30 Days of WRESTLING

[NEWM]

On the subject of Triple H, and in addition to the above post regarding good matches usually being on Youtube, I remember at the time enjoying his match vs Benoit at No Mercy 2000 but it's hard to come by on youtube, and i can't recall ever reading much about it on forums.

 

If it turns out my memory's playing tricks on me and that match actually wasn't up to much, or i've missed all the praise it gets, then i'll mention some of the most recent stuff i've watched that i think falls into the 'underrated' category.

 

Your memory isn't playing tricks, this match was the fucking business. It was before HHH was revealed as the mastermind behind Austin's assault, so he was becoming a hugely popular face, and IIRC, there was a set up to this which involved Benoit nutting Stephanie. Both guys were virtually untouchable (in the US anyway) from an in-ring perspective at that point, and the match was a belter. A few weeks later and Benoit and the Radicalz were Triple H's gang of idiot cronies in his battle with Steve Austin, which I think is another reason why this match fell off the face of the earth pretty quickly back then.

 

That Triple H swerve turn presents a good arguement for the early signs of decline of the golden years I think. Despite the payoff being a bit of a damp squib, immediately after his love triangle feud with Angle, that was as good an organic heel-to-face transition as The Rock and Austin. Right before he turned, HHH could have been a fucking monster face. They even had a second bite of the cherry the night after Mania X7 when they swerved again and he formed the Power Trip with Austin. And I know the Power Trip was brilliant, but just go back and see how much fans wanted HHH as their babyface hero. Cena in 03, Orton in 04 and Batista in 05 would be the nearest comparisons I can think of in recent times, but only in Batista's case did they execute the turn without sapping the "cool" out of the character.

[Dash X]

Bret Hart vs Roddy Piper - Wrestlemania VIII - Intercontinental Title Match. This one often gets forgotten about when on the subject of Great Wrestlemania matches. Back then rarely did you get a face vs face match and this one told a great story with Piper essentially turning heel and back to face again within the space of one match. Great finish as well which has been borrowed a few times since.

 

Part 1

Part 2

[Ric Flair's Divorce Lawyer]

I missed out on a couple so:

 

Day 2) Fave wrestling dvd - Wrestling with shadows - it was amazing how fortunate they were to capture the montreal screwjob as it unravelled.

 

Day 3) Wrestler that is underated - Cody Rhodes he is stuck with a lame gimmick but is doing his best at it and people forget that he can actually wrestle!

 

So now on to today's topic:

 

Day 4) Match that is underated - IC Title Rey Mysterio vs John Morrison (September 7th 2009) I seems to me that everybody keeps forgetting this one but it was a barn burner. Definitely one of the greatest wrestling matches on smackdown.

 

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xae59k_jo...erio-part_sport

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xae5a5_jo...erio-part_sport

[IANdrewDiceClay]

No Way Out 1998's 8 Man Main Event. Its the pure definition of the word "underrated". Yes, it would have been 100 times better if Shawn Michaels or even a half decent replacement would have been in it (although the Savio pop/groan is something to behold), but it is such an exciting match it should be put of Best Of DVD's. But it never is. The wrestlers in the match (apart from Savio) were all super over at this point as well. Austin, Owen, Funk and Cactus and DX had so much heat in that Texas arena, it just added to the brawl. Its such a fun and tremendous weapons filled brawl, where Triple H and the Outlaws bump for Steve Austin as if he was about to win the belt at the next PPV or something. What struck me as great about Austin, is he didnt follow the same pattern as the other babyface main eventers. If Hogan, Warrior or Savage would have been taunted by Billy Gunn they'd have ran in and got dragged out my the referee. Austin got taunted by Gunn and he just launched a distbin at his head in still one of the funniest spots I've ever seen. I suppose looking back, it was for the best Shawn Michaels wasnt in it, because it would have taken away from the first time Austin got his hands on him at WrestleMania. And the match quality never suffered, because it was pure Austin. Amazing and highly underrated match. Everyone should watch it. When you put on main events as good as this, its not hard to see why wrestling was so popular in 1998.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c8tNzDX_ehQ

[bigfoote]

Have been racking my brains about which match to choose. Agree with the Joe/Sabin match from '05, and Hart/Piper. One that sticks in my head, and rarely mentioned is Hart vs Hart, Owen and Bret from WM X. Always destined to be overshadowed by the match-defining HBK/Razor ladder match, and for a Bret Hart match, unusually high on the card. Sparked the feud which would run throughout 1994, with Owen winning KOTR, and being instrumental in Bret losing the championship to Backlund at Survivor Series.

