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Post by bossrock on Sept 5, 2018 22:30:51 GMT -5
Tanahashi is always one of the most interesting wrestlers to analyze every year. He almost never comes to mind when you think about who had the best year due to his inconsistency and he pretty much remains an afterthought until December when you remember "Hey, this guy had some legitimately great matches." This year is no different. It's becoming more and more clear that age and wear and tear are catching up with the Ace, usually rendering him only able to perform as well as his opponent. And yet his high-end stuff is almost always undeniable. For every trudge of a Wrestle Kingdom match with Jay White, every dud of a New Japan Cup match with Taichi, every largely unremarkable G1 run with a few cool moments, he has an amazing duo of matches with Suzuki and Okada. He has a mostly very good run in the New Japan Cup. He has a thrilling G1 final against Ibushi. Every time I'm ready to write this guy off he continues to surprise me. When it comes to big match wrestlers, few are as reliable as Tanahashi. Where he ends up ranking on my final ballot is largely how he does in this next match with Okada and what will most likely be a rubber match with Jay White. But unless he completely falls apart, the Ace could end up with a comfortable spot in the top 30.
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Post by bossrock on Oct 28, 2018 12:59:44 GMT -5
Well, the Destruction Okada match was easily their best since 2013 and he and Jay White had the match they SHOULD HAVE had at WK. Top 25 contender.
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Post by mlev76 on Nov 11, 2018 18:57:23 GMT -5
Probably the most surprising G1 winner in a while as I thought his days of main eventing the Dome were over. Not a great G1 beyond the final against Ibushi and I think people have definitely overrated his Okada matches out of nostalgia. He'll probably make my top 20 or fairly near there, but for someone who used to be my favorite New Japan guy, he's definitely on the downside of his career.
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jrn
New Member
Posts: 44
Pronoun: He/Him
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Post by jrn on Nov 13, 2018 1:37:25 GMT -5
The Ibushi match is one of the greatest wrestling matches of all time. He's also got a ton of other great stuff, Old Man Tanahashi is easily my favorite Tanahashi
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