After seeing Sean Casey’s Video Blog and being the huge wrestling “mark” that I am. I had to reply with my own favorite wrestling matches of my life time and the greatest wrestling matches of my life time. Since the blog world is a fan of lists, mine will be a simple Top 5 with some history or random info surrounding the match up.

Top Five Favorite Matches:

5. The Midnight Express v The Rock and Roll Express (WCW Wrestle War ’90, Greensboro, NC )
- This was THE tag team feud of the 1980’s in the NWA. This was the first time that I had ever seen these two teams match up. Just overall a fun match between two of the best and athletic tag teams in wrestling history.

The Greatest Tag Team ever?

4. WCW World and U.S. Tag Team Champions, The Steiner Brothers vs IWGP Champions Hiro Hase & Kensuke Sasaki (WCW International Starrcade ’91, Tokyo, Japan)
- The Steiner Brothers made history by beating this Japanese tandem and holding 3 major tag team titles at one time. This match is hard-hitting and defined what kind of team Rick and Scott were in their prime. They would later go on to win the WWF Tag Team Titles and came very close to winning the ECW Tag Team Titles years later. They returned to WCW in 1996 where they would capture Tag Team gold multiple times before they split to pursue singles gold. The victory in this match silicified them as the greatest tag team in wrestling history.  

3. Stone Cold Steve Austin v Bret Hart (WWF Survivor Series 1996, New York, NY)
- Following his Wrestlemaina 12 title defeat, Bret Hart took the summer and early fall off from wrestling, he even moonlighted with WCW.  He says he came back to take on the best wrestler in the WWF in Steve Austin. This is one of the best, intense matches you will ever see. Being able to hang with and almost beat “The Hitman” also helped put Steve Austin on the wrestling map. 

RVD can handle a push!

2. WWE Champion, John Cena v Rob Van Dam (ECW One Night Stand ’06, Manhattan, NY)
- John Cena is one of the most underappreciated wrestlers of this generation. Love him or hate him, he can talk, wrestle and brings emotion to a match. RVD might be the most athletic wrestler the business has ever seen. Van Dam made his name in North America by wrestling in the original Extreme Championship Wrestling. He earned the chance to fight Cena at anytime and anyplace he wanted by winning Money in the Bank at Wrestlemaina 22. These two battled in front of the most passionate crowd seen on a WWE pay per view in years at One Night Stand 05. This match of the year candidate was the jumping off point for the WWE to bring back the ECW letters.

1. WWF Champion, The Rock v “Mankind” Mick Foley (WWF Raw, December ‘98 – Worchester, MA)
- The loudest pop I’ve ever heard live was when Mick won this match in front of me and 12,000 of my fellow Foley fans. This match was all about Mick winning the belt, which no one thought he would ever do. This match aired on TV 6 days later and was the largest audience switch from WCW Nitro to WWF Raw in the history of the Monday Night Wrestling War. Sean Grande tells a great story about this match in the Q&A I did with him last week.

Top Five Greatest Matches of my life time:

At One Time the Best Wrestler in the World!

5. WWE Champion, Kurt Angle v Chris Benoit (WWE Royal Rumble ‘03, Boston, MA)
- This was the greatest and most important wrestling match I’ve ever seen live. This match followed an awful Scott Steiner-Triple H World Title match. The crowd wanted to love this match and these two didn’t disappoint. I understand how dirty the name Chris Benoit is, but as an in ring performer he was one of the greatest of all time. This was the match that made everyone see that he belonged in the main event. Kurt Angle had just won the WWE Title and  was just stepping into his own as a top wrestler. This match was a showcase of both men’s talents and it was for the richest prize in the game.

4. Kurt Angle v Shawn Michaels (WWE Wrestlemaina 21, Los Angeles, CA)
- I actually said the September before this match happened how cool it would be to see them in the ring together. Someone in Stanford, CT must have heard me. This match could stand as the greatest wrestling match in the history of Wrestlemaina. Find it on DVD and watch the story they tell, you won’t be disappointed.

