Vince McMahon is a deranged bastard. He likes dumb, cruel, crude things, but his commitment to being the world's 2nd-worst lizard man makes some of the stuff that happens to him more richly rewarding than almost any retribution in any medium, ever. The final 4 minutes of that match, the crowd is a fireworks display. They rise, they explode, they rise and explode, over and over. And again, shoutout to my boy 2020 for making me miss a crowd THAT big having THAT good a time. 5. Adam Cole vs. Johnny Gargano - 2 out of 3 falls - TakeOver New York Now look, I'm not saying that NXT is essentially perfect for me, in terms for what I look for in wrestling. What I will say is that when it cooks, it combines the very best of indie stamina, choreography and stunt work with something WWE sometimes gets VERY right, and that is unabashed, unironic emotion. And it's not even that the intimacy of NXT being a smaller promotion has a denser, more specifically passionate fanbase. It's just the fact that NXT understands that so often, nuance and drama in wrestling doesn't come from promos, or swerves, or endless escalations of said drama, but from getting the FUCK out of the way and letting two of the best in the world *wrestle.* NXT is so good for providing context for the acts of jealousy, pride and entitlement, and then laying out a match that touches on all of these emotions throughout. This main event, built in two weeks, after a terribly-timed Ciampa injury, is actually VERRRY clever booking...disguised to look really simple. Cole starts the match as the crowd favorite, because he's the cool tweener everyone likes (with a catchphrase) to Gargano's unironic Disney prince. Over the course of Cole going all out, making subtle references to Johnny's feud with Ciampa, Gargano fighting from underneath, total fuck-off bastardry from the Undisputed Era (making poor Mauro Ranallo yell "YOU SNAKES!!") Maybe Cole WAS the better choice, but by the end of it, you didn't care. On that night, Johnny refused to lose, and the constant, exciting, *involving* wrestling dragged you to that emotional place. Damn right, you deserve it. 4. CM Punk vs. John Cena, Money In the Bank 2011 It might be a simple choice, but also, sometimes, it's really really gratifying to see a crowd who wants something get what they fucking want for once. A hot crowd makes a good match great, and a great match THIS. A crowd united, either for one guy, and against another, and in this case, BOTH. It makes every. Move. Matter. Trying to find a new angle on this match is like trying to find a new way to say fire is warm. And this crowd created a CAUSE. The no-sold pinfall, the attempted rehash of the Screwjob. Point out the botches if you must. The angle, the promo...it got my friends back into wrestling, a reason to care until the Shield. It's not the best, but it deserves to be. There is no wrestling crowd I wish I was more a part of. And I was at King of the Ring 1998. 3. Kurt Angle vs. Brock Lesnar, 60-Minute Iron Man match, Smackdown of September 18, 2003 It MAYBE was a bit of a "hipster" choice to name this my number 1 in 2016. But you know what? Bloody holds up. Two performers who feel "destined to do this forever," like a Triple H/Shawn Michaels, or a Kevin Owens/Sami Zayn. Possessed of freakish physical charisma, could go for days if pressed. Brock Lesnar, literally at the time ONE OF THE BEST ATHLETES in the WORLD being a lazy fucker and taking DQ points, laying the foundation of what Brock Lesnar would come to be known as. And Angle, in that rare position of everyone knowing he's the best thing going. Brilliant Lazy Asshole Brock and Certified Wrestling Machine Angle are two of my unironic favorite characters in all of wrestling, and it's a buffet of THAT. Like a Royal Rumble, only it's just two dudes, being the best they've ever been. 2. DIY vs. the Revival - 2 out of 3 falls - TakeOver Toronto "Tag team wrestling?" says main roster WWE. "What is this...tag team wrestling?" Well, this is it, at its absolute best. It's up there with Rey Mysterio and Edge vs. Chris Benoit and Kurt Angle from No Mercy 2002 for just brilliant, rock-solid tag team psychology. There are more story opportunities when there are more rules to break, how can WWE *not get behind that?* In terms of chemistry, both between opponents and between teams, in terms of callbacks like Johnny muscling through the exact same inverted figure four that lost them the belts in Brooklyn. It is a perfect match. Not an ounce of fat on it. And that closing sequence, of each member of DIY locking the Revival in their signature holds, and the men now known as FTR clinging to one another. It's probably the best tag match in the history of the WWE, and considering the caliber of tag matches on TakeOvers, is FUCKING saying something. 1. Daniel Bryan vs. Brock Lesnar, Survivor Series 2018 This match is everything I always hoped for. For the longest time, after the 2015 Royal Rumble debacle, when Reigns won, when simply everything we knew about storytelling said "no, of course it should be Bryan," I wondered what that 'Mania match would look like. If it were anything like this, I would have died a happy man. But then again, what makes this match so GOOD is that Bryan had just come back from an early retirement caused by head and neck surgery, and here he is, being dropped on his head and neck by Brock Fucking Lesnar, aka what would happen if the concept of "not giving a shit" gained corporeal form and starting shilling for Jimmy John's. The match gets really ugly, really fast, and Bryan takes us to uncomfortable places with his selling. It wasn't just the retirement angle, it was also the fact that Brock had turned out some REALLY lazy shit by that point in his career, so we had all mentally prepared for another finish-spamming early night. And then. AND THEN... Bryan hoofs him in the walnuts, hits the running knee, gives us the absolute closest 2-count of the decade, and then the fight is fucking on. Bryan went, over the course of 2 minutes, from never having a chance against Brock Lesnar to it being an *absolute certainty* that he was going to BEAT BROCK LESNAR. Anytime you visibly leave your seat every few seconds during a match, you know it's a special one. Again, it took me away, had me absolutely *screaming* at my monitor, elated, invested, and I don't know what more your favorite match can ask of you. But what happens when your favorite match isn't a match at all? No. 0: The Firefly Funhouse - Wrestlemania 36 I'm not kidding, it actually might be my favorite thing. It could be just my brain latching onto the Cult of the New, but I don't think so. It's not a match, I get it. It exists in a weird null-void outside of time and space, but mostly I am floored that they would broadcast something so virulently anti-WWE. Like, we talk of CM Punk and how WWE let him get away with all his little jokes and cut his little Pipebomb promo. But then WWE signed off on Bray Wyatt tearing the soul out of their business. Burying the biggest star of this generation, skewering and laying bare all of terrible WWE's terrible priorities, and also celebrating insider knowledge, wrestling history, and I just...love it. Right now, it's my favorite thing WWE have ever put out, because it did something they've never done before, told a story I didn't think they were capable of telling. And sure, it was Bray who told it, but I still can't believe it aired. But I am endlessly thankful that it did.

