Top Matches I Watched in April 2023
By Alex Kalil
Mania week comes to a close with an incredible show! NJPW, AEW and even Stardom had some incredible matches as well. This was another amazing month of wrestling with 2023 quickly becoming one of the best years for wrestling ever maybe. Hope we keep it up
Fatal Five Way Match for the NXT North American Championship: Wes Lee (c) vs. JD McDonagh vs. Ilja Dragunov vs. Dragon Lee vs. Axiom at NXT Stand & Deliver 2023: A wild and enjoyable spot-fest. Everyone got a chance to shine and be the highlight of the match. Dragunov and McDonagh continued their feud nicely, Dragon Lee got to show off and get over with the fans, Axiom showed he belonged to be in the match and Wes Lee showed why he is still the champion. Some great spots and sequences with a slick finish as Dragunov hits Torpedo Moscow on Dragon Lee at the same time as Wes Lee hits him with a Cardiac Kick to get the win. ****1/4
Unsanctioned Match: Johnny Gargano vs. Grayson Waller at NXT Stand & Deliver 2023: A brutal and violent match! Both men utilized trash cans, chairs, tables and kendo sticks to punish each other. Waller does a great job of getting heat on Gargano in front of his wife and kid until Candice sees enough and jumps the barricade to attack Waller! Gargano hits One Final Beat and locks in Gargano Escape but Waller goes to the eyes to take back over. Crazy spot with Waller hitting a Coast to Coast and goes for a big table spot but Gargano throws a chair into his face! Low blow by Waller buys him time but Gargano low blows him right back. Gargano wraps a chair around Walller's head and blasts him with another chair before the Gargano Escape gets the win. Very fun violent match that made Waller look great even in defeat. ****1/4
NXT Championship Match: Bron Breakker (c) vs. Carmelo Hayes at NXT Stand & Deliver 2023: A good match to highlight these two young stars. Bron easily has the advantage in terms of power while Hayes has to use his quickness to try and keep control. Good back and forth action all match with both men pulling out all the stops to win. A Spear by Bron hits the referee and takes him out. Steiner Recliner locked in on Hayes and he taps but no ref. Trick Williams in and hits Bron from behind with the belt for a big near-fall for Hayes. Bron recovers and looks for the Press Slam but Hayes counters into a Codebreaker before hitting Nothing but Net to get the win. Good stuff. ****
Seth Rollins vs. Logan Paul at WWE Wrestlemania 39 Night 1:A really great heated match. Rollins starts off in control but Logan's quickness allows him to fight back and uses his powerful right hand to work over Rollins' midsection. Logan misses a moonsault and gives Rollins an opening to fight back. Rollins hits a stomp on Logan's right hand to take away that weapon. Back in the ring, the two trade quick pin attempts before Logan nails Rollins with a right hand but can't follow up because of the damage done to it. Rollins is able to hit the Curb Stomp but KSI, Logan's friend, pulls Logan out to the floor and gives Logan an opening to lay out Rollins on the announcer's table. Big splash by Logan but Rollins pulls KSI on the table in his place! Pedigree follows but only two! Rollins goes for the stomp again but Logan hits a gutbuster and Frog Splash for two as well! Logan goes for broke and looks for a Coast to Coast but is caught by a Superkick. Curb Stomp follows and finally ends it. What a match! ****1/4
Rey Mysterio vs. Dominik Mysterio at WWE Wrestlemania 39 Night 1: An overbooked but super fun story-telling match. Rey starts off out-wrestling Dominik and easily controls the match even spanking his son with his belt. Dominik keeps going to the outside and gets in his family's face to distract Rey and hitting him with cheap shots. Battle becomes a more back and forth match as we get run-ins from Judgement Day and LWO. Dominik gets a big near-fall hitting the Frog Splash on his father but it's not enough. Dominik tries to use a chain but Bad Bunny takes it away which leaves Dominik open for a 619 and Frog Splash to give Rey the win. Amazing heel heat all match for Dominik and just a ton of fun to watch ****
