TheBean

Great Muta, Great Kabuki & TAJIRI VS KAI, Yasuhi Nakanoue & Yusuke Kodama (WRESTLE-1 05/05/15) - Oh yes, this was a load of fun. Tajiri & Muta did most of the wrestling for their team of course. Kabuki was definitely involved though. Don't think they didn't touch him. No he got beat on and in fact that's what the story of the match was. KAI and his team focused on beating the aged Kabuki and the fans did not like it. This was a blast and a dream team to have all 3 mist spraying wrestlers on one team 🙂 Great Muta, Great Kabuki & TAJIRI VS Yoshiaki Fujiwara, Hiroshi Yamato & Shotaro Ashino (WRESTLE-1 07/12/15) - Grandpa on grandpa violence to start. Yes! This is another fun match with the poison mist trio! A lot of the charm of this one is from Fujiwara actually. Tajiri is great at showing he's afraid of the old grappler. Also for more Tajiri matches and pics, see my latest post here: TAJIRI - You Might Have Missed #2 Also saw that FLIK requested a review of Tajiri & Great Muta vs Goldust & Hakushi. That's up on Gaora's YouTube and on my watch list so I'm going to watch that one next time 🙂

You're really missing out if you're not checking out this stuff. This has been an absolute revelation to me. And hey! I get it, I didn't watch Zero One for like 15+ years. A big reason is that no one talked about it. Or the internet wrestling taste makers didn't like it at the time. Screw that 😀 This is some fun smash mouth wrestling. Now that there's a wealth of wrestling posted online, this really is worth watching especially if you're into 2000's wrestling. •Masato Tanaka vs Yoshihito Sasaki (05/27) -This is precisely what I wanted with this matchup. These two guys who have the energy, intensity and toughness to break bricks with their bare hands. They gave no quarter and expected none in return. Korakuen Hall brings out the best in people and this was no different. Hard chops, harder elbows and lariats so stiff it knock a T-800 down. Yeah Masato Tanaka is a known great but Yoshihito Sasaki doesn't get enough love. If you're a Tanaka fan then you NEED to see this match and you'll probably be a new Sasaki fan by the end. Classic match. •Steve Corino & CW Anderson vs Tajiri & Masato Tanaka (06/20) - Flashback to ECW & early Zero One! I had to watch this one. And it was worthy of being associated with ECW. All the guys were still in very good shape so they showed great energy as they fought around Korakuen. Chairs were used, mist was sprayed and tables were broken. This was a lot of fun. Some matches that remind us of ECW don't really embody that energy & excitement of the promotion. I think this match did and would recommend it for any fan of that lil promotion outta Philly. For more the full Zero One 2007 project, check out: https://wrestlingdreambattles.blogspot.com/search/label/2007 Bunch more match recommendations & cool pics! Also will be looking at a bunch of 1980's wrestling with Cruising the 80's & AJPW 1986 projects. •Masato Tanaka v Dick Togo (09/30) Good gawd! 90's indie dream match fulfilled. This was was so good. It got going with a bang and never quit. Lil ECW at times and both guys may have been bleeding the hard way. This was representative of the intensity. They brought it back into the ring and really surprised me. There was legitimate near falls in this match. It was part of a Jr. tournament so anything "big" felt like it could end the bout That fact added on top of their great work made this a near classic match...if you're interested in seeing this then you should watch it. •Takao Omori v Masato Tanaka (10/26) Well that was awesome! These Zero One cats don't play around! This was fantastic stuff and all under 15 minutes. They had one high spot that I absolutely popped for but the rest was just hard hitting no nonsense puro. Omori was a nice change from Sekimoto or Sasaki as he has more variety to his moves. I felt this mixed things up. I don't have much more to say. Zero One Wrestling in 2007 has been pretty amazing with these dream match ups. I'm going to say this was a near classic but I'm being conservative. I really dug this! •Masato Tanaka & Ryouji Sai vs. Shinjiro Otani & Yuji Nagata (11/13) Lots of animosity in this match. Every pin or submission was broken up with nastiness. Sai was a very good pupil for Tanaka. They were right in there with Otani and super star Nagata. Those two were especially vicious with their kicks - tandem kenka kicks in the corner and a fierce sandwich enzuigiri. •Masato Tanaka v Yoshihito Sasaki (12/24) This was called Best of 2007 because these two were the best Zero One Wrestling had to offer. They did not disappoint me. There was good wrestling on the mat. Tanaka tries to weaken Sasaki's arm seeing as the lariat is a big weapon of his. But let's be honest, this is not the point of the match. No, there was fighting on the floor, there are big moves and very hard strikes were there too. Sasaki got busted open the hard way from a table thrown by Tanaka. So he was bleeding most of the match. What really put this above just another great match was the counter moves. There were a few choice moves that really surprised me. It made this really feel like two of the best that Zero One had to offer. By the end both men were loopy and although only one man got his hand raised, both were winners in my eyes. I would call this a classic and highly recommend it. Couldn't ask for a better way to close out this brief look at 2007 Zero One Wrestling. For Part #3 of 2007 Zero One Wrestling, come over to: https://wrestlingdreambattles.blogspot.com/2026/01/zero-one-wrestling-2007-final.html