[undisputedshield]

2019 proved to be an eventful year in the pro wrestling world. And as we reflect on the many memories and moments it gave us, many people like myself are inclined to say that this was the year of The Man. And while yes, this year was defined by her many accomplishments and rise to the top of the division, we can also make claims that many different people left their mark this year.

Here are some memorable moments/matches from 2019:

- Roman Reigns made his return and announced that he was in remission.

- Kofi Kingston finally wins the WWE Championship at Wrestlemania.

- Seth Rollins slayed the beast multiple times before falling victim to The Fiend.

-Becky Lynch pinning Ronda Rousey in the first-ever women’s main event to become ‘Becky 2 Belts’.

- Jon Moxley shifted the landscape of wrestling as he looked to “change the world” with AEW.

-Sasha Banks turns heel.

- Trish Stratus took The Queen, Charlotte Flair, to her limits in her retirement match.

- Becky vs Sasha at COC and HIAC.

- WALTER VS Tyler Bate at Takeover: Cardiff.

- Jon Moxley in NJPW.

- Sasha vs Ronda and Becky vs Asuka at the Royal Rumble.

-Becky Lynch and Seth Rollins winning the Royal Rumble.

- Bayley and Sasha winning the women’s tag titles.

- Lacey Evans and Natalya perform in Saudi Arabia.

- Io Shirai vs Candice Lerae at Takeover: Toronto.

- The pairing of Alexa and Nikki cross.

- NXT moving to USA Network.

- Becky, Ronda, and Charlotte are arrested on RAW.

- The Fiend taking over the wrestling world.

- The Kabuki Warriors revived the tag division.

- Finn Balor returning to NXT.

- Adam Cole vs Johnny Gargano — all three of their matches.

- The IIconics winning the tag titles at Wrestlemania.

- Undisputed Era fulfills their prophecy.

-The first-ever women’s war games match.

- NXT “shocked the system” when Adam Cole proved he’s willing to do anything for our entertainment while Rhea Ripley closed the year with an unforgettable title win over Shayna Baszler.

