[2010-03-21-AJPW PRO-WRESTLING LOVE IN RYOGOKU VOL. 9] Minoru Suzuki vs Masakatsu Funaki (Cage)

[BigVanCrush]

I hadn't seen this since right after it hit DVDVR, so I didn't have a real memory of it beyond, "yeah, I watched that." This kinda kicks ass. There's some really nasty shots from Funaki that bust Suzuki open hardway. There's a lot of intensity here (go figure) and they manage to find a middle ground between doing a Pancrase tribute match and an 80s territory cage match. Funaki bleeds after being flung into the cage and he bleeds pretty good for a guy you wouldn't expect to be adept at blading. The strikes in this match aren't otherworldly stiff, but they lay everything in and the finish is really good. I'd need to rewatch Kono/Nagata from 2012 to figure out which of the two Muto-era cage matches I think is better, but this one is pretty friggin great. Pre-Bushiroad NJ Suzuki gets a bum rap, which is deserved at times, but when he felt like trying, he was one of my favorite guys to watch then and now. ****