wrestling / Columns
Pantoja’s Top 100 Matches of 2023 (#60-51)
Image Credit: AEW, B/R Live
60. Giulia vs. Mariah May – STARDOM 5STAR Grand Prix 8/8/23
One of the best things about 2023 was seeing the rise of Mariah May. When she showed up in STARDOM, many wrote her off as just another pretty face and her early matches displayed someone who wasn’t exactly ready for primetime. Yet in a ridiculously short time, she improved immensely and earned a spot in the Grand Prix where she was one of the highlights. Alongside her win over her tag partner Mina Shirakawa, this was her finest moment. Here’s a pretty exciting match. Less than a minute in, Mariah slapped Giulia with some force, triggering an exchange of them and it showed that she wasn’t going to back down or be intimidated by her tough opponent. Even when Giulia got the upper hand, Mariah was right there to fire back and she busted out a powerbomb on the outside. Down the stretch, Mariah was firing up after taking suplexes like she was Tomohiro Ishii or some shit. It became very plausible that she would pull this out. As they hit the 10 minute mark, they were back to trading vicious slaps and Mariah actually won that exchange. In fact, she got a near fall on one because it FLOORED Giulia. Alas, Giulia was able to regroup and win with the Glorious Driver in 12:04. Mariah May is a star that everyone should pay attention to. [****¼]
59. Bryan Danielson vs. Konosuke Takeshita – AEW Dynamite 1/11/23
I’d been anticipating this match since it was announced and they delivered with a great combination of smooth wrestling and hard hitting action. Early on, Takeshita managed to withstand Danielson’s mat work and bust out big moves like a Blue Thunder Bomb to put the American Dragon in trouble. They were pretty even heading into the break. Returning, Takeshita hit a top rope lariat that reminded me of the Danielson/McGuinness classics from the mid-2000s. He added a Brainbuster on the floor but made the mistake of taking too long to capitalize and opened the door for Danielson to get his knees up on a senton atomico. Takeshita survived the Lebelle Lock and they traded forearms before he hit another massive lariat. Takeshita’s counter of the MMA elbows was sick and gave us a true gasp-worthy moment before Danielson came back with a Busaiku Knee, head kicks, and the Regal Stretch in 14:17. Goddamn, what a match. I love stuff like this and Danielson continues to be the best to ever do it. [****¼]
58. WWE Raw Women’s Championship: Bianca Belair [c] vs. IYO SKY – WWE Backlash
Even though I know she had no chance, this felt like a huge moment for IYO. The crowd was pretty hot for both ladies but IYO was the favorite. That gave this a different feel than Bianca is used to. IYO put a target on the arm, starting with a pretty fantastic looking double stomp onto it. IYO was on point with everything she did and seemed to relish in the positive reaction. I liked how Bianca could stop her momentum by using her power for a backbreaker only to have to sell her arm immediately after. Bianca’s one-armed press slam was ridiculously impressive, even if IYO nearly landed badly. Meanwhile, IYO’s springboard dropkick might’ve never looked better than it did here. The Bret’s Rope powerbomb by Bianca to counter an IYO rana was one of the better spots of the year. At this point, Dakota Kai and Bayley came out and that gave us some shenanigans. The spots where Dakota and Bayley were hit by Bianca came off really poorly and looked bad. The referee caught Bayley cheating, IYO missed a moonsault, and Bianca retained with the KOD in 17:57. An outstanding match that is a reminder of how good IYO is and was her breakout. That finish was pretty bad and the Bianca superwoman popup was kind of cheap. Still, a tremendous match. [****¼]
57. Hazuki vs. Mayu Iwatani – STARDOM 5STAR Grand Prix 7/23/23