WWE Smackdown Women's Championship Match: Charlotte Flair (c) vs. Rhea Ripley at WWE Wrestlemania 39 Night 1: A phenomenal match! Both women have their strategies for the match: Rhea wants to fight, brawl and be physical while Charlotte looks to out-wrestle the young upstart and looks for the Figure Four all match. Some great back and forth action with both women throwing stiff strikes and brutal suplexes at each other. Rhea is able to keep blocking the Figure Four and eventually hits the Riptide for only a 2! Rhea tries to wrestle Charlotte and goes for a small package for a near-fall right into the Prism Trap but Charlotte gets to the ropes. Charlotte rocks Rhea with a big boot and finally gets the Figure Four on but Rhea fights to the ropes. Charlotte gets frustrated and goes to the top with Rhea only to get dropped on the ring post. A top rope Riptide ends it! New champion! Rhea was able to weather the storm and kept on Charlotte all match and frustrate her into making a mistake and diverting from her game plan to take advantage. Excellent match! ****1/2
Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship Match: The Usos (c) vs. Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn at WWE Wrestlemania 39 Night 1: A fantastic tag match! Sami and Jey start off and The Usos are able to isolate Sami to get the heat early on. Sami fights back enough to get the tag to Owens who runs wild. Owens with an Uso Splash for a big near-fall. Sami gets the tag back in and hits a Blue Thunder Bomb for another near-fall but a blind tag to Jey allows the Usos to batter Sami with superkicks. Owens is put through a table and Sami is all alone. 1D on Sami but he kicks out! Sami is still alive! Jey with a Helluva Kick but Sami answers with an Exploder in the corner! Hot tag to Owens! Stunner but only 2! Usos unload more superkicks. Double Uso Splash still isn't enough! The two teams just start slugging it out! Owens takes out Jimmy, it's Sami and Jey alone in the ring. Hulluva Kick by Sami. And a second one. One more Hulluva Kick and Sami and Owens are the new tag champions! What a war! What a match! ****1/2
Triple Threat Match for the WWE Intercontinental Championship: Gunther (c) vs. Sheamus vs. Drew McIntyre at WWE Wrestlemania 39 Night 2: What a fight! These three men came into this match wanting to beat the hell out of each other. Match was nothing but chops, clothesline, kicks and all three men throwing bombs at each other. Sheamus nails Gunther with a Brogue Kick and looks to have the match won but Drew pulls him off the pin. The two friends go at it with big strikes and both men hitting their finishers. Sheamus hits a second Brogue Kick but Gunther comes off the top with a splash to break up the pin! Powerbomb to Sheamus on top of Drew and then a powerbomb to Drew and Gunther retains! Beautiful violent wrestling! ****1/2
WWE RAW Women's Championship Match: Bianca Belair (c) vs. Asuka at WWE Wrestlemania 39 Night 2: A really good back and forth match between these two. Love the story of the match with both women being even in terms of speed so both need to use different strategies to get the advantage. Bianca uses her power and strength to manhandle Asuka while Asuka looks to pick at Bianca with strikes and looks for submissions all match. As the match progresses, Bianca's power is looking to be too much for Asuka so Asuka tries to use the mist but Bianca ducks it. Bianca gets Asuka up for the KOD but Asuka rolls out of it and locks in an arm bar. Bianca is able to muscle Asuka up and hits the KOD for the win! A really good match that peaked with a really well done finish. ****
Undisputed WWE Universal Championship Match: Roman Reigns (c) vs. Cody Rhodes at WWE Wrestlemania 39 Night 2: A near perfect wrestling match. The crowd is electric before these two even touch. Cody is able to match Roman's wrestling early on before the power of Roman shuts down Cody's momentum. Roman goes to work on the mid-section of Cody with punches and slams on the outside. Cody starts to fight back but a chair shot to the ribs by Solo puts Roman back in the driver seat. Roman goes for a powerbomb through the announce table but Cody back drops him through it! Cody is back in control but again, Solo comes in with a belt shot to Cody's back. The referee hears the shot and throws Solo out. Both men start throwing big shots at each other with Cody hitting Cross Rhodes and using a Pedigree