[8.0] "There's a sad lack of drama to this match given both were midcarders at this point but it contains some stunning and smooth acrobatics and reversals, proving once again how underrated 2 Cold Scorpio really is. At a certain point they're filling time with holds to get to the countdown for the dramatic finish but its excused due to the quality of the work at hand. Makes me wish there were more good matches with some real meat on their bones for me to check out when it comes to 2 Cold."
[7.0] "For it's day especially, a very exciting and athletically sound contest. It's hard to rate it too high just because it was kind of a nothing match, with nothing really at stake, but damn, what a showcase it was. Scorpio looked electric in there and had some really nice moves in his arsenal, and they had some very stiff striking in there with some Japanese flair as well, which I always appreciate, being a dirty, dirty workrate mark."
[5.0] "The more I watch of early 90s WCW the more I'm convinced that it rules so much. I was really shocked at how good Scorpio was in this, he was probably even better than Benoit but both are great dance partners for each other. I wish they'd worked together more. Enjoyable solid match."
[8.0] "This was pretty great. Scorpio in particular had an awesome showing. He moves unlike anybody else. There are spots where he practically floats across the ring. The match is a little slow paced at times, which is likely to turn off some fans, but I felt like there was always something going on that was able to hold my interest, and it built nicely to the climax at the end. I really liked the finish - it was very well executed and a nice subversion of expectations. Exactly the sort of competition that you want to see in a PPV midcard match."
[7.0] "(Grade:C+) These two did some good counters and Scorpio was very innovative with his dives especially that twisting moonsault that caught me off guard, will say the middle part of the match definitely dragged as you can tell they were passing for time though the last minute of the match was very high pace which was a good match!"
[8.0] "I'm used to Scorpio in WWF, where his stuff was very clunky at times, but here he looked incredible. He was so flawless with all of his high-flying moves and he wasn't hitting them just because they looked fancy, but they also had their place in a wrestling match. Even though it was Benoit's PPV debut he already looked like an experienced workers and he was also so quick with everything, that from time to time even he got an ovation from the crowd as a heel. They kept me invested from start to finish and even though the pace didn't seem to drop, they also didn't make to whole contest too acrobatic and unrealistic, plus they timed the finish perfectly."
[8.0] "Really nice match with some incredibly well worked exchanges, both guys have great chemistry together. Good stuff, ahead of its time in North America."
[8.0] "I thought this match was great, and I was fully invested in this one. These guys were given a solid amount of time to go and truly made the most of it. Great chemistry here between these two. I don't know what more to say about this one. High octane and great technical work combined into one. Scorpio got the win. It's weird seeing Benoit this early in WCW."
[8.0] "I think this is the style of match that stands the test of time. I watch a match like this and think that in 2024 on main stream tv or a high level independent company this match would be great. Scorpio was ahead of his time and even 30 years later is doing almost all of the same stuff."
[7.0] "These two had some terrific chemistry in the ring together. Benoit was a far cry from what he would become, but he was already well ahead of the curve. Scorpio was way ahead of his time. Great match."
[8.0] "Very good match. A lot of what they do is ahead of its time for 1993. The pacing is also great, they don't burn the fans out with non-stop action, there are peaks and valleys in the match, which is extremely necessary, especially when you're just the second match on the card. 2 Cold was doing stuff in '93 that nobody else on television was, and Benoit was damn solid even back then. Fantastic ending spot with just a second left; overall it's just a really a good match."
[4.0] "Oh god this starts great but at the ten minute time announcement Benoit just times stalling and wasting time in the dullest way possibly which becomes a chore to watch and also telegraphs a time limit finish. To their credit the 19:59 win is incredibly well timed."
[7.0] "This was the singles PPV match debut for both Benoit and Scorpio, so you know they were going to make the most of their time out there. They delivered a very exciting matchup, with some awesome reversals back-and-forth. I could've done without the alleged "last-second win", but overall it was quite the kickass match. [***3/4]"
[6.0] "Als alles nach Unentschieden stinkt, holt Scorpio den Sieg mit einer letzten Sekunde auf der Uhr. Insgesamt dann gemessen an den Möglichkeiten beider keine Partie am Limit, welche zudem wenig Liebe vom Veranstalter und dem Publikum erfährt. Ansonsten ist das trotz allem absolut vorzeigbar."
[7.0] "Good solid match between these two. I almost rather it would've gone to a time limit draw than have someone win at the buzzer to avoid Benoit taking a loss, but it still made for an exciting finish. ***3/4"
[7.0] "These two go together so well as their styles are quite similar. Scorpio moves around like a cruiserweight, even though he's a bulky man. This match told the story of the babyface frustrating the heel by winning exchanges and showing off his athleticism. Everything Benoit did looked stiff and rugged, even if he struggled during the times when he had to show some character. His acting ability clearly wasn't his strong suit. As soon as the ring announcer says that there are only 5 minutes left on the clock, you know that they are either going to the time limit or get nail-bitingly close to it, so that loses a few points for the predictability. The actual finish was pulled off well though, with Scorpio able to counter a suplex into a cradle pin to score the victory with only seconds on the clock."
[7.0] "Very solid and a great opener to the ppv (if you are going by the home video version like me). Benoit would go off to Japan for a bit before returning in late 95 as the 4th member of the reformed Horsemen."
