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Post by fxnj on Jan 9, 2018 5:11:58 GMT -5
In my view the definitive wrestler vs. shooter match. Incredible big fight feel. Plays really well off their prior matches with Hashimoto trying everything to avoid the STO and every bit of offense from either guy is sold as a huge deal. Really love Hashimoto's selling and the finish with Ogawa hitting the STO until he looks on the verge of collapsing from exhaustion himself is some unforgettable stuff. Top 20 candidate.
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Post by microstatistics on Jan 12, 2018 21:41:55 GMT -5
Should make the bottom 20 of my list easily, maybe higher. As mentioned above, the continuity is great with Hashimoto's growth and change in tactics. Ogawa stepped it up big time too and looked far better than he had at any point before this. Dramatic, emotional and has maybe Hashimoto's best performance (which covers a lot of ground).
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Post by AstroBoy on Jan 13, 2018 13:20:45 GMT -5
It's a fantastic match with a terrific atmosphere. Hash going berserk and pounding on Ogawa was amazing. The leg sweep is amazing. The heat is out of this world and the ending struggle over the STO, the slow breaking down of heroic Hash, is unforgettable. Easy nomination and may make my list.
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Post by problematic on Jan 13, 2018 20:51:08 GMT -5
Haven't seen this in years, is this online?
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Post by fxnj on Jan 13, 2018 20:53:42 GMT -5
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Post by superstarsleeze on Sept 22, 2018 20:12:13 GMT -5
I am a mark for big, cocky Shooters and I loved the 01/04/00 tag match but this one didn't completely land for me. I thought it was great and the best of the series right there with 5/97, but just not one of the best matches of all time. For great Inokiism matches I like Nagata vs Murakami & Fujita vs Shibata.
NWA World Heavyweight Champion Naoya Ogawa vs Shinya Hashimoto - NJPW 4/7/00
Hitherto, the lowest drawing Dome show. On the undercard, we have Masa Chono vs Great Muta in the blowoff to NWO Japan Civil War and a logical progression from 1/4/00. The headscratcher is IWGP Champ Kensuke Sasaki wrestling Jushin Thunder Liger. That would be a fun match for Kouraken Hall and something I would love to watch. In front of a Dome, seems odd. Hashimoto vs Ogawa is not enough to draw on its own. Compared to the previous year where Mutoh vs Don Frye could draw 50k+, which is less to say about Mutoh's drawing power and more about the health of pro wrestling and New Japan in 2000.
I think I enjoyed the 5/97 match a tad bit more, but this is in the same ballpark. Hashimoto has a way better strategy in this match rather than in FINAL DOME where he is going for the legs and avoiding the clinch and above the waist takedowns. There were some great legsweeps in this taking out that plant leg like a pro. The crowd was popping HUGE everytime Ogawa hit the mat. When Hashimoto took off his glove, the cute chick in the second row lost her mind imitating Hashimoto punching. This crowd wanted a Hashimoto win. Ogawa did rock him early, but Hashimoto powdered gathered himself. That leg strategy was working. He gets a DDT on the ramp. It was going Hashimoto's way. Then he went into the clinch. STO! What a dumb move. I literally said to myself, "He deserves to lose." I did like the DDT counter to the STO and the cross armbreaker that was hot shit. It was STO city after that. It felt exciting for spurts then would cool down. I think Nagata vs Murakami blows this out of the water in terms of a pro wrestler vs shooter in a big time match. ****
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Post by club on Apr 24, 2022 15:27:39 GMT -5
This is a match I've gone back and forth on over the years. On one hand, the wrong guy won. Hash losing feels emblematic of everything wrong with early 00s New Japan. On the other hand, what a fucking battle! This has a big fight atmosphere like few other matches in history. Hashimoto's job is on the line, and he fights like it. There's a pathos to this that's rare which makes the match uniquely memorable. So from that perspective the right guy won after all.
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Post by lemming on Apr 25, 2022 14:58:52 GMT -5
This has a shot at my top 10. Probably my favourite Hashimoto performance and Hashimoto was amazing.
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Post by elliott on May 7, 2022 2:50:15 GMT -5
This has a shot at my top 10. Probably my favourite Hashimoto performance and Hashimoto was amazing. This rules. I love these matches. Top 10 sounds reasonable to me. |
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Post by lemming on Dec 7, 2023 9:18:05 GMT -5
I ended up voting this one #12.
The first half of this is absolute fire with Hash taking it Ogawa with everything he's got and then we get one of the all time great "going out on his shield" performances from Hash down the stretch.
These two match up so well. Hash doesn't get to work as the underdog often but he's amazing at building sympathy and working fiery comebacks. Ogawa brings his size and legitimacy and cockiness to the table, along with one of the most naturally punchable faces in wrestling history, making Hash's eventual defeat all the more tragic.
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Post by elliott on Dec 7, 2023 11:46:16 GMT -5
I ended up voting this one #12.
The first half of this is absolute fire with Hash taking it Ogawa with everything he's got and then we get one of the all time great "going out on his shield" performances from Hash down the stretch. These two match up so well. Hash doesn't get to work as the underdog often but he's amazing at building sympathy and working fiery comebacks. Ogawa brings his size and legitimacy and cockiness to the table, along with one of the most naturally punchable faces in wrestling history, making Hash's eventual defeat all the more tragic. Fucking awesome! These matches rule so much. |
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