and Figure Four for close near-falls. Cody comes off the top right into a Spear but only 2! Now Roman is starting to worry. He starts unloading shots on Cody and locks in the Guillotine Choke. Cody is fading but he fights out! Cody starts unloading on Roman! Referee is taken out by a missed boot. The Usos run out and hit 1D on Cody. Sami and Owens out and they take out the Usos. Stunner and Helluva Kick to Roman. Cody covers. Kickout! Both men start slugging it out. Superman Punch misses. Bionic Elbow by Cody! Cross Rhodes! And another one. Cody goes for one more but Heyman distracts the referee. Solo spikes Cody! Roman with a Spear and it's over. Cody fails to finish the story. This was everything wrestling should be! Action, excitement, crowd energy through the roof, two mega stars battling it out and all the drama that comes with that. If Cody had won here and conquered the final boss, it would have been a 5 Star Classic. ****3/4
Triple Threat Match for the AAA Mega Championship: El Hijo del Vikingo (c) vs. Black Taurus vs. Komander at WrestleCon Mark Hitchcock Memorial SuperShow 2023: A crazy and wild 3 way Lucha match. Taurus immediately uses his power and size to take control at the start of the match. Vikingo and Komander team up and both are needed to take the big man down. When Komander tries for a pin, the alliance doesn't last. From there we get a ton of wild action and spots and all three pulling off some insane moves. In the end, Vikingo is able to hit a 630 onto both men on the outside before finishing Taurus with a 630 in the ring to retain. Super fun watch. ****
Impact World Championship Match: Josh Alexander (c) vs. KENTA at Impact Wrestling 3/30/23: A really good back and forth match. Alexander has the advantage in terms of power and wrestling so KENTA has to chip away at Alexander with quick strikes and tries to keep the match a fight. KENTA goes after the neck of Alexander and bends the rules to work him over. Alexander keeps fighting back and looks to go after the ankle of KENTA to neutralize the kicks and set up for the ankle lock. KENTA pushes Alexander into an exposed turnbuckle for a big near-fall and starts landing all his big shots to put away the weakened champion but Alexander stays alive. Alexander is able to counter KENTA and drop him on the exposed turnbuckle to knock him loopy. A C4 Spike ends it and Alexander retains. ****1/4
Ultimate Triad Match for the NJPW King of Pro-Wrestling Championship: Shingo Takagi (c) vs. Aaron Henare at NJPW Road to Sakura Genesis 2023 Night 2: A really unique gimmick match. Henare starts off hot and is able to display how he can match Shingo in power as well as out-wrestle him. Shingo starts to use his speed to pick up the pace and we get a fun brawl early on. Henare goes to work on the midsection of Shingo to slow the faster man down and make this more of a wrestling match. We get a nice story of both men going for pins and when their opponent kicks out going right into submissions. Henare finds success locking in Ultima to get the submission fall. Shingo fires up and starts dropping Henare with bomb after bomb before locking in a Twister to get the submission fall as well. Match becomes an even back and forth battle before Shingo is able to out-wrestle Henare to get the flash pin fall. Henare almost immediately answers back with a big knee before hitting Streets of Rage to get the pin fall as well. Both men are looking for the 10 count now and start going for broke. Both throw stiff punches, headbutts and lariats before Shingo hits one final Pumping Bomber to drop both men. The count reaches 9 and both men try to reach their feet but Henare falls back down. Shingo is still standing at the 10 count and gets the win in a physical fight. ****
NJPW World Television Championship Match: Zack Sabre Jr. (c) vs. Shota Umino at NJPW Sakura Genesis 2023: A really good wrestling match. Both men go for quick pinfalls right at the bell before settling down into their strategies for the match. Umino tries to work over Sabre's leg to slow him down and work him over before switching to using his power to hit big offense while Sabre tries to bait Umino into fighting him and goes right after the arm of Umino to take away his power. Some great back and forth action as both men get some nice near-falls and close submission wins. Umino is able to hit the Death Rider for a big near-fall but doesn't panic and goes right into trying for a second one. This time Sabre has it scouted and is able to counter into a Jackknife pin and get the win. Umino tried multiple strategies to win while Sabre never switched up his style and in the end won by out-wrestling the young man. ****
