Lee Moriarty vs. Nigel McGuinness

[8.0] "Such a breezy 30 minutes of Iron Man action, Nigel McGuinness may not be the smoothest worker at almost 50, but he brings such a cerebral style which works perfectly in a bout like this. Lee Moriarty flawlessly worked a sneakier style focusing on quick strikes and roll-ups, while McGuinness tried to isolate the shoulder but to little success. Moriarty won in sudden death with a roll-up in a real passing of the torch moment, and although I do not think the Shane Taylor interference was necessary in a big blowoff match like this, I had so much fun watching the two competitors just lay out all their technical savvy. A must watch match if you enjoy technical wrestling."

[9.0] "This was an excellent iron man fight, the storytelling is simple and effective. Nigel isn't as good as he was before but with excellent workers like Moriarty, it delivers. I don't see why Moriarty isn't more often on AEW TV, but his ROH run shows TK believes in him."

[6.0] "It may be difficult to understand because a translation function is being used. The chain wrestling in the beginning was slow and unsharp, and the finish before the sudden death was a series of three-falls that lacked realism. I nearly fell asleep several times during the match, and was in despair the moment the sudden death was decided. It was a waste of time to make the effort to watch it."

[5.0] "***1/2 An interesting match, which disappointed me. I felt they forced the falls. Good chemistry, good sequences, but I think they needed to do more. Interesting pace, they needed to increase it. Interesting intensity, they needed to increase it, especially at the end of the match. Normal ending. Disappointing booking and handling of both wrestlers. With Moriarty leading 3-1, they decided to let Nigel slow things down, and he still managed to get a fall with a minute and a half left. A minute later, he got another, tying the match at 3-3. Neither wrestler rushed things, and the intensity that should have been present during the last minute of the match was lacking. Nigel got what looked like the final pin, putting him up 4-3, and the referee got distracted while Nigel was celebrating. Shane Taylor hit him (which looked bad on camera) and threw him back into the ring so Moriarty could cover him and tie the match at the last second. After that, they had a final fall that was very average and based on... roll-pins wins Moriarty"

[9.0] "I'm not a fan of Nigel, the guy's wrestling style just doesn't work for me and he bugs me more often than not, but I love Moriarty and I'm glad he's getting this match so I gave it a shot. And for the most part, I thought it was very good! Not without flaws, that's an awful lot of falls for a 30 minute match for one thing, but Moriarty worked his side exceptionally well and Nigel, well, he didn't bug me as much as usual. Turned out to be a very good match."

[8.0] "Moriarty is really a student of the game, and even though I really like him, I think he's one of the bright spots of modern ROH. One of the best champions that AEW/ROH has right now, but he still has a lot to learn. I'm ready to give him and Nigel their due. I like the idea of their fight and I find many points interesting, but at the same time I have some questions about their match. Let's talk about the good stuff first. I really like the way they approached their tactics in battle. Lee is hasty, but some of his explosive and unexpected actions are bearing fruit. Nigel is sophisticated and experienced, he is in no hurry, but creates future opportunities for himself through targeting the opponent's hands. I really like how Nigel's unhurried pace is broken by Lee's bursts of energy, which helps him score points. I like the way he procrastinates and avoids the veteran's techniques, and Nigel shows himself in all his glory at the end and even acts a little dirty. However, Nigel is too slow in some places, and this rather raises questions when time is running out, and he is not even trying his best to break Moriarty's arm. Lee does strange things in places, like that departure from Nigel's lariat at the beginning, which was supposed to look cool, but it looked like it looked. Small blemishes, sometimes strange decisions regarding the points scored, especially at the end, and this is a somewhat stupid intervention by Taylor, and later the restart of the match and the fight for the roll-up. Such little things get forgotten over time, but they catch your eye while watching and create too many questions, but the match is still good enough."

[9.0] "This match was an absolute masterclass in technical and counter wrestling, cementing Lee Moriarty as one of the best technical wrestlers in the world! Every match we get with Nigel McGuinness is a blessing, and he delivered truly great work here, making this a must-watch for fans of holds and complex technical storytelling."

[8.0] "In general, I find Moriarty a little boring, and 2025 Nigel is a bit rusty, but the two of them together did a great job of covering each other deficiencies, with Nigel's wily entertaining counters opposing Moriarty's crisp technique. Parts of the match dragged in the way that Iron Man matches often do, but the last couple minutes were thrilling, and the overtime was one of the best pinning sequences I've seen."

