Post by TheShowJordanRichards on Jan 12, 2017 7:26:27 GMT -5
As everyone knows by now, New Japan offered it's yearly supercard, WrestleKingdom, for the eleventh time of January 4, 2017. The main event was an epic battle for the top prize in all of the Orient, the IWGP Heavyweight Championship. The combatants? The first is the incumbent NJPW kingpin and four-time defending IWGP Champion, "Rainmaker" Kazuchika Okada. His foil? The recently-turned heavyweight competitor, de facto leader of "The Bullet Club," and most recent winner of the annual G-1 Climax tournament (which guaranteed his place in this match), "The Cleaner" Kenny Omega.
I'll admit that I did not think much of this match on paper, once I knew it was going to happen. Kenny Omega has spent his entire career as a junior heavyweight spot monkey, who plied most of his craft on the Canadian and American independent scene, before finally landing in NJPW several years ago. I did not buy him as a main event level heavyweight...until this match.
Let me just say that the main event of WK 11 was phenomenal. It was a work of art, and ebbing and flowing of athletics that wowed everyone who has seen it so far, including insider "guru" and founder of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Dave Meltzer. Meltzer has made no bones about the fact that he highly prefers "Strong Style" puroresu over the North American pro wrestling model of storytelling. This love is reflected in his vaunted star rating system for pro wrestling matches, wherein the vast majority of 5-star (his highest rating) matches in history are Japanese.
Now, to the point at hand. Meltzer actually gave this match six stars, stating that a 5-star rating just wasn't good enough for what he had witnessed. I've only seen him do that one other time. In March of 1989, Ric Flair and Rick Steamboat wrestled a double-shot (two cards in one day), the first being a matinee in Landover, MD, with the second being a night event in Philadelphia, PA. Meltzer gave the matinee match six stars, saying that "5 stars doesn't do it justice." BTW, the Philly match got 4.75 stars.
Well, Meltzer has said publicly that he thinks the Okada-Omega match may have been the greatest match in the history of professional wrestling--not just in Japan, but in the world and for all time. So, my friends, I ask you, is Dave Meltzer correct? Is the WK 11 main event the greatest match ever performed in history? I certainly have my opinion on the matter, but I'd like to hear yours before I give it.
So, let's discuss! The floor is open...
