VOW 2021 Match of the Year: #50-26

Some of the year’s standout matches just miss the cut of the top 25 in Voices of Wrestling’s 2021 Match of the Year!

2021 MATCH OF THE YEAR ARCHIVES

• Introduction & Honorable Mentions
• 100-76
• 75-51

VOICES OF WRESTLING MATCH OF THE YEAR ARCHIVES

• 2020
• 2019
• 2018
• 2017
• 2016
• 2015
• 2014
• 2013
• 2012

#50
HARASHIMA vs. Yuji Okabayashi
11/21
DDT

Overall Points: 30
Total Votes: 4
% of Ballots: 2.3%
1 First-Place Vote

“I wrote about this in my column on PW musings so I’ll just repeat it here. The best thing that I did as a wrestling fan in 2021 was discover Yuji Okabayashi. A truly sensational all round performer who deserves all the appreciation that he gets. HARASHIMA needs no introduction. One of the greatest Wrestlers of all time and still going strong to this day. This was a showdown between the smile Pissari teammates on the final night of block matches from DDT D-oh Grand Prix and man what a ride it was. Played out three acts with fantastic mat work in the opening stretch and HARASHIMA going for the leg while Okabayashi clobbered him with the chops until it just comes into one when they’ve used up all their ideas and now it’s just a game of one upsmanship with both friends clobbering each other with one of the best strike exchanges you will see anywhere. And in between all that, the constant theme was them not being willing to give even an inch to the one another. An intense and absolutely wonderful bout. The match of the year.” -Ashutosh Dubey

#49
Edge vs. Seth Rollins
10/21
WWE

Overall Points: 32
Total Votes: 7
% of Ballots: 4%
Highest Vote: 3rd

“My favorite WWE match of 2021 and a fitting finale to a feud that was way too brief. It also gets extra points for being the hottest match in the history of WWE’s Crown Jewel shows. Edge and Rollins are master storytellers inside the ropes.” -Jeuron Dove

#48
Shingo Takagi vs. Zack Sabre Jr.
9/23
NJPW

Overall Points: 32
Total Votes: 7
% of Ballots: 4%
Highest Vote: 2nd

“Shingo is my wrestler of the year and Zack is one of my favorites. Here they both show why.” -Dave Musgrave

#47
Kaito Kiyomiya & Yoshiki Inamura vs. The 37KAMIINA
6/6
CyberFight

Overall Points: 32
Total Votes: 8
% of Ballots: 4.5%
Highest Vote: 4th

“It’s amazing to think of how weirdly unique an event like CyberFight Festival was — and it just works! And this match was my favorite of the bunch, throwing awesome talents in a blender and giving us end results like Takeshita’s explosive power spots, the maybe-some-day potential of a Kiyomiya/Ueno rivalry and Inamura pouncing Take into the fifth dimension. So much fun.” -TDE

#46
Violento Jack vs. Masashi Takeda
9/5
FREEDOMS

Overall Points: 33
Total Votes: 8
% of Ballots: 4.5%
Highest Vote: 4th

“BLOOD. AND. GUTS. Takeda’s death match style, which is essentially a G1 main event with ultraviolence, elevates him amongst the greats of professional bleeders. It turns out that the stakes of a grappling reversal sequence reach their highest heights when all of the holds are to prevent the opponent from stabbing you with scissors. I lost count of the number of times I, out loud, gasped “WHOA” to nobody as Takeda and Jack tried to commit war crimes on each other with every sharp object they could find, including potted plants. This is must watch for my fellow death match ghouls.” -Jeff Martin

#45
Black Terry vs. Mr. Condor
12/5
Zona 23

Overall Points: 34
Total Votes: 3
% of Ballots: 1.7%
2 First-Place Votes

“This match made me think about eye contact in wrestling. Generally, there are two moments that stand out in terms of eye contact, and both are things that I could do with less of. The first is when it is done in order to start or continue some overly choreographed spot, both wrestlers lock eyes and then begin something they discussed backstage at great lengths, like a silent countdown. The second is the mid match staredown, which has now become such an emotional short cut that it tends to lower the stakes rather than heighten them.

