10 Wrestlers With The Most Five Star Matches
4. Manami Toyota - 17
Dave Meltzer often puts Manami Toyota over as the greatest women's wrestler of all time, citing her elite athleticism and excellent charisma as deciding factors. While Akira Hokuto may take umbrage with this, it's hard to argue that Toyota doesn't deserve to be in the conversation, particularly when looking at her body of work.
Though Toyota is often quoted as having 13 five-star matches throughout her career, this is erroneous. Her true number stands at 17, starting with a 1991 tag match against Aja Kong and Bison Kimura, and concluding with her September 1995 singles bout with Hokuto. There are two Wrestling Observer Match of the Year winners mixed in there, and in 2002, Toyota entered the publication's Hall of Fame - two years after Akira's induction.
Like most Japanese wrestlers, the bulk of Toyota's ***** ratings came through tag action, but she has plenty of outstanding singles bouts too, the most memorable of which is her November 1994 David vs. Goliath clash with Aja Kong. A 17-minute masterpiece, it shows Toyota at the height of her powers as a world class babyface in peril, primarily thanks to her expert selling of the monstrous Kong's onslaught.