Jump to content
Pro Wrestling Only

[1999-12-19-WCW-Starrcade '99] Chris Benoit vs Jeff Jarrett (Ladder)


Loss

Recommended Posts

  • 3 weeks later...

Last few minutes. I don't really remember how Jarrett ended up subbing for Hall in the match, but it probably resulted in a better match. Benoit looks to have had some type of accident and is pretty bloody. I should watch this one in full as it has great heat. Jarrett missile dropkicks the ladder to keep Benoit from reaching the belt in an incredible spot, but this seems far more violent than most ladder matches. Benoit does a diving headbutt from the top of the ladder and then climbs to the top to take the title. Benoit is starting to get over as a top guy, or at least it seems that way, and this match looks great from just the last few minutes.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 5 weeks later...
  • 3 months later...

This is really, really good, definitely better than their Starrcade '96 match. It's also the rare case of a ladder match sprint, as they get only ten minutes, but by the end I couldn't believe that it had been that short because of all the stuff they'd managed to pack in. They add a bunch of new ladder match spots to go along with some of the ones that had become staples by this point, and none of it feels contrived. There is some slow climbing, but there aren't any spots where they're lying around just selling how epic the match is. Jarrett again shows good intensity.

 

As good as the match is (and it's absolutely worth watching if you can stomach Benoit), the effort is even more impressive, as pulling this off in only ten minutes is quite a feat.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 1 month later...

Chris Benoit vs Jeff Jarrett - WCW Starrcade 1999 Vacant US Championship Ladder Match

 

Benoit's neck is freaking massive here. Double J's normal size neck looks like a stack of dimes compared to the juiced up Crippler. Benoit and Jarrett put together a really strong and violent ladder match sprint in this one. Benoit unleashes a can of whoop-ass early and hits a superplex to incapacitate JJ long enough to get the ladder. I like a small victory like that in the shine to show how dominate Benoit was early. Jarret is able to recover with a baseball slide into the ladder and then dropping Benoit face first on the ladder opening up a nasty cut on Benoit's face. I liked Jarrett as a heel taking advantage of the situation to take a control. They work some struggle spots with Benoit kept coming at Jarrett, but since Jarrett was a bit fresher he could still control the match. One of the scarier spots was Jarrett was in the Tree of Woe, but in the ladder and tipped over the ladder like you would reverse the pressure on a figure-4. Jarrett could have severely fucked up his knee and the way Benoit's head bounced off the ropes he could have seriously injured, but that's where the freaking massive neck will save your life. The spot of the match would be an all-time great spot if Double J did not hesitate forever and made Benoit look like a fool. That being said it is better to be safe and really focus. He dropkicks the ladder, which goes flying and Benoit takes an awesome bump. It actually came off pretty safe compared to a lot of ladder bumps, but was a sweet visual. Another fun spot is Benoit doing a roll through under the ladder and then dropkicking it into Jarrett's face. Benoit hitting the diving headbutt off the ladder and then grabbing the title does seem excessive, but they needed that climatic spot and it is a good one. The crowd was fucking dead for the beginning of this, but they won them over and Benoit's victory does feel like a big deal by the end. Some really great spots mixed with a strong sense of urgency and struggle makes this a pretty easy call for me to say this is a great, but too spotty to be a true classic. ****

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 6 months later...
  • GSR changed the title to [1999-12-19-WCW-Starrcade '99] Chris Benoit vs Jeff Jarrett (Ladder)

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...