 

EDIT: To make my argument clear: When people think of Bret Hart's best matches, this one very often gets pushed way down the list.

[Magnum]

That Triple H swerve turn presents a good arguement for the early signs of decline of the golden years I think. Despite the payoff being a bit of a damp squib, immediately after his love triangle feud with Angle, that was as good an organic heel-to-face transition as The Rock and Austin. Right before he turned, HHH could have been a fucking monster face. They even had a second bite of the cherry the night after Mania X7 when they swerved again and he formed the Power Trip with Austin. And I know the Power Trip was brilliant, but just go back and see how much fans wanted HHH as their babyface hero. Cena in 03, Orton in 04 and Batista in 05 would be the nearest comparisons I can think of in recent times, but only in Batista's case did they execute the turn without sapping the "cool" out of the character.

 

At the risk of taking this thread on a tangent, do you reckon the HHH face turn (if done fully and properly in late 2000) would have taken and seen him become a legitimate headlining babyface in the way his 2002 run failed to?

 

I personally think he could have had a better chance, as much because of the quality of heels he would have had to play off. Angle was still on the rise (though for the hypothetical situation to work, Steph would have to have turned on HHH and joined Angle at Unforgiven), and Benoit looked more than a match for HHH and The Rock when he worked with them around that point - I always felt Benoit would have been a better and more consistent fit into the world title picture as the cold, sadistic heel he played in 2000 than he was when he eventually got there as a face. With Austin, The Rock and Jericho also on the face side of things, it may have taken another big turn to the heel side to even things up - I don't think anyone would have particularly missed Taker as a face if his 'Big Evil' turn had come a year earlier - but that would've potentially looked a lot more promising for the future.

[Cobra1000]

Said it once, I'll say it a thousand times:

 

Samoa Joe vs. Chris Sabin, No Surrender 2005

 

One of the greatest cat and mouse style matches in recent memory, Joe was on top form and hugely popular, while Sabin put on a truly exceptional performance. Both men had an astounding match.

 

Watch

 

great stuff on a side note (and this may be against the grain) I miss Chris Sabin as a singles competitor, when he was on his own in TNA he looked cool as fuck with the long hair and white tights and was absolutely class in the ring. Not that I don't like the Guns, but I miss him on his own.

[air_raid]

Wow, there's quite a few matches made here that are almost universally bummed, and therefore hardly underrated.

 

Everybody knows the Benoit/Angle cage match was the bollocks, everyone loves the drama of the Lesnar/Undertaker Cell match, everyone who's seen it raves about the Eddy/JBL match from Judgment Day, DDP/Sting is quite often held right up there (I even read in the DVD releases thread someone say he thought it was the best match in WcW history) and even Bossman/Barbar is brought up all the time in any retro threads, usually in the context of "it gets overlooked being on the same show as Rockers/Orients but it was a great match."

 

Still some good examples, of the ones I've actually seen, Ian, Cleetus, baz and BionicRedneck have all picked great examples which made me think "christ, that WAS great, and gets NO love at all."

 

Mine is a bit out there, I dont think I've ever seen anyone mention it, mostly because of the extensive back catalogue of excellence from both men that would put it in the shade.

 

I like Kurt Angle vs Ric Flair from (IIRC) the Raw the night after Vengeance 2005.

 

This match was the very definition of great surprise for me, I say surprise because up until that point I really did think nearly everything Flair had done in the ring since returning to the WWF/WWE had been rubbish, that he was a lost cause and mostly was tarnishing the legacy of how great he used to be.

 

He and Angle went out there and had a brilliant heel vs heel match - they hit low, they bit each other, Flair even grabbed Angle by the package. The exchange of "Whooos" had me in stitches, and the battle to see who could cheat the most completely sucked me in, and I was so happy to see the Nature Boy involved in a match worth watching again.

 

This is where you all tell me what a tard I am, and that Ric Flair has never had a bad match, anywhere, ever.

