In my brief moment of jotting down ideas to do as I started this website, I thought it would be interesting to do something other than just analyzing matches and feuds that I have already witnessed. I thought, “why not get out of my comfort zone a little bit”, and so I decided to do some brainstorming and came up with a good idea: let’s watch, review, and rerank the Cagematch top ten. The idea kinda floated in my head after I had seen that Omega/Ospreay had made its way into the top ten, so I thought it would be interesting to see how it held up to the rest of the list. Now, I’d like to make a disclaimer that I had not seen any of the matches on this list in full(bar Omega/Ospreay and (most of) Okada/Omega 6.9 at Dominion), and in some cases I had never watched a single match of certain wrestlers(Misawa, Kobashi, Shibata). So for me, this was actually very exciting to be able to experience some matches I may have never seen or at least not in their entirety. With all of that said, this list is mostly based on personal enjoyment over other factors, so, if we don’t see eye-to-eye on all of these… oh well. So, whether you decide to read every single overly-long analysis (this is a very long read, I'm sorry in advance), or you just decide to scroll through and see my reranking, thank you for reading. Now, without further ado, here is my personal reranking of the Cagematch top ten matches**.
**top ten list on Cagematch as of January 9, 2023
#10: Danny Kroffat & Doug Furnas vs. Kenta Kobashi & Tsuyoshi Kikuchi(May 25, 1992)
Cagematch Ranking: 10
This match was arguably the one that piqued my interest the most for the simple fact that it was filled with four talents I had yet to watch (though, by the time I wrote this I had already watched Kobashi vs Misawa). This match was for AJPW’s All Asia Tag Team titles, but it did not seem to have a story (as far as I could find) outside of the gaijin heels vs the hometown hero babyfaces. But boy, did that work to a tee. There are two standout points of this match: Tsuyoshi Kikuchi, and the crowd in attendance. In my review of Kobashi vs Misawa I said I had never heard a crowd quite like that one before, but maybe that notion was false. However, I’ll come back to them a bit later. The match itself was solid, with Kikuchi playing the underdog babyface and Kobashi as the powerhouse waiting to make the save. The action was relatively back and forth until Kroffat and Furnas cut Kikuchi off from Kobashi for what felt like roughly 10 or so minutes. Here, Kroffat and Furnas played into the outsider heel role well, getting the crowd worked up in hopes of a comeback from their heroes. This strung on for a bit until Kikuchi made the hot tag of the century to Kobashi. The action continued for another few minutes before Kobashi hit a moonsault on his opponent for the victory.
Though this match actually exceeded my expectations, it still wasn’t the best tag match I’ve seen. There’s nothing inherently wrong with the match, but there’s not much to it that makes me go “this is the second best tag match in history”(according to Cagematch). I think a large part of what makes this match magic is the crowd. From bell to bell, the crowd was absolutely electric and it massively injected a level of passion and energy into the match that few else could hope to garner. Booing everything those despicable gaijin did and cheering for their beloved heroes, the crowd was on fire over the course of the 25+ minute match. Again, the match was still great but it just didn’t seem to click with me personally like I had hoped it could. Because of this, I decided it would probably be best if I left its ranking as is.
#9: Kenny Omega vs Tetsuya Naito(August 13, 2016)
Cagematch Ranking: 9
At the time of writing this, I had taken a few weeks away from this project and decided that this was probably the best match to pick up for the halfway point of my task. With that said, this match did not disappoint.
Exactly what you would expect from a Kenny Omega entering his prime, as well as a Tetsuya Naito fresh off an IWGP Heavyweight title reign. This match was essentially for (almost) all of the marbles in the G1 Climax 26, as the winner of this match would be the man to face Hirooki Goto in the finals of that year’s G1. This match presented a lot for both competitors: Naito wanted to win the G1 not only to reclaim his IWGP Heavyweight Championship, but to also right the mishap that befell him and Okada at Wrestle Kingdom 8 (just take a quick trip to google if you don't know). For Omega, this was the year he had taken over as the leader of the Bullet Club and he wanted to move out of the junior heavyweight division to finally establish himself as a formidable heavyweight in New Japan.
In an attempt to keep the match recap brief, Naito started off in typical fashion, waltzing about the ring as he had no real need to win the match(he could’ve gone through with just a time limit draw). This continues until Kenny spits on him as he’s in the middle of hitting his signature “open your eyes” pose. Naito hits a switch and these two go to war. Naito works Omega’s knee throughout the match, while Omega does everything in his power to wear down the former Heavyweight champ.
