[7.0] "Quite a lengthy match and it didn't feel like it, I was surprised the moment it ended. That still doesn't mean that there wasn't a lot of unecessary stuff in its duration. Some insane spots and unbelievable counters, but they could still cut some stuff down."
[9.0] "[4.25*] Hell yeah, this was fucking fantastic. The only MOTYC of the night and obviously the best one from the show. This was a total blast and even made me rethink about Bandido vs Takeshita, because I gave the other one a higher rating but this one aged better. I think the other match was more explosive with hot nearfalls and fireworks, so the dopamine levels were higher while watching. But this one was more sophisticated, Hechicero made sure that the pacing was never going to be that higher and it only made the match better. Yes, the match could've been shorter, there was no need for 36 minutes and sometimes they were a little bit over the top with the reversal dances and technical exchanges, even having some inevitable minor botches because it was impossible to not have them lol, so it wasn't perfect for me but it was a hell of a match. A crazy mix of different styles, a proper lucha libre tribute with also a fucking Bryan vs Nigel-style headbutt battle, this had it all. They literally blew my mind with all the quality and both guys were used at their best. Bandido when it came to create more explosive moments and Hechicero with the smart-wrestling, limb-work and control segments. A fantastic bout."
[10.0] "Bandido continues to prove that he's the MVP of the summer with this amazing match. I love the aspect of him being so frustrated with Hechicero and Don Callis that he stoops to there level and attacks Hechiceros mask, the fans immediately called him out on it and through his amazing performance he earned their cheers again by the end of the match, absolute cinema. Bandido could surprisingly keep up with Hechiceros technical wrestling, the challenger could surprisingly keep up with the champions high-flying and they were both unsurprisingly very willing to beat the absolute crap out of each other. My 6th favourite match of the year 9.5/10."
"A great match with some amazing moments, but let down by the final 5 minutes. It didnt "ruin" the match for me but without the final 5 it would be very close to if not level with Bandito x Takeshita [4.5*]"
[8.0] "Great work, continuing Bandido's purple patch of fantastic ROH world title defences. These guys have good chemistry, and when the match was firing on all cylinders, it was some of the most peak wrestling of the year. However, they well and truly missed the peak on this match, which dampened my feelings on it. To be truthful, they missed the peak several times, and each returning 'peak' when they brought the crowd back was slightly less effective than the last. Add in some as-expected clunkiness that always seems to pop up in Bandido's matches that run long, and it all comes together for something that, in my mind, was 'great' when it should have been 'amazing'."
[10.0] "[4.75*] WTF! ? OH MY. BANDIDO IS THE BEST WRESTLER I'VE SEEN IN MY GODDAMN LIFE IN 2025. he pairs so well with the talented hechicero form cmll, from zack sabre jr matches to here, he and bandido has been on a great run in this wrestling ring."
[9.0] "I felt it dragged on a bit and i don't know if this is a hot take but the finish felt really flat especially after all the good action before it"
[5.0] "I really like both of these guys but this one felt way too long and a little sloppy. I also don't love the booking, with Bandido's win feeling neither decisive nor like a sneaky surprise pin that demands a rematch. Bandido tearing Hechicero's mask also felt out of character, and like it undercuts what Bandido is supposed to stand for. With that said, an entertaining title match with some impressive moves and chain wrestling."
[5.0] "First of all I really don't dislike both of these guys, the problem isn't necessarily about them. It's the booker/s of this match's problem, my god man it's didn't needed to go for almost 40 minutes, both did really fine and some spots were impressive, it just The match felt padded just to reach 36 minutes a half. These type of matches doesn't need to be long to all, and if they needs to be long there should be reasons whether it's a story/the circumstances, but here it wasn't the cast at all. I still think it's alright tho. **1/2"
[10.0] "Bandido truly is one of the best spotfest wrestlers today. Hechicero tried to attack every limb possible to overcome Bandido and in result, he lost focus and couldn't stick to any of them which could've won him the title. Bandido's sheer resilience and intensity made him panic strategically. It's an amazing story that is told in a very subtle yet blatant manner. And there's so many spots in this match that tear the fucking house down. That Helicopter Slam off the apron was horrifying. I'm unsure if I'd put this over Bandido's match with Dorada or Takeshita but I'll figure it out by the end of the year. INCREDIBLE match."
