Kevin Ranks The NJPW BOTSJ 2017 Matches

A Block: IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Champion Hiromu Takahashi [0] vs. Jushin Thunder Liger [0]A Block: Dragon Lee [2] vs. Marty Scurll [2]Now, I know Larry did a list just like this, but I figured some variety and comparison is always fun. Like his list, I’ve ranked all 57 matches from the tournament this year and will list them here. I’ve included my original reviews for all matches that I gave ***1/2 or higher on. Enjoy and leave comments, where I’ll be happy to discuss the rankings with you.

57. Taichi vs. TAKA Michinoku – 5/18 [-**¾]
56. Taichi vs. Will Ospreay – 5/28 [½*]
55. Dragon Lee vs. Taichi – 5/21 [*¼]
54. Ricochet vs. Taichi – 5/17 [*¾]
53. Tiger Mask IV vs. Yohinobu Kanemaru – 5/25 [*¾]
52. Ryusuke Taguchi vs. Volador Jr. – 5/20 [**]
51. Marty Scurll vs. Taichi – 5/26 [**]
50. Ryusuke Taguchi vs. Yoshinobu Kanemaru – 5/17 [**]
49. ACH vs. Yoshinobu Kanemaru – 5/20 [**¼]
48. Tiger Mask IV vs. Volador Jr. – 5/17 [**¼]
47. Ryusuke Taguchi vs. Tiger Mask IV – 5/27 [**½]
46. TAKA Michinoku vs. Will Ospreay – 5/21 [**½]
45. Jushin Thunder Liger vs. Will Ospreay – 5/23 [**½]
44. BUSHI vs. Yoshinobu Kanemaru – 5/29 [**½]
43. Volador Jr. vs. Yoshinobu Kanemaru – 5/22 [**¾]
42. El Desperado vs. Yoshinobu Kanemaru – 6/1 [**¾]
41. KUSHIDA vs. Yoshinobu Kanemaru – 5/27 [**¾]
40. Dragon Lee vs. TAKA Michinoku – 5/31 [**¾]
39. BUSHI vs. Volador Jr. – 5/27 [**¾]
38. Jushin Thunder Liger vs. Taichi – 5/31 [**¾]
37. Marty Scurll vs. TAKA Michinoku – 5/23 [**¾]
36. BUSHI vs. Tiger Mask IV – 6/1 [***]
35. Hiromu Takahashi vs. Taichi – 5/23 [***]
34. El Desperado vs. Tiger Mask IV – 5/29 [***]
33. Ricochet vs. TAKA Michinoku – 5/28 [***]
32. ACH vs. Ryusuke Taguchi – 6/1 [***]
31. ACH vs. El Desperado – 5/27 [***]
30. El Desperado vs. KUSHIDA – 5/17 [***]
29. BUSHI vs. Ryusuke Taguchi – 5/25 [***]
28. Dragon Lee vs. Will Ospreay – 5/26 [***]
27. BUSHI vs. El Desperado – 5/20 [***]
26. Hiromu Takahashi vs. Will Ospreay – 5/31 [***¼]
25. El Desperado vs. Volador Jr. – 5/25 [***¼]
24. El Desperado vs. Ryusuke Taguchi – 5/22 [***¼]
23. Hiromu Takahashi vs. TAKA Michinoku – 5/26 [***¼]
22. Dragon Lee vs. Jushin Thunder Liger – 5/28 [***¼]
21. KUSHIDA vs. Tiger Mask IV – 5/20 [***¼]
20. Jushin Thunder Liger vs. Ricochet – 5/26 [***¼]
19. Jushin Thunder Liger vs. TAKA Michinoku – 5/17 [***¼]

18. B Block: ACH [2] vs. ROH World Television Champion KUSHIDA [2] – 5/25

I gave their match in ROH **** last year. This began with a feeling out process, with neither man trying to make a mistake. They had each other very well scouted, leading to some fun counters and blocks in the early stages. It was odd to see KUSHDIA go after the arm. He’s been struggling with that strategy for a while, so he changed up his game in the win over BUSHI, but reverted back in this one. His Hoverboard Lock attempts never quite threatened to fully put away ACH. They had strong exchanges down the stretch, highlighted by ACH fighting off the Small Package Driver and hitting a Michinoku Driver. I wonder if TAKA is mad or honored about that. ACH hit a lariat and the Midnight Driver to put the ROH TV Champion down at 14:44. There’s something funny about that considering ACH left ROH recently. By the way, he, like Cedric Alexander, Donovan Dijak and others, has shined since leaving them. This was the best match of the night, with great back and forth and it told a sensible story. [***½]