[7.0] "I thought this was good for the most part, the ending i didn't like because they told an great story and the interference hurt it in my opinion."

[8.0] "Since their Hammerstein encounter, I expected this rematch from afar, but it stings that it wasn't for the title. Loved the 'old school meets new school' exposition followed by a great sequence of unique pins and mat moves. Had the final stretch been cleaner by blending the sudden death and avoiding Shane Taylor's untidy interference, this would've been an excellent exhibition. 4 out of 5 stars!"

[7.0] "Overall I think this match was pretty great but probably not as good as their pure rules bout from last year. It has all the great technical wrestling you could ask for. Lee Moriarty gets better and more well rounded every time I see him and Nigel McGuiness despite slowing down and having a small amount of unshakable ring rust is still a great wrestler. I was excited seeing that this was a 30 minute iron man match so I figured it'd be a non stop technical masterclass. Unfortunately this didn't maintain my attention for the 30 minutes and I think that's due to a few of the falls feeling very unearned and not even an upset way. I also wasn't a fan of the finish despite how good the wrestling was, I just didn't feel like this needed to go to sudden death nor did the last fall feel like that epic showdown it was going for. Obviously still a great showcase but it missed the mark for me"

[7.0] "Slightly marred by Moxley talking over much of the match, this was of detriment to the experience, not the match itself. Like the concept of Iron Man matches and they are largely neglected. Of particular interest for people interested in working left shoulders over. And pinning combos. Nigel's still got it, hell of a last 34 seconds and an enjoyable half hour plus old school technical contest."

[7.0] "I like technical wrestling but this was a bit sluggish. Still enjoyable but McGuinnes clearly is not still able to do matches like this as in early ROH. I would give it a short though as it certainly is interesting and the story is well told. ***1/2"

[7.0] "A very enjoyable tie-breaker, in which Moriarty looked superb in terms of both strength and resilience. A great display of technical wrestling, and well-paced given the enforced time-limit, however the sheer volume of falls did disappoint me; we could have had a close match in which both men came out looking better than they did here, and Lee needing the Taylor interference to take it to overtime was an unnecessary touch. Filling this out retrospectively, so excuse the lack of detail."

[6.0] "What collective delusion is this? This match has nothing memorable about it, 30 minutes of roll-ups and boring catch wrestling, and to make matters worse they threw in 3 falls in less than 30 seconds. This, like all of Nigel's other post-return matches, is another highly overrated one (except for the match against Danielson) [***]."

[5.0] "Did not like the booking of the finish. The match was structured oddly with Lee being the one to call for sudden death, which makes him come off as desperate instead of being done automatically, on top of the bad leverage pin finish. Nigel, despite his old age, moved well here but it's very blatant that he's a shell of his former self. The match itself felt lethargic, and some of the grappling sequences were relatively awkward. Glad Taiga style got the win, which I'm hoping this leads into the betrayal on STP."

"Some despicable narrative choices in the last 5-10 minutes ruined a match that I was really enjoying. From the outset, the storytelling of the match focused on McGuinnes dominating Moriarty by working on his arm and shoulder, masterfully sold by the Pure champion. Despite this, McGuinness was unable to pin or submit his opponent, and therefore score points. For his part, Moriarty only had to avoid Nigel's offensive, which on at least three occasions he managed to turn to his advantage, taking control of the match. He succeeded, adding a further element of realism to the contest that is often forgotten in wrestling: the difference in age (and therefore physical condition) between the two meant that Nigel had to give in immediately to Moriarty's holds to avoid further damage, while Lee was able to resist longer, grit his teeth and wait to reach the ropes (avoiding giving points to his opponent). All of this is suddenly forgotten with 8 minutes to go: Moriarty, who is in the lead, for no reason decides to take absolutely unnecessary risks to launch an offensive that is promptly overturned by McGuinnes, who in fact manages to steal the lead.Narratively, this could be justified by his lack of experience, of course, were it not for the fact that his behaviour in the last 8 minutes is inconsistent with that of the same "inexperienced" (but how inexperienced can he really be? ) Moriarty in the first 22 minutes (when Lee had actively avoided launching an offensive that would expose him to the risk of having his manoeuvres overturned in attempts at pins or submissions). In the last minute, Shane Taylor interferes in favour of Moriarty (leading to a draw), and from there begins the classic (seen a thousand times) routine of "5 more minutes". I'd give the match an 8/10."