Before WWE, Punk was in ROH

3. ROH World Champion, Samoa Joe v C.M. Punk (ROH Punk-Joe II, 10-16-04, Chicago, IL)
- Ring of Honor Wrestling is a throw back of shorts. It is a striaght wrestling company with less of the “sports entertainment” feel to the product. ROH is best known world wide for it’s hard hitting, strong style of pro wrestling. Dave Melter of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter rated this a 5-star match. The first time a 5 star ratting had been given to a match in North America since 1987. This was the second of a three match series and the second 60 minute time limit draws. This was a back and forth match that tested the limits of fans and the wrestlers. Joe is currently the TNA World Champion and Punk is currently the WWE Raw World Champion.

2. Bret Hart v “Mr. Perfect” Curt Henning (WWF King of The Ring ’92, Dayton, OH)
- A wrestling purest dream match between a pair of second generation wrestlers. This back and forth battle was the best match these two ever had. WWE Hall of Fame broadcaster Jim Ross, was on his game during this match. He helped make a great match even greater, if that’s possible. The more popular match is when Bret wins the Intercontinental Championship from Henning at Summer Slam ’90 in New York. This match was the re-match and blows that one away.  

A 16-Time World Champion

1. NWA World Heavyweight Champion Ricky Steamboat v Ric Flair (Wrestle War ’89, Nashville, TN)
- This was the third and final battle in 1989 between these two veterans of the squared circle. Steamboat returned to World Championship Wrestling after a stint in the WWF and upset Flair in Chicago at the Chi-Town Rumble and captured the NWA Championship. In their second battle Steamboat won 2 of 3 falls from Flair in a controversial fashion.  This was the best match of the three, as for more than 30 minutes Flair and Steamboat battled back and forth for the NWA Title. They even brought in judges to score the match just in case it went to a 60-minute time limit draw. Flair would caputure his 6th World Championship by using an inside craddle.

I’m going to try and blog about wrestling at least once a week, WEEI dot com boss Rob Bradford is cool with it and actually encouraged it. As I mentioned wrestling is also a passion of mine and if you listen to some of the music and sound drops during the radio show, you already knew that. Have you heard that the Dale and Holley Show during the spring ratings book was the highest rated show on the station? Well now you have!

I’d love to get Feedback on your favorite and greatest wrestling matches of all time. Questions are always welcome at jstewart850@yahoo.com and maybe your question will show up in a mail bag.

3 Comments for “Favorite and Greatest Wrestling Matches of all time…”

1. Brian in Wakefield Says:
   August 27th, 2008 at 4:45 am

   Jimmy, love the blog. Bostons always been a great pro sports town, and pro wrestling is no exception. At least the WWE thinks so, Boston has hosted all of the original big 4 WWE PPV’s (2003 Royal Rumble, Wrestlemania XIV, 2006 SummerSlam, and the 1993 Survivor Series.) We are home to the longest reining WWE champ this industry has seen in 20+ years (love Cena by the way) Some of my favorite matches, not on the list………

   1. Macho King vs Ultimate Warrior Career Match Wrestlemania 7

   2. Hulk Hogan vs Ultimate Warrior Wrestlemania 6

   3. Matt Hardy vs Edge loser leaves Raw

   4. Bret Hart vs Owen Hart Wrestlemania X (probably my favorite rivalry of the modern WWE era)

   5. Razor Ramon vs Shawn Micheals ladder match WM X

2. Two Touch Says:
   August 29th, 2008 at 3:06 pm

   I look forward to many more interesting blogs regarding the pro wrestling industry. I recently re-watched the Steamboat-Flair match from ‘89 you mentioned. As entertaining as high-flying, lucador style wrestling can be, I always enjoy 2 greats going at it in a pure wrestling match. Keep up the good work, Jimmy.

3. ricky Says:
   September 15th, 2008 at 12:50 pm

   hey shawn v/s john cen (RAW) would have been the greatest of all of then specified,, it got everything skills, technique and hardness and yeah the shawn several sweet chin music , cena’s several FU’s ..how could it be underrated,,,its the best of all ages…hope take it in mind in further blog..

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