In this monthly recurring series, the residents of Wrestle Inn will offer you their recommendation for a single match you should seek out from the last month. We might not always highlight the “best” match; perhaps we’ll pick a hidden gem instead, or a match that you may not have heard of from a promotion different to what you usually watch. But, we can guarantee that all of these picks will be more than worth your time!
Corey Michaels recommends:
Bryan Danielson vs Eddie Kingston, Dynamite: New Year’s Smash (AEW, December 27)
Stop me if you’ve heard this before: The Continental Classic is one of the best gimmicks in 2023. This tournament has churned out some high-tier matches and the concept shows promise in the years to come. The long-running story of Eddie Kingston reaching the mountaintop after fighting legends, wrestling in Japan, winning gold, and defeating rival Claudio Castagnoli set the stage for closure with The American Dragon. A centered, calmer, thick-skinned Mad King withstood the mental chess by Danielson, vindicating the Full Gear match and the December 2 bout. In an event choc-full of stories, the Continental Classic has made for a memorable experience.
Ryan Dilbert recommends:
Hanan and Saya Iida vs Ami Sourei and Lady C, New Blood 12 (STARDOM, December 25)
From the first flurry of forearms to the final resounding suplex, this match does not let up. The pace is go-go-go, full of urgency and intensity. Rising stars Ami Sourei and Hanan both rock here, giving us a glimpse of what those two could pull off in 2024. As a bonus, it is free to watch on the ol’ YouTube.
Adam Ryan recommends:
Ciclope vs Violento Jack, Nick Gage Invitational (GCW, December 30)
In a deathmatch tournament, general insanity is expected but this… this was far beyond anything I expected! The chaos starts before the bell as the two trade shots like they owe money to each other, the violence ratcheting up as Ciclope crashes through a glass pane covered in Christmas ornaments. Later in the match, Ciclope slams Jack through another glass pane from the apron, but this time it’s covered with jagged soda cans. The spot in the match that made me gasp, though, was an incredibly stiff powerbomb from Jack that sent Ciclope into a board covered with even more jagged soda cans. This had very minimal downtime when setting up murderous moments, they went straight from one thing into another in an insane, bloody brawl that is a fantastic example of how wild lucha extrema can be.
Trent Breward recommends:
Katsuhiko Nakajima vs Kento Miyahara, AJPW Mania x 2023 (AJPW, December 31)
Katsuhiko Nakajima walked into the house Giant Baba built to Antonio Inoki’s original Ali Bomaye theme, then proceeded to try and decimate the heart and soul of the company on the final night of 2023. These two work incredible magic together and we saw it earlier in the year, but this time around the stakes were higher. Miyahara has the best home field advantage in wrestling, but there’s no one more methodically violent and dangerous in wrestling than Nakajima. Another match of the year contender between these two in 2023, and you shouldn’t miss either one!
Steve Howard recommends:
Eddie Kingston vs Jon Moxley, Worlds End (AEW, December 30)
The culmination of the inaugural Continental Classic saw a hard hitting and emotionally filled match. Eddie looked out of the tournament after a couple of early losses but recovered to make the final. Mox seemed in control early on but Eddie showed great heart to keep in the match. The match ebbed and flowed before Eddie was finally victorious. The emotion in Eddie’s eyes mirrored the emotion in mine as the announcers referenced the sadly departed Mad Kurt.
CiaranRH recommends:
Kazuchika Okada, Hiroshi Tanahashi and Tomohiro Ishii vs HENARE, Jeff Cobb and Great-O-Khan, Road to Tokyo Dome (NJPW, December 21)
This is a perfect example of what NJPW is; a molten-hot Korakuen Hall crowd elevated this match into the stratosphere as HENARE and Ishii stole the show. Crushingly close near-falls, heads being decapitated and brains being busted, these six men put on what may just be the best NEVER 6-Man Championship match we have ever seen.
Fusa recommends:
Athena vs Billie Starkz, Final Battle (ROH, December 15)
The match that solidified Billie Starkz is the future of AEW and women’s wrestling as a whole. From being taken under Athena’s wing, to being given a 6 digit minion number, to finally snapping and having enough of Athena’s abuse, Billie was always the center of attention in ROH’s best story of 2023. In the 2nd women’s main event in a row to headline an ROH PPV, both these women showed why they deserved that spot. Counters to each others big moves from their knowledge of being allies and testing each other with things they didn’t know they had in them. Te respect and bond of the forever champ and her minion in training being re-kindled was the real prize of the match.
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