Zack Sabre Jr.

"Zack Sabre Jr. Assessment. Technical credibility: exceptional. Physical intimidation: unconventional. Positional awareness: consistently high. Ability to convert minor errors into visible danger: perhaps his greatest strength. He does not require a dramatic collision to alter a match. A misplaced hand, an exposed ankle, or an impatient attempt to stand can become the central problem immediately. That economy is refreshing. Too many performances announce intelligence through unnecessary complexity. Sabre demonstrates it through selection. The right hold at the right moment communicates more than an ornamental chain of reversals. Weakness: the confidence occasionally becomes performance rather than strategy. Verbal taunting can enhance the character, but repeated displays risk delaying the next meaningful decision. Nevertheless, the underlying logic remains unusually clear. He identifies a structural weakness, applies pressure, anticipates the escape, and punishes the escape itself. Final judgment: not always emotionally inviting, rarely careless, frequently brilliant. Watching him is less like witnessing a fight develop and more like realizing the trap was completed three decisions ago."

[8.0] "Saw his match against Kenny Omega recently and even that I'm not a big fan of his style, he was so good and didn't even made mistakes, everything was performing like an art. And I really enjoyed his selling"

[10.0] "One of the best technical wrestler I have ever watched live. I'm happy that NJPW finally gave him two runs with the world title. Do I think he ever go to AEW? Honestly maybe full time no but part time yeah. I also think he be the first person from NJPW to win a AEW championship."

[6.0] "I never get the super hype for ZZZSJ , I find him very boring. His IWGP title reigns sucked and he only won it because NJPW was super desperate at the time. I won't like , he is a great technician in ring but I am never very entertained by his matches."

[10.0] "ZSJ is the best technical wrestler in the world right now. He doesn't do a ton of flashy moves but his submission work really is spectacular. I find myself in awe of his various holds, movements, and wrestling sequences, as he really treats wrestling as an art form"

[10.0] "Zack Sabre Jr is why I watch and why I love professional wrestling. A man who takes the sport and boils it down to its essence. The ring is the canvas and he is the Renaissance painter."

[10.0] "ZSJ is by far the best technical wrestler in the world today, he really deserved more love in a wrestling world where all ppl do to pass off a great match is spamming finishers or doing a ton of flips."

[9.0] "8/10 from me, Accomplishments - 8.5, Charisma/Character Work - 8.5, Cultural Significance - 7.5, In-Ring Skills - 10, Longevity -10 and Move-Set - 10 = 8.9 rounded up to 9/10."

"This man is incapable of putting on a bad match ngl. He's keeping the legacy of British wrestling and "catch-as-catch-can" alive."

[10.0] "Every singles match he has, and most tag matches too, I sit in awe of ZSJ. His knowledge, his fluid movements, his charisma... To me he's everything I want to see in wrestling with fun surprises thrown in."

[10.0] "hes such a great worker that i think isnt fully appreciated for how crazy his shit is for some reason. an undeniably skilled technical wrestler with a well defined character, great selling and a continued drive to work"

[10.0] "amazing wrestler with amazing matches, one of the best in the world currently. Wasn't a fan of njpw during his title runs, but his matches are good, and is a really fucking good technical wrestler."

[10.0] "Being the best pure submission specialist in wrestling history sometimes makes people overlook how amazing Zack is at other aspects of wrestling, mainly his sense of pace and timing. Zack's matches are always great because he knows exactly when and how to slow things down, vs. when to go fast and insert an exciting sequence into the flow of the match. Zack can be methodical, picking apart his opponent on the mat, or he can be downright frantic, changing holds, trading reversals, and getting to his powerful, Shibata-esque strikes. Zack is the rare instance of a specialist who is actually incredibly versatile. He's a true innovator, you won't see anyone in the world pull off some of the wild, octopus-like holds that Zack can apply with fluidity and devastating realism. Truly Zack is a master of the artform of wrestling, but his greatness goes far beyond just that. Zack's character and promo work is wonderful, he always gets a laugh out of me with his constant arrogant dickheadedness, he has a great, dry and sarcastic sense of humor and very strong wit. His post match promos are always some of the best in New Japan. It's Zack's charisma that helps him be the frontman of the best stable in New Japan today. Zack's 2025 was massive for him, seeing him carry the IWGP Heavyweight title, the culmination of his commitment to being the most loyal gaijin to the company and a constant presence in NJPW. Zack has transformed in my time watching him, he's truly come into his own, no longer just a respected scientists but as a true main eventer and someone that a huge company to rely on to carry them. Zack is a living legend at deserves every bit of praise he gets. As times goes on I appreciate his body of work and what he brings to wrestling even more."