Definitely need to see more 1985 AJW based on everyone's comments, damn! I'll say Ted DiBiase for 1985. His work in Mid South as singles performer and his team with Dr. Death would be enough BUT he was also crushing it in AJPW with Stan the Man - its the cherry on top. I could see Duggan but I think the middle of '85 dipped for me as he was working Skandor Akbar & Kimala, I believe 🤔 The beginning with Ted & end versus Slater & Buzz Sawyer were both phenomenal though.

I've been making my way through Zero One Wrestling. Man, I have been missing out!The following are from the DVD: ZERO1 Fire Festival 2007 Part 1 Samurai TV. So I watched the full episode/DVD. For more great Zero One Wrestling in 2007, including awesome matches with Yoshihiro Takayama, Masato Tanaka and more, check out: https://wrestlingdreambattles.blogspot.com/2026/01/zero-one-wrestling-2007-part-1.html https://wrestlingdreambattles.blogspot.com/2026/01/zero-one-wrestling-2007-part-2.html 07/16 •Shinjiro Otani v Kazunari Murakami - This was a brawl which was setup nicely by the video package. These two hate each other. Murakami makes it seem like its going to be a squash at the start. Otani makes his comeback by good old chair swinging. He busts out a chair seat over Murakami's head like it's IWA Japan. This opens Kaz up the hard way. Blood for blood, he retaliates and turns on the crimson faucet by socking Otani in the nose. 14 minutes of mayhem - this was a great match! •Takao Omori v Yoshihito Sasaki - This was one of the best under 10 minute matches in recent memory. Both guys dialed up the impact and intensity for this sprint. Sasaki seems emboldened from his fight with Masato Tanaka and has no hesitation in attacking the veteran Omori. •Ryoji Sai v Yutaka Yoshie - This was a hard fought match. Sai had excellent strikes as he tried to chop down the big man Yoshie. And Yoshie was a fantastic big man with a variety of moves and a lot of muscle under his fat. •Masato Tanaka v Daisuke Sekimoto - Smart stuff at the outset. Tanaka goes after Daisuke's arm. There's a couple brilliant sequences here too. Then, they start pummeling each other. Sekimoto has his chin split open from an elbow strike. That fires him up and this looks like Awesome vs Tanaka at times. These are two of my favorite wrestlers for a reason. Classic dream battle! •Yutaka Yoshie v Ikuto Hidaka 7/22/07 - Really fun big vs little guy match. Good psychology throughout with Hidaka trying to take out the bigger man logically. 07/28 •Ryoji Sai v Ikuto Hidaka - Pretty fun stuff again. This is more evenly matched. I thought Hidaka made this special by taking spirited bumps & and adding a bit of psychology. Sai was smart in letting him tell the story and supplying the kicks & double stomps 🙂 •Daisuke Sekimoto v Yoshihito Sasaki - Holy cow! They put a lot of hard hitting action into 15 minutes! This was at a smaller venue so it lacks a "middle" section. They just ramp up the excitement. If you dig Kobashi era NOAH, you're going to want to see this. Also a good match to show a friend who's curious about "older" Japanese wrestling. •Shinjiro Otani v Akitoshi Saito - Edited to roughly 10 minutes. It's great to see this match up. Very good match that's not clever but two tough guys kicking & suplexing each other. Otani is definitely one of the best wrestlers watched in 2025. This was a great DVD/TV episode! A great overview of the Fire Festival. I feel like the more Zero One Wrestling I watch, the more I like it. This has been a very rewarding project thus far. Thanks for reading! For more including the Final post for 2007 which will coming out soon, visit: wrestlingdreambattles.blogspot.com

