10 Best Wrestling Matches Of 2020

1. Kenny Omega & Hangman Page Vs. The Young Bucks - AEW Revolution

Daniel Bryan AJ Styles
AEW

One day, pro wrestling will be a far richer medium, and the Elite will have blazed the trail towards it.

This was a masterclass - the greatest tag team wrestling match ever - fought between the four most intelligent professional wrestlers in the game. Hangman Page, the former high school journalism teacher, operates at a level above all but his partner and his opponents on the night.

In this seminal, life-affirming epic, he used subtextual details to deepen his incredible arc. He used the One-Winged Angel where partner Kenny Omega wouldn't use his Buckshot. Omega did however rage, in the bout's f*ck-yes dopamine rush spot, at the Bucks using the Golden Trigger against him. Omega kicked out at one. This was a fist-pumping moment - until one remembered where his heart was. This was devastating even when it was euphoric: the full spectrum of pro wrestling emotion spanned a single move.

And if you didn't catch that detail, it didn't matter; this pulsating war threaded these story beats together in the main body of the match. Instantly heralded as the best ever entry into the genre, it has aged magnificently. That beat - just one of many electrifying and emotional moments in a match that volleyed your sympathy all over the ring with beautiful, skull-rattling violence - is even more deeply felt now, looking at the subsequent arcs paved by the former Tag Team Champions.

A twisting, compelling and layered saga staggering in its psychological complexity - presented in the medium of a state-of-the-art banger - this was prestige drama.

A genuine advancement of the form.

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Contributor
Contributor

Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!