But here, I think about eye contact in a new way. The majority of this match is two men punching each other in the jaw and in the chest and in the face. And throughout, Mr. Condor stares at Black Terry, looking at him with hate in his heart. The camera is so close. You see him do it. You see which punches hurt, which punches rock him, which punches he braces for. And during each one, he stares at Black Terry. It is riveting in a way that is totally unique.

And again, what can be said about Black Terry that hasn’t already been said here? I feel like we said it earlier in the year with the Marvin match, and I think there is chance, at least upon first watch, that this match is just flat out better. I think that the more Terry I watch from the past few years, the more I think he is the greatest sound maker in wrestling history. He is like Jim Breaks, in that you can listen to a Black Terry match and it elicits a feeling. Of course, Breaks used this gift to make whine and cry and give a crowd someone to hate and laugh at in equal parts. Terry’s grunts and sighs and yells and vocalizations are the edge of suffering. Terry breathing hard and loud while you hear his fist hit bone again and again is like the camera whirr at the beginning of Texas Chainsaw Massacre. It makes you queasy with your eyes closed, and if you dare to open them, you see only violence.

There is nothing else like this match this year. It’s the first match I watched and immediately texted people about. It’s something else.” -JR Goldberg

#44
Shingo Takagi vs. Kazuchika Okada
6/7
NJPW

Overall Points: 34
Total Votes: 5
% of Ballots: 2.8
1 First-Place Vote

“I’m a big fan of the pairing of Shingo and Okada. It’s the fast-paced Dragon Gate Style vs. the classic methodical NJPW Style. With Shingo defeating Okada earlier in the year, it seemed obvious that Okada was going to get the win back and become champ again. Despite thinking Okada would win, I very desperately wanted Shingo to win. Shingo is the most consistent wrestler in NJPW and one of the best wrestlers in the world. I was locked into every Shingo near fall. When Shingo finally hit Okada with the Made in Japan, I jumped off my couch, hoping Okada wouldn’t kick out. I was beyond excited when Red Shoes’ hand came down for the three count. In a year where fans were tuning out of NJPW, Shingo becoming world champion was exactly what was needed to bring some life to the promotion and grab fans’ attention.” -Jeremy Donovan

#43
Yuji Okabayashi vs. Kazusada Higuchi
11/17
DDT

Overall Points: 34
Total Votes: 7
% of Ballots: 4%
Highest Vote: 2nd

“The flesh-battering physicality that Higuchi and Okabayashi brought in this D-OH Grand Prix bout is a marvel. These hosses unleashed an absolute deluge of violence, maximizing every moment of ring time. It’s a match that transports you to a primal place, to a scene where two animals tear it each other in pursuit of dominance. Okabayashi had a superb run in this tourney, and this was his crown jewel performance.” -Ryan Dilbert

#42
Roman Reigns vs. Daniel Bryan vs. Edge
4/11
WWE

Overall Points: 34
Total Votes: 7
% of Ballots: 4%
1 First-Place Vote

“The best WrestleMania main event in years had a lot of unique and well executed spots and an interesting story that could have gone in any direction. Every wrestler played his role perfectly and had a chance of winning which made the match much more exciting, and even though I wasn’t happy with its outcome I can’t say that it wasn’t booked in the best way possible.” -Saud Al-Rasheedi

#41
Arez vs. El Hijo del Vikingo
3/21
RIOT

Overall Points: 35
Total Votes: 7
% of Ballots: 4%
Highest Vote: 2nd

“The only empty arena match I’ll vote for this year and it is will worth going out of your way to see. Lucha fans have been singing both guys’ praises for years now and they go all out. That makes ring crew and luchadores alike coming to the apron and making noise as these two dole out innovative, high flying offense all the more special” -BlastoSTG

