For only the third time this year, a non-New Japan Pro Wrestling match topped our Match of the Month voting as Bayley and Sasha Banks’ 30-minute Iron Man match at NXT TakeOver: Respect narrowly edged out (0.1%) the NJPW King of Pro-Wrestling 2015 main event Kazuchika Okada vs. A.J. Styles. NXT, specifically, their women’s division has taken home two of the three non-New Japan Pro Wrestling Match of the Month titles this year with Sasha Banks grabbing her second crown (the first being May’s Banks vs. Becky Lynch match).

Banks and Bayley stormed through most of their competition holding overall wins against every other match in our voting pool with the lone exception of Pro Wrestling NOAH’s epic Minoru Suzuki vs. Takashi Suguira which beat Banks vs. Bayley 51% of the time.

Okada vs. Styles put up a valiant fight but overall losses to both Banks vs. Bayley and Suzuki vs. Suguira put them solidly in second place this month.

Perhaps the biggest oddity from this month’s voting is the aforementioned Suzuki vs. Suguira match which won all overall H2H matchups but still finished 6.6% behind Banks vs. Bayley in overall win percentage.

If you’re interested in seeing how each match performed in H2H matchups please click to the drop-down arrow to the left of the header H2H Analysis. Thanks to Josh Engleman (@JoshEngleman) for collecting data throughout the process as well as all VOW contributors who wrote analysis. Last but of course not least everyone who nominated and voted this month, we can’t do it without you.

Previous Winners (2015)

  • January: Kota Ibushi vs. Shinsuke Nakamura
  • February: Tomoaki Honma vs. Tomohiro Ishii
  • March: Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar vs. Seth Rollins
  • April: AJ Styles vs Kota Ibushi
  • May: Sasha Banks vs. Becky Lynch
  • June: KUSHIDA vs. Kyle O’Reilly
  • July: Kazuchika Okada vs. A.J. Styles
  • August: Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi
  • September: Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Hirooki Goto

Bayley vs. Sasha Banks
October 7, 2015
NXT TakeOver: Respect
Watch: voicesofwrestling.com/wwenetwork

[expand title=”H2H Analysis: 392-178 (68.9%)” tag=”h4″][easytable tblsorter=”true”]
Overall,H2H Opponent,W,L,Pass,Win%[attr sort=”desc”]
13,PROGRESS: Tommaso Ciampa vs. Mark Haskins,28,3,11,90%
14,EVOLVE: Ethan Page vs. Johnny Gargano,44,8,9,85%
11,NXT: Jason Jordon & Chad Gable vs. Johnny Gargano & Tommaso Ciampa,41,11,6,79%
8,RevPro: KUSHIDA vs. Kyle O’Reilly,35,10,11,77%
12,RevPro: Will Ospreay vs. Kazuchika Okada,30,10,9,76%
4,PWG: Chris Hero vs. Timothy Thatcher,27,11,9,71%
7,PWG: Mt. Rushmore 2.0 vs. Biff Busick & Andrew Everett & Trevor Lee,23,10,4,69%
9,RevPro: AJ Styles vs. Will Ospreay vs. Marty Scurll,29,15,9,66%
10,PWG: Mark Andrews vs. Will Ospreay,29,17,8,64%
6,WWE: Brock Lesnar vs. The Undertaker,28,17,5,62%
5,PWG: Euro Trash vs. Mount Rushmore 2.0,29,20,6,60%
2,NJPW: AJ Styles vs. Kazuchika Okada,31,25,5,55%
3,NOAH: Minoru Suzuki vs. Takashi Suguira,20,22,7,48%
[/easytable][/expand]

Match Analysis: NXT is a bizarre alternate universe, a glimpse into what WWE might be. What world is this where Stephanie McMahon sits front row, a spectator, next to Rebecca Knox and chants “women’s wrestling”? Wrestlers in WWE often relate like they’re just doing a job, while in NXT it feels like we’ve almost gotten to know the personalities as real people who we’ve watched develop and come into their own. Because of that the satisfying pay-offs for the audience are more frequent, this match being a terrific example.

