The 2015 Rajah Championship Match Project

[Cewsh]

Hello and good day, dear people. This thread represents a commitment made by myself, Hero!, Ringo and Psycho666Soldier, (among others,) to watch every significant world title match from every major promotion in 2015. This is no small undertaking, and almost certainly we will fail at some point. But until then, this thread will be where we post the matches we're watching, along with our thoughts on said matches. We super duper encourage any of you guys who want to try some of these matches to give it a go with us, as we explore the wrestling world together.

The promotions that we have chosen for everyone to follow, and their champions, are as follows:

(Spoiler tagged for your protection)


WWE World Heavyweight Championship
Holders: Brock Lesnar

01/25/15 – Brock Lesnar (c) vs. John Cena vs. Seth Rollins

TNA World Heavyweight Championship
Holders: Bobby Roode

01/07/15 – Bobby Roode (c) vs. Bobby Lashley

ROH World Championship
Holders: Jay Briscoe

CHIKARA Grand Championship
Holders: Icarus

01/25/15 – Icarus (c) vs. Chuck Taylor

Lucha Underground Championship
Holders: Prince Puma

NXT Championship
Holders: Sami Zayn

IWGP Heavyweight Championship
Holders: Hiroshi Tanahashi

01/04/15 – Hiroshi Tanahashi © vs. Kazuchika Okada
02/11/15 - Hiroshi Tanahashi (c) vs. AJ Styles

Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship
Holders: Joe Doering, Go Shiozaki

01/03/15 – Joe Doering (c) vs. Go Shiozaki

GHC Heavyweight Championship
Holders: Naomichi Marufuji

01/10/15 – Naomichi Marufuji (c) vs. Satoshi Kojima

Open The Dream Gate Championship
Holders: BxB Hulk

[Ringo]

Really enjoyed that match. Started off fine. Then there was a fairly dull period with Doering in casual control which I guess made sense because he wasn't taking Go seriously enough. Go hits that great lariat to get back into it. Was slightly awkward after Joe got caught in the ropes and was outside the ring but after that it was pretty compelling until the finish. Doering wasn't perfect but he does seem to have improved from the last time I saw him. I liked much of his Hansen-esque selling. He's also sporting a Hansen moustache these days so I imagine he's been watching him. All Japan may be in a bad way but more great Triple Crown matches like this in front of hot Korakuen crowds and I'll be glad to keep following along.

Shall we decide on the promotions we are going with? I'm not sure how long I'd be able to keep it up if we were doing many non-WWE/Lucha Underground US promotions, but I'm happy to try. Or we could just do our own thing.

[Psycho666Soldier]

If we go as a group, I think US Promotions at least have to be WWE, TNA, ROH, Lucha Underground and CHIKARA. You could make an argument for PWG, but I don't think anything else beats that out in importance. I could understand cutting out CHIKARA for some people, but I'll be keeping up with them anyway.

For Japan, definitely NJPW, NOAH, and AJPW. Admittedly, it'll probably be a bit harder for me to keep up with too much stuff outside of New Japan, but that's what makes this title project fun is because it's at most one match a month from most promotions, so it's easy to keep up and catch up.

[Cewsh]

I think that in the interest of actually making sure everyone can keep up we should limit this to WWE, TNA, ROH, NJPW, NOAH, AJPW, Chikara and Lucha Underground. The last two slip in only because there are so few title defenses in general. This way we never get overwhelmed with matches, and if Hero wants to do NWA matches and post them here, we can take a crack at those if we want.

[Cewsh]

My plan is for somebody, (probably me,) to post each match in here after in happens so people don't have to track it down on their own.

[Ringo]

I fancy trying Wrestle-1 and DDT myself (as I heard the last W1 title match was very good and DDT is currently as well as any other promotion outside of NJPW in Japan right now), but I like the idea of sticking with that core group. :yes:

[Hero!]

Locks:
NJPW
NOAH
AJPW
Dragon Gate
WWE
NXT
TNA
Lucha Underground
ROH
CHIKARA

Optional:
CZW
DDT
NWA
AAA
CMLL

Unlikely:
PWG
FIP
EVOLVE
DGUSA

[Psycho666Soldier]

I feel like ROH belongs in the lock section just based on their history and the slight resurgence of popularity we've seen them involved in, not to mention their dealings with New Japan and such.

[Cewsh]

Yeah, ROH belongs in. It's as big as TNA is these days.

[Hero!]

Sounds good to me. Don't let me down, Briscoe.

[Judas Iscariot]

I see a disturbing lack of CZW in the above list.

[Cewsh]

I would be open to watching some CZW stuff. I hear it's improved a lot.

[Defrost]

Dragon Gate has to be in here

[Hero!]

Sell us on it, Defrost. Who is champ, are they good, how have the matches been?

[Hero!]

I see a disturbing lack of CZW in the above list.


I would be open to watching some CZW stuff. I hear it's improved a lot.

Consider me out on that one. I tried watching some of their PPVs earlier and it was still just ugh. They were doing well with Gulak on top, but I think he's distancing himself from the promotion.

[Defrost]

Sell us on it, Defrost. Who is champ, are they good, how have the matches been?

BxB Hulk is the champion. He had a great match with Tozawa, and a really good one with Shingo. Had an interesting feud with Doi that led to the formations of Dia Hearts.

Plus Dragon Gate is the second biggest promotion in Japan.

[Psycho666Soldier]

If it's legitimately the second biggest promotion in Japan, I feel like we're kind of obligated to include it.

[Cewsh]

Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeehhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh it SOOOOOOORT OF is.

[Ringo]

I thought W1 were doing better numbers than All Japan and NOAH too? Did that not last long?

[DDT]

Nope.

[Defrost]

No that didn't last. Hell I'd argue DDT for third biggest promotion in Japan.

[DDT]

What's there to argue?

[Hero!]

No one likes you, that's what

[Defrost]

The wildcard on the pecking order thing is what exactly is the relationship between New Japan and NOAH.

[DDT]

Here's exactly what it is:

"Hey remember how we were tight bros in the early 2000's and have done nothing to piss each other off? Could you lend us Nagata for a couple years please? Pretty PLEASE!!!?!"

[Ringo]

What do you mean? As in, how are you thinking the nature of their relationship affects the current pecking order?

[DDT]

Basically, if there is a full-blown NOAH vs. New Japan feud, with New Japan's current status the cross-over would necessarily give a rise to NOAH's relevance, at least surpassing DDT if not Dragon Gate (who aren't that far ahead of DDT to be honest).

[Ringo]

:yes:

On that note, who do they have left that is worth a damn? Marufuji's already worked a bunch of NJ talent, looks like TMDK will do some shows in New Japan now. Aside from Morishima (who I don't think I've seen receive a word of praise in years) and Sugiura (who is in his 40s, part of an interpromotional tag team and already taken part in many NJ/NOAH matches in the past), is there anyone else you'd be interested in seeing work NJ talent? The rest of the roster is basically freelancers, old dudes and guys I've barely heard of.

[Hero!]

Updated the list. Cewsh, wanna edit it into your first post so newbies kinda know what to focus on? or at least so people have a basic idea of what we're all following, what a few are following, and what a couple of people are following?

[Ringo]

Ooh, forgot Nakajima. I gave up on him escaping NOAH years ago.

[Defrost]

Here's exactly what it is:

"Hey remember how we were tight bros in the early 2000's and have done nothing to piss each other off? Could you lend us Nagata for a couple years please? Pretty PLEASE!!!?!"

New Japan has some sorta financial stake in NOAH

[Hero!]

Tomorro is a busy night, kids. We've the Lucha Underground Championship being determined and Roode vs Lashley for the TNA title.

[Ringo]

How about this. We can keep this post up to date to keep track of what is coming and what has gone.

...

WWE World Heavyweight Championship
Holders: Brock Lesnar

01/25/15 – Brock Lesnar (c) vs. John Cena vs. Seth Rollins

TNA World Heavyweight Championship
Holders: Bobby Roode

01/07/15 – Bobby Roode (c) vs. Bobby Lashley

ROH World Championship
Holders: Jay Briscoe

CHIKARA Grand Championship
Holders: Icarus

01/25/15 – Icarus (c) vs. Chuck Taylor

Lucha Underground Championship
Holders: Prince Puma

NXT Championship
Holders: Sami Zayn

IWGP Heavyweight Championship
Holders: Hiroshi Tanahashi

01/04/15 – Hiroshi Tanahashi © vs. Kazuchika Okada
02/11/15 - Hiroshi Tanahashi (c) vs. AJ Styles

Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship
Holders: Joe Doering, Go Shiozaki

01/03/15 – Joe Doering (c) vs. Go Shiozaki

GHC Heavyweight Championship
Holders: Naomichi Marufuji

01/10/15 – Naomichi Marufuji (c) vs. Satoshi Kojima

Open The Dream Gate Championship
Holders: BxB Hulk

Plus (add the others if you want):
KO-D Openweight Championship
Holders: HARASHIMA

02/15/15 – HARASHIMA (c) vs. Kota Ibushi

[Mills]

Ringo, you may want to spoiler your list since some of those things haven't happened yet to viewers

[Ringo]

My bad :yes:

[Hero!]

