When the VOW staff wrapped up our January Match of the Month article, we all agreed that January was an aberration of a month. The only reason the article was so long, detailed and featured a plethora of matches was it was an incredibly rare good month with a number of super shows from the top companies adding great matches to the foray. Welp, February may have been even better.
In total, 28 matches were nominated as Match of the Month contenders by our contributors and readers. Like last month, a number of VOW contributors wrote match analysis for their favorites of the month and we “ranked” the matches using reader/general public ELO (H2H) voting. Essentially, voters were given two matches at random and were able to choose which match they liked best or skip to get a new set of matches. Once done voting for their favorite of the two, they were presented with two more matches at random and so on and so forth. The Win-Loss records of each match are reflected in the Record portion of the match header with some brief analysis from VOW stat guru Josh Engleman. If you’re interested in complete H2H results for each match, check out our Google Doc.
The ranking should be seen as nothing more than a fun way to rank these matches, the goal of this project from the beginning isn’t to give you the definitive Match of the Month but rather to present a number of great matches for the month, allow you to catch up on what you may have missed or let you discover wrestling, a promotion or wrestlers you may have otherwise skipped or never heard about.
If there’s something you disagree with, want us to change for next month or ideas for future articles, please let us know in the comments or on the Voices of Wrestling Forums. Thanks for reading, enjoy! -Rich Kraetsch
Tomoaki Honma vs. Tomohiro Ishii
February 13, 2015
New Japan Pro Wrestling
New Beginning in Sendai
Record: 381-44 (90%)
H2H Analysis: Honma/Ishii was a runaway winner in February. This match had at least a 75% win rate in all but one of the combinations (Ishikawa/Okabayashi was 69%). It went 17-0 against the match in the #2 spot. Just an absolute no-brainer victory. -Josh Engleman
Match Analysis: One guy never wins, depends on a ludicrous finisher that he misses like Shaq shooting free throws, and channels old red and yellow Hogan. The other one has been wrestling with one arm for over half a year and is as wide as he is tall. That said, they just had what might just be the MOTY, and worthy of the full monty rating that Big Dave gave it. Moreover, Tomoaki Honma might be the best professional wrestler in the world right now.
At the end of the match, Tomoaki Honma was a winner. Oh, he got pinned. He always gets pinned. But, he made Ishii dig into something primal to get that victory. As Ishii backed Honma into a corner, while Honma struck him repeatedly, it was apparent that this was not a fair fight. It was a man against tectonic plate movement. Ishii could no more be denied his rightful victory than the sun denied its place in the morning sky. Yet, in Sendai, for a moment, there was hope earned against all logic and rational thought. Because Tomoaki Honma is the best storyteller in wrestling, and because hope is a good thing. – Sean Flynn
Kota Ibushi vs. Tomoaki Honma
February 11, 2015
New Japan Pro Wrestling
New Beginning in Osaka
Record: 293-121 (71%)
H2H Analysis: Ibushi was competing with himself in the battle for 2nd place, ultimately squeaking out a small edge over his match with HARASHIMA. The Ibushi/Honma match finished 8-5 versus the Ibushi/HARASHIMA match, so justice was served in the overall numbers. The only match, other than our #1, that had a winning record against Ibushi/Honma was Owens/Zayn (8-10). -Josh Engleman
Match Analysis: The worst thing that could have happened to this match is that Tomoaki “Freaking” Honma had a five star match of the year classic three days later against Tomohiro Ishii. It’s too bad that a match like this will be at best, an afterthought to fans who saw both matches, to at worst, forgotten completely. This match wasn’t as fluid as an Ibushi match usually is, because it shouldn’t have been. This was a Honma match through and through, so it was a fight with one guy illogically attempting to kill himself with headbutts from every direction. Through defeat, Honma continues to have the crowd in the palm of his hand, something that a large majority of his contemporaries have never or will never be able to do anywhere near his level. This was an absolutely fantastic, hard hitting war. It’s tempting to watch Ishii vs. Honma again, but save a little time for this one, too. – Jason Felix
HARASHIMA vs. Kota Ibushi
February 15, 2015
DDT
Saitama Super DDT 2015
Record: 253-111 (70%)
H2H Analysis: The bronze medal for February lands here. This had a winning record against 21 of the 27 other matches. The toughest competition outside of Ishii/Honma was actually from Akira Tozawa vs. Kzy (6-12) – Josh Engleman
Match Analysis: This match is yet more proof of the absurdity of 2015, as if you had told me that I would have been championing a match between Kota Ibushi and the ace of DDT this time last year I would have laughed in your face and said “yeah sure, and in a few months I’ll be a weekly reviewer of TNA Impact for VoicesofWrestling.com.” But as it stands Ibushi is arguably the top worker in the world so far in 2015 (at least when it comes to output) and HARASHIMA is the best true ace in wrestling, a master at projecting his superiority and status, without harming or trivializing the value of his opponent.
