Hiromu Takahashi vs. KUSHIDA

[9.0] "pretty good match i found myself enjoying a more hard hitting Junior match, Kushida gets his revenge interestingly enough crowd was getting behind Hiromu over Kushida even booing him during the final stretches, Hiromu is phenomenal with his selling just a good match here"

[9.0] "Fantastic match, the arm selling of Hiromu Takahashi looks fantastic and the finish is really good. Very enjoyable match."

[9.0] "An outstanding performance by these two and clearly if it wasn't for the Okada/Omega II this without doubt would have been match of the night !"

[10.0] "Wow. What words can i use that do this match justice? It was brilliant, brilliant from start to end, from bell to bell. It had constant action, with the two of them only stopping out of pure exhaustion during this brutal war for victory. Some very cool spots including Hiromu's sunset flip to the outside, which Kushida sold very well. I loved how Kushida attacked and targeted the arm of Takahashi throughout the match, wearing him down continuously. From the first minute they both hit eachother with stiff chops to the chest and forearms to the head, various kicks to the body and Hiromu even raked the eyes of Kushida, and that didn't stop until the final bell, where Hiromu tapped out to the Hoverboard Lock, crowning Kushida the new JR Heavyweight Champion."

[8.0] "This was a very good match, and I was never someone who was a huge fan of Kushida. Loved watching Hiromu be an absolute menace, taking forearms to the face and smiling through it. Commentary did an excellent job telling the story as Kushida looked for that Hoverboard Lock. Actually winning the match with the Hoverboard Lock was icing on the cake."

[10.0] "This was another great match with a great story behind it. Kushida kept attacking the arm of Hiromu while trying to prove that he does in fact still have it. Hiromu is riding the wave of having beat Kushida twice and still was able to put up a good fight despite tapping to Kushida."

[8.0] "A Match that rewards you for watching KUSHIDA get squashed by Hiromu all those months ago, fight through the BOSJ tournament to win it, and finally beat Hiromu the second time around. Sunset bomb spots in this match were great, the crowd was hot, the Sabu-esque chair dropkick was sweet, and the back-and-forth striking made the match feel as personal as it was built to be. It's not perfect, but it was more than adequate. 4.25 Stars."

[9.0] "Great match with some good spots, like the multiple sunset bomb attempts, the top rope battles, and the sick finishing hover board lock with wrist twist. Some stuff didnt work for me, like the transition to the slap fight in the final few minutes seemed to not fit the flow. It led quickly into the punches though, which was nice, but the start of the spot came out of nowhere. And someone, the ref, or KUSHIDA, or Hiromu should have bailed on that botched roll up pin attempt by KUSHIDA instead of trying to save it for a two count when Hiromus shoulders are clearly not down. Treat it like a reversal and move to the next bit. Overall though, awesome match by both men."

[8.0] "****Π- don't get me wrong, this was an awesome match I'd watch over and show people, but it's not as great as I expected seeing the ratings"

[9.0] "An intense, heated match that was built in like 7 months. Such incredible work, and KUSHIDA finally beat Hiromu. What a match. ****1/2"

[9.0] "This was an excellent match. It was a heated and intense battle. It's one of Hiromu Takahashi's best matches. KUSHIDA gave a great showing and was arguably the best junior heavyweight in the world at the time."

[10.0] "What strikes me most about this match is just how violent it is. They're going hard with stiff strikes and chops from the get-go, with KUSHIDA frustrated and desperate to get back the title he'd lost and failed to recapture. The arm work by KUSHIDA on Hiromu is also great, and while Hiromu could have sold it a little better, it was used well in transitioning offence and in the finish. An absolute classic. (****3/4)"

[9.0] "The perfect example of what a really good wrestling story looks like. KUSHIDA lost his title at Wrestle Kingdom, and then was humiliated after losing in about two minutes to the same Hiromu Takahashi. He won Best of the Super Juniors after looking different in the final with Will Ospreay than he had in his matches before. I can say I liked it better than the Wrestle Kingdom match. KUSHIDA showed that he really wanted to beat Takahashi, he was much more aggressive than in the Ospreay match, which was penalized by the crowd. KUSHIDA didn't play the role of a heel, even though he played by the rules and did his best to win. For storyline logic KUSHIDA's win is justified"

[9.0] "Awesome awesome match, Hiromu beating KUSHIDA in 2 minutes back at Sakura Genesis gave that the feeling that this match could end at any moment, and both of them played into that with a great sense of urgency from beginning to end. A fantastic 19 minute sprint ****3/4."