Beautiful list, Ringart. That's gonna be one crazy-long list by year's end.

[Defrost]

At the next Korakuen Dragon Gate is having a four man tournament to determine the next Dream Gate contender. Masato Yoshino, Jimmy Susumu, Don Fujii, and Big R Shimizu are the four men. BTW Mad Blankey Fujii is magic.

[Cewsh]

First post updated with Ringo's list.

[Hero!]

How you guys doing? I'm gonna rewatch the battle of the Bobbys since the live experience always throws things off. So far, I've got done: Tana/Okada, Doering/Shiazaki, Atec Warfare, and Roode/Lashley III. How're y'all doing? Don't let yourselves get behind :P

[Matthew]

i watched two of those.

i'll watch more but give me some resources.

[Hero!]

Which do you need?

[Matthew]

Doering/Shiazaki, Atec Warfare

[Hero!]

My PMs are full, so I skyped it. Anyone else need anything?

I'm doing a write-up on every match too. You can read that on my blog here: http://theunpunchedcard.com/category/championship-match-challenge/

We'll see how short the write-ups get as the year goes on, LOL.

[Cewsh]

I'm queuing up Lashley/Roode right now.

[Hero!]

I'm watching all of impact to look for myself because I am a total queen.

[Ringo]

Enjoyed AZTEC WARFARE. Can't really go wrong with a match like this. Morrison and Puma look like the top two as usual vying for that number one spot, Muertes and Ryck are big threats, Fenix got a good run, enjoyed Chavo's involvement and Blue Demon's return. Good.

1. Tanahashi vs. Okada, NJPW WK9
2. Doering vs. Shiozaki, AJPW 1/3
3. Aztec Warfare, LU 1/7

Still got Bobby v Bobby III because I went to sleep.

[Ringo]

Roode/Lashley was okay. Quite enjoyed it. Nothing particularly memorable but the crowd was good and they looked like they were trying.

1. Tanahashi vs. Okada, NJPW WK9
2. Doering vs. Shiozaki, AJPW 1/3
3. Aztec Warfare, LU 1/7
4. Roode vs. Lashley, TNA 1/7

[Defrost]

Watching the Triple Crown match I am reminded how much I hate the Go Flasher. Especially when Shiozaki teased far more interesting moves like the wrist clutch manslaughter and Burning Hammer.

[Cewsh]

I still have trouble seeing Go as anything other than a weird Voltron created from all the All Japan guys trying to make him their protege at the same time. I've yet to see him establish a style that stands out as his own and it makes him hard to enjoy. After all these years, I still have no idea who Go Shiozaki is outside of the last son of King's Road.

[DDT]

To me, that's what makes Shiozaki compelling; it's almost a weird kung-fu story where all the Masters on the Mountain have trained him in their Secret Arts, and he goes on to reclaim their legacy. It is a losing battle, but one that honor compels him to fight. Enter SUWAMA, the man trained at the temple the Mountain Masters abandoned long ago, seeking to reclaim its legacy after it was abandoned. The two should be friends, but instead a bitter rivalry has developed, and they are on a continual crash course for each other as we, the audience, sadly look on even as we viscerally enjoy what they do to each other.



http://www.kungfucinema.com/images/wong-fei-hung-04.jpg
​(How wrestling looks in DDT's head)

[Mills]

I've got my rankings a bit different so far, but that's just me.

1. Tanahashi/Okada
2. Aztek Warfare
3. Doering/Shiozaki
4. Roode/Lashley

[Hero!]

I won't be ranking the matches. Maybe i'll do a top 10 at the end of the year, but that's it.

[Cewsh]

I think i'll keep a ranking, just since it's unlikely i'll be doing writeups for all of them.

1. Tanahashi/Okada
2. Aztek Warfare
3. Lashley/Roode
4. Shiozaki/Doering

[Mills]

I'm probably going to drop it eventually, but it was more off of what Ringo had. I'm really enjoying the Lucha Underground product as a whole and am excited to see what happens as the brand progresses what becomes of the guys.

[Cewsh]

I like the idea of keeping a gigantic rankings of these matches just for reference.

[Ringo]

Yeah, I'll keep it going. Might start just splitting the list up into tiers and chucking a match in a given tier after I watch it.

A good start to the year. I liked Lashley/Roode the least but it still had a pretty big time feel in that venue as main event of the relaunch. Tanahashi/Okada is a modern classic and the other two were very good. What a bunch of matches we've got coming up over the next month as well:

Brock/Cena/Rollins
Marufuji/Kojima
Tanahashi/Styles
NXT spoiler Zayn/Neville rematch

[Defrost]

I don't know if this is going to cover the KO-D Title, but that's the one I am most looking forward to. HARASHIMA vs Kota Ibushi in the Saitama Super Arena is going to be aweseome.

[DDT]

If we're covering fucking TNA, there's no reason we shouldn't be covering a promotion that doesn't have to give tickets away for free.

[Ringo]

Cewsh isn't keen because he says DDT isn't so much about titles (which I assume is fairly accurate) but sounds like the rest of us are covering it.

[Hero!]

Everyone can cover whatever they want. I'm personally doing:

NJPW
AJPW
NOAH
DDT
WWE
NXT
IMPACT
ROH
Lucha Undergrund
CHIKARA

I'm on the fence about DG. I'm doing write-ups for all every match and I don't follow DG that much nor do I have an interest in it like I do with NOAH and DDT. ROH and IMPACT are more of just a social experiment. LU/CHIKARA are easy because there's so few defense and obviously WWE and NJPW are my companies to watch anyway.

[Defrost]

Ala carte is good because you couldn't pay me to sit through one second of TNA.

[Hero!]

TNA didn't want you as a fan anyway.

[Ringo]

Next up for Go and the Triple Crown is... ZEUS.

I hear Trevor Lee is getting a shot at the PWG Title.

And while I've never had any compulsion to watch Evolve or DGUSA, I'm almost tempted to add the Evolve belt to this thing with Galloway, Thatcher, Lee, Gulak and Busick (and Ricochet!) involved now.

[Hero!]

Well DGUSA is done, but their title is now an Evolve exclusive belt, so both of those belts should be defended at all the same shows.

[Psycho666Soldier]

I'll be going out of my way to see Trevor Lee get his legendary shot!

I also got through Aztec Warfare.
What a fucking match! It was really well-paced, made everyone important look like a star, and even some of the throwaways got a good chance to show what they can do. I loved Sexy Star's drama with Chavo. Big Ryck plays his role to perfection. Puma and Mundo had an excellent finishing sequence to close it out and made the moment feel that much more epic.

[Defrost]

I just watched my first episode of Lucha Underground. Holy shit that Aztec Warfare match was awesome. It was the best kinda Royal Rumblish match I have seen in years.

With what I've watched I'd go

Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Kazuchika Okada IWGP Title Wrestle Kingdom 9
Aztec Warfare Lucha Underground Title Lucha Underground 1/7
Joe Doering vs Go Shiozaki - AJPW 1/3

[Ringo]

Give the last(?) episode a watch. There's two 10 man matches that are bags of fun and Danny Trejo is at ringside high-fiving wrestlers after they do topes. It was great.

[Hero!]

I just watched my first episode of Lucha Underground. Holy shit that Aztec Warfare match was awesome. It was the best kinda Royal Rumblish match I have seen in years.


why don't you ever listen to me when I say something is good? Stop fighting me on stuff.

[Hero!]

Someone please lemme know when Marufuji/Kojima shows up online.

[Mills]

Time to refresh my list at least, Zayn and Neville had a very good match which the biggest detriment was that it wasn't their last match.

1. Tanahashi/Okada
2. Aztek Warfare
3. Zayn/Neville
4. Doering/Shiozaki
5. Roode/Lashley

[Psycho666Soldier]

Don't know if anyone's gotten around to seeing the first Lucha Underground title defense from this week's episode, but it is a whopper. Here are my thoughts from the MOTY thread.