As a result what you got here was the biggest star in DDT history vs. the “man” in DDT in the here and now, and it was worked exactly as a match like that should be worked. HARASHIMA’s offensive attack focusing on Ibushi’s stomach and establishing a vulnerability early was a great touch, as was the consistent looming threat of an Ibushi killshot throughout the match. The pacing was excellent, with smart transitions and momentum swings, and solid selling from both men throughout. The match was presented as a battle between equals, with the finish coming across as a last ditch big bomb from Ibushi, who’s win almost felt like an upset given the way HARASHIMA carries himself. If not for the way the fighting on the ramp had been set up (with a lazy “challenge” from Ibushi rather than a fight to the ramp), this would probably be my current MOTY. Even with it, it is in the discussion, and certainly a must see match. – Dylan Waco
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x2haeiz
Roman Reigns vs. Daniel Bryan
February 22, 2015
WWE
WWE Fastlane
Record: 270-135 (67%)
H2H Analysis: This Bryan/Reigns match is interesting in that it had a losing H2H record against Balor/Neville (5-10), but finished a solid 5% higher overall. It also went 8-8 versus the NJPW Jr. 3-way, but finished 12% higher in the overall numbers. This match was just all over the place individually, but when looked at in the aggregate, landed in the #4 spot. -Josh Engleman
Match Analysis: Daniel Bryan was tasked with a lot going into this match at WWE’s Fastlane. He had to save the WrestleMania main event by making Brock Lesnar’s challenger Roman Reigns into a credible opponent. Bryan accomplished this the only way he knows how: have a great match.
This won’t be remembered as the best match of Daniel Bryan’s career, hell, it may not even be in the top 100, but for Reigns this was his best yet. For the first time in what seemed like months, Reigns looked comfortable in the ring and for what seemed like the first time in months, the crowd was behind him to an overwhelming degree. Both guys traded roles throughout this match with each man playing heel and babyface at various portions of the match.
The closing stretch in particular stood out as Reigns and Bryan traded near-falls with both men kicking out of the others signature moves. Reigns showed some nice fire with a series of strikes and quick-paced offense which finally resulted in a Roman Reigns victory. The match but the fact that he was able to do more for Roman Reigns than hours, weeks and months of WWE creative. Funny how that works, huh? -Rich Kraetsch
Kevin Owens vs. Sami Zayn
February 11, 2015
WWE NXT
NXT Takeover: Rival
Record: 277-147 (65%)
H2H Analysis: The most interesting takeaway from the H2H numbers for this match is the H2H record versus Balor/Neville (9-13). Obviously it’s an incredibly small sample size, but it’s interesting to see a match from the same show do better in H2H but worse in the overall. Also noteworthy, Owens/Zayn lost the H2H battle against Shiozaki/Zeus (5-6), even though the latter match had a win rate of 44%. This match was tied at 65% with the ROH 6-man, but won that H2H contest 12-9. -Josh Engleman
Match Analysis: This match wasn’t one of their ROH classics, but Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn told one of the best bell-to-bell stories ever seen under the WWE banner. Owens played his role as the invading conqueror to perfection and Zayn rejuvenated his spot as the aggrieved protagonist, the role he was born to play. The very non-WWE ending adds to the growing mystique surrounding NXT’s unique stature. Somehow the “minor leagues” are maintaining a continuum of realism and disbelief in a way we wish we could find on big money, main roster programs. – Alex Wendland
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o815CNmygiM
The Young Bucks & A.J. Styles vs. ACH, Cedric Alexander & Matt Sydal
February 14, 2015
Ring of Honor
ROH Television
Record: 261-140 (65%)
Match Analysis: Having watched this live at the former ECW Arena in South Philadelphia, television and video doesn’t do this match justice. Imagine being asked to main event in front of the always jaded, super smart Philadelphia crowd (my membership card is currently in my wallet) after three plus hours of television tapings. It is a tall task even without the added pressure of those same fans expecting all the flippy-do, high risk, super kick escapades that this match promised.
