The Nomination Thread

[Jimmy Redman]

Mistico/Sin Cara/Whatever Name He Is Now

 

There are some reviews in these posts.

 

http://prowrestlingonly.com/index.php?/blog/8/entry-55-a-decent-mistico-match/

http://prowrestlingonly.com/index.php?/blog/8/entry-33-2005/

http://prowrestlingonly.com/index.php?/blog/8/entry-34-2006/

http://prowrestlingonly.com/index.php?/blog/8/entry-40-2007/

[Parties]

Man, on one hand I feel like if Cesaro, Cena, and Thatcher can't make my top 100, then no modern workers stand a chance. Yet still I find myself absolutely loving the nomination of Pequeno Pierroth and find myself thinking, "Hell yeah, what about Pequeno Pierroth?"

[GOTNW]

Yoshihito Sasaki

http://prowrestlingonly.com/index.php?/topic/29523-daisuke-sekimoto/?hl=%2Byoshihito+%2Bsasaki

[Microstatistics]

Kung Fu

 

http://prowrestlingonly.com/index.php?/topic/17898-atlantis-vs-kung-fu-emll-102690/

http://prowrestlingonly.com/index.php?/topic/28669-jim-breaks/?hl=kung (Includes review of Jim Breaks vs. Kung Fu 9/3/86)

http://prowrestlingonly.com/index.php?/blog/8/entry-379-dvdvr-best-of-the-80s-7/ Review of Kato Kung Lee vs. Kung Fu (Mask vs. Hair) (4/29/88)

http://prowrestlingonly.com/index.php?/blog/8/entry-392-1992-cmll/ (Kato Kung Lee y Shogun vs. Kung Fu y Xavier Monarca Cruz, 10/2/92)

[ohtani's jacket]

FYI, the British Kung Fu and Mexican Kung Fu are totally different wrestlers.

[Microstatistics]

Whoops, my mistake haven't seen that match so just assumed it was him.

[GOTNW]

Jun Kasai

http://prowrestlingonly.com/index.php?/topic/25941-mens-teoh-jun-kasai-jaki-numazawa-vs-takashi-sasaki-abdullah-kobayashi-badboy-hido-bjpw-112706/?hl=%2Bjun+%2Bkasai

http://prowrestlingonly.com/index.php?/topic/21816-yoshihito-sasaki-abdullah-kobayashi-shadow-wx-masada-vs-mens-teoh-jun-kasai-jaki-numazawa-yuko-miyamoto-bjpw-010207/?hl=%2Bjun+%2Bkasai

http://wrestlingwithwords.com/the-review-stands-alone-masashi-takeda-vs-jun-kasai-freedoms-122515/

Ryuji Ito

http://www.puroresucentral.com/CompReview-ItoKingHardcore.html

Abdullah Kobayashi

http://prowresblog.blogspot.hr/2012/10/bjw-flaming-boards-barb-wire-shadow-wx.html

http://prowresblog.blogspot.hr/2012/11/bjw-10292012-construction-site.html

http://prowresblog.blogspot.hr/2012/10/bjw-552012-light-tubes-abdullah.html

[Matt D]

Mike Jackson:

 

3 Reviews here:

http://prowrestlingonly.com/index.php?/topic/27673-jvks-territorial-explorations/?view=findpost&p=5612513

He was the MVP and maybe the "best jobber ever."

[Phil Schneider]

Eddie Kingston

 

http://segundacaida.blogspot.com/search?q=eddie+kingston

[Dylan Waco]

Nominating

 

Damien Wayne

 

Three matches:

 

Damien Wayne v. Chris Escobar 6/2/12 VCW

This was really fucking awesome. Wayne is just a great wrestler as he is just as good brawling as he is working lengthy title matches as he is working quasi-spotfests like this. Lots of nasty look punches, some crazy bumps, and some innovative spots that didn't look goofy. That triple wheelbarrow should have been a disaster but Wayne and Escobar really made it work. I also gotta give these guys credit for taking wild as fuck bumps on the floor, on the their ass, trashbagging into the guardrail, et. Just a total blast of a match that I will remember fondly months from now.

