Control21

I was hoping Zangiev would crack the top 500 at least. I didn't have high expectations for Tibor Szakacs, but Vince finishing above him is frustrating

Someone ranked Bas Rutten #14. That's beast

Dick Vrij being the lowest-ranked wrestler with double-digit votes is pretty funny (in a good way)

UWF The Memorial (5/4/1990) Dick Vrij vs Yoji Anjo Fun match, Dick Vrij gets to shine a bit here, although I felt he leaned too much into the grappling side of the match. Perhaps this was to show that he was capable of holding his own on the mat and demonstrate improvement from his debut against Fujiwara. In any case, this had a nice flow to it. Anjo had a better sense of how to target limbs for submissions, but Dick Vrij was able to use his strength on the mat to grind down Anjo. Vrij had some cool heel-ish antics here, including shoving Anjo once or twice. It felt like Vrij held back on the striking; perhaps he was a bit nervous about inadvertently hurting Anjo. In any case, the finish was great. Anjo sold brilliantly after Vrij got him with a jumping high kick and a knee strike to the stomach. ***3/4+ Kazuo Yamazaki vs Tatsuo Nakano Anytime you get Nakano and Yamazaki in the ring, they will likely deliver, and they certainly did in this match. They played off each other's strengths quite well, and the decision to keep things on the mat for most of the match paid off as they leaned into the grittier side of grappling, while building things up towards the finish. Nakano's nose gets bloodied in the process, and that only adds to the match atmosphere. Nakano pulls out all the stops, including headbutts, to try to gain an advantage. Yamazaki knows how to navigate rough waters, though, and his determination ends up resisting Nakano's firebrand pitbull mentality in the end. The last five minutes or so are excellent. Nakano really shines here, and Yamazaki did just enough to make him look like a legit threat until the very end. ****1/4 Akira Maeda vs Masakatsu Funaki This probably could have been a bit better overall, but they still delivered as expected. The matwork wasn't bad at all, and with this leaning towards the grappling side more than the striking side, you want intention and purpose in your matwork, and this match wasn't lacking in that department. Funaki seemed to be reluctant to engage in a striking contest with Maeda, and worked instead to pick off a heel hook or kneebar on the mat, but Maeda seemed quite aware of Funaki's goals, and made things very difficult with some nice defensive wrestling. This caused Funaki to exhaust more energy than he wanted on the mat, allowing Maeda to get back into the bout without suffering too much damage. Eventually, this strategy paid off as Maeda seized an opportunity to clinch an exhausted Funaki and set him up for some vicious knee strikes that created an opening for a rear-naked choke. I think both could have raised the floor of the match a bit with heated striking exchanges, but perhaps they are saving this for later. **** Minoru Suzuki vs Nobuhiko Takada Kind of a weird match. The focus on upper-body grappling and handfighting was interesting, but the pace was a bit too slow than it should have been. It felt like Takada was less interested in the match than Suzuki was, and this created a lack of tension that could have taken this match to the next gear. The work itself was decent, if not unspectacular. Suzuki is improving as a proficient, intelligent wrestler as time goes on in UWF Newborn. His match with Funaki in April 1990 was excellent, and I think he was trying something similar here, but Takada had other things on his mind, I suppose. ***1/2 Yoshiaki Fujiwara vs Fred Hamaker Pretty fun "different style" match. Fred Hamaker is a Dutch SAMBO/freestyle wrestler, and he acts like one, throwing around Fujiwara several times, but his submission game is primitive. There's some gritty matwork as a result, and Fujiwara has a good performance in making Hamaker come across as relatively decent and a legitimate threat. **** UWF