What if I told you I saw Bullet Club T-Shirt wearing gentlemen jumping up and down in joy during this match? What if I told you that every super kick and every crazy top-rope dive whipped the crowd further into pro wrestling bliss? What if I told you that this match made it so much fun to be a pro wrestling fan? The match delivered on so many levels but the main selling point that pushed it over the top was that it gave every single Observer reading, NJPWWorld subscribing, ROH fan a reason to look at their friends and mouth “this is awesome.” – Damon McDonald
Akira Tozawa vs. Kzy
February 28, 2015
Dragon Gate
Champion Gate in Osaka – Night 1
Record: 221-130 (63%)
H2H Analysis: This match was virtually tied with Balor/Neville, but destroyed it in H2H voting (11-4). It’s best H2H match-up wasn’t the last place finisher, but Cena/Rusev (15-1). -Josh Engleman
Match Analysis: There are very few wrestlers that connect with a crowd the way Dragon Gate’s Akira Tozawa does. Whether as a heel or a babyface, something just clicks each and every time Tozawa steps into a ring. This late February Open the Brave Gate showdown with Kzy was no exception as Tozawa was vying for his first singles title in Dragon Gate (Tozawa debuted in 2005).
The match centered around Kzy working over Tozawa’s elbow — which was injured when the Tozawa went for an elbow strike against the ring post. Smartly Kzy did everything he could to add to Tozawa’s pain: hitting the elbow against the mat, kicking it, tying it in the ropes and kicking the ropes. It was great limb work and a complete destruction of the “Dragon Gate is a bunch of non-selling flippy doos” myth that is far too prevalent.
Tozawa sold like a champ even showing signs of pain from his normal elbow strikes. Eventually, Tozawa saw his opening and knew he’d have to live through the pain if he wanted his first singles title in DG. Arm pain aside he was able to hit the delayed German Suplex and get the 1-2-3. Tozawa, ever the emotional man, fell to his ground immediately and started crying — a sign of just how important this title win was to Akira Tozawa the character and more importantly, Akira Tozawa the person. – Rich Kraetsch
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x2idrqv_kzy-c-vs-akira-tozawa-dragon-gate_sport
Finn Balor vs. Adrian Neville
February 11, 2015
WWE NXT
NXT Takeover: Rival
Record: 274-170 (62%)
Match Analysis: Finn Bálor and Adrian Neville, in what was almost an afterthought of a match due to the incredible build up of Owens vs Zayn, delivered in a not-so-surprisingly big way at NXT Takeover: Rival. I attended this show live, and immediately claimed it the best match of the show. After watching on video, I still agree… with myself. Incredible match in the time they were given, and might just have been the tipping point moving Takeover: Rival from an average event to a thumbs up. – Rob McCarron
A.J. Styles vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi
February 11, 2015
New Japan Pro Wrestling
New Beginning in Osaka
Record: 211-150 (59%)
Match Analysis: Oddly enough, sometimes when things go wrong in a pro wrestling match, those mistakes will help to elevate a good match onto another level. As a recent example, look back to Shinsuke Nakamura’s battle with Bad Luck Fale in 2014. Sprinkle in a busted-open nose and the match took off. The same can be said about this match. Tanahashi’s High Fly Flow took out the entire Bullet Club, but in the process Tanahashi’s face and Matt Jackson’s shoulder connected in a most uncomfortable way. The result? Unexpected blood that helped add additional drama to an already dramatic IWGP title match.