 

From Phil Schneider

 

Preston Quinn v. Damien Wayne VCW 3/7/15

https://youtu.be/Y8JLXMVDLDk?t=12m16s

These are the two best wrestlers in the Mid-Alantic indies really for over a decade. They haven't had a ton of singles matches against each other which have made tape, so it is really cool we get a big main event title match between each other. Quinn has breathtakingly great punches, and he unloads in a bunch of different ways on Wayne, who fires back with shots of his own. Parts of this match felt like Lawler v. Mantell. They build to some very cool stuff at the end, including Quinn catching a Savage elbow into a cross armbreaker, and hitting a huge second rope brainbuster. There was some ref awkwardness after that, and while I liked the cleverness of the finish, I though they lost a bit of momentum. Still a great match, and I really hope footage of both guys is available more this year.

 

Damien Wayne v. Charlie Dreamer OSF 8/20/11

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hRWob_BAMQQ

 

I thought this was a great match that had none of the pitfalls of the average "good" indy matches. It wasn't too long. There weren't too many near falls. It wasn't your turn, my turn. No indefensibly stupid spots. Just a damn good fight, that actually managed to have a big match feel despite the half empty venue. Dreamer was good, but this was Wayne's match. Really liked his mannerisms and facials in this. Most indy guys aren't convincing when they stare into a camera to talk shit and staring down fans is a lost art but Wayne knows that's a part of working and does it well. Really loved the theme of Wayne "outsmarting" a Dreamer counter only to get caught with another counter. The guillotine leg drop set up, was one of the only times I've ever seen that done well and the piledriver near fall was great. Really well executed flash pin finish too. This might be my U.S. indy match of the year.

[Dylan Waco]

This is a placeholder post to remind me I need to make threads for a couple of TN indie guys if possible.

[Dylan Waco]

Chris Michaels

 

From Phil Schneider

 

Bull Pain/Todd Morton v. Jerry Lawler/Chris Michaels XCW-Midwest 8/9/08

This is a match I had big expectations going into, and it totally exceeded them. Morton and Pain are a tremendous tag team, they take huge bumps, really violent offense, great at cutting off the ring, pretty much everything you want from a Southern Heel tag team. Morton really looks like one of the top 10 wrestlers in the world, his stuff is so crisp and athletic for a guy who has to be in his mid 40s, and his bumping is crazy. Usually in a tag match like this your big indy legend will hang around the ring apron and come in for a spot or two at the end, Lawler however worked about 70% of the match, bumping around the heels early, taking a big beating (including a ring post bump which is as good as the best post bumps on the Memphis set) and delivering the big comeback. Michaels looked good in his spots, but this was a Lawler showcase and it was awesome. Finish totally ruled with your big revenge spot by the crutch wearing Tony Falk son at ringside, and a Lawler Fireball. Hit up XCW Myspace and pick this up.

 

From Big Rob at WKO

 

Hot Rod Biggs vs Chris Michaels - SAW 19th Jan

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rDf1peeMZxo (33 mins in)

Borderline nomination really, but I enjoyed this a lot. Hot Rod shocked me, as he's another guy that I kind of wrote off based on look but he was so much fun here with his goofy selling, meaty elbow drops and some really choice weapon shots. Michaels seemed a little slow on his comeback, but he sold great. Biggs took a lovely dustbin shot at one point, falling throat first on to the middle rope which looked really cool. Superkick to end it looked cracking too. A really fun ten minutes, I could see people going either way on this but it's definitely worth checking out.

 

Kid Kash v. Chris Michaels - SAW

This is borderline and I can see a good case against it, as it is sloppy in parts and some people will not liked the over booked finish. I'm nominating it because I thought they did a great job getting over the importance of the match and Kash as a loose cannon character really works. He nearly gets in fist fights with virtually every female fan in the audience and is just incredibly hateable. His work on Michaels arm was not anything special, but it was effective enough. The trading submissions stuff was actually not as bad as it might sound because of how it set up. I actually liked the double re-start finish and the post-match angle with Riggins was good too. Not a great match, but something I would vouch for on a list of things people should really watch.

 

Kid Kash

 

From Hector at WKO

 

Kid Kash vs. Pauly Thomaselli- SPW 1/4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SagXkrrhY5Y

This isn't a great match, but man do I love me some Kid Kash. It's amazing how the guy can transition from old school junior to Southern heel at the drop of a hat. He reminds me of Casas in the way he's pretty much as athletic as ever but also has that veteran presence to go along with it. I was doubtful about Thomeslli early on, but he grew on me as the match progressed. Sadly, we were robbed of a proper finish because of whatever storyline they're running there. This is pretty lean for a nomination, but I think it's an easy match to enjoy.

