Hello my name is Iwan Mackenzie and we’ve finally made it towards the end of 2019! Yep 2019 was a funny old year for wrestling, it was the year when we went All Elite, Independence became a movement, BritWres was declared dead several times over and WWE is still continuing with the trollop of a story-line that is the Lana/Lashley/Rusev/Liv story. But most importantly I watched a load of great wrestling so much in fact that I’ve compiled a list of the best 50 matches that I’ve seen all year long.
Now I did write a Top 25 List in July with all of my favourite matches from that half of the year, now some of the matches from that list have remained on here whilst some matches has unfortunately not made the cut. Also remember that this list in entirely personal preference from me so don’t get mad if you’re favourite match isn’t included on the list and what I’ll do is to Tweet me your favourite’s to me @IwanMack on Twitter.
Before we get started as ever here are some Honourable Mentions:
- Cara Noir vs Kyle Fletcher: ATTACK! Pro 24/7 Championship Match – ATTACK! Pro “Live at the Dome II” (20/02)
- PAC vs Amazing Red: British J Cup Semi-Final Match – RevPro “British J Cup 2019” (24/11)
- Beano vs Big Grizzly: GOOD Grand Prize Title Match – GOOD Wrestling “GOODstock 2019: Late Show” (20/07)
- Luke Jacobs vs Ethan Allen vs Tom Thelwell vs Big T Justice vs Martin Kirby: #1 Contenders Five Way Elimination Match – TIDAL “Silent Nightmare 6: Sweet Dream” (27/12)
- Jordon Breaks vs Johnny Kidd: British Rounds Match – Pro Wrestling SOUL “SOUL 8: Take a Look at Me Now” (29/12)
- Big Guns Joe vs Will Kroos vs Alec Mikeals vs Adam Bolt vs Henry Faust: Breeding Ground Invitational Final – Breed “Breeding Ground 3” (07/09)
- Connor Mills vs TK Cooper: IWL Championship Match – IWL “Untitled II” (25/07)
- Chakara vs Big Swole – RIPTIDE “Brighton Spirit 2019: Show 3” (05/10)
- Su Yung vs Charlie Morgan – Pro Wrestling: EVE “Global Women’s Strike 2” (09/02)
- The 0121 (Dan Moloney and Deriess) vs Moustache Mountain (Tyler Bate and Trent Seven): ATTACK! Pro Tag Team Championship Match – ATTACK! Pro “Under the MistleTour 2019: Show Three” (21/12)
Now lets get on with this list properly starting with Number 50:
50. Pete Dunne vs Cara Noir – PROGRESS “Chapter 95: Still Chasing” (15/09)
This was Pete’s return to PROGRESS after being gone from the promotion since Unboxing last year, he issued an open challenge that was answered by Noir who himself had only debuted in PROGRESS the night before at the Natural Progression Series. The best match of a very good Ally Pally show, Noir and Dunne showed off great chemistry between each other in a great 15 minute bout that did have the crowd thinking that Cara was going to shock the world and beat the former NXT UK champion and that’s the strong suit of this match.
A great one off for Dunne and the match that established Noir as a main player in PROGRESS going forward into a new era for the promotion.
WHERE TO WATCH: https://demandprogress.pivotshare.com/media/chapter-95%3A-still-chasing/91300/preview
49. Schadenfreude (Chris Brookes and Kyle Fletcher) vs Meiko Satomura and Dash Chisako: Fight Club: Pro Tag Team Championship Match – Fight Club: Pro “Return of the Sendai Part 2” (26/07)
There’s plenty of jokes that can lauded at Fight Club: Pro for there crowd in Wolverhampton not caring for the wrestling and more focusing on the social interaction and drinking, now all of that is pretty true but there doesn’t mean to say there’s no great main events as this match can attest to.
It was a match that I was hoping to see so when it was announced for the show I was super excited to see it and it lived up to my expectations; a proper old school style tag match with the heels cutting off the ring which in turn leads to the faces getting more heat in comeback’s, combine that with a modern work rate and you get a tag match that is on the same level as some of those Revival/DIY Classics of 2016.
WHERE TO WATCH: https://vimeo.com/ondemand/fightclubprounlimited/352005783
48. Mike Bailey vs Jordon Breaks – RIPTIDE “Brighton Spirit 2019: Show 1” (04/10)
Our first of many trips to RIPTIDE for this list starts with this clash of styles that stole the show on the Friday night of Brighton Spirit; Breaks’ ascension to prominence in RIPTIDE this year has been a pleasure to see and he excelled against a top tier international talent here in Mike Bailey who himself had a fantastic 2019. The match was Bailey being the aggressor against Breaks by laying into him with knee’s and kicks; Breaks’s would counteract this with brilliant counter wrestling and submission holds that had Bailey in peril plenty of times.
If you want something a bit different from the norm then this match will be a bit of you I reckon, I don’t know though I’m not your dad.
WHERE TO WATCH: https://riptidewrestling.pivotshare.com/media/21-riptide%3A-brighton-spirit-show-one/92666
47. Mark Davis vs Shigehiro Irie – ATTACK! Pro “Live at the Dome II” (20/02)
Mark Davis had a massive heavyweight challenge in the form of Shigehiro Irie to deal with on one fatalful night at The Dome here. Both men had a contest to see who could sit on each other the hardest with Irie winning that exchange; both men hit massive dives to the outside on each other showing that there much like crusierweights in heavyweight form, Irie followed that up with a splash where he nearly fell out of the ring on impact that’s how much of a spring he got on it; more chops and strikes followed with Davis eventually attempting a moonsault but Irie moved, Davis was still able to pick up the win following a massive Piledriver.
This was a great battle of big lads that had the high flying in there to show how athletic both men are as well as great strikers, it took me a little bit of time to warm to Irie but he in a short time has become one of my favourite wrestlers to watch, Davis said to me after at the merch that it was one of his favourite singles matches he’s ever had, I’m very inclined to agree.
They did have a rematch at Fight Club: Pro a few months later and that’s a great match as well but I personally prefer this match.
WHERE TO WATCH: https://vimeo.com/ondemand/liveatthedomeii
46. Kyle Fletcher vs Trent Seven – ATTACK! “Live at the Dome III” (24/04)
A rematch from their wonderful encounter at PROGRESS some six months prior, this match in my opinion surpassed their original encounter all them months ago. They started off a little bit of comedy when Trent paraded Kyle’s Aussie Arrow pose by doing a over the top version of a cannon to fire back but the things got serious with Trent focusing on Kyle’s knee so he could take away Kyle’s strength and highflying abilities; Kyle still fought through the pain though by throwing Trent all around the ring and hitting a spectacular springboard senton to the outside.
Trent optimised his chops in this match to wear Kyle down but Kyle had learnt from their last encounter together and was able to fight through the pain that Trent dished out, even reversing a figure four lock that Trent had applied recently; Kyle attempted to hit the Aussie Arrow but his knee buckled from under him on the first time, but he was able to fight through to hit it for the second time which ultimately was the match decider.
