Kevin’s Top 100 Matches Of 2021 (#100-91)

Year #7 of compiling this list is in the books! This was another weird era since about half of the year took place without any real live crowds but there were still plenty of great matches. I watched everything from WWE and AEW, as well as most of NJPW.

Across those three companies, I had 110 matches rated at **** in 2021. As always, enjoy the list, find new matches you may have missed, look back at favorites, or disagree if you want to.

Honorable Mentions (Matches That Got **** But Aren’t In The Top 100)
Jay White vs. Tomohiro Ishii – NJPW Castle Attack 2/27/21
New Japan Cup First Round: SANADA vs. Tomohiro Ishii – NJPW New Japan Cup 3/9/21
New Japan Cup Semi-Finals: David Finlay vs. Will Ospreay – NJPW New Japan Cup 3/20/21
NXT Cruiserweight Championship 2 Out Of 3 Falls Match: KUSHIDA [c] vs. Santos Escobar – NXT 5/11/21
NXT Championship: Karrion Kross [c] vs. Adam Cole vs. Johnny Gargano vs. Kyle O’Reilly vs. Pete Dunne – NXT TakeOver: In Your House
Andrade El Idolo vs. PAC – AEW Rampage 9/10/21
Anthony Greene and Stallion Rogers vs. FTR – AEW Dark 9/21/21
WWE Universal Championship Extreme Rules Match: Roman Reigns [c] vs. Finn Bálor – WWE Extreme Rules
World Title Eliminator Tournament Quarterfinals: Bryan Danielson vs. Dustin Rhodes – AEW Dynamite 10/23/21

100. No Holds Barred Match: Drew McIntyre vs. Sheamus – WWE Fastlane

Credit: WWE

BIG MEATY MEN SLAPPING MEAT! I repeat that often because it’s what I want in these kind of matches and that’s just what I got here. It wasn’t too long into this 19:42 match before these two were beating on each other with kendo sticks, with one of them being driven into Sheamus’ eye. That was some wild stuff to see, especially in a PG environment. They fought into the “crowd” and did a few decent spots, including a particularly nasty looking suplex onto the floor. I got a serious kick out of Sheamus being thrown into the Thunderdome TVs and it blowing up. The explosion was indeed better than the one at AEW Revolution. Once back in the ring, they wrapped it up with Sheamus eating the Claymore and although it was relatively simple in the way it was laid out, it was just what it needed to be. That was two lads beating the stuffing out of each other and I honestly can’t ask for much more. I did like their Raw match a bit better though. [****]

99. MJF vs. Sammy Guevara – AEW Dynamite 6/30/21

Credit: AEW

It’s interesting to think back to what MJF said in the build-up to Full Gear. He called himself, Darby Allin, Jungle Boy, and Sammy Guevara the four pillars (or something like that) of AEW’s future. Personally, I’d swap Sammy and Allin for Dante Martin and Tay Conti. Anyway, two of those men were on full display in this main event match on Dynamite. I didn’t like most of the Pinnacle/Inner Circle rivalry but we at least got this gem out of it all. It was pretty sweet to get to simply watch two young talents put on a show, displaying impressive athleticism and having a great back and forth match. To be fair, I did have some issues with this as I mainly felt it was overbooked down the stretch. As it neared the 20:07 conclusion, there was simply too much interference from members of the Inner Circle and Pinnacle that bogged it down. Around that, we got some truly great stuff. A Sammy 630 led appearances from Spears, Jericho, and others. Spears used the chair to set up the MJF win in a match that showcased the future. [****]

98. Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada – NJPW G1 Climax 31 9/19/21

