Kazuhika Okada vs. Minoru Suzuki (NJPW - 8/31/2019
Oct 23, 2019 18:20:59 GMT -5
Post by bossrock on Oct 23, 2019 18:20:59 GMT -5
Kazuchika Okada vs. Minoru Suzuki (NJPW Royal Quest - 8/31/2019)
Okada and Suzuki have always had amazing chemistry together and this match was no exception. At 30+ minutes, one might normally expect the "inconsequential first third/first half, hot second half two/two thirds formula NJPW main events have become known for. That was not the case here and one of the reasons for that was how well these two complement each other. Okada is a bad mat worker and not a particularly great striker, two things that Suzuki is very good at. Meanwhile, Suzuki is 51 and understandably slower while Okada is a freak athlete who is a master of finishing stretches and making things feel important. Suzuki was terrific as the sadistic yet focused heel hell-bent on breaking Okada down. Okada sold everything like death and yet admirably did his best to withstand everything Suzuki threw at him while not quite beating him at his own game. It made everything come off as much more of an intense struggle than a lot of NJPW matches (and this is from someone who loves the promotion and style). I was particularly impressed with how Okada really laid into his forearms in the latter half of the match and how he slapped on a pretty impressive looking sleeper hold. It was ingenious storytelling of the ace who normally relies on his athleticism and gas tank realizing he was going to have to step the rest of his game up. Suzuki also did a great job adding a wrinkle to Okada's normal reversal-heavy finishing stretch by pummeling his way out of Rainmaker attempts. Okada's struggle to avoid the Gotch Piledriver to finally secure victory was also pretty riveting stuff. My only real criticism of the match was that I think Okada could have shown a bit more urgency during his initial comeback after being walloped by Suzuki, but that's more of a nitpick than anything.
This is quite possibly the best match of the year and the best match between these two, which is really saying something.
Okada and Suzuki have always had amazing chemistry together and this match was no exception. At 30+ minutes, one might normally expect the "inconsequential first third/first half, hot second half two/two thirds formula NJPW main events have become known for. That was not the case here and one of the reasons for that was how well these two complement each other. Okada is a bad mat worker and not a particularly great striker, two things that Suzuki is very good at. Meanwhile, Suzuki is 51 and understandably slower while Okada is a freak athlete who is a master of finishing stretches and making things feel important. Suzuki was terrific as the sadistic yet focused heel hell-bent on breaking Okada down. Okada sold everything like death and yet admirably did his best to withstand everything Suzuki threw at him while not quite beating him at his own game. It made everything come off as much more of an intense struggle than a lot of NJPW matches (and this is from someone who loves the promotion and style). I was particularly impressed with how Okada really laid into his forearms in the latter half of the match and how he slapped on a pretty impressive looking sleeper hold. It was ingenious storytelling of the ace who normally relies on his athleticism and gas tank realizing he was going to have to step the rest of his game up. Suzuki also did a great job adding a wrinkle to Okada's normal reversal-heavy finishing stretch by pummeling his way out of Rainmaker attempts. Okada's struggle to avoid the Gotch Piledriver to finally secure victory was also pretty riveting stuff. My only real criticism of the match was that I think Okada could have shown a bit more urgency during his initial comeback after being walloped by Suzuki, but that's more of a nitpick than anything.
This is quite possibly the best match of the year and the best match between these two, which is really saying something.