Both men have tremendous chemistry with one another and this was another great example of how good the two work together, I welcome the third match!
WHERE TO WATCH: https://vimeo.com/ondemand/liveatthedome3
45. Sean Kustom vs David Starr: Kamikaze Pro Championship Match – Kamikaze Pro “Truth or Consequences 2” (24/08)
This match has the dubious task of following a pretty bad match and a lot of us needed cheering up and this match achieved that and more. The story was simple here: Starr had already beaten Kustom twice in Kamikaze so had a lot of confidence but Kustom was a different beast here and was in his first defence of the title willing to finally get the victory over Starr.
This match has a lot of aggression to it but a great level of athleticism to balance it out as well, I’ve been a big fan of Kustom this year and it’s matches like this that prove how underrated a talent he is.
WHERE TO WATCH: https://vimeo.com/ondemand/kptoc2
44. Cassius vs Cara Noir: Pride of Brighton Title Match – RIPTIDE “Brighton Spirit 2019: Show 2” (05/10)
An open challenge was issued by Cassius in his first defence of his Pride of Brighton title and the challenge was answered by the Black Swan himself still feeling the effects of his match against Su Yung the night beforehand which was hinted at by wearing the red glitter for his facepaint and being more aggressive against the popular Cassius (Something my mate Will noticed). This match really was Cassius trying to survive and finding a way to beat a more aggressive Cara.
The highlight of this match was when Cara looks to have won the match but Cassius’ foot was on the ropes but only Cara had noticed and he had to convince the ref not to call it even though Cara is win less still in RIPTIDE. For a match that is two characters that come from pretty different perspectives, it was a great story driven bout that is propped up with great wrestling.
WHERE TO WATCH: https://riptidewrestling.pivotshare.com/media/22-riptide%3A-brighton-spirit-show-two/92779
43. Laura Di Matteo vs Jordynne Grace – Pro Wrestling: EVE “WrestleQueendom II” (30/06)
The grudge match to end a six month build of storytelling, you see back in October of last year, Di Matteo was able to submit Grace in a four way elimination match, in December she proclaimed 2019 as her year and said she has beaten some of the best with Grace’s name being mentioned, Grace took an issue with this and asked Laura “What makes you think, you could beat me twice?” to which Di Matteo responded back with “What makes you think you could beat me Once?” which led to a pull apart between the two and a match being set up at February’s “Global Women Strike 2”. Unfortunate due to scheduling conflicts that was not to be but it was given the bigger stage of WrestleQueendom II instead.
This was the match to see if Laura was able to back up her words or to see if Jordynne could even the score; the crowd were I’d say 85% in Laura’s corner with some Jordynne supporters in the crowd as well but Laura was the EVE faithful’s chosen one in this match. A real clash of styles here with Laura using her technical and high flying abilities against Jordynne’s absolute raw power, there was some insane stuff in this match with Jordynne powerbombing Laura on the apron and Laura actually tombstoning Jordynne in a real “Holy Shit” moment; it lived up to the feud, made Laura look like an absolute star in her performance and win, Jordynne still went down strong as well, considering which match it had to follow as well (More on that later) they still knocked it out of the park.
WHERE TO WATCH: https://eveondemand.pivotshare.com/media/eve%3A-wrestle-queendom-2!-june-30%2C-2019/89031/feature
42. Scotty Davis vs LJ Cleary: Ladder Match for the NLW Championship – OTT “Fifth Year Anniversary” (26/10)
In an era where ladder matches are massive stunt shows and crazy car crashes of bouts, this match felt very refreshing to watch as two young talents that were having great years for themselves went to war over the NLW title. Only using the one ladder throughout the whole match, they accomplished a lot in this bout with plenty of innovative spots and using regular moves but with ladder based offence.
This match had a lot of Shawn/Razor vibes to it, it was very sensible for two young men to have a match like this and a big highlight of a fantastic OTT show.
WHERE TO WATCH: https://overthetopwrestling.pivotshare.com/media/over-the-top-wrestling-presents-fifth-year-anniversary/92092/preview
41. Jordon Breaks vs Daniel Makabe: British Rounds Match – RIPTIDE “Brighton Spirit 2019: Show 2” (05/10)
RIPTIDE’s first attempt at British Rounds was a success and they couldn’t have found two more perfect talents for it then Breaks and Makabe. The atmosphere was for this match was perfect, silent but only because the audience was appreciating the wrestling that was in front of them.
The aggression was taken up by Makabe in later rounds as he was getting increasingly frustrating when Breaks was getting the advantage on him leading to a potential shoulder injury for Breaks but it played into the match and gave Breaks a wonderful victory in the second fall. If you love technical wrestling then give this match a watch especially with RIPTIDE’s quality camerawork.
WHERE TO WATCH: https://riptidewrestling.pivotshare.com/media/22-riptide%3A-brighton-spirit-show-two/92779
40. Kanji vs Charli Evans: SOUL Women’s Championship Tournament Semi-Final Match – Pro Wrestling SOUL “SOUL VI: Living Forever” (13/09)
Within their first year of promoting, SOUL has been one of the most progressive promotions in all of BritWres, one part of that would be SOUL’s first ever all female show that ran with a tournament to set up the final to crown a women’s champion. They went with a great main event for the show as well as Charli Evans and Kanji brought their rivalry to SOUL.
What was different for this match, is that they went one hundred miles an hour in attempt to head to the final, there chemistry was absolutely fantastic in this match and the near falls were so good, me and the crowd were hanging on all of them. It’s matches like this that proves that SOUL’s women’s division and shows will be a high point for the promotion going into 2020.
WHERE TO WATCH: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCn6ZZeeAvFx-ro0nIhldmPg
39. Jordon Breaks vs Connor Mills: Pride of Brighton Quarter-Final Match – Riptide “Pride of Brighton” (09/06)
Going into this show, this was my pick of the first round as you knew the two would have tremendous chemistry from their training together at Knucklelocks but they took my expectations and absolutely smashed them out the park as they put on an even better match then I thought that it could be.
It started off with some incredible technical wrestling before moving into the story of the match which was Mills using his striking ability because he knew he could outclass Jordan in that area but Jordan scouted Mills wrist in order to take away the punches and chops, that still didn’t affect Mills chops which were the hardest I’ve ever seen him hit. The finishing stretch was insane as Mills hit a suicide dive to the outside, rolling Jordan back in the ring and hitting the 450 splash only for Jordan to catch him in the Kimura lock on Mills weakened wrist to get the instant tap out and the win.
These two had an absolute class match here at this show leading to chants of RIPTIDE and a standing ovation from the crowd, these two truly are the future of BritWres and they showed it here with tremendous performances from the both of them.