#40
Roman Reigns vs. Daniel Bryan
3/21
WWE

Overall Points: 37
Total Votes: 4
% of Ballots: 2.3%
1 First-Place Vote

“Fantastic match. Both guys played their roles so well, Reigns has matured as a performer since their last match 6 years ago and I thought the story they told was excellent. Bryan IS the best wrestler in the company, that’s the story they are telling that in a fair fight, for as intimidating as Roman is he gets out-thought and doesn’t have an answer for Bryan’s technical ability to tie him into a submission at every turn. Bryan has no fear of Roman, he’s played this game before 7 years ago against The Authority, and you can see that in the opening moments where Bryan’s smiling and has a lively, giddy attitude to getting to face Roman for real this time. It’s actually Roman this time that sells the fear, he knows he’s screwed if Bryan gets him down to the mat because with Edge watching on it’s harder to take the cowards way out again. The nuts and bolts of the match were great, they had a deliberately slow pace in the early goings because they knew they were going 30 minutes, but they filled it with interesting stuff. The Yes lock counter from the Spear down the stretch was so good I punched the air. Bryan’s the GOAT, nothing else to say.” -Ed Mills

“The match that made me FEEL the most in all of 2021. Its beautiful storytelling & captivating performance by Daniel Bryan completely made me lose myself in it.” -Heikki Oinonen

#39
Chris Brookes vs. Lulu Pencil
7/22
Gatoh Move

Overall Points: 46
Total Votes: 5
% of Ballots: 2.8%
2 First-Place Votes

“No match this year was better at telling a story than Chris Brookes vs. Lulu Pencil. This was a true war of attrition that ultimately has a wonderful message to never give up and to believe in yourself, despite what others might say.” -Kelly Harrass

#38
Josh Alexander vs. TJP
6/3
Impact Wrestling

Overall Points: 48
Total Votes: 9
% of Ballots: 5.1%
Highest Vote: 2nd

“The best Impact Wrestling match since Samoa Joe/AJ Styles and Christopher Daniels.” -J.D. Oliva

“This was the match that opened a lot of eyes, in my opinion at least, to what Josh Alexander could really do. To have worked as few singles matches in Impact as he had and then to pace this 60-plus minute Ironman match in the way that he and TJP did was remarkable.

It’s the pacing that earns this the most credit but is also partly what made it second and not first on this list. To commit to working a match like this with no crowd deserves tremendous credit but the lack of an audience also made the hour they worked feel long, particularly when I rewatched it earlier this week. Still, it was a booking masterstroke and was, without question Alexander’s best title defense.

This match highlighted the elevated importance that Impact management and Josh’s performances brought the X-Division in 2021 – a trend I sincerely hope continues in 2022 and beyond.” -Andrew Sinclair

#37
The VeloCities vs. Aussie Open
5/8
PWA Black Label

Overall Points: 52
Total Votes: 12
% of Ballots: 6.8%
Highest Vote: 2nd

“What a fun tag match from the land down under. The story, delivered well both in ring and on commentary, really elevated the feel of the match. At points a little long in the tooth and spot heavy for its own good, it nevertheless showcased just how incredible both teams are and, I suspect, likely caught the eye of international talent scouts.” -James “NuclearConvoy”

“One of the best tag team matches I have ever seen. Full crowd experience and two completely contrasting teams in terms of style and size who overcame the possibilities of a disaster to put on one of the best matches to ever take place in Australia.” -James Hova

#36
Shun Skywalker vs. Kzy
7/31
Dragongate

Overall Points: 53
Total Votes: 10
% of Ballots: 5.7%
Highest Vote: 2nd

“It will never be KZY-time. The journey of KZY is pretty remarkable going from opening match comedy act to main event Kobe World is incredible in itself. After a King of Gate victory KZY’s challenge resulted in one of the most engaging and fan emotional matches I found myself having in 2021. This felt like my favourite wrestler’s last chance at the Dream Gate title on the biggest stage. Taking a monkey flip of such height off the apron made me scream. Each and every high flying, hard hitting, dynamic move, and near fall got me. Dragongate doing what they do best. A fast paced style with a big match story feel.” -Jacob Woolley

“Shun’s title reign has been filled with good-great title matches but freak injuries as well and the Kikuta injury plagued the last title defence. So I’m glad that Shun Skywalker had his moment as champion. And despite everything, watching it after the result was revealed, they were still able to create compelling nearfalls and have convincing momentum switches that had me feeling that Kzy could win. The build to the SSW was sublime with Kzy able to slip away at the last second several times before being hit with it. The match had tons of insane high risk moves, like Kzy taking a scary Monkey Flip off the apron to the floor. Both left it all in the ring to put out an incredible match.” -MC

