10 Best Wrestling Matches Of 2020
6. Best Friends Vs. Santana & Ortiz - AEW Dynamite, September 10
A genre masterpiece, the Parking Lot Brawl demonstrated the prowess of AEW's booking.
A collaboration between Santana and Tony Khan in the formative planning stages, it began with an inspired means of getting the heat on Proud N' Powerful - why wouldn't you make use of Sue, the improbably popular wholesome side character? - and ended with a visual gag so incredible that Tony Schiavone and Excalibur could only howl in incredulous appreciation.
In stark and beautiful contrast to so many plunder brawls, most every weapon used was germane to the environment. This created a crucial sense of immersion in addition to a vibe of total brutality. Trent took a shoot windshield to the back, shattering the glass; Ortiz went crown-f*cking-first on a bonnet in another deranged spot. In a less dangerous but very tidy beat, Santana grabbed a baton he'd hidden on top of a wheel. What a tremendous and organic twist this was. Again: unlike the accepted artifice of such a match, you can actually picture him hiding it without the accompanying, sub-optimal mental image.
This whole deal was his idea. There's an agent and a booker position in that man's future.
What was so awesome about this war is that it fused the feel of a fight with the electricity of pro wrestling perfectly. The wrestling element never once felt contrived; Trent slipped out of a powerbomb to strike a thrilling, minor note of athleticism, Santana splashed a Chuck Taylor in bravura form from one car to another because he's great in the air and it would have really hurt.
Orange Cassidy looked like the hardest and coolest wrestler on earth in his cameo appearance, and after an horrific bump told the perfect ending, Sue cracked a phenomenal post-credits gag by flipping off the beaten heels.
An instantly iconic shot to close a wild, gruesome, and über-committed brawl, this ruled.