El Desperado

[9.0] "A guy I was a big fan of in the 2010s for his absolutely badass look alone, Desperado has proven his value as one of the best Juniors in NJPW history. I can't imagine anyone not loving him."

[8.0] "El Desperado was so unremarkable for so long that him suddenly waking up in 2020 and having the best run of any NJPW Junior Ace since Jushin Thunder Liger has been one of the biggest shocks in all my years of being a wrestling fan. Like Liger before him, he's so over he just does whatever he wants. Deathmatch wrestling? Sure. Challenge for the World title? Absolutely. Promote your own cards with our talent? Go right ahead, pal. He hasn't elevated as many talents as Liger did and he's starting to wear out his welcome at the top of the division but he's great otherwise."

[5.0] "I am sorry but if you spent the amount of years El Desperado has had in the best promotion in the world at utilizing their wrestlers talents but you've done nothing in the ring then yeah it's a 5 at most"

[8.0] "Despe is a very diverse wrestler, he is really good at grappling, high flying, deathmatch, etc. Despe is a one of a kind wrestler and it's awesome to see him become one of the faces of NJPW."

[10.0] "El Desperado is the most unique wrestler of all time, his character, his in ring style. How can one man do so many styles, he can do the freaking splits to. One of the coolest wrestlers of our generation."

[10.0] "One of the most complete wrestlers in the world. Capable of wrestling any style and doing it at an elite level."

[9.0] "Just realized why I like him so much, he's the fucking Wolverine. Like, he's literally the fucking Wolverine. Captivating presence that demands your attention every time he shows up. Doesn't matter where he's put he could absolutely steal the show. Not exactly THE TOP STAR of the promotion but he could rise up to that on many occasions. Also, the wrestling style of him is also similar to how Wolverine is portrayed in the comics. A calm and wise fighter that could get absolutely violent in just the blink of an eye. And his attires? My god. Absolute thing of beauty. Simple track pants with frills coupled with that majestically gorgeous mask of his. Love him."

[10.0] "the ace of the modern njpw junior division, despy has been on an all timer run ever since the end of suzuki-gun, finding his feet as a super likeable face who can work just about anything you would need him to from a high flying spot fest to a deathmatch and do it well at that"

[10.0] "Despe went from a hated heel in Suzuki-Gun to the face of the Jr division. His in ring skills are on another level and he has a charisma that no one else has. His looks are good and he's amazing on all levels. Always will be one of my favorites."

[8.0] "A great wrestler that has good in-ring skills, strong charisma, and a decent popularity with the crowd. Overall an amazing wrestler who is a good asset to NJPW and I hope gets used more."

[10.0] "Despy is proving time and time again that he can also be one of the leading faces in the Jr. division. If people didn't watch the BOSJ finale vs Hiromu, I can highly recommend that match, as you can see how special El Desperado really is. EDIT: He did it! He just has to get the 10. It's been an honor to watch the rise of Despy."

[9.0] "Despy is a good wrestler who has worked hard the past few years to get over with the fans and he is also a good booker."

[8.0] "Brings a charisma and technical mat game to his matches that sets him apart from his fellow junior heavyweight cohort, and his versatility in terms of match variety make him one of the strongest assets in the NJPW junior heavyweight division."

[9.0] "Too handsome to wear a mask. Seriously, for a guy who I just thought was a Suzuki Gun body he really turned things up after the stable dissolved to be a top Junior Heavyweight to the point where he should probably be made a full heavyweight to spice things up."

[9.0] "El Desperado is good in the ring. Can look imponent at times and is very charismatic, can work just fine in both silly or serious storylines. Something I appreciate is that he is one of the few that disrespects a rival who clearly does not deserve respect (Many NJPW wrestlers say good things about morally deplorable wrestlers in kayfabe after a match and I don't know why)."

"[9.0] Despy is honestly great and easily the first guy I think to point to when smaller wrestlers get dismissed for being "only flips". He has a great presence about him and a very hard hitting style that perfectly suits his character which blends with great in-ring psychology. Also he might be the biggest beneficiary of pure circumstance from being essentially elevated in the junior division in 2020 when most of the gaijin couldn't exactly come in and him getting his first run with the junior belt after Hiromu went down with an injury in early 2021. And he's proven that he deserves his spot as the hard-hitting, calm number two junior in New Japan right behind the Time Bomb in every year since. The only thing he really has left to prove is if he can win a Super Juniors. If he does that, he genuinely might be in the conversation of all time great Junior Heavyweights in wrestling."

[10.0] "My favourite junior heavyweight of both 2022 and 2023. Charismatic, effortlessly cool yet surprisingly down to Earth. One of the biggest personalities in NJPW."