[10.0] "My pick for Match of The Year. This match had absolutely everything and I can't stop watching it over and over. The best Bandido match, best Hechicero match, what an absolute masterpiece. The pacing, the sequences, the chemistry, everything was at the highest level. People will talk about this match for many, many generations, and I say that because I see actual innovation in this match that I haven't seen in a long time. The perfect mix of technical wrestling and lucha libre that these two bring is so satisfying and fun to watch. I rarely ever give matches more than a 10, I've done so only a couple times, but this is one that I'd give a 12/10 if I could. These two displayed true art, and true magic in the ring."
[7.0] "Sometimes a brilliant contest can overstay its welcome and lessen its impact as a result. This was absolutely brilliant for 25 or so minutes with two of the best around today showcasing some creative counter-wrestling, extraordinary mat exchanges and some wildly impactful and surprising moves on and to the outside. It was all set up to be a worthy addition to the pantheon of great ROH title matches but it did feel like they carried on past the peak for just a little too long and by the time they got to the home stretch things seemed to have flattened considerably."
[7.0] "I think Bandido should go on a tear against The Don Callis Family. He should be the only one to have the factions number. It's fitting as he is the Most Wanted. Next up Okada. Maybe it's just me who don't understand the complexity of Hechicero. Dude is like the Zack Sabre Jr, of Lucha Libre. And this match was that too. I was expecting a classic lucha libre style of contest but what I got was a technical and offensive contest, which obvious I don't object. Even though I rated it a 7/10, it does not mean it was not a good match. Bandido's avalanche fallaway slam is a thing of beauty."
[9.0] "Near flawless match throughout with a ton of great grappling and creative offense, but if I'm being honest, the last few minutes left a sour taste in my mouth. It was all perfectly building to an insane final stretch, and then there was a series of miscommunications that took the heat out of it completely. Otherwise, I had an incredibly fun time watching this. Bandido's having a hell of a year. ****1/2"
[8.0] "Here are two guys who are I think are a little over rated. Don't get me wrong, the can both go and did so in this match. It just seems like I am usually more than a point lower than my peers when either of these two are in the ring with someone."
[9.0] "Not as good as Bandido vs Takeshita for me, but still excellent. Not a new opinion, but Bandido has had a hell of a year, really good to see him have such a strong time after a lot of injuries. This match had a lot of struggle/strength moments which helped it feel REAL. Opening five minutes or so was just mat stuff and after that is when it comes alive."
[7.0] "A good match, but far from as good as the rating says as far as I believe. They told a fine story, had some good spots, had some few mistakes. Don Callis played a surprisinly small role compared to what I would have expected. Bandido looked really good"
[10.0] "I'm tired of saying that Bandido's matches have no right to be that good like how on Earth is it possible ? 2025's MVP is undoubtedly Bandido who puts classic performances on classic performances, what a year for him. I knew I only could love this match because I love both guys, they are clearly my favourite luchadores in the whole world right now. I can't describe this match with words, you need to watch it."