IWGP Tag Team Championship Match: Bishamon (c) vs. Aussie Open at NJPW Sakura Genesis 2023: A great tag match with a surprising story. Match starts off even for both teams. Bishamon is the hard hitting team but Aussie Open is just a bit faster. A huge moonsault to the outside by Fletcher causes him to bang his head against the guardrail, splitting him open. Davis has to go it alone to keep his team in the match as Fletcher is bandaged up and even when he comes in to help out, you can see the target on his head. Bishamon shows no mercy and looks to isolate the wounded Fletcher and target the head with stiff strikes and moves that drop him right on his head. Fletcher does a great job fighting to stay alive and blocking Shoto while Davis keeps trying to help his partner but Bishamon is relentless in their assault. Bishamon looks for the killing blow but again Davis makes the save! Aussie Open fires up and starts drilling the champions with their own big offense. With the opening they have, Aussie Open nails Coriolis and is able to get the win! What a match!
IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship Match: Hiromu Takahashi (c) vs. Robbie Eagles at NJPW Sakura Genesis 2023: A really well done wrestling match. At the bell, Hiromu looks to start off fast and overwhelm Eagles but quickly Hiromu's hurt leg comes into play. Eagles is right on this opening and starts to go after the knee viciously with the Ron Miller Special and any other way he can think of to inflict punishment. Hiromu does all he can to stay alive and fight back with one good leg but Eagles keeps going back to the knee to cut him off. A 450 by Eagles but Hiromu gets his knees up to buy himself time. Time Bomb hits but it's not enough. Hiromu goes for Time Bomb 2 but can't hit it and both men tumble into the turnbuckle. A Time Bomb off the top gets turned into a nasty Reverse Rana followed by a 450 onto Hiromu's bad knee! Ron Miller Special is in but Hiromu is able to fight into a roll-up forcing Eagles to release the hold to kick out. Hiromu starts to fire up and is able to land a series of shots to rock Eagles before a Time Bomb 2 gets him the win. Hiromu was a hurt man but was able to outlast the better wrestler with bigger offensive moves. ****
IWGP World Heavyweight Championship Match: Kazuchika Okada (c) vs. SANADA at NJPW Sakura Genesis 2023: A great back and forth match and crowning moment for SANADA. Right from the start, Okada isn't playing around or toying with SANADA, he takes the fight right to him only for SANADA to strike first and go to work on Okada's neck. Okada fights back and targets the neck as well to set up for the Money Clip and Rainmaker. Great back and forth action all match as SANADA pulls all the old tricks out of his play book but keeps getting caught in the Money Clip of Okada to be worn down. Okada goes for the Rainmaker but SANADA counters into one of his own! SANADA starts to use the offense of Naito and Muto, his mentors, to chip away at Okada but Okada sticks to his game plan. Rainmaker attempted again but SANADA counters with Deadfall and it's over! New champion! Okada stuck to his old formula to try and get the win but SANADA had a new trick up his sleeve that was just what he needed to finally win the big one. ****1/4
Battle of Los Angeles 2023 First Round Match: Konosuke Takeshita vs. Michael Oku at PWG Battle of Los Angeles 2023 Stage 1: A very fun power vs. speed match. Oku uses his quickness early to take shots at Takeshita until Takeshita shuts down his momentum with his power and size. Takeshita works over Oku's back nicely which comes into play when Oku tries to fire up. We get some great back and forth action from both men before Oku counters Takeshita's knee right into a Half Crab for a nice near-fall. Both men start throwing bombs at each other and Takeshita is able to withstand everything Oku throws at him before hammering him with a big Lariat and Jumbo Knee to get the win. ****