Just watched Prince Puma have a terrific first defense of his championship again Fenix in what might have been the finest match on Lucha Underground yet. I dug Fenix, but he absolutely won me over in this match with his crisp offense and innovative repertoire, but Pumachet keeps up with him well and delivers an exciting, but thoughtful match. It starts fast and strong in a fresh take on the chain-wrestling deadlock that accentuates their agility and Jr./Cruiser style, and is a constant show of one-upmanship that is hard to surpass as they logically trade finishing moves and have some of the best counters I have ever seen. I particularly enjoyed the sequence of Puma countering the springboard ace crusher for a suplex, Fenix turning around for a guillotine choke, only for Puma to hit him with the Northern Lights and transition into the jackhammer like he did in Aztec Warfare. A hot run up to the finish, and a match that never leaves you in your seat for very long from some of the crazy spots they pull off and how well-timed it all is.


I guess I'll go ahead and rank these, so here's what I'm thinking so far from what I've watched.

1. Tanahashi/Okada
2. Puma/Fenix
3. Aztec Warfare

[Mills]

I'm watching that episode a bit later today, ive heard great things about the title defense though

[Hero!]

Bout to watch Zayn/Neville and Puma/Fenix. Will be posting up my thoughts later.

[Defrost]

Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Kazuchika Okada IWGP Title Wrestle Kingdom 9
Aztec Warfare Lucha Underground Title Lucha Underground 1/7
Joe Doering vs Go Shiozaki - AJPW 1/3
Prince Puma vs Fenix - Lucha Underground 1/14


Puma vs Fenix was really good. I wouldn't say MOTY level. Like maybe ***1/2. Awesome finish.

[Ringo]

Puma/Fenix was really enjoyable. Bought into that spot at the end where Puma caught him on the rope run. Good episode in general really.

1. Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada, WK9
2. Joe Doering vs. Suwama, AJPW 1/3
3. Aztec Warfare, LU 1/7
4. Prince Puma vs. Fenix, LU 1/14
5. Bobby Roode vs. Bobby Lashley, TNA 1/7

[Defrost]

Next Dream Gate. Challenger in spoiler tag in case anyone wants to see today's show unspoiled

2/5/2015 Tokyo, Korakuen Hall
-Open the Dream Gate Championship Match: BxB Hulk vs. Jimmy Susumu

[Ringo]

Cool, did you watch that show yet? Chatter on Twitter I saw suggested it was really good.

Update, don't click if there's something you don't want spoiled obvs.

WWE World Heavyweight Championship
Holders: Brock Lesnar

01/25/15 – Brock Lesnar (c) vs. John Cena vs. Seth Rollins

TNA World Heavyweight Championship
Holders: Bobby Roode, Bobby Lashley

01/07/15 – Bobby Roode (c) vs. Bobby Lashley

ROH World Championship
Holders: Jay Briscoe

01/30/15 - Jay Briscoe (c) vs. ???

CHIKARA Grand Championship
Holders: Icarus

01/25/15 – Icarus (c) vs. Chuck Taylor

Lucha Underground Championship
Holders: Prince Puma

01/07/15 - Aztec Warfare
01/14/15 - Prince Puma (c) vs. Fenix

NXT Championship
Holders: Sami Zayn

01/14/15 - Sami Zayn (c) vs. Adrian Neville

IWGP Heavyweight Championship
Holders: Hiroshi Tanahashi

01/04/15 – Hiroshi Tanahashi © vs. Kazuchika Okada
02/11/15 - Hiroshi Tanahashi (c) vs. AJ Styles

Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship
Holders: Joe Doering, Go Shiozaki

01/03/15 – Joe Doering (c) vs. Go Shiozaki
02/07/15 - Go Shiozaki (c) vs. Zeus

GHC Heavyweight Championship
Holders: Naomichi Marufuji

01/10/15 - Naomichi Marufuji (c) vs. Satoshi Kojima
03/15/15 - Naomichi Marufuji (c) vs. Minoru Suzuki

Open The Dream Gate Championship
Holders: BxB Hulk

02/05/15 - BxB Hulk (c) vs. Jimmy Susumu

KO-D Openweight Championship
Holders: HARASHIMA

02/15/15 - HARASHIMA (c) vs. Kota Ibushi

[Defrost]

Have not watched it yet

[Hero!]

Just finished the NXT title match and Neville/Zayn.

Any word that NOAH title match showing up yet, boys? How long do DG matches take to get up?

[Defrost]

Well if you can get Nico Nico to work you can watch DG live. Otherwise today's show was already on XWT hours ago.

[Hero!]

I don't have XWT anymore. They locked me out for like a week of inactivity.

[Ringo]

Want an invite?

[Ringo]

I got ONE left.

[Defrost]

It'll be on the usual dailymotion eventually.

[Hero!]

Want an invite?

Um. Yes please.

[Ringo]

PM me your email, chum.

[Defrost]

Marufuji vs Kojima

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x2ew50w_noah-ghc-heavyweight-championship-c-naomichi-marufuji-vs-satoshi-kojima-1-10-15-720p-hd_sport

[Defrost]

Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Kazuchika Okada IWGP Title Wrestle Kingdom 9
Aztec Warfare Lucha Underground Title Lucha Underground 1/7
Joe Doering vs Go Shiozaki - AJPW 1/3
Prince Puma vs Fenix - Lucha Underground Title Lucha Underground 1/14
Naomichi Marufuji vs Satoshi Kojima - GHC Title NOAH 1/10

I thought Marufuji vs Kojima was pretty meh. They had some good stuff in the beginning and end, but the middle dragged something fierce for me. Maybe watching it after the awesome Dangan Yankees vs TMDK match hurt too.

[Ringo]

Announced:

http://www.rohwrestling.com/sites/default/files/imagecache/news_featured_photo_full_news_node/rohtextjpg.jpeg

[Hero!]

Excellent. One of my all-time favorite matches is the 4-way survival match between Joe, Daniels, Gibson, and Punk.

[Mills]

the elimination one with Gibson going full spirit of 76 return? That match was the perfect end to the Summer of Punk

Also, this has to be Briscoe retaining unless theyre pulling the trigger on Ciampa

[Ringo]

Might get Alberto/AJ on that show too as they are both announced and the only other singles wrestlers currently listed as appearing are Mark Briscoe and Jay Lethal. DO IT, ROH.

[Mills]

Might get Alberto/AJ on that show too as they are both announced and the only other singles wrestlers currently listed as appearing are Mark Briscoe and Jay Lethal. DO IT, ROH.

Theyre going Del Rio/Lethal

[Ringo]

Ugh, fuck that.

[Mills]

yeah, Del Rio needs to be ROH champion in the next 3-6 months. It's not like Joe/Angle in TNA where Angle winning really damaged TNA, Del Rio is walking in the best guy on the roster and Briscoe is only champ because Elgin is F'ing crazy and Adam Cole (BABAY!) is hurt. Get Del Rio that title and have him feud with AJ for a year

[Ringo]

Watched Marufuji/Kojima. Yeah, not good.

1. Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada, WK9
2. Joe Doering vs. Suwama, AJPW 1/3
3. Aztec Warfare, LU 1/7
4. Prince Puma vs. Fenix, LU 1/14
5. Sami Zayn vs. Adrian Neville, NXT 1/14
6. Bobby Roode vs. Bobby Lashley, TNA 1/7
7. Naomichi Marufuji vs. Satoshi Kojima, NOAH 1/10

[Mills]

Caught up with Lucha Underground, the match with Puma and Fenix was pretty good. I could see Fenix in a WWE ring eventually as long as they get the Mystico taste out of their mouth
1. Tanahashi/Okada
2. Aztek Warfare
3. Zayn/Neville
4. Prince Puma vs. Fenix
5. Doering/Shiozaki
6. Roode/Lashley

[Mills]

Not sure if anyone else watched this, but Briscoe defended the ROH title vs. Matt Taven on the last show. It was a solid match, Taven personally just doesn't do it for me honestly. Honestly, I can't remember if I've ever enjoyed a Mat Taven match. It wasn't bad, it was just there.I'll be watching Marufuji/Kojima after last night's Lucha Underground.

1. Tanahashi/Okada
2. Aztek Warfare
3. Zayn/Neville
4. Prince Puma vs. Fenix
5. Doering/Shiozaki
6. Briscoe/Taven
7. Roode/Lashley

[Psycho666Soldier]

Was that on the TV Show?

