Kevin's Top 100 Matches of 2015: #70-61

70. Kyle O’Reilly vs. Roderick Strong – ROH Winter Warriors Tour 2/21/15

One of the top performers in all of 2015 was Roderick Strong. Whether he was working for ROH, PWG, Evolve or anywhere else, he consistently put on some of the best matches all year. Kyle O’Reilly was no slouch this year either. I only recently was able to check this match out and I came away very impressed. Some of ROH’s non-PPV events have actually been better than their PPVs most of the year. This show in Atlanta was among their best, with this match being the highlight. It’s one of those that didn’t need an angle behind it. Just two of the best competing, hold for hold. O’Reilly is the guy from ROH that stands out as a future star and performances like this solidify that. He beat the shit out of Strong’s arm for most of the match. Strong sold it well and barely used it the rest of the way, which is always appreciated. There were some really close calls and a great double countout tease as well. Strong was able to pick up the win after the sick kick and orange crush backbreaker after 16:31 of really great work from both men. ****

69. Randy Orton vs. Seth Rollins – WWE WrestleMania 3/29/15

Like the rest of WrestleMania this year, nothing about the build to this match interested me. The fans wanted Randy Orton to return and rip Seth Rollins’ head off. Instead, he fake joined the Authority and wasted a few weeks playing terrible mind games. Also like most of the rest of WrestleMania, the match succeeded where the build failed. The video package beforehand spoke volumes about how Orton was once pegged as the future but that time passed and Seth was the now the future. The story of the match followed that idea. Seth had an answer for everything Orton did because he was a step or two quicker. The one thing Orton made sure to have scouted was the Curb Stomp, countering it twice. Each guy kicked out of the other’s finisher, which I dislike since it’s used so often in wrestling these days and would be my one major gripe with this. After having the Curb Stomp so well scouted, Orton countered one into a massive RKO to win at 13:15. It was honestly my favorite RKO ever, which is certainly saying something. Having Orton win was wise too, as it set up Seth’s first WWE Title program the month after. ****

68. IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Tag Team Championship: reDRagon (c) vs. The Time Splitters – NJPW Destruction in Kobe 9/27/15

In my opinion, these are easily the two best teams in New Japan’s junior tag division. They’ve faced off a few times before with the best being at Power Struggle in 2014 and their least impressive effort coming at Final Battle 2014. This fell somewhere in the middle, but closer to their best. I’d consider this my second favorite straight up tag team match of the year. Both teams worked on a level playing field throughout the 16:17 runtime. They exchanged offense but neither could grab a prolonged advantage. There is something about these teams that just click. It’s like, they go through a lot of stuff but it never feels like a spotfest. reDRagon truly breaks up the monotony of the junior tag division. They played off their past matches, while showing remarkable chemistry. This also allowed us to get another glimpse at the fantastic Best of the Super Juniors finals match between KUSHIDA and Kyle O’Reilly, while not giving us too much, leaving room for their eventual rematch. At least I hope we get it again. The champions nailed Chasing the Dragon to not only retain, but move to a ridiculous 32-1 in straight tag matches in New Japan. Great tag team wrestling from two of the best teams in the world. ****

67. Pentagon Jr. vs. Zack Sabre Jr. – PWG Battle of Los Angeles 8/30/15

On the road to winning the 2015 Battle of Los Angeles, Zack Sabre Jr. wrestled three matches on the final night of the tournament. His first of the evening was easily the most intriguing matchup of the whole tournament. Pentagon Jr. was among my favorite people to watch in 2015, as was Sabre. Both guys are known for their arm submission finishers, making for an interesting situation. Submissions would be the theme of the match actually, with both guys just putting each other in some of the most innovative and painful looking holds I’ve ever seen. The commentary team did a good job in pointing out how different various submissions can be when it comes to the part of the world you’re from. Sabre and Pentagon would even release the holds on their own, trying to one up each other before actually going for the win. When things picked up, Pentagon dished out the strikes, looking like the badass that he is. My biggest gripe was that, after all of the submissions, Pentagon tapped out nearly instantly to Sabre’s Kimura as 12:29, giving this fun match an anti-climactic end. ****

66. AJ Styles and the Young Bucks vs. Kazuchika Okada and Roppongi Vice – ROH Global Wars 5/16/15

The crossover shows between ROH and NJPW are usually a good place to catch some dream matches that wouldn’t be possible in any other scenario. This doesn’t quite fit the mold, as all six men are regulars in New Japan. Still, this proved to be a very exciting and fun six man tag. It allowed for a preview of the Kazuchika Okada/AJ Styles Dominion match, while putting the two junior teams in that know each other very well. Look, it’s hard for me to know that my favorite male wrestler, AJ, teams with my least favorite male wrestlers, the Young Bucks, so frequently. Here, it wasn’t as grating as usual, even with Steve Corino shouting SUPERKIIIICK at every turn. Normally that’s enough to make me hate a match, but this was so fun that I was able to get past it. From the back and forth between Okada and AJ, which is always great, to the fast paced action involving the junior teams, this delivered. The finish to this was pretty nuts as Trent Barreta pretty much died after taking a flurry of high impact moves, capped by a Styles Clash, to end this at 17:25. Even if you’re not a fan of everyone involved, this was still a blast. ****

65. IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Championship: Kenny Omega (c) vs. KUSHIDA – NJPW Dominion 7/5/15

