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Post by elliott on Dec 4, 2017 1:19:08 GMT -5
The Destroyer vs Giant Baba (JWA - 3/5/1969)
The best "60 minute draw" that I've ever seen. This could end up anywhere on my ballot from #3 to #30. I can comfortably call The Destroyer one of the greatest wrestlers ever on the strength of this one match. The depth of knowledge of working holds as well as heel psychology he shows in this match is masterful. Giant Baba is awesome in this and absolutely keeps up with Destroyer. This is one of the foundational building blocks of the "Giant Baba was a great wrestler" movement in the US fans of Japanese Wrestling subculture. For as important as this match is for Giant Baba's career in terms of perception of him as a worker, this match is still all about The Destroyer being one of the best ever.
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Post by stunninggrover on Jan 5, 2018 1:14:05 GMT -5
In 2017, the Japanese government awarded Dick Beyer the Order of the Rising Sun, one of Japan’s highest honours for a lifetime spent promoting goodwill and bi-cultural exchanges between Japan and the United States. Even though this match took place in 1969, it is a match that still holds up nowadays because of the great psychology. This match featured a lot of mat wrestling. Great performance by both wrestlers. The masked “Destroyer” Dick Beyer had the upper hand during the first eight minutes of the match. However, Giant Baba showed why he was one of the top Japanese wrestlers at the time and he was ready to give Beyer a run for his money and Baba was in control for the next portion of the match. Approximately 20 minutes into the match, Beyer took a big bump to the outside after Baba kicked him. There was a great spot where Baba set Beyer up for a big chop, but Beyer held onto the ropes and avoided being hit. Beyer pointed to his own head to let everyone know he was a smart worker and he even started strutting around for a while. Beyer showed a lot of great heel mannerisms throughout the match and he did a lot of clever things to get a reaction from the crowd and to keep the match interesting. Baba was great in this match too and this was possibly Baba’s greatest match ever. Beyer was the true star of the match though and his outstanding work kept this match interesting all the time and time seemed to pass relatively quickly. Baba pinned Beyer after approximately 48 minutes to win the first fall. The second fall ended when the match reached the 60-minute time limit. I like how when the time limit expired and they had wrestled for an hour, the Destroyer yelled angrily at some of the Japanese at ringside: “They cut the match short… cut short… you know what I mean?” Baba retained his NWA International Heavyweight Title, which was one of the three titles that would be unified as part of the legendary All Japan Triple Crown Heavyweight Title in the late 1980s. This match between Baba and Beyer was arguably the greatest match of the 1960s. *****
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Post by microstatistics on Jan 5, 2018 14:18:27 GMT -5
Has far and away the best display of old style matwork I have ever seen and a tremendous heel-face dynamic. Probably the best match of the 1960s and a strong Top 50 contender.
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Post by gordi on Jan 7, 2018 9:58:11 GMT -5
If I end up submitting a ballot, this match is an absolute lock to be on it. Great mat work and great character work. A long match but the time just flies by enjoyably.
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Post by Cap on Dec 11, 2019 20:10:48 GMT -5
Lock for my list next time. True classic. It feels almost like a template for wrestling, a stripped down match that gets to the essence of what a wrestling match is. Its heel vs face dynamics. Its hatred. Its urgency. Its strategy. Its a story. This is all of those things in what feels like a pure form. I love that it ends 1-0 and I like the grey area of the finish. Unless I was watching a slightly clipped version, the match did go just under 60 minutes bell-to-bell, making Destroyer's complaints valid.
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Post by elliott on Dec 11, 2019 21:19:50 GMT -5
It is rather famously not actually 60 minutes. Which is great.
Agree about it being a template. I'm about as big of a Baba fan as anyone out there, but Destroyer is so amazing in this match it is kind of unbelievable. Even if we didn't have another Beyer match, I'd feel confident calling him one of the best ever on the strength of this one performance. There aren't many performances I would say that about. The length definitely plays a role in that...we get to see him do a lot. What he shows in terms of working an enormous variety holds in a compelling & logical fashion while mixing in dastardly heel work and legitimately funny comedy spots is mind blowing.
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Post by Cap on Dec 11, 2019 21:25:18 GMT -5
It is rather famously not actually 60 minutes. Which is great. Agree about it being a template. I'm about as big of a Baba fan as anyone out there, but Destroyer is so amazing in this match it is kind of unbelievable. Even if we didn't have another Beyer match, I'd feel confident calling him one of the best ever on the strength of this one performance. There aren't many performances I would say that about. The length definitely plays a role in that...we get to see him do a lot. What he shows in terms of working an enormous variety holds in a compelling & logical fashion while mixing in dastardly heel work and legitimately funny comedy spots is mind blowing. I assumed as much, I have just never really engaged much discussion of 60s wrestling until this forum. |
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Post by tetsujin on Dec 12, 2019 18:45:11 GMT -5
This is the oldest "excellent match which really never gets old" that I can think of. Baba's peak performance, only a bit overshadowed by one of the greatest performances ever in a wrestling ring, courtesy of Destroyer. I remember the finish being a little anticlimatic, though.
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Post by elliott on Dec 13, 2019 5:30:31 GMT -5
Cap if you haven't seen it yet and you're on an old school kick, I would strongly recommend checking out Baba vs Fritz from 66 as another awesome 60s Baba match, only this one is more of an out of control brawl. They have another awesome bloody match in 75. Both are matches I plan on revisting as we get closer to the next ballot.
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Post by mvz on Sept 23, 2021 4:49:41 GMT -5
Not much to add to this thread but want to encourage everyone who hasn’t watched this to set aside the time. The Destroyer performance lives up to the hype, a master class in keeping you engaged and delighted.
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Post by cactus on Nov 19, 2021 5:39:30 GMT -5
A 50+-year-old match that goes for nearly 60 minutes sounds like it has the potential to be a complete snoozefest, but Destroyer injects a boatload of personality and comedy into this that keeps your attention even during the many, many lengthy holds featured here. Baba has a good grasp on psychology and knows when to throw a big strike and he's surprisingly good at keeping up with Destroyer once the technical exchanges pick up in speed. Destroyer uses a lot of a wide array of subtle heel tactics to gain an advantage, including concealing a foreign object in his trunks and then using it 20 minutes later to bust open Baba. The comedy here is strong too, as I really dug when Destroyer would do all kinds of technical spots which would always end up with him with his head locked into a leg scissors, frustrating the masked gaijin to the delight of Baba and the crowd. The finish is a bit crap, but there's so much to love about this once you give it you give it the patience it needs, that I can overlook it. ★★★★½
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Post by yojianjodefence on Jul 19, 2022 3:43:59 GMT -5
Not much more to add. Greatest Broadway ever imo.
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Post by puropotsy on Jul 23, 2023 17:54:48 GMT -5
I’m kind of in the middle on this one. The last 15-20 minutes was a lot of fun but I found the build to get there fell down a bit for me. But once Baba was busted open and Destroyer was playing hide the foreign object it got better. The heat for the Baba pinfall was great as was the closing moment when Destroyer had him in the figure four. Not as high on it as many will be but glad I watched it. And honestly, I may need to give it another try.
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