 

Kid Kash vs. Chase Owens- NWA Smokey Mountain 12/19

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5X3LgLQpe6A

This is a career vs. career match between Kid Kash and Ricky Morton with Chase Owens filling in as Morton's surrogate. It's kind of a silly premise considering Morton is pretty much done anyways, but man did it make for an awesome match. Kash has developed into a fantastic ring general in his later years which was in full display in this match. He was constantly on Owens with chops, corner stomps, headbutts, pretty much all go-to staples for a good Southern heel. It reminded me of a more mature, professional version of a Super Dragon beat down. There was a great moment towards the end where Owens and Kash are trading punches, and Kash sneaks in a dirty jab and follows up with a nasty left-right combo in the corner. It's a shame we never got Kash vs. Low Ki outside of a crappy X-Division setting. Owens kept it simple with some solid punches and basic babyface comebacks, which is exactly what he needed to do. The post match was great with Morton cutting a phenomenal promo bringing it all home for us. I've seen a lot of mediocre junior matches this year get touted as Southern wrestling, but this felt like the Southern wrestling we know and love. Everyone should check this out.

 

Chase Stevens

 

Team Impact (Gunner, D.O.C., Crimson, Chase Stevens) v. Team Wrestleforce (Brady Pierce, John Skyler, Cedric Alexander, Juggernaut Jon Malus) - WarGames Wrestleforce 5/16/13

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yrF5SQwLGno

It's a shame the finish of this was so idiotic, because up until that point this was a fucking awesome wargames match. Started off hot with Gunner and Skyler brawling all over the place and beating the piss out of each other all around the ring and really went from there. Tons of fun stuff in this. The Cage isn't used a lot but every time guys are brawling on the ropes and someone hits the ropes the whole cage shakes and it adds an extra degree of danger. Gunner takes a crazy back body drop and almost breaks his neck. Skyler does a cage dive and it's actually well set up and doesn't come off as stupid. Every think Gallows does in this looks vicious, really makes you realize how much he is being wasted in TNA. And man Juggernaut Malus looks fucking awesome in this as his teams big guy, trying to defend the runts he's with by standing toe-to-toe with the giants....and then he turns on them at the finish and it's fucking stupid. But there is WAY too much good shit in this up to that point not to nominate it.

Jon Malus v. Chase Stevens - Street Fight Wrestleforce 4/20/13

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KyraNqO9wN4

Pretty borderline and could see some strong arguments against it, but this was a pretty violent match and it hit a lot of the right notes for me. I really enjoyed Malus in the aforementioned cage match and he was fine here, but I thought Stevens was a ton of fun in this. Pretty solid punching and brawling tactics, but what makes this to me is this damage the guy is willing to take. This is a random outdoor show in a Columbia, SC suburb and the guy takes two brutal unprotected chairshots, almost accordians himself on a spear and takes one of the crazier bumps into a standing chair I've ever seen. Good match

 

Stevens also has several matches/segments reviewed in the Best Things Ever Said on Wrestling Message Board thread via tomk's old TNA Workrate reports

[Grimmas]

Thanks for making the threads Dylan.

[NotJayTabb]

Nominating Doug Williams

 

Doug Williams vs Mark Haskins (TNA Destination X 2011)

Haskins is the mystery opponent for Williams, an opponent none of the crowd have heard off. Still, this shouldn’t give them the right to be total dicks, which unfortunately, they are. For despite putting in a good performance, they shit all over Haskins. The opening sequence is particularly fun, with Williams slightly dominating on the mat, but still falling prey to a couple of pinfall attempts. Williams is larger and more experienced, so it makes sense he controls much of the match, but Haskins does some really nice stuff. I especially like the way that, when Williams hits him with a forearm to break a hold, Haskins replies with a straight headbutt. Haskins also takes a nasty looking bump on the ring apron. Haskins does slip a couple of times (which the crowd shit on him for), firstly in the middle of an otherwise smooth sequence of offence whilst trying a springboard clothesline, and secondly when trying for a Shooting Star Press, though this plays into the finish: having wasted a few seconds by slipping, he misses the SSP and Williams rolls him up for 3. A pretty good match, a terrible crowd.

