132. Hiroshi Tanahashi (c) vs Minoru Suzuki (IWGP Championship, NJPW King of Pro Wrestling 2012)

For ten years, there was a hole in my soul. For ten years, I was without a monthly wrestling magazine. I loved Power Slam back in the day, and no other wrestling mag would do. In 2021, I happened to be browsing the shelves of WHSmith and found Inside The Ropes, the spiritual successor to the hallowed Power Slam. Finally, that hole in my soul was slowly being healed with every issue that I purchased (handily, you can even buy a PDF version, so you don’t even have to leave the house to buy it! What a world we live in…).

114. Antonio Inoki vs Hulk Hogan (NJPW IWGP Championship League 20/6/1983)

During scrolling through NJPW World’s list of ‘Recommended’ Antonio Inoki matches, I came across (yet another?) dream match: Inoki vs Hulk Hogan. Yes, you read that right: one of the biggest names in Japanese pro wrestling against one of the biggest names in American pro wrestling. Not only that, but it was for an early version of the IWGP Championship! Being a Hogan match, I didn’t expect much from it…and it met my low expectations.

86. Kazuchika Okada (c) vs Kenny Omega (2/3 Falls Match for the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship, NJPW Dominion 2018)

So now we come to the fourth and final match between Okada and Kenny Omega. Their first was a stone cold classic; their second still very good, but bloated and full of under/no-selling; their third a (relatively) brief second stone cold classic. Their fourth, this time a 2/3 Falls Match for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship, had no time limit…so I feared both wrestlers’ penchant for excess would be nurtured. I was right…

84. Kazuchika Okada (c) vs Kenny Omega (IWGP Heavyweight Championship Match, NJPW Dominion 2017)

Could the inevitable rematch between Okada and Omega live up to the greatness of the original? According to Dave Meltzer, it surpassed the original; he awarded it 6.25 stars!!! At the time, that was his highest rated match ever. He was right about their first bout…but their rematch fell below my very high expectations.

83. Kazuchika Okada (c) vs Kenny Omega (IWGP Heavyweight Championship Match, NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 11)

Time to move from one famed Okada feud to another, one that began with a match that set the wrestling world on fire. Dave Meltzer rated the match 6 stars (yes, 6 stars out of five!), and it won countless Match of the Year (2017) awards. And, truly, Okada vs Kenny Omega deserves all the plaudits it was given. Every once in a while, some things do live up to the hype, and Okada vs Omega at Wrestle Kingdom 11 indeed lives up to the hype.

82. Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Kazuchika Okada (c) (IWGP Heavyweight Championship Match, NJPW Wrestling Dontaku 2018)

It would be two years after their Wrestle Kingdom 10 clash until Okada and Tanahashi met for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship once again. At Wrestling Dontaku, they fought for the most-coveted prize in the (Japanese) game, in a match that Dave Meltzer gave an unbelievable 5 and 1/2 stars. Yes, this broke his rating system! I found that out after watching it, so my expectations weren’t set that high. Even so, after the final bell rang I felt disappointed…

81. Hiroshi Tanahashi (c) vs Kazuchika Okada (IWGP Heavyweight Championship Match, NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 10)

The Sportster has this clash between Okada and Tanahashi as their Number One match between the two NJPW greats. Now, I loved their bout at Wrestle Kingdom 9 (The Sportster has it at Number 5), a clear five star match in my eyes. This Wrestle Kingdom 10 one, however, is not quite as good as that classic…

79. Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Kazuchika Okada (c) (IWGP Heavyweight Championship Match, NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 9)

So far, I’ve enjoyed the Olada/Tanhashi rivalry for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship. I’ve missed their other non-title bouts, but one day I might check them out. However, I haven’t witnessed a classic…until, that is, their main event at Wrestle Kingdom 9. There doesn’t seem to be as much love for this bout as some of their other bouts among the wrestling community, but for me this was a clear five star match.

78. Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Kazuchika Okada (c) (IWGP Heavyweight Championship Match, NJPW Invasion Attack 2013)

The fifth bout for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship between Okada and Tanahashi suffers from the same problem as their third bout: it almost replicates their previous bout. Their clash at King of Pro Wrestling was undeniably awesome, only hamstrung by Okada’s inconsistent selling (an integral part of the match’s story, as well). So, from the looks of, they just copied and pasted the majority of that bout into this one…

77. Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Kazuchika Okada (c) (IWGP Heavyweight Championship Match, NJPW King of Pro Wrestling 2013)

Tanahashi Okada IV…is it East versus West, or man against man? Can any nation stand alone? Sorry, got carried away there…For their fourth title bout, Tanahashi and Okada got back on course, delivering yet another epic that wasn’t merely a rehash of a previous bout (like Tanahashi/Okada III). Wrestling Observer Newsletter rated this as the best wrestling bout of 2013 (in the world!). Yet there are a few niggles that prevent this from becoming a five star bout…