As far as the 20 year thing, that would be the criteria that I would be using but no way does anyone else need to use it. 🙂 I think the consistently great matches can be hashed out a bit more by saying: I wouldn't say someone who had one classic, and a load of average matches or stinkers every year for 20 years should be in the same boat as someone who is putting on great & very good matches as well as classics within that time span. For instance someone like Giant Baba. From '69-89, one could argue he had a classic match in there every year (admittedly tags & 6 mans as time went on)...but the majority of folks would agree that he had a ton of crap too (more crap that classics). Whereas Tenryu from 1984-2004+, one could argue he had a classic match every year in addition to a ton of very good & great matches. I'm using Baba as an extreme example for effect. It's about what could be argued reasonably & be convincing. I don't think anyone could do that with Baba though. Also that's to limit part time or once a year wrestling like WWE would do with guys like Undertaker, Rock, Brock etc. Essentially you've got to be part of a roster or working a schedule. Regarding Misawa, I'd argue he's got 20 years. I'd probably say 1985-2005 would work for me. His stuff versus Kobayashi in 1985 and then I know folks aren't unanimous on his Kawada dome match in 2005 but I would say that as a classic from my old notes. Kobashi is outside that bubble since his injuries and illness sidelined him in NOAH. One could argue Akiyama however 1993-2013 for instance. Arguments for Hansen '80-'00 could be made...although those last couple years could be tough. I think Rey Jr, Danielson, AJ 20 year arguments can be made this time that maybe couldn't be made last time. Ultimately the time span is a strong guide more than a rule. I considered 15 as a start as there's a shit ton of wrestlers that had a great 10 year span. 15 years is a good spot for top 25 but 20 years seems to be the max. And when you start actually looking at folks with those kind of spans, it's many the same wrestlers that were in the Top 10 of 2016 or at least got votes. 20 years isn't the rule but 15-20 years of high quality seemed to be the prevailing trend. Regarding Flair, I'm legitimately asking others what their views are regarding these times, not rhetorically. I'm not arguing '74-94 nor saying he had 15 years of crap. I'm actually curious because I know his 80's is golden and his early 90's holds up too. Also thanks for the additional info Mantaur Rodeo Clown, that makes sense 🙂 But when does Flair become like a "Giant Baba?" When does his output become sporadic in terms of quality? Or again, what year do people say, " this is when Flair became one of the best? " 1981-2001 for instance, is that a reasonable 20 year period? Or can we give him a "bridge" over the last few years of WCW and say he came back into form for a few years in WWE?