 

Doug Williams vs Pete Dunne (TXW King of the Royal SummerMania Series 2014)

Williams was Eddie Dennis' choice to fight the number one contender to his Triple X title. Williams cheap-shotted Dunne to kick off, but this soon developed into a fine technical affair. Williams was dominant on the mat in the early going, which makes sense given his experience advantage, but Dunne was able to get back into it with some tough-looking strikes, and locked in a cloverleaf for a near tap. Dennis distracted Dunne mid-match, and Williams attacked from behind to fully complete his heel turn. Despite this, Dunne was able to pick up the victory. as Dennis lambasted Williams after a two count, and this distraction allowed Dunne to get a roll-up for the victory. After the match, Williams and Dennis put the boots to Pete, until brother Damian came in to make the save. Pete seemed a little put out that Damo didn't make the save sooner, but they left united. Fine main event, and I liked the way that Williams' initial superiority made Dunne look even better when he was able to fire back and take over himself.

 

Doug Williams vs Tyler Bate (TXW Wrestle***** 2014)

One of the big success stories in Triple X in the past 12 months has been the rise of Tyler Bate, who keeps getting better show by show, looking like he belongs with the bigger names that he's been put up against. He's been so impressive, it's easy to forget that he's not picked up a win yet since his debut, yet remains massively over with the crowd. Here, he took on one of the biggest names in BritWres and the result was another terrific match. His style gelled perfectly with Williams, as both guys like to work the mat, throw in cutesy spots (there was a repeated criss-cross section here that was a lot of fun) and hit a nice suplex or two, and this was a really good bout. The story here was that the younger, less experienced Bate was having to struggle to keep up with Doug, but was growing into the match as it progressed. Bate managed to block the Chaos Theory and hit his ever-impressive deadlift German suplex for a very close two, but ultimately Williams was able to tie him up for the three count. Another top performance by Bate, who must be the most promising young wrestler in the UK at the moment.

[GOTNW]

Don Fuji

http://www.voicesofwrestling.com/2015/12/27/dragon-gate-fantastic-gate-2015-december-20-review/

http://www.voicesofwrestling.com/2015/03/01/dragon-gate-champion-gate-in-osaka-review/

http://www.voicesofwrestling.com/2016/02/02/dragon-gate-open-the-new-year-gate-2016-january-17th-review/

[Exposer]

Shaun Tempers

 

Ace Rockwell v. Shaun Tempers NWA Anarchy 6-25-11

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cYZuGuwU0HI...mbedded#at=1805

My brother posted this on my fb yesterday as Rockwell is a local guy he has followed for years in TN and always regarded highly. You could definitely find flaws with this, but over all I thought this was a really well built title match in front of what essentially amounted to a studio audience with announcers that were selling the shit out of the back history between the two, their big moves, and the importance of the belt they were wrestling for. I really liked Rockwell's selling in this, thought he hit some wicked punches and just generally liked the way the match was built. Tempers was really good too. Rockwell was in peril most of the match, but it never got boring at all, and some of the cutoff spots and transitions were really great. I particularly liked the triangle choke spot, the punch to the face of the charging Rockwell, and the spot with Tempers lunatic bump to the floor, followed by him cutting off Rockwell on the ropes before he could hit a dive. Well worth going out of your way to see and these are both guys who I want to see more of.

 

Shaun Tempers v. Lance Erickson - NWA Mountain State

I'm tired and too lazy to look up a date now, but this was one of those slow evolving matches that starts off decent, gets solid and by the end feels like a really good match. Tempers is challenging Erickson for the local belt and the crowd is really into it which helps. The front end of this is slow moving, but when they come up for the big spots it's some good stuff, including an Erickson crossbody that sort of caught me off guard. I really liked Tempers big bump off the slingshot and the finishing run of this had some really cool stuff, including a great Tempers near fall off of a diving knee to the back of Erickson's head and Erickson fighting off Tempers neckbreaker finish with a backslide finish. Not upper tier, but very enjoyable stuff.

