Elsewhere, the war between All Japan and New Japan continued, with the former selling out venue after venue and putting on matches so great that they became must-haves among tape-traders around the world.
But then, a new player entered the mix: All Japan Women’s Pro-Wrestling (AJW). This smaller promotion was making waves among wrestling enthusiasts for putting on astounding matches that people hadn’t seen before. The women wrestling there were so impressive that they became serious competition for their male counterparts in the big match department.
So which matches stole the show in 1992? Many tried, but only these five succeeded more than others…
#5 Sting vs. Big Van Vader
Fans of older wrestling matches remember the wars between Sting and Big Van Vader with fond nostalgia, and it isn’t hard to see why. Vader was an absolute monster that demolished people wherever he went and acted as the perfect ‘immovable object’ for Sting to try and overcome.
Although Vader had the early advantage, Sting managed to turn the match in his favor by using his speed and agility to his advantage. As the match progresses, it becomes less clear who’s going to win, leading to several quick transitions and momentum shifts that leave the fans watching attentively.
Sting was in spectacular form in this match, managing to actually lift the 400-pounds-plus Vader onto his shoulder at least once. Although the finish did come a bit out of nowhere, it was still an exciting match that should be watched by any fan of either wrestler.
#4 WarGames at WrestleWar 1992 - Sting, Ricky Steamboat, Barry Windham, Nikita Koloff & Dustin Rhodes vs. Steve Austin, Rick Rude, Arn Anderson, Bobby Eaton & Larry Zbyszko
This is one of the best WarGames matches ever, and boy was it ever dramatic. Everything about this match just screamed ‘drama’. From the initial brawl between Barry Windham and Steve Austin to the countdowns to each new entrant to the explosive reaction each time someone entered the cages, this was a spectacle if there ever was one.
Extra drama was added when Madusa climbed the cage to drop Paul E Dangerously’s phone into the ring to be used as a weapon and Sting for lifting Rick Rude and smashing him into the cage ceiling. Finally, the commentators and camera crew deserve a lot of credit for calling the action properly and cutting to different angles properly.
Normally a match involving ten men at once would’ve been too chaotic to follow. Thankfully, everyone involved did an awesome job in making this into an instant classic.
#3 Bret Hart vs. The British Bulldog – SummerSlam 1992
It isn’t often that a wrestling show sells out 80,000 tickets, whether in the United States or anywhere else for that matter. But WWE managed to this at SummerSlam 1992, held in Wembley Stadium in the United Kingdom, with a spectacular contest between Bret Hart and his brother-in-law the British Bulldog.
Both wrestlers showed incredible technical precision and savvy throughout this match, with lots of impressive reversals and dramatic sequences. It was especially exciting to see Bulldog, who was mostly known as a power-based wrestler, using more speed and more quick pins than normal. This made him look like a more versatile wrestler, which is always a good thing.
Hart and Bulldog brought their A-game for this match, and it showed. They pulled off some very believable near-falls and submission holds, which caused the crowd to erupt. People even gasped when Hart kicked out of Bulldog’s Running Powerslam, which hadn’t happened before this match.
And when the match ends, the crowd erupts like a volcano, with 80,000 fans screaming and jumping for joy. They loved the match that much, and odds are so will you when you go watch this.
#2 Manami Toyota vs. Kyoko Inoue – 4/25/1992
The early 1990s was the greatest period in women’s wrestling history. Some of the greatest matches were put together by a group of women wrestling for All Japan Women’s Pro-Wrestling (AJW), including these two. When they clashed in this match, they put on such an incredible spectacle that it blew almost anything else that year out of the water.
Showing just how good women could wrestle ig given the right opportunity, Toyota and Inoue delivered some of the most devastating moves ever seen inside and outside of a wrestling ring. They wrestled at such a blistering pace and used such a wide variety of moves that you never knew what was going to happen. Perhaps most impressively, Toyota and Inoue were only 21 and 23 years old respectively when this match took place.
This is simply a must-see match for anyone looking for a dramatic, back-and-forth grappling contest with devastating moves used throughout.
But if you don’t want to take our word for it, consider the following excerpt, which is taken directly from the Wrestling Observer Newsletter from June 8th, 1992, about a month after this match aired:
#1 Kenta Kobashi & Tsuyoshi Kikuchi vs. Dan Kroffat & Doug Furnas
If there were two words to describe this match, it would be ‘hilariously good’. The reason for that is that the crowd and the commentators watching this match live go so absolutely crazy throughout the match that it’s hilarious.
Indeed, this match is proof that the right crowd can make a good match great and a great match outstanding. Furnas and Kroffat played the typical role of ‘evil foreign heels’ while Kobashi and Kikuchi were the perfect babyface duo. The babyfaces, especially Kikuchi, are so beloved in this match that they manage to get a standing ovation out of the audience within less than thirty seconds of actual action.
Explosive crowd noise aside, this match also features classic tag team wrestling psychology, dramatic reversal sequences, believable and realistic selling, and multiple changes in momentum and control.
As a perfect example, watch the sequence between 8:37 and 8:52. The audience and commentators erupt and jump out of their seats over a DROPKICK. That is how passionate and invested they are in this match.
Simply put, this match had all the elements needed to be a contest truly deserving of its Match of the Year distinction.
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