Personally, I felt the match took a little bit to get going(which isn’t uncommon for strong style matches), but once it got going, it was pretty darn good. Apron bumps, super poisonrana’s, Naito going through a table, this match had everything one could ask for. Kenny Omega ultimately picked up the win in a hard fought bout, etching his spot in the finals of the G1 Climax 26. A solid match and a must watch if you’re a fan of either wrestler, but not exactly my favorite match up to this point.
#8: Kenny Omega vs Tetsuya Naito(August 13, 2017)
Cagematch Ranking: 8
Yeah… this was real graps. Seeing that this match was only one rank higher than their G1 bout the year prior, I honestly wasn’t expecting *that* much from this. Boy, was I wrong. This match was essentially what I thought their G1 Climax 26 bout would be: a high octane, hard-hitting thriller. That’s not to say their previous encounter didn’t fall under these measures, but compared to this match it felt almost like a trial version of what was to come.
Coming off of a victory against record-breaking IWGP Heavyweight Champion, Kazuchika Okada (we’ll talk about the remainder of this series in a bit), Omega was looking to beat Naito for a second year in a row and to claim back-to-back G1 Climax victories. This was huge for Omega considering he had lost to Okada in their showdown at Wrestle Kingdom earlier that year. Omega was looking to beat Naito and seal his Wrestle Kingdom rematch against Okada for the following year. For Naito, this match was simply a case of redemption. Once again looking to redeem his short IWGP title reign in which he lost to Okada (kickstarting his record breaking title reign), and, looking to redeem himself for failing to make the finals of the G1 Climax 26 after losing to his current opponent.
Kenny Omega comes across as a lot more confident in his role as a heavyweight in this match; he’s not here to prove himself to this division anymore, but he’s here to continue the dominance that he showed in the G1 Climax the year prior. Naito still has that cool and cocky air about him, but he looked a lot sharper and calculated in this match. Tricking Omega into thinking he’s about to hit a pose in the ring before hitting a tope suicida, the top rope hurricanrana, THE SPINNING DESTINOOOOOO *ahem*, this match was a load of fun and Naito looked excellent. Omega did as well, and I would consider the 2017-2018 period arguably his peak in regards to in-ring work. Omega was nearly flawless in this era and it showed throughout this match.
Ultimately, Naito was able to put down the One Winged Angel after a series of Destinos to claim the trophy for the G1 Climax 27. The lack of selling damage from moves done early on in the match (Omega’s neck and head, and Naito’s knee) do slightly hinder this match as something like the piledriver onto the table felt very important early on, but was forgotten about as the match progressed. Besides that, I’d say that this was a very enjoyable match and was much better than their previous encounter. As with pretty much all of these matches, go check this one out if you have the time.
#7: Will Ospreay vs Kenny Omega(January 4, 2023)
Cagematch Ranking: 6
There isn’t much more to be said about this match that I didn’t already say in one of my previous articles (go check it out if you haven’t, it’s pretty good if I do say so myself :)), but it’s much of what you would expect from two of the very best wrestlers in the world at the time. Will Ospreay, out to prove that he is better than Omega and show that he is now the pinnacle of professional wrestling, gets shot down by the One Winged Angel in a 40+ minute classic.
#6: Akira Taue & Toshiaki Kawada vs. Kenta Kobashi & Mitsuharu Misawa(June 9, 1995)
Cagematch Ranking: 5
THIS IS A CERTIFIED HOOD CLASSIC. Going into this match, it was another case of me seeing one match and placing similar expectations on the next one. After watching the Kroffat/Furnas vs Kobashi/Kikuchi match, I did not expect the grand encounter that I was faced with; though, seeing that this was a match involving all of AJPW’s Four Pillars of Heaven, I look pretty stupid in retrospect.
This match was heavily centered around the story between Misawa and Kawada: Kawada could not beat Misawa. This is a very similar story that will be told in another of Misawa’s matches, but more on that later. Here, Kawada is fighting to get out of Misawa’s shadow and finally push himself into the top spot of AJPW. He had beaten everyone laid in front of him, but he could not put down the Emerald Emperor leaving him firmly as AJPW’s #2. On the other hand, you had the story of the rising star, Kenta Kobashi, also playing out throughout the match as he was steadily pushing away from just being "Misawa's partner". Though he would later go on to become one of, if not, the greatest pro wrestler of all time, Kobashi was the most inexperienced member of this match.