You’ll notice a trend with New Japan junior matches on this list. They all involve KUSHIDA, who was easily the MVP of the division in 2015. This wasn’t his best match, but it was his crowning achievement. After winning the Best of the Super Juniors Tournament, he earned a shot at Kenny Omega and the Jr. Heavyweight Title. Both guys came in with a game plan. KUSHIDA clearly went after the arm, looking for his Hoverboard Lock. Kenny Omega attacked not one, but both legs. Both men sold this work like they should have. KUSHIDA was especially great in selling the leg, doing little things throughout the match and at times, even being unable to run the ropes. Omega struggled to do some of his key offense due to only having one working arm. The red hot Osaka crowd and a pre-match video package showing KUSHIDA as a kid further added to this, giving it an emotional jolt that a lot of juniors matches lacked. Omega was finally able to get KUSHIDA in position for the One Winged Angel, but KUSHIDA countered into the Hoverboard Lock, holding on and forcing Omega to submit after 20:44. It was a great win for KUSHIDA though he unfortunately dropped it back to Omega for some dumb reason a few months later. Still, it doesn’t take away from how great this match was. ****

64. Adam Cole vs. Kyle O’Reilly – ROH Final Battle 12/18/15

The former Future Shock teammates had some matches in the past but this time around, it was the most personal. Adam Cole lulled Kyle O’Reilly into a false rekindling of their friendship before costing him his ROH World Title shot at All-Star Extravaganza. This was billed as a grudge match and Kyle absolutely played into that from the start, taking Cole down. When Cole started to swing the momentum, he targeted O’Reilly’s leg. That was done to set up the figure four, which commentary reminded us was how Cole beat Kyle in their big match in New York in 2012. O’Reilly sold the leg issues rather well, but when they went into their back and forth near the end, this really picked up. Kyle kept going for the armbar, including one after an exchange of superkicks and a rebound lariat. He finally got it locked in seemingly for good, but Cole got his feet on the ropes and pinned O’Reilly to steal it. Kyle didn’t even care, just going after Cole and applying more armbars until officials broke it up. I thought the match was great. It played out like a grudge match mostly, had callbacks to their past and the finish sets up some rematches. ****

63. WWE Championship: Seth Rollins (c) vs. Dean Ambrose vs. Randy Orton vs. Roman Reigns – WWE Payback 5/17/15

For his first WWE Championship defense on Pay-Per-View, Seth Rollins beat Randy Orton in a rather dull affair. His title run wasn’t off to a good start, but that turned around on this night. Originally, this was supposed to be Seth against Orton and Roman Reigns. However, a few weeks earlier, Dean Ambrose pinned Seth and was added in. From the start, Seth was a marked man thanks to his history with all three men. Seth’s boys, J&J Security, would get involved though and tried to even the odds. Their interference was a bit much, as was Kane’s, which was the biggest negative about this. Other than that, this is fantastic. The former Shield members gave the crowd a great moment as they triple powerbombed Orton through a table like the old days. Of course, Dean and Roman didn’t forgive Seth, taking him out. Once this Shield moment happened, things kicked into second gear and included a great back and forth between Ambrose and Reigns. This was the match that gave me Austin/Rock/Triple H vibes for Ambrose/Reigns/Rollins. After the dust settled, Seth planted Orton with a Pedigree to retain at 20:42 in one of the most fun matches all year long. ****

62. ROH World Television Championship: Jay Lethal (c) vs. Roderick Strong – ROH Glory by Honor XIV 10/23/15

Jay Lethal’s ROH World Television Title reign was possibly the best title reign that anyone has had in a really long time. Lethal won the title from Tommaso Ciampa on 4/4/14 and proceeded to hold it for a record 567 days, spanning a ridiculous 36 successful defenses. That is something special. With him holding it along with the World Title, it was only a matter of time before he dropped the TV strap. Enter Roderick Strong. Strong went to a draw with Lethal before losing courtesy of some shenanigans in his next World Title shot. Knowing he had Lethal’s number, he was granted one more shot, but this time at the TV Title and nobody allowed at ringside. This was the shortest match of their trilogy at 16:48, but it was the best to me. The things they did were really smart, building to a phenomenal finishing run. When Strong kicked out of the Lethal Injection, the crowd went nuts and Jay sold the disbelief well. Strong finally got over the hump, unleashing an insane flurry including a knee, gut buster, sick kick and backbreaker before making Lethal submit to the Stronghold. The crowd lost their minds at seeing such a long title reign end. It rightfully felt like a huge moment and proved to be a great end to a really good rivalry. ****

61. RPW Championship: AJ Styles (c) vs. Marty Scurll vs. Will Ospreay – RPW Uprising 10/2/15

After seeing this match, it was clear that I had to make sure I could see more RPW in 2016. This was a very interesting combination of styles, pun intended. AJ Styles is the well-traveled industry veteran, Marty Scurll is pretty great at playing his villain role and Will Ospreay is one of the more athletic wrestlers on the planet. The first time around, I didn’t really see it, but Scurll just may have been the MVP. He just nails everything a villain should do. From eye pokes to trying to take advantage of the moves the other guys do, he just delivers. Ospreay didn’t do much for me during the Battle of Los Angeles, but he was really good in this match. There’s a sequence where he somersaults onto AJ, does a tornado DDT through the ropes and then a corkscrew shooting star press. It’s pretty breathtaking to watch. Styles also more than carries his weight but hangs back a bit to allow the other guys to shine. He retains his belt with a Styles Clash on Ospreay at the 18:22, capping a really fun outing in front of a hot crowd. ****

Kevin's Top 100 Matches of 2015: #75-71

75. Falls Count Anywhere: Cage vs. The Mack – Ultima Lucha 7/29/15

While I talked about Alberto El Patron and Johnny Mundo opening night two of Ultima Lucha, this was the official opener of the festivities. Cage had been booked like a monster in Lucha Underground, which is fitting given his look. The Mack is just a bunch of fun. Fun is actually the word I would use to describe this. Clocking in at just 7:45, it is one of the shortest bouts on the list. It was just such a blast from bell to bell. If you asked me about my ideal Falls Count Anywhere match, I’d want one that never went in the ring, which is what happened here. In the short timeframe, they crammed a good amount of stuff in. There was a big table spot and an especially cool moment where Cage got hit with a cooler. Out spilled beers, so Mack chugged some and hit a Stone Cold Stunner. Commentary sold the near fall like they were shocked because of how well the Stunner worked in the past. The finish to this was the most spectacular moment as Cage curb stomped Mack through a cinder block in an absolutely brutal moment. I didn’t expect too much from this and I came out blown away. ****