#35
Kenny Omega vs. Rey Fenix
1/6
AEW

Overall Points: 54
Total Votes: 15
% of Ballots: 8.5%
Highest Vote: 2nd

“This may be the best TV match I have ever seen, 17 minutes of non-stop action (even with ad breaks) that had me on my feet for most of that time. Fenix never fails to amaze me but the rolling German Suplex from the top rope was special even by his standards.” -Mike Daysley

“It’s a real shame that the absolutely horrific events of January 6th, 2021 overshadowed the first AEW Dynamite of the new year, because that show featured what was easily one of the best matches of 2021. Kenny Omega vs. Fenix was a bout that had incredible potential on paper, but it delivered in spades when it actually happened. Omega always delivers in these big-time spots, while Fenix was nothing short of spectacular. While the result was never really in doubt, the action from start to finish was simply awesome. If you haven’t had the chance to see this match (and again….given the events of that awful day….I wouldn’t blame you), I would definitely recommend seeking it out. It 100% lives up to the hype.” -Sean Sedor

#34
Tsukasa Fujimoto vs. Tsukushi Haruka
11/13
Ice Ribbon

Overall Points: 55
Total Votes: 7
% of Ballots: 4%
1 First-Place Vote

(Note: Due to a glitch in our system, this match was voted on with two separate dates and also appears as #63 on the VOW Match of the Year countdown. We apologize for the error.) 

“As someone who’s been a fan of Tsukushi’s for years now to see the story of her going from having to restart her career back at Ribbonmania 2017 after a incident caused her to be suspended, to throughout 2021 getting her confidence back and being able to finally ask her and Tsukasa’s mentor Manami Toyota for permission to use Manami’s Japanese Ocean Suplex again after feeling she wasn’t allowed to because of her suspension and finally hitting it for the first time to beat Tsukasa Fujimoto for the IcexInfinity title after kicking out of the other legendary Manami finished the JOC passed to Tsukasa, and the big Cherry on top of it all was Manami Toyota telling Tsukushi that she’s proud of her and putting the IcexInfinity belt around Tsukushi’s waist. I get chocked up every time I rewatch this match” -K from RedLeaf RetroCast

“I am far from the biggest Ice Ribbon fan but this match managed to appropriately grip me as Tsukasa Fujimoto passed the torch to Tsukushi Haruka. Fujimoto and Haruka are two of the longest-tenured wrestlers still active in Ice Ribbon, and they regularly team up as The Dropkickers, so it’s safe to say they know each other inside and out. That intimate knowledge of each other carried the match from start to finish as they almost always knew what the other was going to do, but instead of countering it, they were resolved to take that beating and fight through it. There were so many moments where Tsukushi or Tsukasa would hit a stiff strike and the other would welcome it and fight through the pain. For a 27 minute match, this was paced really, really well, and never lagged, it told all the story it needed to and then wrapped up with a great finale as Tsukushi Haruka finally won the ICExInfinity title after using a move passed down from Manami Toyota to put away Fujimoto.” -Alex Richards

#33
Konosuke Takeshita vs. Yuji Okabayashi
12/26
DDT

Overall Points: 56
Total Votes: 9
% of Ballots: 5.1%
1 First-Place Vote

“DDT came in at almost the last possible moment to deliver a MOTYC. These guys had a great draw during the D-Oh block stage that led to this match. This was a war between two of the best wrestlers in the world. While the winner was not a surprise, the way in which the finish came certainly was. While Okabayashi is not an unknown quantity, he doesn’t get enough recognition for being one of the best wrestlers in the world.” -Gerard Di Trolio

“The struggle for dominance between these two fascinated me from the very beginning, which in this case means their first meeting in November as part of the D-King Grand Prix. While the match in November was pretty much telegraphed from the very beginning and for most observers it was obvious that it would go to a time limit draw, the second one for the KO-D Openweight Title in my opinion elevated the story of the first match. It was a tale of both company’s respective top players clashing. Unlike NOAH vs. NJPW, the rivalry between DDT and BJW is much more amicable even in kayfabe. Still though the battle for supremacy between the two companies came through and was even complemented by another element: Takeshita using strikes he took from Kenta Kobashi and Jun Akiyama. After the November match I noticed I was higher on it than many others and that may also be the case here, but I absolutely love to see either of these wrestlers go to work and in combination it resulted in an excellent contest.” -STRIGGA

