Kevin’s Top 10 Matches of June 2017

After a May chock full of excellent matches, June was a bit more subdued. I only have twelve matches from the month ranked at **** or higher, while there were nearly twenty in May. Due to that, I’ve shortened this month’s list to ten. I haven’t seen PROGRESS’ June show, but basically every other major show was covered. The list includes WWE, NJPW, Evolve, Pro Wrestling NOAH and Style Battle. To be considered, the match just had to take place in June 2017.

Honorable Mentions: BxB Hulk vs. Shingo Takagi – Dragon Gate King of Gate 6/1[****]; Evolve Championship: Zack Sabre Jr. [c] vs. Jaka – Evolve 87 6/25 [****]

10. IWGP Intercontinental Championship: Tetsuya Naito [c] vs. HIroshi Tanahashi – NJPW Dominion; 6/11

Ah, another WK rematch. At least this one was my MOTN (****½) in the Dome. On that night, Naito finally got his big Tokyo Dome victory. Like KUSHIDA earlier, Tanahashi got booed a bit when he jumped Naito before the bell. Throwing the IC Title in front of him was too much for Tana. Tanahashi’s wrapped arm (he partially tore his bicep) became a target, giving a nice change of pace from recent Naito outings. Of course, Tanahashi combated it by going after Naito’s leg. Some of Tanahashi’s bumps didn’t come off too well, but I chalk that up to his legitimate injury. However, he gets props for how everything he did felt desperate. Like he knew a loss here would not only cement the end of the IC Title, but his time near the top. High Fly Flow wasn’t enough, so Tanahashi went to the Cloverleaf to make Naito tap at 25:56. A high quality match, but not on par with their WK11 match. It lacked some of the drama from that one, but was possibly more intense. The finish was interesting. I like that it made the leg stuff count and it showed the Cloverleaf isn’t just a rest hold for Tana, but felt a bit anti-climactic. At least this frees up Naito to win the G1. Hopefully. [****]

9. GHC Heavyweight Championship: Katsuhiko Nakajima (c) vs. Atsushi Kotoge – NOAH Great Voyage in Fukushima; 6/25

Atsushi Kotoge was a standout of NOAH’s Jr. Heavyweight division for quite some time. He progressed to a heavyweight and became a guy who hung tough with the bigger guys, but would come up just short. He strung some wins together and earned a shot at Katsuhiko Nakajima’s GHC Heavyweight Title. Kotoge was out to show he could best Nakajima, battling him in every aspect, including the strikes and kicks Nakajima is known for. When that wasn’t enough to get a clear advantage, Kotoge utilized his quickness, snapping off cutters and DDTs to stop Nakajima in his tracks. The crowd believed his hope spots, including his Brainbuster counter into a small package. At the end of the day though, Nakajima is the ace for a reason. He used a flurry of offense, capped by the Brainbuster, to retain in 20:08. A great back and forth match between two of the best guys in NOAH. Nakajima will be missed in this year’s G1 Climax are killing it there last year. [****]

8. Matt Riddle vs. Zack Sabre Jr. – Evolve 86; 6/24

Their match last year was a great nine minute sprint (***¾) that saw Riddle make Sabre tap out. This had a lot of intense grappling from the start, as expected from these two. Lenny Leonard was great on commentary, noting Riddle’s striking advantage and Sabre’s endurance upper hand. Once they moved on from grappling, Riddle started throwing Sabre around. There was an extra level of aggression from Riddle that I didn’t expect in a match like this. Sabre was more than happy to return the favor. The finishing stretch was great, with Sabre kicking out of a powerbomb at one! He also survived the jumping Tombstone but was in trouble when Riddle tried the Bromission. Sabre countered, using both a head scissors and heel hook at the same time, while slapping Riddle’s ribs. The WWN Champion tapped at 12:24 ,eliciting a HUGE reaction from the crowd. Great way to close the show and this was better than their Evolve 59 outing. Two top guys trying to prove who the better man is and who really runs Evolve. Excellent exchanges of grappling and striking with a hot crowd. [****]