[10.0] "This is easily my favourite match of the year so far; near-perfect, just missing five stars. Bandido, decked out in silver armour reminiscent of The Predator, defended the ROH World Title against Hechicero in a semi-main event that more than lived up to its billing. The match started slower but gradually built in intensity, with Bandido hitting a huge floor dive into a rana signalling the action picking up. Hechicero and Bandido exchanged incredible spots, including mask ripping, rolling Mexican Surfboards, and jaw-dropping counters. The second half was spectacular, featuring suplexes onto the barricade, insane crossbodies off the top rope to the floor, and a spinning F5 off the apron that looked absolutely brutal. Bandido closed the match with a Moonsault Fallaway Slam followed by a partial Chaos Theory. My only critique is that the bout ran a few minutes longer than necessary, which kept it from a perfect rating. Even so, this was one of the best matches of Hechicero's career and another outstanding performance for Bandido, cementing him as a contender for Most Outstanding Wrestler in 2025. Compared to his title defence against Konosuke Takeshita, this one connected more emotionally and showcased incredible work from both wrestlers. A must-watch match for anyone who appreciates high-level storytelling and athleticism in the ring. ****3/4"
[8.0] "This was a very good match between two great performers, but I think it had a few things that, for me, keep it from the very highest heights that others seemed to rate it. First, the build was lacking in a way that hurt the high stakes feeling od the best matches. Second, it was too long, and as thrilling as it was overall, I found my attention wavering as we approached 30 minutes. This leads into my third issue - they did a ton of amazing spots, and all but a small fraction hit. With the length of the match, though, the botches added up to a noticeable minority. Finally, Hechicero is a very talented wrestler, but there's just something awkward in his presentation. I don't know if he needs to abandon the slight nods to the alchemical mysticism, or just go all in on the gimmick like Mortos, but his half hearted hand gestures were distracting."
[10.0] "Bandido to me is wrestler of the year, him & Hechicero easily put on a MOTYC tonight. Just an incredible match that didn't even feel like it went over 36 minutes, technically wrestling at its best & there were a few times I ended up thinking there was going to be a title change. Towards the end I'm not sure if there was a miscommunication but it added to the match that they were completely gassed & just loved it feeling like a struggle. What a match"
[9.0] "This match made me fall in love with technical wrestling. An incredible match between two very good competitors. The end result was sadly obvious, but they did everything they could to make the actual wrestling feel spectacular."
[9.0] "An incredible match that built gradually, effortlessly going through the gears. The setting is pivotal in that sense, with the show being truly dependent on this match. As a result, these two have the space to take their time early, patiently putting building blocks in place after a pretty casual undercard to that point. The obvious styles clash certainly helps too, giving this a core dynamic that's able to sustain the runtime, taking a few different shapes along the way. In their own lane, both grapplers are extraordinary offensive wrestlers though, making for a matchup that's incredibly easy on the eyes. Their shared physicality provides just enough overlap to live in otherwise too, sharing some crunchy exchanges along the way. This likely goes a minute or two beyond its absolute peak, but it's an outstanding match nonetheless, strengthening Bandido's impressive 2025 campaign. ****1/2"
[10.0] "Wonderful match between Bandido and Hechicero in Ring of Honor, they ruled so mutch, a high quality match, one of my favorite of the year. It's so great to see mexicans wrestlers in this spot, lucha is really amazing."
[10.0] "oh my god this match was incredible! i think i was watching when i came home from a night out and my god this was exactly what i needed at that moment. truly phenomenal work between the two probably my favorite hechicero performance, might be my second or third bandido singles performance. the way bandido is wrestling i totally see him being crowned mens wrestler of the year."
[9.0] "Although not quite as good as Bandido's classic with Takeshita earlier on this year this was still flipping brilliant and thrilling and I can't wait to see further Bandido title defenses in future."
[8.0] "This match was either exciting or was starting to drag for me at points. An interesting moment was when Bandido tried to take Hechicero's mask off and the crowd for a second turned on him. I thought Bandido reacted perfectly to that. There were great spots. I don't see this as a classic but it certainly was fun to watch."
[9.0] "While not exactly a trillion star match it was a very good ROH World Championship match from Bandido and challlenger Hechicero. The unfortunate part is Hechicero had zero chance of winning here and Bandido seems more likely to lose on a AEW show. The Takeshita match is the best one all year since that felt like it could end either way."