17. A Block: Marty Scurll [0] vs. Will Ospreay [0] – 5/17

I never got to talk about it, but Scurll in the Bullet Club is such a dumb move. The guy was making his own name and doing well without the BC name attached. He’s so much better as his own entity. He’s a MASSIVE upgrade from Adam Cole at least. While I love Marty, I’ve grown very tired of Ospreay. Anyway, we were treated to a “best of” compilation of sorts. These two have a long rivalry (I gave two of their matches last year ****¼ and ****½), so they played into their past. Scurll was ready for the SSP and got his feet up, before scoring with a vicious sounding superkick. Both guys got in their signature spots, with Scurll also being more of a base for Ospreay to do his shit. Ospreay, in typical tool form, stole Randy Orton’s mat pouncing taunt, but gets cut off. Marty did the finger break spot and Ospreay comically oversold it. He still fought Marty off and went for the Oscutter, only to get caught in the Chicken Wing and tap at 12:11. Like I said, this was them going through their typical work, which made sense since it was a safe way to make sure Marty got over. The Japanese crowd did their homework and knew about him, as he got one of the better reactions of anyone on the show. Not a patch on their best work, but still good. [***½]

16. B Block: ACH [0] vs. NEVER Openweight Six Man Tag Team Champion BUSHI [0] – 5/17

This is one of the few B Block matches I’m looking forward to. ACH was awesome during his run with Taiji Ishimori last year. ACH must not watch NJPW, because he shook hands with BUSHI and got attacked for it. ACH fought back with a series of kicks and fast paced offense that earned him a solid response from the crowd. BUSHI nailed a rana to the outside and looked for the countout win. When that failed, BUSHI tried grounding ACH to no avail. He took a springboard dive on the outside. The closing stretch was great, as they traded strikes and big blows. ACH blocked MX with a dropkick and hit a series of lariats. One of those badly bruised up his elbow according to Twitter. He hit a Michinoku Driver and picked up the win at 10:47. Best thing on the show so far. They had some strong exchanges and cranked it up down the stretch. ACH is over and that’s a good thing. [***½]

15. B Block: ROH World Television Champion KUSHIDA [6] vs. Volador Jr. [6] – 6/1

With wins over Kanemaru, Taguchi and BUSHI, a win for KUSHIDA gets him in the finals. They shook hands before the match, because though everything’s on the line, they’re respectable athletes. With so much at stake, they worked with a sense of urgency and had some great exchanges throughout. KUSHIDA went after the arm, even though that hasn’t quite worked for him recently. Volador continued to find ways to escape. They traded super ranas, with Volador’s being especially impressive. When KUSHIDA finally got the Hoverboard Lock on again, Volador still wouldn’t quit. Wisely, KUSHIDA took what he’s learned in the tournament and rolled it into God’s Last Gift to win the match and block at 15:44. A really fun main event that kept a great pace throughout. [***½]

14. A Block: Dragon Lee [2] vs. Marty Scurll [2] – 5/18

With that garbage out of the way, we get to the fun stuff. Both men are over like they’re NJPW regulars. This was my second most anticipated match on the card. Scurll had the plan to ground Lee, showing he did his homework. It got off to a bit of a slow start, but they kept the crowd invested with some nice antics. Scurll did little things, like tie Lee’s mask to the ropes. Like Hiromu yesterday, Scurll had the corner double scouted and countered it with a belly to belly suplex. There was a great spot where Scurll countered a cradle DDT with the finger break spot, which is already over. They fought up top, where Scurll did the finger stuff again, but Lee came back with a headbutt. The double stomp hit and he won at 13:09. Big jump in quality. They delivered the way I expected. Great, even action featuring two guys that already have the crowd in the palm of their hands. [***½]

