[9.0] "This match is rated at 4.5 stars not 3.5 1st of all. Second the fact that people are mad when Mercedes gave willow the best match of her Career is crazy cause this match delivered on every aspect. Mercedes heel work in this was excellent and she brought amazing heat to this match from the start. Willow is a true baby face which makes it hard to root against her. The interference was done right. The ending was even good. People don't know Mercedes has two variations of the mone maker. The ddt variation and just the slam transition. Mercedes shows in this bout why she's been regarded by many pros and indy up and comers alike that she the greatest of all time."
[6.0] "Impossible to separate an evaluation of this match from the ankle injury Mercedes Mone sustained. It's a shame because it was a fun match before that happened, and it puts a damper on what should've been a great (and deserving) moment for Willow Nightingale. And of course the ending was horribly botched because of it, leaving both the ref and the commentators in a state of confusion..."
[8.0] "Mercedes Verletzung war so bitter. Man sah es irgendwie nicht im das Main Event. So bitter und schlimm es für Mercedes war ich möchte trotzdem das Finale bewerten da ich es echt stark fand (***1/2). Auch wurde es komplett beendet."
[5.0] "Jesus the commentators really tried to save this at the end. It's a shame that the crowning of Willow is overshadowed by this sloppy ending. Even without the ending this match really isn't that good as it felt like this match never went into third gear, which is sad because both Moné and Willow are really good. Hope to see a rematch of these two soon."
[8.0] "A match that was fun throughout. Willow Nightingale is a future star and this title win certainly helps her ascend up the ranks (as well as hopefully giving her some great opponents). However, the match falls apart near the end due to the ref missing the three count. 8/10"
[6.0] "Good match that understandably fell apart due to the injury at the end. Who could have imagined Willow Nightinggale would main event a NJPW show this year. A very cool moment for Willow and the company elevated by the great crowd."
[4.0] "Das war bis zur Verletzung ziemlich gut aber dann wurde es chaotisch und sollte eigentlich gar nicht mehr bewertet werden. Damit auch die Leistung davor gewürdigt wird, lasse ich zumindest eine ok-Wertung hier. 4/10 Brote"
[8.0] "Really good match that was on the verge of being great if it was not stopped prematurely due to Mercedes injury. Hope she is not out for long and that she gets healthy quickly. It is a match that I would love to see again because it was clear that they had a lot planned for this match.Willow was already great but I think this match made her a star. Beating Mercedes put her over way more than she already was."
[6.0] "A great crowd, but the match suffered from the obvious injury and a general sloppiness overall. Mone has been a draw and a good watch during her New Japan time, hope she recovers quickly."
[8.0] "This was a good match but Mercedes broke her ankle and the ref screwed up count meaning they had to change the finish on the fly. AEW need to capitalise on this surprise win and make Willow into something now."
[8.0] "This match will go down as one of the biggest What If in wrestling history because it could have been a classic that would have been remembered for a long time, everyone says it and I think it too, this match was destined to be fantastic and Mercedes' injury makes me so sad, it's not that serious but it deprived us of a historic moment and a match that could be described as such too. It's a real shame, but what we saw was very good and both of them have a hell of a chemistry, so I'll settle for the positive. I would love to see NJPW run a PPV in Boston with a big rematch between them in the main event, and Mercedes taking the title this time."
[6.0] "Sadly the injury hampers this from being the great match they were building as the referee fails to count on what would have been a massive pop for the improvised finish."
[5.0] "This was fine until the finish. I mostly liked Nightingale's performance, especially that one Pounce. Mone was quite unimpressive. There were some good moments, but also many clear botchy moves. Sadly, as it was getting better Mone suffered very unfortunately injury. Ref work is expectedly terrible. This match really deserved a proper finish. **3/4"
[6.0] "An unfortunate end to a match that was going to be very good, the crowd went nuts even before the match started, the atmosphere was great and it really felt like a big match. Willow basically killed Mercedes for 10 straight minutes then unfortunately Mercedes injured her leg when she was about to start her comeback so they cut the match short and went right into the finish, but the referee didn't really understand and fked the 3 count -----------This is really sad because it was very good so far and it looked like Mercedes was about to put Willow over very big since she gave her the entire first half of the match, but kudos to both ladies they handled it very well and didn't miss a bit. Very happy for Willow she deserves this push and I wish a speedy recovery to Mercedes"
[7.0] "Damn with such a great crowd and great setup it was shaping up to be an absolute classic, a great finish to a great pay-per-view. But fate was not on their side as Mercedes got seriously injured and called an audible for Willow to win, which sadly ref didn't understand and screwed the finish. Still great to see Willow making it on a big stage and crowd chanting you deserve it. Here's hoping for AEW to treat Willow like a champion and for Mercedes to make a quick recovery."
[8.0] "This match was popping and the crowd was red hot before an unfortunate injury cut it short, nonetheless a seriously hard hitting main event with Mercedes putting Willow over hugely."
[9.0] "I could make a strong argument that this is the biggest shock result in pro wrestling since Brock Lesnar ended The Undertaker's WrestleMania streak, yet this to me was the right call. Everyone expected Mercedes Moné to win the NJPW STRONG Women's Openweight Championship as she was sticking around past her initial agreement with Bushiroad, instead she put over Willow Nightingale and made her a massive star. A shame that the finish was awkward and Moné may be injured, but that doesn't take away from how great the match was, and how big a moment this was for Nightingale. It certainly should elevate her in AEW, where she's been losing to the top stars. UPDATE: It appears Moné broke her ankle. Hope the recovery is as smooth as possible for her."
[8.0] "Whether the finish was an audible or not this match was structured very well with plenty of moments that really put over Willow strength and ability to the point her winning felt like a naturally conclusion even if the finishing stretch was rushed."
[7.0] "A very good match that was unfortunately cut short because of an unfortunate. Moné is maybe the best women's wrestler in the world right now (with the exception of maybe Rhea Ripley), she makes everyone look good. Nightingale is incredibly loveable and has a great connection, so it was nice to see her get her flowers here. This never kicked into the next gear due to Moné's unfortunate injury, but very fun nonetheless."
[9.0] "The moment was bigger than the match and sometimes that's okay. A lively crowd can always make something good become great. A bit sloppy near the end but given Mercedes's apparent injury it's understandable."