[Mills]

yeah, from Saturday, at least in my area.

[Hero!]

Marufuji/kojima done. Thoughts posted (with my thoughts on all the matches) here:

http://theunpunchedcard.com/category/championship-match-challenge/

[Defrost]

Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Kazuchika Okada IWGP Title Wrestle Kingdom 9
Brock Lesnar vs Seth Rollins vs John Cena WWE World Title Royal Rumble
Aztec Warfare Lucha Underground Title Lucha Underground 1/7
Joe Doering vs Go Shiozaki - AJPW 1/3
Prince Puma vs Fenix - Lucha Underground Title Lucha Underground 1/14
Naomichi Marufuji vs Satoshi Kojima - GHC Title NOAH 1/10


I thought the three way was really good. Lesnar was made to look amazing. My only issue was that portion of the match after Brock was put through the table. The goofy stretcher stuff and the run ins irked me. Plus Cena seemed to forget how to cover someone after that Powerbomb.

[Tainted Eclipse]

Ha, that powerbomb spot was hilarious. Only parts I minded were the J&J stuff. I never want to see Cena fight off Rollins, Noble and Mercury at once ever again. Other than that it was really great, pretty much the best possible WWE main event spectacle style triple threats.

[Defrost]

Ha, that powerbomb spot was hilarious. Only parts I minded were the J&J stuff. I never want to see Cena fight off Rollins, Noble and Mercury at once ever again. Other than that it was really great, pretty much the best possible WWE main event spectacle style triple threats.

I can't call it the best when I think HHH vs HBK vs Benoit was better. Not sure how much better, but better.

[Mills]

The NOAH match wasn't that good, I actually dozed off two seperate times watching that match. Also, holy crap was that triple threat amazing. Brock might be one of the GOAT, Rollins officially arrived and Cena was, well, Cena. That's not a negative thing either.

1. Tanahashi/Okada
2. Brock/Cena/Rollins Royal Rumble
3. Aztek Warfare
4. Zayn/Neville
5. Prince Puma vs. Fenix
6. Doering/Shiozaki
7. Briscoe/Taven
8. Roode/Lashley
9. Marufuki/Kojima

[Ringo]

:yes:

1. Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada, WK9
2. Brock Lesnar vs. John Cena vs. Seth Rollins, Royal Rumble 2015
2. Joe Doering vs. Go Shiozaki, AJPW 1/3
3. Aztec Warfare, LU 1/7
4. Prince Puma vs. Fenix, LU 1/14
5. Sami Zayn vs. Adrian Neville, NXT 1/14
6. Bobby Roode vs. Bobby Lashley, TNA 1/7
7. Naomichi Marufuji vs. Satoshi Kojima, NOAH 1/10

[Cewsh]

Just caught up.

1. Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada, WK9
2. Brock Lesnar vs. John Cena vs. Seth Rollins, Royal Rumble 2015
2. Aztec Warfare, LU 1/7
3. Bobby Roode vs. Bobby Lashley, TNA 1/7
4. Prince Puma vs. Fenix, LU 1/14
5. Sami Zayn vs. Adrian Neville, NXT 1/14
6. Naomichi Marufuji vs. Satoshi Kojima, NOAH 1/10
7. Joe Doering vs. Suwama, AJPW 1/3

[Hero!]

Doering vs Shiazaki, you mean, Cewsh? you've also got two at 2.

[Ringo]

I wrote Suwama as well, probably first. Weird.

[Mills]

I was silently wondering if I missed a match lol

[Defrost]

Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Kazuchika Okada IWGP Title Wrestle Kingdom 9
Brock Lesnar vs Seth Rollins vs John Cena WWE World Title Royal Rumble
Aztec Warfare Lucha Underground Title Lucha Underground 1/7
Joe Doering vs Go Shiozaki - AJPW 1/3
Prince Puma vs Cage - Lucha Undergroud Title Lucha Underground 1/28
Prince Puma vs Fenix - Lucha Underground Title Lucha Underground 1/14
Naomichi Marufuji vs Satoshi Kojima - GHC Title NOAH 1/10

I was really into Puma vs Cage, but the finish was super weak. I'm not against DQs in general, but there are much better ways of going about it.

[Tainted Eclipse]

I didn't think the work in Puma/Cage was all that good, Cage especially needs to simplify his offense and get rid of the overly involved, "innovative" indie moves. But they did such a good job building it simply but effectively that I was into the match. Loved the finish, or better to say I loved the post-match. Watch the whole episode if you haven't yet.

[Cewsh]

Doering vs Shiazaki, you mean, Cewsh? you've also got two at 2.

Heh, I just copy and pasted from Ringo and switched mine around, so I didn't catch that.

[Mills]

Finished the Cage/Puma match. Told a really good story and all it was really missing was a good finish. The finish scuked, plain and simple.

1. Tanahashi/Okada NJPW
2. Brock/Cena/Rollins WWE
3. Aztek Warfare Lucha Underground
4. Zayn/Neville NXT
5. Prince Puma vs. Cage Lucha Underground
6. Prince Puma vs. Fenix Lucha Underground
7. Doering/Shiozaki AJPW
8. Briscoe/Taven ROH
9. Roode/Lashley TNA
10. Marufuki/Kojima NOAH

[Defrost]

I didn't think the work in Puma/Cage was all that good, Cage especially needs to simplify his offense and get rid of the overly involved, "innovative" indie moves. But they did such a good job building it simply but effectively that I was into the match. Loved the finish, or better to say I loved the post-match. Watch the whole episode if you haven't yet.

Oh Cage needs to stick to power stuff and knock it off trying to do flips. And Ricochet should not be doing deadlift suplexes to a monster.

[Mills]

Correct, Cage shouldnt be doing a moonsault unless its a desperation attempt to win, not a move that looks cool

[Ringo]

Wasn't too hot on Puma/Cage. Annoying moves. Post-match was amazing as mentioned.

1. Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada, WK9
2. Brock Lesnar vs. John Cena vs. Seth Rollins, WWE Royal Rumble
3. Joe Doering vs. Go Shiozaki, AJPW 1/3
4. Aztec Warfare, LU 1/7
5. Prince Puma vs. Fenix, LU 1/14
6. Sami Zayn vs. Adrian Neville, NXT 1/14
7. Prince Puma vs. Cage, LU 1/28
8. Bobby Roode vs. Bobby Lashley, TNA 1/7
9. Jay Briscoe vs. Matt Taven, ROH 1/17
10. Naomichi Marufuji vs. Satoshi Kojima, NOAH 1/10

[Cewsh]

That Puma/Cage match was wank. Easily the biggest letdown from Lucha Underground thus far. And Jay Briscoe has still yet to ever have a singles match that I liked.


1. Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada, WK9
2. Brock Lesnar vs. John Cena vs. Seth Rollins, Royal Rumble 2015
3. Aztec Warfare, LU 1/7
4. Sami Zayn vs. Adrian Neville, NXT 1/14
5. Prince Puma vs. Fenix, LU 1/14
6. Bobby Roode vs. Bobby Lashley, TNA 1/7
7. Naomichi Marufuji vs. Satoshi Kojima, NOAH 1/10
8. Joe Doering vs. Go Shiozaki, AJPW 1/3
9. Prince Puma vs. Cage, LU 1/28
10. Jay Briscoe vs. Matt Taven, ROH 1/17

[Psycho666Soldier]

Briscoe's match with Amazing Red on the first ROH show is pretty damn good.

[Cewsh]

Good point. Anything from the spandex days is pretty good.

[Mills]

I liked their tag stuff I'm watching from the 06-07 days, fighting KOW, Aries & Strong, stuff like that.

[Cewsh]

Absolutely. I've always loved their tag stuff, even to this day. It's the singles stuff I hate.

[Tainted Eclipse]

Jay/Samoa Joe in the cage is an awesome match and features maybe the most disgusting blade job of all time.

[Mills]

That's true, it might be my favorite Brisco match ever, though the skin hanging off his forehead is a bit much

[Hero!]

All caught up now. I really enjoyed Puma vs Cage. My list looks like this:

1. Tanahashi/Okada NJPW
2. Brock/Cena/Rollins WWE
3. Aztek Warfare Lucha Underground
4. Zayn/Neville NXT
5. Prince Puma vs. Fenix Lucha Underground
6. Prince Puma vs. Cage Lucha Underground
7. Doering/Shiozaki AJPW
8. Roode/Lashley TNA
9. Marufuji/Kojima NOAH
10. Briscoe/Taven ROH

Write ups: http://theunpunchedcard.com/category/championship-match-challenge/

[Hero!]