Fighting F (5/28/90) Masakatsu Funaki vs Yoji Anjo Another excellent contest between Funaki and Anjo, which is a follow-up to their encounter in 1989. This one didn't have the same type of frantic energy throughout, but they made up for it with intelligent matwork and keeping things interesting enough throughout with a threadline. The narrative in this match was about Funaki using his pure talent and skill to overcome Anjo's willpower. Anjo, of course, is not on the level of Funaki skill-wise, so he has to rely on his grit and underdog mentality to get one over the fast-rising superstar. Funaki has some moments where Anjo seems to get the better of him, but he never seems to be in real danger. Still, it's a struggle for him because he's not quite used to squashing the underdog as a guy in the superior role. Funaki does find a way, though, after Anjo opens himself up with some bold knee strikes that allow Funaki to create a cool reversal armdrag takedown that leads to a cross-armbreaker. ****1/2 Akira Maeda vs Minoru Suzuki A good match, if not a bit frustrating at times. I love Maeda, but sometimes he seems to want the guy working from underneath to do more work than he does. This was evident in an extended leg lock sequence where Suzuki and Maeda were trading leverage, and Maeda just sort of chose to lie on his side and not display any urgency. This lasted about two minutes, and kinda caused the match to drag a bit. In any case, things pick up in the last 5-6 minutes. Suzuki has some good flashes of grappling brilliance, like a rolling kneebar and a Huzinga roll. He even catches Maeda with a dropkick, which seems to catch Maeda by surprise. Suzuki attempts to go for the upset, but Maeda catches him with a rear-naked choke. The crowd was pretty invested at this point, and it gave the match some payoff, but I really wish Maeda had allowed the match to have the same level of urgency in the beginning. **** Nobuhiko Takada vs Tatsuo Nakano I think this had the potential to be a classic, but the relatively slow start held things back a bit. Takada was better on the grappling side here compared to Maeda in the previous match, and he worked quite well with Nakano. At the same time, the second half of this match probably demanded more of a hot start in terms of striking. The finish was a bit weak, too. Nakano was probably exhausted, but I felt one more final stand could have sent this match into another level. The crowd was really buying into Nakano in the last few minutes, and you could hear the air being sucked out of the room when the referee called for the bell. Perhaps it was premature, and perhaps it was a more realistic finish. I could see the argument for the latter, but I felt Nakano had one more round in him, going toe-to-toe with Takada. What we got, though, was still very good overall. ****1/2 Yoshiaki Fujiwara vs Johnny Barrett Decent match, and I liked how Fujiwara worked a compelling narrative with Barrett. Barrett is a huge grappler who clearly overpowers Fujiwara, and Fujiwara has to find a way to navigate that mismatch and find a way to win. Barrett is not terrible, but his grappling is very basic, and he can't take the match past first gear on his own. Fujiwara has to work extra hard to keep things moving, and it is enjoyable when it does. Unfortunately, things stall at certain points. The finish was nice, and Fujiwara's genius was on display throughout the bout. ***1/4 Kazuo Yamazaki vs Shigeo Miyato This was a good main event. I'm a bit surprised Yamazaki and Miyato got top billing here, but it's a nice change of pace. Miyato really did his best to win this match and got a few points off Yamazaki. Perhaps in his excitement, Miyato left himself too open, and this gave Yamazaki a chance to get back in the match. The finishing stretch is awesome, with Miyato pummeling Yamazaki and seemingly in the driver's seat. Miyato tries to follow up on a knockdown, but Yamazaki times him with some vicious kicks and gets him to the mat for a kneebar. Very enjoyable. ****1/4