- Keith Lee’s epic performance in the men’s Survivor Series elimination match.

- Daniel Bryan starting the year off as the most hated heel and ending it as the most over face.

But someone who doesn't get talked about enough is Bayley. She started off the year as the hugger, winning the tag titles that she fought for behind the scenes alongside her best friend.

She won the Smackdown Women’s Championship twice — dethroning Charlotte Flair in the process. She made a drastic change to her character and reached another milestone: the longest-reigning combined smackdown women’s champion.

Bayley has been the most consistent in-ring worker this year, and she’s improved on the mic.

So yeah, this year was ruled by The Man and many others in-between, but Bayley makes a not-so-quiet claim to the superstar of the year. But one thing remains true: the women made 2019 and they’ll surely leave their mark on 2020, too.

[buttdawg]

NJPW 5+ Star Matches

I’m trying to plan out what wrestling I want to watch in the near future, so I decided what I really ought to do is watch all the New Japan Pro Wrestling matches that Dave Meltzer rated higher than five stars.   There are some 5+ matches in other promotions, but the vast majority are in NJPW, and that’s who I’ve got a subscription with, so I’m trying to get my money’s worth out of it.  

I’m operating from this handy list on Wikipedia, so if it’s inaccurate or out of date that’s someone else’s problem.   Worst case scenario, I watch a ****3/4 match by mistake and wouldn’t that just be a real tragedy?

There’s also an argument to be made that Dave Meltzer isn’t the final arbiter of match quality, and the star ratings are subjective and therefore useless.   That’s fine, if someone else has a handy list of best-ever matches, I’ll take a look, the point here is for me to watch some really exceptional matches, and I trust Dave to at least point me in the right direction.

2017

1. Kazuchika Okada(c) vs. Kenny Omega

Wrestle Kingdom 11, 1/4/2017

IWGP Heavyweight Championship

Big Dave sez: 6 Stars

I’ve already seen it, but I wouldn’t mind watching it again for comparison.

2. Kazuchika Okada (c) vs. Kenny Omega II

Dominon 6.11, 6/11/2017

IWGP Heavyweight Championship

Big Dave sez: 6.25 Stars

This was the first rematch with these two.

3. Kazuchika Okada vs. Kenny Omega III

G1 Climax 27, 8/12/2017

Pretty sure this was the match that decided the winner of the B-block for that year’s G1 tournament.

Big Dave sez: 6 Stars

4. Tetsuya Naito vs. Kenny Omega

G1 Climax 27, 8/13/2017

The G1 Climax tournament final.

Big Dave sez: 5.75 stars.

2018

5. Kazuchika Okada (c) vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi

Wrestling Dontaku 2018, 5/4/2018

IWGP Heavyweight Championship

Big Dave sez: 5.5 stars

6. Taiji Ishimori vs. Hiromu Takahashi

Best of the Super Juniors Tournament Final, 6/4/2018

Big Dave sez: 5.5 stars

7. Kazuchika Okada vs. Kenny Omega IV

Dominion 6.9, 6/9/2018

IWGP Heavyweight Championship

No time limit, 2-out-of-3 falls match.

Big Dave sez: 7 stars

Holy fuck this sounds great.

8. Kenny Omega vs. Tomohiro Ishii

G1 Climax 28, 8/4/2018

Big Dave sez: 5.5 stars

9. Kenny Omega vs. Kota Ibushi

G1 Climax 28, 8/11/2018

This may have been the match that decided the winner of B-block for that year’s tournament.  

THE GOLDEN LOVERS EXPLODE

Big Dave sez: 5.5 Stars

10. Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kota Ibushi

G1 Climax 28 Final, 8/12/2018

Big Dave sez: 5.75 stars

2019

11. Kenny Omega (c) vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi

Wrestle Kingdom 13, 1/4/2019

IWGP Heavyweight Championship

Big Dave sez: 5.75 stars

12. Shingo Takagi vs. Will Ospreay

Best of the Super Juniors Tournament Final, 6/5/2019

Big Dave sez: 5.75 stars

13. Kazuchika Okada vs. WIll Ospreay

G1 Climax 29, 7/20/19

Big Dave sez: 5.75 stars

I’ve already seen it, but worth another look.

Non-title match, but it’s the heavyweight champion vs. the junior heavyweight champion, so I assume that means something to someone.

