Building a fantasy
wrestling card:
Rules: Any wrestler who has been actively wrestling within
the last five years is eligible to be selected for the card; wrestlers can only
picked once, even those which wrestler under numerous aliases, the name on the
card is the alias they will wrestle under.
Night One:
Six Man Tag Match:
Katsuyori Shibata, Tomohiro Ishii and Chris Hero vs British
Strong Style (Pete Dunne, Trent Seven and Tyler Bate)
A strong 6-man tag team match to start the card, which sees
traditional rivals, Shibata and Ishii team up alongside another veteran and
strong style type wrestler in Chris Hero. They will face off against the
collective known as British Strong Style made up of “The Bruiserweight” Pete
Dunne and Moustache Mountain, Trent Seven and WWE UK Champion Tyler Bate, who
see themselves as bearers of strong style wrestling in Britain. Although Tyler
Bate and Trent Seven work as faces in nearly all promotions, they will work as
heels as they do in Progress alongside the Progress champion, The
Bruiserweight.
Submission Match:
Becky Lynch vs Natalya
The next match sees Natalya battling Becky Lynch in a
submission match. I chose the wrestlers and the stipulation based on the
technical prowess of the two women in the match as well as both wrestlers using
submissions as their finishing maneuvers. I feel like this match would benefit
from some innovative and interesting submission holds and would highlight their
talents effectively.
Ladder match:
Will Ospreay vs Ricochet vs John Morrison vs Daniel Bryan vs
Rey Mysterio vs KUSHIDA
It’s time, it’s time, it’s Vader time for you to turn off your Television Vader as
it’s ladder match time and two of your favourites, Will Ospreay and Ricochet
are present. Will Ospreay and Ricochet are two of my favourite wrestlers and I
feel like a ladder match would be beneficial in displaying their creativity and
athleticism superbly. Adding to the mix, KUSHIDA and Daniel Bryan (yes he is
retired, he was not 5 years ago G’s) use of striking and submissions and
technical aspects whilst still pulling out high flying moves. John Morrison’s
use of parkour and innovative offence, would add the amount of memorable spots
and GIF worthy highlights and finally Rey Mysterio, simply because he is one of
the greatest cruiserweights of this generation and I feel like he would add
prestige and a veteran presence to this match.
Singles Match:
Jay Lethal vs Christopher Daniels
A nice mid-card match here between two of the better
independent wrestlers of this generation, two wrestlers that have been the mainstays
of independent scene over the past decade. Christopher Daniels is known as ‘the
King of the Indies’ for his work in TNA,ROH,FWA,PWG and others. Jay Lethal has
also had a distinguished career in TNA and ROH. An interesting stat considering
they have been in the same promotions they have only faced each other once in
one on one competition on major pay per views back at TNA’s Bound for Glory
2007, a match between the two veterans would be entertaining and gripping to
watch.
Hardcore Tag
Match:
The Briscoe Brothers Vs The Broken Hardys
There were many teams touted to face the Hardys in this
match, firstly I was going to put Mick Foley and Terry Funk for their iconic
hardcore career, but Mick Foley just missed out as his last match was just over
5 years ago. The same scenario existed with Edge and Christian and I could have
went with the Dudley Boyz, but I felt the Briscoe’s would gel and are enigmatic
and unpredictable like their opponents.
The Hardys have done great work in
reinventing their characters and have shown their creativity with The Final
Deletion, Total Nonstop deletion and The Great war. This serves for the two
teams to be able to create some creative and memorable spots, Matt Hardy has
already called out the Briscoe’s at Final Battle in New York City on December 2nd,
so expect these two teams to cross paths in the near future.
6-Man Tag Team
Match
The Shield vs Kevin Steen, El Generico and Claudio
Castagnoli
The Moans from the collective people reading this piece as
Roman Reigns, aka Not a bad guy, Not a good guy, the guy aka Samoa Ro enters
the fray. However, have no fear it is the Roman Reigns you knew and loved, when
he was part of the hounds of justice, A.K.A The Shield. The team that will be
remembered for their dominant period of a year and a half. Their opponents are a team of once best
friends turned bitter enemies in Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens, they will team with
another former ROH star turned WWE superstar in Cesaro.