[7.0] "(Grade:C/***) A solid 30-Min Iron Man Match between two notable technical athletes. However, I felt as though it didn't really rump up until the last 10 minutes into the sudden death portion. It makes sense to have a definitive winner though I feel as though they could've done a more better job as making this more engaging."

[7.0] "[3, 5 Stars] Yes, but no. It's very cool to see Nigel wrestling because it's beautiful symbolically, but he's not at the level, honestly, so we still have grappling, which quickly becomes tedious, so 30 minutes is too long."

"While it takes great cardio and endurance to wrestle for 30 minutes, the iron man stipulation for that amount of time doesn't make sense. The last two matches went nearly 30 minutes too. That said, this was still an instant classic! Moriarty constantly getting a sneaky pin and Nigel's frustration with being unable to put him away was great in ring storytelling. The last few minutes were very suspenseful. Great match!"

[7.0] "While the conflicting strategies here were fascinating - Nigel playing the long game of targeting the arm vs. Moriarty's uncanny ability to sneak falls at will - the bout did seem to be stuck in third gear for long spells. The psychology of Moriarty being the one to demand sudden death was definitely hinky, but the urgent extra time action was what boosted this from a so-so 6 to a solid 7 for me ***1/2"

[7.0] "I wasn't sure how much I'd like this going into it, and I was sure that a 30 minute match between two guys who could be described as dry would certainly be divisive. I ended up really getting into this by the end of it though, and really wanted more when the time ran out. They paced the match well, kept it interesting the whole runtime, and the work is really good. Really enjoy the little back and forth flash pin attempts, even if they can be a little repetitive they're fun when the crowd is biting for the false finishes. It's still definitely not my favorite style of wrestling and isn't the most exciting match you'll ever watch, but I think this excelled expectations for me."

[9.0] "Loved this match. Pure Rules is such a cool concept, and these two are mat geniuses! The sprint to the finish at the end was awesome, and the overtime period had me on the edge of my seat. One of the best matches of the night, and Lee Moriarty is quietly becoming one of my favorite wrestlers. This pure title run is epic."

[8.0] "This was the match that i tuned into this show for and it delivered. The match after this was also similarly great but this was the clear match of the night for me. I loved the story they told here with Nigel dominating for much of the match but giving up falls after constantly being caught off guard by Lee. The drama picks up a lot in the second half as Nigel is down 3 falls to 1 so has to use everything in his arsenal to put Lee away leading to some awesome nearfalls. As the match reaches its conclusion, Nigel is able to score 3 more falls to put him ahead but Lee is able to tie things back up at the very last second with some help from Shane Taylor. The work done in the sudden death period was also pretty good but i am pretty over Iron Man matches going to overtime. Other than that though, this was fantastically wrestled and surprisingly engaging given its long runtime. ****"

[10.0] "This match was genuinely fantastic. Technically sound, had a good up and down pace to suit the 30 minute length and had a very well told story off Lee getting the better of Nigel in the moments that mattered most. I LOVED the way that this initially ended in a draw and how well that last minute was executed. The fast paced overtime leading to Lee getting the win was great and ended with the correct result. I will never get sick of getting to see Nigel McGuinness wrestle and it's something I will cherish every time that he gets to have another match. I have so much love and respect for that man and his craft"

[10.0] "Holy hell what an incredible match, I'm usually not huge on technical wrestling but this absolutely blew me away. Lee and Nigel are two of the best technically styled wrestlers on the planet and knew how to make every little thing they did mean something/feel important, this also felt like a very clear passing of the torch from the original pure rules king in Nigel to the current pure rules king in Lee."