7. IWGP Heavyweight Championship: Kazuchika Okada [c] vs. Kenny Omega – NJPW Dominion; 6/11

Their WK match got the infamous six stars from Dave Meltzer, but I wouldn’t call it the best match of either man’s 2017 or even the best match at WK11. You could see where this was going from the start. It was paced slower than the first match for a reason. I do like how commentary noted that more people praised Omega for the WK match. Okada’s title reign has been him trying to prove himself against everyone, so that must eat him up. Omega went after the leg and viciously attacked it. Leg work in main events are a bit tired (thanks Tanahashi). It was going well, but then they forgot about that work so they could move into bigger spots. However, they at least gave a lot of selling to each big bump, helping to draw out the match. They called back to their first match, with Okada using a table. I dug the spot where he took Omega’s gun taunt into a Rainmaker spot. The best part was Omega finally hitting the One Winged Angel, only for Okada to get his foot on the ropes. A move nobody kicks out of, so it made for a great near fall. Actually, the highlight might’ve been Omega avoiding a Rainmaker simply by falling under it from exhaustion. Time expired at 60:00 after a Rainmaker, leading to a draw. Another great match from these two, but not GOAT status. My major gripe with their first match was how the first 15 or so minutes could’ve been cut out and you’d miss nothing. Here, that wasn’t exactly the case, but they threw the leg work out the window so they could get their good shit in down the stretch. There were parts I loved (Omega avoiding the Rainmaker, the One Winged Angel spot, calling back to the first match) and I must commend them for going at the pace they did for so long. It was even more impressive in that aspect than the first match. Ignoring the first chunk of the work and overdoing it on the Rainmaker/V-Trigger stuff was too much to make this an absolute classic, though. I also don’t like the draw finish. They’ve been telling this story of Okada overdoing himself and getting worn down so Omega could beat him and he still couldn’t get it done. Like the WK match, it has flaws, but it still a great main event. It was an incredible athletic achievement too. Never fear Omega fans. He may have already set the bar for July with his awesome encounter with Tomohiro Ishii. [****]

6. Money in the Bank: AJ Styles vs. Baron Corbin vs. Dolph Ziggler vs. Kevin Owens vs. Sami Zayn vs. Shinsuke Nakamura – WWE Money in the Bank; 6/18

During Nakamura’s entrance, Corbin jumped him and attacked him with a camera, sending him to the back. The rest of the guys were game to bring out the big bumps. There were too many spots to mention, but some of the highlights saw a Zayn sunset flip bomb and AJ hanging from the briefcase and taking a scary fall to the mat. Kevin Owens would get the MVP vote from me for this one. He took some sick bumps. From a DVD onto a ladder to Zayn tossing him from the top onto a ladder to an insane spot where Styles hit USHIGOROSHI onto a ladder bridge, he was part of everything. Nakamura returned around the twenty minute mark and proceeded to look the best he has since the Zayn match at TakeOver: Dallas. Like a bad motherfucker, he wrecked everyone in sight and finally looked to live up to the hype. It all led to a fantastic encounter between he and Styles. The fans badly wanted one of them to win. Corbin found a way to sneak in and tip over the ladder, before pulling down the briefcase himself at 29:50. It didn’t completely click with me at first, but got really good down the stretch. Crazy spots, cool moments and a show stealing exchange from Styles and Nakamura. I wasn’t a fan of the finish because it’s kind of overdone in these kinds of matches. Corbin winning was the best choice though, as the briefcase works with a heel like him. Awesome main event, though not quite on the level of the best MITB matches (2005, SD 2013, 2014 and 2016). [****]

5. Anthony Henry vs. Fred Yehi – Style Battle Season 1: Episode 5; 6/16

For those unfamiliar with Style Battle, they’re part of the WWN family of wrestling. Season one is this year and there will be nine episodes. In each episode, there’s a tournament. After eight episodes, the winner of each tournament will compete in a final tournament to determine the winner of the season. On episode one, Fred Yehi was a favorite to win. He was a standout in Evolve and held the FIP Championship. Anthony Henry stood in his way though, taking him to a thirty minute draw, with neither man advancing. Since then, both Henry and Yehi came up short. They reached finals but never won. On episode four, Henry vowed to never compete in Style Battle again if he lost. That led us to episode five, where the rematch went down in the finals. The face off between them felt like a big deal. They threw bombs in this one, not trying to go to a draw again. Both guys were looking to end this as soon as possible. They focused on the body parts that had been weakened earlier in the tournament and wrestled a really smart match. Yehi was positioned as the superior wrestler, but Henry had more than enough heart to withstand and eventually overcome that. He survived the Koji Clutch and put down Yehi with the Kudoh Driver at the 16:09 mark. This was the best Style Battle match so far and better than their first match. Nobody will really talk about it, but I think it needs to be seen. [****¼]