This is the first ever serious main event match on a major show between two women in WWE, or arguably any mainstream promotion in the modern era. In hindsight, Sasha Banks and Bayley clearly should have main evented in Brooklyn the day before Summerslam. While I don’t think this match is quite as great as that one was, this still lives up to its billing.

After a history (still on-going) of women being presented too often as little more than accessories or sex objects in WWE, this match feels historic. So can you blame the Full Sail crowd for being so giddy that they can’t let an idle moment pass without filling it with some kind of chant?

Other matches this year will have greater execution and highspots, but few will take their audience through a greater range of emotions. This is an unraveling drama between an extremely likeable babyface and her charismatic, very talented adversary, who goes to great lengths to get heat from the smart crowd as they make history.

In the final moments, announcer Corey Graves speaks of “the maturation of the entire women’s division,” leaving us indirectly to wonder what immature thing it was before. -Brandon Howard (@adecorativedrop)

A.J. Styles vs. Kazuchika Okada
October 12, 2015
NJPW King of Pro-Wrestling 2015
Watch: http://njpwworld.com/p/s_series_00351_2_09

[expand title=”H2H Analysis: 364-166 (68.8%)” tag=”h4″][easytable tblsorter=”true”]
Overall,H2H Opponent,W,L,Pass,Win%[attr sort=”desc”]
14,EVOLVE: Ethan Page vs. Johnny Gargano,32,1,14,97%
13,PROGRESS: Tommaso Ciampa vs. Mark Haskins,32,5,11,88%
10,PWG: Mark Andrews vs. Will Ospreay,42,7,5,86%
12,RevPro: Will Ospreay vs. Kazuchika Okada,32,7,9,82%
6,WWE: Brock Lesnar vs. The Undertaker,28,8,3,78%
11,NXT: Jason Jordon & Chad Gable vs. Johnny Gargano & Tommaso Ciampa,22,9,5,71%
9,RevPro: AJ Styles vs. Will Ospreay vs. Marty Scurll,28,12,7,71%
7,PWG: Mt. Rushmore 2.0 vs. Biff Busick & Andrew Everett & Trevor Lee,27,14,7,66%
8,RevPro: KUSHIDA vs. Kyle O’Reilly,26,15,7,63%
5,PWG: Euro Trash vs. Mount Rushmore 2.0,27,17,8,62%
4,PWG: Chris Hero vs. Timothy Thatcher,25,20,6,56%
3,NOAH: Minoru Suzuki vs. Takashi Suguira,22,23,8,49%
1,NXT: Bayley vs. Sasha Banks,25,31,5,45%
[/easytable][/expand]

Match Analysis: What I really loved about this match was how different in tone it was from the Dominion main event from earlier this year where Okada won the title. That match was your traditional big main event for a New Japan show where the entire encounter is very even and back and forth going right up to the closing stretch with both guys get all their big moves in until finally one guy can’t bring himself to kick out anymore. Those types of matches, when executed properly anyway, give the feel that the victor of the contest is always in question right until the bell brings with no guy really having a clear lead. Now don’t get me wrong, I usually love that type of match, and adored their Dominion match, but I also really appreciated how different a feel they gave this one.

In this encounter they presented Okada as half a step ahead; simply put throughout they presented Okada as better than Styles. I’m not saying this was a squash match, it so clearly wasn’t, but they managed to present the match in a way that it felt like Okada was always ahead. Sure there were several periods where AJ was in control but I at least always got the feeling that he was fighting from behind. I forget whether it was Joe or Rich, but one of them put it brilliantly when they said that “Styles never really even felt close to hitting the Styles Clash”.