[8.0] "Extremely well worked match, very smart and methodical, slowly paced yet masterful at times. Did not feel long at all. Lee consistently knowing the moves of Nigel was a brilliant touch, and him adapting to a match with limitless rope breaks was actually genius. Nigel can still work his ass off, he's tremendous in right circumstances. Honestly, I haven't seen anybody attack a wristlock with such venom in a while. Oh yeah, and the finish was fucking incredible in execution and timing. 4.25*"

[0.0] "A very boring, slow, and primitive match. It's like putting LA Knight against The Miz on a recent SmackDown and giving them over 40 minutes. It's about the same thing here. Nigel McGuinness has one of the cringiest wrestling styles, consisting of primitive moves. I have nothing against technical wrestling, but this was really bad. They're clearly not about the technique. Nigel barely moves around the ring, considering he's never been a good wrestler. Probably the worst match on the show. You can't create a revolution with this kind of wrestling. Plus, Nigel really has character issues -- he was showing cowardice at times, then bravery, and it didn't connect at all in this match."

[10.0] "Holy fuck, what an amazing match to put over Lee Moriarty as one of the premier technical wrestlers of the next generation, and it leaves the two previous matches between the men -- which were incredible in their own right -- to shame. If you like flashiness, then this isn't the match for you, but if you like strategy and technical skill, then this is a banquet. The story of the match is simple, but effective: Moriarty gets to a quick lead, as McGuinness wisely thinks that forfeiting an easy fall early means he doesn't expend energy he may need later to tie it back up. Moriarty, from that point, has to stall out McGuinness, and his creativity of Moriarty in the wideness of his tactics, including a nice sequence where he echoes Inoki against Ali, was incredible. But it wasn't just stalling; no, Moriarty showed grit and determination in toughing out and countering McGuinness's submission-based offence so much that it gets to two minutes left and you wonder if -- as standard Iron Man match logic would dictate -- the scores would get tied leading to the final fall. And what a sprint those last two minutes were, with McGuinness managing to go for his last ride into the sunset to not only erase a two-fall deficit in 90 seconds, but with twelve seconds left, get a fourth fall to get to an almost winning position... and then literally at the death, Shane Taylor pushes him back into the ring for Moriarty to tie it up with the ref's hand hitting the mat as time expires. You can't rehearse that stuff; you just have to be that good. Sudden death goes as all sudden death segments do, with the second wind hitting both men to provide an incredible fall-trading prelude to that ninth fall that turns Moriarty into a made man. Pure magic, and I really want to see more Moriarty on Dynamite and Collision now."

[3.0] "Technical wrestling is definitely not my favourite type of wrestling but this just wasn't exiting at all. Weird story decisions, Moriarty some times was a coward and some times a honor warrior, also didn't like the ending and wasn't a fan of action too."

[9.0] "Brilliantly paced match, every little thing they did felt important, Nigel is obviously an all-time great, and Moriarty still felt like his equal the entire way, felt like a true passing of the torch."

[9.0] "Lee Moriarty is good with old wrestlers, he had a great match with Blue Panther and now Nigel. Nigel outspeeding him at first. They flow well but not as fluid as i would like. First fall was fast and smart! Rope breaks feel important because they are Pure wrestlers! Time is part of the story, Nigel is behind on points and has the worse conditioning. Nigel of course has til 5, great reaction. One inattentive moment and Nigel get surprised and overpowered for Fall 2. Nigel is super flustered, great story! Third Dungeon give the third fall. Nigel was too sure of himself after that fall and got overpowered again. Nigel starting to go for covers from here. Moriarty is adapting mid match. Moriarty inviting the wrestling now as he knows Nigel can't take him. Big Comeback, could've started earlier! You feel Moriatys panic when Nigel finally has a chance! THE ROLLS so late. Great Idea there with the time limit draw. I liked the Shane Taylor interference! What a cool way to get an actual decision!"

[10.0] "Technical spectacle at its best definitions one of the best iron man match in the recent memory thirty minutes of awesomeness thirty minutes of pro wrestling nigel at the age of 49 still doing an outstanding performance like he was at 25 overall well done masterpiece"

[5.0] "Did not find it very good. There were some very good dramatic moments, but the technical wrestling was very slow clunky and unathletic at times. Technical wrestling is cool when it's fast physical and deliberate, and this had 1 of these at most. Not enough juice for a 30 minute match, though I do like the concept of a 30 minute iron man match over 60. I was bored so I can't go higher."

[9.0] "Can't give this a 10 since the ending wasn't great in my opinion (they were at least a second behind the count), and there were a couple of minutes in the beginning were I wasn't really tuned in. Nevertheless, Both of them looked tremendous with their submissions and counters."