Rocking into this match with a heavily taped up left thigh, the fiery Kobashi would fight with his all to continue to establish himself as a major player going forward for AJPW. This also felt like a bout in which Akira Taue was fighting to prove himself as well, given he and Kobashi had roughly the same amount of in-ring experience. Even though he is an established part of AJPW’s history and is one of the Four Pillars, he does not often get the same level of acclaim as the other three members. But, Taue had already proved he was more than capable of hanging with the best having pushed Misawa to his limit in their match just two months prior. While Kobashi came into the match with an injured thigh, Misawa was still suffering from the effects of a broken orbital bone. These two injuries were heavily played on throughout the match, with Taue and Kawada targeting their injuries repeatedly to wear Misawa and Kobashi down.
This match is the perfect embodiment of the King’s Road style. For over 40 minutes these two teams absolutely batter each other in an attempt to get one over their rivals. Kobashi’s display of fighting spirit, Misawa’s attempt to continue his dominance over his rival, Kawada fighting to put down AJPW’s ace, and Taue establishing himself as a monster within the company, this match had everything. These four went all out from bell to bell in what I would consider the greatest tag team match I have ever watched. Kobashi did all he could to protect his partner, throwing his body on top of Misawa to save him from the Holy Demon Army’s onslaught; however, it simply wasn’t enough as Kawada would powerbomb Misawa and finally put him down for a three count to win the AJPW World Tag Team Championship.
#5: Kazuchika Okada vs Kenny Omega(January 4, 2017)
Cagematch Ranking: 2
The tale of Okada vs Omega starts as a relatively simple one: “You are not strong enough to beat me yet”. In the build up to the first match in a series of four these two would have against each other, Okada asserts that he would never lose to someone like Omega because he has “endured way more than [Omega] can imagine”. I don’t think many people reading this will need me to tell them what Okada is referring to, as his early years in pro wrestling were quite shaky to say the least. Omega was fighting for his own honor. As the new leader of the Bullet Club and quickly ascending to the top of the heavyweight division upon winning the G1 Climax in 2016, Omega was looking to solidify himself as the best wrestler in the world. The Cleaner fights to etch his name into the history books as a bonafide superstar, while The Rainmaker fights to continue carrying the weight of NJPW on his shoulders as their new hero.
The bout was spectacular as one would know unless they've been living under a rock for the past six years. The action starts out very slowly and carefully as these two feel each other out in their first singles bout against one another. Things then begin to pick up after the action spills to the outside, with Okada hitting a draping DDT and a running dive over the barricade onto Omega. I think my only gripe with this match is that the opening portion of this match lacked a little heat, and it felt like a few big moves were hit just for the sake of it. Beyond that, the match was a masterclass in the art of pro wrestling. The action steadily building up to its climax as the crowd bit on every move and nearfall was *chef’s kiss*. The high spots seeing Kenny Omega hit a springboard backflip from the ring to Okada outside of the barricade, Okada tossing Omega over the ropes onto a table outside, and Omega hitting Okada with a dragon suplex off the top rope makes one wonder how these two are even alive. The match culminated with Okada hitting Omega with a jumping, spinning tombstone piledriver followed by a Rainmaker for the victory.
The slow burn for this match was certainly worth it, and it seems as though a lot of the story that would be told in future matches was built upon this match itself (and not simply promo work, if that makes sense). This match was forged by a simple story of Omega wanting to beat the best man wrestling had to offer, but falling short due to his lack of experience at the top of such a division. As good of a match as I expected, but personal bias towards one or two other matches may lead me to leave this bout a little lower than expected (please don’t kill me).
#4: Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Kota Ibushi(August 12, 2018)
Cagematch Ranking: 7
Kamigoye: “To surpass God”. The Kamigoye is not just a deadly move in Kota Ibushi’s arsenal, but it is a testament to his ultimate goal in New Japan. Walking into the G1 Climax 28 finals against Hiroshi Tanahashi, Kota Ibushi was looking to knock off the man he claims to be his god of professional wrestling (another being Shinsuke Nakamura).