[10.0] "Hechicero has been one of the best wrestlers in the world for years but I think this is the match that really shows that to a wider US audience. Bandido is having an excellent year in his own right since becoming ROH Champion again, but Hechicero is absolutely the star here. Callis calls Hechicero a Swiss Army Knife of a wrestler on commentary and that is 100% true in this match; he does everything from submissions to strikes to dives to power moves to character work/heeling to selling at a level such that you'd consider him one of the best going today at every single one since Bandido forces him to go into his bag of tricks over and over due to his own wide range of talents. That helicopter move off the apron had me gasping in awe, genuinely. Every aspect of this match that can feel played out by modern main event standards felt way more natural and earned here; every nearfall and counter and submission is given 100% and fought for, the comebacks of Bandido are gorgeous stuff, and even the headbutt exchange on the mat felt way more magnanimous due to where they placed it and how they got there. The finish too was fantastic, with Hechicero still to the very end scouting Bandido and the champ needing to improvise on the fly with the Straightjacket Deadlift German off the 21plex setup to get the win. I do think maybe something Hechicero targeted with submissions could've come into play more in the second half of the match, but that's really the only issue I can mention here. With all of that said, the biggest compliment I can give this match is that despite going over 35 minutes, I don't think this dragged or felt overlong at all. A true MOTYC by any metric, the best men's match under the AEW/ROH banner for sure (beating FTR/Outrunners 1 & Ricochet/Briscoe Stretcher but being short of the Hollywood Ending). ****3/4+"
[10.0] "Great showing from both competitors. Hechizero was top notch, bandido was top notch. I'm still new to ROH but this is one of my favorite matches so far."
[9.0] "Lucha Magic. They worked soooo good together. The match was intesnse with some insane bumps. I liked how they ripped the masks off (partial) to show the fans this was some personal stuff. Bandido countering the final spot like crazy was brilliant"
[10.0] "Extremely special match. The match of the year in my opinion. Wildly entertaining, creative, exciting, and inventive in a way that left me dumbfounded. Every so often I will see a match that leaves me thinking something like "Wow I'm not sure if I've ever seen anything else like this before" which is how I felt with this one here. Just two extremely special wrestlers combining their talents in a way that felt wholly unique and perhaps even completely unprecedented."
[10.0] "Maybe the most impressive pro wrestling match I've ever seen, and also not one I'm sure I actually want to give a 10 to. I'm not bothered by the sloppiness; I can't be, really, when any botch was sped past in under a second at the pace they were going. I think they lost me somewhat when Bandido took a devastating-looking lunging knee to the face in the corner, and then without pausing to breathe Hechicero ran back across the ring, Bandido following straight behind him to turn the tables. That's not even fighting spirit, that's just a genuine no-sell on a move that looked like it should have hospitalized him. By the end of this thing, the crowd was too tired to really react to anything they were doing. It's not quite the same as having lost the crowd, they were interested. Just these two guys have more stamina performing the match than most people can muster watching it. I dunno, I've never seen a match so creative and physically impressive, I just wish they slowed down occasionally. Shoutouts to Peter Griffin in the audience, making every spot he reacted to ten times more impactful. Lock for Crowd Member of the Year. Maybe he's enough to elevate this from a 9 to a 10."
[10.0] "Insanely impressive. Bandido is an easy wrestler of the year pick. Somehow I kept doubting he'd be able to pick up Hechicero for those bigger moves but he impressed me every time. A couple beautiful spots I've been rewatching and some perfect technical sequences. All-in-all a stellar match."
[8.0] "(Grade:B+/****2/3) I definitely see why fans are considering this MOTY, I would definitely put it in my top 15 of 2025 for sure. Bandido continues to showcase ROH ability to continuously put on bangers especially on their PPV and Hechicero was the perfect opponent for him. The pacing was solid slowly building up to more elaborate and mind-blowing spots like Hechicero hitting a bang-a-rang off the apron on Bandido, Bandido launching Hechicero off the apron with a sort of reversed monkey-flip. The final moments of the match were a bit clunky but that doesn't detour from how incredible this match was and has me genuinely curious who's gonna dethrone Bandido as ROH Champion so excited to see where he's reign concludes."