13. A Block: Dragon Lee [4] vs. Ricochet [4] – 5/23

This had potential to be an absolutely wild match. It began like a lot of Ricochet/Ospreay matches. Fast paced exchanges and two men showing that they’re evenly matched in terms of athleticism. I was intrigued by the more arrogant side of Ricochet, kicking away at Lee’s head and talking smack. I also dug the twist on Ricochet’s rana counter of landing on his feet, by having him do so on Lee’s awesome apron rana. This was the kind of match where two guys went out and showcased their stuff. It’s a fine idea, but I think they are capable of more. Lee won by blocking a super rana and hitting the tree of woe double stomp at 13:07. A fun, fitting main event. Like I said though, I think they have a better match in them. [***½]

12. B Block: ACH [6] vs. Volador Jr. [4] – 5/29

For some reason, ACH didn’t trust Volador to shake hands at the start. Volador has mostly been a babyface so far. I guess he was right because Volador kicked him low once they shook. From there, this was non-stop action and moved at a crazy pace. There wasn’t a ton in the way of psychology or story, just two guys hitting their shit in an effort to win. That’s fine sometimes. I think it worked well here because everything they did felt important. The highlight might’ve been ACH hitting a quartet of suicide dives. He’s been a blast in this tournament. Volador won this insane battle with a massive super rana at 12:02. This wasn’t the kind of match everyone likes, but I had so much fun with it. More of this please. [***½]

11. A Block: Jushin Thunder Liger [0] vs. Marty Scurll [2] – 5/21

These two met at Global Wars UK last year (***¼), where Marty came out with his own version of Liger’s mask. This was literally a superhero against a villain. This was delightfully campy. Both guys brought fun antics and I got a kick out of Liger mocking the “WOOT WOOT” from Marty’s theme. With Liger in control, Marty got more aggressive. He targeted the arm, looking to set up the Chicken Wing. Liger retaliated with some hope spots, including a super rana and superplex, but it was never enough. He tried an O’Connor roll, but Marty turned it into the chicken wing and Liger had to tap at 12:16. Scurll is three for three in fun matches. This was another strong performance by both men. I’d like Liger to sweep his last four matches and win the block. [***½]

10. B Block: ACH [2] vs. Tiger Mask IV [2] – 5/22

ACH has been a fun addition to the tournament, while Tiger Mask IV had a very good match with KUSHDIA on night three. Tiger Mask targeted the lower back of ACH, trying to slow him down. ACH sold well, but still threw as much of his flashy offense at the veteran as he could. ACH’s dives all got great reactions from the audience. Despite his best efforts, ACH couldn’t keep Tiger Mask down. Tiger Mask withstood a lot of offense and kept waiting for openings. If ACH’s back gave out on a move attempt, he’d kick away. If ACH climbed to the top, he’d bring him down. They traded kicks down the stretch and ACH got Tiger Mask on his shoulders. He wasn’t strong enough, so Tiger slipped out and caught him with a crucifix to win at 11:40. Where has this Tiger Mask IV been for the past few years? This was a well told story of the young gun giving the old guy all he could handle, but the veteran waiting him out. Tiger Mask’s game plan worked and he won. [***½]

9. A Block: Ricochet [2] vs. Will Ospreay [0] – 5/18

Their match in last year’s BOTSJ caused tons of controversy and sparked internet arguments. I wasn’t excited for this because their matches are typically the same and they’ve done it a bunch in the span of a year or so. Anyway, I’m not going to try and recap this match move for move. That would be nuts. Instead, I’ll just give some notes about what I saw. In terms of athleticism, this was incredible. That’s to be expected. They had some variation to their previous matches (though nowhere near the level of Lee/Hiromu) and brought some great ideas to the table. I particularly liked when Ricochet landed on his feet on a super rana and Ospreay did it back to him. Also, Ricochet hit a sick German in this. A few things turned me off from this. For one, their opening sequence, while breathtaking at times, also felt very choreographed. Granted, it probably was, but I don’t want to watch it and instantly think that it looks staged. Seth Rollins once said in an interview that the worst thing a wrestler can do is take a viewer out of the moment and remind them that this is all staged. Last year’s opening sequence felt more natural and like two guys wanting to prove who was more athletic. There were a few slip ups, like when Ricochet tried a reverse rana off the middle rope, but it’s still impressive considering the things they tried. It went a bit long too, clocking in at 27:24, with Ospreay winning after a dragon rana and Oscutter. Apparently, I’m one of the few people so far who haven’t liked this as much as last year’s match. I’d rank their stuff I’ve seen as Evolve 59 > BOTJ ’16 > BOTSJ ’17 > BOLA. [***¾]