14. Shingo Takagi vs. Tomohiro Ishii

G1 Climax 29, 8/8/2019

Big Dave sez: 5.5 stars

I was having trouble keeping up with the G1 this late into it, so probably worth re-watching.

15. Kota Ibushi vs. Jay White

G1 Climax 29 Tournament final, 8/12/2019

Big Dave sez: 5.5 stars

I still think Okada vs. Moxley should have been the final, but I can probably enjoy this one more now that I’m not so bitter about it.  

APPENDIX: 5+ star matches outside of NJPW

Mitsuharu Misawa vs. Toshiaki Kawada.   AJPW, 6/3/1994, 6 stars

Adam Cole vs. Johnny Gargano.  WWE, 4/5/2019, 5.5 stars

Adam Cole vs. Johnny Gargano.  WWE, 6/1/2019, 5.25 stars

Walter vs. Tyler Bate.   WWE, 8/31/2019, 5.25 stars

Young Bucks vs. Lucha Bros. AEW 8/31/2019, 5.25 stars

I had heard that the first Omega/Okada match was the first ever six-star match, but apparently Dave gave out that rating in 1994, so I dunno.   

Anyway, I can’t watch All-Japan or WWE right now, so those will have to wait.   

[rawsmackdownnxtdivas]

#NXTAwardMatch

#WomensWarGames – Women’s WarGames Match (TakeOver: WarGames)

#BatevsWALTER – Tyler Bate vs. WALTER (WWE United Kingdom Championship Match, NXT UK TakeOver: Cardiff)

#ShiraivsBaszler – Io Shirai vs. Shayna Baszler (NXT Women’s Title Cage Match, NXT TV, June 26)

#LeRaevsShirai – Candice LeRae vs. Io Shirai (TakeOver: Toronto)

#3StagesOfHell – Adam Cole vs. Johnny Gargano (2-out-of-3 Falls NXT Championship Match, TakeOver: Toronto)

#RaidersvsERA – Viking Raiders vs. Kyle O’Reilly & Roderick Strong (NXT Tag Team Championship Match, TakeOver: Phoenix)

#2OutOf3Falls – Johnny Gargano vs. Adam Cole (2-out-of-3 Falls NXT Championship Match, TakeOver: New York)

#LadderMatch – Street Profits vs. Forgotten Sons vs. Oney Lorcan & Danny Burch vs. Undisputed ERA (NXT Tag Team Championship Ladder Match, TakeOver: XXV)

#DunnevsCole – Pete Dunne vs. Adam Cole (NXT Championship Match, Survivor Series)

#LeevsDijakovic – Keith Lee vs. Dominik Dijiakovic (NXT TV, Aug. 28)

#WomensFatal4Way – Candice LeRae vs. Bianca Belair vs. Io Shirai vs. Mia Yim (NXT TV, Sept. 18)

#TagTeamTripleThreat – Grizzled Young Veterans vs. Mark Andrews & Flash Morgan Webster vs. Gallus (NXT UK Tag Team Championship Match, NXT UK TakeOver: Cardiff)

[wrestlem4nia]

Matches of 2019... So Far.

With 2/3 of the year now over I thought it was time to list my highest rated matches of the year so far as ranked via the grappl mobile app. (@kynky)

NJPW are dominating with 13 matches, NXT with 3, NXT UK with 1, Progress with 1 and Rev Pro with 1. No matches from main roster WWE or AEW have made the cut so far. 

Ospreay is leading the way with 7 matches in the list.

Ibushi vs. Ospreay 18/07/19

Okada vs. Ibushi 10/08/19

Moxley vs. Ishii 19/07/19

El Phantasmo vs. Ospreay 22/05/19

Takagi vs. Ospreay 05/06/19

Okada vs. Ospreay 30/06/19

Walter vs. Tyler Bate 31/08/19

Jay White vs. Ibushi 12/08/19

Cole vs. Gargano 05/04/19

Swords of Essex vs. Aussie Open 31/03/19

Dragon Lee vs. Ospreay 09/06/19

Okada vs. Sanada 03/08/19

Tanahashi vs. Ospreay 10/08/19

Okada vs. Sanada 24/03/19

Dunne vs. Walter 05/04/19

Starr vs. Haskins vs. Bailey 18/08/19

Jay White vs. Juice Robinson 08/08/19

Takagi vs. Ishii 08/08/19

Ricochet vs. Gargano 26/01/19

Let us know what your favourites/highest rated have been...