74. WWE World Heavyweight Championship Ladder Match: Seth Rollins (c) vs. Dean Ambrose – WWE Money in the Bank 6/14/15

A title reign built around shenanigans, false finishes and interference led us to this mach. Seth Rollins would face his rival, Dean Ambrose, in a ladder match. These two were no strangers to each other, having met in a Lumberjack match, Hell in a Cell match and of course, a plain old singles match two weeks earlier. On that night, Ambrose seemed to win the WWE Title but we got the dusty finish. Dean stole the title, setting the stage for this match, where Seth demanded he do things alone. No Authority, no J&J Security and no Kane. When the bell rang, we got to see a different side of WWE Champion Seth Rollins. For most of the 35:40 that this match took, Seth was an animal. He was a vicious heel in the same vein as early 2000’s Triple H. He attacks Dean’s leg and just comes off as a brutal and cunning heel, unlike the cowardly heel he had portrayed during his run. This wasn’t your typical high spot ladder match, instead taking me back to the Rock/Triple H ladder match from SummerSlam 1998. It seemed like two guys using the ladder as a weapon because they hate each other. Seth hit some sick powerbombs on the guardrail and ladder outside near the finish. Both Dean and him pulled down the belt in the end, but Seth landed with control and retained. With a better, more definitive ending and more selling from Ambrose, this would have ranked higher, but it was one of their better encounters. ****

73. Roderick Strong vs. Shinsuke Nakamura – ROH Global Wars 5/16/15

Similar to another match you’ll see on this list later, Roderick Strong played the role of “Mr. ROH” against one of the top stars from New Japan Pro Wrestling. The Toronto crowd was red hot, knowing they were seeing something special and especially popping at the sight of Shinsuke Nakamura. In every appearance with ROH, Nakamura is over like a god. They adhered to the Code of Honor, following it with a start that you’d expect from two guys like this. They jockey for position and feel each other out, trying to gain the upper hand. Nakamura came with the bigger offense first, hitting some knee strikes, before Roddy turned things around and focused on Shinsuke’s back. On this tour alone, Strong had split matches with Hiroshi Tanahashi and KUSHIDA, though coming into it, you kind of knew Nakamura would win. Still, Strong goes into an offensive flurry that includes a sick kick and backbreaker, bringing upon a near fall that I bit on even on my second viewing. He also avoids a Boma Ye by striking with a knee of his own in a pretty great moment. Shinsuke proves to be too much, winning after a Boma Ye after 17:02 of great back and forth action. ****

72. No Holds Barred: Timothy Thatcher vs. Biff Busick – Evolve 48 8/16/15

I haven’t been able to see the rivalry between Timothy Thatcher and Biff Busick but judging by the commentary in this, it was pretty heated. Thatcher inadvertently broke Biff’s thumb and when Biff returned, he injured Thatcher’s left ear, causing him to nearly go deaf on that side. That led them to this main event bout. Now, when you see the No Holds Barred stipulation, you may expect a hardcore match with weapons. Not here. The rule was in place so two badass dudes could go to war. Biff relentlessly attacked Timothy’s ear, seemingly trying to make him permanently deaf. He repeatedly went after it and even busted the Evolve Champion open at one point. A bleeding ear is quite the sight to be honest. Thatcher didn’t play his normal game, instead realizing that he needed to do what Biff was doing in order to survive. He started to target Biff’s thumb and the protective tape over it. In the end, he exposed the thumb and seemingly broke it once again. He instantly applied the Fujiwara armbar and Biff tapped out at 13:36. I know he’s only the list once, but I do love me some Biff and he’s my third favorite guy not in WWE, NJPW, TNA or ROH. ****

71. Kota Ibushi vs. Tetsuya Naito – NJPW New Japan Cup 3/15/15

Interestingly enough, despite taking place back in March, I only saw this match for the first time in December. It happened during a time when I had to cancel my New Japan World subscription. Going back and watching it led me to see that it was pretty damn good, which honestly isn’t too surprising. Kota Ibushi and Tetsuya Naito are among my absolute favorites in all of New Japan. This was before Naito’s fantastic heel turn, so he’s still playing the white meat babyface that I’m not a fan of. For this match though, I was fine with it. It was two of the most athletic wrestlers, not just in Japan, but in the entire world going at it. They tried to one up each other at every turn though they come off as so evenly matched, nobody really gains an upper hand. It is only when Ibushi reaches into his bag of tricks and starts applying a more physical style that he takes control. His ability to hit hard is one of my favorite things about him. At the 14:14 mark, Ibushi wins with a sitout powerbomb and advancing to the finals, which he would win to earn a shot at AJ Styles and the IWGP Heavyweight Title. ****

Top Five 12/21/15-12/27/15

1) Naomichi Marufuji: Last month, Naomichi Marufuji won Pro Wrestling NOAH's Global League and earned himself a shot at the GHC Heavyweight Championship. He got his match this week at NOAH's major year-end show, Destiny. Minoru Suzuki had reigned as champion for most of the year after winning the belt from Marufuji. This time, Marufuji was able to beat Suzuki and dethrone him, picking up the biggest win of the week, while also being the biggest win for NOAH of the year. Suzuki's stable, Suzuki-Gun, has basically had a hostile takeover of the titles in NOAH all year long and threatened to put the company out of business. Marufuji not only won a title for himself, but in the process, he saved NOAH as a whole. I also realize the GIF I used isn't actually from the match this week.

