Csonka’s Top 19 Matches of January 2018: Suzuki vs. Tanahashi Battles Almas vs. Gargano

WELCOME back, back to the column that makes lists and hopes that you enjoy them. This week’s column will look back and the month of January 2018 and the top 19 matches I have watched for the month. I always hear a lot of people saying that they can’t decide what to watch because they do not have enough time to follow everything, so maybe this will help those of you short on time find some stuff to check out. Have fun, and always, thanks for reading. Also, if you saw matches from companies I do not regularly catch; feel free to share them with the others. The more wrestling we share, the more fun we can have. Thanks for reading! As always, consider this my play list of great matches, recommendations for the month. It’s wrestling, we love it and will disagree. The only rules are “have a take, be respectful, and don’t be a dick.”

19. From WWE Raw 01.01.18 – Champion Roman Reigns defeated Samoa Joe @ 23:05 via pin [****]: This was a great back and forth, hard-hitting match that played to the stipulation very well. They had the crowd the entire time, and it was the first thing on the show that really felt great/important. It was nice to see Raw break out such a great match on the first show of the year.

18. From NOAH Navigation for the Future – X-Division Champion Taiji Ishimori defeated Andrew Everett @ 16:45 via pin [****]: They aired clips of this on Impact, which is a shame because it was a great match and performance many Impact fans haven’t seen from Everett. They had a great match, a really athletic bout with Everett taking it to the champion and forcing the pace to slowly escalate throughout the match. Everett not only does a great job of pushing the pacing of the match, but does an excellent job of embracing the heel role and just generally being a cocky asshole towards Ishimori. The pacing picks up so well, with the overall action and building into a flurry of high-paced, high-impact back and forth action that built perfectly to the finish, where Everett’s shooting star press was countered with knees, and Ishimori finally put him away with the 450.

17. From NXT Takeover: Philadelphia – Champions The Undisputed Era defeated The Authors of Pain @ 15:00 via pin [****]: This was a great match, with tremendous yet simple work by the champions here, nullifying the power advantage of the AOP, Akam sold very well and Rezar showed great fire in his comebacks. The champions were just smarter with their gameplan, and managed to sneak away with the win and did so without any shenanigans. It was a simple and old school story, with the smaller heel champions just executing better than the monster challengers. The AOP deliver again on a takeover, and they are still very young guys, and only getting better. Fish & O’Reilly delivered as expected as well.

16. From NXT Takeover: Philadelphia – Aleister Black defeated Adam Cole @ 22:04 via pin [****]: I think that this took a bit to get going, but they had a crowd that was into everything, which allowed them to keep the heat and work to turn things around and deliver really great second half. I am not a big fan of the run-ins, but due to the rules of the match, and the fact that it made sense, continuing the Sanity vs. Undisputed Era feud. The closing stretch was really great and heated and added a ton to the match as a whole. At the end of the day it came together, it worked and it was rather great. With that win for Black, if Almas retains, I can see Black vs. Almas over Mania weekend.

15. From FantasticaMania 1.21.19 – Champion Volador Jr. defeated Barbaro Cavernario @ 22:15 via pin [****]: This was an absolutely great match, and the best of the two live FantasticaMania shows so far. They did a great job of setting the stage early, not going too wild, but keeping the pacing quick and entertaining. From there, Volador looked like he was on his way to a decently easy win, but the intensity picked up as did the desperation of both men, particularly with Cavernario. The crazy caveman gave it everything he had, getting more wild and desperate, and even pulling out the huge caveman splash to the floor. But at the end of the day, he just didn’t have enough to overcome, as Volador went murder death kill, hitting the Spanish fly and running destroyer to finally put away his challenger. This was a great match and a fitting main event.

#EVOLVE98: @ARealFoxx, @AylaTheFox, and the @WWA4ATL Crew are READY! pic.twitter.com/KspFepfRvQ

— EVOLVE Wrestling (@WWNEVOLVE) January 13, 2018

14. From EVOLVE 98 – AR Fox defeated Matt Riddle @ 11:00 via pin [****]: This was a great match, that mixed the two styles really well, and kept Fox away from some of the shit that takes me out of his matches. The back and forth was great, the pacing was great, and it never overstayed its welcome, going home at just the right time. This was great work from both guys, wand it really feels as if Fox is maturing as a performer, which is great to see. He’s starting to be a bit more “less is more” and doing his crazy, insane and wild shit at the right time instead of all the time.