8. B Block: ROH World Television Champion KUSHIDA [4] vs. Ryusuke Taguchi [6] – 5/29

TAGUCHI JAPAN EXPLODES! They met on this same day last year (***½). Due to their friendship, this was clean from the start, which is a nice change of pace from the past three matches. They worked the expected body parts, and when that didn’t work, they progressed to striking. The exchanges were great, with armbars and ankle locks galore. Though I’m tired of the “desperate come from behind rally” in these tournaments, KUSHIDA has done well with his. He was willing to get a bit dirty when he needed to, but didn’t take it overboard to where he looked like a heel. His rollup attempt out of Dodon felt like a last ditch effort, but he dug deep and hit Back to the Future to earn the victory in 22:53. I thought that when he had the great match with Hiromu, Taguchi was done putting on great performances. I was wrong. This ruled. Their chemistry was top notch and KUSHIDA’s determination was palpable throughout. I liked the little things too, like stealing each other’s moves, as their usual stuff failed. [***¾]

7. A Block: IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Champion Hiromu Takahashi [6] vs. Marty Scurll [6] – 5/28

These two had a match I gave ***½ in RevPro recently. Marty went after the arm, trying to set up the Chicken Wing down the line. He also had Hiromu well scouted and blocked the sunset flip bomb. Hiromu did a good job selling the arm work. It wasn’t the best sell job I’ve seen, but it did the trick and he still got to hit his key stuff. What made this match work was more than just the things done in the ring. It’s the charisma of both men, which added to things. I like that Hiromu has had to fight from behind in some of these matches, because it gives us something different from his title defenses. Scurll kicked out of a modified Time Bomb near the end, which I didn’t like. He applied the Chicken Wing, but Hiromu managed to counter into Time Bomb for the win at 13:07. I liked all this. Good selling, great back and forth, fun action, an invested crowd and a sense of urgency because they knew that the loser would basically be done. [***¾]

6.A Block: IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Champion Hiromu Takahashi [2] vs. Ricochet [2] – 5/21

Their match at Wrestling Toyonokuni ruled (****¼), but I came in expecting a bit less effort with this being a house show type deal. Their last match started insanely hot, but this had a more subdued Knowing the champion, Ricochet had a counter for his sunset flip bomb. Hiromu weathered that storm and took control, choosing to toy with Ricochet. It’s as if, because he beat him last month, Hiromu figured it would be a walk in the park this time. They kept yelling each other’s names before moves. “HIROMU!” “RICOCHET!” Ricochet rallied and the match kept a brisk pace throughout. There was a sense of urgency that neither man wanted to fall to 1-2. Both guys threw bombs down the stretch, before Ricochet dug deep and pulled out Vertigo. Or King’s Landing. I’m not sure what the name is. The match ended at 12:15. I wouldn’t put this on the level of their title match, but this was still a great main event that fit their styles. [***¾]

5. B Block: NEVER Openweight Six Man Tag Team Champion BUSHI [0] vs. ROH World Television Champion KUSHIDA [0] – 5/22

These two met four times last year and they ranged from good to great (**** at New Beginning, ***½ at BOTSJ and Destruction, and *** at Power Struggle). Both men were desperate for their first points. Instantly, this had a sense of urgency from both men. Neither wanted to fall to 0-3. BUSHI was ready for KUSHIDA’s handspring elbow and knew not to dive off the apron at KUSHIDA, since KUSHIDA catches people in arm bars that way. KUSHIDA had the MX scouted, blocking it and trying for the Hoverboard Lock. They traded blows in the middle of the ring when nothing seemed to keep the other down. BUSHI used a Destroyer and MX, but KUSHIDA refused to stay down. KUSHIDA countered the next MX attempt into his own Codebreaker, before applying the Hoverboard Lock. BUSHI just wouldn’t tap, so KUSHIDA rolled over into God’s Last Gift! That got him the win at 15:51. This might’ve been my favorite match between them. They played off their past and brought a real sense of desperation to this. I love God’s Last Gift for KUSHIDA and how he had to try something new because his old stuff kept failing. I don’t want him to come back and win the whole thing because Dominion already has too many WK rematches, but this ruled. Also, I hate that BUSHI is 0-3 again this year. [****]