4. BOTSJ Finals: ROH World Television Champion KUSHIDA vs. Will Ospreay – NJPW BOTSJ; 6/3

Last year, these two met twice (****½ at Invasion Attack and ***¾ at Dominion) and KUSHIDA won both. KUSHIDA won this tournament in 2015, while Ospreay did in 2016. It’s an incredibly uninspired finals choice. Though this was a friendly encounter, you got the feeling Ospreay had a chip on his shoulder. Or maybe that’s just his personality. He called KUSHIDA a bitch while no-selling his strikes, trying to show his toughness. It just led to him eating a rolling kick and dive outside. They played off their past well, with Ospreay having the top rope shoulder breaker scouted (but he still got hit with it) and KUSHIDA getting his knees up on signature Ospreay stuff. There was a particularly wild spot where Ospreay spiked KUSHIDA on the apron with a reverse rana. Ospreay decided against the good guy route of helping KUSHIDA in and was willing to take the countout, but KUSHIDA beat it. KUSHIDA had a fantastic Oscutter counter, jumping with Ospreay and catching him in an armbar. It was nearly as good as the chair armbar spot against KOR last year. They progressed in a badass exchange of strikes and kicks, including KUSHIDA going all Bryan Danielson by stomping on Will’s face. Will flipped him off in the middle, remaining defiant. The Hoverboard Lock didn’t work, so KUSHIDA went to transition to Back to the Future, but Ospreay had a counter ready. Ospreay brought everything, including an imploding 450 and about ten of his corner superkicks, but KUSHIDA refused to stay down. They fought up top, where KUSHIDA hit SUPER Back to the Future. He held on like his name was Okada, and rolled into a second to win in 27:59. That was fantastic. Some spots didn’t look as good as others (Will standing like a moron while KUSHIDA set up his own Oscutter for example) and I preferred their first match. It followed the formula of a lot of NJPW matches that people have gone the full five on this year in that it had a slow build to a wild finish that everyone remembers. Still, it’s a working formula and I was all about how well they played into their history. Having the tourney guys around the ring added to the big fight feel. An awesome match, but not quite as good as their first meeting in 2016. [****¼]

3. NXT Women’s Championship Last Woman Standing: Asuka (c) vs. Nikki Cross – WWE NXT; 6/28

Nikki has her own version of the SAnitY theme. They lock up and break away instantly twice. They duck each other’s moves and have a small standoff. Nikki backs her to the corner and hits shoulder thrusts. They trade blows until Asuka lights her up with kicks. Nikki counters a whip and takes her down with a cross body, followed by some rag dolling. Nikki misses her next cross body and eats a dropkick. Asuka tries a baseball slide but Nikki pulls the apron, trapping Asuka in it. She pounds away with Asuka trapped. Nikki pulls steel chairs from under the ring. Returning from break, they both block suplexes onto chairs. Asuka gets sent into the steel steps but then slams Nikki into it. Asuka throws a trash can in the ring. She puts it over Nikki’s head and fires off kicks. She caps it off with a missile dropkick, causing the referee to start counting but Nikki beats it. They fight over a chair and Nikki leaps off the apron into a knee. Nikki comes back with a reverse DDT on the apron. Nikki beats her down inside, but gets crotched up top. Asuka pulls her down onto a pile of chairs but then gets back suplexed into them. It looked brutal. They both get up around seven, by using the ropes. Commercial break. Asuka kicks the shit out of Nikki, who laughs at them. Asuka fires off a bunch in a row, but Nikki continues to laugh. This pisses off Asuka, who has a back fist blocks. Clothesline type move by Nikki but Asuka fires up and gets to her feet first. She misses the roundhouse kick and Nikk tries her finisher. Asuka counters but eats forearms. Nikki hits the fisherman’s neckbreaker and watches as Asuka gets counted down. Asuka’s up by five, so Nikki hits a second. A third and fourth follow. Nikki gets the title, saying its hers. Asuka’s up at nine and NIkki charges with the belt. Asuka kicks her down and Nikki’s up by five. Spin kick by Asuka and Nikki’s up by seven. She gets Asuka on the apron but eats some body shots. Asuka tries a suplex to the outside onto a pile of chairs, but it gets blocked twice. Nikki hits a neck snap and slides under Asuka, looking for a powerbomb onto the pile. She hits it and Asuka’s head seems to hit the ramp. Asuka barely gets up at nine, and uses the guardrail to stop herself from falling back down. Nikki takes her up the ramp but Asuka fights her off. She wants a German off the ramp but Nikki blocks. Nikki tries a suplex but gets shoved off the ramp. Asuka follows with a leaping hip attack and Nikki beats the count at eight. Asuka tries a kick but Nikki ducks and she breaks a light structure. Nikki drapes Asuka’s feet on a guardrail and hits another fisherman neckbreaker. Asuka again gets up at nine. She hits a spinning back fist but Nikki returns with a ladder to the ribs. She slams her head on a nearby table and sets it up by the announce table. She sets the ladder up by the table and slams Asuka’s head on the table. Nikki lays Asuka on the table and goes up but Asuka grabs her foot. She goes up with her and they trade shots. Asuka delivers an insane superplex off the ladder and through the announce table! Asuka beats the count at nine, while Nikki stays down at 18:46. [****¼]