WHERE TO WATCH: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xPQKFDiv-7A&list=PLwgdfYKTfIonk_sHxNKU6j5MDOnB__bae&index=11&t=1038s
38. TK Cooper vs Cara Noir vs Mike Bailey – RIPTIDE “Bank Holiday Wrestling: Show 1” (26/08)
What do you get when you get three showstealers in RIPTIDE, put them in an open environment and add in a great crowd? Well that you get a great match! This match had so much promise and potential and they absolutely lived up to it.
They had a bit of everything in this match; comedy, innovative spots, high flying, kicks etc. Everything you could possibly imagine is in this match. I’m sorry if I’m being vague but I’d honestly recommend watching this match just to witness the scope and specialness of this bout.
WHERE TO WATCH: https://riptidewrestling.pivotshare.com/media/19riptide-bank-holiday-wrestling-show-one-/91360/feature
37. Charli Evans vs Mike Bird: Gift of GOOD Tournament Final – GOOD Wrestling “GOODstock 2019: Late Show” (20/07)
Even still in 2019, Intergender wrestling still gets criticism for multiple reasons and In some ways I do understand where it comes from; if I was to convince somebody that Intergender wrestling is great then I’d show them this match as after a long day of two matches each for these two, they battled with force and looked like equals in there.
It was an incredible hard hitting match with a great sense of strong style littered throughout which is not a surprise considering both competitors backgrounds. This is a great match regardless of the gender of each wrestler and a great display of professional wrestling.
WHERE TO WATCH: https://goodwrestling.pivotshare.com/media/good-wrestling-%2316-%3A-goodstock-2019-part-2-(20-07-2019)/89751
36. Malik vs Connor Mills: J1 League Finals Qualfying Match – Frontline “NexGen 3” (25/05)
A bit of a personal dream match for me that kind of sold me on going to this show in the first place, these two were elevated to the main event position and absolutely killed it in this small church hall in Rainham.
The two built the match nice and slow with the two going hold for hold before resorting to the striking games that both men are very well known for. There was three insane spots that I must mention, first one being Malik placing Mills over the top rope and springboarding onto him with a footstomp; Malik putting Mills on his shoulder in an electric chair position and then climbing the ropes before hitting a massive German suplex; and the final spot being Malik attempting the German again but Mills learning from it and hitting a sunset powerbomb and a 450 splash but it only got a two!
Malik eventually won with the Chutknee to win the match and the adulation of the crowd. This truly was the match to show to people who had never seen either Mills or Malik at all before and to show why these guys should be everywhere right now.
WHERE TO WATCH: https://vimeo.com/ondemand/nexgen3
35. Mercedes Martinez vs Jinny – EVE Wrestling “Wrestling with an Agenda” (14/09)
I went to two different shows on September 14th and after a decent show for PROGRESS, I drove over to the ResGal with my mates Paul, Joe and Martin to see EVE and was treated to this match. I wasn’t sure what to except from this match as Mercedes in all her appearances this year has been fantastic but Jinny had felt a bit cold in most places up until this point where she pulled out one of the best matches of her career.
They had some brilliant technical exchanges before they went into a great striking exchange, they had a brilliant finish to the end as well with Mercedes looking to get the Dragon Sleeper applied. If you’re somebody that might have been burnt out by Jinny in the past then I’d recommend you watch this as they pulled off magic that night.
WHERE TO WATCH: https://eveondemand.pivotshare.com/media/eve-wrestling-with-an-agenda!-sept-14%2C-2019/91183/feature
34. Connor Mills vs Chris Ridgeway – Battle Pro “Legit Heat” (09/08)
Another personal dream match of mine here and it only took place ten minutes away from my house which is a bonus in my book. Ridgeway had come back from his first tour of NOAH and looked like a different beast here as his kicks was even harder than before, he even displayed a new deadly weapon of a forearm to the gut but Mills had fighting spirit to him and fought back right to the very end.
They went one hundred miles an hour from the start to the end and it was perfect, I could not envision this match to be any more perfect for what I wanted to see, a candidate for the best match in Battle Pro history.
WHERE TO WATCH: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZZIvpJxMtKPcRWqtfhy_ZA
33. Cara Noir vs Connor Mills vs The OJMO – Head Drop “Wrestling III” (17/11)
Head Drop 3 started with a bang on a quiet Sunday afternoon as three of British Wrestling’s brightest stars of 2019 went out there and had a superb match to kick off a pretty great show. The three displayed fantastic chemistry with some of the sequences they pulled off whilst still showing their individual flair.
All three of them was fantastic in this match for different reasons and I’d love to see rematches with these lot down the line into 2020 because I’d love to see what more these great minds could do.
WHERE TO WATCH: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GVDyVE6JmZI&list=PLwgdfYKTfIonk_sHxNKU6j5MDOnB__bae&index=9
32. Mike Bailey vs Joe Nelson – IPW:UK “Area 52” (28/08)
IPW:UK has had a pretty bad year on route to their closure as the IPW brand but there was some highlights and diamonds in the rough especially when it came to this match. I went to this show on a whim as well because my mate Tobi wanted to meet Simon Miller, I went for this match and I wasn’t disappointed as they told a great story over 20 minutes with an invested crowd.
Bailey was the heel of this match which was the right decision as Nelson is the best underdog in British wrestling right now with Nelson getting his moments to comeback leading to the crowd being hot throughout. It’s on YouTube for free to watch and I’d honestly give it a look because it’s very much one that goes under the radar for the year.
WHERE TO WATCH: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D8b8HCwtpAI&list=PLwgdfYKTfIonk_sHxNKU6j5MDOnB__bae&index=8
31. Jordan Devlin vs Kyle Fletcher: Super Strong Style 16 Quarter-Final Match – PROGRESS “Super Strong Style 16 2019 Day 2” (05/05)
These two had one of my MOTY last year at RIPTIDE so when they met each other in the quarter finals for this years SSS16, I got very excited when these two were paired up with each other. Since their encounter last August both men’s games had improved even more so this sequel was going to be even better and boy Jove it was!
Both men worked any incredibly quick style with highflying and counters galore, they were able to pack a lot into a 13 minute time frame but it absolutely worked for them, the match was that good that they got a mid-match standing ovation which always indicates that their doing something pretty damn special. Even though Devlin won, both men emerged from this contest looking like absolute megastars, Devlin as one of the best in the world right now and Kyle as a next potential superstar for the world.
WHERE TO WATCH: https://demandprogress.pivotshare.com/media/chapter-88%3A-super-strong-style-16-day-2/87473
30. Scotty Davis vs Cara Noir: Natural Progression Series Semi-Final Match – PROGRESS “The Natural Progression Series 2019” (14/09)
The Natural Progression Series was a very inconsistent show, some the decisions on that show was very head scratching and at points actually frustrating, especially what happened in the match prior to this but in just ten minutes, Cara Noir and Scotty Davis got the crowd back on side by putting on a simple but highly fuelled story match all focused on Scotty’s neck with Cara targeting it so Scotty couldn’t hit his signature moves and had to re-adjust a lot of his game.