Battle of Los Angeles 2023 First Round Three Way Match: Black Taurus vs. Bandido vs. El Hijo del Vikingo at PWG Battle of Los Angeles 2023 Stage 1: A wild and crazy Lucha match. Nice story-telling with Taurus having the power advantage and dominating early on. Vikingo is able to use his speed and high flying to take over with his insane offense. In the end though, Bandido is the most balanced wrestler; being able to pull off impressive power moves and high flying. Bandido and Taurus take out Vikingo before Bandido is able to hit a 21-Plex for a near-fall and ends it with an impressive Tombstone on Taurus for the win. Crazy spot-fest match. ****
AEW International Championship Match: Orange Cassidy (c) vs. Buddy Matthews at AEW Dynamite 4/12/23: This was a really great wrestling match. Cassidy comes in with a hurt right hand and Matthews knows it. Right at the bell, Cassidy looks to use his quickness to try and counter Matthews' power. Cassidy is able to hit the Orange Punch out of nowhere but he can't follow up because of his hurt hand. Matthews recovers from the punch and wastes no time going to work stomping on the hand and looking to all break it. Cassidy does all he can to survive Matthews' attack and looks to use every other piece of offense he can to put Matthews away. A series of big DDTs gets Cassidy a close near-fall but it's not enough. Cassidy throws an Orange Punch. Kickout! He doesn't have the power left for a knockout blow. Matthews lands a series of knees and even a Curb Stomp on Cassidy looking to end it but Cassidy keeps kicking out. Matthews goes to end it but Cassidy gets the Mouse Trap in and gets 3! Matthews took away Cassidy's best weapon and seemed to have his mind games all scouted but Cassidy was still able to simply out-wrestle the more powerful and dangerous opponent. ****
NJPW World Television Championship Match: Zack Sabre Jr. (c) vs. Tom Lawlor at NJPW Capital Collision 2023: A really great technical wrestling match from these two. Sabre has the edge in the submission game while Lawlor is the stronger wrestler and looks to use his strikes and suplexes. Some incredible back and forth sequences as both men do a great job at countering the other all match and try to keep the match in their control. Sabre is finally able to wrestle Lawlor enough to keep him pinned in a very fun match. ****
Three Way Match for the NJPW STRONG Openweight Tag Team Championship: The Motor City Machine Guns (c) vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi and Kazuchika Okada vs. Aussie Open at NJPW Capital Collision 2023: A very fun three way tag match. Everyone played their roles well with the Guns being the faster and smarter veteran team, Aussie Open playing the powerhouses while Okada and Tanahashi were the mega stars that were able to control the match when it was one-on-one but not so much as a team. Lots of great action all match and good near-falls. Fletcher takes a nasty bump from a moonsault to the outside and becomes a target for the Guns and the Dream Team. Aussie Open is able to battle back through all the pain and clear the ring to hit Corealis on Sabin and get the win. New champs! Would have been better if it was just the Guns vs. Aussie Open but still a very fun match. ****
Four Way Match for the AAA Mega Championship: El Hijo del Vikingo (c) vs. Rich Swann vs. Swerve Strickland vs. Komander at AAA Triplemania XXXI: Monterrey: A very spot heavy 4 way match. A nice little story of Swerve being the larger and more aggressive while Swann picked his spots more and Vikingo and Komander went all out on big high risk offense. A lot of big spots and near-falls for everyone and a fun match to sit back and watch. Komander goes to finish things on Vikingo only for Vikingo to fire up and hit a series of big shots to put Komander down before the 630 ends things. ****