Btw, congrats to all of us who made it through the entire first month. I love that we've all stuck to following the same promotion. I'm sure Defrost will include some DG stuff down the line, but I've decided against following that company. NOAH and AJPW are enough extra Japanese stuff for me to keep up with.

[Defrost]

Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Kazuchika Okada IWGP Title Wrestle Kingdom 9
Brock Lesnar vs Seth Rollins vs John Cena WWE World Title Royal Rumble
Aztec Warfare Lucha Underground Title Lucha Underground 1/7
Joe Doering vs Go Shiozaki - AJPW 1/3
Prince Puma vs Cage - Lucha Undergroud Title Lucha Underground 1/28
Prince Puma vs Fenix - Lucha Underground Title Lucha Underground 1/14
Naomichi Marufuji vs Satoshi Kojima - GHC Title NOAH 1/10
BxB Hulk vs Jimmy Susumu - Open the Dream Gate Dragon Gate 2/5


You know I am not a member of the selling police or anything, but if a match starts off with like 15 straight minutes of leg work you probably shouldn't immediately pop up and start doing dive and cartwheels.

[Mills]

In japanese promotions, I'm more following your guys leads then anything on what to watch. I know a tiny bit of NJPW, that's really it. I can watch it, but I don't really know what the story is.

[Defrost]

Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Kazuchika Okada IWGP Title Wrestle Kingdom 9
Brock Lesnar vs Seth Rollins vs John Cena WWE World Title Royal Rumble
Aztec Warfare Lucha Underground Title Lucha Underground 1/7
Joe Doering vs Go Shiozaki - AJPW 1/3
Prince Puma vs Cage - Lucha Undergroud Title Lucha Underground 1/28
Prince Puma vs Fenix - Lucha Underground Title Lucha Underground 1/14
Naomichi Marufuji vs Satoshi Kojima - GHC Title NOAH 1/10
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs AJ Styles - IWGP Title New Beginning in Osaka
BxB Hulk vs Jimmy Susumu - Open the Dream Gate Dragon Gate 2/5

I have seen every Tanahashi IWGP Title match except the Charlie Haas one that only the people in the building ever saw, and I have to say that Tanahashi vs Styles at New Beginning is the worst Tanahashi IWGP Title match I have ever seen.

[Tainted Eclipse]

I thought it was a decently good match. Never got bored during it so that puts it above a good few Tanahashi title matches for me. AJ working the cut and the rolling Germans spot were both cool. The Bullet Club shit just ruins any rhythm they have in a match. Their best match was at the G1 finals and it ended before they really kicked it into third gear.

[Defrost]

I need to go back and watch their 2008 Sumo Hall match. I sorta remember liking it, but I feel like that might be wrong.

[Ringo]

Haven't got around to Tanahashi/AJ yet.

Updated list, spoilers etc. Stuff that hasn't aired is in extra tags. Let me know if anything else has been announced that I've missed

Reformatted too. Red = seen, grey = unseen, white = upcoming

WWE World Heavyweight Championship
Holders: Brock Lesnar
01/30/15 – Brock Lesnar © vs. John Cena vs. Seth Rollins
03/29/15 – Brock Lesnar © vs. Roman Reigns

TNA World Heavyweight Championship
Holders: Bobby Roode, Bobby Lashley
01/07/15 - Bobby Roode (c) vs. Bobby Lashley
01/09/15 - Bobby Lashley (c) vs. Austin Aries vs. Bobby Roode vs. MVP
01/30/15 - Bobby Lashley (c) vs. MVP
01/31/15 - Bobby Lashley (c) vs. Kurt Angle

ROH World Championship
Holders: Jay Briscoe
01/17/15 – Jay Briscoe © vs. Matt Taven
03/01/15 – Jay Briscoe © vs. Michael Elgin vs. Hanson vs. Tommaso Ciampa

CHIKARA Grand Championship
Holders: Icarus
01/25/15 – Icarus © vs. Chuck Taylor

EVOLVE Championship
Holders: Drew Galloway
03/02/15 – Drew Galloway © vs. Ricochet

Lucha Underground Championship
Holders: Prince Puma
01/07/15 – Aztec Warfare (Prince Puma wins)
01/14/15 – Prince Puma © vs. Fenix
01/28/15 – Prince Puma © vs. Cage

NXT Championship
Holders: Sami Zayn
01/15/15 – Sami Zayn © vs. Adrian Neville
02/11/15 – Sami Zayn © vs. Kevin Owens

IWGP Heavyweight Championship
Holders: Hiroshi Tanahashi
01/04/15 – Hiroshi Tanahashi © vs. Kazuchika Okada
02/11/15 – Hiroshi Tanahashi © vs. AJ Styles

Triple Crown Championship
Holders: Joe Doering, Go Shiozaki
01/03/15 – Joe Doering © vs. Go Shiozaki
02/07/15 – Go Shiozaki © vs. Zeus

GHC Heavyweight Championship
Holders: Naomichi Marufuji
01/10/15 – Naomichi Marufuji © vs. Satoshi Kojima
03/15/15 – Naomichi Marufuji © vs. Minoru Suzuki

Open The Dream Gate Championship
Holders: BxB Hulk
02/05/15 – BxB Hulk © vs. Jimmy Susumu

KO-D Openweight Championship
Holders: HARASHIMA
02/15/15 – HARASHIMA © vs. Kota Ibushi

[Mills]

Has anyone seen the Chikara title match? I saw a result, but can't find it anywhere

[Defrost]

Now that El Patron is in Lucha Underground do we now start doing the AAA Title?

[Ringo]

Didn't update my list. I've added KO/Sami in 3rd, got rid of Drew/Roddy which was apparently non-title and swapped 1 and 2 around.

1. Brock Lesnar vs. Seth Rollins vs. John Cena, Royal Rumble 2015
2. Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada, WK9
3. Sami Zayn vs. Kevin Owens, NXT Takeover: Rival
4. Joe Doering vs. Go Shiozaki, AJPW 1/3
5. Aztec Warfare, LU 1/7
6. Drew Galloway vs. Ricochet, EVOLVE 37
7. Prince Puma vs. Fenix, LU 1/14
8. Sami Zayn vs. Adrian Neville, NXT 1/14
9. Prince Puma vs. Cage, LU 1/28
10. Bobby Roode vs. Bobby Lashley, TNA 1/7
11. Jay Briscoe vs. Matt Taven, ROH 1/17
12. Naomichi Marufuji vs. Satoshi Kojima, NOAH 1/10

[Hero!]

Now that El Patron is in Lucha Underground do we now start doing the AAA Title?

I actually thinking about this the other day. Covering the AAA title could be fun if Del Rio ends up defending it outside of AAA in LU, ROU, or even TNA.

[Defrost]

Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Kazuchika Okada IWGP Title Wrestle Kingdom 9
HARASHIMA vs Kota Ibushi KO-D Title Saitama Super DDT
Brock Lesnar vs Seth Rollins vs John Cena WWE World Title Royal Rumble
Aztec Warfare Lucha Underground Title Lucha Underground 1/7
Joe Doering vs Go Shiozaki - AJPW 1/3
Prince Puma vs Cage - Lucha Undergroud Title Lucha Underground 1/28
Prince Puma vs Fenix - Lucha Underground Title Lucha Underground 1/14
Naomichi Marufuji vs Satoshi Kojima - GHC Title NOAH 1/10
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs AJ Styles - IWGP Title New Beginning in Osaka
BxB Hulk vs Jimmy Susumu - Open the Dream Gate Dragon Gate 2/5


Well HARASHIMA vs Ibushi lived up to the hype. Everything about this match felt epic right from the start. The crowd too. They were pretty lively the whole show, but were dead silent when the match started. You could hear the cameras clicking it was so quiet.

[Psycho666Soldier]

Missing quite a few from my list. Let's fix that.

1. Tanahashi/Okada
2. Brock Lesnar vs. John Cena vs. Seth Rollins
3. Sami Zayn vs. Kevin Owens
4. Puma/Fenix
5. Aztec Warfare
6. Tanahashi vs. AJ Styles

I liked Tanahashi/Styles for the latter half of the match. The first half is meh. I still have a lot of catching up to do. I plan to fix Lucha Underground tonight and tomorrow, and Doering/Shiozaki over the weekend. We'll see how the rest goes.