#32
Kenny Omega vs. Jon Moxley
3/7
AEW

Overall Points: 58
Total Votes: 11
% of Ballots: 6.3
1 First-Place Vote

“It’s hard to talk about this match without talking about the ending. The hilariously bad “explosion” that looked more like sparklers than death, and ruined an excellent face turn by Eddie Kingston playing the role of Atsushi Onita by coming in and laying over a defeated Moxley to protect him. To AEW’s credit, they made the best of it by playing it up as Omega’s creation and an excellent Eddie Kingston promo saying he reacted to the lame explosion the way he did because of a panic attack. Which after his incredible Player’s Tribune piece on mental health makes it all the better and more real.

And honestly, I could have forgiven the post match, because the majority of the match leading up to it was incredible. The heights this match reached in drawing me in was only rivaled by my number 1 match of the year (Ibushi vs. White at Wrestle Kingdom). I was leaning forward in my seat, wringing my hands, standing and pacing – whatever phrase you want to use to describe that I had fully suspended my disbelief and was all in on this match. The whole purpose of the Exploding Barbed Wire Deathmatch is building anticipation and drama for someone to hit the ropes and trigger an explosion. The Onita matches, such as his one with Terry Funk, where often only about this, and were executed to great effect. Here Omega and Moxley did their part – they made every moment of hitting the ropes count. And in between that had a fantastically violent wrestling match. Sure the “triple death” exploding board on the outside didn’t look great when they crashed onto it, but they still managed to pull it off. The most memorable moment to me was when Kenny took a bump into a barbed wire board in the corner without holding anything back and ending up with a great visual of blood all over the back of his white t-shirt, likely from the barbed wire slicing him.

The thing that really knocked this down though, wasn’t the post match, it was the finish of the match. Now, I loved Moxley escaping from the One Winged Angel pinfall by triggering an explosion. A very cool way to protect a move that has only even been kicked out of once before – a fact that Don Callis immediately pointed out on commentary with a “that wasn’t a kick out!” The inevitable Good Brothers interference soured the ending though, and made it very disappointing. They brought out an exploding barbed wire bat, which was very cool, and then helped Kenny hit the One Winged Angel on a chair, but for a match that was the height of drama for long stretches, the ending sadly lacked it. I think with one last gasp of babyface energy from Mox, fighting off the Good Brothers, but then ultimately falling to Kenny could have catapulted this match up to the 5 star territory. Instead we got over 20 minutes of a 5 star match with a 3 star ending. Still though – it’s just incredible to think that we got an Exploding Barbed Wire Deathmatch as the main event of a major US wrestling event. Hopefully AEW will bring it back at some point as I think Hangman Page, Darby Allin, the Lucha Bros, and more could thrive in this situation.” -S. Dakota Jones

“Likely not a popular pick for MOTY amongst most circles, due to the post-match failure to deliver on anything resembling an “explosion,” but I feel this match catches too much flack for what happened after it ended. Bell to bell, this match was insane fun. Mox and Omega worked hard, coming up with innovative spots throughout, and the barbed-wire ropes exploded and sparked as they were supposed to. In fact, throughout the year I kept thinking back to how the One-Winged Angel stayed protected with Mox breaking that one particular pinfall by willingly sacrificing his leg to the exploding barbed-wire ropes. If a match could stick with me this much, and still bring up this much excitement in my mind nearly a year later, it almost HAS to be MOTY no?” -James “NuclearConvoy” Snelgrove

#31
The Young Bucks vs. Eddie Kingston & Jon Moxley
5/30
AEW

Overall Points: 63
Total Votes: 17
% of Ballots: 9.7%
Highest Vote: 2nd

“This is a special match. This was the first big AEW event with a full crowd, and that crowd was so hungry that it elevated this match. From the entrances, to Moxley and Kingston being badasses, to the Bucks almost killing Moxley to be able to beat him, and Kingston’s hot tag, this was an unforgettable performance by the four men. A perfect example of a modern twist to a classic tag team match.” -Abraham Delgado