[10.0] "El desperado is perhaps the coolest wrestler in NJPW if not the world. He is one of my favourite wrestlers and he has such a unique style. He is one of the most interesting characters in NJPW and I struggle to find a match of his that I didn't enjoy. His style is unique, a submission brawler with a flair of lucha libre. He has carried the Jr division at times as well. Some of his best matches are against Hiromu, Wato, Robbie Eagles, Titan, Moxley, Ishii, Yoh and Franceso Akira. Truly amazing."

[10.0] "Updating, when I gave him an 8 in 2019 here is what I said: "El Desperado is a charismatic and interesting character. Sadly he has rarely a chance to shine because he is often put into the junior tag team title race, where he works like a classic heel with Yoshinobu Kanemaru. But when he is in a singles match, especially in the Best Of The Super Juniors, he reminds everyone that he is a very good wrestler with a good mix of lucha libre and super agressive brawling." Since then he had way more opportunities as a singles wrestler and his character evolved, making him wrestle less like a classic heel which gave him the chance to show what he really can do as an athlete and storyteller. Now he is regarded as one of the best juniors in the world and it is totally deserved. He works so well, wether he has more offense or is the underdog in the match, he can do it all and the crowd loves him. I think he will be one of those wrestlers that will be remembered even well after his retirement."

[4.0] "His remarks contain a lot of sarcasm towards younger wrestlers and it feels like emotionally abusive. I can't even feel the affection for New Japan Pro Wrestling's junior class from him He frequently wants to fight wrestlers from other organizations, and when he mentions his name, the company immediately arranges the match. Despite his low contribution to New Japan Pro-Wrestling, he is treated like a star."

[9.0] "I think it's hard to find a cooler wrestler in NJPW. Desperado is solid as hell and, as Moxley, has that love for wrestling above anything else that lets you know he's putting everything in the ring. Just hope for a BOSJ win soon."

[7.0] "I'm a big fan of Despy. Excellent character work and a very solid wrestler. Nice to see him finally getting some breaks in recent years."

[9.0] "He is on his way to becoming a legendary Junior Heavyweight, he show how great of a technical wrestler he can be while wrestling the traditional New Japan style."

[7.0] "Always excited to see a El Desperado match. One of my favourite in-ring attires that kind of reminds me of what Shawn Michaels's or Kevin Nash's were at certain points in history. He had a really exciting match with Titan this year. This is how you do a masked wrestler alright. Extremely talented in ring skills, especially at this year's BoSJ's."

[10.0] "After BOSJ 29 I have to give him a 10. Carried NJPW through the pandemic and kept getting better and better. Matches with Lindaman, Titan, Yuta, Eagles, and of course the final against Hiromu. One of the guys I stayed up late during finals to watch wrestle. Awesome"

[9.0] "One of the best junior heavyweights in the world right now. He's steadily become one of the most consistent guys not only in New Japan's junior division, but on the whole roster."

[7.0] "Had a brilliant one week stretch in Feb/Mar - winning his first Jr Heavyweight Championship, and challenging Ibushi at the anniversary event. Aside from that he held his own in a narrow Jr division, both in singles and tag competition. Not too sure what the future holds for Despy, but it may hinge on his Wrestle Kingdom match vs Hiromu."

[9.0] "I have never been so happy for a jr. match result when Despy finally won the title. He may not be the best wrestler (he is very, very good though), but damn, he knows how to make things memorable, he is charismatic af and as a total package he is the best jr in NJPW along with Hiromu. I hope he gets the belt back."

[10.0] "Very charismatic performer in modern New Japan. Why was he Jr. Champ only one time? ! He deserves more than just being in the shadow of Ospreay that was earlier, and now in Takahashi's shadow. I hope he is gonna be one of the greatest Jr. Heavyweights in NJ history, but he is already 37..."

[6.0] "A weird case in that Desperado is actually much better as a singles wrestler than working in tags, but not so much a weird case in that he's incredibly overrated. Yeah, he's not bad but his matches always need to follow a certain formula (him methodically working on his opponent's legs) to be good: out of that formula he's not this amazing talent he's made to be. It works until the Jr. Heavyweight division becomes too depleted and I see the same match one time too many: like with so many other workers NJPW has been more or less forced to push a midcarder due to how depleted their roster started being in 2018, and there's a very good reason folks like Desperado spent a decade in the midcard."

[10.0] "He gets the 10 for the mask removal spot against Hiromu. Outside of major title victories, I've not felt that way at a match since Shibata's headbutt against Okada. A masterful wrestler who understands how to create a moment that'll last forever."

[8.0] "Despy has to be one of my favorite juniors in wrestling. He deserves a big push from New Japan. I loved his match with Hiromu and his Ishii match."