It was also a statement match for A.J. Styles. Getting a clean win over Tanahashi with the Styles Clash not only gave Styles his second run at the top of the NJPW hill, but it also gave the Styles Clash another level of “if you get trapped in this, you are dead”. Is it the best Tanahashi match you’ll see? No. Is it the best Styles match you’ll see? No. It is a solid match between two of the best in the business that leaves very little left in the tank. Solid, sound, dramatic professional wrestling with the added flair of a Tanahashi hard way makes this a real good watch and an easy addition to your early 2015 MOTY nominations. – Damon McDonald
Shuji Ishikawa vs. Yuji Okabayashi
February 2, 2015
Big Japan Wrestling
Big Japan on Samurai TV!
Record: 180-136 (57%)
Match Analysis: You know that Taco Bell commercial where it keeps saying… Be a Man, Be a Man, Be a Man! Try telling that to Ishikawa and Okabayashi, as they would very likely headbutt you right in your unassuming face. No one can challenge either’s manliness after watching this war of attrition. It’s not pretty, it’s not flashy, and no one is busting out fancy moves. These two are basically annihilating each other for the majority of this match, while seemingly enjoying it. The offense is simple: Chops, forearms, knees, dropping each other on their heads, double stomps. Basically, anything that would give you internal bleeding and a bad case of concussion like symptoms. This match is an excellent exercise in ruggedness, sheer determination, unrelenting warrior’s spirit, and is the type of match that only the Strong BJ division could provide. This is Top 5 of the year for me, as well as BJW’s first true MOTY candidate. – Rob Barry
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x2hv9l1_shuji-ishikawa-c-vs-yuji-okabayashi-bjw_sport
Sasha Banks vs. Bayley vs. Charlotte vs. Becky Lynch
February 11, 2015
WWE NXT
NXT Takeover: Rival
Record: 210-166 (56%)
Match Analysis: Going into this one, I really wasn’t sure how these four ladies were going to handle the potentially problematic match structure of a four-way, but they really went out there and proved themselves. It’s a credit to all four of these ladies’ skill levels that this match flowed so sublimely, when that’s a problem that 90% of four ways suffer from. It didn’t just feel like a rotating cast of singles matches while the other two rested on the outside. They had the crowd reactions, some great well placed high spots and a brilliant finish that just worked on several levels. I personally wouldn’t consider it as a match I’d consider in any match of the year list even so early in the year, but it’s my personal favourite of all the NXT womens matches and definitely a match you need to see. – Rob Reid
Happy Motel (Tetsuya Endo & Konosuke Takeshita vs. Strong BJ (Yuji Okabayashi & Daisuke Sekimoto)
February 15, 2015
DDT
Saitama Super DDT 2015
Record: 178-145 (55%)
Match Analysis: This is the 2nd part of the trilogy from DDT this year that I will call Happy Motel Aces vs. Strong BJ Stars. Go watch the six man from January before you watch this, then watch this, and then to make the triumvirate complete go watch the Endo vs. Okabayashi singles match from the tail end of February. Video issues aside this was a fantastic tag match that showed why Strong BJ are beloved hosses and why Happy Motel are the future of DDT and should probably be booked in more places. (NJPW anyone?)