2) Dean Ambrose: Ambrose has been pretty heavily featured since winning the Intercontinental Title at TLC. Dean Ambrose was in the main event of Raw this past Monday. It wasn't the best episode of Raw ever but I digress. Ambrose defeated Sheamus in a Steel Cage match. Not only is winning the Raw main event usually good, but he did so against the guy who was just the WWE Champion a few weeks ago. Then, on Super Smackdown, he was in the main event again, this time retaining his Intercontinental Championship against Dolph Ziggler and Kevin Owens in a Triple Threat match. Even though the company doesn't seem ready to give him the major victories, they do have enough faith to keep him strong and give him main event spots, which he almost always does well with.

3) Tajiri Ishimori: Remember how I said that Suzuki-Gun had a stranglehold on all of the belts in Pro Wrestling NOAH? Well, Naomichi Marufuji wasn't the only one to wrestle gold from the stable. Taiji Ishimori won the GHC Jr. Heavyweight Title from Taichi, who, like Minoru Suzuki, held the belt for a while. Originally, I wanted Zack Sabre Jr. to be the guy to take the belt from Suzuki-Gun, but Ishimori beat Sabre last month to earn this shot. He made good on his shot and won the belt for the second time in his career. Obviously this GIF is also not from the show this past week, but it's still an Ishimori one, so it works.

                          4) Chad Gable and Jason Jordan: My praise for the duo of Chad Gable and Jason Jordan is just so high. Their chemistry continues to amaze me on a weekly basis. This time around, they won a fatal four way tag team match against the Hype Bros, Blake and Murphy and the Vaudevillains. Not only did they win and put on a very impressive showing, but they managed to be the most over people on the roster not named Sami Zayn. The response they got during the match was insane and one of the coolest things I heard all week long.

5) The New Day: Since around WrestleMania season, the New Day have continually been the most consistently good thing in the WWE. They turned heel and have just absolutely nailed everything, turning strange things that probably shouldn't work into gold. While they suffered a loss on Raw, they competed on Super Smackdown Live and defended the Tag Team Titles against the Lucha Dragons. On that night, the New Day was able to send back the challenge on the Lucha Dragons and rack up another successful defense of the belts. The New Day just keep racking up the accomplishments.

Kevin's Top 100 Matches of 2015: #85-76

85. IWGP Intercontinental Championship: Hirooki Goto (c) vs. Shinsuke Nakamura – NJPW Dominion 7/5/15

At New Japan’s Wrestling Dontaku event, Hirooki Goto defeated Shinsuke Nakamura to win the IWGP Intercontinental Championship. Nakamura has lost the title four times, usually gaining it back before the new champion makes any successful defenses. This was Goto’s first defense of the title. Nakamura came out dressed like a fucking ninja. That’s right, ninja vs. samurai. I was pretty sold once I saw that. The match itself started slowly as they chose to build to something bigger with 22:40 to play with. Honestly, if this was kept to a shorter length, I think it would have been a bit better, but their G1 match was shorter and I preferred this so maybe that isn’t always the case. Still, the final third of this match delivered big time, like it was a Kazuchika Okada match or something. Once this started going, it was pretty awesome. Goto had the Boma Ye very well scouted, and was able to counter it multiple times before retaining his belt. Granted, Goto would never make another successful defense as he lost the title to none other than Nakamura in September. ****

84. Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Tetsuya Naito – NJPW G1 Climax 7/26/15

Early on in the G1 Climax, the “A” Block was my preferred block (though that would change as the tournament went on). This was the fifth night of the tournament and proved to be one of the better ones. In the main event, Hiroshi Tanahashi faced Tetsuya Naito in a rematch of the finals of the G1 two years earlier. I’ve never seen that match, but I heard it was a pretty big disappointment. This was a very different Naito though, fully immersed in his new heel persona. For me, it was in this match that Naito really started nailing it. From his mannerisms early on to his actions during and after the match, he was a total dick. On the Tanahashi side of things, the guy once again proved that he is nowhere the end of his road. They worked a smart 24:14 match that did a great job in establishing this Naito heel gimmick. A win over the top guy in the company was absolutely a big way to show everyone that a new and improved Tetsuya Naito had indeed arrived. ****

83. Global League Finals: Naomichi Marufuji vs. Shelton X Benjamin – NOAH Global League Finals 11/8/15

The stakes were high at the end of Pro Wrestling NOAH’s Global League Tournament. Shelton X Benjamin represented the Suzuki-Gun faction, led by current GHC Heavyweight Champion Minoru Suzuki. Naomichi Marufuji was the NOAH guy. The winner would earn a shot at the GHC Heavyweight Title. Marufuji is the guy that has to save NOAH from Suzuki-Gun and their hostile takeover. I mean, throughout the year, Suzuki-Gun had a firm grasp on every single belt in NOAH. He’s the last hope for the company and the crowd reacted to this match as so. They were completely invested in the entire 24:06 of the match. Marufuji got out of the gate quickly, with some early near falls and a series of superkicks. Shelton came back as the monster heel that he’s become pretty good at playing. It’s a role I never envisioned for him, but he nails it from what I’ve seen of him in NOAH. The interference from Suzuki-Gun during this made sense and wasn’t overdone, so it worked. Benjamin survived Shiranui Kai, but fell to Tiger Flowsion. It set Marufuji up as the top contender for Suzuki’s belt in a showdown for not only the title, but NOAH as a whole. ****

82. Ricochet vs. Zack Sabre Jr. – PWG Battle of Los Angeles 8/29/15

Of the three Battle of Los Angeles matches to make the list, this was the longest at 23:04. Ricochet won the tournament the year before but he faced a favorite for this year, Zack Sabre Jr., in the first round. Ricochet is known for his freakish athleticism while Sabre is known for being arguably the best technical wrestler on the planet. That clash of styles is usually hit or miss and on this night, it hit. First things first, Ricochet dedicated the match to Lil’ Sebastian of Parks and Recreation fame, instantly getting a pop from me. Anyway, despite not being a highly touted technician, Ricochet did a fine job in holding his own on the mat with Sabre. When he got on offense, things were exciting though to be honest, Sabre is exciting even when he’s just working the mat. The finishing stretch is pretty great, as Ricochet pulls out a trio of suplexes and the 630 but can’t win. Sabre is able to score the three on a bridging prawn hold, letting everyone know that there would be a new BOLA champion this year, which would turn out to be Sabre himself. ****