This match made both talents in PROGRESS, both of them came out looking absolutely fantastic as Scotty went on to win the Tournament itself and Noir was so good that he faced Dunne the next day at Ally Pally.
WHERE TO WATCH: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D-wt0WzHgTA&list=PLwgdfYKTfIonk_sHxNKU6j5MDOnB__bae&index=7
29. David Graves vs David Starr: TCW Heavyweight Championship Match – TIDAL “Silent Nightmare 6: Sweet Dreams” (27/12)
A very late candidate for MOTY candidate here at this point of the year; that day a load of us lads had done a podcast talking about great matches of 2019 and after this match we all said that we need to change our lists because this match was such a surprise to all of us that night.
It started off pretty slow with a load of ground wrestling and grappling but it built and built over the course of its time and became increasingly more aggressive, both men treated the title the way it should be, like a prize that its the top of the promotion that both men wanted to be. If I wasn’t standing then I would have given this match a standing ovation.
WHERE TO WATCH: https://tidalondemand.pivotshare.com/
28. Connor Mills vs Scotty Davis: SOUL Men’s Championship Tournament Final – Pro Wrestling SOUL “SOUL 8: Take a Look at Me Now” (29/12)
The latest match on this list, I had to include it after watching it the Sunday afternoon. Both men have a total combined age of 39! and for the their respective ages they had a match that was well beyond their years and made the SOUL Men’s championship something worth fighting for.
The match was absolutely fantastic throughout its duration with a hybrid of moves throughout from submission work, dives, an apron Tombstone and a Gator Roll from the Top. A perfect way to end SOUL’s Year and SOUL’s best match to date in my personal Opinion.
WHERE TO WATCH: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCn6ZZeeAvFx-ro0nIhldmPg
27. Nico Angelo vs Chuck Mambo: ATTACK! 24/7 Championship Match – ATTACK! Pro “Under the MistleTour 2019: Show One” (18/12)
This match had kind of been announced on the down low and didn’t really have any investment on initial announcement but then Mambo cut a cracking promo on his YouTube series ETM saying how much the championship meant to him and that he’ll fight to the end to secure it; add that in with the fact that Nico had a new serge of confidence due to his winning streak and you get two men who are motivated to make this title important.
They fought tooth and nail as well with a load of some of the best high flying and exchanges that I’ve seen all year long including a ring post assisted head scissors into the chairs as well as a massive moonsault from Nico to the outside as well. The crowd were really divided as well which helped add to the magic of this match.
WHERE TO WATCH: https://vimeo.com/ondemand/attack2019mtn1
26. Valkyrie vs Chris Brookes – Sendai Girls Pro Wrestling “Sendai UK” (27/07)
Originally the match was supposed to be Valkyrie vs Killer Kelly but Kelly had picked up an injury so Valkyrie issued an open challenge instead and Schadenfreude invaded Sendai to try to ruin Meiko Satomura again but Val wasn’t backing down and took on Brookes in an impromptu match that created magic.
With a strong Irish contingency of fans in the audience who was one hundred percent behind Val and booed Brookes like the bastard that he plays, they created magic with Val having a star making performance here and confirming Brookes as the best male intergender wrestler in pro wrestling right now in my opinion.
WHERE TO WATCH: https://vimeo.com/ondemand/fightclubprounlimited/350813801
25. Millie McKenzie vs Mercedes Martinez: SHE-1 Series Final – EVE Wrestling “SHE-1 2019 Final” (10/11)
Millie McKenzie has been a star in the making for the last two years in British wrestling and this year in particular has been fantastic for her as an in-ring performer, she’s evloved so much in the ring this year in particular thanks to Meiko Satomura in Sendai Girls. For me this match was the culmination of Millie’s great year as a wrestler as she won the SHE-1 after wrestling in Five matches over the course of 48 Hours.
The match went at a fast pace throughout as both women having had gruelling matches the whole weekend wanted to end it early to become the ACE of EVE, they pulled off the big moves in this match including a Spider-German from the corner and a fantastic finishing sequence.
I don’t want to take anything away from Mercedes who has been EVE’s MVP of 2019 in my opinion, she’s had great matches throughout the year and is able to make star maker against anybody and he was perfect to get Millie over as the ACE of EVE. For me though this is the culmination of Millie’s journey as a great professional wrestler.
WHERE TO WATCH: https://eveondemand.pivotshare.com/media/2019-she-1-series-episode-4%3A-the-finale-nov-10%2C-2019/92397/feature
24. Charli Evans vs Chris Brookes: Deathmatch for the GOOD Grand Prize – GOOD Wrestling “Be Average to Each Other” (21/09)
Beacuse several things more or less went tits up for GOOD’s show in September, it was made a mystery show and we got the main event of Charli Evans who originally was stated to wrestle a best of 17 Falls match but demanded it be changed to a Deathmatch instead, as her mystery opponent was Chris Brookes who won the title earlier in the night beating Beano by roll up and basically not caring about winning the title because of his arrogant character.
This is without doubt the best Deathmatch I’ve seen all year round as they put each other through hell; I know Charli has been campaigning to wrestle a deathmatch for ages to it was rewarding as a fan of her’s to witness this and you couldn’t have chosen anybody better than Brookes to do it with. A fantastic match featuring a gutsy performance from Charli Evans.
WHERE TO WATCH: https://goodwrestling.pivotshare.com/media/good-wrestling-%2317-%3A-be-average-to-each-other-mystery-show-(21-09-2019)/91348
23. Mark Davis vs Dan Moloney vs PAC vs Will Ospreay: Fatal-4-Way Match for the Fight Club: Pro World Championship – Fight Club: Pro “Dream Tag Team Invitational 2019 Night 3” (21/04)
So DTTI Night 3 buy and large was mostly a mystery show and it lead to things like this happening. Davis came to the ring and said that he’s the baddest motherfucker in FCP and challenged anybody thus we got the ever popular Moloney who was on the run of his career over this weekend, he was then followed by the “Bastard” PAC who also answered the challenge and it looks like we’ve got a triple threat but then Ospreay’s music hits and I fell out my chair, Ospreay stared a whole threw the others as we was there for PAC.
Every guy here played their role to perfection; Davis was being a massive prick champion who would do anything to keep a hold of it, Dan was the indestructible babyface who was fueled by the fans support and Ospreay and PAC’s interactions with each other really out this match over the top from me, their first face off had the Manchester crowd foaming at the mouth as two of the best of their collective generations went at it. My two favourite spots of this match were, Ospreay and PAC hitting reverse rana’s on Davis and Moloney respectively with them immediately going into a staredown off the impact of them.
