10 Match Star Ratings For AEW All Out 2023

5. Bryan Danielson Vs. Ricky Starks - Strap Match

Ricky Starks Star Ratings
AEW

There's an elusive moment in the best and most rare professional wrestling matches.

Consumed by bloodlust, disbelief suspended indefinitely, you stop thinking. You become early man, synapses firing by the spectacle of violence. You turn into this fellow right here:

Just Bleed Guy
UFC/Endeavor

When Bryan Danielson and Ricky Starks pelted one another full force in the side of the head with a leather strap, a state of wrestling nirvana was reached. They'd built the moment brilliantly.

After a snug, strategic match, in which Starks had levelled up to his genius of an opponent, Danielson with his expert body language seemed to send him a message. Come on. Can you hang?

And then the exchange happened, the wincing height of physicality and, somehow, since the match was hurriedly built the day before, bone-deep emotion. That instantly iconic moment felt like the culmination of a deeply personal grudge rivalry, and yet it didn't feel forced.

Even when they exchanged scintillating back-and-forth sequences - that spear counter to the Busaiku knee, yes! - it didn't feel too flashy for its own good. This was a harrowing experience and, if it isn't the making of Ricky Starks, promotional malpractice.

Starks was asked to sink or swim by CM Punk when Collision was launching, and it turns out Punk has in fact left something of a positive legacy in AEW.

Star Rating: ★★★★¾

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!