[Ringo]

Ibushi/HARASHIMA was a blast. Loved the first half of the match - HARASHIMA's relentless attacks to Ibushi's midriff were a treat. Established him as one dangerous Champion. Enjoyed the spill into the crowd even if it affected the flow somewhat. Last portion of the match lost a little something for me but it was still really good. Maybe wanted a bit more from Ibushi to put HARASHIMA away.

Liked AJ/Tanahashi more than some people it seems. Thought it was a pretty good main event. Tanahashi bringing Captain New Japan to counter about 10 Bullet Club members was amusing.

1. Brock Lesnar vs. Seth Rollins vs. John Cena, Royal Rumble 2015
2. Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada, WK9
3. Sami Zayn vs. Kevin Owens, NXT Takeover: Rival
4. Kota Ibushi vs. HARASHIMA, DDT
5. Joe Doering vs. Go Shiozaki, AJPW 1/3
6. Aztec Warfare, LU 1/7
7. Drew Galloway vs. Ricochet, EVOLVE 37
9. Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. AJ Styles, NJPW New Beginning in Osaka
10. Prince Puma vs. Fenix, LU 1/14
11. Sami Zayn vs. Adrian Neville, NXT 1/14
12. Prince Puma vs. Cage, LU 1/28
13. Bobby Roode vs. Bobby Lashley, TNA 1/7
14. Jay Briscoe vs. Matt Taven, ROH 1/17
15. Naomichi Marufuji vs. Satoshi Kojima, NOAH 1/10

[DDT]

Everyone should get on Zeus vs. Shiozaki. It's the mother-fuckin' Zeus show, and it is amazing to behold.

EDIT: I also demand we include Big Japan's Strong BJ Championship, just so people can watch Shuji Ishikawa@ vs. Yuji Okabayashi. I mean for fuck's sake if we're including the insignificance that is TNA and ROH, we can afford to include DDT and Big Japan.

[Defrost]

I liked Go vs Zeus a lot. I liked Go vs Doering but no where near as much as it seemed everyone else did. Mostly Go's offense annoyed me in that match. If you're gonna tease a Burning Hammer you damn sure better do it and not a variation of the worst move in wrestling the Go Flasher. Here Zeus dominates after a gorilla press slam from the ring to the floor. I think my only complaint with the match would be that it was worked liked Zeus was a monster and Go is almost the same size as Zeus. So the match should have been shorter with a less prolonged selling portion by Go. Other than that I thought it was awesome.

Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Kazuchika Okada IWGP Title Wrestle Kingdom 9
HARASHIMA vs Kota Ibushi KO-D Title Saitama Super DDT
Brock Lesnar vs Seth Rollins vs John Cena WWE World Title Royal Rumble
Aztec Warfare Lucha Underground Title Lucha Underground 1/7
Go Shiozaki vs Zeus - Triple Crown AJPW 2/7
Joe Doering vs Go Shiozaki - Triple Crown AJPW 1/3
Prince Puma vs Cage - Lucha Undergroud Title Lucha Underground 1/28
Prince Puma vs Fenix - Lucha Underground Title Lucha Underground 1/14
Naomichi Marufuji vs Satoshi Kojima - GHC Title NOAH 1/10
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs AJ Styles - IWGP Title New Beginning in Osaka
BxB Hulk vs Jimmy Susumu - Open the Dream Gate Dragon Gate 2/5

[Ringo]

How good is the Yuji match? I saw Alan4L raving about it but we all know he raves about like 9 matches a week.

[Defrost]

I haven't watched it yet


As for what we should be watching in here I am watching what I want to and not watching what I don't want to. Like I am totally counting the KO-D Title. And I am never ever watching TNA for any reason. Not watching NXT either. I do find it odd how fans want to pretend NXT isn't WWE. WWE has two titles in this thread and people wanted to call NXT 2014 promotion of the year. The promotion is WWE. Brock Lesnar is the champion of all WWE including NXT.

[Ringo]

I'm not going to bother with TNA either from now on. No real desire to. Bobby Lashley, MVP and Kurt Angle in 2015. Can do without. Seems like they have way more defences than any other promotion as well.

I don't see the issue with NXT. It's WWE, of course. But if we'd done this during the brand split era I'd have covered both the WWE title and WHC. ECW too, when that was around. NXT has a different roster and is run by different people. Vince has everything to do with WWE television and little involvement with NXT. The NXT championship is the top title on the "brand" and is treated as prestigious.

[Fanny Batter]

I think if you involve NXT you'd have to involve the New Japan IC title, considering it main events split shows throughout the year.

[DDT]

How good is the Yuji match? I saw Alan4L raving about it but we all know he raves about like 9 matches a week.


It is really good; Shuji Ishikawa is one of those guys on the Indy's who always finds himself in great shit. Okabayashi actually makes a great underdog, but he never gets to do it much because Ishikawa is one of the few guys who is actually bigger than him. They hit each other hard, they actually have narratives around Ishikawa's nasty-ass head-butt (seriously that thing is disgusting) and of course the accompanying fun of two elephant seals smashing into each other.

Alan4L, much like a broken clock, is for once correct.

[Cewsh]

I think if you involve NXT you'd have to involve the New Japan IC title, considering it main events split shows throughout the year.

Stop adding things you horrible monsters.

[Hero!]

Catching up today, here's what i've got down to watch:

Ibushi/Harashima
Styles/Tanahashi
Shiazaki/Zeus

I'm not doing DG. Is there anything i'm missing? TNA? Have they done any titles matches that have aired? I don't keep up with them really. I'm waiting for Cewsh to post the RR review before posting my write-up for the WWE triple threat.

[Defrost]

BxB Hulk vs Uhaa Nation was today. It was a good match, but Dream Gate matches are always overly long and tend to lose something with me unless the crowd is molten hot. It wasn't.

Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Kazuchika Okada IWGP Title Wrestle Kingdom 9
HARASHIMA vs Kota Ibushi KO-D Title Saitama Super DDT
Brock Lesnar vs Seth Rollins vs John Cena WWE World Title Royal Rumble
Aztec Warfare Lucha Underground Title Lucha Underground 1/7
Go Shiozaki vs Zeus - Triple Crown AJPW 2/7
Joe Doering vs Go Shiozaki - Triple Crown AJPW 1/3
BxB Hulk vs Uhaa Nation - Open the Dream Gate Dragon Gate 3/1
Prince Puma vs Cage - Lucha Undergroud Title Lucha Underground 1/28
Prince Puma vs Fenix - Lucha Underground Title Lucha Underground 1/14
Naomichi Marufuji vs Satoshi Kojima - GHC Title NOAH 1/10
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs AJ Styles - IWGP Title New Beginning in Osaka
BxB Hulk vs Jimmy Susumu - Open the Dream Gate Dragon Gate 2/5

[Psycho666Soldier]

1. Tanahashi/Okada
2. Brock Lesnar vs. John Cena vs. Seth Rollins
3. Sami Zayn vs. Kevin Owens
4. Puma/Fenix
5. Aztec Warfare
6. Tanahashi vs. AJ Styles
7. Briscoe vs. Ciampa vs. Hanson vs. Elgin

The ROH Title match actually surprised me at points with some neat spots that were commendable. But they were all surrounded by terrible pacing, contrived booking, and way too many big men doing flippy stuff. One of the first moves Elgin hits only minutes into the match is a somersault legdrop from the top rope. Seriously? I've accepted he's a big guy that does a couple high-flying moves, but that was just senseless. Some of the spots on their own, like the Razor's edge into the barricade or the Jay Driller through the table were great. But this whole package just stunk, especially with the horribly implemented ref bump and a shoehorned confrontation with Nigel that really sucked the energy out of the match.

[Defrost]

I saw a lot of people down on Marufuji vs Suzuki, but I really liked it. It wasn't overly long as some title matches are apt to be. The Suzuki-Gun antics worked great, and weren't grating in a Bullet Club way. The match worked for me.


Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Kazuchika Okada IWGP Title Wrestle Kingdom 9
HARASHIMA vs Kota Ibushi KO-D Title Saitama Super DDT
Brock Lesnar vs Seth Rollins vs John Cena WWE World Title Royal Rumble
Aztec Warfare Lucha Underground Title Lucha Underground 1/7
Naomichi Marufuji vs Minoru Suzuki GHC Heavyweight Title NOAH 3/15
Go Shiozaki vs Zeus - Triple Crown AJPW 2/7
Joe Doering vs Go Shiozaki - Triple Crown AJPW 1/3
BxB Hulk vs Uhaa Nation - Open the Dream Gate Dragon Gate 3/1
Prince Puma vs Cage - Lucha Undergroud Title Lucha Underground 1/28
Prince Puma vs Fenix - Lucha Underground Title Lucha Underground 1/14
Naomichi Marufuji vs Satoshi Kojima - GHC Title NOAH 1/10
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs AJ Styles - IWGP Title New Beginning in Osaka
BxB Hulk vs Jimmy Susumu - Open the Dream Gate Dragon Gate 2/5

[MikeHunt]

why do Japanese wrestlers capitalise their names a lot?