[5.0] "This has many sloppy moments, moments of obvious cooperation, and some pretty bad looking punches in it as well. The submission stuff in it throughout is pretty good, but is a little herky jerky at times. Don Callis is just annoying on commentary as usual and he adds nothing to the match. Hechicero in my opinion is overrated and imprecise. I found his heat on Bandido to be less than compelling. Bandido on the other hand seems to have pretty good fire and is a talented aerialist. His dance partner in this one just leaves a lot to be desired. I can't believe people are calling this a moty candidate. It pales heavily in comparison to Bandido's match with Takeshita from a few weeks ago. Even that match was overrated. This is just too sloppy and disjointed to be very good. Plus there's several exchanges of no selling deep into the match. And people were on their feet for this in the arena! I'd say watch something else."
[10.0] "ROH weekly TV may be basically nonexistent, but their PPVs always tend to have something crazy, and this was no exception. There were a lot of things that might have derailed this for me. Don Callis was there, scraping across my eardrums like a rusty fork. 37 minutes is very, very long even for great wrestlers to fill. It even had a few dodgy headbutt spots, something that gives me the willies. And, while I think Bandido has a lot of talent, I am not as high on him as some are. But I was impressed by the high rating and I LOVE Hechicero, for years I wanted him to have a chance to make good in the US, so there's no way I was going to skip this one. I'll just say first that this was really tremendous work by both guys pretty much for start to finish, they came to show out and they really did that. The biggest spots and bumps in this match were huge, from that thunderous suplex on the barricade all the way to the completely wild helicopter throw off the apron, and tons of stuff in between. This match didn't just pay lip service to big moves, it was filled with IMPACT, every big attack seemed to be genuinely damaging and contributed to both wrestlers getting more beaten up as the match went on, instead of just shrugging stuff off quickly to get the next hit in. Even though it followed some modern big match tropes, they never lost site of the sense of struggle, and even better a sense of exhaustion as the match went long and it became a game of grit and endurance. And yet, even with such a long run time, I never really felt like they were milking it too much with the nearfalls, they never lost my suspension of disbelief that they were working towards winning the match (as opposed to putting on a "show"). Hechicero looked absolutely amazing, not just his impeccable technical game but showing off great strikes (those punches! ), impressive power, and a nice connection with the crowd that surpassed just Don Callis being annoying. The energy in the room was very good and Bandido put on one of his best performances I have seen, mostly moving away from the more contrived moves he sometimes likes (still gotta have the 21-Plex I guess but what can you do). Overall it was just damn great to watch, exciting, sustained itself well, told a simple but effective story, and allowed two lucha guys to show once again they can go as well as anyone in the world when given a shot. My #15 match of the year to date."
[9.0] "a deliriously exciting match in which counter after counter are deployed to mess with your very perception of wrestling pacing. momentum swings never happen where you think, and the tides turn on a dime. only two wrestlers of such fluidity could disrupt the playbook so well and look so good doing it."
[8.0] "***** a gem of a match, Bandido are among the best wrestlers in the world right now and he achieved something very difficult along with Hechicero which was to overcome his match vs Takeshita, excellent chemistry, they knew how to adapt to each other in a wonderful way, Bandido got into Hechicero's keychain style, and Hechicero used riskier moves outside the ring than he usually does with excellent fluidity between sequences and spots, the only thing where they failed was in an exchange of submissions towards the end when there was a somewhat noticeable lack of coordination, excellent intensity, they had a noticeable rivalry throughout almost the entire match that went beyond the ROH title, excellent sequences and spots, which were magnificently distributed with their reaction time but without stopping the match, excellent pace, for almost 40 minutes they gave a master class in wrestling, technical style, high flying and with some good spotfest, a very great ending, after an avalanche fallaway moonsault slam from Bandido to Hechicero, Bandido would look for the 21-plex to close the match, Hechicero would try to resist using the ropes but Bandido would manage to hook him completely and apply the 21-plex to win the match and retain, it was undoubtedly a MOTY Contender (easy top 15 this year in my opinion) they surpassed (in my opinion) the Bandido vs Takeshita, and Bandido is positioned as a serious candidate for wrestler of the year, I hope I have another match vs Hechicero in Final Battle and there Hechicero wins so that Bandido goes on to AEW star matches"
[8.0] "Technically brilliant, and I can absolutely see what others love about this one, but for me, I just never fully got into it. I really don't know why either. Both guys put in a great performance. The crowd was hot. I figured this would be right up my alley. One takeaway I have is that Bandido is the guy. I don't know how or when, but he will be a huge star down the line, just a tremendous performer with a special connection to the crowd. This isn't a flash in the pan, he feels different and should be a main eventer in AEW sooner rather than later. Will need to rewatch the match at some point. 4 stars."