Credit: NJPW

Entering this, Kazuchika Okada led the series 6-5-3, with the three draws coming in the G1. At this point, you know what you’re going to get from these two. They jockeyed for position early on, with neither man giving much ground considering their history. They just know each other too well. Okada brought the attitude here, going for things like cocky pins. I’ve said before that cocky Okada is my favorite Okada. It’s a role that suits him so well, kind of like how it is working wonders for Roman Reigns. They started going into their signature stuff as it hit the halfway mark of the time limit. Tanahashi went after the leg with various dragon screw variations and the Cloverleaf. Okada survived a countout and weathered the storm before going to the Money Clip. As they neared 30:00, you got the sense that they’d add another draw to their G1 history. I liked that both guys were going for pins late, knowing how desperate the times were. Okada hit a dropkick, Michinoku Driver, and Rainmaker to win in 29:36, making good use of the time limit tease. A great match that is par for the course for these guys. My favorite of theirs since the title match in 2018. [****]

97. NXT United Kingdom Championship: WALTER [c] vs. Rampage Brown – NXT UK: Prelude

Credit: WWE

I certainly wasn’t expecting to include Rampage Brown on my year-end list but here we are. That’s what happens when you step into the ring with WALTER, who would’ve appeared way more on this list if he was on TV more often. Anyway, this show was basically the NXT UK brand’s WrestleMania weekend event and it featured some notable matches. The whole show was good and it was capped by a 13:44 United Kingdom Title match between WALTER and Rampage Brown. What made this work so well was that it was right in the wheelhouse of both men. Keep it relatively short and let them beat the hell out of each other the entire time. It’s hard to even find too much to say about this because it was so simple and that’s why I liked it. Classic meat and potatoes stuff. Everything WALTER does feels like a big fight and this was no different. Rampage hit him with everything that he had but WALTER held the title for so long for a reason. Rampage even nailed a massive superplex only for WALTER to keep getting up. He had to resort to the big splash to put away a tough challenger in a hugely underrated match. [****]

96. Aoife Valkyrie vs. Meiko Satomura – NXT UK 4/29/21

Credit: WWE

Sometimes, the best matches are the ones you least expect. While everyone understands how awesome Meiko Satomura is, Aoife Valkyrie is still someone on the rise who hasn’t had many chances to deliver in big matches. In many ways, matches like this are exactly why someone like Satomura is so valuable. She could play the wily veteran who puts the young girl to the test and that’s what this was. Valkyrie stepped up in a big way, delivering some hard hitting strikes that allowed her to stay on the same level as Satomura, who is known for that kind of thing. The whole match only went 11:22, which is pretty ideal for this kind of bout. Valkyrie showed that she’s a woman with a lot of potential but when it came down to it, Satomura got going and started basically ragdolling her young opponent. It looked like Valkyrie was on the verge of being out of it late but she stared down the referee when they attempted to possibly call the match. Satomura put her down for good with a kick and Scorpio Rising, ending her undefeated streak but making her look like a star in the process. [****]

95. Britt Baker vs. Thunder Rosa – AEW Beach Break

Credit: AEW

The most famous women’s rivalry in AEW’s short history is easily Britt Baker vs. Thunder Rosa. I love how different their entries into the company even were. Baker was the hyped signing while Rosa showed up as part of NWA and gradually became a major star. Their most iconic match was obviously the main event in March but a month prior, they had their first meeting and it was actually pretty fantastic. They were given 13:11 to do their thing, which was basically a lifetime when compared to most women’s bouts in the company at the time. Considering the rivalry coming in, this starting hot was more than welcome and played into the story. Things were going along well enough but really picked up after a commercial break as the brawl took them up the ramp. They started with bigger moves like a DVD, Air Raid Crash, and Slingblade. Interference from Rebel (Not Reba) and an exposed turnbuckle ended up costing Rosa the match, as Britt followed with the Lockjaw, beating her knocked out opponent. It was a great early chapter for a feud that only got better. [****]