In this match, Owens
and Zayn will work as Kevin Steen and El Generico as they did during their
tenure as ROH World Tag Team Champions. Cesaro will also work under his real
name and ROH name Claudio Castagnoli to complete the nostalgic trio, who will
work this 6-man tag as faces.
Triple threat
Match:
Roderick Strong vs Austin Aries vs Samoa Joe
Traditional ROH Independent Veteran 3 way dance between
three superstars who have been cutting their teeth down in NXT. Roderick Strong
and Austin Aries have been tag team partners in the stable Generation Next, as
well as tagging in Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic. They have had rivalries,
including one between the two wrestler’s respective stables. Former NXT, TNA
and ROH Champion Samoa Joe will join them in the match, in fact, all 3 of these
wrestlers have held the top title in the honourable ring.
3-Way Tag Team
Match:
The Young Bucks vs Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson vs Finn
Balor and AJ Styles
Dentists do not recommend the following Super Kick Party as it
is too sweet. A Bullet-Club reunion, 3 way tag team match between The Young
Bucks, Gallows and Anderson and The team of former Bullet Club leaders, AJ
Styles and Finn Balor. The match will be contested in tornado style, as to
increase the pace and action of the match, the Young Bucks ( as one of the best
tags in the world, if not the best) can work with everyone, as can AJ Styles
and Finn Balor ( Looking at AJ Styles working very impressive matches against
both Samoa Ro and John Cena). Gallows and Anderson bring their aggressive style
and as the Raw tag team Champions, they currently hold the biggest tag prize in
wrestling (sorry I nearly typed Sports Entertainment).
The team of Styles and Balor will work as Faces, Balor in
full paint as he does during big events because as Jim Johnston said well it’s
the Big Show. The Young Bucks would bridge the gap as tweeners. This is simply
because they are so popular, they have a look and their reputation and
following are so big that they could turn full face and not lose much heat. Gallows
and Anderson will work as Heels as I feel they are too good as heels and are
not suited as faces. The last time Luke Gallows worked as a face for a long period,
let me just say Biscuits and Gravy were involved.
Singles Match:
Shinsuke Nakamura vs Kazuchika Okada
Your Main Event of Night One: Former Chaos leader Shinsuke
Nakamura, The King of Strong Style vs One of the biggest draws in Japan today,
the current IWGP Heavyweight Champion, Kazuchika Okada. Okada who had brief
stints in Mexico and in TNA, Okada actually attributes his time in both arenas
in defining him as a wrestler, stating he took his dropkick from Mexico, his
"fighting spirit" from Japan and the "TV and the
entertainment" from the United States (Barraso,J(2016).
Okada returned to New Japan in 2012, reinventing himself as
the Rainmaker, which Okada describes as “one particular star who could make a
company or project rich and successful”. His Persona as a Cocky, rich wrestler,
who felt entitled to the top of the card. Okada eventually won over the fans
with his matches and eventually made his face turn and is one of the gems of
the Chaos stable. His opponent the charismatic and enigmatic King of Strong
Style, Nakamura. These larger than life characters would have an undeniable in
ring chemistry, they have that CHAOS connection, and an issue as Okada said he
was surprised that Nakamura left New Japan to join WWE and great wrestling ability.
Simply put, this match will be great. There will be some funny spots but plenty
of intense, gripping action. P.S They also appeared in the Japanese video for
Pharrell’s song Happy.