[10.0] "This is easily one of the MOTY. The in-ring storytelling was fantastic, the pacing was great, the technical moves were great, and the suspense was fantastic. It was a "37 minute" match but it didn't feel like a slog, it felt like a war. This was the best match on the card and one of the best matches I've watched in a while. Thank you Bandido and Hechicero for a masterpiece. Fight forever"
[8.0] "While a very fun match and a good one, an all time classic it was not. There was some incredibly awkward and damn near botchy spots when it came to the submission transitions. Not sure where the crowd was the last 10 minutes either. The run-time hurt the atmosphere of the match."
[8.0] "[4, 5 Stars] I liked the detail that the referee spoke in Spanish and the match was superb but as the 1v1 between Bandido and Takeshita are crazy overrated matches they have nothing to do in the MOTY discussion. (****, 5)."
[7.0] "I don't know how to put it into words. Let's just say that for me this match started as a 7/10, then went up to an 8/10, then peaked at a 9/10 somewhere around the middle, then dropped back to an 8/10, and by the end it settled back at a 7/10. I really liked parts of it and wanted to love it. I already knew the length going in, so I expected a long match. The pacing was mostly good, but by the third act it lost me. I just got tired. The execution wasn't perfect either, showing the same flaws common in modern high-risk matches. It comes down to body language, intention, and overall execution. I still liked it better than the Konosuke match, though it wore me down. These guys have great ideas, but not everything clicks. It doesn't have that crisp precision that makes a you an all-timer. They always give me hope that this might be the one, but I can't keep giving them the benefit of the doubt. I know this is as good as we're going to get right now, and that's the sad part. Not because it's bad. It isn't. But because they're so close to greatness, yet keep missing by the smallest margin."
[10.0] "That is the point where I start to make my shoulder hurt more than it is already. Man, WHAT A MATCH. I am gonna even need to watch it back again in the future, but in one sight, it looked AMAZING, the entire match, the experience. I was no hyped for it at all but Hechicero, man, maybe Don Callis is right about him lmao. I ended that match thinking he is better than Mil Mascaras, El Santo, and all this motherfuckers I bately had the chance to watch them wrestle yet because what Hechicero produced here felt so organic and great, it felt indeed as a world title of match mostly because of him. But, of course, I need to give for Bandido his flowers, the great spots and the entire and complete athleticism that match brought to us was mostly because of him. Another MOTYC produced by Bandido on a ROH PPV and also, another five stars for me. That guy is AMAZING."
[8.0] "Great match, intense, original, with well-crafted spots and fluid combos. While they're technical wrestlers, they're also quite powerful, and the chemistry between the two really made for a great match. In-ring quality: 2.75/4. Stakes: 2/2. Justification: 1/1. Place on the card: 1/1. Suspense: 0.75/1. Bonuses/penalties: none. Total: 8.5/10. Match seen on the ROH YouTube channel."
[8.0] "Bandido is more of a cartoon character than a wrestler - a Cenador, if you will. I mean, none of the extreme technicality inflicted on him by Hechicero over the course of nearly 40 minutes had any discernible deleterious effect. The bout boasted some incredible grappling exchanges and several genuine holy shit moments, but it also lacked focus and they definitely lost the crowd right before the finish ***3/4"
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