1 company, 1 year, 5 incredible matches

[air_raid]

One company.....One year.....ONE MAN.

 

1989:

 

Ric Flair vs. Ricky Steamboat (Chi-Town Rumble)

 

Ric Flair vs. Ricky Steamboat (Clash VI)

 

Ric Flair vs. Ricky Steamboat (WrestleWar)

 

Ric Flair vs. Terry Funk (GAB)

 

Ric Flair vs. Terry Funk (Clash IX)

 

This list is definitely fair to Flair.

[tiger_rick]

You just lobbed jizz over the next idea!

[Tommy!]

2000:(I'm on my phone, so may be brief)

 

The Ramble Rumble: Cactus Jack vs Triple HHH

This was a big blow off to a feud that cemented H3 as the main event heel, a run some considered to be both hhh's best and one of the best in wrestling.

It was followed with the HIAC, but that wasn't the match the rumble was any wsy and then was tarnished by Foleys quick return, but the rumble was cactuses big come back, his last hurrah (untill the amazing Orton match in 04 any way) and was his homecoming to new York.

The match still holds up today as a blinder

 

Backlash:

Rock vs Trips

 

It was the best in there series, it had the Austin return, it was just a total blinder with everything, and everything pitched perfectly.

I don't think there is any one who doesn't love this.

 

Summerslam

TLC

 

Now I love the three way ladder at mania. I think its sadly over looked next to TLC here and at mania 17, but it was TLC that stuck in peoples minds. Full of big moments and drama it was three of the biggest teams and names, its mad to think now how big some midcard names were at this time, and this was them going balls to the wall.

 

Fully loaded

Jericho vs HHH

 

That 10 man tag on raw where Kane returns

 

It was stocked with over names, the crowd was smoking and the big finish blew the roof off.

 

Honorable mention to HHH vs Benoit which I love.

[Carbomb]

"The Ramble Rumble" - 30 ramblers vie with each other for the chance to face Bill Oddie at Ramblemania

[air_raid]

The greatest Ramble Rumble of all time was won by Ramblin' Ricky Rhodes.

[tiger_rick]

Went back and watched Austin vs. Trips three stages of hell from Feb 2001. I dunno if I've just mis-remembered or I was on my period when I first watched it but it was pretty good. It did go on a bitand I don't like the barbed wire bat stuff but otherwise its pretty dramatic and fittingly brutal.

 

Watched a couple of other bits off the No Way Out show. First time I've noticed a Benoit match has no chapter marked on the Network. Main event is a cracker between Kurt and Rock. Angle looks about a million times better in defeat than he did in any of his successful title defences. What a pity they completely fucked him over at WrestleMania by having fuck all for him. Not even a shampoo commercial.

 

Why on earth did Big Show interfere? Did it go anywhere? I remember he was in the hardcore title triple threat at Mania so it didn't set anything up for that.

 

WWF really did go down the shitter between SummerSlam 2000 and the Invasion PPV. They even nearly ruined the WM main event with that Debra shite.

 

On topic, Tommy's 2000 list is probably what I'd have come up with with one exception. I'm not a massive fan of the Fully Loaded HHH/Jericho match. I prefer the aborted title win on Raw. That was crazy stuff. Insane pop for the finish. That wouldn't make it either though, it'd be the Judgement Day iron man with the Taker return.

 

I'd also consider Trips/Foley II, Hardys/Dudleys from the Rumble, the brilliant Triple threat ladder match from WM, Rock/Benoit from Fully Loaded, the Triple threat from SummerSlam and the six man HIAC which I quite liked.

[ratedrpoed]

 six man HIAC which I quite liked.

 

My fav HIAC, wish WWE had done a match like that again.

They could have done in 2011 with Punk/Cena/HHH/Del Rio/Miz & Truth

[Carbomb]

 

 six man HIAC which I quite liked.

 

My fav HIAC, wish WWE had done a match like that again.

They could have done in 2011 with Punk/Cena/HHH/Del Rio/Miz & Truth

 

Was Wyatt Family/Shield a HIAC 6-man? Or was it an EC?

[tiger_rick]

 

 

 

 

six man HIAC which I quite liked.

My fav HIAC, wish WWE had done a match like that again.

They could have done in 2011 with Punk/Cena/HHH/Del Rio/Miz & Truth

Was Wyatt Family/Shield a HIAC 6-man? Or was it an EC?

Neither. It was at Elimination Chamber PPV but not in it.

 

Think that Wargames type match in the chamber would make for a decent spectacle. It's a pity they've pigeon holed the chamber and the cell on PPV. Lost that ability to drag them out to boost other shows. Wyatts vs. Reigns, Ambrose and Orton in a chamber would be cool in a couple of months.

[Accident Prone]

I suppose i'll be 'that guy' and go for the non-mainstream approach...