This was a beautiful example of how to make somebody look like a wrestling God. Putting somebody over is more than just laying down for the three seconds, it’s also about how you present the story of the match and huge credit has to be given to Styles for being so unselfish as to put over Okada so strongly. It was the perfect way to lead Okada into the WrestleKingdom main event against his nemesis who he has never beat on the big stage, as when Okada viciously landed that third Rainmaker you were left in no question that this Okada is the best Okada you have ever seen. -Rob Reid (@TheRDouble)

Minoru Suzuki vs. Takashi Sugiura
September 19, 2015 (Moved to October due to release date of video)
Pro Wrestling NOAH 15th Anniversary
Watch: http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x38026h

[expand title=”H2H Analysis: 299-181 (62.3%)” tag=”h4″][easytable tblsorter=”true”]
Overall,H2H Opponent,W,L,Pass,Win%[attr sort=”desc”]
13,PROGRESS: Tommaso Ciampa vs. Mark Haskins,30,4,15,88%
12,RevPro: Will Ospreay vs. Kazuchika Okada,24,5,15,84%
14,EVOLVE: Ethan Page vs. Johnny Gargano,21,8,16,72%
11,NXT: Jason Jordon & Chad Gable vs. Johnny Gargano & Tommaso Ciampa,29,13,10,70%
6,WWE: Brock Lesnar vs. The Undertaker,25,13,6,66%
4,PWG: Chris Hero vs. Timothy Thatcher,23,15,6,61%
7,PWG: Mt. Rushmore 2.0 vs. Biff Busick & Andrew Everett & Trevor Lee,21,15,9,59%
5,PWG: Euro Trash vs. Mount Rushmore 2.0,26,20,8,57%
8,RevPro: KUSHIDA vs. Kyle O’Reilly,18,15,10,55%
10,PWG: Mark Andrews vs. Will Ospreay,20,17,10,54%
9,RevPro: AJ Styles vs. Will Ospreay vs. Marty Scurll,18,16,11,53%
1,NXT: Bayley vs. Sasha Banks,22,20,7,52%
2,NJPW: AJ Styles vs. Kazuchika Okada,23,22,8,51%
[/easytable][/expand]

Match Analysis: Everyone who wants to learn how to be a great heel champion—or how to book one, in 2015—should be watching Minoru Suzuki in his current run as the indomitable invading GHC titleholder. Aside from his audacious hair style, Suzuki is not a heel with any purely tangible endowments; he’s not a giant or a bodybuilder; he’s not even ugly. Everything emotive about him is aura, his intangibles, his choices.

The mood for this match is set by the scene at the venue: Osaka Prefectural Gym, home of the hottest crowds in Japan, its elongated crosshatch ceiling hanging darkly over the NOAH canvas, which is already bloodstained from past Suzuki-gun battles. The building is half-full. The days of NOAH’s glory are now distantly departed, and Suzuki-gun is here to further desecrate what is already mortified.

Sugiura’s humble entrance is immediately contrasted by the live performance of “Kaze Ni Nare”, Suzuki’s entrance music. As if not to be outdone by the impending main event, Ayumi Nakamura, beautified in metallic cowboy hat, delivers a performance with fire to match the most intense moments of the fight to come.

Suzuki’s past title defenses have been littered with ref bumps and interference. In response, this match has special rules. There will be no time limit, no ring seconds allowed to accompany either man or get within in the guardrails. The match can end via pinfall, submission or KO, making this essentially a no DQ match, except there are three extra referees standing by in case there is a ref bump and to ensure the match is fought cleanly. Here we have stipulations that specifically address prior events of controversy, and in this match the stipulations are actually effective in their intent, a novel concept in most western pro wrestling.

Suzuki amplifies each situation with how he carries himself and expresses himself facially. Beginning with his in-ring introduction, he produces tension as he whips the towel from his head and stares across the ring like he owns it, like no one else belongs in it with him. He builds a defiant exterior that can be overcome and conquered by Sugiura’s comebacks and nearfalls when the challenger topples the champion, leaving Suzuki’s face smushed on the bottom rope.

The first half of the match is simple. There’s careful chain wrestling early. It quickly breaks down into head-grabbing, and the first of many trades of strikes, which end up defining this match. This is the exemplar match for the pro wrestling “trade battle” motif. It’s not just that the strikes are stiff or intense, or even well-executed or -timed. A knockout is explicitly a possible finish, so they tease it dramatically many times, using it as a nearfall. More than that, what could be more appropriate to the background? It’s a contest of pride: Suzuki, without his stablemates, defending the title; Sugiura defending NOAH. The trade battles recur in waves. The center of the ring becomes the epicenter for where they must return to testify. A double KO is teased, only for them to rise back up to reinitiate and pick up where they left off, neither man willing to forget the game.