 

Shaun Tempers v. Cedric Alexander - Rampage Pro 6/24

You can watch this match on the Rampage website. I was really impressed as they worked a sort of modern day Scorpio/Windham match with the champ working as a dominant vet, to the speed/flash of the younger up and comer. I am a big mark for well done cut off spots and there were three or four in this match that I thought were well timed and unique. In fact this match had a lot of basic stuff that was dolled up just enough to feel and look fresh. Tempers targetted the neck when he was on offense in a bunch of simple, but nasty looking ways. Alexander rattled off a comeback toward the end, including a really great looking hilo over the top. Finish was really cool as Alexander went for a suplex variation and Tempers stomped on his foot to break the hold and then hit his neckbreaker out of nowhere for the clean fall. Good stuff. Gonna need to go back and watch more Rampage

[Luchaundead]

Tommy End

 

https://freewrestling.wordpress.com/2010/07/04/bryan-danielson-vs-tommy-end-from-wxw-germanys-ambition-2010/

 

http://segundacaida.blogspot.com/2016/02/2016-ongoing-moty-list-heroend-v.html?m=1

 

http://www.voicesofwrestling.com/2015/10/16/pwg-2015-battle-of-los-angeles-final-stage-review/

[Dylan Waco]

Nominating

 

Slim J

 

TEAM ELITE (JAGGED EDGE, SEV7N, NEMESIS, SHADOW JACKSON & SHAUN TEMPERS) v. TEAM ANARCHY (BRODIE CHASE, SLIM J, AZRAEL, BRIAN CASANOVA & SETH DELAY) - NWA Anarchy 3/9

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E0pbHjZKDrI

I really liked this as it was kind of your textbook example of how to hide middling talents (in some cases that may be a generous appraisal) in a tag like this and everyone ends up looking better. We got a double FIP with both Slim J and later Delay in that role and the match was sort of built around that. Azrael/Slim J still being around in 2013 and working square dancing double team spots warms my heart more than it should. Se7en is a really flawed guy but they worked really well with him as the big, power guy enforcer the faces had trouble and had to confound with speed. And Tempers was awesome in this. He was barely in the ring at all, but he's just an excellent heel ace, directing traffic, talking shit, wrenching in nasty neck cranks and sick forearms, cheapshotting Slim J with an ace crusher on the ropes, feigning a back injury early and then late again to get an advantage on Casanova and score the pin. Just awesome heeling douchebaggery from Tempers. Makes me really want to see him work some of these guys in Anarchy Title defenses.

 

 

Shaun Tempers/Bobby Moore v. Slim J/Ace Rockwell - Anarchy 3/8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X_w_sZnUgWE

Really fun showcase match for these guys that I liked in part because they used the standard tag formula and did some slightly different things with it. For instance I really loved Tempers shoving Moore out of the way to start the heat section as it's something you don't really see, but it was a fun start, and believing big bump to put Slim J on the defensive. I also liked Tempers blindsiding J with a shot to the back of the head, and then Moore hitting him with a diving tackle, as a sort of slovenly, but violent double team spot. Slim J was fucking nuts in this his bumping as he folded himself up a few times, and was running right into all of the shots of Tempers and Moore. There were a couple of spots down the stretch that weren't to my taste, but this had a good tempo, J ate a sick forearm on a dive attempt down the stretch, and I really liked the idea of the finish even if the execution was a bit off. This won't make any match of the year lists, but if you are looking for something different, this is a fun one.

 

Shaun Tempers v. Slim J - Anarchy 6/28

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lYaZVVcyl7o

This wasn't Gulak v. Busick, but it might very well be the best Southern indie match of the year, and honestly I can't imagine these guys having a better match together. It's probably better if you know that Tempers three finishers are the neckbreaker, cobra clutch/backbreaker and cobra clutch as that adds meaning to the shockingly great near fall sequence, but even without knowing that I can't imagine anyone here thinking this was less than really good. Slim J is such a hit or miss offensive wrestler for a flashy guy that you never know what you are going to get with him, and Tempers is a guy who can grind a match to a halt if you let him, but here the difference in pacing and offensive styles dramatically enhance the match. The opening matwork - while not world class - was WAY better than you would think in terms of snugness, interesting counters and setting the tone, and even Tempers working his typical "running down the whole shot clock" offense really fit this match well. This match had an awesome test of strength spot, a brutal couple of shots that led to Tempers in control, one of the nastiness neckbreakers I've ever seen, a couple of legitimately great cut off spots, was excellently paced, and as mentioned before had one of the better runs of near falls of any match I've seen from anywhere on Earth this year. The finish was kind of unsatisfying considering how good the rest of this was, but it wasn't bad, and it gives me hope that we might see a series between these two.

