[1986-10-09-NJPW] Akira Maeda vs Don "Nakaya" Nielsen

[Control21]

One of my favorite "Different Style" matches and probably one of my favorite matches of all time too. Maeda and Nielsen both worked very hard to make this an exciting match and the hot crowd carried it to the next level. The story here is that Maeda is more dangerous when he can get Nielsen to the canvas, but Nielsen outclasses Maeda whenever they engage in a traditional striking contest as Nielsen is a good-to-very-good kickboxer who is at the peak of his prowess here. Nielsen's reach gets him out of most situations and seems to be heading to a victory until Maeda gets him with a very well-timed takedown that he quickly turns into a single-leg Boston crab. Excellent stuff all around. ****1/2