Suzuki is a heel champion, but one with credibility, who gets beaten down with hard forearms by the babyface, but  still roars for more from a seated position in the corner; who injures Sugiura’s arm over the ropes with his trademark armbar; who tries to cheat further but isn’t allowed; and who eventually wins cleanly without help from his friends this time, building his villainous credibility further for when he finally loses the title to NOAH’s savior – whoever that might be. -Brandon Howard (@adecorativedrop)

Chris Hero vs. Timothy Thatcher
August 29, 2015 (PWG BOLA15 DVDs released in October)
PWG Battle of Los Angeles: Stage Two

[expand title=”H2H Analysis: 277-204 (57.6%)” tag=”h4″][easytable tblsorter=”true”]
Overall,H2H Opponent,W,L,Pass,Win%[attr sort=”desc”]
14,EVOLVE: Ethan Page vs. Johnny Gargano,28,3,16,90%
13,PROGRESS: Tommaso Ciampa vs. Mark Haskins,25,4,15,86%
11,NXT: Jason Jordon & Chad Gable vs. Johnny Gargano & Tommaso Ciampa,29,9,10,76%
10,PWG: Mark Andrews vs. Will Ospreay,25,14,13,64%
7,PWG: Mt. Rushmore 2.0 vs. Biff Busick & Andrew Everett & Trevor Lee,23,15,6,61%
5,PWG: Euro Trash vs. Mount Rushmore 2.0,22,16,9,59%
8,RevPro: KUSHIDA vs. Kyle O’Reilly,22,17,8,56%
12,RevPro: Will Ospreay vs. Kazuchika Okada,16,13,14,55%
6,WWE: Brock Lesnar vs. The Undertaker,19,17,6,53%
9,RevPro: AJ Styles vs. Will Ospreay vs. Marty Scurll,22,22,13,50%
2,NJPW: AJ Styles vs. Kazuchika Okada,20,25,6,44%
3,NOAH: Minoru Suzuki vs. Takashi Suguira,15,23,6,39%
1,NXT: Bayley vs. Sasha Banks,11,27,9,29%
[/easytable][/expand]

Match Analysis: This was the Hero/Thatcher match that I wanted. The grappling style both have championed often leaves me cold but Excalibur’s promise at the beginning of this match that it would be built around the fact that Hero had previously been unable to knock out Thatcher proved to foreshadow the best possible style of Thatcher match. When Thatcher works with someone who can help him build to a compelling climax, his matches can be exhilarating. Chris Hero, of course, is nearly unrivaled at constructing a match. Put together, and amplified by a crowd that clearly bought the pairing as a special one, this felt like two stars fighting for the respect that comes with earning the distinction of being the very best at what you do. -Aaron Bentley (@AaronBentleyVOW) 

Euro Trash vs. Mount Rushmore 2.0
August 28, 2015
PWG Battle of Los Angeles: Stage One

[expand title=”H2H Analysis: 284-229 (55.4%)” tag=”h4″][easytable tblsorter=”true”]
Overall,H2H Opponent,W,L,Pass,Win%[attr sort=”desc”]
14,EVOLVE: Ethan Page vs. Johnny Gargano,29,6,13,83%
13,PROGRESS: Tommaso Ciampa vs. Mark Haskins,31,7,12,82%
10,PWG: Mark Andrews vs. Will Ospreay,25,8,8,76%
11,NXT: Jason Jordon & Chad Gable vs. Johnny Gargano & Tommaso Ciampa,25,11,5,69%
12,RevPro: Will Ospreay vs. Kazuchika Okada,21,14,12,60%
9,RevPro: AJ Styles vs. Will Ospreay vs. Marty Scurll,23,18,9,56%
6,WWE: Brock Lesnar vs. The Undertaker,24,20,7,55%
8,RevPro: KUSHIDA vs. Kyle O’Reilly,21,22,10,48%
3,NOAH: Minoru Suzuki vs. Takashi Suguira,20,26,8,43%
4,PWG: Chris Hero vs. Timothy Thatcher,16,22,9,41%
7,PWG: Mt. Rushmore 2.0 vs. Biff Busick & Andrew Everett & Trevor Lee,14,20,11,41%
1,NXT: Bayley vs. Sasha Banks,20,29,6,40%
2,NJPW: AJ Styles vs. Kazuchika Okada,17,27,8,38%
[/easytable][/expand]