Some may complain that Strong BJ bumped too much for Happy Motel, and others may complain that Happy Motel was worked over for too long, but those are minor nitpicks in a match full of fire, passion and fury. The finishing stretch was pure magic as there was a real sense of struggle to put each other away, and the way the German Suplex was treated as a legit threat for a finisher reminded me of the days of Dr. Death Steve Williams Homicide Backdrop equalling instant death. Believable near falls, chemistry sweeter than Breaking Bad, and two of the best tag teams in the world that not many people are talking about. Perhaps we should remedy that now. – Rob Barry
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x2hacrn
reDRagon (Kyle O’Reilly & Bobby Fish) vs. The Young Bucks (Matt & Nick Jackson) vs. Time Splitters
February 11, 2015
New Japan Pro Wrestling
New Beginning in Osaka
Record: 211-175 (55%)
Match Analysis: With better positioning on a less loaded card, this match was significantly better than the similar four way from Wrestle Kingdom (which featured these same three teams, plus the Forever Hooligans). The pacing here compared to at Wrestle Kingdom was like the difference between night & day, and this had none of the sloppy spots that hurt the 1/4 bout. Bobby Fish stood out to me as a real “glue guy” here (think: the way Christian would often hold together tag matches that could have easily spiraled out of control), and with the Bucks beating the Splitters to win the titles, it means that reDRagon were never beaten directly to lose their belts, which is a good little plot point to add to the continuing multi-promotional, multi-title reDRagon/Young Bucks feud. Try to imagine what the NJPW junior tag scene would’ve looked like these days without the additions of the Bucks & reDRagon over the last 18 months. Yeesh. – Joe Lanza
Roderick Strong vs. Kyle O’Reilly
February 21, 2015
Ring of Honor
Winter Warriors Tour: Atlanta
Record: 138-145 (49%)
Match Analysis: O’Reilly and Strong are masters of the frantically paced and hard hitting style that is popular on the American Independent circuit. What distinguishes this match from its compatriots is that it did cater to the usual tropes. For example, during the opening chain wrestling exchange there was no flurry of moves followed by a prolonged stare down while the crowd politely applauds. Instead, Strong and O’Reilly backed off for a moment before going right back at each other. Strong actually sold the arm that O’Reilly worked over instead of ignoring that fact. Moves actually meant something in this match and were not devalued by thirty six kick outs. In fact, both wrestlers’ signature moves came out protected. Seek out this match as an example of the quality of minimalist American Strong Style. – Warren Taylor
Will Ospreay vs. A.J. Styles
February 15, 2015
Revolution Pro Wrestling
High Stakes 2015
Record: 150-171 (47%)
Match Analysis: Will Ospreay has taken British wrestling by storm over the last year or so. His fast-paced, high energy matches and great fighting spirit allow him to captivate the crowd like few others in the UK. He’s already faced several international stars before, but AJ Styles was the biggest match of his young career, and both men delivered on the promise of this ‘dream match’. This match was made special by the intensity that both men brought to it, and the crowd being split 50/50 between Ospreay and Styles; a testament to how great Will’s fan support has become to be stealing support from the IWGP Heavyweight Champion. Ultimately, Styles was victorious with a great-looking backwards Styles Clash from the middle rope, but Ospreay looked like a star by keeping pace with one of the best wrestlers in the world. Big things are in the future for that man. – Oliver Court
Go Shiozaki vs. Zeus
February 7, 2015
All Japan Pro Wrestling
EXCITE SERIES 2015
Record: 142-161 (44%)
Match Analysis: I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw this match nominated, and I was very skeptical when I finally got around to watching it. I don’t think I had even seen a Zeus match previously that I’d put above 2-stars, but this delivered. Shiozaki worked as hard as I’ve seen a wrestler work in a singular match in ages, and this was your classic carry job. Zeus, for his part wasn’t, bad at all, but Go was off the charts great, busting his ass just as an ace should when faced with a sub par opponent. Go is having a tremendous year and is a (very) early Wrestler of the Year contender. – Joe Lanza
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x2hv6dv
The Young Bucks & Kenny Omega vs. reDRagon & Mascara Dorada
February 13, 2015
New Japan Pro Wrestling
New Beginning in Sendai
