Alan4L

On the strength of his indy stuff pre-2007 and his New Japan/ROH stuff this year he is a lock for my list. The gems he managed to have sprinkled throughout his TNA years are just icing on the cake. My favourite kind of AJ is the aggressive, beat the shit out of a smaller guy, AJ. This match is one of my favourite examples of that:

oh yeah I know, I'd count his tag stuff but I don't think it's enough to get into a top 100 for individuals.

His 2007 series with Nagata was another great one. I'd say their April title match that year is one of the top 5 IWGP title matches.

his Regal Plex looks absolutely devasatating and I think his strikes have gotten a ton better in the last 9 months so I think the opinion that his moves value flash over substance is one you might waiver on if you saw more of his recent stuff. He's become a much much heavier hitter than he was. The added bulk helps that I'm sure. As for psychology, I'd point to the YAMATO match Joe mentioned, the Uhaa match at Korakuen and ABSOLUTELY the Best Of The Super Juniors final against KUSHIDA which may have had more engaging psychology than any match in 2014. He probably would have been a lock for my list by the time 2016 rolls around but this Lucha Underground thing really puts a dampener on his chances. He just got pulled by them from his match with Okada in England next week and I see alot more of that happening as the months roll on.

yeah I absolutely love Doug as a tag wrestler and will have CanAms high on my tag team list (maybe very very high) but it's next to impossible to say he was top 100 as an individual.

I like the first 15-20 minutes of his big matches alot. Especially in the case of the Okada ones. They set the stage for what is an epic closing stretch. The way they carry themselves, the way they carry the match with the pacing, it's beautiful to watch and it's beautiful to watch how the fans react to it. They often throw in some great little extra things too - for instance in one of the big title matches last year (pretty sure it was the October one) Tanahashi had an awesome heelish knee injury fake.

Incredible "big match" wrestler. Almost never lets you down in a title match or in a big G1 match. He's had a silly amount of MOTYCs since 2007 just churning them out year after year. Only detraction for him (and honestly it's probably been a smart move on his behalf) is that in your regular run of the mill tour shows he generally just does his trademark stuff (especially in tags) and it's rarely anything worth seeing. The live crowd enjoy it though as he's so charismatic.

This might be true. Might. I struggle to find anything he does insulting. But he doesn't really have a single major quality. And what makes him better than say, Suwama, Morishima, Sugiura, Go Shiozaki, Takaiwa, Kojima or Okabayashi? What is your argument for Sekimoto as a top 20 guy of all professional wrestling ever? What are the matches that he has produced that you are so high on that you would put him on that level? I think he's roughly a million times better than Morishima, who I think is generally terrible. I like Suwama, Shiozaki, Okabayashi, & Suguira just fine, a couple of those guys would probably make my 100, but Sekimoto is pretty easily better than all of them. Kojima I am a huge fan of, and I think he's criminally underrated. That one is close, but I prefer Sekimoto. I wouldn't argue with anybody who said Kojima was better. When looking at overall careers I'd go: Sekimoto Kojima Shiozaki (big drop from the top two) Sugiura Okabayashi Morishima Suwama Not to say I don't like Suwama but he's frustrating as often as he's brilliant.

a match which captures me emotionally has heart. A match which I just watch and think "so this is a match" doesn't have much heart. I watch Sekimoto vs Shinobu from this year and it engages my emotions as a viewer. I watch Sugiura matches in recent years and I just watch them with no real emotional reaction. They're matches, they're fine, he works hard, but I stop thinking about them right after they finish.

he had a great 2006 tag against Kensuke & Nakajima too. If you're not adverse to parting with some coin, I'd really recommend some of his best wXw stuff. 16 Carat 2011 Night 3 against Generico is one of the best matches I've ever seen live. 16 Carat 2012 Night 2 against Big Van Walter is often talked about as the best match in promotion history and then finally the match vs Walter from the World Triangle League last year is like a bigger better version of the Okabayashi match I linked to earlier. On the topic of seeing him live, I'd put him in a class with Danielson, Kobashi, Generico, Liger and CIMA when it comes to the best wrestlers I've seen at making crowds I've been a part of be completely engaged at all times in what they were doing.

the best the best Sek & Oka stuff is 2012. I loved alot of Daisuke stuff from 2006 to 2010 particuarly his many matches with Masato Tanaka (although I'm sure some would find them to have to much "overkill"). His great DDT title run was 2010 also. The matches with Takanashi, Ibushi and HARASHIMA in particular are fabulous. I love Sugiura but I think his matches have been missing something for a few years. They tend to devolve into "I hit you, you hit me" with no real story, build or crescendo. I have also found that alot of his stuff from 2003-2009 which I loved at the time, hasn't held up favourably on rewatch. It's still very good stuff, but matches I thought were MOTY type level were not quite that. Meanwhile the top Daisuke stuff from 08 and 09 has surprised me by how well it holds up or in some cases is better than I remembered.