Is there a consensus of when Flair's great matches start and when they end? I think to be even considered top 10, a wrestler should have a 20 year span of consistently great matches*. If we can agree that Flair has 20 years of consistently great matches then, any crap matches/years afterwards can be "excused" because it is a business/job after all. That applies to everyone. BUT I don't think Flair's longevity for the sake on not wanting to retire should be a positive either. If he's got 20 years of quality and 15 years of crap then, I think those 15 years should be used against him when looking at other wrestlers with 20 years of quality but retired, went to the mid card etc.. (Using 15 years as an example). Again that applies to everyone. *consistently great matches, I mean NOT just a great PPV match one year. At least great matches every PPV, big show, tour, very good TV matches etc. Perhaps a classic per year etc. I don't believe he was de-emphasized or had a quality drop in the early 90's. Having watched a bunch of WCW 1994 last year, Flair was given opportunities and definitely used them. He had a couple fantastic matches with Steamboat, one being an hour or so. He had a great series with Regal although intentionally chopped up into multiple matches (Marquis Queensbury matches). And he was working Hogan in PPV main events. So I think AJ & Rey don't benefit more than Ric (or Hogan for that matter) did. They just happen to have longevity & consistency of quality like Flair. I mention '94 because this might be the last year where he has the quality wrestling & opponents, and one could argue '74-94 are his 20 yrs. If this is the year/period when you were thinking when saying "early 90's" then sorry! 🙂 Also, not sure if this was your intention so apologies if it's nitpicking but long matches don't necessarily equal good matches. I want to but won't hold Flair Broadway matches against him at this point (same with Danielson, if not draws then long matches) while physically impressive, it didn't always yield a better match. I mention those two because the long matches became their trademarks.

Yeah I could see Misawa & Kobashi ranking higher this time. I feel like 90's guys are going to edge out 80's guys just from a "who's participating" perspective too. I think that goes into the mix with Flair a very small amount. Probably the smallest since he stayed on TV in the 90's, 2000's and beyond where a lot of "80's" workers were wrapping up or already done. That was my view regarding Steamboat being done in 1994 in the other thread. Hansen, who might be on the bubble for top 5 in your view is an interesting case. I think his position this time may depend on how people view his pre-Kings Road/4 Pillars work in AJPW, not to mention his NJPW, Puerto Rico, AWA etc. stuff. I think you have a point there.

I think your points with Rey, AJ Styles etc al. combined with Ricky Jackson's above are what leads me to believe he might be out of the top 10. It all depends on who's voting (duh!) but there could be a lot of people that don't like "non WWF 80's wrestling" and could be bounced out. I think the 2016 results had that X factor so I'm keeping that in the back of my mind. If I just think about PWO folks and similarly minded people then I think you're 100% right. If there's no anti-80's/old school wrestling or other surprise then I'm thinking: #1 Funk, #2 Hansen, #3 Danielson, #4 Flair, #5 Hijo del Santo, Rey Misterio Jr, Misawa/Kobashi...someone around the top 5 last time.

Watched WCW '94 a few months back so knew it wasn't then but early 95 stuck in my mind for some reason. Points still the same.

I would be surprised if Flair makes the top 10. I have a feeling a lot of the "younger" wrestlers from the 2016 project will be making their way up the rankings. Regarding Flair vs Steamboat, I think I would probably rather watch a random Steamboat match over a random Flair match. I think if Steamboat would have had a few more active in ring years, he might be remembered better on his own. He dipped out right as Nitro was getting started iirc.

Actually found the full show for the above Corino - Omori match. If you search YouTube Zero1-Max Ground Max, you should find it. I watched the Ikuto Hidaka, Minoru Fujita & Tatsuhito Takaiwa vs. Sonjay Dutt, Spanky & Super Crazy. It's a really fun 6 man match with all kinds of crazy spots. 15 minutes just flies by. Definitely recommend it 🙂 Also, the first '07 Zero One Wrestling post is up: https://wrestlingdreambattles.blogspot.com/2026/01/zero-one-wrestling-2007-part-1.html

Oh god yes, this was great primal stuff. I think the moment that locked this in as a great match was when Valentine was pressing Piper's head into the ring post like he was trying to pop it like a cantaloupe. Then it just got better. All time classic. Must see!