Match Analysis: Trios matches do not get much better in PWG than this. The intensity raged early on between Zack Sabre Jr. and Roderick Strong starting with the introductions and bled throughout the entire match where the narrative seemed to be the rivalry between the two with The Bucks, End, and Scurll being the ancillary parts. Those parts though, stepped up and delivered just as you’d expect them to. Ultimately, after a long back and forth battle, the teamwork of 2.0 dispells End and Scurll giving them a 3-on-1 advantage on Sabre where despite some FIGHTING SPIRIT, Sabre gets laid out to a super kick party followed by a sick kick and End of Heartache from Roddy to finally put him away. Not only was this match structured very well for the long format, it was worked at an exceptional level. Everyone bought their shitty little boots to wrestle tonight. It wasn’t simply some exhibition to pop the crowd, this was a program enhancing trios that sets up a future rematch with Sabre and Strong. Can’t say enough good about this one. It’ll be the best trios match you see all year and is a legitimate Match of the Year candidate. -Larry

Brock Lesnar vs. The Undertaker
October 25, 2015
WWE Hell in a Cell 2015
Watch: VoicesofWrestling.com/WWENetwork

[expand title=”H2H Analysis: 279-229 (55.0%)” tag=”h4″][easytable tblsorter=”true”]
Overall,H2H Opponent,W,L,Pass,Win%[attr sort=”desc”]
14,EVOLVE: Ethan Page vs. Johnny Gargano,33,4,11,89%
13,PROGRESS: Tommaso Ciampa vs. Mark Haskins,25,5,13,83%
11,NXT: Jason Jordon & Chad Gable vs. Johnny Gargano & Tommaso Ciampa,32,12,7,73%
12,RevPro: Will Ospreay vs. Kazuchika Okada,23,14,9,62%
7,PWG: Mt. Rushmore 2.0 vs. Biff Busick & Andrew Everett & Trevor Lee,27,17,9,62%
10,PWG: Mark Andrews vs. Will Ospreay,24,17,5,59%
8,RevPro: KUSHIDA vs. Kyle O’Reilly,21,15,8,59%
9,RevPro: AJ Styles vs. Will Ospreay vs. Marty Scurll,21,22,10,49%
4,PWG: Chris Hero vs. Timothy Thatcher,17,19,6,47%
5,PWG: Euro Trash vs. Mount Rushmore 2.0,20,24,7,45%
1,NXT: Bayley vs. Sasha Banks,17,28,5,38%
3,NOAH: Minoru Suzuki vs. Takashi Suguira,13,25,6,34%
2,NJPW: AJ Styles vs. Kazuchika Okada,8,28,3,22%
[/easytable][/expand]

Match Analysis: The Network Era’s most dynamic trilogy came to a brutal and decisive close at Hell in a Cell. The Undertaker, once the stuff of annual legend, descended back upon the WWE to avenge his loss at Wrestlemania 30, the first bout of this modern trilogy. We saw a different Undertaker than anything we’ve seen since his transition to part time work. Where we once saw a phenom and a legend, we saw a vengeful man desperate for revenge by any means necessary – illustrious history be damned.