4. A Block: Marty Scurll [6] vs. Ricochet [8] – 5/31

These two had a great match in PWG in 2015 (***¾). Ricochet needs a win and an Ospreay loss to win the block. I guess the reason TAKA didn’t attack before the bell was because Marty did it here. This was fought with a sense of urgency from the start. Scurll held serve for a large portion of the match and his antics were highly entertaining. Ricochet learned as the match went on, including flipping over Marty’s patented “JUST KIDDING” kick. He went into a wild flurry that made me feel he was on the verge of the win. Ricochet’s SSP caught knees and Marty, ever the villain, went into a series of piledrivers. Ricochet survived and fought through the Chicken Wing, but eventually had to tap at 13:31. This was one of the better tournament matches so far. Scurll looked great and they made me buy into Ricochet overcoming and winning. I hope Marty gets more NJPW bookings and I’d still love to see Ricochet get an IWGP Jr. Title run. More than another KUSHIDA run and definitely more than an Ospreay run. [****]

3. A Block: IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Champion Hiromu Takahashi [0] vs. Jushin Thunder Liger [0] – 5/18

Once I heard this was Liger’s last BOTSJ, I instantly wanted him to win. A final win and matchup with Hiromu at Dominion sounds incredible. This was my most anticipated match of the night and possibly the tournament. Liger tried for the quick win with a lariat, which set the tone for the rest of the contest. He brought out the brainbuster on the outside, trying for a countout win, but Hiromu barely beat the count. I liked how Takahashi adjusted to Liger’s game plan. Liger blocked the sunset flip bomb, so Takahashi changed up and turned it into an apron power bomb. Hiromu countered the Liger Bomb for a near fall but ran into the palm strike. The Liger Bomb connected for two and he ate a German, but no sold and fired up. He nailed another brainbuster for an awesome near fall. After some counters, Hiromu hit the Time Bomb to beat the legend at 8:05. Liger kicked his feet in attempts to kick out, desperate not to lose. This was marvelous. A fantastic sprint with Liger throwing everything at the champ but come up just short. The crowd ate it all up thanks to Liger’s popularity. Hiromu adds another notch to his Wrestler of the Year belt. What an incredible 2017 he’s having. [****]

2. A Block: Dragon Lee [0] vs. IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Champion Hiromu Takahashi [0] – 5/17

These men have one of the best in-ring rivalries in all of wrestling. I have their last two matches (Fantastica Mania ’16 and New Beginning in Osaka ’17) at ****½ each. Hiromu is my current pick for Wrestler of the Year. This had a big fight feel to it and they opened by just chopping the shit out of one another. Lee snapped off a rana off the apron before proceeding to hit Hiromu with a bunch of high impact offense. Hiromu turned it around and went after Lee’s mask. If you remember, he completely removed it in their last match, which helped him win. In an awesome moment, Lee nailed Hiromu with his own sunset flip bomb off the apron. Just showing how much they know each other. Hiromu knew just when to avoid Lee’s corner double stomp too. They went into trading German suplexes and the bigger offensive blows. Hiromu went for the mask again and it nearly cost him when he was rolled up. He got two on the Destroyer before Lee got in some surprisingly sloppy counters. He avoided another Destroyer and hit his own corner DVD. The Phoenix Plex handed Hiromu his first singles loss in NJPW after 18:56. Like Scurll/Ospreay, we got a lot of their signature stuff but it never felt like a compilation. It felt like the next step or chapter in their rivalry. It was on par with their previous matches until a few sloppy moments down the stretch. I did love how they played off their past matches and how Lee stole some of Hiromu’s signature moves. [****¼]

1. BOTSJ Finals: ROH World Television Champion KUSHIDA vs. Will Ospreay – 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. A must-see match. [****½]