You’d probably expect a friendly match between stablemates here. That wasn’t the case. Hazuki held nothing back, delivering a stiff DDT outside and that caused Mayu to also up the ante with some hard hitting shots. Hazuki won a strike exchange by just WAILING on Mayu until she was on the mat and then continued throwing more forearms. She was throwing herself into everything. When she avoided a Mayu tope suicida and Mayu crashed into everyone at ringside, Hazuki followed with a WILD one of her own and then added a second. Mayu was also bumping like crazy, making sure everything looked great. It kind of felt like Hazuki was going extra hard to show she could beat the leader of her stable. Hazuki came close several times, stared down Mayu in the midst of a slew of kicks, and survived a moonsault off the top but ultimately, Mayu won with the Two Step Dragon Suplex in an excellent 13:20. I loved so much of this, Mayu is a big match wrestler for a reason, and Hazuki needs to get her big push soon because she’s fantastic. [****¼]
56. Stadium Stampede: Best Friends, Eddie Kingston, Orange Cassidy & Penta El Zero Miedo vs. The Blackpool Combat Club, Santana & Ortiz – AEW All In
Eddie, in a Patrick Ewing jersey, went straight for Claudio to kickstart this. What we got was the expected big brawl that this match is known for. Some guys fought backstage while others stayed in the ring and the action was wild at every turn. Moxley introduced skewers but had them put in his head which looked gross as hell. OC was having his usual good time but Moxley went after him with a fork and we had a totally different look for OC. Another high spot was Trent getting tripped up top and landing on a ladder. Trent taking a piledriver on the steel steps was wild too. Penta left seemingly hurt onto return as Penta Oscuro even if the camera botched it. OC got hardcore, duct taping his fist and covering it in broken glass to use for an Orange Punch but Moxley cut him off. He took one of the best popup European uppercuts ever. Kingston returned to a pop with a chair as he laid into Claudio. Moxley and Eddie went face to face and Eddie put them through a table. Then, OC returned with the glass covered Orange Punch on Claudio to win in 21:15. Just a war with absurd moments and some good storytelling, capped by a strong ending. Seriously, this match is so stupid in the best possible way. [****¼]
55. WWE Undisputed Tag Team Championship Steel City Street Fight: Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn [c] vs. Damian Priest and Finn Bálor – WWE Payback
If you’re gonna book a street fight then I want plunder from the word go and they gave me that. From Finn stepping on a “Terrible Towel” to Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn popping up dressed in Penguins jerseys and having hockey fights, this was a blast. There might not have been a more fun match this year and the only other one I can think of on this level also featured Priest. The big spots came late like a Blue Thunder Bomb onto a pile of chairs and KO with a big Swanton Bomb in the crowd. However, the run-ins are where things got even better surprisingly. The near fall JD McDonagh interrupted made for a great close call and seeing Rhea Ripley Spear Kevin Owens through the barricade was one of the coolest uses of that overdone spot. Sami fought off Finn until he had a pin broken up by a briefcase shot from Dom and Finn got the three count in 20:43. A few of the run-ins and such were a bit much late but that was so much fun that I don’t even care. Just a wild match with so much action and goofy stuff going on in the best way. [****¼]
54. Kazuchika Okada vs. Taichi – NJPW G1 Climax 33 7/21/23
I have never liked this pairing but they finally delivered here. Commentary put over the story of them as Young Lions and Okada being the top guy who has beaten Taichi every time since they graduated. Okada was a dick here and again, that’s when he works best. He toyed with Taichi and didn’t take him seriously, as well as busting out a spinning Tombstone and Rainmaker early. Taichi got fed up with being played with and got going, which is when this really kicked into the next gear. Taichi shut Okada up and gave him back some of the beating he was dishing out first. When he countered the Rainmaker into a Backdrop Driver, I popped and then he proceeded to just drop Okada on his head with another one. Taichi nearly pulled off this upset several times down the stretch and you got the sense that he had Okada’s number. In fact, there was one near fall where I legitimately believed Okada lost. But in the end, Okada countered Black Mephisto into a pin to win in 16:20. Easy match of the tournament. They gave me my favorite version of Okada, a great performance by Taichi, added high drama, and it didn’t go too long. [****½]
