5 Best Wrestling Matches Of 2017

#1 Kazuchika Okada vs. Kenny Omega - Wrestle Kingdom 11

This is the match that set an entirely new standard for big matches in NJPW. It was such an outstanding wrestling match that it accomplished two seemingly-impossible feats. First, that someone (Omega) was able to have a better match with Okada than Hiroshi Tanahashi. Second, that there was room for a sequel (and later, for a series to unfold).

You see, this epic match had so much great wrestling going for it that there was an important detail that almost went unnoticed. For all the amazing, dangerous and vicious moves Okada and Omega hit on each other, there was one that wasn’t: Kenny Omega’s One-Winged Angel. That move is Omega’s super-finisher, his ultimate match-ending destroyer that always ended his matches.

So when Omega and Okada clashed, people were left wondering if Omega could hit the OWA on Okada? And if he did, could Okada somehow kick out of this devastating maneuver?

These elements were all woven together in a masterful tapestry of pro wrestling storytelling. Okada and Omega demonstrated superhuman conditioning and endurance, wrestling for over 45 minutes. Yet this match didn’t feature lengthy rest periods or meaningless submission holds meant to ‘bring the crowd down’. it was 45 minutes of non-stop wrestling action that brought some fans to tears (literally: the camera panned to several audience members crying when the match ended).

Wrestling usually gets either cheers or boos from fans. In some rare cases, it can make then angry enough to riot or happy enough to scream on top of their lungs. But rarely, rarely is a match so awesome, so dramatic, so well-executed that it leaves fans crying and begging for more. That’s what Omega and Okada accomplished in this historical wrestling masterpiece.