[8.0] "It was a very good Junior match, Kushida is always great in his submissions, he does them in a perfect way, and his armwork is very cool, but Hiromu's selling was not really good unfortunately, it dragged a little bit at sometimes, but except that, this match is very good even if it seems overrated to me. ****"

[9.0] "A high-paced and action-packed match with several smooth exchanges and transitions. Junior matches can get a bit over-the-top with that kind of thing but this felt seamless. Really strong match."

[9.0] "An incredible performance by both wrestlers. Kushida and Hiromu have perfect chemistry because of their wrestling styles. I highly recommend this match."

[10.0] "Violent, explosive, entertaining, and so much more. An absolutely astonishing match that unfortunately didn't get the attention it deserved because of the show's main event."

[6.0] "This was a good match, and there was nothing wrong with it at all, but I wasn't overly impressed with it and I certainly wasn't blown away."

[10.0] "Unquestionably one of the best matches New Japan put out in 2017. These are two of the best in the world, and they absolutely tore it down with a physical and intelligent match. Wonderful stuff, a true MOTY contender."

[9.0] "If you made it past the first five minutes--which is an absolutely boring time full of back-and-forth slaps and chops and punches--you were rewarded with a stimulating, stiff, and excellent match from two excellent wrestlers. Both guys are great throughout. There are some insane spots, particularly a power bomb off the apron that looks like it completely discombobulates KUSHIDA, as well as a super rad chair spot-dropkick on Takahashi that is one of my new recent favorite moves. Well done. Overall, the pace is quick, the action is great, and novel at that, so this gets a very high rating (despite the awful start). ****1/2."

[7.0] "Hiromu Takahashi (c) -vs- KUSHIDA – (IWGP Junior Title) [*** 1/2] This was something else than their 2 minute match from April 9th where the champion completely took KUSHIDA off his guard. Since then KUSHIDA has focused his game, winning the Best of the Super Jr. tournament and top of the hill again going after Takahashi’s arm, bending it in nasty directions. Not that it put Takahashi completely off his own game-plan, but this was KUSHIDA’s return to top. The revenge for the humiliation the last time they met!"

[10.0] "(**** 3/4) Impressive performance , I loved that punches in the end of the match , looked so real. Amazing talents , who put a great match together. I think wrestlers like them deserve some main event matches. , for sure will be great."

[9.0] "Awesome match, with Kushida redeeming himself for the embrassing 2 minute loss in an absolute war with Takahashi. He made Kushida actually be even more vicious as evident by the ending of the match, showing just the lengths he would go to. Both men were tremendous, and I think that one punch actually busted open Takahashi’s lip. Just as good as their WK match. ****1/2"

[9.0] "This match was the 2nd in their encounters & It was bloody bloody tremendous. that is about it. Go watch"

[9.0] "As a huge Omega fan and a big Okada fan, this is probably the match of the night for me and Meltzer's score is about right. It was absolutely brutal but still fast-paced with some great spots both brutal and athletic. People really need to stop sleeping on KUSHIDA in "Best in the World" discussions. Takahashi is amazing, I just haven't seen nearly as many of his matches, but he's on his way to that elite"

[8.0] "It's difficult for me to decide which of the two LIDJ matches I more enjoyed - both were terrific. I consider myself a better judge of matches watching at home than when attending the matches, but what stood out to me about this was how well KUSHIDA runs about and uses the entire ring, attacking Hiromu from varying angles. It's beautiful to behold. Certainly the far majority of the crowd was behind Hiromu but not many were angry by the denouncement. I'm pretty sure I had this right around 4 stars as it felt great to me. 8 - 8. 25"