Outside of the story that was being told within this match, there was a lot of drama on the path to it as well. The previous night, Kota Ibushi had beaten the recently crowned IWGP Heavyweight Champion, Kenny Omega. This was huge as Ibushi had not only beaten his best friend, but he beat the heavyweight champion of the promotion. It gave him a lot of momentum heading into the final because if you can beat the champion, then you can beat just about anyone in the company. Tanahashi, on the other hand, had gone to a 30 minute time-limit draw against Kazuchika Okada to reach the finals of the tournament. But now, it was time for the G1 Climax 28 final. Hiroshi Tanahashi, out to prove that he’s not past his prime and can still hang with the best of the best, versus Kota Ibushi, the man who needs to surpass his god in order to claim victory and face his friend on the biggest stage of them all at the Tokyo Dome.
The match started out a bit slow as the two felt each other out, with Tanahashi attempting to assert his dominance on the mat. Tanahashi worked the knee for quite some time in the match in an attempt to likely stave off the Kamigoye, slowing Ibushi down for a while before the match began to kick into gear (I do wish Ibushi would’ve sold the knee a bit more later on in the match as it took a little bit of heat away). I don’t have much more play-by-play here like I usually do because I ended up getting way more entranced into the match than I usually do and forgot to take more notes(sorry…).
What I can say is that this was a beautifully crafted match with Tanahashi fighting with every fiber of his being to overcome the stiff-hitting and agile Kota Ibushi. Ibushi also gave everything he had but just couldn’t put “The Ace” down for a three count, with Tanahashi pushing through every strike thrown at him(he even busted out Tana-Mania after awakening “Murder Ibushi”). All in all, this was a fantastic match that would culminate with Tanahashi taking the victory over Ibushi. Tanahashi would then go on to defeat Kenny Omega at Wrestle Kingdom the following January as The Ace of New Japan once again took his seat atop the mountain.
#3: Kenta Kobashi vs Mitsuharu Misawa(March 1, 2003)
Cagematch Ranking: 1
If you’re a long time fan of professional wrestling then you have probably heard of this match before: Kenta Kobashi vs Mitsuhara Misawa. Two of All Japan Pro Wrestling’s “Four Pillars of Heaven”(though, this bout took place in the recently formed, Pro Wrestling NOAH) clashed in what would go down as one of the greatest bouts in wrestling history.
From moments before the bell until the victor’s hand was raised, this crowd was electric (I genuinely don’t believe I’ve ever witnessed many like this). Coming into this match, Kobashi was looking to make an upset. Though he had beaten him before in tournament and tag team matches, Kobashi had never beaten Misawa when it counted; Kobashi had never beaten Misawa when a title was on the line. Kobashi lost to Misawa 5 times in AJPW for the Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship, and on this very night he was looking to correct history.
The match opened up as a back and forth encounter between the competitors before Misawa took control after hitting a backdrop suplex on Kobashi. What was a bit surprising to me here was just how many diving and top rope maneuvers Misawa was going for here. This would actually prove to be costly as a missed dive attempt to the outside would see Misawa hit the guard rail and bust his lip open. This would lead to a shift in momentum in favor of Kobashi who would begin to pick up some steam. As the match trekked on, we were treated to loads of chops, forearms, and suplexes(oh my!) between the two competitors. After a suicida onto the ramp, Misawa takes control and hits a tiger suplex on Kobashi from the elevated ramp onto the ground below them (seriously… how was Kobashi still moving after that?). As the match reached its closing stages, Misawa hit the Emerald Flowsion on Kobashi who ended up kicking out at 2.99 which sent the crowd absolutely berserk.
The two battled back and forth for a bit longer with Misawa kicking out of a nasty brainbuster, before Kobashi was able to finish him off with the Burning Hammer. I was honestly a bit skeptical at first as it did take me a minute to get into the match, but after watching it in its entirety and understanding the story that was being told by these two, this match truly is a spectacle. If you have the time to watch this match you should do so, it is truly worthy of being recognized as one the greatest matches in history.
#2: Katsuyori Shibata vs Kazuchika Okada(April 9, 2017)
Cagematch Ranking: 3
A stiff, hard-hitting classic, Kazuchika Okada and Katsuyori Shibata went out at the Ryogoku Kokugikan and delivered one of the greatest matches I have ever seen (granted, the same could be said for almost the rest of this list…). A back-and-forth action filled bout, Okada tries his hardest to prove he can hang with “The Wrestler”; however, Shibata eats everything Okada dishes out and absolutely batters him for over 30 minutes in an attempt to claim the IWGP Heavyweight Championship for the first time.
