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Post by elliott on Dec 18, 2017 21:54:16 GMT -5
Steve Regal vs Fit Finlay (WCW Uncensored - 3/24/1996)
On a favorites list? This is like a top 10 contender, and I'm not even as crazy about Finlay as most people. But come on. Regal and Finaly punching and kicking each other in the face on American PPV in 1996. This is sooooooooooo great. I'll have to think really hard about this match. I'm not sure it is one of the greatest 100 matches ever, but I really want to get it on my list.
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Post by Cap on Jan 3, 2018 17:14:13 GMT -5
Second
This is just a fun, stiff match that was something different and unique within its context. Sometimes I watch these two from this era and I think what they were doing was wasted on a lot of WCW fans (myself included at the time probably). I liked that they could bring another style to the table without making it unpalatable. This is good stuff that I will second because it deserves a look.
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Post by Grimmas on Jan 6, 2018 22:24:15 GMT -5
Third.
These two masters stiff each other and stretch each other for 30 minutes, what is not to love? The finish is a little flat, but what you get is a fucking war! Will rewatch it to see if it makes my list, but it's a match in contention for the bottom part.
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Post by Cap on May 22, 2018 7:24:53 GMT -5
Went through some Regal stuff the other day, this included. I love the vast majority of this, but the finish will pretty safely keep this off my list. Finishes just mean a good bit to me and I can't get over how deflating it was given the match they were having.
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Post by superstarsleeze on Jul 29, 2018 9:16:35 GMT -5
NOSE EXPLOSION~!
Lord Steven Regal vs Fit Finlay - WCW Uncensored 1996
If you are real quiet and pay attention real close, you can actually hear Regal's nose explode at the end of the match. This was Ishikawa/Ikeda levels of brutality and uncomfortability. They were just beating the absolutely fucking shit out of each other. This would not look out of place at all on BattlArts card. This is why I loved WCW in 1996, it really felt like an all-star promotion with the best of every style on the card. Finlay set the tone early by whipping Regal with his jacket and just attacking him with vicious forearms, knees and headbutts. They were just fighting through each other's offense, which is one of my favorite style of matches. To me it is not my turn, your turn because you fucking earned your turn in this war. Whether it was stiff Finlay knee to the head to break out of an armbar or Regal nearly taking Finlay's head off with a dropkick. The only defense in this match was more offense and fight fire with fire. Unlike Ishikawa/Ikeda, they had a hard time keeping the heat up throughout the match and in the holds. They worked the palm strikes and knees in the holds well, but the holds in the match while gnarly did not have the drama of a BatBat match. I loved that the chairs were attached together preventing Finlay from using the chairs at Uncensored. I always mark out when someone suplexes someone from the ring to the floor, which seems so dangerous. Dusty is hilarious totally missing Brain's point that they wrestled each other thinking he was thinking England and Ireland were the same thing, "Ireland is five miles from London. I don't think so." Apparently, this match was supposed to go 30 minutes and I think thankfully it did not. It was running out of steam and this was the perfect ending for the match. One guy hits another guy so hard that his nose is shattered and he is just a bloody mess. It was really the only proper way to end such a nasty fight.
As much as I love sheer brutality, I do like a bit more of a strategy and/or narrative to my matches. It really is another form of a spotfest, but better than what is commonly thought of as a spotfest. Because they are fighting through each other's offense, it never feels like an exhibition. Because they are hitting each other so hard, it always feels like they are trying to win. It does not have the same pitfalls as a standard spotfest, but it does lack hook from a character/angle perspective to make it truly excellent. Still, I think this is an undervalued match. It is well-known, but the usual rating seems a bit low to me. It does not reach the greatness of some of the BatBat/FUTEN stuff I saw in the past year, this is not far off. ****1/4
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Post by puropotsy on Apr 9, 2023 19:48:28 GMT -5
A fantastic match that felt like a gritty fight with clueless commentary. This is an example of something that ages well with modern eyes appreciating things like Regal applying a hammerlock while covering Finlay for the pin. Why this needed interference for the finish I’ll never know but the journey there was great.
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