[9.0] "This guy is phenomenal with his submission holds, he's probably one of my favorite technical wrestlers of all time. I haven't seen a lot of his match beforehand, but when I did decide to check out some of his matches to see the hype, and I can say, I understand why people love him"

[6.0] "I am sorry but I just don't see it. Unless you pair him with Bryan Danielson I genuinely don't want to see his matches. He makes everything stale, slow and unwatchable. He usually paired up with people who won't engage in his technical sequence which is unfortunate but I can't believe these ratings I see on his matches with Ospreay and Takeshita etc. I didn't enjoy any of these matches "beside Danielson""

[10.0] "Zack Sabre Jr. is the best pure technical wrestler since Kiyoshi Tamura. Maybe since Billy Robinson. He is in a league all his own when the ground graps are concerned; he simply has no peers either in his generation or (I'd argue) the one prior. I have no problem at all buying this stringbean of a man hanging with the heavyweights since I am fully convinced he could kill a man with his bare hands. He can also sell like crazy and appears to be a damn good trainer when given a protege willing to learn. My pick for the best overall worker of his generation."

[10.0] "Best in the world as of 2025, by an important distance that is. His understanding of the sport is matched by very few. His in ring is one of the best I've ever seen. Every important mind in the sport has acknowledged him as the best technical wrestler. That should tell you everything about how good he is. But not only he is the absolute best at wrestling, he also cares a lot about the sport and his promotion. Even in the most important and successful year in his career, he elevated many other workers such as Goto, Oiwa, Ren, Finlay. Flawless worker, one can't ask for a better one to have in his roster."

[8.0] "A man who goes into every match with the attitude of "you are all below me" and you believe him. As intricate a wrestler there has ever been, and one of its very best technicians."

[4.0] "Occasionally great. Zack Sabre Jr is a wrestler when paired with the right opponent in the right context can be absolutely fantastic but can also be terrible. Incredibly self indulgent nonsensical holds where logical more painful holds are thrown away for fancy ones that wouldn't hurt at all and matches that go way too long. I almost never go out of my way to watch a ZSJ match and each time i do i get reminded why i don't watch him."

[9.0] "One of the five best technical wrestlers ever and he knows it. Everything he does is built around pure technique and it lets him show off just how sharp he is. He bends people up like he's solving a rubic cube. One of the few who make technical wrestling feel like its own art form."

[8.0] "Technical master who makes a wristlock seem damn devastating. I have enjoyed watching his work in NJPW and ROH. I would like a bit more variation in his grappling."

[9.0] "My god, this guy is great! He has great in-ring techniques, but also a lot of personality that goes with."

[10.0] "Zack is an inspiring and an incredible technical wrestler, he just knows all of the technical submissions and holds and is up there with the likes of Johnny Saint. Definitely a wrestler who should share his experience by helping upcoming students after he retires."

[10.0] "If it's even possible to be "too good" at wrestling, ZSJ most certainly is. He pulls out counter moves and reversals and submissions that you didn't even think were possible, combined with some extra stiff looking strikes and constant chirps makes him one of the most potentially threatening in-ring presences I've seen. Also just the coolest guy outside the ring."

[10.0] "Zack Sabre Jr. is one of those wrestlers you don't just watch -- you study. He's not about flashy entrances, towering muscles, or power moves that shake the ring. He's about control. Precision. Technique. The kind of wrestling that makes you wince because you feel every twist of the arm, every stretch of the leg, every second a joint is bent in a direction it shouldn't go. What makes Zack different is that he wrestles like he's playing chess. He doesn't rush. He breaks you down. Limb by limb. It's almost cold -- not in a boring way, but in a surgical one. He walks into matches knowing that his style isn't the crowd favorite. But he makes you adjust to him. That's power."

[10.0] "I seriously seriously can't comprehend the fact that this man is not rated higher than 9.12 at the time of writing this review. Yes wrestling is subjective, but that's more applicable and true in terms of the entertainment part of wrestling, and the moveset. High flyers for example tend to get less respect than deserved due to their inring style, and wrestlers like LA Knight tend to get less respect due to some people hating the entertainment part embedded in wrestling. But with this man none of the 2 is really applicable. He has the promo value of a "Bobby Lashley" , meaning there isn't much, and the inring prowess of a "Bryan Danielson" meaning he is one of the best ever inring. He should be a 9.50+. My man can have a classic with absolutely any and everyone, and his consistency in doing so is insane. He suffered from a very bad title reign recently sure, but not enough to be regarded as not one of the best ever. He is 37, probably wont ever sign with a major company. And his retirement is surely coming in the near future. I hope NJPW will do him justice with having a few more dream matches before he calls it, and stop booking him so badly. Man for sure is up there with all time greats. 10/10"

[10.0] "The best grappler on the planet. Funny as hell personality when he gets fired up or upset. Comes up with submission moves out of thin air that you've never seen before, twists dudes into pretzels. Always inventive and fascinating to watch evolve from a skinny smarmy technician who couldn't take a punch to an all around champion."