In the end, however, only the Undertaker was damned. We were all a little off-put when the Undertaker won on a technicality at Summerslam after clearly tapping out, but it added a depth to the Undertaker character that we didn’t know we needed. Even if Taker rides off into the sunset after Wrestlemania this year, we’ve already seen his swan song. He went out swinging and he went out closer to being Mark Callaway than we’ve ever seen him. A fitting tribute to a man who was undoubtedly the backbone of the WWE roster throughout both the most trying and most successful times. -Alex Wendland (@AlexWendland)

Mt. Rushmore 2.0 vs. Trevor Lee, Andrew Everett & Biff Busick
August 29, 2015
PWG Battle of Los Angeles: Stage Two

[expand title=”H2H Analysis: 253-217 (53.8%)” tag=”h4″][easytable tblsorter=”true”]
Overall,H2H Opponent,W,L,Pass,Win%[attr sort=”desc”]
14,EVOLVE: Ethan Page vs. Johnny Gargano,26,4,11,87%
13,PROGRESS: Tommaso Ciampa vs. Mark Haskins,25,4,15,86%
12,RevPro: Will Ospreay vs. Kazuchika Okada,30,14,13,69%
10,PWG: Mark Andrews vs. Will Ospreay,25,12,9,68%
9,RevPro: AJ Styles vs. Will Ospreay vs. Marty Scurll,22,11,10,67%
5,PWG: Euro Trash vs. Mount Rushmore 2.0,20,14,11,59%
11,NXT: Jason Jordon & Chad Gable vs. Johnny Gargano & Tommaso Ciampa,19,19,10,50%
8,RevPro: KUSHIDA vs. Kyle O’Reilly,17,20,10,46%
3,NOAH: Minoru Suzuki vs. Takashi Suguira,15,21,9,41%
4,PWG: Chris Hero vs. Timothy Thatcher,15,23,6,39%
6,WWE: Brock Lesnar vs. The Undertaker,17,27,9,38%
2,NJPW: AJ Styles vs. Kazuchika Okada,14,27,7,34%
1,NXT: Bayley vs. Sasha Banks,10,23,4,31%
[/easytable][/expand]

Match Analysis: The phrase “non-stop action” gets thrown around far too often to describe a fast-paced wrestling event. So and so was a match with non-stop action. More times than not, that is an accurate description of a match, it works as a great way to describe a match with a frenetic pace, lots of high-flying, etc. Then you see Mt. Rushmore 2.0 vs. Trevor Lee, Andrew Everett & Biff Busick from Stage Two of the 2015 Battle of Los Angeles and all other uses of “non-stop action” seem passe. Between the high-flying insanity from Andrew Everett and Trevor Lee to the brutality of The Young Bucks using spike Air Jordans and nearly killing Biff Busick with a Superkick to his prone head, this six-man never stopped, never settled and never let you have a chance to catch your breath.  -Rich Kraetsch (@VoicesWrestling)

KUSHIDA vs. Kyle O’Reilly
October 2, 2015
Revolution Pro Wrestling & NJPW: Uprising 2015
Watch: https://vimeo.com/ondemand/uprising2015

[expand title=”H2H Analysis: 234-221 (51.4%)” tag=”h4″][easytable tblsorter=”true”]
Overall,H2H Opponent,W,L,Pass,Win%[attr sort=”desc”]
14,EVOLVE: Ethan Page vs. Johnny Gargano,19,0,17,100%
13,PROGRESS: Tommaso Ciampa vs. Mark Haskins,25,7,16,78%
10,PWG: Mark Andrews vs. Will Ospreay,22,12,10,65%
11,NXT: Jason Jordon & Chad Gable vs. Johnny Gargano & Tommaso Ciampa,21,15,11,57%
12,RevPro: Will Ospreay vs. Kazuchika Okada,15,12,18,56%
7,PWG: Mt. Rushmore 2.0 vs. Biff Busick & Andrew Everett & Trevor Lee,20,17,10,54%
9,RevPro: AJ Styles vs. Will Ospreay vs. Marty Scurll,19,17,16,53%
5,PWG: Euro Trash vs. Mount Rushmore 2.0,22,21,10,52%
3,NOAH: Minoru Suzuki vs. Takashi Suguira,15,18,10,45%
4,PWG: Chris Hero vs. Timothy Thatcher,17,22,8,44%
6,WWE: Brock Lesnar vs. The Undertaker,15,21,8,41%
2,NJPW: AJ Styles vs. Kazuchika Okada,15,26,7,37%
1,NXT: Bayley vs. Sasha Banks,10,35,11,23%
[/easytable][/expand]