[9.0] "This feud is now a trilogy and the latest match was pretty brutal. The crowd in Osaka is always a wild one and they made it pretty clear that they loved Hiromu from the start of the match as they booed the shit out of KUSH whenever he would gain some momentum. This wasn't the standard Junior match which could just be an athletic showoff/exhibition, and instead both these guys channeled their hate for each other and just threw it all out at each other for the whole match. Right from the get go both guys just start slugging each other with fists and elbows for a good few miunutes before KUSH quickly takes control going for Hiromu's arm. That was a big difference in this match than compared to the match both guys had at WK11 or Sakura Genesis where Hiromu was the dominant one througout the matches. KUSHIDA in this match was just a monster attacking Hiromu up and down the ring and outside and everywhere he could, much to the chagrin of the hostile Osaka crowd. Hiromu had moments where he got offense in, but it was hardly able to gain himself some momentum as KUSH was always right there to cut him down again. The ending was pretty intense as KUSH gave Hiromu a Back To The Future from the second rope as an ode to the BOSJ finals match, but he couldn't follow up on the second one. Instead as both guys had their final scuffle with eachother, KUSH latched on the Hoverboard Lock for a good minute or two before Hiromu tapped out in classic fashion. The ending was pretty hilarious though with KUSH having his redemption celebration ruined by a mist spewing BUSH, ****1/2."

[10.0] "If it wasn't for Tanahashi vs Naito this would be my MOTN for Dominion. These two have some of the best chemistry in selling and loved the story told here with KUSHIDA increasing the level of aggression more than usual as he was determine to capture the belt once more from the man who broke him in every way back at Sakura Genesis and I can't forget about the great performance Hiromu put in as well as he was tremendous in his selling of the damaged arm and just the ways he controlled the match at times as well. This is definitely worth the watch in my estimation. ****3/4"

[10.0] "This match was definitely overshadowed by the rest of the top half of the card but this match was absolutely brutal. I thought KUSHIDA died a few times in the match and although Mr. Belto and Timebomb are separated, I felt the finish was incredibly well done and ended an fantastic match, really made the Junior belt feel like a big deal. Where they go from this is anybody's guess but I really really want BUSHI to win the belt at Kizuna Road. Definitely deserved its 4. 75 rating, definitely topped their Dome match and obviously their Sakura Genesis match. (****3/4)"

[8.0] "The weakest of their trilogy (WK, Sakura Genesis & now this), but still really good & borderline great, even. They wrestled like they were heavyweights in the main event spot - loved the aggression of KUSHIDA, he just wasn't gonna be denied vs. Hiromu once again. ***3/4"

[10.0] "A fitting third part to their trilogy this year, and the perfect way to end KUSHIDA's redemption story. This was definitely their best match, and while the action was tremendous as you'd come to expect from Hiromu in a title match, the actual story told was fantastic. The adaptations and changes KUSHIDA has made since the Tokyo Dome are all present in this match, including his new moves and his specific counters for Hiromu's offense; it's really fantastic stuff that feels like the definitive end to a storyline. It's a fantastic effort from both guys and MOTN at Dominion by a good margin. ****1/2"

[10.0] "What an excellent match. Great story, a lot of callbacks to their previous encounters and just an incredible finishing stretch. The best Juniors match in NJPW in what feels like forever. **** 3/4."

[7.0] "On the same level of their WK match, with a different storytelling. KUSHIDA is desperate to get a win after the last brutal defeat, however Hiromu is just as crazy as he has ever been and theat means urgency! Good spotfest with a solid basic left-hand psychology. ***1/4 - ***1/2"

[10.0] "The best Jr heavyweight title match i have ever seen. Kushida and Hiromu just nailed it. It was far better than their Tokyo Dome match because the storytelling here was just brilliant. Kushida's work on Hiromu's arm was tremendous and the ending where he just bent Hiromu's arm in a painful way, that was amazing. (****3/4)"

[10.0] "Absolute amazing. Great story and great match. Lot of desperation for Hiromu Takahashi and lot of heart from Kushida. This rivalry will last a few years and will be one of the best rivalries of pro wrestling. 4 1/2 stars."

[10.0] "Fantastic match. On par or even better than their WK11 match. They told the story well here and everything was done wonderfully. Kushida getting extra aggressive to put down Takahashi like he did Ospreay was excellent. These guys killed them selves again to put on a fanstistic match and they succeeeded. Amazing way to start the main events ****1/2"