[8.0] "This was a borderline great match for me. Jeff Cobb was always a guy that, while he wasn't pushed to the main event, he was prominently featured against some of the companies biggest names, one being Kota Ibushi. In my view, 2021 was really the last year that we saw Kota Ibushi as we remember him. He had won the IWGP Heavyweight Championship earlier that year, so Cobb wrestling someone like Ibushi in a singles match on a major show was a big deal for him. This was a slow paced match, centered around Cobb using his strength to keep Ibushi down. Ibushi did have his comebacks of course, though Cobb did his best to halt his momentum. Cobb even got to kick out of a Kamigoye, but later on Ibushi hit him with a second Kamigoye, this time with the knee pad removed, to win the match. These two have only had 2 singles matches, with their previous one being at the G1 Climax the year before. If these two had wrestled a few years earlier than that, even with the same time given, they could have had a classic match. ****"
[6.0] "Unfortunately, it is a fight that disappointed me. I expected much more from these two, in addition to the score of the fight. The fight seemed really long and slow at times, with much less intensity than expected. A poor performance from both of them, who are below the level that they usually have, especially Ibushi."
[9.0] "This one was explosive high octane wrestling action . Reminiscent to Hangman/Cage but a bit better . It was the basic size advantage with Cobb and the speed and striking advantage to Ibushi . They told a finely built story with a strongly convincing psychology factor . Ibushi fires all cylinders in this match . he goes all out . This match was stiff and hard hitting with the chops , elbows and fore arms connecting and giving a cracking sound almost every time . Cobb also hits some very good power moves and then targets the lower back of Ibushi . Ibushi is not well known for good selling and this was no different . He is more of a all round performer that delivers that mind blowing plethora of moves and he did that here as well , meaning served his purpose in the best way possible . While , Cobb tries his best , it is not enough to keep the golden star down . Ibushi is presented as a very resilient fighter with a very intangible fighting spirit set a blaze . This leads to Cobb being very frustrated as he slams the mat many times , argues with the referee and even tries to pin Ibushi multiple times at once . Ibushi atkes extra risk in order to combat the size advantage such as the hurricarana from the top rope or the soaring moon sault from the top rope as well . Cobb would also nail Ibushi with a humungous F10 that would have Ibushi swinging like a bey blade . That looked insane and how could one forget Cobb? s version of the Kami Goye which looked massive . However , Ibushi showcases that robust will and perseverance by kicking out of them . I did like the facials though , with Ibushi looking like he got hit by a truck with the eyes rolling at the back of his head after being hit with those devastating moves . Ibushi is able t o put together a surge of momentum for his comeback with a Kami Goye for a near fall and tries to connect with the second one but this time with the bare knee . Cobb tries his best to avoid it but finally just like fate , Cobb meets the Kami Goye and then a running knee for good measure . The drama level here was sky high , this could have gone anywhere . It was a fast paced match with electrifying action . The ring content was high quality , and it had huge amounts of fire and momentous intensity . The sequences were fantastic . Fabulous content nonetheless. ****1/2"
[10.0] "I can't speak much to the story of this match, but I know the action was seriously killer! This seemed to get better and better. At one point Cobb threw Ibushi up for an F5 and I swear Ibushi did at least 2. 5 rotations before hitting the mat, a wild move and a wild bump. At one point Cobb hit such a knee strike that Ibushi sold it like his brain was disconnected, it was a beautiful thing. Just a few moments in this great match, and at only 15 minutes it was damn perfect compared to some of the more bloated (in my opinion) New Japan matches of note. My favorite New Japan match I've seen this year."
[9.0] "4. 5 Stars - This was super fun match and reminiscent of pre covid NJPW. There were absolutely crazyspot fest in a japanese big match style. Cobb has looked great since turning heel and Ibushi is just a machine. Throwing bombs and flips throughout and kept it under 20 minutes cut the filler and made it so much more engaging"
[5.0] "A decently fun match but I was not really impressed and was waiting for it to get good but it? s felt like they were in second gear for most of it"
[8.0] "Cobb's F5 was incredible. I've never seen such powerful slam. Even Lesnar couldn't pull this off so brutally. Ibushi's selling was great as always. Finish was sloppy as hell. In fact, there were couple spots it wasn't smooth either. These are the only things that bothered me."
[9.0] "Don't listen to the haters, this match was proof of concept that you can do an engaging "Japanese Big-Match Style" full of stiff spots and near falls without it having to be 35 minutes long. It was by no means perfect (it still somehow managed to drag a tiny bit in the middle) but the beginning felt more like an MMA fight than a wrestling match and the ending stretch was genuinely entertaining. Would it have been more interesting to see Cobb go over and get his re-match with Shingo? Sure, but that doesn't take away from the fact that this match was great. Usually when you watch a short match and it seems like it was way longer than it actually was, that is due to the fact that you are suffering through boring, slogging, messy spots and you just are praying it will be over with. This is not the case here. This match felt longer than it was. But that is because they managed to fit many small story threads into a 15 minute match without ever sacrificing the feel that this was a real fight."