[iamtheman]

Rhino vs Abyss Falls Count Anywhere TNA Against All Odds 2006

 

fantanstic brawl back when both were better workers crowd were really into it plus a 5 star finish

 

The Match

[NEWM]

That Triple H swerve turn presents a good arguement for the early signs of decline of the golden years I think. Despite the payoff being a bit of a damp squib, immediately after his love triangle feud with Angle, that was as good an organic heel-to-face transition as The Rock and Austin. Right before he turned, HHH could have been a fucking monster face. They even had a second bite of the cherry the night after Mania X7 when they swerved again and he formed the Power Trip with Austin. And I know the Power Trip was brilliant, but just go back and see how much fans wanted HHH as their babyface hero. Cena in 03, Orton in 04 and Batista in 05 would be the nearest comparisons I can think of in recent times, but only in Batista's case did they execute the turn without sapping the "cool" out of the character.

 

At the risk of taking this thread on a tangent, do you reckon the HHH face turn (if done fully and properly in late 2000) would have taken and seen him become a legitimate headlining babyface in the way his 2002 run failed to?

 

I personally think he could have had a better chance, as much because of the quality of heels he would have had to play off. Angle was still on the rise (though for the hypothetical situation to work, Steph would have to have turned on HHH and joined Angle at Unforgiven), and Benoit looked more than a match for HHH and The Rock when he worked with them around that point - I always felt Benoit would have been a better and more consistent fit into the world title picture as the cold, sadistic heel he played in 2000 than he was when he eventually got there as a face. With Austin, The Rock and Jericho also on the face side of things, it may have taken another big turn to the heel side to even things up - I don't think anyone would have particularly missed Taker as a face if his 'Big Evil' turn had come a year earlier - but that would've potentially looked a lot more promising for the future.

 

It's incredibly difficult to gage stuff around this time because of how the WCW bouyout would have altered everything, but I've always thought if Triple H had turned then, he would have been a face for years afterwards. You could still have Austin turn heel at Mania and let them have their feud on the other side of the fence, HHH would have been a good leader for the WWF against the invaders, and you're right about Benoit too - he belonged up there matched against The Rock and Jericho as a heel much more than he ever did as a face titleholder.

 

I look at it like this - just via video packages, it was a piece of piss to garner Triple H that humongous reaction when he returned at MSG in 2002. People remembered just how fucking brilliant he had been before his injury, and were happy to get behind the former nasty fucker due to his heroic fightback from injury. However, within a few months, it was blindingly clear (for multiple reasons) that he was not the man that had left in mid-01. His inflata-body seemed to hamper his mobility, and any likability was crushed out of him through an endless stream of horrid, horrid matches with usually safe types like Angle, Jericho and co. The fan sentiment and goodwill was drained bone dry by Wrestlemania, and his heel turn for Summerslam was long overdue by then.

 

All of the positivity that offered such a promising babyface run came out of fan respect for him being the very best at something, just like all the guys that make it to the highest level. Triple H had about 18 months between 2000 and 2001 at that level, and basically he's carved the remainder of his career out with a character who is basically the best in the world. All based around that 18 month spell and (very) brief flashes over the following 10 years. It made his disgusting ego tour of 02-03 all the harder to bear considering just how fucking dreadful he had become.

 

But in a nutshell, yeah, I reckon as a babyface in late 2000 through to 2001, he would have been an even bigger, more marketable star throughout the rest of the decade. He might actually have got to the level of Austin/Rock that deep down he knows he never did but seemed determined to be part of in his wilderness years. Maybe.

[Ron Simmons]

So underrated it doesn't even make a Youtube appearance...In 2004 JBL had a fantastic WWE title match with Hardcore Holly on Smackdown, don't know if anyone remembers it but it really was very good.

 

Was that the Hardcore rules match they had on one of the UK SmackDowns? I remember really liking that at the time, one of the best matches of his title reign, and one of the very few times he retained cleanly, if I remember correctly.

The very one.

 

It's one of my favorite JBL matches ever, I even enjoyed it more than his run of matches with Eddie Guerrero.

[JNLister]

I've got two offerings depending on how you interpret the question.

 

 

From the perspective of matches that are simply not widely known, Johnny Saint vs Mike Jordan from Croydon on ITV. Even among British wrestling lovers it's not that well known because Jordan wasn't one of the main lightweight guys with Saint, Grey, Breaks and the likes. But there's just something beautiful about the way Jordan is an entirely ordinary looking, bordering on middle aged guy who looks like your standard chap who does manual work for the council (that being exactly what he was during the day) who happens to have this rare skill that gets him featured on national TV. There's also an entire round where Saint grabs hold of Jordan's arm and never lets go, yet is always doing something and keeping it interesting.

