1001 MATCHES: Big One (2000s)
(by PHIL RIPPA)
Third part of THE BIG ONE~! All matches took place between 2000-2009
446) CHRISTOPHER DANIELS vs. MIKE MODEST – APW (01/22/00)
Mike Modest and Christopher Daniels had two awesome matches that helped people discover the Cali indie wrestling scene. One was 1999 and one was 2000. I am going to be totally honest. It has been 15 years since I have watched them so I don’t really remember which one is technically better. This one fits better with the category splits I am doing. So there.
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447) TRIPLE H/X-PAC/CHRIS BENOIT/PERRY SATURN/DEAN MALENKO vs. ROCK/CACTUS JACK/RIKISHI/TOO COOL (GRANDMASTER SEXAY/SCOTTY TOO HOTTY) – WWF RAW (02/7/00)
So much going on in one main event segment. The Radicals turn heel for… reasons. Rock and Jack prepare to go 2 on 5. Too Cool and Rikishi suddenly get thrust into the picture. Steph on commentary for… reasons. Kane returns. Molten crowd.
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448) ROCK vs. TRIPLE H – WWF JUDGEMENT DAY ’00 (05/21/00 – 60 Minute Ironman Match)
http://dai.ly/x2sbs2v
I still remember everyone thinking “Holy Shit – this sounds like a terrible idea”. We were at Schneider’s crib to watch the PPV and he was yelling at all of us that we weren’t allowed to read the WON or go to the bathroom or leave. We were going to suffer through all 60 minutes. And then they tour the fucking house down. Bonus historical reasons to watch: Undertaker debuting the American Badass gimmick and while doing the worst save in history. Oh and they fuck up the timing of the finish. Good times.
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449) GOLDBERG vs. SCOTT STEINER – WCW FALL BRAWL ’00 (09/17/00 – No DQ)
http://dai.ly/x2risg
I don’t want to say this is the last great WCW match because it isn’t technically great. But it is Scott Steiner and Goldberg just beating the absolute hell out of each other. To the surprise of no one – the end is ruined by Vince Russo. But really – you should probably should witness that once to get a sense of the death of a federation.
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450) EL HIJO DEL SANTO vs. DR CEREBRO – IWRG (12/21/00 – IWRG Intercontinental Welterweight Championship)
Santo and Cerebro had a great mini-fed in IWRG but none of you watched it because you hate lucha and especially IWRG. Of course – the match I liked the best I can’t find. Guess I will have to find my copy and upload it. You have all been warned. Anyway – this is the match match of the series and probably the best. So much mat wrestling that builds to a third fall where everyone lets it all hang out. God – wrestling on ESPN 2 was amazing.
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451) QUIET STORM/BRIAN XL/CHRIS DEVINE vs. SPANISH ANNOUNCE TEAM (AMAZING RED/JOSE & JOEL MAXIMO) – COMBAT ZONE WRESTLING (06/08/01)
I am fairly sure this was from the very first CZW show but now that I am typing that I am having doubts. Oh well – it is still a super fun 6 man
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452) CHRIS JERICHO vs. THE ROCK – WWF NO MERCY ’01 (10/21/01 – WCW Championship)
For awhile, Jericho said in interviews that this was his best match. I am pretty sure he has changed that to the Shawn Michaels Mania match but the point stands.
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453) EL DANDY vs. NEGRO NAVARRO – IWRG (11/18/11)
MORE WRESTLING ON ESPN 2. I could watch El Dandy and Negro Navarro take it to the mat forever.
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454) SHINYA HASHIMOTO vs. MASATO TANAKA – ZERO-ONE (11/07/03)
Reviewed by Schneider in DVDVR #145
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455) TOSHIAKI KAWADA vs. HIROYOSHI TENZAN – ALL JAPAN (12/05/04 – Triple Crown)
I am sure Necro Butcher vs. Toby Klein is better…
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456) MISTICO vs. ULTIMO GUERRERO – CMLL (02/25/05)
For those who want to get a taste of why folks were making a big deal of Mistico awhile back. This was the first match of his vs. Ultimo Guerrero. The finish is sports entertainy as heck but that is kinda fitting for Sin Cara/Myzteziz/Caristico.
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457) KENTA vs. YOSHINOBU KANEMARU – NOAH “DESTINY ’05” (07/18/05 – GHC Jr. Heavyweight Championship)
HE GOT SHINNING WIZARDED IN THE FACE! OUTRAGE! Yup… that match.