So apparently Crockett Sr, Westin and Matysik votes in the non-wrestler section make you a voter in historical. Really wish that was stipulated in the list because now by voting for Crockett Sr, I'm going to be a No vote on all the historical candidates which I feel terrible about.

This might be true. Might. I struggle to find anything he does insulting. But he doesn't really have a single major quality. And what makes him better than say, Suwama, Morishima, Sugiura, Go Shiozaki, Takaiwa, Kojima or Okabayashi? What is your argument for Sekimoto as a top 20 guy of all professional wrestling ever? What are the matches that he has produced that you are so high on that you would put him on that level? His matches have way more heart and story than the likes of Suwama, Morishima, and Sugiura. And I like all those guys, but they're not in Daisuke's class. They don't even sniff his class. As Jmare said, there is a great list of matches in the Microscope thread including this one which I just added. It's a very different style of match for him as it's really really focused on a body part instead of overall demolition. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cKhSHTV67vQ

I've seen three Daisuke vs Yuji matches. The first one is from 6/29/09 right before Sekimoto took him under his wing and they started tagging, I recall it being quite entertaining considering Okabayashi was barely starting and was facing an established guy like Daisuke. The other one is from January 2nd of 2011, this one I don't remember much, all I have is my rating for it (***1/2) and having the feeling it wasn't as good as their first encounter. And the last one is the one I posted here (2/26/12) which is the best of the trilogy. This is THE LEG MATCH! So so good. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cKhSHTV67vQ

Madoka as a top 100 wrestler of all time????

MY GUY!!! Haven't checked to see if he's nominated for the GOAT project yet but I most certainly will be at some point if nobody beats me to it. Great post with great recommendations mate. Of everything there, I think the one match I'd like to really give an extra push to is the Hama match which is just such an incredible spectacle. From this year, I'd recommend his match against Shinobu: http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x21aafp_daisuke-sekimoto-vs-shinobu-bjw_sport Outside of Japan, he's also been an amazing performer in wXw in Germany, and has become an adopted favourite with their fans. I was there the first time he came over and I think I was the only person who knew who he was. 5 years later, he has legendary status there thanks to his matches with Big Van Walter, El Generico and Bad Bones. Daisuke made his name off of dynamic power based offense but he's turned into so much more than that nowadays. I think fans of Bret Hart would really like his singles matches from the last year or two because he's really taken on that Bret quality of telling a great deliberate story where the littlest things mean a lot.