53. World of Stardom Championship: Giulia [c] vs. Maya Yukihi – STARDOM Triangle Derby Finals
These two have a long history and basically hate each other. That disdain spilled over immediately as Giulia laid out Maya with the title before the bell. That set the stage for a match that never felt like a title fight but instead came across more like a war. They were out to hurt one another. Within about two minutes, Maya was launched into rows of chairs and shortly after that, the two were trading vicious looking forearms. I thought I was getting a suplex on the ramp but instead I got a Falcon Arrow. That’s telling of the kind of fight this was. Every shot they hit looked brutal and even the referee wasn’t safe as he got tossed aside on more than one occasion. The table spots done by each looked especially violent and felt more visceral than most typical table spots. As they waged this war, the bell rang resulting in a double countout after 17:57. An absolute war and up there with Angle/Austin at SummerSlam as great matches without a decisive winner. I’m still hoping we get a rematch down the line. [****½]
52. Wonder of Stardom Championship: Tam Nakano [c] vs. MIRAI – STARDOM Midsummer Champions
Tam Nakano holding the top two titles in STARDOM isn’t something even her biggest fans could’ve predicted coming into 2023. MIRAI being on the cusp of stardom (pun intended) and getting a big win is something that felt in the cards for 2023. The two collided in this match for Tam’s Wonder of Stardom Title after MIRAI earned a shot by winning the Cinderella Tournament. Shocked this isn’t the headliner. This opened with one of the most vicious forearm exchanges you’ll see anywhere as Tam ROCKED the challenger but MIRAI responded with some rapid-fire ones that saw her get so aggressive that she shoved the referee down multiple times. Though Tam slowed her and the pace down a bit, it never got less hard hitting. They fought on the aisle with vicious knee strikes and a lariat from MIRAI that floored the champion. MIRAI gave me ROH Nigel McGuinness vibes here, throwing lariats at any chance she got to stop Tam in her tracks. Tam held serve on the mat for a bit but then MIRAI trapped her in an armbar that she had major trouble trying to escape. Tam escaped and started hitting bigger offense but the bad arm prevented her from being able to fully capitalize. The final few minutes were explosive with both ladies throwing bombs. MIRAI ate a huge kick but popped up and delivered a trio of lariats, only for Tam to come back with a Tiger Suplex. It was that level of back and forth. In the end, MIRAI got over the hump by nailing a spinning Miramare Shock after 22:16. Big Match Tam was great and MIRAI was the striker I like her to be. A spectacular match and a heartwarming crowning moment. [****½]
51. IWGP United Kingdom Championship: Will Ospreay [c] vs. Yota Tsuji – NJPW Destruction in Kobe
A guy many people consider the best in the world and the most intriguing of the new rising stars in the company. A lot of this was clearly structured like most big Ospreay matches but in this case, I think that’s okay. Yota isn’t a veteran so this was rightly Will’s match to lead. What Yota brought to the table was explosiveness, charisma, and great timing. He nailed every spot he had to with wild precision for a guy who I saw a Young Lion only a few years ago. Ospreay kind of dominated this for a lot of the match but Yota would hit something with some snap and turn the tide. Things picked up in a big way when they just traded forearms and chops in the middle of the ring. From there, it was a barrage of big moves like powerbombs, Spanish Flies, Oscutters, and more. My biggest gripe was that they went a bit overboard on the near falls late. I get the idea was that Yota was a tough guy who wouldn’t stay down but having him kick out at one from the Gene Blaster (which didn’t get the pop it should’ve) and then survive several other moves like Stormbreaker and the Tiger Driver all felt like overkill. Another Hidden Blade and Stormbreaker gave Ospreay the win in 27:51. A tremendous pro wrestling match though a few things kept it from being a MOTYC. [****½]