13. From EVOLVE 99 – Matt Riddle defeated Jaka @ 12:38 via submission [****]: These two worked a great back and forth match. Jaka continues to thrive when out in big singles matches, working up to his competition and possibly setting the stage for a singles run down the line. They kept a great pace, worked in some great near finishes and getting a crowd that had been very tame into the match. Both guys delivered here, and Riddle picks up a much-needed win after his loss to Fox the previous night.

12. From WWE Royal Rumble 2018 – 30-Woman Royal Rumble Match: Asuka @ 59:00 [****]: The women had a lot to overcome, a crowd that was dead for the last two matches after the men’s Rumble, the fact that the guys killed it, and also the fact that this was their first rumble match and had a ton thrown onto them with all of WWEs making history media blitz. But with that being said, I felt that they delivered a great match, and again, the layout was a big part of that. Banks working the iron woman role and Lynch getting a ton of time helped and also I think that they way they set up the surprise appearances, and how much they gave them. the crowd was dead coming into this, but between the hard work, the smart use of past names, and much like the men’s match, who it came down to all really worked. This was a ton of fun and something I think would be more appreciated if WWE hadn’t beaten the history deal so much, just let it happen.

11. From NJPW WK 12 – Kota Ibushi defeated Cody @ 16:07 via pin [****]: This match was GREAT, and early into the show, was the best match of the night and held onto that until the juniors hit the ring later in the show. I will freely admit that I have been critical of Cody, but can easily praise his great work here as this was his best match since the Okada match last year. He worked with great urgency and a nice sense of aggression, while mixing in his usual ballyhoo, and didn’t overdo it this time. His work of the neck was strong and this was a performance I really feel he needed. It was also the most invested a NJPW crowd has been in Cody so far in his run there. This is more of the Cody I want to see; this was a Cody looking to prove himself, Cody mixing in his skill and shenanigans in a balanced, thoughtful and effective way. his was simply a great collaboration and I am happy to see Cody have a high-quality performance like this on a show of this level. Cody had the high-quality performance he needed, and Ibushi got the big singles win on a major stage he needed.

10. From NJPW WK 12 – IWGP Junior Heavyweight Title Match: Will Ospreay defeated Champion Marty Scurll, KUSHIDA, and Hiromu Takahashi @ 18:00 via pin to become the new champion [****¼]: While there was a lot of trepidation regarding this match (because I feel most wanted a kick-ass match like KUSHIDA vs. Takahashi like last year), I feel that they more than delivered and that they had a great match; it was a complete spectacle, and with the junior tag title match being worked in a more reserved pace and style, it was ok for these guys to cut lose and deliver fast-paced, exciting and highflying action. They clearly positioned Ospreay as the star of the match and completed the story started at Power Struggle, getting revenge on longtime rival Marty Scurll to get back on top of the mountain. I would have loved for Takahashi to win, but I feel he’s going to be the top seed to win BOTSJ this year, and that Ospreay will finally be positioned for a long run, likely through Dominion, where Takahashi finally takes back his crown. This was simply a ton of fun, and positioned perfectly after Goto vs. Suzuki, as they were polar opposites, stylistically.

9. From AJPW New Year Wars – Champion Joe Doering defeated Zeus @ 20:10 via pin [****¼]: This was a great, shit kicking, hoss battle right here. Zeus has a great look and some good aggression here, but has to fight quite a bit from the bottom to overcome Doering’s raw size and power advantageous with running cross bodies. They set the stage well telling that story, with Zeus finally putting some offense together and gaining momentum. This is a big lad battle from the opening bell, the offense is strong, brutal, and feels real. Doering starts to fade a bit as Zeus really takes control, but continually battles back with lariats that would kill normal men. Doering finally put Zeus away with a revolution bomb to retain. This was great stuff from both men; big Joe beat cancer, beat the muscle God, and is a great man.