“The second best match I have ever seen live. The rebirth of pro wrestling in America, as this was an absolute beast of a match in front of a full, lively crowd in Jacksonville. The crowd lived and died with Kingston and Moxley, the interference was well-placed and paid off with someone finally running off the Young Bucks’ goons, and the match peaked perfectly. The highlight of AEW’s best show of the year.” -Suit Williams

#30
Takuya Nomura vs. Daisuke Sekimoto
10/24
Big Japan

Overall Points: 64
Total Votes: 9
% of Ballots: 5.1%
1 First-Place Vote

“Takuya Nomura’s first title defense was the expected banger. I loved all of this the grappling, the work on the neck and the whole striking exchange between these two maniacs. Pretty scary were the headbutts from Takuya Nomura but I loved them to be honest, it became a bit more dramatic when blood came to play. The story about the world travelled veteran and the young champion had great sequences and the perfect “passing the torch” moment with the finishing moments.” -Christian Gascoigne

“The perfect match to showcase everything great about Takuya Nomura. The first half of the match was a really great build-up, picking up the pace after the 10 minute mark. Nomura’s skill & heart overcomed the strength of Sekimoto in an excellent performance.” -Gin Malkavar

#29
MJF vs. Darby Allin
11/13
AEW

Overall Points: 64
Total Votes: 16
% of Ballots: 9.1%
Highest Vote: 2nd

“This match served as the final piece of evidence that MJF has ascended from a good bell-to-bell worker to a great one. Also, it was the high point of Darby Allin’s sneaky good year.” -Chuck Hodgin

“This was everything I want in “modern wrestling”. Fast paced, clean and smooth wrestling while at the same telling a simple but effective story. MJF says he could beat Darby with a Side Headlock Takeover and keeps going for it all match. Darby is able to keep pace with him but eventually he goes high risk to try and finish MJF off but it backfires and he hurts his back. MJF now has a target and works Darby over but in the process, hurts his own knee that slows him down. Perfect selling by both men all match. MJF gets frustrated that he can’t put Darby away so he gives Darby the opportunity to use his skateboard on MJF. But Darby, like a babyface, refuses to sink to MJF’s level. Only for MJF to sucker punch him with the Diamond Ring behind the ref’s back. Side Headlock Takeover and MJF pins Darby. Brilliant! “ -Alex Kalil

#28
Shingo Takagi vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi
7/25
NJPW

Overall Points: 74
Total Votes: 12
% of Ballots: 6.8%
1 First-Place Vote

“I don’t know how Tanahashi does it. Even on a show where the atmosphere is in a sorry state he and Shingo got me on the edge of my seat and biting for the nearfalls.” -Joey O’Doherty

“New Japan’s formula of phasing older wrestlers out for the younger generation is partly what made this match so special. Tanahashi should in theory just be putting younger acts over in prelims – but his star power is so remarkable that he has remained someone that can be given a push in any division and make it seem like a semi-main event. However, his days of fighting for the company’s top crown seemed past him and on this night, Tanahashi got to main event the Tokyo Dome once more and prove why he was still The Ace. A physically-beaten down took the place of Kota Ibushi and delivered one of his best performances of the year with minimal notice.” -Jeremy Peeples

#27
Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Will Ospreay
3/14
NJPW

Overall Points: 74
Total Votes: 16
% of Ballots: 9.1%
1 First-Place Vote

“The night this match happened, I was dual-screening the New Japan Cup show with a NOAH show airing simultaneously. But when the time came, I closed out the NOAH show and focused all of my attention on Ospreay vs. Sabre. These guys have wrestled each other many times on different continents and always deliver, and on this night they delivered big. What I loved most about this match wasn’t the pacing, which was spirited, or the execution, which was flawless, but the intensity. This was obnoxious heel Ospreay vs. a more tweener yet still mouthy Sabre, so they wrestled like two massive dickheads wanting to shut the other one up and win. One guy would talk some shit and the other would hit him back hard, and vice versa. Add in a little bit of accidental blood from Ospreay’s nose and you had this frenetic war that had the clap crowd breaking some rules on the back end. When the match concluded, an exhausted Kevin Kelly simply exclaimed “Oh my God.” I’m right there with you, Kevin. This was outstanding.” -Andrew Rich