Record: 135-205 (40%)
Match Analysis: If Kenny Omega would just wrestle like he did here, while being a heel asshole, this whole Cleaner deal wouldn’t come off so cringy. The Bucks always deliver big, reDRagon is always great, but the story here was Dorada, who put in his best pure New Japan performance to date, setting up what should be a really fun match(es) with Omega, provided Omega continues to tone down the hokey aspects of his gimmick. – Joe Lanza
Johnny Mundo vs. Cage
February 25, 2015
Lucha Underground
Record: 136-219 (38%)
Match Analysis: Back when I played video games, which is over a decade ago by now, I rather enjoyed playing the WWE Smackdown series. I didn’t enjoy the tedious nature of creating a wrestler, but I gave it a try. Every time I would create a wrestler, the finished product usually looked like Brian Cage: A jacked up muscle guy who had the strength to lift anyone, the agility to jump over anyone, and the look to shame anyone. Cage powered through this match, doing what he wanted to Mundo. Every so often, Mundo would try some agile move to get back on top, and it usually succumbed to Cage’s power. Mundo’s knee eventually was Cage’s focal point, which took Mundo’s agility out of the picture, and the rest was history. This was a match the tough PWG crowd would have enjoyed, and the fans in the Temple certainly did as well. – Rob McCarron
The Briscoes vs. The Kingdom
February 21, 2015
Ring of Honor
The Briscoes vs. The Kingdom
Record: 100-176 (36%)
Match Analysis: Admittedly The Briscoes are my favorite act in wrestling, and admittedly I like The Kingdom more than most, but this was a tremendous match by any measure. Not only did this blow off an extremely underrated feud in a surprising fashion, but it featured some incredible spots, definitive and logical endings to all three falls, and a real sense of escalation that you don’t always get in ⅔ falls bouts. While you could nitpick aspects of the match, few matches today feature the internal psychology and long term psychology payoffs that we got here. This was great storytelling, with great (and insane) spots to boot. A serious darkhorse MOTYC, that more people should seek out. -Dylan Hales
Rusev vs. John Cena
February 22, 2015
WWE
WWE Fastlane
Record: 145-261 (36%)
Match Analysis: A lost narrative in this match is that while Rusev may have won by slightly nefarious means, this was worked even for nearly the entire match, which to me was a subtle message being sent that they truly believe in Rusev as a major player. I had openly questioned coming in whether Rusev could work a long WWE style main event, and whether he’d have the proper chemistry with Cena, which is something that can truly make or break a Cena match in a major way. Their chemistry was good, and the match delivered. Rusev is easily a top five worker in WWE right now. – Joe Lanza
Killer Elite Squad (Lance Archer & Davey Boy Smith Jr.) vs. TMDK (Shane Haste & Mikey Nicholls)
February 11, 2015
Pro Wrestling NOAH
Great Voyage 2015
Record: 115-219 (35%)
Match Analysis: I think the best is yet to come between these two teams. This was kept simple, with a long Haste babyface in peril spot, and KES largely dominating on their way to winning the GHC Tag Team titles. This was a set up for the idea that TMDK is going to have to solve the bigger, stronger, nastier outsiders, and from that perspective they successfully told the story they were attempting to tell. This was a smart match in the sense that these guys know they’ll be facing each other multiple times and that they need to tell a multi-match story. – Joe Lanza
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5n6NTBilMiM
Euforia, Niebla Roja, Último Guerrero vs Mistico, Valiente, Volador Jr.
February 21, 2015
CMLL
CMLL on Fox Sports (Mexico)
Record: 93-178 (34%)
Match Analysis: Do you like sound ground work and grappling? Do you like Ultimo Guerrero being a prick? Do you think Volador Jr. is massively underrated? By God people stop reading my words and just watch the match already. The fans were also hot for both teams as Los Guerreros did all of the heel tactics well and the tecnicos did all of the babyface fire and comebacks well. Some fantastic interplay between all 6 guys, the submission work was top-notch and this was paced at a level you want CMLL 6 man matches to be at. Near falls that had a purpose, dives that had thought behind them and fans buying into everything. The crowd explodes and so do I when Mistico hits La Mistica and Ultimo Guerrero taps. I know we don’t talk about Lucha Libre much at VOW but this will be an underseen gem at the end of the year. Is it a MOTY candidate? No, but it is a crime if people don’t at least watch this match.