[Defrost]

why do Japanese wrestlers capitalise their names a lot?

Looks cool. Usually it is a guy with a really common name doing it to stand out.

[Hero!]

Romanji has grown tremendously in popularity, especially with the melding of the weeabo/oktaku culture and the popularity of engrish. The ALL CAPS just looks cleaner, clearer, and cooler when using letters.

[DDT]

I saw a lot of people down on Marufuji vs Suzuki, but I really liked it. It wasn't overly long as some title matches are apt to be. The Suzuki-Gun antics worked great, and weren't grating in a Bullet Club way. The match worked for me.


I actually REALLY liked that match, which is surprising because Marufuji matches and I don't see eye-to-eye all that often. It had a lot to do with subtle Suzuki stuff mind you (choking Marufuji to counter a leg-lock, then when the ref makes him break it he uses that motion to grab Marufuji's hair and transition to a mounted position). I need to get on this and actually start ranking the matches rather than just raving about them, but this would definitely be in a top-five for me.

[Mills]

I am a bit behind in the wrestling world, but I managed to sit and watch ROH this last week. I'm an unabashed Jimmy Jacobs Mark and loved his title match he had with Briscoe. Jimmy sold like a champ and look great going out in what may be his ROH farewell. God bless

1. Tanahashi/Okada NJPW
2. Brock/Cena/Rollins WWE
3. Aztek Warfare Lucha Underground
4. Zayn/Neville NXT
5. Prince Puma vs. Cage Lucha Underground
6. Prince Puma vs. Fenix Lucha Underground
7. Briscoe/Jacobs ROH
8. Doering/Shiozaki AJPW
9. Briscoe/Taven ROH
10 Roode/Lashley TNA
11 Marufuki/Kojima NOAH

[MikeHunt]

Owens vs Balor opinions?

[DDT]

It was okay; not bad, but one of the weaker NXT title matches.

[MikeHunt]

I'd agree. I bloody love Owens dickheadery during a match and he was on top form during this.

I wonder if it's because they haven't interacted wrth each other that much and we don't know a tremendous amount about Balor and his back story.

[Defrost]

Just finished Lucha Underground. Did it seem to anyone else that Alberto vs Texano was super edited? Like there were a ton of jump cuts?

Puma vs Cage was fun though. Finish was a bit annoying.

Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Kazuchika Okada IWGP Title Wrestle Kingdom 9
HARASHIMA vs Kota Ibushi KO-D Title Saitama Super DDT
Brock Lesnar vs Seth Rollins vs John Cena WWE World Title Royal Rumble
Aztec Warfare Lucha Underground Title Lucha Underground 1/7
Naomichi Marufuji vs Minoru Suzuki GHC Heavyweight Title NOAH 3/15
Go Shiozaki vs Zeus - Triple Crown AJPW 2/7
Joe Doering vs Go Shiozaki - Triple Crown AJPW 1/3
Prince Puma vs Cage - Lucha Underground Title Lucha Underground 3/25
BxB Hulk vs Uhaa Nation - Open the Dream Gate Dragon Gate 3/1
Prince Puma vs Cage - Lucha Undergroud Title Lucha Underground 1/28
Prince Puma vs Fenix - Lucha Underground Title Lucha Underground 1/14
Naomichi Marufuji vs Satoshi Kojima - GHC Title NOAH 1/10
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs AJ Styles - IWGP Title New Beginning in Osaka
BxB Hulk vs Jimmy Susumu - Open the Dream Gate Dragon Gate 2/5

[kangus]

Interesting schedule

[DDT]

Say what you will about Go Shiozaki and his shitty finisher, the dude is on fire as far as title matches go. His recent bout with Kento Miyahara, the forgotten Sasaki Disciple, was hard hitting, athletic, and felt like a gritty fight.

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x2kummj_go-shiozaki-c-vs-kento-miyahara-ajpw_sport

[Ringo]

Forgotten in the sense that no one remembers he's a Kensuke guy or forgotten because no one talks about him? Seems like he's considered the shining light of All Japan for anyone who actually watches the promotion.

I'll watch it :yes:

[DDT]

Forgotten in the sense that no one remembers he's a Kensuke guy. But then, unless you're Nakajima, no one remembers Kensuke guys.

[Defrost]

I've been clear in how much I liked the Mania main event

Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Kazuchika Okada IWGP Title Wrestle Kingdom 9
Brock Lesnar vs Roman Reigns vs Seth Rollins WWE World Title Wrestlemania
HARASHIMA vs Kota Ibushi KO-D Title Saitama Super DDT
Brock Lesnar vs Seth Rollins vs John Cena WWE World Title Royal Rumble
Aztec Warfare Lucha Underground Title Lucha Underground 1/7
Naomichi Marufuji vs Minoru Suzuki GHC Heavyweight Title NOAH 3/15
Go Shiozaki vs Zeus - Triple Crown AJPW 2/7
Joe Doering vs Go Shiozaki - Triple Crown AJPW 1/3
Prince Puma vs Cage - Lucha Underground Title Lucha Underground 3/25
BxB Hulk vs Uhaa Nation - Open the Dream Gate Dragon Gate 3/1
Prince Puma vs Cage - Lucha Undergroud Title Lucha Underground 1/28
Prince Puma vs Fenix - Lucha Underground Title Lucha Underground 1/14
Naomichi Marufuji vs Satoshi Kojima - GHC Title NOAH 1/10
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs AJ Styles - IWGP Title New Beginning in Osaka
BxB Hulk vs Jimmy Susumu - Open the Dream Gate Dragon Gate 2/5

[Bad Collin]

For fun here's my unofficial list, I've included Progress and Rev Pro as they are amazing and you can now watch their shows on demand.

04/01 Wrestle Kingdom 9 - Hiroshi Tanahashi v Kazuchika Okada - IWGP
25/01 Royal Rumble 2015 - Brock Lesnar v Seth Rollins vs John Cena - WWE World Title
29/03 Wrestlemania XXXI - Brock Lesnar v Roman Reigns vs Seth Rollins - WWE World Title
22/03 Progresslemania - Jimmy Havoc v Dave Mastiff v Noam Dar v Will Ospreay v Marty Scurll v Paul Robinson - Progress Title
25/01 Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger - Jimmy Havoc v Will Ospreay - Progress Title
15/02 High Stakes 2015 - Marty Scurll v King Ricochet - Undisputed British Title
11/02 New Beginning in Osaka - Hiroshi Tanahashi vs AJ Styles - IWGP

I may need to rewatch that Tanahas/AJ match, I had high expectations and that might have made it seem worse than it was. I'm hoping to catch up on ROH soon and I need to watch LU, i've got a feeling that i'm going to love it.

[Defrost]

Watched Shiozaki vs Miyahara. Spent the entire time focused on Miyahara's Tanahashi pants


Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Kazuchika Okada IWGP Title Wrestle Kingdom 9
Brock Lesnar vs Roman Reigns vs Seth Rollins WWE World Title Wrestlemania
HARASHIMA vs Kota Ibushi KO-D Title Saitama Super DDT
Brock Lesnar vs Seth Rollins vs John Cena WWE World Title Royal Rumble
Aztec Warfare Lucha Underground Title Lucha Underground 1/7
Naomichi Marufuji vs Minoru Suzuki GHC Heavyweight Title NOAH 3/15
Go Shiozaki vs Zeus - Triple Crown AJPW 2/7
Joe Doering vs Go Shiozaki - Triple Crown AJPW 1/3
Prince Puma vs Cage - Lucha Underground Title Lucha Underground 3/25
BxB Hulk vs Uhaa Nation - Open the Dream Gate Dragon Gate 3/1
Prince Puma vs Cage - Lucha Undergroud Title Lucha Underground 1/28
Prince Puma vs Fenix - Lucha Underground Title Lucha Underground 1/14
Naomichi Marufuji vs Satoshi Kojima - GHC Title NOAH 1/10
Go Shiozaki vs Kento Miyahara - Triple Crown AJPW 3/27
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs AJ Styles - IWGP Title New Beginning in Osaka
BxB Hulk vs Jimmy Susumu - Open the Dream Gate Dragon Gate 2/5

[Bad Collin]

04/01 Wrestle Kingdom 9 - Hiroshi Tanahashi v Kazuchika Okada - IWGP
25/01 Royal Rumble 2015 - Brock Lesnar v Seth Rollins vs John Cena - WWE World Title
29/03 Wrestlemania XXXI - Brock Lesnar v Roman Reigns vs Seth Rollins - WWE World Title
05/04 Invasion Attack 2015 - AJ Styles v Kota Ibushi - IWGP
22/03 Progresslemania - Jimmy Havoc v Dave Mastiff v Noam Dar v Will Ospreay v Marty Scurll v Paul Robinson - Progress Title
25/01 Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger - Jimmy Havoc v Will Ospreay - Progress Title
15/02 High Stakes 2015 - Marty Scurll v King Ricochet - Undisputed British Title
11/02 New Beginning in Osaka - Hiroshi Tanahashi vs AJ Styles - IWGP

I liked today's match but there was something missing. I prefered Ibushi's match with Naito last time out.

