Here are the best matches I watched the last week! From March 4 to March 10, 2023. It was kind of a light week since I started a new position at work and you know how that is.
#9
Roxanne Perez vs Meiko Satomura
“NXT Women’s Championship”
NXT Roadblock
March 7, 2023
I’ve loved these two in the past, so I had to check this out and it was pretty good. A classic teacher/veteran vs student/youngster match, but with the twist of the youngster as the champion. Well laid out with Meiko being the dominant badass she is. Based on the sudden finish, I’d hope for a bigger rematch where they could put on a truly great match.
Rating: 7/10
#8
Aja Kong & Mariko Yoshida vs Kyoko Inoue vs Takako Inoue
“WWWA Tag Team Title Tournament Semi-Final”
AJW Wrestling Queendom 1995 Success
March 21, 1995
Aja Kong was in full beast mode in this one and Yoshida offered a great contrast to her. Double Inoue was on a mission to regain the titles they forfeited because they were the 99th champions and wanted to be the 100th. That led to an exciting tag match!
Rating: 7/10
#7
Kumiko Maekawa vs Nanae Takahashi
AJW Garage Show
November 11, 2001
These two different heavy hitters had a very fun 15-minute draw. It took place at some festival, where there were tents around the ringside. They took great advantage of the setting and brawled to those areas, plus to the street and used a variety of weapons in fun ways. A draw, that didn’t feel like a draw and a very exciting rush to get the pin at the end.
Rating: 7/10
#6
Chihiro Hashimoto vs Himeka
Stardom Triangle Derby I
March 4, 20223
Not only is this a good hoss battle, but it’s perfect booking. Hashimoto has come to Stardom to destroy Syuri and along the way she is building herself up by taking out the biggest hoss in Stardom, Himeka. They battle and battle hard!
Rating: 7/10
#5
Blizzard Yuki & Manami Toyota vs Kyoko Inoue & Takako Inoue
“WWWA Tag Team Title Tournament Final”
AJW Wrestling Queendom 1995 Success
March 21, 1995
The finals of the tournament to crown the 100th WWWA Tag Team Champions was very nearfall heavy which normally would have brought it down a lot, but it being the finals of a tournament weakened the blow a little. An exciting, all-action tag match!
Rating: 7.25
#4
Ami Sourei, MIRAI, & Syuri vs. Hiragi Kurumi, Risa Sera, & Suzu Suzuki
“Triangle Derby Finals”
Stardom Triangle Derby I
March 4, 20223
This tournament has made one of the most stagnant and boring times in Stardom since I started following it closely, but the final show was amazing including the finals of the tournament. I love how strong Prominence has been booked in Stardom, especially Suzu Suzuki. Suzuki and MIRAI have awesome chemistry and their finishing sequence was tremendous.
Rating: 7.5/10
#3
Giulia vs Maya Yukihi
“World of Stardom Championship”
Stardom Triangle Derby I
March 4, 20223
I haven’t seen Yukihi before, but she is from Giulia’s Ice Ribbon past. Based on this match, they have a lot of beef. This focussed a lot more on brawling on the outside and trying to put the other out than your typical Stardom title match, so this was a nice contrast. I dug the ending as Giulia hit the knockout blow on the outside, which would make Akira Hokuto happy, but is too hurt to enter herself. Looking forward to them continuing this one!
Rating: 8.25/10
#2
AZM vs Starlight Kid
“High Speed Championship”
Stardom Triangle Derby I ~Championship Battle~
March 4, 2023
Watching these two feels like you are watching the future of wrestling. While current people are focussing on huge spots, more flips, and fast action, these two focus on fast action built around going for wins with submissions and roll-ups. It feels so much better and natural! There were some huge spots in this one though, but they felt more impactful and more going for the win.
Although this was great, the match they had last year felt a bit better.
Rating: 8.5/10
“Fan Favourite”
Kazuyuki Fujita & Kendo Kashin vs Manabu Nakanishi & Shinsuke Nakamura
NJPW Toukon Festival
November 13, 2004
RoseGold saw how much I enjoyed the Fujita-Nagata shoot fight last week, so tried to see if I would enjoy it more. If you have a match you want me to watch next week, hit me up on Twitter or the discord.
It is so strange seeing Nakamura be so normal here. It’s also a very nice nostalgia hit when I see Kashin. Back in high school I never watched him but was somehow a big fan. He had a mask and did cool armbars, that’s all I needed!
The highlights of this match were when Fujita was beating the shit out of dudes, especially Nakanishi who was a giant punching bag. Nakanishi is so big he also had a few cool moments. Nakamura was just there, like he was a solid dude, but was not a stand-out in any way. Kashin hit a cool armbar off the top rope, so major bonus points for that.
Altogether, there were some fun moments, but mostly it was an okay tag that didn’t do a whole lot for me. Fujita and Don Frye seem to be my favourite shoot-style dudes, but that’s mostly for the MMA punching and not caring about their opponent’s attitude. It doesn’t always translate to a good match.
Rating: fun in parts/10
“Match of the Week”
Saya Kamitani vs Hazuki
“Wonder of Stardom Championship”
Stardom Triangle Derby I ~Championship Battle~
March 4, 2023
When Saya Kamitani is on, she’s really on. Even better when there is someone in there who keeps her on track and from going too far. Hazuki was just that person and her desperation to win at all costs made was unreal. Every time Kamitani started to drag this down, Hazuki brought it right back on track. It was frantic, and exciting, and had me on the edge of my seat.
Rating: 8.5/10
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