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458) LOW KI vs. NECRO BUTCHER – IWA MIDSOUTH (04/01/06)
Reviewed by Schneider in DVDVR #174
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459) TRACY SMOTHERS vs. RIC CONVERSE – CWF MID-ATLANTIC (04/22/06 – Mid-Atlantic Heavyweight Title)
CWF Mid-Atlantic just put this up recently as their throwback match and I couldn’t be more excited. Wanna see why we have spent the last dozen years or so getting excited when Tracy Smothers shows up on an indie show? Right here. Bonus of so many younger versions of folks ending up around ringside.
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460) UNDERTAKER vs. GREAT KHALI – WWE SMACKDOWN (August 8, 2006 – Last Man Standing)
Reviewed by Rippa in DVDVR #172
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461) WRESTLING SOCIETY X RUMBLE MATCH – (01/30/07 (Aired), (02/10/06 (Taped))
Figured I should through on a Wrestle Society X match in here as it very much was the precursor to Lucha Underground. Random warehouse type feel, Ricky Banderas as a monster with mythical powers, Vampiro. Though – El Rey clearly cares more about LU than MTV ever did Wrestle Society X. This might be the only match that was over four minutes.
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462) SOLAR 1/MANO NEGRA vs. NEGRO NAVARRO/BLACK TERRY – AULL (03/10/07)
http://www.veoh.com/watch/v1415480NrPrxt7k
Schneider’s description of “old, fat luchadores ruling it on the mat” is gonna be better than anything I can come up with.
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463) YUJI NAGATA vs. HIROSHI TANAHASHI – NEW JAPAN (04/13/07 – IWGP World Heavyweight Championship)
http://www.veoh.com/watch/v457528pBEntKWp
Yuji Nagata sure is swell. Tanahashi is whatever. This is one of their like 94282 matches. I think – THINK – I picked the right 2007 match.
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464) WATARU SAKATA vs. THE ESPERANZA – HUSTLE “HUSTLEMania 2007” (11/25/07)
http://www.veoh.com/watch/v181853103QCXTdEp
I had really debated just completly ignoring HUSTLE for this project because, fuck, how the fuck do you really categorizing it. But this match might be the perfect summary for HUSTLE (plus it is easier to digest than Akebono – immaculate conception baby). Can Wataru Sakata, on behalf of the New Hustle Army, be the one to final defeat the monster Esperanza? CLICK THE VIDEO TO FIND OUT!
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465) MATT HARDY vs. FINLAY vs. JOHN MORRISON vs. THE MIZ – ECW (07/22/08 – Winner gets ECW Heavyweight Title Shot at Summerslam)
http://dai.ly/xceops
Super 4 way for the right to face Mark Henry at Summerslam. The WWE version of ECW became this hidden little gem of a promotion that, not for the first time, people didn’t pay attention to because it was buried on the Sci Fi channel and it wasn’t the ECW that everyone remembered. Fuck that – this was great.
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466) CLAUDIO CASTAGNOLI vs. BRODIE LEE – CHIKARA (09/07/08) – CHIKARA (09/07/08 – Cage Match)
First ever CHIKARA cage match between the men who would be Cesaro and Luke Harper. This is the version of CHIKARA I wanna watch – not all the other nonsense.
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467) KURT ANGLE vs. ABYSS – TNA TURNING POINT ’08 (Kurt Angle vs Abyss (11/09/08 – Falls Count Anywhere)
https://youtu.be/805fFUJyj5k
A shockingly good Abyss match – possibly the best one of his career where a coked out of his mind Kurt Angle decides to bump… well like a guy coked out of his mind.
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468) ALEXANDER OTSUKA vs. YUJIRO YAMAMOTO – BATTLEARTS (02/15/09)
http://dai.ly/xa4wjb
A decade after everyone had moved on and total forgot about the fed – here is The old Diet Butcher just rolling on. I really enjoyed Yamamoto’s struggle to, well, basically survive.
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469) KATSUHIKO NAKAJIMA vs. KENTA – NOAH (03/01/09 – GHC Junior Heavyweight Title)
http://dai.ly/x391b6b
There was a time that seems so long ago where Kenta Kobayashi was one of the best wrestlers in the world and not injury prone reduced to sending emo tweets. Here he against Nakajima – who really didn’t feel like he was of legal drinking age back in 2009. This match finished third in the WON Match of the Year balloting and it was too low at that.
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470) KOJI KANEMOTO vs. FUJITA JR. HAYATO – NEW JAPAN SUPER J CUP ’09 (12/22/09)
First round match of 5th ever Super J Cup. Kanemoto – at the age of 42 – turns up grumpy dick to 11 and beats the hell out of Hayato. And Hayato is totally fine returning the stiffness. Man – the more I think about it Hayato might be my favorite Jinsei Shinzaki trainee (or at least until I remember someone I like more).
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