[1963-12-02-JWA] Rikidozan vs The Destroyer

[Clayton Jones]

2/3 falls, Rikidozan's last singles match, a few weeks before he was murdered. This is also my first full Rikidozan match so I feel a little out of my element making this post but I want to preserve my thoughts. This was really good. I'm wondering as I dive into all the available footage if Destroyer's schtick will wear on me of if my opinion will keep growing. Right now it's definitely the latter. Everything built logically with a few big payoffs. Destroyer was great on offense and defense, stalling, and still keeping the focus on getting his comeuppance despite how exciting he was to watch. Rikidozan was economical with every move he made or expression he allowed, but he made for a good opponent for the very animated Destroyer. I thought the ref added a lot to this as well in a match where he had to be pretty hands-on. Maybe not an all-time great match (that finish though!) but darn close if it isn't.