"Been watching him since like 2013 and he's always been a favourite of mine. Not only an incredible technical wrestler but he makes it fun."

[4.0] "Here are some holds that Zack Sabre Jr. knows: Spinning toe hold. Wristlock. Indian death lock. Here are some more holds that Zack Sabre Jr. knows: Crucifix armbar. Octopus clutch. Jackknife hold. Here are even more holds that Zack Sabre Jr. knows: Fujiwara armbar. Omoplata. Single leg Boston crab. Wow. That's a lot of holds. And Zack Sabre Jr.'s wrestling style is to use one of these holds in a match for a while, then randomly switch to a different one. Then switch again. And again. And again. And again. Because Zack Sabre Jr. doesn't ever want to actually beat his opponent, he just wants to show that he knows so very, very many holds. So if your idea of an entertaining match is a wrestler laying down or standing in place for a while - fiddling with another wrestler's fingers or foot or lower lumbar or whatever - until he decides to change to something else for no reason, Zack Sabre Jr. is your guy!"

[6.0] "I feel like everyone else in the world is gaslighting me on Zack Sabre Jr. He's too skinny and his offense is boring to watch. Legitimately every match I find dull. A little twink with boring technical offense, he's only in the position he is in because of how depleted NJPW is these days. Should be toiling in the midcard not main eventing shows."

[10.0] "It says a lot when he stops Brian Danielson from winning an award that was named after him. Just a superb technical wrestler and New Japan are very lucky to have him."

"ZSJ is without a doubt the greatest technical wrestler active today, if not ever. The ease with which he seamlessly transitions between submissions, his presence in the ring, and his psychology make him one of the most complete wrestlers around today"

[10.0] "One of the greatest British wrestlers of all time in both in-ring ability and career accomplishment. Deserved both his G1 win, his IWGP WHC reign although not spectacular at least cements his legacy. I still believe we have not seen his best yet and hopefully that will come with enough time."

[9.0] "Here's the thing, He is one of the best technical professional wrestlers I have ever seen, but that being said, I can not rate him a 10/10, since his matches can not main event shows. Let me explain myself. His matches are EXTREMELY slow paced, to the point where they can be boring. He needs, in my opinion, to learn how to be a little bit more fast-paced. I understand that his style of wrestling demands him to be a little bit more slow with his moves, but his match against Shota Umino, on Wrestle Kingdom 19, just highlighted what I said. It would've been a great match for the opening or middle of the card, but for a main event felt very, very flat. Great wrestler, disappointing main eventer."

[7.0] "Honestly, Zack Sabre Jr. is one of the least prestigious IWGP World Heavyweight champions in history. That doesn't mean that Zack Sabre is not a good wrestler, but he simply doesn't look like he could be leading NJPW. For me, he doesn't have the level and never had the ability to do so. His technique is good, but beyond that there's nothing. Before winning the G1 Climax I would have given ZSJ an 8, and when I saw the news that he won the G1 Climax I thought that maybe he had changed his style and was now more complete. But no, he's still the same as always. If you put him with elite wrestlers, he'll surely give you a very good match, but it's not like he knows how to handle matches against average people. Also, it was clear this year at WrestleKingdom 19 that he's not ready for a main event of that magnitude, since his match against Shota Umino seemed too boring to me. Why? Because Shota is a normal wrestler and ZSJ doesn't know how to give decent matches against normal people. That's why I don't consider this guy a great wrestler and that's why he's so overrated to me. Because of things like this you can see that NJPW is going through a very low moment, for me this guy should be in the middle of the card or the upper middle, but not much more if we're talking about NJPW. You can't compare this guy to Kurt Angle or anything like that, because for me there is no comparison, This is not because of the technique, but because of the character and the emotions that they give you. Kurt, with every move and hold he made, made you feel like you were in that submission with him, ZSJ does the same submission, and that's it. No emotion, No storytelling, nothing more than that submission. You could compare him to Bret Hart. (For me Owen was always much better than his brother)"

[10.0] "The greatest pure, technical wrestler of all time. The TRUE definition of "submission specialist." If you're the kinda guy to watch a Bret match and find it boring, he's not the wrestler for you, but if you're into bouts that showcase the art of WRESTLING... Definitely give this guy a go."