8. From WWE Royal Rumble 2018 – 30-Man Royal Rumble Match: Shinsuke Nakamura @ 65:33 [****½]: That was an excellent Rumble match, and not only one of the best in recent years, and possibly in the top 5 all time (although I’d have to go back and look). Who ever laid things out this year did a really great job. The Slater bit was fun, Almas got a good run, Balor got the iron man role, and Rey was a spectacular surprise. He looks to be in great shape, and if he’s in for a run, I’d love to see he and Styles get a match. I thought the booking to get to the final six (Balor, Nakamura, Reigns, Rey, Orton, & Cena) worked extremely well, as you had guys that were over, guys the fans wanted to win and just as important, guys the fans wanted to LOSE in the worst way. Nakamura’s WWE run has been less than spectacular, but this was a great rehabilitation match for him. He was over huge, worked hard, and the fans wanted him to win to see the Styles match. All in all, this was great stuff, and a ton of fun.

7. From NJPW New Beginning in Sapporo 1.28.18 -Roppongi 3k defeated Champions The Young Bucks @ 22:45 via pin [****½]: I expected them to work a very different match than the WK 12 match, but they went back to that match and played heavily on it, with Matt & Yoh selling the back again, But this time, it was Matt that was too injured, and it cost them this time. This was an absolutely EXCELLENT match, and the best Bucks match in NJPW. This had great action, a great pace, great near falls, great layering, and some absolutely incredible selling from Matt Jackson. Nick Jackson still has the best hot tag in all of wrestling, and everyone involved did the right things at the right time. 3k overcame, got back their titles and showed the Bucks that they are much more than young boys. The finish is also a nice callback to WK 11, when Roppongi Vice beat the Bucks, when Romero scored a desperation roll up out of nowhere. This was absolutely excellent and kicked the shit out of everything else on the show.

Nope. @WalterAUT #EVOLVE99⚡️https://t.co/6rx5ikkwBG pic.twitter.com/vpxYgVqVd6

— Ryan? (@cozy_superkick) January 15, 2018

6. From EVOLVE 99 – WALTER defeated Zack Sabre Jr @ 18:05 via pin [****½]: This was an excellent co-main event match, and a great example of how to work a big man vs. little man match. The story was that Sabre was the superior grappler, but constantly got pulled into WALTER’s game. While Sabre was able to link together some great exchanges, WALTER was constantly able to cut him off with a singular move or strike, due to his power and size advantage. They have worked together before and know how to mix their styles very well, and while Sabre tends to dominate matches, it was refreshing to see his opponent take most of the match and make him fight from the bottom. The action was smooth, seamless, and at times very brutal. The match was excellent, and this should give us a rematch, for the title, possibly over Mania weekend; I am all in.

5. From EVOLVE 98 – Champion Zack Sabre Jr. defeated Darby Allin @ 19:40 via referee stoppage [****½]: This was an absolutely excellent main event, one that told an absolutely great story and served as a true star-making performance for Darby Allin. He’s had some great outings in the past, but this was his most complete performance to date. Allin got into Evolve through a tryout, and became a cult hero, basically Evolve’s Mikey Whipwreck. The fans fell in love with him, they followed his rise and his improvement as he grew organically into his role as a rising star. But with that being said, Sabre didn’t take this young man seriously, and was dismissive of him early on. Allin continued to fight, refusing to stop his quest, and this just pissed Sabre off, and flicked the switch as Sabre when into his “I don’t care about your well being, I will break you apart” mode, which he is so good at. Allin never quit, he kept fighting and had the fans believing in him, but at the end of the day, he just wasn’t ready for Sabre. Sabre broke him down, tied him in knots, and Allin went out on his shield, refusing to quit, and having to be saved by the referee. This was excellent stuff, great action, beautiful storytelling, and a match that will make Allin a bigger star than he was. That Sabre fella is also really good.

4. From NJPW WK 12 – No DQ/No Countout IWGP US Title Match: Champion Kenny Omega defeated Chris Jericho @ 35:15 via pin [****½]: Outside of a few (largely small negatives) this was so very great. I hated the rope breaks in a no DQ match, as they started out playing the stip well and then just dropped it. It’s no DQ, you don’t have to break if someone makes the ropes. I also think they went about 5-minutes too long as I feel they hit the peak, ran through it, and then went home. That being said, this honestly blew away every expectation I had. They played with all the tools that they had, and like I speculated, it made for a better match that just a straight up wrestling match. Jericho was motivated, working with purpose and great aggression, and like he had something to prove after all of the hype work he put into the match. At age 47, Jericho put in an absolutely great performance, the best he’s had in years. Bring motivated to show you can still goat a high level. Having freedom and working with one of the best guys in the business was all he needed to succeed. His work as the entitled veteran, looking down on this pretender to the throne was on par, Omega played a great babyface, and they kept the crowd interested the entire time. Had you told me back in 2017 that a 35-minute Chris Jericho match in 2018 would have been pulled off this well, I would have asked you what drugs you were on. Nothing but praise and credit to both guys, but it was great to see Jericho deliver like this on such a big stage and away from WWE. I really hope that this motivates him to do some more with NJPW or other places because I could get into more of Jericho outside of WWE without any handcuffs or restrictions. This is also great for wrestling as a whole. The more that seemingly lifers in WWE can show that they can walk away and deliver elsewhere, get great buzz elsewhere and most importantly make money elsewhere, the more that others may consider their futures, and that influx of name talent, if they are hungry, is great for the rest of the business and for its growth.

