Pantoja’s Top 100 Matches Of 2025 (#40-31)

Click here for part six of the Top 100 Matches Of 2025, looking at #50 through 41.

40. WWE United States Championship: Sami Zayn [c] vs. Ilja Dragunov – WWE SmackDown 10/17/25

Image Credit: WWE

Sami Zayn’s reign as United States Champion is how you book a competent, short title reign. Far too many people think that you can’t have a great reign unless it lasts six months to a year. I wasn’t following WWE too closely during the reign but I caught most of his defenses and they were really good, feeling similar to John Cena’s 2015 reign. Having Ilja Dragunov return to challenge him was brilliant. It was early enough in the reign that you thought Sami would retain but Ilja returning meant he might win the belt. That added drama to a banger of a match. They went to war for 19:21, beating the hell out of each other from bell to bell. I liked that as his progressed, you started to question if Ilja could outlast Sami given his recent injury. When Sami did the apron suplex onto the middle rope, I gasped because that’s not something you see every day. The chops, the stomps, the exchanges, it was all brutal on a level we don’t often see on WWE, especially on a regular TV match in the middle of the card. The close calls late were so well done without ever overdoing things. A Solo Sikoa distraction prevented a Helluva Kick but Sami still nailed the Exploder. Ilja interrupted the Helluva Kick with Torpedo Moscow and then hit the H Bomb to win the title. One of the best TV matches you’ll ever see. I love when they just let dudes wrestle. [****½]

39. Hangman Page vs. MJF – AEW Revolution

Image Credit: AEW

The pivot from MJF/Jarrett to this was brilliant. Especially since MJF had been FREEZING cold since losing the world title. Max teased the fans as Hangman’s old theme played only to transition to MJF’s theme. They went right at each other at the bell and MJF took the first advantage but made the mistake of being too arrogant and Hangman fired up. The idea here was that Max kept finding ways to escape or survive. He’d roll outside for a breather, back away from the Buckshot Lariat, and then when he got hit by it, get his foot on the bottom rope to break a pin. Hangman was better and more aggressive but MJF so MJF was looking to beat him by outsmarting him. He’d strike whenever he had an opening whether it was a quick cradle DDT or slapping on his armbar. MJF took it to the next level when he hit a running Tombstone on an open chair outside. When Hangman beat the count back in, MJF cried and shouted “WHY NOT ME? WHAT’S SO SPECIAL ABOUT YOU?” I love that everything Max does comes back to him being insecure. That opened the door for Hangman to bust out Daniels’ Angel’s Wings and then the Buckshot Lariat to win in 19:03. That Angel’s Wings looked vicious. A hell of a match that told a simple story. Two of the best around too, especially since MJF looked motivated again. [****½]

38. CM Punk vs. Roman Reigns vs. Seth Rollins – WWE WrestleMania 41

Image Credit: WWE

It’s hilarious that this was the main event because it had literally no stakes. At least add a #1 contender’s stipulation or something to it instead of fighting over Paul Heyman’s love. Punk’s pre-match video package was fantastic, and the live performance of “Cult of Personality” was cool. I think I prefer the one at WM 29, though. This reminded me a lot of last year’s night one main event in that it was long and filled with classic WWE main event style storytelling. That’s not a bad thing because it’s something I enjoy when done right, and this was done right. The brawling came off well, and they did nice little things like tease a Shield powerbomb, only for Roman to level Seth. The spot where we got a GTS, Spear, and Curb Stomp all in succession was awesome. The big moment came at the end when Heyman gave Punk a chair instead of Roman. He then hit Punk with a low blow, and Roman wailed on Punk with a chair. When Roman went to hit Seth in the back with the chair, Heyman hit him with a low blow as well, aligning himself with Seth. Rollins hit another Curb Stomp on Roman and pinned him to win in 32:39. Great stuff here, giving us a classic big match main event and a memorable finish that set up some storylines going forward. [****½]

