El Phantasmo vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi

[7.0] "I enjoyed a match between some of my favorite wrestlers in ELP and Tanahashi, but it was sure slowed down to compensate Tanahashi's health going into the Tokyo Dome. El Phantasmo held his own against the Ace with some cool sequences and call backs and Tanahashi makes any match he is in (beside HoT) fun to watch. ELP selled the knee from the missed dive real well, Tanahashi kept the momentum. A draw was for sure the correct result, and going into the first watch back in October, I knew it would be the result, but even on re-watch, it was still a good match, really re-watchable."

[7.0] "Enjoyed this quite a bit. These two have good chemistry and Tanahashi was able to go the distance and look reasonably good. ELP's run with the belt has been solid. ***3/4"

[7.0] "Starts rather uneventfully, with ELP clearly holding back his offense and slowing down to compensate for Tanahashi. Towards the midpoint after he misses a dive to the outside, the two start to focus on ELP's leg, which not only allows for Tanahashi's potential victory to feel more possible (unlocking the Cloverleaf) but is also logical to ground ELP's high-flying abilities. The crowd bite on quite a few falls down the stretch, and ELP bumps extremely well (baseball slide into spike, and hurricanrana counter) to allow Tana to shine."

[7.0] "A draw was a fair result and this match was better than I expected at least. Tanahashi really pushing the boat out in his last year particularly as we enter the final stretch."

[8.0] "A great match, way better than I expected and with a great final stretch. Exceeded my expectations. ****"

[7.0] "****1/4 very good match, maybe I liked it too much but for being their first one-on-one fight it was great, very good chemistry, they surprised in a good way, good constant rhythm from start to finish, very good simple but captivating sequences, good intensity with a very good escalation in the final minutes, the time limit factor added a dramatic touch that helped a lot, very good selling by ELP to his knee, and more in those final minutes where it was key for it to end in a tie, good ending with a tie and leaving you wanting to see them fight one more time, probably Tanahashi's third best fight this year only behind the one he had with Takeshita, and the Cage Match at Forbidden Door"

[7.0] "[3, 5 Stars] It was very enjoyable. ELP and Tanahashi really have that likeability factor when they're in matches together or against each other; it always makes for a good time."

[6.0] "Was surprised to find out Tanahashi competed the most this year than any of his entire career. Insane dedication. Speaking of dedication, has he trimmed down a bit. Man looks leaner. Either, draw was the decision here, especially with Tana nearing closer to his final match, he should be in a few match winning streak, at least."

[8.0] "For a 2025 Tanahashi singles match, this was great. A well put together 15 minute time limit draw, which had plenty of moments making me think Tanahashi might just pull one last singles championship out with just a few months left in his career. No one tells a story like The Ace can in that ring."

[10.0] "Gotta give the boys the due and respect needed for the match her, deserving of the career highlighted match for Phantasmo and Tanahashi, Hiroshi has been very impressive and has been doing all the best he can do showcase himself as the Ace of Pro Wrestling like he is. A great match overall, glad it made the top of the list of matches for the entirety of the PPV, and for a first ever encounter as well, pretty damn well for a first time ever match."

[8.0] "Tanahashi still has the storytelling chops, while ELP sold every bit convincingly. The crowd was hooked from the start. It was intense, dramatic, and respectful, a proper nod to Tanahashi's enduring ring IQ. The 15-minute limit left you wishing for just a bit more."

[5.0] "It was a well worked match but tanahashi's really hard to watch nowadays. His body is just too broken. Honestly, it was more like el phantasmo was working alone. He bumped a lot for tanahashi and sold the leg work well. But like I said, it's a tanahashi match in 2025. ***"

[9.0] "Really good match for the tv title , thought that it was really fast and good . High flying spots were sick as well"

[7.0] "Solid fun match! Started off with comedy both have great chemistry shame about the 15 min time limit but they delivered a great match in this time!"

[6.0] "I love Tana but he's at least 2 years past when he should've retired. I'm going to miss seeing him in the ring no matter what but he's not even on fumes at this point. Just rolling down hill. Not a bad match and I think 6 is pretty generous."

[6.0] "A fine match, . nothing really to report from either wrestler. As Tanahashi's career is coming to a close, each match, more or less, show us its the right time for him to retire."

[7.0] "ELP and Hiroshi Tanahashi are fine together, the match was really cool, i'm not surprised to be honest."

[7.0] "(6.9) A really fun match. Tana took on a bit of a heel role targeting ELP's knee thoruhgout a decent portion of the match, Phantasmo's selling of the injury was great and at points it had me genuinely worried for him. The ending was the clear highlight with a bunch of back and forth action leading to a pretty good climax."

[6.0] "Solid match here between Tanahashi & ELP, found it a bit puzzling to have ELP be Tanahashi's opponent here but it was still a perfectly well worked match with a story centering around ELP's knee injury. Don't like another time limit draw here for Phantasmo's reign but the lead up stretch was pretty good!"

[8.0] "I was wondering what the hell Phantasmo did to get on the list of Tanahashi opponents, but I think, for a variety of reasons, they gave you some reason to believe that Tana could win the title here, which definitely added something to it. ELP's selling of his knee here was great. Before that countout spot I thought he was really hurt, and this was ultimately one of the better singles bouts that Tanahashi has had on this retirement run with genuine intensity and excitement in the final stretch. Would have liked MORE from Tana in his last match in this most momentous New Japan building though. The 15 minute gimmick definitely limited it."

[8.0] "I wish this wasn't a TV title match. This would've been a better match had it gotten a true winner instead of going to a draw. The match itself was very fun and had good spots, as well as good psychology with Tanahashi targeting the knee of ELP. It was very fun and I enjoyed it."

[6.0] "This was fine. As the final ever match for Hiroshi Tanahashi in Ryogoku Kokugikan, it really did not feel big or important. Nothing was bad but nothing was interesting either except the ending. Liked the final stretch of Tanahashi not tapping out. Wish there was a bigger match for him in this stage."