Night two:
40 Man Battle
Royal
Trevor Lee vs Mark Andrews vs Hiromu Takahashi vs Dragon Lee
vs SANADA vs Jeff Cobb vs Pentagon Jr vs Sami Callihan vs Tommy End vs Matt
Sydal vs Mark Haskins vs Cedric Alexander vs TJ Perkins vs Tye Dillinger vs
Rich Swann vs KENTA vs Neville vs Matt Riddle vs Mike Bailey vs Tomasso Ciampa
vs Johnny Gargano vs Low Ki vs TAKA Michinoku vs Frankie Kazarian vs Eric Young
vs Tomoaki Honma vs Drew Galloway vs The Miz vs Shane Strickland vs Apollo
Crews vs Moose vs Alberto El Patron vs Dolph Ziggler vs Jack Gallagher vs Baron
Corbin vs Big Damo vs Eli Drake vs Ethan Carter III vs Eddie Edwards vs Brawn
Strowman vs Tony Nese
This actually started out as a 20-man battle royal, evolved
to 25, then 30, then 40 and I was considering doing a 61-man battle royal to
eclipse WCW’s World War 3, but I thought that was too much at the end of the
day. I picked a 40-man battle royal, as I wanted a lot of deserving wrestlers
to get a slice of the cake and chance to shine. There are a great mixture of
youth and veterans, big guys (not that one) and cruiserweights. I would make
the match faster by making the time between entrants at 15 seconds, simply
because it is the first match of the night and you do not want to kill the
audience off, so a nice match, with some nice spots, some comical relief and
interesting eliminations.
Junior Heavyweight
Triple threat Tag match
Tiger Mask W and Jushin Thunder Liger vs ReDRagon vs
Roppongi Vice
A Junior Heavyweight exclusive triple threat tag match up
next on the card, featuring the teams of Kota Ibushi (as Tiger Mask W) and Jushin
Thunder Liger facing the teams of ReDRagon and the Super Jr Tag Tournament
winners and current IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag champions, Roppongi Vice. Tiger
Mask (in his various incarnations) and Jushin Liger have had a long connection
in their wrestling careers winning the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Championship
in 2012, being involved in a mask vs mask match which Liger won against the
third Tiger Mask (Kōji Kanemoto). The late great Mitsuharu Misawa, who owns the
record of 5-star matches at 25, also portrayed Tiger Mask previously.
Former two time IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag champions,
ReDRagon, join them in the match (Bobby Fish and former ROH World Champion,
Kyle O’Reilly) and a team who they have had battles in the past with in
Roppongi Vice (Rocky Romero and Beretta). This action will be fast and while
Jushin Liger still has plenty left in the tank. Although, he is not as athletic
as he was in his hayday in the 90’s, the others will have to carry the load in
terms of high-risk maneuvers. This though does not mean that Liger in his 50’s
is not capable of putting on great matches, which he continues to do.
Singles Match:
Bobby Roode vs Marty Scurll
The next match sees two wrestlers who have had immense
years. Bobby Roode left TNA and in the within a year, had joined the WWE and
capped off a Glorious year by defeating Shinsuke Nakamura at NXT Takeover: San
Antonio for the NXT Championship. Bobby Roode has displayed that he can work in
different roles, face or heel, as a single wrestler or in a tag team, it will
be interesting to see how he eventually transitions from NXT Champion to the
main roster. His opponent is a man who has been one of the best independent
talents of recent times, a man who reinvented his character from a party boy to
a man who does not conform to the rules inside or outside the ring. Marty has
made “The Villain “Character unique, with his unique fur coat, trademark
umbrella and excellent storytelling skills. This combined with an excellent combination
of technical and high-flying moves as well as excellent comedic pieces has
elevated the Villain to deserved heights. This started by winning the 2016
Battle of Los Angeles and the ROH TV Championship during the companies UK tour.
Despite his Villain
persona, Marty is one of the nicest guys, I have met. His approachability and
communication have seen him build a great bond with independent wrestling fans,
he has had great matches over the past few years with AJ Styles, Will Ospreay,
Chris Hero and Zack Sabre Jr and his communication skills will allow him and
Bobby Roode to put on an excellent contest.