Jumping into the match, this was actually the first full-length match of Shibata’s that I had watched… ever… and it was the best showcase possible for a first time watcher like myself. I’ve always been quite enamored with Shibata as, even with his relatively simple presentation as “The Wrestler”, he just has this aura about him that makes him stand out. From what I pieced together, Shibata was on somewhat of a redemption arc after having left New Japan in the early 2000s for what turned out to be a relatively lackluster MMA career. This left a sour taste in the mouth of many Japanese fans, which seemed to linger upon his return to the promotion. Shibata, however, was not worried about his past and continued to shovel out top performances ultimately leading to his New Japan Cup victory in 2017. Thus, he was able to regain the favor of many fans of the promotion. This was certainly Okada’s match to lose.
Shibata was just a level above anyone Okada had faced (yes, arguably including the likes of Tanahashi and others), and on top of his great ground game, he was a vicious striker as well. With the crowd roaring in his favor, Shibata put on the performance of a lifetime as he chopped down Okada at every turn. Okada would put his best foot forward but it just wasn’t enough until he caught Shibata with a pair of Rainmakers to put him down for the count. Sadly, this would be Shibata’s last match for quite some time as during the match he smashed Okada with THAT headbutt, causing him to collapse backstage after the match. Besides that, this was a fantastic showing from one of the New Three Musketeers and another feather in the cap for Okada during his record breaking IWGP Heavyweight Title reign.
#1: Kazuchika Okada vs Kenny Omega(June 9, 2018)
Cagematch Ranking: 4
There is only one word to possibly describe this match: cinema. Bringing the series to a resounding 1W-1L-1D, Kenny Omega and Kazuchika Okada had put together a string of some of the best matches in wrestling history across the year of 2017. The final match of the initial trilogy would see Omega beat Okada during the G1 Climax of 2017, which would often guarantee a title shot with imminent effect. This would not be the case here. Omega ended up getting swept into a lot of nonsense, including: the arrival of Chris Jericho, infighting in the Bullet Club, and the magnificent reunion of the Golden Lovers (yes, I cry every time I watch that moment).
While all of this was happening, Okada was continuing his dominance over New Japan setting the new record for longest IWGP Heavyweight Championship reign and most title defenses. However, there was still a smudge on his record that needed to be wiped. Having beaten pretty much every challenger there was to offer, Okada would call out Kenny Omega after his record breaking title defense against Tanahashi (the previous title defense record holder) at Wrestling Dontaku 2018. Omega accepted the challenge and further laid the gauntlet for a best two-out-of-three falls match, to which Okada obliged.
The crowd in attendance at Osaka-Jo Hall was in roaring support of Kenny Omega for the span of the match, often overpowering any chants of “Okada” that were started. The NJPW fans had seen the growth and fighting spirit that Omega displayed over the years, and were finally ready to see him ascend to the top of the mountain. I won’t really break down the match in too much detail, otherwise we would be here all day. Omega absolutely dominated the opening chunk of the match, landing move after move on Okada culminating with a springboard dive over the barricade onto his opponent. As the action continued, Okada was able to shift momentum to his side for a bit after hitting a German suplex. Okada then folded Omega with a tombstone piledriver onto the apron, before shotgun drop kicking him off the apron into the barricade. The tides continue to shift back and forth until Okada is able to reverse a roll-up attempt from Omega into a surprise pin of his own. The first fall comes after nearly 30 minutes, almost the entire length of their first singles bout.
These two would continue their war with Omega picking up the second fall after hitting a series of V-Triggers and a One Winged Angel on Okada. At this point it has been nearly 50 minutes and both competitors are absolutely battered. Okada collapsing after hitting a Rainmaker, Omega busting out a Styles Clash to a huge pop from the crowd, Okada’s ever so beautiful dropkick, and Omega hitting the last of a total of 14 V-Triggers across this match (I don’t believe this is an exaggeration), the conclusion of this match was beautiful. The Rainmaker, worn down and beaten after carrying the weight of New Japan for two years, against The Best Bout Machine, here to finally cement himself once and for all as the pinnacle of pro wrestling.
When Omega hits Okada with the final OWA the crowd absolutely erupts, and I have seldom heard an entire crowd count “1, 2, 3” in unison like this. The icing on the cake was seeing the Golden Lovers and Young Bucks hug it out before Ibushi snapped the title across the waist of Kenny Omega. Okada would fall off the rails for a bit in the coming months while Omega would further establish “The Best Bout Machine” as more than a mere moniker. However, on June 9, 2018, Kazuchika Okada and Kenny Omega would produce magic culminating in the greatest match I have personally witnessed as of this moment.