Match Analysis: The rematch of the Best of the Super Juniors final was every bit as spectacular as the original match, and being able to watch it live in the UK was a real treat. KUSHIDA and O’Reilly have impressively effortless chemistry with each other, whether it be in their early match technical work or their brilliant counters and reversals of big moves later on. Everything they did drew me further into the match, and my attention was hooked for the full duration. The best thing about the match was that it felt like a true contest, and after about the halfway point it felt like any move or submission attempt could be the one to finish the match. This really helped ramp up the excitement, enthralling the York Hall as both men exchanged signature moves. I like how resilient KUSHIDA came across, as if no matter what submission hold O’Reilly put him in, he would always find a way out. That made the finish of O’Reilly finally locking KUSHIDA in and making him pass out very satisfying indeed. It wasn’t quite as good as the BOSJ final, but also wasn’t a main event match, so that’s very forgivable. For me it was the best match of the RPW/NJPW weekend, and sets up a tantalising rubber match in the future. -Oliver Court

A.J. Styles vs. Will Ospreay vs. Marty Scurll
October 2, 2015
Revolution Pro Wrestling & NJPW: Uprising 2015
Watch: https://vimeo.com/ondemand/uprising2015

[expand title=”H2H Analysis: 222-235 (48.6%)” tag=”h4″][easytable tblsorter=”true”]
Overall,H2H Opponent,W,L,Pass,Win%[attr sort=”desc”]
14,EVOLVE: Ethan Page vs. Johnny Gargano,25,7,14,78%
13,PROGRESS: Tommaso Ciampa vs. Mark Haskins,13,6,14,69%
12,RevPro: Will Ospreay vs. Kazuchika Okada,21,12,11,64%
10,PWG: Mark Andrews vs. Will Ospreay,19,14,14,58%
6,WWE: Brock Lesnar vs. The Undertaker,22,21,10,51%
4,PWG: Chris Hero vs. Timothy Thatcher,22,22,13,50%
8,RevPro: KUSHIDA vs. Kyle O’Reilly,17,19,16,47%
3,NOAH: Minoru Suzuki vs. Takashi Suguira,16,18,11,47%
11,NXT: Jason Jordon & Chad Gable vs. Johnny Gargano & Tommaso Ciampa,14,17,12,45%
5,PWG: Euro Trash vs. Mount Rushmore 2.0,18,23,9,44%
1,NXT: Bayley vs. Sasha Banks,15,29,9,34%
7,PWG: Mt. Rushmore 2.0 vs. Biff Busick & Andrew Everett & Trevor Lee,11,22,10,33%
2,NJPW: AJ Styles vs. Kazuchika Okada,12,28,7,29%
[/easytable][/expand]

Match Analysis: When AJ Styles, arguably the best wrestler on planet earth right now, is the third best wrestler in a match through no fault of his own you know you’re watching something special. Marty Scurll, who’s developed and evolved by leaps and bounds in the last two years, delivered a world class performance as the glue that helped hold this match together. Will Ospreay was a pure bundle of energy including a sequence composed of a tope over the turnbuckle, a through the turnbuckle DDT and a Red Arrow that was easily the most awesome sequence I’ve ever seen in person at a wrestling show. All three men looked fantastic, the crowd were going nuts, it avoided an over-reliance on the tired two in, one out format of triple threat matches, the finish was novel, and I was so excited afterwards I was giddily bouncing up and down with excitement for a good twenty minutes – I adored this match.  Not only was this my favourite match of October, this will also nearly certainly be in my top five for the whole year. -Garrett Kidney (@GarrettKidney)

Will Ospreay vs. Mark Andrews
August 28, 2015
PWG Battle of Los Angeles: Stage One