[9.0] "I'm not a fan of Iron Man matches, but this one is definitely among the best. The second half is practically perfect in my opinion, with constant twists and flawless wrestling from both guys. It's a match I'd recommend to anyone who loves real in-ring wrestling. The last 30 seconds were awesome, but honestly the whole match was great, with Nigel and Lee both looking completely credible in the ring. Lee's victory was excellent and further solidifies his status in ROH, and in my opinion a move to the main roster next year seems very likely."

[8.0] "The first two matches of this show being squarely focused on "wrestling" helped hype me up for this show that I considered skipping. I'm always excited to see how wrestlers are going to work this match type that require in-ring storytelling to keep the crowd invested without losing pace or doing too much too early. I love the struggle of Nigel deciding to tap early to save taking more damage but then having to pay the price by being behind for the rest of the match. Moriarty was doing everything he could to slow the pace down to run out the clock in a way that added to the atmosphere, instead of dragging this down because it created a desperation of both guys having the time against them. The final five minutes of flash pin attempts and submission counters had everyone on the edge of their seat hoping that Nigel could eventually get ahead. This match also deserves to have people show appreciation from the masterful commentary filling in the wholes and breaking the action down in a way that doesn't make TV viewers feel dumb. ****1/4"

[10.0] "I actually do like iron man matches a lot & this one was still really great. Lee Moriarty is the future & having matches like this under his belt will go a long way because this really was a breakout performance. Nigel did a great job making Lee look like a future star"

[9.0] "Excellent match. I'm not usually a big fan of ironman matches, but I loved the way this was put together with Moriarty getting a big lead at the start with Nigel having to catch up in the end. It made the match very exciting and the sudden death portion was great, with a very nice moment afterwards of Nigel giving his Pure title belt to Moriarty in a passing of the torch."

[8.0] "Beautiful match and a great passing-of-the-torch match for Lee from Nigel. Nigel does some brilliant work on Lee's arm to set-up for the London Dungeon throughout this match, but Lee puts up some great defense and counters it very well throughout. Lee turns a lot of his defense here into offense that catches Nigel off-guard, leading to Nigel having to make a quick comeback in under about 10 minutes. The ending was a bit dodgy, with the interference and with the clock clearly running out before the 3 count. Wasn't a big fan of them running it back immediately after with just one fall, I felt like that should've been a separate match on a separate card. Still, a great match and brilliant performance by both of these guys."

[10.0] "Still can't get over the fact that we could have enjoyed Nigel's wrestling so much if he hadn't retired so early. Even as a retired wrestler he managed to put on a masterclass on how technical wrestling should be. Lee Moriarty is getting too big for this ROH. He should be pushed to the main roster and given the chance to shine."

[9.0] "Lee cemented himself as one of the best technical wrestlers in the world, and Nigel every match we get with him is such a blessing and this was truly some great work by him, if you're not a fan of holds and technical style wrestling this match is not for you but if you enjoy some amazing technical wrestling and story telling watch this match"

[10.0] "This match was what I bought this PPV for, and I did not leave disappointing. They told such an incredible story with every move having intention. Perfectly paced, amazing graps, and the storytelling was Nigel passing his torch down to Moriarty in the only way he knows how - by fighting like hell in a technical wrestling war, inching closer to victory but never being ahead after getting caught earlier. This one needs an immediate rewatch for me. 5 stars."

[10.0] "I only caught the last 15 minutes and the sudden death, and I still firmly believe this is a ten. Simply put: Those last 5 minutes are the most engaged I have been in a wrestling match in quite some time. Just an absolutely phenomenal match between two of the best technical wrestlers of the modern day."

[8.0] "About what you would expect from these guys, an absolute clinic. The first 20 was great technical wrestling, if maybe a little slow. The last 10 with Nigel coming from behind had great tempo. Loved how they paid off the rebound lariat, I bit so hard on that near fall. The time limit finish was awesome, impeccable timing. In the end, Nigel passes the torch to a deserving successor. (8.5)"

[9.0] "This was so close to a perfect match. I really didn't like Shane Taylor's interference at the very end. It defeats the purpose to why they were having the match in the first place. It also led to a temporary stoppage while they decided to go to a sudden victory overtime. That said, what a masterclass in technical and counter wrestling. The overtime traded near falls in a manner similar to Savage and Steamboat. Lee Moriarty has the in ring skills he just needs a bigger personality to match it. As for Nigel, he's as great as he ever was."