 

From two other perspectives, Michaels-Hart Iron Man match. Partly for the simple fact that it's so often called overrated from a false premise (the idea that anyone other than Pat Patterson, Bret Hart and a WWE TV guy who made up a top-ten list consider it the best match in history) and partly because some people genuinely believe it's an awful, dull match. I've probably seen it five or six times over the years and it's one of the very few matches that I enjoy more on every viewing -- watching live was a disappointment simply because halfway through the outcome became obvious, plus it couldn't possible live up to the hype, and the second or third times on tape were admittedly a bit of a slog, but on later viewings both the execution and the story of the match start to shine through. Sure, the two greatest workers in the promotion at the time working an hour in the main event of WrestleMania should have destroyed the ratings scale, but most of the newsletter ratings at the time were in the **** range, and I don't think that's unreasonable from my viewing perspective.

[patiirc]

Bit late to the party

 

1. Your first wrestling video game.

 

This was either Intergalatic Cage Match, which is the worst pile of shit of a game the world has ever seen.

 

 

 

Or the much underrated and largely ignored The Main Event from Konami

 

All about The Maui Mauler and stomping Had proper commentary of a sort

 

 

2. Your favourite wrestling DVD.

 

 

 

Nice history, some great matches and well put together

 

 

3. A wrestler that is underrated.

 

The Big Bossman, Worked a multitude of styles very agile big man, constant reinvention, even though the gimmicks were largely similar, went from brawler to some technical stuff could even do the high risk including Enziguris and taking super, super plex's

 

 

4. A match that is underrated.

 

Hogan vs Bossman SNME. Cracking Cage Match,

 

Pt1

Pt2

[Loki]

and you're right about Benoit too - he belonged up there matched against The Rock and Jericho as a heel much more than he ever did as a face titleholder.

 

He absolutely peaked right about then, and had they pulled the trigger on him then, he'd have been set as a legit main eventer for the rest of the decade. Not that I didn't enjoy his feuds with Angle and all that, but if he'd beaten The Rock (was that the match where Foley reversed the decision?) he'd have been the man.

[TheBigBoot]

I remember Chance Beckett or at least I remember the name getting some praise. Didn't know he just disappeared though that's pretty cool

 

To be fair, by "disappeared" I mean "returned to Canadian indys that don't get much coverage or have widely traded tapes."

 

It's close enough and still pretty cool: I just like the idea of some guy coming out of nowhere getting a lot of praise from the hardcore fans and then disappearing to never be mentioned again.

 

I suppose the closest I can think of is Blitzkrieg although I wouldn't call him underrated since I think a lot of people still remember his WCW run or at least the PPV match with Juvi. Speaking of which...

 

For today's question I'm going for:

 

Juventud Guerrera vs. Kid Kash from the 6th January, 2006 episode of WWE Smackdown:

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SLjMzo0Gwto

 

This was Juvi Juice's last match with the company. It was also his best.

 

I've always liked the more mat-based Cruisers like Malenko, Crash, Noble, Helms and the WWE version of Crusierweight wrestling and Kash fits right into that. He seemed to be turning into one of the better CW champs he had based on his short run and its a shame he wasn't around the company longer given how well The Pitbulls with Noble started and the fact he was apparently tight with Bradshaw, Holly and Benoit.

 

Ken Kennedy makes his return to TV following his first of many injuries and does commentary as a representative of 'The Network'. As with most things associated with Palmer Cannon's Network the gimmick is that he's meant to be annoying and he actually works pretty well playing into Tazz' self depreciating schtick (Mr. Kennedy: "I was a Cruiserweight once", Tazz: "I was one when I was about four-ish").

 

Juvi' throws himself to the wind and hits a lovely 123 Kid style centon from the top turnbuckle to the floor with a lot of height on it even it barely connects. He then sells his leg for the rest of the match (throughout it Guerrera stops to sell the bad knee between and even during high flying moves) after Kash drags him off the top by foot and works the leg throughout. At one point he gives Juvi a hope spot by missing a springboard moonsault to the knees - this was before Shawn Michaels actually hit the moonsault to the knees at WrestleMania last year that some people seemed to think was a "botch" even though they were basically telling the same story as these guys here.

 

The finish sees Guerrera hit a top rope rana, but his knee is bothering so much that he pauses to rub it better before missing the 450 (onto his bad knee) and take the Dead Level right out of the company.

 

At just six minutes, nine seconds this was one of the best WWE Cruiserweight matches ever and one of the better WWE matches in what was a very strong year in-ring in 2006. Simple but effective this was a perfect example of how to adapt the high-flying style into a short TV match.