Zouev and Grom Zaza are off the board. I'm glad to see they got multiple votes.

Things are getting "extreme" in PCW!

I think you are spot on with that analysis.

One of the good things about the 2026 GWE is that it wasn't as heated as 2016. It was a very liberal and open envrionment across social media, PWO, and Discord. You occasionally had your Twitter trolls and whatnot, but those guys were in the minority.

Osamu Kido was one of my final cuts. A painful one.

I think the Joshi push was centered around more historical candidates. Someone can correct me if I am wrong, though. Seems like I'm not the only Frank Shamrock voter? That's interesting. Unless more #100 votes are yet to be revealed.

Yeah, I don't get it either. I know Newman is on a "multi-year" contract, but I don't have much faith that this will pay dividends for NJPW in the long run. They should have given the push to Oleg Boltin instead.

I like the nomination system because it requires people to be engaged throughout the entire process instead of being passive voters at the last second.

Good stuff! This was very easy to imagine, and I'm not even familiar with Georgia Championship Wrestling that much.

I have noticed that as well, unfortunately.

It's truly the "Whole F'N Show" at E-C-Dubya....oops, I meant P-C-Dubya

At this rate, PCW might as well be called Extreme Championship Wrestling! 🤣E-C-DUB! E-C-DUB!

Awesome list. Nikolai Zouev at #61. My man!

Not sure about the 1980s, but I think there's been a bit of a revisionist (I use that in an academic sense, not pejorative) movement within certain circles over the past decade that has really deprioritized AJPW (particularly the four pillars) in favor of other stuff, like BattlArts and WAR, for example. I think guys like Misawa, Kobashi, and Kawada haven't been given the "canon" treatment they used to have as a result.

If there's anyone who sums up a Shakespearean tragedy as well as he has during his career, I would love to hear about them. Watching his rise and fall in RINGS from start to finish was a breathtaking experience. Of course, in terms of in-ring quality, he definitely produced. While he wasn't a grappler on Kohsaka's level, he probably made up for it with the type of grit and rebellious attitude that made Akira Maeda what he was as an in-ring wrestler as well. I think there's a reason why Maeda was so high on him before Tamura came around. He didn't have Maeda's aura, but he certainly had a similar spirit. He could be a bit light at times, but I think this was a rarity, and when he was matched up with quality opponents, you were bound to get a good-to-great match. The matches with Volk Han tell one of the best narratives you will ever see in a shoot-style setting, which was about how a young upstart eventually finds a way to defeat his tormentor. You also have the series with Tamura, which is one of the best trilogies you will find in wrestling, flat out. He was #40 on my ballot. I'd love to see if anyone votes higher than that.

Good stuff! Good to see another Yoshihisa Yamamoto vote. If there's any wrestler who sums up a well-crafted Shakespearean tragedy in their career, it's him.

If Yota Tsuji isn't the "guy," then I don't know who is. It's certainly not Umino. And Uemura isn't someone Gedo is going to push. I don't have much faith in Aaron Wolf at the moment, and that's entirely because of Gedo as well.