 

The year - 2011

 

The company - Pro Wrestling Guerrilla

 

Arguably the turning point for the company, 2011 was the year that solidifed the cracking atmosphere that they've never shaken off, established a lot of new guys that are pretty big deals these days, extended one of the biggest feuds of the previous year and gave some darlings one last hurrah before heading for pastures new.

 

Honourable Mention - The legends Rumble from Kurt RusselReunion 2. Two words; PIPER AND FUNK. Yep, at a PWG show (not held at the usual Resada venue but instead at Wrestle Reuinion in January), Roddy Piper and Terry Funk were the last two remaining in a Royal Rumble that also included the likes of Jimmy Hart, The Barbarian, Savio Vega, Vampiro, Tatanka, Shane Douglas and Warlord. They then proceeded to bloody the fuck out of each other in a wild brawl that came out of fucking no where.

 

5. "Mr. Wrestling" Kevin Steen & Akira Tozawa vs. The Young Bucks (Matt & Nick Jackson) - DDT4, March 2011

 

Steen had only recently returned to PWG after a lenghty absense.where he was embroiled in a blood feud with El Generico in ROH. Steen lost the legendary Loser Leaves Town match the previous year and hastily came back to PWG, where he partnered up with the insanely over Akira Tozawa, a DragonGate rookie who came to the US to hone his craft and became PWG's biggest babyface in the process. The Young Bucks were the cocky heels who had been causing havok around the promotion and needed to be taught a lesson in manners. They were as good as they thought they were which only increased their arrogance (this was way before the whole SUPERKICK PARTY and BulletClub stuff came into play) which made them an unbeatable team.

 

The Bucks were actually Steen's last PWG oppenents in late 2009 before he headed off to ROH. Steen lost that match, along side his partner Generico, and the Bucks battered him to a bloody pulp to get the victory. Shortly after this, Steen turned on Generico in ROH straight after losing to the Young Bucks again. The rest is history. This was his redemption.

 

The bout itself is a spellbinding display; both teams where showing signs of weakness having in all ready competed in two matches earlier in the eveining and the match delivered an all-out brawl followed by some tight as fuck tag formula. Tozawa's hot tag is brutal and the the crowd is on the edge of their seat. Lovely stuff.

 

4. El Generico & Ricochet vs. Nightmare Violence Connection (Kevin Steen & Akira Tozawa) - All Star Weekend 8, May 2011

 

The pairing that no one thought they would see again; Generico and Steen. All ready you have this tense atmosphere as Steen faces off against the man who sent him packing for the first time in almost six months. The Generico & Ricochet team was all ready an uneasy alliance due to the on-off feud the two had. A lot of crosswires and subtext, added in with the furious action made for a belter of a tag match. Every time Steen and Generico locked horns was off the charts and Tozawa was being an absolute cunt to the plucky, arrogant Ricochet to balance it all out.

 

3. El Generico vs. Kevin Steen - Battle Of Los Angeles, August 2011

 

And here we fucking go! The finals of the annual BOLA tournament and boy it's a fucking doozy. The history, the hatred, the suspense. Fucking marvellous. Steen had defeated Dave Finlay and Eddie Edwards to inch himself to the finals whereas Generico tore down Claudio Castognoli and Wille Mack. Those are some pretty big names to etch into your bedpost before facing your biggest rival on the same night. Tons of malice, atmosphere and vicious attacks to be had with a brutal finish (brainbustaaaahhhhh on the apron??? Jeezus christ.). You'd think they were done. Fuck no...

 

2. Pro Wrestling Guerrilla World Championship Title Ladder Match: "Mr. Wrestling" Kevin Steen (Champion) vs. El Generico (Challenger) - Steen Wolf, October 2011

 

This is it. This is fucking it. Perfect storty telling in action. Steen had won the championship at the company's 8th anniversary show and Generico's BOLA win guaranteed him a title shot. What happens is an incredibly heated and brutal affair. Both men took their lumps in this one. The bumps were off the chart and the utter hatred was all too palpable. The perfect end to the perfect epilogue to the perfect feud. The reason this is on the list isn't just due to the match quality though; after the match, the Young Bucks targetted Steen again and attacked the bloody, beaten ex-champion. This angered the one man they should never get under the skin of; SUPER DRAGON. After a massive five year absense from the public eye, the legendary dickhead of epic proportions returned, Sabu lights out style, to the biggest fucking pop this side of Austin helping Manking win the title in '99. An unreal amount of noise. Dragon cleaned house acccepted the Bucks challenge for the next show...