[10.0] "A great wrestler all round, has a great look, moveset and is very charasmatic. And lets not forget he is one of the best workers in the jr division. 2021 is the year Despy finally wins the jr title"

[8.0] "It's always a joy to watch this guy wrestle. He's got a great look and gimmick. Very creative grappler, but also a superb highflyer. Being a total heel, fits him perfectly. One of the very few guys, I wish never want to see go babyface."

[7.0] "El Desperado is a nice little mid-level junior. Definitely not a top-level junior. Mid-level for sure."

[10.0] "I do not know if Despy is a full, 100% 10/10, but he is damn close, and his rating here stands at a 7. 99, so maybe this will boost it up. Today? s match with Hiromu was special. Absolutely excellent."

[10.0] "El Desperado is one of my favorite competitors in NJPW. I turn on most shows just to watch him compete. I hope he finally gets some huge accolades one day."

[9.0] "I used to be among the many people who underrated this guy, but the more I see of him in high profile singles matches, the more impressed I am. Genuinely one of the best performers in NJPW today."

[9.0] "Look: 8/10. Wrestling ability: 8/10. Entrance theme: 10/10, one of the best in the entire business. Let's go with a 9/10 overall."

[10.0] "Insanely underrated. Great look, great in-ring. Should be a multi-time junior champ by now. Shame he doesn't get as much love as other juniors"

[10.0] "Underrated as fuck, should have been Jr. Heavy champion a long time ago, he has proven he well deserve a run with the belt."

[10.0] "Despy is great. I was a fan of his work with the Suzuki-gun even before NJPW gave him a chance with the belts in 2018. Despy had one of the best reigns with the junior tag title since I started watch NJPW years ago and I am really happy that he is getting some opportunities."

[8.0] "El Desperado is one of my favorite Juniors in NJPW, he may not be the best, but for me he is the coolest, he is charismatic, great in promos, he has a unique look, and a style different from the rest of the Junior Division, I hope it will shine in 2020."

[6.0] "Good look, cool name, solid worker, unique moveset, and a great talker. above average, but either hasn't had a breakout yet or I simply haven't found it. well above average but not quite great overall. I'm hoping he steps up in the next couple years and we see some good singles competition from him, cause his BOSJ match with Takahashi was fucking excellent."

[6.0] "There must be legendary hidden tape of Desperado out there in the ether where he is shown wrestling like Kushida and Sho, because all I've seen from this guy has being relatively good and nothing more. He mostly stays in junior tag matches and Suzuki-gun 6, 8, and 10-man tags, and he only gets junior singles matches around the time of the BOSJ. He never looks bad in his performances in these matches, since he works the usual speedy and agile style expected of a junior. He's good fun in the tag matches, but that's only ever when he's contributing to an overarching quick and sneaky team effort from Suzuki-gun. He himself has never directly stood out. He was stuck giving the same 'cheating heel' performances for ages in his and Kanemaru's seemingly never-ending series of matches with Sho and Yoh, and his work, again, was always decent but never especially great. The only singles match he has that people use to try point to as evidence of him being great is his BOSJ match with Hiromu, which I thought was quite good and not much else. There's nothing else to the argument of Desperado supposedly being great. I kind of bet half of his support in recent years just comes from his really cool look. I won't deny he's quite fun (even occasionally very fun) in tag matches, but I'm still yet to see any consistent performances to prove that he's actually a great wrestler."

[8.0] "El Desperado has the same problem that Taichi and Kevin Owens has: THE BOOKING! When Desperado is given a chance to shine, he shine bright like a diamond, but when Gedo (or most probably, Jado) put him to do the Suzuki-gun bullshit, it's simply awful, it look like Desperado can't wrestle, but he can, he's really good."

[10.0] "Despy is defo one of my fave Jrs in the world rn, his 2018 has been soooo good & has had a great BOSJ, he & Uncle Nobu have had the best IWGP Jr. Tag reign in agessss & they are doing wonders with it. I hope he wins the Jr singles title real soon tho."

[10.0] "I have no reason now after this Best of Super Juniors Tournament that this man is the uncrowned IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion. This year's tournament has been a real wake up call to all fans of Desperado's in ring skills being able to be such an annoying heel who at the same time doesn't even have to necessarily cheat to win his matches yet does anyway. His promos have shown to be well done too, he has a good look and it's any time now that Gedo decides to finally put the Jr. championship on him."

[10.0] "Despy is currently one of the best & most underrated wrestlers they have in the Jr division right now. His in ring skills are amazing & he is my favourite & the best one out of the SZKG Jrs. Can't wait to see him face Kushi for the Jr belt & I'm sure these two are gonna steal the show. Also ZSJ & Despy are my favourite tag team right now. #MurderBesties4Life."

[9.0] "So underrated. One of best Jr. heavyweight wrestlers in New Japan right now. He proved it with his stellar performance in BOSJ recently. I think he should be the one pushed as Jr. heavyweight title contender from Suzuki Gun on later date."