The other was PAC using the FCP title to hit Moloney and pinning him only for Ospreay to come in and grab the ref’s hand as it was going down for three thus breaking the pin. It did look like Moloney was going to win but Davis sneaked in and hit the CYE to pick up the win and retain the title this time but possibly setting up a rematch somewhere down the line.
This was an adrenaline fuelled thrillride from start to finish, you honestly could not get anymore perfect than this match, it really was a “Moment” to be there for.
WHERE TO WATCH: https://vimeo.com/ondemand/fightclubprounlimited/334280902
22. Woke Queens (Valkyrie and Debbie Keitel) vs Jinny and Kanji: EVE Tag Team Championship Tournament Semi-Final Match – EVE Wrestling “Check Yourself” (12/10)
Woke Queens has been one of the most consistently entertaining aspects of EVE this year with them bringing massive comedy to the promotion and entertainment; this match did have a lot of it as well but the point of this match more than anything was to show that Woke Queens can wrestle a great match as well.
Kanji and Jinny at first was a weird combo but their chemistry was fantastic together to the point that you’d think they were teaming up for years. This was a great match between the ropes with comedy to keep it grounded in entertainment. There was spots in here that you’d see in indie style of matches that women don’t get to do on a regular basis unfortunately but it was great to see it here.
WHERE TO WATCH: https://eveondemand.pivotshare.com/media/eve-check-yourself!-oct-12%2C-2019/91820/feature
21. Gene Munny vs Chris Brookes: Resurgence Championship Match – Wrestling Resurgence “Arthouse Wrestling Vol.3: Iron Woman” (31/08)
One of the most surprising thing’s in BritWres this year has been Gene Munny’s breakout but its been awesome to watch at the same time because of Gene being one of my favourite wrestlers. He’s long been categorised as “just a Comedy Wrestler” when he can do everything, comedy is just part of his game as this match showed.
There was comedy in this match and plenty of great character moments from Gene who fought valiantly as the Resurgence champ against one of BritWres’s biggest stars. Chris has been on this list a few times now and its because he knows how to build stars and make matches great with underrated performances; This match was hard hitting and a fantastic showcase for Resurgence as a promotion.
WHERE TO WATCH: https://vimeo.com/ondemand/ironwoman
20. The Feather and Funk Connection (Bruno Brown and Le Lechuzza) vs Malik and Callum Newman: London Lucha League Tag Team Championship Match – London Lucha League “Like a Rolling Stone” (14/07)
This match is very under the radar of great matches for this year as normally traniee shows don’t feature great MOTY level matches becaue that’s not there style but these four on a summer’s Sunday afteroon in Bethnal Green changed that by having this really fulid bout that showcased how great tag team wrestling is.
Malik and Callum are two of the cornerstones of the Southern wrestling’s UnderGraps and normally has the best match on the show but don’t downplay Feather and Funk who themselves are fantastic. Even though this match didn’t have a finish, it was still awesome and based on the live experience it was utterly brilliant.
WHERE TO WATCH: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HLNv1g8RnmY&list=PLwgdfYKTfIonk_sHxNKU6j5MDOnB__bae&index=6
19. The Kris Wolf Retirement Gauntlet Match – Pro Wrestling: EVE “We’re All Gonna Die! The Frantic Scramble in Search for Meaning Through a Mess of Meaty Interactions: aka The Kris Wolf Retirement Show” (26/04)
The Kris Wolf Retirement Show may well be the best show that I’ve ever seen live, the first half of the show is hilarious in the best way possible, and we had a very good Kay Lee Ray vs Nina Samuels match where Kris herself was the ref. But things started to get emotional when we got to Kris Wolf’s actual retirement match and she went out in the Joshi tradition of facing everybody on the roster in a gauntlet match with a time limit of 2 minutes per match. Immediately on Kris’s entrance you could feel the love that Kris had brought people as the fans in the ResGal that night made the most noise I’ve ever heard in that place ever with chants of “Kris Wolf Clap Clap” “We Love you Kris Wolf we do” and “There’s only one Kris Wolf!” Before getting to the actual matches.
Now compared to the others on this list, this isn’t a brilliant wrestling match, it isn’t a six star classic or anything but it is an emotional thrill ride celebrating one of pro wrestling’s most loved characters. I did love the opponents choice for Kris as it alluded to her previous moments in EVE; Laura Di Matteo was her first EVE opponent, Erin Angel reenacted her She-1 match, Rebel Kinney was Kris’s opponent on the first SHEvoulution show amongst other callbacks that made following her EVE career worth it.
There are some great moments like Charlie Morgan bringing in a replacement for her match as she was injured in the form of “Fearfall” Jetta Morgan who was scared of everything in a great parody, Kris and Kay Lee Ray’s mini match where they do a 2 minute spotfest basically, Jinny still in Jinny Havoc mode wanting to sing Slipknot and the crowd basking her in song, and then the heel alliance of Jinny, Jamie Hayter and Charli Evans attacking Kris before Kris was saved by her inflatable friend Tito and then a surprise appearance by Kris’s former Odeo-Tai partner Act Yushika who saved Kris as Kris was able to pin Charli and win her retirement.
Much emotional scenes followed afterwards with a life thinking promo by Kris, a great video package that brought me and countless others to tears, a ten bell salute that signalled the end of Kris’s pro wrestling career, Kris and her wife embracing in the ring before Kris was crowd surfed to the back.
For pure emotion alone, this was my favourite match of the year, its a rollercoaster full of emotion but a more than fitting tribute to the one and only Kris Wolf.
WHERE TO WATCH: https://eveondemand.pivotshare.com/media/eve-were-all-gonna-die-the-kris-wolf-retirement-show-april-26%2C-2019-/86983/feature
18. Daniel Makabe vs Carlos Romo – Breed “Breeding Ground 3” (07/09)
I’d never seen Makabe wrestle before but heard a lot of good things so I went in blind to this match and what I got was a fantastic technical wrestling match that was beautiful to watch through it’s duration; again the atmosphere was fantastic for this as everybody was focused watching this match.
Romo has had a tough task of not being known as “Just the Bloke from WhiteWolf” and I feel that he’s done that this year and with matches like this in his back category, he’s doing a great job of it with this match being what I consider to be his best match to date.
WHERE TO WATCH: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RbPadSQrnDs&list=PLwgdfYKTfIonk_sHxNKU6j5MDOnB__bae&index=5
17. Cassius vs Kurtis Chapman: Pride of Brighton Title Tournament Final – RIPTIDE “Bank Holiday Wrestling: Show 2” (26/08)
If you had told me a year ago that these two would have a MOTY for me then I probably would have laughed because whilst I enjoyed watching them, I didn’t think they were capable of it but I love being proven wrong and the work that both men have done all year as well as this day in Brighton has been magic.
A real connection had been made this day with Cassius so by the time he took to the ring on that fateful August night, the crowd wanted him to become the Pride of Brighton; add in that Kurtis was doing such a magnificent job of being a dickhead that everything came around for this with Cassius’s win being one of my favourite moments of the year.