94. Jon Moxley vs. Minoru Suzuki – AEW Dynamite 9/8/21

Credit: AEW

I will keep saying it as long as I review wrestling but matches that are under 10 minutes are sometimes my favorite. Give me 9 minutes of greatness over 45 minutes of trying too hard to be good. Jon Moxley and Minoru Suzuki were pressed for time in this main event of Dynamite but they made the most of it. The crowd was molten hot as even after they couldn’t sing “Kaze Ni Nare,” they were on fire for their hometown guy, Jon Moxley. Their match in New Japan ruled and this was right along those same lines. They had a slugfest that felt like more of a fight than a lot of other matches. Suzuki worked the arm and the intensity level never wavered regardless of what was going on in the ring. They started hitting bigger moves and Suzuki got a busted eye, adding to the entire experience. A strike exchange was won out by Moxley who then added an elevated version of the Paradigm Shift to earn the win in a wild 8:08. It was violent and felt like a legitimate fight, which is great. [****]

93. Falls Count Anywhere: Isaiah “Swerve” Scott vs. Leon Ruff – NXT 5/4/21

Credit: WWE

Always a shame to look back on matches at the end of the year that ruled only for both guys to be gone from the company. I was really looking forward to this. Both guys are good and it had been built as an intriguing TV rivalry. I loved how Swerve took his time to start, playing mind games with the overly aggressive Ruff. It’s exactly what his character should do. He used that to his advantage and I liked the fire Ruff showed to rally, with his hanging dropkick looking really good. During the break, they fought towards the gym area and made good use of the stipulation. The reverse rana off the apron was one of the best spots I’ve seen in a while and looked fantastic. The same goes for the rebound Confidence Boost off the plexiglass. Ruff went for a big dive but was caught by Top Dolla in the early days of Hit Row. He crushed him with a DVD onto the guardrail, followed by Swerve hitting the JML Driver to win in 15:24. I loved that this got the time it deserved and they delivered. Ruff showed exactly the kind of fire he needed to, while Swerve got the win he needed. Also, I like when Falls Count Anywhere matches actually use the stipulation well. [****]

92. AEW World Championship: Kenny Omega [c] vs. Christian Cage – AEW All Out

Credit: AEW

AEW’s All Out was not only the best pay-per-view of the year but it was one of the greatest that I’ve ever seen. To cap off such a special show, you need a great main event and these guys delivered. Kenny Omega lost to Christian Cage in a really good match on the debut episode of Rampage, dropping the Impact Title to him. Here, they had an even better match and brought out bigger spots. That included Omega hitting a double stomp onto a table and Christian nailing a spear off the apron. I feel like not enough people are talking about how good Christian’s return run has been. Edge is also great but he’s on fire too. There were a few spots here that didn’t quite work, including Kenny looking rough on a moonsault off the apron but he got it all together by the end. Christian kept hitting spears but Omega kept surviving. Then, he got help from the various shenanigans of the Elite boys, including Don Callis. That gave this more of an Attitude Era vibe and I didn’t hate it. They ended up fighting on the top turnbuckle where Kenny hit an avalanche One Winged Angel to retain after 21:21. A worthy main event to close an awesome show. [****]

91. IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Championship: Hiromu Takahashi [c] vs. SHO – NJPW New Beginning in Hiroshima Night One

Credit: NJPW

These two went at it right off the bat, trading shots and making you think it might be a short fight. This is New Japan, though, and everything has to be dragged out. Thankfully, SHO and Hiromu are among the best in the company and they can make a long match work. There were almost too many forearm shots to the face in this one to count as they were going to war. As this progressed, Kevin Kelly mentioned that the longest Jr. Heavyweight Title match ever was 34 minutes and that immediately told me that it would surpass that number. After the hot start, things slowed a bit, adding to the sense that it was going long. They picked up the pace after the 20 minute mark and started hitting moves that looked vicious. It made me worried for Hiromu at a few points. They went from trying to outmaneuver the other to throwing some late bombs. With the usual NJPW back and forth exchange to end it, Hiromu retained with Time Bomb #2 after a whopping 35:38. A bit of a disappointment as it felt they tried to go too long. That said, this was still great wrestling between two of the best out there and I could watch them wrestle any day of the week. It lacked some drama which hurt it as well since they never made me buy into a title change. [****]