37. IWGP World Heavyweight Championship: Zack Sabre Jr. [c] vs. Hirooki Goto – NJPW The New Beginning in Osaka

Image Credit: NJPW

The crowd chanting for Goto throughout his entrance was special. That gave this an atmosphere that is hard to match. You’ll find plenty of better matches in terms of the moves done, technical acumen, and high spots but NOTHING beats being emotionally invested in something. Zack played into the crowd being against him, bringing his brash attitude to the foray as he picked apart Goto in the early stages. The challenger got a breather when he hit Ushigiroshi and stopped Zack’s momentum. I liked Goto opting to use the turnbuckle in place of YOSHI-HASHI to deliver a variation of Shoto. After Zack hit the Zack Driver and applied one of his brutal submissions, you could feel the crowd tense up as they sensed a case of Goto falling to 0-9 in world title matches. Yet somehow, he managed to reach the ropes. That sparked the big Goto comeback and again, the crowd was so into it. He busted out Shoten like the old days to a huge ovation. Then ZSJ trapped him in the European Clutch and it looked like Goto would come up short once again. He survived that and hit GTR twice to finally win the big one after 20:07. See, that’s winning the big one. Not when he won the NEVER Title and they tried to hype it like it was the same thing. A special moment and a great match boosted by the emotional, intense crowd. [****½]

36. NJPW Strong Women’s Championship: AZM [c] vs. Bozilla – STARDOM Nighter in Korakuen 7/24/25

Image Credit: STARDOM

Bozilla ignored an opening handshake, showing there wouldn’t be any friendliness here. The idea here was simple and that’s a good thing. AZM’s shots barely hurt Bozilla, so she needed to use her speed. Bozilla caught her early though and just destroyed her. AZM bumped wildly on a shoulder block, setting the tone for how the rest of the match would be. Bozilla looking like an absolute beast and AZM showing a ton of resilience. Whenever AZM got some momentum, Bozilla could wallop her to cut it off. I thought AZM finally got a real opening when she hit a flying headscissors that sent Bozilla to the outside but Bozilla caught her next kick and powerbombed her on the apron. That’s how the match went. Bozilla powerbombed out of a triangle choke but they sold the battle so well as both struggled in that situation. The near falls down the stretch were believable on both sides. Bozilla hit a dope Bret’s Rope Fallaway Slam but missed a moonsault as the tide kept turning. The AZM Poison Rana and Bozilla powerbomb near fall were so well done. The Azumi Sushi near fall was even better and I loved that AZM showed desperation as she trapped Bozilla in an armbar that was turned into a pin for the win at 15:20. An outstanding match. One of my favorites this year as it tells the David vs. Goliath story that I love so much. What a match. [****½]

35. WWE Tag Team Championship TLC Match: The Street Profits [c] vs. DIY vs. The Motor City Machine Guns – WWE SmackDown 4/25/25

Image Credit: WWE

We’ll get the obvious talking point out of the way. This not being on WrestleMania was a crime. I know we can say that they got more time on Smackdown (22:52) but PPVs are long as hell anyway and there were two nights for Mania, so just put it there. Three of the best tag teams in recent memory just putting it all on the line in a stellar main event. I loved that they took a somewhat slower approach with this match. They didn’t just try to go all in from the opening bell, instead allowing the bigger spots to develop and arrive at the right time. Those big spots were massive, which is par for the course in these matches. Montez Ford was the standout here, getting some of the biggest moments and reminding everyone again of why he’s so good. It felt like all six men had chips on their shoulders after being left off the Mania card, so they went out and bested almost everything on that show. The finish was super creative, with Ford getting hooked in the ladder, only to climb it from the inside, knock Sabin and Gargano off, and pull down the titles. One of the better TLC matches ever. [****½]

34. 5STAR Grand Prix Quarterfinals: Natsupoi vs. Rina – STARDOM 5STAR Grand Prix 8/20/25

Image Credit: WWE

Rina pissed off Poi by spitting at her early on, triggering Poi to throw her around the ring. Rina turned it around by slamming Natsupoi from the top onto the apron in a rough looking bump. Natsupoi’s arm was the target and it even got hit with a chair outside. Soon after, these two were just going at it, trading big strikes and moves at a frantic pace. The near falls had me biting, which isn’t always easy to do. Pretty much every exchange was great. When Rina hit the Gory Bomb, it felt earned and she hit it good but couldn’t cover in time. Seeing her attempt a Vertebreaker was wild. In the end, the submission that Rina trapped Natsupoi in looked like something out of ZSJ’s playbook. Natsupoi had no choice by to submit in 13:21. Just tremendous wrestling. A main event match that delivered and helped further solidify that Rina is ready for the big time despite just being 18 years old. [****½]