81. NXT Women’s Championship: Sasha Banks (c) vs. Charlotte – NXT 7/15/15

The Monday prior to this episode of NXT, Becky Lynch, Charlotte and Sasha Banks made the jump to the main roster to Kickstart the “Divas Revolution”, so the spotlight was really on them here. Sasha ran into issues with Dana Brooke and Emma, needing a partner. Charlotte came to her side, but with the condition that she receive a shot at the NXT Women’s Title. Now, these two had some good to great matches in the past, with this being about on par with their best efforts. I saw NXT live in June and they basically had a carbon copy of this match. Even though I saw it before, I was still really enjoying this contest. Their chemistry is nearly always perfect and that’s part of the reason I think the WWE is waiting to give these two ladies a big match on a relatively big stage. The final few minutes of this are among the best stuff they’ve ever done together, including a great spot where Charlotte has the figure four locked in and Sasha reaches the ropes. Instead of breaking the hold, Charlotte holds on, falling outside while the referee counted to five. It was pretty much the old Bret Hart ring post figure four spot, but on the apron. Sasha would make it through that though, getting Charlotte to tap out at 13:28. Sasha’s fantastic run in NXT would produce two more top notch matches you’ll see later on the list. ****

80. Hirooki Goto and Katsuyori Shibata vs. Shinsuke Nakamura and Tomohiro Ishii – World Tag League 11/21/15

This was my first year watching New Japan’s World Tag League. I was told that it usually doesn’t feature many great, standout matches, but mostly solid stuff. So when I tuned into the first night of the tournament and saw the two main events, consider me wowed. Both were among the best tag team matches I saw all year. The first saw a duo that I really enjoy, Hirooki Goto and Katsuyori Shibata take on Shinsuke Nakamura and Tomohiro Ishii. I’ve seen everyone in this match face each other, so I knew the chemistry was there. The effort matched as, for the next 12:48, this was just great stuff. Everything done in this match was hard hitting, exactly how I expected. It didn’t matter if Ishii was in there with Shibata or if Nakamura was battling Goto or any other combination, you were getting something enjoyable. A Penalty Kick from Shibata put the NEVER Champion Ishii down for the count, helping to set the stage for Shibata/Ishii at Wrestle Kingdom 10. ****

79. Hiroshi Tanahashi and Michael Elgin vs. Kazuchika Okada and YOSHI-HASHI – World Tag League 11/21/15

The only time on this list that two matches from the same show will be paired together. After Goto, Shibata, Nakamura and Ishii put on a great show, they were followed up by this main event. YOSHI-HASHI is a guy that I never expected to make this list. He’s not outwardly bad, but he’s just not very good. Michael Elgin got super over in Japan during his G1 run. Nothing really even needs to be said about Hiroshi Tanahashi and Kazuchika Okada at this point. Elgin and YOSHI started but when Tanahashi got the tag, things got really good. He demanded Okada come in so they could renew their rivalry a bit before their match at Wrestle Kingdom 10. Their brawl was intense and physical, doing a great job of setting up WK10. It seems like their upcoming WK10 match could be more physical than past encounters. Elgin continued to impress when he was given the opportunity, looking like a completely different man in Japan than in the States. Okada is the show stealer here though, playing the smug dick so well. Elgin won it for his guys after two powerbombs on YOSHI-HASHI at 17:10. ****

78. Hell in a Cell: Bray Wyatt vs. Roman Reigns – WWE Hell in a Cell 10/25/15

Polarizing is a word I’d use to describe the opinions on this match. I’ve seen some call it amazing and some say it was one of the worst Hell in a Cell matches in history. Personally, and obviously by it being on this list, I’m closer to the former than the latter. The feud leading into this was personal and despite it running for a while, culminating in the Cell was fitting. They went out and made sure to have a pretty badass match within the confines of the PG rating. I’ve heard a lot of people say that the Hell in a Cell can’t work in that situation but I think they, and Brock and Taker later on in the show, made it work. The weapons were brought into play, like kendo sticks, tables and steel chairs. There were some great spots throughout, like Roman Reigns using two kendo sticks at once to attack Bray Wyatt, Bray hitting a uranage through a table and Reigns nailing one of his best Spears off the apron and through a table. In the end, after 23:10, Reigns hit another Spear and came out on top of this long rivalry. It was another feather in the cap of a great 2015 for Roman Reigns. ****

77. IWGP Intercontinental Championship: Shinsuke Nakamura (c) vs. Karl Anderson – NJPW Power Struggle 11/7/15

For the fifth time in his career, Shinsuke Nakamura captured the IWGP Intercontinental Title at Destruction. The belt has become synonymous with Nakamura since he not only put it on the map, but made it a very sought after title. It’s even main evented Wrestle Kingdom in the past, and it headlined this Power Struggle event. Karl Anderson defeated Nakamura early on in the G1 Climax, so he quickly asked for a title shot and got it here. I liked their G1 match but it was certainly bested here. As usual with most Bullet Club matches, when the interference isn’t overdone, like here, it produces a relatively great match. Anderson held serve for most of the match until Nakamura made the babyface rally. Props to Anderson because, while he performed very well in this contest, he didn’t outshine Nakamura, who obviously has to come off as the bigger star. Anderson is really good at doing that. It was a tough task to work here since everyone knew Shinsuke was retaining because of the open challenge set for Wrestle Kingdom but they made me and many others buy into a few false finishes. Nakamura did retain after a Boma Ye at 21:37 before being challenged by AJ Styles to a match at Wrestle Kingdom 10. ****