Four way Tag Team
Elimination Match
The New Day (With Xavier Woods) vs Joel Redman and Charlie
Sterling vs American Alpha vs The Revival
Oh Readers, don’t you dare be sour, clap for your soon to be
four-way elimination tag match and feel the power. It’s a New Day, yes, it is,
it really is the world famous Booty O eating, trombone playing, 2 time tag
champs who are in this match. Kofi Kingston and Big E will represent the New
Day as I have decided to go for the Power and pace combination and gone for
Kofi’s penchant for the sublime, the Nintendo Switch might be out by then so
Xavier Woods will probably be too busy to wrestle, Good Lad. They will be
joined by a tag team that some of you might not know but they are a team that
will start to draw a lot of praise in Joel Redman (Oliver Grey in NXT) and
Charlie Sterling, they have one of the best double team finishers on the
planet, a tombstone followed by a spiral tap. The next team is American Alpha,
who are a high octane, technically gifted tag team. I feel like since their tag
team title victory over the Wyatt family there has not been any significant
action for the team, which has slightly halted the team’s momentum, but they
are still by a long shot the best team on the SmackDown roster. The final team
in this match is The Revival, who are a classic throwback to the classic heel teams
of the 80’s and 90’s who focussed more
on the technical side of wrestling rather than using size or athleticism. They
use simple but effective moves in order to dominate their opponents, a real
contrast in styles will help this match to be unique.
Triple Threat Cage
Match:
Tetsuya Naito vs Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Adam Cole
The next match pits three of the best wrestlers in the
industry stuck in the confines of a steel cage. Tetsuya Naito, the current IWGP
Intercontinental Champion who since his return from Mexico in 2015 with a new
look and villainous persona, has become one of the biggest draws in Japan with
his Los Ingobernables de Japon stable becoming a dominant faction in New Japan.
Naito’s success showed when he was named the 2016 MVP of Japanese wrestling
breaking a 5-year monopoly of Okada and Tanahashi winning the award. The latter
is one of his opponents in the match, Tanahashi. Tanahashi is one of the most
accomplished in ring performers in New Japan history, he has won the following
accolades, match of the year twice, most charismatic wrestler (2013), most
outstanding wrestling (WON, 2012,2013) and wrestler of the year (2011-2013).
This does not even including 5 straight years with a 5 star match, a 3 time
MVP, Two time G1-Climax winner and 7 times IWGP Heavyweight Champion. Adam Cole
is the final entrant of this match, the record breaking 3 time ROH World
Champion bay-bay wraps up a trio of wrestlers who had a 5 star match in 2016,
as a member of The Bullet Club, Cole has won the ROH title twice in the last year.
This match would go a long way in establishing the winner as top of the ladder
in the wrestling, winning this match would definitely go beyond just beating
these tremendous wrestlers but overcoming outside interference from their stable
mates and allies.
Six Woman Scramble
Match:
Charlotte vs Asuka vs Bayley vs Jade vs Sasha Banks vs
Rosemary
The following women’s match will be a 6 woman, 20-minute
scramble. The winner will be the last woman to make a pin-fall or submission.
There are 3 woman in this match who have had storied rivalries over the last
few years in NXT and WWE, 3 of the 4 horsewomen, Charlotte, Bayley and Sasha
Banks, all 3 of them are former NXT Women’s champions. These three women have
been involved in matches with and against each other and have built up a great
in ring chemistry. Joining them in the match by one of the most dominant woman
in wrestling, Asuka. The woman has been untouchable since she became the NXT
Women’s Champion, holding the title for nearly a year now. I feel that Asuka
would mesh will styles wise with Rosemary from TNA, they are both unpredictable
and unstable characters and Jade has had a recent rivalry in TNA with Rosemary,
including a monsters ball match, which has revolutionised TNA’s knockouts division.
