[2004-06-27-WWE-Great American Bash] Rey Mysterio vs Chavo Guerrero Jr

[Jetlag]

This was looking like it was building to be the junior match of the decade with both guys working a really good bayface shine segment with some clever spots and then a great heat section built around Chavo lathering Rey with nasty low kicks. Chavo looked like the best possible Dean Malenko here, handling Rey by the mask and taking Destroyer bumps which was pretty creative fora cruiserweight match. Reys selling initially was just great but I thought he ended up getting a little too cute with comeback spots that all required him leaping around and landing on his bad leg. The 619 clutching the knee also ended up looking goofy. Rey ain't no Hijo del Santo after all.

[ohtani's jacket]

This was a decent match but needed a stronger finishing stretch. I have a hard time getting into Chavo as a singles worker. He’s a total pro, and completely proficient, I just don’t see anything special in him. Definitely a guy I like better in tag matches. Rey is good in this, but you can definitely see how some people find his WWE work rote or formulaic. Having said that, you need to work to the house style in the WWE otherwise you’ll be out on the street. I feel like I’ve seen more exciting Rey matches than this, though. The finish, in particular, was pretty flat. Not sure the commentators or anyone in the crowd saw that coming, which suggests to me that it was the wrong beat to end on. This show seems polarizing. I’m not sure why it generated such strong reactions. It’s fairly middle of the road, if you ask me. I like the bull rope match more than some folks do, others like this match more than me, but I don’t see anything to get your panties in a twist over. 

[DMJ]

I thought this was a really strong match, with great execution, a really great story, good long-term selling and focus on limb work (Chavo's arm at first, Rey's knee for most of the match). I kinda wish the crowd was more into everything as the audience's interest seems to ebb-and-flow despite Chavo and Rey maintaining a good pace and delivering plenty of counters and cut-offs, hope spots, and variety of action. I wouldn't personally consider this to be "formulaic" Rey Mysterio only because, especially in the early going, I found his offense to be really targeted and even vicious - which is not necessarily a word I'd use to describe Rey Mysterio's offense. I haven't seen enough Chavo matches to call this his best, but I'm also not sure I've ever seen a better singles match out of him. Its just too bad that I don't think he or the division itself or the title itself were over enough with the crowd to make this match feel like a big deal (despite all the positives this match has). All in all, I'd recommend this match and would consider it well above-average.