Jonathan Gresham

[Grimmas]

Discuss here.

Clayton Jones said:

"One of the best technicians in the world with a deceptively deep career. Works around his size exceptionally well. He's the type of wrestler that will make me tune into a show I had little to no interest in otherwise. He also only seems to get better with age and could still have some of his best stuff to come."

[Quentin]

I’m already considering Gresham as a 80-100 guy and I can see that case only growing in the next 5 years. Gresham has been fantastic for a good amount of time now, I would say he’s been great since 2012. One of the best tag workers of his generation between stuff with Jay Skillet, Chris Brookes and Jay Lethal. Can do it all like pick the pace of his style up and do more flashy and athletic spots as babyface with really infectious fire. As a heel, can be cocky and surgical in his control segments and can even stooge better than a lot of people. Flawless execution on everything that he does with the ability to seamlessly weave in his athletic spots with elite mat work and I think he’s added the “classic” matches to his resume with his stuff against Zack Sabre Jr and Jay Lethal. 

[Grimmas]

I rather like Gresham and as a technician, he's one of the best (if not the best) of this generation. I would need to watch a bunch more, but I am willing with him.

[Ed.]

I'm a big fan in recent years, hell he's gotten me to watch hollow, empty arena ROH this last six months or so purely (pun unintended) to see his work and nothing else.  Thought he was excellent at 19th Anniversary against Dak Draper.  I have major blind spots pre-2015 for Gresham though and would love to take a look at some of that if anyone has recommendations.

Top 80-100 sounds about right for now Quentin, but I agree there's scope for higher.  When I think of the big hitters in modern technical wrestling who I'm considering for GWE, Gresham has the biggest potential to have the best next 5 years.  Thatcher stuck in NXT where things have already tailed off from a good start, Zack feeling like he's hit a ceiling in New Japan in a tag team with Taichi and facing the same old opponents in G1s etc.  Gresham feels well placed with ROH where he has this spot in the Pure division to showcase his stuff, and there's the opportunity to launch him back into the world title picture in the future, plus he still occasionally works indies.

 

[Cap]

Yeah... Gresham has a pretty solid case. He has been quite good for a decent amount of time. What's more he really does have a knack for pulling good stuff out of his opponent. If that opponent is limited he is pretty good at covering and making them look good. If that opponent is also great he helps them level up too. I know that latter one might sound easier, but I'm not sure it is. Having a really good to great match with Hero and ZSJ in 2016 isn't exactly unique... but having a matches that stand out among their respective impressive catalogue at the time is quite impressive.  Great tag worker as well. Has shown an ability to be put just about anywhere and find success.

I enjoyed his 2019 quite a bit, but haven't kept up as closely with him since. So I'd probably need to see him continue to be good to great between 2020 and 2026 for him to make my list.

[Jetlag]

Gresham has to be one of the most baffling underwhelming wrestlers I've ever seen. Clearly he is very knowledgable on wrestling and aims for a style that goes against the trends, but he's just been a spectacular failure when it comes to having great matches. He reminds me of those Benoit clones you'd see in RoH. I would absolutely rank him below Zack Sabre Jr, and Zack isn't sniffing my top 200

[Clayton Jones]

Oh wow, ZSJ is very likely to be on my ballot, so maybe that makes sense for me being high on Gresham too. I agree I'd rank him lower but the Octopus has a shot for me so I'm glad to see I'm not on an island there.

[BrandonWagemann]

16 hours ago, Jetlag said:

Gresham has to be one of the most baffling underwhelming wrestlers I've ever seen. Clearly he is very knowledgable on wrestling and aims for a style that goes against the trends, but he's just been a spectacular failure when it comes to having great matches. He reminds me of those Benoit clones you'd see in RoH. I would absolutely rank him below Zack Sabre Jr, and Zack isn't sniffing my top 200

What makes him a Benoit clone? 

[Clayton Jones]

Gresham getting called the best wrestler going ruffled a lot of feathers so why not bump my nomination with some match reviews.

Jonathan Gresham VS Tommy End  - wXw 16 Carat Gold 3/15/2014

Well clearly this is one to watch right now. For where both guys were at this was very good. Gresham was still in his junior/high flyer hybrid phase, which I think he did well, although I much prefer the wrestler he evolved into over the years. This was one of many examples where he was excellent at making himself a small target, using leverage and momentum to create his openings against a much bigger opponent. They were deliberate at building to the strike exchanges, which I appreciated, but made a few moments a little too cute. I will say I really enjoyed how Gresham would recover when things went sideways here and there. The finishing stretch was awesome, which is a reoccurring theme watching Gresham matches. For what my expectations were coming into this match up in 2014 I was more than happy with what they delivered.