3. From NJPW WK 12 – IWGP Heavyweight Title Match: Champion Kazuchika Okada defeated Tetsuya Naito @ 36:30 via pin [****¾]: While I think that the decision was the wrong call, this was an absolutely amazing main event. Naito was ready, the fans were ready, but NJPW was too gun shy to pull the trigger here, and that’s a shame. Unfortunately, that seems to be the nature of the beast in wrestling, making the right move at the wrong time. Naito is far from dead, but I feel he was at his peak and that now was the time to run with him. It MAY lead to a good storyline, but I feel it’s a questionable business move. But I loved, loved, loved this match. It was absolutely amazing, with a great pace great layout and just tremendous work from both in front of an absolutely electric crowd. The callbacks to their past encounters were played excellently, leading to an absolutely scintillating home stretch. While I may not be a fan of the decision, this clicked all the boxed for a big time main event match for me, and was a hell of a way to kick off the year. It opens the division up to uncertainty, but I’m not completely sure it’s the right call. Bottom line, if the quality of Okada’s title defenses drops, it’s a bad call. If he stops doing sellout after sell out, it’s a bad call. If Naito stop selling tickets and merchandise, it’s a bad call. If he cools off and fans stop treating him like a major star, then it’s a bad call. If all of that happens, it’s a fucking disaster.

2. From NJPW New Beginning in Sapporo 1.27.18 – Minoru Suzuki defeated Champion Hiroshi Tanahashi @ 32:32 via referee stoppage [****¾]: This was an absolutely beautiful, amazing, MOTY contender from these two. This was so well done, it never felt long and both men played their roles so very well; Tanahashi’s selling was amazing, especially juxtaposed against the sadistic nature of Suzuki, who would maniacally laugh at Tanahashi as he was torturing and picking apart his legs. In some ways this was very reminiscent of their 2012 match, not a lot of rope running or near falls, as they did an excellent job of working a less is more style, making everything they did count and using the submissions to create some great drama. Suzuki hitting the Gotch and not covering, and instead of going for the submission, was a great diversion and one that makes you think his overconfidence will lead to his downfall, but it didn’t. It led to more torture on Tanahashi, and Tanahashi fighting through until the referee had mercy on him and called it off. Tanahashi never gave up, and remains the hero, and Suzuki comes off as a remorseless bastard; this should set the stage for a heated rematch down the line. The absolute best part about this is that it was one on one, clean and the Suzuki-gun guys were just window dressing. They took away everything people hate about Suzuki matches and focused on what everyone loves about them and this delivered big time, I loved it.

1. From NXT Takeover: Philadelphia – Champion Andrade “Cien” Almas defeated Johnny Gargano @ 32:20 via pin [*****]: This was an absolutely spectacular match, and the best I have seen so far in 2018. I know we’re only in January, but this was everything I want from wrestling. It had great action, a great villain and an absolutely lovable and awesome babyface that the live crowd was trying to will to victory and hell, I was here at home. This had the action, the great work, the drama and the storytelling that made me more emotionally invested in a match since Shibata vs. Okada from last year. The near falls, the teases, the fight from Gargano and Almas just being a cocky asshole, cutting all of that off constantly, and the final 10-minutes almost had me out of my seat. This was simply an amazing effort from both guys, from Vega & Candice, as it all came together perfectly as they put on the best WWE match since Bate vs. Dunne last year and took me on an amazing emotional journey; this one will be tough to beat for me this year because it was not only anexcelent match interms of action, but the emotional attachment I had got deeper as the match went on. GO WATCH THIS NOW!

– End scene.

– Thanks for reading.

“Byyyyyyyyyyyyyye Felicia.”