76. NEVER Openweight Championship: Togi Makabe (c) vs. Tomohiro Ishii – NJPW King of Pro Wrestling 10/12/15

After I was disappointed when Togi Makabe retained the NEVER Openweight Championship at Destruction in Okayama, Tomohiro Ishii came out and issued a challenge for the belt. Add in more disappointment from me. Not because these two aren’t capable of a good match, but because it had been done to death already in 2015. Their prior matches were either really good or really disappointing. They apparently saved their best for last because this was superior to those previous encounters. It was 17:54 of two dudes just beating the fuck out of each other. For the most part, they didn’t reinvent the wheel or do anything new, but it just all clicked better than usual. One new thing was seeing Ishii bust out Makabe’s King Kong Knee Drop. Ishii was able to win back the title, ending their series. For now at least. This set up the third match in the Honma/Ishii 2015 series, which is much better than the Ishii/Makabe series. If you only watch one Ishii/Makabe match from this year, I’d say this is your safest bet for a great one. ****

Kevin's Top 100 Matches of 2015: #90-86

90. No Disqualification Match: Adam Page vs. Jay Briscoe – ROH TV 10/21/15

At the start of the year, if you would have told me that Adam Page would appear on my Top 100 Matches list, I don’t think I would have believed you. However, this was very well built up, with Page targeting Jay Briscoe for a long time. This was a ballsy move since Jay had only been pinned once in about 1,000 days. These are the kind of No Disqualification matches I like. It wasn’t just a stipulation added to be there, instead they made sure to take advantage of it from the start. There was no adhering to the Code of Honor and rightfully so. While Cero Miedo is the most violent match on the list, I’d put this in the top five. It is just two dudes trying to hurt each other, as it should be. I saw a DDT on a chair, a double stomp through a table, a neckbreaker with a chair around Page’s neck and even a damn Jay Driller off the apron and through a table. Somehow though, Page kicked out of that, providing me with one of the more surreal near falls I saw all year. A second Jay Driller kept Page down at 16:21, but I’d say it was a star making performance for him. ***¾

89. Hell in a Cell: Brock Lesnar vs. The Undertaker – Hell in a Cell 10/25/15

I’ve been very vocal about the fact that I wanted nothing to do with this program. After their matches in 2002, I never really cared about it. Sure, when Brock Lesnar broke the streak I was shocked, but the build to the match didn’t interest me. When they decided to revisit it over a year and a half later, I cringed. To my surprise though, their match at SummerSlam was pretty good, but had a stupid ending. That of course led us to this. The final encounter, in the same structure were they had their very best match thirteen years earlier. In an era where blading is a big no-no, both men did so in this match pretty much because they have the stroke to do so. I’m a big fan of their original Hell in a Cell and this honestly nearly matched it. It was a physical war between two of the best in history. In a creative move, Brock ripped the mat and exposed wood. He ate a Tombstone on it but kicked out before putting down his rival with an F5 on the wood at 18:08. It was a fitting end to their feud, which is the only one I can remember Undertaker having where he never cleanly beat his opponent. ***¾

88. Hirooki Goto vs. Kazuchika Okada – NJPW G1 Climax 8/1/15

The IWGP Heavyweight Champion vs. the IWGP Intercontinental Champion. This wasn’t Shinsuke Nakamura as IC Champion either. When he beats an Okada or a Tanahashi, it’s not much of a surprise because he’s also one of the top guys. Hirooki Goto is a bit different and isn’t held in quite as high esteem, though he is a very talented performer. There wasn’t anything personal about this match or anything like that. It felt like exactly the kind of match it should have felt like. The two guys with the top belts in the company, vying to see who is better. I got the feeling that more was at stake than two G1 points. They went back and forth, having each other well scouted and they seemed to have counters for everything. My favorite thing about this was that Goto won cleanly. Just 16:45 of pure action and the top guy lost clean. No bullshit. Unfortunately, after winning the Tag Titles, making the finals of the New Japan Cup, beating Nakamura twice, winning the IC Title and beating Okada cleanly, the rest of Goto’s year kind of went nowhere. ***¾

87. WWE Tag Team Championship 2 Out of 3 Falls: New Day (c) vs. Tyson Kidd and Cesaro – WWE Payback 5/17/15

My favorite WWE tag team match of the year. Tyson Kidd and Cesaro formed as a team on December 1^st, 2014 and found instant chemistry that some teams of a few years could only dream of. The New Day struggled to get over as faces, but once they turned heel and got to let their personalities shine, they took off. I don’t know if I’ve ever seen a heel turn save someone as much as it did for New Day. They dethroned Kidd and Cesaro in a solid match at Extreme Rules the month before this one. They upped the ante for the rematch, throwing in the Two out of Three falls stipulation. The first fall saw Cesaro and Kidd run absolutely wild. They did some things that wowed me, which you wouldn’t expect considering how often I’ve seen them work. They won the first fall before Kidd started to play the face in peril. They did a good job in seeming like the hot tag would come, only for Cesaro to not be there because he was taken out by Big E. That led to New Day evening the score. The third fall played back into Kidd and Cesaro’s strengths, but Xavier Woods snuck in and got three on a roll up to win at 11:55 despite not being involved in the match. The finish was the worst part about this as it just made the referee look like a fool. However, they did well in having a really fun match that played into the “New Day could only win with the numbers advantage” angle. ***¾

86. WWE and United States Championship: Seth Rollins (c) vs. John Cena (c) – WWE SummerSlam 8/23/15

Outside of a pretty dreadful feud with Rusev, John Cena spent 2015 having some of the best matches of his career and making the United States Championship important. With that title at its peak importance, he put it up against Seth Rollins and his WWE Championship in a match with huge implications. Seth busted out some near attire, adding to the big fight feel. He had the crowd firmly in his corner and proceeded to deliver. The night before, Seth was in the front row at NXT TakeOver and was brought to tears by the performances of Bayley and Sasha Banks. It seems like that motivated him to try and steal the show even more than usual because he was absolutely on fire here. The angle was similar to the one ROH ran earlier in the year, and even a spot where Seth did two suicide dives and then a third dive also reminded me of the Lethal/Briscoe match. While Seth was on his “A” game, I don’t really think Cena was. Parts of this were great, while others weren’t. The thing that kept this from reaching four star territory was the ending. Jon Stewart showed up to hit Cena with a chair, allowing Seth to hit the Pedigree and become a double champion at 19:26. There was potential for something special here, but the finish killed it. ***¾