UWF Road (2/27/1990) Minoru Suzuki vs Tatsuo Nakano It seemed like Nakano and Suzuki both wanted to prove something, and they spared nothing in achieving that goal. This was a very good shoot-style brawl. They both played to each other's strengths by engaging in a striking battle mixed with some good moments of struggle on the mat. Both wrestlers were pretty evenly matched, and it seemed neither really had a strategy that favored one aspect over another. They just wanted to win. They were both willing to engage in a ton of punishment, and this resulted in a double KO where Nakano popped up with a defiant lariat that sent both tumbling to the mat in exhaustion. One of UWF's hidden gems for sure. **** Yoji Anjo vs Shigeo Miyato Another good outing for these two. Miyato and Anjo were usually a good pairing in UWFi, and this match did not disappoint either. This match was really about two evenly matched foes trying to find the smallest openings that would present themselves to get the upper hand. At the end of the day, it seemed Anjo's striking abilities and willpower were the cards that shifted the bout in his favor. He needed to get all five points from Miyato, though, and he wouldn't go down easily. ***3/4 Akira Maeda vs Kazuo Yamazaki A decent match, although I feel this could have been better. I don't think Maeda ever really left his comfort zone in this match, and seemed fine not going past second gear. That's not a bad thing, but Maeda can be so much better when another wrestler is pushing him. Yamazaki also seems, at least in the context of the narrative, a bit unsure of himself against Maeda. He doesn't gain the sense that he can beat Maeda, and lacks a bit of confidence. He does manage to bloody Maeda's nose, but Maeda never seems to be in real danger, and he preys on Yamazaki's weaknesses to finish the match with a submission in under 10 minutes. ***1/4 Yoshiaki Fujiwara vs Nobuhiko Takada Another masterclass in wrestling from Fujiwara. Nobuhiko Takada was solid in this match, but Fujiwara outshone him in several aspects, including in-ring psychology and overall presence. That's not to say Takada was a passenger in this match; he did his job just fine. Fujiwara was the protagonist, though. The opening few minutes are all about Fujiwara playing the long, defensive game. He's fine with taking the long-term view, and he lets Takada settle into a more patient gear while buying time. In the process, he is frustrating Takada quite a bit with his usual tricks. He's like a pestering fly that always finds a way to bite you. Takada gets a bit more annoyed as time goes on, which allows Fujiwara to ramp up the pressure by antagonizing Takada even more. Takada starts throwing more strikes instead of sticking to the mat. Fujiwara responds by making Takada work harder. He even starts taunting him after a great sequence where Takada gets lured in, only to meet Fujiwara's skull head-on in a trademark Fujiwara headbutt. The match changes its tone after this, and Fujiwara starts to get into Takada's mind. Sakuraba aside, Fujiwara might have been the first true "IQ wrestler" with his ability to tap into the conscience of another wrestler. Takada thinks he has Fujiwara, but Fujiwara feels out Takada's submission attempt and reverses it into his own, leading to a Takada tapout and a huge win for Fujiwara in front of an adoring crowd. ****1/4+ UWF Fighting Area (4/15/1990) Bart Vale vs Shigeo Miyato This was a decent outing from both. Vale looked better than he did in his earlier matches and was more active in dictating the tempo and giving Miyato a few things to think about throughout the match. This was all about Miyato surviving Vale's superior range and striking, but Vale has improved as a grappler as well, and Miyato has a tough time figuring out the puzzle. Vale does a cool shoot-style crucifix powerbomb that leads to a camel clutch for the submission victory. *** Masakatsu Funaki vs Minoru Suzuki This match has a certain mythology around it, and for good reason. In Japan, it is seen as a sort of prototype for Pancrase. It was even included in the first commercial Pancrase VHS tape to illustrate the philosophy of the promotion. Karl Gotch reportedly called it one of the best matches he ever saw, and said wrestling should use it as a model. For an 8-minute match, it certainly carries a lot of weight in terms of evolutionary importance. The match certainly lives up to all of this, and Funaki and Suzuki clearly had an agreement to do purely grappling. It worked out quite well for them, as they really got in a good flow state, and the speed at which they moved was reminiscent of the 90s shoot-style classics. The level of finesse, especially in terms of counterwork, is quite impressive considering they were still relatively early in their shoot-style careers. It was a glimpse at the future, and it serves as a prophetic message for the direction Kakutogi would take in just a few years. **** Akira Maeda vs Tatsuo Nakano This was a fun underdog vs company ace match, and the crowd really got behind Nakano as he gave Maeda some trouble with his striking ability and relentless pressure. Maeda settled into the match, and when he did, all Nakano could do was continue swinging. One of the more underrated things about Maeda is that he is great in matches like this, where he can give enough to make you believe the underdog is winning, and also makes his own comeback believable in the context of the match. This is similar to some of the Yamamoto/Maeda matches in RINGS. Good stuff. ***3/4 Nobuhiko Takada vs Yoji Anjo Another good example of an underdog/company star match on this card. While this match probably went a few minutes longer than it needed to, both Takada and Anjo keep things interesting enough, and Anjo really shines here as the antagonist and a striker capable of going toe-to-toe with Takada. It's not that Takada is the favorite here; the crowd is more behind Anjo, but Anjo is the plucky dog that keeps bothering you and coming around for another go. On the mat, Takada takes control of the match when needed, and Anjo doesn't seem to have much of a solution against Takada's more methodical grappling. This is where Takada steadily wears out Anjo and draws rope breaks from him to build a healthy lead on points. Anjo launches a bit of a comeback with some nice knee strikes, but Takada is just too tough to keep down. Eventually, Takada gets Anjo back to the mat and finds a way to put away the underdog for good. **** Kazuo Yamazaki vs Yoshiaki Fujiwara I might have to rewatch this sometime, but I think I enjoyed their 7/24/89 encounter much better than this, and the Fujiwara/Takada match from earlier in February 1990 was better as well. Overall, though, this isn't a bad match by means. This was all about Yamazaki not letting Fujiwara get under his skin, and perhaps finding ways to beat him at his own game, especially on the mat. Yamazaki seems to do a good job of countering Fujiwara on the mat and feeling out where he wants to hunt for submissions, and fending him off. This opens up opportunities for Yamazaki to utilize his striking game more often, and this puts a toll on Fujiwara. Yamazaki even uses his head to give Fujiwara a taste of his own medicine. The match ends a bit anticlimatically with Yamazaki landing a high kick, which puts Fujiwara down for the count. It still retains some effectiveness, but I felt like it didn't land the way it should have. ****1/4