[MikeHunt]

Defrost have you ever watched any progress? I think it would be right down your street.

[Bad Collin]

Just watched Aztec Warfare, it was good but there is a limit to how good those matches can be

04/01 Wrestle Kingdom 9 - Hiroshi Tanahashi v Kazuchika Okada - IWGP
25/01 Royal Rumble 2015 - Brock Lesnar v Seth Rollins vs John Cena - WWE World Title
29/03 Wrestlemania XXXI - Brock Lesnar v Roman Reigns vs Seth Rollins - WWE World Title
05/04 Invasion Attack 2015 - AJ Styles v Kota Ibushi - IWGP
07/01 Lucha Underground - Aztec Warfare
22/03 Progresslemania - Jimmy Havoc v Dave Mastiff v Noam Dar v Will Ospreay v Marty Scurll v Paul Robinson - Progress Title
25/01 Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger - Jimmy Havoc v Will Ospreay - Progress Title
15/02 High Stakes 2015 - Marty Scurll v King Ricochet - Undisputed British Title
11/02 New Beginning in Osaka - Hiroshi Tanahashi vs AJ Styles - IWGP

[Defrost]

Defrost have you ever watched any progress? I think it would be right down your street.

I haven't watched much indie wrestling in a while

[Tainted Eclipse]

are you watching lucha underground defrost. you should be.

[Defrost]

I watch it a lot of the time

[Defrost]

While AJ vs Ibushi wasn't the OMG MOTY everyone hoped I still liked it. Ibushi worked with a broken hand was impressive. Finish was great.

Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Kazuchika Okada IWGP Title Wrestle Kingdom 9
Brock Lesnar vs Roman Reigns vs Seth Rollins WWE World Title Wrestlemania
HARASHIMA vs Kota Ibushi KO-D Title Saitama Super DDT
Brock Lesnar vs Seth Rollins vs John Cena WWE World Title Royal Rumble
Aztec Warfare Lucha Underground Title Lucha Underground 1/7
AJ Styles vs Kota Ibushi IWGP Title Invasion Attack
Naomichi Marufuji vs Minoru Suzuki GHC Heavyweight Title NOAH 3/15
Go Shiozaki vs Zeus - Triple Crown AJPW 2/7
Joe Doering vs Go Shiozaki - Triple Crown AJPW 1/3
Prince Puma vs Cage - Lucha Underground Title Lucha Underground 3/25
BxB Hulk vs Uhaa Nation - Open the Dream Gate Dragon Gate 3/1
Prince Puma vs Cage - Lucha Undergroud Title Lucha Underground 1/28
Prince Puma vs Fenix - Lucha Underground Title Lucha Underground 1/14
Naomichi Marufuji vs Satoshi Kojima - GHC Title NOAH 1/10
Go Shiozaki vs Kento Miyahara - Triple Crown AJPW 3/27
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs AJ Styles - IWGP Title New Beginning in Osaka
BxB Hulk vs Jimmy Susumu - Open the Dream Gate Dragon Gate 2/5

[Defrost]

Puma vs Cuerno seemed more about the next week's trios match than anything else

Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Kazuchika Okada IWGP Title Wrestle Kingdom 9
Brock Lesnar vs Roman Reigns vs Seth Rollins WWE World Title Wrestlemania
HARASHIMA vs Kota Ibushi KO-D Title Saitama Super DDT
Brock Lesnar vs Seth Rollins vs John Cena WWE World Title Royal Rumble
Aztec Warfare Lucha Underground Title Lucha Underground 1/7
AJ Styles vs Kota Ibushi IWGP Title Invasion Attack
Naomichi Marufuji vs Minoru Suzuki GHC Heavyweight Title NOAH 3/15
Go Shiozaki vs Zeus - Triple Crown AJPW 2/7
Joe Doering vs Go Shiozaki - Triple Crown AJPW 1/3
Prince Puma vs Cage - Lucha Underground Title Lucha Underground 3/25
BxB Hulk vs Uhaa Nation - Open the Dream Gate Dragon Gate 3/1
Prince Puma vs Cage - Lucha Undergroud Title Lucha Underground 1/28
Prince Puma vs Fenix - Lucha Underground Title Lucha Underground 1/14
Prince Puma vs King Cuerno Lucha Underground Title Lucha Underground 4/8
Naomichi Marufuji vs Satoshi Kojima - GHC Title NOAH 1/10
Go Shiozaki vs Kento Miyahara - Triple Crown AJPW 3/27
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs AJ Styles - IWGP Title New Beginning in Osaka
BxB Hulk vs Jimmy Susumu - Open the Dream Gate Dragon Gate 2/5

[Defrost]

By being short BxB Hulk and Cyber Kong has earned a place in my heart


Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Kazuchika Okada IWGP Title Wrestle Kingdom 9
Brock Lesnar vs Roman Reigns vs Seth Rollins WWE World Title Wrestlemania
HARASHIMA vs Kota Ibushi KO-D Title Saitama Super DDT
Brock Lesnar vs Seth Rollins vs John Cena WWE World Title Royal Rumble
Aztec Warfare Lucha Underground Title Lucha Underground 1/7
AJ Styles vs Kota Ibushi IWGP Title Invasion Attack
Naomichi Marufuji vs Minoru Suzuki GHC Heavyweight Title NOAH 3/15
Go Shiozaki vs Zeus - Triple Crown AJPW 2/7
Joe Doering vs Go Shiozaki - Triple Crown AJPW 1/3
BxB Hulk vs Cyber Kong - Open the Dream Gate Dead or Alive 2015
Prince Puma vs Cage - Lucha Underground Title Lucha Underground 3/25
BxB Hulk vs Uhaa Nation - Open the Dream Gate Dragon Gate 3/1
Prince Puma vs Cage - Lucha Undergroud Title Lucha Underground 1/28
Prince Puma vs Fenix - Lucha Underground Title Lucha Underground 1/14
Prince Puma vs King Cuerno Lucha Underground Title Lucha Underground 4/8
Naomichi Marufuji vs Satoshi Kojima - GHC Title NOAH 1/10
Go Shiozaki vs Kento Miyahara - Triple Crown AJPW 3/27
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs AJ Styles - IWGP Title New Beginning in Osaka
BxB Hulk vs Jimmy Susumu - Open the Dream Gate Dragon Gate 2/5

[DDT]

People who enjoyed HARASHIMA vs. Ibushi from the Saitama Super show should check out the re-match from the Max Bump event; probably not as 'hot' as the first, but in my opinion better from a technical standpoint. The first portion of the match is REALLY engaging, and they get a lot out of teasing an armbar.

[Defrost]

People who enjoyed HARASHIMA vs. Ibushi from the Saitama Super show should check out the re-match from the Max Bump event; probably not as 'hot' as the first, but in my opinion better from a technical standpoint. The first portion of the match is REALLY engaging, and they get a lot out of teasing an armbar.

Did this match feel like they were trying to recreate Shinsuke vs Ibushi to you? It felt super similar with the Somato taking the place of the Boma Ye.

[DDT]

Somewhat; they certainly took several highlights out of it.

[DDT]

Puma vs. Hernandez was the best Hernandez match I've seen in YEARS. He finally reminded me of the Super-Mex of old, and his he looked like he actually cared. Also one of the stronger Lucha Underground title matches to boot.