Kevin's Top 100 Matches of 2015: #95-91

95. Cero Miedo: Pentagon Jr. vs. Vamprio - Ultima Lucha 8/5/15

Lucha Underground was easily one of the best things about 2015 in general. Pentagon Jr. was then one of the best things about Lucha Underground. When it came time to build his match for the big Ultima Lucha event, I was disappointed to see it set up to be against Vampiro. While I initially thought Vampiro was cool as a kid, looking back, he never seemed very good in the ring. Add in his age and his weight, and I felt like this was a waste of Pentagon. Boy did the two of them prove me wrong. In no way did I ever expect to see Vampiro on any top list of the year 2015. He was better than I ever expected in what is the most violent match on this list. Light tubes, flaming tables and blood were all involved. Normally, that isn’t my style but it fit what they wanted to accomplish here. Pentagon won after 14:20 when he put Vampiro through a flaming table, but that wasn’t the end. Vampiro demanded Pentagon break his arm before revealing that he was the mysterious “master” whose orders Pentagon had been following all year. Chilling stuff. If we were just talking pure angle, this would rank way higher as it was one of my favorite storylines all year. ***¾

94. NXT Championship: Sami Zayn (c) vs. Adrian Neville - NXT 1/14/15

This was the final leg in a trilogy between these two that spanned two months. In November 2014, they had a match for the belt that I loved before having an all-time classic in December at TakeOver: R-Evolution, where Sami Zayn captured the title. Sami missed time after the Kevin Owens attack but when he returned, Adrian Neville wanted his rematch. He got it on this night in the main event. Neville had to step into the role of challenger for the first time. They played off of their first two matches well, showing us a more aggressive Sami as well as one willing to do what it takes to win. His inability to do those things cost him dearly in their first match. They knew each other so well that their counters had counters and they just were so crisp with everything they did. At one point, Sami looked to be completely out of it following some ranas, only to sneak up and try for the Koji Clutch, perfectly showcasing how far Sami had come during this feud. Sami would hit the Helluva Kick to retain at 11:52 in a match that was shorter than their previous two, but still a great TV main event to cap their excellent rivalry. ***¾

93. Alberto El Patron vs. Johnny Mundo - Ultima Lucha 8/5/15

My second favorite major wrestling show all year was Ultima Lucha. The first night was solid but nothing special, however, it was night two where things really got good. It started with the opening contest between arguably the two most recognizable faces in Lucha Underground, Alberto El Patron and Johnny Mundo, kicked things off. Both guys had some good runs in WWE, but seemed to really thrive in the Temple. Thanks to the feud they had, this got to have a different feel than their match on an earlier episode. That was more based on competition but with Mundo’s heel turn and him throwing Alberto through a window, this match had a personal feel. It mixed solid wrestling with innovative brawling. They used everything from the environment around them including Mundo throwing dirt at El Patron from under the ring. It was just really refreshing to see two guys blend the competition with the heated rivalry so well. Mundo picked up a win after 13:37 thanks to the surprising arrival of Melina, who struck El Patron with his own title. Unfortunately, El Patron won’t be back for Season Two, though that does make this an even better win for Mundo. ***¾

92. ROH World Championship: Jay Lethal (c) vs. Roderick Strong - ROH TV 9/9/15

Jay Lethal captured the ROH World Title in June of this year. His first defense was against Roderick Strong and they went to a one hour draw in a match that I didn’t think was great. Of course, coming out of a draw, there has to be a rematch, which occurred on ROH Television on this night. Here, it went 25:15, so they were able to work a bit quicker instead of dragging things out. The code of honor started things, but the match quickly escalated into something more physical. Lethal is a member of the House of Truth and they made sure to get involved. I didn’t mind it at first since they are a heel unit and interference should be expected. Due to their history, they managed to play off of their past matches, with both guys showing their prior knowledge of one another. They knew what to expect from each other and it made for some fine exchanges throughout. The final few minutes got really good as Strong kicked out of a belt shot and Lethal Injection, which Lethal sold like the most shocking thing since Brock ended the streak. A second Lethal Injection allowed Lethal to retain. I do wish he would have won cleanly in the end, especially considering how the third match in their 2015 trilogy would go down. Still, this was a marked improvement on their first title fight. ***¾

91. Chad Gable and Jason Jordan vs. Johnny Gargano and Tommaso Ciampa – NXT 10/28/15

He hasn’t been around for a while, but Chad Gable is already one of my favorite wrestlers. The guy just gets it and has picked up wrestling incredibly quickly, making the various Kurt Angle comparisons kind of accurate. His dynamic with Jason Jordan and their chemistry is just so good already. They’ve only just started teaming, but they work more smoothly than almost any other current tag team. This match gave everyone a little bit of something. Gable was a wiz on the mat while Jordan threw his opponents around. Gargano and Ciampa were no slouches either, getting their stuff in which got pops from the fans who know them well and from the people just being introduced. There were some cool little things like Gable casually asking Jordan if he should break Johnny’s arm like it was nothing. Despite never working each other, the match goes at such a breakneck pace, you’d think they wrestled countless times. The back suplex double team finisher got Gable and Jordan the win after 11:58 in the best tag team match on NXT all year. ***¾

Kevin's Top 100 Matches of 2015: 100-96

In recent years, I kind of stopped watching many indy promotions and stuck to only the WWE. Not because I didn't like the indies, but because I was pressed for time. However, entering 2015, I made it a point to watch as much wrestling as I could. I got back into some indies and saw some Japanese wrestling for the first time. With all of the wrestling I watched, I've compiled a lengthy Top 100 Matches of 2015 list, spanning the WWE, NJPW, ROH, TNA, PWG, Evolve, LU, RPW, Dragon Gate and Pro Wrestling NOAH. Normally, I wouldn't make a list this large, but, after focusing on mainly WWE only the past few years, I made it a point to watch as much wrestling as possible in 2015. This year just so happened to have TONS of great matches and enough that I could make a Top 100, featuring so much greatness.