 

Ace Rockwell

 

Shaun Tempers v. Ace Rockwell - Anarchy 4/26

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=80DaeqitHGo

These guys had a legitimately great match in the same building a couple of years ago that went about a half an hour. This one didn't go near that long, and was more in keeping with Tempers working his quasi-tv champ gimmick, with Jeff G. Bailey as his second, but I really like them as an act so I loved this. This definitely had a couple of clunky moments, but taken as a whole I thought they did a great job playing off of previous matches they've had (these guys have been feuded on indies in the area for close to a decade), and some of the counters in this were really awesome. I love how Tempers adds different counters and offensive spots to every match depending on opponent, setting, et. Here we got a cool dropkick to the ropes to lead to his first control segment, a sick overhead suplex, and a great counter of the Ace Crusher into his Cobra Clutch. To Rockwell's credit he took some crazy bumps, including a crossbody into the ropes, and a spot where he slingshotted right into a Tempers forearm. You knew this was building to a bullshit finish, but they left the door open for another match so I'm fine with it. Tempers is in my top 20 at this point

 

Plus Tempers v. Ace review in the Tempers nomination.

 

Tank

 

Jimmy Rave Approved v. The Devil's Rejects - Empire Wrestling 4/7/12

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CQ-BJQ_CpQk...yIg&lf=plcp

Not sure others will like this anywhere near as much as me, but this was the best of the four Empire matches I watched today and I liked this one enough to nominate it. Actually Exposer will probably Yes it, but he's hardly objective since he's a semi-regular attendee of Empire shows. I'd be interested to hear thoughts from others.

Day and Hollis are a petty good team. I love Tank when he is an asskicker and that is what he is here. Still Andrew Alexander is the guy having the best year in this as he has been really entertaining in every match I've seen him in this year as the sort of doofy heel, wearing the Heenan style singlet, flopping around and surprising you with his athletic prowess on occasion. This was really solidly structured as you had you had a good shine with constant tags and flashy face spots and then a really solid heel control segment with some big shots, some really nice hope spots, et. I really loved the leaping elbow off the apron spot onto Alexander, Alexander's Boston Crab and the subsequent cradle escape and some of Tank's nastier offense. The stuff off the hot tag was good and Tank cutting it off and then dragging Alexander over to the corner so he could tag in ruled. I also really liked the fact that Tank finally "got hurt" only after hurting himself by missing a spot off the ropes. They put together some neat looking spots and near falls to set up the finish. The finish itself was a hair off in timing, but I thought it still worked well and was creative in a good way.

 

Review of his match v. Cyrus from Pro Wrestling Rossville is here. http://prowrestlingonly.com/index.php?/topic/18959-dylan-reviews-full-shows-in-this-thread/page-7

 

Jimmy Rave Approved v. Kyle Matthews/Tank Norton/Jessico Blue/Mr. Showtime (Elimination Match) NWA/DSCW 11/3/11

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QD_FKqd5U4s

I absolutely fucking loved this. I have no doubt you could pick this apart as Blue is one of the least physical wrestlers I've ever seen, and this is chalk full of indyish spots, but I thought those spots looked good as fuck. The Rave led team is a bunch of guys I don't know offhand, but they are all in matching gear and come across as a Kaentei'sh heel stable with Rave as a Southern mans Taka Minchinoku. Crowd is fucking bananas for this and Matthews keeps leading them in a stomp/clap "We Will Rock You" beat. They segmented this really well as it went almost 25 minutes and was back and fourth between a more traditional match and a balls to the wall sprint. All the eliminations were believable. Tank Norton is one of my favorite indy guys live and he was awesome here just punishing dudes with his obesity and freakshow spots. Every time Rave and Matthews were in the match was really great and the finishing run with Rave and Matthews was just brutally stiff, with Matthews taking some crazy bumps, hitting a fucking lunatic tope, et before having the win stolen out from under him on a sweet Rave counter. Super enjoyable match, with a tremendous atmosphere. Honestly this is the sort of match that would have been a MOTYC for me if I had seen it live.

[JRGoldman]

I think Dylan thought I was trolling on twitter, but I would like to nominate Survival Tobita. A lot of stuff has been lost due to the boards crashing so many times, but his WOTD thread from 2013 has a few archived reviews from the DVDVR crew:

 

http://deathvalleydriver.com/forum/index.php?/topic/1859-wrestler-of-the-day-survival-tobita/

[Dylan Waco]

Nominating

 

Tony St. Clair

 

Taken from OJ's reviews and with the understanding that OJ may cringe at those reviews being used to nominate him

 

Mick McManus vs. Tony St. Clair (3/14/74)

This was an excellent performance from McManus. Pretty much a masterclass. In fact, I think it may be the best Mick McManus performance I've seen. Tony St. Clair had a huge height and weight advantage which kind of translated to some awkward looking lock-ups in terms of him having to bend over, but to St. Clair's credit he was full of fire here and sold well.

