It was a long road getting here. In 2010, I started watching wrestling promotions all over the world in chronological order, spanning the years 1990 – 1999. I was interested in immersing myself in the time period, getting a sense of what was good and bad, what was fresh and stale, and seeing how my takeaways may differ from those who followed everything in real time. As expected, there was both agreement and disagreement with the most common opinions espoused during the time period.
This countdown is the result of my watching over 3500 matches that spanned over 1200 hours in duration. After nearly five years of viewing, I have isolated what I consider the cream of the crop — the 500 most essential matches that were recorded and to which we have access. I have also linked to the thread dedicated to each match at ProWrestlingOnly.com, where other posters and I provided thoughts in real-time (I’m Loss – @prowresonly on Twitter).
My hope in sharing this is that you find a treasure trove of wrestling that you have not seen to watch and enjoy. I’ve taken a shot at some sacred cows and expect to get bludgeoned for a few of the choices, but that’s par the course and even part of the fun of list-making. I might even look back on some of these rankings and disagree with myself at some point, but that’s the joy of being a pro wrestling fan — matches are not “old” or “new”, they are “viewed” or “not viewed”, and our perceptions are very much alive and breathing.
Previous entries:
#500-#451
450. Genichiro Tenryu vs Great Muta (WAR 10/11/96)
449. Shawn Michaels vs Mankind (WWF Monday Night RAW 08/11/97)
448. Jeff Jarrett vs Tom Pritchard (USWA Dallas Sportatorium 04/12/91)
446. Randy Savage vs Genichiro Tenryu (WWF/AJPW Summit 04/13/90)
445. Vader vs Antonio Inoki (NJPW Tokyo Dome 01/04/96)
444. Barry Windham vs Ricky Steamboat (WCW Saturday Night 01/09/93)
443. The Rockers vs Hart Foundation (WWF Fort Wayne, IN 10/30/90, ⅔ falls)
442. Bret Hart vs Diesel (WWF Royal Rumble 01/22/95)
440. Ricky Steamboat & Shane Douglas vs Jushin Liger & Kensuke Sasaki (WCW Philadelphia 12/29/92)
439. La Fiera vs Jerry Estrada (Monterrey 1991, Chain Match)
438. Sabu vs Al Snow (California 09/11/94)
437. Mitsuharu Misawa vs Kenta Kobashi (AJPW October Giant Series 10/25/95)
436. Bret Hart vs Davey Boy Smith (WWF SummerSlam 08/29/92)
435. Barry Windham vs 2 Cold Scorpio (WCW Clash of the Champions XXII 06/16/93)
434. Ric Flair vs Brian Pillman (WCW Saturday Night 04/13/91)
433. Hulk Hogan vs Sgt. Slaughter (WWF MSG Network 06/03/91, Desert Storm Match)
431. Rick & Scott Steiner vs Bret & Owen Hart (WWF Wrestlefest 01/11/94)
430. Manami Toyota vs Toshiyo Yamada (AJW Grand Prix 06/21/92)
428. Ric Flair vs Hulk Hogan (WCW Bash at the Beach 07/17/94)
427. Brian Pillman vs Johnny B. Badd (WCW Fall Brawl 09/17/95)
426. Volk Han vs Dick Vrij (RINGS 08/21/92)
