Hideki Suzuki vs. Yuma Anzai

[7.0] "[3.5*] This was straight-up the young, courageous champion with a lot to prove against the stiff veteran who wants to test him. There were a couple of great control segments by Hideki, I loved when he put Anzai on the ropes and started punching his stomach in a pretty fucking stiff way, it had a cool visual and the champ sold the offense perfectly. After the dominance, the underdog had the classic comeback, we got the usual last 5 minutes of crazy nearfalls and drama, and Yuma retained. Imo this match lacked a little bit of uniqueness, as it was essentially a formula that is by no means something new in Japan, where we actually have someone doing the exactly same thing but in a pretty much charismatic way, Kaito Kiyomiya. The structure is pretty much the same, but Kaito is maybe the best under-30 on planet, he has way more charisma and he does it in a way that he stands out. This match was really good, but did not reach the last gear imo because of these factors."

[6.0] "This was a decent match in a style that I don't really super go in for. Hideki is usually pretty fun to watch and Anzai is not bad, so this is one of the better AJPW matches I have seen lately, which granted is a bit of a low bar since I'm not really into their current style or roster but still."

[7.0] "Just a notch below the Miyahara match. Vintage Suzuki here. He should get a lot of credit for this current AJPW run. I am in the camp that the finish fit the match and wasnt a botch."

[8.0] "Fantastic puro main event, this one had a perfect structure, and would probably get a bigger rating if I didn't thought it was so robotic sometimes, they've followed the script incredibly well, I can't complain about almost nothing in the match, maybe some headbutts, but there were some moments where Hideki took the bump and immediately got up to take another move, and I think this took the realism out of the match in those moments. Excluding that, this was a truly fantastic main event, with stiff moves and a lot of drama and emotion, there were 2 or 3 times where Hideki Suzuki looked like he would absolutely win the championship, what a title defense that was, Anzai is undoubtedly the ace of this promotion - {****}"

[8.0] "Hideki brought the intensity to this and he looked vicious. A match that will not threaten any end of year lists but one that still demanded you pay attention. I suspect I would have gone higher if I did not know the result before hand."

[8.0] "One of those matches that wasn't truly enjoyable, but one that felt so sound it willed it's way into being something notable. Suzuki is a killer, forcing Anzai to earn everything in this match, and Anzai keeps his cool is admirable way. 4+ Stars."

[8.0] "I really liked this match as it felt like Anzai was facing a vicious killer in Hideki Suzuki. I think this match served a great showcase for Yuma Anzai as champ as his work continues to win me over despite my reservations about him back when I started watching during this year's Champion Carnival."

[9.0] "This is main event wrestling and what it looks like. Defined wrestlers working to their strengths and weaknesses the way two fighters would in a heavyweight fight. Continuing to accentuate those throughout the match. This is how you really make the things that happen in a match matter. There are no rest holds here, none of this is perfunctory, they *work* through the holds. They establish that Suzuki has the advantage on the mat; Anzai isn't a slouch, but it's not his domain. So he has to up the tempo of things and make it a fast paced match. Suzuki responds by cutting him off with a chokehold, and then *digs* to the body with nasty shots. He wins a long, drawn out match, so he wants to sap the young man's engine. Anzai's selling for a young man is tremendous, he *moves* tired. It all leads to a terrific crescendo, with great drama and near falls, and with Anzai having to really put everything into his offense; with his attempts to finish it off hindered by the body work before he can finally get Suzuki up. Tremendous match. ****1/4"

[8.0] "Enjoyed this match; maybe four stars is too generous? But that's how I'm feeling; can't really argue with people giving it 3.5 or 3.75, etc, etc, but I actually did enjoy the pace, the grappling, Suzuki's line of attack and Anzai battling back."

[6.0] "Between Anzais inexperience and Suzukis total apathy and lack of ability to create heat, this match lost the crowd several times. Anzai went for his finish 3 times but wasnt able to lift Suzuki, probably because Suzuki was sandbagging him as the crowd lost its heat because of it. There were some good moments of action, but the overall match was skippable for Anzais good run thus far."

[8.0] "Really good battle this. Suzuki is totally convincing as the killer who is happy to take punishment in order to exploit any opening with ruthless efficiency. Anzai is proving great at fighting from underneath and using his spirit & guile to keep the Triple Crown in his grasp. He might want to rethink that finisher, though ***3/4"

[8.0] "Went into this match expecting a fairly middle of the road bout but got so much more than that. Hideki Suzuki delivers one of his best performances of the last couple years as the mean vet pushing Yuma to the point of exhaustion. Yuma's progression as AJPW's ace has continued to shine through in each of these Triple Crown defenses in more ways than one. This time around Yuma has the chance to deliver a wonderful underdog babyface performance and the live crowd responds to it about as well as you could ask. The finishing stretch for so many puro matches these days tend to go an extra step or two than they should but this match doesn't have that. They walk the line perfectly between two dudes fighting for their lives and over the top theatrics. A real triumph and yet another shining performance for All Japan's new ace. **** 1/2"

[9.0] "This match over-performed my expectations. I have noted in previous reviews that I thought Anzai was still missing something, but that was not evident here. This was a textbook example of a young rising star matching a cagey veteran at his own game. I have to praise Suzuki for having one of his best matches of this run. The grappling was crisp. The strike exchanges were stiff. Yuma is developing at a shocking rate. Great, great match. Must watch, for sure."

[8.0] "This was really well worked throughout with a hot closing stretch that really turned it into a great match. This avoided the pitfalls I typically associate with a Hideki Suzuki match with the grappling exchanges being fast paced, with constant transitions and complex holds rather than sitting in basic holds for extended periods of time. It eventually involved some stiff strikes by the end as well. Another great defense in Anzai's inaugural reign."

[8.0] "Good match, Anzai really shines exchanging hold with Suzuki and the pace was great, maybe the ending was botched but it was fine."

[9.0] "What a match. Great technical wrestling from both guys. Hideki is also to be commended as he's finally become a team player as he gets up there in years. He really worked hard to make Anzai look like the guy. Debate to be had about those Gimlet attempts at the end, but if those were botches, they were covered up well."

[8.0] "Another strong defense for Anzai. I thought the ending sequence worked quite well here, even if Anzai genuinely messed up the first Gimlet, Suzuki also sold being knackered by throwing weak punches that barely grazed Anzai. Really made it feel like both guys were out on their feet, before Anzai got one final reserve of strength and fit his finisher"

[8.0] "Great main event. It's incredible how quickly Yuma Anzai has ascended. He looks comfortable as the ace for AJPW. This was a physical and well paced match with at least one smart near fall ****"

[9.0] "Anzai and Suzuki worked as if they were daring people to call bullshit on them. Proper, hard hitting match with real struggle and viciousness."

[9.0] "An excellent Triple Crown Title match that further proves Yuma Anzai's skills as a pro wrestler and a great choice as the next ace and current TC Champion. I was unsure how well these two would gel together, however they ended up having great chemistry. Hideki Suzuki's punches were incredible here, and he had a great job of using his technical skill and they built the match up perfectly - starting slow but still the beginning was not boring or unneccesary, and when they got to the big moves it felt major, this one seemed like a classic match. The ending will be devicive but I loved it, Anzai buckling when doing the Gimlet could have been a botch, but it was worked in well, with Suzuki also being shattered, unable to do a big move to capitalise and win, or even connect his strikes, after one more failed attempt Anzai would hit the Gimlet and win the match and keep the title. ****1/2"