[8.0] "This match had its fair share of issues and moments of sloppiness, but damn was it really good. I was just about ready to write this match off, it actually started off hotter than many recent Ibushi matches but then pretty quickly went into a stretch of slow rest holds, but then they picked the pace back up again, crafting an incredibly gripping extended closing stretch. The bullshit following the very beginning of the match sucked, Jeff Cobb working a bear hug was atrocious, and while it still detracted from my opinion of the match overall, these two rebounded remarkably. This closing stretch was very spot-heavy but they managed to make it feel earned and make it make sense, even if some of the more choreographed power moves and reversals occasionally got a bit sloppy. AND on top of all that, this match had an absolutely incredible nearfall: I would? ve bet serious money that the match was over after Ibushi hit the first Kamigoye and Cobb? s kickout gave the match the energy it needed to propel itself through an incredible finishing stretch. ***3/4+"
[7.0] "Jeff Cobb proved how he progresses since joining New Japan full time. Kota Ibushi was the right man to put him over. However, even though this bout is somehow good, I wasn't in it. When Ibushi goes into his cyborg machina, he can be extremely boring. Same old shit. Good and stiff exchanges but made Cobb kicked out of the Kamigoye was a complete non-sense."
[6.0] "While I don't think this should have been semi main event this was a satisfying match from these two. Good hard hitting match. Ibushi's Frankensteiner and Cobb's F5 were great."
[5.0] "I just truly don't understand the hype around this match. I wanted to see it, but I got massively disappointed by this nonsense. For once NJPW does a short match ( under 15 minutes ), we have a kickout of a Kamigoye ? Really ? This was empty, I didn't saw any goal in this match for both wrestlers. Ibushi overselled a lot. And the 3 last minutes were true nonsense. **1/2"
[7.0] "Pretty cool match in a short matter of time. Jeff Cobb stiffing Ibushi just to enter dark mode is kinda scary, knowing what Ibushi is capable of. Some good spots like an amazing Olympic like moonsaults by Cobb and incredible springboard moonsault by Ibushi to outside of the ring. The spot when Cobb F5 and Kamigoye Ibushi is a pretty cool to see as well. Cobb truly showcased his talent in this match. Ibushi on the other hand, shows some slowness in the match although this is just a 14 minute match so there are some moves that we missed to see by Ibushi. Overall it is a pretty cool match but it should've been like 5-6 mins longer just to showcase their entire moveset. ****1/4"
[10.0] "I loved this match I don't know what they where going for at the end but in came across as Ibushi went for a knee and eventually Cobb just ended up not being able to hold Ibushi's wait in that position. ****3/4"
[8.0] "Really good match that really surprise me because I thought that It will be a match of more than 20 minutes but were less than 15 minutes and that was good because they didn't lengthened so much so they Focus on the importante things. Good action good speed good intensity and a good end, I don't need more"
[8.0] "This was pretty fun all the way through. The ending was possibly botched but I thought it was that rare kind of botch which works regardless because it made the struggle look more legit and continued Ibushi's focus of knee strikes. Cobb has become one of the most entertaining guys to watch in New Japan."
[8.0] "Didnt overstay it? s welcome, hard strikes, unique finish. Great match, even though this would have been a good time to have cobb get a signature win. Great match tho. ****"
[7.0] "This reminded me a little bit of matchups like Antonio Inoki vs Vader and that's simply awesome! This match was pretty good and was like I expected it to be. Ibushi's selling from Cobb's Kamigoye + the final sprint is simply amazing and beautiful! I hope they have a rematch that is even better! Also, that F5 from Cobb was simply BRUTAL! ****"
[10.0] "The match fully met my expectations. took into account all aspects of the history of confrontation between these two fighters, the ending was a little blurred, but the final impression did not affect . 4. 75*"
[8.0] "A perfectly paced brawl of a match between two of the best NJPW has in 2021. It almost felt like a G1 Climax match, the high stakes of this basically being a #1 contender's match shining through. Cobb is an absolute beast, and really pulled a classic babyface performance from Ibushi in this match. Match Rating: 4/5 (****)"
[7.0] "First half with very slow and methodic, with Cobb easily dominating Ibushi, even with leaving him a lot of air to comeback. It wasn't very enjoyable but nicely build Ibushi in the underdog position for his comeback. The match picked up after Cobb miss a standing moonsault and Ibushi hits a springboard moonsault. They did some great spots and had cool moments, with nice selling as they're both exhausted. The final spot looked a bit weird."
[8.0] "I expected this to steal the show, but it felt more like a taste of what they can do together. Cobb solidified himself as a main event talent, and some of their moves and sequences were incredible. Ultimately this felt more about getting Ibushi a big win after losing the WHC."
[8.0] "A good match, the main problem of which is that the climax was built around a move that Ibushi obviously does better, because it's his damn finisher. There were some interesting moments, and even if there wasn't much storytelling in them, I'm just glad that at least some match on the show was dynamic and didn't suffer from excessive stretching. Cobb is a phenomenal powerhouse, but the ending suffered from some roughness. The result is understandable, but it is a pity that in the absence of Ospreay, they didn't give Jeff a big victory (****)."
[9.0] "Very good short match, it's rare that a big NJPW match lasts only 15 minutes but it was a perfect lenght imo. It was a great showing of athleticism from both, but with not so much storytelling except the Kamigoye from Cobb. Speaking of the Kamigoye, I don't get why it's getting buried like that, I hope it's a storyline told to debut a new big move for Ibushi. ****1/2"
[8.0] "Very good match here. A lot of finishers and countered finishers with great feelings viewing it, good in-ring psychology and storytelling. I think a rewatch is mandatory as well as a rematch between these two."
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