WWEditorials XXII: AJ Styles – “The Phenomenal 5” Best Matches

#3. Wrestle Kingdom 10 – Shunsuke Nakamura vs. AJ Styles

Another fantasy that became reality, as ‘The Phenomenal One‘ took on ‘The King of Strong Style‘. It was their first time meeting in singles competition and a highly anticipated match. The big question here is how Styles‘ back was going to fare as the match progressed even with Style reassuring he was good. The opening was a magic moment as it officially set the pace for the match down the road. Throughout the match Styles’ back was definitely becoming an issue, allowing Nakamura to take advantage of the match. At the 15-Mnute mark, you could see the fatigue setting in from both wrestlers especially when Nakamura hit the boma ye off the rope only failing to follow up. Styles would receive another boma ye but counter another attempt from Nakamura with a knee of his own and hit a 450 splash for a near fall. In the end, Nakamura would deliver a Michinoku driver off the second rope then, following it up with the final two boma ye to the back and face getting the victory over Styles. It didn’t fall short of amazement from what man fans regard these two as the best in the business. Now that these two are in WWE, we can only hope the magic is recreated for the WWE Universe to enjoy. Only time will tell the story, right?

#2. ROH All-Star Extravaganza 2002; ROH Title Contender’s Match – AJ Styles vs. Bryan Danielson

If you go back in the history books and search for some of the wrestling’s hidden gems, you will find a match up between two of professional wrestling’s most respected men in the last twenty years. Their name sits in the upper echelons of the independent world alongside Samoa Joe, Low Ki, CM Punk, Christopher Daniels, & others. In the earlier 2000s, the WWE grew into a different entity so many fans steered away for an alternative choice. Styles & Danielson (Daniel Bryan), would clash at ROH 2002 All-Star event where the winner would receive an ROH title shot. This was the night Danielson came one step closer to his heel turn that lurked inside and you had the ultra-aggressive Styles. Two choices candidates for an MOTYC competing in a must-see match. The psychology along with the back-and-forth competition between the left arm of Styles and left knee of Danielson was nothing short of breathtaking. You could sense the aggression not only escalated the competitive nature of both men but only intensified all-the-more as they fought tooth & nail to win. You couldn’t ask for anything else from these two future Hall of Famers. In 2004, they encountered each other again during their stint in IWA Mid-South: An IWA Homecoming and like their meeting circa 2002 the match was a technical classic providing high-octane attacks that both would make an integral part of their arsenal.

#1. NJPW Dominion 2015 – Kazuchika Okada vs. AJ Styles

 

26-minutes of pure wrestling action and it never felt too long. When you have a wrestling match catering to all the factors that makes wrestling so amazing to watch you can’t get any better. Okada was making his way back to the top since his emotional loss to Tanahashi at the Wrestle Kingdom, where Okada‘s emotions would literally be shown. Styles was on a high road of success in NJPW as he was the leader of the Bullet Club and having history-making matches with some of Japan’s greatest pro wrestlers. Despite the attempted involvement of the Bullet Club it still was a must-see match. Throughout the match, the drama, an intense crowd, and unparalleled action made this one of  2015’s best matches. The final five minutes is mind blowing filled with constant counters that it doesn’t feel overdone which in some matches false finishes take away the matches aura. Okada connected with the rainmaker, a German suplex, and one more rainmaker to finally recapture the title away from Styles. You could see how much Styles’ career had definitely culminated for him as he was making his way to WWE. In my eyes, there were no losers as Okada & Styles set the bar high amongst the wrestling world to follow that.

We can see how AJ Styles has matured into such an amazing veteran of today. Take his victory at Backlash 2016 to win the WWE’s most richest prize; the WWE World Championship. His name joined the list of multiple icons; Buddy Rogers, Bruno Sammartino, ‘Superstar’ Billy Graham, Steve Austin, and many others. The chants of “You Deserve It” isn’t just used towards him from “marks”, but holds true that he simply deserves to be at the top. Not being on the list less we forget the amazing match Style/Cena had at SummerSlam. Only the future can get better or worse for AJ Styles but we saw a pro-wrestler hit rock bottom and climb to success. Anybody he steps in the ring with, “They don’t want none.“