Timothy Thatcher VS Jonathan Gresham - Beyond Wrestling 8/31/2014

Similar to the previous match but with a tighter performance from Thatcher than End. Another fantastic finish. In some ways this might be a better showcase of Gresham working around his size but less of a big fight feel. You can see the Octopus' technical style evolving and he has one of the most game opponents in the world at the time to work with.

Jonathan Gresham VS Matt Tremont - Beyond Wrestling 11/28/2015

Definitely a bit of a dream match for me, in what seems like the opener (crazy to think about between these two now). Both try to play in the other's wheelhouse. These guys lay out and execute this in a way that makes me feel confident in calling them two of the best of their generation. They make things count even though it might not have had reason to mean a whole lot at the time. I love the momentum shifts, even enjoyed Doom Patrol on commentary cracking wise. And once again I especially love the finishing sequence. This is a match that takes two completely different talents you're high on, throws them together on a whim, and leaves you on an even higher note. Still not sure if either guy will make my top 100 all-time by 2026, but I feel more optimistic about their cases after this one.

Jonathan Gresham VS Davey Richards - Warrior Wrestling 7/17/2021

There isn't a lot that will make me want to watch a Davey Richards match in 2021 but once again, Gresham is one of those guys who will make me tune in. And I'm glad I did, this was gritty, and to be fair to Davey a good performance from both. The washed up gunslinger against the current quick draw, Gresham is still among the best at making his matches feel like they have real stakes. When things got heated I bought into the hate. Good stuff.

[Zoo Enthusiast]

Really looking forward to his match vs Suzuki in GCW coming up.  Imagine it will add to his case.

[TonyPulis'Cap]

Gresham has been one of my favourite wrestlers over the past few years, and I am absolutely willing to consider him for the top few slots in my list. It will be interesting to see where he lands with all the talk of ROH shutting down, given he had really found a home there, but I think he is a way more versatile performer than just being a great technical wrestler. I remember watching him live at a Rev Pro show here at the UK when part of CCK and he was absolutely tremendous playing a chickenshit heel but without it being over the top and becoming a parody - just walked that line beautifully. A few years ago my criticism would've been one you can often make of 'technical wrestlers' in that you thought sometimes he was going through holds without much emotion, but that was blown out of the water for me back in 2018 when he had my favourite match of that year - his 30 min Iron Man Match for the ROH Title against Jay Lethal. This was my review of that match I've copied from the thread in the match archive section of the site:

I absolutely loved this match, one of my favourites of the year. Had such an old school NWA vibe to it, and in my opinion, miles better than the Rollins/Ziggler match, without the multiple falls for falls sake and a match that had very few dangerous 'movez' and head drops.

It was just fantastic storytelling. I could see the criticism that the first 10 mins or so was a little bland, but I enjoyed that they were establishing parity and that with it going a guaranteed 30 mins, they didn't want to expend energy too quickly. I know a lot of people are down on Lethal, and while he may not be the most compelling wrestler in 2018, he's a had a damn good year in terms of his match quality. As SmartMark said, he came across as the ace of the company in this match, totally confident in his abilities and not rushing in. Gresham in turn is just so super smooth with his technical wrestling and the way he was trying to keep Lethal off balance with his unorthodox approach. 

  On 9/30/2018 at 5:03 AM, Wahoos Leg said:

This match made me believe. The reaction after Gresham got the tapout -- both by the crowd and Gresham's shocked reaction -- might be one of my favorite moments in wrestling of the entire year. The commentary from Riccaboni and Colt really sold it as a potential title change, even though I already knew the outcome., Jay Lethal bores me as a top guy a lot of the time  but he was damn fine here as the hard-hitting champion. Gresham is a jewel. I've seen a fairly wide variety of his matches this year, from an assortment of companies, and every time he brings something unique. 

This times a million. Gresham's face when he gets the tap is one of the best moments in wrestling I've seen in years. Managing to convey so much: knowing that he has just 3 or 4 mins to hold on to become champion and trying to keep composed when he just wants to let out his emotions. It all feels so fucking real, like a football (soccer) team going 1-0 up against the bigger team with just a few minutes on the clock. On a personal level it reminded me as a Crystal Palace fan going 1-0 up in the FA Cup Final in 2016 with just around 10 mins to go against Manchester United, the heavy favourites. You got that sense, hang on, this could happen! Alas as it was for Palace, Gresham suffered that late heartbreak and again as we did in 2016 in the Cup final losing in extra time, Gresham is pinned in the sudden death period.

Maybe that's why the match resonated so much for me - it felt like a genuine sporting emotion that I've had myself. The way Gresham tried to hang on in the figure 4, knowing he had just 120 seconds to do so to become champion, but then it being just too painful. Echoing Wahoos Leg on the commentary - I thought it was tremendous - an amazing call by Ian and Colt, for my money the best commentary team out there at the moment.

Absolutely tremendous stuff - **** 3/4. Too high? Maybe, but I loved it.