 

Pro Wrestling Guerrilla World Tag Team Championship Title Guerrilla Warfare Match: The Young Bucks (Matt & Nick Jackson) - Champions vs. Appetite for Destruction (Super Dragon & Kevin Steen) - Challengers  - Fear, December 2011

 

And the year ends with more layered story, pschology and brutal, out-of-control brawling. This is how you run an indy company, folks. Consistent, simple fueds that build from show to show and end in wild, bloody gimmick matches. Sounds familiar doesn't it? This was the perfect example of that booking style still working to massive effect. In fact, a lot of the 2011 shows are out of print due to the extremely effective old school booking of the company. An incredible match to round off an incredible year.

 

 

[spotlightmagnet1]

You know what, lets go for WWF 1996:

 

1. Shawn Michaels vs. Owen Hart, IYH 6.

 

This was a match with a great bit of story. Michaels supposedly had post concussion syndrome from Owen's kick and this match was great, a forgotten little gem. Owen still has the best spinning heel kick, and when it hit Shawn and Shawn's head snapped back you felt for him.

 

2. Bret Hart vs. Steve Austin, Survivor Series 

 

Hard to believe at one point Austin was a fantastic technical wrestler. This was an amazing match which was a great welcome back for Bret Hart, I think the kick off for the feud was brilliant and very simple, Hart and Austin knew how to have a good match.

 

3. Undertaker vs. Mankind, King of the Ring

 

Fucking mental, Taker was never like this before and Mankind was at his deranged best (imo). These two had such a good match with huge hits and really felt like something completely unique. 

 

4. Shawn Michaels vs. Mankind, IYH 10, Mind Games

 

Again, this match just felt completely original especially at the time it came about. Michaels first reign was something of a let down, This match even Michaels admits was the first time during that reign he felt like he delivered something special and fresh. It was both men in there prime taking risks and looking great in the process.

 

5. Shawn Michaels vs. Diesel, IYH 7

 

OK, forgot about this when writing the above one. This really was off the wall nuts, Diesel as the jealous embittered best friend was glorious and Michaels as the braziliant face was great fun and all the spots were pretty mental.

[spotlightmagnet1]

Double Post

[tiger_rick]

Honourable Mention - The legends Rumble from Kurt RusselReunion 2. Two words; PIPER AND FUNK. Yep, at a PWG show (not held at the usual Resada venue but instead at Wrestle Reuinion in January), Roddy Piper and Terry Funk were the last two remaining in a Royal Rumble that also included the likes of Jimmy Hart, The Barbarian, Savio Vega, Vampiro, Tatanka, Shane Douglas and Warlord. They then proceeded to bloody the fuck out of each other in a wild brawl that came out of fucking no where.

I've always wanted to see that. Is it online anywhere?

 

Good post. I'm not into Indy stuff much but I enjoyed reading that.

 

Nice WWF 1996 list too. Hard to argue too much. Not sure I like Michaels/Foley as much as some but it is good. Think i'd go Diesel/Taker from WM in that last spot.

[KingofSports]

In a year when they put on so many great matches, these'd be my picks from NJPW 2013. Cigarette paper between most of them & there were other matches that could arguably be added:

 

04.01.13: [iWGP I.C Title]: Shinsuke Nakamura v Kazushi Sakuraba
04.01.13: [iWGP Heavyweight Title]: Hiroshi Tanahashi v Kazuchika Okada
03.02.13: [NEVER Openweight Title]: Masato Tanaka v Tomohiro Ishii
07.04.13: [iWGP Heavyweight Title]: Hiroshi Tanahashi v Kazuchika Okada
04.08.13: [G1 Climax - Block B]: Shinsuke Nakamura v Kota Ibushi
04.08.13: [G1 Climax - Block A]: Tomohiro Ishii v Katsuyori Shibata
10.08.13: [G1 Climax - Block A]: Kazuchika Okada v Hiroshi Tanahashi
09.11.13: [iWGP I.C Title]: Shinsuke Nakamura v Minoru Suzuki
 

[Accident Prone]

 

Honourable Mention - The legends Rumble from Kurt RusselReunion 2. Two words; PIPER AND FUNK. Yep, at a PWG show (not held at the usual Resada venue but instead at Wrestle Reuinion in January), Roddy Piper and Terry Funk were the last two remaining in a Royal Rumble that also included the likes of Jimmy Hart, The Barbarian, Savio Vega, Vampiro, Tatanka, Shane Douglas and Warlord. They then proceeded to bloody the fuck out of each other in a wild brawl that came out of fucking no where.

I've always wanted to see that. Is it online anywhere?

 

Good post. I'm not into Indy stuff much but I enjoyed reading that.

 

Nice WWF 1996 list too. Hard to argue too much. Not sure I like Michaels/Foley as much as some but it is good. Think i'd go Diesel/Taker from WM in that last spot.

 

 

I tried to find a clip to go with the original post but PWG seem to be quite good at keeping their content restricted to preview videos and taking down full matches that people try to upload. If i find it at some point then i'll be sure to send it your way!