Traditional
Survivor Series Match:
Bullet Club (Tama Tonga, Tanga Roa, Bad Luck Fale and Cody
Rhodes) vs. The Brothers of Destruction, Triple H and The Rock
Take a trip down Nostalgic Lane, I think it’s next to
Electric Avenue. Remember the March of 2001, when WCW was finally brought to an
end, four of the wrestlers in this match were major influences in winning the
ratings war for WWF and putting WCW and I’m not talking about The Bullet Club,
they’re not time travelling wrestling vigilantes. Alongside Kurt Angle, Mick
Foley and Stone Cold Steve Austin, Kane, the Undertaker, Triple H and The Rock
were major factors in turning WWE’s fortunes. Kane, The Undertaker and The Rock
were on the team that killed a stable in The Alliance at Survivor Series, how
would one of the most dominant stables in world wrestling would deal with these
four wrestling icons in their prime. The Bullet Club team is made up of the Guerrillas
of Destiny (two time IWGP Tag Team Champions), Former IWGP Intercontinental
Champion Bad Luck Fale and former Intercontinental and Tag Team Champion, Cody
Rhodes. I feel like even though The Bullet Club are a major underdog, there
have great been great underdogs in wrestling history and I feel they would come
out aggressive and with a chip on their shoulder, but 100% expect a few double
chokeslams, a couple of Rock Bottom’s and several stunners. WHAT!, I Said
Several Stunners. WHAT!
Triple Threat
Match:
Kurt Angle vs Chris Jericho vs Zack Sabre Jr
Whilst writing this piece, this match for me would be the
match, I would love to see in real life. I am not sure if this dream would come
true but it would be great to see 3 of these great technical wrestlers share
the ring together. Chris Jericho and Kurt Angle have shared the ring numerous times
during their careers; my most memorable match is the triple threat for the
European and Intercontinental Championship. Zack Sabre Jr has also faced Kurt
Angle for Revolution Pro Wrestling and has held championships all over the
world including the RPW and PWG Championships, beating AJ Styles, Jeff Cobb and
Katsuyori Shibata during his title reign. Kurt Angle and Zack Sabre have both
won Best Technical Wrestler (WON), whilst Jericho has won best on mic awards
and most underrated, Chris Jericho is a record setting nine time
Intercontinental Champion, 6 time World Champion and a 7 time Tag Champion. I
feel these three men have a great appreciation for the technical side of
wrestling and would put on a match with classic holds, innovative offence and
just an overall high quality technical masterclass. THIS MATCH, YOU JUST MADE
THE LIST. DAVE MELTZER’S 5 STAR MATCH LIST.
Singles Match:
John Cena vs Kenny Omega
Finally it is time, for your main event of the evening and
the whole event, Kenny Omega has had an “Elite” year winning holding both the
IWGP Intercontinental Championship and NEVER Openweight 6-man tag championship,
as well as winning the G1 Climax tournament, becoming the first Gaijin to win
it as well as winning it on his first attempt. The main highlight of the year
was highlighting the January 4 Tokyo Dome Show, Wrestle Kingdom 11 for the IWGP
Heavyweight Championship against Okada, the match lasted 46 minutes and 45
seconds making it the longest in the events history and garnered a 6 star
rating from Dave Meltzer, the 2nd such rating in wrestling history.
Now for a main event we needs an opponent who loves the big match, a man who
has main evented massive events, a man who likes FRUITY PEBBLES AND HIS NAME IS
JOHHHHHNNNN CEEEEENNNNAAAA RAPPPPPIDDOOO. Some of you might not agree with me
here but you can spend a week writing a piece that’s over 3500 words long, John
Cena is still the WWE’s biggest draw, am I big fan of Cena’s in ring work, no,
but I understand his appeal to the fan base. John Cena, described as the most polarizing
professional wrestler ever, has a loyal army of fans and haters in bunches, but
I feel that John Cena has to be praised for his in ring work especially over
the last few years. Over the last few years, Cena has put on some great matches
and worked well with wrestlers such as Kevin Owens, Bray Wyatt and has had some
memorable matches including his only 5 star match in 2011 against CM Punk, he
also had a memorable match with AJ Styles at the Royal Rumble.
John Cena known
as “Big Match John” by John Bradshaw Layfield and I like how John adds some
innovative new moves to his bigger matches. I feel like he would be more
beneficial adding a deeper move-set but I feel like ownership is limited him in
order to protect him physically, but I feel that irks the wrestling purists.
John Cena is a great guy, with his work with make a wish and he has recently
been willing to put over younger wrestlers and give them the push that they
needed, but with Kenny Omega becoming the hottest commodity in professional
wrestling over the past couple months, who really is the biggest star.