Impact World Championship Match: Steve Maclin vs. KUSHIDA at Impact Wrestling Rebellion 2023: This was a really well done power vs. speed match. KUSHIDA looked to use his quickness to out work the larger man and go after his arm all match to set up for the Hoverboard Lock. Meanwhile, we had Maclin looking to wear down and beat down KUSHIDA and go after his midsection to slow him down. Nice back and forth flow to match with each man doing their best to keep the match at their pace. Maclin is able to counter KUSHIDA when he goes to the top once too often and hits KIA for a big near-fall. KUSHIDA finally gets the Hoverboard Lock in but Maclin is able to keep powering out of it only for KUSHIDA to lock it right back on. Maclin finally counters out and hits an elevated KIA to get the win. Very good match. ****
Battle of Los Angeles 2023 Final Match: "Speedball" Mike Bailey vs. Konosuke Takeshita at PWG Battle of Los Angeles 2023 Final Stage: A really good back and forth match. Bailey plays the faster striker while Takeshita is the larger powerhouse. Takeshita is able to control early on with his strength and goes after the hand of Bailey that was targeted all tournament long. Bailey responds by going after the knee of Takeshita to try and neutralize his power and size. Some great action all match with both men pulling out all the stops. When Takeshita's Jumbo Knee fails to get the pin, he pulls the Turnbuckle Brainbustah for a huge near-fall! Bailey is able to tie Takeshita up in the corner and hits the Omega Weapon! Flamingo Driver finally ends it to give Bailey the win! ****
Wonder of Stardom Championship Match: Saya Kamitani (c) vs. Mina Shirakawa at Stardom All-Star Grand Queendom: A nice heated back and forth match. Both women start off with some basic wrestling before Mina goes after the leg of Saya to slow down her l;faster opponent. Saya sells the leg nicely before making her comeback but she can't find the will to use the Phoenix Splash, the move that broke Mina's jaw. Mina takes advantage of this hesitation and we get a nice back and forth from the two. Saya finally gets another chance to hit the Phoenix Splash and hits it! Kick-out! Mina goes back to the leg and gets a Figure Four in for a close tap out but Saya makes it to the ropes. Mina pushes the advantage and hits the Figure Four Driver to finish off her foe. Saya overcame her doubt about the Phoenix Splash but it wasn't enough to keep her championship. ****
Knockout or Submission Only Match: Syuri vs. Chihiro Hashimoto at Stardom All-Star Grand Queendom: A really good monster vs. quicker submission wrestler. Chihiro looks to toss around and suplex Syuri into oblivion while Syuri tries to use her submission skills to go after the arms of Chihiro and prevent her from using her power. Some brutal back and forth action as both women look for the knockout with vicious bombs on each other. Syuri starts to match Chihiro's vicious attacks and goes to the back of the neck of the beast. A Ganmengiri finally puts Chihiro down for the 10 count and Syuri gets the win in a violent fight. ****
IWGP Women's Championship Match: Mercedes Mone (c) vs. Mayu Iwatani at Stardom All-Star Grand Queendom: A great back and forth wrestling match. Mayu starts off fired up and hot before Mone is able to utilize her knees to start working her over. Mayu looks to use her suplexes to try and fight back and we get some super smooth back and forth counters and sequences. Mone is able to hit the Mone Maker for a big near-fall and her frustration bubbles up and Mayu takes advantage to unload a series of big offensive moves on Mone. Mayu ties up Mone's limbs and hits the Dragon Suplex Hold to get the win in a super fun sprint of a match. ****
World of Stardom Championship Match: Giulia (c) vs. Tam Nakano at Stardom All-Star Grand Queendom: A great battle from these two rivals. Nice feeling out process in the opening minutes before Giulia hits a Northern Lights Bomb out of nowhere! Giulia takes over on Nakano, who tries to keep fighting back only to get dumped off the top through a table! Nakano is finally able to rally and hit a DDT on the ramp and two big knees. Back in the ring, the two women start unloading stiff strikes and even some headbutts at each other before they start trading huge bombs on each other. A nice story beat is Giulia using a straight right hand to Nakano's face to take back control any time she starts to lose the advantage. Giulia goes high risk but Nakano is able to catch her and hit a crazy Underhook Suplex off the top. More back and forth bombs before Nakano hits a Northern Lights Bomb on Giulia! A Violet Screwdriver puts down the champion and Nakano gets the win! ****1/4
Comments