WHERE TO WATCH: https://riptidewrestling.pivotshare.com/media/20riptide-bank-holiday-wrestling-show-two/91306/feature
16. Miyu Yamashita vs Gisele Shaw – Frontline “1 Year on the Frontline” (14/06)
The beauty of a new year in wrestling is that you get to discover new talents and by this time last year I’d never even heard of both of these two but now in the present day, I am massive fans of them.
Gisele Shaw has been one of the most consistently improving talents on the scene and has had a lot of great matches throughout the whole year with Millie McKenzie, Xia Brookside and Tessa Blanchard but this really was her magnum opus of matches that she’s had in the UK so far; I’d never heard of Miyu before but I knew she was a pretty big deal so I was excited to see this match.
For close to twenty minutes, these two kicked the ever living hell out of each other with plenty of great wrestling as well. Very technical start by Gisele who mostly controlled the first portion of the match and despite being known for being a high flyer more than matched Miyu for pure kicking ability; when Miyu had finally taken enough punishment, her face looked like a volcano was about to erupt with rage and that she did with some of the best strikes I’ve ever seen live. Gisele did get to show off her highflying ability though when she met Miyu up top with and hit the Canadian Cwtch (Spanish Fly), the crowd were losing their minds at this point to show how good this match was; Miyu was the one to pick up the win but both women won in mine and the crowd eyes.
This had a lot of vibes of the Ridgeway/Kenoh match the year previously but stood on its own two feet as an awesome professional wrestling match. I immediately want to see Miyu back in the UK as there’s so many matches that I’d want to see her have and as for Gisele, she showed why in this modern landscape of contracts taking away stars and places being needed to fill, Gisele showed that she can be a valuable asset to any company going forward for quality match content.
WHERE TO WATCH: https://vimeo.com/ondemand/oneyearonthefrontline
15. Sean Kustom vs Mike Bailey: Kamikaze Pro Championship Match – Kamikaze Pro “Bank on It 7” (22/09)
You know what I was saying earlier in this list that Sean Kustom is one of the best wrestlers in this country that people don’t know about well this match proved it as well as him and Bailey made magic in Coventry on a show that I wasn’t sure whether to do or not but I was glad that I did because I wound not have wanted to miss this for the world.
Bailey was the heel in the match as he’s been in my other matches with him on this list (I must love heel Bailey) and it worked to get Sean to that next level that he needed to become even better and show more aggression to beat a tough foe.
As a massive Sean Kustom fan, this match made me proud to be a fan of his.
WHERE TO WATCH: https://vimeo.com/ondemand/kpboi7
14. Kagetsu vs Mayu Iwatani – Pro Wrestling: EVE “WrestleQueendom II” (30/06)
Originally before the EVE weekender, this wasn’t a match that I was mega excited for, I knew who both women were but had never seen enough to call myself a fan but after their performances on the Friday and Saturday EVE shows, I instantly became more excited for this match.
They started off really fast and frantically as the two showed off their tremendous chemistry from years of working in STARDOM together; simple story told here of Kagetsu using her stablemates in Odeo-Tai (Jamie Hayter and Martina) to her advantage and trying to break all the rules whilst Mayu used her incredible athletic ability to out manoeuvre Kagetsu at all costs including going for a big moonsault attempt. The near falls in this match were perfect and had be falling back in my chair multiple amounts of times.
In the end though they reached the 15 minute time limit just before Kagetsu hit a 450 splash, people were confused at first but then once my mate Dave gave it a standing ovation and I joined him, the whole crowd got to their feet to applaud this amazing match. Both women blew everybody away with their quick style of wrestling, really showcasing STARDOM in the best way possible and oh yeah did I mention this was the second match on the card? Incredible wrestling all round.
WHERE TO WATCH: https://eveondemand.pivotshare.com/media/eve%3A-wrestle-queendom-2!-june-30%2C-2019/89031/feature
13. Lucha Bros (Penta El Zero M and Rey Fenix) vs LAX (Santana and Ortiz): Dream Tag Team Invitational Semi-Final Match – Fight Club: Pro “Dream Tag Team Invitational 2019 Night 3” (21/04)
I’ve been going to live wrestling shows for 7 (and a bit) years now and seen 1000’s of matches but this is the best opening match that I’ve ever seen at any live show I’ve ever attended. Like I said in my number 9 post, DTTI Night 3 was a mystery show and we didn’t know who drew who in the DTTI semi-finals but we got classic IMPACT! rivals Lucha Bros and LAX, my hopes were already high.
In just under 10 minutes, these four men were able to put on a masterclass in tag team wrestling and a pure thrillride of a match, everybody performed excellently here. Key couple of spots were LAX hitting a multitude of tag team moves followed by Ortiz’s fall down splash where Penta broke the pin up by soccer ball kicking Ortiz in the head, ouch! There was also when Ortiz was pinning Fenix with Santana by him and Penta launched himself off Ortiz’s back to give him a Canadian Destroyer that collectively blew everybody’s mind at once and led to a mid-match standing ovation which tells you that this match was pretty special; Lucha Bros picked up the win the win with the Package Piledriver/Foot Stomp combo and led to the post match standing ovation as well.
WHERE TO WATCH: https://vimeo.com/ondemand/fightclubprounlimited/334280902
12. PAC vs Micheal Oku – RevPro “Live at the Cockpit 42” (02/06)
I’m not a big RevPro fan, not as much as I used to be anyways, I’ve found myself not going to their shows this year as much as previous years but the appeal of seeing The OJMO or as he was here Micheal Oku get his biggest match to date against one of the best in the world in PAC was enough for me to go to the Cockpit on a really hot day as well to see it.
Unlike most PAC matches were the crowd is normally 50/50 or completely in love with PAC, in this match, Oku had the crowd fully behind him from his entrance to the last bell. The story of the match was PAC not giving Oku a chance at all because he believed that he should even be in the ring with him but because this was Oku’s big opportunity, he showed resilience every time, every time Oku would even hit a move on PAC, the crowd would go wild. PAC was able to use his strength advantage to take Oku for the longest time possible during which he taunted the crowd like the true Bastard that he is and it was glorious!
We then get the best part of the match where PAC looked to out Oku out of his misery and end the match early so he went to hit the Black Arrow but as he was in flight, Oku moved out of the way to a thunderous reaction; after that Oku unloaded on PAC and even was able to lock in the half crab and everyone wanted him to win but in the end, Oku couldn’t keep the Bastard down as PAC hit the Black Arrow successfully and picked up the win in the best Cockpit match ever in my opinion.
These two went out there for near to 30 minutes in boiling hot temperatures and wrestled (pardon my French) a fucking excellent wrestling match. PAC is one of the best in the world in my opinion, he looked absolutely glorious in this match but this was Oku’s match as he arrived in the big time by looking like a star against PAC.