The match was basically about McManus' cheating and St. Clair's retaliation (like all McManus matches), but St. Clair was pretty damn good at his part. Max Ward was on his case the entire match and there was awesome part where Walton started saying "Is he gone? I think he might be gone" in regards to whether it was a DQ or public warning. The last couple of falls were really good since St. Clair was battling for an equalising fall via submission.

Not only was this passable, but I'm actually going to list this since it was a genuinely exciting match and a great Mick McManus bout. St. Clair is 4/4 in passable bouts so far, and while I wouldn't call him a good worker, it seems like his opponents liked the heat they got against him because everyone stepped up their game when they faced Tony St. Clair.

 

Tony St. Clair vs. Dave Bond (11/7/77)

Now this was interesting.

Dave Bond was a guy who had weight issues for much of his career, but here he was in the best shape of his career enjoying the hottest run he ever had (w/ the Caribbean Sunshine Boys) and man was he a different sort of worker. The CSB vs. Tony St. Clair was one of the best feuds Dale Martin ever ran, but still I was surprised by how good this was.

It was one of those bouts that disintegrate into a raft of public warnings, but extremely well paced and sold like you wouldn't believe. This was the best I've seen St. Clair look of his own accord, which may have had something to do with his father, a famous heavyweight himself, being in attendance. It was the first time I've seen him brawl without looking like a daffodil. There was an awesome, awesome submission in this and the finish was a huge bump that I wouldn't expect Dave Bond to take. The camerawork was also top notch, which is something else you don't expect from WoS.

Excellent match. Tony St. Clair sucking is a bit of a myth, I'm afraid. Not against the top heels at any rate.

 

Marty Jones vs. Tony St. Clair (9/26/78, JIP Rd 2)

These catch weight contests often produce gems, but this was a bit more special than usual as it was the British Heavyweight champion vs. the British Light-Heavyweight champion, so Jones was giving away a fair bit of size. I can't imagine a heavyweight champion in any other promotion putting over a lighter wrestler as much as St. Clair did here. I've never given St. Clair much credit as a worker, instead praising him as a babyface foil for the likes of McManus, Kincaid and Bond, but I thought he was excellent here. Whoever booked this did a great job as they fooled me twice. St. Clair stayed down during the break between rounds with a shoulder injury and I thought maybe we were going to see a bullshit World of Sport injury finish that put Jones over for whatever reason, but St. Clair shrugged off the pain and the two men put on the best round I've seen on these discs to date. Really fantastic wrestling that had the crowd on their feet. Then they did a head clash spot that I thought for sure would lead to a double knockout, but the match kept going. For as shitty as WoS finishes can be, when they decide to pull a swerve or two it works really well. The match was a cracker and both guys came out of it looking good. Why more wrestling can't be booked like this is a mystery.

[Luchaundead]

Naruki Doi

 

http://www.voicesofwrestling.com/2016/02/05/dragon-gate-truth-gate-february-4-review/

 

http://www.voicesofwrestling.com/2016/01/27/dragon-gate-open-the-new-year-gate-january-13-review/

 

http://www.voicesofwrestling.com/2015/12/30/dragon-gate-final-gate-december-27-review/

[GOTNW]

Johnny Ace

http://prowrestlingonly.com/index.php?/topic/15588-toshiaki-kawada-vs-johnny-ace-ajpw-championship-carnival-032794/?hl=%2Bjohnny+%2Bace&do=findComment&comment=5718326

http://prowrestlingonly.com/index.php?/topic/11456-mitsuharu-misawa-jun-akiyama-vs-steve-williams-johnny-ace-ajpw-summer-action-series-ii-090596/

http://prowrestlingonly.com/index.php?/topic/30305-mitsuharu-misawa-jun-akiyama-vs-steve-williams-johnny-ace-ajpw-real-world-tag-league-113096/

 

Alberto Del Rio

http://prowrestlingonly.com/index.php?/topic/25363-sheamus-vs-alberto-del-rio-wwe-smackdown-030714/

http://prowrestlingonly.com/index.php?/topic/25373-alberto-del-rio-vs-big-show-wwe-smackdown-011113-last-man-standing/

http://prowrestlingonly.com/index.php?/topic/32658-tlc-2015/page-4

[Jetlag]