2. WWN Championship: Matt Riddle (c) vs. Keith Lee – Evolve 87; 6/25

In terms of being over and putting on top notch performances, these are probably the two hottest guys in Evolve. They met on a Beyond Wrestling show the day before this. The atmosphere was rather wild for this. They fist bumped out of respect, before going right into striking one another. Riddle quickly found himself in trouble as Lee tossed him around like nothing. He came back with an impressive gutwrench suplex, managing to best the one against Jeff Cobb last month in PROGRESS. The camera caught a Bro to Sleep that completely seemed to miss, though it at least led to a good near fall on a German. After taking moves like the Pounce (PERIOD), Riddle tried a guillotine choke to wear down Lee. He went to a bunch of sentons, until Lee caught one in mid-air and nailed the Spirit Bomb for a great near fall. Riddle hit the Bro to Sleep again, only for Lee to not go down. They traded bombs until Riddle hit a knee strike and Lee hit a headbutt. They both collapsed, with Riddle falling on top of Lee to win at 14:45. An incredible main event that beats out Riddle/KOR and Lee/Dijak for my favorite Evolve match this year. Two guys giving their all because their best might not be good enough against the other. Riddle survived and got lucky enough to fall on Lee in one of my favorite finishes this year. Probably my second favorite match in all of June. [****½]

1. IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Championship: Hiromu Takahashi (c) vs. ROH World Television Champion KUSHIDA – NJPW Dominion; 6/11

It’s another WK rematch. On that night, Hiromu took the title from KUSHIDA (****¼) and then Hiromu squashed him in under two minutes at Sakura Genesis. Hiromu (2017’s wrestler of the year) got a Rey Mysterio like “JUMPING OUT THE SKY) entrance. Hiromu’s in KUSHIDA’s head and that was kind of the story here. His antics made KUSHIDA aggressive, which pulled KUSHIDA into his style. From battling with strikes to a Sabu like springboard dropkick off a chair, KUSHIDA was ready to get just as wild as the champion. KUSHIDA targeted the arm, because though he has a new finisher, he still utilizes the Hoverboard Lock. They went at a crazy pace with some awesome spots throughout. KUSHIDA took a particularly nasty bump on the sunset flip bomb. KUSHIDA hit a super Back to the Future, like he did against Ospreay, but was too hurt to cover. That led to a great battle of strikes, before KUSHIDA stomped on Hiromu’s head a bunch. That drew boos, most likely since LIDJ is so over in Osaka. A wicked twist on the Hoverboard Lock made Hiromu tap at 19:12. Better than their WK outing. I hate that Hiromu lost, because it seems like his entire (incredible) run was just to put KUSHIDA over even more. That being said, it was a great story. Hiromu broke him in every single way and he had to dig way deep to overcome him. KUSHIDA did things he usually doesn’t do, bending the rules just enough in order to win. Hiromu’s WOTY resume continues growing. [****½]