My ballot! I FOLLOWED THE MODERN PERFORMERS IN U.S/CANADA CANDIDATES Edge - One of the top players in modern WWE for years. Respected a ton by his peers. Always a great performer both in-ring and character wise. Carried the Smackdown brand from 2007 to 2009 and gave it it’s own identity in a lot of ways. Delivered a great match in his one WrestleMania main event. Ivan Koloff - His title win against Bruno is probably the high point as far as Hall Of Fame candidacy, but he backs it up with strong runs in other territories too. He was an in demand performer worldwide. Another guy who has garnered a lot of respect within the business. Brock Lesnar - Proven himself to be a major draw with his UFC run. He was a great performer in his first WWE run, and is arguably even better now. When you look at the business as a whole in the last 12 years, he’s been one of the biggest players. Dick Murdoch – The way his peers talk about him as a worker has to count for a lot. The fact that he was able to get over in so many places says a lot about him as a performer. He was a big star in pretty much every US territory of note, and was also a top guy in Japan for years. Extremely influential in the careers of first ballot HOF’ers like Ted Dibiase, Dusty Rhodes and Ric Flair. Rock & Roll Express (Ricky Morton & Robert Gibson) – They tick the three boxes of drawing/performance/influence making them a well rounded candidate. When you look at how undeniably strong the influence was, you have to really consider them HOF’ers. I FOLLOWED WRESTLING IN JAPAN CANDIDATES Jun Akiyama – Was a part of some of the best wrestling matches in the world during the 90s. Then in the 2000s, he was probably the in-ring MVP of the decade in Japan. Just an incredible worker. One of the best. As a draw, he main evented several sold out Budokan Hall shows (some of which were as GHC Champion) and he main evented a very successful Tokyo Dome show in 2004. Was frequently brought in by other promotions as someone to take part in “dream matches” for big shows or tournaments like the G1 (2003 where he got to the finals) or Champion Carnival (2011). Gran Hamada – I would say he is the founding father of the "Japanese Lucha" style. Without him there would be no Michinoku Pro, Toryumon, Dragon Gate or even Chikara. He was key in getting the careers of Ultimo Dragon, Dick Togo, Jado, Gedo and many others off the ground. Definitely one of the guys who broke the mould as far as acceptable wrestler size. Incredible worker in his youth, and well into his 40s and even 50s. He was also a big star in Mexico, main eventing many big shows. Yuji Nagata - To me, he has been consistently one of the best workers in the world since the late 90s. His longevity has been astounding. He’s been an integral part in training and development for New Japan and is the leader by example for all of the great young wrestlers coming through the famed dojo. His title run in 2002 saw him put in a tough spot with all the crazy Inoki MMA stuff going on, but his efforts never dropped and he still produced several fantastic title bouts against a wide range of opponents. His 2007 run in the title picture is super underrated as far as establishing Tanahashi, and their April bout was one of the best IWGP Heavyweight Title matches ever. Mike & Ben Sharpe - Trailblazers as far as gaijins in Japan. If they weren’t such a success, then who knows if we would have seen the likes of the Funks, Hansen and Brody as major gaijin stars all those years later. I FOLLOWED WRESTLING IN AUSTRALIA/PACIFIC ISLANDS/CARIBBEAN/AFRICA CANDIDATES Carlos Colon - He is Puerto Rico wrestling. Established the territory (and really in a lot of ways it was more than just another territory) and was the main star there for decades having legendary matches and feuds with the likes of Stan Hansen and Abdullah The Butcher. NON-WRESTLERS Jim Crockett Sr. – Was a key figure in building the Carolinas as a wrestling hotbed. He laid the groundwork for something that’s very special to a lot of people, and something which produced so many all time great wrestlers. Did a lot to establish tag team wrestling. Jimmy Hart – Right there with Jerry Lawler and Lance Russell when it comes to carrying Memphis on screen. One of the best heel managers ever. Deserves recognition alongside the managers who are already in. Gorilla Monsoon – Moreso than Vince McMahon, I feel he was the voice of the late 80s WWF boom period. He was an awesome TV personality that I think connected really well with the kids who were watching WWF at the time. Wrestling at that time was larger than life to children and having a larger than life host was benefical. Gene Okerlund – Defined a role, and nobody has come close to matching his work in that role since. Achieved a huge level of fame through wrestling, which in this category I feel is a plus. Jesse Ventura – Similar to Monsoon with regard to the larger than life image. Perfected the heel colour role in the late 80s. *Please note that I am abstaining from any of the categories not mentioned above* For future consideration: CIMA – I would like to see CIMA on the ballot. I feel he’s been one of the most entertaining performers in the world for 14 years. Perhaps more importantly, he has been the face and leader of what’s turned into a very sustainable wrestling product. Hugely influential. Yoshiaki Fujiwara – I’m not sure whether or not I would vote for him, but I’d like to see him in the discussion next year. He would be an interesting candidate.

I'll advocate for CIMA and Fujiwara

this felt like if you took the three toughest dudes from 3rd year in your school and had the three brashest new 1st years come in, talk trash and challenge them to a fight at lunch break. Well that's pretty much what the story was and the match felt alot like this at times. They get a bit lost in the middle but they have all the heat back at the end for a dramatic finish. Really really fun.

Totally in agreement with all of the above here. Real good match, had some great moments, but went too long. Possible for a 90-100 finish.

Wow enjoyed this WAY more than I did at the time and I was a big fan of it then. Hayato's got such a special charisma, it's a shame that M-Pro hasn't been able to create more guys for him to wrestle over the years. What's more of a shame is how wasted Yoshitsune's potential was. He looked so great here and I can't think of any other match he ever had which was anything like this. Hayato holding him upside down before deliverng that kick may be one of my favourite spots of the whole project. I reckon this will have a spot in my top 50.

he also had he also had great matches with Ibushi, Generico and Zack Sabre Jr during that run. The last of which can be found here:

I hear the criticism about "excess" and while I understand what people would mean by that, I disagree in the case of KENTA (at least as far as his 2003-2009 prime years go). To me his "excess" was taking matches to another level, a better level. Those NOAH crowds ate that shit up. Those Nakajima matches and such felt like real epics. To me it wasn't ever like the worst of Davey Richards when it's just doing more for the sake of it, doesn't feel real, and it doesn't add to the match. That is excess. Also, why doesn't KENTA get more credit for his fire and intensity? To me, he was one of the best EVER when it comes to lighting a match on fire with a strike exchange or just getting all up in someone's face. Again that gave him such a sense of realism to me. He wiill definitely be on my list. Top half? probably.

haha, Stillorgan/Sandyford are in Dublin. IWW flew him in. Kenichiro Arai, Tracy Smothers and the sadly retired Lupin Matsutani were also randomly on the show. Arai got PISHED in the pub round the corner from me.

with Steen vs The Briscoes - ROH Death Before Dishonor 2007 vs. PAC - PWG All Star Weekend 2006 vs. Dick Togo - PWG "Fear" vs. Ricochet PWG "The Curse Of Guerrilla Island 2010" and "Death To All But Metal 2012" they are just a couple that come to mind