Nominating: Tibor Szakacs, Pete Roberts & Pat Roach via. OJ's euro wrestling thread:

http://z11.invisionfree.com/wrestling_ko/index.php?showtopic=2555&st=0

[NotJayTabb]

Unlikely to vote for him, but I think he's worth discussion - Jonny Storm

 

Vs Chad Malenko (Collyer) (All Star Wrestling, 14/3/2001)

You may know Malenko better as Chad Collyer, so this has the chance of being decent. Hilariously, he still has the initials "CC" on his trunks. Malenko tries to get a "USA" chant going for some easy heat. Nice little mat sequence gets us warmed up. I love the simple touches, where Storm asks the crowd if he should wrench Malenko's arm again, while Malenko shakes his head. They work a nice sequence of counters and reversals, which ends with Storm on top, which must seem like manna from the Gods for this crowd after some of the earlier toss on this show. Malenko takes control and slows things down with a chinlock. He sends Storm high into the air with a massive flapjack. This is being worked very simply, like a good TV match, with Storm getting a few hope spots on his comebacks before Malenko cuts him off. Makes sense, as this isn't a crowd that wants long indy-style matches (which these guys could certainly do). Top rope rana and a moonsault press by Storm gets a good reaction from the crowd. The end comes as Malenko blocks a second top rope rana and hits a tornado DDT for the win. Really enjoyed this.

 

Vs Chad Malenko (All Star Wrestling 22/2/2001)

This was filmed 3 weeks prior to the other match, so it'll be interesting if they just had a stock touring match. Seemingly not, as Malenko stomps the shit out of Storm in the corner to start. No mat work, just the more muscular Malenko hammering away on Storm. Storm sends him packing with some dropkicks, playing up his speed advantage. There is a mat section after this, but it's nice to see they mixed it up a little bit. They're definately working some different bits into this match, with Malenko doing a nice little showboat by running round whilst holding a delayed vertical suplex. Malenko keeps control on Jonny, with a nice single leg crab and an STF. Jonny's comeback here includes a nice rana in the middle of the ring, but Malenko catches him leaping off the top for another rana and plants him with a powerbomb for three. Another good bout between these two.

 

Trent Acid vs Jonny Storm (GWF Battle of the Champions 2003)
CZW was pretty popular in the UK in 2002, so Trent gets a decent reaction here. Ross Gordon returns and cuts a promo that I can't hear very well. Acid stalls like Hell to start. The highlight of an overly-flippy opening segment is Acid smoothly reversing a hiptoss into an abdominal stretch. Acid really has his character work nailed on here, waiting until Jonny turns around before hiding behind him, then following him in a hilarious, OTT manner. They brawl into the unlit crowd, with something impossible to see earning a "Holy Shit" chant. Acid feigns a leg injury in the corner, then suddenly strikes to attack Storm in a classic heel spot. Acid's mannerisms are great in his control spot, and I like the way that, for a guy who often did too many choreographed looking moves in his matches, he works simply here, drapping a leg over Storm's throat whilst posing to soak up the boos. I also like him following up a backbreaker with a full Nelson camel clutch to focus on Storm's back. Storm's offence at this point was mainly high-risk and flashy, so he was perfect for comebacks that pop the crowd, with a top rope leg-lariat looking great. A triple jump rana gets two for Storm. They work a pin reversals sequence before an Acid Yakuza kick gets two. A second attempt misses and Storm hits a rana for the win. It broke down in places, but overall this was damn good.

[joeg]

David Von Erich

 

Kind of Surprised he isn't nominated.

 

3 matches-

 

7/4/83 Von Erichs vs Freebirds

 

http://prowrestlingonly.com/index.php?/topic/31906-six-man-tag-team-champions-fabulous-freebirds-vs-von-erichs-wccw-7483-2-out-of-3-falls/

 

2/18/83 Von Erichs vs Freebirds

 

http://prowrestlingonly.com/index.php?/topic/31903-fabulous-freebirds-vs-von-erichs-wccw-21883-lumberjack-match/

 

8/15/83 Von Erichs vs Gordy and Garvin

 

http://prowrestlingonly.com/index.php?/topic/31917-gorgeous-jimmy-garvin-terry-gordy-vs-kevin-david-von-erich-wccw-81583-2-out-of-3-falls/