10 Best Wrestling Matches Of The Week (Aug 7)
The Cruiserweight Classic finally makes an appearance on the list!
After two high quality weeks of professional wrestling, it was inevitable that things would take something of a back step eventually, and that is exactly what happened this week. WWE's main roster in particular took a breather this week, with both RAW and SmackDown reverting back to the tired old formula of short matches with no real implications.
That's not to say everything on the WWE Network was forgettable this week as well, as the Cruiserweight Classic first round came to a close with the finest bout of the competition to date. NXT also gave us a couple of goodies, although the tag match between The Revival and TM-61 was more of a taste of things to come than an instant classic.
The NJPW G1 Climax? Well, even a poor G1 Climax show is going to give you at least one four star match, and this week was no different. The competition is reaching the nitty gritty now and the injuries are starting to show, but the quality is still there. No, Toru Yano still isn't on the list.
Elsewhere, Ring of Honor had a second straight good week of TV, and TNA continued its consistent work of recent times. What matches made my bouts of the week though?
10. ECIII Vs. 'The Miracle' Mike Bennett (TNA Impact Wrestling, 4 August)
This was the final of TNA's Bound for Glory Playoffs, with the winner earning the right to challenge for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship at that very same event. The tournament had been an intriguing one throughout, and many assumed that it would come down to ECIII and Drew Galloway.
When 'The Miracle' Mike Bennett managed to defeat the Scotsman, assumptions changed further, especially when the interactions between the Miracle, Moose, and current TNA Champion Lashley seemed to dominate the broadcast. All in all, this made for an intriguing main event this week on Impact Wrestling.
As it turned out, ECIII picked up the win after a back and forth affair with the One Percenter, which is still the strangest name for a babyface finishing move going. Moose tried to get involved but was stopped by Eddie Edwards, a man who is slowly but surely solidifying himself as a main event performer in TNA.
The finish called back to ECIII's first loss in TNA, only this time the former Derrick Bateman escaped. He picked up the win, and to Bound for Glory he goes. Not on the level of some of TNA's other big matches in recent weeks, but a great little bout nonetheless.