[expand title=”H2H Analysis: 205-273 (42.8%)” tag=”h4″][easytable tblsorter=”true”]
Overall,H2H Opponent,W,L,Pass,Win%[attr sort=”desc”]
14,EVOLVE: Ethan Page vs. Johnny Gargano,26,2,10,93%
13,PROGRESS: Tommaso Ciampa vs. Mark Haskins,23,3,14,88%
11,NXT: Jason Jordon & Chad Gable vs. Johnny Gargano & Tommaso Ciampa,27,18,6,60%
3,NOAH: Minoru Suzuki vs. Takashi Suguira,17,20,10,46%
9,RevPro: AJ Styles vs. Will Ospreay vs. Marty Scurll,14,19,14,42%
6,WWE: Brock Lesnar vs. The Undertaker,17,24,5,41%
12,RevPro: Will Ospreay vs. Kazuchika Okada,12,19,13,38%
1,NXT: Bayley vs. Sasha Banks,17,29,8,36%
4,PWG: Chris Hero vs. Timothy Thatcher,14,25,13,36%
8,RevPro: KUSHIDA vs. Kyle O’Reilly,12,22,10,35%
7,PWG: Mt. Rushmore 2.0 vs. Biff Busick & Andrew Everett & Trevor Lee,12,25,9,32%
5,PWG: Euro Trash vs. Mount Rushmore 2.0,8,25,8,24%
2,NJPW: AJ Styles vs. Kazuchika Okada,7,42,5,14%
[/easytable][/expand]

Match Analysis: Two debuts for PWG here in a deeply international BOLA weekend this year, but two men who were no strangers to each other. This was an opportunity for us proud, stalwart British wrestling fans to share homegrown wrestlers we’ve been enjoying for years, at one of the most exciting and hotly anticipated wrestling tournaments of the year. 

The match began in the most chivalrous and honorable of manners: with Mark Andrews placing an affectionate kiss on the hand of Ospreay (as is the custom in England and Wales). It became apparent immediately that the men were here to impress, holding nothing back as they exchanged the most dramatic of high-flying and fast-paced flips. With painful submissions and shocking reversals, from start to finish: this is a “don’t blink or you’ll miss it” first-round match. -Ru Gunn (@doctordala)

Others Receiving Votes

  • Jason Jordan and Chad Gable vs. Johnny Gargano and Tommaso Ciampa (NXT – October 28)
  • Will Ospreay vs. Kazuchika Okada (Revolution Pro – October 3)
  • Tommaso Ciampa vs. Mark Haskins (PROGRESS Wrestling – October 18)
  • Ethan Page vs. Johnny Gargano (EVOLVE – October 17)

Others Nominated

  • Matt Sydal vs Fenix (PWG 8/28)
  • Adam Page vs. Jay Briscoe (ROH 10/17)
  • Kazuchika Okada vs. Will Ospreay (Revolution Pro 10/3)
  • Roman Reigns vs. Bray Wyatt (WWE 10/25)
  • Mike Bailey vs. Tommy End (PWG 8/30)
  • Shingo Takagi vs Don Fujii (Dragon Gate 10/4)
  • Zack Daddy vs ReDragon (wXw 10/4)
  • Zack Sabre Jr vs. Pentagon Jr (PWG 8/30)
  • Jerry Lawler vs Terry Funk (USA Championship Wrestling 10/24)
  • Matt Sydal vs Kenny Omega (NJPW 10/12)
  • Austin Aries vs. Ethan Carter III (TNA 10/7)
  • Team Tier-1 vs Team PWX (FIP 10/23)
  • Brian Cage vs. Jack Evans (PWG 8/30)
  • William Ospreay vs. Matt Sydal (PWG 8/30)
  • Shinsuke Nakamura vs Big Damo (RPW 10/2)
  • CIMA, GAMMA, Don Fujii vs. VerzerK (Dragon Gate 10/8)
  • Roman Reigns vs. Kevin Owens vs. Alberto Del Rio vs. Dolph Ziggler (WWE 10/26)
  • Kevin Owens vs. Chris Jericho (WWE 10/03)
  • Dia.HEARTS vs. Monster Express (DG 10/08)
  • El Desperado & TAKA Michinoku vs. Daisuke Harada & Atsushi Kotoge (NOAH 10/4)
  • Tetsuya Naito vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi (NJPW 10/12)
  • Time Splitters vs Matt Sydal & Ricochet (NJPW 10/23)
  • Drew Galloway vs. Mike Bailey (PWG 8/29)