There’s no doubt in mind that 2019 was the year of the OJMO.
WHERE TO WATCH: https://rpwondemand.pivotshare.com/media/live-at-the-cockpit-42/88329/feature
11. Chuck Mambo vs TK Cooper: Riptide Brighton Championship Match – Riptide “Riptide Rumble 2019” (12/04)
Going into this match, I knew it was going to be good, TK was on a roll with a rejuvenated look and feel and had a great match against Candyfloss at the previous show; Mambo is always on top form when he’s wrestling for RIPTIDE; and both men shared a natural chemistry from their previous matches as well as their tag team chemistry but Jesus on a bike, they just blew everybody out of the water with this match.
They told a simple yet effective story with TK targeting Mambo’s ankle and knowing all of Mambo’s tricks because of them being friends. TK looked like a calculated psychopath in this match whilst Mambo contrasted him as the never say die babyface that would go through hell to remain champ; many great high spots happened in this match but the story is what made so great and helped the moves mean more.
This was another great Mambo match in a series of great match that Mambo has had in the last 18 months, as for TK though, this was a revelation for him and instantly put him up there with the top of UK Indy talents.
WHERE TO WATCH: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hyWPyyNVke4&list=PLwgdfYKTfIonk_sHxNKU6j5MDOnB__bae&index=4
10. Jetta vs Rhia O’Reilly: SHE-1 Series Block C Match – EVE Wrestling “SHE-1 2019 Show 3” (10/11)
The story of this match was Jetta’s quest to getting two points in a spiritual successor to her vs Kasey last year. The story may have been even better than last year’s bout though because of Rhia’s heel work being fantastic especially these last few months.
Jetta went really agressive on Rhia at first because she wanted to beat the shit out of her but Rhia’s previously injured knee looked to have been injured once more but it was just a ploy by Rhia to get the advantage that led to a tense last minute of wrestling as the match was reaching the time minute and everybody is willing Jetta just to hang in and get one point but lightning struck and within the last ten seconds Jetta shocked the world by getting the win!
The place exploded in noise, there was grown men hugging each other because EVE’s cult hero finally got on up on the top Shithouse of EVE. For story purposes, this match is absolute perfection.
WHERE TO WATCH: https://eveondemand.pivotshare.com/media/2019-she-1-series-episode-3-nov-10%2C-2019/92381/feature
9. Luke Jacobs vs Ethan Allen – Tetsujin “The Final Stage: Tetsujin is Fucking Dead”
Tetsujin was a show that I was looking forward to a lot and it delivered, absolutely one of my favourite shows of the year and was highlighted by this match between these two tag team partners and brothers from other mothers that couldn’t have been anywhere else apart from Manchester.
The emotion was palpable throughout the whole match with them getting increasingly more aggressive through the bout with them tying each other in knots and kicking each other massively hard; they really used the rules of Tetsujin to their fullest potential with no wasted movement from either men.
Considering I’d never heard of either men at the start of this year, its massively impressive that they’ve had a Top 10 match from me and I can honestly say that these two are the future of British Wrestling.
WHERE TO WATCH: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qZmMfK_Doag&list=PLwgdfYKTfIonk_sHxNKU6j5MDOnB__bae&index=3
8. Mike Quakenbush vs Tyler Bate – Fight Club: Pro “Internacional Técnico”
One of my biggest goals as a wrestling fan was to watch Quakenbush perform live so as soon as he announced for Fight Club: Pro, I had to go and see him and when it was announced he way facing Tyler Bate, I was even more hyped.
The story was really veteran trying to prove his point that he can still go with younger talent and one of the best in the world in Tyler Bate. The match was brilliantly technical, some of the best work you’ll ever see from that style; it was a match that you could get lost in during its 22 minute duration of a bout and my personal favourite match from Fight Club: Pro this year.
WHERE TO WATCH: https://vimeo.com/ondemand/fightclubprounlimited/376548827?autoplay=1
7. Command Bolshoi vs Leon: Pure J Openweight Championship Match – Pro Wrestling: EVE “She Slams on Saturdays” (09/03)
This was a very special match for EVE and any Joshi purists as it was for the Pure J Openweight championship, a very big honour for EVE to host that and it was Bolshoi’s UK/European Retirement Match which if you know how much of a legend she is in Women’s and Japanese wrestling then you will know that this is a big deal.
These two had history from their past as a tag team in Pure J so you know that their chemistry would be great but Peas and Rice! These two put on an absolute classic in front of 150+ people in a railway arch in East London. The pace of this match was absolutely inane, they did not let off for a second at all, being able to trade beautiful technical wrestling, insane moments of accuracy, Bolshoi’s tight rope walk and Leon’s missile dropkick being particular highlights, and a great sense of Japanese strong style throughout.
The crowd were going insane at every near fall of amazing move proving that you don’t have to do these amazing high spots of massive moves to hook a crowd in but with actual wrestling. Bolshoi won this match and to retain her title in a match that would have received a standing ovation if the crowd wasn’t already standing. Seriously one of the best matches that I’ve ever seen live, and I do not say that lightly.
WHERE TO WATCH: https://eveondemand.pivotshare.com/media/she-slams-on-saturdays-march-9%2C-2019/85117/feature
6. Toni Storm vs Meiko Satomura – Sendai Girls Pro Wrestling “Sendai UK” (27/07)
Sendai UK was a great day out and an even better show headlined by a rematch for the ages against two of the best wrestlers in the world in Meiko and Toni. They took there previous rematches (including one I saw last year which was a MOTYC then as well) and went even better waging war over the duration of this epic main event.
The crowd was more behind Meiko than Toni but Toni was motivated to put on a high end match and everything was on point for her this day including her selling that was stunning at points. Add in a hot Manchester crowd and you get a great main event worthy of top billing.
WHERE TO WATCH: https://vimeo.com/ondemand/fightclubprounlimited/350813801
5. Aussie Open (Mark Davis and Kyle Fletcher) vs The Swords of Essex (Paul Robinson and Will Ospreay): Tables, Ladders and Chairs Match for the PROGRESS World Tag Team Championships – PROGRESS “Chapter 87: BreadKnife” (31/03)
At number five is this incredible feud ending TLC match for the PROGRESS tag straps in an epic trilogy closer of matches between Aussie Open and the reformed Swords of Essex.
it was absolutely brutal at times with everybody not holding back in the weapons department, fantastic massive spots like Ospreay’s dive through a ladder over the top rope hitting a sunset flip powerbomb on Kyle onto Davis and Davis’ massive CYE to Robbo through the ladder, so many great spots to mention. Everybody just played their part to perfection here, it had the length of an epic match (clocking in at nearly 45 mins) and a molten hot crowd which is surprising in the current case of PROGRESS.
The right winners here as Aussie Open gave Ospreay a chance before taking an arm each and driving him through a table with a Fidget Spinner before grabbing the titles to a loud ovation thus making them two time champs and sending Will Ospreay out of PROGRESS again but for good this time due to his NJPW commitments.