33. Continental Classic Semifinals: Jon Moxley vs. Kyle Fletcher – AEW Worlds End

Image Credit: AEW

Kyle played mind games early by stalling but he left himself open for a Mox attack and we were underway. Unlike the previous match, this involved a lot of fighting outside. Once back inside, Kyle put the focus on the ankle. Both men, as expected, were up for the task of having a violent fight, though I’m glad they didn’t overdo anything. When they moved to the apron, things got taken to the next level as Moxley ate a Brainbuster out there. The submission work done inside was great and the crowd came alive when Moxley turned a Kyle submission into the bulldog choke. They were really behind him. The Ankle Lock that Mox has tapped to a few times got applied but he survived. Kyle took a bump where I honestly have no idea how he’s still walking. As this neared 20 minutes, both guys were spent and we got some great close calls. Kyle looked for the screwdriver that helped Okada earlier but it not being there opened the door for Mox to nearly beat him. The near falls down the stretch were great even though I didn’t need a finisher kick out. In the end, Moxley ended up trapping Kyle in a choke and Kyle passed out in 23:31. I wasn’t loving the early stages but it picked up in a big way. Crazy how Mox was so bad in the first half of the year but so good in the second. Love the story wrinkle too because either Okada went rogue and took the weapon or maybe Callis put him up to it. [****½]

32. World of Stardom Championship vs. Career Match: Saya Kamitani [c] vs. Tam Nakano – STARDOM Nighter in Korakuen 3/3/25

Image Credit: STARDOM

If Tam loses, she must leave STARDOM forever. They started this with some aggression that spilled over into the opening exchanges. There was the usual bit of mat work but it had some vigor behind it like it was two women who hate each other. That set up some brawling on the outside and through the crowd as is par for the course with HATE. Saya took control after that and held serve for a long while, which works because Tam is such a great sympathetic babyface and Saya has really grown into her heel persona. When Tam got going, she focused on the leg and had the crowd popping for the fire she brought. From there, they started trading shots and even headbutts in the middle of the ring, with this feeling like a legitimately huge match. The slaps sounded rough and they were laying into each other. Seeing Tam attempt and even hit the avalanche Tiger Suplex showed her desperation and having that be followed by Saya doing a desperation double stomp to counter a charging Tam was a great spot. Tam kicked out from the Star Crusher at one, rallying for one final attempt to pull this out. Unfortunately, we got some of the expected HATE interference and having Cosmic Angels help made you believe Tam might pull it out but then we got even more interfering. Natsuko hit Tam with a weapon and then Saya cracked her with a chair. She added the Star Crusher and then slowly picked up Tam to hit a sick kick to the face, beating her in 25:39. I think they overdid the shenanigans late but this was still a tremendous main event. [****½]

31. IWGP World Heavyweight Championship: Zack Sabre Jr. [c] vs. Konosuke Takeshita – NJPW King of Pro Wrestling

Image Credit: NJPW

Takeshita is the outsider who won the G1 while ZSJ has stuck with New Japan for years. I thought they did a really good job with the early stages here. It was a feeling out process as neither man wanted to make the first mistake and it played off their prior encounters. It was also very engaging, which is something far too many wrestlers struggle with. The crux here was ZSJ going after the elbow and Takeshita responding with big bursts of explosive offense. Sabre picked apart the right arm and though he was still able to hit some big offense, Takeshita did a good job of selling the damage throughout. As this passed the 15 minute mark, Takeshita hit a German suplex and absolutely rocked ZSJ with a forearm. It was brutal. They kept up counters, like ZSJ rolling through a knee strike and into a Rings of Saturn like move. It was one of my favorite sports in a long time. Takeshita made it to the ropes, triggering an intense final third. Sunset flip bombs, the Raging Fire, the Zack Driver, and even Takeshita applying a Crossface Chicken Wing as if he was the submission master. Down the stretch, they traded shots and Takeshita removed his elbow pad to hit a big forearm. He avoided an armbar and hit a German before adding a poison rana and two Power Drives to become the new champion in 31:16. Just tremendous pro wrestling. ZSJ remains one of the best and Takeshita continues to be one of the best currently going. This was the right call and they delivered an epic main event that was my favorite of their trilogy. [****½]