Well said. Funaki ended up #19 on my ballot. I did consider Pancrase in my analysis of his career (along with Suzuki, Rutten, and Frank Shamrock). It's just too big a gap to ignore. Fundamentally, my philosophy remains that Pancrase was, at its very core, practically pro wrestling, despite being mostly a shoot. This will be a topic I'll explore more in-depth eventually on here.

News & Notes (4/27-5/1/1991) UWF's event in Hiroshima last week sold out with an attendance of 8,500 in the newly expanded prefectural gymnasium. The main event, featuring Akira Maeda and Maurice Smith, was said to be quite good from those in attendance, but the show stealer seemed to be the match between Minoru Suzuki and Masakatsu Funaki. Some are calling it a match of the year contender, and there's been a lot of talk in the Japanese press already about how both should receive title shots soon. It's not clear that it will happen this year, but both wrestlers are quickly becoming the primary challengers to the throne. Chris Benoit also made his return to the promotion with a good win over Shigeo Miyato. I would be surprised if Kazuo Yamazaki and Kiyoshi Tamura don't receive a tag title shot against the Koslowski brothers after their win as well, and that should happen at the anniversary event later this summer. (Wrestling Observer, 4/30/1991) Oleg Taktarov looked impressive in his debut, and it seems like UWF officials have moved past the incident in Amsterdam, where he nearly caused a riot. It seems natural to me that UWF would follow up with a Taktarov-Dutch feud, at least if they can avoid the guys killing each other in the middle of the ring. (Wrestling Observer, 4/30/1991) Akira Maeda and Dick Vrij are set for a title bout clash at the next UWF event in Nagoya on May 29th. Contracts will be signed next week at a press conference. Akira Maeda personally requested the match after his win over Maurice Smith. Dick Vrij has impressed UWF representatives by beating a few ranked kickboxers in Europe. Future opponents will likely include Volk Han, who is also in line for a title shot based on UWF's rankings. (Tokyo Sports, 4/28/1991 Lou Thesz will be holding important meetings in the United States later this month as he continues his recruitment efforts inside American amateur wrestling circles. Contacts in the UWF remain confident that the efforts will produce several new signings. Thesz wants the recruits to go through the UWF dojo system instead of debuting right away, and they will be given good salaries if they choose to sign. (Weekly Pro Wrestling, 4/29/1991) It is all but certain that UWF will be holding a "New Generation" tournament this summer, with the 8-man tournament starting in June. Names are being discussed, but it is likely that Minoru Suzuki, Kiyoshi Tamura, Masakatsu Funaki, and Wayne Shamrock will be the first entrants. (Gong Magazine, 4/29/1991)

I wish we had more footage of Billy Robinson in his prime, especially anything from the 1960s UK scene or his matches with Karl Gotch. What we have, though, is tremendous, and outside of a very few exceptions, almost everything we have of Robinson is like eating a five-star meal. It can be quite rich, and it might take some digestion, but god damn, is it good. My favorites are the Giant Baba match from 7/24/77, the Inoki match from 1975, the Tsuruta matches, the matches with Bockwinkel from 1980, and the UWFi exhibition from 1992. It's just one classic after another with Robinson, and he's really towards the end of his career in most of them. The great thing about Robinson is that everything he does looks dangerous and legitimate. It's not modern grappling as we would think in MMA today, or even 90s shoot-style, but he looks like he could put someone in the hospital with his bare hands. The reason why Robinson gets held up with the likes of Gotch and Thesz is precisely that he wrestled like it was a legitimate combat sport, and made people believe it was. At the end of the day, that's the sort of quality I am looking for in most of my candidates to some degree or another. It's not an exact science, but with someone like Robinson, I can revisit the footage almost anytime and be treated to something that just hits me right in the spot. Slam dunk #6 vote.