WHERE TO WATCH: https://demandprogress.pivotshare.com/media/chapter-87%3A-breadknife/86106
4. Chuck Mambo vs TK Cooper: Brighton Championship Match – RIPTIDE “Brighton Spirit 2019: Show 3” (05/10)
As I’ve already spoken about Mambo vs TK from the Rumble was a great match but they went even better six months later during the Brighton Spirit weekender. You see by this time, TK was going around calling himself “Mr RIPTIDE” and saying that he was going to out perform Mambo at shows but they tried to put there differences aside when it came to facing Money vs Everybody but TK’s arrogance ultimately cost them the win during the Bank Holiday shows.
About a month or so later they entered the Brighton Spirit tag team tournament together seemingly having put their differences together enough to get to the second round where to loss to the Rascalz after MvE’s Shay Purser came out to cause dissension between the ETM members after handing TK the belt and then pushing Mambo into TK which led to TK sparking out Mambo which led to the loss. Mambo challenged TK for a match that evening saying that he wanted to prove himself to TK after all because he knew TK was the newest member of MvE.
They took to the ring that evening for a twenty minute classic where the crowd was a lot more split during this time due to TK’s raise of popularity during that six month period. The match was smooth as you’d like but also very scrappy which helped play into the story of these two brothers fighting because they wanted to know who was better. The finish was absolutely electric and instantly went down as one of the best matches in RIPTIDE history; follow that with a shocking post match angle and you get my Number Four.
WHERE TO WATCH: https://riptidewrestling.pivotshare.com/media/23-riptide%3A-brighton-spirit-night-three/92869
3. Charli Evans vs Kanji: #1 Contenders 30-Minute Iron Woman Match – Wrestling Resurgence “Arthouse Wrestling Vol.3: Iron Woman” (31/08)
August 31st was a very busy day for professional wrestling what with AEW’s All In in Chicago and right here in the UK there was NXT UK running another Takeover this time in Cardiff and New Japan Pro Wrestling running their Royal Quest show in London; yet despite that I decided to instead visiting an Arts Center in Leicester to visit a promotion that I’ve heard a load of great things about and this match between two women’s wrestlers who share incredible chemistry with one another not seen between two performers on these shores since the Ospreay/Andrews series.
The build, video packages and what they did in the building that night made the match feel like something special to be there for, that along with the new gear from both and the referee who was fantastic throughout gave it a big fight feel; something I felt both women accomplished it as they had a great slow burner that just flew by as time went on leading to the first fall being accomplished at the 25 minute mark.
The last few minutes are magical and made the falls feel important which most Iron matches don’t seem to accomplish; when the time limit expired there wasn’t anything stupid like booing or a Five More Minutes chant, instead everybody in the arena gave this match a standing ovation as two women embraced after a long fought war between the two.
It’s remarkable that five years ago women wouldn’t been able to have main evented or do a gimmick match but these last few years have been a revolution form women’s wrestling and on a day that I had multiple options for, I chose wisely.
WHERE TO WATCH: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v8qd8KN-_Zk&list=PLwgdfYKTfIonk_sHxNKU6j5MDOnB__bae&index=2
2. PAC vs Cara Noir – RIPTIDE “Point Break 2019” (05/07)
Going into this show there was many predictions to who was facing Cara Noir in the open challenge; from what I could gather some people thought Mike Bailey in a rematch from there 2018 bout, some people thought Bobby Gunns because of him being in the country, some people even thought it was Dave Benson Phillips! I had a prediction because I was trying to figure out who was in the country and I remember PAC being on a show for that Sunday so I made a prediction about it being him.
We get to that night in July and Cara Noir comes out to a monster ovation as by then he really is a hero to the people of RIPTIDE then cue his opponents music and you hear “R.E.D” and there’s people like me who recognise the music and know who it is then he comes out and there he the Bastard himself in Brighton for RIPTIDE as the crowd fucking exploded for PAC, I’ve never heard it so loud in the Brighthelm before.
We get to the match and at the start its all about Cara wanting a handshake from PAC but PAC refusing it which gave the match some great levity and set the stage for an epic match and an epic match this was let me tell you. The match was incredible during it’s 25 Minute long run time with Cara looking to get the win of his career but not quite getting there with some of the best near falls in any match that I’ve ever seen; PAC also bust out some of that trademark aerial skills that made him a name in the first place.
This all came down to one Black Arrow to put down the Black Swan to close out my favorite RIPTIDE match to date, everything clicked with this match for me and it helped me out because I was left shaken the week before when Charlie Morgan had retired as she was my favorite wrestler and it did leave me really sad but watching this match reminded me to why pro wrestling is great as I saw the night that Cara Noir became a mega star in front of my very own eyes.
WHERE TO WATCH: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WswcvsHW8N4&list=PLwgdfYKTfIonk_sHxNKU6j5MDOnB__bae&index=1
1. David Starr vs Jordan Devlin: OTT World Championship Match – OTT “Fifth Year Anniversary” (26/10)
In at number one for this year is the incredible feud ending match between two of the best wrestlers in the world as I travelled to Dublin to witness David Starr against Jordan Devlin. This match was all based in the 18 month plus feud between the two that had featured several other players as well but always came down to them two.
Going into this match Starr had convinced the Irish crowd to turn on their once beloved hero in the name of Independent Wrestling although there was still Devlin supporters in the crowd (me being one of them) so the atmosphere was incredible as you’d come to expect in a wrestling hotbed like OTT. The opening punches between the two is one of the most incredible spots of the whole year, they followed this with just pure hatred fueled wrestling and with the crowd being more invested every minute that went by.
They had moments where you didn’t know who was a face and who was a heel as they both used low blows behind the refs back but that added to the grey area that both men were playing which all led the match ending Han Stansen to earn Starr the title as he was crowd surfed around the National Stadium to the tune of Marilyn Manson’s “Four Rusted Horses” to end a magical night of wrestling and wonderful match.
This is without doubt my match of the Year, everything about it is utterly fantastic from start to finish, as a live experience it will live with me forever and it made the trip to Ireland so worth going to see a match like this. Devlin played his role to perfection to get the most out of the crowd whist I think this is Starr’s best performance to date in a match, he looked fresh, motivated and ready to take on the world as he that night crowned himself as the best wrestler in Independent wrestling.
WHERE TO WATCH: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lurEXADlboY&t=660s
That wraps up my Top 50 Matches of the Year for 2019, thank you to every promotion and wrestler included on this list for keeping me entertained by having an awesome year in wrestling. Thank you so much if you’ve read this or any of my articles throughout 2019, its truly appreciated and means a lot to me that you’ll read what I’ve written.
P.s If you want to know my Worst matches of the Year then send us a DM and I’ll tell you there probably.
Twitter and Instagram: @IwanMack
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