"An amazing wrestler that has helped me learn more about the current NJPW scene that I have had a hard time keeping up with. The way this man can control a person and bend their bodies into ungodly shapes will always keep me invested."

[10.0] "For some reason I always used to get him confused with Zach Gowen, purely because they're both called Zack but even then they're not spelled the same. Anyways, every time I've watched Sabre Jr. he has improved tenfold. this coming to a crowning moment recently when he became the first foreigner to win the G1 and later on the IWGP Heavyweight Title, I watched him face off against Hechicero just before that and all I could say was wow, he really is the complete article when it comes to modern technical wrestlers, some of the counters I've seen him pull out are insane and he just has such good ring psyche. Him, Ospreay, Dunne and Bate will forever be the golden generation of British Wrestling."

[9.0] "Zack is an incredible wrestler and a great benefit to the wrestling industry. He has some of the most creative wrestling moves. He builds his peers up, and develops wrestling in countries where wrestling is not as popular. He has been a great support for NJPW for so long and it is great that he finally is being pushed to the top. He has even had to take some really unnecessary losses for ego driven NJPW people in power. He most likely will win the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship this year and deservedly so. He truly is the MVP of NJPW right now and has been for a while."

[10.0] "Quando Bret Hart parlava del fatto che il wrestling è una forma d'arte, non lo sapeva ma parlava di Zack Sabre Jr"

[10.0] "The greatest professional wrestler in the world right now. Unparalleled in pure grappling ability. Charismatic af."

[9.0] "Zack Sabre Jr. is an exceptional wrestler whose technical precision and creativity make him a joy to watch. His matches feel like a chess game in motion, offering a level of sophistication and ingenuity that sets him apart from most others in the industry."

[10.0] "Dude I freaking LOVE Zack Sabre Jr. As the son of international sensation Zack Sabre Sr, it was always going to be hard to live up to those expectations, and he's exceeded them. His technical skills are remarkable. Easily the best technician in the world. Incredibly underrated guy and it's just a joy watching him wrestle."

[10.0] "Zack Sabre Jr. is one of the best wrestlers in history. He's the greatest technician in the ring after Bryan Danielson, he's so comfortable in all his holds, it's pure bliss for us fans. ZSJ is a genius and very few people can match him. He's truly a phenomenon and to see him at the top of NJPW in 2024 is so inspiring !"

[10.0] "I think Zed-S-J is the best technical wrestler in the world today. His matches sometimes can be boring to watch at times, but Zack is a very smooth submission specialist, which makes the matches flow better than most matches do. He is also very funny and great on the mic. He is also 1/2 of one of the best teams of 2020 with Lord Taichi. Sabre is very very good at the wrestling thing."

[10.0] "Hurrah! Another Year, Surely This One Will Be Better Than the Last; The Inexorable March of Progress Will Lead Us All to Happiness! At the time of writing, Zack Sabre Jr's 20 year wait for the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship is finally over, and honestly, I can't be happier. Zack's been an extremely reliable and consistent part of NJPW's upper mid-card for a very long time, and to see that patience finally rewarded is fantastic. In my opinion, Zack's been in contention for the best wrestler in the whole for a while now, as his Billy Robinson throw-back style is always entertaining considering how well Zack's able to pull it off whilst being an extremely entertaining personality. Now, all I can hope for is that his championship reign is very long, or at least just long enough to give NJPW's younger guys time to catch-up. So congratulations Zack, ya fucking animal :)"

[10.0] "ZSJ is one of those wrestlers who technical work either it be submission or grappling will leave you amaze just seeing him work his magic and lives up to the moniker as "The Technical Wizard"! seeing his rise to becoming IWGP World Heavyweight champion was a blessing and his ability to transform and find innovative holds and improve upon his character work, he's a generational talent who legacy will definitely be looked upon as one the best!"

[10.0] "ive seen some of his NJPW stuff. but ive mainly seen him on the indies and aew from time to tome and hes just so damn good. from the NJPW stuff ive seen too, hes still amazing. leaves me speechless and having a hard time for words with his technical wrestling abilities. highly encourage everyone to seek out some of his matches if you haven't seen him"

[10.0] "Best technical wrestler ever, currently the best wrestler in the world in general. Finally the IWGP Champion, absolutely deserved and amazing."

[10.0] "It has finally happened. Zack Sabre Jr. is officially NJPW World Heavyweight Champion. He deserves this so much - the absolute best wrestler in the world today."