[7.0] "Unsurprisingly this is a great little match between these two with 2 Cold Scorpio showing of his technical wrestling ability alongside his high flying. The finish was great with 2 Cold getting the win with one second to go. They timed it to perfection with the timekeepers countdown for the crowd ***1/2"
[7.0] "Pretty great match here. Some state of the art stuff from Benoit and Scorpio that was way ahead of whatever the WCW were doing this time around. The middle portion dragged at times, but they made it up with a nice little stretch at the end. I liked the fact that it wasn't a TLD. [***3/4]"
[8.0] "Hugely underrated match. No idea why Meltzer gave it under 4. Everything was banging on all cylinders with this one. The chain wrestling, the matwork and the big spots all functioned to tell a cohesive story and the time limit fake out was done perfectly."
[8.0] "Tolles Match zweier ziemlich spektakulärer Worker! Der Beginn war flott mit tollen Moves. Nach einer recht langsamen Mittelphase wurde es dann doch recht spannend. Das hier wäre wohl der bessere Opener gewesen"
[7.0] "It? s interesting seeing Benoit in WCW this early. I guess the New Japan partnership showing its benefits here. They have the typical Jr wrestling start, with nice looking kip-ups and arm wringers. But Scoprio then shows off his great athletic ability, adding a little more snap to the standard drop down -> armdrag spot to make it stand out way more. This plays out very much like someone trying to show off what they can do but they keep the competitive spirit of the match really well. The middle section was a bit forgettable but the finish with the time limit tease was extremely effective. ***1/2"
[6.0] "This match was good and worth watching, but if you're going to watch it find the version that has Jesse Ventura's commentary edited out. Ventura was obnoxious and unprofessional on commentary throughout the entire match."
[9.0] "usual chain wrestling as you would expect from a Chris Benoit match. Scorpio was very good with his high flying and him showing off with his flips and athleticism. This was good in how the two matched each other and were on equal grounds with skill. It was good how Scorpio worked over Benoit's arm throughout the match. I also liked how Benoit was acting cocky when he took control. and I liked how the two rushed to get the pin in the last minute, and how Scorpio actually got the pin with one second left to spare instead of a time limit draw. that was very good."
[8.0] "A really good showcase match for both guys, 2 Cold Scorpio looked real good with his work on top, and when it was time for Benoit to shine, he sure looked good as well. ***1/2"
[8.0] "Benoit & Scorpio liefern ein starkes Match ab, welches aber aus meiner Sicht, vom anwesenden Publikum zu wenig aufgenommen wird. Vor allem die Schlussphase ist spannend umgesetzt (hier haut Benoit auch einige Powermoves raus während Scorpio mit seinen High Flying Moves punktet) und man rechnet schon mit einem Time Limit Draw. Doch Scorpio kann den in eine Sekunde vorher noch durchziehen."
[7.0] "Ein gutes Match wie es zwischen diesen 2 tollen Wrestlern auch zu erwarten war. Hätten die 2 das Tempo etwas früher aufgenommen, wäre hier sicherlich auch noch eine höhere Bewertung drin gewesen. Der Style der hier gewrestelt wurde erinnerte mich sehr an ECW, wo natürlich auch beide später landen sollten. Das Finish war für mich auch überraschend, da ich eigentlich damals mit einem Draw gerechnet hatte, aber umso besser. Seiner Zeit weit voraus. *** 1/2 (17)"
[10.0] "I absolutely loved this match, think it is hugely underrated. Benoit brings tremendous grit and viciousness, though he will get better he is already better than most of the roster. Scorp on the other hand brings to the table amazing creativity and fluidity, the guy never seems to get full credit but he is an all time innovator. Just a wonderful mix of styles, I loved watching this, a huge shot in the arm to WCW after a mostly dull second half of 92."
[7.0] "Solid match, I like the techniques of the two wrestlers. It's easy to enjoy this match, there isn't a feud or anything before this match, but it's a good one. ***1/2"
[8.0] "Starkes Match mit viel Technik in einer für die damalige Zeit beeindruckenden Geschwindigkeit. Das Match ist durchgehend unterhaltsam und ich hatte eigentlich schon mit einem Time Limit Draw gerechnet. Aber zum Glück gibt es noch eine Entscheidung was ich immer besser finde."
[8.0] "Was ich hier so interessant finde ist das es damals die erste Zeit von Chris bei WCW war. Die auch inzwischen sehr vergessen ist. Viele kennen sicher nur die Matches aus seiner zweiten Zeit bei WCW. Zu den zählen ich auch. Der Crowd war hier echt fast tot. Ein wenig Begeisterung gab es Seitens des Crowds aber nicht so richtig. Schöne WCW Perle (***3/4)."
[7.0] "Starkes Match! Das Match läuft fast durchgehend in einem wahnsinns Tempo ab. Der Beginn ist technisch spitze, aber in der Schlussphase holt Benoit auch mal die härteren Moves raus. Die letzten Minuten sind dann äußerst spannend bis zum Finish, das für mich dann doch überraschend ausfällt. ***3/4"
[6.0] "Guter und smoother Kampf, leider ist das größtenteils "tote" Publikum hier keine große Hilfe was die passende Atmosphäre angeht, dennoch ein schöner Kampf."
[8.0] "Für beide Wrestler das erste wirklich großartige Singles-Match in den Staaten. Leider war Scorpio keine so fulminante Karriere, wie die Benoit´s, beschieden. Obwohl ich persönlich so meine Schwierigkeiten mit Time-Limits unter 30 Minuten habe, baut sich hier eine ordentliche Matchstory auf, auch wenn die richtig großen Moves fehlen."