BxB Hulk vs. Jimmy Susumu
February 5, 2015
Dragon Gate
Truth Gate 2015
Record: 118-233 (34%)
Match Analysis: Ok, so this was my first time watching a Dragon Gate match. At least, from what I can recall anyway. One of my New Years Resolutions was to check out more from this promotion, so I made sure to pick this when it became available. The first half of this match kind of surprised me. I was expecting flippy moves and big dives from the get-go, but they worked a 30+ minute match. They focused on submission holds and matwork to start, which was really good. Then about the last 15 minutes I’d estimate was big move after big move, spamming finishers left and right like it was nobody’s business. I get doing a finisher two or maybe even three times, but they did it tons of times to the point I got mad when BxB Hulk kicked out of three lariats and an akiata. If you want those finishers to actually mean something, kicking out of them repeatedly probably isn’t the greatest way to get it over. But, what do I know? The crowd popped big for every kickout, and by the end they were into the match. It really was a great back and forth contest, despitet there being things toward the end that I got annoyed at. – Bryan Rose
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x2h3194_bxb-hulk-c-vs-jimmy-susumu-dragon-gate_sport
Cesaro vs. Sin Cara
February 13, 2015
World Wrestling Entertainment
WWE Main Event
Record: 124-254 (33%)
Match Analysis: With Main Event now being uploaded to The Network on a one month delay, there may be more sneaky great matches like this that fall into the abyss and get overlooked. Everybody knows what Cesaro can do, so let’s talk about Sin Cara, who has become a real C-show workhorse, delivering good TV matches every time out on shows like Main Event & Superstars, while also teaming with/mentoring Kalisto in NXT. His role reminds me of an early 90’s WCW Brad Armstrong. This was given time, was very well paced, and was legitimate 4-star range match that was probably better than anything else on WWE TV all month.
Fuerza Guerrera vs. Negro Casas
February 8, 2015
All Elite
Liga Elite
Record: 65-174 (27%)
Match Analysis: I was interested in discussing this match because I had no idea Fuerza Guerrera was still wrestling! I watched it, and sure enough, he wrestled Negro Casas for a half hour. He moved and looked pretty good in the ring for someone that’s 60 years old. But, I don’t know if I would call this anything beyond a good match. The majority of it was lots of mat work, which looked sound, but it wasn’t particularly interesting to me. There were some kicks and some other spots in between, but I never found it to be really good at any point. But, the crowd was into it (really into Fuerza Guerrera actually) so much like the other match I reviewed – what do I know? If it works, it works. It was a solid match, but nothing beyond that. – Bryan Rose
Kengo Mashimo vs. Yuji Hino
February 22, 2015
K-DOJO
Super in TKP Garden City
Record: 74-209 (26%)
Match Analysis: Yuji Hino chops incredibly hard and incredibly frequently, destroying Kengo’s chest. Not to be outdone, Kengo kicks really hard and very frequently, decimating Yuji’s leg. This wasn’t a subtle match by any stretch of the imagination, it was just two bulls going full force into each other in a total war. And it was glorious. Pity about the finish. – Rob Reid
Black Angel vs Dragon Black, Voltar, Alas de Acero, Aramis
February 18, 2015
IWRG
IWRG Zona XXI
Record: 63-216 (23%)
Match Analysis: I don’t want to say this was amateur hour but each guy was flying around the ring with no semblance of psychology. VERY VERY VERY BOTCHY BOTCHY BOTCHY LUCHA LUCHA LUCHA. The kids try hard and if you want to watch car crash wrestling then this is practically it’s beating heart, plus some of those dives to the crowd were fun. I don’t even think this was for a special prize at the end-no Busca de un Idolo, no Reyes del Aire or La Copa Junior. Only IWRG could think that putting this match together makes sense but the crowd was full so maybe it worked and I know nothing of booking. Enjoy the match for what it was, don’t go over analyzing it like I do. – Rob Barry
Slim J vs. Fred Yehi
February 8, 2015
Anarchy Wrestling
Anarchy Wrestling TV – Episode 470
Record: 28-241 (10%)
One of the better Southern indie matches of the last few years, this was match two in a best of seven series that still has not concluded at the time of this piece. Rock solid match featuring spirited and inventive matwork, true momentum swings, some really nice counters, build to the big spots, a broad range of offense, and a finish that made you want to see the series continue without leaving you feeling cheated. – Dylan Hales