100. WWE Intercontinental Championship Ladder Match – WWE WrestleMania 3/29/15

We open with the most randomly, and poorly, booked match on this list. Instead of trying to build an Intercontinental Title match with some intrigue, the WWE chose to throw seven guys into a match simply because they had nothing for them though still felt they were above the Andre the Giant Battle Royal. R-Truth, Stardust, the champion Bad News Barrett and Luke Harper joined the three most popular faces not named John Cena at the time, Daniel Bryan, Dean Ambrose and Dolph Ziggler. While the lead into this was a clusterfuck in a bad way, the actual match was a clusterfuck in a good way. Everybody got at least one moment to shine, even if it was small like Truth’s spot. There some nice little personal moments in like Stardust getting out his own personal ladder only for Barrett to break it. We saw some big spots, namely Ambrose taking a powerbomb through a ladder, but they didn’t overdo it. It came down to Bryan and Ziggler, both very hot with the fans at the time, as they battled with right hands and headbutts atop the ladder. Bryan won out and pulled down the belt at 13:47 to become Intercontinental Champion one year after winning the WWE Title. ***¾

99. Jay Lethal and Shinsuke Nakamura vs. reDRagon - ROH Field of Honor 8/22/15

Here we have a tag team main event from Ring of Honor’s Field of Honor show, which took place in a baseball stadium. The event featured top talent from both ROH and New Japan Pro Wrestling, headlined by this tag team match. ROH World and Television Champion Jay Lethal teaming with Shinsuke Nakamura to face, in my opinion, the best tag team in pro wrestling, reDRagon. Lethal and Nakamura played opposites, which made things fun. Lethal was being a dick, so Nakamura let him get his ass kicked, before hilariously hugging him as a form of an apology. There was some great back and forth here from everyone. With Kyle O’Reilly set for a World Title shot against Lethal, they did a good job in showing that he was a legit threat. A highlight came when Nakamura countered Kyle’s rebound lariat into a gorgeous armbar. Lethal won for his team with Lethal Injection on Bobby Fish at 21:28 in a match that I would certainly describe as fun. ***¾

98. Michael Elgin vs. Tomoaki Honma - NJPW G1 Climax 8/1/15

When Michael Elgin was announced for the G1 Climax, myself and a lot of others groaned. I remember hearing rumors of Roderick Strong being in and I like him a lot more than Elgin. However, Elgin seemed to love working in Japan. Not only that, but the G1 style works very well for him. It allows him to work 10-15 minute bursts where he can do the things that he does well instead of trying to work a 25 minute classic and getting lost. Tomoaki Honma has also had some great 10-15 minute matches in the past two years in the G1. That made for a very good pairing in this one. Since its Honma, the crowd was very into everything that happened in this one. For those unaware, Honma competed in the G1 last year and went completely winless, but won over the fans with his efforts and performances. At this point, he was still winless this year. From cheering for him to being wowed by some of Elgin’s feats of strengths, they reacted to everything as they should have. Honma is so good at playing the underdog, which was perfect here since Elgin came off looking like a beast in the G1. There were some close calls but Honma would have to wait a little longer before getting his first G1 win, losing to a flurry of powerbombs from Elgin after 9:55. ***¾

97. Taiji Ishimori vs. Zack Sabre Jr. -  NOAH Global League Finals 11/8/15

After seeing Zack Sabre Jr. and Taiji Ishimori have a pretty great exchange in the Jr. Tag League match that I watched, I was eager for more. Enter the Global League Tournament Finals show. Sabre and Ishimori competed in a number one contender’s match with the winner getting a GHC Jr. Heavyweight Title shot. As a nice added touch, both guys got pre-match interviews, with Sabre hyping them as rivals, though he’s never beaten Ishimori. That got me more invested in the match, which turned out to be exactly what I expect from a Sabre match. Good old fashioned technical expertise. He went after the arm relentless and Ishimori sold the work done to it well. I didn’t have a dog in the fight, but found myself clutching my remote, growing tense at the thought of a Sabre loss. I wanted him to beat Ishimori for the first time. Alas, Ishimori would not be denied after 11:13. With a bit more time and a Sabre win, this would have ranked higher. ***¾

96. IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Championship: KUSHIDA (c) vs. Ricochet - G1 Climax Finals 8/16/15

Here we have an IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Title match. I’ve gone on record and stated that the junior division in New Japan is among my least favorite things about the promotion. The talent is mostly there, but the booking is incredibly shoddy. There also needs to be some variety but I digress. The best thing about the division in 2015 was easily KUSHIDA. After winning the Best of the Super Junior Tournament and dethroning Kenny Omega for the strap, his first defense was scheduled against Ricochet. Ricochet beat KUSHIDA in the finals of the 2014 BOTSJ, giving him an edge in this match. KUSHIDA went after the arm, looking for the Hover Board Lock. Ricochet, being one of the better high flyers in the world, wanted to quicken the pace and this was their struggle throughout the match. Some of the things they did were breathtaking and their chemistry is just so good that it was all seamless. Ricochet would miss the 630 before submitting to the Hover Board Lock at 17:00. With them tied at 1, Ricochet made note that a tiebreaker was needed. Unfortunately, KUSHIDA dropped the belt back to Omega in a stupid decision about a month later. ***¾