“The New Japan Cup is my favorite tournament of the year in wrestling and in NJPW (yes I even prefer it over the g1 Climax believe it or not). When I saw this year’s brackets I noticed that they were set up so that Will Ospreay and Zack Sabre Jr. would potentially meet in the second round of the tournament but in order to do that they both would have to win their respective first round matches. Spoiler alert they both did and this match happened in the second round of the tournament and what a match it was! So once again Will Ospreay appears on my list this time against Zack Sabre Jr. This match was back and forth and it featured Ospreay’s explosive and sometimes high flying offense vs. Zack Sabre Jr. who can bend and contort his body to get out of any situation possible. It made for one hell of a match to watch between two of the best wrestlers in the world. The pacing of the match was slower than you would think in the later stages but everything they hit on each other was stiff and there was a psychology to the match that made everything they did mean something as they both worked to wear each other down in order to gain a victory in this all important second round match up In the tournament. Towards the end of the match both Ospreay and Sabre Jr. exchanged offense up until Will Ospreay would hit a last minute Storm Breaker out of desperation to secure the win for himself to advance to the next round of the tournament. If you watched any of the matches from this year’s NJPW Cup make it this one because this match to me was the highlight of the entire tournament.” -Nathan Neumann

#26
Team Sendai Girls vs. Team Marvelous
6/13
Marvelous & Sendai Girls

Overall Points: 79
Total Votes: 9
% of Ballots: 5.1%
3 First-Place Votes

“An incredible match from start to finish that recalled the glory days of the interpromotional matches of AJW in the early 1990s. Chihirio Hashimoto and Mio Momono are two of the best in the world that don’t get their do. If all of the joshi you’ve ever watched is Stardom, check this match out to get an idea of what else is out there.” -Gerard Di Trolio

“A great beginning and a fantastic final stretch with Hashimoto vs Momono and it’s David vs Goliath style of working. For a brief moment you think Momono can slay the beast. The layout for the elimination match is perfect with Hashimoto showcased as the monster with Team Marvelous trying everything to get her eliminated. Seek this match out on YouTube.” -Peter Edge

“This match harkens back to a golden age of joshi and some of the excellent multi-woman tag matches seen in the ten year run of Chigusa Nagayo’s GAEA promotion from the mid-90s to the mid 00s. Unlike so many other tribute shows, this was no mere nostalgia fest. Sendai Girls vs. Marvelous has been one of the most consistent feuds of the year and this was its high point. Both teams came in with a sense of determination and consequence not seen in most inter-promotional matches. It’s clear from the start that Monomo and Hashimoto are the two stars of each sides and this understanding is captured when, despite decent contributions from Chisako and Kadokura, two thirds of each team are eliminated relatively early. What remains becomes a singles match with added urgency as both competitors are immediately battle worn and liable to fall at any moment. Monomo is the natural underdog but has an increased chance due to Hashimoto spending the previous segment at a disadvantage. The desperation on both sides is such that you cannot avert your attention for a moment. In less time than many modern matches take to get going, this gives you a complete dramatic sceptical that shows why joshi in the best it has been in years at a time when so much other wrestling has regressed.” -Jack Groom

“MARVELOUS VS. SENDAI GIRLS!! WOW! GAEAISM!! WOW! No feud and/or series of matches this year have reached this mutual energy of wanting to win and energy as much as the cross promotional battles between Marvelous and Sendai Girls and this is the current peak . This match takes a lot of the aspects of what I love about those matches and elevates them here! Passion, intensity, speed, desperation, heart, skill, awesomeness, strength, and even more wonderful adjectives radiate throughout this amazing match. Its Chigusa Nagayo’s Marvelous students main eventing a GAEA return show. Its a battle of philosophies. Even without all the great backstory context, it is still a great, amazing match and if you are trying to get into a new amazing wrestling scene a great, amazing start too!” -Henry/HeadCheese

VOICES OF WRESTLING 2021 MATCH OF THE YEAR
(282-26)